All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[Mister Mets]

Seth Abramson says criminal intent is provable.

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1...250442753.html

Seth Abramson appears to be unreliable.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics...swamps/530736/

Just this month, editors were forced to delete a contributor post that began, “Impeachment and removal from office are only the first steps; for America to be redeemed, Donald Trump must be prosecuted for treason and — if convicted in a court of law — executed.” And throughout last year’s primaries, Seth Abramson, assistant professor of english and writing specialist at the University of New Hampshire (and a former public defender), used his HuffPost perch to churn out a procession of increasingly delusional blog posts explaining why Bernie Sanders would likely win the Democratic nomination.

Abramson’s arguments not only denied political realities and delegate math as the race wore on; they often denied basic human logic. But thanks to the hordes of Bernie fans desperately scouring the internet for some hope to cling to, Abramson’s posts consistently went uber-viral. (He eventually wrote a post defending this shameless play for clicks as a form of “experimental journalism” that embraced “the multi-dimensionality of metanarrative.” The Washington Post’s Matt O’Brien responded via Twitter: “Area Academic Writes Barely Comprehensible Defense of Lying.”) These days, Abramson’s main platform is Twitter, where he has over 150,000 followers, and specializes in indictment stories in the style of criminal complaints.*

As with right-wing publishers, the content produced by these liberal sites varies widely in terms of quality, credibility, and good faith. At their best, they can offer the kind of radical viewpoints and unique insights that don’t commonly make it onto the high-profile platforms of mainstream liberalism, like MSNBC or the New York Times op-ed page. At their worst, they serve up shallow partisan affirmation and dishonest propaganda. And rarely do the more responsible publishers in this ecosystem spend time proactively debunking the rumors and falsehoods that are circulating among their audiences.

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/...-not-ever.html

Seth Abramson, who appears to have added more than 200,000 Twitter followers in the last six months, is a more interesting or at least more complicated case; his schtick is less credulous fabulism than hyperbolic sleight of hand. Using only the same reported mainstream media articles that everyone else in the country reads, Abramson creates an atmosphere in which the collapse of the Trump administration and disgrace/imprisonment of everyone involved with it is perpetually imminent. He’s not making things up, per se; he’s just recycling information you could find on any news site and adding sinister what-if hypotheticals to create conclusions that he refers to, quite seriously, as “investigatory analyses.”

Writer Ben Mathis-Lilley goes on to show seven misleading items in one tweet.

https://www.pastemagazine.com/politi...nald-trumps-r/

In the same vein as his Bernie trutherism, he spends a lot of time on Twitter telling people what they want to hear. Abramson takes other people's reporting, injects his own speculation and presents it as his “reporting,” all while infusing a level of self-promotion that is only equaled by PR agencies. If you're not familiar with Abramson, congratulations, your life is better off for it. But just to catch you up, here's how he spams Twitter.

(META-THREAD) Click here to see the largest archive of #Russiagate threads on Twitter. And please RETWEET this tweet if you find it helpful. pic.twitter.com/ieWl2PojmP

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 4, 2017

In addition to producing 50+ tweetstorms about Russia (also known as a column), he is the poster child for vacuous Twitter activism that does absolutely nothing to effect change, and at its very core is just pure self-promotion.

European intel agencies have given proof of Trump-Russia collusion to the FBI; Congress must now hold PUBLIC hearings. RETWEET if you agree. pic.twitter.com/sL7kGdbKk8

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 18, 2017
Please RETWEET if you're one of the 74% of Americans (ABC/WaPo Poll) who want to see Trump's taxes and were not paid to hold that opinion. pic.twitter.com/xa2dR178AM

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 16, 2017
As North Korea declares that "thermonuclear war may break out any moment," this is what Trump is doing. Retweet if that's not cool with you. pic.twitter.com/wOUeK53GFQ

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 14, 2017
A simple fact: Trump's lie about releasing his taxes is WORSE BY FAR than Bill Clinton lying about Monica Lewinsky. Retweet if you agree. pic.twitter.com/J8iqX92erP

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 15, 2017
Presidents get privileges and responsibilities. One responsibility, which Trump hasn't met, is financial transparency. RETWEET if you agree. pic.twitter.com/kWOUuCbCPZ

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 15, 2017
RETWEET if you agree that Trump's new attitude toward Russia is a transparent attempt to distract from the worsening #Russiagate scandal. pic.twitter.com/YuviD4ECNn

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 13, 2017
Retweet if you want the press to aggressively question Trump on his ties to Russia, including whether he ordered Flynn to speak to Moscow. pic.twitter.com/tOjF77m4jF

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) February 14, 2017
Retweet if you think what happened in DC—the WH blocking major news outlets from a government event—CANNOT and MUST NOT happen in America. pic.twitter.com/qEzN8WYKvz

These tweets don't contain any information as to how to pressure Congress to do the things he's asking for. He simply begs you to voice your opinion by promoting his Twitter account.

