Rubin It In

On a recent podcast, political commentator Jennifer Rubin advised her listeners not to watch any more cable newscasts.  Cable news, she said, is all about chasing the latest trendy story or click-bait tidbit, and it never gives us the real news - just a bunch of people talking about this and/or that.

I can only assume that Rubin,  a frequent guest on cable news channels herself, has given up appearing on these channels.  Talk about biting the hand that feeds! 

Rubin can knock cable news easily, because she's a print journalist with her own column.

Unfortunately, that column is written for the Washington Post, whose owner, Jeff Bezos, has chilled reporters and columnists who might be inclined to criticize Donald Trump to the point where they're frozen solid.

I'll bet Jen already has a Substack feature.

While You Were Watching CNN

With so much attention focused on Israel and on Jordan (not the country, the jerk from Ohio), CNN (and other TV news outlets too, in fat) have ignored just about everything else going on in the world.  Here's a brief rundown of things that have happened in the past week or so:

• The Nobel Economics Prize was awarded to American economist Claudia Goldin, citing her "for having advanced our understanding of women's labor market outcomes."
• The conservative National Party of New Zealand, led by Christopher Luxon, won the most seats in the New Zealand general parliamentary election.  A coalition government with the far-right NZ First Party is likely.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin (below) claimed that Ukrainian losses in its counteroffensive against the invading Russian army have been devastating.  Kyiv denies this.  Russia has also launched a new offensive in eastern Ukraine. 

• Federal judge Tanya Chutkan issued a gag order against Donald Trump in his insurrection trial, saying that Trump "does not have the right to say and do exactly what he pleases," adding, "This is not about whether I like the language Mr. Trump uses,” Judge Tanya Chutkan said. “This is about language that presents a danger to the administration of justice." 
• Fashion model turned journalist Gail O'Neill died unexpectedly last Tuesday (October 10) at the age of 61. 
• "Three's Company"star Suzanne Somers, who broke through as an actress fifty years ago in American Graffiti as "the blonde in the Thunderbird," died this past Sunday on the eve of her 77th birthday of breast cancer. 
• The Supreme Court of India declined to legalize same-sex marriage in that country. 
• The Philadelphia Eagles, the last undefeated team in the NFL's 2023-24 season, lost to the New York Jets, 20-14.

By the time you read this, a Speaker of the House may have been elected. Or not. But that's for another post.