ABC News has suspended John Green, the executive producer of the weekend Good Mornin America. His leaked emails included his comment that he wanted to puke when Bush spoke.
Worse, you would think would be the latest email that was leaked where he advised that Maeline Albright should not be booked on the show because "Albright has Jew shame."
They insist, however, that the program is fair and balanced.
CREDIT to Drudge for printing the first emails.
Friday, March 31, 2006
Delusions of Infallibility
How is this for insight?
He actually thinks journalists are professional, educated, and skilled. Talk about self delusion.
To its proponents, citizen journalism represents a democratization of media, a shattering of the power of the unelected elite, a blow against the empire of Big Brother. Citizen journalism does not merely challenge the notion of professionalism in journalism but completely circumvents it. It is journalism according to the ethos of indie rock 'n roll: Do It Yourself.You degrade yourselves. Daily.
For precisely such reasons, I despair over the movement�s current cachet. However wrapped in idealism, citizen journalism forms part of a larger attempt to degrade, even to disenfranchise journalism as practiced by trained professionals.
He actually thinks journalists are professional, educated, and skilled. Talk about self delusion.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Briefly
FRANCE
More symptoms of the decline of France. The French language is not the language of choice in the EU.
ISRAEL
Election results show Liduk with a major loss. Reportedly, they only won a total of 12 seats.
More symptoms of the decline of France. The French language is not the language of choice in the EU.
ISRAEL
Election results show Liduk with a major loss. Reportedly, they only won a total of 12 seats.
Jim McDermott, ethically challenged
The U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a lower court that ruled Jim McDermott (D-Wash) violated law when he turned over illegal taped telephone calls to the media.
In one of those wonderful ironies the MSM ignores, McDermott was the ranking Democrat on the ethics panel when he leaked that tape.
It's amazing how much Democrats are for privacy except (A) when they illegally tape GOP telephone conversations, or (B)give 500 FBI files to a Clinton bartender to peruse or, when (C) a Democrat researcher illegally obtained a credit report on a Republican candidate.
God help anyone who depends upon them for privacy or decency.
In one of those wonderful ironies the MSM ignores, McDermott was the ranking Democrat on the ethics panel when he leaked that tape.
It's amazing how much Democrats are for privacy except (A) when they illegally tape GOP telephone conversations, or (B)give 500 FBI files to a Clinton bartender to peruse or, when (C) a Democrat researcher illegally obtained a credit report on a Republican candidate.
God help anyone who depends upon them for privacy or decency.
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Los Angeles Times rewriting history
The Los Angeles Times revising history.
If you live or work in Los Angeles then you know the logistics of gathering that many people had to take an extraordinary effort. At a guess - it was a union play that involved a good many buses. Few people live downtown, the mass transit is ineffective, there are no major shopping areas, little weekend foot traffic, few reasons to be there on a weekend. It's the same reason why Los Angeles doesn't have parades downtown. Who would come? Which makes any gathering suspect. I know from experience.
I was downtown several years ago for jury duty and went the Saturday before to check out parking. I came upon a Jesse Jackson rally for some issue or another. Avoiding the street, I turned two blocks in another direction and there they were -- some 20 or 30 buses lined up on each side of the street, bumper to bumper, out of camera range. You can imagine how much that cost someone.
So, too, with the rally in Los Angeles. This was no spontaneous outpouring. The question is, who paid for it? Who bought all those new American and Mexican flags? My guess is that the service industries and the janitorial industry unions were, no doubt, looking to make a massive statement. Too bad it will backfire spectacularly and with good reason.
Most illegals who are not unionized will be horrified by the display fearing rightfully that it will direct more inspection their way. Most legals who carefully abide by the law are unhappy with unlimited illegal immigration for the effect it has on lowering their wages.
But the real reason for the rally is the union fear that some sort of guest worker program that actually enforces immigration laws will wreck their tidy economy of taking $40 or $50 a week from people who serve as janitors and manual labor in Los Angeles. Losing that revenue flow has got to be a terrifying prospect for the unions. If only 200,000 of the crowd were illegal and known to be by the unions, the loss would represent $8 to $10 million a week.
Of course, if the Los Angeles Times employed investigative journalists and not just Stepford hacks, they could have interviewed the crowd and found out how they came to be there. They could have found out how they traveled to the rally. They could have investigated recent sales of American and Mexican flags. But the Los Angeles Times isn't in the news business. Our MSM is in the collaboration business.
If you live or work in Los Angeles then you know the logistics of gathering that many people had to take an extraordinary effort. At a guess - it was a union play that involved a good many buses. Few people live downtown, the mass transit is ineffective, there are no major shopping areas, little weekend foot traffic, few reasons to be there on a weekend. It's the same reason why Los Angeles doesn't have parades downtown. Who would come? Which makes any gathering suspect. I know from experience.
I was downtown several years ago for jury duty and went the Saturday before to check out parking. I came upon a Jesse Jackson rally for some issue or another. Avoiding the street, I turned two blocks in another direction and there they were -- some 20 or 30 buses lined up on each side of the street, bumper to bumper, out of camera range. You can imagine how much that cost someone.
So, too, with the rally in Los Angeles. This was no spontaneous outpouring. The question is, who paid for it? Who bought all those new American and Mexican flags? My guess is that the service industries and the janitorial industry unions were, no doubt, looking to make a massive statement. Too bad it will backfire spectacularly and with good reason.
Most illegals who are not unionized will be horrified by the display fearing rightfully that it will direct more inspection their way. Most legals who carefully abide by the law are unhappy with unlimited illegal immigration for the effect it has on lowering their wages.
But the real reason for the rally is the union fear that some sort of guest worker program that actually enforces immigration laws will wreck their tidy economy of taking $40 or $50 a week from people who serve as janitors and manual labor in Los Angeles. Losing that revenue flow has got to be a terrifying prospect for the unions. If only 200,000 of the crowd were illegal and known to be by the unions, the loss would represent $8 to $10 million a week.
Of course, if the Los Angeles Times employed investigative journalists and not just Stepford hacks, they could have interviewed the crowd and found out how they came to be there. They could have found out how they traveled to the rally. They could have investigated recent sales of American and Mexican flags. But the Los Angeles Times isn't in the news business. Our MSM is in the collaboration business.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Mum's the word
Another story the MSM studiously ignores.
Former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell might have evaded punishment for corruption, but like Al Capone, the Feds got him on tax evasion. How the jurors could find him innocent of corruption but guilty of taking $160,000 in cash, contributions, home improvements, and junkets is anyone's guess. Maybe they thought "corruption" was too strong a word.
As for the MSM, it's probably because he a do-no-evil Democrat.
