Why do they hate our freedom?
February 28, 2009 9:23 AM Subscribe
Hate Group Numbers Up By 54% Since 2000 according to Southern Poverty Law Center. Glen Beck thoughtfully wonders about the coming civil unrest (that he'll be stoking from the sidelines) And Sean Hannity takes down a poll on his forum about "What kind of revolution appeals most to you?"
And why not take a trip down memory lane with this 1995 CSPAN coverage of Militias In The United States.
And why not take a trip down memory lane with this 1995 CSPAN coverage of Militias In The United States.
What did you expect Sean Hannity would do? Someone put up something obnoxious, his staff took it down. And it looks like they did so fairly rapidly. It doesn't look like they pulled it because of public outrage, but because it was offensive, they saw it as such, and yanked it.
posted by cjorgensen at 9:30 AM on February 28, 2009
posted by cjorgensen at 9:30 AM on February 28, 2009
What kind of revolution appeals most to you?
The kind where Hannity is put on trial.
posted by Ironmouth at 9:30 AM on February 28, 2009 [8 favorites]
The kind where Hannity is put on trial.
posted by Ironmouth at 9:30 AM on February 28, 2009 [8 favorites]
I love the fact that the banner of Hannity's site consists of Sean Hannity looking with wistful pride upon another, slightly smaller Sean Hannity. (With an American flag background, obviously.)
posted by abcde at 9:36 AM on February 28, 2009 [20 favorites]
posted by abcde at 9:36 AM on February 28, 2009 [20 favorites]
I'm not going to defend Sean Hannity, but I think the link of substance here is the first one. His staff's response to this poll was a reasonable one.
Maybe Fox needs a deleted threads blog, so people could go see why stuff was removed. Holding Hannity responsible for his user generated content (that was removed) is like saying mathowie endorses everything on this site.
posted by cjorgensen at 9:37 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
Maybe Fox needs a deleted threads blog, so people could go see why stuff was removed. Holding Hannity responsible for his user generated content (that was removed) is like saying mathowie endorses everything on this site.
posted by cjorgensen at 9:37 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
The way I see it, people nowadays are largely too lazy to get as crazy as they got in the 90s. I imagine some overweight salesman for a local billboard company getting all riled up by talk radio, thinking "I'm going to buy some guns and secede from the Union!" then realizing, a second later, that that would mean no more Taco Bell and high-speed internet. The bright lines on his face slowly darken, smile turns to scowl, and he decides instead to just go home, fill out the online Sean Hannity poll, and eat a few Twinkies.
posted by billysumday at 9:38 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
posted by billysumday at 9:38 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
I included the Hannity link more for what his users generated in forum, related to the over-all tone coming out of the right-wing these days.
posted by nola at 9:40 AM on February 28, 2009
posted by nola at 9:40 AM on February 28, 2009
I dislike calling this particular brand of conservatives human. They have no humanity or any desire to see societal progress. They make pond scum look as smart as Einstein.
Yeah! They're like cockroaches! Or rats!
posted by Bookhouse at 9:41 AM on February 28, 2009 [9 favorites]
Yeah! They're like cockroaches! Or rats!
posted by Bookhouse at 9:41 AM on February 28, 2009 [9 favorites]
The most recent calls for American vs. American bloodshed and civil war from these primates are cause to revoke the "just don't look, just don't look" rule that normally applies. Hannity's tiny puck of a brain is hardly able to contemplate the chaos that may result from this kind of demagoguery and it is up to responsible citizens to call for his removal from Fox. I expect the better sorts of conservatives - the Frums and Buckleys - to join in the protest against Beck and Hannity. This is not reporting or even editorializing. This approaches treason. Under the Bush regime, far milder criticism of the government would get you placed on a no fly list.
posted by fleetmouse at 9:42 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
posted by fleetmouse at 9:42 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
I love the fact that the banner of Hannity's site consists of Sean Hannity looking with wistful pride upon another, slightly smaller Sean Hannity.
A scene repeated in his washroom daily, I don't doubt.
posted by fleetmouse at 9:43 AM on February 28, 2009 [13 favorites]
A scene repeated in his washroom daily, I don't doubt.
posted by fleetmouse at 9:43 AM on February 28, 2009 [13 favorites]
Both of Glenn Beck's guests indicate that they don't think that the coming Bubba-based "French Revolution" should be prevented. They don't believe in democracy when it disagrees with them. They support a violent overthow of the government. Even for the fair and balanced Mouth of Sauron, this is new territory.
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 9:51 AM on February 28, 2009
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 9:51 AM on February 28, 2009
A scene repeated in his washroom daily, I don't doubt.
Not since 2006, when Hannity began wearing board shorts in the shower to avoid looking down on the unemployed.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 9:59 AM on February 28, 2009 [17 favorites]
Not since 2006, when Hannity began wearing board shorts in the shower to avoid looking down on the unemployed.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 9:59 AM on February 28, 2009 [17 favorites]
Yeah! They're like cockroaches! Or rats!
