POLL: Did Rush Limbaugh Have to Apologize?
What's your opinion on the conservative talk show host taking on the feminist law student?
Conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh was in the headlines this week after he called law student Sandra Fluke a "slut" and a "prostitute" in response to her testimony to a Congressional committee.
Fluke, a women's rights activist, is a law student at Georgetown University, who has argued that the cost of contraception should be covered by student health insurance. In her remarks on Capitol Hill, Fluke said it is cost prohibitive for a sexually active student to pay for the cost of birth control for a full year.
Limbaugh used his radio broadcasts to address this topic off and on for three days, criticizing Fluke for her stance - accusing her of being promiscuous and calling her a "slut" and "prostitute." He later apologized on air but is still feeling the repercussions of his remarks, since several of his radio sponsors have pulled out.
Was Limbaugh right in his substance, but not the way he went about his comments? Was he totally off base?
Tell us what you think.
John
9:18 am on Saturday, March 10, 2012
By the way what is a slut ?
Margaret Shreehan
9:26 am on Saturday, March 10, 2012
Of course he should apologize as well as Bill Maher and The President.
Greg
10:42 am on Saturday, March 10, 2012
You're a republican blinded by the propaganda of Fox News. Comedians say things to make you laugh. Bill M. is a comedian. The president indicated that he did not feel someone should be called names for simply stating their position on a matter.
Rush is rich white trash
walleroo
10:41 am on Sunday, March 11, 2012
Oh, I get it. Everyone who disagrees with Greg is blinded by propaganda, but those who agree with him are upholding the truth. Okay, Greg, whatever you say. By the way, Rush Limbaugh calls himself an "entertainer"--the same defense you use for Bill Maher. You and Rush are two peas in a pod.
Hotpep
9:39 am on Saturday, March 10, 2012
Let her father pay !!! I'm tired of paying for all these handouts...
Greg
3:26 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
walleroo, actually i think disagreement is a healthy thing it challenges us to think about our position, as well as the other persons position. When you resort to name calling, that's a pretty clear indication you're not trying to understand the other persons position....at least that's what Rush did. Disagreement, as long as it's civil, is healthy.
I'm guessing you don't know Viagra is covered under most decent health care plans, government and private. I'm a male. To be perfectly honest, I don't use the stuff, but I know people who do. Here's the thing about "the people that I know" who get viagra as a part of their health coverage. they don't really need it. They take it because they feel it turns them into "superman"
If I understand the debate correctly from Ms. Fluke's point of view, I think that 1 of the points she was trying to make is that many women are dependent upon birth control for health reasons, not sexual reasons, which is opposite point Mr. Limpballs was making.
There are tons of current comedians that say some pretty vulgar stuff about public figures. They also say some very ignorant things. But their objective is to make us laugh, mostly at ourselves.
Here's the other thing about this debate that I find extremely fascinating. Politicians are elected to office to represent our will, not their individual religious, sexual, or other orientations. If 98% of women have used birth control at one time or another. That's a lot of women. :
M.Moore
5:08 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
The congressional oath of office - "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States." I believe that includes the First Amendment.
Rev. Susan Gillespie
10:13 am on Thursday, March 15, 2012
Actually, it wasn't about a handout, and neither you nor I are paying for it. It was about whether or not a medical prescription should be covered by insurance, for which both the school and the student already paid. Somewhere in the shouting, people got the idea this was a taxpayer-funded thing. It isn't.
Carolyne Curley
2:28 pm on Saturday, March 10, 2012
Here are some more quotes Rush should apologize for:
"What (Jared Lee) Loughner knows is that
he has the full support of a major political party in this country."
~ Rush Limbaugh, on Arizona shooter, 1/11/11
"If Obama weren't black he'd be a tour guide in Honolulu
or he'd be teaching Saul Alinsky constitutional law or lecturing on it in Chicago."
~ Rush Limbaugh, 7/8/10
"Guess what? Faisal Shahzad is a registered Democrat."
~ Rush Limbaugh
- lying about failed Times Square bomber, who is not registered to vote; 5/4/10
"I love the women's movement - especially when walking behind it."
~ Rush Limbaugh, 2/3/10
"Our political correct society is acting like some giant insult's taken place
by calling a bunch of people who are retards, retards"
~ Rush Limbaugh, 2/3/10
"We've already donated to Haiti.
It's called the U.S. income tax."
~ Rush Limbaugh, discouraging donations, 1/13/10
“In Obama’s America the white kids now get beat up, with the black kids cheering...
