On tour in England in 2003, Natalie Maines, lead singer of the then-popular Country group The Dixie Chicks, made commentary regarding our walking brain stem of a President, saying they were ashamed he was from Texas.
The Reich Wing response was typical. Rocks were thrown through the nursery window of Mrs. Maines' child. The band received very detailed death threats stating the date, time, and method of their execution. Their CDs were pulled from shelves and burned. And music stations stopped playing their music.
All of this illustrates a typical response of the right wing to ideas and statements they personally disagree with. These people live in a world of hypocrisy, where celebrities are only allowed to express points of view when it is the same as their own.
The right wing has a long history of tearing down that which they despise. The Christian right will steal Harry Potter books from libraries and burn them. Joseph "Tailgunner Joe" McCarthy went after his political enemies under the guise of rooting out communists. Michael Moore and Al Gore are vilified and insulted for telling the inconvienent truths about the world. Bill O'Reilly regularly calls for boycotts against companies, people, and countries that he disagrees with.
All of this outlines the thinking of a Reich Winger: You are free to express your ideas, so long as I agree with them.
This is proven every time a 'liberal' celebrity speaks out. The right wing of the country howls and yowls, saying "You're endangering the troops", "How dare you insult your President" and "Shut up and sing".
But when it is a right wing celebrity, there is no outrage. When Dennis Miller insulted Hans Blix for doing his job, where was the outrage? When Ted Nugent talks about how great it is to kill and gut animals, where is the righteous indignation? Why is it okay for Bruce Willis to talk about about how great the war in Iraq is when it isn't okay for Alec Baldwin to tell the truth about it? If Michael Moore says something the right wing disagrees with, he is smeared. When Ann Coulter says the best way to talk to a liberal is with a baseball bat, she is cheered. Oh. And when Ann Coulter receives a pie in the face, it is a crime rather then slapstick comedy.
It is wrong to contest a right winger's statements. But it is okay to make death threats against a liberal. The hypocrisy of the right is not just obvious, but overwhelming.
Simply put, it is because the average Reich Winger lives in a world of lies, deception and hypocrisy. One where it is acceptable to throw rocks through windows and make death threats against people who disagree with you. One where it is wrong to compare Bush to Hitler, or the GOP to the Nazis, even though Bush's America shares fourteen characteristics of fascism. But at the same time, it is okay to compare your Air America Radio to Nazis and Joseph Goebbels.
It is becoming painfully obvious that the right wing will not tolerate dissent in their ideal America. They are working hard to ensure that the only public discourse is discourse they endorse. For the past six years, they have been stating that to disagree with the President is treasonous. Rest assured that it will not end with "liberal" celebrities. Soon it will extend to all of us, unless something is done.