Today's WaPo had yet another right-winger's lament about the assault on their monopoly of hate, er, talk radio. Previous laments have come from such luminaries as "Mushroom Cloud" Gerson and Kraphammer; and now (again) we hear from George "Quill" Will. With everything they could be spilling ink about these days, isn't it curious that they feel so threatened by the (unfortunately, dim) prospect of the Fairness Doctrine being re-activated?
Toward the end of his piece, Quill has a wonderful statement that captures the irony of the cancerous spread of right-wing broadcast networks (Clear Channel, Sterling, Bonneville, etc.) and the message they have driven on the airwaves:
"Having so sullied liberalism's name that they have taken to calling themselves progressives, liberals are now ruining the reputation of reactionaries, which really is unfair."
Quill. Quill. Quill. No, what sullied liberalism's name was its use as a pejorative for 40 years by people like you, Quill, and the crackpots monopolizing the airwaves. Name calling and finger pointing to divide Americans has been a right-wing tactic long before Karl Rove raised it to an art form. What you don't like is for us to fight back. And don't worry - labeling liberals with your newest name (btw, we think "reactionary liberals" sounds an awful lot like Doughy Pantload's "liberal fascists" - creativity isn't a reactionary strong suit) doesn't ruin reactionaries' reputation. That's been accomplished by all the people enshrined in your Hall of Fame: McCarthy, Nixon, Agnew, Reagan, Cheney, Bush, etc., and the crackpots in the wingnut welfare media that you want to shield.
(Image: Quill's doppelganger, Richie Rich)
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