--- Dan Minette <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > My taxes are being given to Halliburton to do things > the government want > done. I have as much choice in the matter as you do > with NPR. They turn > around and use part of that money to buy political > influence. Public radio > is given government money to run programs like > "Engines of our Intuition. > You object because NPR also runs news programs you > think are biased. But, > considering how little of even local station money > comes from the > government, and all the arts and science programs > they run with that money, > I see a parallel with corporations with big > government contracts putting > out public campaigns. > > The money for the Halliburton ads that I see > dominate our morning news > programs (is it just here) comes, in part, from my > taxes. I see a > parallel. > > Dan M.
But it's not a real parallel, because Halliburton wins those contracts on a free market basis. As Dan Drezner has demonstrated, in fact, they won those contracts openly and fairly - something so clear that even The New Republic has agreed to it. And, of course, if it _didn't_, then it's open to criminal sanction. The government is paying for services, not speech. Money is fungible, so it is, in fact, _impossible_ to prove that government money is being used for that speech - but even if it was, once it's been paid to Halliburton (a profitable corporation), it's Halliburton's money, to do with as its shareholders choose. NPR has no shareholders. It is a creation of the government, not a private entity. The rules for private and public entities are very different, and NPR is a private entity. ===== Gautam Mukunda [EMAIL PROTECTED] "Freedom is not free" http://www.mukunda.blogspot.com __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Search - Find what you�re looking for faster http://search.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
