I walked into the Second City’s newest musical parody a typical left-of-center kind of guy. But judging by how much I thoroughly relished its total obliteration of Limbaugh and his right-wing cronies, I walked out of the theater beaming the bluest shade of blue. Rush Limbaugh! The Musical is at times offensive, cheap and one-sided—not unlike Limbaugh himself. In other words, it does what doey-eyed liberals (and moderate conservatives) have feared to do for decades, fills its arsenal with slanderous vitriol and aims it straight back at the conservative machine. Except that it’s far smarter and funnier than anything the right could ever throw our way (thank God entertainers are on our side!).

The story begins in the early sixties with a young Rush pedaling his mediocre talents as a DJ at a church sock hop. Even his musical choices reflect his blooming conservatism. “Screw those commie, faggy Beatles and give me some Pat Boone!” It’s here that he cozies up to Reverend Rightwing, a Darth Vader–like demagogue who convinces Rush to pledge allegiance to Pat Robertson, Ronald Reagan and Old Country Buffet with sly one-liners like, “Hating the people God hates is a great way to share his eternal love.” He also comes face to face with dirty hippies Barney Frank and Hillary Clinton, before their own meteoric rises to fame. In one of the shows most enduring gags, a young Frank can’t help but turn every sentence he utters into a metaphor for gay sex.

As in Rod Blagojevich Superstar!, last year’s smash homage to our fallen governor, writers Ed Furman and TJ Shanoff frame Limbaugh’s meteoric rise as a series of musical numbers that lampoon Broadway biggies. As Rush cozies up to figures like Ann Coulter (a tepid parody, given Ann’s own outrageous antics) and Donald Rumsfeld and Karl Rove (a sharp and funny nod to Abbott and Costello) they break into their own rendition of the musical RentRent reviews’s “Five Hundred Twenty-five Thousand Six Hundred Minutes” set to Limbaugh’s most offensive claims. Ditto the best musical number of the night, a version of the song “Totally Fucked,” from Spring AwakeningSpring Awakening reviews in which Clinton and Frank recognize the Democratic party’s utter fecklessness. Second City nails Spring’s Awakening’s teen angst, right down to Bill T. Jones’s vaunted choreography. DreamgirlsDreamgirls reviews, Les MiserablesLes Miserables reviews and WickedWicked Game reviews all get similar treatment.

As the show reaches its climax, we see liberalism winning out and Limbaugh hunched over in his studio blasting “Half-rican American” president Barack Obama. Limbaugh makes one final push for world domination by proclaiming his own divinity. The finale is the ultimate pie in Limbaugh’s gargantuan face, but I won’t give it away here. Instead I’ll offer kudos to Mark Sutton who may not look the part, but nails Limbaugh’s husky voice, cadence and pregnant pauses. Likewise, Karla L. Beard does a ton of heavy lifting as the narrator Shasta, a shadowy figure who isn’t fully revealed until the musical’s penultimate scene. There isn’t a single weak link in the fine ensemble and I especially appreciated the ongoing banter between Colleen Murray and Kevin Sciretta as Clinton and Frank and also Cayne Collier and Bumper Carroll and Rumsfeld and Rove.

In the end, Rush Limbaugh! The Musical showcases just how sharp the Second City’s claws are when it actually takes its gloves off. Yes, it takes plenty of aim at the left, but this is a tried and true liberal joyride—and a very funny one at that. By the time it reaches its show-stopping finale, the faces of the few conservatives in the audience were, dare we say it—red.

Rush Limbaugh! The Musical plays Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays (except Sunday 7) at the Second City e.t.c.

Technorati Tags: abbott and costello, Ann, Ann Coulter, arsenal, Awakening, Barney Frank, Bill T. Jones, Blue, chicago, Clinton, Colleen Murray, comedy, darth vader, demagogue, dirty hippies, Donald Rumsefeld, Donald Rumsfeld, Ed Furman, Events, Face, finale, Frank, God, guy, Hillary Clinton, Hundred, isn, Karl Rove, Karla L. Beard, Kevin Sciretta, kind, Limbaugh, Machine, Mark Sutton, meteoric rise, musical choices, musical numbers, musical parody, musical rent, Night Life, obliteration, old country buffet, outrageous antics, parody, Pat, pledge allegiance, Reverend Rightwing, Robertson, Rod Blagojevich, Ronald Reagan, Rush, Rush Limbaugh, Second City, shade, Shasta, spring, Theater, Theatre, vitriol, way

A poll done by CBS’s "60 Minutes" and Vanity Fair found Rush Limbaugh to be America’s most influential conservative.

In second place was Fox News’s Glenn Beck, followed by former Vice President Dick Cheney, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, Fox News’s Sean Hannity, and House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio).

In fairness, those were the only choices given to respondents.

That said, there were some other poll results people will find interesting as reported by Vanity Fair: 

John F. Kennedy is the president 29 percent of Americans would most like to see added to Mount Rushmore. Forty percent of Democrats voted for Kennedy, while Ronald Reagan drew 52 percent of Republicans. [...]

Speaking of Nixon, the famously missing portion of Watergate-era audiotape ranked low in our which-lost-artifact-would-you-most-like-to-find question. Noah’s Ark won easily, with 43 percent of those polled and 65 percent of Evangelical Christians. And yet 7 percent of Evangelicals—not many, but still one in 14—chose finding the Nixon tape over the ark and everything else, which included some potential revenue streams of significance. [...]

Evidence that Americans with lower incomes tend to use the postal service more than richer Americans (56 percent of those with incomes under $30,000, 30 percent of those with incomes over $100,000) baffled us briefly. [...]

France is the country of choice for those who would take such a step—maybe surprising, in light of that country’s role as our traditional punching bag (sac de sable). Fifty-eight percent of us said, No thanks, we’ll stay right here. What could be more certain, in our hearts, than that? Only one thing, it turns out: most of us couldn’t even begin to explain what the “public option” means.

Other poll results of note:

• 36 percent believe "domestic militias critical of the president and the federal government" are exercising their constitutional rights versus 33 percent who see them as a threat to national security.
• 66 percent said they couldn’t explain what the "public option" is.

Those interested can view full results here.

Exit question: Who would you vote for in the most influential conservative poll assuming the field wasn’t as restricted?

Technorati Tags: 60 minutes, Barack Obama, CBS, Dick Cheney, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin, Sean Hannity, Vanity Fair

Did you notice a commercial during Thanksgiving’s NFL football games featuring President Barack Obama?

Joined by children from the Washington, D.C. area, the President and players come together for a friendly game of touch football, reminding fans about the importance of being active as part of NFL PLAY 60, the league’s youth health and fitness campaign. Filmed on the White House lawn earlier this month by NFL Films, the PSA also encourages viewers to get involved in their communities and remember the importance of service. 

Such was a collaboration between NFL Play 60, an effort to fight child obesity, and United We Serve, the President’s initiative to encourage community service.

The NFL issued a press release about this last week (video of ad embedded below the fold):

President Barack Obama will join Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Steelers safety Troy Polamalu and Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware in a special public service announcement debuting during each of the three NFL games played on Thanksgiving. The 90-second PSA is a joint effort of the NFL’s PLAY 60 campaign, a leaguewide effort to fight childhood obesity by getting kids active for 60 minutes a day, and United We Serve, the President’s initiative encouraging all Americans to participate in community service. The spot will continue airing throughout the rest of the season in a shorter format. [...]

"Through United We Serve, I have challenged all Americans to roll up their sleeves and engage in sustained service to strengthen our communities," President Obama said. "For some of us that means volunteering at a soup kitchen or cleaning up a local park. For others, it means taking time to build a playground or volunteering your time to improve the life of a child. No matter how we serve, we find common purpose when we dedicate ourselves to helping others. This holiday season, I am asking all Americans to find their own way to give back to their communities."

"Thanksgiving is a time when families come together, and it is also a perfect time to focus on the importance of keeping kids healthy and active," said Brees, a PLAY 60 spokesman. "I was honored to spend time with the President on an issue that is clearly important to him. I was also impressed by his wide receiver skills." [...]

President Obama launched United We Serve to challenge all Americans – young and old, from every background across the country — to create meaningful change in their communities by engaging in service that is sustained and focuses on impact. When volunteers commit to long-term service projects in their communities, they build expertise and strengthen the community’s capacity to meet its challenges. To learn more about United We Serve or find service projects in specific communities, the President is encouraging everyone to visit www.serve.gov.

To be sure, NFL Play 60 is a fine, noble program. But it partnering up with the White House’s community service initiative mightn’t pass the smell test.

After all, what does fighting child obesity and encouraging kids to exercise more have to do with community service?

Of course, Obama’s adoring press didn’t see anything wrong with this.

Here’s what USA Today had to say on November 19:

President Obama is exercising executive privilege to get youngsters off their butts, and to urge all Americans to volunteer for community service.

In a TV spot set to run on Thanksgiving Day, viewers will see New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees zinging a pass to an unseen player. As we look closer, we realize the receiver is actually President Obama. The playing field is the White House lawn. The defender is Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu.

Yet, buried at the bottom of the piece was possibly an inconvenient truth:

The president believes his touch football game is only a part of his public-service message.

Indeed. So the President is using the high-profile NFL, during high-profile games, to advance HIS message.

And media don’t see anything wrong with that. I’m not sure they’d be so accepting if the President catching passes from Drew Brees in order to advance HIS message was George W. Bush.

Yet, there’s another question here: what is the NFL getting in return, if anything?

Consider what Rush Limbaugh had to say about Obama’s connection to the NFL back in October when the conservative talk radio host was forbidden to be a part owner of the St. Louis Rams:

I know all of the you people say, "Rush, don’t be distracted!" I’m not being distracted because what is happening to the National Football League and what is about to happen to it, has already happened to Wall Street, has already happened to the automobile business.

DeMaurice Smith, the executive director of the Players Association is an Obamaite. He’s donated to Obama. He is a Washington lobbyist at Patton Boggs, and I think he even served on Obama’s transition team. He has no experience in professional sports. The National Football League’s agreement, collective bargaining agreement with the players expires soon. Next year, the salary cap — if they don’t get a new deal done, next year the salary cap — will go away. And after that, there is a fear that the owners — who think they’re giving up too much of the gross in salary, compensation to the players — might lock them out, a work stoppage. This is something that the Players Association doesn’t want, obviously.

And the real reason, the real reason — and there are many, many reasons that are valid, but the real reason — that pressure was brought upon me by Sharpton and Jackson and DeMaurice Smith and the commissioner is that the Players Association is using my involvement in the Rams and this whole episode as a bit of leverage in their negotiations, the upcoming negotiations with the league and with the owners on a new collective bargaining agreement. That is what’s really going on, and the Players Association… I don’t know how many players know this, but Mr. Smith has let it be known that if he has to he’ll bring the White House into this. He’ll bring the Congressional Black Caucus into this.

So Obama’s America is quite possibly going to include the National Football League, and pressure from Obama, the Congressional Black Caucus and other places might be brought to bear on the owners. I can’t imagine that that’s anything they want. You know, as all businesses are, they’re regulated to a certain extent by the federal government but this would be a huge expansion of that. And that threat is being bandied about. And I don’t expect anyone to admit it. The owners are not going to admit that. They don’t want to. I’m sure that the reaction to this today will be, "Ah, Limbaugh doesn’t know what he’s talking about." It will be another one of these things, but that is one of the things that I do know is going on behind the scenes.

And of course to make me the poster boy here for, "Oh, my God look! These guys, would they ever consider Limbaugh?" It’s designed to intimidate the owners, frighten the owners and say, "We’re running this league now, gang, not you. Even though you may own the teams, we’re running it, not you," and this was a little warning shot fired across the bow to the owners to say, "Get ready, here we come," for the next collective bargaining agreement.

Exactly five weeks later, the NFL and the White House teamed up for a joint initiative.

Imagine that. 

Technorati Tags: anything, Barack Obama, child, child obesity, childhood obesity, common purpose, community, D.C., DeMaurice Smith, Drew Brees, effort, football, George W. Bush, health and fitness, helping others, House, importance, Initiative, joint effort, League, local park, New Orleans, NFL, nfl films, nfl football games, nfl games, Nfl Players, obesity, part, Patton Boggs, Pittsburgh, Play, President Obama, public service announcement, Quot, Serve, service, soup kitchen, St. Louis, taking time, Thanksgiving, time, touch football, Troy Polamalu, United, Wall Street, Washington, White, white house lawn, youth health

Days after announcing another huge layoff, Al Gore’s Current TV referred to former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as a "Gun-Ho" and a "TWILF."

These disgraceful, sexually-charged epithets were part of an attack on prominent conservatives such as Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck, and came in the form of a cartoon ironically titled "The Stupid Virus":

When a lab-monkey declares that President Obama wasn’t born in America, he becomes Patient Zero for a new brand of fear-based news virus – Fearus Ignoramus. We watch as the virus goes ear-borne, spreading from Rush Limbaugh to CNN to the mainstream-media to the general public. America devolves into panic, convinced its President is an illegal alien anti-Christ.

In the end, this was just a lot of conservative bashing in very bad taste, especially the shot of Palin’s Twitter page and her astonishingly offensive screen name "Gun-Ho" (video embedded below the fold, vulgarity alert, h/t Breitbart TV):

Did you notice Palin’s screen name at Twitter was "Gun-Ho?"

