A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention….

It’s a sign of their frustration.

I’ll have to agree more with JaHerer and Honora on this one that there are crazy people on both sides of the aisle. And the Coulter example is a GREAT one. The problem is, is that when someone who you agree with politically says something outrageous, you don’t think it’s so outrageous.

Perfect example, Hannity asks KP to name something comparable that the conservatives did during the Clinton years. She brings up the stories of the Clintons murdering people (which I certainly remember…the Clintons were murdering Ron Brown, Vince Foster, etc.), and then Hannity goes, “well, those were allegations being made.” That’s exactly my point! Hannity thinks those are appropriate things to bring up, because that’s his political bent.

honora on February 28, 2007 at 1:58 PM

The difference is that we listen to our extremists and laugh or lament. The liberals act on their postings.

When was the last time a conservative stormed a house to attack a liberal, shout down on a college campus an invited speaker, defaced a national monument.

Conservative can see and understand extremism and reject it.

The left embraces it, hire it, dances down the stree with it, votes for it, gives it committee chairs, aligns themselves with it, courts it, and defends it…and now are living with it therfore defined by it, it now is part of their DNA.

Do I have to call you lazy again, honora?

Bryan on February 28, 2007 at 1:48 PM

Ahhhhhhh, ………. yes?

P.S. “Hi, honora!”

Here’s another example for you: A great little thread of LGF commenters celebrating the death of UN peacekeepers and opining over the fact Kofi didn’t happen to be with them.

Can’t we just agree there are stupid, crazy people everywhere, some happen to be liberals, some happen to be conservatives, and anonymous postings in blog comment sections prove nothing?

And they are far more representative of the Democrats and the left than Kirsten is or will be at any point in the near future.

Bryan on February 28, 2007 at 1:00 PM

Precisely — and it is sad. Mahatma Ghandi once said (loosely quoting — I don’t have his exact words in front of me):

I would be a Christian, if it were not for the other Christians that I know.

I suppose that it would shock you all, if I said:

I would BE a Democrat, if it were not for all the other Democrats that I know.

I remember a time (long ago) when a conservative could actually be a member of the Democratic party.
(Alas, I fear, no more.)

I may have finally found some common ground with Jaherer22 and honora. (Don’t let it go to your heads.) The rhetorical vitriol and pure hatred spews, spills, and runs like a open stream of sewage from both sides of the aisle. I really don’t care if it comes from Ann Coulter, or whether it comes from the commenters/blog participants at the liberal blogs like the Huffington Post. Rude is rude. Mean is mean. Hatred is hatred. Lies and character assasination are exactly that. Conservatives are NOT immune. (If you want to be better than the liberals, you gotta’ walk the talk.)

I sent a congratulatory note of sorts (an e-mail message) to Kirsten Powers last night. NOT because I necessarily agreed with anything she said, but because both Bill O’Reilly (on Monday night) and Sean Hannity (on Tuesday night) yelled at her on national television. Even though I may have agreed with most of what both Bill and Sean had to say, I object strenuously to the WAY in which they said it. (They should apologize.) IMHO, KP WON both exchanges — NOT because she was correct, but because she kept her cool throughout.

Why is SO hard to understand that at least some of us expect the people in our society to conduct themselves in a civilized fashion — displaying some common courtesy towards each other? I will NOT defend conservatives when they misbehave — any more than I’ll defend the posters at HP that say that they want Dick Cheney dead.

Okay, so I am getting WAY too preachy here. I’ll knock it off. I’ll admit that I am guilty of posting some pretty lame and nasty stuff myself. I guess that my point is pretty simple. We can’t beat our enemy by becoming our enemy.

That preceded the Iraq War, 9/11, Florida 2000… all the reasons libs give for hating Bush and Cheney.

This blog criticizes Coulter all the time. And you know that, or would if you bothered to look up our posts and link them in your own comments. Do I have to call you lazy again, honora?

Bryan on February 28, 2007 at 1:48 PM

First, I did not look this up on HA. I looked on Media Matters.

Second, the point is that there is the “holy than thou” contention being floated here that wishing horrible stuff to happen to prominent people (like death to Cheney) is somehow the unique province of liberals.

Third, call me what you wish. Do I have to call you obtuse again, Bryan?

JAHerer, I’ve named several specific examples, including a Post by that idiot Hendra. Alec Baldwin has made similar posts. I’m asking for a site on the right that you would go to to find hateful rhetoric.

Ian on February 28, 2007 at 12:58 PM

How about Ann Coulter:

“We need somebody to put rat poison in Justice Stevens’ cream brulee”

“My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he didn’t go to the New York Times building”

re Clinton, the only question is “whether to impeach or assassinate”

Not anonymous blog posts, worse. From her books and speeches. From someone highlighted in a positive way today, on this very blog.

Last year there was a proposition to amend the Constitution to ban desecrations of the flag. It failed, and rightly so. In a country where free speech is protected, whose interests are served by placing limitations on opinions? Ignore the discussion on decency, offensive or inflamatory remarks… there is a chasm of difference between asserting an opinion and acting on that opinion, in the legal and the moral sense.