Paul Harvey: Time For The End Of The Story?

[wilbill]

Paul Harvey is an amazing member of the US broadcast journalism scene. Quite possibly the best known radio journalist of all time, a member of the Broadcasting Hall of Fame, his News and Comment has been carried by the Disney-owned ABC radio network(s) daily since 1951. The Rest Of The Story, a feature which goes for "the story behind the story" has spawned a syndicated TV show and a couple of books. His value to ABC and its affiliates is such that this year, at age 86, the network signed him to a 10 year, $100 million contract.

Always a conservative, "heartland of America" guy (he's originally from Tulsa, OK, began his career there and gained notoriety in Chicago), Mr. Harvey didn't appear to be an extreme conservative idealogue until perhaps the last 15 years or so. Regarding the Vietnam war, he told Richard Nixon, "Mr. President, I love you, but you are wrong." Although I haven't listened to Harvey myself in years, his popularity remains high with his programs reaching an estimated 22 million people weekly.

On June 23 Harvey presented his audience with an endorsement of nuclear war, genocide and racism that would have been right at home on a white supremacist broadcast.

Harvey's commentary began by lamenting the decline of American wartime aggression.

"We're standing there dying, daring to do nothing decisive because we've declared ourselves to be better than our terrorist enemies--more moral, more civilized," he said. Drawing a contrast with what he cast as the praiseworthy nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in World War II, Harvey lamented that "we sent men with rifles into Afghanistan and Iraq and kept our best weapons in their silos"--suggesting that America should have used its nuclear arsenal in its invasions of both countries.

Harvey concluded:

"We didn't come this far because we're made of sugar candy. Once upon a time, we elbowed our way onto and across this continent by giving smallpox-infected blankets to Native Americans. That was biological warfare. And we used every other weapon we could get our hands on to grab this land from whomever.

"And we grew prosperous. And yes, we greased the skids with the sweat of slaves. So it goes with most great nation-states, which--feeling guilty about their savage pasts--eventually civilize themselves out of business and wind up invaded and ultimately dominated by the lean, hungry up-and-coming who are not made of sugar candy."

Harvey's evident approval of slavery, genocide and nuclear and biological warfare would seem to put him at odds with Disney's family-friendly image.

In 2004, Disney forbad its Miramax subsidiary to distribute Michael Moore's film Fahrenheit 9/11, even though Miramax was the principal investor in the film. A Disney executive told the New York Times that it was declining to distribute the film because, in the paper's words, "Disney caters to families of all political stripes and believes Mr. Moore's film...could alienate many."

I have to wonder whether Disney executives are worried about alienating families who oppose slavery, nuclear war and Native American genocide.

I also wonder if the octegenarian broadcaster is quite himself mentally or if, perhaps, he's suffered a recurrence of the condition that caused him to receive a "Section 8" (mental illness) discharge from the Army Air Corps in WWII after stealing a military plane?

 

[farting bob]

Well, the thing about biological warfare doesnt sound like him approving anything, he's stating a fact (is it a fact? i dont know), and the same can be said for the slavery comment. He is not suggesting they use slaves again, or biological weapons, he's saying that they were used in the past.
The nuke comment though is clearly stating he thinks they should have used them in iraq, which is just very wrong, considering the environmental effects, high liklyhood of a nuke flying the over way into america and huge diplomatic problems.

Also, Disney wouldnt let Miramax produce fahrenheit 9/11 because it could alienate many, yet it lets a right wing pensioner ramble on about he's rather odd views of the world? I think its more to do with they like the republicans, and dont like anything bad sad against them.
Why the hell do all businesses now have to have a political motive behind all decisions?

My view is that at 86 he's had a nice long run, but shouldnt maybe think about going home and doing crosswords now.

 

[stormbind]

There are a lot of sick people in the world, and it is quite concerning to see how many ignorant people will blindly follow them.

 

[SeleucusNicator]

Well, the thing about biological warfare doesnt sound like him approving anything, he's stating a fact (is it a fact? i dont know), and the same can be said for the slavery comment. He is not suggesting they use slaves again, or biological weapons, he's saying that they were used in the past.

There were incidents in which smallpox was distributed (first by the British, then later by Americans), but they were isolated incidents and there was never a large-scale program like that across the entire frontier.

America was mostly conquered the old-fashioned way.

 

[amadeus]

Good for Harvey. About time somebody said it!

 

[nonconformist]

Good for Harvey. About time somebody said it!

And all this time we thought it would be a National Socialist.
What fools we were!

 

[h4ppy]

I agree with Harvey.

 

[eyrei]

Sounds like sarcasm to me, at least the part quoted above. A modest proposal maybe?

 

[homeyg]

Off-Topic - I'm related to Paul Harvey.

 

[nonconformist]

Sounds like sarcasm to me, at least the part quoted above. A modest proposal maybe?

I thought it sounded somewhat like sarcasm.
He might be saying
"Hey, 60 years ago we nuked thousands of people, 400 years ago we used biological warfare, so why have we any qualms with wiping out all of Iraq?"

 

[wilbill]

Sounds like sarcasm to me, at least the part quoted above. A modest proposal maybe?

I'd kind of like to think so, but I don't believe it is. Sarcasm's never been Harvey's style. As he's gotten older he's gotten more and more extreme in his commentaries. The part about using nukes isn't too unusual for him. The admiration for genocide and slavery is a new direction for him.

And farting bob, he's not just stating facts. He's bemoaning that the US no longer has the supposed toughness it took to use those methods. He's holding them up as examples of what made America great. Only by pulling them totally out of context can you see them as "stating facts."

 

[M37]

My thoughts. Let me get this straight mr. "now you know the rest of the story" has apperently made the above comments. I thought He was toast and I was listening to recordings.
My main problem with this story is all I see is quotes yet no link to any news source. - if its freeunherdof.com I somehow would doubt its validity. if this is the Paul Harvy I think it is it would be all over CNN.

 

[Bozo Erectus]

Never heard of Paul Harvey. He's just another right wing facist spewing hatred all over the nations airwaves, whats the big deal. Nothing new there.

 

[amadeus]

You've never heard of Paul Harvey?

You can hear him great on your Bose...wave radio while you're taking your ...Citrical... cit for citrus, cal for calcium ...Citrical... and now you know...the rest of the story.

 

[SeleucusNicator]

I've never heard of this guy either, so don't feel so bad.

Also, I don't see how he's spewing "hate". Assuming he's not sarcastic, he's merely critiquing the types of weapons being used in a war. He might be spewing immorality, be may be warmongering, but I don't see where he hates.

 

[IglooDame]

You haven't heard of Paul Harvey either? Did your parents not listen to the radio while you were growing up?

And I haven't heard any "rest of the stories" in the last decade or so (though growing up I heard ~50 or so in total), this sounds like vintage PH commentary about the civil-ization of empires, that do anything that needs doing to get where they are, but then stick with "conventional" means once they're on top. I don't get the sense that he's approving of biological warfare, or slavery. Of course, I could be wrong.

 

[Bozo Erectus]

Well, never having even heard of the guy, I might be doing him a disservice, but he sounds like one of the typical right wing Republican shills that pollute the radio these days. I dont know how people can listen to that stuff for any length of time. I guess they get a kick from being angry all the time.

 

[IglooDame]

Well, never having even heard of the guy, I might be doing him a disservice, but he sounds like one of the typical right wing Republican shills that pollute the radio these days. I dont know how people can listen to that stuff for any length of time. I guess they get a kick from being angry all the time.

One word that most specifically does not come to mind when I think of Paul Harvey (again, the Paul Harvey of 20 years ago) is angry. He is (was?) kind of a commentary-version of Garrison Keillor.

Unfortunately, I know more than one person whose political/social outlook on the world has been completely changed by 11SEPT2001, and I suppose Paul Harvey wouldn't be immune to the same thing.

 

[Bozo Erectus]

Igloo, count me in. For several months after 9/11 I was a rabid, foaming at the mouth genocidal lunatic. Thank god I didnt have access to the 'nuclear football' at the time. All the birds would have flown and we'd probably be in the middle of a nuclear winter right now. But Im all better now

 

[wilbill]

if its freeunherdof.com I somehow would doubt its validity.

It's from the Chicago Tribune.

if this is the Paul Harvy I think it is it would be all over CNN.

I wouldn't think of CNN first, but you'd think at least one of the major media outlets would have picked it up.