Was Bill Clinton's visit to North Korea worth the time, energy, and prestige? No way.

Slate by Christopher Hitchens | Aug. 11, 2009 (Opinion)

I call your attention to a small detail about Laura Ling and Euna Lee, the two American journalists who were wrongfully arrested, illegally detained, and then capriciously released by the crime family that controls the northern section of the Korean peninsula and treats all its inhabitants as slave-prisoners and all the neighbors within its missile range as hostages. Full Story »

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by William Owney - Aug. 11, 2009

The entire premise proceeds from Mr. Hitchens' medical assessment of two women done via photographs taken at a distance compared to: Nothing. He chooses to argue with two other writers by setting them up as straw dogs; yet, even against an opponent made of straw, he proffers not arguments, but insults. Calling someone who does not have the right of reply "boot lick" or "inexpert bore." Is not polemics: It is playground bullying.

This sort of angry talking head B.S. is exactly what it wrong with contemporary "journalism." A good editor -- or a mediocre English teacher, whichever came first -- would send this back for rewrite. Slate should be embarrassed.