You’re a zealot because you ignore the facts I presented to you in that list of the negative effects of the citizens united ruling. Plopped your head in the sand.

You’re a zealot for corporations ruling our lives, not free speech.

You’re a zealot who can’t even agree to disagree you’re so blinded with dogmatic beliefs. I’m just happy people like you who would have us all live as slaves to corporations are in the minority.

Americans love freedom. We love the look of it, sound of it, the look of it, the taste of it, the smell of it. We roll in freedom like a dog in a choice meadow find. We run our fingers through it. We, like Cartman and his money, would wallow in a bathtub of the stuff, soaking it into our pores. All very understandable. What is more beautiful than freedom?

We love it so much, we get suckered by it. We love it so much, that we fall for freedom decoys that bear no more resemblance to the real thing than those plastic models with motorized wings that they sell at Cabela’s. The very word, FREEDOM, becomes some kind of holy icon that dazzles us so much that we don’t look very closely. It’s like the sun, for many people, they can’t look directly at it. What it represents is too precious. Examination is dangerous.

It’s dangerous like thinking too hard about love. “Of course I love you”, says the priest as he pulls the altar boy to him. “Of course I love you.”, says the spouse as he makes a fist. “Of course I love you, says the deity with his long white beard, “Now truss up your kid and throw him on the altar.”

Smell that sweet young fat burning? That’s the smell of your so-called freedom.

–GimpWii

Great, then do that. But you can’t get what you want by reducing someone else’s speech.

And that’s the crux of your dogma. You don’t seem to understand how reality works. I’ve already shown a list of the negative impacts the citizens united ruling has had on speech for average Americans by drowning it out with corporate money.

Something you have no problem with, apparently. But, fortunately, most Americans (who live in reality) do have a big problem with it.

censorious mobs

Spoken like a true zealot.

I want more speech for average Americans.

Great, then do that. But you can’t get what you want by reducing someone else’s speech. It doesn’t work that way, and it’s against one of the founding principles of this country. (A principle I note you take advantage of constantly, but want to deny to others.) Speech is not some limited commodity that needs to be rationed. It’s not zero-sum, and it’s impossible to “drown out” other voices in the internet age, so stop using that as an excuse to shut up people you disagree with.

And, very fortunately… you’re vastly outnumbered.

Even more fortunately, the 1st Amendment still stands, so that censorious mobs like yours don’t get to trample on the rights of the minority by dictating who can speak.

I have no “blind faith” in corporations, just the knowledge that there are many competing ones, all with limited powers, and all avoidable. The government, on the other hand, is an unavoidable monolith with a legal monopoly on force.

I suppose it wouldn’t help to let you know you just proved your blind faith with that ridiculous statement, would it? Completely ignoring the fact we have regular elections?

Also, our government you so despise, is no monolith. Only a person saturated in dogma would say such an untrue thing. Our government is an ever-changing, sprawling composition of elected people voted by the people to represent them. You may hate it, but I love it and I’m willing to fight and die for it despite its flaws.

Your corporations would have us live as fucking slaves if we left them unrestrained. Your blind faith in unrestrained, megalomaniacal corporatists is bordering on insanity.

Corporations have shown more and more unlimited power and are pervading every aspect of our lives to our detriment. Look around, and you might come to see this reality.

Oh… nevermind, the dogma has eaten you alive. We’ll just have to agree to disagree (if you’re still capable of such a thing).

Your argument fits into a standard pattern: “The threat of [corporations|pornography|drugs|terrorism|blasphemy|whatever] is so great that we must limit free speech.”

Once again, you’re confused.

I want more speech for average Americans. What you’re getting (whether it’s your intentions or not) is more speech for the very wealthy and to hell with everyone else.

Your dogma blinds you. We’ll just have to agree to disagree. And, very fortunately… you’re vastly outnumbered.

So you’re just going to have to deal with it.

Your argument fits into a standard pattern: “The threat of [corporations|pornography|drugs|terrorism|blasphemy|whatever] is so great that we must limit free speech.” Censors always believe they are doing the right thing, protecting other people from “dangerous speech” that might cause them to think or act in ways the censor doesn’t like, and they are nearly always wrong. Anti-Citizens United people are all wannabe censors, but rarely have the guts to admit it. 

One irony is that the typical anti-CU type will argue all day long that “free speech” includes things like flag burning, occupying parks, and blocking streets. But a DVD about Hilary Clinton funded by a tiny non-profit?? OMG if the federal government doesn’t stop things like that we’re all doomed!!1!!

politicians the power to decide who says what about them

That’s a corporatist lie. Anyone who works for a corporation can say whatever they want* and what most Americans would prefer is if the lowest paid workers at the corporations have just as much say as the highest paid CEOs.

In reality, Koch industries and other corrupt corporations have already utilized this ruling to help drown out free speech against other Americans including their own workers.

Your blind faith in corporations is a shame. Once again, the government is all we got. Should we trust our government? Nope. That’s why we have elections on a regular basis. Sorry, and we don’t want our elections completely rigged by corporations.

I’m sure you’ve got a better, libertarian utopia in mind. While you’re working on that pipe dream-nightmare, the rest of us got a real country to save.

* that is, they can say whatever they want as long as it’s not against the corporations they work for or they’ll get fired (or worse).

For more on reality, I have a tidy list here (you may have to copy and paste the link for it to jump to the post):

http://boingboing.net/2012/02/04/stephen-colberts-superpac-hu.html#comment-429487826

Or you can scroll up to the part of my post above after I say, ” … Since the citizens united ruling: … ”

Reality. Look into it.

In what world are the handful of people in Citizens United a “huge corporation”? And how is the NY Times not a huge corporation?

I don’t care about your delusions regarding evil corporations that are supposedly ruining your life. The 1st Amendment trumps your hysteria. Deal with it.

note that Cory’s summary is misleading: corporations cannot “make unlimited contributions to political campaigns” in the sense of giving money to candidates. What corporations (and unions and some non-profits) can do is speak out on political issues, including endorsing candidates, which of course the press has always been able to do.

Trite semantics on your part.  They actually can spend unlimited, anonymous money to contribute to a political campaign.  It’s now just easier to do it behind closed doors and feign ignorance as Stephen Colbert & Jon Stewart are laying bare for all the world to see.

Why you think that’s a “good thing” that huge corporations can now more easily drown out free speech against average citizens is beyond me.

But, thank goodness the American public is wiser and is strongly against this bullshit.

anyone arguing against CU is objectively in favor of the government censoring political speech.

Only a Sith speaks in absolutes.

Who is “the government”?  What is this dreadful beast?

It’s the American public and even with all our major flaws, our government is the closest goddam thing we have towards any hope of a representative democracy.

What’ve you got?  What representation do you have that works better? Wal-Mart?  Koch industries?

You can be a corporate communist all you’d like, but the rest of us want more self-determination than that.

These huge corporations run by corrupt, megalomaniacal corporatists are too powerful at this point to be run down with boycotts.   They have their corrupt, evil tentacles infesting every aspect of this country from our schools to our health care system.

Our last stronghold is this government.  And, we’re not giving it up, sorry.  The treasonous corporatists have infiltrated our domain and many of our politicians are in their pockets… but we’re naming names and through true grassroots struggles and education, we’re bringing all these fuckers down.

No wonder they want to throw as much money at fighting the American public as inhumanly possible.

It’s taking time and persistence.  But the American public has both.  The corporatists’ days are numbered.

Surrender, tuck your tail and run.  The rest of us are putting up the fight of our lifetimes.