What does it say about a story when an editor at The New York Times resorts to snark? Is this part of that whole Times loosening up thing? Is it a way to soften the blow of a really wordy article on a topic that no one seems to know anything about? Take this, for instance.

"In recent weeks, some analysts have started to talk about prices rising to $200 a barrel. But not everyone is so glum. Some experts say that today’s prices have resulted from a speculative bubble that is increasingly disconnected from reality. Energy economists at Lehman Brothers argue, for instance, that oil prices are just as likely to fall to $80 a barrel as they are to rise to $200 a barrel." [NYT]

Contact information for this author is not available.