3
The Unbearable Rightness of Being Stupid
Once upon a time, in an imaginary land far, far away, there lived a hillbilly Viking named Erick “The Dim” Erickson. Erick the Dim had been so badly brain-damaged by an unfortunate accident with a musk ox that he believed, contrary to all evidence, that right-wingers were subject to brutal and unique oppression, particularly with respect to being hired by newspapers to write blogs
Washington Post hires left-wing blogger. I guarantee they wouldn’t hire someone from the right.
Well, we really don’t need any reminder as to the liberal bias of the mainstream media, but I’ll remind you anyway.
Greg Sargent was with the left-wing Talking Points Memo. Now he is with the Washington Post.
I’m sure Greg Sargent is good at what he does, but I’m also sure the Washington Post would not even consider hiring someone directly from the right-of-center blogosphere.
Erick’s unfortunate accident, which involved a swift kick by a musk ox annoyed with his desperate attempts at a romantic encounter, apparently erased from his badly battered brain all memory of . . .
That’s Ben Domenech, who co-founded Red State with Erick and who was hired by the Washington Post to write his own blog for the paper. He got this gig from the Post despite his having called Coretta Scott King a “communist.” Domenech’s tenure at the Post was short-lived after it was revealed that he was a serial plagiarist.
Once a few Red State commenters mentioned Ben as a glaring counterexample, Erick offered up his own alternate view of reality:
He was tossed quickly after lefty outrage — and let’s be honest, it had more to do with the lefty outrage than later revelations. They weren’t going to stand by him the minute the phones started wringing.
“Later revelations.” Hehe. Apparently these “revelations” are so inconsequential that Erick dare not even speak their name. Ben didn’t get dumped because he was a conservative; he was dumped because he stole shit. Just like we don’t mock Erickson because he’s conservative; we mock him because he’s dumber than a broken-down dump truck.
Proteus454 said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:43
Argh! My memories of The Lost Vikings, ruined forever!
Jacob Singer said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:44
“…the phones started wringing.”
Well, the phones clearly had to get their unmentionables out of the sink before the guests arrived.
ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:44
Fred Hiatt’s last hire was former Bush speech writer Michael Gerson, aka untalented bloviating hack.
mythago said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:45
Michelle Malkin is a “lefty” now?
WereBear said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:48
Facts are such inconvenient things.
blader said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:54
oh jesus mary and joseph!
broken down dump truck said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:56
I am offended at your entirely unwarranted comparison of myself to Erick Erickson.
noen said,
January 3, 2009 at 20:58
Gawd he just oozes evil. He needs some horns or something.
Me said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:02
I’m also sure the Washington Post would not even consider hiring someone directly from the right-of-center blogosphere
This is some embarrassing shit. This is one of those cases where he should have quickly put up a bunch of other posts and simply hoped this would scroll down the page unnoticed. Instead, he attempts to qualify his fuckup with:
He was tossed quickly after lefty outrage
I’m not sure what it is that repeatedly draws people back to the scenes of their greatest humiliations. Dude, just say “oops” and move on. Certainly your readers won’t give a shit.
El Cid said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:09
H/T Balloon Juice?
[Clif adds: I hadn't seen John's post when I wrote this. Erick's post is such a confection of sheer stupidity that I imagine there are, and will be, bunches of retorts from other bloggers as well.]
DrDick said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:18
Ahhh. The standard rightard debate ploy: when called on your bullshit, change the topic.
BTW – The Vikings are now formally disavowing any knowledge of or association with said Eric the Dim. They claim he is not really one of them, but a fraud and poseur (and probably a Finn).
Fozzetti said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:32
“Wringing Phones”….. scaaary!
J— said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:33
They weren’t going to stand by him the minute the phones started wringing.
Ah, yes. I remember it well. I was ringing my hands with glee as I thought how the Post would respond once the phones started wringing.
I’m sure Greg Sargent is good at what he does, but I’m also sure the Washington Post would not even consider hiring someone directly from the right-of-center blogosphere.
I got it. Domenech was hired indirectly. Erickson wins!
Cpl. Cam said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:34
“They weren’t going to stand by him the minute the phones started wringing.”
OK, besides the obvious “let’s go down to the ‘hood and do some battle wrapping” jokes, wouldn’t that seem to indicate that it was not The Main Stream Media but The Main Stream Audience that was unwilling to tolerate a smug, arrogant, rightwing propagandist.
When will these fools relize they are being marginalized because they are radicals not because some liberal cabal runs “the media.”
The Dark Avenger said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:36
From the Wikipedia:
Yep, it was all that lefty indignation from The National Review and that damn Socialist P.J. O’Rourke.
Fozzetti said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:37
Or is it “Weric the Wdim?”
I am visualizing poor WBen Wdomenech being *tossed* from the Neocon sleigh (wsleigh) to be attacked by the pack of slavering Liberal Wwolves following closely behind.
Marco said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:37
Did he catch his crazy from Hindraker who thinks Obama should look to Bush for oratory refinement? I’d call them functionally retarded but retarded people have souls.
