Chicago Sun-Times Columnist smacks down Rush Limbaugh

[JackBeck]

by: juicyjuice
Sun Oct 12, 2008 at 22:30:30 PM EDT

When Chicago Sun-Times Columnist Mary Mitchell called out Sarah Palin for inciting hate at her rallies, she got http://www.eurweb.com/story/eur47744.cfm">quite an angry response from Rush Limbaugh

"Mary Mitchell, a wuss, wimp columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times says that Sarah Palin should be censured. She says that 'Sarah Palin should apologize to the Obama campaign and the American people for her role in bringing out the worst in her supporters.' This is laughable.

"Come on, Mary. Grow up. This is the big leagues. How about the people in your party? I know you're a Democrat, Mary Mitchell. You can't deny it, all you liberal media people are Democrats. What about the incitement of this whole country that you and your fellow journalists have engaged in along with the Democrat Party? You have gendered up hate for this president. You have ginned up a despise for the US military. You have sought to convince the American people their country is worthless and sinking into an abyss. You have been doing it for six years." Limbaugh also called Mitchell a "racist nutball."

Little did Rush know Mary Mitchell is neither a wimp nor a wuss. Her response?

When you step on a pig's tail, it squeals. Rush Limbaugh is a squealer.
And why is he squealing?

Because John McCain and Sarah Palin are losing ground in a contest that they thought was theirs.

And they are losing it to a black man.

Of course, Limbaugh won't say that. Instead, on Thursday he spent his time berating me for saying Palin needs to apologize for inciting crowds that hurled racial epithets at black members of the press.

I'm a "wuss, wimp columnist," Limbaugh says.

So why would a multimillion-dollar squealer use his air time on a "wuss and a wimp?"

The reason Limbaugh is squealing like the pig he is, is because he's the epitome of white privilege.

He can't wrap his small mind around the fact that Barack Obama is kicking McCain's butt in the polls.

To make matters worse, how dare a black woman ask a white woman who is on the GOP ticket to apologize for the inappropriate behavior of her supporters?

But my position is really a no-brainer.

Whenever a crowd gets whipped up to the point that they turn ugly and start hurling racist insults, it is common sense that the candidate moves to rein it in.

But McCain is so desperate to win, he's feeding off of those angry crowds.
Come on.

The squealer was among the first to demand that Barack Obama (Barack, Rush, not Barry) denounce his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, for comments deemed offensive to white people.

I repeat. Had Obama fans acted a fool the way McCain fans did, every pundit -- with the squealer leading the way -- would have demanded he offer some kind of apology.

I'm the "racist nutball," but the squealer is the one who has made a fortune ridiculing black people at every opportunity.
But I have a voice, too. And all of Limbaugh's bluster and all the calls of his rabid followers won't be enough to silence me when bigoted bullies are running amuck.

Besides, I'm not running for VP. Limbaugh's sorry-ass Palin is.

If Limbaugh wants to spend his time trying to bully me, as they say in my neighborhood, bring it.

http://www.pamshouseblend.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=7528

[blueclown]

1. The squealer.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[JackBeck]

21. I particularly like the imagery of stepping on a pig's tail.

It's as if she's crushing his dick with this article.

[mlevans]

161. That would be to make the assumption that he has one. n/t

[Laelth]

50. Teehee. I love that. n/t

:dem:

-Laelth

[rucognizant]

155. WHats up woith this?

[Dont_Bogart_the_Pretzel]

162. Now someone needs to put lipstick on Limbaugh

:hi:

[TheCowsCameHome]

2. Nice reponse, Ms. Mitchell - You called the pig out, and

as usual he tucked his curly little tail between his fat, flabby legs.

[SpiralHawk]

12. Limbaugh is a draft-dodging republicon chickenhawk

like the other republicon propagandists

[yardwork]

33. I heard that Rush Limbaugh is a hardcore junkie pedophile.

You can google it.

[Bake]

98. Is he really?

I heard that too! Some people say that he is. And I saw it on the internet.

:rofl:

Bake

[Chemical Bill]

130. Do you mean he's the kind of guy...

that takes Viagra(TM) on a guys only junket to an island where sex tourism is rumored to happen?

Bill

[Enthusiast]

92. Limbaugh is a lying draft-dodging chickenhawk

drug addicted miniature dick pedophile fat asshole pussy. I'm sure I forgot something.

[JackBeck]

49. After mocking Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's, I thought this man couldn't get any lower.

Yet here we have him accusing an African-American woman of being a racist.

Next thing you know, we'll see Michele Malkin supporting internment camps...oh...wait...

[Maat]

108. LOL!

:rofl:

[volstork]

135. I'm sure that tail had plenty of room,

because there's nothing ELSE taking up space between his legs...

[SusanaMontana41]

158. Beautiful imagery,

isn't it?

Finally, he's been smacked down. Butt good. 'Bout time.

[Robbien]

3. The squealer. How appropriate. Wish that name for him sticks.

It describes him perfectly.

[tledford]

8. We can help it stick.

Write LTE of your local papers, referring to him as "Squealer" Limbaugh. Call in on his show and/or other right-wing (and left-wing, for that matter) talk shows and call him "Squealer." Call him "Squealer" when you're talking to any of your friends, relatives and coworkers who actually listen to his show, or even if they don't.

If enough of us use the name often enough, it'll stick.

I like it: "Squealer" Limbaugh.

[concreteblue]

103. i call him

"Flush Rimjob" - "Cleaning the kitchen of the GOP since 1988"

[Seldona]

115. I call him The Water Carrier.

He admitted it himself after all.

[JackBeck]

55. History will not cast a good light on this man.

We can only humbly add this apt description to the list that's already being compiled.

[rufus dog]

62. Even more so

Squealer was the propagandist spewing pig in Animal Farm.... and who did Squealer use to promote the propoganda? The sheep!

[frylock]

4. pwnd

[JackBeck]

56. I must say I have to agree.

That was a most righteous smack down.

[nam78_two]

99. Indeed

:)

[BrklynLiberal]

5. Gee, the squealer may have a stroke when he reads that....

:eyes:

What a fantastic column. Hope she writes more, and other columnists are encouraged by her courage and forthrightness.

[JackBeck]

57. He'll probably figure out another way to get the ACLU to come to his defense.

Even though he loves to trash them, while enlisting their services.

It amazes me how the freepers are remiss to acknowledge that little piece of reality.

[immoderate]

6. Hee hee! K&R.

--IMM :rofl:

[JackBeck]

60. She pretty much nailed it for me.

She just dressed him down good.

[Raster]

7. You go, Mary Mitchell! But don't hold your breath. "Squealer" Limpballs is the wuss.

He only hurls insults from afar, never getting close enough to risk getting his ass kicked.

You sure do have a purty mouth, boy! <cue banjoes>

[Blue_Tires]

9. WIN

[KamaAina]

10. Rush got beat up by a gi-irl! Rush got beat up by a gi-irl!

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

edit: emoticons

[JackBeck]

17. Lol. Totally.

[live love laugh]

11. I don't always agree with Mitchell but I'm glad she smacked the SQUEALER down. Oink Oink.

They're all pigs.

[noiretextatique]

13. if you can, go post a comment at her column

she's gotten a lot of comments from freepers.

[ITsec]

14. Squeal like a pig...

...cueing up the banjo music from "Deliverance".

[Dinosaur13]

15. Oink Limbaugh!

[Froward69]

16. I like rushes new nickname

"squealer" only it takes away from the AC/DC song of the same name.

[elizfeelinggreat]

18. Thanks

That was a satisfying read - and a great reminder:

But just in case you don't recall who Limbaugh is, he's the fat guy who got hooked on painkillers and had to go to rehab -- sort of like my girl, Amy Winehouse.

As I noted in a column I wrote in 2003 (the real source of the squeals I'm now hearing, since Limbaugh didn't address a single issue I raised in the column he attacked), despite Limbaugh's drug addiction, he was still allowed to return to his popular radio show.

[pokerfan]

154. Why didn't he send himself "up the river?"

"What this says to me is that too many whites are getting away with drug use. {...} The answer to this disparity is not to start letting people out of jail because we're not putting others in jail who are breaking the law. The answer is to go out and find the ones who are getting away with it, convict them and send them up the river, too."
-- Rush Limbaugh show, Oct. 5, 1995

[14thColony]

19. This was the verbal equivalent of a KO ten seconds into the first round

Squealer is best served to just shut up now on this one. Anything else is just spitting up blood while down on the mat.

[hfojvt]

20. smacks down? Only if name calling and taunts are a smack down.

Also good job bringing race into it. NOT.

Rush Limbaugh has been around since the early 1990s throwing all manner of slime at Democrats and hoping it will stick. I don't think he cares that much that Barack is black. He's probably trashing Joe Biden too just like he trashed Kerry, Edwards, Gore, Lieberman, and both Clintons. He'd probably love to see Colin Powell, Clarence Thomas, or Condaleeza Rice way ahead in the polls against Dick Gephardt or Gary Hart.

Limbaugh has not made a fortune by "ridiculing black people at every opportunity", because he spends lots of his time ridiculing white people too. In fact, he lost a high profile job for saying something stupid about a black person (McNabb).

Mitchell gives an example of racism here, IMO, because in defending herself or counter-punching against an obnoxious moron who happens to be white, she decided to take a few swings at all white people too.

[blogslut]

23. I disagree

Rush Limbaugh has always skated on the thin edge of racism. He is most absolutely a pig. It's not name-calling when the descriptions are accurate.

Ms. Mitchell is spot-on.

[hfojvt]

27. I don't know enough about Limbaugh to know one way or another

but I cannot believe he talks about black people at EVERY opportunity. Doesn't he also spend time blathering about his ties, Billary and feminazis, etc., etc., etc. Plus, he is most probably a fan of CT, Powell and the San Fransisco treat. Maybe Alan Keyes and Lynn Swain (sic) too.

[blogslut]

29. What does regularity have to do with it?

Does his program concentrate entirely on his veiled racism? No. He's a man with many horrid qualities. When I first saw him in the 1990's I picked up on his racism. From all I hear of him now, he hasn't changed one bit. I would imagine that if Colin Powell were to turn around and support Obama, old Rush would throw out some Uncle Tom reference.

Can we at least agree that the man is a porcine hate machine?

[hfojvt]

39. regularity has something to do with the accuracy of this attack

"the squealer is the one who has made a fortune ridiculing black people at every opportunity."

At every opportunity? I am sure he does some of it, particularly since many black people are liberals and because some liberal leaders and politicians are black, but it's not the only thing he does, nor is it necessarily the secret of his financial success.

From the 2nd chapter of "Rush Limbaugh is a big fat idiot"

"And at 12:15, Rush is peeved:

'Let me give you another example here of the press. This may be as good as (sic) an example as I could cite to show you how it is that the left has stereotype. Now you people all know that I have introduced a new line of neckwear, commonly known as ties ..."

...And he won't stop. He's going on and on about those ties. So I flip around the dial, catch an inning of the Mets game, and then come back to Rush. And his brutally defamed ties: ..."

From Chapter 22

"Reaganomics worked. This is the jewel in Rush's crown of bullsh*t. This is the big lie - the one he desperately needs the working-class members of his audience to believe. If Reaganomics worked, Rush is a straight-talking champion of the little guy on a populist crusade to take the country back from those pointy-headed liberals who think they know what's good for everybody and are drunk with the power of sending out welfare checks.

If Reaganomics didn't work, Rush is the carnival clown hired to distract the crowd while paramedics carry the mangled bodies from a derailed roller coaster. He does a little juggling, pulls some flowers out of his hat, and when the crowd begins to get a little anxious about the rising body count, he starts shrieking hysterically that this never would have happened if it weren't for those g*dd*m liberal safety inspectors."

So, yeah, he's on my enemies list. Which is why I read this thread hoping to see him smacked down hard.

