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I will agree that it was NOT good for conservatism. Anyone who thinks this is no big deal is just plain not understanding what this means.

Rush will never again be asked to comment on mainstream networks. Any interview he grants will be consumed with talk about drugs. Any opinion he gives on air will be mocked by toads like Franken as "drug-induced." I also doubt that many officials will be interviewed on his program any more.

I am sorry he got hooked on pain pills. I wish he had not done so in Palm Beach County, and I wish he had checked himself into a clinic before the story broke in the Enquirer.

Rush will never again be asked to comment on mainstream networks. Any interview he grants will be consumed with talk about drugs.

Not a problem. Rush rarely participated as a commentator on "mainstream networks". With 20 million listeners a day he didn't --- and won't--- need to.

" will agree that it was NOT good for conservatism. Anyone who thinks this is no big deal is just plain not understanding what this means."

I agree. I figure this has just made it harder for all of us. I note, however, that the Left is not held to the same standard.

Here's another view. Rush is not asked much on the mainstream networks as it is. Franken will always hate him, because Rush is the man Franken-stein wishes he could be.But Rush will be back on FOX, and I think he will be an ardent spokesman for conservatism once again. And he will be honest about his situation and addiction.

I sincerely hope that his story ,when he tells it, will be a help to many who silently suffer the same addiction to painkillers. It is quite pandemic in our society.

I,too, wish, all this didn't happen. What's worse is the real possibility that his deafness was a result of his addiction.He has to live with that.

When I see that complete criminals like BJ Clinton can be "rehabilitated" in the public arena, there's no way we're going to let Rush get railroaded. What he did, and as bad as it is, is no way equivalent to what some other celebrities have done and been forgiven for in our times.

Are you kidding? Toe-sucker Dick Morris, adulterer Newt Gingrich, rapist Bill Clinton, the Chap of Quiddick, and a host of other disgraced public figures are still regularly sought out for opinions, and their past "indiscretions" are never brought up.

Rush, when, Lord willing, he's clean and getting some nonaddictive pain management therapy, will continue to be asked about issues--other than football--about which he has expertise.

America forgives. America forgets. America is full of Christians who, by definition, are nothing but a bunch of redeemed screw-ups. We tend not to get on our high horses because we are acutely aware of our own weaknesses.

"Rush will never again be asked to comment on mainstream networks. Any interview he grants will be consumed with talk about drugs. Any opinion he gives on air will be mocked by toads like Franken as "drug-induced." I also doubt that many officials will be interviewed on his program any more."

Have you never heard Rush talk about how many times he has been fired? Do you think the man has no stamina? Do you think his fans are wusses? Maybe you are, I'm not. When he comes back, I'll be there!!

Miss Marple,
I cannot remember the last time that rush was asked for an interview on any network. I remember one time when rush interviewed an official.

We have to keep this in perspective, Rush did not invent conservatism, He merely talked it up. I am not a conservative for the benefit of Rush Limbaugh. He provides me with useful information. He provides a valuable service. Thats all.

Now for some people (especially liberals) Rush Limbaugh became a 'symbol' of conservatism, and liberals all over the world will be dancing on his grave one day. But they will do that regardless of whether or not Rush got addicted to prescription drugs because of a chronic pain issue.

Rush Limbaugh is not a 'Symbol' he is a human being. And he has succumb to his circumstances as humans occasionally do. I dont see this as any kind of 'failure' of conservatism, in fact it is a clear opportunity to demonstrate the true nature of compassion in conservatism.

At least that is my plan. You all can do what you want.

How often was Rush on a "mainstream" network? How often did he give interviews? And when he did give interviews he was assumed to be a hateful, racist, woman bashing bigot. THIS is worse?

This situation is embarrasing for Rush and it's uncomfortable for us who have defended him to lib friends and acquaintances. But I really don't think it is a disaster.

The bottom line is that the media have been hateful about Rush for years. People were told that he was awful and rotten and many never bothered to listen to his show. The President of the United States blamed him for the Oklahoma City bombing!

His statements have gotten huge airplay (replays of his own voice, not media paraphrase), his situation is understandable to many not-yet-listeners who suffer from chronic pain or who have family members who do.

I suspect he is a more sympathetic figure (today, maybe forthcoming stories can change this) than we might think.

I will agree that it was NOT good for conservatism. Anyone who thinks this is no big deal is just plain not understanding what this means.

This was bad for Rush in the sense he will have to go through withdrawl, then still have to deal with the physical pain that got him hooked. His career -- and conservatism -- is not going to suffer in the least, however.