have you ever heard any "far left" position advocated by any MSNBC host?

[Syrinx]

I don't think I have.

Last night Campbell Brown and Jon Stewart seemed to agree that, at least in "prime time," MSNBC represents the "far left," and that their hosts (Keith and Rachel) are somehow equivalent to their FOX counterparts.

Excuse me, but I guess my Kool-Aid must have had some tequila mixed in.

Are you telling me that the mere act of refuting right-wing lies is equivalent to spreading right-wing lies?

I admit that I expect Olbermann and Maddow to vote for Obama. But I cannot, for the life of me, recall even one time that either one of them have advocated any "far left" positions.

Can anyone?

Can anyone tell me how Olbermann or Maddow have come even close to the partisanship of O'Reilly?

If not, how can Jon Stewart come so close to endorsing that absurd point of view?

[ProfessorGAC]

1. Truth and Education Have A LeftWing Bias

What can we do?

The right wing has defined themselves as being wholly unfair, unconcerned with facts and unfamiliar with truth. So, the opposite approach to thought has to be the opposite of rightwing.

May not be fair, but seems unavoidable.
The Professor

[OneGrassRoot]

2. That about sums it up. KO was the most vocal in calling out Bushco....

so, that makes him uber leftwing.

Go figure.

I don't even know what the heck leftwing is supposed to be any more, though I have a very clear image of rightwing, thanks to Hannity, Limbaugh, et al.

[UnrepentantUnitarian]

9. I agree, Professor!

Labels are slippery, of course, but the "far left" is essentially the polar opposite of "far right." Far left, or as I see it described in religion as "radical liberal," or "radical democracy;" is dedicated to radical inclusion; tolerance of differences out of rich respect for diversity and for unity instead of uniformity; a nondogmatic quest for truth liberally compared, considered and judged in a free and open marketplace; the inherent worth and potential for growth of each and all (instead of a chosen few), utmost personal freedom/liberation within a context of ultimate connectedness and mutual responsibility; and a pursuit of happiness based more on hope and yearning instead of fear and intimidation. These may be considered "far left" to some, but to me they are the very embodiment of "e pluribus unum" (of many, one) upon which the nation was founded.

To his great credit, Barack Obama is well-versed on this paradigm...this ideology of radical democracy...which couldn't be more intrinsically "American," and which is the very opposite of the NeoCon dogma embraced by Fox and their favorite radio talkers.

At least that's my take on it.

[Somawas]

3. Olbermann ain't far left.

We really need a real leftist so these idiots could get introduced to what one really is. They think that Obama is a Marxist. Hell, give 'em CheTV.

[zbdent]

4. I think that almost any "far left" position that has been presented on the media

has been of the level of "Obama might be right on issue X ..."

[depakid]

5. Jon Stewart reckons that he's going to lose his usual Shtick

when there aren't so many far right nutters to make fun of anymore.

After all- he's a comedian, and it's only because we've had 15+ years of bizarre times that he seemed like something more.

[Balbus]

10. Jon Stewart is going to be the most hated man on this board..

after January of next year.

[Ripley]

11. For real.

Jon has his funny moments but basically he has an adolescent Shtick. We can thank him for all of the adult men who include "douchebag" as an adjective in their vocabulary.

(Hi Syrinx. Cold ain't it?)

[Syrinx]

19. hi Ripley!

Nice to see you! And, yes, it's beginning to feel like November. :scared:

:hi:

[whathehell]

27. I agree...It's the main reason I watch him infrequently. n/t

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

6. I was very disappointed that Jon Stewart sat through that bullshit and didn't say anything,

but hey, what do I know? There's a thread going on in this forum praising Brown.

:puke:

[Postman]

7. The RW tars centrist/sane positions has "far left" in order to hoodwink nitwits who don't know ....

..the difference

[NashVegas]

8. When Keith and Maddow Campaign Against GATT, Get Back To Me

KO and RM are little more than counter-programming; their opposition to RW propaganda is designed to attract ratings. Like BO and Rush, they provide a distraction from real issues.

