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The Wisdom of Ann Coulter (Controversial!)
The Washington Monthly ^ | October 2001 | The Washington Monthly

Posted on 10/09/2001 12:27:10 PM PDT by lady reaper

After the September 11 attack masterminded by a terrorist hoping to spark a religious war, virtually every official and pundit knew better than to take the bait. Except for conservative commentator Ann Coulter, who wrote in a syndicated column on September 12 that in responding to terrorists "we should invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity."

The column outraged the public, but conservatives, including National Review editor Richard Lowry, ascribed Coulter's column to grief over the loss of a friend in the attacks. But the following week, Coulter was at it again: "Congress could pass a law tomorrow requiring that all aliens from Arabic countries leave....We should require passports to fly domestically. Passports can be forged, but they can also be checked with the home country in case of any suspicious-looking swarthy males." This time Lowry spiked her column. Coulter responded by calling Lowry and his staff censorious "girly boys." Lowry then dropped her as a contributing editor. Other conservative leaders also condemned her comments.

What's curious is that Coulter's comments aren't all that different, in tone and style, from hundreds of others she's made over the years. But in the past, her ire was directed at her domestic political enemies---for which she drew fulsome praise from conservatives. Last year, the Media Research Center presented Coulter with its "Conservative Journalist of the Year" award. The Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute bestowed upon her its annual conservative leadership award "for her unfailing dedication to truth, freedom and conservative values and for being an exemplar, in word and deed, of what a true leader is."

Coulter is spinning her downfall as a new kind of terrorist-war McCarthyism. "People are hysterical about speech right now," she told The Washington Post's Howard Kurtz. "Everyone's comments are being taken out of context and wildly misinterpreted." At the risk of further de-contextualization, here are some of Coulter's past comments:

"[Clinton] masturbates in the sinks."---Rivera Live 8/2/99

"God gave us the earth. We have dominion over the plants, the animals, the trees. God said, 'Earth is yours. Take it. Rape it. It's yours.'"---Hannity & Colmes, 6/20/01

The "backbone of the Democratic Party" is a "typical fat, implacable welfare recipient"---syndicated column 10/29/99

To a disabled Vietnam vet: "People like you caused us to lose that war."---MSNBC

"Women like Pamela Harriman and Patricia Duff are basically Anna Nicole Smith from the waist down. Let's just call it for what it is. They're whores."---Salon.com 11/16/00

Juan Gonzales is "Cuba's answer to Joey Buttafuoco," a "miscreant," "sperm-donor," and a "poor man's Hugh Hefner."---Rivera Live 5/1/00

On Princess Diana's death: "Her children knew she's sleeping with all these men. That just seems to me, it's the definition of 'not a good mother.' ... Is everyone just saying here that it's okay to ostentatiously have premarital sex in front of your children?"..."[Diana is] an ordinary and pathetic and confessional - I've never had bulimia! I've never had an affair! I've never had a divorce! So I don't think she's better than I am."---MSNBC 9/12/97

"I think there should be a literacy test and a poll tax for people to vote."---Hannity & Colmes, 8/17/99

"I think [women] should be armed but should not [be allowed to] vote."---Politically Incorrect, 2/26/01

"If you don't hate Clinton and the people who labored to keep him in office, you don't love your country."---George, 7/99

"We're now at the point that it's beyond whether or not this guy is a horny hick. I really think it's a question of his mental stability. He really could be a lunatic. I think it is a rational question for Americans to ask whether their president is insane."---Equal Time

"It's enough [to be impeached] for the president to be a pervert."---The Case Against Bill Clinton, Coulter's 1998 book.

