Former welfare recipient and drug addict Rush Limbaugh is a cartoon of a cartoon. He's racist because HE has lived the life of a black male stereotype.

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I would hope that stooping to this level of tastelessness will at least give some of his listeners second thoughts. How have his ratings been lately, anyway?

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Actually folks, Limbaugh's parody may actually help more than hurt Barack Obama. There will be folks who will be laughing. Yet those same folks may actually get curious about why there is so much fuss over Barack Obama!! Sometimes being attacked or lampooned for lousy reasons has the effect of stirring folks sympathy.

And as for why folks like Al Sharpton have not called for Limbaugh's job. Well, who knows? As a Black woman, I still find it somewhat offensive that the media ran to Sharpton, rather than some media savvy and intellectual Black female when the whole Imus affair broke. They eventually got around to us after an issue that was gender specific had been first filtered through a male lens. It isn't bad enough that the sexist comments from Imus and Black gangsta rappers have been downplayed and treated like simple racism as if gender did not, does not play a part. As for Barack Obama, I wish him well. As for Limbaugh, well I've save that comment for another time!

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Just when I thought that the guy had the bottom of the barrell scraped clean, he finds a new bottom...

What's sadder is that there are still people who give this cretin the time of day.

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Paul Shanklin makes this tripe for Limbaugh. Here is a direct link to his web site so that you can tell him what you think.

e-mail Paul Shanklin Directly

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Limbaugh won't be going anywhere.

He supports the war, Bush/Cheney and the far right of the Republican party. He only mocks the poor, women and minorities - no equal opportunity satire from him. He has no conscience, so he wouldn't even bother with an apology. Limbaugh has no weakness that Sharpton/Jackson/black journalists can exploit.

Imus, on the other hand, made powerful enemies. He condemned Cheney as a war criminal and roused his listeners to oppose the Iraq disaster. His support of gay marriage has alienated many, and Bernard McGuirk's mocking impression of Cardinal Egan has pissed off Catholic conservatives, who know occupy a majority on the Supreme Court.

Without these vulnerabilties, Imus could easily have withstood any political assault from segments of the African-Amercian community. With them, he was doomed.

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There is criticism of Obama from the Black community about not being in touch with Black concerns, as expressed here, for instance,
but please note that this is articulate, not a racist portrayal by a very white professional 'clown'. This 'parody' would be called racist even if came from a Black, but by a very white someone in 'blackface', portraying Blacks as fools (with a racist usage of the word "negro") is offensive as hell. How dare he pretend to speak for Blacks in such a demeaning manner?!

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I did not view the video. I can imagine the garbage that it contains. A few months ago I check in on Rush's program and he had a disgusting parody between Obama & Sharpton that included inflections of "Yo Mama" and other disgusting stereotypes. This pill poping, sexual deviate, racist clearly has tapped into the racist streak in many of his listeners. They just chuckle and laugh at this dispicable racism. America has a long way to go down the road to equality and this degenerate is misdirecting his simple followers down detours of darkness from the enlightened path.

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Limbaugh is purposely pushing the envelope just to show everyone how much power he has - when he turns out to be immune to being canned due to the amount of money he pulls in then the joke is on US. Too bad he can't just go home and OD one of these days after work.

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Rush Limbaugh, as I have believed for quite a long time, is the worst thing that has ever happened to this country in my lifetime of sixty plus years. Way beyond being the hipocrite and rude piece of crap that he is, the real damage that he has done is the influence he has had over so many people. Many are getting hip to who he really is, but the damage he has done will hurt us for a long time to come. Shame on you, Rush, you phony bastard.

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I am not trying to defend the guy, but the reason for the parody is that a columnist for the Los Angeles Times said that Obama is "...running for an equally important unelected office, in the province of the popular imagination — the "Magic Negro." I think the idea was that if it was ok for a liberal newspaper to say it, it would be ok for him to say it.
I tried to paste the url to the column but it was too long, but you can easily find it by just googling "obama magic negro"

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The song and video are offensive. While the words and idea's can be considered clever in some manner given the current political clime and the (ridiculous) arguments that are being made about Obama, obviously this recording is meant to denigrate and put down Obama, unlike more witty and well presented satire (Check out The Capitol Steps, The Fourmen and Roy Zimmerman). However, there are 2 major differences between this and the Don Imus event. First, Don Imus called the rutgers women "Nappy headed ho's" as a direct and personal comment, from him, to them. Regardless of how offensive the song presented here is, Limbaugh is presenting someone elses satire. He may present it as clever, acceptable and funny, but HE DIDN'T MAKE THE COMMENTS. So, by that technicality, he escapes Don Imus's mistake. 2ndly, whether or not you consider it well done or clever. it is a satire and satire is Free Speech. Free speech is not there to protect speech we agree with, it is there to protect uncomfortable and unpleasant speech. We as a nation need to show our distaste with our minds, words and $$. Stop listening to Limbaugh, stop buying products that are advertised on his show and more importantly...LET THE SPONSORS KNOW YOU ARE NOT BUYING THEIR PRODUCT! Imus was (rightfully) fired, but not because he was a racist ass, he was fired because sponsors dropped him and the station and the co. he worked for LOST MONEY! Thats how we need to fight sttupid, undfunny,racist satire like this song!

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And the sound of rush's voice echoing in the corridors of the EIB network as his sponsors chase his ass out the door,"Feet's don't fail me now!"

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You are right that racism is ugly, and I agree that it is dangerous ground to spread crap like this video around the internet. However, you must admit that it is worth asking why Rush Limbaugh can get away with such racist, insulting, degrading, trash while Imus is booted out on his ear.

If alternet had just given a transcript with part of the lyrics to this "song", I wouldn't have recognized just how terrible the whole thing was. I am curious how you would have liked to see this reported in such a way that you felt equally informed about the shit that Rush is up to. (I am not associated with Alternet, I just wanted to know your point of view).

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Rush is a strong canditate for the funny farm with all of his addictions and and bigotry but we need someone in contrast to the good people such Obama who blesses me.

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One thing I do appreciate is the strength of the Black and Brown people of this country. One more attack from the white man is not going to deter them. A lie is a lie no matter who spouts it. An insult is an insult. That being said lets try to get Rush off our airwaves. Contact his sponsors and boycott his channels. I do not get him where I live and would not listen even if I did. There must be a way to rid our country of this blight on humanity.

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No one, including Obama has the guts to take this guy on. He sits in his ivory tower and says what he damn well pleases.
Obama doesn't have a chance at my vote. He trashed Imus but Rush is OK ? Another great decider. I don't think so. ANNA

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No one, including Obama has the guts to take this guy on. He sits in his ivory tower and says what he damn well pleases.
Obama doesn't have a chance at my vote. He trashed Imus but Rush is OK ? Another great decider. I don't think so. ANNA

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the effect of the kind of collective mental retardation a racist war like "the war on terror" has had on shell shocked america, but this website revels in it...
yeah that's right people, wake the fuk up and recognize that 9-11 is america's "shock and awe" experience, and that it has lead to a new lowbrow, thoroughly repulsive culture. The media would have never dared pull this shit in the 90's. LIMAUGH would have never got approval to run it.
Alternet, a 'lefty media organization' runs a funny gag in which the israeli ambasador plays "cinamon", and now i'm supposed to believe that they are outraged about this peice? why should i believe it? WHY SHOULD I BELIEVE IT???

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I saw an interview years ago when Limbaugh was first getting started, where he conceeded that he doesn't even believe much of what he says on air, that he sees himself as an entertainer putting on an act. That would certainly explain his irrational coolaid-drinking, hot-gas spewing, and even racist commentary. I'm fairly conservative, and a pretty calm guy, but I can't listen to the guy very long without yelling something at the radio. And this racist garbage!!?? I mean, Sharpton's a racist himself, and the media shoudn't be running to him for social commentary, but this crap from Limbaugh is unbelievable. As consumers, we should demand they can everybody, regardless of the color of thier skin, who makes racist and racially imflamatory remarks.

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To me the insult to Obama is just as egregious as the insult to the basketball team. I can't tell a lot of difference in racism and hostility between Imus's offhand comment and the snickering puerile racism of this vid. That being said, I wonder if people had a more outraged reaction to Imus's comment because the collegiate womens basketball players were a less acceptable target than a national politician. Not that I agree with that thinking; I just wonder if the public respects athletes more than politicians.

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Limbaugh is parodying a statement made by a liberal news outlet.

I'm curious where the outrage was when the LA times originated the statement?

Great to see that there is no mention of this at all in the original post. Great job at doing research.

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I'll bet he gets his "marching orders" directly from Phineas Phart (aka Bush) and his bloodless vampire of a VP. Nobody's touching "The Oxycontin Gasbag"!

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You libs really need to get a sense of humor.

The song BARACK THE MAGIC NEGRO IS A PARODY OF AN LA TIMES ARTICLE....

LA TIMES ARTICLE

From the article...
But it's clear that Obama also is running for an equally important unelected office, in the province of the popular imagination — the "Magic Negro."

The Magic Negro is a figure of postmodern folk culture, coined by snarky 20th century sociologists, to explain a cultural figure who emerged in the wake of Brown vs. Board of Education. "He has no past, he simply appears one day to help the white protagonist," reads the description on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_Negro .





Your side has questioned Barack's "blackness" so stop being a hypocrite. The left in this country sickens me. You are a bunch of stalinists when it comes to free speech and debate.

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Mr Piggy... known as Russ Limbough. Limbough reflects the Bush administrations ability to discredit all that come into their path. I think that now the American voter is aware of the crooked ways of our President and Vice President and the greedy gang that follows them. Most of us say "No more". Let us throw the undisireables out and start with new blood and honest intentions.

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Just more of the sick Repugwican way of politics. I hope that come November 2008 that every Repugwican gets defeated at the polls, They are not fit to Govern, They can only RULE. They make communism look good.

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I found the idea here, posted in response to Ehrenstein's article not Limbaugh's parody.

To those of you who think that it is just fine use the term 'magic negro' to describe Mr. Obama, well can we just say that the same applies to Condelezza[sic] Rice. She is such a 'magic negro', and as Secretary of State has served President Bush so well. Does she also display the teflon qualities you assign to the 'magic negro' syndrome? All the mistakes she has made in foreign policy just don't stick. Her foreign policy errors overlooked because of white man's guilt.

At any rate, the Media Matters coverage of Limbaugh's take on the Ehrenstein essay is extensive: Latching onto L.A. Times op-ed, Limbaugh sings "Barack, The Magic Negro". Limbaugh's purpose was to tarnish the left with racism: Well, there is white racism out there. Much of it is on the left where the plantation mentality still resides. It doesn't matter what Ehrenstein's actual politics might be. Because the LA Times published it, and everybody knows the LA Times is a liberal paper (despite replacing Robert Scheer with Jonah Goldberg), Ehrenstein speaks for the LA Times and thus for the left and for all liberals.

Divide and conquer tactics in action.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_Negro

The song is a parody of a editorial piece by the LA Times. It is not racist, it is actually quite the opposite.

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Stupid. Rascist. No, Limbaugh you cannot revive the KKK. Yes, Limbaugh you're a fucking fossil. Let's move on already.

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All one has to do is listen to Obama speak and instantly they can tell that there is a light behind his eyes, a brain in his head and a statesman in his heart.

Let's see what we have right now in the WH: a man who says that Jesus is a philosopher and that God told him to go to war. Check. A man who mangles his native language into something akin to a pidgin version of English - a man who is known to not read or have an understanding of what he's read. Check. And, lastly, we have the consummate politician as opposed to a real statesman. Check.

There is a very very very very VERY good reason people like Rush are afraid of the distinguished Senator from my state of Illinois:

Statesman |ˈstātsmən| noun ( pl. -men) a skilled, experienced, and respected political leader or figure.

W. can't even get his own state to accept his library bid.

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Slanderous, outrageous...he should be taken from the airwaves like other common liars.

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OK, it was offensive - DON'T LISTEN TO IT! You don't like Rush Limbagh (I agree, he's a jerk) - DON'T LISTEN TO HIM. How hard is it to push the "off" button on your radio?

CNN and Fox News and MSNBC and the rest of them offend me over their mistreatment of Palestinians in the Israel/Palestine conflict. You don't see me wondering why they are all still on the air - the reason - there are a bunch of idiots out there who like it - and that's their RIGHT.

it's called FREEDOM OF SPEECH people!! Without that, we are lost!

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Most of the readers of Alternet will dismiss this as a piece of trash, but it's worth noting the way the images in this piece slowly lead the viewer from the target (an attractive Obama) to an unattractive parody of Al Sharpton. Mr. Obama is a serious contender and threat to the Republican white male establishment, and Mr. Sharpton (even though I agree with 99% of his positions) is not. By slowly changing the tone throughout the video, the videographer first lures in middle-of-the road folks with a not-too-offensive beginning and then sets the hook when the implied link to Mr. Sharpton is made. Of course, the only real link between the two is that they both have native African ancestors (as, by the way, does Mr. Limbaugh, although his are a bit more distant), and that's what makes this a blatantly racist piece, but whoever made this film (probably with links to an advertising agency or maybe the Swift Boat guys?) knew exactly what he or she was doing. This is a dangerous film, it could be effective for certain "undecided" voters, and it stokes the racism of Limpball's dittoheads. It cannot be ignored. It is important that we point out how stuff like this is intended to jerk people around in order so they can be better prepared to resist these slick appeals in the future.

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I'd like to beat the daylights out of that fat bastard. You would too. Admit it.

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