tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49243929155642963582024-03-13T14:54:14.523-05:00St. Louis Activist HubUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1320125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-42138250634419565302019-01-08T06:53:00.000-06:002019-01-08T06:53:01.883-06:00Sinquefield Flack Admits City/County Unificaiton Plan Is About Eliminating Earnings TaxSt. Louis Business Journals noted recently that "Republican strategist" Gregg Keller tweeted that he was in favor of the City/County unification plan proposed by right-wing millionare Rex Sinquefield's group Better Together STL because it would get rid of St. Louis's earning tax:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Earnings tax: gutted. City aldermanic system: gutted. Dozens of governmental entities: gutted. Hundreds of millions in annual governmental duplication: gutted. <a href="https://t.co/dpUp5TBNCi">https://t.co/dpUp5TBNCi</a></p>— Gregg Keller (@RGreggKeller) <a href="https://twitter.com/RGreggKeller/status/1079507441333739520?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 30, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
What they didn't note, however, was that Keller is a <a href="https://showmeinstitute.org/blog/other/gregg-keller-joins-show-me-institutes-board">member of the board</a> of Rex's original right-wing think tank, the Show Me Institute. So it seems like he might have a pretty good idea of what the real intentions are behind this plan. And, of course, the earnings tax has long been a white whale for Rex, since wrecking the state economy of Kansas ceased to be amusing.
And for anyone wondering just how much old Rex values independent thinking in those on his payroll, keep in mind that the muesum he bankrolls recently ran an exhibit titled, literally, "The Sinquefield Effect." Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-20397681453518932792019-01-05T08:20:00.000-06:002019-01-05T08:20:47.049-06:00Rex Sinquefield Refers To International Master in Chess as "Some Blond"The favorite right-wing millionare of the corporate wing of the St. Louis Democrats disgraced himself even more than usual last November by referring to <a href="https://twitter.com/Anna_Chess">Anna Rudolph</a>, an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIDE_titles#International_Master_(IM)">International Master </a>of chess, as "some blond" on the Today in Chess program. As was pointed out by many chess commentators, Rex himself has <i>not</i> achieved IM status.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Found it... <a href="https://t.co/Ae8N0vbR2s">pic.twitter.com/Ae8N0vbR2s</a></p>— Charlie the Chess Cat (@CharlieChessCat) <a href="https://twitter.com/CharlieChessCat/status/1061604722107392001?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 11, 2018</a></blockquote>
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It's just so strange that Rex engaged in such blatant sexism, since all of the St. Louis Rexocrats kept telling me that old man Rex is a committed libertarian who's, like, totally cool and compassionate on social issues even while he works tirelessly to defund state and city governments. It's almost as if he's just a typical old cranky conservative who figured out how that he can buy off unprincipled "Democrats" in order to get them to sell out the citizens of cities like St. Louis and Kansas City. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-24264109795256929152015-07-14T18:42:00.001-05:002015-07-14T18:42:29.255-05:00To Disincentivize Dishonesty, Planned Parenthood Should SueRight-wing activists released a video today dishonestly claiming that Planned Parenthood is "selling body parts" of aborted fetuses in violation of federal law. You can watch the dishonest video <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/undercover-video-shows-planned-parenthood-exec-discussing-organ-harvesting/2015/07/14/ae330e34-2a4d-11e5-bd33-395c05608059_story.html?tid=sm_tw">here</a> and the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4UjIM9B9KQ">full footage here</a>. In the deliberately deceptive video, the video editors repeatedly refer to laws banning the sale of organs from aborted fetuses and refer to one of the undercover people as the "buyer," suggesting that they were planning a transaction with Planned Parenthood and started a twitter hashtag #ppsellsbabyparts. <br />
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However, in the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4UjIM9B9KQ">full video</a>, the faux "buyer" actually says, regarding the purpose of the meeting, (2:27) "I wanna pick your brain..." which suggests an informal conversation rather than any plans for a transaction. And at (4:22) the "buyer" says "I'd really like to connect with people who...they don't know that we're out there" which again clearly suggests that they are not asking Planned Parenthood to sell body parts. At no point in the video does the Planned Parenthood employee suggest that they are open to selling body parts.<br />
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Moreover, in the video, Dr. Nucatola of Planned Parenthood makes it very clear that Planned Parenthood providers are not going to be making money off of these procedures. Here's what she says at the 5:00 mark:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Every provider has had patients who want to donate their tissue, and they absolutely want to accommodate them...they just want to do it in a way that is not perceived as 'this clinic is selling tissue. this clinic is making money off of this.' I know in the Planned Parenthood World, for example, they're very very sensitive to that and for an affiliate that's going to do that, they need to...some might do it for free...[but] they want to come to a number where it doesn't look like they're making money. They want to come to a number that looks like it is a reasonable effort for the effort that is allotted on their part.</blockquote>
And during a longer conversation at the end (2:22:26-2:27:00 ), you can see that the phonies are trying to push payments, and Dr. Nucatola is giving them the message that aside from not losing money, the clinics will not do the procedures in exchange for money. She says, at various times:<br />
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<ul>
<li>2:22:26: "At the end of the day, if you're going to take money out of the equation, which is what most affiliates are trying to do, how can we do this for you in the most beneficial way"</li>
<li>2:24:52 "Anything you can do to explain who's benefitting, the benevolence of what they're doing, I think that holds as much value as any cash prize." </li>
<li>2:26:00 "Perhaps the difference is affiliates are looking to benefit in very different ways than just dollars and cents. Again, they're not going to do it in a way that costs them money. They want to break even. They want to be compensated for time and space and whatever impact that it has."</li>
</ul>
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In fact, just to underlie how willfully dishonest the "Center for Medical Progress" is being, both of the "buyers" acknowledge in the video that Planned Parenthood is not selling tissue.<br />
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<ul>
<li>Buyer #1 (1:29:05): "I never see that. I don't look at it that way. We're not selling tissue."</li>
<li>Buyer #2 (1:29:29): "The researchers are paying for procurement...they're not buying a brain."</li>
</ul>
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<a href="http://gawker.com/no-planned-parenthood-is-not-selling-aborted-fetal-bod-1717823538?utm_campaign=socialflow_gawker_facebook&utm_source=gawker_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow">Gawker </a>explains the covering of expenses in more detail:<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;">Except that, </span><a href="http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/247898-planned-parenthood-unleashes-counterattack-against-anti-abortion-group" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #e25a48; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">as Planned Parenthood told The Hill</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;">, its affiliates “can legally receive reimbursement from a tissue donation procedure for the ‘additional expenses related tissue donation, which can vary based on individual circumstance,’ but it does not go to staff members or providers.” These “additional expenses” might be the $10-30 it costs to transport the tissue being donated, </span><a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/about-us/newsroom/press-releases/statement-from-planned-parenthood-on-new-undercover-video" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #e25a48; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">which Planned Parenthood notes</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;"> is “standard across the medical field.” And no, the patient donating the tissue doesn’t receive any financial reimbursement either.</span></blockquote>
The "Center for Medical Progress," the group behind this video, was clearly being intentionally dishonest in implying that Planned Parenthood was "selling body parts" in violation of federal law. Planned Parenthood should sue them for everything they're worth, and should find out through the process of discovery who else was involved in this dishonest campaign. If our legal system is even remotely adequate, this type of nonsense should be punishable to an extent that makes it clear that these dishonest tactics are not worth it.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-68813842305162243722015-07-07T23:10:00.001-05:002015-07-07T23:10:52.633-05:00Right-Wing Bloggers Gloriously Prove They Have No Idea How Elections WorkWe all know the tea party used to go to great lengths to exaggerate the size of crowds at their events. But even so, they were at least capable of drawing something that could legitimately be called a crowd. That no longer seems to be the case. Mike Flynn, a co-founder of Breitbart, ran a "campaign" for disgraced Republican Congressman Aaron Schock's vacated seat, and one of his big events was a "Flags and Fun" rally featuring Jim Hoft in the same Quincy Illinois park that had hosted several large tea party events in the past. This time around, they couldn't even draw 50 people:<br />
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What's more, the right-wing blogosphere went all in for Flynn. Breitbart.com, of course, wrote numerous articles attacking his primary opponent LaHood (often, unsurprisingly, <a href="http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2015/07/breitbart-gives-boost-to-editors-congressional-race-210009.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter">without noting the conflict of interest</a>), but that was just the tip of the iceberg. Many (most?) rightwing bloggers billed this as an epic battle between the "grassroots" and the establishment. And guess what? The establishment, aka LaHood, won the primary by over 40% of the vote. It was an absolute landslide. It was almost as if conservative bloggers were trying to prove that they are completely beholden to the whims of the establishment GOP. When they're not being actively propped up by Americans for Prosperity, or Fox News, or the health insurance or coal industries, they really have no ability to make much of a difference in elections, even in deep red districts like Illinois 18. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-31170122141942474642015-06-20T17:43:00.000-05:002015-06-20T17:43:46.063-05:00What are they up to now? Gateway Pundit EditionRemember Jim Hoft, aka Gateway Pundit, who has <a href="http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/43726_Jim_Hoft_Links_to_White_Supremacist_Site_to_Smear_Michael_Brown">repeatedly</a> <a href="http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2010/09/gateway_pundit_racism_jim_hoft.php">promoted white supremacist websites including the Council of Conservative Citizens</a>, especially for their "black on white" crime stories (even long after being called out by <a href="http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2010/09/gateway_pundit_racism_jim_hoft.php">mainstream media outlets</a>), who deletes comments from liberals at his website but leaves up comments calling black people <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2010/09/st-louis-tea-party-leader-again.html">the n-word</a>, <a href="http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/44703_Stupidest_Man_on_the_Internet_Leads_Charge_to_Defend_McKinney_Cop_as_Commenters_Spew_Overt_Racism">animals</a>, and <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2012/01/jim-hoft-continues-to-promote-racism-at.html">crackheads</a>, and <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2010/07/gateway-pundit-claims-naacp-is-racist.html">who claims that the NAACP</a> are "the real racists." What has he been up to?<br />
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Sadly, even in the wake of the horrific Charleston shootings perpetuated by <a href="http://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/dylann-roof-manifesto-full-text">a deranged racist</a>, Hoft continues to allow his website to be a hub for internet racists. Here is a sample of blatantly racist comments on The Gateway Pundit Facebook page *after* the shooting (there are plenty more from the week before as well):<br />
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WARNING: Offensive content below<br />
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You'd like to think that there are life events that are so tragic, so momentous that they can get even people like Jim Hoft to stop for a moment and reconsider whether they really should be using their websites to flame white racal resentment. Unfortunately, there's not much evidence to support that hope. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-44723536602619376492015-06-18T17:35:00.000-05:002015-06-18T17:35:00.514-05:00Behold: A Burnsian Masterpiece! <div nbsp="" style="-x-system-font: none; display: block; font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 12px auto 6px auto;">
<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/269061846/Charles-C-Johnson-Gawker-Defamation-Lawsuit" nbsp="" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Charles C Johnson Gawker Defamation Lawsuit on Scribd">Charles C Johnson Gawker Defamation Lawsuit</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/myiannopoulos" nbsp="" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Milo Yiannopoulos's profile on Scribd">Milo Yiannopoulos</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="0.7729220222793488" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_94687" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/269061846/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-LoIUdpgbcHVjBbIc9Q7l&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe><br />
<br />
See also <a href="http://adamsteinbaugh.com/2015/06/18/chuck-johnson-files-libel-lawsuit-in-missouri-for-some-reason/">here </a>and <a href="http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/44738_Chuck_Johnsons_Petition_to_Sue_Gawker_Media">here</a>.<br />
<br />
I really hope James O'Keefe, like Johnson, will rely exclusively on <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2015/05/what-are-they-up-to-now-john-burns.html">his buddy</a> Burns for legal advice.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-6786592335899718772015-05-26T21:59:00.000-05:002015-05-26T21:59:46.604-05:00What are they up to now? John Burns EditionRemember John Burns, the guy who teamed up with James O'Keefe to <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2010/03/revealed-okeefe-and-burns-gulag.html">falsely accuse</a> Washington University of oppressing free speech, then <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2010/03/who-is-cbts-john-burns.html">tried to sabotage a marriage equality rally</a>, then heroically lost a public transportation ballot initiative in <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2010/04/despite-media-hype-st-louis-tea-party.html">humiliating fashion</a> by claiming the Republican Mayor of Chesterfield personally <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2010/04/tea-party-uses-dirty-tactics-in-anti.html">ordered police to shut down a tea party protest</a>, oh, and <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2010/09/tea-partys-john-burns-involved-in-james.html">who helped O'Keefe come up with a plan to sexually humiliate a CNN reporter</a>? <br />
<br />
What's he been up to?<br />
<br />
He's been <a href="http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/44656_Heres_Chuck_Johnsons_Ludicrous_Lawyer_Letter_to_Twitter">lawyerin for Chuck C. Johnson</a>, that's what! Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-28738528622164665712015-05-14T19:35:00.002-05:002015-05-14T19:35:28.033-05:00The John Diehl Fiasco Was Not An Isolated IncidentMissouri House Speaker John Diehl <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/missouri-house-speaker-resigns-after-intern-text-messages/article_5c80b0e2-87db-5524-8349-46143d743560.html">resigned today</a> after getting caught sexting with a 19-year old intern. However, I think it's important to note that, at least according to quite a few people who have worked in Jefferson City, this is not an outlier in the Missouri Legislature. Since I haven't seen this anywhere else, I thought it might be helpful to collect some examples of public comments made about this. <br />
<br />
First, just to show this isn't a recent development, here's what Senator McCaskill wrote about her time as an intern <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/steve-paul/article20835306.html">back in 1974</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“It was the first time I experienced moments of being very
uncomfortable as a young woman surrounded by lots of men,” McCaskill
writes. “There were inappropriate things said to me and inappropriate
behaviors that made me very uneasy.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Part of her gopher activities included running errands to the upper floors of the Capitol: </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“One
day I ended up in the elevator with two older male legislators and one
of their assistants. They began asking if I liked ‘to party’ and then
tried to get me to come to one of their offices for some drinks. I felt
trapped. For the rest of the internship, I took the stairs.”</blockquote>
In 2009, State Senator Joan Bray <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/sen-joan-bray-angers-male-senators-with-comments-on-abortion/article_2eae29e8-7a07-5ee2-a277-02e21aa87f6c.html">gave an impassioned speech during a fillibuster </a>that pissed off many of her Republican colleagues. Here's an excerpt:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I am sick of the disrespect for women who come to the Capitol
defending a woman's legal right to choose an abortion. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I am sick that they're being treated dismissively and
rudely. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<u>I'm sick of the ethic around here that men are pro-life for
their wives and pro-choice for their girlfriends.</u></blockquote>
In response to the Diehl story, one woman I know who was previously an intern in Jefferson City wrote on Facebook that "today's news does not surprise me at all." Another woman with first hand experience wrote that Missouri Republicans have, "zero respect shown for young women," and added that she heard a male Missouri legislator call Bray a "c#nt" during her filibuster, causing two other male legislators to laugh. <br />
<br />
