The liberal media love to talk about "victims," particularly victims of alleged economic or social oppression, such as illegal immigrants, children without enough Head Start funding, the homeless, the transgendered, detainees at Gitmo, and so on. But when it comes to victims of left-wing ideology--i.e., Communism--the liberal media don't say too much. And this is evident in the minimal (in my view) coverage given to the dedication of the Memorial to the Victims of Communism in Washington, D.C. on June 12, an event where President Bush spoke and where some of the world's leading experts on communism's atrocities--more than 100 million victims--spoke as well.
From yesterday's dedication of the memorial, there has been some print coverage, yet most of the stories have been buried inside the papers. For instance, Los Angeles Times, p. 15; Chicago Tribune, p. 3; Miami Herald, p. 17; and the Washington Post (registration required) placed the story in its Style section but did run a page 1 story in its free "express" newspaper, distributed around D.C. Good for The Post. But, so far, I have not seen any network news coverage and only one mention on MSNBC in a Financial Times article on the MSNBC Web site. You'd think a memorial dedication to the 100 million victims of the greatest evil in modern times would get a little more attention from the dominant liberal media---but perhaps the "victim" Paris Hilton is more important to them.
Marxism-Leninism (communism) dominated the 20th century, sparked the Cold War, and through political terror and government-made famines and communist labor camps killed more than 100 million people. Lenin and Stalin instituted a system that killed at least 25 million people; Mao Tse-Tung and China, 60 million victims; Pol Pot in Cambodia, 2 million victims; North Korea, 2 million victims; Ethiopia, 725,000; Vietnam, 1.8 million. The list goes on.
Editor's Note: Photo via Google image search, obtained from this Web site.
Editor's Note #2 (June 28): Related June 28 NewsBusters post by Warner Todd Huston here.
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Comments Policy
That's the 'old' communism. M
June 13, 2007 - 11:55 ET by Mica the MagnificentThat's the 'old' communism. Murders, oppression - c'mon! The 'new' communism is warm and fuzzy. It's about the environment and global warming, and the Fairness Doctrine (who's not for fairness?) and the redistribution of wealth.
Murders? Oppression? That's so 6 revolutions ago!
But when it comes to victim
June 13, 2007 - 15:08 ET by general companyBut when it comes to victims of left-wing ideology--i.e., Communism--the liberal media don't say too much.
When you are trying to accomplish Communism why would you focus on the negative?...waits patiently for the in
June 13, 2007 - 11:58 ET by Roger the Shrubber...waits patiently for the inevitable "Well George Bush killed 650,000 innocent Iraqis!" post...
yep -- saw that one Shrubb.
June 13, 2007 - 12:02 ET by Jack Baueryep -- saw that one Shrubb. We are dealing with mental deficients. I have no idea how people get that thick.
You have to read some of th
June 13, 2007 - 12:01 ET by Jack BauerYou have to read some of the deranged WashPoo reader comments on that article.
Seriously the leftoid moonbats are frackin' INSANE. And quite possibly just evil. I'm not kidding, check them out.
I just read some
June 13, 2007 - 16:52 ET by E4PukeI just read some of them and you owe me. it was like reading writing that is on the bathroom wall in poo.
The one man who stood up to t
June 13, 2007 - 12:06 ET by mattmThe one man who stood up to these murderers was Ronald Reagan...which is why the Left hates him so much.
But, come on! We all know the
June 13, 2007 - 12:08 ET by Sorceress17But, come on! We all know the only reason communism hasn't worked so far is because we haven't done it here!
communism here
June 13, 2007 - 12:17 ET by ParkerzThat's right, it just hasn't been done correctly ... yet.
As they say at ProtestWarrior.com:
Communism has only killed 100 million people. Let's give it another chance!
We have done it here. It's
June 13, 2007 - 12:26 ET by mattmWe have done it here. It's called Social Security, the Public School System, Medicare, HMO's etc.
