Caller clowns Rush, Rush clowns Republicans
In the immortal words of Catbert, I just laughed myself fuzzy. First, you really must listen to this:
(Transcript here, courtesy of Media Matters.)
Rush starts, I think, to suggest that the caller isn’t really who he says he is, and by the end seems to allow that the guy may be a Republican, but not much of one. The truth is we don’t know who the guy is. Could be who he claims to be, and could be a dirty hippie librul having some sport with the GOP leadership.
It doesn’t matter, though. The real lesson is in Rush’s response to the charges. Put simply:
- If you disagree with Rush, it’s “sour grapes.”
- If you disagree with Rush, you’ve been “brainwashed.”
- People who oppose torture are “stupid” and “ignorant.”
- If you don’t agree with Rush, you “don’t know diddly-squat.”
- If you disagree with Rush, “you’re no Republican at all.”
The new Republican leadership has drawn a line in the sand. Then dug it out and filled it with concrete. Rush Limbaugh is the One True Voice of God. Dissent and other forms of thinking will not be tolerated.
Get in line, bitches.
lullaby pit 
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I find Rush to be very entertaining, much like I suspect that the left finds Olbermann to be. I don’t taje him seriously, looking at him as sport of a partisan Mark Russell. All of this media hype about Rush being the voice of the Republican party is just hype. I’m a card carrying Republican and don’t let Rush influence my thoughts. I wish I wasn’t a card carrying Republican, but there is no such thing as Objectivist party, and Libertarian just doesn’t cut it:)
If you think about it, both players use the same devices to play to and motivate their respective audiences.
Like Rush or not. his Paul Shanklin parodies are sometimes funny, and if you can’t laugh at your own side, then you need serious self examination:)
Jeff
No, jeff, not really. Rush is flat out disingenuous and demagogic. He lies blatantly, race baits and uses sexism as his main calling cards. He defends torture, the thrust of this episode, and denies obvious facts. On top of that, he usually mercilessly screens his callers, which is why this episode is so extraordinary. In similar liberal talk forums, I have always found the dialog to be far more open to opposing voices, and respectful of facts. It is true on the air, and on the blogs. It is telling and undeniable that progressive blogs, like this one, make it easy to join in the dialog. Not so much on the right wing blogs. They vet commenters extensively before giving them full access. What are they so scared of, jeff?
Howie,
Respectfully so, I can provide you with numerous examples of the other side doing the same exact thing. However, it’s more of a question of whether the right and left take marching orders from those guys, and I strongly suspect that they don’t/ Instead of wringing your hands in angst when you listen to those guys, look at it as high entertainment. If you take this stuff too seriously, it will drive you nuts…..and take that from someone who’s been there.
Jeff
the attempt to drag the other side into the gutter with it is an old wingnut strategy. It’s tantamount to the ‘they do it too defense’. Rush and Keith are hardly similar. This old red herring on the part of the jeff isn’t worth any more commentary. The good news is that we may never run out of video taped republican hypocrisy to refute their claims of moral and political superiority.
Mark Russell? What decade are you living in, Jeff? Why not Eddy Cantor?
“…someone who’s been there.” You mean, like “nuts”?
Jeff, as long as you and other Ayn Rand followers don’t object to Limbaugh’s hatespeech and distortions, there will never be an objectivist party! Didn’t the heros of “the fountainhead” and “atlas shrugs” take a stand against self serving demagogues like “Ellsworth Toohey”? If you want an objectivist party, do something to make it happenl! Simply wishing for a pony is pathetic.
Its great how he blatantly just cuts off the caller and gives his response as to not be responded to. Hes disgusting. I love how he says “you do not know anything at all” yet he feels the need to give us a speech about how HE has all the answers! i sure am glad the person with all the answers is in fact him. it was such a bother trying to find the chosen one. nevermind, he came to me!
Jeff – “I find Rush to be very entertaining…”
I wish I was like you
Easily amused – Nirvana
Stupid ignorant slobs thinking Rush Lamebrain is worth air.
As stupid as Pain Rand worshippers.
You goddamned human garbage!
“As stupid as Pain Rand worshippers.”
Yeah, they don’t even try to follow the lead of Ayn Rand’s larger than life characters. All they do is whining. Hehe, Miss Rosenbaum must be rotating in her grave because of the lame condition of objectivism nowadays. Deserves her right. Her philosophy never fit to actual humans. Just like communism.
@sheba, offlogic, Joe
Wow, such taunting and making it personal. I would think that you could come up with some better material than that. I guess that it’s hard for you to take someone seriously that has a differing opinion.
I’ve noticed that most of the people who hate Objectivism are her protagonists anyways, so it doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things.
