Posted on 01/12/2004 4:29:11 AM PST by tornado100
Several months have elapsed and I thought it might be interesting to re-examine the plight of radio megastar Rush Limbaugh. In my previous article on Limbaugh's troubles entitled "Limbaugh's Secret Life", I was initially criticized for accepting The National Enquirer's contention that he was addicted to prescription narcotics. Heck, I was also skewered for surmising that the conservative icon was likely to be subject to arrest, pursuant to his drug activities. In hindsight, I think my points were well taken. My article came out about five days before Limbaugh publicly acknowledged his addiction and need for rehabilitation. And now criminal charges against Rush might be unavoidable, if the Palm Beach prosecutor has his way. I have no crystal ball, just plenty of life experience. In fact, I'll be quite happy if I'm wrong about this situation. However, there's no need to fret -- even if Limbaugh takes some type of plea, he's looking at court supervision rather than jail time.
Now for some pertinent background information --The National Enquirer vets its front page exposés of celebrities with a phalanx of attorneys, certainly more thoroughly than anything that you would read on the front page of The New York Times. That's a sad commentary on our modern culture, isn't it? Common sense dictates that the tabloid was not going to place itself at the mercy of Limbaugh and a libel suit. The National Enquirer couldn't afford to be wrong. That said, I rightly judged that the essence of the story - Limbaugh's significant addiction to painkillers - had to be accurate otherwise the publication would not have gone to print with it. But what about those that categorically reject anything published in The National Enquirer, claiming that it's all pure drivel rife with abundant sensationalism? I'll readily concede there's a lot of innuendo and spinning that's intended for pure titillation purposes in The National Enquirer - But the lead stories (such as the Limbaugh piece) often contain significant morsels of truth, which is directly attributable to decent investigative reporting by journalists such as David Wright and oversight by attorneys. To some degree, The National Enquirer and its sister paper, The Star, get a bum rap. Many "junk paper" aficionados point out that the supermarket tabloids sell millions of copies each week precisely because they deliver genuine tidbits to their readership.
Since Limbaugh's return from residential treatment, he's verbally eviscerated the tabloid for relying on the statements of a couple who had "blackmailed" him. His anger toward the tabloid is totally understandable. However, it's important to note that although The National Enquirer didn't get everything right in their article on Limbaugh, it certainly got much of the story right - at least the key elements. As an aside, Limbaugh violated a fundamental precept in life that you should never, ever permit yourself to be blackmailed. And it demonstrates Limbaugh's depths of despair in his attempts to manage a dire, no-win situation. Ultimately, it was really Limbaugh's responsibility to have gone directly to law enforcement authorities if he was being blackmailed, but he chose not to do so. Clearly, he wanted to avoid scrutiny of his own drug involvement.
Despite Limbaugh's shortcomings, his fans have remained profoundly loyal. Rush's audience numbers are peaking at an all-time high due to his incisive political analysis that's the best around.
(Excerpt) Read more at gopusa.com ...
Well yes, he should have. But aside from his medical predicament; he also knew he had a target on his back, and he would be submitting to those in his Florida jurisdiction, who have long held him in their sites.
A kind of no-win here for Rush. Maybe he just needed more time to figure it all out; and this story broke, before he was able to deal with this.
Bottom line; he knew he would be treated differently and he was right.
The minute he starts doing the victim routine, it's clear his disease is talking for him.
I blame nobody for my addiction except myself. I earned all of the consequences. I was a total jerk.
We who have been there and done that -- or seen people who have -- understand.
Nothing but true desire will make anyone quit.
That's also a good point, though I might have done away with the 'Nonsense' preface. :o)
I'm addicted to invading other countries. I am powerless over my addiction. ;^)
So what they are saying about you in the Newsletter is true?
Are you implying that Rush "continually talked about the evils of drug abuse"? Care to provide a quote or two to back that up, out of about 10,000 hours of broadcasting, aside from his much-celebrated "white people" comment in 1995?
Yes, but it was incomplete. I was a world-class homicidal tyrannical torturing maniacal laughing spartan incoherent ticklish isolating androgynous mechanical relaxed pulmonary expectant rocking hesitating horrific violent purple enuui-filled legubrious excitable moronic melancholy wanking lurid vibrating perfectionist dishonest sad blinking concealing morbid jerk.
Faults revealed are faults powerless against you.
I wish you well Sir.
What a nice way to start a day! :o)
Thank you sir. And to you, the same, tenfold. :o)
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