Former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell might have evaded punishment for corruption, but like Al Capone, the Feds got him on tax evasion. How the jurors could find him innocent of corruption but guilty of taking $160,000 in cash, contributions, home improvements, and junkets is anyone's guess. Maybe they thought "corruption" was too strong a word.
As for the MSM, it's probably because he a do-no-evil Democrat.
Murder by any other name
Why it's important to call terrorists what they are.
In Kirkuk a doctor at the emergency room pretended to treat injured men. Instead he gave lethal injections to 43 of them so they would bleed to death The leftwing Independent calls him an "insurgent doctor".
Is there anyone of any decency that would call him anything but a murderer? Except the morally-challenged Independent>?
In Kirkuk a doctor at the emergency room pretended to treat injured men. Instead he gave lethal injections to 43 of them so they would bleed to death The leftwing Independent calls him an "insurgent doctor".
Is there anyone of any decency that would call him anything but a murderer? Except the morally-challenged Independent>?
EU - pronounced EWWWWWW
The EU, or parts of it anyway -- Germany, Poland, France, Spain, Great Britain and Italy -- are starting to reconsider multiculturalism, the unfettered joys of a fragmented society.
They are now considering a European "Test for Foreigners" - an integration contract to apprise newcomers of their rights and obligations. Oh, and they also want to do something about terrorism and illegal immigration.
And THAT is the problem with Europe. There is no real European unity on any problem, nor any consensus or willingness to fix anything. The conference is a photo op where the problems are discussed and half heartedly debated and some future conference is announced, usually by France, and then France will set out to undermine national policies of neighboring countries, and the disintegration of their societies continues unabated.
To anyone else, the idea of following France anywhere would be suicidal at best. Bloomberg : French unemployment is 9.6% (and - from CNN - around 50% for the some groups, 22% for the young). Annual growth is limited to 2 percent. Unemployment is dropping, they are quick to point out. Except, of the 110,000 new jobs created in the first half of the year, 85,000 will get government subsidies or be in the non-profit sector. Subsidized jobs and a 35-hour workweek and stop-gab measures that placate noone and punish business are the French solutions. Buying off the public with guaranteed jobs for life may no longer be possible. France is at war with capitalism, students, their labor unions, and unassimilated immigrants.
Like GM and Ford, France has made political accommodations with unions for decades. Power in exchange for union cooperation and collaboration in making use of union funds. Like GM and Ford, France is no longer capable of even pretending to be viable.
Not so very unlike the Democrat party.
They are now considering a European "Test for Foreigners" - an integration contract to apprise newcomers of their rights and obligations. Oh, and they also want to do something about terrorism and illegal immigration.
And THAT is the problem with Europe. There is no real European unity on any problem, nor any consensus or willingness to fix anything. The conference is a photo op where the problems are discussed and half heartedly debated and some future conference is announced, usually by France, and then France will set out to undermine national policies of neighboring countries, and the disintegration of their societies continues unabated.
To anyone else, the idea of following France anywhere would be suicidal at best. Bloomberg : French unemployment is 9.6% (and - from CNN - around 50% for the some groups, 22% for the young). Annual growth is limited to 2 percent. Unemployment is dropping, they are quick to point out. Except, of the 110,000 new jobs created in the first half of the year, 85,000 will get government subsidies or be in the non-profit sector. Subsidized jobs and a 35-hour workweek and stop-gab measures that placate noone and punish business are the French solutions. Buying off the public with guaranteed jobs for life may no longer be possible. France is at war with capitalism, students, their labor unions, and unassimilated immigrants.
Like GM and Ford, France has made political accommodations with unions for decades. Power in exchange for union cooperation and collaboration in making use of union funds. Like GM and Ford, France is no longer capable of even pretending to be viable.
Not so very unlike the Democrat party.
State-sponsored Piracy
That's how Apple describes the new French law passed by the lower house that would force Apple to make its downloads work on all digital music players and not just on the iPod.
Of course, state-sponsored piracy isn't new in France. In anticipation of the UN scheme to provide low costripoff generic drugs to the Third World, France is building a pharmaceutical firm in Brazil for the express purpose of producing drugs in violation of copyright laws. Brazil is a major player in flouting drug copyright laws.
Of course, state-sponsored piracy isn't new in France. In anticipation of the UN scheme to provide low cost
Our Canadian Friends
Canadian built detonator for terrorist plot, trial told
Canadian-born son of Pakistani immigrants, Mohammed Momin Khawaja, designed the detonator for a terrorist plot in the U.K.
Watchdog cleared tritium shipment to Iran
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission approved a shipment last year (under the Liberals) of dual-use tritium to Iran. The approved amount was about 10% of the quantity necessary for making a nuclear weapon. The shipment was in the form of 70,000 glow-in-the-dark lights.
Canadian-born son of Pakistani immigrants, Mohammed Momin Khawaja, designed the detonator for a terrorist plot in the U.K.
Watchdog cleared tritium shipment to Iran
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission approved a shipment last year (under the Liberals) of dual-use tritium to Iran. The approved amount was about 10% of the quantity necessary for making a nuclear weapon. The shipment was in the form of 70,000 glow-in-the-dark lights.
Bad slip or bad story?
Another blogger ragging on the New York Times?
For the second time in less than a week, The New York Times today admitted to a serious error in a story. On Saturday it said it had misidentified a man featured in the iconic 'hooded inmate' photograph from Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. Today it discloses that a woman it profiled on March 8 is not, in fact, a victim of Hurricane Katrina--and was arrested for fraud and grand larceny yesterday.It's from Editor & Publisher, the Lefty leaning industry rag. They call it "another bad slip."
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Fall from Grace
The Episcopal Church in California has just announced their candidates for a new bishop. Of the 7 candidates announced, three have same-sex partners. Of the three same-sex, one is a lesbian.
The first gay Episcopal Bishop, Gene Robinson, recently underwent alcohol rehabilitation. No wonder people are staying away from formerly-mainstream churches.
The first gay Episcopal Bishop, Gene Robinson, recently underwent alcohol rehabilitation. No wonder people are staying away from formerly-mainstream churches.
Canadian Liberals want Joe Tripp to advise
The Liberals in Canada are desperate enough to hire Joe Trippi to give them advice on fundraising.
They must be in worse shape than we thought if they want Howard Dean's former campaign manager.
They must be in worse shape than we thought if they want Howard Dean's former campaign manager.
ETA ceasefire
Famous last headlines: ETA announces permanent ceasefire.
They are, in AP lingo, "separatists" and "armed Basque group" and they had an "armed campaign." Despite the bombs and civilian targets, despite financing "the struggle" with money extorted from targeting the business community, the death of 800 people, and hundreds of bombs, the AP still can't call them terrorists.
Not all media make that fine distinction. Nor the EU. The European Union has ETA on their list of terrorist organizations, but then, the EU has Hamas and the PLO on their list and that hasn't stopped them from funneling money to the PLO for decades. But, at least, they know a terrorist organization when they see one.
Canadian Broadcasting Corp: "ETA is an armed separatist group in Spain, seeking an independent Marxist state in the Basque region." in link to chronology. This, despite, noting that in 2001, the EU declared the group terrorist.
They are, in AP lingo, "separatists" and "armed Basque group" and they had an "armed campaign." Despite the bombs and civilian targets, despite financing "the struggle" with money extorted from targeting the business community, the death of 800 people, and hundreds of bombs, the AP still can't call them terrorists.
Not all media make that fine distinction. Nor the EU. The European Union has ETA on their list of terrorist organizations, but then, the EU has Hamas and the PLO on their list and that hasn't stopped them from funneling money to the PLO for decades. But, at least, they know a terrorist organization when they see one.
Canadian Broadcasting Corp: "ETA is an armed separatist group in Spain, seeking an independent Marxist state in the Basque region." in link to chronology. This, despite, noting that in 2001, the EU declared the group terrorist.
AP HACK OUSTED and now we know why
We were right to be indignant when we learned about AP correspondent Christopher Graff's connections with the Democrat party.
When the longtime AP correspondent was abruptlyfired ousted, there was speculation as to why. Turns out it was exactly what we expected from those cozy connections. He had posted a column by Patrick Leahy, the ultra-liberal, highly partisan Senator from Vermont. Graff had posted the column to the wire in advance of the release. Within a hour the AP had removed the column and advised newspapers not to run it. According to a source, the AP criticized Graff and said he had compromised the integrity of the wire service.
Running advance copy of speeches and columns by political hacks - correction, Democrat hacks -- is how the AP and the newspapers that own the AP prepare an advance assault to promote a hatchet job. They've done it for decades. Only now, they have to actually contend with readers who might strike back.
When the longtime AP correspondent was abruptly
Running advance copy of speeches and columns by political hacks - correction, Democrat hacks -- is how the AP and the newspapers that own the AP prepare an advance assault to promote a hatchet job. They've done it for decades. Only now, they have to actually contend with readers who might strike back.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Time magazine billing
Say it isn't so.
Investigators for the states found that Time had billed consumers or charged their credit cards for 'unwanted or unordered' subscriptions, the attorney general's office said.What next? Fake subscribers? Oh, wait, that's Newsday. For sheer annoyance, however, nothing beats National Geographic for hounding subscribers who don't renew.
BRIEFS
SPAIN
Despite the worldwide MSM contention that there is no such thing as a terrorist, Spain has arrested another 32 "Islamic extremists." They were planning to blow up the National Court in Madrid.
EUROPEAN UNION
Apparently isn't. Germany will continue to ban workers from central European members Poland, Czech Republic and Baltic states through 2009.
FRANCE
Hailing "reform" of the "discredited" United Nations Human Rights Commission, Chirac will propose abolition of the death penalty and a ban on torture. It's a thin excuse to adopt the measure and then ban the U.S. from the new Council of Human Rights.
IMPASSE
Meanwhile, U.N. talks on Iranian nuclear "crisis" stalled as Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the U.S. couldn't agree on a strategy to induce Tehran to give up nuclear weapons.
EU GENEROSITY
The EU sends $609 million annually to the Palestinians tolaunder in aid. Recently, they approved a $120 million package to "help meet the needs of Palestinians and pay public sector salaries, $64 million Euros "of which was signed over the the UN on their behalf on Monday." (Considering there are only 1,376,289 in the Gaza Strip, this largesse is, ah, magnanimous.)
Despite the worldwide MSM contention that there is no such thing as a terrorist, Spain has arrested another 32 "Islamic extremists." They were planning to blow up the National Court in Madrid.
EUROPEAN UNION
Apparently isn't. Germany will continue to ban workers from central European members Poland, Czech Republic and Baltic states through 2009.
FRANCE
Hailing "reform" of the "discredited" United Nations Human Rights Commission, Chirac will propose abolition of the death penalty and a ban on torture. It's a thin excuse to adopt the measure and then ban the U.S. from the new Council of Human Rights.
IMPASSE
Meanwhile, U.N. talks on Iranian nuclear "crisis" stalled as Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the U.S. couldn't agree on a strategy to induce Tehran to give up nuclear weapons.
EU GENEROSITY
The EU sends $609 million annually to the Palestinians to
Monday, March 20, 2006
Too Cozy for Comfort
This is the kind of cozy relations that make most of us media critics angry.
Chris Graff, "well-known" Associated Press bureau chief in VT was fired. He is also a regular host of Vermont Public Televisions' Vermont This Week and Gov. Jim Douglas chimed in on the loss and so did Patrick Leahy.
Hell, why not Vermont DNC chair?
Chris Graff, "well-known" Associated Press bureau chief in VT was fired. He is also a regular host of Vermont Public Televisions' Vermont This Week and Gov. Jim Douglas chimed in on the loss and so did Patrick Leahy.
Hell, why not Vermont DNC chair?
More BS from the New York Times
This is what passes for "News Analysis" of the Knight Ridder sale by the New York Times. (The article originally appeared in the NYTimes.)
Their barebone facts.
* Tony Ridder sold the company and didn't have to.
* The sale was a stunning capitulation.
* Ridder could have "toughened" it out.
* McClatchy bought the company for $4.5 billion in cash and stock.
BACK UP there a moment, because the NYT forgot some inconvenient facts.
1. McClatchy didn't have $4.5 billion.
2. They borrowed $3.75 billion, so whoever bailed out Knight Ridder with a convenient loan to McClatchy actually own the Knight Ridder papers.
3. McClatchy also assumed $2 billion in Knight Ridder debt. (No mention whatsoever in the article.)
4. Knight Ridder debt burden was extraordinarily high even compared to other papers.
5. The above (#4) explains why Knight Ridder profits were so low. Much of their income was needed to service their debt. Their short and long-term debt rating had been reduced by Fitch, Moody's and Standard and Poors. (pg 37)
6. Knight Ridder had no choice but to sell or risk losing control of the company. Two other investment companies besides Private Capital Management were committed to challenging the board and instituting changes that would take KR out of Tony Ridder's hands.
7. McClatchy and the bankers will sell off 12 papers immediately, effectively breaking up the Knight Ridder chain. (No mention in article.)
8. The 2nd to last paragraph of the "news analysis" is pure wishful thinking. Knight Ridder was grateful that anyone bid on the sale. No other buyers were to be found.
So much for "all the news that's fit to print", huh?
Their barebone facts.
* Tony Ridder sold the company and didn't have to.
