EXCESS - AT 2:57 P.M. ET:  I was just monitoring the TV networks.  Every major network, and all the cable news systems, are carrying the Michael Jackson memorial service live.  Sinatra never got this treatment.  Nor did Johnny Carson.  Both men were vastly more important, and had an impact on the culture over many more years.  And I recall how the networks would routinely reject President Bush's requests for air time when he addressed the nation.

Say nothing bad about the dead.  I'm sure Jackson was an exciting entertainer.  But the excess here is vulgar, a sad reflection on the values of many Americans. 

On the stage at the Staples Center is Michael Jackson, in a golden casket.  It would have been far nobler to have a simple coffin, with the money saved devoted to a favorite charity.

I flipped channels just as Al Sharpton was speaking.  What precisely does he have to do with Michael Jackson? 

We buried Ed McMahon, decent guy, Marine pilot; we buried Farrah Fawcett, once one of the most famous women in the world, whose struggle with cancer was an inspiration; we will bury Karl Malden, one of our finest actors.  No live coverage for any of them.

July 7, 2009