I’ve been meaning to say something about this for a while now … and then some great people on Twitter practically wrote it for me. So here we go.
It seems like everywhere I turn, left-leaning folks are debunking the delusional rantings of Glenn Beck. (And the rest of that crew — Palin, Bachmann, Limbaugh, Paul, Angle, etc.)
Nearly all of this well-intentioned effort is a waste of time and energy, a diversion from our real work.
If forgiveness seems a stretch, consider this wisdom from a blog post by @lotay:
So how does one engage with hateful people? Give them what they lack… love and compassion. And most importantly, do not resist or react to their hateful actions.
And then there’s the hard-nosed strategic question of opportunity costs. Alex Zaitchik, who has written extensively about the right wing (including the book Common Nonsense: Glenn Beck and the Triumph of Ignorance) put it this way:
I do think that at some point you have to start asking yourself what the opportunity costs are of fixating on every absurd statement coming out of the mouths of Glenn Beck, Michelle Bachmann, Sarah Palin, Limbaugh, and the rest. I mean, it takes a lot of time to mock and/or fact-check every idiocy that is said these days. Sometimes, when you tune into radio or blogs, it seems there’s a real lot of time spent talking about this stuff.
And while it’s important to know, and counter, I think we need to ask ourselves sometimes how much is enough, and realize that it’s much more important to come up with a positive agenda that is educative and based in reality to counter the profusion of lies. Ultimately, what this amounts to is diversionary programming coming from the right wing message machine, of which Beck has emerged as a central component.
I’ll give the last word to @desireeadaway:
You do not need to tear down that which you do not want, you simply need to focus your attention and energy on that which you do want.
What more can I say? Your thoughts?
Thank you Thank you Thank you for taking the time to so beautifully articulate this. I’m going to keep this around and Tweet it regularly in response to people who mindless provide an echo chamber for the senseless, hateful rantings of Beck, Palin, Limbaugh, et al.
Thank you, Meryl, for your Twitter conversation that sparked me to put this together. I’m looking forward to the echo chamber quieting down, so we can hear the voices of hope and reason.
I do have a tendency to agree but lately something has just come over me. I have always felt the best deterrent to your detractors was to just ignore them. However, if every single person in history ignored those that were hateful would we be where we are today? I don’t mean to say we should be spiteful or hateful but I do believe we can’t remain silent. When these people set out to spin lies and mistruths it’s our obligation and DUTY to set them straight even if it’s an exhausting and futile effort.
As MLK said..the day we begin to remain silent about what matters is the day we begin to die.
Jennifer
Thanks, Jennifer, you make an important point about not remaining silent. That’s the last thing I’d want any of us to do! For me, the question is: what do we say when we speak out?
First, to be clear: I believe strategic, purposeful action — like @stopbeck, for example — is important. It’s all the unfocused hand-waving that seems less useful to me.
Maybe there’s a division of labor, with some folks taking on more of this “watchdog” role and leaving most people free to focus on positive conversations.
Or maybe within each of us there might be some shift in focus as we spend more time on things other than fighting the noise machine. How large a shift is a choice for each person. I’m hoping it can be a more conscious choice.
One other thought: I’m convinced it is impossible to “set them straight,” if by “them” you mean the likes of Beck. And so there is no reason to exhaust ourselves trying to do so.
If we’re to win elections and build power over the long haul, we must focus on reaching people who can be reached (swing voters, independents). Marginalize the ideologues by connecting deeply with the folks in the middle.
Well, I’m obviously thinking out loud. Glad we’re thinking about this together!
Pam
Pam,
First of all, thank you for your response. :)
Secondly, by them I mean Beck viewers and the like. I guess I just get so frustrated because when we remain silent they just repeat the same spin until the moderates, swing voters and independents start to believe their tripe. Sometimes I do feel like I’m fighting a losing battle. LOL! But now that you’ve clarified a bit, and I discussed w/Meryl I do agree..that purposeful, thoughtful responses are best..and it’s best to maybe not engage them personally but instead engage their lies and counter them with truth.
I also agree with you regarding StopBeck. The work that young man does is wonderful..and we need to support him and others like him that try to hit these people where it matters..their sponsorships (i.e. pocketbooks).
Jennifer
What’s difficult here is that these people have an entire *news* network to spew their lies. And few Americans realize that FAUX News would not have been able to even operate as a news network prior to Reagan dismantling the FCC. The “liberal media” bias line spewed by Limbaugh, Beck, etc. has not existed for years. Yet FOX is an excellent example of the Joseph Goebbels’ quote: “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.” FAUX News is the highest rated cable *news* channel. Who owns FOX? Who bankrolls the *tea partiers?*
So what IS the answer? I do understand. It FEELS like we’re giving the lies an echo chamber. Yet don’t they need to be exposed as liars?
Why aren’t we using more effective storytelling? Go out – tell the story of any average middle class (or formerly middle class) American. I guarantee you won’t find one who’s done well under the leadership of Reagan, Bush and Bush. Where are the stories that need to be told? Why aren’t I hearing them from Carville, moveon, Emily’s List, etc.?