A few observations, with the only common thread being that they involve our media.
I have largely ignored the “underwear bomber” because I don’t think much of the faked controversy that’s kept the pundits busy for weeks. So long as we continue to invade Middle Eastern countries we can expect to be targeted by terrorists. Sometimes they’ll succeed, and sometimes they’ll fail, and with every success or near success we will find that we missed opportunities to stop them. That’s true, whether it’s a Republican or a Democrat that sits in the oval office. It is not a law of nature that one party has to partner with the terrorists by trying to raise the fear level, but that’s another issue.
One thing I picked up, despite my lack of real interest in all the gory details, was that one sign we missed was the fact that the bomber bought a one way ticket:
…CNN anchor Erica Hill asked: “So, just how did a guy on a terror watch list with a one-way ticket paid for in cash, with no luggage … manage to board a U.S. airliner and allegedly try to blow it to pieces? Simply put tonight, who screwed up?”
And here’s Rush Limbaugh on Friday: “When a 20-something Muslim male buys a one-way ticket with cash and has no luggage, that’s not a dot. That’s a fire alarm! He may as well have “I’m a terrorist” taped on his T-shirt.”
Have you heard or read it too? Well, it’s not true, strange to say, as the linked article demonstrates, but it’s unlikely that the media that spread the word so widely will take pains to un-spread it. It will probably just acquire the status of truth through repetition, just as it is now true that Al Gore claimed to invent the internet.
Meanwhile, some in the non-print media are actually somewhat embarrassed about the fact that they routinely allow their on-air guests to lie to them and their viewers. The usual punishment for such conduct is an invitation to return and lie some more. Recently, however, some of these folks abused their privileges by lying so blatantly that even the typical brain dead television viewer may have been jolted out of his somnolence. Rudy Giuliani, for instance, claimed that there were no terrorist attacks under Bush, and Jim DeMint claimed that Obama never used the word terrorist. In both cases the television “personality” let the claims go unchallenged.
Now there’s some talk among the talking (but not thinking) heads about fact checking their guest’s statements and maybe, just maybe, going over those statements on later shows. That will, of course, be of no use at all. As Mark Twain said, A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes. It won’t do the truth any good if it doesn’t even get to put on its shoes for several days after the lie takes off.
Here’s an idea: Take a little of those megabuck salaries they pay those deadheads and hire some interns to do real time fact checking while the shows are actually on air. They could use “the google” and other esoteric tools of the internet age. How long would it have taken an intern to turn up 9/11 (why they might not even need to use Google for that) after Rudy spewed his lie, not to mention the anthrax scare, and the non-Arab terrorists like the anti-abortion bombers. If liars like Giuliani were confronted in real time they would start to be a bit more careful. Another idea: maybe the TV folks could consider not inviting proven liars onto their shows.
Here’s an idea.
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