Fabi Watch: a guest column

This morning, in what may be one of the most intellectually disingenuous columns the Miami Herald has ever printed in its 100 plus years of history, staff writer Fabiola Santiago takes the "Ray Allen Seven" to the woodshed for a stern tongue lashing.

"These brats need a hard lesson," reads the headline over her column.

"The case holds up a mirror — and what one sees is troubling: What kind of society raises college-bound 18-year-olds who think that it’s okay to break into someone’s house because it looks empty and they’re “curious” about how a basketball player lives?" Fabi asks rhetorically.

I have a better question, Fabi: At what point in your upbringing did your parents teach you that it was OK to screw your boss in order to get a promotion?

But I digress.

This morning I asked a friend to take a look at the column. This was the response: "Honestly, I couldn't get through it. You don't often see "skewed" and "slew" in the same place. Drawing global conclusions from a single incident. The mark of an idiot."

And about an hour ago, filmmaker - and friend - Billy Corben, shared some thoughts on the column on his Facebook page. (For those who don't know, Billy has lots of opinions.)

One of Billy's Facebook friends responded with this comment: "Her writing just isn't captivating. Her leads are awkward and sometimes vague. I have problems understanding her points and find myself having to re-read her columns just to comprehend its coherency." (Hmm, I thought I was the only one who felt that way.)

I asked Billy for permission to publish his post on the blog, and he said yes.

America's (and Cuba's) worst columnist lumbers back onto her sanctimonious and hypocritical soapbox: With all the corruption and dysfunction in South Florida, the Miami Herald pays Fabiola Santiago to beat up on kids?

I guess she's never made a mistake before. I mean, other than that time she had an affair with her editor and got a promotion over more experienced and qualified colleagues.

Regardless, she thinks the teens who broke into Ray Allen's house should have their lives derailed over a (very) stupid mistake; much like the rude, drug-addicted teen who mouthed off to an equally obnoxious judge last year. 

She demands that any and all dissenters who stray from her arbitrary ideological whims should be tossed into prison. Fidel much? 

In the Allen matter, the state attorney's office made a difficult, but appropriate charging decision (initially, anyway) -- the same office who I do not recall Santiago ever taking to task for never charging a police officer for an on-duty shooting, despite a Justice Department investigation calling them out for it. 

Of all the people in this town who “need to learn a lesson,” this is the best she can do? She should pick on somebody her own size. 

Until then, as long as she continues punching down, I'll keep punching down at her. 

Shame on Jay Ducassi, Mindy Marques Gonzalez and Rick Hirsch for continuing to publish and squandering their limited resources on her bile. 

She contributes nothing journalistically or intellectually to our community conversation and is an embarrassment to your paper. 

Perhaps you should ship her back to the front line as your Miami vs. Tampa "Cuban Sandwich War" correspondent.