We need segregated buses"
~ Rush Limbaugh, 9/15/09
"If homosexuality being inborn is what makes it acceptable,
why does racism being inborn not make racism acceptable?"
~ Rush Limbaugh, 9/15/09
"(Obama is) more African in his roots than he is American"
~ Rush Limbaugh, 6/26/09
"The phony soldiers."
~ Rush Limbaugh, on U.S. service members who support withdrawal from Iraq, 9/26/07
Dr. Algernon V. Bhoomz
6:20 pm on Saturday, March 10, 2012
It is a sad commentary that someone who express these views are still on the Air.
If he was employed at any normal place of business, he would be fired already.
Carolyne Curley
2:30 pm on Saturday, March 10, 2012
And some more:
"Look, let me put it to you this way:
the NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons.
There, I said it."
~ Rush Limbaugh, 1/19/07
"He is exaggerating the effects of the disease...
This is really shameless of Michael J. Fox."
~ Rush Limbaugh, 10/23/06
"And don't forget, Sherrod Brown is black.
There's a racial component here, too."
~ Rush Limbaugh, on Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who is white, 2/14/06
"It has not been proven that nicotine is addictive,
the same with cigarettes causing emphysema [and other diseases]."
~ Rush Limbaugh 4/29/94
"Kurt Cobain was, ladies and gentleman, I just -
he was a worthless shred of human debris..."
~ Rush Limbaugh 4/11/94
"Do you know we have more acreage of forest land in the United States today
than we did at the time the constitution was written?"
~ Rush Limbaugh 2/18/94
"$14,400 for a family of four.
That's not so bad."
~ Rush Limbaugh, 11/9/93
Carolyne Curley
2:31 pm on Saturday, March 10, 2012
And even some more:
"There are more American Indians alive today
than there were when Columbus arrived or at any other time in history...
Does this sound like a record of genocide?"
~ Rush Limbaugh, his book: "See, I Told You So" 11/1/93
“Let the unskilled jobs that take absolutely no knowledge whatsoever to do
— let stupid and unskilled Mexicans do that work.”
~ Rush Limbaugh, Flush Rush Quarterly, Fall Issue, 1993
"Feminism was established so as to allow unattractive women easier access to the mainstream of society."
~ Rush Limbaugh, Flush Rush Quarterly, Summer Issue, 1993
"The NAACP should have riot rehearsal.
They should get a liquor store and practice robberies."
~ Rush Limbaugh, Flush Rush Quarterly, Winter Issue, 1993
"The worst of all of this is the lie that condoms really protect against AIDS.
The condom failure rate can be as high as 20 percent.
Would you get on a plane - or put your children on a plane - if one of five passengers would be killed on the flight?
Well, the statistic holds for condoms, folks."
~ Rush Limbaugh, his book: "The Way Things Ought to Be", 10/92
"Have you ever noticed how all composite pictures of wanted criminals resemble Jesse Jackson?"
~ Rush Limbaugh, 1990 Newsday article
“Take that bone out of your nose and call me back.”
~ Rush Limbaugh, to an African-American caller, at the beginning of his broadcast career as an Insult Jock in Pittsburg, 1970's
M OKeef
3:09 pm on Saturday, March 10, 2012
What does this have to do with local news????
m
4:20 pm on Saturday, March 10, 2012
She should apologize- She's a seasoned politician passing herself off as a doe-eyed college coed.
Carl Ben Witzig
9:28 am on Sunday, March 11, 2012
"the cost of contraception should be covered by student health insurance." Res ipsa loquitor" it speaks for itself. The premiums for health insurance are paid by the student or part of the fees to the school, paid by the student. A legitimate opinion and not uncommon in other health plans. Ignorance is demonstrated when RL says someone else pays (hotpep) or that sexual activity or frequency is connected to the use of prescribed OCs. OTC condoms are usually excluded anyway. Therefore, such ignorance should bring about execution as punishment for wasting time on public blogs. RL's utterances should place him on the pile of unworthy fools we all suffer everyday. More importantly, how about those Knicks?
amy wall
10:45 am on Sunday, March 11, 2012
He's another hate-mongering biggoted voice on the airwaves - someone whose words are given too much power. I wouldn't even know the man existed if it wasn't for all the stupid things he says that make it into the news. He's a nothing. Someone worth ignoring just like so many other hateful people in the world.