JUST A FEW HOURS LEFT to vote Jon Ossoff (@ossoff) for Georgia's Sixth Congressional District. [QUOTE\Please send Trump a message and RETWEET this! pic.twitter.com/zXyxJV56lC

— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) April 18, 2017

If you actually wanted to send Trump a message, you'd make sure that people voted, not retweeted some random dude on Twitter. Not once on Georgia's special election day did Abramson tweet any helpful information about where people could go vote, and he simply continued his tradition of begging people to distribute his empty pleas to their followers. If you are more focused on effecting change than promoting yourself, wouldn't you—you know—include information as to how one can effect change? [/QUOTE]

There is no original reporting on Abramson’s part. There is no work on his personal website or Medium page to fund. No independent research that he does outside his job that he already (presumably) gets paid to do. He simply reads other people’s work, and then tweetstorms about it. That’s the “journalism” that your donation is funding. Even Donald Trump does a better job of hiding his grifting. At least you get a hat in exchange for his scam—all Abramson gives you in return for your cash is high blood pressure and a dramatic misunderstanding of how this Russian saga is playing out.

https://newrepublic.com/article/1429...racy-theorists

Then there’s Seth Abramson, a poet at the University of New Hampshire, who has 119,000 followers. In one long-winded and breathless Twitter thread, published in March, Abramson rattled off 40 tweets (plus an additional 10 tweets of “notes”) that began: “The plot to sell America’s foreign policy for foreign oil _and_ steal an election in the bargain began”—wait for it—“at the Mayflower Hotel.” The venue for Trump’s first major foreign policy address, Abramson notes, was switched at the last minute from the National Press Club to the Mayflower. In Abramson’s analysis, it was changed because the hotel has “restricted, VIP-only areas” that enabled Trump to meet in secret with the ambassadors for Russia, Italy, and Singapore, who jointly negotiated the sale of 19 percent of Russia’s state oil company. Here, behind closed doors, is where Trump agreed to do Russia’s bidding in return for a cut of the oil: “The Mayflower Speech,” Abramson concludes, “should get the most attention in Congress.” The entire thesis is founded on the simple fact of a hotel booking; in the conspiracy mind-set, even the most mundane logistical details reveal a deeper, preordained plot.

[Malvolio]

On the Democratic side there's a reason politicians like Pelosi win. To replace her the left needs someone capable of going toe to toe with her and win, and if you come at the queen you best not miss. The answer to this that those who would be interested know they'd be sitting ducks or there are those who have no interest in wasting everyone's time and risking endangering their faction's relationship with leadership. The left aren't even playing the same sport when it comes to winning elections for leadership positions.

Nancy Pelosi has announced that she will retire at the end of her current term of office. So, come January of 2023, there will be a new Speaker of the House, one way or another.

[Steel Inquisitor]

Nancy Pelosi has announced that she will retire at the end of her current term of office. So, come January of 2023, there will be a new Speaker of the House, one way or another.

Which is why I said

politicians like Pelosi win

, I expect people on the left to be upset when her successor isn't from their faction like I explained. There will be an new Speaker, the question is if they will be a leftist. Hint: they will not, for the above reasons. You can't win en election if you don't have candidate, but the other factions do - and if you think Pelosi's bad wait until the conservative Dems get in.

[InformationGeek]

Uuuuuuuuuuuuugh.

NEW: Trump is expected to give Rep. Devin Nunes the Presidential Medal of Freedom — the nation’s highest civilian honor — on Monday, and to give the same award to Rep. Jim Jordan next week. https://t.co/mtk1u7JL9z

[Tami]

Which is why I said , I expect people on the left to be upset when her successor isn't from their faction like I explained. There will be an new Speaker, the question is if they will be a leftist. Hint: they will not, for the above reasons. You can't win en election if you don't have candidate, but the other factions do - and if you think Pelosi's bad wait until the conservative Dems get in.

It will likely be Hakeem Jeffries. He's been positioning himself for the position for a long time and he is hungry enough to not simply sit back and hope others will vote for him.

[Steel Inquisitor]

It will likely be Hakeem Jeffries. He's been positioning himself for the position for a long time and he is hungry enough to not simply sit back and hope others will vote for him.

Exactly, a Pelosi successor.

[DrNewGod]

Uuuuuuuuuuuuugh.

How long before the US gets around to attaching asterisks to the Medal Of Freedom?

[Malvolio]

Uuuuuuuuuuuuugh.

This reminds me of the old Hanna Barbera cartoons where Dick Dastardly would give Muttley a medal just to get him on board with whatever ridiculous scheme he was running.

So I guess we have a new nickname for Trump: Don Dastardly.

[Jack Dracula]

Uuuuuuuuuuuuugh.

A literal badge of dishonor.

[AnakinFlair]

How long before the US gets around to attaching asterisks to the Medal Of Freedom?

January 21.

[DrNewGod]

January 21.

Nah. Gonna take longer. We're going to need a lot of historical breathing room before we can call this for what it is. A lot of us know, but it's taken us a century to tear down confederate statues.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Uuuuuuuuuuuuugh.

No surprise. Trump is simply rewarding sycophants and bootlickers who remained loyal to him.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

I would love if Biden could revoke these traitor medals.

[numberthirty]

I would love if Biden could revoke these traitor medals.

While I get this being the gut reaction?

Biden has bigger fish to fry.

[Powerboy]

Looking at FB, I am convinced there are no longer any limits to the stupidity, ignorance and complete willingness to ignore all facts and evidence for Trump supporters.

Anyone believe for one moment they would turn against Trump telling a governor to find votes in his favor with no evidence of fraud? Of course not. The governor is a hack and there was obviously mass voter fraud minus any evidence because the alternative is that Biden wins.

As always, the scary part is not that we have a delusional president who is willing to burn the nation down as a Republic in order to win but that half of Republicans are willing to go along with it to get what they want. And I don't buy that, deep down, some of them don't know very well what the reality is. They just don't care. Yes, some are stupid and ignorant beyond words, the very definition of never being able to win an argument with a stupid or ignorant person because they think they are the smart ones even with no evidence of their viewpoint. But I suspect most have to see they have no evidence and are willfully ignorant.