The Washington Post can never decide whether its Page Two columnist Dana Milbank is writing news stories or editorials or "news-itorials." But his "Washington Sketch" on Al Gore's Wednesday testimony is artistic indeed, casting Gore as the "champion of scientific thought" and conservative Sen James Inhofe as the William Jennings Bryan character in "Inherit the Wind," the sad back-woods Bible-thumper arrayed against the wisdom of modernity:
Al Gore, star of an Academy Award-winning film, was in town for a double feature on Capitol Hill yesterday. But instead of giving another screening of "An Inconvenient Truth," the former vice president found himself playing the Clarence Darrow character in "Inherit the Wind."
....It was, in many ways, a 21st-century version of the Scopes trial. Only this time, Gore, like William Jennings Bryan a failed Democratic presidential nominee, was playing Darrow, champion of scientific thought. Inhofe was playing the Bryan character, defending his beliefs against the encroachments of foes such as the National Academy of Sciences, the United Nations and the Oscar-hoisting former vice president.
Milbank does allow readers to hear a little of the "savage" conservative "ordeal" Gore was under from Inhofe and Congressman Joe Barton, but mostly, Gore was a superstar:
There was opening-night enthusiasm as hundreds lined up to see Gore make his first appearance in the Rayburn House office building. The demand for seats led staffers to set up two overflow rooms. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, by contrast, attracted barely a glance as she arrived for another hearing moments before Gore's appearance.
This does not qualify as objective reporting.
—Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
was this Al Gore Phd or just
March 22, 2007 - 07:24 ET by ucwas this Al Gore Phd or just Al Gore former tabacco farmer - practicing doctoring without a license?
...at least as doctor Al wou
March 22, 2007 - 11:01 ET by TruthMonger...at least as doctor Al would make his two-faced lib positions official with the "hypocratic" oath:) (cue the rimshot)...
BTW milbank you missed again by a mile...but yes, try-try again tomorrow...you are the definition of insanity after all...
I challenge these so-called "peace-activists" to organize JUST ONE MAJOR D.C. PROTEST AGAINST AL QUEDA by the end of 2007...
Wait a minute, isn't Gore the
March 22, 2007 - 07:37 ET by RobR-BaronWait a minute, isn't Gore the one who flunked out of divinity school? Gore IS the one trying to defend a religion here, the religion of AGW. He's the one not using scientific methods and discipline.
Gore could not make it in a r
March 22, 2007 - 08:32 ET by Clear thinkerGore could not make it in a real religion, so he invents one of his own!
The liberal MSM has become an enemy of the USA.
Inhofe might have fit in at t
March 22, 2007 - 07:52 ET by BillAdkinsInhofe might have fit in at the trial, but you've placed him in the wrong role. Inhofe would have been the monkey.
I used to think Jimmy Carter was the worst president in history - then along came George W. Bush.
If you think George Bush is a
March 22, 2007 - 08:08 ET by stanleygoodspeedIf you think George Bush is a bad President you're an idiot and you have no business posting on NewsBusters.
Stanley, you'll have to exc
March 22, 2007 - 08:15 ET by MightyMouthStanley, you'll have to excuse Bill. He has a bad case of BDS causing blindness, stuttering and the constant urge to scratch inappropriate body parts in public. I know it's difficult, but please just look the other way when he comes around.
"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...
LOL. I'll try to do that.&qu
March 22, 2007 - 08:28 ET by stanleygoodspeedLOL. I'll try to do that.
"Truth prevails when the good men speak."
No - Inhofe was more of the G
March 22, 2007 - 08:13 ET by EdhenryNo - Inhofe was more of the Gregory Peck (Kill a M'bird). The lone stalwart aginst bias and predjudice (to pre-judge; you know railroad the case before all the facts come to light, lynching the US by an angry mob without a full hearing) Bush has kept us safe from attacks since 9/11, economy roaring (seems the same thing happened when Reagan lowered taxes - pattern?) freed 25 million people, number of employed all time high and black home ownership is all time high. Real bad leadership Now back to central point - WaPo is Urinalism. Sad to see a franchise go down the tubes with this type of reporting. The real story is whether there is a scientific disagreement of the cause of the temporary rise in global temps and whether the rise is part of a cycle. Dana doesn't want to admit this, so he goes for images. Makes him look weak, very weak.
Gore
March 22, 2007 - 08:48 ET by Mulligan22Please don't run BillAdkins off. His quick driveby comment only shows his weaknesses. I hope his comments are welcome here. Unlike the left which preaches tolerance and diversity, but doesn't tolerate diversity that doesn't fit their idealogy, we need to see their comments.
No I don't agree at all with him, but I don't want them silenced either.
I second your opinion, Mullig
March 22, 2007 - 09:31 ET by KC MulvilleI second your opinion, Mulligan22.
