I take ONE DAY off from the blogosphere and look what happens...

[Hissyspit]

Four fairly MAJOR story developments/MSM reactions on the Jeff "My behavior and very existance undermines everything you naively held dear about the nobility of the freedom of the press and yet I am a victim" Guckert vs. Bloggers issue and one great Oliphant cartoon on same.

And that was just on the DU front page. I haven't even checked Daily Kos or Americablog.org or Atrios or Raw Story, etc. etc.

What is the mainstream media's problem? I used to be a newspaper reporter and am now a college professor. What exactly are they complaining about? That their post-corporate-merger reception of all or most that is tabloid is somehow nevertheless superior to the free-for-all character of blogging? I find this type of complaint sublimely ridiculous (I would take it more seriously if I had not just lived through the last five years and didn't recognize that Bush/Rove et al. had horns and smell - 'evil piles of shit' - before the 2000 election), and I haven't even read the Peggy Noonan article all the way through yet, and have not yet mentioned The Daily Show and CNN's 'bloggers more interesting than CNN' discussion. (I did read Will Pitt's commentary...)

Why did I take a day off? I needed some sleep, I had exams to give, a paycheck to deposit, and I was trying to get laid, er, I mean I had a date of sorts.

One day!
Discuss...

(P.S. Why did I take a day off? I needed some sleep, I had exams to give, a paycheck to deposit, and I was trying to get laid, er, I mean I had a date of sorts. Also, I realize the extra etc. is redundant. For effect.)

[stellanoir]

1. I empathize completely. . .

but my sabbatical from the news has been far longer. After devoting 20 months to the total ruse of EVM's I pretty much gave up on the news on January 6th, when the electoral votes were "certified," albeit. . .most questionably so. . .;

Around that time * nominated Gonzales for AG. I thought, "oh great, it's the torture dude," in charge of the DOJ. Almost went over the edge with that one, but took twelve steps backwards and suddenly saw this whole phase as the bad theater that it truly is.

Perhaps these bozos will inevitably take their fall just as all tyrants have throughout recorded history have done.

Perhaps the process is also akin to the alchemists of old, wherein one focuses intensely on something "attuning to what was once referred to as the Nigredo. . " or nothingness, and then surrenders completely. Dunno for sure. Just don't feel guilty about taking the day off. You deserved it. And the scandal is more than likely not worth your full attention.

But then the line I saw on the main page summarized the scandal that I normally would have paid great attention to, in one glorious line. . (paraphrasing here). . ."Pay no attention to the naked gay guy in the "family values" White House living room."

Hope your extracurricular activities went well anyhow.

[Hissyspit]

2. "Pay no attention to the naked gay guy in the 'family values' White House"

I was going to work that into my post, but forgot.

Ah, surrender to the nothingness. That sounds a lot like "Surrender, Dorothy." The Wizard and the Witch all have their ulterior motives/hidden agendas. Who can I depend on? For a while there I could swear that I was the only one in the U.S. who remembered that there was still an ozone hole over the Antarctic.

"You can't be cynical about everything," my mother said to me the other day. "Why not?" I said. "Maybe that's why I'm here."

[stellanoir]

3. Hold on. . .

I was merely relating my recent experience. Having obsessed for far too long over various national and planetary woes (including the ever threatening hole in the ozone) , just to step back for a while, out of all the obtusely baffling frustration, has been truly refreshing and really helped me.

I hoped that perhaps it may help you as well, not only in terms of your "day off" but perhaps I even daresay, a bit longer break, to gain better perspective of the current foolishness in which we find ourself completely immersed.

I was hardly suggesting eternal complacence, just that some distance and perspective can truly be a good thing. Maybe even make us both be more effective in the grander scheme of things.

Cynicism and optimism might be closer than we can imagine.
At least you have a clue as to why you're here.

[Hissyspit]

4. Oh, I know!

I got your point. Just contemplating 'outloud.' I'm all better now.

But see my next post...

[Hissyspit]

5. So, I don't even take a day off, just go to bed for a while & look ...

what happens! I can't even load the Home page for all the "Gannon" stuff. And I was overwhelmed last night!

I'm at a state press associations award show right now and have left the proceedings to check the blogosphere! Is that more ironic than anything Alana Morrisette can come up with? :7

[Roland99]

6. I think you should do it more often!

:P