* The sale was a stunning capitulation.
* Ridder could have "toughened" it out.
* McClatchy bought the company for $4.5 billion in cash and stock.
BACK UP there a moment, because the NYT forgot some inconvenient facts.
1. McClatchy didn't have $4.5 billion.
2. They borrowed $3.75 billion, so whoever bailed out Knight Ridder with a convenient loan to McClatchy actually own the Knight Ridder papers.
3. McClatchy also assumed $2 billion in Knight Ridder debt. (No mention whatsoever in the article.)
4. Knight Ridder debt burden was extraordinarily high even compared to other papers.
5. The above (#4) explains why Knight Ridder profits were so low. Much of their income was needed to service their debt. Their short and long-term debt rating had been reduced by Fitch, Moody's and Standard and Poors. (pg 37)
6. Knight Ridder had no choice but to sell or risk losing control of the company. Two other investment companies besides Private Capital Management were committed to challenging the board and instituting changes that would take KR out of Tony Ridder's hands.
7. McClatchy and the bankers will sell off 12 papers immediately, effectively breaking up the Knight Ridder chain. (No mention in article.)
8. The 2nd to last paragraph of the "news analysis" is pure wishful thinking. Knight Ridder was grateful that anyone bid on the sale. No other buyers were to be found.
So much for "all the news that's fit to print", huh?
Death of multiculturalism... I hope
This is another online poll the Globe and Mail will ignore.
Is it time for Canada to abandon its multiculturalism policy and insist that immigrants adopt Canadian cultural values?
YES 18,356
NO 9,160
Is it time for Canada to abandon its multiculturalism policy and insist that immigrants adopt Canadian cultural values?
YES 18,356
NO 9,160
MSM on Blogs
Newsday on wanna-be journalists with blogs. [Emphasis mine.]
MSM cheerleader Romenesko appears to be skeptical . His headline was Claim: Most bloggers dream of working for a print publication
'Every so-called professional blogger I know wants to work for print,' says Melissa Lafsky, 27, a lawyer whose popular blog at Opinionistas .com led to her finding a book agent, quitting her big law-firm job and starting a novel based on her blog. 'There's still that desire for legitimacy. I'll admit it: I'll feel like a real writer when I have something published in print. 'Til then, I feel I'm faking it. Most bloggers I've talked to feel the same way.'"It makes the media feel better to imagine that bloggers just wanna be JUST LIKE like them. They even have a quote from the faked-entry blogger-wannabe Arianna Huffington that she (or her publicist) might have written.
MSM cheerleader Romenesko appears to be skeptical . His headline was Claim: Most bloggers dream of working for a print publication
MSM on Blogs
Newsday on wanna-be journalists with blogs. [Emphasis mine.]
MSM cheerleader Romenesko appears to be skeptical . His headline was Claim: Most bloggers dream of working for a print publication
'Every so-called professional blogger I know wants to work for print,' says Melissa Lafsky, 27, a lawyer whose popular blog at Opinionistas .com led to her finding a book agent, quitting her big law-firm job and starting a novel based on her blog. 'There's still that desire for legitimacy. I'll admit it: I'll feel like a real writer when I have something published in print. 'Til then, I feel I'm faking it. Most bloggers I've talked to feel the same way.'"It makes the media feel better to imagine that bloggers just wanna be JUST LIKE like them. They even have a quote from the faked-entry blogger-wannabe Arianna Huffington that she (or her publicist) might have written.
MSM cheerleader Romenesko appears to be skeptical . His headline was Claim: Most bloggers dream of working for a print publication
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Communist Creeps
What do Russian Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov, Russian State Duma Vice-President Sergei Baburin, former U.S. state prosecutor Ramsey Clark, and Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko have in common?
They are "dignitaries" who attended the funeral of Slobodan Milosovic.
Jimmy Carter must have had a previous engagement.
They are "dignitaries" who attended the funeral of Slobodan Milosovic.
Jimmy Carter must have had a previous engagement.
Friday, March 17, 2006
Newspaper Monopoly
A Columbia Journalism Reveiw editorial misses the point. In making the argument that years of monopoly underminded newspapers, they write: [Emphasis mine.]
(In fact, it's debatable whether newspaper culture IS the liberal ideology. )
So to ask those "troops" now to be lifted to "levels of creativity" is to deny that the purpose of diversified newsrooms intended -- that hiring be based on lack of excellence. They were hired for loyalty. Not genius, not writing skills, not imagination, not depth of experience. How do you take a college grad with a degree in journalism and teach him to "report deeply" when he has no life experiences and by, virtue of his employment, never will have. You don't. Newspapers never wanted that degree of free thinking or independence.
Journalists live in grey towers of ignorance that self-regard and egotism refuse to acknowledge. They are the brightest and the best because others tell them so. So how do you inject "authority" into someone who moved into the newsroom right after college, had no experiences in the workplace, lives separately from his fellow man?
You don't. That's why newspapers hire sophomoric morons right out of college. That's why they hope they remain sophomoric morons. The only creativity they were ever allowed in their careers was making up quotes and fabrications. The people who despise newsrooms the most are journalists who have a degree of intellect. But the morons rule.
Newspapers know this. The editorial reference to "troops" -- when the MSM regard "troops" as witless pawns -- is more telling than they know.
Whether editors used it well or wasted it, the golden age of monopoly is gone. Newspapers are in competition with everything now, and they have fewer troops to deploy. Editors know this. But it’s not yet clear at some papers that they know it deeply enough to try to lift those troops to levels of creativity that this loss of a news monopoly requires, to help time-pressed reporters make sharper choices, and to remind them over and over that they have qualities that few bloggers or radio jabbermouths or cable talkers come close to supplying: a visceral knowledge of the turf and an ability to report deeply and write with both voice and authority, given time and a little encouragement.The idiocy of that argument is that journalists where chosen, pre-selected, and the preferred hires for their lack of creativity, for their lack of daring, for their very willingness to write for, and conform to, a newspaper culture that is indistinguishable from the Liberal ideology.
(In fact, it's debatable whether newspaper culture IS the liberal ideology. )
So to ask those "troops" now to be lifted to "levels of creativity" is to deny that the purpose of diversified newsrooms intended -- that hiring be based on lack of excellence. They were hired for loyalty. Not genius, not writing skills, not imagination, not depth of experience. How do you take a college grad with a degree in journalism and teach him to "report deeply" when he has no life experiences and by, virtue of his employment, never will have. You don't. Newspapers never wanted that degree of free thinking or independence.
Journalists live in grey towers of ignorance that self-regard and egotism refuse to acknowledge. They are the brightest and the best because others tell them so. So how do you inject "authority" into someone who moved into the newsroom right after college, had no experiences in the workplace, lives separately from his fellow man?