[PopeRatzo]

97. Yes, "every opportunity"

Perhaps Rush Limbaugh missed an opportunity to launch a racist attack here and there, but if so, he hasn't missed many. There is an ugly racism in the things he says that often extends to "his own" tame Republican blacks. Woe be to Colin Powell when he dared to voice disagreement with the Bush Administration, for example.

Rush can't even talk about sports without showing his nasty racism. Do you remember why he got canned from his NFL gig? Do you remember his comments about how Donovan McNabb would be considered a mediocre QB if only he was white? Have you never heard Rush do his Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton "impressions"? Do you remember him mispronouncing the name of the mayor of New Orleans as "Ray Nayger"?

And, as a white person who only by the color of my skin enjoys some measure of "white privilege", I can say without fear that Rush Limbaugh embodies the "epitome of white privilege".

Do you doubt that if he'd been a person of color he'd have done hard time for his trafficking in oxycontin? Or that if he'd been an African-American radio host who had "come out" as a junkie he'd have been dropped from most of his radio stations?

I'm sorry, "hfojvt" but when you say "Rush is a straight-talking champion of the little guy " you lose absolutely any credibility you may think you have.

[hfojvt]

114. welcome to DU

I didn't consider the McNabb comments to be racist. Wrong and stupid and unnecessary, but not racist. They also cost him a job, and did not advance his career.

As for my credibility. I feel pretty certain that I have zero of that around here. Or very little. That the typical response is "oh, him again :eyes: why hasn't he been tombstoned yet?"

Plus, I did not say what you claim I did. Al Franken did and I put it in quotes. Plus, there was a ginormous IF in front of it "IF Reaganomics worked then Rush is a straight-talking champion of the little guy."

Since, however, it is well known by people with a passing knowledge of the facts that Reaganomics was a miserable failure, Rush is nothing more than a well paid corporate shill trying to justify policies that harm the majority of people while greatly enriching a few.

[TankLV]

119. "I didn't consider the McNabb comments to be racist."

That says is all in a nutshell.

We know what YOU are too...

I'm done even trying to argue with you...

[hfojvt]

126. who is "we"? Do you speak for some group?

So people who do not agree with your POV ARE some thing (besides wrong).

I am one of them. A racist? So racist that I voted for Jesse Jackson in the 1988 Wisconsin primary. So racist that I caucused for Obama in the 2008 Kansas primary.

It's better to focus on the arguments than your opinion of the person making them. It's not like you can find all about me by reading a few of my posts and presumably we are arguing certain theses. Theses, or ideas, that have nothing to do with either you or me. That was Mitchell's mistake, IMO, instead of refuting the things that Limbaugh said, she attacked Limbaugh. That's not good logic.

[Zhade]

152. It sure does.

NT!

[greenbriar]

36. he also puts on a fake "gay" lisp when talking about Barney Frank

and pretty much us liberals in general


I for one say WAY to GO with this article

[Terran]

68. Limbaugh IS a racist--there is no doubt

It doesn't come out on every show, of course not, but it's been on display enough over the years to make it clear where his mind is on this subject. So her 'bringing race' into it is entirely appropriate.

[MadMaddie]

95. You should go back to listen to his shows when Katrina happened

He was a racist bigotted pig, he blamed the victims for their plight. He was the worst of the worst.

Don't give "Squeeler" anything he does not deserve it. The man is a pedophile drug addict and the only reason he is not in jail is because he is rich and priveldged.

If it were you or me we would be under the jailhouse.

[JackBeck]

24. Limbaugh is a racist and has the rap sheet to prove it.

Including, most recently, playing on his show "Barack the Magic Negro":

http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/50979/

And where does she "take a few swings at all white people"? When she talks about white privilege?

[hfojvt]

28. she did not talk about white privilege, just used Limbaugh as an example of it

Typical white person, Limbaugh is, eh?

And me too, typical white person, taking umbrage at the use of white privilege. Can I get some soup too?

[JackBeck]

30. She didn't write that Limbaugh was "typical", but represented the "epitome" of white privilege.

And as another white person, I couldn't agree more with her observation.

[hfojvt]

41. still seems to make his problem not stupidity, cupidity, or venality

it's whiteness. He's only attacking Obama, because Obama's black and because Rush is white.

[JackBeck]

58. Rush's issues with Obama aren't about him being Black.

No...given Rush's history, it's more about Obama not being White.

[AlbertCat]

129. Jesus hfojvt! Let it go!

Why are you using Rush Limbaugh to defend you over-sensitivity? You don't even seem to know much about him. Find another cause celeb for you PC crusade! Limbaugh ain't worth it...or gonna cut it.

[hfojvt]

136. if Limbaugh gets attacked for being white

if every white person who ever criticizes, attacks or opposes a black person is automatically attacked as a racist, then I am calling bullsh*t no matter who is being attacked.

I know enough about Limbaugh to know that he never wants the Democrats to win and he attacks them whether they are white or black. He'd be attacking Edwards, Biden, Dodd or Kucinich and their supporters/defenders if they had won the nomination. So I don't think race is the reason for attacks on Obama. Nor do I think his racism is relevant to refuting the argument he made in this case. It's an ad hominem argument and it attacks him for being white.

It's not a PC crusade, just an opinion on a newspaper column and then a defense of my POV.

[yardwork]

34. I'm white and her column didn't bother me at all. Rush is a squealer and he is racist.

Rush is also sexist.

"Gendered up hate against our president?"

WTF does that even mean?

[cordelia]

40. Thank you

I read that and said "huh?"

He must have issues. I wonder if he will be buying a new "wife" soon.

[hfojvt]

42. you are a white person who buys into the white privilege paradigm

I'm not sure that's typical of white people. It doesn't hurt that you are female though and thus benefit from the male privilege paradigm. Whereas I as a white guy have the privilege tonight of yelling "I am king of the world" as I ride through the rain on my bicycle to my part-time janitor job.

I think Rush meant "ginned up" instead of "gendered up" or it is close to "engendered".

