[Vision2020] Duct Tape and Laughter

[Mushroom]

The worst thing for a politician, somebody said, is to be
laughed at. If you aren't laughing at the Bush
administration's endorsement of duct tape, what's wrong with
you?

I realize that senses of humor differ. I once had to get
thesis approval from a Canadian, and certainly Canadians and
Mexicans and Germans have a right to have different senses
of humor, so all I want to say is that I realize that senses
of humor differ.

But I will say further: Here in Moscow we all may die of
terrorist actions, but none of us will die of not having
enough duct tape.

That's opinion, and my Valentine's day resolution is to be
less confrontational. So I will go further and say that war
is a serious business and I have no problem with people who
are more serious than I.

Without committing to a separate "Media Watch" post, I will
point out that this morning's Spokesman got it absolutely
right when it said, on page three in a story about the new
Smith and Wesson .50 caliber Magnum handgun, "At .50
caliber, the bullet is about a half-inch wide ...."

What I liked was the "about." If the Spokesman needs to
write about .25 caliber bullets in the future, they should
confidently say the bullets are about a quarter of an inch
in diameter.

The Spokesman didn't do as well when it said the bullet is
more powerful because it can pack more powder. Bullets, of
course, don't pack powder; cartridge cases do. And the
Spokesman didn't do well when it neglected reporting that
most handgunners couldn't shoot the old, and smaller, .44
magnum, because of the recoil. I know I couldn't. I dropped
back to a .41 Mag. So Smith and Wesson has given us a
handgun for the person who drives his Humvee down to the
convenience store for a six-pack.

I want this posting to have some point, in spite of
Valentine's Day resolutions. Why can't newspapers check gun
stories with one of the people in the newsroom who is
familiar with the subject?

Don Coombs