Only four people correctly predicted even two of our Final Four, and no one correctly predicted more. (Please let me know if you think anything is wrong). The standings are as follows:

	Round One	Round Two	Sweet 16	Elite Eight	Final Four	Final	Total
@seucT	22	18	4	8			52
@HerbCarmen	23	16	12				51
@thecamelsnose	23	12	8				43
@RogueAdventurer	23	12	8	8			51
@Sandra_Woy	23	12	8	8			51
@MichaelStone	21	12	8				41
@MikeTalley73	26	16	8	16			66
@nebarkley6	23	16	8				47
@milaficent	23	18	8	8			57
@smsaideman	23	16	8				47
@intelwire	26	20	8				54
@azelin	23	12	4	8			47
@strangestrings	25	12	4	8			49
@pcdisney	21	16	16	8			61
@MarkfromArk	26	22	16	8			72
@anniesperson	20	6					26
@astridhka	21	10	8	16			55
@emptywheel	26	12	8				46
@JDanaStuster	20	18	8	8			54
@DaveedGR	20	10	8	8			46
@walt_sa	19	10					29
@minglishmuffin	20	20	8	8			56
@LeoAdrien	17	8	4				29
@johnsonr	22	16	12	16			66
@rejectionking	23	20	16				59
@AngelaConner	23	12	4				39
@AthertonKD	19	8	4	8			39
@drjjoyner	25	24	12	16			77
@ctn767	24	16	8	8			56

The Sweet 16 judges had a devil of a time. Three different judges issued split decisions on a contest this round. In the end, the one seeds took the West - one easily, one by the smallest fraction - and the lower seeds ruled the East. The winners of today’s contests will face off here in the Final Four on Monday!

Northwest Final

**1)@texasinafrica: 80%, four of five judges’ votes
15) @lesley_warner: 20%, one of five judges’ votes

The top seed continues to look like a favorite, taking 80% from both the judges and the public and dispatching her worthy opponent, this year’s Cinderella story @lesley_warner.

Southwest Final

**1) @BlakeHounshell: 66%, 1.75 of five judges’ votes
11) @JasonFritz1: 34%, 3.25 of five judges’ votes

@stephaniecarvin’s split vote almost gives the contest to @JasonFritz1, but @BlakeHounshell’s edge in the popular vote carries him through.

Northeast Final

4) @SlaughterAM: 54%, two of five judges’ votes
**11) @JimmySky: 46%, three of five judges’ votes

This was a close and hotly contested race, but @JimmySky’s edge with the judges is enough to overcome @SlaughterAM’s better showing in the popular vote.

Southeast Final

**5) @smsaideman: 42%, three of five judges’ votes
3) @azelin: 58%, two of five judges’ votes

Two judges called it a tie, and one outsourced the vote to her students, that’s how tight this race was. In the end, @azelin has the popular edge, but @stephaniecarvin’s students give it to @smsaideman by a nose.

Judges’ Ballots

@bmaz

First off, I would like to thank @caidid and #TFC13 for inviting me to be a judge for the Elite Eight; it is an honor. Some of the final eight I knew of and/or followed coming into this job, others I did not, or did not as much. So, basically, my goal was to reset and judge everybody on what they did today, in this round to attack, defend and engage. This is, after all, Twitter Fight Club; the first rule is, well, you gotta fight to win. Other rules are rather discretionary I’m afraid. Frankly, all participants were, and are, extremely worthy of being here, and all did a great job. It has been a blast, thank you.

Northwest Final

(1) @TEXASINAFRICA - Got off to a fast and strong early start, taking advantage of opponent she characterized as “sleeping in”. The posting of the Toto video was a definite low point. got in some good licks like the allegation @Lesley_Warner was killing the snow on Kilimanjaro (as a former climber this hits home). Also apparently likes poutine, one of the most ridiculous dishes I ever loved.

(15) @LESLEY_WARNER - took a bit to get going, but then started firing away with style. And you have to love the Florida Gulf Coast University like underdog awesomeness of a #15 seed battling a #1 seed. Scored for accusing her opponent for the eating of her young and wanting to drone Africa. the offer of a “Dire Wolf” was very tempting, but I already have a furry beast.

This first bracket was hard, and a yeoman’s effort was made by @Lesley_Warner. Both displayed superb content in their areas of specialization, Africa, today, both in and out of #TFC13. Extremely difficult call, but @Lesley_Warner did not deny the allegation that she hated cows, and I am about to enjoy a steak. My vote goes to @TexasInAfrica by a whisker.

Southwest Final

(1) @BLAKEHOUNSHELL - Slow to get going, something about alienating his followers or the like, but got rolling mid afternoon and scored with this tweet of the cost of the NK airshow the US put on recently. However, when @dianawueger vouched that @jasonfritz1 could intimidate NK even cheaper, that took a little bite off the credit.

(11) @JASONFRITZ1 - I didn’t know Jason previously, but give the man credit, he came out firing direct shots at FP and listicles. Incredibly strong work. Seriously, listicles are a freaking plague on humanity, and getting into FP is frustratingly annoying. Also, Jason understandably was diverted by duties with his children.

Another tough matchup, frankly Jason may have pulled the upset here had he not been diverted; prior to that he was ahead on points on my scorecard. But, this is a battle and it has to be waged over the longer term. While @BlakeHounshell did not engage directly as much as many others in the Elite Eight, his overall Twitter content for the day pushed him over the top. Advantage Hounshell.

Northeast Final

(4) @SLAUGHTERAM - Had the charismatic grace to admit JimmySky’s early blow, and was aided and abetted greatly by this gif posted in her favor by @HayesBrown. Brutal. Also gets some modern dad love for complimenting @JasonFritz1 for duties with his kids (I had dad duties today too).

(11) @JIMMYSKY - Landed a crushing body blow early with this picture. Also, Jimmy’s shaky joke about the AM versus PM Slaughter amused me and gets points for that.

This was maybe the hardest to grade of all the brackets, was kind of hoping for more broadsides from both. Ms. Slaughter is to be commended for her sophisticated elegance in battle. But a fight is a fight. And the best shot fired in an attempt to slaughter @JimmySky was fired not by a direct combatant, but by @HayesBrown. @JimmySky scored his own early and decisive blow with the fists of have it all fury. For the upset win, @JimmySky

Southeast Final

(5) @SMSAIDEMAN - Gets valuable points for self professed plight of being an American in Canuckistan. Also apparently has strong Star Wars skilz. Not to mention the awesome beard. Significant points for the boating picture, which I can unfortunately no longer find.

(3) @AZELIN - Got off to a great start by complimenting my Twitter background picture and professing support of the Arizona Wildcats over the dreaded Big 10.2 OSU Buckeyes. That’s way huge. And hung tough by continuing to wage war from the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA March Madness Tournament.

These were the two hardest working men in Twitter Fight Show Business today. Hats off to both. Frankly it was a draw at the end, no way to pick a winner on the merits. Judging is hard I tell ya. But a winner must be picked, and the early compliment of the skyline on my Twitter page and basketball fandom wins the day, barely, for @AZelin.

@elsnarkistani

A huge thank you to @caidid for putting this whole thing together. I first was a part of this last year, and barely got to participate either as a judge or as a Tweeter, so missed out on much of it. This year, having figured out how to unclog the hollow tubes of the interwebs, I’ve completely enjoyed myself, both as a participant and now as a judge. I find that I end up “meeting” at least a few new people through this thing every year, and there are some genuine heavy hitters in the IR/NatSec community wandering around.

Now for the judging.

I made it clear that my 5 keys to Twitter Fight Club as a judge are these:

1. It’s a fight. The moral high ground is where one puts one’s artillery.

2. Pandering is expected. I pointed out some key facts: Texas resident, rescued greyhounds, Iraq vet, English teacher.

3. Twitter can be a wonderfully uplifting intellectual platform. This, however is Twitterfight. So I expect the complete opposite.

4. Engage your opponent. See #1. Now is not the time to remain above the fray.

5. Points for cross-referencing pop culture and your chosen twitter topics.

This was about as tough as I expected, so…tough.

Northwest Final: @TexasInAfrica vs. @Lesley_Warner

This was the toughest one of the bunch, no doubt. First of all, both super sharp in the same field…Africa. Which, as it turns out, is made up of a lot of other countries. Which makes it a continent, which completely explains my frustration in trying to find an African flag. Or any kind of African language course.

I digress.

Both got off to a decent start in the pandering department:

But @texasinafrica quickly pulled ahead:

I probably do, given where I work. So that put @texasinafrica in the lead early.

But the fight? The fight was…fairly epic. This was by far my favorite exchange:

Oh, absolute bravo all around. Somewhere Jonathan Swift is looking up from his bowl of Chef Boyardee (now with real boys!) and applauding.

Points had to go to both for a @laurenist instigated Toto showdown, because, well, it’s Toto.

But…given the Texas connect, and the effort put into judge pandering, I give this one to @TexasInAfrica. By the narrowest of margins.

Winner: @TexasInAfrica

Southwest Final: @Blake_Hounsell vs. @JasonFritz1

In short: @JasonFritz1 made it clear that the bar was open if any of us as judges were in his neighborhood. @Blake_Hounsell suggested that people follow us as judges. Well, folks: guess who doesn’t follow this particular judge? @Blake_Hounsell. Probably too busy finding the next great op-ed for Foreign Policy comparing the French intervention in Mali to Flight of the Phoenix to be bothered.

Neither really engaged the other at all in any kind of slapfest, so I’m having to default to the fact that @JasonFritz1 is a fellow veteran. He’s also a cricket fan, which I’ve tried to understand and enjoy, but have found it to be only slightly less entertaining than playing “guess which country Max Boot wants to send troops to now” as a drinking game.

Winner: @JasonFritz1

Northeast Final: @SlaughterAM vs. @JimmySky

There seemed to be a general consensus that Mr. Sky was getting his Air Force-y self significantly pwned by Not-So-Sergeant Slaughter.

Although based on their Twitter interactions, that wasn’t readily obvious. Neither indulged much in pandering, and overall their fight was a non-starter. They’re both genuinely nice people on Twitter, but @JimmySky edged my vote slightly with this tweet:

Their “fight” was really a nod to niceness, which is great, normally. Civility is a lost art. But judging this was like refereeing competitive napping. I was hoping for more, I really was. You two stay classy, though.

Winner: @JimmySky

Southeast Final: @azelin vs. @smsaideman

Apparently I wasn’t following @azelin on Twitter, something I’ve recently remedied, but even with that, this was another slightly disappointing round. Not through lack of an effort by @smsaideman:

That, is an articulate, well-put pander tweet, kids.

And as far as understanding that it’s Twitter Fight Club, and therefore, one must have one’s priorities in order:

And his usual wry humor about living in America’s hat:

At one point @azelin did try to counter:

But overall the exchanges between the two were limited, and not quite what I was hoping for. Not quite the two-way nap referenced earlier, but sub-par. However, the Canuck pulled more than his weight here.

Winner: @smsaideman

@khanserai

It’s that wonderful time of the year again when twitverse is flooded by inane repartee between twitter fight club contestants and their supporters. Thank you @caidid for organizing #TFC13. As I was following 7 of the 8 before TFC even started, my criteria for judging was simple & openly declared at the beginning of the day:

Northwest

(1) @TEXASINAFRICA

(15) @LESLEY_WARNER

This was a hotly anticipated match-up. Both are Africa experts, women, snarky & interested in winning. Sadly, both are facial baldies.

It started early with @texasinafrica’s pandering to the judges. @lesley_warne took her time in coming on the stage and even longer before she followed me. But we won’t hold that against her because of the beautiful sparring that ensued.

This perfectly illustrates how the contest transpired between the two:

As much as I wanted to support the underdog in this race (I really really really did) I felt quite neglected by @lesley_warner who did not engage with me, pander or even mention beards. Instead she worked hard on raising her experty-ness & sparring with @texasinafrica. 1 out of 3? Come on Lesley, you gotta listen next time! Despite being from Texas (I did not hold it against her as it was not part of my judging criteria), the pandering, snark, beard acknowledgement & overall tweet flood showed Laura’s commitment to victory.

With a heavy heart I give this round to @texasinafrica.

Southwest

(1) @BLAKEHOUNSHELL

(11) @JASONFRITZ1

What’s the first rule of Twitter Fight Club? You must talk about Twitter Fight Club.

What did @blakehounsell do? Tweet maybe 3 times in the whole day about TFC. He pandered to the judges with a #FF but that was about it. His profile pic was too fuzzy to tell if he has facial hair or not & there was no snark. With +56k followers maybe he felt embarrassed to fight for himself? And yet @slaughteram with even more followers (+65k) proved that giving up dignity and gravitas for #TFC13 is worth it.

I am disappointed @blakehounsell

Now @jasonfritz1 is proving to be quite a #TFC13 fighter. I lost to him in Round 2 but don’t hold it against him for the simple reason that it was during Round 2 that Jason discovered his inner meanie and the true meaning of TFC fighting. The gloves have been off ever since and he has become quite the skilled sub-tweeter. The whole day was spent throwing barbs at @blakehounsell’s employer & job. And let’s not forget, he actually follows me.

Despite the fact that his face is follically challenged, I wholeheartedly give this round to @JasonFritz1

Northeast

(4) @SLAUGHTERAM

(11) @JIMMYSKY

At the beginning of the day I had assumed I would end up voting for the underdog in this match-up but @slaughterAM changed my mind (even though she doesn’t follow me). She has +65k followers & yet she still shamelessly played #TFC13. She engaged some of the judges, mocked her opponent, tried to play the sympathy-for-the-aged card and gave up dignity & gravitas- all in all, very classy. But the tweet that did it for me was when she turned @jimmysky’s awesome snark attempt against him.

I am still laughing thinking about the tweet. I’m sorry @JimmySky, much as I enjoy Kid A and Creep stories, your fingers handed this round to the Prof.

Round goes to @slaughterAM

Southeast

(5) @SMSAIDEMAN

(3) @AZELIN

This was the hardest round to judge. What a fight. @azelin started with pandering early on with a #FF. @smsaideman followed with references to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. He brought his towel! They moved on to beards. Both showed their “real” furriness- @azelin with his non-henna-enhanced lushness & @smsaideman with his salt-and-pepper experience. @smsaideman attacked @azelin but a careless tweet made me warn them both.

@azelin shamelessly tried to take advantage of the situation and but @smsaideman recovered completely with his dissing of Huntington. You have to love a prof who is willing to call out crap theories. And then there was the hufflepuff residual categories video.

And it continued, on and on and on. They blocked, they parried, they shamelessly self-promoted. They continued to the wee hours of the night. They ended respectfully. And left me completely undecided. Two such spectacular players, how can I possibly choose one over the other?

I select them BOTH. Let the popular vote decide this round.

@richganske

First, if you have not gone out of your way to thank @caidid for pulling this monumental Twitter Fight Club together – then you’re doing it wrong. By the time you’re reading this – its Friday people, so make sure you give her a shout. @caidid, if I ever make it out to Boston, or you to Kansas City (or Doha in the interim), thanks again I’m buying.

Second, I’m not sure what @caidid is thinking but, for some reason she invited me back to judge again. It’s better to be lucky than good, so I’ll take what I can get. Thanks to the fighters @texasinafrica, @lesley_warner, @blakehounshell, @jasonfritz1, @slaughteram, @jimmysky, @smsaideman, and @azelin for putting up a great effort.

In a better effort for TFC transparency, I took it as a given that the Elite Eight were all extremely knowledgeable and possessed of sufficient intellectual curiosity to be considered innovative in their own right. Therefore, I counted it equal amongst the competitors and discounted them both. Instead, I judged the field on their responsiveness (to me, but mostly towards their followers and competition), their fighting (not necessarily just snark, substance counts), and the quality of their arguments, in order.

Third, judging again has allowed me to bring back my favorite part of Twitter Fight Club: Feats of Strength. Only @juliaaberman really cares for it (in addition to me), or said so, but the fighters were good sports about it. Plus it got me a TFC judge MVP nod:

So glad @richganske is a #TFC13 judge again - he might be MVP of judging w/ his feats of strength.

— Julia Berman (@juliaaberman) March 28, 2013

Enough drivel, now what you really want to know – my judgment:

#1 @texasinafrica vs #15 @lesley_warner

In my book, having predicted this eventual clash of titans in round one, this was the main event. If the pivot was to the Pacific, someone forgot to tell #TFC13, and more specifically these two fantastic tweeps. As is customary for @texasinafrica in TFC, the condottiero crept forth once more from the shadows, with K-Bar in one hand and MGRS chart in the other, and with good effect.

They equally fought with élan and flair, but love it or hate it, I have to boil this down to the Feats of Strength. The rules were fairly unrestrictive, if I do say so myself, but only Lesley truly fought with substance and that was the better of the two. Shocking as it may be for some, and at risk of my Texan citizenship may be revoked for doing so; my vote is with @lesley_warner who also garnered a perfect score for her efforts.

#1 @blakehounshell vs #11 @jasonfritz1

Both are exceptional Tweeters day-to-day. One has a tremendous following on Twitter. One engaged with the followership throughout the competition to a level that greatly exceeded the other. One merely went about business as rather usual.

My vote for @jasonfritz1 here is not to be considered as a consolation for what I would otherwise call very poor TFC participation by @blakehounshell. Rather, @jasonfritz1 stayed responsive to his followership, fought without response for the majority of the time (again, not just limited to snark, although he was relentless in that), and even provided more than a merely participatory argument.

The sad part is that @blakehounshell will likely when the popular vote, but he underperformed his competition in every category today.

#4 @slaughteram vs #11 @jimmysky

These are both Tweeps that I have immensely enjoyed following since first joining Twitter. In fact, @slaughteram was one of the reasons I joined Twitter (it was a @slaughteram RT of a cross-post from a friend who works for the State). Unfortunately, @slaughteram seemed fairly preoccupied today (and her lack response to my Feats of Strength entreats were akin to this). I thought @jimmysky decisively earned my vote today with his performance in his answer to my Feats of Strength question regarding acceptance of sequestration as the new “peace dividend” (he demurred). @jimmysky could possibly be this TFC’s dark horse champion, you’ve heard it here folks… there’s no way to know our future foe scenarios.

#5 @smsaideman vs #3 @azelin

By far the most responsive of the Elite Eight, the participation of these gentlemen in the Feats of Strength was beyond commendable. Where I found a few of the arguments @smsaideman somewhat lacking, the fight (a tempo of relentless interesting analysis, news, and commentary) was exceptional. @smsaideman is truly how one should fight in TFC. I found the arguments of @azelin to be impeccable (if not exhaustive, as even @smsaideman admitted), but perhaps his fighting was a bit genteel for my taste.

Ultimately, this match up was my favorite of the two rounds I was asked to judge in TFC! Unfortunately, both performed so well, their respective and alternative weaknesses and strengths as perfect counterpart to one another. I feel remiss to both in calling this match a draw, but it is clear to me that either will perform exceptionally in the next round – so I pass my points to the popular vote for the decision of the people. Good luck to you both!

@stephaniecarvin

1. @texasinafrica vs @lesley_warner

It’s that time of year, when Easter is here, spring is (slowly!) springing and it’s time things to start things afresh and anew….

Except I am not that kind of person. Cinderella story? @lesley_warner, this Ugly Step-Sister deems you the pumpkin in this fight. And it’s two minutes past midnight.

Winner: @texasinafrica

***

2. @blakehounshell vs @JasonFritz1

@blakehounshell

Blake is a lynchpin of the IR/IP/NatSec Twitter community. And quite frankly, if you are not reading FP YOU ARE DOING IT WRONG. Needless to say, I am a fan. I have found a lot of great people to follow out of his re-tweets and he has a great mix of his own comments, and the views of others.

Blake didn’t pander too much today, which in my view is good. I’d have liked to see a bit more of a witty banter, but the Obama-esque Houndshell cool only let him go so far.

However, there is this:

@daveedgr I voted @jasonfritz1. Why? Despite being FP subscriber, I get annoying subscription pop up every time I check website.

— Brent Scales (@Boiler40) March 28, 2013

Hmmm…

@JasonFritz1

I don’t know Jason very well. I have been following him for sometime but I would be lying to you if I really said I knew what he was all about. But he has the impressive @dianawueger endorsement. And with just under 1700 followers (compared to Blake’s 56K+) he is the true underdog in the fight.

But what I really liked about Jason is that despite making the Elite Eight he was willing to put Twitter Fight Club aside to be with and play with his Dirt Magnets (aka children) after picking them up from school.

@bmaz Sorry, still with the dirt magnets. Guess I’ll pass on closing arguments then.

— Jason Fritz (@JasonFritz1) March 29, 2013

Priorities people. Priorities.

Winner: @blakehounshell

In the end, both of these gentlemen are fathers, solid tweeters and are great to follow. For me this was definitely the hardest match to judge. I am going with .75 to @blakehounshell on the basis that his twitter content is excellent, FP mag/blogs are a huge benefit to international politics/foreign policy discourse and I think he genuinely makes our virtual NatSec world a better place.

However - .25 to the man who chose to play with his kids over twisticuffs. And for dong a good job in the face of being outnumbered.

@SlaughterAM vs @JimmySky

This was possibly one of the most enjoyable twitter match-ups of the tournament. A David and Goliath story, to be sure, but it also produced moments like this:

*claps*

@SlaughterAm

I teach using several of Anne-Marie’s writings in the class I was assigned. So where you are tempted to make a “Can’t have it all” joke, I’m formulating witty remarks about the disaggregated state and information networks.

But what I love about AMS is that she just seems ridiculously full of passion for what she does. If I was the former Director of Policy Planning for the State Department, I would not be following me. But she follows and interacts and engages and cares and it’s AWESOME.

@JimmySky

@JimmySky is a great follow. Chatty, interesting and also the underdog with 2.5K followers to Slaughter’s 65K. He also suffered setbacks when he lost the endorsement of several #tfc13 staples, including @AbuMuqawamaPMC @HayesBrown and @joshuafoust. Harsh, man.

Winner: @SlaughterAM

@azelin vs @smsaideman

There is probably no way I can objectively judge this match. Steve Saideman is my adopted family in Ottawa. This week he sponsored a dinner where I, @will_mccants and others ate most of the meat in Ottawa.

I think I met @azelin in DC at a bar once.

So, as you can see – there is no way I am objective in this case. So I left it to the “minions” (aka: my Masters students: @NikeshT1 @simon_fol @CrystalStd @mlydan @ElyseArmstrong_ and more) to vote on who could provide the best video on globalization and its’ impact on social policy.

@azelin sent this:

@stephaniecarvin Globalization: bit.ly/YH3Y0l Social Welfare: bit.ly/YH3ZkQ Enjoy, heh!

— Aaron Y. Zelin (@azelin) March 28, 2013

What. The. Crap.

Where as @smsaideman sent this:

.@stephaniecarvin here is the trailer I was speaking of youtube.com/watch?feature=…

— Stephen Saideman (@smsaideman) March 28, 2013

Winner: @smsaideman won the vote by 3 vs 2.

Can @lesley_warner continue her Cinderella story to make the Elite Eight as a 15 seed? Can our remaining three 1 seeds stay in the competition? Let’s see how the Sweet 16 shook out!

West

NW1) @texasinafrica: 58%, four of five judges
NW5) @hayesbrown: 42%, one of five judges

Both competitors gave it their all, but @hayesbrown could not overcome the TFC juggernaut that is @texasinafrica, who took four of five judges and the popular vote.

