Thanks to Immoral Minority for highlighting this Daily Beast post by John Avlon,
The talk sensation looked more like a televangelist at his “Restoring Honor” rally this weekend, but his preaching about unity only proved that his biggest adversary is himself.
The Rev. Glenn Beck staged a religious revival on the National Mall in Washington yesterday.
His “Restoring Honor” rally sidestepped politics, instead offering a tribute to the troops and calls for a new Great Awakening, proclaiming “We’ve got to go to God Bootcamp,” to the applause of hundreds of thousand of followers.
But the most striking thing about Beck’s heartfelt evangelism was its hypocrisy.
“We’re dividing ourselves,” Beck lamented. “There is growing hatred in the country. We must be better than what we’ve allowed ourselves to become. We must get the poison of hatred out of us, no matter what smears or lies are thrown our way… we must look to God and look to love. We must defend those we disagree with.”
It made me wonder if Glenn Beck has ever watched the Glenn Beck show.
The man offers a daily drumbeat of division for a living, earning $32 million last year selling his paranoid snake oil. It’s almost impossible to keep up with Beck’s serial fearmongering, though a stroll through Media Matters will give an authoritative sampling. Just a few of his greatest hits include:
• “We are a country that is headed toward socialism, totalitarianism, beyond your wildest imagination.”
• “There is a coup going on. There is a stealing of America… done through the guise of an election.”
• “The president is a Marxist... who is setting up a class system.”
• “The government is a heroin pusher using smiley-faced fascism to grow the nanny state."
• “The health-care bill is reparations. It's the beginning of reparations."
• And of course, speaking of President Obama, “I believe this guy is a racist” with “a deep-seated hatred of white people.”
You can’t profit from fear and division all week and then denounce them one Saturday on the National Mall in Washington and hope nobody notices.
But Beck sure tried, offering a string of aphorisms in a rambling speech that was equal parts sermon, history lesson, and motivational seminar: “We, as individuals, must be good so that America can be great;” “We must not just explore outer space; we must explore inner space;” “Somewhere in this crowd is the next George Washington;” “What you gaze upon you become;” “I testify to you now that one man can change the world!”; “There is a lot that we can disagree on. But it is values and principles that unite us;” “We must not have fear and we must not get lost in politics.”
What accounts for this split personality? I’ve argued in the past that there is a Good Beck and a Bad Beck, and they are usually struggling for supremacy inside his head.
The Good Beck is genuinely patriotic and deeply religious, ascribing his recovery from drug and alcohol addiction to his family and his newfound Mormon faith.
The Bad Beck is such a talented broadcaster that he knows how to manipulate an audience’s emotions. He uses conflict, tension, fear and resentment to keep their attention day after day, buying his books, attending his rallies.
The two coexist uneasily under the justification that the Bad Beck promotes the Good Beck. He is advancing himself in order to advance a greater cause. And I can only imagine that in the Beck-centric universe, yesterday was supposed to represent the triumph of the Good Beck over the Bad. The fact that his 100-year Plan for America was abandoned in favor of “faith, hope and charity” set to an Aaron Copland score, symbolizes the elevation of religion over political ambition.
John summed it all up rather masterfully didn't he?! My thoughts exactly as I listened to Rev. Beck speak about the growing hatred in our country, to teabaggers no less!! Who does he think is spreading hate and division?? It's surely NOT LIBERALS and Coffee drinkers! Duh liberal haters, Obama haters, wake up and smell your teapot, it's boiling over! That ignorant buffoon is a hypocrite and you who fall all over his words are too.....
Look out Christians, that self-righteous rodeo clown is the false prophet God warned you about!
WATCH WHAT THE ANTI-DEMOCRACY/AMERICA TRUMP REGIME DOES, NOT SAYS!
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* In Hungary, a key Orbán tactic in dismantling their democracy was that
his allies bought media outlets that were critical of the regime and turned ...
39 minutes ago
27 comments:
This was a very good write up... I refused to watch the parody that is Beck, with Palin by his side, I wouldn't have been able to stand it...lol
I am only sorry they get the attention they do not deserve.
I wonder if the Beckster will perform baptisms and speak in tongues at his next Big Event?
“We’re dividing ourselves,” Beck lamented.
Who's this "we" white man?* Doesn't he pay attention to himself when he promotes divisiveness on his own show?
*Punch line to old Tonto/Lone Ranger joke.
“There is growing hatred in the country."
Excuse me, you fatuous jackdass. YOU ARE the one who called the president of the United States a racist!
"We must be better than what we’ve allowed ourselves to become."
Now that you've done the damage you want to run away from it, you cowardly worm.
"We must get the poison of hatred out of us, no matter what smears or lies are thrown our way…"
Oh really, Glenn? Like when you called liberals cockroaches?
"we must look to God and look to love."
Okay, now that he's turned American against American, he wants us to look to God and love?
Oh, that's rich.
"We must defend those we disagree with.”
GLENN BECK:
"I'm thinking about killing Michael Moore, and I'm wondering if I could kill him myself, or if I would need to hire somebody to do it."The Glenn Beck Program," May 17, 2005
"When I see a 9/11 victim family on television, or whatever, I'm just like, 'Oh shut up' I'm so sick of them because they're always complaining."The Glenn Beck Program," Sept. 9, 2005
"I have been nervous about this interview with you because what I feel like saying is, 'Sir, prove to me that you are not working with our enemies. ... And I know you're not. I'm not accusing you of being an enemy, but that's the way I feel, and I think a lot of Americans will feel that way." –interviewing Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), the first Muslim U.S. congressman, Glen Beck's show on CNN's Headline News, Nov. 14, 2006
One thing I am absolutely sure of is this:
Anyone who admires this POS is stupid. Period.
