NP - Donnie does the Tu Quoque shuffle

[matthew cissell]

Howdy Y'all,

    Been a lot of talk on the list and elsewhere about journalism, Syria,
fake news and the russian hackers & CIA, and oh so much more. Many have
said: "Oh so you think the US is free of sin?" Now we see The Chump doing
that rag. Love that Whataboutism.

Do we need to rehearse and recount the sins and crimes of the land of the
Free? Doesn't hurt. We could start with the colonies and work our way up to
Wounded KNee, Ludlow and more. Sure of course we will mention Operation
Condor, Paperclip and more. Agent Orange and Guantanamo will get their
place in the recital of shame.

  But let me ask you: do you think that that painful and terrible list is a
proper rebuttle? Do you really think that US support (first on part of the
government and then later by too many people) of regime change and more
prohibits the US from complaint? Why can't we recognize the fallacy behind
that logic? Would we say that the members who sit on the International
Court of Justice can't hear cases against warlords or dictators given their
own countries' past crimes?

The judge who has blocked Chump's order offers a point of comparison; do
you think something similar could happen in Russia? I think the folks who
engage in the Tu Quoque argument should not just spend some time in Russia
but also go talk to the Chechens. However, for a cheap primer you could
watch the PBS documentary "Return of the Czar" - before you get any ideas,
it posits how the US in the '90's could be said to be guilty for the rise
of Putin. Another item to add to the list of shame.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhStxLABfMs

No, Donnie, the US is not so innocent. And niether am I. But I still know
how to discern a brute from someone who has behaved brutishly, a killer
from someone who has killed. If you can't then we may be in for big trouble.

ciao
mc otis
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