NW11) @InkSptsGulliver: 58%, zero of five judges
NW15) @lesley_warner: 42%, five of five judges

The judges all go for @lesley_warner, giving her yet another upset, keeping the Cinderella story alive, and setting up the all-woman, all-Africa Northwest region final for which so many have been clamoring.

SW1) @blakehounshell: 72%, four of five judges
SW5) @speechboy71: 28%, one of five judges

The other western 1 seed gets an easy victory in this quiet match with wins in both the popular and the judges’ vote.

SW11) @JasonFritz1: 53%, five of five judges
SW10) @lrozen: 47%, zero of five judges

The second judges’ sweep in the west favors @JasonFritz1 over @lrozen, who has stayed uninvolved in the competition.

East

NE1) @intelwire: 46%, two of five judges
NE4) @SlaughterAM: 54%, three of five judges

In one of the day’s closer matches, @SlaughterAM’s slight edge in both voting categories puts her in the Elite Eight

NE11) @JimmySky: 38%, five of five judges
NE2) @attackerman: 62%, zero of five judges

@attackerman’s larger following gives him the popular vote, but @JimmySky’s more active participation in the competition impresses the judges.

SE9) @drjjoyner: 40%, 1.5 of five judges
SE5) @smsaideman: 60%, 3.5 of five judges

In one of two eastern contests so tough to call that a judge had to split his vote, @smsaideman edges out @drjjoyner to return to the Elite Eight for the second year in a row.

SE3) @azelin: 48%, 3.5 of five judges
SE2) @joshuafoust: 52%, 1.5 of five judges

@joshuafoust’s travel schedule ended up hurting him with the judges, and it’s their vote that puts @azelin through to the next round.

The Elite Eight

In the Elite Eight, there is one panel of five judges looking at all four contests. The panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote, with each judge representing 10% of the overall total. The other 50% is based on the popular vote via the public polls below, so make sure to cast your votes! Judges and voters alike are encouraged to look at metrics such as: knowledge base; quality of argumentation; innovative thinking; humor, snark, facility with quips, and charisma; and responsiveness to followers. The judging panel for today is as follows:

@bmaz
@elsnarkistani
@khanserai
@richganske
@stephaniecarvin

Your vote can be the difference in a race, so make sure to vote for your favorites!

And now to the Sweet 16 judges’ ballots!

West

@AllThingsHLS

First, a big thanks to @caidid for inviting me to judge this round despite being totally dissed as a possible contestant. You gave my @starbucks Internet hobo-ness meaning today. Not that I would want to join a fight club that would have me as a contestant. But when you have no other life except job hunting…

But I digress. On to the judging:

(1) @texasinafrica vs (5) @hayesbrown

Both @texasinafrica and @hayesbrown came out swinging early this morning with @texasinafrica landing the most punishing blows despite her blatant attempt at coffee bribery of the judge. She had my vote early on with the “@hayesbrown stands with dictators” tweet:

but then she almost lost me with this tweet:

(imaging trying to impugn your opponent by linking him to the two greatest presidents of the last century!) Later, @hayesbrown staged a comeback with this tweet:

(Ya gotta love babies in bow ties). Both showed a masterful command of the subject matter (twitterfighting). What swayed my vote, however, was a desire to see @texasinafrica challenge @lesley_warner in an all Africa shootout.

Winner: @texasinafrica

(11) @inkspotsgulliver vs (15) @lesley_warner

Every year during March Madness an underdog emerges from the pack to take down a favorite and make it to the final four. TwitterFightClub is no different. This year’s underdog, so far seems to be @lesley_warner. While not a follower until this competition, I have been very impressed with the content of her tweets and her expert knowledge of her African subject matter. She uses big academic words like “methodology” and “crazypants.” Plus the sheer volume of her tweets was impressive.

@inkspotsgulliver seemed to already be looking forward to his next match. He seemed to avoid directly challenging @lesley_warner and there was a noticeable absence of trash talking. But with 3,271 followers to @lesley_warner’s 1,086, he will be hard to beat in the popular vote. But I really want to see an estrogen-stoked African academic matchup in the next round so the winner is:

Winner: @lesley_warner

(1) @blakehounshell vs (5) @speechboy71

Another potentially outstanding, twitter trash-talking match-up between these two TwitterFightClub veterans failed to materialize. What happened guys? Did I miss all the good tweets while out doing my “Honey-do’s?” But then upon review of the timeline I saw that @speechboy71 didn’t even show up. No tweets for 8 hours, other than a few “vote for me” tweets. C’mon, you didn’t take a lunch break? You don’t own an i-Phone?

@blakehoushell wasn’t much better. He tweeted at about the rate of one tweet per hour. I guess he was too busy today rejecting all of my Foreign Policy submissions because I ask for money, but with 56, 000 followers, how can @speechboy71 win?

I’ll TELL you how. By sweeping the judges votes, that’s how. Even though @speechboy71’s lib-tard political tweets are mostly diametrically opposed to my own conservative views, his National Security tweets are pretty much right on. I really enjoy his feed (he keeps me honest to my core principles.) His body of work is informative and entertaining, even if you don’t agree with him. And, as he says in this tweet:

voting for him is a “no-brainer”

Winner: @speechboy71

(11) @jasonfritz1 vs (10) @lrozen

What is it about these contestants with 21,000 + followers who don’t feel the need to do at least one shout-out tweet to TwitterFightClub? I’ve been a long-time follower of @lrozen, but unlike @amslaughter, she hasn’t even acknowledged today’s fight.

@jaosnfritz1, on the other hand, has at least made the effort by engaging some of the other contestants. So with nothing more to really go on, other than this tweet

from @jasonfritz1, my vote goes to:

Winner: @jasonfritz1

@ArminRosen

@lrozen vs. @JasonFritz1

Pesach—festival of freedom. Freedom from slavery and fear—freedom from bread, noodles, beer, and, depending on your minchag, a variety of assorted grains and starches as well. For me, Pesach yuntuf also meant a self-imposed freedom from having to tweet anything, and sweet Moses was it ever awesome. Gonna get a little confessional here, but the pressure to tweet something interesting or insightful is just so enormous and such an omnipresent and deeply ingrained aspect of my life and self-image at this point, that it’s hard to conceive of even the existence of a frame of mind in which said pressure just up and ceases to exist. What a joy to discover how artificial and disposable this mentality actually is. “’Good night!’ says guy on Segway to homeless man on I St.,” I wanted to tweet while witnessing this exact scene after work today — but I didn’t, and it was liberating. “Hang onto your ego,” the Beach Boys may have cautioned. Sometimes, it’s better just to let that sucker go.

This was the philosophy that @lrozen apparently brought to Twitter Fight Club today. Yeah I get it—you’re covering the P5+1 negotiations with Iran. Bully for you. I’m under strict orders not to consider non-Twitter-related factors in my decision-making process, and the Iran nuclear crisis and any professional obligations thereunto are certainly not Twitter-related. She chose Almaty over TFC. Only defensible if you don’t care whether you make it to the Elite 8 or not.

But even if she had cared, @JasonFritz1 put in a very strong day. I direct you to this masterpiece, but it’s this one that really won it for me:

This guy spends work hours watching high-level chess matches unfold over the internet. Not even TFC can contain his appetite for the balletic treacheries of simulated war. Rock and fuckin’ roll.

WINNER: @JASONFRITZ1

@TexasInAfrica vs. @HayesBrown

For me, this matchup calls to mind a classic exchange from the end of a classic “Simpsons” episode, reproduced here thanks to the tzadikim over at The Simpsons Archive:

Ron [Ed. Note: Howard]: [emotionally] And it grows, to a powerful, emotional climax when the father has to choose which one of his children will live … and which one … will die.

Executive: Pass. [Ron lets out a sigh] What else you got?

Ron: Well, well, there is this one thing. It’s about a killer robot driving instructor that travels back in time for some reason.

Executive: I’m listening.

Ron: Okay, okay, well, you see … this robot [Ed. Note: driving instructor?], he’s got a heartbreaking decision to make about whether his best friend lives … or dies.

Executive: Eh.

Ron: His best friend’s a talking pie!

Executive: Sold! Howard, you’ve done it again! [he hands Ron two large bags of money; Ron holds them up and smiles, as the closing line from the "Happy Days" theme plays]

I have met both @TexasinAfrica and @HayesBrown. Neither of them is a talking pie—let’s put that ugly rumor to rest. But they are two of my favorite tweeters—not quite up to like, Jose Canseco of Joyce Carol Oates-level God status, but close. Consider this paragraph my “there’s really no way to choose between them without badly fucking up”-type caveat.

So here goes. Prof. InAfrica’s strategy was mostly built around exploiting a gobstopping own-goal from earlier in the day: namely, Hayes’s boasting of his once having stood behind some sort of marble or possibly fake-marble dais adorned with the U.N. logo. Many a tyrant has struck an identical pose, albeit with a slightly different color wall as a backdrop (is that the ECOSOC chamber, Hayes?). No matter. Hayes has a wide smile in the photo, as he huffs in deep breaths of pure UN Hell sulfur. Little did he realize he was walking into a series of TFC burns that could be felt even within the thick, vaguely crenellated walls of the Watergate.

Hayes’ retort was a daring gambit: one of those awesomely bad Photoshop jobs so brazen and self-conscious in its awfulness that you just have to respect it. I certainly did. In the end, Hayes only gave ever so slightly less than he got. A valiant effort, but I’m handing my vote to @tTxasinAfrica, who capped the day with a persuasive and full-borne defense of the UN’s new intervention force in the DRC—a rather controversial view, in some circles.

WINNER: @TexasInAfrica

@InkSptsGulliver vs. @Lesley_Warner

@InkSptsGulliver had the tweet of the day.

Too bad this isn’t Write One Great Tweet and then Slag the Great City of Cincinnati Club, or Gulliver would have won this running away. Instead, InkSpts has revealed himself to be someone who’s never destroyed multiple Skyline cheese coneys, capped with diabetic quantities of black cherry chocolate chip ice cream from Greaters—or worse, he’s done this without savoring or even appreciating the experience. For shame.

@Lesley_Warner just tweeted up a storm today. She is an exhausting follow, and I say that as someone who prides himself in his ability to exhaust his followers. Look at that feed—there’s stuff about CAR and South Sudan and DRC, snippets of analysis, stuff that’s like, useful. And though snark is pretty rare—some would say admirably rare—on her feed, she proved more than capable of going into full metal TFC mode the other day against Stephanie Carvin. Far as I’m concerned, she is the Dunk City of this contest.

WINNER: @Lesley_Warner

@blakehounshell vs. @speechboy1

Wait, what? These guys are in TFC? If you say so. Didn’t really see much from either of these folks today. But at least Hounshell didn’t tweet at his kid, as if his weeks-old infant is even capable of operating a computer, opening a Twitter account, knowing what Twitter is, writing in English or for that matter any other language, eating solid food etc. Babies can’t do any of those things. You’re fooling no one.

Also, congratulations! He is adorable.

Winner: @BlakeHounshell

@CaldwellGR

First, I want to thank @caidid for so much work into running TFC. It’s a fun time, and we wouldn’t be able to do it without someone working herself to the point where appointing me as judge for a second time seemed like a good idea.

@texasinafrica v. @hayesbrown

Tough decision. One focuses on Africa, which I have been reliably informed by AFRICOM is a poor and violent place. The other focuses on the UN, which appears a poor and, much to @texasinafrica’s apparent chagrin, nonviolent place. Despite this nonthreatening background, @hayesbrown put up a valiant fight against the twitterfighting juggernaut that is @texasinafrica (and, like most people, came away the better for it). This match was tight until @HayesBrown to make common cause with his foe. Sorry, Hayes, the LOTFC (Laws of Twitter Fight Club, as helpfully abbreviated by @JimmySky*), clearly indicate that when your opponent stakes out a position on an issue, you must take the other side or outinform them.** I’m afraid in this case, seeing as how the issue was deep in the heart of Africa, your only option would have been to side with M23. Opportunity missed, match awarded to @texasinafrica.

Oh, and also because Texas.

* the pedant in me feels compelled to point out that, though LOTFC is correct DoD usage, Europeans and NGOs refer to it as ITFCL

@InkSptsGulliver v. @lesley_warner

These are both great feeds and you should follow them both. @InkSptsGulliver, the savvy veteran of many a twitterfight, came out with his usual bag of tricks, but the newcomer parried them well. She then went on a tear, talking up CAR, South Sudan, and other African topics with aplomb. @InkSptsGulliver, meanwhile, contented himself with gnawing on an article declaring the era of landpower over. Now, in general, I find chewing over poorly-written or poorly-considered articles to be uninformative, if sometimes entertaining. @InkSptsGulliver’s “genius,” however, is an ability to take terrible articles and actually produce new information and something worth consideration while savaging them (and due respect today to his counterparties @wjrue, @forbesmm, and @JasonFritz1).

Still, by volume of tweets and variety of topics, I have to give this round to ongoing twinsurgent @lesley_warner. I will doubtless come to regret this next week when @InkSptsGulliver gets another chance to wreak physical violence upon me.

@blakehounshell v. @speechboy71

And now we reach the “new father” portion of the bracket (ably supplemented, of course, by @JasonFritz1). As much as it hurts to vote against either of the cute babies, I have to go by a simple rule: if you’re looking forward to twitterfighting, you actually have to twitterfight. One retweet after 10 AM doesn’t get the job done. Round to @blakehounshell.

@JasonFritz1 v. @lrozen

Like a good wine, @lrozen’s feed has a strong informative substance, with just enough opinion to give it a crisp bite (yes, I like informative wines, deal with it). @JasonFritz1, on the other hand, ranges over many topics with many different people, taking sometimes surprising, but always thoughtful, positions. To give you an idea, let’s look at this morning where, in the course of half an hour, he went from tweeting about Peeps to writing On Twitter War. @lrozen had nothing on that today, so match to @JasonFritz1.

@jeffemanuel

NW1) @texasinafrica
NW5) @hayesbrown

This first matchup was the toughest one for me. @texasinafrica covers a country - Africa - that is both relevant and underserved these days, while @hayesbrown’s feed is always entertaining (he’s very deserving of this year’s 5 seed, after almost knocking off #tfc12 runner-up @dandrezner in a 16 vs 1 first round matchup last year). These two were also the only participants to acknowledge the competition in tweets directed at me, an all-powerful Judge In This Round Of The Competition! Unfortunately, as they’re pitted against each other (rather than any of the six ingrates below), that’s kind of a wash here. So, it comes down to choosing between the young, idealistic professional, or the Morehouse professor who has an informative twitter feed, but who voted to send me packing in the Final Four of last years’s Twitter Fight Club, after I beat her (with a little help from the man they call Jayne) in the Elite Eight. Hmmmmmmmm. That’s a tough one, but frankly, while @hayesbrown made a serious improvement from a 16 seed and a (close) first-round exit in 2012, and while I’m expecting even better things from him next year, @texasinafrica deserves to advance here. Also frankly, if I still lived in Atlanta, I’d cash in her promised bribe of babysitting in return for this vote (sadly, as it stands I have to cast it with no promise of reward). All the same, @texasinafrica is my winner.

NW11) @InkSptsGulliver
NW15) @lesley_warner

One quarter of this quadrant is made up of Ink Spotters. I don’t know what they did to deserve this, but that just happened. This is also one of two remarkable match-ups between competitors who were seeded 10th or lower, which is part of why Twitter Fight Club is so great - newcomers and variable-volume tweeters alike can knock off their better-known, more prolific opponents simply by putting out quality content (and offering quality bribes) on the day of the competition. That having been said, let’s get back to it! Let me see…doctrine and nomenclature, or Africa news and analysis? Though I wasn’t familiar with @lesley_warner prior to this competition, she impressed me right off the bat with her Swift display of knowledge and unwillingness to back down in the face of promised (though ambiguous) “slaughter.” She also focuses on an area that, as I said in Round 1, is sadly underserved and in desperate need of smart attention, while Gulliver pontificates on a subject I can already learn about from a cartoon — a clear point in Lesley’s favor. Gulliver brought a pretty good game to the Twitterwebs today overall, but shot himself in the foot (from this humble judge’s perspective) when he loudly announced his ignorance of Air Force Special Operations Weathermen’s long existence. The Air Force SOF world already gets too little love, so this was too much to take (even if @warfarecenter’s reply that a Suunto watch could do about the same thing as a SOWT was, sadly, pretty spot on). Thus, the vote (and a follow!) goes to @lesley_warner.

SW11) @JasonFritz1
SW10) @lrozen

This matchup featured the second of the two Ink Spotters in this quadrant of the Sweet 16, again in a competition between two low seeds who underdogged their way (I think I might use that new term regularly) into the third round of this battle royale of tweepers. Everybody knows that Ink Spots posts can get a little long-winded (to say the least), so Twitter can be a great place to hear from folks like @JasonFritz1 in more manageable doses. After all, Twitter is nothing if not a medium that requires brevity-oh. I actually didn’t know stringing together that many 140-character posts into what is basically a single (really, really long) thought was possible. @lrozen, on the other hand, took the opposite tack: she tweeted almost none today, and mentioned #tfc13 precisely zero times. Bad Laura! @JasonFritz1 gets the win here.

@petulantskeptic

I guess some of the competitors in my bracket didn’t understand my directive for them to submit their own ballots—thus saving me the work of writing out my judgements and allowing me to proceed with an additional, objective, metric. Approximately half of them did send in their own ballots for their TFC matchup, but I will not reveal which ones since the competitors graciously submitted them as though they were written by me. I’ve also edited the submitted ballots as is my prerogative as judge. Deal with it. Please consider any fawning that is present in any ballot to be the work of the competitor and not the judge.

NW1 @texasinafrica vs. NW5 @hayesbrown

My metrics for this matchup were simple: level of snark, devastation of blows, and information provided. In the first category, @HayesBrown managed to edge past @texasinafrica’s well-honed Southern reserve, taking on items outside of his wheelhouse, showing a much more eclectic national security feed. That wheelhouse, though, got him in trouble with the second category.

It’s hard to contest that @texasinafrica’s hitting @HayesBrown on his ties to dictators at the UN was both crushing and hilarious. The poorly done Photoshopping of @texasinafrica as a Congolese warlord just couldn’t compare.

In the end, though, what won it out for me was the level of informative tweets he put out. By acting as more of a one-stop-shop that @texasinafrica’s still impressive Africa-based feed, @HayesBrown won out in the end, advancing to the next round

P.S. It’s a damn good thing @HayesBrown changed his mind about the safety of eating mosquito-laden ice cream since last year. That would’ve sunk him.

NW11 @inksptsgulliver vs. NW15 @lesley_warner

It took awhile for @lesley_warner to realize that the judge’s call for competitor submitted ballots was a real thing, but given her opponent’s outright rejection of penning his own ballot she was not disadvantaged by this. Moreover her anodyne tweets, which did not impugn the intelligence of every red blooded American who loves the NCAA basketball tournament; as well as the lack of tweets perseverating over minor points of semantic hair splitting buried deep within unreadable tomes of doctrine allow the judge to look upon her areas of expertise even more positively.

SW1 @blakehounshell vs. SW5 @speechboy71

Both of these competitors began planning for my judgeship well in advance, producing a steady stream of adorable child photos for the past few months in order to inculcate good will should one of their future TFC judges end up being a pediatrician. How were they to know that this foresight, which would have seen them to an easy triumph over any other competitor be stymied by the fact that they were matched with an opponent who had adopted the exact same strategy? However only one of these two competitors has created an (adorable) twitter feed for, and ostensibly by, his offspring; this advantage was augmented by the recent flurry of first birthday tweets from said child. Subcontracting is an honored part of TFC and thus @blakehounshell must be deemed the winner.

SW11 @jasonfritz1 vs. SW10 @lrozen

@lrozen is one of DC’s best foreign policy journalists with an informative twitter feed. But she has completely ignored Twitter Fight Club, causing us to wonder how she made it this far into the tournament in the first place. Twitter Fight Club is a thing and she has other things to do. As opponent @JasonFritz1 said on twitter, @lrozen’s means and objects may be twitter, but they are not an extension of twitter by other means. They are not Twitter Fight Club. @JasonFritz1 wins due to his awesome, if incomprehensible, translations of CvC. Were his CvC comments to make sense it would ruin his twitter feed’s atmosphere of clever confusion, something he has carefully cultivated over the past few years with an unceasing stream of cricket commentary and classical music commentary as though penned by James Joyce on mushrooms.

East

@drfarls

NE1) @intelwire
NE4) @SlaughterAM

Everybody loves a winner, and Intelwire had a great day. He got a job, had an outstanding performance in both the interactive and solo twitter categories, and perhaps most importantly reminded me of his longstanding grudge against Glenn Greenwald. To her credit, SlaughterAM poured it on towards the end, but the margin was insurmountable.

NE11) @JimmySky
NE2) @attackerman

Jimmy sky just wanted it more, in the sense that he made some effort to win. Affecting disinterest is awesome and all, but at some point subjecting one’s self to the grim, savage requirement of noting the existence of a competition should count.

SE9) @drjjoyner
SE5) @smsaideman

A hard fought, brutally difficult match to decide. Both competitors pandered effectively, retweeting my hopelessly unfunny quips about the upcoming Independence Day sequels. In the end, however, smsaideman kept a tighter focus on the need to shamelessly flatter the pretensions of the judges.

SE3) @azelin
SE2) @joshuafoust

Foust picked the wrong week to quit twitter. You wanna go to Russia (or wherever, it was hard to tell) go; just don’t expect to win #tfc13 while you’re gone.

@parafille

Shout-out to @Caidid for #TFC13, how’d she know I excel at judging people? My approach is essentially skilled-based — what can these people do for me? I don’t know how else one would evaluate - valor in tweeting?

And the match-ups -

Always a fan of @Intelwire for his sheer volume of (mostly interesting) material and wide-ranging topics. But @SlaughterAM brings impact. I mean, what chick doesn’t want to have it all (even if it’s not all at the same time)?

WINNER: @SlaughterAM

A gourmet cook talking Asia policy? At the same time? @joshuafoust might just be the perfect man. But props to @azelin for his recent work on online radicalization, really some good stuff. And he’s a Chi-town boy, we obviously share a love of Cubs & hot dogs. Secretly hoping this lands me an outing to Windy City Red Hots.

WINNER: @Azelin

@JimmySky feels like the underdog and (despite being AF) seems like a nice person. Despite my deep admiration of geekdom, @Attackerman hasn’t yet invited me to sample pastries on the set of Up (and ogle #NerdCrush @chrislhayes). So underdog @JimmySky it is. Plus, I might need some data visualized someday.

WINNER @JimmySky

Sorry @drjjoyner, as a rule, I subtract points for including an advanced degree in an e-mail address, twitter handle, really anywhere but a business card. Plus, I think a vote for @smsaideman gives me a certain international flair (well, Canadian flair, does that count?)

WINNER @smsaideman

@RBStalin

Hello I am a judge. I have spent the last few days relaxing in San Francisco, away from my unreasonably-large computer named after the anti-hero from Berserk, so as was the case last year the pyrotechnics will be light.

Before I don the robe, I must fully disclose.

I have followed each of the contestants in this bracket for at least a year. Five have followed me before today.

