Turks, Alex Jones at the RNC

This topic has 10 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 4 months ago by bnw.

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July 23, 2016 at 7:30 am #49184

wv
Participant

Young Turks chatting with Alex Jones

July 23, 2016 at 9:10 am #49186

Billy_T
Participant

WV,

I don’t know who the narrator is, but it’s baffling how any sane person can “respect” Alex Jones, IMO. He’s easily one of the most despicable public figures on America’s right-wing fringe, a true know-nothing, knuckle-dragging, paranoid moron and bully.

He’s always on and on about “false flags” whenever there is a mass shooting. He called the one in Sandy Hook a “false flag” operation, and thinks the Oklahoma City bombings were orchestrated by the government. And these are always supposedly designed to take away everyone’s “gun rights,” which for Alex Jones, means the right to gun down fellow Americans if Alex Jones thinks they’re a part of a tyrannical government. The circular logic there being, it’s “tyrannical” for the government to want to put limits on weaponry, etc.

Needless to say, he’s a Truther, and executive produced the absurdist “loose change” video.

I have no idea if he truly believes the bat-shit crazy things he says, or he just does all of that to make money. Either way, he doesn’t deserve anyone’s “respect.”

July 23, 2016 at 4:56 pm #49210

wv
Participant

Billy_T wrote:

WV,

I don’t know who the narrator is, but it’s baffling how any sane person can “respect” Alex Jones, IMO. He’s easily one of the most despicable public figures on America’s right-wing fringe, a true know-nothing, knuckle-dragging, paranoid moron and bully.

He’s always on and on about “false flags” whenever there is a mass shooting. He called the one in Sandy Hook a “false flag” operation, and thinks the Oklahoma City bombings were orchestrated by the government. And these are always supposedly designed to take away everyone’s “gun rights,” which for Alex Jones, means the right to gun down fellow Americans if Alex Jones thinks they’re a part of a tyrannical government. The circular logic there being, it’s “tyrannical” for the government to want to put limits on weaponry, etc.

Needless to say, he’s a Truther, and executive produced the absurdist “loose change” video.

I have no idea if he truly believes the bat-shit crazy things he says, or he just does all of that to make money. Either way, he doesn’t deserve anyone’s “respect.”

==============
Yeah, i understand about the narrator, i had the same reaction.
And I almost always agree with the Turks, in general, and I think Alex
has things wrong as I’ve said before. (But the Alex Jones phenomenon is very interesting to me, as is the Trump phenomenon)

But my primary gut takeaway from that vid was — no-one ever looks good when they are ranting, angry or doing the heated-bickering thing. It turns everyone off. I mean, I like the Turks and I just winced at all that hostility and venom.

Just my opinion, but for ‘me’ thats the exact reason i quit posting on the old Pol Board.
And…its why i dont read posts between you and bnw anymore. The animosity just turns me off. Not why i come here. Its separate from ‘who’s right’ or ‘who do i agree with’.
I want a board thats fun to read. The Pol board died because it was not fun.

This is a very very very difficult thing we are trying here. A social experiment. Can we keep things informative, interesting, fun, quirky, insightful, surprising….while talking about science, humans, politics, religion…. Can that be done? Do we all have to ‘react’ to every post we disagree with?

w
v

July 23, 2016 at 5:23 pm #49213

nittany ram
Moderator

wv wrote:

This is a very very very difficult thing we are trying here. A social experiment. Can we keep things informative, interesting, fun, quirky, insightful, surprising….while talking about science, humans, politics, religion…. Can that be done? Do we all have to ‘react’ to every post we disagree with?

w
v

Can it be done? I don’t know. Right now this board is mostly populated with people who are like-minded politically. Diversity is a good thing but more of it would certainly make maintaining the peace more difficult. I think zn has done a bang-up job as sheriff thus far.

You have an easygoing, thoughtful manner that I’ve always admired. Because of that I think it’s easier for you to stay above the fray than it is for others.

I have been loving the discussions here of late. I’m glad Billy has come back and I enjoy bnw’s take on things although I seldom agree. But I do worry that, as the board grows and more voices are added that it could become increasingly difficult to keep the emotions in check as they have been up to now (for the most part).

July 23, 2016 at 6:31 pm #49217

Billy_T
Participant

WV,

I understand your take on this. The video, then, was a way of getting us to take stock of ourselves? At least indirectly?

Okay. That’s fine.

It may not seem this way to you, but I’ve always tried really hard not to start fights. I usually finish them and generally won’t back down when others start them. But I try my best not to take the first shot. As a flawed human being, like everyone else, I fail at this from time to time. But, overall, I think my record on that is pretty good in the real world and online as well. It’s a combination of the way I was brought up, my relatively small stature as a kid, and the evolution of my own personal philosophy over time. I eventually grew a lot, thank goddess, both physically and philosophically, but battling bullies has always stayed with me, to this day. I kinda follow Woodrow Call in this, though with a word substitution or two:

I hate the behavior of bullies. I won’t tolerate it.

So, anyway. Back to this particular board. It’s also been my thing that criticism of public figures should be okay. Criticism of political parties, economic systems, organized religions, etc. etc. What crosses the line, in my view, is when it turns personal. As long as we debate the relative merits of this or that public policy, government program, public figure or ideology, what have you, I think adults should be able to handle this without getting upset. If adults do get upset, it may be time to question the intensity of investment in things largely beyond our control.

It’s kinda like the old Warner/Bulger wars. I don’t get how someone could take criticism of either of them personally — as a direct slap in the face, or worse. It’s not them. It’s not their career’s being discussed, etc. etc.

Bottom line: I’ll do my best to avoid “bickering and ranting” here. That’s all I can do.

Hope all is well.

July 23, 2016 at 6:42 pm #49218

zn
Moderator

nittany ram wrote:

. I think zn has done a bang-up job as sheriff thus far.

Thanks. But I feel more like a corporal.

July 23, 2016 at 7:26 pm #49219

wv
Participant

nittany ram wrote:

You have an easygoing, thoughtful manner that I’ve always admired. Because of that I think it’s easier for you to stay above the fray than it is for others.

I have been loving the discussions here of late. I’m glad Billy has come back and I enjoy bnw’s take on things although I seldom agree. But I do worry that, as the board grows and more voices are added that it could become increasingly difficult to keep the emotions in check as they have been up to now (for the most part).

——————-

Yeah, this place works because its small. If there were more rightwingers to balance out the leftwingers It would be a warzone, again. Even with Mods. I suspect.

As far as me being easy-going…Maybe, but i went batshit-crazy in the old wars.
But I’m a grizzled old man now, and I have no stomach for war anymore. Ya know.
Not unless its unavoidable.

Plus, its just plain good ‘practice’ for ‘me’ to post with bnw. I often want to ‘react’ emotionally. But i take a breath allow myself an inner-primal-scream, and
then I move on. 🙂

Its good practice. Seriously. The country is full of people that think like bnw, so
I am trying to practice getting along with people who think differently. Its not easy for me, or bnw, or any of us. We should try though, imho. We should try especially hard if we feel insulted. Thats when the practice actually matters.

w
v

July 23, 2016 at 7:31 pm #49220

wv
Participant

Billy_T wrote:

WV,

I understand your take on this. The video, then, was a way of getting us to take stock of ourselves? At least indirectly?

Okay. That’s fine.

It may not seem this way to you, but I’ve always tried really hard not to start fights. I usually finish them and generally won’t back down when others start them. But I try my best not to take the first shot. As a flawed human being, like everyone else, I fail at this from time to time. But, overall, I think my record on that is pretty good in the real world and online as well. It’s a combination of the way I was brought up, my relatively small stature as a kid, and the evolution of my own personal philosophy over time. I eventually grew a lot, thank goddess, both physically and philosophically, but battling bullies has always stayed with me, to this day. I kinda follow Woodrow Call in this, though with a word substitution or two:

I hate the behavior of bullies. I won’t tolerate it.

So, anyway. Back to this particular board. It’s also been my thing that criticism of public figures should be okay. Criticism of political parties, economic systems, organized religions, etc. etc. What crosses the line, in my view, is when it turns personal. As long as we debate the relative merits of this or that public policy, government program, public figure or ideology, what have you, I think adults should be able to handle this without getting upset. If adults do get upset, it may be time to question the intensity of investment in things largely beyond our control.

It’s kinda like the old Warner/Bulger wars. I don’t get how someone could take criticism of either of them personally — as a direct slap in the face, or worse. It’s not them. It’s not their career’s being discussed, etc. etc.

Bottom line: I’ll do my best to avoid “bickering and ranting” here. That’s all I can do.

Hope all is well.

=========
I know you are trying BT. I see that. That post of mine was as much a reminder to myself as anything else.

I just hate rancorous, endless, get-nowhere, no-point-in-it, Bickering.

Lets say bnw goes “yawn” — well, why react at all? Why…react…at…all?
We react because of emotions. Thats all. Emotions. Yes? No?

w
v

July 23, 2016 at 7:47 pm #49222

Billy_T
Participant

I know you are trying BT. I see that. That post of mine was as much a reminder to myself as anything else.

I just hate rancorous, endless, get-nowhere, no-point-in-it, Bickering.

Lets say bnw goes “yawn” — well, why react at all? Why…react…at…all?
We react because of emotions. Thats all. Emotions. Yes? No?

w
v

Well, I thought I responded with humor after the “yawn,” suggesting that he get more sleep and maybe try Melatonin. And then after the third or fourth “yawn,” I upped the ante to Ambien.

I thought you liked humor.

Okay, okay. No reaction is better.

July 23, 2016 at 8:36 pm #49227

wv
Participant

Billy_T wrote:

I know you are trying BT. I see that. That post of mine was as much a reminder to myself as anything else.

I just hate rancorous, endless, get-nowhere, no-point-in-it, Bickering.

Lets say bnw goes “yawn” — well, why react at all? Why…react…at…all?
We react because of emotions. Thats all. Emotions. Yes? No?

w
v

Well, I thought I responded with humor after the “yawn,” suggesting that he get more sleep and maybe try Melatonin. And then after the third or fourth “yawn,” I upped the ante to Ambien.

I thought you liked humor.

Okay, okay. No reaction is better.

—————–

I didnt realize Obama wears a watch. I didnt know people
still wore watches.

w
v

July 23, 2016 at 8:57 pm #49233

bnw
Blocked

In this thread I sense I am loved.

The upside to being a Rams fan is heartbreak.

Sprinkles are for winners.
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