You may have heard about the plane crash last weekend (November 28, 2004) in Montrose, Colorado, mainly because a “celebrity” was aboard (NBC Sports head Dick Ebersol; his wife is actress Susan Saint James).
Editorial
Binge Drinking in College: No, Not Funny
I periodically remind people: the stories in This is True are not always meant to be funny. Even the funny ones are often chosen to drive home a point, but sometimes being funny isn’t the way to do that. A good example is this two-story line-up from True’s 3 October 2004 issue:
Live Free or Whine
After seeing my note from last week, and then seeing a paid ad for the Free State Project in True, Tim in New Hampshire wrote to complain:
Who “Deserves” Freedom?
We’re often told not to discuss politics or religion in polite company. But sometimes your hand is forced. It all started with two stories that appeared in subsequent weeks — in the 9 May and 16 May 2004 issues:
I Demand You Agree With This
There was a story last week about the governor of West Virginia, who was so outraged over a joke T-shirt that he demanded 1) that the seller remove them from its stores and catalog, 2) recall them, and 3) destroy them. The company refused. My tagline: “…In other news, the indignant governor said no, it’s untrue that only inbred buffoons think they can stop people from telling jokes.”
The Cradle of Common Law
In the 28 March edition I ran a story about Britain’s Home Secretary, who has started billing released prisoners for their room and board when they have been found innocent after spending years in prison.
When is Racism OK?
When some idiot in the public eye spews forth an outrageous racist remark or two, they’re always called to task! And rightly so. Well… are they really? What happens when people are afraid to call a racist a racist, because they’ll be called racist? This story was in True’s 29 February 2004 issue:
Home Schooling Looks Better Every Day
Sometimes I write taglines with the intention of provoking readers a bit, but usually they don’t rise to the bait. Other times, I’m astounded at what does trigger complaints. A good example of the latter is this story from the 15 February 2004 issue:
The Missionary’s Position
Or, Much Ado About Nothing!
I got exactly one complaint about a story in last week’s issue, and the basis of the complaint, by a Baptist Youth Pastor, is so eye-rolling in its cluelessness, you’ll begin to understand why some kids are so screwed up.
One Brave Girl
or… Welcome to the 21st Century
Editorial comments from This is True for the week of 16 February 2003:
Babies ’R’ Us? Yes They Are
A story this week brought in a huge reader response — and an unbelievable reply from “Babies ’R’ Us” to my readers who complained to them. First, the story:
Date Rape is Funny?
Last week’s story about one of Time magazine’s “best inventions of the year” brought a mixed reaction. Let’s start with the story, from True‘s 1 December 2002 issue:
A Truly Heartwarming Story
In doing my research every week, I’ve been noticing more and more stories about spammers.
The Voices in My Head
As I (ahem) expected, I got a few letters from readers about last week’s story about the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill’s successful campaign to get Sears to stop selling a T-shirt. It reads:
Politics is a Dirty Business
In the 25 August 2002 newsletter, there was a paid ad for an anti-Bush bumper sticker. The ad’s headline: There’s Dirt Under Every Bu$h. That led to (ahem) several reader letters:
Spawn of Satan
I’m “anti-Christian” again (darn it!) — according to a few Catholic readers, anyway. I refer to the story about the fastest-growing religion in Australia:
Let’s Go to Pluto!
Yes, True is about weird news. More importantly, it’s about thinking, which implies a quest for knowledge and understanding. That’s most evident in my editorials; here are two of them on the same subject, starting with one from May 2002:
Your TV Wants to Control You
Just how clueless is Hollywood? Very. It’s bad enough that they try to jam crap down our throats all the time, but they also demand that you sit and watch that commercial for “Tide” detergent — all 26 times it runs tonight.
ZT: Legislative Action
I ran more “zero tolerance” stories last week, and I’m noticing a new trend: when I run the stories, I get mail from readers asking what they can do about this trend, since it obviously is a trend and not just an isolated happening. The new trend: many ask if I would please provide the mail/email address of the schools involved so you can give the administrators a piece of your mind.
ZT: Too Much Coverage?
A couple of letters regarding Zero Tolerance, starting with Wayne in NWT, Canada: