Spoiled by the Information Age...

...and prone to suspicion. The only thing that went through my mind when I heard Vice President Dick Cheney shot his friend in a hunting accident was, "Man are late-night joke writers gonna have a hay day!" I did not think, "Gasp! I wonder why he REALLY shot him!"

From CNN.com: "The accident happened on Saturday but was not publicly revealed until the next day. ... That decision created a major public relations problem for the White House, with some Republicans even suggesting that it made the situation worse by suggesting the possibility of some sort of cover-up."

Aside from being an atrociously written sentence, I couldn't help but scoff at the words: "The next day." I'm sorry, is that a long time? Has the Information Age spoiled us so much that we think a less-than-24-hour turnaround in news is evidence of a cover-up? I have a better theory: News sources are sore they didn't find out first and were instead scooped by a small-town newspaper in Texas. "How can we explain we weren't the first station to broadcast this news? Ah yes, let's run a headline that reads 'Bush satisfied with Cheney's account.' This will stir up all the interest of a nonstory just enough to raise suspicion (a la this week's 'TomKat denies breakup rumors'). Oh the cleverness of us!"

This is to say nothing of people like House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi who have clearly made a mountain of a mole hill (the mole hill being a "cover-up," not Mr. Whittington's health, which should be at the heart of every story written or broadcast).

Normally, I don't post a lot on political themes, but some things are easier to write about than a parent's sudden absence.