“Mr. Ailes exerted wide influence on American politics...”
May 18, 2017 9:50 AM Subscribe
Roger Ailes, Who Built Fox News Into an Empire, Dies at 77 [The New York Times] “Roger E. Ailes, who shaped the images that helped elect three Republican presidents and then became a dominant, often-intimidating force in American conservative politics at the helm of Fox News, which he created with Rupert Murdoch’s money and guided for two decades until he was forced out in a sexual predation scandal, died on Thursday morning. He was 77. No cause of death or other details were given in an announcement by Mr. Ailes’s wife, Elizabeth. Mr. Ailes was a hemophiliac long plagued by obesity and arthritis.”
posted by slater at 9:51 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
That's a thing that happened.
posted by drezdn at 9:53 AM on May 18, 2017 [26 favorites]
posted by drezdn at 9:53 AM on May 18, 2017 [26 favorites]
posted by Fizz at 9:53 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
My hope is that he really was a mastermind, and that there's no one of his skill level to take up his mantle.
posted by drezdn at 9:53 AM on May 18, 2017 [16 favorites]
posted by drezdn at 9:53 AM on May 18, 2017 [16 favorites]
Good riddance to bad rubbish.
posted by wondrous strange snow at 9:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [17 favorites]
posted by wondrous strange snow at 9:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [17 favorites]
To my knowledge the manner of his passing caused harm to no orphans. That's about the best thing I can say.
posted by Artw at 9:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [24 favorites]
posted by Artw at 9:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [24 favorites]
No cause of death or other details were given in an announcement
I'm guessing it involved Princess Leia and a chain.
posted by Rust Moranis at 9:56 AM on May 18, 2017 [133 favorites]
I'm guessing it involved Princess Leia and a chain.
posted by Rust Moranis at 9:56 AM on May 18, 2017 [133 favorites]
He left the world a far worse place than he found it. Not many people can say that.
posted by dnash at 9:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [51 favorites]
posted by dnash at 9:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [51 favorites]
Good riddance to a perverse, toxic, cruel, bigoted, misogynistic asshole.
*
posted by Strange Interlude at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [15 favorites]
*
posted by Strange Interlude at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [15 favorites]
I whistle past the graveyard before catching myself and doubling back to dance on his grave, where only a few words come to mind: "You lived too long."
posted by rhizome at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
posted by rhizome at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
Huh. I hope that the news that a Special Prosecutor had been appointed to look into his buddy was the last thing that he heard.
posted by RedOrGreen at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [21 favorites]
posted by RedOrGreen at 9:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [21 favorites]
He left the world a far worse place than he found it. Not many people can say that.
I'd argue that the world is better today than when Ailes was born, but that is certainly in spite of and not because of Ailes.
posted by Behemoth at 9:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
I'd argue that the world is better today than when Ailes was born, but that is certainly in spite of and not because of Ailes.
posted by Behemoth at 9:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
I know people are already telling us not to disrespect the dead, but y'know what?
FUCK.
THAT.
NOISE.
This is a day that I will wish every indignity that can be wrought upon a corpse to happen simultaneously, because the saddest thing about his death is that it didn't happen 18+ years ago. Pissing on his grave should be considered a horrible insult to both the urine and the toxins it contains. After all, this is a man who was, by all accounts, truly evil and horrible in both his personal and professional life. He personally committed heinous acts of violence, including sexual assaults, on people throughout his entire career. He is one of the people most responsible for the social, political, and economic state the US and the world is in. His bigotry seeped out of every pore, infecting not only his mind but those who worked at the businesses he ran, and pretty much everyone in his closest circle either did nothing to stop it or actively encouraged his worst impulses. I can't even enjoy the fact that he didn't live to see his worst creations suffer, because the conservative ideology he helped mold has become a population of millions. These millions of vicious predators of the marginalized will continue to thrive, nevermind exist, for years or even decades to come. They may possibly bring about the end of the modern world (if not civilization) within just a couple generations. They have ensured that what passes for "moderate" conservatism these days still yearns for outcomes that many moderate conservatives of the past would have found abhorrent.
So, no, I'm not going to listen to people telling me to be respectful. He deserves every bit of disrespect he gets today, which is still only a tiny fraction of what should have come due.
posted by zombieflanders at 9:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [129 favorites]
FUCK.
THAT.
NOISE.
This is a day that I will wish every indignity that can be wrought upon a corpse to happen simultaneously, because the saddest thing about his death is that it didn't happen 18+ years ago. Pissing on his grave should be considered a horrible insult to both the urine and the toxins it contains. After all, this is a man who was, by all accounts, truly evil and horrible in both his personal and professional life. He personally committed heinous acts of violence, including sexual assaults, on people throughout his entire career. He is one of the people most responsible for the social, political, and economic state the US and the world is in. His bigotry seeped out of every pore, infecting not only his mind but those who worked at the businesses he ran, and pretty much everyone in his closest circle either did nothing to stop it or actively encouraged his worst impulses. I can't even enjoy the fact that he didn't live to see his worst creations suffer, because the conservative ideology he helped mold has become a population of millions. These millions of vicious predators of the marginalized will continue to thrive, nevermind exist, for years or even decades to come. They may possibly bring about the end of the modern world (if not civilization) within just a couple generations. They have ensured that what passes for "moderate" conservatism these days still yearns for outcomes that many moderate conservatives of the past would have found abhorrent.
So, no, I'm not going to listen to people telling me to be respectful. He deserves every bit of disrespect he gets today, which is still only a tiny fraction of what should have come due.
posted by zombieflanders at 9:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [129 favorites]
I regret that his victims won't be able to humiliate him to his face.
posted by aramaic at 10:00 AM on May 18, 2017 [8 favorites]
posted by aramaic at 10:00 AM on May 18, 2017 [8 favorites]
My . is for the country, and not the Thomas Midgely Jr. of the American media.
