Thoughts On Brokaw

When Tom Teriffic showed up, NBC was in last place among the big three… Mostly because of the pompous, overbearing, and unabashedly leftist John Chancellor. Brokaw did what he could to reverse the situation.  As of last week, when he stepped aside to make room for the glorified traffic reporter from Elmira, NY…. (yes, I remember WENY, Brian…) NBC was in first place among the big three.

However, in looking over the ratings for Browkaw’s tenure, one fact comes up that few of the people singing his praise today will mention; Less people were watching the big three at the end of his tenure, than were there at the start of it.  The numbers reveal a curious statistical fact; He didn’t win new viewers so much as he was more successful at keeping the old ones that the others… CBS, and ABC, were losing.

Put another way, Brokaw’s real victory here was that he did a better job, in the end, of stemming the losses all three networks experienced through the period.

Certainly, the big three losing viewers is a good thing. Just as certainly, Brokaw won the race because he was better at his job… and lacked at least some of the qualities that made Chancellor such an insufferable tool, (to say nothing of Jennings and Rather). 

But his victory, it seems to me, is less than those praising him make it. When one manages to win the rat race, after all, cannot one assume that they won because they are the best rat?

I’ve been working on a draft for a weekly long-form along these lines for weeks now, and hadn’t quite gotten it yet.Victor Davis Hanson did the subject first and better. Read it.

I note with some degree of amusement that I’ve not even been mentioed in this year’s annual Weblog Awards. I wonder if I demanded a hand recount in those areas favorable to me, if it’ll do me any good. Of course, I’d have to determine what those areas were…

This week’s “long form” is up.
It’s called “The Stores, Christmas, and Looking Though the Glass”

To my everlasting amazement, the response to last week’s grump was more positive than I expected. Certainly, it was more positive than I was. (Granted, that being more positive than I was last week is not, by definition, all that hard.)

Of the many messages I got in the E-mail last week, one really caught my eye…One reader sent me a link to an bit posted over at Gennie’s place and asked if I had any response.

Well, I had several responses, most of them unprintable. However, having calmed myself a bit, let me say that I read Gennie just about daily, and I’ve always liked her work. But the intent of my reader linking that particular story went right by me, I’m afraid… and I think the reasons for my grouch last weekend got lost somewhere around trying to link it to other people’s geopolitical strutting. In any event, I doubt Gennie saw my bit of last week.

But, look, let’s not get our “Haines Her Way” in a twist, OK? I’m by no means suggesting we all take part in an organized effort at shutting down (insert business here) for the day, nor am I in protest of any business taking part in such post-Thanksgiving sellathons. The businesses are out there giving people what they ask for; that’s why they’re in business. I’d just as soon they didn’t go out of business. Far from it.  However, that means little for my personal actions; I’m not too keen on going to ‘boy band’ concerts, either, nor am I into Sushi bars, or Elvis impersonations, but that doesn’t mean I’m overly concerned with the forcible removal of them from the planet…. (Well, OK, maybe the Elvis impersonations!)

For the most part, Gennie’s ire as she directs against such organized groups as want such sales to fail, seems to me right on the beam… They are after the failure of such sales, because they’re after the failure of the usual Christmas sales spike, and thereby the failure of the economic policies of the president… For reasons of their own socialist mantra. This is not some great morally driven crusade we find them involved with, (if morals can EVER be said to drive liberals).

Yes, I’m serious. Ask yourself; did you see such high-minded concern for the sanctity of Christmas being reported widely during the Clinton administration? No, it’s only when the Bush Administration comes along, and it would suit the socialists well to see a sales drop-off under Mr. Bush, that this stuff comes out. And I note, as Gennie does the theme popping up among the DU(h) crowd.  I’m as Skeptical as Gennie is with these folks for three reasons;

1: I doubt their stated goal is a good one
2: I doubt their real goal is their stated one.
3: I doubt that their real goal is a good one either.

And as a bonus, frankly, I doubt any goal the DU(h) morons get behind as a general rule.

Still, I’ve always sought shopping venues that were at something less than 300% of fire safety occupancy limits.  There is something about doing Christmas shopping under Decorations that don’t have dust on them from late August. I will contribute to the economic recovery, but I’ll do it in my own time, thank you.

