Ron Silver once said...

[WilliamPitt]

...this:

I am tired of working for candidates who make me think I should be embarassed to believe what I believe. We all need some therapy, because somebody came along and said Liberal means soft on crime, soft on drugs, soft on communism, soft on defense, and we’re going to tax you back to the stone age because people shouldn’t have to go to work if they don’t want to. And instead of saying, “Excuse me, you right wing, reactionary, xenophobic, homophobic, anti-education, anti-choice, pro-gun, Leave It To Beaver-trip back to the ’50s,” we cowered in the corner and said, “Please don’t hurt me.”

...while playing the character of Bruno Gianelli on the West Wing.

I remember how DU went berzerk the night Silver said that on the West Wing. It was an episode called "Gone Silent," and right after Silver delivered those lines, 250 "Yeah!" threads erupted right here in GD. It was an all-too-accurate diagnosis of the malady afflicting Democratic party politics. The words are one thing...but Silver's delivery was gold.

It was memorable. tservo found a link to the scene:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCSMyFWTjRc

Enjoy.

(thanks, tservo...MST3K baby... ;) )

[Drunken Irishman]

1. Then he turned into one of those right wing, reactionist, xenophobic assholes.

[Marr]

3. He was an actor.

He might well have been one of those xenophobic assholes when he delivered those lines. In fact, I like to think he was. It'd say much for his acting.

[Drunken Irishman]

5. Well when was that episode?

I don't even know when West Wing started airing.

All I know is that he went off the deep end after 9/11.

[WilliamPitt]

7. 11/14/01

http://www.westwingepguide.com/S3/Episodes/51_GQ.html

[Drunken Irishman]

10. Ok, so he might've been in transition.

[MessiahRp]

16. He played a greedy, corrupt politician in TimeCop...

One who used the time machine to make money off of the stock market crash of 1929 even. Seems like he knew how to play a Republican very well to me.

Rp

[stray cat]

15. He was so right wing he even voted for Obama

It sounds to me like he actually couldn't be simplistically pigeonhold. Maybe unlike some he actually put thinking ahead of partisan soundbites. I may have disagreed with him but I don't mind disagreeing with thoughtful inteligent humans versus simplistic partisan hacks at least.

[Marr]

2. oops- doublepost

[Vickers]

4. Who wrote those words?

There's yer culprit.

:eyes:

[ColbertWatcher]

8. Sorkin wrote that episode ...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0745626/

[WilliamPitt]

9. Probably Sorkin

http://www.westwingepguide.com/S3/Episodes/51_GQ.html

[tservo]

6. here it is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCSMyFWTjRc

[Selatius]

11. You might want to take up your beef with Democrats who sold out working class interests.

Specifically those Democrats who will not stand up for the rights of working people everywhere when it was time to stand up and be counted.

Whenever it was time to rally votes to stop some idiotic right wing scheme, there was always a good segment of the party that just jumped ship and joined Republicans in shooting down progressives.

[old mark]

12. This was when the minority Democratic party became the

"me too" party, trying to become GOP lite.


mark

[jus_the_facts]

13. May he rest in peace.

K'n'R

[stray cat]

14. He voted for Obama

[JackRiddler]

18. He helped the Lewis Libby Legal Defense Trust.

So if Genghis Khan voted for Obama, everything's peachy for him too, right? (I guess we can call that the Colin Powell defense; he's no longer a primary architect of mass murder in Iraq because he endorsed Obama!)

From Silver's wikipedia page:

"On September 8, 2006, it was announced that Silver had joined an advisory committee to the Lewis Libby Legal Defense Trust."

(The Scooter Libby defense site is no longer online.)

Silver was also in FahrenHYPE 911.

It's incredible what a touch of celebrity worship can do to sharp minds on DU. Silver throws a scrap to the people he's been kicking down, and we are all supposed to be grateful.

[JackRiddler]

17. As you know Ron Silver didn't say that, but here is something he really did say.

Come on, Pitt, what's this bullshit? Lines spoken by a character on a television show bear no necessary connection to the views of the hired actor playing the character. (Charlton Heston didn't find the Statue of Liberty in the sand, either.)

Here is what Ron Silver, the man not the actor, actually did say as a speaker at the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York City:

Under the unwavering leadership of President Bush, the cause of freedom
and democracy is being advanced by the courageous men and women serving in our
Armed Services.
The President is doing exactly the right thing.
That is why we need this President at this time!
I am grateful for the chance to speak tonight to express my support for
our Commander-in-Chief, for our brave troops, and for the vital cause which
they have undertaken.

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/08-30-2004/0002240914&EDATE

[seemslikeadream]

19. ..........

:thumbsup: