MSNBC conservative team continues to smear the left

On Chris Matthews Hardball show last night he had on a new segment called MSNBC "hotshots" with Tucker Carlson, Joe Scarborough, and Rita Cosby to discuss this past weeks headlines. I'm sure i'm not the only one who sees how unfair it is to have on three conservative commentators (Rita Cosby did work for Fox News) along with Chris Matthews giving their opinions on political issues. I'd understand if this was a Fox News show but this is Hardball, the premise of the show is to go after both sides. Well the first topic they covered was the Hillary Clinton "plantation" remark and big surprise, they all had something negative to say about Hillary Clinton. They eventually got to the release of the latest Bin Laden audio tape and his statements. Here is an excerpt of what Matthews and Scarborough had to say about it:

MATTHEWS: Why is [bin Laden] doing it? Why is he trying to track what he picks up in the internet and from the media as the lingo of the left in America, like Moore? Why would he start to talk like Moore? People misunderstood what I said last night. I think he’s getting some advice from people, he’s getting some lingo, some wordage that he hears working in the United States about this thing for war profiteers and he’s jumping on every opportunity. Is that what you are saying Joe?

SCARBOROUGH: Listen, if somebody can’t look at the words that Bin Laden said last night and match them up with what Michael Moore said, with what John Kerry said on Face the Nation when he said Americans were terrorizing Iraqi women and children in their homes at night, which is what Bin Laden in effect said. What Ted Kennedy has been saying. Remember he said after Abu Ghraib that Saddam’s torture came bers were turned over to — chambers were turned over to new management, U.S. troops, that’s the same thing Bin Laden hit on.

Those statements are just plain wrong on so many levels. First i'll start by saying that Michael Moore wasn't responsible for the deaths of over 3000 people nor does he abdicate the killing of innocent people and neither do Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, or any of the Democrats. Osama Bin Laden is a terrorist. Comparing anyone who has been opposed to the war in Iraq to Bin Laden is simply outrageous. No matter how many times Chris Matthews tries to clarify what he said doesn't change the fact that he's linking the opposition party here in America with support for Bin Laden. This is the same sort of thing President Bush did in the lead up to the Iraq war when he kept mentioning 911 in the same sentence he mentioned Saddam Hussein. That gave many of the american people the false impression that Saddam was involved in 911. Chris Matthews and Joe Scarboroughs comments will give many americans the impression that the Democrats support Bin Laden. Karl Rove himself would be proud.

I have other problems with their statements, especially Joe Scarboroughs where he talks about John Kerry saying our troops were terrorizing Iraqis. John Kerry was saying that when our troops go smashing into iraqis homes in the middle of the night looking for insurgents that it frightens the women and children, that is a true statement. Scarborough would like everyone to believe that he called our troops terrorists. John Kerry was making the point about how many of our troops don't understand the Arab culture and how they treat Iraqis in their own homes could lead to the creation of more terrorists. Despite the hyperbole involved, Ted Kennedy's statement was also factual. Our troops were mistreating and yes torturing innocent Iraqis at Abu Ghraib.

People need to be aware of false comparisons. It's very easy to generalize when making comparisons. For instance, I hear that Saddam Hussein really likes Doritos. I like Doritos as well but that doesn't make me an evil murderous dictator. Do you see now how ridiculous it is to compare Osama Bin Laden to Michael Moore? MSNBC needs to issue a statement condemning the statements of Chris Matthews and Joe Scarborough and they need to appologize.