[kenberg]

The reason that this thing about Rush Limbaugh is important:

I am not a fully committed liberal, not by a long shot. But there are many true weirdos on the Republican side. Yes, on the Democratic side also. But compare: Back in 92, some nutjob rapper did Clinton the enormous favor of suggesting that a week be set aside for killing white people instead of black people. She was, I suppose, trying to be witty. Clinton made a big show out of rejecting this sort of thing. He made it clear that yes, he is a liberal, no, he won't be pandering to the nuts in his presumed base. A PR stunt no doubt,but a lot of politics is PR. Many people in the political center felt a lot better about voting for him after that. Of course the real target was Jesse Jackson, who cooperatively tried to defend the comments.

If Republicans want to get the vote of people like me, it's not an impossible dream. But first they have to tell people like Limbaugh to eff off. They flunked the test.


Added:
I see that I have been scooped on this observation.
Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia...._Souljah_moment, reports:

Quote

In 2012, during the round-table discussion section of March 4 edition of the Meet The Press, its host David Gregory asked one of the panelists Mike Murphy whether the controversy of the conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh's verbal attack (during his radio show) on a Georgetown University law student and feminist Sandra Fluke, describing her as a "slut", "prostitute", "round-heeled" etc, was a Sister Souljah moment for Mitt Romney (the presumed front-runner in the 2012 GOP Presidential Primaries). Murphy replied, "My view is - it could have been and should have been. ... I thought it was a lost opportunity for his campaign." In the same show, another panelist Savannah Guthrie earlier said that had Romney responded forcefully against Limbaugh, that would have shown some political courage, some backbone and ultimately that would have helped him with conservatives.

As a child I was told various cautionary tales. One involved a man, his possessions and a donkey. He was riding his donkey with his possessions and was criticized for over-burdening the poor animal. So he got off and walked in front, and was criticized for stupidity since he could not keep a close eye on his possessions. So he walked behind and was criticized for letting his donkey go first. In frustration he decided to lift the donkey on his own shoulders, but of course the donkey fell and broke his neck. The moral being that if you try to please everyone you end up pleasing no one and lose your ass in the bargain.
Republicans need to decide: Go after votes from people like me, or go after votes from people like Limbaugh. Going for both won't work.

This post has been edited by kenberg: 2012-March-07, 08:09

[PassedOut]

 kenberg, on 2012-March-06, 11:03, said:

Republicans need to decide: Go after votes from people like me, or go after votes from people like Limbaugh. Going for both won't work.

When you get right down to it, all of the republican candidates except Ron Paul are pants-pissers: Rush Limbaugh instills fear in GOP candidates

Quote

So let’s get this straight: These guys want us to believe they’re ready to face down Vladimir Putin, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Kim Jong Eun, the Taliban and what’s left of al-Qaeda. Yet they’re so scared of a talk-radio buffoon that they ignore or excuse an eruption of venom that some of Limbaugh’s advertisers — nine, at last count, have said they would no longer sponsor the show — find inexcusable.

Benjamin Netanyahu is no buffoon, and he'd wrap any of the three around his little finger.

[luke warm]

 PassedOut, on 2012-March-06, 14:15, said:

Benjamin Netanyahu is no buffoon, and he'd wrap any of the three around his little finger.

agree... watched his speech last nite at aipac, he was brilliant... imo he hit just the right balance between u.s.a/israeli solidarity and israel's sovereign right to make its own decisions, especially as those decisions affect its very survival

[PassedOut]

Newt Gingrich intensifies Deep South strategy, shifting resources to Alabama, Mississippi

Quote

Gingrich plans to continue to talk about energy and gas prices, putting ads on air about his pledge for $2.50 per gallon gas.

$2.50? That's the best he can do?

Michele Bachmann promised $2.00.

[hrothgar]

 PassedOut, on 2012-March-07, 12:06, said:

Newt Gingrich intensifies Deep South strategy, shifting resources to Alabama, Mississippi

$2.50? That's the best he can do?

Michele Bachmann promised $2.00.

I almost feel sorry for Newt...

It's obviously that the only role he has in the race is as a "spoiler", preventing the anti Romney forces from uniting around Santorum.
(If this were to happen, the race could turn around very fast as contests swing from a proportional representation format to winner take all...)

