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February 12, 2006
If I Wanted to Be A Popular Blogger With the Left
It's a pretty simple formula, really.
1. Turn conventional wisdom on its head. It's obvious to one and all that the Democrats don't have anything they stand for, other than opposing Bush. So when faced with this, claim that Republicans are the ones who have no principle other than supporting Bush:
Now, in order to be considered a "liberal," only one thing is required – a failure to pledge blind loyalty to George W. Bush. The minute one criticizes him is the minute that one becomes a "liberal," regardless of the ground on which the criticism is based. And the more one criticizes him, by definition, the more "liberal" one is. Whether one is a "liberal" -- or, for that matter, a "conservative" -- is now no longer a function of one’s actual political views, but is a function purely of one’s personal loyalty to George Bush.
2. Project the failings of the left on the right:
And the core emotions driving the Bush extremists are not hard to see. It is a driving rage and hatred – for liberals, for Muslims, for anyone who opposes George Bush.
3. Mention the unspeakable evil of the famous bloggers/columnists on the right:
And in that regard, people like Michelle Malkin, John Hinderaker, Jonah Goldberg and Hugh Hewitt are not conservatives. They are authoritarian cultists. Their allegiance is not to any principles of government but to strong authority through a single leader.
4. Vaguely indicate some personal conservative or non-liberal viewpoints without actually espousing them (Note: only effective when attacking other conservative viewpoints):
It used to be the case that in order to be considered a "liberal" or someone "of the Left," one had to actually ascribe to liberal views on the important policy issues of the day – social spending, abortion, the death penalty, affirmative action, immigration, "judicial activism," hate speech laws, gay rights, utopian foreign policies, etc. etc.
5. Make the Republicans sound like Nazis:
A movement which has as its shining lights a woman who advocates the death of her political opponents, another woman who is a proponent of concentration camps, a magazine which advocates the imprisonment of journalists who expose government actions of dubious legality, all topped off by a President who believes he has the power to secretly engage in activities which the American people, through their Congress, have made it a crime to engage in, is a movement motivated by lots of different things. Political ideology isn't one of them.
Posted by pat at February 12, 2006 11:14 PM
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Comments
Greenwald made Sullivan's "Quote of the Day." Shocker, I know.
Posted by: Patrick at February 13, 2006 12:19 AM
Tx for the tips. I'll put them to work.
Posted by: paul at February 14, 2006 09:26 AM
Not Nazis, really. More like the Soviet Politburo, if you want historical accuracy. It's pretty much congruent. Oh, the irony.
Posted by: Dr. Sid at February 14, 2006 03:19 PM
Posted by: paul at February 14, 2006 04:42 PM
Not Nazis, Fascists. You can't call this administration Nazis. The Nazis were competent. They knew how to win a war against a much smaller weaker enemy, for instance. And Hitler pulled Germany out of the great depression, as opposed to Bush turning an eight year expansion into a double dip recession. The Bushies are much more like Italy under Benito Mussolini than Germany under Adolf Hitler.
And, incidently, Prescott Bush was one of the biggest supporters of fascism in the US.
Posted by: IaintBacchus at February 14, 2006 05:51 PM
Iaint, that's silly. I've looked into the supposed Prescott Bush/Nazi connection and it has zero to do with any fascists in the United States.
Posted by: Pat Curley at February 15, 2006 12:39 AM
Pat, you're silly. Also you haven't look hard enough. And that should come as no suprise to anyone.
Posted by: IaintBacchus at February 15, 2006 02:17 PM