Randi Rhodes: War of the Words (Oh, the whore horror!)

[LTR]

Here are some excerpts from my blog this morning.

http://ltradio.blogspot.com/2008/04/war-of-words-oh-whore-horror.html

Synopsis:

What is a whore? It's a word with several distinct meanings. And it's a word that got Air America host Randi Rhodes suspended, once a raunchy recent live performance was uploaded to YouTube. But who are the whores? Who are the hypocrites? And why can't the Clinton and Obama people get along? And above all, was Randi right?

Excerpts:

What is a whore? The word has many meanings. When most of us hear the word, our minds, naturally, turn to sex. We think Ashley Dupré and the whole Eliot (Client 9) Spitzer mess from last month. We think of streetwalkers turning tricks on seedy streets.

But the word does indeed carry many meanings...

(snip)

So, back to the Rhodes matter. The whole ordeal and how it was handled does have some precedent. In January, ESPN television personality Dana Jacobson got into hot water when, while allegedly drunk at a private roast for fellow ESPN personalities Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic, got in the spirit of things by lashing out in a kidding way with a string of f-bombs, mostly directed at Golic's alma mater, Notre Dame. Various groups, most notably the Catholic League, who didn't take kindly to phrases like "F-ck Touchdown Jesus!" went ballistic when word of this bawdy roast got out. ESPN was forced into damage control, sidelining Jacobson for a few weeks and forcing her to apologize profusely.

(snip)

Larry Johnson is a hypocrite. He proudly boasted that he and his people got her suspended. Never mind that the left-leaning crowd this former Republican shill is currently courting is one that is very vocal about media bias and censorship, and are also strong supporters of progressive media, including...surprise... Air America. This move spits in the face of all his supporters. And it looks very petty and tacky when one considers the little nasties he throws Obama's way. Yes, this is the same guy who posted an Obama hit piece with the charming title “Wrong Nigga to Fuck Wit.” Gee, nice.

Geraldine Ferraro, who along with Clinton was labeled by Rhodes as a 'whore,' is also a hypocrite. And yes, she's a sellout, a.k.a. 'whore.' There, I said it. Ferraro pisses me off... Yesterday, she took her fiery rhetoric even further by demanding Rhodes' firing. And to top it off, she said that on her usual stomping grounds of...get ready... FOX News!Hello? FOX Freakin' News? The most vehemently anti-Clinton cable news outlet in existence? The same network that, on the same show (Hannity & Colmes), rolled out right-wing hatemonger Ann Coulter (as if she's one to talk) to add her take on Rhodes' comments (while comparing Obama to Adolf Hitler in the same segment). Which makes me wonder why the Clintons even allowed Ferraro to carry their water in the first place. Geraldine Ferraro is batshit crazy, and I admit that I almost concur with Rhodes' opinion of her. Oh, and I feel less guilty now about my misspent past life as a Reagan Youth.

(snip)

Even still, as with most controversies, look for Rhodes to return to Air America soon, after the heat has died down. That's par for the course. Nonetheless, perhaps Rhodes stepped over the line a bit. Even with the raucous San Francisco audience, the tirade may have been a bit over the top. And it's appearance on YouTube is likely to scare away some of her fans. But like other controversial media personalities, such as Imus, Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and others, these people have jobs because they're controversial. We expect them to say outrageous stuff. Anyone who expects otherwise is delusional.

http://ltradio.blogspot.com/2008/04/war-of-words-oh-whore-horror.html

[Cheap_Trick]

1. The first presidential election that I was able to vote in

was 1984...Mondale/Ferraro. I regret ever casting a vote which would have made her Vice President. Her 15 minutes were up 25 years ago. She is merely a footnote in history trying to be relevant again. She is trying to live vicariously through hilla(R)y to get what she was denied.

[Howardx]

2. randi needs to get off the booze

clearly this was drunk behavior.

[rinsd]

3. Perhaps we should stop treating the outrageous assholes as entertainment,

and more like the guy screaming on the corner.