MSNBC's Attempted Political Assassination of Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)
By Erick Posted in War — Comments (114) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
UPDATE by Erick at 3:55 p.m.: Sources tell NewsBusters that MSNBC will most likely be issuing a statement to correct Shuster's error later today.
UPDATE by Erick at 5:05 p.m.: I am now hearing that Shuster will apologize himself either today or possibly Monday on air. It is worth nothing, however, that Shuster replied to an email from Conblog earlier today and said the name was not really important, but
I'm sure you will understand that this segment was about the priorities of Representative Blackburn. What do you think it says when any lawmaker, regardless of their party, knows more about a newspaper ad than about their constituents serving and dying in Iraq?
For the record, the last American death in Iraq from Congresswoman's Blackburn's district occurred on February 1, 2007.
------------------------
Is David Shuster wrong or lying?
I ask the question because I know he was wrong. But if he was unintentionally wrong, he should correct himself. Otherwise, he's a liar who needs to be called out.
The other night, on MSNBC, David Shuster ambushed Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) with a clever question. He did this:
Shuster: "Let's talk about the public trust. You represent, of course, a district in western Tennessee. What was the name of the last solider from your district who was killed in Iraq?"
Blackburn:"The name of the last soldier killed in Iraq uh - from my district I - I do not know his name ..."
Shuster: "Okay, his name was Jeremy Bohannon. He was killed August the 9th, 2007. How come you didnít know the name?"
Blackburn: "I - I, you know, I - I do not know why I did not know the name..."
Shuster: "But you weren't appreciative enough to know the name of this young man. He was 18 years old who was killed, and yet you can say chapter and verse about what's going on with The New York Times and Move On.org." [snip] "Don't you understand, the problems that a lot of people would have, that you're so focused on an ad. When was the last time a New York Times ad ever killed somebody? I mean, here we have a war that took the life of an 18-year-old kid, Jeremy Bohannon, from your district, and you didnít even know his name."
First, I'd note that the only reason David Shuster knows Jeremy Bohannon's name is because it was convenient for Shuster to use Bohannon's dead body to score points against a Republican. That's exactly what Blackburn has been critical of the New York Times, MoveOn.org, and others doing. Shuster just played to type -- only mention the troops when they're dead or accused of crimes and therefore convenient to use against Republicans.
Second, Shuster got his facts wrong. Members of Congress are notified about soldiers from their districts who died. But Jeremy Bohannon was not from Marsha Blackburn's district. He was from Congressman Tanner's district.
The damage of course has been done. The story has appeared in Tennessee media bashing Blackburn as out of touch. Ryan Underwood, writing for the Tennessean, wrote an article without even the common courtesy of checking with Marsha Blackburn's Press Secretary to make sure he got his facts right.
Email Shuster and ask him if he's going to correct himself. His address is david.shuster@msnbc.com
You might as well email Ryan Underwood too at runderwood@tennessean.com and ask him if he's going to point out that Shuster had his facts wrong and can we count on him to actually talk with elected officials before writing about them.
Lastly, You can email John Gibson of the Tennessean's editorial board and Mark Silverman, the paper's editor, to express your disappointment that they'd carry a story on Shuster's ambush without pointing how aggressive Blackburn is in supporting the troops and that Shuster had his facts wrong.
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MSNBC's Attempted Political Assassination of Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) 114 Comments (0 topical, 114 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
has caused any damage to Blackburn.
I didn't think anybody watched MSNBC, I can't remember the last time I have. I thought they just showed a bunch of Dateline reruns.
The problem is that local reporters in Memphis and Nashville got wind of it and are drumming up news stories on it. The Tennessean didn't even bother to call her office before running their story.
I worked as an intern in Rep. Blackburn's Memphis office and I can tell you that she (and any other Republican for that matter) is not liked by either the Commercial Appeal (Memphis' paper, I call it the Communist Appeal) or the Nashville Tennesseean. Both are liberal rags anyway, especially the Appeal. During the '06 Senate race, the frontpage of the Commie Appeal looked like it had to get approved by Harold Ford Jr.'s campaign staff before it could be printed. These folks have called Marsha "out of touch" with her district for a long time so I don't know how much damage this will do.