Two I have met personally. One has written a book about domestic terrorism I purchased and recommended to lots of people. One shares a good personal friend with me. At least two have quoted me in their blogs. One I’ve discussed at length following her explosive discussion of the state of modern feminism in the workplace. One sent my girlfriend an autographed copy of On War and another refuses to bribe me with food, which is bullshit.

I’m not telling you who any of those people are. Fuck disclosure.

Spencer Ackerman vs. James Gerrond

As a fiscally liberal, socially conservative individual, my valuation of Jimmy Sky is quite simple. He is employed by the government but neither as a soldier nor a sexy firefighter, which classifies him as a bureaucrat. I therefore approve of his contribution to society, and whatever he tweets is completely irrelevant as long as it is on government time.

I had the pleasure of either voting for or against Spencer last year. I don’t remember which. It’s irrelevant today, as my investigative journalism has led me to some explosive reporting I feel compelled to put forth with my judgment:

ACKERMAN SUBTWEETS SEX-WORKERS
Spencer Ackerman, or John Spencer the actor from West Wing and also a prostitution reference? We’re just asking questions.

All of the following individuals are current and/or former sex-workers - a shameful profession of which I am loudly in favor of continued prohibition - and writers of various frequencies. A potent combination our Ackerman apparently cannot resist.

Bubbles, the stripper:

The sex and rock I knew, but drugs now too? Moral decline.

Next, Mistress Matisse, “professional dominatrix and writer”:

No, Spencer, it means Miss Matisse is.

Charlotte, self-described “Known Prostitute, Lesser-Known Writer” loves Ackerman’s employers:

The subtweeting goes both ways. Meet Lori, pro-switch:

Rude.

In light of Gerrond’s excellent waste of taxpayer dollars and Ackerman’s reprehensible moral inconsistency, this ruling goes to Jimmy.

Berger vs. Slaughter:

Let me first say that the Twitter-fighting between these two got into some kind of weird Rocky Road mix of shockingly dirty and alarmingly polite. Each is a quality tweeter with a consistently active and interactive presence. I find it hard to even pretend to dislike either of them, which I find sufficiently obnoxious to wish I could vote against both of them. In the end, this twisting vortex of qualitative polarity yields a vote, and Ms. Slaughter can have all of it.

…RIGHT?! High-five o/\o

Dr. Joyner vs. (Dr.?) Stephen Saideman

Both Joyner and Saideman are constant presences in my Twitter, and I am irritated to admit that as with everyone else in this bracket are regularly discussing things that interest me. If I wanted to model my content on some sort of diverse-but-definable vertical in order to shape my personal brand and gain lots of followers through one weird trick, I would start with them. This was a difficult decision for me, but based on quality of snark I come down on the side of the Aussie-Canadian or whatever the hell he is. Doctor? Still has a beard, as far as I know. Saideman.

Aaron Zelin vs. Joshua Foust

It is not my policy to comment on whether or not an individual has or has not refused to bribe me with food, but one of these individuals either has or has not, and the other just has not. I’m not saying which has not, and which has or has not, and one should not infer from the constant references to and/or pictures of exquisite food in one of these individual’s Twitter streams that they are the ones who did or did not refuse to bribe me, which may or may not have happened at a past, present, or future date, heretofore, and forthwith.

I am not saying that the one who specifically did not refuse to bribe me with food is Aaron Zelin, but I am going to move on to discussing him now. Aaron Zelin is best known for the blog Jihad Watch, which he writes under the pseudonym Robert Spencer, a Ziggy Stardust like alternate identity, except where Ziggy was a space rocker from the future, Spencer is a crazy asshole Islamophobe. However, I’m not going to hold this against Mr. Zelin as it is his Twitter presence which is on trial here, not his weird little paranoid blog. From his Twitter feed he is constantly linking to posts on something called Jihadology, which I may or may not have beaten a superior over the head with at one time, allegedly literally, by printing out the entire thing and rolling it up and actually smacking him on his dumb face.

This is the sort of robust fantasy life which keeps people like me off the front page of the New York Times, though The Duffel Blog may have already run with it.

Jihadology is a good site. Whoever runs it deserves kudos. On Twitter, however, Foust fights with literally everyone and I feel compelled to once again vote in his favor. If he wins, literal or figurative blood may or may not be expected quid pro quo.

@wjrue

I was excited about the prospect of judging today’s matches when Caitlin sent me an email last night, but compared to Tuesday’s matches, today’s were lackluster. Pandering was far too scarce.

NE1) @intelwire
NE4) @SlaughterAM

I really like @SlaughterAM, but this one isn’t close. @intelwire’s feed is a one stop shop for all sorts of news on terrorism and he is willing to engage with anyone. His acceptance of an associate fellowship at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation is a touchdown celebration. Congrats, J.M.!!

NE11) @JimmySky
NE2) @attackerman

I know we aren’t supposed to incorporate things outside of twitter, but I’m afraid of what Creep will do to me if he finds out I didn’t vote for his dad. He breaks piñatas with his fists and carries nunchuks to the White House Easter Egg Roll.

SE9) @drjjoyner
SE5) @smsaideman

@smsaideman is a worthy opponent, but this one goes to @drjjoyner because he reminded me about this.

SE3) @azelin
SE2) @joshuafoust

This matchup had the potential to be really, really good. But @joshuafoust was stuck on a plane home from Moscow all day, probably in economy where the drinks aren’t free. So @azelin was left to toil alone. He sent the lone #FF today, which automatically earns him a .5 point. But @joshuafoust has such a tremendous body of work that makes up for today’s absence earning him a .5 point too.

@zackbeauchamp

I’ll keep this simple. As I indicated during my own round, I judge TwitterFightClub on a metric that may sound quaint: actual fighting. I judged each round on the basis of how well the fighters competed in their direct skirmishes with each other and, if relevant, proxies, nothing more.

But I quickly realized that, given how disparate the fighting styles and incentives were, I couldn’t judge the fights quite like I used to judge policy debate rounds. So instead, I developed a context-sensitive means of evaluating each fight: historical analogs. Seeing as this a competition for foreign policy folk, I tried to figure out what historical conflict best described the specific contours of each fight (admittedly, this was impressionistic), and then judged each one accordingly. Here’s what came out:

Northeast 1) @intelwire v. 4) @slaughteram; The Iraq road not taken.

Don’t let the seeding fool you: this was an asymmetric fight, but @slaughterAM was the great power. As @intelwire pointed out, @slaughterAM has roughly 58,000 more followers than he does, an overwhelming advantage in the popular vote not dissimilar to the one possessed by a state with far greater military capabilities in a war. To win, she needs to leverage her superior conventional assets (full disclosure: I can’t know the voting numbers, so it’s impossible to tell if she did that) while at the same time refusing to be drawn into a quagmire on terrain more favorable to the insurgent (direct, judgeable exchanges) wherein she could be ground down by attrition.

Any number of historical asymmetric conflicts could be used here, but since @intelwire brought up @slaughterAM’s support for the Iraq War, let’s roll with that. @Intelwire, like Saddam, expertly baited his stronger opponent but, unlike her real-life counterpart, @slaughterAM refused to take the bait, resisting conventional offensives (except for the occasional sortie) in favor of a containment regime of positivity and compliments. This even resulted in @intelwire, also like Saddam, pushing it too far and alienating the world (this judge) through overly-aggressive and misplaced offensives.

So @slaughterAM practiced what she preached about “humility and learning” with respect to Iraq. The win goes to @slaughterAM.

Northeast 2) @attackerman v. 11) @jimmysky; The Russia-Estonia conflict.

This was another asymmetric conflict, but one with virtually no direct engagement, so it’s hard to make it into a conventional conflict. The best analog I could think of would be a case where there was a significantly stronger and weaker side where tensions still existed, but weren’t even remotely likely to escalate into outright war. Contemporary Russian-Estonian relations fit the bill (if you don’t believe me about the history of conflict, read up.)

So how to judge victory? Well, Like Estonia, @jimmysky embedded himself in a broader international arrangement, though instead of NATO, it was the LOFTFC (Laws of Twitter Fight Club). Also like Estonia, @jimmysky wasn’t above the employment of private military corporations. @attackerman, much like Russia, simply declared his intent to compete and then did nothing much to help him gain strategic advantage over his opponent. The smaller state finds a way, against the odds, to gain a measure of security. @jimmysky wins.

Southeast 2) @joshuafoust v. 3) @azelin; The fall of the Roman Empire.

This one’s pretty simple. Like the tribes that would eventually unite under the Visigoth banner, @azelin periodically built up a base of support over the course of the competition with a declaration of intent to win and several entreaties to third parties, while @joshuafoust, like Rome, was distracted and overstretched (something called “real life” taking up the bulk of his attention). @joshuafoust, much like Rome, alienated potential bases of support by refusing to provide them with desired goods. @azelin wins.

5) @smsaideman v 9) @drjoyner; Internecine warfare between nobles in Medieval Europe.

Our final battle was an odd affair. Though there was an unending, nearly impossible to sort out stream of offensives and counteroffensives, and real blood was occasionally drawn, the entire endeavor was suffused with a sense of honor and mutual respect that reminded me nothing more of conflict between rival nobles in Medieval Europe. The conflict between nobles (NOT civilians or non-noble combatants, though) was regulated by a set of shifting, amorphous chivalric values that required fair treatment in the same way that the sparring between @smsaideman and @drjoyner was, while combative, oftentimes quite good natured.

Much as noble medieval warfare generally didn’t much affect the basic structure of the European international system, this conflict did not have a clear, decisive winner. This is a tie.

It’s a punishing schedule for competitors as yesterday’s victors launch straight into today’s Sweet 16 contest. We’ll start here with yesterday’s results, followed by today’s polls, then finally the judges’ ballots for yesterday.

Results: Round Two, Northeast and Southeast

Northeast

**(1) @intelwire: 67%, 2.5 of five judges
(8) @BFriedmanDC: 33%, 2.5 of five judges

An even split in the judging doesn’t matter to @intelwire who takes the day on the strength of the popular vote.

(5) @chrisalbon: 51%, 1.5 of five judges
**(4) @SlaughterAM: 49%, 3.5 of five judges

@chrisalbon’s slender lead in the popular vote is not enough to upend @SlaughterAM, who advances to the Sweet 16 thanks to the judges.

**(11) @JimmySky: 64%, 2.5 of five judges
(3) @astridhka: 36%, 2.5 of five judges

Another judges’ split, another decision for the popular vote, and @JimmySky is moving on.

(10) @elsnarkistani: 36%, 2.5 of five judges
**(2) @attackerman: 64%, 2.5 of five judges

The third of three even splits in the judges’ ballots is decided by the popular vote for @attackerman.

Southeast

(1) @adamserwer: 55%, two of five judges’ votes
**(9) @drjjoyner: 45%, three of five judges’ votes

@drjjoyner edges one out over @adamserwer by taking three of five judges’ votes.

**(5) @smsaideman: 51%, five of five judges’ votes
(4) @gregorydjohnsen: 49%, zero of five judges’ votes

An extremely close race in the popular polls, @smsaideman cruises to victory with a sweep of the judges.

(6) @naheedmustafa: 40% (39.73%), three of five judges’ votes
**(3) @azelin: 60% (60.26%), two of five judges’ votes

The closest race in TFC history, we had to go to hundredths of a percent in the popular voting to determine the winner. One vote was the difference that put @azelin over the top.

(7) @johnsonr: 41%, one of five judges’ votes
**(2) @joshuafoust: 59%, four of five judges’ votes

@joshuafoust takes the popular vote and the judges’ vote to take an easy victory.

Sweet 16

In the Sweet 16, there are five judges for each side of the brackets, East and West. The panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote, with each judge representing 10% of the overall total. The other 50% is based on the popular vote via the public polls below, so make sure to cast your votes! The judging panels for today are as follows:

West

@AllThingsHLS
@ArminRosen
@CaldwellGR
@jeffemanuel
@petulantskeptic

East

@drfarls
@parafille
@RBStalin
@wjrue
@zackbeauchamp

Their votes account for half of each contestant’s score. Your votes make up the other half:

West

East

Now for your Round Two Judges’ Ballots!

Northeast

@kensofer

First and foremost, a big thank you to @caidid for putting this together. It’s an insane amount of logistical work and prep that creates a venue for such awesome twitter battles.

Onto the battles!

@ElSnarkistani made an early attempt to cut out @attackerman’s legs, but like the Yankee fan he is, @attackerman embraced his role as Goliath and quickly dismissed the pleas of his opponent. @ElSnarkistani responded by subtweeting the shit out of @attackerman. Ackerman is never an easy draw in TFC, but I’m awarding Gary the win for the range of interesting articles he offered his followers throughout the day.

WINNER: @ElSnarkstani

After a deafening silence to begin the day by both @SlaughterAM and @chrisalbon, they both came roaring out of the gate. @SlaughterAM gets dinged for retweeting so many people talking about how great her article is. But I’m an attention whore and do the same thing, so I’ll let it slide. Albon’s early lead is buried by a slow, methodical landslide from Slaughter.

WINNER: @SlaughterAM

@BFriedmanDC walked into his matchup with a tough @intelwire knowing he had to play to his strengths and not let @intelwire dictate the tempo of the game. Brandon stayed in his lane and reinforced his reputation as one of the best on twitter when it comes to veterans and military personnel issues. But Berger wins the match with a heavy flood of good articles and retweets. Berger shows he’s not afraid of his opponent, retweeting him twice.

WINNER: @intelwire

@astridhka effectively works the Africa offense, with a brief aside to shit talk Boston (as a Laker fan, this plays well with me). Much like the Princeton offense, it’s a highly effective, but difficult to translate to a larger stage. @jimmysky counters with a good high-low game: SHOT: Lording over both his current and former opponents in a good display of braggadocio. CHASER: Several pictures of his adorable kids, Kid A and Creep. Jimmy nears flies off the rails when distracted by a fake congressman and several Chris Hayes-related puns, but good veteran play keeps it together and he holds on for the W.

WINNER: @jimmysky

@laurenist

In the long tradition of Drunk History and Drunk Kitchen, I present to you Drunk TFC Judging. (I don’t know, dudes, Science Club’s white wine is strong.)

(1) @intelwire vs. (8) @BFriedmanDC

Look, this isn’t a Twitter Expert Club or a Twitter Rational Argument Club, this is Twitter Fight Club. And @BFriedmanDC is fighting someone on Twitter just about every day. Today? Fighting on Twitter. Yesterday? Fighting on Twitter. Tomorrow? He will be fighting on Twitter. Every day, @BFriedmanDC comes to Twitter ready to do battle with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and that he does.

Hands down, @BFriedmanDC takes this round. Butterbeer is on him.

(4) @SlaughterAM vs. (5) @chrisalbon

The least Twitter fight-y of all the Northeast division fights. What’s a tipsy judge to do? As fellow judge @zoonpolitikon notes, @chrisalbon is the only one to have Tweeted about Twitter Fight Club and so, as one of the arbitrary rules I have made up about Twitter Fight Club is that one must talk about Twitter Fight Club, this round goes to @chrisalbon.

In @chrisalbon vs. @CONFLCTMRCOFFEE, though, we all know who the true winner is.

(3) @astridhka vs. (11) @JimmySky

So on the one hand we have someone who has served their country in harsh environments and to this day strives to make the world a better place by educating the people of Twitter about esoteric information. And on the other hand we have @JimmySky. He was in the Air Force.

Look, @JimmySky is a great guy with kids who are probably smarter than us (yes, maybe even smarter than @stcolumbia). He owes me a beer, though. @astridhka is an Africanist who we all want to see go up against @texasinafrica. I know what the people want. I know that I want beer. @astridhka wins this one. Unless it turns out she was in the Coast Guard.

(2) @attackerman vs. (10) @ElSnarkistani

@ElSnarkistani came out fighting early with the brownnosing Tweets and the effusive retweets. He even managed to be in a branch of the military that wasn’t the Air Force. @attackerman was, like, working on stuff? Like reporting? Come on, man, this is Twitter Fight Club. Deadlines can wait.

This one is close. Chris Hayes jokes or F-35 videos? Wait, those were both @attackerman. I love a good CERP reference, @ElSnarkistani, but by a hair @attackerman gets the KO this round with LockMart’s terrible PR video.

I apologize to everyone for everything. Good night.

@rei_tang

“Twitter Fight Club is like the greatest covert war taking place in history today: the struggle for Eastern Europe.” - Stratfor founder and chairman George Friedman

Many Twitter fighters have questioned the reasoning and criteria for judging, and many judges have developed ever more rigorous methodologies to weigh our Twitter fighters against each other.

lol

My match-ups fought even less this time and I am disappoint. Again, as a judge, I want my day of hyper-vigilance over the blows in my Twitter feed to be worth it.

@intelwire
@BFriedmanDC

Let us go to the source of the struggle. What are they fighting for?

@BFriedmanDC says,

@intelwire says,

Did @BFriedmanDC scale Everest? His feed was a massive subtweet to IAVA’s rabid criticism of the VA. Is this a sub-twitter fight? Did he file all these cabinets himself?

Did @intelwire make music? Well, he pals around with terrorists.

(Okay, what he is doing is pretty bad ass)

Neither really engaged in TFC. I must vote on their potential, in which case, this must go to @intelwire, who took a little more effort with TFC, and who argued with a terrorist with aplomb.

@chrisalbon
@SlaughterAM

First, I was going to vote for @chrisalbon.

Then,

And @chrisalbon had no response.

Winner: @slaughteram.

@JimmySky
@astridhka

Winner: @JimmySky and his superhero offspring. @astridhka did not really have anything.

Superhero offspring.

And what he is fighting for.

@elsnarkistani
@attackerman

At first, @elsnarkistani was pandering like I had never seen.

A class act with a clear understanding of how TFC works. But, then I remembered, @attackerman had pre-pandered.

No, this was not pre-pandering. Could he have guessed I would be judging three days in advance? This was more.

Then came the fight.

A lot happened, but this should explain what went down.

Winner: @attackerman, because a pre-pandering Taliban panda simply has a permanent hold over the population, despite the best efforts of Western invaders. @elsnarkistani, this was a tough call. Everyone should follow you. I hope you will still follow me. I will give you the last tweet.

Finally, a bit more advice to those aspiring to attain my vote. Jon Roberts was a horrible criminal who smuggled cocaine for the Medellin cartel in Miami during the 1980s. Don’t do anything he did. But he said, “If you have a problem, choose the most evil way to solve it, and do the evil as forcefully as you can. That’s how you come out on top.” I encourage you to do this for TFC.

@zoonpolitikon

This was tough.

Before the competition started, I imagined myself with a cocktail in my hand on the private yacht of one of the contestants, spending all the bribes I got. Then I would have given my vote to the highest bidder. It turned out it is much more work. Here is me trying to come to a conclusion:

Southeast

@aelkus

My personal metrics are as follows:

1. Candidate vs. Candidate disses
2. Pandering to me on Iranian food, cute animals on the Internet, or the superiority of Los Angeles sports teams.
3. Quality of tweets.

1 and 3 are completely subjective. 2 concerns some things that are important to me: the kabobs I now frequently consume as exam comfort food, cute animals on the Internet (who doesn’t like them), and proper recognition of the awesomeness of my home town.

1. drjoyner

Neither competed against each other for the prize. Score: 0

Neither pandered to me about Iranian food, cute animals, or Los Angeles. Score: 0

I enjoyed Joyner’s discussion of a wider range of issues, from cyberwar to veteran’s services. Serwer’s feed, while scintillating, did not demonstrate the same range. Joyner 1, Serwer 0.

2. smsaideman

Both contestants have a solid body of work on Twitter covering a wide range of national security issues. So this came down to pandering and twitterfighting skills. I gave both a .5 rating for tie. Johnsen .5, Saideman .5

Saideman is strong in twitterfighting. As I previously noted, Saideman’s maple-themed tweets have the demonic power of a million giant inflatable beevers. When Saideman gets worked up, it looks like the Winter Olympics out there. Yet Johnsen impressively parried many of his barbs with oppo research twitpics, so I will have to give this one to him. Johnsen 1.5, Saideman .5.

Saideman pandered to me with cute animal pictures and videos (a baby polar cub), and LA-themed RTs. Johnsen, however, subtweeted that I was the Twitter equivalent of a corrupt Jordanian flaunting wasta. Bad movie, Johnsen! This one went to Saideman. Johnsen 1.5, Saideman 1.5

So how did I decide? Well, Saideman spoke frequently of his generosity to political science and IR grad students. As a 1-st year PhD student in IR, I appreciate that. Johnsen 1.5, Saideman, 2.5.

6. azelin

Mustafa and Zelin both went hard. But Zelin’s raw aggression, complete with cyberwar put-downs, gave him an edge in the twitterfighting category. Mustafa 0, Zelin 1

Neither Mustafa nor Zelin engaged in any pandering, and both RT’d Johnsen’s subtweet at me. So no point for either. Mustafa 0, Zelin 1.

Zelin delivered top-notch goods on Middle East and North Africa. Mustafa had some goods but also tweeted a bit about overly earnest people on her train. So point to Zelin. Mustafa 0, Zelin 2.

7. @joshuafoust

Perhaps out of her strong sense of ethics, Johnson did not engage in pandering. Likewise Foust, knowing not to do things for free (and with no guarantee he would come out on top of the combined judge/popular vote if he pandered.) refrained from pandering. So Foust 0, Johnson 0.

Johnson and Foust did not engage in much fighting. However, Johnson made a solid case for her own candidacy and beat back critics, so I will give her 0.5. Foust, 0, Johnson 0.5.

Substance: Johnson discussed many important subjects. However, Foust also did this while engaging many twitter personalities large and small on substantive discussion of the issues. Johnson 0.5, Foust 1.

@EricMartin24

(1)@adamserwer vs. (9)@drjjoyner

The top of the bracket features a truly brutal match-up between a pair of Twitter Titans (Twitans?) that I happen to also like on a personal level (to the extent one can develop such sentimental connections without ever having met in the flesh world). My first thought when looking at this contest was, “How the hell is @drjjoyner only a #9 seed?” Granted, he’s not overly combative or snarky, but his almost grating reliance on common sense and decency should have been enough to catapult him into #3 seed territory.

That said, this is TwitterFightClub and I’m not sure @drjjoyner put up enough of a fight to upend a #1 seed (where wwas the pointing and laughing, the touting of gaffes, the compromising photos, the bribes, the beards?)…That, and @adamserwer’s liveblogging of the Prop 8 arguments was nicely done.

Alas, @drjjoyner’s sense of honor cost him the match (that, and the fact that he was wrongly seeded).

Winner: @adamserwer

(5) @smsaideman vs. (4) @gregorydjohnsen

This match featured much of the TFC spice that the (1)-(9) contest lacked - dueling beards, working the refs (praise for Don Mattingly and the Yankees from a Mets fan no less), the brandishing of arms (was that a spear?), a bucket of qat, the donning of embarrassing costumes…really, the spirit of TwitterFightClub combat.

In fact, I was so impressed with the showing from both participants that I’ve agonized (read: spent more than 1 minute) over my decision.

