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All is Vanity See other All is Vanity Articles Title: Glenn Beck's Theatre of the Absurd "Glenn Beck's Theatre of the Absurd" Published on 09-01-2010 By Keith Johnson = BLN Contributing Writer Start wearing purple wearing purple Start wearing purple for me now All your sanity and wits they will all vanish I promise, it's just a matter of time... ~Start Wearing Purple~ by Gogol Bordello If you want to know the real purpose behind Glenn Beck's expensive, heavily publicized 'feel good' extravaganza, you need only watch the first ten minutes of the speech he delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Dressed up in the NWO color of purple, and clutching purple speech cards in his hand (check out who else is fond of the color purple), Beck took center stage to issue marching orders to the thousands of gullible lemmings that attended his ‘Restoring Honor’ rally this past weekend. Beck warmed up the crowd like any good, charismatic tent preacher would. He opened with, "Something that is beyond man is happening. America today begins to turn back to God. For too long, this country has wandered in darkness." After getting the women to tear up, and the men to jut out their chests, Beck’s motivational speech soon turned into a lesson in American history, that apparently began (according to Beck) when, “God’s chosen people were led out of bondage by a guy with a stick.” As Beck’s sermon unfolded, the very first person to appear in the background (and the very first person Beck introduced) was Rabbi Daniel Lapin, a strong critic of “liberal Judaism” and a controversial figure who has been linked to former lobbyist, con man and convicted felon Jack Abramoff. According to the Washington Post, Lapin’s specialty is "finding support in the Torah for what turns out to be the current Republican platform: lower taxes, decreased regulation, pro-traditional family policies." Gee whiz. And here, all this time, Beck has been telling us that his event was “not about politics.” Go figure. In 2005, Abramoff contacted Lapin via email and asked if it would be possible for him to produce phony credentials from Lapin’s group, Toward Tradition. Abramoff wanted something like a "Scholar of Talmudic Studies," or "Distinguished Biblical Scholar Award." Lapin was more than happy to oblige. For a rally that promotes the idea of restoring honor to America, Beck certainly picked an awfully dishonorable Rabbi as part of his line up, don’t you think? Beck continued by saying, “The chosen people listened to the Lord. At the same time those things were happening…on this side…on this land…another group of people [Native American’s] were gathered here, and they too were listening to God.” This was less of a tribute to Native American’s and more intended as a subtle reference to Beck’s Mormon theology. By now, two Native American Indians joined Lapin on the steps behind Beck. Beck introduced them as the “direct descendants of the Native Americans that met the Pilgrims on the shores as they arrived.” There they stood, shoulder to shoulder with Rabbi Lapin. How odd it was seeing two Native American’s standing in the vicinity of a man whose friend, Jack Abramoff, referred to his Indian clients as "morons" and "monkeys" in emails that surfaced during the Abramoff-Reed Indian Gambling Scandal. But I digress… The Indian couple was followed by Paul Jehle, a Christian pastor whom Beck introduced as “a direct descendant of those who arrived on the Mayflower.” Are you starting to see the psy-op here? Beck is implanting in the minds of his audience that this group represents the three stages of America’s birth. At one point during his speech, Beck turned to face the foursome, and pointed to them individually, as he went down the line, “God’s Chosen people” [the Rabbi]…”the Native Americans”…“and the Pilgrims” [the Pastor] Is the picture now starting to come into focus? Beck is linking Israel’s history with America’s history. He wants you to never forget that the United States and Israel are one in the same. This way, the next time one of his brainwashed minions hears of a homemade rocket falling on an empty lot in Jerusalem, or if an Iranian sailor accidentally steps on the toes of an IDF commando who is inspecting his ship, they will not just consider it an attack on Israel— but an attack on America itself. We’re being prepped for war, folks—and everything about this rally, including all the references to Martin Luther King, was part of that sales pitch. The GOP has a vested interest in getting on the good side of the African American community. Why? Because they need those young, black soldiers on the battlefield. What better way to get their foot in the door than to invoke the spirit of the black communities most cherished icon. Talk about your defamation of character. Using Martin Luther King as a poster child for your pro-Israel war rally? Say what you like about Reverend King, but he certainly was not a war advocate like Beck and Palin. During the 1960’s, MLK openly expressed his opposition to the Vietnam War on moral grounds. He also said that the war drained much-needed resources from domestic programs. He was even more concerned about the percentage of African American casualties in relation to the total population. King was a leader in the anti-war movement who rallied other African Americans to the cause. Listening to a warmonger like Sarah Palin talk up Martin Luther King was beyond surreal. Before she addressed a list of US soldiers who were receiving awards, Palin gave this little ‘shout out’ to her new favorite Brother from another Mother: “Over these grounds where we are so honored to stand today, we feel the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who on this very day, two score and seven years ago, gave voice to a dream that would challenge us to honor the sacred charters of our liberty – that all men are created equal.” She then went on to suggest that the best way to honor MLK was to honor the military men and women who fought to protect his freedom of speech. “Now, in honoring these giants [George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King], who were linked by a solid rock foundation of faith in the one true God of justice, we must not forget the ordinary men and women on whose shoulders they stood. The ordinary called for extraordinary bravery. I am speaking, of course, of America’s finest – our men and women in uniform, a force for good in