Mark over at LP has been defestifying his blogroll after discovering a bunch of dead and no-longer-updated links. I don’t know if we have any dead links as yet - c8to cleaned them all up nicely after the Great Catallaxy Server Crash. That said, are there any good sites out there that we’re missing? And are any of the current lot seemingly in hiatus? (Apart from CL, that is, who is reminded of his failure to provide bloggy goodness everytime he looks at our sidebar).
To get a link here, a site needs to be interesting. Support for liberty would be an added advantage, but interest is what really floats our boat round these parts. Good writing helps, too, as does a bit of general heterodoxy. Our readers’ suggestions are most welcome.
Apart from that, I’d like to remind people to nominate us over at Collective Apathy for a blog award in whatever category they think best. Our good friend Yobbo thinks the whole thing is a lefty circle-jerk, and has declined his nomination for best WA blog. Tim Blair also isn’t too keen, after being dudded a few years back. Maybe both of them are right.
I figure that if it is a lefty circle jerk - and this finishes up being Catallaxy’s first (and last) entree into the comp - then more bloody fool them. The award will decline into irrelevance and we’ll be forced to accept the common MSM jibe that the blogosphere is incapable of rising above personal differences and political stoushing.
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I’m a bit grumpy with LP at the moment since my blog was cut off their blog roll. I don’t understand their ‘left focus’ anyway; on the one hand Mark goes on about it being inclusive and ecumenical and then says that linked blogs should have some arbitrary left focus (determined, presumably, by him).
Ah well, Mark’s a bright guy, and I guess he can offer an explanation, but I liked the old LP blog roll - it WAS inclusive, had tonnes of obscure Aussie blogs.
Anyway, I’m interested - how was Blair dudded at the awards? They are a little dodgy; I suspect there were rorts last year organised by The Spin Starts Here crowd.
If Yobbo’s about, he can explain better than me, Tim. I do know it wasn’t last year, though - all the righty blogs just refused nomination. Apparently a group of (lefty) blogs ran a large campaign that used CA’s optional preferential voting sytem to make sure Tim didn’t win. Yobbo mentioned ‘Darp Hau’ and ‘Ms Fits’ as two of the culprits.
And anyway, what’s your url? We can’t include you if we don’t know where to look.
I’ve always tried to make the blogroll eclectic and it’s not confined to Australian blogs or even right wing or libertarians. I may be the only blogger aside from Steve Edwards who links to both Abiola Lapite (Foreign Dispatches) and Steve Sailer and is linked to by both of them, two people who otherwise detest each other. So as long as it’s quality writing and intelligent and not overly hateful/echo chamberish in the LGF or Leftwrites kinda way …
TimT, apologies, I might have made an error and hit the wrong key. I didn’t actually purge any blogs for ideological reasons (Catallaxy’s still there) - please email me with the details (there’s no hyperlink in your moniker) and I’ll be happy to reinstate you.
mbahnisch (at) gmail (dot) com
You’re back, TimT. Three glasses of pinot grigio and I’d forgotten the association between your moniker and your blog:
http://willtypeforfood.blogspot.com/
Just to clarify (though I seem to spend half my life now on Catallaxy defending LP’s policies), we’re not aiming to be politically sectarian, but just to explicitly highlight left wing blogs. I’m not aware of anywhere else that does it. Troppo has the remains of a comprehensive blogroll - I did a fair bit of work on it when I was there - but it’s way out of date. But it didn’t capture anywhere near the diversity of left blogs in Oz. I just don’t want to have a blogroll that goes on forever - and I’m assuming that most people know where the prominent righty blogs are - or if not they can find them from Tim B’s blogroll.
Catallaxy’s linked because there are some bloggers on this site whose libertarian perspectives have some crossover with the more libertarian lefty perspective.
As to the blog awards, Darp (who’s no longer blogging) and MsFits might well have advised their readers to vote for them. I don’t know.
But I honestly can’t see the difference between that and SL’s post.
The approach we’re taking at LP is that we’re trying to encourage people to nominate blogs we might never have heard of and widen the field beyond the “usual suspects”.
http://larvatusprodeo.net/2006/12/20/the-australian-blog-awards-and-the-usual-suspects/
We certainly won’t be running any sort of campaign ourselves, and I, at any rate, will be voting for the blogs I genuinely consider the best examples of their category regardless of partisan considerations and will be encouraging LP readers to do likewise.
These awards can only work well if they reach the widest possible audience who have the widest possible choice. Any sort of “running a ticket” strategy will detract from that.
They’re worth everyone getting behind in that spirit, as they’re the only independent blog awards in Oz and the only one generated from within the blogosphere.
And Keks goes to an enormous amount of trouble to organise them, and to count the votes professionally using AEC guidelines on PR. What he usually gets for his troubles is sour grapes from people who want to whinge about one thing or another. For instance, DREADNOUGHT’s hissy fit about his blog name not being capitalised. And all these claims about “wank circles”.
I think it would be a much more positive thing if people encouraged participation and didn’t run campaigns. And also recognised the amount of voluntary effort that goes into hosting and running it.
To clarify another point, Yobbo refused his nomination in “advance”. No one had nominated him. In my view, it would be much more productive if Yobbo tried to extend the catchment are for people participating rather than dismissing the process in advance.
Catchment area.
Aforesaid three pinots to blame…
Preferential voting means that even if the TBlair has the most people who think his blog is the best, he won’t win if the majority rank some other blog above him. I don’t see why you think that is unfair.
The winners of the best blog for 2004 and 2005, Loobylu and Barista haven’t been very political.
Why do we want awards anyway? What are we aiming for, a gala evening with a Big Name American presenter, a drunk Nabakov pushing Antony Lowenstein off the stage? I think it’s all a bit silly and convoluted to the point of meaninglessness.
