Sunday Sundae

Quote redux of the week:

[Mike Wallace] quoted co-correspondent Morley Safer: "A crook doesn't feel as though he's really made it until he's been on 60 Minutes."

This piquant squib is from a story in the San Francisco Chronicle by Leah Garchick about how Mike Wallace, during a phone interview with her about his new book, got pretty ticked of by some of her questions. A juicy read. He accused her of being petty and unprepared, and from the article itself, which doesn't even mention the title of the book, Mike Wallace Asks: highlights from 46 controversial interviews, I would be willing to bet that he had a point there.

The book sounds great. If anyone would be so kind as to send me one, I'd love to read it. We don't get 60 minutes here in China. I miss it, and miss Ted Koppel's Nightline as well. The CNN broadcast we do get used to feature NewsNight with Aaron Brown and it was always the highlight of my day. It was odd watching it mid-morning, but whenever we could, we did. But for some reason they stopped showing it. It's hard to say whether there was any official reason for dropping it from the schedule, but our CNN is definitely an emasculated version. We get their stupid shows about golf and 'design,' but no more Aaron Brown. Miss you, A.

Belatedly, I want to mention and honor the passing of "Mother" Rosa Parks, who died last week and to say how gratifying it is that she'll be the first woman to lie in state in the Capital Rotunda in Washington, DC.

(CBS/AP) Rosa Parks, the seamstress whose act of defiance on a public bus a half-century ago helped spark the modern U.S. civil rights movement, will join presidents and war heroes who have been honored in death with a public viewing in the Capitol Rotunda.

Parks, who died Monday in Detroit at age 92, (pic RosaParks.jpg) also will be the first woman to lie in honor in the Rotunda, the vast circular room under the Capitol dome.

There are a lot of good stories about the American Civil Rights movement on that page, for you students (ni hao) who visit Crackpot Chronicles. And note too, how America honors her heroes and heroines, even if, and often especially if, they are dissenters. One of our founders said "the highest form of patriotism is dissent." One of the more interesting and relevant differences in our two cultures.

Tab Hunter, 74 (!), teen heart-throb of the 1950s and George Takei, 68 (Star Trek's Mr. Sulu),-- came out. I look forward to an America where people, even media stars, don't have to hide who they are for most of their lives.

Finally, Happy Hallowe'en, White House. Trick or treat--thy comeuppance is nigh.