Posted on 01/22/2011 5:38:16 AM PST by reaganaut1
On his daily radio and television shows, Glenn Beck has elevated once-obscure conservative thinkers onto best-seller lists. Recently, he has elevated a 78-year-old liberal academic to celebrity of a different sort, in a way that some say is endangering her life.
Frances Fox Piven, a City University of New York professor, has been a primary character in Mr. Beck’s warnings about a progressive take-down of America. Ms. Piven, Mr. Beck says, is responsible for a plan to “intentionally collapse our economic system.”
Her name has become a kind of shorthand for “enemy” on Mr. Beck’s Fox News Channel program, which is watched by more than 2 million people, and on one of his Web sites, The Blaze. This week, Mr. Beck suggested on television that she was an enemy of the Constitution.
Never mind that Ms. Piven’s radical plan to help poor people was published 45 years ago, when Mr. Beck was a toddler. Anonymous visitors to his Web site have called for her death, and some, she said, have contacted her directly via e-mail.
In response, a liberal nonprofit group, the Center for Constitutional Rights, wrote to the chairman of Fox News, Roger Ailes, on Thursday to ask him to put a stop to Mr. Beck’s “false accusations” about Ms. Piven.
“Mr. Beck is putting Professor Piven in actual physical danger of a violent response,” the group wrote.
Fox News disagrees. Joel Cheatwood, a senior vice president, said Friday that Mr. Beck would not be ordered to stop talking about Ms. Piven on television. He said Mr. Beck had quoted her accurately and had never threatened her.
“ ‘The Glenn Beck Program,’ probably above and beyond any on television, has denounced violence repeatedly,” Mr. Cheatwood said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
"One such threat, published as an anonymous comment on The Blaze, read, “Somebody tell Frances I have 5000 roundas ready and I’ll give My life to take Our freedom back.” (The spelling and capitalizing have not been changed.)"
What is the nytimes' source for the above quote? The Center for Constitution Rights' website posted a pdf of their anti-Beck letter to FOX [LINKand it quotes that email as coming from "superwrench 4" as follows:
"Somebody tell Frances I have 5,000 rounds ready and will give my life to take our freedom back."
How has the "spelling and capitalization... not been changed?" Is this yet another technique of Leftist-journalism?
It’s probably never a great idea for a guy to be seen beating up an old lady. This lady is just shy of 80.
Not being on the inside and not having a Mormon spouse anymore either I’m not that interested in all the details of their doctrine.
What interests me is what motivates Glenn Beck...he is a phenomenon and has a unique perspective. I had always suspected that Mormonism was at the root of his schtick...just for fun I did a search on “LDS prophecy” and found out about the White Horse. Then, I confirmed its existence with a couple “elders” whom I count as friends. They told me it is real but not a point of emphasis. Plus they aren’t favorably impressed with Beck. One said something like, “Let him push it too far and he’ll get excommunicated in a heartbeat.” Whatever. But, when taken together, it all adds up to Beck having been inspired by the White Horse...and I would go so far as to suggest that he sees himself as the horse’s rider.
Messianic delusions?
Ideas do have consequences, don’t they?
However, these are PUBLIC devotees of hers.
I wonder who the rest of her groupies are, and how many True Believers are there, all totalled?
You ever wonder how someone like that looks back upon their life?
The kind of people who would do FFP harm are more likely to read The Slimes than watch Glenn Beck.
But, of course, The Slimes already knows that.
I'm not so positive that she is a "lady" --- however, I agree with you that going after an elderly senior citizen is not the wisest choice, and I'm frankly surprised that FOX permitted it.
This will backfire BADLY if she gets hurt in ANY manner, or even if shortly after all this stress she develops cancer or has a heart attack....
AND then.... all the comments by Beck will be played & replayed again & again & again & again, and will be less a reflection up Glenn and will be blamed upon Conservatives.In.General.
And then there's this: akademik.
You got that right.
And, actually, going after an old lady would be more damaging to a guy with a more masculine image. With his soft features and his tearful emotional affect, Beck has at best an androgynous image that will allow him to get away with more than most guys.
If she is in danger, she has only her own words to blame. I doubt she will even have to employ a fraction of the security that Beck must because of the true nature of the danger of the left.
Alcoholic grandiosity, as well. Unfortunately I have personal experience with an alcoholic and Beck's rantings are all too familiar. I predict he will crash and burn at some point and in doing do more damage to the conservative cause than any good he may have done.
You have to wonder if she’d sing a different tune if she found herself in the middle of “a little bit of violence”, or if it is just OK for people she does not like?
Do you really think he’s back on it?
Joseph Smith, the “Jolly Prophet,” was absolutely guilty of it but it would be news to me if Beck had slipped back into the bottle.
I’m sure the “dislikers” would stay off the Beck threads if HE would quit his covert proselytizing for mormonism. I, for one, do.
Not at this point, and his alcoholic mental state doesn't necessarily need to be fueled by active drinking.
The capacity of the Ego to bypass experience is astounding and would be humorous were it not so tragic in its consequences. Cutting the individual down to size and making the results last is a task never completely accomplished. The possibility of a return of his Ego must be faced by every alcoholic. If it does return, he may refrain from drinking, but he will surely go on a "dry drunk," with all the old feelings and attitudes once more asserting themselves and making sobriety a shambles of discontent and restlessness. Not until the ego is decisively retired can peace and quiet again prevail. As one sees this struggle in process, the need for the helping hand of a Deity becomes clearer. Mere man alone all too often seems powerless to stay the force of his Ego. He needs assistance and needs it urgently.
Think of all the celebrities who have tried again and again to stay sober...it's a very tough row to hoe, and IMO Glenn has put himself in a precarious position with the stresses he now undergoes.
Well, actually, Christians simply believe that Jesus is the Messiah long-awaited by the Jews.
And any such Messiah would be omnipotent, even in the minds of the Jews. And that is what we Christians actually believe.
Mormons are NOT mono-theistic. Mormons believe in multiple gods, and also believe that each good mormon will have of equal stature to Jesus.
If she got threats, she need to file a police report. Where is the police report? I bet there are none. She just wants to shut Beck up about who she is and what she and her nasty pals are doing.
“it’s a very tough row to hoe”
Fortunately, I don’t have the problem personally but that seems to be the consensus. I always suspected that Beck was attracted to Mormonism because it is a way of staying on the straight and narrow through an established support system.
“he will surely go on a ‘dry drunk,’”
Interesting...a few years ago a critic used that term “dry drunk” to take a pot shot at Beck. He seemed to be really bothered by it though he pretended that he had never heard the term before.
If the lefty in question suffers a fatal wound, then they are martyrs to be celebrated and have T shirts made with their likenesses imprinted to spread the gospel.
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