Bill OReilly

[texdiveguy]

I think Bill O. is just crazy.

 

[drbill]

Papa Bear!

Hmmm... what's the purpose in bringing my great uncle George Halas and the Chicago Bears into this discussion?

 

[SteveDiver]

Hmmm... what's the purpose in bringing my great uncle George Halas and the Chicago Bears into this discussion?

Sorry, I edited my post and took that out, did not want to offend anyone and I live too close to the old man don't want to start trouble with the neighbors..I just got off on a rant...It's the Italian in me I cannot help it....

 

[drbill]

I respect O'Reily as an intelligent, educated, experienced man with a long history in reporting, and a man of character with a passionate dedication to his moral/ethical belief system using his position to advocate as a news commentator (which he has presented himself as, by the way, not a primary journalist) to advocate for the right & against the wrong, as best he understands it, to hopefully make the world a better place.

I respect that. I think that's what many men & women of integrity would like to do.

I can not respect Bill O'Reilly primarily because he doesn't respect others or their opinions. If we are to have rational discourse and an honest debate between people of differing opinions (remember, diversity is good!), the participants have to show respect for one another. The few times I've watched O'Reilly, he hardly showed respect for others who disagreed with his positions.

Anyone who feels so self-righteous is not a person who will be open to new thoughts, new factual evidence, new opinions in my opinion. I have conservative friends whose positions I respect, and we debate the issues with respect (and a nice glass of our favorite mind-altering beverage)!

 

[H2Andy]

these guys all have their "audiences" that they pander to ... it's all about the ratings, and they know how to play the game

i must say, i saw the immigration Rivera v. O'Reilly shout-out and was very impressed with Rivera ... i'd pretty much written him off as a hack

 

[SteveDiver]

I can not respect Bill O'Reilly primarily because he doesn't respect others or their opinions. If we are to have rational discourse and an honest debate between people of differing opinions (remember, diversity is good!), the participants have to show respect for one another. The few times I've watched O'Reilly, he hardly showed respect for others who disagreed with his positions.

Anyone who feels so self-righteous is not a person who will be open to new thoughts, new factual evidence, new opinions in my opinion. I have conservative friends whose positions I respect, and we debate the issues with respect (and a nice glass of our favorite mind-altering beverage)!

Well stated! Thank you...

 

[Cacia]

must say, i saw the immigration Rivera v. O'Reilly shout-out and was very impressed with Rivera ... i'd pretty much written him off as a hack

Rivera is a pretty good reporter, actually. He just looks obnoxious...

(I'm the audience they pander to, I stop short of e-mailing him though)

I worry about those people.

I do like the way he exposes judges

 

[WI Scuba Dave]

I respect O'Reily as an intelligent, educated, experienced man with a long history in reporting, and a man of character with a passionate dedication to his moral/ethical belief system using his position to advocate as a news commentator (which he has presented himself as, by the way, not a primary journalist) to advocate for the right & against the wrong, as best he understands it, to hopefully make the world a better place.

I respect that. I think that's what many men & women of integrity would like to do.

Given that he has strong opinions & presentation, some people who don't share them won't like them.

I agree with him on quite a bit, & disagree with him on some things.

I've seen a segment or two where the guest did not, in my opinion, have adequate time & opportunity to fully present his/her ideas/position. I think most segments are reasonable, but that there have been some exceptions.

I believe his voice contributes to the public discourse generally in a positive way.

Hi-lighting wrist-slap sentencing for child molestation atrocities is a good example.

Richard.

I think you summed up my feelings on the matter nicely. And like him or not, agree with him or not, I do believe he is honest and believes in his positions. And he is not above admitting when he has made a mistake, or apologizing when he feels he has treated someone unfairly. I respect that.

Also, I tend to find that the people who seem to trash him the hardest have often times had their opinions formed by sources other than actually watching him.

That said, his style can be very ebrasive and rude at times. Especially if he gets frustrated or feels he is being spun or lied to. Yet he can be funny and sensitive as well depending on the subject or guest. Admittedly he is not for everyone.

 

[WI Scuba Dave]

these guys all have their "audiences" that they pander to ... it's all about the ratings, and they know how to play the game

i must say, i saw the immigration Rivera v. O'Reilly shout-out and was very impressed with Rivera ... i'd pretty much written him off as a hack

I am not a Geraldo fan by a long shot and usually find myself disagreeing with his odd mixing of liberal and libertarian views (Although I do respect his support of the troops and his visits to Iraq - (despite his blunder of giving troop positions away on the original push into Baghdad). And while for the most part I agree with Bill O'Reilly's stance on illegal immigration and "sanctuary cities" I believe Bill was wrong in this case and that Geraldo was right.

Edit: I do believe though that Bill O'Reilly's frustration over reporting on so many crimes being commited by illegal aliens who had previously been caught and subsequently released (sometimes over and over) to then commit a more heinous crime is what set him off on this.

 

[WI Scuba Dave]

One example of something I learned? Illegal immigrants have a lower crime rate than US citizens.

I'd be very cautious about taking that as "fact" and I'd actually be interested in where Geraldo got that information - because it is my understanding that neither the FBI nor Justice Department track crimes committed by US citizen perpetrators versus illegal alien perpetrators. Not to mention that within their own communities many crimes by illegal aliens are not reported due to fear of the authorities. So I'm just not sure how he could know that definitively.