David Shuster: MSNBC Boss refuses Fans' Petition

The movement to silence David Shuster by MSNBC's temperamental boss, Phil Griffin, is apparently still very much alive and well. Griffin has gone out of his way to avoid dealing with this issue, and in a last-ditch attempt to save MSNBC's failing daytime ratings, has been frantically hiring and scheduling a series of forgettable daytime News Anchors, in an effort to get a substitute for David Shuster on the airwaves who MSNBC's viewers will accept, and are willing to watch.

So far, that's not happening, judging by the steady stream of new faces you can see almost daily on MSNBC's airwaves. Seems that David Shuster's shoes are mighty hard to fill.

What IS happening, however, is that MSNBC daytime ratings are failing, further evidence that Griffin was horribly wrong in his rash and abrupt decision to remove Shuster from the roster.

It doesn't look promising that Griffin will ever eat some crow, or that Shuster will ever grace MSNBC's airwaves again, judging by the news that has surfaced today, showing Griffin to be a vindictive and childish boss.

First a quick bit of background information:

In early April, David Shuster was abruptly removed from his duties as daytime MSNBC anchor, apparently for "hurting Phil Griffin's feelings". The eruption was precipitated when, without Griffin's knowledge, Shuster filmed a pilot for CNN, which never aired. This was not a breach of Shuster's contract, and, in fact, was actually understandable (considering the raw deal and disrespect with which MSNBC had always treated Shuster - he is a thorough and committed journalist and was severely overqualified to be reduced to reading the headlines during the afternoons with the female anchors).

CNN was actually responsible for inexplicably leaking the news about the pilot, and when Griffin found out, he totally lost his cool, and demanded Shuster be removed from the MSNBC airwaves immediately, and indefinitely.

As soon as Shuster's loyal fans were apprised of the situation, a petition was created, to Bring Back David Shuster. Fans were encouraged to leave comments (850 so far, and counting), which were all reviewed and edited, and the best submissions were selected to be included in a Certified Letter that was sent to Griffin, as well as a few other key players in the drama…(Note: MSNBC is about to be sold to Comcast, any day, and Griffin's job, itself, might be in jeopardy)…The other recipients were Jeffery Zucker, and Steve Capus of NBC Universal, Jon Klein of CNN, and Brian Roberts of Comcast.

The only executive that has accepted the letter so far is Klein of CNN. Today, the folks who originally sent the letters (and, btw, are also responsible for the hilarious web site "Punish David Shuster with his Own Show") received one of the packets back, stamped "Refused" - the one that was the most important, the one that was sent to Phil Griffin.

Phil Griffin "refused" to accept this communication, from a large group of very upset MSNBC viewers. This, once again, shows Griffin's incompetence, and inability to face problems squarely, and deal with them in a rational, mature way. It also illustrates Griffins supreme arrogance, in putting his own personal vendetta against Shuster (see previous articles) above the needs of his boss, and their network. This continued blackballing of Shuster can't possibly be good for business. To read the comments on the Petition to Bring Shuster back, it seems like viewers are jumping ship at an alarming rate. A network needs viewers if it wants to sell advertising, and from all accounts, MSNBC's numbers are dwindling.

Shuster's loyal fans remain puzzled and deflated by this latest occurrence, of Griffin refusing their heartfelt letter and comments. What more can they do, that they haven't already done? To date, they've stopped watching MSNBC, sent numerous emails to news media sites, bloggers, and execs at MSNBC, CNN, & Comcast, sent snail mail letters with 12 pages of testimonials from loyal, disgruntled fans, signed an online petition and spread the news through Twitter & Facebook of Shuster's unfair suspension.

When a news media executive takes none of their loyal fans into account, and remains taciturn and unwilling to back down from a ridiculous stance, we end up with an untenable situation such as this one.

MSNBC's premier daytime anchor, who was keeping the viewers engaged during the afternoons has been removed, and replaced by a series of weaker, incompetent, uninteresting, boring anchors, and MSNBC, as well as Shuster's loyal fans are all suffering.

Apparently, Griffin is not big enough to say "mea culpa", or even to accept a Certified Letter with a Petition from Shuster's loyal fans, which contained nothing more than a plea for Griffin to allow Shuster back on the air, so that he could bring his insight into today's current bombshell set of news stories, and thus help MSNBC gain back some much-needed ratings. The packet held nothing more than an assertion of how deeply a large number of Shuster's fans feel about him.

