Life Imitates Scrappleface

BocaNews.com

Mental health officials in South Florida blasted Rush Limbaugh on Monday, saying the conservative talk show host’s offer of “free therapy” for traumatized John Kerry voters has made a mockery of a valid psychological problem.

“Rush Limbaugh has a way of back-handedly slamming people,” said Sheila Cooperman, a licensed clinician with the American Health Association (AHA) who listened Friday as Limbaugh offered to personally treat her patients. “He’s trying to ridicule the emotional state this presidential election produced in many of us here in Palm Beach County. Who is he to offer therapy?”

“us”?

Physician, heal thyself.

Cooperman, whose professional practice is based in Delray Beach, said the election-related symptoms she sees in the Kerry supporters more than quality PEST as “a legitimate syndrome or disorder within the trauma spectrum,” according to the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

“Rush Limbaugh has no clinical qualifications to counsel anyone,” Cooperman said. “He’s not only minimizing PEST, but he’s bastardizing the entire psychological field and our clinical expertise.”

You don’t say.

FILED UNDER: 2004 Election, Health, US Politics, , , ,
Kate McMillan
About Kate McMillan
Kate McMillan is the proprietor of small dead animals, which has won numerous awards including Best Conservative Blog and Best Canadian Blog. She contributed nearly 300 pieces to OTB between November 2004 and June 2007. Follow her on Twitter @katewerk.

Comments

  1. Tom says:

    Kate

    I think Rush was reading your report, he quoted it today online almost verbatim.

  2. Cricket says:

    Uh, wouldn’t that be ‘self shrinking?’ I also
    find it ironic that the good doctor would listen to
    Rush or even know about it.

    heh.

  3. LJD says:

    P.E.S.T.? Are you kidding me? Gimme a break. There must not be enough real mental health problems to treat in Florida. Kinda cathcy acronym though, maybe her minor in college was marketing. Nothing like taking advantage of the situation to boost revenue.

    What the good doctor fails to mention is that some of these Kerry supporters actually may NEED “back-handed slamming”.

    After baseless attacks on the President, failure to accept the outcome of the election, and inability to see WHY they lost, perhaps they could use a reality check.

    But, I’m not a psychologist either…

  4. Anjin-San says:

    Perhaps after Rush gets a bit of clean & sober time under his belt he will be in a better position to comment on the mental health of others.

    In the meantime, I would like to hear from this alleged conservative on the subject of record deficits, and a president who has yet to veto a single spending bill during years when congress was on a massive spending spree. We are talking non-defense discresionary spending…

  5. Kate says:

    Anjin – do you have any idea how completely humourless you are?

    Not a criticism. Just feeling a little sorry for you.

  6. Anjin-San says:

    Kate,

    Actually I regarded as having a pretty good sense of humor, at least 2 professional comedians have used material I gave them. Its just that I feel we are in a very sad time for our country.

    But I do have a Bill Evans album on to chase those old Bush blues away…

    🙂