Monthly Archives: April 2007

I’m Sorry Everyone!




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Open Letter to WKRN (Edited)

Dear WKRN:

Your coverage of the immigration debate is usually exemplary and the station is usually conscientious about its approach to this highly volatile issue.

Imagine how shocked I was, then, to see Christine Maddela’s piece last night about the immigration debate, which juxtaposed the peaceful demonstrations last year with the tragic story of a woman killed by a driver in the country illegally. I know some Assistant News Director thought it was probably brilliant to segue from a story on last year’s rallies to the heartbroken mother of this victim, but this conflates two very separate issues. One simply has nothing to do with the other.

Not only that, but Megan McCrary’s tragic death took place two years ago. That’s right. This segment, used to provide “balance” against the positive story of peaceful demonstrators, was an update on a two year old story. This type of sensationalism does not do justice to either the suffering of the McCrary family, or to the thousands of immigrants (regardless of their current legal status) who drive safely and obey traffic laws. But this poorly thought out piece will likely become yet another weapon for those seeking to demonize all immigrants who lack documentation.

Countless similar segments were produced during the Garcia-Reyes incident (you may recall that Garcia-Reyes had numerous run-ins with the law before he killed that couple in Hermitage), and Sheriff Hall has said many times that the Reyes incident was what ultimately prompted him to push for Proposition 287(g), which allows local police to check the immigration status of arrestees and have them deported. Not a single television station in town asked the relevant question: how did Reyes avoid incarceration for so many years, and after so many arrests? Furthermore, had he somehow been granted residency at some point during his long criminal career, would his victim’s death somehow be less tragic? Maybe more to the point, would there have been a story so many months later?


If Megan McCrary had been struck and killed by a legal resident, would WKRN still have followed up two years later?


The point of the video segment was unnecessary and smacked of pandering. It isn’t of the standard I have come to expect from your news department. I hope irresponsible reporting doesn’t become commonplace at Channel 2.


Note: Edited to correct the name of Reyes-Garcia. I had just gotten off the phone with a friend, and his name was clearly stuck in my over-crowded head. Apologies to anyone I may have mislead or offended.


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Keyboard Warrior

Glen, buddy.  I suppose you could be pulling a Kleinheider, and just trolling for hits.  I say that because you and I have broken bread, we’ve shared a shot of real Honest To God Blue Agave tequila.  In person, you are polite, and maybe just a bit shy.  So why is it, then, that when you get behind your keyboard, you pound out this kind of drivel?  Here’s a nugget from that diatribe:

What is it like to be a far left liberal? I mean, how does it feel to be miserable, pessimistic, and full of hatred? What is it like to wake up everyday and call for somebody new to resign, be fired, or impeached? What is it like to despise America, despise Christianity, and despise masculine men? What is it like to hate freedom? What is it like to be so freaking unhappy that you are unable to laugh at anything? Tell me Egalia, what is it like?

Before I answer you, I’m going to do you a huge favor and clue you in to something.  Write this down.  You are not, by any stretch, ready to take on Egalia.  I don’t always agree with her, but if I were to engage her in debate, I’d come with something much stronger, dude.  There is a reason her blog gets the hits that it does, while yours pretty much goes unread.  She can write.  She thinks things through.  You would be well served to do likewise.

Lets go ahead and answer your questions, rhetorical as they were.

What is it like to be a far left liberal?  It’s exhausting, man.  Having to slow down, way down, and explain things to ill-informed people (even bloggers!) makes for long days.

I mean, how does it feel to be miserable, pessimistic, and full of hatred?  No clue, I don’t live in Campfield’s district.

What is it like to wake up everyday and call for somebody new to resign, be fired, or impeached?  Stumped me there, you did.  Perhaps you might ask someone that was a Republican when Clinton was in office.

What is it like to despise America, despise Christianity, and despise masculine men?  I don’t hate America or Christianity, I hate what they have become.  As for masculine men, I don’t despise them, I just prefer my men to be a bit curvy, cuz, you know, I’m a top.

What is it like to hate freedom? Well, I’m starting to worry, actually, theres precious little left to hate.  (Oh, I caught your other bit about capitalism=freedom,  try not paying your mortgage for a few months, see how free you are.)
What is it like to be so freaking unhappy that you are unable to laugh at anything?  Hey, I laughed at your post.


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Clinton in a Walk

She’s not my personal choice right now, but she was clearly head and shoulders above the field tonight. More later.

