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I would feel a little sorry for this individual if I had not been exposed to his intellectual dishonesty so many times before.

In an update to a previous post I had linked to a Myspace thread Shawn Wilkinson created when he saw that I had encouraged people to catch a new ACORN video on Glenn Beck. Of course there was no substantive rebuttal to the videos released thus far which resulted in my criticizing his comment. The following would be his idea of a reply that has substance.

Shawn in bold font

My replies in regular font

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Markie mark,

I made fun of you and your postering of Glenn Beck as an informative source.

He still offers nothing to show the information is not accurate. ACORN has suspended operations, and fired employees, such actions indicate they know things went bad, the videos are true and they need to delay so this blows over. My words “as if that would matter anyway” were clearly broad enough to cover any ad hominem fallacy, but of course Shawn has nothing to criticize the actual information so has to resort to it again. As for ACORN threatening to sue, the people involved had said, bring it on. A number of us are looking forward to the discovery phase of such an action.

Concerning the conent of your post...

Why not the content of the videos? *chirp* *chirp*

These two "journalists" managed to successfully catch several bad apples in a large pile. Have they disucssed their Philadelphia trip? Of course not.

I was already aware of ACORN’s claim regarding Philadelphia. What will be interesting is to see what actually happened. Considering that ACORN has been wrong about it being only one incident with Baltimore, wrong about being turned away in New York and San Diego thus far, and it’s up to five offices, at this point, leaves Hannah and O’Keefe with far more credibility than ACORN. They also have the videos.

But since you are an avid FOX News watcher, surely you saw Hannity’s show today?

As if this is relevant to the truth or falsity of the videos which do not require having cable or watching FOX News, but only an internet connection to Big Government, youtube and various blogs.

You know, the one with Giles and Breitbart discussing how EVVVIL ACORN is, but it was Hannity (of all people) who pushed Giles into admitting that they had failed to fact check their story before coming out with it. No? Perhaps you should catch the podcast.

Then show where the facts are wrong. Shawn is desperately trying to stomp out the chirping crickets now.

More and more we see the duo as amateurs,

No one has argued otherwise. The Jon Stewart video criticizes the press for being scooped by amateurs and yet Shawn thinks their being amateurs is the negative point.

who when pressed to divulge all their video, refuse to.

So? They have their schedule. Notice Shawn still offers no evidence to counter what has been presented, just tries to imply something nefarious.

There’s a term for this type of behavior...

Hilarious, Shawn’s link has a five point definition for yellow journalism and this reporting doesn’t match up at all with any of it.

1. This fails as it is clearly not a minor story, unless one does not mind the under-age sex trade.

2. Would apply to any investigative undercover journalism with video if he foolishly wants to apply it to this case.

3. Is decimated by the fact that we have video and the very words of the ACORN workers and ACORN higher ups early statements showing they are not about being truthful about any of this.

4. Not really applicable in this case.

5. With this matter we have the supposed champions of underdogs and who they use as a shield and cannon fodder defrauding the system, this point fails as well.

But on a more serious note.

I guess he got tired of the the ad hominem fallacies and attempts at deflection.

I guess FOX news is a child porn mill and supportive of sexual harrassment if we make the charge that a few bad apples spoil the enitre bunch.

I was wrong, he is going for more deflection, doubling down even. Let’s first review what Shawn has tried thus far. One, go after Glenn Beck, as if that actually addresses the content of the videos. Two, attack Hannah and O’Keefe despite the five point definition of yellow journalism failing and the Philadelphia claim, which currently lacks details, already being overwhelmed by the five ACORN locations and ACORNS initial lies, with perhaps more videos in the future. And again, the actual content of the videos is not.rebutted.at.all.

Now he tries for deflecting with a ridiculous attempt at moral equivalence. He first has to distort the charge against ACORN to have a chance at this, in other words, a straw man fallacy. Once the actual complaint is taken into account the rest just falls away. There has been evidence for some time that ACORN is a corrupt organization from the top. This new scandal is only on top of the former scandals of embezzlement and cover up, voter registration fraud convictions in multiple states, shaking down businesses, campaign finance illegalities, to name a few off the top of my head.

That it takes this to wake up Congress, with the media still asleep, shows that we have additional problems with uprooting corruption in this country when it comes to liberal institutions. The charge is clearly not that a few bad apples spoil the entire bunch, but rather, that an organization that has long been corrupt at the top demonstrates this all the way to the bottom and that government and the media would rather look the other way until forced to act.

Best of luck in your parallel universe!

This coming from someone who can only respond with fallacies, deflections, distortion of the actual charge against ACORN and a pathetic attempt at moral equivalence.

Apparently Shawn did not watch the end of the Jon Stewart video or he refused to comprehend the criticism of shallow responses to this serious matter.

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Filed Under: Politics -- Obama -- News -- MSM -- Crime – ACORN