It's been almost two months now, and so far, Shuster has not re-surfaced, nor has his vanishing act been so much as mentioned or addressed by any of the on-air hosts at MSNBC. It is almost like he never existed. Only Joe Scarborough has had the guts to even give Shuster a shout-out, and that was not on air, but at an after-party the night of the WH Correspondents Dinner.

Seems that MSNBC has decided to pretend that David Shuster never existed, and they honestly thought that none of his fans would notice. That has certainly not been the case. His loyal fans are not willing to just let Griffin win, and so they keep on sending Press Releases and doing all that they can to keep this story alive, and hopefully get their hero back on the air.

At this point, it's a travesty…there are probably a greater number of people who have been following this story who feel that Griffin, not Shuster, is the one who deserves to be let go.

Petition to Bring Back David Shuster
Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Page
"TOP TEN THINGS David Shuster Can Do…Poll."
Photos from the Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Group
Letter sent out to Media Executives along with 12 pages worth of
Select Comments left by disgruntled MSNBC ex-viewers.

David Shuster: Off the Air, but not Forgotten!!

A loyal group of David Shuster fans have very much noticed his absence of late on the MSNBC airwaves!! In fact, MSNBC's daytime ratings have noticeably taken a nose dive in the past few weeks (the lowest in 11 years), as more and more "Shustie Fans" have jumped ship, and abandoned MSNBC until Shuster is reinstated...or else, they will follow him to wherever he goes next.

So far, there's been The Bring Back David Shuster Petition (which includes a copy of the text of a Letter which was sent out last week to Phil Griffin, Steve Capus and Jeffery Zucker of NBC Universal, along with CNN President Jon Klein and Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, complete with signatures and heartfelt comments by a growing number of concerned, and disgruntled Shuster fans), a tongue-in-cheek Facebook Page, entitled "Punish David Shuster with his Own Show", as well as more and more articles being written about Shuster's unfair suspension. He had not breached his contract, (which is up at the end of the year), so he could only be rashly suspended by MSNBC's (very hurt) Phil Griffin for having filmed a pilot for CNN, which never aired.

Stories are surfacing by bloggers and journalists, including the original NY Observer piece that broke the story, and the follow-up article detailing his suspension a few days later. There was also a Washington Examiner piece about a Shuster-spotting at a company Softball Game, with some questionable "factual information" in it, followed by Shuster's Facebook Response, and a follow-up article in the Examiner, as well as a DailyKos Post in David's defense, by sgary and detailed descriptions of Shuster's situation by DailyKos Bloggers, Bob Amsel and Gary Stewart.

Considering how little quality air-time MSNBC has given to David over the years, and how he has never had his own branded show, he has an extremely loyal following, who are well aware of his journalistic style, the quality of his reporting, and his courageous interviewing technique. This group of David's fans has been coming up with new and creative ideas daily, to impress upon MSNBC how strongly they feel about this issue.

Their latest campaign, in which Shuster's fans were asked to cast their vote, was a Blog Post by Gary Stewart, along with a cheeky poll at the end, entitled:

"TOP TEN THINGS David Shuster Can Do...While Phil Griffin Leaves Him Twisting In The Wind."

Check out the Winning Poll Results here!!

And if you are so-inclined, you can sign the Petition - just click the link!!

Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Page
Sign the Petition (& Leave Your Comment) to Bring Back David Shuster
"TOP TEN THINGS David Shuster Can Do…Poll."
Photos from the Punish David Shuster with His Own Show Facebook Page
Letter sent out to Media Executives along with 12 pages worth of
Select Comments left by unhappy MSNBC ex-viewers.

Dear BP ~ How much will a new ecosystem cost?

Seen on a bumper sticker:

“If we don’t change direction, we’ll end up where we’re headed.”

BP originally said they'd be responsible for all of it...but then they thought they could wiggle out of it by blaming their other two partners in crime, Halliburton & TransOcean...

