(Update from John below)
Roll out!
For those who have not yet read Dana Houle’s post about Jane Hamsher’s duplicity, you should do so. The article speaks for itself. For my part, the revelation is unsurprising. Also unsurprising? That her acolytes rush to defend her, usually with some version of the “Obama sucks” song.
I suspect, however, that while their cognitive dissonance won’t permit them to draw the obvious conclusion — that Hamsher has played them like a fiddle, spouting her special brand of Obama Derangement in order to loosen their wallets — it is still necessary to draw attention to her chicanery in the hopes that the media will stop treating Hamsher like she is some Progressive darling when she so plainly is nothing of the sort. (And when she selectively edits her appearances on the MSM in order to make herself seem more politically savvy than she is.)
I’m sure I need not remind you of Jane’s purported loathing for people who attack Democrats from the outside. You know… veal pen and all that. So what does one call heading up a company that sells ads for Republicans? Elephant Pen, perhaps?
What does one call a person who heads up a company that sells ads for Republican and who simultaneously systematically attacks Democrats (Obama, Reid, etc.), while seemingly doing NOTHING ELSE?
Ratfucker. That’s what.
In fact, Matt Osborne of Osborne Ink and Crooks and Liars wrote about Hamsher’s ratfuckery months ago — “Nixon Had A Word for People Like Jane Hamsher” — and drew this response from Kevin Gosztola: “Jane Hamsher is No “Ratfucker” (And She Shouldn’t Be Required to Show Progressive Credentials Either) – with Updates.” Even Gosztola, however, had to recognize a bit of double-dealing:
[Osborne] goes after Hamsher for using a web ad company that took money from BP. Fair enough, but this seemed to be something that happened because BP purchased ads as part of their greenwashing campaign. BP effectively tried to intimidate ThinkProgress, Crooks and Liars, AmericaBlog, Eschaton and other liberal blogs relying on ad revenue from Common Sense Media. It threatened to pull ads if they were found to be appearing near posts that were “offensive” or critical of BP. Pulling the ad, of course, would mean loss of ad revenue, which is often the life’s blood for blogs. Those familiar with Firedoglake know they had a BP Oil Disaster campaign that was funded by donations. It is likely that they took a minimal amount of money if any.
Needless to say, Osborne clearly woke the beast. At Netroots Nation this past weekend, Osborne was offered a paid writing gig in “the movement,” (his words) but was informed that he “would need to “dial back” his criticism of Hamsher.
Seriously.
Ask him.
Or read his twitter stream from June 17.
Or read this Chirpstory (also viewable at ABLC]:
You tell me: What exactly is progressive about this woman? That she is tolerant of other views in her blog space? That she takes a hard-line against the use of racist dogwhistles? That she would never employ blackface to make a point? That she takes a hard stance against using the term “nigger” to describe Democrats and ensures that her moderators and diarists do as well?
Oh right, she does the exact opposite of those things.
So, the answer is nothing. There is nothing progressive or righteous about Jane Hamsher, as far as I can tell. She’s fleecing her readers and taking advantage of the Progressive movement in the same way that Arianna Huffington did.
So now can we require her to show her progressive credentials?
Well what if I were to tell you that she has been instrumental in rolling out a Primary Obama bus billboard that will be covering — wait for it — only black neighborhoods in Washington, D.C.
Yup:
The “Primary Obama” campaign over at www.epicstep.com was successful and the bus ads are finally placed. Because it took the company so long to place the ads they decided to give us six ads instead of one. Perhaps they are sympathetic to the cause?
I had to reformat it to fit on a bus instead of a billboard but the message is the same.
Heavy Downtown coverage from 16th Street NW eastward into portions of Northeast DC coverage including Capitol Hill, Chinatown, Metro Center, Union Station, L’Enfant Plaza, Mt Vernon-convention center neighborhood, McPherson Sq, NoMa, Thomas Circle, Logan Circle, Columbia Heights, Mt Pleasant, Adams Morgan, Shaw, U Street Corridor, Cardozo.1
I grew up and have lived in DC for years. I have one question for Jane Hamsher:
Why no coverage in Dupont Circle? Georgetown? Cleveland Park? Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Silver Spring? You know — where the white folks are?
Could this be the reason?
Much better would be to go on the offensive, IMO. I.e., exploit this dustup [sic] (with West’s blessings, of course), to take things to a higher level. Specifically, West, with the NPA’s backing, could undertake an education program, with the initial target the US black community, of teaching them about, say, Obama’s Top 10 betrayals, and Obama’s Top 5 betrayals of Afro-Americans.
Nah, couldn’t be.
Jane would never do that.
1 For your Google-fu since I’m not going to link to FDL, use these search strings to find the relevant posts: (1) “Jane Hamsher is No “Ratfucker” (And She Shouldn’t Be Required to Show Progressive Credentials Either) – with Updates” and (2) “Primary Obama Bus Ads go live in Washington D.C.!!!”
*** Update ***
This is John speaking. Personally, I am profoundly uncomfortable asserting that Jane is part of some racist campaign because of what some idiot diarist at FDL has done. I know that we (ABL and I) have disagreements about who is responsible for what over there, with ABL feeling that because they moderate some comments and diaries, they therefore own the rest of them. I disagree with that. All I see is some idiot named Figaro promoting this idiocy and then thanking the community, but I have seen nothing from Jane anywhere that would indicated she was involved, much less knew anything about this silliness.
If there is any evidence that Jane is responsible for the bus ads in any way, I would love to see it. But I can’t in good conscience ignore a post calling Jane out for racist behavior when there is no real evidence she was involved. There’s a simple reason for this- I’ve been called a bigot, misogynist, and a homophobe for no reason whatsoever, and thought they were vicious unfounded smears. It bothered me, so I won’t allow that to happen here.
And before the haters pile on ABL- I like her, and will have her back when I think she is right. I just think this one is a little thinly sourced, so I am making a rare editorial decision. If it turns out Jane was involved, show me the proof and I will have your back.
And for those of you following this shitshow, I originally took this post down, then agreed that that was the wrong way to handle things. I’ll leave it up (nothing disappears on the internet anyway) and just note that I think it is factually incorrect and lacking evidence.
tweez
makin’ popcorn!
stuckinred
Oh El Tiburon, it’s whine time!
Fuck em up ABL!
Dana Houle
Well…uh…OK now…
Dana Houle
Well…uh…OK now…
General Stuck
Goody! It’s hump day race riot again on BJ.
Who will be the first to whine that ABL is overly concerned with race and racism and get all butthurt we aren’t talking also about black racism. Tim Interruptus is my first guess, or maybe Mattminus. nope D Mason is my final pick
meh
this will be interesting – could be THE sock puppet event of the year. Know how you can tell who is posting here from FDL? The slightly burnt smell of righteous indignation emanating from their comments…
dig a hole and dig it deep – we got incoming boys!
Duckest Fuckingway: Ask not for whom the Duck Fucks. . .
Really, the thing I noticed about most of those neighborhoods listed, many of which were traditionally black before the latest wave of gentrification, is that they are young and, well, gentrified.
But, whatever, this blog has a long history of being stupidly, obsessively unhinged about some woman named Jane Hamster, whoever that is..
Duckest Fuckingway: Ask not for whom the Duck Fucks. . .
Really, the thing I noticed about most of those neighborhoods listed, many of which were traditionally black before the latest wave of gentrification, is that they are young and, well, gentrified.
But, whatever, this blog has a long history of being stupidly, obsessively unhinged about some woman named Jane Hamster, whoever that is..
stuckinred
We’ve already had a long battle downstream with El Tiburon leading the firebag assault team!
Jon
ohhh boy: why not just throw in some israel/palestine stuff in the mix just to make sure we get max effect here.
Trurl
If Obama is defeated in his re-election effort, just make sure to blame Jane Hamsher and her hundreds of readers – and not your man’s miserable economic record.
ABL
i’m so damn black.
i’m a shitty blogger.
i’m obsessed with hamsters.
(i think that covers it.)
:)
justawriter
This asshole should also be taken down because he is obviously shilling for the Republicans.
Firing squad, take your weapons and line up in a circle.
Guster
Huh. I’ve long thought that people who are invested in the Jane-Hamshers-of-the-left bullshit are almost always just as stupidly pro-O as she is anti. (Yes, both sides _do_ do it.)
But looks like I was wrong:
August J. Pollak
“Where the white folks are?” Jesus Christ. I lived in DC for four years, including in Mount Pleasant and Columbia Heights. Whatever point you’re trying to make here is painfully diminished by such a baseless argument about these neighborhoods- which on a rough guess make up, like, 80% of the entire residential topography of DC- consisting only of black people. And without a single link. How you don’t see that as flat on its face ridiculous astounds me.
burnspbesq
Ratfucker?
Naah.
Businessperson.
Hurts the top line if you don’t work both sides of the street.
Now, that ignores the fact that Janey has been misrepresenting who she is and what’s she’s about since, oh, 2005 or so. But hey … hate the sin, not the sinner, right?
Dana Houle
BTW, I lived in DC from 2005 through 2009 and have returned regularly since then, and while I have no compulsion to defend Jane Hamsher, I have to say that in most of those areas listed there are more white people than black people.
Mark D
Oh goodness … once the Firebaggers get wind of this, this comment section is going to be a freaking gold mine of lulz.
I’ll have to check back tonight — with a bag of popcorn, natch.
(Oh, and THANK YOU for pounding the “Jane is a ratfucking tool” angle as hard as you have. I just wish Tbogg would go somewhere else.
RossInDetroit
Wow. Instant TrollAvalanche.
Everyone who thinks Dems should beat up their incumbent before the general election please indicate by cutting off your own nose.
Marc
Pro tip to firebaggers: complaining about how evil Obama is doesn’t address the point at hand.
Alex S.
I don’t know yet whether it’s ratfucking or trying to facilitate a primary challenge that would boost CSM’s revenue. But then I also can’t decide which one is worse.
JC
‘a firm that does work for Republicans’.
Hmm, that’s an awfully big net there. Lots of room for a firm to ‘do work for Republicans’ and not mean that Hamsher is a posing left wing grifter.
