I was called a "highly skilled propagandist" in my local newspaper

[In_The_Wind]

:woohoo: my letter to the editor is stirring up a hornets nest! I missed my letter to the editor because it was in Thursday's paper, I was on the road. I guess that tomorrow I visit their office to pick up another copy.


I returned home today to see where Jim Miller of my hometown is saying in his letter to the editor "Alpern as a propagandist. A good propagandist will not tell you a lie, just not tell you all the facts you need to make an informed opinion." I guess Mr. Miller's panties are all in a bunch about now!



"highly skilled" ~ thanks DU !

[stellanoir]

1. congrats

a high compliment indeed !!!

[In_The_Wind]

34. thanks

I was rather pleased

[Debi]

2. Mr. Miller wears panties?

:wow: What kind of town do you live in?

[In_The_Wind]

33. it's Woodstock

we are having a meet-up in October ... you are invited



y'all come now ~ ya hear >

[Rick Myers]

3. Congratulations!!!

That's a compliment!!! :thumbsup:

[In_The_Wind]

35. thanks

I did take it as a compliment ~ such a NICE welcome home!

[GOPisEvil]

4. Woohoo! Congratulations!

:woohoo::toast:

[In_The_Wind]

36. yep ~ lil ole me

is stirring people up, making em think!

[Jara sang]

5. Screw Miller

i always listen to JA!

[In_The_Wind]

41. It's a VERY small town.

I'm sure Mr. Miller & I will come toe to toe someday.

It's too bad for him if he intends to hand onto old incorrect ideas ... I'll stand him on his ear for sure!

[edbermac]

Good..when a neocon calls you a propogandist...

You know you're doing something right...:patriot:

[In_The_Wind]

42. I intend to continue!

Thank you edbermac.

One person at a time is how the war is won. I know many other people read my letter and now they have real facts to think about, facts which they may have forgotten.

[MadAsHellNewYorker]

6. Thats great Joan!

:yourock:

Im glad people's LTTE are getting published and at least causing a stir. you should respond to the guy calling you a propagandist and tell him off in your oh so incredible ways!

[RedCloud]

7. You disseminated information!

Congratulations!

[In_The_Wind]

44. just the facts!

nothing more


Thank you RedCloud

[In_The_Wind]

43. I do have a way with words.

understatement still makes people think ... when they least expect it



there in lies the *gotcha*!!!

[gmoney]

8. You're in good company...

...Michael Moore, Air America, Dan Rather, Bill Moyers... congratulations!

[In_The_Wind]

38. I intend to stay there!

waking people up ... making them think is what I enjoy most ... thanks gmoney

[UncleSepp]

9. I tip my hat to you, Joan!

Congrats! It's an art - some people were born to paint, some to sculpt. Perhaps you were born to this :-)

[In_The_Wind]

39. I seem to ruffel feathers better than anything else!

I intend to keep on keeping on (as they say around here)!

[kodi]

10. speaking truth to power? how dare you!

congrats. wear their reprobation as a badge of honor.

it should be noted that the Mr. Millers of the world admit only their versions of the complete facts. whenever they ply their trade, they admit only what comforts them.

[In_The_Wind]

45. I dare! Because it is the right of every American! I will continue!

what comforts them can be the downfall of civilization as we know it ... THIS is not the world I grew up with ... THIS is NOT the world for our grandchildren!

Thank you kodi

[H2O Man]

11. Actually, in its proper use

the word is a compliment. It means that you arrange facts and information in a persuasive manner that supports your point of view. Well done.

[In_The_Wind]

46. thank you H2O Man

It was a "welcome home" in a way that was very gratifying! I made someone think about what Bush actually said because anyone who researched the quotes that I provided will be looking at our "elected" leader a little differently!

[iconoclastic cat]

12. Uh, link?

[In_The_Wind]

21. link

www.midhudsoncentral.com

[Scout1071]

120. Can't find the LTE? Help!

Also, really want to read your letter too.

[last_texas_dem]

13. Good job

Your letter must have been quite good for you to get to them that much! The worst I was ever called due to one of my letters to the editor was "Molly Ivins on bad booze" but the insult they threw at you is quite a bit more sinister.

