Debunking Scarborough, with Snark

In my vacation from the news, I did hear a clip of this screed from Joe Scarborough and made a mental note to give him a smack down when I got back to my blog. This is a transcript of his closing report, The Real Deal, from the March 24 airing of Scarborough Country. My comments are inserted in italics.

The court-ordered starvation of Terri Schiavo is nearing its bitter end. (The court did NOT order the starvation of Terri Schiavo. It upheld the rulings of a multitude of previous courts in determining that her husband was her guardian and there was no credible basis for dismissing his claims that she would not want to continue on the feeding tube.) When it is over, when the courts, the Florida Senate and Michael Schiavo succeed in finishing off an innocent 41-year-old woman, it‘s going to be time for us to take our judicial system back. (Please - the incendiary language is offensive. And the independence of the judiciary is a fundamental component of our Constitutional government and undermining it, according to the founding fathers, is an invitation to tyranny.)

You know, I heard what his brother said, and I understand there are two sides to every story. (Note that when someone says "but" they mean ignore what I just said, I'm about to tell you what I really believe.) But there is something terribly wrong with a power structure in America that allows a local politician who is elected by a few thousand votes to trump the will of the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate, and the president of the United States, just because that local politico wears a black robe to work. (Um, sorry Joe. But that's EXACTLY what the Constitution calls for. And it's not one judge - it's a multitude of judges, applying the law as written. The judiciary isn't a "power structure". It's the weakest branch of government. And if the state and federal legislative and executive branches couldn't find a way around the legal rulings, then they had NO legal basis to do so. And this is still a country founded on the rule of law. At least it is today.)

Do we really live in a country where one local judge allows one conflicted husband‘s evidence to hold the power of an executioner‘s blade?  (Again, try to be accurate. Just try. Don't mislead us. This isn't one judge. It's many judges hearing lots of testimony and applying the law. Judges appointed by Republicans and Democrats, all sworn to apply the law and not  bow to the will of the elected majority. Okay?) Sadly tonight, it seems that we do. (Wrong premise, wrong conclusion.) And why is it that we live in a land and have laws in Florida and across the country that call for the arrest of citizens for withholding food and water from dogs, but our courts actively participate in a process that ends up killing a woman? (My, the outrage. If a dog had 20% of his brain left and couldn't eat or swallow on its own, do you think we'd be calling for the arrest of anyone that put the dog to sleep? I don't think so. And are you calling for the arrest of anyone, anywhere who discontinues feeding tubes for those in vegetative states? What if the family agrees? What if there's no money to continue care and the family wants to continue care but the hospital doesn't? Why isn't that a problem for you? Oh, that's right. It's because Bush passed that law in Texas and we don't want to highlight the hypocrisy of the politicians on the right, now do we?)

Why is that the same activists who fight to save the whales, the spotted owls, and a snail darter, for God‘s sake, sit quietly by while the U.S. government helps kill Terri Schiavo?  (Because the government ISN'T helping kill Terri Schiavo. It's ruling on the guardianship of Terri, the validity of Michael Schiavo's claims that Terri wouldn't want the feeding tube, the medical diagnoses that credibly state there is no hope of improvement.  And where is all of your concern for life when it comes to the 20,000 people a day who die across the world because of poverty, no access to water, lack of over-the-counter medicines? Where is it when it comes to those who can't afford medical care, who are denied life saving medications because their insurance companies won't cover them?) Why do we see the visceral reaction by leftist organizations to the attempts to save Terri Schiavo‘s life?  (We're not reacting to Terri's life or death, we're reacting to misleading, supercilious, condescending screeds like yours. And the willingness of the Republicans to ignore the fundamental laws of the land.) Do these liberals really hate George Bush so much? And that‘s all you ever hear about, George Bush.  You never hear about Terri Schiavo. (Wrong, asshole. We mention Terri plenty. We agree with the courts and trust their judgment. That's an informed and credible position that doesn't preclude a deep sympathy for Terri. Even an advocacy for her. For your part, you can't hide your disregard for the law, you're hypocrisy, your willingness to use this poor woman's tragedy and her family's pain for your own political purposes. We hate that. And we should.)

But do they hate George Bush so much that they are cheering for Terri‘s death only because the president of the United States and his brother are fighting for Terri‘s life? (Stop being so damnably simple. You can try to dismiss our dismay over Congress' willingness to ignore separation of powers. You can minimize our outrage that this tragedy is political juice for the rightwing. You can ignore the contrast between Bush's reaction to the Schiavo legislation and his reaction to the recent school shooting or the tsunami. But you can't say we're cheering for Terri's death. That's bullshit.)

You know, there are no easy answers here, no quick solutions, only one suggestion.  (Ha ha ha. After that screed, where you seem to believe that if those of us who disagree would shut up and fight for the continuation of Terri's life, that the solution is to maintain her feeding tube, you actually think we're going to accept your suddenly reasonable "no easy answers" close? It's laughable.) Tonight, as we enter Easter weekend, it‘s time to pray for Terri Schiavo, pray for her family, and pray for the souls of the judges and politicians who signed this helpless woman‘s death warrant. (No problem with that suggestion, right up to the "death warrant" comment. And if you're specific enough to tell us to pray for the souls of the judges and politicians, could you clarify what we're praying for when it comes to the Schiavo's? I have another suggestion for those who believe in the power of prayer. Pray for our country, pray that truth will win, pray that what goes around comes around, pray that Joe Scarborough loses his voice or has his own "road to Damascus" experience where he discovers that adopting the mantle of a good Christian is a far cry from being one, that engaging in this kind of misleading, judgmental, arrogant discourse is the antithesis of the message of Christ. Then he can confess and repent, preferably on his show. And all his former partners in crime can lament "Say it ain't so, Joe".)

Comments

[tas]

Argh. I tried reading this, and with your snarky comments fitted neatly inbetween his BS, it mid the job easier... But it just became too much. Too much Joe Scarbourgh. Too many lies... Why does that guy even have a job? I just want to reach through my television screen and smack the everloving crap out of him.

[zxzxzx]

I always heard something from my neighbor
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I always heard something from my neighbor