Gman
11:43 am on Sunday, March 11, 2012
He is an ass with a job that allows him time and time again to spew his nasty, nonsensical venom. He gets away with racist remarks that have gotten many fired or banned for less( ....see Al Campanis...Jimmy the Greek....). While his employers are applauding his ratings, the only way one can think to stop him is to call him out to his bosses while simultaneously boycotting advertisers. The "liberal media" that he attacks regularly are the "bosses" that do understand revenue loss.
DianaID
1:56 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
I do find it odd that Imus, who was famous for the "good deeds" he performed having a ranch for kids with cancer and other severe childhood illnesses, was also an entertainer, was kicked off the air for saying something pretty similar about the Rutgers women's basketball team. I can't sort out why he was punished so severely, and in my mind and I listened and enjoyed Imus fairfly often, when Rush, who has said far worse things and far more consistenly, hasn't been.
One last point about handouts. If I get insurance through an employer and I pay a premium as well as a copay, which is fairly typical, no one will consider it a hand-out. (Actually there are significant tax breaks for group health benefits, but let's even throw those out for the moment.) Well, when you get health care from a school, it's a similar deal. And what Ms. Fluke ewas talking about was that option. The issue was being a Catholic university, it wasn't covered. And, not to put too fine a point on it, the major focus was on someone who could not get birth control pills to address a non-sexually related problem that led to the loss of her ovary. Having the Affordable Medical Act ("Obamacare") will be far more similar to private insurance options than not since there isn't a public option.
M.Moore
2:48 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
So, when is Bill Maher going to apologize? Oh, I forgot, he can get away with calling women sl*ts and c***ts because it's "comedy" and the women he goes after are conservatives, so it's fair game, is that it?
Andrea
4:01 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
Bill Maher strongly disagrees with Rush's slander of Ms. Fluke. At the same time, Bill actually defended Rush on his show this past Friday night as far as having the 1st. amendment right to freedom of speech. I actually liked what another guest on the show said about how some Republican men state that sex should only happen in a marriage and only for the purposes of making babies.She proposed that women should abide by this and then we would see how much longer the above mentioned men would continue to spew this ridiculous view.
Greg
5:19 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
word games M. Moore. He's not a comedian. Rush does not refer to himself as a comedian. Maybe you meant "entertainer". I'm certainly not entertained by RL. 99.9% of what comes out of his mouth is hate. He is within his rights under the constitution i guess. entertainer is what "you" want to call him.
Rev. Susan Gillespie
10:17 am on Thursday, March 15, 2012
Two points: Saying something about a public figure IS different from saying it about a private citizen. AND perhaps he should apologize - but what does that have to do with whether or not Rush should?
Greg
4:20 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
And can someone tell me why it's o.k. for us to subsidize the oil industry? Maybe I'm missing something. I would like a response from someone who thinks this is o.k. and also agrees with Rush on the contraceptive issue. I can't imagine a decent argument one could present, but I'm certainly willing to try to see it from your point of view if you can explain it without name calling.
M.Moore
5:00 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
It is not a ridiculous view to believe that sex belongs in marriage only - maybe it's old-fashioned, but it's hardly ridiculous. Generalizing and ridiculing the beliefs of others is unfair and unkind.
It's also not ridiculous to believe that groups should not be forced to violate their beliefs by providing insurance for contraception, sterilization and morning-after pills. To those religious organizations and to many others, this is a first amendment issue, a religious liberty issue, not a matter of whether contraception is OK. Does the Constitution protect organizations from providing insurance for those things which violate their deeply-held beliefs? Many people believe that it does. The courts will decide.
Rush Limbaugh says stupid things but his point was that when do an individual's personal choices become something that the rest of us have to pay for? Why is it that Georgetown University has to provide contraception - something that violates the beliefs of the Church that founded it and continues to run it - for students so that they can have sex whenever they like? I think that is a legitimate question and there are many who agree with me. The left wishes to frame this issue about contraception, a war a women, etc., but to me and others like me, this is a constitutional issue.
BTW, many Catholic institutions already pay for birth control pills when they are considered medically necessary so that issue is really a straw man.
I
M.Moore
5:05 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
I am constantly amazed (and I probably shouldn't be) at the left-leaning propaganda of Patch (to paraphrase Greg). This poll is a perfect example, where was the outrage when Bill Maher called Sarah Palin a c**t? Not on Patch, that is for sure.
Candid
6:17 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
Sarah Palin is a public figure. And calling her names in media however deplorable is protected by First Amendment. On the contrary calling names a private citizen in media is just slander.