Yobbo still managed to get himself nominated, Mark - it’s over on the CA site, as is his rejection thereof.
And CL, that’d be funny, but the presenter would have to be Rove
Sure, Tim. Loobylu has already demonstrated where her political loyalties lie with a cutesy promo picture of Rudd and Gillard.
I’m with CL - who cares?
I’m against running any campaign and i’m not going to whinge about the result - it’s undignified.
Fair call. Call this an experiment to see if Yobbo’s right.
Yeah, I think it’s worth testing the system.
MARKS BEHAVIOUR A MYSTERY TIM T?
I don’t THINK!!!!!so
The thing about our leftists is that they are haunted, HAUNTED! by their late-teen-commie-faux-revelations dream.
>>>>>>>>>
(Fourteen year old boy) “Do you believe in God? Really? Do you believe?”
( Fourteen year old girl with huge tits sounding almost ashamed)
“Sometimes. Sometimes I do. You know at night. Sometimes at night when I’m upset or frightened I still believe”
This is what leftists face. There are those who are torn. TORN!!!!
They don’t REALLY believe in the daylight in a room full of sensible Aquinas fans anymore…. (pssst: but even then they still believe a little bit)
…. In that if we interogated them under hot lights in a situation of uncertainty and sleep-deprivation they would have to admit honestly and without further coercion……
>>
(((((((…… (red herring coercian would be used but for other topics. And the REAL information we were after would be gained after at a LULL in the tension. And a brief faux-reconcilliation and (one-side-faux) bonding between interrogator and closet fantasy-commie)…..))))))))))
>>
…..In that if we interrogated them they would admit that there was little basis for believing that their faux-revelations-commie-fantasy could work and lead eventually to a better world.
THEIR MORE RATIONAL SIDE WOULD ADMIT THAT THE COMMIE-FANTASY COULDN’T WORK.
Yet they are still haunted by the fantasy.
You typical leftists that cause the world so much grief even though they can sometimes seem like reasonable and nice guys….. Well they still believe sometimes.
The faux-revelations fantasy might be the only thing except for drugs and not excepting sex…..(((((leftist blokes fake it in the sack but the sheilas are authentic screamers.))))) ……….
THAT CAN GIVE THEM AN INSTANT ENDORPHINE HIGH.
And thats why they are always a risk to us.
Because when we have a crisis thats when they will all react in unison. Determined to bring the third age on.
If our Christians end up going Utopian Eschatological with them then we really are fucked.
In any case in the light of the above lets look at Tim T’s mystery. Lets call it the ‘MYSTERY OF MARK’.
COMPRESSING OUR DEFINITION
And for someone torn between his rational side and his pseudo-revelations-commie-fantasy….
For someone so torn… Lets just shorten the phrase of such a conflicted person down to one word.
Lets just call that person a ‘COMMIE!!!!!!!.’
Now when I call a person a ‘commie’ I usually like to say ‘dirty-stinking-commie-and son of Joachim-of-fiore.’
But that will be way unreadable and so lets just call such a conflicted person a ‘commie’.
Analysing what Time T said immediately we can find a solution to all his puzzling questions. In fact Mark and other ‘commies’ (going by our new definition) tend to fill the whole room with question marks until you sort out whats going on behind their eyes.
Here we go:
“I’m a bit grumpy with LP at the moment since my blog was cut off their blog roll. I don’t understand their ‘left focus’ anyway; …
(Its because Marks a commie)
“……on the one hand Mark goes on about it being inclusive and ecumenical…..”
(He’s a commie. But sometimes the rational side weighs in.)
“…. and then says that linked blogs should have some arbitrary left focus…”
(Of course! He’s a fucking commie!)
“…. (determined, presumably, by him).
Ah well, Mark’s a bright guy…..”
(Well no he ISN’T. But thats not important. If he was bright…. which he isn’t…. that wouldn’t matter. He’s acting like this because he is a commie)
…… and I guess he can offer an explanation……
(It will just be more bullshit. Because he’s not going to say that he’s doing this because he’s a commie. But the reason he’s doing this is because he is a commit.)
“….. but I liked the old LP blog roll - it WAS inclusive, had tonnes of obscure Aussie blogs…….”
(And was not serving his commie-fantasy-purposes as well as it might have been).
what have you been drinking GBH?
Knew he’d be back with a bang. Or a bracket. Or an exclamation mark. Or something
I think its irresponsible to link Lamberts site.
You might link an alarmist-fraudster site but only if it has a liberal comments policy.
Because Lambert has it set up so that third parties can come on and see that non–fraudsters are being gotten the better of.
But thats an illusion only brought about by Lamberts series of techniques.
He would never let actual science get the upper hand over the fraudsters.
There may be some anti-fraudster sites with a liberal comments policy and you can link them and be socially responsible.
So far the only mainstream (ie fraudster) climate-policy site with a liberal comments policy I’ve been able to track down is Kevin Vranes’ blog.
You could responsibly link that one.
See the thing is our asses are on the line here.
We need to fast-track the deregulation of coal-electricity power and coal-to-liquid–fuel-conversion and may even need to make all sorts of deffered cost allowances and tax-free time periods to those who are willing to set these massive plants up.
So we cannot have the luxury of not discriminating against Michelin Man and his ilk.
We don’t have that much time.
Think of the children.
Lambert’s been around a long time. His site wasn’t always just about global warming.
GB
What’s that site you have been on about recently. You have been given them hell. Has Annan responded yet. You’re giving some heavy hitters a good thrashing or so i have read.
“Lambert’s been around a long time. His site wasn’t always just about global warming.”
Yeah dude but things have gotten too far.
I mean our man is a talented man. He must be a worthy aspects to him because that wife of his had ’sweetheart’ written all over her.
Not sex goddess. I’m sure that this might have been the case a few years ago.
