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I was having some plumbing problems at The Fortress so I called maintenance to fix it. While we were talking, I learned that the shower and toilet are literally the same pipe--no more than a few feet apart. This is good to know in case I ever wanted to pee in the shower.

I read an article in the Orange County Register that really angers me. The headline stated:

D.A. weighs charges in police shooting

This is exactly why you gotta think when you read the news. Even when the media isn't directly lying, the "news" it reports is often misleading and bias. Honest journalism has long since been a thing of the past.

The article is in reference to a local controversy where an 18-year old girl was killed by police officers. Many people are up in arms and are screaming police brutality (of course, the media is the one reporting the uproar in the first place: I couldn't honestly tell you how the public feels). Lost in the reporting is that this girl was doped up, strung-out, acting crazy...and she sorta attacked the cops with a knife. But that's inconsequential to the story according to the media.

This article is irritating because nowhere within it is there actual proof that D.A. is considering charges. Not a quote. Not a source. Nothing to confirm that claim. The only official mention of the district attorney is one sentence, eight paragraphs into the article.

The headline was totally deceptive. It should have read: ..Sheriffs Office completes investigation in shooting.' Not misleading the casual reader into thinking the officers are likely to get arrested soon.

This is how the media manipulates us. They create their own version of public opinion. If the D.A. decides not to press charges, those who haven't been following the article are going to wonder why. With all the headlines implying guilt, anyone who isn't paying attention is going to think the cops got away with one and this is another case of the government approving excessive force.

I don't trust any news source. I recall during the Kobe Bryant rape proceedings, the LA Times reporter assigned to the case was very, very bias. I remember his name because I got use to seeing it everyday. Without ever citing sources or proof, Steven Henson always made the accuser look like a money-grubbing, headline whore. Every chance he took, he mention that she audition for "American Idol" and was mentally unstable. What he did isn't consider libel because he never accused her of anything--these were all facts reported in every media outlet in the country. But the way he reminded readers of these facts everyday--even if they had nothing to do with the current proceeding--bordered on journalistic ethics. I found it to be totally appalling: this one individual, Steve Henson, decided that Kobe was innocent and took every opportunity he could to discredit the victim. It was disgusting--and he was supposed to be the unbiased reporter covering the case.

You gotta be careful. Anytime you read anything it can have a bias--even without saying it. The article can be worded strongly one way or another. The reporter can tell one side's story without covering the other (or not giving it the same amount of attention). It's not just the print media--hell, television news is even worse. Thanks to FOX, George W. Bush won the 2000 presidential election. But don't believe everything the media reports: even if all the "facts" are laid out in front of you.