Twitter Fight Club

The Twitter Fight Club Tournament proper might be occupying the center ring, but this circus is bigger than that. There is another competition going on that carries its own prizes and its own glory: the bracket pool. We are using a fairly standard scoring system for this type of competition. The matches in each round are worth double the round before, meaning there are 32 points up for grabs each round. First round match-ups are worth one point each, second round two points each, third round four points each, and so on. Below are the standings through two rounds, showing @bmccorkle1 and @daveedgr tied for first place with several other competitors nipping at their heels. (I used initials where I didn’t have people’s Twitter handles).

	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Round 5	Final	Total
RBStalin	22	12					34
dianawueger	23	20					43
S.S.	25	18					43
drjjoyner	22	20					42
mariastoh	23	16					39
bmccorkle1	27	24					51
johntabin	24	16					40
tellmemo	21	12					33
daveedgr	27	24					51
alexlobov	28	22					50
ericmartin24	26	22					48
azelin	24	16					40
elizrael	19	12					31
laurenist	25	16					41
JimmySky	22	24					46
bob_fitch	25	16					41
randomvariable	23	8					31
slowfalling	24	16					40
abumuqawama	20	18					38
mil_historicus	18	12					30
timmathews	25	14					39
T.M.	28	20					48
doylechrist	19	14					33
jonathanshainin	27	20					47
stcolumbia	22	24					46
D. A-B.	22	16					38
bmaz	26	22					48

The Sweet Sixteen

March 28, 2011

by twitsticuffs

A word before the next round of voting begins: we have seen the comments of those among you who think you’re clever enough to have more than one vote. We have detected attempts to subvert our security measures. You are forgetting that this is a tournament designed for intelligence professionals. If our state-of-the art security system detects attempts to cast more than one vote from a single location, all votes from that location will be deemed invalid for the remainder of the tournament. Also, be warned that just as the UN Security Council has authorized some of the combat taking place in Twitter Fight Club, a secret NSA regulation makes subversion of our voting system illegal. If you try to cheat the system, the least you will lose is your attempted votes…. you may lose your liberty as well.

Now let’s go! It’s the Twitter Fight Club Sweet 16. Vote!

Standings

March 25, 2011

by twitsticuffs

Here are your full Twitter Fight Club standings after two rounds! Rest up this weekend, twitterfighters, because you’ve got some tough Sweet 16 matchups facing you on Monday.

Round of 32 Results!

March 25, 2011

by twitsticuffs

The round of 32 comes to a close! Top seed @abuaardvark continues his dominance with another resounding victory, and the first 1 seed is eliminated, as @EliLake, who pulled out a close win against 16 seed @timmathews in Round One, falls decisively to 8 seed @Max_Fisher. The only other lower seed to win a matchup was @InkSptsGulliver (6) who squeaked past @shadihamid (3), the narrowest victory of the day save that of @nirrosen (5) who beat @ThinkStrat (13) by a mere four votes. Voting for the Sweet Sixteen starts Monday morning 9am EDT!

Twitterfighter	Total Votes	Percent of Votes

A Bracket:

(1) @abuaardvark	326	86%
(9) @speechboy71	51	14%

(5) @CChristineFair	158	41%
(4) @blakehounsell	225	59%

(6) @lbishblog	93	37%
(3) @mattduss	157	63%

(10) @joshmull	124	33%
(2) @ggreenwald	250	67%

B Bracket:

(1) @abumuqawama	269	64%
(8) @NaheedMustafa	149	36%

(5) @dandrezner	125	34%
(4) @glcarlstrom	244	66%

(6) @InkSptsGulliver	166	52%
(3) @shadihamid	155	48%

(7) @EricMartin24	96	38%
(2) @allthingsct	154	62%

C Bracket:

(1) @joshuafoust	237	74%
(8) @MattGallagher83	85	26%

(5) @nirrosen	168	51%
(13) @ThinkStrat	164	49%

(6) @DaveedGR	160	47%
(3) @AdamSerwer	178	53%

(7) @chrisalbon	149	41%
(2) @attackerman	217	59%

D Bracket:

(1) @EliLake	95	26%
(8) @Max_Fisher	272	74%

(12) @jonathanshainin	120	27%
(4) @afpakchannel	323	73%

(6) @mattyglesias	164	40%
(3) @lrozen	243	60%

(10) @elliottjustin	114	22%
(2) @jeremyscahill	394	78%

Round Two

March 24, 2011

by twitsticuffs

To put it bluntly, the first round of the Twitterfightclub tournament was not kind to underdogs. Only five lower-ranked teams were able to eke out first round victories, only two of whom (@jonathanshainin and @ThinkStrat) could be regarded as Cinderellas. Nice ~~shoes~~ job, gentlemen.

Will the round of 32 go as smoothly for top-ranked teams? As you can see, there are some tough matches involving highly skilled pugilists. Choose wisely, as the course of history could hang in the balance. (There has already been talk of @abumuqawama being elected — or perhaps, appointed — president. Surely a loss in Twitterfightclub would prove an insurmountable barrier to a 2012 run.)

To review: what makes a good Twitterfighter? The key factors you should evaluate include:

knowledge base
logic and reasoning
humor, snark, and facility with quips
frequency of tweets and willingness to engage with followers
charisma and overall awesomeness

The right to vote is an awesome one, carrying great responsibility. Cast your ballot wisely.

Super 64 Super Results!

March 24, 2011

by twitsticuffs

Twitterfighter	Total Votes	Percent of Votes
A Bracket:

(1) @abuaardvark	323	92%
(16) @Simlaughter	27	8%

(9) @speechboy71	116	54%
(8) @drjjoyner	99	46%

(5) @CChristineFair	166	75%
(12) @NYKrinDC	56	25%

(4) @blakehounsell	266	83%
(13) @LobeLog	53	17%

(6) @lbishblog	117	65%
(11) @SteveSchippert	63	35%

(3) @mattduss	143	53%
(14) @mosharrafzaidi	126	47%

(10) @joshmull	153	60%
(7) @MaxBoot	101	40%

(2) @ggreenwald	259	67%
(15) @azelin	125	33%

B Bracket:

(1) @abumuqawama	281	79%
(16) @dianawueger	74	21%

(8) @NaheedMustafa	123	58%
(9) @JasonFritz1	90	42%

(5) @dandrezner	173	74%
(12) @robertcaruso	61	26%

(4) @glcarlstrom	179	79%
(13) @primorisera	48	21%

(6) @InkSptsGulliver	166	75%
(11) @acorn	54	25%

(3) @shadihamid	136	64%
(14) @JimmySky	77	36%

(7) @EricMartin24	92	52%
(10) @noonanjo	85	48%

(2) @allthingsct	172	76%
(15) @NoahPollak	54	24%

C Bracket:

(1) @joshuafoust	225	85%
(16) @xrauscher_	39	15%

(8) @MattGallagher83	138	77%
(9) @bdomenech	42	23%

(5) @nirrosen	149	55%
(12) @alexlobov	120	45%

(13) @ThinkStrat	106	63%
(4) @kirstenpowers10	63	37%

(6) @DaveedGR	154	58%
(11) @AdamWeinstein	112	42%

(3) @AdamSerwer	200	67%
(14) @Galrahn	99	33%

(7) @chrisalbon	183	78%
(10) @NYUProf	53	22%

(2) @attackerman	278	92%
(15) @marisaurgo	25	8%

D Bracket:

(1) @EliLake	129	52%
(16) @timmathews	119	48%

(8) @Max_Fisher	161	63%
(9) @Starbuck_WOI	93	37%

(12) @jonathanshainin	146	60%
(5) @jstrevino	96	40%

(4) @afpakchannel	267	82%
(13) @steven_metz	59	18%

(6) @mattyglesias	209	64%
(11) @kalsoom82	117	36%

(3) @lrozen	206	86%
(14) @michaelroston	34	14%

(10) @elliottjustin	108	54%
(7) @DrewConway	92	46%

(2) @jeremyscahill	321	73%
(15) @laurenist	118	27%

Get to Know Your #1s

March 23, 2011

by emmasixteen

You’ve followed them on Twitter for a year. You think you know all there is to know about these guys*.

YOU’RE (probably) WRONG.

_________

@Abuaardvark

Strengths: He’s an aardvark with opposable thumbs. That’s awesome.

Weaknesses: He’s an aardvark with opposable thumbs. That’s creepy.

@Abumuqawama

Strengths: Former Ranger. Now has a beard and a killer workout schedule.

Weaknesses: Ranger workouts seem to involve short shorts. Just say no.

@Joshuafoust

Strengths: If this were Iron Chef: Twitter, we wouldn’t even be having this discussion.

Weaknesses: His puggle is bringing sharia to Fairfax.

@EliLake

Strengths: Accomplished amateur rapper, focusing on old school jams.

Weaknesses: I got that from Wikipedia. And apparently he got that from Copyright Infringements R Us…

_________

So will we see these boys in the Final Four? Only time, your votes, and Teddy Roosevelt will tell!

* Hey! Why is it all guys? Ladies, fight harder! Selection Committee, be less chauvinistic!

The Super 64

March 23, 2011

by twitsticuffs

On this day in 1801, Tsar Paul I of Russia is struck with a sword, then strangled, and finally trampled to death in his bedroom at St. Michael’s Castle. In 1889, the free Woolwich Ferry officially opens in east London. In 1909, Teddy Roosevelt leaves New York for a post-presidency safari in Africa. And in 2011, the first Twitter Fight Club tournament opens for voting. Auspicious, no?

Welcome to the Super 64 Round! Polls will be open until midnight EST, at which point NO MORE VOTING FOR YOU.

You are charged with voting based not on how much you like these individuals, or agree with their politics: you are responsible, instead, for helping to decisively determine the most adept Twitterfighter in the counterterrorism, defense, and foreign policy realm.

What makes a good Twitterfighter? As outlined here, the key factors you should evaluate include:

knowledge base
logic and reasoning
humor, snark, and facility with quips
frequency of tweets and willingness to engage with followers
charisma and overall awesomeness.

The responsibility you undertake in judging this tournament is an awesome one. Egos hang in the balance; the course of history may change based entirely on your decisions. So vote wisely, vote early, and vote often.*

* Note to readers: Voting limited to one vote per IP address. Do not vote often.