Last week we asked readers to send their love notes and hate mail about Kiro's Dori Monson to us so we could amalgamate them and regurgitate a summary in this virtual vomitorium we call a blog.
Boyo, we got plenty of responses. Love notes? Not so much.
We'd been wondering what to do about Dori. He's always churned up more mail around here than any other single talker. But to tell you the truth, we were not looking forward to listening to him with our porcelain critic's ear for the length of time it would take to give a fair assessment.
(Let's just say he's not exactly our cup of matė. Too annoying. Too many sports. Too many tiresome rants on the same issues, against the same people. We listen to lots of conservatives, so it isn't his politics. We're just elitist liberal, intellectual snobs, who don't really care about football, baseball, basketball, or how Dori's got a hard-on for soccer. We've always been able to hear the crewcut in his voice, and we think he went wrong when the nuns were eliminated as regulars).
So we said, to hell with a fair assessment! Let's ask our readers. And while there were some that could be described as hate mail, many responded with serious analyses! Many just wanted to help. (Others suggested various types of earthen indentations or bathroom fixtures into which they'd like to stuff his head. Still others suggested that his head would need first be pulled from his own anal aperture).
Dori has inspired at least one website devoted to hating him. (It's requisite for national talk hosts, but rarer in Seattle. BlatherWatch friend David Tatelman has a great anti-Dori post on his blog with new information on Dori's interesting personal life. ("interesting" may not exactly be the word for The Monster's life). We weren't surprised to find that Sound Politics, that stiff but stalwart bulwark of bloggy right-wing blather considers Dori the "King of Mid-day Talk in the Northwest" so much, apparently, for the chopped liver that is Michael Medved. Orbusmax has this acrimonious and entertaining email thread between Dori and the PI's Joel Connelly worth a read. It's hard to say who's most peckish, but jeez, Joel's an old guy...
A recurring theme with readers is that while Dori used to be delightful, funny and fresh when he started in the morning at the old KING AM with Pat Cashman and early-on at KIRO; that after that something happened. Words readers used are hateful, hard-edged, annoying, conservative, sarcastic, rancorous, vindictive. We got lots like this:
~~I’ve been listening to KIRO for a long time. I actually remember when Dori did fill-in - replacement shows for other hosts. I liked him! I was delighted when he got his own show. But something changed, and it wasn’t me.
~~I used to think Dori was a good guy and he was, at first. I've listened to him since he was working with Pat Cashman at KING 1090, and I remember the births of all his children. He seemed like such an all-around good guy, funny and smart.
~~I too am troubled by Monson's 180 turn about since 9/11. It seems so sudden and abrupt that I always said it had the vague whiff of consultant brimstone about it. Somehow the conversion since then has never struck me as sincere. It's like somebody told him, "You do this and we'll go national." It just all comes off so forced.
~~Like others, over time, I felt the tone of Dori's show changed and in a way that began to make his show irritating to me and much less compelling.
~~It is not Dori's political stripe that caused me to eventually turn off Dori. For very similar reasons, I also reached the point where I also turned off Mike Webb when Mike began to turn up the volume on his rudeness to callers and began to increase his mocking tone toward those he disagreed with. Dori and Mike shared a propensity for rudeness and a mocking tone that I find very distasteful and aggravating.
Before we get too far into all this- here's what readers appreciate about The Dorster. Out of 66 responses, we post here all (7) of the accolades- most of the praise is faint, but praise nonetheless:
~~I listen to him frequently in the pm. I like his smarmy little sense of humor, but I turn him off when he goes on one of his "personal responsibility" rants.
~~I hate this cruel attitude about people that Dori smugly spews forth on a daily basis, but again, I do like his general "political incorrectness" style of saying things that many people feel inhibited from saying. Bottom line of Dori- he's OK, despite his many failings.
~~I kind of like Dori, although I do consider myself politically liberal. But take away issues like the war, Bush, and about half of what he says about Sound Transit, I kind of find myself agreeing with the guy more often than not. Maybe that means there's something wrong with me, but so be it.
~~One thing Dori did for me directly: I'm a cyclist, and about five years ago I was about to ride STP for the very first time. And to be honest, I had a great amount of trepidation about it. But about a week or two before the ride, Dori did his bungee jump, (and maybe to the dismay of some) he survived. So I figured if Dori can bungee jump, I can ride STP. And I did, and I succeeded. Since then, I've ridden it two more times, and succeeded. And I intend to do it again this year, and hopefully succeed. This might be hard for a lot of people to maybe even stomach, BUT DORI HELPED ME CONQUER MY FEAR! SO, GOD BLESS YOU, DORI...well, at least to a certain extent.
