Booman Tribune ~ Comments ~ Open Letter to A-List Bloggers Not Named Markos Moulitsas

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Open Letter to A-List Bloggers Not Named Markos Moulitsas | 99 comments (99 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

What possesses Kos? (4.00 / 8)

You wonder what indeed possessses Kos on certain days.

The spirit of his hero, Ronald Reagan? You know, the President who sponsored the slaughter of leftist rebels in El Salvador (where Kos' family was allied with the right-wing elite)?

Visit me at The Blogging Curmudgeon

by The Blogging Curmudgeon on Sat Apr 14th, 2007 at 09:52:00 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: What possesses Kos? (none / 1)

Is that true? The bit about his family? Just curious.

mbr + dv + woyg

by keirdubois (keir@mybandrocks.com) on Sat Apr 14th, 2007 at 09:59:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Yes it is true (4.00 / 7)

If you read the biography on DailyKos, Kos' family moved back and forth between the United States and El Salvador.

Kos' uncle was the Minister for Education for El Salvador during the 1980s. At the time Kos' uncle was a government official, right-wing death squads were roaming the countryside, wiping out campesinos (peasants) who allied themselves with the political left.

The political class (those allowed to hold high office) in El Salvador has always been small: perhaps 30 families rotate the political offices amongst them. That means the Moulitsas family is, shall we say, well-connected. The very fact that they were allowed to leave El Salvador at that time says that they had a freedom of movement that the ordinary Salvadoran peasants sure didn't have.

And yes, Kos has written many times that he admired Ronald Reagan. Reagan is Kos' hero and the model of what a Republican ought to be.

As for me, I voted against Reagan twice and hated not only his politics but the empty-headed, empty-hearted man himself. And Reagan was STILL a much better President than the current occupant!

You can find the article about the right-wing affiliation of the Moulitsas family at this Washington Monthly article: Kos Call by Benjamin Wallace-Wells

Moulitsas was born in Chicago to a middle class, ethnically-Greek family from El Salvador (his uncle, an architect, had briefly been that country's education minister). The family moved back to El Salvador when Moulitsas was four and was on the right-wing side of the Cold War proxy fight there. But as that war's intrusions became unbearable--Moulitsas talks about stepping over dead bodies--the family returned to Chicago, where he grew up, in his own words, "a loudmouthed nerd."
After high school, Moulitsas, then a Reagan Republican thanks largely to the White House's support of the Salvadorean government, spent four years as an army artillery scout, mainly in Germany.

Visit me at The Blogging Curmudgeon

by The Blogging Curmudgeon on Sat Apr 14th, 2007 at 10:13:08 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Yes it is true (none / 0)

Thanks for that.

As for Reagan, well, I still can't relate or empathize with the impulse to admire that guy. My very first political memory is watching the '84 returns come in on TV (I was into the big map behind the newscaster) and every time a state went for Ronnie my dad said "dammit!". He swore a lot that night. Elections and cussing have gone hand in hand for me ever since.

mbr + dv + woyg

by keirdubois (keir@mybandrocks.com) on Sat Apr 14th, 2007 at 10:22:22 PM EST
[ Parent ]

To his credit, he did speak out against (none / 1)

mercenaries.

This was back during the first Fallujah episode.

Well, he is not the most graceful writer, and he did not make his remarks . . . gracefully.

Ironically, he got slammed for that.

Still, he is indeed well connected, and farther right than most of us think.

by Gaianne on Sat Apr 14th, 2007 at 10:47:53 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: To his credit, he did speak out against (none / 0)

Earlier I had tried to put something up and it was pulled down quickly.

I am beginning to see the issue, but still feel, due to personal experience, that the best defense against some right wingnut twit is the law and a hard pair of fists. I learned this as a Kerry worker in 2004 against rednecks in Oswego county, New York.

I am with Sheelzebub at Pinko Feminist Hellcat. Get Tough.

But Markos stuck his foot into this one, and I think he ought to address this, and soon, like double quick, for I see the damage being done that I didn't fully appreciate this morning.