[yardwork]

46. Yeah, but I'm a queer woman so the male privilege paradigm wants to kill me.

I do see your point. While it is very clear that Rush Limbaugh is a sexist racist squealer, going around saying that is no way to win an election - or run the country afterwards.

I'm sure that Rush misspoke but I couldn't resist the urge to taunt him. Again, Obama is better than this. Obama is better than me. That's one of the differences between Obama and me. He will be a good president. I would be lousy.

[hfojvt]

64. I am pretty sure that was not my point

In fact, my point in the last post was a tangent on the idea of white privilege and male privilege which I still think are nonsense while at the same time admitting those groups still face racism and sexism all too often.

My original point was that if a bloviating blowhard like Limbaugh makes some ridiculous rant about how Democrats or the liberal media or the liberal blogosphere have stirred up hatred against Bush and against the military, then it is not a huge smackdown to start calling him names and accusing him of racism. Even though he has a verifiable history of racism, it's not really germaine to the argument at hand. That ad hominem attack does not make him look like a fool by chopping his thesis into little pieces and serving it back to him as a crow sandwich.

To me, it looks like this
Mitchell: Palin needs to apologize for stirring up hatred against Obama.
Limbaugh: What about the liberals who have stirred up hatred of Bush?
Mitchell: Limbaugh is a racist pig who is freaked out, like so many white people, at the thought of a black man becoming President.

As much contempt as I have for Limbaugh, I didn't see him smacked down. There was no refutation of his point, just some pooh flung at him. It looks to me like Mitchell was incapable of a rational argument. Her comeback thesis is also absurd. As if Limbaugh would not be bothered if Biden was the Presidential candidate and it looked like Biden/Dodd was gonna defeat McCain/Romney. He wouldn't attack a white Democratic candidate, she posits, which is ridiculous since he attacked Kerry, Edwards, Gore, Lieberman, and Clinton. Ad hominem argument plus ridiculous thesis plus generic swipe at white people equals epic fail to me, not huge smackdown. As KeithO said, I call them as I see them.

As for the rest, I would be happy to endorse you for Vice President. You are smart enough, you are good enough, and darn it all, I like you, even when I seem to be playing Pat Buchanan to your Rachel Maddow.

[yardwork]

73. Well, thank you! Your point is well taken.

My point - which I thought you were also saying - is very similar. We don't win elections by hurling insults at one another. I enjoy doing that online on boards, but Obama has carefully avoided doing so. Columnists can do whatever they want, but this particular column doesn't really help Obama.

[hfojvt]

80. We certainly agree on the last line

but I am not against insults. The end of Rachel's show (the last five minutes or so which I did not see until I got back from work) is a case in point. She called Palin a liar, which is fine. In fact, it is awesome. When you have presented the evidence, which she did, then a carefully aimed and well deserved insult scores a hit, a palpable hit. Certainly the RNC and the RWNM has done that effectively against our people, calling Gore a liar and Kerry a flip-flopper.

Calling Limbaugh a racist is fine too, if the column presents some evidence. Here, it just concludes he racist because he doesn't want the Democrat to win. But he never wants the Democrat to win, does he?

Perhaps the reason it works here, is because this is a crowd that does not need the evidence, because they have seen it and they already know it. I don't think it works with an audience that's not already in the choir. But like Will Pitt said, sometimes you've gotta fire up the choir too.

[Scout]

91. you have more privilege than a person of color or a woman in

the exact same circumstances as you find yourself in...

:eyes:

[hfojvt]

112. oh thank you so much for the eyes

that's such a mark of respect.

Even if your argument was true, which I doubt in many ways, that still does not change the fact that I have less privilege than 80% of the women in America who are in better circumstances or 60% of the people of color who are in better circumstances. Ergo, there is no inherent privilege to being white or male. :eyes: :eyes: right back atcha.

[TankLV]

120. "there is no inherent privilege to being white or male"

really? you really believe that crap?

OK, now I'm CONVINCED of my other point up thread about WHAT you are...

there you go again...

[hfojvt]

127. again, it's not about me

if I believe 'crap' then why not take a crack at proving that it's crap? Give it your best shot. Bring it on.

Answer these statistics. In America there are 24,950,000 white households with less than $10,000 in assets. There are also 1,737,000 black households with more than $100,000 in assets. Those are facts. Are you really gonna say that the 25 million poor whites have privilege that the 1.7 million wealthy blacks don't?

How about the 7,879,704 households headed by single males which have less than $10,000 in assets. Do they have more privileges than the 8,823,000 households headed by single females which have more than $100,000 in assets. Not to mention the 29,796,000 women who are part of married couples that have more than $100,000 in assets?

Where are those privileges again?

Got some answers? Or do you just wanna call me some names?

[JackBeck]

131. The U.S. Census Bureau disagrees with you:

Communities of color account for more than half of those living in poverty, which limits access to health coverage and leads to poor health outcomes.

In 2007, 37.3 million people were living in poverty. Although people of color accounted for one-third of the U.S. population, they made up well over half of those living in poverty—57 percent. Daily exposure to poor social conditions contributes to poor overall health. Rates of poverty for nearly every racial and ethnic group were disproportionately higher than they were for non-Hispanic whites.

http://www.familiesusa.org/assets/pdfs/minority-health-and-the-census-numbers.pdf

[hfojvt]

134. no they don't. They are the source of my data

The link you gave conveniently separates hispanic whites from non-hispanic whites, thus making the white majority smaller. How nice. Apparently some whites, like Charlie Sheen and Emelio Estevez don't have white privilege even though they are white.

No matter how you slice it, there are still millions of poor whites and millions of poor males and also millions of rich blacks and millions of rich females.

http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/wealth/2002/wlth02-4.html

[JackBeck]

139. YOur lack of an understanding between ethnicity and race in disappointing.

The reason why non-Hispanic White is separated out by the Census Bureau is because any race can be Hispanic.

