Rush Limbaugh

Rush Limbaugh is hot and heavy in the news over the last few days regarding his comments about a Georgetown University law student. Ms. Fluke contrary to the allegations of Mr. Limbaugh was not advocating for taxpayer funded contraception. She was attempting to make the point that entities like Georgetown University do not pay for oral contraceptives even when the intent is to treat a medical issue like ovarian cysts and not to prevent unintended pregnancy. It is not a sexual issue as Mr. Limbaugh would have you believe it is a women's health issue. Once again a mass media talking head has decided to pursue an agenda by manipulation of the facts. Mr. Limbaugh is just one of many who seems to think that he who talks the loudest and longest must be right. He is but one of many and this is not limited to conservative commentators. Liberal media spokespersons have been guilty of the same sort of behavior. Mr. Limbaugh has apologized and indicated he made a poor choice of words in an attempt to be humorous. He is not presenting himself on a dialy basis as a comedy program. He alleges that the intent is a serious political discourse. Ms. Fluke was attempting to participate in our political discourse and make a statement to Congress about what affect a change in policy would have on her and other women. It would seem rather than addressing the issues at hand Mr. Limbaugh chose to make a personal attack on Ms. Fluke. The question at hand was not Ms. Fluke's sexual activities it was if employers who have a moral objection to birth control should be obligated to provide it in their health insurance coverage. Ms. Fluke for her efforts was labeled by Mr. Limbaugh a slut and a prostitute. He additionally suggested in his comments that she and the other females at Georgetown University should post sex videos on line for taxpayers to watch so they could see how their money was being spent. Is it any wonder why intelligent people who could add a voice of reason to our national discourse are so unwilling to participate. The statements they make are distorted and their characters are drawn into question instead of debate moving forward on the issue at hand. It is no wonder when one considers the facts that we often go to the voting booth feeling like we have no good choices. Millions of voters simply choose the one they think is the lesser of two evils. Well, sad to say but the lesser of two evils is still evil.

Newsweek seems to have hit the nail on the head. ENOUGH! Not just of Mr. Limbaugh but all those on either side of the debate who have managed to make it an uncivil shouting match. Being loud and being correct are not the same thing. A lie told loudly is still a lie no matter how many times you say it.

Michael Moore is certainly at the other end of the political spectrum from Mr. Limbaugh. His brief twitter comment posted above is as offensive and counterproductive as the statements made by Mr. Limbaugh. The name calling and insults from both sides need to stop.

Finally part of the problem may be in the recent scientific discovery that we tend to make a decision about things in about 343 milliseconds. This may have been a good idea when early man was sharing the plains of Africa with lions. Since men don't run as fast as lions the decision to run needed to be made quickly. If you believe in evolution (survival of the fittest) then a fast runner who makes a quick decision has the best chance. There are no lions trying to turn us into a happy meal now so it would seem like we could ignore the instinct to make a quick decision and replace it with the brain's ability to reason. Alas instinct seems to be alive and well. Charles Darwin, can you ever be wrong?

Be kind to one another. Think before speaking. Words once spoken can be forgiven but they will not be forgotten.