Now, IS Hamsher a faux leftwing grifter? Possibly.
But it’s also possible that she is what she seems, in that a lot of people agree that the system, as it is, is broken and corrupt, and Obama is choosing to work within a broken system, and with those (such as banksters) that ‘own the place’.
Jon Stewart made a trenchant observation, in his interview with Chris Wallace, in his disappointment with Obama:
“He came in and said you can’t expect to have a different result with the same people. That was, in many ways, his seminal campaign focus. And all I see as far as economic stewardship are the guys that got us into this mess in the first place”
That really seems to pinpoint my own unease with what has NOT been accomplished with the Obama administration. Summers, Geithner, Bernanke, etc.
But, since I can hold two conflicting ideas at the same time – this doesn’t mean I don’t recognize the HUGE advances he has made, from Lily Ledbetter to the ACA, working within the system.
Since Obama no doubt has better judgment than me, I’m sure he’s right in his judgement that he had no choice but to play footsies and tiddlywinks with the banksters, in order to get what he’s gotten done, done.
But it still is annoying. And, of course, the banksters now are conspiring to kick him out, despite his cooperation. Because greed is infinite, unless challenged.
After that long diversion – Hamsher:
I never go to her sites. I give her no traffic. She truly went insane in the Obama is no better than Rethugs schtick, especially when considering people like Governor Walker, the crook governor in Florida, all the various idiot Rethugs for President now on display.
To say no difference with Obama is insanity.
But this case is pretty weak, in terms of ‘nailing’ her for conflict of interests.
Nail her for being an effing idiot, but build a better case.
August J. Pollak
I guess there would just have to be threads about how Pam Spaulding is an Obama hating racist instead.
brent
Yeah. I grew up in DC as well. Lived about 20 years of my life there and I wouldn’t feel at all comfortable with the racial demographic assumptions you are making here ABL. I definitely have some serious issues with Hamsher’s brand of “progressivism” if it can be called that but I think you are undermining your point here.
Duckest Fuckingway: Ask not for whom the Duck Fucks. . .
ABL: Now you are the entire blog, too?
Sorry but John had Hamster Derangment Syndrome long before you showed up. But it is nice seeing people keep up traditions!
Arrik
Just in case no one has pointed it out, Atrios called bullshit on the claim about BP ads.
Marc
The discussion here of, say, Cornell West has been different than the discussion of Jane. Perhaps this is because they’re different cases?
Jay B.
This should be as good as the “Weiner was set up because of Clarence Thomas” sleuthing.
Timothy Trollenschlongen (formerly Tim, Interrupted)
ABL has jumped her own shark.
Or is it racist to say so?
taylormattd
ABL, I am so sad. Did you see that Pam Spaulding is migrating House Blend over to Hamsher’s shithole?
Temporarily Max McGee (soon enough to be Andy K again)
@Arrik
Really? I’d beg to differ with Atrios.
Meander
Just made a donation to FDL for their good work and told them that ABL sends encouragement.
TheMightyTrowel
@ABL #12 – you’re also one of the finest bloggerz on these here intertrons.
Corey
As others have already pointed out, you’re an idiot. None of those neighborhoods are predominantly-African American.
Elliecat
ABL@12:
There you go again, I I I I, it’s always all about you! Unlike all those objective, altruistic bloggers out there who leave themselves completely out of it. ;)
Justin
Off-topic, but I’m thinking of getting my cat circumcised with the claws I had removed. Anyone think this is a bad idea? Fuck you.
JC
Seeing more comments, the case is less and less clear, about the ‘conflict of interests’ thing. From the BP example, called BS by Atrios, to the ‘firm worked for Rethugs’, to the specific charge of black neighborhoods.
There are plenty of reasons to despise Hamsher. I do, considering her insane equivalency of Obama and Rethugs.
Cole has from about seven years ago, since the ‘The Jane Hamsher’s of the Left” fiasco. (Heh, but man, those were some awesomely funny posts and comment sections at the time.)
This particular case that she is a disbelieving grifter (rather than a stupid believing grifter) is weak.
cthulhu
This little war isn’t high up on my priority list but I will note that I stopped visiting FDL mid-08 and haven’t really missed it. But whether this is actual rat-fuckery or simply a sincere (and, IMHO, misguided) difference of opinion, I cannot say.
Citizen_X
JC @ 22: Once she has taken money for promoting Republicans (and, well, allied with Grover Norquist), everything anti-Obama that she does is suspect.
The best counterargument you can make for her is that she’s not evil, she’s just idiotically self-defeating at politics (evidence: the blackface incident). Either way, she’s toxic.
andrewsomething
Who is this Jane Hamsher?
Alex S.
I would guess that the focus is on Washington D.C. because it’s meant to tell the Village that the left is unhappy with Obama.
JC
cthulhu
Yes, agreed. Except that more than a difference of a opinion, she is willfully blind.
chopper
what kind of moron thinks a ‘primary obama’ campaign will go over well in DC neighborhoods?
j low
ABL and Jane Hamsher do make a beautiful couple. I think Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson sang about it.
Trurl
I guess that depends on what the point it.
As I read it, the Lady’s point is that Hamsher opposes Obama’s re-election not because he’s Bush’s third term but because she has a “Derangement Syndrome”. If so, that would make the fact that Obama is Bush’s third term quite relevant indeed.
The amusing part, of course, is that Hamsher will have less effect on the 2012 election than… well, pretty much anyone else. Her readers are few, have long since recognized for themselves what Obama is, and in any case were written off by his political team years ago.
The only reason for ABL to go off on this diatribe is she resents Hamsher speaking the truth about her (ABL’s) shit candidate.
Morbo
Anyone cold today? Get your flames here.
gbear
Any ‘progressive’ who’d partner with Grover Norquist is a rodent r@per. There was no way to justify that pairing.
Pat
Oh, fer fuck’s sake. This is absurd. The woman works in politics, evidently has to make compromises in order to do so, and fashions herself as liberal enough to find President Obama’s record thus far deeply disappointing. This is enough to justify your and John’s Ahab-like obsession with her destruction… why, exactly?
MomSense
@RossinDetroit
I did a spittake reading your comment. Bravo! That is some good stuff.
Strandedvandal
Oh the smell of old withered PUMA. Do I detect persistent poutrage, nagging self loathing with just a hint of Dungeons and Dragons?
taylormattd
@ August J. Pollak – 23
And it starts already. The “I have black friends” defense. GIVE. IT. A. REST. Blackface Jane and the merry band of racist PUMAs that are permitted to repeatedly post racist shit in the “diary” type areas of that site will get a different reputation when the EARN it.
Kerry Reid
The logical follow-up question of course, is “Primary Obama with WHOM?”
Catsy
Wow, dissing Jane really brings out the trolls in force.
Dana Houle
I do have to say I’m amused by how many people say “hey, she has to make a living, so i don’t mind her making some compromises,” which I don’t think is a line of argument she or her allies would accept if made against someone with whom they disagreed.
boss bitch
No. Obama is the one that has to make compromises. She is not constrained. She is not a politician. She bills herself as a progressive activist. She does not have to team up with Republicans to get anything done.
locus
I don’t really care much if Hamsher’s a REAL progressive or not, but I have to agree with Dana, August and brent here to say that you’re way off with your assumptions about DC neighborhoods.
I’ve owned and lived in my NE DC rowhouse for the last nine years, so I know a little about the current demographics.
What you’ll find if you took a stroll through the neighborhoods you listed you would be surprised at home racially mixed these neighborhoods have become. It’s no longer a white/black thing with whites only in NW and blacks dominating the rest. Most of the neighborhoods listed have already gentrified or are in the slow process of gentrifying. What you’d find in these neighborhoods is a mixture of many different races but most of them have a rapidly increasing average SES. There will be lots of younger affluent professionals of all races and ethnicities.
One reason that they’re focusing on those neighborhoods may be the route of the message (i.e. bus ads). People who live in the high-SES parts of NW DC don’t ride the bus.
General Stuck
It was bound to happen with the natural expansion and expression of the internets. Everyone is realizing there is gold in them there clicks. At first, most everyone was doing it out of a believing place, or one stripe or the other.
And at some point, with building a sizable community of followers, which also bring sizable clicks and traffic, at some point the tail starts to wag the dog. I’ve said that about Kos;s bullshit at times, feeding the red Obama fail meat to his followers, in ways I know from following him from the beginning, is not in accord with his pragmatic political self.
I won’t say Jane Hamsher is not a true believer, nor Markos, or any of the others near the top of the rapidly growing world of blogs and bloggers, but being progressive doesn’t mean you should not take yer opportunities when you gets ’em.
Not too worried about Cole on this, as he pumps out the regular Truman Show style posts on his garden and pet angst. And the weird pointy head foodstuffs. That won’t make the big time anytime soon.
I have some hopes that altruism will again be more the feature than a bug into the internet blog future, but not high hopes of anytime soon, though there are still plenty of low traffic writers out there doing it for the right reasons.
I don’t really care all that much what goes on in the blogosphere, unless it ends up on my regular blog here at BJ, or on my teevee. Then I will have something to say about it, like everyone else.
Trurl
Yeah, that’s the flaw in her thinking. Until she realizes that the Democratic Party is irredeemably corrupt, she will not have attained Enlightenment.
Mnemosyne
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Juicetard (FKA Liberty60)
There are, I am convinced, people within just about any movement who cherish defeat.
Defeat allows them to nurse a grudge, allows them to burnish their vanity and pride at their own pristine moral righteousness, without any of the messy compromise and painful slogging through the trenches that actual victory brings.
I see this all the time when I hold activist meetings, where there is always some guy who wails loudly about the wicked immorality of the world, about the corruption of the movment all implying that he alone is the valiant pure soul who stand uncorrupted.
Of course, these same people can be counted on to never man a phone bank, never walk a precinct, never send a donation.
They are the political equivalent of the 101st Chairborne, the chickenhawks who lustily declare war from their moms basement.
F*ck, I am as pissed at Obama for half a dozen things as well; but when I look at the political landscape he is head and shoulders above anyone else, and I am working my ass off doing everything in my power to get him re-elected.
If someone wants to stand tall and preen about their political purity go ahead- but just please get the f*ck out of the way of those who want to get sh*t done.
