Rush’s Reign on Rudeness

Rush Limbaugh is sorry.

He’s also apologetic.

On Saturday, Limbaugh issued an apology (of sorts) for calling Sandra Fluke a “slut” and a “prostitute” after the Georgetown University Law student testified at a mock Congressional hearing about women’s health issues.

“I think it is absolutely absurd that during these very serious political times, we are discussing personal sexual recreational activities before members of Congress,” Limbaugh wrote. But, he noted, “I chose the wrong words in my analogy of the situation. I did not mean a personal attack on Ms. Fluke.”

Rush Limbaugh: Liar, Liar, pants on fire. First the name-calling, then the lying. Surely, your mama taught you better than that. You didn’t mean it as a personal attack? (insert loud groan and eye roll here) Oh. Gimme a break.

Nobody is fooled by Limbaugh’s half-hearted apology. Just a few short years ago, Limbaugh signed a $400 million contract making him the highest paid loud mouth in this nation’s history. After his crass remarks about Ms. Fluke evoked a social media backlash, Limbaugh’s sponsors began an exodus of Biblical proportions.

The only thing Limbaugh is really sorry about is that he has finally said the one thing that will likely lead to the demise of Rush’s Reign on Rudeness. He should have taken a page from the playbook of Don Imus, but then again, learning has never been Limbaugh’s strong suit. He’s always been much more inclined toward shouting matches and name-calling and bullying than he has in civil discourse.

I’ll bet Rush Limbaugh never read Toni Birdsong and Tami Heim’s book @stickyjesus: how to live out your faith online. Ms. Birdsong and Ms. Heim wrote the book to educate evangelicals on how to use social media as a tool of evangelism, but certain truths cited in the book are applicable for anyone: “Communication is the most important skill in life, but at the core of great communication, funny as it seems, is listening.”

But none of this is all that funny, actually. Those cochlear implants Limbaugh had implanted a few years back may have helped him overcome his deafness, but they did little in the way of helping him be a better listener.

Rush Limbaugh needs a time out. I hope Clear Channel sees fit to give him a nice long break from his role as this nation’s most obnoxious yammer-head.

I hope they stick him in a corner and refuse to let him say one word until he learns to be nice to others.