Halloween Horrors: Razor Blade found in Candy in Reynoldsburg, Ohio (My Town)

Since I was little, back in the 70s (and for a long time before), there have been stories about tainted Halloween treats. Well-meaning neighbors would make caramel apples, popcorn balls and other homemade treats, only to have parents chuck them in the garbage, in the unlikely event that they contained needles, poisons, razor blades or other potentially  lethal items.

Everyone heard stories, but no one believed them. Parents would rifle through our candy sacks (usually a pillowcase), in the name of finding tears or needle pricks in the wrappers, but really just to steal the best chocolate. The rare occasions when there would be an actual case of tainted goodies would invariably turn out to be a hoax or a prank, either by a kid or a parent looking to scare people or garner attention. If you check out Snopes.com, they back me up on this.

But, especially after the Tylenol scare in the early 1980s, communities started changing Halloween. They'd have X-ray machines to run candy through, they'd hold mass indoor events instead of allowing trick-or-treating, they'd hold "trunk or treat" events, where kids got candy out of the backs of people's cars (and my, my, folks, doesn't that sound like a perfectly idiotic idea to teach kids?). A lot of over-the-top "safety" over a handful of mostly urban legends and hoaxes.

Well, last night it happened not only in the state of Ohio--where I recently returned after 20 years in Las Vegas--but right down the street from me. Seriously, we walk the area almost daily. It's a legit case, insofar as the Reynoldsburg police are treating it seriously, and there are actual photos of the Snickers bar with what looks like the razor blade from a disposable safety razor inside. But, I smell a rat. There was one piece of tainted candy found, period. That doesn't sound like a crazed lunatic trying to hurt people to me. It sounds like almost every other case like this, like a hoax or a prank gone too far. I'd lay money on it.

For the record: yes, central Ohio has "Beggars Nights," on various dates ahead of Halloween, a tradition dating back to the 1950s (with several origin theories). And no, I didn't pass out Snickers bars from my house, only Kit-Kats and Twix. Honest!

[Excerpt]

Reynoldsburg police: Razor blade found in Halloween candy

Reynoldsburg police are asking parents of children who trick-or-treated in the suburb to check all candy tonight, after a razor blade was found in a candy bar. Lt. Shane Mauger said police have no reason to believe the situation was a hoax. He said that the razor blade was in a Snickers bar. . .
Read more at: Columbus Dispatch

Latest James O'Keefe Video "Sting" Flops

Why would anyone trust this guy? Image from Huffington Post.

Mom wasn't right about everything: sometimes you can judge a book by its cover. And of course, its past behavior. James O'Keefe, who looks like a soulless weasel in every single photo I've ever seen of him, continues to crank out bullshit "sting" videos on a variety of conservative topics. I'm not sure if any of them has been straightforward or remotely honest. But I am sure that for the most part, they're trumped up, deceptively edited hit pieces.

By now, I can't understand why this rodent-faced asshat is given an ounce of credibility by anybody.

[Excerpt]

Latest James O'Keefe Sting Video Targeting Clinton Campaign Flops

At the end of a press conference Tuesday in which conservative filmmaker James O'Keefe unveiled a new sting video about Hillary Clinton, one reporter had just one question:  "Are you sure it's not a joke?" she asked. Project Veritas Action, O'Keefe's infamous nonprofit sting outfit, had promised reporters a "new undercover video exposing illegal activity conducted by high-level employees within Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. . ."

Read more at: Huffington Post

Report: Man-Caused Global Warming Virtually Certain

Image from source, Huffington Post

To this I say, well, DUH. I've always thought it was incredibly nonsensical to think that we could pollute to the levels we have for as long as we have and not have something to do with changing the climate. I mean, to have measurable, obvious differences in climate in my lifespan of less than 50 years? How could it not be because we're pumping pollutants into the air, water and ground?

Also, I've yet to hear a logical argument for motive on the part of climate scientists to lie to us about it. They're climatologists. They get paid whatever the climate is. It makes much more sense to me that the energy companies have a huge motive to deny climate change. And when you throw in that the right wing--which is wrong about virtually everything--is heavy on the denialism, it just makes it that much more obvious.

[Excerpt]

IPCC Climate Change Report Expresses Extreme Confidence In Human Cause Of Global Warming

Scientists now believe it's "extremely likely" that human activity is the dominant cause of global warming, a long-term trend that is clear despite a recent plateau in the temperatures, an international climate panel said Friday. . .

