I felt bad that I couldn't participate fully on Darcy's thread at Lem. Her post was so poignant and heartfelt I didn't feel that I could let loose my usual bullshit. Even though Rev was asking for it.
Sometimes you have to feel your way when you are commenting. I wouldn't comment the way I do here or at Lem's at a more serious blog like "Legal Insurrection." Of course at a free for all like Ace you can just let fly. When somebody puts up a sincire post like Darcy did it is not really cool to be a Meade.
Man is that fucker annoying. He keeps poking at me but I will not respond. I might give him an obligue shot in other threads but I will not directly engage his stupidity. He wants that too much.
95 comments:
I went and read Darcy's post, but didn't bother with the comments. Agreed...poignant and heartfelt.
There is an online friend I'm sure some of us know who answers Darcy's description. I don't think Darcy meant her, but it really doesn't matter. What matters is Darcy's point about the empty promise of "fulfilling dreams."
Parents soon learn that having kids is all about "fulfilling dreams." They're just not the stupid, selfish ones you might have started out with. We've been in the "fulfilling dream" business for 20 years now, and it's been pretty steady all that time.
Tim w/ wisdom from the Bay State. Good to see you "Wild Thing" Tim Burnett.
Hey, thanks, Nick!
Troop, I think Meade is just warming up. When he gets angry -- and he's getting peeved -- he starts calling people by their real first name -- like Jim and Bruce. When he crosses that bridge, he's full on "Larry" to me.
I haven't read Meade in ages before today.
When did the psychotic break occur?
Troop, I think Meade is just warming up. When he gets angry -- and he's getting peeved -- he starts calling people by their real first name -- like Jim and Bruce. When he crosses that bridge, he's full on "Larry" to me.
After the incident with him this summer I vowed never to engage with him in public again— no responses, no mentions, nothing. The most interaction I have given him was deleting his nasty comment to me the other day in my "neutron star" thread at Lem's.
He's a seriously deranged, disgusting person. It still astonishes me that he has no shame about how he behaves. That he even considered taking a shot at me again, it boggles my mind.
I like Revenant, even though he's an asshole. It was Meade that thoroughly polluted Darcy's thread.
I haven't read Meade in ages before today.
When did the psychotic break occur?
A long time ago, it seems.
After the incident with him this summer I vowed never to engage with him in public again— no responses, no mentions, nothing. The most interaction I have given him was deleting his nasty comment to me the other day in my "neutron star" thread at Lem's.
I'll bet that bugs him too. I remember when Althouse singled you out as her favorite commenter. It's hard to go from 60 to 0 that fast in their minds, even though I suspect that they both think that Sixty is a zero.
I used to be a "beloved commenter," too. The scales fell from my eyes at Althouse's insulting e-mail when I was unmasked. She couldn't avoid getting her digs into Sir Archy's medium when the time came. "Love/hate" or 'jealousy" or "Daddy issues," or something. Normal politeness is beyond, beneath, or above her. I don't know or care.
I am done with sick, crazy people. Let me quote from something I put up on Facebook a few minutes ago. It was partly in response to an old colleague who is a trust-fund lefty out of Central Casting, and who cannot control her urge to berate:
On Facebook, and online generally, I prefer good cheer, good music, fripperies, heartfelt sentiments, and expansive thoughts to scolding. I have read factional disputes every day online for the past 25 years, and I am finally done with them. Call me shallow. I say, "not insane, at last."
Amen.
Thanks, Trooper. I liked your comments on that thread and I'm just glad you all read it and get me.
Meade. His aggression does seem to be accelerating. I left his assholery out there for all to see just because I'm that stubborn.
(Irish.)
Another day, more discussion about what an asshole Meade is.
Anyone see the pattern?
Yeah. :)
Happy Friday! I'm heading up north with two crazy friends to even colder weather. There will be beer and laughs.
You are correct sir.
It seems that Meade and Crack are in a weird symbiotic relationship. Meade posts anonymous comments and trolls both Lem and Crack. Then Crack takes the nonsense and front pages it and tries to call in other commenters to provide cover. It is getting stupid.
