I have heard people say that "I'm fine. I don't know what is wrong with these Occupy Wall Streeters" and I am appalled that these folks don't listen to themselves.
The root cause of much of our problems is that there no longer a sense of community. We no longer read the same newspapers (or news sites) and we have so many choices of media that there are very few shared experiences anymore, and sharing is the very essence of community.
For many years, the FCC's Fairness Doctorine helped give us conflicting viewpoints so that we may make better decisions. Now, we have Fox New and Rush Limbaugh putting out incorrect information as news trusting people to find conflicting opinions themselves, which obviously is not working.
Republicans and Libertarians are all for the government providing a free-for-all in news, the latter simply saying that the government has no business ensuring fairness. I disagree. If we do not offer clear choices, how does one know there IS a choice? As a community and a society, do we not have the responsibility to provide all sides of an argument so that people can come to an educated opinion? Can you have an educated opinion if you only get your news from a single, biased source?
The First Amendment states that, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances". Nowhere in there does it say that Congress shall pass no law to help provide the truth. Last I heard, providing different points of view is not "abridging" anything or preventing anyone from exercising their free speech. If the government must "provide for the general welfare", what better way than to promote the dissemination of ideas?
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