Today’s Idiot: Kim Stout of Franklin, TN
Kim Stout of Franklin, Tennessee penned a nasty little letter comparing anonymous bloggers to terrorists, that The Tennessean printed:
Regarding the political blog sites, I see no difference between cowardly terrorists hiding their faces beneath hoods and citizens spewing vile statements about public officials while not identifying themselves. If a blogger is confident in the truth of their slander, they should claim ownership of their thoughts.
Even this newspaper will not publish unsigned letters. Freedom of expression is one of the greatest things about our country, but in the name of common decency — cowards, identify yourselves. Civil discourse will always be more productive than Web sites that are channels of hate.
Kim Stout
Yup, I’m a terrorist. The Tennessean doesn’t publish unsigned letters but here’s a big list of their unsigned opinion pieces.
Kim Stout, you’re a vile, hateful and despicable sort of idiot. Stating that someone who expresses themselves anonymously is similar to a terrorist is disgusting and you should be ashamed of yourself. Sure, there are legitimate complaints one can level against an anonymous blogger but comparing them to terrorists isn’t one of them.
Update: Make that two idiots today:
Why do people read Say(s)Uncle? After his? their? little rant today against someone who thought anonymous bloggers were cowards, “he” pitched a little hissy fit and posted it for the world to see
As I said: There are legitimate complaints one can level against an anonymous blogger but comparing them to terrorists isn’t one of them.
November 14th, 2005 at 1:17 pm
Just a cursory look at what happened to SK demonstrates the value of being anonomous.
What a moron.
He wants to know who his idiots are so he can use political, legal, and police power to silence them.
What a scum.
November 14th, 2005 at 2:06 pm
[…] Why do people read Say(s)Uncle? After his? their? little rant today against someone who thought anonymous bloggers were cowards, “he” pitched a little hissy fit and posted it for the world to see. […]
November 14th, 2005 at 3:54 pm
Heh.. I’ve discovered that the people who complain about anonymous bloggers are the same people who try to get them fired once they figure out who they are.
It’s simple really. They hate your anonymity because it makes it that much harder to silence you.
November 14th, 2005 at 4:20 pm
That’s why I just come out and say who I am, but I wouldn’t get fired for any comments I’ve made on my blog because they are completely unrelated. Power to the proletariat!
November 14th, 2005 at 4:44 pm
Heh.
I’d sure hate it if my employer caught me talking about guns and libertarian politics on my blog. 😉
November 14th, 2005 at 4:44 pm
Whoops, almost forgot:
Nyah-nyah-nyah! :p
November 14th, 2005 at 6:38 pm
You must be a terrorist……. you like AKs to much. 🙂
November 14th, 2005 at 9:03 pm
Publius, Brutus, Centinel, and the Federal Farmer, all terrorists. Same goes with the pseudonyms of Ben Franklin; Silence Dogood, Polly Baker, and Richard Saunders. That makes ol’ Ben terrorist three times over.
Blogs are just hate spewing disinformation campaigns, much like the broadsides and the pamphlets of an earlier era. Only mainstream media have the creditability to define reality. Dan Rather, Mary Maples, Geraldo Rivera, these are real media people who put the honest reporting of facts and the accurate transmission of the entire picture above any personal agenda or ratings sensationalism.
Clearly the first amendments freedom of the press only deserves to be given to large media companies that can afford to buy ink by the barrel, and radio and television license holders handpicked by the FCC for a piece of the valuable RF spectrum. I look forward to the day when they use the near omnipotent powers of the USA PATRIOT Act to root out these dangerous insurgents and send them off in boxcars to the labor camps. If it saves just one child’s life, isn’t it worth it?
November 14th, 2005 at 11:36 pm
Terrorists aren’t so bad any ways, they do a lot less damage in the long run than dictatorship supporting governments (like ours) do.
November 15th, 2005 at 9:37 am
I have been scathed by Kim Stout’s letter and thoroughly chastened, so much so that right here on UNcle’s blog, I’m coming out of the pseudonymous closet.
My real name is not Rich Hailey; it’s a pen name I came up with to use for all things bloggish. My real name is Teisher Ferrante, and you would do well to remember it!
November 15th, 2005 at 10:23 am
[…] Mephistophocles (which I don’t recommend you pronounce phonetically) takes on the anonymous bloggers are like terrorists silliness that I mentioned here: This sort of thing can only be countered by maturity and culture, and I believe that the Tennesean (sic) (as a newspaper, which should, I think, be generally a furthering and promoting culture) should be ashamed of themselves for printing it. Yes, sure, everyone has the right to say what they think, but some opinions, like the people that utter them, really are assholes – and aren’t worth anyone’s time. The Tennesean, by printing this garbage, is implying that it has merit, and I believe this only serves to lower their credibility to an even more abysmal level (assuming that’s possible). I say that the rest of us take a lesson from this woman and her hatred – don’t be like her. […]
November 15th, 2005 at 12:01 pm
Darn it, Rich has shamed me into revealing the truth. My name’s not Les Jones. It’s Damon Mercadante Joshua Micah Marshall Jacquelie Mackey Paisley Passey Dweezil Frankfurter Molly Hatchet Butros Butros Ghalli.
November 15th, 2005 at 6:11 pm
[…] Well, I don’t blog anonymously. My ego demands otherwise. However, to compare anonymous bloggers to terrorists is without a basis. Public officials get little benefit of the defamation laws anyhow, so I’m not at all sure what Ms. Stout thinks she has to stand on by attacking anonymity. Say Uncle takes issues with her letter more than I do, for obvious reasons. The best response to Ms. Stout’s absurdity comes from Standard Mischief in a comment Publius, Brutus, Centinel, and the Federal Farmer, all terrorists. Same goes with the pseudonyms of Ben Franklin; Silence Dogood, Polly Baker, and Richard Saunders. That makes ol’ Ben terrorist three times over. […]
May 25th, 2006 at 9:39 am
[…] Went to the KnoxViews get together last night. Got to meet a few folks and put some faces with online names. Always good to see Mr. and (the charming) Mrs. R. Neal. Got to meet all-around troublemaker and commentator persimmon; Steve from Whites Creek; Betty Bean; a couple of folks from The Metropulse (one who sort of apologized for being mean to me on the old blab); Bob Stepno; and KnoxJon (whose blog seems to have disappeared – I apparently called him an idiot once and am happy to report he is, in fact, not an idiot and is actually a nice guy). […]