Mixed Messages

It seems that little Johnny Sinrud just can't keep from picking fights in the blogs.  If he were smarter, he'd take the advice of his good buddy Koopman, the LieMonkey, and just dismiss us all as 'haters'.  But nope, not John.  He appears to have  more of an attitude problem and one helluva lot less discipline than his Republicant peers, so he starts doin' mouth exercises (the better to insert foot, I'd imagine).

This time he decided to target Jay/Touchstone, at 4 & 20 Blackbirds, for the Sinrud blue-bully special.  I don't doubt that John was intimidated because  Touchstone was well featured in both the Missoula Independent article and the PBS story for NOW tele-magazine.  That distinction was well earned for Touchstone; he is among the most charming and certainly among the smartest of all our tiny band of "hate-bloggers".  So John's need to dominate inspired him to latch onto Jay like a fly onto a horse-apple.

So Johnny leaves a fly-by comment, accusing Touchstone of supporting a tax and (unspoken) liberal in John Tester, all based on Tester's support for one bill.  Now let's be clear, here.  Touchstone is a father, a Montanan, a concerned blogger, and an intelligent man; not the kind of guy to be intimidated.  So he responds with a post concerning the weak and questionable record of one state Representative John Sinrud.  No doubts, this makes our Johnny vewwy vewwy angwy!  So John responds with the same BS about Tester as before ... guilt by association being cast on Touchstone and all.  For his efforts, the commentors hand Sinrud his ass on a plate.  Game over, Johnny.  Try again.

But see, here's the part that has me bemused.  The efforts of Sinrud, and those of his ilk, are to paint Tester as a "Liberal" who will raise your taxes.  Eric keeps spouting the complete load of crap that 'Tester never met a tax he didn't like'.  We can somewhat forgive Eric; he's the windup toy simply recycling the feces he's stuffed with from Chucky Denowh.  But the slightly more rational like Sinrud should realize that half of their smear is missing ... and it's an important half.  The point of attacking liberals with the taxation idea is that they tax and spend.  Notice, please, the spend is an implication.  It implies, spend for crap that you don't like.  Funny thing, that.  That isn't what they're accusing Jon Tester of.  Now why would this be?

Here's a theory.  The Republicant platform of fear has run its course in the state of Montana.  The only strategy they have left is that you must be afraid because the 'libruls' want to take things from you.  They have completely lost sight of consequence.  Completely.  For this, you can blame the strategy of Conrad Burns.

Do any of you know what Conrad's campaign slogan is?  Yes, you there in the back.  "Delivering for Montana".  Absolutely correct.  This is the problem.  What is Conrad delivering for Montana except spending?  Nothing.  You can't very well attack Tester for being a 'tax and spend' liberal if you wish to hold spending sacrosanct from scrutiny to protect your boy, now can you?  Obviously not.  These are the facts of the case.  Money that gets taxed to Government gets spent.  We all know this.  Many if not most of us don't like that fact, but the only thing we ever really rise against is if the money gets spent uselessly, foolishly, stupidly.

Which brings us back to little Johnny Sinrud.  Sinrud wants you scared shitless that Tester will tax you into oblivion.  The windup toy (Eric) actually made the claim in a comment here that Montana would dry up and blow away without SPENDING, spending provided by Conrad Burnt.  These two ideas don't meet.  They don't relate.  So here we have the mixed message.

Montanans aren't stupid, though Sinrud and Eric and Chucky and Conrad think we are.  They will tell us all the horrors that Tester's taxation will bring upon the state, but here's the facts.  Montana is one of the very few states where real-earnings for workers has risen, rather substantially, while Tester was in office.  Burns, who holds national office, has seen a dramatic overall decrease in real-earnings on his watch, not to mention an enormous swelling of the national debt ... a debt he voted multiple times to increase.  Tester voted to increase the equipment taxes on Exxon in this state, while exempting more small businesses from such a tax.  Burns, the spender, gave 3 million dollars to a tribe that didn't need the money to build a school (if you believe Burns, and I don't, it's because a couple of 'librul' Democrats asked him to.)    Montana is running a budget surplus this year, while Burns' federal responsibilities show overspending of only 300 million instead of the projected 500 million.

Montanans know this.  They see this.  They experience it in their daily lives.  The Montana GOP insults us with their stupid certainty that we will be more afraid of a guy who obviously did his job, then the guy who obviously hasn't.  Montanans are smart enough to know that what gets made, gets spent or it doesn't.  What Jon has helped garner for Montana will assist our state or be repaid.  What Conrad has done is mortgage our future while counting on our fear of taxes, which will rise when  having to pay for what he obligated us to pay.  He's spent his wad and ours too.  I believe, no, rather, I know that Montanans aren't that dumb.  We don't want the spending because we don't want the taxes.  If Tester betrays that, we vote him out.  Conrad has betrayed that for 18 years.  What are we waiting for?

So John Sinrud can continue to display his emotional problems by challenging us all to fear an alternative, while really wanting us to fear him.  I've made my statement concerning how little I fear Johnny Sinrud, and I'm certain he's heard it loud and clear.  The Republicants aren't offering anything except a mixed message.  Fear the tax, but ignore our spend.  Losers, one and all.  I don't fear the tax, I fear your spending that gives rise to the tax.  Cease now, or lose.

A final note to touchstone:  John didn't threaten me on Yellowstone Public Radio, and he didn't say "I know where you live".  He threatened me, if that's what that weak sauce was, on KMMS.  The radio show was Citizen's Voice, which all good Bozeman liberals should be listening to.  What he said was "I know what you look like".  I don't take that as a threat because, a)  I laughed at him, and b) now he knows he couldn't take me down (in more ways than one, right John?).  No, John was just being a bully, and bullies don't like it when you push back.  John, ignorant as he is, has decided to play in our bailiwick of the Inter-tubes.  It's time to push back.

UPDATE:  On previewing websites before post, it seems that Touchstone is way ahead of me.  Little Johnny bit off more than he can chew.  He might win his seat back, in the legislature.  But he will be alone ...  so very very alone.  And every time he shakes a bit too vigorously, us 'hate-bloggers' will be watching.  When you're in the public eye, it's probably not a good idea to be a raging asshole, Mister Sinrude.  Just thought I'd clarify.

UPDATE 2:  Uh Oh, It seems our little Johnny opened a can of woop-ass.  We'll see how many phone calls he can make to silence the haters, or if he can respond at all.  It's like a good soap opera, idn't it?

Comments

[Larry Kralj, Environmental Rangers!]

Woop-ass must be on sale somewheres! Wulfgar gave jonny at LEAST two cans worth!

[Eric Coobs]

My opinion of Testers fiscal policy is based on his voting record in the legislature.

The TV commercials say he supports lower taxes, while his voting record proves that he does not.

[Mark T]

Eric - 'look around you all you see are sympathetic eyes'