Y'know

FIRST: What Mencken said.

Second: I spent eight years in itchy discomfort because, on top of everything else, including much, much worse, Helen Thomas and Gentleman Farmer Sam Donaldson were the designated spokespersons for The Liberal Media during the Reagan excrescence. Thomas may be a good reporter, but the simple fact is that that's like being the top safety advisor at BP. The Gaggle's been owned since 1981, and at best she gave it some sort of credibility on Bizarro World. This is the period when our politics got taken over by "personalities"--beginning with Reagan, moving on to Tip O'Neill, Jerry Brown, Newt Gingrich, and George Will's bowtie--and you know where that got us. She shoulda got while the getting' was good. Goes for the rest of 'em, too.

(And maybe I'm the only one, but goddam if I don't hate the sort of place that has some legendary waitress or cashier who's been there for forty years and can't be bothered to refill your coffee or ring up your bill because she's been there for forty years, and is a legend, and so can pretty much spend her time doing nothing without fear of firing or reprimand, unless she criticizes Israel. Did Helen Thomas inspire any Gaggler to transcend stenography? Or did she inspire a lot of young careerists to a stagy combativeness except when the heat was on? You tell me.)

But, still: Jonah Goldberg has a job. Pat Buchanan has a job. Glenn Beck says worse shit than that in his sleep. Oh, they're not reporters? Monica Crowley has a job. Bernie Goldberg has one. David "Pimping Chelsea Clinton" Shuster had to make a non-apology apology and was suspended for a week. Mike Allen and Andrea Mitchell pimped the White House Vandalism story despite it being, y'know, utter bullshit.

And how long did Judy Miller keep her job at the Times again?