All thanks and praise to the inventor of the Mute Newt button ...

Normally, I think it's good to hear people out. At the very least , there's that "know thine enemy" motive. I really appreciate that Rachel and Lawrence and Ed and Rev. Al invite onto their shows these people with whom they know they don't agree on anything (though I'm not sure how they can endure some of them). But when someone has established a lifelong pattern of ignorant, prejudiced, over-the-top bloviation, and is seemingly unable to suppress same for more than one sentence, I just can't justify wasting my neurons on processing his swill.

By now, even the M$M should know better than to bring a TV camera anywhere near Newt Gingrich. He's an attention whore -- maybe even the type specimen. But however volubly and aggressively he dispenses his opinions, there's simply nothing there that anyone else needs to hear. It's just Newt glorying in being Newt, a legend in his own mind. I've taken to hitting the mute button as soon as his swollen head pollutes my screen, or as soon as I hear the intro "Gingrich had this to say ...". I've never done this for anyone else.

It's time for Newt's face to be replaced by a PhotoBucket (etc.) "Lifetime Bandwidth Exceeded" icon.