Jan
27
27
Oh Yes, We’ve Seen This Story Before…
Megan McArdle & Liberal Fascism
She hasn’t read it and admits she probably won’t, so accusing me of bad faith based on a conversation with Will Wilkinson isn’t all that powerful an indictment. Still, I’m a big fan of what I’ve seen of McCardle’s work generally and I think she’s trying to be fair. So let me respond to this passage which seems to be the heart of her objections — and those of many others. The rest of her post largely amounts to her reacting to hypotheticals and straw men of her own design. In the…
Jonah Goldberg protests my take on the title of Liberal Fascism. Some of his argument is a misreading of my post, perhaps because I was unclear–when I said that…
ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said,
January 27, 2008 at 18:54
Megan and Pantload, sitting in a tree…
The Kenosha Kid said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:00
Hopefully they will bleat each other to death.
Davis said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:08
It’s the Clash of the Titans!
J— said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:09
How best to determine who got the upper in this meeting of the mediocre minds? Ask a high-school debate coach!
High-school debate coach says (even without reading the book): “Advantage, Jonah.”
witty1 said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:09
Pantload: Even though you called me out on my bullshit book, I would still like to get into your pants.
Megan: I didn’t call you out. I am actually full of shit myself, so there might still be a chance for us.
dBa said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:15
With my limited reading of Megan and the Pantload I’ve come to the conclusion they’re more than 50% of Teh Stupid, I don’t deny I try not to read them, indeed, it is central to my point.
I eagerly await the final decision – which one will win the Battle Of The Stupids?
Will it be ‘food Stamps cause Fat People’ or ‘White Males are the Jews of Liberal Fascism?
And why won’t teh stupid stop??
Smiling Mortician said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:16
I’m enjoying the mental image of Megan’s dilemma: Do I point out that he spelled my name wrong? Would that seem weak? What if he doesn’t even know what my name is? OMG and it’s out there on the internetz for the whole world to see! I should correct him. But now I’ve probably waited too long. Plus I’m hungry.
Jennifer said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:16
It’s the Clash of the Titans!
More like the Feinting of the Feebs,
Snorghagen said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:19
Jonah wrote:
Translation: ‘I can’t help but admire a fellow blowhard who churns out bullshit almost as flagrantly idiotic as my own.’
Righteous Bubba said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:19
Ask a high-school debate coach!
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
The Jonah show keeps on delivering.
The Return of The Attack of Arky Cthulhusexual said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:21
*”Tit” here is used to connote a bumbler or person of low intelligence. It is not meant to demean breasts or those who posses breasts.†
†Unless said breasts were acquired by sitting on one’s ass, gobbling Cheetos and Twinkies and generally being a slob. Even then I don’t really care provided the breast possessor never removes his shirt in my presence.‡
‡ But then we librofascistqueers tend to be kind of funny that way. Megan might not be so picky.
J— said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:22
The Jonah show keeps on delivering.
The “Letters to Jonah” section of the Liberal Fascist blog is like a dinner scene in a Buñuel movie. Such quirky characters!
Jennifer said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:28
Cage Match of the Cretins, BitchSlap of the Blowhards…there are so many possibilities.
Nimrod Gently said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:29
Ugh, wingnut mating dances.
Susan of Texas said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:31
Neiwert does what Megan can’t do.
I’m waiting for the fake sycophant Letters to Jonah to start showing up. Not that he’ll know the difference.
gbear said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:39
The thrill of watching moronic mediocities battle their way to the bottom is really starting to lose it’s charm. Sorry, but I can’t bring myself to read any of these links. If I need my fix of watching people battle to see who can be the world’s biggest asshole, I’ll go watch John Waters’ Pink Flamingos. At least they KNOW they’re being funny and stupid, and Divine actually has a look of unspeakable horror on his face when he bites into the piece of shit. These modern crapsters try to pass it off even to themselves as a tootsie roll. Fuck them in ways that won’t make babies.
Snorghagen said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:42
Megan: It’s like really icky when poopheads call people fascists, “particularly libertarians, who… are literally as far from fascism politically as it is possible to get.” On the other hand, “(Nazis) didn’t call themselves “National Socialists” for no reason, and pointing this out is, so far as I am concerned, God’s work.”
Or put another way: “I’m not a fascist! I’m not, I’m not, I’m not!! Maybe those smelly hippie socialists, but not me!”
Fats Durston said,
January 27, 2008 at 19:46
X-posted at McMegan.
An allegory:
There are three monsters.
One monster is all blue, though dead.
There is another monster, with some other colors, but lots of skin that is blue.
There is a third monster, with a few small spots of blue, who shed some of his blue skin when he molted decades ago.
Jonah Goldberg: LOOK!!!! MONSTER 3 HAS SMALL BLUE SPOTS!!!! AND NOBODY REMEMBERS BUT ME–with such detail and such care–HOW MUCH BLUE ITS SKIN USED TO HAVE!!!!! EVERYONE KNOWS THAT MONSTER 1 WAS ALL BLUE!!!!!!
Questioner: But are you arguing that Monster 3 is exactly like Monster 1?
Jonah: Absolutely not, I said nothing of the sort. BUT DID YOU NOTICE THE BLUE SPOTS ON MONSTER 3!!!!
Q: But what about Monster 2, he looks a lot more like Monster 1?
Jonah: You are foolishly arguing that blueness is only a characteristic of Monster 2, when it’s ultravioletly a phenomenon of Monster 3.