Read more at: Huffington Post

Idiot Proves Voter Fraud is Possible, Doesn't Prove it's Common

When Andrew Breitbart died, I thought maybe we'd be spared from ever hearing of his minion, the twerpy James O'Keefe, ever again. He's the one who stages sometimes elaborate, often dishonest "exposés" from an extreme right-wing perspective. But he's such a douche, that even if he had all his ducks in a row, he'd still just come off as a jerk. Here, he's proving that you can vote as somebody else if you know their address. Yeah. I've always known I could do that. . .provided I knew that person hadn't already voted, and provided that I wanted to commit a federal crime. I've never felt that inclination. And neither have very many other people.  [Story continues below]



The right has a very convincing argument for strict voter rules, with picture IDs, etc. "Who doesn't have an ID? You need an ID to get a movie at Blockbuster!" Yeah, nobody goes to Blockbuster anymore, but that isn't the point. The point is, there are large groups of people who do not often have photo IDs, whether you think that's stupid or not. And those people disproportionately vote Democrat. The fact of the matter is, Republicans didn't dream up voter ID laws because of some rampant voter fraud. More people win the big prize in MegaMillions and PowerBall in a given year than are busted for voter fraud. If it is a problem at all, it is amazingly small one. No, the laws are to disenfranchise particular voters.

I've been a voter for 28 years, first in Ohio, then in Nevada. I've never needed anything more than my name and my address to vote. When I registered, I filled out a card. I don't think I even needed ID then, just a bill with my address on it. I do have a photo ID, and can't conceive of not having one for myself. But since when do conservatives mandate official government papers for anything? And if you have to pay for them, isn't that an individual mandate? Not to mention a poll tax? And if they're given away for free, isn't that a giveaway?

[Excerpt]

James O’Keefe Proves That Pointless Form of Voter Fraud Is Possible


In a new video, a member of James O'Keefe's "Project Veritas" manages to enter a D.C. polling station and receive a ballot for none other than Attorney General Eric Holder, simply by providing Holder's address. . .

Read more at: New York Magazine

Video Hoaxster James O'Keefe Accused of Sexual Harrassment

In a previous post, I mused about the unlikeliness of uncharismatic people like John Boner Boehner and Mitch McConnell rising to powerful positions. But it isn't just them. How do unsavory people like Andrew Breitbart or James O'Keefe attain any level of success or fandom? Breitbart is an egomaniac on par with Donald Trump. And O'Keefe? Well, words like skeevy, sleazy, creepy and sociopath come to mind. Best part? ". . .O'Keefe lives with his parents." Ha!

[Excerpt]

James O’Keefe accused of sexual harassment



The Record reporter Chris Harris appeared on Countdown with Keith Olbermann on Thursday night to discuss the possible civil sexual harassment lawsuit against conservative filmmaker James O’Keefe. . . 

Read more at: The Raw Story

Fun With PhotoShop: Birthers 'Shop Obama Out of Grandparents' Picture

Well, clearly it's a fake. He's BLACK! They're WHITE!

I've lost sight of exactly what the "birthers" are trying to prove as it pertains to President Obama. One point is that Obama hasn't presented his "long form" certificate of live birth, and only his "short form" certification of live birth. Though the short form is adequate for getting a passport, becoming a Senator and any other legal purpose, the birthers want more! OR. . .the President isn't really president because his dad wasn't a citizen. Which has no legal pertinence whatsoever. OR. . .Mrs. Obama and her family concocted a ruse back in 1961, because they suspected that a half-black kid might one day grow up to be President. Since Mrs. Obama was--for some unknown reason--in Kenya (though there is no proof that puts her there at the time), they had to fake little bitty Barry's birth as having happened in Hawaii rather than in Kenya, Indonesia, Canada, the Pacific Ocean or. . .Washington (???).

But more recently, birfers try to say that there is no evidence of Barack Obama's life. Bizarrely, they say there are no pictures of him as a youth, no evidence he went to the schools he says he did. Though the man wrote two autobiographical tomes, it is alleged that we know nothing about him. Odd. I remember a lot about a twenty-year affiliation with Reverend Wright. . .something about Bill Ayers. . .Right. Nobody knows him. Anyway, the storyline is like an LSD parade through the looking glass with Lewis Carroll and Grace Slick. Nothing is what it seems, and nothing can be believed, no matter how concrete or provable. Essentially, anything that fits the birther narrative is true, and anything that refutes it is delusion. Or something.


The sunlight already looked fake. CLONING it makes it look faker. And the knee?

 But it gets particularly hilarious when they try to prove that the picture of Barack Obama with his (white) grandparents is a PhotoShopped phony. But instead, it can clearly be seen that the picture without Obama is the phony. Why? Well, they forgot to PhotoShop out the President's leg for starters. . .

Source: Joe.My.God.

