Russell Williams
Well-Known Member
December 17, 2011
Letters to the Editor
Dear Editors:
The more of David Limbaugh's columns I read the more I wonder if he is trying to become a 21st century Westbrook Pegler. Westbrook Pegler was a nationally read Pulitzer Prize winning columnist who, among other things, called for the assassination of Robert Kennedy(1,) stated that Jews were not victims because they were being rightfully punished(2), and eventually became an embarrassment to the John Birch Society(3). Pegler has provided an insight into his mind when he was quoted as having said My hates have always occupied my mind much more actively and have given greater spiritual satisfactions than my friendships. (4)
Let us consider one of the many, many, statements of David Limbaugh. This one appeared on page A4 of the Herald mail opinion page on Saturday, December 10, 2011
"Our professors of history, economics, political science, sociology, psychology, philosophy, journalism, law, the hard sciences and other fields deride Western civilization and characterize our founders as Christian mocking deists devoted to enlightenment principles of the philosophes In the name of academic Inquiry, these academic and cultural "Thought Police" indoctrinate and intimidate students who dare deviate from their thought mandates"
Would it be impertinent to ask for little evidence for such a broad statement? Where in the hard science journals are peer-reviewed articles characterizing our founders as Christian mocking deists? Where is some evidence that sociologists, psychologists, and philosophers who have huge intellectual battles in their respective fields are all united in being academic and cultural "Thought Police"? Journalism- Where is the evidence that all of the newspapers are in lockstep to "... indoctrinate and intimidate students... .?
In order to lead people into folly one must first make them fearful. In column after column David Limbaugh is attempting to scare the American people by telling them that the liberals, the intelligentsia, the educated people, people with masters degrees and doctorate degrees are attempting to destroy the country. If David Limbaugh can convince enough people that compassionate people and educated people are a danger to the country then politicians preaching hate and fear will have a much better chance of being elected. We have seen this before, repeatedly politicians, trying to be elected or reelected, have stirred up fears of our country and our culture being destroyed by dangerous groups such as the abolitionists, the Irish, the Italians, the Chinese, the Mormons, the Catholics, the Wobblies, those who would allow women to vote, the anarchists, the Communists, and the integrationists. Now it is the Muslims, the illegal immigrants, the liberals, those who would take money from the rich, the homosexuals, and the evolutionists, among others that the fear mongers tell us are about to destroy the country.
If one chooses to read David Limbaugh I strongly suggest that you keep in mind the story of Chicken Little. While David Limbaugh can be viewed as somebody running around yelling that the sky is falling, calmer and wiser heads say "Yes these are difficult times but we must keep our wits about us. We must not hand over control of the government to those politicians who try to scare us into supporting their fear driven attempts to achieve power. Such politicians can only achieve power if they can convince a majority of the people that the elimination of one particular category of US citizens will turn this into a perfect country." If we can calmly keep our wits about us then we will get through these times.
Russell Williams
(1) On Robert Kennedy:
He wished in 1965 that some white patriot of the Southern tier will spatter his spoonful of brains in public premises before the snow flies. (J. Sharlet, Paradise Shot to Hell: The Westbrook Pegler Story, in Boob Jubilee, Ed. T. Frank & D. Mulcahey, W.W. Norton & Company, 2003, p. 358)
(2) Jews, he said, could not be the victims of persecution because persecution connotes injustice They are, instead, enduring retaliation, or punishment. (D. Levitas, The Terrorist Next Door: The Militia Movement and the Radical Right, Macmillan, 2002, p. 71.) Note, In my research I found out that his first wife was Jewish. I wonder if that had any relationship to his hatred for Jews. RFW
(3) In the 1950s and 1960s, as his conservative views became more extreme and his writing increasingly shrill, he earned the tag of "the stuck whistle of journalism."[11((] ^ (Emery, Edwin. The Press and America, Prentice-Hall, 1962, pp.569). He denounced the civil rights movement and in the early 1960s wrote for the John Birch Society, until he was invited to leave because of his extreme views.[12] ^ Pilat, Pegler (1973)
(4) My hates have always occupied my mind much more actively and have given greater spiritual satisfactions than my friendships. In many places on the Internet this remark is attributed to him but I could not find a reference to a print source.
Enamored of a reckless style of attack writing, Pegler grew careless of the facts after 1950. His attack on writer Quentin Reynolds led to a costly slander suit against him and his publishers, as a jury awarded Reynolds $175,000 in damages. In 1962, Pegler lost his contract with King Features Syndicate, owned by Hearst after he started criticizing Hearst executives. His late writing appeared sporadically in obscure publications, including the John Birch Society's American Opinion and grew increasingly vituperative, violent, and unnoticed by the public that once read him eagerly.
