TIA, don't encourage JimLad! He's exhibiting behavior here and in the Scooter Libby thread that is known in Forum-speak as "trolling" behavior... which he hasn't exhibited in non-political discussion threads, so I hesitate to label him as a troll.

But troll or not, he is not interested as much in debating the topic of said political thread discussion as in baiting people (tempting them to react to his statements emotionally rather than rationally). When he gets an emotional reaction, he feels rewarded. When he gets a rational reaction -- any attempt to treat his statements in a reasonable manner -- his reaction is to post a more irrational, unreasonable statement in order to increase others' frustration level so that they will finally react emotionally (at which point he again feels rewarded).

As much as he may claim to desire to discuss the topic, he doesn't spend nearly as much time and energy on the topic as he does on the other discussers. He doesn't defend his position on the topic; he offends in an attempt to jockey for position emotionally over others (or, at least, he feels that he achieves a superior position when others become angry or leave the discussion in frustration, though in truth he ends up at the bottom because he has debased himself).

The best way to treat such trolling behavior is to ignore it, just as you would ignore tantrum behavior in a small child. The troll (or, in this case, part-time troll-wanna-be) will react similarly, raising his stakes in an attempt to induce others to cave in and reward his misbehavior, so one must remain strong in the face of this and refuse to pay attention to it. Eventually the troll himself will become so frustrated at the calmness and coolness around him that he will make some parting shot, and he will leave the discussion himself (as we have just seen). Don't be fooled, though; he's lurking, waiting for someone new to flare up at what he's said so he can come back to fan the flames.

So, again, please don't encourage him.

TIA, I'm guessing you've come here to discuss Keith Olbermann's speech, as I and others had done. We can have that discussion, as long as we can be strong enough to resist reacting to JimLad's outrageousness and letting the thread become his sideshow again. Okay?