I think the best thing to do is just maintain radio silence with Meade and Crack.
Crack has really gone off the deep end. I am afraid that he has become really mentally ill.
The sheriff pulled over an old woman driving an old car.
"Officer, it is my duty to inform you that I am armed", she said.
"What are you carrying?"
"A .45, a .357, two 9s, a .38 and a .22 ankle pistol."
"My God woman, what are you scared of?"
Said the little old woman "Nothing."
@ Darcy
I thought of this poem when you made your post about the regrets for lost children and lost dreams. It is too late to post there but here is the last verse.
For of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these: "It might have been!"
Ah, well! for us all some sweet hope lies
Deeply buried from human eyes;
And, in the hereafter, angels may
Roll the stone from its grave away!
John Greenleaf Whittier
It seems that Meade and Crack are in a weird symbiotic relationship.
Yeah, I think there's some collusion going on. No way to prove it though, and maybe that's the way the like like it.
I think the best thing to do is just maintain radio silence with Meade and Crack.
Yes. It should be our collusion.
That is really beautiful, DBQ. I've just tweeted it.
Thank you!
Hope you all have a great weekend.
Northward!
Cody, if we didn't discuss what an asshole LM is, we'd have to start talking about what an asshole TY is.
Meade is a very public troll. He exposes himself again and again as vile, vicious, petty, and adolescent. Here's what I don't get... why doesn't AA rein him in? If were her, I would've died of shame many times over because of him.
Doesn't she care? Doesn't she mind what this says about her to all the world? Meade may have nothing to lose, but she has a high profile, personally and professionally, and she has plenty to lose. Could she possibly be that removed from reality that she thinks his behaviour doesn't reflect on her?
I know that one explanation is she's so demented herself that she still thinks he's manly and clever. But she's been with him long enough to know what a pathetic fraud of a man he is and how insubstantial his ideas are. Plus she doesn't appear to be insane. So I don't think that's it.
It's not that I care about her. I don't. I'm just so curious.
"My God woman, what are you scared of?"
Said the little old woman "Nothing."
Yeah, but after she's survived an encounter with one of the state's pet vibrant ones she'll have to face the wrath of the state.
Agreed that survival is the first law. But the "crime" of successful self-defense will be punished by our enemy the state.
Too much imagination is my problem. Better to just have the guts to fire and to hell with the consequences.
Did you just say "she doesn't appear to be insane" or something very similar to that?
She hasn't ever appeared to be anything but insane. Ever. Let's talk about that whole thing where she blew her shit out at that conference having dinner with 3-4 people and work our way forward. Or all that shit between her and her ex that has been carefully deleted.
Nope. Annie Outhouse is nuttier than a shithouse rat. She reminds me of my grandmother that way--it's one of the reasons it bothers me so much, the pathology is near and dear and painful to my heart.
And you're also starting with another (possibly) faulty premise: you're assuming that whenever you see the red bird beside a comment, it's coming from Laurence. Sometimes--usually--perhaps. But I'll bet any amount of money some of the bitchest comments are being made by Ms. Outhouse under his name.
And Palladian, that's true enough. Or hey--we could just take turns attacking each other.
kalmia, Maybe he's hung like a horse.
Always go w/ the simple explanation when given a choice.
Cody, I do believe AA has NPD--and like all NPDs, she's odious, dishonest, manipulative, and dangerous to others. But that's not the same thing as being insane.
Narcissistic people care terribly what others think. That's the part that confuses me. If she's posting vile things as Meade, she's cutting off her own nose to spite her face, no?
ndspinellli, True enough. :-) Occam's Razor, and all that.
I'm fairly sure NPD is the least of her issues, but what makes you think NPD isn't insanity?
Until a few people got together and tried to create the whole NPD thing a few years ago it used to all be lumped together as megalomania.
Anyway, Darcy's advice in a previous comment thread to not talk about them was apt. I get the same feeling as when I discover one of those huge Giant House Spiders in my basement.
Must... resist... next... time.
And no, she's not cutting off her own nose to spite her face if she posts something as Meade that she can't post as herself.
Meade is still only her husband. If he wants to make an ass of himself on a blog with 17 readers, how does it hurt her or her tenured position as a super important professor of bullshit?
How many of her colleagues do you suppose know the Litterbox exists? The only time Meade gets any notice is when Breitbart picks up a video they've made about the screaming morons attacking the WI capitol.
NPD my ass.
You're hanging your hat on something created in the late 60's, argued about since then, and totally revamped 3-4 years ago.
Okay, one more... I guess I'm thinking of the definition of being clinically insane as opposed to having a terrible character defect like meglomania. But I see your point. She has definitely lost her grip many times, so who knows what she does or why.
Yes, because Darcy's been the only person here that's ever said anything like that. Not Palladian, not Ari, not Sixty, not Tim, not MamaM, not even Troop hisself (although he gets restless...)....
NPD = Narcissistic Personality Disorder
That's for anyone else like me who couldn't follow the thread. So I googled NPD and like the cop in Chinatown by sharing I'm doing you a BIG favor.
Lieutenant Escobar, that's the cop's name. Just came to me after not coming to me for ten minutes. Age is so much fun.
Chinatown didn't come to me for five minutes. And then it did. Yeah, think highly of yourselves cause you all got young supple brains. Just you wait ha ha ha ha ha.....
So, he goes in lobbing bombs, then thanks Synova for bringing the conversation back?
I confess, I don't get why y'all bother.
Whether crazy or personality disorder is your preferred nomenclature, the core abnormality is bad faith vindictiveness for its own sake.
He pisses in the soup for no reason he can explain, because he must.
And he is good at reading others by their online posts, and guessing what the worst thing he can say to you might be.
That sort of ability only comes by years of practice.
Even dogs fail him him after a few weeks, in his eyes.
And you're also starting with another (possibly) faulty premise: you're assuming that whenever you see the red bird beside a comment, it's coming from Laurence. Sometimes--usually--perhaps. But I'll bet any amount of money some of the bitchest comments are being made by Ms. Outhouse under his name.
This may be old news for some but there are at least two distinct "Meade" profiles on Blogger. There could be more but I'm too lazy to check.
The Original Meade
and the Angry Meade, created in October of 2008.
blake said...
So, he goes in lobbing bombs, then thanks Synova for bringing the conversation back?
I confess, I don't get why y'all bother.
At the risk of sounding all pissy, blake, I enjoy what I do at Lem's as well as what others do there. For some reason for me, it beats Twitter these days. That Meade comes over and shits at Lem's concerns me. I suspect that he does it because Althouse despises some of the commenters at Lems (myself included) but she wants to lure back some of the "lesser offenders."
Having met her once along with Meade, and broaching the topic, I can assure you that she really doesn't give a flying fuck about her commenters. She would if any of them were celebrities I suspect.
Lest my two previous comments seem incongruent -- that she cares and doesn't care -- it is resolved by considering that she cares only about the blog and how people perceive her through it. She will lash out at her detractors because they threaten her esteem somehow.
I went back there to kick sand and behave badly, but given chicken little's posts (and the fact that many of her posts seem recycled from the last few years), fuck it.
On some topics i am a slow learner.
Hey Pogo, what's the name for the syndrome where folks go on rubbing and rubbing and rubbing on a raw spot they complain about but won't leave alone and let heal?...wait...I've got it...Recurring Althouse Obsession Syndrome.
You're all sinners in the hands of an angry God!
Who said that? Hint: he hailed from TTBurnett country.
I went back there to kick sand and behave badly, but given chicken little's posts (and the fact that many of her posts seem recycled from the last few years), fuck it.
I still go back and even comment occasionally. The woman has a knack for pot stirring and for finding original topics. But Lem is beating at the latter, IMO. My weakness is that I'm from there, and can't resist piling on things I like and dislike about Madison. If Althouse were broadcasting from Brooklyn, he'd have a harder time staying away.
He = Troop
@ricpic
Dat's the fact, jack.
I still want to punch her in the nose. Thought I could do it in some bloggerly way, but that's just stupid.
I like TTBurnett's advice.
