Hoist on His Own Petard Hubris
2
Michael Smerconish, who from time to time displays a level of common sense that belies his label as a “conservative commentator,” explains how Bill Cosby shot himself in the foot through his own hectoring moralizing. Here’s a snippet.
“This case, however, is not about defendant’s status as a public person by virtue of the exercise of his trade as a televised or comedic personality,” wrote the judge in his 25-page opinion. “Rather, defendant has donned the mantle of public moralist and mounted the proverbial electronic or print soap box to volunteer his views on, among other things, child-rearing, family life, education, and crime.”
Citing precedent, Robreno concluded that Cosby had “thrust himself into the vortex of these public issues” and had “voluntarily narrowed the zone of privacy that he is entitled to claim.”
July 13, 2015 at 6:47 am
Smerconish has misses as well as hits like this, but the guy actually thinks and is not afraid to change his mind.
July 13, 2015 at 8:35 am
Those qualities separate Smerconish from automatons such as Cal Thomas and Krauthammer.
I don’t bother to read them any more, as their caterwaulings are as predictable as a evening sunset. I read the headline and know the content of the column.
Smerconish has an ideology, but he’s not an ideologue. And, given the nature of discourse on the right, he’s got some degree of integrity go against the Roger Ailes talking point of the day.