Megan: Ah, that is true that Spotism = Blueism. God’s work pointing that out.
aubanel said,
January 27, 2008 at 20:16
It’s just another bum-fight at the I’m OK Corral.
Doctorb Science said,
January 27, 2008 at 20:31
Hitler only had a mustache, and a small one at that. Jonah has an ENTIRE BEARD (sometimes). Obviously he’s as bad as five or six Hitlers.
PhysioProf said,
January 27, 2008 at 20:44
Picturing the two of them kissing and hugging and shit is squicking me the fuck out.
Nimrod Gently said,
January 27, 2008 at 20:47
I have a Thomas Riker goatee. How many Hitlers is that worth, for future reference?
Incontinentia Buttocks said,
January 27, 2008 at 20:58
Is there any way we can Althouse involved in this? It would speed the stupidological singularity!
Susan of Texas said,
January 27, 2008 at 21:15
Is there any way we can Althouse involved in this? It would speed the stupidological singularity!
Sure, post anything praising another woman.
RobW said,
January 27, 2008 at 22:06
Charlie Chaplin was a liberal, and he had a mustache virtually identical to Hitler’s. Therefore, Chaplin, and all his fans, are fascists. But it’s ok, since the Klan was really just a fan club. Or something like that is central to my point.
Galactic Dustbin said,
January 27, 2008 at 22:23
Hitler only had a mustache, and a small one at that So does Meagan to be honest…
Calming Influence said,
January 27, 2008 at 22:41
Hitler had a very minimalist mustache, whereas Marx let it all hang out. Stalin fell somewhere in the middle. Lincoln had the beard sans mustache. Ghandi had the mustache sans beard. Jesus liked to mix it up, and had long hair to boot.
I rest my case.
Calming Influence said,
January 27, 2008 at 22:46
And so no one misses my point, let me remind you all that Ghandi once shot a cow in Reno just to watch it die.
a different brad said,
January 27, 2008 at 22:52
Megan is, presumably, physically incapable of growing a mustache.
That means she wins.
luneylegume said,
January 27, 2008 at 23:06
Science made easy = Cheetoes + Mountain Dew
Logic Maid = Easy
Logic Lad + Easy = Shrinking universe(or worse)
Writing made easy = AU + ?(0)
Hawkwind said,
January 27, 2008 at 23:09
Einstein was not a handsome fellow
Nobody ever called him Al
He had a long moustache to pull on, It was yellow
I don’t believe he ever had a girl.
ed said,
January 27, 2008 at 23:17
Sheltered, coddled, pseudo-intellectual, pseudo-libertarians…
…unite!
ed said,
January 27, 2008 at 23:20
And what about this:
This must be some sort of corrolary to Godwin’s Law:
“Hey, everybody, look at me, I’m, like, so not like Teh Hitler!!!!!!!!!!”
greg said,
January 27, 2008 at 23:25
And the last one to come has to eat the cracker!
a different brad said,
January 28, 2008 at 0:10
I agree with ed. Megan has invented the reverse Godwin.
Galactic Dustbin said,
January 28, 2008 at 0:16
Sheltered, coddled, pseudo-intellectual, pseudo-libertarians…
…unite!
The League of Extraordinary Nepotists
Percyprune said,
January 28, 2008 at 1:55
Given that most of the American libertarians I’ve met are distinctly nationalist, this does not compute!
Jimmmm said,
January 28, 2008 at 2:10
Meg jumped onto the Jonah bandwagon just to drive some traffic her way.
Compared to Meg, Jonah is funny and scholarly.
Susan of Texas said,
January 28, 2008 at 3:24
“The League of Extraordinary Nepotists”
Is that anything like The League of Extraordinary Bloggers?
Smiling Mortician said,
January 28, 2008 at 3:56
Funny stuff, Susan!
ignobility said,
January 28, 2008 at 5:58
Megan is, presumably, physically incapable of growing a mustache. That means she wins.
Not necessarily. Women can grow mustaches if they have more male hormones than female, like, say, post-menopausal women, or women who’ve had hysterectomies or just particularly mannish women. I suspect Megan would fall into the latter category.
larkspur said,
January 28, 2008 at 7:00
Oh, Susan, I agree with Smiling Mortician – funny stuff. Two shakes of the pom-pom and a box of Merlot for you!
Now I’m off to bed, as soon as I brush my teeth and rub Rogaine on my upper lip.
Smut Clyde said,
January 28, 2008 at 13:11
…and particularly libertarians, who, [with] their horror of [...] nationalism, are literally as far from fascism politically as it is possible to get…
Obviously a libertarian would not be an advocate for aggressive war, since war comes down to soldiers employed by the nation-state to which you (reluctantly) belong, heading off to kill soldiers and civilians in another nation-state.
Certainly she would not suggest that people protesting against an aggressive war should be beaten up with 4-by-2s. That would be nationalist enough to border on fascism.
Duros62 said,
January 28, 2008 at 23:57
I agree with ed. Megan has invented the reverse Godwin.
Don’t forget to stretch. Don’t want to pull a Hammie.
nick said,
January 29, 2008 at 16:38
I feel dirty, but I read through some of JG’s column there.
I had to stop when I reached this nugget of swine:
(emphasis added, for those as ideologically myopic as JG)
…
teh stoopid … it burnsszzz!
Strange Forces said,
January 29, 2008 at 19:01
Pablo Picasso was never called an asshole.