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Cartoonist Ted Rall: "We Do Not Owe Our Liberties To The Military"
Newsbusters.org ^ | 3 February 2006 | Dave Pierre

Posted on 02/03/2006 8:30:23 PM PST by infoguy

In an especially contentious exchange on this evening's Hannity and Colmes (Friday February 3, 2006), cantankerous cartoonist Ted Rall, a guest on the program, unbelievably declared, "We do not owe our liberties to the military." The topic was the recent Washington Post cartoon by Tom Toles that has outraged many. The cartoon prompted a letter to the editor (linked at Michelle Malkin) from the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who tagged the the work as "beyond tasteless." Needless to say, Rall (who himself has created bigoted trash in the past) defended Toles' cruel piece. Here's the relevant exchange (audiotape on file, emphasis mine):

SEAN HANNITY: Here's what you're missing. The reason that you have the right to be mean, and you were mean to this guy [killed in Afghanistan, former NFL star Pat] Tillman, who gave up a football contract to save his country. The reason you have the right to be mean in your cartoons, and Toles has a right to mean and insensitive in his cartoons, is because of people like this (Sean holds up the WaPo cartoon) that literally put their lives on the line so you have the right for free expression. And you insult them and use them as props so you can make your left-wing political points.

RALL: Sean, you could not possibly be more wrong about the nature of this country. We do not owe our liberties to the military. We owe them to the Constitution. We have civilian rule in the United States --

HANNITY: The military preserves the Constitution. They put their lives on the line so that you have free speech. You do owe them.

RALL: The military doesn't give us free speech.

HANNITY: Yes, they do.

RALL: Thomas Jefferson and the Founding Fathers gave us free speech.

HANNITY: No. Because if they don't defend that Constitution, you don't have the right to be so wrong in your cartoons!

"We do not owe our liberties to our military"?? I'm sure George Washington would have had a few things to say about that, not to mention the generations of heroic young men who fought and died to protect and defend our precious liberties.

It was simply another pathetic display by Ted Rall. How ungrateful this man is. What a disgrace.

By the way, if Rall's comments weren't sad enough, co-host Alan Colmes claimed that the Joint Chiefs' letter to the Washington Post was "intimidating" and that there was a "chill of intimidation that goes right down the spine of the First Amendment." Puh-leeze, Alan.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: ahole; cartoons; hateamericafilth; hateamericatrash; hatebush; hateourtroops; hatingamerica; idiot; ignorant; ingrates; moron; stuckonstupid; tedrall; turd; washingtonpost
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To: Dengar01
Has anyone considered that this scumbag cartoonist, created this piece of garbage simply to enflame conservatives. Maybe trying to teach us mean old conservatives how the "poor muslims" feel after the cartoons from Denmark.

With full knowledge that we won't saw his head off, like the Muslims want done to the Danish Cartoonists.

81 posted on 02/03/2006 9:34:49 PM PST by magslinger (Cry Havoc and let slip the yobos of war!)
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To: satchmodog9

Luckily he will not get within ax-handle range of me.


82 posted on 02/03/2006 9:34:58 PM PST by RobbyS ( CHIRHO)
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To: infoguy

After viewing the H&C episode, I would not be shocked if evidence revealed "Ted" was a "Tess" prior to a certain Renee Richards-type surgical procedure.


83 posted on 02/03/2006 9:37:42 PM PST by ConservativeStatement
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To: eddie willers

who give a flying sh*t what Rall thinks about anything . He's a punk , immature , ill educated and not at all original or even slightly witty. A no talent if ever there was one. He says this crap to get attention . like the assh*le kid he is. He dosen't even think any of this through , just like most Leftist idiots. They try to be OVER the top for attention , for the sake of attention and ego. He is , and means nothing .


84 posted on 02/03/2006 9:40:45 PM PST by binkdeville
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To: MarkL

He's an idiot. I find most of the liberals I argue with have , at best a ,grammer school level history background . Very rarely do they have ANY sense of history or politics.


85 posted on 02/03/2006 9:42:59 PM PST by binkdeville
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To: infoguy; All

After the election, I had heard that Ted Rall was going to leave the country, and I found his email address somehow, so I sent him one:

Subject: Re: Are you leaving the country?
In a message dated 11/3/04 1:30:34 PM, rlmorel writes:

I heard you were going to leave if President Bush won re-election...is that true?


Never said it, never thought it.







I must admit I was surprised...but he didn't take the bait...:)


86 posted on 02/03/2006 9:45:30 PM PST by rlmorel ("Innocence seldom utters outraged shrieks. Guilt does." Whittaker Chambers)
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To: magslinger
Regular air service or military flight and HANO drop?

LOL!

87 posted on 02/03/2006 9:46:19 PM PST by 11Bush
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To: infoguy
There really is a simple way to test Ted Rall's assertion.

Rall should draw a cartoon depicting Mohammed and wait to see what happens. I'm sure the USA military will not be there to protect his liberties, so I guess he'll be proven right.

-PJ

88 posted on 02/03/2006 9:46:35 PM PST by Political Junkie Too (It's still not safe to vote Democrat.)
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To: spikeytx86; All
Hey Ted...about the things that exit your pie-hole...


89 posted on 02/03/2006 9:49:21 PM PST by rlmorel ("Innocence seldom utters outraged shrieks. Guilt does." Whittaker Chambers)
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To: infoguy

A pimple on the butt of a great nation.


