Breitbart's purified exit

NPR reported on the surprising death of hatchet man Andrew Brietbart at the age of 43 in such reverent tones you'd think he were known for dedicating his life to rescuing feral kittens. How could a Very Serious news entity like NPR fail to mention that Breitbart achieved real fame via the sleaziest racist scam of recent memory -- the distorted video that ruined the career of Shirley Sherrod, a civil servant and, not accidentally, a black female who dedicated her life to aiding poor farmers. But Breitbart's career as a scumbag was hardly knicked by NPR and other broadcast outfits, which speaks volumes about the corruption of our political and media cultures.

I'm all for charity towards the dead, even public figures, but not for whitewashing their shortcomings to please certain still-alive sympathizers. Breitbart was not just a "controversial" or "polemical" figure. He was an immoral dirty trickster whose tactics should have been universally condemned long before his death. In a sane world, he would have been a desk clerk snarling at customers at a Quality Inn.