The issue is not the lying nazi with barbie blonde hair, nor the fact that she continues to reap millions of dollars selling hate, ignorance, and racism. Her hopes for the assassination of democratic candidates here and the mass murder of children abroad are not really new, and not particularly surprising.

What is surprising is that the mainstream, corporate media in this country continues to lavish her with attention and provide her with a readily available voice in the national dialogue. In the interest of equal time for moral degenerates, I'm eagerly awaiting the hourlong primetime chats with leaders of the KKK, NAMBLA, and Charlie Manson. I sure can't wait to hear their points of view. (Maybe Charlie could make Chris Matthews' watch stop ticking. That would be cool.)

Even if you see Ann simply as an extremist of the Right, where are her supposed counterparts on the Left? When do "extremists" like Cindy Sheehan, Ralph Nader and Dennis Kucinich get to speak their minds for an hour of primetime TV?

Maybe it's her looks. Matthews, usually the loudmouth king of talk-show interrupters, sat silently grinning and mentally undressing her there in the pleasantly sunny "hardball courtyard" as those sweet lips spewed hate and death. I don't know. Maybe he gets off on that. Maybe he gets off on female adam's apples.

But more likely this was simply a ratings stunt on the part of MSNBC, Chris, and his failing show. Hardball has dropped to last in the cable news race with less than a quarter of a million viewers, and if this episode of political theater is a desperate attempt to revive it, then it's clearly time to put it out of its misery.

Put Chris Matthews out of his misery, too, for that matter. They Imused Imus for less.

Corporate Sponsors? Hello?

Long live the Fourth Estate.

-jw