Yes, we're back at the very same issue - Liberal bias at ProgBlog. But don't worry I'll take a new angle too.
The PB moderators.
I've recently learned that there's a lot more liberalism at PB than the eye meets. Scott would like to make you believe that, out of seven moderators, only two are Liberals. Well, not so. Saskboy is SK Liberal (check Liblogs - he's still there) and Catnip, she's a very special Liberal, spelled liberal. Then there's Scott himself. Doesn't that make three already?
But there's something else.
During the Polly Jones crisis, one comment lost in all the bickering, intrigued me. Polly asked for a serious discussion on a current topic:
Would it be possible for people to state their positions on the WB? Are people aware of neo-liberalism? Or, do none of you look beyond your own postal code?
No answers, and I have to admit my own silence too. But it did lead me to visit some of my most vocal opponents' websites, trying to figure out what it is they are blogging about. These opponents included
Scott Tribe,
Steve V. and
Jason Cherniak.
Liberal PropagandaDo the test and decide for yourself (now do it!). Aren't these Libloggers merely Liberal propaganda sites with a "progressive bloggers" logo? By far the majority of their posts is nothing more than partisan BS; not very progressive if you ask me. One wonders, when Liberal party politics is all they seem to care about (along with their obvious party biases), what good it does for the Progressive Bloggers community; couldn't we simply subscribe to Liblogs if we were interested in Liberal junk?
I'm more progressive than you...I realize all too well that it's hard to describe what progressive means. But it's less difficult to define what it is not;
Blogs continuously spouting petty party propaganda is not progressive.
So can it be done, can we actually blog without overly obvious biases? Yes, we can. And many have. Here's a list of progressive blogs, dealing beyond petty party politics. Yes, some of them are affiliated with political parties, and some aren't. But all have a far wider spectrum than, say,
Far and Wide does.
- Buckdog:
http://buckdogpolitics.blogspot.com/- Bill Longstaff:
http://blongstaff.blogspot.com/
- James Laxer:
http://www.jameslaxer.com- Political Psychols:
http://cycles2k.blogspot.com/- Marginal notes:
http://marginalnotes.typepad.com/
Libs are as progressive as the Cons are greenSome say that the latest spat (or crisis) hasn't much to do with Scott's actions as moderator, but more with his politics. Either way, I take offence in having clearly partisan hacks as our moderators. I hear from many that Scott has done wonderful work for PB, I've no issue with that. He should be praised for his achievements. But when Liberals' only reason for joining PB is infecting us with their obvious biases (also given the scope of their blogs), one has to wonder if the progressive label is nothing more than dress-up. Conservatives have taken on the Green Label, and Scott, your right, their
actions are not conform their message. But neither is the "Progressive Bloggers" label very suitable for Liberal partisan hacks. Progressive-Lites would be more appropriate.
Progressive-Lite LogoI'm sure Joanne can supply you with a new Progressive-Lite button, Scott. Just ask her in a friendly manner, she's quite approachable. I've chosen the other logo below, to let you know where I stand:
Cheers!
Stephane Dion has been awfully silent on the SPP issue. And there's an obvious reason for the apparent indifference: Stephane Dion couldn't care less about deep integration with US and Mexico; SPP fits the Liberal's neo-liberal platform so why complain about it, why not let sleeping dogs lie? I see no evil....
