Letters to the Editor
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Pissed Off Americans
I have to agree with one point - that Americans are fed up with Washington, period. As a currently-registered-as-Democrat American, I'm ready to switch to the Green party!!! I'm sick and tired of the wishy-washy Dems sitting in Congress allowing pResident Bush to do anything he damn well pleases, and more! These nut cases must NOT be allowed to bomb Iran!!!!!!!
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ondelette
Clearly very much OT. Our ongoing topic is the RWAs and pointing out how crazy, sick and stupid they are and secondarily how the M$M lets them keep flooding us with their BS.
If a few of the enabling media would just read quality comments like yours and others in blogs that provide insight into why neocon stupidity has no bounds, they would have all kinds of substantial journalism without any research or hard work. If I were a betting man which I am not, I would bet with a modicum of hard work, they could end up with a Pulitzer. I would also bet Krugman reads them.
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In Memoriam: WinSmith
I know, I know. We've been there, done that, and it's OT anyway. Forgive me, but this article, (h/t to Juan Cole for the link) is about the best and most nuanced analysis of the relationship between PNAC and AIPAC that I've read to date.
Daniel Levy's review of Walt and Mearsheimer's new book puts our debates of the past couple of days into a well-balanced and welcome perspective. The title is Ok, here we go, the Israel Lobby, and was published originally in Ha'aretz. Here's the link to the article as it appears on Levy's blog, Prospects for Peace.http://www.prospectsforpeace.com/2007/10ok_here_we_go_the_israel_lobby.html
Here's a sample:
It is a long piece, but I hope that you stick with it. Allow me to set out my stall in this kind of pre-amble. While I certainly take issue with the specific recent policy examples in the book (Iraq and Syria in particular), I am convinced that the relationship between the US, Israel and the lobby that speaks in its name needs to change for everyone’s sake, that this book contributes to a re-think and that the authors are not driven by prejudice.
A key distinction to draw for instance is that it is not Israel per se that has become a strategic liability for the US, but rather Israel as an occupier (which is indeed, a liability to itself). To quote Walt and Mearsheimer, “if the conflict were resolved, Israel might become the sort of strategic asset that its supporters often claim it is.” -
OT: On the subject of "what we can do"
IMO, the number 1 objective is to increase the field of influence for bloggers like Glenn. All the ideas regarding boycotts and protests, etc., are great, but unlikely to work at this point in time. For a vast majority of Americans, it is not "socially safe" to actively protest.
ACTION
Everyone should start a blog. It's free and easy to setup. The difficulty of blogs is producing the content and keeping it up to date. I would therefore propose that some (1, 2, a few) here create the content that others use. Glenn's "various items" entry is a perfect format. The goal is short, easy-to-read, but compelling content, w/ links to the full story, i.e. to UT (or other blogs). It's vital that the blog is updated at least every few days. You then share your blog w/i your circle of influence. It doesn't matter that the various blogs look similar or even identical, since it's unlikely that readers will learn of more than 1 of these blogs.
It would be great if a couple of the leading posters here volunteered to create the succinct, compelling content. I'm happy to help people setup blogs, if necessary.
WHY
Most posters here are either "innovators" or "early adopters" on the market traction curve. (This translates to the lower left of a bell curve.) They tend to create and seek out new ideas, are quick to understand the implications of new ideas, etc.) Unfortunately, they typically don't serve as references to the next group, the "early majority." If the MSM were playing their role properly, they would be influential in reaching the early majority. Since they're not, we must create bridges to the early majority. Some of us bridge to this group within our circle of influence.
I believe many if not most of the early majority are sympathetic to the ideals here. The problem is that they are confused about sources of information and distrustful (rightly so) of the political and media machines.
Additional blogs will not dilute the message. Search engine rankings increase with cross-links. This will increase the penetration of source blogs.
The most "dangerous" time for any market adoption is when bridging between the early adopters and early majority. Mistakes often include:
- believing you are further along the curve than you really are
- assuming that early majority references early adopters
- early adopters seeking to "protect" their status as first movers
- too many segments/product offerings (i.e. not staying focused "on message." For instance, IMO attempting to punish Bush for his child healthcare veto makes our job more difficult. Better to stay focused on War and the Constitution.
Thoughts?
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OT, but ...
Where's Glenn's alarming blog about Obama's speech over the weekend declaring his intent to bring God's kingdom to the U.S.--given in an evangelical church, no less.
Hmm, should I hold my breath? Nah, don't wanna die of asphyxiation.
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Missed
Was hoping to hear you on the Sam Seder Show.
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Afghanistan, where we should have been, with all our blood and treasure
Of course, for years, the media in this country has reported on Afghanistan as filler. [...] For years, we get this assessment of the situation, written in terms of hearts and minds and drugs, and not in terms of regenerating a country torn by 35 years of war [...] But no, we have to spray 'cause that's what works (Republican style) in Colombia. Permanent War. Come down on the little guy, lose those hearts and minds. They're just little people hearts and minds anyway. Little people trying to grow crops in the "carpet of bombs" sown in their fields -- 4 million land mines with no maps.-- ondelette
It's enough to make you wonder who got the no-bid spraying contract.
I've never forgotten Usama bin Laden's quid pro quo murder of Ahmed Shah Masood 2 days before 9-11. It was obviously his pre-payment for shelter by the Taliban. People should bring it up more often.