Though I must say, that if there’s anything that can drive me screaming to the stores, checkbook in hand, on that day, it’s leftist nutbags saying I shouldn’t go.

——

Speaking of shopping and Christmas, and businesses and whatnot…  One of the annual mileposts have just gone past me.  I wonder how many more times I’ll see it, however. Your understanding of this is going to take a little setting up.

Back in 1962, a group of Rochester business people got together and formed what turned out to be a harbinger of the future of the shopping center… Midtown Plaza. An all-indoor shopping mall, particularly in a smaller market like Rochester was kind of an unknown.. And was ahead of it’s time. When you go to your local mall, and look around remember this is where the concept got started.

The second picture on that page is pretty much what it looks like today, though this picture was taken about four years ago. Notice the kiddie monorail, the Christmas tree, and so on. The outside picture is taken out in front, and is of the old Sibley’s building, and features the Liberty Pole in Downtown Rochester.

That milestone, as I mentioned, is that the Christmas tree is now up. It stands where you see it here. Years ago, the putting up of the Christmas tree at Midtown was an event covered by all the local news outlets, and was often in the early years set off with a party. Santa arrived in the same day the tree did, and did a land office business from November 26th on. No more, since as all downtown areas have, downtown Rochester is falling on harder times, as people interested in lower crime, less parking hassle, and better prices due to lower rent and taxes, head to the ‘burbs to do their shopping.

Still it’s nice to see Midtown and putting their usual holiday spread up along with much of the rest of Downtown Rochester. The place holds many memories for me; Myself at age 5, being escorted through the downtown for a ride on Midtown’s monorail… Yes the same one… Way back when. It seemed so much larger then.  Of course it was much busier, too.. Many many more shoppers. Going downtown used to be a special trip, something one looked forward to. Alas, few people look forward to that trip, or even consider it, any longer.

One thing I do remember also about those years is the rather unique clock, shown in the interior shot on the page I linked. There are 12 nations represented on that clock… And each one of the pods you see, contains a diarahma depicting that country. It moves, and has a soundtrack for each country, too…  And was all made by hand, and worked for the first time the week the mall opened back in 1962. At the time, the electronics were all electron tube based, and tape recordings provided the (rather poor quality) sound. Since then, a computer has taken over the operation of the display which vastly improves the sound, but some of the hand-made parts have broken, and the gent whose clock outlasted him, isn;t around to care for his creation. Sad.

I can remember begging my sister to wait just until the top of the hours, just so I could hear the music and see all the doors opened at once… And see all the displays, instead of just the half-hour where only one of them opened.

If this all sounds quaint, keep in mind; This was magical stuff for a 5 year old, particularly for the time. And the time itself was of the same magic; The country was under the Presidency of JFK, the world, supposedly, was united..And our place in the world was pretty much secured, except for those nagging nuclear bomb drills in school, and some background noise during the dinner hour about a place called Vietnam.

It’s rather strange how my history seems to have unfolded with this building. Many of the jobs I’ve had since I started working in the middle 70’s, have ended up being in this building. Back in the early 70’s, I started at WVOR, fresh out of High school. They were on the third floor, then. Almost all of the jobs I’ve had since have ended up within walking distance of it.  Later, I worked at Xerox Tower which is attached by walkway system. And since then, I’ve been working elsewhere in the building supporting computers. This too, is attached to Midtown Plaza. Indeed; there’s hardly been a time in my life when I’ve not been in this building at least once during the week, once I grew up and started working.

Over the years, I’ve watched as the bigger stores… The names of which won’t mean much to people not from around here, but I’ll mention anyway… McCurdy’s, B. Forman’s, Sibleys, Scrantom’s, Wegmans, and in later years, “The Shed” and so on, one by one, went out of business, and/or left Midtown. One of my memories is the station I used to listen to as a Kid… WBBF, the top 40 station of the day hereabouts… Had offices on the 8th floor. They moved out of downtown too, just recently. Very seldom now do I go though the place without remembering where those stores were, and how much better off it seemed to be in those days. And I wonder, as I look at the empty office sections, and the empty storefronts, how much longer I will continua to see this place decked out for Christmas… or at all, for that matter.