Yeah, I'm not sure that I need a lot of rhetoric to cause me to hate and fear those who seek to destroy others because of their race, their nationality, their religion or their sexual orientation -- I hate and fear their stupidity sufficiently as things are.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:04 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I'm not sure that I need a lot of rhetoric to cause me to hate and fear those who seek to destroy others because of their race, their nationality, their religion or their sexual orientation -- I hate and fear their stupidity sufficiently as things are.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:04 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
I said I disliked calling them human, not that I don't.
posted by kldickson at 10:05 AM on February 28, 2009
posted by kldickson at 10:05 AM on February 28, 2009
you'd have thought the secessionists would have learned their lesson after the last election
oh, wait - that was us, wasn't it?
posted by pyramid termite at 10:05 AM on February 28, 2009
oh, wait - that was us, wasn't it?
posted by pyramid termite at 10:05 AM on February 28, 2009
Reason to be optimistic: "Conservatives" haven't made a correct prediction in decades, if ever.
posted by psmealey at 10:07 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
posted by psmealey at 10:07 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
Hate Group Numbers Up By 54% Since 2000...
I reckon that's inaccurate. How many users did Metafilter have back in 2000?
posted by gman at 10:10 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
I reckon that's inaccurate. How many users did Metafilter have back in 2000?
posted by gman at 10:10 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
I love the fact that the banner of Hannity's site consists of Sean Hannity looking with wistful pride upon another, slightly smaller Sean Hannity.
A scene repeated in his washroom daily, I don't doubt.
Travis Bickel/ Taxi Driver as Played by Sean Hannity
"You talking to me!? You talking to me!? I don't see any one else in the room!?"
posted by doctorschlock at 10:12 AM on February 28, 2009
A scene repeated in his washroom daily, I don't doubt.
Travis Bickel/ Taxi Driver as Played by Sean Hannity
"You talking to me!? You talking to me!? I don't see any one else in the room!?"
posted by doctorschlock at 10:12 AM on February 28, 2009
So wait, we're back to being unreasonably afraid of militias again?
90s retro has arrived sooner than I thought.
So am I still supposed to be afraid of child predators lurking around every corner and in every shadow or am I free to focus entirely on this now?
posted by Senor Cardgage at 10:15 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
90s retro has arrived sooner than I thought.
So am I still supposed to be afraid of child predators lurking around every corner and in every shadow or am I free to focus entirely on this now?
posted by Senor Cardgage at 10:15 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
"Look, the cities are going to look like Dog City. They're going to be uncontrollable. You're going to have gangs in control, motorcycle marauders."
You just rented mad max II didn't you?
posted by 5imian at 10:25 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
You just rented mad max II didn't you?
posted by 5imian at 10:25 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
The problem with the armed revolution argument starts when all the folks in the rural areas realize that all they can "take over" are their neighbors.
Are they all gonna come and say, clean out Chicago?
So much bluster, couldn't someone set up a some kind of system so they can continue to give their money to the 1% of the population that Fox has convinced them needs it more than they do?
Or is that what evangelical christianity is all about?
posted by Max Power at 10:28 AM on February 28, 2009
Are they all gonna come and say, clean out Chicago?
So much bluster, couldn't someone set up a some kind of system so they can continue to give their money to the 1% of the population that Fox has convinced them needs it more than they do?
Or is that what evangelical christianity is all about?
posted by Max Power at 10:28 AM on February 28, 2009
So wait, we're back to being unreasonably afraid of militias again?
posted by nola at 10:31 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
posted by nola at 10:31 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
I've met a huge number of conservatives whose world view is what everyone selling a get rich quick scheme is just praying for: "Poor people are poor because they're lazy and stupid. I'm going up. Up. Up!" Unfortunately, like a lot of us, they get a crappy job that pays for shit and they don't go up. Up. Up!
Our would be revolutionaries have gone a step or three down the trail. Clearly anyone who disagrees with them and is doing better than them is part of a conspiracy to hold them back, and anyone doing worse, who is being supported in some way by the state is part of Ayn Rand's great unwashed that would fall into barbarism if not for their continued contribution to society. It's us vs. them! (Well, it's them vs. me, since I work in the sciences and my wife grows arugula and deer tongue in the back yard, but you know.)
Personally, I'm waiting for enough liberal types to get frightened by these guys, followed by the absolute hand waving freak-outery when FOX reports a poll that suggests that a lot more liberals are buying guns.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 10:54 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
Our would be revolutionaries have gone a step or three down the trail. Clearly anyone who disagrees with them and is doing better than them is part of a conspiracy to hold them back, and anyone doing worse, who is being supported in some way by the state is part of Ayn Rand's great unwashed that would fall into barbarism if not for their continued contribution to society. It's us vs. them! (Well, it's them vs. me, since I work in the sciences and my wife grows arugula and deer tongue in the back yard, but you know.)
Personally, I'm waiting for enough liberal types to get frightened by these guys, followed by the absolute hand waving freak-outery when FOX reports a poll that suggests that a lot more liberals are buying guns.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 10:54 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
I love the fact that when you have vaguely religious extremism and the talk of arming you're either a terrorist or a patriot based on... what? Skin color? I mean, just 6 months ago, weren't folks talking about reclassifying street gangs as terrorists?
posted by yeloson at 11:04 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
posted by yeloson at 11:04 AM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
A sick, sick, evil part of me actually wants these people to "rise up" so we can have the pleasure of smacking them down a second time and then have an excuse to make the Red States our bitch for another half-century or so.