You don't. That's why newspapers hire sophomoric morons right out of college. That's why they hope they remain sophomoric morons. The only creativity they were ever allowed in their careers was making up quotes and fabrications. The people who despise newsrooms the most are journalists who have a degree of intellect. But the morons rule.
Newspapers know this. The editorial reference to "troops" -- when the MSM regard "troops" as witless pawns -- is more telling than they know.
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Canadian Corruption pt 77
Canadian politics are what we would have if our MSM had the disproportionate influence they have in Canada. Take the former Privacy Commissioner George Radwanski. (The post is an independent officer of Parliament who serves as advocate for privacy rights of Canadians.)
Radwanski is facing criminal charges for, as the Toronto Star put it, an expense audit and suggests the fraud was $5,000. It's a little more than that. It was gross mismanagement. A 2003 audit found $500,000 misspent. By Canadian standards of public corruption, this was small indeed, compared to the Gun Registry ($2 Billion) and the Ad scandal ($250 milliona nd counting) and the forced resignations of a number of government appointees. But the pettiness was typical of many of Chretien's appointments and the reaction of the Liberals typical as well. They insisted that censure was enough.
And who was George Radwanski, who was so assiduous about protecting Canadian's privacy? He was a former Toronto Star editor-in-chief. &nbwp; And a tax cheater even while the Toronto Star editorialized about "abusive government powers" to track down, ah, tax cheaters.
And he defines Liberal arrogance.
Radwanski is facing criminal charges for, as the Toronto Star put it, an expense audit and suggests the fraud was $5,000. It's a little more than that. It was gross mismanagement. A 2003 audit found $500,000 misspent. By Canadian standards of public corruption, this was small indeed, compared to the Gun Registry ($2 Billion) and the Ad scandal ($250 milliona nd counting) and the forced resignations of a number of government appointees. But the pettiness was typical of many of Chretien's appointments and the reaction of the Liberals typical as well. They insisted that censure was enough.
And who was George Radwanski, who was so assiduous about protecting Canadian's privacy? He was a former Toronto Star editor-in-chief. &nbwp; And a tax cheater even while the Toronto Star editorialized about "abusive government powers" to track down, ah, tax cheaters.
And he defines Liberal arrogance.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Peter Pan Press
If you wonder why journalists are dumb as cow chips, check out this quote.
Journalists like to think that if you spent more money, newspapers would sell. That is the same self-delusion practiced by schools who insist that if there were just more teachers, smaller classrooms, etc, we could expect miracles. But we know it doesn't work. If it did work, the infusion of court-mandated billions into Kansas schools would have made them the best in the country. It didn't.
Our Peter Pan Press needs to grow up.
I'm afraid what this says is that the future of newspapers depends more on people who care about profit than (journalism's) community responsibility,' said Naughton, who retired in 2003 as president of the Poynter Institute, the school for journalists that owns the St. Petersburg Times.Knight Ridder was $2 billion in debt. THAT is why they had to sell, pushed by stockholder rebellion at the continued fiscal incompetence of management.
Journalists like to think that if you spent more money, newspapers would sell. That is the same self-delusion practiced by schools who insist that if there were just more teachers, smaller classrooms, etc, we could expect miracles. But we know it doesn't work. If it did work, the infusion of court-mandated billions into Kansas schools would have made them the best in the country. It didn't.
Our Peter Pan Press needs to grow up.
Naked Tribalism
Dr. Bob is a favorite site when your soul needs healing by humanness and decency, reason and logic, sometimes wonderful whimsey, and always damned good writing. Not surprisingly, his "The Pornography of Ideas" [permalink not working] on the reality of the Left is another thoughtful post. His blog. [Paragraphs added for emphasis.]
From this observation arises another conclusion: those on the left are far more tribal than national. Their allegiance and loyalty is no longer to country -- working for and hoping for more national unity, peace, and progress -- but rather to their particular interest group, whose narrow agenda dominates their worldview and becomes the totality of their focus.And the title comes from this observation.
They are not Americans who seek to improve the country's environment, but - environmental activists - who view all who differ on means and priorities as greedy polluters and evil capitalists. They are not Americans who genuinely seek, by personal effort and compromise, to improve the lot of the poor and underprivileged, but who prefer instead to exploit the poor as political pawns, demagoguing those who seek the same goals by economically rational means. They are not Americans who seek racial healing and cultural unity, but rather to use race as a lever to power, and charge "racism" freely and liberally - all the while being viciously racist against non-whites who dare to leave the liberal plantation.
To be on the left is to be gay, lesbian, or transgendered; pro-choice or feminist; environmental activist or animal-rights warrior; anti-globalism anarchist or antiwar protester - but never a member of a unified national community striving through compromise and cooperation to address core issues of discrimination, tolerance, economic or environmental progress, national security. The tribe comes first: their personal grievance their only allegiance; the nation - if considered in any positive light at all - is nothing more than a alliance of tribes, bound together by collective victimization, whose goals are to seek sufficient power to coerce their intellectual and moral inferiors into submitting to their dictates. Such is the natural history and inevitable outcome of multiculturalism, which seeks to divide and conquer rather than unite and restore.
The postmodern left loves the pornography of ideas: not the deep, transformational passion for beauty, and character, and worthy cause, sacrificing self for the best of the beloved, but rather ideas as harlots, useful to satisfy their lust for power and control, lascivious but cheap, discarded like yesterday’s condom when their utility passes and another conquest looms.I might be wrong, but I've always thought the French had perfected the Pornography of Ideas with the French Revolution and the rot set in from there. The Russian Revolution and Communism were the logical consequences and post-modern man, in his naked secularism, the new converts to nihilism. I never thought of the True Believers as tribal, but I will from now on.
Monday, March 13, 2006
A helping hand
It isn't April Fool's day yet so we have to believe this Deutsche Welle story on retraining prostitutes to be, ah, care givers to the elderly. It begins with "In their former profession, they were used to giving a helping hand."
We bet they were.
We bet they were.
Delusion
Self-delusion from the Left.
Hearing the leftwing media, there was a genocide every day. Hundreds of thousands were killed. But like the tens of thousands killed in East Timor, the reality was that he numbers just didn't add up. Less than 1,000 died in East Timor, and the numbers in Serbia are also suspect. Unlike a real genocide in Rwanda.
With his untimely death, former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic may have evaded judgment and thumbed his nose at the hundreds of thousands of victims of his alleged war crimes, but he's not thought to have escaped responsibility nor permanently impaired the cause of international justice.After a five year trial that humiliated the court, I would say he did a lot to discredit "international justice. Not nearly as much damage as the International Court did to itself though. And as for that upcoming case against 8 Serbs for the massacre at Srebrenica, how come it was "the only instance of proven genocide in the Yugoslav wars"?
