I find Rush Limbaugh’s retreat on Slutgate to be more than a little amusing:
Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh apologized Saturday to a Georgetown University law student he had branded a “slut” and “prostitute” after fellow Republicans as well as Democrats criticized him and several advertisers left his program.
The student, Sandra Fluke, had testified to congressional Democrats in support of their national health care policy that would compel her college to offer health plans that cover her birth control.
“My choice of words was not the best, and in the attempt to be humorous, I created a national stir,” Limbaugh said on his website. “I sincerely apologize to Ms. Fluke for the insulting word choice.
Now, I don’t know if Ms. Fluke is a slut or not. I do know her position on government funded birth control is idiotic and that she’s not intelligent enough to understand basic supply and demand or she wouldn’t be pursuing a law degree at the age of 30. So, she may well be a slut, but she is not necessarily one. I tend to think it’s a little strange to apologize to someone for something that is possibly, though not necessarily, true without first attempting to determine if one is actually incorrect or not.
But Limbaugh’s apology demonstrates the fundamental cowardice of the conservative media. They are spooked as easily as neurotic thoroughbred horses. He’s the one with the massive audience, so why should he pay any attention to what his advertisers want? By allowing them to dictate his limits, he’s making himself their bitch. That’s fine, if that’s his desire, but then he would do well to abandon all of the heroic posturing of which he is so fond.
As with the Republicans, Limbaugh operates by one core principle: Always Retreat. And that is why conservatism has failed and one reason why American democracy is a thing of the past.