This morning I was listening to Rush Limbaugh on Santa Cruz station KSCO, as I often do.
Yes, it's true.
I like to hear what the other side is thinking, or being brainwashed into believing.
Limbaugh is considered the No. 1 talk radio show in Talkers Magazine's yearly study, with almost 15 million daily listeners, not a small chunk.
Yet, I've only met a few people in my life who actually believed him. But I live in Santa Cruz. Travel through the Midwest and not only is Limbaugh heard in his 11 am.-2 p.m. timeslot there (it's 9 a.m. to noon here), but you can hear replays 24 hours a day.
Yesterday, Limbaugh pontificated on a study that he said showed that women taking birth control pills were more likely to vote Democratic (or "Democrat" in his Archie Bunkeresque language). The study showed that women's hormones would make them vote for the sexier candidate.
"Now you see why Obama wants women to have free birth control pills," in voice that crosses Rooster T. Feathers with Porky Pig.
But, after a commercial break, he came back and informed his listeners he had mistakenly read the study. In fact, it was talking about women who don't take the birth control pill.
Oops. So, this 10 minutes of one-half-of-his-brain-tied-behind-his-back "brilliant" analysis wasn't just wrong, it was completely opposite the truth.
No matter to Rush. He came back on, apologized for his mistake and went on to say that Republican women voted with their brains and Democratic women voted with their emotions, favoring people on welfare and such.
Limbaugh has learned nothing from his national foul-up attacking and calling Sandra Fluke a slut – she was the woman who testified before a Congressional committee and said birth control should be covered by her insurance.
That not only caused a boycott of his show by advertisers, but according to a speech by Norm Pattiz, has hurt ad sales across the board for talk radio.
The irony of Limbaugh attacking anyone as being immoral for birth control wasn't picked up by most media. Limbaugh, then unmarried, was detained for trying to transport a bottle of Viagra out of the country in 2009. In 2003 he was arrested for buying OxyContin, the painkiller known as "hillbilly heroin."
The hypocrisy of getting political insights from a drug addicted sex fiend doesn't seem to trouble his listeners...or does it? Other talk show hosts fall in line with what Limbaugh calls an "echo effect."
Even leaders take cues from Limbaugh. George W. Bush had him to the White House to celebrated the host's birthday, according to Rush and candidate Mitt Romney seemed to be quoting him in the last presidential debate when he called President Barack Obama's diplomatic tour of Europe and the Middle East "an apology tour," something Obama said was a longtime lie.
So, do you listen for truth or comedy? Do you believe him or is it a chance to hear what uneducated people are being told?
Why on earth would such a clown be the most popular host in America?