Another commenter on Facebook mentioned that Rich Chrismer, when he was a Missouri Representative, commented to her that he had a "very good sex life" (without specifying with whom). Chrismer recently<a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/mark-schlinkmann/settlement-reached-in-sexual-harassment-suit-against-st-charles-county/article_3982705c-96b0-5134-901a-942e7be82945.html"> settled a sexual harrasment lawsuit</a> filed by three former workers in his capacity as the elections director of St. Charles County. <br />
<br />
Of course there's the <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/rod-jetton-pleads-guilty-receives-probation-for-assault/article_55cb6490-5852-5adb-80f1-6452aabfdd64.html">sordid tale of Rod Jetton</a> who plead guilty of assault after "he struck a woman in the
face and choked her before and during sex at her Sikeston, Mo.,
home in November 2009." <br />
<br />
<div style="color: black; font: 10pt sans-serif; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; text-align: left; text-transform: none; width: 1px;">
<br />Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/news/government-politics/article20842023.html#storylink=cpy</div>
Tony Messenger, in an e<a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/tony-messenger/messenger-from-muschany-to-diehl-the-culture-of-entitlement-in/article_0905bee5-f3ef-5184-9a62-e555dc656be8.html">xcellent editorial about the Diehl episode </a>and the broader disaster of the Missouri Legislature, mentioned an incident in which Diehl's predecessor Scott Muschany was<a href="http://www.columbiamissourian.com/a/112112/former-missouri-lawmaker-muschany-found-not-guilty-on-sex-charges/"> busted having an affair with a Mid-Missouri woman</a> and accused of forcing her 14 year old daughter to inappropriately touch him (he was found not guilty of the crime). <br />
<br />
And, so you don't think this is only Democrats claiming that there's a problem, former Republican State Senator John Lamping had the following comments about the Diehl story in the <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/news/government-politics/article20842023.html">Kansas City Star:</a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Former Missouri state Sen. John Lamping, a Republican from suburban
St. Louis, said the texts suggest an unacceptable political environment
in the state Capitol. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“This epitomizes the culture in Jeff City,”
he said. “This is what happens. … This is a high-profile, apparently
well-documented circumstance, but it is not an isolated incident. It is
standard procedure. It’s remarkable.”</blockquote>
And Lamping later said the following on <a href="http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/audio/mark-reardon-show/">Mark Reardon's radio show</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
This epitomizes the behavior down there [in the capitol] and it's a bipartison set of behavior...A lot of people get into office and are very comfortable with what their status will be, and then...there's too many people who don't just go back to their homes at the end of the session and they're out and about and circumstances like this happen and they happen far too frequently, certainly, more than they ever should.</blockquote>
A coalition of Missouri legislators also circulated a petition today stating the following:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Dozens of talented and hard-working young people serve as interns in the Missouri Capitol each year, and they play an important role in legislative operations. We must ensure them a safe environment to work and learn free from the inappropriate attentions of elected officials. </blockquote>
With all of that smoke, I think we can be pretty sure there's a fire. Hopefully, the Diehl incident provides the necessary spark to reform the frat culture of the Missouri Legislature. People, even hypocritical Bible-thumpers, should be allowed to do whatever they want in their free time as long as they're not hurting anyone else. But when they create an atmosphere that systematically demeans and devalues women, the situation needs to change. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-42636272748013779032014-05-29T18:23:00.000-05:002014-05-29T18:23:00.594-05:00James O'Keefe Caught in the ActGood segment on Chris Hayes exposing James O'Keefe's dishonest editing:<br />
<br />
<iframe border="no" height="500" scrolling="no" src="http://player.theplatform.com/p/2E2eJC/EmbeddedOffSite?guid=n_hayes_4edit_140522" width="635"></iframe><br />
<br />
This isn't a surprise for those of us who paid attention, but it is a particularly nice example.<br />
<br />
And why is this relevant for St. Louis? The local tea party fever that came and went (but which still has a pernicious influence on politics) was based in large part on emulation of the dishonest tactics employed by Breitbart and O'Keefe. Any immoral action was justified as long as it was in service of their "WAR".Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-48217337211285863362013-12-18T19:00:00.001-06:002013-12-18T19:01:26.229-06:00MIssouri DESE Posts Story Suggesting Nicastro Unilaterally Made Decision On Contoversial Consultant@MOEducation, the Twitter feed for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) posted a link today to a story by a Kansas City group called "Do The Right Thing For Kids:"<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-JFm5nOB0ScQFI-TOk2u3LoIK0noBiUIqQlmZIao6aEvHpZDTwQyoaVdr-1_oNJeVa5XNutBB983-ThEz7SqILeU8a-W-JfLYqEoQxl6DPs52s_NtbXQDYDIs88TFTfIMsYi65_V6u2gW/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-12-18+at+3.53.33+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="84" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-JFm5nOB0ScQFI-TOk2u3LoIK0noBiUIqQlmZIao6aEvHpZDTwQyoaVdr-1_oNJeVa5XNutBB983-ThEz7SqILeU8a-W-JfLYqEoQxl6DPs52s_NtbXQDYDIs88TFTfIMsYi65_V6u2gW/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-12-18+at+3.53.33+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<a href="http://www.dotherightthingforkids.org/opinions/wait-to-judge-the-commissioners-plan/">The post </a>was full of the usual, "if caring about children is wrong, I don't wanna be right" fluff of Nicastro defenders that steadfastly avoids the actual issues at the heart of the controversy, but what was especially strange is that it included the following passage:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0eYvAS2T8zSRlCCimOiAPt8EZk4GdtVgUWjKw44IHgo35H9RSldwG9nbhqNDQByMnJ9tvBGgt7S07EbpCFcRTRMoeZ5TYGy2-VJ39iJqMLAGqg3vH2JlQjY8SjI17pNx1XLtrrPK7E8dK/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-12-18+at+3.56.17+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="88" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0eYvAS2T8zSRlCCimOiAPt8EZk4GdtVgUWjKw44IHgo35H9RSldwG9nbhqNDQByMnJ9tvBGgt7S07EbpCFcRTRMoeZ5TYGy2-VJ39iJqMLAGqg3vH2JlQjY8SjI17pNx1XLtrrPK7E8dK/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-12-18+at+3.56.17+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
So according to this account, Nicastro "hire[d], in her judgment, the best consultant." That's funny, because I thought that the consultant was supposed to be determined by the <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/07/4677672/emails-detail-a-hidden-plan-for.html">scores of four separate evaluators who graded the different proposals according to different criteria</a> like "cost" and "personnel". The State Board President Peter Herschend<a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/education/missouri-s-chief-educator-is-a-lightning-rod-in-reform/article_9c72dc4f-9041-50df-a020-f43ec462b050.html"> said </a>the process was "open and competitive." Of course, there are many reasons for questioning whether that evaluation process was <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2013/12/every-nicastro-story-should-include.html">rigged from the start</a>, but I'm a little surprised that DESE would tweet out a story that openly states Nicastro made the decision herself given that they were claiming it was a fair process determined by a scoring system. You would think they would at least offer some correction or note stating that the story incorrectly described the process.<br />
<br />
Unless, of course, Nicastro really did unilaterally make the decision.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-77550152580267967322013-12-17T22:39:00.000-06:002013-12-17T22:39:34.130-06:00Tea Party's Star Gladney Witness Found Guilty of Fraud, Blames Gay And Pro-Abortion ActivistsRemember when tea partiers were <a href="http://mediamatters.org/blog/2011/07/13/the-kenneth-gladney-charade-collapses/181483">completely humiliated</a> during their fabricated story about evil "union thugs" brutally beating a guy selling tea party merchandise? One of the tea party's alleged "witnesses" of the "brutal beating" was Harris Himes, a Montana pastor oddly attending a St. Louis political event who told <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2009/11/breaking-harris-himes-changes-story-big.html">conflicting stories </a>about what he saw. After a jury took less than an hour to reach a <a href="http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2011/07/12/acquittal-in-town-hall-assault-case/">not guilty verdict </a>for the "union thugs," Himes sent a letter to Gateway Pundit Jim Hoft, one of the primary pushers of the fabricated story, <a href="http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2011/07/seiu-thugs-lied-justice-died-witness-to-gladney-beating-speaks-out-after-controversial-verdict/">declaring that the trial was a "miscarriage of justice</a>." <br />
<br />
So yeah, <a href="http://missoulian.com/news/local/hamilton-pastor-convicted-of-securities-fraud/article_b66c134c-2253-11e3-90ca-0019bb2963f4.html">about that guy</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
A Ravalli County jury found Hamilton pastor Harris Himes guilty on three felony counts of securities fraud Friday...<br />
