I don’t know – I thought it lacked class. Olbermann’s better off using his superior wit and throwing O’Reilly’s words back in his face. He doesn’t need to stoop to crude mockery.

Crude mockery is best left to the experts at Sadly, No! of course.

Ther Zell one scared me. I thinked I pooped my pants a little.

When the shoe fits, wear it. O’Reilley and his guests are classic fascists with a hint of genocidal tendency (not a good group name). They are the echos of an early Nazi party, the ones that paved the way for future acceptance of attrocities in the name of “Fatherland Security”.

Shorter ADL:

It is unseemly to notice that a shirt is brown.

A troll will come by to squawk about Hugo Chavez in 5… 4… 3…

Shorter ADL: We don’t get it, therefore it is not funny.

(Noting that the letter doesn’t address Olberman’s point–that Bill is a Nazi–it just complains about the use of the salute “even in jest”.)

Besides, Fox Security knows where you live, and they’ll be paying you a visit.

As a respected and well-known media personality…

Keith Olberman is respected?

Bill isn’t a Nazi though. He’s an authoritarian blowhard. There’s a difference.

Bill isn’t a Nazi though. He’s an authoritarian blowhard. There’s a difference.

You say burnt sienna shirt, I say brown.

Is that Zell Miller, or the emperor after Samuel L. Jackson got all lightning bolt on his ass?

I thought Olberman explained the photo as saying it caught him inbetween the up and down hand motion of a “fluttering” wave… or something like that.

I think the best “SEIG HEIL” salute is Arnolds.

I would say O’Reilly is more totalitarian in nature. With a hint of baby-shit brown.

Wasn’t Keith Olberman’s piece about the Falafel Man claiming that the Americans had murdered Nazis at Malmedy instead of Nazis murdering Americans? Sounds like the Falafel Man is a Nazi to me and well deserves the salute or are the ADL now trying to claim that the only real people to die in WW2 were the Jews.

To all wingnuts, yes it was the Waffen-SS but to become a member of the Waffen-SS you had to be a Nazi.

Of course none of you will have any proof that O’Reilly is a fascist and/or nazi

Of course none of you will have any proof that O’Reilly is a fascist and/or nazi

What kind of proof would suit you, Gary, if his own words aren’t enough?

How about an unfortunate stain on an SS uniform?

One more comment on Lamont:

It’s amazing that he got though the primary despite that “Mentos” ad. Type “Mentos Lamont” in Google if you want to find the ad remix in question.

Lieberman will be unable to unleash more punches when it comes to people starring in Lamont ads who celebrate the deaths of Americans in Iraq, like Markos Moulitsas.

I don’t know about you guys, but that Ghost World-y chick in the “no immigrants” picture is making my pants salute.

Just saying.

These are the seven criteria I’ve been using for fascism:

(any six of seven)
1. exalting the nation, (and in some cases the race, culture, or religion) above the individual, with the state apparatus being supreme.
2. stressing loyalty to a single leader.
3. advocating violence or using modern techniques of propaganda and censorship to forcibly suppress political opposition.
4. advocating severe economic and social regimentation.
5. advocating syndicalist corporatism.
6. advocating totalitarian systems.
7. declaring itself or holding itself out to be to be a fascist, national socialist, falangist, rexist, etc. movement.

Now, in claiming “fascism” you have to be careful of degree. “Severe” economic and social regimentation is hard to eyeball; just being against the capital-gains tax probably doesn’t cut it.

But if you’re talking about the people who wear the lynching t-shirts…

So what did the ADL make of this use of gestures and imagery associated with the Nazis?

Alternet (http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/40099/) runs down some of Bill’s rantings that should have raised ADL eyebrows, but didn’t.

I don’t think there’s any Holocaust-trivializing going on. I think it’s a much-needed de-trivializing of the kind of dangerous invective that American public discourse has shrugged off or even considered acceptable for far too long.

Bill isn’t a Nazi though. He’s an authoritarian blowhard. There’s a difference.
True enough. But this is where it begins. You don’t go from a happy and free democracy to fascist hellhole overnight. It’s a process. I don’t think we should wait until people overtly wear swastikas before pointing out where this sort of thing has generally led, historically.

And someone doesn’t have to be an actual Nazi to share a similarly odious philosophy, nor to be called on that. Whether he wears an SS uniform or advocates genocide or not is beside the point.

OT, but….

I want to pause for a second and note what a treasure Gary Ruppert is.

In this age of drive-by trolling, faux trolling, and so many other variations on the theme, it is so heartening to see a surviving specimen of the old-fashioned, dedicated comment-board troll. Like all the best trolls, Gary has his own brand of monomaniacal lunacy that — like a fingerprint, the shape of a humpback whale’s tail, or the precise splatter marks of a latenight upchuck on the pavement — is entirely unique. You just can’t duplicate this special kind of wingnuttery

Thanks again for playing, Gary!

What about this context?

