Post #120,975
10/12/03 8:49:22 AM
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So what's the definition of "astroturf' again?
[link|http://cerdip.motime.com/1064959200|And does this fit?]
Excerpt:
"Sgt. Christopher Shelton, who signed a letter that ran in the Snohomish Herald, said Friday that his platoon sergeant had distributed the letter and asked soldiers for the names of their hometown newspapers. Soldiers were asked to sign the letter if they agreed with it, said Shelton, whose shoulder was wounded during an ambush earlier this year.
"Everything it said is dead accurate. We've done a really good job," he said by phone from Italy, where he was preparing to return to Iraq.
Sgt. Todd Oliver, a spokesman for the 173rd Airborne Brigade, which counts the 503rd as one of its units, said he was told a soldier wrote the letter, but he didn't know who. He said the brigade's public affairs unit was not involved.
"When he asked other soldiers in his unit to sign it, they did," Oliver explained in an e-mail response to a GNS inquiry. "Someone, somewhere along the way, took it upon themselves to mail it to the various editors of newspapers across the country." "
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DEAL WITH IT.
Compromise is for suckers. Seeking a middle ground is what led to 9/11.
"I do not want to be admired by scumbags and liars and wife beaters. I want to be admired by good and decent, intelligent and just people, and in order to achieve this I need to do things that make me despised by their opposites." - Bill Whittle
Never mind all the mass graves. Where's the nerve gas?
[link|http://www.angelfire.com/ca3/marlowe/index.html|http://www.angelfire...arlowe/index.html]
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Post #120,987
10/12/03 1:11:03 PM
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Depends
One of the soldiers claimed that he had never even seen the letter before it was shipped to a paper in his name.
At this point we don't have enough information to know if this was really nefarious, a local effort gone wrong or just some over eager soldiers.
Jay
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Post #121,284
10/15/03 10:31:34 AM
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Hello? Any definitions out there?
Everybody loves to use the word, but nobody wants to define it.
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DEAL WITH IT.
Compromise is for suckers. Seeking a middle ground is what led to 9/11.
"I do not want to be admired by scumbags and liars and wife beaters. I want to be admired by good and decent, intelligent and just people, and in order to achieve this I need to do things that make me despised by their opposites." - Bill Whittle
Never mind all the mass graves. Where's the nerve gas?
[link|http://www.angelfire.com/ca3/marlowe/index.html|http://www.angelfire...arlowe/index.html]
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Post #121,288
10/15/03 10:46:26 AM
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Astroturf
is the false (plastic) grass used by some stadiums rather than plant real grass for players (ususally football) to play on.
However, in this instance, the definition is that of a attempt by a group to market a position by appearing to be a grass-roots campaign.
(BTW: for the record, sincerity is not an issue as any good advertiser will tell you he is always sincere, regardless of the campaign.)
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Post #121,314
10/15/03 1:41:18 PM
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"Appearing to be a grass roots campaign"
Okay, so now you have to demonstrate intent to misrepresent.
Oh, and by the way, what is the defintion of "grass roots campaign?"
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DEAL WITH IT.
Compromise is for suckers. Seeking a middle ground is what led to 9/11.
"I do not want to be admired by scumbags and liars and wife beaters. I want to be admired by good and decent, intelligent and just people, and in order to achieve this I need to do things that make me despised by their opposites." - Bill Whittle
Never mind all the mass graves. Where's the nerve gas?
[link|http://www.angelfire.com/ca3/marlowe/index.html|http://www.angelfire...arlowe/index.html]
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Post #121,317
10/15/03 2:11:08 PM
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Actually I don't.
Okay, so now you have to demonstrate intent to misrepresent.
I'm not claiming that's it's an Astroturf campaign. An Astroturf campaign attempts to look like a "grassroots" campaign - and I doubt anyone will try and claim that 500 form letters represents a "grassroots" campaign.
Oh, and by the way, what is the defintion of "grass roots campaign?"
