The Al Franken-Rush Limbaugh effect

[superfreak]

I saw Al Franken last night at Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh, PA. He is not anti-USA, just anti-Bush. His comedy is very entertaining. People tend to forget he is an entertainer, his goal is to make people laugh and make money. In this way his liberal message is appealing to the left the same way Rush Limbaugh's conservative message is appealing to the right.

I fear that leftist Democrats in general believe what he says to be true the same way that rightist Republicans in general believe what Rush says is true.

Democrats contend that Bush (self proclaimed uniter) has polarized the country. Although some of his actions (war in Iraq) and policies (tax cuts) have inflamed the left, Ive been playing with the idea that its not so much what he has done that bothers people, it is how the media and entertainers portray what he has done as the cause of polarization.

It seems that Government and countries are polarized by extreme fanaticism on both sides. It is not politicians who breed this fanaticsm. Entertainers who know they can make a buck by builiding up a base of fanatical followers seem to divide countries. This is what Franken and Limbaugh have done.

In my opinion Bush is neither a poor nor a great president. Like Clinton he is middle of the road. He has made progress on economic stimulation and national security but he has failed on deficit reduction and job growth. Franken would have you think otherwise. It is idiotic and unrealistic to think that any president can always make the right decisions when it comes to managing the country. It is a failure of democracy to think that a president will always do the right thing.

Franken's criticsm of Bush makes the left think that Bush must always do the right thing, or at least that he should do exactly what he said he would do when he campaigned in 2000. Limbaugh makes the same mistake when he claimes the Clinton never made rational decisions and that it was his job as president to do so.

I'm not sure where I am going with this, I just caution anyone to dive headfirst into the pool of entertainment fantasy on the intricate complexities of politics. I guesse when people get sucked into Franken and Rush's entertainment they polarize the country.

 

[eric]

Are you kidding me, this guy is nothing more than an idiot, and not because he is anti-bush, it is just his core personality !

 

[Zhukov]

Listen, I don't much care for Rush. He comes off as an egotistical windbag. However, though the man spends hours rambling on about his own obviously biased opinion, he is generally honest about it.

Franken on the other hand spreads lies and when caught in them dismisses them away with a wave of the hand describing his 'facts' as political satire. Despite this, the left continues to regard the man as an important liberal voice who fights for their 'truth'.

There's a difference.

 

[rtwngAvngr]

There's a huge difference. Rush is a brilliant political analyst and debater. Franken is an idiot.

As for the mentioned windbaginess, I find people with small egos to be incredibly boring!

 

[LoneVoice]

Actually, you were almost right on that one...

But you should've said that RUSH is a big fat idiot too.

 

[DKSuddeth]

Rush is an even bigger windbag of waste gasses than hillary clinton is.

 

[rtwngAvngr]

Originally posted by DKSuddeth
Rush is an even bigger windbag of waste gasses than hillary clinton is.

DK, glad to hear you think hillary is a windbad of waste gas. There's hope for you, yet.

 

[superfreak]

The fact that you guys can't look at both men objectively proves my point. Regardless of their intellectual capacities they both are trying to make money, this makes the "truth" they both support suspect to suspicion.

I listen to and like both of them. Just because they entertain me doesn't mean that I buy into either of their bullshit.

The polarization on this post (let alone the country) makes my initial thoughts "the idea that its not so much what he (bush) has done that bothers people, it is how the media and entertainers portray what he has done as the cause of polarization" seem like a plausible thought.

At times i think eveyone on this board should step out of their idealogical/philosophical cave (Plato) and look at the political spectrum with an eye towards historical trends not just present issues. maybe then we will come to a consensus solution for the problems of our time....instead of getting caught up calling one side "lying liars" and "big fat idiots" we may actually make some domestic progress.

Thanks for your replies.

 

[montyfowler]

Oh, Brother...you have stirred the Conservative lions today!

You have quickly discovered that there are a few people lurking around here who are intellectually stuck in a wooden box made of Conservative Republican party planks. They are as bad as the Liberals who can't reason beyond what the media pumps into their heads.

I appreciate your thoughtful comments on Mr. Franken and Mr. Limbaugh. Both are indeed entertainers, both have real insights filtered through their own political lens, and both have the ability to influence millions of people who would rather be spoonfed opinions that have to put in the work to form their own.

Keep posting and ignore the blowhard extremists.

 

[acludem]

I am a big Al Franken fan. One reason is because Al will tell you that first and foremost he is an entertainer, a satirist. His first mission has always been, and I think will always to be to make people laugh. His books on politics have been thoroughly researched and very intelligent, but at their core, they are still about entertainment. Al Franken is an unabashed Democrat and liberal. Rush Limbaugh tries to pass himself off as something other than an entertainer, some sort of broadcast journalist. Franken does not, he's an entertainer and proud of it. I don't take everything Al Franken says as absolutely true, primarly because he'd call me stupid if I did. Rush's dittoheads take everything he says as the absolute truth. The other reason I like Al Franken is because he's damn funny. The stuff he did on Saturday Night Live is brilliant. My personal favorite is Stuart Smalley ("I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it people like me!" )

acludem

 

[kcmcdonald]

While i have to agree with the post superfreak, i do have some questions for you. Have you heard the last time that rush limbau was used as a sourse on the news. However more than just a few times I have seen Franken on the news, spouting his anti-bush redoric. This calls into question wether this man(franken) truely belives that he is at first an entertainer. The fact that many of the Left "political satirists" some how end up in some facsit or another is stricking. Rush does not get invloved in any way shape or form with campaigns. However every time i look around some left comedian or actor is endorsing or raising money for a left canadite. You have to think of this on a populus term. Frankin and the Bunch use thier celbrity to influense people to their train of thought. Not by any brain washing methods but by campiagning for a canadiate. If Frankin was so independent you'ld think he would shy away from politics, however he get's up to his neck in the shit. Now can you say this is an entertainer first type person? People who listen to rush listen for one reason, the man is a conservative and his views are pretty right. However he is only a political celeb. So no one listens to the program because of a celeb. The man is very much in love with his own voice, but he is also does what he does for politics. He makes no lies about entertainment, the man is a political anyalist, that's his job that's what you get when you listen. Franken hides this fact from his audiance. They go to see a celeb. and instead get political comentary, comentary masked in the form of entertainment. Don't for a minute believe that this man(frankin)doesn't belive his own BS. So in that I would hope i'm able shed some light on the so called "entertainer" Al Franken, and the left comedians.(tina fey, Fuck you bitch!)

 

[kcmcdonald]

You have quickly discovered that there are a few people lurking around here who are intellectually stuck in a wooden box made of Conservative Republican party planks. They are as bad as the Liberals who can't reason beyond what the media pumps into their heads.

I don't learn my values and political belifes from the "media" i learn them through experience and learning. Mabey if you just picked a side(likely the left) you might be cable to decide it is exactly how you feel on certain issues. I know I am very right on most issues, but i am left on some other issues. At least i'm consistant in my views and I don't parade around as a liberal in conservative clothing. The right in this room hold true to thier oppoins. We feal that the best conservative for our country is Bush. we don't have a blind alegance to the right, however we do find most of it's platforms in agreement with our own ideas of what is right.
Get over the fact that you're this all knowing conservative who is above the fray. go to the left if you can't stand fighting with us. I'm sure they'll welcome you with open arms.

 

[sitarro]

Well acludern ,
I have found that the only people I know that think Stuart Smalley is the least bit funny are the ones that spend years and a fortune in therapy . He has made a few people laugh with his sophmoric humor but he isn't the least bit convincing as a political comentator . I used to like him , when I was a 18 year old know nothing , I have since grown up . I find him to be a notalent hack that is nobody to look to for any serious thought .

Superfreak ,
Rush Limbaugh is not trying to make money , he is the most successful person to ever be broadcast on radio . The last contract he signed was for just under a half BILLION dollars . He has over 20 MILLION listeners that are now paying attention to what politicians do everyday . He has single handedly made politics popular . That is why Democrats hate him so much , the thing they want least is a public that watches and knows what the are doing . They do so much better with uneducated , naive , lemmings that have the attention span of a 2 year old . Look at Kerry , nothing but meaningless 10 second soundbites , perfect for the dolts that catch a few minutes of the news while waitng for sports to come on .
When I hear the simplistic criticism of Mr. Limbaugh , I know that it is coming from someone that doesn't listen to his program . His listeners don't follow him like a pied piper , they listen to him because he verbalizes what they already think . He is very entertaining but that doesn't make what he says any less valid , it just makes it more interesting . I don't agree with everything he says , and I know he is a conservative , everyone is very aware of that . That seperates him from obviously biased radio programming like NPR that masquerades as a news program .
Rush always says it takes 6 weeks to get over all of the misconceptions of him and actually listen to his show , I can see that , I hated him when I first started listening to him but my father recomended his show as did every other intelligent person I knew . At the time, I was like most Democrats , which I am still registered as , I didn't know who my Congressman or state Senators were , I had no interest in politics . I voted for whoever I was told to by the famous or the "cool" . I figured they wouldn't be speaking up if they weren't paying attention . Now I have grown up and pay attention to what is said and done by all and I make up my own mind , I find that it rarely agrees with the "cool" people . I am one of the real listeners of Rush Limbaugh not the socalled dittoheads that the leftists labels us as . We are business people , usually successful , a lot of the time entrepeneurs , you don't catch a lot of slackers that listen to his program . This is reality , disagree if you want , but I know the real story .

 

[Palestinian Jew]

Everyone that believes that Rush is not a bile spewing, ego inflated windbag, and also believes that this guy is someone that speaks "truth", just look at the first quote in my sig for the integrity that Rush displays on a day to day basis.

 

[RightyRightOn]

but three of the quotes in you sig are correct!

 

[sitarro]

Palestinian ,
You have done such a great job of proving my point , you have never listened to him have you?
I don't know that nicotine is addictive, I smoke cigars and a pipe when I want to but never need to . I can stop right now and never pick either up again, how is that addictive . Where did you find this quote , on Mikey Moore's site? Limbaugh used to smoke cigarettes but quit (go ahead insert some sophmoric quip about addiction here) . You claim it is a Limbaugh quote but where did it come from , was it taken out of context?
You know 'Let it be Naked " is a much better album than the original . McCartney took out all of those faggy strings that Phil Spector put in .

 

[deciophobic]

Anyone who seriously thinks Rush is "the great truth seeker" or a briliant person has got to be completly insane.

I don't agree with some of what Al Franken says, but he is really funny about it.

 

[jimnyc]

Franken is another fat, lying idiot. Check out his page!

http://www.lyingliar.com/

 

[RightyRightOn]

Rush is brilliant, whether you agree with him or not. He succeded where everyone told him he couldn't. He is immensly popular. There is no liberal equivalent to him. Franken doesn't even come close.

 

[Palestinian Jew]

I'll admit that going from a huge fatass who was collecting unemplyoment to the most popular talk show host is a sucess story, I disagree that Rush is brilliant.

Here a few sites that support my quote and it is also the perfect excuse to quote more idiotic(non-brilliant) rush quotes:

"It has not been proven that nicotine is addictive, the same with cigarettes causing emphysema [and other diseases]."


Link You are nothing but a good brainwashed Rush follower if you actually believe that nicotine isn't physically addictive.

Another good one: On Iran-Contra special prosecutor Lawrence Walsh: "This Walsh story basically is, we just spent seven years and $40 million looking for any criminal activity on the part of anybody in the Reagan administration, and guess what? We couldn't find any. . . . There is not one indictment. There is not one charge." (TV show, 1/19/94) In fact, Walsh indicted 14 people 11 of whom were convicted or pleaded guilty, including Bush appointee John Poindexter.
Link

Ronald Reagan was the greatest president of the twentieth century.
--Rush Limbaugh :rotflmao:
Link

That was some "truth" but i guess we know why the show was crap, too much oxycotin