Woodrowfan
whatever the racial component of these DC neighborhoods, paying money to convince people in DC to “primary Obama” is a waste of money. The people putting out the ads are not the brightest bulbs in the store…
Joel
If only Tunch hadn’t stolen her ball, this could have all been avoided.
JasonM
A friend recently said that once someone argues that “fascism came from the left”, they’re an idiot and not worth debating.
Same goes for Hamsher or anyone else who claims “Obama=Bush” or “Obama’s a Republican”.
Catsy
Ding. We have a winner.
Also, too, this.
Given how much of Jane and FDL’s ire at insufficiently progressive politicians comes from the compromises they make to get shit done, I find this defense of her partnership with Norquist particularly laughable.
Strandedvandal
Obviously, that’s where she keeps the rats.
Jonathon
just made a donation to FDL myself with regards from ABL.
JPL
So is there one FDL person who trolls the site and then warns the others to come defend Jane? It’s kinda like fire ants. They don’t sting until all are positioned.
Pat
Sigh. I’d forgotten this is the Internet. Enjoy the circus, everyone.
Kerry Reid
No — until she shows that she actually understands how to win elections in the real world, she’s screaming just to give herself a righteousgasm. Oh, and make money for herself.
Roman Berry
That was a stupid diary. When it comes to Hamsher, you’ve lost your way (if not your mind.) What you have done here is engage in a smear. No more. No less. You should be ashamed. (I know you aren’t, but you should be. And many of your commenters along with you. This diary and many of the comments read like some bizarro Free Republic.)
Kerry Reid
Besides, I thought the first order of business for FDL was primarying that sell-out Bernie Sanders.
Danny
Will all new poster please provide a link 2 your facebook profile in the Website field when posting? Just so we can get some identity hardening and know you’re not paid professionals. Thanks!
MikeJ
@52:
Especially since the last person to be elected to congress as a soçialist was deemed insufficiently liberal by the purity brigade.
JR
@AJP #15.
Yes, this. ABL’s list includes some of the most expensive residential areas in the city, and the biggest travel and economic hubs. Thomas and Logan Circles are right downtown; Union Station is a block from the Capitol, Fox News, the Teamsters’ HQ, Georgetown Law, and the future home of NPR; Adams Morgan is where undergrads go to get hammered; the U Street Corridor is only gentrifying and hasn’t yet been gentrified, so ABL might have a point there; Chinatown is also home to the Verizon Center, a ton of bars and restaurants, a giant movie theater, and several museums.
It’s like complaining that Hamsher would want to put ads in the most trafficked parts of the city, including those closest to the Capitol (hardly, we can all agree, a bastion of nonwhite power). The nerve!
Trurl
Looking about at what Democratic victory in 2008 has brought us, I don’t think we can afford any more of it.
Strandedvandal
Heh, the ants are swarming. Must. Protect. The. Queen.
General Stuck
Teehee, you sound like Sarah Palin’s press secretary. A “lamestream media” quip would have been a nice touch.
Kerry Reid
Shhh — nobody tell Trurl that we live in an imperialist/capitalist state dominated by two parties in thrall to Big Money!
So, let's see...
If Jane is exploiting Progressives…
what do you call what Obama is doing to them?
aisce
abl, i said you had the mentality of a troll last time, and i’m sticking with that assessment. you just can’t help yourself, can you?
jane hamsher is a self-promoting, double dealing, money grubbing, professional left opportunist…and that’s not enough for you. not far enough. you could leave the case there, and people would be inclined to go with you on that. hamsher’s a vile little parasite on the body politic.
but that’s just not enough. no. she’s also running a d.c. bus-based racial conspiracy meant to scam black people out of their votes! because of course she is.
Tonal Crow
This bullshit *again*?
Guest-123
OMG! OMG! Who fucking cares?
Hamsher makes interesting arguments that I often agree with, and she writes them clearly. This kind of attempt to discredit someone based on something other than the arguments themselves is Rove/Cheney of the left.
Strandedvandal
I actually agree with Trurl. What the Democratic victory brought us was an unhinged Republican party that is hell bent on destroying the American economy and taking as many of the poor and middle class with it as possible.
Danny
To all BJ regulars:
Please remember to “flag” all posts that you suspect are written by a paid Jane Hamsher operative. In that way John can personally check them for “suspicious” content and we all get to enjoy laughing at them on the Wall of Shame once they’ve all been banned :)
Thanks!
Marc
Claim: someone attacking Democrats for insufficient purity is actually working with Republicans (in some cases) to defeat Democrats; the Republicans are more conservative that Democrats.
A response of the form “Obama sucks” is not convincing.
MikeJ
Danny @ 82: I don’t think BJ is the site with the “identity hardening” program.
John Cole
I don’t understand this post. It’s got like five different things running together- there’s the stuff from Houle, there’s the NN stuff, there’s the chirpstory, and then there is the bus. How is Jane related to the bus? Why would you do this in DC anyway, since their votes don’t count in the general election?
And what is Atrios talking about in regards to the BP ads?
gbear
Go for it. Why not pledge to donate a dollar for each comment here. We’ll make more…
Han's Solo
She is no progressive. None of the brain damaged PUMA losers are. They are still fighting “Operation Chaos”, and they aren’t doing well.
I have no doubt that eventually we will find she was paid large sums of money, money not discussed above, in 2008 by some rich wingnut or wingnut organization. I wouldn’t be surprised if pictures of her and Karl Rove bumping uglies showed up as well. That, by the way, would make her an actual rat fucker as well as a metaphorical one.
Fuck her.
a
umm, nobody gives a shit about your stupid little fights. We just laugh at you.
chopper
@John Cole:
what??
MikeJ
Cole @ 85:
DC has three electoral votes.
Danny
MikeJ @ 84
Darn it! Got BJ and FDL mixed up again; imma such a klutz.
Duckest Fuckingway: Ask not for whom the Duck Fucks. . .
Danny: You must be new if you think that John is going to waste all that time when there are deer to yell at.
Chinn Romney
I’m afraid I lost track of what Jane does, or allegedly does, a couple of years back. I can’t shake the feeling that the accusations of “Obama Derangement Syndrome” are inflated, as they usually are.
If you don’t bend over and kiss his ring, you’re deranged. Never mind his truly pitiful track record. Make a token pass at the Gays, and all his crimes and broken and unkempt promises are supposed to be swept under the rug. Make a non-offensive (and uninspired) SCOTUS nomination, and well, look the other way when his wipes his ass with Federal Law. Is the bar really set that low now? If we called them Signing Statements, would that get the Obama faithful worked up? Or is the power of that (D) too blinding.
I guess I’m deranged. I’m okay with that. But if the guy or gal with the ( R ) next to their name isn’t good enough in 2012, I’ll have to vote for the guy again. At least I won’t be surprised or disappointed. Just let down. Again.
General Stuck
Politics ain’t beanbags, to use the true but hackneyed phrase. Everyone is for something or someone else. And those that play rough for what they want, deserve in kind treatment from those that disagree. Jane plays rough, so does ABL, the rest of you weinies ought to quit running around with the vapors over it all. Jane can take care of herself, and so can ABL. It shouldn’t get personal, but sometimes does amongst the combatants. This is politics, and what we do for substitute of heavy artillery barrages against our opponents to settle shit.
PS
I think I’ll make a donation to myself with regards from the FDL folks, who are (sob) driving me back to work (moan) that is somewhat less tedious than reading defenses of the Hamster. But my identity is hardening, so there may be a delay.
Dana Houle
@John Cole To answer “why would you do this in DC,” same reason the metro has ads for attack choppers and military transports: it’s where political decisions are made and reported on. It’s not about influencing votes–at least in my interpretation–it’s about getting attention and reporting to donors. Same reason why PCCC/DFA ran an ad against Congressman Charlie Bass (R-NH) on DC cable last week. It wasn’t to influence voters in DC, it was to get attention for PCCC/DFA and to show their donors they’re taking to fight…somewhere, to someone.
[And FWIW, full disclosure: I managed the campaign that defeated Bass in 2006. We managed to eke out a 7 point win without running a single ad on DC cable.]
August J. Pollak
You need to clarify here.
MikeJ
Danny @91, I suspected snark, but thought I’d assist for those as slow as I.
Trurl
Blogging ain’t politics.
Hamsher’s importance in Washington is too small to be detected by any instrument known to science.
And ABL’s importance is even smaller than that.
Maybe that’s what this is about.
Pat
O-bots are embarrassing the left. Please grow up, stop chasing his carrots, accept you’ve been conned, and learn your lessons from it. Or keep on dreaming the dream, coz that’s all Mr. Middleman’s ever gonna give you.
General Stuck
Who wants to take odds on a fresh Cole apology before midnight?
General Stuck
Lordy, who left the ratfucker gate open.?
Tonybrown74
And yet, here you are …
Violet
John Cole:
I don’t get it either. I tried to read it and follow it and just gave up. Plus the guaranteed fight in the comments wore me out just thinking about it.
I think I’ve had my fill of outrage for today.
Danny
Duckest Fuckingway @ 92
So you’re saying all we got to do is fundraise a house in hicksville near the forest for Lady Jane and that will be the end of her shenanigans?
Han's Solo
Pat @ 100 – PUMA hags like you and Hamsher are embarrassing the left. Please grow up, stop chasing Jane’s carrots, accept you’ve been conned, and learn your lessons from it. Or keep on dreaming the dream, coz that’s all Mrs. I-suck-rat-cock is ever gonna give you.
There, I fixed your post. Now fuck the fuck off.
Guster
Why? Because Hamsher tries (not always intelligently) to exert pressure to get what she wants, instead of just wanking about it. That makes people unhappy. Also, she’s mean to Obama.
But that doesn’t change the (apparent) fact that her marketing company is thrilled to work with right-wing blogs, to spread their message and increase their income. I’m trying to think of an excuse for that, and failing.
Danny
MikeJ @ 98
I suspected assist and went for more snark :D
burnspbesq
@Trurl:
Riiiight. I’m guessing you would have voted for Nader in 2000 if you hadn’t been six years old at the time.
