The Main Event

The final day of the tournament started slowly, with @will_mccants occupied with media appearances and @dandrezner wrapped up in the ISA conference. The competition picked up a bit of steam as the day wore on with some more noteworthy work by Drezner proxy @stephaniecarvin, and by the end of the day AQ and zombies were in full play as befits a contest between experts in those respective fields.

In an unexpected twist, however, one third of today’s judging panel staged an insurgency and cast their ballots for another candidate entirely. We were unwilling to wage a resource-intensive counterinsurgency campaign against these judges, and felt secure in our ability to secure a free and fair vote for the TFC public, so we let these insurgents have their say, even publishing their ballots in the interests of free speech.

In the end, their uprising was not enough to overshadow @will_mccants, who rode a wave of public support to victory! Congratulations, Will! You will make an awesome bobblehead a worthy champion!

Let’s see how the scoring played out:

@dandrezner vs. @will_mccants
Judges: 2-2(-2)
Popular vote:
@will_mccants: 190 (72%)
@dandrezner: 74 (28%)

Now to the judges’ ballots, in which @abumuqawama tries to bring some rigor to the task of judging, @jeremyscahill gives ups to @ggreenwald, @ClosetIdealist plays it straight, @attackerman keeps it short and sweet, and @astridhka and @charlie_simpson judge a whole other match.

@jeremyscahill

Before delving into the main event that brings us all here, let’s pause to pour some booze out for those who didn’t make it past the Final Four. Well, at least for @jeffemanuel. For @stcolumbia, sparkling cider will have to do. I have to say that had these two guys made it to the Finals, they would have been just as worthy as those who did. Without a doubt, @stcolumbia wins the Twitter NatSec “Rookie of the Year” title hands down and, quite frankly, may even make the All-Star Team in a sort of Spud Webb-type way. When was the last time you can recall that a former senior State Department official had to respond to a blog post by a 14 year old sporting a flannel shirt who, right after he hit “publish,” was playing Halo in his parents’ basement?

As for @jeffemanuel, he is one of the reasons why I love Twitter so much. In a world without Twitter, he and the rest of the Knights Templar, challenge coin possessing, Hezbollah-fearing, Iran wants to rule the world conspiracy holding, Mitt Romney lov-OK, actually Jeff is pretty funny about little Mittens. But, my point is that he is from way, way, way over on the other side of the worldview tracks from me, yet I often learn from reading Jeff and I respect him as a no-bullshit dude (even when I think he is full of shit). When I meet Jeff in person, the drinks are on me (hopefully not the M4 rounds). I already met @stcolumbia in person and had to convince 3 different bouncers to let him into their fine establishments. Props to both of these noble Twitter warriors. I assure you we have not heard the last of them.

One final note here before I cast my vote in the championship, if we were judging this purely based on the spirit of the old fashioned Twitter FIGHTS that gave birth to this noble tournament, then I believe, as I did last year, that @ggreenwald would be the undisputed champion, no matter how many of y’all think whatever you think about him. The dude can fight and, like the proud Twitter Troll of Texas™, @jstrevino (whom I have sometimes had the awful misfortune of agreeing with), he is not afraid to mix it up with an account with an egg shell as its Avatar and 3 followers, one of whom is porn, another a free iPad-bot and the third @BarackObama. That, my friends, is the true spirit of a Twitter fighter. The trophy really should be a gold bobblehead of Glenn, perhaps surrounded by the skulls of his defeated or pummeled Twitter avatars. But those were the Gladiator days of past. Today we have rules and civility and something called “vegan cheese.” Part of me believes that this “Twitter Fight Club” is, in reality, some COIN-inspired Red Cell op that we are all unwittingly being used in. I assume it is all being run by @abumuqawama or @robertcaruso.

All of which leads me to the Finals between @dandrezner and @will_mccants. In order to judge this, I had to check the final language of the NDAA law. Now, lest you think I am going to wax poetic about the coming Halliburton concentration camps, I will make myself clear: I believe that, according to the law, Will McCants may-I said may-be an al Qaeda facilitator. Much of my intel on this remains classified and I plan to offer an ultra slim CliffsNotes defense of this allegation in a major address at the Univerity of Chicago Law School, but this little nugget should give you a good window into what Dr. McCants is really about. And it ain’t pretty. Just look at who it is that made this al Qaeda manifesto available to the English-speaking world: “The Management of Savagery.” Now, because we are a nation of laws, I believe McCants should be presented with the evidence against him and, if proper, charged. That’s the American way, right? So until that happens-JSOC and CIA drones permitting-I will put these facts aside and treat McCants as a legitimate Twitter Fight Club combatant with full protection under all international and US conventions and laws of war. (Wink. Wink.)

As for Dan Drezner, I am not aware of his involvement with managing any actual savagery. However, he has cut to the center of some of the most burning foreign policy questions facing those of us who live in the real world (meaning those of us who watch AMC and know who Max Brooks is) with his latest book, Theories of International Politics and Zombies, which “explores the myriad predictions of different theories of world politics and foreign policy in case the dead should rise from the grave and feast upon the living.” Let’s be honest, it is quite possible that Zombies pose a far greater existential threat to peace and stability than the merry band of loonies whose message McCants loves to translate and promote to the English-speaking world.

But, I digress.

In the end, we are not permitted to judge these fine men on such merits. It boils down to what they do with those bursts of 140 characters that God and the prophet Joseph Smith give them on a daily basis.

I have to say that, despite the prestige of both of these renowned scholars, the Finals proved to be a low scoring match. For several hours on Tuesday, Drezner didn’t tweet and-perhaps in a brilliant swipe at McCants-left a +1 RT of @ggreenwald at the top of his feed. For his part, McCants attempted to prove his commitment to victory by disowning his Ivy league Alma Mater, Princeton, sparking the ire of Princeton’s own @gregorydjohnsen, and praising other Ivy League schools, such as UPenn. McCants tried to hold this up as evidence of his willingness to “rupture my deep friend[ship] with Greg in order to speak the truth.” While such principled disavowing of an Ivy League academic institution that gave him so so much may have swayed some judges, another tweet undermined his “average Joe” shtick: “Hard to type in back of limo on my way to CNN for interview.” Oh, Will. Will. Will. Was Seamus strapped to the roof as you drove?

In keeping with the recent US trend, Drezner did deploy a proxy to fight his wars yesterday: one @StephanieCarvin. And while she put up a great effort-with such scurrilous attacks as “Breaking News: John Mearsheimer confirms ‘The Tragedy of Great Power Politics’ actually about @will_mccants”-in the end, a proxy is a proxy. They may achieve short-term objectives, but you cannot control the mess (extrajudicial executions anyone?) to come. After basically outsourcing his war-@StephanieCarvin=Blackwater=new Scahill book-in an 11th hour bid to seal the deal, Drezner did tweet from some boring conference he has been speaking at for like 48 hours straight: “OK, MUST tweet this. At my #ISA2012 panel, Nicholas Cull references “kitlers” — a community of people with cats that look like Hitler.” Well played, sir.

I have been a long-time follower of both of these guys. Dan Drezner is funny and smart and often tweets and retweets great stuff. He also understands that using an underscore in a Twitter name is lame. Wasn’t @TheRealWillMcCants available, dude? Despite his proclivity towards the underscore, McCants, along with that young jedi, @azelin, provide a great service to those of us who report on al Qaeda, al Shabaab, Ansar al Shariah, Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, AQAP and a host of other militant groups. In the end, that is what decided this match for me. I give it to @will_mccants with one caveat: if a White House death panel thinks I am wrong and Gen. Votel and the boys need to show him what’s what, then I will retract it all and dance in the streets celebrating his demise and claim that I had always known there was something strange about that guy.

@abumuqawama

Gang, I am not going to lie: I have been disappointed by the lack of any apparent rigor to the way in which Twitter Fight Club has thus far been judged. For many judges, the vote seems to come down to “I like the way he has a picture of a small child in his profile” or “that picture of the breakfast taco she tweeted looks yummy!”

Goodness gracious.

Some judges rewarded people for nothing more than high output the day of the match, which is to Twitter what “saves” is to baseball – statistically devoid of worth. But that was positively Bill Jamesian compared to some clowns. One judge rewarded a competitor for where he went to university. Another judge rewarded a competitor for owning the same breed of dog. Another reflected that a competitor might be on her review board for tenure and then voted accordingly.

Are you people serious?

(Finally, judges, an aside. This is a pet peeve of mine: if a competitor is not following you prior to the competition, don’t whine about it. Instead, take a look into the mirror and ask yourself why your Twitter feed stinks.)

Needless to say, little of what has passed for “judging” this year adds up to an accurate reflection of how valuable a person’s Twitter account is. And while I hate to go all Sabermetrics on this competition, I’m going to advance a simple way to better determine the worth of an account. This is a) a crude measurement that is b) nonetheless about a million times more scientific than 90% of what other people have written.

RT + M
———- = T-score
F

Okay, the number of followers [F] one has says little about the value of a person’s Twitter account. Any vapid reality television celebrity can have a lot of followers on Twitter. A more accurate reflection of an account’s value is the degree to which a post is re-tweeted [RT] or an account is mentioned (to include responses) [M]. But those figures can be skewed by an account’s amplification. So we have to control for that by dividing the sum by F. I call the figure we get at the end a T-score. (Because RTMF is a crappy acronym.)

Again, more idiots will re-tweet the musings of @JessicaSimpson than smart people will re-tweet @stcolumbia. But what happens when we divide their RT + M by F (4.9 million for @JessicaSimpson and 1,100 for @stcolumbia)? @stcolumbia is left with a monster T-score of 5.18, while @JessicaSimpson scores just .009. Relatively speaking, people really care about what @stcolumbia writes on Twitter, whereas very few people honestly care about what @JessicaSimpson writes on Twitter.

In order to control for last-minute flurries of competition-related tweets, I used Klout to harvest data on the accounts of @dandrezner and @will_mccants going back 90 days.

Here are the results, with RT, M and F all measured in the thousands. These two competitors were incredible well-paired, even if @stcolumbia would have smoked either of them. First, @dandrezner:

(5.8) + (3.4)
————— = .989
9.3

Now, @will_mccants:

(1.3) + (2.3)
————— = .947
3.8

So my vote goes to @dandrezner, while @will_mccants gets traded to Oakland for Yoenis Cespedes.

By the way, in case anyone is wondering, my T-score is 1.454. Last year’s champion, Jeremy Scahill, has an anemic T-score of .333. Not that I am still bitter about last year. Or @naheedmustafa’s petulant final ballot. Not at all.

@astridhka

As I was judging this morning, I immediately noticed both @dandrezner and @will_mccants had a truly unfortunate level of commitment to doing things today that were not Twitter Fight Club. @dandrezner was at ISA and @will_mccants was off being a “terrorism” “expert” for the media.

Still, @will_mccants made some time to pander a bit to me by acknowledging that my (and @abumuqawama’s) university is superior to his university. He was so engaged on Twitter while @dandrezner was lengthily absent that the poor guy had to resort to trading barbs with his own @ZombieDrezner. For his part, @dandrezner’s continued use of the @stephaniecarvin proxy and later effort to come back with the revealing @AQ_Loves_Will was valiant, but ultimately both men’s efforts on this important day lacked a certain je na sais quoi one expects from Twitter Fight Club.

And so, it’s come to this.

With the decidedly lackluster Twitter performance of the two final contestants, an enthusiastic insurgent candidate emerged sometime this afternoon. The sharp, smart, and engaging @texasinafrica has earned herself the darkhorse vote among the judges. The last woman standing in the TFC boys club and the final Africa (watcher) contestant, there was no way I couldn’t vote for her steady, informative tweets and shameless offer to send cupcakes.

Team @texasinafrica!

@attackerman

A tough competition: I hate all academics equally. But @will_mccants is the Anthony Davis of this year’s TFC. You can learn something valuable about terrorism from his feed. And “only Tom Friedman has more insight, zingers & amazing analogies” is a cold-as-ice mot juste, the kind of thing uttered by Twitter champions. @will_mccants is like the U. Chicago tenure board: @dandrezner can’t get past him.

@charlie_simpson

In her judging guidance, @caidid encouraged we the judges to ”look at metrics such as: knowledge base; quality of argumentation; innovative thinking; humor, snark, facility with quips, and charisma; and responsiveness to followers.”

Taking all those factors into consideration, I cast my final round vote for @texasinafrica.

@will_mccants gets an A-for-Effort in sheer pandering (even if he did get my graduate school wrong). There were not, however, any Jayhawk condolences forthcoming from either party. Which, given that I haven’t tweeted about anything else in a month, is rather disappointing. My pain is no less real for being live tweeted!

Now @dandrezer is handicapped by attending ISA. I feel his pain: it’s difficult to maintain consciousness after three-days of theory laden IR panels. (I attended ISA Honolulu. By which I mean, I attended 1.5 panels and shared a condo with @mchorowitz, @jbusby2, and @thomaswright08 in Waikiki. It was much better than ISA Montreal.) But that’s no excuse for him to ignore @will_mccants’ Christian Science Monitor humblebrag. CSM, really? They don’t even do print anymore.

And finally, they failed to respond in any meaningful way to the sly insurgency of @texasinafrica. The women of the warkid loop demand to be taken seriously! They also demand cupcakes. Seriously, I named my price like 5 times. This is not f*cking rocket science, gentlemen. Jayhawks, cupcakes, and servicey snark.

It’s @texasinafrica in a landslide.

@ClosetIdealist

Well, this certainly wasn’t an easy decision. @will_mccants buttered me up early with a follower recommendation and signalled the start of a promising career as emir of AQ’s newest affiliate, the Pink Hotpants Battalion. If AQAP produced the ‘undie-bomber’, I’m not looking forward to @will_mccants first plot against the decadent West. Thankfully no self-respecting terrorist knows where Australia is, so I’m safe. Good luck to the rest of you, though.

@dandrezner took the high road, not pandering to the judges (much). It wasn’t particularly easy to figure out who fired the first shot in the 2012 Zombies vs AQ war, but it seemed to end with the destruction of Tom Friedman’s moustache (which is more than can be said about most wars in recent memory). But @dandrezner had some great substantive tweets on Wikileaks, the Republican nomination process, and Iraq War intelligence - all worth a read. Also, it can’t have been easy participating in both #TFC12 and #ISA2012.

It was a hard decision - both participants had some great tweets and the interaction was excellent, but I have to select @dandrezner as the winner by a narrow margin.

The Bracket Pool

By virtue of being the only one to correctly pick the winner of the tournament, @azelin has made #TFC12 a sweep for the CT, Friends of the AQ Fora crew. Congratulations, @azelin!

Entrant	Round One	Round Two	Sweet Sixteen	Elite Eight	Final Four	Championship	Total
@alanatiemessen	21	16	12	8	16	0	73
@AngelaConner	25	0	0	0	0	0	25
@astridhka	25	22	12	0	0	0	59
@azelin	24	14	16	8	16	32	110
@bmccorkle1	22	18	16	0	0	0	56
@DaveedGR	22	18	16	8	0	0	64
@dianawueger	26	18	12	8	16	0	80
@doylecjd	18	16	8	0	0	0	42
@drjjoyner	23	18	8	0	0	0	49
@GrahamWJenkins	26	12	8	0	0	0	46
@ibnlarry	17	16	20	0	0	0	53
@jay_ulfelder	26	16	20	8	0	0	70
@jeffemanuel	24	18	12	8	16	0	78
@JimmySky	26	20	12	0	0	0	58
@katiedemann	20	16	12	8	0	0	56
@mariastoh	28	14	12	8	16	0	78
@miketalley73	20	12	16	16	0	0	64
@mvallonesta	23	16	20	8	16	0	83
@RogueAdventurer	28	18	12	8	0	0	66
@smsaideman	22	18	24	16	16	0	96
@stephanie carvin	27	22	16	0	0	0	65
@strangestrings	24	14	12	0	0	0	50
@TalkingWarheads	21	14	8	0	0	0	43
@the_boy	24	16	12	0	0	0	52
@TheCamelsNose	22	16	12	0	0	0	50
Arias (handle unknown)	20	16	8	0	0	0	44
Stone (handle unknown)	22	12	8	8	0	0	50

Prizes will make their way to the winners in the coming weeks, but aside from that, this wraps up TwitterFightClub 2012. Thank you to our dedicated judges, @noahchestnut for the great recaps and previews, @MarkfromArk for the wonderful visualizations, and everyone for reading. Congratulations again to our 2012 champ @will_mccants!

Today marks the final day of competition. Tomorrow, we will crown a victor. Let’s see who remains to compete for the honor.

Final Four Results

North: @will_mccants vs. East: @stcolumbia
Judges: 4-3 for @will_mccants (57% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@will_mccants: 326 (71%)
@stcolumbia: 132 (29%)
On the same day that @will_mccants apparently took down al Qaeda’s cyber networks (or so @JimmySky’s ballot says probably presumably happened), @stcolumbia’s until-now-superior cyber networks fail to net him the popular vote, and on a day when the judges’ vote tilts against him as well…Did the Hound use some kind of counter terror cyber counter ninjitsu to take down the pup? We may never know, but the day belongs to @will_mccants in this contest.