Newt's an idiot, but he's smart enough to understand that he's being used.
I don't think its sitting very well.

So, the next time you hear him boviating about Washington insiders and "elites", please recall his only purpose in the race (trying to ensure that Romney wins)

[luke warm]

i could be wrong, but i think after yesterday it doesn't matter if newt gets out... romney got what he wanted, he's over that magic 400 delegates after super tuesday... looks like he can't be beaten now

[blackshoe]

There's still a general election to come…

[Winstonm]

This Limbaugh incident keeps getting weirder. The most current Republican to fail to castigate Limbaugh is Michelle Bachman, who, on CNN, refused to condemn Limbaugh and instead twisted the conversation to complain about the treatment from the "liberal media" of herself and Sarah Palin.

When you are so terrified of pissing off the wingnut crazies in the party that you eschew taking a stand for simple decency, the party has reached a point where it is no longer functional, viable, or necessary.

That the spokesperson for conservatives has changed from William
F. Buckley to Rush Limbaugh says all that need be said about the disintegration of conservative leadership.

[PassedOut]

 Winstonm, on 2012-March-08, 08:00, said:

That the spokesperson for conservatives has changed from William F. Buckley to Rush Limbaugh says all that need be said about the disintegration of conservative leadership.

If Buckley were alive today, he'd roll over in his grave.

[luke warm]

 Winstonm, on 2012-March-08, 08:00, said:

This Limbaugh incident keeps getting weirder. The most current Republican to fail to castigate Limbaugh is Michell Bachman, who, on CNN, refused to condemn Limbaugh and instead twisted the conversation to complain about the treatment from the "liberal media" of herself and Sarah Palin.

i think what bachman said concerns mainly bill mahr and his calling those two, and others some pretty vile names that nobody (no liberal politico, also) really complained about... is there a double standard, in your opinion?

[PassedOut]

 luke warm, on 2012-March-08, 16:33, said:

i think what bachman said concerns mainly bill mahr and his calling those two, and others some pretty vile names that nobody (no liberal politico, also) really complained about... is there a double standard, in your opinion?

Lots of mean things get said about candidates running for high office -- and right-wing politicos take a back seat to none in that regard.

Is it your opinion that the same standards should apply to women in college who advocate their views as those that apply to politicians running for president or vice-president?

[Winstonm]

 luke warm, on 2012-March-08, 16:33, said:

i think what bachman said concerns mainly bill mahr and his calling those two, and others some pretty vile names that nobody (no liberal politico, also) really complained about... is there a double standard, in your opinion?

I see no comparison between calling a private law student a slut and calling a national public figure a stupid slut, especially when the national public figure is a stupid slut to begin with.

[kenberg]

I won't be defending Bill Maher, I have seen him once or twice and that's plenty. And anyone who chooses to go to Congress to present her views makes herself something of a public figure, subject to criticism. Still....

Limbaugh has a large audience. There apparently are people who like him and agree with him. Actually, I have never heard him. But I have heard the views of people who tell me that they listen to him. It's not the sort of conservative viewpoint that I hope to see in power.

What I said was that Republicans have to choose. They can go after the votes of people like me or they can go after the votes of those who tune in to Rush. Trying to go after both is apt to lose them both. This goes beyond the specifics of the moment.

But to the specifics. I'm of a certain age. Walking across campus one day I was listening to a a young guy, maybe 19, talking to a girl. It went like this: "When I was younger I used to do a lot of stupid ....ing .... But now that I am older I don't do stupid ....ing .... anymore" etc. Was she impressed? No. A guy, especially some fat old fart like Limbaugh, cannot call a young woman a slut. A guy who does not understand that is an idiot.

