TheAgitator.com
The ‘Big Fat Idiot’ Shouldn’t Be Forced to Resign
Thursday, October 2nd, 2003In case you haven’t heard, Rush Limbaugh got into a little bit of trouble in his position as a Sunday morning analyst. On ESPN’s NFL Sunday Countdown, Limbaugh said that Donovan McNabb is overrated as a quarterback because the media wanted to see a black quarterback succeed. He resigned over the comment.
My own personal opinion is: 1) he’s wrong. Donovan McNabb is not overrated. And Donovan McNabb is definitely not overrated because he’s black. The era of black quarterbacks being an abnormality is long gone. It left not long after Doug Williams won the M.V.P. in Super Bowl XXII. That’s in 1987 for you non-Romans. With stars such as Michael Vick and Donte Culpepper in the huddle and on our X-Boxs, the media has no interest in hyping a ‘lesser quality’ black quarterback simply because he is black. There are plenty of great black quarterbacks to hype. Limbaugh’s premise is absurd.
Still, 2) he should not have been forced (or allowed) to resign over the comments. And I’m not going to hold up some flimsy 1st Amendment argument on this one either. Its not censorship, its just stupid. All Limbaugh did was talk about race. The fact is, there are a growing number of white people who feel that anything a black man does that’s positive, is only acknowledged because the bar is lowered for minorities. Those white people are wrong, but its their perception and it must be dealt with. Those that disagree are much better off pointing out how its wrong, rather than seeking to silence the white man on charges of racism or insensitivity. A reaction like that only serves to strengthen the speaker’s resolve that he’s right. And it solidifies and expands the audience to boot.
I don’t think Rush Limbaugh is a racist. He is a white guy who doesn’t know how to respond to the era of affirmative action where the many qualified black men and women walk amongst the products of diversity engineering. Limbaugh needs to be told he is an idiot. He needs McNabb’s statistic put in front of his face for him to contradict. He does not need to be silenced. The issue should not be ignored as if it was never brought up. Doing that only provides it with legitimacy.
I agree. Is race discussion not allowed? His comments were as stupid as Spike Lee or Isiah Thomas saying that Larry Bird was only considered a great player because he is white, but where was the outrage when they made their comments? The double standard in race discussion drives me nuts. Another example is John Rocker. Although his comments were not very intelligent why did he deserve a 1 month suspension and diversity training when countless numbers of minority athletes and coaches have made racial comments without consequence? This type of thing adds fuel to the fire of racial discrimination.
Apparently, ESPN asked Limbaugh to go on SportsCenter Wednesday night, presumably to talk about it, and he declined.
Radley, haven’t you ever listened to that f’ing idiot? He never admits he’s wrong. He’d twist things around and try to weasel his way into saying he was misunderstood, meant something else, or that the liberal media used trick filmography or something…
I used to listen to Rush almost daily, but I just couldn’t take his arrogance any longer. I’m happy he resigned. His views on minorities were shown clearly by his remarks. If he’s idiotic enough to say something so absurd on the air, I can only imagine what kinds of things he says behind closed doors with other big, fat, arrogant, cigar-smoking, stuffed suits.
C’mon…the guy is such a shill for the republican party it is as if he has no opinion of his own most of the time.
Chris
You forgot to mention Randall Cunningham from when he was with the Eagles. Even though he gave the team more yards by running the ball than he did from passes.
Anyway, Rush should stay on Not be allowd to quit. Someone as dumb as this guy should be force to stay and deal with the negative response that is dealt to him. And let’s face it folks, he is the true voice of the conserative right. let the conserves keep their voice and let the world clearly know what they feel!!
Thou shalt not speak ill of any person of color - ever.
Thou shalt not speak ill of the media - ever.
Or thou shalt be burned at the stake for being a racial heritic.
Anyone notice that McNabb brushed off this comment, but then changed his mind later (probably after a phone call from Jessie Jackson)
The media in this country is out of control. And Bryan, I agree with you. It was a stupid comment and should be treated as such.
