The week that was: Swedish babies to 9/11

Caroline Degel, looking like a Swedish mother

UPDATE: (Saturday morning)

So low and behold the Daily Hampshire Gazette managed an exclusive interview with the beleaguered Swedish mother in the midst of her 15 minutes of infamy, who states her time in Bueno y Sano only amounted to four minutes, not ten; and her boy is actually two years old, not one.

Since the police report only gave her surname, "Degel," the intrepid Gazette actually had to do some leg work--or these days--more like finger work on a keyboard to track her down.

The article itself reaffirms my initial reaction that the RP ("reporting person"), although in this case apparently a group of people, overreacted by calling 911 rather than seeking out the parent or simply waiting an extra minute or two for her to return.

Branding her a "bad mother" and following up with "people like you shouldn't have children" also reaffirms my initial thought that they were those ubiquitous Amherst know-it-all's who probably do not have children of their own.

If my now 4- year-old was awakened too early in her nap cycle back when she was 2, there was Hell to pay.

I also found it a tad tacky for the newspaper to simultaneously use this overblown incident in their weekly "Gazette News Quiz" appearing on the highly visible break page:

A Swedish woman caused quite a stir in Amherst earlier this week when she left what on the sidewalk for a few minutes?

(a) Photos of her marriage to Tiger Woods
(b) Five pounds of Swedish meatballs (which are illegal in Amherst)
(c) A miniature daschund
(d) Her 1-year-old son

Notice even the "correct answer" is incorrect, and they misspelled dachshund. I guess since the exclusive interview was done only on Friday, the News Quiz editor did not have enough time for checking copy.

A Swedish publication scoops the Gazette with interview of an obviously pissed off husband/dad.
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Original post: (Thursday evening)

For a weekly newspaper the greatest gift is time. When the presses do not run until Wednesday afternoon you have time to check and recheck copy for news that happened over the weekend or even timelier events occurring at the beginning of the week; an extra margin of time to ponder the perfect headline and dwell even harder about where to position the story.

Because in news, as with selling real estate, location matters.

So I waited with anticipation early this morning for the weekly Amherst Bulletin to see how they would handle the non story that sparked national and international attention: Amherst's abandoned--but only for ten minutes-- Swedish baby story.

The Daily Hampshire Gazette placed it on Tuesday's front page under a foreboding headline: "State to look into report of baby left in stroller."

But I was pleased to see the non story, although still appearing on the front page, relegated to a tiny corner, bottom right, well below the fold. Lousy placement. And the almost as important headline was changed to something far less foreboding: "Cultural differences lead to trouble in Amherst."

God knows Amherst practices cultural sensitivity. Take for example the top story they did chose to place in the prized, above the fold, lead position: "A small but devoted Muslim congregation gathers in Amherst." And later in the lengthy article disclose the group would take part in an interfaith march in Amherst on the fast approaching 10th anniversary of 9/11.

Well I'm glad they found something, umm, non controversial to bump the Swedish baby caper?

Not in Amherst

Hadley's Howard Johnson's

Oozing the outdated bricks and mortar 4’th Estate policy of “never apologize, never explain” today’s Amherst Bulletin editorial suggesting a compromise on the July 4’th Parade brew-ha-ha controversy actually champions a sound principle:

Let the League of Women Voters have their rag-tag “Protest Parade”; although Iraq is now won and even President Obama, the darling of the liberal left, is talking tough on Afghanistan.

Let them run the same route as the normal, All-American Rockwell style parade (at a safe distance from the end) that private organizers have promoted since 2002, after the town gave up in 1976.

The same cops who control things for the private July 4’th Parade Committee can stay in place and also handle the yahoos (since Union rules guarantee them 4 hours and two parades can happen within that time frame.) The two groups could probably also split the cost of insurance.

Too bad the Bully did not think of this eleven months ago.

Bully Nitwit editorial 5/2/08

What I find journalistically fascinating is this same “newspaper” previously told the private Amherst July 4’th Parade Committee to go find another holiday to have a Parade (yeah, gee there nitwits, they should have a July 4’th Parade on April 1’st eh?)

And they applauded the Town Mangler’s Nazi like takeover of the Parade from the private group by declaring he would not give them a permit for July 4, 2009—A resoundingly overt violation of the First Amendment and an idiotic move that brought a reprimand and federal lawsuit threat from the ACLU (also the darling of the left).

We think the 6-year-old Amherst parade will find a better home on a holiday that is not so closely aligned with the cherished principles of free speech and independence. Shaffer's stance creates a hundred and one headaches for himself and other town officials before Independence Day rolls around in 2009. But anyone who takes seriously the rights won by the nation's founders - a fight that began on a certain July day in 1776 - owes Shaffer a tip of the tricorn.

Any real newspaper that takes seriously their journalistic watchdog role—unlike the toothless, aging, arthritic, senile Bully--would have told Shaffer where to stick that tricorn.
Click to enlarge/read

The Bully "reports"