Posted on 03/26/2010 8:45:12 AM PDT by Michael van der Galien
The Rights response to David Frums perceived heresies has inflicted serious intellectual and political damage on the conservative movement.
Im a full-spectrum conservative of conviction. But even if I leaned to the left, I still would find it laudatory that, in recent decades, political conservatives in America have been the most steadfast defenders of freedom of speech and the most vigorous champions of free and open intellectual inquiry.
Indeed, no graduate of an American college or university in the past quarter century cannot help but notice that the biggest threat to free speech today comes not from the political Right, but from the academic Left.
And its not just America, but Canada, too, which suffers from this problem. Why, only this week Ann Coulter was prohibited from speaking at the University of Ottawa.
So it is with great sadness and disappointment that I read today of David Frums forced resignation from the American Enterprise Institute.
AEI, of course, has long been home to some of the worlds greatest scholars and academics, including many who have been shunned by the academy for their right-leaning views.
But David, it seems, has pushed the intellectual envelope too far even for AEIs tastes.
On Sunday, for instance, David charged conservatives and Republicans with helping to bring about the healthcare debacle because, he alleged, they were unwilling to negotiate in earnest with the Democrats.
I think Davids mistaken about this. I dont think Obama and the Dems ever showed any real willingness to negotiate in good faith with conservatives and Republicans.
Nonetheless, Davids view is hardly extreme or beyond the pale.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsrealblog.com ...
Frum’s rights are not being jeopardized by his getting fired from the AEI. He still has his free speech rights intact. He can say whatever he wants wherever he is employed next.
Frum was just not a good spokesperson for any republican/conservative political matter. In the case of conservative politics, Frum’s dismissal was a positive for the conservative movement. It’s addition by subtraction.
I never heard of John R. Guardiano, and now I hope never to hear of him again.
David Frum can continue to speak all he wants. I am sure it will continue to be as nonsensical as his completely idiotic column on how dumb Republicans were not to work with Ozero on health care.
He cannot be completely unaware that what was demanded of Republicans was capitulation in this Marxist dream of controlling the people and bankrupting the country. I guess he can’t see the electoral bloodbath waiting for the dems in November.
Well, it would be if he were still conservative. Unfortunately, he’s not a conservative, he’s a textbook moderate to liberal Republican. I say this not to call names but to call it what it is.
LOL! I guess that could be true if you consider “Frum’s pathetic, desperate whining” to be pushing “the intellectual envelope”.
I hardly consider it a loss.
Frum has no following. His pathetic website is lucky to get thirty visitors a day.
I lost all respect for Frum when he lied about Sarah Palin’s record in Alaska. I forget the specific details now, but he made an allegation about one of her tax proposals that - upon investigation - I found to be patently false.
No one has injured his freedom of speech. He’s free to say anything he likes. And I’m free to criticize it. And his employer is free to decide if Frum’s message fits with their overall message or if he might be a better fit down the road somewhere.
No mobs surrounded Frum’s office and prevented him from speaking. No one threatened to take away the license of any radio station that invited him on. No one threatened to shut down AEI, although it wouldn’t surprise me if some of their donors called and threatened to withhold their donations. Thats their right as well.
If someone keeps poking me in the eye, I have the right to criticize him and the right to criticize the organization that employs him. That doesn’t subtract anything from his right to keep poking me in the eye on his own dime.
The author is incorrect. This has nothing to do with freedom of speech.
Very false comparison. The Ann Coulter thing is about being THREATENED WITH A CRIME.
BTW...Coulter was fired from NRO some time back. Did Horowitz put up the same fuss then?
Exactly.
Deciding to decline further supporting someones free speech is not an abridgment of their free speech. We are not obligated under the law to respect the free speech rights of the dixie chicks by buying their records. Neither is AEI obligated under the law to respect the free speech rights of Frum by paying him.
The AIE has freedom of association. They can decline to associate with Frum is they wish.
The AIE has freedom of speech. They can outline where they disagree with Frum, and are not obligated to pay him to say things that they feel is contrary to their message while under the AIE banner.
Is this clear to you Horowitz? Or are you still waxing your water skis?
National Review is kind of inconsistent sometimes. It definitely has not been the same since W.F. Buckley passed. And Chris Buckley..? Yeecch.
A few years ago David Frum penned a vicious article in National Review that called for certain conservatives that he personally deemed "unpatriotic" to be forcibly purged from the political right. His list ran the gamut from the isolationist Buchanan types to libertarians to mainstream conservatives such as Robert Novak who had grown weary of the Bush admin's excesses.
Frum became increasingly shrill in his "purge" movement over the years that followed, and expanded his list of targets to include most of talk radio, with Limbaugh among them.
Now the shoe is on the other foot, and it's Frum that's being purged. It's long overdue. And it can be accurately stated that he's reaping what he sowed.
Here's the HATE Test to determine whether a person is a real conservative and is effective: Are the HATED by the Left?
Frum's never been attacked by the Left that I'm aware of. Frum attacks conservatives and then gets plenty of time on the MSM to attack some more as a 'true conservative'. Do we really need to know any more?
Kind of a weird editorial. Frum has the right to speak out and he has been all over the place. Frum is the Mainstream Media’s favorite “go-to” Republican. He doesn’t have the constitutional right to be paid big bucks by the AEI though.
AEI also has Norm Ornstein who I used to see all over the place. Ornstein is a conventional liberal, as far as I can tell.
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.