The America that wingnut blowhards like herself helped create, I might add. A few days ago, she wrote a column at Townhall (that bastion of free-thinking objectivity -- not) criticizing McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate. Parker was pretty harsh, actually, and called on Palin to step down for “the good of her Party and for the good of America.” She joined a growing chorus of conservative pundits, including George Will and David Frum, criticizing Palin and essentially calling her out as what she really is; an embarrassment.
Well, as Gomer Pyle would say, “Surprise, surprise, surprise!” Guess what happened next? She actually got hate mail! Imagine that! And here (via Mahablog) is her reaction to her newfound unpopularity among the rabid right-wing mouth breathers of America.
WASHINGTON -- Allow me to introduce myself. I am a traitor and an idiot. Also, my mother should have aborted me and left me in a dumpster, but since she didn't, I should "off" myself.
Those are just a few nuggets randomly selected from thousands of e-mails written in response to my column suggesting that Sarah Palin is out of her league and should step down.
Who says public discourse hasn't deteriorated?
The fierce reaction to my column has been both bracing and enlightening. After 20 years of column writing, I'm familiar with angry mail. But the past few days have produced responses of a different order. Not just angry, but vicious and threatening.
Some of my usual readers feel betrayed because I previously have written favorably of Palin. By changing my mind and saying so, I am viewed as a traitor to the Republican Party -- not a "true" conservative.
-- snip –
That we have become a partisan nation is no secret. This week has provided a vivid example of where rabid partisanship leads with the failure of Congress to pass a bailout bill vitally needed to keep our economy from unraveling. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave a partisan speech, blaming the credit crisis on the Bush administration (omitting the Clinton administration's role in launching the subprime lending debacle). Republicans responded by voting against the bill.
Everyone's to blame, by the way.
Such extreme partisanship has a crippling effect on government, which may be desirable at times, but not now. More important in the long term is the less tangible effect of stifling free speech. My mail paints an ugly picture and a bleak future if we do not soon correct ourselves.
Uh, huh. That’s pretty rich, coming from one who has helped create the entire climate in America where it is perfectly acceptable to worship hatred of your enemies. And by “enemies”, I don’t mean terrorists or Muslims, although they certainly are on their list. No, their arch-enemies are anyone who happens to hold a different opinion than they do. Anyone expressing an opinion that is not absolutely in line with what they already believe is a marked person. An infidel. Unclean. Unfit to live in modern society. That is what people like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michelle Malkin, Michael Savage, and yes, Kathleen Parker, along with countless others have been promoting for all these years that have gotten paid obscene amounts of money to encourage hatred of their fellow Americans who just happen to have a different point of view than they do.
But now, because the venom of the right wing anger squadron has been turned upon her, Kathleen Parker now is seeing the danger. “An ugly picture and a bleak future.” Yep, pretty much. Although I would tend to disagree a bit. It isn’t the future. It’s the present. It’s already here, and yes, it is bleak and it is ugly.
I felt like putting in a comment to her column, explaining a few things to her. But I didn’t bother. First off, I am sure a lot of other people have beaten me to that particular punch. Secondly, I am sure every point I would have made would have either been just ignored or would have sailed right over her head. She wouldn’t have understood. Words like “double-standard” and “hypocrisy” are no longer in the wingers lexicon. So, I didn’t bother. I would have been somewhat akin to trying to teach algebra to an elm tree. But I’ll just leave this little rant of mine with this.
What in God’s name did you people expect would happen?
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