Keith Olbermann wants to torture Sean Hannity. Or is it enhanced-interrogate him?
Last week, Charles Grodin was on Hannity, and the conversation turned, as so many do, to simulated drowning. Grodin says waterboarding is torture; Hannity says it’s not, and then Grodin asked, "We can waterboard you?" Hannity replied, "Sure…I’ll do it for charity. I’ll let you do it." And then Keith Olbermann became obsessed with the statement, offering to give $1,000 to military families for every second of waterboarding Hannity could withstand. "And I’ll double it, when you admit you feared for your life," he said on the air.
I’d like to think that Olbermann doesn’t actually want Hannity to go through with this — especially given that Olbermann devoted an entire segment to the legal definitions of torture, and said "the only thing in question is how human are those who condone it?" So, you know, too harsh to inflict on the enemies of our country, probs too harsh to inflict on Sean Hannity.
My guess is that Hannity won’t ever acknowledge Olbermann, and the MSNBC anchor will have to just drop it — and that’s the best-case scenario. Otherwise, if Hannity (insanely) agrees to be waterboarded, there are two other possibilities: He says it’s horrible, in which case we have tortured someone just to settle a TV wiener-wagging contest, or he says it’s no big deal, which isn’t going to change anyone’s mind about anything ("See, I knew it: Not torture!" or "We can’t recreate potentially-torturous conditions with a consenting participant who doesn’t actually fear for his safety, so of course it didn’t feel like torture to him."). Oh, and we’ll have turned waterboarding into a sideshow. Another proud day!
Anyone actually think Hannity will respond to Olbermann’s challenge? If he consented to be waterboarded on-air, would you watch?
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Don’t know if Hannity will respond, but I absolutely would not watch it. Which is not to say that I think it is off limits for interrogating terrorists.
Keith Olbermann is a putz
I fully expect NBC to order a daily 30-minute show where celebrities get waterboarded. For charity, of course. Because ANYTHING is ok if you do it for charity.
I wouldn’t watch it, but I definitely think we need to take him up on it. Waterboarding was torture in WWII and it’s torture now.
Hannity says this is not torture. The whole point of this is to see if he really believes what he says.
I don’t think Olberman would go through with it. He’s not that dumb. He’s just pointing out Hannity’s hypocrisy – which he does with all of the people he puts in his sights. If anything, it’s a lesson to watch what you say. Something Hannity should be reminded of on a daily basis.
Olbermann tortures hundreds nightly on that horrific MSNBC show of his. he has no room to talk.
I heard about this last week, and was rather under the impression that the point wasn’t that Olbermann wanted to gratuitously waterboard Hannity, but that, since Hannity had volunteered to be waterboarded in order to prove that waterboarding isn’t such a big deal and that people shouldn’t be so upset that it happened. I disagree that it’s a, “TV wiener-wagging contest,” but a legitimate response to Sean Hannity, and other pundits, and their claim that waterboarding isn’t really an objectionable action, and, in fact, such a tame “technique” that Hannity is willing to experience it himself. They all get up and talk and talk and talk without having any real expertise or knowledge and expect for us to take their words to be true. Well, Hannity said that he’d do it and for charity. Let’s see him prove the worth of what he’s said.
Hannity is never going to consent to be tortured, even faux-torture for charity. He is a coward and a loud-mouth; it’s so easy to talk about what is or is not, but when it comes to action, he is content to sit behind his desk and pontificate. Olbermann is absolutely right to call him out. I would watch it too, by the way.
I would probably have to watch. The important thing is that is was Hannity’s idea to do it for charity. The question is if he’ll follow through. Here’s the original video on Hannity and Charles Grodin if you missed it:
http://www.gotchamediablog.com/2009/04/sean-hannity-offers-to-be-waterboarded.html
Don’t forget — Christopher Hitchens (http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/08/hitchens200808) and Playboy journalist Mike Guy (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/20/playboy-journo-bets-he-ca_n_189280.html).
Waterboarding is ALREADY a sideshow.
Olbermann is the best. All of FOX Noise anchors should be waterboarded and treated like Gitmo prisoners. Raped.
Hannity opened the door. He said he would be willing to be waterboarded. Now it will be interesting to see if he backs down. Olbermann was just calling him up on it, don’t blame him.
http://tvdonewright.com/2009/04/29/tv-tonight-wednesday-april-29th-2009/
Would you honestly not waterboard a terrorist who held information that could save thousands of lives?
I mean there are far worse methods of interrogation. Waterboarding is tame compared to electro shock, pulling out fingernails, burning etc…
Where can I donate to the “Waterboard Hannity” fund? This is TV that I would pay to see.
Ok waterboarding is it torture or not really isn’t the question is it effective…If I knew that someone had information that could save thousands of lives and the only way we get that info is to waterboard…I would hope the government does it…maybe that sounds harsh but that is the way i feel.
What unbelievably bad analysis, Margaret. Olbermann was “obsessed” with this statement? And is it “torturing” Hannity to accept his own offer to be waterboarded? Finally, is it really torture if someone knows they are not going to be drowned?
Grow up, lady, you’re embarassing yourself.
Here’s the thing… if waterboarding isn’t “all that bad,” as the conservative hawks would tell us, then how could it ever be an effective interrogation technique? People’s wills break when they fear for their life, which is why torture is effective and why waterboarding is useful to people willing to mortgage their humanity and ethics for the sake of fear.
And no, I would NOT want to torture anyone, period. Not even that douchenozzle Hannity. Torture is inhuman. Neither torture nor preemptive attack are tools that any nation that holds itself to be a paragon of global virtue should ever employ.
Also, Stuart and TJ are not patriots. America was founded on the principle that the rule of law applies in safe times and scary. Besides, the law of necessity already says that one can engage in otherwise prohibited behavior in order to save others from harm. Why does this not work? It just ensures that they are darn sure the “ticking bomb” scenario exists befor engaging in otherwise repulsive behavior.
You two can grow up as well.
I understand the issue you have with it, but the underlying motivator is this – Sean Hannity said he’d do it. And to an anti-torture guy like Olbermann, the chance to see a guy like Hannity, so quick to downplay the tactic, volunteer to it and potentially eat his hat, is priceless.
Keith Olbermann can be kinda scary sometimes… 0_o
but i don’t think he’d actually do that, and NO i would not watch. what kind of freakazoid WOULD?
The blow hard takes on the loud mouth. They both need to shut up.
Mae below provided the link to Hitchens’ first person account of going through this. There shouldn’t be any debate on whether this is torture. While I don’t subscribe to BS grandstanding, you have to admit there is some entertainment value tied to “put up or shut up” with Hannity.
I’d pay money to see Sean Hannity waterboarded; he deserves to be tortured for his show.
Hannity is a panty-wearing bully. no intelligent human being would believe anything that comes spewing from his pie hole.
How many more must die for GOP lies?
Didn’t Christopher Hitchens already agree to undergo waterboarding as someone who supports the ‘enhanced interrogation’ methods. He said ‘it isn’t simulated drowning. It is drowning.’ Can someone please tell me the difference between waterboarding and tying someone’s hands behind their backs and forcing their head in a bucket of water?
Waterboarding isn’t torture? Jack Bauer just called and said, “Hey now, that’s a bit much.”
I find the irony that Olbermann has has a small fraction of the ratings of O’Reilly yet you continue to comment on what he has to say. Funny this is probable the only way Olbermann would donate to charity though.
3 million watch Hannity and 15 million listen to him on the radio. Only 1.2 million watch Olberman. Why recognize anything Olbermann does. Saw his show a few times, does nothing but attach Fox News and Bush Administration 100 days after he left.