Tucker Carlson is back and it appears that his stint on Dancing With The Stars left him a bit frisky. In this interview on Fox, Tucker Carlson states that not only is the United States the only country with the moral standing to launch a preemptive strike on Iran but Iran “deserves to be annihilated.”
However, Carlson is not without moral qualms about another war . . . well not without qualms. He notes that he is worried how annihilating Iran might increase gas prices. For that reason, he opposes a war at this time. Some 76 million people to be annihilated and Tucker Carlson is worried about another buck at the pump?
I liked him more when his concerns ran from the Rumba to the Watusi.
If it is any solace, he is not alone in feeling that whole countries deserve annihilation, as reported on the same say. It is a sentiment found common in places like Iran, but of course they do not worry about gas prices like decent folk.
I hope you’re right idealist7. But you should hear what Netanyahu said about our highest Military General (Dempsey), which was echoed by a few US senators present with him in Israel the past couple of days. They are trashing the white house, and our highest officials in a foreign setting. That says a lot about the exceptional relationship we have with Israel.
Imagine that. The only country who’s allowed to mock and even humiliate our leadership in front of the world….
There is something weird that I don’t grasp hear…
I hate to keep reminding people when we don’t really know what Cheney, George and the other goon did,except the latter sold stuff to Iraq and then complained later about them using them.
But we do know thanks to McNamara’s Vietnam study of how it all began after WW2, and up to the end of Johnson’s war. Of course there have been major disclosure about Vietnam since then. But the most important point, is the purposeful disdain for the public, the Congress and the press by all administrations up to LBJ. And Nixon had no intentions of “losing”, he made it his war, and spent over 30,000 more American lives, in spite of his campaigh pledges.
So, with this in mind, how can anybody trust any administration, or any of its strategic departments or agencies, with ANYTHING.
Let’s not get fooled a NNth time again.
Thanks to lottakatz, anon nurse, and jill. I’m with your take.
keith,
I used to buy that argument, but Israel is just a convenient flag to wave and a vote-getter.
Israel is, at last resort a convenient base if the Aaaarabs crap out. when Iiiiiran muscles up
This is one idiot in a sea of fools which is the real problem. It isn’t just FOX and friends beating the drums for war. You can find the same thing on what is considered respectable M$M and on so called liberal sites. This is because the US govt. needs to “fool” or propagandize people both right and left to get on board with this war.
The govt. is already engaged in a barely covert war against Iran. But they will need to convince a lot more people of the moral, wholesome goodness of Armageddon before they go all the way! That’s what this is a part of, nothing more, nothing less.
Tucker is quite a mensch. A few years ago, he interviewed me on his MSNBC show, “Tucker.” The ‘interview’ was actually an attack. Not content to state that I was wrong, he declared that I – a theologian – am “wrong, blasphemous, and sinful.” To be sure, this is actually true, at least the latter two. But the reason for the charge of ‘blasphemy’ was that I had made a charge of evil-doing on the part of the President – this was 2006. Tucker seemed to be treating Bush as divine. In any case, his inappropriate mode of argumentation was trivial compared to his inappropriate – that is, sinful to the nth degree – suggestion that Iran should be eradicated. – David Griffin
John Stewart said it best when he asked the twit “Why do you have to be such a dick?”
if not for Israel pressing…none of this stuff would be happening.
The Iranians do not threaten America.
We pushed Saddam Hussein to attack them. They Lost one Million people, while Iraq was using chemical weapons provided by us against them. They didn’t retaliate with anything unconventional when they could have. We went in and toppled their beloved liberal leader in the fifties. We have about 50 Military bases surrounding Iran, our planes and drones and submarines are striking whom ever they wish anytime they wish. More often then not, they hit weddings and funerals in neighboring countries, and we never even say “oops”…We kill their scientists, and darken their image in the world, and threaten to strike them any minute. And anytime they try to act confident and save face by making a “defiant” statement such as “we’re not afraid of you”, we accuse them of threatening to annihilate the entire planet.
And we are a model to humanity?
Why are we so full of ourselves in the name of God? Why don’t we leave god out of it?
A good time to post this, lottakatz. It comes to mind from time to time and always makes me laugh when I see/hear it.
See video “Iran plays by its own rules,” Carlson is not placed in the best light in this brief video.
All this drum-beating and war talk looks like the run-up to Iraq to me. I thought it was ‘fool me once, can’t get fooled again” … or something like that. 🙂 Maybe not.
I can’t believe Tucker even gets on tv anymore, after watching Jon Stewart skewer him a few years ago I’ve rarely if ever seen him. The neo-cons are in full war mode with the military industrial complex’s blessing. Along with the sitting POTUS who claims to not want war yet is doing everything possible to create war with Iran. Maybe someone should refer these maniacs to Antiwar.com
I agree with Gene and the others that 3 Days of the Condor was an outstanding movie.
Tucker Carlson doesn’t even have the moral fiber to stick to his guns. He is now suggesting that he doesn’t want to attack Iran after all. What a punk.
Mespo,
I seem to recall Cross-Fire was cancelled as a result of Stewart’s appearance. Funnier still, Carlson never worn a bow tie after that.
Seamus and all,
I wish I could dig up the clip, but forgotten the connection linkwise.
It was a CIA, top grade, probably retired mandarin, who told a responsible grade woman journalist that it it works who cares who gets killed. The ends always justify OUR means.
He, I think, had been CIA chief for South American operations during Pinochet and Reagan Iran-Contra in Nicaragua.
Got a name?
“Three Days of the Condor” is one of my all time favorite movies. None of which changes Tucker Carlson is a tool.
Tucker Carlson: Still Our Dancing Monkey:
Tucker Carlson: ‘Iran Deserves to be Annihilated’
By Jeffrey Goldberg
Feb 22 2012, 3:07 PM ET 46
The conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, with whom I am on friendly terms, said the following last night:
I do think, I’m sure I’m the lone voice in saying this, that Iran deserves to be annihilated. I think they’re lunatics. I think they’re evil.
This is the sort of rhetoric that leads to war. I have no doubt this clip will be played over and over again in Tehran by a regime eager to prove that America wants to — to borrow a phrase — wipe Iran off the map. It should go without saying that Iran does not “deserve” to be annihilated. I wish, of course, that Iranian citizens will one day soon be free of the evil regime that rules their lives, and that Iran’s neighbors, Arabs, Jews, everyone, will be able to live without fear of Tehran’s aggressiveness. But language like this — careless or premeditated — is inhuman and sets back America’s interests.
UPDATE: This is Tucker’s explanation, to Glenn Greenwald, about the motivation behind his statement:
It’s my fault that I got tongue tied and didn’t explain myself well last night. I’m actually on the opposite side on the Iran question from many people I otherwise agree with. I think attacking could be a disaster for the US and am worried that Obama will do it, for fear of seeming weak before an election. Of course the Iranian government is awful and deserves to be crushed. But I’m not persuaded we or Israel could do it in a way that doesn’t cause even greater problems. That’s the main lesson of Iraq it seems to me.
Here is an e-mail I received from Tucker shortly after I posted on the subject: “I was arguing that an attack on Iran might cause a massive spike in energy prices that could tank our economy. In other words, slow down — just the opposite of what you claim I said. Watch the fucking tape.”
For the record, I watched the tape before I posted. On tape, Tucker did say he favors the “annihilation” of Iran. It is true that Tucker opposed the Iraq war, btw.
Elaine M. & anon nurse,
I watched it again a few years ago. I had forgotten the final puch line. Unfortunately the head spook makes a valid point about the “who-gives-a-shit-ness” of the American public (and that was before cable and the internets!!). I don’t think wing-nuts like Carlson Tucker truely believe we have any moral authority, just as I don’t think the last two administrations really thought Bybee and Yoo’s made-to-order legal opinions gave us the right to violate U.S. and international laws against torture. It is a little refreshing when Tucker just pulls his pants down, says screw the plausible deniability; “F*** it, what’s wrong with invading a country to take their stuff?”
SEAMUS
Not to be onetrack, but the European assassin who turned against his contractor and spared Redford is a Swedish actor, who’s done things for Ingmar Bergman, like as a medieval knight playing chess with Death.
His name: Max von Sydow.
A great movie this, for its time magnificent. Glad to be reminded of the theme. I was caught up with it as a thriller, how many got the message?
An e-mail exchange between Glenn Greenwald and Tucker Carlson yesterday. (For the entire series, check the following link.)
(http://ggdrafts.blogspot.com/2012/02/email-exchange-with-tucker-carlson.html)
This is the last of them:
Glenn Greenwald
6:58 PM
I’m really not looking to be persuaded of anything – I honestly want to know what you meant by “annihiliation.”
Seems pretty uncharacteristic for you not to defend or elaborate on your own comments.
________________
Tucker Carlson
7:23 PM
It’s my fault that I got tongue tied and didn’t explain myself well last night. I’m actually on the opposite side on the Iran question from many people I otherwise agree with. I think attacking could be a disaster for the US and am worried that Obama will do it, for fear of seeming weak before an election. Of course the Iranian government is awful and deserves to be crushed. But I’m not persuaded we or Israel could do it in a way that doesn’t cause even greater problems. That’s the main lesson of Iraq it seems to me.
That’s my sincere view, but I’d rather take some lumps and be misunderstood than seem like I’m reversing myself due to pressure from Twitter.
Is this not the same fruitfly that used to wear a bow tie, or boy tie, on some faux news show and articulate stupid thoughts on high taxes on same sex marriages or some schmuck talk. And we he really born with that name?