Oppo Research in the Tradition of Einstein (Free Republic under fire)

The Corner at National Review Online ^ | 28 June 2008 | Byron York

[SE Mom]

The Washington Post has published an unintentionally amusing article this morning about one Danielle Allen, a "razor-sharp, 36-year-old political theorist" at Princeton's Institute for Advanced Studies. Allen, with doctorates from Cambridge and Harvard, won a $500,000 MacArthur Foundation genius grant a few years ago and now conducts studies at the Institute, where, according to the Post, "she works alongside groundbreaking physicists, mathematicians and social scientists. They don't have to teach, and they face no quotas on what they publish. Their only mandate is to work in the tradition of Einstein, wrestling with the most vexing problems in the universe."

And one of the most vexing problems in the universe, which Allen has decided to pursue in the tradition of Einstein, is the origin of a number of e-mails claiming that Barack Obama is a Muslim. Using the advanced research tools at her disposal, the razor-sharp Allen found…a couple of posters on the Free Republic website, plus a former political rival of Obama's who sends out zillions of e-mails to reporters every day.

The former political rival appears to have been completely open about the stuff he sent out, some of which was based on arguments similar to an op-ed that appeared in the pages of the New York Times. As for Free Republic, according to the Post, Allen "counted 23 freepers among those engaging in regular discussions about Obama's religion, and isolated a handful whom she began to suspect as having a role in the e-mail. Sifting through hundreds of postings, she began to piece together their identities."

Allen gave her information to the Post reporter, who used it to track down two allegedly offending freepers, one a 69-year-old retired grandfather in the suburbs of Boston and the other a 60-year-old schoolteacher in rural Washington state. Both said they had nothing to do with the emails. And that's about it.

But the article has a pretty clear subtext, and it is that the exchange of such information on the Internet should be controlled. "I started thinking, 'How does one stop it?'" Allen told the Post. "Citizens and political scientists must face the fact that the Internet has enabled a new form of political organization that is just as influential on local and national elections as unions and political action committees…This kind of misinformation campaign short-circuits judgment. It also aggressively disregards the fundamental principle of free societies that one be able to debate one's accusers."

Of course, we have laws that regulate the political activities of unions and political action committees. Is it going too far to guess that the scholar from the Institute for Advanced Studies might be searching for some way to do the same for Free Republic?

06/28 08:45 AM

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks for the pings and links!

Beckwith Responds To The Washington Post
The Obama File — Latest News | 6/28/2008 | Beckwith
Posted on 06/28/2008 9:35:21 AM PDT by Beckwith
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037813/posts?page=51#51

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

This is what they actually do at Princeton on grant money? This might save all of the would-be Einsteinians at the Institute for Advanced Studies a lot of time, as it gets to the nub of the matter: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obsessive_compulsive_disorder.

Surely, there is a Crisis Intervention Center on campus for situations when someone goes off the deep end?

[mjaneangels@aolcom]

“This particular researcher received a half-million dollar genius grant, after all.”

How can she be a genius and support Obama? Are those not opposites?

[grey_whiskers]

Can anyone post a link to this person's thesis, so we can judge if her work is truly indicative of genius or is merely postmodernist deconstructionism or other similar BS?

Cheers!

[ladyjane]

OPPO research?

You know Serutan is Natures spelled backwards.

OPPO is POOP spelled inside out.

[mjaneangels@aolcom]

“It’s important to keep asking these Obama supporters, “Explain why you claim that talking about the possibility that Obama was raised as a Muslim is a smear. Are you an anti-Muslim bigot?”...”

You make a very good point. I, honestly, do not care whether he was raised Muslim or not. I do care that every position he has taken on every issue has started out from the far left. Those are the positions he will act on, not the more current middle positions he has taken recently.

I have been reading and hearing people say that they don’t believe that increasing production of oil will affect the price. Well, what they believe does not matter, Economics has proven that when supply is increased the price goes down, unless there is a strong enough increase in demand at the same time.

[grey_whiskers]

Jamie Farr? KLINGER??? (Note the Liberace-style clothing.) /sarc>

Cheers!

[Santino Sonny Corleone]

> By the way - Barak Hussein Obama is indeed a muzzie.

I did some research and tracked this rumor to a 58 or so year old conservative with a gray beard.

[Graybeard58]

I did some research and tracked this rumor to a 58 or so year old conservative with a gray beard.

Yesterday was my 63rd b/day.

[Santino Sonny Corleone]

Yesterday was my 63rd b/day.
I am not working on the same building as Einstein so give me a break :-)

[happygrl]

Absolutely stunning discussion on that link.

Thanks for posting it.

Yes, I could see a Sirhan Encore....

[happygrl]

And is there any doubt that we will someday read a majority opinion from the Supremes that the 1st Amendment was never intended to provide protection to liars.

I believe that is an approximation of the British Libel Law.

Of course, the Supremes could include foreign sources of law in their cosideration of our Constitution, dontcha know !

[kalee]

WOW, I think someone has a pretty vivid imagination or is being snookered. This is the message Obama supposedly sent to the conference.

Hullo my dear fellow Muslim brothers and sisters. First of all I apologize to you for not joining all of you on this stage of unity due to my urgent emergency, otherwise it is an honor for me to be with you for this special and honorable occasion. I hope you’ll forgive my presence,but, I am always with you via HOPE and CHANGE and UNITY.....You and I are united for change that we can do and can bring to this country. I request you to come to DNC convention in August in Denver as a Muslim cacus and support my nomination and then support me in November to make sure that this is our time, this is our last chance to win back this country for our freedom, for our lives and for our future .I promise you that next year I will be with you on this occasion .Thanks.Your’s
BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA

[kalee]

I meant the originator of the thread at the Hillary site not you, just so there is no confusion here. :)

[SE Mom]

I understood :)

I guess the only way to know if this was truly read aloud would be to somehow get a tape of the next day conference. It IS hard to imagine that statement being read aloud.

But then again..

[kalee]

When I read it I had the distinct impression it was written by the same people who send the emails promising vast wealth to the person who helps them get uncollected money out of a bank in some third world country. My inner scam detection bells were furiously chiming.
However the Hillary people seem to be buying it, so I guess it’s serving a purpose. LOL They believe it and are adamant in their opposition to Obama the Muslim.

[kristinn]

Ping.