National Review Cans Columnist Ann Coulter

Washington Post ^ | 10/2/01 | Howard Kurtz

[Jean S]

Even by her usual incendiary standards, Ann Coulter's response to the terrorist attacks was something of a jaw-dropper.

"We should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity," the conservative commentator declared in her column on National Review Online.

Those words created an uproar at the Web site, which refused to run a follow-up piece in which Coulter singled out what she called "swarthy males." She promptly began bad-mouthing National Review, which responded by axing her as a contributing editor.

[ppaul]

Envy? Jealousy? No sense of humor? What?

Kay: I've never understood the pheromonal control that Ms. Coulter had on the males on this board. It's almost as if her scent caused them to park their brains.

ouroboros: She's very abrasive and annoying on TV. She grew up in Greenwich and has gotten by on her looks all her life and it shows.

Polonius: What NR did was take out the trash, and I say good riddance.

Different strokes for different folks, I suppose.
Oh well, I rather enjoyed her columns. Refreshingly straightforward.

:

[BoomerBob]

LOL! I knew you were carrying a torch for her!

[mercy]

zoap. da.

[smorgle]

Neither can she!! (chuckle)

I'm laughing but here's one more FReeper who won't side with Ann Coulter in this one. All the free speech/private ownership/NR/etc. issues aside, I think her mistake is not supporting President Bush. He keeps urging us to keep the focus on the war against terrorism, not to make it a war against Islam or Arabs. He's right in principle, plus he and his people have a tough job to do to maintain the support of Islamic and Arab countries. Saying we should go kill all the leaders and convert the people to Christianity isn't exactly in line with those objectives. I think what she did was irresponsible and bratty. She should support the President.

[BoomerBob]

I'm only 32 but I studied my Conservative history (the Boomer comes from an inside joke)

[garyhope]

I agree, sometimes people can't see behind the words to get the humor or sarcasm.

[MayflowerMadam]

What's wrong with "swarthy"? They ARE swarthy -- "dark-skinned". Give the chick a break; her close friend Barbraa Olson was murdered by these SWARTHY heathens so it makes sense that she was overly passionate about the subject.

[TLBSHOW]

Here is what will happen because of this WP hit piece on Ann. The rats sites like du and smorkies and democrap.com will have a field day with this. Either they hire her back and apologize or face the wrath of FReepers. Means no hits at their site or money for their printed copy.

This is War.

[Ymani Cricket]

I hate to labor this any more but...

Ok it didn't say "forced" conversions. right? right. BUT in the context of "invading their countries" going in and "killing their leaders" (which I'm all for if they harbour terrorists) I would not think that "conversion" would be very well recieved in that type of environment. Comprende? The context of the phrase doesn't look good.

Can you imagine what would happen had that line been in Bush's Speech the other night...?

[antidisestablishment]

Sheesh, you have no sense of poetic (literary) license. It was simply a provocative statement meant to contrast the PC bilge coming out of everywhere else. Get a life!

[BoomerBob]

Indeed we are at war (there are many excellent articles at NR Online urging readers to remember that very point). Somehow I suspect that NR will manage to survive your boycott. Would you also suggest that we boycott Ann Coulter because of her continued participation in Maher's program despite his latests controversies?

[Ymani Cricket]

Her article passed their editorial screening filter. It must have, or eles they would not have published it.

That is something to think about isn't it? Perhaps they let it through because/and were already looking for an excuse to get rid of her...for some as yet unknown reason.

[MayflowerMadam]

"Everyone drop em, email em, fax em call em ..."

Can you go to the magazine stand and take out those little subscription cards, then mail them back to NR with a strong message in Magic Marker? They have to pay the postage. Or is that illegal? Oh well, never mind.

[x]

Coulter's a sacrificial lamb or goat. National Review is going out on a limb with the neo-con warriors. Letting her go obscures this fact. She represents a different kind of crusade than they do -- more Richard the Lionheart than Woodrow Wilson or Norman Podhoretz -- so she's expendable.

The other side of the coin, is, what if Eric Alterman or Molly Ivins or Paul Begala made a comment of this sort?

[JMJ333]

Sheesh, you have no sense of poetic (literary) license. It was simply a provocative statement meant to contrast the PC bilge coming out of everywhere else. Get a life!

Ever heard the term "Words mean things?"

[Ymani Cricket]

Sheesh, you have no sense of poetic (literary) license. It was simply a provocative statement meant to contrast the PC bilge coming out of everywhere else. Get a life!

whatever...

[MayflowerMadam]

"For those of us who aren't Christian, the rature is poppycock."

You're in for a beeeeg surprise. Wouldn't wanna be ya.

[JohnHuang2]

That is something to think about isn't it? Perhaps they let it through because/and were already looking for an excuse to get rid of her...for some as yet unknown reason.

....can't rule it out....

[JohnHuang2]

for some as yet unknown reason

I have a hunch what that 'unknown reason' might be: Ann Coulter does circles around every other writer/columnists who works for National Review

;^)

[JMJ333]

Asked for comment, National Review Online Editor Jonah Goldberg said: "We didn't feel we wanted to be associated with the comments expressed in those two columns. We got a lot of complaints from sponsors and a lot of complaints from readers left, right and center. We've decided for editorial reasons we think are sound that we're no longer going to run Ann Coulter's syndicated column."

So it WAS Jonah Goldberg. I hadn't realized Coulter had gotten into a flame war with the NR Online Editor. Bad move, Annie. Was it about her position on drugs?

The "causation" for her being fired may have just been discovered.