Gary Ruppert said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:37
The fact is . . . oh, fuck it, even I don’t know what to say this time.
PeeJ said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:39
When will these fools relize they are being marginalized because they are radicals …
Never. Aint it great?
Rightwingsnarkle said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:40
His red necktie totally clashes with that brass (bronze?) helmet.
May I suggest a cravat made from a weasel’s pelt?
Why, yes. Yes, I may.
A weasel pelt cravat it is, then.
J— said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:41
Thankfully, Sadly, No! has preserved Erickson’s immediate reaction to the Domenech Post debacle.
Mooser said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:41
Those phones were wringing right off the hook. They wrung and wrung and wrung.
fauxmaxbaer said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:42
We seem to have located the culprit who stole those W’s from the White House keyboards.
gocart mozart said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:48
For Gawds sake, leave them their sense of victimhood. Without it, they have no sense at all.
J— said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:50
All that phone wringing by leftists foursed the Post to throe Domenech under the bus. Despickable.
Ripley said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:51
Um, then why did they hire him in the first place? Surely they were aware of the traditional lefty outrage when they offered him the job.
julia said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:53
Erm. Let’s say he’s absolutely right and the Washington Post was completely stampeded by the left, despite the fact that their online editor did a few victory laps at the time talking about balancing Froomkin and how tickled he was that the foulmouthed DFHs were pissed off.
Would never hire != Hired specifically for his political views and later spinelessly fired by craven editors poised to leap on any trivial gross violation of ethics and copyright law as an excuse
Just isn’t.
Bina said,
January 3, 2009 at 21:55
TPM is “leftist”? The mind boggles.
Caliph Garrett said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:02
The same Liberal Cabal that controls the Media also owns the Scoop Syndicate, whose Commie developers are so goddamn liberal they wouldn’t help Erick keep his crappy site running for free.
I can’t believe how much power Teh Liberals have over the lives of conservatives. Shouldn’t we have at least built some re-education camps by now?
El Cid said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:03
Man, what kind of crime is that, to deny someone an unjustified sense of victimhood when he or she is the actual victimizer? That’s so horrid, I can see why right wingers spent the era from 2002 – 2006 when they controlled every single solitary branch of the federal government whining about how the Democrats weren’t letting them do what they wanted, and how they totally would have reformed “Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac” (their version of the cause of the financial crisis, i.e., Democrats forcing banks to lend to shiftless Negroes) except that mean Barnie Frank looked at them funny and prevented them from using their Total Triumvirate Powers.
Interrobang said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:07
War is Peace!
Ignorance is Wisdom!
Plagiarism is Persecution!
RyRy Cooter said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:08
All that phone wringing by leftists foursed the Post to throe Domenech under the bus. Despickable.
Thupherin’ thuccotash!
Soj said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:08
I’m sure it was the sheets‘ fault that his mother had to wring out on a daily basis that little Eric pissed the bed.
Djur said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:09
These are people to whom Hugh Hewitt is “center-right.”
islmfaoscist said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:21
It’s almost as if Erik is pleading for some sort of “fairness doctrine”. Nah, that couldn’t be.
Loneoak said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:25
Gawd he just oozes evil. He needs some horns or something.
noen, I thought the same of that picture of Domenech at first. But then I realized he was eyeing a sammich just off camera. It was the only way they could get him smile.
Snorghagen said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:27
I ring my hands in fear whenever I hear the phone wring.
Bullsmith said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:33
This really is too perfect. It’s like a little late Christmas present from Redstate to the world.
Smut Clyde said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:37
Perhaps Erickson is another fan of Claes Oldenburg.
zombie rotten mcdonald said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:43
“Wringing Phones” is a pretty lame band name.
Loneoak said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:44
Are those phones Right-Wring?
elmer fudd said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:46
wringing wingnut wackos wrightully. wipe that smirk off your face, NOW!
Bina said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:49
Instead of wringing the phone, why not just his neck…that is, if you can get your hands ’round it.
That is, if it exists. Does it? I can’t see one.
Righteous Bubba said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:52
Thankfully, Sadly, No! has preserved Erickson’s immediate reaction to the Domenech Post debacle.
Was it “Oh Christ this fool has shamed us all?”
Another Kiwi said,
January 3, 2009 at 22:54
I think it was O Khrist
Dostoevsky's Frozen Head said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:00
Criminy! Maybe it is.
ckc (not kc) said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:02
genius is 1% insufflation and 99% perservation
EnfantTerrible said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:10
Getting back to Erick’s original complaint, sour grapes certainly makes a bitter whine.
Fozzetti said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:22
and bitter whine causes a wringing in the ears.
Dostoevsky's Frozen Head said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:26
His soul has withered on the vine.
mikey said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:26
Actually, I’m not sure the far right actually considers something like “plagiarism” to be an actual offense. It’s kind of a squishy, limp-wristed crime, something teh left would get their panties in a twist about.
To employ plagiarism to advance your ideology is certainly not something to fear, indeed, it may very well be a political necessity…
mikey
Andre said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:34
Erick, you’re doing it wwrong.
