When in a hole...

The plight of the mainstream media continues to get worse.  NBC's bizarre decision to do create a news event based on alleged hatred of Muslims boggles the mind.

The obvious responses - already noted throughout the blogosphere - of why NBC doesn't show a Hasidic Jew trying to enter a mosque or the legendary "tolerance" of college faculty by wearing a Bush t-shirt to a lecture misses the point.

NBC isn't trying to find examples of American intolerance or even trying to discredit NASCAR and its presumed bumpkin fans.

No, NBC is looking for a risk-free way to demonstrate that they still have courage.

Like the anti-war protesters who claim to be boldly confronting a police state or the military deserters who claim to be operating from principle but still wish to escape punishment, the mainstream media is infected by the same cowardice that dominates the modern left.

They want to provoke an incident where they know that police and public safety officials will immediately intervene on their behalf.  That it targets their political and cultural foes only adds gravy, but the goal is really to show how "courageous" Dateline NBC is.