In the end, despite @gregorydjohnsen ridiculous k-nowledge of all things Yemen (and embarrassing ultimate frisbee/bandana expose), I’m casting my vote for @smsaideman under the rationale that one of them has to be declared the winner…

Winner: @smsaideman

(6) @naheedmustafa vs. (3) @azelin

This match certainly had promise - at least initially. @naheedmustafa jumped out early with a preemptive strike of judge shmoozing, and a shocking expose of @azelin’s use of French (hard to vote for a surrender monkey talkin guy). But then at some point in the middle the thing went soft..Twitter Kindness Club? Oy. Luckily, the intensity pushed past “soft slap fight” toward the tail end of the contest…

Although I’m loathe to endorse two Canadians in a row, socialism wins by a tea-cup…

Winner: @naheedmustafa

(7) @johnsonr vs. (2) @joshuafoust

The (2) - (7) contest closely resembled the (1) - (9) in its lack of fireworks. And, as with the (1) - (9), the lack of big strikes favors the higher seed. Simply not enough done on the part of @johnsonr to overcome @joshuafoust’s #2 seed, and his shameless pimping of the pug for sympathy votes. Effective nevertheless.

Winner: @joshuafoust

@jasminchill

(1) @adamserwer vs (9) @drjjoyner

While @adamserwer is a prolific tweeter with 4x @drjjoyner’s followers, it all seems to be related to his day job and there was no acknowledgment that he was even participating in TFC13 nor any actual contact made on his part towards his opponent. That might be acceptable in the first round but not in the second. Penalties awarded.

In addition to the fact that @drjjoyner bothered to follow me, he had no qualms about retweeting @AbuMuqawamaPMC ‘s back-handed but amusing advocacy for him:

Advantage: @drjjoyner

(5) @smsaideman vs (4) @gregorydjohnsen

@smsaideman got to an early start pandering to the judges and slamming his late-starting opponent. @gregorydjohnsen replied with beard pictures, just in case that would sway ones vote.

The battle was quickly described as “fighting the dark arts” (https://twitter.com/smsaideman/status/316576794369208320/photo/1) vs fighting in the real world to defend one’s flat (http://t.co/dDbMZrNTiD)

@smsaideman pointed out his use of pop culture in lecturing IR (http://t.co/Mib9iS5ztv) although I noted that he had not bothered to fully research the pop culture reference to realise it was a complex multipolar scenario. Given said pop culture reference was the rather superb Game of Thrones, the penalties & points awarded evened out.

@gregorydjohnsen appeared to have compiled a dirt file that included sporting photos of his opponent which were quickly used in an effective ambush, points awarded.

The flipside was I found the superhero ones amusing (https://twitter.com/smsaideman/status/316578702081265664/photo/1) and endearing (https://twitter.com/gregorydjohnsen/status/316729026301538305/photo/1). I’m a geek & can’t help awarding points for cosplay & general tomfoolery.

Having earlier posted bearded photos, @gregorydjohnsen had a change of heart on pandering & compared the judges to an unfavourable experience in Jordan. I would’ve given him serious points for guts in taking on the judges had he bothered to address my challenges and hints. But he didn’t.

@gregorydjohnsen also seemed to take a +4hr break without bothering to field a child/dog/work /warfare excuse for his absence. These two events might not seem much but it was just enough for me to reverse my earlier judging sentiments. That said, his reengagement may be in time to gain him the popular vote (since its predominantly after the judges cut-off).

Advantage (in spite of his admitting liking our truly awful capital city Canberra): @smsaideman

(6) @naheedmustafa vs(3) @azelin

This battle got off to a nauseating start with both competitors seemingly set upon engaging in “Twitter Kindness Club 2013 #TKC13”. Thankfully this soon ended although the quality of the fighting didn’t improve much.

@naheedmustafa doesn’t follow my feed but did pander to how “chill” I must be and offered me tea. @azelin countered with an early #FF to the judges.

@azelin took on the judges asking why we didn’t like arguments over peanut butter and pickles, Austria & strategic airpower, thereby missing the point that the lack of blood spilt, not topic was the source of our disappointment. Points for guts and judge interaction, minor deduction for not henceforth initiating a less shallow fight.

I nearly gave it to @azelin outright for being referred to as the Prince of all things Jihad (and having a generally better feed).

But also desperately wanted to see @naheedmustafa make good on her threat to make @AbuMuqawamaPMC rue the day he endorsed her opponent. It was a moment of real feistiness!

Advantage (but is going to need to up game to survive @AbuMuqawamaPMC, let alone her opponents in the next round): @NaheedMustafa

(7) @johnsonr vs (2) @joshuafoust

This was always going to be a tough one for me, I’ve been a committed follower of @joshuafoust for some time but as he himself said, “blind loyalty is dumb” and @johnsonr distinguished herself in #TFC13 Round 1 as an intelligent and highly amusing competitor with cute dobermanns and possessing serious gumption.

I noted that @AbuMuqawamaPMC weighing into the battle between these two brought it to an all new (truly horrible) TFC low: https://twitter.com/AbuMuqawamaPMC/status/316606980208873472

@joshuafoust strength is not just in the breadth of his feed but the commentary he inserts into his tweets & his quick response to most tweets in his direction. @johnsonr engaged quickly with anyone who tweeted her and amassed an impressive collection of advocates, some of whom even lobbied me directly.

I would’ve awarded this one to @joshuafoust based on the high quality of his tweeting & his quick ending of any dog sympathy advantage being directed towards @johnsonr but given my minor penalty to @gregorydjohnsen for taking an unexplained break, I couldn’t let near on 7hrs of unexplained silence and non-participation go unanswered.

Advantage: @johnsonr

@juliaaberman

I came into the SE bracket much less familiar with the competitors than in my last judging round, so I tried to largely judge each contestant on their output between 10am and 10pm Tuesday. As a judge with a straight IR/African Studies field of knowledge, I perhaps find different topics/discussions appealing than some of the NatSec folks. I tend to favor a lot of aggressive pandering to TFC judges, though quality of content can certainly overcome the massive flaw of having a life/feed that don’t revolve around TFC.

(1) @adamserwer
(9) @drjjoyner
@adamserwer began the day at a disadvantage in terms of TFC tweeting because he was doing real work at the SCOTUS. While this didn’t allow him to interact with TFC, he provided a solid summary of the conversations happening at the court, which is a real-world service to his followers. @drjjoyner similarly didn’t engage much with TFC. I agree with the below tweet in my ultimate judging, though I deeply enjoyed @adamserwer’s SCOTUS snark.

(5) @smsaideman
(4) @gregorydjohnsen
@smsaideman came in strong from the word go, pandering aggressively to the judges and making sure I, as an Africanist, knew about his @texasinafrica endorsement. He even made an infographic about the matchup! As a recovered grad student, I did enjoy him framing the fight as “what not do to” as a grad student (i.e., be an historian - truth). His output was also truly impressive - at certain points, he sent a tweet a minute. @gregorydjohnsen was a bit clearer on when his TFC round would take place, and did a fair amount of directly countering his competitor’s attacks with proof of his work (links to video, etc). He also apparently can take down a LOT of qat. @gregorydjohnsen compared judges expecting banter/bribes to wasta, and focused largely on proving his competitiveness by his prodigious output, while @smsaideman proved to be one of the most impressive sycophants I’ve seen in #TFC13. In the end, it’s a matter of style, and I like my TFC fought dirty.

(6) @naheedmustafa
(3) @azelin
Both contestants started out the day adorably complimenting one another and half-heartedly tearing one another down, plus kitten pictures! Each got in a direct interaction with the judges early, which always earns points in my book. @naheedmustafa was very thorough in her judge interaction/bribing efforts, willing to say anything to get an endorsement, while @azelin was less blatant with flattery but quite responsive and followed his judges - always a smart move. I can’t do it. Ok, fine, @azelin by the tiniest of noses, mainly because a RT in his feed made me cry. Is that fair? Probably not. I have a headache.

(7) @johnsonr
(2) @joshuafoust
Of the entire SE bracket, @joshuafoust was somehow the only person I came into TFC following. His facial hair is also immaculate. johnsonr admitted early on that she would be busy on Tuesday (partly with a sick dog, and I cannot in good conscience vote someone down when their dog is sick). Neither had huge engagement with TFC, but by midday I learned @joshuafoust ALSO has a recently-sick dog, so that voting standard fell apart. My friend @aurallyfit focuses on Russia/Central Asia and lobbied hard for @joshuafoust because, and I quote, “he’s right about Russia, and Russia is important, just like Africa.” Naturally, that solid argument combined with my previous awareness of @joshuafoust’s not-insubstantial output and his ability to keep up with TFC while in Moscow made him today’s winner.

@rockrichard

Getting vanquished in the first round of #TFC13 apparently doesn’t put you out of the fold, as I’m back from the dead to judge round two. To be honest, there was a time I tweeted nearly exclusively about security and IR subjects, but a change in career path has significantly altered my production and consumption of such material. As such, I was surprised to even be included in the first round, but enjoyed judging the second round more as it allowed me delve into some of my interests that have gone neglected as of late.

(1) @adamserwer
(9) @drjjoyner

I swung both ways throughout the day on this match up. First thing I noticed was that Adam’s volume was significantly lower (not always a bad thing, but Adam generally tweets good things regardless of volume), but then I noticed he had tweeted he was without tech in the Supreme Court for today’s Prop 8 oral arguments. Possibly sacrificing #TFC13 to witness history got him mad respect points. Then, James decided to make a race of it by tweeting about policy implications of military retiree health care, a pet subject of mine. But then James tweeted this:

Which, as an employ of the agency to which he refers, I know to be wholly inaccurate. People shouldn’t be experts on everything. But tweeting an assumption as if it were settled fact is problematic. There was also this Tweet:

And as a fellow Southerner, I sympathize with Ex on this smear that I like to refer to as “Clampettization”.

But then James tweeted his concern when I tweeted about heading to the ER for an illness. Pandering, sure, but isn’t that what #TFC13 is about?

Finally, I remembered that Adam can always be counted on for a light and I often forget my cigarette lighter.

Adam had some great analysis on the SCOTUS hearing, and James was wrong on two issues I care deeply about (granted, those two were in a sea of highly informative Tweets).

Point, Serwer.

(5) @smsaideman
(4) @gregorydjohnsen

Stephen took the early lead by pandering to my love of war stories from my 2007 Afghanistan deployment and NBA basketball. Gregory made it competitive, though, with tweets on Flannery O’Conner, secession (again, I’m a diasporic Southerner) and fascinating stuff about Yemen. On the other hand, he has a really weak beard whereas Stephen’s beard is somewhat glorious (I expect Stephen to quote that compliment as a blurb on his next book).

My vote goes to @smsaideman.

(6) @naheedmustafa
(3) @azelin

Naheed starts with the significant handicapped of having her bio indicate that she is in Canada. I spent time in Canada once. It’s not something I want to re-experience. If Tim Horton’s white hot chocolate and crullers weren’t a thing (the TH trailer at Kandahar Airfield is a bit of a theater Shrangri-La) I’d have nothing good to say about the place. However, she did call me one of “the smartest people on twitter”. The fact that the other “smartest people on twitter” were also judges on her match up, I’m assuming, was pure coincidence.

Aaron, on the other hand proved himself to be an exceptionally apt panderer, and based on his cartoon avatar has quite the beard. For this match up, however, beard possession has to be thrown out as a criterion.

Beards and country of residence aside, this race was probably a draw for me. Therefore, I’m going to make what is probably a controversial activist vote.

Naheed raised the undervalued concern of women’s issues in IR, and we desperately need more women voices in the IR sphere. Definitely consider this a message that addressing women’s issues earns you points in #TFC13. My vote is for Naheed to keep this subject matter relevant in the next round.

(7) @johnsonr
(2) @joshuafoust

Rebecca gets a head start for being a specialist on uniformed issues, a subject dear to my heart. But not by much as I’ve long been an admirer of Josh’s work.

Josh also spent most of the day on some smart analysis on the subject of RussoAmeriEuro Atlanticism. Really interesting stuff on some incentives (or lack of) that I hadn’t previously thought about in depth.

I really wanted to support Rebecca. I like her subject matter, I have a soft spot for the underdog and she definitely brought the “love of the game” factor with a plethora of #TFC13 hashtagged tweets. But she spent most of the day on the road to do great things and care for her dogs. If I had my druthers, I’d call for a mulligan for Rebecca so she could face this tough opponent on a day when she could more actively participate. Unfortunately, there are no second acts in #TFC13 (except as a judge), and thus my vote is for Foust.

The western half of the bracket gave us a lively start to Round Two. Let’s see if the East can measure up!

In the second round, there are five judges for each ‘region.’ The panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote, with each judge representing 10% of the overall total. The other 50% is based on the popular vote via the public polls below, so make sure to cast your votes! The judging panels for today are as follows:

Northeast

@kensofer
@laurenist
@paulmcleary
@rei_tang
@zoonpolitikon

Southeast

@aelkus
@EricMartin24
@juliaaberman
@jasminchill
@rockrichard

Northeast

Southeast

And now for the day one results!

Northwest

**(1) @texasinafrica: 67%, five of five judges
(8) @drfarls: 33%, zero of five judges

@texasinafrica shows no signs of slowing down as she cruises to an easy victory in round two.

**(5) @hayesbrown: 66%, 2.5 of five judges
(4) @zackbeauchamp: 34%, 2.5 of five judges

The panel of five judges managed to split evenly on this one, but the popular vote wins it for @hayesbrown.

**(11) @InkSptsGulliver: 42%, three of five judges
(3) @tweetsintheme: 58%, two of five judges

In a close race, @InkSptsGulliver just manages to squeak by popular poll-winner @tweetsintheme by taking three of the five judges’ votes.

(7) @stephaniecarvin: 55%, one of five judges
**(15) @lesley_warner: 45%, four of five judges

@stephaniecarvin gets the edge in the popular vote, but four of five judges go for @lesley_warner to give her the win and keep the 15 seed’s Cinderella story alive.

Southwest

**(1) @blakehounshell: 64%, three of five judges
(8) @max_fisher: 36%, two of five judges

The one seed remains strong enough to take out the competition.

**(5) @speechboy71: 50%, four of five judges
(4) @emptywheel: 50%, one of five judges

With a perfect 50/50 split in the popular vote, @speechboy71 takes this one on the strength of the judges’ decision.

**(11) @JasonFritz1: 51%, three of five judges
(14) @khanserai: 49%, two of five judges

@khanserai pulled out all the stops, but it wasn’t quite enough to overcome @JasonFritz1.

**(10) @lrozen: 43%, four of five judges
(2) @abuaardvark: 57%, one of five judges

@abuaardvark’s slight edge in the popular vote isn’t enough to make up for his silence on Twitter this week, as four of five judges give the match to @lrozen.

And here are your judges’ ballots:

Northwest

@AthertonKD

For my objective criterion, I went entirely with the Swanson Pyramid of Greatness. Few competitors took this to heart, which is fine. The pyramid stands alone.

(1) @TexasInAfrica
(8) @DrFarls

Texas is the Chipotle of American States. Sure, it’s better than average, but the gulf between how good evangelists claim it to be and how good it actually is is vast. Normally this would weigh my vote, but both contestants were able to speak to the finer points of New Mexico, so I can stow that hatchet away for another day.

Farls openly challenges convention, supporting Pirates, opposing Texas, and blood sports as COIN. Seay combines good memory with her pandering, was covering the country of Africa long before you were correcting me for calling it a country, and she also throws her considerable klout behind #HireMonday. Speaking as a millenial who spent too much time in the trenches of the great recession, this last point is invaluable. It also happens well outside of #TFC tournaments, and while it’s been pandery during this contest, it’s origins are altruistic. In the way that seeding a vast network of young and indebted national security thinkers is altruistic. It was a close call, but #HireMonday sealed this. Seay by an inch.

(5) @HayesBrown
(4) @ZackBeauchamp

This was a brutal fight, that opened with an ugly showdown about zombies, BlogTarkin, fiction, and metaphor that left no contestant looking anything like pretty. After that followed a long race to the left, where the messy reality of dictators existing was thrown against America’s most perfect and inconvenient ideals. They also humored me by debating League of Nations vs League of Extraordinary Gentleman, though there was some confusion about the rules. There was bribery and impassioned speech, as the house of Progress shook to its very foundation. This was a Magneto-vs-Xavier duel, and where Beauchamp mustered a long ideological defense, Brown picked it apart in progress with reaction .gif after reaction .gif. If .gif fighting is wrong, Millenials will never be right. Brown has my vote.

(11) @InkSptsGulliver
(3) @TweetsInTheME

Great additions to any feed lacking in realtalk (Clausewitzian and North African, respectively), but the contest today complete fell apart when Gulliver went full Greenwald. You never go full Greenwald. Lebovich takes it.

(7) @StephanieCarvin
(15) @Lesley_Warner

Both are formidable and talented scholars that you should be following. But Lesley Warner showed up, fought all day, and did so on Carvin’s turf, with artful cupcakes thrown like punches. Warner, no contest.

@Doctrine_Man

(1) @texasinafrica
(8) @drfarls

@TexasinAfrica. Aside from the fact she uses a gas barbecue in Texas, it’s hard to find fault in @TexasinAfrica. With all due respect to her opponent, keeping up with @TexasinAfrica is a full-time job that would challenge any of us. Hands down, this one goes to the number one seed in the bracket.

(5) @hayesbrown
(4) @zackbeauchamp

@HayesBrown. They say that some of us have a bias toward others who look like them. @HayesBrown could be a cartoon character in The Further Adventures of Doctrine Man!! Oh, and he’s a bombastic Twittermaniac, which doesn’t hurt. @ZackBeauchamp was close on his heels every minute of the matchup, but a last-ditch, GIF-encrusted rendition of Spamalot proved to be the difference in the end. Well played, @HayesBrown. Well played.

(11) @InkSptsGulliver
(3) @tweetsintheme

@InkSptsGulliver. The matchup between Gulliver and @TweetsintheME was about as close as it get in Twitter Fight Club. Both are relevant, communicate in sharp, concise bursts of 140-character genius, and hit hard on issues that matter the most. The difference is the ‘snark’ level, where — in the upset of the bracket — Gulliver edges his worthy opponent by a nose… or a character or two in Twitter-ese.

(7) @stephaniecarvin
(15) @lesley_warner

@StephanieCarvin. Mmm… cupcakes. @Lesley_Warner is going to be a force to be reckoned with one day soon, but her opponent has opened up a substantial lead in the Twitterverse, combining a penchant for the world of international relations with a certain snakorific ability to strike with panache and punch. Did I mention cupcakes?

@dohoBOB

(1) @texasinafrica

Laura really brought her A-game today and maintained an even amount of legitimate news/worthy tweets and competitive fight. I’m not partial because she’s female or a Texan, although both don’t hurt, but because she’s ridiculously smart, specializing in a really important field. #AfricaPivot, FTW.

(5) @hayesbrown
(4) @zackbeauchamp

I legitimately cannot decide. I think it was a very equal match-up with some great sh*t talking, and, er, *interesting* gifs. Both pandered well so I’m pulling a Switzerland.

(11) @InkSptsGulliver

Reading his tweets is like that time I read “Ghost Wars”: A LOT of acronyms and history that requires me spending 20 minutes reading 10K characters to figure out everything he mentioned in one damn tweet of 140. That alone warrants recognition. Also, who doesn’t love CvC? Probably terrorists, but that’s why he doing us all a patriotic service.

(15) @lesley_warner

Aside from @stephaniecarvin actually conceding (that helped my decision), I have to give Lesley my vote since she literally out-tweeted her opponent. Tweeted her into submission. And Stephanie has some serious credentials, like two books, so isn’t that enough? I’m Robin Hood-ing my vote and giving it to the contestant that can use this on their resume in case that PhD doesn’t pan out.

@JDanaStuster

As a grateful 1^st-round knockout, I’m thrilled to be judging. Thanks to @caidid for putting this together and letting me participate.

(1) @texasinafrica vs. (8) @drfarls

@texasinafrica is a true pro at Twitter Fight Club. Truly a natural, with just the right balance of professionalism and pandering. She just knows how this works. In terms of professional content, @texasinafrica had an unfair advantage. It was a busy day in the CAR, and a very good day to finally (and, yes I know, very belatedly) start following her.

@drfarls had some good moments and some missed opportunities. He went on HuffPo Live and then didn’t use it to take TFC cross-platform. Or at least he said he didn’t. I don’t know – like everyone else, I don’t actually watch HuffPo Live. @texasinafrica’s “he likes pirates” line of attack definitely backfired, as I harbor somewhat secret (2.5 beers, so really not a secret at all) desire to give up on my chosen career path and become a privateer. It is my understanding that he has the more impressive beard. And as @texasinafrica was getting a bit lazy, he went and did this. Damn, that’s serious (and seriously adorable) devotion to TFC.

It had the makings of a Cinderella story come-from-behind upset, and then he started livetweeting. I cannot abide livetweeting. The day belongs to @texasinafrica.

(5) @hayesbrown vs. (4) @zackbeauchamp

Full disclosure: I like Hayes and hadn’t gotten around to following @zackbeauchamp until today. When I had questions about the United Nations (for an article about Batman, obviously), I went to Hayes. Hayes is a good man, and I came into this one biased.

And I was disappointed.

Hayes: What happened to you, man? By your own admission, you were having an off day. Boy howdy, were you ever. You come in and start trying to take down @zackbeauchamp for writing about zombies as an extended metaphor for society? It’s like I don’t even know you anymore. And then you managed to be both elitist (“he doesn’t pronounce his French name properly, harrumph” (apparently MS Word autocorrects to harrumph with two r’s; now you know)), and anti-intellectual (he uses too many big words and “bloviates”? Hayes, it’s Twitter! It doesn’t get more self-indulgent than this! You even tweeted a picture of your lunch! It’s all bloviating!). Hayes, you didn’t even use a particularly good “Haters gonna hate” meme. You were ready to surrender to the cephalopods!

You almost redeemed yourself this afternoon with an excellent round of gif-sparring, and I do love a good etymology, but it just didn’t do it in the end. (This picture from @darth sums it up pretty well.) You had the content, so did @zackbeauchamp, but you disappointed. I’m sorry, Hayes. I’m so sorry. I’m voting for @zackbeauchamp. Here’s hoping you have a better day next year. You can still borrow my copy of Justice League International if you want.

(11) @InkSptsGulliver vs. (3) @tweetsintheme

This had the potential to be a good match, and got off to a decent start with some beard-fighting. And that’s more or less where it ended. InkSpts might have had one of the best jokes of the day, but as much as I like a good curmudgeon, sometimes I feel he strays into the hypercritical-for-the-sake-of-being-hypercritical territory. I’m conflicted on this one and have to draw on their larger opus – there just wasn’t much of a showing today – and say @tweetsintheme usually is more insightful. In today’s fight, though, we all lost.

(7) @stephaniecarvin vs. (15) @lesley_warner

Once again, fortune favored the Africa expert – in that there was a coup, so go ahead and feel guilty, @lesley_warner, because you might’ve won my vote because of the overthrow of a government. I enjoy @stephaniecarvin’s tweets. They’re informative, wide-ranging, and reliably fun – for example, this (oh, Canada, you’re so charming). But @lesley_warner was bringing it with the substance today, and also cleverly turned @stephaniecarvin’s cupcake obsession on her. @lesley_warner nearly lost me by periodically and without context tweeting “Bazinga,” which is an unfunny line from the least funny show on TV, but for the most part she was fun and engaging, whereas @stephaniecarvin went for the jugular. For Christ’s sake, this is TFC, not the American Political Science Review – and that was just a straight up brag, not even trying for a humblebrag – and then moving on to using killing baby seals for wi-fi? I’m no electrical engineer, but that…I just…now I’m sad.

