For those who haven't heard, CBS news reporter Lara Logan suffered a "suffered a brutal and sustained sexual assault and beating before being saved by a group of women and an estimated 20 Egyptian soldiers." Just last week, conservative pundit Ann Coulter uttered the following while at the Conservative Political Action conference:
...conservative commentator Ann Coulter was asked what is more important to America's values: maintaining a strong relationship with Israel or "knowing there are jailed dissidents and journalists."
"What do you mean, 'knowing that there are jailed journalists?'" Coulter answered. "I think there should be more jailed journalists."
Coulter received a raucous round of applause from the audience for her response.
The 'joke' is bad enough, but the applause is equally appalling.
Coulter has also called for the New York Times staff to be executed, and, previously has 'joked':
"My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the New York Times Building." McVeigh's April 19, 1995, bomb attack destroyed the Alfred P. Murrah federal building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people.
And Logan isn't exactly a darling of the right due to some of her reporting.
So I would like to know if Coulter approves of Logan's rape. This isn't snark (one doesn't joke about rape)--there is a very serious point here.
One option is Coulter just says a lot shit she doesn't believe--and her supporters applaud, even though they don't really believe it either when push comes to shove. In which case, we shouldn't accept the sincerity of anything movement conservatives say. Ever.
The other option is that she does believe this crap, in which case movement conservatism has morphed into eliminationism--or at least, eliminationist wannabees. Beating and killing people because they say or write things you don't like is a hallmark of eliminationist thuggery (although it belongs to other types of thuggery too).
Now, I actually think Coulter is just a money-grubbing manipulator, but some those who applaud probably believe this violence is appropriate.
Maybe this will be the final step in the devolution of the Republican Party from TR's Bull Moose to Glenn Beck's downer cow. Then again, probably not.
Related posts: Amanda and Echidne both say what needs to be said about the rape itself.
An aside: Reading various comments left after news stories, it seems conservatives who have been flummoxed by the whole 'Arabs and Muslims who are able to gain their freedom non-violent' thing (the cognitive dissonance is palpable) have regained their footing, and are blaming the dirty Ay-rabs (when they're not blaming Logan). Never mind that it was Egyptians who fought off the mob and rescued her.
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Ummm, this is one hell of a strawman, isnt it? So far the only one rejoicing over Logans rape was lefty Taliban sycophant Nir Rosen, and his justification for being tickled pink was that she wasnât anti-war enough for him.
Jurgen,
Your news is out of date now. Rosen was fired from his job, dropped as a professional consultant to an NGO, as well as recanting (and apparently running away from his - now old - Twitter account as it has attracted a really thuggish bunch of followers who apparently do think that it's okay to sexually assault reporters).
http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2011/02/almost-unthinkable-to-be…
No, Jurgen, Schussell was also rejoicing over the rape. Horribly gloating over the rape of another woman.
If Ms Coulter ever had a moral compass, she pawned it a long time ago.
Lara Logan is about anti war as Dick Cheney. Both she and her Pentagon contractor husband have benefited immensely from the war and have need to keep it going.