I've received quite a few responses from various wingnuts to my Huffington Post column yesterday suggesting that because I ridiculed the town hall hooligans I'm therefore opposed to dissent. Actually, in a strategic sense, I'm against physical protests -- not dissent. I don't think physical protests are the most effective form of dissent in the digital age, but that's a different discussion.
I've spent the last 20 years of my life involved in dissent. I engage in it every day here on this blog, on the Huffington Post, in digital animation & filmmaking (including the indie movie I directed several years ago). In practically every form of media, my career is all about dissent. (Much of this blog lately has been dedicated to dissenting against Democratic politicians like Max Baucus and Kent Conrad.)
What I'm against when it comes to these town hall protests is (to put it politely) the hypocrisy and self-contradiction of the message and of many of the participants, as well as the utter nonsensical nature of what they're saying. In some cases, what they're shouting is literally nonsense -- random loud noises and the like.
I mean, what should we say in response when Medicare recipients are angrily shouting that they don't want government handling their Medicare? What should we say when they gather in publicly financed buildings and on publicly financed park property in order to protest against a public program?
I'm not against dissent. I'm against stupid.