CHOKING ON THE HYPOCRISY OF THE SELF-STYLED MORALISTS

Disinclined as I am to devote any more column inches to a discussion of
Rush Limbaugh, having read and considered Jon Schleifer's letter in last
week's SMN, I thought it possible that my first segment on Rush might have
been too easy and too breezy. Mr. Schleifer has his knickers in a knot
because I said, in my concluding remarks, that Rush was "just the same
idiot he's always been."

I guess Mr. Schleifer believes this sort of coarseness is unbecoming to an
intellect as keen as Limbaugh's, and I have no defense for it other than
believing, with all my heart, that Rush deserves no better. After all, Rush
himself is king of ad hominem attacks - does the term "Feminazi" ring a
bell? Even the term "liberal" has become a pejorative. Rather than engage
in real debate on issues and candidates, Rush simply says that anything he
doesn't like is "liberal" and is done with it.

As you may know, Rush not only resigned from his post as an ESPN football
commentator, but took a hiatus from his talk show in order to go into rehab
for an addiction to painkillers. Now, as impolite as it may seem to kick an
addict when he's down (I look forward to the new bumper sticker, "Rush is
in Rehab!"), consider the hypocrisy of Rush and his ideological compatriot,
Bill Bennett (author of the self-righteous, moralizing The Book of Virtues,
and admitted gambling addict).

These two deep thinkers spend far less time actually engaging in a real
debate of issues as they do in very carefully wrapping their rhetoric - and
themselves, ultimately - in the garments of morality and patriotism. Their
positions - on abortion, gun control, the capital gains tax, welfare
reform, mandatory prison sentences, you name it - are not only
intellectually superior, they are morally and patriotically superior as
well. You are not only right if you agree with Rush Limbaugh, you are a
better person and a better American for doing so. That is the real argument
every time.

That is why when self-styled moralists like Limbaugh and Bennett preach to
us on the dangers of drugs - and the need for much stiffer penalties for
"criminals" - while demonizing those who may take exception to cramming
more people into prison for relatively minor infractions, you will have to
excuse some of us for getting a little snippy when they walk all over us
with their clay feet. Limbaugh is a drug addict, and Bennett is a gambling
addict, by their own admission. Do as they say, not as they do, I guess, as
long as you can stand the stench of their hypocrisy.

As for Mr. Schleifer's insistence that Rush "expressed a perfectly
legitimate point of view" (when he claimed that liberal media are taking it
easy on Eagle quarterback Donovan McNabb's poor performance this season
because he is black), well, it would appear that Mr. Schleifer is as
woefully out of touch as Rush on this issue. So here's a news flash for
both of them - there are quite a few black people playing sports. Some of
them play quarterback. It has been more than 20 years since anyone noticed
or cared that an NFL quarterback is black or white, Mr. Schleifer. Yes, I
am old enough to remember when it was an issue - in 1975, Rush's comments
might have been provocative and worthy of serious discussion. In 2003, they
are out of touch and just stupid.

As an example, did you notice the furor in Jacksonville when rookie
quarterback Byron Leftwich, who is black, was named starter over Mark
Brunell, who is white, a couple of weeks ago? You didn't? Well, that's
because there was no furor. Honestly, now, how many fans around the country
really gave any thought to the racial component of this change? How many
reporters were all over the "story," writing up Leftwich as if he were this
generation's Jackie Robinson?

The good news is that it just isn't an issue anymore, and hasn't been for a
long, long time. No one cares if Leftwich is black or white, or whether
Donovan McNabb is. All that matters is whether they are performing or not.
That's it. There is no liberal media bogeyman out there manipulating the
news trying to cover up for McNabb because he's black. We're past that now.

When Rush gets out of rehab and takes his place once again as one of
America's great leaders (and great hypocrites) in the war on drugs and
other cultural battles, maybe someone will tell him. We're past that now.