Will TruthOut continue using James Ridgeway after this crap!

[trumad]

I've noticed T.O has used his work in the past. I wonder if they'll post his current piece, which by the way, Drudge was so kind to link to.

John Kerry Must Go
Note to Democrats: it's not too late to draft someone—anyone—else

WASHINGTON, D.C.— With the air gushing out of John Kerry's balloon, it may be only a matter of time until political insiders in Washington face the dread reality that the junior senator from Massachusetts doesn't have what it takes to win and has got to go. As arrogant and out of it as the Democratic political establishment is, even these pols know the party's got to have someone to run against George Bush. They can't exactly expect the president to self-destruct into thin air.

With growing issues over his wealth (which makes fellow plutocrat Bush seem a charity case by comparison), the miasma over his medals and ribbons (or ribbons and medals), his uninspiring record in the Senate (yes war, no war), and wishy-washy efforts to mimic Bill Clinton's triangulation gimmickry (the protractor factor), Kerry sinks day by day. The pros all know that the candidate who starts each morning by having to explain himself is a goner. <end snip>
http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0417/mondo1.php

What...this stupid MOFO thinks he's a Pro while at the same time spouting the most inane Right Wing Talking points out there. This idiot's not a pro, he's a fucking Moran!

[blm]

1. Current day David Horowitz.

I guess Christopher Hitchens isn't pretending hard enough for them.

[trumad]

2. The guy writes for the Village Voice...

3. Why not?

Just because you disagree with someone's perspective on one thing, does that invalidate their perspective on other things? Particularly when the person is a muckraker like Ridgeway?

I think that would be letting partisanship get in the way of truth.

Is Truth Out in favor of the truth or are they a Democratic Party rubberstamp? That would probably determine whether they continued to use Ridgeway whatever there disagreement or agreement with him on this current article.

[blm]

8. RNC talking points are now truth?

Ha. Not in a million years.

[sangh0]

9. Spoken like someone who has little idea of who Ridgeway is

He's not the highest caliber of journaliast out there, and given the quality of the players, that's not very flattering.

Maybe that's why you've adopted the ridiculous idea that Ridgeway prints "the truth" even though you seem to know little about him (your post is perfectly silent on Ridgeway's past)

12. I said he was a muckraker

I didn't say the particular article here is the truth.

I was referring to other stuff I've read by him that I thought was true. I've also read a lot of stuff by him I didn't believe.

Kind of like Ted Rall, who I sometimes agree with & sometimes don't.

These guys are basically editorialists which in my book is somewhat different than a journalist in the sense of a reporter.

It's their opinion they're expressing & sometimes there opinions are true, sometimes not.

Why unilaterally censor them for sometimes having opinions that are not backed up by facts? I just don't get it.

Too much getting on one's high horse. I mistrust extremism on either side of the political spectrum.

& I am familiar with Ridgeway's writing,thank you, if not his past. Should I google it or will you enlighten me.

[sangh0]

16. *WAS* a muckraker - The mighty RIdgeway fell years ago

Ridgeway is nothing like Ted Rall, and he is not an editorialist. He is a journalist. I've been following him since the early 80's, so thinking up new terms for old things (like the way suicide bombers became homicide bombers, and the way everyone is now a terrorist) won't work with me.

Why unilaterally censor them for sometimes having opinions that are not backed up by facts? I just don't get it.

Well, maybe you should re-read what you said earlier:

Is Truth Out in favor of the truth or are they a Democratic Party rubberstamp? That would probably determine whether they continued to use Ridgeway whatever there disagreement or agreement with him on this current article.

So, is it "truth", or is it "opinion", or is it whatever it's convenient for you to call it at the moment?

I am familiar with Ridgeway's writing,thank you, if not his past. Should I google it or will you enlighten me.

You should google it. I don't have the time for someone who judges a journalist without knowing their record.

18. 124,000 entries on Google

if you type in his name.

If you really want to convince me that I shouldn't trust him, I sincerely and politely ask that you steer me towards a source.

Otherwise, I'm going to assume that you are engaging in polemics. I've actually got more evidence of that over the past few months than I've seen regarding Ridgeways not being trustworthy.

[sangh0]

19. I respectfully decline your invitation

If you want to think he's a fine journalist, or editorialist, or whatever it is you think he is, be my guest.

But if you're going to argue that any journalist is worthy of being believed, then IMO the burden of proof is on you to show that he is trustworthy. Your weak attempt to burden me is the polemics going on here.

21. I'm not arguing any journalist is worthy of being believed

You're misrepresenting what I said, unless I didn't say it clearly enough.
I said I have read stuff of his I agree with & stuff I disagree with.
Actually, I usually do think he's a bit untrustworthy.
That's not the point. The point is whether a journalist should be unilaterally discounted because you don't agree with them on some things.

It can't really be that hard to type out one or two sources for me to look at. You know,I'm sure, the search within results option on Google? I'd type Ridgeway's name & then the other entry in search within results, you know how that works right? I thought so.