True story: Stephanie Carvin once walked past my desk in real life. It was about two years ago and she stopped by to meet my then-boss. They chatted for about 10 minutes. I think there were cupcakes. If there were, I didn’t receive any.

Hey, @lesley_warner, this one goes to you for being a solid follow and for keeping it civil.

And that’s it. This ballot is already late (sorry, Caitlin!) so I’m not proofreading and will regret this later. If you have any problems with my methods, too bad.

@wjrue

If Twitter Fight Club was the World Cup, the Northwest region would be the group of death. My feed was a bloodbath before I even finished my first coffee. All eight contenders took the “fight” in Twitter Fight Club very seriously and spent the day throwing rhetorical haymakers. Each of the contenders brought their A-game today (even @inksptsgulliver who hasn’t been on Twitter much of late). It was a real treat watching my feed today and each of these matches was extremely close.

My metric is a secret, much like Nate Silver’s algorithms. I plugged everyone into a program I wrote but can’t share and what follows is the result. Just trust me, it’s legit.

I wish none of them had to face each other and could continue in the tournament. But, this is the Thunderdome, not some new-age children’s sports league where everyone gets a trophy. Losing builds character.

(1) @texasinafrica
(8) @drfarls

This was the Harvard-Yale match-up of the day. Two super smart PhDs getting after it, no holds barred. On the one hand, @drfarls is an avowed navalist and supporter of my beloved Corps. Combined with the fact that @texasinafrica doesn’t acknowledge white queso as the supreme form of melted cheese, and @drfarls has the strong advantage here. But, my vote goes to @texasinafrica—her irrational hatred of white queso notwithstanding—for a couple of reasons. One, she stated her unequivocal support for sleeves up, and two, I was given an order to vote for her by my twitter squad leader @brettfriedman and I followed it.

(5) @hayesbrown
(4) @zackbeauchamp

These two middleweights sparred without interruption all day. The stamina of these two young guns was impressive. @hayesbrown scored major points by conducting an insider cyber attack, tweeting out an endorsement for himself under his opponent’s handle. Such bold, daring action will go down in TFC lore. But, @zackbeauchamp is a fellow alumnus of the LSE and his feed is my go-to feed when I start longing IR410 and need a dose of political theory. Sorry, @hayesbrown.

(11) @InkSptsGulliver
(3) @tweetsintheme

The heavyweights, battle of the beards. At one point, @inksptsgulliver was fighting a two-front war against @tweetsintheme and his proxy, the recently vanquished @daveedgr. In my judgment, @inksptsgulliver fought both his opponents to a draw, and since he was fighting two people, he gets my vote. @tweetsintheme’s consolation prize is acceptance to Columbia University’s PhD program so I think he’ll be okay. Congrats, Andrew

(7) @stephaniecarvin
(15) @lesley_warner

I didn’t start following @lesley_warner until I saw that I would be judging her. She was highly impressive. She even used cupcakes (!!) against her opponent. And she put a DoD press release in my feed announcing the Marine’s lieutenant general officer assignments. Combined with @stephaniecarvin’s concession at the end of the night, @lesley_warner moves into the Sweet Sixteen, a Cinderella story.

Southwest

@CrispinBurke

They’re both talented and knowledgeable; and though Abu Aardvark’s expertise is more specified, Laura’s background gives her a broader knowledge base is more broad. Still, Abu Aardvark has the necessary snark to put him over the top. Laura Rozen? Well, she’s become a respectable journalist

Winner: @AbuAardvark

@dan_e_solo

Alas, the Hebraic celebration of the pascal lamb, or something, limited today’s Twitter Fight Club adjudicating; I found myself down to the proverbial wire, streaming TFC contestant feeds for missed bribes, discreet baby photos, and Instagrammed versions of the Passover meal. Prior to the Thrilling 34′s kickoff, I specified the terms of my support: babies, Passover jokes, tweets in poetic form (haikus, rap couplets, excerpted sonnets), and food porn. By this criteria, which is the best criteria, y’all better recognize, the Southwestern field lacked substance, style, and panache. The field’s poor performance notwithstanding, let’s take a qualitative, process-traced peak at each matchup.

(1) @blakehounshell vs. (8) max_fisher

Let’s be real: this matchup was a non-event. I mean that colloquially, as well as epistemologically: it’s difficult to know, at a very fundamental level, whether Blake Hounshell, that wizard of the baby photo, and Max Fisher, a bearded ninja of aggregated foreign policy analysis, actually acknowledge TFC’s existence. This is all well and good, as they’re much too successful for our lowly potshots, but their epistemic emptiness leaves the committed TFC spectator with a deep, pervasive sense of melancholy. As far as TFC is concerned, Blake and Max’s exchanges read like a Samuel Beckett play, if Samuel Beckett had written a Dan Harmon Community episode:

Blake: Ah, yes, a yoghurt baby.

Max: Pfft. Leonard, what say you?

Leonard: Pfft.

Blake: Yoghurt, yes, Kurds.

All in all, though, I suspect Blake’s @DavidYHounshell’s “parody” account, a transparent attempt to subtweet a TFC victory, takes the cake. One day, Blake will be unseated, but this will not be that day. Victor: @blakehounshell.

(5) @speechboy71 vs. (4) emptywheel

In contrast to the top-seed context, @speechboy71, the pugilistic Michael Cohen, vs. @emptywheel, Marcy Wheeler’s intrepid avatar, is a bit harder to judge. Ultimately, any qualitative analysis carries a normative bias, and value-based judgments are, to a certain extent, inevitable. If you read my feed, I’m transparently a Yankee, both in sports affiliation (1998 was my first season-of-interest) and in my perspectives towards the sub-Mason-Dixon. As far as I can tell, @emptywheel was tweeting from eastern Kentucky, where I never hope to visit.

Meanwhile, she tossed barbs at @speechboy71 for enjoying a New York birthday dinner, the menu of which included a halibut dish with truffles, Yukon gold potatoes, and leeks. I spent the past week enjoying a filet mignon of horse from Montreal’s Joe Beef, so color me unimpressed by @emptywheel’s vitriolic screed. Victor, on culinary grounds: @speechboy71.

(11) @JasonFritz1 vs. (14) @khanserai

Another toughie, which included more baby photos than the last two, but focused too much on @khanserai’s allegedly fabricated facial hair. I appreciated @JasonFritz1′s variety, which managed to swing between the varied poles of Twitter Awesome. “Oh, a NYRB thought-piece on religious secularism? LET ME TOSS IT AT @KHANSERAI LIKE A SUPER SMASH BROS. CAPSULE.” No big deal, as they say. If the Southwestern round, in general, lacked reflections of Twitter’s artistic capabilities, @JasonFritz1′s tweets were the closest thing to it: there’s something inherently majestic about an Army vet who, after tweeting a baby photo, drops “hirsute” like it’s everybody’s business. Also, @JasonFritz1′s “bowties are cool” moment. Despite @khanserai’s indispensable commentary on countering violent extremism, the victor is clear: @JasonFritz1.

(10) @lrozen vs. (2) @abuaardvark

To paraphrase Damian, they don’t even go here!

With that said, victor: @lrozen, who tweeted about Passover, even if she’s wrong on kugel.

@dianawueger

(1) blakehounshell
(8) max_fisher

While I do appreciate that Blake brought Waffle Day to my attention, he brought it to my attention on the day I am should be tossing all leavened products from my house. Fail. And the side of his head is sorta blurry in his avatar; clean it up, hippie.

Max, on the other hand, made me less afraid of North Korea AND has a serious beard. Also Blake admitted to being a stupid head, and to his TFC opponent no less:

Clearly, Blake is not ready for TFC primetime. Also he beat me in TFC12. It’s been a year in the making, but VENGEANCE IS FINALLY MINE! Ish.

(5) speechboy71
(4) emptywheel

Blergh I don’t know. There’s a cute kid and a bulldog, and there’s a lady saying blowjob on the teevee, and somebody was promising bourbon and now it’s 9:37p and I have no bribebourbon (bribourbon?) so I’m giving this one to the bulldog. I like bulldogs. Also, @speechboy71 follows me and neither @emptywheel or her sidekick do, so I’m pretty sure that bourbon isn’t forthcoming, and there’s nothing I like less than unfulfilled promises of bourbon.

(11) jasonfritz1
(14) khanserai

This was the only match worth watching today. This was delightful, almost on par with the truly epic last round of #TFC11, except nobody promised me a pony and a gun this time.

Okay. Judging. I guess that’s what I’m here for. Let’s get down to brass tacks here and talk about what matters in Twitterfightclub: facial hair. It’s like this is the only pair in this entire division that gets it. Behold!

This is an unsolvable matrix of beardy greatness. Except for that top right corner, which, let me repeat:

But the bottom right makes up for it. But JFritz’s concrete beard had me laughing inappropriately loudly every time I looked at it. So conflicted! Even Jason’s baby doesn’t know who to pick:

But y’know, @khanserai really pulled all out the stops today and throughout #TFC13, and I gotta respect that. There were more than a few low blows, and some serious dedication to picking fights with otherwise-placid opponents. And isn’t that what twitterfighting is all about? The rest of the field could take some tips from this lady. But let’s all stick with concrete beards in the future, shall we? Much obliged.

(10) lrozen
(2) abuaardvark

Ugh, I can’t. @abuaardvark didn’t even show up today. It’s like he’s on vacation or something.

Yes. Yes, I am jealous, and also I found @lrozen’s tweets today rather useful. So point to Rozen. I guess. Whatever, I’m getting cheese fries.

(and but seriously, can we just have a JFritz/HKhan rematch next round? kthx.)

@ForbesMM

(1) @blakehounshell vs. (8) @max_fisher

A slow start from these two heavyweights. The only acknowledgement that TFC13 was even going on was a couple of half-hearted replies to the endorsement of @blakehounshell by Twitterfighting mercenary @AbuMuqawamaPMC. But it was @Max Fisher who struck first (sort of): while largely ignoring the competition, he did come on strong with a not-so-humblebrag about his own influence:

And we all know how high TIME’s standards are for this sort of thing.

Shameless self-promotion IS a core value in the TFC tradition, so two points for Max there.

I almost called this low-scoring round on the spot, but then @blakehounshell came back with a hard one-two punch: a cute kid picture combined with some straight-to-the-point smack-talk:

Oh, that’s just … graphic.

Unbeatable combo. This round goes to @blakehounshell.

(5) @speechboy71 vs. (4) @emptywheel

At least there was some head-to-head twitterfighting in this matchup in which the competitors actually acknowledged both each other and the existence of the tournament. That fact alone was almost enough to make me ignore the otherwise mild nature of the slap-fight between these two … but then it turned out that they were fighting over who hated the Yankees more, which is like arguing over who hates going to the dentist more: sure, everyone agrees with you, but it’s justzzzzzzzzzzzzz … And then the “fight” drifted into who was a True Detroit Lions fan andzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz …

In the end, this one was something of a toss-up. In fact, I was going to come up with some silly and arbitrary factor like making a joke about how @speechboy71’s Twitter handle sounds like a high school junior’s Hotmail address from 1997. Luckily, @emptywheel saved me from having to do that (and you from having to read it) by teaming up with @bmaz in the late afternoon to engage in some flagrantly overt bribery. I’m not above admitting that I can be bought, and at least she made an effort. Easy winner: @emptywheel.

(11) @JasonFritz1 vs. (14) @khanserai

Despite claiming the handicap of having to attend an all-day conference during Round 2 (or DID she??), @khanserai started off very strong, throwing down the gauntlet by reprising her successful Round 1 tactic of providing TFC13 voters with a convenient Top Ten list of reasons to vote for her. Shameless self-promotion and pandering? Check and check. Better still was @khanserai’s judo-like flipping of @JasonFritz1’s strengths-going so far as to use his own newborn daughter against him. That is ice cold.

Slow. Clap.

Fritz almost-almost!-won me over by cleverly drawing me into a conversation about tanks (well played), and by going big when the bout weirdly turned to imaginary facial hair …

To be fair, that is one glorious fake beard.

… but this round has to go to @khanserai.

(10) @lrozen vs. (2) @abuaardvark

Eking out a Round 1 victory by the sheer weight of popular votes from his 20,000+ followers, @abuaardvark was a complete no-show for Round 2. And sorry, I don’t want to hear lame-ass excuses like “I’m on vacation in Italy” or “I don’t have internet access.” Tough luck, dude. Gotta play to win. Not that there was much direct engagement activity from @lrozen either, but at least she tweeted something. Solidifying this judge’s vote, @lrozen tweeted and translated a couple news items in Russian-and I’m a sucker for foreign languages, so there you have it.

@rejectionking

@blakehounsell—His tweets are a good of FP mag and non FP mag, and seems to always tweets stories that are in depth and fun to read.

@speechboy71—I made my decision primarily on charisma. I just like the pictures of the baby with bulldogs, mixed in with insightful tweets.

@JasonFritz1— I find myself relying on him for insights about civ-mil relations and how they work in the US. Also I’m a closet CvC minutiae fan.

@lrozen- Her tweets are always a mix of insight, policy granularity, and she is always receptive to up and comers.

Welcome to round two of TFC13! After a wild and crowded start, we are settling in to the heart of the tournament this week. The second round will play out today and tomorrow, and by Friday, we will have our Final Four!

In the second round, there are five judges for each ‘region.’ The panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote, with each judge representing 10% of the overall total. The other 50% is based on the popular vote via the public polls below, so make sure to cast your votes! The judging panels for today are as follows:

Northwest

@AthertonKD
@Doctrine_Man
@dohoBOB
@JDanaStuster
@wjrue

Southwest

@CrispinBurke
@Dan_e_Solo
@dianawueger
@forbesmm
@rejectionking

Today’s matches include a Washington Post/Foreign Policy showdown between @max_fisher and @blakehounshell, a killer matchup of Think Progress young guns @zackbeauchamp and @hayesbrown, and upstart 15 seed @lesley_warner’s second shot at an upset. The judges will be deciding half of the scores; you’ll be deciding the rest! Vote now!

Northwest

Southwest

None of our first-round upsets went completely unpredicted, but nor did anyone have a perfect run in round one prognostication. Still a tight field after one round, expect more separation as the week progresses.

	Round One	Round Two	Sweet 16	Elite Eight	Final Four	Final	Total
@seucT	22						22
@HerbCarmen	23						23
@thecamelsnose	23						23
@RogueAdventurer	23						23
@Sandra_Woy	23						23
@MichaelStone	21						21
@MikeTalley73	26						26
@nebarkley6	23						23
@milaficent	23						23
@smsaideman	23						23
@intelwire	26						26
@azelin	23						23
@strangestrings	25						25
@pcdisney	21						21
@MarkfromArk	26						26
@anniesperson	20						20
@astridhka	21						21
@emptywheel	26						26
@JDanaStuster	20						20
@DaveedGR	20						20
@walt_sa	19						19
@minglishmuffin	20						20
@LeoAdrien	17						17
@johnsonr	22						22
@rejectionking	23						23
@AngelaConner	23						23
@AthertonKD	19						19
@drjjoyner	25						25
@ctn767	24						24

After an exhausting two-day melee, all the votes have been tabulated, the judges’ ballots have been counted, and 32 contestants are back to twitterfighting for the sheer love of the game, hopes of glory crushed by their competitors. A handful of upsets - one or two quite unexpected - and even more whisper-close contests populated this opening round. Without further ado, to the results!

Northwest

**1) @texasinafrica 81% 3 votes
16) @lwscaustralia 19% 1 votes

There was a lot of love for the Australian underdog, but in the end the overall number one seed advances handily.

2) @DaveedGR 62% 1 votes
**15) @lesley_warner 38% 3 votes

In probably the biggest upset of the round, despite @DaveedGR’s healthy edge in the popular vote, @lesley_warner takes this one thanks to a strong showing with the judges.

**3) @tweetsintheme 64% 4 votes
14) @rockrichard 36%

@tweetsintheme would have been in good position based on the popular vote, but doesn’t even need it after he runs the table with the judges.

**4) @zackbeauchamp 70% 4 votes
13) @zoonpolitikon 30%

The judges spoke highly of @zoonpolitikon, but in the end they all went with @zackbeauchamp to give him an easy win.

**5) @hayesbrown 73% 4 votes
12) @FranTownsend 27%

There was much respect for @FranTownsend, but @hayesbrown’s closer attention to the competition was too much to overcome.

6) @mattduss 34% 1 votes
**11) @InkSptsGulliver 66% 3 votes

A tough call for many to make, but in the end @InkSptsGulliver gets the edge with most of them and takes the match.

**7) @stephaniecarvin 63% 4 votes
10) @bungdan 37%

@stephaniecarvin pulls out all the stops - snark, proxies, actual content, cupcakes, a band of minions - to make sure her opponent never has a chance.

**8) @drfarls 37% 3 votes
9) @Ali_Gharib 63% 1 vote

In the closest match of the round (by a hair), @drfarls just squeaks by popular favorite @Ali-Gharib on the strength of a better showing with the judges.

Northeast

1) @intelwire 80% 2 votes
16) @forbesmm 20% 2 votes

The judges were split, but the popular vote gave @intelwire a comfortable victory.

**2) @attackerman 87% 2 votes
15) @DzirhanDefence 13% 2 votes

@attackerman dominated the popular vote to overcome a judging split.

**3) @astridhka 54% 3 votes
14) @dan_e_solo 46% 1 votes

In one of the most entertaining contests of the day, @astridhka gets a slight advantage in the popular vote and a strong advantage in the judging to take the day.

**4) @SlaughterAM 51% 2 votes
13) @Allison_Good1 49% 2 votes

This one is about as close as it gets! A tie with the judges, and a mere five votes between them in the popular polls, but @SlaughterAM just squeaks by @Allison_Good1.

**5) @chrisalbon 76% 1 votes
12) @PeterRNeumann 24% 3 votes

Another fingernail-close result with @PeterRNeumann taking 75% of the judges’ votes, but @chrisalbon winning out with 76% of the public vote.

6) @Doctrine_Man 56% 1 votes
**11) @JimmySky 44% 3 votes

@Doctrine_Man pulls ahead in the popular vote, but @JimmySky’s advantage with the judges wins the contest for him.

7) @AthertonKD 53% 1 votes
**10) @elsnarkistani 47% 3 votes

A tough match-up as I don’t think anyone wanted to see either of these guys going down in the first round, but @elsnarkistani overcomes @AthertonKD’s slender popular lead by taking three of the four judges’ votes.

**8) @BFriedmanDC 66% 4 votes
9) @trdeghett 34%

A show of strength in the first round as @BFriedmanDC cruises to a comfortable victory.

Southeast

**1) @adamserwer 75% 2 votes
16) @zaidjilani 25% 2 votes

@adamserwer’s popular edge gives him the win here despite a split judging panel.

**2) @joshuafoust 64% 4 votes
15) @rejectionking 36%

A strong opening for @joshuafoust as he gets past @rejectionking with a popular advantage and all four judges.

**3) @azelin 77% 2 votes
14) @dohoBOB 23% 2 votes

The newcomer manages to split the judging panel, but @azelin’s larger follower count surely helped him build a strong advantage in the popular vote.

**4) @gregorydjohnsen 61% 3 votes
13) @ArminRosen 39% 1 vote

Much respect was given to @ArminRosen’s twitterfighting game, but in the end @gregorydjohnsen won the match comfortably on both measures.

**5) @smsaideman 71% 2 votes
12) @EvansRyan202 29% 2 votes

Another split judging panel, but @smsaideman pulls it out with a strong popular advantage.

**6) @naheedmustafa 44% 4 votes
11) @charlie_simpson 56%

A sweep of the judges gets @naheedmustafa the win over @charlie_simpson.

**7) @johnsonr 64% 3 votes
10) @JDanaStuster 36% 1 vote

It’s a strong start for @johnsonr as she gets past a tough competitor with ease.

@laurenist 71% 1 votes
**9) @drjjoyner 29% 3 votes

@laurenist dominates the popular vote, but it’s not enough to overcome @drjjoyner’s edge with the judges.

Southwest

**1) @blakehounshell 72% 3 votes
16) @jasminchill 28% 1 votes

@blakehounshell cruises past the tournament newcomer with strong showings in the judging and the popular vote.

**2) @abuaardvark 84% 1 votes
15) @thebaseleg 16% 3 votes

@thebaseleg manages to take three of four judges’ votes, but @abuaardvark’s dominance in the popular vote means one judge is enough.

3) @AzmatZahra 44% 2 votes
**14) @khanserai 56% 2 votes

A split panel, but @khanserai gave voters enough reasons to vote for her and give her the edge.

**4) @emptywheel 72% 4 votes
13) @mkoplow 28%

@emptywheel opens strong with a popular vote win and all four judges.

**5) @speechboy71 66% 4 votes
12) @drjohnhorgan 34%

A comfortable victory for @speechboy71 as he takes all four judges’ votes and two thirds of the popular vote.

6) @shephardm 42% 2 votes
**11) @JasonFritz1 58% 2 votes

@JasonFritz1 caps off a big week with a win here on the strength of a small popular-vote advantage.

7) @JeffreyGoldberg 33% 2 votes
**10) @lrozen 67% 2 votes

@lrozen takes two thirds of the popular vote, giving her the edge with another split judging panel.

**8) @max_fisher 72% 2 votes
9) @andrew_zammit 28% 2 votes

@max_fisher’s greater followership takes the day with yet another split judging panel.

And now to your judges’ ballots!

Northwest

@hemlockmartinis

(1) @texasinafrica vs. (16) @lwscaustralia

Nothing like a good ol’-fashioned Huntington-esque clash of continents to start off Twitter Fight Club. When I was in college and definitely not under 21, my dorkier friends and I would play a version of Risk whereby we had to drink every time we lost a territory. Due to Australia’s defensibility, the player lucky enough to capture it early almost always won by default (we never actually finished an entire game). With a strategic environment like that, could @lwscaustralia stage the upset to end all upsets?

Dr. Seay is from Texas, but I won’t hold it against her. And despite the glaring geographic error in her Twitter handle – Texas isn’t even in Africa! – @texasinafrica knows her way around both. With only 140 characters apiece, she brings clarity and insight to a complex region known for endemic lawlessness, cultural backwardness, and strongmen-led regimes. Her tweets on Africa aren’t half-bad either. Cinderella story denied.

Winner: @texasinafrica.

(2) @DaveedGR vs. (15) @lesley_warner

There’s nothing more American than an underdog, which is ironic given the United States’ current six-and-a-half decade reign as a superpower. Despite being only a #15 seed, @lesley_warner has the endorsement of both the #1 seed AND the #2 seed in the Northwest – an impressive feat considering the #2 seed is her opponent @DaveedGR. Consensus like that leads to one inescapable conclusion.

Winner: @lesley_warner

(3) @tweetsintheME vs. (14) @rockrichard

In French, the English verb “to know” can be translated in two ways. “Connaître” is used when one knows something with familiarity: i.e., “I know that restaurant” or “I know her from school”. “Savoir” is used when one knows a fact or knows how to do something: i.e., “I know that George Washington was the first president” or “I know how to ride a bike”. In all things Sahel, @tweetsintheME knows the people, places, organizations, and events. But his keen insight into the region as a whole, cultivated from academic study and personal experience, made his Twitter feed as indispensible during the year-long Malian crisis as Edward Murrow’s radio broadcasts from London during the Blitz.

