# Open letter to Bricker **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 6, 2008, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263 "2008-09-06T00:51:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Harborwolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Harborwolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harborwolf)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/121 "2008-09-06T14:22:37Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > To be fair to Dio, he did retract his “Sarah Palin slashes funds to teen mothers” OP in GD. It took a bit of counter-cites for him to do it, but he did do in in one page. I sit corrected. I’d stand corrected, but I have enough problems typing while seated. ---
**Author:** ![qualor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/eada6e/32.png) [@qualor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/qualor)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/122 "2008-09-06T14:45:31Z")
People take themselves/this message board far too seriously. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/123 "2008-09-06T14:46:51Z")
^ Agrees with OP. **Bricker** ’s one of the nicest, most reasonable posters here, and he absolutely doesn’t deserve the kind of vitriol he gets here on a fairly regular basis. If it was, say, **Shodan** , that would be another matter, but it’s not, and it’s almost incomprehensible that they receive pretty much the same treatment just because their politics are similar. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/124 "2008-09-06T14:56:43Z")
> [@Scylla](#): > > You may remember that you and I started on this board at about the same time in '99. Things were a little different back then. I remember getting my ass kicked by the likes of Davidb, Gaudere, and Dr. Fidelius in scientific discussions, and feeling greatful about it. The board was much more about factual debate on pretty tangible subjects, and not so much about politics. I was here in '99, and I’d say the signal-to-noise ratio hasn’t changed all _that_ much. In fact, the mods used to tolerate a lot more stuff in GD then that would have had to be in the Pit anytime during the past half-dozen or so years. An unwillingness to deal with that change was, or at least seemed to be, a good part of what got a number of our more vociferous posters from that era (e.g. **Satan** , **Danielinthewolvesden** ) banned. And the Pit had _massive_ pile-ons back then. Melingate, anyone? O ye of rose-colored memories! > [@Scylla](#): > > The eagle does not trouble himself to return the disdain of the dung beatle. It is enough to know that it feeds on shit. Since that eventually seems to be your attitude towards just about everyone here you disagree with, I’d say this thread’s existence undermines the clearly intended meaning of your analogy. ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/125 "2008-09-06T15:34:38Z")
> [@Scylla](#): > > More than enough. I think your indictment of this administration and conservatives/republicans in general is as careless and devoid of fact as your attack on me. > > I think it’s just bad, sloppy, and angry thinking. I apologized to you for missing your threads. Accept it or not; up to you. And on you. The fact that you still support a corrupt, incompetent, vicious administration reflects entirely on you. Just as it did on little **Bricker** , the tender soul wounded by attack politics. You’re both vicious little whores but ones without even basic dress sense. Seriously, vote for the flipflopper and the fundie. Knock yourself out. Whore yourself out. Again. Show your true colors, O Stalwart Conservative. Show the whole fucking world, especially the hated liberals, exactly what you stand for. You always were an attention-whoring shit and nothing has changed. Based _on your actions_, you’re a wretched excuse for a human being and a waste of oxygen. In case you missed it, jerk, I quite sincerely hate your whiny, self-indulgent guts. And little Father Bricky is a vicious, smiling hypocrite. Deal. ---
**Author:** ![Scylla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/126 "2008-09-06T15:36:55Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I > > Since that eventually seems to be your attitude towards just about everyone here you disagree with, I’d say this thread’s existence undermines the clearly intended meaning of your analogy. Agreed. My hypocrisy is firmly established. It’s besides the point since the main topic is pile-ons. Unless of course you think I’m a one man pile on? (There. I set it up and left it open. Who wants to take it home?) ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/127 "2008-09-06T15:49:29Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > ^ Agrees with OP. > > **Bricker** ’s one of the nicest, most reasonable posters here, and he absolutely doesn’t deserve the kind of vitriol he gets here on a fairly regular basis. If it was, say, **Shodan** , that would be another matter, but it’s not, and it’s almost incomprehensible that they receive pretty much the same treatment just because their politics are similar. This, and I probably would say **Shodan** doesn’t deserve it either (though I hold **Bricker** in considerably more estimation than him). That \ ***Bricker** \*of all people would get an enormous pile-on Pit thread has pretty much hammered home for me the message of considerable underlying lefty idiocy here. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/128 "2008-09-06T15:57:05Z")
> [@Scylla](#): > > Agreed. My hypocrisy is firmly established. It’s besides the point since the main topic is pile-ons. I get it: digressions from the main topic are OK for you to make, but not OK for others to respond to. But you did say your hypocrisy is firmly established. ---
