Time magazine may have named German Chancellor Angela Merkel “Person of the Year,” but Time‘s readers chose Bernie Sanders by a landslide.
I think Bernie would have been a better choice, even when keeping the actual meaning of Time’s annual “Person” designation in mind.
The criterion is “the person or persons who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill, and embodied what was important about the year.” A lot of news is bad news and a lot of people who make bad news are very powerful people. TIME’s editors aren’t immune to that reality. Famously, they named Hitler in 1938 and Stalin in 1939 and again in 1942. These were men who had a huge impact, not just in those years but over the entire century. It’s easy to stand by those choices, looking back. Arguably you could do a bad guy every year and be justified.
Every year, I watch the idiots on TV (who should know better) tie themselves into knots over the choice, always seeming to ignore what the designation signifies. So, here’s my suggestion:
Time magazine should change the name of this annual “award” from “Person of the Year” to “The Entity that most influenced the news this year.” Common sense to me…
I think Bernie Sanders would still be a better choice, as he’s energizing a new generation of young people to get involved and excited about politics. Just saying….
Today is Wednesday, that means we get together with Deborah Newell Tornello to share stories from the Oy, FloriDUH files, which included these gems today:
Florida Man Caught Driving Cadillac Naked at 110 mph
Florida Burglar Killed By Alligator When Fleeing Deputies
Polk Sheriffs: Oral sex led to fatal hit-and-run crash
National DUI expert charged with DUI in Sarasota
Knife attack confused for performance art at Art Basel Miami Beach
There was actually a bright spot in our usual DUH fest. The good Florida story came by way of a Tweet from the Mayor of St. Petersburg:
I am hereby barring Donald Trump from entering St. Petersburg until we fully understand the dangerous threat posed by all Trumps.
— Rick Kriseman (@Kriseman) December 8, 2015
Bravo, Mr. Mayor! Bravo!
In hour two, I was honored to welcome Harry Shearer back to my show. Harry is the true Renaissance Man. You can find links to all of his works — from Le Show, to his books, films & TV work, and lots more at HarryShearer.com.
Harry Shearer & his wife Judith Owens‘ annual holiday celebration, Christmas Without Tears, picks up in Los Angeles on December 19 & 20, and wraps up (so to speak) in New Orleans on December 23. Those of us who aren’t in the vicinity can still get some of Harry Shearer’s holiday mojo with his EP, also called “Christmas Without Tears.” By the way, all the proceeds from the show and the EP go to charity, with Elton John’s AIDS Foundation being the main beneficiary.
Tomorrow, it’s Driftglass and Howie Klein to get us through a Thursday morning, radio or not!
