I was right! I put up a highly skeptical post yesterday, one hyped to the rafters by The Drudge Report, about a young McCain supporter who was mugged, robbed, beaten and "mutilated" (actually a scratched, backwards "B" on her cheek) at an ATM in Pennsylvania. The story had holes, but I didn't want to dismiss it outright and come off like a heartless bastard (not that I'm not one, I just don't want to appear so!).
It turns out the whole thing was a hoax. Which is just the latest embarrassment for Drudge, and for highly reactionary wing-nut sites like Free Republic. When I viewed initial reaction to the story on FR, only minutes after the breaking news, they were in a frothy lather, ready to bring on a full-scale race war, and planning to stock up on ammunition this weekend. That's because the hoaxster described her attacker as a big, black Barack Obama supporter. Nice, right? It's not as funny as the faux outrage over Obama's use of an "Obama Flag" that turned out to be a State of Ohio flag, but it is predictable.
This story stunk pretty badly, and I'm not surprised that it turned out to be a hoax. But will the crazed reactionaries take back what they said yesterday? Somehow, I doubt it.
[Excerpt]
KDKA: Police say Ashley Todd Assault a Hoax
Ashley Todd's assault has been confirmed to be a hoax, according to KDKA. Police reportedly admitted Friday the attack was a hoax.
20-year-old Ashley Todd was facing a polygraph test to be administered by officials after claiming she was brutally beaten over her political views. . .
Read more at: The Post Chronicle
It turns out the whole thing was a hoax. Which is just the latest embarrassment for Drudge, and for highly reactionary wing-nut sites like Free Republic. When I viewed initial reaction to the story on FR, only minutes after the breaking news, they were in a frothy lather, ready to bring on a full-scale race war, and planning to stock up on ammunition this weekend. That's because the hoaxster described her attacker as a big, black Barack Obama supporter. Nice, right? It's not as funny as the faux outrage over Obama's use of an "Obama Flag" that turned out to be a State of Ohio flag, but it is predictable.
This story stunk pretty badly, and I'm not surprised that it turned out to be a hoax. But will the crazed reactionaries take back what they said yesterday? Somehow, I doubt it.
[Excerpt]
KDKA: Police say Ashley Todd Assault a Hoax
Ashley Todd's assault has been confirmed to be a hoax, according to KDKA. Police reportedly admitted Friday the attack was a hoax.
20-year-old Ashley Todd was facing a polygraph test to be administered by officials after claiming she was brutally beaten over her political views. . .
Read more at: The Post Chronicle
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