Keith Olbermann understands important things: We watch, because we’re paid to

They’re still paying us, so we’re still watching. Here’s what happened this week on Keith Olbermann.

Friday, January 15: Olbermann was in a philosophical mood on Friday, as he mused about the week’s devastation in Haiti. “Words are of great value; our actions greater still,” he intoned. “The images we have seen, however, may be the most lasting: a catalog of them.” It sounded pretty good, but try not to think too hard about it. The notion that actions are more valuable than words is pretty straightforward, but was he then implying that images are more valuable than either of them? Or merely that they last the longest? If so, why do images necessarily last longer than words? Perhaps he was only referring to spoken words that go unrecorded? And, though it’s natural for a television host to believe it, are images really more valuable than actions?

What were we talking about again?

Never mind. Soon, he was back on terra firma, lambasting some recent remarks by Rush Limbaugh, “a man who took his own spark of humanity and wasted it lighting his own cigar.” (Ok, Keith, I admit it, that is a pretty good line.)

Then it was on to Sean Hannity, who Olbermann lit into for discussing the Massachusetts Senate race instead of Haiti. (I hate to give away the end of this column, but take a guess about whether Olbermann himself will deal with that election’s outcome with a sense of moral balance.) Hannity also drew fire for using the phrase “Hannity’s America.”

As for the series “Keith Olbermann’s America,” that’s totally different.

Monday, January 18: Olbermann came out angry on Monday, like he does on many Mondays, as well as Tuesdays and Wednesdays, most Thursdays and the vast majority of Fridays. This day’s target: Scott Brown, Republican Senate candidate. “You’ve heard Scott Brown respond to the shout from his supporter that they should stick a curling iron into Ms. Coakley‘s rectum with the answer: ‘We can do this,’” he reminded us. (Actually the supporter had used the term “butt,” but, uh, it’s your show, Keith.) Then he called Brown “a supporter of violence against women and against politicians with whom he disagrees.”

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As for the time way back in 2008 when Olbermann happily mused about “somebody who can take [then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton] into a room and only he comes out,” well, that’s totally different.