Put down the Beer and Read This!

“Our Founding Fathers were once revered in this country as divinely inspired, courageous visionaries. But now, after the past 100 years of "enlightenment," we've come to realize that they were nothing but old, white, racist, heathens. The "myth" of our Christian founding has been obliterated and, at best, we now know that they were no more than "deists" at best.

That's what the progressives have had to do to the memory of those great men. Men who — while not perfect, certainly, men with flaws — were in fact, mostly Christian and nearly all believers.

In order to restore the country, we have to restore the men who founded it on certain principles to the rightful place in our national psyche.

I want to start with the man known at the time as "the father of the American Revolution," but now has become all but forgotten.”

By Glenn Beck

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,591862,00.html

IMHO, you should go immediately to read this entire inspiring article. The entire thing speaks of a character I long to see in our government.

Bollocks on Bullock's Publicity

Oscar-winner Sandra Bullock has reappeared in public for People magazine, and has finally revealed that she will indeed divorce cheating spouse Jesse James. But there is also another surprise we didn’t expect. She has gone through the child adoption process and now she has a baby!

http://toppayingideas.com/blog/2010/04/28/sandra-bullock-adoption-adopts-louis-bardo-bullock-photo/



I remember my childhood fantasies of being a rich and famous Broadway star. It didn’t look a thing like celebrity today.

In fact, if you have seen Woody Allen’s 1998 film “Celebrity”, you can see, as perverse as the film can be on the subject of fame, it has only gone downhill since then. Woody, if you have it in you, take another shot at this; you can do the Fellini-esque absurdity thing, without hyperbole.

What is it we think these people owe us? We’re not allowed to be codependent in real life so we do it with our flickering gods of the silver screen (or tube, or football stadium)? You must live up to the standard that I imagine you should live up to, though God forbid anybody hold me accountable for anything!

Speaking of artists, I don’t have respect for Woody Allen, as a man; he is a creep. He just happens to be an incredibly talented creep. I love Sandra Bullock, as an actress. She is one of my favorites and I am sorry to see her go through this spectacle; but we, the public are as much to blame as Jesse, because we eat this crap up!

Let’s get some self respect, based on some tangible criteria and maybe we won’t need George Clooney or Jesse James, to walk on water.

May I See Some ID Please?

There are 309,114,891 people in the United States of America. If everyone in the U.S. lined up single file, the line would stretch around the Earth almost 7 times. That's a lot of people.

The U.S. Census Bureau statistics tell us that there are at least 151,671 different last names and 5,163 different first names in common use in the United States. Some names are more common than others.

http://howmanyofme.com/search/

I found, as the hottest search on Google, “How many people have my name.” This was a thought provoking topic, so I took a look. After clicking on it, Google displayed several news and blog links related to this search. However, all the links they showed seemed to have little or nothing to do with this subject. Trust me, I opened half a dozen, looking for the common thread and found none, whatsoever.

Considering this had to do with identifying myself with others, it struck me funny how elusive this subject was. When I started searching with these key words, I found the site above. I was thrilled to discover that, according to the site there are supposedly only 12 other Tim Cotes running around the US. I sense a kinship to my unknown brothers and feel special and unique, like one of the 12 apostles.

Now, my Dad’s hometown, Grand Falls, New Brunswick, Canada has 30 pages of Cotes in a 45 page telephone book, I wonder if they’re teeming with Tims?

Is the thrill I experienced the same thrill some people get from passionately following “their” baseball or football team?

Is this the thrill some get from watching soaps or reality shows? Do they sense a connection that they identify with?

Though I laughed out loud at the TV sitcom, “Seinfeld”, the problem was that I didn’t want to identify myself with those characters. They weren’t very sympathetic characters, though true to life, nonetheless.

How we identify, and with what, shows us who we are and helps mold us into who we’ll become.

“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful what we pretend to be. “
Kurt Vonnegut, Mother Night

Police search home of Gizmodo editor Jason Chen over lost iPhone 4G

Six computers and other items seized by task force from San Mateo police - in a case that could turn into a test of whether bloggers can claim journalistic exemptions
California police have taken six computers and other items from the house of Jason Chen, the editor of the gadget blog Gizmodo who appeared on a video on the site showing off a lost Apple iPhone prototype which, it transpired, had been bought from a middleman for about $5,000.

Charles Arthur
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/pda/2010/apr/26/iphone-gizmodo-police-search-apple



Oh the things we get litigious about and the things we don’t. People shoot each other in the street, but the police are carting away computers cause this guy bought a LOST phone from a guy. If Jason Chen isn’t a journalist, what is he?
Journalism is defined as the occupation of reporting, writing, editing, photographing, or broadcasting news or of conducting any news organization as a business. Jason Chen is a journalist, and there IMHO, today, he should be covered by the first amendment. Anybody remember that?

Amendment 1 - Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression. Ratified 12/15/1791.

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.

The Electric Power Power

The first place many small business owners point their computers in the morning ist he Quickbooks Online login. QuickBooks online solutions help you track your business finances, pay your bills, create invoices and POs, manage your inventory, be ready at tax time with complete and accurate records, and more.

However, users who tried to use the Quickbooks online login this morning were confronted with an error message. The official Quickbooks online Twitter responded at about 10 a.m. Pacific time, saying “Our team is working on getting QuickBooks Online back up.”

http://www.providingnews.com/quickbooks-online-is-back-online.html

We have become so dependent upon our electronic friends; imagine a world without electricity. A few weeks ago, I thought I’d lost my cell phone and tried to think how I would ever get back most of my contact numbers. My life is in my computer, records, receipts and literally hundreds of photographs I couldn’t replace.

I’m thinking right up there with germ warfare, he who controls the electric current can control the world, including traffic, communication and even armaments.
Retro Tech Mechanized Warfare Soundtrack Vol.1
Will we ever be faced with living in a simpler, less automated world, or are we gonna have those microchips surgically inserted into us and we can join the automated family.


High Tech Warfare

Holy Compost, Batman!!

S.F. Earth Day celebrations
“But to make the message more fun, and less dogmatic, the staff will sponsor a recycling game in which visitors have to sort chicken bones, plastic bags, TVs and other items into recycling bins. Winners get a canvas bag made of scrap fabric….Earth Day is our biggest holiday of the year," Shaw said. "And the fact we get so many people out, not just on Earth Day but every day, really speaks to the commitment of people in the Bay Area."
Carolyn Jones, Chronicle Staff Writer
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/04/21/BAHT1D2AQI.DTL

This tickles me in a perverse way more than I can say. When they put up the Na'vi statues of the Pandoran (from “Avatar”) religion of worshipping Mother Earth, I can’t wait to see all the self righteous turning in their petroleum based products onto the altar…..yeah, right.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0499549/


I am all for recognizing that the planet has exhaustible resources, and we should be good stewards of the planet we live on, but if that’s the biggest aim in your life, then dying is the kindest thing you can do. You’ll no longer emit noxious gases, consume resources and you can be used as fertilizer. Soylent Green, with a twist.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070723/

What are we feeding on?

“Miserable failure George W. Bush"
"For two years, when Google users typed “miserable failure” for their search term, George W. Bush was instant cash at the top of the list, first for his biography and later for images. Pranksters built the miserable failure scheme, known as a Google bomb, after former Democratic Missouri congressman Dick Gephardt applied the term to the Bush administration.”
Thomas Hart
http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2010/04/21/miserable-failure/

Scheme, by definition usually refers to underhanded plots with the intent to deceive, or do harm. This seems to be an appropriate use of that definition. Am I a huge George W. fan? Nope, I did vote for the man and I did, at times, regret it. But if you want miserable failure examples in this present administration, there are many, in my opinion, to be found.

Millions of dollars spent on bailouts that couldn’t be accounted for by this present administration. That was a miserable failure. Our government has had a pretty lousy track record of failure on many fronts for the last fifty years (that would be my lifespan). Yet our country has been a super power for all of that time. Maybe, it’s just human nature, and I know the old saying about the winners writing history, but when did we become so out in the open with our nasty tricks, maligning and scheming to blacken the other guys’ eyes?

You know there’s another old saying that goes, “virtue is its own reward” and unfortunately, only those who have it know how valuable it is. As long as we continue to accept this type of character assassination and dirty politics as status quo we remain bottom feeders. You know what bottom feeders are feeding on?