After Palin tweeted, Brian Williams of NBC’s "Nightly News" reported it as the "Top Story," and in the right of the screen was the word "twilf" with a question mark after it (h/t Amanda Carpenter):

This appears to either be a take on the acronym MILF with the "TW" standing for "Twitterer," or an urban dictionary reference way too disgusting to address.

Regardless, is that what a former Vice President and Nobel Laureate believes is acceptable to call a former Governor and vice presidential candidate?

Lest we not forget the vulgar attack on Beck at the end.

And these folks wonder why they’re continually having to lay people off!

Screencaps courtesy of Story Balloon.

Technorati Tags: Al Gore, alaska, alaska governor sarah palin, Amanda Carpenter, America, attack, Beck, Bill Oreilly, breitbart tv, Brian Williams, Cartoon, Christ, CNN, current tv, dictionary reference, end, epithets, form, former vice president, Fox News Channel, Glenn, Glenn Beck, Governor, governor sarah palin, Gun-Ho, layoff, Limbaugh, mainstream media, name, News, news virus, nobel laureate, Orly Taitz, part, patient zero, President Obama, Quot, Rush, Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, screen, story, Stupid, stupid virus, TWILF, Twitter, urban dictionary, vice, virus

MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell on Friday called Rush Limbaugh and Sarah Palin idiots.

In his disturbed view, the former Alaska Governor wrote a simpleton’s book that would still be difficult reading for the conservative talk radio host.

While subbing for Keith Olbermann on "Countdown," O’Donnell belittled Palin’s "Going Rogue" as an "index and footnote free, score settling campaign memoir" possessing "[no] mind numbing charts or graphs, no big words, no scholarly Latin phrases, like caveat emptor."

"And I bet the pictures are, like, amazing," said O’Donnell after claiming Limbaugh would "[struggle] to get through" it (video embedded below the fold with transcript, h/t Story Balloon, file photo):

LAWRENCE O`DONNELL, SUBSTITUTE HOST: Breaking news; in our third story in the COUNTDOWN, Levi Johnston has seen Sarah Palin`s Oprah prompted invitation to Thanksgiving dinner, and says, quote, "you can tell by her laugh that she was full of it."

Meantime, Rush Limbaugh calls Palin`s book, quote, "truly one of the most substantive policy books I’ve read," end quote. Rush, I believe you. I cannot imagine you, in full recline on your Gulfstream, Cuban cigar in hand, struggling to get through a more substantive policy book than Sarah`s index and footnote free, score settling campaign memoir. No mind numbing charts or graphs, no big words, no scholarly Latin phrases, like caveat emptor. And I bet the pictures are, like, amazing.

Amazing. For those that can stand it, here’s the rest of this segment:

O’DONNELL: The previously-released clips from Palin`s interview with Oprah Winfrey getting new life now that would-be-son-in-law Mr. Johnston has had a chance to see it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OPRAH WINFREY, "OPRAH": One final question about Levi. Will he be invited to Thanksgiving dinner?

SARAH PALIN, FMR. GOVERNOR OF ALASKA: You know, that is a great question. It`s lovely to think that he would ever even consider such a thing, because, of course, he is a part of the family. You want to bring him in the fold and under your wing.

He needs that too, Oprah. I think he needs to know that he is loved. He has the most beautiful child. This can all work out for good. It really can. We don`t have to keep going down this road of controversy and drama.

We are not really into the drama. We don`t really like that. We are more productive. We have other things to concentrate on.

WINFREY: Does that mean yes, he is coming, or no, he is not?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O`DONNELL: Mr. Johnston, through a "Playgirl" spokesman, has now responded. Quote, "you could tell by her laugh that she was full of it," and that her invitation was a, quote, "nice gesture, but she didn`t mean it." If he went, it would be "awkward." Do you think?

By the way, on the day Palin was taping that Oprah Interview, Mr. Johnston was at the 2009 Flesh-Bot Awards. And he was given his very own award for sexy achievements.

As for the crowd formerly known as the presidential campaign of senator John McCain, we are told that McCain instructed them not to respond to allegations in Palin`s book. But some of them have done more than just respond. McCain himself today saying he has the Palin book, but has not had a chance yet to read it.

Back to Mr. Limbaugh. He says he told Ms. Palin, quote, "people who get hold of this, like the AP or any of the state-controlled media, they are going to focus on the soap opera aspects of your book, and they are going to ignore what is truly one of the most substantive policy books I`ve read."

Let`s bring in MSNBC political analyst and author of "Renegade," Richard Wolffe, also senior strategist at Public Strategies.

Good evening, Richard.

RICHARD WOLFFE, MSNBC POLITICAL ANALYST: Truly, Lawrence, good evening.

O`DONNELL: Richard, I want to listen again to part of Sarah Palin`s answer to Oprah`s Thanksgiving dinner question.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PALIN: Of course you want — he is a part of the family. You want to bring him in the fold and under your wing. He needs that, too, Oprah. He needs to know that he is loved.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

O`DONNELL: Richard, you want to bring him into the fold. You want to take him under your wing. She can`t say I want to do that. Was she trying to get Oprah to invite Levi to Thanksgiving dinner?

WOLFFE: It`s a nice suggestion. But I suspect Oprah is kind of busy. Actually, I am, too, in case you were suggesting me.

I think there is a bigger picture here, which is that if you talk to people involved in the McCain campaign, she — Sarah Palin had this weird disembodied reaction to everything going on around her. In public, we saw this fabulous TV performer, someone who could give a great speech at the convention. But in private, she was frozen in the head lamps. It was very difficult to connect reality to her, and get her to wake up to her situation.

I think, in her own mind, there may be a Sarah Palin, the real person, and Sarah Palin, the performer. And maybe the you, we, I think reflects that.

O`DONNELL: McCain has gotten word out to the campaign staff that he doesn`t want them talking. He doesn`t want them prolonging this story. But today an unnamed senior campaign official did dispute Palin`s claim that she was asked to pay legal fees for her own vetting. McCain`s former chief of staff, Mark Salter, defended the campaign`s version of how the Palin interviews with Katie Couric came about. But how long can the rest of the McCain campaign staff control themselves as they turn the pages of this book and find things in the book that they think are untrue?

WOLFFE: Well, it`s hard for them. I`ve been speaking to some of them. They find it very difficult when there are just plain factual errors, inaccuracies, fabrications. They don`t want to get into a public fist fight with Sarah Palin, because that`s unedifying. They recognize it, even if someone who may run for president again doesn`t recognize it.

Look, I was speaking to Nicole Wallace, who was accused of coming up with some weird story for why Sarah Palin would go speak to Katie Couric. According to Palin, Wallace had said that Katie Couric had low self-esteem, and that`s why, I guess out of some sympathy, she should do the interview.

