Why All the Name Calling?

[oostevo]

Through all my browsing of Democratic Underground forums, I have noticed quite a lot of people replying to threads by calling our leaders (well, sort of leaders) names.
For example, instead of pointing out how ABSOLUTELY INSANE Bush's policies are, people think it suffices to call him "Whistle-Ass". What does that even mean? Wouldn't it do the left a lot more good to debate policies with intellect instead of acting in a way that people might see as childish?

I welcome your comments.

PLEASE NOTE: I do not mean for this to seem condescending at all. It's merely a question.

[wtmusic]

1. I agree. Please don't call Whistle-Ass names.

Welcome to DU oostevo!

:bounce: :toast: :bounce:

Yeah, sometimes DU is not known for its maturity. However we're pretty informal around here and um, 'his' name is just sort of hard to say the way it's spelled--it just sounds uncharacteristically official.

[wryter2000]

2. I'm certainly at fault on this one.

On many occasions, I've called Whistle Ass Chimpy McAwol. Shame on me.

[Cocoa]

3. mosly because it's funny

stick around, oostevo, it turned me off at first too but you get used to it and it starts being funny.

And Mrs. Baron was not childish, she was in her 70's.

[Terwilliger]

4. I dont think there's any need to debate Bush's idiocy

its already well established

[JackDragna]

5. This is an internet message board..

..not "Meet The Press." People are going to be abrasive and pointed when referring to the president simply to be funny or blow off some steam. Please save us the sanctimony about acting "childish."

[oostevo]

8. Okay, okay ...

You're right, I probably shouldn't have used the word "childish", but the rest of the message still applies.

[JackDragna]

15. Okay, it does. And it's still useless.

Do you think every post in here should be some detailed analysis of why the president's policies are failing? People are going to hang out (as much as they can on the internet) and be casual, which means they're going to stick verbal pins in the president. I'm sorry, but I don't get posts like yours that call for people here to take the intellectual high ground. I consider myself just as learned about politics as anyone I know and when I need to have a rational political discussion, I do all right. When I want to vent about the president, however, I'll do it here and you and everyone else that thinks me childish be damned. :)

[wryter2000]

6. On a more serious note

1) this is a refuge for people who are tired of Bush, his lies, and his murderous policies. Calling him names here is a harmless way to blow off steam.
2) It's become abundantly clear that the left (and dems) have been put at a severe disadvantage by trying to engage in intelligent discourse with the right. Accusing us of calling names is laughable from people who call Jimmy Carter a traitor,
3) They've not only spewn invective at us, they've lied. All of them, repeatedly and vituperatively. Read Al Franken if you don't believe it. It's about damned time someone stood up and told Whistle Ass that he's a "miserable failure" and changed the conversation.

[Flying_Pig]

7. Whistle Ass?

Oh, you mean Smirky McMonkeyboy! Sorry, but DU is a good place for us frustrated Dems to vent. You will also notice a tint of humor attached to most of the "name calling". If you're looking for a dry, humorless board, this ain't it.

On edit: And with 14 posts, you're already criticizing the place, you won't be around long anyway.... Ciao!

[StClone]

9. Bush doesn't really need to be called stuff

Especially "President" that's a disgrace to all of American history.
By comparison the other names are more accurate!

[oostevo]

10. Very good point.

[chaumont58]

11. Your proposition strikes me as a little bit looney

The repukes can say the most god awful things about Clinton, or the left in general, but the left is supposed to be above it, and not reply in kind? You been in a cave for the last 10 years? And, if I call Bush a smirking chimp or dumber than a bag of hammers, what part of what I am saying is NOT the truth? You've forgotten about Ken Starr, Watermelon Dan, Scaife.net(with all of its myriad of tenticles), the trashing of Al Gore(vs truth teller extraordinare George W Bush), by the RNC and its constitutionally protected arm, the beltway whores. Jesus H. Christ, could it be that you work for a pink tutu Senate Democrat?
Up this high road with a rubber hose.

[oostevo]

18. No ...

actually I'm in high school

[CatWoman]

19. well -- this is a switch

trying to tell adults how to behave.

What was I thinking???????

[Terwilliger]

23. Free Republic High?

that's in Fresno, isn't it?