"Clinton is in love with the erect penis."---This Evening with Judith Regan, Fox News Channel 2/6/00

"I think we had enough laws about the turn-of-the-century. We don't need any more." Asked how far back would she go to repeal laws, she replied, "Well, before the New Deal...[The Emancipation Proclamation] would be a good start."---Politically Incorrect 5/7/97

"If they have the one innocent person who has ever to be put to death this century out of over 7,000, you probably will get a good movie deal out of it."---MSNBC 7/27/97

"If those kids had been carrying guns they would have gunned down this one [child] gunman. ... Don't pray. Learn to use guns."---Politically Incorrect, 12/18/97

"The presumption of innocence only means you don't go right to jail."---Hannity & Colmes 8/24/01

"I have to say I'm all for public flogging. One type of criminal that a public humiliation might work particularly well with are the juvenile delinquents, a lot of whom consider it a badge of honor to be sent to juvenile detention. And it might not be such a cool thing in the 'hood to be flogged publicly."---MSNBC 3/22/97

"Originally, I was the only female with long blonde hair. Now, they all have long blonde hair."---CapitolHillBlue.com 6/6/00

"I am emboldened by my looks to say things Republican men wouldn't."---TV Guide 8/97

"Let's say I go out every night, I meet a guy and have sex with him. Good for me. I'm not married."---Rivera Live 6/7/00

"Anorexics never have boyfriends. ... That's one way to know you don't have anorexia, if you have a boyfriend."---Politically Incorrect 7/21/97

"I think [Whitewater]'s going to prevent the First Lady from running for Senate."---Rivera Live 3/12/99

"My track record is pretty good on predictions."---Rivera Live 12/8/98

"The thing I like about Bush is I think he hates liberals."---Washington Post 8/1/00

On Rep. Christopher Shays (d-CT) in deciding whether to run against him as a Libertarian candidate: "I really want to hurt him. I want him to feel pain."---Hartford Courant 6/25/99

"The swing voters---I like to refer to them as the idiot voters because they don't have set philosophical principles. You're either a liberal or you're a conservative if you have an IQ above a toaster. "---Beyond the News, Fox News Channel, 6/4/00

"My libertarian friends are probably getting a little upset now but I think that's because they never appreciate the benefits of local fascism."---MSNBC 2/8/97

"You want to be careful not to become just a blowhard."---Washington Post 10/16/98


TOPICS: Editorial; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
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1 posted on 10/09/2001 12:27:10 PM PDT by lady reaper
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To: lady reaper
I think I love her even more reading all these quotes together in one place!
2 posted on 10/09/2001 12:38:39 PM PDT by marktuoni
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To: lady reaper
NOT breaking news.
3 posted on 10/09/2001 12:38:48 PM PDT by Henry F. Bowman
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To: lady reaper
This probably doesn't belong in Breaking News.

Anyhow, ROFL! There are some pretty hilarious quotes in there.

Of course, it's only fair to point out that most of them are said in the context of television programs where outrageous comments were the order of the day.

I think it is the case, though, that Miss Coulter did not grasp the fact that the use of such inflammatory comments does not translate well to the printed page.

4 posted on 10/09/2001 12:39:06 PM PDT by B Knotts
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To: lady reaper
"Let's say I go out every night, I meet a guy and have sex with him. Good for me. I'm not married."---Rivera Live 6/7/00

I'd say it would be good for more than just Ann.

5 posted on 10/09/2001 12:39:13 PM PDT by Orion
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To: lady reaper
This was from last week.

OCTOBER 5TH BREAKING NEWS

6 posted on 10/09/2001 12:40:14 PM PDT by TLBSHOW
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To: lady reaper
Gee, I never realized before how much Ann and I have in common....
7 posted on 10/09/2001 12:41:02 PM PDT by sailor4321
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To: lady reaper
I think a lot of her remarks were made with tongue in cheek, and they are certainly no worse than anything Carville ever said. I have long felt that conservatives needed a voice bold enough to make the quotable types of remarks that Carville has made.
8 posted on 10/09/2001 12:41:12 PM PDT by Sans-Culotte
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To: lady reaper
The wisdom of Ann Coulter is summarized thusly:

Which is to say, much of her wisdom appears to reside somewhere below the male belt-line.