Bloggers that should be united are not. And this isn't so good.

by boilerman10 on Sun Apr 15th, 2007 at 01:19:14 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: To his credit, he did speak out against (none / 0)

Nothing was pulled down here.

by BooMan on Sun Apr 15th, 2007 at 01:22:41 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: To his credit, he did speak out against (none / 0)

then for some reason, it didn't go up. I thought it was pulled.

Either way, this hoo-haa is hurting progressive blogging.

by boilerman10 on Sun Apr 15th, 2007 at 11:17:41 AM EST
[ Parent ]

What hurts progressive blogging (4.00 / 4)

is when the highest traffic blog trivializes online sexual harassment. Kos could not have meant to say might makes right, but that is the logical conclusion of his remarks. It just encourages online bullies.

A voice has been silenced and lost to blogosphere because of this. Liberals should care.

As Moderate Left blog put it, women are the majority of Democratic voters, anyone who trivializes women's issues is no friend of the Democratic party.

Kos shot himself in the foot. His fellow progressives are attempting, thus far with no success, to point that out and make clear the seriousness of the situation. Every hour this goes unanswered it becomes more serious.

Had Kos, within a few hours of the original post added an update along the lines of: I spoke before getting the facts, I don't have time to write a proper post I just want to apologize to Sierra and what should be obvious, it is not acceptable to allow your online forum to be used for the purpose of threatening violence.

That would have been sufficient, the whole thing would have blown over. But for some reason He cannot be brought to understand that this is serious and his fellow high traffic bloggers (I hate the term A list) cannot understand that in absence of Kos doing the right thing they need to speak to this.

by AliceDem on Sun Apr 15th, 2007 at 12:35:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]

a question of solidarity (4.00 / 4)

this whole issue is about solidarity. This is a time to show Sierra and other victims of online harassment some solidarity. "Just suck it up" is not a adequate response.

by AliceDem on Sun Apr 15th, 2007 at 12:38:26 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: a question of solidarity (none / 0)

What do you propose then?

A blogger bill of ethics? How will you enforce it?

I can sympathize and support Kathy but I will be damned if I am going to scream that if we don't fawn over her plight we are somehow sexist, for that is complete hogwash!

If you are aware of my signature statement at DK, you already know I am up to my neck in trying to stop the Iraq conflagration without resorting to histrionic rhetoric following the framing given us by Jeff Feldman. It takes up much of my time. This is the cross I am dragging, and it will be more than enough for my capabilities.

This whole affair is odious, typically republican/conservative and as Kos stated early, the work of a bullying coward. Kathy needs to use the law, and use her senses. Conservative stoops rely on a woman's terror for success at exploitation whether in the workplace or in the political arena. For Kathy, 1st, GET A GRIP! Fear is the tool the bully uses to compell your submission! After that get friends, the cops and if that fails GET YOURSELF A GUN! AND A LAWYER, FOR NOW THE HARRASSMENT IS REALLY FELONY STALKING, and man oh man are there civil remedies you can get, Kathy will "pwn" this creep but good.

But I will not sit here and play "professional mourner" because this poor woman got a fright from some dirty con cretin coward!

I can't speak for Kos, but I will speak for me, and I don't think you know me well enough Alice, to imply I am insensitive or sexist about this affair. I am a working prole, and I use my hands for a living. Thus, I learned early that if you didn't want to be a victim, you had damn well better fight when you must. It's Kathy's time to fight, and I will help if I can but blaming Kos for being non-plussed is counter-productive. Kos will speak when Kos gets ready, I can't make him speak, and neither will you or Booman or anyone else.

But, let's think about Kathy here, she seems to be getting lost in all the hoo-haw over Kos.

by boilerman10 on Sun Apr 15th, 2007 at 06:49:12 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: What possesses Kos? (none / 1)

Laziness?

To me that post seemed just plain lazy like Markos got home late after a busy day and wanted to get off a quick one before he sat down to dinner and thought Wow, this is a no brainer....

However, I doubt he will apologize, since it might set a precedent.

by mythmother (mythmother (at) gmail.com) on Sat Apr 14th, 2007 at 10:01:18 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Open Letter to A-List Bloggers Not Named Markos Moulitsas | 99 comments (99 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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