Lord, this San Francisco Chronicle piece lambasting the Obama Administration for tossing a reporter out of the press pool over protest coverage is intense. Here’s a taste, then go read the rest:

I get that all powerful people and institutions want to control their image and their message. That’s part of their job, to create a mythology that allows them to continue being powerful.

But part of the press’ job is to do the opposite, to strip away the cloaks and veneers. By banning her, and by not acknowledging how contemporary media works, the White House did not just put Carla in a cage but more like one of those stifling pens reserved for calves on their way to being veal.

If a tenth of the press adopted this attitude politicians of both parties would be a lot less happy, sure, but the rest of us would simultaneously be infinitely better off. (Funny how that equation works, no?) Of course, such brave souls presumably would be denied the professional honor of being mocked by Jay Carney whenever they stray from the “stifling pen.” Such are the sacrifices, alas, occasionally required on behalf of the republic.