Keith Olbermann only came out against the war on TV because MSNBC decided it was safe to. Disagree? Ask Phil Donohue.

[Mr Rabble]

31. You wont even hear GATT mentioned, let alone...

campaigned against.

Not going to happen.

I actually disagree with the implied analog to BO and Rush however. They are reactionary propagandists, who clearly know that their policy positions are harmful to the population.
KO and RM may be centrists, repeating common wisdom, they are not engaged in an act of malice. Big difference in my book.

[NashVegas]

38. I Don't Know About Maddow

I think KO is a centrist who gets pegged as a leftist because he is such a LOUD voice of opposition to Rush, et al. I think his treatment of HC during the primaries was most definitely malicious but other topics, by and large, no.

If you get the Documentary channel, keep an eye out for a film they're running about the Berkeley movement in the 1960s. What they were doing was so beyond right and left, it's no wonder they scared the living shit out of Hoover.

[Mr Rabble]

39. You are talking about real change-

Not changes in policies, but changes in the fundamental way our society functions, when you mention Berkley in that period.
That said, I believe that there is much more activism today than there was then. We are certainly a more civil country as a result of that activism.

If have never listened to Chomsky, log on to Youtube and watch-

[NashVegas]

40. I Passed Out of My Chomsky Phase

Some years ago, when it got to the point where I realized there was _no_way_on_god's_green_earth_ that his positions were ever going to be allowed to get traction, and why, that it all got too depressing to contemplate.

[old mark]

12. I well remember the "far Left" from the 1960's and 1970's, even Bill Ayers,

and there is NO ONE AT ALL whose stated positions are even close. THis is like saying that advocating a 5 day work week is "far left" - it is nothing but ignorant, or nothing but a lie, depending.

I have never seen Jon Stewart, and used to see Brown occasionally on a "news" program, but have nn idea what their views are. I watch only MSNBC for political stuff, because it is the least offensive to me.


mark

[HillbillyBob]

30. The far left does not even exist anymore, we have been

muzzled, murdered, disappeared, and basically told to shut the F up, then intimidated, arrested, spied on, etc, etc.

[old mark]

32. Even in the "70's a large portion of the "Far Left Radicals" were FBI agents.

[Generator]

41. Exactly or scared shitless

(that would be moi-and no one else has the guts to admit themselves are too) because I don't fucking want to go to prison or Guantanamo or you know, worse. Because if there was a real active left movement in this country in the streets that's were we'd end up. But no one has the guts to ever say that. Free speech "zone" anyone? What a joke this country is.

[Azathoth]

13. The rightwing has successfully redefined the term "far left"

to mean anything to the left of staunch conservative. Centrists and moderates of all stripes, liberals and progressives, communists and anarchists all get thrown into the same category.

[whathehell]

28. Why does no one challenge the term "far left"?...at least by

asking for a definition.."What does 'far left' mean to you"?..Define It" Same with "anti-American" Any jerk can claim ANYthing if they're not asked to define it.
I'm disappointed in John

[Atman]

14. Many Americans have been successfully conditions afters years of this shit

Liberal is a dirty word (or was). Disagreement is anti-American. They've repeated their lies for so long, so often, that even some of us are beginning to believe them.

.

[ClayZ]

23. What is is the (was) of what shall be!

The dominate paradigm has shifted!


WHOOOO HOOOOO!

[wvbygod]

15. What is considered far right proposals from media?

Can we list a few of the faux news far right proposals? When measuring extremes, it's
best to have a calibrated yardstick.

[Zodiak]

33. Here is one

Bill O'Reilly openly advocated for Al Queda to blow up San Fanscisco because the town is liberal.

We can start calibrating the yardstick to that.

[deutsey]

16. "Far left" in relation to what?

What passes for "center" today? If that's the case, then, yeah, I guess KO and Maddow are "far left."

What's considered "center" today is really moderate rightwing, imo. What's called "liberal" today is what used to be center.

