Faith

NY Times Columnist on Beck: ‘I Underestimated the Man’

Ross Douthat begins his latest column with an admission:

Entering this weekend, I was convinced that Glenn Beck’s star was about to go into eclipse.

But the weekend, for Mr Douthat, seems to have been something of a revelation.

This was a tent revival crossed with a pep rally intertwined with a history lecture married to a U.S.O. telethon — and that was just in the first hour.

Read the rest here.

Comments (72)

1 2 3
  • profitsbeard
    Posted on August 31, 2010 at 12:21am

    Obama was too busy to watch 500,000 of his fellow American citizens come to Washington D.C. seeking a peaceful redress of grievances.

    The Vacationer-In-Chief thad o step out for some more shrimp.

    ‘Coz Rev,. Sharpton was stoppping by, hungry.

    And Barry wouldn’t want to start a brawl-ey.

    Report Post »  
  • darcdante
    Posted on August 31, 2010 at 12:12am

    Amusingly, Beck seems to have divided the Left. Many have backed off their attacks and see the value of the weekend rally, even as some others stupidly ask for sex tape donations. Good job, Glenn!

    Report Post » darcdante  
  • BlazeOfGlory
    Posted on August 31, 2010 at 12:05am

    Douthat is a Kathlen Parker style “conservative” writer. He’s not.

    Report Post »  
  • Mirimichi
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 11:45pm

    Glad to see some HotAir posters here.

    Glenn says that he is looking for the next George Washington. Maybe, that is him.

    Report Post »  
  • milo
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 11:22pm

    Not only was the rally epic, but the capitol mall was left spotless. My congrats to everyone on the scene, and in charge.
    65 days to elections days. “Focused like a laser for November.”
    We MUST TAKE this country back, or lose it.

    Report Post »  
    • saneromeo
      Posted on September 4, 2010 at 6:31pm

      I hope that our “laser like focus” isn‘t like Obama’s “laser like focus” on jobs…

      Report Post » saneromeo  
  • vntnrse
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 11:03pm

    What nobody on the left seems to understand is that Glenn was merely saying that God knows what is going on, and God want us to trust in HIM to put it right, but He counts on us to use the intelligence He has given us to do His work here on earth. What is it that all of our preachers say? We are God’s hands and feet? Oh yeah, something like that! God is in control and is letting us know what He wants us to do! He talks to us daily in that still small voice! We must listen!!!

    Report Post »  
  • Buckaroo
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:58pm

    “Read the rest here”

    srsly, u want us to give the nyt the traffic?

    /well, i guess someone should, huh?
    :-)

    Report Post »  
  • Alex
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:43pm

    And he is still underestimating Glenn. And us. He has no idea, not a clue. There is no eclipse going on. In fact, the Sun of Righteousness is about the shine on Glenn and on all of us that are looking for Him. Words are shallow and vain. The Word is the answer.

    Report Post »  
  • j-mac
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:42pm

    The concept of family, heritage, honor, and patriotism is foreign to these people.

    Report Post »  
  • Waiting4George
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:27pm

    Dear Ross,

    I know you thought to stump Beck fans with your verbose liturgy. Between the snideness and hissing in your op-ed you make your minority status clear.Your fear is palpable. By the way, underestimating your readership is a career killer.

    Sincerely,
    H.L. Mencken

    Report Post »  
  • D-D-D-Dave
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:16pm

    “To hell with them fellas. Buzzards gotta eat, same as worms.”

    Report Post » *PATRIOT*GAMES*  
  • WIjoyzie
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:13pm

    Do these so-called journalists “get it”… I doubt it! Even when they show up and listen, they do not hear; they observe the crowd, but do not see individuals.

    “…King, who presumably wouldn’t have cared much for Beck’s right-wing politics…” Didn’t learn from or hear Dr King either!

     
  • d1carter
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:12pm

    Carlos Slim has got more than $1 in this dog called the NYT. How is that working out for you?

    Report Post »  
  • Margie10
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:00pm

    Gay Bee…excellent post!
    The “mostly white” crowd was *probably* pretty representative of the makeup of the US. The other funny comment was how DC had “such a high black population” like that somehow proved the rally was racist! WTH?
    A gal on YouTube was FURIOUS at a commenter that said “Most US taxpayers are white.” She seriously LOST HER MIND!
    The Left will NEVER get it right until they actually LISTEN to Glenn.

