Jane Hampshire, meet Scott Ritter

[Armstead]

Someone is not perfect. Use their imperfections to discredit them, and to distract attention from the message.

Focus on Jane Hampshire's faults rather than the faults of the healthcare bill.

Bush style politics of personal destraction in action.

[BlooInBloo]

1. Uh... dude. She's a teabagger who makes blackface jokes.

[PurityOfEssence]

31. Then you must completely dismiss Jesse Jackson as a bigot, too.

Oh, that's right; you don't believe there's such a thing as reverse racism, but this should knot you up in yet more denial outrage, once again granting yourself full rights to vilify those who disagree with you. Then again, the Hymietown moment isn't quite reverse racism, it's sort of triangulation bigotry, since the targets are also minorities...

By your crap "logic", Barack Obama is an elitist retard-hater for his comment on the Special Olympics. Ah, but then again, he's "good" by definition, and thus immune from any recriminations. Such a demand for aristocratic privilege is hardly in keeping with pluralist manners, but quite fitting for this typical brand of sniping.

Hamsher's overboard satire was a dig at Lieberman, lest you forget, so obviously and by your consistent "logic" this makes you a Lieberman-lover and outraged that anyone would call him to account for his record on the subject.

Trying to dismiss posters who have different opinions by playing the race card is a sure sign of a deplorable sense of entitlement and absence of ethics.

[pnwmom]

2. Jane Hamsher's "faults" go directly to her credibility on the HCR issue.

Especially her linkage with Norquist.

[ProSense]

3. "Focus on Jane Hampshire's faults..." What's Hamsher focusing on?

She's bitter and decided that it's better to team with Norquist and abandon any common sense.

She's an idiot.

[Armstead]

10. She's also not that important..which is point.

I posted this after seeing the 5000th post about her here.

She's a minor player who has been given far more importance as a "symbol" of the "leftbaggers" than is merited.

Discredit her to discredit everyone who is critical of this bill. Thast seems to be the theory of some.

(And I spelled her name wrong in my OP)

[dave29]

4. Norquist has spent his career trying to kill HCR in America

ask Bill Clinton. Norquist was instrumental in killing that bill. No wonder she wants to hook up with him. Problem is, he's not going to help you make it better. Single payer would be like a stake through Norquist's heart.

[dave29]

5. I'd also like to focus on this comment you made:

"Someone is not perfect. Use their imperfections to discredit them, and to distract attention from the message"

Would you at least attempt to apply this to Obama? Or maybe the Healthcare bill itself? Or does it please you too much to be so righteously indignant that you would potentially make life worse for those you are trying to help?

[Armstead]

13. I do apply it to Obama....I am giving him far more credit....

or benefit of the doubt on DU than I'm beginning to feel that he deserves.

I have no problem with some criticism of Hamsher or her methods. But the obsessive hammering of her is far out of proportion to her than it deserves, in my opinion.

As for the bill itself -- well I have often said there are some good things in it. But I sincerely believe there are other things about it that are far worse on a systemic basis, and which I truly believe will make it much harder -- if not impossible -- for meaningful reform down the line.

Feel free to disagree with that assessment -- but Jame Hamsher has little to do with the merits or flaws of the bill itself.

[Kahuna]

6. Oh please. nt

[librechik]

7. so--the best response to Jane is to name call her? (judging from the responses)

"Shes' a (racist, in other words)" "She's an idiot"


That's constructive dialogue! Way to get things done!

At least she's doing SOMETHING and she picked THE MOST POWERFUL MAN IN WASHINGTON to help her do it.

What are we doing? Throwing stones at our own?

I was repulsed, too, when I first heard the story. But fuck it. We align ourselves with the DLC and get nothing.

Maybe Jane is just thinking outside the box and we are being less than helpful when we bite her ankles.

No wonder the Dems can't organize--we are so quick to villify our leaders.

[Arkana]

8. Jane Hamsher is collaborating with teabaggers and cozying up

to Grover fucking Norquist.

That DOES make her less credible, no matter how much you wish it didn't.

[Armstead]

15. To repeat, she is not the issue

Endlessly bashing one critic of the bill to discredit everyone who is critical of tghe bill is the politics of personal distraction,

[spiritual_gunfighter]

28. I guess this doesnt count

[Arkana]

33. Yeah, talking to a guy who you may have been friendly with at one point

is so totally the same as teaming up with the scumbaggiest GOP operative that exists in order to shoot down the White House's agenda and force them to fire some of their most competent staffers so that your bruised, racist little ego can be satisfied.

Yup. Same thing.

Oh, wait. No, no it's not.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

35. Obama is friendly with this guy

that is the problem. I guess you see no problem with giving legitimacy to a guy who thinks that homosexuals are the equivalent of people that commit bestality and was instrumental in Uganda pushing a "kill the gays" bill.

But I guess its okay because Obama was "friendly with him at one point". You see no problem with it, and that is truly pathetic.

[Arkana]

36. Who's giving Warren "legitimacy"?

He's a scumpile. I don't dispute that.

But you act like it makes Hamsher's actions correct, and it doesn't. She's wrong to work with Norquist, who would love nothing more than to destroy Obama's White House.

And I'm really tired of being called "pathetic" by you people because my hair isn't on fire 24/7.

[dsc]

42. Obama did by letting him give the Inagural prayer

a once every four year opportunity bestowed upon a man who literally helped author a bill to kill gays.

[Arkana]

43. Walk up to a random person on the street and ask them who gave the invocation at Obama's

inaugural.

