So I got this icky forward about Obama

[Connonym]

basically insinuating (with quotes!) that Obama hates white people and we should all be afraid and not vote for him. I was so disgusted that I replied to everyone who was on the forward list and said that I'm disgusted by the racism and they should be ashamed of themselves if that's what they believe. Oh boy did I touch a lot of nerves! I'm getting back responses that I need to get a life -- "outside the ghetto" and that I should pray for god's forgiveness for being judgmental (funny I thought the racists were the judgmental ones?). Now I'm afraid I've pissed of a boat load of racist fundies and because I'm getting a bunch of emails about asking for god's forgiveness now. Needless to say I've been making a lot of email filters.

On the bright side, I did get an email from someone in Iowa stating that she agreed with me :)

[Skittles]

1. why is it only repukes that seem to send out that garbage?

whenever I get trash I have to blast away at (ALWAYS ALWAYS REPLY TO ALL) it's always repuke-type garbage. Is it the Heritage Foundation, Fox News, who?

Fire back at those bastard fundies too, Connonym - f***ing let them have it. NEVER let shit like this go unanswered. SILENCE = AGREEMENT and I disagree - LOUDLY.

[jobycom]

3. Because that garbage isn't randomly generated nor is it written by lone individuals.

That's part of the "whisper campaign" that Republicans are famous for. Ever try to start an Internet rumor? It's not easy. Now and then an email or picture or something written by an individual catches some wind on its own, but not often. These emails are written and coordinated and distributed by organized, funded groups. Not necessarily the RNC, but close enough. Back in the 90s, they used to use web rings, where they kept lists of people who had mailing lists for some group or another. Someone would run a website with a mailing list, and would form a ring of other webmasters with mailing lists. The generators of these emails would send them to web ring leaders across the nation, and these leaders would mail them to their lists, which usually comprised other mail lists and web rings. Soon the email would be coast to coast, and people would be sending them outside of the rings.

People don't trust the media or politicians, but they will believe without question an anonymous email claiming to have been generated by a regular person with inside knowledge. So it's a very effective method. Before the Web, they circulated pamphlets through churches and clubs and other types of contacts. Far less efficient.

Now, they've gone beyond web rings to the super blogs, and have gotten sophisticated enough to introduce slanders through web sites, but a lot of the old email structures are still working, so these Republican groups keep writing them.

People underestimate how coordinated and sophisticated all this is. You have two parties running, literally, for the chance to control the world, and still most people seem surprised that candidates are willing to lie, cheat, steal, sling mud, and do all sorts of dastardly things to win. A lot of money, time, and skill goes into making these things look folksy and common.

[Skittles]

17. a fairly good friend of mine sent me one of them recently

I guess what really disburbs me is not so much that this ugly stuff is produced but by just how many people seem to fall for it. My friend Betty is Hispanic and retired from the Army; she raised two wonderful children who are half African-American. Betty is very, very smart - she trained me in my last job (her first civilian job) - so it really shocked me to receive that stupid "lapel pin" patriotism-themed garbage from her about Obama. I replied to all with the Snopes link and asked her why she would so readily believe something that could easily have been disproved with 10 seconds research on the Web. Of course this made her mad. Still, I KNOW the answer why - she believes it because she WANTS to believe it. I guess that's the real question here - why do so many people WANT to believe this stuff. I mean really, I read that stupid email twice and it was laughably bad. Not just propaganda but REALLY BAD PROPAGANDA, piling it on to the point of OBVIOUS ABSURDITY. :o

[jobycom]

2. You say it like it's a bad think. Be happy. You pissed them off because you made them think.

And they hate that thinking stuff. So they attack you, to turn their nasty thoughts away from themselves. Meanwhile, they are still muttering to themselves, thinking of all the reasons you are wrong about them, and figuring out how to prove it. Somewhere in there, maybe they've changed a little.

I say good job. :applause:

[Chan790]

4. I always respond to insistances for my praying for God's forgiveness...

with a photo of outer-space captioned "Where's the tea-pot?". Either they're too dumb to get it or they just decide I'm hell-bound...but in either case they leave me alone.