Then they started changing the language to "we will honor all 'legitimate' claims' filed"...uh-oh, seems like now we've hit a sticky spot. I'm sure the bells went off inside your head when you heard that term, too..."legitimate claims"...so if a fisherman doesn't have completely accurate records of his past years, to compare with the losses he will suffer this year, then does that mean he didn't lose money, and his claim will not be "legitimate"...

I don't think anybody is really picturing where this might lead.

There is no way in hell that BP can possibly "pay back" everyone for all the havoc they've wreaked...can they rebuild the ocean? Can they restore the habitat of the sea animals. Can they bring coral reefs back to life? Can they bring back memories of sandy beaches? Can they bring murdered sea animals back to life? How about all the walks along the beach, and vacations not taken?

If BP is only thinking that they are responsible for the oil coming out of the well, then they are sadly mistaken!

I mean, we expected the run-around that the Big 3 Oil Companies have been giving, but I don't think anybody is focusing on the fact that it is STILL going on....that little stain on the map is growing bigger daily!

Everybody is just a bit ho-hum about the fact that we are not yet out of the trenches for my taste, from the media to the politicians, to the Oil Execs...they are treating it like just "one more news story", and people WAKE UP, I gotta say - this IS THE news story...(of the decade, perhaps) imho. And, we have NO SOLUTION in sight for the current spill!!!

This is certainly NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL!!! Every single scientist, oceanographer, inventor, deep thinker, genius, nerd & dork should be focusing on solving this MASSIVE problem for our whole country, and maybe even the entire world!!

I mean, if tires and golf balls are actually being floated as a solution, they'll take anything, any solution, any suggestion...right? I've heard they are asking the public, if ANYONE has any ideas, please submit them... Geesh!!

I never thought I'd say this but: BRING OUT THE NATIONAL GUARD!! (or something...we need HELP)!!

: (


“Look back over the past, with its changing empires that rose & fell, & you can foresee the future, too.” ~ Marcus Aurelius

*Note: I morphed the title for this post from a Facebook comment I saw today, that said something similar...not sure who said it...Please contact me, so I can credit you!!

FIX MEXICO, & LEGALIZE = FIX U.S. IMMIGRATION WOES

Nobody in Congress wants to touch Immigration reform, because either way, the politicians stand to lose votes. Most congress people are concerned more about keeping their jobs, than actually doing the will of the people and serving their constituents. That's why they take money from lobbyists, and sometimes cast nonsensical votes...all in an effort to keep their jobs, with full medical benefits, a salary of roughly $175,000 in perpetuity, and the right to decide their own pay raises...but I digress....

Here's what I think we need to address, that nobody is looking at:

1) MEXICAN IMMIGRATION TO THE U.S. can be fixed if we FIX MEXICO!! Is anyone examining WHY these people can't create their own livelihood in their country of origin? I think it all points to the American Farm Bill, which subsidizes four crops, one of which is corn. We sell our excess corn to Mexico for cheaper than if they buy it from their own farmers. Their markets are flooded with our corn, and Mexican farmers can't make a living because of it.
And they stay here because of greed…the greed of the American employers who want to save money by hiring illegals for dirt cheap and not paying any taxes on that labor, and the greed of the American landlords who will rent tiny homes to groups of anywhere from 4-10 immigrants all living together in tiny quarters.

The whole situation is very sad.

And secondly:
2) What would happen if we made POT LEGAL in the U.S? Wouldn't that kind of put a crimp in their whole smuggling racket?
People died over liquor, during prohibition, too. Didn't they?
It might just be time to legalize it, folks…for our own safety...
After all, hemp was only ever outlawed in the first place because Dupont had just created Nylon, and didn't want Hemp to compete with it, and Dupont had good lobbyists, who pressured congress to do the scare tactics on Marijuana and make it illegal, when really they just wanted to stop Hemp production for rope and twine…
I mean, it's not like Congress really cares about our health - if they did they would eradicate cigarettes, wouldn't they?
...but I digress…that's another Facebook group..ha ha

5 Most Stoned US Cities

Well, I must say, I would have expected more from San Francisco!

Too Taboo for you?

Certain subjects and human functions are considered taboo in today's society, I've noticed - you don't see them in TV shows, movies, advertisements...they don't exist, but we all do them, or we know someone who does...for example: going to the bathroom, smoking pot, menstruating, picking scabs...not acceptable topics for polite conversation, or as part of a TV show or movie...although when you do see one of them in a movie or TV show, it's considered "ground-breaking" (witness - pot-smoking on Entourage, or in the movie "Marty", they showed someone on the toilet - both were NOTICED)...

