Plausible satires
When last I mocked Louisiana Republican Rep. John Fleming it was for whining that after he paid all the expenses from his $6.3 million a year gross income, he only had $400,000 a year left for pleasurable pursuits. But I'm inclined to give him something of a pass on being pwned by The Onion since back in 2003 I also bit on one of their satires. If memory serves it had something to with George W. Bush "decidering" to cut the Bill of Rights down to just four.
In my defense, I was a beginner blogger back then and I didn't notice it was an Onion piece. Maybe Fleming didn't either. Maybe he doesn't even know The Onion is a satire site. I do think it was much more plausible that Bush would have been capable of such chicanery than it is that Planned Parenthood would be building an $8 billion Abortionplex. However, Atrios is right, we were both caught because we were predisposed to believe such outrageous conduct could credibly be commited.
Which shows you how firmly established the far right mythology is implanted in the conservative psyche. Bush was already actually testing the limits of the unitary executive theory when I was fooled. On the other hand, Planned Parenthood's alleged desire to become the world's largest abortion mill is a fabrication of the wingnut noise machine that somehow gained the veneer of truthiness solely on the basis of relentless repetition.
Back in 2003 I believed Blogtopia could, and would, overcome their lies with equally relentless repetition of facts. These days I'm not so sure.
[More posts daily at the Detroit News.]
In my defense, I was a beginner blogger back then and I didn't notice it was an Onion piece. Maybe Fleming didn't either. Maybe he doesn't even know The Onion is a satire site. I do think it was much more plausible that Bush would have been capable of such chicanery than it is that Planned Parenthood would be building an $8 billion Abortionplex. However, Atrios is right, we were both caught because we were predisposed to believe such outrageous conduct could credibly be commited.
Which shows you how firmly established the far right mythology is implanted in the conservative psyche. Bush was already actually testing the limits of the unitary executive theory when I was fooled. On the other hand, Planned Parenthood's alleged desire to become the world's largest abortion mill is a fabrication of the wingnut noise machine that somehow gained the veneer of truthiness solely on the basis of relentless repetition.
Back in 2003 I believed Blogtopia could, and would, overcome their lies with equally relentless repetition of facts. These days I'm not so sure.
[More posts daily at the Detroit News.]
Labels: Blogtopia, Media, Republicans, spin
posted by Libby Spencer at 6:10 PM
4 Comments:
Libby, you got no respite back then and Fleming will get none now. The business folks say "location, location, location." In politics it's "timing, timing, timing."
The teabag tide is turning in part because this crop of loons have so well demonstrated their ignorance. When you bit on the Shrub piece you displayed confirmation bias and ignorance (not to be confused with stupidity.) That Fleming bit on the planned parenthood piece demonstrates the same confirmation bias and ignorance.
The difference is that you've shown the ability to overcome and rise above the ignorance. Fleming and most of the Tea Party have demonstrated nothing of the sort. If anything they seem to be mining for even more ignorance that they can display. Witness Oklahoma Shorty and his "no fetuses in my cereal" bill.
In short there is an enormous difference between ignorance and willful ignorance. We are all born ignorant and have opportunities in life to learn. The reasonable will take those opportunities and make good of them. The stupid will not and will actively strive to remain ignorant.
LOL. Admitted the embarrassing mistake immediately. Still blush a bit when I think of how gullible I was though.
I once sent an Onion piece to a wingnut I know, he thought it was real and said that the Onion was a Liberal piece of shit rag. hahaha I thought it was an obvious satire bit, he didn't. I guess it hit too close to home.
They do the satire so well. It isn't that easy to tell it's fake. :)
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