Winner: @tweetsintheME.

(4) @zackbeauchamp vs. (13) @zoonpolitikon

@zoonpolitikon tweets in what appears to be twelve different languages, most of them vaguely Germanic-looking – I only speak English and French so I have to guess – which is an impressive feat. Seriously, try tweeting a few things in a language other than English and watch your followers melt away. I can only read half his tweets, but given his following he must be doing something right with the other half too. The conclusion, and my vote choice, seemed self-evident.

Then I remembered that his opponent spent most of last Saturday live-tweeting birthers and neo-Confederates at CPAC. His weekend died so that our nation might live. Thus, in a larger sense, I cannot dedicate – I cannot consecrate – I cannot hallow – this bracket. The sacrifice made by @zackbeauchamp has already done that – far above my poor power to add or subtract.

Winner: @zackbeauchamp.

(5) @HayesBrown vs. (12) @FranTownsend

Don’t let the seeding fool you: this is a clash of titans. How good is @FranTownsend at Twitter? She started following me a good six months before anyone else in this bracket. Only a real Twitter pro could identify a rising star that quickly. On the other hand, a single Saturday morning retweet by @HayesBrown turned my pre-election parody account from an unnoticed weekend pursuit into the subject of a Washington Post article. The man clearly knows how to find high-quality content, tosay nothing of his ability to produce it. (The top one’s my favorite.) He’s also far more prolific on Twitter, with over 28,000 tweets to her 7,400. @FranTownsend could probably catch up easily – if she weren’t so busy regularly appearing on CNN and advising presidents of the United States on homeland security and counterterrorism, that is.

Winner: @HayesBrown

(6) @mattduss vs. (11) @InkSptsGulliver

This isn’t called Twitter Fight Club for nothing. @InkSptsGulliver’s feed is filled with sharp, incisive debates on the philosophy of war, U.S. military doctrines, the writings of Clausewitz, and everything in between. @mattduss is a top-notch analyst with a strong Twitter presence, but tenacity and pugilism bring it home for the low seed.

Winner: @InkSptsGulliver.

(7) @stephaniecarvin vs. (10) @bungdan

@bungdan’s Twitter presence is almost three times greater than @stephaniecarvin’s, with 34,000 tweets to 12,000 and 7,100 followers to 2,300, respectively. This might seem formidable until you realize that @stephaniecarvin is in Ottawa – a city far to the north, if you’re unfamiliar with the lands beyond the Wall – so her followers and tweets are tabulated in metric. Once converted into imperial, the match-up’s almost even. What’s the tie-breaker? Only one of these people is a self-described “cupcake artist.”

Winner: @stephaniecarvin.

@drfarls vs. (9) @Ali_Gharib

Despite the seeds, or perhaps because of them, this has been one of the more high-intensity match-ups so this year, with a ferocity resembling the intractable campaigns on the Eastern Front. Even in the opening salvos, @Ali_Gharib wasn’t afraid to make it personal and @drfarls wasn’t afraid to respond in kind. So like some Newtonian model, every hit landed was met withan equal and opposite reaction by the other for the past forty-eight hours. Even the harshest of counterattacks failed to bluntthe opponent’s momentum. Were this contest to be judged on merits beyond Twitter, @Ali_Gharib would have triumphed with this coup de grace. As it stands, however, deference must be paid to the higher-ranked seed who withstood the barrage over the lower-ranked seed who failed to break through.

Winner: @drfarls.

@juliaaberman

(1) @texasinafrica
(16) @lwscaustralia
You can DQ me for being biased if you want on this one. I never had a prayer. Laura was why I joined Twitter, plus she did a #hirejulia for me (during TFC cause she’s wiley), but in general her interactions and presence are unparalleled. She came to play. I did like LWS’s fake RTs a lot, but… no contest to me.

(2) @DaveedGR
(15)@lesley_warner
Leslie Knope references from Lesley. This was close, they were both very engaged with TFC and funny, but I felt like Daveed’s series of tweets about how people with tons of followers can’t engage as much with TCF at risk of alienation, followed by “I promise not to clog up my feed too much with TFC,” was a little… snobby? I dunno, it rubbed me the wrong way. BUT day II he killed it. And Oregonian. SO HARD. Still Lesley in the end, mostly bc her content tends to be more up my ally. By a nose.

(3) @tweetsintheme
(14) @rockrichard
I was leaning the other way, but Richard’s Thurs am twitter fight with Jake Tapper put me off… Not that he didn’t have points, but he was aggressive and repetitive and it lasted way too long. Andrew’s OpSec/deception loop joking with @AbuMuqawamaPMC was great too. Two of the best, though.

(4)@zackbeauchamp
(13) @zoonpolitikon
I liked the sass between them and zoonpolitikon did great with GIFs and pics, but I really do want to see Zack and Hayes face off, and Zack was a little more involved overall.

(5) @hayesbrown
(12) @FranTownsend
Way better engagement with TFC, global health pandering, which I liked, trashing Leno, which i love. Tried to bribe me and other judges, while we got no engagement from Fran. She also had a bs Benghazi tweet Thurs am soooo.

(6) @mattduss
(11) @InkSptsGulliver
Meh, this was underwhelming. It’s a total toss-up for me, which means Matt live tweeted Obama’s Israel speech and therefore won it with:

(7) @stephaniecarvin
(10) @bungdan
I do what Dan Drezner says. She livetweeted her parents too, and was responsive and engaged - so was Dan, but this tweet of her to him in particular charmed me:

(8) @drfarls
(9) @Ali_Gharib
Awesome banter and tweets, this one was really close for me. I couldn’t decide until @richganske did his feats of strength. Best exchange:

@richganske

Twitter Fight Club is a game of violence, exclusion, and degradation and the northwest bracket did not disappoint in this first round. The nature of Twitter Fight Club has always hinged upon selecting cunning allies, specifically, the bigger, stronger Twitterati for the purpose of ganging up and eliminating the weaker Twitterati.

No sooner had the opening bell rung when these stalwart sixteen begun their dizzying Machiavellian maneuvers: @texasinafrica joined forces with @stephaniecarvin, @hayesbrown became confederate with @zackbeauchamp, @mattduss collaborated with @rockrichard, and @ali_gharib enlisted the aid of @mattduss, all while @texasinafrica also aligned up with @lesley_warner.

While I find nothing shocking about the tendency to cooperate towards a common goal, I was shocked that it was not more discriminate. I anticipated a web of entanglements weaved not within the same regional bracket but rather on outside help although that did occur (I’m looking at you @brettfriedman). One thing is certain; there is no fear in this bracket for the strategic dangers of how said alliances might fall apart when the temptation of the immediate gain is apparent.

What do the entanglements of the first round alliances mean for round two?

My judgments:

#1 @texasinafrica vs #16 @lwscaustralia
I did not follow the Land Warfare Studies Center previously, but the @lwscaustralia focuses broadly upon the continent’s security concerns and not just upon “exploring land combat.” I was very glad to see their tweets include PTSD and cyberwarfare.

Laura Seay is a professor at Morehouse College, and while she’s not otherwise occupied in educating her students on state failure and conflict, she’s laying current Africa knowledge on the rest of us.

Verdict: @texasinafrica
Overall, @texasinafrica overwhelmed her opponent through multiple lines of operations of deception, counter-deception, and shadowy Marine intermediaries (@brettfriedman) that culminated while @lwscaustralia slept half a world away.

#2 @daveedgr vs #15 @lesley_warner
If you concern yourself with National Security and Foreign Policy, then you follow Daveed Gartenstein-Ross. While allegedly procrastinating on completing his dissertation, he leaps small buildings, saves kittens from trees, and has written Bin Laden’s Legacy.

I did not follow Lesley Warner previous to TFC13. With similar expertise as @texasinafrica, @lesley_warner is another great resource for current events and analysis on Africa.

Shocking verdict: @lesley_warner
In a closely contested match, with bare knuckle brawling, and cute baby pictures, the hummingbird @lesley_warner has upset @daveedgr’s drones. Perhaps there will be an all-Africa finale to the northwest bracket?

#3 @tweetsintheME vs #14 @rockrichard
Andrew Lebovich’s work on Twitter (@tweetsintheME) is well known to the NatSec/FoPo following.

Richard Smith was another previous unknown to me in TFC13. The focus of @rockrichard is his righteous accountability of veteran affairs.

Verdict: @tweetsintheME
This matchup was one of my top-two contests in this bracket’s first round (the other being @mattduss v. @inksptgulliver, see below). Both addressed the voting criteria quite evenly, in my opinion. My technical scoring shows them at a complete tie. Both do not follow me, so at the end of the round I subjected them both to feats of strength. Only Andrew Lebovich responded, so by technical knockout my points go to @tweetsintheME.

#4 @zackbeauchamp vs #13 @zoonpolitikon
Zack is one half of the TFC Brown/Beauchamp gang. Equal parts analysis and humor, @zackbeauchamp is a reporter for ThinkProgress and shares my Google Reader angst.

TFC created a pleasant introduction for me to Ali (@zoonpolitikon) who is a polyglot that tweets in English but blogs in German about international relations, and is a Doctor Who and BSG fan.

Verdict: @zackbeauchamp
Pleasantries aside @zackbeauchamp grabbed the initiative and never looked back. Will he face @hayesbrown in the next round? Will will be the cost to collective security should this strategic alliance fall apart in round two?

#5 @hayesbrown vs #12 @frantownsend
@hayesbrown is the other half of the TFC Brown/Beauchamp gang who, like @zackbeauchamp, reports for ThinkProgress.

Frances Townsend is a former presidential CT adviser and current CNN National Security contributor.

Verdict: @hayesbrown
While there is no questioning @frantownsend’s knowledge base and argumentation, @hayesbrown scored a perfect 10 on the technicals to presumably progress to the next round. If he and @zackbeauchamp meet next round then the first (of many?) alliances will crumble in this region.

#6 @mattduss vs #11 @inksptgulliver
Matt Duss is a policy analyst at the Center for American Progress and has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, BBC, FoxNews, and Al Jazeera as a contributor

Gulliver is an excellent Twitter resource for strategy, doctrine (especially Army doctrine), and CvC.

Photo-Finish: @inksptgulliver
With a similar level of performance as @hayesbrown, both @mattduss and @inksptgulliver tirelessly maintained a high level of output on Twitter in their own specific areas of expertise. And like @hayesbrown, I’ve graded both @mattduss and @inksptgulliver a perfect 10 on the technicals. In my mind, this was quietly the most competitive of all the matchups in this round. So the tiebreaker fell to the “most ridiculous interview questions” I could find on the internet for the Feats of Strength. @mattduss did not reply, so points to @inksptgulliver who replied that if he could be anyone living or dead, he would consider a golfing Clausewitz, a read Pappy Van Winkle, or a whiskey aficionado Tiger Woods. Well played sir.

#7 @stephaniecarvin vs #10 @bungdan
Stephanie Carvin is an International Relations professor, a cupcake artist, and knows what the hell an at-at is.

I cannot say what Dan Murphy does, who he is, or where he came from. I’ve become so confounded by @stephaniecarvin’s highly effective propaganda campaign… however, @bungdan does great military commentary and if he posts it about the Middle East, I read it.

Verdict: @stephaniecarvin
In the end, I’m in shock that Vermont has been ceded to Canada for its crucial maple syrup resources and random anagrams were too much for my feeble mind. I no longer know what is true and what is not. @stephaniecarvin gained my vote via the Two Minutes Hate.

#8 @drfarls vs #9 @ali_gharib
Robert Farley is a professor at the University of Kentucky. @drfarls also blogs at Lawyers, Guns & Money and is a regular contributor at The Diplomat on international affairs and seapower.

Ali Gharib is Middle East correspondent for The Daily Beast.

Photo Finish: @drfarls
There is something to be said for not letting TFC change your game and that’s commendable on @ali_gharib’s part. @drfarls clearly tweaked his style to match his judges. And despite the misgivings of @douhetNYT, the technicals support @drfarls gaining my vote. @drfarls helped himself pushing more airpower than usual through his feed the last two days, however, he almost tanked with his John Warden reference (#notafan).

@RogueAdventurer

(1) @texasinafrica vs. (16) @lwscaustralia

This seemed a pretty straightforward match at first, with @lwscaustralia missing a lot of the first day’s TFC fight time due to the ridiculous time difference (I should know, I’m on GMT+8). What looked like a dominant early performance from @texasinafrica had turned around by Thursday night (AUS time), as @lwscaustralia had clearly decided to take ‘work’ home with them and keep the brawl going. Both competitors covered a range of topics, from Afghanistan to China, and from Iron Dome to the conflict in Mali. Likewise, both competitors were frequently engaged with their audiences, with @texasinafrica even managing to rope in an endorsement from Grand Moff Friedman himself. Not to be outdone, @lwscaustralia… fabricated glowing support. I fully expected to award an easy win to @texasinafrica, having seen the ‘calibre’ of other official Aussie Army accounts before, but – by just a wallaby’s whisker – I have to award this one to @lwscaustralia.

Victor: @lwscaustralia

(2) @DaveedGR vs. (15) @lesley_warner

Both competitors seemed to ease into their match nicely, producing and sharing good content, and engaging with their followers and fellow competitors. Whilst @lesley_warner perhaps didn’t have the foresight to follow all of the judges, she put out some excellent links looking at Mali and South Sudan. There wasn’t too much political jockeying from either camp (no doubt @DaveedGR is saving his A game), though @lesley_warner went for the zombie angle, whilst @DaveedGR focused on his Twitterfight expertise. At the end of the day, @DaveedGR came out stronger in engagement and humour, claiming a clear – if not comfortable – victory.

Victor: @DaveedGR

(3) @tweetsintheme vs. (14) @rockrichard

As with previous matchups, it was excellent to see both duellists heavily engaged with their audiences and put out solid content. But really, it came down to Star Wars. My favourite exchange included the two following tweets, both showing solid analysis of the original trilogy:

@tweetsintheme: “endor was a key tactical staging ground and target site, but hardly a strategic re-orientation.”

@rockrichard: “But I think that Hoth is probably the best example of realignment of strategic priorities. Insurgency became non-kinetic.”

Whilst I’m not sure that the Rebel forces’ retreat to Hoth constituted a shift to a ‘non-kinetic insurgency’ (more like a staging ground for strategic, very much kinetic ops), both competitors had me chuckling. In the end, @tweetsintheme appeared to have a firmer grasp of Rebel insurgent strategy in the original trilogy, and gets my vote on that basis.

Victor: @tweetsintheme

(4) @zackbeauchamp vs. (13) @zoonpolitikon

Google Reader (or rather, its untimely demise) took up quite a chunk of @zackbeauchamp’s Tweet time, even discussing hisfriends’ reactions to the news, however his opponent was quick to point out that he was lagging behind the fast-paced medium of Twitter. @zoonpolitikon made an uninspiring, Dr Who-based appeal, but quickly realised his tactical error. Of course, he also decided he was best represented by Kermit the Frog. It seemed that the snark stakes had evened out in this match, and it came down to content. Both competitors produced a high volume of material, however @zackbeauchamp edged out by engaging with a number of followers on different tweets throughout the play period.

Victor: @zackbeauchamp

(5) @hayesbrown vs. (12) @FranTownsend

Unfortunately, @FranTownsend had only fired off a handful of tweets by the time I wrote these judgements up. I’d cut her a little slack for being on the news, but I managed to get to a TV studio and back in essentially the same time period. Whilst she hit back at @hayesbrown’s initial salvo, the follow-up was sadly lacking. So despite this little piece of snark directed my way, @hayesbrown scores an early victory from me.

Victor: @hayesbrown

(6) @mattduss vs. (11) @InkSptsGulliver

This was another surprising match, with neither competitor having been particularly prolific by the time I was writing these judgements. Nor had either of them used the #TFC13 hashtag, or engaged with each other in any way. I was certainly surprised by @InkSptsGulliver, who I have followed for quite some time and know to be proficient at the art of Twitterfighting. In the end, @InkSptsGulliver snuck in a few more on-point tweets, and won out.

Victor: @InkSptsGulliver

(7) @stephaniecarvin vs. (10) @bungdan

@stephaniecarvin and @bungdan each managed an excellent balance of useful tweets, audience engagement, and traded barbs. @stephaniecarvin pointed out that ‘bungdan’ is an anagram of ‘band gnu’, apparently indicating @bungdan advocated a ban on gnus. Somehow, that turned into this horrible YouTube video. However, whilst @bungdan’s quips were a little unimaginative at times, @stephaniecarvin’s were spot-on, old school Twitterfight bombs, twisting her opponent’s words to suit her own purposes.

Victor: @stephaniecarvin

(8) @drfarls vs. (9) @Ali_Gharib

The final match of the Northwest Round saw a solid scrap between @drfarls and @Ali_Gharib, who was quick to claim editorial dominance over @drfarls’ recent writing. An early endorsement for @drfarls came from @AbuMuqawamaPMC, with @Ali_Gharib questioning the use of mercenaries. Of course, there are no rules in Twitter Fight Club. He learned fast though, and when @drfarls tried to paint him as a cartoon villain, @Ali_Gharib hit back in classic TFC style. @drfarls threw in anappeal to one of the bracket judges, which is always a wise move, but it wasn’t enough to save him in my eyes.

Victor: @Ali_Gharib

Northeast

@jasonmrobertson

1) @intelwire vs 16) @forbesmm
My first thought upon looking at the bracket was that @forbesmm was woefully underseeded. I also think @intelwire was slightly overseeded, but who am I to judge? Oh wait, a judge. Aside from the many substantial reasons I could waste your time with, I’m giving this round to @forbesmm because a) he’s Army (go Army!), b) he bought me beers once, and c) who doesn’t love an upset? (Also, he’s extremely quick-witted for a Major, which cannot be discounted.)

Pick: @forbesmm

@BFriedmanDC vs 9) @trdeghett
@BFriedmanDC: Extremely smart and witty (good), but also a Marine (ehhhhh). @trdeghett: New to me, but professes to like Arabic rap, and that’s pretty awesome. I’m gonna have to go with what I know here though. @BFriedmanDC’s body of work is pretty tough to overcome.

Pick: @BFriedmanDC

5) @chrisalbon vs 12) @PeterRNeumann
Hmm, another battle of higher-seeded known vs. lower-seeded unknown. Why do you do this to me, Caitlin? On day 1, @PeterRNeumann hit a home run when he managed to lump Bashar al-Assad in with Rand Paul. He’s good. @chrisalbon has a solid body of work, but didn’t really bring it on day 1 of TFC13. The dreaded 12-5 upset strikes Twitterfightclub!

Pick: @PeterRNeumann

4) @SlaughterAM vs 13) @Allison_Good1
@SlaughterAM is a powerhouse. @Allison_Good1 is a Louisianan. Dilemma… I’m not gonna lie though, I haven’t seen a whole lot of @SlaughterAM lately, and since this is Twitterfightclub, I’ve got to go with the better twitterer.

Pick: @Allison_Good1

6) @Doctrine_Man vs 11) JimmySky
Army vs. Air Force? No contest. But even aside from that, @Doctrine_Man just gets me.

Pick: @Doctrine_Man

3) @astridhka vs 14) dan_e_solo
Oof. @dan_e_solo is gonna have a hard time overcoming the Backstreet Boys admission. Also, @astridhka pretty much smacked @dan_e_solo around with the maps, and I love the maps.

Pick: @astridhka

7) @AthertonKD vs 10) @elsnarkistani
@AthertonKD’s Louisiana ties should help him, but then again he went to Tulane, so it’s pretty much a wash on that count. On the other hand, Blog Tarkin is pretty awesome. @elsnarkistani…well, snark. Pretty much the whole reason Twitter exists. And he’s a vet, so I’m biased again. Damn, this is a tough one.

Pick: @elsnarkistani

2) @attackerman vs 15) @DzirhanDefence
FINALLY an easy one. (Relatively.) @attackerman is a Twitter rockstar, and deservedly so. He’s pretty badass over at Wired, too. Also, see previous comment re: snark.

Pick: @attackerman

@jeffemanuel

(1) @intelwire
(16) @ForbesMM
This would have been a tough matchup to judge had @ForbesMM been up against pretty much anybody else. However, @intelwire is an absolute force on twitter: a high-volume news source who also provides deep, relevant analysis of events, both past and in-progress. Though I think @ForbesMM deserves better than a first-round out, @intelwire has to get my vote here.

(2) @attackerman
(15) @DzirhanDefence
I can see one of the Young Turks in this competition taking out @attackerman down the road, but on name ID alone he’ll probably sail through this round. That being said, while enjoy his feed (and while the Danger Room crew is fun to read), I have to go for the underdog here. @dzirhandefence provides excellent twitter content daily, and he gets my vote here against the Goliath that is @attackerman.

(3) @astridhka
(14) @dan_e_solo
Two folks who know Africa, and who are prolific (and fun to read) tweeters? This is a tough one to call, but as Africa grows on the developed world’s radar (for more reasons than just minerals this time), I have to go with the tweeter here who is covering that regularly. My vote goes to @dan_e_solo.

(4) @SlaughterAM
(13) @Allison_Good1
This is a very tough matchup between two people who “get” the medium, yet use it very differently. While both are very interesting, I think @SlaughterAM‘s body of work as a whole on twitter has earned her the right to advance to Round 2.

(5) @chrisalbon
(12) @PeterRNeumann
Have I mentioned that this is a tough quadrant of the bracket to judge yet? I enjoy both @chrisalbon and @PeterRNeumann’s feeds immensely, even if the former has lost a little volume since transitioning from “graduate student” to “guy with an actual job.” I can’t help but think how much fun later rounds would be with myriad Frontline (nee Conflict) Kitchen Appliance accounts advocating for @chrisalbon; however, based on the recent activity in their respective feeds, I have to go with @PeterRNeumann here.

(6) @Doctrine_Man
(11) @JimmySky
What’s that word I keep using? Oh, right: tough. Both of these guys are great tweeters, and they both bring great knowledge to the NatSec conversation. This is so difficult I literally changed my mind a half dozen times while writing this sentence, but I have to cast a vote, so it goes to….@jimmysky.

(7) @AthertonKD
(10) @elsnarkistani
Definitely two of the most fun feeds in this space, and another one where I changed my mind several times when it came down to decision time. It seems like there’s a pattern to my picks today; other than @intelwire, @slaughteram, and (spoiler alert!) @BFriedmanDC, I appear to be in pick-the-underdog mode, and that continues here. @athertonkd deserves better than to lose in the first round (and I’m guessing he won’t), but @elsnarkistani gets the vote. Man was this a tough one to decide.

(8) @BFriedmanDC
(9) @trdeghett
I don’t know if 8 vs 9 counts as a real underdog vs favored matchup, but this is one of the few cases where I went with the higher-seeded individual. @trgeghett provides a lot of quality content in her feed, but the insight and experience @BFriedmanDC brings to twitter is tough to beat. He gets the vote.

@petulantskeptic

I was a judge last year for TFC. I think, maybe it was the year before that, I’m honestly not sure. While I may not be sure of that, I am sure of this: I was shocked when I read this year’s judging guidelines. I’m pretty sure that there were no judging guidelines in past TFCs and I think the competition was better for this, I firmly believe in the [find amendment number later] Amendment right of all Americans to judge other people based on whatever capricious whim suits them.