Anybody who knows Nicole Wallace, who was a formidable figure in the 2004 Bush campaign — anybody who knows Katie Couric would recognize that story just doesn`t pass the smell test.

O`DONNELL: There`s someone right there, Nicole Wallace. Doesn`t there come a point where she has an incentive to clarify as much what she thinks about Katie Couric as what she thinks about Sarah Palin in a situation like this?

WOLFFE: I think there is a desire to clarify things. And they are putting out statements through other people. Again, Sarah Palin has more ink than anybody else. She has more media attention. There comes a point where people have to make a judgment about credibility. Palin, for instance, has gone out and said that the AP reports — according to her Facebook posting, AP reports about her book were erroneous. Well, she better be right, because in four days we`ll be able to see if the AP was true or not in its reporting about the book. And if she is lying, then, yet again, her credibility is going to be called into question.

O`DONNELL: Now, Levi Johnston has also said I don`t really pay attention to politics now that Sarah is gone. But I think — Obama that is — is doing a lot better than Sarah would have done. So I give him props. Do we expect former members of the Palin inner circle to go rogue and give props to Barack Obama?

WOLFFE: I`m not sure the White House is in that desperate a situation that they are going to need this kind of thing, especially from someone who is having trouble keeping his clothes on. We`ll see. It`s a fascinating spectacle.

O`DONNELL: Richard Wolffe of MSNBC, thank you very much for joining us tonight.

WOLFFE: Thanks, Lawrence.

Technorati Tags: alaska, Alaska Governor, book, campaign, caveat emptor, Clip, Countdown, cuban cigar, dinner, Donnell, end, footnote, free score, Governor, governor of alaska, host, index, John Mccain, Keith Olbermann, latin phrases, Lawrence, lawrence o donnell, Lawrence O'Donnell, Levi, Levi Johnston, mind, Mr. Johnston, Mr. Limbaugh, Ms. Palin, Msnbc, oprah, oprah interview, Oprah Winfrey, part, policy, policy books, Questio, question, Quot, quote, Radio Host, recline, Richard, RICHARD WOLFFE, Rush, Rush Limbaugh, Sarah, Sarah Palin, simpleton, substitute host, Thanksgiving, thanksgiving dinner, video, wing

Last month liberal media members armed with false allegations of racism went into a full-court press to prevent Rush Limbaugh from becoming an owner of the St. Louis Rams.

On Tuesday, the owner of basketball’s Los Angeles Clippers settled a multi-million dollar discrimination lawsuit wherein it was alleged that he had for years tried to keep blacks and hispanics out of his apartment buildings.

This is actually the second such suit Donald Sterling has settled in the past four years.

Despite this, America’s television news media, which had a field day going after Limbaugh last month, completely ignored the story.

Bucking the trend was sports columnist Dan Wetzel (h/t Shekhar Jain):

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling agreed to pay $2.73 million this week to settle a federal case alleging he discriminated in the rental of apartments he owns with his wife in Southern California.

The settlement is "the largest monetary payment ever obtained" in this kind of case by the U.S. Justice Department, according to a news release from the organization.

It stems from allegations Sterling’s company targeted and discriminated against blacks, Hispanics and families with children in renting apartments in greater Los Angeles. The settlement must still be approved by a federal judge but should also resolve two additional tenant-filed suits alleging racial discrimination. [...]

What the magnitude of this settlement should have done is create a wave of questions and condemnations of Donald Sterling from across the NBA.

Instead, most incredibly, there hasn’t been a lick of public discussion.

The NBA said it has no plans to investigate or comment, according to a spokesman. Other owners have been silent. The NBA Player’s Association has had no reaction and did not respond to messages. The players themselves have, best I can find, said nothing.

The media, which just last month went full force on the story of Rush Limbaugh becoming part of a potential NFL ownership group, has mostly ignored the deal.

So, where’s the outrage?

Indeed. And, as Wetzel noted, this isn’t a new issue for Sterling:

Four years ago his company agreed to settle a similar 2003 racial discrimination suit for an undisclosed sum – "one of the largest ever obtained in this type of case," according to the judge – and a reported $5 million in plaintiff legal fees. [...]

Since Sterling made no admission of guilt or liability in the settlement, the NBA’s ability to take official action was greatly reduced. This isn’t league business and there are no criminal charges.

Still, NBA commissioner David Stern could’ve stated he doesn’t approve of an owner repeatedly being involved in these ugly cases. If he’s so concerned with his player’s off-court attire, why not his owners’ off-court business? He could demand the Clippers raise funds and awareness for fair-housing advocacy groups.

To be sure, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell certainly felt the need to immerse himself in the Limbaugh case:

It’s two different leagues, two different groups of people, two different circumstances, but the parallels with the firestorm that enveloped Limbaugh’s potential bid to become a minority owner of the St. Louis Rams immediately spring to mind.

Limbaugh was engulfed from all directions. Players, owners, union officials – even NFL commissioner Roger Goodell – all voiced opinions, almost all negative. There was an avalanche of media coverage; in part, because Limbaugh delivers the ratings and page views. (Sterling is merely famous for being one of the worst owners in professional sports.)

Still, Limbaugh was attacked for expressing political views that some people find offensive. You may hate every word he says, but he wasn’t repeatedly settling multimillion dollar racial-discrimination lawsuits.

You’d think Sterling was worth something.

Yes you would.

Yet apart from the silence on this matter from America’s television media, the New York Times ignored this story, as did USA Today.

As for the Washington Post, here’s what it alloted for this issue in the middle of its "Digest" piece on November 4:

Los Angeles Clippers owner and real estate mogul Donald Sterling has agreed to pay a record $2.73 million to settle allegations by the government that he refused to rent apartments to Hispanics, blacks and to families with children.

The Justice Department sued Sterling in August 2006 for allegations of housing discrimination in the Koreatown area of Los Angeles. Other defendants were Sterling’s wife, Rochelle, and the Sterling Family Trust. . .

Some outrage, huh?

But there’s actually more to this story, for something Wetzel didn’t mention was that in February, Hall of Famer and former Clippers GM Elgin Baylor filed a — wait for it! — discrimination lawsuit against Sterling.

The Los Angeles Times reported on February 11:

Baylor charges that Sterling had "a pervasive and on-going racist attitude as expressed to then NBA player Danny Manning during contract negotiations."

The lawsuit, which was obtained by The Times on Wednesday night, alleges that Sterling once said of Manning: "I’m offering a lot of money for a poor Black kid."

The civil lawsuit also states that NBA Commissioner David Stern was present when Sterling made the remark about Manning.

Several pages later, Baylor claims that Sterling once told him that "he [Sterling] wanted the Clippers team to be composed of ‘Poor Black boys from the South’ and a White head coach."

By contrast, Limbaugh offered an opinion years ago about how the sporting press were treating Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb, and his potential minority ownership in a football team created a media frenzy.

