The Anti-Tevis?

March 31, 2009 12:50 PM

Rosanna Pulido is the Republican nominee for the 5th Congressional District of Illinois (Rahm Emanuel's old seat). She's also an active poster on Free Republic. An active poster on Free Republic who's learning that what you write on the internet can come back to haunt you.
posted by dersins (107 comments total)

Oh bloody hell. Politicians are not saints - they are people. Anyone who goes about cherry picking quotes like this can make anyone look bad.

I think great progress will be made in politics as a whole when we get over this 3rd grade "But She said ...." crap.
posted by strixus at 12:52 PM on March 31

What an unpleasant person.
posted by box at 12:55 PM on March 31

Free Republic could end up doing a service to humanity by helping a vast array of wingnuts exclude themselves from holding public office. Bless their hearts.
posted by mullingitover at 12:56 PM on March 31 [25 favorites]

Anyone who goes about cherry picking quotes like this can make anyone look bad.

"LOL!! YOU ARE SICK!!
Face it, it’s better to be in a meat packing town than a fudge packing town."

You're right, strixus. Anyone could have said that and we shouldn't judge them for it. I'm sure she'd make a fine congresswomen.

"LOL."
posted by dersins at 12:57 PM on March 31 [60 favorites]

I disagree with you, strixus. I think it's instructive to have a look at this woman's racist and homophobic idea of humor. Read this one, and tell me if you think that a person with this view of Mexican/hispanic (she uses these terms interchangeably in this post) culture is fit to sit in the US House of Representatives.
posted by Mister_A at 12:59 PM on March 31

Her face is rather hideous. I'm not talking about bone structure or skin tone, or anything genetic. It's purely the way that she holds her face that makes it hideous.
posted by Burhanistan at 12:59 PM on March 31 [4 favorites]

It's OK, she has a Muslim friend.
posted by mr_crash_davis mark II: Jazz Odyssey at 1:00 PM on March 31 [6 favorites]

Well, she is a Republican.
posted by IvoShandor at 1:00 PM on March 31 [6 favorites]

Anyone who goes about cherry picking quotes like this can make anyone look bad.

Hold the expletive phone there. You can dig through all my internet postings and find a plethora of opinions, bad puns, a few flameouts, etcetera, and I'll own up to every one of them.

Yet I'm also not some kind of asshat wingnut who would "joke" about "shooting people" and "selling black people". Someone doesn't get a free pass on that because it was a quote, they said it, that's it.
posted by cavalier at 1:01 PM on March 31 [24 favorites]

Anyone who goes about cherry picking quotes like this can make anyone look bad.

Hmm. As noted on the blog, in response to the comment “Oh I don’t know, those pictures of dozens of men in mosques kneeling on prayer rugs with their heads down low always looks pretty funny to me,” Pulido wrote: It reminds me of my dog, smelling buts. [sic]

So I guess you're right, it does make her look bad. Probably because - and this is coming from a dude with no love for Islam - it's fucking horrible and racist.
posted by Optimus Chyme at 1:02 PM on March 31 [12 favorites]

We need a better word to describe my feelings towards this ...Superduperschadenfreude
posted by The Whelk at 1:02 PM on March 31 [13 favorites]

'It is my parents first language and it enrages me when I hear it.'
posted by box at 1:03 PM on March 31

I know, you were like, name calling, 3rd grade, etcetera... but our text betrays who we are.
posted by cavalier at 1:04 PM on March 31

I think great progress will be made when people running for office realize that if they have said it on teh intarwebs, someone will dig it up and repost it.
posted by pointystick at 1:04 PM on March 31

What an unpleasant person.

She's a bigot. Her prospective constituents will get the elected official they deserve. They'll need to do some soul searching, if that's the kind of scum they want to represent them. I wish them luck in choosing anyone else.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 1:05 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I am having a human experience.

First time for everything, I guess.
posted by Joe Beese at 1:05 PM on March 31 [5 favorites]

the woodwards of the next generation, indeed.
posted by boo_radley at 1:05 PM on March 31

Politicians are not saints - they are people.

