I had the opportunity to swap vehicles with my parents for a couple of days recently. It actually worked out great for me because besides needing my big truck, Dad was more than willing to run it around and get some service work done on it for me. Meanwhile, I had his ride. Again, very convenient.

The only downside is that the radio in his vehicle is tuned to AM talk radio. Yes, yes… I know how to change the station and/or turn it off. I recognize that this is within my power. Yet I somehow feel that listening to their radio station provides a more holistic experience. It’s a strange bonding of sorts with my parents. All of which leads to my conclusion that my parents are far more heavily medicated than I realize.

My parents are both easy going rather laid back sorts. Oh sure, Mom gets a little anxious from time to time, but it’s more often about whether the new seat cushions will compliment or clash with the carpet then whether or not there is a liberal conspiracy brewing. Yet having subjected myself to only a few short rides with the likes of Michael Savage and Glenn Beck, I’m convinced that only those on near coma inducing doses of Xanax could listen to this stuff and not be in a perpetual state of rage.

One option is to jump on the rage bandwagon from which the snake oil is being peddled by these oratory charlatans. The other is to be enraged that these lunatics are actually attracting rabid followers with this blatant blather. I’m finding it difficult to believe that anyone could listen to these goobers and just find it casually entertaining.

To be clear, I’m not opposed to thoughtful dissent. Our political process is based on it. We need it. But this ain’t it. This is just old fashioned whipping up of the crowd into a lynch mob frenzy. Get them angry enough and they’ll attack anything. It ceases to become about rationality, but becomes about spleen venting. It’s not about having an opposing view, or an alternate plan. It’s simply about being in opposition. It’s one thing to stand for a set of principles, it’s another to stand in opposition to another’s principles. In essence to define yourself as being on the other side, pretty much regardless of what the opposing side does or stands for.

I do recognize that the liberals/progressives have their vocal extremists too. But what I don’t see on the left is the anger that seems so prevalent on the right. I also don’t see people advocating against themselves. Blue collar tea partiers protesting higher taxes they aren’t paying. People who’s golden years will be heavily dependent on Medicare and Social Security warning of socialist policies.

Certainly some (if not most) of the motivation for right-wing talk radio and Fox News is based on ratings, which translates into profit. The anger gains them followers, and that translates to ratings. I’m not convinced Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh are as motivated by politics as they are by profit. But it seems that their profit seeking adventures are having a destructive and divisive effect on politics. Unfortunately, the biggest losers in this are likely to be the Fox loyalists. I certainly support anyone’s right to speak and be heard. So this is only going to get better if people start thinking and stop reacting emotionally to what they hear.

So are my parents drugged? Are they simply hard of hearing? Or does my dad only set the radio up on that station before he loans me the car just to yank my chain? I report. You decide.