Wednesday, August 14, 2013

What Digby Said



This is a fine sentiment:
I can't tell you how happy I am that institutional and grassroots progressives have finally come around to the idea that we need to raise benefits on Social Security. It's going to take a while to get the usual suspects to stop thinking of this as taboo because "entitlements" are the boogeyman that's going to kill us in our beds. But it can be done if everyone sticks to the message and they don't run off to chase the next shiny object the first chance they get.
But I do tend to smile and pray over strategies that depend on Liberals not chasing shiny objects. I mean, you couldn't fairly call it "Liberalism" if at some point some large fraction of us weren't holed up in our favorite Single Issue Helm's Deep sneering down at the impure slobs who haven't Made Their Decision For The One, True Christ.

I am also saddened that Digby's comment section -- once a hub of internet conversation which legend has it went spla due to some technical glitch dog years ago -- is now permanently shuttered. Back when I was an apple-cheeked plebe walking the ivy-covered halls Blogging University in awe of the marble busts of A-listers, all of my professors drove home the lesson that comments are one of the things that makes blogging, blogging.

But I guess the world has once again passed me by.


18 comments:

Cirze said...

But not here!

Love ya, baby,

C

is now permanently shuttered

Ebon Krieg said...

We who have opposite beliefs will be scorned. It is The Way.
I am sickened by the corruption involved in everyday life. My worldview has shifted to MAFIA mode. Damn us peons who can't afford protection.

Anonymous said...

Pretty sure that Digbys comments section was not shuttered because of glitches, but instead was changed to allow access only to premium members/paying customers. She had a post on how it was changing, so now if you pay you can remove ads and also get access to the comments section.

Cinesias said...

I commented there fairly often. They were announcing that the old commenting forum would end, but that it would be replaced.

I think they decided just to keep it Andrew Sullivan-ish, since I'm sure it is much easier without policing comments.

I've pretty much stopped going there. I don't comment often, but if I'm reading a blog I want to be able to comment. Otherwise, I'm just being spoken at.

Compound F said...

A noble thought. Any clue as to why my comments have been failing to post lately? Glitches?

Compound F said...

Ah, there we go.

Anonymous said...

That's kinda bullshit, liberals are for cutting social security, so are progressives. Obama talked about it before we nominated him in 2008, and we not only nominated him as a progressive we elected him twice.

Furthermore we are the party of major urban centers, where the rich are. That's where we get our socially liberal values from, that's where our base is. Those people want to cut social security and it will help those urban centers and suck money from the redneck facisists in the flyover land.

You know how you can tell I support slashing social security... because I support gay marriage. Just as the HRC works will Wall Street and big money to push gay marriage and named Goldman Sachs their partner, anyone supporting gay marriage is also working with the crowd to balance the debt and cut social security.

This is not the old populist, sexist, and racist New Deal Democratic party. This is the New Democratic party, and populism is as vile and dead here as racism and sexism.

You guys let us in to help win your wars on social issues such as the abortion, the price was neoliberal economics. You can't undue the economics part of it.

zombie rotten mcdonald said...

and we not only nominated him as a progressive

Really? Were you watching a different election?

Unknown said...

"This is not the old populist, sexist, and racist New Deal Democratic party. This is the New Democratic party, and populism is as vile and dead here as racism and sexism."

I disagree. Racism remains central to the class war, whichever of the two parties is waging it.

For the liberal capitalists, racism is 'over' the moment Blacks, women, Gays, etc are duly represented among the bankers, CEOs, hedgefund managers etc. (Just look at the 'gravy train' system promoted by the ANC/SACP in 'post-Apaprtheid' South Africa.)

Hence also their full-throated support - echoed by Droneglass & Co- for the most extreme versions of the surveillance/police state to deal with any hint of opposition from the impoverished and excluded majority of actual workers, minorities and oppressed.

mahakal said...

Any clue why Compound Fracture is still posting comments here lately when he clearly left already?

