The press corps

In the second paragraph of Dana Milbank's mildly humorous Washington Post column, This is an ex-candidate, he gives us a window into the campaign press corps. They are waiting for their flight from DC to West Virginia to cover the Clinton primary victory.

Let's just say they aren't in a flurry of professional activity in the run up of their journey to West Virginia...

"During the security sweep at Dulles, some [journalists] play Hacky Sack with a cigarette carton. Awaiting the candidate on the tarmac, two guys from CNN toss a football. Aboard the plane, one member of the press corps entertains his colleagues by flopping down the aisle on his belly, like a fish." [Emphasis mine.]

First, I want to know which reporter is flopping like a fish. I think this is hilarious. We suspect that television reporters are secretly crazy, attention-seekers, who realized their acting career wasn't going to take off so they went into TV journalism. Print reporters are those slightly imbalanced policy nerds who don't believe they ever receive enough attention or respect. So, who is this journalist that sees fit to entertain his colleagues by acting like an attention-starved 15 year-old? I love it!

Second, this makes me hunger for more insights into the campaign press corps. My visions are mostly informed by West Wing episodes, Doonesbury strips featuring Rick Redfern and Roland Hedley, and highly unreliable, old Hunter S. Thompson portraits of the campaign trail. What's the real deal?

It is pretty tiring to hear the press talk and write about the press. But this is an area that merits an exception. Next time I want names of those acting like buffoons. I might develop a bit more respect for these journalists; or maybe not.

Perhaps this guy has a career in journalism...

NPR talks about white people

NPR is something white people like. This week on Talk of the Nation, Neal Conan interviews the creator of the What White People Like blog. The blog, less than a couple months old, has become a big hit.

The blog was also the subject of an LA Times commentary.

How many pilots does your plane have?

Here's a reason to have more than one pilot flying a passenger plane:

Plane diverted after co-pilot's death

Out of tragedy

It's heartbreaking to read the news some days. Horrific tragedies inundate our eyes and ears seemingly constantly.

Today, the Star Tribune runs a more heartwarming piece. It's about the child of a woman murdered 14 years ago and raised by her grandparents. For me, it serves as a reminder of the lasting effect each of these stories we hear about each day have on peoples' lives, but also that life does go on, even for those touched by tragedy. The headline sums it up.

I know Luanne, the grandmother, and she's a wonderful person. Luanne is a union activist who successfully ran for the Minnesota House of Representatives not long after her daughter was killed. In the Legislature, she was a tireless advocate for countless causes, and remains an energetic advocate in her "post-legislative career." Luanne decided not to run again for election after her knees stopped allowing her to doorknock the thousands of homes in her district. Keep in mind this is a woman in her 60s raising a teenager at the time.

• Touched by tragedy, Chess Koskinen is not defined by it

Valentines and gnocchi

A nice essay on Valentine's Day, cooking pasta, and hope: Of Valentine's jinxes and packaged gnocchi - Rebecca Traister at Salon.com.

Today's featured article: Clinton's experience

This week Newseek carries a piece by Fareed Zakaria that discusses Senator Clinton's "experience" as it relates to her presidential bid. Entitled, The Wrong Experience, Zakaria makes the case that Clinton's background and experience lend her to be too cautious.

Zakaria identifies some of my concerns with both of the Clintons. They too readily sell-out their position or co-opt their allies in the name of political pragmatism.