Quotes & amp;amp; Notes

by Inlander Staff


Still Kickable -- Remember when Richard Nixon gave his famous "You won't have Dick Nixon to kick around anymore" press conference after losing to Kennedy in 1960? That's probably the kind of speech former City Councilman Steve Corker would have liked to have given, too, when he left public office at the end of 2003. Long a critic over his treatment in the pages of the Spokesman-Review (justifiably or not), he probably figured he'd be able to finally slip into anonymity.


No such luck. Corker now claims the S-R is creating erroneous impressions about him -- and misleading nervous investors -- in its coverage of Met Mortgage's bankruptcy. We checked out his complaint, and it looks like he has a legitimate beef. The guilty party? None other than everybody's favorite local right-winger, D.F. "Dave" Oliveria, who on Sunday wrote of Corker that: "Ya help run down a company and emerge unscathed. Steve Corker... will pocket $252,000 for work this year for the sinking company."


Corker, who resigned from his post earlier this week after helping find the firm's new Chief Restructuring Officer, says he couldn't help "run down a company" because he was never involved in managing it until Dec. 3, 2003. He also says documents created the false impression that he was going to work for Met full time for the foreseeable future. That was never part of the plan -- something he says he would have gladly shared if asked by the Review. He adds that the Review appears to be grinding its owners' ax when if fails to disclose that while Oliveria kicks away, its owners -- the Cowles family -- still have a lawsuit pending against Corker and other public officials for their alleged role in the parking garage problem.


For the record, Corker claims he was brought in on a short-term basis to help find a replacement for the departing Paul Sandifur. In all, he says he will be paid about $20,000 for his efforts -- equivalent, he says, to the pay scale a senior accountant would command. Still, it's good money. Oliveria probably had it right when he wrote "it's nice work if you can get it."





Boobs vs. Blood -- Lots of people were offended by Janet Jackson's exposed nipple, but the reaction to The Passion raises a question: While sexually, uh, titillating content is sure to raise a big ruckus, why don't depictions of extreme violence? It's strange to see some of the biggest nipple-objectors lining up to go see what critics are almost unanimously calling one of the most violent films of all time. We didn't even want to see a droplet of blood in all the hours of Iraq coverage, but entire churches are sending their flocks to this R-rated film -- some in place of Sunday services. That's their business, but the "violence OK/nudity bad" mindset is certainly something for sociologists to unravel.





Publication date: 02/26/04