The residents of Gypsum, Colorado were in for a surprise the other day. Someone hit the wrong button in the county's communications center, triggering an automatic broadcast over four radio stations warning residents to evacuate immediately on account of the tsunami headed their way. That's an interesting weather development for this landlocked community, 6,334 feet above sea level. It's not often screaming alarms are so demonstrably false, and the wise course of action at times like this is simply to turn them off and publicly recognize the error. So why, then, won't the false-alarm-clanging critics leave "The Passion of the... continue reading
Do you ever read those oftentimes annoying little tickers that crawl under the TV newscasts? Even the tickers can carry a liberal bias. Take ABC's "Good Morning America" on February 27, in the show's first two minutes. Notice where ABC placed (and didn't place) the quote marks and the word "so-called" as these sentences crossed the screen, in order: - "Days before Super Tuesday, Democratic presidential rivals John Kerry and John Edwards spar over trade, agree on opposing gay marriages in debate." - "House passes 'Laci and Conner's bill,' makes harming an 'unborn child' a federal crime." - "Justice Department... continue reading
Almost every parent of a teenager wonders how on Earth they're going to be able to monitor what sensationalistic media images or ideas children are engrossed in today. On the radio, a pop singer boasts about her chest as a "milkshake" that brings all the boys around to her yard. On the television, kids can see WB's "The Surreal Life," its sleazy reality-show plot often revolving around a porn star, Ron Jeremy. Then there's video games, which have grown increasingly sophisticated - and unfortunately, increasingly raunchy and bloody - since the musty old days of Donkey Kong and Pac-Man. More... continue reading
The venerable Associated Press would not wish itself to be seen as a silly institution of stenographers, forwarding whatever hilarious charges politicians can concoct. But then how do you explain their Sunday report that John Kerry sent a letter to President George W. Bush, accusing him of using the painful topic of Vietnam for his 'personal political gain'? Will someone please cue the laugh track, and a full orchestra playing the "Looney Tunes" theme song? Is there anyone in presidential politics who's tried to use his Vietnam experience for political gain more than John Forbes Kerry? Is there no end... continue reading
For several weeks now, the national media have looked like the servile monkey to Democratic Party chairman Terry McAuliffe's organ grinder. Not only have they pounded the Democratic attack line against the President, chanting "questions linger, questions linger, questions linger" about Bush's honorable National Guard service, they have touted the efficiency and electability of John Kerry, and implored his remaining opponents to quit immediately. Then, after all the Bush-bashing and the Kerry-boosting, they unveil a new media poll and squeal with excitement that Kerry's opened a lead. Who would have guessed media manipulation had anything to do with those numbers?... continue reading
The mass unveiling of Mel Gibson's cinematic vision of "The Passion of the Christ" on 2,000 screens - a massive debut for a foreign-language film with subtitles - has the entertainment elite a bit frightened. After all, how many decades have elapsed since Hollywood has been in any way associated with Christian orthodoxy? The one who is not frightened is Gibson. He is a man who has made his own brave and generous sacrifice, putting tens of millions of dollars and his own film career on the line for a daring and controversial cultural event. He is a man who... continue reading
It is a testament to the dignity of George Bush the Elder that in 1992, he refused to make endless fun of the draft sheananigans of Bill Clinton, who skipped off to Oxford after he received his draft notice to blab endlessly about politics and play strip poker with the lasses. But he should have said something serious about it. Bush's campaign was so devoid of red meat on Clinton's military deficiencies that it was almost vegetarian in its fear of liberal media pounding. Twelve years later, seemingly we have role reversal with President George W. Bush. Except there is... continue reading
When CBS decided to pick up the annual Victoria's Secret fashion show, knowing that the programs was aimed directly at hormonally-exploding youngsters, I wondered: how would parents react if their local high school announced that it would be holding an underwear-and-lingerie fashion show on their own? Little did I realize that at least one community would outdo the spectacle on CBS. In oh-so-progressive Amherst, Massachusetts, the local high school is aiming to sink lower, much lower. To celebrate (or more accurately, eviscerate) Valentine's Day, the Amherst-Pelham School District is welcoming a Friday-the-13th staging of the vulgar feminist play "The Vagina... continue reading
The dominance of Fox News in the cable news ratings - and what liberals see as its annoying tendency to cover topics and angles which they believe should be buried for the good of liberalism - has led to a great amount of Fox-hating in the anything-but-"mainstream" press. These liberal elites love to pretend that the patch of dirt where they stand is the hallowed ground of objectivity when in reality their idea of "mainstream" is floating out on a liberal sea, on a fanciful boat where everyone thinks Howard Dean is best classified as a political moderate, as were... continue reading
Sports are supposed to remain as an inspirational oasis in our culture, a place where merit and performance, and even dazzling feats of prowess grab our attention. Too often in recent years, as professional sports has grown massively popular, the gap between athletic performance on the field and athletic misbehavior off the field has widened into a chasm. But the latest shocking sports news says something worse: now expectations of virtue in sports fans are also falling apart. Even before the sleaze parade known at this year's Super Bowl unfolded, sports pages were lamenting what was happening at the University... continue reading