Freed pirate hostage reacts to Limbaugh’s racism

By Joe Byrne

Shane Murphy is a sailor trying to get his land-legs on home turf. Less than a week ago, Somali pirates took his ship’s captain hostage, and Murphy took over at the helm while a hostage-rescue team freed his captain. Murphy told his father that the crew used “brute force” to overpower the pirates, who were armed with AK-47 assault rifles.Murphy, who returned to his home near Boston on Friday, spoke with reporters about Limbaugh’s controversial statements. “It feels great to be home – with the exception of Rush Limbaugh, who is trying to make this into a race issue. It’s disgusting. The president did the right thing. It’s a war. It’s about good versus evil. And what you said is evil, that is hate speech. I won’t tolerate it.”

     Three Somali men were killed in the rescue of the ship’s captain. On returning to America, Shane was disgusted by what some people think its okay to say on the radio. The second-in-command on the American merchant ship has come home to find that Rush Limbaugh has personally offended him with comments about “black teenagers” being killed in covert operations on “the high seas.”

“There you have it, three teenagers shot on the high seas at the order of President Obama,” said Limbaugh according to a transcript of an April 14 broadcast. “Just imagine the hue and cry had a Republican president ordered the shooting of black teenagers on the high seas,” Limbaugh said. “If only President Obama had known that the three Somali community organizers are actually young black Muslim teenagers, I’m sure he wouldn’t have given the order to shoot.”

Murphy, who returned to his home near Boston on Friday, spoke with reporters about Limbaugh’s controversial statements. “It feels great to be home – with the exception of Rush Limbaugh, who is trying to make this into a race issue. It’s disgusting. The president did the right thing. It’s a war.  It’s about good versus evil. And what you said is evil, that is hate speech. I won’t tolerate it.”