Letter to Bob Beckel

August 17, 2012


Mr. Bob Beckel
Political Analyst
Fox News Corporation
1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10036

Dear Mr. Beckel:

I'm willing to wager you don't get much fan mail from Fox News viewers. Well, this isn't a fan letter either. But I'm not writing about our divergent views on politics and human nature. No, this letter is much more personal.

I want to talk about your legacy. To paraphrase a line from the opening scene in the 1970 movie "Patton"; "Thirty years from now, when you're sitting around your fireside with your grandchildren and one of them asks, 'What did you do in the great campaign of 2012', you shouldn't have to say, 'Well... I shoveled manure on Fox News'". However, it's not the stuff you are shoveling that has prompted this letter.

Regardless of what you want or think your legacy to be, yours is not being cast in the mold of the antagonist Fox News wants you to be, or the ideological defender you think you are. It is being cast in the eyes of viewers as a myrmidon, as one who seeks only the favor of his handlers, as one who finds more security and comfort in membership and affiliation than in individualism, self-reliance, and fierce independence. I believe you are competent, capable and intelligent but I also believe you have sold your dignity, self-respect, and manhood for the ephemeral trappings of notoriety, material gain, and the approval of men. Please, don't pretend to be shocked and offended. How many times have you sung the party song even when you knew it was the wrong tune?

If you are to be remembered after your life on earth has passed, will your legacy make your posterity beam with pride? I want mine to remember me as a man who wasn't afraid, embarrassed or ashamed of his convictions, who didn't shrink from doing the right thing regardless of the cost, who didn't compromise his values and beliefs for any reason, who had the courage to face the consequences of his actions, and who had compassion for those who needed a helping hand.

You have the time and the opportunity to re-shape your legacy. I hope you do so.

Respectfully,

Bill Monroe
Southlake, TX