Any questions? 

Technorati Tags: Dan Wetzel, Donald Sterling, sports

"If the Republican Party follows the course of Palin and Beck and Company it’s doomed."

So said Sam Donaldson on ABC’s "This Week" Sunday.

His evidence?

Democrat Bill Owens victory Tuesday in the 23rd Congressional district of New York.

Readers are strongly advised to stow all fluids, combustibles, and sharp objects for the ignorance on display here might produce uncontrollable fits of anger (video embedded below the fold with partial transcript):

Let me tell you that the wake-up call for the Republicans was the New York’s 23rd. Now just as Rush Limbaugh couldn’t prevent the Party from nominating John McCain despite his best efforts, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin and the gang could not prevent that district for the first time in a hundred years from going Democratic. Because they had a candidate, well he wasn’t a Republican, I understand that, who was the Sarah Palin values, the robocalls and all of that. It didn’t resonate. It doesn’t resonate with independents. If the Republican Party follows the course of Palin and Beck and Company it’s doomed.

Staggering ignorance, dontcha think?

First off, John McCain lost last November, Sam, in one of the biggest landslides in decades. 

As such, Limbaugh’s attempts to prevent McCain from being the Republican nominee actually look quick wise.

Think about it, Sam: knowing what you now know about the results of that election, would you STILL nominate McCain?

As for NY-23, the Republican Party backed a liberal who had to drop out of the race three days before Election Day because she couldn’t garner enough support.

Add it up and the GOP was WRONG to back McCain last year and WRONG to back Dede Scozzafava this year.

Why?

BECAUSE THEY BOTH LOST!!!

But Donaldson thinks the Party is doomed if it chooses to get different advice.

Amazing.

And you gotta love his point concerning robocalls. 

After all, Scozzafava did a robocall for Owens. So did Vice President Joe Biden. Apparently so did President Obama.

Alas, like virtually all liberals, Sam only finds robocalls distasteful when done to assist Republicans.

Now THAT’S entertainment!

Technorati Tags: ABC, Beck, best efforts, Bill Owens, combustibles, company, Congressional, Congressional District, course, Democrat, democrat bill, district, Donaldson, dontcha, election, evidence, GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, Glenn Beck, ignorance, joe biden, John Mccain, landslides, last november, Limbaugh, New York, obama, partial transcript, party, president joe, President Obama, Quot, Republican, republican nominee, republican party, Rush Limbaugh, Sam, Sam Donaldson, Sarah Palin, Scozzafava, sharp objects, Sunday, This Week, Tuesday, Vice President Joe Biden, victory, week, wrong, year

Remember the case of the Census worker who was found hanging from a tree with the word ‘fed’ scrawled across his chest?  You remember – he died at the hands of right-wing commentators and anti-government tea partiers.  He was killed because of an overwhelming case of right-wing paranoia.  He was murdered by Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Michelle Bachmann, and Fox News.

Keep this quiet though…

While the death of Bill Sparkman was a media sensation for pushing anti-conservative sentiments just a couple of months ago, it is receiving little to no coverage currently.  Why?  Because, as investigators have recently speculated, there is a possibility that he died by his own hands. 

Well, that just doesn’t make for interesting news at the so-called legitimate news organizations. 

As the AP states,

"The strange case attracted national attention when it first came to light, prompting worries that it may be a sign of increased anger toward the federal government in the first year of Barack Obama’s presidency."

Prompting worries from whom?  The unhinged left wishing to create sensational accusations?  Check. The list follows:

• The Democratic Underground quickly posted a ‘Handy Guide to how Republicans and Fox News are responsible for Census worker being hanged’.
• Rachel Maddow suggested Sparkman was killed simply because ‘he was a federal employee’.
• Liberal bloggers were quick to accuse ‘right wing zealots’ trying to ‘take their country back.
• Time chalked it up to government distrust, a sentiment fanned by ‘talk media, tea parties and white-hot town-hall meetings’.
• The Huffington Post immediately assumed this was a case of right-wing paranoia.
• True/Slant opined that the body of Sparkman should be shipped to Glenn Beck.
• Think Progress pointed the finger at Michelle Bachman and her ‘inflammatory and fear-mongering rhetoric against the Census’.
• New York Magazine linked the death to that of ‘some wide-eyed, hysterical woman’ named Michelle Bachman. (The irony in this is that the reference to a wide-eyed, hysterical woman was made in an article mentioning Nancy Pelosi).

Now however,

"Investigators probing the death of a Kentucky census worker found hanging from a tree with the word "fed" scrawled on his chest increasingly doubt he was killed because of his government job and are pursuing the possibility he committed suicide…"

And

"In recent weeks … investigators have grown more skeptical that 51-year-old Bill Sparkman died at the hands of someone angry at the federal government."

Thus far, the AP article remains the only main-stream mention of the case as a possible suicide.  Oh, and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch explored the possibility. 

Funny though, how rampant speculation of murder managed to find its way through the media, but now that authorities are leaning towards a suicide, mum’s the word.

Will the rest of the media express the same skepticism as those mentioned in the AP article?  Will the aforementioned media outlets begin tripping over themselves, offering apologies to everyone they accused of having blood on their hands?  Or will they quietly sweep this development under the rug?

Shhh!  Don’t answer; it’ll be our little secret.

Photo Credit:  The Times-Tribune/AP

Technorati Tags: article, Barack Obama, Beck, Bias by Omission, Bill Sparkman, Broadcast Television, Cable Television, case, Census, census worker, chest, death, democratic underground, Don, fox, fox news, Glenn, Glenn Beck, government, Handy Guide, hanging from a tree, hot town, huffington post, hysterical woman, Kentucky, Limbaugh, Major Newspapers, media sensation, Michelle Bachman, Michelle Bachmann, Nancy, News, overwhelming case, paranoia, possibility, Quot, Rachel Maddow, radio, Rush, Rush Limbaugh, St. Louis, strange case, Suicide, tea, Tea Parties, town hall meetings, tree, woman, word, worker

During a live midnight EST hour Larry King Live Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, CNN’s Larry King repeatedly employed the “far right” pejorative to describe those who backed the unsuccessful New York congressional bid of the Conservative Party’s Doug Hoffman. After Wolf Blitzer announced at 12:15 AM EST that CNN had declared Democrat Bill Owens the winner, King blurted: “That may be the first defeat for the far right tonight.”

About 15 minutes later, King pressed Amanda Carpenter of the Washington Times: “Since the far right did get into that race in upstate New York, is this a legitimate defeat for them tonight?”

And a few minutes after that, King forwarded the notion “the far right” is a “threat” to the GOP, asking Ben Stein: “Do you see the far right as evidenced by — we all know who they are — as a threat to your party?”

