The contemporary phenomenon of round-the-clock, round-the-world, round-the-houses media and internet commentary on just about everything that happens in public life has a lot to be said for it. I'll just say two of the things by way of indication: it makes it easier to stay informed; and it gives far more people than used to have it a voice in the forums where issues are raised and clarified. But there are also some less positive sides, and one of these is that there's hardly anything that doesn't get up somebody's nose. I don't know, you look around and some things you think 'Hey, that's interesting' or 'Hey, this is worrying' or 'Gee, how funny'. But often don't you just think 'Nah, nothing'? Yet there ain't nothing that isn't something to somebody.
Take Obama's bow to the emperor of Japan. I mean, he was greeting the guy - respectfully. Maybe too respectfully. Maybe he bowed too far. Maybe he shouldn't have bowed at all. Maybe it was just right. Maybe it was nearly right, but not quite right. You can count on there being, even in this matter, every shade of opinion and analysis, every nuance, inflection of meaning, every angle of the eyebrow and lay-out of the brow. Does it really matter in the larger scheme of political life? No prizes for the answer. Some of the comment was plain demented.