Enough Already

Eight days ago, Michael Jackson died. Ever since, the news media has exploited his death ad nauseum. I have had it, and I know I am not the only one. To the media I want to say, "Enough already. Give it a rest." From now on, when coverage is given to Jackson, I am switching channels. If this weekend is anything like last weekend, I may be watching the Weather Channel.

Now, I will admit I have not been a Michael Jackson fan. His and the Jackson Five's music is okay, but I never wanted to buy one of his albums. The moonwalk is amusing to watch, but I would never have bought a concert ticket to see him.

To me, Jackson is just another case of an extraordinarily fortunate but narcissistic entertainer who ruined himself with drugs and self-indulgence. Reportedly, he died over $400 million in debt. Sackfuls of drugs were removed from his home by investigators, according to press reports.

Jackson's death is sad but not tragic. He made wrong choices, and he reaped what he sowed. Faced with life's pressures, he was a coward, as every addict is.

On the same day Jackson died, Farrah Fawcett died. Now, that was tragic. Farrah did not choose cancer. Yet, when faced with it, she responded with courage and bravery. She was a good example to people of all ages of how to deal with life's struggles.

Fawcett's death received about two hours of coverage before Jackson's death was announced. After that, she received hardly any mention. Now, I am not suggesting that her death should have received the amount of time spent on Jackson's by the media.

In a world rife with real crises and important issues, neither death deserved more than short reports for a couple of days. We have an economy in a death spiral with mounting unemployment and a collapsing dollar. The legitimacy of two governments, Iran and Honduras, are in question following a disputed election and a coup, respectively. While troops are withdrawing from Iraq, war efforts in Afghanistan are ramping up. Korea is threatening to launch long-range missiles at Hawaii. Korea and Iran are thumbing their noses at the world as they pursue development of nuclear weapons. Congress is debating health care reform and global warming measures. The list goes on and on. Yet, for the weekend after Jackson's death, a viewer was hard-pressed to find any coverage of any of these stories. No, it was Michael Jackson all the time. Even Fox News fell into this trap. As one commentator said, "We have become the United States of Entertainment."

The media's coverage is lazy journalism. It is much easier and cheaper to let one story consume all their time and resources. This cult of celebrity provides an escape from the tough issues for both reporters and viewers. What makes it dangerous is it gives cover for nefarious politicians. While our collective attention is diverted, what are foreign and domestic leaders doing? Are they working for or against us?

Finally, this worship of Jackson is particularly disgusting because of the allegations of child abuse. I cannot know if Jackson ever molested any children when they visited his Neverland home. A jury acquitted him when some charges were brought against him. On the other hand, he made multi-million dollar settlements with some of his accusers. The one thing I do know is that, if he did molest any children, he answered to God for it. If he faked out that jury with the help of his lawyers, he did not fake out God. If his victims did not get justice here on earth, they can know they have it now.

Attack on Yazidis: What Iraq Will Look Like if American Troops Withdraw Prematurely

Horrific suicide bomber attacks were made upon Yazidis in northern Iraq earlier this week. The Yazidis are "a small Kurdish-speaking sect that has been targeted by Muslim extremists who consider its members to be blasphemers." They live in a remote area where there are few American troops.

"This is an act of ethnic cleansing, if you will, almost genocide," Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin Mixon, commander of U.S. forces in northern Iraq, told CNN.

Those who are calling for immediate or near-term withdrawal of American troops from Iraq need to look closely at the pictures from these attacks. They are stomach-turning. Yet, this is what Iraq will look like if American troops are withdrawn prematurely, before Iraqi forces are ready to take over their country's security.

Do Americans want to see night after night of ethnic cleansing -- the results of civil war -- from Iraq on an unimaginable scale? I don't. Yes, we have seen many pictures and reports of suicide bombings and sectarian attacks on civilians for the past three years. They will look like a walk in the park compared to what will come if we withdraw early.

