Fredipedia: The Definitive Fred Thompson Quick Reference
Fred Thompson FAQ: THE Fred Thompson Web Resource
Posted on 09/10/2007 4:21:32 AM PDT by Josh Painter
I don’t know whether Fred Thompson will ultimately prevail as the Republican Party’s nominee for President, but I find myself rooting for him, because, even if there were no other reason (and I think there are many), he drives the mainstream media crazy by paying absolutely no attention to them...
As they fretted over his late entry into the race and warned of the consequences of that strategy, Thompson met with potential supporters, went through trial and error with a campaign staff, used outlets like YouTube to communicate with voters, and... had the nerve to formally announce his candidacy on a late-night talk show. When you choose Jay Leno over The New York Times editorial board, you’re asking for trouble. Somehow, it’s supposed to be undignified to use that kind of frivolous forum for such an important announcement. Dignity can only be found in a print or broadcast newsroom where, of course, nothing frivolous ever finds its way inside...
If Thompson shows himself to be a strong candidate with a real chance to win, he’s likely to face extraordinary scrutiny from the major media. He’ll be painted as a rube, as lazy, as a hypocrite, as an actor playing a role, and more. Will he have the strength to continue to ignore the barbs and do things at his pace and in his way? Will he remain comfortable enough in his own skin to withstand the onslaught? If he does manage to stay on his own course, the attacks will be even more strong and unrelenting. In part, his politics will make that inevitable; but, more importantly, his success would continue the process of undercutting the importance and influence of the mainstream media. That’s the real danger they see.
There’s no more ignominious fate for these once-powerful titans than irrelevance.
(Excerpt) Read more at humanevents.com ...
...for later reading
A well written article as well!
Pat has been an outspoken conservative for a while.
I see that. Went to his profile page at Human Events and was really impressed with a number of his articles. Good for Pat. Not easy being a Conservative in Tensil Town.
well said Pat! Thompson is approaching his campaign also from a grassroots movement mentality from what Ive seen. This is a very powerful tool often overlooked by the politico giants. The media has positioned itself to be toppled by ignoring the old adage of being objective and reporting the facts nothing but the facts.
Fred Thompson Explains Al Qaeda, Baffles Media
Fred Thompson was giving a speech yesterday and he mentioned that one of the reasons the locals threw Al Qaelda out of Anbar was the prohibition on smoking. This apparently baffled one reporter by the name of Richard Sisk from the NY Daily News who thought it was a nonsensical answer.
Fred Thompson: Al Qaeda smoking ban pushed Iraqis to U.S.
BY RICHARD SISK (who doesn’t read enough)
SIOUX CITY, Iowa - Freshly minted GOP White House hopeful Fred Thompson puzzled Iowans yesterday by insisting an Al Qaeda smoking ban was one reason freedom-loving Iraqis bolted to the U.S. side.
“They said, ‘You gotta quit smoking,’” Thompson explained to a questioner asking about progress in Iraq during a town hall-style meeting.
Thompson said the smoking ban and terror tactics Al Qaeda used to oppress women and intimidate local leaders pushed tribes in western Anbar Province to support U.S. troops.
But Thompson’s tale of a smokers’ revolt baffled some in the audience of about 150 who came to decide whether the former Tennessee senator is ready for prime time.
“I don’t know what that was about,” said Jim Moran, 72, who had driven from nearby McCook Lake, S.D.
Mr. Moran is to be excused for not understanding, after all, he is relying on the MSM to report the news and they don’t know it themselves. Perhaps Richard Sisk should read a bit more. For example Michael Yon’s dispatches from directly from Anbar where he explains the transformation and has mentioned this several times:
In June
On the evening of the 24th I spoke with a local Iraqi official, Colonel Faik, who said the Muftis would order the severance of the two fingers used to hold a cigarette for any Iraqis caught smoking. Other reports, from here in Diyala and also in Anbar, allege that smokers are murdered by AQI. Most Iraqis smoke and this particular prohibition appeared to have earned the ire of many locals. After an American unit cleared an apartment complex on the 23rd, LTC Smiley, the battalion commander, reported that residents didn’t ask for food and water, but cigarettes. In other parts of Baqubah, people have been celebrating the routing of AQI by lighting up and smoking cigarettes.
He mentions it again in July:
As our folks clear the city of al Qaeda, the first thing people ask for is cigarettes, not food. Cigarettes were outlawed by AQI. They celebrate the routing of AQI by smoking and drinking cold water. (People say Al Qaeda also outlawed cold water, but I have no idea why.)