The idiot of a Mayor as I described to you last week, certainly isn’t helping matters any. A few years ago, he started a movement toward tearing part of the place down, and replacing it with a government owned performing Arts center. Nobody wants to get tied into this as a business location because they’re afraid the mayor’s PAC will throw them out of their lease, mid term.

Good move, you Bonehead.

We’ve seen the scenario too often before in downtowns all over the country…. While the doctors argue about what treatment would be best and do nothing, the patient loses the fight for life.

I still shop here for some of my Christmas giving… for two reasons… I work here… and I like the idea of coming here each year. It’s something of a tradition for us to bring the boys down and show them around. They particularly like the model train displays that get set up each year at various locations, and of course a ride on the monorail s a good thing…  But I know that this place is a memory, now on borrowed time. And that’s sad.

Thus the unannounced, yet impending demise of an old friend is noted in this blogger’s musings for the week.

———–

Saturday was a fine day. We all piled into Bit’sBox and headed south on I-390 and 86 to Corning, NY to an open house at the Corning Museum of Glass. They have what is undoubtedly the most expansive and interesting collection of ancient glass I’m aware of… and a fascinating show about what glass is doing today… The technology is amazing. They have glass articles dating to well before the time of Christ. Well worth the visit. Check the link for details.

On the way home, we ran though what has become something of a holiday tradition around here. One entire neighborhood about a mile from here got together and put together one of the outright wildest Christmas light displays you’ve ever seen… It covers several blocks.

But that’s for next week. With some luck, I’ll even have some pictures for you.

I don’t know as I can put into words exactly why this story struck me. I made note of this this morning, on the drive into the office. I’m not sure, but I think it was WPHT in Philly I was listening to at the time, or perhaps WGY in the Albany area. In any event, I’ve been mulling this one over most of the day….and I finally managed to find it online.

USA TODAY is reporting from Worthington OH, today.. the death of Verona Johnston, aged 114 years.

She was born Aug. 6, 1890, in Indianola, Iowa. She was the eighth of nine children born to Civil War veteran Joseph Calhoun and Emma Speer Calhoun.

Johnston voted in every election since women earned the right in 1920, even casting an absentee ballot in November.

Her last words; “Dying is hard…. I hope I do it well”.

Hmmm.
Where’s my copy of Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bookends”?

OK… just stop what you’re doing and go read Ann’s new column.

Now.

James at Outside The Beltway is linking a story from Fox saying John Danforth is resigning his post as US Ambassador to the UN. James seems ot think it somewhat strange that he’d be resigning so soon after he got the post, but you may recall the president had some arm twisting to do to get him into the post in the first place.

Even without that factor, consider the repercussions at home; Most Americans consider the UN to be somewhere underneath whale squeeze.  Oil for food isn’t likely to raise that perception any.

As for the question of who will replace Danforth..  it is an interesting one, and one that bears some watching..

The person in that role will need to be tough.. and know how to play hardball.

They’ll also need to see and believe in the President’s international vision.

To top that off, given that perception of most folks of the UN, such a person would need to have no political aspirations for their own future, because this would be a costly position, politically speaking.

James thinks Paul Wolfowitz would be an amusing choice… and I agree there’s some merit there, and along with that point comes the suggestion that Bush may in fact have to send one of his first-stringers to cover this role, given the requirements as I’ve laid out.

The answer to these questions will, I think, reflect the president’s intentions and degree of commitment as regards the UN. Mind you, it wouldn’t hurt my feeling in the least if Danforth didn’t get replaced. But, that would be a signal as well, wouldn’t it?

Chinese takeaway for IBM’s PC business? – vnunet.com

I’m hearing some heavy chatter from internal sources on this.
Watch this story, folks… it’s large.

Reilly , over at Right Voices makes note of somehting I’ve been watching, too, but have thusfar refused comment on, thinking it a non-mover, frankly…. The continued recount efforts in Ohio.

Reilly apparently doesn’t understand Kamp Kerry’s continued efforts in Ohio, given that at least on the surface, they’re not disputing the election results.

The answer is simple enough… They’re trying to further hte perception that the Democrats were victims of fraud, to use as a tool against the Republicans in the 2008 election.

