Ave atque vale

This week Dennis Shreefer was fired from his job as afternoon radio personality on WIMA-Lima, "a Clear Channel station." A parade of geniuses has been calling in to gloat and sneer, to tell his replacement how happy they are that Dennis has been canned. Most are insisting that it was his own fault, that Dennis did himself in by being so rude, vindictive, and judgmental.

This is nonsense, of course. Dennis was no more rude, vindictive, and judgmental than the two syndicated shock jocks that precede him: Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh. What got Dennis fired was being highly critical of George W. Bush and his gang of thieves. If he had spent the last year bashing John Kerry and the liberal establishment, Dennis could have been TWICE as hateful and still have his job.

It's no secret that right-wingers have difficulty accepting criticism, listening to any view that differs from their own even slightly. Those listeners who were perfectly content when Dennis was bashing Clinton suddenly reached for the dial when he started bashing Bush.

And Dennis's replacement? A local jock-sniffer, which gentleman has made it perfectly clear that he will be happy to be whatever his listeners want him to be in order to keep them tuned to WIMA. Expect a mini-Limbaugh, then, with a dash of Paul Harvey.

Good day!