Demanding uncritical fealty to a media personality

[BainsBane]

19. As long as one does not assume

he is always right. Yesterday we saw an argument purporting to come from Hartman that contained serious factual errors. It relied on those errors to illicit sympathy for the Kremlin. Rather than responding to those errors, that same poster wrote another OP insisting any criticism of Hartman's points was due to opposition to Bernie. Rather than dealing with the substance of the issue, they insisted anyone who raised questions was somehow anti-progressive and disloyal to Bernie. I consider the ploy transparent and am disappointed that so many responded favorably to it.

Truthful arguments are easy to make. They rely on substance. Misinformation is furthered through distraction and obfuscation, demands for loyalty and attacks on anyone who points to factual errors.

You can like much of what Hartman says and still recognizes problems in some of his arguments. One can still appreciate his positions on some issues and recognize his working for RT influenced what he says about Russia.

Though truthfully, I have trouble understanding treating for-profit media personalities as allies. An ally in what? How does being a fan of a show make its star your ally? Because they tell you what you want to hear? An allying in affirming your views? Or in some goal?

You are wrong to say I know "that." I can't begin to understand what is an unprecedented, in the history if the republic, emphasis on a few, powerful men over the citizenry. The entire ethos is foreign to me. So you are wrong to imagine I understand your relationship to a star at a multi-billionaire dollar profit enterprise, even if it weren't a propaganda arm of the Kremlin. It's never occurred to me to look at the media that way.

Do you believe all stars of political shows you like are your allies? Or is Hartman unique? And why?

Do you think RT as a whole is your ally? Do you imagine you are benefited by the Kremlin's efforts to spread misinformation in order to keep Trump in power?