The War Room

IN DEFENSE OF ANN COULTER

Not that she needs me to defend her. I am amazed at how many conservatives are now distancing themselves from Ann Coulter. To hear many conservatives talk about her, she is the sole thing holding them back; the one person who does not give them credibility; the woman who they most likely should not emulate and show disgust towards to gain credibility with progressive friends.

One sad-sack ‘conservative’ blogger apparently even had any banners advertising Coulter’s new book removed from his blog. Great! You know that’s the type of character that has really dug his heels into the trenches for a long fight.

I am an Ann Coulter fan and have been since I began seeing her as a regular guest of Bill Maher’s on his show Politically Incorrect during the mid-nineties. Does Miss Coulter say things that are shocking, irreverent and politically incorrect? Of course. That’s why you have heard of her.

What is most important about Ann Coulter is that unlike most conservatives, she understands ‘culture’ as opposed to just politics. She understands that she is going up against the assumptions of the counter-culture of the 60’s and as such must turn the table and the assumptions made. She is a satirist and quite frankly makes me laugh harder than virtually any other male comedian in Hollywood these days.

And I think this is what really makes people uncomfortable. For four decades we have been used to the ‘cutting edge’ satirists being usually white, male, left-wing comedians who make fun of the usual topics; Christians, government, military, conservatives, tradition, corporations, oil, Catholics etc.

Now Ann Coulter comes along, an attractive, blonde haired conservative woman in a slinky black dress, and turns those assumptions on their ear. Her topics are all leftist sacred cow that you are not supposed to find humour in; abortion advocates, the gay lobby, secularists, liberals, teachers, environmentalists, Hollywood and feminists. She shocks and offends.

As conservatives, we are used to rolling our eyes in acceptance when a left-wing comedian such as Robin Williams says all conservatives are murderers or something to that effect. We shrug out shoulders when Jon Stewart takes a crack at Christians from Hicksville and dutifully chuckle when Tom Hanks appears on SNL mocking Catholics. We uncomfortably nod and agree when Chris Rock says all white people are racist. We do not like it…but hey, we’re used to it.

What we have not been taught is how to use humour as a weapon such as the left has and see the humour from our POV. There is much humour to be found in seeing the world from a conservative POV and Coulter has found it. She can spew wit like the best of them.

She is not a ‘hate monger’ any more than Lenny Bruce or Richard Pryor were ‘sinful’ or ‘immoral’ during their time emerging from the conservatism of 1950’s culture. The words have changed but the attacks are the same.

And know this, culturally Ann is having an effect.

One Coulter appearance is worth 10,000 blogs.

One Coulter book worth 500 rallies. That is how culture works.

She is not holding conservatives back; quite the opposite. She can take credit for many of the advances conservatism has made in the past 10 years.

She has made conservatism mainstream, sexy and young. That was ever more apparent when she appeared with George Carlin on the Tonight Show this week, where Carlin, the verbal counter-culture spokesman of his generation clearly was the ‘old-fashioned’ aged veteran unable to shock or offend anyone.

Now I like and respect George Carlin but clearly the mantle-piece has been handed over. Coulter was introduced as ‘controversial’ and Carlin was the first guest plugging a kids animated film.

Unlike many conservatives she does not back-down. She does not try to impress progressive friends. She wears the name calling like a badge of honour.

Good for her. Some conservatives say they wish she would go away. I’m in the camp of those that welcome her sass, wit and dart like precision. Y’see, unlike those conservatives that wish she were gone…I want to win this thing.

If we want to get rid of conservatism’s dead weight, let’s start with that ass Garth Turner.

There. The boat is lighter all ready.

posted by Nicol DuMoulin @ 8:20 AM