Just one note to add. The biggest problem with websites open to the public is the willingness of opponents to flood the site. Some people poison the site with negativity and scorn, and then reading becomes painful. I believe the best response is to allow all opinions, and then try to avoid a spitting match (even though I get as agitated as the next guy when I get spit at). As the alcoholics say, "take what you need, leave the rest."
worst:1. carter (no one els
March 22, 2007 - 16:08 ET by buddycworst:
1. carter (no one else close) unemployment, inflation, mortgage rates etc etc
2. jfk who uttered the magic words that lifted us up, to vietnam, corrupted the election system, abadoned brave freedom fighters to their deaths and imprisonment in cuba, who conducted illegal wiretaps and evesdropping, who authorized the murder of foreign officals with whom he disagreed in cuba and vietnam and africa and who virtually eliminated state's rights and whose personal conduct was, at best, sick.
3. lbj who was personally responsible for the deaths of millions, he detroyed our economy that took almost 15 years to correct.
Don't forget LBJ's Great Society
March 22, 2007 - 16:14 ET by RJDon't forget LBJ's "Great Society" failure that we're still recovering from...
Personally, I always consider
March 22, 2007 - 18:10 ET by Roger the ShrubberPersonally, I always considered Franklin Pierce to be a one of the worst presidents. He got the pro-slavery Kansas-Nebraska Act passed in 1855, I believe, which basically told settlers in US territories that they can have slaves if they pass their own laws to allow it. I realize that being pro-slavery was a big for Democrats back then, but, you should despise Pierce, if only because the Republican Party was formed, in part, to oppose Pierce's crappy governence of the USA (and was indrectly a cause -albeit one of many- of the Civil War). It was also Pierce who had the first Christmas tree in the White House, another annoying symbol of Christianity that you Liberals have railed against for years.
Oh wait, I forgot. History begins at 1970 for many Liberals.
Favorite Dead Presidents
March 22, 2007 - 21:10 ET by Jack BauerOne of my favorite U.S. Presidents is William Henry Harrison.
One of the last Whigs, he emphasized in his Inaugural address that he would be obedient to the will of the people as expressed through Congress.
As such, he had the good grace to die a month later on April 4, 1841,
the first President to die in office!
You all are good for a laugh.
March 22, 2007 - 20:43 ET by BillAdkinsYou all are good for a laugh. Why do I compare Carter and Bush and find Bush worse? Well, here we are in day 1462 of the Iraq Hostage Crisis, the worst military/strategic/foreign policy blunder in the history of the United States. America Held Hostage - day 1462 - that's why, guys. This isn't from your desired perception of the 'liberal pacifist,' it's from the perception of the educated individual with an appreciation and knowledge of history ( I await the howls, but I've got the credentials). Regardless of what you think, I believe 'world war II good, 'police action' bad, Vietnam screwed up and Gulf War '91 defeat snatched from the jaws of victory. But Iraq, man, Iraq 2003 is the crown jewel of clusterf--k brought to you by the worst president in history. Ronald Reagan, for whom I voted twice, would be sickened and humiliated at what George W. Bush has caused.
I used to think Jimmy Carter was the worst president in history - then along came George W. Bush.
Yawn
March 22, 2007 - 21:01 ET by RJSpeaking Of Laughs
March 22, 2007 - 21:23 ET by emjem24You voted for Reagan? I find that hard to believe. Are you yet another "Reagan Democrat" preaching to all of us from upon high?
What exactly makes you educated with "an appreciation and knowledge of history?" Do you have a history degree or even teach it? Ummm...unless you have a BA in History or a Masters in it or Education...then your entire statement is one long, meaningless rant.
Please, do present your "credentials." We'll be awaiting them in awe.
Methinks you just have an issue with Pres. Bush. Period. Please correct me and give an argument free of the usuall bullsh$% and BDS that's present in your statements. Otherwise, you're just another troll along the lines of hater, rhayes, rainlilly, and all the rest.
Please...do go ahead and wow us with your "knowledge." However, this former history teacher is not sure that you, like most of America, has much in the form of knowledge to present.
The difficult we do immediately; the impossible takes a little longer. Air Force Motto
emjem says: When your brain's stuck on liberalism it self-destructs.
You're a former history teach
March 23, 2007 - 06:25 ET by BillAdkinsYou're a former history teacher? I see why you got fired since you cannot see the forest for the tangle of brush that is the Bush Disaster. And, yes, I have a Bachelor of Science in History, graduated Summa, and a doctoral degree. Want to discuss 9/1/39 to 9/2/45? That's my favorite period.
I used to think Jimmy Carter was the worst president in history - then along came George W. Bush.
Well, ain't you speshul?
March 23, 2007 - 08:42 ET by RJWell, ain't you speshul? Yeah, and I'm the Donald Trump's silent business partner.
