There was a time when someone who incessantly professed their own superiorirty was viewed with derision of not outright pity. Healthy self-confidence is one thing, but public self-glorification is quite another. The Limbaugh's and O'Reilly's of the world got to where they are on over-inflated egos primarily because, as reality TV proves, large segments of the passive broadcast audience wants to be told what they should think. That scenario doesn't demand intelligence or humility, but rather false bravdo and emotional hyperbole. Unfortunately for us, this forumla has migrated beyond the media and into some dark corners of our government.
Because I'm a media guy, I've always enjoed Glenn Greenwald and have linked to him before. While never as concise as Leonard Pitts, Jr., (another favorite) I appreciate Greenwald's constant linking of sources and frequent updates.
Here's a taste on a recent post that resonated with me...
"The most predominant mentality in right-wing discourse finds expression in this form: "I am part of/was born into Group X, and Group X -- my group -- is better than all others yet treated so very unfairly." This claim persists -- indeed, is often intensified -- even when Group X is clearly the strongest, most privileged and most favored group. So intense is their need for self-victimization -- so inebriating is their self-absorption and so lacking are they in any capacity for empathy -- that, for all the noise and rhetoric, the arguments they make virtually always have this tribalistic self-absorption at its core."
Comments