Enjoyable Daily Show on Wednesday night with Jon going after Jonah Goldberg and his book Liberal Fascism. Highlights from Jon included: "Organic food is fascist???" and "I must say you are unbelievably misrepresenting" what the progressive era was all about. Apparently the taping went on so long, and with so many nuggets, that (as Stewart had warned) some of it had to be aired in choppy sound bites. It could have been called, "The Goldberg Variations."
Most humiliating moment for Jonah came when Stewart asked him if one of the things he was against was people throwing around the charge "fascism" far too easily. Jonah said yes, then Stewart picked up a copy of the book and simply pointed to the title, Liberal Fascism -- adding, so why are you doing this?
Goldberg got angry at one point and accused Stewart of not reading his book. You expected Stewart to reply, "This piece of trash? No way," but somehow he refrained.
UPDATE: Goldberg's allies over the National Review's "The Corner" are demanding that Comedy Central post the entire interview, which will allegedly show their man in a better light. Goldberg himself reviews the show there, revealing that he knew he was in trouble when the interview went on and on, and heavy editing became inevitable. There's also an audio interview with Goldberg talking about it at HotAir.com, in which he says he chatted with Stewart this morning and complained about the editing of the segment -- even though he had said earlier in the same interview that he had not seen it yet. He calls Stewart the "dashboard saint of the liberal blogs."
Here's my favorite comment from Kathryn Jean Lopez at The Corner, which closes by suggesting that everyone watch a remarkably unfunny Adam Sandler movie:
"I can think a good number of other friends and colleagues who have been mistreated by The Daily Show. There are some rare exceptions for the Right-minded — Bill Kristol's had decent experiences, Rick Santorum remarkably did when his book came out — but Stewart generally winds up trying to make a joke out of your or your issues, or is just downright unfair. The best shows involve some sort of smart give and take. The Daily Show isn't generally conducive to such a thing. You're either in downright hostile territory, or you're pretending to be something you aren't — a comedian. It's just not worth it.
"Watch Big Daddy instead."
12 comments:
I was hoping he'd comment on Goldberg saying that liberals gave Mussolini the label of "Fascist." Ignoring (or, more likely, not knowing) that Mussolini was called Fascist because he, you know, FOUNDED THE FASCIST PARTY.
Edited not only for length, but to make Jon Stewart look smart and make his guest, Goldberg, look like an idiot. Something that is common on his show, that's why he is on Comedy Central. Maybe Jon should try reading the book next time before you bring someone on to talk about their book.
Does anyone here really know the definition of fascism?
If they did perhaps comments would grasp that Goldberg understands, while Stewart does not, that fascism is but a manifestation of socialism.
In Italy and Germany the state directed all means of production while letting it remain privately owned. That's fascism baby!
The pogroms that happened were another malevolent component of that government, but that wasn't a feature of fascism, it was "National Socialism" - remember?
Take an honest look at the Italian National Fascist Party, National Socialism and the Soviet system and you see they are more alike than different. People forget they were all democracies when they started, which should be a reminder of the inherent evil of democracy and why our forefathers sought to prevent that form of government in the US.
All of these states needed enemies to whip up nationalism and militarism. All advocated subjugation of the individual to the state or the party. All were but separate evolutions of the same evil.
The only real difference in these two forms of socialism was the view of who owned the means of production, the state or not.
Guys like Goldberg simply want a return to the classic liberalism of our founding fathers.
It simply holds that the individual, not the state rules a person's life. It is a concept, mostly alien to the political parties in America today.
Well, I'm pretty disappointed that The (A) Daily Show hasn't posted the entire 18 min interview on the Daily Show website. They only have the edited version there.
I thought the reason they aired the edited version on television was because they didn't have enough time. Isn't that exactly what is the web is for?
Quite the kerfuffle over at The Corner about this. If Comedy Central and Jon Stewart won't play fair and put Jonah out of his misery by posting the entire interview online, why doesn't Jonah use his big media muscles and regale us all with his recollection of all the smart stuff he said by just posting it on his blog? He IS going to be a NYT bestselling author next week, or the week after that, you know.
The only real difference in these two forms of socialism was the view of who owned the means of production, the state or not.
But the entire point of socialism is that the state owns the means of production.
If you have socialism where the means of production are privately owned, it's like democracy where nobody gets to vote or baseball without the bats or the bases. It's really not the same thing at all.
Goldberg's definition of fascism is "anything the federal government does." It's really not more complicated than that. He actually admits in his book that every president from FDR through Nixon should be considered a "liberal fascist." Fine. America's golden age of peace, prosperity, and freedom is "fascism." If so, let's have some more of it.
The conservative Michael Ledeen honed in on Jonah's garbage, made-up definition of fascism:
"What is missing from Jonah’s book—he mentions it in passing a few times, but never gives it the weight it deserves—is the specific historical context from which fascism was born: the First World War. Fascism was created in the trenches of that war, it was a war ideology from beginning to end, and the central core of fascism was composed of two basic concepts: first the conviction that the only people worthy of political power were those who had been tested and proven in combat (for the most part, the brownshirts were veterans, and the Socialists they attacked had been pacifists or neutralists or isolationists). And second, that the essence of Western civilization was under siege from the left, that is, from Communists and Socialists…
…The best that can be said about this is that it’s imaginative. But it’s what happens when you are bound and determined to put liberals, Socialists, Communists, fascists and Nazis into a common political home."
Actually, anon, Jonah is indeed flexing "his big media muscles" and getting his version out.
http://hotair.com/archives/2008/01/17/jonah-goldberg-my-phone-call-with-jon-stewart/
Jeebus - Do Doughy Pantload and K-Lo realize that TDS is on friggen "Comedy Central?"
BTW - I coined the term "The Goldberg Principle"
"You can prove any thesis to be true if you make up your own definitions of words."
Notr is a self-described Randian Objectivist.
'Nuff said.
Have to agree with Dr. A on this one. Notr's definition excludes the particular collusion between state, corporations, and the religious establishment, the xenophobia, and the worship of the "strong man" leader that were all hallmarks of classical fascism. It kinda pisses me off that Goldberg is making money off this book, when it'd be *much* easier to write one about "conservative fascism". And the Republicans' collusion with evangelicals and corporations, the anti-immigrant hysteria, and the lionization of Bush (and Reagan), are all more compelling similarities than "vegetarianism" and and "emphasis on the state," in terms of argument.
I don't know what all the fuss is about. If you're a conservative and you choose to go on a liberal talk show how is it that you're shocked when the liberals give you a hard time? I mean when liberals go on the Bill O'Reilly show it's not as if he gives them softball questions.
You can't have it both ways. The Daily Show sells books, so if you're a conservative and if you want your book to sell you run that particular gauntlet.
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