For all you people who seek attention with nothing good to say about Obama....

[EFerrari]

103. "Straw men" isn't a phrase, it's a term. The error registers somewhere on the Gregs scale

of abusing the English language.

If you really need it broken down, here are the straw men in that post:

When you refer to those who 'lack sanctity', do you include those who are declared 'not true progressives' if they don't agree with your views?

The poster didn't say that.

Would you agree that there is a difference between valid criticism and 'bashing'?

"As always, you are welcome to go to the Obama Group, where all agree with him 100% all the time. They oppose what he opposes, one assumes."

Did it ever occur to you that you assume wrongly?

This is also a red herring, a merstrawman.

"You should remain in that restricted echo chamber of xerox like minds if discussion is upsetting to you."

Do you not find it a bit odd that those who support a Democratic president on a Democratic website are told they should restrict their postings to a small 'group', rather than being permitted to voice their opinions as part of the wider community that posts here?

The poster didn't say that, but pointed out if criticism is intolerable, the BOG would be a more comfortable place to post. Plus, this is cherry picking.

My observation is that the 'echo chamber of xerox like minds' works both ways. There are those who decry lock-stepping, while lock-stepping themselves in their own little echo chamber of anti-Obama rhetoric, despite their cries that they are of independent mind.

Conflates legit critique with "anti-Obama rhetoric".

But, as you say, "to each his own". It's an interesting concept which, IMHO, should include all opinions, not just those you personally agree with. And suggesting that Obama supporters should keep to their own little niche sounds rather like the 'extreme intolerance' of which you speak.

The poster still has not said that but instead said that if the OP can't tolerate criticism, the BOG is the better place to post, which is true enough.

I was being very precise when I called this a chorus line of straw men. And aside from the fact that this reply reminds me of the inflated rhetoric, unmerited condescension and logical slipperiness of rants we no longer see on DU, I don't see it as moving the discussion forward in any way.

The thing is, I believe samplegirl is upset about the crit of Obama she's seeing here. But it would be much easier to talk to her about it if she wasn't calling out roughly half of DU. And this reply from Summer Hathaway only makes the difficulty worse, imo.

Come on, Monday.