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September 11 is a very important day for Glenn Beck. For one thing, the king of all right-wing media talks about it all the time -- more on that in a second. What's more, the horrors of Sept. 11, 2001, as pretty much the event that made the Fox News Channel host into the national lightning rod that he is today -- the vehicle that caused him to complete his journey from a Morning Zoo "rodeo clown" to a political guy who suddenly was replacing the so-9/10 Laura Schlessinger on radio outlets coast to coast and then leading a series of transparently self-serving honoring the troops rallies for Clear Channel.
But Beck has talked a lot about 9/11 over nine years -- and the highly notable exception of his bizarre September 2005 attack on the family members of victims of the terrorist attack -- the emphasis has been on extreme reverence for that day in American history. When he was getting off the ground on FNC, he used the images of 9/11 to launch project he claimed would bring Americans back together.
As recounted in my new book The Backlash, he said on his now imfamous March 13, 2009 "We Surround Them" program of the attacks that...
“[t]he skies were filled with black clouds and our hearts were full of terror and fear. We realized -- for the first time -- how fragile we really were.” As Beck addressed his coast-to-coast audience, viewers saw images of anguished, tearful women, head in hands, mouths agape, staring at the hellish fires of the World Trade Center, then a mother racing down a Manhattan byway pushing two children in a stroller, away from the deadly dust.
The 9/12 Project, which devolved in a matter of days into an anti-Barack Obama backlash movement, was described by Beck as aimed:
"to bring us all back to the place we were on September 12, 2001. The day after America was attacked we were not obsessed with Red States, Blue States or political parties. We were united as Americans, standing together to protect the values and the principles of the greatest nation ever created."
In fact, Beck even told his much ballyhooed Restoring Honor rally in D.C. last month that 9/11 was a sign from the Almighty, presumably to turn Americans away from things like greed and back to the things that really matter:
He has been sending us wake-up calls, and you can send two kinds of wake-up calls. One through fear, like 9/11. Nine-eleven woke us up, and we stood shoulder-to-shoulder for a very short period of time. Politics didn't matter. Color didn't matter. It didn't matter if you were poor or if you were rich. We were Americans together. Beyond that, we were God's human creation standing together.
So, with that all as a backdrop, what matters the most to Glenn Beck on September 11, 2010, the ninth anniversary of the day that terrorists slaughtered nearly 3,000 innocent Americans and ripped apart the lives of their families and friends?
Cashing in, apparently.
In Palinland, of all places.
The spiritual guru of the 9-12 Project will be marking the anniversay of 9-11 along with his new best friend Sarah Palin with a high-priced (and as far as the actual program goes, somewhat mysterious) event at the Dena'ina Center in Anchorage, Alaska. The potential event has been rumored and discussed under the radar for days, possibly even as the launch of a Palin 2012 presidential bid.
But apparently, in the immortal words of Steve Martin in "The Jerk," it's yet another "profit deal" for the two leading high-def hucksters of the right wing. According to the Ticketmaster page, tickets for this solemn 9-11 commemoration run from a low of $73 to a top price of $130, and that's not all. There's also $225 for a special meet-and-greet with Beck (and possibly with Palin), so that die-hard (and not economically struggling) Beck fans can wish him a happy 9-11 in person.
If there's a contradiction or some sort of irony in cashing in over 9-11, that seems to have eluded the hosts. Palin wrote this week on her Facebook page:
"We can count on Glenn to make the night interesting and inspiring, and I can think of no better way to commemorate 9/11 than to gather with patriots who will 'never forget.'
Visa and MasterCard accepted.
Truth be told, outrageous as Beck's latest scheme is, it's almost hard to work up the outrage at this point because to those of us who aren't drinking the David Barton-fueled Kool-Aid, this is simply who Beck is: One of the most shameless business people in America, who happens to be in the business of entertainment and warping some minds politically in the process. Beck has millions of fans -- and to him they are all walking ATM machines. He thinks nothing of selling the people who admire him overpriced gold coins or surivial seed banks and "Food Insurance" kits, none of which they need, and almost every Beck event not named "Restoring Honor" is designed around maximizing ticket prices.
That's why Glenn Beck made $32 million last year and Sarah Palin made $12 million in a matter of months.
The only difference is that this time it's 9/11.
And Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin are open for business 365 days a year.
UPDATE: One commenter below says that money from the event would be benefitting 9/11 families -- my initial check of a handful of news stories about the event does not turn that up, nor is that mentioned on the Ticketmaster page. If Palin or Beck or their reps say anything to that effect I will update the post, obviously. Of course, Palin also promised to donate her $100,000 fee for speaking to the Tea Party Convention back to the movement, and we've not seen evidence of that yet.
That was a short self impsoed break from obsessing over Beck. Book sales not going so well?— RG- Of course she's an opportunist, like most politicians of both parties today. Maybe she should be slicker, as to not to get on Will's radar, and should hide it in the fridge, like the pure and wholesome Democrat William Jefferson of Louisiana?— Catch22
- jealous? do you know if they are donating to charity or do you not care? I wonder if you lampooned Michael Moore for cashing in on his "documentary" on 9/11.— palmyra21
Comment removed.- Will - You failed to mention that the money raised here is going to help the 9/11 families? Interesting fact you missed.— kmjm22
- Families of 9/11 victims have been compensated millions of dollars from the federal government.— michael o
Spend one less hour per day on Beck, and dedicate that extra hour to P90X. Your wife will thank you, and you won't have to go through life with such a sour attytood.— Mr. Smith- As a lifelong Republican, the antics of Beck and his "disciples" sicken me. They are destroying a great political party.— phillydave2010
- Comment removed.
remember my fellow americans, Glenn beck (and pretty much Palin too) IS AN ENTERTAINER, not a politician, not a spiritual leader, and not an american leader. he is a for profit celebrity pundit.- Beck is the anti-Christ— cuso20
- I couldn't agree more @raynesrock— phillydave2010
- Comment removed.
I'd much rather have good, old-fashioned American capitalism as part of a 9/11 rally than a bunch of liberals sitting around moaning about how Muslims are so persecuted here in the US.— jmc- will, this is a news/politics blog correct? neither palin nor beck are elected officials, they have no more power than you do. i do not for the life of me understand this obession, and at this point can only speculate it to be professional jealousy as others have suggested. why dont you devote these posts to real news stories? you are slowly becoming nothing more than a tmz.com devoted solely to beck. stop stalking him and report news. much like if the media stopped reporting on reality stars/fake celebrities their influence would go away, if all the lefties in the media stop talking about beck he'll begin to fade. the more you talk about him, the more power you are giving him, by making him seem newsworthy, when in fact, he is just someone reporting the news himself, albiet with his own spin (but how is that any different than you?).— Greg S
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About Will Bunch
Will's new book: Learn about it here and purchase it here.
Will Bunch, a senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, blogs about his obsessions, including national and local politics and world affairs, the media, pop music, the Philadelphia Phillies, soccer and other sports, not necessarily in that order.
Will Bunch, a senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, blogs about his obsessions, including national and local politics and world affairs, the media, pop music, the Philadelphia Phillies, soccer and other sports, not necessarily in that order.
E-mail Will by clicking here.
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