April 22, 2006 8:44 AM

Trollwatch 2006

One People’s Project: Hate Has Its Consequences

There are a boatload of angry, hateful voices on the Right- Ann Coulter, Michelle Malkin, Michael Savage, Pat Roberston, ad infinitum, ad nauseum- whose continued existence, and their paychecks, depend on feeding the ignorance, the fear, and the reaction that fuels so much of the current political debate on the Right. Why discuss an issue rationally, when you can demonize those who disagree with you and marginalize them as clueless, unpatriotic zealots who hate America and worship that Satan’s bitch, Hillary Clinton?

Why conduct a reasoned, dispassionate argument when you attract so much more attention- and money- by engaging in name-calling and shouting down your adversaries? Hey, there’s money to be made by dealing in hate and ignorance, and apparently it’s rather lucrative work if you can get it. All you need is a congenital disrespect for those who don’t think as you do, a complete disregard of common courtesy, and a hyper-developed since of your own intellectual and moral superiority. Oh, and a healthy dose of intolerance doesn’t hurt, either.

Thankfully, there are folks out there who have determined that the way to make these cockroaches scurry is to keep the light focused on them. By exposing them as the hate-filled, intolerant bigots they are, we can at least get to see the truth about them. One People’s Project first came to my attention this week during the fuss over my linking to their page spotlighting Michelle Malkin. OPP’s Rogues Gallery spotlights those who traffic in hate as their raison d’etre. In some respects, this is probably more attention than these trolls deserve, but I think it’s useful for those of us who value tolerance and diversity to have a resource to understand what fuels hatred and intolerance as well as those who openly and knowingly peddle this trash.

Yes, hate speech, ignorance, and intolerance is still free and protected speech, but that doesn’t mean we have to accept it unquestioningly. Thanks to the people at OPP for creating this resource. You will undoubtedly see me taking full advantage of it in the future.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on April 22, 2006 8:44 AM.

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