And we all know what successes those things are! ; >)
Communism is possible only wh
June 13, 2007 - 12:30 ET by EdhenryCommunism is possible only when government gets big enough to control our lives.
It is creeping up on us in the US. First it is retirement (SS + Medicare) then all of healthcare gets grabbed by Kennedy/Obama/Clinton. Then tax relief for the growth of the US will be repealed. Government grows until government employees outnumber the private sector; and they vote their own largess and power.
Government then gets too big. Its inherent inefficiencies shrink the economy. Inevitably an evil person gets elected and she uses the force of government to her selfish desires and destroys people/economy/family.
Then a necessary revolution and upheaval for a generation or two, if we are lucky, to reduce govenrment and get back to where our founding fathers put us in first place.
The MSM is not smart enough (do not confuse educated with smart) to understand how thier weak, co-dependent, liberal behavior is making the country weaker and the future less bright.
do not forget the role of the ACLU
June 13, 2007 - 12:33 ET by LionKing*** WARNING ***
Do not forget the ACLU? They are on mission for communism.
Ed...Hope I'm not the only
June 13, 2007 - 13:18 ET by Tim the EnchanterEd...
Hope I'm not the only one that noticed your use of the feminine pronoun in your paragraph #3. Let's see.. to whom could that be referring?
LionKing & TimACLU is not
June 13, 2007 - 13:48 ET by EdhenryLionKing & Tim
ACLU is not on a mission. Their start/genisis/seminal was/is the communist party.
Mistake in use of "She"? Must be a typo......twice.
No, it just hasn't been impl
June 13, 2007 - 15:36 ET by Prester JohnNo, it just hasn't been implemented properly, that's all.
I believe it was Lenin who
June 13, 2007 - 12:30 ET by dabalI believe it was Lenin who said "One death is a tragedy. A million deaths is merely a statistic."
Sick f***ks.
I reasonable sure it was Unc
June 13, 2007 - 16:44 ET by Prester JohnOops
I am reasonably sure it was
June 13, 2007 - 16:45 ET by Prester JohnI am reasonably sure it was Uncle Joe Stalin who said that.
I beg to differ
June 13, 2007 - 12:42 ET by Lame CherryI beg to differ respectfully for the dead as Stalin murdered around 40 million Ukraine people with some people suggesting 60 million Ukraines starved to death.
With Mao's "camps of education" and his idiot "kill the sparrows campaign" which caused a pestilence as the birds were not there to eat the bugs, Mao is thought to have murdered 100 million himself. Tales come out of China still of people eating each other.
Add to the list the Islamocommunists which are Saddam and Khomeini, the ever cuddly Fidel and the butcher of Africa from Mugabe to Mandella in South Africa, the world is talking closer to a quarter of a billion dead from communism.
The left's socialist Hitler as they brand people like Pat Buchanan a "nazi" (Mario Cuomo on CBS Face the Nation), was a piker compared to what the communist globalists have done.
*HIC IACET ARTORIVS REX QVONDAM REXQVE FVTVRVS
Lame Cherry,Welcome to NB.Exc
June 13, 2007 - 12:58 ET by Dave RLame Cherry,
Welcome to NB.
Excellent post. I know there have been a mere handfull out there recently who have been working diligently to obtain a more accurate number of Stalin's & Mao's victims. Glad to see there are some others who have taken note of that.
Build the damn fence, George!
Dear Commenters, I went wit
June 13, 2007 - 16:03 ET by Michael ChapmanDear Commenters, I went with the more conservative estimates on the number of communism's victims because few, if any, historians will dispute them. But you are correct in that the actual numbers are likely higher, or much higher in some cases. And it's true we will likely never know the total number of victims because there are so many mass graves, many of which are still being discovered in Moscow and across Russia, Eastern Europe and the Ukraine, and so many other places. The atrocities in the Ukraine were so terrible. An excellent book is Robert Conquest's "Harvest of Sorrow." Things got so bad in parts of the Ukraine because of the government-induced famine that people were eating other people and killing children for food. Even Communist officials got somewhat alarmed by the cannibalism and posted signs, according to Conquest, warning people not to eat dead bodies, etc. It was terrible. I wish someone would bankroll a movie (several movies) to help bring the truth of the communist crimes to larger audiences.