this country, and that is nothing to apologize for.” It would have been just fine if Sarah Palin had stopped there—but you know Sarah Palin. She can’t get through the day without making some whacked out comment that reveals what a raving lunatic she really is. “Now, I’ve been asked to speak today, not as a politician. No, as something more – something much more. I’ve been asked to speak as the mother of a soldier, and I am proud of that distinction. You know, say what you want to say about me, but I raised a combat vet, and you can’t take that away from me. I’m proud of that distinction, but it is not one that I had imagined because no woman gives birth thinking that she will hand over her child to her country, but that’s what mothers have done from ancient days.” Did you catch that last part, Ladies and Gentlemen? I hope so, because her message was loud and clear: If you want to be right with God, and a great American patriot, you will do as Sarah Palin has done. You will raise your sons to the tender age of 18 and then surrender them over to your government. After all—as Sarah Palin reminds us—“that’s what Mothers have done from ancient days” The best way I can think of responding to that is by referring you to one of my favorite movie quotes from the Adam Sandler comedy, Billy Madison: “What you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.” For a brief spell—the Democrats were sent in like a direct-action Special Ops team to force through legislation that the GOP also wants, but can’t sell to their conservative constituents. The wars have continued, but at an idled pace. However, as soon as the Republicans take power, those wars will kick into high gear, and new wars will grow out of those. But you can’t have a war without soldiers, and right now soldiers are in short supply. The government wants to avoid a draft as long as they can because they have learned their lesson from Vietnam. Drafts bring bad publicity, protests and reluctant soldiers returning from the battlefield to share their horror stories with the world. So that’s why the Pentagon decided to sponsor this pricey recruitment campaign—an infomercial if you will—for the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. But the target audience, for this thinly veiled marketing campaign, was not the virile 18 year old who will be expected to do all the fighting. This propaganda was aimed directly at Mom and Dad, to convince them that it is the patriotic duty of every red-blooded American parent to rear their sons and daughters in preparation for military service. Do that—and the government will reward you, and your children, with showers of public admiration and all the bragging rights that go along with it. These lavishly produced celebrations of war are being used to promote a culture of military worship like that which flourished in the former Soviet Union, and can still be found to exist in places like North Korea. If this frightening trend continues, we may very well find our daughters being encouraged to issue white feathers (a symbol of cowardice) to men not wearing uniforms—a common practice, to encourage men to enlist in the British Army, during World War I. Of course, many of those who are peddling this war propaganda don’t hold themselves to the same standard. Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Neal Boortz, and countless others have never served in the military…but they sure expect your children to serve. Sarah Palin (whose son is a combat veteran) is an exception to this rule, but only because she is one of the few pundits who believes in her own rhetoric. This is what makes her so effective…and dangerous. Some say that Beck is cast from the same mold. On the surface this may appear to be true. But psychologically, they are as different as night and day. Beck is not a psychopath—he is a sociopath. Psychopaths believe that they are doing God’s work, while the sociopath believes that God works for them. One of the best films to ever come out of Hollywood is, ‘A Face in the Crowd.’ Andy Griffith plays Lonesome Rhodes, an opinionated, backwoods country-western singer who is discovered in a drunk tank by a local talent scout. Rhodes gets a spot on a local radio program and becomes an overnight sensation due to his folksy charm and engaging personality. Soon after, he lands a television program and amasses a huge following as well as multiple sponsors and endorsements. Before too long, Rhodes becomes the most powerful and influential entertainer on the airwaves. This leads to him being introduced to Worthington Fuller, a political candidate who asks for Rhodes assistance in getting elected. Rhodes becomes his media emissary and helps him to gain a significant lead in the national polls. Riding high off this victory, Rhodes confides in one of his intimates. “Rednecks, crackers, hillbillies, hausfraus, shut-ins, pea-pickers - everybody that's got to jump when somebody else blows the whistle. They don't know it yet, but they're all gonna be 'Fighters for Fuller. ‘They’re mine! I own 'em! They think like I do. Only they're even more stupid than I am, so I gotta think for 'em.” It becomes obvious—to those closest to him—that Rhodes public persona is merely an act, and that he is actually an egotistically driven manipulator with Machiavellian political aspirations. Rhodes uses everyone around him in his pursuit of fame and fortune—and has utter contempt for his audience—seeing how easily they can be deceived. This resentment gives him an air of superiority over others and an unrealistic sense of invulnerability…and this is what leads to his downfall. During the closing credits of his television program, his confidant purposely arranges to switch on the audio to his microphone so the entire nation can hear what he really thinks of his audience. “Shucks, I sell them chicken fertilizer as caviar. I can make them eat dog food and think it’s steak. Sure, I've got them like this. You know what the public's like, a cage full of guinea pigs. They're a lot of trained seals...I toss them a dead fish and they'll flap their flippers. Good night, you stupid idiots. Good night, you miserable slobs.” If you’ve followed Glenn Beck’s career, you can’t help but find a lot of striking similarities between him and Lonesome Rhodes. But whether they will share the same ending…remains to be seen.
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#4. To: Ragin1 (#0)
Wrong.
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