Too bad that, while you were getting your "educashun", you didn't learn anything valuable, like common sense, effective communication skills, or honesty.
You specialized in history 39
March 23, 2007 - 09:59 ET by BDYou specialized in history 39-45 and consider Bush to be worse than FDR? How is this possible?
Let us just consider our first "War of Choice" as is the current phraseology in leftist circle from that time period. How could you possibly justify FDR's invasion of the French Colonies of North Africa? Our first significant casualties in WWII from offensive action had nothing to do with the people who bombed us on 7 Dec 41, but were occasioned by fighting with the Frogs.
Now that would make sense --
March 23, 2007 - 19:33 ET by BillAdkinsNow that would make sense -- if you discarded the facts that the Germans declared war on the US about 5 days after Pearl Harbor and that an ongoing U-Boat campaign ramped up, too. FDR made the determination to deal with the Germans first. Seems to have worked out, too. We won.
I used to think Jimmy Carter was the worst president in history - then along came George W. Bush.
So, Saddam who engaged US air
March 26, 2007 - 12:24 ET by BDSo, Saddam who engaged US aircraft over the no fly zones did not similiarly have a defacto state of war on the US? Similarly, couldn't Bush claim to be dealing with an enemy.
By the way, When did the Frogs declare war on us causing us to invade French North Africa?
OUr current strategy seems to be working as well...
BillAdkins: "Inhofe wo
March 23, 2007 - 06:56 ET by GalvanicBillAdkins: "Inhofe would have been the monkey."
Actually, monkeys are reknown for mimicking human behavior, and the folks most befitting that description were Sen. Boxer and her Democratic colleagues on the committee. They came to worship the High Priest of Global Warming, and regurgitate his dogma. Not one challenged any of Gore's outrageous claims, despite the fact the forecasts of the IPCC --- whom Gore routinely cites and invites us to accpettheir findings ---- are way lower than Gore's alarmist nonsense.
Inhofe had the guts to expose Gore for what he is: an alarmist, a hypocrit, and a liar.
They [the corrupt] praise the
March 22, 2007 - 08:22 ET by stanleygoodspeedThey [the corrupt] praise the wicked and turn aside the just for a thing of naught.
Proverbs 28:4
They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them.
Isaiah 29:21
That make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of naught.
Reporters never explain the a
March 22, 2007 - 08:56 ET by KC MulvilleReporters never explain the actual science behind global warming, mostly because (I'm sure) they don't understand it themselves. Instead, they only report on the part they can figure out ... that is, the partisan bickering that accompanies the debate. You've heard the old lawyer's saw that when you have facts, argue the facts, but when you don't have facts, pound the table ... same here. Reporters don’t know the science, so they sell us the only product they do have: the ongoing public relations "Us versus Them" turf battle.
The irony, however, is that since they can't explain the facts, it provokes suspicion that the case is not the slam-dunk the media reports it to be.
I personally have no idea whether global warming is real or not, or how dangerous it is ... and that's the problem. I have not been informed. I've gone to several scientific websites to see what the actual arguments are, but more often than not, I only see the evidence that supports one point of view. The non-mainstream, "issue-focused" media (so to speak) tends to be even more rhetorical than the mainstream media.
And frankly, if reporters aren’t going to advance my understanding, I don’t want to hear their personal opinions on the politics of the players. That's why the media hurts the issue. It's just deadweight. The media exists to inform, so they claim, but they aren't informing. I am in no better shape of understanding the issue (and knowing what to vote for) than I was if I never read a news report. Yet they're perfectly happy to issue constant "reportage" about the issue.
As usual, reporters don’t write to inform … they write simply to be heard.
Then you need to see this vid
March 22, 2007 - 10:57 ET by mattmThen you need to see this video.
BTW - It's not just ignorance and a desire to be heard; it's part of an active propagandizing for the religion of Liberalism.
THE COMING ASS AGE! "
March 22, 2007 - 09:08 ET by MightyMouthTHE COMING ASS AGE!
"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...
Ha MM... Annie's on good fo
March 22, 2007 - 09:15 ET by Jack BauerHa MM... Annie's on good form..
Never mind his carbon footprint — have you seen the size of Al Gore's regular footprint lately? It's almost as deep as Janet Reno's...
And let's even go near the size of his carbon buttprint.
Indeed she is Jack, and th
March 22, 2007 - 09:26 ET by MightyMouthIndeed she is Jack, and this little gem reads as if it could have come from Chairman Ann herself.
"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...
liberals
March 22, 2007 - 09:59 ET by iveseenitallLiberals are teaching this GW nonsense in the public schools---not just in "science" classes, but in Social Studies, English, and any other course they can spin it into. They show Gore's film.They condemn religion but teach voodo like this. Disgusting! ( BTW, many parents are complaining--- thank God).
