Can Al-Jazeera Save American News??

On Friday night, at 6:30 I sat before the TV hoping to return to something I’ve always enjoyed in years past: the nightly news from one of the major networks. Sadly, I keep forgetting that the face of the news has changed, literally.

With the passing of Peter Jennings, and retirements of Tom Brokaw and Dan Rather, the news no longer has a face I feel I can trust. On NBC, Brian Reynolds feels temporary, a placeholder until they get things figured out. On CBS, Bob Schieffer seems rickety and unsure – as if he’s a victim of the news instead of its caretaker.

The story of the leaking of a CIA operative’s name is complicated and I think the average American needs help dissecting it. But the network dissection seems to soft-pedal the true heart of this story: that Libby set out to destroy a political enemy and that our reasons for going to war in Iraq are in serious doubt. But as I flip around and watch all three networks, I realize the unfamiliar news anchors are a metaphor for another important aspect of this story...

We can no longer trust the people who give us our news.

Where were the investigative journalists when the Administration was outlining its reasons for war? How come the press hasn’t found out who ordered torture at Abu Gharib? With the news organizations owned by corporations who profit from Administration policies, the mainstream media can do nothing but be stenographers for their contacts in the government.

Enter Al-Jazeera.

Now in English and expanding as a global news service, the Qatar-based network has established an office in Washington D.C. and is hiring American and British journalists to head up those offices. Will Al-Jazeera be able to scrutinize our government without having a conflict of interest?

Obviously Al-Jazeera has a long way to go before it can prove that it’s credible and not anti-American. But I’m betting you won’t catch an Al-Jazeera reporter yucking it up with the VP’s Chief of Staff like a certain "New York Times" reporter did. If these guys can be objective and lay out facts in a responsible way, I’m thinking they’ll eventually get the respect they want and other news organizations will notice their stories and follow suit.

That’s good for the American press. And that’s good for America.

Meanwhile... shout out to Brokaw, Rather, and Jennings. You guys are greatly missed.

20 Minutes to Apocalypse?

Like many people, I received an email claiming that Hurricane Katrina was an act of God's wrath on Louisiana for the sin and homosexual depravity that regularly goes on in New Orleans.

Some might point out that God's wrath missed the mark by sparing the New Orleans French Quarter (where all the fun happens) and instead destroying the other surrounding area. But as they say, God works in mysterious ways.

I am no longer a religious man. But when I did attend church I was never a believer in this kind of fire and brimstone Old Testament deity. No, I opted for the loving, merciful God who is ever-forgiving and cares for each and every one of his children as a shepherd cares for his sheep.

But that God is OUT!!

The new God is the old God, and he likes a good smack down! This is the Apocalypse, folks, and I can certainly attest that all I got from the other God was 20 grand in debt and an empty cupboard.

All the cool people with the money and power in this country are into wrath. They like to smear their enemies in the press, bomb civilians into submission, and torture enemy prisoners with humiliation and sexual depravity. They've got the ear of God and God rewards them by lining their wallets with Enron-sized profits and by punishing the wicked on the Gulf Coast, and more recently the 54,000 people in Pakistan.

I don't possess the direct link that I can know why God smashed Pakistan. But I'd guess it was because Pakistan is the probable new host for Osama Bin Laden.

Unfortunately, it was the Kashmir area near India that was hit, as opposed to the border near Afghanistan where OBL is probably being hidden. Being zero for 2 on his accuracy, some people might point out that God is like the US missile that flies past the terror camp and hits the baby formula factory. But not me! I'm falling in line.

You see, as an American who lives in Los Angeles, I can read the writing on the wall. The "big one" here will kill 180,000 people, lead to riots, starvation, looting, and rampant lawlessness. There will be no rescue from Washington.

I'm buying a gun and stocking up on soup. 'Cause mercy is for sissies and us blue states will eventually get what's coming to us.

Will you be next??

Python vs. Croc

Who wins?

Apparently neither. It makes for a nice photo... and a cool story.