Saturday, October 6, 2012

Why the Politics?



I guess it was the trolls who inspired me.

Back in January 2009 I posted a 1991 single by Seattle punk-metal band Coffin Break (see HERE). I pointed out that the single's A-side, "Kill the President" wasn't about politics at all but was in fact "...a bright pop song about insanity. The narrator is like Travis Bickle just as the Prozac wears off." Then after sparing a brief thought for the relationship between punk and politics, I cast a wary eye upon the next four years:

And it does seem like everyone’s in a sincere mood these days doesn't it? It’s kinda like watching that besotted couple who, in their first flush of passion, offer loud, wild promises that make you wince with the pain of regret to come. So, when the inauguration spectacle is packed away, when the word historical gets a well-deserved rest, there’s gonna be some ugliness. The American Right thinks everyone (but them) is a communist and the American Left thinks everyone (but them) is a fascist and they both love political bloodsport. America may well be in a better place in four years but by then the axe-grinders that dictate public discourse in the U.S. will have tossed all this non-partisan sincerity aside.

Well my crystal ball was a little cloudy (how was I to guess that the American Right  would brand the Left as communists AND fascists!). On the other hand, I did call the cynical malaise that would soon cloud Obama voters view and rightly noted that no good deed by Obama would be acknowledged by the axe-grinding class.

However, despite the cautious, not-terribly partisan nature of the post, the trolls heard me tromp-tromp-tromping over their Bridge to the 19th Century and came out howling:

Anonymous January 18, 2009 3:16 PM
You're an idiot. The Left blamed GWB for everything. He kept integrity. Iraq did have WMD, did use them, and Iraq and the world are better off now than before. The economic crisis was created by Dodd, Obama and Frank - the Dem congress. 0bama's "career" was built on fraud and waste and maybe the clueless crowd you hang with is "optimistic", but there is fear with an inexperienced person whose only idea is raising taxes and restricting personal rights among most of the free thinking adults.

What? The? Fuck?


Honestly, I was a little shocked (ah, such naivete) at how high the level of hatred BEFORE THE MAN EVEN TOOK OFFICE but just then a blogging legend dropped by to offer a little tutorial on trolling:

Joe Stumble January 20, 2009 7:27 AM
CLASSIC Troll move. He starts off by calling you an idiot thereby shutting the door at the get-go on any meaningful conversation. Then he proceeds to regurgitate right wing nonsense that he's picked up from Rush or Ann or whomever. Finally he does it all anonymously. When did conservatives become such whiny sissies? 

Not one to allow the noble art of trolling to be so besmirched, a new voice shouted out:

Maria January 24, 2009 1:08 AM
Bush never tried to limit anyone's constitutional rights.
Everything obama says he is going to do is completely wrong.
You are like the morons that vote based on sunshine logos and bubblegum speeches.
You should look up the term "useful idiot".

Now comparing me to a Stalinist showed an ignorance of history (plus a terribly limited array of snappy put-downs) but I realized that if you can express an opinion with a minimum of clarity you're a threat to these reactionary types. And no, I will not sully the word conservative, a legitimate political philosophy, by letting these people take that name upon themselves when they can be more accurately labelled reactionaries. These aren't people of a different view who want to debate ideas and interpretations, no they want to hurl inflammatory invective and then run away and hide in anonymity.


So I knew I had to keep going on this blog, to do my part to show those people on the fence that this kind of hate-filled, tongue-tied, Fox-fed know-nothingness is an integral part of this imbalanced modern Republican Party which needs to be brought back to sanity.

Snip-snap-snout 
this tale's told out....

27 comments:

  1. I enjoy your "political blogging".
    I think it's important to discuss politics and way too many people do their best to avoid it for fear of controversy.

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    1. Yeah I don't do these political posts just to piss people off, so I'm always glad when regular readers speak up for them.
      Thanks.

      Delete
  2. well said, i enjoy haranguing the right on twitter, they all now seem to avoid me now for some reason, as do coldplay fans
    Phinky

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    1. Wow, scaring off right-wingers and Coldplay fans - that's a two-fer.

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  3. Liberals are the most hateful, bigoted & intolerant people on the planet. Not to mention narcissistic.

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    1. Thanks for reading the post and...

      Oh wait, you didn't read the post you just cut n' pasted your own words from a previous comment, words I'm sure you cut n' pasted from some reactionary, right-wing hate site in the first place.

      Trollers, gonna troll...

      Delete
  4. Hey, the political posts rarely get a flat-out 'thank you' - cool!

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  5. Hatred for Obama before he took office.
    Hatred for Bush before he took office.
    Hatred for Clinton before he took office.
    Hatred for Bush senior before he took office
    and for Reagan and for Carter, etc.

    It really never ends, does it?

    Just like the level of hatred from the left and jeffen before Romney takes the office.

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    Replies
    1. Now that's what I'm hoping for!
      Someone from the other side that reads the post and THEN offers criticism.
      I think you're right that Americans have always criticized their presidents and their presidential aspirants from the get-go.
      I also think your point that I'm criticizing Romney BEFORE he even hopes to take office is worht making.
      Of course, I am willing to defend myself as not being an anonymous bomb-thrower but one who publicly offers specific criticisms of the candidate (and his cohorts) and then makes adjustments as I go.
      As I've said above, I think there is significant difference between being a partisan and offering your considered viewpoint (whatever your ideology) and blind followers shouting insults and talking points without ever LISTENING to the other side.
      Thank you for your time.

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    2. yer welcome jeffen.

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    3. Everybody's dissatisfied when their guy loses, but I don't remember this level of hatred after any other Presidential election, except maybe Bush's reelection being tainted with the Florida disaster. Maybe it seems exaggerated because of the rise and easy access to blogs and social media.

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    4. I do remember the post-Florida anger in 2000, I'm trying to imagine how the Right would've reacted if Republicans had lost in such a manner (loss of popular vote, ballot unreliability, Supreme Court judgement).
      Also, yes, the internet has amplified the hate, far more even then cable TV did.
      But the hatred for Obama (birth certificate et al) has seemed so visceral that it creeps me out.

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    5. I gave some bozo the link on Snopes.com for the birth certificate photo, and his reply was some bizarre conspiracy theory involving the doctor! I think these people are just willing to spread lies online in the hopes that other people, who don't bother to do any research, will fall for the negative propaganda. It's very strange the way it just never ends.

      The most hatred I remember is when Ford pardoned Nixon, and that died off after a few months.

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    6. That birther thing is one of the most depressing displays of ignorance in this century.

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  6. Good post, However, you forgot to add that Liberals have also been called Socialists as well. What I find amazing (and also ironic) is that when right-wingers see an article that doesn't support their position, they say the press has always been a group of bleeding heart Liberals, yet they get all their information from media as well. Personally, I would also add that over the last four years, right-wingers have confirmed my suspicion that they are racists as well, but that would be insulting the 0.01% of right-wingers that aren't.

    Peace.

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    1. Yeah The Republicans have a very selective views of information that comes from the media; when the jobs numbers were low they saw them as gospel, one move in Obama's direction and they're heresy.

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    2. Thats an ignorant thing to say Oxy. Always with the racism charge. Just because you might happen to be a Republican does not mean you are a racist. The left screams racism if you aren't for Obama. Hmmmm, maybe just maybe it might be his policies. Please, man. Ever hear of Senator Robert Byrd (D?

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    3. I can agree that no party has a monopoly on racists, but I also know that the modern GOP is more willing to placate racists and Lee Atwater and many more will attest to this.
      And as for Sen. Byrd he said some terrible things in the 1940's but he not only recanted he did it with a shining grace:

      "I know now I was wrong. Intolerance had no place in America. I apologized a thousand times ... and I don't mind apologizing over and over again. I can't erase what happened."[10]
      Robert Byrd, 2005

      http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/18/AR2005061801105_pf.html

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  7. I feel qualified to pre-hate Romney because he used to be the governor of my state. He was just using the position to simulate qualifications for his current job search. For the last two years of his term he travelled the country trashing the state (if you own a small business that depends on tourism in Ma he's NOT your friend).
    BTW, I'm a believer in the pendulum between Left and Right but right now it's broken and yes, the Right is to blame.

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    1. I hope this line of attack on Mitt as a one-term governor who ran scared from re-election and will now lose his home state by staggering numbers gets some heavy play in the final months of the campaign.

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    2. dude, no months. A MONTH

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  8. Not sure if anyone will read this, but Biff, my comment was somewhat tongue in cheek. Sure, there's a little bit of truth to it, but I wasn't painting all right-wingers as racist. I was also referring to the left and their canned response when the right does not cooperate with Obama and any bill he proposes. Still, in my many, many years on the planet, I have never seen such a lack of respect for the presidency. Boggles the mind. As for Byrd, he was a piker. Hell, I live in SC, famous for our current and last governor, but also the land of Strom Thurmand and the Dixiecrats. We can't get any sports or business events into the state, as the state senate refuses to take the confederate flag off the state grounds. The NAACP boycotts any event (and the very needed dollars that go with it) because of it.

    Here's a good example of the mind-set of this true red state. A lady in Georgetown, SC says she is voting for Romney because he seems nice and kind. She is interviewed a month later, after she finds out Romney and Bain Capital bought and gutted the steel mill in Georgetown, leaving an empty shell and some very peeved residents. She still says she is voting for Romney after she learns this. By the way, if you need any super weed, crack or smack, Georgetown is the place to go. It's the biggest business in the city since Bain sold off all the mill equipment, thus preventing anyone else from coming in to start up the mill again.

    What's my point? People are idiots. I live among a number of folk who still claim Bush was a very good president. As a nation, we better get our act together and be a bit more vocal about what we think is best for the nation. I will also shake my head in wonder when I find out, after the election, the percentage of registered voters who didn't think it was worth their time to simply cast a vote. I need a drink.



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  9. "Hell, I live in SC, famous for our current and last governor, but also the land of Strom Thurmand and the Dixiecrats. We can't get any sports or business events into the state, as the state senate refuses to take the confederate flag off the state grounds. The NAACP boycotts any event (and the very needed dollars that go with it) because of it. "

    Oxy,
    You've made a powerful statement where your frustration comes from. While it's easy for me to hope that your great country is changing for the better, it's got to be harder when you're in the thick of some of the most negative things abut your nation.
    I admire your courage.

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  10. Brilliant response to trolls.

    The political debate over the last 5 years has not been as "usual". I consider myself an independent so I don't enjoy bashing conservatives, right-wingers, or name calling but they are not "normal". There is no logic or debate possible, there are no facts outside of their agreeable media circle and there is no understanding of a need to compromise. In fact, compromise brings claims they have been "victimized". WTF?

    I'm tired of it. One more comment about the need for "smaller government" and my response is to "move to Somalia" - which sounds like their ideal to me; free market, no gun laws, no taxes, no healthcare and no services unless someone can pay a private contractor. They have no police or firefighters, no infrastructure ... perfect.

    I like civilized society and I think government does have a roll to play in it - and that role should be bigger than any private industry. I tend to call "reactionaries" the "American Taliban" since they share similar goals.

    Since they are 1%, I think they should leave.

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  11. "There is no logic or debate possible, there are no facts outside of their agreeable media circle and there is no understanding of a need to compromise. "

    Your diagnosis is spot-on, IMI.

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