Lesley said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:41
Eric being even stupider responds in comments
Or perhaps he can get behind a plagiarist, much like he can get behind an ox!
owlbear1 said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:54
Apparently, the ability to feel victimized by having to stand in a check-out line is the most sought after attribute of Republican ‘intellectuals’?
Lesley said,
January 3, 2009 at 23:59
Hey, folks, Eric has a date with the VP. He’s inviting your questions.
DrDick said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:05
TPM is “leftist”? The mind boggles.
To the folks at Red State, that includes everyone to the left of Dr. Mengele.
ckc (not kc) said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:05
“What’s your favorite quail recipe?”
Arky said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:07
Tossing, wringing.
I’m not saying Erick is a compulsive wanker, I’m just saying…
American Cannibals Association said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:09
Mr. Cheney do you plan a speaking tour?
DrDick said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:15
I’m not saying Erick is a compulsive wanker, I’m just saying…
Well, he does suffer a distinct disability in that regard. I mean you have to have something to actually wank, don’t you?
ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:21
Mr. Cheney, what are your views on torture?
Big Bad Bald Bastard said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:25
“Wringing Phones” is a pretty lame band name.
Didn’t Coldplay plagiarize one of their songs?
Maybe Domenech can join Coldplay as a cowbell-player.
justme said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:33
Actually, I’m not sure the far right actually considers
something like“plagiarism”“bribery”“blackmail”“coercion”“burglary”“extortion”“murder”anything whatsoever to be an actual offense. It’s kind of a squishy, limp-wristed crime, something teh left would get their panties in a twist about.To employ
plagiarismbriberyblackmailcoercionburglaryextortionmurderanything whatsoever to advance your ideology is certainly not something to fear, indeed, it may very well be a political necessity…ftfy.
This, of course, is central to my point. One can’t, after all, go around “criminalizing politics”, now can one?
ckc (not kc) said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:34
“What’s your favorite lawyer recipe?”
Loneoak said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:35
When politics are criminalized, only criminals will be politicians … and … uh … hey, are politics already criminalized?
Lesley said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:36
Mr. Cheney, when are you going to get those gnarly bottom teeth fixed? Humane face lift in your future?
DrDick said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:39
hey, are politics already criminalized?
Twain referred to Congress as America’s only native criminal class.
Gary Ruppert said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:40
The fact is, liberal bias is pervasive in the media, and liberals want to keep it that way, they don’t want any facts or logic with their daily strokes and brainwashing from PC Left Leaning Media, no other viewpoint is tolerated, and especially about the economy, all we get is doom and gloom when it is not really that bad if you worked hard and saved and also all the bad things are the fault of dems and liberals, trying to give money to poor people who just threw it away, but no, lets wage classwar on the productive classes because we are envious of their hard-earned wealth, so we take over tha government and take it away by tax and fiat, that’s what liberals arre all about.
'liberals' said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:42
And in just a few more days we’re coming for your ass, Gary.
Gary Ruppert said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:44
The fact is, if I could ask Mr. Cheney a question, it would be to thank him for his service to our nation and to ask just how awesome he thinks the USA is.
Big Bad Bald Bastard said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:47
Shorter Err-Wreck Ewww-rickson:
We have always been at war with Ben Domenech.
DrDick said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:48
And in just a few more days we’re coming for your ass, Gary.
The Gulags are finally ready and they just got the shipments of brand new, shiny whips, chains, and branding irons.
ckc (not kc) said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:53
…take it away by tax and fiat,
Buy American!
B. Dummynech said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:54
Hey, I didn’t plagiarize! I redistributed the wealth of other people’s words. As I’m fond of saying: Next o’er his books his eyes began to roll, In pleasing memory of all he stole; How here he sipp’d, how there he plunder’d snug, And suck’d all o’er like an industrious bug.
ckc (not kc) said,
January 4, 2009 at 0:56
‘n all those words had been used before, anyway!
Smut Clyde said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:02
Gary knows the suppressed original version of Only Losers Take the Bus.
I was born again in piss and scat, (goldrush almighty)
Take it away by tax and fiat, (goldrush almighty)
Theres nothing, nothing to discuss,
Only losers take the bus.
'liberals' said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:05
The Gulags are finally ready and they just got the shipments of brand new, shiny whips, chains, and branding irons.
The cells have the proper Feng Shui, the Tie-dye prison uniforms neatly folded, and the espresso is steaming.
Good times they are a coming!
Andre said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:09
Don’t forget the counsellors. We aren’t callling them “Sensitivity Camps” for nothing.
owlbear1 said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:12
“Sensitivity Camps”?
What happened to “Executive Re-vitalization Retreats”?
Juicy Heart said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:24
“…he was dumped because he stole shit.”
What could be more conservative, than stealing from others? He was dumped for his conservative viewpoint. It’s obvious.
DrDick said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:25
Of course, I suspect they will scream loudest when informed that they have to shave off those wretched face mullets.
Big Bad Bald Bastard said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:35
Of course, I suspect they will scream loudest when informed that they have to shave off those wretched face mullets.
There’s no room for neckbeards in our librulfascist paradise!
