The New York Times is Like a Religion

Well, unless you are reading about it in The New York Times.

Thanks to the Althouse blog for this catch, they deleted the quote from their own paper.

I skipped this item yesterday, when Law Profesor Ann Althouse blogged here about "The Paper of Record" as being like a religion.

Now, the Old Grey Lady has deleted the quote from the new editor, Ms Jill Abramson, who said:

In my house growing up, The Times substituted for religion.  If The Times said it, it was the absolute truth.

Professor Althouse asked how this would shape the newspaper now that Ms Abramson has replaced Mr Bill Keller as Executive Editor of The New York Times:

1. You have a deep moral obligation to insure that it is absolutely true, to respect the faith that others put in it and to preserve and grow the community of believers because of your dedication to truth, or...
2. You are embedded in the faith, carrying on the commitment to the idea that it is the truth and impressing that faith that it is the truth on readers, so that they keep looking to you as the mouthpiece of truth and don't go wandering off looking for some other viewpoints.

It could be #1 or #2 or both or neither.

I am thinking "both" is not an option, but then The New York Times is not my religion.

When I buy the paper it is for Maureen Dowd's column or the Book Reviews, and with regard to that I am thinking of switching back to The New York Review of Books.

You pays your money and you takes your choice.

Regards  —  Cliff

CNN on Sarah on the Road

Well, to be fair, it is CNN publishing an opinion piece by a conservative writer with Hot Air.  Writer Ed Morrissey says:

CNN asked me to write an opinion piece on how a Sarah Palin campaign — or lack of one — would impact the Republican nomination race.  Instead of hitting that directly, I decided to write an analysis of what Palin has accomplished with her bus tour and how it will impact the race regardless of whether she decides to run in 2012 at all, and CNN graciously published it this morning[.]

Then Captain Ed refers us to not only his own piece, linked above, but also to commentary from Washington Examiner writer Byron York, who noted

One thing many viewers have probably missed in all the horse-race speculation is that Palin is perfectly willing to discuss her positions on key issues, if anyone wants to ask.  In fact, in recent days, weeks, and months, we've seen a lot of policy commentary from the former Alaska governor.

For example, during the bus trip, Palin took a stand on an issue that is crucial for candidates considering a run in the Iowa caucuses. "I think that all of our energy subsidies need to be re-looked at today and eliminated," Palin told RealClearPolitics.  "We've got to allow the free market to dictate what's most efficient and economical for our nation's economy."  What that means is Palin opposes the infamous ethanol subsidy that some presidential aspirants are afraid to question, lest they lose support in heavily agricultural Iowa.

Maybe that is the signal that she is not running—she isn't pandering to the voters in Iowa.

In his own post on Hot Air, Captain Ed ends with this comment:

Again, this is exactly the kind of political tour that other Republicans have conducted, with much more serious coverage from the media than given Palin’s tour.   With all of those reporters following the bus, why aren’t more of them reporting the political story rather than the celebrity story?

Of course it is celebrity coverage—she is just some uneducated girl from the fly-over states.  The fact that she has fought corruption within her own party and crossed the aisle to work with Democrats to raise taxes doesn't count.  I have my own bones to pick with Gov Palin, but I find most coverage distorted, and thus my fascination with this issue.  Like most of my fellow citizens, I have a certain fascination with people behaving badly—in this case the MSM.

Regards  —  Cliff

Not All Medicine is the Same

The e coli outbreak in Europe, which has infected some 1500 and killed four, suggests differences in treating diseases.  Here is the view from The International Herald Tribune.

But, are veggies all that good for you anyway?  Last April (2010) the Instapundit suggested maybe not.

Regards  —  Cliff

Unemployment 9.1%

The Department of Labor reports the unemployment rate as basically unchanged from last month.  That is to say, up 0.1% from April.

Regards  —  Cliff

What is it About Penguins?

Penguins seem to attract a lot of human interest, but from a distance, since they live in the far southern part of the southern hemisphere.

Here is an article, with photos, from the Daily Mail.  I love the title:

Hey, I think that's our kid, 3,233rd from the left

There is a wonderful diversity in life across the planet.

Hat tip to Ann Althouse.

Regards  —  Cliff

Exactly!

But, then, your view of the "precautionary principle" may vary.

This one is from Law Prof Ilya Somin.  Professor Somin teaches at George Mason Law School.

Hat tip to the Instapundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Bad News Keeps Rolling In

Over at Salon is more bad news.  It seems that there is plenty of carbon energy in terms of natural gas and oil.  There are, of course, folks who are resisting its production.

Here is the pitch from Mr Michael Lind.  The basic thrust of the article is that there is enough stuff in the ground to give us six times the reserves of natural gas as we thought there were ten years ago.  And, additional oil is a side benefit.  To quote the author's "bottom line":

We may be living in the era of Peak Renewables, which will be followed by a very long Age of Fossil Fuels that has only just begun.

Why is this bad news?  It is bad news because there are folks out there who will go into overdrive to make sure we don't exploit this potential source of energy.  Forget the bad economy and the millions across the world living in poverty.  We don't want to see fossil fuels exploited.

I wonder if there has been a study of the impact on longevity if we have to cut back on energy production?

Hat tip to Ann Althouse.

Regards  —  Cliff