Yes, I know, the Civil War wasn't exactly a pleasure, yadda yadda. I did say "sick".
posted by Xezlec at 11:05 AM on February 28, 2009
Yes, I know, the Civil War wasn't exactly a pleasure, yadda yadda. I did say "sick".
posted by Xezlec at 11:05 AM on February 28, 2009
Are they all gonna come and say, clean out Chicago?
That's what nukes are for.
posted by EarBucket at 11:14 AM on February 28, 2009
That's what nukes are for.
posted by EarBucket at 11:14 AM on February 28, 2009
So the ones most foaming for revolution are a disenfranchised group of poor bigoted militia-types and a tiny loud mouthed minority of stubborn rich, who have only incidentally done the bulk of disenfranchising, whose collective goad to revolt is a newly elected slightly populist approach to classical equality and redistribution of wealth in the face of conservative managed global economic downturn? Tax revolts, really? So the people most likely to comprise the foot soldiers of said revolution, who are unemployed and therefore dependent on services provided by taxes, are going to take up arms? Or will it be the middle class, presumably during a penciled in break between car payments and paid vacation? What is the end-game for such a revolution, a more dominant aristocracy based on implacable iniquity? A Jeb Bush dictatorship?
Maybe it's just age, or maybe it's because I just budgeted for newly cut wages and hours, but even being a radical-blooded son of a (hungarian) revolutionary myself, I would likely join the black clad riot cops to mow down rebellious masses of cut-taxes-for-the-racist-rich-lynch-mobs. It's actually impressive how much wrong-headed ideology flirts with utter lunacy when forced to negotiate backward propagandized priorities with everyday reality.
But rest easy; I suspect any such revolt will face certain delays.
posted by sarcasman at 11:23 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
Maybe it's just age, or maybe it's because I just budgeted for newly cut wages and hours, but even being a radical-blooded son of a (hungarian) revolutionary myself, I would likely join the black clad riot cops to mow down rebellious masses of cut-taxes-for-the-racist-rich-lynch-mobs. It's actually impressive how much wrong-headed ideology flirts with utter lunacy when forced to negotiate backward propagandized priorities with everyday reality.
But rest easy; I suspect any such revolt will face certain delays.
posted by sarcasman at 11:23 AM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
It never ceases to amaze me how these self-described partriots long for actual treason, and glorify treasonous acts of the past. It makes my blood boil when I see a Confederate battle flag displayed, and the fact that it's still a part of Mississippi's flag really makes me wonder. I mean, why not just create a flag that depicts the Oklahoma City bombing?
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 11:23 AM on February 28, 2009 [4 favorites]
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 11:23 AM on February 28, 2009 [4 favorites]
I agree that the national environment has changed so much that a militia uprising unlikely to be effective in overhauling the entire nation. However, articles like this scare me. You don't have to witness an armed rebellion to have you world change. A single lunatic with a single bullet can change your world forever. And as long as these lunatics have their seditious, anitsocial, pernicious opinions vindicated daily by national authority figures like these talk show and tv personalities, I totally understand how people could be scared.
Disseminating speech that makes others feel threatened unless they change, or that damns those without the ability to change. How is this not terrorism?
posted by aftermarketradio at 11:42 AM on February 28, 2009
Disseminating speech that makes others feel threatened unless they change, or that damns those without the ability to change. How is this not terrorism?
posted by aftermarketradio at 11:42 AM on February 28, 2009
I love the fact that the banner of Hannity's site consists of Sean Hannity looking with wistful pride upon another, slightly smaller Sean Hannity. (With an American flag background, obviously.)
I thought it needed more...
I just spent a lot of time staring at Sean Hannity's head.
posted by !Jim at 11:46 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
I thought it needed more...
I just spent a lot of time staring at Sean Hannity's head.
posted by !Jim at 11:46 AM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
People don't care, they said. Become more politically involved, they said.
posted by adipocere at 11:48 AM on February 28, 2009
posted by adipocere at 11:48 AM on February 28, 2009
I mean, why not just create a flag that depicts the Oklahoma City bombing?
Marisa you totally nailed it. These assholes have all this rhetoric describing "catching terrorists" and "being a patriot"...
I fail to see how THEY aren't terrorists (literally arming themselves and using "terror" to get their political point across). I fail to see how THEY are patriots. Don't patriots see America as a place where national cooperation can overcome just about anything? Not these "patriots".
Our founding fathers had disagreements too. THOSE patriots are famous because they were able to reason and compromise.
With that said.. I am from Oklahoma. Who is the dominant terrorist in my region, Glen Beck? Who killed a lot of my friends when i was in 9th grade? I'll give you a hint... They aren't Muslim... and they are self-described patriots(just like you)..but the farthest thing from it.
posted by 5imian at 12:03 PM on February 28, 2009
Marisa you totally nailed it. These assholes have all this rhetoric describing "catching terrorists" and "being a patriot"...
I fail to see how THEY aren't terrorists (literally arming themselves and using "terror" to get their political point across). I fail to see how THEY are patriots. Don't patriots see America as a place where national cooperation can overcome just about anything? Not these "patriots".
Our founding fathers had disagreements too. THOSE patriots are famous because they were able to reason and compromise.
With that said.. I am from Oklahoma. Who is the dominant terrorist in my region, Glen Beck? Who killed a lot of my friends when i was in 9th grade? I'll give you a hint... They aren't Muslim... and they are self-described patriots(just like you)..but the farthest thing from it.
posted by 5imian at 12:03 PM on February 28, 2009
The Nation of Islam is a "hate group" now? Most of the groups at the SPL link have less than 30 members, especially the "Christian Identity Hate Groups." Also, if there are 12 guys in the NOI in Birmingham, and another eight of them in the NOI in Tuscaloosa does that really mean those are two separate hate groups?
Seems a little difficult to find the total number of haters/militia-men in the country. I wonder how that number would compare with say, the number of Crips.
I'm with Senor Cardgage, the "hate group/militia" boogeyman needs to stay in the 90s where it belongs. More innocent people have been killed by police officers than have been or will ever be by militias or hate groups.
posted by hamida2242 at 12:10 PM on February 28, 2009
Seems a little difficult to find the total number of haters/militia-men in the country. I wonder how that number would compare with say, the number of Crips.
I'm with Senor Cardgage, the "hate group/militia" boogeyman needs to stay in the 90s where it belongs. More innocent people have been killed by police officers than have been or will ever be by militias or hate groups.
posted by hamida2242 at 12:10 PM on February 28, 2009
The Nation of Islam is a "hate group" now?
Always has been.
Besides, it's probably time for a fund appeal from the SPLC. The number hate groups seem to rise dramatically just before my appeal letter and fresh supply of "Teach Tolerance" return address labels arrive. Oh, and the kind of revolution that appeals to me most is the one with lots of booze and deviant sex acts.
posted by MikeMc at 12:20 PM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
Always has been.
Besides, it's probably time for a fund appeal from the SPLC. The number hate groups seem to rise dramatically just before my appeal letter and fresh supply of "Teach Tolerance" return address labels arrive. Oh, and the kind of revolution that appeals to me most is the one with lots of booze and deviant sex acts.
posted by MikeMc at 12:20 PM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
Oh, and the kind of revolution that appeals to me most is the one with lots of booze and deviant sex acts.
you're in luck then - spring break is right around the corner
posted by pyramid termite at 12:40 PM on February 28, 2009
you're in luck then - spring break is right around the corner
posted by pyramid termite at 12:40 PM on February 28, 2009
Oh, and the kind of revolution that appeals to me most is the one with lots of booze and deviant sex acts.
Rock and roll, dope and fucking in the streets, eh?
*cranks 'Kick Out The Jams'*
posted by jonmc at 12:54 PM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
Rock and roll, dope and fucking in the streets, eh?
*cranks 'Kick Out The Jams'*
posted by jonmc at 12:54 PM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
A sick, sick, evil part of me actually wants these people to "rise up" so we can have the pleasure of smacking them down a second time and then have an excuse to make the Red States our bitch for another half-century or so.
posted by Xezlec
You can start with California, the state with the most hate groups. Ignore that they're not red.
I do love the whole 'us' vs 'them' tone of your post. Bush would be proud.
Also, you seem nice.
posted by gtr at 12:56 PM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
posted by Xezlec
You can start with California, the state with the most hate groups. Ignore that they're not red.
I do love the whole 'us' vs 'them' tone of your post. Bush would be proud.
Also, you seem nice.
posted by gtr at 12:56 PM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
Deja vu.
Teaching in the Downturn, from the latest issue of Teaching Tolerance magazine, offers strategies for addressing the symptoms of an economic crisis that can spill into the classroom, such as parental substance abuse, classroom behavioral problems, school budget cuts and growing neighborhood poverty. Psychologist Melanie Killen discusses how educators can help their students cope during hard times, and social critic Meizhu Lui offers her take on where the crisis may lead us.
posted by netbros at 12:59 PM on February 28, 2009
Teaching in the Downturn, from the latest issue of Teaching Tolerance magazine, offers strategies for addressing the symptoms of an economic crisis that can spill into the classroom, such as parental substance abuse, classroom behavioral problems, school budget cuts and growing neighborhood poverty. Psychologist Melanie Killen discusses how educators can help their students cope during hard times, and social critic Meizhu Lui offers her take on where the crisis may lead us.
posted by netbros at 12:59 PM on February 28, 2009
yes, hamida. yes. I am afraid of militias. They freak me out. They live comparatively next door to me than any other danger.
The "underground conservative" stuff is ablaze with how "oklahoma just declared sovereignty" And there's all these completely stupid alarmist talks of "impending civil war".
Read these quotes from some of the blog boards
Good for Oklahoma! Now, recall ALL of your National Guard folks and gear. Use them to drive out the feds from your borders and keep it that way.
This is the only solution to our broken gubment, other than outright, focused and violent rebellion against all fed representatives. But it must be done. NOTHING that comes out of Washington is good for you.
There are only Loyalists or Patriots. Choose which one you are
We are living in perilous times and are in uncharted waters. Be prepared for extreme changes in the way that you are now living. STOCK UP NOW ON FOOD, WATER, AND AMMUNITION! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
oh lord and my favorite, and immediate follow up to the above post.