Don't see that much to get excited though.
Greg
7:43 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
lol, that's not a paraphrase of anything I said :).
Had Bill said Sarah Palin was a mother of 4 that he really wants to have sex with, would that have been o.k. :)?
Greg
5:34 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
religious freedom is fine. Let religious organizations apply their rules to people who subscribe to that faith. Don't know, but that makes more sense to me. That rule,religious belief, constitutional right, etc., could remain without becoming a civil liberty issue. This way, what you believe in your social bubble does not infringe upon everyone else. as for hand outs, please explain the gas subsidy and why that's good.
Nick Muson
11:24 am on Thursday, March 15, 2012
It's funny how confused right-wingers are by things like bias and racism and sexism, how willing you are to prove how clueless you are.
Calling SARAH PALIN a slut is not the same thing as CALLING ALL WOMEN WHO THINK BIRTH CONTROL SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN HEALTH PLANS sluts. This should be VERY obvious to someone with a brain.
And, in the spirit of false equivalency, Bill Maher once lost a network job for what he said. And Bill Maher gets pissed on by the feminist left ALL THE TIME. It just doesn't make Fox News when the left criticizes the left -- it's not in their interest to report on such things -- so ditto-heads think it never happens.
And wrt to this ridiculous false equivalency, are you right-wing ditto-heads saying it is OK for Bill Maher and Rush to say horrible sexist things because they can each point at each other? Or are you saying they are both wrong?
Andrea
9:58 pm on Sunday, March 11, 2012
I agree with Candid! The whole issue is that nobody is asking the public to fund contraception, when you have employer provided health insurance, it is coming out of your pocket! I am a woman and Sarah is an idiot like Rick, Mittens and the Pillsbury Dough Boy, Newt (aka, a snake). Why aren't you screaming about the hypocrisy of Rush and the rest of the above who constantly talk about how we need to get government, etc out of our lives when they are so busy telling us (mostly women) what we can and cannot do with our bodies and lives.
M.Moore
6:23 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
Andrea, you pay for all your health insurance? Your employer doesn't pay anything? Most employers pay quite a bit toward their employee's health insurance.
Greg
5:49 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
CHURCHES: wow, where do I start! You want to talk about the morality and rights of the catholic church as it relates to sex. WOW!!!!!! Last time I checked, a considerable amount of noise was being made about sex crimes on children.....never mind what faith; you pick :).
Churches are organizations made up of PEOPLE.......REGULAR PEOPLE. who try to practice a certain way of living, No one is perfect. every living person on this planet has some issues.
why can't we all just get along :).
Greg
6:10 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
I believe in free speech.
You appear to me to enjoy "bait & switch" word games in your effort to support your argument. That's fine. Please tell me why is it o.k. for us to continue subsidizing oil companies. THAT'S A HANDOUT!!! .
M.Moore
6:20 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
I have no idea what you are talking about. Talk about word games. You asked for an explanation for the opposition to the mandate. I gave you one. You don't agree, fine, the courts will decide. Instead of respecting my opinion, you accuse me of word games. (My comment about paraphasing you related to your comment on Fox News, I'm sorry if I offended you.) Hardly a fair and honest discussion. I am finished here.
BTW, I don't believe that we should subsidize oil companies or corn or anything else right now.
trey bruder
10:05 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
Rush is a typical Millburn Old Guarder; refuses to accept women as members in our Old Guard
Jay Gerish
10:17 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
Again, another case of liberal hypocrisy
Greg
10:34 am on Monday, March 12, 2012
What's unfair? Also, where did I ask for explanation about the Fluke opposition? Maybe you misunderstood me. I was asking someone to respond to the oil subsidy, who also agrees with Rush. While is disagree with you about RL, we are in agreementabout oil and the subsidy they receive. Thais is civil debate.
I guess my bigger question is why so many attacks on womens rights all of a sudden? Why do republicans scream about government staying out of the doctors office and the reach of big government and "obama care" then turn around and tell women they have to have an unnecessary examination?
Rev. Susan Gillespie
10:23 am on Thursday, March 15, 2012
It's a legitimate question about whether or not Catholic-run institutions should have to comply with this mandate about insurance and contraception. The church doesn't, but when you get into universities, hospitals, etc., where you are hiring people who are not members of your faith, it may well be that you owe a duty to them regarding their medical care that members of your faith willingly give up. However, I can see their point. NONE of that, however, justifies RL's 3-day rant about a private individual in which he called her terrible names, alleged all kinds of sexual activity and destroyed her reputation (if anyone believes him). That's out of bounds, and it isn't the same thing as calling public figures names, although we could do without that as well. So let's stop shifting the blame and call it what it is, and demand that it stop.
