Dan Gardner lost it, a penny that is, this past month. Don't worry though because I'm giving him another for my thoughts.
In a news/opinion article, depending on the newspaper, Mr. Gardner reported this past month on the reaction of Prime Minister Harper after being told of Graham James' pardon by a CP reporter asking for a comment. Given Gardner's initial summary of events surrounding the parole board reviews, and Dan's description of Graham as "the most notorious sex offender in the country", an in depth story should have followed.
How obtuse of me to think so. For Dan Gardner, this subject is the perfect opportunity to smear Harper: "He's the love child of Richard Nixon and George W. Bush".
What a cheap shot for Dan. About as cheap as the penny Dan writes about when the revelation occurs to him. Though, or because, he characterizes Harper as "barking orders" and "apparently" not knowing about Stockwell Day's review, Dan states, "these details are not what made the penny drop for me." He says, "(i)t was the handling of the whole issue that did it". Instead of clarifying what and when Harper knew of the details, or constructing an argument about Harper's handling of the parole board reviews, Gardner thinks to "(c)ombine Nixon's personality with Bush's decision-making style and you have Canada's prime minister", and an article to make a dime on.
It's not worth a dropped penny. To dismiss the Graham James pardon story as a decision from a "fairly minor administrative tool" in order to insult Stephen Harper with Nixon and Bush comparisons is worthless journalism. It makes me wonder, "is it really so hard to believe that people can, with lots of luck and bravado, soar far above their level of competence?" (see Gardner, Dan)
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