[awoke_in_2003]

22. Glad i read the thread

before I posted the same thing.

[progressoid]

34. Me too!

Sums it up for me.

[high density]

17. Olbermann has always struck me as more anti-stupid/corruption rather than far left

If Democrats do insanely stupid things like the Republicans have done, then I expect Olbermann will chew into them as well.

MSNBC's primetime is without question further to the left than anything else in the cable talk market, but "far left" it is not. Compared with Limbaugh or Hannity, what Olbermann and Maddow do is pretty tame. Maybe they need to give somebody like Mike Malloy an hour so he can show Campbell what "far left" is.

[elizfeelinggreat]

18. My feelings last night exactly. And about Mrs. Senor!

Shame on anyone who interviews her yet doesn't point out simple facts about Ms. Brown!!!

From Wikipedia:

On April 2, 2006, Brown married her second husband Daniel Samuel Senor (born 1971), a Republican consultant who regularly appears on Fox News.

And what might Ms. Brown bring to her own show? Follow the money!

About her husband:

Daniel Samuel Senor (born November 6, 1971), is a founding parter of Rosemont Capital LLC, and Rosemont Solebury Capital Management. He is also a contributor to Fox News, frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal, and author of an upcoming book about the economy of Israel and globalization in the Middle East. He is most noted for his former position as chief spokesperson for the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq; some criticized him in that role because of his inability to speak Arabic. He is married to television news personality Campbell Brown.


Why haven't they learned a lesson from Mrs. Greenspan?

[Generator]

42. Thanks I know! She married a right wing Bush shill

and she's an "indpendent journalist" with NO hidden agenda. Nowhere man. Reminds me of Carville. Only those of us paying attention constantly feel punked by reality.

[samsingh]

20. never

[eridani]

21. Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn are far left

On what planet are Olbermann and Maddow more than vaguely leftish?

[whathehell]

29. The same one on which Obama is...This stuff needs to be challenged.

At least, as I said in the above post, by asking the users to define their terms.

[PA Democrat]

24. Apparently defending the Constitution is "far left"

Telling the truth about how the country was lied into war is "far left". The truth in general is "far left" according to Campbell Brown.

She should get back to us when KO and RM start advocating for the nationalization of industries like the oil companies, or for drastic cuts in military spending, or for huge tax increases for the wealthy, etc.

[tavalon]

25. The truth has a liberal bias, what can I say?

[Duppers]

26. hubby & I saw that too and went 'huh????"

Truth must be 'far left' then.

LOL!

[tomp]

35. and that is the problem in america, in a nutshell...

...and why people think obama is farther left than he really is (i.e., not very)

[Porschenut1066]

36. If ones thinking moves so far to the right then normal Democratic

views become "far-left" to those extreme right wing. Remember evangelicals think in Black and white, good vs evil. They think that everything that comes out of their mouths is "holy" and anyone who disagrees must be "evil"

I think that what comes out of the far right is "holy shit"

[Douglas Carpenter]

37. for someone as far to the left as Hannity or Humes is to the right - you would need Ward Churchill

and Ward Churchill would have to be strident pro-Democratic Party partisan loyalist.

There simply are not ANY commentators in the mainstream media as far to the left as the average Fox News commentator is to the right -- none - never has been and probably never will be. And there certainly aren't ANY pro-Democratic Party loyalist commentators who are anywhere near as far to the left as any number of long list of mainstream media commentators are far to the right.

[ailsagirl]

43. The "far left" is anarchy on the political spectrum

[librechik]

44. I believe in Social Security and Medicare for All. I guess that makes me "far left"

although just a few years ago I would have been smack in the middle of MOR Dems.

Whoever applies these labels is a: full of it as far as accuracy goes

Obviously trying to put something over on us.

AMERICA IS A LIBERAL COUNTRY--CHECK THE POLLS. THEY HAVE BEEN RULING OVER US AS A MINORITY, SAYING
FAR-RIGHT POSITIONS ARE THE MAINSTREAM. THEY ARE NOT!