**Author:** ![Scylla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/129 "2008-09-06T16:01:16Z")
> [@TVeblen](#): > > I apologized to you for missing your threads. Accept it or not; up to you. And on you. It’s not an apology, so there is nothing for to accetp. Give with one hand, take with the other, and I notice you didn’t retract any of the insults. Just an “I’m sorry I missed your threads.” And, you follow it up with further insults even more personal and nasty. Your Mama should have taught you better. > [@](#): > > The fact that you still support a corrupt, incompetent, vicious administration reflects entirely on you. Just as it did on little **Bricker** , the tender soul wounded by attack politics. You’re both vicious little whores but ones without even basic dress sense. Again, the apology is pretty shitty in context. And for the record, I wear custom made Talia suits. Custom made shirts, Alden Shell Cordovans, and prescription glasses with Oakley frames during the work week. I wear Robert Graham shirts casually with Patagonia or Indigo Pines Chinos while about town. I am a snazzy dresser. > [@](#): > > Seriously, vote for the flipflopper and the fundie. Knock yourself out. Whore yourself out. Again. Show your true colors, O Stalwart Conservative. Show the whole fucking world, especially the hated liberals, exactly what you stand for. > > You always were an attention-whoring shit and nothing has changed. Based _on your actions_, you’re a wretched excuse for a human being and a waste of oxygen. > > In case you missed it, jerk, I quite sincerely hate your whiny, self-indulgent guts. And little Father Bricky is a vicious, smiling hypocrite. Deal. For me, the formless, irrational hatred that you and so many others on the left hold in your hearts is a validation of my beleifs. The ones that are all full of righteous hatred and indignation are the bad guys. It’s that simple. It’s been that way throughout history. You can forget about everything else. That’s the key. That’s all that matters. When I see you and your ilk freely indulging in this hatred, I know you’re wrong and that I am right simply to be in opposition. The hate and intolerance are on the left these days. It’s like a left-wing rabies. For as long as you allow yourself to indulge in it, you are lost in the wilderness. ---
**Author:** ![Scylla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/130 "2008-09-06T16:03:46Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I get it: digressions from the main topic are OK for you to make, but not OK for others to respond to. No. Your digression is fine. My hypocrisy doesn’t really affect the main point which is about piling on **Bricker** > [@](#): > > But you did say your hypocrisy is firmly established. Yeah. So be happy. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/131 "2008-09-06T16:10:13Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > I do agree that it would be wonderful if we had more articulate conservative posters around here. Both the Pit and general debate dynamics of a message board don’t work nearly as well when one side is so poorly represented. I don’t think complaining about the imbalance is the way to go, though – simply carrying oneself well and calling out those on the other side who do not would be a far better approach. The problem is, quite simply, the past eight years. Bush’s approval ratings have been hovering around 30% all year, and have been in the 30’s or lower ever since Katrina. Given that maybe 25% of the population is knee-jerk at either end, the 50% who are sufficiently in the middle that they might debate politics with people on the other side has a 90-10 anti-Bush tilt. And the GOP has deviated from the Bush line only to be even more conservative, so there’s no significant anti-Bush strain of Republicanism either. So of course the board is far more lopsided politically than it was even in 2002: the only significant political division in the country is the D-R division, which translates to the Bush-antiBush division, and right now the vast majority of people who’d show up here are on one side of that split. I expect that if Obama wins in November, that’ll recenter the debates here somewhat, because instead of debating the latest idiocy from Bush and his GOP acolytes, with the usual one-sidedness, we’ll be debating what Obama and the Dems are trying to get through Congress, which will provide many more instances where people are in favor of the general idea, but disagree with a lot of the particulars. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/132 "2008-09-06T16:12:48Z")
> [@Scylla](#): > > No. Your digression is fine. My hypocrisy doesn’t really affect the main point which is about piling on **Bricker** Pit threads have a way of frequently being about the OP him/herself, rather than about the OP’s intended topic. At any rate, it ain’t your call. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tao_s_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/133 "2008-09-06T16:13:20Z")
