Cheap Shots

In the Sunday New York Times, there was an article on a new production of Mister Roberts at the Kennedy Center. Predictably, they're reviving it because they see parallels to the Iraq War.

This is tiresome enough, but political reporter Todd S. Purdum has to add his own cheap shots.

For example, one of the reasons Purdum thinks the play (about a World War II supply ship) could still be relevant, nay, "provocative," is because "[Donald] Rumsfeld squabbles with the troops over a shortage of body armor. " Actually, Rumsfeld gave a long, detailed answer to the question on this issue, and certainly didn't "squabble" with the troops about it. (This is one of those false stories, like, say, Bush 41's alleged amazement at a price scanner, that's too good to die.)

When Purdum mentions a joke about the clap that was censored in the original production, he adds "Warning to Alberto R. Gonzales: it has been restored." No one will care about the line, of course--certainly not a liberal Republican like Gonzales. The crack is so forced you can almost feel Purdum's disappointment that 1) John Ashcroft is no longer AG and 2) there's no gag in the show about torture.

What impresses me most is Purdum's confidence that he can insult certain targets based on faulty premises and his audience will go for it.