Stein filled in the names as he rejected the premise: “Not at all. Not in the slightest. I think you’re talking about people like my wonderful friend Ann Coulter and my wonderful friend Rush Limbaugh. I think those people are activating the party, they are keeping the party alive…”

Technorati Tags: Amanda Carpenter, Ann Coulter, Ben Stein, bid, Bill Owens, Campaigns & Elections, carpenter, CNN, conservative, conservative party, defeat, Democrat, democrat bill, Doug Hoffman, est, friend, friend ann, GOP, hour, Larry King, Larry King Live, Live, MIDNIGHT, morning, New York, night, notion, party, premise, right, Rush Limbaugh, Threat, Tonight, Tuesday, tuesday night, upstate new york, Washington, washington times, Wednesday, wednesday morning, winner, Wolf Blitzer

There’s no better example than political commentary from a Hollywood elite to demonstrate how low some conservatives are regarded. According to actor Ted Danson, some conservatives are just being manipulated by Rush Limbaugh and organized religion because they’re not smart to formulate their own beliefs. 

Danson, who has starred in both "Becker" and "Cheers," appeared on HLN’s Nov. 2 "The Joy Behar Show" and was asked to respond to Rush Limbaugh’s criticism of Barack Obama on Nov. 1 "Fox News Sunday." Danson questioned the notion that Limbaugh, who is a self-made success, is really "one of the people." Instead, he accused him playing on people’s fears and anger to make money, which he didn’t like.

"The people of the people, Rush, one of us, yeah," Danson said. "Those are the people that really piss me off, to be honest. I totally understand people who are angry and are fearful. I understand people who church is a huge part of their life. I understand people not wanting their daughters to watch MTV. I understand and have empathy for all those people. The people that come along and make use of those people’s fears and insecurities to make money or to make something, a position for them, you know, more palatable, those people are … shame, shame."

Behar prodded Danson to name people that were guilty of his charge of playing on anger and fear, which he said not only Rush, but also the religious right.

"You know what – pretty much the religious right does that, by and large. You know?" Danson replied.

Behar called them "extremists," a suggestion Danson agreed with and got Danson to elaborate on how they play on people’s fears.

"The people’s fears, you totally understand," Danson said. "I understand that. I understand wanting to go to a mega-church because the rest of your life is tough. You know, I understand all of that, but then you come along and organize those people off of their fears and anger and I think that’s too bad."

Behar also accused those same people of being "encouraged" to vote against their interests and Danson alluded to opposition to a government option of health insurance, suggesting it was being opposed by people it would help.

"Who’s going to be able to get the government, what do you call it, with insurance, the government … the public option," Danson said. "Right, only people who don’t have insurance. So people who don’t have insurance would rather not – they don’t want it."

Behar’s explanation – those in power were in cahoots with big insurance.

"They don’t want to have too much competition for the insurance companies," Behar said. 

Technorati Tags: Celebrities, Culture/Society, economy, health care, Joy Behar, Liberals & Democrats, Limbaugh, Medical Insurance, ObamaCare, option, Quot, Religious Right, Ted Danson, video

A new left-wing organization created specifically to attack Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Lou Dobbs, Pat Buchanan, and Paul Brown has ties to ex-Obama green jobs czar Van Jones.

As NewsBusters reported Thursday, StopTheWitchHunt.org was formed to "call out" what it considers "mischaracterizations and hate speech" by the aforementioned quintet.

With the assistance of tipster Bret A. Gehring, NewsBusters has discovered an organizational link to Jones.

Our investigation began with who was listed as the contact person on the STWH press release reported by Reuters Thursday:

SOURCE StopTheWitchHunt.org

Karlos Schmeider, +1-505-363-4962, karlos@centerformediajustice.org

For those unfamiliar, the Center for Media Justice is "a media strategy and action center that uses strategic communications and media activism to build a powerful movement for racial justice, economic equity, and human rights. Through two program areas and fee for service projects, CMJ strengthens the communications effectiveness of grassroots groups and builds a powerful, integrated movement for media justice and communication rights."

Its address is 1611 Telegraph Avenue, Suite 510, Oakland, California.

According to Issue Lab, the Center for Media Justice used to be the Youth Media Council:

Center for Media Justice (Formerly Youth Media Council) 1611 Telegraph Ave
Oakland , California
94612
United States Phone 510-444-640
Web address http://youthmediacouncil.org (as early as next week will be http://centerformediajustice.org)

Mission Statement: Youth Media Council builds communications power and defends the communication rights of youth, communities of color, and organizing groups working for racial and economic justice. Launched in 2001 to counter racial stereotypes and anti-youth bias in the news, YMC is a media strategy and action center dedicated to building a strategic and collaborative movement for justice by strengthening media strategy, capacity and action in California and beyond.

The web address "http://www.youthmediacouncil.org" does indeed redirect to CMJ.

A Scarleteen article about YMC revealed the following:

Youth Media Council (YMC) was founded in 2001 as a two-year pilot project at We Interrupt This Message (Interrupt). A media strategy center for the racial justice movement since the early 90s, Interrupt founded the YMC to increase the media strategy and capacity of the youth organizing sector. YMC built upon Interrupt’s racial justice communications framework and strong partnerships with racial and economic justice groups. Under the leadership of veteran media strategists Hunter Cutting and Kim Deterline, Interrupt pioneered methods for media capacity building, strategic communications and media watchdog projects uniquely tailored to disenfranchised communities.

Who’s listed first on the Board of Directors of Interrupt?

Board of Directors

Van Jones
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights

Putting the pieces together, an organization that Jones is on the board of founded the Youth Media Council which is now the Center for Media Justice. A representative of CMJ is the contact person for this new coalition looking to target Limbaugh, Beck, Dobbs, et al.

Coincidence? 

Not likely, for a look at CMJ’s Facebook page revealed an interesting post on September 29 (emphasis added):

Tell Fox News to Stop the Witch Hunts! Join CMJ and Color of Change to stop Glenn Beck’s program!

As NewsBusters reported on August 12, Jones was a founding member of Color of Change, the group that started an online petition calling for advertisers to stop sponsoring Glenn Beck’s television program.

But this gets better, for CMJ’s Facebook post sent readers to its "Actions" page. There, readers can find a September 11 headline, "Tell Fox News to Stop the Witch Hunts!" The embedded link sent readers to — wait for it!!! — Color of Change’s Beck petition.

This was posted at CMJ’s website just five days after Jones was forced to resign as Obama’s green jobs czar.

Now, roughly seven weeks later, a new coalition has been created using the same phrase "Stop the Witch Hunt" for its name, and its contact person works for CMJ which was not only founded by an organization whose Board of Directors includes Jones, but also worked with Jones’s Color of Change to get advertisers to stop sponsoring Beck. 