God, I hope we get to launch all our nukes before society crumbles. That would be wicked cool. the poster? abe lincoln.
sure sure, there's the occasional guys who says "oh this isn't succession its soverignty
The point is the rhetoric. Some of these guys are confederate flag waving tools who dreeeammm of civil war. Some can't wait! They bought their guns! They wanna BLOW SHIT UP!
Yes. They freak me the hell out.
And whose fueling these idiots? People like Glen Beck. In the name of patriotism.
posted by 5imian at 1:01 PM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
The "underground conservative" stuff is ablaze with how "oklahoma just declared sovereignty" And there's all these completely stupid alarmist talks of "impending civil war".
Read these quotes from some of the blog boards
This is the only solution to our broken gubment, other than outright, focused and violent rebellion against all fed representatives. But it must be done. NOTHING that comes out of Washington is good for you.
oh lord and my favorite, and immediate follow up to the above post.
sure sure, there's the occasional guys who says "oh this isn't succession its soverignty
The point is the rhetoric. Some of these guys are confederate flag waving tools who dreeeammm of civil war. Some can't wait! They bought their guns! They wanna BLOW SHIT UP!
Yes. They freak me the hell out.
And whose fueling these idiots? People like Glen Beck. In the name of patriotism.
posted by 5imian at 1:01 PM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
I'm just glad the President has heightened security due to his color and popularity and positions. It's pretty much over for the hate groups here (although I do think they're going to try something). They will exist, but sane people know that we all have to live together and interact fairly to make it in the future. Hannity needs a knife through his eardrum. Peace.
posted by Flex1970 at 1:08 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by Flex1970 at 1:08 PM on February 28, 2009
"oh this isn't succession its soverignty"
I'm fairly confident that's exactly what they say which is why they will never succeed at anything ever. Dumb as a bag of hair each and every one of 'em. Doesn't make 'em any less dangerous in the present tense, but the Fidel Castros of the right they ain't.
posted by Doublewhiskeycokenoice at 1:17 PM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
I'm fairly confident that's exactly what they say which is why they will never succeed at anything ever. Dumb as a bag of hair each and every one of 'em. Doesn't make 'em any less dangerous in the present tense, but the Fidel Castros of the right they ain't.
posted by Doublewhiskeycokenoice at 1:17 PM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
"Are they all gonna come and say, clean out Chicago?"
Molon labe. I love a target rich environment.
"What kind of revolution appeals most to you?"
What angers me is that these shitheads keep calling themselves 'conservatives.' They're the worst kind of radical cowards this country has ever seen. How the hell are they going to pick up a weapon and fire it when they were too chicken shit to sign up to fight in a war they cheerleaded from day one?
Yeah, yeah, I know, you don't have to serve to be in favor of a war, but y'know, it helps. Because odds are if it was your ass in the sharp end you'd probably, y'know, reconsider just how serious your commitment to the execution of that government policy was.
Meanwhile the congress and executive branch just rolls roughshod over our civil liberties and they don't say dick. Put them out where they might have to be exposed and they backpedal and crap themselves.
But put them back in their gilded cage and suddenly they have huge balls.
Speaking of which, on the off change Chicago does get nuked, I'm going to have Bolton's, Cheney's and anyone else I can think of's balls on my desk. I'm getting mighty tired of these veiled threats and scare tactics.
F'ing militias. Bunch of ingrates farting around in the woods thinking they're a guerrilla unit because they've read the Poor Man's James Bond and have Ruger-14's (A fine choice to kill zombies at range perhaps - if the scope's not on backwards - but you still have dolts on Stormfront geeking out over it because of the Matix and Platt shootout with the feds in the 80's and Ayoob's commentary). Yeah, some fat ass prick like Glenn Beck, he's going to be just fine during this strife?
All this talk aggravates the hell out of me because, as a conservative, I strongly favor preservation of the institutions of our democracy. For all the 'revolution' talk under Bush, and for as much as it may have been warranted in theory (if he didn't relinquish power, say), I strongly opposed that as well on general principles because of the potential damage to our institutions by moving too swiftly or too violently.
These fucks have no idea how bad it can get. No idea what that kind of chaos can do to a nation. They think they're going to sit in their offices and life will go on. It's not.
Y'know those really nasty bits in "The Stand"? (Just trying to find some common ground here for folks who've never been through this shit). The big black dude and his cohorts in loincloths running a death game show. The chaos within military ranks. Field commanders laying down localized martial law. Execution of dissent. Revolt and execution of those who execute dissenters. All that?
Yeah, that'd be the mostly coherent bits. The vast majority of the action would appear meaningless, baseless. Something you couldn't explain or even describe in a novel.
I'll see peace in the U.S. if I have to murder every one of these goddamn animals with my bare goddamn hands (to paraphrase Bill).
posted by Smedleyman at 1:26 PM on February 28, 2009 [6 favorites]
Molon labe. I love a target rich environment.
"What kind of revolution appeals most to you?"
What angers me is that these shitheads keep calling themselves 'conservatives.' They're the worst kind of radical cowards this country has ever seen. How the hell are they going to pick up a weapon and fire it when they were too chicken shit to sign up to fight in a war they cheerleaded from day one?
