Whenever I find myself in the car during certain parts of the day, I turn to conservative talk radio.
I don’t do this because I need the fix.
I do it so I can hear not only what slanted news the host is passing on, but, by the number and content of those calling in, can gauge how much of that is being accepted as truth.
Sadly, too much is being accepted no matter how outlandish.
The other day I was doing a short distance errand, and only had time to hear a little Rush Limbaugh.
He was covering the Robin Williams suicide story.
While thinking people used the tragedy as an opportunity to bring attention to depression and society’s need to deal with it, as a celebrity can serve more as an example of our need to pay attention to those we know who suffer depression than unknown people who commit suicide can, Rush decided to make it a political thing.
He claimed that the suicide was based on some “Leftist” thing.
“What is the left’s world view in general? If you had to attach, not a philosophy, but an attitude to a leftist world view. It’s one of pessimism, and darkness, sadness. They’re never happy, are they? They’re animated in large part by the false promises of America because the promises of America are not for everyone”.
He also claimed the suicide was a result of “survivor guilt” because three of his friends, Christopher Reeve, John Belushi, and Andy Kaufman, had died young.
Of course, he came to this conclusion because Fox News had presented that, and what more reliable source of good, solid information is there other than Fox.
“Robin Williams felt guilty that he was still alive while his three friends had died young, and much earlier than he had. He could never get over the guilt that they died and he didn’t.”
Then he brought it all together with,
“Well, that is a constant measurement that is made by political leftists in judging the country.”
When a caller questioned why all of a sudden celebrity suicides were no longer being hidden, but had become news, he continued to bloviate:
Today acupuncture is one of devensec.com buy cheap levitra the most liked flavors of kamagra jelly. You are advised to consume Musli Strong capsule to ensure buy cialis australia forceful and stronger ejaculation. While expensive libido boosters are easily obtained over counter in drug stores and http://www.devensec.com/ISRS2016/Devens_EIP.pdf tadalafil 20mg for sale the market is flooded with female enhancement pills, they often aren’t regulated and approved by the state authorities. These medications are ended tadalafil india cialis up being compelling in managing impotency.
“This really is an example of the dedication the media has to pop culture events and how important it is in the eyes of their audience. Whereas in Washington, the media thinks the world is on fire because of what’s happening in the Middle East, your average TMZ viewer thinks the world doesn’t make any sense anymore because Robin Williams committed suicide.”
He characterized the media coverage as “fawning and glorious, and positive” that it might lead to copy cats “seeking the same kind of fame.”
To him it is all show.
To thinking and compassionate people it is a call to deal effectively with depression in an era where mental health has been connected to mass shootings and suicides, and funding for programs to address it are being cut.
To Rush, suicides are a way to get attention.
”This is one way to do it, obviously,” he said. “To kill yourself is one way to get the media to spend a lot of time talking about you, if you want to be talked about.”
And, as we know, dead people love to wallow in the attention. I guess that’s why they just lie there in their coffins at wakes. It’s all about them enjoying being at the front of the room with everyone looking at them.
For one brief sentence it seemed he was actually going to get serious about depression when h pointed out that Robin Williams “had it all, but he had nothing. He made everybody else laugh but was miserable inside.”
But then he went back to being Rush, “I mean, it fits a certain picture, or a certain image that the left has.”
Of course, as he was having his housekeeper buy him oxycontin, he was telling his listeners that addicts were the dregs of society who needed to be locked up with no mercy.
When he recognized his own addiction, while never retracting how he characterized others, he asked for understanding and support from his fans.
I would be nervous if I was a friend of his who suffered from depression because he might only change his tune and educate himself about my depression if it led to suicide and hit close to home for him.
It will be interesting to see how people react to this.
Will his listeners see that he is just a twisted man who looks for negative things to say to rile people up while misleading them, or a great actor who pretends he actually believes what he says because it pays the bills and people accept him the on air persona.