The fact that this is so shocking speaks to how well America works: Most local governments do a good job of delivering essential governmental services, and we stare, slack-jawed and angry, when a component of the system fails so obviously.This is a pair of smoked herrings (source).
This is what the flesh of a smoked herring looks like (source).
I'm not a much of a fish person (other than fish tacos, which are delicious), but even I can admire the texture and flavor of this slab. The red, smoky meat looks a bit like salmon.
This is what a different sort of red herring looks like.
Finally, this is the sort of person who loves (or, at the very least, makes a living by his willingness) to latch onto red herrings and other fallacies and talk. And talk. And talk. Directly. At the. Camera. With Gravitas. And interject things like, "How dare you, sir?" Angrily. Directly. At the. Camera. With Gravitas. And a straight face. Unironically.
This week, Keith Olbermann and many other pundits stumbled as they exploited a tragic fire in Tennessee to score political points. A foible common among ideologues is to see their ideology in every story, whether it actually fits or not. Here is what happened, how a number of people reacted, and why they've gotten it wrong:
