Yet another fine display of embarrassing hatred for…everything
Just say no to this guy. From Wikipedia Commons
After Pat Robertson once again enlightened all of us to how much he lacks in self control, it was then time for someone else to do the same. Enter the Rush Limbaugh Haiti comments. Obviously, he isn’t going away anytime soon, as people are willing to line up payday loans to buy his books, listen to his programs, and attend his speaking engagements.
“You already give aid to Haiti. It’s called the income tax.”
I will give him this – the US government does spend a lot on foreign entitlements. However, compared to other expenditures, foreign entitlements are a drop in the bucket. He also voiced concern that any money given wouldn’t actually reach aid victims – which is a valid concern, though unfounded, as aid programs in countries we’ve invaded work well. That said, it doesn’t exculpate him from wrong, and a boor.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said that unfortunately, there are always people who will have “really stupid things to say” during a crisis. Indeed there are.
The biggest government expenditures, and why he’s wrong
In case anyone wondered, part of why this sad clown is wrong, especially about government spending, is because he doesn’t seem to read the literature. Even a pedestrian perusal of the Congressional Budget (available, for free, from the Government Printing Office website, www.gpoaccess.gov) reveals that the biggest expenditures are for the following: Social Security, Defense, Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP, Welfare/Entitlements (domestic), War on Terror, and Interest on the National Debt. Social Security, Medicare/Medicaid/SCHIP and Defense/War on Terror are the biggest.
Anything spent on foreign aid is almost unnoticeable. So, my fiscal conservative friends (and I’m among your ranks), if you are going to talk about what our government spends our money on, then you had better go after the big stuff first. Otherwise you come off as a bit hypocritical.
Haiti is going to need far more than the tiny bit it already has been allocated, and foreign aid, as I’ve said, is a tiny fraction of the largess of government waste. Quite frankly, the conservative wing needs to start finding a better champion if they want to be taken seriously. There is that guy from Texas with the flair for Constitutional issues and liberty who is SO much more practical and smarter, in my humble opinion, than certain ex-governors of Alaska. (Hint, hint.)
Can’t we make him go back to sports?
The Rush Limbaugh Haiti comments highlight his boorishness, though it’s calculated and therefore, cynical in the extreme. Limbaugh is one of the reasons why the right wing doesn’t get taken seriously. Polemicists have a tendency to alienate people, from the left or right, and while some are both informative AND entertaining (George Carlin, Bill Hicks, Christopher Hitchens, Hunter S. Thompson, etc.), others come off as sad fascists. (Limbaugh and others I won’t mention.) I’d give payday loans to make him go back to sports, as long as he doesn’t bring up Donovan McNabb again.
I can’t believe how insensitive some people are. This is no joke by any means. It is a complete tragedy for the people of Haiti who have lost their homes and beloved family and friends. Thousands and thousands of people have died in this tragic incident. The streets are filled with dead bodies, parents looking for ways to feed their hungry babies, children who have lost their parents are left wandering through the ruins with nowhere to go, and this is what Rush Limbaugh has to say? He is one stupid individual, a dim-witted pig who lacks empathy and goodness.