That’s a wrap, right? There just cannot be any sentient being on Planet Earth who really thinks three Duke lacrosse players raped a stripper in Durham last March. Here’s what Jon Ham at our sister blog Right Angles has to say:

I’m not even finished watching my taped version of the “60 Minutes” program on the Duke rape case and I can say without fear of contradiction that Mike Nifong is a complete and hopeless incompetent who does not deserve to hold public office. And if you think that’s harsh, just think what his incompetence and bull-headedness has cost three innocent lacrosse players.

And Duke President Richard Brodhead is close behind.

Actually, I’d argue that Gov. Mike Whatshisname has not exactly covered himself in glory with this mess, either. There have been very credible calls for Whatshisname to find a way to remove Nifong from office, or at least hand the case to another, competent prosecutor. Instead Whatshisname, a former attorney general for crying out loud, has pursued his usual duck-and-cover approach to any serious issue facing this state.

Now, with a searing national TV broadcast on what passes for justice in North Carolina, the all-important image of the state, the thing we spend millions trying to polish at every opportunity, has taken a serious hit.

In fact, a new state marketing slogan should reflect the low opinion of the state now held nationally, heck worldwide, thanks to the Duke farce. bb

North Carolina — America’s Banana Republic

I like it!

Bonus observation: Gee, the Uptown paper of record today runs a wire story on the 60 Minutes report. What, no more three reporter, 60-inch stories on the Duke lacrosse case? As soon as it looked like this story was going to turn out “wrong” our local news mavens beat a hasty retreat.

Wonder why?

Double bonus observation: Here’s my Reason piece from June, Low-Tech Lynching: Even annoying, rich white boys deserve justice. It closes:

Nothing is more dangerous than a lunatic with government letterhead. It is a black mark on all of us that it took a seedy mix of race, money, sex, and violence for anyone to notice that crucial fact of American life at work in a courtroom.