Yesterday's post, about the hatchet men who made that fake Planned Parenthood video, got mostly support on facebook, but I also got a little push-back, too. This was expected from conservatives. But I didn't expect it from any liberals. And, to be fair, the negative liberal reaction I got was less about the substance of my post and more about how I just summarily dismissed conservative rhetoric on this as inconsequential bullshit.
Still though. It's disturbing to me that smart liberals can buy into such "controversy" as being legitimate. Here's a comment exchange from that thread:
Jim I'm not referring to Breitbart at any point here. I'm referring to your argument with Rachael.Excelsior!
I am of the opinion that she had a valid point when she called your initial argument weak. As I mentioned above, I have not even really seen these videos because I don't give them the time of day. I am quite smart enough to ignore assholes crying "wolf," and was discussing something entirely different if you read what I said.
In fact, I think you are doing an excellent job of making my point for me by attacking me rather than responding reasonably to my criticism. Same thing you did with Rachael, which was why I critiqued your argument in the first place.
My critique had nothing whatsoever to do with the videos. My critique was of your failure to avoid ad hominem tactics in dealing with Rachael (and now me). You should know better than this, Ron.
I have the utmost respect for you and am simply saying you seem to have let the emotion get further into this discussion than it historically would. Your page has typically been one of reasoned discussion rather than passionate outcry, so I was a bit surprised at your angry rather than reasoned response to Rachael.
Ronald Jim, you seem to be under the impression that I made an argument about whether these Nixonian dirty tricksters have some sort of point. I never made such an argument at all. I don't need to do so. The video was almost immediately debunked, as these things always are.
The point I'm making is that giving this shit any credence at all is downright stupid. All it does is feed the false controversy. I will not play this sick and twisted game.
Yes, I am angry about this. But you, and this Rachel person, want me to take what has been clearly demonstrated to be total bullshit seriously. I don't know why you think anybody at all should do that. I don't know why you're doing that, for that matter.
Jim, this kind of thing, savage, brutal dirty tricks, aimed at creating false controversy, while ruining organizations and careers, IS NOT POLITICAL DEBATE. It's hatchet work, plain and simple. And until you regard it as such, you, too, have been duped by it.
Ronald Again, Jim, I cannot under emphasize how this, these video "stings," are not political debate. This is not a debate. It has never been a debate, nor is it intended to be debate.
Instead, it is designed to do the opposite of debate. It's all about confusing people. About fucking up individuals who do nothing but good work. About duping the nation. You think the whole Benghazi thing was bad? You think the fake IRS scandal was bad? Birthers? What about Vince Foster's "suicide" or Whitewater?
This is far, far, far worse. I will not dignify it with "debate." Debate assumes a few things about where people are coming from with what they say, and honesty of opinion is among those things. But continually throwing demonstrably fake videos out there as "evidence" for a "debate" is a travesty.
And you've been fooled into buying it all. Not that you believe the videos, but that you are interested in having honest discussion about them.
There can be no honest discussion about them because they are nothing but dishonest from the get-go. The ONLY discussion that can be had is what to do about such sabotage of the American marketplace of ideas. That's it.
Ronald Also, Jim, if you're having difficulty accepting what I'm saying, try reading this Salon essay that gives a nice rundown on how this fabulous "debate" you think should be happening is actually functioning in the real non-facebook world. It isn't pretty. And it's not even a debate.
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