Myths that need need debunking

For starters, Hollywood is not a hotbed of wealthy liberals. But still, look Rudy's new movie-star friends! Robert Duvall? Gary Sinise?

Here’s the dirty little secret — Hollywood isn’t really liberal. As a community it has strong and large conservative strains, particularly at the top of the business side where all the strings get pulled (see: Murdoch, Rupert).

Not to mention Ben Stein, Dennis Miller, Bruce Willis (who these days denies he's a Republican), and Bo Derek.

The reason Hollywood conservatives like to bitch about being persecuted is because victimology is part of the whole right-wing shtick, not because Joel Surnow actually suffers for his political beliefs. I mean, does anyone think that The 1/2 Hour News Hour was anything other than a wingnut welfare operation?

I've wondered if Michael Medved was another wingnut welfare recipient myself.

Speaking of wingnuts, what'll they say about this?

Truthdig tips its hat this week to South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who took the Anglican Church to task for what he called its “homophobic” attitude, declaring in a recent interview with BBC Radio 4 that, “If God, as they say, is homophobic, I wouldn’t worship that God.”

Archbishop Tutu zeroed in on church leadership in his critique, lamenting that the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, has not promoted the idea of a “welcoming God” to all members. Instead, Tutu charged, Williams and other top officials have unduly focused on the subject of gay priests, which cropped up again in the controversy over the openly gay bishop of New Hampshire, Gene Robinson, when much bigger considerations should be given priority. “Our world is facing problems—poverty, HIV and AIDS—a devastating pandemic, and conflict,” the 76-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner told the BBC. “In the face of all of that, our church, especially the Anglican Church, at this time is almost obsessed with questions of human sexuality.”

Maybe Rudy Giuliani will bring this up with his new friend Pat Robertson. Speaking of Rudy, it looks like the myth of "America's Mayor" is about to go the way of those Bigfoot rumors.

Meanwhile, Dave Neiwert reminds us of the holes in Ron Paul's "libertarian" philosophy. Like his opposition to reproductive rights. And his cozying to far-right racist wackos. And other assorted scary stuff. Go read it. It's educational. (This is not to say that Ron Paul doesn't have possible usefulness as a sort of a reverse Nader.)