In “Best of the Web Today”, 16-Feb,
http://www.opinionjournal.com/best/?id=110006300
James Taranto notes the following:
The Whine Spectator
Car-bumper exhortations to support the troops have NPR commentator Bob Sommer bent out of shape:
*** QUOTE ***
That curious phrase, "support our troops," on those yellow ribbon magnets seems to
accuse me of not doing my part. Then I realized that "support our troops" is a code!
It requires parsing.
Here's what I think it means: Those who presumably need to be admonished to
support the troops are those who oppose the decisions of the administration.
"Support our troops" means, then, that we should be supporting the war. I believe
that most yellow-magnet bearers want support not just for the troops, but for the
mission, the presence, the president.
Maybe the magnets should say: "Shut up and support our troops."
*** END QUOTE ***
I would suggest the following response to Mr. Sommer:
The curious phrase “support NPR and PBS” that appears on state funded broadcast media seems to accuse me of intolerance for the posturing of leftist pseudo-intellectual bigots. It exhorts me to pay (as if I’m not already) for views with which I thoroughly disagree.
Then I realized it is a code. The phrase requires parsing.
It means: “Those who presumably must be admonished to pay my salary are those same redneck moralists who can’t recognize superior intellect when they’re exposed to it. The same ones who think Christo’s “The Gates” in Central Park look like a bunch of traffic cones with rags attached, that Eason Jordan has loose lips and that Bill Moyers didn’t deserve an entire career on the public teat.”
“Support Public Broadcasting”, then, means that we should be supporting left-wing ideologues even as they grow fat on our money and call us ignoramuses. I believe that most voluntary Public Broadcast supporters want not just forced monetary support from the rest of us, but support for calling us idiots, for their moonbat ideas, for Michael Moore and Teddy Kennedy.
How about a PBS ad saying: “Shut up and give me back my tax dollars!”, or “Send us enough to retire and we’ll shut this stinking thing down.”?