You are far more effective with Meade ignoring him. You can always comment here.
That dog fucker wants attention. When you fail to take his bait he goes completely nuts. It is funny to watch.
Meade and AA do deserve each other. They are like Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf for Dummies.
Unfair - George and Martha in WAoVW were much more sober than those two.
I saw that movie for the first time last month.
Man, what a frightening pair. Did make me think of AA & Larry.
My brother and I always thought it was a home movie. I guess our parents thought that was an instructional movie, not a cautionary tale.
LM's crappery seems to occur most frequently during hours when you'd expect that he is home alone. That says something, but I don't know what.
The 60 to 0 comment upthread is spot-on. I went from a commenter who was sometimes front-paged to a despised plebian just that fast. It was because she put up a topic that I believed was a harsh swipe at another commenter's child, based on what that commenter had tweeted.
I posted a comment to that effect, as did several others. She denied having done it, even though it was blatantly apparent that she had done so.
The result was a stream of increasingly shrill, angry and vindictive emails sent to me on a Sunday afternoon, and the freezing of all comments on that topic.
I purposely delete comments Meade posts on the topics I create on Lem's blog. I get quite a bit of pleasure from doing that.
Especially when the AA rules are invoked when doing so.
That make me laugh.
"...a topic that I believed was a harsh swipe at another commenter's child"
I must have missed that one.
NPD = Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Althouse Insensitivity Derangement Syndrome is viral.
Only milkmaids are vaccinated. That explains Titus' peccadillo & immunity.
Pogo - A regular commenter - long since gone - was having a very rough week with a run away, drug addicted adolescent child. In overwhelming frustration about the situation, he tweeted a few times one evening.
AA picked up on those tweets and without mentioning him my name, ripped into him. Her post went up early on a Sunday morning and read like she was stinking drunk.
She was called out on it by several regulars, including some loyalists who though she was out of bounds. She denied knowing anything about the guy's situation, although she very quickly un-followed him on twitter.
Her emails were increasingly filled with legal mumbo jumbo and denials, all looking like setting the predicate in the event of a suit.
Shit.
That's was very ugly of her.
Hard to believe, but she has even uglier parts.
"Some say your nose,
Some say your toes,
But I think it's your mind".
Thanks, Frank Zappa - it's as if you knew her.
AA picked up on those tweets and without mentioning him my name, ripped into him. Her post went up early on a Sunday morning and read like she was stinking drunk.
I remember that now. That was vile and pathetic of her. But just another example of how she turned on a longtime (and loyal) commenter.
Bruce,
Nothin' magic about Lem's. You could do your biz someplace where Larry's not allowed.
I'm not casting stones. The sheer malignance of those comments took me aback, is all.
Distance is recommended.
And I did not know that about Pogo.
I've often said, the problem with most people who go to Althouse is that they think it's a community, with people communicating back and forth and forming normal human bonds.
It's not. It's a show. That can be a shocking revelation.
And I did not know that about Pogo.
Know what about Pogo?
That he was dead.
Zombies are really popular these days.
You should know that blake. You are the movie guy after all.
Blake is right. It is a show. That's why Sir Archy call'd it a Theatre of Topicks. In that light, we're all groundlings, to be chas'd out after the Savoyard dancers and performing dogs have done.
It must, then, have been a matter of some desperation for Mr. Meade to have sunk his hooks into the impressaria, who has but a small, collegiate income, additionally to peddling trifles to passers-by from the steps of her playhouse.
Oh and one more thing.
It is always an appropriate topic to notice how big an asshole TY is because he is proud of it. Just sayn'
Bruce--
I misread Haz's letter as an apposite, "Pogo, a long time commenter, had some trouble..." not "Pogo, there was a long time commenter who had some trouble".
Confused again.
I did know about the dead thing, though. I'm currently writing a not-zombie book.
Also, I knew Troop was an out-and-proud asshole.
Right now it appears as if each contributor at Lem's is responsible for handling deletions as they see fit when it comes to comments or commenters they dislike or have an issue with. In the wake of Darcy's abortion post, the term "bad faith" is also being floated around as if the meaning is known , without a clear definition of what "bad faith" commenting looks like or involves being presented. Which makes me wonder: Is directly delivered malicious snark worse than sweetly hidden malicious snark? When does begging Inga to return become a bad faith idea and allowing Titus to impugn others and become headline material seem like good one? Where does intentional pot stirring cross the line to become toxic poking? While an individual approach by posters to these questions may work for while for those with insider knowledge, the blog itself continues on as a public gathering place with unlimited access (as opposed to a private club), into which unknown guests and new comers could be expected to arrive, without having a clue or finding any indication about what the individual or group comment policy(s) involve.
While I enjoy seeing MHaz apply Althouse's policy to Meade, and respect Palladian's decision to delete the personal snark and disrespect being directed at him by Meade, neither of those approaches reveal or reflect an overall policy by them or the blog owner. At some point something more comprehensive than reaction is going to be needed and Meade appears to be doing a yeoman's job of forcing this issue.
I wasn't comfortable with the term "bad faith" when Althouse started using it, following her bumbling inability to honestly and adequately address the "J" material, and I didn't like or respect the sporadic and seemingly random deletions of comments (some made by long time contributors) that took place under that policy prior to the July Shutdown, and since with the addition of "moderation". In my mind Althouse has undermined trust and revealed herself to be random and petty in her handling of this, rather than a person of integrity with firm and consistently applied principles responding to a difficult to control situation.
How to identify and deal with the truly toxic stuff along with determining the worth and value of the pot-stirrers, ravers, and other dark-hearted juvenile delinquents that are bound to show up is something Lem and his contributors are eventually going to have to address as the blog continues to grow and garner more comments.
"If people can't control themselves the Government will. If the Government can't control itself another Government will."
I have no problem with Lem delegating deletion policy. Penultimately, he has the say. Ultimately, Google has march in rights.
My deletion policy over there is willful and capricious. It's a feature, not a bug.
Have you ever noticed that when AA blogs about a conversation with LM it's all
"I read this aloud to Meade and Meade laughed ha ha and sang a Bob Dylan lyric to me about this very same thing, and I googled the album cover and Meade said ha ha ha yes, I remember and sang some songs from the album and look out the windows! trees! and wind! and Mead said ha ha ha wood'nt you know...wood'nt, get it, and...."
Sounds like LM doesn't let his inner jackass run wild at home, only on blogs wifey may not read.
My deletion policy over there is willful and capricious. It's a feature, not a bug.
So is AA's. And I didn't respect her for it when she started deleting in that manner.
Using her policy against Meade is funny stuff and it makes a point, but in the end it's still a reactive, Larry-oriented and Althouse-centric solution. That it currently works doesn't make it a credible or good personal policy, and using it or mimicking her is not the same as blogging in strength with one's own boundaries in place.
As I understand TY's loosely described policy, he doesn't countenance crazy, and going after family is not tolerated. I've seen him enforce this with consistency and integrity, and that kind of enforcement is what I'd like to see happening at Lem's.
Lem is a weakling.
Wait, was that too personal?
In any case, he has a spine of linguini and stands for nothing.
But it's his blog, so I can take it or leave it.
And don't forget that Meade bought and paid for Lem's services.
Using her policy against Meade is funny stuff and it makes a point, but in the end it's still a reactive, Larry-oriented and Althouse-centric solution.
Althouse-centric? Not entirely. It's a more of a jackass-centric solution as it relates to M's comments, with the use of his wife's policy thrown in to end the discussion.
We all have our own views. Mine is that I don't want personal attacks made by one commenter against another commenter on my topics. I delete Meade for that reason. Left alone he soon enough zings a line or two about Palladian, or about someone else.
Perhaps you missed it, but I recently intervened when Ritmo and Icepick got into an exchange in which personal circumstances became a part of the topic. I deleted those specific comments, but not the entire conversation, which was actually quite good.
I am consistent about it on my topics, but each person who posts topics at Lem's can abide by what he or she chooses. In time, there will be a gravitational pull toward a common standard. Each person has to find his or her way to that standard.
As I said, blogging in strength with one's own boundaries in place is a good thing. It's also good to know that your bottom line involves no personal attacks made by one commenter against another, MHaz.
As for each person (poster?) finding his or her own way to a common standard, its been my experience within systems (church, family, school and business) that entropy takes over when leadership isn't actively involved and common goals aren't clear and present.
The gravitational pull in those situations wasn't toward order, integration or healthy growth.
No commenter on commenter violence? Where's the fun in that, Hazdude?
And, not that I am keeping track, but how many of my comments have you deleted. I trust your judgment, and I know for a fact that some of my comments need deletin', just sayin'...
There's the "owns a lathe" exception to the rule.
I prefer a standard of non-aggression between commenters, as a master of taste, if you will. I think it's in poor taste to be arguing with someone and attack them personally.
I'm not talking about friendly ball-busting or even exasperated exchanges between friendly people.
But in trying to debate Ritmo the other day, he quickly resorted to calling me a "miserable human being".
Not that I care what he thinks or says, but it indicates that there can be no rational discussion. We're just arguing to argue, for the sake of partisan point scoring (even though I'm not sure what teams we're supposed to be on).
I've only seen it happen for a few times, and never for more than a few months on the open Internet. (On CompuServe, there were many groups that were basically professional gatherings, and debate was possible in some of these groups.)
It was really the impetus for not discussing details of my personal life. I mean, I've worked with people in on-line relationships for over a decade who had no idea I had kids.
It'd be a nice thing to be able to have a community where you could reveal personal details and not have them used against you in a debate about ideas, but I suppose a unicorn would be pretty nice, too.
Haz, you are too kind.
I have 3 or 4 lathes, come to think of it...
Does skill with a gouge or v-tool count or does there need to be a pull cord, plug or switch to qualify for the manly pass? What about skill with a needle? The ability to walk fast with scissors?
What I've got is a generator, the one we bought new and hooked up just prior to the power returning last time around. As of today, it's semi-used as the power went out again this afternoon for several hours with temps in the single digits. It proved useful, revealing its worth one outage at a time.
There should be a pass for anyone who lives on a grid of their own making.
As if MamaM is going to go all rogue in the first place. Ha!
MamaM is so sui generis -- especially in her advice -- it's hard to imagine ever crossing her. As for her dislike of my delete policy -- I wield it so infrequently that nobody really notices. Mi piace.
Re comment policy: I just put the following into my blog comment box:
"Titus and Titus-like comments will be shot on sight."
SixtyG, Your skill with the turn is powerful with or without the lathe!
And chickenlittle, sui generis is new to me. I appreciate the good word. As for infrequent notice, the shadow knows. It's the ability to acknowledge and work with the shadow that gives jesters their jest. I like your policy.
Maybe I didn't read my thread carefully enough, as there are some commenters I routinely scroll by and some that I just skim based on history, but I did not see anything that screamed deletion.
Dickish behavior, yes. I thought at least some of it was directed at me to be honest, not to mention revealing for whoever might still think kindly of Laurence Meade, so I left them as a statement.
I really don't want to be deleting comments off of my threads unless maybe someone had an issue that they approached me with (like a privacy issue). I would abide by whatever rule Lem may ask be enforced, though.
Darcy,
There is no rule that says you should delete comments; just as there is no rule that says you shouldn't delete comments you find offensive. Set your own standard.
The universe giveth, as Althouse clarifies her personal standard and Meade continues to provoke others into responding with theirs.
I saved my readers time, and a few of them are paying me back by wasting my time.
Either show comprehension and speak respectfully, as I have spoken to you, or you'll get nothing more from me.
I am trying to model civility, clarity, brevity, and humor, and the readers I want are the ones who like that. If you don't want to try for that ideal, then this blog is not for you.
From The China Dog 1/27/14, 12:44 PM
I took a few moments to read the thread from which MamaM quoted above.
The anger and frigidity embedded in her remarks left a chill, and a deep thankfulness that I am not married to such a bitter and manipulative woman.
Yeah, that was somethin', huh? I read it, too.
Train wreck...
The one re HRC is just as awful.
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