But the one taboo subject, that nobody wants to even mention, is something near and dear to all of us, and I don't understand why nobody wants to broach this subject, EVER - and that is our own DEATH...nobody wants to talk about this...aren't you the least bit curious to know what OTHER people think is gonna happen to them when they die? I am, and I can't get anybody to discuss it...do they think we'll "jinx it" just by mentioning it?

I also don't understand people who live their whole lives avoiding the issue...I could never get excited about football games in high school....I used to sit on the window ledge of my room, and stare out the window, thinking about the trees, and that I will miss them when I'm dead...and wondering how the cheerleaders and jocks seemed so engaged with their sports...as if they don't know, don't care, or have no knowledge of the fact that none of this matters, in the face of their own mortality...why doesn't anybody want to discuss this...what do YOU think happens when you die? Don't you want to be prepared for it, somehow?

I want to know your opinions, or has the fear gripped you too much to discuss it?

Health Care Passed - Yippee or Oops?

Mandated Health Care may not be right for everyone, is my only fear. If poor people, or self-employed people, or Christian Scientists, or healthy people who can't or don't want to go in for even one doctor visit are now forced to buy health insurance, whether they want to or not, is that fair?

I mistakenly thought one would only be fined if one actually went into an emergency room and that was how and when they might found out about you not being insured, but I just learned today that it's all linked in to the IRS, and they're gonna be hiring tens of thousands of IRS workers to track down the poor people who couldn't afford to buy health insurance and smack 'em with the $2000 fine.

Does anyone else see the madness in this? I mean, maybe you are employed, and your employer takes care of your health insurance, and you've never had to think about it, but there are lots of people who are self-employed, or free-lance, or work in a number of ways that don't fit into the tidy little box, that may have some difficulties with the scope of this new law.

I know there are other great strides in this bill, that should make us happy...when they finally kick in, round 'bout 2014, but it looks like the taxing starts now, and the lion's share of the benefits won't actually hit for a few more years - long after the Democrats have had to engage in the 2010 and 2012 elections.

I also know that for Obama's sake this bill had to pass, and I'm glad for that...but there was a good deal of wheeling and dealing that went on, that left both Democrats and Republicans in a less than favorable light, and all in all, it wasn't pretty to watch the process of our elected politicians trying to beat this bill into law.

Seems like the greatest beneficiaries of the bill will be the Health Insurance and Pharmaceutical companies, but I guess we'll just have to see how it plays out, and where the dust settles.

But I must say, I'm a little wary of turning on tomorrow's news & seeing what the Republicans will pull next.

I usually try to be an optimist, but I am concerned, on a number of levels, as to where this all is heading...

Health Care - I'm confused!

Okay, I've got a lot to say about this, so bear with me...

If the Health Care debate bores you, then this is not the post for you...that said:

I don't know about you, but I'm pretty confused (and somewhat PO'd, too).

We've lost Single Payer, and the Public Option, but somehow we should still pass this inferior bill...because why? Because Obama's presidency is at stake? Because we might lose the majority in Congress? Um...I thought it was about "Change We Could Believe In", you know, the will of the people, transparency in Government, all those good things we were promised...

Don't get me wrong - angry as I am, I still can't quite fully give up on Obama....I mean, Michelle planted an Organic Garden, right?...and...and SOME good legislation has happened, right?...Now, if we can just overlook the whole Gay thing, and now, I just heard today, Don't Ask Don't Tell is gonna have to 'be studied by the Pentagon' for another year!

But if I can ignore all the stuff like that, I still have hope that Obama will come through for us (is that a naive thought at this point?) I mean, he's really smart, maybe he has some secret long-term plan that I can't quite anticipate (am I the only one having these thoughts?) I don't know, I just can't give up on him, I like him...and let's face it, he's still WAY better than McCain would have been, right?

But I digress - back to my thoughts on Health "Reform".

I've heard so many conflicting stories, that I don't know who or what to believe.

I do know this, though - the bill is over 2000 pages long, and the Republicans are complaining that they don't want to do their job (which is to read the entire bill - yup, all the way through to the end)...

