Mark Whicker, what were you thinking?

I've often wondered why Mark Whicker doesn't get more attention on this board; he's one of the good guys, and a well-respected veteran. Sad to see him stumble into the spotlight this way.

But wow, that was a bizarre column. Can't see anyone getting fired over it, but clearly someone was asleep.

 

I think Whicker is safe.

 

Real, real, real, real bad. (And yes, Whicker has been very good in the past.)

At this point none of us know what Jaycee Dugard thinks of her captivity.

If at some point she were to give an interview and say, "gee, I missed a lot of stuff on TV" -- indicating she had come to grips with it to some extent -- then something like this might fly.

Until then, you're just completely trivializing something unspeakably brutal that deprived her of (up to now) 2/3 of her life.

This is another example of Albom's Law: When a columnist gets to the point when his stuff is declared untouchable, bad things follow.

The apology and public mea culpa is probably punishment enough -- although I suspect Whicker's stuff will be run through a few more pairs of eyes before heading to print in the near future.

 

C'mon. It's not a fireable offense. Horrible judgment, but nobody deserves to lose his job.

 

Why would an 11-year-old girl from South Lake Tahoe give a crap about Orange County sports?

 

I don't know Bob... ... ... That is a pretty insensitive column.

 

I don't consider myself to be too sensitive, and I'm not one who writes letters, but I didn't find this column all that "offensive." No, I wouldn't have written it, and I understand he was walking in thin ice, but at no point did he make light of the abduction or rape. What if it was someone in a coma, or they thawed out Walt Disney? Again, I'm probably the least connected person to this story, but I think people can be oversensitive about everything.

 

...but not for writing it?

 

He certainly did make light of her abduction. The WHOLE column makes light of her abduction.
I've got to be honest. I've never read anything like that before. Nothing even close, actually.
Stunning.

 

I believe Mr. Whicker is about to become the first sports columnist to be named Olbermann's Worst Person In The World.

Edit: Until Joe Wilson came along.

 

He was second-worst on Olbermann's list, lumped in with the editors and deskers who let it run.

 

"Like it's their business. Columnists are
geniuses and their shit doesn't stink. Dude
should write whatever he wants, even make
it all up if that's how he feels."