The D bloc of every local newscast. The wretched waste of air time. It is not the lead story, which in America usually involves a crime. Nor is it the all important weather forecast which earns meteorologists the highest salaries. It is not sports, which at least keeps men watching for a few more minutes. The D bloc could cover hard hitting stories, but it rarely does. These stories are usually fluff and are labeled human interests stories. Despite being fluff or shining light on humanity, these stories come just as slanted and carefully edited as anything on MSNBC.
Take a look at ABC Columbus’ On Your Side segment about a pregnant mom asking for help to escape cockroaches. Montena Middleton is just a 23-year-old mother of three, expecting a fourth, who reached out to ABC 6 for help, since no one was helping her eliminate the roaches. The reporter will be mocha-colored Michelle with good hair, so that you, the viewer, do not think it is a condescending white woman exploring the ghetto.
The message is clear that this mother is helpless, and that the media was right there to offer her the support no one else would provide. The audience will see horrible conditions, a pregnant woman, and a young mother just trying to turn her life around. This is poverty. Feel pity, viewer at home. Keep those tax dollars flowing.
Does anything feel off? Why can she not move? Why is this publicly-owned building not cleaning this up? The call to the media was not the only call Montena Middleton made that day. She also called child protective services to report herself for neglect because of her three small children being exposed to hazardous conditions. Why the two calls? She was not calling CPS for a positive reason, or to have her kids taken away. She called them to try to get them to pay her overdue electric and utilities bills that totaled $2,600. The power company had not cut her off, which is something they are all reluctant to do because of the bad press they may receive a la Detroit.
She could not move to a new apartment with that outstanding debt. No one would turn the electricity on for her at the new apartment with that bill out there. Bills are high, so maybe she could not cover it, but remember she lived in a CPO property, and her rent was most likely under $250 month. Montena did have small children, but she was a part of Title 20, which means child care would have been paid for if she were working or in school. Despite her claims that no one was helping, in fact a gigantic network of money, programs and individuals were helping Montena Middleton.
There is a net. It is there to help people. Dysfunction cares not for the net; it just keeps on devolving. Ms. Middleton knew she also had the media in her corner. This is no assumption. Just look at her record. At age 19, Montena Middleton was a single mother of one moving into an abandoned factory that had turned into a shelter for single moms. The media discussed how righteous of a project that was, and how it would help the little people, the deserving poor in rough spots. Four years later, and she is about to have 3 more kids on top of the one she had entering that homeless shelter.
Did she take the first opportunity for relief to correct her missteps or build a base? No. Do not get angry at her, though. Her poor decision-making is annoying and a burden on society, but the greater evil is the system of programs that continually catch her before she falls on the bed of coals. When those programs do not work, or when social workers seethe with anger at their clients, the media is always there with a camera and a reporter just waiting to air Ms. Middleton’s grievances and hardships.
Just like the D bloc, all of these wonderful progressive policies have a great pitch and sound sweet to the ears of people who want to help and do good.
Just like the negative unintended consequences of progressive policies, the D bloc has another side that does not show up on camera.
Its like constantly sheltering a kid from the consequences of his actions. He will never learn and you end up stunting his growth. Ultimately the humanitarian thing to do would be let people deal with the consequences of their actions. That way they at least have a chance to correct their errors and learn. Otherwise the cycle will continue until the government money runs out or society collapses.