Strandedvandal
@ August, No, I don’t think I do. If you have a specific question, by all means, ask it.
Pat
@General Stuck – dem sticks and stones provide a good distraction from Obama’s dirty deeds, eh?
jinxtigr
Shame on ‘Trurl’ for stealing a name from a perfectly good Stanislaw Lem book. :(
Joe
When is the character assassination of Marcy Wheeler scheduled?
Yevgraf
I forgot all about that Limbaugh-inspired mookfest. I keep wondering why nobody in the GOP kicks him in the teeth for that.
Klaus
So mediating right wing ads is enough to be a ratf!cker. I suppose Daily Kos is out too, then. Though I’m sure Hamsher will call someone a misogynist any moment now. ABL can retort with racist.
Judean People’s Front indeed…
August J. Pollak
Bitches, am I right guys?
Sorry, we were talking about how people say nasty things in the comments of Jane Hamsher’s website.
taylormattd
@ John Cole – 85
The bus ads are the brainchild of the people at “The Seminal” at Jane’s site, which used to have it’s own page there. They later formed “New Progressive Alliance” (here is the current web page: http://www.newprogs.org/founding)
The NPA steering committee is the following people: http://newprogs.org/steering-committee
Jill Stein
Cindy Sheehan
Paul Barrow
Norman Bie
Anthony Noel
Alan Maki
Richard Winger
Cornel West
David Swanson
j
I gave up on FDL a long time ago. I always felt like I needed blain bleach and eye drops after reading that non-stop Obama bashing site. It’s like wading through Agent Flowbee’s rag of a site, or some Hillbot place. And it is starting to show with her tepid fund raising efforts.
The only reason I even click on Jane’s screeching screed is to get to TBogg.
The woman who writes fro First Draft is also on there, and she is a great writer, but I can read her stuff n her own site.
Roger Moore
@Catsy:
FTFY.
Trurl
It was as a 33 year old that I voted for him.
And he was right. Not A Dime’s Worth Of Difference.
Pat
Odd you’d call Jane a ratfucker…I see no trace of her in this sewer.
stuckinred
emptywheel actually KNOWS something. She doesn’t go on the tube with that shiteatin smirk and pretend she speaks for the “left”.
goblue72
PUMA Jane showed her true colors as soon as she put a Lieberman tar baby on her website. I don’t care how many times she apologizes for it. There is just some stuff you don’t get to walk back. Especially when you go around pointing fingers nonstop questioning everyone else’s progressive bona fides and demanding that people show their papers.
As for those who might vote for a “R” in 2012 if they are good enough because Obama is someone no better, then yes, you are truly and utterly deranged.
And you possibly have intercourse with rats.
meh
this is like a slap fight at a jewish day school…
arguingwithsignposts
Haven’t read the whole thread, but the fucking census would answer the demographic questions. It should be broken down by zip code at least.
Trurl
Though I’ll tell you what…
If your man can get his executive power grabbing ass re-elected with the unemployment numbers the Fed is predicting, he’ll deserve another 4 years on the public tit.
General Stuck
Dirty Deeds? You ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Wait till Obama is reelected, and you ratfuckers whine yourselves into a ball of quivering goo.
Strandedvandal
a fucking census? Hmm, I’ve never gotten that questionnaire!
Lolis
I am puzzled to see people writing they would vote for Huntsman on blogs like Crooks and Liars. People are lauding Huntsman for his positions which are like Obama’s. Plus, these progressives are ignoring his endorsement of the Ryan Plan, a balanced budget amendment, etc. I am confused. Obama is too conservative for some firebaggers so they may vote Republican? Someone explain this to me.
Surly Duff
I could see the argument that the buses seem to target more heavily trafficked areas (McPhereson, Union St, Lenfant, Metro Center) to get more eyes on them during business hours, but to argue that the neighborhoods are not predominantly African-american is shockingly stupid. Of the residential neighborhoods, only Capitol Hill and Thomas Circle would be described as not predominantly black. It is as if people are using that the number of white people in bars in those neighborhoods as an accurate metric as opposed to actual statistics http://www.neighborhoodinfodc.org/psa/psa.html (2010 census data).
taylormattd
@ August J. Pollak – 116
Yes, yes.
Hillary is under attack by those sexist Obama supporters!!!!!Two nasty comments in this thread is just like Blackface Jane and her merry band of crypto PUMAs.goblue72
@taylormattd – that list reads like a Who’s Who of deranged far left ideologues and Berkeley new age loons.
@trurl – your Naderite sympathies explain everything.
Julie Raffety
I know she’s not a progressive, I used to read her, but quit mid 2008 when she made me crazy. It is too bad about Pam Spaulding; I always liked her.
Danny
Pat @ 123
That’s only on account of insufficient identity hardening measures /snark
Ted Stein
I live in Washington, DC and all of those neighborhoods are diverse, but mostly white. And they include Dupont Circle (west of 16th st). The majority black neighborhoods are not downtown or capitol hill, they are far east and south.
Either you are lying or ignorant.
If this is representative of your critique of Jane, it is a dishonest critique.
Daveboy
God, ABL is such a terrible contributer. Why not just get Dana Houle — he or she is largely an idiot, but at least they’re a coherent one and don’t bury their points in piles of hysterical, shitty sass.
Extreme Liberal
ABL, once again, you’ve nailed the truth to the heads of the firebaggers. It’s gotta hurt. Why do they keep sticking their heads out and handing you the nail?
goblue72
@trurl – Why don’t you just call the President a lazy house Negro and get it other with? You know you want to.
piratedan
is TRurl the new troll? how quaint….yeah Jane seems to want it both ways….blast the President and any Dems making any compromise in order to move the bus and still happily allowing herself to partner up in bidness with the people who she is supposedly diametrically opposed to all for the sake of “profit!”, guess the real world does indeed make for the strangest of bedfellows. Wonder which side of the bed the nightlight is on.
Strandedvandal
How dare you SASS Daveboy, ABL! HOW. DARE. YOU!
Han's Solo
Lolis @ 131 – Those people by in large are not progressives, nor even Democrats – they are ratfuckers like Jane.
August J. Pollak @ 116 – Yes, I made nasty comments about Jane. Fuck her and the rest of the PUMA morons. I’ll stop saying nasty things about her when she stops pretending to be a progressive.
Fuck her, and if you don’t like that, fuck off back to FDL.
Klaus
Though thinking of the Judean People’s Front, this is actually quite funny.
Trurl
With whom was the President compromising when he knowingly violated the War Powers Act?
Joel
@ taylormattd:
That’s one sweet party bus.
interesting
Interesting take on who the ‘true progressive’ is brought to you by the site of a big time war cheerleader and former all around Bush shill
Jimperson Zibb (formerly Duncan Dönitz, Otto Graf von Pfmidtnöchtler-Pízsmőgy, Mumphrey, et al.)
Huh. I never would have guessed that Bush would have worked so hard to get a health reform bill through Congress, but then, what the hell do I know? I thought Gore was 857,397 times better than Bush in 2000, so I guess my record isn’t too good.
And as for the whining about Washington’s racial demographics, well, true enough, there are neighborhoods with a higher percentage of black people who live in them, but I think ABL’s point holds water. They aren’t rolling that truck through Chevy Chase, after all. Just because they could find more minority-majority neighborhoods doesn’t mean this doesn’t smell.
RossInDetroit
@Trurl, re Nader:
All of the Democrats and Republicans can see the difference clearly. What the fuck’s wrong with you?
tomvox1
Dana Houle:
Bingo. How does an absolutist like Jane get to earn a living by taking corporatist and GOPer money to help them place their lying propaganda most effectively while simultaneously handing out decrees on the authenticity of other Progressives and Democrats? Riddle me that one, firebag trolls.
Big ups to you, Dana, and also ABL for linking that Crooks ‘n Liars piece I had forgotten about. Keep up the good good work and keep digging.
As for what Jane’s really doing, sure all we have evidence of now is that she’s playing both sides of the political/ideological fence for bucks. But if it seems paranoid to believe Jane might be a ratf*#ker as well as a simple grifter, just remember what Hunter Thompson said:
The question is not whether I’m paranoid, it’s whether I’m paranoid enough.
Ash Can
To me, the crux of ABL’s entire post was pretty clearly this:
Said “education program” being, of course an anti-Obama propaganda campaign.
ABL posted on this not too long ago, and it resulted in a bazillion-comment white-butthurt festival (how soon we forget). The folks posting here on this thread who countered with “Actually, nowadays those neighborhoods probably aren’t as black as you think they are” have been the ones most effectively disputing ABL’s main point, which — again, pretty clearly to me — is that Hamsher’s bus ad campaign is tied in with her expressed desire to “educate” blacks about Obama — which, understandably, ABL finds infuriatingly condescending at best.
Criticizing Obama is one thing. Paul Krugman has done an excellent job of finding fault with the prez’s policies, for example. And hell, even Al Gore has been on him lately about not doing enough about climate change, and he has a point. But Hamsher has taken it to extremes, and to what end? All it seems she’s doing is refighting the 2008 primaries. Her shtick got old a long time ago. She’s become as much a one-note screamer as the right-wing pundits are, and I can tell you right now that if I’m looking for a well-reasoned, well-researched critique of Obama or any of his policies, I’m sure as hell not going to her for it.
Joe
Sorry, I’m still bewildered by the accusation that Hamsher is a Republican saboteur (yeah, you say ratf*cker–classy). That all of her activism is predicated on showing the Obama admin in a negative light.
It’s reminiscent of the attack on Greenwald in April, painting him as a right-wing libertarian.
I never took BJ as a loyalist attack dog, but I guess that’s what it has become.
p.s. I am not opposed to any criticism of Hamsher, FDL. I’m opposed to an Obama primary. But this post is pure, unadulterated flame bait. Rein it in, or I’m gone.
El Tiburon
@ Cole
Just pledge your hatred to the racist, harpy, duplicitous, Grover Norquist loving, troll of a bitch and move on.
Otherwise, you are a sycophant and an acolyte. I bet ABL damn near had a coronary when she saw the mistermix link to the Dana post. FREE_HATE AND RAGE!!! Yum yum get ya’ some!
