A Left Turn FOR CLARK

It’s time to kick it up a notch in the fight to inject sanity into United States policy toward Iran. Too many anti-war activists are acting complacent about this one, and I’m not sure why. I hope it’s not because we already have our own hands full opposing Bush on Iraq, because if that’s the case we are far weaker than I want to imagine. I simply refuse to believe that we can’t walk and chew gum at the same time because… well just because.

And it would be just as disturbing to think that there still may be peace advocates who underestimate the capacity of this Administration to shout loudly AND swing a big stick, no matter how unpopular the war in Iraq is or how overextended our military might now be. We are “led” by a government that needs enemies as a rational to rule, and either by accident or design an attitude like that eventually leads to armed conflict. That attitude already torpedoed a historic chance for peace with Iran, as well as progress on a host of issues affecting the Middle East, back in May of 2003, according to this recently published column by Nicholas D. Kristof:

America’s omnipresent attention deficit disorder is again on an annual collision course with the lazy hazy crazy days of summer. With more temptations calling our attention than sun drenched hours fill a day; few among us have the patience to sit still for 3 long months of Reruns. Catering to our need for novelty, TV moguls years back bit the bullet and introduced TV’s “Second Season”, alive with new characters, new plot lines; and compelling new reasons to tune in for an enhanced summer lineup.

So what’s in store for 2007? Some new Presidential candidates for us to follow, of course. In an era where networks fail to distinguish between their news and entertainment divisions, politics becomes another genre of “Reality TV”. “The Race for the White House” may be a popular hit, but its cast of characters hasn’t changed in six months. That’s far too long without new blood. There is a real risk of the ratings falling well before the scheduled Fall roll out of “Rounding the Final Corner.”

I write the above as a parody of sorts but the truth is too close for comfort. Media buzz can make or break a political candidate, and the media craves new personalities to promote, as well as classic conflicts to exploit. And so too does the public, which burns through new Reality TV shows like there’s no tomorrow. Even the most popular stand bys depend on new wrinkles to stay topical. As political reporting edges closer to center stage with the first 2008 primaries little more than six months off, those dueling political love triangles that the media has obsessed over continually are starting to lose their luster. Look, it’s still Rudy, John and Mitt mixing it up in the right corner, while yonder over left Hillary, John and Obama are still going at it. Is that all there is? Is that all there will be for six more months? Somehow I doubt it.