Where Does The Buck Stop?

“Injured Reds pitcher Edinson Volquez says his 50-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's policy on performance-enhancing drugs is the result of medications he took to treat a fertility condition….. Volquez has been suspended 50 games following a positive test for performance-enhancing drugs, Major League Baseball announced on Tuesday, April 20, 2010. “

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/dailypitch/post/2010/04/reds-pitcher-edinson-volquez-suspended-for-violating-drug-policy/1

Did Volquez really take these drugs for infertility? I am not smart enough to know. Let me tell you what I think I do know. Throw out of the game everyone who is found guilty of drug enhancement and I promise you it will end immediately. Look, this is easy peezy; If the penalty to getting caught is sitting out 50 games, it’s like speeding on the highway, you take your chances. If we knew we would do mandatory 30 days in jail for speeding, we wouldn’t be.

If you insisted on real integrity from these “professionals” then there would be a lot less of this nonsense. People will always be weak and make some mistakes, but there has to be a line and that line has been erased in our culture.

I was sure when Bill Clinton stared into the camera and said, “I did not sleep with that woman.” It wasn’t that he had an affair, but that he could lie so bold facedly to America. That means the man has no integrity.

Until we find a way back to integrity, every aspect of our lives is diminished, seeing everything in shades of gray. Is there a way back? I don’t know, ask Frank Capra’s ghost.

Proactive; Literally

Hey Borders Books,

I wanted you to know you just lost a customer for a lousy $4.

I have rarely had the opportunity to take advantage of your special savings, though you are constantly sending me emails (that does get a little annoying). The last two times I tried, I got nothing.

The second to the last time, I left the store and then realized that though the cashier had asked me for my membership card, he hadn't applied the savings. I thought no big deal and went on with life.

Saturday I went and bought a book one of your emails had suggested, and I knew you'd just sent me a 33% off coupon so I figured I would give it a read. I was disappointed by how cheaply the book was made, knowing it would fall apart quickly, but life becomes more disposable each day I guess.

After I'd paid for my purchase and for a donation book for some charity, I realized that I had not gotten my discount. Feeling embarrassed, I asked why and I was told I had to have a physical copy of the coupon or the bar code numbers.........the unasked question I saved for you is why the hell did I have to give you my stinking card if you weren’t applying your offer of savings? This is nonsense; there's no earthly reason to do this other than to loophole your way out of giving me a lousy $4 discount off a book that probably cost ten cents to print.

I will be getting off this mailing list and go back to buying my books from Amazon.com, or local book dealers, where I know up front how I'll be treated.
I don't usually tell companies why I stop doing business with them, like most Americans, I just stop; of course I do tell my friends. I told you because actual paper books are on the decline and I don't want to see them discontinued in my life, if possible.

I hope you realize this is easily fixable for the remainder of your customers.

Searching for Searching's sake?

“People are searching for Keyword “Lilian Sykes Award”. Hmmm… we figure it out and find some clue about this words means.”
http://anakbawang.com/lillian-sykes-award.html

http://www.usposttoday.com/lillian-sykes-award/

http://currenttopix.net/

http://askville.amazon.com/Watch-Lillian-Sykes-Award-2010/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=67947785

Okay, so the other day I talked about how influential Google.com and other internet sources are. I emphasized how they influence the world, even the established institutions like Wall Street, and Big Daddy Government, but the quote and search above really tickled me.

I saw that Lillian Sykes Award was the number one search on Google.com and so I went searching for information on this award. All the web sites I went to had the same article that I have quoted above. On Google’s first results page, there was virtually no other info.

Anybody remember Chicken Little? This was the fable about one hysterical chicken, and her misconception, turning the crowd into a mob. The writer of this Lillian Sykes article, quoted above didn’t even spell Lillian correctly; forget about the grammar and lack of solid information. Yet, all of these links listed above were found on the first Google search result page, and they all used this poorly written article. Am I missing something?

It’s frightening to think this is the number 1 search, when there’s a world’s worth of information available to us.

IMHO, we need to instruct, and not just inform, or maybe the sky really will start falling.