There's no great justice, of course, but it could have been worse. He was disgraced, and he died knowing that the Trump administration was going to hell to keep him company.
posted by Countess Elena at 10:01 AM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
There's no great justice, of course, but it could have been worse. He was disgraced, and he died knowing that the Trump administration was going to hell to keep him company.
posted by Countess Elena at 10:01 AM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
I suppose this is the closest to justice he was ever going to get for his crimes: he lived just long enough to be unceremoniously dumped from Fox but not long enough to actually benefit from his severance. I don't know if his wife and kid are cut from the same cloth, but I hope they aren't and they actually use his money for the betterment of society somehow.
I don't cheer his death: it's sort of a personal rule of mine to not revel in this sort of thing. I always hope that people like him can somehow atone (or at least try to) for how awful they had been.
But: any one of his ideological counterparts who pleads for civility and 'respect' in the discussion regarding his death? They can fuck right off. Ailes and the rest of them spent the last 50 years poisoning the well of civic discourse. They can drink from it until they choke.
posted by The Notorious SRD at 10:01 AM on May 18, 2017 [34 favorites]
I don't cheer his death: it's sort of a personal rule of mine to not revel in this sort of thing. I always hope that people like him can somehow atone (or at least try to) for how awful they had been.
But: any one of his ideological counterparts who pleads for civility and 'respect' in the discussion regarding his death? They can fuck right off. Ailes and the rest of them spent the last 50 years poisoning the well of civic discourse. They can drink from it until they choke.
posted by The Notorious SRD at 10:01 AM on May 18, 2017 [34 favorites]
Dammit, and before he could get what was really coming to him, too.
I apologize to Mrs. Ailes, but her husband was an awful man.
posted by droplet at 10:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I apologize to Mrs. Ailes, but her husband was an awful man.
posted by droplet at 10:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
My only sympathy is for the women he assaulted who now have no chance at all of seeing justice done.
My only regret is that he didn't die earlier.
The world would have been a better place if he'd never been born.
posted by sotonohito at 10:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [24 favorites]
My only regret is that he didn't die earlier.
The world would have been a better place if he'd never been born.
posted by sotonohito at 10:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [24 favorites]
Hope no one minds my doing this, but I posted something about him in the latest Trump thread and it seems like it would fit better here.
--
Roger Ailes' first job was working on the Mike Douglas show when it was just a local talk/variety program in Cleveland. Ailes worked his way up from being a property manager for the show, until he was eventually made its Executive Producer when the show went national. In 1968, Vice President Richard Nixon was a guest and that's where he met Ailes, who would eventually be tapped to run Nixon's Presidential campaign.
There's been a lot written about Watergate over the years, and many people have noted that the scandal's most lasting legacy has been a growing distrust of politicians, politics and government by the American people. The only time that distrust tends to fade is during times of war, but when those conflicts end, distrust reliably rises.
There's a thread here worth following. A theme. A recurring motif. Ailes helped elect a President who was paranoid, obsessed with his image, kept enemies lists and maniacal about information leaks. When his Presidency fell apart, Nixon destroyed America's (mostly blind faith and) trust in our leaders. That and his prolongation of the Vietnam War are most of Nixon's legacy. A mistrust of government and politicians which has lasted for 40 years. In no small part thanks to Roger Ailes.
After Nixon left office in disgrace, Ailes became a political consultant. But in '96, he took over FoxNewschannel and he turned that network into a Republican propaganda arm for the Murdochs. Fox promoted a Republican worldview and stirred up as much mistrust of Democrats and specifically of the Clinton administration as it possibly could. Under Ailes, Fox News fed off the sentiment that Nixon had triggered, broadcasting conspiracy theories and lies about anyone who opposed Republicans, all while proclaiming themselves to be fair and balanced. Playing their part, Republicans have done everything they can to play the "heel" to their constituents.
The end result of 20 years of Fox broadcasting an endless flood of propaganda and attacks is of course the defeat of Hillary Clinton and the rise of Donald Trump. Our current President is a corrupt, paranoid, racist, narcissistic liar who is obsessed with leaks, punishing his enemies, desperate to control every aspect of his image and equally demanding of people's unwavering loyalty. Sounds familiar.
Ailes made a Trump Presidency possible. He helped create the modern GOP. Now we're all paying the price.
posted by zarq at 10:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [79 favorites]
--
Roger Ailes' first job was working on the Mike Douglas show when it was just a local talk/variety program in Cleveland. Ailes worked his way up from being a property manager for the show, until he was eventually made its Executive Producer when the show went national. In 1968, Vice President Richard Nixon was a guest and that's where he met Ailes, who would eventually be tapped to run Nixon's Presidential campaign.
There's been a lot written about Watergate over the years, and many people have noted that the scandal's most lasting legacy has been a growing distrust of politicians, politics and government by the American people. The only time that distrust tends to fade is during times of war, but when those conflicts end, distrust reliably rises.
There's a thread here worth following. A theme. A recurring motif. Ailes helped elect a President who was paranoid, obsessed with his image, kept enemies lists and maniacal about information leaks. When his Presidency fell apart, Nixon destroyed America's (mostly blind faith and) trust in our leaders. That and his prolongation of the Vietnam War are most of Nixon's legacy. A mistrust of government and politicians which has lasted for 40 years. In no small part thanks to Roger Ailes.
After Nixon left office in disgrace, Ailes became a political consultant. But in '96, he took over FoxNewschannel and he turned that network into a Republican propaganda arm for the Murdochs. Fox promoted a Republican worldview and stirred up as much mistrust of Democrats and specifically of the Clinton administration as it possibly could. Under Ailes, Fox News fed off the sentiment that Nixon had triggered, broadcasting conspiracy theories and lies about anyone who opposed Republicans, all while proclaiming themselves to be fair and balanced. Playing their part, Republicans have done everything they can to play the "heel" to their constituents.
