I spend, and have spent, a good deal of time fighting with conservatives on their own turf - Town Hall, Little Green Footballs, WizBang, etc. It always feels like heading into enemy territory. I know I'm outnumbered. I know my opinions might be stricken from the threads (or, in some cases, scrambled with commentary from editors who misrepresent it), but it's always a worthwhile fight.
You and I know the right wingers live in echo chambers. Their sympathizers always throw softball questions and engage in "friendly" debates. Half of the reason, I believe, that these people are so entrenched in their beliefs are because their ideas are never truly challenged.
After my post yesterday, Jay Tea, one of the editors of WizBang, a site I frequently hold up for ridicule here as an example of people who are too far gone to help, posted on my thread. He was curious about my criticism of one of his collegues, who spent the good part of yesterday defending BP because of their contracts and "terms and conditions."
I responded (his quotes in blocks):
What I find objectionable about DJ's (his collegues) piece is he is fishing for a way to absolve BP of blame.
It's always someone else's fault - Obama, the democrats, the regulatory system, vendors.
What I will agree with him on is a comment where he claimed the company has a stake in the cleanup due to respect for "family members" - workers - who've died there.
What is not disputable is that something very bad, very unexpected, and very unlikely happened on that platform that killed eleven men, and we don't know what the hell happened and who was at fault.
We know exactly who was at fault. BP. Whether their contractor or vendor had or had not any liability in this, they are one's who are responsible.
What you guys do over and over, again and again, is defend corporate interests to a fault. Your criticism of them is never more than a sidenote.
In the meantime, BP is living up to its legal obligations.
Are they living up to their obligations? That remains to be seen. Exxon fought tooth and nail over years to avoid full financial responsibility. I suspect, given the kind of contracts floating around the coastal towns the BP quickly pulled once it was discovered by the press, that this is not their last salvo into avoiding payment.
In the meantime, feel free to wallow in the cesspool that is Kos. I've had too many dealings already with the vermin who infest it. For example, I butted heads with and showed what a fraud "Maccabee" was about eight months before the rest of the Kossacks discovered it, banned him, and "unpersonned" his most flagrant frauds.
Don't know this Maccabee, but as far as showing up anyone here as a "fraud", well, that's really just in your own mind. The right tends to mistaken opinion as fact and facts as selective. To your audience you might have smited Maccabee. To the intelligent, average American who doesn't make up your 23%, your arguments won't hold water.
Most of you are too far gone to ever believe you hold a thought that isn't 100% accurate. What you'll find here are alot of people readily willing to admit fault if they can be proven wrong (and alot that won't). That's one of the reasons the democrats can't get it together in Congress and Senate. Too many individuals, not enough lemmings.
And, by the way, most democrats don't believe that corporations are "evil" or other ridiculous myths you and your followers spout. Most believe companies will take everything they can get and, because of that, need regulation in the same way a child needs to be told he can't have five candy bars.
Then, I told him the following:
Why not post one of your articles here and get into real debate, rather than speaking to the choir at WizBang. That's what take real balls.
Or do what I'd expect you to do - walk away, boast to your like-minded followers about "those stupid democrats" and never test your version of the "facts" and anyone that can refute them intelligently.
He said he would pass, but would rather I post one of his articles verbatim for discussion or for the Kos audience "to choke on."
So here's my question: Why not have someone like this, the TRULY opposing viewpoint, post diaries here? From a business perspective, I understand that, metaphorically speaking, you don't want to sell tricycles at an Auto Dealer, but I think the audience here would tear him a new one - and that's good theater.
Two things: I've not read every Kos diary, so there may be a few right wingers here speaking their mind on a regular basis. I'm also not suggesting we enable trolls. They only want to provoke and have no place anywhere. I'm talking about someone who believes this crap and wants to debate.
Besides, we are armed with a kind of ammunition foreign to the right-wingers: REAL FACTS - and trying to strike down fact-deprived posts on their conservative blogs has the expected results. (They do have to protect their easily refuted arguments).
So, vote - and give me your verbal opinions on this as well: