RUSH'S SUCCESS, GROUNDED IN WORK ETHIC, IS SOLIDLY AMERICAN

Take a look at the non-fiction best-seller list and you'll find a familiar name. It's not just familiar to Cape Girardeau residents, who recognize it as one of the city's most famous native sons, but to those who follow the media generally. With publication and immediate success of his new book, "See, I Told You So," Rush Limbaugh continues to grow as a phenomenon. Within his success, we also find a few lessons for living.

Mere numbers provide some insight. About 20 million people listen to his weekday radio program. More than three million people bought the hard cover version of his first book, "The Way Things Ought to Be," which has now settled in comfortably at the top of the mass paperback best-seller list. The follow-up book, published earlier this month, had a hard cover first printing of two million, the largest in American history; in the publishing world, he is the closest you get to a sure thing.

In addition, his syndicated television program, which is seldom mentioned in the context of late-night talk shows because it isn't always on at night and features only one man talking, Rush Limbaugh, regularly outdraws the likes of Conan O'Brien and Arsenio Hall. He also markets a thriving newsletter and was recently inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame. He has successfully marketed videos of his live performances and other work. Barbara Walters seeks him out for an interview. National magazines bear his photograph.

The secret to his success might be found in qualities available to (if not availed of by) all Americans. First, he was persistent. He tried and failed at an academic career and several jobs before finding a niche with his current format; once his radio achievements blossomed, other media explorations began. Second, he never strayed from his fundamental beliefs; no one has accused Mr. Limbaugh of tailoring his views to please all the people all the time. In addition, he proves that substance can prevail over style; radio is not the most glamorous medium, but he used it as a springboard to wide-ranging opportunities with the simple tenet that a good message will get through.

Above all, he is a living, breathing example of the American outlook he prizes: Hard work, firm convictions and an affirmative frame of mind still can yield success in this nation. Whether people love what Rush Limbaugh has to say or hate it, they should at least acknowledge his success is grounded in a work ethic that is solidly American.

You get to the top of the mountain (best-seller list, radio ratings, etc.) with product, skill, determination, moxie and no small measure of luck. You stay at the top of the mountain by how you handle yourself on that lofty perch and by supplying a message many people agree with. For all the controversy that surrounds him, Rush Limbaugh speaks for a great many Americans who fear for our nation's lost values and shake their heads when common sense is abandoned. We are pleased such a philosophy has its roots in Cape Girardeau.