Unless I am mistaken Bryan wrote this entry not Radley.
Randall Cunningham did not rush for more yards than he passed. He had several 3000 yard passing years and nobody has ever rushed for that many yards in a season. Randall’s running talents were a definate highlight of his game, but I would guess that his passing yards at least quadruple his rushing yards. Afterall he was never even a 1000 yard rusher in any season.
I think the Limbaugh/painkiller story is a much bigger story anyway. Now that the two stories are breaking together I think the drug story might have contributed to the resignation. It looks like another moralizer bites the dust.
This still doesn’t explain the disproportionate outrage to a white man mentioning the subject of race to a minority (Baker, Thomas, Lee, Iverson, Canseco, Sheffield, etc.). I think anyone who knows about sports would say that Rush is wrong on this but since when does being wrong about sports and or athletes by a sports commentator constitute a resignation. Is the topic of race that off limits? Is it racist to bring up a possibility that I’m sure others are thinking of? Why not just let the others on the panel (Keith Jackson, Michael Irvin, Steve Young, and Chris Berman) refute what he has to say, which they did with statistical evidence. If you haven’t watched the clip it is really rather tame compared to reading the words. The others immediately jumped on his assertion and refuted it thouroughly. The two black men on the panel did not seem to think it was offensive, just wrong. I agree with them.
In case you haven’t heard, now Rush is a druggie. The Enquirer and the NY Post are publishing the whole thing today. Looks like it might be real. This should be highly entertaining.
I must correct some erroneous numbers that I gave in a previous post. Actually Randall Cunningham’s career rushing yards equal about 1/6 of his career passing yards (4928 to 29,979). Even while with the Eagles early in his career he never even came close to rushing for more yards than he passed.
Limbaugh vs. McNabb
Bryan M. Westhoff has comments at The Agitator this morning about Rush Limbaugh’s statements about Donovan McNabb being overrated and that the media and others merely to succeed because he is black, and there is a “need” for a black…
Drudge characterizes this as a “coordinated attack” on Limbaugh. Looks like he forgot to wear his aluminum foil hat.
Unfortunately, Wesley Clark weighed in on this as well. It was audio, so I’m paraphrasing, but he said
And he wants to be PRESIDENT??? He’s either uninformed as to what Limbaugh actually said, saying what he thinks people want to hear, or genuinely feels that people shouldn’t be able to talk about certain things. In my mind, any one of those thing makes him unqualified for public office.
Kieffer -
Keep in mind that this is the same Wesley Clark that believes the US was founded on the “principle of progressive taxation”, so we already know what HE thinks…
All told, While Rush’s comments were pretty dumb, the double-standard in race discussion is painfully obvious today. The NAACP, Jesse Jackson, Sharpton, etc. do not want racial tension to disappear, because they would disappear along with it. Why else would they constantly be fanning the flames of racism without ever really working to put them out?
Foolish as Rush’s statement was, it should have simply sparked a debate, not resignation. The fact that he mentioned race does not mean that he was necessarily wrong. A little debate on the topic would have been appropriate, but instead we get pure outrage, which unfortunately does add some legitimacy to his argument.
The Race Issue will never go away until we can all discuss it without calling each other “racist” in the process. Right now, a white person is not free to discuss race, either intelligently or stupidly, without being immediately branded a racist.
Roger -
Thus my point about the Thou Shalt nots…
Racial Discussion is not allowed if you are white these days.
Has anyone watched the video? The two black comentators there with Rush defended McNabbs stats, but had nothing to say about Rush’s comments.
This is all much ado about nothing.
Roger,
On Clark, I completely agree with you.
I disagree slightly on your second point. ESPN Sunday Countdown is not the forum for social/political discourse, and Rush made an error in judgement trying to inject political commentary. The trouble is that he was, in all likelihood, brought on board to do just that. If that’s the case, the show’s producers should shoulder some of the blame for failing to know their audience. I’m a sports fan, I know a lot of other sports fans who both do and do not follow politics, and I can’t think of a single one that would want a debate over race and media bias mixed into a discussion of the relative talent of an NFL quarterback.
