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From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
Lucky to be Somewhere is the first film produced by T Sizzle Productions. Directors Torin Simpson and Jeffrey Hamed teamed up to tell the story of a business man who gets by just fine in his crooked world. After a chance encounter with a seductress, he is thrust into an unlikely situation that lands him with a bag full of money and a trail of dust behind him. Chris is at the wrong place at the wrong time. Or, depending on how it turns out, the wrong place at the right time. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/lucky-to-be-somewhere/11866513/ 2352-11866513 Fri, 19 Sep 2008 13:09:00 -0400 Lucky to be Somewhere
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
Young photographer with a deteriorating eye sight. Still does what he loves the most, Taking pictures. Only at the cost of his relationship with his girlfriend and brother. Audio in Nederlands. No English subtitles available. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/perspectief/11866077/ 2352-11866077 Fri, 01 Aug 2008 11:08:00 -0400 Perspectief
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
Abrasion chronicles a series of tumultuous, fantastic events in the life a young woman named Jin-Kyung. She is the unhappy lover of a local butcher who relentlessly pursues her, even as she recoils from his advances. In a series of events that are both real and imagined, this unbearable situation manifests itself physically to Jin-Kyung in the form of an open wound in her back. In response, she tries to escape into the countryside, and this escape attempt culminates in a traumatic confrontation. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/abrasion/11849827/ 2352-11849827 Mon, 15 Sep 2008 03:09:00 -0400 Abrasion
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
Music video for the song Rock bottom Riser by Smog. From the album 'A River ain't too much to love'. Hundreds of ink paintings form the basis for a dreamy and flowing animation, randomly moving from image to image we travel deep into the murk of a distant memory rising to the surface. Hand drawn artwork animated in after effects. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/rock-bottom-riser-by-smog/11849227/ 2352-11849227 Tue, 29 Apr 2008 13:04:00 -0400 Rock Bottom Riser by Smog
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
5 moments of an unusual day, a man flirts with parano?a, love, thriller, action and hope. A silent hero shares with us a hypnotic and emotional moment. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/tombe-du-ciel/11849225/ 2352-11849225 Fri, 09 May 2008 06:05:00 -0400 Tombe du Ciel
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
'Got. Got. Need!' is essential playground lingo for thousands of children swapping football stickers all over the world. But for one collector, playground swopsies were not enough to land him the prized name of Mickey Stewart - the only empty space in an otherwise complete sticker album from 1970. After a dramatic vision, the collector realises that all his life's failures stemmed from his incomplete album and, now enlightened, he mounts a new bid to complete it - 35 years after he first started. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/got-got-need/11849224/ 2352-11849224 Wed, 18 Jun 2008 08:06:00 -0400 Got, Got, Need!
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
Errol Flynns greatest regret was never having learned the piano yet Marilyn Monroe confessed to Truman Capote that Errol was quite an impressive pianist. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/errol-flynns-pianist/11849222/ 2352-11849222 Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:09:00 -0400 Errol Flynn's Pianist
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
Errol Flynns greatest regret was never having learned the piano yet Marilyn Monroe confessed to Truman Capote that Errol was quite an impressive pianist. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/errol-flynns-pianist/11845496/ 2352-11845496 Wed, 03 Sep 2008 09:09:00 -0400 Errol Flynn's Pianist
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
a guy is afraid of making mistakes and copies somebody's way of act. Actually he was working in a library as a copying staff. He copies several things and feels easy to be copying. He was OK. However a tiny thing happened to him. A girl was down on the road because of stomachache. He was following an old guy on the road and the old guy ignored her and he did. He felt something unusual feelings and realized he was wrong. He went back to the place the girl was. It means he quit the copying. But she has gone and a library pass was left. A few days later, he met with her in the library. He hid ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/a-copy-life/11845495/ 2352-11845495 Wed, 24 Sep 2008 03:09:00 -0400 a copy life
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
an agent provocateur from an animal rights group infiltrates the closed world of an English village to close down the local guinea pig farm. But the locals aren't as docile as they appear ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/gods-wounds/11845494/ 2352-11845494 Wed, 08 Oct 2008 06:10:00 -0400 Gods Wounds
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
how to be a twitter power user! ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/how-to-be-a-twitter-power-user/11833503/ 2352-11833503 Wed, 08 Oct 2008 21:37:29 -0400 how to be a twitter power user!
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
McCain Loses It: Calls Americans ‘My Fellow Prisoners’ (via jedreport) ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/mccain-loses-it-calls-americans-my-fellow/11833502/ 2352-11833502 Wed, 08 Oct 2008 22:41:45 -0400 McCain Loses It: Calls Americans ‘My Fellow...
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
The ones who fuck, live better lives. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/five-fucking-fables/11830459/ 2352-11830459 Thu, 08 Nov 2007 07:11:00 -0500 Five Fucking Fables
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
I was looking to explore the subject of love and infatuation and thought it best to interview real people about their encounters to really capture the emotion of this very awkward early experience. Using their animal counterparts I looked to explore the humor and heartache of this right of passage, and make a film that made people reminisce about their own encounters. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/my-first-crush/11830458/ 2352-11830458 Mon, 28 Jul 2008 05:07:00 -0400 My First Crush
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
Cinema L'Amour is a short, character-driven documentary about one of the last and largest porn theatres in North America. Through exploring the theatre???s story we learn that historical movie palaces such as the Globe (now Cinema L???Amour) could not have survived had it not been for the rise of commercial pornography in the 1960s. Although theatrical pornography is now, itself in danger of extinction in the wake of the digital revolution, home video market, and the legalization of swinger???s clubs, it is the people who work at the theatre that keep the business alive. Joyce is the voice ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/cinema-lamour/11830457/ 2352-11830457 Thu, 31 Jul 2008 08:07:00 -0400 Cinema L'Amour
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
Legendary blacklisted Hollywood actress Marsha Hunt makes a stunning return to the screen in this haunting short film that writer-director Eddie Muller describes as a noir fairy tale, based on actual events. A young woman (Leah Dashe) discovers a cache of used books she believes hold clues to the solution of decades-old crimes. When authorities dismiss her, she takes matters into her own hands, ringing the doorbell of Hazel Reedy (Hunt) ? who may, or may not, be the widow of America?s most notorious un-apprehended serial killer. The cross-generational confrontation leads to an une ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/the-grand-inquisitor/11830456/ 2352-11830456 Tue, 05 Aug 2008 03:08:00 -0400 The Grand Inquisitor
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
i Love Trash is a documentary about dumpster diving. Two friends decide to do an experiment in trash. They rent an unfurnished apartment and arrive with only the clothes they are wearing and a flashlight. They decide not to buy any things for 3 months and instead to find all their needs in the trash. They furnish their apartment lavishly. They eat decadently. They dress sharp, and create beautiful art, all from the trash. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/i-love-trash/11830455/ 2352-11830455 Sat, 06 Sep 2008 14:09:00 -0400 i Love Trash
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
