Say Anything Blog

Via the Buzzmachine, I've come across this story:

Wise-cracking funnyman Al Franken yesterday body-slammed a demonstrator to the ground after the man tried to shout down Gov. Howard Dean.

The tussle left Franken's trademark thick-rim glasses broken, but he said he was not injured.

Franken - who seemed in a state of shock and out of breath after the incident - was helped back to his feet by several people who watched the tussle. Police arrived soon after.

"I got down low and took his legs out," said Franken afterwards.

Franken said he's not backing Dean but merely wanted to protect the right of people to speak freely. "I would have done it if he was a Dean supporter at a Kerry rally," he said.

"I'm neutral in this race but I'm for freedom of speech, which means people should be able to assemble and speak without being shouted down."

Just another example of how Franken and his ilk selectively apply the freedom of speech. While I don't condone heckling, its funny that Franken would tackle somebody to shut them up in the name of "free speech."

Would the media be talking about free speech if Rush Limbaugh had tackled, or "body slammed," somebody at a conference? Heck no! They'd be talking about assault. Why shouldn't this incident be classified as an assault? Sure the guy Franken tackled was being disruptive, but does that give Franken license to tackle him? Or body slam him? Yet, Franken seems proud of his actions as though "getting low and taking the legs out" of a demonstrator were something to be proud of.

In the world of Al Franken, liberal free speech is good. Silencing dissenting opinions through physical violence is also good. Dissenting opinions themselves are bad.

Kind of reminds me of how Moby thinks that hating Bush is good, while hating Cho is bad.