On the news this morning, the teaser for this bit of news referred to him reaching a "special milestone." I thought they were going to say he walked without crushes! I was going to do a dance in his honor.
Is it coincidence or strange and inevitable fate that Sen. Byrd should, in his old age, begin to look like the very creature for which he is, sorta, named?
Since he's a Democrat, he gets the benefit of the doubt that he's "probably still an old racist, but the sort of old racist who knows it is not acceptable to be racist anymore."
@TheHonJudgeSmails: If you speak well and carry yourself with regal bearing, you can be Kali, the goddess of destruction, and still be nominated for the Supreme Court.
I love that the judge in Louisiana who won't marry interracial couples can now be the poster boy for Not-a-Racists. Do you get it, people? That guy claims he's not a racist. Maybe sometimes people are influenced by beliefs they don't consciously want to admit they have. Maybe you don't have to be a Klan member to have these beliefs. (Although it sure helps!) #polls
@FriendlyFloyd: No, I'm fairly certain that in modern evangelical circles, Beck is the Archangel Glenn, whose main powers appear to be crying on cue, whining, drawing illogical conclusions from random facts and appearing on TV with a face made for radio. They overlook the fact that he's a Mormon, which is easy for people who follow him, considering that they all seem to have been in comas during the Bush administration. #polls
It's hard to come up with an explanation that *isn't* race when describing the far-right's ideas and reactions to President Obama. They literally think he's evil and trying to destroy the United States of America, and he has given *no* reason to believe anything remotely similar. The guy is extremely moderate and subdued, he tries way too hard to be inclusive toward the opposition party, and he has done almost nothing. The far-right hasn't seen *every* politician with a D next to their name as apocalyptic - why do they see *this* one that way? #polls
@Tzepish: I'm with you. I recently got a forwarded email that portrayed a very different person than the one who has occupied the White House for the past 9 months or so. It's actually kind of bizarre. But then, I don't watch Glenn Beck. #polls
I get a kick out of how, in these people's minds, liberals are huge, ineffectual pussies who won't stand up for America, and yet liberals are also psychopathic power hungry killers who will murder Glen Beck for speaking out against them. #polls
For all the intricacies of your argument, you are still saying one cannot be vociferously opposed to most of Obama's policies (which are those of Pelosi, Reid, et al) without having some race-related motives. So one can't be angry about the ludicrous thinking behind, say. bailing out Chrysler without that view being in some way racially informed? #polls
@quotidian: If you can't see the difference between believing Obama is putting for a secret agenda to collapse capitalism and destroy the United States from the inside out in order to usher in (whatever, fill in the blank here, seems to change daily) and what you just said, then, yes, there is probably something kind of wrong with you! At the very least, you are an extremely disingenuous and lazy arguer! Sorry, dude. #polls
@quotidian: I need these Glenn Beck and the patriotic Americans who love him to outline with fact and logic their opposition to the POTUS policies. I also need these Americans to outline alternatives to the vast problems facing the country that don't involve invoking watermelon, fried chicken, socialism, Hitler, that the POTUs hates white people or a tax cut. #polls
Thanks for the shout to the Conservative-leaning independents!
We can't talk about race because it's day-1 ingrained in our heads at school that Racism Is Bad. But we aren't taught (or can't comprehend) WHY racism is bad, so we treat it like some sort of radioactive substance. Then, when presented with data that supports racist conclusions, no response seems viable. Look at the argument surrounding "The Bell Curve" - we've been having that same debate since America decided it was post-race. This leads to the sort of "OH GOD MY BRAIN IS ON FIRE" ranting you get when you accuse racists of being racist, because they only hate "n's" which is not racist. Which is completely racist!