But at least he uses a consistent pseudonym, which you have to respect a bit. I'd have expected him to change his name or something at least. Not that it would prevent him from stepping on his dick again.

The anonymous commenting here is something that makes it a hostile environment much of the time. I am all for people having privacy but without some sort of reputational basis things fall into chaos.

I also really wish commenters could block one another like on Facebook, so as to become invisible to one another, it would cut down on much conflict here. Perhaps there would then be some way to allow anonymous posting which can be blocked, if people want to decide to see it or not.

It's a difficult corner of the internet, this comment section. I'm just saying it could use a street light.

Cinesias said...

"Full-throated support...for the most extreme versions of the surveilance/police state...

Hey Lumpy, what is it like to be a fucking liar?

Did your parents mistreat you?

Maybe an uncle?

You're a contemptuous piece of shit liar.

Fuck. Off.

zombie rotten mcdonald said...

I also really wish commenters could block one another like on Facebook, so as to become invisible to one another, it would cut down on much conflict here. Perhaps there would then be some way to allow anonymous posting which can be blocked, if people want to decide to see it or not.

It's a blog. This is how they work. There's very little barrier to entry, you could start one of your own and run it how you wish.

Pinkamena Panic said...

Remember LL's actual beliefs every time he tries to be high and mighty:

The Droneglass libs happily endorse police state powers, limitless surveillance, confiscation of democratic rights (such as they are), but offer - in consolation of the oppressed (i.e. to the major recipients of police violence) - an extra-generous helping of 'politically correct' verbiage!

Last time I checked women, Black people, Gays, not to mention 'the underprivileged' (sic!) were still citizens, and not merely the grateful objects of your liberal patronage.


And later on in the same post:

The best you can offer to cover your liberal ass is hypocritical PC blather and the symbol of a black overseer for the military/prison/surveillance/ industrial complex.

That LL has the temerity to position himself as a stalwart anti-racist against his ever-present SOOPAH SEKRIT RAYCIST ENEMEEZ IN TEH DEMOPUBLIKKKAN PARTEE should be stomach-churning. LL is a racist and has admitted it. His opinions are not valid. End of discussion.

Mahakal: Well, someone could always come up with a Greasemonkey script like Killfile that works with Blogger's commenting system. That person won't be me - I'm too stupid to code.

mahakal said...

ZLM writes: "It's a blog. This is how they work. There's very little barrier to entry, you could start one of your own and run it how you wish."

I did run one on Wordpress for several years in fact, and the commenting system is much better than on Blogger. I prefer to blog on Facebook lately, which has the feature I am talking about.

Regarding PP's suggestion of a Greasemonkey script, that wouldn't be a method to block trolls, only a way to ignore them at best.

Not sure there's anything much DG can do about this platform's limitations, but they aren't ideal.

Anonymous said...

Malekai:

"Any clue why Compound Fracture is still posting comments here lately when he clearly left already?"

What in gods name are you blathering about?

Are you one in the same, some sort of split personality?
How is he posting here when he clearly left already?? How is that guy in front of me talking to me when he clearly left the room?

And your fee fees are hurt because somebody who doesn't use a ridiculous pseudonym like you do.. insulted you? You mean like you insult the blog author and others everytime you post?

Hey Malakai...maybe compound idiot is the is the embodiment of a dipole?

Man I sure miss the internet as it was before every idiot got a computer for christmas...

mahakal said...

I may have been mistaken that Compound Fracture previously flounced. That may have been a Nonny Mouse sock puppet in the same thread. But I'm still surprised he's still here.

Scott Ingram said...

I always considered the existence of the comment section tho be the big difference between conservative and liberal blogs.

The conservative sites suppress the comments to avoid being associated with racist and secessionist commentators. I don't know why Digby would close hers.

But she's the one thinning the site and doing the work, so I can't fault her for not running things to my satisfaction.

Still, it's disheartening.

Scott Ingram said...

Argh. She's "running" the site, not thinning it.

Frakking auto-correct.