Bill O’Reilly is in a bit of trouble. It would appear he lied about just how close he was to the action, during the Falklands War, which sounds a lot like what happened to Brian Williams.
The obvious difference is that O’Reilly is not an actual journalist, even though people treat him like one.
But the Falklands issue has O’Reilly in usual windbag mode, and it’s as good of an opportunity as any to revisit these 12 incredibly dumb Bill O’Reilly quotes.
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Photo: Fox News
O’Reilly Said Nas Trades In Violence
When Nas appeared at a Virginia Tech benefit in the wake of a campus shooting, O’Reilly said, “Having a rapper who trades in violence perform at Virginia Tech insults the victims, the university and the entire commonwealth.” Some basic research like listening to “I Gave You Power” would’ve prevented him from offering that uninformed opinion, but it appears O’Reilly is more interested in smearing rappers than facts.
O’Reilly Attacks Ludacris And Pepsi
Remember when Bill O’Reilly called Ludacris “degrading to women” 2002? It’s hard to defend a song and video like “P-Poppin’,” but O’Reilly has been pretty degrading to women himself. There’s the matter of O’Reilly’s 2004 sexual harassment suit, which offers some pretty degrading details about the Fox News pundit.
Trayvon Martin “Looked A Certain Way”
In the wake of George Zimmerman shooting Trayvon Martin, O’Reilly said Martin died “because he looked a certain way.” No Bill, Trayvon Martin died because a vigilante with (at best) incredibly stereotypical views about race and class decided to take the law into his own hands despite being told not to do so.
Bill O’Reilly Doesn’t Get Tides
When debating with President of American Atheists, David Silverman, O’Reilly pointed toward tidal patterns saying, “Tide goes in, tide goes out. Never a miscommunication. You can’t explain that.” Actually Bill, anyone regardless of their religious beliefs can explain how gravity and the waning and waxing of the moon impact tidal patterns in about five minutes.
photo: WENN
The (Falsified) War Report
O’Reilly likes to casually tell guests and detractors he was in a combat zone during the Falklands War. By most accounts, it sounds like O’Reilly covered a protest some 1,200 miles away from where the action took place. That would be referred to as pulling a Brian Williams.
Journalist Threats
To add insult to injury, O’Reilly threatened a New York Times reporter for calling him out on his alleged lies about war zone coverage. “I am coming after you with everything I have. You can take it as a threat.” Why threaten a journalist in hopes of ensuring flattering coverage if you have nothing to hide?
O’Reilly Thinks Oprah Runs The World
In a now infamous debate with Jon Stewart, O’Reilly said, “Maybe you haven’t figured out that there is no more slavery, no more Jim Crow, and the most powerful man in the world is a black American, and the most powerful woman in the world — Oprah Winfrey — is black!” Despite Oprah touching a billion, maybe someone should get O’Reilly a copy of Forbes so he can see the world’s most powerful women.
Bill Has A Loose Definition Of “War”
After President Obama’s proposed 2014 executive action to protect undocumented immigrants from deportation O’Reilly said, “President Obama is declaring war on the Republican Party.” Given how he fibbed about his own time during war, maybe O’Reilly just doesn’t understand the term. Besides, not all Republicans feel the same way about immigration.
Trying To Shame Sandra Fluke
Bill O’Reilly insinuated that women only take birth control to go on smashing sprees when he asked Fluke, “You want me to give you my hard-earned money so you can have sex?” This totally ignores issues like some forms of polycystic ovarian syndrome, which are best treated by prescription birth control. And comparing birth control to football uniforms (which O’Reilly also did) is just plain dumb.
Marijuana Legalization
Bill O’Reilly is of the belief that “If you use any intoxicating agent, your goal is to leave reality. You’re not satisfied with your present state of mind. Some adults can handle that on occasion, others cannot. So it’s literally Russian roulette.” It’s figuratively Russian roulette. But even that argument is flawed because it ignores the medicinal treatment of the terminally ill, and O’Reilly trotted out those quotes before immediately pivoting to a different argument about teenage use of marijuana, not adult use.
The Ridiculous Ferguson Debate
O’Reilly sparked off the conservative backlash by trotting out statistics on what he referred to as “black on black crime” and unwed mothers. Lost in the pontificating were the facts that parents don’t have to be married to co-parent, and that skewed statistics don’t remove the need for a discussion about race. But that would’ve made actual sense.
photo: WENN
Why Bill O’Reilly Is Here
Bill said, “I can write. I can bloviate on TV. So I’m trying to use the gifts in a positive way. And I believe that’s all directed. And that’s why I’m here on the planet.” Excuse us? A positive way? If you consider mud slinging, misguided statistics, and bullying guests positive, then have at it Bill.
