Howard Stern's anti-wingnut screed on today's show.

[slj0101]

Color me impressed.
I know Howard is no fan of the Repubs- especially after the FCC pretty much drove him off the air, but today he laid into his inDemand director Scott DePace, who is a huge wingnut and homophobe who apparently only gets his news from Fox and Limbaugh. DePace challenged Howard by asking him where he got his political beliefs, and Howard said "from the heart," and not from any media outlet (like the "liberal" NYT). He said gays should unquestionably have the same rights as anyone else, including adoption and marriage. Only women are allowed to decide what they want to do with their bodies- abortion is no one's choice but theirs. He also said that global warming is a man-made problem, and lamented the fact that Bush has gone out of his way to roll back eco-friendly restrictions on big companies. Stern also weighed in on stem-cell research and how important it is. He then blasted Limbaugh for the "Halfrican" comment he made about Halle Berry and Barack Obama.

I know he has his share of enemies, but that's one of the most heartfelt things I've ever heard him say.
Just thought I'd pass it on.

[LibraLiz1973]

1. I like Howard

Alot. My mom's boyfriend worked with him for years and years & they still keep in touch. He says Howard is totally normal & actually quite shy in real life.

[soothsayer]

2. I heard him! I'm a big fan.

[slj0101]

3. My synopsis didn't do it justice.

He covered a lot in 10 minutes time. I know his views really turned a couple years ago, especially after getting fined out the yingyang and his subsequent firing from those Clear Channel stations.

[BuyingThyme]

4. He's been on a similar path for some time now.

As for homosexuals, I think he's done more than most people will ever realize.

[slj0101]

9. Gary Dell'Abate also does a lot of work for AIDS research.

Sadly, he had a brother who succumbed to AIDS a few years ago.

[The_Casual_Observer]

5. Stern isn't doing anything but speaking common sense.

Whenever he isn't talking about t&a he talks about the concerns of working people.

[oberliner]

6. Which is about 1/100th of the time

Or so it seems.

He is pretty disgusting when any female is his guest.

He has said some very distasteful things about women and female minors.

[The_Casual_Observer]

7. No argument, he's pretty embarrassing. However, the female guests

know it's going to happen, but they go on anyway.

[slj0101]

8. And that was his point exactly.

He said he didn't feel this way because some pundit told him so. He believes it out od personal conviction.

[confludemocrat]

10. He's come a long way since wanting to use the ashes of executed killers to fill potholes

in New York roads. His support for gay rights is unmatched by anyone in show business or politics. Mix that with wack packers and hot chicks and relentless goofing on people like Don Imus and Oprah and you've got off-the-charts entertaining and funny, unleashed as it is on Sirius.

[zbdent]

11. The right wing loved him (quietly) when he was psychotically

backing Bush in the early part of the war ... once he turned against the war (thanks to FCC's over-reaction to Janet Jackson's boob), the Repuke Reich panicked, realizing that Stern really could influence the people against Bush ...

[NewJeffCT]

13. What really turned Stern was Al Franken

He read the "Lying Liars" book while on vacation and it really opened his eyes and he went from being for the Iraq invasion & occupation to being 100% against. He was never a big Bush-backer because he's always been strongly pro-choice and against the religious fundies. However, because he was in Manhattan on 9/11, he was supportive of Bush and his invasions of Afghanistan & Iraq until he read the book...

[LTR]

14. Reminds me of a great interview he did with Franken a few years ago

Franken was making the media rounds promoting his upcoming show on the soon-to-debut Air America, and Howard admitted how much he enjoyed Franken's book. Franken asked why, since he criticized Stern in it. "But it's true," Howard replied.

Stern also said some nice things about AAR.

[zbdent]

15. I think that what really happened was that Stern had Franken on at the time

that the Jackson thing was going on ... and the Right-wing program manager was going to "debate" Franken ... and Franken just handed him his ass ... and the RWer ran crying to HIS bosses and all of a sudden ... Clear Channel started freaking out and "pulled" him off the six CC owned stations. (I remember how much of a coward the RWer was ... he was trying to define the rules to his advantage).

Stern went nutso after 9/11, and was all for destroying the Palestinians (kinda like Tancredo and the Muslims) ... Somewhat understandable, given the fact that he was one of those on the air in New York on 9/11/2001 ... and he decided to hold off on pissing off the Reichwingers in favor of taking revenge ... but, after a while, the snake he held to his bosom decided to remind him it was a snake, and bit their best PR guy to average joe ... and pissed off Stern. After you piss off a guy who has a much broader and larger audience than Rush Limbaugh, you gotta watch out ... so the RWers used Clear Channel's axe to cut his balls off ...

[RB TexLa]

12. I miss hearing a few minutes of Howard in the morning

Didn't usually listen to it the whole time in the car, but it was a nice part to have in my scan cycle. Howard, Sports, AAR, News, and a little theology (if Catholic radio was talking about theology).

[MrSlayer]

16. Stern is the best.

It took him a little while to get off the war wagon but when he did he let it fly on Chimp and has never stopped. He's always been for gay rights and women's rights.