I also know that we will be taxed immediately, however the benefits of this bill won't kick in until 2014....good going, Democrats! Have you thought at all about the 2010 and 2012 elections, if people won't see the value of this bill until four years from now, when the Republican have managed to capture all three houses of the legislature back???

Okay, but here's my main question. They are saying that this bill will immediately "get coverage for 30 million Americans"...I have a problem with using those words...

It's more like we are making a law, and banking on the fact that people will obey it, and that 30 million already broke people will voluntarily decide to buy their own insurance. This is very different than the language they are using to describe it, when they call it "getting coverage". That terminology makes it sound as if, somehow, the government is gonna pay your insurance for you...and that just ain't the case.

I sent two letters off to various MSNBC hosts today, and they explain pretty much, how I feel.

I know it isn't politically correct to be against this lame bill, but, sorry, that's just the truth of it. I'm torn, I don't want the bill to fail, and the Republicans to win the White House, and the Senate and the House, but, quite honestly, this bill sucks, sorry.

I'm proud of these letters - I think they bring up a possible future that I haven't heard anyone else picturing. I'd love to hear your opinions on this.

Letter #1 (sent to Contessa Brewer, Dylan Ratigan & Ed Schultz of MSNBC - I tried to send it to David Shuster, but his email bounced back):

Hello again ~

I hope somebody actually reads these emails that I send!

The terminology that the media and the Dems (I'm a liberal, btw) are using to describe all the wondrous benefits that this bill will provide really bothers me. It's not like "30 million people will (actually) be insured" with the new bill. That is a gross mis-statement of the facts. Here's the truth, as I see it:

"30 million really poor people, who can't afford a single doctor's visit, are being FORCED to pull money from somewhere else in their lives, to pay monthly insurance premiums to companies that don't really need the money, for services they won't provide, to protect rich people from having to cover emergency room visits by the poor."

We had 60 votes, but couldn't pass a decent bill....now we have 59, making it even harder, and this bill does VERY LITTLE for the people who really need it, so why bother to go to all this effort just to appease the insurance and pharmaceutical industry, while pretending to help the poor?

How many less people will actually "die" because they now have health care? Do you really think the poor are somehow going to be miraculously able to afford Health Care tomorrow, when they couldn't afford it today or yesterday? Where is this money expected to come from?

I'll tell you what I think is going to happen - lots of people are still not going to be able to afford Health Care, won't get it, and then, when they do need to go for that Emergency Room visit, just won't, because they can't afford the $2000 fine, so they'll just die at home, instead. Great.

Or do you have some other way that you see it going down? The poor people STILL won't be able to afford Health Insurance. Just because rich congress people pass a bill - that won't increase the income of the poor and make them able, suddenly, to take on another (huge) expense each month, just 'cause it's now a law!

It's a great bill for the Insurance Companies, and our elected officials have sure cleaned up, the pharmaceutical companies are thrilled, the rich people who now won't have to foot the emergency room visits that the poor have "burdened" them with, everyone (who doesn't really need any more money) is thrilled - in fact, everyone accept the people who really need decently-priced health care are thrilled.

Democracy, yeah, right.

One other thing - this was really funny - unfortunately it wasn't meant as a joke. I actually saw Debbie Stabenow on MSNBC the other night touting the fact that although the main benefits of this bill won't kick in until 2014 - there are SEVENTEEN provisions that will take effect immediately! Like this was a GOOD thing!!

2000 page bill - 17 provisions - wow, I'm impressed.

Also, what are the Dems thinking? The taxing will begin immediately, but the benefits won't kick in until 2014? How do they expect to win elections in 2010 & 2012 if the "good stuff" doesn't kick in until a nebulous date in the future, two elections from now???

Why are the Dems so thick, I wonder?

Again, in distress, as usual,

Your faithful fan,

Tara Thralls
------------------------------------------------------
Letter #2 (sent to Dylan Ratigan - my hero)

Hello again ~

I've been thinking long and hard about this, and all of a sudden I realized that EVERYONE is banking on these 30 million poor people hopping to, and getting in line, and buying the mandated Health Insurance!!

