In 2005, I started to blog at Martin’s pond because he was a heck of a writer with excellent progressive views about politics and the Democratic party. It became easier to find residence at the Pond because Daily Kos became rampant with policing of thought, harsh comments and ejecting bloggers with deeper reasoning or just a philosophical approach to culture and movement in human kind.
In addition, Martin started BT to provide a platform for international issues. Later the European Tribune was started and many bloggers from Europe continued there. Because I’m an American citizen, I felt more at home here at BT to write about the effect of US foreign policy in the Western hemisphere and, because of George Bush and the Iraq War, on the Middle- or Near East.
In recent times, the Pond became less inviting to bloggers not toeing the party line, whatever that may be. What in the past had been set in guidelines at BT, trolling of fellow bloggers became a daily concern. I had written about this in a diary:
Un fortunately, these Orange traits seen at Daily Kos which caused many excellent writers to escape to elsewhere or were banned by the guardians, is slowly turning this blog sour. I will not turn away unless Martin “uninvites” me. I know Martin, this will not happen.
So I hope the marduks, Beahmonts, nalbars and maythirteenths of this blog stop their effort to silence fellow bloggers writing at BT. Democracy and the progressive line for American politics will be much better off with diversity in thought and analysis. Infallibility is part of religion, not in political discourse. No one possesses to claim for the only truth … Pravda was part of communist doctrine or Stalinism. It doesn’t belomg in the culture of Booman Tribune … or the true frogs gathered at Martin’s pond.
I go back to August, when nothing much was happening in Clinton’s campaign, and I asked her to talk with me only about what her website said was her signature plan — a $270 billion proposal for infrastructure spending. Word came back that she wasn’t going to discuss it in any detail. To my knowledge, she never did.
It must be quite a relief, a warming feeling all over,
to think you can win political campaigns without ever
having to wrestle with complex subjects or talk to
anyone who doesn’t already think you’re right.But the Cult of Demography was built on some very flawed assumptions.
[Source: Matt Bai’s Political World ]