90 posted on 02/03/2006 9:51:21 PM PST by facedown (Armed in the Heartland)
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To: infoguy
Rall can hold that piece of paper up (perhaps in front of his heart--if he has one--to deflect the bullets) to protect him from foreign and domestic enemies.

"Don't shoot, torture, enslave, or molest me--can't you see I'm holding a constitution?"

91 posted on 02/03/2006 9:54:01 PM PST by flada (Posting in a manner reminiscent of Jen-gis Kahn.)
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To: infoguy

Typically ignorant leftist. He was probably too interested in homosexual sex in high school to study US history.


92 posted on 02/03/2006 9:54:33 PM PST by Mad_Tom_Rackham (A Liberal: One who demands half of your pie because he didn't bake one.)
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To: frankjr

I've always credited political cartoonists for my freedom...


93 posted on 02/03/2006 9:55:17 PM PST by The Worthless Miracle
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To: Sisku Hanne

"It Is The Soldier" was authored by Charles Michael Province



===

Was it? I always saw it as authored by Father Denis Edward O'Brien, USMC.

I really don't know. But this is the first I heard of it being authored by Province.


94 posted on 02/03/2006 10:00:18 PM PST by FairOpinion
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To: WIladyconservative; FairOpinion

FATHER DENNIS EDWARD O'BRIEN

Spiritual Director, American Life League
October 8, 1923 – August 29, 2002
A Man for All Seasons

Father Denis O'Brien was born in Dallas on October 8, 1923, and entered the seminary in 1941. But when Pearl Harbor was attacked, he quickly volunteered for the Marine Corps.

He served in the Pacific and participated in three campaigns; Café Gloucester, Peleliu and Okinawa. He often recalled the battle to take Peleliu as the bloodiest and most memorable — 1,336 Marines lost their lives and 6,032 were wounded. Later, as chaplain of the First Marine Division, he returned to Peleliu in 1994 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of that battle and to pray for all who died there. They were, as he described them, his brothers and all Marines. He often said, "We never left anyone behind."

He said it was on that battlefield that he felt God's call stronger than before. After he left the military service, he went into God's service by studying at the Maryknoll Seminary in New York.

Father Denis O'Brien went on to be a missionary to the poor, the needy, the terminally ill and the "unwanted" in East Africa and Mexico. Father O'Brien so impressed the leadership of the Mexican bishops' conference that he was appointed respect life director, a job he performed remarkably for 25 years. He trained doctors, taught medical students, spoke to high school and college groups, trained parents, and did it with a love for human beings and respect for the magisterium of the Church.

Excerpt from the article by Judie Brown

http://www.semperficatholic.com/page3.html

WEBMASTER'S NOTE: Information recently recieved via a 3rd party, (Toni A. Petty from Buffalo, NY - to whom I am indebted) from the administrator of the Catholic Community of Pius X, Dallas, TX, where Father O'Brien lived and worked from 1988 to his death in 2002 advises the following:

Fr. O'Brien used this [What is a Veteran?] and many other writings concerning veterans. The poem you are referring to seems to be the main piece of literature that people refer to. He was always quick to state that he was not the author, but did find the text poignant. I am sorry to say we do not know the original author,

Cordially,
Neely Kerr
Office Manager
August 8, 2005

http://www.iwvpa.net/o_briende/

95 posted on 02/03/2006 10:04:47 PM PST by A.A. Cunningham
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To: infoguy

Ted Ralls is insane...end of story.


96 posted on 02/03/2006 10:05:57 PM PST by GarySpFc (De Oppresso Liber)
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To: FairOpinion
"Mr Province has advised that Father O'Brien once sent a copy of the poem to "Dear Abby" and it was printed erroneously giving credit to Father O'Brien for writing it. It is at that point that the authorship became clouded..."

Charles M. Province, a veteran of the US Army, is the sole and single Founder and President of The George S. Patton, Jr. Historical Society. He is the author of "The Unknown Patton", "Patton's Third Army", "Patton's One-Minute Messages" and "It Is The Soldier" ©Copyright 1970-2005 by Charles M. Province

97 posted on 02/03/2006 10:09:19 PM PST by Sisku Hanne (Happy 2006...The Year of the Black Conservative!)
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To: jazusamo
Colmes was a close second.

Colmes has been so obnoxious lately that I can't even watch him. The minute he opens his mouth, I switch the channel.

98 posted on 02/03/2006 10:10:22 PM PST by McGavin999 (If Intelligence Agencies can't find leakers, how can we expect them to find terrorists?)
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To: Sisku Hanne

"Mr Province has advised that Father O'Brien once sent a copy of the poem to "Dear Abby" and it was printed erroneously giving credit to Father O'Brien for writing it. It is at that point that the authorship became clouded..."


===

Thanks for the information. I'll credit Mr. Province in the future -- but at an great number of websites O'Brien is credited as the author.

It's a wonderful poem.


99 posted on 02/03/2006 10:11:14 PM PST by FairOpinion
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To: infoguy
The Constitution may outline and give us Liberties, but it is the Military that bleeds and dies to protect that Constitution to ensure it keeps granting us liberties.

Idiots like Rall would laud the ACLU for their efforts, not realizing through blind hatred that all they wish to do is rob us of Liberties. If they ever did realize it, it is the Military they would call on and expect to fight and die to reinstate Liberty.

Sanctimonious morons like Rall don't have a clue as to the meaning of devotion to duty, honor or country. If only we could give him the Constitution without the historical Military protection of it and let him and other looney left moonbats see just where their liberty is owed.
100 posted on 02/03/2006 10:12:48 PM PST by DakotaRed
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