Just Commenting

Sam Zell On Tribune Purchase: "I Made A Mistake"

2009-04-15T14:34:00.001-07:00

If the Chicago Tribune is a virus, owner Sam Zell exposed the venerable newspaper to that risk. No doubt about it, Yosemite Sam is the poster boy for irresponsible newspaper owners. As a fellow Huffington Post poster noted, dailies have been regarded as nearly nothing more than piggy banks.

So, many owners took them for granted, ignoring technological advances -- until it was almost too late. Those owners include founders of once great newspapers, who didn't recognize changes in journalistic tools and appetites. Some of their heirs didn't want to deal and sold out. So, billionaires with no news judgment gobbled them up.

And offering news wasn't there intent. Fashioning glorified newsletters is the goal.
About Newspapers
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PETA: Obama Puppy Should Be Neutered (But He Already Is)

2009-04-13T19:44:00.001-07:00

Amazingly, PETA and I agree on something. We both love animals. However, choosing to stick my wet nose in other people's business isn't how I roll. Cherishing freedom is what I'm about. Therefore, people should be able to wear fur -- without fanatics dousing them with blood. Exercising their First Amendment rights should be enough for some PETA supporters. But I digress...

In order to avoid making a fool itself, PETA might have asked a simple question first. Is Bo fixed? No one...I mean no one...appreciates Big Brother. However, PETA's approach seems to mirror the attitude of many humane societies. Ensuring owners are responsible is a noble goal. But making pet ownership harder than adopting a child is ridiculous.

If PETA is concerned about re-homing pets, it should help encourage better pet adoption regulations.
About Bo Obama
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Kid Reporter Damon Weaver To Make 20/20 Appearance, Still Looking For That Obama Interview

2009-04-12T13:10:00.001-07:00

It seems some African-American children are damned if they do or don't succeed. Damon Weaver and his brother are both aspiring to be more than gangbangers. But some fellow HuffPost posters aren't satisfied. Even though Damon's trying to break cycle and resist stereotypes, he's got alleged adults stressing to remember his place.

I can't deny that he's immature. Watching him interview his friend was hard. Damon needed to show more compassion. But then, some more "seasoned" journalists could use that reminder. So, yes, I must agree he's immature. Here's a news flash: Damon is 10-years-old.

All this attitude about his behavior seems to be "colored" by something. Yes, Damon does need to grow up. However, so do some of the posters.
About Barack Obama
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Betty Brown, Texas Republican, Asks Asian-Americans To Simplify Names

2009-04-09T20:26:00.001-07:00

Writing off Texas as a state full of idiots isn't an option. I've got friends from the Lone Star state. However, former President George W. Bush and State Rep. Betty Brown, R-Terrell, certainly aren't helping disprove that notion. Brown's claim that her "suggestion" wasn't racist is beyond ridiculous. Her comment reminds me of a scene from that 1978 classic, "Roots."

The slaveowner didn't want to have to pronounce Kunta Kinte, so he became Toby. But, of course, renaming him was a way of staking claim.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Republican Rep. Bachus Makes List Of 'Socialists' In House Of Representatives

2009-04-09T19:42:00.001-07:00

If this isn't proof that history repeats itself, I don't what is. Just reading the headline had me hearing voices. Well, I actually heard one voice -- belonging to late U.S. Sen. Joseph McCarthy, R-Wis. When crooner Frank Sinatra was all the rage and Ronald Reagan was still an actor, McCarthy began his search for communists. He has been reincarnated as U.S. Rep. Spencer Bacchus, R-Ala.

Bacchus claims 17 congressional colleagues are socialists. Some Republicans apparently need more do. If the Democrats' policies and decisions aren't to their liking, quit talking and take action. Here's a hint: Calling people socialists isn't the best action.
About GOP
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Obama "Bow" To Saudis: CNN Reporter Asks White House To Clarify

2009-04-09T14:31:00.001-07:00

Neither former president George W. Bush nor President Barack Obama should have shown such deference to Saudi royalty. However, hob-nobbing with the likes of Osama bin Laden's family on Sept. 11, 2001, frankly, doesn't sit well with me. That alone reveals the type of relationship the Bushes have with big oil types.

