Sargent up in Arms

Greg Sargent is actually very polite about the nonsense Hal Strauss dished. Strauss can't keep his story straight.

WASHINGTON POST RESPONDS. I noted below that I'd asked the Post for its official explanation of the hiring of Domenech.

Now WashingtonPost.com's Opinions editor, Hal Straus, has sent some answers to our questions via a spokesman, Eric Easter. For your ... and enjoyment, here are [Straus's answers] followed by Straus's answers:

Straus: "When WP.com launched Opinions we said we wanted this new area to be about a variety of voices across a broad spectrum of political and cultural thought. [snip]

"Ben Domenech brings an original and authentically conservative voice to the site's Opinions area, where we're committed to presenting the most provocative, informed and ideologically diverse policy debate on the web.

[snip]

Straus: "Washingtonpost.com hires writers for their ability to add something substantive to the national conversation. As best as possible, we look for that ability regardless of political labels."

OK so how does one manage to maintain ideological diversity and a broad spectrum of thought why looking at ability regardless of political labels ?

Strauss could have said that Washingtonpost.com only considers ability and that, since ability is roughly evenly distributed among left and right, automatically obtains ideological diversity. He could also have said that Washingtonpost.com is committed to ideological diversity and that, since ability is roughly evenly distributed among left and right, fortunately has not had to accept a low ability dishonest non journalist in order to achieve diversity.

However he said that they consider only ability and that they aim for diversity making two plainly contradictory claims about their aims and motivations which can not possibly be true even if there is no need to choice between the two aims one of which he claimed was their only aim.

Again we see the holy duality. WAPO the father is singlemindedly focused on ability alone while WAPO the Son/Daughter/Child cares about diversity too. They are two yet They are one. I just hope "Red America" is soon wholly a ghost.