THE LIBERAL RABBIT
Let me preface this blog entry by stating that I, as much as anyone, have been an emphatic proponent of The Santa Barbara Daily Sound since its inception. And it goes without saying that they have been a breath of fresh air in a city suffering from the putrid stench of The Santa Barbara News-Press. Thus, it is with this in mind, that I've so far held my tongue on an issue that I -- and others in the blog community -- have noticed over the last few months ... What's with all the conservative commentators?
In last Tuesday's edition, a new column debuted titled The Conservative Turtle that finally gave me that "enough is enough" feeling in the pit of my stomach. This new addition to The Sound is apparently written by a collection of SB conservatives led by a man named Aaron Shaw, and boy are they a depressed bunch of sad sacks. For a group who's ideology is all about being tough, I've never read so much "woe is me" babble in my life. I'd like to go through paragraph by paragraph and respond to each comment, but I think that would give me heartburn. Instead, I'll pick out a few of my favorites ...
Those few [Conservative Turtles] that do remain have mostly been rounded up by the outspoken liberal and progressive activists and placed in a pond ... in an attempt to contain and control yet another endangered species.
And then there's this ...
But we have been afraid. The world has become a dangerous place for turtles ... We fear someone from another culture will pluck us form our pond and maul and torture us ...
And this is nice ...
We dream of a ... city where we can actually speak the truth ... without the filter of the barking liberal media and specter of political correctness, with its associated character assassinations.
You mean like wearing Band-Aids with purple hearts on them to signify John Kerry didn't really get hurt all that bad in Vietnam? Anyway, one more ...
We will no longer be intimidated. We will no longer be inhibited when our words are twisted by the slanderous name-calling left.
Wow, how horrible it must be for you to live in our little town by the sea. I mean, if I controlled all branches of government over the last six years, I'd be ecstatic. But I guess that's just me. You've covered a lot of ground here for such a slow moving animal, but like turtles, you've said very little. It may sound a little cliche, but "where's the beef!" Being a proud and vocal liberal, I could take exception to the many "slanderous name-calling" statements you've produced in this column, but I won't. Instead, Mr. Turtle, I'd like to ask you a few questions ...
1) Do you think Bush did a heck of a job with Katrina?
2) Do you believe Iraq was at all involved in 9/11?
3) Do you believe there should be a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage?
4) Do you believe the "vast majority" of Bush's tax cut went to the lower and middle class?
5) Do you think Ann Coulter was right when she said the 9/11 widows are "enjoying their husband's deaths?"
6) Do you believe in global warming?
7) Do you believe in evolution?
8) Do you believe that stem cell research has the potential to save lives?
9) Do you believe we're winning in Iraq?
10) Is Bush a great president or the greatest president?
These, Mr. Turtle, are the values that this barking liberal wants to discuss. Don't hide in your shell; you need not fear me ... unless, of course, you fear my ideas. So, what say you?
Okay, Mr. Jeramy Gordon, now a couple questions for you ... Are you simply a big champion of The First Amendment as everyone has been saying, or are you a conservative who feels the media leans left and wants to rectify it in his paper? Should I be worried that the wall separating news and opinion will start to chip away at some point? I'm not going to get on my soapbox and suggest people stop reading your paper, but I'm also not too interested in the voices of Santa Barbara becoming Robert Novak, John Stossel, Dr. Laura, Travis Armstrong, and The Conservative Turtle. So, how about a real progressive voice in your paper? And I'm not talking about a slightly left of center, Alan Colmes-like liberal. No, I mean a true progressive sound.
If you have trouble finding someone, give me a ring.
Labels: conservative turtle, santa barbara daily sound, santa barbara news-press
posted by Trekking Left @ 8:51 PM
17 comments
17 Comments:
I was afraid that T_L would use the Turtles to spout off about liberal slant in the media; of course he's done just that. They've trumpeted this paper since its inception, right up until the Turtles column appeared. Now they're in a tizzy. First the NP was stolen from our town by a power hungry media mogul, now the free daily they loved so much isn't parroting their viewpoints, so it gives them "that" feeling in the pit of their stomachs. I guess it's going to be the Indy and the blogs from here on out. Don't worry: the conservatives won't be taking over the Daily Kos anytime soon, so you'll have ample opportunity to spoon feed yourselves the drivel you so desire. Who knows, maybe some local lib will link up the Feinstein, Capps, and Pelosi sites so you guys can stuff yourselves with all the liberal turkey you want.
