Fair and balanced? Really?
Anybody who has been following my blog posts and comments, either on 1389 Blog, on 2.0: The Blogmocracy, or anywhere else, is probably aware of my dislike for the Fox News “fair and balanced” slogan. There is no middle ground between good and evil. There is no compromise between truth and falsehood. I am uninterested in “fair and balanced” reporting. As I’ve mentioned before, the devil already has plenty enough spokesmen, and spokeswomen too. What I want instead is the whole truth and nothing but. That is what I endeavor to provide in all of my blog posts and comments.
And yes, I have previously voiced my own complaints about Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Arizona. Just for starters, a significant percentage of those who are arrested in any jurisdiction are actually innocent. The U.S. Constitution states that anyone accused of a crime is to be considered innocent until proven guilty. It is bad enough to be wrongfully arrested – and yes, that inevitably happens some of the time in every jurisdiction – without also being subjected to rough and physically uncomfortable treatment. Those who are past middle age and/or already suffering from various physical infirmities have reason to fear permanent bodily harm or death if detained in a hot desert “tent city” facility.
Update, thanks to lobo91 at 2.0: The Blogmocracy:
Evidently, only sentenced inmates are being held in the tent city; pre-trial detainees are held in the regular jail.
From their website:
The Tents Jail was begun in 1993 when Sheriff Joe Arpaio was able to obtain some surplus military tents. These tents were set up in an area adjacent to one of the existing Maricopa County Jails in Phoenix, Arizona. Sheriff Arpaio had previously decided that he would not release any inmates due to jail overcrowding, and housing sentenced inmates in the tents seemed a good solution.
Despite my prior misgivings, there is something important that Sheriff Joe Arpaio is doing right.
Immigration enforcement and Obozo’s stealth amnesty program
With the recent federal lawsuit against the State of Arizona for empowering their local and state law enforcement officers to enforce federal immigration law, it has become painfully clear that the Obama administration wants an unrestricted flow of illegal immigrants into the U.S. The main reason for this is that the Obama regime sees them as an easily controlled and intimidated future voting bloc who will reliably support the leftist Democrat agenda. Naturally, the ICE employees who are charged with enforcing US immigration laws are disgusted with this.
Border agents vote ‘no confidence’ in ICE leadership (h/t doriangrey)
In an unprecedented move within Homeland Security special agents recently gave ICE leadership a “non confidence” vote.
The Center For Immigration Studies reported:
In an unprecedented move within the Department of Homeland Security, the special agents responsible for enforcing our nation’s immigration laws issued an exhaustive, scathing letter simply titled “VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE IN ICE DIRECTOR JOHN MORTON AND ODPP ASSISTANT DIRECTOR PHYLLIS COVEN” on June 11, 2010. The letter, acquired through sources, provides a litany of examples of how ICE’s mission is being skewed towards supporting an unflinching goal of amnesty by refusing to allow agents to do their job; allowing criminal aliens to roam free; depleting resources for key enforcement initiatives that preceded this administration; and misrepresenting facts and programs, demeaning the extent of the criminal alien problem and geared to support amnesty.
What is Sheriff Joe Arpaio doing right?
Arpaio Responsible For 25% Of All U.S. Deportees Since 2007
Without the benefit of their state’s strict new immigration law, officers from a single Arizona county helped deport more than 26,000 immigrants from the U.S. through a federal-local partnership program that has been roundly criticized as fraught with problems.
Statistics obtained by The Associated Press show that the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office was responsible for deportations or forced departure of 26,146 immigrants since 2007.
That’s about a quarter of the national total of 115,841 sent out of the U.S. by officers in 64 law enforcement agencies deputized to help enforce immigration laws, some since 2006, under the so-called 287(g) program.
The tens of thousands of immigrant arrests show local officials already have a significant amount of authority to enforce immigration laws and help remove illegal immigrants from the country.
But with Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio the top law officer among all those deputized, questions remain about what’s in store when Arizona gives more officers the power to enforce immigration laws. The federal government already is under fire for doing a poor job of keeping watch on local officers enforcing immigration laws and ensuring safeguards for protecting civil rights are in place.
Joanne Lin, legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, said it is alarming that one Arizona county is responsible for a disproportionate share of deportations.
The Los Angeles County’s Sheriff’s Office, a distant second to Maricopa, helped find 13,784 immigrants who were later deported or left the country. The Sheriff’s Office’s agreement with the federal government allows it to check its jails for deportable immigrants, but not to enforce immigration laws during street patrols. A renewal of the agreement is under negotiation.
An estimated 10.8 million people, about 26 percent of the state’s population, are living illegally in California, compared with 460,000, about 12 percent, in Arizona.
“These statistics bear out that you have rogue sheriffs in certain counties that are bent on targeting immigrants,” Lin said.
