From everything I’ve read, the only factor remaining in Governor Palin’s decision-making process about a 2012 presidential run is the impact the campaign would have on her family — which is why I think Bill Maher went here [emphasis mine]:
Now, I’m not saying that sexism doesn’t exist and isn’t real. And we can’t, but we can’t throw around the word “sexist” just to stop people like me from pointing out that Michele Bachmann, now running second for the Republican presidential nomination, isn’t a dangerous nincompoop. And when I point out that Sarah Palin is a vainglorious braggart, a liar, a whiner, a professional victim, a scold, a know-it-all, a chiseler, a bully who sells patriotism like a pimp, and the leader of a strange family of inbred weirdos straight out of “The Hills Have Eyes,” that’s not sexist. I’m saying it because it’s true, not because it’s true of a woman.
Really, Bill, this is “true?” Who has it in them to look at this photo of Tripp and Trig Palin, two beautiful and perfect children, and make jokes about “inbred weirdos?”
There was a lot of news, outrage and commotion over the weekend over Maher and his panelists ripping Michele Bachman’s husband, the appalling hate f**k comment directed at her, and Maher’s defensiveness when it comes to being called sexist. But from everything I’ve seen — including most of the paragraph quoted above aimed at Governor Palin herself — all of those comments were directed at adults perfectly capable of defending themselves. No one will argue that any and all of those comments were in poor taste, even for a HBO program proud of such things, but the real line that was crossed Friday night was Maher’s astonishingly obscene attack on Sarah Palin’s family — which obviously includes her children.
For all intents and purposes, on national cable television, Bill Maher called a Down Syndrome child an “inbred weirdos straight out of ‘The Hills Have Eyes’”.
This is beyond the beyond and yet we’re hearing nothing about it — even from our side.
On the day that the Obama released a White House photo of the Obama family watching soccer while sitting BAREFOOT and eating chips and salsa off a suede ottoman, I think Bill should have bit his tongue.
Odd, other than Michael Moore, I can’t think of anyone who is more of a weirdo creep than Bill Maher is.
This is beyond the beyond and yet we’re hearing nothing about it — even from our side.
Right on target Sir! We did hear it on Fox News on that new show. But if the roles had been reversed and a talking head had made those same remarks about the Clintons, and or Peanut Carter, it would have made front page news. The libdem congresspeople/senators would have been all over tv, and the press. Yet our henpecked republicans cower in the corner and just ignore it. God! How I wish we could get some more young guns on our side who would take the fight to the enemy. That was the most hideous and insulting remarks that I have heard as of to date about a woman who ran as vice president of this country. And speaking of women where are the republican women in our goverment? Where is the outrage? Someone needs to take the republicans out to the wood shed and lay into them a with limber branch. Its good that you recognized it, and made more people aware of it. I can hear it now though “We are involved with more important things!” Yeah, right! And your cowering on those issues as well.
I suspect Maher is having trouble with ratings….
As usual when there is ‘no argument’ (or ratings), then attack – attack – attack… the person, the family… I am not understanding why the Liberals always ‘whine’ about ‘tolerance’ …. They are ‘frauds’ to their own ideology…. No one spouts that more than Maher… The man is despicable…
And most certainly Maher surely has “no room” whatsoever to talk…. ick!
Why whine. Just fire Maher with your dollars. I called my cable provider a year ago when Maher made some dumb comment (similar to this one) and told them to cancel my HBO. When they asked why, I told them that as long as Maher was on HBO, I was off it.
Think what would happen if a million people cancelled HBO. Maher would be gone.
Maybe we should start taking about the photos of Obama’s nude mama. Wonder if Maher would consider that fair game.
I feel safe to respond about two very centrifugal major media organizations, one is Turner lead by a wild manic-depressive (bi-polar) whose super wealthy father committed gun to head suicide and the other is HBO. Here in New York there are many situations meeting people that work for or left HBO employment. The organizational culture is extremely stiff allowing no operational questions. Everything internal has to pass through the image police that is ensconced with spies in every department. Because of the powers dictated from marketing and public relations Bill Maher is safe and secure. HBO remains a cash cow for Time-Warner so until the value structure of the cable industry changes he keeps his job.