Hearing the leftwing media, there was a genocide every day. Hundreds of thousands were killed. But like the tens of thousands killed in East Timor, the reality was that he numbers just didn't add up. Less than 1,000 died in East Timor, and the numbers in Serbia are also suspect. Unlike a real genocide in Rwanda.
Knight Ridder sale
The New York Times spinning the sale of Knight Ridder.
Unmentioned, of course, in the NYTime story was the fact that Knight Ridder was $2 billion in debt. They also failed to mention that McClatchy papers had to finance the transaction with $3.75 billion in bank debt. Most telling of all is the fact that the fear was rampant that no one would want Knight Ridder. MSNBC on the need for a "strong bid."
The bottom line, though, is that the 2nd largest newspaper chain in the U.S. just went belly up.
The sale may help assuage some investors who are nervous about the values of newspaper companies, however, because Knight Ridder commanded a premium of about 25 percent for its shares from the time it put itself up for sale in November under pressure from shareholders who were unhappy with performance of its stock.It reminds me of the $60 billion Viacom paid for CBS radio, properties that Viacom devalued by $30 billion two years later. Then there was the Time-Warner-AOL sale and the $80 billion writedown within two years.
Unmentioned, of course, in the NYTime story was the fact that Knight Ridder was $2 billion in debt. They also failed to mention that McClatchy papers had to finance the transaction with $3.75 billion in bank debt. Most telling of all is the fact that the fear was rampant that no one would want Knight Ridder. MSNBC on the need for a "strong bid."
If big newspaper owners such as Gannett Co. don’t step up and make what investors believe to be a strong bid, pessimists might take it as a sign of waning confidence in the future prospects of an industry that many already believe to be in decline. On the other hand, paying a rich price could also lead investors to punish the acquiring company. “It’s a Catch-22,” says Merrill Lynch newspaper analyst Lauren Rich Fine.In other words, the bailout was essential. McClatchy couldnt' afford it without bank loans, and they plan to sell off 12 papers immediately to pay for the Knight-Ridder debt. Wall Street wasn't as optimistic as the New York Times. And even the Times eventually admitted the sale wasn't much of an auction, with only one newspaper bidding.
The bottom line, though, is that the 2nd largest newspaper chain in the U.S. just went belly up.
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Bye Bye Slobodan
It was two years ago when I posted this about the trial of Slobodan Milosevic.
The Tribunal itself is a show piece for Internationalism under UN auspices. Supposedly a descendant of the Nuremburg trials, the problem is that those trials were conducted due to and in absence of a functioning German court system. The UN Tribunals are based upon an international treaty (unsigned by the U.S. under Clinton) in a court unrecognized by non-signees to the treaty, a court where no established law or precedent exists. In addition, the trial itself insults the concept of the nation-state, not to mention the distrurbing similarity to the Russian show trials of the 1930s that became verdicts in search of law.And I was not the only one who thought so.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Shameful and Disgusting
Remember when "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words will never hurt me?" was a happy childhood refrain? That was, of course, before the you-are-all-victims industry decided that ethnic jokes and derision were "hate speech." And people were "racists" for speech that was politically incorrect. Check out this Canadian travesty. (Full ruling here. )
Human Rights Tribunals and Commissions are unelected "courts" of redress when the oversensitive want to silence and punish others. I deplore inflammatory speech but I am a grown up. Words don't harm. The harm is to our concept of justice when citizens are persecuted without the protection of laws. The problem with non-elected, politically appointed, Human Rights Commissions and Tribunals are that their rulings are not subject to court review, and their decisions are not based upon laws of concensus, but of might.
The tricky thing with might, of course, is that one day those persecuting others will be on the other end of the tribunal table. Then, I suppose the "human rights crusader" will appeal to human decency after a lifetime of shameful conduct. It would be a good time then to kick the bastards in the teeth.
Note: Look who got an award for "pain and suffering" (see 110) in a smilar case. For a time, he worked for the commission. (see 4) in another case.
Read this decision on another case (see 218-226) that awarded $9,500 to an "overqualified" job applicant for not being hired for a job for which others (who were considered) were more qualified. (Follow the logic on that one, if you can.)
Human Rights Tribunals and Commissions are unelected "courts" of redress when the oversensitive want to silence and punish others. I deplore inflammatory speech but I am a grown up. Words don't harm. The harm is to our concept of justice when citizens are persecuted without the protection of laws. The problem with non-elected, politically appointed, Human Rights Commissions and Tribunals are that their rulings are not subject to court review, and their decisions are not based upon laws of concensus, but of might.
The tricky thing with might, of course, is that one day those persecuting others will be on the other end of the tribunal table. Then, I suppose the "human rights crusader" will appeal to human decency after a lifetime of shameful conduct. It would be a good time then to kick the bastards in the teeth.
Note: Look who got an award for "pain and suffering" (see 110) in a smilar case. For a time, he worked for the commission. (see 4) in another case.
Read this decision on another case (see 218-226) that awarded $9,500 to an "overqualified" job applicant for not being hired for a job for which others (who were considered) were more qualified. (Follow the logic on that one, if you can.)
Friday, March 10, 2006
Missing the numbers
Debunking Today Show's missing children media campaign.
This time, Today was more conservative in its [2004] estimate [of 58,000], claiming that only 5,000 children go missing each year. While this is an improvement over 58,000, the implication is still that there are 5,000 stereotypical kidnappings, in which a stranger or acquaintance abducts a child to hold for ransom or abuse and kill him or her. According to the Justice Department, there are only about 115 such incidents each year.Many news media outlets depend upon press release journalism - quoting from highly suspect "public interest" groups whose views the media share.
Monday, March 06, 2006
Hollywierd
I guess the Academy folks didn't read the AP-AOL poll on black leadership. If they had, they might have thought twice about rewarding a filth-laden rap song as best song.
4. In general, are hip hop artists good role models for children, or not?
5. In general, is hip hop music a positive or negative force in American society?
4. In general, are hip hop artists good role models for children, or not?
- Yes 18%
- No 77%
- Not sure 5%
5. In general, is hip hop music a positive or negative force in American society?
- Positive 28%
- Negative 50%
- Neither 10%
- Both 10%
- Not sure 7%
WHO YOU CALLING DUMB?
Recording for posterity - from DrudgeReport.
We are, indeed, blessed by our enemies.
