"Mock" news=real news?

Being here in Mexico, I don't really have a TV (idiot box), but I do have internet that is from the the stone age that loads 5 minute clips on youtube in like an hour. Haha, nah, I'm kidding but it is hella slow though. Anyway, the thought crossed my mind the other day that we live in an unintellectual era starting from your good ol' boy from Texas sittin' in the oval office all the way down to mainstream news sources, and sadly a dumbed down generation of people whose minds have been littered with useless information. I'm no exception either. I constantly feel the temptation to fall into this cycle and sometimes do. There is a socialization process taking place that urges us to be ignorant and detached from the truths of the world around us. I know, I'm starting to sound like Morpheus from the Matrix. Anyway, an example, fellow citizens are dying in a "war" that initiated on the lies of our government, the pretext of the "War on Terror" campaign, and faulty premises, but one wouldn't be able to tell by talking to the everyday American. People are numb to it all. In contrast, the Vietnam War aka the "Vietnam 'Conflict'" in U.S. textbooks because 'war' wasn't declared by congress (but we all know it was a war), sparked the momentum of a civil rights movement that was grand on many scales but...well...did not do enough (more segregated today than the time of Brown v. Board, still police brutalities taking place in ethnic communities, a growing wealth and inequality gap, an unjust justice system that persecutes ethnic minorities more harshly, etc.) It was all short lived with the rise of the "New Right" (damn you Reagan! haha!). Anyway, back to Vietnam. People were moved by the news coming in from testimonies of soldiers, reporters reporting incredibly from the ground. The news actually helped to stir the U.S. public to mobilize and rightfully so. Now...people can barely mobilize themselves to get off a couch and make themselves something to eat. Playing or being dumb is popular and marketable now. How does this happen? It's like we're a degenerate population. I don't mean to sound elitist although I might be doing a good job at it, but I can't help but feel that sometimes the retrogression of hummankind starts with us. I saw a clip of a recent show on "The Daily Show with John Stewart" on youtube and thought it was...well, funny. I thought to myself that it was sad that a program designed to deliver news in comedic fashion could actually be more critical and useful than actual mainstream sources whose "purpose" is to actually provide news. I wish news in general could be half as honest and critical as "The Daily Show". I hope you enjoy, and thanks to John Stewart and Co. for exposing the snakes hypocrites among us!!! Peace!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMiUAcEJY98