Feel the love…not.
The Washingtonian’s Garrett M. Graff writes about the MRC’s yearly hatefest, “The DisHonors Awards”, where a hater comes on stage to announce the award and slam the nominees and then another hater comes on to accept the award and slam the winner. Is there anything even remotely as caustic and mean sprited on the Left? If there is I’d be interested in hearing about it so I can slam it as well.
Yes, I’m clrearly staking a position on this. How people could enjoy themselves in a sea of so much negativity and spite is amazing. A circle jerk at its finest…
CNN’s Jack Cafferty won the “Tin Foil Hat Award for Crazy Conspiracy Theories” and the award was “accepted” via video by Osama bin Laden, whose dubbed video played on the room’s four big screens. Speaking through a bad Punjabi translator, “bin Laden” explained that he calls CNN the “Cave News Network” because “their audience is so small it could fit in my cave.”
MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann was perhaps the biggest loser last night: Nominated in three of the five categories, he failed to win a single award. Neal Boortz relished going after Olbermann, calling him “MSNBC’s answer to a relief tube,” a “void surrounded by a sphincter muscle,” and said, “You know you’ve done something right when that footstool attacks you on national TV.”
Boortz on Bryant Gumbel: An “arrogant little jock-sniffer” and an “obtuse mindless person.”
I don’t see anything wrong with this. At least you don’t have nuts coming on stage throwing pies etc…. at people or having a whole mob rush on stage, shouting obscenities, ripping up stuff, pushing people around like what happened to the founder of the Minute Man Project when he was invited to speak at Columbia University.
Comment by Lurker — March 30, 2007 @ 11:23 am
Spud, are you serious? Please don’t deny conservatives our one little night to combat the constant “hatefests” (to use your term) that occur in the MSM (yes, it does exist) every single day!
As Lurker points out, those kids at Columbia, who attacked the Minuteman speaker, got off with a slap on the wrist. “Monique”, their leader, was laughing about her sentence (or lack thereof) in a student newspaper. Did we hear any outrage over the initial incident, or the ensuing punishment? NO! Only O’Reilly reported it, to my knowledge. And this type of thing happens CONSTANTLY to conservatives (Ann Coulter, Pat Buchanan et al) who are attacked during their speeches. And the lack of reportage in the MSM is evident in those cases as well.
And with all the fuss paid to the actions of Mark Foley, Randy Cunningham and Tom Delay, have the MSM done a THING to investigate the conflict of interest of your Sen. Feinstein? Hopefully you know more about it than I, since you’re one of her constituents. She served on the Military Appropriations Construction Committee while her husband had major ownership of two major defense contractors. A local paper in your area http://www.metroactive.com/metro/03.21.07/dianne-feinstein-resigns-0712.html seems to be the only one covering this story, which seems to be huge. Even veterans and their care were affected, as this committee was also to oversee the care of veterans. Again, where is ABC’s Brian Ross, NBC’s Lisa Meyers, 60 Minutes, Chris Matthews, etc.?
Comment by Missy — March 30, 2007 @ 11:45 am
“Hatefest?” Maybe. I would also describe Olbermann’s program as a hatefest, and that’s on every night. Wouldn’t you agree, Spud?
Comment by William — March 30, 2007 @ 12:05 pm
Oh please Missy…this isn’t about combating whatever the left does. This is a circle jerk of mean spirited nabobs who get together to see who can out hate whom.
It’s one thing to cite issues where the media lacks proper oversight (you cite Feinstein, who I never vote for for other reasons). It’s another thing entirely to do what this MRC event does, just hurl insults. It’s not a serious attempt to deal with media issues. It’s a political rally masquerading as an awards banquet.
And Lurker, your analogy is bogus. There’s light year’s difference between someone being ambushed by a pie by some whack job that snuck into some event and this MRC gala which sole purpose, the reason it is organized every year and the reason everyone comes, is to ridicule, demean, and hate anyone they don’t agree with.
The closest thing I can come up with on the left was the funeral for Paul Welstone which turned into a Republican bash-a-thon. So there’s plenty of hate on both sides. But two songs don’t make a right. And since the MRC event is a yearly thing and is set in stone, it’s the worse of the two to me.
Comment by Spud — March 30, 2007 @ 12:11 pm
I don’t know if I’d call Olbermann’s show a hatefest or not, but if I did, I’d have to lump in O’Reilly, Hannity & Colmes, Glenn Beck, Nancy Grace, Joe Scarborough, Tucker Carlson, John Stossel, and Lou Dobbs’s shows as well…basically anybody’s show that has an opinion.
Comment by Spud — March 30, 2007 @ 12:13 pm
Wow, Spud, thanks for the link. I didn’t even know this little ‘cabal of the cool kids’ even existed. You know what’s scary? These people think they’re Masters of the Universe and all the rest of us are just their ’staff’.
Comment by Arthur — March 30, 2007 @ 12:19 pm
The difference is those conservatives you site at least have the guts to invite people with different opinions on their shows and Keith Olberman is so insecure he will have no one on his show that disagrees with him or is of a different political party. Dispute that?? By the way, Alan Colmes is one of the vilest, more accusatory, always tit for tat spokespeople for the left that you can find. He is just offensive and not even the dems claim him.
Comment by SOPHIA — March 30, 2007 @ 12:43 pm
And personally SOPHIA, i would say Hannity is equally offensive. But none of the names listed quite reaches the offensiveness of Rush Limbaugh.
Comment by Randy — March 30, 2007 @ 12:58 pm
He is just offensive and not even the dems claim him.
Comment by SOPHIA — March 30, 2007 @ 12:43 pm
He is not claimed by the left because he’s weak and doesn’t have any sense. He’s a token “liberal”, who by his own admission, is a moderate. He is there so Fox can claim they are “fair & balanced” even though he gets about 1/5 the airtime that Hannity gets.
Comment by Shaun — March 30, 2007 @ 1:47 pm
SOPHIA, you should have stuck to what you knew. KO may not have people who disagrees with him, but do you know who Chuck Hagel is? And for the millionth time, KO’s how is about him telling the news, the way he sees it (which happens to be the way many on the left see it). It isnt a debate show.
Comment by Randy — March 30, 2007 @ 1:59 pm
“KO’s how about him telling the news, the way he sees it (which happens to be the way many on the left see it). It isnt a debate show.”
Thank you Randy for the clarification, I only wish MSNBC could do the same.
Comment by Obama in 08! — March 30, 2007 @ 2:33 pm
Randy, of course it’s not a debate show. It’s hard to prepare scripted responses that you can read off a teleprompter when you don’t know exactly where the debate might lead. Additionally, it’s not about him telling the news the way he sees it. It’s about him skewing the news to fit a particular agenda. The dude has no stones. Chris Wallace has it right, he should go back to the toy department.
Spud, To lump O’reilly in with KO is just dumb. O’reilly has a show where he presents his viewpoints on issues and allows others to respond. Your boy, KO, twists facts to fit his agenda & doesn’t provide counter arguments. The two shows are apples & oranges. If you don’t get that, you must be blinded by ideology. By the way, I’ve never been one to subscribe to the theories of many on here that your a hard core lefty.
Comment by ChrisM — March 30, 2007 @ 2:48 pm
Randy, of course it’s not a debate show. It’s hard to prepare scripted responses that you can read off a teleprompter when you don’t know exactly where the debate might lead. Additionally, it’s not about him telling the news the way he sees it. It’s about him skewing the news to fit a particular agenda. The dude has no stones. Chris Wallace has it right, he should go back to the toy department.
Spud, To lump O’reilly in with KO is just dumb. O’reilly has a show where he presents his viewpoints on issues and allows others to respond. Your boy, KO, twists facts to fit his agenda & doesn’t provide counter arguments. The two shows are apples & oranges. If you don’t get that, you must be blinded by ideology. By the way, I’ve never been one to subscribe to the theories of many on here that your a hard core lefty.
Comment by ChrisM — March 30, 2007 @ 2:48 pm
“And Lurker, your analogy is bogus. There’s light year’s difference between someone being ambushed by a pie by some whack job that snuck into some event and this MRC gala which sole purpose, the reason it is organized every year and the reason everyone comes, is to ridicule, demean, and hate anyone they don’t agree with.”
Huh? How is what I said bogus? They hold this event to have a good laugh and isn’t hurting anyone. Everytime there is a conservative speaker somewhere, you don’t think they have organized riots like the one in Columbia? Now that’s what you call ridicule, demean, and hate anyone they don’t agree with. What’s worse? Having a good time at some fancy dinner party with like minded people ridiculing liberals and their conspiracy theories etc… or having organized riots the left seems to love doing like the one in Columbia?
Comment by Lurker — March 30, 2007 @ 2:49 pm
Lurker,
Stop making sense. You’re causing brain overload for some.
Comment by ChrisM — March 30, 2007 @ 2:59 pm
Spud, To lump O’reilly in with KO is just dumb. O’reilly has a show where he presents his viewpoints on issues and allows others to respond. Your boy, KO, twists facts to fit his agenda & doesn’t provide counter arguments. The two shows are apples & oranges. If you don’t get that, you must be blinded by ideology. By the way, I’ve never been one to subscribe to the theories of many on here that your a hard core lefty.
That funny, because im pretty sure O’reilly loves to twist the facts to fit his agenda as well. If you guys really believe that the show is “the no spin zone,” than you guys are a lot dumber than i thought. BTW, O’Reilly needs to learn how to let other actually answer his questions. Instead, he interrupts them and if he really doesnt agree with you, shouts you down, and then occasionally silences you by cutting your mic.
Comment by Randy — March 30, 2007 @ 3:09 pm
Good point, Randy. Maybe you should inquire about getting hired on as a consultant to The Factor. When you look at their numbers, they’re definitely in dire need of your help.
Comment by ChrisM — March 30, 2007 @ 3:15 pm
Spud,
In which universe are you living?
That is the most cockamamie posting I have seen you make.
You need a reality check.
Comment by cella — March 30, 2007 @ 3:56 pm
You conservatives never are able to take criticism. Somebody criticizes O’reilly, and he says “Yea, well more people watch me so Im better than you.” And then he sticks his tongue out at them. So by this logic then, American Idol is the best show on television because it gets the most viewers, and because it gets the most viewers, can’t be criticized.
Comment by Randy — March 30, 2007 @ 4:02 pm
Cella, are you referring to the article Spud posted or his comments? I’m having a difficult time trying to figure out why you think either are cockamine.
Comment by myview — March 30, 2007 @ 4:07 pm
Randy,
How’d you know I was sticking my tongue out at you? Scary. As for you logic, well, nevermind. I’m in too good a mood to be mean. It’s Friday. Which, if I have my days correct, is welfare check day. Which reminds me of a question I’ve had for quite sometime. If one trips in his driveway on the way to the mailbox to receive his check, can this be a workmans comp claim? I have some victimization liberal friends who would desperately like to know. Can anyone shed some light for me? Randy?
Comment by ChrisM — March 30, 2007 @ 4:19 pm
Spud
If this were the usual left wing stuff, it would be up for Pulitzers and being rebroadcast everywhere. The liberals can dish it out but they sure cannot take it. For crying out loud! Did you see Stephen Colbert last year at the correspondent’s dinner? Talk about a Circle Jerk. Where was the outrage then? Each satirical (depending on your point of view) award at the MRC banquet was preceded by “in context” verbatim video piece of a MSM person blatantly insulting conservatives or their beliefs. No hard news reporters participated.
PS: Yes, it is not nice being the target of a joke. It goes both ways.
Comment by Steve L — March 30, 2007 @ 6:43 pm
I think the only difference between this and KO’s “Worst Person In The World” hatefest, is that MRC hands out awards once a year while KO does it 5 times a week.
Comment by TBDave — March 30, 2007 @ 7:16 pm
Number 20
I am astounded that Spud appears to have no knowledge of the hate being spewed from the left. Incredible! And, frankly, unbelievable!
Comment by cella — March 30, 2007 @ 7:31 pm
Huh? How is what I said bogus? They hold this event to have a good laugh and isn’t hurting anyone. Everytime there is a conservative speaker somewhere, you don’t think they have organized riots like the one in Columbia? Now that’s what you call ridicule, demean, and hate anyone they don’t agree with. What’s worse? Having a good time at some fancy dinner party with like minded people ridiculing liberals and their conspiracy theories etc… or having organized riots the left seems to love doing like the one in Columbia?
I would think the answer is obvious. The nut jobs that infiltrate an event, and do notice that I use the term “nut job” as I don’t condone or approve of their antics, aren’t organizing the event. The even it straight but getting corrupted by outside influences.
That’s the difference for me. The MRC gala’s sole purpose is to ridicule the other side. If MoveOn or any other left wing group organizes something similar to harp on “right wing media distortions or innacuracies” then yes you would have a point. But you aren’t making that point. You’re making another point which I don’t agree is a valid apples to apples comparison.
I am astounded that Spud appears to have no knowledge of the hate being spewed from the left. Incredible! And, frankly, unbelievable!
I’m astounded that you missed me clearly stating that there’s plenty of hate on both sides.
Did you see Stephen Colbert last year at the correspondent’s dinner?
Colbert didn’t organize the event. The Radio and TV Correspondents association did. And they didn’t do with the expressed purpose of ridiculing conservatives. And don’t forget that Don Imus ripped Bill Clinton at a similar event but it wasn’t organized to rip Bill Clinton.
I think the only difference between this and KO’s “Worst Person In The World” hatefest, is that MRC hands out awards once a year while KO does it 5 times a week.
While it’s indisputable in my opinion that Olbermann has gone left and he regularly abuses FNC with points that can be disputed by reasonable people, that’s still different from what the MRC event is all about. Note that when “1/2 Hour News Hour” debuted, you didn’t see me criticize the program because it ridiculed liberals (though I did say in the comments that lampooning Ed Begley for driving a hybrid was rather dumb since the hybrids of today aren’t anywhere near as bad as the joke made them out to be).
Name me one organization on the left that holds a yearly event that’s sole purpose is to ridicule the right and gets played up in the press as a celebrity gala that should be taken seriously and I’ll shut up about the MRC.
Comment by Spud — March 30, 2007 @ 7:54 pm
No. 10 - No, I am just an uneducated boob from Oklahoma. Who is this Chuck Hagel? Oh, wait, I think I know - he is the Democrat wannabee who AGREES with everything KO says? Okay, now I know who he is. When he runs for President, what party will he represent?
Comment by SOPHIA — March 30, 2007 @ 9:20 pm
Spud
“Name me one organization on the left that holds a yearly event that’s sole purpose is to ridicule the right and gets played up in the press as a celebrity gala that should be taken seriously and I’ll shut up about the MRC.”
I think the Academy of Awards usually comes close don’t you? However, we can take the jokes and not go bonkers.
Comment by Steve L — March 30, 2007 @ 9:39 pm
No. 10 - No, I am just an uneducated boob from Oklahoma. Who is this Chuck Hagel? Oh, wait, I think I know - he is the Democrat wannabee who AGREES with everything KO says? Okay, now I know who he is. When he runs for President, what party will he represent?
Comment by SOPHIA — March 30, 2007 @ 9:20 pm
RIGGGGHHT! That’s why he is the MOST conservative member of the Senate accoring to National Journal. The only thing he doesn’t agree with your Supreme Leader on is the war. But that makes him a wannabe Democrat. You people are delusional.
Comment by Shaun — March 30, 2007 @ 10:09 pm
Thanks Spud
It’s an inconvenient truth is that the MRC event probably has more political diversity than the “Annual Academy Awards Show” If you think left leaning politics does not drive that annual political event more than anything else then I have a bridge I would like to sell you. Some of those activists are not exactly kind.
I rest my case!
Comment by Steve L — March 30, 2007 @ 10:13 pm
Steve L, there was tons of outrage over Stephen Colbert’s jokes about the president. The thing is, none of the jokes about the President resulted in mean spirited name calling. I never heard Colbert say anything on the lines of calling the president an arrogant jock sniffer.
Comment by Randy — March 31, 2007 @ 12:54 am
Shaun, your left lunacy knows no bounds. Hagel’s the most conservative member of the Senate, huh? Let’s see, his score by the National Journal was a 72.. so you’re right, if you exclude the following:
DeMint, Jim, R-S.C. 7.5 92.5
Bunning, Jim, R-Ky. 8.2 91.8
Kyl, Jon, R-Ariz. 9.2 90.8
Cornyn, John, R-Texas 9.2 90.8
Sessions, Jeff, R-Ala. 9.5 90.5
Isakson, Johnny, R-Ga. 10.5 89.5
Enzi, Michael, R-Wyo. 10.5 89.5
Inhofe, James, R-Okla. 10.7 89.3
Chambliss, Saxby, R-Ga. 11.8 88.2
Allard, Wayne, R-Colo. 13.8 86.2
Thomas, Craig, R-Wyo. 15.5 84.5
McConnell, Mitch, R-Ky. 15.7 84.3
Vitter, David, R-La. 15.7 84.3
Crapo, Mike, R-Idaho 16.3 83.7
Thune, John, R-S.D. 17 83
Craig, Larry, R-Idaho 18.3 81.7
Dole, Elizabeth, R-N.C. 19.3 80.7
Coburn, Tom, R-Okla. 21.2 78.8
Bond, Christopher (Kit), R-Mo. 21.5 78.5
Frist, Bill, R-Tenn. * 21.5 78.5
Roberts, Pat, R-Kan. 21.8 78.2
Allen, George, R-Va. * 22 78
Grassley, Charles, R-Iowa 22.7 77.3
Burns, Conrad, R-Mont. * 22.8 77.2
Domenici, Pete, R-N.M. 24.7 75.3
Lott, Trent, R-Miss. 26.7 73.3
Martinez, Mel, R-Fla. 26.8 73.2
Hatch, Orrin, R-Utah 27 73
Comment by bigred — March 31, 2007 @ 1:07 am
Bigred is right but also being somewhat disengenuous. The media likes to trot out Hagel whenever he breaks ranks to say that such and such now has “bipartisan” support (I should also note that Bush would use the same tactic early on in his administration when he would pick off a couple of “conservative” Democrats to back some proposal of his and he’d call it a “bipartisan” effort so there’s plenty of BS on both sides in that regard).