The post has since been corrected, but it is hilarious. Too bad she couldn't correct her Harvard appearance. Time magazine reported that she was helped to write the speech at Harvard by Peter Jennings and the Leftwing Los Angeles Times' Robert Scheer. Harvard Crimson take. I happened to see it on C-SPAN. Too bad someone isn't selling a videotape.STREISAND: BUSH IS DUMMBE; ESSAY FILLED WITH SPELLING ERRORS
Mon Mar 06 2006 11:43:52 ET
Barbra Streisand has launched a new spelling error-ridden dispatch on the Internet -- a dispatch that mocks President Bush for being a "C student!"
In her February 28th, 2006 essay, Streisand flubs 11 words, a personal record.
• Irag
• curruption
• dictatoriship
• crediblity
• Adminstration
• warrented
• desperatly
• preceedings
• ouside
• subpoening
• responsibilty
And this time around, Streisand makes four spelling errors -- in one sentence!
["In the 1970’s, during the Nixon Adminstration, serious political curruption arose and the Republican leadership stepped up and took responsibilty by holding hearings and subpoening administration officials."]
Streisand has not seen fit to run a spellcheck on the rant as of Noon, March 06.
"The arrogance of this C student," Streisand says of Bush.
We are, indeed, blessed by our enemies.
Deported
A Belgiun woman was deported to Brussels. She had lived in the U.S. for 12 years on a student visa. She was 32 and reportedly was working "to pay for her studies." That makes her either a Rodney Dangerfield student or a complete liar.
She can't re-enter the U.S. for 10 years. Lets hope the INS makes a notation in her file that remembers how she took advantage of the system the first time around and stamps NO on her application.
She can't re-enter the U.S. for 10 years. Lets hope the INS makes a notation in her file that remembers how she took advantage of the system the first time around and stamps NO on her application.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Academy what???
Friday, March 03, 2006
Gotcha Journalism Backfires
From DrudgeReport, this correction from the Associated Press.
AP FRIDAY NIGHT CLARIFICATION ON BUSH/KATRINA VIDEO
Fri Mar 03 2006 19:48:29 ET
Clarification: Katrina-Video story
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON (AP) _ In a March 1 story, The Associated Press reported that federal disaster officials warned President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees in New Orleans, citing confidential video footage of an Aug. 28 briefing among U.S. officials.
The Army Corps of Engineers considers a breach a hole developing in a levee rather than an overrun. The story should have made clear that Bush was warned about floodwaters overrunning the levees, rather than the levees breaking.
The day before the storm hit, Bush was told there were grave concerns that the levees could be overrun. It wasn't until the next morning, as the storm was hitting, that Michael Brown, then head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Bush had inquired about reports of breaches. Bush did not participate in that briefing.
Associated Press writers Ron Fournier and Lara Jakes Jordan contributed to the original misleading story. Notice the time of the correction. After 7p.m EST.
PowerLine on it. They were the first to write how faulty the reporting was. Blogger Wizbang had more including a byline for the story that included MARGARET EBRAHIM and JOHN SOLOMON. Ebrahim appears to have been a former CBS news producer for 60 Minutes II.
Headline
TIME-WARNER ATTORNEY ARRESTED FOR RENTING TEENS FOR SEX.
If we followed the lead of the MSM in writing sensationalist headlines, the above would be perfect for the New York attorney arrested for renting two girls from their mother for sex.
Curiously, though, the last paragraph in the Toronto Sun that informs us that the lawyer worked for is considered one of "America's top law firms, which has regular client companies such as IBM and Time Warner." -- that information doesn't appear in any of the New York Daily News articles on Colliton's arrest. But read the final paragraph on this New York Sun piece.
I wonder if he will testify to more than just his own sexual antics.
If we followed the lead of the MSM in writing sensationalist headlines, the above would be perfect for the New York attorney arrested for renting two girls from their mother for sex.
Curiously, though, the last paragraph in the Toronto Sun that informs us that the lawyer worked for is considered one of "America's top law firms, which has regular client companies such as IBM and Time Warner." -- that information doesn't appear in any of the New York Daily News articles on Colliton's arrest. But read the final paragraph on this New York Sun piece.
I wonder if he will testify to more than just his own sexual antics.
CBS black eye
OUCH Investors were advised to sell shares of CBS Corp. The reason: radio revenue loss due to Howard Stern's departure.
The truth: CBS posted a $9.14 billion loss this year after lowering the value of television and radio assets. This was after a write-down of their radio and outdoor advertising units by $18 billion last year. Bloomberg News: "That means Viacom paid more than $60 billion for television networks in 2000 and 2001 that the company now valued at less than $30 billion."
It's reminiscent of the merger of Time-Warner and AOL when, within months of the merger in 2002, their combined company assets were devalued by $99.7 billion.
The truth: CBS posted a $9.14 billion loss this year after lowering the value of television and radio assets. This was after a write-down of their radio and outdoor advertising units by $18 billion last year. Bloomberg News: "That means Viacom paid more than $60 billion for television networks in 2000 and 2001 that the company now valued at less than $30 billion."
It's reminiscent of the merger of Time-Warner and AOL when, within months of the merger in 2002, their combined company assets were devalued by $99.7 billion.
Nut, indeed
PowerLine isn't mincing words in their "JIMMY CARTER: NUT" this morning. Read the whole thing.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
U.N. Human Rights Council
Honestly, try this for logic. From Mary Robinson, former UN Commissioner for Human Rights on why the proposal for a new Human Rights Council should be adopted.
Personally, I don't think the United Nations is worth saving. It's a corrupt and venal organization dominated by French perfidity and Russian style corruption.
If the United States presses for further negotiation, the U.S. media and Americans should ask themselves what sort of Human Rights Council they want and whether they prefer to stand beside the U.S. administration and countries like Cuba and Sudan as they search for it, or with human rights organizations and the majority of UN member states, including those in the European Union, calling for the current resolution to be adopted without further delay.I thought the need to create a Human Rights Council to replace the Human Rights Commission was precisely because the Commission was seen as inept and corrupt and an embarrassment, but one that also happens to be supported by the majority of UN member states. Which is why the U.S. is demanding that the vote be 2/3rds to allow nations to be on the new Council. So people like Mary Robinson won't be in charge ever again.
Personally, I don't think the United Nations is worth saving. It's a corrupt and venal organization dominated by French perfidity and Russian style corruption.
Idiot without the savant
NPR ass makes an ass of himself.
Naturally, the New York Times-owned International Herald Tribune would print the diatribe.
Naturally, the New York Times-owned International Herald Tribune would print the diatribe.
Rule of Law Courts
For those who are not registered at the Globe and Mail in Canada, today's Canadian Supreme Court story is worth registering for.