I mean more like… What a sweethearted looking woman. You know the kind that all the nephews would turn to as their favourite aunty.
But he’s using whatever (probably substantial) talents he has for influence that is nearly always malign.
In fact I cannot think of even one area where his SUBSTANTIAL influence is not likely to be harmful.
I’m not sure I see faux-revelations fantasy here although that may play a part. Maybe its serious and pathological Malthusian fear.
I don’t know whats going on.
And though I might taunt him for being the most malign of michelin-men older photos reveal him as being quite a smooth-looking fellow.
He more then most can subtly control his blog so that the harmful side of the argument always trumps.
An analogy of the way he controls his blog (with few outright bans) is like international busy-body tax-eater controlling of DDT.
It wasn’t an outright ban.
There was never a crisis situation where some world bureaucracy didn’t let some DDT through.
But it was devastating what they did anyhow and thats the way Lambert has it with his blog.
Just enough control to always corral it that third parties would think the fraudsters had the stronger argument.
He is not to be taken lightly.
At this stage I would have to judge it absolutely irresponsible to link his site.
>>>>>>>>>>>
I was talking about Mark and other commies being conflicted JC.
But my constant criticism of Annan leaves me conflicted.
And it is how you suggest.
I don’t mean ill of him.
But I was desperately trying to draw him out.
I don’t know crap about Bayesian statistics.
But what inadequate and skeletal mapping out (using the epistemology of CONVERGENCE) of the situation I have been able to do…..reveals to me as my uninformed….first-best….default-postion…..open-to-correction-at-any-time…
What I’ve been able to tentatively suss out…
….and I don’t know enough
What I’m “getting” so far is that this guy is a very fucking talented guy who ought to be doing good work.
The great and somewhat original applications of various techniques appear to be somewhat original to him.
The flawed shit appears to be standard bi-partisan procedures (the sort of procedures that Michaels or Lindzen might from time to time use) that I reckon that he should know better about.
I’ll not specify more then that because I’ll be cut to ribbons by the bully-boys.
But I was trying to draw him out.
The thing is I’ve been reading a lot about this.
And there is one bloke on Quiggins site. And he’s a scientist who got turned down…..The peers reviewed him and the peers gave him the thumbs down. Because peer-review is a crock when all your peers are basically useless.
Anway this fellow who hangs with Quiggin reckoned he got turned down.
And why?
Because he criticised standard practise of going about these things.
So Annan, in this current environment probably couldn’t get good science out there if he was doing it.
I suspect that a lot of our scientists are basically hemmed in and controlled like a righteous man who thought he had to be polite on Lamberts blog.
You look at Annans study where he concludes that a doubling leads to 3 degrees warming holding all things equal.
Now thats bullshit and will remain bullshit until we get real clear about what time frames we are talking about.
And I don’t think anyone has any clue about that yet.
But bullshit as it is, every step of what he has done appears to go with bi-partisan techniques (ie using techniques the skeptics also would use from time to time)….
And when he isn’t using these sort of techniques he’s applying highly dextrous and somewhat eclectic techniques somewhat original (in their specific application) to himself.
The process looks impressive.
The result is:
1. bullshit.
2. A compromise.
3. Something that almost no-one in the field could really argue with.
4. A toning down of the alleged crises…
5. Not too much of a toning down to get him thrown off the alarmist camp…. And….
6…. yet in the current climate enough to stop us making haste in the lost ground on energy production……..
Now I think he’s a good bloke.
But do you kind of see why I’ve been going after him?
Yep
These guys have a responsibiliy to get the truth out. Good or bad bloke makes no difference. If Annan is playing cute he is doing so on our dime.
I also agree that this peer review thing is starting to stink to high heaven especially in the area of climate science. There is a good blog that is trying to get the truth out about this. It’s named Climate Audit.
Ha Ha Ha.
I just went over to James’ blog.
And the first thing I read is:
“Some more drivel in the Indescribablyoverhyped, which starts off with
“A combination of global warming and the El Niño weather system is set to make 2007 the warmest year on record with far-reaching consequences for the planet,
one of Britain’s leading climate experts has warned.”
I call bullshit on sentence 1.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
Ha Ha!
I call bullshit on sentence 1 says James Annan.
Thats almost a GMB idiom.
Probably a coincidence.
Told you he was a good guy. Trying to really play down the hysteria.
But I wish he’d reject the whole paradigm and come over to the skeptic side.
“If Annan is playing cute….”
Playing cute is exactly how you would describe it. But not entirely for selfish reasons either.
Its strikes me as a totally integrated sort of playing-cute. It enables him (I’m speculating) to maintain paid work applying techniques that he has a talent for….
And this is not to be thought of as a base and flimsy motive either. What’s he going to do otherwise?
Let his family down?
Let his creditors down?
Come work alongside me in some shit job he’s not suited for?
But at the same time he can tell himself he’s being really the most responsible guy on earth since he more then anyone recently has pulled the level of hysteria down about 20%. (Or at least he could tell himself that he had pulled the hysteria down. With great justification.)
‘Playing cute’ is exactly what I perceive he is doing.
Like what Keynes said to Hayek three months before Keynes died.
It was like “Ho HO. Don’t worry. If this inflation deal gets out of hand I’ll use my influence to put it back in the box” (not his exact words).
You see I think in this case Annan is for institutional reason not telling us the whole story and trying to ride this escaped and rampaging tiger back to where the cage is.
But he thinks he can control it (in my speculations).
But being less then 100% truthful is just opening up a lot more cages and it was never to be assumed there was but one Tiger amongst us.
I’d want some deep pocket company to give him a pay-rise if he dissavows the alarmist side once and for all.
And they would get him doing useful science for once in this imaginary scenario of mine.
And I’m sure he would be good at it.