I have no doubt that they reported quite fairly on his Uncle John Ford's problems with the Tenessee Waltz scandal, his brothers and his other relatives who can't seem to walk a straight ethical line if you put guardrails on both sides of them. Not to mention good old Aunt Ophelia, elected by a 13 vote lead in a special election to replace her utterly corrupt brother, John. An election in which dead people voted, as is usual in Memphis. And when the election results were questioned, what was the battle cry? You guessed it, racism.
Marsha Blackburn is one of the hardest working, most ethical, most conservative members of Tennessee's Republican party. She is also a member of Fred Thompson's election committee. She is staunchly pro-military, has dedicated bridges and other memorials to Tn. soldiers, has been to Iraq several times to be with the troops, is anti-amnesty, and a very strong fiscal conservative.
Let's see, those are her creds--and this other guy works for MSNBC. Yeah, he's got all he needs to challenge someone like her. What a douche for using one of our heroes who gave his life for our country to make a cheap point against an honorable woman--and it was a lie to boot.
according to the update at the top of the page, now won't they.
And then look like the biased rags that they have proven themselves to be anyway.
The Swift Boat ads never reached a large market, but those allegations got out well. I expect that in the worst case, this little smear could get out the same way.
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I don't care if only 1 person is watching. Who gives anyone the right to ambush another when they don't even have their facts right? It's similar to you don't mind if I take $10 out of your wallet since you have thousands more in the bank? For politicians, reputation and voters are their hard currency.
Ask not what you can do for your country, ask what your country can do for you. Washington Elected Elite
Dave,sorry excuse for a journalist, I'm certain you'll never read this, but if you do, I have a message for you:
You are a Democrat hack, masquerading as some kind of journalist. Ambushing guests with a question like that is a cheap and dishonest stunt. Would you ask such a question of a Democrat, like say, Sheila Jackson Lee, or David Obey? No, you wouldn't. What are the odds that those cretins would know, off the top of their heads, the name of the most recent soldier KIA'd who came from their respective districts?
You are a Crash Davis Umpire.
It's war -- so when can we start shooting back at the enemy Democrats?
The way that Jason Mattera did to Murtha? Have him or another YAF member go to each Dem Congressmember and ask them the name of the last person to die in their district.
...if the interviewees are told the wrong names.
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
You complete morons! Even if you are right, and Shuster was wrong, the point is Blackburn DIDN'T KNOW. I saw that segment, and she looked like an idiot. As Shuster pointed out, she knew chapter and verse about the MoveOn.org ad, but she hadn't a clue about who in her district was fighting and dying.
BOOM!!!!
Another room-temp IQ America-hater bites the dust.
It's war -- so when can we start shooting back at the enemy Democrats?
...which does not include mflorence999: she got booted at "morons" - a quick suggestion for you. You'll want to work out first whether any soldier from Blackburn's district has ever lost his or her life in Iraq. A little bit of thinking might give you an idea of why that's a potentially important point for your argument*.
Moe
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
*If you can't work it out, think about it some more. We're not here to hold your hand.
My son is a US Marine, ret. His unit has had two deployments in Anbar province and 41 of his Marines gave all. I know a good percentage of those families.
Speaking for our family, I don't give a damn if Rep. Blackburn knows the name of the last soldier/Marine from her district to be killed. I, and every family I know, cares much more about the fact that she actually supports the mission that those soldiers/Marines are fighting for - and believe deeply in.
Her job is to effectively take on and counter moonbats like MoveOn - and you - who don't give a damn about soldiers and Marines, dead or alive, who don't understand or support their mission.
You might want to show up at a Marine parents gathering and try to make your point. Hint: wear body armor.
____
CongressCritter™: Never have so few felt like they were owed so much by so many for so little.
You might want to show up at a Marine parents gathering and try to make your point. Hint: wear body armor.
It's a bit ironic. If these nutjobs came to a group of soldiers and marines and talked like this, they would generally be met with stone-faced indifference, or at most a calm word or two. On the other hand, several people that made inappropriate comments to my mother while I was in Iraq were torn up verbally, and if they had pressed their luck, would have been torn up physically.
