David Letterman's Shame

This story pains me because 30 years or so ago David Letterman was a fresh young comedian who I and other guys my age gravitated toward. He was edgy, off-beat, and most importantly, funny.

He was not a Carson-clone by any stretch but he was like Carson in one vital respect: He was A-Political. He made fun of conservatives and liberals alike and his overall demeanor and commentary gave no (or at least very little) clue to his personal ideological leanings.

When Johnny Carson left the Tonight Show in 1992 I was a firm Letterman supporter who thought he should have been the next host. Jay Leno was and is a comedian who has limited interview ability. For all of his hilarity Johnny Carson could be an incisive interviewer and Letterman owns some of those same skills.

As the years ran into decades Letterman, bitter at having lost out to Leno, seemed to become increasingly angry in his attempts at humor until what had been funny in a smart-mouth nephew sort of way started feeling mean and hostile like a cranky uncle who you suspect might occasionally smack your aunt around.

Throughout the presidency of George W. Bush, Letterman steadily moved left-ward in his commentary until finally turning his show into a late night hate fest of all things Republican. Now he has gone totally berserk by making sick jokes at the expense of a 14 year-old girl.

Ask yourself a simple question: Would Letterman have made that joke about the young daughter of any person in the world other than Sarah Palin?

This is a sick little episode that demonstrates how far the political left in this country has degraded our public discourse. People of good intention can either speak out and condemn these perverted antics or stand silent and watch as our society moves farther along the way to anything goes chaos.