Monday, March 30, 2009

The Trolljan Army

Once in a while, something so perfectly moronic comes along that mockery cannot illuminate the stupid.

Witless:

Much of Mr. Obama's vaunted online strategy involved utilizing "Internet trolls" to invade enemy lines under false names and trying to derail discussion. In the real world, that's called "vandalism." [RA -- no, it's not.] But in a political movement that embraces "graffiti" as avant-garde art, that's business as usual. It relishes the ability to destroy other people's property in pursuit of electoral victory.

Hugh Hewitt's popular site shut off its comments section because of the success of these obnoxious invaders. Breitbart.com polices nonpartisan newswire stories for such obviously coordinated attacks. Other right-leaning sites such as Instapundit and National Review Online refuse to allow comments, knowing better than to flirt with the online activist left.

During the Clinton impeachment scandal, a new group out of California called MoveOn.org employed a plan to get its members to dial into right-leaning talk radio shows with scripted talking points falsely claiming that they were Republicans. They said they would never vote for the GOP again if the case against Bill Clinton was pursued.

Particularly eggregious is the Obama Administration's use of the vile expletive glibertarian and speculation about Megan McArdle's gender. Have they no decency?

The crazy corn in Andy's excrement is so abundant that it's impossible to choose from the kernels. But the fundamental flaw is Andy's call to arms without naming the weapon to be used. Andy begins and ends his epistle thusly:

A digital war has broken out, and the conservative movement is losing. Read the comment sections of right-leaning blogs, news sites and social forums, and the evidence is there in ugly abundance. Internet hooligans are spewing their talking points to thwart the dissent of the newly-out-of-power.

We must not let that go unanswered.

...

The American right is in a heap of trouble in a media age that doesn't shun the goons and liars that have poisoned the political process and won the American presidency by breaking the rules of fair play. It is time to fight back, but it won't be easy. The enemy is willing to do and say anything in order to win.

So what is the exit strategy? Shunning? Not having comments? Comment registration? Counterinsurgency? Dimbart rejects the last tactic as un-Judeo-Christian and expressly denies that he is the brains behind the Rebel Alliance ("Of course, every now and then, a curious right-winger will go in and engage in discussion at a left-wing site, but rarely under purely disingenuous and mass coordinated means").

I guess that leaves surrender.

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