Non-Smoking Gun Please

“…James Taranto, who writes for the Wall Street Journal editorial page, thinks he’s got the smoking gun to debunk claims that black House Dems were pelted by the “N-word” at Tea Party rallies last month.…..Shuler’s comments to the Times-News referred to the general tenor of the protests, not to the black congressmen’s specific allegations….….On a separate note, this whole effort by the right wing media and blososphere is deeply mystifying. If you are trying to make the case that the Tea Party movement is tolerant and diverse, defending the Tea Partiers by accusing Civil Rights icons of lying and racemongering doesn’t seem like the wisest strategy.”
Greg Sargent
http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/political-media/the-smoking-gun/

This is why I love people and not parties cause Mr. Sargent’s comments are right on. If only there were a group of Americans who believed in integrity and honor, not just for people with their own point of view. Jesus walked the earth and treated everyone with honor, except for the guys who pretended to be God’s P.R. guys, but were really hypocrites.

Do I think the Left is on the right track? Hell, no! Do I think the Right is? Again, I say, Hell, no! I am a Watergate baby, raised on the jaded point of view that everyone in public office is not to be trusted. Now as a mature man, I realize human nature can never be fully trusted, and that’s why our forefathers put in the checks and balances of a Republic. They knew no group with excessive power could keep integrity intact, and even the public at large can be fooled some of the time. Our system, as it was originally intended was set to keep a balance of power and therefore a system that has been the envy of the entire world.

How much longer will we have it? Maybe if the right doesn’t name-call people like Greg Sargent, and the Left doesn’t call Tea Partiers, hateful fanatics, maybe we can keep the system from falling into the hands of those who would destroy it. Don’t look now, but they are definitely in our midst!

The Ad Police

“NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- The chatter on Main Street (a.k.a. Google) is always of interest to investors on Wall Street. Thus, each day TheStreet compiles the stories that are trending on Google, and highlights the news that could make stocks move. The phrase "new Macbook Pro" is creating buzz after Apple (AAPL) finally revealed an upgrade to the device Tuesday morning.”
By Jeanine Poggi
http://www.thestreet.com/story/10724207/1/hot-trends-alcoa-macbook-pro-opera.html?cm_ven=GOOGLEFI

For those of us who can remember before the digital age when computers filled entire rooms and only Vulcans and space travelers had cordless communicators, this article was an eye opener. Wall Street pays attention to Google trends? You bet they do. Online Sales in 2008 were estimated to be over $208 Billion!! The internet is the new market place where people congregate, party, and spend money.

Advertising has always played a huge role in any company’s success, but in the age of Walmart, and Amazon.com’s brand name recognition, worldwide, it seems to be of critical importance. We are so inundated with constant advertising imagery that it’s hard to know how to reach us anymore. So when Google speaks, with 91 million searches per day, everyone who wants your dollar is paying attention.

The thing is, is Google correctly representing us? Does Google know us better than we know ourselves? These are some important things to consider, that go beyond how and where we spend our money. If you don’t believe me, read George Orwell’s, “1984” and see for yourself.

http://www.amazon.com/1984-Signet-Classics-George-Orwell/dp/0451524934/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1271331448&sr=1-1

Monkey Say, Monkey Do

“Justin Bieber is on the latest People magazine cover -- and he was apparently not pleased when he saw the picture they used.
He tweeted, "Dear @peoplemag Covershoot...next time i laugh real crazy warn me u r still taking pics. still appreciate u but let's get on the same page"

http://blog.zap2it.com/thedishrag/2010/04/justin-bieber-people-magazine-cover---justin-not-pleased-but-deletes-tweet.html

Amazing when a 16 year old is wronged and yet required to be this publically savvy, and please don’t respond nonsense about his being fair game in the public eye. The hysteria we get into over public figures’ comments is laughable. I am still not over Don Imus, the DJ, being char grilled for his “nappy headed” comments. The man is a satirist, an entertainer. Why not fry Chris Rock on an open grill because he has said some truly degrading remarks about blacks in America. Could it be the color of his skin?

It seems we just don’t care about what people do anymore, only what they’re quoted as saying.

We need a new media that isn’t in the business of telling us what we should approve of, or be insulted by. We have so much information in the world today, but so few really pulling the strings. I have three words for you. Time. Warner. America Online. All merged together to tell you who is who. They dictate to us what to care about. Why not find out what people are really doing, and not just what they say in a sound bite.

Like the old saying goes, talk is cheap.

Sitting in the Shade of the Money Tree

“As a part of the national appliance rebate program, the Arizona rebates for appliances program started this morning. The Arizona appliance rebate program is designed to help individuals who purchase new, energy-efficient appliances by providing debt relief through rebates on the cost of the appliance”.
Mary Rice
http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2010/04/12/arizona-rebates-appliances-arizona-appliance-rebate-begins/

Well, here we are, rebating the price of energy efficient appliances. I say ‘we’, because we are the government, right? Of the people, by the people,…..remember? While we are in true economic crisis, is this the right time to promote appliance sales by going to the money tree for another freebie?

Is this program designed to invigorate our economy? To help out the consumer to pay less for electricity? I know it can’t be for the environment’s sake, cause where are all those old energy inefficient appliances going….landfills? That doesn’t sound green to me.

IMHO, it probably helps the politicians most. After all if we’re out shopping and waiting for our rebate checks, maybe we won’t notice what’s really going on with the men behind the curtain. Will we wake up before it’s too late?

Double Your Plesasure

For those spending time this weekend filing their taxes -- or those feeling the pinch from paying -- Subway wants to feed you. Saturday is Customer Appreciation Day in the D.C. area. The hoagie chain that sometimes doubles as a weight-loss diet is offering free foot-long sandwiches when you buy another foot-long.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/around-town/food-drink/Hook-Me-Up-2-Feet-for-the-Price-of-1-at-Subway-90483994.html

Oh, how I love aspects of this recession. Big corporations reaching out like friends to say they care. Do they really? Nah, but if we have to be succored by multi-national conglomerates, at least they’re smiling and going into their own pockets while Uncle Sam is picking ours.

Great quality of life, IMHO, means trying to find value in all the necessary aspects of life. I can attain fulfillment scrubbing a toilet, with the right mind set. I value each moment and the trivial things in them, and my life is sweeter. So when a company makes an offer to treat me like I have value, I respond.

Getting a free sub is a small thing, but life is mostly made up of small things.

Go Subway!
Eat Fresh today!!

Don't Just Pass the Buck-Make One

"It’s called extreme couponing, and it’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen. Fueled by the recession and made possible by the Internet, the practice is spreading across the country. Numbers suggest it could be huge. Bargain hunters used 3.2 billion coupons in 2009. That’s not only a 23 percent increase from 2008, it was the largest one-year jump ever recorded, according to NCH Marketing Services Inc. of Deerfield, Ill."

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/05/1859265/extreme-couponer-brandie-mavrich.html

Being what I consider a typical American, I am not in favor of suffering trouble of any kind, or for any reason. Though of course being a human being, I cannot completely avoid it.

My point here is that though I am not enjoying our current economic woes, I see the good side of recession; the polite customer service, the special deals on items I couldn’t afford during the “good times” come closer to my pocket book’s reach during recession.

The thing I love best is seeing the entrepreneurial spirit that comes alive here in the Unites States, when times get tough. The lady mentioned in the article quoted above, the people creating websites about finding coupons and deals; even the bloggers discussing it, in hopes of making a buck, they inspire me to hope that our way of life might not be over. Rather than focus on those who hold out their hands, waiting for Big Daddy Government to suckle away their anguish, I am seeing the industrious, creative American Spirit, which finds the opportunity presented in troubling times and finds a way to “work it.”

IMHO, we need that same spirit to find its way back into government, by the people, and for the people.

Bad Breath; Scopolamine

"Everything about scopolamine has to do with hurting people.
Scopolamine is made from the fruit of the Borrachero tree, whose flowers are narcotic. Locals use the tree's flowers in tea as a hallucinogen, but the fruit must be chemically processed to create scopolamine."
http://www.nowpublic.com/style/scopolamine-vice-tv-seeks-out-devils-breath-2602213.html

Researching this drug was fascinating as I read so many different accounts. An astronaut’s wife explained it was prescribed to her for motion sickness, but it clearly affected her short term memory. It was also being discussed as a treatment for lifting people out of extreme depression. The quoted site above talked about prostitutes using this to drug customers into getting PIN numbers and other valuable information.