Be sure you keep on writing and don't let them get to you. :-)

[In_The_Wind]

47. I'm not about to quit now!

I smiled when I read Jim Miller's rebuttal. I'd like nothing more than to tell him that the paper's 400 word limit was my only limit in providing truth... someone should!

[LynneSin]

14. Oh good, we're only allowing highly skilled propagandist in our hotel room

if I found out you were a slack artist slight-of-hand rumormongerer we'd have to boot you out

[In_The_Wind]

48. rumormongerer ~ no way. Joan Alpern speaks the truth!

or nothing




"boot you out" ... never

[Zuni]

15. A skilled propagandist on DU!

:o

[In_The_Wind]

49. who woulda thunk it

[Sugar Smack]

119. LOL!!!

:rofl: :loveya:

Viva Zuni!

[KG]

16. a LTTE is propaganda?

what an idiot.

[In_The_Wind]

50. see

it's no wonder that I don't date local people



it's a beautiful place to live ~

[WCGreen]

17. Oh Joan, that is so special......

To be called a skilled anything would make your parents proud...

I am so happy for you......

Paper..... Link...... Letter .......

What DID you say to get him so unerved that he had to respond.....

BTW, today, you are my hero...

Not so much with the wings beneath my sails, I chaffe...

But my hero non the less........

:toast::bounce::toast:

Love that Bouncy Ball

[In_The_Wind]

53. honestly

The Freeman has a 400 word limit so all I did was to use accurate quotes and dates to make my point that our president should abide by his own words. I did it very respectfully but VERY clearly.

I am going to pick up a copy of the paper. I'll scan it for you, its' powerful effect was in its' simplicity.

[WCGreen]

68. I wish you could teach that to the Dems in Washington

[In_The_Wind]

71. we can all learn from one another

take the good that life offers us and pass it on


do what we can to stop the things that are wrong


everyone of us can make a difference in the world around us IF we try ... ((((((((( :hug: ))))))))) the ripple effect can do awesome things!

[WCGreen]

72. Oh man, are you a hippie chick?

[In_The_Wind]

74. YES ! And Proud of it!

somethings never change my Scorpio best friend (since our college days) just called a few weeks ago & reminded me that what you see today is what she saw 33 years ago ~ the only difference is ~ now I have the time to do something about it.

[WCGreen]

77. That is soooooo cool....

I love hippie chicks.......

BTW, so looking forward to DC....

I have a very staid friend who lives close to DC that Ihaven't seen foryears...

I plan to just show up at his house on the way back with my backpack and say, Man the het is on, can I crash here for a few days until all the trouble blows over....

[GoddessOfGuinness]

18. Here's to you, Joan!

:toast:
Congrats!

[In_The_Wind]

54. Thanks GoddessOfGuinness

Reading Millers' reaction to my letter was intoxicating! He'll be seeing more of my "letters to the editor".

[GoddessOfGuinness]

57. I agree with Mayberry Machiavelli

I'd love to read your letter and his response!

[In_The_Wind]

64. it's been added please see post # 59

I just returned home with a new copy of my letter.

I like to make people think!

Mission accomplished !

[GreenPartyVoter]

19. *high five*

[In_The_Wind]

55. That means a lot to me GreenPartyVoter.

thank you

[GreenPartyVoter]

58. You bet :^D

[Sugar Smack]

20. LOL!

"highly skilled propagandist" is a fabulous thing to be. You gotta be special.

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[In_The_Wind]

52. it just goes to show ya

that ya can't be too careful about who ya invite to supper

[Sugar Smack]

109. NICE one~

Here's kudos to you:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=3735726#3741070

:D

[eyepaddle]

22. Way to go Joan!

:applause:

Can we read this LTTE? Please?

[In_The_Wind]

78. absolutely eyepaddle

see post # 59

[no name no slogan]

23. Nice going Joan!

That is trememdous!!! :hi:

[In_The_Wind]

79. well ~ no name no slogan It's a first for me.