Do we remember the horrors of Rwandaa and Kosovo? Are we aware of what has been happening in the Sudan? Are those the kind of pictures we want with our dinner every night on the evening news or with our breakfast on the morning news shows? I believe that is exactly what we will see if we leave Iraq before the Iraqis are ready politically and militarily to secure their country and establish a viable democracy.

Our withdrawal would result in a bloodbath of ethnic cleansing: a holocaust. I agree there has been abundant mismanagement of the military efforts to establish the peace in Iraq after defeating Saddam Hussein. Donald Rumsfeld and his team served President Bush poorly in not planning effectively for the aftermath of the removal of Hussein. Nonetheless, I do not want us to be responsible for the deaths and injuries of millions of Iraqis in a civil war.

Hatred of President Bush has blinded many liberals to the raw reality of what would happen if Iraq descends into a full civil war. Ironically, these same liberals were quick to advocate our intervention into the Kosovo battles between ethnic Albanians and the Serbs. They have condemned our failure to intervene in Rwandaa, a bloodbath between ethnic tribes. These same anti-Iraq war protesters are critical that the U.S. has not rushed in to resolve the conflict in Darfur between Northern (Muslim) and Southern (Christian) Sudanese.

All of these are civil wars between ethnic or sectarian rivals. Why, if it is a moral imperative for us to rescue the underdogs in the civil wars in Rwandaa, Kosovo, and the Sudan, would it not be so to prevent a bloodbath in an Iraq civil war?

President George Washington wisely warned us in his Farewell Address to avoid "foreign involvements." I would respect a viewpoint that says the United States should remain neutral and avoid involvement in civil strife in other countries. But, I believe it is pure hypocrisy to advocate intervention in these other cases and not in Iraq.

Letter-to-the-Editor Published 2-28-07

I just learned that my letter-to-the-editor to the Florida Times-Union was published on February 28th. The subject was the "slow bleed" proposals of House and Senate Democrats and the jeopardy they would cause our troops in Iraq. Here's the link to the letter: http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/022807/opl_8240671.shtml

Fearless Forecasts for 2007

How time flies when we’re having fun, and even when we’re not. Here it is mid-February, and I still haven’t posted my “Fearless Forecasts” for 2007. These were completed during the first week of January. I do these every year to prove that psychics are no better prognosticators than the average person. (See the entry for January 5, 2007 for how this New Year’s tradition began.) They are in no particular order. So, here goes:


1. Mayor John Peyton will win re-election as Mayor of Jacksonville (FL) handily.

2. Now that Saddam Hussein is dead, things will start to settle down in Iraq. However, U.S. troops will not be withdrawn.

3. We will be engaged militarily with Iran to prevent their further development of nuclear weapons and to keep Israel from acting on it.

4. Osama bin Laden will be captured alive.

5. California, especially San Francisco, will have a very damaging earthquake.

6. Jacksonville (FL) will continue to be hurricane-free. El Nino will continue to suppress hurricane activity, although not as well as in 2006.

7. An F3 or stronger tornado will hit a major American city’s central or downtown area.

8. At least one new case of Mad Cow disease will surface in the U.S.

9. The Jacksonville Jaguars will replace both its head coach and quarterback.

10. There will be a major announcement of a new recreational or tourist attraction, possibly an aquarium or amusement park, for Jacksonville (FL).

11. Construction of the new courthouse in Jacksonville (FL) will still be stalled.

12. With Democrats in charge of revenues and spending, the economy will flat-line unless President Bush finds his veto pen. This year will be the prelude to a recession in 2008.

13. After brief stabilization, housing prices will continue down as unemployment heads up.

14. Nancy Pelosi will find it difficult to manage upstart congressmen with more conservative positions. The Democratic caucus will be more divided than most expected.

15. There will be an accident of some kind (car, plane, something or someone falling) that will really rattle everyone in the White House. It will involve or affect the President, Vice President, or members of their immediate family or closest staffers. No one will be killed or seriously hurt, however.

16. The St. Louis Cardinals will disappoint me this year. (Of course, anything less than another World Championship will disappoint.)