South: @dandrezner vs. West: @jeffemanuel
Judges: 6-1 for @dandrezner (86% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@jeffemanuel: 434 (75%)
@dandrezner: 141 (25%)
@jeffemanuel scored another nod from ‘Firefly’ alum Adam Baldwin and clear superiority in the popular vote, but it’s not enough to overcome @dandrezner‘s overwhelming edge with the judges, a good deal of the credit for which must go to his highly effective proxy @stephaniecarvin.

The Championship Round

@will_mccants has battled his way here through a series of lively, close battles with @zackbeauchamp, @chrisalbon, @AzmatZahra, and @smsaideman.

@dandrezner was very nearly sent home in the first round by (16) seed @HayesBrown, but since then has appeared secure and sometimes downright formidable, taking down heavyweights @USEmbPretoria, @DaveedGR, and @BlakeHounshell

Today marks the epic final showdown of #TFC12, where @will_mccants and @dandrezner will seek to curry the favor of the voting public and a panel of judges including the only two people who have stood where they now stand, last year’s finalists @jeremyscahill and @abumuqawama. By the end of the evening, as many of the committee members, judges, contestants, and enthusiasts make merry,

the Chair will be locked away, feverishly tallying votes and weighing ballots, until the identity of the new champion is known.

The judging panel on this final day of competitions consists of:

• @jeremyscahill
• @abumuqawama
• @astridhka
• @attackerman
• @charlie_simpson
• @ClosetIdealist

The panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote. The public polls account for the other 50%. 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. Contestants’ full bodies of work on Twitter are fair game, but any work outside of Twitter should not be considered, and once again everyone is encouraged to make their decisions in their own way. Two tweeters enter. Only one will walk away with the coveted trophy. Who will it be?

Now let’s hear from the judges how they made their picks.

@AzmatZahra

@will_mccants vs. @stcolumbia

So Will McCants is a super serious, established “terrorism expert” (a title he deserves) who makes the pages of WaPo like it ain’t no thang. Despite this, he doesn’t think himself above partaking in seriously dorky, embarrassing things — a very tiny example of which is pandering to this judge’s obsession with The Hunger Games — and that’s ace in my books.

But Dan Trombly is young and hungry and relentless in his blogging, which is incredibly endearing. I mean, he’s a young’n (something Will hasn’t failed to used to his advantage) who knows a great deal, and how can you not root for that? He also cracked out the lolCats, which I have deep (and secret) appreciation for. Back in grad school, I used to read icanhazcheezburger? captions to my friends in funny voices (yes, I had friends) and would make my own. What? Stop typing right now, Azmat. Moving along. Dan also made this, and I love it.

This was difficult, very difficult, but my vote goes to @will_mccants, whom I suspect is behind Al Qaeda’s internet blackout. (For the record, I’m afraid this decision will come back to haunt me when I’m (well, we’ll all be) working for Dan Trombly one day. Please take pity on me then, Dan. I was a fool.)

@jeffemanuel vs. @dandrezner

Jeff started out the morning with an #FF for the judges, which is kind and whatnot, but entirely pointless, no? I mean, when was the last time an #FF like that actually meant something? That said, Jeff seems to have a very dedicated and loyal following… that includes Adam Baldwin? That’s probably because Jeff is both thoughtful and opinionated, which is a surprisingly rare combination.

Dan Drezner was at ISA, where he spoke and live-tweeted, and apparently also ate a whale, fought zombies and saved baby kittens. That he has Stephanie Carvin’s backing (who is a badass in my books) means a lot. Forget Adam Baldwin. I can’t help but listen to women I know are smart, so my vote goes to @dandrezner.

@JimmySky

Obviously, at this point in #TFC12, all of the competitions are going to be tough to judge. It’s doubly so for me right now since I just got diagnosed with “something pretty close to bronchitis” and now I’m suffering from the side-effects of Albuterol, which include nervousness, dizziness, shortness of breath, headache and uncontrollable shaking. Come to think of it, that’s the exact list of symptoms I had prior to going to the doctor.

Regardless, I have been asked to pass judgment on the Twitter Fight Club 2012 Final Four, so here they are.

@will_mccants vs. @stcolumbia

The #TFC12 Illuminati are going to be furious at me for doing this, but its time to get the truth out there. I don’t believe that ‘Dan Trombly’ (aka @stcolumbia) is actually a real person. More precisely, I don’t believe that he is a single individual. I think that he is more of a collective, like @blakehounshell. My guess is that @stcolumbia is some kind of slow-burn viral marketing advertisement for Columbia University (or Columbia, SC). No real person could be as widely read and intelligent on such a vast amount topics as this ‘Dan Trombly’ person, especially at only 21 years old.

Follow me down the rabbit hole…

I know, I know. There is a guy that attends events in DC occasionally and presents himself as “Dan Trombly” but what do we really know about him, aside from the fact that he bears a passing resemblance to Emo Peter Parker from Spider-Man 3?

I’ll answer that: Nothing.

No 21-year old should be able to go toe-to-toe with Foreign Policy elite via twitter and argue the finer points of foreign intervention in Libya or the fiscal impacts behind France’s involvement in the American Revolution. Occam’s Razor dictates that @stcolumbia is a collection of at least a dozen PhDs. Or he is a 287-year-old Vampire. Or there is a hideously grotesque picture of him hidden in an attic somewhere.

Regardless, @stcolumbia isn’t real. Wake up, Sheeple! The truth is out there.

So, you ask, ‘What did @will_mccants do today?’ Nothing….

…unless you count SINGLE HANDEDLY TAKING DOWN AL-QAEDAS WEBSITE.
(I just kinda skimmed the article, but I’m pretty sure that’s what it said)

That’s right. Will McCants used the power of cyber to stop ALL THE TERRORISTS. Suck it, @evgenymorozov. The internet is awesome.

What did @will_mccants do yesterday? He cyber-punched Glenn Greenwald. This scores him huge points with me, not because he resorted to violence (cyber punching hits with all the physical damage of a sternly written ‘letter to the editor’) but because I find Greenwald unbearable.

Plus, Will McCants isn’t some shady collective of individuals we know nothing about. At worst, he is one guy standing on another guy’s shoulders wearing a trenchcoat.

WINNER: @will_mccants

@jeffemanuel vs. @dandrezner

@dandrezner engaged in unbelievably ruthless behavior in today’s twitter fight club round by enlisting a proxy by the name of @StephanieCarvin to wear down Jeff Emanuel’s defenses. Granted, Dan paid lip-service to the greatness of his adversaries, but behind the scenes he was laying the groundwork for his ultimate triumph.

I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop with @jeffemanuel. I kept waiting for him to ‘go negative.’ I wanted to see him lay down some snark with Dan Drezner. I knew that since we were in the Final Four he would certainly come out swinging. Nope. Jeff played it classy the whole time.

Unfortunately for Jeff, this is Twitter FIGHT Club, and the Coliseum demands blood. Or, in the absence of blood, cupcakes (which Dan Drezner promised to everyone).

Also, I’m a sore loser.

@naheedmustafa

Of Canadian Spellings and Canadian Decisions:

Ah, yes, the Final Four. Today’s Twitter fight threw up a veritable smorgasbord of soup-to-nuts tweets (eat your heart out Thomas Friedman). Everything from Russian influence in the GCC to a twitpic of a big girl in tiny clothes that singed my retinas (thanksalot @jeffemanuel). But decisions have to be made and not every decision is as decisive as the War of 1812 (which Canada won so…).

So here’s my rundown. But before I give my rundown I would like to say that each contestant – ok, not each contestant (you know who you are @dandrezner) made a real effort at toadying and truckling to some degree – some with compliments about my tumblr (I’m lookin’ at you @jeffemanuel) – and some with mildly swear-y exchanges – kudos @will_mccants. And some by RT’ing my brilliance (cheque’s in the mail @stcolumbia). But I also feel like regardless of the feel-good exchanges and the good times, I did announce early on that my core evaluation would be content (and whether I learned anything new). So, take a deep swig of your Tim Hortons double double and read on:

@will_mccants vs. @stcolumbia

This matchup was a tough one to decide. I just started following @stcolumbia and quickly realized I’m better for it. @will_mccants, well, what can one say? Sheikh al-Forummeister is an obvious must-follow and I’ve been consuming his tweets for some time.

@will_mccants:

• we had a nice swear-y exchange
• he made great efforts at toadying and truckling – nice touch
• some forum talk
• tweeted an article in which he’s quoted so that boosted his cred
• mild trash talk with @stcolumbia which was all right but not stellar and mostly one-sided.
• at one point he attempted to bribe one of the judges (@texasinafrica) with coke – white powdery stuff or carbonated beverage, I’m not sure
• actually visited my tumblr, hence the swear-y exchange.

@stcolumbia

• while there was little by way of trash talk and snark, @stcolumbia’s twitter feed is a cornucopia of information – everything from the British Empire to American intervention in WWI to Libyan democracy to Russian influence in the GCC to a post on the dovishness of Fouad Ajami (!). In a world where content is king, in today’s matchup, @stcolumbia wears the crown.

Decision: @stcolumbia

@jeffemanuel vs. @dandrezner

This matchup was easy. @dandrezner live-tweeted some China thingy and ignored me all day. That is all. I wanted to change my twitter handle to @SadSadBunny but figured I would just be inundated with porn bots specializing in the use of small woodland creatures. Despite my best efforts, there was nary a tweet in my direction from the estimable @dandrezner. One thing he did have that no one else did, however, was a proxy. I feel there should be a special helper medal for @stephaniecarvin. Alternatively, a commemorative Canadian penny (they’re being discontinued y’know) and a Tim Hortons gift card should suffice. Or a t-shirt and fleece vest combo would work too.

@jeffemanuel, on the other hand, pandered like a pro. He pandered early and he pandered often. Also, he made good use of snark; his feed included a twitpic that left me visually impaired (see above) so while it’s never good to burn the retinas of a judge it did show that he had guts and wasn’t afraid to go out on a limb; he tweeted about sports (I think it was sports, I don’t do sports); American aid to Syria (learned something I didn’t know in terms of the possible type of aid); Groupon; food; and the F-35 (one of several banes of my existence). Oh, and he visited my tumblr too.

Decision: @jeffemanuel

@NuisanceValue

After two weeks of fierce competition, shocking upsets, and creative pandering, only four competitors are left:

@will_mccants, the author, jolly green giant of the counter terror community, who promises to be the judges’ Hound today:

@stcolumbia, the precocious undergrad whose soul has not yet been crushed by the working world, the 12 seed who has sneak-attacked a series of higher seeds on the way up:

@jeffemanuel, the archaeologist, scholar, and SOF vet:

and @dandrezner, renowned professor of IR, blogger, and expert on-

One day, two battles, two victors who will face each other in tomorrow’s final day of competition. For the tales of the tape, check out these visualizations set up by @MarkfromArk:

@will_mccants vs. @stcolumbia

@jeffemanuel vs. @dandrezner

Today’s matches will be judged by a panel of seven:

• @AzmatZahra
• @JimmySky
• @naheedmustafa
• @NuisanceValue
• @securityscholar
• @texasinafrica
• @wjrue

The panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote, with each judge representing one seventh of that total. The public polls account for the other 50%. 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. Contestants’ full bodies of work on Twitter are fair game, but any work outside of Twitter should not be considered, and once again everyone is encouraged to make their decisions in their own way. The winners will face each other in the championship round on Tuesday!

Polls are open until midnight, and remember to get out the vote!

 

 

A lot of entrants did not have any of the Final Four in their brackets, and only two correctly predicted more than one of them. @smsaideman went down in the Sweet 16 round of the competition, but his bracket selections could yet bring him a victory in TwitterFightClub 2012.

Entrant	Round One	Round Two	Sweet Sixteen	Elite Eight	Final Four	Championship	Total
@alanatiemessen	21	16	12	8			57
@AngelaConner	25	0	0	0	0	0	25
@astridhka	25	22	12	0	0	0	59
@azelin	24	14	16	8			62
@bmccorkle1	22	18	16	0	0	0	56
@DaveedGR	22	18	16	8			64
@dianawueger	26	18	12	8			64
@doylecjd	18	16	8	0	0	0	42
@drjjoyner	23	18	8	0	0	0	49
@GrahamWJenkins	26	12	8	0	0	0	46
@ibnlarry	17	16	20	0	0	0	53
@jay_ulfelder	26	16	20	8			70
@jeffemanuel	24	18	12	8			62
@JimmySky	26	20	12	0	0	0	58
@katiedemann	20	16	12	8			56
@mariastoh	28	14	12	8			62
@miketalley73	20	12	16	16			64
@mvallonesta	23	16	20	8			67
@RogueAdventurer	28	18	12	8			66
@smsaideman	22	18	24	16			80
@stephanie carvin	27	22	16	0	0	0	65
@strangestrings	24	14	12	0	0	0	50
@TalkingWarheads	21	14	8	0	0	0	43
@the_boy	24	16	12	0	0	0	52
@TheCamelsNose	22	16	12	0	0	0	50
Arias (handle unknown)	20	16	8	0	0	0	44
Stone (handle unknown)	22	12	8	8			50

More upsets in Elite Eight action as the competitor who had become favored to win it all goes down in defeat. The four survivors of today’s competition have a long weekend to rest and strategize before next week’s final two decisive rounds!

East: (2) @joshuafoust vs. (12) @stcolumbia
Judges: 2-2 (50% of judges’ votes each)
Popular vote:
@stcolumbia: 160 (64%)
@joshuafoust: 91 (36%)
A judges’ split leaves this one in the hands of the public, where once again 12 seed @stcolumbia shows an advantage, advancing to the Final Four.

South: (1) @dandrezner vs. (2) @BlakeHounshell
Judges: 2-2 (50% of judges’ vote each)
Popular vote:
@dandrezner: 167 (60%)
@BlakeHounshell: 113 (40%)
Another judges’ split, and the final one seed left in the competition advances to Monday’s competition.

North: (3) @will_mccants vs. (12) @smsaideman
Judges: 4-0 for @will_mccants (100% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@will_mccants: 159 (64%)
@smsaideman: 89 (36%)
A great competitive run comes to an end as @will_mccants takes the judges’ votes and the popular vote to eliminate @smsaideman.

West: (2) @texasinafrica vs. (4) @jeffemanuel
Judges: 3-1 for @jeffemanuel (75% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@texasinafrica: 268 (51%)
@jeffemanuel: 262 (49%)
A celebrity endorsement by the man they call the Man They Call Jayne ends up being the difference in this match, as it tips at least one judge away from popular-vote winner @texasinafrica. A very active voting day for both contestants ends with a victory for @jeffemanuel.

The Final Four will be contested Monday, with (12) seed @stcolumbia taking on (3) seed @will_mccants and (1) seed @dandrezner facing off against (4) seed @jeffemanuel for spots in Tuesday’s Championship round. Be on the lookout this weekend for an announcement of next week’s judging panels as well as an update on the bracket pool scoring!

Now for the judges’ ballots:

@azelin

In the morning I asked the Elite Eight participants why I should vote for them. Half did not answer. Seriously?! The Elite Eight and you’re not pandering. I digress…

@stcolumbia v. @joshuafoust:

I usually root for the underdogs, but in this case I have to go with @joshuafoust. Not only does he provide fierce commentary and get in epic Twitter battles, but he also shows awesome pictures of food he cooks, which I wish I could always eat. If this was a blog competition @stcolumbia may have had a shot, but this is Twitter Fight Club. Enjoy the final four @joshuafoust.

@dandrezner v. @blakehounshell:

Neither of these old curmudgeons decided to pander to me. Points taken away from @dandrezner for not even following me. I like @dandrezner’s tweets, but I’m simply a Middle East/North Africa guy whereas he focuses on IR/Poli Sci type stuff. Have to back the MENA folks. As such, @blakehounshell I send you to the Final Four (also, when am I getting my own FP blog?).

@smsaideman v. @will_mccants:

This was easily the best fight of the day. Some real virtual punches were thrown. At the height they were arguing about what role they would have in my future book (as a reviewer or blurber). Much of the contest saw @smsaideman on the defensive. Further, @smsaideman was not following me until today, which although is some good pandering I feel it was already too late. Cinderella has to end at some point, which is why I go with the beard and Islamicist vote for Mr. Jihad @will_mccants. Plus @will_mccants owned the “legal” expert Gossip Girl earlier in the week.

@jeffemanuel v. @texasinafrica:

I had originally given the win to @texasinafrica for pandering well, dropping knowledge, and since she defeated me and I wanted her to carry on since it would give my loss more cred. Then in a late hail mary @jeffemanuel gets the win with a huge celebrity endorsement: @adamsbaldwin. What the Chuck?! Yeah, that just happened. Way to pull out all the stops, @jeffemanuel!

Winter is coming…”

@brianfishman

It’s too bad that defeated contestants in March Madness do not go on to referee future rounds. It might increase sportsmanship, as contestants would have an incentive to cultivate their defeated foes. On the other hand, the specter of a defeated opponent serving as a judge has not reduced the rancor in #TFC2012. Are the stakes too low? Too high? Maybe decorum would break down even further if these rules were not in place? I don’t know, but it sounds like a thesis for some Game Theory obsessed blogger.

On to the judging, which I only agreed to do after being assured my decisions could be utterly arbitrary.