If you still think this is all just a coincidence, might I interest you in some swampland?

Technorati Tags: 1611 Telegraph Avenue, action, Barack Obama, Beck, Beck Group, bias in the news, board, Bret A. Gehring, California, Center, change, CMJ, Color, communication rights, communications effectiveness, communications power, contact, Council, Dobbs, economic equity, Glenn, Glenn Beck, grassroots groups, Interrupt, Jones, Justice, Justice. A, Kim Deterline, Lou Dobbs, Media, media activism, media strategy, movement, NewsBusters, Oakland, organization, Pat Buchanan, paul brown, person, Quot, racial justice, racial stereotypes, reuters, Rush Limbaugh, strategic communications, strategy, telegraph ave, United States, Van Jones, YMC, youth

Rush Limbaugh will be the guest on this weekend’s Fox News Sunday. Host Chris Wallace traveled to Palm Beach, Florida to record the interview with Limbaugh today.

List of air times, by city, for the program on Fox broadcast stations at various times on Sunday morning.

Don’t forget, Daylight Savings Time ends at 2 AM on Sunday, so if you don’t see the show at the time you think it is on, wait an hour.

Fox News Sunday re-runs twice on FNC on Sunday: 2 PM and 6 PM ET — at what then will be EST.

Technorati Tags: air, broadcast, broadcast stations, Chris Wallace, city, Daylight, daylight savings time, daylight savings time ends, Don, florida, fnc, fox, Fox News Sunday, guest, host, interview, Limbaugh, Limbaugh Rush, List, morning, News, Palm Beach, palm beach florida, program, Reminder, Rush, Rush Limbaugh, Rush News, Savings, show, Sunday, sunday morning, time, today, Weekend

Comedian Wanda Sykes brushed aside her low blow about Rush Limbaugh’s kidneys failing as no big deal on CNN’s AC360 on Thursday: “Was it…too far for that room? Yes, it was…but, hey, you shouldn’t invite me….I think everybody would have been disappointed if I hadn’t gone too far. Sykes also gushed wildly over President Obama during the interview: “He is like the George Clooney of presidents.”

Anchor John King, filling in for Anderson Cooper, interviewed Sykes 45 minutes into the 10 pm Eastern hour, and brought up the issue of the Limbaugh crack mid-way through the interview: “As you know, there were one or two lines [from Sykes’s appearance at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner] that got a little bit of a gasp and a groan in the room. One of them was when you were making fun and criticizing Rush Limbaugh.” After playing a clip of the line in question, he asked, “Any regrets for that? As you know, there was a big gasp in that room. Washington wasn’t quite ready for that one.”

Sykes was largely unapologetic in her answer, just as she was in her interview earlier that day with NBC’s Meredith Vieira: “Still makes me laugh. I don’t know. (laughs) The thing is, everyone laughed at the first part. But then it’s the tag line when I said- you know, I hope his kidneys fail. You know, was it- it’s too far for that room? Yes, it was too far for that room. But, hey, you shouldn’t invite me. You know what you’re going to get, you know? I think everybody would have been disappointed if I hadn’t gone too far.”

Earlier in the interview, the CNN anchor brought up President Obama as a subject of comedy: “In recent history, when you had Bill Clinton, you had the southern thing. A lot of comics said he looked a little funny. Then you had the comedic gift of the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Bush comes to town and he’s from Texas and he talks a little funny and there’s the Bushisms, and people had a lot of fun making fun of him. What about Barack Obama? Is he as easy a target as the material is rich?”

The comedian seemed to channel Chris Matthews and just became awestruck over the President: “You know what? He’s…just cool. He is like the coolest president that we’ve had. I mean, he is like the George Clooney of presidents. You know, he walks in the room. All the women want to be with him and all the guys want to be him. You know? He’s just cool. I’ve never heard women like this before. You know, he walks in a room, and they’re all like, ‘Ooh, I’ll have his baby.’ It’s like- jeez, hey, he’s not John Edwards, all right? He’s Barack Obama. Calm down.”

When King asked the comedian, who “came out of the closet” as a lesbian in 2006, about Obama’s record on the homosexual agenda at the end of the interview, Sykes acknowledged her disappointment in the President, but still sang his praises:

KING: Grade the President on this one. He gave a big speech to the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest gay rights organization, not that long ago, and there were a number of standing ovations. The President said, ‘I want to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. I want to repeal don’t ask, don’t tell. I want to do some other things that are important to the gay and lesbian community.’ But there were also a lot of people in the room who said, ‘Nice speech, Mr. President, but you’ve been in office almost 10 months now. Where’s the proof you’re going to deliver?’ Grade the President.

SYKES: As far as with gay rights, yeah, he’s failing in that. But if you look at- I grade him overall. Because that, to me, I’m more- I’m just as concerned with our country as a whole. So when you look at- you know, the economy and- you know, and jobs and education, then- I mean, he was in a big, big hole when he took office, you know. So everything has to- you know, I want to say get in line. And yeah, the LGBT community doesn’t really want to- you know, be at the back of the line, but as long as we’re in the line. To me, he had to bring this country back to life, just like he gave us life-saving CPR, and for me to slap him about- you know, not moving ahead on gay rights. That’s like somebody giving you CPR and you go, ‘Oh, your breath stinks.’ I mean, it’s (laughs) – you know, I’m just grateful that the country is still surviving. You know, the Dow went up to 10,000 last week. I mean, to me, he’s doing a great job, and like I said, I really believe that eventually he’ll get to the other issues with gay rights.

Sykes was also interviewed earlier in the evening on CNN during Campbell Brown’s program, but Brown didn’t raise the Limbaugh issue at all during the segment. Instead, the CNN anchor threw softball questions at the comedian, asking her about motherhood and her upcoming show on Fox.

Technorati Tags: ac360, Anchor, Anderson Cooper, Anderson Cooper 360, Barack, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, brown, bushisms, Campbell Brown, Chris Matthews, CNN, cnn anchor, comedian, Conservatives & Republicans, country, Culture/Society, Everybody, fun, George Clooney, Grade, hadn, house correspondents dinner, interview, issue, John, John King, Kidneys, King, lesbian, Liberals & Democrats, Limbaugh, line, lot, low blow, meredith vieira, mid way, Monica Lewinsky, monica lewinsky scandal, Mr. President, Nice, obama, Peopl, President Obama, President. SYKES, Room, Rush, Rush Limbaugh, s meredith, Sexuality, shouldn, speech, tag line, Target, Texas, thing, Wanda Sykes, Washington, white house correspondents, white house correspondents dinner

While NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was calling conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh too "divisive" to own a professional football team, rapper Snoop Dogg was appearing in television ads for ESPN’s "Sunday NFL Countdown."