So your singling out Mr. Sheen and Mr. Estevez to further your argument falls flat, to say the least, given you don't have a clue how they responded to the Census. Further more, a few examples of "success" does not invalidate a proven sociological phenomenon, that extends far beyond comparing group incomes.

Poverty, unfortunately, disproportionately affects communities of color, which the Census irrefutably proves. And yes, white privilege is one of the many factors that contribute to this terrible reality.

[hfojvt]

153. I did not pick the Sheen brothers because they are 'successful'

I picked them as examples of white hispanics. The stats I knew from the 1960s and 1970s had whites making up a majority of the poor. That becomes less likely if you reduce the size of the white population by separating hispanics and comparing non-hispanic whites to non-whites. I call statistical bullsh*t. If there is such a thing as 'white privilege' it must be enjoyed by white hispanics too.

Proportionality does not create privilege. As one of the low percentage of whites at the bottom, I am not at all helped by the fact that there's a lower percentage of whites at the bottom, any more than the other poor whites are. We are still one of the few and the humbled.

It was not just a "few" examples of success. It was, remember, 1,737,00 households along with almost 25 million examples of 'failure'. So I am hard-pressed to believe a theory is "proven" when it has over 26 million counter-examples (actually 50 million if there's an average of 2 per household).

The disproportionality of poverty does not bother me at all. See, in my eyes, poverty is the problem, not the disproportionality thereof. I guess if I was a wealthier liberal, then I too could happily and self-righteously cast aspersions at poor whites who are too racist to realize how privileged they are.

[JackBeck]

164. Privilege groups are usually unaware of their privileges.

It's clear that we disagree on the importance of recognizing and trying to correct the reasons why communities of color are disproportionately in poverty. This reality, though, is important when developing public policy. But here are some more points that need to be enumerated to show the existence of white privilege:

Housing

Whites are offered more choices; 60%-90% of housing units shown to whites are not made available to blacks.

72.1% of whites own their own home opposed to 48.1% for African Americans.

46% of whites had help from their family in making down payments on homes compared to 12% for African Americans.

Whites are half as likely to be turned down for a mortgage or home improvement loan.

Whites pay on average a 8.12% interest rate on their mortgage, lower than the 8.44% African Americans pay on average.

The median home equity for whites is $58,000 compared to $40,000 for African Americans.

- Smith, Chip (2007). The Cost of Privilege.

Employment

Research in Chicago and Boston uncovered that people with "white-sounding" names are 50% more likely to get a call-back than people with "black-sounding" names, despite having resumes presenting equal qualities between the two racial groups.

- Bertrand, Marianne; Mullainathan, Sendhil (September 2004). "Are Emily and Greg More Employable Than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment in Labor Market Discrimination"

Justice

In 2002, the Department of Justice conducted a survey and found that being stopped be police did not significantly differ among races, but Black and Latino drivers were three times more likely to be searched, when compared to white drivers.

- Matthew R. Durose, Erica L. Schmitt and Patrick A. Langan, Contacts Between Police and the Public: Findings from the 2002 National Survey. U.S. Department of Justice, (Bureau of Justice Statistics), April 2005

Young white offenders are more likely to receive lighter punishments than minorities.

Black youth arrested for drug possession for the first time are incarcerated at a rate that is forty-eight times greater than the rate for white youth, even when all other factors surrounding the crime are identical.

- "Young White Offenders get lighter treatment," 2000. The Tennessean. April 26: 8A.
- Human Rights Watch, 2000. Punishment and Prejudice: Racial Disparities in the War on Drugs. DC: May, Volume 12, No. 2.

Black men are 8 times more likely to be in prison than whites.

- Western, Bruce. Punishment and Inequality in America. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

Wealth

Many whites were able to pass along their wealth in the form of inheritances and transformative assets which continually give advantage to white Americans.

- "Young whites can often rely on gifts and bequests from family members for transformative assets that help build wealth ... One in four white families receives a bequest upon the death of a relative compared with only one in twenty black families." George Lipsitz, The Possessive Investment in Whiteness: How White People Profit from Identity Politics, Temple University Press, 2006, p. 107-08

Constitution

Article 1, Section 2, Paragraph 3 of the United States Constitution:

"Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons."

-------

There's much more, but I don't really have the time to go into any more detail. And we didn't even get a chance to get into male privilege, heterosexual privilege, able-bodied privilege and non-trans privilege, since it wasn't germain to the conversation. These are not random social paradigms created by some lofty, elitist liberals. Extensive research by sociologists, case managers, etc...in order to properly address these disparities among the poor in this country by creating the best public policy to address the needs in communities that have historically been marginalized.

[hfojvt]

165. it's not extensive research. It's research with an agenda

Those people are part of a sub-culture where agreement with the conventional wisdom produces rewards. Try to critique this conventional wisdom and your professor is likely to flunk you. Then everyone who has been indoctrinated into this theology goes out and produces 'research' to verify their conclusions.

Secondly, the use of the word privilege is bass-ackwards. Take, able-bodied privilege, please. Privilege means a 'special benefit' a 'reward'. Something extra. Problem is that being able-bodied is not something extra, it is the norm for people between 12 and 55. A privilege, to me, would imply that society has given something to somebody that puts them above the norm. For example, I get to use the community center and the pool therein for free. Those are privileges that I get as a city employee. (which brings up another issue though, is it a 'privilege' if it is earned?)

Now, you might say it's only fair to consider the perspective of the other people and that their handicap looks like your privilege, but I don't think relativity works when one group is 80% and the other is 20%. The norm is like the sun and no matter how relativistic you get, the earth still revolves around the sun and not vice versa.

Semantics, maybe, but when I deny white privilege, I am not denying discrimination. Being discriminated against sucks. It's bullsh*t, but "not being discriminated against" is not thereby a 'privilege'. It is, instead, the way things ought to be for everybody. And often it is a moot point anyway. For example, I am not denied a good job because of the color of my skin, but the bottom line still is that I don't have a good job.

And although you have the privilege of cutting and pasting something from the sociology department at UC-Berkeley to back up your argument, I could probably do a line-by-line on those supposed privileges.