Oh, yeah, that’ll fly… it worked so well in the 2004 election, huh?

Still looking at Democrat policy over the last 60 years, one sees the pattern clearly; insisting on tacics that repeatedly haven’t worked in the past, expecting different reults is what Democrats do. Sorta like insisting socilaism will work, if we’d just do it right…

Ty Willingham has been canned at ND. And frankly, I was wondering when they’d get around to it.

Here’s a clue for the race baiting hucksters trying to say the reason for Willingham firing was overt racism on the part of the school… Willingham is gone for one reason, and one reason only… a overwhelmingly losing record…. 21-15.

And if you’re still trying to tell me this is racism, please explain to me what a racist school, (as you apparently hold NotreDame to be racist, if you’re going to even suggest racism as an argument) is doing even hiring such a person.

Ask yourself; if we have a white guy who isn’t performing, but is kept in the job because of someone’s idea of keeping white people working, wouldn’t you call that racism? You bet your bazooka you would, and I’d even join you.

So why is the argument about a non-performer who happens to be black, any different? Isn’t that also racism? You know it is.

Bottom line:
Willingham didn’t perform… a point even he admits.
It’s about time his race baiting supporters did, too.

John Leo has the details, in a bit called OPEN MOUTH, INSERT FOOT

I noted C-Span’s coverage of President Bush’s comments in Halifax, which they re-ran this morning. (They do have vid up on the site today) I didn’t comment on it when it was fresh, because there was much to consider from his words. Boortz seems to have a handle on all of this from a world-wide perspective, and it’s a good write-up.

But let me get more specific. I’ve gotten several bits of mail the last few days, regarding my comments on the MP Carolyn Parrish, from Mississauga-Erindale. My counters tell me that blog entry of mine is catching a lot of attention up north. Good, I imagine this one will, as well.  A few writers defended Parrish on the rather shakey ground that our actions in Iraq were without just cause.

Well, I think over the last year, I’ve more than shown the cause more than just. Anyone arguing these days it was not a just action is simply looking for excuses for not having weighed in.  I’ve also shown the comments of Parrish to be so far out of bounds, her own party has rejected them out of hand…. and her with them.

Even among Canadians, who, generally speaking, are more left-oriented than their American counterparts, our actions in Iraq have more support than the likes of Parrish do.

Consider for example the comments of one Canadian:

“May I take this opportunity to apologize to American friends and readers? I am guessing the typical reaction is, first, “What?” and, then, “Whatever.” And indeed Ms. Parrish deserves the dismissal we reserve all for kooks and cranks. The trouble is that there are millions of like minded kooks and cranks in my fair country.

Anti-Americanism is rampant. Many Canadians now make free with the most derogatory comments about their southern neighbors. They are pleased to call Americans stupid, aggressive, and vulgar. They are quick to say that Bush is a moron. (And here I have to bite my tongue to keep from saying, “well, he may not be Stephen Hawking but he is almost certainly smarter than you.”) Want an easy laugh at a gathering of Canadians? Say something anti-American. No sooner have you spoken than the room is awash in self congratulation. American bashing is now a Canadian pastime, as passionately pursued as road hockey and Tim Horton do-nuts.

Indeed, I have not heard prejudice as unabashed as this since I spent a summer in the south of France and listened to locals let fly with anti-Semitic sentiments. (I do not mean to compare anti-Americanism to anti-Semitism, but merely the unapologetic ease with which both sentiments are, in this case, offered.) Canadians pride themselves on being open minded and cosmopolitan. But here they are stupid, aggressive, and vulgar.

(Aside; Should I point out that there is a Tim Horton’s cup on my desk as I write this? I drive by one at least, and usually two Horton’s each day on my way into the ofice.)

It was this anti US attitude which forced my choice of not spending my personal dollars in Canada. Do not misread me here. This is not to suggest, by any stretch of imagination, that all Canadians are like that.  There are many good people behind that horrible face I’ve just painted. But I’m forced to do that, and react to that, because this is how Canadians are represented by poeple like Parrish.