<br />
The charges followed a yearlong investigation by the state Office of
the Commissioner of Securities and Insurance on accusations that Himes
and another pastor, James “Jeb” Bryant, promised a Hamilton man a large
return on $150,000 of his inheritance for his investment in the
Mexican-based building materials company Duratherm Building Systems.<br />
<br />
The
man told the jury this week that he was surprised when he traveled to
Mexico to find the factory was nothing more than an empty agricultural
shed.</blockquote>
Oh, and guess who he previously <a href="http://missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/article_cf85e17e-eb09-11e0-8358-001cc4c03286.html">blamed the charges on</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Himes went on to claim that gay and pro-abortion activists may be
behind the charges against him and co-defendant James "Jeb" Bryant,
another self-proclaimed pastor.</blockquote>
Himes seems like quite a guy. He's the perfect spokesperson for Jim Hoft's right-wing victimization fantasies. <br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-2873221458923063452013-12-16T09:56:00.000-06:002013-12-16T09:56:24.072-06:00St. Louis Public Radio Story on the Nicastro ScandalDale Singer has a nice story up at the newly merged St. Louis Public Radio/Beacon site on the <a href="http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/amid-controversies-embattled-nicastro-tries-keep-focus-kids#.Uq6V5iYZtHs.twitter">Nicastro controversy</a>. There's a lot in there, so please <a href="http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/amid-controversies-embattled-nicastro-tries-keep-focus-kids#.Uq6V5iYZtHs.twitter">read the whole thing</a>, but here are a few highlights:<br />
<br />
Senator Maria Chappelle-Nadal says that Nicastro has not been honest during her time at DESE:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“My total issue,” she said, “has been her not being transparent and
telling the truth. She tells school board members one thing and she
tells senators and representatives something else. Since I serve in both
capacities, I’m hearing both sides.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Specifically,
Chappelle-Nadal complained that when Normandy absorbed the Wellston
school district in 2010, she was told that the district would not lose
accreditation for at least three years. The district lost accreditation
two years later, leading to the student transfers that have resulted in
serious financial problems and questions about whether the district can
survive. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“When you make a commitment,” Chappelle-Nadal said, “you
stick to your commitment. The one thing I will never ever ever ever
tolerate is an administrator who misrepresents the truth and makes
misstatements and outright lies.</blockquote>
It doesn't look like the controversy is going away any time soon. The Kansas City School District <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/13/4690308/kc-school-district-sues-state.html">filed suit to prevent the state's breakup of their school district</a>, stating that Nicastro has been working "covertly to orchestrate a breakup of (the district) into charter schools."<br />
<br />
And Tom Schweich has asked for documents to<a href="http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/politics/2013/12/13/missouri-auditor-tom-schweich-wants-education-agency-documents/4009049/"> investigate Nicastro's decision to change wording on DESE's cost estimate </a>(or lack thereof). There are <a href="http://www.firedupmissouri.com/content/schweich-punts-sinquefield-thrilled">reasons</a>, however, to be skeptical about the chances of Schweich taking any action that would negatively impact Sinqeufield's agenda. <a href="http://rturner229.blogspot.com/2012/12/schweich-i-came-right-to-rex.html">Many</a> reasons.<br />
<br />
Mike Jones, a senior policy adviser to Charlie Dooley and the vice president of the state board of education, <a href="http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/amid-controversies-embattled-nicastro-tries-keep-focus-kids#.Uq6V5iYZtHs.twitter">had a jaw-dropping quote</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“But the process of making the sausage is a different issue. I’m big on
accountability. I think transparency is fairly overrated. Transparency
is a liberal fetish. It’s way overemphasized.”</blockquote>
His full quote is a little more nuanced and contains some interesting observations:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“On one side you have the education reform establishment. There is a
small group of people who want it to work for all children, then there
are two other groups: libertarians, who live in a fantasy world and
don’t believe in public education, and corporate interests, who see
education as a cash cow. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
“Then you have the education
establishment. They are genuinely concerned about the education of kids,
except they collectively seem to lack the will to fundamentally change
the way we deliver public education. They have lost the moral high
ground.”</blockquote>
It sounds like Jones is thoughtful about this issue, but I have a feeling the transparency quote is not going to go over very well and will lead to future headaches.<br />
<br />
Finally, I wanted to make sure to flag this <a href="http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/amid-controversies-embattled-nicastro-tries-keep-focus-kids#.Uq6V5iYZtHs.twitter">important tidbit</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Sinquefield has declined repeated requests for an interview on his stand on education issues.</blockquote>
Rex spends millions to bend state policy to his will, relying on slick advertising campaigns and <a href="http://www.news-leader.com/article/20131205/NEWS06/312050133/">predetermined "reports" from stink tanks </a>rather than comprehensive, honest debate. So it figures that he would not want to answer questions about his true views. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-51650117021117792642013-12-11T20:51:00.000-06:002013-12-11T20:51:00.706-06:00The Usual Suspects Say Open and Transparent Government is OverratedRepublican Jay Barnes wrote a blog post claiming that the <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/07/4677672/emails-detail-a-hidden-plan-for.html">Nicastro scandal </a>wasn't really a scandal because, I guess, <a href="http://barnesformissouri.com/?p=1341">unions are bad</a>, and they have secret bad motives. How exactly the claim that unions are big meanies gets Nicastro off the hook for<a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2013/12/every-nicastro-story-should-include.html"> pushing for a no bid contract and then rigging the process </a>is left unexplained, but that didn't stop Rex Sinquefeld's favorite Democrats from declaring that the Republican's post was a vindication of Nicastro.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/search/label/martin%20casas">Martin Casas,</a> of course, declared that the Nicastro scandal "is a total farce:"<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBCfZXfbZc7RlWeZP2F_8-QvfGGAJzJxB1PQ0N-xVJEQAyutG5rE1LFIbfLWH61wldX3kAl1IjQ33-EagqfnXYLANZ9vOK7ecFf0ggnCXrVQTBQu3iJBb9WMKDbo6qo2v95A_Ctw-40vs/s1600/Picture+4123.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="116" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBCfZXfbZc7RlWeZP2F_8-QvfGGAJzJxB1PQ0N-xVJEQAyutG5rE1LFIbfLWH61wldX3kAl1IjQ33-EagqfnXYLANZ9vOK7ecFf0ggnCXrVQTBQu3iJBb9WMKDbo6qo2v95A_Ctw-40vs/s320/Picture+4123.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(note the "favorite" by the director of one of Sinquefield's front groups)</span><br />
<br />
And <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2012/01/mayor-slay-sends-education-advisor-to.html">Robbyn Wahby</a> linked to the post saying that it revealed "the full story:"<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLFzQoEbyh1Muakq68AxPNKo2QmcUltqP5oWSLNjVQYWCIsBujwj7RCvUhhhtuoML2HXIHvk6jRL2dCPEvVWdAhLr3rHSI1x96CHaeau0Xcp7rZFJ32UqB2Q-cT7rjdbWlPcYLjvUiee70/s1600/Picture+4124.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="89" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLFzQoEbyh1Muakq68AxPNKo2QmcUltqP5oWSLNjVQYWCIsBujwj7RCvUhhhtuoML2HXIHvk6jRL2dCPEvVWdAhLr3rHSI1x96CHaeau0Xcp7rZFJ32UqB2Q-cT7rjdbWlPcYLjvUiee70/s320/Picture+4124.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Wahby, however, is a member of CEE-Trust, so it's not exactly surprising that she's a fan of rigged processes that get CEE-Trust lucrative contracts:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvO3xYmL0QA-zrXeSuEBW0p0br4hz5y9ejsEyTI2JaJrewlfV8NN-nGCANOjrXY1de3X2J6mpUGs2blMmOtHheBjC0Jcgd3lyslNUMSP0CfsGZ73OXihyU_WnSRABUI3HAIh8yJg1bQEY/s1600/Picture+4125.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBvO3xYmL0QA-zrXeSuEBW0p0br4hz5y9ejsEyTI2JaJrewlfV8NN-nGCANOjrXY1de3X2J6mpUGs2blMmOtHheBjC0Jcgd3lyslNUMSP0CfsGZ73OXihyU_WnSRABUI3HAIh8yJg1bQEY/s320/Picture+4125.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Not surprising. But worth noting. And twenty years from now, if school privatization has gone bonkers and the schools are still a mess, it will be worth remembering.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-19913679333907864682013-12-11T08:59:00.003-06:002013-12-11T09:10:07.517-06:00Every Nicastro Story Should Include These DetailsThe Kansas City schools scandal with Missouri Education Commissioner Chris Nicastro is worse than it is being portrayed in many media outlets. Not only did Nicastro originally try for a no-bid contract to CEE-Trust and promise a job to a guy before the job was even created, but it's pretty clear that the process that was ultimately selected was rigged to ensure CEE-T would be chosen. Below are a few relevant details from the<a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/07/4677672/emails-detail-a-hidden-plan-for.html"> original Kansas City Star story</a> that don't seem to make it into many of the subsequent reports.<br />
<br />
Two of the state administers working with Nicastro to create the original "memorandum of understanding" (ie no bid contract), were on the panel that "scored" the different bids:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
State administrators Margie Vandeven and Robin Coffman, who emails
showed had helped craft the original memorandum of understanding with
CEE-Trust, were two of four evaluators who scored the bids.</blockquote>
With those two scoring, CEE-Trust won the evaluation process by a single point, <i>after</i> a competitor that cost 1/3 the price of CEE-Trust received ridiculously low scores on a category that is normally their strong suit:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
CEE-Trust edged the closest competitor — Community Training and Assistance Center, known as CTAC — by a single point, 70 to 69. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
CTAC,
because its bid of $124,700 was less than one-third of CEE-Trust’s
$385,000 bid, earned the maximum 45 points under the major category of
cost. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
CEE-Trust earned the maximum 45 points under the other major heading, “Experience, reliability and expertise of personnel.” </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
CTAC
received only 20 points for its personnel despite a proposal that
described a 34-year history of assisting school systems in 40 states. </blockquote>
Here's what the executive director of the company that lost the bid by a point had to say:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"That’s a section (personnel qualifications) that we usually knock out of
the water,” said CTAC executive director William Slotnik, who had not
been aware of the details of the scoring until he was reached by The
Star.</blockquote>
No one could look at this with clear eyes and not have alarm bells go off. So though I agree with the group of Missouri Democrats calling for Nicastro to resign, I think the<a href="http://www.senate.mo.gov/media/14info/LeVota/releases/120913.html"> other part of their request </a>is probably even more important:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In addition, we are asking the State Board of Education to open an
internal investigation into potential bid-rigging by Dr. Nicastro to
ensure that an education department contract was granted to an
organization she favors, despite the fact that its bid was more than
three times more costly to taxpayers than the bid of the next closest
competitor.</blockquote>
This process needs to be investigated, transparently and by an independent entity. It's sad that the president of the state education commission, Republican Peter Herschend, so far has<a href="http://www.kctv5.com/story/24176679/secret-negotiations-create-big-problems-for-mo-state-education-chair"> shown no interest</a> in transparency or openness, and has not even discussed the possibility of investigation.<br />
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<br />
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/07/4677672/emails-detail-a-hidden-plan-for.html#storylink=cp</div>
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<br />
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/07/4677672/emails-detail-a-hidden-plan-for.html#storylink=cpy</div>
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<br />
Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/07/4677672/emails-detail-a-hidden-plan-for.html#storylink=cpy</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-57617158470172629892013-12-08T16:31:00.000-06:002013-12-08T16:31:03.346-06:00Chris Nicastro Redux<a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2013/12/07/4677672/emails-detail-a-hidden-plan-for.html">Another scandal </a>for the Missouri Commissioner of Education.<br />
<br />
Strange. I seem to remember Rex Sinquefield's front group CEAM actively rooting for the failure of the Kansas City public schools as well. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-7519784754862669052013-11-27T19:08:00.000-06:002013-11-27T19:08:07.897-06:00Larry Conners UpdateThis was a while ago, but in case you missed it, Larry Conners lost a lawsuit.<br />
<br />
Then he <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/columns/joe-holleman/larry-conners-loses-appeal-on-non-compete-clause/article_99d216e0-6347-54c1-98a3-799fa18b6adc.html">lost it again</a>.<br />
<br />
I predict he <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2013/05/larry-conners-claims-kmov-is-keeping.html">will lose many such lawsuits.</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-87604678941416338252013-11-27T18:43:00.000-06:002013-11-27T18:46:29.795-06:00State Education Commissioner Helps Right-Wing Front Group Write Evasive Ballot LanguageHere's a November 21 statement from the <a href="http://www.mnea.org/Missouri/News/Teachers-release-statement-on-Chris-Nicastro-ties-416.aspx">Missouri NEA site</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">(Jefferson City, MO) Today education leaders from the American Federation of Teachers, Missouri National Education Association and the Missouri State Teachers Association issued the following joint statement regarding press reports of Education Commissioner Chris Nicastro’s covert conversations with Rex Sinquefield lobbyist Kate Casas.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">“As educators we are disturbed by Commissioner Nicastro’s covert communication with a registered lobbyist, her potential disregard of open meetings law, and the circumvention of input from anyone involved in the day-to-day operations of public schools.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Published reports indicate Commissioner Nicastro actively assisted a special interest lobbyist in crafting language for an amendment to the Missouri Constitution and ordering DESE staff not to post items to the State Board of Education’s public agenda. Nicastro assured special interest groups the fiscal note outlining the financial impact would be favorable.</span></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The professional staff at DESE developed language that disclosed the potential significant costs to local districts. However, Nicastro chose to personally override her financial experts at the expense of taxpayers.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Government officials have a duty to act in an open and transparent manner for the benefit of the citizens of the state of Missouri – Commissioner Nicastro’s actions fall short of that duty.”</span></blockquote>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">More soon.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-13662142320451766572013-11-25T20:54:00.002-06:002013-11-25T20:56:48.480-06:00Sinquefield Spokesperson Not Sure If Sinquefield Has Opinion On Sinquefield-Funded ProjectFrom a recent <a href="https://www.stlbeacon.org/#!/content/33788/onthetrail_earnings_tax_112113">Beacon article</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Better Together executive director Nancy Rice said last week that <b><i>she hasn't talked to Sinquefield about the new organization.</i></b></blockquote>
Better Together is funded by the Missouri Council for a Better Environment (MCBE). Nancy Rice is the media contact person for MCBE, a group previously funded exclusively by Sinquefield. She's a spokesperson for Sinquefield. She works for his lobbying group. Sinquefield was reported in August to be <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/article_e4cdecda-8aed-5479-a4dd-f82a38edde89.html">working on this project</a>.<br />
<br />
These games are silly. Just stop.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-19953780197008485682013-11-25T20:18:00.002-06:002013-11-25T20:56:19.506-06:00Déjà Vu: Casas Confused About The Group He's Working For, AgainA long while back, I <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2012/01/fake-local-control-finance-report-how.html">reported</a> on how St. Louis "Democrats" were being paid off by <a href="http://progressmissouri.org/smi">extreme right-wing ideologue Rex Sinquefield</a> to work on the ballot initiative restoring local control of the police department to St. Louis. As I've said many times, I support local control, and in fact worked with the groups who had been pushing for local control long before it occurred to the St. Louis establishment that it might be a politically useful campaign. However, I had concerns about the way the campaign was being run as a PR campaign for Rex Sinquefield and anti-tax groups around the state.<br />
<br />
Specifically, I was <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2011/02/support-local-control-by-signing-up-for.html">critical</a> of one of Sinquefield's group's primary beneficiaries, Martin Casas, who repeatedly claimed to be clueless about the operation he was working on. Casas wrote an article for Vital Voice asking people to sign a petition for United for Missouri, a right-wing group run by Sinquefield's employee Carl Bearden, who among many other things:<br />
<br />
<br />
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-image: url(http://www.blogblog.com/tictac_blue/tictac_blue.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 6px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 14px;">Voted to <a href="http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:-Zih2leOUVAJ:www.logcabinstl.org/Media/news/vitalvoicejune.pdf+%22carl+bearden%22+lgbt&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESiwYJtzkB1YefBrNrWdXblA2dQh2_WGq5LYQ1YL8GYp5evr2IaNWpbA_gskM2HizfsusKePqoCZJaDx8fQ8C6OLzEEXXDFfFlM412QlXtv7C0h8jMR8gTq2cDhZxvOKqArMQcH-&sig=AHIEtbQOZburaVXHMgYU34Ow3o7s0mZa5w&pli=1" style="color: #6699cc;">ban the existence of gay/straight student alliances in Missouri</a>.</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-image: url(http://www.blogblog.com/tictac_blue/tictac_blue.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 6px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 14px;">Was a co-sponsor of <a href="http://www.house.mo.gov/content.aspx?info=/bills041/spon/spn016.htm" style="color: #6699cc;">HB885</a> in 2004, which would "Prohibit public institutions or any entity receiving state funds from adopting discrimination policies that exceed state and federal protections against discrimination."</li>