I once had an exchange with james. I asked him to explain to me what he thought about the risk of AGW etc. He essentially gave me the Ipcc projections 3.5 degs at the equator and 7 degs at the poles.
I asked him how bad that was. His reply was that we ought to be more concerned about the fact that most of our oil comes from the Mid East which is a very unstable source of supply.
The trouble is that these climate dudes are getting drowned out by the non scientists like the quiggler. who have a political motivation. This puts undue pressure on them to keep coming out with scary movie scripts. I think it’s a fucking mess.
I am away with some friends, had a new years eve dinner with a bunch of people. I almost got pelted with empty plates and utensils when I argued that it is far better to watch what is going on than spending money on major policy changes. these people think world is going to end unless we spend huge amounts and start riding bikes. As usual relations with wifey were very strained that evening.
If they are anything to go by, the population seems to be scared shitless about climate change and are prepared to throw their dollars at this horror movie.
I think it;s over. I really think the population is prepared to waste big dolls trying to solve a problem that doesn’t yet exist.. I think the game is lost. It’s now a matter of trying to prevent a lot of money being wasted. The Quigglers of this world have managed to scare the kids shitless.
For those that aren’t aware, a conglomeration of blogs led by Darp Hau, Ms Fits and Jeremy Sear all nominated and ran consecutive campaigns urging all readers to vote for the included blogs 2 years ago.
LP joined the act last year and linked to the campaign blogs while not linking to any non-campaigning blogs.
Then LP 2 weeks ago again urged everyone to join in the (hopelessly corrupted) competition again, while alluding to but specifically not mentioning the left-wing fix they were a part of last year.
Everyone on LP knows this of course, but won’t mention it lest it belittles their title.
As such, all right-wing bloggers will decline nominations and continue to refuse to be part of the process until it is fixed.
After all, all it would take is for Tim Blair to link, just once, to his preferred blog in every category for right-wing blogs to scoop the awards, but he refuses to do so in protest, and thus the whole thing is a waste of time as long as the lefty blogs continue to run campaigns.
So who’s winning his blog comp, Yobbo.
“His reply was that we ought to be more concerned about the fact that most of our oil comes from the Mid East which is a very unstable source of supply.”
Well there you are. Thats what was breaking my heart about this guy. A smart guy and not naturally dishonest…. in fact quite the opposite.
And yet the fraudsters will use him as the fucking pivot-point to obstruct our ability to produce energy.
I mean a modified “PEAK OIL” concept which will lead to a disaster is a very real thing…
But its a totally “aritificial” crisis…
… In that the restrictions against energy production
( which will IN FACT lead to a crises…)
Well these restrictions have been doing their work for thirty years and more now.
This was not the free-markets doing. And would not have presented a problem but for three decades of anti-energy obstruction.
In fact it already HAS led to a problem. A very fucking serious problem.
Had we no restrictions on energy production (brought about for no good reason) the family Saud would listen a bit more carefully when we were talking.
And the rest of those crackers to.
“The trouble is that these climate dudes are getting drowned out by the non scientists like the quiggler. who have a political motivation.”
Right. They are not blameless. But can you see any of these guys giving it all up and working for minimum wage in the factory?
They are not all blameless. But even the smarter ones like Annan are unlikely to be able to escape that instiutional pull.
“This puts undue pressure on them to keep coming out with scary movie scripts.”
Yeah. Thats what I’m getting. Though its probably quite indirect and dovetailing with the media and so forth.
” I think it’s a fucking mess.”
You will not get any caveats or fucking qualifications from ME on that one.
Its like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Like nothing since Francis Bacon arrived in town. Like nothing at all.
“I am away with some friends, had a new years eve dinner with a bunch of people.
I almost got pelted with empty plates and utensils when I argued that it is far better to watch what is going on than spending money on major policy changes.
these people think world is going to end unless we spend huge amounts and start riding bikes.
As usual relations with wifey were very strained that evening.”
Well I wish I had of been there and not just for the RED WINE.
You see PRUDENCE goes quite the other way.
The path of prudence goes with:
1. Not imposing costs and labouring to maximise the voluntary accumulation of capital goods.
and/or
2. Anything in favour of warming.
Now when I’m speculating about James and such…. I might not always point that I’m speculating.
But with regards to points 1 and 2….
I’M NOT EVEN FUCKING SPECULATING A LITTLE BIT.
I doubt many things. But there is just no doubt at all where PRUDENCE lies in this situation.
THATS!!!!! why this movement is a fraud.
It puts the prudence-shoe on the wrong foot.
CLIMATE-ALARMISM PUTS THE PRUDENCE-SHOE ON THE WRONG FOOT.
“If they are anything to go by, the population seems to be scared shitless about climate change and are prepared to throw their dollars at this horror movie.”
Right.
“I think it;s over. I really think the population is prepared to waste big dolls trying to solve a problem that doesn’t yet exist.. I think the game is lost………”
Don’t go fucking French on me now fella.
We have to win this thing.
We simply don’t have what we would have had under free enterprise.
We don’t have the energy production and substitution-away-from-oil investment on-stream.
And we need to be strong until sometime after the Chinese demographic collapse.
We simply cannot lose this one.
Look I’ll do anything?!?
I’m fucking desperate on this one.
There are few things I wouldn’t do short of letting Lambert touch any of my sheilas.
I didn’t want to write anything for the skeptics magazine.
I didn’t want to presume to write a scientific paper when I’m not a trained scientist.
But I’ll co-write something.
Can someone get me an interview with that magnificent Aussie scientist Ian Plimer?
We need to take this movement down. Take it down and bury it on the ash-heap of history.
Which is a tough gig because one still wants to be monitoring the situation with an open mind.
But not for heating. Instead for trends as revealed by the Oceans and mostly just for cooling.
We need to finish these guys…
Even if we have to raise money to get someone (probably me) on a modest full-time wage invading these sites under a multiple of aliases.
