The Secret of Coulter's Success

My friend David Carr lays it out visually in today's NYT:

That's one way of dissecting her rhetoric. But I think he gives her too much credit. Her function in society is actually something more akin to this:

Comments

[Comandante Agi]

Naw, rodeo clowns are too fun and nice

[peterh]

Actually, I might posit, that her mission in life is to raise the respectability level of “white trash”, i.e., her fan club. Her antics are hardly clownish…they’re boorish….which pretty much encapsulates her attraction to that social class.

[bryant]

I'm seeing a pattern. Rant and rave with mindless hatred and the world lines up to support you. Speak of reconciliation and they ignore you. The Geno's thread was amazing to me. Most of the remarks were full of hatred and fear. There are intelligent opinions on both sides of most issues but folks' willingness to discuss them calmly seems to be disappearing. Ann Coulter is one of the poster children of the hatred movement. Amazingly, like so many, she calls herself Christian. Not sure Jesus would be welcome in that church.

[freD]

She uses the technique of taking advantage of the “paranoia” and “neurotic impulses” which all normal people possess to some degree, to gain wealth and power for herself. A truly fearless person does not understand these things – some call them psychopathic. They are completely amoral, born chameleons who do whatever it takes to get whatever they want, regardless of the consequences to others because they physically, literally, cannot ever “care”. Getting to know some, you’ll see they always equate caring with stupidity. Always. And everywhere I look online this is the opinion. Whether it’s an addiction to “will to power” or a more permanent feature, hardwiring is definitely a factor.

Anyways.. it’s interesting how she’s managed to become a leading spokesperson for the Christian Right.

[julia]

What I thought was interesting about this article: back when America was practically begging the press to get out of Clinton's jockstrap, it was too important that the story get out there because there were principles at stake.

Now they've just got to give a megaphone to Ann Coulter because the audience, base creatures that we are, demand it (and shame on us).

I guess the principles thing is too last millennium.