Filed under: Authoritarian, Civil Liberties, Depression, Economy, Politics, Progressive | Tags: Stupidity, wingnuts
Things are moving incredibly quickly in the economic sector. I wish I had more time to blog.
Wish I had time to locate a heap of linkage to show that the Tax Day Tea Parties are a GOP project to sink the Obama Presidency and revive the old “tax and spend” zombie meme. Instead I’ll just label this entire post opinion, and point out that this website is so transparent that a six-year old should be able to see through the ruse.
Some other thoughts I am having right now.
1. Government spending is neither good nor bad, in and of itself. It is necessary.
2. Just because you label something you don’t like “pork” doesn’t make it so.
3. People who talk about socialism without understanding what socialism is look very ignorant to the rest of us.
4. Free market fundamentalism in the service of elitist kleptocracy is one of the things that got us into this mess. No amount of pedantery aimed at explaining how the excesses of our current political economy have moved us away from “true capitalism” is going to fix the problems we’re dealing with. I don’t think Obama’s done a very good job with the economy up to this point. But the problem isn’t his “interventionism.” His problem is that, in order to stabilize the economy and get back to a sustainable model, we are going to eventually have to temporarily nationalize some finanical institutions fix them, and then put them under responsible ownership, whether anyone likes it or not. If this had been done already and best practices for dealing with failed banks applied, we would be much closer to seeing a real recovery.
5. “Silent Majority” was once a very popular catchphrase among the KKK and their allies. I think it is still something of a racist dogwhistle, even though a lot of young people don’t get that, because they certainly didn’t learn it in history.
6. I don’t like paying taxes. But the people who are saying that taxes are out of control are so out of touch with reality I don’t know how to get through to them. The Bush administration cut a lot of taxes and they didn’t exactly decrease spending. If you want to object to paying taxes, that’s fine. But don’t pretend you’re making a political argument that people ought to take seriously. Just admit you have a personal thing about paying taxes, then move on and try to say something intelligent.
7. Making common cause with people like the Wingnut Daily and Newt Gingrich and Michelle Malkin (who wrote a book defending the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII) doesn’t make you “bipartisan” or independent-minded. It makes you a sucker. You’re never going to get good government this way. These are the same people who were marching in lockstep with the torturers, the war profiteers, the lawyers who eviscerated the Fourth Amendment, and the corporatists less than a year ago.
8. If you think all this talk of “revolution” is harmless, think again. And again.
I think Davenoon’s response to the Tea Party “Manifesto” is entirely appropriate.
The Teabaggers want you to waste your time worrying about “collectivism” and conspiracy theories so you won’t notice that it was their masters and political allies who looted the treasury, broke the economy, shredded the Constitution, and embroiled us in two foreign wars that are bleeding our military to death. But, you know, we’re all free to say and think whatever we want. Lap it right up, if that’s your thing. Don’t forget to stimulate the economy by purchasing some gear before you go.
Just be prepared to accept responsibility for the consequences when they come back to power and keep doing exactly what they’ve been doing for the last 30 years. And if you say one word about “populism” or “groupthink” after this, don’t expect any response other than than the ridicule hypocrites deserve.
We are so screwed by the stupidity of our political discourse. It makes my head hurt.
I am going back to my work on the Alabama PACT now.
Gonna give reason one more try here before I decide to be done with this. Buelahman, old buddy, if you actually bother to read this, it might leave a mark. That’s your problem. You have a thick skull, and I just don’t know how else to deal with the bullshit. You brought these words on yourself. I apologize to no one for my writing at this blog.
I do not understand why it is necessary for BuelahMan to add the words “Shitbag, Gene’O” to this pingback.
I am appalled at how quickly and easily BuelahMan made the decision to go that route over a disagreement between two grown men that we could have been handled like adults. I find it breathtakingly funny coming from a man who had just spent all those words going on and on and on about the right to speak his mind. I wish he would stop pretending this argument is about what he writes on his blog, and I think it’s dishonest of him to do that. When I first saw that pingback, I wondered why he didn’t just come out and tell his readers “If you luv me, you won’t click on this link, m’kay?”
I left a comment over there last night, and as of this writing, it hadn’t been allowed to post. I am assuming it won’t be. I am a little surprised at having my comment privileges revoked without at least being allowed the courtesy of responding directly to that post. That’s behavior I typically associate with the wingnut fringe of the GOP. These look to me like the actions of a man who can’t deal with criticism, and who knows he’s wrong but can’t admit it. Or maybe just the actions of a man who likes to be the alpha everywhere he goes.
