I'm not naive enough to think there won't be more piracy around Somalia, nor that there might not be situations with a less positive outcome than the one that took place over the weekend. And it's a more complex issue than one at which knees can easily jerk. Still, I think it's instructive. Whether it's the economy, health care, or foreign policy, Republicans are counting on -- betting on -- the US to fail.
Even as the US Navy was executing its plan, Rush was on the air decrying Obama's weakness and blaming all piracy on liberals. No kidding. Even, one must assume, the piracy that began while Chenbush's shoot-first tough-guy approach was in full bloom.
I suppose if the captain had been killed by the pirates, Rush and his followers (ie, the entire remainder of the Republican party) would have been able to gloat
Their future success, they've decided, is predicated entirely on predicting and literally working for the failure of America. If the pirate incident is any indicator, people -- even some on the right -- will begin to realize it, as (if?) successes begin piling up. What could be more desperate? What could be less patriotic? What could be a finer example of self-interest over that of the country? Of intellectual bankruptcy.
At least it's out there for all to see, if only they'll look.
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You don't sound so happy yourself Sid...I mean if slappin around a few Terrorists in Git-Mo is so bad...ummm you DID hear what happened to the 3 little Pirates??? Didn't get read their rights, or have a lawyer appointed, or even a decent last meal... just a 7.62 hole in the forehead... So sad...
ReplyDelete"I suppose if the captain had been killed by the pirates, Rush and his followers (ie, the entire remainder of the Republican party) would have been able to gloat. And indeed they would have done it, despite the fact that it would have been on the grave of a brave American that they were dancing."
ReplyDeleteLet's see...making up your opponent's argument, then debating that...where did I just hear about that???
Oh yeah: http://sidschwab.blogspot.com/2009/04/critical-thinking.html
Oooooooohhhh....
ReplyDeleteWhat a Burn!!!
Where to start, where to start.
ReplyDeleteDistracting from the main point? Check!
Ignoring the main point? Check!
Rejecting the logic of extrapolation? Check!
Many are the examples from which to draw the conclusion I drew. Many are the points I've made in posts here which are ignored in favor of a sophomoric retort. Nor was that sentence, which began with a supposition, in any form a "debate."
Good effort, though.
P.S: I did modify a couple of words by strikethrough. No point in giving Mr Anonymous a reason to avoid confronting the question of Republican strategy and its anti-American thesis. Which was, after all, the point.
ReplyDeleteFrank -- there's a Yiddish proverb that translates to, "Don't argue with a fool. People might not be able to tell the difference." Don't feel smug when no one bothers to refute you.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, this man had a fir growing in his lung. I felt the urge to share:
http://www.mosnews.com/weird/2009/04/13/firtree/
Best,
Sam Spade
I just wanted you to know that I was paying attention. You published that very creative cartoon about the hazards of poor logic. And the next day I read a great example of it, so I had to point it out!
ReplyDelete"Distracting from the main point? Check! Ignoring the main point? Check!"
It was your point, wasn't it? You really should post the rules. Like this: I, the blog author, may slip in all kinds of snarky comments, but they are not the main point, so please don't mention them."
Feel free to use that.
Republicans aren't rooting for Obama to fail,,,but it seems likely it will happen. He hasn't shown much good judgment so far, and he seems unlikely to learn. He's too arrogant, too stubborn, too inexperienced.
Too bad.
Anonymous -- "Republicans aren't rooting for Obama to fail"
ReplyDeleteNot so. Limbaugh openly does so, and one can make a strong argument that he's the dominant figure in the GOP. Consider Steele's abject apology to the man.
"[Obama] hasn't shown much good judgment so far, and he seems unlikely to learn. He's too arrogant, too stubborn, too inexperienced."
You make no effort to corroborate this, so it will be regarded merely as opinion.
It wasn't snark. It was a prediction that if the captain had been killed, the Republican screamers would have been all over Obama. Think that's not true? How about the fact that they're all over him, anyway?
ReplyDeleteArguing with you (afraid to leave a moniker anonymous) is like trying to hit a beach ball with a bat. Easy, but not much sense of accomplishment. You have, in the space of two comments, changed what you are calling my main point: first, a prediction of what would have happened had the captain been killed. Now, the main point was... what? The point of a previous post? Funny. I thought it was about the risky nature of the Rs strategy to bet against success and to hope and work for failure of the US.
Read a little more carefully. I didn't say it was your main point, but it is a point you made. Again--may we only discuss your main point or any point you make?
ReplyDeleteMy prediction: if the captain had been killed Obama would have taken complete responsibility and and admitted he had no experience with this, since as a senator he had never attended one of the hearings of his own committee on piracy near Africa.
Predictions after the fact are a little hard to disprove, aren't they?