Posted by
Andrews on Saturday, September 13, 2008 1:29:27 PM
My wife pointed out something interesting a few days ago. Gasoline prices at the pump have fallen 40, in some places 50, cents per gallon, yet the media has been silent about it. When they were in full "crisis" mode, they would be in hysterics over a two or three cent uptick, but now prices have dropped 10% and not a word. It is as if news were a ratchet, only reporting when the news is unfavorable. Improvement has no place in the media.
However, there is one place it certainly is not going unnoticed, and that is among voters. No one is saying anything, but falling oil prices cut against the Obama change mantra pretty effectively. With Iraq improving, Afghanistan refusing to turn into the conflagration the Demcorats were pushing a few weeks ago, and now gas prices falling, the Democrats can't get much mileage out of their promises of change. Once change is already here, no one gets very excited about promises of more.
Of course there are seven or eight weeks left. Gasoline could rise again, housing prices could collapse again, the stock market could stop wallowing in its current trough and drop, but barring those, the media will remain silent. Not that Bush will get credit from the media for the improvement, only blame for the failures, but the public notices. And they are not about to vote for someone who is saying he will change a situation which appears to be on the mend already.
POSTSCRIPT
This is an interesting parallel to a comment I made earlier that speculators get blame for making prices rise, but never are credited for making prices fall. It seems Bush is int he same boat. Which makes sense, as both are convenient scapegoats for the congress, easy victims to blame for the problems caused partly by independent economic phenomena and aprtly by congress itself.