The other day I heard Rush Limbaugh make the accusation that liberal Americans advocate a "culture of death" - one of many aspersions he spits and spatters at liberals, in a campaign to demonize us in the minds of his legions of radio listeners.

Since this is a time when, more than ever, we need to pool our talents and energies, and work collectively to find real solutions to really huge problems, I thought I'd share with Mr. Limbaugh some real-life stories about liberals I have known and the roles they play in our lives. My mom is a liberal. She raised six liberal boys: two doctors (who have saved and enriched countless lives); a lawyer (who has assisted many hundreds of low-income clients); a songwriter (whose songs for kids are used in thousands of schools); a commercial farmer (in Israel and father of six sons, all of whom will or have served in the Israeli military); and a remarkably successful entrepeneur, who employs dozens of people (and pays them very well).

Oh, yeah, after raising six boys, my mom returned to school, got her teaching degree, and taught in a public high school for many years, positively affecting thousands of young lives.

Rush, can you please tell me how my mom represents a "culture of death"?

My dad is a liberal. He came to this country as a child of poor immigrants.

Two of his siblings died of starvation before he and his mom reached America. As a child, he lived in the back of a fish store during the Depression.

He worked his way through college, got a degree in chemical engineering and worked for 30 years for the U.S. Navy.

He taught us to swim and sail and enjoy music and humor and books and the beauty of the English language.

Rush, help me here. How is it you can defame my father as representing a "culture of death"!?

My wife is a liberal. While raising two young children, my wife returned to school and earned her graduate degree in nursing. As an RN she has worked for 25 years in community health and hospice care.

She visits people in their homes; she helps her patients and their families cope with some of life's most painful, difficult and heartbreaking experiences.

She lovingly nurtures, comforts and problem-solves, and in every way humanly possible provides professional care, comfort and guidance to hundreds of patients and families, who write their gratitude to my wife in beautiful, deeply moving expressions of thanks.

Mr. Limbaugh, I defy you to explain how my wife represents a "culture of death."

Collectively, my brothers and our wives have been blessed with 18 beautiful, remarkable, wonderfully gifted and creative sons and daughters.

Out of respect for their privacy, I will not categorize them in terms of their political beliefs.

I can share that they work incredibly long hours for the impressive salaries they earn.

I also can tell you their work in journalism, law, environmental science and other fields serves to educate, entertain, enlighten and positively affect many thousands of people on a daily basis.

I can tell you they are brilliantly funny, deeply compassionate, loving and exciting people.

Now, because they are the children of liberals, do you suppose ol' Rush Limbaugh would be sick enough to imply that our kids are, by association, an extension of a "culture of death"?

Take heart, liberals. You know you are a gift to this world. Have patience with Rush and his kin.

One day the spell will thaw, and even the most devoted "ditto heads" will see his meaningless accusations for the sick distortions that they are.

Mike Nobel is a songwriter who lives in Gorham, Maine.

© 2006 Portland Press Herald