The end result of 20 years of Fox broadcasting an endless flood of propaganda and attacks is of course the defeat of Hillary Clinton and the rise of Donald Trump. Our current President is a corrupt, paranoid, racist, narcissistic liar who is obsessed with leaks, punishing his enemies, desperate to control every aspect of his image and equally demanding of people's unwavering loyalty. Sounds familiar.
Ailes made a Trump Presidency possible. He helped create the modern GOP. Now we're all paying the price.
posted by zarq at 10:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [79 favorites]
I can't do the traditional period of respect. The end result of his efforts is increased divisiveness and a potential constitutional crisis.
May he rot in hell.
posted by MrGuilt at 10:03 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
May he rot in hell.
posted by MrGuilt at 10:03 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
To paraphrase Bette Davis: "You should never say bad things about the dead, you should only say good… Roger Ailes is dead. Good!"
posted by Ber at 10:05 AM on May 18, 2017 [25 favorites]
posted by Ber at 10:05 AM on May 18, 2017 [25 favorites]
"You lived too long."
One down, one more to go, the sooner the better:
his mate the Dirty Digger (Rupert Murdoch)
posted by Mister Bijou at 10:07 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
One down, one more to go, the sooner the better:
his mate the Dirty Digger (Rupert Murdoch)
posted by Mister Bijou at 10:07 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
With all the shit going on in the world, I can't keep track of all the Fox News lawsuits but if there are any still open, I hope they can continue to sue his estate for money. Either way, I hope this gives his many, many victims some peace.
And quoting myself from earlier:
The person I was who would feel bad when he couldn't stop smiling because some asshole who made the world worst died does not exist anymore. I'd like to say he died on November 8, 2016, but I'm pretty sure it was when the GOP had a big "We took your insurance" victory lap and busted open cans of Budweiser because it was a step towards rich people getting tax cuts and poor people dying more easily. Roger Ailes is probably one of the top 10 people in the world who made this (and every other shitty thing we're living through now) happen and my only sadness is that he didn't die 40 years ago.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:07 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
And quoting myself from earlier:
The person I was who would feel bad when he couldn't stop smiling because some asshole who made the world worst died does not exist anymore. I'd like to say he died on November 8, 2016, but I'm pretty sure it was when the GOP had a big "We took your insurance" victory lap and busted open cans of Budweiser because it was a step towards rich people getting tax cuts and poor people dying more easily. Roger Ailes is probably one of the top 10 people in the world who made this (and every other shitty thing we're living through now) happen and my only sadness is that he didn't die 40 years ago.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:07 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
In a just world he would have died alone in prison, sick but neglected by one of the trash fascists he's promoted over the years, like Sheriffs Clarke or Arpaio.
posted by Lyme Drop at 10:08 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by Lyme Drop at 10:08 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
In these trying times, my thoughts, best wishes and sympathies are with Ailes many victims.
posted by MartinWisse at 10:08 AM on May 18, 2017 [21 favorites]
posted by MartinWisse at 10:08 AM on May 18, 2017 [21 favorites]
Statement from Roger Ailes’ wife Elizabeth on his death:
"Roger was a loving husband to me, to his son Zachary, and a loyal friend to many. He passed away this morning after getting out of bed and tripping over a block of cheese, which he keeps by his bed to eat. His pants ripped and one of his balls flopped out and he stepped on his own sack and howled in pain. This caused a honey jar to fall off a shelf and land on his head. When he tried to pry the honey jar off his head he stumbled backwards and landed in an empty barrel, causing his ass to get stuck. Now flailing wildly, his hand somehow became lodged in a pickle jar. Finally, Roger fell out of an open window, and dropped to his death three stories below. And so, even as we mourn his death, we celebrate his life ...posted by octobersurprise at 10:08 AM on May 18, 2017 [66 favorites]
— Elizabeth Ailes
Good riddance to bad rubbish.
posted by Halloween Jack at 10:14 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Halloween Jack at 10:14 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
I almost never post in obit threads, but I'll make an exception here.
Good fucking riddance. May his toxic legacy (and the toxic legacies of his aging peers) quickly fade into irrelevance.
posted by ZakDaddy at 10:14 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
Good fucking riddance. May his toxic legacy (and the toxic legacies of his aging peers) quickly fade into irrelevance.
posted by ZakDaddy at 10:14 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
May they roll his corpse into the LA river to be gnawed apart by rats and blue bottle flies.
posted by Aya Hirano on the Astral Plane at 10:16 AM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
posted by Aya Hirano on the Astral Plane at 10:16 AM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
I am reading his obituary with some glee.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 10:16 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 10:16 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
Another good occasion for linking this song.
posted by saulgoodman at 10:17 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by saulgoodman at 10:17 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
Well, at least something's going right today.
posted by mondo dentro at 10:18 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by mondo dentro at 10:18 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
If world civilization collapses sometime in this next century, with or without an accompanying nuclear war, there will be a good case to make (if anyone is around to make it) that Ailes and Murdoch will bear as much responsibility as anyone in history for that collapse. Few men who have not actively instigated genocide have done more evil in the world.
posted by Caduceus at 10:20 AM on May 18, 2017 [14 favorites]
posted by Caduceus at 10:20 AM on May 18, 2017 [14 favorites]
Weirdly enough the morning radio shows I was flipping through this morning were making it sound like a suicide.
posted by 80 Cats in a Dog Suit at 10:21 AM on May 18, 2017
posted by 80 Cats in a Dog Suit at 10:21 AM on May 18, 2017
Glad he's dead, sorry it didn't happen sooner, hope his victims get a nice fat settlement from his estate.
