TPM vs NYT: Marshall takes on Brooks.

[BlueEyedSon]

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2004_01_04.html#002372

<snip>

In Brooks’ column, aside from the anti-Semitism stuff I’ve noted, we can see another common ploy. In fact, it makes up almost the entirety of Brooks’ column.

The aim is to discredit any notion that neoconservatism plays any significant role in Bush administration foreign policy --- a demonstrably ridiculous point. Brooks does this by mixing in all sorts of code words about ‘conspiracies’, ‘jews’, radio communications through dental filings and the like to stigmatize as ridiculous what is actually a serious issue and ripe field for serious debate.

It’s almost the definition of anti-intellectualism.

Here’s a particular example from the second graf of Brooks’ column …

Theories about the tightly knit neocon cabal came in waves. One day you read that neocons were pushing plans to finish off Iraq and move into Syria. Web sites appeared detailing neocon conspiracies; my favorite described a neocon outing organized by Dick Cheney to hunt for humans.



This is really classic. First, a demonstrably accurate point, neocons pushing for forcible regime change in Syria followed by some story about Dick Cheney’s hunting trip to hunt humans.

<snip>

Woo hoo! Brooks is toast!

[Manix]

1. ...somehow Brooks' stuff has been portrayed in various quarters as

a "moderate" conservative voice. This clearly puts him in the
kooky ultra-right. This charade is over.

[DoYouEverWonder]

2. Here's a link to Brook's article

He is really living in fantasy land. He's probably hitting the oxycotin with Rush again. Oh that's right, I forgot, none of these folks even know each other. Yeah, sure whatever you say David.


http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/01/06/1073268035178.html

How the 'neo-cons' are taking over the world - or not

January 7, 2004

Do you ever get the sense the whole world is becoming unhinged from reality? I started feeling that way a while ago, when I was still working for The Weekly Standard and all these articles began appearing about how Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, Doug Feith, Bill Kristol and a bunch of "neo-conservatives" at the magazine had taken over US foreign policy.

Theories about the tightly knit neo-con cabal came in waves. One day you read that neo-cons were pushing plans to finish off Iraq and move into Syria. Websites appeared detailing neo-con conspiracies; my favourite described a neo-con outing organised by Dick Cheney to hunt for humans.

<snip>

The full-mooners fixated on a think tank called the Project for the New American Century, which has a staff of five and issues memos on foreign policy. To hear these people describe it, it is sort of a Yiddish Trilateral Commission, the nexus of the sprawling neo-con tentacles.

<snip>

The ones outside government have almost no contact with President George Bush. There have been hundreds of references, for example, to the insidious power of Richard Perle, chairman of the Defence Policy Board, over Administration policy, but I've been told by senior Administration officials that he has had no significant meetings with Bush or Cheney since they assumed office. If he's shaping their decisions, he must be microwaving his ideas into their fillings.