Here’s one for the Hall of Shame.
A few months ago, US Census worker Bill Sparkman was found dead. The death was suspicious – he was found hanging, with anti-government graffiti scrawled on his chest.
This happened not long after Rep. Michele Bachmann spoke about her ambivalence about cooperating with a census that, at the time, the Obama Administration was overtly politicizing.
The Sorosphere leapt into action. To pick three examples:
- The direly-misnamed “Thinkprogress” took all of a day to conjure up a mythical right-wing terror movement based on the death.
- City Pages generic angst-filled hYpStR Matt Hoffman went all CSI on us before the police were even done at the crime scene: “Now a census worker has been found in what appears to be an anti-government lynching. Does Bachmann own some responsibility?
- Dusty “The Michael Brodkorb Of Snark” Trice delivered a verdict before they’d actually cut Sparkman’s body down: “I’m going to say it again because sadly I feel it bears repeating. I strongly believe that the inflammatory rhetoric Rep. Michele Bachmann thinks passes for policy debate is going to end in violence. “
“Inflammatory rhetoric”. Heh.
Heh. Heh.
Oh, yeah. It’s official; they were full of s**t (emphases added by me):
A part-time U.S. Census worker found dead near a secluded Clay County cemetery killed himself but tried to make the death look like a murder, authorities have concluded.
Bill Sparkman, 51, of London, apparently was trying to preserve payments under life insurance policies he had taken out, one as recently as May, which paid benefits if he died as a result of murder or accident, but not suicide or natural causes, police said.
Sparkman had survived a bout with cancer a few years ago, but he told a friend he believed the cancer had returned and that he would die, police said.
In a two-month investigation, police marshaled a number of reasons to conclude Sparkman ended his own life. Among other things, only Sparkman’s DNA was found on evidence at the scene, and he had told a friend details of his plan that matched what happened, police said at a news conference Tuesday.
And when, not if, some leftyblogging hamster tries to equivocate on this result, let it be repeated:
Police interviewed potential homicide suspects but ruled them out and found no evidence pointing to any conclusion except that Sparkman killed himself.
Matt? Dusty? “Think?”
All of you leftyblog hamsters?
Do you have something to tell all the sane, responsible people?
Followup question: Sparkman could have chosen many, many ways to cover up his suicide. But as his last act on this earth, Sparkman apparently chose to go out in a way that, he would seem to have known, would implicate in his death a whole lot of peaceable, law-abiding people whose only “crime” is distrusting government; people like Rep. Bachmann and, incidentally, me (in addition to committing fraud). Question: Whose rhetoric is really doing the harm, here?
Lefties don’t have much to be thankful for tomorrow. Climategate, this and Obama’s gonna send more troops to Afghanistan.
I deplore Sparkman’s suicide Mitch. I would point out that his attempt to disguise the action clearly appeared from the information available to be a crime against Census takers was in a context of other things than just the crime scene, including the statements of people in law enforcement who had worries about that kind of violence towards people working for the government – all government, not just federal.
You too blythely discount the extremist conservative rhetoric that has been connected with events such as the homicide of Dr. Tiller.
You may also recall that I was among those who asserted that the initial appearance of the event certainly looked like it was a hate crime, but that it was important to wait for all the evidence to be in….including in a comment on SitD. (I’m presuming you consider Penigma to be a ‘lefty blog’, and that therefore I’m lumped in with the otherMN lefty-bloggers.) Point being, there are people on both the right AND the left who jump to conclusions too quickly. I would argue that this error merits a correction ONLY, but does not negate the larger point which is not limited to this event.
It does not negate the validity of the criticism of rhetoric like that by Bachmann, nor does it suddenly make those people who gave concern to law enforcement early in the Sparkman investigation suddenly safe and responsible individuals. You may recall that many of those who were of concern were involved for example in the meth trade rather than objecting to government for political reasons. (I’m assuming you don’t wish to claim common cause with meth-heads? Not you! [grin])
Bachmann has claimed all kinds of inaccurate things about the Census, and deserves to be called on them. I’m still waiting to get a chance to ask her about any efforts on her part back in March of 2008 to change the questions asked when the Census Bureau made their report to Congress and requested input. Since I can’t ever seem to get on when you have her on your radio program, maybe YOU would ask her for me? Because so far as I can find out, while Bush was in office, she wouldn’t say ‘boo’ to criticize the Census….which strongly suggests not a REAL or honest objection but an attempt to manipulate the subject purely for political gain, no matter how badly she mis-states the facts.
I’m still waiting for your response, speaking of sane responsible people, to a discussion of Article VI, (the Supremacy Clause) under your piece about electing ‘morons’, after you asked me to produce specific language in support of civilian trials for the 5 terrorists being tried in Manhattan.
“Lefty blog hamsters” – great, now I can’t get the ‘Hamster Dance” music out of my head, and it’s your fault Mitch, LOL!
In advance of the holiday, wishing a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday to everyone on SitD (even you KR).
So, you can still point your fingers at Bachmann because of this case?!?!?!
Huh?
I deplore Sparkman’s suicide Mitch. I would point out that his attempt to disguise the action clearly appeared from the information available to be a crime against Census takers was in a context of other things than just the crime scene, including the statements of people in law enforcement who had worries about that kind of violence towards people working for the government – all government, not just federal.
You too blythely discount the extremist conservative rhetoric that has been connected with events such as the homicide of Dr. Tiller.
Didn’t know Tiller was a government worker.
And otherwise, you doth protest too much, DG. You’ll note that Mitch was dropping the dime on Dusty Trice, Matt Hoffman and the Thinkprogress people. Unless you are one of those people, this isn’t really about you.
Bachmann has claimed all kinds of inaccurate things about the Census, and deserves to be called on them.
The lefty blogs wrote that Bachmann said that the Census would lead to internment camps.
The lefty blogs lied.
The lefty blogs said that Bachmann was wrong when she said that census data was used to intern the Japanese in WW2.
The lefty blogs lied here as well.
There is something deeply wrong with the way many blogs on the left work. When I researched this I found that many, many of them posted the same short piece with Bachmann’s census quotes and perhaps one sentence of ‘commentary’ that wasn’t very original. I am talking dozens of blogs (maybe hundreds) that apparently posted the same out-of-context Bachmann quote without, apparently, reading the words.
It’s the Soros influence. If you go to an MM site they rarely refer you to a source document, they refer you instead to other MM-connected posts commenting on the source document. Drives the hits up, I suppose. The man on the top (Brock?) needs page-click numbers he can show his boss to justify his salary. Quite a propaganda operation they got running.
Badda Says:
November 25th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
“So, you can still point your fingers at Bachmann because of this case?!?!?!
Huh?”
You misunderstandme Badda. I still point fingers at Bachmann for her offensive pattern of misstatements and inflammatory rhetoric, IN SPITE OF this case. The results of the investigation do not NEGATE the validity of the criticism that she uses inflammatory rhetoric. If I was unclear in some way, my apologies. I thought I explained myself more clearly. Let me also make it clear that I object to Bachmann’s rhetoric on a variety of issues, which includes distrust of government (actually only distrust of government that disagrees with her), but also abortion which is political in part (the ‘infanticide’ terminology springs to mind).
Mr. D wrote:
“And otherwise, you doth protest too much, DG. You’ll note that Mitch was dropping the dime on Dusty Trice, Matt Hoffman and the Thinkprogress people. Unless you are one of those people, this isn’t really about you.”
As to protesting too much, I responded to Mitch’s headline, and to the following: “The Sorosphere leapt into action. To pick three examples:”
This strongly suggests that Mitch is not taking issue with only specific individuals, but rather with those generally who blog that are to the left of his usual position. Otherwise presumably he would have limited his headline and subsequent identification to those three. So I take issue with your statement that unless I’m one of those people this isn’t really about me.
As to protesting too much, I responded to Mitch’s headline, and to the following: “The Sorosphere leapt into action. To pick three examples:”
Unless you are getting a check from Soros or are one of the three individuals Mitch specifically mentioned, he’s not talking about you, DG. And if you are getting a check from Soros, good for you!
Dog,
I KNOW I misunderstand you… I said as much.
(Small point: I’m not sure misstatements, regardless of how many, can make up an offensive pattern.)
Now, if you want to be clear, you need to avoid the tendency to use more words to clarify. Be simple and concise.
Folks in general need to get to the point and, more importantly, cut to the chase.
“…or her offensive pattern…”
Yet DogNagIt can’t substantiate her accusations.
Mr. D was right, you doth protest too much.
….
Very interesting that DG kinda puts herself in the Sorosphere, without remorse no less. 😉
Bachmann probably asked Jesus to make the guy’s cancer come back.
Terry wrote:”When I researched this I found that many, many of them posted the same short piece with Bachmann’s census quotes and perhaps one sentence of ‘commentary’ that wasn’t very original. ”
I researched the actual statements of Bachmann and RNC chair Steele when I wrote “A Consensus about the Census Con”, criticizing statements like “It seems the Obama administration has plans to rig the Census results.” and misleading statements about the possibility that the Census data could be misused when Bachmann stated the fact that the 1940 Census was used to inter Japanese Americans without the context of the subsequent successful legal challenges to that action, and the subsequent other court challenges to improper attempts to use the Census data. The misleading nature of that data cherrypicking can hardly be called lies by lefty bloggers. I specifically faulted Bachmann’s assertions that the questions exceeded the mandate of the Constitution, as determined by SCOTUS challenges. And I criticized Bachmann for misrepresenting the partnership with ACORN as a conspiracy to falsify data to alter subsequent redistricting to alter electoral votes.
I was pretty thorough in my research Terry, and I faulted Bachmann pretty rigorously, both on the local blog and the national blog for which I write. Maybe you are just reading the wrong ‘lefty’ blogs? Because while I agree that Bachmann did not actually claim that completing the Census would result in internment camps, she clearly was implying either that or similar abuses which was an implication not justified. I agree with you about the abuse of the 1940 Census, it is a fact, but again one that is misleading without the acknowledgment of the subsequent SCOTUS cases (there were 4 that pertain to this if you are interested, I have the case citations) which not only addressed that misuse, but the subsequent measures which act to prevent future abuses. Bachmann is a lawyer, she should know these cases and certainly since she represents herself to be a trial lawyer, she must certainly recognize that she was not presenting information accurately, objectively, or fairly, but rather using it to mislead and misinform.
Given the greater abuses by Bachmann, I don’t regard the errors by the leftyblogs you describe to be misleading. Did they leave out significant details to explain their conclusions? YES Was that wrong? YES Should they do better research, including original sources?YES – as should blogs on the right (I’m still waiting for the infanticide language you claimed Mitch, quoting Bachmann, re health care reform). Do I do better research? Yes.
Did the left bloggers mislead anything like Bachmann did? Not even close. Bachmann has a very very long laundry list of ‘pants on fire’ lies from fact checking organizations. That is qualitatively very different from some – some – left bloggers being a little sloppy in their research.
Dog Gone said:
“You too blythely discount the extremist conservative rhetoric that has been connected with events such as the homicide of Dr. Tiller.”
The word “connected” is interestingly imprecise. How did “extremist conservative rhetoric” affect the murderer of Dr. Tiller? Did it make the murderer less responsible for their crime? Exactly how culpable are speakers of “extremist conservative rhetoric” for the murder of Dr. Tiller?
DG and Troy,
Good point, Troy. DG, your statement imples you know of some direct connection between “extremist conservative rhetoric” and a murder carried out by an indivisual who’s not yet gone to trial.
What rhetoric? By whom? And how has it been definitively linked to the Tiller murder? And by “definitively”, I mean by a court, or by an actual investigator speaking on the record. Because so far, all I’ve seen is the usual “all that anti-abortion talk kills people!”, which is really no more than an attempt to stifle dissent.
Badda, before: “Folks in general need to get to the point and, more importantly, cut to the chase.”
Badda, after: “Cut to the chase, people”.
I live to serve.
Bottom line is that Bachmann (& Ellison) are responsible to their constituents, not a bunch of bloggers.
The people of the 6th district will decide whether or not she represents their views. Bachmann’s greatest ‘unwisdom’ may be in attracting out-of-district contributions for her political opponents.
mitch wrote “I live to serve.”
so how about serving up responses to the following:
“I’m still waiting for your response, speaking of sane responsible people, to a discussion of Article VI, (the Supremacy Clause) under your piece about electing ‘morons’, after you asked me to produce specific language in support of civilian trials for the 5 terrorists being tried in Manhattan.”
