Nation. Can you believe it? The bigot and unimaginably cretinous radio comedian, Rush "I even flunked ballroom dancing" Limbaugh actually tried to make a school bus fight--something that has been happening in this country and around the world since kids got on a bus to go to school--President Obama's fault.
Hey Rush! If you really want to go there, then by YOUR logic. Your idiotic logic. George W. Bush is responsible for our country being attacked on September 11, 2001. Afterall, he was the president at that time. If you can make that imbecilic leap of logic over common school bus incidents, then you have opened the door to blaming every president in our history for every act of violence that happened in this country during their presidency.
Why does anyone with any intelligence listen to this stupid, incendiary foul mouthed pig?
From ThinkProgress:
There’s no evidence that the fight was racially motivated. Although the local police captain initially speculated that it may have been, he later backtracked and said, “The incident appears now to be more about a couple of bullies on a bus dictating where people sit.” D’Vante Lott, a student who witnessed the attack and was suspended for laughing at the incident, said the two attackers were basically just trying to act tough.
Limbaugh never cares about racially motivated attacks perpetrated on people of color and has derided hate crimes legislation. He said that such a bill would “carve out protection for perverts” and worried that it didn’t provide enough protections for whites.
43 comments:
Rev Jackson came to mind for me with this one. I was recalling another incident like this, and Jesse Jackson applauded the kids who beat up other kids.
Perhaps Limbaugh is confusing Jackson with Obama.
dmarks,
You really ought to change your name to "titfortat."
Not in this case. I didn't present a Republican side until I mentioned Limbaugh, and I can't see how anyone could interpret my conjecture as being pro-Limbaugh.
I agree that Limbaugh's point on this is nothing but lame, and pointing out that he might have mangled two incidents in his mind is not an attempt to excuse him. The observation, if true, makes him look worse.
Put away the tit, and the tat.
A link regarding this Rev. Jackson episode would be great!
Rush Limbaugh called Jimmy Carter "the nation's hemorroid."
Keith Olbermann countered with "Well yes, the nation's asshole would know what a hemorroid is."
LOL!
Rush lost credibility a long time ago, so I am not surprised by anything he does anymore.
One of the crimes is how adults can't get involved and break up these incidents out of fear of being sued now. Or fear of retaliation by the bullies.
We live in fear now. Damn shame.
P - A - R - O - D - Y
Tell me what it means to thee.
Just as I wouldn't take Newsbusters.com as the final word on anything, y'all might not want to take Media Matters without verifying with an original source.
Speaking of misinformation, why did you post the quote at the top left while leaving out that the author explicitly stated that Bush had a twinkle in his eye when he said it?
That would, after all, change the meaning completely. Quoting out of context is the sort of thing you usually condemn in others.
Parody?
Like humorous? Like Comedy Central?
Of course!
Thats why every politican that say something that contradicts Rush runs out the next day to apologize!
He drew attention to the fact that they had no sense of humor!
No need to feel bad if you didn't get the joke, Tao. Lots of folks didn't get Johnathan Swift, either.
Lots of folks who should know better didn't bother to check.
Actually, I got the info from Crooks and Liars and Think Progress.
The piece downstairs is credited to Media Matters.
And listening to Rush Limbaugh doing a parody on racism is like listening to Vlad the Impaler giving a seminar on sensitivity training.
And this doesn't sound like a parody to me.
It sounds like typical Limbaugh stirring up his usual pot of hatred and resentment for the poor majority white folks. Because keeping them angry and victimized keeps Limbaugh rolling in his trough of money.
Gordon: Guam must be one of the 57 states the current President was telling us about.
Any luck with Rev. Jackson dmarks?
Rush Limbaugh with 'a twinkle in his eye' is one of the most frightening images I can conjure up. I bet those peepers really 'twinkle' down Santo Domingo way.
Shaw,
You have to listen to a little more than the payoff clip, or read a transcript of the whole piece. He set it up by describing the school bus beating as racist, and suggesting that the victim deserved it because he was born racist. He then used the Newsweek cover story to back up his point, as well as running various quotes from people on the topic of how any criticism of Obama is racist.
