Under the Fedora: Journalism, Havel and a Friend in need

There was a great example of how you turn one question into a deceiving headline.

On Face the Nation, Bob Schieffer asked Newt Gingrich about his statements concerning judges and the power of congress over them. Gingrich expanded on it noting that a judge giving a verdict beyond outragious can be subpoenaed to explain his decision,

Schieffer pressed on “what if he doesn’t answer such a subpoena and Gingrich correctly notes the capital police can compel the presence of one who ignores such a subpoena.

Presto: instant phony headline at the hill:

Gingrich: Congress can send Capitol Police to arrest rogue judges

GOP presidential frontrunner Newt Gingrich said Congress has the power to dispatch the Capitol Police or U.S. Marshals to apprehend a federal judge who renders a decision lawmakers broadly oppose.

It is only after the lead that the writer Bolton notes he was talking not about sending police for a decision, but for defying a federal subpoena.

Ah Journo-lism means never having to say what side you’re on, expect in secret.

Of course some bias by the media is just plain funny as the new editor notices:

Apparently in Mr. Blow’s world, our society is ‘doomed,’ in part, because people don’t recognize the danger inherent in a system that results in 50% of households having incomes below the median average.

You see, it’s all about the ‘facts,’ and if you don’t accept the ‘facts,’ you are a ‘denier.’

If it wasn’t so sad, it would be funny.

Update: A Google search for the phrase “Census shows 1 in 2 people are poor or low-income” — the title of the AP story on the ludicrous ‘findings’ from the US Census Bureau showing that 50% of all US households earn less than the US median income — yields over 140,000 results.

Good think journalists are so well educated.

Speaking of Gingrich there is a great Youtube video from 2002 with him and the late Chris Hitchens talking the war on terror. It’s well worth your time.

And one more Hitchens story this one from William Jacobson:

I had a long conversation with Hitch in April 2010, a few weeks before he was diagnosed with cancer. My friend Steven and I waited for him outside of the Kimmel Center at NYU after he participated on a panel. He came out, armed with a double Johnnie Walker Black and a bottle of Evian. There were only four people waiting to talk to him and it was pretty late in the evening, but he stayed for about an hour to talk with us. He was just as polished in a casual conversation with college sophomores as he was on stage defending a wildly unpopular war or in his weekly column. Beyond that, though, he didn’t seem bothered by our conversation. In fact, he engaged with us; asking follow-up questions and clarifications. I rarely get that sense of genuine interest from anyone, including my professors.

Most people will probably attribute Hitch’s success to his intellect. That’s fair, but I think it’s also insufficient. There are plenty of people who are smarter than Hitchens but remain less devoted to their work. The element that drove Hitchens the top was his pursuit of the truth. Nothing else can explain his prodigious output, willingness to engage with his critics, political conversions, & his late-night conversations with college kids.

The willingness to engage those who disagreed with him was always one of Hitchens finest qualities.

Vaclav Havel has died. He was one of the great voices for freedom in both the soviet and the post-soviet world.

Havel will likely not get the Kudos that other have, but then again he also was not afraid to go after Cuba as Babalu blog remembers

Havel was a friend of Cubans and Cuban-Americans who sought to restore freedom and democracy to their homeland since 1959. In a speech in 2002, he indicated “”I want to express my solidarity to all those who struggle for a free life in Cuba.” In 2006, he stated that “I cannot go to Cuba to relax on the beach and keep my eyes shut, while dozens of political prisoners are behind bars there.” His words should be required reading to Americans who want to travel to Cuba to dance cha-cha and drink mojitos in Havana nightclubs, while ignoring the plight of daily life for average Cubans.

Many in the press will not abide that.

On the other end of hte coin Kim Jong Il apparently died Saturday. Unfortunately his successor Kim Jong Un seems to be more of the same. Unless the generals decide to knock him off things aren’t going to change, and maybe not even then.

Illinois was one of the few states to go blue last time around and their decision to continue to raise taxes has had the expected result:

Mr. Wooters has another five years before he can retire, but he’s advising his kids to leave the state after college. He’s also talked with his dad about closing their shop because it costs too much to run a business in Illinois these days. Plus, “the customers are leaving town.”

Now two downstate Republican lawmakers think that they’ve found a solution for Mr. Wooters and other disgruntled Illinoisans who want to escape but can’t: Cut off the pesky tail that’s wagging the dog—separate Chicago from the rest of the state.
It never ceases to amaze me that people expect a different result from this kind of decision

And apparently rich democrats in Virginia are getting angry at being “used as a piggybank’ by the Virginia Assembly.

Reason asks “What ever happened to making the rich pay their fair share.” Glenn Reynolds answers “They mean those other rich people”

As of Sunday the last US troops have left Iraq. The news media focused on the cost, on the causalities and the time, none of the successes from the removal of one of the most bloodthirsty dictators and his family, the establishment of one of the most honest elections in the in the Arab world and an incredible amount of causalities among our enemies including the drawing of Al Qaeda members from all over the world to Iraq so we can kill them.

If this war had started under a democratic president all of these points would have been made but this war began under George W Bush so the only good thing about it is its ending.

It was a mixed day for those who fear Tim Tebow. Fumbles and penalties doomed Denver after a strong start as the patriots offense simply rolled forward. Defeating them 41-23.

But at the same time the Oakland Raiders not only gave up two last minute touchdowns to Detroit, but had the potential game winning field goal blocked losing to the Lions 28-27 keeping Denver in first place by game with two left to play and since Oakland and San Diego with two weeks to go to the season and owning the tie breaker. Denver is in the catbird seat to clinch a playoff spot

God doesn’t always give you want you want, but usually give you what you need.
Plus it’s nice to see Detroit get a break, after the decade they’ve had they have one coming.

I’ve started a new series on my blog called: Da Saturday diners. This week I visited a place in Lancaster Massachusetts called Michael’s Bridge diner. The food was pretty good but if you are a member of PETA you might have a heart attack when seeing things like this:

That alone is reason to go.

In closing Zilla of the Resistance had this to say concerning a post a bit ago about conservative bloggers needing support:

Christmas is just around the corner, why not spread some joy by hitting a few of the tip jars of your favorite bloggers? I an guarantee you that it will be welcomed and appreciated! And if you can spare anything at all, please help me to stay avoid being silenced by hitting my tip jar. Thank you for reading, and I wish you all a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and a very Happy New Year.

Zilla is a friend and if you could help her stay afloat, I’d really appreciate it.

See you just before Christmas.