I know you are but what am I. (liberal)

February 7, 2002 12:27 PM

You know things have changed on MetaFilter when aaron gets accused of being liberal!
posted by briank to Etiquette/Policy at 12:27 PM (21 comments total)

(so maybe better categorized as mefi-related, sorry)

It's good to see everyone's favoriteconservative whipping-boy back by popular demand, but it's funnier to see those who don't remember him (or know his rep) thrashing in the quicksand (thanks to jpoulos for the metaphor) when they miss the invisible sarcasm tags.
posted by briank at 12:29 PM on February 7, 2002

Thanks, I think, but something tells me I'd really rather not see this thread exist. It serves no purpose other than to call attention to me and talk about me, and I don't need or want it.
posted by aaron at 12:41 PM on February 7, 2002

also - it was a little bit shall we say, fiesty for the little newcomers to take on EVERYBODY at once, in double team fashion.

Metafilter is one tight knit community
posted by goneill at 12:43 PM on February 7, 2002

To turn this away from aaron personally, I think it was a textbook case in the inability of some to glean sarcasm from the written word.
posted by owillis at 12:57 PM on February 7, 2002

I think it was a textbook case in the inability of some to glean sarcasm from the written word.

Difficult unless you write a lot?
posted by walrus at 12:58 PM on February 7, 2002

owillis - it's both the inability to see sarcasm and aaron's assumption that people would get it because it was coming from him.

Not calling you out at all, aaron -- I meant this more as a reflection of how the MeFi world has changed. The sudden re-appearance of someone who had been a "name player" around here a while back didn't necessarily bring all the cache with it. Given the discussions last week about SDB and "who do we miss", I'd say we don't really miss anybody. It's a whole different MeFi out there, kids.
posted by briank at 1:23 PM on February 7, 2002

for the record, the "quicksand" analogy came from dhartung. carry on...
posted by jpoulos at 1:36 PM on February 7, 2002

I miss Manimal.
posted by dong_resin at 2:25 PM on February 7, 2002

Of all the online communities that I've participated in over the last 12 years, I have to say that this one is by far the most fixated on people's political affiliations. What's up with that?
posted by MrBaliHai at 2:26 PM on February 7, 2002

<obvious>You wouldn't say that if you weren't a freakin' commie.</obvious>
posted by jpoulos at 2:36 PM on February 7, 2002

It serves no purpose other than to call attention to me and talk about me, and I don't need or want it. - aaron

Are you sure? I count 36 of your comments in MeFi alone, since Feb 3. There's nothing wrong with being prolific but it kind of goes against the above statement.
posted by ashbury at 2:42 PM on February 7, 2002

Actually, briank nailed it on the head. I didn't know Aaron's political affiliation, and so obviously any irony is going to be lost, there. Which brings up an interesting question: should I? Is there a base expectation that the reader know other MetaFilterites' views, affiliations, and attitudes, and read accordingly?
posted by eamondaly at 3:05 PM on February 7, 2002

freakin' commie

I'll thank you to refer to me properly as a goddamn pinko subversive prevert.
posted by MrBaliHai at 3:06 PM on February 7, 2002

And by the way, who are you calling a newcomer, goneill? I was here six months before you. Neener.
posted by eamondaly at 3:19 PM on February 7, 2002

It's a whole different MeFi out there, kids.

And how!

I know it's not cool to say this anymore, but... I miss a lot of the old MeFites. Entropy - by which I don't mean degradation, but rather the inexorable tendency towards inert uniformity in the universe - really sucks.

*silently wipes away a solitary tear*
posted by gd779 at 3:25 PM on February 7, 2002

You know, I thought the post was sarcastic before I saw who wrote it. I dunno...
posted by owillis at 3:29 PM on February 7, 2002

Eh. I was aiming for true-yet-vaguely-funny. I think I overshoot and hit overly-critical by mistake. Since I still hang around here fairly frequently, it obviously wasn't intended that way.
posted by gd779 at 3:34 PM on February 7, 2002

time is all relevant eamondaly - the thing is that aaron is famously conservative... so it does seem that you are 'new' if you don't yet know that. perhaps you have spent less time here, even if your user number is lower?
posted by goneill at 1:41 PM on February 8, 2002

That's a very interesting comment, especially the use of the word 'famously'. I, for one, really don't pay much attention to who says what. I love the links and the commentary, and have been reading every day since I stumbled over it, but I rarely pay any attention to who said what. As I mentioned, I'm a lazy reader.

I wonder if I'm in the minority.
posted by eamondaly at 3:03 PM on February 8, 2002

i don't know if others pay attention or not. i think that a lot of people have mentioned that they don't - i'm sorry for saying that about you. peace?
posted by goneill at 3:17 PM on February 8, 2002

Heh. We're cool. There's really no need to apologize-- I find it an interesting topic of conversation. What 'participating' means and all that.
posted by eamondaly at 3:33 PM on February 8, 2002