Misunderstood Nationalist
Understanding Michael Savage
By D.W.

If you tune into Michael Savage’s conservative AM radio talk show The Savage Nation without any previous knowledge of the man or his politics, you could easily become confused about whom he really is. If you ever catch him vehemently bashing the Bush Administration or the Republican Party, you might briefly mistake him for a liberal. His opinions are very often unique or extreme compared to others on the airwaves. However, the key to understanding Michael Savage and his show is to understand that he is a conservative but first and foremost, an American nationalist.

Michael Savage has a style that includes powerful monologues and his vicious attacks on callers cause one to either love or hate him. Dr. Savage’s brash and biting rhetoric also makes him far too caustic for many casual listeners and this can cause people to readily typecast him as an extremist nut without making a concerted effort to understand his positions. As a result, he has a lot of critics from both sides of the political spectrum, even those who might be his natural allies.

But once you begin to view him as a nationalist, he is much easier to comprehend and you can even come to appreciate him more. Nationalists like Michael Savage once dominated both political parties who put America first but they are now a dying breed in the age of globalization.

As for myself, I am only an occasional listener to his Savage Nation radio show but the constant theme of American nationalism is ever present and underlies all of his political ideas and conversations. He comes off as being opposed to many aspects of free trade and the global economy that undermine America’s industrial capacity and empowers potential enemies like China.

Dr, Savage also holds a different view on environmentalism and animal rights than many conservatives do.

His science background generally appears to align him more with liberals, but his environmental arguments are more compelling. Unlike many crackpot liberals who wave the science flag without actually understanding the positions they hold, Savage is an accomplished scientist. He holds master’s degrees in medical botany and medical anthropology as well as a PhD in epidemiology and nutrition science from the University of California, Berkeley. He also authored 18 books, mostly scientific topics on nutrition.

Michael Savage’s nationalism is based upon the concepts of secure borders and language and culture, which he defines as the cornerstones of American Society. To advance his concept of nationalism in the political and intellectual arena he founded the nonprofit Paul Revere Society. These themes are prevalent throughout his show and they are the most fundamental and common themes evident to a listener which are the paradigms through which he approaches many political issues.

Many liberals and some conservatives accuse Savage of being racist and completely anti-immigrant in his philosophy on immigration and the border. It is easy for an unacquainted listener to deduce that he is a bigot from his brash rhetoric.

Applying his nationalist philosophy to the immigration problem, his approach is very logical. In fact, the crux of his immigration argument is that immigrants must assimilate into American society by learning the English language and embracing American culture. He disparages immigrants and immigrant groups that refuse to assimilate and praises those that do.

Michael Savage does display a lot of bias against non American and particularly non-Western cultures, many of which he seems to regard as inferior. This can lend some credence to charges of racism if you are using an expanded definition. Keep in mind that culture, unlike race, is a man-made construct and is always evolving. You are born into a race and into a culture, but you can change your culture even if you can’t change your race.

When he disparages Muslims, especially those from Muslim nations, his attacks are focused on their culture and not on some inherent genetic difference that Muslims posses.

A true racist would believe that Arabs are inferior because that is the way they were born and it cannot be altered. But, Savage attacks their culture for being less developed and more violent than Western culture. I have never heard Savage attack Arabs for being genetically inferior. Viewed from a nationalist paradigm this argument makes more sense than viewing it as an isolated belief.

Michael Savage’s nationalism has also led him to being falsely accused of being a homophobe. I have listened to a number of on air conversations between him and homosexuals and he has never labeled them as evil or sick to my knowledge. What I have heard him attack is the liberal homosexual counter culture, which vehemently opposes the Judeo-Christian ethical system and the traditionalist aspects of America.

The counter culture demands the freedom to pursue all manner of perversions as if they were normal and this would undermine the American moral code and justice system as we know it. The Judeo-Christian belief system is a fundamental and undeniable part of the American identity and attacks on it weaken our identity which nationalists seek to defend.

Michael Savage is clearly a dynamic multifaceted personality and it is difficult to readily typecast him into our pre-defined categories. To understand Michael Savage you not only have to listen to him over a certain span of time, but you have to get past his caustic tongue and offensively blunt style to the prevailing undercurrents of his thought. Perhaps I am wrong, but I have clearly discerned his strong nationalist paradigm that shapes his show and political philosophy. Next time you tune into the Savage Nation, think of Dr. Savage as primarily a nationalist and you may understand him better.

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