Limbaugh puts American Politics in Limbo

For several months I’ve been recreationally following American political commentator, Rush Limbaugh.
 
Like most students, I’ve had the good fortune to gain a much better understanding of the way our political and social systems work on top of studying my major. Even more importantly, how those systems are connected.

Before I move on, I would like to say this is not an attack on the beliefs of any party or person.

My main concern is not what Limbaugh and other conservative talk show hosts are preaching, but rather how they are preaching it.

I believe this sort of wacked out fundamentalist style of delivering news and opinion rolled together is detrimental not only to the reputation and prestige of the Republican Party, but also American politics as a whole.

Much of our society rides on civil interaction between groups with differing political opinions. Radical commentators like Limbaugh can have serious negative affects on the tension between political parties.

With millions of people tuning into talk radio shows like Limbaugh’s every week, it would not be a far stretch to assume his aggressive and unprofessional way of presenting current events can be interpreted into misinformation.

This is a colossal problem due to the fact that good sources of unbiased and uncensored information are vital in maintaining a healthy and vibrant democracy.

With one extremely biased and often radical opinion being aired, one can only assume that Limbaugh and his producers actively seek to undermine the intelligence of his listeners to help push his personal political agenda. If this were not the case, there would be airtime given to people with differing political views.

Another issue I take with Limbaugh is his unwillingness to listen to fair compromise. Willingness to compromise is the heart of any democracy, Limbaugh quickly stomps out the idea that cooperation is a viable way to get the job done.

And with all things considered, it is sort of ironic seeing as he is so heartily against any sort of fascist or single party style control.

It is undeniable that political tensions in the U.S. have been rising for some time now, most notably to my generation during the second Bush and Obama administrations.

 Public division, as well as people preaching this sort of non-compromising rhetoric on many talk radio programs, can do nothing but weaken a strong and vibrant society.

While the topic is obviously very complex, this article just does not have the space for an in depth examination of the issues at hand.

I will take the risk of sounding like my second-grade teacher and say, “Cant we all just get along?”

Our country’s continued prosperity depends on it.

— ogwise@indiana.edu