Again, Obama showed poor judgment in that case. But White House press secretary Robert Gibbs was right. Millions of people are faced with more pressing matters -- keeping their jobs and homes. As a fellow reporter, I understand the need to prove objectivity by asking the tough questions. With that said, CNN's Dan Lothian was a week late. And breaking "Bowgate" won't save jobs or the auto industry.

Journalists end up often being scapegoats for other people's sins. But my media colleagues and I don't need to encourage detractors by haranguing people pointlessly for real or perceived choices and mistakes. Obama should not have bowed. But presidents and former presidents shouldn't fraternizing with the likes of bin Laden's kin. By the way, the U.S. government suspected his involvement with the first attack on the World Trade Center.

But I digress...
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Bill O'Reilly Threatens To Not Travel To Spain Anymore (VIDEO)

2009-03-31T16:28:00.001-07:00

Bill O'Reilly has threatened not to grace Spain with his presence. Images of its people crowding the streets and belting out "Celebration" (in Spanish, of course) are running through my mind. It's my prayer that they manage to handle the pain of being shunned.

Much has been said of the inability to criticize Obama. Saying anything negative about the administration -- that spent us into this mess and put military men and women in harm's way -- is just as taboo. O'Reilly needs to get a grip. Capturing and punishing suspected terrorists is great. However, holding them indefinitely without proving they actually did anything wrong is hypocritical. We preach to other countries about being just. America can't just talk the talk.
About War Crimes
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Meghan McCain, Rachel Maddow Interview: Meghan Talks Feud With Ann Coulter, State Of GOP (VIDEO)

2009-03-15T12:54:00.001-07:00

Considering Meghan McCain as an intelligent Republican spokesperson proved difficult for me. Witnessing McCain's appearance on The Rachel Maddow Show helped change that. As a gay, biracial man raised to be Republican, I anticipated a typically shrill and conservative young woman. However, McCain actually made sense.

Just so we clear, becoming a Log Cabin Republican is not in my future. The part of Lincoln, which clings to the Emancipation Proclamation as a recruiting tool, has done nothing for met since. Well, the late Ronald Reagan--one of its patron saints--did paint the entire African-American race as welfare royalty druing his failed 1976 presidential campaign. But I digress.

McCain acknowledged the GOP is not as diverse as it should be. She also pointed that it has not made much of an effort to be more welcoming people, particularly with more moderate views. McCain said what Republican leaders refuse to admit. The party has been kidnapped and continues being held hostage by the Religious Right and Rush Limbaugh.

Appointing Michael Steele as Republican National Committee was nothing more than lip service to the notion of diversity. Steele apparently is only expected to be seen and not heard.
About Rachel Maddow
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Deflecting Financial Reponsibility with Citizenship

2009-03-01T09:50:00.000-08:00

Our nation guarantees its citizens many rights. That includes dissenting and disagreeing with its leaders. Thanks to U.S. President Barack Obama's stimulus package, congressional Republicans have exercised that right profusely. However, those legislators and their Right-Wing allies seem to go beyond opposition. Take U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-AL, for example. Sharing observations that the package has flaws was insufficient.

Speaking to constituents in Cullman County, Shelby cast doubt about Obama's U.S. citizenship. He was addressing a resident's concern about rumors that arose during the presidential campaign, according to the Cullman Times' Patrick McCreless.

“Well his father was Kenyan and they said he was born in Hawaii, but I haven’t seen any birth certificate,” Shelby said. “You have to be born in America to be president.”

The country faces one of its most trying economic times. But, no matter, Shelby still decides to mire himself in a genealogical debate. For the record, the Associated Press located a birth certificate. And a birth announcement was printed in a Honolulu newspaper. It's the economy, not citizenship, stupid—a Bush administration-decimated economy. When another citizen pointed that out, Shelby chose not to speak to that point.

