Althouse: "You have embarrassing material in your supposedly professional journal that is out there festering right now."

December 2, 2011

"You have embarrassing material in your supposedly professional journal that is out there festering right now."

"And I really don't care about amends you 'may' make next year."

59 comments:

Issob Morocco said...: Stellar disassemblage!; 12/2/11, 11:44 AM
ndspinelli said...: I'll come back in a minute w/ something pity. Right now I'm doing all my Christmas shopping on Amazon.; 12/2/11, 11:46 AM
ndspinelli said...: It was supposed to be "pithy" a Freudian typo! I'm just so engaged in buying on Amazon!!; 12/2/11, 11:48 AM
Chip S. said...: So, you find it so defamatory to be called "conservative" that you're posting this reply twice?

Methinks everyone in Madison doth protest too much.; 12/2/11, 11:51 AM
Mark O said...: The ABA is just another lefist union. It should have described Ann as "enchanting," "distracting," or even "blonde."

When a publication can't find anything that is "liberal," it fully defines the publication.; 12/2/11, 11:51 AM
edutcher said...: Sounds like something J would say.

Maybe it's time to give him a rest.

(maybe Ann has an alter ego...(they say, as people get older, all the inhibitions come out...)); 12/2/11, 11:53 AM
Toad Trend said...: To be able to tell someone to go pound sand in a nice way is elegant.

Nice job...; 12/2/11, 12:02 PM
Roger J. said...: Professor: continue to do what you are doing--I suspect there is a certain amount of blog envy going on.; 12/2/11, 12:04 PM
Chuck66 said...: AA's blog is one of the very few places conservatives and liberals can come and discuss.

Few looney's on either side here. My biggest thing is that the liberals here aren't too much into conspiracy theories like far too many Wisconsin Democrats are.; 12/2/11, 12:09 PM
Dark Eden said...: "So, you find it so defamatory to be called "conservative" that you're posting this reply twice"

I don't know if she found it defamatory but they clearly meant it to be.

I don't think of Althouse so much as a conservative as a moderate liberal who recognizes that voting Republican doesn't make you a nazi terrorist racist. That's all it takes to be outcast by some on the left these days.; 12/2/11, 12:20 PM
Chip S. said...: I don't know if she found it defamatory but they clearly meant it to be.

I'll wager that no more than ten percent of the people who've commented on this teapot tempest have actually read the article in question. The list is a potpourri of law blogs, overwhelmingly. Aside from the fact that Althouse is presided over by a law prof, how much of a law blog is it? It's more like a diary that's shared with the world in real time. I read the article's description as an attempt to convey that sense of it to potential readers.

Paul Caron's blog was mentioned, without being described as "conservative". That's because he mostly restricts his commentary to tax law. Brian Leiter's blog wasn't mentioned at all, so there was no need to describe its political viewpoint.

I'd have thought Althouse would be happy to have made the cut, when so many other largely political law blogs did not.

This virtual foot-stomping is a good way to get left off next year's list.; 12/2/11, 12:32 PM
DADvocate said...: You failed to tell him you drive an Audi. That would have destroyed the conservative tag right then and there. (Let's don't talk about the Confederate flag in your backyard though.); 12/2/11, 12:34 PM
Anonymous said...: The Confederate Flag is not conservative. if you want a real conservative flag, you have to back before any of the states carved out of the illegal Louisiana Purchase were added.; 12/2/11, 12:44 PM
coketown said...: Wow. Scathing email! Note to self: Do not call Ann Althouse conservative...; 12/2/11, 12:53 PM
AllenS said...: Kinda funny that it's the liberals who find The Althouse Woman conservative. That says a lot about liberals.; 12/2/11, 1:01 PM
Richard Dolan said...: It's a commonplace today to note that the internet in general and blogging in particular tends to become an exercise in gravitating to what you already agree with. Accepting arguendo the ABA's spin, Ann's post points out another way in which this is the atypical place on the internet. Ann's posts don't often advocate policies associated with conservative politics even if they sometimes reflect conservative values. (It's odd to think that a vigorous defense of the First Amendment has become something of a conservative value but that's the reality today.)

From her posts and what she's said about her voting record, it's clear that Ann qualifies as a moderate Dem -- except for two occasions, she's voted Dem on the presidential line since 1972, the policy issues she features (same sex marriage being most prominent) are mostly associated with the Dems, and her most obvious pet peeve is how feminism has been coopted to serve partisan goals rather than its own ostensible raises an interesting question values.

None of that is intended or could possibly function as 'red meat' for gonzo-righties. Strange that anyone looking at that would conclude that this is a conservative gathering-place (assuming the ABA journalist knew enough actually to have an opinion rather than merely recycling the received wisdom in lefty blogs that this is a conservative hotbet).

