Rush Limbaugh's red herring
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Rush Limbaugh's red herring
As you might expect, there's a lot of fallout from Rush Limbaugh's failed involvement in a group seeking to buy the St. Louis Rams. The party -- as in Republican Party, I guess -- line is that it's all because people are making up horrible things that the de facto king of the GOP never said. As one of Limbaugh's defenders across the pond (apparently distance makes the heart grow fonder) writes:
What’s the term for those who are setting about “racist” Rush Limbaugh right now? Ironically, it seems to be “lynch mob”. And they’ve succeeded – word is that Limbaugh’s been dropped from the consortium seeking to buy the St Louis Rams.
Toby Harden of the Telegraph certainly has a point -- several commentators on CNN and elsewhere did cite a bogus Limbaugh-attributed quote, and there is clearly no excuse for that. It's yet another example of the atrocious fact-checking at places like CNN, coincidentally the subject of a great lampoon/investigation by Jon Stewart the other night. But Limbaugh's defenders have hooked a giant red herring; the apparently bogus quote had nothing to do with the growing realization that star NFL players would choose not to play for him and other team owners did not want their sport to be associated with him.
Rush was hanged by his own very real words. There's too many example to quote here, but here are three examples of the many, many episodes over the years.
Limbaugh says "NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips." On January 19, 2007, Limbaugh stated: "Look it, let me put it to you this way. The NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons. There I said it."
Limbaugh on Survivor series: "African-American tribe" worst swimmers, Hispanics "will do things other people won't do." On August 23, 2006, Limbaugh suggested that the competition in a season of CBS' Survivor, in which contestants were reportedly divided into competing "tribes" by ethnicity, "is not going to be fair if there's a lot of water events." In support of this assertion, he cited a March 2, 2006, HealthDay article reporting that "young blacks -- especially males -- are much more likely to drown in pools than whites." He later added that Hispanics have "probably shown the most survival tactics," that they "have shown a remarkable ability to cross borders," and that they can "do it without water for a long time, they don't get apprehended, and they will do things other people won't do." On his September 29, 2006, show, Limbaugh claimed "[t]here can only be one reason" Survivor scrapped "segregated" competition after two episodes -- "the white tribe had to be winning."
Then there's this, from Newsday in 1990:
Recalling a stint as an "insult-radio" DJ in Pittsburgh, he admits feeling guilty about, for example, telling a black listener he could not understand to "take that bone out of your nose and call me back."
You see, it's "insult radio," so that makes it OK! And it one sense, it is. We've argued here a lot this year about free speech in America, and what it means. Rush Limbaugh is free in America to say what he wishes -- and I go even farther, in that I have no problem with him hosting a radio show for whatever Americans choose to listen to his dreck. But words have consequences. If the Eagles had the right as a private employer to fire the "Dam Eagles R retarted" Facebook guy, then the NFL -- also a private entity -- has the right to choose who they want to "hire," and they are choosing to reject Rush Limbaugh because for all of his Dittohead radio listeners, there are millions more who find his speech -- these real quotes, well documented -- to be offensive.
Because words are free but they also have consequences, even for a politically influential multi-millionaire like Rush Limbaugh.
There, I've said it.
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"If you regulated this, it would go against the spirit of the freedom of asociation." Isn't there a right to not associate? Or doesn't private mean private anymore? I'm just against the double standard we have now. Do you think that swim club would have been demonized if they had done the exact same thing to a group of skinheads? I doubt it. I guess it gets back to something I wrote yesterday - I want the government to not waste my money and I want them to stay out of my personal life.— bird11
SteveMG - I know and understand that. My only point is - why the need for such sensitivity around it? Nobody crucifies a black guy for joking about a white dancing / jumping. As a white guy that grew up playing basketball, it never offended me. There was nothing I liked more than getting passed the ball, hearing "shooter" b/c i'm white, and then driving to the hole. I'm just saying everybody looks at Rush as this vile racist guy for making stereotypical comments that a lot of us think. Have fun with it, embrace differences. I hate racism and discrimination, but I do think there's a little room to joke. I know my black friends and I do it all the time.— DreamShake- "Isn't there a right to not associate?" If you mean exclusion on the basis of x, y, or z, then yes, I'd say so. It may be ugly and wrong, but people have that right. Sunlight is the best disinfectant.— RG
- once again the good old double standard; remember what the white guy says and hold it against him his whole life; but farrakan, jackson and sharpton are 'men of god" so they get the free pass - racism is being taught everyday with this double standard.— mikeyg
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I wonder what Bunch would say if a hate-monger like George Soros were part of the Checketts bid to own the Rams? Would that hypothetical scenario be objectionable? Not that it could ever happen.— Mr. Smith- Double Standard??? "Business and city leaders gathered in Progress Plaza yesterday to hail an investment by one of the city's prominent black churches in a black-owned bank that serves North Philadelphia and other parts of the city. Under a green-and-white tent in the plaza parking lot, the Rev. Kevin Johnson, senior pastor of Bright Hope Baptist Church, announced that the church has decided to deposit all of its money at United Bank of Philadelphia, which has a branch in the plaza, at Broad and Jefferson streets. Johnson said that this move represented a desire to contribute to the economic development of the African-American community. He also spoke of the warmth of doing business with a black-owned business." HOW MANY WORDS DO YOU NEED TO CHANGE IN THIS STORY BEFORE IT IS SEEN AS RACISM AND THE PEOPLE INVOLVED HAVE PROTESTERS OUTSIDE - I COUNT 4.— bird11
- Dreamer, I liked to go to new playgrounds then lay back beneath the basket and practice my spike. The reations were priceless. I have no problem with locker room talk or just shooting the stuff aroung the plyground, I just expect more from people who talk (or write) for a living.— SteveMG
mikeyg..and when had farrakhan gotten a pass? Rush gets a pass every freaking day with the hate that he and Beck preach. Both have accused the President of the United States of being racist. Both hope our President and country fail. That translates to hoping that you and I both fail, my friend. What Rush and Beck do is give voice to the dirty secret in America today, the fact that racism still lurks in America.— Les Ismore- Les Ismore - I don't listen to either Rush or Beck but I do seriously doubt that they ever said they hope "the country fails". Do they hope Obama and the democrats fail - most definitely. While I could argue both sides that Obama's failure is good for the country - that isn't my point. My point is simply that those two and the rest of the right-wing talkers that are hijacking conservativism IMHO would never ever left the words "I want the U.S. to fail" pass their lips - it would be be detrimental to ratings.— bird11
- What would Will write about if it weren't for Glenn Beck and Rush. Got any other topics, Will?— pj katauskas
- Les Ismore: The President called his own grandmother a "typical white person" (go look it up). Tell me what's NOT racist about that?— WWTDD
- On a completely unrelated point, did anybody notice the upgraded look to a good portion of Philly.com?? Does this mean Attytood is gonna get a facelift?— bird11
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