Death and Arrogance

Well, it finally happened. A man's body was found in a McDonald's parking lot in Davis, CA on Tuesday morning. There were no obvious signs of trauma. The police are investigating the possibility of homicide by trans fat (or global warming, or secondhand smoke).

While I'm waiting for the the results of the election to learn whether or not I will be put to the sword, I'll take a few moments to criticize the elitist Sacramento Bee. My displeasure with the paper began a few months ago when they published an editorial which included the racist statement that a black defendant could not get a fair trial from an all-white jury. In a letter to the editor I asked for an apology, in vain.

Since then, I have learned that all letters of complaint receive the same cavalier treatment. Sure, they publish them, but then they slap the writers in the face.

Most letters complain about pictures or the political cartons of the Bee's controversial artist. People write to the editor saying they don't want to see anything like that again. In response, right next to the letter of complaint, the Bee reprints the offending item.

My e-mail to the Bee ombudsman drew the response that they reprinted the item so that the readers could see the object of the complaint, and to reinforce their opinion that it was appropriate to publish it. This has happened several times, so one can only conclude -- "Don't bother to complain, because the Bee is always right, and we will insult you until you stop expressing your stupid opinion."