"Whites are offered more choices; 60%-90% of housing units shown to whites are not made available to blacks."

That's kinda less relevant than the housing units that a person can afford. Many lower class white people probably cannot afford that 60-90% of housing units.

"72.1% of whites own their own home opposed to 48.1% for African Americans."

Doesn't look like the 28.9% of whites are more privileged than the 48.1% of AAs.

"46% of whites had help from their family in making down payments on homes compared to 12% for African Americans."

It's a privilege to get help from your family? How dare those white people help their relatives, those racist b*stards!

Semantically, the notion of white privilege sounds like an attack on white people, particularly the white people at the bottom who don't seem to have jack/squat for privileges. And if there is a lower class, I am in it. And the indoctrinees of this notion tend, in my experience, to be a little self-righteous towards the wilfully ignorant racist/sexists/bigots who doubt those notions :eyes:

[TankLV]

140. You're so full of CRAP that it's a waste of time...

[ItNerd4life]

96. Your different perspective may not be liked

Rush hates all liberals. He doesn't care about color, but people think because he is conservative and that all conservatives are racist, then Rush is a racist.

I just can't believe how blind people are to their own prejudices.
How many times on DU have people called Bush supporters 'Nazis' or Nazi lovers. It's not racism, it's just plain hatred of the other side.

I don't hate Rush, I disagree with him. I don't hate the people who call conservatives 'Nazis', I disagree with them.

But it's much easier for people to only like to talk with people they agree with and call the other side names.

Just look at the responses on this thread. How much hatred do you see? Both parties are equal opportunity haters.

[hfojvt]

111. oh I definitely hate Rush

I believe that his books and radio show have made this world a worse place and it disgusts me that he has gotten obscenely rich by promoting hatred and stupidity.

However, I do not believe it is a huge smackdown to answer one of his rants with a bunch of name calling.

To me a smackdown would involve taking what Rush said and showing it to be stupid or inaccurate. Answering even only a semi-coherent argument by making faces, flipping him off or calling him even a clever name makes the second person look like an idiot.

Rush is basically a purveyor of mental poison, it's not a hateful thing to oppose that very, very strongly. Comparing Rush to DU is like comparing somebody who hates kids to somebody who hates the bully who is beating up kids and stealing their lunches.

[Waiting For Everyman]

137. The same logic as John Lewis should apologize to McC.

Baloney.

What "hate" showed up in Obama's campaign? Someone booed Mc (big deal), and Obama "shushed" him. See the difference?

[rosesaylavee]

100. Huh?

I don't see that at all. I think she called him on his own less than subtle racism. I think there are a number of other females in the media who have denounced Palin for her encouragement of these statements at her rallies. I don't listen to the squealer but I don't see any mention of him taking them on.

No, I think the fact that Ms. Mitchell is a well-known female columnist from the Sun-Times -which is known to be left-leaning - it is no wonder she is a target. That and the color of her skin got her mentioned on Rush' show. IMO.

[PVnRT]

156. Limbaugh isn't racist?

So, when he told a caller to "take the bone out of his nose," that wasn't racist?

There are dozens of other examples. The interweb is your friend, and you might want to use it next time before you whine about people saying mean things about poor little Rush.

[badgerpup]

22. Y'all remember those "Superballs" they used to make in the '60s and '70s?

Little balls made of incredibly (for the time) hard rubber and when you tossed them they bounced like nuthin' you'd ever seen before?

IIRC, it was the INCREDIBLE DENSITY of the rubber which made this possible.

Rush Limbaugh is like one of those...smack him down (or give him any kind of impetus, for that matter) and he starts bouncing off all the walls in all kinds of directions until he runs out of energy.

Tres amusante...in a child's toy.
Not so much so in a supposedly adult human male. :eyes:

[DailyGrind51]

25. Limbaugh always reminded me of Ned Beatty's character in "Deliverance"!

"It appears we have ourselves a sow!" (and a drug-addled sow at that!)

[madrchsod]

26. mary is as tough as any reporter

that has ever been on the beat in chicago.

nice try limpballs but mary will kick your pasty white ass...

[mopinko]

89. yup. mary brings is every day.

wear your helmet, pig boy.

[TygrBright]

31. Wasn't "Squealer" the name of one of the pigs in Orwell's "Animal Farm?"

If I recall correctly, "Squealer" was the pig who had the job of PR flack to all the other animals, explaining to them why the pigs' decisions were good for them and why they should shut up and knuckle under. And why the ones that didn't conform had to be ostracized and punished.

How BEAUTIFULLY appropriate.

Squealer Limbaugh.

I like it.

appreciatively,
Bright

[rufus dog]

63. sorry didn't read down thread before posting

You are correct, and the best irony is Squealer used the sheep to repeat the talking points over and over, drowning out all legitimate discussion.

[JackBeck]

148. Both of you make an awesome literary correlation.

Whether the original author intended it or not, this observation should not go unnoticed.

:applause:

[yardwork]

32. Bring it.

[mellowfellowO]

35. I have mixed emotions about this...

I'm glad she did it, but smacking down Rush Limbaugh is ridiculously easy. It's not like, say, William Buckley, which would have posited a bit more of a challenge. Limbaugh isn't much of an intellectual heavyweight. We are talking about a man who got out of the Vietnam War because of a cyst on his arse...:eyes:

[Forkboy]

38. Buckley was no intellectual giant. He was an ass.

“Now listen, you queer, stop calling me a crypto-Nazi or I will sock you in your goddamn face, and you will stay plastered.”
===
He said HIV positive people should be tattooed on the buttocks, as a matter of "public health".
===
“The central question that emerges…is whether the White community in the South is entitled to take such measures as are necessary to prevail, politically and culturally, in areas where it does not predominate numerically? The sobering answer is Yes—the White community is so entitled because, for the time being, it is the advanced race.” —William F. Buckley, National Review, August 24, 1957.

The only challenge he posed for me was taking him seriously.

