

Anonymous v. Koch brothers - entangld
http://www.dangerousminds.net/comments/koch_brothers_tea_partiers_union_bashers_anonymous_/

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michaelcampbell
> Governor Walker’s union-busting budget plan contains a clause that went
> nearly un-noticed. This clause would allow the sale of publicly owned
> utility plants in Wisconsin to private parties (specifically, Koch
> Industries) at any price, no matter how low, without a public bidding
> process.

Wow. I was skeptical at this claim, but it appears to be true?

* [http://drudgeretort.wordpress.com/2011/02/23/walker-to-make-...](http://drudgeretort.wordpress.com/2011/02/23/walker-to-make-no-bid-sale-of-wisconsin-power-plants-to-koch-brothers/)

* [http://wisconsin.onpolitix.com/news/36834/governor-walker-an...](http://wisconsin.onpolitix.com/news/36834/governor-walker-and-koch-industries)

Bizarre.

~~~
TomOfTTB
I don't see how this is bizarre. He's trying to jettison anything that loses
money. Selling a business for nothing is a net profit to you if the business
is losing money.

As far as Koch Industries they specifically said (in the 2nd link you posted)
that they have no interest in the power plants.

~~~
potatolicious
For a moment let's assume that it is indeed in the government's interest to
sell these properties.

Why is there a no-bid clause? Should the government not be obligated to try
and get the best price it can on a major property sale?

The no-bid part just reeks of corruption - there's no solid reason to have it
there. If someone bids ten dollars for a power plant and _nobody_ else comes
forward with a better bid, so be it, but at least the process needs to be
competitive and transparent.

~~~
glenra
If it's in the government's interest to sell these properties, the important
thing politically might be to sell it as quickly as possible rather than wait
to get the best possible deal. Trying to "get the best price it can" might be
a false economy, letting the best be the enemy of the good. In the best case
it adds delay, in the worst case fighting over the terms might prevent the
deal from going through.

In other words, "Don't let the best be the enemy of the good."

~~~
michaelcampbell
How about the better? There's vast oceans between "the best possible price we
can possibly get" and "whoever offers first".

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entangld
They're becoming a pretty sharp political group.

~~~
Semiapies
How so? By hopping on the 2011 version of the George Soros freakout GOP
supporters had years back?

By announcing that they're "targeting" an organization, knowing that _that_
will be reported and that people will completely forget this "conflict" by the
time whichever person or persons within Anonymous made this announcement lose
interest in this "operation"?

OK, that last is almost kinda sharp.

~~~
entangld
1\. They're jumping on hot topics like the Koch brothers.

2\. They're bringing up politically salient points like the "clause would
allow the sale of publicly owned utility plants in Wisconsin to private
parties (specifically, Koch Industries) at any price, no matter how low,
without a public bidding process."

3\. Their writing sounds populist and they're boldly declaring attacks against
powerful opponents which gives them a David v. Goliath story which is easy for
the public to get behind.

4\. Colbert did a story on them so their name is growing.

5\. I'm not saying they're good or bad. But, whatever their ideology, they're
becoming a stronger presence and they're getting better at diplomacy.

~~~
Semiapies
1) So is everyone and his brother. Like the Soros freak-out or the Tea Party,
it's a fascinatingly manufactured meme with real legs.

2) This is not their discovery. Or, you know, particularly remarkable. No-bid
contracts have a long and dirty history.

3) That's not "sharpness", that's just grandstanding by individuals in a
community that values attention-seeking.

4) And? See #3.

You're rather clearly confusing political acumen with "can get attention".

~~~
entangld
It's PR, what else is it supposed to do? It doesn't need to be rocket science.

Brilliance in obscurity has no political impact.

------
makeramen
digital warfare goes commercial

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bonch
The sudden attacks on the libertarian Koch brothers from the Left is pretty
silly and closed-minded.

~~~
jbooth
They're not libertarian, they're movement conservatives.

And anonymous isn't part of "the Left".

In fact, almost any sentence involving a capitalized "the Left" is probably
missing the mark.

~~~
glenra
> They're not libertarian, they're movement conservatives.

They've donated at least $20 million to the ACLU to fight the Patriot Act.
They support the Cato institute. One of them ran for president on the
Libertarian ticket.

The Koch family isn't unified in its views; collectively the group does
support some "movement conservative" causes. For that matter, they've
supported a few democrats and democrat-favored causes. But "libertarian"
actually fits pretty well if you need an overall label.