It has been nicknamed “The Devil’s Breath”, because it can cause hallucinations and can supposedly rob a person of their free will. According to one report in Colombia, a man supposedly committed murder while he was unknowingly under its influence.

As a former recreational drug user, this reminds me how precarious it is to ride the psychedelic train, whether it is prescribed or not (and how thankful I am I got off the ride, myself). Does anybody really understand the overall effects of putting any drug into our bodies and minds? IMHO, we’re playing doctor and trying to stamp out symptoms rather than exploring the root of our troubles.

Look up in the sky...does he have to be Superman?

“But for Tiger Woods, it seems, the past four months were all about arriving at this moment. A moment when, to sportswriters' astonishment, he addressed them all by their first names and called them friends. A moment when, far from snarling at photo-clicking fans during his practice round, he smiled at them and even acknowledged their support. A moment when, in this most emotionally trying time of his career, he acknowledged that golf "feels fun again."
Mark Sappenfield
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/2010/0405/Tiger-Woods-press-conference-at-last-a-glimmer-of-sincerity

Why is it, just because you’re the greatest golfer, perhaps, ever, did it become necessary to be a good guy role model?

Woody Allen is a brilliant film maker, but I wouldn’t let him babysit my kids. Richard Pryor was certainly one of the funniest men in my generation, but I wouldn’t have given him my PIN number. Sean Penn is a great actor, but his political views are idiotic.. I’m saying instead of you and I needing to live vicariously through our superstars, why don’t we get a life and let them be great at what they’re great at?

Would Ty Cobb have been allowed to be one of the greatest baseball players of all time, and still be true to his surly self?

If I need a role model I won’t go to the golf course looking for one. Nor would I go to a concert or a movie. IMHO, I need actors, artists and athletes to show me excellence in their fields, not on how to live my life.

Speaking of real life, I met an amazing jewelery designer in the park. Check her out:
www.bluemarblebeading.etsy.com

Filler duped

Well, ladies and gentlemen, it’s that time again. Memorial Day is almost here! Raise the hem lines, raise the American Flag, and by all means, raise the gas prices. Anyone else wonder of it’s a coincidence that by Memorial Day, the gas prices are almost $1 higher than they were in December of the previous year?
http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/international/gas1.html

Could this be since 9/11/01, when people stopped traveling abroad, and drove to most of their vacation spots? Huh, that is coincidental, isn’t it?
To find the cheapest gas in CT, checkout:
http://www.connecticutgasprices.com/

How about we start a trend? I know I can’t go without gas either, but how about we do something to make a statement. Let’s all buy only $7.77 worth of gas every time we buy gas. Imagine if thousands of us did it and when they finally asked us what it means, we could explain the oil companies have been ganging up on us for years (Funny all prices in USA vary greatly, except for gasoline) and that we are bound and determined to use less than $7.77 worth of gas daily.

I did mention I have a Capraesque heart, didn’t I?

If a thousand of you agree I will do everything in my power to let everyone, everywhere know about it.

Light on the Hot Topic

At last the rain has ended! It’s oh so sunny out here in the real world and I finally see that my government is on the right path. April Fools!!

“My intent is to be straight with you and show you exactly where I stand on all the issues that are not only important to me, but also to the American people. If you're like me, you are fed up with the current government and its excesses! I refuse to be told any longer that I should just "sit down and shut up!"
Barry A.A. Dillinger
http://www.creepyconnecticut.net/barryaadillingerforpresident/index.html

I received an email from a guy running for President. His name is Barry Dillinger, and though he doesn’t seem completely qualified for what he refers to as the “most powerful position in the world”, he is a fresh breath of air in a hopelessly corrupt arena. With all my Capraesque heart I would love to see a man like this be taken seriously. I also want to think that I am not this jaded, but can a “normal” guy really run for president?

I’m not talking about coming up with the cash or the platform, I’m saying can a guy who doesn’t have the media or a major political machine driving him, have any hope of ever being taken seriously for such an office? The Manchurian Candidate was about one man being brain washed to kill a good man running for president. IMHO, today, the realistic twist is that it’s the American public that has been brainwashed by CNN, Fox News and the rest of the sound bite demons, to kill off hope of any serious representation for us real people. Will we wake up before our liberty is all gone?

If you haven't seen the original movie, check it out!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056218/