There's irony in NPR's firing of Juan Williams

Analyst Juan Williams was fired by National Public Radio for remarks made on the Bill O'Reilly show. Mr. Williams said that he felt nervous when he sees people dressed in Muslim garb on planes. NPR had long disapproved of his appearances on Fox News. This apparently gave them the excuse they needed to hasten his departure.

I am by no means a fan of Juan Williams. He is a Liberal who was frequently at odds with the commentators on Fox News. But it was that open public discourse on a conservative news station that stood in stark contrast to the biased, one-sided news characteristic of mainstream media.

Liberals claim to be open to new ideas and differing views. It is further evidence that they can talk the talk but they can't walk the walk. In a very cold, calculating, and seemingly detached manner, Vivian Schiller dismissed the only black liberal voice for NPR. But Ms. Schiller couldn't stop there. She had to imply that Williams should see a psychiatrist.

There was no outrage from black and minority groups. Conservatives and Fox News immediately stepped in and defended Williams and his right to express his personal feelings and opinions. Fox News has offered him a lucrative long-term contract. The vindictive actions of NPR speak volumes about liberal ideology as do the compassionate and supportive actions of conservatives and Fox News.

To have a liberal organization punish a liberal and a conservative organization come to the defense of a liberal seems just a bit ironic.

Ray Cziczo

Antioch