NEVER, NEVER trust a liberal
I was thinking of Elmer Gantr
March 22, 2007 - 10:06 ET by Dan The Man 2I was thinking of Elmer Gantry, remember this si the same person who said he and Tipper were the inspiration for Love Story. Well there is a Love Story going on, but its between him and the media.
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark. -- save my gun, shoot a liberal.
Gore's performances lately ha
March 22, 2007 - 10:28 ET by CaringwhiteguyGore's performances lately have also brought to mind Professor Harold Hill. A pile full of lemmings followed Hill as MSM does "Professor Gore". That said the comparison has problems because Professor Hill actually had some talent.
Al Gore a man of science, h
March 22, 2007 - 10:30 ET by MightyMouthAl Gore a man of science, huh? Well riddle me this batman: how many "scientists" have an Academy Award?
"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...
To bring up the Bryan* refere
March 22, 2007 - 10:43 ET by mattmTo bring up the Bryan* reference proves these APGW-ist to be propagandists. Scopes was a sham trial and it has been misrepresented for decades, just like every other tenet of the Secular-Socialist Religion known as Liberalism.
*who was a Democrat, BTW - not a Bible Thumping right-winger. (although, most people from his era were "Bible-thumpers" - as they were taught the Bible in public school.)
Role reversal
March 22, 2007 - 10:47 ET by nkviking75What we have here is a little role reversal, where science persecutes the heretics.
Science damn you! Oh my sci
March 22, 2007 - 11:39 ET by wiwfScience damn you! Oh my science!
I like how science thumping secularists attack christians for believing in something they (S-Ps) don't believe in, but when christians return fire and question their science when it comes to "man-made global warming" they call us the evil people (even though we have the science to back us up). The same goes for evolution, but I'll rest my case at my first point.
Compationate conservative kil
March 22, 2007 - 11:36 ET by ucCompationate conservative killer idea to get Gore past blowing steam >> nuclear powered "chiller" submarines stationed under ice pack and able to lower if only half a degree per mission the ambiant water temperature. ??? per some measurable and not infinite defined area.
comatose?news
March 22, 2007 - 12:13 ET by foolnomorethe "msnbc"news is truly turning into the "commie-hour"news service,they must be trying harder to cut into colbert's ,an the other wingnuts ratings,
Let us keep in prospective th
March 22, 2007 - 12:18 ET by Airforce_5_OLet us keep in prospective that the rest of the Dems have to stay with Gore because the extreme left of the party (Moveon, Environmentalist whack jobs, peace nicks) are running the agenda for them.
I have a couple of question; If Gore runs, will the other candidates challenge his stance on Global Warming? Will they question the science he is using and call him on it? Will they bring up his hypocrisy?
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…
Good question. What would B
March 22, 2007 - 19:49 ET by dahliatraversGood question. What would Barak and Hillary do with the issue that made Al Gore a media darling?
By the way, will this become one of the questions asked during the Presidential debates? "Senator Rodham/Obama/Edwards, do you believe in anthropogenic global warming? And as President, what do you intend to do about it?"
It's the Scopes Trial alright
March 22, 2007 - 12:41 ET by daveinbocaIt's the Scopes Trial alright, but clown Dana-boy has it all confused as usual. Gore is a fraud and a political whore. Inhofe has more science on his side than the touts for AGW, who should read Richard Feynman's treatise on "cargo cult science." An illiterate ideologue like Milbank wouldn't understand Feynman, but bad scientists like big government money and if they mau-mau enough, they think they can con the big-government Democrats into funding, using the Judas-goat moron Goracle as their cash-goat.
It's the Scopes Trial alright
March 22, 2007 - 12:41 ET by daveinbocaIt's the Scopes Trial alright, but clown Dana-boy has it all confused as usual. Gore is a fraud and a political whore. Inhofe has more science on his side than the touts for AGW, who should read Richard Feynman's treatise on "cargo cult science." An illiterate ideologue like Milbank wouldn't understand Feynman, but bad scientists like big government money and if they mau-mau enough, they think they can con the big-government Democrats into funding, using the Judas-goat moron Goracle as their cash-goat.
Concur:It seemed to me that G
March 22, 2007 - 12:59 ET by BDConcur:
It seemed to me that Gore was in the role of Bryant telling the tale of Jonah being swallowed by a whale while Inhofe (Darrow) was skeptically asking questions about it....
I am sick of Dana Milquetoast
March 22, 2007 - 13:15 ET by bigtimerI am sick of Dana Milquetoast...way past sick of Algore and all his theatrics...even wished that Global Warming would hurry and take over!
I am freezing here!
Sick of keeping a fire going already and have cabin fever....uh-oh...I said fever...lol!
Milbank: The personification
March 23, 2007 - 00:10 ET by Gat New YorkMilbank: The personification of the contented look of ignorance.