Tuesday Cable News Links and Open Thread
Bill O'Reilly meets Spill O'Reilly.
Monday's numbers: Bill-Beck-Hannity 1-2-3.
GE supports FNC. Weekend numbers.
Q&A: Kurtz. Lou won't leave? Olby vs Beck.
Today's firing demand: video. Hotline after dark.
Updated through the day. Use our valuable bandwidth to post your cable news comments in today's open thread. fox news cable
Cecelia
I saw Matthews interviewing Bishop Tobin and it seemed to me that he was more respectful with him than with other people who don't hold his views.
Did Matthews talk over Tobin? Yep. Did he try to back him into solely black or white false positions by demanding only "yes" or "no" answers? Yep. Did he brush over Bishop Tobin's attempts to characterize his own argument and to give all the facts (such as the one that the Bishop was RESPONDING to Kennedy's criticism and Kennedy's public challenge to the Catholic Church). Yep.
Business as usual for Matthews, but he did take a more modulated tone in the interview. I'm not Catholic, so I'm not sure what level of diffidence is traditional in exchanges with Church hierarchy.
As the writer of the piece states, Matthews completely overlooked Bishop Tobin's point about natural law. Matthews also overlooked his argument that though the church is an advocate for Christian morality and for laws that reflect it, it does not follow that this would mean that they see themselves as the arbiters of codes as to the punishment for breaking the law. The Church isn't taking a position on "three strikes and you're out" policy, sentencing guidelines, the number of appeals one can make, or a judge's authority in mitigating punishment.
Again, it doesn't logically follow that by arguing that something should be illegal, that they should then advocate for particular penalties against it.
What Matthews did accomplish was to highlight the contradiction that comes from likening the abortion of pre-term fetuses to murder. If aborting a fetus is tantamount to an abortion clinic lining up three-year-olds and exterminating them, then you do raise the question of whether is it not evil and/or insane behavior to gun down an abortionist or blow up a clinic ( way someone might do if gas chambers for Jews suddenly appeared.)
The vast majority of us instinctively know that this sort of violence is utterly wrong. That there is a difference in that pre-term infants are nascent life and they cannot be given the same status as you or me.
I think there are argument to be made about third trimester infants and I admit that there are reasonable arguments against any violence reaction to any codified law (despite my analogy of gas chambers.)
It's a horribly thorny subject.
It would be nice if Matthews, in all his grandstanding about no one being FOR abortion, could understand what a pandora's box Roe vs Wade opened.
It would be nice if he (and others) could see the position they've put themselves in having to finesse the proprieties of bishops and plain folk while constantly declaring their own distaste for the matter too.
I wouldn't count on Matthews doing that anytime soon. He can see the corner that the term "murder" backs pro-lifers into, he just can't see what an complete and utter philosophical dead-end that Roe Vs Wade is, and was, from the beginning.
November 24, 2009, 11:06:54 AM EST – Like – Reply
chris
I might have to agree with Olby here. I think those free health clinics is a great idae. Other media should report it
November 24, 2009, 5:24:37 PM EST – Like – Reply
Blackflon
It looks like Ellen's latest dog washer and her myrmidons have a problem with political operatives and what they really are.
From Her Glass House, Liz Trotta Complains About George Stephanopoulos Going To GMA
Reported by Guest Blogger - Mon 5:56 PM
Guest blogged by Ira Rosofsky
What Palin's college experience has to do with anything is just an excuse by the Hens to attack her.
Huckabbe was not a political operative. He was a Governor. If the Hounds don't know the difference they should not be writing about it.
Tony Snow was a speech writer, not a political operative.
Oliver North was a Colonel in the Marines. Not a Political operative and he is not a journalist on Fox.
Roger Ailes was a political operative but he is did not become a journalist like Stephanopoulus did.
Karl Rove was also a political operative but he did not become a journalist on Fox.
Yes, Diane Sawyer worked for Nixon AFTER he left the White House. Again, she was not a political operative.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the Hideous Hounds and their dog washers really are that ignorant.
Maybe littlejohnt, the union goon could explain it to them. Oh, never mind. He's too busy talking to himself.
November 24, 2009, 6:11:07 PM EST – Like – Reply
Blackflon
Julie, the unrepentant hater of real women, attacks Palin over her English and and presentation.
Sarah Palin Interviews on OReilly: Are They Finally Over?
Reported by Julie - November 24, 2009 - 60 comments
Has she ever watched Obam without his ever present teleprompter. The man leaves ummm's and ahhh's all over the place and his flowery rhetoric never does come to an dend with anything concrete in his messages.
November 24, 2009, 6:23:47 PM EST – Like – Reply
Ashley
Excellent ratings for FNC on Monday. In each case from Beck to BOR's rerun, those shows beat MSNBC, CNN, and HLN combined in their respective time slots. BOR is so far ahead that even if Olby and Campbell Brown doubled their viewers, he would still beat the other 3 nets combined.
BOR's total audience for his first run show alone is more than Ed - Matthews 2 - Olbermann - Maddow combined. Toss in Matthews 1 and BOR is only 200K behind.
Although Olbermann has pitiful numbers, he really ought to thank the commenters at OW as they may now represent the largest block of Olby viewers.
November 24, 2009, 6:30:04 PM EST – Like – Reply
Scott
I might have to agree with Olby here. I think those free health clinics is a great idae. Other media should report it
chris | Homepage | 11.24.09 - 5:29 pm | #
Chris this group has been doing free clinic's for year's. Clinton knew it and that's why he refused to go because he knew Olby, GE and MSEARS had politized them. The same group held a 2-day clinic in Omaha this past August, way back in the olden days before OLardbermann knew such a thing or group existed. I would like to see the proof that all these clinic's are being paid for by thee of the Goodyear Blimp proportion's or his 6 viewer's as he/it claim's. Sure if enough blog's called him a liar we would get the answer since we know he can't handle being called what he is. My money is we would never hear the farce clinic thing again.
November 24, 2009, 9:37:45 PM EST – Like – Reply
Fox Fan
chris | Homepage | 11.24.09 - 5:29 pm | #
I agree, chris. Free clinics are a good thing. They are usually provided with donations from charity groups (in this case, Countdown viewers), but the gov't could also provide them.
The only difference is, the charity can only help those most in need and for as long as its donations provide. If the gov't provides, they either have to restrict usage a la long lines and distant appointments or provide services that everyone would want which allows for abuse of the system.
Finding the balance, both ethically and financially, is difficult.
November 24, 2009, 9:54:21 PM EST – Like – Reply
Cecelia
I think the local media does cover free clinics (which are not a new phenomena) when they occur in their communities. What Olbermann wants is to politicize them.
That's not fair to the volunteers and other contributors who don't wish to be associated with Keith's agenda.
November 25, 2009, 9:00:06 AM EST – Like – Reply
