The Jesse and Al Show

An unfortunate byproduct of Michael Jackson's death is the reemergence of two of the greatest hustlers and ambulance chasers without law degrees of all-time, the Revs. Jesse Jackson and Rev. Al Sharpton. The former rushed to L.A. reportedly at the behest of the Jackson family to express their concerns about the circumstances surrounding the death. As is usual with Jesse, many of the points he raises are valid but what is problematic is the messenger - his ego and his motives. The latter, not to be outdone, arrived later in L.A. to pitch his grand idea of a worldwide celebration of the life of the King of Pop. Jackson and Sharpton are not solely to blame for inserting themselves in the middle of matters deemed racial or having racial overtones. For their enablers are the news media who reflexively contact this willing duo who never shy away from microphones and cameras.

Michael Jackson 1958-2009

Two things are undeniably true of the self-anointed King of Pop Michael Jackson, who died suddenly of cardiac arrest Thursday in Los Angeles. One, he was an extraordinarily talented and gifted entertainer, singer, and dancer; indeed, of all his contemporaries, he is most deserving of the appellation musical genius. And two, he was an inscrutably tortured soul whose eccentricities grew increasingly more bizarre and stranger as time wore on. That behavior resulted in child molestation scandals and a seemingly never ending string of lawsuits that tarnished his reputation. Whether the latter similarly tarnishes his legacy now that he is gone can only be answered over time.

Sanford and Sin

Last week it was Republican Sen. John Ensign who came clean about his extra-marital affair despite his holier than thou condemnation of Bill Clinton's involvement with Monica Lewinsky and fellow GOP senator and hypocrite Larry Craig for playing footsie in a Minneapolis airport. Now it is the principled South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, who was hailed as a potential presidential candidate in 2012 and the refuser of stimulus funds from the Obama administration because it would compromise deeply held conservative principles, has bitten the dust. But this numbnut took the mea culpa to another level by giving a rambling, disjointed press conference, where he waxed nostalgically about his experiences on the Appalachian Trail, God's divine guidance, and sundry other topics before announcing to the world that he cheated on his wife. If he had a shred of integrity, he would resign his governorship not only for political hypocrisy but for abandoning his state and lying to his staff about his whereabouts.

WPFW's Turmoil

The recent firing of Ron Pinchback as general manager of Pacifica's WPFW 89.3 FM in Washington, D.C. was badly timed and ill-considered, not because of Pinchback's ability - truth is, he was a mediocrity who reached the apogee of his meager skills years ago when he was responsible for public service announcements and calendar of events - but because his termination coincides with the departure of Bobby Hill as program director. These actions render an already shaky, floundering organization even more unstable. The station prides itself on 30 years of community service but the truth is, it has failed miserably to inject its programming with the imagination and energy sorely needed to compete in a dynamic, ever-changing environment created in large part with the emergence of the internet and other technologies.

Blind, Irrational Hatred

This white racist, anti-Semitic octogenarian mofo who killed the security guard at the Holocaust Museum last week did not get his just desserts, at least not in the short term. If only the guard who brought him down had been a better shot, he would be dead by now. But remember the adage that hate can consume you and lead to your eventual destruction? Well, James W. von Brunn's example puts that to rest because this sick mofo's 88 years on the planet apparently was fueled by nothing more blind, irrational hatred. Like I said, if only the guard had been a better shot.

Civilization Decline

The Federal Government has been quite generous in doling out money in battling the current recession. Now it seems that even the procrastinators who hesitated about converting from analog to digital television are also eligible for a little stimulus, specifically, $40 converter box coupons. Given the decline of readers in the society, it seems that those efforts would have better spent in trying to increase the ranks of this endangered group.

Quote of the Day

"While it is true that the Web allows access to massive collections of printed matter in electronic form, cognition requires the investment in time to receive and ponder. Now there is no time . . . to consider, no time to digest information into knowledge."


From an obituary for Paul Wasserman, Library School Founder A Man of Many Words, in The Washington Post.

The King Has No Clothes

Of LeBron James' unwillingness to congratulate the Oralndo Magic after the Cleveland Cavaliers were ousted from the playoffs, Michael Wilbon writes:

But LeBron James, over the past five years, has made hundreds of decisions and utterances that play out in public. It happens a half-dozen times every day of his life, at arenas, and charity events and hospitals, representing the United States or the Cleveland Cavaliers or Nike or any of a dozen different corporate sponsors; he has to say something appropriate or greet someone in an awkward situation or act as the team leader and primary decision maker. And 99.9 percent of the time he does exactly the right thing. If we're keeping count on the behavior scoreboard, its LeBron James Gets It Right 299, LeBron Goofs 1. That's the ledger.

I disagree with Wilbon. James' behavior pretty much trumps whatever good will he established before this incident. As the expression goes, "Adversity doesn't build character, it reveals it."

Affirmative Action

Not surprisingly, the congenitally demagogic Pat Buchanan disparages Sonia Sotomayor as the "affirmative action candidate." But Howard Ross, a diversity consultant, places Buchanan's statement in its proper historical context. Since the founding of the Republic, he says, there have been 110 nominees to the United States Supreme Court, 106 of them were white males nominated exclusively by white males (presidents), which were in turn confirmed by a body of predominantly white males (Senate). Affirmative action indeed.