Tuesday, May 31, 2005

Deep Throat   Bob Woodward has confirmed the Felt family's claim that Mark Felt was Deep Throat.  The guy's 91, and he looks pretty frail, so I'd like to call him a hero, but I can't.  It's a good thing he leaked stuff anonymously, but if he had just openly come forward with what he knew, we would have been spared the second Nixon term.  Not that Nixon was actually that bad a President (he created the EPA), aside from the mistake of recognizing China, and instituting racial preferences (which were always consititutionally questionable and discriminatory) instead of continuing the civil rights requirement that schools and businesses made every effort to give minorities a fair shake (which in legal terms was actually a much higher standard), and, well, being a crook. Mark Felt, Deep Throat:  what a weasel. 5:28:03 PM    comment []

Reporters' Bad Case of Stockholm Syndrome   Members of the press who disparage the blogosphere and laud to the skies the professional standards of the paid media are confusing cause and effect.  Ethical standards in the press are largely an outgrowth of owners trying to protect themselves from lawsuits.  Beyond that, ethical standards are whatever reporters, who are considerably more idealistic folk than most media owners, manage to sneak in with them while their ownership wasn't paying attention.  The great reporters are great because they have high standards, and they work hard; the newspaper or TV outlet they work for have, really, fairly little to do with it.  When they make extreme attacks on the blogosphere, they sound like hostages who have fallen in love with their captor.  A. J. Liebling said, "Freedom of the press is limited to those who own one."  And this has been true; everyone has a voice; but a greater voice belongs to those who own the megaphone.  With the onset of blogging, everyone has greater potential access to an audience; please note I say potential access.  An enormous advantage still accrues to those bloggers who are associated with the paid media.  But with time, and success in breaking stories, and success presenting viewpoints not adequately represented in the paid media, some few bloggers are breaking through to have personal influence; and the mass of bloggers frequently are able to shine a national spotlight on an issue. 2:38:52 PM    comment []

State Department Official's Pants Don't Burst Into Flames   You've heard the expression, "Liar, liar, pants on fire"?  Well, that appears to be a purely figurative expression.  What makes me so sure?  A spokesman for the State Department, Noel Clay, responded to the French vote against a European constitution by saying, "We welcome a strong, integrated Europe", and there was no report of any damage to his pants.  In fact, the US hates the idea of a united Europe, which would have more people and form an economy that was competitive with America; and indeed, would form a competing superpower.  A more united European economy, with more consistent the laws governing it, would make for a more competitive, efficient, and productive Europe, and frankly, that doesn't serve either US economic or political interests at all. And I have no real problem with that; that's just the way it is.  However, I do think it's pointless to pretend that the US wants a united Europe when everyone at the State Department was probably popping champagne corks (from bottles of fake American champagne) when the news came in. 9:05:42 AM    comment []

Quote for the Day, 5/31/2005   "A little flirting with the female members of the cast and stage team will help to relax the nerves, but avoid anything in the nature of an orgy.  Save that for the last night party."   -Michael Green, The Art of Coarse Acting 7:31:21 AM    comment []