On a more serious note, the Canadian Supreme Court, appointed by Liberals for decades, relies on reference to international declarations, such as the Rights of Man from the United Nations embodied in the 1982 Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to usurp and overrule Canadian-made law. This is what Democrat-Socialists -- the two words need to be linked because they are linked in reality -- would like in this country. While the newspapers are spinning this as an issue of "religious freedom," it is, in the words of the court, based on "Canadian values based on multiculturalism." Their reliance in this case on unelected "Human Rights Commissions" in various cities and provinces and the Canadian Human Rights Commission that assures no citizen input shows how far toward Socialism Canadian courts have gone. A look at the commission members is typical of the makeup of human rights commissions throughout Canada. None are elected. None of their decisions are subject to review. Most of their recommendations are accepted without public debate or input. And their effect is enormous. In Canada, random drug testing was "struck down" as an affront to human rights.
Today's Decision
The human rights commissions in Canada are not unique. They are in most American Democrat-Socialist controlled cities. In Los Angeles, a parallel commission on the police serves the same function - to offer politicians "solutions" that would otherwise be politically untenable and would raise public concern or outcry.
The reality of the "human rights" advocacy can be found in the Human Rights Commission of the United Nations where every despot wants to serve to protect themselves against investigation. The reality of United Nations-guaranteed human rights is 800,000 dead in Rwanda and no one is responsible. The reality of human rights is the murder of white farmers in Zimbabwe and necklacing in South Africa and thegenocide that's not a genocide in Darfur, murderous rampage by Pol Pot, and the support for terrorist groups like the Tamil Tigers.
When the Equal Rights Amendment was attempted in this country, I was against it. I am against the United Nations declarations of Human Rights for the same reason. My rights are God-given and immutable.
The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that Sikh students can carry ceremonial daggers to class and that doing so does not pose a undue danger to others in the schools.Those Canadian pencils must be more lethal than ours.
The top court overturned Thursday morning a Quebec Court of Appeals ruling that had barred the kirpan from schools in the province. The Quebec court had said a limit on religious freedom was reasonable, given the safety concerns from carrying the daggers to school.
"Religious tolerance is a very important value of Canadian society," the top court judges wrote in their decision.
"A total prohibition against wearing a kirpan to school undermines the value of this religious symbol and sends students the message that some religious practices do not merit the same protection as others."
If the kirpan is sealed inside clothing the risk of it being used for violent purposes, or being taken away by other students is very low, the judges said. "There are many objects in schools that could be used to commit violent acts and that are much more easily obtained by students, such as scissors, pencils and baseball bats."
On a more serious note, the Canadian Supreme Court, appointed by Liberals for decades, relies on reference to international declarations, such as the Rights of Man from the United Nations embodied in the 1982 Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to usurp and overrule Canadian-made law. This is what Democrat-Socialists -- the two words need to be linked because they are linked in reality -- would like in this country. While the newspapers are spinning this as an issue of "religious freedom," it is, in the words of the court, based on "Canadian values based on multiculturalism." Their reliance in this case on unelected "Human Rights Commissions" in various cities and provinces and the Canadian Human Rights Commission that assures no citizen input shows how far toward Socialism Canadian courts have gone. A look at the commission members is typical of the makeup of human rights commissions throughout Canada. None are elected. None of their decisions are subject to review. Most of their recommendations are accepted without public debate or input. And their effect is enormous. In Canada, random drug testing was "struck down" as an affront to human rights.
Today's Decision
The human rights commissions in Canada are not unique. They are in most American Democrat-Socialist controlled cities. In Los Angeles, a parallel commission on the police serves the same function - to offer politicians "solutions" that would otherwise be politically untenable and would raise public concern or outcry.
The reality of the "human rights" advocacy can be found in the Human Rights Commission of the United Nations where every despot wants to serve to protect themselves against investigation. The reality of United Nations-guaranteed human rights is 800,000 dead in Rwanda and no one is responsible. The reality of human rights is the murder of white farmers in Zimbabwe and necklacing in South Africa and the
When the Equal Rights Amendment was attempted in this country, I was against it. I am against the United Nations declarations of Human Rights for the same reason. My rights are God-given and immutable.
Media Swarm
Glenn Reynolds is beginning to describe it as a "anti-Bush swarm" - the media pushing a story to get political traction. Read the Patterico link as well.
History Update
Setting the record straight. An Italian parliamentary committee determined "beyond any reasonable doubt" that the Soviet Union was behind the 1981 attempt to kill Pope John Paul II.
Not that the New York Times will be convinced.
Not that the New York Times will be convinced.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Screw the New York Times and Prosecute them
Michael Barone is conflicted on prosecuting the media under the Espionage Act for their disclosures of secrets.
IMHO - The only danger I can see is if we lose the case. Because the NYTimes has become so unhinged that it is endangering my country, my fellow countrymen and the future of my country. It's one thing to hide the misdeeds of tyrants and dictators and terrorists. It's another thing altogether to give encouragement to tyrants and dictators and terrorists.
Part of me says that a prosecution of the Times and its sources would be fully justified, probably more so than the prosecutions of Morison and Franklin. That part of me also tends to think that the Times, in its contradictory stances on the Plame and NSA disclosures, has been acting out of malicious political motives and in reckless disregard of the real security interests of the United States.He concludes that the government should act with caution and restraint. He feels that the Times has recklessly brought this peril on itself.
IMHO - The only danger I can see is if we lose the case. Because the NYTimes has become so unhinged that it is endangering my country, my fellow countrymen and the future of my country. It's one thing to hide the misdeeds of tyrants and dictators and terrorists. It's another thing altogether to give encouragement to tyrants and dictators and terrorists.
New boondoggle
Make no mistake about this. The air tax proposed and adopted by France and now agreed to by 12 other countries is an international tax.
None of the funds collected will go into national treasuries.
Africa, in addition to need, has some of the most corrupt governments on the planet who were quick to sign up to help launder the money. Because that is exactly what this is about. Lack of fiscal accountability is the main attraction, and the inclusion of the United Nations is evidence that this is just the new food-for-oil program. Call it the "HIV drugs for socialism" program.
Al-Jazerra had one additional paragraph to the article.
None of the funds collected will go into national treasuries.
Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said the money would go to a central medicine buying facility France and Brazil are working to set up which would notably work to give AIDS and HIV sufferers cheaper and easier access to anti-retroviral drugs.The "development aid" money will go mainly to African countries as Africa "will always need outside aid."
Africa, in addition to need, has some of the most corrupt governments on the planet who were quick to sign up to help launder the money. Because that is exactly what this is about. Lack of fiscal accountability is the main attraction, and the inclusion of the United Nations is evidence that this is just the new food-for-oil program. Call it the "HIV drugs for socialism" program.
Al-Jazerra had one additional paragraph to the article.
It was "absolutely necessary" for countries to come up with new ways of raising development aid, he said, but only "on condition that that is not a pretext for states to reduce their contributions elsewhere".For development aid, read "United Nations" support.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)