Lazy Gopher Pachyderm

Flip . . . flip . . . flip . . .

Excuse me a second. I’m taking part in a ritual long ago abandoned; looking for a story in the Star Tribune. You see, a petition was presented to House GOP leader John Boehner yesterday signed by almost 3000 active duty service men and women.

Flip . . . flip . . . hmmm . . . another racist editorial cartoon rendering of Condi Rice . . .

Anyway, it’s called an Appeal for Courage, something Congress, particularly Senate Republicans like our own Norm Coleman, sorely lack. It reads as follows:

“As an American currently serving my nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to fully support our mission in Iraq and halt any calls for retreat. I also respectfully urge my political leaders to actively oppose media efforts which embolden my enemy while demoralizing American support at home. The War in Iraq is a necessary and just effort to bring freedom to the Middle East and protect America from further attack.”

Flip . . . flip . . . “Palestinian Group claims it's holding BBC reporter.” Yeah, right; “group.”

I couldn’t help but remember in January when a thousand “military personnel” presented a petition to congress and a story appeared on the front page of the B section the very next day. So I was wondering if an opposing petition signed by almost three times as many soldiers would get covered. After all, I wrote back then:

“Tony Snow had it right when he said that these handful of soldiers would get more press than tens of thousands who come home with pride in their service and belief in the mission. Those soldiers rarely achieve the same level of prominence in the MSM because the MSM is no longer about news, but presenting a predetermined viewpoint.”

In the interest of fairness I thought I’d give the STRIB a chance to prove me wrong. I’ll let you know what I find.

Flip . . . flip . . . Damn! Twins lost . . .