Coming from a thirteen-year-old this stuff might be understandable. From a grown man who calls himself a political blogger, and spends his time working himself into a lather about the (very real) assault on our rights, it’s pathetic. He has lost all credibility with me. If you’re not willing to walk the walk, don’t bother to talk the fucking talk. BuelahMan is just an entertainer.
It’s taking every ounce of restraint I have to stop short of going ahead and calling BuelahMan a coward and a hypocrite straight-up. Maybe I am too reasonable. I won’t call him a coward or a hypocrite just yet. I truly believe he is better than this. But I will say that I view his behavior over the last couple of days as cowardly and hypocritical. It’s his decision to treat me like a troll. No skin off my nose that he’s doing so, but I get to speak my mind about his behavior.
Read the comment thread that generated all this heat and judge for yourself what I said.
Here is what I was trying to say (and not say). Whether it came through or not.
I was not trying to tell Buelahman what to write or what to think or do with his blog, for fuck’s sake.
When Buelahman or anyone else decide to exercise their free speech in the form of public comments on blogs run by people that I consider friends and allies, and when their speech involves calling ALL PROGRESSIVE BLOGGERS (or “So-Called Progressive bloggers”) cocksuckers, I am going to exercise my own right to speak up. When you come into my friend’s house and start scrawling graffiti all over the walls and pissing on the rug, I am going to object to your behavior and suggest that you clean up your mess. Anyone who knows me should expect that from me. It works the same way online as it does in real life. It’s got nothing to do with free speech. It’s got everything to do with respect and fair play. Doesn’t matter if it’s my house or not. I have an interest and a right to speak.
The comment I objected to was part of a big chunk of blog post pasted directly into the thread. If he had simply dropped a link, the tone of my response would have been much more congenial. He’s the one who chose to paste it in. BFD, but this was on a blog that I read almost every day and link to often. I get to say whatever I like about comments posted there as long as I stay within the guidelines laid down by the owner. And I didn’t see the original post when he first published it. If I had, I would have responded on the comment thread over at his place, and my tone would have been much more congenial.
Bottom line: If you want to go around pasting your work onto blogs you don’t own, have at it. But be prepared to receive an honest response. Especially if you’re spreading around the sort of stuff that BEGS for a response.
My last comment to BuelahMan on that thread was fair. Any person interested in being reasonable and working out the disagreement would have taken the out that I offered. BuelahMan elected forgo any further response on that thread.
He decided instead to play the victim for the benefit of people who maybe had no idea our conversation had even taken place. That says way more about him than it does about me. I was not surpised, but it was his decision to go there. Not mine. He deserved the response he got from me, and I stand behind every word of it. I love how people who THINK they know exactly what progressive means love to accuse us of whining when we actually, you know, take a firm stand. As far as I’m concerned, merciless ridicule is a perfectly appropriate response to that level of stupidity, and I do not believe I am the one doing the whining.
Maybe now some of you folks who have been following along with me at home can see why I am so adamant when I say it is foolish to get all hung up on civility when you are not getting any reciprocity from the other side.
BuelahMan took me off his blogroll last night. I decided to sleep on all of this, and give him a few hours to cool off. I’d rather hoped he would stop being so infantile and open a channel. Typically, I only remove blogs if they shut down. I never do it vindictively. I am removing him now, and not because I’m angry.
I am removing him because I cannot in good conscience recommend him or promote his work any more, given how quickly he escalated this little flame war, or whatever he believes it to be. And given the fact that it took him less than 24 hours begin attempting – laughable though his attempts may be – to direct his slings and arrows at my person rather than at my arguments.
I am not changing to his comment privileges, and I don’t plan on doing so unless he really asks for it. I want him to be able to open a line of communication with me later if he wants to. I believe that when you write about someone by name, it’s only fair to allow them a direct response, and passive aggressive games aren’t going to resolve this. But do I have to stand firm here. I am simply not going to say I am out of line on this just so BuelahMan can feel like the daddy. It would be dishonest, and that is just not the way I roll. No amount of concern trolling or abusive language is going to change my mind. But maybe direct conversation can still be productive, so I’m not burning the last bridge just yet.
@ All my friends and neighbors: If you blogrolled BuelahMan because I recommended him, or if I introduced you to his work (some of which has been pretty good), please accept my apology. I am not making any suggestions to anyone else, and I am not happy about losing a Southern Voice. I just need to assure all of you that I am totally capable of behaving as an adult when I run into him at the places we both frequent. I hope he won’t stop coming around, and I hope he won’t take out his anger with me on others. But I need to be very clear here. I am no longer willing to vouch for him the way I would an offline friend or a nominal ally.
I have no respect for him left beyond the minimal level of respect that I afford all human beings, and not one ounce of trust.
And yes, I am done with this now — at least I hope so.