FOX "News" Sunday Promotes O'Keefe as "Power Player"

FOX "News" Sunday with Chris Wallace is easily the least in every category for the Sunday morning political shows. It is also the easiest one to breeze through on the DVR, since it has the most commercials. The always vaguely creepy host is the most likely of the bunch to lob softballs at guests, and to set up perfect hits to his ludicrously named "Power Panel" of pundits (nearly always one-half of the show's running time). I always stop the DVR and erase right after the last of those segments, skipping the last segment.

At the end of each show, Wallace has a segment titled Power Player of the Week. I don't know who that title is supposed to impress, and I can't imagine ever anticipating with excitement just who it's going to be this week.  So I skip it. But not this week. This week, FOX inexplicably picked James O'Keefe, video hoaxster. O'Keefe is the one who "punks" organizations and individuals who are on the far right's hit list. O'Keefe's videos are nearly always creatively edited to make them far more incendiary than they otherwise would be.

The weird part of this is, even though these "exposés" are 95% hokum, they have an effect anyway. ACORN--which did nothing wrong--is now gone. NPR, another target, is shedding personnel and is in danger of losing funding, even though the "punk'd" executive merely told the truth. This punk's dodgy antics are effective, often even when he really doesn't expose anything. Wallace and FOX are apparently awarding this creep with their alleged weekly honor, and for what? Being a partisan asshole? 

FOX "News" is extremely good at injecting false or distorted narratives into political discourse. Do "death panels" ring a bell? ACORN itself would probably still be around were it not for the grossly inflated and embellished claims about them getting air on FOX. So I guess it makes sense after all that O'Keefe be given their big "honor." He's doing exactly what the network as a whole does. Fair and balanced, my ass. 

[Excerpt]



Chris Wallace Ignores James O’Keefe’s Dodgy Past While Promoting Him As The ‘Power Player Of The Week’



Right-wing activist James O’Keefe recently released a video showing how he deceived NPR fundraisers into thinking they were having a discussion with members of a Muslim non-profit organization. One of the fundraisers was caught criticizing Republicans and the Tea Party and NPR CEO Vivian Schiller subsequently resigned. . .
 
Read more at: ThinkProgress

Shirley Sherrod Sues Andrew Breitbart

Image from source, TPM Muckraker

Good for her. He drug her name through the mud for no good reason, and though she was ultimately proven to have done nothing wrong, there are those on the right who STILL insist she's a racist and worse. Clean him out, Shirley!

[Excerpt]

Breitbart Changes Tune On Why He Released Sherrod Video

When TPM asked Andrew Breitbart last July if the release of an edited video of Shirley Sherrod was timed to impact a Senate vote on restitution for black farmers, he said no. Now that she's suing him for defamation, he's making that restitution the issue. . .

Read more at: TPM Muckraker

IF IT'S ON THE INTERNET, IT MUST BE TRUE!!!

Lordy, there's a lot of stuff that conservatives believe that. . .well. . .defies belief.  And look, it's right there on the internets! I read it, it's true, don't you understand?  Ugh. But wait, aren't there things on the internet that liberals might believe that are distortions or outright lies? Probably. But liberals don't have the megaphone of FOX "News" or right-wing talk radio, to turn absolute idiocy into full-blown news stories.

And the weirdest part? These stories can be utterly debunked, blown apart, and laughed about by the rest of us. And if you go onto FreeRepublic.com three years from now, they'll still go on about each of these stories as if they are true.  Hey, did you hear about President Obama's trip to India that cost six million, billion, trillion dollars a day???  IT'S TRUE!!!

Another Shoe Bomber? Uh, Not So Much.

Image from source, ABC News

Note to self: do not joke about lighting my shoes on fire on a plane. Darn, and it's my favorite joke too. . .

[Excerpt]

FBI: No Explosives Found on United Jet in Denver

FBI agents say no explosives were found in the shoes of a Qatar diplomat who was subdued by federal air marshals on a United flight to Denver Wednesday night after allegedly telling the marshals, "I'm lighting my shoes on fire."

Authorities say the diplomat was wrestled to the ground and two F-16 fighter jets were dispatched to accompany the 757 on the final 40 minutes of its flight to Denver. Flight 663 originated from Washington Reagan airport. . .

Read more at: ABC News by way of Stupid Monkey Planet

Eric Cantor's Office Attack. Real?

Image from source, Gawker

I mused yesterday whether or not Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA) really had his office window shot out in a political threat/attack. Turns out. . .well, probably not. Unless this was a very clever shooter, who staged an arial attack! I thought it sounded too convenient.

[Excerpt]

Will Eric Cantor, Victim of Random Bullet Rain, Support Gun Control?