    Margie10  
    • Ruz
      Posted on August 31, 2010 at 1:06am

      Good point. One of the panelists on Bret Baier’s program mentioned that nearly every leftist rally/march/protest had mostly white attendees, which makes sense in light of the present racial make-up of the U.S.

      Report Post »  
    • Nicole from CA
      Posted on August 31, 2010 at 2:17am

      How did you add a photo icon with your user name?

       
  • MARY1949
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:42pm

    Guess they are friends with Rham Emanuel. Never let a CRISIS go to waste. NYT is pathetic. Another paper down the drain.
    I never read any links to articles to that disgusting piece of trash. NYT= NATIONAL Enquirer lite.
    LoL

    Report Post »  
  • 30moves
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:40pm

    I think it is great that they are underestimating everything we are doing – they only know the tactics of the left. Heh

     
    • Mama Who
      Posted on September 6, 2010 at 9:17pm

      Just be sure WE don’t underestimate THEM! They know they are losing seats in November. That’s why they are scrambling to make the changes, that couldn’t pass the legislature, through the back door. They are trying to use administrative rules by non-elected bureaucrats to pass cap & trade, outlaw guns, censor free speech, and so on…WE MUST STOP THE CZARS, and outlaw them in future administrations.

      Report Post »  
  • Gay Bee
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:39pm

    “Identity politics?“ Is that like ”racial politics?“ The notion of ”identity politics” is ridiculous in part because too many politicians run around masquerading as something they’re not just to get elected (cue Pat as Arlen Spector). The “rich vein” that Glenn has tapped into is something called the truth. If these journalists were even a tad bit honest they would acknowledge that Glenn’s audience has steadily grown over time, not overnight. Common sense dictates that growing an audience in the manner is an indicator that trust is being built. So while it is easy and convenient to call us names, label us and accuse us of mongering, we listen to the evidence, do our own research, form an opinion, and support those who are honest with us and who espouse similar values. My personal favorite media comment on the RH event came from Politico where one genius said “…many in the predominantly white crowd bent over backward to insist that they are not racists.” I would like to know how exactly he came to this conclusion. Cite your source please. Talk about baseless!

    Report Post » Gay Bee  
  • cookboy
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:38pm

    I think the NYT circulation is in decline.

    Report Post »  
    • extexjb
      Posted on September 1, 2010 at 4:39pm

      It does surprise me to hear someone from the NYT admit this…
      November will be the beginning of the ‘great turn-around’. We cannot allow this DC bunch any more freedom-grabbing in their ‘grand-plan’ of destroying our Republic!

      Report Post » extexjb  
  • Philo Beddoe
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:19pm

    Ross Douthat isn’t the only one who is having a epiphany.

    Nov 2nd is just around the corner

    Report Post » Philo Beddoe  
    • Founder
      Posted on August 31, 2010 at 8:21am

      Unfortunately, I don’t think November 2nd will cause similar epiphanies, on/from the left. Do you think they’ll suddenly say to themselves “Gee, I guess I was wrong about liberalism.”? I don’t see it happening. They’ll just continue the “Americans are obviously stupid” mantra.

       
  • dressseller
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:06pm

    You ‘underestimated the man’? ….Apparently, you didn’t know him like we all know him.

    Report Post »  
  • Skandia Recluse
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:03pm

    NYTimes is to journalism as WWE/WWF is to rasslin’. (Staged, looks pretty, and manufactured)
    Refudiating the NYTimes logic and ideology is tiresome, tedious, and time consuming. Especially frustrating when facts don’t matter.

    Report Post »  
  • KenM2
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:01pm

    It isn’t Beck that was underestimated…it was the American people who were underestimated. All that was needed was a little organization to bring them out in force Douthat, and if you think it was all about Beck, that is the proof that you also underestimate them.

     
    • GeeWhiz
      Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:07pm

      I agree. And that doesn’t even speak to all of the people who wanted to be there, but couldn’t. No one on that side is really paying attention. And the few who straddle the middle are shrieking (like Pat Caddell) and still no one listens.

      This is the problem when you believe your own propaganda. They write stories that the town halls and the tea parties mean nothing, ergo they mean nothing. Except they mean something and they’re not going to get it until the midterms.