That said, you (and the MSM, this isn't an Assault On Pareene) have to stop packaging racism accusations with policy counterarguments. Why? Because even though I agree that racism informs many Conservative positions, the extent to which they do so is impossible to measure. Vitriol isn't evidence that Obama has ushered in an era of more angry debate - people were calling Bush a Nazi over Iraq in 2004, and YouTube is there to prove it. You're advancing a subjective argument heavily influenced by your broader anti-Conservative agenda, which makes the racism accusations seem like a hollow bludgeon designed to justify policies that many Conservatives are willing to debate on their merits. And that's something I haven't seen you do in a little while. #polls
@Unsolicited Advice: It'd be easier to discuss if everyone would stop pretending that the people that are being specifically discussed here actually had policy counter-arguments. You know as well as I do that that isn't the truth; the people who openly view the Obama presidency as some deliberate, sweeping attempt to destroy "200 years of democracy as set forth by our founding fathers" etc. cannot articulate what policies they'd prefer or why they dislike the ones being put forth. It's not some kind of sweeping condemnation of all Republicans to say that the ones being focused on by everyone and their goddamned brother, conservative and liberal alike, are crazy, racist jerks who really don't have articulated views as to why they're mad.
Much like the people who just randomly shouted about how Bush was a "nazi" were not particularly well-informed in political discourse either.
I feel like you want to keep playing this card, that everyone is being unfair by pointing out that there is a large, frothing group of crazy people heavily influencing debate in the country right now, because most conservatives actually do have some ability to articulate their opinions in a way that has a bearing on actual intellectual thought, but who is accusing you personally otherwise? You're lumping yourself in with these people by continually pretending that they have a policy debate that is being ignored by the media!
I think the issue is that I view these as marginalized strawmen that the MSM/Pareene attack in lieu of speaking more clearly about some of the legitimate issues with various reform initiatives.
(It's entirely possible that the core problem is that I misjudge the clout of these people. Most likely my mind formed this view as a personal defense mechanism that enables me to leave my house and operate in society without freaking out completely. ) #polls
@allyzay: I'm all for mainstream Republicans forwarding alternative policies. You let us know when that happens, okay? When no less a Republican establishment figure like Orrin Hatch solemly intones, with a straight face, that some rinky dink incremental reform being voted out of committee is but the first step to the Communist destruction of America, you have to know that the GOP is committed to nothing except the future of their party, even if it's at the expense of the country.
They keep saying they're going to come up with ideas for real reform (cut taxes/tort reform/yawn) if you just give them time, and we're supposed to forget that Republicans ran the entire show from 2003 until 2007? No, sorry, not going to happen. Mainstream Republicans time and again have proven themselves willing to manipulate America's racial fears. And they're doing it once again. Fuck 'em.
@allyzay: True.
Add: there's a huge difference between scattered Leftist ranters Godwining on YouTube versus an entire news network, an entire political party and their associated think tanks and PR efforts trying to prove a Muslim sleeper agent wants to kill your grandma.
For that to happen, the entire Dem establishment, the networks AND CNN would have to have been attacking Bush for eight years, when the reverse is sadly (for our nation) true.
For the sake of decorum, I'll let go of the fact that their President lost the first time around, except for the SC vote, and thus even what the some of the hippy ranters said had some basis in fact. #polls
@Unsolicited Advice: I wish to God you were right that these people are marginalized. But it's precisely the actions of the Republican Party that are bringing them front and center. These are the people to whom they've handed over the reins. Conservatives have to take responsibility for that, and take action to drag their party back into some semblance of a reality-based worldview. #polls
@if_i_only_had_a_heart: an overwhelming amount of them participate in focus groups, for starters.
is there anyone who thinks that focus groups are free-thinking, unbiased atmospheres any more? i don't doubt carville's findings, but the universe of willing participants tends to be rather small, and very familiar--perhaps too familiar.
i can't argue with michael moore's point that white/american people are a paranoid lot, by and large.
