Breitbart Knight Painting a Photoshopped Video Game Character

Boy, these conservatives sure do love their copyright infringement.

Wonkette: So, you know that painting by David Bugnon of Dead Guy Andrew Breitbart as a Teutonic Knight in Heaven, ready to take on commies, liberal scumbags, and innocent Department of Agriculture employees from beyond the grave?... The painting which The Patriot Update bravely calls, “The Painting Obama Fears?” Yeah, it’s not so much a painting as a Photoshop mashup of a stock photo of Andrew Breitbart and a character from the copyrighted computer game Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, with a pretty sunset-and-clouds background that probably also came from some stock photo website — no doubt somebody will find that soon, too.

Can You Get It Painted on Velvet?

What a waste of artistic talent.

Via Wonkette: Patriot Depot, supplies for the conservative revolution, has what you crave, and that is seven different versions of this amazing portrait of Ghost Andrew Breitbart titled Fight. You could buy it in a pack of post cards; you could buy a giclee print; you could buy a $49.95 version, or a $3,999.95 version...

I can't wait for the artist, David Bugnon, to create his next masterpiece, James O'Keefe in a Brunhilda costume.

This monstrosity is almost as awesome as Jebus holding the Declaration of Independence or President Obama burning the Constitution.

Andrew Breitbart Dead at 43

Since I've been working a lot more and blogging less these past couple of months, I didn't have a chance to express my thoughts about Breitbart's death until now. I did have a chance to read Chez Pazienza's well written post although in my opinion he was way too diplomatic. My co-blogger Jennifer tweeted "I'm not going to act like Breitbart over Breitbart. But I don't think he's equivalent to Anthony Shadid so I'd be OK if coverage were less."

For the most part, I agree with them both. But here's the thing: why is it that I should have any compassion for a man whose very existence in public life was nothing but the height of vileness? He walked the earth with the sole purpose of pushing his political ideology not by extolling the virtues on his own party, but by vilifying the opposition though lies and deceit. Why should I "mourn the man and not his deeds"?

He was complicit in destroying ACORN by flat out lying about them. Should the thousands of people who lost their jobs because of his doctored videotape mourn his loss? He set fire to the career of Shirley Sherrod and slandered her name with accusations of racism, then tried to wash his hands of it because he claimed didn't know that the "evidence" against her was edited as well. And I'm supposed to feel some kind of sympathy?

If someone makes their living as a flamethrower then they can't gripe when its turned on them. Live by the cheap shot, die by the cheap shot. In fact, Breitbart himself showed no respect after the passing of Ted Kennedy:

Andrew Breitbart, a Washington Times columnist who oversees Breitbart.com and BigHollywood.com, tapped into the anti-Kennedy vein in the hours after the senator’s death was announced, posting a series of Twitter messages in which he called Kennedy a “villain,” a “duplicitous bastard” and a “prick.”

"I'm more than willing to go off decorum to ensure THIS MAN is not beatified,” Breitbart wrote. “Sorry, he destroyed lives. And he knew it."

Sorry, Breitbart certainly destroyed lives. And he most certainly knew it.

Did I wish him dead? No. But neither am I saddened by his passing. There are still plenty of blowhards to fill the gaps. He won't be missed.

We Connive, You Decide

Here we go again. How many times does this have to happen before our collective response is, “…yawn…”?

At yesterday’s Labor Day presidential event, Teamsters President James Hoffa Jr. spoke about the need to vote Republicans out of office in 2012. Of course, Fox News had a completely different take on what Hoffa “meant” through selective editing.

As Media Matters reports, Fox edited video of Hoffa’s money quote to suggest, actually to just flat out lie and say that he was urging violence against Tea Party activists.

...fuller context included in other Fox segments makes clear that Hoffa wasn't calling for violence but was actually urging the crowd to vote out Republican members of Congress. During the segment that the bloggers have latched onto, Fox edited out the bolded portion of Hoffa's comments:

HOFFA: Everybody here's got to vote. If we go back and keep the eye on the prize, let's take these son of a bitches out and give America back to America where we belong! Thank you very much!

Everyone jumped on the bandwagon including Andrew “ACORN, Shirley Sherrod, Planned Parenthood” Breitbart, and hacky tweets from Dana Loesch demanded that President Obama condemn Hoffa’s remarks and “sanctioning violence against fellow Americans” if he doesn’t. This after the fact that it was Fox’s Ed Henry who initially reported correctly on their own network that Hoffa as referring to voting Republicans out, and is on record with his tweet just 20 minutes after his report. Why tweet? Because he KNEW it was going to be taken out of context.

Now the pushback of course will be, or already has been that the left took Sarah Palin's "Don't retreat, RELOAD!" comment out of context as well. But I'm willing to wager that if you head over to the Teamsters' website, or any site associated with James Hoffa, you're not going to find a map with crosshairs targeting Republican districts. Just another day at Fox News.