We have to ‘do this thing so it has to get done.’
The way I look at it we are set to have immense problems with energy and therefore the economy and therefore our sense of national fortitude…
…. We are set to have immense short-term problems just at that critical point where we have to reign in China so that one day we will all be brothers again and living without fear of eachother.
If it was 2050 and China was effectively a collection of two hundred Singapores I would say what the hell the alarmists are full of shit…
But there are more pressing problems…
…….the baby grandkid needs changing.
And the older one NEEDS a story before he falls down into sleepland.
“After all, all it would take is for Tim Blair to link, just once, to his preferred blog in every category for right-wing blogs to scoop the awards…
.. but he refuses to do so in protest, and thus the whole thing is a waste of time as long as the lefty blogs continue to run campaigns.”
Don’t put it on Blair man.
You don’t overide these lunatics by sanctioning them.
I thnk Blair is doing the right thing.
And if those leftist pooftahs don’t run good competitions more generally I’ll try and convince Good Queen Skeptic not to let them use her CACHE-AND-STREET-CRED to give their pathetic little ankle-biting thread-starters any credibility.
Blair is doing his job and its good enough, when he takes up my phrase ‘Lamberting’.
That alone is good enough.
We should celebrate his blog TRIUMPH.
You’ve already contributed ‘taxeater’ and ‘flying outhouse’ to the Catallaxy lexicon. I’m sure there are plenty of others, I just can’t think of them right now.
Taxeater, I found out the other day, goes back to John Bright.
No. 2 (after Cobden) Manchester school guy.
I got it from this immensely convincing guy that writes for City Journal.
I’ll track him down sometime.
But the analysis I got from Mises.org. but would have thought of it as just one good concept amongst many had I not noticed how the left had morphed away from solid, labour Bovver-Boy types who would stick up for their constinuency (industrial workers) down to fist-fighting…..
…. and now had morphed into this OTHER crowd who was if anything in contempt of your average proletarian.
And the only thing that seemed to explain this was the subtle-on-one but strong on 1 million forces that come from the institutional pull of the tax-eaters.
But that flying outhouse business comes from one source and one source alone.
It comes from Good Queen Skeptic putting pressure on me to clean up my language.
Hey Good Queen Skeptic?
Do you think you can use your immense reach and those myriad interlinked permutations of various favours and paybacks and so forth to get me a few-beers sitdown with the exemplary Dr Plimer?
Now I am NOT a homosexual.
And I’m pretty disorganized, and so prize all my free time, if only to get a few overdue things done.
But this climate fraudsterism has gone too far.
And there is nothing like going to the best-person-available in all-possible-worlds to try and talk about what might be done.
.
Rest assured, GMB, we wouldn’t think any more highly of you if you were…
You know, GMB, internet spammers offer many drugs at low prices that might aid your mental health.
Just sayin…
So what’s your objection, Yobbo? Are you saying it’s a popularity contest?
The problem most right wing blogs in Australia have is that they have neglible readership. The only one that does - and with good reason - is Tim Blair’s.
I’m assuming that Catallaxy is a libertarian blog, so I’m not subsuming it under that comment. Though I do note that SL has recently been promoting Catallaxy as “Australia’s leading right wing blog”.
Tim Blair is just the most read.
We’re libertarian right, Mark. And that’s very different from ‘conservative’, as I think I made clear on the OLO thread (even if we then had an amiable stoush about the difference between ‘classical liberal’ and ‘libertarian’). Like I say, herding cats comes to mind
And to add to the last sentence - “with good reason”.
Much of the right wing blogosphere in Australia consists of pathetic attempts to get Tim to notice their posts.
It seems there’s only room for one right wing blog under the southern skies.
Tim is a great conservative blogger, and very funny, but he chooses not to write much of his own material (on his blog, at any rate). We do, and we tend to have just the teensiest difference with Tim over the Iraq war.
You’ll have to point me to the OLO thread you mean, SL.
On your Christmas one, I noticed you wrote:
I didn’t see any further discussion on that thread about the politics or positioning of Catallaxy.
http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?article=5332
Here.
Whats the point of the competition?
Is it just more leftist spruiking in lieu of any actual sound arguments for their endless bullshit and malign intentions?
I come to this particular topic unarmed with prior knowledge.
And wish to be as objective about it as I possibly can be.
Which means of course that the above is my default position until the data rolls in.
“Now I am NOT a homosexual.
.
Rest assured, GMB, we wouldn’t think any more highly of you if you were…”
I wasn’t asking.
Don’t be impertinent Mark you little turd.
Go away quickly.
I might stay around to haunt you endlessly, GMB.
Or assail you with imprecatory psalms.
On the other hand, when I go back to work next week I probably won’t have time to banter with you.
I trust that over the rest of 2007 you’ll be doing your best to make Australia more productive and not stealing your employer’s wages by constantly and obsessively commenting on blogs.
I know from your own self-assessment that you value your own time very highly.
I just want to make sure your efforts are directed where they can have most impact.
Are there any other blogs than this one, by the way, where you’re allowed to comment?
Thanks, SL.
I thought you meant a thread at OLO rather than one here about OLO.
Oy, you pair, knock it off.
Gladly, SL.
Past my bedtime.
I’ll leave GMB to enlighten Catallaxy readers about his fantasies:
I’m sure if he wishes he can explain what he means by that.
Night all!
“I trust that over the rest of 2007 you’ll be doing your best to make Australia more productive and not stealing your employer’s wages by constantly and obsessively commenting on blogs”
Your fucking impertinence knows no bounds.
Thief.
Taxeater.
Filthy layabout.
Dead Wood.
Fuck me stupid. I don’t know how you made it to 38 without having some existential crisis where you realised you were actually useless and a big fucking drain on the human race.