MzNicky said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:48
So, Mr. Cheney: Exactly how many countries can you not visit now because you’d be arrested for war crimes? And as a follow-up: When will you finally fuck off and die?
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 1:48
There’s no room for neckbeards in our librulfascist paradise!
Uh… I’ll be right back — gotta go shave my fisherman’s beard. Sorry, I didn’t get the memo. It won’t happen again.
Hoosier X said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:03
Most of the things they call “extreme liberal lefty leftist” are what honest decent people call “sensible.”
Hoosier X said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:10
Aren’t these two choices pretty much the same thing?
I say if conservatives don’t want to be ridiculed, they do have some responsibility to be less ridiculous.
(By the way, there should be a hyphen between “broken” and “down” lest some readers mistakenly think you are comparing Erickson to a dump truck full of down that is broken.)
ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:20
Mr. Cheney, are you still drinking the blood of newborn children?
M. Bouffant said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:28
Never, as that would put them face to face w/ the fact that whatever they “stand athwart, crying ‘Stop!’” it’s going to roll right over them & they end up in that ol’ dustbin o’ history.
I’d bet that a mess of tombstone blanks w/ some sort of cheesily patriotic (redundant, we know) Early American Eagle motif & the phrase “This Is A Center Right Country” pre-chiseled thereon wouldn’t be a bad medium- to long-term investment.
mikey said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:39
Actually, America is like most every other country.
It IS “Center Right” when the people feel secure and prosperous and no wars are raging. Bill Clinton ran the US from a Center Right political ideology, and moved steadily right throughout the nineties. When people feel like they have theirs, they will become more conservative (small c), and more tribal.
Take away their wealth and security, force them to once again understand we’re all in this together and we need help from each other, and from government, and the people start to run, not walk to the left.
It was the greed, corruption and war mongering that caused people to abandon the right as a non-viable political system.
I would suspect we’ll see the cycle played out again before long…
mikey
jurassicpork said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:40
You want an accurate gauge of Bush’s legacy, look at the graffiti and artwork that I’ve accumulated from all over the nation and the world.
M. Bouffant said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:43
Hoosier X, be careful, Clif (doubtless as a stress-induced result of his yeoman duty here over the holidays) doesn’t take well to grammar crit. I could link, but that would be like cheating.
Tyrone Shoelaces said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:56
Mr Cheney, how would you like to meet my little fren’?
Tyrone Shoelaces said,
January 4, 2009 at 2:57
Mr Cheney, do you have anything to say before sentence is pronounced upon you?
mikey said,
January 4, 2009 at 3:11
Mr Cheney, do you have anything to say before sentence is pronounced upon you?
AWACS, this is Angler. Angler for AWACS, over. Broken Arrow, I say again, Broken Arrow, put all ordnance on my pos, over.
AWACS, this is Angler, Broken Arrow, Broken Arrow, how copy, over.
Over..
Shit
pat said,
January 4, 2009 at 3:17
Totally OT, but the Minnesota Senate recount is complete and Franken is up by 226. Yay.
Good bye, Mr. Coleman. Hello, Senator Franken (although I’m sure ol’ Norm will not go gentle into that brave night.)
Gocart Mozart said,
January 4, 2009 at 3:30
AND IN JUST A FEW MORE DAYS WE’RE COMING FOR YOUR ASS GARY!, said the usually reticent liberalobamafascist drone.
“The Gulags are finally ready and they just got the shipments of brand new, shiny whips, chains, and branding irons”, the moderately left-of-center newly appointed obamafascist supply clerk, who is normally reticent about such matters, piped in, unprompted by the liberal media.
“COOL!!!! (thirteeny!) OOOH!! Hurt Me Real Good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”, responded Gary Ruppert’s Libido with just a hint of shame at revealing so nakedly his desire of satisfying, finally! (fourteeny!), his innermost desire.
pat said,
January 4, 2009 at 3:31
The irony, of course, is that when Norm came out of the general election with about 50 more votes than Franken, and even though MN state law MANDATES a recount if the difference is less than 0.1% of all votes cast, Norm tried to make Franken look like a sore loser for not accepting the results. Hahahahaha.
Now it’s up to Norm to fight fight fight all the way to the supreme court if necessary.
NOOOOOO…… They be stealing my ELECTION……
Heh.
tensor said,
January 4, 2009 at 3:37
He was tossed quickly after lefty outrage — and let’s be honest, it had more to do with the lefty outrage than later revelations.
Yeah, we can’t let lefty outrage be about anything criminal or dishonorable, can we? We were just reflexively outraged, that’s all. What a whiny little loser.
They weren’t going to stand by him the minute the phones started wringing.
Silly typo aside, I love the idea that newspaper editors and publishers should have stood by a copyright-violator. That’s like asking bankers to defend a robber. I guess our right-wringers (sic) have become so used to having criminals everywhere around them, they expect the rest of us to live with rampant criminality as well. Feh.
David said,
January 4, 2009 at 3:57
Erick Erickson: Lord of the Wrings
Rayl said,
January 4, 2009 at 3:59
You might say that Eric just got caught with his tit in the wringer.