[mellowfellowO]

43. Point Taken...

But if you put it in context, the man was a damn sight smarter than Rush....:eyes:

[mellowfellowO]

44. Of Course...

That isn't saying much, really...

[Forkboy]

45. LOL...not saying much at all.

Carrot Top is smarter than Rush, though rarely as funny. :)

[mellowfellowO]

47. it's a tossup...

as to which of them look more frightening to small children...

[TankLV]

122. and Hitler was a good watercolorist...what's your point...?

[mellowfellowO]

124. No point...

Just to show the evil of two lessers...:eyes:

[Frank Cannon]

66. He also threatened Noam Chomsky on his show

Said he would "smash his goddamn face in", as I recall.

Buckley was a moron with a stack of "Increase Your Word Power" books.

[Forkboy]

90. That's right. I forgot about that.

If he's an intellectual I'm staying dumb. :silly:

[mellowfellowO]

125. Please keep in mind...

I am in no way stating that William F. Buckley was a great human being. I was just stating that Rush Limbaugh is not much of an intellectual challenge to smack down. Any one of us here could do it in the time it took to write this...:eyes:

[Faux pas]

37. 'Wimp'-1, squealing pig-0.

Doing the cabbage patch chanting 'Go Mary, Go Mary, Go Mary....'

[MyOwnPeace]

48. Rush - many things to many people

He's got us arguing about who he insults - and we're feeding his "habit!"
And wait until "Limbaugh's sorry-ass Palin" reads about all of this in all of the papers that she reads!!!

[Initech]

51. That's fucking awesome!

It really is time for that piece of shit to go. Really, Rush, it's over. Dont let the door hit your ass on the way out. Although that would be pretty difficult for it not to since your ass is huge.

[unkachuck]

52. Mary Mitchell, you rock!!....you speak the truth....n/t

[D23MIURG23]

53. Ouch. That is a smackdown.

[MrMickeysMom]

54. Seeeuuuuuuwee!

The line of Kevin Coster's from JFK comes to mind... "Well, what else can you expect from a pig, but a grunt?"

Limbaugh is a good example of what not to be. Doubt he ever had a meaningful relationship in life. Anyone who has spent as many days behind the microphone berating the underclass clearly missed something the rest of us got. Nobody hugged that pig as a piglet.

What a pathetic disappointment to pigs everywhere.

[Lex]

59. " bring it "

:thumbsup:

[JackBeck]

150. I wonder if Rush will respond?

It's been a couple of days now, and it appears that Mitchell's assessment of the squealer may be spot on.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

61. "gendered up hate"? "ginned up a despise"?

Between Bush, Sarah Palin, and Rush, I guess that the right wingers have declared war on the English language.

[Solly Mack]

65. Henceforth, Rush shall be known as The Squealer

[swimmernsecretsea]

70. The Squealer!

I Effin' LOVE IT. Spread it, repeat it, pass it. Give The Squealer his due.

[OnionPatch]

67. There is a huge difference between the two situations, Rush.

Rush says we ginned up hatred for Bush and that is true. But.....we did it AFTER Bush had already done quite a few things that were an affront to our constitution such as starting an illegal war, torturing our enemies and spying on Americans.

The GOP toadies are inciting hatred before Obama has done a single presidential act. I see a huge difference here. We had a reason for our anger and hatred. They have nothing but their prejudice.

[Mad_Dem_X]

69. BAM!

Terrific response!

"But I have a voice, too. And all of Limbaugh's bluster and all the calls of his rabid followers won't be enough to silence me when bigoted bullies are running amuck."

It's time we all raised our voices against the hatred and bigotry being spewed by people like Limbaugh.

[Historic NY]

71. Squeal like a pig............humm heard that line before in.

deliverence so perhaps on Limpass better watch his.

[Swagman]

72. go for it Mary Mitchell ! sock it to the squealing pig from the Moran family

[ensho]

74. kick

well done

[Tarc]

75. OH SNAP

Mary Mitchell, :toast:

[riverdeep]

76. Squeal for me, boy!! Squeal!!

Hate to equate that cretin with the noble pig, which are actually as intelligent as dogs, but the name 'Squealer' is absolutely fitting.

[creeksneakers2]

77. Fantastic!

Right on!

[madmom]

78. YOU GO GIRL.......love it!

[SalviaBlue]

79. Rush "The Squealer" Limbaugh

He will heretofore be referred to as such. Thank you Mary Mitchell!!

recommended

[Citizen Jane]

81. Woof!

That is some serious smack-down!

:popcorn:

[AnnieBW]

82. Squeal Like A Pigboy!

I love it! You go, girl!

[Peregrine Took]

83. Its wonderful to see someone take on the old "oinker" himself!

I'm amazed as to what he gets by with - very few have the nerve to take him on with his acid tongue and big microphone. Go Mary!

[Maestro]

84. Absolutely love it!

Rush the Squealer! I hope it sticks!

[antimatter98]

85. We need next to get Limbaugh off the air..or

see to it that stations that carry him have to pay a financial penalty for carrying his show
without a balanced response show.

Limbaugh is a major contributor to the racism and hate speech that has divided this country.

[adigal]

86. Beautiful - we should call Rush up and squeal

for the next month or so.

[trickyguy]

87. K&R And too bad for Limbaughs' sorry ass Palin. You brought it.

[kwolf68]

88. Mary Mitchell

Have no idea who she is, but she kicks ass.

[Enthusiast]

93. If they ever remake 'Deliverance', there is a role for Rush. nt

[swimboy]

94. Thrilled beyond reason to read and recommend

Great find, pal!

[JackBeck]

143. If I were in the same position, and Rush called me a 'homophobe'

I'd probably have a similar reaction. Ultimately, though, it makes me miss Molly Ivins' take-downs even more than ever.

I'm glad you got a chance to read it, buddy.

:pals:

[RidgeDweller]

101. Rush attacked Kerry on liberal points

when Rush goes after Obama he looks for black and white. He is now obsessed with race.

