Blog of law articles

Today's Glenn Garvin op-ed epitomizes everything that is wrong with his columns:

1. It is at least three media cycles too late.

2. It is riddled with factual and logical errors; and

3. See first two points above.

As usual, Glenn rises to the defense of the rich white man (hey, I'm ok with that), and writes that Rushbo got a raw deal because other NFL owners -- like JLo and Fergie -- are just as bad or worse:

Among Fergie's more infamous songs recorded with the Black Eyed Peas is one called My Humps, which goes: I'ma get get get get you drunk/Get you love drunk off my hump -- well, you get the drift.

Yep Glenn, Rush and Fergie are pretty much exactly the same thing -- did you used to work in marketing?

Garvin also drops this whopper:

What got Limbaugh in trouble were purportedly racist comments that mostly turned out to be Internet fabrications.

I see -- "internet fabrications," something totally different from "Glenn Garvin fabrications."

It's true there were several statements attributed to Rush that were not properly sourced. Rush himself denies them in a column published by the WSJ four days ago (see Glenn? -- you're late).

I agree with A.L. on the unverified quotes:

Contrary to what the National Review and Rush's knee-jerk defenders claim, these quotes are not all fabricated. Most of them, in fact, are well-documented (his quote about Donovan McNabb, etc.). Several of them, however, are unverifiable. They come from secondary sources (books and magazine articles about Rush) and supposedly date back to very early in Limbaugh's career. It's not as if there are transcripts of everything Rush has said on air since the 70s, so who knows whether they're true.

That's ok, though, because there are dozens of quotes that Rush has not denied that are just as bad:

• "We are being told that we have to hope [Obama] succeeds, that we have to bend over, grab the ankles ... because his father was black."
• "I do believe" Obama is an "angry black guy."
• "[I]n Obama's America, the white kids now get beat up with the black kids cheering."
• "Obama's entire economic program is reparations."
• Obama is "more African in his roots than he is American" and is "behaving like an African colonial despot."
• Obama is "Halfrican-American."
• "Obama has disowned his white half ... he's decided he's got to go all in on the black side."
• Sotomayor "a reverse racist" appointed by Obama, "the greatest living example of a reverse racist."
• Obama "wants us to have the same health care and plan that he had in Kenya" and "wants to be the black FDR."
• Latching onto LA Times op-ed, Limbaugh sings "Barack, The Magic Negro."
• "God does not have a birth certificate. Neither does Obama"; Obama "has yet to prove he's a citizen."
• Limbaugh on Gates controversy: "Here you have a black president trying to destroy a white policeman."
• Limbaugh suggests Obama would not have acted on Somali pirates if he'd known they were "actually young, black Muslim teenagers."
• Limbaugh suggests Democrats, media believe "you can't criticize the little black man-child."
• "The government's been taking care of [young blacks] their whole lives."
• "The days of [minorities] not having any power are over, and they are angry."
• "[M]inorities never do anything for which they have to apologize."
• Limbaugh: "The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well."
• Limbaugh says "NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips."
• Limbaugh declares basketball "the favorite sport of gangs."
• Limbaugh invented "racial component" to Hackett's decision to withdraw from Ohio primary race.
• Limbaugh on Survivor series: "African-American tribe" worst swimmers, Hispanics "will do things other people won't do."
• Limbaugh suggested Colin Powell only supported Obama because of race.
• Limbaugh: Gates is an "angry racist."
• Limbaugh called illegal immigrants an "invasive species."
• Limbaugh repeatedly calls Native Americans "Injuns."
• Limbaugh says Democrats' interest in Darfur is securing black "voting bloc."
• Limbaugh says that if "feminazis" had remembered to oppose "affirmative action for black guys ... they wouldn't face the situation they face today."

The bottom line here is that free market capitalism -- the treasured, fetishistic object of Rush's wet dreams -- spoke and determined that it probably is better to have JLo or Fergie own a piece of a team than Rush:

From a pop culture marketing and public relations perspective, Limbaugh is positively toxic. Of course, Limbaugh's free to push his AM brand of loathing, and within that world he sells lots of ads. But why on earth would sane businessmen who have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in a mainstream entertainment franchise want to be associated with Limbaugh's paranoia and divisiveness? Guess what? They don't want anything to do with the guy.

Thanks Glenn -- you just wasted a chunk of my time on a stupid nonissue and forced us all to revisit a story that everyone pretty much moved on from days ago.

On a happier NFL note, my fantasy team crushed -- crushed -- the Well Hung Jury. All hail Aaron Rodgers!!