Total Crap

Why do liberal/left newspapers always feel that they occasionally need to provide space for those who support the most radical far-right agendas? If that's called being "fair and balanced", why not offer a weekly column to Osama bin Laden?

Nearly every left-leaning newspaper seems to have at least one regular hack whose job seems to revolve purely and simply around the need to stir up readers with the most stupid, inflammatory and un-informed commentry imaginable. It's all part of the blurring between news and entertainment, I suppose.

But this piece from Richard Cohen in the Washington Post today goes way, way too far:

The best thing Patrick Fitzgerald could do for his country is get out of Washington, return to Chicago and prosecute some real criminals. As it is, all he has done so far is send Judith Miller of the New York Times to jail and repeatedly haul this or that administration high official before a grand jury, investigating a crime that probably wasn't one in the first place but that now, as is often the case, might have metastasized into some sort of coverup -- but, again, of nothing much. Go home, Pat.

... Not nice, but it was what Washington does day in and day out... Now we are told by various journalistic sources that Fitzgerald might not indict anyone for the illegal act he was authorized to investigate, but some other one -- maybe one concerning the disclosure of secret material. Here again, though, this is a daily occurrence in Washington, where most secrets have the shelf life of sashimi. Then, too, other journalists say that Fitzgerald might bring conspiracy charges, an attempt (or so it seems) to bring charges of some sort. This is what special prosecutors do and why they should always be avoided...

More is at stake here than bringing down Karl Rove or some other White House apparatchik, or even settling some score with Miller, who is sometimes accused of taking this nation to war in Iraq all by herself. The greater issue is control of information. If anything good comes out of the Iraq war, it has to be a realization that bad things can happen to good people when the administration -- any administration -- is in sole control of knowledge and those who know the truth are afraid to speak up. This -- this creepy silence -- will be the consequence of dusting off rarely used statutes to still the tongues of leakers and intimidate the press in its pursuit of truth, fame and choice restaurant tables. Apres Miller comes moi .

This is why I want Fitzgerald to leave now. Do not bring trivial charges -- nothing about conspiracies, please -- and nothing about official secrets, most of which are known to hairdressers, mistresses and dog walkers all over town. Please, Mr. Fitzgerald, there's so much crime in Washington already. Don't commit another.

Kos says it " might very well be the worst column I have ever seen". Numerous other bloggers have already launched scathing attacks, so I won't bother with that. But please, if you don't like this sort of crap, take a moment to email the author - cohenr@washpost.com - or better yet his editors and let them know just what you think of such unadulterated rubbish.