I really like it that my first letter to the editor is having such a huge effect. The real bonus was a piece written by Marie Cocco "Roves malicious politics" on the opposite side of the page where my letter was published. Ms. Cocco is syndicated by the Washington Post Writers Group.

[no name no slogan]

91. Wow, that's even better!!!

The biggest piece I ever had published was a "counterpoint" that ran one Sunday in the Minneapolis paper, about ten years ago. One of the local right-wing mouth-breathers from a local "thinktank" was ranting about how awful the Americans with Disabilities Act was. So I wiped the spittle off my lips, and tossed a couple paragraphs together, and lo and behold it's in the paper.

I wish you the best of luck with your future pieces and look forward to reading them! Nothing better than pissing off right-wingers in print, I say. :P

:thumbsup: :toast:

[In_The_Wind]

92. I get all of the help I need to do the job right from DU.

:yourock: too!

[BikeWriter]

24. You've hit the big time now! :-)

[In_The_Wind]

25. perhaps

[BikeWriter]

27. Jim Miller's quibbling. You own him. :-)

[In_The_Wind]

30. I've only just begun!

[GoddessOfGuinness]

65. "gather all the facts you can from as many varied sources"

Ooo...like FUX News, I suppose...

[xmas74]

108. I debated in high school and college.

His feeble attempts at an argument are laughable at best. He offered no further arguments of his own nor did he actually refute your arguments. He sputtered about trying to make up his wishy-washy mind about how to discredit you (not realizing that he actually complimented you). And the "story" that he decided that he had to share had nothing to do w/ the argument. He couldn't even bring it back around to make it fit into what his original purpose was-to discredit your LTTE.
You won the argument. You now own his ass.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

26. CONGRATULATIONS MY DEAR JOAN!

Woooo hoooo! Today: LTTE! Tomorrow: the sky's the limit!

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

:toast: :toast: :toast:

Edited to add: Thanks Joan for posting the letter; I could NOT find the LTTE in your paper! Now, I don't need to...That letter writer is an idiot, IMHO! YOU GO, GIRL!

[In_The_Wind]

31. I'm surprised that my letter was published!

The Freeman doesn't seem to carry anything more than local issues. It is the daily newspaper for this county. Let's see just how much more I can stir them up!

[liontamer]

28. congrats

you must have convinced him that he was wrong!

[In_The_Wind]

81. I thought it was my letter

until I spotted the wonderful article by Marie Cocco "Rove's malicious politics" where she states



Let us remember the real reason that White House political enforcer Karl Rove was chatting with selected reporters in the summer of 2003.

It was not necessarily to blow the cover of CIA operative Valerie Plame. It was not entirely to mete out vicious retribution against her husband, former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, for writing an op-ed article in The New York Times that discounted administration claims about an alleged Iraqi effort to acquire uranium from Niger.

The malevolence was more fundamental. Rove was trying to sustain the lies that led us into Iraq.

[proud2BlibKansan]

29. You share that title

with Michael Moore. Congratulations! Must have been some letter.

[In_The_Wind]

83. It seems that I share the title and ideals with many people.

The last paragraph written in an article "Rove's malicious politics" by syndicated columnist Marie Cocco hits home to all of us. She wrote "Karl Rove may or may not pay some price for his malicious politics. But make no mistake. The nation pays - every day in Iraq - with our blood and treasure."





~ sadly every day men and women are dieing the senseless deaths of war ~

[tanyev]

32. Actually, I would call you a counter-propagandist.

All DUers are! (except the trolls)

:yourock:

[In_The_Wind]

84. I believe you're on to something there!

Thank you tanyev

[hfojvt]

37. wow, thank goodness Republicans would never do that

"just not tell you all the facts you need to make an informed decision". Not when it is so much easier to lie and then attack people who challenge your lies.

[In_The_Wind]

86. are you also in the bridge selling business

good one

[graywarrior]

40. Wow, I AM impressed.

Nice job.

[In_The_Wind]

89. thanks graywarrior

I was surprised & very pleased with myself *patting self on back* (until all my DU friends take over the patting self on back job for me so I can continue to drag & drop just the facts).

[burrowowl]

51. Glad you got

Mr. Miller's knickers in a twist!

