Facts aren't dead or alive. Facts are facts. Facts are what is.
Abraham Lincoln was fond of asking, “If you call a dog’s tail a leg, how many legs does a dog have?” “Five,” his audience would invariably answer. “No,” he would politely respond,” the correct answer is four. Calling a tail a leg does not make it a leg.” That's pretty much what we're dealing with here. Whatever the situation, there are certain facts that attach to that situation. The assignment of journalists used to be to report those facts. The assignment of the editorial writer was to offer an opinion regarding those facts.
The media today want to print stories about 5-legged dogs, and they get all upset when someone says, "No, it's still a dog and it doesn't have five legs."