That said, I don’t like the way this turned out at all. An unfortunate comment has spun itself out of control now that certain self-serving individuals have involved themselves. Instead of a logical outcome, Jesse will end up with a Disney Store franchise, Limbaugh will suffer no more that a few scratches, and race relations in America will take a small step in the wrong direction.
If you intended to say that Rush’s statement should have sparked a debate after he said it and it was too late, I would agree with you. But I don’t think that he should have said it to spark a debate.
Hey, why has no one from the ACLU stood up to defend Rush’s First Amendment rights? Where is the outrage from the Left that Rush is being denied an opportunity to present an opposing viewpoint?
What Limbaugh said was boneheaded, but not racially motivated. McNabb has received a lot of credit for the Eagles past success…but hey, ALL QB’s receive an inordinate amount of praise when a team does well…the exception being Trent Dilfer, but he’s white so no biggie.
I think Rush is correct to resign though, it takes the wind out of the sails of the race-baiters that had demonstrations planned for this morning and the weekend.
And Dean and Clark, the two heroes of the opposing viewpoint camp, have definitely exposed themselves as hypocrites when it comes to ‘free speech’. Assclowns, I say.
Go Seahawks!
I can’t wait to hear Rush’s reason for resigning so quickly. Today’s radio show should be very interesting.
Funny thing is though, I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t even talk about this at all.
Kieffer -
Good point. A sports show is probably not the place for a media/race debate. As a former football fan (the Browns leaving for Baltimore pretty much ended my pro football interest), I can see how most of the people watching would not be interested in such a debate.
That is where Monkey Boy is correct about the actual exchange between Rush and the others. They debated it on the basis of statistics and football in general, leaving race out of it. Race didn’t seem like such a big issue to them at the time. My gut-feeling is that a lot of people comenting negatively on Rush’s statement haven’t actually seen the video, or at least hadn’t seen it until AFTER they had a notion of exactly what to expect. People who expect to see racism, tend to see racism.
You are right, however that the time for debating it was AFTER the show in the various appropriate arenas of political/social debate. If Rush did indeed make the statement in order to spark a debate on race and media bias, then he picked the wrong time and place. Personally, I don’t believe he said it to spark a race debate. It was mainly a comment on media bias, which he’s been commenting on for years.
A politically-motivated comment slipped out, but who can honestly blame him? That is what he does for a living. To expect anything less is like expecting the Raiders to NOT take a few cheap shot during a game, or Mike Tyson to leave his opponent un-eaten throughout the fight.
I watched the clip yesterday morning, and personally didn’t see much deserving of such outrage. Further debate, yes. Outrage, no.
Rush is an idiot.
Race is the third rail in sportscasting. The Jimmy “The Greek” Snyder fiasco demonstrated that almost 15 years ago.
This really pissed me off. I think it’s complete bullshit that you are never allowed to discuss race unless you are speaking from the pre-approved white guilt script.
I don’t know enough about McNabb to know whether Rush was completely off base.
But how come this same media thinks it’s cute and funny to constantly deride Clarence Thomas as an incompetent Uncle Tom? What fucking hypocrites.
Race relations will never improve if people aren’t allowed to say what they think about races. Hiding racial views in a closet — good and bad — serves to advance no cause but ignorance.
This is why I hate America sometimes.
Ditto! Bunnie Foo Foo.
(No pun intended for you ditto heads out there)
Shouldn’t be allowed to resign? He resigned because his tenure at ESPN would now never be about anything but race.
He was wrong about McNabb and of course he was being intentionally provocative. Neither is a crime, he just got too clever by half here and had to quit a gig he wanted.
He gracefully gave ESPN a break here, I think it would have been very difficult for them to fire him for this because the opinion offered is not racist and clearly they were expecting *some* social commentary from him.
” I think the drug story might have contributed to the resignation. ”
Surely it’s a factor. I’m sure Limbaugh didn’t want to draw ESPN into that, no matter what the facts are.