The problem with Bigred’s list is it is entirely subjective. There is no one agreed upon set of standards amongst conservatives for what qualifies as conservative. Which is why we have paleocons, neocons, fiscal conservatives, social conservatives (etc.).
Comment by Spud — March 31, 2007 @ 10:28 am
I think the Academy of Awards usually comes close don’t you? However, we can take the jokes and not go bonkers.
No I don’t. Most of the awards and most of the acceptance speeches are apolitical. There have been some recipients who have gone off the liberal deep end, particularly in the documentary categories and short film categories and foreign film categories. But when was the last time you saw the Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress winners make an overt political reference? The biggest transgression I can remember was when Elia Kazaan was given an honorary Oscar and a bunch of the audience sat on its hands because he “collaborated” with the “other side” in the McCarthy era. I thought it was a pathetic display on their part.
But still even if you lump all of the transgressions that happen at the Oscars together it doesn’t come close to what goes on year after year at the MRC.
Comment by Spud — March 31, 2007 @ 10:35 am
Spud #32 — Spud is soooooo correct, each side is very quick to trot out any example that shows they might be trying to be “bipartisan”, when in fact very little true effort is made by either side.
Comment by Aunt Mary — March 31, 2007 @ 11:00 am
I get your point and respect your right to disagree. However, I don’t think you appreciate that the primary point of the MRC Gala is to point out satirically how one sided the MSM is everyday. They make the point by citing “verbatim in context examples” and they have a field day with them. Yes like the Academy Awards (I know you don’t see any institutional bias) name calling is an unfortunate by product. I dare say that most conservatives don’t think the Academy Awards are anywhere near politically neutral and it provides Americans like George Clooney gets a nice little political platform. Most conservatives still watch the show hoping to be entertained with a laugh or two.
By the way, do you think the judges of the Pulitzers prizes allow liberal politics to influence their decisions?
Both sides are well represented on your bog. It’s not an echo chamber. MSM take note.
Comment by steve L — March 31, 2007 @ 12:32 pm
Spud, please explain to me how I’m being disingenuous.
Shawn said according to the National Journal, Hagel is the most conservative member of the Senate. I posted the actual numbers from the National Journal, which show Hagel ranks around 29th.
I guess if you back up your statements with actual facts, it is now “disingenuous”.
Comment by bigred — March 31, 2007 @ 1:13 pm
steve L — The Academy Awards is such a great example for this discussion and for that matter many of the other type award shows. i.e. Just look at the “Dixie Chicks Saga” — the winners “ONLY” for a political statement.
The MSM leans left and represents half of our country. That view is important for balance as is Fox News reporting leaning right. The MSM is a “GOLIATH” compared to FOX News, however the MSM tries with all its might to render FOX News impotent. I know I sound like a broken record on this topic, but with out that conservative voice would we all just except everything that the MSM says and not “THINK” about it because we were not given “FACTS” from the conservative viewpoint. I am “NOT” saying that the MSM is right wing, I am saying they “LEAN LEFT”.
Comment by Aunt Mary — March 31, 2007 @ 1:59 pm
Correction - I am “NOT” saying that the MSM is left wing, I am saying they “LEAN LEFT”.
Comment by Aunt Mary — March 31, 2007 @ 2:02 pm
Now I could be wrong (it’s happened once before), but doesn’t Media Matters give out their annual awards for the newscasters whom they deam biggest mis-informers? I remember a number of people bring that up to defend Chris Matthews liberalism.
Spud, does that count?
Comment by ImNotBlue — March 31, 2007 @ 4:30 pm
It should. MRC and Media Matters are the right’s and the left’s watchdogs. If, as you say, they both have similar awards ceremonies/hatefests, they deserve the same condemnation or the same praise.
Comment by erljr — April 1, 2007 @ 12:03 am
You guys get so upset when someone criticizes anyone of a conservative background. The fact is that there is a difference between protestors outside of a college campus and a gala organized for the sole purpose of demonizing people they see as bias. Infact the truth is that anyone can can protest at an event, infact the Academy awards saw protestors last year when Brokeback Mountain got nominated for Best Picture. By no means can the Oscars be equated to the MRC Gala. Its not even about left or right, its about decency. I can name left wing talk show host but none of them has as large a following, as the ultimate venom spewer Michael Savage, the guy has the second larget audience following among conservatives- the same conservatives who like to cry about how loony and fill of hate the left is.
Comment by Sam — April 2, 2007 @ 5:29 pm