Military families are just as tough as soldiers and marines, but without the constraints of professional discipline. Heh.
that she wanted to go to Iraq - with several of her lady friends. They didn't want to bother with boot camp, just go straight there. The recruiter explained that would not be possible, the slaughter that she would perpetrate on the enemy would make for bad press in the US.
Nobody messes with Marine Moms. A second time.
____
CongressCritter™: Never have so few felt like they were owed so much by so many for so little.
MSNBC is the National Enquirer of cable news networks, but even less accurate and more biased.
the Enquirer does have some reason to be semi-accurate, since they can be sued for false stories.
MSNBC has no such reason to be accurate, because the Warren court disemboweled laws regarding slander and libel in the 1960s. Due to those laws, basically the media can say anything they want about you, without any legal penalty.
In a fair and just world, Blackburn takes MSNBC to the cleaners. But the Warren Court makes that impossible.
confirming the district Jeremy Bohannon was from would be nice.
I know research is hard work and all, but I'm sure you're up to it.
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling
Odds are, Congressional Democrats aren't exactly paying attention to this, other than to chuckle at Congresswoman Blackburn's alleged faux pas.
I say we ask them directly the same question, and with honest intent. What do you think the odds are that half of them would get it right? Even twenty percent?
Of all the things happening in America, asking about an individual non-constituent who died roughly a month and a half ago, however tragic, is asinine. Even if the war is your strong issue, keeping a running counter like that of the last person from your district to die in Iraq sounds horrifically morbid. If I were Rep. Blackburn, I would've pointed this out to him, that we have objectives in Iraq that we are still trying to accomplish (and, indeed, accomplishing), and yet this reporter seems to have some sort of a sick fetish with the names, hometowns, and dates of death of fallen military personnel.
"I don't understand why the same newspaper commentators who bemoan the terrible education given to poor people are always so eager to have those poor people get out and vote." - P.J. O'Rourke
When are Republicans gonna start playing hardball with these smear artists in the press?!
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Click here to donate to the Fred Thompson campaign.
I reject the legitimacy of the underlying suppostion. Why should Blackburn be able to recall his name? It would be nice, sure. Very touchy-feely of her to keep up with them. But what is that supposed to mean; that because she knows his name she takes war very seriously, or that because she does not know his name, she finds death in war inconsequential? Stuff and nonsense, as they say.
absentee
He lies. That's what he does on a daily basis. He deliberately lies.
There is absolutely no reason to assume that he did not know that Jeremy Bohannon was not from Blackburn's district. I firmly believe he knew.
He was just aiming for a cheap shot.
And, unfortunately, he got it.
The NBC organization has a problematic history when it comes to fact checking. And they are not averse to helping the story along. Remember the "exploding fuel tank" scandal, where they rigged the vehicle with explosives to make a better explosion?
which is in Tennessee's 7th Congressional district, represented by Marsha Blackburn. You can find this information here: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/findyourreps.xpd?state=TN&district=7.
So unless you know his exact address or zip + 4, you don't know that.
http://capwiz.com/yo-demo/officials/congress/?state=&lvl=C&azip=37025
...is in John Tanner's District. That's not full-proof accuracy but it's a darn good hint.
If one was to google "'mark bohannon' bon aqua", there are 2 results. (Mark Bohannon is Jeremy Bohannon's father, as discovered from the obituary in my link earlier.) One of these results is an online memorial guestbook to the memory of Private Bohannon. The first entry on page 3 of this guestbook was written by Mark Bohannon, thanking all posters for their support. It is signed Mark Bohannon, McEwen, TN.
McEwen is in the district to the north. This is not entirely conclusive, but it's pretty dadgum close. Bohannon was not from Marsha Blackburn's district.
And, at least one link showed that he was from McEwen and was buried in McEwen. McEwen is north of the boundary of the 7th district.
http://www.thenews-democrat.com/news.php?viewStory=5725
Sorry to reply to my own.
The link also stated that there was to be a service in Tennessee City, which is also in the next congressional district. Ultimately, the only way for us to find out is to get his address and enter it into the find your congressman utility, or, some Nashville or Memphis RedStater gets to drive down and find out.
