Suck it, FTC

I suppose it might be a different matter if the FTC had actually attempted to impose a single set of across-the-board guidelines to try to reduce or eliminate the scourge of glowing reviews of crap given to writers for free. But they didn't. They actually went out of their way to say that traditional media -- newspapers, magazines, radio, TV -- are exempt: "the Commission does not consider reviews published in traditional media (i.e., where a newspaper, magazine, or television or radio station with independent editorial responsibility assigns an employee to review various products or services as part of his or her official duties, and then publishes those reviews) to be sponsored advertising messages" . . . EVEN IF they got the stuff for free and didn't disclose that.

Because, you know, TV "news", especially local "news" with its puff-pieces about the state fair, and its running unaltered "video press releases" from major corporations and/or the government, is *so* freaking reliable.

So the FTC can SUCK IT. Anybody who has read my writing knows that I'm pretty much incapable of writing anything other than my honest opinion.

But just so we're clear: I buy music. I also get some music for free, especially nowadays when you can just stick an MP3 up on a website somewhere. I also work at WXDU and guess what, we get a lot of music for free too, all of which I have access to. While I'm disclosing things: I illegally downloaded the new Mountain Goats record, the one about the Bible, from the internet a full month before its release date. It's pretty good. I'd buy it. In fact, I probably will, even though I already have that illegal copy. Try to figure out the logic of THAT, Federal Trade Commission. While you SUCK IT.