Terry, in your criticism of the left bloggers, I’m still waiting for your defense of Bachmann bringing up the events of Japanese internment, as a concern, while leaving out the repudiation of those events by the courts, and the putting in place of safeguards against a repetition that have prevented any abuses for nearly 70 years.
If you could throw in any instances where conservative or republican or right wing bloggers mentioned the above, while repeating Bachmann’s ‘concern’ for the potential abuse, I’d appreciate that as well. I haven’t found any, not one, zero, zip.
Are you really claiming, Mitch et al, that contributing to an atmosphere of hatred and misinformation doesn’t have an impact on the actions of those who are undecided about acting?
If you do not write to encourage action and thought on a subject, why do you blog? Why do you do a radio show, if not at least in part to persuade.
It seems the height of disengenuousness to then claim that what is said and what is written does not contribute to a result………..or is it perhaps that you only consider it to contribute when you want it to, and pretend it doesn’t when the outcome is negative? This seems very much trying to have it both ways, and ignoring the contradiction.
If Sorosphere isn’t being used to refer to all lefty blogs, then anyone you do use it for must receive money from George Soros, right? Besides MinMon writers (or whatever it’s called now), do you have proof of these payments?
Are you really claiming, Mitch et al, that contributing to an atmosphere of hatred and misinformation doesn’t have an impact on the actions of those who are undecided about acting?
I am saying, flat-out, that the claims on the left that conservative rhetoric contributes to violence are nothing but an attempt, hatched and coordinated at the highest levels of the American left, to demonize conservative rhetoric. Periold.
Supremacy clause? I gotta confess, DG – once a topic is more than a couple of days old, my brain loses the thread. Maybe I will, maybe I won’t. We’ll see how the weekend goes.
If Sorosphere isn’t being used to refer to all lefty blogs, then anyone you do use it for must receive money from George Soros, right?
I suppose if you want to be all literal, sure.
But it’s like “Anglosphere”; are French Canadians not included? Of course they are!
I use the term both in the literal sense (the Minnesoros Independent most definitely bellies up to the trough) and a less-literal one (the many, many leftyblogs that happily regurgitate for free what Soros et al pay others to gurgitate first).
Besides MinMon writers (or whatever it’s called now), do you have proof of these payments?
Media Matters for America, as well as all of the Center for “Independent” Media “news” blogs, plus anything the Sunlight Foundation is into, among others.
Terry, in your criticism of the left bloggers, I’m still waiting for your defense of Bachmann bringing up the events of Japanese internment, as a concern, while leaving out the repudiation of those events by the courts, and the putting in place of safeguards against a repetition that have prevented any abuses for nearly 70 years.
For God’s sake DG — the census bureau eagerly gathered the data. They gave to the government with both hands. Why didn’t the lefty bloggers emphasize that? Maybe any info about what wonderful things the courts did re protecting the census should be coupled with a lesson about FDR’s attempt to pack the supreme court a few years earlier?
Your trust of the federal government is foolish. There is no state in the union that has will and the power to crush civil rights like the federal government.
Terry, in your criticism of the left bloggers, I’m still waiting for your defense of Bachmann bringing up the events of Japanese internment, as a concern, while leaving out the repudiation of those events by the courts, and the putting in place of safeguards against a repetition that have prevented any abuses for nearly 70 years.
Well, cool and all, but just because the government eventually made things right doesn’t change Bachmann’s key fact – that government can and often does use its immense power to do terrible wrongs. The courts fixed things – yay, courts! – although that was small consolation for the lives and fortunes destroyed at the time, and did little to fix any of that. The lesson is clear; one is best served by mistrusting government.
If you could throw in any instances where conservative or republican or right wing bloggers mentioned the above,
I’ll say “None, and it doesn’t matter!” Bachmann’s point – that government power is something the people have to watch and control carefully – stands, either way!
while repeating Bachmann’s ‘concern’ for the potential abuse, I’d appreciate that as well. I haven’t found any, not one, zero, zip.
You may also find that they were silent about what she was wearing when she said it. It’d be equally irrelevant to the larger point.
“Because so far, all I’ve seen is the usual “all that anti-abortion talk kills people!”, which is really no more than an attempt to stifle dissent.”
Bingo, Mitch, I can spot that Liberal Fascist tactic a mile away.
Nice job of taking DogNagIt to task, once again.
“The lesson is clear; one is best served by mistrusting government.” – Mitch Berg
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