The ABA journal's 'conservative' tag for this blog raises another issue similar to the self-segregating phenom common on the internet (just not here). It's been evident for some time that, as part of that self-segregating phenom, words come to mean different things to those ideologically segregated subgroups. "Conservative" and "liberal" are prime amont them, used by both ends of the spectrum to write off those who don't fully toe the line. It's first cousin to "politically correct," which has mostly been a feature of the left but shows up ever more regularly on the right these days.; 12/2/11, 1:29 PM
traditionalguy said...: The many layers of LaAlthouse can make most comments about her look wrong.

She is an art designer who seeks beauty and believes in mercy...so she must be a liberal.

And then she believes in categories and clear definitions of reality...so she must be a Conservative.

The Progressives have crossed over into demanding their members are unceasingly bowing to an alternative reality that is made of myths developed by master mind controllers.

(How is that Dirty Carbon polluting the air and ending life everywhere any day now doing?)

So where could Althouse ever fit into that?; 12/2/11, 1:37 PM
Anonymous said...: Proud of you, Althouse.; 12/2/11, 2:03 PM
Irene said...: Brava.; 12/2/11, 2:05 PM
DADvocate said...: It's odd to think that a vigorous defense of the First Amendment has become something of a conservative value but that's the reality today.

As has the vigorous defense of most of the Bill of Rights.; 12/2/11, 2:11 PM
Levi Starks said...: Well it certainly seems that you've coddled conservatives, and apparently that's that's enough.; 12/2/11, 2:11 PM
sorepaw said...: The list is a potpourri of law blogs, overwhelmingly.

In which no law blog is ever described as liberal, progressive, or Left-wing.

For some reason.; 12/2/11, 2:23 PM
Heart_Collector said...: To stupid to even prioritize their strategic targets.

Liberals, cant live with em, cant sustain em.; 12/2/11, 2:28 PM
Heart_Collector said...: Im sure if all blogs were fire dog lake... the world would be a better place.; 12/2/11, 2:38 PM
AlphaLiberal said...: Ann, you frequently repeat Rush Limbaugh's statements; you say the corporate media working for those conservative billionaires are somehow liberal; you attack critics of torture, child labor, and Wall Street like any other right wing attack dog, you mount ad hominem attacks on scientists studying global warming; you attack any Democrat with plain vanilla Republican caricatures, etc, etc.

Get over it and quit yer bitchin'. You're a conservative.; 12/2/11, 2:46 PM
Patrick said...: Wow, it's been awhile since Alpha has weighed in.

"you attack critics of torture, child labor, and Wall Street like any other right wing attack dog, you mount ad hominem attacks on scientists studying global warming; you attack any Democrat with plain vanilla Republican caricatures, etc, etc. "

I'll grant you that to some extent it's in the eye of the beholder, but "attack" is different than "point out errors, inconsistencies or misreadings of things she's written."; 12/2/11, 3:23 PM
Anonymous said...: While those are the only two labeled as conservative (and commentary takes shots at both), they are not the only conservative blogs on the list. The others are just not labeled conservative. Overlawyered and Bainbridge, for instance (there may well be others, I don't read most of these blogs).; 12/2/11, 3:28 PM
madAsHell said...: Bill McKinney, the actor whom delivered the line "squeal like a pig" in the movie "Deliverance" has died.; 12/2/11, 3:57 PM
rhhardin said...: Fester on low heat.

It ought to get a sudden Althouse tag, for weird things that set Althouse off.; 12/2/11, 4:01 PM
Curious George said...: I would be more embarrassed by the reason you voted for Obama than some stupid ABA ranking.; 12/2/11, 4:03 PM
d-day said...: I hate when lawyers reflexively join ABA. It's a liberal advocacy organization, let's stop pretending they're neutral. I stopped sending them checks when they filed a brief opposing individual 2nd Amendment rights in Heller. If I want to read the magazine, I know 5890524 other lawyers to borrow it from.; 12/2/11, 4:12 PM
d-day said...: @Chip: It's not defamatory to call her conservative, but it is an attack. They're using it to marginalize her because she criticizes liberals and Democrats from time to time. With the self-segregating internet echo chamber, calling her a conservative is a good way to tell liberal readers not to read her.; 12/2/11, 4:15 PM
Chip S. said...: @d-day--Putting her on their Top 100 list seems like an odd way to marginalize her.; 12/2/11, 4:23 PM
Robert Cook said...: "I don't know if she found it defamatory but they clearly meant it to be."

It read like a fairly objective, judgement-neutral description to me, and I certainly don't see the least defamatory intent.

One may have differing views on Prof. Althouse's place on the political spectrum--she seems more conservative than liberal to me, (but hey, perhaps this simply points up how inexact and insufficient is our nomenclature for describing the more shaded realities of flesh-and-bone people), but judged on the preponderance of daily comments here--which constitute the major part of this blog's content--it's a conservative blog.; 12/2/11, 4:41 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: Althouse: I resent the crude label, which wasn't imposed on any other bloggers.

1. They only listed four other opinion blogs in the top 100.

2. They do describe other blogs as "liberal", "progressive", and "conservative" in their larger list.

3. They literally labeled another of the opinion blogs, The Legal Satyricon, as "crude". They even said, "this blog isn’t for the faint of heart".

4. The list was meant to be fun, and Althouse is clearly having fun acting out the part of an agrieved victim.

5. What does Althouse have against being labeled "conservative"?

I believe Althouse owes the ABA, and her readers, a public apology.; 12/2/11, 4:44 PM
Carnifex said...: @ AlphaLiberal

So your argument of Professor Althouse being a conservative is (paraphrasing): I'm a bitch! You're not a bitch.!

Truly, you have a dizzying intellect.

My validation word is "destini" :-); 12/2/11, 5:10 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "What does Althouse have against being labeled "conservative"?"

I object to being portrayed this way: "In nearly eight years of blogging, Ann Althouse doesn’t miss a chance to offer her conservative take on the latest political dustup."

I take every opportunity to say something conservative about whatever's happening. That is false and it's a disparaging portrayal of me as a political hack. I don't like it, and I don't see anything liberal treated that way.; 12/2/11, 5:17 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "Ann, you frequently repeat Rush Limbaugh's statements; you say the corporate media working for those conservative billionaires are somehow liberal; you attack critics of torture, child labor, and Wall Street like any other right wing attack dog, you mount ad hominem attacks on scientists studying global warming; you attack any Democrat with plain vanilla Republican caricatures, etc, etc. Get over it and quit yer bitchin'. You're a conservative."

I voted for Obama. I've supported same-sex marriage, abortion rights, and many other liberal causes.

Plus, your characterizations of things I've written is full of mistakes. It's actually quite stupid, really.; 12/2/11, 5:19 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "@d-day--Putting her on their Top 100 list seems like an odd way to marginalize her."

They want the links, the traffic. They're hoping I will tell people to go over and vote for me and so forth. It's an annual gimmick.; 12/2/11, 5:21 PM
Henry said...: Fester is an entertaining word. A wound can fester. So can garbage. The context suggest garbage.

The problem with the word "conservative" isn't just the hackneyed labeling. It's the sloppy imprecision. Think of the other adjectives that could have been used in it's place.

"incisive" for example. Or "pointed".

Now look at the adjectives used in the other descriptions. You think Molly McDonough, Sarah Randag and Lee Rawles aren't playing favorites?; 12/2/11, 5:56 PM
Henry said...: That's a rhetorical question.; 12/2/11, 5:57 PM
Ralph L said...: We've got plenty of byro festering here in the comments section, if we could just figure out what it is.; 12/2/11, 5:59 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: Althouse: I don't like it, and I don't see anything liberal treated that way.

That's because they've completely ignored the liberal blogs. They describe two as conservative, one as talking about clothing, another as posting penguin videos, and another gets a vague reference about its writing style.

They've done more than just ignore the liberal blogs. It's pretty obvious the person who made the list doesn't know much about any of the blogs and tried to add a few specific details where they could to hide that fact.

You should be happy they remembered so much about your blog!

And they got this bit perfectly:

"Or become part of a dustup"

Which you are proving to be completely true.

You're probably having a fight with the work of an unpaid intern. Oh, I hope you are proud of yourself.; 12/2/11, 6:17 PM
Henry said...: @Jason -- There's a byline. Check it out.

Look, I'd say you're half right. The folks at ABA needed to write blurbs on short notice. Grant them a thousand excuses.

But when you print something, you own it. The people with the byline own it and the publisher owns it. Excuses are for lightweights.; 12/2/11, 6:23 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: Henry: @Jason -- There's a byline. Check it out.

I saw the byline and I'm skeptical. The main text may have been written by that person, but the list itself has "intern" written all over it. And even if it's not by an intern, it's obviously written by someone who cared very little about what was said about each blog.; 12/2/11, 6:27 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Plus, your characterizations of things I've written is full of mistakes. It's actually quite stupid, really.

You're being charitable.

Hyperbole, thy name is AlphaLiberal. Ad hominem attacks on climate scientists? I must've missed those. A-Lib, you're confused linking to a story with actually endorsing the story (or endorsing your interpretation of it).; 12/2/11, 7:05 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Can I just add that Ann's advocacy for free speech is downright libertarian?; 12/2/11, 7:10 PM
sorepaw said...: you mount ad hominem attacks on scientists studying global warming

For Alpha Liberal, substantiated charges that advocates of Catastrophic Anthropogenic Global Warming have—deliberately presented their data in misleading ways, deliberately withheld their raw data from other researchers who requested it, and campaigned to get journal editors fired for publishing articles with which they disagree—are "ad hominem attacks."