9 posted on 10/09/2001 12:41:28 PM PDT by r9etb
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To: lady reaper
"I think there should be a literacy test and a poll tax for people to vote."---Hannity & Colmes, 8/17/99

Very sound thinking. It is the creeps, louts, and freaks that vote in people like Gephart, McDermott, Clinton, et al.

If this were the case, the senate would be 80%GOP, as would the House.

10 posted on 10/09/2001 12:41:56 PM PDT by Orion
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To: lady reaper
There's a lot of inflammatory rhetoric here, but this was right on target:

"The swing voters---I like to refer to them as the idiot voters because they don't have set philosophical principles. You're either a liberal or you're a conservative if you have an IQ above a toaster. -- Ann Coulter"

IOTTMCO!!!! (intuitively obvious to the most casual observer)

11 posted on 10/09/2001 12:44:20 PM PDT by Rytwyng
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To: lady reaper
There's a lot of inflammatory rhetoric here, but this was right on target:

"The swing voters---I like to refer to them as the idiot voters because they don't have set philosophical principles. You're either a liberal or you're a conservative if you have an IQ above a toaster. -- Ann Coulter"

IOTTMCO!!!! (intuitively obvious to the most casual observer)

12 posted on 10/09/2001 12:44:29 PM PDT by Rytwyng
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To: lady reaper
Okay, I'll bite. How the heck did this get compiled? I mean, who is keeping track of all her statements, so that they can be listed like this? I wanna know.

Seriously.

13 posted on 10/09/2001 12:44:35 PM PDT by Aggressive Calvinist
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To: lady reaper
So what's controversial about this? Everything she said (in the proper context) is dead on.
14 posted on 10/09/2001 12:45:51 PM PDT by SirAllen
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To: lady reaper
We ought to thank these guys for assembling some of Ann's greatest hits in one place for us. I'm book-marking this post.

That's the thing about liberalism. Conservatives aren't allowed to have a sense of humor. Conservatives are not allowed to say anything that can be construed as making fun of them, but they can launch on us all day long.

15 posted on 10/09/2001 12:46:11 PM PDT by 4Freedom
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To: lady reaper
And your point is...??????

Pray for GW and the Troops!

God Bless America!

16 posted on 10/09/2001 12:47:16 PM PDT by bray
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To: lady reaper
"I have to say I'm all for public flogging. One type of criminal that a public humiliation might work particularly well with are the juvenile delinquents, a lot of whom consider it a badge of honor to be sent to juvenile detention. And it might not be such a cool thing in the 'hood to be flogged publicly."---MSNBC 3/22/97

Bullseye!

If you showed the gangers crying at the hand of some kung-fu expert weilding a rattan cane at their hairy ass, they would never be taken seriously agian. I say do this in a public square and broadcast it on PBS.

17 posted on 10/09/2001 12:47:23 PM PDT by Orion
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To: lady reaper
The author of this article is a shameless, spineless jackass who insults the reader's intelligence.

What is telling is the author's deceit in purposely selecting out-of-context snippets of Miss Coulter's comments - which taken in context are not at all controverisal. Even the reference about sleeping with men - clearly she is giving a "for instance" and is not talking about her own dating habits. Without the context one would think Miss Coulter sleeps around. And the same goes for every other snippet listed.

18 posted on 10/09/2001 12:48:20 PM PDT by Notwithstanding
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To: lady reaper
I love this gal's thinking processes. Can't say that I disagree with a thing she says. I did, however, drop my 30-year old subscription to the (formerly conservative) National Review.
19 posted on 10/09/2001 12:50:56 PM PDT by nightdriver
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To: bray
When Ann stated that all visa visitors from Muslim countries or anywhere in the Middle East, Iran or Adghanistan should be deported immediately, I knew she was ahead of the curve, as usual! As the terrorist acts increase we will all see her comments are/were prescient.
20 posted on 10/09/2001 12:51:25 PM PDT by MHGinTN
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