[luke warm]

 PassedOut, on 2012-March-08, 17:25, said:

Is it your opinion that the same standards should apply to women in college who advocate their views as those that apply to politicians running for president or vice-president?

no, it's my opinion that the same standards should apply to our leaders when it comes to lecturing us on public discourse and apologizing for the words of entertainers, regardless of their political leanings

 Winstonm, on 2012-March-08, 18:55, said:

I see no comparison between calling a private law student a slut and calling a national public figure a stupid slut, especially when the national public figure is a stupid slut to begin with.

either the word is offensive or it isn't... i don't personally think it's quite so bad, certainly not as bad as when mahr called palin a cunt... i think he went over the line on that one, even for him

 kenberg, on 2012-March-08, 21:28, said:

A guy, especially some fat old fart like Limbaugh, cannot call a young woman a slut. A guy who does not understand that is an idiot.

i agree that there are more intelligent ways to make a point than by name calling... i was speaking more of the double standard and inconsistency when it comes to who gets criticized and who gets a pass

[kenberg]

I was unaware of the Maher comment. As I say I don't watch him. I think I can now claim that my choice to not do so shows some good judgment. It's amazing what passes for clever these days.

[billw55]

 kenberg, on 2012-March-08, 21:28, said:

What I said was that Republicans have to choose. They can go after the votes of people like me or they can go after the votes of those who tune in to Rush. Trying to go after both is apt to lose them both. This goes beyond the specifics of the moment.

I am sad to say it, but lately it seems that there are a lot more of the latter. I suppose it could be just that those ones make more noise. Or am I just hoping in vain?

Compared to 20-30 years ago, it seems that the nation as a whole has become much more politically partisan. The actual candidate barely seems to matter. I think either party could nominate Pee Wee Herman and get a third of the votes or more.

And then there is the electoral college, which I feel should be abolished in favor of a straight popular vote. But that's another story.

[PassedOut]

 luke warm, on 2012-March-09, 04:46, said:

no, it's my opinion that the same standards should apply to our leaders when it comes to lecturing us on public discourse and apologizing for the words of entertainers, regardless of their political leanings

I guess everyone agrees with that. Should an entertainer hurl hours of public insults and filthy comments at a conservative college student for expressing her views, that entertainer should also be criticized. And would be, I'm sure.

Men and women in politics do subject themselves to lots of scurrilous commentary from jerks like Limbaugh and Maher. They understand that when they choose to enter the arena. Hillary Clinton, for example, has taken lots of abuse.

College students do not choose to be vilified for expressing an opinion.

[Winstonm]

The sad part is that the people who religiously listen to Limbaugh consider him an intellectual.

[PassedOut]

 Winstonm, on 2012-March-09, 08:18, said:

The sad part is that the people who religiously listen to Limbaugh consider him an intellectual.

In Upper Michigan, where I live, lots of people listen to him, and I've listened to his shows on occasion too. He has an emotional appeal to lots of folks who are disappointed in how their lives have turned out and want to blame someone else for their failures (those damnable liberals).

Folks who put themselves into the public eye can handle over-the-top comments: Sorry, Rush Limbaugh: A response from the writer he called ‘b-i-itchy’

Quote

Having my work called “b-i-itchy” and “an out-and-out lie” was not how I expected to spend International Women’s Day. Usually, I spend International Women’s Day completely ignoring the fact that it is International Women’s Day.

But first things first.

My piece yesterday stating that AshleyMadison.com and SeekingArrangement.com were the only new companies to be advertised on Rush Limbaugh’s show was wrong. They want to be on his show, but Limbaugh said today that he won’t let them.

Whenever their ads claw their way onto a local radio station carrying Rush, Rush says, he contacts the relevant authorities immediately and has them pried off. To say that these are the companies he keeps would be misleading. They might like to be. But Rush has prevented them.

Still, the whole point of the piece was that the people most eager to be associated with Rush Limbaugh’s show are — well, advertisers seeking jerks. This has not changed.

College students don't have a public platform from which to defend themselves.

[Winstonm]

I think it should be noted, too, that there is a distinction between Limbaugh and Maher, in that Maher is admittedly a satirist/comedian whereas Limbaugh passes himself off as a political commentator/entertainer.

If I tune in to watch an HBO special program from a known liberal satirist, it should not surprise me to hear someone like Sarah Palin described as an ignorant cunt. It is certainly an insulting phrase to use about someone.

Limbaugh, on the other hand, stated that the act of a private law student wanting access to birth control indicated that she was a slut, that she would not be in need of contraceptives if here morals were not so low.

If anyone cannot see that the Maher's insulting characterisation of a public personality is different than Limbaugh's personal attack on a private individual I feel sorry for him as a human being - he must be missing much that occurs around him. Fox News is not synonymous with reality.