Judging by the comments to my previous thread about zombie lies, a few of the things I thought didn’t need to be said needed to be said. That’s okay, that’s why the blogosphere is superior to the traditional (old) forms of media: immediate feedback and the ability to interact with readers.
The first thing I left unsaid was an explanation as to why we should build and maintain a one-stop reference site debunking Obama propaganda and Axelrovian talking points. The election is over, so why dwell in the past? Shouldn’t we move on and find new battles to fight?
If one of PUMA’s goals is going to be reforming the primary/caucus system so that what happened this year never happens again, we need people to know the truth. Now honestly, if Barack Obama ends global warming, cures cancer, brings peace to the entire world and ushers in the greatest period of prosperity in our nation’s history, few people will care a whole lot about how he became President. But if (when) his popularity drops down to G-Dub/Nixonian levels, they will be asking “How the hell did this empty suit getelected?”
Once upon a time the “progressive blogosphere” was the only place dedicated to telling the truth about Iraq and the Bush (mal)administration. They called themselves the “reality-based community” because they refused to drink Dick Cheney’s Kool-aid or repeat his zombie lies. Eventually the American people realized the media was lying to them, due in part to truth-telling bloggers.
But the meltdown of the progressive blogosphere is the reason why WE should build our own anti-propaganda database. This past year we have seen far too many examples of respected bloggers tossing aside years of hard-earned credibility to worship Teleprompter Jesus. Some were guilty of sins of commission, others committed sins of omission, but either way we obviously can’t count on anyone else to do the job and do it right.
The last point I neglected to make is that our goal is not to convince Axelrove’s paid bloggers and trolls to put down their sippy-kups and recognize that the clothes have no emperor, our goal is to counteract the lies that those zombies are spreading. We don’t need to argue with them, when we see one of them squat and pinch-out a zombie lie on the carpet, we can cut & paste a zombie truth over it. But when we encounter a real person who has been deceived by the lies and propaganda spread by Obamanation, we won’t have to search for the antidote.
Here’s a handy field guide to spotting and dealing with trolls. I’m not talking about the kind that live under bridges or appear in Tolkien novels, I’m talking about the sub-human vermin that infest blogs and corrupt discussion threads. Scientists have not yet determined when they mutated into their present form or how they were first introduced into cyberspace, but these parasites are now as ubiquitous as cockroaches.
Trolls feed on two things: attention and disruption. When you hear the expression “Do not feed the trolls” it means do not engage the trolls in discussion or argument and do not allow the troll to hijack threads. If you feed a troll it will never leave and may bring friends. Site monitors can delete the troll’s comments and block its IP address, but if it knows there is food to be had it will find a new IP address and return.
Several sub-species of troll have been identified but they mutate quickly so there are always new types appearing. Here are some of the more common types:
The Confluence was founded by Riverdaughter as a safe, comfortable place – a refuge – for Hillary supporters to talk without being brutalized by Obama supporters. Now that the election is over the term, “Hillary Supporter” might not be the best description of a Confluencian — but we know who we are. And we still don’t want to be bullied.
This post is a notice that comments at The Confluence are moderated. Lying, spamming and/or regurgitating talking points is NOT tolerated*. And if you bully or harass the authors or commenters your comments may be deleted with or without notice.
Oy, such changety-hopety-change! You shouldn’t know from it!
So, Chicago Congressman Rahm Emanuel is going to be Barack Obama’s Chief Of Staff, eh? I’m sure he is a Washington outsider who has no connection to the same old politics of the past (like Joe Biden, that fresh-faced newcomer!). I’m also certain that he reflects all of Obama’s “liberal” views on the war, and since the “centrist” DLC is the most eeeeevilll organization EVAH according to our fauxgressive brethren, I’m positive that he would never touch such an organization with a ten-foot pole!