Yes, and some of them are evil, racist homophobic people. But we shouldn't bring that to the voters' attention because... something.
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 1:06 PM on March 31 [20 favorites]

From a fellow Republican conservative in Chicago:

“[Pulido] apparently felt comfortable posting anonymously. Her cover was blown, however, by a blog called ‘Rosanna Pulido is a Freeper.’ Many of the posts highlighted there are borderline racist. Although I agree on the basics of many of Pulido's positions, such as enforement [sic] of our existing immigration laws, I and most other conservatives have made great and sincere effort to make it clear that we oppose illegal immigration for a number of health, legal, criminal and national security reasons, with race not being a factor for us. We don't give a damn whether those illegals are from Mexico, Sweden, Nicaragua or England. Pulido's comments, however, give those of us who don't factor race or a particular nationality into the immigration argument an undeserved bad reputation.”

posted by ericb at 1:06 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

This is delicious.

Oh, and lolbuts.
posted by odinsdream at 1:08 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

She's a bigot. Her prospective constituents will get the elected official they deserve. They'll need to do some soul searching, if that's the kind of scum they want to represent them. I wish them luck in choosing anyone else.

Pshaw. This is Chicago, not Atlanta. Please don't assume she represents anyone in Illinois. We suck, but not that much.
posted by IvoShandor at 1:08 PM on March 31

not Atlanta-ist
posted by IvoShandor at 1:09 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

Am I right in thinking that she had exactly zero chance of winning before all this came out, and that part of the reason that she got the nomination is that Republicans in this district don't take the Congressional race seriously, because they know they're doomed from the word go?
posted by craichead at 1:09 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

"Pulido's comments, however, give those of us who don't factor race or a particular nationality into the immigration argument an undeserved bad reputation.”

Translated from Republican: "Oh shit, one us got caught saying what we really mean - disown! Disown!"
posted by Optimus Chyme at 1:09 PM on March 31 [23 favorites]

This is Chicago, not Atlanta
Hey, now! My representative is John Lewis.
posted by pointystick at 1:10 PM on March 31 [4 favorites]

The most important and truthful words a politician utters are the ones they use when they're not campaigning.
posted by rocket88 at 1:10 PM on March 31 [24 favorites]

Please don't assume she represents anyone in Illinois.

Perhaps I misunderstand what the word "nominee" means.
posted by YoBananaBoy at 1:10 PM on March 31 [6 favorites]

Also, check out the primary numbers as far as voter turnout, from Wiki. She ain't winnin' nada.
posted by IvoShandor at 1:11 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I am fascinated with her self-loathing. What does it mean that the granddaughter of Mexican immigrants, whose father lived most of his childhood and adolescence in Mexico, feels the need to anonymously express such hatred and contempt for Mexican immigrants, legal or illegal, on the Internet?

It's all a little too Daniel Burros for me.
posted by Sidhedevil at 1:11 PM on March 31 [5 favorites]

not Atlanta-ist
no worries
posted by pointystick at 1:11 PM on March 31

Perhaps I misunderstand what the word "nominee" means.

In this context, it means "cannon fodder"--she has no chance of winning, and was selected essentially as a placeholder candidate.
posted by Sidhedevil at 1:12 PM on March 31

I'm assuming they're running this lightweight because this is an absolute rock solid D district. I mean, Emanuel's old district is in the heart of the machine; I would be surprised if Republicans ever get even 35% of the vote.
posted by mr_roboto at 1:13 PM on March 31

I've been waiting years and years for some way in which being a troll actually has consequences. Thank you, Internet, you've redeemed yourself.
posted by Jon_Evil at 1:13 PM on March 31 [20 favorites]

Meanwhile, the new remixed version of Schoolhouse Rock is commissioning a sequel to "Conjunction Junction." Performed by Sir Mix-a-Lot, it will be called "Please Don't Lose That But!"
posted by jonp72 at 1:14 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I recall seeing a strongly worded rebuke from the IL GOP Chairman to her about running as an "anti-republican republican". She made this correspondence public and used it to brag about her platform. Someone wrote back to the chairman to let him know that his correspondence had been shared in public. I don't know if he's responded in any way yet.
posted by boo_radley at 1:14 PM on March 31

We don't give a damn whether those illegals are from Mexico, Sweden, Nicaragua or England.