Lately we've been bombarded with TV ads for Health Insurance, here in California, where many people are self-employed, practice alternative medicines, and aren't on any medication, or in need of any doctor's help right now. Other people are too poor to take care of their health. Both these groups might take issue with the mandate of this bill.

Has anybody considered the possibility that the 30 million "new Health Insurance customers" might reject the whole idea, and just won't buy the Health Insurance even though it's mandated???

What if nobody goes for this? How will it be enforced? Are there agencies in place ready to enforce the law if there is a large rejection by the consumers of this forced mandate (of the poor to fill the coffers of the rich)?

I asked my daughter, (who I am embarrassed to say, has no interest in politics, as she feels it's all pointless) if she planned to buy health insurance when the new bill becomes law and I found out two things:

1) Lots of people might not even KNOW this whole thing is going on. LOTS of people RELIGIOUSLY DON'T WATCH THE NEWS!!! My daughter had no idea that this was about to become law, and she was about to become a criminal.

2) She said, "Huh? I didn't even KNOW about any of this..." She thought for less than a second and then replied, "No, of course not. I don't have money to pay my BILLS, how can I afford Health Care?"

So, I guess she plans to become a criminal if this bill passes.

Well, at least maybe, she'll be inspired to get into politics and march for some cause, like "I reject your mandate to fill the coffers of the rich with my money."

Just sayin'....

As always, your sincere fan,

Tara Thralls
------------------------------------------------------
and finally, Letter #3 (sent to Lynn Woolsey - our excellent, and well-respected (D) Rep in the House of Representatives for Marin & Sonoma County, CA)

Hi Lynn,

I am a STAUNCH Liberal, and I support you in all of your decisions. You are wise, & I can count on you to do the right thing in almost every vote, but I have some concerns about the Health Care issue.

First off, it has become a bill that fills the coffers of the rich (Insurance Companies, Pharmaceutical Companies, and yes, even members of Congress), with the money of the poor.

How do the lawmakers expect these 30 million poor people to miraculously come up with the extra money to get Insurance Coverage, when they are already strapped and can't pay their other bills?

Has anyone envisioned a scenario where the currently "uninsured" just don't buy the Government mandated Insurance? How would that be enforced? Will their be offices, and officers? Will the police be needed?

Has anyone considered this possibility, or is it just me?

Congress people just may be too far removed from the lower income mindset to understand how a poor person thinks. They will put their bad habits ahead of their need to buy Health Insurance, guaranteed. The threat of some imagined day when they might need Emergency Room care, (and it be discovered, at that time, that they were uninsured, and that they would then have to pay a fine) is nothing, compared to their immediate need for that next cigarette, drink, fill in the blank. I just can't picture poor people obeying this law, willingly.

You are counting on 30 million poor people voluntarily insuring themselves, because it's a law? How's that War on Drugs going?... if you know what I mean...

Actually, I've thought about it a lot and here's what I've learned...I think lots of people
a) won't even KNOW they've become criminals - my older daughter, who is not glued to MSNBC 24/7 like me, and has absolutely no interest in politics, and NEVER watches the news, told me today that she didn't even KNOW about this law that was going to make her into a criminal some time soon.
b) I think people will gamble that they won't be getting sick, especially here in CA, where so many people live really healthfully, and practice alternative medicine anyway, and
c) if they do get sick, will just NOT GO TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM at all, because they can't afford the ridiculous $2000 fine - which, no doubt, would make the rich people happy, as they no longer will have to foot the bill for the Emergency Room care, but it will leave the poor, once again, shafted.

This is a terrible situation. I don't want the Republicans to once again seize power, but Lynn, this bill is BAD for the poor, who can't afford a SINGLE Doctor's visit, no less monthly premiums!!

As I Tweeted earlier,
30 mill poor people will be forced 2 pay for svcs they can’t afford 2 cos who don’t need the $ 4 svcs they won’t provide. Whoopee.

I don't know the answer. Damned if we do, damned if we don't. How'd the Dems get into this mess, anyway?

If you have a spare minute (ha ha) please read my blog post about the HCR debate:

http://bit.ly/hcr-huh

Your loyal supporter,

Tara Thralls

------------------------------------------------------
So, what do you think? I'd love to hear your thoughts, corrections, anything. This is important stuff, and I'm interested...

Still Good after all these years

Storm Damage!