Updates and corrections, part I

I wrote a whole bunch of stuff yesterday, and several of them could stand a bit of updating. In most cases, it’s corrections and apologies — no great surprise there. Instead of singling them out, I’m going to put them all here.

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On the Army co-opting Michael Yon’s photograph: the story is growing. The Boston Herald broke the story, and that’s where I picked it up. Then one of their staff bloggers (hey, guys, any openings?) linked to our discussion via the fine gentlemen at Pundit Review. Apparently there are some technicalities and intricacies that just might give the Army a legal foot to stand on — but not, in my opinion, a moral one.

Next, I ripped noted blowhard and professional ass Oliver Willis for falling for a bogus story — an especially delightful irony, as Willis gets his paychecks for the George Soros-funded “media watchdog” Media Matters. Willis couldn’t defend himself, so he counterattacked on Rob Port’s site, accusing me of making up material. I called him on that, in a particularly agitated fashion (sorry for the language, but I was a mite incensed).

His response:

Well, jeez kid, when you’re running around yelling about “jizz”… Sorry, I don’t sit around in every comment section that has people making stuff about me and reject charge after made up charge, but I’d be spending all day doing that.

First of all. Ollie, I’m about a decade older than you, so knock off that “kid” crap. Secondly, I didn’t ask you to answer charges against you, but prove or withdraw your charges against me. If you don’t have time to back up your bullshit, Ollie, then maybe you ought not spout it in the first place.

OK, the third one, the one on Hamas. I made one big, honking factual error in that one. I said that Israel had once held the west bank of the Nile. “West Bank” is a phrase that, in my mind, is inexplicably linked to news about the Israel/Palestine conflict, and it intruded on me here. What I meant (and pointed out by Phinn, JohninAnnArbor, and John) was that Israel once held the west side of the Suez Canal and gave it back. Thanks, guys, for the correction.

This is getting a bit long. I’ll continue the housekeeping after a short break.