[othermeans]

149. Remember when he said nobody would care about Donovan McNabb except that he was a black qb.

[BayjanDem]

102. "Limbaugh's sorry-ass Palin"

ROTFLMAO.

[MonteLukast]

145. She won't be "his" anymore...

... when he inevitably makes a pass at her and she turns him down. His opinion of her will change pretty damn quick! Because all women who turn down his advances are ugly lesbians.

[proud2BlibKansan]

104. great smackdown

[Xipe Totec]

105. Bring home the bacon, Mary!

:applause:

:rofl:

[jeff30997]

106. Lol!

Pigboy got kicked so hard in the nuts that he's now orbiting pluto.:toast:

[Vickers]

107. THE SQUEALER !!!

OMG, I am totally loving that.

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

[newtothegame]

109. I wish that neither side ever brought up race for ANY reason...

I wish the Squealer wasn't a racist pig and I wish Ms. Mitchell wouldn't let him feed into it by writing columns about race. Most of all, I wish these elections were on the radio and we never even saw the candidates until Inauguration day; would solve this whole problem.

[George II]

110. Great! Drill, baby, drill! Right through his elitist exterior to expose his piggish-ness. Thanks.

[OwnedByFerrets]

113. This is fabulous!!!! I dont know Ms Mitchell, but KUDOs!!!

[librechik]

116. Question--does anybody know if Rush knew Mitchell was a black woman before calling her out?

seems to me he might not have known, and that her righteous putdown of him was even more delicious because of that...

[blue sky at night]

117. she came, she saw...........

she kicked his fat ass, and stepped on his tail too! You go Mary, I never give an inch to racist assholes.

[cat2112]

118. Hummm......

He may have a point. Censorship is scary. What if they (whoever they is) decided to censor this site. Could happen. Stay on your toes fellow Americans.

[MasonJar]

121. Ms Mitche4ll, in your next column you should apologize to pigs. I

understand that they are highly intelligent creatures, which make excellent pets. There is no reason to insult the pigs of the world by comparing them to a spineless human creature that these intelligent animals would not allow in their pig pen. Otherwise bravo big time!

[gingersnaps1]

123. You go, girl!! The sad thing is that Rush is just one of many squealers.

[BlooInBloo]

128. Error: you can only recommend threads which were started in the past 24 hours

[Geronimo12]

132. Limbaugh is a has-been

Does anyone even listen to the radio anymore?

[Daemonaquila]

133. Is her response better, or the late Molly Ivins'?

Man, I don't know which lady put him down better - Mitchell or the late, great Molly Ivins who said:

"I have been attacked by Rush Limbaugh on the air, an experience somewhat akin to being gummed by a newt. It doesn't actually hurt, but it leaves you with slimy stuff on your ankle."

http://www.motherjones.com/commentary/columns/1995/05/ivins.html

[JackBeck]

141. Molly would be having a ball writing about this election.

I miss her voice most of all.

Thank you for reminding me and welcome to DU!

[Waiting For Everyman]

138. Well done, Mary! Reminds me of a tune...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaP8WfcxXSE

Why these loudmouths like Lumbaugh expect to spew their nonsense without anyone calling them on it, is beyond me. Glad to see the smackdowns, as it should be. Keep up the good work.

[ChicagoSchoolLiberal]

142. Such elevated discourse...

from both of them and their respective claques serves as a trenchant indictment of the state school system.

[tigereye]

144. bring it!

:yourock: Mary Mitchell! And anyone else who calls out racist, hypocritical slime like Limbaugh.

[scarface2004]

146. he aint a squealer!!

he s a piece of shit!!!

[Kalifornia.Kid]

147. Whooo - Doggie, Boss Hog done got smacked down ... HARD.

[Zhade]

151. Fucking. Awesome.

NT!

[eilen]

157. The argument is not what is important

I think it commendable for Squealer Limbaugh to be called out on his shit. Personally, I think he runs out of stuff to bloviate on and seques into base school boy rants. Like Howard Stern who farts and talks about body functions when he runs out of interesting material.

Do I think Limbaugh a racist? In a word, yes. I heard his show once following Katrina and he appeals to the conservatives who live behind gates. I honestly don't know how anyone can deal with listening to his show anymore, I get a visceral reaction to hearing his voice. At my most conservative moments I could hardly listen to him--when I did I think they were in maybe 2 minute increments. Our local talk/news radio station used to play little shorts from him in the am drive. Even my best friend who pays no attention to politics instinctively turns the dial when he comes on (if she has that station on). I haven't listened to him enough to know if he piles on Blacks, Hispanics and Asians every chance he gets so I can't vouch for the veracity of that statement. He certainly dumps on white people who have a different philosophy than he as well as assertive women who don't march to the Republican party line, and almost any intellectual or expert that posits proof that Limbaughs claims are hot air and stupid.

I acknowledge that as a middle-aged white woman I am treated with privilege-- although I would like to say that this privilege I speak of is mainly just being treated politely and without suspicion-- the way all people should be treated. I know that not everyone is treated like this and it angers me however I don't know how I can do anything about it except not to perpetuate it in my dealings with people. However, I did give a cashier a hard time when my friend David had his money examined for counterfeit -- he was behind me in line and I didn't have my money examined like that. How is it that my friend have a higher probabliity of having a fake twenty dispensed by the ATM than I? Ultimately, I don't believe it made any difference as to how the cashier looked at the world and I don't know if David felt embarrassed that I made a big deal about it--I think he was embarrassed.

[peacetalksforall]

159. pig squeal hog trough fat ....... it all fits, with one exception...... ....

Pigs don't incite people to hate and lie every day of their lives
Pigs don't make millions hating and making others hate.

[The Wizard]

160. Limbaugh will respond

when he gets the dick out of his mouth.

[slor]

163. DAMN ! Mary Mitchell is...

Bad ASS ! I see the word "smackdown" used in many posts, and quite a few times, I feel let down by the lack of "smackdowniness" of the situation. Mary Mitchell has unleashed a true smackdown!