New Insurgent Group ?

[Badger52]

Honest, I didn't know whether to put this in the Comedy Zone or UWOA or...
I know it's a (severely lib) Minneapolis paper, but it's an AP-authored story. (Editors these days are all in the witness protection program.) So an interesting offering on the primaries that occured in a few states.
Here's the link.

and a snip

SALT LAKE CITY - Republican divisions resurfaced in congressional primaries, with five-term Rep. John Sullivan falling to a tea party backed opponent in Oklahoma while Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch easily defeated another candidate backed by the insurgent group. It was Hatch's first primary challenge since his election to the Senate in 1976.

(pick your smiley)

With that kind of reporting, the road to D.C., and spinning yarns of White House gala events will be a short one for that writer.

[Richard]

Republican divisions resurfaced in congressional primaries, with five-term Rep. John Sullivan falling to a tea party backed opponent in Oklahoma while Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch easily defeated another candidate backed by the insurgent group.

One common definition of insurgent is "rebelling against the leadership of a political party."

Isn't that what the Tea Party is doing, rebelling against the leadership of the Republican Party?

Meh...

And so it goes...

Richard

[Streck-Fu]

But after 10 years of referring to our enemies in Iraq and Afhanistan as insurgents, I have little doubt that the use of that word by the author was intentional.

[Dusty]

Originally Posted by Badger52

Honest, I didn't know whether to put this in the Comedy Zone or UWOA or...
I know it's a (severely lib) Minneapolis paper, but it's an AP-authored story. (Editors these days are all in the witness protection program.) So an interesting offering on the primaries that occured in a few states.
Here's the link.

and a snip



(pick your smiley)

Is there a "F.ck the AP" smiley available?

[Badger52]

Originally Posted by Richard

One common definition of insurgent is "rebelling against the leadership of a political party."

Isn't that what the Tea Party is doing, rebelling against the leadership of the Republican Party?

Precisely. IMO they have notably more popular support than the oxygen-wasting Occupy movement and seem to already be on their way to serving up 2 deliverables:
- they scare the bejeebers out of the Dems and,
- they may help to right (pun intended) the Republican shallow-draft ship.

[Pete]

Originally Posted by Richard

One common definition of insurgent is "rebelling against the leadership of a political party."

Isn't that what the Tea Party is doing, rebelling against the leadership of the Republican Party?

Meh...

And so it goes...

Richard

Yes, Richard, you are right.

But how would the individual in question address a leftist group like Code Pick taking out a Blue Dog Democrat in a Primary?

More like "a grass roots oganization full of loving, caring individuals came together on election day........................."? Hardly think you will ever see "Insurgent" used to address a leftist organization.

[Dusty]

Originally Posted by Pete

Hardly think you will ever see "Insurgent" used to address a leftist organization.

Yeah, I usually use "communist", myself.

[Sigaba]

IMO, American journalists are cribbing from The Economist. See page 200 of the search results available here. On that page and the ones preceding it, one will see articles on the McCain insurgency during the 2000 primary season. On page 157, one will find an article on Dean's insurgency against the Democratic Party's establishment leading up to the 2004 primary season.

Does the word, given the times, have a double meaning? Yes, but what words don't? Does this usage undermine "insurgents" political legitimacy? Or do we do that ourselves when we parse the words and expressions the other guys use--without doing the same with our own?

[Streck-Fu]

Does the word, given the times, have a double meaning? Yes, but what words don't?

And what author does not consider how the majority of the readers will interpret the words use in their article?

[Sigaba]

Originally Posted by Streck-Fu

And what author does not consider how the majority of the readers will interpret the words use in their article?

Okay, let's run with this.

Is the selection of "insurgent" about American reporters trying to sell votes by making the right look dangerous? Or is it about American reporters trying to sell copy by making political reporting look dangerous or to connect relatively mundane stories to broader contexts? Or is it about American reporters trying to make themselves look proficient by appropriating sensibilities of more successful newspapers?

[Sigaba]

(Ultimately, I think that in some of our criticisms of the Fourth Estate, we're giving journalists credit for a level of foresight beyond their means. Theirs is a dying industry even though there's an exponentially growing thirst for information and knowledge. Yet, these are the guys who couldn't give away Gore Tex parkas in a rain forest.)

[Richard]

Originally Posted by Streck-Fu

But after 10 years of referring to our enemies in Iraq and Afhanistan as insurgents, I have little doubt that the use of that word by the author was intentional.

Yep - mundanely so.

Richard