My theory is that he lived somewhere out in the sticks between Bon Aqua, McEwen and Tennessee City, so that both Bon Aqua and McEwen could reasonably "claim" him and that there could be a service in Tennessee City. This would almost certainly place him in the next congressional district north.
This entire thing smells to high heaven.
You couldn't do it by yourself. He's from TN-4
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling
If you're going to belittle people about doing the research, then I think it's reasonable for you to help those of us who are doing so as to why ours is producing different results.
And as near as I can tell, he lived near Bon Aqua but across the 7th district-8th district border -- in Tanner (D)'s district, to be specific.
-
NARF
I found a Bryan Bohannon in Bon Aqua, TN that lives in Tanner's district. His street address gave me a 9-digit ZIP that I could use in Brad G's link above. His mother's name Detta Bohannon turns up a hit in McEwen, TN---also Tanner's district. News reports cite a friend, Alexandria Stull, from Waverly, TN---you guessed it, also Tanner's district. This is NOT definitive yet but we can keep digging.
http://www.thenews-democrat.com/news.php?viewStory=5761
Pvt. Jeremy Shawn Bohannon of McEwen
Funeral services were held Saturday, August 18, 2007 at Friendship Baptist Church in Dickson for Pvt. Jeremy Shawn Bohannon of McEwen.
Pvt. Bohannon, age 18, died August 5.
Rev. J.B. Millard officiated the service with interment in Knight Cemetery. Luff Bowen Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangements.
Pvt. Bohannon was born in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba on March 23, 1989. He was in active duty for the U.S. Army in Iraq.
Pvt. Bohannon was the son of Mark Davis Bohannon and Detta Susan Sadler Bohannon.
Survivors, in addition to his parents, include one brother, Clifton (Kellye) Bohannon of Iraq; one sister, Jessica Bohannon of McEwen; paternal grandparents, Harry and Beverly Bohannon of Titusville, Fla.; maternal grandparents, Clifton and Roberta Sadler of Ferguson, Ky.; a special friend, Tonya Taylor of Bon Aqua; and numerous loving aunts, uncles and cousins.
so maybe the leftists figure they can score a triple harassment play, harass a grieving family, harass a Republican lawmaker,
and demoralize an American soldier in Iraq.
Was he registered to vote? That would clear this up.
Can't the family grieve privately without the death being turned into a media circus?
No. They can't.
What? We have a chance to attack Marsha Blackburn? Well, let's do it, by
And so off we go on our merry way, spreading lies and deceit, never minding what the consequences may be, because if all else fails, we can write a book. Or go post on Daily Kos.
...is the fact that Congresspunk John Tanner doesn't have the integrity to step in here and correct the confusion by stating publicly that Pvt Bohannon lived in his Congressional district...I used to live in his district (Paris,TN) and I can say with certainty that Tanner is a Dem party hack of the worst sort
I'm SO SICK of the media's obvious bias and far-left gotcha games that I'll WILLINGLY join in demanding they correct the record when they lie.
This is disgusting and Shuster should be ashamed of himself.
"I just disproved my own argument. Where's my degree from Paul Maguire University??" -- Bill Simmons
Can someone tell me where I can find the name of the last fallen soldier from Blackburn's district... it's hard to figure out unless you know all the names of all the little towns in a district.
“Republicans believe every day is the Fourth of July, but the Democrats believe every day is April 15.”
-Ronald Reagan
Middleton, TN
Elliott, Terry J. Gunnery Sergeant 01-Feb-2007
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling
The good news is that TN-7 is bright red and Marsha Blackburn(R) is in no danger whatsoever of losing...
Now, regarding John Tanner(D) TN-8... there was in interesting piece describing the conflict Tanner felt as a Vietnam Vet having voted to authorize use of force in Iraq and Afghanastan linked here. Boy, aint it tough being a democrat from a yellow-dog conservative district.