@joshuafoust v. @stcolumbia

@stcolumbia is the only contestant in the Elite Eight that I was not already following, which either speaks to his poverty as a contestant, or mine as a judge. Guess which one I’m going with? On the other hand, he defeated @abuaardvark, albeit partly because he was trying to throw the contest, but still. Defeating perhaps the overall number one is no small accomplishment. On the other hand, we have @joshuafoust, a prolific tweeter on all sorts of issues, only some of which I care about. Truffles and pugs simply don’t get me going. Still, he’s antagonistic, and I like that. Winner, @joshuafoust. @stcolumbia, come back when you’re in graduate school.

@dandrezner v. @blakehounshell

This one is surprisingly easy for me. @blakehounshell is one of my favorite twitter feeds. I actually learn things here and that’s the point. Plus, @blakehounshell seems to reflect flesh and blood Blake Hounshell. (I can picture that avatar chain smoking cigarettes on L Street.) Despite my immense respect for @dandrezner’s work on zombies, the tweets jump around a bit too much for my taste. @blakehounshell wins.

@will_mccants v. @smsaideman

Normally I would just vote against @smsaideman on principle; he being Canadian and all. But in this case there are compelling reasons to vote against @will_mccants, namely his work with the beard mafia early in the tournament, a cabal of Bond-villains that included the @tweetsintheme, who vanquished me from this tournament. Plus he tweeted that video of me in the Fat Boy Slim video. In the end, though, this has to be a protest vote against @ggreenwald. Man knows enough about terrorism to be the teacher’s pet on the first day in an Intro to Terrorism class and runs around stating the obvious like the ideas are new…all the while denigrating everyone that actually showed up to class the second day. With apologies to @smsaideman, who never had a fair shot here, I regretfully go with @will_mccants, whose beard chauvinism is not so obnoxious as @ggreenwald.

@texasinafrica v. @jeffemanuel

@texasinafrica only followed me today. Poor form, though she did come on strong by offering a bribe of scotch. (She’d have done better offering tequila.) I don’t know anything about Jeff Emanuel (or scotch), but based on @jeffemanuel, I think I’d like him. So that’s a good start. @texasinafrica is awfully useful for me though, because her expertise adds a lot of value. I don’t know much about sub-saharan politics. She does, and I learn things. But you’ve got love @jeffemanuel’s resigned support for Mitt Romney. He embodies the frustrated conservative, but politely and without all the exclamation points. Plus, his avatar is better. In a close one, I go with @jeffemanuel.

@peterjmunson

Today’s Elite 8 deathmatch was a well-played contest. These professionals pretty much did what they do every day – not too much in the way of gimmicks or attack tactics. Unfortunately for me, there weren’t any serious attempts to win over the judge. What is more, I’m not overwhelmed with wit right now, so I’ll get right into it.

@joshuafoust (2) vs. @stcolumbia (12)

Both of these gentlemen are smart tweeters and bloggers, strong and informed in their opinions. Joshua Foust does this as a professional wonk, Dan Trombly does this as a student, meaning that this is not really a sideline gig for either, but the handicap tilts the field slightly in favor of the undergrad. Foust took the edge on edginess in his interactions, but Trombly seemed to engage more substantively and to take the advantage on substance and volume. I’m looking forward to seeing where he goes after he graduates.

Victor: @stcolumbia

@dandrezner (1) vs. @blakehounshell (2)

This was a not-particularly bloody battle between two heavyweights. Honestly, you would barely have known there was a fight on, except for Drezner getting the Fletcher mafia tweet. They did what they do every day, which is put out a lot of relevant information and links. Follow both. Tough call but…

Victor: @dandrezner

@will_mccants (3) vs. @smsaideman (12)

This, in my opinion, was the best-fought and most interesting match-up. I am not sure if I want to give Saideman a handicap advantage for continuing to Tweet while on vacation or to penalize him to participate in what one of my friends called “the lamest thing I’ve ever heard of” while on vacation. His tweets on butter beer, capes, and the like, though, were a refreshing break in my Twitter feed. I also appreciated his attempts to suck up, however he was a step behind McCants.

Will McCants started the fight off with a strategic coup, claiming to have my book Iraq in Transition on his nightstand, while also touting a Cleveland connection (my town). I was happy that he pushed out a link on the book to 3,816 followers, but didn’t really believe him. I called him out on it during an afternoon tweet calculated to hit more of an audience and he actually produced a picture of my book on his nightstand. In all, the fight was good-heartedly nasty, with insults and compromising pictures slung back and forth. In this, I really want to vote for Saideman, the underdog who spent the day on vacation with his family, but I have to say that McCants brought the game. Follow both of them, but…

Victor: @will_mccants

@texasinafrica (2) vs. @jeffemanuel (4)

This was another contest of relatively quiet professionals. Jeff Emanuel handily defeated me in round 1, but I held no grudge and noted that he was quick to get in an RT on my shameless request for followers from the Elite 8 contestants on Wednesday night. He is a prolific tweeter and retweeter, plus he acknowledged the contest with a number of well timed self-promotion tweets asking for votes.

Laura Seay (@texasinafrica) is relatively new to me because I don’t focus on Africa. It seemed, though, that she offers a lot of good material that is not as easy to find as the never-ending tales of woe in the Middle East that I follow. She did offer several times to suck up, but didn’t seize the initiative creatively like McCants did in the other bout. An early #FridayFollow was a nice touch.

Overall, the edge goes to Emanuel for self-promotion, tweet volume, and the legion of loyal followers that spread the word to vote for him.

Victor: @jeffemanuel

@zackbeauchamp

Twitter Fight Club judging has the highest aspirations towards honor, impartiality and intellectual rigor. The sacred trust put in the judge to ascertain the truth approximates our highest ideals of our justice system. We are, in short, Henry Fonda:

What this video tells you about…aww, fuck it. Twitter Fight Club judges are actually more like this:

With pretensions and self-regard entirely shattered, let’s move on to the actual matchups – all of which were unfortunately fantastic. I say “unfortunately” because instead of being able to spend five minutes thinking and an hour writing a terribly nasty decision about how one of these tweeps fails at life and should probably pursue a career in the lucrative adult movie theater janitorial field, I had to make actual, fairish decisions. Ah, well. Bear in mind my judging criteria while you read these:

(2) @joshuafoust vs. (12) @stcolumbia

So the two people I’ve probably fought the most on Twitter, and I can only send home one of them this week? What is this, Flavor of Love?

Nah, they’re both great, and I’m genuinely sorry to have to decide. @joshuafoust was, despite being a higher seed, forced to fight an uphill battle, because @stcolumbia spends so damn much time putting stuff out there that even someone as prolific and entertaining as @joshuafoust is in a tough place. While one might get the impression from that comment that @stcolumbia’s feed is something like this:

It’s actually chock full of intellectual goodness, entertaining fighting, and historical knowledge-dropping. To overcome the barrage, @joshuafoust probably needed to match it in quantity or pick a fight with someone (as is his wont) and take a decisive victory. Unfortunately, @joshuafoust decided to pick yesterday to start kicking his pugilism habit. @stcolumbia advances.

(1) @dandrezner vs. (2) @blakehounshell

One would assume the battle of Foreign Policy honchos would have had the same effect on the blocks of DC surrounding the offices as the alien weapon in Independence Day did:

And yet the city stands. Aside from a (poorly) veiled threat to destroy @dandrezner’s blog, this fight was extraordinarily civilized. Not only did both spend the day tweeting interesting articles and having it out with their followers, but each even urged me to vote for the other one. Tough.

But in the end, this one’s gotta got to @dandrezner. Not only did he hit two of my pet topics by flagging an article that uses Game of Thrones to point out realism’s descriptive deficiencies, but he engaged in more of the sort of sustained arguments/conversations/snarkfests that makes Twitter a place for fight clubs than @blakehounshell. So Dan, enjoy your victory with a song (that you tweeted):

(2) @texasinafrica vs. (4) @jeffemanuel

On almost every metric, this was a perfectly matched fight. Both tweeters developed interesting ideas, found interesting articles, engaged in interesting arguments with other tweeps, and demonstrated the highest respect for each other. Awesome, but also hard for me.

But then I remembered – I promised that pandering would be tiebreaker in tough cases. And boy, did @texasinafrica pander, while @jeffemanuel oddly seemed to care about his dignity. She made many, many, many promises, but the one I’ll take her up on is babysitting my niece and nephew. The shirt I’m wearing that Friday night:

(3) @willmccants vs. (12) @smsaideman

Hands down today’s best-fought match, with both sides making excellent use of clever barbs and judge pandering. To be honest, either of them probably would have beaten any of the other remaining contestants with these performances. But – there can be only one.

By a hair’s edge, it’s @will_mccants. I was all set to vote for @will_mccants at the outset of deliberation – his promise to back me all the way next year nearly won it on promising me #TFC13 and giving me credit for all my boss’ work went a long way – but reviewing their feeds side-by-side, the two tie on arguing with each other, pandering (Whedon tweets!), and all-around hilarity, but Steve just barely, barely spend more time than Will on argument on natsec substance. I swung my vote.

Then I remembered the trap Will baited Steve into about the bizarre pronunciation of my last name. A thing of strategic beauty that played brilliantly on Steve’s background – it just couldn’t go unrewarded. But congratulations to both on a fight well fought – it was like this, only exactly as awesomely nerdy:

The high seeds advance in six of today’s eight contests, but two one seeds fall, as just three more days of competition remain before the 2012 TwitterFightClub champion is crowned!

Sweet 16 Results

East: (1) @abuaardvark vs. (12) @stcolumbia
Judges: 3.5-0.5 for @stcolumbia (87.5% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@stcolumbia: 268 (66%)
@abuaardvark: 141 (34%)
The prolific Twitter output and higher recent engagement of dark horse @stcolumbia is enough to dispatch (1) seed @abuaardvark.

East: (2) @joshuafoust vs. (11) @naheedmustafa
Judges: 2.5-1.5 for @naheedmustafa (62.5% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@joshuafoust: 177 (64%)
@naheedmustafa: 98 (36%)
@naheedmustafa’s edge in the judges’ vote is not enough to overcome the popular advantage enjoyed by her opponent. @joshuafoust ekes out a narrow victory here.

South: (1) @dandrezner vs. (4) @DaveedGR
Judges: 3.5-0.5 for @dandrezner (87.5% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@dandrezner: 151 (55%)
@DaveedGR: 122 (45%)
@DaveedGR had a light Twitter day at the wrong time. Despite protestations of a busy schedule, @dandrezner brought enough content and snark to impress the people and especially the judges.

South: (2) @blakehounshell vs. (14) @astridhka
Judges: 2.5-1.5 for @astridhka (62.5% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@blakehounshell: 174 (60%)
@astridhka: 114 (40%)
In a whisper-close contest, higher seed @blakehounshell manages to squeak past @astridhka by the narrowest of margins thanks to his better showing in the popular vote.

North: (1) @attackerman vs. (12) @smsaideman
Judges: 3-1 for @smsaideman (75% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@smsaideman: 154 (53%)
@attackerman: 139 (47%)
The @attackerman has stayed aloof from the competition, and this round it finally took its toll, as the underdog @smsaideman continues his run, taking three of four judges and the popular vote.

North: (3) @will_mccants vs. (7) @AzmatZahra
Judges: 2-2 (50% of judges’ vote to each)
Popular vote:
@will_mccants: 195 (59%)
@AzmatZahra: 135 (41%)
Both competitors had the full court press on today, but @will_mccants advances on the strength of his advantage in the popular vote.

West: (4) @jeffemanuel vs. (8) @tweetsintheme
Judges: 2-2 (50% of judges’ vote to each)
Popular vote:
@jeffemanuel: 127 (51%)
@tweetsintheme: 122 (49%)
In the closest match of the day, @jeffemanuel pulls off a victory on the basis of his very slight edge in the popular vote.

West: (2) @texasinafrica vs. (14) @laurenist
Judges: 3-1 for @texasinafrica (75% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@texasinafrica: 205 (62%)
@laurenist: 125 (38%)
In a match that gave all of the judges fits, both competitors gave their all, tossing off content, quips, and bribe offers all day long, but in the end the high seed prevails. @texasinafrica still looks dominant heading into today’s Elite Eight.

Elite Eight Match-ups

Today’s matches will be judged by:

• @azelin
• @brianfishman
• @peterjmunson
• @zackbeauchamp

The panel’s judgment will count for 40% of the vote, with each judge representing one-fourth of that total, meaning that the public vote is worth 60% of the total. 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. Contestants’ full bodies of work on Twitter are fair game, but any work outside of Twitter should not be considered, and once again everyone is encouraged to make their decisions in their own way. The winners move on to Monday’s Final Four!

Polls are open until midnight, and remember to get out the vote! Now, without further ado, your Elite Eight!

 

 

 

Read on for the Sweet 16 judges’ ballots.

East and South

@AdamWeinstein

(2) @joshuafoust vs. (11) @naheedmustafa

This one is hard, because I have a deep personal bond with both Josh and Naheed. I mean, as personal as you can get in years of Twitter debates and commiserations. Which isn’t really personal at all, but it’s pretty darn virtually personal. Hell, I think I know what Foust has eaten every night for the past decade, owing to his prolific tweeting. We get it, dude. You like Swiss chard.

Also, these two are both excellent muckrakers, ready to call out stupidity when it’s warranted — and both do it with a lovely balance of wit and righteous fury. Like I said, it’s a tough decision.

On the other hand, this is pretty easy: I work for Mother Jones, and there’s a minority Canadian woman competing against a white dude. Being that they’re both brilliant, on teh Twitterz and off, I have no qualms about breaking this Gordian knot with some hardened lefty affirmative action. Naheed gets the nod. And it’s not just because she shares my obsessions with social justice and The Kids in the Hall. I swear.

WINNER: @naheedmustafa

(1) @dandrezner vs. (4) @DaveedGR

Dammit, stop giving me these hard choices between people I dig. When I was a policy debater in college, there was a word that we cunning linguists uttered only in hushed murmurs in the dark corners of tournament rooms, for fear its vocalization might summon the spirit it invoked: “DAVEED.” He was a rockstar then and now, always willing to remind you when your argument is non-inherent, non-topical, and lacking in internal links and significant harms. He is as well a sensitive and empathetic voice from the other side of the proverbial aisle. He is an amazing person, in tweet form and everywhere else.

But as far as I know, he’s not into zombies or the Bosox. And he’s never tweeted me any hilarious quotes about Stratfor or comely TV models. Besides, I warned Daveed that I’m a fiat abuser. Drezner takes it in a photo-finish.

WINNER: @dandrezner

(2) @blakehounshell vs. (14) @astridhka

I cannot live without Blake. I could block everything Middle Eastern in my RSS and TV feeds and still know more than most Florida-based professors of IR theory and comparative politics just by following Blake’s twitter feed. He is smart and, apparently, permanently unable to sleep or stop working. I definitely sympathize. Hell, he moves around the world so much, I have no clue where he’s at till he tweets it.

But! I hate the Steelers and their idiot QB. I’m not big on Yalies. I’m looking for an upset pick. And I’m pretty sure that Blake won’t need my help, because he’s kind of a beast in this bracket. Astrid is a do-gooder with a dry wit and a keen sense of the possible in disadvantaged corners of the world. Also, she gets extra points for actually being in those corners right now, and for having a tweet-voice with a slight edge that I recognize as similar to my own.

WINNER: @astridhka

(1) @abuaardvark vs. (12) @stcolumbia

WHOA. George Washington professor vs. George Washington student? Is that for real? Marc Lynch is a badass Middle East expert. Dan Trombly is a bit more of a generalist. Both are passionate, fun on the Twitter, and prone to long bouts of intelligent discourse. But lately, I see Dan wading in more to argue it out with his peers - on Twitter, on his blog - and I like that. He’s hungry. And he’s my pick.

WINNER: @stcolumbia

So, actually, I guess I’m all about the upsets this week. It’s like that little old Irish lady who was all about the underdogs said: “I will tell the truth wherever I please.” Fiat, baby, fiat!

@brettfriedman

I apologize for not writing another epic yarn, but I did not have the time or the favor of the Muses today. They are fickle mistresses. Yet, I’ve been called upon to judge and judge I shall.

In the case of @abuaardvark versus @stcolumbia there was really no contest. @abuaardvark does not follow me. If he did, he would know that I requested a signed copy of contestant’s books for their votes. Now I’ll have to order his book from Amazon like some kind of pleb and hope he visits Quantico on his book tour. @stcolumbia on the other hand, regularly converses with me on twitter and I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him twice now. He’s just as impressive in real life, and intoxicated, as he is on twitter.

Winner: @stcolumbia

In the case of @joshuafoust versus @naheedmustafa I had a great deal of difficulty. @joshuafoust is a legendary twitter pugilist and writes a super smart blog. But, I love an underdog, and @naheedmustafa never backed down from the formidable @joshuafoust for a second. She kept a lively offensive going for much of the day. But, Canada. Canada. They beat us in a scrap once, when we were a young nation and the Marine Corps was busy. Still, I’ll give this one to her. Although I will remind you, Canada, that a wise man once said that the result in war is never final. We will come for you.

Winner: @naheedmustafa

In the case of @dandrezner versus @DaveedGR we have two published authors who also failed to heed the call for signed books. Also, they both author fantastic twitter feeds. (Their twitter feeds are also not autographed.) As difficult as choosing between these two feeds is, one contestant went for the comedic jugular and the other decided to keep his tweets light in the interests of sportsmanship and mercy. Mercy is weakness. War is not sport. This one goes to @dandrezner

Winner: @dandrezner

In the case of @blakehounshell versus @astridhka, I fear my vote may not matter. @blakehounshell has a whopping 36,447 followers who he has appealed to for votes. I cannot abide this populism. I’m a firm believer in a ruling class, especially since I rule.

