I used to enjoy Bill Maher, until the comments about the hijakers who killed so many innocent people. I was actually glad that his show was canceled because I felt what he said was wrong. As I have not seen the HBO program (don't even have basic cable) I can only comment on what I have read. Based on that, he was even more wrong, and some might say making terroristic threats against the Vice President of the United States. Not sure the second part would hold up with a good lawyer, but it was very vile of him to wish death to anyone like that. Now lets see what the Libs have to say?

Maher has become a monumentally stupid man - he has warped his own mentality to the point where he believes fantasies which wouldn't fool a 6 year old.

And we will hear a lot of crickets chirping from the left about this one...

Bill Maher, Keith Olberman, and most of Hollywood--loons of the first order. But hey, they make big bucks, and they care not about what people think of them.

To be honest, I always agreed with the left in regards to Mahers famous comments about the bravery of the terrorists.

He could have said it a little better, but it climbing onto a jet liner with the intention of crashing it into a building demonstrates a certain level of commitment that shouldnt be "misunderestimated".

The press jumped all over it, over-reacted as if they had pictures of Britney Spears in a soul kiss with Roseanne Barr and basically created Bill Maher's career.

Still, the comments about Cheney are inexcusable. The complete disregard for another person based solely on differing political viewpoints seems to be the liberal "default" position.

Maybe some of the trolls here can explain just what is up with the left these days. Its been brewing for awhile but they seem to be getting a little more violent and just plain nutty lately.

Its almost as if they are maddened by the idea that some people dis-agree with them.

Nightmare,

We recently had a father murder his 5 family members including school-age children and then killed himself. Real brave guy, right?

Murder/suicide does not define bravery. In fact it precludes it. It's more an act of cowardice.

MsUnderestimated.com has clips of the entire Real Time interview (the relevant portion is at the beginning of the second clip).

Anyway, I think the excerpt presented at the top of this topic alone makes it pretty clear that Maher didn't say he regretted Cheney wasn't assassinated. Rather, he stated what he thought was a fact: that if Cheney were to die, others would live. That's obviously not a fact (speculation about something that hasn't happened is a prediction, not a fact), but it is equally obviously not an expression of regret. To imply regret, or any other emotional reaction on his part is also speculation. It is not a fact.

But that's not to say Maher's not capable of saying some controversial, even reprehensible things. The initial topic of the conversation was whether the Huffington Post appropriately responded by censoring such hate speech. Obviously, Maher didn't think so. He thinks people should be able to say whatever it is they want to say, no matter how despicable. The other panel members agreed in principle, but argued that the owners or administrators of the forum upon which the speech is expressed (in this case the Huffington Post) also have rights to censorship, because they will ultimately be held responsible for whatever it is that is said by annonymous commentors on their forums. B4B obviously and explicitly agree -- the administrators here actively engage in censorship, and they post a warning. And frankly, I think they have every right to do so. After all, this is not my forum, or yours, it's theirs. Fortunately, they're fairly lax about the degree of censorship they impose, but it is there.

Back to Maher... it may seem counterintuitive, but he is, in fact, a champion of Ann Coulter. He's been friends with her for years, and on Larry King a while back he called her a "kindred spirit", because she is not afraid to be outrageous. They're two peas in a pod in that respect. Ebony and ivory -- sorta. And if you're an advocate of free speech you have to agree: although doing so requires you to hold your nose many times or (to conjure up a South Park metaphore) to be willing to fart in your own brandy snifter, lol!

But even if you advocate free speech you have to appreciate its ramifications. On the recent Coulter thread AAR for one expressed deep affection for Ann Coulter, because she fired up the base. But that's not all she fires up. Think about it: when Maher says outrageous things, doesn't it revile you as a conservative? Doesn't it motivate you to work harder to see to it libbies like him are out of power? If so, doesn't it also occur to you that Ann Coulter has the same kind of powerful, though opposite effect on libbies? It is my opinion that people like that do more harm than good for whatever side they are attempting to advocate. And when they are invited to do it from a podium of a prestigious advocacy group like CPAC it makes it all the worse. Michelle Malkin, for one, seems to agree: "It seems to me that those Democrats would like nothing better than for another Coulter Moment at the pivotal CPAC event in 2008. "Raghead" in 2006. "Faggot" in 2007. What diarrhea of the mouth at the premiere conservative gathering can we all look forward to in a crucial election year with so much at stake in a critical period of American history?" Ed Morrissey over at Captains Quarters comes to a similar conclusion.

The left will not come out against Maher's statements, because deep down they think that he is right. I have, and encourage others to quit calling leftists, liberals. The definition of liberal is one who is open minded. The left in Amerika, as they like to spell it, have become totalitarians. All one has to do is look at their statements against President Bush, the Vice-President, Condi, conservatives, etc. When a conservative speaker, or one that does not agree with their view-point, arrives on a college campus, they are heckled and often assaulted. They shout the conservative down in an attempt to show that we are anti-gay, anti-female, anti-black, anti-hispanic, but their very actions and policies are geared to keep the minority inprisoned through such government programs as affirmative action, welfare, and social security. They would love universal health care, because most of the wealthier among them would not have to wait months to get the care they need. The poor would still have to wait. Ann Colter can call poor John Edwards a "faggot", and most conservatives will call her to task for her words; I don't think we will hear anything against Maher for wishing the Taliban had gotten the VP.

I posted in the Ann Coulter thread and I will vaguely repeat it here.

