You didn't know? TPM is an entertainment review site and each theater of the absurd we review must be covered from all the angles. You know, sets and props, costumes, supporting cast, cast size, backers (also know as angels). You see by these thorough reviews we take the drudgery of you having to really go and risk serious illness.

I never post about these emotional arguments. They're a waste of time. I wish our lawmakers would concentrate on some facts instead of the whackos who aren't in control of their emotions.

You know, in medical school they spend a great deal of time talking about disease, too. I can't understand why these so-called "healers" spend so much time promoting and publicizing a thing they claim to hate.

Have these "doctors" lost their minds, or are they actually covert disease-disseminators?

Before you scoff, know that hospitals are rife with "nosocomial infections." This is nothing but a the medicos' own secret code for "getting sick in a place that supposed to heal you." It's a conspiracy, I tell you!

Isn't this post about the Teabaggers, too?

Shhhhhhh......

Frankly, I can't believe how often Sarah Palin, Rush Limbaugh, and all of the nutwing right get front, center page coverage on TPM often with article titles that could be read as if supporting them.

I think it's completely wrongheaded, and while I can maybe understand why the front page does it - to bring it hotheaded traffic - the fact that it runs so heavy on the Readers page is the true failure. I'd be happy with a once weekly report on what these asshats are doing, and the rest of the time, on developing and rolling out our agenda. People wonder why we can't people to a health care rally in DC, when all our energy is going into screaming about the assholes.

It's a bit like hockey, where the other team's agitators aim to do nothing but distract attention and get people angry, so we pay no attention to the game. Bit like trolls too, I guess.

If I could quota the mention of Rush and the rest, I'd happily do so.

I think that it's the whole "the better informed you are, the better you can fight" routine, at least in part. It does get Spammish (is that a word?) at times, and I do agree that it could be condensed better. But I'm not sure once a week could cover all the actions of the nutcases. Maybe once daily? Or every other day?

I appreciate the detailed coverage because I live in an area that takes Faux News as gospel and won't deign to consider anything else. Getting an overview and an idea of why said things are wrong here gives me a good start at getting the needed info on the issues I know I'll be arguing about at work or with my father in law without me having to watch it myself, which in my opinion gives it credibility via another viewer number.

Also, knowing which of the Congress critters said what outlandish thing, or which one stood up against said outlandish things gives me another name for my list of people to watch and potentially support financially when they come up for re-election.

Digging in and holding our ground is all well and good, and required if we're going to get anything done. But how are we going to know what we're up against if we don't know what the nutsos are spewing this week? They watch us like hawks for the next thing to twist into Fear Spam, or the next reason to insult us. We have to know what to be ready to counter.

In short, yes, it's annoying, and yes, it probably does get too much coverage. But it's pretty necessary, at least in my opinion. Take it for what it's worth.

Just to play Devil's Advocate (hey, gotta do something for that retainer he pays) . . .

These people represent the gravest danger to American democracy since the 1920's version of the Ku Klux Klan. People who agree with them comprise about a quarter of the electorate and every last one of them will be voting next election. Given the low turn-out that's the norm in midterms, there are more than enough of them to grab Congress from us in 2010. And they are, as we say around here, batshit crazy, swept up by the biggest, most long-lasting, wave of mass psychosis to hit this country ever.

As long as Fox, the Internet and email exist, we cannot ignore them out of existence. They will not dry up and blow away if they aren't covered by the rest of the media. And if we dont' stop them next November, they will put the brakes on item on our checklist and try to roll back whatever we've managed to accomplish.

The teabaggers gain no credibility from TPM's coverage, no converts, no donations. Keeping their descent into ever-deeper levels of madness shoved in our faces all the time is possibly the only thing that can shake Democrats and people to their left out of the complacancy, self-absorption and intramural bickering that's their traditional response to electoral success. If we let them slip underneath our radar screeen over the next twelve months we'll convince ourselves we can afford to skip the next election, the way Democrats always do, and then the country is well and truly screwed.

If they take back Congress, or simply even increase their minority to the point that they can topple the present leadership and replace asshats like McConnell and Boehner with nuts like DeMint and Bachmann, the insanity that dogged Bill Clinton after he lost Congress will be like tea and crumpets over a polite hand of whist by comparison.

I say keep it up, TPM. Crank that siren!

I don't think TPM is a democratic or liberal site. I think it is a news site, of a new kind. A reporter's site.

There is a leftward bent, somewhat. I think we all know how Josh feels about the political spectrum. But I think Josh and his operation are more about reporting. So when something interesting happens in DC, I think it'll get covered on the DC page, even if the democratic faithful is upset by it.

Also, as a proclaimed, "muckraker", if this site sits back and takes it easy on a Democratic administration, they'll lose their muckraking cred, atleast in my eyes.

As far as the teabaggers, I was interested. I'm glad they covered it.

It does offer me much amusement for the faithful to get all up in arms and huffy, and stamping their cyber feet all pouty when they don't think TPM is cheerleading Obama enough, or the democratic party, or giving too much attention to something they don't like. I don't think TPM is here for that. First and foremost, they report.

If you want a cheerleading site, there are many out there.

I appreciate Josh's editorial decisions.