What the Modern Conservative Movement Has Become
Right Wing News conducts a yearly survey of right-leaning blogs and asks them to rank their "Favorite People on the Right." Today the site announced the winner of this year's survey; by an overwhelming margin, right-wing bloggers chose Rush Limbaugh. Second place went to Ann Coulter. That says just about everything you need to know about the state of modern conservatism.
As if to put an exclamation point on the results of the survey, Media Matters has this truly unbelievable item from none other than Rush Limbaugh himself. As I'm sure you've already heard, Limbaugh has taken some heat from Democrats this week for referring to soldiers with anti-war views as "phony soldiers" in one of his broadcasts. Limbaugh has defended himself by claiming that he was taken out of context and that he was literally referring to a guy named Jesse MacBeth, who falsely claimed to have served in Iraq, and not to those with anti-war views generally. He claimed that Media Matters didn't provide the full transcript of the relevant discussion. So, on the air the next day, Limbaugh played what he claimed was the "entire transcript, in context." But what he actually played was a heavily edited version of the prior broadcast in which he had spliced out the minute and a half of air time immediately following his controversial remarks. Fox News' John Gibson then replayed Rush's doctored version of the broadcast and accused Media Matters of having edited Limbaugh's remarks to take them out of context.
Sometimes there are just no words. It's truly not an exaggeration to say that the modern conservative movement in this country is dominated by propagandists and charlatans, people with no intellectual integrity at all. Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter, the right-wing blogosphere's two most "favorite people," aren't even ideologues. They're nihilists. They don't believe in anything. They are Pied Pipers who have been entrusted to lead the Republican flock, and they've already led much of it far away from anything that resembles reality. And yet the Elders of the Republican village still fail to see the danger. When Limbaugh's offensive comments and rank dishonesty are exposed, they offer Congressional resolutions commending him for being such a fine American.
Though the Limbaughs and Coulters of the world have caused untold damage to our political discourse over the years, there is reason for hope. I suspect that eventually these Pied Pipers will lead the Republican base so far astray that there will be a massive gulf separating the Republican base from the rest of the American peope. In fact I think we're already nearing that point. It's a long and ugly road, but it leads only toward permanent minority status.
As if to put an exclamation point on the results of the survey, Media Matters has this truly unbelievable item from none other than Rush Limbaugh himself. As I'm sure you've already heard, Limbaugh has taken some heat from Democrats this week for referring to soldiers with anti-war views as "phony soldiers" in one of his broadcasts. Limbaugh has defended himself by claiming that he was taken out of context and that he was literally referring to a guy named Jesse MacBeth, who falsely claimed to have served in Iraq, and not to those with anti-war views generally. He claimed that Media Matters didn't provide the full transcript of the relevant discussion. So, on the air the next day, Limbaugh played what he claimed was the "entire transcript, in context." But what he actually played was a heavily edited version of the prior broadcast in which he had spliced out the minute and a half of air time immediately following his controversial remarks. Fox News' John Gibson then replayed Rush's doctored version of the broadcast and accused Media Matters of having edited Limbaugh's remarks to take them out of context.
Sometimes there are just no words. It's truly not an exaggeration to say that the modern conservative movement in this country is dominated by propagandists and charlatans, people with no intellectual integrity at all. Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter, the right-wing blogosphere's two most "favorite people," aren't even ideologues. They're nihilists. They don't believe in anything. They are Pied Pipers who have been entrusted to lead the Republican flock, and they've already led much of it far away from anything that resembles reality. And yet the Elders of the Republican village still fail to see the danger. When Limbaugh's offensive comments and rank dishonesty are exposed, they offer Congressional resolutions commending him for being such a fine American.
Though the Limbaughs and Coulters of the world have caused untold damage to our political discourse over the years, there is reason for hope. I suspect that eventually these Pied Pipers will lead the Republican base so far astray that there will be a massive gulf separating the Republican base from the rest of the American peope. In fact I think we're already nearing that point. It's a long and ugly road, but it leads only toward permanent minority status.
posted by A.L. at 10:24 PM
13 Comments:
It leads to a civil war that they lose.
Again.
Permanent minority status - and why should they care - they have stolen the last 2 presidential elections and have been "caging" votes to let them steal 2008.
And the dems in congress? They just give the repugs what they want anyhow.
Y'all just keep listening to those voices in your heads and convincing yourself you're gonna win because you're a majority.
Over the past year, Gallup, Pew, Zogby, Rasmussen have all taken polls that show about 35% of Americans consider themselves liberal & 20% liberal.
Those pesky facts never stop your surreality-based community from yammering endlessly about stealing elections yadda yadda yadda....
BDS has rendered y'all a bunch of s***-for-brains libtards.
Make that 35% conservative & 20% liberal....
I don't get it. The word 'soldiers' is plural. Obviously he was not referring to just one person. I haven't followed this too much, though. What's the point? The right-wing spin machine always kicks into high gear and protects its own.
Gee dave - don't let mr. 25% approval rating's "popularity" get to your head...
http://www.pollkatz.homestead.com/
Did you look at any other poll results, Dave? If not, you need to take a look.
Seems Americans really don't like what G.W. Bush is selling anymore. They don't seem too high on the Republican Party in general.
Here's what's interesting - not that A.L.'s post isn't, but Dave chimes in here with what I'd imagine most readers of this blog would consider to be self-indicting coarseness. He chucks a turd in the room and leaves. But has anyone gone and checked out his blog site, and specifically the list of favorite books and music? Hardly the cretin he clearly enjoys coming off as. The question is, is such a person - that is to say, an unapologetic conservative in the year 2007 - not given the remotest pause by the fact that, with the possible exception of Mel Gibson, nearly all of the influences he sites are, or would be, proud and loud sufferers of BDS. It really is a rather comprehensive and impressive list of sh*t-for-brain libtards. The easy explanation is that Dave is simply completely full-of-shit and hasn't read any of his favorite books since college, if ever (Can anyone who has read DOORS OF PERCEPTION possible stomach a George W. Bush?). And yet the list makes too much sense, in-and-of itself. Dave, if you're out there, account for the cognitive dissonance: you disdain almost every artist you profess to admire. (Note: if your answer amounts to pet theories about the latent conservative that's hiding in all their hearts, spare us.)
Beyond his stellar example of proper sentence construction, we should thank Dave for bringing up an important point.
Liberals must remember that we have to win the centrist vote to actually govern. That doesn't mean following a DLC model of Republican bootlicking. But it does mean picking and choosing our battles. The war in Iraq is one to pick for sure. Others like the 2nd Amendment, maybe not so much.
We will never win over the Daves of the world. He will surely follow the republican party over the cliff. And good riddance. But I live in a conservative part of Colorado, and in order to win the average Joe's vote Dems must show that they support personal responsibility and basic morality. I think Obama does a great job of this.
I don't see these vermin actually loosing ground, yes WE are gaining, but the crazy right wingers are not leaving their cloud behind, I don't know what country these people were brought up in....
I really think they are just fools, fools for money, fools for atention and that they have no core values
brux - don't know about you, but when someone throws a turd my way, I don't go looking for more sh#t...
but maybe you enjoy it - I hear its warm and comfortable to sit in.
But no thank you - wouldn't bother to click through.
Some rare video of dave
http://thumbsnap.com/v/2jyLpg82.gif
I noticed Barbara Tuchman's "The Proud Tower" among Dave's faves. I suspect he missed her last book, "The March of Folly".
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