Yeah, I'm certain that's the case.
posted by Ironmouth at 1:15 PM on March 31 [3 favorites]

She has a Muslim friend? Does she have a black friend, a Mexican friend, a liberal friend and a gay friend too? She does? Oh alright then!
posted by Talanvor at 1:16 PM on March 31

Jesus, how horrible were Tom Hanson, David Anderson, Gregory Bedell, Daniel Kay, and Jon Stewart (!) that Illinois' 5th congressional district Republicans picked Pulido as their best option?
posted by turaho at 1:16 PM on March 31

In IL-5 in 2009 the Republican party is a fringe party and this woman a fringe candidate.
posted by enn at 1:16 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I am fascinated with her self-loathing.

face look like paper mache and silly putty

make-up kit say HAAS on the side
posted by Optimus Chyme at 1:18 PM on March 31 [3 favorites]

I wonder if she drives an orange Pinto.
posted by bonehead at 1:19 PM on March 31

Palin - Pulido '12.
posted by swift at 1:21 PM on March 31 [8 favorites]

In IL-5 in 2009 the Republican party is a fringe party and this woman a fringe candidate.

Really? Those seemed like fairly representative examples of Republican thought to me: hatred of blacks, gays, immigrants (code for "Mexicans") and treating one's fellow countrymen who have different ideological beliefs as if they were one's enemies, rather than merely one's opponents. How is she "fringe"? Oh wait, I see, as OC said, she got caught saying what they all really mean. My bad.
posted by ND¢ at 1:22 PM on March 31 [10 favorites]

Jesus, how horrible were Tom Hanson, David Anderson, Gregory Bedell, Daniel Kay, and Jon Stewart (!) that Illinois' 5th congressional district Republicans picked Pulido as their best option?

She apparently ran an anti-central party campaign that likely appealed to disaffected republicans, of which there are currently very, very many.

Here's the scolding from her local committeeman. It's pretty brutal. He seems especially upset that she was going harsh on the head of the Chicago Archdiocese while trying to campaign in a heavily Catholic district. She seems to not have a particularly sharp political mind.
posted by mr_roboto at 1:24 PM on March 31 [2 favorites]

Man it's all demzone up in this piece.
posted by Mister_A at 1:25 PM on March 31

How is she "fringe"?

She's fringe in terms of actual support. She's running a safe Democratic district: they've elected exactly one Republican since 1907, and he was a one-term congressman who won because his opponent was under indictment at the time of the election. The Republican turnout in the primary was negligible. She may not be a fringe character within the American Republican party, but she's a fringe candidate in the Illinois 5th. If the Republicans had any chance of winning, they have run someone like Mark Kirk, who can sell himself as a moderate.
posted by craichead at 1:25 PM on March 31

How is she "fringe"?

Around 50,000 people voted in the Democratic primary, 11,000 of them for the winner, Mike Quigley.

Around 3,000 people voted in the Republican primary, 745 of them for Pulido. Her positions may well be characteristic of the Republican party in general and I'm sure there are places where she would be part of the mainstream, but the fifth district of Illinois is not one of them.
posted by enn at 1:26 PM on March 31

This is fucking awesome.
posted by chunking express at 1:26 PM on March 31

How long 'til she gets a gig as a guest commentator on Fox News?
posted by Mister_A at 1:28 PM on March 31 [3 favorites]

Welcome to the future, where everything about you is saved.

I'm not saying that this lady doesn't deserve to be savaged for what she's written, but there is another interesting angle here. I don't think I've seen a story about a politician being attacked with their own postings to the internet before. While this is an example of easy pickings, imagine the kind of twisted stuff that will happen in the future as more people who participate on-line run for office and their typings are twisted like words usually are.

Why are these people so keen to see Jesus come back?
1) It validates their beliefs.
2) They finally win.
3) It's a pretty heady feeling to walk around knowing what's going to happen.
4) Jesus will love only them and not anyone else when He Returns.

See what awful things Sean Tevis thinks about Christians?
Things are probably only going to get more interesting in this regard as time goes by.
posted by cimbrog at 1:28 PM on March 31 [2 favorites]

I don't think I've seen a story about a politician being attacked with their own postings to the internet before.

Not postings, but IMs and e-mails: Mark Foley (aka Maf54).
posted by ericb at 1:33 PM on March 31

This is from discussions following a news post about Christians being easier to joke about than Muslims, which just seems like another incendiary post on freerepublic, leading to the following thread:

There is nothing about their beliefs, traditions or religious practices that encourages ridicule.

Oh I don't know, those pictures of dozens of men in mosques kneeling on prayer rugs with their heads down low always looks pretty funny to me.

