This will be a short and angry diary, but ... a necessary one. How is that, after all of this time -- during which it has been proven without any doubt -- that Al Gore NEVER said or otherwise claimed that he "invented the internet" ... how after all of this time can MSNBC television viewers be subjected to Chris Mathews pushing the notion that he did?!!!!
It. Is. Infuriating.
But that's what we had, tonight--at approximately 7:25 eastern from Chris "Tweety" Mathews on Hardball. A direct quote from Mathews:
But in terms of Al Gore, he's the one who said that he created the internet. He's the one that put out the word that he was the subject or role model for Love Story. That he pointed the country's attention to Love Canal.... Gore got himself in those problem areas by vanity and showing off and trying to make himself cool.
Thank gawd for Tivo. For the real and factual details on what Gore really said, which everyone but apparently Tweety (and a few wingnut prevaricators who later fried their collective brain pans looking for WMD in Iraq) knows by now, let's jump again to the most recent Vanity Fair article summarizing the sad history of the above-described falsehood:
The Love Story distortion set the stage for the "I Invented the Internet" distortion, a devastating piece of propaganda that damaged Gore at the starting gate of his run. On March 9, 1999, CNN's Wolf Blitzer conducted an interview with Gore shortly before he officially announced his candidacy. In answer to a question about why Democrats should support him, Gore spoke about his record. "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative"—politico-speak for leadership—"in creating the Internet," he said, before going on to describe other accomplishments. It was true. In the 1970s, the Internet was a limited tool used by the Pentagon and universities for research. As a senator in the 80s, Gore sponsored two bills that turned this government program into an "information superhighway," a term Gore popularized, and made it accessible to all. Vinton Cerf, often called the father of the Internet, has claimed that the Internet would not be where it was without Gore's leadership on the issue. Even former Republican House speaker Newt Gingrich has said that "Gore is the person who, in the Congress, most systematically worked to make sure that we got to an Internet."
As the Vanity Fair piece further summarizes:
The press didn't object to Gore's statement until Texas Republican congressman Dick Armey led the charge, saying, "If the vice president created the Internet, then I created the interstate highway system." Republican congressman James Sensenbrenner released a statement with the headline, delusions of grandeur: vice president gore takes credit for creating the internet. CNN's Lou Dobbs was soon calling Gore's remark "a case study ... in delusions of grandeur." A few days later the word "invented" entered the narrative. On March 15, a USA Today headline about Gore read, inventing the internet; March 16 on Hardball, Chris Matthews derided Gore for his claim that he "invented the Internet." Soon the distorted assertion was in the pages of the Los Angeles Times and The Boston Globe, and on the A.P. wire service. By early June, the word "invented" was actually being put in quotation marks, as though that were Gore's word of choice. Here's how Mimi Hall put it in USA Today: "A couple of Gore gaffes, including his assertion that he 'invented' the Internet, didn't help." And Newsday's Elaine Povich ridiculed "Gore's widely mocked assertion that he 'invented' the Internet." (Thanks to the Web site the Daily Howler, the creation of Bob Somerby, a college roommate of Gore's, we have a chronicle of how the Internet story spiraled out of control.)
Belatedly attempting to defuse the situation, Gore joked about it on Imus in the Morning, saying that he "was up late the night before ... inventing the camcorder." But it was too late—the damage had been done.
Jesus H. Krist. With idiots like Christ Mathews still occupying an hour's worth of prime-time television -- is it any wonder--any wonder at all--that Al Gore has decided in 2008 not to seek the presidency? Is it any effen wonder?!!
Don Henley has a great line in one of his most wonderful (and overlooked songs) -- A Month of Sundays. He says "we get the government we deserve."
That song was written in the 1980s. Never has it been more true than nearly 20 years later. Sums it all up way too well.
UPDATE: HawkJT, below, provides some additional context to tongiht's Tweety idiocy.
What I found interesting was the whole topic that tweety was discussing with Micheal Crowley...ie. Crowley brought up how dem primary voters are angry with the media and right wing slimers and agree with obama firing right back at novak and HRC when a dishonest item appearred in the Suntimes. Crowley said that dem voters still blame the media and rightwingers for destroying Gore and Kerry in the last couple of elections.
That is when Tweety took off on how while Kerry was truly unjustly slimed, Gore brought it on himself.
Then Crowley tried to say, hey, this is what the dems feel.. matthews fires back that they are partisan and would always believe their guy was cheated...then crowley threw one more comment out and matthews stopped dead, taking offense and said something about how things are in the ''real world''.. clearly pissed that crowley was not buying matthews take.
well, duh, tweety, of course dem primay voters are partisan..that is why they are concerned about the media and rightwingers slamming dems with lies ect.
I give Crowley credit, cuz he was right, and would not really back down to tweety. Crowley is right, dems are going to hyper-sensitive to swiftboating this time around.
by Hawkjt on Mon Nov 19, 2007 at 08:41:35 PM EST
Thanks Hawkjt.