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News, Spin

Mock of the Mockingbird

Copyright 2005 Ben S. Pollock “[Russ A. Charif, a research biologist at Cornell Lab of Ornithology,] said after his talk that the ‘kent’ sounds alone were not conclusive because scientists could not completely rule out a blue jay mimicking the sound of an ivory bill. …” — The New York Times, Aug. 25, 2005. Yeah, […]

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News, Spin

Can’t get no (Supreme Court action)

Copyright 2005 Ben S. Pollock Thursday, July 21, 2005. When we say the president names a nominee who then gets the appointment following the advice and consent of the Senate, we mean everyone from the Cabinet and a few top Executive Branch positions to all the federal judges. So far as those who work in […]

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News, Spin

Rent: Closer than the show

Copyright 2005 Ben S. Pollock Monday, July 18, 2005. Some Rogers officials are getting nervous about the growth of apartments in their fair city. They are candid enough to worry aloud about any resulting increase in crime, not to mention increase in poorer people and lower surrounding property values. If I were just to discuss […]

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News, Spin

No trash cans in London

Copyright 2005 Ben S. Pollock Thursday, July 7, 2005: No need to add excessive verbiage about the London mass-transit attacks. Suffice it to say that America shouldn’t forget the Madrid attacks, which have been scarcely mentioned in the news media today. This sort of terrorism has an evening effect. Whether it is thousands killed in […]

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News, Spin

Lead the press to water

Copyright 2005 Ben S. Pollock Friday, July 1, 2005: In this morning’s papers, we read again of local officials asking people to informally not waste water, before conservation steps are ordered. Again, they say there is no shortage, just that it’s summer and yada, yada, yada. In previous summers, though, there have been no mummers […]

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News, Spin

Koran in a barrel

Copyright 2005 Ben S. Pollock Sunday, May 22, 2005. So … if the International Red Cross says some Americans in some way desecrated the Koran in front of Iraqis, Afghans or other Muslims (with comparable incidents already reported months ago as part of the Abu Ghraib initial and follow-up reports — and now somehow forgotten) […]