Prairie...yes, I'm stirring the pot a bit ;^D
7 posted on 12/28/2003 5:31:52 PM PST by prairiebreeze (President George W. Bush....most assuredly, MY President!)

"It reminds me of my dog, smelling buts."
52 posted on 12/28/2003 9:02:11 PM PST by chicagolady (Jesus, Be my Magnificent Obsession)
- - - - - - -

And then Pulido's apology for her crude jokes:

"Also A Muslim man who is my good friend called me. We talked about some other stupid comments I made and I had the opportunity to take responsibility for what I said." - Rosanna Pulido
- - - - - - -

I'd like to imagine her Muslim friend asking what it is about his method of prayer in groups makes her think of dogs sniffing butts, and her stammering something, maybe an awkward laugh about "those kids on the internet" and trying to "join in the fun."

strixus - I'm not in Illinois, but I wouldn't want someone with a 3rd grade sense of "humor" represent me. This isn't taking things out of context, this is looking for things that politicians think but don't say, as rocket88 mentioned.
posted by filthy light thief at 1:34 PM on March 31

> we oppose illegal immigration... with race not being a factor for us. We don't give a damn whether those illegals are from Sweden....

Finally, somebody has the courage and foresight to defend us from the Viking terror. They may not have invaded our shores for one thousand years now, but this does not mean they will not attempt to attack us again some day.
posted by ardgedee at 1:35 PM on March 31 [10 favorites]

Yet I'm also not some kind of asshat wingnut who would "joke" about "shooting people" and "selling black people". Someone doesn't get a free pass on that because it was a quote, they said it, that's it.
posted by cavalier at 4:01 PM on March 31

I've never really joked about race or things like that.

But cherry picking quotes is serious business. I for one am guilty of making not one but two jokes on this site about skull fucking. Taken out of context, those jokes make the practice sound deviant and disgusting. But in truth, I fall right in line with the majority in believing that skullophilia is can be a healthy and endearing pastime among our teenagers.

Who among us as fresh-faced lad or lass didn't grab our date's hand before set off giggling down the basement stairs for a little of the ol' walleye ball-eye? We were young and we were in love, and that's all the explanation we need.
posted by Pastabagel at 1:35 PM on March 31 [20 favorites]

Flagged as penoculist or something...
posted by Mister_A at 1:37 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I this where I pile on the racist bigot idiot? *Takes running jump* "Whoop!"
posted by Devils Rancher at 1:38 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I don't think I've seen a story about a politician being attacked with their own postings to the internet before.

While not technically his own posting, I think George Allen would want to take back a certain Youtube video...

As for this lady, who cares, this post is probably the most publicity she's likely to see. I applaud the GOP for going with the "we're not crazy enough" strategy, it'll make sure that the grownups hold onto power even longer than we thought we would.
posted by mark242 at 1:39 PM on March 31

Rosanna Pulido is the founder and director of the Illinois Minutemen, a branch of the Minutemen Project


Illinois Minuteman Project
P.O. Box 911
Skokie, Illinois 60076

You can't make this shit up.
posted by Joe Beese at 1:39 PM on March 31 [2 favorites]

Politicians are not saints

You clearly got that one right.
posted by Flunkie at 1:40 PM on March 31

I, too, am fascinated by the elements of self-loathing.

The other really interesting thing, I think, is the interaction with local party officials. When the local GOP tried to tell her, in a private correspondence, that bashing a cardinal in a district that's 40% Catholic might not be good strategy, she, you guessed it, posted the letter to Free Republic.
posted by box at 1:41 PM on March 31

You're really squicking me out there, Pastabagel.
posted by dersins at 1:42 PM on March 31 [2 favorites]

I'd like to imagine her Muslim friend asking what it is about his method of prayer in groups makes her think of dogs sniffing butts

Page 1 of the GIS
posted by mrt at 1:44 PM on March 31

Is it good that our words can be used against us? I don't know.

This is an easy case: nasty postings, rotten opinions, she stands for office, she deserves everything she gets.

It's the harder cases I worry about - where a remark is genuinely taken out of context, or from ten years ago, or is twisted out of shape to form the topic of some right-wing media campaign.
posted by athenian at 1:47 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

We really need a "The more you know" series of PSAs about the internet. People need to understand that despite appearances, nothing you do on the internet is anonymous, and it stays around practically forever.
posted by heathkit at 1:48 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I'd like to imagine her Muslim friend(...)

I'm pretty sure you'd have to.
posted by dirtdirt at 1:51 PM on March 31 [20 favorites]

Pasta, "ol' walleye ball-eye". You just made me google that. Did you just come up with that? Wow. Wow times two and a half add infinity. Trepanning the rift?
posted by cavalier at 1:52 PM on March 31

She's pretty much a wing nut. I would bet even without her crazy posting she has trouble with voters.
posted by caddis at 1:54 PM on March 31

I've been waiting years and years for some way in which being a troll actually has consequences.

Well, she's not a troll, she's a genuine racist. I mean, if she was on Fark or 4chan, she might have been a troll, and she might even garner some sympathy for the destruction of her career based on some stupid jokes. But it was on Free Republic, where racism isn't the noise, it's the signal.
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 1:58 PM on March 31 [21 favorites]

Palin-Pulido in 2012!

Every time I get to the point in time where I feel compelled to give a typical 'Winger Republican the benefit of the doubt about what he or she says (admittedly about once in a blue moon) I see something like this.

You'd think I would have learned by now.
posted by imjustsaying at 1:59 PM on March 31

I really, really loathe the free republic site because of the way the people there have created an echo chamber that is used to demonize people with different viewpoints rather than address issues in a constructive way.

You know, saying things like 'I'll give my guns to liberals bullet first', or 'Mexicans are the “new Ku Klux Klan with the tan”', it'd almost be like a liberal leaning site saying things like: 'representative examples of Republican thought: hatred of blacks, gays, immigrants (code for "Mexicans")'.

Thankfully, we know that most liberalslearned people are above that, and I'm glad that this site - mostly, and better than any other I know of - knows how to keep the brush focused on this particular loon, and rightfully taking her, or anyone that endorses her to task for her loathsome comments.
posted by forforf at 2:05 PM on March 31

Oops. Looks like the comments identified have disappeared down the memory hole.

Party of accountability indeed.
posted by TheNewWazoo at 2:06 PM on March 31

People need to understand that despite appearances, nothing you do on the internet is anonymous, and it stays around practically forever.

That's tougher than it sounds though. The Internet is a communication platform that is replacing a lot of more private methods of communication, and society as a whole has never really had to cope with a major form of communication that creates millions of permanent publicly accessible records.

People do say different things to different audiences, and it's not trivial to express your opinions in a way that is appropriate for everyone who bothers to look it up.* I know in my case you would be able to find a lot of incredibly stupid stuff in a search for my name by now if I had used it for my main method of communication and all of it was saved forever and searchable on Google. And although I don't really care if people decide to connect the dots, I don't particularly like the idea of everyone I know (including my boss, relatives, etc.) having access to, for example, all of my MetaFilter posts. There are some positive aspects of having a quasi-anonymous online handle other than spouting offensive comments and getting away with it, so I'm not looking forward to a day when everything you say online can instantly be connected to who you are in real life.

* Obviously in this particular case I'm glad that someone running for office wasn't able to pretend to have less extreme and offensive political views than they expressed through their online persona.
posted by burnmp3s at 2:06 PM on March 31

East Manitoba Champion '94: You may be right, I was largely unfamiliar with Free Republic beyond someone once characterizing it to me as "the Right's version of RawStory." Now that I have visited, I understand much more. Thank you so much. If I hadn't surfed onto the site just now, I would never have learned about the Klingon translation of the Book of Mormon.
posted by Jon_Evil at 2:08 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

If she came out and said, "Come on, I was just trolling FR!" I might move up there and vote for her.
posted by Stylus Happenstance at 2:10 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

Did you hear the one about the guy who needed the brain transplant?
The Doctor told him , "well we have this brain here, it is a brain of a famous Professor. It costs 300,000.
Then the Doctor said, "here, this brain is fron a Nasa engineer it costs 400,000.
Now lastly we have a brain here of an alcoholic! It will cost you 1 Million dollars.
The patient said "What??" thats crazy! Why is the brain of an alcoholic more expensive than anything else??
Simple, the doctor said "It's never been Used!!

Wow, she's classy in so many ways. Truly a multi-talented offender.
posted by Devils Rancher at 2:12 PM on March 31

The Anti-Tevis? Maybe not. Particle and anti-particle pairs are observed to attract one another, often as the prelude to annihilation. And I am not attracted to her at all.

