In all the posturing done by NPR about their decision to fire Mr. Williams for voicing his personal opinions, we see politics once again entering the fray. Why else would they fire Juan and keep the other opinionated people on staff? Of course, the answer is that the other people with opinions are liberal and liberal opinions coincide with the management’s opinions.
But, knowing that everyone has a personal set of biases, isn’t it to everyone’s benefit that Mr. Williams let you know what his deep feelings are? That way, when he expresses an opinion, you can weigh the value of his opinions against what you might or might not perceive to be his biases. Every commentator should have to let us know their personal convictions BEFORE they speak, just as FOX news will introduce people with the caveat “a commentator for FOX news”.
It’s unfortunate that NPR fired Mr. Williams. We seldom agree with his opinions, but have always thought he was fair-minded in his analyses. But, maybe this incident will begin a debate about how the liberal media conceals their deep-seated biases and pretends to be objective! Maybe this incident will make the taxpayer reconsider whether tax money should support a lop-sided view of the world…a view, by the way, not held by the majority of Americans. And, since there is NO constitutional justification to fund any kind of media, maybe public financing for NPR, the National Endowment of the Arts, and other liberal causes, can be cut.
After all, the American taxpayer is suffering from a deep recession, high unemployment, and a loss of hope for the future. Maybe NPR is not a major component of the total budget deficit, but every penny saved is a penny that the taxpayer doesn’t have to pay out of his own pocket.
And, in THIS economy, we need all the pennies we can get!
