Bush's Democrat

In an interview with ABC News anchor Charles Gibson, President Bush declared his apparently unwavering support for Pakistani President Pervez Mushariff saying that Mushariff "hasn't crossed the line" and that he "truly is somebody who believes in democracy." To put it charitably, it is difficult to comprehend what Bush means in seeing Mushariff as a democrat. This is the general who has imposed emergency rule in Pakistan, rejected calls to relinquish his military leadership or share power with former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and placed judges and opposition leaders under house arrest. And yes, this is the same general who seized power in a military coup from the democratically elected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999.

Snoop Dogg

Snoop Dogg, the rapper, Madsion Avenue huckster, and occasional criminal offender, supposedly is one of the best practitioners of his chosen art form. Since I don't have any of the gentleman's recordings, I'll accept the representations of his legion of fans and admirers that the gentleman is a gifted and talented performer. But what I find objectionable about Snoop is when he expounds nonsensically about matters that should be left to others. In a recent London Independent interview, he said: "I'm a nigga, so I'm not gonna ever be treated fair. There will always be some new niggas coming out, gangbanging, not giving a damn, just living their life, because that's what America breeds. We're bred to do that shit, so you can't get mad at us. You gotta get mad at the system." What a curious combination of fatalism, victimization, and braggadocio.

Better Late Than Never

Last Saturday the Minnesota Vikings organization reversed its decision to withhold a week's salary from wide receiver Troy Williamson because Williamson missed a game while making funeral arrangements for his grandmother, the woman who raised him. Granted, it took a meeting between Vikings head coach Brad Childress and a veteran players council to rescind the initial boneheaded decision but better late than never. Williamson annunced that he would donate the one week's pay - $25,588.24 - to a charity to be determined in memory of his grandmother.