I have to agree with Andrew Sullivan regarding Sean Hannity:
“It is obscene for Hannity to purloin a sentence from the Lord’s Prayer in order to advance his partisan political views. And yes, it is also obscene to equate terrorism and despotism with liberalism. Hannity isn’t worthy to speak the word “liberalism,” a long and complicated and deeply Western political tradition that is the only reason he can actually publish a book like this and face only criticism.”
This comes right after he blasts Larissa MacFarquhar for her fawning article on Michael Moore in The New Yorker (not available online today).
This is why I like Andrew’s site. He is intellectually honest. No screeching crow.
I listen to the radio on the way home from work each day. On talk radio (the music stations are wall-to-wall commercials) I have the choice of a local conservative who enjoys his own voice, or Sean Hannity. I bounce back and forth to hear what topics they’re discussing that day. On days like today, I turn the radio off.
Hannity is sincere. But he views everything in the extreme. I don’t like extreme. It is far too simplistic. And he locks in on something and refuses to let go. Like “the Dean Scream.” He obviously enjoyed it, and played it every chance he got. The same thing happened after he managed to speak with Ted Kennedy one day, and Teddy reproached him about interrupting. For the next two weeks, he played Kennedy’s “You don’t interrupt me when I’m talking!” every time he found someone who hadn’t heard it, or who had only heard it once or twice. Or three times.
Bill O’Reilly is much the same, except I think he is far more in love with himself than Hannity. O’Reilly will act incensed all of a sudden about something someone says, totally out of a desire to appear tough. It is almost like he’s thinking, “I haven’t acted really pissed in a while, I wonder if this is the right time to do it.” I once wrote to him that he was in danger of becoming the new Geraldo, and he has. ME ME ME ME ME!
At least Rush is generally amusing, although I don’t listen to him, either.
And Democrats want a liberal version of all this?
I guess they give the Right someone who shares their views. I used to pay attention to O’Reilly, but have since quit watching his televised version of National Enquirer. The only show where thoughts are actually discussed is Brit Hume’s. If anyone has found another anywhere that has intelligent discussion rather than argument, let me know! Until then, I’ll stick with bloggers from all sides who have something intelligent to say.