Operation Chaos vs. “Shoot Those Leftist Bastards Dead”

Not all political machinations of and by the media deserve the same censure. 

Rush Limbaugh has been touting the success of his “Operation Chaos” campaign designed to sow dissent and chaos within the Democratic Party. Statistical data support the possibility that significant numbers of Limbaugh-led Republicans have been voting for Hillary Clinton in Democratic primaries, the goal being to extend the Democratic nomination process as long as possible.

The beneficiary: John McCain (and, of course, Rush Limbaugh.)

Democrats have criticized Limbaugh for inserting himself into the Democratic race, claiming that he’s undermining the democratic process. That’s an odd accusation coming from a party that uses elitist superdelegates and can’t find a way to make the votes cast in Florida and Michigan count.

If states want to restrict party primaries to voters registered in that party and registered independents, that’s their right. Until then, Limbaugh’s tactics are no more or less unethical than those routinely practiced by his critics.

Limbaugh is participating in the democratic process, even if it’s in a pretty sarcastic and mischievous way. The only thing he’s undermining is his opposition.

Meanwhile, last Friday, during the noon hour of the Neal Boortz Show, Boortz spoke about the Pittsburgh Organizing Group, or POG, a radical leftist anti-war group that pickets military recruitment offices.

Boortz’s admonition to any military personnel present for a protest scheduled that evening: “Shoot those leftist bastards dead.” That could easily be interpreted as an incitement to violence at a particular place and time against a specific group of citizens … a reasonable and widely accepted exception to free speech that might interest the FCC.

Limbaugh’s strategery has generated ample press coverage and the deeply satisfying scorn of the left; Boortz’s stunt just confirms that he’s an amoral, artless self-promoter.

Newsprism

A wise man cannot be harmed by criticism; for if the criticism is false, it means nothing to him, and if it is true, he’s grateful for the opportunity to improve himself