Winner: @astridhka

@drfarls

(1) @abuaardvark vs. (12) @stcolumbia

This was an interesting matchup from the start. @stcolumbia came onto the court with a lot of underdog energy, and decided to use it to engage in an epic twitter battle with…. some guy who wasn’t @abuaardvark. Unfortunately for him, @abuaardvark embarked on a Dukakis-esque “Rose-Garden-while-not-in-the-Rose-Garden strategy” leaving himself vulnerable to defeat by the cagey-but-strategically-challenged undergraduate. In the end, @stcolumbia should pull it out, and continue his Cinderella run. But will midnight soon chime?

(2) @joshuafoust vs. (11) @naheedmustafa

This was a close, well fought battle on both sides. @naheedmustafa came to play, demonstrating no underdog jitters. @joshuafoust took the fight seriously, not looking ahead to the next battle. Both employed a sophisticated array of funny, snarky, and substantive tweets. In the end, I’m only human; @joshuafoust promised cookies for everyone if he won, and anyone who knows me will understand that such an offer is virtually impossible to resist. In response, @naheedmustafa offered only freedom. Eh…. I’ll take the cookies.

(1) @dandrezner vs. (4) @DaveedGR

@DaveedGR opened strong, going hard on the zombie angle. Tenacious defense by @dandrezner put an end to that, and Drezner owned most of the rest of the day. Perhaps @DaveedGR was exhausted after the epic battle with @InkSpotsGulliver? In any case, the “fake faculty meeting” and the scurrilous attacks on Glenn Greenwald ensured a colossal victory for @dandrezner, who today resembled the Kentucky Wildcats bringing their A game. @DaveedGR shouldn’t hang his head about anything, other than being savagely beaten.

(2) @blakehounshell vs. (14) @astridhka

@astridhka put up a good fight, but was simply overwhelmed by the MLRS-esque barrage of @blakehounshell. Touching on virtually ever subject conceivably related to foreign policy and national security, @blakehounshell turned in what amounted to a normal twitter day, not even taking the “let’s bash Glenn Greenwald” low road. A dominating performance to set up a classic Elite Eight matchup.

@elsnarkistani

@elsnarkistani missed the deadline. Consequently, all of his votes will be split evenly between contestants.

West and North

@dianawueger

Oh my stars, this was tough. This is a great set of tweeters - they all get Twitter as a communication platform, and they play to its strengths and to their audiences. And because my ballot’s late and because I refuse to engage in too much group hugging, I’m keepin’ it short and sweet:

(1) @attackerman vs. (12) @smsaideman - I’m busting my own bracket here, but I’ve been so impressed with Saideman’s Twitter output both recently and… less recently? What’s the word here? Whatever. This sorta comes down to whether you prefer high-output vs. low-output, and I’m rewarding high output here. But only here.

(3) @will_mccants vs. (7) @AzmatZahra - So yesterday I had a minor breakdown over my soul-crushing PhD rejections, and both of these individuals were sympathetic AND had helpful suggestions. This is one of my favorite parts of Twitter - that incredible, brilliant people are easy to access and take time from their lives to help you out. But in the end, Will’s depth of knowledge is enough to drown in, and also.

(4) @jeffemanuel vs. (8) @tweetsintheme - Justifying this choice is nearly impossible. Just… I don’t know. Follow them both. They can both win TFC as far as I’m concerned. Jeff’s holding a rifle in his avatar. I… I can’t read or write.

(2) @texasinafrica vs. (14) @laurenist - So it comes down to this, does it? While my twin in panda hattery remains the gin in my tonic, TexasinAfrica brings news I would never otherwise find, real insight born of both experience and study and the willingness to share it, and a true fighter’s spirit. This woman awes me on a daily basis.

@RogueAdventurer

Another (almost) all-nighter saw some of the best matches of the competition. The games will only heat up from here, and demand participation and engagement from all competitors. Good luck to everyone moving on to the 8!

Match 1 – @attackerman vs @smsaideman

I found @attackerman’s strategy of ignoring his opponent and tweeting very little to be pretty unimpressive. Whilst he displayed one TFC-worthy counterstrike early on, there was sadly little to follow. @smsaideman, on the other hand, hit back with a variety of references, and also covered some very interesting content, ranging from Afghanistan to the recent “is there such as thing as a ‘terrorism expert” debate. He also had time to organise a game of Ultimate for ISA 2012 (yes, it’s a hippy’s game, but still) and play some Junta with his students. @will_mccants also had some insightful thoughts on the nature of the two competitors’ avatars. At this stage in the game it is not acceptable to simply rest on your laurels and hope to slide to victory. For me, a clear win for @smsaideman.

Winner: @smsaideman

Match 2 – @will_mccants vs @AzmatZahra

Both contestants came out of their corners swinging, with @will_mccants typecasting his opponent as an ‘internet goliath’, then engaging in some very comprehensive pandering to the judges. His allies then showcased the strength of their bond with him. @AzmatZahra hit out with a charming photo posing alongside Katniss (I had to google the reference, but I’m sure other judges appreciated it), before both contestants settled in to tweet some interesting content on the AfPak region, intel gathering procedures, academia, and – of course – the nature of terrorism experts (@AzmatZahra was kind enough to defend her opponent earlier). @will_mccants suggested we TFC judges drink like Orson Welles, and that resonated very well with the panel, no doubt. @AzmatZahra did promise to cook for any judges who made it to Boston (that Instagram link contains the delicious pun, “If only every day could be koobide”), and backed that up with another good foodie tweet – both winners for me. Unfortunately, these just weren’t enough to take the edge off @will_mccants sustained efforts, and my vote, narrowly, goes his way. Need to chuck in a special mention for AzmatZahra’s new profile pic - awesome stuff.

Winner: @will_mccants

Match 3 – @jeffemanuel vs @tweetsintheme

This proved to be the gentleman’s match of the round, with both contestants focusing on tweeting good quality content on a range of topics. @tweetsintheme covered Mali, the Tolouse shooting, Afghanistan, Boko Haram, and facial hair, whilst @jeffemanuel looked at an even broader range of topics, from WMDs in South Afric, to domestic politics. @jeffemanuel was certainly the more prolific tweeter, and whilst I would have like to see a little more interaction between the contestants, both interacted extensively with followers. Both competitors finished the day by thanking their opponents honourably. This was a tough one for me, but I am awarding a narrow victory to @jeffemanuel.

Winner: @jeffemanuel

Match 4 – @texasinafrica vs @laurenist

This match was the trickiest to adjudicate of the day’s line up. Both competitors epitomised TFC in my mind – they balanced funny with smart, snarky with respectful, and threw in a whole lot of pandering, vote-buying, and non sequitur references. Both contestants tweeted about a wide range of content, and also laid a number of solid Tweet-blows on each other whilst putting themselves up. My favourites, from each competitor:

https://twitter.com/#!/laurenist/status/185118168728080386
https://twitter.com/#!/laurenist/status/185094000603168768
https://twitter.com/#!/laurenist/status/185153519857315840

https://twitter.com/#!/texasinafrica/status/185006861630717953
https://twitter.com/#!/texasinafrica/status/185150061267791872
https://twitter.com/#!/texasinafrica/status/185152547969957889

This has certainly proven to be one hell of a tough match to judge. Whilst I don’t want to arbitrate on the ‘leggings are pants’ debate, today’s match is awarded, by the finest of margins, to…

Winner: @texasinafrica

Well fought, ladies!

@stephaniecarvin

Methodology: In the interest of fairness, I looked at tweeting over a 24 hour period and evaluated based on 1) national security content 2) snark 3) impact. I have honestly tried to be as even handed as I could.

That being said, this was a bloody hard bracket to judge. Congratulations to all of the contestents for making it this far and, for those of you playing at home, if you’re not following all 16 of these guys, you’re missing out.

@smsaideman vs @ATTACKERMAN

Disclosure:

I have met @smsaideman once in London where I bought beer, we are friends on facebook and heis a co-blogger @duckofminerva. He has also promised me coffee two weeks from now in Ottawa and I have followed him on twitter for some time. \

I have never met @attackerman, but I very much appreciate the fact he re-introduced me to Alphaflight. And that’s freaking cool. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_Flight

Bribes: Uh, coffee from @smsaideman?

Content:

@smsaideman

A decent mix of security links and #tfc12 pandering – which is good. It is very clear that he is in it to win it. While he may only have 1.3K followers to 18K, he has a steady stream of content on international and Canadian security/defence issues. Bonus: He is even organising an ultimate match for the Nerd Prom that is the International Studies Association annual conference in San Diego. https://twitter.com/#!/smsaideman/status/185078362702749697

Summary Haiku
Fighting the good fight
He battled his opponent
He’s the Prof who lived

@attackerman

So… What does this even mean: https://twitter.com/#!/attackerman/status/185121990200410113

Or this: https://twitter.com/#!/attackerman/status/185026199976816640

In my opinion, this was the David and Goliath match of the North & West. @smsaideman is the snarky but loveable family man/Professor that likes Harry Potter and @attackerman seems to have a lot of tattoos and like the crazy punk music: http://spencerackerman.typepad.com/

The difficulty here is that while @smsaideman was definitely playing to win, @attackerman broke a major news story about the FBI “bending the rules” when it came to the way it trained CT officials. The Twitter Fight Club rules state that we are not to judge work outside of twitter feeds – but these were some tweets leading to an impressive story. http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2012/03/fbi-bend-suspend-law/

Summary Haiku
May not tweet a lot
But breaks major news stories
On his twitter feed

Verdict: @smsaideman, you know I loves you. But getting cited in the Guardian and NYT in the same day because you broke a major CT scandal kind of wins. Sorry. Winner is @attackerman

Don’t hate me.

@AZMATZAHRA vs @WILL_MCCANTS

Disclosure:

Azmatzahra is someone I have only followed recently. We have never met. However, I am always highly impressed with the NatSec Ladiez.

I met Will McCants last summer. He is very tall. As someone who is 5 foot 2.5 inches on a good day, that impresses me. I have followed him on Twitter for a long time and he is tolerant of my terrible Persian.

Bribes: Azmatzahra did not tweet me today. @Will_McCants tweeted a link to my book AND my Mom. That’s right @will_mccants tweeted my Mom.

Content:

@Azmatzahra did some very cool tweets today. In particular, very interesting links about sexual violence in Syria and an interesting Frontline expose on the FBI using Muslim outreach programs as a way to collect intelligence. (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/foreign-affairs-defense/are-we-safer/docs-reveal-fbi-used-muslim-outreach-as-guise-to-collect-intel/)

She has a great interaction with other tweeters and some pretty good digs in at Will McCants like this: https://twitter.com/#!/AzmatZahra/status/185115001596559360

Summary haiku:
This tweeter is cool
Good combination of tweets
Except Hunger Games.

@WILL_MCCANTS is hilarious. He has been one of my favourite tweeters for a while. Will also gets dumped on regularly for reasons I do not quite understand, as @abumuqawama rightly notes, “I find it hilarious and depressing that these guys keep going after the least Islamophobic terrorism specialist in America”.

Then again, Will McCants is often up to things. Terrible things. http://willmccants.tumblr.com/

Unfortunately, while Will McCants was hilarious today – there was not as much security content as befitting a #tfc12 fighter. We need the best of both worlds.

Summary haiku:
He is very tall
And he’s awesome on CT
But not today, eh?

Verdict: Going on the basis of content, I am going to have to award this to @azmatzahra.

I’m so sorry Will. I adore you. You may think of me as the Glenn Greenwald of #TFC12, but I will buy you a beer next time I am in DC and you can curse me out in Persian. :-/

I feel so sad now.

@JEFFEMANUEL vs @TWEETSINTHEME

Disclosure: I have followed both twitter accounts for some time. I have not met @jeffemanuel but I have vague recollections of meeting @tweetsintheME last Washington after about 4 cocktails. Hence the vague… I think?

Bribes: None, so far as I can tell.

Content:

@Jeffemanuel – this man tweets A LOT. Still, somehow he makes it all very interesting. He also takes flack from the left and right which plays into my sympathy vote. Or maybe he will be singlehandedly responsible for Barack Obama winning in November. https://twitter.com/#!/jeffemanuel/status/183587453469339650

Today’s feed had a lot of the Supreme Court’s decision on healthcare (which I confess, as a liberal Canadian, I cannot understand for the life of me – seriously: Get some goddamn healthcare, America. Seriously.) Gingrich, But dude also had his twisticuff trousers on - taking on left and right on twitter as public content and the @will_mccants haters.

That being said, there was not a lot on what I would consider to be security/national security issues today. There were some interesting RTs and replies, but, quite frankly, I want less on bizarro-US politics or GOP infighting, and more on… national security.

Summary Haiku:
Lots of twisticuffs
But what’s up with the healthcare?
More security!

@tweetsintheME
Despite being Tweets in the Middle East, there was an excellent range of tweets on North Africa, (Mali, Nigeria), the fallout of the shootings in Toulouse, got in on the Greenwald “what is an expert” smackdown, et, @tweetsintheME peut tweet en français. Très internationale! https://twitter.com/#!/tweetsintheME/status/184987417760104448

There was also some great interaction with fellow tweeters.

Summary haiku:
Lots of good tweets, but
Not *actually* from Mid East
It’s a misnomer

Verdict: Again, based on National Security content, I’m going to go @tweetsintheME.

@texasinafrica vs @laurenist

How am I supposed to judge this. HOW?

In what will surely go down as one of the greatest Twitter Fight Club match-ups of all time, we have two of the finest Securi-tweebs go mano-a-mano… or, uh, lady-fight.

We had this: https://twitter.com/#!/texasinafrica/status/185152547969957889
And this: https://twitter.com/#!/laurenist/status/185153519857315840
And This: https://twitter.com/#!/texasinafrica/status/185130883152478208
And This: https://twitter.com/#!/laurenist/status/185151290173685760

Dang. Let’s start from the beginning.

Disclosure: I have met neither @texasinafrica nor @laurenist. I have a sneaking suspicion that @texasinafrica may be living my life in a parallel dimension south of the Mason-Dixon Line, but that is for another day.

Bribes: I think somewhere along the line I was promised a pony and (another?) PhD. Laurenist probably takes the cake for pandering though. I like pandering.

Content:

@texasinafrica
Despite teaching a seminar on Liberal Democratic Peace Theory, everyone’s favourite Professor on Africa from Texas got her TWEET ON. She covered many aspects of security in Africa, including gender, terrorism, the Mali coup and the ICC. Further there was Banjo: https://twitter.com/#!/tweetsintheME/status/184987417760104448 and Otter http://jezebel.com/5896986/adorable-baby-sea-otter-has-the-power-to-erase-stress

For the record, my Mom loved the otter.

@texasinafrica has become an indispensible source on international politics – not just Africa. That she is so indispensible while being generally funny and interesting is double plus good.

Summary Haiku:
Now she is the Prof
That all of the cool kids want
Because she is boss.

@laurenist
Leggings are not pants. https://twitter.com/#!/laurenist/status/185018034749050880

However, @laurenist’s love of cupcakes and knowledge of poutine goes a long way in my book. And the fact of the matter is @ laurenist brought fight to today’s events. There are few who are sharper, wittier or, frankly, more awesome on the twitters.

Today, however, was mostly content-free. There was one RT of a Truman Project – but, if we’re going on NatSec tweets, there was not a lot here to judge. And this is where there is going to be a pinch.

Summary Haiku:
Leggings are not pants
I don’t care where you are from
Don’t want to see bums

Verdict: Oy this one was hard. The fact is that the twitterverse is better in the aftermath of today’s main event as far as I am concerned. That being said, I am going to cast my vote for @texasinafrica. Like @will_mccants, I shall try to make up my decision to @laurenist in alcohol (and poutine and cupcakes) the next time I am in DC.

@zachprague

@attackerman vs. @smsaideman

Not much of a “fight” as it were — very few tweets exchanged, and only one with a phallic reference. So, this one had to be judged differently. I go with @smsaideman here for several reasons, the main being the offer of a hat made from the flesh of an animal.

@will_mccants vs. @AzmatZahra

Will McCants is boosted by the “Greenwald quotient” for having recently engaged Glenn Greenwald on Twitter for more than 10 tweets. McCants also utilized various algorithms to locate a photo spread of this judge which appeared in a regional architecture magazine some time ago. This judge can’t say for certain if he was flattered or disgusted.

Azmat Khan is one of the best on Twitter at finding expose-type material. Tweet-for-tweet, she is unrivaled in the hard news arena. She also managed to flatter this judge through tweeting a link to a corporate account he controls — always a plus.

This one was close, but @AzmatZahra gets the nod, due in large part to her tweet about McCants’ dreams of appropriating Balochistan’s wealth. For all we know it’s true, and he must be stopped.

@jeffemanuel vs. @tweetsintheme

Andrew Lebovich also benefitted from a recent Twitter to and fro with Greenwald, and was similarly boosted by the corresponding quotient. As these two really didn’t fight it out — and even encouraged their respective followers to follow each other, I was tempted to not vote for either. @tweetsintheme gets the nod, pushed across the line by the Greenwald Quotient.