This is a mini doc/exp short film-poem about a day in Venice California. This film was shot in a single afternoon in March 07. I wrote the narration, recorded it, and cut picture in Sept 08. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/i-remember-venice-california/11830454/ 2352-11830454 Mon, 15 Sep 2008 10:09:00 -0400 I Remember Venice California
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
He is the world's most optimistic flower; however, wherever he goes, whomever he meets, he cannot escape being screwed by nature. Looking on the bright side of life has never been so hilariously dark. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/the-flower/11830453/ 2352-11830453 Sun, 21 Sep 2008 11:09:00 -0400 The Flower
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
An experimental documentary consisting of eight individuals' memories shaped into one life, into one singular human experience. Each person's memories are visualized using different mediums to mirror the emotional content of the memory. The mediums include animation, digital video, 8mm, and 35mm. The combination of the various mediums creates a visual collage, a visceral patchwork of human experience. We are taken on a journey from the womb, through the curious joys and occasional pains of childhood, through tumultuous experiences of adolescence, into the complex world of adulthood. The film a ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/memorium/11830452/ 2352-11830452 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:09:00 -0400 Memorium
From : Undergroundfilm > Most Watched
A short that mixes horror with comedy. Most of the actors were also crew members. Hope you enjoy. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/for-sale/11830451/ 2352-11830451 Sat, 27 Sep 2008 13:09:00 -0400 For Sale
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
It begins to rain metal over the city. Nobody knows exactly where it comes from, and neither scientists nor politicians are able to give a proper explanation about the strange phenomenon. While citizens are still waiting for an answer, they don't realize that they have already learned to live with the rain. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/la-pluja-rain/11829643/ 2352-11829643 Mon, 19 Nov 2007 06:11:00 -0500 LA PLUJA (rain)
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
"Porn Queens of the 70's", a verite style short about the tumultuous lives of porn stars, earned Danielle Stallings DGA recognition two years before "Boogie Nights" was produced. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/porn-queens-of-the-70s/11829642/ 2352-11829642 Wed, 12 Dec 2007 06:12:00 -0500 Porn Queens of the 70s
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
Lucky to be Somewhere is the first film produced by T Sizzle Productions. Directors Torin Simpson and Jeffrey Hamed teamed up to tell the story of a business man who gets by just fine in his crooked world. After a chance encounter with a seductress, he is thrust into an unlikely situation that lands him with a bag full of money and a trail of dust behind him. Chris is at the wrong place at the wrong time. Or, depending on how it turns out, the wrong place at the right time. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/lucky-to-be-somewhere/11829641/ 2352-11829641 Fri, 19 Sep 2008 13:09:00 -0400 Lucky to be Somewhere
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
When Chris comes home from a year away in seminary, challenged by ideas his provincial upbringing never revealed, he expects the comfortable assurances of home, and a warm reception from his fiancee Lynette. But Lynette has spent the year as a missionary in the third world, and has returned home harder and colder than she was before. Her father and his mother, the owners of neighboring farms, expect them to be married -- the same kind of perfect marriage their watermelon flowers and bees produce every summer. But Chris and Lynette must confront their own changed perspectives on the world to di ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/watermelon-honey/11829640/ 2352-11829640 Tue, 23 Sep 2008 13:09:00 -0400 Watermelon Honey
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
An experimental documentary consisting of eight individuals' memories shaped into one life, into one singular human experience. Each person's memories are visualized using different mediums to mirror the emotional content of the memory. The mediums include animation, digital video, 8mm, and 35mm. The combination of the various mediums creates a visual collage, a visceral patchwork of human experience. We are taken on a journey from the womb, through the curious joys and occasional pains of childhood, through tumultuous experiences of adolescence, into the complex world of adulthood. The film a ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/memorium/11829639/ 2352-11829639 Fri, 26 Sep 2008 03:09:00 -0400 Memorium
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
My short film 'Grimoire' was the result of 5 months of work for my final project while studying at Sheridan College in the Computer Animation program in 2007. Grimoire went on to be screened at the Official Toronto One Minute Video and Film Festival, the ShortsNonStop.com February film competition (winning first place for $1k), and the World Wide Short Film Festival. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/grimoire/11829638/ 2352-11829638 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 11:09:00 -0400 Grimoire
From : Undergroundfilm > Top Rated
The Day After Halloween, directed by Danny Plotnick, is a wistful tale of a little boy who refuses to take off his Halloween costume after the holiday is over, and goes about a day full of activities dressed as a ghost. The song by The Sippy Cups is featured on their latest iTunes EP One Day Soon, which includes five new tracks from everyone's favorite psychedelic rock band for kids. www.thesippycups.com ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/the-day-after-halloween/11829637/ 2352-11829637 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:10:00 -0400 The Day After Halloween
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
Six entertaining months, following independent hip hop icon Quanstar through his day to day journey toward his ultimate goal of achievement for himself not only as a performer and an artist, but as a father and a man. It takes on a very personal effect, filmed intimately and independently not only by the film?s co-producer but, at times, by Quanstar himself. ?Do It? is the best kind of film; spoken from the heart. Quanstar speaks to the camera as if you are right in front of him and bears his innermost thoughts in order to bring to light the true magnitude of what it means to be an inde ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/do-it-a-documentary/11826314/ 2352-11826314 Wed, 30 Apr 2008 12:04:00 -0400 Do It!: A Documentary
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
Unhinged is the story of a man on the edge, living in a world of regret for the person he has become and the lives he has affected. He has hurt everyone he has loved and his actions have changed them forever. A combination of overwhelming guilt he feels over the death of his daughter, the affair that caused her death and a lifeless marriage on the brink of failure are sending Richard Hailey on a mental and emotional roller coaster headed for disaster. Soon his sanity comes into question as he begins to wonder where it all went wrong. When all hope appears lost, things go from bad to worse when ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/unhinged/11826313/ 2352-11826313 Sun, 31 Aug 2008 04:08:00 -0400 UNHINGED
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
i Love Trash is a documentary about dumpster diving. Two friends decide to do an experiment in trash. They rent an unfurnished apartment and arrive with only the clothes they are wearing and a flashlight. They decide not to buy any things for 3 months and instead to find all their needs in the trash. They furnish their apartment lavishly. They eat decadently. They dress sharp, and create beautiful art, all from the trash. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/i-love-trash/11826312/ 2352-11826312 Sat, 06 Sep 2008 14:09:00 -0400 i Love Trash
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
Youths, Tashan and Cola, have followed young, drug dealer Vince into the tower block where Cola lives with his mum. Tashan has bones to pick with Vince: he suspects Vince is selling drugs to his cousin Clarice in return for sexual favours ??? in fact the case. When Vince exits Clarice's flat, Tashan confronts him in the corridor. They face off. Tashan misreads the signs and panics, stabbing Vince in the gut. Tashan and Cola run from the scene but stop in a stairwell as Tashan realises he needs a change of shirt and orders Cola to go pick one up from his place. Meanwhile Vince staggers ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/what-goes-around/11826311/ 2352-11826311 Mon, 08 Sep 2008 05:09:00 -0400 WHAT GOES AROUND...