Also, I always imagined my evil twin to be a bit more dashing and wear a sinister black cape.

About online life intersecting with political life -- I've had the chance to meet many, many politicians now and I've talked to them about reaching out to people via social networks and other online forums. I think it could improve government response immeasurably.

However, a significant percentage of them refuse to participate online not because they're luddites, but because they fear their words will come back to haunt them in a campaign. As one Kansas Senator told me last month, "they can't attack me for what I don't say."
posted by stevis at 2:49 PM on March 31 [6 favorites]

Holy shit, this is Free Republic's idea of a redesign? Angelfire called, they want their site design back. Because you're racist.
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 3:06 PM on March 31

In the future, all political campaigns will be about things the other candidate said on the web twenty years ago.
posted by Zed at 3:13 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

I love that we live in the Information Age. Politicians must express themselves to the constituency, there's no way around it- except to not run for office. But if you want to serve at that level, you have to state your positions. The way information isn't filtered these days is straight up RUINING careers, and rightly so. One less fool I gotta worry about.

Anyone know of a good website where I can learn grammar and sentence structure?
posted by Flex1970 at 3:20 PM on March 31

In the future, all political campaigns will be about things the other candidate said on the web twenty years ago.

Those are just the pot-shots. You know people really worry about you when they dig through physical files. Anyone can connect some distant dots with knowledge and patience. The internet just makes it all really easy. If she had written these things in a Illinois Minutemen publication, it would just take a bit longer to track down physical copies, and there would be the chance that a small pressing of racist, fear-mongering comments might actually disappear if they were actually all destroyed.

And it's not just those who want public positions. If you're being hired by a company of a decent size, you should assume people will google your name, look through major social sites, and do a cursory search, because they can get all that done and written up in 20 minutes. Even new friends, potential dates, and folks you've just met might be bored and find out you like to collect spoons in your pants, and take pictures of yourself doing so.

The transparency of the internet could make people more honest, or more devious about declaring their true feelings and thoughts.
posted by filthy light thief at 3:34 PM on March 31

I'm clearly not working as hard as I could be to make myself unelectable.
posted by rtha at 3:40 PM on March 31

Palin-Pulido in 2012!

Better yet, Palin-Pulido-Plumber!

The Democrats only have two people on their ticket. Are you going to trust a party that won't even tell you the name of their Vice Vice Presidential nominee?

I bet it's because their Vice Vice Presidential nominee is off pallin' around with terrorists.
posted by Flunkie at 3:40 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

If you look through my posting history, you will see a wealth of examples of me talking about all manner of badness; hunting people for sport, burning the world, hobos, strippers, drinking, using genetically modified water birds to operate orbital death rays, blowing stuff up, my cat.

But since I'm not running for office, or expecting that at any point, someone will willingly hand me the reigns of power, I don't worry that anyone will take these out of context (or in context) and see me for anything other than what I am.

As it is, I like that she was outed. If you desire power, I'd kind of like to know that you are publicly willing to show off what a racist homophobe you are. That way I can vote against you.
posted by quin at 3:45 PM on March 31

I'm most concerned that she can't spell the word "butts." Have them caught referring to anyone as a "looser" yet?
posted by drjimmy11 at 3:55 PM on March 31

wow I grammatically mangled that. I meant:

Have they caught her referring to anyone as a "looser" yet?
posted by drjimmy11 at 3:55 PM on March 31

In the future, all political campaigns will be about things the other candidate said on the web twenty years ago.

if anything, national US politics is becoming much less about this kind of stuff. Remember Bill Clinton and "I did not inhale?" That was only pot. George W. Bush and Barack Obama have both admitted to doing coke in their youth, and it was a complete non-issue in all the elections they were involved in.
posted by drjimmy11 at 3:58 PM on March 31

The transparency of the internet could make people more honest, or more devious about declaring their true feelings and thoughts.

I agree, but I would go further and say that it's going to be extraordinarily difficult to conceal your true feelings (if as a politician that's what you choose to do) over a span of years. You would have to have that je ne sais quoi thing happening, and a serious Weapons of Mass Deception firm backing you up: like Burson-Marsteller. I still don't think it would work over time. An Alien attack would probably also help.
posted by Flex1970 at 4:02 PM on March 31

The transparency of the internet could make people more honest, or more devious about declaring their true feelings and thoughts.

At least, until Google (or whatever search conglomerate succeeds it and takes over the Internet) works hand in hand with the existing government to wipe the memory hole clean of any offending comments of a prospective, up-and-coming candidate. Stalin said that the people who count the votes are the ones to watch — tomorrow, it could be the indexing engineers.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 4:08 PM on March 31

Have they caught her referring to anyone as a "looser" yet?

I did see one grocer's apostrophe. I don't think it was a mistake. I think this combined with the other abuses proves that she hates the English language.
posted by ob at 4:13 PM on March 31

SCHADENFREUDE

The Whelk, is this a better description than typical old twelve-point schadenfreude?
posted by kldickson at 4:25 PM on March 31

Shit, the big tag didn't work.
posted by kldickson at 4:26 PM on March 31

For all the folks who cannot bear to hear anyone say anything bad about the policies that President and some other Republicans are divising I have 2 words for you!!


HAIL HITLER!!!

Awesome.
posted by jokeefe at 4:28 PM on March 31

Look, if you cherry pick someone's...

- Pulido thinks Obama will sell black people into slavery.

....OK, but what I'm saying is that cherry picking....

- Pulido will give her guns to liberals “bullets first”.

...but you see the context...

- Pulido says Muslims at prayer remind her of a dogs “smelling buts [sic]”.

...I'm sure that any one of you could have...

- Pulido calls gay men “fudge packers”…a lot.

...only the political correctness Thought Police would condemn...

- Pulido says offering amnesty to illegal immigrants will cause an African-American genocide.

...no reasonably intelligent person could possibly take away from this...

- Pulido believes in hanging politicians for treason when it comes to immigration.

...without audio there's no way to prove what she really...

- Pulido has been calling Obama “Osama” since 2004.

...there's a clear Left Wing Conspiracy in forcing Pulido to have written...

- Pulido thinks stealing is part of Mexican culture.

...examine the surrounding statements you'll see...

- Pulido thinks that Mexicans are the “new Ku Klux Klan with the tan”.

...in summary, Pulido is the victim here. Of cherrypicking and Thought Policemanship.
posted by DU at 5:21 PM on March 31 [16 favorites]

"I and most other conservatives have made great and sincere effort to make it clear that we oppose illegal immigration for a number of health, legal, criminal and national security reasons, with race not being a factor for us. We don't give a damn whether those illegals are from Mexico, Sweden, Nicaragua or England."

Bullshit. Nobody is talking about building a fence across the Canadian border. Glenn Beck and Lou Dobbs only go apoplectic over this issue when it concerns Mexicans, and, naturally, Mid East terrorists, who can be lumped in together because they're all ... brown skinned?

I'm glad they're starting to see how poisonous some views can be to the party as a whole, but they haven't yet realized that they were the ones who created this monster. The above statement tells me they don't understand that their immigration policy is a fig leaf for provincialism, sometimes drifting into xenophobia, populist witch hunts and an outlet for outright racism. Tax cuts are very subtly racist and are part of the Republican playbook since Reagan, harking back to the Southern Strategy. You have to know the history to see what it is. This stuff is just transparent and it's fucking wrong. The party needs a big purging.
posted by krinklyfig at 5:52 PM on March 31 [2 favorites]

That wordpress blog was the result of a Something Awful thread.
posted by chiababe at 5:53 PM on March 31 [3 favorites]

kinklyfig: you got your terms mixed. Communists purge, Republicans witchhunt.

(by the way, by using the term "party purge" so casually, you're now at the top of my list of suspected communists. Just a heads up)
posted by qvantamon at 5:56 PM on March 31

The Whelk, is this a better description than typical old twelve-point schadenfreude?