I dug watching Gravel (I LOVE his resume’) and Kucinich sing out, though.  The poor bobbing heads that pass for “experts” almost wet themselves trying to paint those two as “out of touch”.  Shit, they said things that needed to be said.  Someone threw out the word “naive”, apparently because Kucinich is convinced that pre-emptive war as an instrument of policy is a failed strategy.  Except that he is right.  I get that the “top-tier” candidates can’t frame their arguments in quite the same way.  But guys like Gravel and Kucinich serve an important purpose.  I fear that when we snap to the fact that they are right, it may well be too late.

Obama never got his feet under him.  He seemed hesitant, and his inexperience with this format showed.  No matter, his supporters won’t be bothered in the least.  Rumor has it he’s a quick learner, and he may turn in quite a performance in the next parade of personalities.

Richardson looked distracted, almost.  Was he having difficulty hearing?  Clumsy reiteration of his resume once again.  Shame.  I really like Bill.

No, this one was an easy call.  Hillary had the most to lose, and she looked poised, and relaxed.  She nailed her answers, and managed the clock well.  If she manages to go through these without raising her voice, she’s the odds on favorite every time.

Nice work, Howard.


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Note to Zach Wamp

Oh man, did you just get your ass handed to you on MSNBC.  You may want to rethink EVER going up against a guy like Tim Waltz (D) Minnesota.  Look, I like your stance on preventative health care, and I know you serve on the all important Appropriations Committee, so you’re a serious dude…but you didn’t make a very believable case today, on national television, on why you voted no on the Iraq spending bill.  Good Lord, what a butt-kicking that was.

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Save Us, Sam.

I had this whole snarky bit written out about this piece of news, then it occurred to me that despite my aversion to mixing food and communicable diseases, this may be an answer to our over-crowded emergency rooms. WalMart is already most people’s one stop shopping destination. Where else can you have your car serviced, film developed, eyes examined, eat lunch, then do your Xmas shopping before loading up on household supplies and groceries? So, ok, add to that the convenience of getting your kid’s school shots done at a discount, and that is Walmart’s new strategy. I was a bit puzzled by this sentence:

“It has said the clinics are expected to boost the health of its shoppers and should also help sales by drawing consumers into its stores.”

I’m pretty sure that the demographic that will use the Walmart based clinics already know to follow the bouncing yellow happy face around the store as it slashes prices even lower! Is this move really likely to “draw” more people into Walmart? Are there people out in Suburbia that noticed these 200,000 square foot behemoths but haven’t wandered in for a peek? I loathe Walmart for a hundred different reasons, yet I shop there, at least some of the time. I hold my nose and dive in for two reasons; time and money. It does help me that I can get my oil changed and film developed and shop for groceries and poster-board and get this all done in a hour, and, I have a list of things that we use a lot of and the price makes it unwise to purchase anywhere else. (I’m a bit of an old woman when it comes to shopping for groceries. I don’t do coupons (wish I had the patience) but I literally have a list of things I buy from Walmart, and a list for Kroger.) And I have noticed a trend that has Walmart dressing up it’s exterior to better blend in to local communities. Inside, though, it’s the same. Stacked deep, sold cheap. And why is it always the same sad sack of a kid I see being cooed at and propped up to have his picture made?

Where was I? Right. Emergency rooms. Any nurse paying attention will tell you that the bulk of the wait time at your local E.R. isn’t caused by Illegal Aliens or by Ginger dragging George Clooney into a closet and away from patients. No, its those people who either have no insurance and know that they cannot be turned away, or, worse, people who run to the E.R for every headache, rash, scrape or overly loud fart. The fact that the “E” stands for emergency concerns them not in the least. Something is not right in their world, and by God, they are going to see a doctor. Once inside, the attending physician now has to run every test in his arsenal or risk missing something and being sued. This ties up time and resources, and we all pay.

Maybe, just maybe, having an affordable clinic located at Walmart is part of an answer at least. These days, I’m willing to work with the devil a little if it means we take a step forward, or a step back, anything to break the inertia.


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Falling Behind

Storms tonight, I hear.  It’s funny to watch the little dog shake all over at the slightest bit of thunder…I guess it isn’t funny to him.   I get to take my daughter to her State Finals for Future Problem Solvers this weekend.  I like her teammates, and i may have mentioned that the topic they were assigned was caring for our elderly, I think.  They don’t give you much of a heads up.  Anyway, school projects dominate this time of year, and of course there are horses to train, and always always always grass to mow, and a garden to tend.

I need a “Big Love” kind of set-up.  I wonder if it’s hard to become a Mormon…


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