John Fonseca
11:07 am on Thursday, March 15, 2012
Who cares? Rush Limbaugh, Bill Maher, Jon Stewart, and Stephen Colbert, et al are not journalists or politicians. They're entertainers. They interpret events according to their respective play books and perform their schticks as is their custom. People then get all fired up right on cue.
Did someone mention earlier that Rush's comments have actually helped the cause of the young woman because it got her out there as a victim of the Far Right? I saw her on CNN and she seemed well spoken and not at all flapped by the incident.
Nick Muson
11:31 am on Thursday, March 15, 2012
John, I couldn't disagree with you more. Satire is powerful when done right, and as much as you would like to denigrate it, it is VERY difficult to do well, which is why we've only had 20 or so really good ones over the last 200 years. They are valuable, and a good satirist is in no way the same sort of "entertainer" as a tap dancer (nothing against tap dancers). Basically, all of the people you list have a large influence, whether you'd like that to be the case or not.
And whether or not this woman was personally offended or not says things about HER character, but otherwise it's a totally moot point.
John Fonseca
12:37 pm on Thursday, March 15, 2012
Nick, we're not talking Jonathan Swift here. I haven't watched Bill Maher in a while, but from what I remember, he invites people of various fame and views (sort of like Dancing with the Stars meets the debating team). He brings up the various hot button topics of the day and the guests argue. He then pontificates and they move on. Sort of like the McLaughlin Group but with bad words.
The Comedy Central guys mostly play news clips of people they don't like and make funny comments. Sort of like MST3K with no robots.
Rush just spews vitriol like Howard Stern spews whatever he spews.
I'm not denigrating these guys, I'm just saying what I believe they are not. I don't believe that entertainers are lower in status than journalists and certainly not lower than politicians. I really enjoyed Religulous I think that many episodes of South Park exhibit much more cutting satire than most any other contemporary practicioner of the craft.
But I don't believe that any of these guys on either side of the spectrum are really changing anyone's mind. Dittoheads go for Rush because he says what the already believe. Same with the other guys. Personally, if all of a sudden the satellite radio in my car started playing Rush Limbaugh after 15 minutes I don't think I'd all of a sudden become a Republican. So, yeah... they have a large influence but on people already in their camp.
Nick Muson
1:15 pm on Thursday, March 15, 2012
Well that's your opinion, John, and I didn't make any comparisons between anyone and anyone. You boil-down 3 people you admit you only have passing familiarity with to one-dimensional characters who are easily dismissed, and then you dismiss them.
"they have a large influence but on people already in their camp."
There are differing levels of influence, John, must you be so black-and-white? And within their "camps" they can influence direction and language, which is still influence.
I don't know why I am arguing with you. Go to any thread on any message board in the history of message boards, and someone will wander in and tell everyone why they shouldn't care. If you don't care, why are you posting? It says something about a person. Apologies for getting involved.
John Fonseca
2:32 pm on Thursday, March 15, 2012
Nick,
You don't know why you're arguing with me? Well, at the point that I got tired of counting, I found 15 of the previous posts under your name contain personal attacks and/or name calling. You mentioned the strawman and sophistry. How about arguing ad hominem?
The funny thing is that I agree with a large part of what you're saying, but the way in which your arguments are presented erodes their effectiveness greatly, in my opinion.
Apology accepted.
Nick Muson
2:41 pm on Thursday, March 15, 2012
Right John, that's why I was personally invited to blog on Maplewood Patch, because my arguments are so lame.
You are confused about what a personal attack is, I think. Telling someone their argument sucks is not a personal attack, it's just an attack. Don't be so sensitive.
Mary Mann
1:15 am on Friday, March 16, 2012
Nick,
Please see my email.
Greg
3:56 pm on Thursday, March 22, 2012
no one wants to admit it but this entire debate is the result of middle aged white men who are concerned about the preservation of the white race in america as the majority. No one in mainstream news will say it, but that's really the driving force behind this. Just think about it! Why would republicans propose something that is so unpopular amongst women. Someone feels this comment is inappropriate. O.K. that's fair. But think about this and look out how long the white race will be the majority in the USA and I'm certain you'll look at this entire debate differently and with a little insight