After Eric Cantor is done apologizing for lying about his office being shot at, he should probably do something to address the gun problem in his district—which is apparently so bad that bullets are raining from the sky. . .

Read more at: Gawker (with a hat-tip to Tracy for the link)

So, Climate Change is a Hoax, Then?

When the right-wing gets a big talking point, you can usually count on there being more to the story. So when some scientists' emails were stolen, and FOX "News" and the rest started saying they proved global warming a.k.a. climate change was a hoax, my b.s. antennae went up. Below is an excerpt showing exactly how.

And as a personal note, how can reasonable people not believe that 6-7 billion people spewing garbage into the air might cause problems?

[Excerpt]

Quick Fact: Baier falsely suggested allegedly hacked emails dispute global warming science


On Special Report, host Bret Baier falsely suggested that a series of emails reportedly stolen from the UK's Climate Research Unit (CRU) creates a "basis for disputing global warming." In fact, the validity of climate science is not hinged on the contents of these emails, some of which conservative media have taken out of context; reports from the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the leading scientific body for assessing climate change research, are the product of thousands of scientists worldwide. . .

Read more at: Media Matters

Faux Outrage: Loud, Proud and Bogus

Images from source, Brad Blog

If you think there's something fishy going on with all of these "grass roots" uprisings at various town hall meetings around the country, there's a reason for that. They're staged. Now, these wingnuts may actually be pissed off, but still in that vague, tea party, tea bagger way (also set-ups, by the way). In order to try to focus these lummoxes, they've given them a script, and instructions. The only problem is, with nut bars like this as your foot soldiers, there is the very likely consequence that they're going to start going off script. And boy howdy, I wouldn't put anything past these people, would you?

[Excerpt]

Wingnuts Receive Marching Orders On How to Disrupt Upcoming Town Halls With Phony Outrage

Are there simply no democratic (small "d") processes left that the Right isn't willing to corrupt to their own corporatized, nefarious purposes? It would seem not.

This from ThinkProgress, concerning the rightwing, corporate-sponsored (read: astroturf) "grassroots" FreedomWatch coalition, and their conveniently leaked talking points instruction memo [PDF] on how to create an appearance of dissension --- "Yell...Stand up and shout out...Rattle Him...Be Disruptive Early and Often" --- at upcoming town hall meetings back in Congressional districts over the August recess...

Read more at: Brad Blog

Totally the Worst Computer Attack Ever!!!

Image from PublicRadio.org

Have you ever gotten one of those emails from a well-meaning friend that says something like:

"I usually do NOT send out Virus Alerts because so many are Hoaxes This One appears to be True and its best to be safe!"

They often follow with "I checked it out on Snopes, and it's for real!" They'll say that Microsoft calls it the worst attack ever, and that it will melt your hard drive, turn your monitor into an amber-on-black terminal, and delete all of your porn. Well, maybe not, but you get the idea.

They're almost always either hoaxes, or are blown all out of proportion. But this story--which reads very much like one of those emails--appears to actually be legit. So, update your Windows Update downloads, stay away from Internet Explorer, or get a Mac. And I say this as a Mac-phobe!

[Excerpt]

Worm Infects Millions of Computers Worldwide

A new digital plague has hit the Internet, infecting millions of personal and business computers in what seems to be the first step of a multistage attack. The world’s leading computer security experts do not yet know who programmed the infection, or what the next stage will be. . .

Read more at: New York Times

Media Punk'd: Martin Eisenstadt, Fake McCain Advisor

A while back, when making fun of Sarah Palin was still cool (I mean cooler, it's not like we're going to stop doing it!), a little drama broke out within the news media. Carl Cameron of FOX "News" reported that a John McCain-Sarah Palin campaign advisor had leaked to him tons of information about how stupid Sarah Palin is. Stuff like not knowing that Africa is a continent, or what countries are in North America.

It was a vindication for people who'd been saying that she was basically "Miss Teen South Carolina" in hockey-mom clothes. Anyway, there were denials, and non-denials about the story. Palin herself gave a (what else?) rambling non-answer excuse that didn't convince me.

Then, a twist. MSNBC's David Shuster reported that they'd uncovered the source of the unnamed advisor, somebody named Martin Eisenstadt. Shortly after this, he retracted the story. End of issue, right? Not exactly. Shuster was lambasted by bloggers, his image everywhere, painting him as a fool and a sucker. Here on my blog, I scratched my head aloud, and wondered why Cameron wasn't taking any heat. Well, it was because I didn't read thoroughly enough to see what the blogs were laughing about.

