David Letterman has matured in his outlook over the years. Oh, he can still do his grinning-fratboy-let's-throw-watermelons-off-the-roof act to perfection. But since he became a father, he has shown moments of genuine wisdom and insight.Last night, he had on Brian Williams of NBC News--one of those overpaid ignoramuses with network hair who are are hired to keep folks from ever asking a meaningful question. I had actually seen him (heard mostly, I was making dinner) earlier that evening and had complained aloud that he gave roughly four times as much airtime to the death of Amy Winehouse (she of TWO albums) than to the coverage of the events in Norway. I am sure that Norway is so happy to learn that on USA teevee, a minor musical act rates 4 times the coverage of the death of 70 of her most accomplished young people. So when Williams shows up, I actually switch channels rather than have him annoy me again (it's why god invented the clicker, after all).
About 20 minutes later, I channel-surf by CBS and I catch Letterman asking Williams regarding the heat wave on the east coast, "It's 108 today in New Jersey. What happens in five years when that temperature is 140?" Rather than answer the question, Williams actually had the nerve to patronize him, "Now I know this is a big issue with you Dave, but..." Like climate change is not THE universal issue.
Letterman asked a few more questions and made some pithy remarks before he abandoned any hope that Williams was going to answer them. Dave's been on the teevee a long time--he knows that the lead spokesliar for NBC is under orders to maintain the fiction that there is still some debate over the existence of climate change. But Letterman seemed to want to make it clear that he was on the record on climate change and Williams was weaseling out.
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