Dan Abrams recently tweeted that the "MSM is empowering the pirate/thugs," asking, "Would we see headlines about "muggers" vowing retaliation if a few of them were shot in a rescue?" This strikes me as a bit dotty. The answer to the question is, of course we would see such headlines if "muggers" vowed "retaliation" -- especially since the thought of muggers uniting together to seek vengeance after another mugger was shot by authorities would be a highly unusual development in the annals of criminal behavior. Anyway, the closest thing to a land-based gang of pirates who act in concert with one another and pursue group-oriented activities of retaliation are called "gangs" and their declarations are indeed, covered by media.
A little smart research on pirates reveals that the extent to which the "MSM" is "empowering" them is the least of our worries. At any rate, I'm told that the dolphins today really stepped up in the fight against this scourge of the sea, and on behalf of homo sapiens everywhere, I just want to say that the efforts are appreciated.
Methinks the Blogger Doth Protest Too Much: Apparently, a DHS report warning of the dangers posed by right-wing extremists and domestic terrorists and white supremacists have gotten conservative bloggers in a tizzy with offense, despite the fact that, as David Neiwert points out, the DHS report is about...uhm...right-wing extremists and domestic terrorists and white supremacists and not "conservatives." There was a time of course, when the typical right wing blogger could be counted on to insist that dangerous domestic elements needed to be surveilled and wiretapped without warrants and the like. On the other hand, there was also a time when the typical right wing blogger could be counted on to shriek at Dunkin Donuts because their pitchwoman dared to wear a scarf.
Stimulus Economics: Obama says that stimulus projects are "ahead of schedule and under budget." But is that necessarily a good thing?
Rolling Stone's Great Derangement: Portfolio's Jeff Bercovici's been running down the whys and wherefores on how it came to pass that Rolling Stone didn't or wouldn't or couldn't exclusively lock down the talents of in-house columnist Matt Taibbi.
Department of Well-Worn Cliches: CNBC has added a midday iteration of Fast Money that they are calling "Halftime Report." In that way, CNBC continues to expertly convey how financial news reporting isn't a f**king game.
Department of Lost Innocence: There will never be such a thing as a "simple fart" ever again. Not in Waco, Texas, anyway.
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