Monday, May 11, 2009

A New Era Of Political Discourse?


Nothing has become more obviously a joke than Obama's promises of bipartisanship and an elevation in the political discourse. Even the Brits are noticing. This from the Telegraph's U.S. editor:

What was Wanda Sykes thinking? Perhaps more to the point, what was President Barack Obama thinking when he laughed and smiled as the comedienne wished Rush Limbaugh dead?

Although the Left is reporting her White House Correspondents' Dinner speech as "taking shots" at Limbaugh and mocking everyone, that's a gross misrepresentation of what turned into a hateful and disgusting diatribe.

I was at the dinner and I began by laughing at Sykes's gentle teases about the press loving Obama . . .

But the speech took a very ugly turn when she laid into Limbaugh.

This is what she said: "Rush Limbaugh said he hopes this administration fails, so you're saying, 'I hope America fails', you're, like, 'I dont care about people losing their homes, their jobs, our soldiers in Iraq'. He just wants the country to fail. To me, that's treason.

"He's not saying anything differently than what Osama bin Laden is saying. You know, you might want to look into this, sir, because I think Rush Limbaugh was the 20th hijacker. But he was just so strung out on OxyContin he missed his flight."

She then concluded: "Rush Limbaugh, I hope the country fails, I hope his kidneys fail, how about that? He needs a good waterboarding, that's what he needs." Obama seemed to think this bit was pretty hilarious, grinning and chuckling and turning to share the "joke" with the person sitting on his right.

There's not much room for differing interpretations of what Sykes said. She called Limbaugh a terrorist and a traitor, suggested that he be tortured and wished him dead.

What was his crime? Hoping that Obama's policies - which he views as socialist - will fail.

That's way, way beyond reasoned debate or comedy and Obama's reaction to it was astonishing.

. . . [W]hen the "joke" comes from a liberal, Obama-supporting comedienne and the target is a right-winger then the likes of Hilary Rosen and Donna Brazile are on CNN saying it's just comedy and Limbaugh is "fair game".

And Obama laughing when someone wishes Limbaugh dead? Hard to take from the man who promised a new era of civility and elevated debate in Washington.

Obama can get away with this because he has a cult of personality with his most rabid acolytes being members of the press. He is a man of no principles. And I am not surprised by this. I can well imagine that he reacted with similar approval to equally hateful speech as he sat in the pews of Rev. Wrights church. People, other than those still enthralled by our Don In Chief, are starting to take note that maybe the carefully crafted persona that they saw of Obama during the campaign was little more than smoke and mirrors.








4 comments:

Ex-Dissident said...

It is hard for people to notice this disgusting show, when the news outlets have become propaganda and hide what should be in bold print.

About your earlier comment-how the policies of Obama will make people pine for the stability of Carter era. I know about the rampant inflation, American hostages, and the constant threat of nuclear war during those times. However, I was very young then, and I mostly recall seeing long lines by the gas stations. Maybe you could post about some of your memories from that era.

Paul Gordon said...

Someone commenting on another blog tried to defend Sykes as expressing concern over Rush's past problems with painkillers and their effects on his kidney's.

I thought that was carrying self-delusion to new heights, and that Wanda Sykes had deliberately placed herself on the Janeane Garofalo and Rosanne Barr level of civil discourse, where absolutely anything goes when talking about someone they don't like.

-

GW said...

You've about summed up the Carter era. There was a national feeling of impotence on the world stage coupled with rampant inflation that destroyed the lives of people living on fixed incomes. Inflation was outpacing wages and people were finding their quality of life deteriorating. Four years of life under Jimmy was far too long, and in terms of how he handled Iran, we are still paying the price of Jimmy's perfidy.

GW said...

Hmmm, true enough about the Wanda Sykes, it was over the line, but I have to admit, I laughed at the joke I blogged above this about the soldier in an elevator with two bullets, Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and Osama. That said, I laughed about that joke because the acts of Pelosi and Reid I consider to be treasonous endangerement of our troops during time of war. They were being shot at while, at the same time, Reid and Pelosi were grandstanding in such a manner that gave support to al Qaeda.

Rush is simply an ideological opposite. To yuk it up about wanting him to die and to call him a terrorist for his political views, that does cross a pretty clear line. And yep, Wanda has now crossed into the rarified air of Garafalo / Barr,