Generally speaking (and someone can correct me if they wish) a grass roots campaign is a number of people speaking out on a issue without a coordinated effort by someone to get them to all say the same thing. Such campaigns start very small, and then gain numbers if people agree with what's being said. My litmus test : a grassroots campaign will tell you the phone number of your Congressman (or whomever) and urge you to contact them. A non-grassroots campaign will produce a letter for you to sign and send to your Congressman. (YMMV)
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Post #121,315
10/15/03 1:51:26 PM
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Ah, here's a definition.
[link|http://gopher.quux.org:70/pygfarm/dict.pyg%7C/jargon/DEFINITION/astroturfing|Just had to Google a bit]
Excerpt:
DEFINITION of 'astroturfing'
From Jargon File (4.3.3, 20 Sep 2002)
astroturfing n. 1. The use of paid shills to create the impression of a
popular movement, through means like letters to newspapers from
soi-disant `concerned citizens', paid opinion pieces, and the formation
of grass-roots lobbying groups that are actually funded by a PR group
(AstroTurf is fake grass; hence the term). 2. What an individual posting
to a public forum under an assumed name is said to be doing.
I say:
Posting under an assumed name obviously doesn't apply here. So let's deal with definition number 1.
Paid shills. Does that mean they're paid to shill? Or just shills that happen to have gainful employment of some kind? Because soldiers get paid. To fight, that is. Or just to soldier, if they're lucky.
But wait a minute. [link|http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=shill|What counts as a shill?]
Excerpt:
n.
One who poses as a satisfied customer or an enthusiastic gambler to dupe bystanders into participating in a swindle.
I say:
One who poses? [link|http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=pose|What does that mean?]
Excerpt:
1. To assume or hold a particular position or posture, as in sitting for a portrait.
2. To affect a particular mental attitude.
3. To represent oneself falsely; pretend to be other than what one is.
I say:
Well, I don't see what's so nefarious about definitions 1 or 2. And definition 3 clearly doesn't apply. So what's the beef?
Note well: definition 3 is all about lack of sincerity, so SINCERITY DOES COUNT.
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DEAL WITH IT.
Compromise is for suckers. Seeking a middle ground is what led to 9/11.
"I do not want to be admired by scumbags and liars and wife beaters. I want to be admired by good and decent, intelligent and just people, and in order to achieve this I need to do things that make me despised by their opposites." - Bill Whittle
Never mind all the mass graves. Where's the nerve gas?
[link|http://www.angelfire.com/ca3/marlowe/index.html|http://www.angelfire...arlowe/index.html]
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Post #121,318
10/15/03 2:15:39 PM
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By the way - the definition of 'is' is....
v. First and third person singular past indicative was, (wz, wz; wz when unstressed)second person singular and plural and first and third person plural past indicative were, (w\ufffdr)past subjunctive were,past participle been, (bn)present participle be\ufffding, (bng)first person singular present indicative am, (m)second person singular and plural and first and third person plural present indicative are, (\ufffdr)third person singular present indicative is, (z)present subjunctive be
v. intr.
1. To exist in actuality; have life or reality: I think, therefore I am.
2.
1. To occupy a specified position: The food is on the table.
2. To remain in a certain state or situation undisturbed, untouched, or unmolested: Let the children be.
3. To take place; occur: The test was yesterday.
4. To go or come: Have you ever been to Italy? Have you been home recently?
5. Used as a copula in such senses as:
1. To equal in identity: \ufffdTo be a Christian was to be a Roman\ufffd (James Bryce).
2. To have a specified significance: A is excellent, C is passing. Let n be the unknown quantity.
3. To belong to a specified class or group: The human being is a primate.
4. To have or show a specified quality or characteristic: She is witty. All humans are mortal.
5. To seem to consist or be made of: The yard is all snow. He is all bluff and no bite.
6. To belong; befall: Peace be unto you. Woe is me.
[link|http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=is| Source ]
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