Glenn Beck: "Environmentalists Worshiping Baal."

Glenn Beck is an actor, as are pretty much all news-entertainers/political-propagandists. That particular style of right-wing punditry (perfected by Limbaugh many years ago) is all about emotionally connecting to the audience and convincing them that you are also a "true believer." The reason he has that job is that he is talented at exactly such theater. And not because he's good at reporting news or political analysis or whatever - acting, and not news, is his primary job role.

To get an idea of the depth of his convictions, observe the radical break in the stances that he's oh-so-personally-invested-in when he left CNN and moved to FOX:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/deadlineusa/2009/aug/14/glenn-beck-healthcare

That's great and all, but I don't see what it has to do with Glenn Beck the TV personality. He's not out there arguing his beliefs or his experiences - he's engaged in political theater for profit, and says and does whatever will best serve that end. I don't think he's out to destroy democracy or ruin America - just that he's more than happy to take money from those who are in exchange for his best performances in the service of their favored policies and ideology.

I mean, seriously, equating climate science with the worship of ancient Babylonian dieties? That's not personal experience honestly argued, that's wingnuttery of the highest order. The only thing I take away from that is that there are apparently enough wide-eyed fundamentalist wackjobs in our polity for such horseshit to be worth spreading - which is scary.

The name for that sort of ideology is Producerism. The idea that "conservatives" (or, Republicans) speak for the "productive" sector of society is an offensive and dangerous canard. We've all seen the stats showing that Red States are consistent tax-sinks, while Blue States are consistent tax-sources, the legions of unwashed redneck conservatives that don't produce much of anything, the billionaire philanthropists that despise the GOP, etc.

Why don't you start that project by refusing the basic ideological disrespect of equating "conservative" with "producer" (and, implicitly, "liberal" with "leech.")?

 

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Yeah... ...them loonies who worship AL scare the shit outta me, too.

'cept he's from Tennessee, not Texas !

:mufc:

 

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The Phoenicians, living in Lebanon were traders and mariners. They worshipped Baal, who was a god of trade and weather.

The Israelites were mainly farmers. They worshipped Yahweh.
So long as they pleased him, he sent no droughts and prevented invasions by their enemies.

Glen Beck is probably very knowledgeable about Bible history,
but talking about scripture as if it contained some coded message for modern right wing Americans is ludicrous.

 

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HE just was more moderate on CNN because he would have gotten fired if not. Why not go back to his original theatre, his talk shows which are more conservative than even the Fox Glenn. No doubt he is a conservative, he isn't acting that much thats him. I actually see a more phony glenn on CNN than on Fox. I listened to his show years before he was popular, the guy is a mormon for petes sake of course hes conservative.

PS television plays on ratings, which means fox news is merely playing to its audience, which means yes its views are based on reality not made up for entertainment. Though some of them are played for such, they are still real as in based on real peoples point of view.

 

How do we know they aren't the same God? I mean, even if you think there could be a God, that's a long way from being able to distinguish one God from another.

 

There is only one god spidergoat

 

Which one?

 

Damn...Where's Anita Meyer when ya need her?...She would know.

 

Here is some of Beck's logic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yp_l5ntikaU

 

The ONE true one. The one everyone keeps going on about.


Chuck Norris.

 

And you dare speak out loud, the name of the "True one"?

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My parents thinks Glenn Beck is a jerk.

 

He is that.

 

And I find him amusing. He makes a big stink about everything.

 

How would you know the difference? Have you ever personally met him, interacted with him? Do you have any means of knowing him that are not for-profit, politicized media?

There are plenty of liberal Mormons.

That conclusion does not follow from that chain of reasoning. Rather the opposite, in point of fact.

To the extent that you are referring to the point of view of FOX management that airing such views will help sell ad time, then sure.

To the extent that you assume these types are genuine true-believers, despite their obvious financial incentive to dissemble on that point, I'm unimpressed.

 

Plenty of money in rant and prejudice then.

The people who really annoy me are the scientists who use their education and training to support scientific creationism.

 

Here we go... what do you think the conservatives say when they watch MSNBC?? same thing

And I also have problems with teaching the bible as science, but i do not have a problem with teaching about intelligent design or random design as hypothesis's. I have problems with anyone that discredits any hypothesis as unscientific when there isn't any data to say either way, most athiests promote multiverse for example.. just as unfounded as intelligent design is there is no data either way.

But I get your point, religious fundamentalism that means non-tolerance and narrow mindedness has no place in the education system. Education should be there as science, it should teach about speculations and then when the kids go to church let them make up their own mind.

for exampl I have no problem with most catholics that embrace science yet are betting on grand design implying a grand designer. They do not reject evolution, or the age of the universe, or any of the "hows" of science, they are just there for the people that need to wonder why. They also now teach tolerance of other religions for example a muslim can also go to heaven or even an athiest.. if all social groups took this type of perspective the world would be a better place. And by that I mean tolerance and acceptance of science, even if sciene one day proves there is no God.

 

Because conservatives can't tell Morning Joe and Chris Mathews from scientists?

Figures.

"No evidence" means "not scientific".

 

Hypotheses that are unfalsifiable (i.e., not answerable to evidence to begin with, as opposed to merely lacking in decisive evidence) are, by definition, unscientific. Intelligent Design is not a scientific hypothesis.

? Maybe "most physicists," but I haven't noted a particular affinity for MWI amongst atheists.

The difference being that nobody claims that MWI is a scientific theory/hypothesis/etc. It's an interpretation. That is not how Intelligent Design is advertized - its proponents claim that it is an actual testable scientific theory.

Science couldn't ever prove that. The existence of God is not a scientific hypothesis.

The conflict between religion and science isn't so much that religion is worried that science will show that certain beliefs are incorrect, but that science represents a social authority independent of the church. The entire operation of organized religions of the sort in question is based on the premise that they have access to privileged truths about the nature and purpose of the universe. To the extent that science has the authority to contradict the church, it greatly undermines the social power of the church. That being the entire reason for a church to exist, this is a serious threat to them. This is a pitfall of premising one's authority on a claim to ultimate truth.

 

The thing I find most disturbing is that when the Tea Party is polled, 65% of them get their "News" from FOX. Their knowledge is, for the most part, coming from a source that doesn't actually draw conclusions from any real academic sources. In their eyes all science is suspect, books are to be used as firewood, and history is to be warped and twisted in any way they want.

It's at the point where evidence is no longer needed when it comes to making decisions about the natural world and the planet in which we live.