And Michael Yon’s latest dispatch which had a caption to a picture:
Shops in Anbar reopening. Cigarettes for sale. Just recently, al Qaeda was executing people who smoked, but this shop was selling cigarettes on the street.
So yes, the ban on smoking WAS one of the reasons AQI was tossed in Anbar. It’s a damn shame this dimwitted reporter didn’t know what he was talking about and didn’t even other google it, where he would have found other examples from Diyala and elsewhere including the New York Times.
“It’s not that they love us Americans,” said one senior administration official. “It’s that Al Qaeda was so heavy-handed, taking out Sunnis just because they were smoking a cigarette. In the end, that may be the best break we’ve gotten in a while.”
This guy’s editor should really clamp down on him... If he’s not informed enough to understand what a candidate is saying, then he should be writing for the Lifestyle Section or something; especially if his ignorance is magnified by his apparent unwillingness to use google to educate himself. — Of course if this guy had a competent editor this would have been caught before it hit the street.
(And by the way, if you’re not reading Michael Yon, you should be. If you think Yon is retelling an urban legend; that not even Al Qaeda could be that barbaric... maybe you should read this.)
ttp://wizbangblog.com/content/2007/09/09/thompson-explains-al-qaeda-baffles-media.php
The lazy label is a bunch of BS. He’s so lazy that after he got his college degree, he went to a fine law school and got a law degree. Then he was so lazy that he practiced law, and was one of the Watergate lawyers. Then he was so lazy that he became a lobbyist, and then he was so lazy that he became a successful actor. Later, he was so lazy that he ran for the Senate, and won. After being lazy in the Senate for years, he returned to acting and remained lazy during prime time.
He’s not lazy. I attribute his late entry into the race as a simple tactical mistake, which was probably brought about by the fact that his supporters kept telling him that he was making a brilliant move by not entering the race just yet.
“What is he thinking?....not an intelligent start.”
As you can see what he was thinking was correct and the only thing “untintelligent” was your posting.
Bite me....since you must be more intelligent than 99% of the voters...the fact remains he looked stupid and as you can see by the article the voters he is wooing didn’t get it either.
Now unfortunately he will be portayed just as another southern good ole boy...which he is not. I stand by my comment he looked dumb and that is how the msm will play it like it or not.
But...I’m just an ole southern boy and NOT as smart as you traderrob6
Fred took so long to enter because he was engaged in negotiations with the RNC backroom boys on campaign funding issues , stae by state. It took a few months to turn the Rooty RNC juggernaut off and get a new set of guidelines nationally for Fred. Conservatives need to take back the Republican party at the convention next September. Fred's job is to lull the conservative movement into somnulence and keep it in fragmented and disunified.
No thank you to Fred, as popular and appealing as he is. I will stick with Duncan Hunter and Tom Tancredo.
Thanks for posting that. Its extremely good news that the Islamic fanatics can’t help being a) Islamic and b) fanatic - their crackdown on smoking (not to mention their cretinous brutality) gave us Anbar.
The lazy label is a bunch of BS. He’s so lazy that after he got his college degree, he went to a fine law school and got a law degree. Then he was so lazy that he practiced law, and was one of the Watergate lawyers. Then he was so lazy that he became a lobbyist, and then he was so lazy that he became a successful actor. Later, he was so lazy that he ran for the Senate, and won. After being lazy in the Senate for years, he returned to acting and remained lazy during prime time.
I think the press has labeled him lazy because he’s not a fast talking, hyper, northeastern. He’s deliberate in what he says and does. He doesn’t come across as if he’s loaded up on cafeine or mood enhancing drugs.
b_mp
I’d like to buy a vowel..a “U”!
That ‘fact’ doesn’t remain at all. The author of the piece clearly was ignorant and thought that Fred was wrong. All the author did was make himself look stupid. Just because that writer found someone who didn’t understand what Fred was getting at to interview, doesn’t mean that nobody understood it.
The media will portray Fred Thompson how they choose to and nothing Fred does can change that. Frankly, it doesn’t matter what they say about him. Especially when they make themselves look as stupid as the writer of that article did.
Good lord. No thank you to moonbat conspiracy theorists. I’m sticking with Fred.
I sincerely doubt you have a cite for that smear. Here is the truth:
Now that Mr. Thompson seems poised to re-enter politics as a Republican presidential candidate, his career will take another twist. In May, he asked NBC to release him from further “Law & Order” commitments; more recently, NBC said it was ready to stop showing reruns of the episodes he appears in because of federal equal time regulations for presidential candidates.
If Thompson Runs for President, Don’t Look for Him in Reruns
The new season for L&O began in September, therefore he entered late because he had contractual obligations to fulfill. If you don't like Fred, that's fine, but cut the crap.
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