I can't help it. I'm starting to think that The Daily Show should be required viewing.
Jon Stewart had a particularly good segment tonight (April 7, 2009 - go check out the web page and view the first half of the show if you haven't seen it). He was making a good example of the hypocrisy of the conservatives (or should I say "ultra-conservatives"? maybe just the neocons?). He
was showing clips from pundits and politicians expressing their "terror" at the "tyranny" of Obama's presidency, how it's an erosion of our rights and the Declaration of Independence.Huh?
And (of course) he points out the criminal actions that occurred during the Bush presidency, and the nose-dive the US took in the international arena under his leadership. Contrast that with the reception that Obama got at the G20 conference, and the shared vision we are now working toward with respect to nuclear (pronounced correctly!) disarmament and the components of Obama's campaign platform.
The most poignant comparison was how - during the last eight years - anyone criticizing Bush or his policies was "unamerican." But now, not only do we have the conservatives flinging around "socialist," "tyrant," and other epithets while they criticize his policies ... we also have idiotic hate-mongers like Rush Limbaugh voicing his hopes that Obama's policies fail - even at the cost of recovery from the economic crisis. Hypocrisy at its best.
I can't help but think of what the Dixie Chicks went through after their criticism of Bush and the Iraq war in 2003 (if you missed that or need a refresher, check out their wikipedia entry. What was "high treason" then is par for the course now?Only because their guy didn't win in '08.
I know, I know, there was a war on then, and we all get little blinders on when there are polarizing issues. But be rational - at least try to see the other side's story without automatically demonizing it. America is all about protecting freedoms - you know, like free speech? The venom that Limbaugh and some of these pundits get paid to spew - that is protected as well. I'm just glad Stewart and his colleagues (like Stephen Colbert and Rachel Maddow) are around to assemble the clips and expose the bullshit for what it is - 'cause I sure don't have the patience for all that. But at least I have hope.
Addendum 4/8/09:
Now that it is available, here is the clip I am referring to. [If you are NOT a fan, please hold tight until at least the middle - it picks up a bit more there and gets to the point(s) I was commenting on.] The rest of the episode can be seen (either as full episode, or as clips) by going to The Daily Show and clicking on "full episodes" or "videos" and selecting the appropriate date.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| Baracknophobia - Obey | ||||
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Pictures lifted from Wikipedia. Clip from The Daily Show website.
5 comments:
Don't you just love how it works? We'll bad mouth you, but you cannot bad mouth us, dammit!
Why does it feel like the Dixie Chicks incident was much longer ago than 2003?
See, this is why I joined the libertarians; because they'll bash the morons on the left AND the right.
I agree with you a 100% Bonzo!! John Stewart does a great job of exposing the hypocrisy.
BTW, we'll be back home from May 1-8th. Will you be around? Hopefully we can get together.
kapgar - yeah, those 6 years (hell, all 8 of Bush) seemed to take forEVER.
josh - thanks for dropping by. do you have a blog? your profile is not viewable, otherwise i would dropped by. how did you stumble upon mine? i don't know much about the libertarian party, but i'm all for berating of any morons that can't find their way to a rational compromise.
ron - i look forward to seeing ya - i'll probably still be here, but who knows for sure. i'll keep in touch. maybe i'll end up by you!
for any other readers - below is a link to the clip I was speaking about. the first half is ok, the second half drives it home well. check out the "videos" page on the main "daily show" site to see the other segments from this episode if you are interested.
baracknophobia-obey
Good lord has it really been six years since the Dixie Chicks were crapped on?
Jon Stewart is a comedian and does a far better job of exposing this kind of crap than the "mainstream media". And for the record, his "...it's supposed to taste like a shit taco..." comment from the other day is, well, priceless.
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