Of a slow news week-end (check the pic).
NCAA Mascot Decision
I don’t recall the last time Jeff Goldstein was this hopping mad about an issue, but he is writing up a storm on the idiotic NCAA decision to ban ‘offensive’ mascots from tournament play, but otherwise not bother with them. He has posts here, here, and here (read them in that order).
My take on the silliness is here.
Jacked Up
Jack Shafer is shrill:
The larger point that the boneheads who so despise the media need to appreciate is that the mainstream American press is better than it’s ever been. If you don’t believe me, visit your local library and roll through a couple of miles of microfilm of the papers you’re currently familiarly with. By any comparison, today’s press is more accurate, ethical, reliable, independent, transparent, and trustworthy than ever. Skepticism is a healthy disposition in life. I wouldn’t be a press critic if I regarded the press as hunky-dory. But mindless skepticism is mainly an excuse for ignorance. Even the people who denounce the New York Times as the bible of liberals ultimately get most of their useful news from it.
Your average reader is not to be trusted because he just doesn’t know his own mind. In addition to the Jayson Blair finding, the Annenberg survey offers this gem. When asked how important it is to them to live in a country in which they can criticize the government, a resounding 81 percent of respondents say “very important” and 14 percent say “somewhat important.” The verdict is almost unanimous.
Now, one would assume that what’s good for the individual—rip into your government the best you can—would also be good for journalists, who are paid to watch-dog politicians. But the average reader can’t keep a consistent thought in his head for two minutes. When the same Annenberg survey asked if government should have the right to limit the press in reporting a story, an appalling 68 percent said either “always,” “sometimes,” or “rarely.” Only 29 percent said “never.” Let’s hope the First Amendment never comes up for a vote.
I’ve had it with all you unreliable, inconsistent, and detestable blockheads. I’ve given you every possible chance and you’ve failed me miserably. Tonight I’m ordering a custom bumper-sticker that reads, “I Don’t Trust the Mainstream Media Audience.”
Due in large part to the tone of this piece, my personal opinion of Jack Shafer just went up a few notches.
Cut and Run
To all Democratic Representatives and Senators who voted for the Iraq War resolution:
Just admit you fucked up.
I don’t care how you do it. I don’t care why you do it. I don’t care if you believe it or not.
Just admit it and move on so we as a party can start beating the crap out of the Republicans with this issue.
Once this is done, the Democrats can then get back to the business of siding with the American people, the majority of whom see the war negatively, not worth the cost, and not making us safer.
Discuss.
RIP Hunter Kelly
This is sad:
Hunter Kelly, whose battle with a fatal nervous system disease inspired his Hall of Fame father Jim Kelly’s charitable works, died Friday morning. He was 8.
“Our prayers go to the family and kids,” Jim Kelly’s brother, Dan, told The Associated Press.
Born in 1997, Hunter Kelly was given no more than three years to live after being diagnosed with Krabbe Disease, an inherited degenerative disorder of the central and peripheral nervous systems. The disease hinders development of the myelin sheath, a fatty covering that protects the brain’s nerve fibers.
In honor of their son, Jim Kelly and his wife, Jill, established the Hunter’s Hope Foundation in 1997, which has raised more than $6 million and awarded more than $3.8 million to leukodystrophy and other neurological disease-related research.
I have met Jim Kelly, and he was a decent fellow who was in no hurry when talking to us. This is just a shame. To donate to Hunter’s Hope, go here.
Push Polls and Judge Roberts
Details here. Again- this is one person’s mother, so let’s not get too worked up…
McCaffrey’s Report
Barry McAffrey provided the Senate Foreign Relations committee with a detailed report of the situation in Iraq. A must read.