I thought David Letterman's second apology to Sarah Palin went way beyond what the joke warranted…but I guess I understand why certain of her supporters insist it didn't go far enough. They're empowered by their outrage. People who would never get quoted in the press have a bit of attention so they want to keep it going as long as possible. Saying Dave has evened things up would be the end of it for them. Staging protests and demanding he be terminated proves their power and keeps the clock ticking on their fifteen minutes of fame.
To the extent they're genuinely incensed, it's not Dave. It's that Sarah Palin has largely become a laughingstock in this nation, shunned even by much of the Republican Party. If you've cast your lot with her and the things she stands for — if you fantasize about her booting that birth-certificateless Muslim Socialist out of office in 2012 — well, you can't admit that maybe she's a joke because of her own words and actions. It's those damn late night comedians and their hateful, unfair remarks. Maybe if you can give Letterman enough grief, he and others will be afraid to utter her name with anything less than reverence.
This will go on for another day or two. Apology 2.0 should have drained most of the fuel from the fire and it'll become old news. (It's amazing it ever became news at all…but I guess it's not like there's anything important happening in the world at the moment.) CBS is not going to fire David Letterman or suspend him or anything of the sort. The only lasting impact of the protests might be measured next time — and there will be a next time — Sarah Palin says or does something really, really stupid or dishonest. If Letterman and other comedians go easy on her then the terrorists will have won.