Letters to the Editor
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So Tex Field....
Maybe you want to share why Amanda got under your skin? Are you a Catholic Priest? Misogonist? Something seems to have hit a nerve. Maybe it would help for you to talk about it? Edwards hate? Is his house too big? Hate trial lawyers? You work for a swimming pool company? Really, you might feel better if you unload the hate.
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Kidlacan
An incidental point: why should an atheist blogger be expected to have a better than "tenuous" grasp of (specifically Catholic) church doctrine? Indeed, why are questions of doctrine so all-fired important in a political race? If you're going to call people out for muddling doctrine, shouldn't you also be calling out the NY Times, and everyone else who read Amanda's "hot sticky Holy Spirit" statement and mixed up the Virgin Birth and the Immaculate Conception
At the risk of answering what I think is most likely a rhetorical question, the reason that an 'atheist blogger' (or, for that matter, Catholic, Buddhist, Jewish or Muslim bloggers) should have a better than tenous grasp on the subject matter is that, otherwise, the opinions will be treated, justifiably, as nothing better than the bigoted and uninformed rants of an exhibitionist.
Marcotte is unimportant in the grand scheme of things, as is Edwards. She'll just creep back to her little hole in the liberal blogosphere (the 'hot and sticky' one, of course) and he'll retreat to one of his 'two' Americas after the primaries are concluded.
And as far as Holmes is concerned, as my old con law professor stated, while the justice wanted a wide marketplace, he would have steered clear of the aisle containing trash.
Which is what I intend to do as well.
Christine
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Issues?
As a Catholic, a woman, a lawyer, a registered Democrat and an oped writer with a clear conception of both the First Amendment, ethics and good prose, I am gratified to see that Amanda Marcotte was forced to resign from the Edwards campaign.
-- Christine
I note that you identify yourself first as a Catholic first. Not a woman, not a lawyer. The church will be so proud. Might that be why you hate Amanda so much? Do you hate Edwards as a trial lawyer? You may have some issues to work out.
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So Afterthought...
Maybe you want to share why Christine and Tex Field got under your skin? Are you frigid? Misandry? Misanthropy? Your dog bit you after you hit it? Something seems to have hit a nerve. Maybe it would help for you to talk about it? Penis Envy? Does Tex's penis threaten you? Do Christine's multiple orgasms disturb you? You hate all of humanity? Really, you might feel better if you unload the hate.
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Interesting article, very revealing letters
Do not ask me why but I read the article and all the letters commenting on it. The letters are a very mixed bag.
The article was very interesting and informative. It did an excellent job of using this particluar incident to explain some of the risks and benefits of using blogging to promote a Presidential campaign. I have been writing political opinion pieces for the Internet even before the Blog term was invented. The opinion pieces were published in traditional newspapers along with websites from the beginning.
The Right Wing Attack Machine exists outside the Internet. It existed before the Internet. My column was banned from some newspapers in the South like the Sparta Expositor in Tennessee (although I wrote it without pay) because I advocated impeaching Bush and Cheney for incompetence for not preventing the 9-11 attacks.
The Internet tolerates more unorthodox, unconventional thinking very much like talk radio. Attacks by the opposition are and should be relished when it comes to political commentary. Making people think about ideas is a good thing.
Personally, profanity does not help make an argument have more merit. It serves only to distract from the content of ideas, information and opinions. Personal attacks are not much better if they do not focus on specific behaviors or statements. It is sometimes difficult not to say that "Rush is an idiot" or "Ann Coulter is a nut" but it lends little to the discussion to state the obvious.
Attacks on the religious beliefs of any specific faith is not appropriate in a political campaign. It is bad politics and undermines the separation of church and state. Republicans will distort any statements, often with active media support, to make Democrats look bad. The Biden-Obama non-controversy is a great example.
Statements by Democratic bloggers on a campaign staff need to be defensible. An aggressive counter-attack should always be available when you write. With practice, it becomes second nature.
I have an extensive background in campaign management. Unfortunately, I am a minor political personality in my own right which makes it very difficult to get employed in the field. Political personalities can take some attention away from the candidate. Edwards should get some credit for boldness in hiring staffers who are minor political personalities.
Edwards should make sure staffers who are bloggers have some experience in off-line campaigns. Staff bloggers need to understand that some self-control is needed if you want to help your candidate win.
I am supporting Edwards. Republicans are really frightened by his appeal to working class and middle class voters. He cares about the poor. He can admit a mistake. He is real.
- Stephen Crockett (co-host of Democratic Talk Radio.)
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It gets even more weird...
I believe Lindsay understands her role better than Marcotte.
Marcotte has never apologized to anyone for anything. She has now ginned up a fantastic story about how it was all a grand conspiracy to deny Democrats netroots resources and she was the innocent bystander caught in the middle. Yes the right sat around the kitchen table scheming about how to keep women like Marcotte 'down'.
Riiiiiight......
The sad, sad truth is Marcotte is an immature brat that has had no consequences to her ridiculous harangues about men and religion. While she bangs out her propaganda, her willing minyions have nodded approvingly like the little dogs in the back of windshields. Then she gets outside of her bubble believing that the real world is the same. Well, Sunshine got some bad news that day. If her positions weren't so vile, repugnant and heinous, no one would have been able to get any traction with them.
No, it was not the position with Edwards where anyone would have suffered the slings and arrows, it was Marcotte.
She deserved every bit of what she got and more.