Let's Shine Some Light On The Awfulness That Is Bill Maher

[Exultant Democracy]

33. 1. I read the article so don't ask. 2. His horribleness

Is within the mainstream of horribleness. He wasnt a liberal a few decades ago and his opinions and position for the most part haven't evolved. However the right wing drift in the US had aligned him with the left on most issues.

His transphobia and Islamophobia is terrible. His stance on 14 year old boys banging the "hot" teacher is also terrible and is exactly what you see on almost every late night show especially if you look at the generation of hosts he came up with.

The one defining feature of his show however is his panels. It's probably the only place on TV where anything even resembling debate goes on anymore. We got to watch Ben Affleck call Bill a racist for his views on Islam and he didn't cut off the mic or cut to commercial. At the same time when people come on and just lie they get their asses handed to them right there without filter.
Moreover you get to hear the audience boo Bill when he says the stuff we agree is terrible.

Most of us can't stomach even a few minutes of Rush or any of the hard right, and his listeners are more or less lost to us anyway. Bill however speaks for a class of somewhat clueless libertarians who kinda want to be on the left, and he can packed his ideas in a manner which is somewhat tolerable, so hearing what he has to say has some value.