@retire05: I respectfully disagree. The notorious left has a habit even if it is denigrating to a person on the right and they lose a ton of money through advertisers they care not and do it anyway. They have studied Hitler very well; Tell a lie long enough…
@Mune Shadowe:
Doesn’t matter what Hitler did. It matters what you do with your dollars. If you boycott HBO, their products, and the companies that advertise on Maher, it will get HBOs attention. Think it doesn’t work? Reference Wonkette, who had a writer that made vile comments about Trig Palin on his birthday. Now, Wonkette is a pretty popular website, especially with the left, but within 24 hours Wonkette had lost all but one advertiser (almost all blogs rely on advertisers to help offset the cost of running the blog) and had fired the clown who made the vile remarks about little Trig.
Maher, and people like him, makes vile remarks because it brings them attention. But you can bitch until the cows come home, demand that Republicans take to the airways with their Hanes all in a wad, but it only gives more publicity to people like Maher and doesn’t, in the end, do any good.
But if Maher was to loose his sponsors, or HBO was to lose business because of Maher, remember, profit is the bottom line and it is the language of the game, and he would be gone.
I will give you the benefit of a doubt.
Thank you sir.
@THE SOOTHSAYER:
Having worked for Time Warner (years ago) I got rid of them as soon as I could get satellite service. It proved to be cheaper, went out less often and is more reliable than wired service. Most people can do the same unless their apartment complex has an agreement with Time Warner to be the cable provider.
@Mune Shadowe:
I worked for a major publication for over ten years. What I learned was that advertising was the meat and potatoes of the paper, but subscriptions was the gravy. By cancelling a paper, you only hurt the gravy, but boycott the advertisers, the meat and potatoes get rationed. Look at the NY Slimes; they lost tons of advertisers, and now they are being financed by the richest man in Mexico, Carlos Slim. Without him, they would have gone under.
@retire05:
As vile and hateful as Maher is, I prefer to have him, and the guests he brings on his show, out front for the liberals, as it gives a more accurate picture of how hateful, nasty, and spiteful liberal/progressives can be. Lose him, and the others like him, and all it does is hide, or cover-up, their true nature. I don’t watch his program, nor listen to him, ever. Indeed, I didn’t even click the video above to watch it. But I don’t want the liberals true nature to be hidden from the public, either.
@johngalt:
Liberals have been bashing conservative for generations. Do you think that the vile, hateful rhetoric we hear coming from those like Maher is anything new? So how has letting them have their head worked out for us? The fact of the matter is, it hasn’t.
But although we may not be able to stop them, we don’t have to fund their bank accounts. That was my point. My guess is that Maher is seeing his ratings drop (there are some honorable Democrats who don’t like his vile style) and he is running his mouth for effect. But money talks and b/s walks. If HBO finds Maher is no longer profitable, he will be walked out of their studios.
Case in point: Jane Fonda had a contract with QVC. QVC got so many complaints about her traitorism, that they dropped her. Point make. She won’t be hawking her wares, and earning money, over QVC.
Have you ever wondered what happened to Flip Wilson?
What if Michelle Obama is Flip Wilson doing Geraldine?
Forgive me Lord for having these thoughts. 🙂
Bill Maher hides behind the frankly dubious claim that he is a comedian, yet nearly everyone on his programs discuss issues quite seriously, from mostly liberal viewpoints, with only occasional hate filled vitrolic insults for anything conservative. Hate is not comedy, I will have nothing to do with Maher. I no longer have any interest in anything he has to say When he is a guest on a program, I change the channel. He is a cancerous polyp on the body politic. He is only popular because of the rabid hatred of the far-left for conservatives and Republicans.
@retire05:
And I agree with your point. I personally choose not to fund them when given a choice. I just think that when they open their mouths and hateful rhetoric comes out, like Maher has done so, so many times, that those people in the “middle” tend to shy away from that kind of talk and don’t listen, or watch, such filth. In the end, much of it ends up being as you suggest, that people vote with their pocketbooks, and the loons like Maher end up shutting themselves out by their own words.