The Sheriff's A Ni-
Wow, so they have wi-fi at the Ron Paul Bring Back The Confederacy Rally?
The Sheriff's A Ni-
So Hanoi Jane can make compromises but President Obama can’t. And there are those who wonder why nobody outside the Village takes the Firebaggers seriously.
ricky
This post really makes me angry ABL.
I named my dog’s ashes Kobe after Jane’s died (he never answered to Toto anyway even in life.)
Without Jane we would never have known how good things could be under Senator Lamont.
El Cid
I guess I’m supposed to form an opinion about Jane Hamsher.
Dana Houle
@Surley Duff
Sorry, you’re just plain wrong about that: Look at this NYT interactive where you can look at demographics by census tract. Every neighborhood east of 16th St from Mt Pleasant south is majority white. The U St corridor is plurality white, and every tract south of U St and east of 9th except one–a small one around Rhode Island and 9th–is plurality or majority white.
ricky
I hate to say this, and perhaps some of you already know this. Her hair color is not natural. And killers are not natural born, either.
Jimperson Zibb (formerly Duncan Dönitz, Otto Graf von Pfmidtnöchtler-Pízsmőgy, Mumphrey, et al.)
See, people who say things like that lose all credibility. I can’t believe that there are still people who think Gore would have been as bad as Bush. That’s delusional.
Now, I don’t mind telling you that I’m not thrilled about everything Obama does. If I had my way, he’d be a lot more liberal. But I don’t get my way in this, and neither do you. We don’t live down in Dingly Dell, where Rumpletweezer runs the Dinky Tinky shop in the foot of the magic oak tree by the wobbly dumdum bush in the shade of the magic glade. If we did, then everything you and I want would already have happened. But we live on Earth, in the U.S., where there are three branches and many levels of government, and people and parties are free to be as assholish as they want for political gain over the short haul, and that’s what Obama has to work with.
Again, I think he’s too willing to negotiate in good faith with Republicans; he doesn’t seem to be willing to hit them hard when they’re down. But to be truthful, I don’t know how much more the guy could really do. If I had my magic wish, and we had a president who was willing to fight more agressively, then that president would have some other shortcomings to amke up for it. People aren’t flawless. Everybody has weaknesses. All told, I’ll take Obama, cautious as he is.
And as for Hamsher, well, I really don’t know if she’s racist or not. I do know that she’s willing to play racial games if she thinks it’ll help her, and that’s unacceptable in this country, with the racial history we have. Decent people don’t do that. She doesn’t get any benefit of the doubt from me, and I think it’s good for ABL to call her our on it. Yes, she may well be marginal. But she is supposedly on our side, and I think it’s worth trying to shame her into ending this disgraceful behavior. If she doesn’t like the bad press she gets from some bloggers, she should own up to what she’s done and mend her ways.
Elise
So are the racist comments here from firebaggers or right wing trolls? Just wondering.
Dana Houle
Sorry, meant “every neighborhood WEST of 16th St from Mt Pleasant south is majority white.”
jnfr
@Lolis
It is inexplicable.
General Stuck
Please fill out the questionaire on yer way out, so we may better offend you in the future. thank you for playing. and don’t take no wooden nickels.
ira-NY
This supposed influential progressive, the Queen of Hearts, launched a “1000 new members by June 1” campaign in early May. Despite working it 24-7 like a junkyard dog on a steak bone for over 3 weeks and then extending the campaign, although in a muted manner to the present, there are only 325 new members.
Could the Queen of Hearts following and power are overrated?
Perhaps she is spending too much time playing croquet.
Jennifer
Never have been able to understand the “blogger X can do no wrong” types. All the big bloggers have them – Kos, Atrios, etc etc.
Guess it just goes to show that unblinking fealty is not the sole province of the right.
Never cared much for Hamsher myself, though less for reasons of ideological purity than those of obvious, glaring self-aggrandizement. Just as I don’t expect that I’ll agree with everything any politician says or does, it’s a bit childish to assume that the same would hold true for any blogger…but it’s quite a bit MORE childish to assume that one must tie oneself into logical and rhetorical pretzels when flying to the defense of someone’s business decisions. Which is what it all boils down to for the Hamshers et al.
Roger Moore
@Elise:
I think the $64K question is whether there’s a meaningful difference. If the allegation that Jane is taking Republican money to mess with the Democrats is correct, then somebody who attacks another blog on Jane’s orders or in her defense is effectively a right wing troll. It doesn’t really matter whether they know that’s what they’re doing or not.
That’s the danger of personalizing this stuff. When you start giving Jane Hamsher (or John Cole, Barack Obama, George Bush, etc.) the Beloved Leader treatment, you lose control over your own choices. One of the things I like about BJ is that we’re willing and able to slag our own front pagers in the comments. It helps to keep Beloved Leader syndrome in check.
Sixers
Is this better or worse than the time she tried to take on Greenwald using MS paint? Look a Ludacris video!
Trurl
Only in BJ-land.
They’ll embarrass themselves less if they switch back to Sully as the Goldstein du jour. At least some people have heard of him.
eemom
Hi there, lake-dwelling cult-bots. Welcome to an uncensored blog.
Man, this must be like a banquet for you people — cuz over there, critics of Jane are generally vaporized by eunuch-in-chief RBG before y’all have had a chance to finish devouring their entrails.
You know one of these days Jane is gonna lead you all to Guyana and serve you some kool-aid, and you’re all gonna drink it. She, however, will not.
cat48
Trurl
This is true. Her hide isn’t a fraction as thick as Cole’s.
Swishalicious
@160:
goddamnit, that’s one of the more amazing fantasy snarks ever. right up there with TBogg’s thing about unicorns and fairies. well done, sir or madam.
Elie
My goodness!
Shoot, I find all of this pro/anti Hamsher stuff entertaining but beside the point of the fact that I am still looking for work. Jane apparently has found a good way to stay employed and has chucked any sense of needing to stay true to anything but that.
And for all you Hamsher sock puppets who will support her right to be as free of any value of supporting progressivism in a positive way, go fuck yourselves and stay fucked.
I got stabbed in the back by a former “friend” and though I know she felt it was important to her work longevity, I take a short sight of those with those particular sociopathic qualities. I appreciate however, that those qualities are greatly admired by many these days…
As for Obama, I could care less what you PUMA types think. I read your comments and its time to reach for another box of that new “Colon Health” product that I see on the teevee.
And for the dude or dudette that “threatenned” to leave if insulted, consider this an insult and an invitation to let the door knob hit you in the ass on your way out.
Elie
My goodness!
Shoot, I find all of this pro/anti Hamsher stuff entertaining but beside the point of the fact that I am still looking for work. Jane apparently has found a good way to stay employed and has chucked any sense of needing to stay true to anything but that.
And for all you Hamsher sock puppets who will support her right to be as free of any value of supporting progressivism in a positive way, go fuck yourselves and stay fucked.
I got stabbed in the back by a former “friend” and though I know she felt it was important to her work longevity, I take a short sight of those with those particular sociopathic qualities. I appreciate however, that those qualities are greatly admired by many these days…
As for Obama, I could care less what you PUMA types think. I read your comments and its time to reach for another box of that new “Colon Health” product that I see on the teevee.
And for the dude or dudette that “threatenned” to leave if insulted, consider this an insult and an invitation to let the door knob hit you in the ass on your way out.
Turgidson
They’re idiots. SATSQ.
Jimperson Zibb (formerly Duncan Dönitz, Otto Graf von Pfmidtnöchtler-Pízsmőgy, Mumphrey, et al.)
@173
Well, I wish I could take credit for it, but, as is so often true when anything is funny, Monty Python thought of it. I only borrowed it, but I’ll take credit for seeing how well it fit…
Ginger Lou
But, but, the crazy poodle lady, she make me laugh . . .
manual
Let me preface this by saying: I don’t really care for Jane Hamsher. She is sort of a fly by night “progressive” who is too self righteous. Many of us have made careers out of activism and they do not place us on MSNBS and are founded in unglamourous hard work. Nor do I particularly hat her, either.
Disclaimer over, I will say: This is an unhinged post. I’ve lived in DC for years (and still do), and almost none of these neighborhoods are considered northeast or definitively african america. I’ve lived and worked in pretty much all of them. The majority are not even neighborhoods, really, but areas of high density and commercial significance that either form part of the city’s commercial/tourist core or ring said areas (e.g. Chinatown, Metro Center, Union Station, L’Enfant Plaza, Mt Vernon-convention center , McPherson Sq, logan circle). Otherwise, the areas are broken up into areas of political importance (capitol hill) or highly populated (and popular), young, and well-gentrified neighborhoods with a lot of political activists (Admo, U street, Shaw, Mt. Pleasant, Colombia Heights and Noma). I’ve lived in four of the aforementioned neighborhoods and currently reside in arguably its most marginal (columbia heights – and before that NOMA). Columbia heights, Noma and Mt. Pleasant are probably the areas with the most “activist” types – me included.
So, tactically, she is targeting (1) some of the most job dense areas, (2) some of the most politically significant and and (3) some of the most politically active. This makes complete sense to me. If she were to target Cleveland park or bethesda, she would likely be wasting her time on bourgeois folks who already support Obama and have no interest in her billboard campaign – with the exception of dupont and its activist gay community.
Now, it is true that some of these areas (Noma, Shaw and Columbia Heights) have sizable african american populations – most black people have been driven out of U street by now. But they also have a ton of young white people and probably represent the entry point for a large portion of new movers. Moreover, they are contiguous, and make the campaign cheaper and dense and likely more effective.
So please, rather than jump to conclusory judgements about race, hate Jane Hamsher for another reason; it’s probably not that hard. Because the evidence you have marshalled forth is silly and points to an opposing conclusion.
John Cole
I still, for the life of me, can not figure out what the hell Jane has to do with this bus ad. The absolute only thing I can find is some crackpot diarist at myfdl named figaro- but what does that have to do with Jane?
Turgidson
She partnered with GROVER FUCKING NORQUIST. What is there to be bewildered about?