We connive, you decide.

Breitbart's 1 for 4

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He Really Was Dumb Enough

Until New York Representative Anthony Weiner stood behind a podium and admitted his Twitter indiscretions, nothing anyone could have said would have changed my initial thought of giving him the benefit of the doubt. Part of the reason for this is because of who broke the story. Andrew Breitbart, after all, has cried wolf a few too many times (ACORN, Shirley Sherrod, Planned Parenthood, etc.) for me to view him as a credible source. For as much as he believes he is non-partisan, you'd have to have shit in your head where your brain should be not to realize that Breitbart has an agenda. Show me where he's gone after a Republican as fiercely and I'll reconsider.

And part of the reason I believed Weiner is because I never thought he would be so dumb as to use social media that's out there in the ether to send "lewd" photos of himself. A guy as sharp as Anthony Weiner could never put his career in jeopardy by doing something so frivolous.

I was wrong. He really was dumb enough.

I'm not one to judge someone's moral integrity, unless they tout themselves as holier than thou and wind up being a hypocrite, so I'm not going to start here. I'm sure more details will be revealed during the ethics investigation called for by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, and if Weiner violated ethics rules (using Congressional equipment to send these tweets) then he'll be called to account. But until then, I'm glad that Weiner as of this point has taken the Republican lead and decided not to resign.

What he did was disappointing to me, and reprehensible conduct for a married man, but he did nothing technically illegal. He didn't engage prostitutes like David Vitter or Eliot Spitzer. He didn't have a child in an affair like John Edwards or Arnold Schwarzenegger. He didn't get arrested for soliciting gay sex in an airport bathroom. None of these examples exonerates Weiner's actions, but it helps in putting things in perspective.

If his career is coming to an end, it's a shame because he is a talented, smart politician who really cares about his constituency, regardless of his private failings.

As far as Breitbart is concerned, yeah, he won one. So what? The man is still a scumbag who feeds on gutter news, and his "classiness" was on display for all to see as he hijacked the Weiner press conference before Weiner even spoke. It'll take more that one story for Breitbart to have credibility in my eyes.

Breitbart Busted... AGAIN

Stef at the Daily Kos does a great job with the chronology of the Weiner underwear tweet controversy and how one particular anti-Weiner Twitter user named @PatriotUSA76 (complete with a portrait of St. Ronald Reagan as his icon) was most likely behind it.

Whether the intrepid Andrew Breitbart knew about it ahead of time or reported on it without checking facts and sources is irrelevant. It shows Breitbart to be all too eager to smear anyone not in line with his ideology regardless of facts.

Andrew Breitbart: SUPERJOURNALIST!

Here's Martin Bashir attempting to interview Andrew "It's All A Big Left Wing Conspiracy!" Breitbart. It's an interesting back and forth that should be watched. My question is this: If Andrew Breitbart is so sure of his journalistic integrity, why is he so defensive?

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Breitbart admits he didn't watch the full 43 minute Shirley Sherrod speech when he posted the 2 minute version on his website, claiming she racially discriminated against a white farmer. But here he tries to cover his tracks, going on to push the notion that in his "1400 word" article, he makes clear the point that her humanity was greater than her initial racism. But how would he know that if he hadn't seen the full video? And if he doesn't think she's racist, why did he call her racist?

Even if you take Breitbart at his questionable word, how many times is he going to get burned? ACORN, Shirley Sherrod, Planned Parenthood... There's a clear pattern here and Breitbart, in his enthusiasm to push his conservative meme, continues to compromise his journalistic integrity (as if that was a real concern) by putting out these stories that are debunked within days, if not hours of their posting. If you consider him completely innocent in these situations he finds himself in over and over again, his worst attribute is that he shoots first and asks questions later. That is a horrible habit for a "journalist," don't you think?

I Hope He Loses His Shirt

Shirley Sherrod has filed a lawsuit against Andrew Breitbart over a video released by the conservative personality that lead to her ouster as an official at the USDA.

...The video first gained widespread public attention when it was posted on Breitbart's BigGovernment.com. The two-minute, 38-second clip was widely received as an admission by Sherrod, who is African American, that she had discriminated against a white farmer. Under immediate pressure from the Obama administration, Sherrod resigned from her position as the USDA's director of rural development in Georgia.

When a full 43-minute copy of the video surfaced, additional context turned the story into one of reconciliation. Sherrod had actually saved the man's farm and started a lifelong friendship.

Breitbart is going to attempt hiding behind the First Amendment, saying that he "categorically rejects the transparent effort to chill his constitutionally protected free speech and, to reiterate, looks forward to exercising his full and broad discovery rights."
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I don't think slander and libel are protected by the Constitution.