Yeah, yeah, I know, you don't have to serve to be in favor of a war, but y'know, it helps. Because odds are if it was your ass in the sharp end you'd probably, y'know, reconsider just how serious your commitment to the execution of that government policy was.
Meanwhile the congress and executive branch just rolls roughshod over our civil liberties and they don't say dick. Put them out where they might have to be exposed and they backpedal and crap themselves.
But put them back in their gilded cage and suddenly they have huge balls.
Speaking of which, on the off change Chicago does get nuked, I'm going to have Bolton's, Cheney's and anyone else I can think of's balls on my desk. I'm getting mighty tired of these veiled threats and scare tactics.
F'ing militias. Bunch of ingrates farting around in the woods thinking they're a guerrilla unit because they've read the Poor Man's James Bond and have Ruger-14's (A fine choice to kill zombies at range perhaps - if the scope's not on backwards - but you still have dolts on Stormfront geeking out over it because of the Matix and Platt shootout with the feds in the 80's and Ayoob's commentary). Yeah, some fat ass prick like Glenn Beck, he's going to be just fine during this strife?
All this talk aggravates the hell out of me because, as a conservative, I strongly favor preservation of the institutions of our democracy. For all the 'revolution' talk under Bush, and for as much as it may have been warranted in theory (if he didn't relinquish power, say), I strongly opposed that as well on general principles because of the potential damage to our institutions by moving too swiftly or too violently.
These fucks have no idea how bad it can get. No idea what that kind of chaos can do to a nation. They think they're going to sit in their offices and life will go on. It's not.
Y'know those really nasty bits in "The Stand"? (Just trying to find some common ground here for folks who've never been through this shit). The big black dude and his cohorts in loincloths running a death game show. The chaos within military ranks. Field commanders laying down localized martial law. Execution of dissent. Revolt and execution of those who execute dissenters. All that?
Yeah, that'd be the mostly coherent bits. The vast majority of the action would appear meaningless, baseless. Something you couldn't explain or even describe in a novel.
I'll see peace in the U.S. if I have to murder every one of these goddamn animals with my bare goddamn hands (to paraphrase Bill).
posted by Smedleyman at 1:26 PM on February 28, 2009 [6 favorites]
These kind of people are the first with their hands out when they fuck up or there's a disaster and the first to say "the government should have done something!!!!". I think it's all down to some kind of twisted Daddy complex, myself.
posted by fshgrl at 1:47 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by fshgrl at 1:47 PM on February 28, 2009
Scooping up Beck to add to Fox now makes for the holy trinity: Hannity, Beck and O'Reilly.
Shawn snarls and would seem to have picked up his perspective from early days in growing up. O"Reilly seems to believe that he is in fact fair and seeing things objectively but with a very slight leaning toward the wholesome right (oh, yea). Beck has a wholesome view that all govt sucks, that things are about to explode and that the people must do something about it to restore sanity to the nation..but has no idea of what they ought to do.
Clearly there is a wide audience out there or this stuff would not last long. The only redeeming thing though is that Fox manages to get some hotties to sputter on about the news.
Now move on to Olberman and Rachel...Keith tosses paper around after overly elaborate tirades denouncing dullards on Fox; Rachel, very bright, smirks and smiles, and is sure she has truth on her side. She brings on interesting guests for various topics but Keith gets the same journalists over and over to stumble over what he has already suggested needs saying. That cable channel, owned by a conservative, knows that there is some sort of market at the moment for those who are left of center, so Keith goes on, Rachel follows, and then, next hour, Keith show repeated...giving us some 3 hours of....anti-Bush, anti-Fox, and first,2nd,3rd worst person of the day.
We are forced to watch one of those two shows. If not, there is the punishment of: Lou Dobbs, who, should illegal immigration become a non-issue, would become a weatherman, predicting dire weather daily.
posted by Postroad at 1:48 PM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
Shawn snarls and would seem to have picked up his perspective from early days in growing up. O"Reilly seems to believe that he is in fact fair and seeing things objectively but with a very slight leaning toward the wholesome right (oh, yea). Beck has a wholesome view that all govt sucks, that things are about to explode and that the people must do something about it to restore sanity to the nation..but has no idea of what they ought to do.
Clearly there is a wide audience out there or this stuff would not last long. The only redeeming thing though is that Fox manages to get some hotties to sputter on about the news.
Now move on to Olberman and Rachel...Keith tosses paper around after overly elaborate tirades denouncing dullards on Fox; Rachel, very bright, smirks and smiles, and is sure she has truth on her side. She brings on interesting guests for various topics but Keith gets the same journalists over and over to stumble over what he has already suggested needs saying. That cable channel, owned by a conservative, knows that there is some sort of market at the moment for those who are left of center, so Keith goes on, Rachel follows, and then, next hour, Keith show repeated...giving us some 3 hours of....anti-Bush, anti-Fox, and first,2nd,3rd worst person of the day.
We are forced to watch one of those two shows. If not, there is the punishment of: Lou Dobbs, who, should illegal immigration become a non-issue, would become a weatherman, predicting dire weather daily.
posted by Postroad at 1:48 PM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
And whose fueling these idiots? People like Glen Beck.
