Martin Peretz: Get Butt Cancer & Die.

New Republic owner Martin Peretz calls himself a "loyalist" to the Democratic Party, albeit a "strained" one. Come hear that strain a creakin'...

If you still need proof that what passes for 'conservative' today represents the triumph of petty ignorance over common sense, the usurpation of common decency by bigotry, you could do worse than read Martin Peretz's nasty little article on Islam at TNR. Example:

But, frankly, Muslim life is cheap, most notably to Muslims. And among those Muslims led by the Imam Rauf there is hardly one who has raised a fuss about the routine and random bloodshed that defines their brotherhood. So, yes, I wonder whether I need honor these people and pretend that they are worthy of the privileges of the First Amendment which I have in my gut the sense that they will abuse.

Peretz knocks the NYT for it's "olympian wisdom" in discounting Peretz's own "gut" and seeking instead to give American Muslims the benefit of the doubt. Like, hey, they might not all be terrorists. For Peretz's "gut", there's no proof that they aren't all terrorists, so the NYT must be playing some kinda liberal sleight of hand that flies way over his head. "Olympian wisdom" for that? If this isn't a clear, if sarcastic, admission that wisdom itself is something to be attacked, I'm not sure what is.

Peretz really is living proof that 'conservatives' suspect (with damn good reason) that 'liberals' are smarter than they are and that tolerance, like a UFO, is the product of a more advanced, alien intelligence. But instead of trying to out-smart the enemy, they opt to attack intelligence itself. Even a freakin' ex-Havard professor like Peretz is proud to rant like the dumbest of the haters. It's a great ruse for them because rejecting intelligence means you can be proudly and unconditionally conservative. You can hate liberals without having to listen to their arguments that make your brain hurt. And, best of all, you'll never wonder that there's anything wrong with being an irrational bigot who'd condemn all Muslims based on what your "gut" tells you. Don't worry if you worry that hate might be wrong... It's just your intelligence playing up.

Wingnuts like to accuse me of hypocrisy, of preaching tolerance while spewing hate (against them). How can I hate people like Martin Peretz so much while claiming to be tolerant and open minded? Trust me. It's damned easy.