Go ahead and leave the Sound where it is and you'll be depriving yourselves of the best in local news coverage this town has to offer. Which is it going to be?
Maybe the "Turtle" is just trying to provide a counter-weight to the ultra liberal Independent...?
Hello Mr. Average Man! I found your blog via edhat. This posting on the Sound confuses me. I find the news and opinion pages to be very even handed. Why does everyone think the Sound will turn into another News-Press? I think we need to give this guy a chance. The paper's only been around for 18 months for crying out loud.
I, for one, find it very interesting watching the Sound evolve. I think it's great that Gordon prints both liberal and conservative view points and whether I agree with those opinions or not doesn't mean they don't have a place there.
His two local political columnists seem very liberal to me and he also carries Froma Harrop on a regular basis, but I suppose you don't care about that. It's just the occasional appearance of Stossel and Novak that's got your panties in a twist.
It seems you're the biased one. Just my two cents.
McConfrontation said - "First the NP was stolen from our town by a power hungry media mogul, now the free daily they loved so much isn't parroting their viewpoints..."
I don't want the Sound to parrot my viewpoints. What I want is for them to stop only parroting yours.
Anonymous said - "Maybe the Turtle is just trying to provide a counter-weight to the ultra liberal Independent..."
Maybe, and if so, that's fine. But my question is whether or not the Sound as a whole feels the need to counter-weight the (nonexistent) liberal media?
Rick said - "I, for one, find it very interesting watching the Sound evolve. I think it's great that Gordon prints both liberal and conservative view points and whether I agree with those opinions or not doesn't mean they don't have a place there."
Couldn't agree more. My point, though, is that it isn't a one-to-one. I read the Sound every day, and from my perspective, the Sound is "evolving" in a such a way that the conservative voices are more extreme and more frequent. I'm sorry, but John Stossel defending the U.S. health care system is not balanced by Cheri Rae pining for the days of more hippies. And The Turtle's insulting comments about the left are not balanced by anyone ... except me.
Rick also said - "It seems you're the biased one."
Guilty. I'm a liberal blogger, not a journalist.
"They've trumpeted this paper since its inception"
I don't think we... (whoever "we" are... have praised the content of the Sound, so much as simply celebrated its presence as a competitor.
Calling attention to the paper's viewpoint(s) isn't the same thing as hoping it disppears -- it's simply the duty of responsible readers and citizens.
It's always all or nothing with you, isn't it McC?
I've always felt that if you take things as black and white, you don't get screwed with the grey. I'm a realist and a pragmatist, and anyway T_L answered my question: he reads it every day, despite John Stossel having, what, three columns printed in there over the last year and a half? How open-minded and progressive of you.
I really dont think that the Sound "only parrots (my)" viewpoints. Are you implying that they only publish conservative commentary? Because that's patently not true.
No, I'm implying that the trend has been to increasingly print more extreme and more frequent conservative commentary.
Not at all -- he said this one column parroted your viewpoints, was wondering why the publisher considered it worthy of print, and whether it signaled a trend towards more of the same.
Seeing the world in B&W certainly makes life easy, doesn't it? I can certainly understand the temptation, but just because you ignore the shades inbetween doesn't mean they're not there! You're a "realist"? Then you would recognize that there are very, very few absolutes in this world... and handle yourself accordingly.
It is the New World Order destiny to conquer the world and to rule the people with an iron fist. Your local paper is just a small part of the plan. Resistance is futile.
"I don't want the Sound to parrot my viewpoints. What I want is for them to stop only parroting yours."
I don't know TAM, that sounds like he thinks he wants them to stop only parroting (my viewpoints). Do you read that differently than me? If a paper is only parroting my viewpoints and T_L wants them to stop only parroting my viewpoints, then surely he must be referring to more than one article. If they "ONLY parrot" my viewpoints then he surely believes all of the articles in the Sound are conservative. I can only react to what you guys write, even if you fellas do a whole lot of inferring when it comes to reacting to what I write.
I think that the Sound decided it was worthy of print because that voice has been locally absent for some time. And if you can't see that it DOES signal more of the same to come then you're more even myopic than I thought.
You guys whine louder than the dude who got tased in Florida at a John Kerry speech. If the turtles back up what they say they want to do then it confirms what can only be some of your worst fears: conservative thinkers pushing to turn the tide of this towns liberal political agenda. I can see the partisanship is going to get a whole lot more local.
The guy who got tased is one of the few Americans paying enough attention to be outraged about something, anything. This country has turned into over-cooked pasta noodles mostly. Nice to see some zeal. Nathan Hale would be proud.
OMG, Edgar. I just watched that video. That's it -- we're in a police state, where speaking up gives cops the idea they can arrest you. Kerry is an absolute p*ssy for not putting a stop to that immediately (not to mention for conceding the 04 election, like the guy said).
I think that also puts to rest the idea that conservatives are marginalized. You've got the cops, the corporations, and up until last year, all 3 branches of government. And there's plenty of right wingers in this town, too. Giuliani raised millions last time he came through. So McC (and the turtle), you should really stop talking and acting like vicitms. It's pathetic.
I really, really, want to move to within a half a mile of the U.S. Canada border. This country does not even realize that we are right at the very door of a totalitarian state. I keep staying though. I sure am glad I don't have kids, because the maggots would have them in bondage for sure.
Too bad the Turtle didn't use the Salamander as it's analogous namesake.
Rather than being deligated to barely surviving in minimally maintained man-made ponds, the Turtles sould realize that as Salamanders they could have been much better off. Environmental-liberals fight for habitat and many species exit today only because of liberal-progressive efforts.
Regardlesss, both Turtle and Salamanders are cold blooded animals but a distinction is that the turtle's head strikingly resembles an uncircumsize penis.
I only mention this because if properly analyzed the poor poor unrepresened convervative did indeed select the "turtle's" and presumably it's visual qualities as it's mascot.
I mean no offense to turtles of any species, religion, ethnicitiy, color, marital status, gender, or sexuality.
At 9:08 AM, Anonymous said...
Maybe the "Turtle" is just trying to provide a counter-weight to the ultra liberal Independent...?
Bingo!
Plus, it's so much fun watching liberals have a meltdown when their exclusive grip on local Newspaper commentary begins to erode away, and not be able to blame it on Haliburton, Bush or the Carlisle group.. *wink*
Sorry Average man, Trekking left, very rude of us to comment on your blog without answering the host's questions of the Turtle, and without thanking the host for having us as a topic.
Your ten questions show a rather narrow prejudged view of what conservatism is all about. We will try to educate in future columns.
It isn't all about Bush and Anne Coulter. I can answer #10 by saying, it may shock you to hear that Bush is one of the least great presidents amongst conservatives, yet a good notch above Gore or Kerry. However, we dislike him for different reasons than you probably do. We dislike him because he has the power to end this war and he won't (umm... by winning, not by running away). Also, because he is a corporate globalist and will not do what it takes to protect America and it's borders.
Your questions all seem to be rather national in scope, we will be trying to limit topics to only what applies to local politics. We are under no delusion that we can change the world, but perhaps a little push to the right on local politics wouldn't be too much to swallow?
Thanks for the attention! By the way, we would love to know exactly which comments we made that you feel insulted by?
Well, "slanderous name-calling left" is a good start.
I think you sort of missed the point of my questions: I asked them for two reasons ...
1) To emphasize that you did not (and have not) really spoken about anything (except ethynol). If you answered the questions, we could actually have a debate on THE ISSUES.
2) This list was also designed to give you an idea of the reasons why I (and many liberals) don't often appreciate conservative viewpoints.
Again, you just made a bunch of vague statements and stereotypes about liberals. And that, by the way, is what you don't like about us.
Thanks for reading.
Post a Comment
<< Home