I know from your quote above that you were trying to project that JIVE onto me.
But champ it aint going to take.
“I’ll leave GMB to enlighten Catallaxy readers about his fantasies:
Fourteen year old girl with huge tits”
For your fucking information:
1. It was a journalistic interlude.
2. It spiced up the rather weighty post.
3. What innuendo were you trying on there commie?…. parasite?……. vampire?
I’m not going to try and explain artistic composition to you fella.
Like trying to teach a monkey algebra.
Cheers Mark for the explanation, good of you to put me back on the blogroll.
I don’t see anything wrong with the Darp/Ms Fits/Ausculture way of campaigning. Sounds like normal internet politics. If Tim Blair refuses to actively participate in the blog awards, that’s his choice.
Keks does try to make an evening of the blog awards; he announces the winners one after another; the whole thing takes a couple of hours. Very annoying when I had dial-up - it involves a LOT of refreshing. I don’t see the point behind a lot of it.
Ah - good to read through a thread which starts out well but is then inundated with avian flu.
More is not more.
The problem most right wing blogs in Australia have is that they have neglible readership. The only one that does - and with good reason - is Tim Blair’s.
Are you just stirring or do you actually believe your own drivel? Either way it’s pretty sad.
Much of the right wing blogosphere in Australia consists of pathetic attempts to get Tim to notice their posts.
Unlike your good self, who continually pathetically begs for people to notice him by running around posting cute little “trackbacks” in posts. Do you know any right-wing bloggers who do that Mark?
And why don’t you provide an example of your claim?
I’m assuming that Catallaxy is a libertarian blog, so I’m not subsuming it under that comment.
So by right-wing you mean what? The majority of Australian right-wing blogs are libertarians.
Can I recommend Chris Berg’s blog? It did make it for a few heady weeks between crashes, but has disappeared. He has an interesting blog and could benefit from some traffic.
http://www.chrisberg.org
The blog awards is a bit of a jerk. I voted for myself because I like a bit of a jerk.
There is such a thing as objective quality and merit, but people look for different things in blogs like they do in everything.
For example, I like LP for its diversity and intelligently-written posts, while I like Yobbo’s site because it’s fun and silly. There’s a place for all different sorts of styles. I like Catallaxy because I’ve got a crush on Jason (no, just joking).
If it’s about quantity of readers, well, I suppose Tim Blair will win, but that wouldn’t reflect my opinion about what’s the best blog.
GMB???????????????????????????
All this talk about the most popular blog, right wing or left wing, quibbling over readership, etc suggests taking the blogging caper a little too seriously. And why should we emulate the MSM with their little media awards? The only thing that ultimately matters in blogging is whether you get any satisfaction out of it.
And GBH, stop sounding like a communist. All this implicit talk about ideological solidarity, social responsibility and all that crap suggests activists on our side are just mirror images of their commie counterparts.
Lambert is a good fellow. I link to people I like or have cooperated with in the past. That is all.
When I first heard about these awards being run again this year I thought I’d check it out but strangely I had the same sort of trouble registering to comment there as I had here and I promptly gave up.
I am Cynical about them for pretty much for the sort of reasons that Yobbo cites. The Usual suspects on the left have made it so much of a closed shop that the result is meaningless.
Nonetheless I find myself nominated and although I suspect that it was by one of my detractors, I will watch the result with a little more than passing Interest.
Can I also be so immodest as to ask that you add me to your blogroll? I will be returning the favor at my blog.
… I like LP for its diversity and intelligently-written posts…
*cough*
*splutter*
*double-take*
“…while I like Yobbo’s site because it’s fun and silly.”
Yobbo’s serious stuff on everything from sport, wheat, gambling, nanny-statism and culture is comparably intelligent - if not more intelligent - than anything found at LP.
Well, I think I said these things are subjective. What some think are intelligent, others don’t.
I don’t base my notions of quality on the ideological beliefs of the blogger involved (if I did, I wouldn’t go near Yobbo with a barge pole, speaking as a woman). Excessive ideological attachments, however, get on my fucking nerves.
C L happens to be a very well-written blog, and I know a lot of people miss it.
I’ve always said my favourite blog is Man of Lettuce, and I stand by that.
Yobbo said: For those that aren’t aware, a conglomeration of blogs led by Darp Hau, Ms Fits and Jeremy Sear all nominated and ran consecutive campaigns urging all readers to vote for the included blogs 2 years ago.
(snip)
Then LP 2 weeks ago again urged everyone to join in the (hopelessly corrupted) competition again, while alluding to but specifically not mentioning the left-wing fix they were a part of last year.
I wrote that post and I was not alluding to the thing you’re on about, because I didn’t know about it - I only started blogging two years ago and hardly ever read the blogs you mention. I was actually thinking more of the mean campaign run by TSSH to make fun of that poor nerdy kid in Canberra.
As for fixes or cartels or whatever, that’s nonsensical. I don’t know the organisers from a bar of soap, they seem to belong to the alternate universe Australian blogosphere which includes sites like Toxic Custard (blogging since 1999) and Brown Cardigan.
Nominating and voting is open to anyone and it’s pretty hard to see how practically begging people to nominate a wide range of blogs, NOT the usual suspects as I said in my post about it, is some kind of conspiracy.
As I also said at the time, a good reason for moving on from olden days blog war shite is that people who have joined us in the past twelve months have no interest in that stuff, and why should they. Let them have some fun too.
You make some good points in favour of the blog awards, Laura, and I should say that they’ve made me reconsider my cynicism, at least. Last year I think you had to register to vote, and then the organiser, Keks, would send you a ‘once-off’ link via email. So yeah, outright multiple-voting rorts would be hard to achieve. Though not impossible. A bit annoying, though, and probably offputting to a lot of potential voters.
Still, worth getting involved in, even if there are a couple of problems with the way Keks organises it. Like you say, let new bloggers have some fun, etc.
I’m off to nominate all my mates!
A few more blogroll recommendations would be handy, folks. So far only Iain, TimT and Sinkers have given us any candidates for consideration.
Have to agree with Currency about diversity of opinion at LP — at least among the bloggers. Even among the comments there is now a lamentable degree of uniformity, particularly since C.L.’s unjustified and arbitrary banning.
I second Darlene’s vote for Man of Lettuce.
Yobbo likes to project a little bit of a boofhead personality at times though I suspect he really isn’t like that at all. Anyway it doesn’t necessarily do justice to his serious posts which are always very well written and very thoughtful.
Well, Rob, pop over and vote.
I think I’ve been the only person to vote for Man of Lettuce so far, so. Although, I could be wrong.
The awards are a toss given everybody’s different tastes, but I’m sure the people who win will be stoked, so that’s fine. I’ve got a big enough ego to think that I’m an okay writer, so I don’t need other people’s say so. It’s always good to see our favourites get up, though.
I take your point about Yobbo. I think that his naughty sense of humour dominates other stuff he does. It’s not fun to have some woman’s crotch stuck in my face everytime I visit his site. I like his naughty sense of humour, but….
I’m trying to the line from that episode of The Office about porn laughs.
Although, I will concede that I’ve had a number of hits on my site from Australian Princess fans. That is something that women are interested in, just as some blokes like porn. Women do to, but I’m not getting into that now.
Agreed, Jason.
I didn’t mean to suggest my blog for a link - just whinging, really - but I’m more than happy to be linked on a fine site such as Catallaxy! I will clean my blog up on the weekend and reciprocate!
Some other fine blogs to be linked:
http://www.diogeneslamp.net
http://sternezine.blogspot.com
http://www.observationdeck.org/lip
http://www.vibewire.net/blog (this is a link to the Vibewire blogs page, which is the most active part of that site at the moment. Some of their bloggers are excellent writers).
Apologies, GMB.
I think CL should be banned until he writes something, anything on his blog again!
LP has as many diversified views as Tim Blair has.
Pet Rock
Yobbo, it’s always been practice to advise other bloggers that you’ve linked to their post - it’s a courtesy not linkwhoring.
I’ve never posted porn on my site. Girls in Bikinis aren’t porn. If girls in bikinis offend you it can only be because you are jealous. Get over it.
Yobbo, it’s always been practice to advise other bloggers that you’ve linked to their post - it’s a courtesy not linkwhoring.
You keep telling yourself that Mark.
I must say that I to lament the way that LP has gone more and more they make anyone who is a bit cheeky or Gasp “conservative” less than welcome. I think the requirement that any one on their blog roll should be “of the left ” is really sad. these days I find that I have been placed on some sort of straight to moderation list.for any comments that I may wish to post. not exactly fair when any of regular the leftists are not likewise moderated.
Iain, to be fair to Mark and LP I think the spaminator they use treats everybody the same. If you use certain words you get moderated. I’m to the right of most of the commenters but only occasionally get caught, most recently because due to the r*pe word.
The LP system is different from ours, Iain. You don’t have to register to use their site, so they’re reliant on a computer program (called akismet) to keep their blog free of spam. The program tends to err on the side of caution, so occasionally chucks legitimate commenters in the spaminator.
That aside, what Rob says is right - certain words can be placed in the spam filter - mainy swear words. We do the latter here sometimes too, but don’t have the first problem. When faced with the epic levels of spam you get on a popular blog, c8to (our techie) moved us across to a registration system. LP have put up posts describing some of their problems - I remember Anna Winter saying once she’d received 200 spams in 5 minutes.
It’s not the spam filter, it’s the moderation filter. They’re two separate things.
Anyway, Yobbo, as to your question about whether right wing bloggers post trackbacks - SL does.
http://larvatusprodeo.net/2007/01/04/blogcleaning/#comment-285640
Note that I’m not criticising her for doing so, just reinforcing my point about the fact that it’s normal blog practice. And that if you think that right wingers don’t do it, here’s evidence that you’re wrong.
We have a lot of traffic at LP and we’re happy with that and we don’t need to go around linkwhoring to increase it. As I’m saying, if I wrote a post critiquing or praising (for the sake of argument) something here, I’d have thought it was a courtesy to the blogger concerned to let them know.
Catallaxy used to have an automatic trackback thingy, but it’s gone now. Sometimes I forget, too.
Not many blogs use them now, SL, as trackback spam is very difficult to block.
Mark,
You leave trackbacks when you think doing so is to your advantage. When I posted on LP’s link-whoring there was a response post directed at me but no-one from LP left a trackback at my site because my readership is too small to worry about.
LP’s readership is much bigger than mine but you’ve got nothing to crow about, especially since there are 24 bloggers on your roster. The number of page views per visitor ain’t great: probably because most of your traffic comes via Google searches. Tim Lambert and John Quiggin are both running one man blogs that are getting figures probably as good as yours.
It’s obvious to everyone with half a brain that you’re trying to boost your readership.
What’s the difference between the spam filter and the moderation filter, then, Mark? The moderation filter is where you feed a commenter’s ID and/or IP address for automatic moderation, is that right?
Rob, the moderation filter can do both - either particular commenters or particular words.
Anyway, I’m tired of having to constantly defend LP here so I’m not going to bother anymore.
If Beck, Yobbo, C.L., etc., want to take potshots, that’s fine. A more constructive response to SL’s post might have been desirable in my view.
Okay, I’d like some clarification on this trackback thing, because my practice (up until now) has been: if I talk about another post - and, even more, if I use something from another person’s blog - I let them know. There’s an example on the front page where I’ve used David Jackmanson’s animated ME map. I’d have felt very bad if I’d have (a) just taken it and (b) not told him. So I’ve done both.