@texasinafrica vs. @laurenist

Texas stepped it up, heaping praise on the judges early. Having left our mothers’ respective basements so rarely in the past six months, we judges were, to say the least, humbled by the expression of affection from an actual digital human being. This judge was offered a pony, an offer, as any reasonable person knows, that is physically impossible to pass up.

A late charge by @laurenist — no doubt buoyed and sustained by hours of training in Laurenism — made this content particularly difficult. My vote goes to @laurenist, based largely on what seem to be accurate charges against @texasinafrica for, among other things, “eating soup with a spoon.” Nothing more conventional than that.

Two rounds are in the books, and 16 tweeters are left standing. Three out of four one seeds are going strong, but two 14 seeds are in the mix as well. There have been upsets and close calls aplenty. Before we get into today’s action, here are the judges who will help to decide which eight contestants will advance.

East and South matches will be judged by:

• @AdamWeinstein
• @brettfriedman
• @drfarls
• @elsnarkistani

West and North matches will be judged by:

• @dianawueger
• @RogueAdventurer
• @stephaniecarvin
• @zachprague

The panel’s judgment will count for 40% of the vote, with each judge representing one-fourth of that total, so the public vote will mean more than ever this round. 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. Contestants’ full bodies of work on Twitter are fair game, but any work outside of Twitter should not be considered, and once again everyone is encouraged to make their decisions in their own way. The eight who advance will compete again tomorrow for spots in Monday’s Final Four!

Polls are open until midnight, and remember: the popular vote has a larger say today, so get out the vote! Now, without further ado, your Sweet 16:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Sweet 16 will play out tomorrow. Today we find out who joins @abuaardvark, @stcolumbia, @naheedmustafa, @joshuafoust, @dandrezner, @DaveedGR, @astridhka, and @blakehounshell in that illustrious round.

North

(1) @attackerman vs. (9) @AdamWeinstein
Judges: 4-1 for @attackerman (80% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@attackerman: 150 (70%)
@AdamWeinstein: 64 (30%)
One seed @attackerman cruises to the Sweet Sixteen, despite hardly acknowledging that the tournament is going on. Will the overall top seed be able to continue advancing effortlessly all the way to the title?

(4) @glcarlstrom vs. (12) @smsaideman
Judges: 4-1 for @smsaideman (80% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@glcarlstrom: 95 (54%)
@smsaideman: 80 (46%)
@glcarlstrom takes the popular vote, but 12 seed @smsaideman continues to impress the judges with his hustle, and it’s more than enough to get him into the Sweet 16.

(3) @will_mccants vs. (6) @chrisalbon
Judges: 5-0 for @will_mccants (100% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@chrisalbon: 113 (60%)
@will_mccants: 76 (40%)
The judges all paid respect to @chrisalbon…on their way to voting for @will_mccants, who rolls to the next round, despite @chrisalbon’s better showing in the popular vote.

(2) @intelwire vs. (7) @AzmatZahra
Judges: 3-2 for @AzmatZahra
Popular vote:
@AzmatZahra: 203 (63%)
@intelwire: 121 (37%)
121 votes would be enough to win the popular vote in most races, but not against PBS’ @AzmatZahra who managed to mobilize a whopping 203 votes. With 3 out of 5 judges on her side too, she takes this contest.

West

(8) @tweetsintheme vs. (16) @zoonpolitikon
Judges: 3-2 for @tweetsintheme (60% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@tweetsintheme: 137 (55%)
@zoonpolitikon: 114 (45%)
@zoonpolitikon’s Cinderella run is cut short as, despite putting up a good fight, he is edged by @tweetsintheme in both the public polls and the judges’ votes.

(4) @jeffemanuel vs. (12) @JimmySky
Judges: 5-0 for @jeffemanuel (100% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@jeffemanuel: 104 (56%)
@JimmySky: 83 (44%)
In a virtual replay of the North bracket’s @will_mccants vs. @chrisalbon results, all of our judges give respect to @JimmySky, but end up casting their votes for @jeffemanuel, who takes the popular vote as well on his way to the Sweet 16.

(6) @max_fisher vs. (14) @laurenist
Judges: 3-2 for @laurenist (60% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@laurenist: 109 (57%)
@max_fisher: 81 (43%)
Another 14 seed, another smart and snarky woman with development chops, another Cinderella story continues. Like @astridhka yesterday, @laurenist overcomes her higher-ranked opponent to keep the dream alive.

(2) @texasinafrica vs. (10) @azelin
Judges: 4-1 for @texasinafrica (80% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@texasinafrica: 160 (64%)
@azelin: 89 (36%)
@azelin gets a lot of respect, but it’s not nearly enough to overcome the momentum of powerhouse @texasinafrica, who wins comfortably to advance.

North Brackets

@aelkus

(1) Attackerman-more humor, diversity of subjects, etc, than Weinstein. That being said it was a very tough choice, since Weinstein seemed to engage more with readers.

(2) SmSaideman—managed to do a lot of good tweeting while preparing for ISA, which is a very big challenge. Also brought his academic knowledge base to bear on Twitter.

(3) William McCants, for having a cat icon, managing to stay civil in a debate with Greenwald, and twittering very well on a pre-eminent international security issue.

(4) azmatzahra-for very useful links, snarky commentary, and playing close to the vest with intelwire.

@Ali_Gharib

(1) @ATTACKERMAN vs (9) @ADAMWEINSTEIN

This was a tougher one to call than many might expect from the seeding. Sure, @Attackerman’s twitter feed is a must-follow, and it’s full of modest pronouncements about working relationships with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and other less important news of the national security world. But @AdamWeinstein played with #tfc12 a little better — he called it up and rolled it between his palms and build a little Bibilical triceratops out of it. My dad, though, was in L.A. in the ’60s and worships the John Wooden heyday of the Bruins, and @Attackerman just happened to pick the right day to humble-brag about the former Lew Alcindor writing under the same masthead. He takes it.

(12) @SMSAIDEMAN vs (4) @GLCARLSTROM

@Glcarlstrom forgot to participate for most of the day, which made this match tougher than it probably needed to be. His twitter is great, too. But @Smsaideman, who also had limited output because of meetings, really went after him for sleep and was hungry for a competition, even suggesting extracurriculars with @Chrisalbon to stay in fighting shape. So I’ll give the day to the eager warrior, @Smsaideman.

(6) @CHRISALBON vs (3) @WILL_MCCANTS

How do you judge a match between two people you know, like, and have accompanied through the rigors of traditional American beer-drinking rituals with? I’ll tell you what you do — you put aside that @Chrisalbon is one of the best Twitter accounts out there for generalized world info and, most notably, his shouldn’t-be-a-niche specialty, and you give it to @will_mccants for knowing that the way to a man’s #tfc12 vote is shamelessly working your way slowly through his burly beard. Congrats, @will_mccants.

(7) @AZMATZAHRA vs (2) @INTELWIRE

@Intelwire was engaged in the competition enough that usually the high seed would prevail, especially from such an invaluable tweeter. But @Azmatzahra raked in endorsements, and had quippy comebacks defending the honor of public broadcasting, and so takes the day.

@jeffemanuel

I’ll leave the fanfic and photo montages to my esteemed judging colleagues and cut straight to the chase here: four matches, eight excellent competitors, and no dead weight. So, without further adieu:

@attackerman vs. @adamweinstein

Adam Weinstein initially referred to this battle with overall #1 seed Spencer Ackerman as a “David versus Goliath” showdown, though he quickly amended that, saying “Actually, given our last names, it’s Lil’ David vs. Big David.” He sent out a handful of half-hearted tweets mentioning #tfc12, but for the most part his feed was all-Trayvon Martin, all the time - though his employer, Mother Jones, sent a tweet to its 120,000 followers asking them to vote for Adam. Ackerman, on the other hand, was his usual self on twitter, hitting topics from Blackwater to the transition to ANSF in Afghanistan to the Obamacare hearings — and he didn’t feel the need bring @Dangerroom or @Wired into the fray, choosing instead to beat back the plucky challenger on his own. Vote: @attackerman

@smsaideman vs. glcarlstrom

Not only was the higher-seeded Carlstrom largely absent from Twitter today, but he admittedly forgot about the competition altogether until afternoon Eastern Time (the only time that really matters)! It’s almost like he has a day job that requires time and attention. @smsaideman, on the other hand, has been prepping the twitterspace for this fight for days, handicapping his chances and practically begging for the judges in this matchup to forego their prejudices and embrace the wonder that is Harry Potter (and Harry Potter role-playing). Saideman’s hard work won him a round one upset against Yemen expert @gregorydjohnsen, and though I find Carlstrom an indispensable presence on twitter day in and day out, I have to reward the canuck’s legwork once again (not to mention his twitter feed, which is both humorous and high quality). Vote: @smsaideman

@chrisalbon vs. @will_mccants

This is the first of two very difficult matches to judge. Albon’s body of work is absolutely excellent, as are those of his kitchen appliances (though the whole “getting a PhD and a real job” thing has slightly crimped their collective lately). McCants, on the other hand, is a constant source of information, knowledge, perspective, and unique wit. Pretty much the only way that he could lose my vote in this battle of two must-follow tweeters would be by changing his avatar to something insufferably horrible, like a cat. Surely he would never do such a—-well, dangit, that’s exactly what he did. A cat, Will? Really? Jeez. However, if I’m picking ten twitter feeds that can’t be done without, McCants is definitely one of them — and in Twitter Fight Club, that should be enough to let him advance. Vote: @will_mccants

@azmatzahra vs. @intelwire

And here we have the second of two incredibly difficult matches to judge — and indisputably the most entertaining battle of the day (with @chrisalbon vs. @will_mccants coming in a close but clear second). @azmatzahra is another indispensable source of information and perspective on Twitter, and her feed today was an excellent example of her usual output. However, like @will_mccants, I would include @intelwire on any shortlist of twitter feeds that absolutely can’t be done without. The volume of information that comes through his feed daily — both news and commentary — seals this one in his favor, even though he claims to hate Mr. Rogers (what’s next? hating old people, puppies, and kids?). Vote: @intelwire

@RBStalin

Greetings. There’s no time for greetings. Some of my fellow judges have written opinions favoring the performance of contweetstants during the period of judgment. As a demonstrably purer and more disciplined arbiter - a torch-bearer of a millennia-long tradition of objective judginess, if you will - I will be considering the Twitter-corpus, as in habeas corpus, or at least parts of it. We will select and dine on choice corpus-bits.

Note: While there is a significant Canadian presence in the competition, the remaining Americans may want to reference Wikipedia for an explainer on this “habeas corpus” concept.

///// @attackerman vs. @adamweinstein /////

Speaking of habeas corpus, Spackerman’s wife works for an organization possessing what some might call an unseemly obsession with the concept. He himself is responsible for some (notable?) journalism at the intersection of defense, civil rights, and the law. Were one to judge the entire body of Spackerman’s work, one might be somewhat-to-moderately impressed. It is possible his primary venue is a blog this judge calls a must-read, including for defense insiders. It is also possible his personal blog is one this judge recommends to those of his friends and coworkers who have the (metaphorical) balls to read it.

I come not to praise Spackerman’s journalistic corpus, but to bury it. His tweets on the other hand…are pretty good? Not as engaged or interactive as he once was. Still prolific. Should probably follow, if you’re into the whole NatSec thing. Feel free to ignore his unbelievably obnoxious New York sports tweets.

Weinstein (speaking of explainers)…also a national security reporter? For Mother Jones. His bio reads that way, but if I’m real (and I AM REAL) he is far more engaged on domestic issues than national security, at least on Twitter. Weinstein’s non-twitter works are also prolific. It’s hard to make a comparison after this award that Spackerman pulled in, but Mother Jones is an indisputably important part of the fifth estate, and Weinstein has been no small part of that during his tenure.

VERDICT: I lean upset like Michael Jackson in “Smooth Criminal”. There’s no doubt in my mind that Mr. Weinstein’s more recent engagement with the twitterverse has been superior to Spackerman’s. However, like Season Two of Top Chef (“It’s a cooking contest and he didn’t cook anything!”) I have to give this to Spackerman for the simple reason that this tournament is about national security tweeters, and by that metric he is more indispensable than Mr. Weinstein. I may or may not completely disregard this in further judgments.

///// @smsaideman vs. @glcarlstrom /////

I’ve been following Carlstrom for a long time and Saideman for only a matter of days. Here’s what I’ll tell you right off the bat. When Carlstrom tweets, he looks like another dude in a nondescript location* saying some stuff in 140 characters or less. Saideman, by contrast, when presented with a writ of habeas corpus, responded with “AVADA KEDAVRA!” While this represents a certain misunderstanding of the concept, it definitely gets my attention.

* Nondescript location: some pile of rubble in the background. Body armor worn.

VERDICT: This is a tough call but I have to give this round to Carlstrom. There’s a reason I, as a NatSec-focused Twitter-user, have been following him for as long as I have. Also he did not try to kill me with magic.

///// @chrisalbon vs. @will_mccants /////

McCants is no fool. Not only did he follow me on this, the dies irae, he also pointed out my long-established YTMND profile link to his followers. Readers of my judgments, however, know I have turned from flattery to duck fat to, now, I suppose, Latin comprehension as the currency with which my judgments can be moved.

What can I say about Will McCants? Will McCants is very tall; I keep hearing how awfully tall he is. Everyone he meets mutters “Tall…” helplessly the way Fooly Cooly characters carry on about eyebrows.

Albon, on the other hand, is best known for autonomous appliances - with which your humble* judge disavows any involvement - swarming Twitter at unfortunately decreasing regularity.

McCants is no more responsible for his height than Albon is for his possessed appliances. This begs the question if either man contributes to Twitter in any way and if either deserves to be in the contest at all, let alone advance. Given such a dilemma I was forced to resort to a tie-breaker, which helpfully came in the form of this tweet:

@will_mccants: i’d like to make fun of an academic book or article by @chrisalbon but I can’t find one. #tfc2012

I DON’T EVEN CARE IF THAT’S ACCURATE

VERDICT: WILL MCCANTS

* Read: fantastically narcissistic.

///// @AzmatZahra vs. @intelwire /////

I’m going to make this short and to the point. Invoking precedent from round one, what shall be hitherto referred to as the DR J JOYNER rule…

VERDICT: J. M. Berger takes this round and the basis of being a HIGH-VOLUME (38,000+ tweet) NatSec feed I have been following for a long time and have never had the urge to unfollow. Azmat Khan works for an outstanding organization and has a quality tweetstream you should be following if you aren’t already, but this round must go to Berger.

Were it not for the DR J JOYNER rule I would have to remind the readers that it is select bits of the corpus on which we are focused, and, well, Mr. Berger has irrefutable facial hair. Facial hair…

@SecurityScholar

Round 2, North Quarter. An excellent field to judge. What was I looking for? Snarky research and well-researched snarks. That is, feisty horn-locking and below-the-belt jokes as well as interesting #linksthatmakeyougohmmmm NatSec tweets over the past 24 hours. I haven’t had this much fun since discovering this:

@attackman vs @adamweinstein

Spencer Ackerman and Adam Weinstein, two excellent NatSec reporters of Danger Room and Mother Jones, respectively, who regularly light up my Twitter feed with moar reading and all-round snarkiness. Despite being NatSec tweeters, on the day of judging both were taken by social issues with @attackman pondering Obamacare and @adamweinstein handling #Trayvon. Props to @adamweinstein for live-tweeting #Trayvon justice protests outside the Supreme Court and sticking the boot into Twitter about shutting down racist accounts, but props to @attackman for keeping up the NatSec tradition of, you know, being a NatSec tweeter and engaging consistently.

TOTDs:

attackerman (@attackerman)
3/27/12 5:28 AM
Oh yeah no big deal Kareem Abdul-Jabbar just wrote an op-ed for @wired, happens every day. t.co/7mKHwD39

attackerman (@attackerman)
3/27/12 5:28 AM
Hey, teenagers who answer phones for Senate offices: take some pride in your work! #old

Adam Weinstein (@AdamWeinstein)
3/27/12 6:07 AM
Man, hell hath no fury like an anonymous angry white dude with dial-up. #WhatILearnedThisWeek

Overall, I awarded it to @adamweinstein for strong performance on covering #Trayvon, referencing #TFC12, and wearing a hoodie.

@smsaideman vs @glcarlstrom

The Academic and The Journalist. Both excellent tweeters of the world, International Relations Professor Stephen Saideman with interesting analysis from the inside and Al Jazeera reporter Gregg Carlstrom providing essential analysis from the ground. @smsaideman got in with an early h/t to his Aussie judge and attempted to pull the heartstrings by claiming his grandmother is about to die (seriously, Stephen, you should know better … and use the dog next time). @glcarlstrom, seemingly having forgotten about #TFC12, rolled in with some late Canadian-bashing of his opponent to keep him in the running. @smsaideman tweeted hard, engaging his followers, dropping the ol’ 1,2 in self-deprecating humour and snarkiness but keeping up intense discussion on IR issues. @glcarlstrom had tweeted some feisty reporting on security issues and some cultural FYI tweets earlier in the day but, on balance, was not as consistent as his competitor.