posted by Pseudonymous Cognomen at 10:23 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Pseudonymous Cognomen at 10:23 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
TMZ is reporting that Ailes died of a head injury after a "fall." I'd put it this way:
"After learning that Roger Ailes had sexually harassed numerous women at Fox News, his wife announced today that he died of blunt force trauma to his head."
posted by msalt at 10:28 AM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
"After learning that Roger Ailes had sexually harassed numerous women at Fox News, his wife announced today that he died of blunt force trauma to his head."
posted by msalt at 10:28 AM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
One of the issues I had with Frank Herbert's novel, Dune, was that Baron Harkonnen seemed like such an absurdly over-the-top villain: bloated with sin, full of malignant mischief, evil for its own sake. But then, Roger Ailes proved that such a character is not only possible, but plausible.
posted by SPrintF at 10:30 AM on May 18, 2017 [40 favorites]
posted by SPrintF at 10:30 AM on May 18, 2017 [40 favorites]
Screw him.
posted by Splunge at 10:30 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Splunge at 10:30 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
I hope he's on his knees in the afterlife washing the feet of old black homeless men, AIDS victims, and Muslim refugees.
posted by praemunire at 10:32 AM on May 18, 2017 [10 favorites]
posted by praemunire at 10:32 AM on May 18, 2017 [10 favorites]
National Treasure Alexandra Petri wins the Internet today.
@petridishes: skirts at Fox News today will be lowered to half-mast
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 10:33 AM on May 18, 2017 [14 favorites]
@petridishes: skirts at Fox News today will be lowered to half-mast
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 10:33 AM on May 18, 2017 [14 favorites]
I hope he's on his knees in the afterlife washing the feet of old black homeless men, AIDS victims, and Muslim refugees.
Piles of trash, but lapidary like rubies and obsidian, and diamond-colored cowspit streamers in the wind. And voting booths. And everyone in Balenciaga gowns with red corsages, and big dance palaces full of music and lights and racial impurity and gender confusion. And all the deities are creole, mulatto, brown as the mouths of rivers. Race, taste and history finally overcome.posted by octobersurprise at 10:41 AM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
Well, I guess if I'd been born from the exact same sperm and egg that he was, and experienced all the same formative childhood influences he did, I'd have inevitably done all the terrible things he did, too. So "there but for the grace of god", in a way.
posted by oliverburkeman at 10:42 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by oliverburkeman at 10:42 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
.
(Not for Roger. For the victims of his harassment and sexual assault.)
posted by nubs at 10:43 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
(Not for Roger. For the victims of his harassment and sexual assault.)
posted by nubs at 10:43 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
This happened.
posted by spinifex23 at 10:45 AM on May 18, 2017
posted by spinifex23 at 10:45 AM on May 18, 2017
Previously; he wasn't content to fuck over the country, he had to make the lives of his neighbors miserable too.
Please add an obituary tag...
posted by Melismata at 10:47 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
Please add an obituary tag...
posted by Melismata at 10:47 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
De mortuis nihil nisi bonum, so i will just note here that early this morning I mistook him for Rupert Murdoch and started to get really excited at the possibility of a new media direction. So clearly he is not the person whose death is the most beneficial.
That's all I've got.
posted by corb at 10:49 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
That's all I've got.
posted by corb at 10:49 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
U+1F595
posted by lmfsilva at 10:53 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by lmfsilva at 10:53 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
Hell needed a bureau chief...
posted by AJaffe at 10:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by AJaffe at 10:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
The life of Ailes is proof lived that benevolent, hero, time travelers do not exist, same with Ghengis Khan, Alexander the Great, Richard Nixon, Julius Caesar and on and on.
posted by Oyéah at 10:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Oyéah at 10:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
Or that Roko's Basilisk is real.
posted by rhizome at 11:00 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by rhizome at 11:00 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
Wherever he is now, I hope it's warm.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 11:00 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 11:00 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
If you wanted to charge me a significant amount of money to piss on his corpse, then I'd be happy to talk price.
posted by codacorolla at 11:03 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by codacorolla at 11:03 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
GOOD. FUCKING. RIDDANCE.
posted by Caxton1476 at 11:06 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Caxton1476 at 11:06 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
Sean Hannity on twitter, making even less sense than his daddy trump:
But to his enemies know this; I say ADVANTAGE ROGER, In his mind he just has a head start in preparing to kick your ass in the next life.
Meanwhile, John Cleese knows what's what:
Roger Ailes is dead. He just...ran out of power. And importance...
And now...a moment's silence in memory of the many women he harassed...
posted by Atom Eyes at 11:07 AM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
But to his enemies know this; I say ADVANTAGE ROGER, In his mind he just has a head start in preparing to kick your ass in the next life.
Meanwhile, John Cleese knows what's what:
Roger Ailes is dead. He just...ran out of power. And importance...
And now...a moment's silence in memory of the many women he harassed...
posted by Atom Eyes at 11:07 AM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
I can't post a big enough * in this thread.
posted by SansPoint at 11:13 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by SansPoint at 11:13 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I saw Satan laughing with delight.
posted by tommasz at 11:18 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by tommasz at 11:18 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
Who? It would seem that I have already forgotten this person ever existed...
posted by jim in austin at 11:24 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by jim in austin at 11:24 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
The NY Magazine piece does not shed a good light on Beth Ailes. At minimum, she's a bully. According to Megyn Kelly, Beth tried to recruit her to defend Roger when Gretchen Carlson filed suit against him for sexual harassment. To her credit, Megyn did the opposite.
posted by nequalsone at 11:24 AM on May 18, 2017 [12 favorites]
posted by nequalsone at 11:24 AM on May 18, 2017 [12 favorites]
Roger Ailes and I attended the same university, a place well-regarded for its journalism program. That always bothered me.
posted by girlmightlive at 11:26 AM on May 18, 2017
posted by girlmightlive at 11:26 AM on May 18, 2017
I couldn't say it better than this: "The only thing sad about his death is that he leaves behind a machine that will continue to harm the country in his stead."
posted by tobascodagama at 11:38 AM on May 18, 2017 [18 favorites]
posted by tobascodagama at 11:38 AM on May 18, 2017 [18 favorites]
It's like that saying about planting trees. The best time for Roger Ailes to die is 20 years ago. The second best time is now.
posted by JDHarper at 11:49 AM on May 18, 2017 [34 favorites]
posted by JDHarper at 11:49 AM on May 18, 2017 [34 favorites]
Pissing on his grave should be considered a horrible insult to both the urine and the toxins it contains.