At this point I don’t think she has any purpose, political, ideological, or otherwise, other than “ZOMG I HATE OBAMA SOOOOOO MUCH!!!!” Why else would she make common cause with someone who hates everything she’s supposed to stand for as a Professional Left uberstar and, if he had his way, would gleefully completely fucking ruin all that is good about this country and turn it into a modern Somalia with nukes?
I don’t think she’s actually a GOP ratfucker, but it’s hard to imagine a more coherent explanation for her apparent belief that Obama is the bigger enemy than GROVER.FUCKING.NORQUIST. I mean, be as pissed as you want to be about how Obama fails you with every decision he makes. Fine, whatever. Pressure him to be more liberal. Knock yourself out. But Grover fucking Norquist. Fuck him. With the rustiest goddamn chainsaw that has ever existed. Anyone who would solicit his help in order to attack a Democratic president deserves to have her fucking motives and sanity questioned. Grover fucking Norquist.
Loneoak
Sometimes I feel like the Righteous Progressives are rather like the lizard people conspiracy theorists: deep down, all politicians are the product of a single corrupt system and are the same on a fundamental level that is invisible to the normals. We need someone brilliant like Nader or Hamsher to undermine the system sufficiently, and the costs to regular people of turning over the political system to the actual enemy be damned. They think that until we purge the party of all Lizards/Unrighteous, we risk being eaten by them.
manual
On second thought, this is more ridiculous than I thought. Not only do the ads not target the african american community in any meaningful way, they seem to have absolutely nothing to do with Jane Hamsher. This is a really delusional post.
mpbruss
The buses are a dead end. Even if Jane assumes responsibility for every idiot who posts to her site, a majority of commenters here have convincingly disputed ABL’s assumed neighborhood demographics–and honestly why would you assume neighborhood demographics? We have this thing called the internet…
Since I’m not once on record fluffing Hamsher, and since I’ve never expressed any personal displeasure with ABL, I’m clearly the only non-regular here with the impartiality credentials necessary to suggest ABL quietly walk this one back.
Full disclosure: I have previously expressed a high opinion of Glenn Greenwald at some point, so everything I have to say can be safely ignored.
rikyrah
stay in dat ass, ABL.
STAY IN IT!!
YOU have nailed her!!
on point, ABL.
putting it in Black neighborhoods.
G-T-F-O-H
shortstop
I cannot decide what is funnier, Burns owning Trurl at 111 or Trurl lying down on his back and handing Burns a bigger leash at 122.
Danny has me in stitches. I read the End of Sherwood thread with increasing disbelief. I almost never go to FDL except for TBogg, so I’d forgotten how thick teh crazy gets over there. But what really threw me in that thread and this one was not the insanity; it was the plodding double-plus unbrightness of most of the FDL commentariat. Bagging fire is one thing. Doing it with so little aptitude, grace and elan is really inexcusable. I sure ain’t one of the shining stars of intellect and wit around here — but man, we got ’em a-plenty.
MomSense
So I’m pretty new here at balloon-juice but clearly there is a history between folks here and FDL from all the energy on this thread.
I have a question for folks who are defending Hamsher. Who did she support in the endless Democratic priamary/caucus season?
John Aravosis
No one ever told me BP was going to pull the ads if they were near a post critical of BP. I can’t swear they weren’t pulled, I never noticed, but it’s not a very effective way to pressure people if you never make the threat :)
gimmeabreak
I lost patience and can’t read all 185 (mostly) fucked-up comments.
If it hasn’t been said, I’m a-gonna say it. Does it matter what neighborhoods these emoprog-plastered buses run though?
The residents of these gentrified quarters won’t have a close-up look at them like the riders of the buses will.
Corey
@gimmeabreak – this is DC we’re talking about. Relatively few people have cars, and the riders of the buses in those neighborhoods are mostly white, too.
(I live in one of the neighborhoods mentioned above, work in another, and hang out in four or five more. The bus I rode home from work featured this very ad!)
I’ve actually read the whole thread, there are no fucked up comments, just people asking ABL to back up her claim that Hamsher’s condescendingly attempting to “educate” black people by placing ads on these buses. Which she hasn’t done.
Alan in SF
So fiendishly clever of Jane Hamsher, presenting the work of D-Day, Jon Walker, Marcy Wheeler, Christy-Hardin Smith and many other of the best informed and most respected journalists in the progressive blogosphere. I’m not gonna say anything against Balloon-Juice cause I love the site, but we’d be in sad shape if we had to rely on B-J for authoritative information and analysis rather than FDL & Greenwald. (Not that there’s anything wrong with B-J, just not that kind of site.)
mike in dc
NE DC is majority white? News to me… Half those buses travel along the Green Line route, and the other half along the Red Line route…both of which cross through AA neighborhoods.
Mike Kay (Team America)
I’m setting the over/under on post comments at 245.
Corey
@mike in dc – All of the neighborhoods listed above are in NW.
Uncle Clarence Thomas
.
.
Shorter “Cult of Personality” ABL – “It’s the messenger, stupid, not the message.”
.
.
Mike Kay (Team America)
Why can’t the vaunted netroots find anyone to primary OBama?
Even Grayson and Kucinich have said no.
Grayson is out of a job and has nothing to lose, but even he’s givin the netroots the back of his hand.
Kucinich has been redistricted out of his seat and he also has nothing to lose, and likewise, he says no.
So whats the deal.
Why can’t the so-called “base”, with their vast resources, persuade anyone, even people with nothing to lose, to challenge the Great Satan?
eemom
@ MomSense
I’m far from a defender, but I’ll answer your question because I seriously doubt you’d get an honest one from any of the cultbots.
FDL was self-proclaimedly “neutral” in the primaries. Hamsher made a big goddamn deal out of that. But like everything else about her, it was a transparent fraud. She was shilling for Hillary big time, and if you don’t believe me, just ask any of the dozens of loyal readers who were banned as “misogynists” anytime they uttered a word critical of Hillary.
It was my opinion at the time — and given the overwhelming evidence of her rabid ambition and self-promotion ever since, it still is — that she rather fancied herself a prime candidate for President Clinton II’s press secretary or some position of that kind. She’s been known to suck up to Bill Clinton before.
She would be singing a very different tune than she is today if Hillary had been elected. You think we’re Obots here? Hamsher would have changed the name of her blog to Criticize President Clinton and I’ll Cut Your Balls Off Lake.
Bobby Thomson
So Gozstola was wrong. Doesn’t make Jane “Thousands in revenues, not one cent in campaign contributions” Hamsher less of a grifter.
Alan in SF
Jane Hamsher’s biggest crime is that she believe in Barack Obama’s platform. That’s what really infuriates so many people here, because you’ve had to spend the past two years pretending you don’t believe in it.
eemom
delusional much?
Just for starters, Christy H-S hasn’t blogged there since 2009.
As for the other, um, “best respected journalists” — well, words are just inadequate to the idiocy of that characterization.
ETA: Jane BELIEVED in Barack Obama’s platform?
Holy shit. Delusional doesn’t even begin to cover it.
General Stuck
Personally, I don’t give a rats ass where the buses went and if they targeted black people or not. If Jane and FDL are promoting this kind of anti Obama propaganda and calling for Obama to be primaried, that is fine with me. It’s a free country. But this bullshit about laying off Jane cause she is some kind of liberal progressive royalty pisses me off. If she wants to join the wingnuts in running Obama out of office with a primary challenge, or supporting a republican, that is peachy. And of course, in practical effect, calling for Obama to be primaried is exactly that, giving the goopers a leg up to capture the WH in 2012.
So why should any Obama supporter sit by and give Jane or any other dem a pass on treating them just like we would treat the wingnuts, who want the same thing as Jane and the firebaggers? I will answer that for you. If you oppose the reelection of Barack Obama for president, then we are political opponents. if you make up shit to smear him, then
we are political enemies. It makes no difference what party is on what side, or one part of a party is on what side.
Mike Kay (The Base)
reading through the comments I had no idea hamsher was so reviled.
it’s well deserved. she did it to herself.
Alan in SF
@Turdigdson
Obama partnered with John Fucking Boehner. In fact, when he sold out his FISA pledge during the campaign, he partnered with Dick Fucking Cheney. Now he’s partnering with William Fucking Daley. So what?
Eli Rabett
Those are not really black neighborhoods anymore, mostly a mixture of blacks and yuppies. Think of them as Matt Yglesias’ turf
The Sheriff's A Ni-
Its so cute watching the firebaggers flail away at rationalizations.
Odie Hugh Manatee
I think that what angers the firebaggers about this place is that John lets people speak freely, unlike Calamity Jane and her RedState-style of banning anyone she or her community take a dislike to because they spoke their mind and gave their opinion on a subject. RedState likes to ‘assign’ stupid shit like writing an essay to attempt to get back in their good graces there while Calamity Jane is now into “identy hardening’, requiring people to out themselves publicly in the hope that Jane and her community will let the offender back into the site. Never mind the stalking and harassment that outing yourself to a bunch of crazy people on the internet will cause, or the possibility that doing so could endanger their careers or family.
Calamity Jane’s Raging Ass Hamsters of the Apocalypse are just fine with her “identity hardening” program because they know that it will never be required of them. Kind of like her rage against the health care bill, it largely wouldn’t affect them so they were on the bandwagon with Jane.
Calamity Jane has only one progressive goal; to progressively fill her bank account with money from whatever source she can. That’s it. For Jane, it’s ‘purity for thee but not for me’.
mike in dc
@Corey–easy way to resolve this. What are the route numbers of the buses carrying these signs?
MomSense
Thanks, eemom because I remember her very positive statements about Bill Clinton and about Hilary as well. I also read that Paul Krugman made the top 10 list of candidates to primary President Obama.
When I started to pay attention to her again after many years of ignoring her following the Lieberman blackface disaster, she was teaming up with Grover Norquist in opposition to the individual mandate that was part of health care reform. I was paying attention because I was volunteering about 20 hours per week with HCAN/SEIU and OFA to organize around health care reform.
But Clinton and Edwards both proposed mandates from the outset. Krugman wrote a long piece in the Times comparing Clinton’s plan with that of Obama and favoring Clinton’s precisely because of the individual mandate.
