By Travis Mamone

I never understood why many Christians enjoy conservative pundits like Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, and Michelle Malkin.  It’s not because they report things that contradict my socialist agenda or anything like that.  I’m not against conservatism or conservative media in general; some of my favorite bloggers are conservatives.  No, the reason why I don’t like them is because they are just so . . . nasty.

Last July on “Fox and Friends,” Beck said that he believed that President Obama was a racist with a “deep-seated hatred for white people.”  Despite several advertisers boycotting his show, his popularity keeps growing.  But this isn’t the first time Beck’s said something outrageous.  In the past, he has stated that he wanted to kill Michael Moore, called Cindy Sheehan a “tragedy slut,” and compared Al Gore to Hitler.

While not as popular as Beck, Hannity and Malkin have definitely said some doozies.  On his Fox News show “Hannity and Colmes” in 2005, Hannity once said that “every filthy Democrat in the U.S. Congress” should be tortured at Guatanamo Bay.  And last year, Malkin said that Dunkin Donuts was promoting Islamic terrorism because of a certain scarf Rachel Ray wore in an advertisement.

Now, unless I’m reading it wrong, I’m pretty sure the Bible says not to let “unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”  (Ephesians 4:29)  Further in Ephesians Paul says to get rid of all malice and slander (4:31).  And then there’s Colossians 4:6, which says, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”  So why would a Christian either say or listen to such vile words without blinking?

But then again, sometimes I wonder if I’m guilty of the same crime.

Recently on my blog I named Pastor Steven L. Anderson “D-Bag of the Year.”  While the title might fit—Anderson is the guy who said he prayed that President Obama would die—technically I am calling him names.  Also on Facebook I post a lot of links to stories about outrageous things Beck and others have said, and I usually add a condescending comment saying something like, “Look at this idiot.”  But am I putting myself on their level?  Are my words no longer seasoned with salt?

What do you think?  How do you keep tabs on your words?  Where do you draw the line?

Travis has been a friend of the blog from the beginning. A freelance writer, he’s contributed to Relevant Magazine, Chesapeake Music Guide, Burnside Writers Collective, and many other publications/ Web sites.  He blogs here, here, and here.  According to this Worldview quiz, he’s a communist….which I guess explains why we always have so much to talk about, because according to the quiz, I’m a socialist. :-)