Day: 1/11/2013

Rush Limbaugh: Flu Epidemic Is “Trained Media” Making Excuses For Obama

Posted by on January 11, 2013 at 4:35 pm. 2 Comments :

In an epic rant that abandons all semblance of sanity, Rush Limbaugh today blasted media outlets that have been alerting the public to the serious nature of this year’s flu season. Already dozens of Americans have died and thousands have been hospitalized across the nation. But Limbaugh sees a conspiracy in the press to use this “phony” flu epidemic as a preemptive explanation for the coming economic collapse. He says…

“The purpose of this story is to give everybody in Washington an excuse before the flu outbreak even hits. I know that the reports of the flu outbreak are starting to trickle in now. But we do not have an epidemic yet. We may, who knows? But what’s being established now is that if and when we have a flu epidemic, that’s why the economy slowed down.”

The news that set Limbaugh off was a story published by CNBC that noted that a “Major Flu Outbreak Threatens to Slow Economy Further.” Limbaugh declared that “This headline is a made-to-order, built-in excuse to cover for slipshod economic policies out of Washington.” The article on CNBC stated correctly that…

“On average, seasonal flu outbreaks cost U.S. employers $10.4 billion in direct costs of hospitalization and outpatient visits, according to the Centers for Disease Control. That doesn’t include the indirect costs related to lost productivity and worker absenteeism.”

Apparently, amongst the news outlets that are serving as “trained media” for Obama is Fox News. All day they have been broadcasting warnings about how serious the flu is, including its potential cost to the economy. Neil Cavuto’s business program featured both Fox Business Network contributor, Charles Payne And Fox’s senior medical contributor, Dr. Marc Siegel, to specifically discuss the flu’s impact on business.

If it weren’t already clear that Limbaugh had degenerated into an incoherent nut case spewing delusional tales for his dimwit followers, this nonsensical commentary should remove all doubt. And his dittoheads would do well to recall what he said on election day back in November:

Rush Limbaugh

Fox News Hypocrisy Over Al-Jazeera Hilariously Exposed By Jon Stewart [Video]

Posted by on January 11, 2013 at 4:18 am. 4 Comments :

As reported here last week, Fox News went on a loopy and hyperbolic panic over the news that Current TV was purchased by Al-Jazeera. They railed against what they called an anti-American network with ties to terrorists when, in reality, Fox News is more closely associated with terrorists than Al-Jazeera.

Last night Jon Stewart weighed in on The Daily Show with another of his hallmark smackdowns that revealed the brazen hypocrisy of Fox News. The segment features ludicrous condemnations from the likes of Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilly, Stuart Varney, and Steve Doocy, as they sought to demonize Al Gore, while blithely ignoring the fact that their own boss, Rupert Murdoch, was deeply aligned with repulsive rhetoric from a Saudi-based network (Rotana) of which he has a 20% stake. Stewart noted that…

“Rotana is the same network that aired “Valley of the Wolves,” a movie in which American soldiers are the bad guys, massacring Iraqi civilians and stealing Arab organs to sell them to Jews.”

This is further evidence that Fox has no genuine interest in the pseudo-patriotism with which they plaster their airwaves. It is just a sleazy and phony operation aimed at advancing the political agenda of right-wing extremists, and enriching the network’s owners and the celebrities posing as journalists.

It’s too bad that the humor-deprived conservatives who need to see Stewart’s piece most are unlikely to do so. They already regard the program as liberal propaganda and dismiss it out of hand. But if they knew that they were being conned by Fox while the company is embracing some of the very same villains they pretend to oppose, viewers would revolt in a big way. Perhaps some of them already have, because Fox’s ratings have been in a steep dive for the past couple of months.