Beck's merely the latest in a long series of quasi-conervative semi-populist Buffalo Bobs that includes Father Coughlin, Morton Downey Jr., Wally George and Walter Winchell. And he's not even a particularly interesting or entertaining one. The McVeigh's and militia/klan types would consider him a silly poseur. Their roots go back at least to the post-civil war period of the early militant Klan and the Know-Nothings through to the John Birchers.
posted by jonmc at 1:58 PM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
Beck's merely the latest in a long series of quasi-conervative semi-populist Buffalo Bobs that includes Father Coughlin, Morton Downey Jr., Wally George and Walter Winchell. And he's not even a particularly interesting or entertaining one. The McVeigh's and militia/klan types would consider him a silly poseur. Their roots go back at least to the post-civil war period of the early militant Klan and the Know-Nothings through to the John Birchers.
posted by jonmc at 1:58 PM on February 28, 2009 [3 favorites]
That Hannity is so deeply embroiled in this comes as no surprise, either, considering this was the man who gave Hal Turner a public platform when most New Jersey conservatives were distancing themselves from his racist babblings.
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 2:05 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 2:05 PM on February 28, 2009
Growing up, I remember the most popular blowhard was Rush.
posted by 5imian at 2:09 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by 5imian at 2:09 PM on February 28, 2009
5imian, I've got a good decade on you, and I can assure you, he's only the latest in a long line, and he's also the one of the slickest and least interesting.
posted by jonmc at 2:16 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by jonmc at 2:16 PM on February 28, 2009
These guys are pathetic, honestly.
They tried to have a 'tea-party' a few days ago, and nobody came.
The left-wing craps bigger rallies than that.
Good luck getting anything accomplished with protests, though. It didn't seem to make any difference before the Iraq war, and we had millions of people show up.
posted by empath at 2:23 PM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
They tried to have a 'tea-party' a few days ago, and nobody came.
The left-wing craps bigger rallies than that.
Good luck getting anything accomplished with protests, though. It didn't seem to make any difference before the Iraq war, and we had millions of people show up.
posted by empath at 2:23 PM on February 28, 2009 [1 favorite]
...And yes, he is totally uninteresting.. But no, you're right.. I just thought since we were mentioning some of those predecessors, as well as the 'holy trinity'.. Rush at least deserved a mention, haha.
posted by 5imian at 2:24 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by 5imian at 2:24 PM on February 28, 2009
Didn't mean any offfense, 5imian, just trying to put the whole right-wing-pundit thing into a larger historical context. (and Mort Downey Jr. while flat-out wrong on most things, was at least a good entertainer and had led an interesting life. Limbaugh's greatest sin is that he's really boring.)
posted by jonmc at 2:33 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by jonmc at 2:33 PM on February 28, 2009
sane people know that we all have to live together and interact fairly to make it in the future. Hannity needs a knife through his eardrum. Peace.
Umm....
posted by shakespeherian at 2:40 PM on February 28, 2009
Umm....
posted by shakespeherian at 2:40 PM on February 28, 2009
Worth noting that the SPLC is describing an increase in the number of GROUPS, not the number of total members. One doesn't necessarily follow the other.
posted by UsernameFilter at 3:09 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by UsernameFilter at 3:09 PM on February 28, 2009
I'm guessing that for the 2012 election, they'll eventually settle on Romney/Jindal. The fomer looks like he'd sell you a car. The latter looks like he'd provide the tech support for it.
posted by jamstigator at 3:45 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by jamstigator at 3:45 PM on February 28, 2009
Are Violent Video Games Adequately Preparing Children For The Apocalypse?
posted by homunculus at 4:13 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by homunculus at 4:13 PM on February 28, 2009
There's a really good Ruby Ridge documentary done by Jon Ronson available on Youtube. It centered around the daughter of the famly, Rachel, who seems to be a magnet for every crazy in the world now. My favorite quote was, "most paranoid people think they're being watched and they're not, here was somebody who was actually being watched ... any little thing that occurs becomes a big thing."
Just don't let them buy a bunch of explosives, otherwise let them play revolutionary in the middle of nowhere.
posted by geoff. at 4:26 PM on February 28, 2009
Just don't let them buy a bunch of explosives, otherwise let them play revolutionary in the middle of nowhere.
posted by geoff. at 4:26 PM on February 28, 2009
The fomer looks like he'd sell you a car. The latter looks like he'd provide the tech support for it.
Oh, I get it. White people are liars and Indians are nerds.
posted by 0xdeadc0de at 4:42 PM on February 28, 2009
Oh, I get it. White people are liars and Indians are nerds.
posted by 0xdeadc0de at 4:42 PM on February 28, 2009
These guys are pathetic, honestly.
Yes, but that's not what's disturbing about them.
The thing is you don't need a lot of people to put together an effective operations team and do some real damage. Oklahoma City was plotted and carried out by like, 4 people. September 11th was carried about by a team of about 19 people with some logistical support from overseas. Mumbai was carried out by what, a dozen?
Point is that you don't need an army. You just need a handful of very determined individuals, some training, and a little luck.
posted by smoothvirus at 5:41 PM on February 28, 2009
Yes, but that's not what's disturbing about them.
The thing is you don't need a lot of people to put together an effective operations team and do some real damage. Oklahoma City was plotted and carried out by like, 4 people. September 11th was carried about by a team of about 19 people with some logistical support from overseas. Mumbai was carried out by what, a dozen?