And what would be the incentive for Beck to tell "less deranged and dangerous lies" when he is so amply rewarded for the lies he tells now? Furthermore, why does the extreme right, which is a small lunatic fringe, keep getting what Margaret Thatcher called "the oxygen of publicity" that augments their power? Funny how the extreme left never gets this kind of coverage from the MSM: I mean, does Noam Chomsky have his own show on MSNBC? Don't worry, right-wing crazies: the journalists of the MSM may not like you, but their corporate overseers will make sure you get everything you need #polls
@TheBusinessGuy: these are all good and important points. the day that someone as far out on the edge batshit crazy on the left as limbaugh, beck, most of fox, etc., gets 50 hours of airtime a week ... #polls
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Granted, the bridge was his penis.
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Sigh. Now I'm really confused. #polls
10/16/09
We can't talk about race because it's day-1 ingrained in our heads at school that Racism Is Bad. But we aren't taught (or can't comprehend) WHY racism is bad, so we treat it like some sort of radioactive substance. Then, when presented with data that supports racist conclusions, no response seems viable. Look at the argument surrounding "The Bell Curve" - we've been having that same debate since America decided it was post-race. This leads to the sort of "OH GOD MY BRAIN IS ON FIRE" ranting you get when you accuse racists of being racist, because they only hate "n's" which is not racist. Which is completely racist!
That said, you (and the MSM, this isn't an Assault On Pareene) have to stop packaging racism accusations with policy counterarguments. Why? Because even though I agree that racism informs many Conservative positions, the extent to which they do so is impossible to measure. Vitriol isn't evidence that Obama has ushered in an era of more angry debate - people were calling Bush a Nazi over Iraq in 2004, and YouTube is there to prove it. You're advancing a subjective argument heavily influenced by your broader anti-Conservative agenda, which makes the racism accusations seem like a hollow bludgeon designed to justify policies that many Conservatives are willing to debate on their merits. And that's something I haven't seen you do in a little while. #polls
10/16/09
10/16/09
Much like the people who just randomly shouted about how Bush was a "nazi" were not particularly well-informed in political discourse either.
I feel like you want to keep playing this card, that everyone is being unfair by pointing out that there is a large, frothing group of crazy people heavily influencing debate in the country right now, because most conservatives actually do have some ability to articulate their opinions in a way that has a bearing on actual intellectual thought, but who is accusing you personally otherwise? You're lumping yourself in with these people by continually pretending that they have a policy debate that is being ignored by the media!
10/16/09
I think the issue is that I view these as marginalized strawmen that the MSM/Pareene attack in lieu of speaking more clearly about some of the legitimate issues with various reform initiatives.
(It's entirely possible that the core problem is that I misjudge the clout of these people. Most likely my mind formed this view as a personal defense mechanism that enables me to leave my house and operate in society without freaking out completely. ) #polls
10/17/09
They keep saying they're going to come up with ideas for real reform (cut taxes/tort reform/yawn) if you just give them time, and we're supposed to forget that Republicans ran the entire show from 2003 until 2007? No, sorry, not going to happen. Mainstream Republicans time and again have proven themselves willing to manipulate America's racial fears. And they're doing it once again. Fuck 'em.
10/17/09
Add: there's a huge difference between scattered Leftist ranters Godwining on YouTube versus an entire news network, an entire political party and their associated think tanks and PR efforts trying to prove a Muslim sleeper agent wants to kill your grandma.
For that to happen, the entire Dem establishment, the networks AND CNN would have to have been attacking Bush for eight years, when the reverse is sadly (for our nation) true.
For the sake of decorum, I'll let go of the fact that their President lost the first time around, except for the SC vote, and thus even what the some of the hippy ranters said had some basis in fact. #polls
10/17/09
10/16/09
10/16/09
is there anyone who thinks that focus groups are free-thinking, unbiased atmospheres any more? i don't doubt carville's findings, but the universe of willing participants tends to be rather small, and very familiar--perhaps too familiar.
i can't argue with michael moore's point that white/american people are a paranoid lot, by and large.
10/16/09
10/16/09