Friday, March 16, 2007

Ann Coulter: Servant of Mammon

Ann Coulter has really lost her way. Its hard to believe any conservative takes her inflammatory rhetoric seriously. But yet, this is where most conservatives find their talking points. She refers to herself as a born-again Christian and claims that her favorite book is the Bible. I am not going to take issue with that, but her conduct as of late has been woefully unbecoming of one who claims to be born-again and loves God's Word. I have read multiple sources who report that she is paid between $25,001-$50,000 per engagement in which she speaks. The HeraldNet reports:

It's hard to imagine why a single conservative would still cling to this "political pundit." She stopped talking real politics long ago. She had true qualifications for political commentary, having graduated with honors from Cornell University School of Arts & Sciences, and received her J.D. from University of Michigan Law School, where she was an editor of The Michigan Law Review. She practiced law in New York, worked for the Senate Judiciary Committee and later became a litigator with the Center For Individual Rights in Washington, D.C., a public interest law firm dedicated to the defense of individual rights with particular emphasis on freedom of speech, civil rights and the free exercise of religion.

But then she was seduced by her own celebrity and being famous became more important than saying anything of substance.
It is amazing that someone with that much clout could abandon that to become a political pundit essentially known for hate speech, but the last sentence is key; its all about celebrity status and wealth. Jesus said, "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will by loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon" (Matthew 6:24).

What I find even more disturbing is shallow Christians who still prescribe to her type of rhetoric and endorse her vitriolic views. Coulter is certainly within her right to spew her bromides and to be amply paid for them. But I also have the right to plug my ears.

Thus far, eight newspapers and fifteen advertisers have abandoned her column, up from the three from my last post. My fear though, like a pastor fired from his bully pulpit, such will only embolden her to spew more venom. Until those whom she claims to represent make their true and sincere views known, she will continue to be as one reporter aptly put it, "like a teenage child running rampant. Somebody’s got to give her serious consequences to deal with — serious economic consequences.”

2 comments:

Streak said...

Great post, Tony. Remember that the supposedly family friendly Dr. Dobson devoted two days to Ann Coulter, allowing her to mock Democrats faith, make fun of the tortured:

"It is obvious why you drive the liberals absolutely crazy, and it's fun watching you do it," he told her. "You are a good lady. … And I appreciate what you're trying to do."

--snip--

During the interview, the two attacked Hollywood, the media, the courts, affirmative action, stem-cell research, public schools, concerns about torture, environmentalism, feminists and evolution.

--snip--

Near the end of the interview, Coulter dismissed concerns about how prisoners are treated at Guantanamo Bay. She argued that the idea that one should "shower [your enemies] with kindness" is merely "a liberal idea that will not die." So much for turning the other cheek or praying for your enemies."

Tony said...

I remember listening to that show and I thought it was more of a political action maneuver rather than supporting "family values." Dobson was wrong for hosting her on that show, but then again, you know what they say about birds of a feather.

Your concluding quotation, interestingly, coolly represents most conservatives' "ends justify the means" ethic in regards to torture.