Tehanu said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:01
and let’s be honest,…
It would be for the first time, wouldn’t it?
Arky said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:13
No matter what he intends to ask Erick’s questions will all sound like this:
“Oooo, Mr. Vice-President! How can you expect me to get all of that in my mouth?”
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:15
I’m sure ol’ Norm will not go gentle into that brave night.
Surely not.
I read some of the stuff about his challenges over at fivethirtyeight – did any of Coleman’s legal maneuvers amount to anything other than “B..b..but if they count all the votes, I might lose!!!!”?
M. Bouffant said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:20
Wasn’t that the Paul Weyrich approach to democracy as well?
Big Bad Bald Bastard said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:24
Mr Cheney, are your numerous cardiovascular problems the result of your propensity to eat really big sammiches?
mikey said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:27
Ok, I’m pretty sure this is stupid and naive, but why do politicians with a stake in the outcome have any say in the process?
I mean, isn’t it a little like letting Peyton Manning decide who’s MVP?
Wouldn’t a system that said “you have a personal interest in the outcome, therefore, you must stand down and shut up until the designated body decides the election” make more sense?
Why is this even open to question?
mikehy
JK47 said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:28
The victory of Senator Al Franken is one last great cherry-on-top “FUCK YOU” to wingnut nation. I suggest taking a trip over to freeperland to bask in the glorious whining.
BEST ELECTION EVAR!11!1!1 MOAR PLZ!!!
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:39
AWACS, this is Angler, Broken Arrow, Broken Arrow, how copy, over.
Mikey, I read that and all I can think is what’s happening on the other end…
AWACS, this is Gavel. Tally on Angler, request instructions, over.
Gavel, this is AWACS, you are cleared hot. I say again, cleared hot. Confirm tally on Law’s sparkle, over.
Affirmative, AWACS, we are judy on sparkle. Proceeding as fragged…
… Wait, it’s not an allegory?
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:41
The victory of Senator Al Franken is one last great cherry-on-top “FUCK YOU” to wingnut nation.
Yeah! But in my squishy liberal interest in equal time, we should get together another round of these.
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:49
Why is this even open to question?
I wish I knew. Or rather, I wish you didn’t even have to ask the question. This may be one of those instances where the answer to “why don’t we ______” (where ______ = let people without a conflict of interest decide the matter) is “because it would make sense.”
noen said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:54
“Why is this even open to question?”
Because everyone has a personal interest in the outcome. Since there is no clear line of who’s in and who’s out you let both parties have a say. I’m not that thrilled over Franken. He ran an ugly negative campaign that was only exceeded by Colman. But I’m glad he will warm a Dem seat and I am looking forward to the howls coming from the wingnuts. That just might make his campaign worth it.
Big Bad Bald Bastard said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:55
Big John to filibuster Franken seating:
http://thehill.com/campaign-2008/cornyn-promises-filibuster-on-franken-seating-2009-01-02.html
This is precious, he’s courting the “rath” (pwrops to Ewrick Ewrickson) of teh fonnyman.
BenDover said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:55
I was tossed quickly after lefty outrage — and let’s be honest, it had more to do with the lefty outrage than later revelations. They weren’t going to stand by me the minute the phones started wringing.
pat said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:59
Uhhh…. Because they don’t trust the “designated body”?
Imagine that Katherine Harris had been the sole responsible official for vote counting in 2000. It wouldn’t have made it to the supreme court.
Dr. Squid said,
January 4, 2009 at 4:59
Which is to say that he got dumped because he was conservative. Part of conservative ideology says that the law isn’t that important as long as you’re in the right group. This is why Erickson excuses lawbreaking by conservatives, because according to conservative ideology, conservatives are allowed some lawbreaking.
Bina said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:03
Erick Erickson must be the only scribbler abject enough to still be speaking to the Big Dick. Crikey, what a grovelling buffoon…
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:07
Imagine that Katherine Harris had been the sole responsible official for vote counting in 2000. It wouldn’t have made it to the supreme court.
Hmm… Fair point, Pat. I guess that makes the answer roughly “because there are people who approach such matters in bad faith.” I don’t like the litigation, but now you’ve got me scratching my head trying to come up with an alternative that accounts for this. OTOH, it did go to the USSC in 2000, and that didn’t really turn out any different than letting Harris decide it, now did it?
sarah said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:14
the links over there all bounce me to a “free virus software” offer that won’t let me say no. be careful, fellow sadlies!
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:14
OTOH, it did go to the USSC in 2000, and that didn’t really turn out any different than letting Harris decide it, now did it?
Yes, but I’m optimist enough to believe that was something of a special case. In most circumstances I think it’s reasonable to believe that the courts will not always behave exactly as would a corrupt partisan hack.
It might be a while before that’s true of the USSC, tho.
pat said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:16
But think of the history books. That Supreme Court decision could come to be seen as the defining moment in the first decade of the 21st century.
It’s not just WHAT happened, it’s HOW it came about. I wonder what Sandra Day O’Conner thinks about the whole thing……
pat said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:21
the links over there all bounce me to a “free virus software” offer that won’t let me say no. be careful, fellow sadlies!
