What makes Carl Hiaasen tick? And other thoughts on life

Carl Hiaasen sets all of his novels in Florida; which makes sense, since he has lived there his entire life. That being said, he writes about what is most important to him: Florida and its landscape.

According to Biblio.com, "Hiaasen's Florida is that of greedy businessmen, corrupt politicians, dumb blondes, apathetic retirees, intellectually challenged tourists, and militant ecoteurs."

Biblio also classifies Hiaasen's work as most "environmental thrillers," which also goes into what makes him "tick."

I believe that his issues go hand-in-hand with his "tick." Just from the little I've read of his work (which at this point is about half of "Lucky You"), it's obvious that the preservation of Florida holds a place near and dear to his heart.

The moral center of "The Scum Also Rises." Not to be confused with the center of Blow Pops.

It can be argued that Hunter S. Thompson didn't like government. The subject of "The Scum Also Rises" is of President Nixon's final days in office. Thompson's writing style was different than most at the time, as well as different that most of today's journalists. I think that to describe the moral center of "The Scum Also Rises" would be Thompson attempting to slam Nixon one more time as a sitting president.

Jimmy Breslin's take on the end of the Nixon era was slightly different. I large chuck displayed the loyalty that Tip O'Neill has. Towards the end of the reading, Breslin writes:
"But when a Tip O'Neill began using the word impeachment on the floor of the House of Representatives, this changed the issue."

I think that Breslin's tone was that if someone like O'Neill has turned his back on you, you're pretty much done.

Response to William F. Buckley Jr., 1925-2008

In reading various obits on William F. Buckley, many people said the same two things: he was a heavy conservative; and he was able to not let it interfere with his personal life.


I think it can be argued that "The O'Rielly Factor," "Hardball" and others evolved from Buckley's "Firing Line." That said, if that show were on in today's world, it would not survuve a month. One story on Buckley mentioned that he treated his guests with respect, something you don't usually see. Today, it's more about who can talk over the other person better.

I think that the best thing that we can learn from Buckley is that it's not what you say, necessarily, it's how you say it. Julia Keller wrote in the Trib:

"'At the peak of his fame, he received more than 600 letters a week. He would personally respond to at least 200 of them,' his son said. 'It was quite something to go through an airport with him. He would be stopped, literally, every 5 feet, and someone would say, "I don't agree with a thing you say, but I love the way you say it!"'"

War stories then & now

In comparing an news story on the Civil War to one on the current war in Iraq, one will be able to notice a striking difference between the two.

The meat and potatoes are there: both stories are about a war. Both stories give the reader information about a particular battle about the war. It's the presentation that's different; Villard's article on the first Battle of Bull Run is like something you might encounter at a dinner party, while Roeder's account of Iraq is a fast-food variety. (Yes, I went with the food connection.)

That is not to say that Roeder's story is bad; it is just that it is easier to read than Villard's. Roeder uses shorter paragraphs and follows the contemporary journalism style. Villard, on the other hand, has some challenging paragraphs in his story. His is a story that you would have to take the time to read.

Adventures in Live Blogging III

1:17 -- Molly said that she would give the reporters a story that would be true, then jumped out of the window to her (possible) death. A better story to give reporters would have been the fact that Molly can fly.

1:21 -- Hildy's going to choose her work over Bruce.

1:32 -- The Morning Post is harboring a criminal AND Bruce's mother isn't dead?

1:40 -- Poor Bruce. He's been locked up three times in one night.

1:42 -- The movie ends with Hildy staying with the paper and Wally.

Adventures in Live Blogging II

1:09 -- I like Hildy's style. She seems to not be there to get a story, but because she actually sympathizes with the prisoner. You know, except for that whole bribery thing.

1:11 -- Seriously, do these guys do anything besides play poker and smoke?

1:13 -- Molly (?) just said that she never said that she'd marry Earl (?) and that all they (reporters) do is write lies. I can't help but think of an old saying that I picked up a long time ago that says, "Even if your dear, old grandmother says that she loves you, check it out!"

1:22 -- Poor Hildy. Right when she's ready to leave the business forever, Earl's jail break stops that.

1:27 -- Why is it that Hildy and Wally are the only people in the news business with the ability to speak clearly?

1:33 -- Gotta love political corruption.

1:41 -- We meet Bruce's mother and we're done for today.

Adventures in live blogging -- "His Girl Friday"

Here it is: My first try at live blogging.

1:10 -- It's in black and white.

1:15 -- Wally is way too dedicated to his job.

1:18 -- Good job, Wally. Way to make things up to try to win Hildy back. Hildy, on the other hand, has decided to give up the journalist life.

1:21 -- So far, I have gathered that Wally is unable to seperate his personal and professional life, while Hildy is all too able to seperate the two in that she no longer wants a professional life.

1:25 -- Besides it being in black and white, one thing that dates this film is the fact that the characters are smoking all the time.

1:38 -- And we're done for the day.

What I want to learn this semester

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what this course entails. While I am not really excited about learning the 18th-century magazine style, I am anxious to learn how the world of journalism developed from that into what it is today.