Paranoia

Chicago Tribune headline:

“Rush Limbaugh indicates he's evacuating Palm Beach days after suggesting Hurricane Irma is fake news”

Limbaugh says Irma is not as bad as the news media says. He says the media portray the storm as catastrophic only to pump up viewership so they can raise their advertising rates. He advised his listeners to not give too much credence to reports that the storm is very dangerous. Then he high-tailed it out of Dodge for parts unknown.

Meanwhile, Alex Jones of Infowars declared that the US government (specifically, the so-called “deep state”) is artificially increasing the strength of hurricanes and then steering them toward population centers in order to support the global warming “hoax” and the “liberal agenda.” That puts Jones squarely in the Fidel Castro nut-job camp. After Cuba was hit with several strong hurricanes in the 1960s, Castro said the US was directing hurricanes toward his island.

This is what right-wing paranoia looks like when it runs amok. It’s not only stupid, it’s dangerous. But it’s not dangerous for Limbaugh. He knows what’s at stake and he’s doing the sensible thing. But such talk is dangerous for his listeners, some of whom may decide to stay in harm’s way instead of seeking shelter, solely because their favorite talk show host says it will be okay. If there were a national gullibility rating for every country, I really believe the USA would hold first place.