And the only reason that the mandate was a part of health care reform was because the various Senate and House committees proposed it. President Obama wasn’t pushing that aspect of reform. So it always seemed strange to me that the individual mandate would be considered so egregious to Hamsher that she would team up with Norquist. I don’t know her motivation but I think she should be asked. It is at the least a major flip flop on her part. Why?
On a number of other policy issues, I might agree with folks at FDL on policy but as an organizer I must start with the world as it is and the criticism coming from FDL is often divorced from the legislative realities. I have also noticed a tendency to put winning or beating the other side (corporations, wealthy, etc) ahead of helping people who need help.
There is also I think a problem in that we discount the anxiety that comes with change. We have been fed a steady diet of fear for 10 years and then we suffered a terrible economic blow. People are rightfully scared. You can’t change a culture overnight. Anyone who leads an organization or business or who volunteers at their faith community or with any other kind of charitable organization has experienced how difficult and time consuming it is to change the culture.
Lots more to say about this subject but I’m not sure that this is the right forum.
gimmeabreak
@MomSense: “…the criticism coming from FDL is often divorced from the legislative realities.”
That’s it in a nutshell. Period. And that sentence is short enough for Twitter.
Corner Stone
Man. This post seems pretty thinly sourced to me.
Trurl
I hardly read FDL at all in 2008, but yeah, it did seem to lean Hillary. Still, it was never notorious for it the way MyDD or TalkLeft were.
Matt Osborne
I should make clear that I had multiple offers for work, and the request to dial back was universal among them. Naturally, all of these people then proceeded to tell me fresh hell stories about the Hamsher.
HumboldtBlue
I still, for the life of me, can not figure out what the hell Jane has to do with this bus ad. The absolute only thing I can find is some crackpot diarist at myfdl named figaro- but what does that have to do with Jane?
Because NPA and FDL are the same fucking thing? Is that being too obtuse?
Corner Stone
@Matt Osborne
Is that a good or bad thing? Matt, can you provide any further clarity?
General Stuck
Well, that is not a bad piece of evidence, at least for blog work.
Corner Stone
HumboldtBlue
Doesn’t it seem a little thinly sourced for you?
bmull
@Matt (#212)
Yes, do tell some fresh Hamsher hell stories. Or are you lying to propagate the myth that everyone is afraid of Jane because of her supposed Nixonian dirty-tricks powers.
I suspect employers just don’t want you writing embarrassing defamatory nonsense (see above post) on their dime. Is that so hard to believe?
brent
@mike in dc – #207
I have no idea what specific bus routes those signs are supposed to cover but most of those neighborhoods are unquestionably in the Northwest or barely past the center of town into the NE (like Union Station for instance). But even that is really beside the point. If you are familiar with D.C, as you seem to be, you know that those are not the areas that you would choose if your goal was to specifically target black people and exclude a non-black demographic.
I grew up in DC. Haven’t lived there in a number of years but even 10-15 years ago, most of the neighborhoods on that list that could even still be described as black neighborhoods were already gentrifying pretty rapidly. Now I grew up in some projects near capitol hill (Union Station was my stop) which are still low income housing and still mostly black but even in that neighborhood, there were plenty of white people who lived and worked. Now there are many, many more.
Karen
Jane Hamsher would only respect Obama if he was to fall on his knees and apologize for the crime of daring to run when Hilary Clinton was entitled damn it and Obama didn’t wait his turn or take the cue from Hilary Clinton that Obama was unelectable. She and her buddies have made it their mission to crap on everything Obama does since he committed the felony of winning the election. If Obama loses because of the GOP, I expect it. If Jane Hamsher and her friends primary someone to split the Democratic vote or puts out misleading information that makes Obama lose the election and we end up with one of these John Birchers as President she is my enemy. Her friends are my enemy. And they are not Democrats. They’re spoilers.
Corner Stone
@Karen
PUMA Roar!! Rawr! raaaarwwrrr!!..rar…rawr…
Alexander2
We had a healthy debate about John Cole and Balloon Juice at an African American political blog a few years ago. Some of us, including me, argued that John Cole was a friend who always kept our community in mind. Others disagreed.
Today’s drama about ABL’s post — Cole taking it down, then reinstating the post with an update that severely undercuts ABL’s position — convinced me that I was on the wrong side of that debate.
I’ve always been a moderate in matters of race, politics, etc. This time I was wrong. I vouched for this site. No more.
Mike Kay (The Base)
jeez, Cole, your flip-flopping on this post would make Mittens blush.
Honestly, I don’t care about the billboards. But Hamsher has a long, long history of banning anyone who posts a disagreeing comment. Don’t believe me – try it yourself using a pseudonym. And I’m sure you’ve heard, she’s currently instituting what she calls an “identity hardeming” program to stamp out dissenting voices.
She’s at the very least involved in the billboards by approving of the posts appearing on her site.
Think of it this way, if the posts were to raise money to run billboards denouncing FDL, do you think she would let those go on?
Odie Hugh Manatee
John,
Even though I have nothing more to say about Hamsher at this time, thank you for reopening comments. Now let the cards fall where they may, as it always has been here.
The ‘home’ here for me is as it should be. Not perfect, nor has it ever been, but it feels right once again. Remember the line that originally described this place: “Hot air and ill-informed banter”
Indeed, and I like it that way.
Mike Kay (The Base)
@Trurl:
In what way were MYDD and TL notorious?
AAA Bonds
HOLY FUCK GETTING ALL MY JANE HAMSHER NEWS RIGHT HERE AT THE 24 HOUR SOME WHITE CHICK’S BLOG NEWS EMPORIUM
AAA Bonds
MAN OH MAN I can’t wait to read through this spicy thread of hot debate on whose website is the coolest website
Corner Stone
@Alexander2
Could you please provide links to this?
Turgidson
Yeah, because the president having to make deals with the majority party in the House, or coming down on the same side on an issue as a political adversary once, to get shit done, is exactly the same thing as a liberal activist voluntarily, EAGERLY, making common cause with an uber-conservative anti-tax zealot in order to embarrass the president (and for no other discernable purpose). Exactly the same thing. Are you fucking serious?
edit: blockquote fail. The quote should be the first paragraph if that’s not obvious.
miguel
I got data! Took a DC census map and drew the approximate border of these neighborhoods. Red dots for whites, blue for blacks, and yellow for hispanics http://i.imgur.com/axE9c.jpg
If I had to characterize these neighborhoods by race I’d say they’re the edge of the gentrification.
Timothy Trollenschlongen (formerly Tim, Interrupted)
Reading thru this thread, it shocks me again how obsessed STuck, eesmarm, and others are with Hamsher and how eviiiil she is. Which of course tells me Hamsher must be doing something very right, but I digress…
I’ve been called a Firebagger a good number of times in comments here, and I look at that site a couple of times a week max, rarely making it beyond scanning the headers.
Seems pretty clear that the obsessive Hamsher Haters here are the ones with their eyes glued daily to FDL. Now why would that be? Why do people constantly read thru a site they claim to hate? Why not just, you know, NOT read it?
No, really, I’m asking…
cinesimon
Timothy – it’s called being informed.
Alexander2
@Corner Stone
I’m one of eight bloggers/moderators. There is no link to our private conversations.
This isn’t about our site. Its about yours. Sorry if that sound evasive or wrong. I’ve had enough. We all have.
AlphaLiberal
Um. Gang?
When I read this, I had to check to see if it was a student council blog. No, it is Balloon Juice alright.
So, we’re fucked here in the USA so many ways from Sunday I can’t bear to list. Except there are real people losing jobs, homes, being evicted, living hungry. Plus, all the rest.
And you’re all snarking about some bus ad without bothering to say WTF the bus ad has to with Hamsher (she’s the blonde, right?)
Is this all a farce? No, sorry. This is all a farce.
We need UNITY. Enough with the circular fucking fire squad. Obama is President and people will criticize him. Don’t like the criticism, then speak to it but cut the high school student council weasel bullshit.
And, no, I don’t surf FDL.
WTF.
AlphaLiberal
And the articles you link suck, too. More poorly proved accusations, assigning motivations, and plain vanilla ad hominem.
Corner Stone
@Alexander2
Ok. So you had a “healthy debate” between the 8 or so monitors of a site you can’t link any of us to.
That does sound healthy indeed.
Alexander2
http://weeseeyou.com/2011/06/22/w-e-e-peeps-wednesday-link-sweep-70/#disqus_thread
aisce
@ corner stone
the important thing is that john cole hates black people.
…and they aren’t gonna take it anymore!
cinesimon
Alphaliberal – I sort of agree, that the circular firing squad is very counterproductive.
That’s the point, though: Hamsher and her supporters are the lead shooters in such a metaphorical scenario. That’s why so many of us dislike her: they’re no less full of nonsense and destructiveness than the tea party folk.
Forget about the bus thing – just look at her body of articles since the 2008 election – even during.
But hey: it’s all a farce, right? I guess that means you just want people to kiss and make up, and forget about debating issues and motivations, just behave like the republicans, forget about policy, as long as we’re one fighting block?
Screw that: we need to debate our values and policy. We do not want unity at all costs like the right have achieved. That would mean everyone following a Limbaugh or a Hamsher or whomever, and throwing away our critical thinking skills.
Sure it gets very messy. That’s actually a good thing – we’re all different, after all.
And please: just because this day a wildly silly(at times) argument has broken out, does not mean that less people will get fed. There is room for stuff like this – as long as it doesn’t dominate.
If it were up to Hamsher, it probably would, going by her writings and actions. Because if things aren’t done up to her exacting requirements(that is, if Obama does not act like a left wing dictator, which is what she has been essentially demanding), she has a fit and campaigns on the side of scum like Grover Norquist. That’s her style.
Alexander2
@aisce
Scroll down a bit in the comments. I’ll answer any non-racist comments that you might have.
http://weeseeyou.com/2011/06/22/w-e-e-peeps-wednesday-link-sweep-70/#disqus_thread
Corner Stone
@Alexander2
Very educational. Thank you.
AxelFoley
@ Kerry Reid
[crickets]
Notice how we never get a real answer for that.
AxelFoley
@ boss bitch:
Thank you.
I mean, so Evil-Lyn gets an excuse for compromise, but the President of the United States, who has to work with the other side, doesn’t?