The transcript and a link to the audio are here.
Limbaugh often uses absurdity to illustrate absurdity. Sometimes he leads with the parody, then follows with the context, as in this case.
The people at ThinkProgress and Media Matters know this, but they're cheerfully leaving out the context to get Limbaugh haters riled up. In other words, they're playing you for a sucker.
You're very patient Shaw. To be fair though Rush's is such a subtle, nuanced wit one should be forgiven for occasionally missing the satire. It's really quite sophisticated. I know these explanations really help.
Gordon, it's really, really difficult for me to get Limbaugh's subtlety when he's known for excruciatingly subtle statements such as:
"TAKE THAT BONE OUT OF YOUR NOSE AND CALL ME BACK." (Limbaugh to an African-American caller.)
And:
"HAVE YOU EVER NOTICED HOW ALL COMPOSITE PICTURES OF WANTED CRIMINALS RESEMBLE JESSE JACKSON?"-
“...THE MEDIA HAS [sic] BEEN VERY DESIROUS THAT A BLACK QUARTERBACK [Donovan McNabb] DO [sic] WELL.”
"The NAACP should have riot rehearsal. They should get a liquor store and practice robberies."
"They're 12 percent of the population. Who the hell cares?"
Of African-Americans, as quoted in "Limbaugh Brings Baggage with his ESPN Blabber" by Derrick Z. Jackson inThe Boston Globe (16 July 2003), and "Colorblind football fans know Rush is wrong" by Richard Roeper in Chicago Sun-Times (1 October 2003)
"They oughtta change Black History Month to Black Progress Month and start measuring it."
(27 February 2006)
Responses to the subtlety of Gasbag:
"We have no intention of prosecuting Rush Limbaugh because lying through your teeth and being stupid isn't a crime."
--Leo Jennings, a spokesperson for the office of the Ohio Attorney General, after Limbaugh urged Ohio Republicans to reregister as Democrats to disrupt the Democratic primary, which would be a felony if done with fraudulent intent; reported in "Limbaugh safe from voter-fraud charges", The Columbus Dispatch, March 28, 2008
"For any radio announcer to wish a riot on a city so his party could win, that's disgraceful and it's absurd."
--Republican Denver Councilman Charles Brown, on Limbaugh's speech about rioting in Denver; April 24, 2008; DenverPost.com
I've been played for a sucker?
Hmmm.
Could you explain the "context" in which Limbaugh told the African-American caller to take the bone out of his nose?
Or to change Black History Month to Black Progress month?
What exactly was Limbaugh getting at when he suggested that?
I don't understand people who defend demagogues whose only purpose in life is to keep themselves the center of attention no matter how much damage it does to this country.
Shaw,
We've had this discussion before. Most of those statements were taken out of context, too, and the two you cited from very early in his career cannot be independently verified.
Even if the above weren't true, it doesn't justify lifting Tuesday's parody out of its context to whip up hate for their blog readers. It's dishonest, and it suggests that the proprietors of those blogs think their readers can be easily manipulated.
If they made a mistake, they can promptly update and correct their posts. That's the ethical and morally correct action. They haven't.
If it was deliberate, as I suspect, then they're lying to you and playing you for a sucker. They figure they can count on their readers to spread the misinformation widely, and inflict damage thereby.
It's wrong if the source is conservative, liberal or neutral. It's wrong if the target is conservative, liberal or other.
Shaw Kenawe said...
And this doesn't sound like a parody to me.
It sounds like typical Limbaugh stirring up his usual pot of hatred and resentment for the poor majority white folks
Sort reminds me of AL Sharpton and Jessie Jerkson..
By the way... I think that Rush was right. But then again you would NEVER admit that
OHIONOBAMA:
But I absolutely DO admit that you think Rush is right.
There is no doubt in my mind in that matter.
Gordon,
You keep coming to the defense of Limbaugh--a demagogue. And you are incensed that he's taken out of "context" or that some of his remarks can't be verified (the one about the African-American and bone in the nose can be, btw).
