(01-27-2014 01:08 PM)JMUDunk Wrote:  

(01-26-2014 01:45 PM)Fitbud Wrote:  

(01-24-2014 05:36 PM)oklalittledixie Wrote:  The comedy is that not one poster on this thread opposing Glen Beck has even attempted to discredit his material.

Looks like we caught a Beck fan.

Here you go buddy.

#1: Van Jones Fictional Conviction

In his attacks on Van Jones, Beck claimed that Jones was a convicted felon. In the days after Beck's claim, numerous bloggers (including me) pointed out that Jones was arrested, but never convicted of any felony. Four months later, Beck admitted he was wrong and that Van Jones had never been convicted of a felony.

#2: Beck Clams FEMA Prison Camps Exist and Then Changes His Mind

The conspiracy theory of FEMA prison camps was something of an internet legend, which Beck bought in to for a short time. While being hosted on Fox & Friends, Beck announced that he had tried to debunk the FEMA camp myth, only to discover that they really do exist. He promised later on his show to cover the story. Later that day, Beck would begin to backtrack, saying he needed to do more research.

#3: The Hyperinflation Myth

In his promotion of gold, Beck has warned his audience of a coming hyperinflation problem. Under hyperinflation, prices rise uncontrollably and currency essentially becomes worthless. Hyperinflation rates reach 100% or more. Normal inflation rates are anywhere from 3% to 5%. As of June, the United States inflation rate was 1.10%. Many economists are actually concerned about deflation in the future.

#4: The Gold Spike that Never Happened

Beck has continually promoted buying gold on the promise that the price per ounce would rise in the future. After gold exceeded $1,000 per ounce, Beck was still encouraging gold buying (even with the significant markups of his sponsor Goldline). In December 2009, Beck suggested that gold could exceed $1,500 per ounce, or even $2,000 per ounce in the near future. Gold is currently trading at around $1,200 per ounce and has stayed at about that level for the past year. As a result, Goldline customers who listened to Beck and purchased coins with a 30% markup have still not recouped their losses.

#5: Beck's Evolving Support for the Death Panel Myth

In the middle of the health care debate, Glenn Beck first agreed with Sarah Palin that her son Trig would be forced to go before a literal "death panel." Later, Beck would amend himself to say that the death panel was not literal, but would exist in the form of some board which would decide who lives and dies. The death panel myth (both literal and figurative) has now been thoroughly debunked by both partisan and non-partisan organizations. Months after passage of health care reform, not one credible report of any death panel has emerged. The most thorough debunking of the myth can be seen in a video here.

#6: Cars.gov Never Took Over Anyone's Computer

Beck warned his entire audience (not just car dealers) that their computers were in danger of being taken over by the Cash for Clunkers website. Under Beck's theory, the government would be able to control your computer if you went to the Cars.gov website. To date, no reports have emerged of any person's computer (dealer or non-dealer) being taken over through the website.

#7: Beck's Revisionist History of 20th Century Presidents

Beck has claimed that Hoover was a bad President because he tried to spend his way out of the Great Depression. In fact, Hoover's first move was to adopt conservative principles by slashing the budget and restricting the money supply. These moves worsened the Great Depression. Beck also claims the policies of Coolidge led to the economic boom of the 1920's and that Hoover caused the Great Depression. Many economists believe the deregulation implemented by Coolidge led to the financial collapse which started the Great Depression.

#8: Beck Claims DDT is Harmless

In his promotion of DDT, Beck claimed that there was "no" evidence showing DDT was harmful to humans. In fact, I provided at least four studies showing harmful side effects to humans, which include infant mortality, breast cancer, and central nervous system problems.

#9: The Civilian National Security Force

Last year Beck warned of a civilian national security force which was being formed to take over the country. Presumably this force would be used by progressives after some crisis to seize power. If the force does exist, they must be very effective in hiding like ninjas because no reports have emerged of any kind of civilian national security force organized by the government.

#10: Beck Promotes His Eric Massa Interview, Then Backtracks

When former Representative Eric Massa said he had some dirt on the Obama administration, Beck was more than happy to host him on his show. Beck promised his audience stunning revelations from the Massa interview. Instead, the interview turned into a strange spectacle in which Massa often disagreed with Beck and talked about a "ticklefest" incident while in office. In the end, even Beck admitted that the interview was a waste of time.

#11: Beck Somehow Forgets Fox News Promotion of the Shirley Sherrod Story

Finally, just last week Beck argued that Fox News did not report on the Shirley Sherrod story until after she was forced to resign. In fact, the story ran on the Fox News website well before her resignation. The stories run by Fox News followed the narrative of Andrew Breitbart, who accused Sherrod of racially discriminating against white farmers.

If this list does not satisfy Beck, then Politifact also has a very long list of factually incorrect statements made by Beck on his show. Included are false claims by Beck that:

- Andy Stern was the most frequent visitor to the White House.

- The health care bill offers insurance for dogs.

- Less than 10% of President Obama's cabinet has private enterprise experience.

- 45% of doctors say they will quit if health care passes.

- That the director of White House Science and Technology policy has "proposed forced abortions and putting sterilants in the drinking water to contr,ol the population."

In the video below Beck claims that the financial reform bill means the "end of the Republic" and that government can now control every dollar we spend. Beck never cites any part of the bill to support his claim, and thousands of dollars are still being donated to Republican candidates as this article is being published. If Democrats are controlling how every dollar is being spent, they are doing a very lousy job.

That, as stated before, is a very abbreviated list of the times Beck has been wrong. It is also important to note that these are not minor errors. Imagine, for instance, if someone in the Obama administration wrongly accused Beck of being a convicted felon. Beck's other errors involve major predictions regarding the economy, health care, and science. So there. We have now met Beck's challenge to "name" the times when he was wrong. Now we will see if Beck follows through on his promise to "lead his show" with any corrections.

Don't you need to give credit for where ever you lifted this from?