I Shave

I seem to recall an old Doonesbury cartoon from the Nixon era where a member of the media asks the an administration official what he does after looking in the mirror and thinking of all the lies he will be tell.

"I shave," said the character.

One has to wonder if that is a daily occurrence on the Right. A recent controversy is the blogger's attempt to prove that a memo supposedly given to Republican senators by an unknown group was faked and probably the result of Democrats.

Fred Barnes of the Standard told the Washington Post that the reporting of the memo was unfair but not unsurprising, since "the press is much tougher on Republicans." The sound you just heard may have been Al Gore, unmercifully and unfairly targeted by the media in 2000, falling out of his chair in shock.

Right. Excuse me but the reason Bush was able to limit his loss in the 2000 Presidential election to only a half million votes was the media's dishonest "War On Gore." If Florida was counted fairly, Gore wins not only the popular vote, but also the electoral college, 292 to 246, a significant win. To believe the media played no role in influencing Al Gore's vote total is to suspend belief, which is what many on the Right do on a daily basis.

Those on the right believe they are looking at another memogate like they had with Dan Rather. And I'm sure they are hoping for the same outcome. You know, investigate whether the media should have checked if a memo was legit, not whether the story was legit.

Afterall what's the story? In the CBS's case was it that Bush might have shirked his military obligation or that there was a questionable memo that alleged Bush shirked his duty? Hmm, lets see. There is one common ideal (investigate whether there is truth to the story), or check and see if the documents are accurate? Why not both?