With all the really really important stuff happening in the world today, the first (and only) questions in today's press briefing had to do with 'why the hell was there a delay in informing us about Cheney's Hunting Incident?'
Ah, the good old 'people's right to know' with the additional 'IMMEDIATELY' tacked on. The Press is on a mission.
First, where is the 'Right to Know' in the constitution? It's not there. However, by logical extension, people in a democracy who decide what their government will do will certainly make better decisions when they are informed.
So just what would American citizens actually DO if they were informed a few hours earlier of the incident? I mean, really. And what if the first 'facts' that emerged were incomplete or untrue? What will citizens DO with the information.
(Like my Joe says, what is the public going to do if they learn that the Pershing missile can go xxxx kilometers? There is no public need to justify printing such information.)
It doesn't matter one whit whether we were informed on Saturday, Saturday night, or Sunday morning. Doesn't matter at all. And there is no principle involved other than the Press Corps feeling miffed and not in control. Such outrage. Not only are they angry about the delay, they're angry because a private citizen, the ranch owner on whose property the incident occurred and who was a witness was the first to inform the public through her local newspaper.
Such a travesty of justice! Not!
Get serious, you idiots in the press. There's a war on. A real one. Get back to work and do your job which is informing the public about things that matter. Things the public has to act on.
17 comments:
Syl:
What difference would it have made if we had never known for that matter?
The whole thing is stupid. I see.... so if Cheney himself had told the press immediately.... it would have mattered?
It is no wonder that 75% of the American people have a negative view of the press.
oH, FUDGE--
LOL
You have to admit some of the 'jokes' are funny, though.
And I'm sure Cheney is embarrassed by the whole thing.
The jokes are fine.
Trying to make more of the incident re 'covering up' and 'putting Cheney in the best light' are not. Democrats would have acted in the same way.
What we have in this country is not the 'right to know what is necessary to keep us informed re making judgements re the course of our government' but, rather, the 'right to be informed of anything we can make political of'.
political hay of.
Preview Is For Wimps.
Syl I frilly regree
I watched Brit Hume tonight and Robert Novak was on the panel. Ick.
They seemed to think the administration was slow to respond and should have immediately gone running to give a press conference. All except for Brit.
I think the press is pissed because they think they were snubbed---again--- by the Bushies.
Big babies.
So let's flip it. If the administration had gone to the press right away, what would the result have been. MSM would still be claiming Cheney should resign and that there was a cover-up. Nothing new there...
I was just corresponding with oen of the folks I know slightly at NRO, making the point that this is being made into a big fuss by a bunch of people who clearly don't know the tiniest thing about what actually happened. I pointed out the person I'd heard on TV say that Cheney shot the guy with "28 gauge buckshot."
(For clarity, I'll note that it was a 28 gauge shotgun and a birdshot load.)
This guy immediately came back and said "The point is that it was a rifle!"
Now, my mother is 71 years old, somewhat demented as a result of 50+ years of smoking and progressive COPD, and when I told her this remark, she instantly responded "but it was a shotgun."
It's clear that the legacy media are all thinking that someone should be out there making a chalk outline on the pavement, while in a day or two this guy's going to be on TV saying "Hell, I've cut myself worse shavin'."
Or, more likely, he'll say that in an interview in the San Anonio papers and it'll never be picked up anywhere else.
seneca:
They are just a bunch of pansy ass morons who don't know what the hell they are talking about.
Some idiot on one site was wondering where the NRA is?
The NRA??? This is birdshot not a tactical nuclear weapon for Chrisake.
And then of course there was the absolutely scandalous fact that Cheney seemed to think he did not need to drop everything and [gasp] give a press conference.
I read over at SoccerDad that Adlai Stephenson {sp?} shot and killed a woman in a hunting accident. That was the guy who told the Russians he could wait until Hell froze over wasn't it?
I wonder if the media would ruin his life today? He was a Democrat so he might be safe.
peter:
Sometimes they remind me of vultures on road kill.
But then again being the little city slickers that they are they probably do not know about road kill.
He wrote back and said "Well, one of us has read Proust."
This just fascinates me.
Apparently, on the basis of my knowing the difference between a rifle and a shotgun, he's concluded I couldn't have read Proust.
seneca:
I guess he doesn't know much about Patton does he?
People have their prejudices and while they might hide racial prejudice, they flaunt class prejudice.
Making so much stupidity out of this incident is, well, stupid. But making fun of it is okay. I think we should all just laugh our asses off.
Let the other side kill themselves with their outrage. I'm pissed at the press' demands, but other than that I'm laughing.
syl:
Did you see the pic of Dana Milbank on msnbc? He was wearing a hunting vest and a hat and he seems to think it clever.
I saw it at Michelle Malkins. I did as she suggested and wrote the ombudsman@washpost.com.
These people are so consumed with this crap they do not know how stupid they look. Yeah, this kind of thing is the sort of thing people snigger about, but they have gone straight to fullblown wildeyed paranoia.
Christ, just look at the stuff Clinton got away with.
Watching the replay of the WH Presser today I was struck by the lack of perspective of the WH Press Corps. Gregory was particularly rabid and one of the gals asked (seemingly in all seriousness) whether McLellan thought Cheney might resign over this.
Oh, you've got to go back to Malkin and look at The WaPo's Ace Reporter on the video. It's very short, a fast download. The snark about small-town commoners is unbelievable. What a nasty little jerkoff.
Instapundit is sending people to watch the video, so I imagine the omsbudsman will get the message--for whatever good it does.
Buddy:
Your description of Milbank is right on.
That was one supercilious performance.
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