Doug Feaver will make you "hate" the Washington Post all over again (N.C. Aizenman)

Doug Feaver runs the Washington Post blog "dot.comments", which appears to consist of attacks against their readers who leave comments rather than attempts to engage those readers' concerns. Yesterday he offered "The Latino Emigration" (link), a passive-aggressive attempt to smear those who, unlike the WaPo, oppose illegal activity:

No subject -- not presidential politics, not the war in Iraq -- generates more hate-filled comments from some of our readers than illegal immigration. Today, N.C. Aizenman reports that a "vibrant Latino subculture" in Prince William County, Va., is coming unglued because of "the construction downturn, the mortgage crisis and new local laws aimed at catching illegal immigrants." ...This subject is not going away and requires a significantly more civilized national discussion than this emotional issue is getting now.

I don't see any "hate" in the comments he quotes, but I didn't review all the comments left on the article. This is yet another example of the MSM being called on their propaganda and then blaming those who point it out.

And, the N.C. Aizenman story (link) is indeed propaganda similar to other "ghost town" stories, such as those from Russ Bynum/AP, Jill Capuzzo/NYT, and another one from the AP. Some highlights:

"If things keep going this way, I don't know how I'm going to survive," said [a restaurant owner whose clientele was apparently largely illegal aliens], massaging a sore arm her doctor blames on stress... As [a choir leader] watched them take their places beside her, she said afterward, she thought sadly of those not there: Brother William, the young Salvadoran carpet layer with a knack for guitar playing, who used to keep them all in tune [etc.]... The sun gleamed over Manassas out of a cloudless sky... But those neighbors are gone now, their homes vacant like so many others in the subdivision. And Silda, who is in the United States illegally, is too nervous to venture out for casual strolls... the Bangladesh-born owner [of a 99 cents store], perked up at the rare sight of a shopper... As [someone who fell on hard times and as a result fell out of Temporary Protected Status] lit his candle, it illuminated a large, framed photograph of him and his wife embracing the children. Mauricio stood for a moment, looking up at their grinning faces, before walking out of the room.

I have to wonder: do the WaPo's "reporters" ever break out laughing as they write these things? Does the WaPo hire people who used to write romance novels or the like? Does the WaPo have any shame?

UPDATE: Note to the WaPo: "Bart's People" (link) was comedy, not a model for you to follow.

Immigration2008a · Fri, 03/28/2008 - 10:44 · · Importance: 1