Matt Taibbi:...How the Democratic campaign turned into an absurd and acrimonious culture war

[babylonsister]

Hillary's Bitter Victory: How the Democratic campaign turned into an absurd and acrimonious culture war
Hillary Clinton
by Matt Taibbi | May 5, 2008 - 9:19am


Zero hour, the night of the excruciating Pennsylvania primary. I'm in the ballroom of the Park Hyatt hotel in Philadelphia, site of Hillary Clinton's victory speech. The place is going nuts. The floor is a teeming mass of celebrating Lifetime demographic; I haven't seen this many strong, independent women in one place since . Clinton, who has just kicked Obama's ass all over the state, is onstage spooning out her rap.

"You know, for me, the victory we share tonight is deeply personal," Hillary says. "It was here in Pennsylvania where my grandfather started work as a boy in the lace mills. . . ."

"Really?" I say from my perch in the press balcony, nudging an HBO producer next to me. "Her grandfather worked in a lace mill? I hadn't heard that!"

"Yeah, right?" she says, laughing. "Who knew?"

But I'm catching stares now from a camera woman kneeling a few feet in front. "You clap at these things," she snaps at us. "That's what you do at these things. You clap. You should be clapping!"

I clap quietly to calm her down, sighing once she turns around. In the past, the press areas at campaign stops have always been wisecracking oases, a place where the rules of partisan politics are largely suspended. After all, this job is hard enough without having to take the subject matter seriously. But as the Obama-Clinton race has devolved into one of the all-time political death matches, the Hutu-Tutsi thing has spread even into the reporter ranks. Now, even one wrong word on the press bus can start a fight.

more...

http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/14446

[grasswire]

1. Taibbi is a fool.

His sentence: "After all, this job is hard enough without having to take the subject matter seriously" displays exactly what's wrong with journalism today.

Narcissistic.

His job is too hard? He has to observe, digest, and write. That's too hard, and no fun?

Get out of the profession, then. He's doing no service to the American people.

[navarth]

3. I suspect you're unfamiliar with Taibbi.

I think his stuff is great. He's the inheritor of the mantle of Hunter Thompson at Rolling Stone.

[gateley]

2. Taibbi is great.

But then, I GET the sardonic humor.

[KoKo]

5. He see's life as a Circus....that seems to be his schtick....n/t

[KoKo]

4. Well.....not sure I can agree with his conclusion in the article....

Although it's a catchy read....there's something I can't put my finger on..that bothers me about his personal observations and conclusion. :shrug:


The result has been an epic clash, a war of cultural types that has nothing whatsoever to do with issues and everything to do with self-image. It's become a pitched fight between the fucked-over suburban little guy and the vilified intellectual, two groups that for years have felt put upon and dispossessed, for different reasons. The fact that their respective champions are identical superstar U.S. senators/multimillionaires makes the bitter hatred this schism is inspiring absurd, but it doesn't make it any less real. Or likely to end anytime soon.

[shrike]

6. I haven't had much use for him since I saw him on the Daily Show

He found George Bush's victory in 2004 hilarious. He found John Kerry "such a dufus."

I realize that life is a tragedy to those who feel, a comedy to those who think. But anyone with a trace of humanity does feel some outrage, does recognize something. Taibbi seemed to feel nothing.

The world is here for his amusement.

[KoKo]

7. That other article of his posted here about his experience invading Dobsen's Cult..

reflects what you say. The article left me cringing more for Taibbi's cynical view of "ordinary fellow human beings" than his descriptions of the cultists. :-(

[shrike]

8. I dislike Hitchens, for reasons that go back to the Clinton years, but even I'll admit

he seems to care enough about things to get angry.

Taibbi seems to care about little save his own amusement. Which unnerves me.