Sometimes the only people more stupid than journalists are the people in government that they cover. Today's case study is Douglas County (Minn.) Coordinator Bill Schalow.

Once upon a time in a place called Alexandria an official decreed that news must be submitted to the government for approval before being disseminated.

The official was not Alexander the Great but rather a county administrator, Bill Schalow. The place was not the Great's namesake on the Nile but rather Alexandria, Minn. The date was March 6, 2006 -- last Monday.

By Friday, Douglas County Coordinator Schalow's new "Public Relations/Communications Protocol," which required the local paper to submit its stories about the county for fact-checking or be cut off from top county officials, was ancient history.

Bill Schalow...

...A french fry short of a happy meal

...Not the sharpest tool in the shed

...Not the sharpest knife in the drawer

...As sharp as a bowling ball

...A taco short of a combination plate