It should blink.
posted by The Whelk at 6:07 PM on March 31

Yeah, and you reap what you sow, and these guys have been stirring up this awful shit for decades now. I don't feel the least bit sorry for anyone who willingly joins this group knowing these sorts of people are welcomed in the party when they get called out on it. It's all been sort of hush-hush, whispers and hints of racism, sometimes breaking out with a Willie Horton story to try to destroy a campaign by playing up the racist fears of their target group, but all this immigration stuff, Bush's ideology and the utter cynicism of the Bush administration have made racism a central part of the platform, what there remains of one anyway. They've been saying for four decades now that they are willing to divide the country and loudly call in support of closeted racists around the country. I'm frankly blown away that we seem to have moved backwards a bit, inasmuch as one of the two major political parties is still propping up this nonsense using the Southern Strategy, and there's an African-American in the White House. My fear is that, if things get really bad economically, provincialism and authoritarianism become magnets for populist outrage, and there is a well-heeled party with lots of money willing to ride that train. It's the whiff of fascism, of blatant racism, and it's fighting for its ideological life right now. The Republicans would do well to draw a line in the sand and make a very vocal clean break, with large defections, such as what happened with the Dixiecrats. So far, all they've done is play coy, but the stink is still there, and there isn't much left they claim to believe, except that people in finance deserve to make magnitudes more than average Americans, and that their salaries and contracts are sacrosanct in even the most dire circumstances, because BY GOD it's the principle of the thing, and let's be fair and let these rich guys be islands unto themselves ...

Whew ...

OK, feel better now. Didn't intend the rant, but it just sort of came out.
posted by krinklyfig at 6:07 PM on March 31 [2 favorites]

"(by the way, by using the term 'party purge' so casually, you're now at the top of my list of suspected communists. Just a heads up)"

Hey, comrade, I'm just sitting quietly over here tending to my hedge fund.
posted by krinklyfig at 6:08 PM on March 31

"Translated from Republican: 'Oh shit, one us got caught saying what we really mean - disown! Disown!'"

YES! That's exactly it. It's just unbelievably cynical when you think about it. Machiavelli was so very right.

On one hand, the activist wing of the Republican Party is rife with the worst of this kind of thinking*. On the other, they pick the charismatic winner Michael Steele as their chairman, which I'm sure quite coincidentally happened right after Obama took office. Imagine that! Wow, what a country! Both parties are so socially advanced they both picked African-Americans to lead their parties! At the same time! It's magic!

Man, can you believe this shit? I swear, someone better be writing down what's going on, on paper, and maybe seal a copy away somewhere. We're going to need reference material for the crazy ass stories we'll tell our grandchildren.

*To be fair, the activist wing of the Democrats utterly creeps me out when they're campaigning
posted by krinklyfig at 6:42 PM on March 31 [1 favorite]

imma gnaw my own leg off
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 7:29 PM on March 31

My, this poll:

In his first press conference Obama said that only government could solve this economic crisis, what say you?

No -- I don't find pork 'stimulating.'

Maybe -- why fight it, we pay they play!

Yes -- Because socialism just hasn't 'been done right' yet!

No -- government meddling is what got us in this pickle in the first place

Yes -- Government teat is mighty tasty!

Reminds me of that Little Britain Abroad episode where Lou and Andy get shipwrecked, and Lou carves into the desert island sand in these huge letters, true to character:

HELP
WE'RE IN QUITE A BIT
OF A KERFUFFLE
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 9:41 PM on March 31

I will just add that on a certain web forum you'll get your posting privileges revoked pretty quickly if you stray at all from the core principles of bigotry, racism, hatred, hysteria, etc., however, if instead of posting you just add pithy keywords to existing posts, they will usually slip under the radar. Unless you tag a post made by the site owner. That will get noticed, and get your IP address banned.

Or so I hear.
posted by Balonious Assault at 11:41 PM on March 31

Oh boo hoo. Wingnut discovers too late that personal responsibility isn't just for poor brown people sucking at the teat of the welfare state.
posted by MuffinMan at 8:14 AM on April 1 [1 favorite]

There's a reason I post pretty much everywhere using my real name, or a portion of it: I never want to get lax about what I say "in public," and not having the comfort of a pseudonym keeps me from succumbing to the illusion of anonymity that I think a lot of people lapse into, especially when they feel they are "among friends."

I've said a lot of dumb stuff in the past, some of it recently, but nothing I wouldn't own up to saying, and that's got a lot to do with having my real-world name sitting under, above or next to almost everything I type.
posted by Shepherd at 11:16 AM on April 1

Update: Out of nearly 45,000 votes cast, GOP candidate Pulido garnered 24 percent of the vote....

SPOILER: That's not enough to win.
posted by dersins at 10:16 AM on April 8

Out of nearly 45,000 votes cast, GOP candidate Pulido garnered 24 percent of the vote....

It just goes to show that ~24% of the population will vote for a mud brick or a cedar fence post so long as it's got an (R) in front of its name.
posted by Devils Rancher at 11:11 AM on April 8