'Not normal': Social media reacts after Trump makes bizarre comments about a fly he's bothered by on stage

[LiberalLovinLug]

50. Forgive me if I'm reading you incorrectly, but i disagree that it was wrong for Thom and others to use RT

I do not think they were "duped". They knew perfectly well who was giving them a platform. Their only crime, Schultz, Hartmann, Abby Marten, and other left leaning voices, was to knowingly use that tarnished gift of a space and production budget in order to spread truth to power. Because there was no other way to do it, at least very effectively. Air America was long gone. And the Right had gobbled up most of the media space that was left.

Putin purposely funded far left voices, and far right voices at the same time. It was the same strategy of funding Bernie Sanders campaigns in order to make it difficult for Hillary. Or funding the Stein and the Green Party. For Putin, its about destabilization of western democracies. Causing as much division as possible so they are weaker and easier to win against, Not necessarily militarily but economically.

I believe that, at the time at least, Putin opened up RT to any American lefty that wanted to tear down the US system. And right wing and corporate news networks had a vested interest in keeping the corporate status quo. They were never going to give Hartmann or especially someone like Martin, an MSM show of their own. Even Cenk didn't last very long on MSNBC.

So Hartmann and others said.....what the hell, if its our only way to get out more voices from the left, and as long as RT lets us say whatever we want to about the flaws in the US government?.....why not? Why not use RT for their own purposes. I don't think they were duped, and didn't know Putin's purposes. They just came to the conclusion that even if it caused more division to speak truth to right wing power, it couldn't be helped. The need was too great for the country to be able to hear from the other side.

Division is bad, but allowing unchallenged Fascist propaganda to flourish, and a neutered MSM, not having any progressive counter argument going on in the public domain was way worse. They took advantage of the stage offered them to enlighten the masses. And I for one, watched back then, and really really appreciated that they had a place to host their programs. No matter what the host's broader agenda was.