Matt Taibbi Appreciation Thread

sweetpotato

I know he's been quoted many times in various threads, but this guy seriously deserves a thread all his own. He speaks the painful truth, god love him. Sure, he's biased- as Stephen Colbert recently reminded us, reality has a well-known liberal bias- but you have to love how he nails certain truths, even when it makes you cringe.

Here's his most recent take on Madame Palin:

"Here's the thing about Americans. You can send their kids off by the thousands to get their balls blown off in foreign lands for no reason at all, saddle them with billions in debt year after congressional year while they spend their winters cheerfully watching game shows and football, pull the rug out from under their mortgages, and leave them living off their credit cards and their Wal-Mart salaries while you move their jobs to China and Bangalore.

And none of it matters, so long as you remember a few months before Election Day to offer them a two-bit caricature culled from some cutting-room-floor episode of Roseanne as part of your presidential ticket. And if she's a good enough likeness of a loudmouthed Middle American archetype, as Sarah Palin is, John Q. Public will drop his giant sized bag of Doritos in gratitude, wipe the sizzlin' picante dust from his lips and rush to the booth to vote for her. Not because it makes sense, or because it has a chance of improving his life or anyone else's, but simply because it appeals to the low-humming narcissism that substitutes for his personality, because that image on TV reminds him of the mean brainless slob he sees in the mirror every morning.

Sarah Palin is a symbol of everything that is wrong with the modern United States. As a representative of our political system, she's a new low in reptilian villainy, the ultimate cynical masterwork of puppeteers like Karl Rove. But more than that, she is a horrifying symbol of how little we ask for in return for the total surrender of our political power. Not only is Sarah Palin a fraud, she's the tawdriest, most half-assed fraud imaginable, 20 floors below the lowest common denominator, a character too dumb even for daytime TV – and this country is going to eat her up, cheering every step of the way. All because most Americans no longer have the energy to do anything but lie back and allow ourselves to be jacked off by the calculating thieves who run this grasping consumer paradise we call a nation."

jeffbr

I like Taibbi's writing a lot. He's the reason I read Rolling Stone magazine. He is biased. BUT he isn't afraid to rip any and all sides. He'll tear apart Palin, the religious right, McCain, Obama, war-mongering Dems, ineffective congress, etc... His writing is biting, sometimes vicious, sometimes funny, almost always sarcastic. Even when I don't agree with him about something I'm always glad I read the article.

WaveCameCrashin

jeffbr wrote:

I like Taibbi's writing a lot. He's the reason I read Rolling Stone magazine. He is biased. BUT he isn't afraid to rip any and all sides. He'll tear apart Palin, the religious right, McCain, Obama, war-mongering Dems, ineffective congress, etc... His writing is biting, sometimes vicious, sometimes funny, almost always sarcastic. Even when I don't agree with him about something I'm always glad I read the article.

I got a subscription to R.S. last year for christmas.As soon as I get it I throw it in the recycle bin.Unless P.J. is on the cover. He is one of many reasons. The guy has no class,Journalism has sunk to an all time low in this country.What ever happend to respectfully disagreeing with some one? These days you are attaked personaly for what you believe in.I know the right dose it too But the far left is way more viscious.I hope I didn't offend anyone by mentioning Christmas.

Anon

gvn2fly74 wrote:

I got a subscription to R.S. last year for christmas.As soon as I get it I throw it in the recycle bin.Unless P.J. is on the cover. He is one of many reasons. The guy has no class,Journalism has sunk to an all time low in this country.What ever happend to respectfully disagreeing with some one? These days you are attaked personaly for what you believe in.I know the right dose it too But the far left is way more viscious.I hope I didn't offend anyone by mentioning Christmas.

Why would anyone be offended you mentioned christmas? unless the peson who got you the subscription is reading this post! they might be a little pissed

jeffbr

gvn2fly74 wrote:

I got a subscription to R.S. last year for christmas.As soon as I get it I throw it in the recycle bin.Unless P.J. is on the cover. He is one of many reasons. The guy has no class,Journalism has sunk to an all time low in this country.What ever happend to respectfully disagreeing with some one? These days you are attaked personaly for what you believe in.I know the right dose it too But the far left is way more viscious.I hope I didn't offend anyone by mentioning Christmas.

Well, I think we've become so politically correct that we are afraid to offend. The media give hand jobs to Obama and McCain. So it is nice to see Taibbi not worry about being offensive, while at the same time providing an interesting perspective and biting criticism no matter who he skewering.

musicismylife78

wouldnt even necessarily call him a liberal. His most effective work is where he calls out the no backbone democrats for what they really are: shills and liars.

