Daily Kos Diarist

Mr. Michael Goldfarb,

It has come to my attention that yesterday you derided the New York Times editorial blog, The Board. You also decided to denigrate Daily Kos writers as a whole in the process. I would urge you to think about the things you write a little longer before you publish them. As I sit here in the home I own, with a computer setup you probably would not understand, I wonder exactly how many DK writers play Dungeons and Dragons and live in their mother's basement. The logical fallacy you committed with your statements is called a glittering generality, and given your past work the fact that you committed it really does not surprise me.

On May 8th of this year you wrote that George Bush's positive impact on Al Qaeda recruiting should be of no concern to the citizens of the United States. You supported the idea that killing the recruits, incessantly, would eventually rid the world of Islamic extremists. You claimed that at some point they would just give up. If I believed what you said for one second, then I would have to ask you, Mr. Goldfarb, do you understand that Pakistan harbors a large percentage of the world's Islamic extremists? Exactly how much progress has been made in exterminating the Muslims of Pakistan who do not like the United States? My objections to your thesis go far beyond buying into your diatribe, however.

The fact that somebody with your obvious talents for writing would support an indefinite state of war strikes me as somehow perverse. The language I love so much does not deserve to be twisted and abused with the ignorance of your argument. Three days ago the RAND Corporation released a report that completely refutes your idea of an indefinite war on terrorism. I understand that neo-conservatives professed a desperate desire to bring Democracy to the Muslim world through superior firepower. That philosophy, if taken as genuine, was an utter failure. Many of us believe that these wars have really been about greed and profit, but that argument has no relevance to your arrogance.

I return to your work of the past. When you pretended John McCain was involved with the release of hostages in Colombia, people familiar with events in Latin America shook their heads in disbelief. Juan Manuel Santos and his staff crafted Operation Jaque quite independently of any American involvement. It would not surprise me if a phone call from Washington convinced them to conduct the operation while McCain was in their nation, but the Republican candidate could never have come up with the plan. As I am sure you know somewhere deep inside you, Mr. Goldfarb, John McCain can't even answer simple questions without a lot of preparation.

I understand, Mr. Goldfarb, that you played a role in the absolute fabrication concerning Senator Obama and wounded troops in Landstuhl. After reading about your involvement I came to the conclusion that you play the role of propagandist for the McCain campaign. Nothing you say can be taken as true from that point on. Quality journalists don't create an idea and then look for evidence that it is true. Journalism takes evidence and presents it. In some cases drawing conclusions from the evidence is inevitable, and probably the most exciting part of journalism (aside from dangerous in-the-field reporting). What you do is exactly the opposite of journalism.

Mr. Goldfarb, I say to you that you have no idea what you are talking about when it comes to the Daily Kos. Some of the most amateurish diarists out there have more honesty and sincerity in their little fingers than you do in your entire body. The work of the dedicated writers completely blows yours out of the water. Of course I seriously doubt you have spent much time reading the high quality pieces that appear at the Daily Kos every single day.

As for my own part in all of this, I have to say that I am not a journalist and not the best diarist around. I write poetry and novels, run a small web business, and express my opinions as well as I am able to. I am 38 years old. I would never do it, but I could probably chase you down after giving you a thirty second head start, and then drag you by your ear for a couple of miles. Be careful of the things you say, Mr. Goldfarb. One day you might offend the wrong person.

Sincerely,
Right-Out