The Invisible Hand

The Guardian Gets it Wrong

Thank goodness The Guardian doesn't carry a Page Three girl! Just a troubling thought I felt the need to get of my chest.

Anyway, today the mouthpiece of the permanent revolution identifies Donald Rumsfeld as the "US secretary of state." Common mistake. Many people have a hard time distinguishing between Colin Powell and Rummy, no harm done.

But the story they so breathlessly report is that Rumsfeld was heckled! By anti-war protestors!

Where is the news you might ask? Are Guardian readers of the belief that the Department of Dissent has already rounded up all protestors by now or that these brave souls risked everything to make their plea of peace? Certainly the news that there are some Americans willing to vociferously defend a fascist military dictator in public is noteworthy, especially since today's Gallup poll says that 61% of Americans support military action against the brutal Iraqi regime and 80% think the United Nations is giving Saddam a "get out of hell free" card. But is this interesting tidbit worth front page coverage?

Maybe The Guardian take at least one tip from The Sun and add a "Bizarre" section to the paper.

Well actually, if they did that, what could they possibly call the other sections?