[Lizz612]

24. I'm not sure I believe you....

I'm 18 and I've never met a liberal highschooler unwilling to call "our leader" a crack monkey. But I guess I have to trust that you're just a more moderate dem. and tell you that if you keep up stuff like this you're gonna get called on it and you might even get booted. The High Road is not found in the GDF. If you want serious dicussion go into the more specific rooms.

[JohnKleeb]

26. hey lizz moderates can insult too

BTW I am in the liberal wing lol what I mean is my moderate grandparents well they are really liberals but they hammer at Shrub and Co like its no tommorow.

[Bake]

27. Crack monkey! I love it!

Bake

[oostevo]

29. Thank you for the warning

Thanks for the warning, and the suggestion. I'm rather new to the forums.

I _am_ a very liberal democrat (especially socially liberal), though I still believe that pointing out flaws in policy is better than calling someone names.

[CatWoman]

30. go and hang out over here for a while before you judge us so harshly

www.freerepublic.com

[oostevo]

31. I have ...

And their complaints about us resorting to name calling instead of intellectual debate are the basis of this question (and it is a question! Not a judgement!) While I strongly disagree with almost absolutely everything they say there, it took me by surprise that I couldn't come up with a very good counter-argument for that.

By the way, do look at the last line of the newly-edited root post. I really didn't mean to offend.

[CatWoman]

32. counter argument for what?

do you have blinders on?

A liberal can't even call into a right-wing radio show. He will either be ridiculed and hung up on, or ignored.

On the other hand, lefties such as Guy James and Randi Rhodes routinely take calls from right wingers, and debate with them.

They are always the first to throw grenades.

Plus, we do not debate right wingers here.

This is not a forum for expressing their point of view.

[oostevo]

34. I meant ...

internal debate. I wanted to prove to myself that they were wrong.

[CatWoman]

35. you are really contradicting yourself

either we call Bush* names unnecessarily, or we call each other names unnecessarily.

Just which is it?

Name calling among DUers is not tolerated here by admin.

So which is it???

And why do we have to prove something to you?

You showed up here calling US names.

[roughsatori]

12. So now you're name calling: "instead of acting childish"

How ironic, you use the same technique you are complaining about. Odd that is a favorite device of neo-conservatives.

[oostevo]

14. I get the point!

I'm sorry I used the word childish. I've edited it.

[CatWoman]

16. yeah

on MTP this morning, the Repub GOP chair had the FUCKING GALL to say that Dems go negative early with name calling.

[Generic Other]

13. I started calling Bush names during the debates

when I saw the cold blooded glint in his eye when he talked about the death penalty.

That was when I knew what a dangerous SOB Bush was. Nothing he has done since has convinced me that my initial impression was wrong.

Calling him names is the only legal way I have to express my disapproval of him.

[CatWoman]

17. he got that glint from his mother

the evil harpy.

[LittleApple81]

20. You must be also wondering why Franken is so popular?

He is called Whistle-Ass because that is the kindest thing some people can call him. And because Democrats are fed-up with the attacks from the right-wingers and the do-nothing response from the "Democratic" politicians.

[patrice]

21. I agree with you. I like to try to persuade and give people

a chance to agree with me.

Sometimes, I say rude things here because I really DO need to let off steam, and people laugh about that here. There is so much that is so screwed up, and you get mad, and there is nothing that can be done with that anger.

[Clark Can WIN]

22. Don't call Bunnypants names any more!

Whistle ass deserves better than that. Chimpy McDumbass is not a dignified way to refer to the pretender in thief. Captain Doobie should be addressed by his proper name Duuuuh bya.

[JohnKleeb]

25. Ive noticed you are a few years older than me

The reason is because we are silly lol, this isnt just a political fourm too.

[imax2268]

28. steveo

I try not to use very harsh name calling but I will call him shrub, chimpy, or BushCo...but you have to understand...this is a forum...and many, many people are tired of Shrub and the direction that he is taking this country...I can tell you that I am mad as hell and sometimes name calling comes out...

I tell you this though...go to any of the freeper sites and you see the names the call us...or the names they call the democratic candidates...then when you come back...maybe you will understand a bit better...I think this place is tame compared to freeperville...!

[imhotep]

33. What do you expect?

This country is childish and ignorant. Name-calling is the pinnacle of intellect in American politics.

[edzontar]

36. Bush is a stinky poop-head.

I really mean it.

JEEZ.