Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Announcing... The World's First Stupie Award. And the winner is...
The Stupie Award was created specifically for journalists of the first rank who say things they know make no sense. If Peter Jennings had said that Canada were part of Latin America, that would merit a Stupie. On the other hand, if Bill O'Reilly said it, it would be unworthy of mention. Bill O'Reilly will never receive a Stupie, because he is neither a journalist, nor of the first rank, except among his fellow members of Equus asinus.
The very first Stupie is hereby awarded to William Arkin, author and (where else) Washington Post blogger. Arkin is one of a very small handful of journalists who have a clue what they're talking about with regard to intelligence matters, does independent investigative journalism, and almost certainly was burned by Bushco's monitoring of journalists's phone calls-- or, rather, his sources were.
So, exactly how stupid does William Arking have to be to post a bald assertion, completely unsubstantiated by facts, that the Bush Administration has not created an Enemies List, ala Nixon?
I'll be the first to admit that facts are not yet in public evidence to prove much of anything to courtroon standards. But absence of evidence is not, as Rummy is famed for saying, evidence of absence. We have Congress and the courts to investigate the evidence and reach the conclusion Arkin leaped to... or another.
Now, I thave a guess as to what is going on. Arkin's intelligence sources are telling him it isn't happening. Arkin has gotten to know his sources, formed friendships, and assumes that they wouldn't lie. But as James Bamford learned to his chagrin, sometimes-- like Michael Hayden-- they do. And they drag the journalists who imagined they were friends rather than sources down with them.
Because Arkin is one of the first rank journalists, and because he should know better, he is hereby awarded the first Stupie.
Plese note the gold filigree and inlaid semi-precious stones spelling out D-O-P-E.
Comments:
<< Home
Geez, Charles. That wasn't very nice.
You aren't going to develop an award for posters to Mr. Arkin's column who are sometimes long-winded and have nowhere else to post, are you?
redcat
You aren't going to develop an award for posters to Mr. Arkin's column who are sometimes long-winded and have nowhere else to post, are you?
redcat
# posted by 
: 5/17/2006 04:49:00 PM
: 5/17/2006 04:49:00 PM
Assuming this is the real Redcat:
1. What is not nice about calling Arkin a journalist of the first rank?
2. William Arkin has some of the most valuable journalistic real estate in the US. When he chooses to use it badly, he needs to be told. If he's a professional, he would want to be told. Asserting on the basis of no evidence whatsoever that there is no Enemies List is using it badly.
3. The scroll wheel was invented to deal with longwinded posters. They waste their time, not the time of anyone who cares about learning from others and sharing with them what one knows.
I hope this addresses your concerns. If not, you know where to post any followups.
1. What is not nice about calling Arkin a journalist of the first rank?
2. William Arkin has some of the most valuable journalistic real estate in the US. When he chooses to use it badly, he needs to be told. If he's a professional, he would want to be told. Asserting on the basis of no evidence whatsoever that there is no Enemies List is using it badly.
3. The scroll wheel was invented to deal with longwinded posters. They waste their time, not the time of anyone who cares about learning from others and sharing with them what one knows.
I hope this addresses your concerns. If not, you know where to post any followups.
Charles,
I believe that you may have taken my comments more seriously than I had intended. That s to say, they were intended to be light-hearted in nature.
I also believe that your comments about the necessity of responding to Mr. Arkin's statements are quite valid.
Here's hoping that not all of my posts over there are considered to be complete 'wastes.'
And yes, this is the 'real' redcat; I am just cautious about revealing too much personal information on the net.
redcat
I believe that you may have taken my comments more seriously than I had intended. That s to say, they were intended to be light-hearted in nature.
I also believe that your comments about the necessity of responding to Mr. Arkin's statements are quite valid.
Here's hoping that not all of my posts over there are considered to be complete 'wastes.'
And yes, this is the 'real' redcat; I am just cautious about revealing too much personal information on the net.
redcat
# posted by : 5/18/2006 06:57:00 AM
: 5/18/2006 06:57:00 AM
Ah, well!
I'm honored to have the authentic redcat as a guest on MercuryRising. You're one of the few posters on Early Warning who makes good points and tries to be even-handed.
You may want to consider creating a Blogger account, since that prevents people from forging your screen name. Many trolls think the funniest thing on earth is posting under someone else's name. They don't seem to realize that their third grade reasoning and reform school grammar follow them into their new, fraudulent identity. It's like watching Olbermann's segment on The World's Stupidest Criminals.
Anyway, please feel free to join the MercRising community. Small, but fine folks.
Post a Comment
I'm honored to have the authentic redcat as a guest on MercuryRising. You're one of the few posters on Early Warning who makes good points and tries to be even-handed.
You may want to consider creating a Blogger account, since that prevents people from forging your screen name. Many trolls think the funniest thing on earth is posting under someone else's name. They don't seem to realize that their third grade reasoning and reform school grammar follow them into their new, fraudulent identity. It's like watching Olbermann's segment on The World's Stupidest Criminals.
Anyway, please feel free to join the MercRising community. Small, but fine folks.
<< Home
More blogs about politics.
