John Sandford posting... Tonights screed will have a tiny bit to do about books, but more about stupid politics and terrible journalism...so if you dont want to hear about stupid politics and terrible journalism, dont read this. But first...went to a Ray Wylie Hubbard concert last night, and got to shake hands with the man. Great concert, everybody knew his music. Hes also funny when he wants to be... Now the screed. Ive been reading this book called Duty by Robert Gates, the former secretary of defense, and it scares the hell out of me. There are all kinds of little specifics in the book, but the basic, underlying message is that the government is simply out of control. I dont say that like a left-winger or a right-winger, but just as a judgment -- Gates literally presents evidence that suggests nobody, not even the President, can control the government. Weve built a machine that cant stop. Its so huge, and all of its parts are so complicated, and so entangled, that nobody really understands it. You try to do one thing, even as the President, and something else happens. Its like the Titanic -- you turn the steering wheel and apply the brakes, but you hit the iceberg anyway. For example, Gates observes (just an observation, not an argument) that most Democrats want to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan -- but every one of them, no matter how liberal they might be, will fight like dogs to preserve defense spending (jobs) in their districts. And since everyone of them will fight like dogs to do this, they simply make deals (involving almost all congressmen) to keep spending, even when the Defense Department doesnt want the money, or the equipment or programs it buys. The Defense Department has tried repeatedly to kill some programs, and close some bases no longer needed, but Congress refuses to do it. So, the department sails on its own way, with nobody in control, not even the people who run the place. And the corporations who build the stuff for the department know this, of course, so they spread their manufacturing contracts over as many congressional districts as possible. One result -- we have way, way more tanks than we could ever use, designed to fight the Russians on the northern plains of Europe, a war that will not happen in the next few decades simply because the Russians dont have the equipment to do it, even if they wanted to. Where are tanks no good? In Afghanistan, where were fighting right now. Tanks arent worth a damn in roadless mountains. And the evidence for this kind of thing keeps piling on...and on...and on. It is one scary book. How does this lead to bad journalism? Well, it doesnt directly. But, as people who read this know, I really like good journalism. I devoted a good part of my life to it. But the journalism weve had since the rise of the Internet has become radically different than the journalism I grew up with. Much, much more ideological. So, the Gates book comes out, with what I think is astounding information about the running of the government in both the Bush/2 and the Obama administrations, and our No.1 (or possibly, No. 2) newspaper, the New York Times, gives it a sort of cursory treatment. A couple stories, a nice review in the book section. Why? Because theres some very harsh stuff about Barack Obama (and also George Bush, but Bush is now gone.) And Obama is the Times guy. In my opinion, this book should have been on the front page of all serious newspapers for days or weeks: this is information the country needs. Then, about the same time the Gates book comes out, we learn that a couple of young and fairly stupid political operators for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie caused a traffic jam on a bridge between New Jersey and New York for a few days -- this was some time back -- and you would have thought that the world had ended. On the main day of coverage, I figure the NY TImes gave the story 2 1/2 *pages* of coverage, with a lot more to follow on subsequent days. I mean really...two and a half pages for a traffic jam? Or to put it in the worst possible light, the deliberate creation of a traffic jam by a political bully...worth 2 1/2 pages in the Times? For all you people out in LA, or Miami, or Chicago, or Seattle, was a traffic jam in New Jersey worth 2 1/2 pages of your national newspaper, no matter what its cause? If an Oregon politician had done the same thing...2 1/2 pages? If you think so, Ive got a bridge Id like to sell you. This was nothing more than a blatant take-down of a Republican who the Times didnt like. The Times, in fact, has simply become a mouthpiece for the Democratic Party, much like the Wall Street Journal has become a branch of the Republican Party, and as a former fairly serious journalist, I find that pretty disquieting. What I want from a newspaper is what happened -- Ill figure out what to do with the facts on my own. I really dont need some 28-year-old beat reporter (or even a 60-year-old reporter) to tell me what I should believe. End of screed. Ray Wylie was really good. I now have a Ray Wylie baseball cap.
Posted on: Tue, 28 Jan 2014 02:51:11 +0000
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