I will bet you any sum of money they will go "What now?"

[dsc]

45. I think many people know who gave that prayer but even worse

any time any right wing religious leader gets criticised for bigotry against gays all they need to do is bring up Warren and say he did it too and no one cared. No politician on any level can ever ban an anti gay preacher from his or her platform without having Obama's embrace of Warren thrown right in his or her face.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

46. Obama gave Warren legitimacy

Or maybe you dont remember the inauguration.

It is pathetic because you are picking and choosing your outrage. It is horrible that Hamsher has aligned herself with Norquist but Obama gets a free pass because he "once was friendly with Warren".

I am not aware of Hamsher being friendly with Norquist, and if you have ever followed FDL you will know that she probably doesn't count Norquist as one of her close pals.

I guess since Obama once was friendly with Warren he gets a free pass.

[Arkana]

47. And what are you doing if not "picking and choosing your outrage"?

I remember the inauguration. I remember a shitstorm because Obama chose the guy to give a prayer. What I don't remember is Obama getting up next to him and asking him to be a senior advisor in the White House or saying "Thanks for setting me straight, Rick. I hate gay people now too."

[spiritual_gunfighter]

48. He didnt have to

the message was clear, as was DOMA and DADT. Warren was just his way of letting us know.

[brentspeak]

41. Obama is collaborating with Big Pharma and cozying up with Billy Tauzin

http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-na-healthcare-pharma4-2009aug04,0,3660985.story

[ipaint]

9. Yes Hamsher is exposing centrists in power are as corrupt as repubs.

It's scary and threatening for them (hint to centrists: it's supposed to be) hence the blind lashing out and name calling.

[HughMoran]

23. She's acting like a spoiled child & grasping at anybody/anything in order to promote her whining

Seriously, do you think she's the only one who feels the way she does? Should I team up with people that want to destroy me just to make my friends listen to me? That's infantile. But you knew that. You're intentions are clear here - have been for some time now.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

29. .

[Cha]

11. Yeah, lets ignore grover norquist, too.

[Armstead]

16. I don't care about griover Norquist -- He's against healthcare reform -- surprise surprise

[Cha]

18. And, I could give a shit about that teabagger, jane hamsher.

[Armstead]

21. Then why not just forget about her

Too many people here are trying to make her a symbol of everyone who is critical of this bill.

[vaberella]

39. That's a bit hard to do when there are several threads like yours on this page.

And considering all her actions seem to warrant attention she will, much like Orly Taitz, be a hot button topic that one who tries to avoid...cannot.

[KittyWampus]

12. If this was about the Healthcare bill why the fuck is Hamsher going after Freddie Mac/Rahm?

[depakid]

14. She's certainly set herself up as a useful strawoman...

First with her twitty fit about Bernie Sanders- next with Fox "news" and Norquist.

With predictable results.

[Armstead]

17. She may be -- But the obsession with her by some here is our of proportion

[depakid]

27. Agreed- but people have learned that there's nothing like a strawman (or woman)

when the policies (or politicians) are disappointing.

Helps with the cognitive dissonance- and focuses "blame" somewhere other than the objects of adulation.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

30. Yeah people that go on Fox have no credibility

[apocalypsehow]

19. Still defending the use of Blackface, are we? And you are a "progressive"....how? n/t.

[Armstead]

20. Yeah I'm defebnding her use of blackface -- Not

The point is that she or her behavior have nothing to do with whether the HCR bill is good, bad or indifferent.

She is being used to discredit a much larger point of view and many responsible and serious people who are critical of this bill.

[Arkana]

26. Hey, why don't we get Rush Limbaugh to start handing out diet tips?

Surely people can trust a fat, sweaty, bloated gasbag when it comes to matters of health!

There is a such thing as good information coming from the absolute wrong fucking person.

[HughMoran]

22. Lame

I'm assuming you're already regretting posting this.

[Armstead]

24. I'm regretting not writing it better

Scott Ritter was more credible on WMds than she is on health reform.

She screwed the pooch by allying with Norquist, and I don't agree with her on that.

But I stand by my point that she is being used as a weapon of mass distraction to tar all critics of "the bill" by association.

[HughMoran]

25. She did volunteer for the assignment

:)

If it wasn't her, it would be someone else. She's a big girl - she wouldn't have (or shouldn't have?) done this if she didn't think she could handle the flack she would get.

[PBS Poll-435]

32. New New Hampshire?

New Hampster?

Jane Hampsher?

Jane Hamsher?

[Armstead]

38. I know, I know

She's not been important enough for me to know the spelling

(That's just an excuse for my bad spelling, but what the hey...)

[tranche]

34. Why defend someone who you ask we pay no attention to?

She can either represent her ideas based on her resume or she cannot.

[Armstead]

37. I only wrote this after seeing the 5000th post using her to bash critics of the bill

The "guilt by association" bugged me.

[ima_sinnic]

40. yes, the tactics are the same, and so are the tactics used by the shills on the board

they know exactly what they're doing--Jane Hamsher serves their purpose well--they can use her every second of every day to distort, obfuscate, and distract. The "obsession" is an old FOX News one, repeating something day in and day out to gullible people who somehow think it "means" something.
Frankly, the whole corrupt system can end up in the septic tank for all I care. Rahm Emmanuel is a dirtbag scum who WILL be convicted of criminal activity at some point in the future. That's just the scumbagger kind of guy he is, and he's just typical of the shitheads we have "serving" us in Washington.

[Melinda]

44. A thousand times yes, yes, and yes! TY!!