John Kerry is an idiot: claims death of newspapers is a threat to democracy

Failed 2004 Democrat Presidential Candidate Senator John Kerry will focus hearings of the US Senate Commerce Committee next week on the state of the newspaper industry.

Kerry said in a letter to the Boston Globe, which is under threat of closure by parent The New York Times Company, that:

“America’s newspapers are struggling to survive and while there will be serious consequences in terms of the lives and financial security of the employees involved, including hundreds at the Globe, there will also be serious consequences for our democracy where diversity of opinion and strong debate are paramount…

The emphasis is mine, but it’s the key line: Kerry is seriously suggesting that the death of newspapers threatens diversity of opinion and debate, which in turn is a threat to American democracy.

Someone needs to send Kerry a laptop with a mobile broadband card, because anyone who has ever been on the internet knows that diversity of opinion and strong debate has never been stronger than at any time in human history. The internet is by its nature the great enabler, a medium that has given voice to millions over the restricted voice of an elite media owning few, as was the case only 20 years ago.

There’s a reason he lost in 2004, and another reason he shouldn’t be in charge of anything remotely serious today: he qualifies in the villiage idiot stakes.