Partisan Stupidity

[Griff]

At this point in the process I still support Obama because we need to make a clean break with the Bush administration. That said, my support does not completely blind me to partisan stupidity.

Radar produced this gem.
McCain's running mate won't be any help to him at all, unless it's to help him get his depends undergarments on. She's got no real experience, she's under investigation for corruption, she faked a pregnancy recently to hide the fact that her teenage daughter was pregnant, and she actually doesn't believe in evolution. Anyone over the age of 6 who doesn't believe in evolution is either retarded or insane.

I propose we use this thread to call people out when they are being partisan idiots. I feel that the biggest problem we face as Americans is the playground character of our politics. The country cannot be governed if it is continually at war with itself. We need to limit the stupidity and acknowlege that people, who view the world much differently than we do, are not evil. When we cast falsehoods like candy at mardi gras, we are doing evil and we prove to the other side that we are evil. So Radar, this STFU is for you.

[Ibby]

I'm calling myself out pre-emptively.

[Trilby]

Griff: When we cast falsehoods like candy at mardi gras...


Nice line.

Oh, and I agree with you. But that line is gold.

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by Brianna

Griff: When we cast falsehoods like candy at mardi gras...


Nice line.

Oh, and I agree with you. But that line is gold.

I also like that line. I don't appreciate the tone of Radar's post.

He is correct that she is under investigation. If the charges are proved true, which is unlikely in the next two months, it would have brought up serious questions on her professional judgment, inviting comparisons to Nixon's "enemies list".

I have not heard anything about a teenage daughter being pregnant. It doesn't matter because it does not have a bearing on her fitness. If she lied about it to the press or anyone else, that's a personal issue. I would also like Radar to post a link or any kind of attribution to back up the statement.

Her stance on creationism does seem to paint her as a conservative ideologue.

McCain is entering office as one of the oldest US presidents. Even given the fact that '50 is the new 30' or whatever, he has had serious health issues. Even some Republicans are trying to get him to agree to serve only one term (try getting that promise to stick). This means that she will be under increased scrutiny because going into office she is probably more likely to end up serving as president than any vice president in recent history.

Still, Radar cheapens his message by resorting to quips like 'Depends'. I am proud to say that while I do not know any liberals who decorate their workspaces with extremely negative clippings, stickers, etc, I have seen work areas with anti-liberal items that I find offensive no matter who is the target.

I have seen stickers that literally demonize Obama (an O with little horns) on office walls. I have not seen pictures of McCain in diapers anywhere that I've been.

There are a lot of jokes about Cheney, but most of them lack the vitriol I hear when I listen to conservatives talk about liberals.

Most of the really awful stuff towards McCain seems to be coming from 'libertarians' and conservatives.

[Undertoad]

Playground is exactly the right word for it.

We have to be aware that, at this time, there are people on both left and right whose job it is to listen to all news and political statements 24x7, and isolate each and every moment to see whether it can be mined in any way for political purposes.

Half of these isolated moments are completely bogus. Little throwaway statements, casual contradictions, things stated in humor... it's all fair game to some assholes like (from the left) Thinkprogress and Media Matters, (from the right) Free Republic, and Drudge. They know exactly the game they're playing, and excuse it because the other side does it too.

The candidates themselves seem more wise to what the people want and need, and both have been utterly gracious at critical moments.

[Undertoad]

There are a lot of jokes about Cheney, but most of them lack the vitriol I hear when I listen to conservatives talk about liberals.

No vitriol about Cheney? Dick Cheney? Are you fucking kidding me??

See, Rich can't hear properly. He needs some sort of hearing test because he can only hear out of one side.

Most of us suffer from it to some degree. This is the result of the playground.

Edit: but it was nice of Rich to put his post in this thread, so we don't have to copy it here, eh?

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

No vitriol about Cheney? Dick Cheney? Are you fucking kidding me??

A lot of jokes, and some anger, but I haven't seen anything like I've seen from the right. Also, decorating your work area with this kind of stuff implies a commitment to the idea that I just find lacking from everyone else.

Maybe liberals are more apathetic and disorganized.

[Undertoad]

Oh, perhaps it's not tone deafness, then, you just think everyone around you is everyone. Common mistake.

Meanwhile, first page of Google image search for, generically, "cheney", yields:















And that's just the first page. You have to go eight pages into a similar GIS for "Obama" to get the same amount of material.

[piercehawkeye45]

The biggest difference I see between right and left winged propaganda is that the right wingers use material that hits closer to home.

It would be like two seventh grade bullies calling someone a fag. But one uses fag as just another insult that has very little actual truth behind it and one using it on an child that is insecure and confused about his sexuality.

Both right and left wingers use the term fag, but right wingers use it more efficiently as an insult because it tends to bring up some "truthful" confusion and hostilities.


To be fair though, if radical left wingers had the opportunity, they would do the same.

[Griff]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

The candidates themselves seem more wise to what the people want and need, and both have been utterly gracious at critical moments.

We need to follow the candidates' lead. I think they both get it. I would suggest that folks should call out the people on their own side if they really want to change the tone of discourse. I've been guilty of smearing McCain but I intend to stick to the issues from here on out.

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Oh, perhaps it's not tone deafness, then, you just think everyone around you is everyone. Common mistake.

And that's just the first page. You have to go eight pages into a similar GIS for "Obama" to get the same amount of material.

..And Cheney has been in office and a candidate for over 8 years to Obama's 1.

And I'm just taking a sampling of the places I see. I'm not necessarily talking about my workplace, but every office I've been in for one reason or another. People do not put up the 'I hate Republican' stuff up like I see conservatives do.

Maybe that's why talk radio has Rush and Beck, etc, and the liberals have junky Air America. Conservatives like red meat speech, and liberals don't. It's hard to sell bitter hatred if the audience isn't buying.

While the web might have some examples, it's all amateur hour. Noone is paying 400 million dollars to Al Franken.

[Undertoad]

..And Cheney has been in office and a candidate for over 8 years to Obama's 1.

Results 1 - 18 of about 2,120,000 for cheney

Results 1 - 18 of about 32,500,000 for obama

While the web might have some examples, it's all amateur hour.

No market for Demmy snark? ($220M worldwide gross for F9/11.)



Is that so? (Key demographic ratings getting close to O'Reilly.)



No-one's buying??



On any media?

I thank you once again for posting in this thread so we don't have to copy and paste.

[xoxoxoBruce]

The liberals wouldn't come up with this.... would they?

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

The liberals wouldn't come up with this.... would they?

You see, that is the kind of tasteless snarky humor that cheapens political discourse.

Damned funny, though.:p

BTW, I'm not sure how much of Colbert's viewership is from liberals and how much from conservatives who don't understand sarcasm.

[Undertoad]

If you have nothing to say about a candidate, just mock her relentlessly.