If you think the talk-radio host is just an ideological warrior, you've got him all wrong.

Reuters

Said Rush Limbaugh on Thursday:



Yes, this is offensive, but that's not the point. What needs saying is that this isn't politically incorrect conservatism. It's just a hater being gratuitous. It doesn't advance an ideological movement.It's actually just discrediting -- and Limbaugh knows it. He's smart enough to understand that monologues like that earn him a certain kind of attention. The same kind that all shock jocks attract.If conservatives weren't so fanatically loyal to everyone they perceive to be a member of their tribe they'd grasp what's afoot. The man they're always defending isn't a happy warrior for the cause. He's a ratings hound willing to engage in over-the-top misogyny.How to measure his character? This is a grown man whose jokes land at the expense of women whose ankle size he mocks. If you were a mother and he were your son you'd be embarrassed by his uncouthness. If society operated according to the traditional norms he theoretically espouses, he'd get slapped.Yet he's considered a conservative champion. If you think conservatism is inescapably sexist perhaps he's a perfect fit for the role. Others think conservatism is a more noble intellectual tradition.And they should shun Limbaugh.