taochiapet's Blog

taochiapet Commented on The Anatomy of Conservative Self-Deception by Ed Kilgore

2008-11-14T18:18:35Z

well, there's plenty of room to criticize/influence obama from the left; that's still a genuinely viable political POV, IMHO.

taochiapet Commented on Republican Mailer In Ohio Targets Wright, Says Obama's "Friends" Are "Hostile To America" by Greg Sargent

2008-11-03T19:37:24Z

it's been said there are no original thoughts; all are built on what's come before (this thought included).

so, in other words, who the hell is ...? (ad infinitum)

taochiapet Commented on Republican Mailer In Ohio Targets Wright, Says Obama's "Friends" Are "Hostile To America" by Greg Sargent

2008-11-03T19:34:19Z

it's been said there are no original thoughts; all are built on what's come before (this thought included).

so who the hell is ...? ad infinitum...

taochiapet Commented on Republican Mailer In Ohio Targets Wright, Says Obama's "Friends" Are "Hostile To America" by Greg Sargent

2008-11-03T19:13:26Z

hey, it ain't easy to tell anymore!

taochiapet Commented on Stick It To The Right----Buy Rashid Khalidi's Book Here by M.J. Rosenberg

2008-11-03T19:02:26Z

if you want dumb, just re-read your posts.

taochiapet Commented on Stick It To The Right----Buy Rashid Khalidi's Book Here by M.J. Rosenberg

2008-11-03T19:00:23Z

poor YBD, everyone's against israel! why has god forsaken us?

taochiapet Commented on Stick It To The Right----Buy Rashid Khalidi's Book Here by M.J. Rosenberg

2008-11-03T18:54:50Z

if MJ were a "self-hating jew" that would still be better than the self-hating human that you reveal yourself to be.

you've gotten your answer from us "libruls", maybe you should crawl back under that safe little rock you call a mind.

taochiapet Commented on Where Is The First Brigade? by Naomi Wolf

2008-11-03T18:08:08Z

i think the question that most here who disagree with you might ask is: why can't we be concerned about both?

taochiapet Commented on Where Is The First Brigade? by Naomi Wolf

2008-11-03T18:03:46Z

sorry, but the opening salvo of a de facto coup de tat occurred a long time ago, when corporatism met militarism and the modern american empire was born.

as for the historical references, they were meant to show that your naive defense of all things american-military was off-base and historically unsupported, and that indeed the military has been mis-used for domestic political suppression before.

smedley butler turning in the conspirators wasn't the point, his long record of being a tool for american corporations was. his military training didn't help him have the courage to come out-of-the-closet about it; that had to wait until he was again a "civilian".

google's great; now combine it with common sense and consistent (not ideologically-driven) universal human values and perhaps you're on to something.

taochiapet Commented on Where Is The First Brigade? by Naomi Wolf

2008-11-03T17:40:05Z

i never claimed posse comitatus was being violated. my point was to question the broad-brush smearing of those on the left who have concerns about the historical and on-going mis-use of the military.

the debate between the founding "fathers" is also irrevalent; the neo-con rethugs have demonstrated just how easy it is to disregard the law at the highest levels with impunity.

taochiapet Commented on Where Is The First Brigade? by Naomi Wolf

2008-11-02T19:52:05Z

you suggest that those of us on the left have an unduly suspicious nature towards the military, but that those (presumably more "centrist") rural folks simply have an innate distrust of government. why the different spin on the essentially same concern based on (faulty) political divisions?

you sounds more like one whose experiences with the military have personally blinded you to the very real and possible dangers -- anywhere, anytime, anyplace -- inherent in a militarist mind-set. it's a pretty well-established pattern of human behavior, don't ya think?

whose "nature" -- the "paranoid" left or reasonable that-could-never-happen-here centrists -- has served us better on such matters as...

* vietnam
* cointelpro
* iraq
* WMDs
* torture
* domestic spying

... to name but a few. and while you're recommending a broad contextual view on the military and it's "culture", revisit...

* the bonus army
* the tuskegee airmen
* general smedley butler

... to balance out some of that unduly pro-military non-paranoia.

snarkiness aside, most people keeping an eye on this topic do so out a _healthy_ concern over excesses, not because of paranoia (although these last eight years have shown that even knee-jerk paranoia is more of a legimate political philosophy than conservatism!)

good luck to all of us in the ongoing deprogramming efforts...