I wonder about the same things, although you left one possibility out, which is that one or more of them are being paid to do the absurd things they do here. Actually, in my mind, they would better viewed if that were so. Why? Because then the explanation isn't that they have no character, or lack intelligence, or are simply being trolls because they can, and find it fun, which is the most "logical" explanation for what they post here. Instead, they would be supplementing their incomes by spamming for the GOP. Whether they believed what they post would not be important to them, because it would be a job, like working for a phone bank and cold calling potential voters, and doing so just for the salary. I know it sounds highly unlikely, but not nearly as unlikely as actually believing the crap that they post here. After all, it's capitalism in operation. Politics not out of belief, but out of a desire for money. The irony would be delicious.
I would believe that except for 3 things 1. They don't link back enough to any other site consistently to generate traffic or rev for them that would counter the costs. 2. They do it in off cycle years when it wouldn't make sense for them to get paid to post their sewage. 3. Seems that they would have easier ways to make money that posting on clutch fans. I think they are just ideologues.
Oh, I don't really believe it. Of course, most people didn't believe Watergate in the run-up to the '72 election. I remember it well, because I did believe Nixon was ultimately behind it. That the Washington Post stories were true. I had arguments with people 10 minutes before going into the voting booth (they had voting booths back then). "Nixon's a crook!" I said, and in reply? "No way! It's just too rediculous! Why would he do it?" Truth can be stranger than fiction.
it can be but usually explanations are much simpler. Romney doesn't release his taxes because he knows it will become campaign fodder since he had some near 0 tax years. Simplest explanation. Reid is making up what he is saying. Simplest explanation. TJ & Basso - they are just really like that, and they aren't trolls. It's actually pretty hard to maintain a front for years even online. Problem is you get bored. I do think TJ is more aware of his b.s. where Basso is not.
I have to disagree. basso and Trader_J don't believe half of what they post, in my opinion, if that much. They're trolling big time.
let me correct. They are trolls in that they want to get a rise out of people. But the same can be said for some of the liberal posters on here as well. But they do believe in their agendas. They won't admit to ever being wrong, and they may know inside they are, but they truly believe that the overall platform is correct.
People actually write for FAUX news too. But people can be willfully delusional when it serves their own self interest. Existing in a insular, self-confirming circle allows confirmation bias to define your reality to the group-think. Maintaining a purity of ideology is a defense from attacks of outside logic. A change in the social and economic dominance of the White Christian demographic is a threatening concept. Being the top of the food chain is a privileged position of evolutionary value. Being in and maintaining the 1% even more so.
Romney Probably Shouldn't Talk About His Dad's Free-McDonald's-For-Life Card Gus Lubin | Aug. 8, 2012, 6:44 AM | 6,556 | 38 Already seen as a wealthy elite, Mitt Romney probably shouldn't brag about the special privelege granted to his dad by Ray Kroc himself. But that's what he did at a Chicago fundraiser, according to ABC News' Amy Walter and Emily Friedman: “You know how boys liked to go through their dad’s top drawer, just to sort of see what he has in there, maybe find an old coin he might not miss or whatever, ” Romney told a group of donors at a Chicago fundraiser this afternoon. “I found a little paper card, a little pink card, and it said this entitles George W. Romney to a lifetime of a hamburger, a shake and French fries at McDonald’s. It was signed by the hand of Ray Kroc. My dad had done a little training lesson or whatever for McDonald’s when there was just a handful of restaurants and I saw this thing and was like, ‘This is a gold mine, Dad! What are you doing?’ So I had it laminated. My dad, as you know, would go almost every day to a McDonald’s restaurant and get either a hamburger or a fish filet sandwich. And he would present this little card and of course the person behind the counter would look and say, ‘Well, what is that?’ They’d never seen something like that, but he said it was never turned down. They always honored it.” http://www.businessinsider.com/romneys-dad-had-free-mcdonalds-for-life-card-2012-8
Apparently, one of my old friends owns a firm that specializes in using the web for politics. Rumour has it that he has about 40-60 employees whose sole purpose is to comment on news articles, political book reviews on Amazon, YouTube videos, blogs, forums, and Facebook whatever message a client pays his firm to disseminate. It seems to have evolved from what used to be niche online marketing and PR in the early 00s to what I call the 'disformation industry'. His company is one of many, and his clients tend to lean conservative, but there are also Democrats. If you think about it, it's quite brilliant. If there are even 200-300 fake users out there which target the comments section of the 15 largest newspapers in America, by posting blatantly false information they create an artificial reality. I realize this sounds very Orwellian and far-fetched, but usually this source is very reliable as far as gossip. It was she who told me about the Swift Boat Veterans and the existence of Wikileaks, Assange, and Manning, before any news outlets reported them.
It's called persona management and it's huge. Everyone from corporations to governments are manipulating what's hot and what's not on the interwebz....and by extension the world. They use "sock puppets", many of them automated, to spam forums, facebook, etc to mass promote whatever agenda they want.
I don't think TJ is paid. I firmly believe basso is. He doesn't have to be paid to link back to any sites. I think he's paid by people like in the post based on an agenda. I don't think Clutchfans is the only place he posts. I have noticed that he'll take articles that are freeper articles but will link to them other places. After his style and posting habits took a dramatic turn for the dark side, he also started posting about going to various conventions where technology and computers are the subject matter. He might go there for his posting business. He never posted about those conventions before. His style, and ploys to troll people into more responses reeks of someone being paid for what he does.
Not a very good poll day for Mittens http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entries/fox-poll-obama-by-9-nationally
Not only that but even though all summer long Willard has outspent Obama 2 to 1, he has not expanded the map. And it's getting smaller. It's really down to about 6 or 7 swing states. And Obama is ahead overall in those states. Rmoney can't seem to connect to anything outside the 1%. Not even the tea party likes him.
Fox News poll: Obama's lead grows as Romney's support slips By Dana Blanton Published August 10, 2012 | FoxNews.com Mitt Romney has had a tough couple of weeks on the campaign trail -- and it shows in the latest Fox News poll. After a barrage of campaign ads, negative news coverage of his overseas trip and ongoing talk about his tax returns, Romney’s favorable rating and standing in the trial ballot have declined. As a result, President Obama has opened his biggest lead since Romney became the presumptive Republican nominee. The president would take 49 percent of the vote compared to Romney's 40 percent in a head-to-head matchup if the election were held today, the poll found. Last month, Obama had a four percentage-point edge of 45 percent to 41 percent. This marks the second time this year the president has had a lead outside the poll’s margin of sampling error. Obama’s advantage comes largely from increased support among independents, who now pick him over Romney by 11 percentage points. Some 30 percent of independents are undecided. Last month, Obama had a four-point edge among independents, while Romney had the advantage from April through early June. There was also an uptick in support for Obama among women, blacks and Democrats. ......... URL http://www.foxnews.comhttp://www.fo...oll-obama-lead-grows-as-romney-support-slips/
Romney has to be careful. He must keep his head screwed on and not repeat the mistake John McCain made 4 years ago. He should make a safe choice for running-mate, understand this race will automatically tighten up later and not blow his chance to win by selecting a veep that isn't ready for prime time.