His statements about barack continue to ring in my brain: Barack could be the real deal, someone who genuinely will change washington, but he could also be just another example of the disturbing lengths the system will go to cloak itself and to hide its true nature from voters.

utterly brilliant idea, considering everyone is gaga for obama. What will happen if he doesnt deliver? What if his mantra of "change" is hollow? What if he is?

Couldnt care less about politics in general, and shy away from most political media, but he is one of the few I actually make sure to check out.

His expose on how Reid and Pelosi are just liars was fantastic.

Alot of "liberal" folks bug me. They often criticize the right, but act like the dems are so holy or something and beyond criticism. What Taibbi excels at is exposing the hypocrisy and the lunacy of both parties, and inadvertently calls for the formation of something less currupt and ridiculous

WaveCameCrashin

This is the guy who had a cartoon of Mcain strung up and being beaten by the V.C. Im not even voting for Mcain but that picture made me sick to my stomach. Why dont we give M.Moore his own thread too.

musicismylife78

gvn2fly74 wrote:

This is the guy who had a cartoon of Mcain strung up and being beaten by the V.C. Im not even voting for Mcain but that picture made me sick to my stomach. Why dont we give M.Moore his own thread too.

I hardly think Taibbi would make fun of that aspect of mccain. While i havent read any of his opinions on mccain specifically, i think its safe to say he hates his politics and doesnt want him elected. That said, where is this cartoon? And isnt that exactly what mccain had happen to him?

I posted months ago asking people to explain EXACTLY what torture mccain endured. It is obviously a huge part of his life story and his narrative. I was called out and called names by a large majority of those who responded. And never got a clear answer as to what happened.

Secondly, I am no liberal, in fact I despise them. But it always amuses me, conservatives who worship at Medved, Coulters, Limbaugh's alters, and bash the liberals for their "heroes" like Michael Moore. While Michael Moore, voted for kerry and is certainly voting for obama, alot of his views are in opposition to the democrats. Roger and Me was a radical film, a dare I say it socialist film.

The point being, I dont hear the left, or at least people like michael moore, calling for presidents to be killed and such. Yet people like coulter get away with it

LONGRD

gvn2fly74 wrote:

I got a subscription to R.S. last year for christmas.As soon as I get it I throw it in the recycle bin.Unless P.J. is on the cover. He is one of many reasons. The guy has no class,Journalism has sunk to an all time low in this country.What ever happend to respectfully disagreeing with some one? These days you are attaked personaly for what you believe in.I know the right dose it too But the far left is way more viscious.I hope I didn't offend anyone by mentioning Christmas.

The only way journalism will hit an all-time low if some editor hires you as their writer/reporter. :rolleyes:

WaveCameCrashin

LongRd. wrote:

The only way journalism will hit an all-time low if some editor hires you as their writer/reporter. :rolleyes:

you just proved my point.

WaveCameCrashin

radiohead33 wrote:

I hardly think Taibbi would make fun of that aspect of mccain. While i havent read any of his opinions on mccain specifically, i think its safe to say he hates his politics and doesnt want him elected. That said, where is this cartoon? And isnt that exactly what mccain had happen to him?

I posted months ago asking people to explain EXACTLY what torture mccain endured. It is obviously a huge part of his life story and his narrative. I was called out and called names by a large majority of those who responded. And never got a clear answer as to what happened.

Secondly, I am no liberal, in fact I despise them. But it always amuses me, conservatives who worship at Medved, Coulters, Limbaugh's alters, and bash the liberals for their "heroes" like Michael Moore. While Michael Moore, voted for kerry and is certainly voting for obama, alot of his views are in opposition to the democrats. Roger and Me was a radical film, a dare I say it socialist film.

The point being, I dont hear the left, or at least people like michael moore, calling for presidents to be killed and such. Yet people like coulter get away with it

He was held captive for 5years at the Hanoi Hilton in which he was tortured day after day. Im not going to go into details because I dont know all of them.As far as Ann Coulter goes she's a bomb thrower.Just like Taibbi,M.Savage,R.Rhodes,and R.Limbaugh

sweetpotato

what's that quote? i'm sure i'm butchering it, but it goes something like:

when lying is prevalent, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.

i say, we need more matt taibbis- people who aren't afraid to offend during the course of calling bullshit BULLSHIT. people who don't like his writing prefer to see the world through a smokescreen. less scary that way, and less demanding of action.

WaveCameCrashin

sweetpotato wrote:

what's that quote? i'm sure i'm butchering it, but it goes something like:

when lying is prevalent, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.

i say, we need more matt taibbis- people who aren't afraid to offend during the course of calling bullshit BULLSHIT. people who don't like his writing prefer to see the world through a smokescreen. less scary that way, and less demanding of action.

you are missing my point. I JUST DONT agree with his style of writing.Im all for calling people out on their B.S. No smoke here

sweet adeline

pretty good interview:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxWtsbapkio