Mini-snarks

• Paula Zahn's show last night did a story about a nasty little racist Internet game called "Border Patrol":
  
  DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The creators of a video game called "Border Patrol" won't win any awards for graphics or creativity, but could take home a prize for bad taste.
  
  (on camera): This isn't some expensive game for the Xbox. It's simple, free and on the Internet and, according to the Anti-Defamation League, dangerous.
  
  JONATHAN BERNSTEIN, ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE: It puts in the mind of the player that they should be resorting to violence.
  
  SIMON (voice-over): The objective? To shoot and kill Mexicans crossing into the U.S. The game's targets? Mexican nationalists, drug smugglers and most outrageous, breeders, pregnant women running with children. The more you kill, the higher your score.
  
  They criticized it, and rightfully so - but I somehow can't help but wonder at CNN being so concerned about this when they run a show every weeknight which, quite frankly, feeds into the paranoia about undocumented workers and "illegal immigration".
  
  
  "OPH NOES THE ILLEGALS ARE COMING!
  THEY'LL STEAL OUR JOBS AND OUR MONEY AND OUR WIMMIN
  OMFG RECONQUISTA !!!11!"
  
  
• And also from that bastion of classic journalism that is "Paula Zahn NOW", from the other night we have a gripping story about how Hollywood is dogpiling on the poor abused Preznit:
  
  Well, they're not the only ones going after President Bush this weekend. You can see two brand new movies that some people say are stepping over the line when it comes to politics. Both movies paint very unflattering pictures of the commander in chief. Is it all part of an unprecedented blitz from Hollywood against the Bush administration? Or is it just typical satire from that place in the country?
  
  [snip]
  
  (voice over): But Jason Apuzzo thinks Hollywood's presidential pot shots could back fire.
  
  APUZZO: It's, in effect, just, you know, alienating half your audience. And I don't frankly see the compelling reason to do that unless you're just trying to make it a cheap political message.
  
  Well, as you can see over at Tbogg's, Jason's busy being a full-time whiny-ass tittie-baby with regards to Big Bad Hollywood and their EEEEEEvil Liberal Bias, but "alienating half your audience"?
  
  Try "a THIRD of your audience", chucko.
  
  Bush's approval rating as measured by CNN's poll dropped from 36 percent in March. His lowest job performance measure has been 32 percent, in a Fox News poll this month.
  
  (And whatever happened to "give the people what they want"? If almost 68% of people in the country disapprove of the Preznit, isn't that a valid market to be appealing to?)
  
  
• And from that same Reuter's story (see how seamless my transitions are?) we get this:
  
  Bush's response to the gas crisis has been to warn Americans to expect a tough summer, vow that price gouging will not be tolerated and try to promote energy alternatives that will take years to get to consumers.
  
  Oh, jeez, thanks, Bush, you useless wimp. Leadership? Negotiations with the Saudis? Easing of tensions with Iran? Nope, Bush says "suck it up, you proles"!
  
  And remind yourself it's JUST A FRICKIN' COINCIDENCE that this White House is full of people associated with the oil industry. Which industry is just COINCIDENTALLY making massive profits. Naw, nothing to see here - move along, citizen.