I just got one of those. YOUR COMPUTER IS AT RISK YOU HAVE UMPTY TROJAN HORSES…..yadayada.
Funny that my “official” virus detector doesn’t think so.
I finally had to close the whole page.
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:21
I wonder what Sandra Day O’Conner thinks about the whole thing……
I was just Googling around about that. I recall that, a few years after Bush’s appointment, she was expressing some concerns about impending dictatorship – haven’t yet found that exact quote / article. I do remember there was a lot of outrage about it in the lefty blogs, with which I fully agreed, along the lines of “if you think dictatorship is so awful, why’d you install a fucking dictator?!?”
That Supreme Court decision could come to be seen as the defining moment in the first decade of the 21st century.
That’s a much milder interpretation than I give it, though almost certainly more accurate than mine. For me, Bush v. Gore permanently torpedoed the court’s credibility. Well, maybe not permanently, but at least as long as any of the proponents are serving, which will probably be for the rest of my life.
pat said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:25
Not only did it destroy the court’s credibility, just think of the things that might not have happened under President Gore.
Maybe he would have taken seriously the memos about Bin Laden determined to attack the US. With planes.
Maybe we would have done something about climate change before the Arctic ice shield melted.
Maybe someone would have put a little effort into knocking heads together in the middle east..
You can make your own lists. Let’s rest assured, the world would be a much different place.
*sigh*
M. Bouffant said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:26
Alright, I did it, & I’m sorry, but I just had to.
And now I’m bragging about it & web log pimpin’, just to compound my sins.
jim said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:29
Yeah, it was just AWFUL the way the MSM hounded Bush out of office & forced him to flee the country to avoid a lengthy prison term for his criminal negligence after 9/11 … er … I mean, after Katrina … uh, I mean, Abu Ghraib … ummm … I mean, outing Valerie Plame … ahh … firing attorneys? Planeloads of missing cash? Blackwater?
Well, if they didn’t, that just means they’re deviously PRETENDING to support the far right so no-one will suspect their fiendish leftist plot. Ha! Also, hippies smell funny!
“So?”
J— said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:34
Erickson again:
Awesome logo included, of course.
Bina said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:39
“Army of Redstate Activists”? Listen, dillweed…why can’t you just haul your sorry ass off to a REGULAR army like all the other dumbfucks in the Red States?
Oh yeah. I forgot. You’re a RICH dumbfuck, aren’t you. Explains a lot.
J— said,
January 4, 2009 at 5:54
I comment at a humor blog, therefore I am witty.
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:01
It’s not just WHAT happened, it’s HOW it came about.
Again, fair point. However, this is part of why I’m none too happy with the way things are — the Supreme Court completely demolished whatever credibility and legitimacy the American judicial system had by electing Bush 5-0 (with 4 legally coherent “let’s just count all the votes and let the chips fall where they may” abstentions). So it did tear away the facade of impartiality from the courts, which would not have happened had it just been one crooked official. I’ll agree that this was a good thing. Not the corruption, obviously — the destruction of the unhealthy illusion that the courts can be trusted to be disinterested arbiters of disputes when they actually can’t. I don’t know where I’m going with this, if anywhere other than deeper into a bottle.
In most circumstances I think it’s reasonable to believe that the courts will not always behave exactly as would a corrupt partisan hack.
True enough, Xecklothxayyquou, depending on the court (e.g., if you’re in the 4th circuit, the Constitution is effectively a dead letter). The problem is that the USSC is, by a solid majority, corrupt partisan hacks of the same stripe. Though judging by your follow-up, I probably don’t need to tell you that.
*sigh* I guess when it really comes down to it, my position is really just “shit’s fucked up,” and I currently don’t see much difference at this point between “let a corrupt partisan hack decide” and “let the Supreme Court be the final arbiter.”
Big Bad Bald Bastard said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:06
For me, Bush v. Gore permanently torpedoed the court’s credibility. Well, maybe not permanently, but at least as long as any of the proponents are serving, which will probably be for the rest of my life.
George Soros should sign Alito, Scalia, Roberts, and Thomas up for the “Bacon of the Month Club”.
The “Red State Army” is kinda like a dorkier version of the KISS army. I like the “Strike Force” logo as well.
WOLVERINES!!!
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:09
Xecklothxayyquou,
Are you thinking of this?
http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB115931733674775033-lMyQjAxMDE2NTE5MDMxMTA3Wj.html
I can’t help but notice how she bends over backwards to avoid observing the fact that everything more recent than WWII she decries is straight-up movement conservatism, and just has to reach back 70 years to find a tenuous example to pin on Democrats.
noen said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:12
I comment on comments on a humor blog, therefore I am meta witty.
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:19
I guess when it really comes down to it, my position is really just “shit’s fucked up,” and I currently don’t see much difference at this point between “let a corrupt partisan hack decide” and “let the Supreme Court be the final arbiter.”
Fair enough. My position is, on reflection, the same.
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:24
Are you thinking of this?
