Back to previous post: Outbreak of humor in Cedar City, UT; St. George area residents protest

Go to Making Light's front page.

Forward to next post: American apology shirt

Subscribe (via RSS) to this post's comment thread. (What does this mean? Here's a quick introduction.)

June 26, 2003

Slow doings at ankle level
Posted by Teresa at 12:28 PM *

I’m starting to see little bursts of freeply outrage at my Recursive museum updates post of 13 June, as well as at the comments that followed it. I figure these reactions are a potentially useful measure of the freepi’s natural unassisted processing time.

Funniest line so far: “I’m just sick to death of the left hijacking the moral high ground on every issue under the sun.” If I’ve got that right, what he’s saying is “I perceive myself to be on the moral low ground—and it’s all your fault!”

Comments on Slow doings at ankle level:
#1 ::: Kip W ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 06:17 PM:

It's a religious thing, using Vonnegut's definition of religion as "comforting lies." You are upsetting the stories they tell themselves with these unseemly truths. Both local papers I read here have had irate posts from people claiming that the losses are merely (merely!) in the double digits -- one says 50, one says 30. It's so much nicer to believe that, instead of the truth, 120 to 150 times higher (and climbing).

As long as they continue to get all their information from talk radio, the Moonie Times and Rupert Murdoch, life is simple and monochromatic... and then you come along with all these evil complications. And so they purple with rage and demand to know, why can't you just accept what Big Brother wants you to know... and be one of us... one of us... one of us...

#2 ::: Erik V. Olson ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 06:53 PM:

Want to really torque them off? Mention Hilary. Repeaedtly. Bonus points for mention books sales, increase thereof.

#3 ::: Bill Humphries ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 07:47 PM:

Eric: I mentioned this in my LiveJournal, but not in the blog.

A couple of weekends ago I was spammed by the freeper rag NewsMax.com. They were selling a pack of "Hillary Clinton Attrocity" cards, you know, like the Iraqi Deck of Demons, in protest of Clinton's book.

I put on my hazmat suit and looked at NewsMax's, and sure enough, the spam matched up with NewsMax's marketing.

It seems they planned on selling more packs of "Hillary" cards than Ms. Clinton's book.

So much for that plan.

Oh, and for your scary patriotic tat collection: http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2003/n05232003_200305236.html

Someone gave up a vacation in Europe for that... sad really.

#4 ::: Kevin Andrew Murphy ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 09:11 PM:

Well, as a trip to Europe would be less thrilling at the moment than it might be, I don't begrudge that couple having some fun seeing this country, or indulging in patriotic tat.

The glamour wore off Europe when a friend told me he'd roadtripped from Paris to Vienna for a Warhammer convention. As I said, "You get special geek points for that."

#5 ::: Bill Humphries ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 09:27 PM:

Well, neither Europe nor Peoria's glamour have worn off me yet.

I can see the family saying, "damn, but that strong Euro is gonna cut into the vacation budget. Let's see the Grand Canyon instead, and bank the money until the dollar recovers."

But their rationale was, "Europe bad. US good. Let's build a Nuremberg-level prop and drive around the country showing what a bunch of sheep-shagger, er, freepi we are!"

#6 ::: Paul Riddell ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 10:05 PM:

Personally, I almost feel sorry for the freepers: all of us teddible liberals keeping them from their Eden of book-burning, cross-burning, and brother-sister marriages. (And before anyone starts flaming, I used to live in Lewisville, Texas, a town so redneck that an opposing team started playing "Duelling Banjos" during a Lewisville High School football game and the locals couldn't understand why the opposition was laughing so hard.) Unfortunately, we can't get away from them because they're like the spoiled little brother who wants to poke your smallpox vaccine scab, and they won't leave because it's severely doubtful that any of 'em would know how to make a stone axe without help, much less their own starship.

Of course, if we leave, they're doomed. They'll no longer be able to blame crop failures on US involvement in the Middle East peace process, and they won't be able to blame the double-wide getting blown away in a tornado on Hillary Clinton. Again, I ALMOST feel sorry for them.