Bill Maher is an entertainer. Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Both have said things in (my opinion) extremely bad taste. Rush wins the poor taste contest by a country mile. Yet, I must remember they are both entertainers. The comments were made on their shows.

The comments made on the Huff post were by common folk venting their poorly worded common theme. I have read very similar posts on the more right wing fascist oriented weblogs (like this one) too. I keep things in the context of who is making the comments.

Comparing comments made anonymously by some sad sack (like me) and someone of national fame, on a national stage, at a national conference are two entirely different things.

Come on now. You know these things.

This is typical of the GOP and people are tired of it. The backlash is of your own doing.

Feel the lash. Recoil from the outrage. Become one with the pain. You'll feel more and more of it as the wheels continue to come apart on the wicked Bush administration.

Leo,

You are twisting and distorting Bill Maher's words. He did not say he regrets Cheney assassination attempt failed.

Are people really still calling this an assassination attempt? I mean, just because the Taliban calls it one doesn't make it so. They also say they control all of Afghanistan outside Kabul. This dummy that blew himself up was nowhere near Cheney.

So if I said ' Hey, I'm not saying I would do it myself - but killing enough Democrats to change the vote in some key states would be good." That would be acceptable?

Maher's point was that Cheney is an unwitting (I can only assume) ally of terrorism, if he were not in power(dead or othewise), lives, including American lives would be saved...
something Leo is obviously against...

how's the body count today Leo....acceptable?

Hey raker...
Give me an example of Rush's bad taste..just one will do....

Now, now, Ricorun...

I didn't say I had a "deep affection" for Ann. She doesn't even know me! I think I said: "If Ann can fire up the base, more power to her. We need some fire!"

If that were the worst thing the Democrats (Liberals) had said about Bush, Cheney, Republicans, Conservatives, Christians, and anyone else they disagreed with during the past six years, we would have had a regular hugs and kisses love fest! I'm sure you have heard enough news and read enough liberal blogs to know Ann's comment is absolutely nothing compared to those from the lunatics on the nutty liberal left!

Democrats apparently think it's perfectly alright for them to run a non-stop, 24/7, six year campaign of pure vile hatred, but if someone like Ann says something the Democrats don't like, they feign outrage and use that as an excuse to run their usual coordinated "hate mongering" campaign against that person -- only magnified many, many, many times over. Then they use their tactic of "hate transference" to direct that hate to everyone else they can. Nothing new there. That's the Democrat way. It's time Conservatives and Republicans return the favor... a hundred-fold! I'll do what I can to help.

I only listen to Ann on occasion, and I've never bought one of her books -- not that I wouldn't, but I just don't have the time or inclination to do that much book reading. I prefer and recommend Rush Limbaugh, but listening to anyone would be better than listening to a Democrat (Liberal) talk show host, commentator, or other media personality.

After six years on the receiving end, it's time the Right learns and uses some of the tactics of the Left and light their own fires... the more the better!!! That's how the Democrats won. Democrats didn't have an agenda. Their only message was "We Hate Bush". Congressional, state, or local office... no matter... the ads were all the same: "Hi. I'm such-and-such. Vote for me. I hate Bush!"

As to Bill Maher, I have no use for him, even if he is a fan of Ann's. The less he says the better. I saw him a couple of weeks ago going through his anti-Bush and related rants on Jay Leno, but that's not the first time Jay has used his show to bash Bush.

AAR

Opus, so if I disagree with you and really really dislike you, I can advocate your murder?

Let me know when you organize the next book-burning; OK buddy?

Well said AAR

According to this, Maher quoted someone who said he wished Cheney had been blown up, and thinks we should have a right to say we wished he had been blown up. yes, people ahve said that. I agree, we should have a right to say we wished he had been killed. Doesn't mean it's in good taste, but it is legal.

His point seems to be that Cheney is a bad thing for America, and his death might lead to fewer dead people over all. it is different from ishing he had died, though a slight difference.

His comments might be in poor taste, but he might have a point.

Consider, Senator Smith of Oregon, a Republican and presumably not a raging leftist, said he was told by General Petraeus that the surge has a 25% of being successful. meanwhile, Secretary ice and general pace are saying that, in the General's words, Plan B is to make Plan A work," suggesting that if the plan fails, as a top general says it is likely to, they will continue to throw soldiers into combat. Administrations officials and their supporters, then, say the plan is to keep having people die. Cheney seems to be a believer in that ideology, and it's possible that a different VP would lobby a different way, possibly leading to more soldiers remaining alive.

I don't want him dead. I hate America, and am working towards the glorious day where islamic law is the law of the land, and only gay marriage is allowed. I'm not good at spotting contradictions

I hate America, and am working towards the glorious day where islamic law is the law of the land, and only gay marriage is allowed.

Finally! An honest liberal.

From what I can tell Maher didn't say he felt regret that the Vice President wasn't assassinated. Although I wouldn't be surprised if that were his real opinion. But he didn't say it. And I don't think anyone can get inside his head. Who would honestly want to!

But to state an unsupportable assertion, as he did, that fewer people would die if the Vice President were to die is ridiculous and disgusting.

I'm all for free speech. Maher can say whatever he wants on his stupid show. I don't watch it. Never have. Never will.

I pass 'Maher' on the channel surfing too...he's an ass. His decision making is suspect...recently deciding whether right or left handed masturbation is the best...and we can all see, left handed it is.