But Tom, Limbaugh was right for once. The first Persian Gulf War were “magical times.” Through the use of deception, a good magician creates false images of reality and suspends our sense of disbelief. He distracts the attention of his audience with smoke, mirrors, colorful silk cloths, hastily-shuffled playing cards, and rapid hand movements. He is thus able to bring into existence things that did not exist before (e.g., weapons of mass distraction destruction), make other things disappear (e.g., people and cities), and transform our discomfort of seeing a woman sawed in half into the imagined fear of a mushroom cloud over an American city. The movie, Wag the Dog, must be one of Limbaugh’s favorites!

The Best of Butler Shaffer