Did Keith Olbermann Defend a Monument to the 9/11 Terrorists? No, he didn’t.

Not long ago, Keith Olbermann, of CNBC, gave a long-winded talk regarding the building of an Islamic center near the site of the 9/11/2001 terrorist attacks in New York City.

He made a few good points, but not enough, considering the length of his talk.

But what is more important is that he sought to make some thoughtful points about a very emotional issue. And, he took the unpopular side of the issue.

Well and good. However, this is the same Keith Olbermann who is ready to lie about people who try to make thoughtful points about emotional issues when he disagrees with them!

Several years ago, conservative talk-radio host, author, and movie critic, Michael Medved wrote a piece defending the history of the Unites States regarding slavery. He condemned slavery in the piece, as he has frequently done during his show. However, Keith Olbermann, in response to Medved’s article, called Michael Medved the worst person in the world because he wrote an article defending slavery. Either Olbermann didn’t read the article, or he decided that he could lie about it.

Two of the points that Olbermann made, when discussing the 51Park Islamic Center, were that the Islamic Center is not a mosque, and that it isn’t at ground zero. So, he concludes, there isn’t really a ‘Ground Zero Mosque.’

So, Olbermann is intelligent enough to distinguish between a mosque and a building that includes a prayer room for the same kinds of prayers that happen in a mosque. He is intelligent enough to distinguish between ground zero and two blocks away from the northeast corner of the World Trade Center Complex. So, he ought to be intelligent enough to distinguish between a defense of this great nation with regard to slavery and a defense of slavery itself. He is intelligent enough. But he’s malicious enough to lie about Michael Medved’s article.

Would it be appropriate for someone to say that Keith Olbermann has defended building a monument to Muslim terrorists at ground zero? Of course not! It would be a lie. But, it would be in keeping with Olbermann’s penchant for twisting words.

The point is, if you want to make reasoned arguments about emotional issues, and you want people to take you seriously, then you need to be willing to listen carefully to others who are attempting to do the same, even if you disagree with them. And you should never lie about what they write or say.