Slammed, I am, tending to an injured mare, figuring out what to do with multiple downed trees, and having both cars break down the same day. But I couldn’t not check in to opine on two things:
“One Punk Under God” This is a documentary shown in parts on The Sundance Channel. It follows the son of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, Jay, as he struggles to keep alive a small ministry while reconciling with his dad. I’m sure many of you are already familiar with this series, (I am seldom on the leading edge of ANY pop culture) but i watched an episode last night and now I’m hooked. In last night’s show, Jay visited his mom, and then went back to his church to proclaim that it is morally wrong for Christian churches to deny rights, and access to the church, to Gay Christians. In doing so, he is expecting to lose his major funding source, as so far unnamed “conservative entity.” Anyway, I’m hooked.
David Shuster, one of MSNBC’s better reporters, uttered a phrase so blatantly pejorative, so hopelessly stupid, so completely unprofessional, that it totally boggles the mind. I like Shuster, as I said above, he is a first rate reporter, and I hoped he would ultimately replace that spoiled frat boy, Tucker Carlson. He apologized several times on the air, but it didn’t seem that he understood what consequences might follow. He has been “suspended” by MSNBC, whatever that means.
His career may not survive. I hope it does, just as I hoped Imus’s career would go on. I wonder how much the “culture” of MSNBC encourages this kind of thing? Ratings rule, and much like blog posts, there can be a footrace to the bottom resulting from the need to create controversy. Its a disturbing trend. In my opinion, he had every right to question the Clinton campaign about Chelsea’s activities, since she is actively campaigning. She is 28 yrs old, which is old enough to know that participating in a national campaign means attention from the press. She is indeed “fair game.”
Shuster is smart, smart enough to have been able to make his point without resorting to disparaging street slang. Chelsea endured brutal attacks during her father’s Presidency, all of them unfair and rather pointless. I understand her parent’s anger at Shuster, but only for his choice of words, and its implications, not for drawing attention to the fact that she is shielded from questions from reporters.
Someone I know and love contacted me yesterday and was furious that the Obama campaign had not issued a statement calling for Shuster to apologize. They felt that the failure to do so was proof that the Obama campaign is “just as dirty as any politician’s campaign.” I didn’t agree, but I’m curious if others might see that point. Anyone got a link, or opinion?
