No need to apologize. My original entry is rather flippant and I’m not surprised that I roused some passionate opinions with it. I’m not at all opposed to having you or anyone else disagree with me.

I’ll fully admit that this could just be a case of confirmation bias on my part, but it seems like some of the pundits on the right aren’t kidding when they advocate violence against those of us on the left and too many of their rabid fans seem willing to follow through on those suggestions. When was the last time you heard of a left-wing nutcase shooting a church up because he read a bunch of Al Franken and Keith Olbermann books?

The last thing I want to come across as is some kind of right-wing nutjob who will defend conservative talk show hosts. Because , again, I can’t stand them. My personal opinion is that conservatives and in general,Republicans have lost all credibility.

But comments like the ones you listed about Ann Coulter I would agree are said far more frequently on the conservative side rather than the liberal. My favorite talk show host right now is the Progressive Thomm Hartmann. To my knowledge, he has never even remotely said anything violent and I’d be shocked to find out if he ever did.

But just to show, comments like that are not just limited to conservatives:

Air America host Mike Malloy said about blogger Mark Noonan
MALLOY: …but when they do make these sweeping uh… umm… statements about Democrats better watch out, I think they should be responded to, the way Hunter responded to Peggy Noonan’s little boy here… uh just beat the crap out of them. If you can do it with the pen, fine. If you need to do it with the sword, that’s ok, too… uhhh… you know it’s said that the pen is mightier than the sword. alright, alright, that’s fine.”

Keith Olbermann once said about Hillary Clinton, “Right. Somebody who can take her into a room and only he comes out.” April 23, 2008

Or Al Franken joking about the drugging and rape of CBS’ 60 Minutes reporter Leslie Stahl:
‘ I give the pills to Lesley Stahl. Then, when Lesley’s passed out, I take her to the closet and rape her.’ Or, ‘That’s why you never see Lesley until February.’ Or, ‘When she passes out, I put her in various positions and take pictures of her.’  Source: New York Magazine, March 13, 1995.

Now when you take all of these comments together, liberal and conservative, frankly I think these don’t push the line enough to warrant an arrest. If you take these things at face value, wether it be joking about rat poison or rape, however inappropriate and in bad taste, should be taken in jest. Mentally unstable people can be set off at the drop of a hat. If a talk show host isn’t the trigger, then something else will be.

When we are talking about arresting someone, it is some very serious business. I have never been in jail, but I know people who have. From what they told me, the reality of jail, even in county lockup, is no laughing matter. In many ways you are in serious physical danger and risk abuse not only from the inmates, but the people who are supposed to protect you, like the guards. This is not to mention the normal processing procedures that strip people of their dignity and are downright humiliating.

My argument is that Hal Turner took things to a whole new level! He clearly crossed the line and actively tried to get people killed. He made it very clear that was not joking in the least. He deserves everything he is going to get.

Again, I do not want to become a hostile presence here, because I agree so much with what is said here. Man do I ever hate religion! So I guess I’ll just drop the subject.

So, I apologize to you Les for my first post. I came off a little bit angry and that was wrong.

You’re right, Gdub, Ann Coulter never advocates violence against people she disagrees with.

For example she never said the following:

Vester: You say you’d rather not talk to liberals at all?

Coulter: I think a baseball bat is the most effective way these days.

Oh wait, she did say that on the FOX News Channel show DaySide with Linda Vester.

Here’s some more of her non-violent comments:

“When contemplating college liberals, you really regret once again that John Walker is not getting the death penalty. We need to execute people like John Walker in order to physically intimidate liberals, by making them realize that they can be killed, too. Otherwise, they will turn out to be outright traitors.” – Conservative Political Action Conference; February 26, 2002

“Would that it were so! … That the American military were targeting journalists.” – CNBC; Kudlow & Cramer; February 7, 2005

“My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the New York Times building.” – New York Observer article; August 26, 2002

“Of course I regret it. I should have added ‘after everyone had left the building except the editors and the reporters.’” – rightwingnews.com; June 26, 2003 On her (above) statement concerning Timothy McVeigh

“We need somebody to put rat poisoning in Justice Stevens’s creme brulee. That’s just a joke, for you in the media.” – Philander Smith College January 26, 2006

And that’s just Coulter. Like I said, the only real difference is that Hal Turner got too specific on who he felt should be killed.

I guess I should apologize for my first post, because now that I am reading it again, it was worded in a hostile way.

It just seems that there is a definate line that shouldn’t be crossed when it comes to one’s speech. Hal Turner’s racist fat ass crossed that line and I think it is funny as shit that he’s going to prison now. (I am quite sure that the minorites that he will live with will have great appreciation for him!

OOOPS…I guess I just did an Ann Coulter there. In so many words I said that I wouldn’t feel to sorry for Hal Turner if he got raped and murdered in a vicious way while locked away in a cage.

Should I be arrested for that?

Yes, I of course see the difference, I just thought it an interesting quote. She said it recently. She is, however, trivializing the killing and trying to advertise the idea that viewers should not feel any moral reason not to do this sort of thing. As mistermook alluded to, this is borderline stuff.

OK…it seems that we are going to go in painful circles here. I need to stress that I am not a fan whatsoever of Ann Coulter and the like. I can’t stand the bitch! Or Rush, or Bill O’Riely or any of those fuckfaces!

Positive, you are quoting Coulter basically saying that she didn’t feel sorry for Dr. Tiller when he was murdered. In contrast, Hal Turner would flat out say that Dr. Tiller should be killed, and by the way, here is his home address, and the location of his clinic where he works so if anyone of you want’s to ‘give him a piece of your mind’ you can do so.

Do you see the difference?

Recently on O’Reilly’s show Ann Coulter said of Dr. Tiller’s killing: “I don’t really like to think of it as a murder. It was terminating Tiller in the 203rd trimester.”

How can you compare the two if this is so?

Because I’ve listened to Ann Coulter before, when she’s not prettying things up for a national audience and thinks she’s preaching to the choir.

when has Ann Coulter ever flat out called for the killing of public officials and published thier information so any unstable wacko can get exact coodinates to do the job?

If she’d crossed that particular line I’d have jumped at the chance to inform upon her, but I think she’s done a fine job at toeing the legal otherwise in her quest to be as vile as possible. You’re claiming they’re different, I disagree. One’s just finally made a minor misstep in the language they’ve used, but they’re both using the same language.

It’s like saying Pol Pot was never as bad as Hitler, if I may without Godwining the thread, because Pol Pot never invaded France.

It is not that I have any facination with Hal Turner, Bachalon so don’t even try to put me in his camp. I listen to and read a very very wide range of radio shows, blogs, and news sources.

MisterMook, when has Ann Coulter ever flat out called for the killing of public officials and published thier information so any unstable wacko can get exact coodinates to do the job?

I know that Ann Coulter has called homosexuals “fags” and stuff like that. But that’s a far cry from calling for the killing of public officials.

You say you have heard of Hal Turner and listened to him before? How can you compare the two if this is so?

Gdudb… honestly? I’ve only heard a few of Hal Turner broadcasts, but from them and your own description I think we’re talking about oranges and oranges. At least in regards to Ann Coulter, the woman only gets away with what she says because of her tits and long blonde hair.