No, Ms. Lin, what’s alarming is that other sheriffs in other counties are FAILING to do their jobs in targeting those immigrants (some legal, but most not) who have brought about a major crime wave involving not only smuggling of human beings and other contraband, but also gang warfare, widespread property damage, rape, and just about everything else in the criminal code.
Here’s another Arizona sheriff with the right idea
Arizona Sheriff: ‘Our Own Government Has Become Our Enemy’
(CNSNews.com) – Pinal County (Ariz.) Sheriff Paul Babeu is hopping mad at the federal government.
Babeu told CNSNews.com that rather than help law enforcement in Arizona stop the hundreds of thousands of people who come into the United States illegally, the federal government is targeting the state and its law enforcement personnel.
“What’s very troubling is the fact that at a time when we in law enforcement and our state need help from the federal government, instead of sending help they put up billboard-size signs warning our citizens to stay out of the desert in my county because of dangerous drug and human smuggling and weapons and bandits and all these other things and then, behind that, they drag us into court with the ACLU,” Babeu said.
The sheriff was referring to the law suits filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the U.S. Department of Justice challenging the state’s new immigration law.
“So who has partnered with the ACLU?” Babeu said in a telephone interview with CNSNews.com. “It’s the president and (Attorney General) Eric Holder himself. And that’s simply outrageous.”
So one man is responsible for 25% of the deportations. It’s actually sad that other officials are not stepping up.
Charles Barkley spent a weekend in Sheriff Joe’s luxury tent city a while back. DUI.
I don’t think that fair and balanced means compromising with evil.
mjazz wrote:
hand–feeds—bite
why?
the rest of the post is excellent.
good info
@ mjazz:
I think it just means FOX offers an on air opportunity for an opposing opinion to be broadcast. I like the format and the slogan.
At least someone is trying to do something. No one is ever right 100% of the time.
I’m not anti-immigrant. I’m anti-illegal immigrant. I don’t know why some people find that so difficult to grasp. There are valid reasons there are controls on immigration to begin with.
Recently I have noticed Oreilly in his interviews with Joe A. he has been short, rude and shitty. But Oreilly is being consistent lately in that he bends over backwards to kiss the arse of Obama and the leftretards. (we need at least ten thousand Joes)
Oh and as a former journalist I can tell you that being “fair and balanced” is a precept of journalism itself. That is what they teach you in school. Come to a story with no preconceived notions; there are two sides to a story. If you write your story properly the reader will be able to determine what the truth is.
Too bad journalism is a dying industry and has been replaced with advocacy instead of objectivity. Also you do have to consider that journalism as a whole attracts those of a liberal bent by nature, so it is a self-selecting group that is biased because of the motivations of those who have pursued it as a vocation.
All I know is that you can’t support a family on it coming straight out of college. I had to find something else that would pay enough to support my family and pay my bills … and oh yeah, taxes. Ugh.
@ Grimcargo:
I am not a big fan of OReilly but I did see him interview that Ground Zero Mosque dude, Awad, and cut him no slack when he dodged the hard questions. He also repeatedly pressed Jorge Ramos, author and Univision anchor on what to do with 1100 illegal fellons in AZ prisons. OReilly was brutal. His style is irritating but he will go after guests if they dodge and filibuster instead of answering questions. Lately, I’ve seen the other sheriff, Babeau, on Fox.
People who have a fond belief in a former time when journalism was supposedly more honest or ethical than it is today need to spend some time watching The Front Page, starring Pat O’Brien and Adolphe Menjou. This is a superb film realization of the stage play of the same name by Ben Hecht, who had been a Chicago newspaperman at the City News Bureau (where Communist blowhard Ernest Hemingway also worked).
It’s hilarious, and brutal.
@ buzzsawmonkey:
old journalism is dead, and that is a good thing.
and joyous shabbat to you and your family.
@ coldwarrior:
Thank you. Got to go pretty soon, but I’m lurking for another few minutes.
buzzsawmonkey wrote:
cheers.
snowcrash wrote:
Joe is an equal opportunity incarcerator.
buzzsawmonkey wrote:
Hey can you write out instructions on how to use the hi-quote function here?
our sister parish, the carpatho-rusyns are having their food fest this weekend.
carbs carbs fat carbs
buzzsawmonkey wrote:
Enjoy your Shabbat, Buzz!
To my knowledge, the only prisoners who are housed in the “tent city” facility are those who have been convicted.
Those awaiting trial are housed in the regular jail.
coldwarrior wrote:
Oh man that sounds delicious…
From their website:
http://accidentalpenis.com/post/708221085/autograph-penis
Obama’s signature reveals all.
Oy. We can’t do anything about illegal immigration. It’s caused by global warming.
@ doriangrey:
i’ll take some pics and make a post.
the old babushkas can cook
@ doriangrey:
their palachinke is just sick wonderful.
the bar is open! martinis, anyone?
@ coldwarrior:
Please include a recipe for something simple if possible. I am not familiar with Russian food.
@ lobo91:
It’d be interesting to see if the life/health concerns are valid. I’d guess not, because if a disproportionate number of Sheriff Joe’s prisoners were ill to the point of needing hospitalization, we’d hear about it non-stop.
snowcrash wrote:
ok, pilmeni:
i think we can expand on this later
coldwarrior wrote:
Funny you should say that, as it is now time for me to run off and abuse my liver with Corona’s and limes…
@ snowcrash:
get busy:
doriangrey wrote:
the liver can grow back.
blini…excellent:
snowcrash wrote:
buzzsawmonkey wrote:
I harbor no illusions that journalism has ever been truly objective and noted as much when I said that historically attracted liberals because they feel they are making a difference. I wasn’t around in some magical prehistory where bias was something left at the newsroom door. However as I practiced the art I took pride in being even handed, yet truthful. The truth speaks for itself. I think I was really referring to myself with the ‘fair and balanced’ take.
A true journalist stays out of the story and allows the reader to make up his or her mind. But again we are talking ideals, and as we know, being idealistic is useless, although I don’t think that it is useless for one to pursue objectivity as a virtue in reporting. But it is something we just don’t see anymore.
In the end it is all a business and sales are the bottom line anyway, and in the end that’s all that matters, despite good or bad intentions.
legendary perogie
coldwarrior wrote:
Here, please!
coldwarrior wrote:
order real perogies here.
vapig wrote:
one question. do you like anchovies?
coldwarrior wrote:
I had them on a cesar salad once and they were good. But I’ve discovered I like those green olives with the red pimemtos in them. Got one of those?
Grimcargo wrote:
its a cuisine/ehtnic thing.
the actual making of the pilmeni/perogi is a prayer
however, i still eat boyardi ravs out of the can
vapig wrote:
ok, greek or spanish olive?
coldwarrior wrote:
Greek!
@ vapig:
greek.
for u:
3 oz white diamond latvian 90 proof vodka
1/4 oz bombay saphire gin
1/2 oz sweet vermouth
1/2 oz dry vermouth
it all goes into the shaker, gently…with big ice.
out is goes into a frozen martini glass with a large greek olive with pimento and a cocktail onion, impaled on a metal toothpick.
enjoy!
(i like the metal toothpick thing…do they make those?)
Rodan wrote:
Think about that the next time someone whinbes “But we can’t deport all the illegals!” Why not?
@ Iron Fist:
And these same people believe that we can change the Earth’s climate…
variation on the theme:
coldwarrior wrote:
Ooooh! THANK YOU!!!! I can’t wait to try it! Yes – they make metal toothpicks!
lobo91 wrote:
stop harshing their buzz, sgm
@ vapig:
thats original for u.
@ coldwarrior:
Of course, they confuse lack of political will with inability to do something.
We clearly could deport virtually all the people here illegally, but our leaders choose not to.
We could also balance the federal budget.
We could have eliminated HIV infections in our population if the proper steps had been taken in the 1980s.
There’s very little we can’t do if we have leadership who is willing to actually lead.
@ lobo91:
yep.
@ Grimcargo:
I like the way you think! Could substitute the frozen bread rolls too. LOL
@ snowcrash:
there are shortcuts, but my wife wont let them out
@ snowcrash:
Exactly.
@ coldwarrior:
In my family one of the funniest “secret ingredients” is adding a Tbsp of Catsup. Sure, like that came from the old country. LOL and dont tell.
I have had several friends who turned up innocent after being arrested, me too, all it meant was that it wasn’t our weed that time… odd are if you are arrested for drugs you are in the wrong place or hanging with the wrong folks – which is an easy fix. My bet is those that are detained for being illegal and turn out not to be, were hanging with illegals or decided to drive without their licence. Baretta was correct, you can beat the rap but you can’t beat the ride.
lobo91 wrote:
I hope you’re right. If you have any info on this, please let me know. I will issue an update on this article if need be.
rgranger wrote:
Sometimes it happens to people who are as close to perfectly innocent as anybody could reasonably be. It happened to our parish priest in Chicago, who ended up in jail and charged with a bunch of bogus charges simply because he happened to physically resemble somebody else the cops were looking for. The judge dismissed all of the charges, but it was an unsettling experience nonetheless. It just goes to show that no matter how careful you are about your behavior, your companions, and avoiding even the appearance of misconduct, you can end up being arrested anyway. Sad, but true.
lobo91 wrote:
OK, got it!
Ok, that is a scrambled statistic. Calif has about 33 million or so. The number of illegals nationwide is 10 to 12 million, or so we think. This statistic mix up would indicate over 30% of Californians are illegal.
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