Of course none of you will have any proof that O’Reilly is a fascist and/or nazi

Well, I rec’d this e-mail from Bill O.:

‘Dear Mr. Ripley,

You may have heard that I am a fascist and a Nazi.

I hope you’re having a pleasant day.

Regards,
Bill O. ‘

So, there you have it.

BenA makes a good point. What I most enjoy about Gary’s comments is the null affect, the “Raymond Shaw? Why don’t you pass the time by playing some Solitaire, Raymond?” hypno-trance tone. Throw some Music for Airports behind them, and there’s your proof of the viability of weak AI.

Lieberman will be unable to unleash more punches when it comes to people starring in Lamont ads who celebrate the deaths of Americans in Iraq, like Markos Moulitsas.

It’s definitely this kind of thing that keeps me coming back. It’s the political equivalent of, “Oh yeah? And what about Scarecrow’s brain?” You know, right in the middle of a debate about petunias.

“True enough. But this is where it begins. You don’t go from a happy and free democracy to fascist hellhole overnight. It’s a process. I don’t think we should wait until people overtly wear swastikas before pointing out where this sort of thing has generally led, historically.”

Absolutely. But for the pointing out to be effective, you need to delineate precisely what leads to what. Just labelling everyone who leans hard right a Nazi doesn’t help much. I’ve less of a problem with calling Bush a Nazi because he’s actually putting totalitarianism into practice, although again I’d prefer more precise terminology. If O’Reilly were in power, he wouldn’t have the imagination to come up with half the stuff Bush, Cheney and Addington have. Nor do I think he would start rounding up Jews and gays. Communists, maybe. On the other hand, his rhetoric gives support to and mainstreams fascist views and behaviour. It is absolutely right and necessary to point this out. I just don’t think doing a Nazi salute is a very effective, or funny, way to do it. Olbermann’s other work on O’Reilly is brilliant.

Not to mention Gary’s Fabulous Motorized Goalposts. “Lieberman will Win”. Ooppss. “Lieberman’s Loss means the Democratic Party is Doomed”. It really doesn’t matter what kind of blind, mindless “prediction” Gary makes, when confronted with an outcome diametrically opposed to said prediction, Gary breezes right on by and pulls a new set of Talking Points out of his Rectal Talking – Point Dispenser and goes right on. He’s the Energizer Bunny of the Radical Theocratic Right ™, with the notable exception that he never leaves his mom and dad’s basement…

mikey

Rectal Talking – Point Dispenser

*spews coffee on keyboard — sighs — goes to get another cup*

blowback got it right in one. The Nazi commentary is in reference to O’Rly claiming that it was Americans who killed Nazis in cold blood in Malmedy. First off, Bill-O was trying to use this as an excuse for why soldiers could go into houses in Iraq and kill civilians in cold blood – which is shameless enough. Beyond that, though, it was the NAZIS who killed Americans in cold blood in Malmedy, not vice versa, meaning that O’Reilly is actually comparing our soldiers to despicable Nazi murderers. What is worse is that he has been corrected yet he still keeps mistelling the Malmedy story.

That is what this is about – not authoritarianism or fascism. While I think Keith could be smarter about how he pokes fun at O’Reilly, Bill-O has made no apology for his Nazi sympathy. I expect Gary to completely ignore this.

Of course, the fact tha O’Reilly keeps saying that “liberal Jews” support terrorists who behead Americans doesn’t do much to take him out of Mel Gibson-ville… http://mediamatters.org/items/200607200004

So is the ADL actually enforcing Godwin’s Law now?

He’s the Energizer Bunny of the Radical Theocratic Right ™, with the notable exception that he never leaves his mom and dad’s basement…

That’s an exception?

mikey said,
August 9, 2006 at 18:30

He’s the Energizer Bunny of the Radical Theocratic Right ™, with the notable exception that he never leaves his mom and dad’s basement…

mikey

I wish my mom & dad had a basement.

Crap. I forgot. They’re dead. (Never mind.)

The thing about Malmedy doesn’t make O’Reilly a Nazi-lover. It makes him an apologist for war crimes. It just means that he’s not above slandering American ex-soldiers if it helps him to minimise atrocities committed by current ones.

Olbermann is a myopic former sports guy who can’t even drive a car. Comparing Mr. Factor to a Nazi is not only ignorant and baseless but adolescent. One wonders what–if anything–Olbermann knows about history, besides the history of sports.

A guy I like is Stephen Colbert–smart as a whip, funny, and quick–a real talent.

Oh, and by the way, Media Matters is not a credible source. They specialize in partisan hack jobs.

myopic

He wears GLASSES? Shit, I hate that dude now. Thanks, Jose!

Oh, and by the way, Media Matters is not a credible source. They specialize in partisan hack jobs.

Indeed they do. They find them and point them out. But I admit they’re nowhere near as credible as a WND or a NewsMax.

GG, clown.

Olbermann is a myopic former sports guy who can’t even drive a car. Comparing Mr. Factor to a Nazi is not only ignorant and baseless but adolescent.