Strictly speaking, urine, unlike the life and works of Roger Ailes, is not really all that toxic.
I find it unseemly to take pleasure in the death of a fellow human, and for all his faults Ailes was human. But he chose to spend his life, not enriching the lives of those around him, or defending the weak against the strong, or even in the pursuit of mere solipsistic hedonism, but instead defending injustice, denigrating love and empathy, humiliating those near to him, and promoting an evil morality to turn his fellow humans against one another. He sought the worst in humanity and made it an idol for millions, and his fingerprints cover the worst of our politics and culture today.
So I find that despite my belief in the intrinsic dignity of all people, and in the indignity of taking pleasure in another's death, I nevertheless experienced relief and even joy at learning of his death. And so even in his death, Roger Ailes manages to poison the wellspring of our common humanity, turning my empathy for those he harmed, and my desire for justice that he despised, into a base joy at another's suffering, demeaning my own beliefs in human dignity, and claiming yet another victory for his own inverted morality.
Ailes was a vile, hateful human being, and the world is better with him gone. What a tragedy that any of us should have to have that thought about any of our fellow humans.
posted by biogeo at 11:51 AM on May 18, 2017 [28 favorites]
Strictly speaking, urine, unlike the life and works of Roger Ailes, is not really all that toxic.
I find it unseemly to take pleasure in the death of a fellow human, and for all his faults Ailes was human. But he chose to spend his life, not enriching the lives of those around him, or defending the weak against the strong, or even in the pursuit of mere solipsistic hedonism, but instead defending injustice, denigrating love and empathy, humiliating those near to him, and promoting an evil morality to turn his fellow humans against one another. He sought the worst in humanity and made it an idol for millions, and his fingerprints cover the worst of our politics and culture today.
So I find that despite my belief in the intrinsic dignity of all people, and in the indignity of taking pleasure in another's death, I nevertheless experienced relief and even joy at learning of his death. And so even in his death, Roger Ailes manages to poison the wellspring of our common humanity, turning my empathy for those he harmed, and my desire for justice that he despised, into a base joy at another's suffering, demeaning my own beliefs in human dignity, and claiming yet another victory for his own inverted morality.
Ailes was a vile, hateful human being, and the world is better with him gone. What a tragedy that any of us should have to have that thought about any of our fellow humans.
posted by biogeo at 11:51 AM on May 18, 2017 [28 favorites]
Well I hope I don't die too soon
I pray the lord my soul to save
Oh I'll be a good boy, I'm trying so hard to behave
Because there's one thing I know, I'd like to live
Long enough to savor
That's when they finally put you in the ground
I'll stand on your grave and tramp the dirt down
posted by Cookiebastard at 11:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
I pray the lord my soul to save
Oh I'll be a good boy, I'm trying so hard to behave
Because there's one thing I know, I'd like to live
Long enough to savor
That's when they finally put you in the ground
I'll stand on your grave and tramp the dirt down
posted by Cookiebastard at 11:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
Ding, dong, the witch is dead.
posted by MexicanYenta at 11:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by MexicanYenta at 11:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I regret that Hunter Thompson is no longer around to write his obituary.
posted by indubitable at 11:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [13 favorites]
posted by indubitable at 11:58 AM on May 18, 2017 [13 favorites]
The cognitive dissonance on display is astounding...
"He was a sexual predator... who also changed broadcasting."
posted by My Dad at 11:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
"He was a sexual predator... who also changed broadcasting."
posted by My Dad at 11:59 AM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
This post should've waited for Matt Taibbi's obit.
Ailes was the Christopher Columbus of hate. When the former daytime TV executive and political strategist looked across the American continent, he saw money laying around in giant piles. He knew all that was needed to pick it up was a) the total abandonment of any sense of decency or civic duty in the news business, and b) the factory-like production of news stories that spoke to Americans' worst fantasies about each other.
posted by T.D. Strange at 12:07 PM on May 18, 2017 [34 favorites]
Ailes was the Christopher Columbus of hate. When the former daytime TV executive and political strategist looked across the American continent, he saw money laying around in giant piles. He knew all that was needed to pick it up was a) the total abandonment of any sense of decency or civic duty in the news business, and b) the factory-like production of news stories that spoke to Americans' worst fantasies about each other.
posted by T.D. Strange at 12:07 PM on May 18, 2017 [34 favorites]
Ailes also helped bestow Senator Mitch McConnell upon the world.
Link
posted by HillbillyInBC at 12:14 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
Link
posted by HillbillyInBC at 12:14 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
George Pullman's ultimate fate seems apropos:
"In fear that his enemies might disinter his body, his family took extreme measures in seeing that his remains would not be disturbed, including having his lead-lined coffin sunk in a concrete block and placed in a tomb made of reinforced concrete covered with asphalt and tar paper, followed by a layer of steel rails bolted at right angles with another layer of concrete poured on top."
posted by Quindar Beep at 12:25 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
"In fear that his enemies might disinter his body, his family took extreme measures in seeing that his remains would not be disturbed, including having his lead-lined coffin sunk in a concrete block and placed in a tomb made of reinforced concrete covered with asphalt and tar paper, followed by a layer of steel rails bolted at right angles with another layer of concrete poured on top."
posted by Quindar Beep at 12:25 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
The other lyric that comes to mind is
So I run to the Lord
Please hide me, Lord
Don't you see me prayin'?
