I can't defend Brian Williams' lies but let's get real. Lies are a staple of NBC news. Are Williams' lies any worse than David Gregory badgering Michelle Bachmann and John Boehner over Obama's birth certificate knowing full well that neither of them had ever mentioned Obama's place of birth and knowing that the ridiculous "Born in Kenya" meme was started by Barack Obama himself in a biography provided to his literary agency, Dystel and Goderich. We can't chart all of the lies at NBC. That would be a Herculean task on scale with tallying all of the White House lies.
Almost as disturbing as Williams lying is his ignorance of modern history. Eisenhower never ran against Kennedy and anyone who works in the press should know that. This is malpractice as absurd as a doctor not knowing how many kidneys a patient should have. From this very blog June 9, 2009.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Let's be fair. It is possible that Williams misspoke. That he knew that Kennedy never ran against Eisenhower but that Nixon (Eisenehower's vice president) was an extension of the Eisenhower Administration. Maybe he accidentally misstated the facts. But he did not clarify as well as he should have.
Williams then repeats the analogy. And in the context, it appears that he does believe Eisenhower ran against Kennedy because McCain the war hero is sort of the political Eisenhower of his era. He is certainly comparing Eisenhower and McCain.
Is Williams a moron? If the standard is beyond reasonable doubt, he has a chance at acquittal. If the standard is a preponderance of evidence, the viewers and the voters will be rewarded damages.
Oh, and you might notice that Mensa member Dave does not correct his intellectual twin on his absurdities.
PALIN HAS NEVER UTTERED ANYTHING HALF THIS STUPID
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
To paraphrase Hillary Clinton, at this stage of the game, what difference does it make?
Saturday, February 7, 2015
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
William Bennett Vs. Greg Abbott On Common Core
I don't have a dog in this fight. I believe our nation's schools will continue to crank out illiterates and numerically incompetent individuals regardless of what curriculum is advanced. We live in a society where truth does not count for much anymore. If we don't like the fact that two plus two equals four we change the definition of four. Self esteem is preserved, problem solved.
I started bashing William Bennett a couple of decades ago. Nothing personal. In fact, I admire his opportunism. Prior to Barack Obama no one ever refuted the Peter Principle so brazenly. And I respect William Bennett's over achievement. Like Rosie O'Donell, he has done so much with so little talent. These people are unsinkable. I bet they both someday rise from the dead to guest on future talk shows.
William Bennett is the guy Codevilla warned us about. He might present as the paragon of virtue (I think he owns the copyright on that word) but don't be surprised if he is playing footsie with Tim Kaine or Cass Sunstein. The GOP is full of mountebanks. William Bennett is just one of the more obvious examples.
ABOVE ALL ELSE, BENNETT IS A WASHINGTON INSIDER
I started bashing William Bennett a couple of decades ago. Nothing personal. In fact, I admire his opportunism. Prior to Barack Obama no one ever refuted the Peter Principle so brazenly. And I respect William Bennett's over achievement. Like Rosie O'Donell, he has done so much with so little talent. These people are unsinkable. I bet they both someday rise from the dead to guest on future talk shows.
William Bennett is the guy Codevilla warned us about. He might present as the paragon of virtue (I think he owns the copyright on that word) but don't be surprised if he is playing footsie with Tim Kaine or Cass Sunstein. The GOP is full of mountebanks. William Bennett is just one of the more obvious examples.
ABOVE ALL ELSE, BENNETT IS A WASHINGTON INSIDER
Herd of RINO's
Mitt steps aside and two Democrats in drag take his place. Are these like those lower life forms that you can break in half and instead of subtracting one from the equation, we get two organisms?
Pro-abortion, pro gun control advocate George Pataki is back with the blessing of would be kingmaker Sheldon Adelson. Ideology aside, I level the same criticism against Pataki that I level against Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush, Gary Johnson and Rick Santorum. You stay home when you could have been a contender against a Democratic Senate incumbent in your home state. It's called being a team player. Pataki is not the ideal candidate but I will take him over New York's current Senate duo. But if he won't get off the bench....
A guy who had a bright future if he played his cards right was John Kasich, governor from Ohio. This guy was a strong VP candidate but then he started singing the praises for Obamacare, even citing Scripture to justify the 2, 700 page abomination. Thanks, but no thanks, Ohio.
Has Bob Dole formed an exploratory committee yet?
