WHERE IS THE OUTRAGE, DITTOHEADS?

The Dittoheads have fallen silent, at least where their hero,
right-wing radio talk-show blowhard Rush Limbaugh, is concerned.

It's kind of strange to witness these legions of devotees sit with
mouths taped shut as their guy has re-emerged on the radio with his
reputation intact. Heaven knows, these folks have lots to say about
everyone else's problems - legal or otherwise.

Even their main man, Limbaugh, has been known to spout off about the
evils of consuming illicit drugs. Send 'em up the river, he has
blustered over the years.

Ah, but now he's back after spending five weeks in rehab. The
Dittoheads? Why, they've found a tolerant streak.

Rush is no hypocrite, they say, even though he's allegedly being
investigated by police for obtaining prescription painkillers
illegally. I understand the difference between consuming ill-gotten
painkillers in a plush Florida estate (where Limbaugh lives) and
mainlining "smack" behind some back-alley trash bin. That difference
likely explains why Limbaugh isn't in the slammer waiting for the
government to decide whether to prosecute him. Limbaugh, though, never
seemed to make that distinction when arguing that drug users should be
sent up the river.

Limbaugh is KGNC radio's No. 1 show, says the Amarillo radio station's
program director, Chris Albracht. Limbaugh is on the air five days a
week from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., filling Panhandle residents'
automobiles, homes and offices with his brand of "analysis."

Has anyone called to complain about Limbaugh? Has anyone suggested
that Limbaugh is a hypocrite for calling for the maximum punishment
for other drug abusers? Not yet, said Albracht.

"Hey, this is Rush Country," Albracht explained. "He's been here twice
and he's our most popular show."

Albracht wondered whether "the lack of words on the subject suggests
acceptance" from the Panhandle's listeners toward their guy's
drug-related legal troubles.

One person did write an anonymous note, which he scribbled on a copy
of a newspaper article chronicling Limbaugh's return to the air,
Albracht said, adding quickly that he gave that unknown person's
criticism of Limbaugh all the attention it deserved: none.

"No one has called us or written us to challenge us for running
Limbaugh's show," Albracht said.

Ah, human nature is wonderful, but so very predictable. Humans react
more viscerally to ideas with which we disagree. I see this all the
time in my business. The person who writes letters to the editor more
often than not does so to criticize someone or some idea.

So, it's no surprise that Limbaugh's return to the air would spawn
such silence among the Dittoheads.

Do I favor drug legalization? No. I believe we should maintain the
criminal punishment for those caught selling, buying or using illegal
drugs. But should we send 'em all "up the river" no matter what, as
Limbaugh has advocated? I won't go that far. Different categories of
drug crimes warrant different penalties.

I must offer a disclaimer: I haven't listened to every word Limbaugh
has said on the air since his return. In fact, I have listened to only
a tiny snippet of his show since he came back from rehab.

But I haven't heard about him performing a simple act: apologizing for
his intemperate, intolerant and ignorant remarks about drug users.

Albracht wondered whether the public has become "jaded" by reading
about so many celebrities getting caught using illegal drugs. "We see
these people going into rehab all the time," Albracht said.

Perhaps. But I don't recall hearing actor Robert Downey Jr.
proclaiming maximum punishment for drug users while he shot heroin
into his veins.

In a column published Oct. 9, 1993, I compared Limbaugh's political
commentary to Willard Scott's weather forecasting. "Willard Scott
makes me giggle. Rush Limbaugh makes me sick," I wrote then.

My basic view of Limbaugh hasn't changed in those 10
years.

I should add that now, in light of these allegations, Limbaugh's
hypocrisy by itself should be enough to cause grief, anger and
indignation among the Dittoheads. They should speak out against the
tarnished self-proclaimed paragon of mortal rectitude.

I guess, though, a true-blue Dittohead accepts the blather that comes
from a comedian posing as a political guru. They aim their righteous
anger only at those with whom they disagree.

Just like Rush.