Jack Hunter

September 22, 2009

On yesterday?s drive home I listened to Sean Hannity, as I often do. Hannity was upset, as he often is, about President Obama ?weakening? American defense – scrapping missile defense shields in Europe, not escalating troop levels fast enough in Afghanistan, ignoring an Iran on the verge of getting nukes – you know, not being ?conservative.? ?You?re a great American!? one lady caller told Hannity.

While I?m not sure how great an American he is, Glenn Beck at least deserves credit for trying to change the conversation on the talk radio Right by getting away from unqualified support for faux patriotism and blind militarism that still so-animates men like Hannity. As of late, Beck?s even become increasingly, and more solidly, antiwar.

Beck?s radio show is not carried on the station where I work, but our competitor (we have Hannity and Mark Levin. Blah.), and I had missed a rant by Beck last week where, as one WTMA listener said to a friend, ?Glenn Beck was talkin? about war like the Southern Avenger!?

While I did not get to hear Beck?s antiwar, supposedly ?Southern-Avenger-esque?  rant,  Jenn Morrill at the Salt Lake City Examiner apparently did. And it?s a good?n:

On his radio show last week, he apologized to libertarians everywhere for calling himself a libertarian in the past. He has long called himself a conservative with libertarian leanings, but he said he is now leaning so far libertarian that he is almost horizontal. He said, ?I?m going through a change here.?

Beck would like the time machine to take him back eighteen months. Why? To go back to when he was calling Ron Paul a ?crackpot on so many issues.? Now, he laments, ?Gosh. I?d like to reexamine all those issues.? Among those issues is America?s occupation of many foreign countries; Beck specifically mentions Germany,  Korea, and Afghanistan. He admits that America?s imperialism has caused a lot of problems. He said, ?Progressive members of the Republican party wanted to make sure that we spread sunshine, lollipops, happiness, and democracy to all around the world. That?s great. But the best way to do that is to live a righteous life and be a good example.? And he repeated what Paul has been saying for years, ?Besides, we can?t afford it anymore!?