AxelFoley
@ Jonathon:
What’s that saying about a fool and his money?
aisce
@ Alexander2
really? that’s a website comments section you’re proud of? you want more people to see that?
which part? the part where cole is an “racial underminer” and a “weaselly, wishy-washy, punk ass bitch” who operates a toxic hellhole that abl needs to disassociate herself from? or the part where al gore is now public enemy number one, a loser, a looser, a looooooooooser, and a little crybaby who needs to be rocked to sleep? also, a loser.
why it’s a regular algonquin round table. certainly puts this blog to shame…
AxelFoley
@ Han’s Solo:
Han’s my new favorite poster for this.
ROFL
AxelFoley
@ jinxtgr:
And here I thought he was just trying to say the word “troll” with a British accent.
Internet Dragons
Seriously? Balloon Juice is seriously getting all protective of someone who feels that blackface is edgy political commentary? Someone who has idiots like this ‘Primary Obama’ asshole splashing their vile (and racist, if you hadn’t noticed) BS all over their site, and then posting a special little ‘thank you’ to FDL for SUPPORTING their ‘work’?
Really?
You have got to be fucking kidding me.
I don’t feel like I need to agree with you all the time, but that’s kinda sickening.
pragmatism
This one time, at blogging camp, we all refudiated Stalin and the broccoli mandate. Best summer evar.
But seriously, partnering with Grover Norquist against the health care mandate is like roaches partnering with Raid against the “let’s not clean the floor” mandate. I apologize to the roaches in advance for comparing them to Jane and her fire bagging minions.
Alexander2
@aisce
that’s a website comments section you’re proud of?
Extremely.
you want more people to see that?
I could not give a fuck. That’s not why I linked.
I’m starting to get angry. You see what you want to see and ignore what you want to ignore. How do sane people of color do this?
AxelFoley
@ Elie:
LOL, damn.
Odie Hugh Manatee
@Alexander2:
Thanks for the link to WeeSeeYou (bookmarked, of course). All I read there are people honestly expressing themselves. When my Mom and father were going through a divorce in the 60’s, my father ran off with his girlfriend and took all six of us kids, leaving Mom in the dark as to where we were. After a few weeks, the police showed up with our Mom at his new house and we were happily reunited with her. Mom promptly stashed us where she thought we would be safe while she battled it out with him. The safe place was with AA friends of hers in another small town a couple of hundred miles away from our father. She did that because he knew nothing about them and wouldn’t be able to find us to run off with us again. We later learned that he only took us to avoid child support, which explained the way we were treated by him after he ran off with us (like we were a burden he was forced to carry). When he couldn’t get away with that, he fled the state to avoid the dreaded child support, leaving Mom to fend for us on her own (which she did very admirably considering the times).
They had four kids and the time we lived there was a real eye opener for me regarding the shit that people of color had to deal with on a daily basis. We were treated like crap by other families in the area with (white) kids and they weren’t allowed to play with us. That was fine with us as ten kids were able to find plenty to do on our own to stay amused. I have more than a few tales, both funny and sad, I could tell you about but I’ll leave it at that. It was one noisy and fun home though, and we all missed it when we had to leave to return to Mom after she thought it was safe to bring us home.
One thing I took away from the experience was that kids are kids; we all got along great (maybe a little too great at times…lol) and parents are parents. That while we are really all the same on the inside, our outward appearance and life experience are not equal. While the divorce and stuff we had to go through really sucked, I am glad that I was able to experience life from ‘the other side’.
It was an experience that had a lasting impact on my life and I’m glad to have had the chance to live it.
Joe
ABL is, as usual, unhinged and almost totally incoherent. My brain begins to hurt every time I’m able to make it through the first few paragraphs of her rambling screaming nonsense.
Here’s the thing, gang: even if Jane Hampsher is the worst blogger in the history of blogs, why would any serious person on the left spend more than a couple minutes on her, while we’ve got a president who blatently violates the laws and constitution of this country?
Here’s a partial list of Obama’s major crimes:
*Not investigating Bush’s torture regime
*Assassination attempts on American citizens
*The Cruel and Unusual treatment of Bradley Manning
*The War on Libya
We’ve got a criminal running the country and ABL wastes our time with this sh*t.
When I voted for Obama. I thought:
Best case: he’s going to be a great president
Worst case: he’s going to be an average president
I NEVER would have dreamed that I’d be comparing him to George W. Bush, and not really knowing for sure who was worse.
Obama mainstreamed and extended Bush’s assault on our liberties, he’s mainstreamed rightwing economic dogma, and he’s oversaw the largest transfer of wealth UPWARD in this nation’s history — a transfer of wealth directly into the pockets of the frauds who CAUSED the crisis. That’s right – the frauds skipped the jail time and just got more wealthy instead.
To the extent that he’s come along on some gay rights issues, it’s only because he’s been dragged kicking and screaming by the gay community, every single time.
He has shown absolutely no propensity for taking LEADERSHIP on any issue.
He’s fuck awful. The left should proudly disown him.
AxelFoley
LOL at this asshat’s post above mine.
El Tiburon
Per usual Cole handles this better than most of us would. I certainly appreciate his voice of reason in an otherwise mostly swirling sea of frothy insanity.
ABLs hatred for this woman is palpable. Perhaps she has just cause, fine. But when it turns into some kind of seven degrees of Kevin Bacon to smear here, I think we have a problem. This post being example A.
So, anyhoo.
Odie Hugh Manatee
ET, I can’t speak for ABL but what she says about Calamity Jane comes across to me as disgust, not hate. I could be wrong but that is my translation of her posts about Jane. Of course, I’m not running around trying to defend Lady Jane (or anyone else, for that matter) like you’ve been so maybe you have your own axe to grind with ABL.
someguy
Well, ABL isn’t exactly on point factually here but she does have a generally correct instinct that Hamsher has no place in Democratic circles. Anybody who does things that screw up the party going into an election year isn’t on the same team, and the fact that Hamsher does business with Republicans makes it clear that not only is she not on the team but she can’t be trusted because she has a financial stake in rooting for the other side.
Seriously, you want to get the leg up on Republicans, quit doing business with them, quit associating with them, shun them, in politics and in your professional and personal life.
AlphaLiberal
From cinesimon
Put words in other peoples’ mouths much? I clearly said what I prefer: address the issues. Instead, you argue like a right winger, debating your own strawman — which is basically mental masturbation.
The accusations aimed at Hamsher in this crappy post aren’t even well-founded or backed up. Is that so much to ask? I read it with an open mind, I have no Hamsher (or Cole) loyalty.
“Forget the bus?” Why? The bus is up there in the picture and is the reason this person called her a “ratfucker.” It’s a part of the argument.
Yes, she criticizes Obama. I think we’ve all faced the Obamabots who demand complete servility and insult Obama supporters who criticize the President’s policies. Fuck. That.
OK, again with the putting words in my mouth. Just like right wingers do. I said no such fucking thing. What I said is that there are very important issues to be fought but you guys want to be Obama’s Loyalty Police. In response, I will increase my criticisms of Obama.
This has not been proven. It is an allegation based on flimsy arguments that don’t make sense. The articles linked to are a bunch of wild eyed screeds. And, you fucking said “forget the bus.”
This is not a “silly” post. The arguments, the politics of personal destruction, the hostile in-fighting for the purpose of enforcing loyalty and servility, alone, are destructive and demoralizing.
AlphaLiberal
I read JOhn Cole’s post over at WEE, linked somewhere here. And I have to say I wholeheartedly agree. If you are going to call someone a racist or a ratfucker, you better have a pretty strong argument. ABL has nothing. Nothing.
John Cole:
I also learned over there “ABL” stands for “Angry Black Lady.” I don’t care if you’re angry, black or a lady. You need to be responsible and not make baseless accusations.
Again, I am no Hamsher backer. I am just offended.
different church-lady
@ Odie #206
I bet a lot of Stalin’s people thought the same of themselves at first.
(I also wonder which adjunct to Godwin’s Law I just tripped across…)
Pococurante
Ok I read the comments over on Alexander2’s site. I was surprised at ABL’s quick slide into victimhood glory.
ABL, just source the fucking story.
You’ve made a name as someone who goes off on exactly the kind of thin gruel of this post. And yet you’re doing it yourself then slinking off for a tonguebath by folks who think proving dishonesty starts and stops with dreaming up a conspiracy.
Everyone has a bad day. Don’t double down on yours. Though at this point it is triple down.
Davebo
Ya gotta love a blog war!
We’ve got Stalin, Godwin and all internet traditions!
Robert Green
combining streams here: joe’s criticisms @comment253 are all valid. every one of them. unarguable, to me. and everything alphaliberal says is dead on, and i +1 all of it. every word.
having said that, here’s something that’s STILL true: obama is infiinity plus better than any other option we have for the job in question: PRESIDENT OF THE USA. how do i know? because the other candidates are either republicans, a party which self-selects against intelligence or comprehending the world as it actually is (see, evolution and global warming and macroeconomics). they will be the death of us all if given enough rope with which to hang us.
so, allow yourself a bit of cognitive dissonance. know that obama is flawed, know that his flaws are partially personal and partially systemic (the political system, that is), and allow that he is probably the best of a bad lot, and assuredly so if you include in that lot ONLY THOSE PEOPLE WHO MAY ACTUALLY WIN IN 2012.
why this is complicated is beyond me.
Johnny C.
I find it funny that the so called “real”liberals who attack Obama as being a DLCer or centrist Democrat are getting their marching orders from a woman who takes money from Republicans and friends with Grover Norquist.
ProgressiveATL
I lived in WDC too, ABL, and as soon as I got to that list of locations, I realized you’d gone off the deep end. Those are great spots to reach Congress, lobbyists, and movers and shakers who live in WDC. Focus your ire on congress who every session does something horrible to screw the local population. WDC is without representation. Why don’t you expend your ire and energy on getting those citizens some real democratic mojo?
So is it Hamsher’s message that’s making you angry? Obama in talks to eradicate employer social security requirement? Republican. Escalating every war he’s ever met? That’s Republican. And the list goes on and on. Hamsher’s message is valid, unlike your post.