Point is that you don't need an army. You just need a handful of very determined individuals, some training, and a little luck.
posted by smoothvirus at 5:41 PM on February 28, 2009
And all you need is one bigot with a gun to get shooting spree: Florida man embarked on another eliminationist killing rampage
posted by homunculus at 6:37 PM on February 28, 2009
posted by homunculus at 6:37 PM on February 28, 2009
Yeah homunculus this stuff is getting a little to real for my comfort zone.
. . . Metafiler: to real for my comfort zone
posted by nola at 8:03 PM on February 28, 2009
. . . Metafiler: to real for my comfort zone
posted by nola at 8:03 PM on February 28, 2009
Growing up, I remember the most popular blowhard was Rush.
And who, exactly, are you to criticize Neal Peart's songwriting skills or Geddy Lee's vocals? Oh...sorry.
posted by MikeMc at 9:16 PM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
And who, exactly, are you to criticize Neal Peart's songwriting skills or Geddy Lee's vocals? Oh...sorry.
posted by MikeMc at 9:16 PM on February 28, 2009 [2 favorites]
American Revolutionary War: treasonous rebels declare independence from mother country because of unfair taxes and the impending abolishment of slavery.
American Civil War: treasonous rebels declare independence from mother country because of unfair taxes and the impending abolishment of slavery.
Difference: In the first case, the rebels won, ensconced slavery in their constitution, and are now seen as heroes and patriots; in the second, the rebels lost, and are now seen as racist monsters and traitors.
posted by iconjack at 9:26 PM on February 28, 2009
American Civil War: treasonous rebels declare independence from mother country because of unfair taxes and the impending abolishment of slavery.
Difference: In the first case, the rebels won, ensconced slavery in their constitution, and are now seen as heroes and patriots; in the second, the rebels lost, and are now seen as racist monsters and traitors.
posted by iconjack at 9:26 PM on February 28, 2009
jonmc: From your link about Walter Winchell: "Winchell, who was Jewish, was one of the first commentators in America to attack Adolf Hitler and American pro-fascist and pro-Nazi organizations such as the German-American Bund. He generally had a left-of-center political view through the 1930s and World War II, when he was stridently pro-Roosevelt, pro-labor, and pro–Democratic Party."
A little weird that you call him quasi-conservative.
posted by billysumday at 8:07 AM on March 1, 2009
A little weird that you call him quasi-conservative.
posted by billysumday at 8:07 AM on March 1, 2009
Omigod, jonmc, I didn't read further, and should have. So Winchell turned into a crazy McCarthy nut. My opinion of him was formed mostly from Roth's "Plot Against America," which, though fictitious, contains real characters. I knew about his love of Roosevelt, didn't know that it morphed into anti-commie craziness in the 50's. Apologies.
posted by billysumday at 8:11 AM on March 1, 2009
posted by billysumday at 8:11 AM on March 1, 2009
Interesting: Apparently Friday, Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., suggested that millions of conservatives are ready to "take to the streets to stop America's slide into socialism." Are we seeing a new set of [super-seditious] talking points being circulated by the Republican party?
posted by limeonaire at 10:08 AM on March 1, 2009
posted by limeonaire at 10:08 AM on March 1, 2009
I think what we're seeing is the death throes of the Republican party. I can't think of any other way to describe it. They're over as a political force in this country. The only path they have back to power is violence at this point.
posted by empath at 11:00 AM on March 1, 2009
posted by empath at 11:00 AM on March 1, 2009
My favorite part about this party of rugged, self-reliant individuals is how quick they are to blame EVERYTHING on someone else: immigrants, liberals, Democrats, 'the government", etc. I'm starting to think that in order to be a conservative, you do have to have the narcissism gene and it trumps all other impulses.
posted by psmealey at 3:16 AM on March 2, 2009
posted by psmealey at 3:16 AM on March 2, 2009
Will ex-military 'Patriots' form a more dangerous kind of militias?
posted by homunculus at 6:56 PM on March 5, 2009
posted by homunculus at 6:56 PM on March 5, 2009
You can start with California, the state with the most hate groups. Ignore that they're not red.
I'm sorry all of you were offended. I keep accidentally crossing that line of how honest you're actually supposed to be...
I do love the whole 'us' vs 'them' tone of your post. Bush would be proud.
You don't see these people as adversaries? Seriously?
Also, you seem nice.
Is that based on my above fumbled snark alone? Or am I a regular troll and don't realize it?
posted by Xezlec at 10:36 PM on March 10, 2009
I'm sorry all of you were offended. I keep accidentally crossing that line of how honest you're actually supposed to be...
I do love the whole 'us' vs 'them' tone of your post. Bush would be proud.
You don't see these people as adversaries? Seriously?
Also, you seem nice.
Is that based on my above fumbled snark alone? Or am I a regular troll and don't realize it?
posted by Xezlec at 10:36 PM on March 10, 2009
Glenn Beck Recycles "X-Files" Plot to Spread Fear of Obama
posted by homunculus at 10:57 AM on March 15, 2009
posted by homunculus at 10:57 AM on March 15, 2009
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posted by kldickson at 9:30 AM on February 28, 2009