TOTDs:

Stephen Saideman (@smsaideman)
3/27/12 5:41 AM
Ok, I think I prefer the pornbots to the walmart/ipad-bots. ktyvm

Stephen Saideman (@smsaideman)
3/27/12 9:59 AM
Token Aussie tweet for my aussie judge in #tfc12-Aussie case was most surprising of all ones studied for contingents in A-stan. 1/2

Stephen Saideman (@smsaideman)
3/27/12 10:00 AM
Aussies actually were quite casualty averse but sneakily so by using SOF heavily, restricting conventional infantry. #tvc12 pander FTW? 2/2

Gregg Carlstrom (@glcarlstrom)
3/27/12 5:15 AM
Dirty tricks! Just what you’d expect from north of the border RT @smsaideman: @glcarlstrom well then, vote for me #tfc12

Gregg Carlstrom (@glcarlstrom)
3/25/12 2:02 AM
I actually just interviewed someone who used the word taqiyya in a non-ironic sense

For his true competitive spirit, unashamed IR nerdiness and AUS-philic tendencies, I awarded the round to @smsaideman.

@chrisalbon vs @will_mccants

It’s not even fair to ask someone to judge this showdown. Chris Albon and Will McCants are solid experts in their respective fields of governance/global health and CT/terrorism/jihadism, regularly providing useful links and oh-so-snarksome tweets. I love cats #fulldisclosure. In a sneaky PSYOPS move, @will_mccants literally “got his game face on” by deploying Puss in Boots as his competition avatar. Looking at their tweets for the day, @chrisalbon was tweeting hard, from trash talking his opponent, dropping Senegal and James Cameron with SeaQuest DSV reference (I saw what he did there) to beefing up with solid NatSec focussed links. @will_mccants gets props for targeted NatSec tweeting as well and mixing it up with good engagement with followers and a Star Wars reference. The exchange between these fine competitors provided some of the wittiest, snarkiest and yet heartwarming TOTDs. Observe:

Will McCants (@will_mccants)
3/27/12 4:31 AM
@intelwire for you, i’m gonna break out the Green Giant pic. Ho ho ho mother$@%$%$

Chris R. Albon (@chrisalbon)
3/27/12 5:05 AM
Add glitter and @will_mccants’ book is like an Islamic version of Twilight. #TFC12

That’s like an academic equivalent of a kick to the nuts. With … glitter.

Chris R. Albon (@chrisalbon)
3/27/12 5:15 AM
If you read @will_mccants’ book backwards, it’s a call for white power, but let’s face it, then you’d have to read it. #TFC12

Will McCants (@will_mccants)
3/27/12 5:32 AM
i’d like to make fun of an academic book or article by @chrisalbon but I can’t find one. #tfc2012

Oh snap! Finally:

Chris R. Albon (@chrisalbon)
3/27/12 5:32 AM
And finally, if you are one of the nicest guys I know and one of my closest friends, you are definitely @will_mccants. #TFC12

Nyawwwwwwwwww. Gentlemen, it was a pleasure but there can be only one. And by a (cat)hair, it goes to @will_mccants for a marginally stronger performance on the day for expertise-focussed tweets.

@azmatzahra vs @intelwire

Another competitive duo. The indomitable @FrontlinePBS journalist Azmat Khan and the prolific terrorism/jihadism expert/author J.M. Berger are both solid tweeters who have provided me with fascinating links and analysis. Today was no exception. With twitzophrenic skeelz, feisty @azmatzahra switched between mercilessly calling a jihad against her opponent and showing her softer side with tweets on child soldiers, acid attack victims and other human security issues. @intelwire fought back with a solid performance of NatSec tweets on a range of issues from Afghanistan, nuclear weapons, and global operations while trash talking and engaging followers. Props to @azmatzahra for RT-ing other journalists’ articles but props to @intelwire who, on the day of competition, RT-d @azmatzahra ‘s work!

TOTDs:

Azmat Khan (@AzmatZahra)
3/27/12 8:08 AM
@intelwire Last week you called me “genteel” (bit.ly/GV53ZZ), this week it’s “evil genius.” Only certainty? You’re a flip-flopper.

Azmat Khan (@AzmatZahra)
3/27/12 7:19 AM
#TFC12 I hail from Parachinar, where my people take on the Taliban t.co/ClXisWFq so a vote for the other guy really is a Taliban vote

J.M. Berger (@intelwire)
3/27/12 8:33 AM
@AllThingsHLS I have conceded @AzmatZahra’s superior acquaintance with the crawling blasphemies of the shapeless Elder Gods. @will_mccants

I found this really, really hard to call. Both are excellent at what they do. But I award this round to @azmatzahra for keeping the “fight” in TFC.

West Brackets

@hayesbrown

Match 1: @zoonpolitikon vs. tweetsintheme

I have to put it right out there. As a former 16-seed, my heart automatically goes out to @zoonpolitikon. He’s faced a tough road. And he did so with more snark than I would have expect from someone who blogs in German. His attempts at slandering @tweetsintheme were impressive, particularly for someone living in Switzerland. But then again, he did manage to pull off the upset I so badly wanted.

@tweetsintheme, on the other hand, is a prolific tweeter. This man knew what a Sahel was before you did, and he isn’t afraid to show it. He’s a pretty stand-up guy, too, from the interactions I’ve had with him at various tweetup. Granted, the guy has managed to not follow me, even when facing my wroth. So clearly, his self-preservation instinct isn’t high, a flaw that will surely cost him in later fights.

In this instance, I’m going to go with the one who knowingly pandered sci-fi goodness to me: @zoonpolitikon.

Match 2: @jimmysky vs. @jeffemanuel

I could go the route of seemingly everyone else ever and make fun of @jimmysky’s being in the Air Force. But I’m afraid of heights, so what do I know? @jimmysky is a great follow, who is always been all smart on defense acquisitions, which you would think is an oxymoron of a sentence. He dresses his kids up as superheroes and once called me the “UN wunderkind”. So I clearly have a bias.

Speaking of bias, I never followed @jeffemanuel until Twitter Fight Club started up, and he’s a definite change of pace from my normal stream. Having now broken outside of the liberal bubble, I see myself interacting with @jeffemanuel frequently in the future, as he seems like a man who is okay with a firm discussion without resorting to attacks.

The back and forth between the two was pretty heated early, but dipped into vast swathes of politeness later on. While it shocks me to do so, I’m actually going to say that of the two of them, in terms of sheer informative output, @jeffemanuel had the better day today.

Match 3: @Max_Fisher vs. @laurenist

Oh goodness. @Max_Fisher, as editor of Atlantic International, is what most nerdy young bloggers aspire to be when we grow up. He writes about cool things. And gets PAID FOR IT. Will wonders never cease. He came out of the gate swinging this morning, declaring Russia the number one reason that we aren’t invading Syria. He was…disagreed with. Proving he isn’t invulnerable.

@laurenist on the other hand was pure snark today. Well, purer snark than normal. Colombian-grade snark. She took the attack to @Max_Fisher early and often, pursuing votes with zeal. She spent some of her time in New York City today sitting in on a class of @abumaquwama, so I’m pretty sure she got some beard-by-proxy action going on.

Despite the fact that the former could one day land me a sweet gig, I’m going to have to hand this bout to @laurenist.

Match 4: @azelin vs. @texasinafrica

Clash of the experts. I was one of the few (okay, many) granted access to @azelin’s account before he unlocked it for this competition. I have to admit, though, when it comes to counterterrorism, I’m no newb. But this guy is at a whole other level. His stream is constantly putting out high grade information on terrorist networks I can’t feign pronounce. If you need an expert, you’ve certainly found one.

Unfortunately for him, however, he’s got serious competition when it comes to @texasinafrica. Dr. Seay don’t play. She doesn’t just know a lot about one country, or even region. No. She knows the whole. Damn. Continent. And can speak on it with a winning wit and sarcasm. She even followed me after a long drought. But….and this is a big one….she didn’t pick Michigan State for the Final Four. Even if she was right, her glee in making that choice wounds me deep.

In the end though, despite her betrayal, it’s Africa uber alles, and @texasinafrica takes the win for me.

@HerbCarmen

Be sincere; be brief; be seated. - FDR

8. tweetsintheme vs. 16. @zoonpolitikon

Keine Bilder von Katzen.

My pick: @tweetsintheme

12. @jimmysky vs. 4. @jeffemanuel

I enjoy following these gentlemen and patriots. Tough to vote against @jimmysky but overwhelming volume of excellent tweets by @jeffemanuel earns my vote, despite an avatar aiming an AK-47 painted like a VFC-13 F-5F Tiger.

My pick: @jeffemanuel

6. @max_fisher vs. 14. @laurenist

Drones. Hellfires.

My pick: @laurenist

10. @azelin vs. 2. @texasinafrica

Africa matters and @texasinafrica knows what matters. @azelin’s manipulative cat avatar worked….for @texasinafrica

My pick: @texasinafrica

@johnsonr

General comment: I’m over babies, cats, and puppies. Enough. That said, I’m not going to be asked back to judge another round after these pics hit the net, so you guys do whatcha gotta do.

@zoonpolitikon vs @tweetsintheme

@zoonpolitikon Adds snark to his commentary of nuclear negotiations. He tried to smear his opponent, but given last week’s trash talk, his efforts came off almost, well, adorable. That said, @zoonpolitikon tapped into my previously unpublicized, but irrationally strong love of all things Mongolia. Have you been? No? Then shut up. It’s freakin’ awesome. Where else have you seen this?

Mongols. Go Green.

Why do they need solar power, you ask???

To power their camel-mounted satellite dish so they can watch the Olympics, of course. No lie. So shut up. Mongolia wins. (Told you it was irrational.)

Sorry @tweetsintheme. I was with you ‘til the death blow. You engaged other folks on twitter, always have interesting commentary, and seem totally cool. But, you know. Mongolia.

@JimmySky vs @jeffemanuel

Clearly I’m judging this match because someone at Gunpowder & Lead hates me. I love @jeffemanuel (in a completely professionally appropriate / I know he’s married sort of way. Geez, people!) He’s smart, he’s engaged, and he’s just cranky enough to avoid both the Charbydis of tool-dom and the Schylla of dickiness. And, as we established this weekend, he brings me new followers every time we tweet each other, which really doesn’t suck. Today he totally wore me down – I don’t have time for silly things like counting, but the man tweeted a boatload. Check it out. An actual boat would nearly capsize under the weight of his tweets. There was even some nonsense about his taking time for a bike ride, but I don’t believe him. I’d link to the tweet, but I can’t find that needle in the haystack.

But I love me some @JimmySky too. First, he’s one of the only guys in Round 2 who’s confident enough not to change his profile pic. WYSIWYG. Done. No silliness. So refreshing. Making me cry with the whole Captain America thing was a tricky move, but luckily it came after I was safely away from the office. If that had come over lunch, it would have been an immediate disqualification. That said, in his blizzard of tweetiness, @jeffemanuel re-tweeted the tear-jerker, so your gamble would have washed itself out.

At the end of the day, I have to vote for @jeffemanuel. I don’t agree with everything he says, but he’s thoughtful, courteous, and comprehensive. He’s who I hope to be when I grow up…

(…minus the ‘roid rage. This guy, not @jeffemanuel, who I’m sure is all natural muscle. Hey, he’s holding a damn AK. You’d say the same thing.).

@texasinafrica vs does it really matter?

@TEXASinafrica. ‘Nough said (Remember, Rule #4). The thing is, she’s not pandering to Texas; she’s been Texas for far longer than she could have possibly been trying to suck up to me. In fact, I didn’t find out about @texasinafrica from twitter fight club, or national security, or anything obvious like that. I first learned about her from my sister, who does nothing remotely security-related (no, Laura, now is not the time to argue that point. Just let me have it). So she’s a professor: check. FROM TEXAS: all the checks anyone needs. Who my sister follows: Family Check. Who focuses on Africa:

(yeah, we were that close. Oopsy!). Extra checks.

And, because I forgot all about these pictures, but just rediscovered them looking for something suitably “Africa” and they scream to be shared with you:

(that’s right. I just did that.) This one was taken seconds later and is even better:

LIKE A BOSS.

Let’s see if the #tfc12 editors let these past QC. Are they more offensive for their pornographic nature, or for perpetuating the stereotype that Africa is nothing more than safari? Polling is now open.

Winner: @texasinafrica. Come on.

@laurenist vs @Max_Fisher

I’m inclined to like @laurenist – she’s got an insane fan base, she’s super smart, and, well, that’s enough for me. But I’m a cranky about some things, and proper grammar is one of those things (I know I started that sentence with a conjunction. Leave it.). While @laurenist was reminiscing about some random thing I didn’t understand that involved Tony Blinken’s dad, she dropped this grammar grenade. She also spoke TRUTH.

So did @Max_Fisher. He covered Libya, China, South Sudan, North Korea, and said what I can’t about a certain political moment that occurred today (think I’m going to link to that? You crazy. #dropsmic #walksaway). I’ve got to give it to @Max_Fisher for breadth, depth, and his general ability to make me smarter. And yes, I’m voting for him even though he can’t be bothered to follow me back. So there’s that. @laurenist, I’m buying you a drink at the tweetup next week. You’ve earned it.

@shephardm

16 vs. 8

@zoonpolitikon vs. @tweetsintheme

Naturally inclined to go for underdog & a strong start for @zoonpolitikon, with props for kitten photo and Canada cage match. Besides, any chance to use this photo… (BREAKING NEWS: #TFC12 has hit Eastern Mongolia. http://pic.twitter.com/pltif03L). But @tweetsintheME was competing from Ottawa, aka: the-town-that-fun-forgot, so that deserves some bonus points. And even though he succumbed to cheap Canuckistan currency bashing, he had me with his original Boko Haram analysis. He sticks with what he knows and he knew it before the rest of us.

12 vs. 4

@JimmySky vs. @jeffemanuel

Was not @JimmySky’s best Twitter day, except the RT of fact that Jenna Talackova, Miss Universe Canada finalist, was disqualified for being transgender. He apologizes saying he was “working to secure the nation’s critical cyber infrastructure” .. Excuses, excuses. Now @jeffemanuel on the other hand, is the Jack Bauer of tweeting, so prolific that there’s no way he eats, sleeps or goes to the loo. I couldn’t keep up because like @JimmySky I was busy securing Canada’s national security. I dunno. Voted @jeffemanuel.

6 vs. 14

@max_fisher vs. @laurenist

Killer match. “The Henry Kissinger of the zombie apocalypse..” TM by my friend @Scott_Gilmore certainly gave her early lead. Also, who doesn’t like short shorts? But @max_fisher’s retorts and analysis hard to beat and imagining Cheney doing Aztec time travel I think gave me an idea for a novel. In the end it was @max_fisher headshot – it’s like he’s daring you to not vote of him… or auditioning for next Twilight series.

10 vs. 2

@azelin vs. @texasinafrica

Very entertaining and pulled me both ways. Wanted to vote @texasinafrica because heart in Africa and national security boys club needs some shaking up. But no one can deliver geek jabs like @azelin & he gets extra points for Arabic & posting stuff that SITE makes you pay for. I’m also unfairly influenced by fact that I know if I call him for interviews he will always sound like he just woke up. @azelin, shukran.

@timmathews

In @zoonpolitikon vs @tweetsintheme, I declare @tweetsintheme the winner.

I regret to say that I have no basis upon which to vote for a continuation of @zoonpolitikon’s Cinderella story. His exchange with @tweetsintheme was a mix or cordial and good-natured ribbing. On the other hand, @tweetsintheme was not itching for a Twitterfight either. But, I give the edge to @tweetsintheme because he at least engaged in (albeit rational) debate with @ggreenwald, perhaps one of the greatest Twitterfighters in history.

In @jimmysky vs @jeffemanuel, I declare @jeffemanuel the winner.

This match, too, was essentially a lovefest. @jeffemanuel gets the edge because while he lobs little more than polite nudges at his foe, he at least takes time in between projects to take swipes at other ideological foes. @jimmysky seems overly preoccupied with work or something.

In @max_fisher vs @laurenist, I declare @laurenist the winner.

Did either of these two get the memo that they were facing off against each other? There was hardly any mention of one by the other, and definitely nothing rising to the level of twisticuffs. In this instance, my vote is determined solely by who was the lower seed. If you’re going to advance, then you need to earn it and justify it. Both failed, but the higher seed should justify its position by adhering to a higher standard. @laurenist wins by default.

In @azelin vs @texasinafrica, I declare @texasinafrica the winner.

Although there was little in the way of twisticuffs between the two, @texasinafrica did utilize the underhanded tactic of shamelessly praising me and encouraging others to hire me. Well done. She should be imitated and listened to. @azelin retweeted the plug, but this was like being the brown-noser who merely brings his teacher an apple. @texasinafrica’s effort was more analogous to bringing the teacher a plate of bacon. I declare @texasinafrica the winner and I declare bacon to be delicious.

Due to some technical issues (having to do with the freezingness of Boston, the heatlessness of a certain apartment, and the numbness of typing hands) there will not be a post in the morning as there usually is. The results of Round 2: Day 2 will post Tuesday afternoon, along with a list of judges for the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 rounds. The Sweet 16 round will begin on schedule first thing Wednesday morning.

We thank you for your patience and understanding.

The popular vote edged the judges in some contests, the judges overruled the people in others, the competition heated up in some brackets, and just rolled along in others, as we saw the first half of Round Two of #TFC12 play out on Friday. A breakdown of all the day’s action is coming, but first: today’s matches.

