I’ve mentioned before that I subscribe to only one online “mainstream” publication, and that’s The Daily Telegraph. Fond memories from my childhood of its being rolled up in a paper sleeve and posted to us, first in Nigeria, then in the States. Arriving weeks late, but still interesting and informative, and with excellent features and crosswords. Lord. My mother was a whiz at the cryptic ones, even (perhaps especially) into her demented old age.
I’ve still got bits and pieces cut out from newspapers of old–fashion, recipes, sewing patterns, knitting patterns, gardening tips, and on and on.
And then, of course, there was Dad’s excellent obituary. One which drew the attention of GBNews’s newest weeknight star (and Piers Morgan’s worst nightmare). I suppose one might call him the Commonwealth’s Answer to Tucker Carlson–the inestimable Mark Steyn, who wrote of Dad’s Telegraph obituary:
“Here’s a practical solution to big government,” referring to story of the cannibal king who ate the local tax collector, and Dad’s role in it.
We really did live in interesting times when I was growing up.
Although the Telegraph is, overall, more likely to report rationally on the events of the day, every so often it gets things wrong. As with today’s article, headlined Prince William praises ‘selfless’ officer killed defending US Capitol which goes on to repeat the completely debunked canard that Officer Brian Sicknick was bludgeoned with a fire-extinguisher and subsequently died of his injuries.
How this is still a “thing,” at this point, is baffling.
Still, the article, and its many inaccuracies, prompted a comment from me, as follows:
As usual, it appears that unembellished facts serve as catnip to the reality challenged. And so (at this point) the “reply” status to my comment stands as follows:
I’ve anonymized those other than myself. But, crimenutely. If I read the first comment correctly, this person seems to think that I’m dismayed that folks view the Capitol Riot as a serious matter (he’d be wrong, but not worth engaging with). The second person seems to be a conspiracy theorist beholden to Alex Jones and Steve Bannon (something I’m not, but not going there either), and (perhaps) the third person has a glimmer of understanding. Hard to know.
I deplore the violence and the several deaths that followed the Capitol riots of January 6, just as I am reminded that “correlation is not always causation.”
And just as I am reminded that the only person actually “killed” (in the verbiage of the Telegraph headline) during them was an unarmed protestor named Ashli Babbit. And that her killer (a Capitol Police officer just like Brian Sicknick, but in his case one with a history of reckless behavior with his weapon, which he once left behind in a Capitol restroom) was afforded quite extraordinary media and political protections for months following the event. It’s still quite difficult to discover this individual’s name (Michael Byrd) from a simple Google search.
I come from a generation, and a tradition, that mostly puts great stock in reality and facts. One which believes that facing reality, and recognizing facts will save us from false choices and bad decisions, and–in the end–rescue us all.
Sometimes–especially when one of my touchstones–The Daily Telegraph–gets it so very wrong, I begin to think that I really have lived too long.
Wake up and smell the coffee, please. Especially you, Your Royal Highness.
And get your facts straight, so your foot doesn’t go right into your mouth, when you feel compelled to virtue signal your wokeness.
Better yet, take a leaf out of your sovereign’s book, and keep your opinions to yourself. The future King of England doesn’t need to, and shouldn’t, become a divisive lightning rod. You’ve plenty of homework to do, just on the Commonwealth optics, as the recent–rather unfortunate–photograph of you and Kate greeting the Jamaican children trying to thrust their arms through a chain-link fence shows:
Your grandmother and her ilk, on the Royal tours that I have any knowledge of (and there are a few), wouldn’t have stood for such a thing.
The concept of noblesse oblige used to mean something good and useful. Don’t fuck it up.
UPDATE AS OF JUNE 19, 2022: Well, it was nice while it lasted. I just checked back, and guess what??? (Emphasis Added):
What office do I go to to get my reputation back?? LOL. (Second time the Telegraph has whacked me. I guess it can’t handle the truth. Sad.)
From the invaluable Babylon Bee: