Fear and Loathing in the Halls of Media

The Media is a fearful bunch. They're afraid of just about everything. Name a topic, any topic, and there's a group of honest well-intentioned media folks who are genuinely worried about [...]'s impact on society and the world.

The Media is also a loathsome bunch. They loathe whatever marginalizes, or worse... trivializes... Their importance to the well-oiled global community. They believe themselves the equals of presidents and kings.

And yet some in Media are not without honesty.

Jeff Jacoby, writing for the Boston Globe, praises one news outlet-- albeit in a round about way --for its honesty while wondering at the dangers inherent in giving in to terror and intimidation. Quoting The Phoenix; the paper in question [Annoying registration required]:

"Our primary reason," the editors confessed, is "fear of retaliation from... Bloodthirsty Islamists who seek to impose their will on those who do not believe as they do... Simply stated, we are being terrorized, and... Could not in good conscience place the men and women who work at the Phoenix and its related companies in physical jeopardy. As we feel forced, literally, to bend to maniacal pressure, this may be the darkest moment in our 40-year-publishing history."

Well, at least the Phoenix is honest. Almost without exception, every other news outlet claims their motive for not publishing the cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed, is due to respect for the noble followers of the religion of peace... Islam. In truth, however, they're simply afraid of retaliation, and rightly so. Jacoby goes on to detail the history and danger of capitulation...

Like the Nazis in the 1930s and the Soviet communists in the Cold War, the Islamofascists are emboldened by appeasement and submissiveness. Give the rampagers and book-burners a veto over artistic and editorial decisions, and you end up not with heightened sensitivity and cultural respect, but with more rampages and more books burned. You betray ideals that generations of Americans have died to defend.

Jacoby characterized the Fearful, now Captain Ed at Captain's Quarters comments on the Loathsome...

The media attacks those who they know will not spend much energy fighting back. Gregory could act like a rude, spoiled child denied his choice of birthday gift because he knew the White House would not dare to even expel him from the room. However, their supposed calling to keep the people informed suddenly takes a powder when the remote threat of violence appears...

That's right, attack the President and his administration. Attack Conservatives. Attack Republican's. Attack Christianity and its followers-- "They'll bluster and complain, but they won't cut our heads off!"

Mainstream Media has become the proverbial schoolyard bully: Tyrannical toward the weak, and cowardly toward bigger bullies.

In the true spirit of satire-- as are the now-infamous Danish cartoons --Maureen Martin at CatholicNews.org shines a little light humor on the whole. Humorous or not, it nicely illustrates the absurdity of giving in to Islamfascism...

ATLANTA -- Out of Respect for the religion of Islam, CNN President Jonathan N. Klein announced today that the network will no longer air content that is offensive to the religion's followers, including any other material that distorts the image of the "religion of peace."

"Two weeks ago, we made the maverick decision not to air the Mohammed cartoons -- not because all of us in Atlanta are afraid of being turned into human shish kabobs-- but because we don't want to offend the followers of this great world religion," said Klein. "The fact that we're still alive-- er, I mean--that we've gotten positive feedback from the world, shows we made the right decision."

As part of the new policy, CNN will not air any material that depicts Islamic followers involved in violent acts, since that goes against tenets of the Islam, the religion of peace. As a result, CNN reporters, producers, and camera crews today pulled out of Brunei, Chad, Comoros, [yada, yada, yada...]

Read the whole piece, it gets better.

I'm not immune to fear either. I have drawn up my own cartoon of the prophet Mohammed, but I'm too chick-poops to post it. I like my head where it's at.