Sometimes A Cigar Is Just A Cigar

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And sometimes “I haven’t said anything” has an implied “…yet” after it.

One the most dull-witted bit of comment-section rhetoric is the old “I see you’re silent on…[some issue you haven’t written or spoken about]”, usually written to imply “silence equals assent”.

I’ve had a few commenters, tweeps and other people say “I notice you’re completely silent on the issue of the MNGOP “Sex Scandal”, the “coverup”, and the principals involved”.

Well, there’s a grain of truth to that, in that I haven’t written anything on the subject.

Yet.

There are a few good reasons for that.

I Have Little To Say:  All of the principals in the case are, to some degree or another, friends.  More importantly, they all have families.  Others may believe that their ends – pillorying the opposition – justfify their means, including piling on a couple of families who, let’s be honest, didn’t ask to be part of this.  So go read them, if that’s what you want.  But before you do, remember…

If You Ever, Even Once, Said “It’s Just About Sex” During The Clinton Administration, You Need To Just Shush: Seriously.  It’s private business.  It didn’t affect government.  Move on.  Just mooooove on.

Some might respond “But the relationship was inappropriate!  What kind of management style is that?”  To which I respond:

It’s An HR Issue:  Is every complaint about “inappropriate relationships” aired out in the media where you work?  Not until it goes to court, if at all.

Yeah, I know – Koch is an elected official in a position of some considerable power, so it’s a little different.  Suffice to say I have no opinion.  Yet.

But…

Much Of The Discourse On The Subject Has Nothing To Do With Amy Koch:  The “relationship” with the unnamed male staffer is the issue that’s got a good chunk of the Twin Cities leftyblogosphere cackling away with their prurient, projection-addled glee.  A name has been popping up, over and over again.  But none of the MSM’s sources on the subject have gone on the record with that name yet – not to a standard that a “real” news media outlet can run with yet.

And I’ll confess this to you all right now – I hope the “rumor” is wrong.  And I hope that the reason the subject of the tittering speculation is lawyering up is because so many of the Twin Cities’ leftybloggers and less-scrupulous media outlets have stuck their tender extremities into a meatgrinder; that they’ve defamed the “rumored” staffer, and done it because they  ignored the standards of fact-checking required to defend a defamatory assertion, and exercised “reckless disregard for the truth” – which is a form of “malice” under Minnesota defamation law that might, with a good lawyer, be enough to void the First Amendment protection they’re all hoping to hide behind.  I’ll cop to it; my Christmas cheer is marred by a hope against hope that the next year sees an awful lot of smug leftyblogging and City-Pages-writing prigs bussing tables at Panera to pay off a humongous legal judgment.

A guy can dream, can’t he?

But What About The Coverup?:  We’ll see.  I’m going to do something that a whoooole lot of – I’ll be frank – dumber bloggers could stand to try; waiting until I know enough to have a perspective worth writing.

Now – as to all of you leftybloggers and comment-section-lawyers who haven’t specifically condemned the massacre at Katyn Wood?  Why do you support Russian genocide against the Poles?

Does your silence speak volumes, or what?

 

27 thoughts on “Sometimes A Cigar Is Just A Cigar”

  1. I’m still waiting for the DFL to apologize for the annexation of Schleswig-Holstein, and for the Rape of Nanking, and for Robert Roeder stealing the Twinkie out of my lunch box in 3rd grade – you know, important stuff.

  4. So Angry Clown is taking credit for demolishing Amy Koch’s marriage by having a steamy affair with this Brodkorb fellow?
    Nasty!

  5. Cover up? Seems to me that one of the unique features of this scandal is tha the wrong-doer was exposed and held accountable for her misbehavior before the opposition or media ever got hold of the story. It would also appear, given the number of reports the Party received, that Mdm Koch and her paramour were less than circumspect in their dalliance and made no attempts to silence or coerce witnesses.

  6. Mitch, I’d wish you and your compatriots a happy Holidays, but I’m not even sure what season it is in your alternative world. I noticed this response is filled with all sorts of terms like “it’s an HR issue”, “rumors”, “they have families”, “reckless disregard” and “wait for perspective”. This would all be very commendable, but when you compare that to your Hamline/Emmer writings, it’s all just exposed for the big pile of horsecrap that it is.

    But hey, I commend ya. It only took you 3 days to get to this. That’s 87 days less than your legislative pals took to address it.

  7. In all the years he’s commented here, Earsall Macbee has never condemned the Massacre of Innocents and therefore must condone it. He hates children. And Jews. And wants them all dead. Like Hitler did. Nazi.

    Wow, this Progressive logic stuff is fun!

  8. In my alternate world, people found to have a conflict of interest like sleeping with a staffer get disciplined by their peers. Any personal fallout, like divorce proceedings, belongs in the none of the public’s business category. I know this may come as a disappointment to some trolls but really, if no laws have been broken and the miscreants are no longer working at the affected jobs, there is nothing to do about it. I believe that subscriptions to People Magazine can be had fairly cheaply. If Earsall has any friends, perhaps they can be persuaded to gift one.

  9. Ears,

    your alternative world

    Look – either be a name-calling dolt, or shoot for a literate, factual argument. Trying for both is lame.

    I noticed this response is filled with all sorts of terms like “it’s an HR issue”, “rumors”, “they have families”, “reckless disregard” and “wait for perspective”. This would all be very commendable, but when you compare that to your Hamline/Emmer writings, it’s all just exposed for the big pile of horsecrap that it is.

    Um, how?

    I have a hunch you wrote that because it sounded good in your head, but really – what is “exposed?” I have a defined – and correct – opinion on Hamline. I am developing opinions on Koch et al – still correct, but nothing I’m gonna write yet. For reasons that would seem to pass your understanding, but valid nonetheless.

    But hey, I commend ya. It only took you 3 days to get to this

    You keep talking like I’m on some sort of schedule, and have some obligation to address every issue on some sort of timetable. I do not. Please move on to your next easily-flensed argument.

  10. Loren wrote:
    My ancestors were from Schleswig-Holstein, and I demand reparations!
    For all we know Mackbee supported the annexation of that peaceful land by the Kaiser’s thugs. Mackbee has never written a single word about it.
    Not. A. Single. Word.
    His silence speaks volumes!

  11. Now guys, we really need to get to some blamestorming here,and thankfully, I’m here to help. The biggest problem here is that government is big business, and that quite frankly takes a lot of time to run, which gives politicians a lot of opportunities to meet someone who is not their spouse.

    And, quite frankly, we need then to figure out who, for the most part, is guilty of creating bigger government in the state of Minnesota. The DFL, of course, and so we can blame them in toto for this debacle.

    Pretty easy when you start to think about it, isn’t it?

  13. Pingback: LIVE AT FIVE – 12.23.11 : The Other McCain

  14. Mitch whined “You keep talking like I’m on some sort of schedule,
    Yes, you are. You have a dedicated clientele that insists, nay, DEMANDS production. And I personally would like to see the pithiness quotient increased. Since Dopeyclown abdicated his throne, there has been a severe lack of pith, and this is unacceptable.

    We have expectations, and we want to get our moneys worth out of this blog. I’d also like some pickled herring, but that’s another matter.

  15. If a heterosexual woman has an affair, that means that gay marriage is a civil right. Why can’t you irrational, God-bothering- knuckle-draggers see this?

  21. “Look – either be a name-calling dolt, or shoot for a literate, factual argument. Trying for both is lame.” Well said by someone who qualifies on both fronts!

    Explain to me how you can immediately indict Hamline, yet need all kinds of time and have all kinds of ability to show empathy and patience for Amy? Mitch, when a Fat Chick who’s the head of the Family Values Party commits adultery and her party covers it up for 3 months, the honest response is just to admit your guys f’ed up (like I did with Hamline). Pretending you need “more time to formulate an opinion” on such a clear-cut issue is laughable at best. But then again, that’s become SOP for this little blog.

  23. Ears,

    Explain to me how you can immediately indict Hamline,

    Because the President confessed, because the chain of events is crystal-clear, and because it is my choice to indict Hamline.

    yet need all kinds of time and have all kinds of ability to show empathy and patience for Amy?

    Wait – now you’re talking like I have some obligation to deliver not only coverage, but coverage that satisfies…what? Is that a game of blindman’s bluff I get to play?

    Sorry, Ears. I’ll cover what I want, when I want it. Some of which may surprise you, not that that’s a value, much less a goal.

    , when a Fat Chick

    Ah. So you’re a sexist pig. Now I know why you stay anonymous (although Dems are intensely hypocritical about these things). Duly noted

    You might wanna moderate that streak around here.

    who’s the head of the Family Values Party

    As if one person’s error voids the party’s commitment to principle. Look – the Democrats are the “Gaining and Retaining Power Is The Only Value” party, so I’m not surprised it’s such a difficult concept, but it is truly void of logic.

    Political point, sure – but not logical.

    the honest response is just to admit your guys f’ed up (like I did with Hamline).

    Huh? How cloudy is your mind, Ears – it’s not my position to “admit” anything! I am not responsible for any of the parties’ actions! I don’t have to “Admit” or “Defend” anything! I didn’t do anything!

    And I’ll write what I write when I write it. Don’t like it? Go elsewhere.

    Pretending you need “more time to formulate an opinion” on such a clear-cut issue is laughable at best.

    In your opinion, which is – no offense – of no value or import whatsoever.

  24. Mitch, when a Fat Chick who’s the head of the Family Values Party commits adultery and her party covers it up for 3 months

    So, what were they supposed to do? Hand her a scarlet letter and make her wear it around town?

    Also, we’ve been waiting for that “Fat Chick” reference — glad to see your compassion is so abundant at Christmastime, Rev. Dim Bulb Dimmesdale.

  25. Geez, Louise Mackbees, you certainly are hard to satisfy. Amy Koch is too fat, Ann Coulter is too thin, Sarah Palin is too provincial . . . no wonder Democrats are The Queer Party. Your hottest babes are Hillary and Janet Reno.

    The difference between the Hamline story and the Koch story is Koch was honest and took personal responsibility for her failings whereas Hamline lied but pretends to hold the high ground because intolerance and lying when practiced by Democrats aren’t as bad as unfounded accusations of intolerance against a Conservative. The ends justify the means, you see.

  26. “Your hottest babes are Hillary and Janet Reno.”
    That’s hitting the nail on the head, but you omitted Madeline Albright. Yucko!!

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