Down With Quote-Grabbers

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

While perusing Drudge I was alerted to a Rush Limbaugh segment where he told his listeners that John Kerry called soldiers terrorists.

The offense committed by Limbaugh is not unique to the talk show host as it's being done virtually allover the Internet.

It has become commonplace now for people on the Left and the Right to accuse people of being something their not or saying something they didn't. Too often supposed watchdogs like MediaMatters (which conveniently edits video content) grab quotes from certain individuals with whom they disagree and deliberately take them out of context.

When Bill O'Reilly suggested on his program the U.S. Army shouldn't protect San Francisco in the even of a terrorist attack, he did not just then invite terrorists to attack the Bay Area,

When Ann Coulter said she believes the First Amendment is overrated in a speech before a Gainesville audience, she did not just then say she opposed the First Amendment.

When John Kerry said there's no reason "American soldiers need to be going into the homes of Iraqis in the dead of night, terrorizing kids and children," he did not just then call American soldiers terrorists.

As you surf the newspapers and Internet I urge you to use caution when coming across a quote-grabber. Before nodding your head like a drone it would only be fair to check out the truth behind the story.