Posted on 09/08/2006 5:11:35 AM PDT by governsleastgovernsbest
by Mark Finkelstein
September 8, 2006 - 07:58
We're all familiar with this definition of a conservative: "a liberal who's just been mugged." This morning, Ted Koppel devised a variation on the theme that could be taken as an insult to his fellow lefties: "a liberal is a conservative who just got arrested."
Koppel's line came in the course of a Today show interview with Matt Lauer to discuss a special that Koppel is about to air in his role as Managing Editor of the Discovery Channel [so that's where he went after leaving ABC!]. As Lauer described it, the documentary, entitled 'The Price of Security,' addresses "the balance between securing the nation and protecting our individual liberties."
Koppel never flatly stated where he drew the line on the issue, but left little doubt as to which way he leans.
Lauer: "You say this is a debate we have to have right now because it will be impossible to have after another attack."
Koppel: "Imagine what would happen if there were another terrorists attacks. Any discussion of liberties then would be out the window."
I don't believe that. In the grand scheme of things the impingement of liberties that followed the unprecedented 9/11 attacks was relatively minor. But consider what Koppel is implying: that we should agree now not to take measures that would appear necessary following another terror attack. No thanks, Ted.
Lauer: "When Americans are polled a majority say if I have to give up a few personal freedoms and it makes me safer, I am okay with that. Do you think torturing of suspects falls into category?"
Here's where Koppel got off his line: "First there is that old definition of what is a liberal. A liberal is a conservative who just got arrested. People are always willing to give up somebody else's liberties as long as they are convinced it won't be their own."
Eventually, the pair built up a head of steam, making clear that they come down on the ACLU side of the security vs. civil liberties divide.
Lauer came close to accusing the US of torturing terror suspects and to calling Pres. Bush - who has denied that the US tortures prisoners - a liar: "If there is no torture, why do you need secret locations set up by the CIA?"
Koppel: "Precisely. In point of fact with all of the people now and everyone down there [in Guantanamo] they spoke to including the chief interrogator said the same thing: torture doesn't work. It causes people to give you whatever they think it is you want to have just to stop the pain."
Lauer: "The best information comes through a cooperative relationship?"
If that's the standard, next time we catch a terrorist, why not just let Matt interview him?
Today Show/NewsBusters Ted-Koppel-pops-up ping to Today show list.
Interesting. So he's saying that all liberals are criminals? Sounds like he is.
If a tree fell in the forest, and a conservative wasn't around, would it still kill the liberal chained to it?
"If there is no torture, why do you need secret locations set up by the CIA?"
There is no way anybody over 10 years old can be this stupid.
"The best information comes through a cooperative relationship?
The biggest mistake America could ever make is to let people who think like this be in charge of protecting us.
By that logic, a Conservative is a Liberal who just bought a house.
I saw the lib-fest and it was putrid bump.
True.
Good line.
He actually believes this!!! More and more evidence piling up that the left is just going off the deep end.
Why don't we ask America if they care that terrorists are tortured? Better yet, how bout we torture ACLU Lawyers?
Pray for W and Our Troops
Man, I really hate this crap. The various Discovery channels were just about the only place one could go in the huge spectrum of channels to get remotely entertaining/informative programming (Military Channel is great, as is Discovery Science) without a political bias. Now with those bozos hiring Koppel I fear that will all go by the boards, and we will have to endure dripping socialism to get the rest.
Do none of these clowns retire and go fishing? Sheesh...
"By that logic, a Conservative is a Liberal who just bought a house"
And...Libertarian = An armed liberal that doesn't want to pay taxes.
Still, it might be best to try it to be sure.
Nope, Ted Koppel, Bill Moyers, et al., have not yet finished their mission to convert America into a socialist utopia.
not a bad metaphor, however.
This got me thinking:
Who is likely to be a liberal?
Union member
A person under 30 years old
A person making less than $ 10,000 per year
A person making $ 30 million per year
An environmentalist
A democrat
An "artist"
A floral designer
An advocate for animals
A "professor"
A vegitarian
A "journalist"
A United Nations supporter
A homosexual, bisexual, transgendered person
A lobbyist
An author
Anyone who thinks Hillary Rodham is a reasonable person.
This could be a thread all on its own!
Does anyone know the saying about - "the govt cannot control an honest man so they have to create laws to make the honest man a criminal" -
The original was much better written. I need it to counter a few progressive-socialists who glorify the total police state were are now in.
And I forgot
So, it is a liberal who is the one who mugs the Conservative, thus getting arrested?
Good one, and worth repeating.
Now I gather it is, but honestly I'd never heard it before, only the other one about the definition of a conservative being a liberal who's been mugged.
Democrat = Liberal
Conservative = Republican
Independent = Republican who swore he would never be a Republican
Libertarian = Independent who Smokes Dope
Pray for W and Our Troops
hey! i resent that! not all people under 30 are liberals!
and not all union members either. come up to MI. alot of union members here vote conservative, because altho they like their union, everything else is conservative (lower taxes, rkba, anti- gay marriage, etc)
To begin with, the people he's talking about are not liberal; they're anything but.
