My daughter and I were watching a reporter in Baton Rouge - Stephanie Something-or-other - on WWL report on how long the power is expected to be out in New Orleans. This Stephanie said that she had discussed it with the experts, with the people responsible for getting the power back on, and they told her that they expected to have it on in 6-8 weeks for most of the metro area. Stephanie then proceeded to say that she just did not see how that was possible given what she has been told by other people reporting on this problem. She spent at least twice as long explaining that the experts were wrong, in her opinion - and even said, I'm no engineer, but I just don't see how this is possible. She offered no evidence whatsoever. Only a vague reference to her chats with other reporters and bystanders.

I asked my 15 year old daughter who is not a regular news watcher if she thought anything was wrong with the report. (We homeschool moms have to try to make a teachable moment out of everything. It's obnoxious, I know.) My daughter replied that she couldn't figure out why the reporter thinks she's smarter than the engineers and experts, and wondered why the reporter was trying to make things seem even worse than they already are.

It's a good question. I still have friends missing. I know quite a few people who have lost everything they owned. A friend's husband fought the battle of the Convention Center and told her that he shot more people in that fracas than in Iraq and Bosnia combined. (What does that say about Iraq, I wonder... somebody page Chrenkoff.) I've read the reports about the looting and mayhem. I've been told that it will be a very long time before I can go home, although I'm not sure I believe that. Will the media ever be satiated with bad news? If this tragedy isn't enough to pacify their hunger, I'm afraid to speculate what would.