Patterns in the White Noise:

Patterns in the white noise...

...emerge here:

A New York congresswoman asked the White House to explain Wednesday why a man who worked for a news Web site owned by a GOP activist was able to obtain White House press credentials under an assumed name.

James Guckert, who reported from the White House for the Talon News Service under the name "Jeff Gannon," announced he was quitting the business "in consideration of the welfare of me and my family."

"Because of the attention being paid to me, I find it is no longer possible to effectively be a reporter for Talon News," he said in a statement posted Wednesday on his Web site.

In a letter to President Bush, Rep. Louise Slaughter, a Democrat, questioned why Guckert routinely received credentials for White House news briefings.

Slaughter linked Guckert's case to recent revelations that two conservative columnists who supported Bush administration policies had received government money.

"It appears that 'Mr. Gannon's' presence in the White House press corps was merely as a tool of propaganda for your administration," Slaughter wrote.

The White House had no comment.

I am a fan of Condoleeza Rice. I think she is smart and politically gifted. And I agree with those in the White House who say that the Secretary of State is an example of just how far our nation has come on issues of gender and race.

The many talents and skills of Dr. Rice make me all the more befuddled and frustrated over what happened yesterday in France. Dr. Rice stepped into the Institute of Political Sciences, an elite school in the heart of Paris, and responded to questions and questioners who were vetted by the school and by the state department in advance. That's right! America's top diplomat was unable or unwilling to talk on her feet and face anything that was unscripted.

A state department official said the U.S. embassy had asked the school to vet five people/questions. And what do you know? Rice took a total of five questions. As the Washington Post reports, "Like the questions, access to the hall was controlled. Of 500 seats, only 150 went to the school's students and staff. Another 150 were given to French opinion leaders and government officials. Fifty went to American organizations and etc. Meanwhile, scores of students from the school were kept well away from the session. Several complained of being pushed back by police."

The only grade school in this rural town is requiring students to wear radio frequency identification badges that can track their every move. Some parents are outraged, fearing it will rob their children of privacy.

The badges introduced at Brittan Elementary School on Jan. 18 rely on the same radio frequency and scanner technology that companies use to track livestock and product inventory.

Attention, parents: The state of Virginia understands that you lead busy lives, but lawmakers are confident that you will be only too happy to tack just one more task onto your morning routine -- a quick pants check as the kids head out the door.

The House of Delegates voted 60 to 34 Tuesday to impose a $50 fine on anyone found wearing pants low enough that a substantial portion of undergarments is showing. Note the vote: It wasn't even close.

Sure, it will be difficult to guarantee that your kids' pants stay secured around the waist all day, but there are ways to protect your offspring from exposure to police action and resulting fines. I suggest duct tape or, in extreme cases, super glue.

Is this the America we really want?

   - A government that refuses to be open and answer questions that are not planted or pre-approved...

   - Tracking elementary school students like inventory or cattle instead of teaching them responsibility by expecting them to be responsible...

   - Invasive and idiotic laws fining people for not exposing their bodies, but their underwear...

Is this the America we really want?

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Thanks to The Moderate Voice for the first pointer to the GOP activist in the White House press room.