<li style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-image: url(http://www.blogblog.com/tictac_blue/tictac_blue.gif); background-origin: initial; background-position: 0% 6px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 3px; padding-left: 14px;">Voted in favor of <a href="http://www.house.mo.gov/content.aspx?info=/bills041/jrn/jrn044.htm" style="color: #6699cc;">placing a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Missouri </a>on the 2004 ballot.</li>
<br />
So Casas wrote an article for St. Louis's premier LGBT news source asking people to hand their contact information over to a dude categorically opposed to equal rights. And to make it worse, rather than just being honest about it, when I asked Casas about who was handling the emails from the petition, he<a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.com/2012/01/fake-local-control-finance-report-how.html"> responded by claiming</a>: "I have no idea! I'm working on #LocalControl!" The idea that Casas, a failed candidate for state office, had been contracted to get signatures to an online petition without having any idea of what would be done with the signatures is pretty ridiculous, even for him.<br />
<br />
So now we have a new Sinquefield-backed initiative, <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/article_e4cdecda-8aed-5479-a4dd-f82a38edde89.html">described by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch</a> way back in August, created to "study" various aspects of City and County services. Again, I personally think the City and County should be merged. But like the Post-Dispatch editorial board, I think this discussion should be transparent and honest, rather than opaque and deceptive. However, rather than being honest, the group, staffed by Rex's previous campaign operatives, is pretending to be unconnected to Rex Sinquefield.<br />
<br />
So for starters, let's just be clear that the Twitter feed for the group, Better Together St. Louis, is run by Martin Casas. With his usual stealth, Casas managed to tweet and post on facebook an identical post using his personal account and Better Together simultaneously, demonstrating that he's running both.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhje5ghwOUhzOclW247jvTmVPt6DT5Pnrz8xQDSbwEBcbFwCT4EDBt2Q9hPK_UwxG6VntEUjgOfLGr3WpZ7XjMYEOpQB0qpfxaIVCd0B-T6QoWzZtrghIpx_pA1uAoJQN7bVr3KVPxU8Nj_/s1600/Picture+4117.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="90" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhje5ghwOUhzOclW247jvTmVPt6DT5Pnrz8xQDSbwEBcbFwCT4EDBt2Q9hPK_UwxG6VntEUjgOfLGr3WpZ7XjMYEOpQB0qpfxaIVCd0B-T6QoWzZtrghIpx_pA1uAoJQN7bVr3KVPxU8Nj_/s320/Picture+4117.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
But what's really amazing is that Casas is again acting clueless about Rex Sinquefield's involvement in the group. During a Twitter conversation, Casas initially said that Sinquefield wasn't involved in funding the group, then said he "didn't know" after it was pointed out that Sinquefeld was previously <a href="https://twitter.com/nickpistor/status/402946490210844674">the only funder of the group, MCBE</a> (Missouri Council for a Better Economy) that paid for "A Better St. Louis":<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Xqr551Lv-_WqCq5bKUG9Z6k40Nns9WB5m28tlqeCr-nH9CGm3MDOJLiw0VZqtyxrUHPIZV_sXaZp1yCvAINr0X9Ytha4hbPj9Gvj0sgcbDXgC7TbVIifFxpfNnICKKgmcUt4_HXp0zzj/s1600/Picture+4119.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Xqr551Lv-_WqCq5bKUG9Z6k40Nns9WB5m28tlqeCr-nH9CGm3MDOJLiw0VZqtyxrUHPIZV_sXaZp1yCvAINr0X9Ytha4hbPj9Gvj0sgcbDXgC7TbVIifFxpfNnICKKgmcUt4_HXp0zzj/s320/Picture+4119.png" width="265" /></a></div>
So Casas, for the second time, gets very confused when he's asked about whether he's working for a Sinquefield group and in what capacity. Of course, in the grand scheme of things, Casas is pretty irrelevant to whatever policy outcomes might occur. Yet this whole approach is suggestive of a broader disdain for the public from the group. Rather than simply being up front about Sinquefield's involvement, the effort so far has been designed, rather sloppily I might add, to act as though Rex has nothing to do with it, though he clearly has been involved in the planning and financing of the plan for a long time. And if they can't just admit that he's a key part of the effort, what else are they trying to hide? And more importantly, as the Kansas City Star's Yael Aboulhalkah asked, "<a href="https://twitter.com/YaelTAbouhalkah/status/402978630013173761">What's in it for Rex?</a>"Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-80844006800532553892013-11-15T23:18:00.000-06:002013-11-16T09:12:33.999-06:00St. Louis Journalism ReviewGotta say, I don't really understand what the Gateway Journalism Review takes itself to be doing. If you call yourself a "Journalism Review" and say in the mission statement that you aim for the public to have the "most credible, fair media possible," then shouldn't you be among the first to call out charlatans and grifters, rather than the last? Maybe write stories when someone is dishonest on CNN, rather than at teh Blaze? It's not really providing any accountability if you only call out a media personality a full year after every thinking person stopped taking the person seriously. <br />
<br />
But yeah, don't get your news from the Blaze. Can't argue with that. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-86278269165519148612013-08-14T07:00:00.000-05:002013-08-14T07:00:06.955-05:002013 St. Louis Walk for Farm Animals<a href="http://www.farmsanctuary.org/" target="_blank">Farm Sanctuary</a> is a great organization that spreads a message of compassion for all, and provides homes to animals who have been abused in factory farms. So, when I was offered the opportunity to help coordinate the 2013 <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/St-Louis-Walk-for-Farm-Animals/227432247279166" target="_blank"><i>St. Louis Walk for Farm Animals</i></a> to raise money and publicity for Farm Sanctuary, I jumped at the chance.<br />
<br />
From <a href="http://blog.farmsanctuary.org/2013/07/walk-with-us/" target="_blank">Farm Sanctuary's blog</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Each year, Farm Sanctuary’s vital work is supported by funds raised during the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8raoQBCxaYE&feature=youtu.be.html" target="_blank"><i>Walk for Farm Animals</i></a>, which stands as a testament to the value of positive, grassroots activism. The <i>Walk for Farm Animals</i> started with a small group of volunteers walking and raising enough money in 1989 to make a down payment on what is now our Watkins Glen sanctuary. Today, it has spread across the United States and Canada to more than 35 regional <a href="http://events.walkforfarmanimals.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.eventList" target="_blank"><i>Walk</i> events</a> supporting Farm Sanctuary’s mission to end the abuse and suffering of farm animals and to provide life-long refuge to the individuals we rescue.</blockquote>
<br />
This year's <i>St. Louis Walk for Farm Animals</i> will be held on <b>September 14 in Tower Grove Park</b> at the Sons of Rest Pavilion. Registration begins at 10 a.m., and the <i>Walk</i> begins at 11. Children and dogs are welcome.
After the <i>Walk</i>, there will be free vegan food, massages, live music, a raffle, and face painting. There will also be a costume contest, so come dressed as your favorite animal for a chance to win a homemade vegan gooey butter cake – a St. Louis favorite.<br />
<br />
Early adult registration is $15, and event-day registration is $25. Children under 18 are free. Participants are encouraged to <a href="http://walkforfarmanimals.org/fundraising/how-to-raise-funds/" target="_blank">set a fundraising goal</a> and ask their friends and family for donations to support Farm Sanctuary's life-saving mission. If you have mobility issues or can't make it to the <i>Walk</i>, you can still participate as a <a href="http://events.walkforfarmanimals.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.event&eventID=641" target="_blank">virtual walker</a>.<br />
<br />
The <i>Walk</i> is only a month away, so if you're interested in participating, please <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><b><a href="http://events.walkforfarmanimals.org/event/stlouis" target="_blank">register now</a></b></span></span>, so you can start raising money!Luellahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17994570579179750700noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-14164504271616863212013-05-30T14:26:00.000-05:002013-05-30T20:17:36.029-05:00Larry Conners Claims KMOV is Keeping the White Man DownSo first Larry Conners <a href="http://www.kmov.com/home/News-4s-Larry-Conners-goes-one-on-one-with-President-Obama-147266435.html">claimed </a>that President Obama was "jetting around" too much and "going on all these vacations." Now Conners says in a complaint that he, Larry Conners, <a href="http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2013/05/larry_conners_vickie_newtown_kmov_complaint.php">was discriminated against </a>for being a white male:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">Since his <a href="http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2013/05/larry_conners_kmov_out_irs_comments.php" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; color: #31639c; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: initial; outline-width: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">firing</a>, his attorneys have filed a formal discrimination complaint with the Missouri Human Rights Commission alleging that his bosses terminated him in retaliation for a dispute he had with the station in 2010 regarding his salary. In that legal battle, Conners writes in the complaint, he had alleged that KMOV was unfairly paying him less than his co-prime anchor, Vickie Newton, "an African-American female; I claimed that I received less compensation than Newtown because of my race and gender."</span></blockquote>