I believe you are intelligent and that you know what Limbaugh is up to and why.
There are many conservative thinkers who are far more intelligent and don't resort to taunts, insults, racism, and outright lies to keep people listening to or reading what they believe in.
I listened occasionally to Air America--but I was never locked into it on a daily basis. I don't remember the last time I listened to it, but it's been at least 2 or three years.
Keith Olbermann is funny, IMHO, and over the top. And I'm very much aware of it, but I like the way he mocks pompous asses like Limbaugh and boneheads like Beck.
I normally watch CSPAN, listen to the BBC, NPR, and a mix of other cable news stations, except for FOX NEWS, which, IMHO, is not a news station, but the propaganda arm of the RNC.
FOX has been exposed so many times spreading lies and not knowing basic geography and history, that I wonder what the educational background is of its daily followers and for those who are educated, why would they put up with such sloppy reporting and such propagandist lies.
The fact of the matter is that a "news" organization that gives a platform for an ignorant jackass like Beck should never be taken seriously and should be understood as a cynical corporation interested only in its bottom line and nothing else.
I did dig to the source on the bone-in-the-nose thing. It's true, alright. Limbaugh apologized for it, but it sounded like a weak apology to me.
Arthur: It took a while to find the story. There's a lot of "noise" now related to the bus assault and Jena. But this was an even older incident in which some students were expelled for assaulting others. Jackson came to their defense.
Jackson should start a "Center for Violent Social Change". It would fit in with how he rose to defend indensible thuggery in the Decatur case.
The students had been expelled under a school policy for "Zero Tolerance" for violence. I guess Jackson thinks that there is a tolerable level of violence.
Good job Gordon, you got Shaw to defend her information sources...
"Out of context" which is always easy to say about items quoted in print and or shown in video...
But how many times does someone listening to Rush only hear what they want to hear?
Black child beats up white child and all of the sudden you got a whole bunch of listeners who only hear that a white was beat up by a black...
Parody is fine, and I am sure that Rush is more than intelligent enough to produce parody much like Stephen Colbert...or Jon Sterwart.
Glenn Beck's website informs us that he is an 'entertainer' first and foremost...
But at the end of the day who have comedians leading political action....or viewers who hear things 'out of context'
In other words they miss the warning that this is parody.
Don't worry dmarks.
I found it for you:
http://www.cnn.com/US/9911/16/expelled.students.04/
Not quite 'applauding kids who beat up the other kids'. Nor is it exactly defending the indensible (sic).
I could make a quip here but I expect Gordon would have his feelings hurt.
Tao; Rush's "absurdity to illustrate absurdity" tactic is convuluted, messy, and easily short circuits itself.
After all, when you get someone telling racist jokes (in attempted humorous effect) to poke fun at racism, at the end of that day what you still have is someone telling racist jokes.
Arthur: I did find it already thanks. And in my source, as yours, it was clearly "kids who beat up the other kids [and]defending the indefensible"
Thank you, Rev. Jackson, for making the lowest type of thuggery pay, for your efforts to make sure Decatur's schools are a place for brawling instead of learning.
The mild spelling flame was unexpected from you. Kind of low. I actually try to correct spellings when I can, even in quoting opponents in arguments.
Except when it comes to someone claiming to be a genius, who misspells every word, like one certain troll we had way back.
Shaw,
Unlike some on the left, I think you're honest and have a strong streak of integrity. You're also an entertaining writer, and your blog reflects that. The thing is, you don't have to engage in misinformation to pull an audience.
The simple thing would be to update the post with something like, "Upon further review, the Rush Limbaugh statement cited below was actually part of a parody. My sources misled me on that. While I still believe that Limbaugh eats baby seals for breakfast and burns down rainforests for fun, in this case he's not guilty of the crime."
Then you can go forth, sin no more, sleep the sleep of the just, and and know that while David Brock may be a slimy toad hopping around on George Soros' leash, you are a beacon of truth and light, and slinky leather boots.