Round 2: Day 2 Matches

Look for a short post later today announcing the Sweet 16 judging panels. The judges for today’s matches are as follows:

North (@attackerman is the one seed):

• @aelkus
• @Ali_Gharib
• @jeffemanuel
• @RBStalin
• @SecurityScholar

West (@SlaughterAM was the one seed):

• @HayesBrown
• @HerbCarmen
• @johnsonr
• @shephardm
• @timmathews

Usual reminders: the panel’s judgment will count for 50% of the vote, with each judge representing one-fifth of that total. So don’t forget to vote: in a close match, as history has shown, the popular vote can overrule a split judging panel. Judges and voters alike are urged to be as objective as possible when assessing contestants and 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. Contestants’ full bodies of work on Twitter are fair game, but any work outside of Twitter should not be considered, and once again everyone is encouraged to make their decisions in their own way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Round 2: Day 2 Results

EAST

(1) @abuaardvark vs. (8) @drjjoyner
Judges: 3-2 for @drjjoyner (60% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@abuaardvark: 113 (69%)
@drjjoyner: 50 (31%)
One seed @abuaardvark advances to the Sweet Sixteen. Despite losing three out of the five judges’ ballots, his commanding lead in the popular vote is good enough to advance.

(4) @allthingsct vs. (12) @stcolumbia
Judges: 4-1 for @stcolumbia (80% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@stcolumbia: 114 (72%)
@allthingsct: 44 (28%)
Popular underdog @stcolumbia sees his miracle run continue, as he advances to the Sweet Sixteen with a decisive victory over Australian counterterrorism expert @allthingsct.

(3) @adamserwer vs. (11) @naheedmustafa
Judges: 3-2 for @naheedmustafa (60% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@adamserwer: 96 (51%)
@naheedmustafa: 91 (49%)
Canadian @naheedmustafa rolls over Mother Jones journalist @adamserwer, and will represent Canada (a.k.a. America Junior) in the Sweet Sixteen.

(2) @joshuafoust vs. (10) @stephaniecarvin
Judges: 3-2 for @joshuafoust
Popular vote:
@joshuafoust: 88 (49%)
@stephaniecarvin: 91 (51%)
A narrow win in the popular vote for @stephaniecarvin, but she loses on the expert judges’ decision.

SOUTH

(1) @dandrezner vs. (8) @USEmbPretoria
Judges: 5-0 for @dandrezner (100% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@dandrezner: 112 (70%)
@USEmbPretoria: 47 (30%)
U.S. embassies throughout the world celebrated as @USEmbPretoria shattered the glass ceiling by becoming the first American embassy to advance to the prestigious second round of TwitterFightClub. Unfortunately, an even taller glass ceiling remained just past the first one, and @USEmbPretoria’s run ends here.

(4) @DaveedGR vs. (5) @InkSptsGulliver
Judges: 4-1 for @DaveedGR (80% of judges’ vote)
Popular vote:
@DaveedGR: 97 (55%)
@InkSptsGulliver: 78 (45%)
In the designated Chap Hop Match of the South bracket, two bitter rivals faced off in a duel that became ugly immediately, and degenerated from there. @DaveedGR emerges the victor, but neither man is unscathed after this vicious—and very nearly ungentlemanly—match.

(6) @evanchill vs. (14) @astridhka
Judges: 3-2 for @astridhka
Popular vote:
@evanchill: 75 (48%)
@astridhka: 81 (52%)
The Cinderella Story of 14 seed @astridhka continues, as she advances to the Sweet Sixteen by winning both the popular and also judges’ votes.

(2) @blakehounshell vs. (7) @dianawueger
Judges: 3-2 for @dianawueger
Popular vote:
@blakehounshell: 126 (61%)
@dianawueger: 81 (39%)
In a match that is closer than close, @dianawueger wins 60% of the judges’ vote… but @blakehounshell wins 61% of the popular vote. Congratulations to @dianawueger for a great run and a loss to a popular opponent. @blakehounshell advances to the Sweet Sixteen, but this highly popular 2 seed must surely feel vulnerable at this point.

East Bracket:

@hilango

So far, Twitter Fight Club has exceeded my expectations, representing the height of dignified discourse on the internets. The men have behaved like real gentlemen and the women have behaved like true ladies. Round 2 can only bring more joy.

Fight!

@abuaardvark vs. @drjjoyner

As always, @abuaardvark was a strong source of news and insight throughout the day. Also, he has a dog. (I’m not entirely sure why the contestants keep thinking small animals will engender sympathy. Obviously, building a platform on dogs risks alienating the cat electorate, not to mention the livestock people.)

@drjjoyner was even more productive, bombarding my feed with news stories. Also, it didn’t hurt that his avatar was a picture of two children. Granted, we can’t be sure @drjjoyner didn’t pull a @chrisalbon here, but I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Kids trump puppies.

My choice: @drjjoyner

@stcolumbia vs. @allthingsct

This could have been an interesting fight. But like some other contestants in this competition, @allthingsct didn’t even bother showing up. For shame! Was it fear of the harmless-looking-but-skills-of-a-ninja @stcolumbia that kept her from stepping up to the mic? Maybe dingo hunting season began this week in Australia? Or perhaps someone sent @allthingsct a fine single-malt in the hopes of distracting her? We can only speculate. Mystery down under!

My choice: @stcolumbia

@NaheedMustafa vs. @AdamSerwer

I suspect the knife fight between @DaveedGR and @InkSptsGulliver zapped the power out of the rest of the competition in round 2. There was some pretty lackluster dueling on Friday, with @AdamSerwer trying to stoke anti-elephant sentiments and @NaheedMustafa failing at Star Wars references—neither of which impressed the judges (I think). Both contestants served some good articles throughout the day, but @AdamSerwer’s output was significantly higher. Finally, his tweets on the Trayvon Martin tragedy put it beyond reach.

My choice: @AdamSerwer

@StephanieCarvin vs. @JoshuaFoust

@StephanieCarvin once showed me a picture of her cupcakes. They were Star Wars-themed. For Valentine’s Day. And most impressive (sorry!). But this is Twitter Fight Club, and pastries don’t win you trophies. Besides, @joshuafoust’s constant tweets of “easy” dinners would humble most amateur chefs. No, here we demand blood—not butter.

@StephanieCarvin made a preemptive strike at our sense of honor by announcing she’d be jetlagged. Us judges are not easily swayed by such sentiment (career help is an entirely different matter, and libelous claims that such collegiality would in any way, shape or form alter this judge’s perception of said contestant will be met with harsh rebuke and stern warning of sanctions). Instead, we consider this contest on purely measurable variables in the most objective way possible.

Curiously, both contestants incorporated food in their strategy. This is a bit baffling, since talk of food makes me hungry, which in turn makes me grumpy. That aside, @StephanieCarvin powered through the jetlag to tweet about pirates (yarr!), DSK (ewww!), and mammoth inbreeding (ehhh?). All in all, good stuff and she engaged with the ‘readers’ throughout the day. @JoshuaFoust was not as productive, though kept in touch with his tweeps from Canadia. Tweeting about bacon should have given him the victory, but since I can’t have any, he won’t.

My choice: @StephanieCarvin

@katiedemann

Since I have little chance of being as funny in my judging as @brettfriedman or @RBStalin, I have to go with short and sincere. This is the second time I’ve judged this fine quadrant, and the decisions have not gotten any easier…

@abuaardvark v @drjjoyner. Both with doctorates, both smart and engaged tweeters (despite @drjjoyner’s near-constant stream of “New at OTB”), but only one advances in my bracket: with his Kanye references, dog’s presence on NPR, and mockery of tweeters without proper Avatars, @abuaardvark moves ahead. Plus, I have him winning it all in my bracket, so no way I’m shooting myself in the foot when my actual tournament bracket died on day 1.

@stcolumbia v @allthingsct. While I give @stcolumbia a lot of credit for being so involved in our insular, irritating natsec universe, I give the match to @allthingsct for her body of work on twitter over the course of the last however many years I’ve been following her. I always learn something, whether I agree with her or not, and her perspective is well worth reading.

@naheedmustafa v @adamserwer. Two of my very favorite tweeters up against each other! And they’ve been so enthusiastic and fighty! Crap. Decisions. What to do? I’m taking the coward’s way out and tossing a coin: @naheedmustafa.

@stephaniecarvin v @joshuafoust. Stephanie’s put up a good fight against the heavily favored Foust, who hasn’t delivered me any home-cooked food as I demanded in my first-round vote and has expressed indifference toward the vaunted #tfc12. Foust is basically the definition of Twitterfighter. But Stephanie was a janitor for four years (really?) AND she RTs puns about bananas having appeal. Puns win it every time. @stephaniecarvin.

@neilbhatiya

This was a fun bracket to judge, as it contained some of my favorite Twitter people (I followed @JoshuaFoust back when his feed was double-super-secret). This was also an entertaining series of contests to jobs because so many of the tweets on competition day referenced cute animals and, hell, who doesn’t love cute animals?

These are also some of the most informative feeds on Twitter. Just lately: @AdamSerwer has been all over the Trayvon Martin case for Mother Jones; @allthingsct has provided important commentary on the Toulouse killings; @abuaardvark, @drjjoyner, @joshuafoust & @stcolumbia have been great sources of commentary on U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, especially on Syria; and who isn’t entertained by @NaheedMustafa’s #CommuterChronicles, proving that Canada can be as annoying and disgusting as the United States (cf. mayonnaise on French fries).

Since all of these people are close to each other in terms of engagement, quality information, and contributing to the general utility and fun of Twitter, I decide to judge them by a combination of the best tweet they could muster on or around the competition day (Friday, March 23rd) and my overall opinion of their Twitter prowess. In some cases, the tweet was decisive, in others not so much. Without further ado:

(1) @abuaardvark v. (8) @drjjoyner

Best tweet from @drjjoyner: Let me guess: One per page? RT @FP_Magazine: Amazing images from 2011s best military photography http://t.co/1Iz3PFiO

Best tweet from @abuaardvark: Sorry to disappoint, but despite his star turn on today’s radio program my dog was not invited join me and @nprscottsimon tomorrow.

TWEET VERDICT: @drjjoyner

FINAL VERDICT: @abuaardvark

(12) @stcolumbia v. (4) @allthingsct

Best tweet from @stcolumbia: In a time of rapidly shifting baby avatars, my consistently awesome dog is a rock of stability.

Best tweet from @allthingsct: Arrived home to find my cat who I had left with parents is obese. I need a cat fat farm. He’s like 10 kg.

TWEET VERDICT: @stcolumbia

FINAL VERDICT: @stcolumbia

(11) @naheedmustafa v. (3) @adamserwer

Best Tweet from @naheedmustafa: ok no. i’m confused. i’m not competing today. Am I? I can’t read. Whaaat?

Best Tweet from @AdamSerwer: In Game Change, there’s an endnote in invisible ink revealing that @NaheedMustafa introduced John McCain to Sarah Palin

TWEET VERDICT: @AdamSerwer

FINAL VERDICT: @AdamSerwer [as a Marist grad, it stings to advance the fortunes of a Vassar grad, but that’s how the merits add up]

(10) @stephaniecarvin v. (2) joshuafoust

Best tweet from @stephaniecarvin: Gerard Depardieu to play Dominique Strauss-Kahn in French movie. Could DSK play Diepardieu in aeroplane incident film? http://t.co/k2HLMvfA [almost gets no credit for misspelling Depardieu after spelling it correctly just nine words prior]

Best tweet from @joshuafoust: Here is what it looks like to cook lemon-vanilla pancakes over applewood-smoked bacon. http://yfrog.com/h73m7ahj [foodie tweets will get you far]

TWEET VERDICT: @stephaniecarvin

FINAL VERDICT: @joshuafoust

@petulantskeptic

(1) @abuaardvark v. (8) @drjjoyner

Things to know about this matchup. One of them follows me, the other doesn’t. One of them routinely interacts with me, the other doesn’t.

On the other hand, one of them writes important research papers for CNAS explaining why everyone on any US cable television network who ever said anything about intervening in Syria is an idiot (I’m paraphrasing). This one also works for the listicle factory known as Foreign Policy, though as far as I know is not personally involved in creating listicles.

One of them is a former Army officer. I’m an Army officer. Joyner wins. For a (1) seed Marc Lynch really ought to know that he needs to work the judges more.

(12) @stcolumbia v. (4) @allthingsct

Trombly’s avatar is a Rhodesian ridgeback. I have a Rhodesian ridgeback as well (though mine is more adorable than his [more pictures available upon request]). I’ve known Trombly since he was just another random blogger prodigiously toiling away in [relative] obscurity (I say relative because even on a per word basis, far more people read his words than mine). This is Twitter Fight Club, not some contest in which judging should be impartial. Trombly wins.

(11) @naheedmustafa v. (3) @adamserwer

Neither one follows me. Since I started paying attention to them Naheed seems the more interesting, plus I like voting for underdogs. Naheed wins.

(10) @stephaniecarvin v. (2) joshuafoust

One of these people wore an ascot on Al Jazeera. Anyone who does that would probably ruin me if I didn’t vote for them. Beyond that though, Foust is one of the most legendary Twitter Fighters in the Twitter Fight Sphere, even though he may have lost a step and some of his ambition with age (Twitter years are like dog years, so it’s not inconceivable that a lot changes in a year). Foust used to be one of the most pugnacious pugilists in the Twitterverse, though these days he tends to play a more tactical game holding his immense depth of snark and knowledge in reserve for only those opponents truly worthy of a volley. While I may miss the old, more rambunctious Foust, no one can keep up that level of intensity for an entire Twitter Fight career. Like an old, wise, ascot wearing boxer he has learned to win with his intelligence as well as his fists. Foust wins.

My apologies that I didn’t write y’all a story, in lieu of that I give you:

*** BONUS JUDGING ***

The people running this show tell me this won’t count [Ed: it doesn't], but I don’t care, I’m going to do it anyway.

(6) @evanchill v. (14) @astridhka

Seriously. Evan is a Bears fan. In my first round ballot I speculated that he would totally be able to handle losing. Then after he (despite my vote) won, he confirmed my suspicions. He’s a Bears fan… for them losing is like having a glass of milk to you and I. Then, on the other side of the matchup you have one of the most insightful Horn of Africa tweeters, and also a woman of immense and fantastical taste in television shows (e.g. Friday Night Lights). I don’t know who does the seeding for this stuff (or how they let people like @jstrevino in) but Astrid is criminally underseeded and, since the judges have mysteriously, decided that I can’t judge her half of the bracket I’d like to cast a public vote for her (even if those same powers that be decide that this is meaningless [Ed: it is]).

@speechboy71

In the 1-8 matchup, one’s heart has to go out to @abuaardvark as all his NCAA teams were banished from the tourney (first the Packers and now this) but @drjjoyner is a tweeting machine - respect must be paid. A vote for @drjjoyner

12) @stcolumbia v. 4) @allthingsct - If you don’t tweet, you don’t win. A vote for @stcolumbia (even if I could do with a little less IR theory)

A tough match between @naheedmustafa and @adamserwer with equal levels of snarks and unsubstantiated accusations. But I have to give my vote to @Naheedmustafa; she went against national type in demonstrating that Canadians can be as harsh as Americans in - a significant accomplishment and one that earns her this judge’s nod.

10) @stephaniecarvin v. 2) joshuafoust Neither much impressed with their tweeting, but Foust bought me lunch and I can’t vote for 2 Canadians in a fight club. @joshuafoust gets my vote

South Bracket:

@BareftStratgist

I have to admit I knew very little about #TFC12 before being invited to judge in round 2, beyond new cat & baby-themed profile pictures and liquid refreshment bribes (by the way…still waiting on that Scotch folks). After digging in and watching the judging styles of my more creative and articulate predecessors, I saw there wasn’t much new material for me. Particular props to @brettfriedman for his phenomenal USMC/Star Wars-inspired epic.

Which leaves me really only a 4-metric system for evaluation (to spare those non-military types, I won’t get into which are Measures of Effectiveness and which are Measures of Performance – but feel free to hit up @jon_jeckell if you’re interested).

The four metrics I used were:

1) The likelihood that this story resonated with the contestant – a powerful determinate of both an analytic mind and their geek-quotient.

2) The contestant’s twitter description – a synopsis of their knowledge and level of snarkiness you can expect.

3) The best picture on their twitter account – a symbol of their wit.

4) The contestant that had the best final tweet of the day – let’s face it, who has time to follow every great tweet from the folks for 24 hours? S/he who is best, last wins.

Formalities out of the way –

@dandrezner	@USEmbPretoria
Based on his obsession with zombies – think the contestant felt vindication for much of his adolescent life.	Since it’s the official twitter feed for an embassy, I’m guessing it never role-played as a kid…
“International relations professor, politics junkie, blogger, zombie expert seeking intellectual company on the web. No freaks.”	“United States Diplomatic Mission to South Africa”
Rejected subtitle was, “Get Off My Lawn You Punks!”	Oh, Khaya.
“An interesting @jbplainblog point about exactly how elections have consequences: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/new-world-bank-chief-shows-that-elections-have-consequences/2012/03/23/gIQASnLuVS_blog.html” - in which the author quotes the contestant…good strong self-promotional exit.	“Foreign policy and national interests: China, oil and the Sudans: http://wapo.st/GMNpYh (Washington Post)

@dandrezner obviously comes out ahead in my completely logical evaluation system. While @USEmbPretoria is ever-informative on African issues, official organizations are at a handicap for humor and personality.

