Bonfire of the banalities

WELL, that didn't take long. From the moment President Obama said “America’s role would be limited” and that he would not “put ground troops into Libya,” the wind went out of the media’s hype-inflated sails. You could clock it with an egg timer. Given Obama resoluteness (he’s not kidding) and the absence of American casualties, interest plummeted. From my perch, Libya has not really been a big deal among average folks to begin with, what with March Madness and, you know, life and all. After the speech, most Americans were like, okey-dokey, “let Obama handle it, he kinda seems to know what he’s doing. Call us if you invade.” Ratings-wise, cable networks and talk shows know what side their bread is buttered on. For now, Libya has fallen to a second-tier subject, if that. So, with apologies to Tom Wolf, it’s back to the media bonfire of the banalities: GoDaddy.com founder criticized by PETA for elephant-hunting video, passengers get dizzy on airline flight and “Clone Wars” goes full-on Wookiee tonight. Swell.