#7 ::: Teresa Nielsen Hayden ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 11:47 PM:

Paul, I grew up where the annual appearance of Tex Earnhardt's Diving Mules was a big event. I don't feel sorry for Freepers at all. They're having the kind of fun they like best.

#8 ::: Jon H ::: (view all by) ::: June 26, 2003, 11:57 PM:

I wonder when that van is going to be updated with a nice portrait of burned, double amputee Ali...

#9 ::: Bruce Arthurs ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 12:38 AM:

Tex Earnhardt's commercials and publicity stunts may be outrageous, but when we've had to do Serious Car Shopping, we've found that Earnhardt's various dealerships are about the best in town. Salesmen are courteous and non-pushy, the selection of vehicles is good, and the financing is about as fair as you can find.

So yeh, I'd buy a used car from that man. (And have.)

And that ain't no bull!

#10 ::: Paula Lieberman ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 01:08 AM:

Earnhardt sounds more entertaining than, "I'm Ernie Boch!" On the other hand, the competition in the furniture industry around here gets interesting -- the commercials with the two old geezers who are the chain owners who get told to get lost in Swedish by tall blondes, who arrive with the sofa and the person receiving the order calls for the geezers to be taken home.... there's the furniture company that announced one day that all its employees should listen to WBZ radio early in the morning on a certain date; the station announced that all the employees and their families should come to the airport,the company was having a special company outing that day to Bermuda for the day and the stores were closed for the day....

Regarding Bush II.... reincarnation of Savonarola maybe?

#11 ::: pericat ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 01:45 AM:

I was wondering how they could afford the customized second truck, what with spending all their savings on travelling the continent the year before, then I remembered the tax write-off for SUVs.

#12 ::: Steve Taylor ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 02:38 AM:

I think I'm behind the curve on language. Would anyone care to define freep/freeply for me?

#13 ::: Steve Taylor ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 02:38 AM:

I think I'm behind the curve on language. Would anyone care to define freep/freeply for me?

#14 ::: Jesurgislac ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 03:26 AM:

//Want to really torque them off? Mention Hilary. Repeaedtly. Bonus points for mention books sales, increase thereof.//

On a conservative livejournal community I belong to (yes, I know, but it has a good guy running it and debate sometimes rises to a civilised level) the freepi were rejoicing.

Because why? Because HARRY POTTER had knocked Hilary Clinton's biography off the top of the bestseller list....

#15 ::: Jon Meltzer ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 07:10 AM:

Obviously, they haven't read the book yet. (But, everyone here has, right?)

Conservative government uses terrorist threat to curb civil liberties and purge political opponents in the interest of preserving class and racial privilege. Oppressed people react with civil disobedience and violent attacks against property.

And five million people bought the book the first day ...

#16 ::: Chad Orzel ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 08:02 AM:

Paul, I grew up where the annual appearance of Tex Earnhardt's Diving Mules was a big event.

I don't know if it was the same Diving Mules act, but that was the highlight of a few Broome County Fairs back home (the fairgrounds are in my home town). There was a lone protestor who showed up every morning and stood in front of the gates with a sign saying "Diving Mules are Un-American."

The next year, the mules were replaced with a diving human act-- a guy would come out in a cape, set fire to the cape, then dive into a big tank of water. One of the members of the Fair Committee rented a mule for the week, and tied it to a post out in front of the gates with a sign reading "Diving Flaming Humans are Un-American."

Every now and then you find a redneck with a good sense of humor...

#17 ::: Anne ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 09:01 AM:

Jeepers freepers,
Where'd you get those creepers?
Jeepers freepers,
Where'd you get those spies?

Hm. Perhaps I should drink my coffee before attempting poesy.

#18 ::: Daniel J. Boone ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 12:01 PM:

Steve Taylor, "freeper" is a made-up insult word like Rush Limbaugh's "feminazi" -- an extension of the fine tradition of American political insult.

In this case, I believe (and will no doubt be corrected if I am wrong) that it's a reference to a conservative website called "Free Republic", whose authors, fans, forum participants, etc. annoy many on the left in the same visceral way that Hillary Clinton annoys...well, freepers.

#19 ::: --k. ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 01:12 PM:

Wasn't it a term coined by the freepers themselves? As in-house shorthand, that we've appropriated for our own nefarious purposes?