For all the talk about tax-and-spend liberals, Bush and his cronies got the act of spending down. They have poured billions into the Iraq War. The National Priorities Project pegged the current cost at nearly $600 billion, as of Sunday, Feb. 22. (http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home) So, Republicans and other stimulus opponents need to do more than just oppose the package. Here's a novel idea: Offer some solutions.

OK, the GOP has been squawking about tax cuts. Here's a news flash, people receiving them save or invest the money. They don't spend. I'm not Alan Greenspan or Charles Schwab, but the idea that spending stimulates the economy isn't a foreign concept. That is why food stamps are more of stimulant than tax cuts, Mark Zandi said. Zandi, Moody's Economy.com chief economist, testified before the U.S. House Small Business Committee on July 24, 2008.

“Extending food stamps is the most effective way to prime the economy's pump. A $1 inscrease in food stamps payments boosts GDP by $1.73. People who receive these benefits are very hard-pressed and will spend any financial aid they receive within a few weeks," he said.

I'm hearing voices. And those voices belong to conservatives. God forbid we increase food stamps. They say that encourages people to stay on the dole. Where's the research? But there's no denying public assistance is a great way to prime the economic pump. Many Republicans need to put up or shut up.

While disagreeing -- about anything and everything -- is the GOP's right, they need to learn to multitask. Try disagreeing, while developing some viable solutions.

A Presidential Press Conference In Color

2009-02-09T20:17:00.000-08:00

Presidential press conferences can even news junkies. Listening to so-called leaders blathering on can become tiresome and tedious. So, this journalism addict found new ways to entertain myself. Waiting for UPI's Helen Thomas to ask a question was one way.

My life so far has included watching the press conference of U.S. Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. The emergence of Thomas always insured that the conference wouldn't be boring. I still remember when she literally chased Reagan from the East Room. He couldn't hide from Thomas, so the Gipper ran.

However, Thomas didn't need to spice up President Barack Obama's first presidential press conference. Whether you agree with Obama, the press conference was good television. The 44th president didn't pull any punches. Obama kept it real. And he didn't hide behind a press secretary.

With that said, turning the press corps into a bunch of students was interesting. Presidential press conferences aren't supposed to be that orderly. I kept wondering if I was watching a political science telecourse. Then, I noticed something. The professor was black (well, biracial actually). It's about time we had some color in the White House.

Triumph over tragedy...for a moment

2009-02-09T17:38:00.000-08:00

Sharing her feelings of gratitude was hard for Jennifer Hudson. Well, it was difficult until she started singing. Then, the words came easily and beautifully. As she belted out "You Pulled Me Through," Hudson's screamed thank you. Emotion enveloped everyone in the Staples Center, when she took the stage at the 51st annual Grammy Awards.

Her powerful voice showed its massive range. Ironically, everyone seemed to know it wasn't for show. Hudson was expressing gratefulness in the only way she knew how. Seeing seemingly jaded performers humbled was fascinating. Under the pall of Hudson's immense tragedy, they realized celebrity isn't everything...if only for a moment.

The Grammy winner's Super Bowl performance of "The Star-Spangled Banner" offered a similar scene. As she lip-synced (at the request of Super Bowl producers), Hudson's emotion was evident in her recorded rendition. As she poured her soul into the patriotic tune, it sent one message. Thank you.

Being grateful and humble just makes the fabulous Miss Hudson that much more wonderful.

Rewarding deadly behavior and incompetence

2009-02-06T19:07:00.000-08:00

Well, isn't that special. George Ryan, another disgraced Illinois governor, has no retirement worries. A court ruling reduced Ryan's pension rather than strip him of it. He is slated to receive $65,000. The decision noted Ryan would not get credit for his time as secretary of state and governor.

Technically, he's not being rewarded for corruption -- corruption leading to death. Getting any state money certainly sends that message. Ryan is being compensated for service as lieutenant governor and an Illinois General Assembly member. However, his subsequent sins should cost him previously earned spoils.

