drat fink
View current page...more recent posts
eye in the sky
"The nation's cell phone service providers will soon know exactly where every one of their customers is, at all times, and privacy rights groups are asking what they plan to do with the information."
back of the line
"Why Disney went after Letterman and snubbed Koppel: Inside the tizzy over the future of TV news"
watered down beers
"If they are angry, as millions clearly are, it's because they have seen those promises betrayed by U.S. policy. Despite President Bush's insistence that America's enemies resent its liberties, most critics of the U.S. don't actually object to America's stated values. Instead, they point to U.S. unilateralism in the face of international laws, widening wealth disparities, crackdowns on immigrants and human rights violations--most recently in Guantanamo Bay. The anger comes not only from the facts of each case but also from a clear perception of false advertising. In other words, America's problem is not with its brand--which could scarcely be stronger--but with its product."
marked green
"Back then some Greens said, "there's no difference between Democrats and Republicans." This was campaign rhetoric -- broadstroked political shorthand. It meant that the Democratic Leadership Committee/Brothel had compromised the former party of the people into an almost unrecognizable shambles. But most Naderites understood that the Democrats were the far lesser of two evils. We knew that Gore would appoint better judges and less insane cabinet members. We knew that Gore would at least maintain a casual relationship with the Bill of Rights."
a real american hero
"Eventually, I somehow became typed as a variety show writer and wrote many a special or series in that dying genre, thereby hastening its demise. Most of them were for the legendary Sid and Marty Krofft and included the infamous Pink Lady and Jeff, which toplined two Japanese ladies who spoke almost no English, and a series with the Bay City Rollers, who spoke English but were no more intelligible.
I also started writing cartoon shows: Scooby Doo, Plastic Man, Thundarr the Barbarian, The Trollkins, ABC Weekend Special, CBS Storybreak, Rickety Rocket, Superman: The Animated Series and many others. I story-edited Richie Rich for a couple of years, wrote the pilots for Dungeons & Dragons, The Wuzzles and a few series from which I removed my name. Somewhere in there, I wrote That's Incredible! for three years and a whole lotta material for stand-up comedians."
alternetting a profit
"I have never been enthusiastic about Alternet's charging of a usurious 50 percent fee for the articles it resells. But until now, Alternet has been the only game in town. It has had near monopoly status as a syndication agency for a particular niche of "alternative" news. But, as with other monopolies, Alternet has grown fat in abusing its position in a manner that now causes more harm than good."
bombshell brownies
whats with the ny times and wa post running these photos on their homepages? they seem awfully fond of using terror porn from the mideast conflict, although the times crops this photo for a less revealing portrait of grief. are they trying to sell policy with a mix of titilation and fear?
no look pass
"The ANWR debate is a “smokescreen,” said Tyson Slocum, energy project research director at Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy group founded by Ralph Nader.
He said “it’s a brilliant strategy” to keep scrutiny away from other industry-friendly sections of the GOP-drafted energy bill passed by the House last August and the Democratic bill now being debated by the Senate."
light touch
"Are you the sort of person who believes in conspiracies--the Trilateral Commission secretly runs the world, that sort of thing? Well, then, here's a company for you. The Carlyle Group, a Washington, D.C., buyout firm, is one of the nation's largest defense contractors. It has billions of dollars at its disposal and employs a few important people. Maybe you've heard of them: former Secretary of State Jim Baker, former Secretary of Defense Frank Carlucci, and former White House budget director Dick Darman. Wait, we're just getting warmed up. William Kennard, who recently headed the FCC, and Arthur Levitt, who just left the SEC, also work for Carlyle. As do former British Prime Minister John Major and former Philippines President Fidel Ramos. Let's see, are we forgetting anyone? Oh, right, former President George Herbert Walker Bush is on the payroll too."
inside out
"When Brokaw, Jennings and Rather retire, it is a perfect time for these corporations to decide their newscasts are no longer worth it," said Ken Bode, a former NBC correspondent who teaches at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. "Unless something dramatic happens, inevitably, the network newscasts are gone."