HBO's Bill Maher in 'What's behind the mask?' (It ain't pretty.)        

It was recently reported that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was again hospitalized, and receiving cancer treatment.

Gateway Pundit reported President Trump sent 'Well wishes' to Justice Ginsburg: 

"I hope she does really well. And our thoughts and prayers are with her. I'm hoping she's going to be fine. She's pulled through a lot. She's strong. Very tough. We wish her well."

On Friday, the host of Tucker Carlson Tonight also expressed compassion for a stricken fellow human being, political ideology being irrelevant.

"We learned today that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has been diagnosed with another recurrence of pancreatic cancer," said Carlson. "Ginsburg is an impressively tough person. We wish her the best, and hope for her recovery."

Bill Maher, on that same evening's edition of HBO's Real Time With Bill Maher,  addressed the recent death of financier and Republican mega-donor David Koch.

"I guess I'm going to have to reevaluate my low opinion of prostate cancer...As for his remains, he asked to be cremated and have the ashes blown into a child's lungs...He and his brother have done more than anybody to fund climate science deniers for decades...So, fuck him! I'm glad he's dead, and I hope it was painful!"

It's common for attention-hungry celebrities like Maher to be calculatedly provocative, even tastelessly so. And, as surely as if he'd rung Pavlov's bell, mainstream outlets awarded him ink.

Presumably, the baggypants commentator's terminal disease-wisecracks are supposed to be edgy. But they aren't. In this painfully polarized atmosphere, attacking the opposite camp with slimy drool is a safe option. 

No risk, at all.

Besides, Maher is no Lenny Bruce, an irreverent outsider pointing up establishment pretensions. He is as 'of' the status quo as any corporate-retained congressman. He lives comfortably in their bubble, and entertains at their parties as a tolerated court jester.

If public relations attentiveness and philosophical prejudice partly explain his vile spectacle, what else accounts for it?

Maher's is the latest example of liberals ditching pretended decency in this Trump Age. 

They once marched against racial prejudice. Now, they organize college courses against "whiteness."

They once advocated passionately for the rights of the accused, including the presumption of innocence. Now, to them, an unsubstantiated charge is as good as a conviction. Ask Justice Kavanaugh.

They once endorsed free speech and that 'unpopular voices' enjoy audience. Now, they enforce speech codes and shout down speakers.

They once were patriotic and genuinely concerned about blue-collar America. Now, they increasingly call for open borders and a recession that would greatly harm working folks.

And they once urged peace and extolled icons like King and Ghandi. But now, they cheer when Antifa riot and assault pedestrians; attack ICE facilities; guffaw about cancer; and, with repulsive gusto, urge presidential assassination.

They've dropped their masks. And what lies beneath is gruesome.