Apparently, the land of Lincoln is destined to be mired in disgrace. CURRENT former Ill. Gov. Rod Blagojevich won't stop whoring himself out for publicity. I'm trying to figure what television show on which Blagojevich has not appeared. And, then, there's another former Ill. Gov. Jim Thompson, who acted as Ryan's attorney and secured his pension.

For those weirded out from seeing Blagojevich and Thompson in close proximity -- literately speaking. Actually, it's not that strange. They have something in common. Both men have an aversion to downstate Illinois. Staying in Springfield was beneath them.

Let's hope Illinois taxpayers are not shelling out a pension to Blagojevich.

Consolation prizes

2009-01-23T06:36:00.000-08:00

There are reports that people -- like me -- kept waiting for hours in a tunnel (and forced to miss seeing history made) are slated to receive consolation gifts. The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies will apparently give those slighted and humiliated copies of the invitation, program and a print. Well, isn't that special? OK, so I didn't have a print before.

Let me tell you what I did have before -- self-respect and some respect from colleagues and friends. After failing to deliver coverage on the inauguration, that's been shot. So, these consolation prizes really do nothing more than pour salt in a wound. It's just a reminder of what I missed. And I doubt that they'll restore the tattered remains of my dignity.

Yes, circumstances out of my control led to my broken promise. However, it's still my fault. So, please forgive me for failing to deliver.

A Disappointing Day...But Hope Remains

2009-01-22T11:51:00.000-08:00

Change and hope is what President Barack Obama has pledged to bring. Seeing him being inaugurated was my great hope. Alas, it was dashed. Disappointment is a woefully inadequate adjective to describe my reaction to missing history. When a tour bus left Rockford Jan. 18, witnessing history seemed an achievable goal.

Nothing changed my perspective during our 18-hour trek, until we got closer to D.C. Somewhere in Pennsylvania, there seemed to be a question whether we would even go into the city on Monday. That was before we stopped for breakfast. Dawdling of some of the riders didn't help much. Despite pleas to get back to the bus at a certain time, people still showed up late.

Eventually, we got to D.C. Initially, we were allotted four hours. But a wait at the Metrorail station and the ride all but an hour. That's right, we spent an hour in D.C. on Monday. The hotel was two hours away in Charles Town, W.V. Of course, that was only part of the adventure. History was fast approaching.

Our departure times (like so many other times) seemed to fluctuate. Since we were told one time that we would leave at 2 a.m. and another at 3 a.m. D.C. time (one hour earlier), sleeping from 8 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. seemed the best option. We were ready by 1 a.m. However, we still left at 3:30 a.m. and losing the downtown parking spot we would have had. Instead, we parked near a Metrorail station in the Anacostia neighborhood.

Our group walked in the brisk winds of Washington D.C. (about three blocks) to the station. Upon arriving, we had to buy another day pass. Thanks to my luck of the draw, a rude Metrorail employee would help me to get our commemorative day passes. We took the Metro from Anacostia to Gallery Pl and transferred to a rail that took us to Judiciary Square.

We were following the directions -- to the letter -- on our %$$#@ purple tickets. It didn't take us long to make to First St. and Louisiana Ave., which turns into North Capitol. So, we got a great view of the massive building in the dark, morning sky. Following the prescribed path, we got to the Purple gate and instructed to get in line.

So, we did what we were told. We walked and walked and walked and walked, before finding the end of the line. It was 6 a.m. and we were standing the street tunnel headed to the Capitol. That's right, we were standing in the street.

My new friends and I took up two lanes, while emergency vehicles and limos whizzed by us. By 9 a.m., I learned that the couple in front of us were from Minnesota, where she served as the director of a nonprofit involved with housing.

At around 10:30 a.m., I received an urgent call -- from nature. So, wisely or not, I left the pack in search of facilities. After walking one-quarter mile, I found one at the Georgetown University Law Center. Getting there when a Georgetown grad did was the only reason the guard let me in. After leaving the restroom, fear of whether I'd find my companion filled me.