That would get me past all the entries that are on the top of the page of Google of his films and his recent articles.

I'm not trying to prove he's trustworthy. You're trying to prove he isn't or at least you've asserted it. It would take you about as much time to provide me with a name or two to type into search within results as it would to write the responses you've already written, so if you won't when I have specifically asked you to, in order to help me find out to what you are referring, I'll draw my own conclusions about why you won't.

[trumad]

24. I've googled this guy for the last hour

and read a ton of what he's written... The point is the guy hates Gore, Clinton and now obviously Kerry. PLUS I've noticed in his work that he quotes bullshit that has been clearly discounted..I:E Gore invented the Internet, Gore lies about the Campain Finance bullshit, etc. He's either a liar himself or he's lazy and simply cutting and pasting RW talking points being fed to his fellow lazy media Ho's by the RW..

My take is...if a rag like TruthOut clearly wants to get the er Truth Out, then they should use folks who write the truth.

26. Thanks, your point makes more sense to me now

I'm supposed to be working, :crazy: so when I saw the 124,000 entries, I was hoping for some way to narrow it down a little with some info from someone who had some evidence.

[trumad]

28. I see your point as well

but when I read crap like this and see talking points like that, I smell a rat. And then a little research proves to me the guys a rat. After researching his work for the last hour it seems to me that the dudes a Naderite. He sure has written about old Ralph quite a bit and he loves Ralph.

22. Muckraker is not always a compliment

yellow journalists are muckrakers also.

I can understand why you might not have caught my intent in the use of that word however.

[jonnyblitz]

4. Gee, this article sounds pretty spot on to me tho I think it's too

late and futile to draft somebody else. His Kerry critique sounds about right! But have no fear we all will be voting for him because we arent going to vote for Bush!!

Like the sign one of the women at the DC March on sunday said : "Kerry sucks less." ;) :hi:

[trumad]

6. Oh Horseshit

The thing is full of Rove talking points and if you think they're accurate perhaps you stay away from Karl's koolaid.

[displacedtexan]

5. My letter to the editor

James Ridgeway has go to go! Zero facts. Zero concrete evidence. Zero credibility. His tirade against Senator Kerry's ability to defeat the former governor of Texas (as Vice President Gore defeated him in 2000) makes me wonder if Mr. Ridgeway isn't dating Ann Coulter.

7. Pick your battles..

I really doubt the Village Voice will pay much attention to your letter.
Is it an actual letter you're sending?

[sangh0]

10. The right-wingers at the Voice won't pay attention to LTTE's

but I bet you didn't know that the Voice is now owned by Freepers?

13. I live in New York City

I know all about the Voice and its ownership.

You're doing the same thing here that you did in your response to me in the above post, which is assuming I don't know this stuff.
I really don't appreciate it.

[sangh0]

17. If you're going to talk about Ridgeway as an editorialist

*AND* a muckraker (both of which are no longer true) at the same time, then yes, I will continue to assume that you do not know so much about Ridgeway.

[G_j]

11. there have been a number of critical articles

on liberal news sites lately.
from www.alternet.org

Taking on the War President
Robert Scheer, AlterNet
Former war hero and protester John Kerry has to stop angling for position and confront Bush directly on the war.
Posted on April 27, 2004.

http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=18521
--
Kerry's Foreign Policy Trap
Bill Berkowitz, AlterNet
The Democratic candidate appears to be trying to out-Bush Bush on foreign policy, and his positions have the centrist Democratic Leadership Council's stamp all over them.

http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=18520

and truthout and alternet are not alone
www.tompaine.com has also carried some articles highly critical of Kerry

[trumad]

15. Look... Criticisms fine

but when it's out of the mouth of Rove I'm going to bitch.

[G_j]

23. I also find

it disturbing when Ridgeway harps on the 'medal' thing. It's one thing to have legitimate concerns it's another to pander to a smear attack.

[trumad]

25. But it's his style

he's pandered big time in his past work to that same kind of stuff.

[Cocoa]

14. what about the primaries?

what about all the people that voted for Kerry, and have donated money to him?

Ridgeway wants the Democratic Party to overrule the primary voters?

[trumad]

20. Here's a piece where he talks about Dumping Gore

Of course he fell for the campaign-finance crap drummed up the the Right Wingers....

How Can the Democrats Go With Him?
Dump Gore

A look at Al Gore's just-released interview with the Justice Department's campaign-finance task force director not only makes the vice president look like a barefaced liar but also makes you wonder why Janet Reno has not prosecuted him and why this man is the certain nominee of the Democratic Party.
http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0028/ridgeway.php

[wyldwolf]

27. ooh! Here's a piece where he talks about dumping FDR!

..well, he PROBABLY would have written it!

[trumad]

29. The guys has written dozens of stories about Ralph Nader

and all of them are glowing... Me thinks I know his ideology.... Hey..if you're a Naderite, fine, admit it and stick to factual truth. Oh wait...Naderites get their factual truth from Karl.

[trumad]

30. Kick

Apparently there's a few DU'er enamored by this idiot Ho!