:toast:

and CHEERS!

[In_The_Wind]

94. the right information directly through DU

I love pissing people off by pointing out just wrong they are when it really matters!



thanks for your support burrowowl

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

56. Can you link or print your original LTTE so we can see too?

[In_The_Wind]

59. by your request, I give you the words of "a highly skilled propagandist" ~

]




I'm sure all of you at DU will recognize my choice of words.

When I identified myself at the Daily Freeman while picking up the paper from last week I received a hearty and a request to send more letters to the editor.

[swag]

60. Perfect letter, Joan.

Spot fucking on!

[In_The_Wind]

63. it's that darned course in journalism that I took decades ago ...

in high school ... it was difficult in college to become more loquacious ... I believe in hitting hard & fast ~ just the facts.

[Hosnon]

61. Very good letter - so someone called you a highly skilled

propogandist? Hmmm...doesn't seem like propoganda to me. What level of reading has that person reached I wonder:)

Good Job.

Post some of the replies if you get a chance.

[In_The_Wind]

76. if there are any more replies I'll be sure to let y'all know about it

Thanks !

[GoddessOfGuinness]

67. Well said!

To the point and factual, regardless of the lack of an indictment or a guilty verdict. Mr Miller might find some ExLax to be useful. :evilgrin:

[In_The_Wind]

69. O M G ~ that's so funny!

I believe my future letters will have exactly that effect on Miller and everyone of the same mindset! At least I hope so.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

73. Nice job, JA. You owned Miller game, set and match. WTF was he on about

with that whole snowmobile thing? LOL. Your letter was clear, concise and hard hitting, and made your point much more clearly than his. He just tried to diffuse and obfuscate, much like the RNC talking points.

Good job. Do you guys live in a small community where everyone knows each other? Heh.

[In_The_Wind]

75. I don't know Jim Miller ~ yet

but with my DU bumper stickers and my favorite pink DU tee-shirt that proudly proclaims ~ Democratic Underground.com Check it out before the Feds shut us down ~ I'm sure it won't be very long before we come face to face because it is a very small community, one main street going through town. This should be interesting.

[Lavender Brown]

96. Awesome - you should send more!

:applause:

[Kat45]

62. Cool! I think it's great!

How large a paper is it? I'm just curious about how many folks might have read your 'propadanda'? LOL

[In_The_Wind]

66. I just called the paper for an answer to your question ...

circulation week days 21,000 and on weekends 28,000

[Kat45]

87. Not bad. Not bad at all.

You reached a lot of people with your "propaganda." Way to go, Joan! :-)

[NoSheep]

70. Keep it up!!

[In_The_Wind]

99. I will

[Robeson]

80. Way to Go!!

Congrats...:applause:

[In_The_Wind]

100. thank you Robeson

I hope the next ones make the paper too.

[Rabrrrrrr]

82. Congratulations!

:applause:

[In_The_Wind]

101. thanks Rabrrrrrr

I'm still enjoying my surprise of seeing the reply on Tuesday because I missed my letter being printed last Thursday!

[zinndependence]

85. once someone responded to a letter of mine with....

"she's so far too the left she doesn't even know where the middle is." (This with regard to a letter I wrote questioning an earlier editorial in my local paper claiming FOX "news" is the only neutral cable news station!)

This person pretty much attacks me via L.T.T.E. every time I write a L.T.T.E. I get called names all the time. I take it as a complement.

[In_The_Wind]

88. Welcome to DU ... zinndependence

yes, I also took it as a complement.

[Wetzelbill]

90. Way To Go!

[In_The_Wind]

102. Kudos Wetzelbill ! You have a very nice blog!

thank you

[blondeatlast]

93. Congratulations! I can only aspire to such a noble achievement!

:patriot:

[In_The_Wind]

97. you can!

I simply used the information provided by the DU Activist Corps which I arranged for the maximum impact.

PM me if you would like to talk about it more.

[FourStarDemocrat]

95. Great news! Congratulations!

It sounds like you're having a great time while being the 'anti-propagandist'. Keep up the good work! :hi: :thumbsup: :yourock:

[In_The_Wind]

103. you're right I am having a great time while being the 'anti-propagandist'

I've had more fun since joining DU than I've had in a long time.

