Of course that’s just what some MSM type like Matt Dallek would say about the birthers, isn’t it? He has help from Kathy in explaining why Americans believe conspiracy theories about government. And also in my hometown paper.
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8 comments
July 31, 2009 at 8:49 am
Levi Stahl
There’s a bit of false equivalence in Dallek’s piece, which is otherwise good: unless I’ve missed something, no prominent Democrat has ever supported or even really countenanced the 9/11 Truthers. The right, meanwhile, has had a few of its biggest public voices pushing the birther line, while until recent days at least a few congressmen have been unwilling to dismiss it out of hand. So Dallek’s call for liberals to get their house in order is a bit much, verging on “tell that guy with the whacked-out sign at the rally to go home.:
July 31, 2009 at 9:51 am
kevin
Given the powerful kung fu style of the Obama team, part of me thinks they have the original birth certificate in hand and are just holding back on releasing it until this reaches a fever pitch, in order to maximize the embarrassment for the Republicans.
Or, they might just be busy trying to run the country and don’t have time to deal with John Birch Society II: Electric Boogeyman.
July 31, 2009 at 10:26 am
eric
So the Breakin II joke goes here, and not under Schooling II? Surprising.
July 31, 2009 at 10:59 am
PorJ
I can’t figure out the birther thing. Obviously, there’s true believers (toothless rubes). Then there’s the cynical exploiters crowd (Lou Dobbs). But you have right-wing loons like Bill O’Reilly and Michael Medved who go out of their way to debate the birthers and are outspoken in trying to get them to stop. I think Rush is leaving the whole thing alone. It could be a sly game of putting it in play while still rejecting it (by Republican establishment) thus having it both ways, or it could just be August silliness in action (no news with everyone on vacation).
It reminds of me trying to sort out all the crazies outspoken in their hatred of Roosevelt (“that man.”) You had some established, very well-respected types like James Rowland Angell (President of Yale University, psychologist who founded “functionalism” which became behaviorism under his student, Watson). Some businessmen like the Liberty League, and some wild conspiracists like the journalist John Flynn. They all had different critiques and sometimes wasted time quarreling amongst themselves – without making much real difference on the political landscape at all. And I didn’t even mention Father Coughlin.
July 31, 2009 at 10:59 am
Charlieford
My reading of the “truthers” is that they are far from exclusively a left-wing lot. They seem to me to be eclectic anarchists of various kinds.
July 31, 2009 at 11:19 am
kevin
So the Breakin II joke goes here, and not under Schooling II? Surprising.
You were expecting it in that post — nay, practically asking for it, with that title — so I kept it on reserve for when you’d least expect it.
And then Bam! here come Turbo and Ozone. (Special K couldn’t get off work.)
July 31, 2009 at 11:35 am
eric
You’re too sly to take the bait, dawg. I respect that.
August 1, 2009 at 9:54 am
AaLD
Both sides have their lunatic fringe (although my impression of the “truthers” is similar to Charlieford’s). I think the fundamental difference here is that mainstream conservativism these days is far closer to the rightwing lunatic fringe than mainstream liberalism is to the leftwing fringe. In fact, the rightwing fringe is so close to mainstream conservativsm these days that it’s hard to tell where to draw the line between them. Also, the rightwing crazies seem to have much better access to the media.