“The Race Issue will never go away until we can all discuss it without calling each other “racist” in the process. ”
The race issue won’t go away until it ceases to be a public policy matter.
I said that he shouldn’t have been allowed to resign partly because I was sure who initiated the resignation idea, ESPN or Limbaugh.
If it was Limbaugh, my only point was I wish ESPN would have publicly fought a little harder. Limbaugh may have been wrong in his analysis, but simply saying it was not wrong. Obviously if Rush really wants to resign, for any reason, he should be allowed. Its more directed at what ESPN should have done about it.
Ditto on the ditto Monkey Boy and Bunnie Foo Foo!
Radley, you have it wrong in your assertion that “Limbaugh said that Donovan McNabb is overrated as a quarterback because the media wanted to see a black quarterback succeed.”
Limbaugh actually said:
He did not say that McNabb is overrated BECAUSE (cause/effect) media wanted to see a black QB succeed, he said McNabb is overrated [becuase they hadn't won, and his stats suck] and the media doesn’t point that out because they don’t want to inflame racial issues.
Watch the ESPN video to get the correct context.
You should listen too, Chris, because, yes, the media does employ soundbites to distort and create controversy targeted at Republicans. Remember Newt Gingrich’s speech calling for the elimination of the bureaucratic agency that processes Medicare, formerly the Healthcare Financing Administration now the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Democrats constructed a soundbite that mischaracterized Gingrich as calling for the elimination of Medicare altogether. The media was all too happy to run those soundbites without setting the record straight. Same applies to Republicans attempts to reduce the rate of growth of certain programs. Aiding and abetting the leftist Democraps, the media dutifully claimed that Republicans were attempting to “cut” programs,
As far as political/social commentary on the show, don’t you know that was the intended format with Rush on the show? Otherwise, wouldn’t Jimmy Kimmel or someone from The Best Damned Sports Show Ever have been a more logical panelist to represent the fans.
And finally, for all those engaged in ad hominem attacks against “that f’ing idiot” Limbaugh, or anyone else with whom you disagree for that matter, try brushing up on your logical fallacies to engage in more effective debates.
Oops. Sorry Radley, I just noticed that Bryan actually penned the original blog post.
More Limbaugh Fallout
Rush Limbaugh gave a speech to the National Association of Broadcasters this morning in Philadelphia where he gave some more
First of all, I hate Rush.
With that on the table, lets’ take a close look at what he actually said.
Taken in context, Rush slammed the sports media more than McNabb. All he said about McNabb wss that he thought #5 got too much credit for the Eagles’ successes.
Seems to me Rush was lambasting the sports media that “has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well.” He wasn’t blaming McNabb for anything. He was blaming the media for making a hero out of McNabb when they made their playoff run last year, but being hesitant about roasting him whe the Eagles struggled this season.
Like him or not, stats or no stats, Rush has a right to say that he thinks McNabb is overrated.
What I find so funny is that not one sportswriter or sportscaster has taken issue with Rush about accusing them of giving McNabb special treatment.
The true way to prove Rush wrong would be to compile a catalog of articles and broadcast pieces that criticize McNabb. I remember hearing some a few weeks ago. Use those to prove Rush is the “Big Fat Idiot” that he is.
Interesting article about McNabb written back in 2001. Have a look….
http://www.nationalreview.com/flashback/chapman200310020955.asp
The Jimmy the Greek comment made earlier was intended to show racism in the world of sportscasting, but I see it as yet another example of race discussion being squelched. What Jimmy the Greek said was all true. The network execs. just got scared and canned him. I think the fact that he was clearly drunk when he said it didn’t help his case though.
I don’t understand ESPN, they hired Rush to stir the pot. To make outragous comments. Once he does it they run for cover.
I don’t agree with Rush, but I don’t see why he has to quit.