What I just absolutely can't
June 13, 2007 - 12:49 ET by BeowulfWhat I just absolutely can't figure is why the media are actively cooperating with the lefties? Are they so incredibly stupid as to believe that if their envisioned "paradise" were to happen, they wouldn't either be out of a job or dead?
The first and most important thing to a socialist government is total control of the media. Did the USSR have a free press? Does China? North Korea? Cuba? (soon) Venezuela? The best way to control a population is to control their sources of information (and oh, BTW, take away their guns).
These talking-head morons are coniving at their own destruction...
The Closed Mind Erects Strong Barriers
The MSM cant think that far a
June 13, 2007 - 12:55 ET by bassndudeThe MSM cant think that far ahead. They are complicit in a socialist conspiracy, and are not smart enough to realize that if they are successful, they will be the first heads on the chopping block. The dumbing down of collage education.
Save a SeAL, club a liberal!!
Eh...in the grand scheme, a
June 13, 2007 - 13:12 ET by balboaEh...in the grand scheme, a dedication of a memorial to something that didn't occur on our shores, not a big news story.
Right, balboa
June 13, 2007 - 13:22 ET by RJRight, balboa. Good leftist response.
Just because we've been actively fighting communism all these years, why should we pay attention to some silly memorial?
Note to RJ,We haven't fought
June 13, 2007 - 16:13 ET by LeonNote to RJ,
We haven't fought communism in over 20 years. Time to move on.
we fight communism everyday
June 13, 2007 - 16:17 ET by LionKingWe fight communism everyday so long as the ACLU is in existence.
And just ignore the silly memorial, right, Leon?
June 13, 2007 - 16:19 ET by RJWell, it's mostly evolved to socialism, Leon, but the same beliefs and forces are still being fought, even here in America....not that I expect you to admit it....
In any event, we should just ignore the silly memorial like bal said, right?
No I'm not saying that at all
June 13, 2007 - 16:22 ET by LeonNo I'm not saying that at all. I have no problem with the memorial, but I tend to lean towards balboa in terms of its news worthiness.
This is an example of the Newsbusters stretching a bit to find liberal bias in my opinion.
I have a real problem with this unfounded association you guys tend to make between liberals and communists. It's disingenuous entirely. I'm a liberal but I have a job. While I support social welfare programs to some extent, I am not even close to a communist and it ticks me off when people make this ridiculous claim. Liberals are not communists. They do not support communists. Communism is not in any way a threat to America. Americans love making money. Period. We don't have to worry about communism. It would never happen and any Americans that are communists are unrealistic morons.
Communism isn't cool anymore, Leon
June 13, 2007 - 16:34 ET by RJYou seem a little tetchy on the subject, Leon. You don't often see or hear leftists being accused of communism these days. Communism isn't cool anymore....the new cool for leftists is socialism.
However, considering the massive numbers sacrificed to communism, for our media to ignore the memorial does show bias. After all, aren't leftists always complaining that America doesn't pay enough attention to world events? Seems this would be an easy call for news rooms.
RJ,Yes people do complain tha
June 13, 2007 - 16:38 ET by LeonRJ,
Yes people do complain that the media doesn't pay enough attention to world events, but I don't think the opening of a memorial in another country for citizens of that other country should be classified as 'an event'.
I just don't think it's that big of a deal. Monuments open all over the world all the time. So what?
Now, if they were ignoring the 9/11 memorial or the oklahoma city bombing memorial or the operation iraqi freedom memorial, than it would be a different story.
