First Principles

So creepy Old Man Letterman finally issued another apology, one slightly less weak than the first.  It actually included the words “sorry” and “apologize,” unlike the first go at it.  It was still littered with explanations and excuses, but what else do you expect from a guy who’d tell a “joke” like this in the first place?

In spite of this, and in spite of the fact that Sarah Palin has accepted the apology, there are some Republicans who think it’s too little, too late, and want to relentlessly pursue Letterman off the air and beyond.

Stop it.

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We already won this round.  Letterman is cowed.  The forces of Plain Old Decency wrestled him to the ground and forced him to say “uncle”.  Ol’ Dave was exposed for the creepy misogynistic partisan hack he is.  His legacy will forever include this episode, where Americans from right to left looked at him and said, “loser.”  He’s been diminished beyond recovery.  (He’s even probably lessened in the eyes of the hard core Palin haters, who will be irritated that he “gave in.”)

Everyone knows he’s not actually sorry.  So what?  He’s never going to be.  And continuing to harp on him will only swing sympathy to him.  Far fewer people will be outraged if the target of his boorishness looks vindictive, spiteful, and obsessed.  And even if Sarah Palin isn’t, if it comes from her close supporters or spokespeople, she can easily be painted to be.

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When Americans look around the political landscape, they look for strength and leadership.  If you don’t respond to this kind of thing, like George W. Bush ignored the ridiculous smears and slander against him for his entire presidency, you look week.  Worse than that, the smears start to sink in because people expect strong people to stick up for themselves from time to time, and an absence of that hints that the smears just might be true.

But if you overrespond, then you stop looking strong, and start looking thin skinned.  People start wondering if you’re protesting just a little too much.  There’s a thin, thin line between legitimate complaints and whining.  George Bush needed to do more to defend himself and his policies, but can you imagine how absurd he would have looked if he tried to post rebuttals in the comments section of every Daily Kos post?

Up until now, that line has been toed.  But we’re very rapidly running out of line to toe.

So stop.  Right now.  Before someone falls off a cliff and drags the whole conservative movement with them.

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The bottom line is that Letterman’s stupid “joke” provided us with an opportunity to expose the left for what it is, which happens every time a lefty makes the mistake of being too honest about how they actually feel about these things.  Light will eventually beat heat every time.  That’s been done.  There’s no more profit in protesting his studios, or demanding he be fired, or milking a victim card, or risking coming down to the level of a has-been late night talk show host.

So let’s let this one lie for now.  There are many more battles ahead, with more valuable ground to gain, and far less to lose.