Great post, as usual. I also kept away from the TV yesterday--I have a life---but was curious to see how this schmaltzy rally was going to be portrayed. Of course by Beck's account there were 600,000 souls (all lost) there, but CNN said about 87,000. No surprise there. We Dems and INdies better get our acts together. We're headed for a ough ride if these Bozos take the lead again. I'll put MYSELF in a 'death camp."
hey everyone, thanks for the visit. This was a good post by John Avlon, he said exactly what I was thinking as I watched the Bleckerhead religious crusade.
I was listening to Chris Van Hollen today on C-Span, he's a smart man, I like him very much. He said the dems will not lose the House and I believe him. No death camps for you Judi!
Beck's next act will be to hold exorcisms then board a Haley-like comet cult like 'Heaven's Gate' to sail off into the stratosphere. I wish.
“We’ve got to go to God Bootcamp”... is that at Waco or Jonestown?
Just wondering.
glenn - the D.C. area Staples, Office Depot, WalMart, surrounding hotel and restaurants would like to thank you for saving the local economy from a dismal summer.
Thus, the REAL highlight of this past weekend and the only REAL sucess.
The last time glenn tasted REAL sucess was when Rupert Murdoch inserted his cock into glenn's mouth.
While channel surfing, I caught the last portion of the "Welcome To My Nightmare" speech. I tuned in as Beck was preaching to his flock about the truth. Please! The man who deservedly won Media Matters' Misinformer of the Year for 2009 is preaching about the truth?!
I used to feel sorry for people who followed Beck, but not anymore. He has been exposed as a lying fraud on numerous occasions. If the Lollipop Guild (aka suckers) want to waste their time and money buying into Beck's BS, that's on them.
look C, lisa has a blog!! see what you've missing!
Who?
MALCOLM!!!! I'm doing the happy dance, you are my number 50 I've been waiting for for so long!! Thank you! Everyone, welcome Malcolm, my #50th follower!!
you're right we can not feel sorry for the sheeple. They have been warned but choose to be stupid. Beck standing on that step Saturday with bulletproof vest on preaching love while all the while calling Obama a Nazi, a racist, a liar, a socialist, blah blah blah... those Beck followers are being duped, morons.....
lisa, our dumbass troll lisa!
I'll say it again. Who?
ok smarty pants. just go take a peek at her dumbass blog, her first post is dedicated to moi...
Sue if it wasn't killing you so much i would' be your central focus.
Oh yeah Hope and Change is much more.....meaningful with the mindless masses chanting Obama,Obama,Obama at a guy they knew nothing about.
Plus the free concerts,hot dogs and beer needed to draw them there. I guess it was the "freebies" that was the attraction thinking there were more freebies coming their way after the election.
mmmmmmmm........mmmmmmm......mmmmmmm
@Shaw, I asked the same thing. Basically what we is this, you got a mouse in you pocket. As far as restoring "honor" we saw how long he was able to use that. The day of, next day he was back to his usual dogging on PO on the channel that has made him.
I have to say, following the Rude Pundit's twitter got me through this rally.
Lisa Lisa Lisa. What part of bussed in by big money is eluding you? Is it because it's Monday and you need a couple days to get going? It has already been debunked how many of these people were just there just because. AFP, Freedomworks et al, chartered buses, you know like transportation that holds many people. They got tea partiers to go because the didn't have to pay for the ride. Go look it up and don't count on us doing yer homework for you. Some of us are ahving hard enough time with their own, to do yours as well. You are so welcome. What Glennda's rally has to do with PO's is a another mystery laying within your head but we'll get to one at a time. The counts are roughly between 70-97 k, pretty good crowd regardless. Not the MILLION crazy eyes Bachmann was spouting off, not the 500k Glennda is yammering about. Parks do a really good estimation in a non partisan way, they kind of do that for a living and have said between 70-90+k. The better part, 200k doors were knocked on and more than half of those knocked on registered to vote. Let's see, what is the more useful use of time. I'll wait, I'm certain it will take a moment or two for you to process this, because there's like facts and math involved with it.
@everyone. I made the error of clicking on anon's link, so you don't have to. You will be giving that little Filipino anchor baby Michele Malkin hits, if you click on it. Save the energy it takes to do the click and DON'T. Yer welcome
Sue, 2 things:
1) Just disregard the anon poster, seriously. You are giving them what they want - attention. Besides, I wouldn't be a bit surprised if it was that homely cow from Utah that was doing this.
2) Please change your title of the post, it's "profit" not "prophet". Makes more sense when you think about it.
thanks C.
It should be False Profit though it be real money he is swindling from his duped zealots...
he didn't walk atop the water of the reflecting pool. he didn't even part the water. screw 'im.
p.s. it's not mikk2, it's me--nonnie9999.
Chris Matthews kicked things off last night with Beck and Rev. John Hagee, who stood on the podium with Beck and Palin Saturday. The same guy who said God destroyed New Orleans with Katrina because of the city's gay pride parade.....just like Sodom and Gomorrah, only this time nobody was changed into a pillar of salt- if there were, you know Olbermann would have had it on ODD BALL.
Also....Hagee said years ago that the Catholic Church was an "apostate" and a "great whore".....yep, nothing like unifying the Christian community in America.
To the best of my knowledge, or that of anyone else.....there were no Catholic clergymen invited to stand behind Beck....I guess somebody forgot to tell him that particular issue (are "they" real Americans?) was resolved with the election of 1960.
duh I deleted you because you are a rude troll. I don't need your comments...
I have a few regular conservative commenters here who are respectful of me and my posts. I don't believe I have ever had to delete a comment from them because of rudeness. Unlike you duh brainless, you are a rude troll and you are not welcome here.
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