Remember the flap over Don Imus when he made a crude comment about the Rutgers University women’s basketball team? You would have thought he had insulted the highest dignitary in the world. Of course, his remarks were totally out of line and never should have been made – on that we all agree. But at the time I thought the flap was totally disproportionate to the actual event. It was hard not to miss the uproar; the discussion of his inappropriate comments went worldwide. It took Imus a long time to recover and he’s still offensive, but he hasn’t got a thing on HBO’s Bill Maher.
Imus got worldwide exposure and a pink slip; Maher has gotten a free ride – at least so far.
I am flabbergasted that the media is nearly silent when it comes to one of their own hurling hateful comments at Pope Benedict XVI just days before his arrival on American soil. One of Maher’s remarks, the only one I would even quote, was this: "If you have a few hundred followers and you let some of them molest children, they call you a cult leader. If you have a billion, they call you pope."
How dare he! But then again, the media has, for the most part, ignored Maher, perhaps because they too regard the Holy Father with something akin to pure, unadulterated hatred.
The point has to be made that some have made comments in defense of the Holy Father, though they may as well have been in a closet somewhere in Africa, because the media simply weren't paying attention – that is except for Bill O’Reilly’s brilliant assessment.
As O’Reilly pointed out, "can you imagine if Maher had castigated a Jewish or Muslim leader like that? Or if he had branded a minority group with that kind of description? The American media would slaughter him."
Robert Knight of the Culture and Media Institute said, "Anti-religious zealots in the media have a field day every time a pope visits the United States. They showcase self-described Catholic dissidents who would perform an Oprahfication on the church or they give time to vile, hateful celebrities like Bill Maher, who delight in offending millions."
Kristen Fyfe wrote in her excellent Townhall column entitled "Bill Maher Slanders Pope Benedict XVI":
Maher’s anti-Catholic, anti-religion rhetoric is part of his schtick as a comedian. It has also been given a very public platform, first by ABC and now by Time Warner and HBO. Offensive material like this is also the cornerstone upon which Maher will build the publicity machine for his upcoming "anti-religion documentary" Religulous, due to be released in theaters in July.
His agenda in all of this is clear: to tear down religious belief and believers. In so doing he attacks a clear majority of Americans and a foundation of American society. When confronted by the Catholic League on why it continues to give Maher air time, HBO stated that Maher’s anti-Catholic remarks were a matter of "creative freedom." One wonders if HBO would be so sanguine if Maher’s vitriol was regularly aimed at Muslims.
For those who were not aware that Maher has made a series of attacks on the Catholic Church over the past several years, you will find Fyfe’s documentation of those verbal assaults more than interesting. Anti-Catholicism is nothing new for Maher.
This history of Maher getting away with these attacks shows clearly that those who have found fault with Maher’s total disrespect and salacious attitude are not going to be heard to the extent that folks like you and I would like. This is why American Life League has decided to lead the fight to have Mr. Maher fired!
We will be running full page ads; we will be distributing petitions asking Americans of all faiths to demand the dismissal of the religious bigot, Mr. Bill Maher and we are asking everyone to unsubscribe to HBO and let Time Warner know the reason why. We will not have an impact on media giant Time Warner until it feels the heat in its wallet! So please, take the following actions:
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Cancel your subscription to HBO and tell them why
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Write or call Time Warner, demanding that Maher be fired:
Warner Inc.
One Time Warner Center
New York, NY 10019
Phone 212.484.8000
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Go to the Media Research Center action site and e-mail Time Warner: http://www.mrcaction.org/511/email_form.asp?CID=506&RID=9601289
American Life League will not stop encouraging people to take action until the hierarchy at Time Warner is uncomfortable enough to cancel Maher’s reign of disrespect for Christ and His vicar on earth is over.