Hmmm.<br />
<br />
<b>Update:</b> Shockingly, a judge <a href="http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2013/05/larry_conners_vickie_newtown_kmov_complaint.php">did not agree</a> with Conners' claim that he was being discriminated against for being a middle-aged white guy (see update of the post):<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">"The arbitration process was confidential and private and we honored that," Pimentel says. "But in light of Mr. Conners' election not to, we believe it's appropriate to point out that after a full two days of arbitration, the arbiter found no merit whatsoever to Larry's claims and ruled in favor of KMOV on all counts."</span></blockquote>
<div>
Double hmmm.<br />
<br />
<b>Update #2: </b>For clarity, I should note that Conners' current complaint is that KMOV discriminated against him because of age and "retaliation." But in his complaint, he noted that he previously had formally complained about race and gender discrimination at KMOV (basically he thought he should get paid more), while conveniently forgetting to mention that the arbiter found his claim meritless. As in: without any merit.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-61960182756092819192013-05-28T17:12:00.000-05:002013-05-28T17:12:39.919-05:00Important Facts About the Larry Conners Fiasco (Mostly) Ignored By the MediaSo, if you recall, back in September Larry Conners <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.ca/2012/04/kmov-continues-to-embarrass-st-louis.html">did a silly interview</a> for KMOV where he asked President Obama if he takes too many vacation days. The interview was ridiculous because (1) it showed that Conners was completely out of touch with issues that actually matter and (2) Conners conveniently left out the fact that Obama had taken about 1/3 as many vacation days as Bush and 1/2 as many as Reagan at similar points in their presidencies.<br />
<br />
More recently, <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/aaronperlut/2013/05/23/st-louis-social-media-driven-saga-of-larry-conners-and-kmov/">Conners was fired</a> after using his KMOV Facebook page to absurdly suggest, without a shred of evidence, that he was targeted by the IRS for his "tough interview" with Obama. In his original post, Conners conveniently left out the fact that his tax issues with the IRS predated the interview, and later claimed he meant to say that the IRS cancelled his repayment plan after the interview. He never updated his Facebook or Twitter accounts with the truth, though he did record a statement for KMOV.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, media reports during the Larry Conners Sympathy Tour have been leaving out a couple key facts that are telling about the amount of "integrity" of his actions. First, Conners did not only use his KMOV facebook account to "ask questions" about the interview. He also used his KMOV "News 4" Twitter account to push the story to right-wing bloggers. Here's how he described himself on Twitter before deleting his old account:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeNqLzidsxBTfPxvvh5g2qGmSDIc3hJGCwcD_JiGlKy0IUQnTF8m9rYV45dsN06YRysPwZwJoKDlJQhyphenhyphenlR8mD-_nTgqxkryh0TbtLl6yBSTe8BRAR4AwuMUxfRbqFc7gzV2TlYc6veRXfi/s1600/Picture+4007.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="65" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeNqLzidsxBTfPxvvh5g2qGmSDIc3hJGCwcD_JiGlKy0IUQnTF8m9rYV45dsN06YRysPwZwJoKDlJQhyphenhyphenlR8mD-_nTgqxkryh0TbtLl6yBSTe8BRAR4AwuMUxfRbqFc7gzV2TlYc6veRXfi/s320/Picture+4007.png" width="320" /></a></div>
And here's a screenshot of him tweeting the story to right-wing bloggers (at the bottom of the tweet:):<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg18Qo0DtAdAhx8MUVsQkZBugjPV7cDUydNCsOQqNSre5asOj9yP2-hZOieK2Km51kN1fArFRN7dEf-FhsMY1_yr3Wp3UinUkngskM_MIYMSbOFewfCrt8Xa0liKoI18nvsBcsXfT9ES1tL/s1600/Conners1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="79" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg18Qo0DtAdAhx8MUVsQkZBugjPV7cDUydNCsOQqNSre5asOj9yP2-hZOieK2Km51kN1fArFRN7dEf-FhsMY1_yr3Wp3UinUkngskM_MIYMSbOFewfCrt8Xa0liKoI18nvsBcsXfT9ES1tL/s320/Conners1.png" width="320" /></a></div>
You might recall the Daily Caller from their amazing display of "journalistic integrity" while reporting a <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/erik-wemple/wp/2013/03/22/did-daily-caller-pay-to-frame-menendez/">completely invented story</a> about a Democratic Senator visiting underage prostitutes in Haiti. Instapundit is right-wing blogger Glenn Reynolds, and Red Alert is a blog for "young conservatives." (Conners also tweeted the story to Breitbart.com and to one of their former employees. Yes, I have screen shots)<br />
<br />
This completely undermines Conner's claim that he was innocently "asking questions." He did not tweet the story to neutral or liberal outlets. He was clearly trolling for publicity from far right wing blogs, and was happy to throw them red meat he knew would be used to claim that the President was targeting him. This is not responsible journalism.<br />
<br />
Now, to be fair to Conners, he has targeted his tweets at right wing blogs before, probably because he doesn't really put that much effort into pretending to be unbiased. But given that he's done it before, and KMOV knows that he's done it before, he might very well be right that KMOV encourages him to engage in this type of trolling. I don't really <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.ca/search?q=kmov">care to defend KMOV</a> and wouldn't be surprised at all if they told him in the past to try to target right-wing blogs; however, I do think it's important not to pretend that Conners was engaging in responsible journalism. He was pushing a story he knew would be used to attack President Obama (while, by the way, further eroding people's trust in the government).<br />
<br />
Second, and even more importantly, Conners could not even answer a question from Charles Jaco about what reason the IRS gave for canceling the payment plan. You can watch the interview here (the relevant bit starts at 2:12):<br />
<script height="365px" src="http://player.ooyala.com/iframe.js#ec=RubGp3YjoQSSBgXbprRTglsc7ZtTFepO&pbid=c660b791c3704ff69d4162d7adb7c4a1" width="650px"></script><br />
<br />
Transcript of the relevant portion:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Jaco: Did they tell you why they cancelled the monthly plan?<br />Conners: I was paying everything on time and continued to do so...<br />Jaco: And they didn't tell you anything...?<br />Conners: I leave that to my tax attorney. <b><i>I don't know what any of the background is, other than the fact that it was pulled from us....Charles, since 1980 I haven't even done my taxes. I leave that to folks who are a lot smarter than me.</i></b></blockquote>
In other words, Conners can't even answer when asked what reason the IRS gave for canceling his plan, because he hasn't done his taxes in 30 years! Conners was willing to suggest that the IRS was "hammering" him for political reasons <i>without even being engaged enough to know what the IRS's stated reason was!</i> This is the height of journalistic irresponsibility. It's the equivalent of a journalist saying on air, "I got a parking ticket the other day. I didn't actually look at it to see what it was for, but I'm positive it's retaliation from the Mayor!"<br />
<br />
Finally, also in the Jaco interview, Conners says that KMOV "supposedly" sent him social media guidelines but he doesn't remember looking at them. Hmmm, I wonder whose responsibility that is?<br />
<br />
Obviously, journalists have a reason to be sympathetic to one of their own and to protect themselves from bosses who probably don't know much about journalism, even if "their own" in this case is a guy like Larry Conners who was perfectly willing to cross picket lines while fellow news employees were striking (especially ironic now that Conners is now citing collective bargaining). However, given that this story has important implications for what it means to do quality journalism, they need to take care to report all of the relevant facts, even those that clearly undermine his claims. Conners engaged in epically irresponsible "journalism," and whether or not he deserved to be fired, no one should pretend for a second that he was acting with journalistic integrity.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-32601516397893414002013-05-17T08:46:00.000-05:002013-05-28T15:33:38.527-05:00Tea Partiers Who Likely Violated 501(c)(4) Rules Are, Of Course, Leading the Complaints About the IRSBill Hennessy, founder of the St. Louis Tea Party, was recently on Larry Kudlow's CNBC show complaining about the IRS targeting the tea party for additional scrutiny:<br />
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Similarly, Missouri GOP Chair Ed Martin<a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/political-fix/irs-abuses-bringing-energy-to-tea-party-forces/article_e82d8fd9-0f2d-598e-b679-e3437b3195fd.html"> is in the Post-Dispatch</a> talking about how the IRS "corruption" will galvanize the tea party.<br />
<br />
