Back scratching, DC-style

I took a mild swing at Slate's Jack Shafer today. He deserved it. But that doesn't mean Shafer isn't smart (or funny). On DC journalism, he observes: "If sucking up to important sources was a crime, 95 percent of all Washington journalists would be doing time right now. It's not that Washington journalists love kissing ass—though most of them excel at it—it's that the high ratio of powerful sources to journalists almost demands it." Ha! So true. Read his piece here.