So, I began sprinting back. The line had moved considerably while I was gone. That made the challenge of finding my partner more difficult. But it shouldn't have been hard. All I had to do was look for a red hat. However, everyone was wearing a red hat. But when all was said and done, I did find him. We emerged from the tunnel not long after that -- at about 11 a.m.

The throng of people -- bringing us along -- made it down a block, turned right and walked another block. As soon as we got the intersection of First and C streets, we learned the purple tickets weren't being honored. The gate had been closed. It inspired all sorts of reactions.

While others dissolved into tears, anger overtook me and many others. I joined in a chant. "1-2-3-4, We don't to wait anymore. 5-6-7-8, open the purple gate." That got rid of some of my anger, but did little else. I walked away in a daze. In D.C. and on our trip home, I bought newspapers to help me commemorate the day. But those purchases gave me some sense of comfort.

With that said, a great sense of disappointment remains. It's a disappointment in myself. Despite best laid plans, events conspired to keep me from providing promised inauguration coverage. That's right, I failed. Yes, I'm disappointed to have missed seeing history. But my failure weighs heavier on me. I'm not seeking sympathy. I don't deserve it, as someone noted. After all, I got to go to D.C.

With that said, our nation still achieved something great. It looked past race and elected our first African-American president. I'll never be disappointed in that.

Tunnel vision

2009-01-21T05:12:00.000-08:00

Hopes of witnessing history inspired my yearning to be in Washington D.C. Unfortunately, I witnessed nothing but a travesty (on a small scale). The tickets secured from U.S. Rep. Don Manzullo's office were purple. They would have afforded a pretty good place to stand. I arrived at the gate at 6 a.m., figuring on standing for three hours before getting in the gate.

However, I joined thousands of people from around the country in a street tunnel. Emergency vehicles sped past us, while we waited and waited and waited. My wait lasted five hours, while others waited nearly seven hours.

After emerging from the tunnel, the entire group headed to the gate. We would discover the gate was closed, making our purple tickets useless. And there were no officials to be found. The disappointment of seeing no history being made will stay with me.
But it does not diminish the momentous occasion.

One long ride

2009-01-19T15:58:00.000-08:00

It's been nearly 20 years since I spent so much time on a bus. So, spending more than 20 hours on a chartered bus proved somewhat difficult. Sitting still from Rockford to Mahomet and between a few other stops was hard. And the ability to sleep proved nearly impossible.
Giggling girls and non-stop movies made getting shut-eye a problem. I managed to deal with that in high school. Been there. Done that.

And that was how I spent Martin Luther KIng Jr. Day. Given our initial itinerary, heading to the Lincoln Memorial might have been possible. However, my one hour in D.C. Monday consisted of locating a Starbucks in order to get an Internet connection and rushing back to the Metro Centre. (No, not that Metro Centre.)

But here's the silver lining. I'm still going to see President-elect Barack Obama inaugurated from a good vantage point. After all, that's why I'm here. Tomorrow history and Obama's destiny will meet.

Riding toward history

2009-01-17T21:16:00.000-08:00

Containing my excitement about witnessing history has become difficult. For days and weeks, attending the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama has only a been concept to me. However, tonight making the trek to Washington D.C. has become real. It's like celebrating my birthday and Christmas all at the same time.

Having an African-American president is something that I never thought I'd see. Well, actually, as an 8-year-old, it had crossed my mind. I recall making my own Jesse Jackson for President signs. Of course, then I was enthralled with the idea of having a Black president.

Now, I'm anxiously anticipating having a leader of color. But I realize Obama's color can't be his most valued attribute. He must lead. However, I have faith. Given his success in leading young people and other apathetic voters to polls, Obama has proved his leadership ability. But, admittedly, getting elected is different from serving. Even so, history will be made soon. And I can't wait to see it unfold.

My journey -- on a bus -- to the capital begins 1 p.m. Sunday at the Rockford K-Mart on Sandy Hollow Road. Saturday was spent trying to answer an important question: What do you wear to an inauguration?

Come back to http://justcommenting09.blogspot.com for updates on the historic trip.