A liberal is someone who believes in liberty, freedom, freedom of thought, speech, belief and religion.
The best word for these people is something other than Liberal. I prefer Leftist.
Leftists are the opposite of liberal. They are oppressive, totalitarian, conformist, determined to oppose their opinions on others, to oppress freedom of thought, speech, belief, and religion, committed to censorship and propaganda.
They shout down speakers with whom they disagree, prohibit them from speaking on college campuses etc.
They control and manipulate information.
Right now they are fighting to prevent the showing of The Path to 9/11.
A more truthful statement--though less catchy and laconic--is that when a Leftist faces truth he becomes a non-Leftist.
By definition, a Leftist is delusional. That's what the Left is--a paradigm of mass delusion.
Nothing knocks a Leftist out of the delusion like an attack on his personal welfare--especially his money or financial welfare.
A non-Leftist is not necessarily a conservative. For example, I am not a conservative, but I am definitely not a Leftist.
We have all had experience with Leftists who are lavish and prodigal with someone else's money, welfare, or other resources, but selfish, greedy, and nasty about their own. In fact that's exactly what these people are.
hey ted, a journalist is just someone with limited mental capabilities and thats the best they can do is read a teleprompter or write the same crap their jschool profs spoonfed them.
You are so right. The dictionary definition of liberal hardly describes today's left of center politicians.
Koppel and the simple minded members of the "news" media see ideology in such black and white terms, conservative v. liberal. I don't recall any lefties screaming about government intrusion into private lives when Clinton and his administration spied and violated citizens' privacy.
Darn. And we used to LIKE the Doscovery Channel. Now we can't trust it to be factual anymore. What's next....Dan Rather as managing editor of the History Channel??
Yo be fair (I watched the interview this morning) Kopple ALSO said there was no torture going on at Gitmo, and that the most popular interrogation technique was a "hoagie and a 6 pack of Coke"
CAFFIENE, for Pete's sake!!
Right you are. By his own definition, Koppel is a conservative that has just been arrested. He is in a good company in his cell block (Teddy "Bear" Kennedy, Johnie "I Have a Plan" Kerry, Alferdo "the Internet" Gore and lots and lots of other former conservatives).
Early stage senile dementia?
As for intelligence gathering techniques foloowing another possible attack trampling our civil rights, here did Ted recieve his degree in Constitutional law anyway? How many years did he spend in the CIA, or what branch of military intelligence did he serve in? How about Matt Lauer?
Their qualifications are absolutely zilch, but whenever you turn on the news anymore, all you see are reporters interviewing other reporters on their tinfoil hat theories about everything from national security to sociology, when they have no training or experience in ANY of the fields they're being interviewd about.
It ain't journalism. It's propaganda. Which is why we - sadly - have to cross the Discovery Channel off our list of channels to watch. It had some innacuracies before Kopple, but now it looks like NONE of it's "documentaries" can be trusted.
I'm sure Ted mean "lobotomized", not "arrested".
Ain't that the truth!
I like your tag line. Same for me. Reagan made me proud to be a Republican.
Have you heard that Kerry was in Viet Nam?
Sorry absolootezer0. I meant people under 30 except for you! LOL! It was just for fun and as I said it was people "likely" to be liberals.
I have relatives who are union members, one of which is my 93 yo grandfather. He isn't a liberal, but he'll vote straight Dem ticket every time. Now my uncle, who is 70 and also a life-long union member has truly seen the light and votes for conservatives even though he's a registered Dem. He has told me stories of how much pressure the unions put on their members to vote Dem.
The good news is that both of them loathe Hil-Rod and will NOT vote for her for dog catcher. And anecdotely, I met a young guy, probably 21 or so at a University of Cental Florida vs. Villanova football game this past Saturday and he talked like a FReeper. I told him it was great to hear a young guy talking sense like he was.
Wow, so this is where journalism has fallen... Complete non sequiturs passed off as analysis.
"If there was no deliberate genocide, why weren't our war plans released in advance?"
"If they aren't molesting children, why do they keep Area 51 so secret?"
"If Dick Cheney didn't mean to shoot that guy, why didn't he call David Gregory five minutes after it happened?"
"If there is no embezzlement, why won't Matt Lauer release his financial records?"
"If there are no necrophiliac orgies, why does NBC have such high security at their studios?"
"If Ted Koppel doesn't cavort with male prostitutes, why won't he set up webcams in his house so we can observe his behavior?"
I guess Scooter is becoming a Liberal nowdays.
That's known as Classical Liberalism, not liberalism as we define it today.
And a conservative is a liberal who now has kids and needs to get a real job.
s'ok. every once in a while you do run into a pocket of young conservatives, my HS gov't class was one of those pockets. the teacher gave us a "how conservative/ liberal are you?" quiz. most of us in the class only scored one point as a liberal because we were under 35. but according to that quiz, we were all quite a bit to the right of reagan.
also, i just remembered one other class of people you missed to be likely dems.. minorities.
Warms my heart...sniff.
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