State to license journalists? ~ By Joseph Farah

Joseph Farah asks, "How do we rediscover the America where the Constitution is the very basis of our law and it is considered immoral and illegal to subvert it?"

A Michigan State Representative, Bruce Patterson, wants to license journalists. Not only is it an obvious violation of the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States, Rep. Patterson is a Republican. How could this guy even come up with such a lame idea, anyway? A Republican? How dumb is this guy, anyway? Just sayin'...

Competition on an even playing field solves many problems. Government regulation generally makes problems worse. You would think a Republican legislator in one of America's most over-regulated and economically depressed states would have some understanding of principles like that.

But not in this parallel universe.

How do I break through to the other side?

By Joseph Farah

Posted: June 07, 2010 ~ 1:00 am Eastern

© 2010

I swear sometimes I live in a parallel universe – like the characters from "Fringe."

In another existence somewhere, there's an America that still makes sense – that comprehends the principles that made this country great and special.

That's what I think when I read stories like the one about Michigan considering a law to license journalists.

Is this Iran? Is this Cuba? Is this Venezuela or China? Or is this the United States of America where the principle of a free press was first established as an inalienable God-given right?

Maybe you missed the latest.

A Michigan state senator is introducing legislation that will regulate reporters much like the state currently does with hairdressers, mechanics and plumbers.

His name is Bruce Patterson, and he is a Republican.

Why would Patterson want to trifle with the U.S. Constitution's guarantees of a free press?

To ensure reporters are "credible" and to determine that they are of "good moral character." Presumably that would mean, among other things, that they respect and adhere to the Constitution of the United States?

How about looking in the mirror, fella?

Paterson is troubled because the general public is being overwhelmed by an increasing number of media outlets – traditional, online and citizen-generated. In other words, there's too much competition out there.

I guess it hasn't occurred to this busybody that citizens are far more overwhelmed with government intrusion into every aspect of their lives – thousands of laws being churned out faster than anyone can even read them. That is not a threat to liberty, I guess.

According to the bill, reporters must provide the licensing board proof of:

• "Good moral character" and demonstrate they have industry "ethics standards acceptable to the board."

• Possession of a degree in journalism or other degree substantially equivalent.

• Not less than 3 years experience as a reporter or any other relevant background information.

• Awards or recognition related to being a reporter.

• Three or more writing samples.

Reporters would also have to pay an application and registration fee.

Though the bill, in its current state, would not prevent reporters who are not licensed by the state from covering Michigan politics, regulatory legislation often begins as "voluntary" before morphing into mandatory.

Now I doubt this bill is going anywhere. However, it shows the mindset of just how authoritarian and anti-constitutional many elected officials truly are – Democrats and Republicans.

They simply have no respect or reverence for the unique system of self-governance our founders envisioned and bequeathed to us.

How do we know if someone is a legitimate reporter? We judge them by their work.

There are plenty of illegitimate journalists practicing at some of the biggest news organizations in America today. They would have no problem passing Patterson's little test. But it hardly means they are of good moral character.

By the way, how does one prove good moral character in the state of Michigan?

READ FULL STORY at WorldNetDaily.com

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Lou Dobbs, real newsman ~ By Joseph Farah

From WorldNetDaily

By Joseph Farah Posted: November 13, 2009 ~ 1:00 am Eastern © 2009 The departure of Lou Dobbs from CNN after 30 years leaves the network in a state of programming irrelevancy. For years there has been just one reason to tune in to CNN. His name was Lou Dobbs. What makes Lou Dobbs so special is his independence and fearlessness. Dobbs clearly set his own agenda. He had no interest in the "conventional wisdom" of his industry. Dobbs thinks like a real American newsman – a throwback to an age when journalists actually believed they were watchdogs of government and asked tough questions in the interests of the people. When virtually his entire profession and elites in all the other political and cultural institutions of our time were making excuses for allowing tens of millions of illegal aliens to occupy our country, Lou Dobbs was alone in his focus on the issue critical to America's safety and security. When virtually his entire profession and elites in all the other political and cultural institutions of our time were making excuses for Barack Obama's unwillingness to prove his constitutional eligibility to serve in the White House by simply showing the American people his long-form birth certificate, Lou Dobbs was alone in asking why. Even this week, when virtually his entire profession and elites in all the other political and cultural institutions of our time were in denial that what happened at Fort Hood was a completely avoidable terrorist attack if only political correctness didn't rule the day, Lou Dobbs was alone in stating the obvious. Someone this good will be picked up soon by another network or news organization, right? Sadly, I'm not so sure. Let me be the first to say I would be proud to work with Lou Dobbs. He's got his pick of assignments here at WND. I would be honored to work for him – and it's been a long time since I worked for anyone. [CLICK HERE TO READ MORE]

What Do You Do With Writer's Block and Idea Gridlock?

By Lewis Green Scream. Pray. Read. Reach out to others. Drink. Take a nap. Drive. Take time off. Run. Physical labor. I have tried each of those among a variety of other techniques. They each work sometimes and the results vary. But here's the story that works best for me. I started writing professionally at age 16, when I got a stringer job covering my high school's varsity sports. What was weird was that I played varsity football and basketball and was the co-captain of the varsity baseball team. So my first job presented challenges--how do I cover something in which I am a participant and still be objective? Well, you can't really, and that was a good lesson learned. Therefore, I focused on the facts and weaved those facts into a first-person account in which I saw the games played from outside myself. [Continue reading]

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