Columbus Dispatch, your self-righteousness stinks

The Columbus Dispatch today (3/14/09) in an editorial at this link pontificated mightily about Congressional earmarks. “Despite brave words about reform, unexamined earmark spending continues unabated,” it said.

Then quickly (third paragraph) implied one of the bad guys responsible for this “omnibus spending measure” with “more than 8,500 earmarks” was President Obama, a Democrat.

Then the Dispatch burned up several paragraphs about the injustices to be found in this particular pork patch, mentioning the follies of a California representative, a Democrat, and an Iowa Senator, a Democrat. Then, in a flourish of self-righteous anger, says: “The public back home should be telling their Congress members: Enough already. This pork process stinks -- and we already know why.”

What the Dispatch failed to mention was that its favorite son, Ohio Senator Georgie Voinovich, a Republican - who loudly and self-righteously opposed the omnibus spending bill - was among leaders of the congressional porker pack with $13.5 million in earmarks attached to this bill.

This is a textbook example of how media, big and small, fail readers, fail taxpayers, and fail America: they do not, they will not, expose their golden-haired friends to voters, not so long as they belong to the right political party.

The public back home should be telling their newspaper editors - and the Dispatch editor in particular - enough, already. Your newspaper and your lousy self-righteousness and your putrid, slanted reportage stinks - and we have known why for a long time.