Paul Rosenberg provides a handy summary of recent rightwing Shitstorms (TM).
The latest example is Pete Stark attacking the GOP for opposing SCHIP. Before that it was Moveon.org for criticizing His Holiness General Petraeus, using language his colleagues and troops had used for years. Back in 2006, there was Kerry flubbing a joke about Bush's inept leadership in sending troops to Iraq. (Bush, of course, never mis-speaks.) In 2005, Senator Durbin was attacked for comparing Guantanamo to Nazi or Soviet prison camps. And in 2004, there was Edwards daring to mention that Cheney's daughter was gay--which was appreciated--followed by Kerry mentioning it, which was attacked. And, of course, there was also Moveon.org letting someone's proposed ad comparing Bush to Hitler on their site. These are just a few of the examples that come readily to mind.
These Shitstorms (TM) occur every time a Democrat or progressive exposes the truth about Republicans, whether it's a personal truth (that Bush amuses himself over the debacle in Iraq) or a policy truth (that torture in American-run prisons can be compared to torture in other prisons).
So how do we fight a Shitstorm (TM)? This is what comes immediately to mind for me:
1. Get our Democratic "leaders" to shut up, because they immediately surrender.
2. Send out our best talkers to fire back, starting with Air America Radio hosts and moving on from there.
3. Beat the crap out of them on progressive blogs.
What do you suggest?
Update 1: Georgia10 writes eloquently about the misdirection strategy at the heart of rightwing Shitstorms (TM).
oh, what masters of deflection Republicans have become. A debate about whether to invade Iraq becomes a debate about whether Joe Wilson's undercover CIA wife hooked him up with a sweet junket overseas. A debate on stem cell research becomes a debate about whether Michael J. Fox exaggerates his symptoms. A debate about the right to privacy becomes a debate about whether Terri's blinks were voluntary. A debate on Iraq policy becomes a debate about how mean people are to General Petraeus. A debate about health care becomes a full-blown investigation into the lifestyles of 12 year old Graeme Frost and 2 year old Bethany Wilkerson. A debate about curbing global climate change becomes a debate about how many compact fluorescent light bulbs Al Gore has in his house. A debate about the shameful level of poverty in this country becomes a debate about how much money John Edwards spent on a haircut. A debate about who's qualified to be president becomes a debate about who does or does not wear a lapel pin. A debate about executive accountability becomes a debate about whether Representative Stark hurt Mr. Bush's feelings.
Knowing that they cannot emerge victoriously out of a battle of ideas, Republicans latch on to individuals instead. Public figures and private citizens alike are fair game as the right-wing noise machine turns its cacophony-creating media apparatus in non-discriminating fashion upon any individual, any prey that can serve to distract even for one minute from the utter vapidity of the Republican platform today.
georgia10 recommends Democrats just ignore Shitstorms (TM) and they will go away. Unfortunately that's not how the political media works - if a charge is not immediately and aggressively rebutted, it is treated as valid. After all that's why the Swiftboating of Kerry worked - because Bob Shrum told him not to fight back on the theory it would just go away if he ignored it. That's why Bob Shrum has lost every campaign he's ever run, and why no one would hire him again.
