Lies of Omission

DWS- self-appointed Ombudsman for NPR

We need an ombudsman for everything. Well, every public service for starters. That is, any taxpayer-funded operation that we use or are forced to use, or would consider using if it wasn’t lame and/or mendacious. NPR is lame and mendacious- we need an NPR Ombudsman.

Ombudsman (Webster) 1. a public official, esp. in Scandinavian countries, who investigates complaints by private citizens against government agencies or officials. 2. a person who investigates and resolves complaints, as from employees or students.

I don’t think you can have a very effective ombudsman who is hired by the people he’s supposed to keep an eye on, so a public official investigating public officials is kind of a goofy idea.

Dear Citizens, Your concerns will be addressed! Just follow the 12km water-buffalo trail to the left, through the jaguar forest and over dead man’s cliff, and down through the valley of the cobras. Take a number from the ticket dispenser under the hornets nest outside our office at Scorching Sun Beach in Cape Point. The deputy-assistant to the ombudsman will attend to you pending his availability between ten o’clock and noon. Bring a photo ID and your pocketbook.

The Seattle Times used to have an ombudsman. Frank Wetzel was hired in 1987 to be the ombudsman for the Times- hired by the Times of course. But at least they came up with a contract where he couldn’t be fired, or hired again after his contractual 3-year stint there.

When my listenership gets significant enough, I will propose that the citizens of the Bitterroot Valley hire an Ombudsman to watch over content on BBR, keeping us honest, so to speak. How this person will be selected or paid is not my problem; I’ll have no connection to him. The citizen watchman should not be shmoozing with the object of his vigilance. Meanwhile, I will be appointing myself Ombudsman for NPR and MTPR (Montana Public Radio). The show will be called NPR Watch. I will attempt to work in the spirit of the Newspaper Ombudsman, as described by whatever AI the Brave search engine is using. It’s a very adequate description, in my opinion.

Mainly I’ll be working on the inquiries/findings/advocating categories. Not much I can do about the ‘mediating disputes’ categories. NPR and MTPR certainly don’t want to hear from dissident/populist patriots. One phone call and they’ll have me on perma-block. Two and I’ll get a knock from the local stasi goons.

Duration of my assignment: Until someone else with more time and superior expertise steps in to do a better job.

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So here is the kind of crap I’m going to have to deal with with NPR:

Yesterday morning Steve Inski and the Morning Edition crew were talking about the case of Linda Sun, who the day before was arrested and charged with eight federal crimes related to allegedly acting as an undisclosed foreign agent for the Chinese government. I skimmed the BBC article on this outrage, A Ferrari, a Honolulu hideaway, salted duck - top NY official allegedly spied for China. Click the link to discover the long list of stuff she’s been doing secretly to aid communist China.

I don’t doubt that NPR and the BBC did their homework and reported semi-honestly on this case. Yay. Good for them. The funny part in Steve Inski’s report, that made me cackle out loud at 6 in the morning (I told you my alarm is masochistically set to the local NPR station) was when he asked the crack, on the spot local NPR reporter a question to the tune of “Now John, is this kind of illegal foreign influence common? Are there other countries besides China engaging in this sort of behavior?”

Phwaasht goes my cafe au lait all over the bed, had I been drinking coffee. I laughed and thought, “No way, they are not going there, are they??”

I’m thinking of all the China bashing as a diversion. I’m thinking of Thomas Massie and his claim that all congressmen beside him have an AIPAC minder. I’m thinking about Benjamin Netanyahu and the 6.5 gajillion standing ovations he got at the Capitol, on two occasions. I’m thinking of Jonathan Pollard, whom Trump dutifully pardoned to please Sheldon and other similar donors/minders. I’m thinking of the billions we dole out to Our Greatest Ally (OK, sorry. Trillions You think those missing trillions at the Pentagon went to the Lion’s Club?). Grimly, I’m thinking of the the tens of thousands of American military lives and millions of they-don’t-matter-cuz-they’re over there civilian lives ended. And then I wait for reporter John to talk about the other countries.

to paraphrase John: “Indeed there are other countries engaged in this sort of thing.”

Whoah! They are going there! Hot damn, NPR- Doin’ some reporting today!

Then the reporter goes on to finger South Korea and Egypt!

Okay, go on, John. Go on. I’m waiting for it….

John….John????

Crickets. Nothing about Israel. It’s a wrap for Steve. That’s it for this portion of Morning Edition. Next up, a group of Haitian refugees making a big contribution to their community at their new home in Mineola, Texas. And watch out for those shifty Chinese, South Koreans and Egyptians!

This is from the BBC article on super-spy Miss Sun:

They also bought a $2.1m ocean-view condominium in Honolulu, Hawaii, and luxury vehicles including a 2024 Ferrari Roma sports car, according to the indictment.

The couple pleaded not guilty on Tuesday in a Brooklyn federal court to a range of charges, from failing to register as a foreign agent to visa fraud and money laundering.

US law requires that individuals acting for or in the interests of foreign countries or political parties register as foreign agents.

Ms Sun never did - and, according to prosecutors, the Chinese-born naturalised citizen "actively concealed that she took actions at the order, request, or direction" of Chinese government officials and representatives.

Regarding the bolded part above, let’s ask Thomas Massie if there’s another group that fails to register. Maybe I’ll bring it up when I sit down with him on my USA Interview Blitz. Meanwhile, a note for the good folks at NPR:

Dear Steve Inski and the Morning Edition editorial desk,

Do your job.

Sincerely,

NPR Ombudsman

Let me guess, Andrew- South Korea?

Bzzzzt- Wrong!

Egypt? Russia? China?

Bzzzzzt- Wrong again!

Don’t beat yourself up. I used to semi-trust and access lots of these.

OK, I’ve gone far enough. Don’t want to cancel myself before I even get on that plane to the no-1st-amendment lands of my ancestors!

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oh, what the heck. How about a few more?

Relax, I’m not making these claims. They’re just quotes from small-time, sour-grapes military men unsatisfied with life and career, n’kay? Losers like this have to make excuses, right?

OK, one more. The last, I promise.

OK, sorry. I went one too far. This is undeserved and dangerous calumny of the worst kind, right up there with The Protocols! How do I know it’s untrue? Snopes says it’s “unfounded”. And you know what they say, Never believe something until if Snopes denies it!

Office of Ombudsman: By Kotoviski photograph by Henryk Kotowski - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8297730 Thank you, Henryk.