Looks like Emanuel has been working in Democratic politics since 1984. He was with Bill Clinton from 1991 (when he was the campaign’s finance director) to 1998. He is a member of the DLC, and here is his record on the war:
Oh, and remember when Jesse Jackson promised that the Zionists’s hold on American politics would be loosened? If you thought he meant AIPAC and was not being a wacked-out anti-Semite, get used to disappointment. Emanuel has already introduced Obama to AIPAC and is extremely pro-Israel. Ain’t nothin’ gonna change there either.
We don’t know what they’re up to but they got the candidate THEY wanted, not the candidate WE wanted. They did it in 2000 and 2004 and they only way we will ever have a choice going forward is if we neutralize their toxic messages. The progressive blogosphere was supposed to be the cure to that but they failed utterly, eventually being subsumed by the media itself. Had Clinton won the primary, the media would have suffered a devastating blow and I think the political power brokers knew that. So, I think we can assume that they maintained the current system so that they could use it in the future.
Who do we trust? First hand accounts are always valuable. There are also indicators that can’t be spun by the networks. The Dow, for instance, reacts to economic data, not media commands. We could also keep an eye on the foreign press, which if not necessarily more reliable will certainly present a different point of view. InsightAnalytical has a page of foreign press resources.
It would be nice to think that now that the media got what it wanted that it will do its job and report on the presidency of Barack Obama with a more critical eye. Anyone who is thinking that should pass the bong because I don’t think that’s going to happen. The people who elevated Obama are going to want something in return and if what Biden reported a few weeks ago is true, it’s a good bet that the rest of us peons are going to hate it with such intensity that we’ll be sharpening the pitchforks and lighting the torches by this time next year.
Keep alert. Keep skeptical. Find a buddy, hold hands, look both ways before you cross the street. We’ll still be here. We’ve got lots of friends and we’re going to work together to fix the misogyny in the media, broken election systems, the scarcity of women in political office and the millions of broken hearts in the GLBT community who were let down by the same people who put their favorite in the White House. The country needs to be inclusive of all of its citizens.
And it was yummy too! Like my my previous post when an SEIU Canvasser dropped by, I’ll write out the exchange in a MadamaB style playlet post except that it’s actually happened to me. It’s a phone rant, so please bear with me:
[The Scene: I am in my humble bungalow abode in Tampa, FL, coming back from picking up Abuela from a medical lab test appointment. While making a “greca de café“, the phone rings. On the Caller ID I see “Democratic Party” with a local number. Suddenly, I maliciously smiled as my inner PUMA growled and I answer the phone. A polite caller introduces himself en español. For the sake of this post, I will write out the exchange in English.]
ME: Hello?
DNC Phone Guy: Hi, my name is Mauricio and I am calling on behalf of the Democratic Party. We would like to remind you that you can early vote today at the West Tampa Library located on Howard and Union streets.
ME: Hello Mauricio, I plan to vote in my district, 205, at the West Tampa Convention Center on Election Day. I want to vote where I always vote.
DNC Phone Guy: Well, that’s good then, ok, well we’d also like to remind you to please vote for Barack Obama as well as other Democratic ticket runners…
ME: Hold up, stop right there. Mauricio, with due and proper respect that you deserve, I know that you are only doing your job. Whatever I have to say, please don’t take offense. Get this straight, write this down and tell anybody and everybody in the FL Democratic office there. There is no way I’m not voting for Barack Obama after he and the DNC stole my vote in the primaries and did not allow my vote to be cast the way I intended it at the convention. I will be voting for McCain because he co-wrote the bill for Comprehensive Immigration Reform together with Ted Kennedy and endorsed by Hillary Clinton. I marched in the LULAC protest and McCain stood by us Latinos – but what has Obama done? His own aunt in Boston is an illegal immigrant and he hasn’t even had the nerve to help her, not even to help her get an immigration attorney to help her out. If he ignored his own aunt, what makes you think he’s going to help pass this Reform we so desperately need, especially in the Latino community? I was going to vote for McKinney but with the race so close as it is in Florida and in other states, I want him and the Democratic Party to lose so they know not to steal votes like they did on May 31st at the RBC meeting in Washington.
DNC Phone Guy: I, I, I understand and I’m happy to know that you are an informed voter and…
ME: And another thing – the Democratic Party I knew, the one defended Democracy, one person=one vote, Liberty, Freedom of Speech, Women’s rights, is DEAD thanks to Obama, Pelosi, Dean and Harry Reid. They trashed everything that I identified with as a Democrat. If Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. were alive today, he’d be hanging his head in shame at the fact that the first African-American presidential candidate stole votes in order to win. This is a disgrace and a cancer to Democracy. Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina’s votes counted, but not Florida and Michigan’s? The only thing that makes everyone equal in this country is the right to vote. And the Democratic Party did not count my vote because they felt like putting Obama as the leader and how are they going to do that when Hillary won the popular vote and she won the electoral map across the board? He only won little pockets of the population but the DNC assigned more delegates to that particular population and ignored the rest. Well guess what, my vote will count this November 4th and when Democracy comes back to the Democratic Party, so will, I. Until then, I am a PUMA – have you heard of PUMAs before?
DNC Phone guy: Well, I have heard yes, but I urge you to please at least vote downticket…
DNC Phone Guy: I hope that you have a good day and I understand that you feel this way, but I am happy to know that you are an informed voter and you’ll be voting this election.
ME: Without a doubt I’ll be voting and yes, I do look forward to Hillary Clinton running for 2012 – but this time, let the process play out. Tell them to send Obama back to Democracy School so he can learn what a Democracy is. You can’t steal votes in the primary and expect the same people you stole from to support you in the general election. There is no Party Unity worth enough to trade the only thing that makes me a free person in this country, which is MY VOTE. Remember that and have a good day.
DNC Phone Guy: Thank (click)
And that was it – I leave you with Eddie Palmieri’s “Revolt/La Libertad Logico” with the Fania All Stars sound that invokes the spirit of rebelión and demands freedom for all people.
A vote for Obama is a vote against the poor. A vote for Obama is a vote against workers. A vote for Obama is a vote against good government. A vote for Obama is a vote against the future of the Democratic Party.
To further prove that Obama’s campaign is really in trouble, the Oborg collective purchased 1/2 hr. spots on NBC , CBS , Fox, Univision, BET , MSNBC and TV One.
HARRISONBURG, Va. — Barack Obama will focus on the economy and how his tax plans would help the middle class in a half-hour political infomercial Wednesday night.
The program, scheduled to run on television networks on the 79th anniversary of the stock-market crash of 1929, “will share the specifics of Obama’s plans to turn the economy around and get the country back on track,” campaign spokesman Bill Burton said Tuesday.
“We want to make sure every voter heading into the voting booth knows exactly what Barack Obama would do to bring about fundamental change as president,” he said.
Campaign aides declined Tuesday to answer questions about what images viewers will see when they tune in, whether the format will be live or taped and whether it will feature Obama alone or include additional voices such as business leaders or economic experts.
The program will air at 8 p.m. EDT on NBC , CBS , Fox, Univision, BET , MSNBC and TV One, and at various times in other time zones. Obama is scheduled to be speaking during that time at a rally in Florida .
Message to Bill Burton: WE ALREADY KNOW EVERYTHING we need to know about Obama, and we’re not interested.
This is an act of desperation folks. Not only does Obama have a Dish TV channel, now he’s going to be on major network and cable channels too, AT THE SAME TIME. Maybe if the Obama campaign didn’t launch an attack against working class people like Joe the Plumber, maybe “undecided voters” would find his economy message more believable. Maybe if the Chicago Machine Run DNC didn’t steal votes to win and won his candidacy fair & square, maybe more Democrats would be voting for Obama. Maybe had Obama denounced the “war on women” his supporters and surrogates wage incessantly, maybe more of us would be willing to listen to what he has to say on Wednesday.
Yet despite the media HAKA, had Obama put this election in the bag as the “polls” say, they wouldn’t be going through all this trouble. Personally, this scares the living heck out of me. I plan to not watch it of course, it’s too “Big Brother” for my taste, but what will you do? Will you watch for comedic purposes, wait till it comes out on Youtube or boycott the Oborg completely?
Here’s a message I’d like to blast out to the Oborg collective:
Remember this guy below? His name is Tito Muñóz, a small construction business owner who went ballistic at the press last week at a McCain/Palin rally for attacking Joe the Plumber from 1:21 to about 3:40 where he now famously said “I was born in Colombia but made in the USA” (the other guy after that is an anti-choice guy so skip to the end):
Now, Tito the Builder opened a rally for Sarah Palin in Virginia.
Not only is Tito another working class man looking to better his life, but…Latino vote? CHECK. Working Class vote? CHECK. Aren’t these the voters a part of the DEMOCRATIC base??? Oh, that’s right, we’re not part of the new 2008 Chicago Edition Democratic party anymore! You have to be on the VIP guest list to belong to the new DNC. Since there is no room for the working class voter in the Democratic Party – take a guess who they are going to vote for?
From Harriet Christian, a lifelong Democrat, diner waitress who famously denounced the Democrats for rigging the primaries at the RBC meeting on May 31st, 2008, to Joe the Plumber a guy who Obama came up to with a gazillion TV cameras while he was playing ball with his son, and now Tito the Builder are becoming the voices of Americans everywhere who dared ask the questions and confront the media about Barack Obama’s illegitimate selection as the Democratic Presidential Candidate.
Democrats had a candidate that won the majority of the votes, connected and resonated with working class voters which understood her talk about raising taxes without scaring the heck out of people, has a sparkling clean record and background, the gravitas, love and grasp of solving problems for our country. She’s still working her heart out for Downticket Democrats since the “That One” is too busy to help the DSCC and DCCC as he is supposed to do as the Democratic Party “Leader.”
Speaking of working class voters and the economy, this guy thought the same thing we all did (h/t/ Hillbuzz):
WASHINGTON–As Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) noted Sunday, he
believes it is pre-mature to speculate who Gov. Blagojevich will tap to replace Barack Obama if he is elected president. Nonetheless, the Chicago Defender called for Jackson to succeed Obama, and the lawmaker blasted out the news in an e-mail.
Others in the top tier for Blagojevich to consider:
Illinois Veterans Affairs chief Tammy Duckworth
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.)
WASHINGTON–With
Barack Obama’s lead growing and John McCain’s path shrinking,
speculation is growing about who will serve in an Obama White House. On
Sunday, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.)
whether he would be interested in serving as Obama’s chief of staff.
Emanuel did not rule it out.
Former Clinton White House chief of staff John Podesta—a native of
Chicago’s North Side–is quietly overseeing Obama’s transition
operation, dealing with personnel, policy and process. The transition
operation commissioned white papers on how to turn campaign promises
into action; arranging security clearance for those involved in the
handover; figuring decision time lines out how the executive office
should be organized.
Obama has been pondering transition matters since at least last
April, I have learned, with activity stepped up as it looked more
likely he will win. The Obama team has been trying to keep all
transition matters secret for fear of raising the hubris factor.
UPDATE:
Other names being mentioned for Obama White House Chief of Staff are former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), whose own team made up the core of the Obama operation; real estate executive Valerie Jarrett, the confidant of Michelle and Obama who has known them for years and banker William Daley, the former Commerce Secretary and Mayor Daley’s brother.
This is not the party I once supported and knew. This is a complicit and systematical Chicago Machine takeover on the national scale – at all costs. This Neo-Democratic thug crew is measuring the drapes and cutting their pieces of their pie while our votes are thrown in the trash. This is their reward for a “job well done” – for pissing on Democracy, Free Speech and Women Rights, among so many other rights the current 2008 DNC has violated. And God help me, as long as I have breath in me, I’ll resist it to the end.
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