2008 Woodie Awards
Just Stop Talking
By Andrew Aschenbrenner
4/11/07 - Opinion
Once again, this is in no way suggests that the people mentioned have no right to say what they said. Free speech is the greatest element of this country, and all forms must be allowed, however threatening. This is merely a rant and a suggestion that the people mentioned would be better off if they just kept their mouth shut.
The Bush White House continues to have information issues and embarrassments, taking a break from the Alberto Gonzales attorney scandal to find Vice President Cheney lurking in the bushes during a Bush speech on the south lawn. Cheney appeared on Rush Limbaugh's radio show talking up connections between al-Qaeda and Iraq on the same day that a declassified Defense Department report confirmed that Iraq connections to the terrorist group were dubious at best. Cheney would probably do well at this point to keep doing what he has done for the better part of the last six years: stay out of sight, and certainly out of the bushes.
President Bush has jumped on the hypocrisy train yet again (what a surprise!). He continued his criticism of Congress for not passing a funding bill "without strings" before going on vacation, right before he went on vacation himself. Mr. Bush, how about you stop whining and start using your brain instead of your RNC-supplied list of talking points.
Newt Gingrich also crossed my radar, not for his call for Gonzales to resign, but for another insensitive, ill-advised remark in a speech. Gingrich referred to bilingual education as teaching the "language of the ghetto." Um...Newt, who's your speech editor? You might want to fire him and get someone who will better manage the bull---- points that you are trying to say.
Normally, a classic foot-in-mouth comment would take the prize, but the Don Imus controversy has taken on a life of its own. Now, I'm not a big fan of the Jesse Jackson's of the world, but Imus made a thoughtless and seemingly racist comment on his radio show, calling the members of Rutgers University's women's basketball team "nappy headed ho's." The Rutgers team, who lost to Tennessee in last Tuesday's NCAA Women's Championship game, is mostly black and has a black coach, C. Vivian Stringer. Imus has since apologized repeatedly, expressing remorse, and he appeared on Al Sharpton's radio show on Monday to answer to calls for his firing. At press time, Imus still had his job, but CBS, owner of the radio station where he is employed, WFAN-AM in New York City, and MSNBC, who broadcasts his show on television, have suspended his radio show for two weeks. Imus is known for saying controversial things, but this is the first time it has blown up in his face, probably because only an imbecile would say what he said. I'm not a person that thinks you should lose your job for something you say, unless you are really out of line. Imus was doing his job as a shock jock: tossing comments around for effect. Next time, Mr. Imus, think before you speak, or you will be fired for lacking the judgment to just stop talking.
The Bush White House continues to have information issues and embarrassments, taking a break from the Alberto Gonzales attorney scandal to find Vice President Cheney lurking in the bushes during a Bush speech on the south lawn. Cheney appeared on Rush Limbaugh's radio show talking up connections between al-Qaeda and Iraq on the same day that a declassified Defense Department report confirmed that Iraq connections to the terrorist group were dubious at best. Cheney would probably do well at this point to keep doing what he has done for the better part of the last six years: stay out of sight, and certainly out of the bushes.
President Bush has jumped on the hypocrisy train yet again (what a surprise!). He continued his criticism of Congress for not passing a funding bill "without strings" before going on vacation, right before he went on vacation himself. Mr. Bush, how about you stop whining and start using your brain instead of your RNC-supplied list of talking points.
Newt Gingrich also crossed my radar, not for his call for Gonzales to resign, but for another insensitive, ill-advised remark in a speech. Gingrich referred to bilingual education as teaching the "language of the ghetto." Um...Newt, who's your speech editor? You might want to fire him and get someone who will better manage the bull---- points that you are trying to say.
Normally, a classic foot-in-mouth comment would take the prize, but the Don Imus controversy has taken on a life of its own. Now, I'm not a big fan of the Jesse Jackson's of the world, but Imus made a thoughtless and seemingly racist comment on his radio show, calling the members of Rutgers University's women's basketball team "nappy headed ho's." The Rutgers team, who lost to Tennessee in last Tuesday's NCAA Women's Championship game, is mostly black and has a black coach, C. Vivian Stringer. Imus has since apologized repeatedly, expressing remorse, and he appeared on Al Sharpton's radio show on Monday to answer to calls for his firing. At press time, Imus still had his job, but CBS, owner of the radio station where he is employed, WFAN-AM in New York City, and MSNBC, who broadcasts his show on television, have suspended his radio show for two weeks. Imus is known for saying controversial things, but this is the first time it has blown up in his face, probably because only an imbecile would say what he said. I'm not a person that thinks you should lose your job for something you say, unless you are really out of line. Imus was doing his job as a shock jock: tossing comments around for effect. Next time, Mr. Imus, think before you speak, or you will be fired for lacking the judgment to just stop talking.
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