@InkSptsGulliver	@DaveedGR
Based on the amount of snark and pictures of booze on this contestants twitter feed, it’s guaranteed he had an adolescence filled with horrid experiences involving role playing.	Way too cool for an imagination - @DaveedGR was the formidable debate team kid, not the backroom gamer.
“Ink Spots is a blog dedicated to the discussion of security issues across the spectrum of conflict & around the world. I’m a cog in the mil-industrial machine.”	“Author of Bin Laden’s Legacy.”
Feeling pretty confident I’m the only straight man here tonight.
“@KeithB18 I’m not sure he can explain how the Spurs always have some terrible rookie scoring 18 by banking in threes and shit.”	“I’m off Twitter for the evening. I’d like to thank my friend, the virtually unreadable @InkSptsGulliver, for a great match.”

This was an extremely tough call. Both contestants overflow with snark and confrontation. They both obviously know how to play the TFC game…throwing shots at each other all day. While @DaveedGR is the favorite, @InkSpotsGulliver does better on most of my evaluation criteria. Based on the final tweet-suckerpunch by @DaveedGR, though, he gets my vote. Well done gents.

@evanchill	@astridhka
As a Bears fan, he lacks imagination…	Definitely not…too extroverted and engaging.
“Al Jazeera English online producer, Wisconsin raised Chicago Bears fan, Radiohead listener, middle initial C. evan [dot] hill [at] aljazeera [dot] net.”	“aid worker in the Horn of Africa.”
” Carlos Latuff turned this one around within like six hours. Someone tell this man to take a break once in a while.”	Only works on @petulantskeptic, I’m afraid…
“@austin_riggs My bracket is just ridiculous right now,”	“Somali PM is asked who’s the real parliament speaker, essentially says, “This gov’t is over in August; who cares?” http://is.gd/QKSvTb

This was another tight contest, though for different reasons. Both contestants are prolific in their serious coverage of their areas – amazing lack of snark. Both are very engaging and are in constant discussion with others on Twitter. Again, it comes down to the final tweet – and @astridhka’s strong finish with a little humor took her over the top.

@dianawueger	@blakehounshell
I can see @dianawueger pandering to poor gamers, but, like @astridhka, she’s too extroverted and engaging for this story to resonate.	Quick, witty, imaginative, and worldly…can see him as running the show.
“Writing about small arms, slightly larger arms, foreign affairs, natsec, & facial hair. I love a well-turned phrase.”	“Managing editor of Foreign Policy magazine. Opinions my own. RT ? endorsement. Buy my book! http://amzn.to/u6uNL6”
“”Hoodies don’t fit in today’s society” says man with horrible 1970s pedophile mustache.” – retweet from @Wonderella	“GOP primary bad for ratings RT @memeorandum: Television News and the Incredibly Shrinking 2012 Campaign http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/03/22/television-news-and-the-incredibly-shrinking-2012-campaign.html

 

By far the toughest contest of the day. As one of the progenitors of TFC, @dianawueger knows how to throw it down, while @blakehounshell is one of the anchors of NatSec/FoPo on Twitter. Their pictures alone should push them both through to the next round, but alas:

While the last tweet is less than decisive for either contestant (@dianawueger’s is amusing, but merely a re-tweet and @blakehounshell’s only a quick direct to an informative piece on politics), @blakehounshell’s hat tip to Playgirl’s Geraldo edition pushed him ahead. Add to that @blakehounshell’s likely abilities at role play and game theory (not to mention his gigantic and cult-like following on Twitter), and he cruises to victory. Well played, @blakehounshell.

TL;DR version:
@dandrezner
@DaveedGR
@astridhka
@blakehounshell

@EricMartin24

1) @dandrezner v. 9) @USEmbPretoria

Not a lot of heat from this contest pitting the #1 seed (Dan Drezner) against the plucky #9 seed (USEmbPretoria). Both sides kept themselves at an exceedingly boring, if civil, distance for the duration of the day. However, as @DaveedGR was kind enough to highlight a few days ago, I am perfectly willing to consider “fair judging & impartiality gifts” from contestants, and Drezner at least had the good sense to follow me. As a result of that gesture, my thus-enhanced open mind led me to the conclusion that @USEmbPretoria didn’t do enough to upend a #1 seed.

Vote: Drezner.

5) @InkSptsGulliver v. 4) @DaveedGR

Watching these two go at it yesterday was reminiscent of just about every day on twitter, ever. Fighting trousers were donned, wigs powdered, gloves were cracked across ruddy cheeks…the usual. When the dust settled, @DaveedGR scored points for profile pic pugnacity, but lost some for his savaging of my first round judging lapse and his refusal to change his name to either Maximum Fighting Power Jones or Count R. Terrorism (a suggestion that earned Gully points of his own). Further, as a member of The Progressive Realist network, Gully does enjoy certain priviliges with certain judges which on a normal fighting day would seal the deal for the Inked one…but then came the bombshell announcement that Gully’s blog-mate @JasonFritz1 was actually endorsing DGR.

(An audible chorus of harumphs ensued, chins were stroked, brows were furrowed, tabulations were re-tabulated)

That revelation, and the highly strategic #FF from DGR, pushed the needle every so slightly in favor of Maximum Fighting Power Jones.

Vote: @DaveedGR, in the toughest decision of the day.

6) @evanchill v. 14) @astridhka

Like the @dandrezner v. @USEmbPretoria match-up, these contestants could have taken a cue from Inky and DGR and mixed it up a bit more. @astridhka went so far as to call @evanchill an…”excellent journalist.” Yeah, that’ll leave a mark. For his part, @evanchill launched such heavy artillery as “goody two-shoes aid worker” coupled with a misspelled username. Not exactly the stuff of legends here.

In terms of sympathy votes, @astridhka’s loss of 4 hours’ worth of work to an Excel freeze-up tugged on my office dwelling heart strings. But I’m not sure it was enough firepower to overtake the favorite.

Vote: @evanchill

7) @dianawueger v. 2) @blakehounshell

This duel features a match-up of two people that I’ve actually met in the real world, and consumed alcohol with. So that’s something I suppose.

@blakehounshell did his best to keep a “positive” tone, embracing “bold ideas” and characterizing his opponent as negative. His most effective tactic was clearly the deployment of pictures of his adorable 5 day old son. That, and a DGR inspired #FF (though, as @dianawueger pointed out, the #FF didn’t accompany an actual follow. Ahem. Points nullified). Despite his pledge to keep it positive, the judges would have liked to see a little more fight out of the newly minted father.

@dianawueger on the other hand put forth a tantalizing offer of free scotch for the judges - the global currency of awesome. Also, veiled threats about inclusion in #TFC13. Devastating. Miscellania: bedazzling references, owls, correcting the editor and more barbs landed than absorbed.

Normally, that would tilt the contest toward @dianawueger, but @blakehounshell has two aces up his sleeve:

1. As a new father, he earns my sympathy vote for the lack of sleep he will suffer over the coming months. That, and his impending realization that for the next 18 years or so, he will never really have a “day off.” Weekends? Vacations? Those words are hollow.

2. Blake and I used to blog together at American Footprints waaaaay back in the day when he wrote under the handle praktike. That’s gotta count for something when trying to pick a winner in a matchup between two people that deserve to move on.

Vote: ever so slight nod in the direction of @blakehounshell. Also the toughest decision of the day.

@mvallonesta

When I was contacted by the organizers of Twitter Fight Club about judging, I was a little hesitant to do so. Not because of any concern about my ability to be objective, but more regarding my ability to match the humor and wit seen on previous rulings (preview: not going to happen). That being said, I’m more than happy to be here and will lay out my voting below. I look at two criteria when evaluating participants in Twitter Fight Club: quality of material presented and quantity of tweets. Quality of tweets should be seen in both the user generated content and the quality of provided links. Quantity of tweets is pretty self-explanatory, though more weight was given to unique content then retweeting. As tempting as it is to look at external factors (articles, papers, books, Klout scores, shameless pandering to the judge, etc.), the rules of the competition focus on activity during the time period in question.

Matchup 1: #1 @dandrezner v. #9 @USEmbPretoria

@USEmbPretoria draws a tough matchup with one of the three remaining #1 seeds in TFC. Despite limited familiarity with @USEmbPretoria prior to the start of TFC, I’ve been very impressed by both the quality and quantity of the twitter feed. Many governmental twitter feeds fail on both of these measures, managing to infrequently post banal talking points that have all the personality of linoleum. With tweets ranging from explanations of African Union activity to the Judicial Service of Ghana, there’s something for almost everyone. It makes for interesting reading and is well worth following.

@dandrezner’s feed doesn’t quite match @USEmbPretoria for quantity of content, but I believe there’s an edge in quality. Some of the articles provided proved to be exceptionally interesting and topics included as diverse topics as comparing college football to the Hunger Games and how to get into grad school (as someone who just finished applying that was particularly appreciated).

Result: A surprisingly close match-up, but I give the vote to @dandrezner based on quality of entrees. @USEmbPretoria is definitely worth a follow though.

Matchup 2: #5 @InkSptsGulliver v. #4 @DaveedGR

This was a difficult match to follow, not because of any failings on participants but because of the sheer volume of tweets. To say that these two participants attempted to flood the zone with tweets does a disservice to the phrase. If you haven’t looked at the exchange they had on Friday, go back and do that now, I’ll wait. … … Actually, scrap that, it would take a good solid hour to work through all of their tweets, we’ll continue on. While the length was rather daunting, the back and forth was extremely enjoyable. For better or worse, it was incredibly effective at distracting from me from my attempts to be productive.

Looking back at the two feeds now, it looks like @DaveedGR was the more prolific tweeter- how he managed that given that he was on a plane for part of the day is beyond me. To his credit, @InkSptsGulliver observed a pause during the flight before resuming hostilities. This is part and parcel with a longer-running twitter feud/admiration fest between the two. The quality of both Twitter feeds was impressive, ranging from discussion of Mavericks basketball (which is described as ‘bad’, clearly they haven’t seen the Celtics this season) to follow-up on the Toulouse shootings. For further details, @noahchestnut has a fairly comprehensive overview of the morning portion of their match-up here.

Result: It’s difficult to determine a winner in this one, but I think I have to give my vote to @DaveedGR for sheer numbers. Both feeds are excellent and well-worth reading, so @DaveedGR gets the nod for quantity.

Matchup 3: #6 @evanchill v. #14 @astridhka

I didn’t follow @evanchill prior to Twitter Fight Club and clearly this was my loss, his reporting appears to be always interesting and insightful. @astridhka I’ve followed for some time and remains a top-quality twitter feed focused on the HoA. The rankings indicate a bit of a mismatch, but the actual competition proved to be pretty close.

@evanchill clearly wins in terms of quantity of tweets, but quality of tweets is harder to discern. @evanchill’s feed provides coverage around the globe, ranging from Syria to Kandahar to US domestic politics. @astridhka remains more focused on Africa, but this focus allows for some very interesting analysis/links on activities there (particularly given events in Mali).

Result: @evanchill wins on quantity and the quality of both feeds isn’t significantly different enough to overcome that, meaning this round goes to @evanchill

Matchup 4: #7 @dianawueger v. #2 @blakehounsell

This was a difficult competition to rule on as both contestants have top-notch feeds that I’ve followed for some time. And both brought their “A game” to the table on Friday. While there wasn’t a done of engagement between the two, there was sufficient back-and-forth to make it interesting.

@dianawueger had a solid day of tweeting both for quantity and quality. Topics ranged from bedazzler technology to Swiss water-safety to Trayvon Martin. She also gets points for linking to one of the cutest pictures of baby owls I’ve ever seen. If the link to the scotch ice cream concoction she had posted earlier this week had made an occurrence, that likely would have secured a nod.

@blakehounsell provided an impressive day of tweets, including interesting links and analysis. Topics covered included Mali, fall-out from Greg Smith’s Goldman op-ed and the on-going 2012 GOP primary. Also, surprisingly, links to Conan O’Brien’s coverage of Obama’s world bank pick.

Result: If this were simply focused on national security tweets, @blakehounsell’s volume of tweets would be the clear winner. As it is more expansive, the range of topics discussed by @dianawueger make me pick her in an upset.

@trdeghett

1) @dandrezner v. 9) @USEmbPretoria

Both of these tweeters put out great content. The embassy has the honor of being one of the few non-individual twitter feeds that pulls off a personal feel, but Drezner made a good showing with today’s tweeting on Obama’s World Bank pick and more.

It’s a close race, but I vote for @dandrezner. Hope to see @USEmbPretoria come back around next year.

5) @InkSptsGulliver v. 4) @DaveedGR

This fight got ugly quickly with @InkSptsGulliver starting out the match by accusing @DaveedGR of being a fictional character and @DaveedGR returned fire by challenging Gulliver for allegedly being a boring and unreadable blogger. @InkSptsGulliver lost points with me by pulling @JasonFritz1 into the fray and Jason’s subsequent endorsement of @DaveedGR was a major boost. Ultimately, though, I wished that they had spent a little more time being their usual informative selves on Twitter, and since @DaveedGR did that the most of the two…

My vote goes to @daveedgr.

6) @evanchill v. 14) @astridhka

@evanchill has a lot going for him in #TFC12 and I only just started following @astridhka’s feed, but she’s definitely worth it. It’s hard to top Hill’s follower count and his Al Jazeera ties, etc… but @astridhka’s no slouch. Hill gets extra credit for asking for the vote in Arabic, but @astridhka wins the day with her consistent, informative and opinionated Africa tweeting.

My vote goes to @astridhka.

7) @dianawueger v. 2) @blakehounshell

This just is not a fair match-up to have to judge: I rely on both of these two tweeters for their solid expertise and for the wit they bring in 140 characters. Hounshell’s comprehensive world news tweeting and his RTs with snarky/pithy commentary were matched up with @dianawueger’s usual stellar mix of snark and weapons-tweeting (plus a discussion of Somali pirates and guyliner).

I vote @dianawueger.

@WThomasWebb

Today was truly the day-of-days to be a Twitter Fight Club 2012 judge. As the day progressed, upsets could be felt waiting in the wings and the body blows of rhetorical heavyweights did not disappoint. Would the witty 1-seed professor, who squeaked by the charismatic 16-seed, earn his ranking against a US embassy? Could a TFC sponsor upend a FP Magazine editor and popular Middle East expert? Did the aid worker mobilize the good-will she tries to sow against an Al-Jazeera producer? Best of all, the far-too-early-in-the-bracket prize fight between precocious partisans @InkSptsGulliver and @DaveedGR drew not just the crowds en masse, but the jeers and cheers of an audience enthralled.

[Are you not entertained!?]

(1) @dandrezner v. (9) @USEmbPretoria

Both contestants followed your humble judge once the matchup and judges were announced. Each contestant is a must follow if you’re not already (albeit, you probably are). This one was actually one of the closer matches of the day. Each contestant tweeted a plethora of important, topical, and timely articles. Further equalizers were @dandrezner’s having to catch a flight and @USEmbPretoria’s time-zone disadvantage. Even their nice-fight was on display, with the academic giving up a #FF to his bureaucratic adversary and the latter plying me with his chic flag avatar, in contrast to the child-puppy-kitten avatars currently trending.

Both sides stuck to what they do best, only one side did it better. @dandrezner’s “So you want to get into a Ph.D. in political science Ph.D. program, Episode II: Attack of the Postgrads was the lynchpin of the competition. Influenced by a request from our intrepid oraganizer @caidid, his series on PhD admissions is a must read, and shows the power of Twitter’s interconnectivity. This isn’t to say @USEmbPretoria isn’t a shining light in a cesspool of poor embassy feeds, and I know next year our South African mission will be contender to be reckoned with.

Point: @dandrezner.

(5) @InkSptsGulliver v. (4) @DaveedGR

Articulate adversaries. Forsworn friends. Rambunctious rivals. Alliteration abounds amongst articulate attritionists, aiming at ameliorating anger. @DaveedGR gave the lie immediately, as I had just arrived at work. Witty and unhindered, he launched a rhetorical broadside at @InkSptsGulliver to which the blogger was able to respond to intermittently. Soon the pace quickened on both ends, leading to a what I could only be taken as a Pyrrhic victory by either side. For the sake of brevity, check out this story one the morning’s fireworksby ‘Noah Chestnut’. With such banter, how do I even begin to vote? Here’s the major difference: Daveed weaponized his feed for the day’s fight, up-armoring and dedicating the day to destruction. On the other hand, Gulliver stuck to what he does best: asking young people to get off his rhetorical lawn, bitching about the NBA, and giving Daveed a few good body-blows 140 characters at a time.

In the end, I side with Gulliver, only on the basis of his human display. Any man who can go toe-to-toe with @DaveedGR and then rage against the Spurs has proved his worth.

Point: @InkSptsGulliver

(6) @evanchill v. (14) @astridhka

This one became easier as the day went on. @astridhka engaged and kept up her expected humor, while @evanchill couldn’t bring himself to hit the follow button. A early #FF and a few jokes just wasn’t enough to overcome the charms of his opponent.

(7) @dianawueger v. (2) @blakehounshell

Diana ran away with this one. As with Evan, Blake went with the #FF, but didn’t follow through on his own recommendation. The TFC sponsor and tireless editor of a band of blogging misfits found time to work and serve up some great laughs during a match I thought would be much closer. I sympathize with Blake’s new child, but sympathy has no place in war. None. Ever. Ever ever.

Point: @dianawueger