[friesianrider]

98. I was told in my paper that my "heroes" are Syria and Libya

(Why didn't anyone tell me!?)

His exact worse were something like "She needs to move to Syria or Libya - countries that are heroes to her and her liberal ilk." He also called me a traitor...typical. :eyes:

He's some neo-Nazi fundie (divorced three times) who has no life except to wait for me to write letters into my paper so he can respond with some ridiculous insult. I keep writing them every 30 days as allowed by the paper just to piss him off. ;)

[In_The_Wind]

105. wait a darned minute - your paper will only print 1 letter every 30 days

That's it? You can only express an opinion once a month ... that bites!

[friesianrider]

106. Yep...

Only one letter every 30 days from the same writer. When he wrote that to me, he also hurled a lot of insults at me (because I noted I was only 18 at the time) telling me to "go back to the mall and stay out of politics" and other choice phrases like that. I was angry - and upset - that anyone would suggest that I am somehow "less American" than they are. I shot off a response letter, and the editor wrote me back saying I couldn't respond to it until a month had passed.

I agree - it sucks.

[MaryBear]

104. Congratulations!

:woohoo:

[In_The_Wind]

112. thanks MaryBear

I'm gonna try real hard to have the same effect again & again.

[NMMNG]

107. Yay! Way to piss off the neocons!

:kick:

[In_The_Wind]

126. just doin my job

and having fun while I'm at it

[Bossy Monkey]

110. A poll for you

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x3747923
:P

[In_The_Wind]

111. you're AWESOME undisclosedlocation !

With DU's help ... I'll continue to make people THINK & QUESTION all of the things that make us (as a country and as individuals) less that we can be.

[Sugar Smack]

113. Although I agree with Joani's use of her own name,

some of those others were great, and really fitting. :P

[In_The_Wind]

115. you are so totally sweet Sugar!

onward
with a smile!
rockin till the end of time

[peekaloo]

114. Good for you!

:woohoo:

:applause:

[In_The_Wind]

127. thanks peekaloo

it felt good to see I was making people think because my facts were accurate thanks to DU

[Wetzelbill]

116. this thread will not die

And, who am I not to reply just for the heck of it?

Congratulations again, Joani!

[In_The_Wind]

125. is that a promise from a politician

who really should have his own DU week




thanks again Bill ... we seem to have a mutual admiration thing going on

[Wetzelbill]

128. oh you called me a politician....

I may have to shower again. How about "Man of the People."

Politian is such a dirty word. :)

You're welcome. Lots of mutual admiration going on around here. :)

[In_The_Wind]

129. Wetzelbill is a true Man of the People

how's that


huh



BTW there's nothing wrong with an additional run through the suds now & then!

[Wetzelbill]

130. I may not be a leader of men but I'm definitely a follower of beautiful

women! Man of the People will work just fine.

:):toast: :patriot:

[In_The_Wind]

131. Man of the People it is then!

you have made this week even more fun than it already was ... and it started off pretty damn good


thanks Bill

[Name removed]

117. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[In_The_Wind]

118. THANK YOU ! a first "Deleted message" on my thread ~ thank you moderator

whatever it was ... I'm glad I didn't see it

[Sugar Smack]

121. LOL!!!!!!

I love it! I didn't see it either, but I love it!

wonder what sadsack wants to bite your butt. It was probably an over-the-top love letter.

[In_The_Wind]

122. one could only hope that the later part of your message is the reason

I did post a photograph of my bumper stickers ~ words that I support ~ woe be it to those who choose to come toe to toe with me in anger. I only play one way.

[Sugar Smack]

123. Well, I love the juxtaposition of the wiggly-feet

with you not taking any shit from any who!!!!

:yourock:

[In_The_Wind]

124. it just shows ta go ya

ya can't always tell what's goin on in my mind unless ya get ta know me real well


thank you Sugar

[In_The_Wind]

132. ~

my bad


oops ~

[Wetzelbill]

133. Man of The People here

Kick for all of my subjects out there.

:kick: