StopBeck is a movement started on Twitter by a gay man named Angelo.  According to the website, it is “a nonpartisan effort focused on holding [conservative personality] Glenn Beck accountable for preying on racial anxieties, employing vitriolic rhetoric and disseminating distortions”.  They also “urge sponsors to stop supporting Glenn Beck’s brand of hate with advertising dollars”.  As of this posting, they have helped get a part of 119 advertisers in the US and UK to stop sponsoring Beck’s show on Fox News.

Sadly, Angelo has recently been receiving cryptic threats to his life via Twitter (@StopBeck).  The attackers appear to be right-wingers and defend Glenn Beck and his conservative cohorts faithfully.  Luckily, Angelo has been smart and saved images of the attacks.  You can view screen captures of the attacks through the following links:

http://twitpic.com/149pxu
http://twitpic.com/14gjq8

Are these attackers actually being serious or not?  They could just be spewing off hate and threats knowing that they’re hiding behind a screen name on the internet.  Or they could really be wacky right-wing extremists stalking the poor guy online and potentially in real life.  They have appeared to find out Angelo’s full name and even commented about his MySpace pictures and how he’s obviously gay.  I certainly hope they are bluffing but you never know.

I think the whole situation is scary.  Fox News and people like Glenn Beck, Bill O’Reilly, and Sean Hannity are definitely pushing conservative rhetoric into the minds of viewers.  But they’re also feeding a flame that may not easily be put out.  These followers are spouting death threats against a fellow American, simply for having different views!  I see posts on Twitter and Facebook by right-wingers and teabaggers and it frightens me how disillusioned people are and how easily they believe everything they hear on Fox News and conservative talk radio.  I’m afraid to see how this will affect the upcoming elections in 2010 and 2012.