> [@Scylla](#): > > It’s not an apology, so there is nothing for to accetp. Give with one hand, take with the other, and I notice you didn’t retract any of the insults. Just an “I’m sorry I missed your threads.” And, you follow it up with further insults even more personal and nasty. Your Mama should have taught you better. > > Again, the apology is pretty shitty in context. And for the record, I wear custom made Talia suits. Custom made shirts, Alden Shell Cordovans, and prescription glasses with Oakley frames during the work week. > > I wear Robert Graham shirts casually with Patagonia or Indigo Pines Chinos while about town. > > I am a snazzy dresser. > > For me, the formless, irrational hatred that you and so many others on the left hold in your hearts is a validation of my beleifs. > > The ones that are all full of righteous hatred and indignation are the bad guys. It’s that simple. It’s been that way throughout history. You can forget about everything else. That’s the key. That’s all that matters. > When I see you and your ilk freely indulging in this hatred, I know you’re wrong and that I am right simply to be in opposition. The hate and intolerance are on the left these days. It’s like a left-wing rabies. > > For as long as you allow yourself to indulge in it, you are lost in the wilderness. I see alot of hand waiving but stupid traitors like you don’t actually say why that hatred is wrong. Bush ran the country into he ground. Out deficit is fucked, the dollar is worth less and less, everyone hates us, jobs are hard to find, our president is torturing innocent people, and that’s just for starters. Thanks to Republicans. You did what Al Quada couldn’t. Successfully mounted a prolonged attack on America. You’ll either ignore this or make hand waving comments, because you’re stoooopid, and people like you are traitors. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/134 "2008-09-06T16:13:52Z")
> [@qualor](#): > > People take themselves/this message board far too seriously. Thank you for noticing, I was starting to feel like I was the one not understanding something. ---
**Author:** ![Scylla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/135 "2008-09-06T16:18:36Z")
> [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](#): > > I see alot of hand waiving but stupid traitors like you don’t actually say why that hatred is wrong. > > Bush ran the country into he ground. Out deficit is fucked, the dollar is worth less and less, everyone hates us, jobs are hard to find, our president is torturing innocent people, and that’s just for starters. > > Thanks to Republicans. You did what Al Quada couldn’t. Successfully mounted a prolonged attack on America. > You’ll either ignore this or make hand waving comments, because you’re stoooopid, and people like you are traitors. I think it’s self-indulgent and childish. I think comments like yours are difficult to respond to thoughtfully. I think it’s beneath my dignity, or anybody’s dignity for that matter. The simple fact that I am in opposition to and the target of such sentiments, makes me right and you wrong. You win the argument for me just by showing up. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/136 "2008-09-06T16:20:54Z")
I like **Bricker** , and I’ve learned a lot about law from him. But I get really turned off when he plays the victim or goes into Attention Whore mode. That seems to happen all too frequently. ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/137 "2008-09-06T16:21:41Z")
> [@TVeblen](#): > > You always were an attention-whoring shit and nothing has changed. You forgot “little”. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tao_s_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/138 "2008-09-06T16:25:55Z")
> [@Scylla](#): > > I think it’s self-indulgent and childish. I think comments like yours are difficult to respond to thoughtfully. I think it’s beneath my dignity, or anybody’s dignity for that matter. The simple fact that I am in opposition to and the target of such sentiments, makes me right and you wrong. > > You win the argument for me just by showing up. See? Handwaving. Called it. Sooo predictable. You won’t defend Bush because you can’t. Your hand waiving is proof. You’ll just say you’re right because everyone hates him. Has it accord to you that maybe everyone hates him because he’s a stupid asshole who deserves it? ---
**Author:** ![Scylla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@Scylla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scylla)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/139 "2008-09-06T16:29:17Z")
> [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](#): > > See? Handwaving. Called it. Sooo predictable. > > You won’t defend Bush because you can’t. It’s true. You’re impervious. > [@](#): > > Has it accord to you that maybe everyone hates him because he’s a stupid asshole who deserves it? How could I argue with that? Why would I? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/73ab20/32.png) [@The\_Tao\_s\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tao_s_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2008, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263/140 "2008-09-06T16:40:49Z")
> [@Scylla](#): > > How could I argue with that? Why would I? So then you agree Bush was a major mistake, and we should move away from his politics. Great, glad we got that cleared up. I presume since McCain is alot closer to Bush in politics this is your official endorsement of the competition? Great, glad ya saw the light. Welcome aboard. 😛 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/open-letter-to-bricker/462263.md?page=8)