Call William Raspberry on his ignorance

courtesy of atrios
Must be Nice

It's sort of cute that conservatives are suddenly shocked that there are people expressing opinions on the radio in a less than respectful fashion. William Raspberry is so shocked by it he's decided to write a column decrying the evils of the new Franken show, even though he's never actually heard it.

-Atrios 8:15 AM

Stop Embracing the Negative

And my response to him:

I was reading your latest editorial but had to stop when I got to this sentence:

"The Franken show, as I understand the concept (I haven't been able to find it on my radio yet), is to stick it to the right the way the right has been sticking it to the left."

If you haven't even listened to his show, then how can you comment on it? And why should I accept your comments as valid, much less read them, since they are based on nothing?

Unlike you I have listened to his show, and you might be surprised that a comedian (much like most editorialists), particularly Al Franken, CAN have valid political insights based on truths. However, unlike many editorialists, he is not afraid to call someone a liar when the only way to describe what they've said is that they lied. This is not negative, it's the way things should be, as long as it is backed up by the truth.

There - how did I do for not reading the rest of your column?

I accused him of being jealous of Franken.

I also asked him how it felt to pull the same crap the conservatives do, and he accused Franken of doing.

He's an idiot.

I send it?
To willrasp@washpost.com

Dear Mr.Raspberry:
I cannot believe what our country has come to. That somebody like you, who implies to be left of center, criticizes a LIBERAL radio station and one of its programs WITHOUT HAVING LISTENED TO IT is so against any journalism standard that it is unbelievable. And that this column appears in one of our journalistic flagships is even worse.
First, Maher is NOT LIBERAL. He is a LIBERTARIAN. Second, Mr. Dennis Miller is a Bush shill (for your information, he used to lean to the left until he found that his career was in the pits and that the corporate media might need another rightwing shill). Therefore, if you are watching both of them, you are NOT listening to a liberal voice.
Second, Mr. Franken is liberal and outspoken. But unlike the right wingers, he is an HONEST person who researches before he propounds. He can back every statement he makes with correct and validated references. And, if by any chance—since he is human—he makes a mistake, he admits it and retracts in a timely fashion.
Air America and Mr. Franken are a breath of fresh air and honesty in this country of ours where the media are so corporate/Bush controlled that even CNN does not dare show the news it shows internationally here in the United States.
So, Mr. Raspberry: if you cannot find Air America on your dial, please get on your computer, go to the Air America site (http://www.airamericaradio.com/) and LISTEN. It will make you think and give thanks to independently minded people who dared provide America with a LIBERAL, HONEST point of view which, by reading your column as an example of “regular” journalism in a main media outlet, we have not been able to obtain before.
Sincerely,

such as Franken, they are immediately discredited by the media gods, who piss and moan about how celebrities have no business expressing their political views on the rest of the nation.

Name me one Hollywood, TV or sports celebrity who currently, or has recently held a national political office.

I can name several Republicans off the top of my head: Fred Thompson, Fred Grandy, Ronald Reagan,to name a few. You can probably include Charlton Heston in that group. Then, there's the sports celebrities who hold or have recently held elected offices, such as Steve Largent, JC Watts, Tom Osborne. Then, there are the Republicans who ran for office off their famous ancestors' names, such as Connie Mack and George Allen.

Holy double standards, Batman!

That is all we need. People presenting themselves as left of center and saying such bs.

about this today. http://www.dailyhowler.com/dh041204.shtml

(snip)
Raspberry has never heard Franken’s show. He offers no quote about Franken’s intentions. Despite this, he accuses Franken of deliberately offering “lies” and “left-wing misrepresentations.” This is deeply offensive writing. This morning, Raspberry’s nastiness matches the rank stupidity he put on display last week.