What makes it funny is the response I got because I said to look at guys like Rush and Olbermann as entertainers. They’re great entertainers, and very high camp. Since Reverend Ike is no longer with us, we’re forced to listen to the political pundits for our daily fix of comedy
As far as being nuts, I probably am. However, the old childhood saying,”It takes one to know one” might be applicable in this thread.
Jeff.
I can usually put up with Rush’s 15 minute monologue in the beginning of his show, but I can’t stand the call-ins.
I occasionally watch Keith O, too (on the rare times I actually watch TV anymore). Flipping between Keith and O’Reilly is friggin hysterical on some nights. Sometimes I have to wonder if it’s like that Boondocks episode where the “Ann Coulter” talking head was always fighting with the “Reverend Sharpton” talking head while the cameras were on, but ended up going out for drinks after the show.
Gray
Hate speech can be found in shills of both parties. I wonder if during the BHO years we will see a movie called ‘Death of a president’ like we saw with Bush? The amount of mainstream media vitriol pointed at Bush for the last 8 years dwarfs anything Rush ever said. Also, there is a difference between Olbermann, Chris Matthews, Dan Rather (and many others) & Rush…the difference is that Rush does not promote himself as a ‘News Man”, Rush promotes himself as a commentator with a clear idealogical agenda, the others promote themselves as ‘Un-Biased Hard News Men”. Laughable. It is why Rush beats them in audience numbers consistently.
Jeff states, “…I said to look at guys like Rush and Olbermann as entertainers.” I used to get “mad as hell” listening to Rush, while my nephew thought that he was right on the money. He gave me one of Rush’s books to read (I forget which one), so in the interest of objectivity I began to read it. I didn’t get very far until Rush revealed that he is indeed an entertainer and says the things that he does to get ratings. At that point I put the book down, and nothing he says has bothered me since.
My conservative friends think he’s a shrewd self-promoter, a clown for ratings and completely irrelevant to serious issues, but I certainly overhear a LOT of people around here quoting him. And that whole Michael Steele mess was creepily serious; apparently some high-level Republicans believe that Limbaugh has credibility with a significant number of voters, or why the worries about fracturing the party? Why the forced mea culpa?
That’s the kind of thing that worries me.
What makes Rush so popular is that he says things that lots of Americans are thinking. It’s also the reason for the popularity of “Atlas Shrugged.” It’s just as simple as that.
“Atlas Shrugged” has been popular for over 50 years. I am very pleased that the masses are starting to embrace Rand’s philosophy. Atlas society, which I have linked over on my blog, has never had so many hits according to the web master.
FC: That’s exactly what terrifies me… except that when you’re raving, you’re not thinking at all. So I suppose he’s saying what lots of Americans are feeling.
Ann, are you actually terrified by people who listen to Rush Limbaugh? A little hyperbole goes a long way. I promise I will never lay a hand on you. 🙂
Yes, Curtis. A large unthinking mass of people running on ignorance and fear alarms me. Crazy, I know. After all, what’s the worst that could… oh. Never mind.
There’s one thing the list of new rules didn’t cover – the only other excerpt I’ve heard from this asshole involved his comments on the news that 1 in 55 children experience homelessness. Limbaugh’s answer that makes it ok: “I don’t believe that. I haven’t seen any kids living under bridges.”
Combined with “I don’t know of anyone dead from US torture” we have a new important rule. If Rush didn’t see it: It didn’t happen.
But there’s also exaggeration on both sides. I remember a homeless activist in the 80’s who said that 7500 homeless were dying a week in the USA. The main stream media actually glommed on to this number and it was accepted as the truth. At 7500 a week, that’s a few million+ a year and the dead homeless would be stacked up like cordwood.
Exaggeration exists on all sides and nobody should listen to anyone, especially pundits. People should just form their opinions off hard, raw data, numbers, much like traders do.
Jeff
Sometimes I have to wonder if it’s like that Boondocks episode where the “Ann Coulter” talking head was always fighting with the “Reverend Sharpton” talking head while the cameras were on, but ended up going out for drinks after the show.
Keith Olbermann was on Real Time with Bill Maher a couple of weeks ago. He talked about one off-camera moment with Sean Hannity in which Hannity essentially admitted he’s more of a salesman than a true believer in anything he says.
Aren’t they all sales…er…people?
I tend to be much more critical of the assholes on my own “side,” whatever that may be, because they muddy the waters and provide great big stupid stereotypical straw men to lob fireballs at.
Oh, and all those dead homeless? Soylent Green is people…
So true, so true. A brilliant opponent is nowhere near as dangerous as an idiot ally.
Link to MM transcript not working…getting a 404 message.