Rush Limbaugh died at the age of 70 today on February 17th, 2021. For those not familiar with him or those reading this at a later date where he’s not very well known, he was a radio commentator who discussed politics from a nominally conservative position. His main appeal, at least to me and the people who liked him, was that he was an interesting communicator, had a good voice, and also had a very enjoyable although understated sense of humor. I’m sure there were people who hung on his every word for political analysis, but my main enjoyment of his work was that he would talk about things going on in an enjoyable manner.
I haven’t
listened to him regularly ever since I graduated from Hollywood, a little less
than a decade ago at this point, because he was mainly something to listen to
while driving with your parents or on a commute. He was essentially the best mainstream
right wing radio entertainment option for the lower middle class and middle
class white people across America with nominally conservative views. I say
nominally conservative, because at this point it is quite clear that very
little conservatives have ever done or stood for have conserved anything in
America. His fairly lukewarm and non-extreme views of reality are not really
worth demonizing or praising him for, but as he kind of existed and established
himself prior to the internet and more extreme or pure versions of right wing
thought were able to flourish, Limbaugh got quite a reputation as a sort of
extremist or horrible person in the mainstream. As such, which should not
surprise anybody who has seen the lack of bipartisan empathy that exists in
humanity, Limbaugh’s death has resulted in jeering and mean-spirited jokes by
those on the left. This is not really upsetting to me, as I’m not particularly
upset he is dead even though I did not wish death on him, but this
mean-spiritedness should be mentioned as a matter of record.
This essay
is not really meant as a biographical or reminiscent piece, although Limbaugh
was culturally relevant and successful enough that he does merit remembrance in
some form. The focus of this essay relates more to thinking about what Rush
accomplished, what he did not accomplish, and what his death is a sign of,
which is the ending of a comfortable lie that most white people and
conservatives as well as liberals have had the blessing and curse to live ever
since the end of World War 2.
What did
Limbaugh accomplish? Objectively speaking, he did not accomplish all that much on
the macro scale. On an individual level however, Limbaugh made a name for
himself and did his job extremely well for a impressively long time. He
certainly lucked into having a voice extremely suited for radio, but a voice is
not all it takes to maintain popularity and relevance for decades. Limbaugh had
a work ethic and grounded sense of self which were admirable. This was evident
not only in his staying power, but also his ability to take and make jokes as
previously mentioned. In terms of longevity, the only two people who matched
him were Larry King and Howard Stern, and both of those people were largely “on
the side” of the dominant forces of humanity at large. Limbaugh managed to
preserve his career and legacy in a manner that cannot be lucked into. He had a
few scandals and mishaps, but for the most part Limbaugh displayed extreme
competency and consistency that are worth trying to emulate. As a result,
Limbaugh became insanely wealthy and successful. Now he’s dead, so that doesn’t
really matter, but it is worth noting.
What didn’t
Limbaugh accomplish? He didn’t change anything. Limbaugh didn’t really help
anything. He served as a pressure release valve. He was a sort of anesthetic
for the lower middle class and middle class that were and continue to be squeezed.
It was enjoyable to turn on the radio and listen to somebody who seemed like
the voice of sanity, but what did this really do besides provide some sort of
temporary relief from the mainstream media and the government and the financial
institutions exploiting and abusing people who listened to Rush? There was no
real action that came from Limbaugh, there was no fundamental change that came
from Limbaugh, the people who loved Rush and the people who hated Rush were
essentially wasting their time paying attention to Rush. Limbaugh was not the
devil, but he was also not an angel, he was an entertainer who did not change
the course of the country in any meaningful manner.
What does
Rush Limbaugh’s death mean for anything? It is the end of an era of sorts.
There is really nobody who can replace Rush Limbaugh, and what’s more the
context in which people are growing up is not really amenable to the content
that Rush Limbaugh made. All the things that used to be funny jokes are now
realities. There are very few people who believe that anything can be solved
through discussion, even fewer that believe that America is headed in some
positive direction and simply needs a little commentary and nudges here or
there to stay on the right course, and both of those groups of people are shrinking
as every year passes. Monoculture of any sort has been shattered by the
internet its democratized distribution mechanisms, and radio, television, and
movies are dying industries. With Rush Limbaugh’s death the last illusions that
we are headed anywhere comfortable or familiar are also dying. Soon, it won’t
just be Rush who is dead. Soon, all the well-known TV and radio hosts who made
their careers in a much nicer, much cleaner, much more prosperous first world
will be dead. Nominally left and nominally right alike, the well-meaning but
deluded milquetoast media figures and spokespeople will soon be dying.
We are in a
transitionary period of humanity, where the psychic is gaining dominance over
the physical, but we are now entering another, more familiar and predictable
transition, a generational transition. The institutions and industries which
have been clogged up and are currently run by greedy geriatrics that refuse to
step down will soon see a lot of their “leadership” dying off or becoming
disabled to the point of being forced out of their positions. Positions will be
vacated, not in the honorable way like a torch being passed down as was done in
prior generations -- that opportunity for honorable transition of power has
been completely rejected by the rotting walking corpses currently in power – but
rather in a chaotic and unstable manner. Millennials and Gen X and Gen Z people
have not been mentored or taught how behave properly, they have watched as
those who came before them abused their birthrights, and they are
understandably upset and desperate. Although their negative feelings are
justified -- they have been abused and mistreated by those who had a
responsibility to look after and help them -- the people who will soon be
getting power and influence through attrition also don’t know how to make
things run or how to be judicious.
We are
looking at a derailed train which hasn’t derailed yet. Rush has died, and along
with him the convenient, comforting lies that white and middle class boomers
have told themselves and their kids and grandkids are also dying. The old guard
is disappearing, and the old guard neglected their responsibilities, they
squandered their opportunities, and they spent the wealth that should have
invested and handed down to what will soon be the new guard. The new guard is
going to be abusive, malevolent, and malicious, and why shouldn’t they be? They
were raised with lies and abuses which robbed them of any healthy or happy
future. Race relations and income inequality have only gotten worse. There is
no happy humanistic future that anybody who is paying attention believes in.
The only people who believe in turning the other cheek are old people, the only
people who never had to turn their other cheek. With Rush dies old America and the
1950s era white picket fence advertisements used to sell grills.
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