Punditry Hypocrisy
Back when Clinton was going through the Lewinsky thang, William J. Bennett wrote a book titled "The Death of Outrage: Bill Clinton and the Assault on American Ideals". In it, Bennett expressed sadness and concern that the country wasn't more "outraged" at Clinton's behaviour. His basic conclusion..."American Values" are in decline, and the nation is going to hell in a handbasket, morally-speaking.
Last time I checked, there were some pretty good american values at the local WalMart, but that's another can of worms to be addressed in a future n2justice post.
I still vividly recall Bennett being a fixture on the political punditry circuit. He was everywhere...CNN, FOX, MSNBC, CBS, NBC, ABC, ASAP, PDQ, LMNOP. He was also busy writing books with titles like "The Book of Virtues", "The Book of Virtues for Young People", "The Children's Treasury of Virtues" and "Children's Book of Virtues". You get the point...the man knows a thing or two about virtues. Nowadays, you'd have to work awful hard to catch some virtuous, outrage-filled morsels from Mr. Bennett. I guess American values are no longer in decline.
By the way, what's the difference between a "book" and a "treasury"?
OK, fair enough. If you want to be a moral watchdog, then so be it. But to have credibility, don't you have to be CONSISTENT in your watchdoggyness? Where is Bennett's outrage at Abu Ghraib? Where is Bennett's outrage regarding abuse at Guantanamo? Where is Bennett's outrage when it comes to corporate malfeasence? Where is Bennett's outrage at the growing gap between rich and poor?
I could go on, but I'm getting tired of typing "Where is Bennett's outrage".
I actually appreciate people who take the time to investigate current events and issues and take an interest in the political scene. But the minute you lose your OBJECTIVITY, you lose your credibility. You no longer speak the truth to power.
You've become a political hack.
Last time I checked, there were some pretty good american values at the local WalMart, but that's another can of worms to be addressed in a future n2justice post.
I still vividly recall Bennett being a fixture on the political punditry circuit. He was everywhere...CNN, FOX, MSNBC, CBS, NBC, ABC, ASAP, PDQ, LMNOP. He was also busy writing books with titles like "The Book of Virtues", "The Book of Virtues for Young People", "The Children's Treasury of Virtues" and "Children's Book of Virtues". You get the point...the man knows a thing or two about virtues. Nowadays, you'd have to work awful hard to catch some virtuous, outrage-filled morsels from Mr. Bennett. I guess American values are no longer in decline.
By the way, what's the difference between a "book" and a "treasury"?
OK, fair enough. If you want to be a moral watchdog, then so be it. But to have credibility, don't you have to be CONSISTENT in your watchdoggyness? Where is Bennett's outrage at Abu Ghraib? Where is Bennett's outrage regarding abuse at Guantanamo? Where is Bennett's outrage when it comes to corporate malfeasence? Where is Bennett's outrage at the growing gap between rich and poor?
I could go on, but I'm getting tired of typing "Where is Bennett's outrage".
I actually appreciate people who take the time to investigate current events and issues and take an interest in the political scene. But the minute you lose your OBJECTIVITY, you lose your credibility. You no longer speak the truth to power.
You've become a political hack.
posted by n2justice at 1:32 PM
2 Comments:
Great post. Also, wasn't it Bennett that was exposed for a serious gambling habit? Where's the virtue in that?
Peace
Yep, that may explain, at least in part, why he's been rather silent these days. For me, he's just a prominent example of someone who's partisanship has overtaken his objectivity. There are many of these people around (on BOTH sides of the political aisle), and it's something I always try to be aware of, because it could happen to me as well.
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