I don’t think that’s it, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the remarks I’m thinking of were also from around the “L1EBRUL JUDGZ MSUT D1E!!!!” fad. The article you found does indeed slant just the way you say and is also a good source of “you made this bed, ma’am.”
jim said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:42
I enjoy irony, therefore I am ironic.
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:54
Funny you should say that…
Smut Clyde said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:54
I spar, therefore I am Spartacus!!
jim said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:57
I divide by zero, therefore OH SHI-
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 6:59
I took my ball and went home, therefore I am John Galt.
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 7:00
No, I am Spartacus!
M. Bouffant said,
January 4, 2009 at 7:03
I drink, therefore I am.
Bina said,
January 4, 2009 at 7:19
John Galt is a petulant five-year-old?
NOW it all makes sense!
Loneoak said,
January 4, 2009 at 7:28
I have an iPhone, therefore I am reading S,N on the shitter.
DrDick said,
January 4, 2009 at 7:30
John Galt is a petulant five-year-old?
And a not very bright, emotionally retarded one at that.
Bina said,
January 4, 2009 at 7:53
Dude. That’s seriously depraved. Don’t let our “Zionofascism” troll from the other thread see you doing that, or he’ll claim it as hard evidence of our “toilet mentality” here.
RyRy Cooter said,
January 4, 2009 at 8:02
And a not very bright, emotionally retarded one at that.
Like author, like character?
Bina said,
January 4, 2009 at 8:04
Exactly.
g said,
January 4, 2009 at 8:45
He was tossed quickly after lefty outrage
So I guess this means that “righties” don’t mind plagiarism?
Hoosier X said,
January 4, 2009 at 9:45
Only if it’s Joe Biden.
Smut Clyde said,
January 4, 2009 at 10:10
He was tossed quickly
Too much information.
Solipsist Clyde said,
January 4, 2009 at 10:23
I have an i-Phone, therefore
There is no consciousness in the universe other than me.
henry lewis said,
January 4, 2009 at 10:34
I comment at a humor blog, therefore I am witty.
That happened to me once.
justme said,
January 4, 2009 at 12:13
Dude, penicillin.
Gary Ruppert said,
January 4, 2009 at 14:58
The fact is, the Palestinian people are a death cult.
Three generations have been raised to view Jews an blood drinking animals that should be eliminated. Israel offered them a separate state and half of Jerusalem in 2000. They rejected it. Israel gave them Gaza. They held elections and chose to be governed by terrorists that has waged war against Israel from Gaza.
Parents of suicide bombers as young as the pictured baby are featured on Palestinian TV as heroes. I’ll never forget the celebration of a Palestinian teen that blew up herself and a Pizza Hut in Tel Aviv.
Such parents are peeved now that their children may die in their rocket launcher laden homes instead of a Pizza Hut with scores of young Israelis that just ordered pepperoni and extra cheese.
Do I have to repeat that to convey the depths of sickness in their culture?
These people are sick.
There can be no peace until they get their minds concentrated. The only way that will happen is after utter and devastating defeat. This is the lesson of history.
Israel has always been capable of delivering utter and devastating defeat but has never done so. Now, they say that this is all out war.
But is it?
I think not, because I know what all out war is, and it requires no ground assault.
The United States faced a death cult after Pearl Harbor. Millions of lives were saved thanks to the courage of President Truman to be willing to concentrate the minds of the Japanese people with two atom bombs. We did that to avoid a ground assault.
It took two bombs, so sick were the Japanese people in their death cult.
Israel doesn’t need to use nuclear weapons. They can deliver the blow with conventional weapons from the air. But they are not willing to do it.
Therefore, Israel is failing its people. Not too long in the future, this operation will end, and not far in the future, more Israelis will die at the hands of Palestinians again.
It will take more than removing rocket launchers and capturing and killing some Hamas leaders. The sickness of the whole people is deep. Radical surgery is required.
But what about the moderates, you may ask? Just saw one on CNN. She is an apologist for the radicals. Reminds me of the “good” slave owner in Uncle Tom’s Cabin that enabled the brutish Simon Legree.
I’ll never forget a Palestinian barber whose barber shop was destroyed the last time Hamas waged war against Israel, soon after the clarifying elections. He said that next time he would vote for those that wouldn’t cause his barber shop to be bombed. But there aren’t enough of his kind in the death cult.
We know what Lincoln had to do, that Sherman foresaw, to end that one.
20 years later, more Southerners volunteered for the Spanish-American War than any others. The Japanese love baseball.
Israel, want some good neighbors?
Concentrate their minds.
We are all supposed to get a pink glow of good feeling inside because Israel goes to such lengths to limit enemy casualties.
I don’t get that feeling because the duty of Israel’s government is to protect their people and their half measures the last 40 years have not done that and a full measure of devastation would save more lives in the long run and bring actual peace.
Concentrate the Palestinian mind.
Bomb the hell out of them.
Its the right thing to do.
Unless you do, we will all be back for this re-run in a few years, again.
M. Bouffant said,
January 4, 2009 at 15:13
Hey Ruppert, you two-bit parodist, you needn’t leave yr. imitative screeds on both threads. I’m confused enough.
Gary Ruppert said,
January 4, 2009 at 16:25
The fact is, I MADE POOPIE.
ohioans everywhere said,
January 4, 2009 at 16:30
I don’t remember much from Hagar the Horrible, but I do remember that when I viking tells a lie, his horns fall off.
Perhaps the picture should reflect this. So on one thinks it’s a photoshop job.
ohioans everywhere said,
January 4, 2009 at 16:32
“a viking,” not “I viking,” of course
Dragon-King Wangchuck said,
January 4, 2009 at 16:32
Hey all! Happy New Year, and what not. Seventeen days and all that.
Hmm, let’s see what’s been going on at S,N! BWAHAHAHAHHAHHA!!!
Fucking Red State?!?!
To be fair to Erickson, us deranged and unhinged lefties were calling for Box Turtke Ben’s head even before it came out that he was a serial plagiarist. Here’s Josh Marshall explaining the problem:
This fucking liberal bias bullshit is so fucking stupid it is hard to fucking understand why it isn’t laughed at anytime anyone dares speak its name.
Oh, I also seem to recall a bunck of patchouli reeking moonbats telling the Post that catering to “the Right”, giving in on any crazy demands the pantless howler monkeys came up with, wasn’t going to do anything about their venomous animosity towards anything even remotely associated with the dreaded emmessemm. And after being proved right on that account during the BenDo shitstorm, we have fucking RedState proving it yet again. This could only have been funnier if the bitch post was written by Ben hisself – although knowing Ben’s tendencies, it miaghy well appear verbatim somewhere else with a Domenech byline.
But, back to the part that FUCKING PISSES ME OFF. Yeah, seeing this stupid piece of RedState crap, one has to think of “Box Turtle Xerox Machine” – but that is pretty unfair to Greg Sargent. I’ve been reading his stuff off and on over at TPM, and the reason that Greg Sargent has been hired to write is because that’s what he does. Fucking TPM broke news stories with a crew of something like half a dozen. Embarrassed the fucking hell out of outfits like Wash Post by fucking delivering the news. There is no actual comparison to a piece of shit like Augustine.
You see, the fucking pantless howler monkeys have this thing in their tiny and atrophied little minds. “I R RIGHT!!!! ANY 1 WHO DISS-ARGEES WIF ME IS WRNOG! ONLEE RITE AND conSERVEatives CAN POSSIBLY DELIVER NEWS SINCE ONLY PEEPUL WHO SAYS THE SAME THINGS I SAYS R TELLNIG TROOF!”
Well to those idiots, a hearty FUCK YOU! Consider fucking Erickson’s complaint:
You’re sure? Can’t be bothered to go and fucking check? You do know that there is this intertrons thing that’ll let you actually read the stuff he wrote. But, no. Who needs fucking evidence? This sounds vaguely like something I might agree with – or perhaps it’s something some other conservatard e-mailed me. You can’t doubt conservatism. Jesus holy fucking Christ, if you expect Erickson to even remotely question the Fucking Holy Gospel of Fucking Conservativism – by considering actual fucking evidence – then holy fucking shit – End Of The World. Erickson has to keep his tragically impaired brain in lockstep – no questioning the received wisdom. That’s how conservatives roll.
Asshole.
Realist said,
January 4, 2009 at 17:01
The fact is, Gary’s comment was plagiarized almost entirely from a column by some wingnut named Mike Devine.
Bina said,
January 4, 2009 at 18:07
And that’s why conservatives are all dumber than broken down dump trucks, and that’s why we mock them.
Any questions?
Another Kiwi said,
January 4, 2009 at 19:01
Nice catch Realist. The Ruprecht bot iz broked
D.N. Nation said,
January 4, 2009 at 19:40
Happy New Year.
For me, this was the gold standard in 2007 for astonishing wingnut online idiocy. I dare say we’ve found an equal contender with this shitshow…just count the fail:
- Sniveling whining about the EMM ESS EMM
- Bitching about how the WaPo wouldn’t hire one a right-winger, when they fucking hired one from your own site
- Refusing to say “whoops” and just letting the matter go, leading to
- Pathetic attempts to defend why you just forgot your bestest bud was hired by the WaPo and
- Reminding us that he was a laughable plagiarist
Well done. Hey, Erick: Stop hitting yourself. Stop hitting yourself.
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 21:03
D.N.N. – thanks for the retrospective link – I’d forgotten about that, somehow, despite its being a truly towering landmark of dumb. Plus that article has this timeless line:
These are living American adult people writing this stuff — how do they survive in a world full of crosswalks, pen-knives, and cleaning products that superficially resemble sugar?
Xecklothxayyquou Gilchrist said,
January 4, 2009 at 21:09
Oh jeez – and that Gateway Pundit stupiditude happened on the same day as “Shut up, that’s why”. That was a banner day for wingnut dumbth.
Percy ‘Mad Dog’ Plumflute said,
January 22, 2009 at 23:45
Someone needs to humorously associate Bendover with this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bendomino.jpg