Reply #110: If you don't mind one more piling on [View All]

You're right. Frenchie did use some profanity, and perhaps what offended you more, she was extremely sarcastic and assumed bad motives on the part of the OP. In doing so, she risked offending you and others and maybe that wasn't such a good idea.

But it's more complicated than that.

Those of us who are both DU regulars and Clark supporters get hit with exactly this sort of attack all the time. A poster, usually one with a low post count or recent sign-up date, or both, but not always either, will post some really old attack piece (from one extreme or the other of the political spectrum -- they're usually pretty much the same ref Clark) that has been thoroughly debunked more times than any of us can count. Often, they say just what the "Admiral" did, "I like Clark, but what about..." There have been quite literally thousands of posts, and hundreds of threads, very much like this one over the last three years or so since Clark declared in 2003. And while there are fewer now than during the 2004 primaries, they still pop up regularly. I'd bet the FAIR article alone has generated at least a hundred posts all by itself and that might be a conservative estimate. It gets frustrating beyond belief to see it again.

Now, we all realize that not everyone reads a lot of what's posted at DU, and no one reads it all. And most people don't know a whole lot about Clark's background, altho anyone who claims to be a Democratic activist (and DU membership sort of implies that) really should. So it is possible that the OP here is sincere in wanting an answer to a legitimate question. But surely you can understand why we are skeptical.

Frenchie is one who spends a lot of time and effort combatting misinformation at DU. Not just about Clark, but about just about all of our Democratic leaders. Even some she doesn't much like, if she thinks they're being wronged. She is death on the media whores and the way they manipulate information. If she has less patience than some others, I think she's earned it. And I would guess that most of us who know her feel the same, which may be why you and the OP got so many replies coming to her defense.

But please note, there are a couple people who either defended her, or accused the OP, who are not Clarkies.

As for the profanity... all I can say is that it's the norm at DU. I know you're not that new here, so I would think you'd recognize that. It shocks me sometimes, and yet I find myself using it too when provoked. And, I hate to admit, sometimes just out of the blue. It almost seems like, if you want to make a point, you have to slam it home with harsh words because otherwise, people are so used to seeing them, you can't get thru if you don't. I suppose that's not a good excuse, but it seems to be the way it is. :shrug: