If the Dispatch-Argus is seeking to topple the QCTimes from its lofty perch as the worst newspaper in this neck of the woods, it made a strong effort this past Sunday.
Its chronically weak Editorial page was in fine form, led by the always pompous, often pretentious, seldom informative former TV weather forecaster, Don Wooten, and the above-it-all academic, who negates any effort to provide meaningful analysis by his obsequiousness toward the ideological left and his craving to be viewed by his fellow faculty members as fair-minded, Dan Lee.
The paper’s managing editor, Roger Ruthhart, made his typically uninteresting observations, this time about how devastating to Rock Island’s jewel- like essence it would be if its many county offices were combined in one facility.
To add real spice to Sunday’s serving of journalistic erudition, a piece by an obscure Chicago Tribune writer charging Republican congressman Alan West, with “killing ‘facts'”…was an amusing column only because it wasn’t, though the writer manfully strove to make it seem both amusing and clever…failing in both aims.
The “news” section of the D-A was not to be outdone in its typically full throated support of Barack Obama. A long AP story pretended to be an analysis of the anticipated “collision” between race and religion in the 2012 Presidential campaign.
A reading of the story, for those with nothing better to do, however, reveals that its true motivation was to put anyone on notice who might be inclined to consider whether President Obama’s first term performance made him worthy of a second term, would be dismissed as irredeemably racist. And, for added measure, if there were any readers out there who were not aware of all the “objectionable” aspects of Mormonism which would make a candidate for President unacceptable, well, here they are.
Mr. Wooten, however, deserves special recognition for his contribution to this newspaper’s impressive mediocrity in this edition as in any in which his column appears. Had he not assured us so often in the past that he is Moline’s Rennaissance Man, fair minded and extraordinarily wise, one might have gotten the impression that he is a religious bigot and a mindless doctrinaire leftist ideologue.
Citing his apparent admiration for Pope Leo XIII as a strong supporter of minimum wage policy, Mr. Wooten advises the Catholic Church that it’s only hope for spiritual redemption from its current path is to repudiate the vile pronouncements of Peoria Diocese Bishop Jenky and follow Leo’s “example of moderation” and urge “passage of single payer national health insurance.” Wooten acknowledges, however, that it would require, in his view, the Church to change its political affiliation to the Democratic Party. Invoking, as Wooten does, Leo XIII so far out of historical context as to conditions then and now, only establishes Wooten as an intellectual poseur.
Wrapping tripe would be a better use for Sundays A-D. DLH
What a joke both the Dispatch and Times are. At least the Times looks like an actual newspaper. The Dispatch is so horribly formatted it’s hard to believe this thing could cost a buck-fitty.
I can’t believe the Dispatch is even still around though. Especially with crap like that printed in the editorial page every day. Yeah, Wooten is a real fair minded person! I have noticed the people that claim to be the most fair minded and moderate are often times the most crazy. I’ll give his dinosaur paper 2 years before it goes the way of The Leader. About 5 more years than I though it would last.