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
A dark comedy that uses classic elements from masters such as Chaplin and Jaques Tati, as well as more "modern" techniques like stop-motion or zoom. The short is inteded to be listened with headphones. Hope you enjoy! ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/box/11826310/ 2352-11826310 Sat, 27 Sep 2008 12:09:00 -0400 Box
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
My short film 'Grimoire' was the result of 5 months of work for my final project while studying at Sheridan College in the Computer Animation program in 2007. Grimoire went on to be screened at the Official Toronto One Minute Video and Film Festival, the ShortsNonStop.com February film competition (winning first place for $1k), and the World Wide Short Film Festival. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/grimoire/11826309/ 2352-11826309 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 11:09:00 -0400 Grimoire
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
When the Sky is Falling is a music video for indie singer/songwriter Justin Catalino's song of the same name, on his album Welcome to Vacationland. The music video was a collaborative effort between Justin and animator Matt Kushner in which the two sought to construct a narrative that followed the lyrics of the song and lent itself to the medium of animation. ???When the Sky is Falling??? contains references to works such as Antoine de Saint Exupery's Petit Princeand Shel Silverstein's The Missing Piece, trying to incorporate these classic stories and hand-drawn artwork into our curr ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/when-the-sky-is-falling/11826308/ 2352-11826308 Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:10:00 -0400 When the Sky is Falling
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
While shooting something else, I shot some B-roll in Moscow--which is no small feat if your camera is bigger than a can of soda and they think you're with the BBC. It was an interesting place and I wanted to share my experience in a quick two and a half minutes. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/moscow-money-success-fame-glamour/11826307/ 2352-11826307 Sun, 05 Oct 2008 08:10:00 -0400 Moscow: Money, Success, Fame, Glamour
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
Nathan Evans, a young college student suffering from sleep deprivation, drives along a highway after finals. Stopping in a small town he discovers the towns people are mannequins. In an attempt to escape his nightmare Nathan runs into a residential house, to find a mannequin family. Breaking under the pressure Nathan loses control and smashes the family to pieces. Catching a glimpse of himself in a mirror, Nathan is shocked to discover not everything appears, as it seems. A non-stop thrill ride in the likes of the Twilight Zone, ?Still Life? takes the audience on an adventure through an eerie ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/still-life/11826306/ 2352-11826306 Mon, 06 Oct 2008 03:10:00 -0400 Still Life
From : Undergroundfilm > Recent Additions
The Day After Halloween, directed by Danny Plotnick, is a wistful tale of a little boy who refuses to take off his Halloween costume after the holiday is over, and goes about a day full of activities dressed as a ghost. The song by The Sippy Cups is featured on their latest iTunes EP One Day Soon, which includes five new tracks from everyone's favorite psychedelic rock band for kids. www.thesippycups.com ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/the-day-after-halloween/11826305/ 2352-11826305 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:10:00 -0400 The Day After Halloween
From : Media Matters for America
Gov. Sarah Palin's introduction onto the national stage has ignited scores of Alaska-based narratives and mini-controversies as reporters and voters scrambled to learn more about her political past. But has any other Palin issue produced the type of visceral response ignited by the revelation that while she was mayor of Wasilla, the town began charging rape victims or their insurance companies for costly emergency-room rape kits and post-assault examinations? The story remains woefully under-covered by the mainstream media, where most outlets have shied away from tackling the touchy topic as a straight news story about Palin's political past. But the issue continues to generate all kinds of discussion in the opinion pages and online. (AmericaBlog was among the first big-name liberal blogs to highlight the story.) The persistent buzz, I think, stems from the fact that the Wasilla story just seems so ... weird. What municipality would bill rape victims for traumatic post-assault forensic exams? And especially in Alaska, where the rape rate is twice the national average. And wouldn't charging the victims or their insurance companies (assuming the victims were insured) simply drive down the number of women who are willing to report sexual attacks? Having that story hover around Palin as she introduced herself to the American people could not have helped the Republican ticket. And I suspect that's why the conservative press and right-wing bloggers have tried so hard to knock the story down, why they have been so quick to condemn journalists who dared report the rape-kit story as being unethical and biased. But facts are not a fungible commodity. And the hurdle the GOP press simply cannot clear in its debunking effort is that the policy did exist while Palin was mayor. Boxed in by the obvious, overeager bloggers instead claim Palin didn't "support" or even know about the policy and that Palin did not personally bill the victims herself. (Strawman alert: Nobody ever suggested Palin went around knocking on doors demanding payments.) Sadly for Palin partisans, they got schooled on the Wasilla specifics by a 20-year-old blogger and junior at George Washington University who did what so many on the right can't quite pull off: fact-based reporting. He proved without a doubt that Palin, as mayor, signed off on the initiative that forced rape victims or their insurance companies to foot the bill for the post-assault exam kits. It's important to highlight the deficiencies of the so-called debunking of the rape-kit story so that reporters don't continue to ignore the issue, which raises questions about Palin's leadership. So they don't take seriously the conservative claims that the story has been proven a "lie," a "smear," a "myth," and a "bunch of baloney." The loud pronouncements by the right have become almost a cult-like mantra online, and they seem to be effectively scaring the press off the story. For instance, The Washington Post has never written about the rape-kit story in its news pages, according to a search of Nexis, nor has The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, the New York Daily News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Baltimore Sun, The Boston Globe, Newsweek, or Time. Credit goes to USA Today for treating the issue seriously, while CNN.com posted a detailed investigation. And on the air, CNN seems to have reported more on the issue than its cable competitors, which isn't saying much, since its competitors have virtually ignored the story. As for the news networks, there's been a blackout on the rape-kit story. Journalists ought to be reporting the story and asking Palin to give detailed, unambiguous answers, since the rape-kit issue could offer some insights into how she governs. Instead, the press has treated the story as something of a taboo. And the loud, bogus claims about it being "debunked" likely add to its untouchable status. Trust me, nothing has been debunked. "No truth to the rape kit lie. Doesn't really matter. They just make the shit up," wrote conservative blogger Atlas Shrugs, blind to the irony of making shit up while accusing others of making shit up. The blogger was in search of a "retraction" from the media, which "deliberately obfuscates and lies by omission." Again, irony alert: Somebody deliberately obfuscating the facts of the rape-kit story? That would be Atlas Shrugs. Writing at National Review Online, Jim Geraghty, setting out to "debunk" the story, claimed that "liberal bloggers have cited the story of Wasilla charging victims for rape kits as evidence that as mayor, Sarah Palin backed cruel and insensitive policies. But just about everything we know from initial accounts of this controversy is wrong." Indeed, according to NRO, the rape-kit stories online and in the press represented "crimes on truth." That's almost too silly for words. (Click here for a paragraph-by-paragraph evisceration of Geraghty's rape-kit spin; and by a gossip website, Jezebel, no less.) The "initial accounts" of the controversy were quite straightforward: Wasilla once had a policy on the books -- publicly supported by Palin's hand-picked police chief -- that it would charge rape victims or their insurers to collect evidence of sexual assaults. (Or to be more precise, the town would no longer pay for the fees out of its own budget and would seek reimbursements.) And while that policy was in effect, Palin was mayor, and Palin approved the town budget. In 2000, though, that practice was deemed so offensive that the Republican-leaning Alaska Legislature stepped in and quickly passed a law so that towns like Wasilla could not charge victims. And guess what? That's all still true. (Where exactly do the "crimes of truth" come in to view?) Geraghty didn't even try to disprove it. Instead, he got lost in the weeds reading minutes from legislative hearings and became wildly impressed that the town of Wasilla never came up in the hearings and that Wasilla wasn't the only town in Alaska to charge for rape kits. That somehow led him to the conclusion that bloggers and the Obama campaign owed Palin "an apology." Why? Because Wasilla, Geraghty stressed, was not the only town in Alaska that adopted the rape-kit policy. But so what? I mean that literally: So what if Wasilla wasn't the only town that adopted the rape-test policy? The argument represented another straw-man effort, so not surprisingly, conservative media critics at NewsBusters embraced it as well. Throwing a temper tantrum after a Boston Globe editorial raised the same rape-kit question that everybody else was asking (i.e. "Why?"), one NewsBusters writer complained, "It is absolutely untrue that the town of Wasilla was the one town that caused the Alaska Legislature to ban the fees in question." That's all well and good, but the Globe never claimed Wasilla was the "one town" that adopted the rape kit policy. (Why would the Globe even care if Wasilla was the "one town"? It's irrelevant.) Fact: Wasilla is the "one town" that adopted the rape-kit policy whose former mayor is currently running for vice president. That's what made it a legitimate news story; that's why it's deserves far more focus than the fleeting mainstream media attention it's received so far. Other so-called proof used to "debunk" the story was equally lame. Confederate Yankee, a popular GOP site that took a lead role in the pushback, pointed to a statement recently released by Palin in response to a 14-point questionnaire submitted by her hometown newspaper. One of the questions asked about the rape-kit story: The entire notion of making a victim of a crime pay for anything is crazy. I do not believe, nor have I ever believed, that rape victims should have to pay for an evidence-gathering test. As governor, I worked in a variety of ways to tackle the problem of sexual assault and rape, including making domestic violence a priority of my administration. That's what's commonly referred to as a non-denial denial; Palin said the idea was "crazy," but she never addressed the newspaper's very specific question: "During your tenure as Mayor, what was the police department and city's standard operating procedure in recovering costs of rape kits?" Palin avoided a direct response to the direct question in favor of commenting on the "notion" at hand. But for Confederate Yankee and many other conservatives, Palin's elusive denial about a plainly embarrassing policy her town adopted was all the proof they needed that the rape-kit story was false. Palin said so! Please note that as part of the same newspaper questionnaire, Palin continued to insist that she had put an end to the so-called "Bridge to Nowhere" ("I cancelled the project"), despite the fact that numerous news and independent fact-checking organizations have pointed out Palin's bridge claim is patently false. Knowing that her "Bridge to Nowhere" questionnaire answer was not truthful, why should her vague denial regarding the rape-kit story carry real weight? But the bloggers had more proof the rape-kit story was a smear: Wasilla town officials, including current police chief Angella Long, recently announced that they could not find any records of the police department ever billing a rape victim for a post-assault test. And with that, Confederate Yankee announced, "If current Police Chief Long's information is correct, then Mayor Palin didn't know that rape victims were charged for rape kits, because none were." Two holes in that logic are plainly apparent. First, local hospitals administered the post-assault examinations, which means hospitals likely generated the bills sent to the victims or their insurance companies, not the town of Wasilla. But it was the town of Wasilla that set the policy instructing the hospital to bill the victim. (And naturally, the hospital/patient records in question remain confidential.) So the fact that the town can't find any collection records is not surprising since the hospital did the collecting. In other words, for years, the local hospital billed the Wasilla police department when it brought in a rape victim to be tested. After the town adopted a new policy, the Wasilla police instructed the hospital to bill the victim or her insurance company instead. But secondly and more important, whether the town actually billed anyone during the relatively short time the policy was in place was secondary to the fact that the policy was instituted while Palin was mayor. Or was the very small town of Wasilla in the habit of adopting budgetary policies without the mayor's consent, and Palin in the habit of signing off on city budget initiatives she disapproved of? Based on the annual budget documents she signed off on, Palin either consented to the policy or signed documents she hadn't bothered to read -- both issues that should get the media's attention. Oh, yeah: A third point regarding the claim that the town never billed anyone. Here's what Palin's hand-picked police chief told a reporter for the local newspaper, the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, in 2000 after the state outlawed the practice of billing victims for rape kits: "In the past, we've charged the cost of the exams to the victim's insurance company when possible" [emphasis added]. Yes, you read that correctly. Palin's own police chief freely discussed how the town of Wasilla had charged "the victim's insurance company" for the post-assault exam. (He opposed the new state law that forced Wasilla to stop.) So how did Confederate Yankee deal with the large blemish on the rape-kit-story-is-a-smear meme? Easy: He ignored it. In his September 22 post "debunking" the controversy, the blogger made no mention of the damning Frontiersman article. The NewsBusters writer took the same route when he harangued The Boston Globe on October 2 for its rape-kit editorial. The article that quoted Palin's police chief, in real time, acknowledging that the town had charged victims' insurance companies and that he was disappointed the town could not continue to do so was completely ignored in order to sustain the right-wing claim that the rape-kit story had been completely concocted. See how much easier it is to be indignant when facts are ignored? And yes, the police chief's 2000 quote remains an enormous obstacle for conservatives who desperately want to debunk the Wasilla story. Not surprisingly, some have even raised doubts about the police chief's quote in the Frontiersman. But ask yourself this: If the police chief's comments in 2000 had been some kind of massive misunderstanding and were being foolishly used to fuel the current rape-kit story, wouldn't the former police chief clear the matter up? Wouldn't Palin be able to persuade her former police chief to come forward and explain to the press how his comments in the Frontiersman in 2000 were completely taken out of context and that no, of course not, Wasilla never charged the insurance companies of rape victims when Palin was mayor? Instead, we've heard radio silence from the former police chief, who seems to have no interest in walking back his rape-kit comments from 2000, comments that frustrated bloggers just cannot make disappear. Stuck with a public statement that leaves no room for ambiguity ("We've charged the cost of the exams to the victim's insurance company when possible"), bloggers clung to the idea that Palin should not be tarred by the rape-kit policy because she had been completely in the dark about it as mayor. "She never supported" the policy, claimed Amanda Carpenter, a national political reporter for Townhall.com. "There's no evidence Mayor Palin knew about the policy," agreed an outraged Boston Herald columnist. "There is not yet any evidence generated that Palin was aware of this policy," announced NRO. "She wasn't even aware it was going on," stressed the NewsBusters writer. Set aside the oddity of Palin's press supporters pushing her candidacy by emphasizing that she apparently had no idea what the town of Wasilla was doing in her name, and focus on this: Unless Palin had no idea what was going on in her own city government and unless she signed budget documents without actually reading them, the claim is plainly false. And that's where conservatives got schooled by a GW junior named Jacob Alperin-Sheriff. Writing for The Huffington Post's Off The Bus, and crossposting at Daily Kos, Alperin-Sheriff posted by far the most specific and factual analysis of the rape-kit story in terms of Palin's role as mayor and the final say she had over the budget. Combing through Wasilla's budgetary documents, which are posted online, Alperin-Sheriff showed that Palin had clearly signed off on a fiscal-year budget that reduced by three-quarters the amount of money the town set aside annually for rape-kit costs and that the rape-kit reduction was spelled out before the fiscal-year 2000 budget was approved by Mayor Sarah Palin on April 26, 1999. This week's bottom line: No matter how many times partisans in the GOP press announce the Palin rape-kit story has been "debunked," the central, undisputed facts remain hidden in plain sight for all to see. It's time for the press to take a closer look. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/boehlert-memo-to-media-the-palin-rape-kit-story-has-not-been-debunked/11815637/ 2352-11815637 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 12:58:36 -0400 Boehlert: Memo to media: The Palin rape-kit story has not been "debunked"
From : Media Matters for America
Gov. Sarah Palin's introduction onto the national stage has ignited scores of Alaska-based narratives and mini-controversies as reporters and voters scrambled to learn more about her political past. But has any other Palin issue produced the type of visceral response ignited by the revelation that while she was mayor of Wasilla, the town began charging rape victims or their insurance companies for costly emergency-room rape kits and post-assault examinations? The story remains woefully under-covered by the mainstream media, where most outlets have shied away from tackling the touchy topic as a straight news story about Palin's political past. But the issue continues to generate all kinds of discussion in the opinion pages and online. (AmericaBlog was among the first big-name liberal blogs to highlight the story.) The persistent buzz, I think, stems from the fact that the Wasilla story just seems so ... weird. What municipality would bill rape victims for traumatic post-assault forensic exams? And especially in Alaska, where the rape rate is twice the national average. And wouldn't charging the victims or their insurance companies (assuming the victims were insured) simply drive down the number of women who are willing to report sexual attacks? Having that story hover around Palin as she introduced herself to the American people could not have helped the Republican ticket. And I suspect that's why the conservative press and right-wing bloggers have tried so hard to knock the story down, why they have been so quick to condemn journalists who dared report the rape-kit story as being unethical and biased. But facts are not a fungible commodity. And the hurdle the GOP press simply cannot clear in its debunking effort is that the policy did exist while Palin was mayor. Boxed in by the obvious, overeager bloggers instead claim Palin didn't "support" or even know about the policy and that Palin did not personally bill the victims herself. (Strawman alert: Nobody ever suggested Palin went around knocking on doors demanding payments.) Sadly for Palin partisans, they got schooled on the Wasilla specifics by a 20-year-old blogger and junior at George Washington University who did what so many on the right can't quite pull off: fact-based reporting. He proved without a doubt that Palin, as mayor, signed off on the initiative that forced rape victims or their insurance companies to foot the bill for the post-assault exam kits. It's important to highlight the deficiencies of the so-called debunking of the rape-kit story so that reporters don't continue to ignore the issue, which raises questions about Palin's leadership. So they don't take seriously the conservative claims that the story has been proven a "lie," a "smear," a "myth," and a "bunch of baloney." The loud pronouncements by the right have become almost a cult-like mantra online, and they seem to be effectively scaring the press off the story. For instance, The Washington Post has never written about the rape-kit story in its news pages, according to a search of Nexis, nor has The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, the New York Daily News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Baltimore Sun, The Boston Globe, Newsweek, or Time. Credit goes to USA Today for treating the issue seriously, while CNN.com posted a detailed investigation. And on the air, CNN seems to have reported more on the issue than its cable competitors, which isn't saying much, since its competitors have virtually ignored the story. As for the news networks, there's been a blackout on the rape-kit story. Journalists ought to be reporting the story and asking Palin to give detailed, unambiguous answers, since the rape-kit issue could offer some insights into how she governs. Instead, the press has treated the story as something of a taboo. And the loud, bogus claims about it being "debunked" likely add to its untouchable status. Trust me, nothing has been debunked. "No truth to the rape kit lie. Doesn't really matter. They just make the shit up," wrote conservative blogger Atlas Shrugs, blind to the irony of making shit up while accusing others of making shit up. The blogger was in search of a "retraction" from the media, which "deliberately obfuscates and lies by omission." Again, irony alert: Somebody deliberately obfuscating the facts of the rape-kit story? That would be Atlas Shrugs. Writing at National Review Online, Jim Geraghty, setting out to "debunk" the story, claimed that "liberal bloggers have cited the story of Wasilla charging victims for rape kits as evidence that as mayor, Sarah Palin backed cruel and insensitive policies. But just about everything we know from initial accounts of this controversy is wrong." Indeed, according to NRO, the rape-kit stories online and in the press represented "crimes on truth." That's almost too silly for words. (Click here for a paragraph-by-paragraph evisceration of Geraghty's rape-kit spin; and by a gossip website, Jezebel, no less.) The "initial accounts" of the controversy were quite straightforward: Wasilla once had a policy on the books -- publicly supported by Palin's hand-picked police chief -- that it would charge rape victims or their insurers to collect evidence of sexual assaults. (Or to be more precise, the town would no longer pay for the fees out of its own budget and would seek reimbursements.) And while that policy was in effect, Palin was mayor, and Palin approved the town budget. In 2000, though, that practice was deemed so offensive that the Republican-leaning Alaska Legislature stepped in and quickly passed a law so that towns like Wasilla could not charge victims. And guess what? That's all still true. (Where exactly do the "crimes of truth" come in to view?) Geraghty didn't even try to disprove it. Instead, he got lost in the weeds reading minutes from legislative hearings and became wildly impressed that the town of Wasilla never came up in the hearings and that Wasilla wasn't the only town in Alaska to charge for rape kits. That somehow led him to the conclusion that bloggers and the Obama campaign owed Palin "an apology." Why? Because Wasilla, Geraghty stressed, was not the only town in Alaska that adopted the rape-kit policy. But so what? I mean that literally: So what if Wasilla wasn't the only town that adopted the rape-test policy? The argument represented another straw-man effort, so not surprisingly, conservative media critics at NewsBusters embraced it as well. Throwing a temper tantrum after a Boston Globe editorial raised the same rape-kit question that everybody else was asking (i.e. "Why?"), one NewsBusters writer complained, "It is absolutely untrue that the town of Wasilla was the one town that caused the Alaska Legislature to ban the fees in question." That's all well and good, but the Globe never claimed Wasilla was the "one town" that adopted the rape kit policy. (Why would the Globe even care if Wasilla was the "one town"? It's irrelevant.) Fact: Wasilla is the "one town" that adopted the rape-kit policy whose former mayor is currently running for vice president. That's what made it a legitimate news story; that's why it's deserves far more focus than the fleeting mainstream media attention it's received so far. Other so-called proof used to "debunk" the story was equally lame. Confederate Yankee, a popular GOP site that took a lead role in the pushback, pointed to a statement recently released by Palin in response to a 14-point questionnaire submitted by her hometown newspaper. One of the questions asked about the rape-kit story: The entire notion of making a victim of a crime pay for anything is crazy. I do not believe, nor have I ever believed, that rape victims should have to pay for an evidence-gathering test. As governor, I worked in a variety of ways to tackle the problem of sexual assault and rape, including making domestic violence a priority of my administration. That's what's commonly referred to as a non-denial denial; Palin said the idea was "crazy," but she never addressed the newspaper's very specific question: "During your tenure as Mayor, what was the police department and city's standard operating procedure in recovering costs of rape kits?" Palin avoided a direct response to the direct question in favor of commenting on the "notion" at hand. But for Confederate Yankee and many other conservatives, Palin's elusive denial about a plainly embarrassing policy her town adopted was all the proof they needed that the rape-kit story was false. Palin said so! Please note that as part of the same newspaper questionnaire, Palin continued to insist that she had put an end to the so-called "Bridge to Nowhere" ("I cancelled the project"), despite the fact that numerous news and independent fact-checking organizations have pointed out Palin's bridge claim is patently false. Knowing that her "Bridge to Nowhere" questionnaire answer was not truthful, why should her vague denial regarding the rape-kit story carry real weight? But the bloggers had more proof the rape-kit story was a smear: Wasilla town officials, including current police chief Angella Long, recently announced that they could not find any records of the police department ever billing a rape victim for a post-assault test. And with that, Confederate Yankee announced, "If current Police Chief Long's information is correct, then Mayor Palin didn't know that rape victims were charged for rape kits, because none were." Two holes in that logic are plainly apparent. First, local hospitals administered the post-assault examinations, which means hospitals likely generated the bills sent to the victims or their insurance companies, not the town of Wasilla. But it was the town of Wasilla that set the policy instructing the hospital to bill the victim. (And naturally, the hospital/patient records in question remain confidential.) So the fact that the town can't find any collection records is not surprising since the hospital did the collecting. In other words, for years, the local hospital billed the Wasilla police department when it brought in a rape victim to be tested. After the town adopted a new policy, the Wasilla police instructed the hospital to bill the victim or her insurance company instead. But secondly and more important, whether the town actually billed anyone during the relatively short time the policy was in place was secondary to the fact that the policy was instituted while Palin was mayor. Or was the very small town of Wasilla in the habit of adopting budgetary policies without the mayor's consent, and Palin in the habit of signing off on city budget initiatives she disapproved of? Based on the annual budget documents she signed off on, Palin either consented to the policy or signed documents she hadn't bothered to read -- both issues that should get the media's attention. Oh, yeah: A third point regarding the claim that the town never billed anyone. Here's what Palin's hand-picked police chief told a reporter for the local newspaper, the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, in 2000 after the state outlawed the practice of billing victims for rape kits: "In the past, we've charged the cost of the exams to the victim's insurance company when possible" [emphasis added]. Yes, you read that correctly. Palin's own police chief freely discussed how the town of Wasilla had charged "the victim's insurance company" for the post-assault exam. (He opposed the new state law that forced Wasilla to stop.) So how did Confederate Yankee deal with the large blemish on the rape-kit-story-is-a-smear meme? Easy: He ignored it. In his September 22 post "debunking" the controversy, the blogger made no mention of the damning Frontiersman article. The NewsBusters writer took the same route when he harangued The Boston Globe on October 2 for its rape-kit editorial. The article that quoted Palin's police chief, in real time, acknowledging that the town had charged victims' insurance companies and that he was disappointed the town could not continue to do so was completely ignored in order to sustain the right-wing claim that the rape-kit story had been completely concocted. See how much easier it is to be indignant when facts are ignored? And yes, the police chief's 2000 quote remains an enormous obstacle for conservatives who desperately want to debunk the Wasilla story. Not surprisingly, some have even raised doubts about the police chief's quote in the Frontiersman. But ask yourself this: If the police chief's comments in 2000 had been some kind of massive misunderstanding and were being foolishly used to fuel the current rape-kit story, wouldn't the former police chief clear the matter up? Wouldn't Palin be able to persuade her former police chief to come forward and explain to the press how his comments in the Frontiersman in 2000 were completely taken out of context and that no, of course not, Wasilla never charged the insurance companies of rape victims when Palin was mayor? Instead, we've heard radio silence from the former police chief, who seems to have no interest in walking back his rape-kit comments from 2000, comments that frustrated bloggers just cannot make disappear. Stuck with a public statement that leaves no room for ambiguity ("We've charged the cost of the exams to the victim's insurance company when possible"), bloggers clung to the idea that Palin should not be tarred by the rape-kit policy because she had been completely in the dark about it as mayor. "She never supported" the policy, claimed Amanda Carpenter, a national political reporter for Townhall.com. "There's no evidence Mayor Palin knew about the policy," agreed an outraged Boston Herald columnist. "There is not yet any evidence generated that Palin was aware of this policy," announced NRO. "She wasn't even aware it was going on," stressed the NewsBusters writer. Set aside the oddity of Palin's press supporters pushing her candidacy by emphasizing that she apparently had no idea what the town of Wasilla was doing in her name, and focus on this: Unless Palin had no idea what was going on in her own city government and unless she signed budget documents without actually reading them, the claim is plainly false. And that's where conservatives got schooled by a GW junior named Jacob Alperin-Sheriff. Writing for The Huffington Post's Off The Bus, and crossposting at Daily Kos, Alperin-Sheriff posted by far the most specific and factual analysis of the rape-kit story in terms of Palin's role as mayor and the final say she had over the budget. Combing through Wasilla's budgetary documents, which are posted online, Alperin-Sheriff showed that Palin had clearly signed off on a fiscal-year budget that reduced by three-quarters the amount of money the town set aside annually for rape-kit costs and that the rape-kit reduction was spelled out before the fiscal-year 2000 budget was approved by Mayor Sarah Palin on April 26, 1999. This week's bottom line: No matter how many times partisans in the GOP press announce the Palin rape-kit story has been "debunked," the central, undisputed facts remain hidden in plain sight for all to see. It's time for the press to take a closer look. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/boehlert-memo-to-media-the-palin-rape-kit-story-has-not-been-debunked/11815638/ 2352-11815638 Tue, 07 Oct 2008 12:58:36 -0400 Boehlert: Memo to media: The Palin rape-kit story has not been "debunked"
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
KEATING ECONOMICS: John McCain & The Making of a Financial Crisis (via BarackObamadotcom) ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/keating-economics-john-mccain-the-making-of-a-financial/11815616/ 2352-11815616 Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:29:29 -0400 KEATING ECONOMICS: John McCain & The Making of a Financial...
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
fight for your right, indie music fest, creative commons ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/fight-for-your-right-indie-music-fest-creative-commons/11781774/ 2352-11781774 Sat, 04 Oct 2008 04:36:04 -0400 fight for your right, indie music fest, creative commons
From : Media Matters for America
In a September 29 article, the New York Post reported that "Barack Obama apparently broke his promise to the family of a fallen Wisconsin soldier when he mentioned the slain sergeant's name in his Friday debate with Sen. John McCain." The article added that "Brian Jopek, the father of the late Ryan David Jopek, told National Public Radio in March that the family asked Obama to stop wearing his son's bracelet, but the Illinois senator continued to do so." However, the Post provided no evidence that Obama ever "promise[d]" the Jopek family that he would "stop wearing" Ryan Jopek's bracelet. In fact, during the March 20 interview with Wisconsin Public Radio, Brian Jopek made no such claim. Further, according to the Associated Press, "After Tracy Jopek gave Sen. Barack Obama a bracelet in honor of her son who was killed in Iraq," she "e-mailed the Obama campaign through its Web site asking that he not mention it during debates or speeches" but "never got a reply." Moreover, the Post did not mention until the eighth paragraph that Tracy Jopek and her daughter -- Ryan's sister -- were reportedly not upset over Obama's mention of Ryan Jopek's bracelet: "Tracy, who has been divorced from [Brian] Jopek for six years, said Obama's mention of her son in the debate was OK because he was responding to McCain, who first brought up that he was wearing a soldier's 'hero bracelet.' Tracy, who backs Obama, said she was 'ecstatic' that the Illinois senator had used her son's name and did not believe he was doing so for political purposes." During the September 26 debate, McCain asserted that in August 2007 at "a town hall meeting in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, ... a woman stood up and she said, 'Senator McCain, I want you to do me the honor of wearing a bracelet with my son's name on it.' ... And then she said, 'But, Senator McCain, I want you to do everything -- promise me one thing, that you'll do everything in your power to make sure that my son's death was not in vain.' " McCain added: "That means that that mission succeeds, just like those young people who re-enlisted in Baghdad, just like the mother I met at the airport the other day whose son was killed. And they all say to me that we don't want defeat." In response, Obama stated: I've got a bracelet, too, from Sergeant -- from the mother of Sergeant Ryan David Jopek, given to me in Green Bay. She asked me, can you please make sure another mother is not going through what I'm going through. No U.S. soldier ever dies in vain because they're carrying out the missions of their commander in chief. And we honor all the service that they've provided. Our troops have performed brilliantly. The question is for the next president, are we making good judgments about how to keep America safe precisely because sending our military into battle is such an enormous step. The AP reported on September 28 that Tracy Jopek "gave Obama the bracelet at a Green Bay rally in February." But a "few days" later, she "had a change of heart" and "realized it could be interpreted as a protest against the war, a statement that made her uncomfortable because other military families who suffered losses still supported the conflict." The article added: "So she e-mailed the Obama campaign through its Web site asking that he not mention it during debates or speeches. She never got a reply but said she didn't hear of him mentioning it after that -- until Friday, when Obama and Republican Sen. John McCain appeared in their first debate." The AP reported further: "Obama's comment sparked a number of angry comments from bloggers who suggested Obama was exploiting her son's death to score political points. Jopek said those bloggers might have heard comments that her son's father made on Wisconsin Public Radio on March 20." During the interview, Brian Jopek, who is a staff sergeant in the National Guard, reportedly claimed that "his ex-wife asked Obama not to wear the bracelet at any further public appearances. But Obama was still apparently wearing it, he said." However, according to the AP, "Tracy Jopek said she didn't hear the interview but that her ex-husband, who is currently stationed in Cuba, mischaracterized her viewpoint.' ... I think he knew my intention, he understands it was a gesture between me and Sen. Obama,' she said. 'It was just little piece of peace for us. I don't understand how people can take that and turn it into some garbage on the Internet.' " Also, the subhead of the Post article read "GI's Kin Irked Over Bracelet." But other than citing Brian Jopek's March 20 remarks, the article provided no evidence that Jopek family members had been "irked" by Obama's mention of Ryan Jopek. Indeed, the Post reported that Brian "Jopek could not be reached for comment. His stepdaughter, Morgan, said he is with the military in Cuba," and cited Tracey and Jessica Jopek's support of Obama's actions. From the September 29 New York Post article, headlined "Bam's Bangle Bungle: GI's Kin Irked Over Bracelet": Barack Obama apparently broke his promise to the family of a fallen Wisconsin soldier when he mentioned the slain sergeant's name in his Friday debate with John McCain. Brian Jopek, the father of the late Ryan David Jopek, told National Public Radio in March that the family asked Obama to stop wearing his son's bracelet, but the Illinois senator continued to do so. Jopek said his ex-wife, Tracy, was upset that Obama had made her son's death a campaign issue. In the March 20 NPR interview, Jopek, who lives in Madison, said his ex-wife had e-mailed Obama, asking him not to wear the bracelet. "She has turned down any subsequent interviews with the media because she just didn't want it to get turned into something that it wasn't. She had told me in an e-mail that she had asked, actually asked Mr. Obama to not wear the bracelet any more at any of his public appearances," he said. "But, the other night, I was watching the news, and he was on, uh, speaking somewhere, and he was still wearing it on his right wrist. I could see it on his right wrist. So . . . that's a choice that he continues to wear it despite Tracy asking him not to." Jopek could not be reached for comment. His stepdaughter, Morgan, said he is with the military in Cuba. But Tracy, who has been divorced from Jopek for six years, said Obama's mention of her son in the debate was OK because he was responding to McCain, who first brought up that he was wearing a soldier's "hero bracelet." Tracy, who backs Obama, said she was "ecstatic" that the Illinois senator had used her son's name and did not believe he was doing so for political purposes. Her daughter, Jessica, who is Ryan's sister, told The Post: "When Obama used it after McCain mentioned it, that was fine. We're very happy with his response. It was the perfect response." ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/ny-post-baselessly-claimed-that-obama-broke-his-promise-to-military-family-when-he-mentioned-soldier/11763535/ 2352-11763535 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 19:03:25 -0400 NY Post baselessly claimed that Obama "broke his promise" to military family "when he mentioned" soldier's name during debate
From : Media Matters for America
On the October 1 edition of Fox News' America's Newsroom, host Megyn Kelly falsely suggested it was publicly revealed that PBS senior correspondent Gwen Ifill is the author of the forthcoming book, The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama (Doubleday), only after it was announced she would moderate the October 2 vice presidential debate. Kelly said: "Critics are asking how Ifill can pen such a glowing review of Senator [Barack] Obama and still be fair during this debate. Ifill has gone public recently talking about the book and how the path to influence has changed for African-Americans." In fact, media outlets, including the Associated Press, reported that Ifill was the book's author well before the August 21 announcement that she would moderate the debate. Additionally, following an October 1 post on her blog, in which she asserted that "full disclosure to both [candidates] was necessary," Fox News host Greta Van Susteren wrote in a second post that day: I confirmed for us here on GretaWire: the McCain campaign did NOT know about Gwen Ifill's book (I think I told them when I made my efforts -- emails about midnight -- to find out!) I am stunned ... the campaign (actually both) should have been told before the campaign agreed to have her moderate. It simply is not fair -- in law, this would create a mistrial [emphasis in original]. However, in addition to ignoring the AP report citing Ifill's book, published on July 21, Van Susteren did not note in either blog post that a September 4 Washington Post profile of Ifill also mentioned that she was working on The Breakthrough. In an October 1 post on his Politico blog, Michael Calderone wrote of the Post article: "Ifill discussed it [the book] with Howard Kurtz last month in the Washington Post, in the only profile she's done before the debate. (And I'd imagine someone in the campaign should have read it)." Ifill's role as moderator of the October 2 vice presidential debate was announced in an August 21 joint statement from the Obama and McCain campaigns, which is posted on the McCain-Palin website: The two campaigns agreed today on a framework for four General Election debates, to be sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates. Key elements of the agreement are: [...] 2. Vice Presidential Debate - Date: October 2nd - Site: Washington University (St. Louis) - Moderator: Gwen Ifill - Staging/Answer Format: To be resolved after both parties' Vice Presidential nominees are selected. Prior to the joint announcement of the debate schedule and format, the July 21 AP article -- which is also posted on FoxNews.com -- identified Ifill as "author of 'The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama,' slated for publication early next year." Additionally, in a May 8 interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer -- portions of which were also quoted in a May 13 article in The Republican of Springfield, Massachusetts -- Ifill discussed the book*: Q: What do you do when you're not reporting or moderating? A: Well, I am working on this book now, which is frankly taking almost all of my waking hours when I'm not at work. The book is about an emerging generation of black politicians - in fact, when I'm in town, I'll probably talk to your mayor - including focusing on Barack Obama and [Massachusetts Gov.] Deval Patrick and [Newark, N.J., Mayor] Corey Booker - and trying to talk about what we see happening here, and I think there is something fundamental shifting here, which is shifting before our eyes, that goes beyond Barack Obama. It's my first book, so it's terrifying. But when I'm not working all the time, I'm playing with my godchildren and going to movies and doing things normal people do. Below is a Doubleday description of Ifill's book: In THE BREAKTHROUGH, veteran journalist Gwen Ifill surveys the American political landscape, shedding new light on the impact of Barack Obama's stunning presidential campaign and introducing the emerging young African American politicians forging a bold new path to political power. Ifill argues that the Black political structure formed during the Civil Rights movement is giving way to a generation of men and women who are the direct beneficiaries of the struggles of the 1960s. She offers incisive, detailed profiles of such prominent leaders as Newark Mayor Cory Booker, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, and U.S. Congressman Artur Davis of Alabama, and also covers up-and-coming figures from across the nation. Drawing on interviews with power brokers like Senator Obama, former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Vernon Jordan, the Reverend Jesse Jackson, and many others, as well as her own razor-sharp observations and analysis of such issues as generational conflict and the "black enough" conundrum, Ifill shows why this is a pivotal moment in American history. THE BREAKTHROUGH is a remarkable look at contemporary politics and an essential foundation for understanding the future of American democracy. From the October 1 edition of Fox News' America's Newsroom: KELLY: Also, this developing story from the campaign trail this morning: The moderator for tomorrow night's vice presidential debate is now under fire for a book she has written that's set to hit bookstores on January 20, which just happens to be Inauguration Day. PBS' Gwen Ifill, writing a book called, The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama. It focuses on Obama and other emerging African-American leaders. Critics are asking how Ifill can pen such a glowing review of Senator Obama and still be fair during this debate. Ifill has gone public recently talking about the book and how the path to influence has changed for African-Americans. IFILL [video clip]: The title of the book is The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama. It's taking the story of Barack Obama and extending it to talk about a whole new generation of black politicians who are doing very similar things in very different ways. They're younger, they're more likely to get to power not by marching in marches, the way their parents did, or by leading protests. They have decided to do it by getting educations; basically walking through the doors that their parents opened, then choosing public service in a different way. KELLY: Well, the official promo for the book calls Senator Obama a "power broker," calls his campaign "stunning," and says this is a "pivotal moment in American history." Fox News contributor Juan Williams knows Gwen Ifill well, and he will join us live on this developing story, which is picking up a lot of heat, in our next hour. * Text added to include the original May 8 Inquirer interview. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/fox-news-kelly-falsely-suggested-ifills-book-about-obama-was-made-public-only-after-she-was-announce/11763534/ 2352-11763534 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 15:19:16 -0400 Fox News' Kelly falsely suggested Ifill's book about Obama was made "public" only after she was announced as debate moderator
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: performance by young people we worked with. created what a new Belfast flag might look like. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-performance-by-young-people-we-worked-with-created/11742216/ 2352-11742216 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:15 -0400 Belfast: performance by young people we worked with. created...
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: performance by young people we worked with. created what a new Belfast flag might look like. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-performance-by-young-people-we-worked-with-created/11742215/ 2352-11742215 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:18 -0400 Belfast: performance by young people we worked with. created...
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: performance by young people we worked with. created what a new Belfast flag might look like. ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-performance-by-young-people-we-worked-with-created/11742214/ 2352-11742214 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:26 -0400 Belfast: performance by young people we worked with. created...
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: noose ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-noose/11742212/ 2352-11742212 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:29 -0400 Belfast: noose
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prisoners ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prisoners/11742211/ 2352-11742211 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:32 -0400 Belfast: prisoners
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: through broken window ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-through-broken-window/11742210/ 2352-11742210 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:35 -0400 Belfast: through broken window
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742209/ 2352-11742209 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:38 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742208/ 2352-11742208 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:42 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742207/ 2352-11742207 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:46 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742206/ 2352-11742206 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:49 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison markings ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison-markings/11742205/ 2352-11742205 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:53 -0400 Belfast: prison markings
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison grave ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison-grave/11742204/ 2352-11742204 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:18:56 -0400 Belfast: prison grave
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison grave ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison-grave/11742203/ 2352-11742203 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:19:00 -0400 Belfast: prison grave
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742202/ 2352-11742202 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:19:03 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742201/ 2352-11742201 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:19:07 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742200/ 2352-11742200 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:19:11 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742199/ 2352-11742199 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:19:14 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742198/ 2352-11742198 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:19:17 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
Belfast: prison ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/belfast-prison/11742197/ 2352-11742197 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:19:20 -0400 Belfast: prison
From : Karmagrrrl's Video Podcast
banned books, forbidden beards, lg15 resistance ]]> http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/banned-books-forbidden-beards-lg15-resistance/11742196/ 2352-11742196 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 21:21:30 -0400 banned books, forbidden beards, lg15 resistance
From : Media Matters for America
In a September 29 article, the New York Post reported that "Barack Obama apparently broke his promise to the family of a fallen Wisconsin soldier when he mentioned the slain sergeant's name in his Friday debate with Sen. John McCain." The article added that "Brian Jopek, the father of the late Ryan David Jopek, told National Public Radio in March that the family asked Obama to stop wearing his son's bracelet, but the Illinois senator continued to do so." However, the Post provided no evidence that Obama ever "promise[d]" the Jopek family that he would "stop wearing" Ryan Jopek's bracelet. In fact, during the March 20 interview with Wisconsin Public Radio, Brian Jopek made no such claim. Further, according to the Associated Press, "After Tracy Jopek gave Sen. Barack Obama a bracelet in honor of her son who was killed in Iraq," she "e-mailed the Obama campaign through its Web site asking that he not mention it during debates or speeches" but "never got a reply." Moreover, the Post did not mention until the eighth paragraph that Tracy Jopek and her daughter -- Ryan's sister -- were reportedly not upset over Obama's mention of Ryan Jopek's bracelet: "Tracy, who has been divorced from [Brian] Jopek for six years, said Obama's mention of her son in the debate was OK because he was responding to McCain, who first brought up that he was wearing a soldier's 'hero bracelet.' Tracy, who backs Obama, said she was 'ecstatic' that the Illinois senator had used her son's name and did not believe he was doing so for political purposes." During the September 26 debate, McCain asserted that in August 2007 at "a town hall meeting in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, ... a woman stood up and she said, 'Senator McCain, I want you to do me the honor of wearing a bracelet with my son's name on it.' ... And then she said, 'But, Senator McCain, I want you to do everything -- promise me one thing, that you'll do everything in your power to make sure that my son's death was not in vain.' " McCain added: "That means that that mission succeeds, just like those young people who re-enlisted in Baghdad, just like the mother I met at the airport the other day whose son was killed. And they all say to me that we don't want defeat." In response, Obama stated: I've got a bracelet, too, from Sergeant -- from the mother of Sergeant Ryan David Jopek, given to me in Green Bay. She asked me, can you please make sure another mother is not going through what I'm going through. No U.S. soldier ever dies in vain because they're carrying out the missions of their commander in chief. And we honor all the service that they've provided. Our troops have performed brilliantly. The question is for the next president, are we making good judgments about how to keep America safe precisely because sending our military into battle is such an enormous step. The AP reported on September 28 that Tracy Jopek "gave Obama the bracelet at a Green Bay rally in February." But a "few days" later, she "had a change of heart" and "realized it could be interpreted as a protest against the war, a statement that made her uncomfortable because other military families who suffered losses still supported the conflict." The article added: "So she e-mailed the Obama campaign through its Web site asking that he not mention it during debates or speeches. She never got a reply but said she didn't hear of him mentioning it after that -- until Friday, when Obama and Republican Sen. John McCain appeared in their first debate." The AP reported further: "Obama's comment sparked a number of angry comments from bloggers who suggested Obama was exploiting her son's death to score political points. Jopek said those bloggers might have heard comments that her son's father made on Wisconsin Public Radio on March 20." During the in