Britain says no to Fox.

Julian Petley, chairman of the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, called on the ITC to act against Fox News: "I'm not in favour of censorship, but Murdoch would like to do with British television news what he has done with newspapers, which is to force people to compete on his own terms.

"So if we allow into Britain the kind of journalism represented by Fox, that would bring about a form of censorship ."

This event brings two of my favorite things together, literature and politics.

Time: Wednesday, May 7, 2003 7:30 PM
Location: 5233 N. Clark
Title of Event: Speakeasy’s Speak Out: A Forum On the Relationship Between Reading, Writing, and Political Dissent

I'm probably the last lefty in the blogosphere to post something on Bush's AWOL past, but it's worth posting as many places as possible.(via Atrios)

The short version: In May 1968 the silver-spoon son of a U.S. congressman jumped to the top of a long waiting list despite mediocre scores on his pilot-aptitude test and was allowed to enlist in the Guard, a common way to avoid being drafted into combat in Vietnam.
In May 1972 he sought a transfer from Houston, where he flew F-102s on weekends, to a unit in Montgomery, Ala. There, he worked on the U.S. Senate campaign of a friend of his father's and, records indicate, blew off his military obligations.
Bush failed to take his annual flight physical in 1972 so Guard officials grounded him, the story went. He never flew again and received an early discharge to go to graduate school. His final officer-efficiency report from May 1973 noted only that supervisors hadn't seen him or heard from him.
Bush's campaign biography obscured or misrepresented these details. In the summer and fall of 2000, his spokesmen offered various and evolving explanations for what Democrats said represented a far bigger "character issue" than any of the windy exaggerations of their candidate, Vice President Al Gore.

Chris Matthews is a blowhard (yes I know redundant) and Jon Stewart should have handed his ass to him last night on The Daily Show. In Jon's defense I can't imagine it was easy to get a word in edgewise, and he did manage to point out that MSNBC is pretty much whoring itself in order to keep up with Fox. Still, he should have challenged Matthews on this stellar bit vis a vis Bush's "Top Gun" revival last week.

Imagine Joe Lieberman in this costume, or even John Kerry. Nobody looks right in the role Bush has set for the presidency-commander-in-chief, medium height, medium build, looks good in a jet pilot’s costume-or uniform, rather-has a certain swagger, not too literary, certainly not too verbal, but a guy who speaks plainly and wins wars.

Yeah, who cares if some of the Democrats are actually veterans when George has the body I always wanted?

...John Kerry entered the Navy after graduation, becoming a Swift Boat officer, serving on a gunboat in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. He received a Silver Star, Bronze Star with Combat V, and three awards of the Purple Heart for his service in combat.

What a moron.

In response to this piece I invite writer, and fellow Chicago resident, Mr. Wexler to check out these local venues.

The Guild Complex

The Neighborhood Writing Alliance

The Poetry Center

Women and Children First

He could also take a look at the Chicago Reader which advertises readings and open mics throughout the city.

I also want to add that for Newsweek to run such a weak and facetious piece is pretty damn cynical. They're not really all that interested in whether poetry is dead or not. If they were interested in poetry at all they would publish it.