Now I freely admit I forget sometimes, especially when I’m just chatting about someone’s writing. I’ll always link to it but may not tell them on their blog. This is due to forgetfulness, nothing else.
So Iain may have been right after all. Sorry, Iain.
Sorry for calling it like i see it. You’ve gone from claiming to run the “best read political blog” in Australia to practically begging someone, anyone, to give you some sort of award. I’m embarrassed for you.
*Laughs loudly*
Who gives a shit if Mark is trying to boost LP’s leadership? There’s nothing wrong with that! The nice thing about trackbacks is it lets others in on a conversation, AND it boosts your readership! It’s win-win!
Heck, I read RWDB AND LP. Both good blogs. I couldn’t care about petty things like trackbacks!
“Lambert is a good fellow. I link to people I like or have cooperated with in the past. That is all.”
That it ought to be legal to link to Lamberts blog, under Libertarian thinking, this does not mean its the right thing to do at this time.
You ought to ditch the link until he opens it up to real debate. So that its not merely a propagandist site for commie-motivated scientific-fraud.
TimT is right about trackbacks but Bahnisch has been going around link-whoring while at the same time claiming LP is a shit hot blog. I’m just pricking his delusions-of-grandeur bubble for him.
As for Lambert, like Loewenstein, and to a lesser degree LP, he’s a comment manipulator. He blocks civil comments that contradict or debunk him and has been known to delete comments. He also manipulates content to suit his agenda. He’s out and out slimy.
We’ve already got awards, Beck. And you know that I didn’t make that claim.
You’re constantly being disingenuous with the truth.
Your whole modus operandi in blogging appears to be attacking others. Why not set out your thoughts positively?
And TimT is quite right - what on earth is wrong with alerting others who might be interested in a subject that it’s being discussed somewhere else? The whole point of the blogosphere is meant to be facilitating conversation - and one of its strong points the ability to bring disparate groups together to discuss issues of common interest.
You persist in regarding it as some sort of competitive game. I don’t share that view.
Yes I’m pleased that we’ve got a good readership. Why shouldn’t I be? The point of writing is to engage with an audience, I’d have thought.
And I can’t for the life of me see that when I do something it’s “linkwhoring” but when SL does exactly the same (and for the same good reasons) it’s apparently ok. But I suppose that fits in with the partisan frame implied in calling your blog RWDB.
The question was whether righties do it too…
Sorry, SL. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with doing it, it’s what blogging is all about. It was just an easy way to make a point.
I don’t think you can compare Lambert and LP. Trackbacks are there for sites to use if they want to.
Mark,
If I go to LP and contradict someone or point out an error there’s a good possibility I’ll be called a troll. When cs was there he was deleting comments and getting up to other slimy stuff but you took no notice because he was the most prominent lefty blogger in the universe — a good draw card, you know. Both CL and EP were banned for nothing more than standing their ground.
Jesus H Christ man, you disappeared a whole LP thread (without notice) probably because you were worried that such a slimy attack on a journalist/editor might hinder your budding writing career.
For the record, SL has been overdoing it a bit with the trackbacks and the pleas for recognition. That said, I respect the catallaxy bloggers because they won’t have a big pout if i say something they don’t like.
Touche, Becky.
But you still haven’t answered my question about what is appropriate.
One more thing, you LPers take yourselves way too seriously. Hell, it’s almost as if you think blogging is something more than a huge waste of time.
As you should be able to gather from my motto - “nothing’s fact until it’s history, and then it’s debatable” - I don’t take myself all that seriously. (I was going to use “measure with a micrometer, cut with an axe.”)
Mark, you, Kim and your commenters take potshots and far worse at me (usually in LP comments threads) often. At least I make them in a forum where you can respond.
Beck, I deleted the thread in question because I thought the implications made in it were unfair to Tim Blair. I don’t exercise any control over what’s posted - it’s a group blog, and the decision was made in consultation with the thread’s author.
So what you’re saying in your last paragraph is that you’ll always accord me the most unfavourable motivation for doing anything, regardless of what I say, but you’re happy to assume differently for right wing people?
The two ironies of this thread are that it’s got bugger all to do with blogrolls and everything to do with LP. And secondly, that almost everyone who’s decrying LP as an “echo chamber” themselves post comments on LP which take a different position to that of LP bloggers, who often disagree with each other, by the way. If you look at LP now, there are disagreements and debates on almost every thread.
Anyway, I apologise for contributing to the derailment of this thread, and for letting my frustration get the better of me last night - apologies to both SL and GMB for personal comments directed at him. I’ll bow out of here now out of respect for SL and what she wanted this thread to be about.
C ya
SL,I’ve never been big on trackbacks and haven’t done one in ages. Trackbacks seem so… Antony Loewenstein (please, please look at me). See what Yobbo has to say, he’ll give you an honest answer.
Just as an example, I can’t recall seeing a Tim Blair trackback, ever. He’s done Okay without doing it.
C.L. I don’t believe that’s so. I asked people not to mention you anymore. If you can supply me with links, I’ll take some action to rectify the situation.
But please email me. Much as I have a concern to defend LP and myself from the numerous attacks which have become predominant on this thread, as I said, I think SL wanted it to be about Catallaxy’s blogroll.
Bahnisch,
You thought the thread was unfair to Tim Blair? Why then did you not give notice that the thread was deleted and publicly apologize to Blair? You know, so everything was fair and transparent.
I’ve seen him comment of at LP a couple of times, but it doesn’t seem an official ‘trackback’ as such, more a case of ‘take a look at this’. I seem to remember something a bit different on the Crikey prize thread, but I’m not going to dig it up now.
I’ve only ever posted one comment at Loewenstein’s blog - just a comment - it was on a light-hearted thread, and was appropriately light-hearted. It never appeared. He’s got the