In his inimitable way, Paul Krugman calls out the crazy-facilitators in the mainstream media who have shamelessly pandered to made one excuse after another for a Republican party that has long since gone off the deep end:
A number of commentators seem shocked at how unreasonable Republicans are being. “Has the G.O.P. gone insane?” they ask.
Why, yes, it has. But this isn’t something that just happened, it’s the culmination of a process that has been going on for decades. Anyone surprised by the extremism and irresponsibility now on display either hasn’t been paying attention, or has been deliberately turning a blind eye.
And may I say to those suddenly agonizing over the mental health of one of our two major parties: People like you bear some responsibility for that party’s current state.
As Krugman concludes, the media bear a great deal of responsibility for legitimizing the crazy for some years now, as they pretend that all ideas are equal, and that there are "two sides" to every stories, including stories like whether voodoo economics really works or not. And so now, as the 2012 elections approach, we have the sorry spectacle of the media treating presidential candidates right out of a loony bin, gibbering nonsense, as if they are legitimate thinkers who deserve serious attention.
Thus positioning the nonsense-gibbering crazies to claim the White House, and lead the entire nation over their cliff of crazy. I begin to think this is a real possibility with the 2010 elections. And the prospect dismays me.
The center didn't move so far to the right that crazy now appears thinkable all by itself in the final decades of the 20th century. It got there with the free and willing assistance of the mainstream media, funded to the hilt by corporate leaders who largely benefit from having crazy in the White House and in Congress. Since they can always don silk parachutes as the rest of us tumble parachuteless over the cliff.
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