Like I said to balboa, Leon
June 13, 2007 - 16:46 ET by RJLike I said to balboa, Leon, communism was a global thing. In many ways it was the major driving force behind much that went on in the world for many years, and affected virtually everyone. That makes the memorial not just "another opening."
I disagree. If socialism we
June 13, 2007 - 16:42 ET by sarcasmoI disagree. If socialism were really all that 'cool' instead of just another failed philosophy, how come people feel the need to call socialist education "public schooling," and how come the news media yearn to call socialist medicine "single payer"? Peeling off the creative labels, it's all just bigger government IMO.
JMR
You're right, sarky
June 13, 2007 - 16:49 ET by RJYou're right, sarky. I was being a little....ahem.....sarcastic....and a lot tongue-in-cheek. Of course they don't admit that their programs are actually socialism with fancy names.
Liberals, for the most part,
June 13, 2007 - 19:18 ET by Roger the ShrubberLiberals, for the most part, are socialist. Communist-light.
Leon, please show us a thread where you were 100% BEHIND Newsbuster's work. I am sure those threads are few and far between.
I didn't say we shouldn't p
June 13, 2007 - 16:27 ET by balboaI didn't say we shouldn't pay attention to it, I'm just explaining why it might not receive priority on a network newscast.
Classic liberal "history started with my birth", balboa
June 13, 2007 - 16:38 ET by RJThat's classic liberal "history started with my birth" thinking, balboa. Communism WAS a big deal for the entire globe, especially including America.
I know communism was a big
June 13, 2007 - 17:11 ET by balboaI know communism was a big deal. Bush at an unveiling of a memorial to the struggle against communism, not so much.
That's contradictory
June 13, 2007 - 17:15 ET by RJThat's contradictory....
No it's not. We're talking ab
June 13, 2007 - 17:22 ET by balboaNo it's not. We're talking about the struggle against communism, yes, it was a long hard-fought battle by the U.S., and thankfully we didn't have an all-out war against the USSR, but many lives were lost across the globe. That's big.
News coverage of Bush at the dedication of a memorial to that struggle is just not a real important news happening, IMO. Sure, it's newsworthy, absolutely. But it's not the be-all, end-all of this news cycle.
Ok, bal. You just refuse to see the contradiction
June 13, 2007 - 17:26 ET by RJOk, bal. You just refuse to see the contradiction. If you really believed the first part of your post, you wouldn't add the second.
Totally untrue. Just becaus
June 13, 2007 - 17:30 ET by balboaTotally untrue. Just because the struggle against communism was large in scope, that doesn't mean that every event in conjunction with that struggle is also large in scope.
The struggle against Communis
June 13, 2007 - 17:35 ET by Clear thinkerThe struggle against Communism is alive and well. Just read the "45 Communist Goals for America" and you will understand. Items 15 thru 45 are the most significant.
Prove you can secure our borders first. The only legislation that counts!
Awww, do I have to? Can't I
June 13, 2007 - 17:36 ET by balboaAwww, do I have to? Can't I just take your word for it?
No you don't have to read it.
June 13, 2007 - 17:39 ET by Clear thinkerNo you don't have to read it. I can accept it if you prefer to stay uninformed.
Prove you can secure our borders first. The only legislation that counts!
I'm counting on you guys to
June 13, 2007 - 17:43 ET by balboaI'm counting on you guys to protect America from the Red Menace.
Ok, we will protect America f
June 13, 2007 - 17:52 ET by Clear thinkerOk, we will protect America from the red mennace for no other reason than to spite you.
Prove you can secure our borders first. The only legislation that counts!
Not on our shores
June 13, 2007 - 16:10 ET by EllisWyattHmm ... so, by your logic, the Vietnam War didn't happen on our shores, so the dedication of the Vietnam War Memorial should not have been a big news story either.
If you're not outraged at the media, you haven't been paying attention.