Visit draftfredthompson.com early and often...
judgment until Rep. Blackburn comes out and says this fine young man wasn't from her district. I took a look at the district map and have to say it is one of the most engineered districts I've ever seen layed out on a map. A Congressional District splitting a town is always suspect, and now look, we are debating whether a soldier was from one side of the tracks or the other. It really doesn't matter in the end who's district he was from. He's dead and we're not, and it puts a lump in my throat.
So if you didn't know yesterday his name and what congressional district he lived in, does that mean you were derelict in your support for the troops?
This is a really, really bad, baseless, emotionally-driven attack on a fine woman, and it cheapens the Congress for a mmember to do this to another member.
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yesterday he was a convenient tool to whack Rep Blackburn with. Today, however, he's no longer a convenient tool so the people who used him yesterday are getting all weepy.
This is just disgusting and depraved on so many levels.
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling
and anyone in the media who does that is lower than pond scum.
Way, way lower.
you're getting at with your question. But, certainly a member of Congress can hit back on their own if they feel they were slighted. They don't need us to carry their water. My point is that it is really strange to be debating what side of the tracks this fine young man was from. It begs the question, are we degrading his family's sacrifice? She's a capable politician and should be hitting the local airwaves to knock any questionable narrative she finds herself associated with. But as it stands she's been way too quiet.
Are you implying it's somehow not useful or appropriate for Red State, a Republican activist community, to 'carry water' for a Republican member of congress whom we not only like, but have had join us by posting articles in the past?
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one thing. Arguing over where a dead soldier was from, where he was registered to vote, or what day he died on simply leaves a bitter taste. It shouldn't have been beneath her to have come out the following morning with a statement saying this dead soldier wasn't from her district ,and that she'd been blindsided with the question when she was prepared to talk about MoveOn and their outrageous speech.
but I'm getting tired of it and what I get tired of matters.
Your position, that it doesn't really make any difference where Private Bohannon was from stinks. It does make a difference because the thrust of the story was that Rep Blackburn is in favor of the war but doesn't know the names of troops from her district who were killed in correct chronological sequence.
We aren't arguing over where he was from. We know where he was from and we know which member of Congress was notified of the death.
We don't know what contact Rep Blackburn's office had with MSNBC, but the fact that we are writing about it -- as well as Shuster's email in this thread -- gives a clue that they probably weren't interested in correcting the record. And you don't call a news conference over something like this. Just bush league and it keeps the story alive.
So if you don't like this thread, shove off, because right now your posts aren't making me happy. And me being happy is important.
"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition." -- Rudyard Kipling
It is written:
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools...
...Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!
I'm sure you get it considering your tag line. It is important that I'm happy as well, and I'm always pleased to see a Kipling quote.
As we're in the mood for literary allusions that someone thinks are cute:
1 Here's a knocking indeed! If a man were
2 porter of Hell Gate, he should have old turning the
3 key. (Knock.) Knock, knock, knock! Who's there,
4 i' the name of Beelzebub? Here's a farmer, that hang'd
5 himself on th' expectation of plenty. Come in time!
6 Have napkins enow about you; here you'll sweat for't.
7 (Knock.) Knock, knock! Who's there, in the other
8 devil's name? Faith, here's an equivocator, that could
9 swear in both the scales against either scale, who com-
10 mitted treason enough for God's sake, yet could
11 not equivocate to heaven. O, come in, equivocator.
12 (Knock.) Knock, knock, knock! Who's there? Faith,
13 here's an English tailor come hither, for stealing
14 out of a French hose: come in, tailor; here you may
15 roast your goose. (Knock.) Knock, knock! Never
16 at quiet! What are you? But this place is too
17 cold for hell. I'll devil-porter it no further: I had
18 thought to have let in some of all professions that go
19 the primrose way to the everlasting bonfire. (Knock.)
20 Anon, anon! [Opens the gate.] I pray you, remember
21 the porter.
When you next decide to troll, avoid the use of easy-to-spot insults. Anyone with an English degree could catch that one, and -- bad news! -- two of the moderators here have one.
-----------
We are all heroes, you and Boo and I. Hamsters and rangers everywhere, rejoice!
I wonder how Olbermann feels about his employer apologizing?
Ha ha ha ha haaaaa ha!
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Today is a good day!
