POLL: I Want Ali To...
Rosemary the Queen
A. Continue to ignore debate by posting threads reiterating the same points, as if nobody has answered him.
or
B. Show some cojones and engage in the debate that he started in the comment sections of all his threads.
I vote "B" that way the discussion can happen in one place instead of 4 or 5 places. I'm getting whiplash reading all this stuff.
I'm also in favor of a putting a stop to wanton and incorrect use of the word "lie" and all variants thereof; "lie" does not mean "a statement I believe to be false," nor does it mean "a statement I believe has been proven false."
"Ali AND Dean AND Arnold AND Rosemary AND Everyone Else pretend they are DanielH and stop making ranting, hyperbolic, incindiary comments like calling people racists and liars. And we stick to one thread."
Ali isn't a liar, he's just another rant-master with at least one incorrect opinion.
Just say no to hyperbole. Even joking hyperbole. I often can't tell when you are serious, people. The medium removes facial expression and tone of voice. Sometimes that is a blessing, but it has drawbacks.
Yours,
Wince
D: Ali keeps doing what he's doing because it's so damned entertaining. Can he do with while spinning plates? Choose "D" and find out!
or
That kind of foolishness borders on trolling, in the sense of "I'm just doing this to start a fight" trolling. Being called a bigot or deranged doesn't help much either.
Well, I've often adopted a lecturing tone. I need to talk less, listen more, and ask more questions.
Yours,
Wince
Tom, lecturing by itself isn't the problem. Many a fruitful discussion starts with a lecture, and then proceeds to a give-and-take.
The problem is Ali's follow-through: he wants to give, and we're supposed to just take his wisdom. When he doesn't ignore responses, he belittles them (and still ignores their substance). He becomes condescending and insulting. And eventually, he just goes away, and then comes back later and pretends the responses never happened.
Since I'm not supposed to conclude that he's intentionally dishonest, and I don't believe he's too stupid to understand the argument, the only conclusion I can see is that he's simply uninterested in discussion. He's right, and we're wrong, and we're not supposed to question that. He always claims to want to foster discussion; but in his mind, our role in that discussion is to say, "Yes, Ali."
Huh. Think you could tell the
LeftistsDem base this? They keep using that word in regard to pre-war intelligence.Unless, of course, you think that's perfectly reasonable - in which case I'll back elisha.
But it won't do any good. See, Ali's just angling for a public outburst/banning from Dean so he can get some more notoriety in his new digs at HuffPo at Dean's expense.
Just business, man. Nothing personal.
The Aristocrats!
Seriously, Ali's getting old. He's a one trick pony, and both the trick and the pony are lame.
As to my point about engagement, I specifically recall saying this even before anyone got their objections out, showing how ready I was to let you have at me:
And then, when I woke up, I did what I supposed to.
Irrelevant post Queen.
Hmmmm. I don't have time to engage in the comment section, either. In fact, I'm almost always pretty depressed when I do so, and I'm using it as a really freaking useless coping strategy.
Yours,
Wince
Translation: I don't want to answer questions and defend my positions, just use my loud soapbox that most of you can't share.
That's not fair. For one thing Dean is generous with his posting priviledges. For another there are plenty of people who don't allow comments. If I was actively blogging on my site I wouldn't allow them either, since I don't have the time to moderate the comments section and I have seen that commenters invariably behave badly on the wide open internet if not moderated.
Luckily on my site no one cares.
Yours,
Wince
But it's true. Ali's pattern is clear: he happily joins the comments, right up to the point where he meets arguments that he can't answer. Then he disappears, and returns later with a new post with the same points, as if arguments were never raised. So his disputed points get the front page. Our undisputed responses get the comments. He gets the soap box, and we're just supposed to accept what he says as Revealed Truth.
-
(what the heck, it's not like this was a deep thread anyway... {g})
Not that he has your obvious & magnificent attributes, natch... ;)
Of course we all lose our tempers now and then. Dean freely admits to being imperfect in this regard, which is why regulars to this establishment will generally be cut more slack than people who we don't know very well.
Still: behave like an adult, or go find somewhere else to play. Thanks.