~~How can you not love Dori? A decade ago when I was in college, one of the topics that Dori discussed was a man who flashed his bare ass at an elderly neighbor who often complained about his behavior. I am sorry to say that I am not that man, but during the "You be the Jury" discussion tha followed I called in to say that flashing one's bare ass is actually symbolic speech and as such should be protected by the first amendment the same as flag burning. Dori quipped, "Speaking of burning, have you ever lit a fart? I saw a guy do this when I was in college..." Way to go Dori, you are always raising the intellect of Seattle radio.
~~The first couple of weeks I listened to Dori I had a bad grumbling in
my gut. Why did this guy’s voice grate on my nerves so badly? Then it
dawned on me – he sounded exactly like I did on the radio…when I was 15
years old. Yikes. It was déjà vu all over again! I’ve gotten over that
– and now find him hard working and often entertaining, if a bit self
possessed with his importance as a ‘talk show host’.
~~
I actually like Dori's show for the most part, it seems to be well
prepared and usually interesting, except for the sports stuff which
gets old fast.
Here are some miscellaneous favorites:
~~I refer to the 12-3 KIRO radio show as the "I-me-my" show; all Dori, all the time.
~~Dori's greatest ambition was achieved when he made Fox News carrying the ashes of a dead man to the Superbowl.
~~He likes himself way more than I like him.
~~Dori highlights what a classy guy Dave Ross seems to be.
~~Woman rarely call into his show, and most of the callers that do get through seem to be selfish, simple minded and non-curious. It leads me to believe the bulk of his audience is made up of such people, and thus they are the type of people he primarily appeals to. He's like the leader to a local secret society of Neanderthals.
~~His intro music seems, um, ambiguously gay.
~~He started the trend of calling his show the "big show", leading John Prococcino to call his show the "gigantic show". Both shows are roughly three hours in length and have no tangible volume.
~~He's petty and small. He gawked ad nauseum about Celine Dion mispronouncing the word "helicopter" as "helicopster" and singing a song for the victims of hurricane Katrina, which is ironic seeing as he, in his own weird way, mispronounces it "halicopter", along with any number of other words.
~~Firstly, Dorky Monson has no balls (at least worthy of procreating a male since he has only females in his family). Secondly Michael Savage does!
His being a Dispassionate Conservative is a frequent criticism. (we need to say in his defense that anyone who can serve as a celebrity judge in a Bonsai Potato Growing Competition can't be totally evil.) Here are some samples.
~~He loves to toot his own horn by saying that if he could make the big bucks anbody can. It doesn't matter if you were born with a crystal meth addiction and your parents were trying to sell you off in the Denny's parking lot as a toddler because they just couldn't pay the bills on $500 a month social security while sporting a chronic mental illness. According to Dori you still have as good of chance at making it big as any privileged, well connected, preppy from the suburbs.
~~According to Dori if you're one of the millions of starving American children- your parents just made poor decisions.
~~I listen to Dori Monson right up to the point when he: 1. Mocks people in a very personal way (e.g. calling Celine Dion "horse face") 2. Goes off on a caller who mistakenly uses a wrong word, a wrong phrase, etc. Usually when he is losing an argument. 3. Obsesses on Sound Transit or Ron Sims.
~~This guy is obviously a Libertarian...[who are] very conservative people [with] no compassion for anyone else on the planet...at least when it comes to paying taxes in order to take care of the inevitable 10% who, for whatever reasons, cannot help themselves....I hate this cruel attutude about people that Dori smugly spews forth on a daily basis.
~~The incident that was the final straw for me was the day about a year ago sometime in the spring when Dori started a "topic" about a man who had attempted to commit suicide by using a gun and failed to actually kill himself. In typical Dori style, Dori ranted, laughed and mocked this man talking about what a screw-up he was...I was genuinely sickened, saddened and shocked that... he continued to talk on; laughing and mocking...I wrote Dori that evening to express my shock and my anger. I also talked about Dori's liberal use of language like "nut job" and "whack job" to describe describe people with whom he disagrees. I pointed out to Dori the insensitivity of his approach to this topic and also toward people with mental illness. To his credit, Dori promptly responded. (He has always been polite in responding to my emails.). He said his "humor sometimes "misses the mark". He talked about wanting to return to some of the topics I had mentioned that I enjoyed when I first started listening to him: goal setting, lighter "fun" subjects, and his summer adventure series. For awhile I naively felt that Dori might truly have heard my message. Part of the reason I was so stunned by Dori's comments that day, was that Allen Prell had talked with great sensitivity about the mentally ill the same morning. I couldn't help but notice the marked difference between the two hosts. Not long after the email exchange, Doria gain mockingly talked about someone who tried to commit suicide. I was shocked. I foolishly believed he was sensitive enough to see how insensitive such "humor" is. I decided that I could no longer listen.
~~Dori WAS a good guy but something really ugly has happened to him lately. I wish it were a case of just being "the guy we love to hate" but it goes way beyond that. Over a year ago, he was talking about elections and whether or not homeless people should be able to vote. He called the homeless of Seattle "human garbage."
~~Another symptom of his arrogance and the way he's convinced he could never been wrong is a conversation he had with a black woman a few years ago. The subject was whether or not racism was getting worse in America, and Dori, a VERY white man, tried to tell the African-American woman that she was WRONG, and that racism doesn't exist any more.
~~I thought I was hearing someone who genuinely had heart. Dori readily admits to being a soft touch. We've all been touched and have heard him cry on the radio. Were the tears real or was this just radio entertainment? Are the listeners being played? Dori starts his "Big Show" the same way every day. The "brutal combat" line began to feel more true every day.
Dori's ubiquitous endorsements ads are a source of listeners' ridicule and disdain:
~~I am also sick to death of hearing him on commercials. Enough already!!
~~I am actually to the point where I, on the rare occasions I listen to KIRO, will turn the volume down to avoid a Monsen commercial. I’m willing to bet that his co-workers can’t stand him!!
~~I don't begrudge him hustling to make some extra income by doing commercials; he's got kids who probably need to be put through college. If it really bothers me, I can turn it off.
~~I do find it amusing how he portrays himself as a jock, fit dude and then I see him on TV in a Lazy-Boy commercial AND HE HAS A GUT!! What a joke.
~~I honestly do not think I could ever buy a gutter, an invisible fence, a mortgage or a bamboo floor from one of the companies Dori's does ads for. He has no trust or credibility with me. I can't imagine that I am the only listener who has this same negative association.
Seattle Weekly columnist Geov Parrish sent in this anecdote:
I've appeared on KIRO a lot over the years. But the only time I've ever been invited onto Dori's show was a few years ago when I wrote a column, pegged on the early fundraising efforts to create what would become Air America, on the need for and commercial viability of liberal talk radio. In doing so, I surveyed what was available for Seattle talk radio at the time, noting that it was overwhelmingly conservative in an overwhelmingly liberal radio market. In doing that, I mentioned KIRO's uneven lineup, including the "Neaderthalic Dori Monson."
Well, Monson's producer called me up and asked me to come on his show to talk about the prospects for liberal talk radio. Dori, it seemed, didn't think it was remotely possible, because liberals (accuording to him) never had facts on their side and so could not construct compelling arguments on air. But when I actually came on the show, that was the last thing Dori wanted to talk about. Instead, he wanted to pillory me for calling him a Neanderthal. To me, it was (and is) a self-evident description of both his on-air style and his politics, and on the hour in question he'd begun it with a pre-produced bellow that sounded an awful lot like a caveman to me. I said as much, and I also mentioned that "Neanderthalic" is an adjective, a description that he might not agree with, but not an epithet. But primarily I kept trying to draw the discussion back to liberal talk radio -- what I'd been invited to talk about in the first place.
Dori would have none of it. He feeling were hurt, liberals could only call people names, blah blah blah. And then, once I was off air, he spent the next hour and a half continuing to pillory me, and by extension all liberals, for having called him a name. He, in effect, spent all hat air time calling *me* names -- over one adjective.
The punch line, of course, is that now there is commercial liberal talk radio -- and even though he's not local, in the latest ratings KPTK's syndicated Ed Schulz kicked Dorii's ass. Karma.
Lots of BlatherWatchers don't like his politics (imagine that!)
~~When his show is being light, his topics are fun......but when he is doing political stuff, it blows!
~~The whole Dori situation comes down to a couple of things- his constant whining about some government decision that might cost him a few pennies and nickles
~~He will rant about name-calling liberals, while he is calling them idiots.
~~I haven't listened to smug Dori since Bush first started his Iraq war
dance rhetoric and dumb Dori supported Bush's folly, after that I
turned KIRO off anytime I heard his condescending voice, in a
commercial even. I just wonder if hates-taxes Dori is just thrilled to
pieces with the cost of Bush's Iraq fiasco war. Finally, I turned Kiro
off permanently, on Sept 21, 2005 when they fired Allen Prell.
~~He turned too conservative after he shared time with Michael Medved.
~~He has toned it down somewhat since the Bush ship is sinking fast but of course continues to bash Christine G.
~~ a few years ago. Dori was spouting off about Ron Sims on his show,
and Ron went down there unannounced and went on the show. During that
visit, Dori invited Ron to come back on later for a longer, scheduled
interview. Ron accepted, KIRO heavily promoted the showdown, and KING 5
actually came down and filmed it. Dori got flack from his audience for
being too soft on Ron during that appearance.
The 50,000 watt EGO
~~I can’t listen to Dori because it’s always all about Dori. Even my
husband, who is at the opposite end of the political spectrum from me,
can’t stand him.My favorite example was when Dori got an interview with
the winners of the Amazing Race. The winners, Uchenna and Joyce, were
very popular competitors and it was great to see them win. Dori played
basketball with Uchenna years ago, and managed to get them to agree to
call in for an interview. I don’t listen to Dori, but I’m a big Amazing
Race fan, and heard the interview teased on the morning drive-time
news. After teasing the interview for hours it only lasted for only a
few minutes, and the ENTIRE INTERVIEW was taken up with Dori talking
about how he and Uchenna used to play basketball together. Adventures
in foreign lands? How did they handle the stress and still stay nice
to each other? Future plans? All those subjects weren’t important
because, as always, it’s all about Dori.
~~Dori reminds me of that neighbor we all know and go out of our way to avoid. The guy with lots to say but totally uninterested in what anyone else thinks.
~~Being an old, retired radio guy who spent over twenty years in the Seattle market I have to say that Dori comes off as perhaps the most conceited personality that I've heard since the late Bob Hardwick.
~~My feeling is that his modest success went to his head and he became the “know it all and do what I do” pain in the ass he is today. His political views I can live with, so poorly thought through that they’re amusing, it’s his obvious bigger than life ego that makes me reach for the tuning knob.
I thought about writing something, but in keeping with my theory of the empty fridge, I didnt.
Looks like everyone else just about covered it.
Fascinating...thanks Michael. This is an interesting analysis.
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 05:44 AM
Up and Down Left and Right ! In Your Face !!! Scary hairy Gary ! Late night on your Dial And his side Kick the wonder chimp ! 710 kiro from 1:00am too 5:00am & Hand Signs for the deaf .
Posted by: Brian Lacey | March 14, 2006 at 06:45 AM
Dori rips local politicos to shreds, indulges in the politics of personal destruction, labels all politicians as crooks, thieves, incompetents, etc., and then he wonders why they don't want to come on his show. Duh!
He has a very ugly habit of, when he finally CAN lure someone onto his show, being polite to their faces and then, once they're off the air and can no longer defend themselves, deriding them and calling them every name in the book. Isn't that what bullies do?
A while back he came perilously close to liabel/slander (I can never remember which is which) when he started to insinuate that the goings-on of Sound Transit where perhaps illegal, with hints that he thought certain people were "on the take". I'm guessing the KIRO legal department slapped him upside the head and warned him to knock it off if he didn't want to share Mike Siegel's fate, because he never mentioned it again.
Posted by: Dana | March 14, 2006 at 08:55 AM
NEW RULES:
~~KEEP THESE STRINGS CLOSER TO TOPIC- ESPECIALLY IN THE FIRST 1--20 POSTS.
~~NO MORE LONG ARTICLES PASTED INTO THE THREADS... PLEASE LINK. SPARKY: HERE'S THE DEAL- I BLOG, YOU RESPOND.
Posted by: blathering michael | March 14, 2006 at 10:19 AM
my apologies oh Master Blogger :-)
but you dont have to yell, ya know.
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 10:31 AM
I like the observation that so many of I-did-do-it-you-can-do-it anti-compassionate conservative types don't appreciate the advantages they had in they their upbringing: being white, being male, speaking perfect english, having been gifted with talents, or being smart.
"Hard work" will not make everybody smart, and because not everybody is super smart, and because not every person is psychologicaly 100% baggage free you can't expect everybody to make good decisions with good consistancy.
The mistaken belief that everybody is equaly capable is one of the most gaping flaws in conservative logic.
A psychological dissorder might be more responsible for the success of some convervatives over smarts or wisdom. Narcissism, obsessive compulsive dissorders and sociapathy can lead a person to use over-agressive business tactics, pay too much attention to work and too little to play.
Posted by: Andrew | March 14, 2006 at 10:47 AM
you know how I feel about you, Spark...
Posted by: blathering michael | March 14, 2006 at 10:51 AM
I love this!!!! It is so overdue!
He is racist and sexist - uppity African Americans like Ron Sims and that former, local NAACP head he baited all the time - and uppity women like Christine Gregoire who don't submit to men - he can't leave them alone.
People like Dorky put the ugly in Ugly American.
Posted by: John | March 14, 2006 at 10:53 AM
WBAL is not the first station to cancel Limbaugh. That honor goes to the old KING-AM, which dumped him back in the 1980s, on instruction from one of the Bullits.
Interesting how Limbaugh's people have conveniently "forgotten" about that.
Posted by: rev | March 14, 2006 at 11:03 AM
The all upper case post is a bit much
Posted by: chris | March 14, 2006 at 11:46 AM
Sparky,
I enjoyed the article, even if it was misplaced.
(I'm sure everyone's dying to know now what it was...)
Posted by: Seabeck | March 14, 2006 at 11:58 AM
heh..well in my mind Dori=ass and Rush=ass so I posted the article. I thought it was another open thread.
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 12:04 PM
It's kinda irritating how the news guys say "lets go to [jim/bob] for [traffic/weather/together]" and then they say "thanks for that report [jim/bob]" and it's so, so obvious they are thanking a tape recorder, and that they are refering to the tape recorder by the name of the person's whose recording will be played. They realy need to polish that up.
Posted by: Andrew | March 14, 2006 at 12:15 PM
Tuff to do with one company, Metro Traffic and many stations having their traffic nearly at the same time (maybe this is a topic for the Dori Monson show) Kiro still does live traffic but not as much during the Dori Monson show. (keeping on thread here) If Dori had his own helo, he could do traffic and middle age, neo-con anger together, on the 7's!
Posted by: chris | March 14, 2006 at 12:49 PM
just keep in mind, dori is probably happy as a pig in muck with all this attention.
Of course getting a liberal in a huff is about as hard as making a newborn cry.
What's more ugly? Dori's purely harmless blather, or a democratic leadership that didn't meet a tax they didn't like?
One seems fine to the average reader here, the other sends them into hysterics.
Oh, it's ok Ron (the democratic god) only wants 8 million to move into his new offices, but Dori should be fired for pointing it out!!!
Posted by: asfdasdf | March 14, 2006 at 12:52 PM
I can't confirm that Dori or his listeners are familiar with use of the internet.
Posted by: Andrew | March 14, 2006 at 01:00 PM
Wow... Now let's see... Dori's a racist, sexist, ass, egocentric talk show host who doesn't care about anybody but himself...
Seems to me these are the type of rants you hear from people who don't let facts get in the way of their opinion...
I would bet that most of these people are so deeply embedded in left wing ideology, that anything that remotely disagrees with their beliefs sends them into a rage...
Posted by: Joe | March 14, 2006 at 01:25 PM
Obviously Joe, it has some affect on you.
Posted by: chris | March 14, 2006 at 01:39 PM
Joe said Seems to me these are the type of rants you hear from people who don't let facts get in the way of their opinion
This remark was found in a 100% fact free post. The author know himself all too well.
Posted by: Andrew | March 14, 2006 at 01:51 PM
Thanks for the link, Michael! I found it interesting how many people were upset about the Celine Dion quote Dori kept making fun of. He also did a similar thing with John Dean, playing the famous "Aaargh" sound about a mllion times. The one that really got to me, however, was the tape of Paul Berendt getting choked up. I thought it was really cruel of Dori to keep playing that. Berendt did not deserve that treatment.
Posted by: David Tatelman | March 14, 2006 at 02:18 PM
"I thought about writing something, but in keeping with my theory of the empty fridge, I didnt.
Looks like everyone else just about covered it.
Fascinating...thanks Michael. This is an interesting analysis."
Jeez, Sparks, I would have attributed at least half of such incisive comments to your lethal pen...Rats! I hate to be wrong!
Posted by: Fremont | March 14, 2006 at 02:30 PM
It may very well be true that Dori is as happy as a pig in muck with all this attention. All this chatter might indeed boost his ratings. He is in the spotlight for the day. But if at the end of the day, Dori hears recounted back to him the stuff we've read here - the on-air instances of cruelty, insensitivity, mocking, joking and humor at the expense of others and this pleases him and makes him proud of his show and his behavior, well, I am simply left speechless. I don't know what makes this guy tick. I assume that the blathering one did run the emails by Dori as he said he would. I haven't heard that Dori has denied any of these accounts. I'd like to believe that reading this stuff made public might cause Dori for just a moment or two to think about his behavior, what he communicates and what that says about him. But I'm not gonna hold my breath...
Posted by: Cyn | March 14, 2006 at 02:38 PM
Fremont...Im in detention.
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 02:46 PM
Ok, seriously, Fremont..It has truly been years since I have listened to Dori, so I didnt think I had anything pertinent to add. I was pretty sure there were enough people out there who could do the job, and I was right.
I have bigger fish to fry :-)
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 02:48 PM
Joe, I didn't realize that cruel and mocking comments and jokes at the expense of others had anything to do with left-wing ideology, right-wing ideology or any ideology at all. I don't like that kind of humor or "entertainment" whatever or whomever the source. It has absolutely nothing to do with political views.
Posted by: Cyn | March 14, 2006 at 02:57 PM
we'll do Rush soon...his being kicked off WBAL is indeed a big deal. I don't mean to yell but the band width taken by huge cutnpastes is stretching my account limits. Lets just try to link and sum up.
Posted by: blathering michael | March 14, 2006 at 03:05 PM
Bottom line: Dorky is a raging narcissist.
Posted by: John | March 14, 2006 at 03:45 PM
Dana, absolutely agree with your whole post! I listened to Dori (long time ago now) when he interviewed a totally nice guy whether you agreed with him or not who was advocating not replicating yourself! He actually was suggesting we quit having kids and start to eliminate ourselves from the planet.
Okay, I actually understand where this guy is coming from and even have some empathy with his cause. I think animals are much less destructive to the planet! And I love nature!
Anyway, Dori kept trying to bait him by his usual stupid tactics, but the guy - obviously used to being mocked - just went with it. Dori was totally frustrated and finally stopped the so-called interview. It wasn't an honest interview; Dori just wanted to get the guy's goat.
So, Dori sort of abruptly dismissed him and went on to say that he hoped the guy would disappear from the planet . . . and other comments in that vein. It was pretty disgusting, disrespectful, vulgar, and just plain mean. That is actually the last time I listened to him for even ten-fifteen minutes. I was done.
Sparky, I love your articles and columns and we are sympatico politically. Too harsh, Michael.
Wish I could post the equation for the linking . . . everytime I try, it doesn't show.
Posted by: joanie | March 14, 2006 at 03:56 PM
I just had to add that seeing Hartmann and Schultz kick booty is just so satisfying! And that Schultz who I think is really very ordinary gains a larger audience than our glib little bully on KIRO gives me hope in human nature again. YES!
Posted by: joanie | March 14, 2006 at 04:04 PM
heh..well, bandwidth is expensive...I will just post links from now on.
(Unless Michael pisses me off and then I will post the entire Magna Carta..in Latin.)
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 04:09 PM
Here's my take on Mr. Monson. I remember when Dori first started at KIRO. His right turn occurred when KVI started gaining ground on KIRO.
As I recall, Dave and Dori were very close to each other on major issues.
KIRO had to find a right winger to stave off KVI. At the time it was either Dave or Dori.
Does anyone believe Dave Ross would become someone he's not, for a buck?
So Dori started edging to the right, creating seperation between himself and Dave, and the rest is history.
I gave up on Dori long ago, he was just too annoying to listen to. His rants and raves were mostly ridiculous, and not thought through very well.
For instance, he would rant and rave about the high taxes in this state and how the taxes and "business climate" were driving Boeing and other companies out of the state, destroying the economy, and throwing thousands out of work.
What a load of manure. This state has a strong economy, unemployment is LOW, companies are thriving, and MOVING here.
Boeing moved a few hundred souls to Chicago, in a thinly disguised attempt to kiss the ass of the Majority Leader in the House of Representatives. Nothing more, nothing less.
Yup, the Democrats are doing such a horrible job of governing, that our state's economy has rarely been better. Go figure.
So much for Monson's critical thinking abilities.
What I don't understand, is why those who dislike his show continue to listen? Who is the bigger fool?
Just ignore KIRO and they'll be forced to make changes. Why change if enough fools are listening?
Schultz is definately a breath of fresh air and worth a listen, and KOMO has baseball.
So nothing is really forcing you to listen to Monson, other than a perverse urge to witness the radio equivalent of a bloody train wreck everyday.
Posted by: ADC | March 14, 2006 at 05:55 PM
I'll stand firmly on what I said before. Anyone with any sense can recognize that this blog is dominated by a totally liberal, progressive, left wing point of view who hate Dori for what ever reason. Some of the reasons people pointed out are just ridiculous. Racists? Sexist? That's total bull shit.
Some people criticize him for going after some of our local politicians who brought us wonderful programs such as Light Rail (way over budget & doesn't reduce traffic), The Sounder North cost per passenger per year = $33,700 average over the next 22 years... see CETA Article (and the current year is much worse), the now defunct monorail program that most recently announced that it stands to profit from the land it bought (ripped off) from Seattle residents and businesses and the list just goes on and on.
As far as I'm concerned, you can hate Dori for having a big ego or just for being annoying, but get real. I don't always agree with him, but his contribution and foresight has been dead on in most cases about our local politicians and I for one am sick of the way they have continually been sticking it to the tax payers and flushing our money down the toilet.
Posted by: Joe | March 14, 2006 at 05:57 PM
"Boeing moved a few hundred souls to Chicago, in a thinly disguised attempt to kiss the ass of the Majority Leader in the House of Representatives. Nothing more, nothing less."
I had a friend that worked pretty high up in the Boeing hierarchy and he said that Phil's divorce had a little to do with the move also. Take it for what it is worth . . . (you never know:)
". . . but his contribution and foresight has been dead on in most cases about our local politicians and I for one am sick of the way they have continually been sticking it to the tax payers and flushing our money down the toilet."
I agreed with Dori on the transit thing although I'm now on the fence regarding Sound Transit. But the monorail thing was a far-fetched idea from the get-go and I agreed with him.
But, being right on one or two items is a far cry from the omniscient characterization you provide him.
Thank goodness, most people listen to Dave Ross who has a whole lot more gray matter than Dori and did the right thing on the last initiative. Sometimes, Joe, taxes need to be levied. It takes some critical thinking to work that out, I know.
BTW, your last name isn't Sixpack by any chance?
Posted by: joanie | March 14, 2006 at 06:38 PM
We are 33 comments in so I hope this is okay:)
Sparky, NY Times today article on panthers in Florida:
". . . in its new report, the agency calls preserving panther habitat in South Florida its top priority. Yet construction has just begun on Ave Maria, a new town that will hold a Catholic university and up to 30,000 people, on 5,000 acres of panther habitat bordering Big Cypress National Preserve and the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge."
They are building that town on prime wilderness . . . I will never buy another Dominos Pizza - ever, ever, ever. :(
I wonder if Dori will talk about this?
Posted by: joanie | March 14, 2006 at 07:25 PM
Noooo...that guy has not owned Dominos for a long long time..he sold it several years ago, and the company has spent the ensuing time trying to rid themselves of his reputation. You can buy the pizza.
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 07:36 PM
Dorky Fraud'son!
This guy must go. This simpleton is convinced that we can all be like him because of our choices.
Does this guy report the free gifts he receives from sponsors on his tax returns? Gifts like bamboo floors, that god-damn invisible fence, pet food, gutter helmets, the cheap crap they give him at Stupid Prices (remember it's not a dollar store). I would love to hear that he was audited by the IRS. He would cry on the air that it was a conspiracy because of his views on air!
It is also amazing that like all the pro-Iraq War people that talked in favor of this war in 2003 for days and days and days...you never hear a word about the war anymore...it has simply disappeared off Dori's radar...much like the WMD's themselves. This guy wouldn't serve a day in the service.
So much for a free market guy. Today he was threatening a home mortgage company to stop sending him email solicitions otherwise he will have his "listeners" flood the company with phone calls.
Does this guy think he's Caesar?
Posted by: The Anti Kiro | March 14, 2006 at 08:05 PM
For every anti-Dori comment out there is a positive Dori Monson comment. This blog has done him a great service by garnering him all of this attention. His ratings will go up, even if he is on KIRO. Ross may be more intellectual in areas, but his critical thinking skills are MIA about a number of partisan Democrat issues.
Dori's critical thinking is the one thing that I like about him - and just because liberal ideologues don't agree with him - I challenge you to refuse with substantive facts some of his positions you doth protest too much. The governing and the politicians of Seattle are attrocious and someone needs to tell it like it is. Political correctness is not his long suit, so sorry Joanie, Andrew, Sparky and others who have ripped on him.
Posted by: KS | March 14, 2006 at 08:06 PM
Who the fuck would call a company on Dori's behalf!
Posted by: The Anti Kiro | March 14, 2006 at 08:07 PM
KS
Who the fuck are you? The guy preaches that he's a Libertarian but threatens a business that sends him spam that he will flood the phone bank...so much for 21st century marketing in a free market.
Also Libertarians don't give a fuck about the "mornig after pill." Dori said that a pharmacist has the right to deny the completion of a prescription even if required by his boss.
Libertarians are against all smoking laws. Dori wants to make cigarettes illegal. You jerk.
Posted by: The Anti Kiro | March 14, 2006 at 08:10 PM
The guy is not a Libertarian. Anybody who will "give away" Key Arena is not a Lobertarian.
He's an ignorant fool that plays to the "dumbing down of America crowd" and somehow got through the cracks.
Dori will be off the air this year.
Posted by: The Anti Kiro | March 14, 2006 at 08:13 PM
" I challenge you to refuse with substantive facts some of his positions you doth protest too much."
What are they?
"The governing and the politicians of Seattle are attrocious and someone needs to tell it like it is."
Nothing like a broad-brush to tell it like it is. What are you talking about? Who are you talking about? Some specifics please.
"Ross may be more intellectual in areas, but his critical thinking skills are MIA about a number of partisan Democrat issues."
So now "critical thinking" (as if you even know what that means) is a partisan concept?
You show your lack of critical thinking quite often, KS.
Posted by: joanie | March 14, 2006 at 08:26 PM
If you go back and read CAREFULLY, you will see many comments relating how he treats his callers and guests. That transcends politics.
Posted by: sparky | March 14, 2006 at 08:27 PM
"The governing and the politicians of Seattle are attrocious and someone needs to tell it like it is."
And yet they keep getting elected, so it must be a conspiracy against you if one city is big, bad and corrupt and no one listens to you?
Posted by: chris | March 14, 2006 at 08:49 PM
Anti KIRO - Who the hell cares about your anti- libertarian bias ? No, dude I asked you what are your substantive facts - nothing but personal attacks because you have nothing. Your assertions about him are fascinating and alot of hot air - show us the weblinks with your assertions if you have them. My suspicion is that alot of you here take him too seriously - I see his humor as tongue in cheek and appealing to those who are politically incorrect. If you have a problem with him, why the hell do you listen to him - get a life !
I don't live in Seattle so I don't have to put up with its corruption and ludicrous government - I don't care that much. So let it keep trying to emulate San Francisco ! YAWN.
"So now "critical thinking" (as if you even know what that means) is a partisan concept?"
It isn't a partisan concept, but it parallels partisanism here - get a clue. If you don't believe it, go back and re-read the posts here.
Posted by: KS | March 14, 2006 at 09:24 PM
KS
Could I be any clearer:
Dori is a simpleton. He is not intellectually honest.
1. Libertarians are pro-choice...it's a fact many right wingers cringe at. Dori's anti abortion.
2. Libertarians allow the free market to dominate. Dori is against eminent domain.
3. Libertarians favor social liberties. Dori's wants cigarettes illegal.
I can continue but since Dori will be off the air soon...it's moot.
Posted by: The Anti Kiro | March 14, 2006 at 10:10 PM
The worst part is Dori says he's only anti-abortion because of a personal experiance he'd had. In other words: his personal experiances determine his expectations of everybody else.
And it's consistant with his "if I can do it anybody can do it" world view, shared by so many upper middle class white men. He believes everybody else is just a less succesfull Dori. He's shocked an amazed that we aren't all hawking products to support ourselves.
Who's suprised a man with limited command over logic mistakes good ratings for intelectual validation? He's just like ExDem in that he's certainly 50% correct, but think's he's 100% spot on the money about everything and therefor he knows what's best for everybody. News flash: personal experiance are personal. You can't justify public policy with personal anecdotes.
Posted by: Andrew | March 14, 2006 at 10:33 PM
As I m about to critique Styble's show tonight, I am dumbfounded that the 2 shock jocks are still employed at KIRO. These guys are so clueless and the subject matter is so lifeless and irrelevant, I almost believe it's an act.
What kind of topics are these: Living with Mom at 30? Come on!
Iraq is falling into a civil war. Bird flu is swelling throughout the world. India is accelerating its nuclear arsenal. Katrina victims are STILL homeless.
KIRO is not a news/talk station. It's bubble gum for the "dumbing down of America" crowd.
Posted by: The Anti Kiro | March 15, 2006 at 12:57 AM
"upper middle class white men"
Wrong -- Dori doesn't have any class.
Posted by: Dana | March 15, 2006 at 06:59 AM
Good morning comrades... I don't live and die to be on this or any other blog, but I have to address some comments to a couple of my fellow contributors...
>> KS: Your thoughts art an island of hope in a sea of doom and gloom... But I'll disagree with you on your statement that "For every anti-Dori comment out there is a positive Dori Monson comment" ...at least, not on this blog...
>> Joanie: I'm glad to see that I have finally found the true source for "critical thinking". Your retorts to KS and myself exhibit the fact that in light of opposition to your views, your words are chosen to abuse...
>> Andrew: re: "...'if I can do it anybody can do it' world view, shared by so many upper middle class white men"... This is a ridiculous cop-out and a total distortion of the facts. Dori has pointed out many times how Asian and Indian imagrants have come to this country and succeeded because of family values and work ethics.
>> The Anti Kiro: Oye Ve...
>> Dana: See Anti Kiro...
"Blogs are a great place to exchange ideas, facts and questions, but once they digress into personal attacks, insults and name calling, the blog value is reduced to that of a high school chat room."
Posted by: Joe | March 15, 2006 at 07:43 AM
isnt there a saying out there that opinions are like a certain body part..everyone has one and they all stink?
Joe, if you like Dori. more power to ya. We don't care for him.
Next....
Posted by: sparky | March 15, 2006 at 08:29 AM