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JONATHAN
HOFFMAN |
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Read more by Jonathan
Previous columns: Intergenerational Corporate Welfare
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Coulter Kerfuffle I am of the age of those who reminisce about original Star Trek episodes. I love the series, though it was imperfect. For example, when space ships met in three-dimensional space, they always seemed to be on the same plane, and the Enterprise could always fire at other ships – even with her “shields up.” These same sorts of shields appear to be in the possession of some Iraq war critics. Representative John Murtha, for example, rose from obscurity to become a household name by continuing to advocate a “cut and run” strategy in Iraq. His shield is his military service in Vietnam of some thirty-odd years ago – service that all agree was carried out with honor and valor. No one can ever question anything Representative Murtha says, because that questioning will be recast as an attack on his military service. I don’t know how that works, but it does. The Jersey Girls have a similar device. Theirs is not military service; rather, it is great personal tragedy – their husbands died in the 9/11 attacks. As creepy as it may sound, those tragic events bestowed an almost Papal infallibility on them regarding virtually everything, including international intelligence and port security - and of course, no one can ever, ever, ever say anything critical of them without being branded cruel and insensitive. I don’t know how that works either, but there it is. Enter Ann Coulter. For those of you unfamiliar with Ms. Coulter, she’s the outspoken Republican who will gladly flash her cruel and insensitive brand to anyone who will look. She is a Republican with cojones (a rare animal indeed), which makes her suitable for vilification by the Democrats and their accomplices. She is the author of four New York Times best sellers, and can be spotted on television. She’s the spindly one with the long blonde hair. You can even buy an Ann Coulter action figure – I’m not making that up! In her new book, Godless: The Church of Liberalism, she fired a short salvo at the Jersey Girls. In her own insensitive way, she spoke the unspeakable: Why is the grief of these women deeper than those who did not turn it into a career? Why are the other widows not doing what they are doing? If they grieve so, why enter the political arena? What do we really know about these women anyway? Coulter caught flak from every direction – left, right, center, upside down and sideways. Fortunately for her, she has her own shields - the confidence and defiance of a straight shooter (note to Senator McCain: if you ever endeavor to pose as a “straight shooter” again, use her as a model). There is no doubt that Coulter is guilty of insensitivity regarding the Jersey Girls; but in the end, she only pointed out what is obvious to the most casual of observers, in order to make a larger point in her book. Is Ann Coulter despicable? Perhaps. However, if Ann Coulter is despicable by virtue of insensitivity, what can one say of the women who achieve celebrity by exploiting the tragic, untimely death of their own husbands?
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