Don't you see me down here prayin'?
But the Lord said
Go to the Devil
The Lord said
Go to the Devil
He said, go to the Devil
All on that day
So I ran to the Devil
He was waitin'
posted by praemunire at 12:25 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
So I run to the Lord
Please hide me, Lord
Don't you see me prayin'?
Don't you see me down here prayin'?
But the Lord said
Go to the Devil
The Lord said
Go to the Devil
He said, go to the Devil
All on that day
So I ran to the Devil
He was waitin'
posted by praemunire at 12:25 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Deepest sympathy to his victims. I hope his estate is parceled out to the many, many people he hurt. Dim comfort would be better than nothing.
I also wish his colleagues would find it in their hearts to follow his lead as diligently now as they did every other time. Doesn't seem like an unfair request this year.
posted by mordax at 12:36 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
I also wish his colleagues would find it in their hearts to follow his lead as diligently now as they did every other time. Doesn't seem like an unfair request this year.
posted by mordax at 12:36 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
Warning to 2017: Cheney better be next
posted by klarck at 12:43 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by klarck at 12:43 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I came in out of curiosity thinking "surely no one will give that the mefi . "
I was not disappointed.
Wouldn't it be fine if the rest of 2017 served to balance out the many good ones we lost in 2016.
posted by BoscosMom at 12:44 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
I was not disappointed.
Wouldn't it be fine if the rest of 2017 served to balance out the many good ones we lost in 2016.
posted by BoscosMom at 12:44 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Rupert Murdoch, isn't it time you shrugged off this mortal coil? All the best people did it last year, and this year your kind is doing it.
posted by orange swan at 12:46 PM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
posted by orange swan at 12:46 PM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
This was basically my reaction. Finally! Some good news!
posted by byanyothername at 12:46 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by byanyothername at 12:46 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
If you like your obits salty, read this AMAZING one of Breitbart by "Mobutu Sese Seko"- and transpose onto Ailes, x1000.
posted by lalochezia at 12:50 PM on May 18, 2017
posted by lalochezia at 12:50 PM on May 18, 2017
Speaking of lyrics brought to mind by Ailes' passing, allow me to quote Chuck D.:
"Picture me giving a damn? I said never."
posted by mr. digits at 1:01 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
"Picture me giving a damn? I said never."
posted by mr. digits at 1:01 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
He was not even truly a "mastermind" among the Evil Class. He was enabled over the years by Evil Men more powerful than he, from Richard Nixon to Rupert Murdoch. But maybe we should put the blame on the first to enable him: Mike Douglas. Always hated that smug bastard.
posted by oneswellfoop at 1:12 PM on May 18, 2017
posted by oneswellfoop at 1:12 PM on May 18, 2017
If anyone tries to bury his remains, the ground will spit them back up.
posted by delfin at 1:23 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by delfin at 1:23 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
Taking Mefites' comments into consideration, when we turn our house into The Roger Ailes Boyhood Home and Museum To Separate Conservative Whackadoos From Their Money, we will be sure to include a representation of the man himself that patrons might pee on it.
We'll put it in the basement. It's where the cats pee anyway.
posted by chainsofreedom at 1:25 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
We'll put it in the basement. It's where the cats pee anyway.
posted by chainsofreedom at 1:25 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
This is a fun time to revisit last year's Fortune piece, "Exclusive: Roger Ailes Taking a Backseat Is ‘Bullshit,’ Rupert Murdoch Says,"
posted by octobersurprise at 1:28 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
"I’ve got every confidence in Roger, you know? His health is fine. It’s true he had a little problem with his back for awhile, but otherwise, he’s micromanaging the place just as much as ever."Oh you're taking a backseat now, Rog.
posted by octobersurprise at 1:28 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
From the Beaverton: Roger Ailes dies secure in knowledge he left the world a more terrible place.
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:29 PM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:29 PM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
If you have nothing nice to say...come sit by me.
posted by pangolin party at 1:34 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by pangolin party at 1:34 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
Anyone poked him with a sharpened fork yet, you know, just to make sure?
posted by Phlegmco(tm) at 1:51 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Phlegmco(tm) at 1:51 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
Fire up the old wood chipper!
posted by Artw at 1:55 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 1:55 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
> every indignity that can be wrought upon a corpse
I mean, I don't necessarily disagree but DAMN
posted by kleinsteradikaleminderheit at 2:21 PM on May 18, 2017
I mean, I don't necessarily disagree but DAMN
posted by kleinsteradikaleminderheit at 2:21 PM on May 18, 2017
Statement from Roger Ailes' wife Elizabeth on his death
posted by indubitable at 2:33 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by indubitable at 2:33 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
I'm sorry for all the people who were stomped on and/or abused by Ailes. I'm sorry for his son: I assume the kid probably loved his father, no matter how unworthy of love that person was. I'm sorry for all the rest of us, who will spend decades or more living under Ailes' legacy of hate and division.