[kay1864]

6. I'm too dumb to get it myself

"Where's the tea-pot?"

:shrug:

[trof]

8. I had to look it up:

Bertrand Russell once gave an illustration that he supposed was analogous to the (non)existence of God. He said:

If I were to suggest that between the Earth and Mars there is a china teapot revolving around the sun in an elliptical orbit, nobody would be able to disprove my assertion provided I were careful to add that the teapot is too small to be revealed even by our most powerful telescopes. But if I were to go on to say that, since my assertion cannot be disproved, it is intolerable presumption on the part of human reason to doubt it, I should rightly be thought to be talking nonsense. If, however, the existence of such a teapot were affirmed in ancient books, taught as the sacred truth every Sunday, and instilled into the minds of children at school, hesitation to believe in its existence would become a mark of eccentricity and entitle the doubter to the attentions of the psychiatrist in an enlightened age or the Inquisitor in an earlier time.

[kay1864]

12. Thanks!

:hi:

[Chan790]

11. Bertrand Russell

posited an argument showing that one cannot prove the existence of God for the same reason that one cannot prove the existence of a teapot floating in space at an undetermined point between here and Mars...however it is equally-valid to believe in either. The burden lies with the believer to prove the existence in either case to the skeptic, not vice-versa.

If I were to suggest that between the Earth and Mars there is a china teapot revolving about the sun in an elliptical orbit, nobody would be able to disprove my assertion provided I were careful to add that the teapot is too small to be revealed even by our most powerful telescopes. But if I were to go on to say that, since my assertion cannot be disproved, it is an intolerable presumption on the part of human reason to doubt it, I should rightly be thought to be talking nonsense. If, however, the existence of such a teapot were affirmed in ancient books, taught as the sacred truth every Sunday, and instilled into the minds of children at school, hesitation to believe in its existence would become a mark of eccentricity and entitle the doubter to the attentions of the psychiatrist in an enlightened age or of the Inquisitor in an earlier time. -Bertrand Russell

Basically, my comment comes back to a snarky "I'll believe in God when they prove a god exists."

[PeaceNikki]

5. Next time, please cc me on the reply. And remind them that McCain calls his wife a "cunt"

[Midlodemocrat]

7. .

:thumbsup:

[LynneSin]

9. "God told me to be racist so you better pray for forgiveness"

That is so pathetic. The God & Jesus I know loves everyone. Remember the parable about the Good Samaratin. People from Samarai were considered dregs of society that people were to be avoided. Jesus told that story because he wanted people to know that it just takes one person to show love and compassion and that person has no race, skin color, religion, sexual preference, etc. etc. because it's within you.

[DarkTirade]

10. ... they do realize that he's half white, right?

Then again, anyone who would believe that probably thinks he faces east to pray.

... then again, that might be over their heads. "His middle name is Hussein and he has brown skin! I'm afraid!" is probably more what they're thinking.

[Connonym]

13. I think that's exactly what they're thinking

and it makes me sick. They look and don't see a man they see a BLACK man. And that scares them. And then when they think god is on their side? That scares ME.

[mreilly]

14. You should see the shit debunked on snopes.com

This is a site devoted to urban legends and the unraveling thereof. I check the "What's New" section frequently and there is ALWAYS some new outpouring of piss/shit/vomit against Obama being debunked. It literally nauseates me; the crying little Repuke turds are banging this crap out non-stop and frantically sending it all around the web to anyone who will listen to their infantile fairy tales.

It's worth noting I have NEVER seen any such articles on snopes.com concerning some hateful shitstorm against John McCain. Noooooo.... that's because, simply put, Repukes are human garbage who see nothing wrong with spewing whatever disgusting lies they see fit to try to destroy someone they consider a threat. It makes it especially ironic when these fuckers preach about "character" or "integrity!"

[NewEnglandGirl]

15. When those "people"

send me the lying emails about Obama I send them back the snopes pages proving that they are false. And then the idiots will send it out again in a few weeks.:grr:

[graywarrior]

16. I talked to a few democrats who think the same way

Granted, they are the dumbest fucks walking the earth, but nevertheless THEY VOTE. One of them is related to me.....give me strength.