I guess Goodell and other higher-ups within the league weren’t concerned with having a man possessing multiple felony charges against him including murder do commercials for the highly-watched Sunday pre-game show on the nation’s leading sports cable network.

Maybe Goodell should have looked at Snoop’s rap sheet before he derided Limbaugh right out of an ownership position with the St. Louis Rams (ESPN commercial embedded below the fold along with Wikipedia highlights of the rapper’s legal issues, h/t NB reader Shekhar Jain): 

While recording Doggystyle in August 1993, Snoop Dogg was arrested in connection with the death of Phillip Woldemariam, a member of a rival gang who was shot and killed by Snoop’s bodyguard, McKinley Lee; Snoop was charged with murder along with Lee as he was driving the vehicle from which the shooting had commenced. Snoop was defended by Johnnie Cochran, with his bodyguard McKinley Lee.^[46] Both Snoop and Lee were acquitted; Lee was acquitted on grounds of self-defense, but Snoop Dogg remained entangled in the legal battles around the case for three years.^[47] In July 1993, Snoop was stopped for a traffic violation and a firearm was found by police while conducting a search of his car. In February 1997, he pled guilty to one count of being an ex-felon in possession of a handgun and was ordered to record three public service announcements, pay a $1,000 fine, and serve three years’ probation.^[48] Twice, in May 1998 and October 2001, Snoop Dogg was fined and arrested for misdemeanor marijuana possession.^{[49] [...]}

Snoop Dogg, Tha Dogg Pound, and The Game were sued for assaulting a fan on stage at a May 2005 concert at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, Washington. The accuser, Richard Monroe, Jr., claimed he was beaten by the artists’ entourage while mounting the stage.^[51] He alleged that he reacted to an "open invite" to come on stage. Before he could, Snoop’s bodyguards grabbed him and he was beaten unconscious by crewmembers, including the rapper and producer Soopafly; Snoop and The Game were included in the suit for not intervening. The lawsuit focuses on a pecuniary claim of $22 million in punitive and compensatory damages, batteryBattery reviews, negligence, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.^[52] The concerned parties appeared in court in April 2009.

On April 26, 2006, Snoop Dogg and members of his entourage were arrested after being turned away from British Airways‘ first class lounge at Heathrow Airport. Snoop and his party were not allowed to enter the lounge because some of the entourage were flying first class, other members in economy class. After the group was escorted outside, they vandalized a duty-free shop by throwing whiskey bottles. Seven police officers were injured in the midst of the disturbance. After a night in prison, Snoop and the other men were released on bail on April 27, but he was unable to perform at the Premier Foods People’s Concert in Johannesburg on the same day. As part of his bail conditions, he had to return to the police station in May. The group has been banned by British Airways for "the foreseeable future."^[53][54] When Snoop Dogg appeared at a London police station on May 11, he was cautioned for affray under Section 4 of the Public Order Act for use of threatening words or behavior.^[55] On May 15, the Home Office decided that Snoop Dogg should be denied entry to the United Kingdom for the foreseeable future due to the incident at Heathrow as well as his previous convictions in the United States for drugs and firearms offenses.^{[56][57]  [...]}

Snoop Dogg was arrested again on October 26, 2006 at Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, California while parked in a passenger loading zone. Approached by airport security for a traffic infraction, he was found in possession of marijuana and a firearm, according to a police statement. He was transported to Burbank Police Department Jail, booked, and released on $35,000 bond. He faced firearm and drug possession charges on December 12 at Burbank Superior Court.^[62] He was again arrested on November 29, 2006, after performing on The Tonight Show, for possession of marijuana and a firearm.^[63] [...]

On April 26, 2007, the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship banned him from entering the country on character grounds, citing his prior criminal convictions. He had been scheduled to appear at the MTV Australia Video Music Awards on April 29, 2007.^[66] Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship lifted the ban in September 2008 and had granted him visa to tour Australia. DIAC said "In making this decision, the department weighed his criminal convictions against his previous behaviour while in Australia, recent conduct – including charity work – and any likely risk to the Australian community … We took into account all relevant factors and, on balance, the department decided to grant the visa."^[67]

Snoop Dogg’s many legal issues forced San FranciscoSan Francisco reviews mayor Gavin Newsom to withdraw his plan to issue a proclamationProclamation reviews to the rapper.^[68]

Despite all this, Snoop does commercials for ESPN’s "Sunday NFL Countdown."

But Rush Limbaugh is too "divisive" to be a minority owner of a team.

Any questions? 

Technorati Tags: April, auburn washington, Australia, Bob Hope Airport, Burbank, California, class, Commissioner Roger Goodell, Department, dogg, Entourage, espn, Espn Nfl, Espn Sunday Nfl Countdown, felony charges, firearm, Heathrow, Jain, Johannesburg, Johnnie Cochran, lee, legal battles, Limbaugh, London, marijuana, May, misdemeanor marijuana possession, murder, NFL, nfl commissioner roger goodell, ownership position, Phillip Woldemariam, Police, possession, pre game show, Premier Foods, professional football team, public service announcements, Quot, Radio Host, rap sheet, rapper, Richard Monroe, rival gang, Roger Goodell, Rush Limbaugh, show, snoop, Snoop Dogg, sports, St Louis Rams, St. Louis, Stage, Sunday, tha dogg pound, traffic violation, United Kingdom, United States, Washington, White River, white river amphitheatre

By Jordan C. Alston

Rush Limbaugh is no stranger to controversy.

Every word uttered by the pugnacious pill-popper ignites a firestorm that even Beelzebub would want no part of.

It is that same polarizing quality that has denied the jolly racially intolerant fat man the distinct privilege of owning an NFL franchise.

Caving to public pressure applied by current players, the NFLPA, and civil rights dunderhead Al Sharpton, Dave Checketts has dropped the Limbaugh from his bidding team, a move that underscores the level of toxicity associated with the shock jock.

Earlier this week, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsey predicted that an association with Limbaugh would hamper anyone seeking team ownership, claiming that it “would be met with significant opposition.”

“I met Rush only once,” said Irsey to media during a fall owners meeting. “I, myself, couldn’t even consider voting for him. When there are comments that have been made that are inappropriate, incendiary and insensitive…our words do damage, and it’s something that we don’t need.”

Of the 32 league owners, three-quarters would have had to vote in favor of the potential buyout in order for Limbaugh to become a team owner.

In Racist Rush’s absence, Checketts  will have to work diligently to find an adequate replacement with enough cash to get back into the bidding run.

Source

Technorati Tags: Adequate Replacement, Al Sharpton, Alston, Civil Rights, controversy, Dave Checketts, Distinct Privilege, firestorm, Indianapolis Colts, Jim Irsey, Jordan C, Nfl Franchise, NFLPA, Pill Popper, Rams, Rush Limbaugh, Shock Jock, Team Owner, Three Quarters, toxicity