There were two very patriotic moments during the Super Bowl (search) program on Sunday. First was the excellent rendition of the national anthem by the choirs of the five military academies. It was a terrific moment for all of us who respect the USA. The presentation was dignified and heartfelt.
The second moment occurred during a beer commercial — if you can believe it. The scene was an airline terminal and folks applauding the American soldiers walking through it. Again, the message is that America is a good country and great sacrifices are being made by our military, which we all should admire.
It wasn't until the end of the commercial that the words "Anheuser Busch" appeared on the screen. It was a great spot.
Now you may remember Anheuser Busch made a big mistake by hiring gangster rapper Ludacris to push its product. The company got out of that situation, but never acknowledged rewarding bad behavior. However, this commercial makes up for that lapse in judgment.
Now I believe about 80 percent of Americans truly revere their country and realize we're basically a good nation. The other 20 percent, however, get a lot of attention.
Over the weekend, The Denver Post reported that radical Professor Ward Churchill (search) has actually called for more 9/11s. It's now apparent the state of Colorado will have to take action against the professor, who has deeply embarrassed the university.
But not everybody feels that way. The personal attacks on me have dramatically increased since we broke the story nationally. And some sympathetic newspaper columnists like Richard Cohen of The Washington Post have even chastised "Factor" viewers and listeners all for wanting to hold this Churchill guy accountable.
There's no question that if Churchill attacked a minority group or women or religious institution and wished them ill, he would have been shoved out of C.U. a long time ago. But attacking America is now acceptable in many circles, even if the attacks condone violence against U.S. citizens.
So how have we gotten to this place? Well, the answer lies in the clustering of anti-American voices in academia and in the media. It's chic again to blast America, much like it was in the 1960s. The intelligentsia is more aligned with France than Washington. President Bush is seen as a barbarian and anyone who gives Mr. Bush a fair hearing is scorned.
Now that kind of lemming-like mind-set rules on many college campuses, in Hollywood, in much of the publishing world, and to a lesser extent in the broadcast industry. There are powerful people who see America not as a victim of terrorism, but as a cause of it.
Ward Churchill is the extreme in this misguided club. But up until a few days ago, even he was acceptable. Now he is not, thanks to you. But there are those who do not like that one bit.
And that's "The Memo."
The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day
As you know, we get hammered from both the left and the right, which is the price of being independent and successful in America. Now we don't mind criticism on issues, but personal attacks are another matter. I ignore most of them, but, once in a while, I feel compelled to respond.
There is a right-wing radio guy, the Voice of a Nation, who doesn't like "The Factor" gear concept. He doesn't like me much either, but he rails and rails about the greed of the gear. Of course, the guy has to know, because I've said it many times, that a major portion of the gear money goes to charity.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars has been donated to various causes, which are listed on www.billoreilly.com. There's even a foundation in the name of my parents set up to continue that work. So criticism of "Factor" gear may be ridiculous, especially if all the facts are not put forth. Any nation would want to know the truth.
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