Quote of the Day

"When this sort of thing happens, it is important to remember that about 5 percent of our population is and always will be totally crazy."

--Gail Collins, in a column about the Koran burning Florida "pastor."

I haven't talked about that guy because he's just some dumb Florida cracker who doesn't know his elbow from his asshole, but since this is apparently the biggest news story since a mid-level Department of Agriculture staffer allegedly said something racist 25 years ago, I'll throw in my two cents.

I guess if I wanted to get really famous all I'd have to do is announce that I'm going to pull some douchebag stunt?  Is that the formula?  Would it help if I lived in the sticks?  How did this guy, who leads a flock of 50, become the center of the universe?  Hell, Shirley Phelps Roper, spawn of Fred Phelps, has whined that they burned a Koran and nobody noticed.  Not that Shirl is lacking media attention, but her crowd had to protest military funerals to get anybody to notice.  They tried protesting the funerals of AIDS victims, but nobody cared.  All Pastor Mutton Chops had to do was threaten to burn Korans and the whole world flew into a tissy.  Actually, that's not completely true.  He tried generating attention with his "no homo mayor" signs last year when Craig Lowe ran for mayor of Gainsville.  He won, btw.  Obviously, homophobia is not the way to get attention.

Even President Obama has urged this guy to stand down, which I think was a mistake.  The President should stay above such things.

I suppose it's the fault of the 24-hour media culture we live in.  With competing cable news networks trying to fill so much time and a zillion news sites and blogs on this internet machine, journalism has been completely jettisoned.  I understand that this guy (I'm not going to name him) is doing something completely asinine, but my mother taught me to me to ignore crazy people doing crazy things.  Instead, he's getting  the attention he desperately craves.  The media has just created another Westboro Baptist Church and he'll keep ratcheting up the assholery to get more attention. 

How many crazies are waiting in the wings for their moment in the spotlight?

UPDATE:  The Krazy Kracker has cancelled the Koran burning.  Bizarrely, he said he had reached an agreement with Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf of the so-called Ground Zero Mosque (which isn't at Ground Zero and isn't a mosque) for the NY mosque to be re-located in exchange for the cancellation of the book burning.  Imam Rauf denied any contact with Rev. Muttonchops.  In other words, the pastor lied.  Like a dog.  Apologies to dogs. 

UPDATE II:  Keith Olbermann is reporting that the cancellation is off, which apparently means the Koran burning is on.  Maybe.  The pastor says he was "lied to," probably by the NY Imam he never talked to in the first place.  Associate pastor Wayne Sapp (an appropriate name if I've ever heard one) said the burning is not cancelled. 

Why are crazy preachers and death row inmates always named Wayne?

The world media needs to pull the plug on these clowns and leave them howling in the swamp.