Dispatch: A friend

Another email from a friend — this one anonymous — that I thought worth sharing here:

i’ve been wondering about the media folks and their bursts of honesty and anger about bush–like you said, even fox has them, but also it’s coming from middle-of-the-roaders like brooks and some republican politicians too.
it is sorta extraordinary, and while you could say that the events in the south are simply so horrific that these folks have no choice but to howl, really think about it–iraq is a huge screw-up too, and abu ghraib and guantanamo. plenty of horror there, and evidence of misdeeds. so why now and not then?
well, i just got this feeling that perhaps these are reasonable people who have been supporting the administration by reflex for a long time but who’ve been privately getting more and more troubled. oh, not troubled enough to say anything out loud, maybe they felt some loyalty too, but uneasy. and finally, here’s katrina–something simple and clear-cut enough to give them the cover they’ve been wanting, that will allow them to break with the home team. these breakdowns on tv–they’re genuine, i think, and the things they’re seeing are horrific enough in themselves to warrant that response–but i really wonder if there’s this something else too, a terrific relief bursting forth of FINALLY being able to admit the fuck-up and get the hell over to the other side of the room. it feels like the infectious laughter of the crowd after the little boy points out the emperor’s nakedness. only this crowd’s not laughing.