      The light at the end of the tunnel is a train marked ‘conservative’ and it’s heading for the station without breaks. Seen the gallup poll today re ‘any rep’ versus ‘any dem’? It’s showing a literally historic trend away from the dems this cycle.

      We can still grab defeat from the jaws of victory, but the trend is amazing. And yet journalists stand there with their thumb in their ears going ‘wha?‘ It’s going to take the midterms, or an asteroid falling on their heads for them to get it.

       
    • Vitarte
      Posted on August 31, 2010 at 12:01am

      Ditto! Exactly right!

      Report Post »  
    • daveoz
      Posted on August 31, 2010 at 8:42am

      “It isn’t Beck that was underestimated…it was the American people who were underestimated” You got that right! Just wait until November.

       
    • guardianforce
      Posted on August 31, 2010 at 1:40pm

      YAY!!!!! You have it absolutely right! It’s the American people who have been underestimated! Glenn Beck, God bless him, gave us all a good swift kick in the butt! His belief in us was never a question. He knew us better than we knew ourselves. His genuine love for God, the Constitution, the U.S.A. and all of us is too foreign for the haters. Let them continue to underestimate. They’ll have a lot of free time soon to try to figure out where they went wrong.

      Report Post »  
    • Stupid Windmill
      Posted on September 13, 2010 at 6:44pm

      If by American you mean 45+ year old white males then I would agree.

      Report Post » Stupid Windmill  
  • Snowbunnie
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 9:00pm

    The trouble seems to be that they are NOT listening, watching anything on the right. Tone deaf and message deaf these lefties. Surprise that the event was a huge success is not limited to lefty observance or comment. Bill O’Reilly also thought only 20,000 would be there. Over 650,000 it seems showed up. This is a wonderful and powerful testament to the fact that most Americans do not share the left’s ideas or view of the country , what it is or where it is going. The people at the event on Saturday ARE America. The left is surprised by this outpouring of sentiment and resolve. They are going to be even more surprised in November.

    Snowbunnie  
    • Jeetman
      Posted on September 6, 2010 at 2:54pm

      SNOWBUNNIE – They are going to be even more surprised in November.

      SO VERY TRUE!!!!

      Report Post » Jeetman  
  • MuadDib
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 8:55pm

    Has he been paying attention to Mr. Beck for the past months? I read similar stories of commentators surprised by the 8/28 rally and the content… just shows those same people who often criticize never actually watch/listen to Mr. Beck. It’s like when I teach and give an example straight from the book, and the students are lost – clear evidence they didn’t do the reading.

     
  • cynccook
    Posted on August 30, 2010 at 8:53pm

    Ugh. The NYT. If Newsweek is worth a dollar, how much is this rag/cyber rag worth? 50cents? The article wasn’t bad, but a quick glance at the comments was enough to send me away from that site as quickly as possible. What a bunch of paranoid liberal non-thinkers.

     
    • 8thAirForce
      Posted on August 30, 2010 at 10:19pm

      “The article wasn’t bad, but a quick glance at the comments was enough to send me away from that site as quickly as possible. What a bunch of paranoid liberal non-thinkers.”

      Isn’t that the truth! Something about Beck and Palin causes the left to absolutely lose every last shred of decency remaining. I’m often embarrassed by their comments.

       
    • n13
      Posted on August 31, 2010 at 12:28pm

      The author’s own words on how NOT to make your star eclipse.

      Glenn Beck’s star was about to go into eclipse…This was a tent revival crossed with a pep rally intertwined with a history lecture married to a U.S.O. telethon — and that was just in the first hour.

       
    • missmarie
      Posted on September 4, 2010 at 12:29pm

      I agree, I enjoyed the article. I was the nasty, negative, uneducated comments that drove me away from the site. Thankfully, I had a place to come home to here at the Blaze. It is so very nice to get to know all of you – except for maybe a few of the trolls. I now know I am not alone in my opinions. Thanks a bunch!

      Report Post » missmarie  
    • Stupid Windmill
      Posted on September 13, 2010 at 6:42pm

      …Wow paranoid non-thinkers?

      What do they call that…

      Uh.. Shameless Irony?

      Report Post » Stupid Windmill  
1 2 3

Sign In To Post Comments! Sign In

Sign Up For Our Newsletter!

Glenn Beck Radio

Listen to Glenn Beck 24/7 Listen Now
Restoring Love