If this is the Alpha case, imagine how bad the arguments of Beta Liberals would have to be.; 12/2/11, 7:12 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Hey sorepaw, that's a great slogan for the prez campaign: "Let's make Obama the Omega Liberal."; 12/2/11, 7:32 PM
sakredkow said...: Jeez. What was the email like that the editor sent to Althouse?; 12/2/11, 8:46 PM
Kirby Olson said...: I'm constantly labeled as the only Beat Studies prof who is a conservative. I don't think I'm a conservative. I'm centrist. Besides, Kerouac was a Republican who laughed along with McCarthy. He loved McCarthy! Ginsberg was a leftist, but Kerouac certainly wasn't. Kerouac is the only real Beat, so he set the tone. It's still painful to be corralled into a tiny rubric of some kind.; 12/2/11, 9:37 PM
LoafingOaf said...: Can I just add that Ann's advocacy for free speech is downright libertarian?

She ain't so in favor of free speech. Althouse and her husband drove around Madison with cameras rolling in her high-priced car trying to get salt truck drivers fired if they honked their horn in support of a protest she disagreed with. She couldn't figure out if they deserved to be in trouble for over-salting or under-salting,she just wanted them in trouble for disagreeing with her and her husband. Where I'm from, that's a fucking jerk.

She's trying to go on about how her vote for Obama proves it's wrong to call her blog a conservative blog. Instapundit doesn't give a daily link to blogs that don't serve his propaganda. This blog is his pet and she makes money from that.

Althouse's fave politician in 2008 was Sarah Palin. She voted for Obama because McCain wasn't conservative enough, and she wanted Obama in there for four years so the GOP could get back to real conservatism while Obama was taking all the heat while dealing with the George W. Bush housing bubble, foreign policy quagmires, and other catastrophes.

Also, some of us predicted that one of the reasons she voted for Obama was just so she could go on for four years about how, though she bashes him daily, she voted for Obama.

The ABA Journal put her blog in the opinion category along with just 4 other blogs. There was no reason to call other blogs liberal or conservative. They didn't call Professor Bainbridge a conservative blog, for example.

She didn't want you to know that. She wanted to play the victim of the liberals (again) and stir shit up.

She said the ABA Journal called the Volokh Conspiracy a "conservative" blog, which Instapundit copied without checking.

What they said was: "While commentary generally flows libertarian and conservative, no opinion is likely to go unchallenged by other contributors or their active reader base."

Entirely accurate.

They mentioned that Althouse likes to become part of dustups. That's what she's doing here. Entirely accurate.

It's some kind of game the blogger's up to when she doesn't want us to notice that she writes blog posts with the hope that Rush Limbaugh will read them on the air the next day but then plays the victim when someone points out that it's a conservative blog.; 12/3/11, 12:03 AM
Robert Cook said...: "Kerouac is the only real Beat, so he set the tone."

Come again?; 12/3/11, 5:06 AM
Joe Schmoe said...: she just wanted them in trouble for disagreeing with her and her husband.

This is stupid. Public workers were driving around wasting time and gas on a protest that they should've participated in outside of their work hours. You got caught and don't want to be held accountable.; 12/3/11, 5:45 AM
Anonymous said...: "...I voted for Obama. I've supported same-sex marriage, abortion rights, and many other liberal causes.

..and some of my best friends are black.; 12/3/11, 7:28 AM
Jason (the commenter) said...: Althouse: I voted for Obama. I've supported same-sex marriage, abortion rights, and many other liberal causes.

So, other than saying she voted for Obama, Althouse has the same political history as Romney.; 12/3/11, 7:58 AM
ndspinelli said...: MadasHell, "You sure got a peeerty mouth."; 12/3/11, 8:51 AM
sorepaw said...: Hmm.

Obama the Omega Liberal...

Discredited the "progressive" cause, once and for all.; 12/3/11, 11:21 AM
LoafingOaf said...: This is stupid. Public workers were driving around wasting time and gas on a protest that they should've participated in outside of their work hours. You got caught and don't want to be held accountable.

What I think is stupid and what you think is stupid differ. I think it's stupid that Althouse and her ultra-right-wing husband drove around with their camera worrying about whether a salt truck driver honking his horn was salting too much or salting too little.

The context is whether Althouse is appropriately labeled a conservative blog. Of course it is. Every time I look at the blog it is acting as a tool for the right. Every time I look in the comments, it's a bunch of hardcore conservatives. That's what she chose to make her blog. It didn't start out that way, but that's what it is. Althouse is Instapundit's pet. Oh, I just looked at the blog again, and the entry I saw was Meade doing a mic check at a right-wing radio program, hosted by a blowhard who likes to defame firefighters. Yup, every time I look at it, it's a conservative blog. That's what it is.

Why the whining about someone calling it what it is?; 12/4/11, 11:58 PM