Among other things, Ann Coulter has caused renewed interest in the Isaiah Washington case. From her appearance on Hannity and Colmes:

Frankly, I didn't think Edwards was really worth attacking, and I promise you, an audience of conservative news junkies not only know the Isaiah Washington story, they know John Edwards, with his two Americas and you know, his charlatan performances before illiterate juries. They know that that is wussy. That is lame. That is a sissy thing to do. Everybody knows what I was talking about, and I also know that John Edwards is not gay, and that I was using it in a schoolyard taunt way. In that way, it is a sophomoric word. It is not a bad word.

[Emphasis added.]

[...]

COLMES: Was Isaiah Washington wrong to use that word to -- when he used it to describe T.R. Knight?

COULTER: Yes. He used it incorrectly, but I still don't think he should go to rehab for using a word. I think that's crazy. I think all of America outside of Hollywood thinks that's a wee bit crazy.

"What are we waiting on?" said Isaiah [Washington].
"Not me," said Patrick [Dempsey]. "I'm always ready."
"At that point," said the source, "Isaiah said something mean to T.R. Knight" (who plays mild-mannered Dr. George O'Malley).
"That's when Patrick told Isaiah, 'Pick on somebody your own size.'
"Well, that did it. Isaiah became enraged and grabbed Patrick by the throat and shoved him back a few feet.
"Dr. McDreamy [Dempsey's nickname] almost landed in McDreamland."
When Knight demanded that the pair break it up, the source says, "Isaiah called him a bitch. Isaiah stormed off to his trailer to cool off, while Patrick and T.R. stood there in disbelief. (Emphasis added.)

I realize it is not a crime to call anyone a faggot or a bitch, but I find myself wondering about assaulting someone by grabbing him on the throat. Legally, that's assault and battery, although whether it is prosecuted usually depends on whether or not a complaint is pursued by the victim. Here, the victim was not the man referred to as a "bitch" or a "faggot" but a heterosexual member of the cast.

At the time, my reaction was that Washington should have been fired. I realize that's entirely up to the employer, but I'm just wondering why this "audience of conservative news junkies" thinks that it's all about the use of politically incorrect language.

Is it?

In a way, yes, and I'll explain why.

I think that if Washington hadn't called T.R. Knight a "faggot," but had instead simply throttled the other man by the throat, we'd never be hearing anything about this case -- even if he had been sent to rehab, and even if he had been fired.

Am I wrong in thinking that the guy's use of the "f" word might have actually created sympathy?

All I know is that people are feeling a lot sorrier for him than they would if he'd just been a silent throat grabber.

I guess the moral lesson here is that if you're going to assault someone, you'd better throw in a derogatory epithet.

UPDATE: Not to be nitpicky, but I'm a bit worried about the "conservative news junkie" business. If someone called me that, I'd take it as a triple insult, because I don't like to be labeled or stereotyped because of someone else's perception of my politics, and I don't think it's fair to attribute the disease model to my interest in the details of news stories. Furthermore, isn't it degrading to casually compare avid news readers to people who may be engaged in a struggle for their very lives over substance issues? I mean, what's funny about that?

[QUESTION: Am I supposed to place little sarcasm emphasis tags somewhere, or is it better to let clueless commenters believe I'm serious? Nah, forget it! If I started doing that, the readers who do get it might think I was being condescending. There is simply no way to take every hypothetical human into account. It's probably wiser to risk offending a clueless minority than spell everything out for the eyeball-rolling majority.]