Alternate, apocryphal coinage: The Fellowship to Re-elect the President.

#20 ::: Kip W ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 02:19 PM:

Really? Hillary Clinton amuses the freepers? You can't tell it from their writhings.

#21 ::: Daniel J. Boone ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 02:38 PM:

Did they make it up? If so, I guess it's more like "dittoheads" as some Limbaugh fans call themselves. I don't know, I've only followed links to that site once or twice, and so I've only seen the word used as a term of abuse or derision. Not a lot of freepers in the market anarchist circles where I mostly hang out. We might be too tolerant of drugs 'n fornication for their taste, I dunno.

#22 ::: Teresa Nielsen Hayden ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 06:37 PM:

Freep, freeper.
Freepi, the site's many not-very-thoughtful followers, who take their cues from the freeperati.
Freeply, of or having to do with.
Freepish, of or in the manner of.
And so forth and so on. The world is full of inflections.

#23 ::: Paula Lieberman ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 06:45 PM:

Once upon a time, there was a term, "frappe," in this part of the USA that refers to a shaken-up/beaten up drink with ice cream and other stuff in it, called a "milkshake" in other part of country (back in those days, someone who asked for a "milkshake" got a drink make of frothed up milk with flavorings in it -- it was a milk-shake...).

Anway, "freeper" and "frappee" shre the same set of consonants.... perhaps a freeper is someone who goes around beating up on other people.

#24 ::: Paul Riddell ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 07:09 PM:

Paula, as in standing around corners, shirt up over their heads, screaming "I need freepercino for my bunghole"?

#25 ::: lightnng ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 11:36 PM:

Anway, "freeper" and "frappee" shre the same set of consonants.... perhaps a freeper is someone who goes around beating up on other people.

No, they go around in a froth. There are people who really like being mad, and go out of their way to be offended. Freepers are a subgroup.

#26 ::: lightnng ::: (view all by) ::: June 27, 2003, 11:41 PM:

Ahh, Tex Earnhardt. Selected by TV Guide as one of the three most annoying car dealers in the country.

This is the Ford dealership that was giving away a free shotgun with the purchase of a pickup truck. You can't get any more redneck than that, even in a Jeff Foxworthy routine.

#27 ::: Paula Lieberman ::: (view all by) ::: June 28, 2003, 03:34 AM:

"From lightnng,
"posted on June 27, 2003 11:41 PM:
"Ahh, Tex Earnhardt. Selected by TV Guide as one of the three most annoying car dealers in the country.

"This is the Ford dealership that was giving away a free shotgun with the purchase of a pickup truck. You can't get any more redneck than that, even in a Jeff Foxworthy routine."

But, but, but, what about the dawg? The pickup truck needs both the shotgun hanging in the rear window (are the ropes/wires included?) AND the dog, as proper accessories!

#28 ::: Bill Humphries ::: (view all by) ::: June 28, 2003, 04:33 AM:

Dammit, why don't Bay Area car dealers give away shotguns with a purchase? The best they do is a season pass to ski resorts at Tahoe when you buy an SUV.

#29 ::: Claude Muncey ::: (view all by) ::: June 28, 2003, 11:09 AM:

No wires, Paula, that would rattle against the back window -- what you need is this, unless you want to be more subtle, then you want this.

Some places I have lived, you can have them installed on your new pickup by the dealer before you take possession.

#30 ::: Kathryn Cramer ::: (view all by) ::: July 01, 2003, 06:30 AM:

>Steve Taylor, "freeper" is a made-up insult word like Rush Limbaugh's "feminazi" -- an extension of the fine tradition of American political insult.

Goggling the term turns up a lot of self-labelled freeper websites. From this search, I would suspect that it might emerge from FreeRepublic.com, "The Premier Conservative News Forum."

#32 ::: curious cat ::: (view all by) ::: July 18, 2003, 07:17 AM:

Still no comment son that word 'freep' ...

Choose:
Smaller type (our default)
Larger type
Even larger type, with serifs

Dire legal notice
Making Light copyright 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 by Patrick & Teresa Nielsen Hayden. All rights reserved.