Anyhow, the guidance I received was (along with a laundry list of recommended “metrics” and other such nonsense), “We also reserve the right to throw out any ballots that don’t at least make some attempt at objectivity.” Well, since this is all pretty serious business I don’t want my ballot thrown out so I’ve attempted to get some objective data from the competitors. If TFC were about readily available objective data it wouldn’t be in any fun because it would be Klout. To that end I asked the tweeps in my division for their weight. Here’s what happened

(1) intelwire vs (16) ForbesMM
While @intelwire‘s feed is a treasure trove of links regarding foreign policy and national security Google Reader still exists (though he does get kudos for his prescient vision of its demise). He also seems to be hiding something because when I asked for some objective measures to use in judging my region he obfuscated. When queried more directly his response was unsettling (1).

Meanwhile, laboring in somewhat more obscure corners of twitter @ForbesMM‘s feed does not resemble Google Reader (which, for now, is a point in his favor, though he also loses a point for lack of the foresight that his opponent has clearly demonstrated in filling this soon-to-be empty niche). @ForbesMM also raises a good point about his opponent’s views on Twitter Fight Club: Does @intelwire believe the Twitter Fight Club to be spam? It would seem so, and from his continued evasions it becomes harder and harder to not jump to conclusions and vote for his opponent.

The final deciding factor however was that @intelwire not only made a poor decision by using an unconventional and confusing hashtag throughout the first day’s competition (and continued, Rumsfeldian, defending this mistake until its ignominy was clear to all) (a). Complementing this was the objective data that @ForbesMM weighs 5.87×10^28 AU, we have no such objective information about @intelwire.

Decision: @ForbesMM

(8) BFriedmanDC vs (9) trdeghett
I’m not familiar with both of these competitors, only with @BFriedmanDC, who I see here as criminally underrated. Additionally a perusal of @trdeghett‘s feed does not reveal much in the way of “Twitter Fighting” whereas @BFriedmanDC has multiple grudges and regularly antagonizes the IAVA crew for their inexplicable dislike of Shinseki. If they would just come out and say that they’re still bitter about the whole “berets for everyone thing” it would probably resolve a lot of issues. It must be noted that @trdeghett did answer my call for objective data with something sort of resembling an answer.

Decision: @BFriedmanDC

(5) chrisalbon vs (12) PeterRNeumann
Chris is married to a pediatrician. I’m going to be a pediatrician in about 3 months. Game. Set. Match.

Decision: @chrisalbon

(4) SlaughterAM vs (13) Allison_Good1
Not only has @Allison_Good1 brought the heat as far as entertainment goes (objectively speaking) during TFC13 her opponent has no idea what it is and has been essentially non participatory.

Decision: @Allison_Good1

(11) JimmySky vs (6) Doctrine_Man
One of these competitors responded to my call for objective data with photographic proof, hard to get more objective than that. One did not respond at all.

Decision: @JimmySky

(3) astridhka vs (14) dan_e_solo
Toughest matchup to judge. Dan put up a great fight, but in the end some late-breaking, objective, allegations of Ridgeback dislike were leveled at @dan_e_solo and never responded to adequately. In the world of Twitter Fighting, “When did you stop beating your wife?” is a valid strategy, employed masterfully by @astridhka in this matchup.

Decision: @astridhka

(7) AthertonKD vs (10) elsnarkistani
This matchup was incredibly difficult to judge, both competitors giving it their all, entertaining me, offering me bribes, etc. Then @AthertonKD revealed, with objective data, that he owns a cat.

Decision: @elsnarkistani

(2) attackerman vs (15) dzirhandefence
Neither party seems super interested in TFC13, instead going about their normal, non-aggressive twitter lives. @attackerman has a) the more aggressive twitter handle (attack vs defence [sic]… you do the math) and a longer track record of Twitter fighting he wins by default.

Decision: @attackerman

@securityscholar

Below I launch into my results, I’ll start by saying it was a hard field to narrow! So to give you an idea of how I judged this field, this is what I kept in mind, both in quantitative and qualitative terms:

1. knowledge base (tweet content, including quality of argumentation);
2. innovative thinking (presenting tweets in a novel or innovative way);
3. overall Twitiquette (meaning humour, snark, but also responsiveness and respect shown to followers)

To be fair as possible, after I gathered my first impressions, I waited a few hours before going back and verifying my results in reverse order.

(1) @intelwire
(16) @ForbesMM

Gentlemen from very different styles had approximately the same level of jovial engagement with followers, and were about equal in innovation (I liked @ForbesMM’s #TFC13 strategy!). So I gave it to @intelwire for a stronger performance in tweets in his area of knowledge whereas I found @ForbesMM, no less a knowledgeable tweeter, spent too much time talking about #TFC13 than tweet-fighting it.

(2) @attackerman
(15) @DzirhanDefence

Seriously knowledgeable dudes! It came down to consistency in this instance, and @DzirhanDefence won out for producing super informative tweets mixed in with the right ratio of engagement. That said, @attackerman’s dating advice is priceless!

(3) @astridhka
(14) @dan_e_solo

The Africa experts. How do I separate these two? Both got right into the spirit of #TFC13 and for that alone both deserve commendation for being good sports and an admonishing fingerwag for mud-raking! Not being an Africa person, it came down to who better showed/shared knowledge, and for me it was … um … oh gosh this was hard … @astridhka

(4) @SlaughterAM
(13) @Allison_Good1

The Professor and the Student. I had to wade a little more than usual to get to the heart of their knowledge bases in their feeds, but you can’t fault either lady for being passionate about what they believe it, whether it’s women in the workplace or Kelly Clarkson Both are good engagers, so it came down to quality tweeting (especially in content), and in this deciding field, I gave it to @SlaughterAM.

(5) @chrisalbon
(12) @PeterRNeumann

@chrisalbon’s humour still makes me smile. I’m new to @PeterRNeumann, but lucky “ich spreche some Deutsch”! @chrisalbon’s got the Twititquette down overall but @PeterRNeumann was ahead in knowledge base. As I scrolled down, I saw @PeterRNeumann show uncharacteristic looseness in castigating a colleague for tweeting while on a panel. So in a photo finish, I gave it to @PeterRNeumann for a stronger performance overall.

(6) @Doctrine_Man
(11) @JimmySky

Both very clever tweeters. @Doctrine_Man’s strength and novelty is his ability to fold doctrine and strategy lessons into quips, if you’re into polmil stuff, I recommend you follow him. But tweet for tweet, @JimmySky is stronger in the criteria listed above, especially content and knowledge, and is my 2013 pick.

(7) @AthertonKD
(10) @elsnarkistani

Both straight from the blogworld with strong analytical minds willing to mix it up with pop culture in their writing. Loved their #TFC13 quips as well. But in their overall Twitter feed performances, I was left wanting more from @ElSnarkistani in content. @AthertonKD gets my vote this year.

(8) @BFriedmanDC
(9) @trdeghett

Last for today but not least, the media pack: a PR Expert and a Journalist. @trdeghett curates a tight, interesting feed full of links relevant to her fields. @BFriedmanDC has great engagement and equally provides fascinating stuff. I’ve given it to @BFriedmanDC for his novel presentation of facts about the Afghanistan war by stating how old servicepeople killed this week were in 2001. Another photo finish!

Southeast

@aostovar

Judging is subjective. I have made an effort to also make it transparent. When thinking through how I would approach this round I identified certain benchmarks that would undoubtedly shape my decision making. The below decision tree highlights these factors:

Competitors able to meet the criteria at the lower end of the tree have an advantage. Let’s move on to the matches:

(1) @adamserwer vs. (16) @zaidjilani
This match was apparently blacked out in my market. To make it interesting I flipped a book, in this case Nicholas Blanford’s Warriors of God. Cover goes to the higher seed. Cover it is. @adamserwer gets the vote.

(2) @joshuafoust vs. (15) @rejectionking
This was a very close match. As a product of the academy, I’m at times partial to the underdog. @rejectionking did not disappoint. TFC organizers did him no favor placing him opposite @joshuafoust, but Sina put forward impressive effort. This had the potential for a Balboa-Creed double knockout, but in the end I had to decide what I valued more: social justice or self-preservation. I went with the latter. Although “real” Josh is a very pleasant fellow, “twitter” Josh scares me. @joshuafoust gets the vote.

(3) @azelin vs. (14) @dohoBOB
See decision tree. O.G. @azelin gets the vote.

(4) @gregorydjohnsen vs. (13) @ArminRosen
O.G. and fellow U of A NES alumnus @gregorydjohnsen gets the vote. I didn’t really have a choice here since Gregory also has Terry Gross’ endorsement.

(5) @smsaideman vs. (12) @EvansRyan202
This was hardest fought match in the bracket. @EvansRyan202 played it conservative but did not rest on his laurels. @smsaideman took appropriate steps to advance into legitimate contention and even pulled ahead with some impressive strategery. My Canadian spouse has given me a fondness for the people of the great white north. This alone could have tipped the scales in @smsaideman’s favor. However, two factors ultimately put Ryan ahead for good: 1) he’s an O.G. and 2) I owe him for last Cinco de Mayo. @EvansRyan202 gets the vote.

(6) @naheedmustafa vs. (11) @charlie_simpson
The decision tree should have decided this contest. However, not wanting to see Canada fall short completely in this bracket gave @naheedmustafa a slight edge. I flipped an Emirati dirham to check with the karma gods. Heads (decanter) goes to Naheed. Heads it is. The gods have spoken. @naheedmustafa gets the vote.

(7) @johnsonr vs. (10) @JDanaStuster
I expected this to be competitive. It was until @johnsonr pulled off a Crane Kick. COME AT ME BRO. No can defend. @johnsonr gets the vote.

(8) @laurenist vs. (9) @drjjoyner
This was essentially a tie. @laurenist started stronger but faded late. Conditioning could have been a factor. Tie breaker goes to the Alexandrian. @drjjoyner gets the vote.

@caldwellgr

Most law students, deep down, dream of one day being a Supreme Court justice. This, I reckon, is the closest I’m ever going to come. And so, with thanks to @caidid for giving me this platform, I will proceed to abuse my authority to the utmost of my ability. My judging strategy basically boils down to three precepts: 1) ramble on long enough that you lose interest, thus overlooking the leaps of logic I make, especially in 2) comparing two (or more) different “values,” even if they have little or nothing to do with each other, and pronouncing the resulting “balance” as almost too close to call, before 3) making the pick I want to make anyway. If you’ve ever read a John Marshall opinion, this method should make perfect sense to you. In this way, I hope you will overlook that I am not nearly as humorous or insightful as the contestants upon whom I have been called to pass judgment, and who all have much better feeds than do I. But, as the old saying goes, “Those who can, tweet. Those who can’t, write out 4400 word posts. Those who do both are Gulliver and Trombly.

@AdamSerwer v. @ZaidJilani
Is this really a 1 v. 16 matchup? Both competitors got down to business as usual, providing hard-hitting opinions through their feeds. @AdamSerwer, for his part, appeared to all but ignore the competition in favor of his day job, which fortunately for him still allows him to be competitive. @ZaidJilani, however, scores points by being willing to use an electronic device even while possibly being targeted.

At the end of the day, this is a surprisingly tough call. Both competitors spend a lot of time talking about topics that I don’t follow closely. On those that I do follow, I often disagree with much of what they say. This is not a bad thing at all, and I’m happy to follow both (though @ZaidJilani is a new follow for this competition). I’m going to buck the rankings here and go with @ZaidJilani, whose pointed commentary on multiple issues this week is successfully thought-provoking, and whose own words show humility and a willingness to make himself reconsider. This takes nothing away from @AdamSerwer, whose feed is consistently interesting but is possibly so broad and prolific that individual tweets fail to have the same impact.

@joshuafoust v. @rejectionking
Speaking of tweeters that have to avoid being killed! @rejectionking has quickly become a good follow for information on Iran and sanctions (especially in combo with @youbsanctioned). @joshuafoust, as anyone who has followed him for long knows, is an expert on all things expert (not to take anything away from @DaveedGR, Twitter’s leading authority on leading authorities). His domain includes drones, insurgency, secrecy, and food. @rejectionking is great at sifting through the mass of bytes on Twitter for those one or two morsels worth finding. @joshuafoust is great at carving up internet experts and DoD advisors with incisive commentary, sweeping through their arguments like a modern-day Tamerlane, if with slightly more respect for the human rights of Central Asians. I have to give this round to @joshuafoust, whose feed, as always, provides a fine balance of analysis with humor and the random, even when he’s busy twitterfighting opponents not his own. Also because this is a national security focused event, and who doesn’t love carpet bombing more than careful targeting?

@azelin v. @DoHoBoB
I feel sorry for those of us (namely, me) trying to decide between these two. Very different feeds, subject-wise, but both incredibly knowledgeable. And so we must consider several different values in deciding. If we go by pandering, @azelin easily takes the cake (writing your own pander will always win over belatedly retweeting someone else’s). I also like his equanimity in the face of death threats made against 10-year-olds. But @DoHoBoB was all over the place throwing out interesting stories. I also considered whether the rookie deserves a break going against last year’s bracket champion, In the end, I have to go with @azelin, based on depth of tweeted knowledge. I remain open to the possibility of changing my pick, however, if @DoHoBoB will provide barbecue the next time I’m in Houston.

@GregoryDJohnsen v. @ArminRosen
Both competitors got off to bad starts for an event that prizes strategic knowledge. I trust @gregorydjohnsen to provide me with information about a place that I know next to nothing about (namely Yemen), and yet he goes and puts himself on foreign territory. Or @caidid puts him there. Either way. But then @ArminRosen apparently came unarmed to a knife fight, failing to check his equipment to make sure it was functioning properly before entering into his engagement. Both nearly fatal errors, and perhaps the contestants were lucky to be matched against each other.

Early missteps aside, the two quickly came to blows. Credit @ArminRosen with the best current events joke, and one that makes fun of Richard Nixon. Ignoring this, @gregorydjohnsen showed that he’s all business when it comes to TFC. @ArminRosen balanced TFC with a media appearance, which is all kinds of cool. But I think I once heard @gregorydjohnsen on NPR, and I don’t think it was on “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me,” though I could be mistaken. @gregorydjohnsen says a vote for him is one for freedom and cavities. @ArminRosen says a vote for him…means he won’t force WMATA to single-track tomorrow.

It’s good v. evil. Freedom v. WMATA tyranny. Ultimately, however, neither of those promises changes anything (I’m already relatively free, and I already have about a 75% chance of single-tracking anytime I use the metro). Ultimately, I have to pick @gregorydjohnsen, who provides news I can’t get anywhere else.

@smsaideman v. @EvansRyan202
The feistiest engagement in this region (despite some surprisingly tender moments)! So much going for @EvansRyan202 in this one. He’s a fellow Jesuit survivor, a dark liquor drinker, and a fellow Duke fan (though I harbor some grave doubts about his sincerity). Additionally, he’s the underdog and runs a feed that sticks close to what he knows, while still being surprisingly broad in scope. Against this, however, I have to weigh his notoriety as a slavedriver.

Opponent @smsaideman returns this year savvier and veterannier than ever. If I were to judge solely by the number of rounds fired (presumably a favored @brettfriedman metric), this would be no issue. The amount of words that @smsaideman puts out per day is astounding, and I’m not even counting anything he puts on his blog. Let’s be honest, here is a man with so much time on his fingers that he can not only battle his own competitor, he can get in early shots for down the road.

I enjoyed both of these competitors immensely. They threw some great zingers back and forth and both showed great Muppets knowledge. When it comes to substance, there is a definite contrast. @EvansRyan202 tweets much more in-depth, @smsaideman much more broadly. Sadly for @EvansRyan202, this week, as the Iraq anniversary, was a week that favors ruminations on national security policy writ large. @smsaideman for the win, with the hopes that @EvansRyan202 comes back next year during a week in which insurgent movements are much more active (wait…am I really hoping for that?).

@NaheedMustafa v. @charlie_simpson
@charlie_simpson usually has a great feed, aside from the KU cheerleading, but her job interfered with the competition this year. Her early plea for sympathy worked on this judge, who understands the pain of BAAs. In the end, though, you can’t blow off the competition and expect to win. Unless you’re Christian Laettner.

Now, if there were a cash reward for TFC, I’d have had to vote for @NaheedMustafa almost regardless of competition. If you hadn’t noticed, she is trying to raise money to do some on-the-ground reporting in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and I feel like this is the type of thing I should support. Sadly, there is no such cash reward, and I think there’s a 50% chance that her on-the-ground reporting will be entirely dedicated to telling me about the people on Pakistani trains. Actually, now that I think about it, that sounds pretty entertaining. Vote for @NaheedMustafa!

@johnsonr v. @JDanaStuster
Everyone’s favorite USMC ethics professor v. the up-and-coming listicle creator. Actually, when you say it that way, it doesn’t sound like much of a competition. Nonetheless, these two put together a fun battle to watch. @johnsonr got off on the wrong foot, telling her followers that she was rebuilding the Command and Staff College, but not crowdsourcing for ideas. Does she have any idea how much most of her readership would probably enjoy that project? Apparently not; points deducted. @JDanaStuster, meanwhile, was more than content to rope-a-dope and let his opponent get herself into mistakes. But when both parties fully joined battle this afternoon, the results were hilarious. Well done to both parties, though I feel compelled to point out @johnsonr’s contribution to the ongoing decline of the American economy.

Substantively, both were good sources of information, posting links to articles and reports throughout the day (this one got extra points with this judge). In the end, @johnsonr had a few more substantive posts, and almost all of them on topics she knows well. Well done to @JDanaStuster, but vote to @johnsonr.

@laurenist v. @drjjoyner
In so many ways a clash of contrasts. Male v. female. Gen X v. Millenial. Scotch v. scotch.

@laurenist came out swinging, clearly understanding what the day (or two) was about. @drjjoyner, always up for a debate about, around, or between veterans, started twitterfighting with careless abandon, searching out new opponents. In one morning, I saw him engaged on three different topics, with half a dozen or so opponents. Impressive, though he couldn’t keep up that frenetic pace. @laurenist, meanwhile, went about being helpful, which is an odd thing to see during TFC. I initially wasn’t sure whether to award points or not for that, but I ultimately decided that there’s a good chance she was just buttering @johnsonr up for betrayal in a future round. Points for that, then, as well as for her unique ability to get something tangible from TFC.

Despite supposedly being a clash of contrasts, this comes right down to the wire. @drjjoyner by a whisker, based on the number of different topics upon which he’s willing to engage. I want to compliment both of these contestants, though, for their debate on job trainers for veterans. Though the snark is fun, one of the best things about this competition is that it gives smart people the opportunity to engage each other on a variety of topics. Both @drjjoyner and @laurenist know their veterans’ issues, and I enjoyed seeing them debate on it.

Congratulations, though, to all of the contestants! I very much enjoyed reading your tweets for the past two days, and thanks for participating.

@grahamwjenkin

I should preface this with something of an apology. I followed exactly half of the people in this bracket before the tournament began. Luckily, most of them faced each other so I didn’t have really unfair decisions to make, but for some the choice was really based on output over the past two days. With that said…

(1) @adamserwer
(16) @zaidjilani

This one’s rather unfair from the start. I haven’t been following Zaid, though extra points for labor issues because nobody talks about them enough. On the other hand, I follow Adam. Also, I saw him once at a Clyde’s happy hour. I think he was leaving.

Winner: @adamserwer
(2) @joshuafoust
(15) @rejectionking

Now, here’s a matchup I can get behind. The current star versus the newcomer. HUMINT v. cyber. The guy who uses real names, and the other guy who doesn’t really. Lots of other things. But here are the crucial “keys to the match”:

- Puggles: Now, as a guy who grew up with proper pugs and plans on getting one sometime soon, I could go either way. On the one hand, they’ve got precious pugblood in them. On the other hand, they’re abominations. But from the pictures I’ve seen, Milo is pretty adorable. Rejection has a very cute little dog himself. I don’t know the breed but it looks yappy and nervous and precious and if I tried to pet it I would pull a Lennie from Of Mice and Men. But that surely isn’t the dog’s fault.

- Foursquare: I like to keep track of comings and goings. I like remembering what the name of that bar I was at Saturday night is because I won’t otherwise. And the King of all Rejection uses it, and I like that.

- Cooking: I asked @rejectionking was the last meal he cooked was, and the answer was mac and cheese with “fancy chicken sausage”. I am hungry all the time and that sounds amazing. Foust uses way too many vegetables, but he also puts up all the pretty pictures, so points to him there.

- Cyber: Put simply, @rejectionking has turned me on to way more sweet cyber/etc. Twitter accounts than I ever thought possible. Including a useful Reddit (extra points!). So there’s that.

Also, you guys, they agree on Star Trek things, making this a very hard-fought decision, but in the end…it’s @joshuafoust, surprising even myself, because pug lineage is unstoppable.
(3) @azelin
(14) @dohoBOB

Zelin gave me a shoutout But @dohoBOB’s name is Betsy Ross, and she had a very bad day yesterday (it may also have been a stratagem…but in that case it was indeed a good one). Then again, Zelin is as annoyed about the Obama trip underway as I am, which is nice to hear. This one’s tough, but owing mostly to my ignorance…

@dohoBOB, in an upset.
(4) @gregorydjohnsen
(13) @ArminRosen

@ArminRosen is one of the accounts that most closely resembles Weird Twitter. Mr. Johnsen once visited Canada. No contest here.

Winner: @ArminRosen
(5) @smsaideman
(12) @EvansRyan202

Ryan was the first to follow me, and we share a Chicago connection (Devon Avenue whaaaat). Saideman has been more engaging, but he’s also Canadian. So there’s a tossup for ya. Against my better judgment (see: previous decision), and owing to his prolific output, the winner: @smsaideman.
(6) @naheedmustafa
(11) @charlie_simpson

This was about to be a hard-fought battle, and then Ms. Simpson tweeted: “Please vote for @naheedmustafa in #TFC13. I’m swamped.” As someone who’s been trying to print versions of the same document non-stop for several weeks, I feel your pain, and understand.

Winner: @naheedmustafa
(8) @laurenist
(9) @drjjoyner

I think you’re both pretty great, but between yoga pants, Science Club, and an illustrious family name, the winner is clear. I don’t care how many generations removed our common ancestor might be or how thin the blood is – it’s still thicker than water. Or oil. Or wine or something. Look, we Jenkinseseses just gotta stick together, is all.

Winner: @laurenist

(7) @johnsonr
(10) @JDanaStuster

AN EPIC DUEL. The professor v. the whiz kid. DC v. Quantico. R vs. J. Ms. Johnson tweets evening discussions, which are great. I always seem to miss the beginning though and am always too lazy to get caught up again. Mr. Stuster seems to follow more my Twitter style, of interesting links and occasional replies and such. Also, Rebecca gave me a shout-out/suck-up, which was nice…but Dana promised me beer. And that’s even thicker than blood. Or whatever.

Winner: @JDanaStuster

@stcolumbia

A note on methodology:

You will note that I provide two quantitative metrics here along with my qualitative assessments. Past Twitter Fight Clubs have been marred with dispute over if and how quantitative factors deserve a larger place in judging, and to what extent one’s past Twitteroeuvre ought factor into our decision.

I render my judgments in this manner: When available, for analyzing prior body of work, I will incorporate both a T-Score and a Gartenstein-Ross Score*, assessed at the time of selection. These numbers will be aggregated using a sophisticated process called “lumping it together,” the theorems of which are so complex and mind-boggling I could only adequately explain it in a more scholarly forum, such as a barroom napkin.

