Birthday Wishes

Today, Air America Radio begins its third year of being a week away from collapsing, at least if every conservative pundit can be believed (and really, when can't they be?)

April 19th, 2004
June 6th, 2004
March 2nd, 2005
April 28th, 2005
September 22nd, 2005
March 3rd, 2006
March 25th, 2006

Oh.

I used to be sort of embarrased that I listened to Air America, back when I was still a registered Republican. A bunch of us at work started listening to it a little over a year ago via XM Radio. Since many of us had previously been Rush Limbaugh listeners, it was definitely a change to hear political talk radio that wasn't simply three hours of one guy bloviating and taking phone calls only from gushing, vapid fans. Suddenly, we heard political radio hosts presenting verifiable, balanced facts. They injected humor into their discourse and didn't take themselves so seriously. They invited respected political opponents onto their shows for balanced debate. They seemed to have an actual value system and got on members of both political parties when they didn't live up to them, instead of simply pushing a party line. It was absolutely refreshing. I may not agree with everything they say, but I never feel expected to. It's never about being told what to think. Rush creates dittoheads. Air America informs. They certainly have a bias, but they are far, far more moderate than their competition on the right.

If you haven't listened yet, I highly recommend checking out the Rachel Maddow show, which airs 7am to 9am Eastern. Rachel isn't one of their celebrity names, but she is a fantastic host and one of the smartest people I've ever had the priveledge of tuning in to. Not only can she handle just about any topic, but she puts up with Tucker Carlson on a regular basis, which is a real feat.

I still tune in to Rush on occasion, just to see what he's saying, but not only is he almost always talking through his ass these days, but he's incredibly boring. Rush talking in a vacuum for 3 hours simply can't hold a torch to, say, Rachel Maddow debating with Rick Scarborough, creator of the "War on Christianity" Conference. Frankly, the only reason I can see for continuing to listen to Rush is to get three hours of someone telling you that your fanatical right-wing views and willfull ignorance are completely normal and justified, despite all real-world evidence to the contrary.

Happy birthday, Air America Radio!