It seemed like the same two protesters were leaning on the mailbox on the corner of Short Street and Xenia Avenue every time I drove past Friday morning. And that was it for the "Occupy Short Street" movement as far as I could see. It's a good thing it's a short street.A quick check of the Kumbaya Times Website this morning brought exactly what I expected, an exaggerated portrayal in video format of what really was going on. It was hard to tell from the stilted camera angles, but if there were a dozen people there at the height of the "Occupy Short Street" event, I'd be surprised. Notably, the piece provided no count of the protesters.
I'm no fan of US Bank. I probably know more about what goes on at the local level than any of the folks who turned out to protest. I'm certainly not about to be an apologist or defender of the bank. But I have to say that the editorial policy at the local paper in this regard is rather surprising. In recent times they have published two letters attacking US Bank, one directed straight at the local branch, and one at top management, urging protests outside the local branch.
Since those letters came from individuals, one might feel the paper is not really taking a position on the content. Not so! They choose what to publish and they write the headlines for the pieces submitted to the community forum. So, when they write "Occupy Short Street," that's coming directly from the newspaper; that's their editorial policy. In my view, whether we agree with that position or not, it's questionable journalism. It's a good thing they no longer have a monopoly on the flow of information in this town.
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6 comments:
Virgil,
I'd be curious to see if you submitted a letter to the editor with essentially the same content as this blog entry, would it be publish it?
The Saturday-noon vigil at Xenia and Limestone must be at least as well attended. But it happens every week, so I guess it isn't news any more.
Mike
As I said, I don't want to defend US Bank, but the protester who claimed US Bank is a contributor the the mortgage lending crisis is talking off the top of her head (they are the 5th largest bank, therefore they must be responsible). In fact, US Bank is very conservative and had tight-ass lending policies all along. They were not making risky loans. In fact, they were turning down people with excellent credit. As a result, they came through the crisis with flying colors.
They tried to turn down the bailout money, because the government wanted them to buy out bad banks. They returned the money at their first opportunity. So, as far as the mortgage lending crisis goes, the protesters are protesting the wrong bank. And maybe the CEO really did earn his moeny. That's up to the stockholders to decide.
But fee income... That's another story.
I drove by and saw about 4 bedraggled protesters who looked familiar from the Saturday noon peace gang.
I do respect that it is possible for them to feel strongly about multiple causes. But since occupy Short Street did not address their usual peace-on-earth passion, it did occur to me that perhaps these folks were knee-jerk protesters, with a need to make a stand no matter what the cause.
Virgil,
Good for you. I'm glad you offer another local news vehicle to balance out the heavily slanted YS News too. I read you daily.
My understanding is that the local preschool is planning a new protest called "Occupy Sesame Street."
Virgil,
I cancelled my subscription to the "Yellow News" years ago, fed up with its biased coverage (and lack of coverage) of local events and issues. Thank you for providing a balanced (and free) alternative.
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