Death of Rehnquist

I don't consider myself competent enough to give comprehensive analysis of what the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist might mean for the future of United States and the rest of the world, but I think I can comment on the way this event showed the incompetence and visible decline of Croatian media.

Rehnquist was one of the major political figures in USA and played an important role in the shaping of today's world if we consider the Supreme Court decision to be decisive factor in 2000 election. Yet HRT and index.hr failed to report this news to Croatian public.

On the other hand, this isn't that surprising. Most of US-related media coverage is reserved for Katrina and destruction of New Orleans - simple story about hurricane that reduced global superpower to Third World hellhole and validated preconceived notions about George W. Bush as worthless and incompetent idiot.

Death of Rehnquist and its political consequences is, on the other hand, much more complicated. It requires some knowledge about US Constitution, separation of powers, checks and balances, as well as ideological divide and complex issues. It isn't surprising that this could be beyond the comprehension of an average Croatian media consumer.

But I fear that those issues appear to be beyond the comprehension of an average Croatian journalist or news editor.

Comments

[Seesaw]

Could not agree more with you. The most important thing for HRT was to show Branka Slavica alive from the airport of New Orleans...
Political analysis has been dead in Croatia, and not only in Croatia, for years...

[Judith Sapp]

Rehnquist's death isn't complicated at all. Together with Sandra Day's retirement, it means that the United States will be ruled by corporate interests and the religious right, who don't believe in evolution or the right to privacy, which includes the right to decide on reproductive matters. We're ruled by the same people now, but they can be voted out. The Supremes are there for life, which means we are sunk.

[todd]

I spent a year in Croatia teaching English nearly 10 years ago...I learned Croatian but not well enough to be able to appreciate or understand the news about good ol' Franjo Tudjman. But yes, as Judith says, in the US, it's another opening for Bush to appoint a neo-Nazi psychopath to the court. John Paul Stevens is not getting any younger (he's about 83) and so he may not survive the end of Bush's term-though I don't think he's unwell. Anyway.....