I can’t argue with your thoughts. Also, I can’t forget that Letterman is a creature of CBS, the Dan Rather network.
IMO Letterman was funny when he was following Carson on NBC, and at first when he started at CBS. Even after Viacom took over CBS, he did funny bits lambasting Sumner Redstone and Les Moonves at first—but that material was later replaced by telephone skits where Letterman and Moonves played at being buddy-buddy, and the rest of his “jokes” IMO took a distinctly more leftist slant. The way I saw it, Viacom pulled Letterman’s leash, and he toed the corporate political line. I stopped watching Dave back then—figuring that CBS was using their late night show just as they use the news division—to spread propaganda whenever possible. I suspect that Letterman just takes their money, and for the amount they pay him, happily does their bidding.
It is for that reason that we should ask not just for Letterman’s resignation, but also his writers.
It seems sensible that Sarah Palin could seize the initiative and call CBS on this. Joking about rape is really wrong: I don’t know of anybody outside of prison who would do that.
Letterman losing his job is a fair price to pay for an outrageous display of bad judgment bordering on naked aggression. For all the millions he is paid, and for all the experts helping him do his show, this sort of thing should never happen, and if it does it should be remedied.