Hilarious! I suppose comparing innocent Lebanese citizens to terrorists is adult by comparison?

We’re not laughing with you.

Gary Ruppert said,

Of course none of you will have any proof that O’Reilly is a fascist and/or nazi

Start here:

http://mediamatters.org/issues_topics/people/billoreilly

Jose Chung said: “Olbermann is a myopic former sports guy who can’t even drive a car. Comparing Mr. Factor to a Nazi is not only ignorant and baseless but adolescent. One wonders what–if anything–Olbermann knows about history, besides the history of sports.”

Have you ever actually watched Olbermann’s show? He is indeed one of the most quick-witted and intelligent talking heads on all of television. So what if he’s a “former sports guy”? Bill O’Reilly used to host a sensationalist half-hour show called “Inside Edition”. What the hell does he know? He isn’t a real journalist; he doesn’t know anything about the actual history of this nation or of the world; he is clearly a partisan hack who won’t even correct his own mistakes even when they are shown to him.

“A guy I like is Stephen Colbert–smart as a whip, funny, and quick–a real talent.”

I love Colbert too, but you have to remember that he is a COMEDIAN, not a real politico. In case you haven’t noticed, he’s lampooning O’Reilly each and every night on Comedy Central. Colbert is no conservative in real life, just read up on him and you’ll see!

“Oh, and by the way, Media Matters is not a credible source. They specialize in partisan hack jobs.”

Media Matters for America is indeed a very credible source. Without much added comment they present the actual words of so-called “conservatives” and allow us to make up our own minds. You have obviously never even visited their website at http://www.mediamatters.org. Check it out and you will indeed see how credible and reliable they are. *sheesh*

Sometimes, I just wanna cry. The ADL is missing the target with this one.

You missed one…

http://snipurl.com/uobl

I could have done without seeing that picture of Arnold. I think I’m going to go throw up now.

Lieberman will be unable to unleash more punches when it comes to people starring in Lamont ads who celebrate the deaths of Americans in Iraq, like Markos Moulitsas.

and where is your proof of this, asshole?

Gary Ruppert, I just want to smack you in the face with my cock.

Kos is a former soldier, dickwad. No one EVER celebrated American deaths in Iraq. The last thing he wants is for people to die for no reason.

Unlike fascist warmongers such as yourself, who would gladly send other people to die for bullshit lies.

Just for fiver

Oh, GoatBoy. Thanks for the slight taste of urp in the back of my throat.

Oh, and by the way, Media Matters is not a credible source. They specialize in partisan hack jobs.

Wha? Direct audio with accompanying transcript is not credible? I also have a link somewhere around here with a video of him singing “Pee On You,” two forms of government ID, a police officer there to verify the whole thing, four or five of my buddies and Neal taking notes, and Bill-O’s grandma to confirm his identity.

Dear ADL:

Every television comes equipped with an ON/OFF switch. If the sensibilities of your “constituents” are too delicate for irony, sarcasm or satire that gores their proverbial ox, you might encourage them to use it.

Lieberman will be unable to unleash more punches when it comes to people starring in Lamont ads who celebrate the deaths of Americans in Iraq, like Markos Moulitsas.

Markos Moulitsas never served in Iraq. Oh, and there were no Lamont ads that celebrated the deaths of Americans in Iraq.

Gary, you had better syntax when you were one person.

I mean, from a game theory point of view, you don’t actually exist here. You do not provide any new information.

I suppose you got a lot of rises out of commenters before we all got over our Helskinki syndrome with the talking heads.

Now, you (‘scuse me “vous”) are only worthy of note in an Abba kind of way.

µ

How can it possibly be that there are still Nazi skins dressing exactly the way they did when I was in high school 20 years ago?

Then again, there were kids in my high school dressing as Mods.

Hey, ADL– I hear that Anderson Cooper listens to Wagner; run along, little boys and girls… run along…

Jose Chung said,
August 9, 2006 at 20:03

Olbermann is a myopic former sports guy who can’t even drive a car.

Yes, because Olbermann suffered a head injury that all but destroyed his visual depth perception. That’s why he is unable to drive.

One wonders what–if anything–Olbermann knows about history, besides the history of sports.�

Well, unlike Bill O’Reilly, Olbermann knows that the perpetrators of war crimes at Malmedy were the Nazi SS, not American soldiers.

Oh, and by the way, Media Matters is not a credible source.

Like you are?

[…] *Attention Mr. Abe Foxman: You were worried about trivialization of historical Jewish Suffering, including the Shoah? I think you should send Pammy a letter for this. And while you’re at it, Instapundit, too. […]

[…] Perhaps now, through Pajamas Media osmosis, she’ll be added to the list of self-loathers. Man, for the second time in as many days, I’m forced to ask Abe Foxman to clarify what he meant with his condemnation of the trivalization of historical Jewish suffering. […]

The reason they sent the letter was Robert Cox, he runs an anti-Keith Olbermann webite, contacted the ADL and made a big deal about it. He said so here:

http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=17287845&postID=115512248622010722