Laura Ingraham, a bright, usually thoughtful, prime- time
star on Fox News, got personal and nasty last week. Big mistake.
Conservatives ae accustomed to being the targets of
personal and unkind attacks from the left.
Ad hominem is necessary when substantial rejoinders are weak.
But responding in kind is rarely a good idea.
Ms. Ingraham took aim at Dave Hogg, a student at the
Florida high school where seventeen people were slain, who has been a popular
spokesman for anti-gun measures. She
tweeted a snide remark about this young fellow’s rejection for admission by
four California colleges.
Why? Did this
failure reflect on his viewpoint?
Hardly. Did Laura Ingraham believe
that his lack of success was a deserved comeuppance for his calls for tightened
gun laws? Nasty.
Attacks by a prominent adult pundit on a seventeen year
old, at the very least, seem unfair. But
worse, they reflect poorly indeed on the source when they are personal.
We on the right would be quick to condemn someone on the
left who conducted herself that way. But
Laura Ingraham generated little – if any – disapproval from fellow conservatives.
In fact, she expressed regret for her message only after
social media exploded with condemnation.
Yet her reaction was mealy-mouthed, expressing her “sorrow” in the
venerable “I don’t really mean it but have to placate critics” manner favored
by celebrities. “I apologize for any
upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland.”
Really? How about
acknowledging that what you wrote was wrong and mean. It was, regardless of whether it gave offense
or not.
We conservatives have enough problems in attracting
supporters without being burdened with compatriots who validate the disrespect
displayed by our foes.
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