Open Space: Rejecting and Denouncing?
Father Guido Sarducci (Don Novello) used to ask why priests say for ever and ever at the end of a song or prayer. He asked, “Doesn’t the first “for ever” cover it?”
While there is a difference between rejecting what someone says and denouncing who they are, doesn’t rejecting cover it? Is it necessary to denounce the speech and the person? How is the distinction made? Who monitors and polices the difference? Do they have to say something first or should they just be denounced for who they are and what they stand for before they say someting? Should candidates for public office start their campaign with a list of people and organizations that they denounce? Wouldn’t that clarify matters from the start? Should denouncements only apply to someone who endorses a candidate or should a candidate denounce anything that anyone says about anything in public discourse? For example, Rush Limbough will not endorse Clinton or Obama, but should both candidates denounce him for anything that he says that is not Democratic Party orthodoxy?
What is the difference between denouncement and censorship? What is the function of the First Amendment here?
Posted: February 29th, 2008 under Uncategorized.
Comments: 2
Comments
Comment from Josh Hammond
Time: March 1, 2008, 8:12 am
It looks like John McCain is taking a different approach with those who endorse him, but other denounce. Rev. John Hagee, an evangelical pastor in Texas endorsed McCain, but the Catholic League says Hagee calls the Catholic Church “anti-Christ” and “a false cult system”. They called on McCain to denounce Hagee.
McCain did not take the Clinton bait. He said he was proud of Hagee’s spiritual leadership and his commitment to Israel, and that “when he endorses me, it does not mean that I embrace everything that he stands for or believes in.”
My take is that “forcing” McCain to take the next step of denouncing would take an effort not worth the oxygen and that it would backfire with fairminded voters. What do you think?
Comment from timr
Time: March 1, 2008, 11:54 am
I would really like to see if the MSM presses st john on this as they have done to Obama. timmah presses hard on Obama to denounce Farrakan, and the MSM is starting to gear up to hit Obama on what his pastor has said in the past. Now st john solicited the Hagee endorsement, this so called xristian has really said some nasty things about the Catholics, the least of which is calling them a cult. Question, will timmah, or any member of the villiage idiots, tweety for example-who was actually honest when he said that st john’s base was the MSM-ever press him on the question of this religious endorsement? Very doubtful. But then again, this just means that st john and & will look more like the 2 faced bastards that they are if they keep pressing Obama on the same subject. IOW, the its ok if I do it, but terrible if you do it. Crap. Of course, I have just finished my daily read of Media Matters, which really gets my temper boiling
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