Those deaths, by extension,
June 13, 2007 - 16:28 ET by balboaThose deaths, by extension, occurred here. We were directly involved in the conflict.
Uh, let's not forget the obvi
June 13, 2007 - 16:36 ET by LeonUh, let's not forget the obvious. Those dead were AMERICAN
Didn't thousands of Americans
June 13, 2007 - 19:14 ET by Roger the ShrubberDidn't thousands of Americans die in Korea and Vietnam?
Sounds like involvement to me.
I guess that wasn't obvious enough?
In 1939, Hitler and Stalin in
June 13, 2007 - 16:39 ET by Michael ChapmanIn 1939, Hitler and Stalin invaded Poland, which compelled England to enter the war. More than 1.5 million Poles were marched off to the Gulag (they were among communism's victims). Because England entered the war and was getting its clock cleaned by the Nazis, the USA tried everything it could to assist England with material and some military aid. Then came Pearl Harbor. The Communists and the National Socialists started World War II (in 1939) and more than 55 million people died by the time the war ended. In between, millions of East Europenas were shipped off to the Gulag and then hundreds of thousands more were shipped off under "Operation Keelhaul." The U.S., Britain, and USSR all directly involved. On a related note, Prof. Richard Pipes documents in his book, Communism, that Stalin ordered the German Communist Party NOT to vote with the Social Democrats against the Nazis (National Socialists) in 1933 and that ensured the Nazi win and Hitler's rise as chancellor of Germany and finally dictator. The Communists, again, directly involved in helping to foment politcial tension and eventually military action and war----a war that eventually took some 450,000 American lives. Then came the Cold War.
I've seen the effects of Sovi
June 13, 2007 - 13:33 ET by BeanManI've seen the effects of Soviet communism first hand.
The first time was in East Berlin in 1979. I saw the street where they broke into homes, bricked up the front windows and pushed the people out the back door into the east. You could still see the curtians still in the window.
I've been to far distant places in Russia where 70 years of Communism ruined the ability of the people to believe they could make it on their own and now they stand on the street with their hands out, not saying anything, not doing anything but showing to the world that they are unwilling to do anything to take care of themselves except to beg.
I've seen the unpaved roads in such poor shape that when it rains they turn into quickmud and cars can sink up to their windows. Cranes have to pull them out.
The young are the only hope Russia has now since they have no remembrance of the yoke that the others were under. Maybe one day they will throw off the burden of socialism too.
Communism and its evil brother Socialism have always been forced upon societies. When people are left to themselves, Capitalism and free markets will happen naturally.
American Civil Liberties Unio
June 13, 2007 - 14:51 ET by rbosqueAmerican Civil Liberties Union's (ACLU) Communist Agenda:
"I am for socialism, disarmament, and ultimately for abolishing the State itself
as an instrument of violence and compulsion.
I seek the social ownership of property, the abolition of the propertied class,
and sole control of those who produce wealth. Communism is the goal."
~ Roger Baldwin, founder of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU),
quoted in the National Federation for Decency Journal, September 1988, page 9.
And of course, with Roger B
June 13, 2007 - 15:13 ET by lnthompAnd of course, with Roger Baldwin and Hilary Clinton in charge, it will work, even though it has never worked anywhere with anyone else in charge ever before. </sarc>
Lee T.
U.S. Navy (ret.) / Vancouver, Washington
The history of the race, and each individual's experience, are thick with evidence that a truth is not hard to kill and that a lie told well is immortal.-- Mark Twain
thanks for the reference
June 13, 2007 - 15:16 ET by LionKingthanks for the reference...as if there was any doubt about the goal of the ACLU.
A million here, ten million t
June 13, 2007 - 15:37 ET by Prester JohnA million here, ten million there, just the cost of creating utopia.
Minimal Liberal Media Cover
June 14, 2007 - 09:22 ET by Sergeant ROCKMinimal Liberal Media Coverage? Guilty conscience perhaps...