Praise the Lord they could walk

So they get all the way to the runway before anyone says anything? Are people insane? You smell alcohol on a pilot and you joke about it as he sits in the cockpit?

What a world we live in. But then of course we have the defense attourney saying:

"Mr. Hughes was able to see, hear, walk, talk, etcetera," attorney James Rubin said of his client.

And he goes on to argue that they weren't actually operating the airplane at the time. They were in fact being tugged to the runway so the tug driver had control of the plane. My question is, who did they expect to fly the plane once they arrived at the end of the runway?

This quote says it all

"If Johnson donates part of his liver, it could take up to two months for him to recover enough to return to death row."

Normalcy

File this one under "Sure, that could be normal". She's 34 and he's 22, no problem. They have two children together, no problem. She was married before and has 4 other children. Ok, a little messed up for the kids (very messed up actually) but still, in today's culture, somewhat common.

But their two daughters are 7 and 8 years old. Do the math that makes him 14 and 15 when he knocked her up. And she was his teacher. They met when he was in second grade. They became "intimate" when he was 12. All semblance of normalcy... obliterated. I don't think Dr. Phil would even touch this one. To begin thinking about the messed up confusion in this guy's mind and heart brings a swirl of dizziness. Then to ask what a 24 year old mother of 4 could gain from a relationship with a 12 year old almost brings the gag reflex. Can you say Oedipus?

Low Expectations Abound

Ok, just the other day I was convicted that my disgust with Newsweek was slightly misplaced. I have such low expectations of Arab Muslims that any report such as the one about the flushed Koran seems to beg for riots and death. So I was convinced that I ought to raise my expectations and place my disgust with the riotous murderers who perpetrate this kind of bizarre reaction. The idea that paper being flushed down a toilet should result in death to anyone is really bizarre.

I’m still somewhat disgusted with Newsweek, as with CBS and several other “news” agencies who seem to be so blinded by a specific agenda that they can’t even perceive their own bias. But, let’s raise the bar on Arab Muslims just a tad huh?

Now it’s time to raise the bar on news agencies as well. The pictures published by the Sun seem to be aimed at the incarcerators. It’s as if there is an expectation that any punishment ought to be meted out on the photographer, or the person who sold the pictures to the Sun. The Sun itself cannot be culpable for it’s actions, it is merely doing what a newspaper does, publishes. It asks no value questions whatever. It asks no justice questions, it simply puts things into print that it believes will sell papers.

It’s time for news agencies to have some responsibility. We need to raise the bar of expectations for newspapers, magazines, television. Agencies must be responsible for the things they do. If these pictures are truly a violation of Geneva convention then the Sun is among those responsible for the violation. There may be a legitimate reason for the photographs to have been taken, but the violation is in printing them which lies with the Sun.

The Real Enemy

Ok, it's been a long time, but for good reason. I'm now licensed to sell life, health, property, casualty and variable products.

This article raised my ire and got me in front of the blog keyboard again.

I've been watching this story unfold and frankly have been pretty upset with the shoddy reporting by Newsweek here. It seems pretty clear that they bear some culpability in all this. A few more phone calls could have saved 17 lives. But they were Afghan lives and for some reason that seems to make a difference to the average American. Imagine if they were American lives from perhaps, Cleveland.

Anyway, my opinion regarding Newsweek (and CBS) aside, I think David Brooks actually makes a very good point. I felt rebuked, and rightfully so, when he says "Talk about the bigotry of low expectations." I do have pretty low expectations when it comes to the ability of Arabs to resort to violence. I can't imagine this same reaction in Israel were it reported that the Torah had been flushed, or in Christianity if the New Testament were involved. Perhaps there would have been disgust, outrage, harsh words etc. But riots and murder? Death and mayhem? No.

So why am I not surprised when Arabs show themselves to be a powder keg with a short fuse? Why does that not shock society anymore? And instead we are in fact quick to blame those who ineptly trip the fuse.

The real enemy is not CBS, Newsweek, President Bush, Harry Reid... The real enemy is the fanatical belief that murder is justified in some cases, that violence is endearing to God, that some persons are of less value because of the color of their skin, their religious beliefs, their way of life.