Their promotion of the issue by this pair is especially ironic considering that I documented, on multiple occasions, the St. Louis Tea Party publicly advocating their endorsement of Ed Martin in a Missouri Congressional race in violation of the rules governing 501(c)(4) organizations, which state that such organizations are not allowed to endorse candidates (see<a href="http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-tege/eotopicm95.pdf"> here</a>, p. 7, first full paragraph) and communicate that endorsement to the public. <br />
<br />
Back in the 2010 elections, the tea party paid for billboards featuring Martin and his Democratic opponent Russ Carnahan that prompted former Post-Dispatch reporter Jake Wagman<a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/political-fix/article_9edd0400-daff-11df-8f73-0017a4a78c22.html"> to write</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
But unless Carnahan supporters really do have their head down, it won't
be hard to see through the intent of the billboard, which, if it sparks a
legal challenge, could spell trouble for the Tea Party. </blockquote>
As I <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.ca/2010/10/is-st-louis-tea-party-breaking-election.html">noted at the time,</a> there were other tea party actions that were not "straddling the line" (Wagman's phrase); they were clearly endorsing Ed Martin in a manner intended to communicate with the general public. First, the St. Louis Tea Party posted advertisements around the web that<a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.ca/2010/10/is-st-louis-tea-party-breaking-election.html"> led directly </a>to a web page that stated "Ed Martin Deserves To Serve Instead of Russ Carnahan." They've deleted the original post now, but you can see it <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20101020171108/http://stlouisteaparty.com/ed-martin-deserves-to-serve-instead-of-russ-carnahan/">at the Way Back machine</a>.<br />
Here's my screen shot of the ad at the conservative blog Reboot Congress:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwpOjdfY9jKrmrEH6HwlSGoOfqBtpYBLKHA9PTtbJqOyTI2wRGAZC-dotmwlZjmK5GWc-VLdnhryMRpO7J1jsuFVds2jAFnBV1zA9kmtDidt3JLFuuuIP41W-VkBDrELto4CgYueqllWWP/s1600/EdMartinTP.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="83" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwpOjdfY9jKrmrEH6HwlSGoOfqBtpYBLKHA9PTtbJqOyTI2wRGAZC-dotmwlZjmK5GWc-VLdnhryMRpO7J1jsuFVds2jAFnBV1zA9kmtDidt3JLFuuuIP41W-VkBDrELto4CgYueqllWWP/s320/EdMartinTP.png" width="320" /></a></div>
Similarly, here's a screenshot of an advertisement that appeared on Breitbart.com that states, "Paid for by the St. Louis Tea Party Coalition:"<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5O_unF5pGCRSu1Ydir4RUXuJDQGBdz11SFwcSfU6ZR6hgjbirjX_BYZMjG3MEXlW46XxE1E27IhGs8GfmzRKfgcWNZq60i16AoYHkK6wdDgnWX92gASHMpnl2zL0U6i4V9g7u7uDgEf8Q/s1600/tpedmartin2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5O_unF5pGCRSu1Ydir4RUXuJDQGBdz11SFwcSfU6ZR6hgjbirjX_BYZMjG3MEXlW46XxE1E27IhGs8GfmzRKfgcWNZq60i16AoYHkK6wdDgnWX92gASHMpnl2zL0U6i4V9g7u7uDgEf8Q/s1600/tpedmartin2.png" /></a></div>
Here's the ad appearing on Big Government:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX87brM2jJUPgD0vrdICfI2ns52wbtre04T_OAvzCL-UMKuTUyqHsWJxk9wXv8WPUAe_eL7-wr0iuX-RSWooxeT8AEKAIQQG5XrWE5oamRD9Jc5GtTtyeb6r-D677H_vj3OtAaSHgATNMV/s1600/bgtpmartin.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX87brM2jJUPgD0vrdICfI2ns52wbtre04T_OAvzCL-UMKuTUyqHsWJxk9wXv8WPUAe_eL7-wr0iuX-RSWooxeT8AEKAIQQG5XrWE5oamRD9Jc5GtTtyeb6r-D677H_vj3OtAaSHgATNMV/s320/bgtpmartin.png" width="320" /></a></div>
The ad that time took people to a tea party "Get Out the Vote" page that featured a video of Bill Hennessy <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.ca/2010/11/new-evidence-tea-party-is-violating.html">saying the following</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I'm going to ask you to take one hour, just one hour, Monday or Tuesday,
to come to the St. Louis Tea Party Headquarters at 4512 Hampton Avenue
in St. Louis Hills, just south of Hampton Village, and give one hour to
phone calls or knocking on doors asking your friends and neighbors, your
fellow citizens to go to the polls on Tuesday<span style="font-style: italic;"> and vote for Ed Martin </span>and the tea party candidates across the ballot.</blockquote>
The tea party also put up yard signs and attended rallies with signs that read "Taxpayers for Ed Martin" but <a href="http://stlactivisthub.blogspot.ca/2010/11/more-potential-501c4-violations-by-tea.html">included "St. Louis Tea Party" decals</a>.<br />
<br />
It would have been very easy for them to simply use advertisements or signage that simply said, "Vote for the pro-liberty candidate (wink wink)." But they didn't. They deliberately flaunted 501(c)(4) rules by endorsing Ed Martin. And now they have the audacity to go on national TV and complain about the IRS looking at tea party groups. <br />
<br />
One last irony from the Kulow video worth mentioning: another guest was an employee of Americans For Prosperity, the astroturf group funded by the billionaire Koch brothers. This raises an issue that I think hasn't been discussed enough as part of the IRS "scandal." People say it would be wrong for the IRS to target particular groups just because of their political beliefs, and this, of course, is true. But that isn't necessarily the only reason the IRS has for looking closely at the tea party groups. As most people know, the tea party wasn't as "spontaneous" as they liked to portray, and they received a lot of help and coordination from big-money backed groups, including especially the Koch Brothers' Americans for Prosperity. So if there's evidence that a number of groups are <i>coordinating with one another</i> or <i>being coordinated </i>while applying for 501(c)(4) status, <i>and </i>that some of those groups are flaunting the rules, then that seems to me to provide a reason for carefully looking at the groups, entirely independently of their political beliefs.<br />
<br />
<b>Update</b>: Several people are telling me that <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/political-fix/article_9edd0400-daff-11df-8f73-0017a4a78c22.html">Wagman's claim </a>that 501(c)(4)s "can't communicate their endorsement to the public at large" is based on a misreading. If that's true, then the tea party doesn't seem to be violating the post Citizen's United interpretation of 501(c)(4) rules, just operating in the murky actually-functioning-as-a-political-organization-designed-solely-to-win-elections-while-technically-following-the-law landscape that we already knew about. <br />
<br />
<b>Update #2:</b> Think Progress <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2013/05/27/2064111/some-groups-targeted-by-irs-may-have-violated-election-law/">gets to the heart of the matter.</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4924392915564296358.post-35516499667661937922013-05-08T05:40:00.003-05:002014-09-18T21:56:32.746-05:00Hazardous Conditions: New Report ranks Missouri 35th in nation on workplace safety<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx1IkOtx9WckLH-JtdneHdT3NBzW0k-af88jHieaAP8EmQgvqU2pk-lR6on4Af8JVu03NQPTLsCyuNu2tgd96M0SV3yqY68tWlV83cJyIY_9q9YpW__wTs3940cjeSXDKZKTEVEDz1PL4/s1600/Workplace_Safety_Signs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">As
the Missouri legislature winds down and high-profile tragedies in the U.S. and
worldwide are still fresh in our minds, a new report shows Missouri has a long
way to go on workplace safety. According to <a href="http://www.aflcio.org/Issues/Job-Safety/Death-on-the-Job-Report">“Death on the Job: The Toll ofNeglect,”</a> released by the <a href="http://aflcio.org/">AFL-CIO</a> on Tuesday, Missouri ranks 35<sup>th</sup>
in the nation in workplace safety. <br />
<br />
Just one worker killed on the job is too many, but the <a href="http://www.aflcio.org/Issues/Job-Safety/Death-on-the-Job-Report">report </a>details 132 Missouri
workers who went to work in 2011 and never made it back home. At a rate of 4.9
deaths per 100,000 workers, this puts Missouri behind 34 out of 50 states.
Neighboring Arkansas and Kansas are among the worst states for workplace
fatalities, along with North Dakota, Wyoming and Montana. <br /><br />
<a href="http://moaflcio.org/">Missouri AFL-CIO </a>Secretary Treasurer Mike Louis said politics is a factor. “While
too many people are dying on the job right here in Missouri, too many of our
elected officials are trying to make it more difficult for Missourians to
exercise their collective bargaining rights to ensure health and safety
protections at work,” said Louis.<br /><br /> “Some of the most dangerous states in the
country are so-called ‘right to work’ states – and that’s no coincidence. In
states were fewer workers are able to have a voice on the job and to advocate
for better working conditions, corporations cut corners and take risks that
cause devastating consequences.” <br />
<br />
Another issue cited in the report is underfunding of enforcement agencies. Due
to a lack of staffing it would take the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) a whopping 111 years to inspect each workplace in
Missouri – just once. <br />
<br />
Louis said “Our elected leaders should find ways to make things better and
reduce these tragic numbers, not push more dangerous legislation like ‘right to
work’ and paycheck deception. Workplace safety needs to be a priority on the
federal, state and local level.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br />
Across the country there’s much work to do. The <a href="http://www.aflcio.org/Issues/Job-Safety/Death-on-the-Job-Report">report</a> notes that in 2011,
there were 4,693 workplace deaths due to traumatic injuries and more than 3.8
million workers across all industries, including state and local government,
who experienced work-related illnesses and injuries. <br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
</span></div>
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