Dear Nightly News Brian,
I am a fun of your program but i am beginning to get sick about the "making a difference" section. How come you never report anything positive about Africa?. Imagine somebody describing America to the outside world on the basis of its negative aspects only (including the racial ones). How would you feel knowing that it is generalization?. I feel that you all concentrate on negative things in Africa. Please report on something good in Africa. Africa is a continent and all those countries are different if you are not aware. There are smart people in there just like in other parts of the world. There are well managed countries in Africa. There are millions who work hard to feed their families in that continent just like you and i . When are you going to tell us about them?.I have never seen American networks bring anything positive about Africa including yours yet when i visit there, it is not the way you report it. Why don't you bring miserable pictures from other parts of the world like you do Africa. Be fair when it come to Africa or forget it. Give us a better picture of Africa. There is no way a whole continent can be like that. Mix it up. Give us the ugly and the good. Show us a picture of well dressed and fed African kids besides the naked ones you always show us. Be fair to all humanity.

Brian, I looked at a photo of the Dragon Skin and it looks to me like it is layered from bottom to top. If a soldier was laying in the direction of fire, wouldn’t the bullet go under and between the layers without stopping?

Hey Brian! I was so excited when I heard you say you would be in the Crescent City today! I want to thank you and NBC News for all of the love and concern you have shown to this city and the wonderful people there. I also want to bring to your attention an awesome blog entry written by my home boy Tim (Kosovo-Paradise MSN Spaces) who is on active duty. He has written an eloquent piece that touched me very deeply as I am sure it will touch everyone who reads it. A soldier's point of view and why it is necessary for him and his comrades to stay in Iraq and Afghanistan "until the job is done". Take care!!

Thanks for the response Jack, A few weeks ago I wrote about the appalling uptick in the number of people literally calling for the “MASS GENOCIDE” of all Arab people as if that was some sort of answer. Not surprisingly, I just read this quote from the world blog by:

“israel should fire bomb gaza and turn it into an inferno. if the arabs continue to press for the elimination of israel, at some point this scenario will finally come to be the end game. same goes for the west bank. of course, israel has to wait for the right moment. another conflaguration in the middle east, an all out shiite-sunni war or an iranian explosion of violence could trigger the opportunity.”

This is horrific and I wouldn’t be surprised if this person (Jerry) considers themselves religious. Do a find on NUKE IRAN on the web and it comes up 183,000 times. Is this what we’ve become?

Looking forward to your New Orleans coverage! Have a good trip there!

Thank you Brian for your most informative show asever. I just got this back online and you and the rest will be hearing from me ona regular basis . I enjoy your newscast no matter whatitis. Itis the news and youmake it sound the best you can. I would takebad news from youanytime. You Have the style.

"Lighten up?" I would suspect that Brian just might change his tune after his visit to the Gulf Coast Region tomorrow. Those of us who are still involved, 20 months later, with helping those who still need assistance while the rebuilding of this region of our country is still going on, find it difficult to "lighten up".

I read the Limbaugh transcript, just as I have read most of the links that Brian suggests in his blogs. What a huge waste of my time!!! What exactly was the point? The only thing I got from reading all that was a "celebrity", who is always full of hot air (Limbaugh), found great joy in dropping the names of a few folks with whom he was fortunate enough to share the same real estate for an hour or so (those folks are way more important than Limbaugh will ever be) ... just to make himself seem more important. I certainly had more important things to do, such as mopping the kitchen floor, than to read that pointless piece of junk. Brian, please think carefully before you precede a link such as the Limbaugh link with the request, " ... must ask you to link ... and set aside time and read to the end." From now on, I'll have to think twice before I read the links you provide, which is something I didn't think I'd ever find myself saying ... I really thought there was something important that I needed to read.

Brian,
What can I say? After a very long day I could not help but smile (ok grin) at being mentioned in the Daily Blog. Had to read the link immediately, then it all made perfect sense(quite entertaining btw).

If I may go off on a tangent and this is simply my opinion........the world is a scary place these days and at times I fear the human race has gone mad. The stress filled environment that has become the norm, the cut throat competition to have more, the lack of compassion toward those in need in our own country, towns and neighborhoods can make us lose hope for a better future. But tonight was different, tonight I had my hope and faith renewed. I held in my arms the most beautiful little little baby girl (ok I'm biased here). At 6 weeks of age she's an amazing 5 lbs 2 ounces (I've been corrected by her dad for omitting the 2 ounces) This little dynamo with eyes you could get lost in for hours and a heck of a strong grip for such a tiny person is nothing short of a miracle. Holding this little angel, so perfect, trusting and innocent makes me believe that we can and must do better to make this world a better place for her to grow up in. It was an amazing experience! If that's what being a parent is like, such a rush of love and sense of protectiveness, then I truly envy all of you who are blessed to be parents. Peace in our lifetime, I have to believe it can be done.