It’s funny, though, that Limbaugh is being forced out for doing what he was hired to do (be provocative). Also, I couldn’t begin to tell you how many columnists/sports talkers have contended Brian Urlacher has been overrated because the media has held out hope that he succeed because he’s white. (we’re finding out Urlacher has been overrated, at least of late)
Donovan McNabb had a Pro Bowl year in 2001 and a half of one last year. His first couple of years were decent, but he didn’t really get the starting job until 2000. And he’s very, very young for a QB. Few QBs come in and light things up the first few years. McNabb learned the offense quickly, and shows a better than average flair for reading defenses on the fly. IMO he’s more of a RH Steve Young than Randall Cunningham. The jury’s still out on him, but he’s just 27.
Rush is the right’s Michael Moore…nuff said. Not surprised he finally did something stupid, he has an ego and is arrogant as hell. This should be fun to watch.
Bobby,
Do you remember what Jimmy the Greek said?
Rush was right. But ESPN was wrong to force him out. By the way “affirmative action” is racist.
Anonymous Jimmy the Greek Guy,
Yes I remember what he said. He said that black athletes are stronger and faster because during slavery they would breed the large black males with the large black females to produce larger, stronger, and more productive slaves for the next generation. Of course that’s a paraphrase because like I said before Jimmy was drunk and I don’t think he was so sensitive in his wording.
Bobby,
The anonimity was accidental, but more to the point… the reason I asked if you remembered what The Greek said is because you said it was true, and I’m not sure I agree with that. Certainly Kenyans, largely considered the best long distance runners in the world, are good because of slave breeding. A stretch, yes, but you see what I’m getting at. I don’t think a comparison can be made between what Rush said and what Jimmy said. Rush was right…the Philly defense did carry that team.
It’s mighty generous of you to give Rush the benefit of the doubt about being racist. But you’re wrong. Listen to his show for a few weeks (if you can stand it), or read some of the online transcripts.
The man is definitely a racist. Or at the very least, he pretends to be on his radio show. And I really doubt that he’s pretending, why would he bother?
Mr. Maggie,
I didn’t make the comparison between what Rush said and what Jimmy the Greek said. I simply responded to another post that used Jimmy as an example of institutional racism among sportscasters.
The Kenyan example is a stretch because what Jimmy the Greek was referring to was size and strength. Last time I checked there weren’t many Kenyan middle linebackers in the NFL. Speed was one thing you could contest Jimmy on, but once again I don’t see many world class Kenyan sprinters. Why they are so good at long distances is a mystery to me and apparently to them as expressed in the Nike commercial, but damned if they aren’t great generation after generation.
I definately don’t draw parralels between Rush and Jimmy. Most of all because Jimmy was just shooting off at the mouth after downing a few and Rush’s opinion was thought out and probably rehearsed. I still don’t see why Jimmy was fired though.
Bones,
You Obviously dont listen to Rush.
I always find it amazing when someone says something as you said. Because to those that do listen off and on, A statement like that just proves you dont listen.
Bobby,
No, there aren’t any Kenyan middle linebackers in the NFL, but if there were they would be overrated. The media has always wanted to see a Kenyan middle linebacker do well.
Bones, please define racism because I think your definition is a little too broad.
Bones -
Regarding your last post about Rush: “Listen to his show for a few weeks (if you can stand it), or read some of the online transcripts. The man is definitely a racist.”
I don’t know about anyone else, but you sure convinced me with all that hard data.
Look, nobody’s saying you should LIKE Limbaugh. Few liberals do. That would be the equivalent of you saying that I should like Al Franken or Michael Moore. To call Rush a racist is pure ignorance, however. I’ve been listening for years now, and have yet to hear a single racist comment. You clearly haven’t been listening to his show very often.
Do you feel like giving us some documented examples of Rush’s apparently obvious racism, or would you rather provide us with more vague, non-specific statements?
Dani Girl,
I think Bones’s definition can be found in post #5. Thou Shalt not…..
Rush has only made a mistake once, when he once thought he had made a mistake and realized he was mistaken>
Mr. Maggie,
I agree there is a strong Kenyan bias among sportswriters in America. They would like nothing more than to see a linebacker from Kenya and would pump him up in there collumns ensuring he would one day be a hall of famer.