I gotta be honest, Sirota’s grating self righteousness turned me off a long time ago. I don’t know how many electoral victories he’s actively played a role in but I’d guess that number would be fairly low as his persona always seems to percolate as someone more interested in being “right” than in actually accomplishing even smaller things.
And I should add that as much as I think Jacobin is generally silly, your writings about NY City and State politics are way more informative and nuanced than many others, which is why I’m a paid subscriber. I wouldn’t pay Sirota to analyze, well, anything, as what little I’ve seen of his analyses in recent years has been almost comically predictable.
I hear you, Ross, but don't you have better targets than Sirota? Why spend so much time on this? Why not just give him a call and talk it over, rather than make it a public spat between two notable (heroic, even) progressive spokespersons?
Hate to be crass, Sirota blocked you, get over it.
You win elections in the mud and grime, hard relentless work and dollars. I guided and worked in numerous races, won some, lost some, learned along the way.
Today the line between journalist, blogger and Tweeter is blurred, anyone can join the fray, the marketplace determines readers, from a handful to untold 000s.
I find Jacobin a relic of the 30s, …and pseudo/newbie/self-appointed talking heads rarely influence…. the decision-makers are not “influenced” by rambling scribblers,
Unfortunately, getting politicians on the ballot requires a certain amount of verified signatures. This requires door-knocking. If you don't want people knocking on your door then don't register to vote. You might dodge jury duty too!
Our system requires that for candidates to get on ballots they must get signatures from registered voters. If you don't want candidates knocking on your door then don't register to vote. Then put a notice on your door asking that nobody seek your signature for a political petition.
After that try telling the court system that although you are interested in justice you do not wish to be bothered by jury duty.
Perhaps - and I know that this is going to blow your mind - perhaps I am allowed to exist without being pestered all day long - and still be allowed to vote.
So glad you take the time to share your vaunted opinions with little peons like me. I bet a lot of people really care about what you think, and ask you for your opinion all the time. Very kind of you.
You are smart, charming, and your opinion matters.
I call this article the Arena Fallacy Fallacy. You are substituting some strawmen here. He was talking about literally volunteering on one brief occasion in one's entire life, which is something within the capabilities of the vast majority of us. Not "been part of the industry or follow it closely" or "of late" or the "proper number of volunteer hours."
By the way, having done extensive volunteer work of this sort often still leaves the doer as clueless as anyone else as to politics, voting, policy, etc. It is far from a reliable way to achieve wisdom in the political realm. Doesn’t hurt though.
I gotta be honest, Sirota’s grating self righteousness turned me off a long time ago. I don’t know how many electoral victories he’s actively played a role in but I’d guess that number would be fairly low as his persona always seems to percolate as someone more interested in being “right” than in actually accomplishing even smaller things.
And I should add that as much as I think Jacobin is generally silly, your writings about NY City and State politics are way more informative and nuanced than many others, which is why I’m a paid subscriber. I wouldn’t pay Sirota to analyze, well, anything, as what little I’ve seen of his analyses in recent years has been almost comically predictable.
I hear you, Ross, but don't you have better targets than Sirota? Why spend so much time on this? Why not just give him a call and talk it over, rather than make it a public spat between two notable (heroic, even) progressive spokespersons?
Hate to be crass, Sirota blocked you, get over it.
You win elections in the mud and grime, hard relentless work and dollars. I guided and worked in numerous races, won some, lost some, learned along the way.
Today the line between journalist, blogger and Tweeter is blurred, anyone can join the fray, the marketplace determines readers, from a handful to untold 000s.
I find Jacobin a relic of the 30s, …and pseudo/newbie/self-appointed talking heads rarely influence…. the decision-makers are not “influenced” by rambling scribblers,
I hate it when people knock on my door and I won't do it to anyone else, either.
Unfortunately, getting politicians on the ballot requires a certain amount of verified signatures. This requires door-knocking. If you don't want people knocking on your door then don't register to vote. You might dodge jury duty too!
Yes, it's definitely my fault that people come to my home to pester me.
You could move to a country that doesn't have democracy or wait for ours to collapse from lack of interest. Keep up the good work!
Yes, I read this blog about politics because I am not interested in politics.
You are a smart person.
Our system requires that for candidates to get on ballots they must get signatures from registered voters. If you don't want candidates knocking on your door then don't register to vote. Then put a notice on your door asking that nobody seek your signature for a political petition.
After that try telling the court system that although you are interested in justice you do not wish to be bothered by jury duty.
Good luck with all of that.
Perhaps - and I know that this is going to blow your mind - perhaps I am allowed to exist without being pestered all day long - and still be allowed to vote.
So glad you take the time to share your vaunted opinions with little peons like me. I bet a lot of people really care about what you think, and ask you for your opinion all the time. Very kind of you.
You are smart, charming, and your opinion matters.
Great article
Sirota is notorious for blocking anyone who doesn’t kiss his a$$. I’m a nobody and he blocked me
I call this article the Arena Fallacy Fallacy. You are substituting some strawmen here. He was talking about literally volunteering on one brief occasion in one's entire life, which is something within the capabilities of the vast majority of us. Not "been part of the industry or follow it closely" or "of late" or the "proper number of volunteer hours."
By the way, having done extensive volunteer work of this sort often still leaves the doer as clueless as anyone else as to politics, voting, policy, etc. It is far from a reliable way to achieve wisdom in the political realm. Doesn’t hurt though.