Letters to the Editor
Dear Editors:
The more of David Limbaugh's columns I read the more I wonder if he is trying to become a 21st century Westbrook Pegler. Westbrook Pegler was a nationally read Pulitzer Prize winning columnist who, among other things, called for the assassination of Robert Kennedy(1,) stated that Jews were not victims because they were being rightfully punished(2), and eventually became an embarrassment to the John Birch Society(3). Pegler has provided an insight into his mind when he was quoted as having said My hates have always occupied my mind much more actively and have given greater spiritual satisfactions than my friendships. (4)
Let us consider one of the many, many, statements of David Limbaugh. This one appeared on page A4 of the Herald mail opinion page on Saturday, December 10, 2011
"Our professors of history, economics, political science, sociology, psychology, philosophy, journalism, law, the hard sciences and other fields deride Western civilization and characterize our founders as Christian mocking deists devoted to enlightenment principles of the philosophes In the name of academic Inquiry, these academic and cultural "Thought Police" indoctrinate and intimidate students who dare deviate from their thought mandates"
Would it be impertinent to ask for little evidence for such a broad statement? Where in the hard science journals are peer-reviewed articles characterizing our founders as Christian mocking deists? Where is some evidence that sociologists, psychologists, and philosophers who have huge intellectual battles in their respective fields are all united in being academic and cultural "Thought Police"? Journalism- Where is the evidence that all of the newspapers are in lockstep to "... indoctrinate and intimidate students... .?
In order to lead people into folly one must first make them fearful. In column after column David Limbaugh is attempting to scare the American people by telling them that the liberals, the intelligentsia, the educated people, people with masters degrees and doctorate degrees are attempting to destroy the country. If David Limbaugh can convince enough people that compassionate people and educated people are a danger to the country then politicians preaching hate and fear will have a much better chance of being elected. We have seen this before, repeatedly politicians, trying to be elected or reelected, have stirred up fears of our country and our culture being destroyed by dangerous groups such as the abolitionists, the Irish, the Italians, the Chinese, the Mormons, the Catholics, the Wobblies, those who would allow women to vote, the anarchists, the Communists, and the integrationists. Now it is the Muslims, the illegal immigrants, the liberals, those who would take money from the rich, the homosexuals, and the evolutionists, among others that the fear mongers tell us are about to destroy the country.
If one chooses to read David Limbaugh I strongly suggest that you keep in mind the story of Chicken Little. While David Limbaugh can be viewed as somebody running around yelling that the sky is falling, calmer and wiser heads say "Yes these are difficult times but we must keep our wits about us. We must not hand over control of the government to those politicians who try to scare us into supporting their fear driven attempts to achieve power. Such politicians can only achieve power if they can convince a majority of the people that the elimination of one particular category of US citizens will turn this into a perfect country." If we can calmly keep our wits about us then we will get through these times.
Russell Williams
(1) On Robert Kennedy:
He wished in 1965 that some white patriot of the Southern tier will spatter his spoonful of brains in public premises before the snow flies. (J. Sharlet, Paradise Shot to Hell: The Westbrook Pegler Story, in Boob Jubilee, Ed. T. Frank & D. Mulcahey, W.W. Norton & Company, 2003, p. 358)
(2) Jews, he said, could not be the victims of persecution because persecution connotes injustice They are, instead, enduring retaliation, or punishment. (D. Levitas, The Terrorist Next Door: The Militia Movement and the Radical Right, Macmillan, 2002, p. 71.) Note, In my research I found out that his first wife was Jewish. I wonder if that had any relationship to his hatred for Jews. RFW
(3) In the 1950s and 1960s, as his conservative views became more extreme and his writing increasingly shrill, he earned the tag of "the stuck whistle of journalism."[11((] ^ (Emery, Edwin. The Press and America, Prentice-Hall, 1962, pp.569). He denounced the civil rights movement and in the early 1960s wrote for the John Birch Society, until he was invited to leave because of his extreme views.[12] ^ Pilat, Pegler (1973)
(4) My hates have always occupied my mind much more actively and have given greater spiritual satisfactions than my friendships. In many places on the Internet this remark is attributed to him but I could not find a reference to a print source.
Enamored of a reckless style of attack writing, Pegler grew careless of the facts after 1950. His attack on writer Quentin Reynolds led to a costly slander suit against him and his publishers, as a jury awarded Reynolds $175,000 in damages. In 1962, Pegler lost his contract with King Features Syndicate, owned by Hearst after he started criticizing Hearst executives. His late writing appeared sporadically in obscure publications, including the John Birch Society's American Opinion and grew increasingly vituperative, violent, and unnoticed by the public that once read him eagerly.