Poor you, dmarks. "Kind of low". I only made the remark you call "The mild spelling flame" because the root of indensible (dense) struck me as so...perfectly timed.
Buck up. Frankly this new found sensitivity from someone eager to assign the moniker 'mass murderer' to anyone with whom he has a political disagreement is a bit tough to swallow.
No matter.
I didn't cite the CNN source regarding the Jesse Jackson episode to back up your ridiculous characterization of the incident. The story is, as is almost always the case, quite a bit different than your spin.
Gordon-
You've assumed quite a proprietary air these days. Well done. How can I get you to help me polish my remarks? The Rush Limbaugh as Jonathan Swift bit really clinched it.
Arthur said: "Frankly this new found sensitivity from someone eager to assign the moniker 'mass murderer' to anyone with whom he has a political disagreement is a bit tough to swallow."
It was Van Jones himself who proudly embraced the worst mass murdering movement in human history. I didn't do that for him.
Disliking the very worst of political extremists (and Jones is one) is not over a mere "political disagreement". Exactly like my dislike of David Duke. It is puzzling that you again and again defend such extremism.
"The story is, as is almost always the case, quite a bit different than your spin."
I described it quite accurately. I am puzzled at your attempt to place some sort of good "spin" on Jackson's support of what amounts to some pretty bad school bullies.
dmarks typed:
"I am puzzled..."
Bingo.
Well, next time make sense!
More P-A-R-O-D-Y
Audio:
http://crooksandliars.com/
Referring to an incident in which a white student was beaten by black students on a bus, Limbaugh said: “I think the guy’s wrong. I think not only it was racism, it was justifiable racism. I mean, that’s the lesson we’re being taught here today. Kid shouldn’t have been on the bus anyway. We need segregated buses — it was invading space and stuff. This is Obama’s America.”
That's good, Arthurstone. You're learning well. Leave out the context surrounding the quote! It's cool, he's just a reactionary. If we can manipulate the information, why not? By any means, right?
If, of course, you add in the part about Time magazines cover story suggesting that racism is innate, and quote the segment in full, then it's clear that Limbaugh was doing a parody. But that wouldn't serve the cause, so why bother?
Even Media Matters ran the full transcript. If you're less honest than David Brock, that's really saying something. Shaw, at least, has the excuse that she didn't know the full context when she wrote the post.
"There’s no evidence that the fight was racially motivated."
Perhaps Jimmy Carter could take a lesson here.
"It sounds like typical Limbaugh stirring up his usual pot of hatred and resentment..."
Perhaps Mr. Carter has taken lessons.
"FOX has been exposed so many times spreading lies...why would they put up with such sloppy reporting and such propagandist lies."
Oh yes, of course --- reporting in the vein of Maddow & Olbermann. Certainly.
Now Alisa, it's only propaganda if it's on Fox. If it's on MSNBC, it's God's Own Truth. Get with the program, eh? ;-)
I should correct my last comment. Since we're talking about MSNBC, it should read, "Darwin's Own Truth."
Except in the case of Ed "Shot His Dog" Schultz, who claims to have Jesus' private email.
Gordon. Gordon. Gordon.
What's the problem? Where did I write Rush was 'racist'? Just what 'big lie' am I perpetuating 'by any means necessary' anyway?
I quite clearly gave the guy credit for engaging in PARODY. Can you not read?
It isn't my fault he isn't funny.
"Now Alisa, it's only propaganda if it's on Fox"
Thanks, Gordon, for clearing that up for AliRos. & the rest of us. I was beginning to lost faith that the American people could collectively chose the #1 rated news network month after month, after month (after month) without the driving force of a vast Right Wing conspiracy behind it. Propaganda...sure! That HAS to be it!
Hi Shaw!
I was away all weekend at a beautiful seaside wedding down the street from the Kennedy Compound.
What fun. It was perfect weather, and I'm still hurting from all the dancing, dancing, dancing and champagne!
A good wedding and party is always a mood lifter!
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