Speaking Ill of the Dead

I’m not one to speak ill of the recently deceased. Whatever judgments of history can wait until those who mourn have had their time to do so.

But of Roger Ailes who died yesterday?

Roger Ailes was a reprehensible excuse of a human being who devastated the principles of journalism while leaving a shattered democracy in his wake.

• Donald Trump in the Oval Office? Roger Ailes made that possible.
• An ideologically frozen Congress unable to maintain the basic functions of democratic governance? That’s on Roger Ailes!
• An electorate ruled by fear and hatred? Lay that at the feet of Roger Ailes. 

It was Roger Ailes who started Fox News on the basis that news is a marketable commodity. Dress it up with beautiful mostly blonde women in short skirts to draw in the eyeballs of horny middle aged men and then give them an earful about what’s wrong with this country. 

There was nothing too small on the left of the political divide that wasn’t worthy of Fox News’ most outraged scorn.  And there was very little on the right side of the political divide that didn’t warrant fawning adulation and praise.

Fox News’ slogan was “Fair and Balanced” but Roger Ailes made sure it wasn’t, pushing a hard right conservative agenda and constantly haranguing of anything that remotely smacked of anything that wasn’t. another slogan for Fox News was “We report;you decide.” But Roger Ailes made sure that Fox News spent the entire day telling you what to think. There was no mere difference of opinions between Republican and Democratic views. No, Democrats were absolutely against you and your way of life. They hate America and will drag it down into liberal hell if not for the God-fearing, true blue patriotic Republicans. And it must be true. Those beautiful mostly blonde women in short skirts wouldn't lie to us, would they?

It was this toxic stew that Roger Ailes cooked up that gave us Donald Trump. Fox News and their brethren on the even farther right had pushed their viewers to such a state of angry indignation, they gave their support to a clearly unqualified buffoon. A Fox News viewer didn’t disagree with Hillary Clinton; no, they HATED her and cast their lot with the small handed, orange skinned moron with the gopher on his head.

Roger Ailes made that happen. Years, decades of grinding that axe against the grindstone of fear and hate, Ailes stoked a white hot rage that refused to countenance bi-partisanship. Compromise? Hell no! You don’t compromise with evil!

There’s an idiot in the White House and sniveling sycophants in the House and the Senate and Ailes’ creation is what put them there. 

I used to watch Fox News. There was a loose, friendly charm about the hosts and who am I kidding, it was for the hot babes in the short skirts. I’m a perv, OK? But I'm not only one.

Oh, Steve Doocy! You bad, bad boy.  

But I became aware of a disturbing repetitive nature to what I was hearing. Democrats were always wrong and Republicans were always right. ALWAYS! I’m a registered Republican; the first President I voted for was Ronald Reagan. And Democrats have a bad habit of failing to find their own asses with both hands behind them. But they weren’t always wrong! And when they were wrong, they were just, well, wrong, not all to undermine the American way of life. And Republicans were NOT always right. Sometimes their views defied logic and facts but Fox News would still sing their praises.

Roger Ailes gave us that. And we as a nation are so much poorer for it.

Roger Ailes just died yesterday but it’s not too soon to start shoveling dirt over his misbegotten place in American history.

Oh, here's a photo of Roger Ailes.

Sorry. My mistake. That's Jabba the Hutt. Let's try this again. 

Dammit! Jabba again?!? 

Oh never mind. 

And I'm so glad my suffering amuses you.  
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OK, one last thing relating to Fox News. I commented on Wednesday that Donald Trump figured his problem isn't his message but his messengers. Was Press Secretary Sean Spicer on his way out? And would he be replaced by Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle? 

Guilfoyle gushed about the opportunity to take on that role. 
“I’m a patriot, and it would be an honor to serve the country,” she said. “I think it’d be a fascinating job … you need someone really determined and focused, a great communicator in there with deep knowledge to be able to handle that position.”

According to the Washington Examiner, President Trump picked up on her not-so-subtle message, but it had the opposite effect: Instead of endearing her to the president, Guilfoyle’s remarks reportedly made him “furious.” Apparently Li'l Donnie doesn't like others getting ahead of what he's going to do and thought Guilfoyle's comments were self-serving. (Does the kettle knows the pot is black?)  

So it may well be that this...

...will NOT wind up behind a White House press podium.