Shuster doesn't seem to think that getting the name of the soldier wrong matters all that much:
=======================================================
Quoting "Shuster, David (NBC Universal, MSNBC)"
William,
Thanks for your inquiry. You are wrong on a key point, though. Before the name of the soldier was ever mentioned on the show, I asked Ms. Blackburn the name of the last soldier from her district killed in Iraq. She did not know.
Here's the transcript:
SHUSTER: Congressman, let`s talk about the public trust. You represent, of course, a district in western Tennessee. What was the name of the last soldier from your district who was killed in Iraq?
BLACKBURN: The name of the last soldier killed in Iraq, from my
district, I do not know.
That means she didn't know and wouldn't know whether it was David shuster, William Smith, or jeremy Bohannon.
I respect your point of view... But if you are truly an "editor," as you say, I'm sure you will understand that this segment was about the priorities of Representative Blackburn. What do you think it says when any lawmaker, regardless of their party, knows more about a newspaper ad
than about their constituents serving and dying in Iraq?
Sincerely,
D
-----Original Message-----
From: William Smith
Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 1:56 PM
To: Shuster, David (NBC Universal, MSNBC)
Subject: Correction?
David,
I was wondering: Since you ambushed Marsha Blackburn pretty vehemently
over the name of Jeremy Bohannon, are you now going to correct the
record just as vehemently now that it's come to light that Jeremy
Bohannon was NOT from her district?
How come YOU didn't know his Congressman was John Tanner, a Democrat?
Where's the apology and the correction, sir?
William Smith
Manchester, NH
Editor, ConservativeBlogger.com
The fake but accurate defense...it worked so well for Dan Rather.
"I'm sure you will understand that this segment was about the priorities of Representative Blackburn"
I'm pretty sure she was invited on the show to discuss the moveon.org ad, but inviting a conservative on a talk show to discuss one subject and ambushing them on another subject isn't a new thing.
"But if you are truly an "editor," as you say,"
MSM elitism on full display. I wonder if he would have added to quotes to editor if your website was "ProgressiveBlogger.com"?
Still, congrats on getting a reply from this loser. I sent him an email around the same time and I received nothing.
SHUSTER: Congressman, let`s talk about the public trust. You represent,
of course, a district in western Tennessee. What was the name of the
last soldier from your district who was killed in Iraq?
BLACKBURN: The name of the last soldier killed in Iraq, from my
district, I do not know.
That was before I mentioned his name. So, your point is wrong. I didn't accuse Blackburn of not knowing Bohanon's name... She stated, to begin with, she didn't know the name of the last soldier in her district killed in Iraq. That means she didn't know and wouldn't know if the name was Bohannon, Shuster, or Pershing. Don't you see the point?
D
I replied back the he *did* specifically mention Jeremy's name as being from her district, that he was wrong about that, and didn't *he* see the point, but received no reply back. Not too surprised.
"Here's my strategy on the Cold War: We win, they lose." - Ronald Reagan
because of words he spoke, Don Imus no longer has his show because of words he spoke, Dan Rather is gone. Wonder how many emails it would take to MSNBC to insure that David Shuster is no longer able to use the names of brave Americans who were willing to die for their country, to spread his leftist propaganda.
NewsBusters is depending on the work of Conservative Belle (link) to claim that Pvt. Bohannon was in another district. The only problem is she really didn't do her homework right. She said she looked up the 9-digit zip code of the only "Bohannon" found in whitepages.com in Bon Aqua. However, that Bohannon was not Jeremy or his parents. (I know, because I looked it up myself; see my posts above.) She is treating it as conclusive evidence that Jeremy was in that 9-digit ZIP, but it simply isn't. The 5-digit zip actually is split between 3 different districts, so it is vitally important to get the exact 9-digit zip for Pvt. Bohannon's Tennessee address to make the determination conclusive.
Of course, if MSNBC does issue an apology or a correction, then that's fine. I'm just saying that from what I've seen thus far we really don't have conclusive proof of the error, until we have a conclusive determination of his actual Tennessee residence. If I were a betting man, I'd say that TN-8 is right, but only if the stakes weren't too high.
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendI...
