O'Reilly is gunning for NPR's Nina Tottenberg, now.
Watching the wounded FOX machine on the Juan Williams saga the past week has been like witnessing the Kubler-Ross stages:
1. Denial
2. Anger
3. Bargaining
4. Depression
5. Acceptance
Trying to "capture" Tottenberg suggests that they are at "bargaining": you take one of ours, we'll take one of yours. This is backed up by overly legalistic thinking (they want Juan to sue NPR...).
Andrew's dissenting readers miss the fact that we protect religious conscience precisely because we don't want religious bigotry, any more than we want racial bigotry. The fact that Mr. Williams feels compelled to make inferences from someone's dress about their intent seems to me the same in terms of either racial or religious bigotry, given that we know by evidence (not faith) that there is nothing "scary" about muslims' conscience per se.
Indeed, one could casually wonder aloud, in a fashion mocking of their defense of Williams, if it is not Catholics harboring hatred toward muslims that is showing up in the FOX commentary. Is it because they harbor hatred, that they assume muslims do as well or ask for them to be put on the defensive? I mean, let me see if I can get this FOX-pitch-perfect: I'm just asking questions, stating opinions, not making sly intimations or anything...whistle...whistle...te hee hee.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
The Juan Williams Saga, con'd
