Brian David Mitchell was found guilty and not insane for the kidnapping and rape of Elizabeth Smart. But before Smart proclaimed that she would return to France to finish an LDS mission, KUTV 2—the newly acclaimed leader in TV news—found it necessary to have the cameras rolling to the dulcet tones of baleful music, to profess how “thrilling” the verdict was, and to increase the drama by slow-mo’ing Mitchell as he left the courthouse, shackled, as usual. This breaking news had a distinctive “Wednesday’s Child” feel to it, in which the station apparently thought cinematic treatment would help the viewer emote. But c’mon, adding schmaltz and melodrama to a naturally dramatic story just serves to diminish the reality.
The Salt Lake City School Board, after five years of on-again-off-again debate, have voted 4-3 in favor of a nondiscrimination policy including sexual orientation and gender identity. Board member Doug Nelson noted the irony that 14 years had passed since the same school board had banned a high school gay club and put all extracurricular clubs at risk. Two of the board naysayers spoke about how divisive the subject was, and board member Alama Uluave said, repeatedly—appearing to read from his computer monitor—that the policy would place what he referred to as “GLBT people” on a “pedestal.” But Uluave’s most stunning statement came when he repeatedly mentioned that the policy would only help the seven gay students at West High. Seven? The board passed the policy anyway.
Again. Maybe this climate-change conference in Cancun, Mexico, actually accomplished something after 15 years of trying, but where were the mainstream media? Democracy Now reports there were plenty of reps from the fossil-fuels industry, but the emphasis still was on voluntary reductions of greenhouse gases, and the United States still refused to sign the only binding agreement—the Kyoto Protocol, which will fade away in 2012. The whole extravaganza was laughable to many Utahns, who still think global warming is a myth perpetrated by the liberal media. What no one could explain, however, was what some called the “Gore Effect.” Balmy Cancun experienced lows of 53 degrees for the three-day conference despite its average of 65.