Thoughts from a semi-retired energy reporter. Tonight's Nightly News report on gasoline prices used two boilerplate comments -- no new refineries in 30 years with an oil industry spokesman saying they are not economical and record prices. Lets look at them.
Yes, for much of the three decades new refineries have not been economic. But existing refineries have been expanded. What is total national capacity today and how does it compare to 30 years ago. And what about NIMBY?
On prices: Yes records are being set in actual dollars. What about inflation adjusted dollars? I understand EIA says the inflation adjusted record is $3.22/gallon. Since we are now getting in that range, is there any chance the impact will be the same as when it was set in the late 70s (or early 8os, I forget which)? The impact then was a sharp cut in usage.

Dear Nightly News,

This is not really for posting, but my previous blog comment about the lycopene research had a badly mangled affiliation. I am a Professor at LOYOLA University. Also it was the "principal" not "principle" investigator who reassured us. I must also say that I look forward to seeing Robert Bazell's pieces but I think some causation/correlation trap got sprung here.

Thanks for posting my comment. And I hope you all keep asking the hard questions (Blair was quite a sham, wasn't he?).

Cheers,

Rich Bowen

Brian:
You had a story on tonight about rising gas prices. In that story, you featured a quote from a representative of the oil industry which included the following: "...it has not been economically feasible to build more refineries." Of course it's not economically feasible for oil companies to build more refineries, when scarce supply and rising demand boost price. Hence, oil companies get record profits from disaster, or any other world situation that threatens supplies and leads to record oil prices. The rest of us pay, which impacts the economy and the security of the rest of the nation. I wish your interviewer would not have let that guy off the hook. Oil companies have a social responsibility just like everyone else, and if they're making record profits from disasters on the back of Joe Public, at least a portion those profits should be invested in ways to improve supply and price stability so Joe doesn't have to be bled dry for their profit. That's just basic social responsibility. Any chance you can do better at this next time?

The Rush piece was fun - and informative! Half of the world complains about too much polarization - while the other half feels that you have to HATE your opponents to be a true believer? One thing I will say about the national media is (for the most part) they treat each other as colleagues if not friends. Or would you rather see Brian and Charlie in a mud-wrestling match?

Good Evening Again Mr.Williams, The report by Lisa Myers concerning the body armour that the troops wear was very interesting. I had never heard of dragon skin and how it is supposed to be better for the troops. I don't quite understand how some thought it was a failure and others the best kind of protection. One would think that everyone should be on the same page when it concerns the safety of our military. Also the report by Robert Bazell about lycopene and that it doesn't matter how much you have in your system it will not prevent you from getting cancer. It seems like when my great grandparents were alive they ate whatever they wanted and both lived into their nineties. Sometimes I wish we could do the same thing and all live very long lives, but these are different times. Maybe we worry too much and I guess should "...lighten up out there." Anyway, thank you for the broadcast. Keep safe all military and journalists in the battled region! All wear the best armour possible! Always keep everyone safe! Peace to all!

Well Chris you gotta realize that the Iraqis belong to the wrong tribe. Recent events in world history prove that you can slaughter innocent Muslims by the tens of thousands and noone in the Western world makes a peep. But if you kill one member of the other prominent tribe from the region (Daniel Pearl anyone?) there will be articles, books, foundations, major motion pictures starring Angelina Jolie, etc.

I myself have this quaint notion that murder is murder and it's all wrong. George W, who has killed thousands of innocent Iraqis by issuing orders from afar, is just as barbaric as a terrorist who takes a knife and cuts off someone's head up close and personal. But mine is a minority view, unpopular with angry mobs.

Robert Bazell reports that lycopene is not related to prostate cancer risk according to a recent research study. This may be so, but the original observation that eating a lot of tomatoes seems to be correlated with a lower rate of prostate cancer stands. So SOMETHING in the tomato fruit may still protect against prostate cancer, even if it is not lycopene. For Bazell to ask rhetorically whether this lycopene finding "means that tomatoes aren't good for you" is, at best, misleading and possibly confusing. And although the prinicple investigator of the study reassured us men that eating fruits and vegetables in a healthy diet is recommended, it should also be said that tomatoes themselves may still be a protective factor. I'm not giving up my marinara sauce and ketchup just yet.

Richard Bowen
Psychology Department
Lotyoal University Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

Hi Brian -

Today I'm surrounded by the clever guys at NBC - David in the Morning, and Brian in the evening. Who could ask for anything more??

Thanks for the mention.

Good Evening Mr.Williams, First of all I think you are doing an excellent job on Nightly News. Frankly you should always be first in the ratings in my mind. I guess because I believe NBC has the best reporters. I would like to say to you Mr.Williams that when I make a comment on your Daily Nightly I have always tried to be positive and supportive of you and every reporter that is on your broadcast. I NEVER would think of putting you down or making you feel as if you did a poor job of journalism. And you know full well how much I have complimented and supported one particular bureau chief who is my favorite. And I am thankful to you when you pass those compliments to him. I will always wish you success. I do hope you consider me one of your friendly blog commenters. Looking forward to your broadcast. Peace to all!

"Some of you need to just lighten up out there."

How many Iraqis are dead or utterly dismembered right now? Heck, I’d bet they’d all get a real hoot out of Countdown’s Blair video or the latest SNL episode! Buddhists such as myself believe that ‘small talk’ and wasting one’s time is literally a sin given the appalling and irreprehensible state of the world. As the Dalai Lama says, “in times of the greatest adversity is the most chance to do good.”