As for the corpse: I'm thinking the Mussolini treatment sounds about right.
posted by easily confused at 2:34 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
As for the corpse: I'm thinking the Mussolini treatment sounds about right.
posted by easily confused at 2:34 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
When God closes a door (RIP Chris Cornell), he opens a window...and pushes Roger Ailes out of it.
posted by Kitteh at 2:35 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Kitteh at 2:35 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Now THIS is what echo chambers are for.
posted by bonobothegreat at 2:40 PM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
posted by bonobothegreat at 2:40 PM on May 18, 2017 [9 favorites]
.
posted by 256 at 2:57 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by 256 at 2:57 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
We had this asshole for 20 years longer than Prince.
posted by mykescipark at 3:10 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by mykescipark at 3:10 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
Whoopi Goldberg once said "you shouldn't say something about someone whose dead unless it's good. He's dead. Good."
posted by 4ster at 3:18 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by 4ster at 3:18 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Anyone poked him with a sharpened fork yet, you know, just to make sure?
pretty sure the proper method is a stake through the heart
posted by entropicamericana at 3:37 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
pretty sure the proper method is a stake through the heart
posted by entropicamericana at 3:37 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
With any luck he died the way he lived: horrifically.
posted by DoctorFedora at 3:55 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by DoctorFedora at 3:55 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
💩
posted by Ogre Lawless at 4:02 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Ogre Lawless at 4:02 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Instead of a funeral, just throw his body into the same trash pile that all of those confederate monuments are going into.
posted by codacorolla at 4:32 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by codacorolla at 4:32 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Statement from Roger Ailes' wife Elizabeth on his death
This is not to be missed, nor are the comments that follow. That poor pickle jar.
posted by Countess Elena at 4:34 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
This is not to be missed, nor are the comments that follow. That poor pickle jar.
posted by Countess Elena at 4:34 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
👍🎈
posted by chance at 5:04 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by chance at 5:04 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
His profession made weak minds weaker, and his personal tastes were an affront to civilisation. His mortal remains belong deep in a garbage dump, and his remaining legacy deserves much worse.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 6:35 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 6:35 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
Is that the rotting corpse of Roger Ailes I smell?
Smells better already.
posted by Max Power at 6:52 PM on May 18, 2017
Smells better already.
posted by Max Power at 6:52 PM on May 18, 2017
I have to say, I've been personally dealing with a lot of unexpected and tragic death in my life lately and this news is a very tiny and welcome breath of justice and hilarity.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 7:02 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 7:02 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
Good. I hope the rest of the NewsCorp/Fox News tapeworm colony follow quickly behind him.
posted by JohnFromGR at 7:13 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by JohnFromGR at 7:13 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
There's a special place in Hell waiting for him.
posted by lipservant at 8:06 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by lipservant at 8:06 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
> There's a special place in Hell waiting for him.According to Dante, the Maleborge are made for this purpose.
posted by runcifex at 8:12 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
You should never speak ill of the dead, only good.
Roger Ailes is dead. Good.
*Thanks to Bette Davis for the quote inspiration.
posted by Big Al 8000 at 8:53 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Roger Ailes is dead. Good.
*Thanks to Bette Davis for the quote inspiration.
posted by Big Al 8000 at 8:53 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Great Moments in Fuck Off Obituaries:
Hunter Thompson on Nixon
Tim Kreider on Reagan
Mark Ames on Andrew Breitbart
Matt Taibbi on Boris Yeltsin
Anyone from across the pond know of a good one for Thatcher? There must have been at least one...
posted by indubitable at 9:09 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
Hunter Thompson on Nixon
Tim Kreider on Reagan
Mark Ames on Andrew Breitbart
Matt Taibbi on Boris Yeltsin
Anyone from across the pond know of a good one for Thatcher? There must have been at least one...
posted by indubitable at 9:09 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
I've never favorited more comments in a mefi thread...
posted by coust at 9:39 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by coust at 9:39 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
*spits*
posted by Space Kitty at 9:56 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by Space Kitty at 9:56 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
The cause of Ailes' death is yet to be determined. However, in the pile of ashes that was his only remains a wooden stake was found, and a blonde woman with a Californian accent was seen leaving the building.
posted by happyroach at 10:37 PM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
posted by happyroach at 10:37 PM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
In Hell, Ailes will report for his first day of work, and his boss will be his 40 year old self.
posted by benzenedream at 11:01 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by benzenedream at 11:01 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
And via Patriothole:
Nation In Mourning: Roger Ailes, America’s Jolly Grandpa Who Was Always Pulling Beloved Goofs On Ladies, Has Been Murdered By The Deep State
posted by benzenedream at 11:53 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
Nation In Mourning: Roger Ailes, America’s Jolly Grandpa Who Was Always Pulling Beloved Goofs On Ladies, Has Been Murdered By The Deep State
posted by benzenedream at 11:53 PM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
You do not disappoint, mefites.
posted by greermahoney at 12:35 AM on May 19, 2017
posted by greermahoney at 12:35 AM on May 19, 2017
In Hell, Ailes will report for his first day of work, and his boss will be his 40 year old self.
Also, he'll be in the body of a woman working for himself.
posted by FatherDagon at 7:20 AM on May 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
Also, he'll be in the body of a woman working for himself.
posted by FatherDagon at 7:20 AM on May 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
Rot you wanker.
posted by GallonOfAlan at 7:53 AM on May 19, 2017
posted by GallonOfAlan at 7:53 AM on May 19, 2017
Also, he'll be in the body of a woman working for himself.
In my favorite revenge/cosmic justice fantasy, everybody's consciousness is doomed to be reincarnated in every other person's body/life eventually, so he'll eventually have to be the specific women he harassed and abused, too.
I think I got that idea from either the bible or a Pixies lyric. I still choose to believe it, whether it's true or not, because it helps keep me thinking about other people's perspective.
posted by saulgoodman at 9:01 AM on May 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
In my favorite revenge/cosmic justice fantasy, everybody's consciousness is doomed to be reincarnated in every other person's body/life eventually, so he'll eventually have to be the specific women he harassed and abused, too.
