He's free to speak, and they're free to fire him. That's always been the deal, right? I didn't see any upset conservatives when Bill Maher got the axe for the simple observation that some physical bravery is involved in flying a plane into a building.
Shockingly that is the point I wanted to make. When did Bill Maher join the Loony Left? When did Imus join the Extreme Right. Why is this seen as points scored for one side or the other.
Nowadays, if you aren't dogmatic about your political affiliation, you end up branded as a member of the opposite extreme. Bill Maher is an AM radio poster-child for how the evil Hollywood liberals are infiltrating politics. Imus, who is typically just a banal but bombastic moderate, has gotten the same treatment from the far left because he insults some of their pet causes
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The "Us/Them" nature of this is of interest. Before this I had thought of Imus as a left of center shock jock who was given a pass for all the mean spirited thing he said because of the work he did for children with cancer. I have listened on occasion and find much of what he did insulting. Like others before him, he will go to satelite radio and insult more people to rebuild his audience.
Imus never seemed left of center to me. Anyway, here's The Rude Pundit on the matter, with a left-leaning critique of the firing. Note: very rude language. Ruder than Imus.
Thanks for the link. The Rude Pundit makes a valid point. It was once "Sticks and stones can break our bones but names will never hurt us." Now name calling is an art that underlies much of comedy, music, and, what passes for political debate.
But, see, like that bleeding sacrifice mentioned earlier, the Rude Pundit's afraid that once again we're going to think we've pleased the volcano god. The lava's still bubbling, and that fucker's gonna blow. The only sure way to save ourselves is to move the village. Chances are, though, we'll just wait for the next rumble and earthquake and toss in another virgin.
The Rude Pundit realizes that if judged by the yard stick of insulting comments, they could be considered a sacrificial virgin.
Thank you for the link and an article I would have overlooked.
We're more comfortable with our bigots being lowbrow and crude because then we can look down on them on feel unimplicated. Imus's bigotry doesn't allow that luxury, since he is by all accounts a bookish news junkie, so the default mechanism is to one-dimensionalize him, reduce him to nothing more than a desiccated praying mantis in a cowboy hat and a permanent hate-on. He was more complex than that, his misanthropic animosity more multidirected. As Tom Watson notes: Imus famously called Dick Cheney a war criminal, hit Halliburton for refusing to contribute to a new hospital for wounded veterans, and has been a long and consistent critic of this dreadful failed war.Indeed, no one was more emphatic in pounding home the issue of incompetence and misery in the veterans hospitals than Imus, and he continued hitting it, not sparing politicians he personally liked and supported (such as McCain) from his daily indictment even as everyone else was ready to "move on." In the last
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The "Us/Them" nature of this is of interest. Before this I had thought of Imus as a left of center shock jock who was given a pass for all the mean spirited thing he said because of the work he did for children with cancer. I have listened on occasion and find much of what he did insulting. Like others before him, he will go to satelite radio and insult more people to rebuild his audience.
Reply
Reply
But, see, like that bleeding sacrifice mentioned earlier, the Rude Pundit's afraid that once again we're going to think we've pleased the volcano god. The lava's still bubbling, and that fucker's gonna blow. The only sure way to save ourselves is to move the village. Chances are, though, we'll just wait for the next rumble and earthquake and toss in another virgin.
The Rude Pundit realizes that if judged by the yard stick of insulting comments, they could be considered a sacrificial virgin.
Reply
Reply
We're more comfortable with our bigots being lowbrow and crude because then we can look down on them on feel unimplicated. Imus's bigotry doesn't allow that luxury, since he is by all accounts a bookish news junkie, so the default mechanism is to one-dimensionalize him, reduce him to nothing more than a desiccated praying mantis in a cowboy hat and a permanent hate-on. He was more complex than that, his misanthropic animosity more multidirected. As Tom Watson notes:
Imus famously called Dick Cheney a war criminal, hit Halliburton for refusing to contribute to a new hospital for wounded veterans, and has been a long and consistent critic of this dreadful failed war.Indeed, no one was more emphatic in pounding home the issue of incompetence and misery in the veterans hospitals than Imus, and he continued hitting it, not sparing politicians he personally liked and supported (such as McCain) from his daily indictment even as everyone else was ready to "move on." In the last ( ... )
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