Let's not forget that the Obama administration and the NAACP were quick to judge Sherrod as well, their sole basis being the edited video on Breitbart's website. But if Breitbart were actually a journalist and looked deeper into the matter instead of a vainglorious nutbag, he wouldn't be claiming he was duped. He knew exactly was he was doing and didn't care about the consequences - the rubes only get to know the first half of any tainted story before pulling out their pitchforks and torches.

Who's Politicizing the Arizona Shooting?

There seems to be a lot of umbrage at Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik and his opinion that the heightened political rhetoric is partly to blame for the Safeway shooting that targeted Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and killed six others. That somehow he was polticizing the event.

Well, who's politicizing now?

In the wake of Saturday's tragic shooting in Arizona, Gateway Pundit and Breitbart blogger Jim Hoft has been on a one man mission to prove that the deranged shooter was a "typical leftist nut." This morning, Hoft posted what he seems to think is bulletproof evidence supporting this thesis, but, as is usually the case with him, it is merely evidence that someone as hackishly irresponsible as Hoft should have no role in our national political discourse.

...That Hoft would reprint the outrageous assertion that Loughner idolized Obama - based on a random commenter on a fringe message board that provided no evidence for his assertion - says a lot about his complete lack of journalistic integrity.

Voter Intimidation at Micky D's

Why does this shit always happen in Ohio? Why are they always the troubled state when it comes to elections?

The owner of a franchise in Canton, Ohio enclosed a handbill in employees' paychecks that threatened lower wages and benefits if Republicans don't win on Tuesday...

..."The handbill endorses candidates who have in essence pledged to roll back the minimum wage and eviscerate the safety net that protects the most vulnerable members of our workforce," said Attorney Allen Schulman of Canton law firm Schulman Zimmerman & Associates, which received the documents from an employer who stepped forward. "But it's more than that. When a corporation like McDonald's intimidates its employees into voting a specific way, it violates both state and federal election law..."

The owner of the McDonald's franchise, Paul Siegfried, called it "an error in judgment" and apologized to "those that I have offended...". It's not about offending anyone, douchebag, it's about breaking the law.

Don't expect the wingnuts to go crazy over this.  They're too worried about the ACORN scam du jour even though they've been out of business since April after being framed by Breitbart and accomplices. Registering voters is evil, but intimidating minimum wage workers will go unnoticed in their bizarro world.

Why I Stopped Watching Real Time

When I first started this blog almost four years ago, it was because I was inspired by Richard Dreyfuss when he was a guest on Real Time. I noticed last season, after President Obama won the 2008 election, the was something a little different about the show. Something akin to falling into the false equivalency meme that has infected the mainstream media.

There is no such thing as "both sides are equally crazy." Who is the liberal equal in influence to a Sean Hannity or a Rush Limbaugh? Name the progressive that has an equally large following. Point out who on the left holds an audience of millions spellbound like Glenn Beck does with his rubes. You can't name one, because one does not exist. Not even to mention the content of these shows, using half truths, spin, innuendo and flat out lies in an effort to undermine any Democratic "agenda." Believing that both sides are the same is just flat out wrong and dangerously naive.

And then last Friday night, there was Bill Maher introducing Andrew Breitbart as one of his guests on the panel. Andrew. Fucking. Breitbart. And he introduced him as a journalist.

It was disappointing to hear Bill Maher refer to Andrew Breitbart as a "journalist" last night. He isn't one, and calling him that is an insult to every journalist everywhere. Journalism requires the kind of integrity Breitbart utterly lacks...

Maher has diminished himself in elevating Breitbart, who returned the favor by telling his host "you're not libertarian, you're socialist." The fabricator's entire web empire is characterized by this sort of Overton Window-yanking insanity. You cannot find a single mention of Iraq or Afghanistan contracting scandals on his sites, for example, but you can find the latest ginned-up outrage over White House Christmas ornaments or an NEA conference call in between the Victoria Jackson posts.

I turned the program off halfway through the show.  I want honest debate, not shitty talking points and ACORN conspiracy theories.

Will I watch Maher again? Maybe in passing or perhaps stream a video clip here and there, but I'm not going out of my way to tune in anymore.

Breitbart Just Can't Let The Sherrod Thing Go

Just admit you were wrong, Andrew. I know it's really hard for you, but be a man and eat crow like a big boy. Instead, you continue to take a hatchet to your credibility, as if you have any left or had any to begin with, by hiring Dr. Kevin Pezzi to write for your sorry excuse of a website without even vetting him. Did you take a lesson from the McCain campaign in their VP nominating choice?

Unless you really did know his background but thought you'd just get another dig in at Shirley Sherrod before the shit hit the fan as yet another one of your bullshit "journalists" gets outed as a con man and then decide to take down his posts and bio without even mentioning Pezzi by name.  What's the harm, right? Your aim is to make waves, cause damage and then walk away with shrugged shoulders, arms outstretched as if you had no clue.

Another "oops," Andrew? Another, "the video was already edited when I received it"?

You fucking child.

Sherrod To Sue Breitbart

It's about time something like this happens, else scum like Breitbart will continue to smear for smear's sake without repercussion.

"...Shirley Sherrod said Thursday she will pursue a lawsuit against conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart.

Breitbart posted an edited video clip of Sherrod appearing to say she discriminated against a white farmer looking for assistance. The clip showed her addressing a chapter of the NAACP.

'I will definitely do it,' she said when asked whether she was considering legal action. Sherrod made her remarks during an appearance at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in San Diego, California.

Breitbart 'had to know that he was targeting me,' Sherrod said. 'At this point, he hasn't apologized. I don't want it at this point, and he'll definitely hear from me.'

And as sure as there are stars in the sky, the right immediately shoots back and makes it about the evil Sherrod (but she wasn't the subject of the smear, right?)

Brent Bozell, head of the conservative Media Research Center, said Thursday Sherrod was the one who needed to apologize.

"Andrew Breitbart is going to be fine. He's done nothing wrong," Bozell said.

"I wonder if Ms. Sherrod, who is such a champion of transparency, will publicly disclose who is putting her up to this. And I also hope this champion of honesty will stop lying about Fox News," which has been accused of pushing the story before full details emerged, he said.

Quote of the Day

"What does it say about America now, and where it is heading, that a racial provocateur, wielding a deceptively edited video, could not only smear an innocent woman but make every national institution that touched the story look bad? The White House, the N.A.A.C.P. and the news media were all soiled by this episode. Meanwhile, the majority of Americans, who believe in fundamental fairness for all, grapple with the poisonous residue left behind by the many powerful people of all stripes who served as accessories to a high-tech lynching."

~ Frank Rich

Keith Olbermann's Special Comment on Shirley Sherrod

This is arguably Olbermann's best special comment ever.

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"Fired up? Fired up?! Anyone? Anyone?"

Shirley Sherrod

POSTED BY JHW22

I am livid. So livid I can't possibly formulate a proper post. So instead I will write free-form and hope it all makes sense when I am finished -- even to me.

Breitbart uses film editing as his weapon.
Fox News uses distortion as their weapon.

The left-wing media like the Huffington Post and groups like the NAACP see the weapon and throw their hands up.
The Department of Agriculture and the White House throw their hands up.

We are at the mercy of the right-wing media when they can use their constant hate, lies and fear-mongering to extort the citizens, the media and the government to do dance as if bullets are being fired at our feet.

Shirley Sherrod is the personal victim of the right-wing's lies and the left-wing's capitulation.
We are all victims of the aftermath.

I want Shirley Sherrod reinstated by President Obama and apologized to by ANYONE who perpetuated the lie about her. Yet, even when the truth is out, people will believe the lie and think the truth is the lie. It will be too late. And the people who will hold on to the lie are dangerous people. They are the ones who thrive on right-wing weaponry and chaos.

Now Fox is acting as if they had nothing to do with this and are going to pull the wool over their own viewers' eyes. And people will believe that lie, too.

Part of me keeps saying, please let this be a Rosa Parks moment. Please tell me that we will all learn from this and stop the cycle of destructive rhetoric and fear-based reaction. Please tell me that this honorable woman will be an example of how we should ALL learn from our personal struggles and see people as people. Let the destruction of her reputation result in a phoenix moment for her. Let her rise from the damage as the person we refer to when we say, "I beat back my personal '-isms' and rose above them." Let Shirley Sherrod be the person who forces us to beat back the cowardice and discuss racism in America.

And let's beg of our friends and family to THINK before they allow thirty-eight seconds to define a person or a story.

Here's Shirley Sherrod's entire speech.
Here is Rachel Maddow's thorough take on the chaos.
Here is the story unfolding on CNN.


EDITOR'S UPDATE (7/21/10, 2:45pm): ColorOfChange.org is petitioning President Obama to reinstate Shirley Sherrod. It only takes a minute to fill out a form and do the right thing.

Douche Quote of the Day

Talk about your right wing lunacy!

Gawker:

Andrew Breitbart: [Holocaust Museum shooter] James von Brunn was a "multiculturalist just like the black studies and the lesbian studies majors on college campuses."

Breitbart is angry that anyone would call a neo-Nazi a "right-wing extremist."

Here's a sample:

"It's such a fucking slander on people like me. This guy's political philosophy is more akin to the drivel that you hear on a college campuses that delineates us by group and not by individuality....
It's deeply offensive that you would use this for political gain."

What a fucking jokester this douchebag is. But please go to Gawker and listen to the whole seething, angry voicemail. How dare someone call Von Brunn a right wing extremist! Apparently it's an insult to real right wing extremisits like Breitbart.