I always liked ED...
Posted on 10/27/2009 7:07:38 AM PDT by Kaslin
I record Special Report on Fox News every day. One day I noticed that there was a change in the preceding show. Neil Cavuto had been transferred to the new Fox News Business channel and some guy named Glenn Beck had taken over the slot. Nothing resonated with me so I didn’t bother to watch his show.
I soon heard that Beck had broken the story of Van Jones, a guy who should not have been in any administration, let alone a presidential one. Then Beck got credit for showing the Acorn videos that began the cascade of charges and loss of support for that organization. The Obama Administration responded to this by making Beck Public Enemy #1, along with the rest of Fox News.
All of a sudden everyone was talking about Glenn Beck. More importantly, the White House decided that they could not take it anymore, and started vilifying Fox as a “center of opinionating” (rather than a news network) from whom facts could not be trusted. It was not good enough to bar any access to the administration; they sent out their top guns to establish a quarantine of Fox. Despite every attempt to bury stories contrary to the interests of the Obama Administration, some networks had actually gone over to the dark side and allowed snippets of recognition. This could not be tolerated.
Surprisingly, the Administration’s plan to ostracize Fox has faltered because the mainstream media picked up the story. As much as Fox’s competitors harbor innate contempt for Fox (and maybe a little jealousy), some actually recognize that it is nonetheless some form of a news organization. Jake Tapper of ABC News recently had the temerity to confront Robert Gibbs, the White House Press Secretary. Tapper suggested that there might be a hint of legitimacy among the 1,000+ employees working at Fox News. Gibbs stayed on message – Fox was not to be trusted.
I want to thank the Obama Administration for bringing back my youth. When I was 20, the age that my son is today, we had an administration that was in trouble. That administration was found to have an enemies list. It sent out the Vice-President to strafe anyone who would dare criticize its policies. In fact, the entire administration displayed a paranoia that manifested itself in a crime that ultimately brought down the President.
Long before Watergate, I had a Nixon countdown calendar on my wall. Each day I used my red magic marker to bring us a day closer to a new President. I had voted for Nixon in my first election; that had been an easy choice over the hapless George McGovern. However soon after the election, it became clear that Nixon and his people had acted beyond the pale. It did not matter whether I had voted for him; he had gone too far.
Ignoring the adage that history tends to repeat itself, many of us who lived through those days thought they would never return. The convulsive effect of the downfall of the Nixon Administration was at the time so significant that a recurrence during our lifetime was unimaginable. Another White House enemies list? Unthinkable!
Yet it appears to be. Maybe they have not written down the names, but all other elements are there. Obama goes after a news organization just like Nixon went after the press, and had on his enemies’ list Daniel Schorr. Shutting down the opinions of a private company, as Obama did to Humana, is thuggishly reminiscent of the dirty-tricks crowd. Attacking the U.S. Chamber of Commerce seems like something distasteful that we have seen before.
When your arguments cannot be sustained, the easy thing to do is vilify your opponents. Nixon did it out of paranoia and Obama appears to be doing it because he is losing. The astonishing thing is that people like Henry Waxman, who rode into office on the back of Watergate, cannot pick up the phone and tell his colleagues to stop. It’s always sad when ideologues sacrifice the most cherished principles of this country for some minor – and temporary – political gain.
Like many other Americans, I watched Glenn Beck the other night just to see what all the fuss was about. Beck has his schtick. He is much too cutesy for me and not nearly erudite enough for my taste. He was making fun of Anita Dunn and her comments endorsing the political philosophy of the mass murderer Mao. Beck was straightforward and truthful, but to be honest, he gave me little reason to watch him again. Obama, Rahm Emanuel and Dunn have done this guy a favor by giving him the recognition he would likely never have otherwise received.
It reminds me of how no one thought the Democrats had a chance in the 1972 election, yet Nixon gave them too much attention. That brought disaster to Nixon and the Republicans. Obama risks suffering the same fate unless he calls the attack dogs off and starts acting presidential.
In that part of your post above, you felt compelled to go on a "you can't handle the truth!" type of rant.
Then, your final sentence again implies that I care nothing for truth, but, you, in your infinite wisdom and specialness, do:
Some would trade truth for that, I suppose. Not me.
I have no idea how my finding Beck a "tad childish" should make you think "I care nothing for truth", or that I even watch O'Reilly. I stated that I thought Beck does a good job over-all and that Obama would have been wise to ignore him. Seriously, you don't find Beck a "tad childish"? Not even a little? If you don't, that's fine with me. But if you do, I can assure you, I will not think it is because you care nothing for truth.
He claims to be Mormon.
(You're right, Kaslin. The "erudite" author has never watched Fox).
Bravo, Leni. Very nice post and written better than the article, which is of no huge surprise.
He also claims to be a Christian as well, and I studiously stay away from the raging "are Mormons Chrstians" theological debate, which flared up about a dozen times here when Mitt Romney was running.
So right you are, lol! They're the same ones who call farts and belches "eructations."
Beck's about 3 times as smart and learned as the self-important Mr. Bialosky. While Beck's routine sometimes seems a bit silly it's tailored to get his well-researched and very important message out to the greatest number.
GBeck is not erudite enough for the author?
That means he’s a snob.
In the end Beck will likely burn out but so what? He’s doing the job that the media simply will not do.
I think I’ll sit this one out after yesterday’s fiasco ...
That was quite the storm, avalanche or hurricane you started. It’s still going.
Actually, erudition and "smarts" are different animals. I'll take smarts and common sense over erudition any day of the week.
Hussein is "erudite," flashy but pretty much useless. Just another word for "Bullshit"*
Beck is smart and presents facts and asks the questions the Marxists in Congress can't or won't answer, and Obama totally avoids with cute meaningless phrases like "hope and change," between sightseeing trips, of course.
Ya, I need to lay lo’ for a while ...
Glenn Beck doesn’t impress the Bill Buckley & George Will types but he sells like Velveeta in Middle America. This scares the Left to no end, because they know that elections are decided by the Velveeta eaters not the brie nibblers.
Ask for a copy of his birth certificate. I bet he has one. Unlike the unknown entity in the oval office.
Plus, I think he is jealous. Especially snarky was this commentary: "He is much too cutesy for me and not nearly erudite enough for my taste."
Beck is breaking down mental walls that have been built up in the so-called "independents" and reaching back to the "Reagan Democrats" teaching them truths that the other side carefully conceals. Any conservative who doesn't relish that, and wish to encourage it and support it...isn't a bona fide conservative.
I always liked ED...
I had not heard that; in any event, he’s not a hedonist nor an antheist—and the Left hates that.
You are correct!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.