The story goes that Martin Eisenstadt is a phony; a fraud. And Cameron's original story was not sourced by Eisenstadt, but somebody else. So apparently, Sarah Palin is ignorant for reals y'all, and Shuster (and others) were "punk'd" by hoaxsters. I still don't get why this attracted so much attention though. It would have been a better "gotcha" if the whole story had been a fake.

No less than conservative "FOX Fan" blogger Johnny Dollar came to my site, to rub my nose in it the fact that I'd gotten the story wrong. And hey, I am the first to admit I am capable of making a mistake. I'm a one-man show, running this blog between a real job and a real life. My only fact-checkers are my limited base of readers. So, anyway, here is the real story behind the story, to make up for the fact that I didn't get it at first.

I've got to wonder though, is the "conventional wisdom" on the Africa and North America ignorance by Palin now considered to be entirely a hoax? Is this falsely attributed leak now like the "Memogate" Bush AWOL-ness from 2004? Part of the story turns out to be false, so the CW throws the baby out with the bathwater? I'm betting, yes.

[Excerpt]

Filmmakers Behind Fake McCain Adviser Discuss Tricking The Media (VIDEO)

Dan Mirvish and Eitan Gorlin appeared on CNN's Reliable Sources to discuss how they tricked the media by creating a fake McCain adviser named Martin Eisenstadt. The duo were able to fool such reputable news organizations as The New York Times, The New Republic, and, most famously, MSNBC, whose anchor David Schuster reported live on air that Martin Eisenstadt had been identified. . .

Watch the video at: Huffington Post

Maybe Sarah Palin isn't quite as Dumb as We Thought?

It's way too early to give Sarah Palin a pass on the "Africa is a country" and "what countries are in North America" stuff. But there is some disinformation swirling around those stories. I posted some of my patented snark about the revelations, but in the context of a FOX "News" report of the story. Which made it doubly funny.

I'm convinced, after hearing a really lame defense from Palin herself in an interview, that her comments were genuine, or at least along the lines of the other things she doesn't know.

[Excerpt]

Martin Eisenstadt Tricks News Orgs On Being Source Of Palin Dirt

But it's not at all clear that Eisenstadt exists. William K. Wolfrum of Shakespeare's Sister, who was suckered by Eisenstadt during the campaign, did some digging and concluded, "There is no M. Thomas Eisenstadt. There is no Eisenstadt Group. There is no Harding Institute for Freedom and Democracy. M. Thomas Eisenstadt is a hoax. . ."

Read more (with video) at: Huffington Post

An Answer for all of the "We Can't Trust Obama" Claims

For months, I've been seeing and hearing about those stupid email hoaxes, alleging all kinds of nefarious things about Barack Obama. Lately, a "truthier" version of those emails have been going around, this time using real (or half-true) tidbits to plant doubt in "uninformed" voters' minds. To my way of thinking, many of these undecideds are probably either hard-core Republicans who are trying to justify voting Democrat, or they are people who are (possibly sub-consciously) racists looking for a different label to hide behind. Just my opinion, take it for what it's worth.

The writer of the piece excerpted below got just such an email, from a former employer. At the risk of burning his bridges, he answers every claim in the email--and answers them well. It's pretty late in the campaign for this to help you with your acquaintances who pass these along, but hey, they may be out in force tomorrow! It's well worth a read, in any case.

[Excerpt]

In Which I Burn All Bridges to My Former Boss

An email came to me by a circuitous route the other day. Normally I would pass on responding to something like this--particularly since the specifics have been rebutted by others more effectively than I dilitentte such as I could ever manage.

But this one is special--it comes from a person that I worked with very closely for many years. This person was a veteran of business affairs. A longtime senior executive. And I was his right hand. . .

Read more at: Talking Points Memo

Keith Olbermann's Campaign Comment: McCain, Step Up!

Another Countdown with Keith Olbermann "Campaign Comment," another contented blogger. I love when he gets fired up, and he's right. It's high time John McCain stood up and shouted down the worst elements of his party. The frenzy the right-wingers were thrown into by the Ashley Todd hoax just scratched the surface of their irrational hatreds. McCain should say something about it.

McCain Campaign Pushed "Mutilation" Hoax

You know that sad, John McCain worker who hoaxed Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania police (and the rest of us) with a story that a Barack Obama-supporting mugger carved a "B" into her face? Well, it appears that the McCain-Palin campaign pushed this story into the media before getting all of the facts. What is most striking to me, is that McCain is making a Pennsylvania push, trying desperately to flip the state back to red. Is it a coincidence that one of his workers perpetrated this hoax in western Pennsylvania?

McCain Supporter Attack a HOAX

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