I think I got that idea from either the bible or a Pixies lyric. I still choose to believe it, whether it's true or not, because it helps keep me thinking about other people's perspective.
posted by saulgoodman at 9:01 AM on May 19, 2017 [2 favorites]
Rachel Maddow On The Passing Of Roger Ailes: 'I Considered Him To Be A Friend'
posted by indubitable at 9:55 AM on May 19, 2017
posted by indubitable at 9:55 AM on May 19, 2017
Between the end of the Civil War and the start of the Great Depression, Republicans controlled the House of Representatives about twice as often as the Democrats. From the start of the Great Depression until the start of Fox News, Democrats controlled the House for all but 2 sessions. Since the start of Fox News, Republicans have controlled the House for all but 2 sessions.
By countering the liberal bias of broadcast media, Roger Alies and Rush Limbaugh became the 2 people most influential in shifting control of the House back to reflecting the center-right politics of the majority of voters.
posted by Homer42 at 11:01 AM on May 19, 2017
By countering the liberal bias of broadcast media, Roger Alies and Rush Limbaugh became the 2 people most influential in shifting control of the House back to reflecting the center-right politics of the majority of voters.
posted by Homer42 at 11:01 AM on May 19, 2017
via Twitter:
Personally, I'll never forgive him for the effect his network had on my grandparents in the last years of their lives. They were enthralled by Fox News, had it on day and night, whenever they were awake, and it infected them with paranoia, anger and most of all, fear.posted by straight at 11:37 AM on May 19, 2017 [9 favorites]
...
My last conversations with my grandmother were ones of her explaining the conspiracy theories of @JoeBiden "fake crying". It was sad.
By countering the liberal bias of broadcast media
...
back to reflecting the center-right politics of the majority of voters.
HAHAHHAHAHHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHAH
And they say liberals are out of touch.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:50 PM on May 19, 2017 [7 favorites]
...
back to reflecting the center-right politics of the majority of voters.
HAHAHHAHAHHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHAH
And they say liberals are out of touch.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:50 PM on May 19, 2017 [7 favorites]
If you can't say anything nice, you might be talking about Roger Ailes.
posted by ckape at 1:01 PM on May 19, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by ckape at 1:01 PM on May 19, 2017 [5 favorites]
Good riddance. He poisoned every old white person's brain and his network will poison my generation's brains when we have the bad luck to age into the climate disaster it relentlessly denied. I hope Kissinger is next.
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 1:34 PM on May 19, 2017 [8 favorites]
posted by Rustic Etruscan at 1:34 PM on May 19, 2017 [8 favorites]
back to reflecting the center-right politics of the majority of voters.
Look, I'm as pre-Trump Republican as it gets, but if the majority of voters were center-right I'd be paying a lot less taxes. Ailes was a cancer and the dumbing down of the Republican Party is the sin that led to our current position.
Dammit I wasn't going to say anything bad about Ailes but now I don't want to erase it.
posted by corb at 1:39 PM on May 19, 2017 [4 favorites]
Look, I'm as pre-Trump Republican as it gets, but if the majority of voters were center-right I'd be paying a lot less taxes. Ailes was a cancer and the dumbing down of the Republican Party is the sin that led to our current position.
Dammit I wasn't going to say anything bad about Ailes but now I don't want to erase it.
posted by corb at 1:39 PM on May 19, 2017 [4 favorites]
I honestly can't say he never did anything good. When I heard he died yesterday, it made me smile all day long. So that was nice. Good riddance to a horrible person who showed us all how low a human being can sink. The only problem is that he leaves behind the Fox News apparatus, and people who genuinely think he was a wonderful person, and that his serial molestation of women was either perfectly okay, or utterly made up. Not many people can say they broke reality. His version of a Wonderful Life would have been Clarence saying, you know what, you're right. Go ahead and off yourself.
posted by Ghidorah at 3:25 PM on May 19, 2017
posted by Ghidorah at 3:25 PM on May 19, 2017
Regarding "don't speak ill of the dead," here's a thoughtful take by Fred Clark of Slacktivist.
I found his final paragraph particularly moving.
posted by St. Hubbins at 10:31 PM on May 19, 2017 [4 favorites]
I found his final paragraph particularly moving.
posted by St. Hubbins at 10:31 PM on May 19, 2017 [4 favorites]
In my favorite revenge/cosmic justice fantasy, everybody's consciousness is doomed to be reincarnated in every other person's body/life eventually, so he'll eventually have to be the specific women he harassed and abused, too.
I think I got that idea from either the bible or a Pixies lyric.
Most likely it came from the short story The Egg by Andy Weir.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:24 AM on May 20, 2017 [1 favorite]
I think I got that idea from either the bible or a Pixies lyric.
Most likely it came from the short story The Egg by Andy Weir.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 6:24 AM on May 20, 2017 [1 favorite]
I think generally it's occurred to everyone who's taken acid at least once.
posted by Artw at 6:27 AM on May 20, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Artw at 6:27 AM on May 20, 2017 [2 favorites]
I think I got that idea from either the bible or a Pixies lyric.
I, too, often confuse Doolittle and Deuteronomy.
I can't bring myself to cheer anyone's death, not even this man's. All I can say is it's been a long time since I felt like I was living in historic times. Nothing good or ill seems quite stable right now.
posted by rokusan at 6:29 PM on May 20, 2017
I, too, often confuse Doolittle and Deuteronomy.
I can't bring myself to cheer anyone's death, not even this man's. All I can say is it's been a long time since I felt like I was living in historic times. Nothing good or ill seems quite stable right now.
posted by rokusan at 6:29 PM on May 20, 2017
During eulogy, Ailes's teenage son threatened Fox women who alleged harassment. "I’m coming after them...and hell is coming with me.”
posted by rhizome at 11:05 AM on May 21, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by rhizome at 11:05 AM on May 21, 2017 [1 favorite]
I'm glad nobody has any sympathy for the stupid fuck.
posted by Artw at 11:07 AM on May 21, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 11:07 AM on May 21, 2017 [1 favorite]
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posted by TedW at 9:51 AM on May 18, 2017 [25 favorites]