"My heroes are the ones that have gone before me and died."
Interestingly enough, Jeremy Bohannon was euligized in a dailykos blog on 8/9/07.
Congressman Tanner's office is the office that received notice of the death.
Please disregard my lower post. Can I get a link, if possible?
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Is no indication of where one is registered to vote.
According to his MySpace page: "I'm originally from Tennessee. I just turned 18 I've been in the active military for six months."
Dying to protect the concept of democracy in Iraq, but never able to participate in it at home.
If I had a nickel for every young man and woman I worked next to in Iraq like this one; barely out of H.S., never legally allowed to drink, never yet had a chance to vote, not only putting their lives on the line, but doing it professionally and proudly.
...but not a beer.
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
I used to say the same. In fact, when I got to my first duty station in the Marine Corps, 18 was the legal age on base. However, now that I'm wiser (read: older), I've changed my mind.
It is silly, of course, to suggest that there is a particular age at which one achieves a higher level of control, a clarity of judgment that was, up until that exact moment, unattainable. Surely everyone can agree that maturity occurs over time, gradually. So it is not a stretch of the imagination to think that we can be ready for some adult responsibilities but not yet ready for others.
I have seen again and again the damage that alcohol can bring to the life of a young person. The 18-year-old, fresh from the constraints of being a legal youth, is often one to over-indulge his or her new freedoms. At 21 they've two years of adulthood behind them. It is not much but enough to make a difference.
To the extent that one can agree with a legal drinking age at all, and given that one must choose between two particular ages, I would choose 21.
absentee
every dead US soldier who died in Iraq for completely no reason due to our idiot preznit and his moronic "war of terror", I'd have $190.05 (3801 dead as of Sept 25).
...a long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right...
---Thomas Paine---
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
I'm guessing the Ronulan fur flying means I'm not needed yet, heh.
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Reality: Thompson/Romney Dream: Santorum/Watts.
...if I had a nickel for every quasi-sociopath who only thinks of dead soldiers in the context of how they can be used against the Bush administration?
Shoo.
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
And as Erick says above it was delivered to... Rep. Tanner.
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/mark-finkelstein/2007/09/26/fallen-soldier-...
"You said during a recent debate over Iraq that X number of soldiers from your district/state had been killed since the surge began and that enough was enough. How many of them can you name? How many of their families have you gone to visit in their homes? How many of their funerals have you attended? For how many of those family visits or funerals did you try to ensure there would be no media present by not announcing where you were going?"
"You said we need to bring our boys home now. Can you tell me how many from your district/state are deployed in Iraq? How many in Afghanistan? How many in the Balkans? Can you name a few, or do you only 'care' about them when they are dead and can be used as political fodder?"
"You claim the SCHIP funding increase is needed. Can you name a few familes from your district/state that would benefit, the names and ages of their kids, and exactly how much the benefit is worth to them? Can you name some young middle class couples with no kids who are trying to get established before starting a family and what the impact of a $35B spending increase would be on their taxes?"
"Can you name some young middle class couples with no kids who are trying to get established before starting a family and what the impact of a $35B spending increase would be on their taxes?"
I doubt anyone would come up with names but the tax increase could be estimated. $35 billion dollars over 5 years, so that's $7 billion per year. There are approximately 300 million people in the US with about 25% of them under 18 years old so we'll exclude them for the most part so that's 225 million tax payers. So $7 billion divided by 225 million is $31.11 per year tax increase or about .08 cents a day. Can you spare that to help sick kids?
You see, a lot of people already have their finances budgeted, taking care of their own bills, and their own kids. Busting the budget means they don't get to take their kids for ice cream.
I don't like taking ice cream away from kids, heh.
HTML Help Central for Red Staters
Reality: Thompson/Romney Dream: Santorum/Watts.
"Busting the budget means they don't get to take their kids for ice cream."