Pro-abortion, pro gun control advocate George Pataki is back with the blessing of would be kingmaker Sheldon Adelson. Ideology aside, I level the same criticism against Pataki that I level against Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush, Gary Johnson and Rick Santorum. You stay home when you could have been a contender against a Democratic Senate incumbent in your home state. It's called being a team player. Pataki is not the ideal candidate but I will take him over New York's current Senate duo. But if he won't get off the bench....
A guy who had a bright future if he played his cards right was John Kasich, governor from Ohio. This guy was a strong VP candidate but then he started singing the praises for Obamacare, even citing Scripture to justify the 2, 700 page abomination. Thanks, but no thanks, Ohio.
Has Bob Dole formed an exploratory committee yet?
Sunday, February 1, 2015
Congratulations Patriots!
Butler did it!
Je suis Gronk!
Ich bin auch Wilfork!
Who cares about the 16 inches of snow and the three hours in a dental chair that await me. Happy days are here again!
Je suis Gronk!
Ich bin auch Wilfork!
Who cares about the 16 inches of snow and the three hours in a dental chair that await me. Happy days are here again!
Once More, The Media Is The Message
I guess the media are the message or the messages. One of the most common English language errors is to use the plural noun media as a singular noun. Occasionally you will get a double plural, "medias" (as well as the less frequent agendas or datas). We can excuse people confusing media as a singular noun because news people are a giant senseless mob. Sad but true.
I will watch the Super Bowl later today. I did not watch most of the regular and post season mostly because I was sick of the news mob interjecting themselves into the story. Spectator sports work because they sell escape. If the know-it-alls treat the events as forums to expound on the virtues of gun control or the evils of domestic violence or the tragedy of head injuries, something is lost. As high minded as these platitudes might be, they certainly destroy the escapist entertainment.
There was a time when sports reporting was the last refuge of good journalism. If you wanted to know who what when where, the sports guys delivered. Hubris set in and the Bob Costas's of the world insisted on being recognized as oracles at large. They would sanction personnel and policies much as their big brothers in news media were doing. It was time we all bowed down to our superiors.
People can talk about left vs right, conservative vs liberal, Tea Party vs Establishment, etc. Still it does seem like it is often the media vs the people. Andy Rooney's summary of the 2004 presidential election will live on in infamy. "Half of the media liked John Kerry. The other half hated George Bush."
I have ignored most of the Deflategate scandal because it does not rise to the level of a real scandal. Indianapolis did not lose by 38 points because footballs were deflated to the degree that they could not even recognize the deflation. And the Patriots outscored the Colts 28-0 in the second half with fully inflated balls. Facts just do not matter any more.
The sports media generated a witch hunt and then experienced a collective Midol moment when the lynch mob was not activated. They are the rightful shapers of public opinion--all opinion--and Tom Brady is the latest Chris Christie. Ultimately, the news mob was thwarted. I would be cheering on the Patriots today even if I did not live in New England. Screw the news mob. Je suis Belichick!
I will watch the Super Bowl later today. I did not watch most of the regular and post season mostly because I was sick of the news mob interjecting themselves into the story. Spectator sports work because they sell escape. If the know-it-alls treat the events as forums to expound on the virtues of gun control or the evils of domestic violence or the tragedy of head injuries, something is lost. As high minded as these platitudes might be, they certainly destroy the escapist entertainment.
There was a time when sports reporting was the last refuge of good journalism. If you wanted to know who what when where, the sports guys delivered. Hubris set in and the Bob Costas's of the world insisted on being recognized as oracles at large. They would sanction personnel and policies much as their big brothers in news media were doing. It was time we all bowed down to our superiors.
People can talk about left vs right, conservative vs liberal, Tea Party vs Establishment, etc. Still it does seem like it is often the media vs the people. Andy Rooney's summary of the 2004 presidential election will live on in infamy. "Half of the media liked John Kerry. The other half hated George Bush."
I have ignored most of the Deflategate scandal because it does not rise to the level of a real scandal. Indianapolis did not lose by 38 points because footballs were deflated to the degree that they could not even recognize the deflation. And the Patriots outscored the Colts 28-0 in the second half with fully inflated balls. Facts just do not matter any more.
The sports media generated a witch hunt and then experienced a collective Midol moment when the lynch mob was not activated. They are the rightful shapers of public opinion--all opinion--and Tom Brady is the latest Chris Christie. Ultimately, the news mob was thwarted. I would be cheering on the Patriots today even if I did not live in New England. Screw the news mob. Je suis Belichick!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)