Then, you take the qualitative variable, and at this point I hope you’ve actually just decided to scroll down to find out the results, so really, let’s cut to the chase.

(1) @ADAMSERWER VS. (16) @ZAIDJILANI
T-Scores: .12 vs. .76
DGR Scores: 405 vs. 2492
Here’s a great example of how quantitative metrics can obliterate our preconceptions of Twitter-fighting strength. Neither of these progressives spent much time twitter fighting each other, although @zaidjilani’s casual invitation for electoral support did question the fundamentally reactionary underpinnings of TFC. Nevertheless, the stats don’t lie. This white guy’s vote goes to @zaidjilani.

(2) @JOSHUAFOUST VS. (15) @REJECTIONKING

T-Scores and DGR-Scores for this matchup unavailable due to data collection issues.

Joshua “The Puggle-owning Pugilist” Foust and Sina “I Can’t Think of a Chihuahua Joke” K. face off. For the bloodthirsty audience there was a fair amount of sparring between these two, including adorable dog pictures. Nevertheless, this competition is about twitterfighting, not who has the best dog picture on the internet (then I would win, duh). And as far as twitterfighting goes, there’s few who can claim to do it with the tenacity of @joshuafoust.

(3) @AZELIN VS. (14) @DOHOBOB
T-Scores: .45 vs. 7.76
DGR Scores: 1352 vs. 29409
@Azelin, despite his dominating output on jihadist ideology, simply can’t stand up to the unstoppable Twitter doom machine that is @DOHOBOB, who leads everyone else even scored. @Azelin was very active during the competition period, and was even the first to pander to me by recommending a follow. @DOHOBOB explained her relative silence by participating in a 400lb-of-meat-consuming cookoff, but since none of it was sent to me, I can’t give her credit for that. What I can give her credit for is the statistical Omdurman she can inflict on most foes. If you can’t stand the heat, get out the way of the Kitchener of Moneyball’d TFC.

(4) @GREGORYJOHNSEN VS. (13) @ARMINROSEN
T-Scores: .22 vs. 1.78
DGR Scores: 415 vs. 4586
Gregory Johnsen, as Armin Rosen noted, is a Princeton professor and the published author of a work that is thus far definitive on its subject. But this is Twitter Fight Club. It’s not simply the stats here, it’s Armin Rosen‘s general embrace of the spirit of twitterfighting which none of his followers could really question, and which continued to shine through throughout the course of the first round. While it’s up to the other judges and the public to determine whether Johnsen will have to seek solace from Twitter defeat in the Last Refuge of his, well, many other accomplishments, my vote must go to his opponent.

(5) @SMSAIDEMAN VS. (12) @EVANSRYAN202
T-Scores and DGR-Scores for this matchup unavailable due to data collection issues.

These two took the message of twitterfighting each other most to heart, with disses involving each other’s scholarly papers, hometowns, judge-encouraged groan-inducing puns, and many things else besides. In the spirit of this competition they have no equals within this bracket. But, only one will take their surely now battered keyboard or touchscreen to the field of decision next. There was pandering to myself and to other judges, some of it involving Duke, which is pretty bold considering @CaldwellGR is probably the only Duke fan judging. This, by far, was the toughest decision. In the spirit of Anton Chigurh, in touch with the dark and violent forces of the universe which surely motivate twitterfighting as well as murder-for-hire, I flipped a coin, which involves probability, which is kind of like statistics, which is kind of like what would have decided this if I could wrestle the necessary numbers from the ever-tightening grip of Twitter’s API. Congratulations @EvansRyan202.

(6) @NAHEEDMUSTAFA VS. (11) @CHARLIE_SIMPSON
Due to what would ordinarily be a crippling conflict of interest, since the (11) seed is my employer, I am not going to pretend to make any kind of objective assessment about this round. I was petrified that, upon being found out, I would have to walk into @Caidid’s office and surrender my badge and gun. However, thanks to @Charlie_Simpson almost immediately demanding all to vote for @NaheedMustafa, my conflict of interest is absolved, leaving me free to abuse my power in future rounds.

(7) @JOHNSONR VS. (10) @JDANASTUSTER
T-Score: 1.7 vs. .61
DGR Score: 7973 vs. 252

Both competitors put up a good show, but the raw stats and @JohnsonR’s long history of tweeting and commendable volume still managed to overshadow @JDanaStuster stepping it up for the competition. This vote goes to @JohnsonR.

(8) @LAURENIST VS. (9) @DRJJOYNER
Here was another dramatic matchup, with the noticeable and prolonged intervention of @AbuMuqawamaPMC, the contract tweeter whose done a much better job of twitterfighting than many of the contestants. Indeed, after a controversy involving jeggings, the competition’s mascot mercenary even defected to fight in favor of @DrJJoyner. The fight has been close. Both competitors tweeted, twitterfought, and even actually debated on a substantive topic during the competition! This would have been as tough a call as the @smsaideman @evansryan202 matchup, except rather than invoking the spirit of a fictional actual gun-for-hire, I’m going to invoke a real metaphorical one, and rather than flipping a coin, I’m going to see if I can make some coin.

Look, @AbuMuqawamaPMC, I don’t know what they’re paying you. But clearly they’re paying you something. A mercenary ought fight for the highest bidder, even if it’s fighting on the side of jeggings. Your “denimwashing” to make your Kingdom of Italy-level volte face morally upstanding isn’t fooling me. Here’s how this will work. Nothing guarantees future business like results. You give me a slice, and I’ll help you out providing judicial top cover. This is is like, paramilitarism 101.

So, because I think this could be the beginning of a munificent friendship. I’m casting my vote for @DrJJoyner.

* [(RT + Mentions*1.3)]*[(RT+Mentions)/Followers]

Southwest

@colincookman

I’ve said previously that Twitter’s key utility is allowing you to tap directly into the thoughts, readings, and 140-character snark of a broad range of people working in your field, giving you an extra level of curation of the flood of information that surrounds us daily. The starting roundup of contestants in the southwest region of the 2013 TFC bracket is populated by a great mix of journalists, regional specialists (including way more Australians than statistical probability would otherwise suggest) and natsec pros of all different varieties. All of them are of course worth following, but how to really decide which signals to follow closely and what noise to filter out?

The wholly arbitrary verdict of the Twitter Fight Club judges, that’s how.

(1) @blakehounshell vs (16) @jasminchill
Odds suggest that you are already following Blake. If you are somehow not, odds are still good that he may be following you. Prolific reader, tweeter, and managing editor of the foreign policy magazine with the biggest presence on the web. His feed tilts slightly towards the Middle East, but he still manages to cover a broad, broad range of issues. Jasmin CHill — or is it Jasmin C Hill, Jasmin Chill, Jasmin C’Hill? it’s somewhat unclear from her account — focuses on nuclear issues. But she’s also following Australian security and politics, which apparently involve much fewer battles for gasoline than I was previously led to believe. Points for rallying support for her candidacy and for responding to my shameless request for TFC contestants to share my recent report on Pakistani elections. Despite a valiant effort by C’Hill, Hounshell is an overwhelming contender in any Twitter matchup, even though he stayed above the TFC fray during this first round. Pictures of his unreasonably adorable son ultimately seal the deal.

Follow: @blakehounshell

(2) @abuaardvark vs (15) @thebaseleg
Marc Lynch (@abuaardvark) is another great resource on issues in the greater Middle East. Most of his tweets during this judging period have been quick updates and link-sharing, but he’s still covering everything from Saudi to Syria to academia issues and more. Also, his exasperated paean to the soon-to-be late, lamented Google Reader totally captures my sentiments. On the other hand, if you’re into military aviation and the Asia-Pacific, Mike Yeo (@TheBaseLeg) out of Melbourne appears to be a man to follow. He has an eye on North Korea as well, although is mostly sharing other users’ coverage there. No direct engagement between the two contestants to review, but Lynch is simply too valuable of a resource on Middle East news and views to pass on.

Follow: @abuaardvark

(3) @AzmatZahra vs (14) @khanserai

The scrappiest of the matches in this region of the bracket, mostly thanks to some relentless self-promotion from upstart contender @Khanserai. She also brings some entertaining humor, devious facial hair, a fair bit of terrorism coverage. Zahra parries effectively, judo-style, and keeps her feed primarily focused on journalism issues — she’s a producer for PBS Frontline — and Syria, which she’s covering at the moment. Compared to Khanserai, Zahra is a less prolific tweeter, but this may be because she’s not creating multiple lists for why I should vote for her. Both are engaging, and I do love our nation’s public broadcasting networks and the fine work they produce, but in the end I have to give it to @Khanserai on strength of 1) likeliness to contribute to an entertaining next round and 2) facial hair.

Follow: @khanserai

(4) @emptywheel vs (13) @mkoplow

If you’re interested in a critical perspective on U.S. legal issues associated with the war on terror, with frequent deep dives into ongoing trials, document releases, and classification issues, Marcy Wheeler (@emptywheel) is a good choice to follow. She’s also an active debater with others on Twitter who can bring a sharp eyes and a sharp edge when she chooses. Michael Koplow works on Israel and Turkish issues and had plenty to say about both these past few days. As a general rule, I maintain a personal “nothing west of Herat” policy for myself and steer clear of the Middle East as much as possible, so assessing the substance is a bit of a judging challenge. Still, Koplow managed to have an actual Twitter fight on the subject and do so in a fairly level-headed way. Wheeler on a coin toss.

Follow: @emptywheel

(5) @speechboy71 vs (12) @drjohnhorgan

Michael Cohen (@speechboy71) brings plenty of punch to his retrospectives on the Iraq war anniversary this week, engaging in several Twitter fights with a variety of sparring partners before closing the day out with a strong baby / dog finishing combo.John Horgan (@drjohnhorgan) of Penn State’s International Center for the Study of Terrorism is not as prolific a Twitterer and primarily seems to be using the service to engage in conversation with other terrorism scholars. That’s all well and good, but in the end this isn’t Twitter Conversation Club. Cohen shows more commitment to verbal combat than almost all of the other competitors in the bracket during this first period, and he gets the nod.

Follow: @speechboy71

(6) @shephardm vs (11) @JasonFritz1

One’s a Canadian journalist, the other a former cavalry officer; gentility again abounds in this contest. Michelle Shephard (@shephardm) specializes in terrorism and detention policy but follows a broad range of issues, and regularly engages with others on Twitter. It was a pretty big week for Jason Fritz, who kicked it off with the birth of a new daughter, followed it with some thoughtful Iraq anniversary retrospectives and veterans issue commentary, and rounded it out with a new position with the Truman Project. Both sides engaged their followers in support of their quest for the TFC13 big leagues, even as they praised the other’s work. A very well-matched pair in terms of their volume, content quality, and responsiveness, but in the end I can’t bring myself to end Fritz’s winning streak this week.

Follow: @JasonFritz1

(7) @JeffreyGoldberg vs (10) @lrozen

Two well-known journalists, both with a focus on Washington politics and the Middle East. Neither seems particularly aware they’re taking part in Twitter Fight Club, but Obama’s visit to Israel gave them both plenty to of substance to tweet about, with Goldberg there on the ground for Wednesday’s press conference. Whether you agree or disagree with his coverage, Goldberg’s feed is higher-volume and has a more diverse mix of content, with his own reporting, RTs of others, and direct engagement with his followers. Rozen indicates she’s on spring break with kids and signals a forfeit, tipping the verdict.

Follow: @JeffreyGoldberg

(8) @max_fisher vs (9) @andrew_zammit

Fisher is another widely-read foreign policy editor, at the Post, where he surveys pretty much the global span. Good engagement with readers, not so much in the Twitter Fight Club exercise itself. Andrew Zammit, yet another Australian security observer, brings a strong challenge with a cat accomplice that is capable of providing both indirect fire, and UAV support. Zammit also breaks out a Warriors reference, and a steady stream of other good issue-based content. I want to see how he handles a more engaged opponent - Zammit it is.

@drunkenpredator

(1) @blakehounshell
(16) @jasminchill

I’m not a huge fan of the Simpsons and @jasminchill seems (according to her twitter profile) to be an actual character on the show. I recognize that she’s not, though, and that she’s Australian. And I am a huge fan of Australians. But much as I’d like to make this a Robert Morris/Kentucky moment, it’s really tough to argue with @blakehounshell’s reach, influence and general Twitter volume. Advantage: @blakehounshell

(2) @abuaardvark
(15) @thebaseleg

@abuaardvark is one of the original gangstas of Middle Eastern studies on Twitter, and his personal website is totally slick. He teaches at GW, writes for FP, talks on NPR and tweets prodigiously. He should be a lock. And @thebaseleg is a less-known Singaporean defense journalist. But it’s going to the underdog. Why? Because @abuaardvark has made not even a single mention of #TFC13, and @thebaseleg has an Australian connection, and Australians are awesome. Advantage: @thebaseleg

(3) @AzmatZahra
(14) @khanserai

So @AzmatZahra writes great stuff on drones, Middle east politics, and conflict in general. @khanserai…I have no idea what she does. She made a conscious decision not to share that information. While that may work for some people, I am a surveillance platform and I don’t trust the unknown, so I kinda have to give it to @AzmatZahra.

(4) @emptywheel
(13) @mkoplow

So @mkoplow definitely gets extra consideration for being a Red Sox fan, and for enthusiastically diving into the #TFC13 fray. But @emptywheel’s prodigious and formidable reporting on the issues nearest and dearest to my robotic heart- national security, drones, etc- is just too much to contend with. Advantage: Marcy.

(5) @speechboy71
(12) @drjohnhorgan

I will admit that @drjohnhorgan is a new name to me, and after checking out his page, the Penn State project he runs studying the psychology of terrorism is pretty cool. But I am biased in favor of snark over earnestness, Twitter-addicted behavior over practicality, and @speechboy71 brings that in spades. Advantage: @speechboy71

(6) @shephardm
(11) @JasonFritz1

Kudos to both of these competitors for genuinely getting into the spirit of the game. Canadians like @shephardm get a boost, because they get accent-points and drunkenness-points, but they’re all sort of…polite and such. And she mentioned freedom and women (both good things) in her #TFC13 platform, but also mentioned peace and maple syrup, both of which I could really do without. @JasonFritz1 just became a father to an adorable baby, and was totally unashamed to break out said adorable daughter and use her to gain an edge over @shephardm. He also contributes to Ink Spots, and his background images are ACTUAL INK SPOTS. But the tiebreaker came in when @shephardm’s #TFC13 campaigning resulted in an unsolicited entry from Somalia…by a Twitter-savvy member of al-Shabaab. Advantage: @shephardm.

(7) @JeffreyGoldberg
(10) @lrozen

This one was hard because the two of them tend to RT and reference each other fairly regularly- and not in the savaging, Thunderdome-style competition of other #TFC13 participants. It ended up being kind of a toss-up, since neither of them seemed to acknowledge #TFC13 or their responsibility to spar and amuse the bloodthirsty masses. So I went with the underdog. Advantage @lrozen

(8) @max_fisher
(9) @andrew_zammit

God, this one was not easy. @andrew_zammit had the Australian thing going for him, and made a genuine effort to bribe this judge by sending over a photo of a remotely-piloted helicopter in his possession. But he lost points for mislabeling it, and @max_fisher strikes a strong balance between foreign policy, interesting tidbits and The Funny. This is another very-close one, but it has to go to @max_fisher.

@rei_tang

Like choosing the pope, Twitter Fight Club. The Arab Spring and the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics are connected. The next six months are critical. My taxi driver in Bangalore said this. - Tom Friedman

The southwest region turned out to be the Australian round. @jasminchill, @thebaseleg, and @andrew_zammit, three tweeps I had not followed before showed exceptional fight. I learned some new facts, illustrated below.

Indeed, this scrappiness worked. Take the words of General Mattis to heart: “I have never been in a fair fight.” You are not in a fair fight.

If I am going to judge TFC, I am going to reward those who make it worth my time, dammit.

(1) @blakehounshell
(16) @jasminchill (vote)

As @abumquwamapmc points out,

@blakehounshell is not a real human and shouldn’t be allowed in this competition. While @blakehounshell would be one of the first people I would recommended anyone follow for world news, where was he in the Twitter fight? @jasminchill had fight and she has a feed that deserves more followers.

(2) @abuaardvark
(15) @thebaseleg (vote)

This was another case of Australian doggedness vs. Foreign Policy Magazine insouciance. At least @abuaardvark had an excuse:

@thebaseleg did not engage as much as the other Australians, but at least acknowledged his participation in the grand event of Twitter Fight Club:

Also, his feed is about military aviation.

(3) @AzmatZahra
(14) @khanserai (vote)

I have to give credit to @AzmatZahra for her audacity, arguing against a judge:

With that kind of sharp aggression, she had so much potential. Unfortunately, this was all she could muster. @kahnserai had two top ten (twenty!) reasons to vote for her. In all seriousness, follow @AzmatZahra for the stuff Frontline does, like this:

Follow @khanserai for tweets on countering violent extremism (CVE, see, I do know what it means, duh).

(4) @emptywheel (vote)
(13) @mkoplow

I am not sure if there was a fight here, although I saw some acknowledgement from @mkoplow he was in TFC. However, @emptywheel was making alliances

and planning for future threats

and that is promising, so she gets the vote.

(5) @speechboy71 (vote)
(12) @drjohnhorgan

This was the hardest to judge. Both @speechboy71 and @drjohnhorgan gave about the same modest effort to TFC, but that is okay, given this was the first round. @drjohnhorgan let slip that he let the terrorists win:

@speechboy71 promises the insane one-two punch of babies and bulldogs:

@speechboy71 also is a clear voice combating the absurdities of U.S. foreign policy discourse, even when I don’t always agree with him. Happy birthday!

(6) @shephardm
(11) @JasonFritz1 (vote)

These two just praised each other to death, which was just messing with my head. I vote @JasonFritz1 because of that one time he tweeted about making a tank blow up another tank, which is awesome and frightening.

(7) @JeffreyGoldberg
(10) @lrozen (vote)

@JeffreyGoldberg did some top-notch color commentary on Obama’s visit to Israel, so he was understandably absent from TFC. @lrozen was understandably absent too:

On this one, I’ll give it @lrozen for acknowledging TFC, and am holding out hope the break ends this week (but not really because she should have time off with her kids), sort of like how hope is a strategy for Middle East peace.

(8) @max_fisher
(9) @andrew_zammit (vote)

@andrew_zammit turned out to be quite a surprise, in that I am finding so many interesting links to Australian foreign policy in his feed. He also got into the TFC game early:

@max_fisher wrote some very incisive pieces for the Washington Post, but doesn’t want to Twitter fight. So the vote goes to (commercial break) @andrew_zammit, the Australian.

Finally, I will leave this quote from Joseph de Maistre’s Considerations on France, which I read over a few days thanks to it being in @stcolumbia’s library, among vinyl records and flannel… cloth.

“…when the human spirit has lost its resilience through indolence, incredulity, and the gangrenous vices that follow an excess of civilization, it can be retempered only in blood. It is far from easy to explain why war produces different effects in different circumstances. What is sufficiently clear is that humanity can be considered as a tree that an invisible hand is continually pruning, often to its benefit. In fact, if its trunk is hacked or if it is pruned badly, a tree can die, but who knows the limits for the human tree?”

This judgement was a pruning of the TFC tree. Let this be a lesson that the decadence and arrogance of high civilization must be avoided. Twitter Fight Club must reach its pure state of Twitter fight.

@zachprague

(1) @blakehounshell
(16) @jasminchill

Despite the efforts of @jasminchill to curry favor through flattery on Twitter — which were comprehensive and, more importantly, appreciated — @blakehounshell is the easy choice here. He can be downright mean with blunt facts.

(2) @abuaardvark
(15) @thebaseleg

Upset alert — I like @thebaseleg here because I don’t really see @abuaardvark as a Twitter fighter. @thebaseleg knows Korea and he knows jets. I don’t know much about either, so to the 15 seed go the spoils.

(3) @AzmatZahra
(14) @khanserai

PBS Frontline is the gold standard for longform investigative journalism. This is a fight club, and @AzmatZahra is more of a hard news person than a Twitter snarker, but her service is invaluable, and she gets the win because of her employer’s amazing work.

(4) @emptywheel
(13) @mkoplow

Have to go with @emptywheel here really for one reason — the blog post about the NYT piece on how Anwar Al-Awlaki was targeted and droned. Well, that and I have no clue who @mkoplow is.

(5) @speechboy71
(12) @drjohnhorgan

Although I am reluctant to go with the higher seed here, @drjohnhorgan is far too civil — especially when compared to @speechboy71 — to really be considered a favorite here.

(6) @shephardm
(11) @JasonFritz1

There are few reporters who cover their beats like @shephardm — enough said.

(7) @JeffreyGoldberg
(10) @lrozen

This is a tough one, as @lrozen’s feed is probably more informative, but @JeffreyGoldberg’s more entertaining. The nod goes to @JeffreyGoldberg…but just barely.

(8) @max_fisher
(9) @andrew_zammit

Had to go with @Max_Fisher here because he doesn’t always tweet about Australian politics.

TwitterFightClub 2013 is starting off with a bang! 64 contestants, 16 judges, two days; half the field will be gone before the weekend.

There are four judges for each ‘region.’ The panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote, with each judge representing one quarter of that total. The other 50% is based on the popular vote via the public polls below, so make sure to cast your votes! The judging panels are as follows:

‘Northwest Region’ (One seed: @texasinafrica)

• @hemlockmartinis
• @juliaaberman
• @richganske
• @RogueAdventurer

‘Northeast Region’ (One seed: @intelwire)

• @jasonmrobertson
• @jeffemanuel
• @petulantskeptic
• @securityscholar

‘Southeast Region’ (One seed: @adamserwer)

• @aostovar
• @CaldwellGR
• @GrahamWJenkins
• @stcolumbia

‘Southwest Region’ (One seed: @blakehounshell)

• @colincookman
• @drunkenpredator
• @rei_tang
• @zachprague

Judges and voters alike are encouraged to look at metrics such as: knowledge base; quality of argumentation; innovative thinking; humor, snark, facility with quips, and charisma; and responsiveness to followers. We are looking to crown the best overall natsec/fopo tweeter, so contestants’ full bodies of work on Twitter are fair game, but any work outside of Twitter should not be considered. Everyone is encouraged to make their decisions in their own way.

The first round polls are open until midnight EDT this Thursday, March 21, and we will post the full results Friday morning at 9am. If you want to follow all of the TwitterFightClub action, we are using the hashtag #tfc13 and there is a full contestant list here.

Don’t forget there is still time to submit your bracket for inclusion in the pool! Just get it in to [email protected] before Friday’s results post!

Now to the polls!

Northwest Region:

Northeast Region:

Southeast Region:

Southwest Region:

The competition commences in earnest Wednesday, March 20, and our 2013 champion will be revealed on Thursday, April 4th. The full schedule is as follows:

The full field with final seedings is as follows:

We will once again be running a pool. If you are interested in entering, please fill out this excel document and submit it with your Twitter handle in the document title to [email protected]. Submissions must be received before 9am EDT on Friday, March 22 in order to be considered. Once the first-round results are posted on Friday morning, we will no longer accept pool submissions.

First round polls open in the morning. Sharpen your wits, twitterfighters; it’s gonna be a wild opening round!