It is, I think, fortunate that such people are in fact outnumbered by a more realistic and reasonable… and frankly, more a honorable sort. However, alas, it’s only recently that these have been heard from… the press leaning left up there makes our own press’ leftist leanings look miniscule by comparison.  As a result of this picture, I stated publicly I would not be returning to Canada until I saw the anti-American nonsense recanted, or at least shouted down. Make no mistake; I do not consider that the Average Canadian is quite so vulgar as Parrish and her ilk are. Yet, the remainder wasn’t speaking up… apparently fearful of reprecussions for doing so.

However,the backlash has finally started, and I can’t say it’s too soon.  This sentiment against America and her actions in Iraq and elsewhere, of which Parrish is a part, was finally confirmed as having only minority status on Monday, as thousands and thousands of people came up to cheer and greet the President, and only about 40 protestors showed up…(Covered by around twice as many members of the press, who seemed somewhat annoyed about the small turnout… The Anti-American nonsense turned out, to their chagrin to be far smaller than their pre-summit stories made it.)

That alone shows us that it is Parrish and the extremist left that is marching out of step with the rest of the World… Not the President. It’s time the Liberals in Canada started consider that members like Parrish do not help Canada’s place in the world.

As Cultureby says

“I have never heard a Canadian admit to admiration or even acknowledgement of this difference. Instead, the strategy is to claim moral superiority. Canadians are better, they suppose, because they have better social programs, pay more taxes, and do not go to war. Why is that, I wonder? The reason that Canada does not go to war is because it lives within the protection of the US. This is the reason it has an Armed Force that would be hard pressed, if transplanted to Eastern Europe, to defend itself from an attack by Estonia.

And this brings us to the question of terrorism and Ms. Parrish’s conviction that a missile defense treaty with the US would expose Canada to an attack. It is hard to know whether this is naiveté or cowardice. But it certainly smacks of ingratitude. To accept American protection and then, in the American hour of urgency, to refuse to do what little we can, is wrong.

It compounds the error made by former Prime Minister Chrétien when he refused to send Canadian troops to Iraq. Chrétien claimed that there was insufficient evidence of weapons of mass destruction. What in God’s name prompted him to think this was the point? Plainly and simply, our neighbour needed us to close ranks, show solidarity, and present a single face to the dithering world community. If friendship was not enough, surely the opportunity to repay the “protection debt” should have been. If you can’t act from honor, you might at least think about acting from reciprocity.

Ms. Parrish calls Americans “bastards” and “idiots” because she would otherwise be obliged to accept a pressing reality: that Canada is no longer the “sleeping giant” but a continental embarrassment, the little brother who turns out to be slow at learning, bad at sports, incapable of protecting himself, inclined to incoherent outbursts, and, in spite of this, insufferably smug, self important, and ungrateful. Ms. Parrish, please, for the love of God, just shut up. “

My earlier comments stand, and my committment to not returning to Canada until such time as those telling the world the US deserved to be attacked, are gone from Canadian public service roles, or until they recant those statements, also stand.

As to the US being hated by some Canadians, I must take that in some degree of perspective. America, you see, has made it rather a habit to anger enemies of freedom. The Nazis, The Communists, the Islamofacists… all of these have hated us. Seems to me an encouraging trend, but it is a trend which forces a question: Who are people like Parrish, siding with?

Think, people; Herb Dhaliwal is gone today from his post. So, too, is that blithering idiot Jean Chretien. Both for the same reason. Perhaps some clues could be found there for some who apparently need one.

I fully expect that the Mississauga-Erindale riding, liberal as that area tends to be, will be removing Parrish at the next opportunity, as well. They would be favoring themselves, the world, and their place in it, to do so.

Some interesting BitsBlog stats: At the moment, I’m tossing up around 30 posts per week. That translates to 2200 or so posts total, since I started this Blogger venture, a year and a half ago. The Outlink ratio is around 1.14 to 1. I’ve often wished I had as many inbound links as I have outbounds….(Shrug)

Of interest to me is that Blogger tells me the word count on this blog is well over a half million words! Actually, I had no idea it was that large. I’d be interested in seeing just how much space I’m taking up on their servers.

I’m not sure all those words are a good thing or not, but I hope in all that, something I’ve said has made a difference for you.

You just know it’s a slow news day when Matt Drudge starts posting stories like this one. Sorry, but the only time you ever see this stuff is when there’s no red meat for the eveining news cycle.