This is precisely what is wrong about conservativism. There is always the underlying theme of entitlement and elitism. You would rather provide your kids with the luxury of ice cream than help a fellow American with providing healthcare to their children. You would allow a neighbor's child to be denied medicine so your children can eat rocky road sundaes. Its an outrageous position when framed in those terms.
buy my kids ice cream than have the government take that money from me and spend it on things that it has no constitutional right to spend money on. If my neighbor's kid needs medicine, let him sell his boat to get it. Or cancel his cell phone contract. Or buy something other than designer sneakers. Or borrow the money from his family or friends. Or apply to a local charity.
Keep your freaking hands out of my pocket for items that the Constitution doesn't specify that the federal government has a responsibility for.
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CongressCritter™: Never have so few felt like they were owed so much by so many for so little.
...a long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right...
---Thomas Paine---
Enjoying your RedState Experience™, eh? Well, let me help you out a bit, having been around for some time...
This is precisely what is wrong about conservativism. There is always the underlying theme of entitlement and elitism.
Point 1, you don't understand jack-squat about conservatism.
Point 2, if you're looking for "theme(s) of entitlement and elitism", the site you're looking for is spelled D-A-I-L-Y-K-, well you know the rest.
You would rather provide your kids with the luxury of ice cream than help a fellow American with providing healthcare to their children.
First, straw is quite flamible in untrained hands. Be careful with it. But no, I (for one) would rather take care of my own children in a way that I chose and not have someone decide for me how I am to "help" my fellow American. There's a distinction and a difference.
My 12-year old argues better along the same lines, and she's only started to learn that Life's Not Fair™. Obviously you're not that far along, to wit...
You would allow a neighbor's child to be denied medicine so your children can eat rocky road sundaes.
(Cue Violins) So, how's that socialized medicine working everywhere else in the world? Eh?
Its an outrageous position when framed in those terms.
Indeed - which is why your Man of Straw is, well, outrageous.
Enjoy your brief stay. Do try to not soil the rugs too badly while you're here, though.
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Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.
What sick kids? What was it again? 300 million people, about 25% of them under 18?
OK, so we have 75 million "kids" available to cover. But we only have to cover the kids of parents making less than $82,000/year. That turns out to be about 68% of the households with children, so a close-enough-for-government-work answer is we'll be covering about 50,000,000 "sick kids" (to use your term).
According to you, we have $7 billion per year to spend on this. So that means we have $140 per sick kid per year, or $12 per sick kid per month.
Let's say I come to your front door tomorrow and offer to sell you comprehensive health insurance for your children for the low low price of $12 per month per kid. Now here's the question. Do you believe I can do this? Do you have any faith whatsoever that if your kid gets sick, I can actually cover the doctor bills, the hospital bills, and the prescriptions for the $12 per month you're paying me to do it?
Admit it: it's preposterous. Therefore, politicians who tell you they can do this for $12 per month per kid are lying. Newspapers cost more than $12 per month. Even basic cable television costs more than $12 per month. But for this price, some politician told you that he can give you comprehensive health insurance for your kid, and you believed him. You know what? That was dumb.
Drink Good Coffee. You can sleep when you're dead.
Your facts and numbers are considerably off, the numbers I used were to calculate an approximate tax increase to taxpayers not to determine which children are eligible and taking part in SCHIP.
About 5.3 million children were enrolled in SCHIP programs in 2002. 40 billion dollars over ten years was alloted for the program in 1997. Now do the math. It's about $63 per month per child. SCHIP also receives some matching funds from the states and Medicaid depending on the status of the parent.
$63 per month per child is not preposterous. Not understanding the program, who it benifits and the cost to the taxpayer is. Get informed.
says that funding health insurance for anybody is the responsibility of the Federal Government. Please provide a cite.
I don't care a whit about your emotional "for the children" arguments. I'm also fine with the idea that either your particular state, county or city government could pay for whatever they'd like. I think private charity is good as well.
If we're talking about children dying because the federal government doesn't pay for their health insurance or food or anything else, let 'em die.
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CongressCritter™: Never have so few felt like they were owed so much by so many for so little.
e-mail advertisers and make it clear that if MSNBC doesn't retract, then they should pull their ads due to MSNBC's smearjob on a public figure.
You can do this for both the local and national advertisers on MSNBC.
Granted, it would be much better if Shuster got canned from MSNBC, but that won't happen because he's too popular with the lefty feverswamp.