Ace:
You’ll remember that Californians who donated to help pass Proposition 8 were boycotted.
The IRS gave NOM’s chief political rival its donor list. I believe so that a similar boycott could be had.
This was, of course, illegal. And making it worse is proof of consciousness of guilt — whoever leaked the document took pains to redact the internal stamps and markings that would show it was leaked from the IRS.
But NOM was able to go to an expert to “see under” the black bars of redaction.
But Eastman shed light on another potential controversy involving the IRS — the unauthorized disclosure of tax document information. He recalled how information on their donors was leaked last year and published on the website of the Human Rights Campaign, which Eastman described as their “principal political opponent” on the marriage issue. The documents showed Mitt Romney’s political committee as a donor.Asked by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., if he had “proof” that the IRS leaked that material, Eastman said that he did.
Eastman explained that while some information was redacted in the posted version, his group’s “forensic” specialists were able to strip layers from the document and found “the original document that was posted there had originated from within the IRS.”
He said the version had “internal IRS stamps,” which “only exist within the IRS.”
Funny — I despise the IRS for targeting NOM — and I despise NOM for targeting gay men — my liberty streak says the IRS should not target NOM — but my liberty streak says I reserve the right to lambaste that miscreant group of morons, NOM. I won’t put up with lies and nonsense from the IRS — nor from NOM — in many ways they are the same ilk — and in some ways they are different — no blog post or comment is sufficient — but requires a much deeper look — I’m working on a book on the issue right now — for it takes a book to show how both groups are insane and dangerous.
@Jim Hlavac:
Have you considered that NOM already has political opponents that you likely support who could just as easily be targeted by the IRS for the same kind of scrutiny under a different politically biased management?
@Ditto:
Jim DID say that: “both groups are insane and dangerous.”
And it should go without saying that BOTH political sides are guilty of huge, HUGE amounts of exactly the same sort of mischief.
Here in Virginia during the run-up to the 2012 election, a number of “voter registration” booths were discovered to be discarding the applications received from black citizens. Apparently the Republican volunteers felt that their presidential candidate needed their “help” to win the election. Nobody suggested that the “plan” originated at the “highest level”. More like: At the lowest levels, “shi_ happens.”
And one look at the shapes of election districts ALL across the land proves that virtually NOBODY thinks that their party can win an election honestly and on the merits of their respective party platforms.
And all of the noise over voter-identification issues is VERY little more than minority voter intimidation.
And look at all the different mischief Nixon pulled during his fateful presidency.
Politics is an ugly business. Both sides know it, and both sides DO bend the rules – and break them – to gain what they hope to be an undeserved advantage.
Both the liberal and the conservative media distort the truth in an effort to gain a similar advantage, and in the end, the constant mischief convinces the public only that BOTH sides are crooked.
What I find difficult to understand is why one side doesn’t figure out that there just MIGHT be an advantage to be had by taking the high road in politics. Maybe it’s because EVERYONE thinks EVERYONE ELSE is a cheat, and they wouldn’t EVER believe that an honest politician could even exist.
I had an economics professor who once told the class that the vast majority of the “filthy rich” got rich by cheating, by being unethical, by taking unfair advantage of others, and the vast majority of successful politicians got where they were by cheating every way to Sunday.
I’m sure that Jim has a tight grip on the big picture here. I know that I’m not surprised.
@George Wells:
Provide link.
Are you saying that because Blockbuster requires a photo I.D. to rent a movie, they are quilty of racial intimidation against “minorities?”
Don’t these morons know about the “flatten image” option in the photoshop menus? Must be the same folk who made obambi’s birth certificate. 😉 I’m hardly a photoshop expert, but even I know how to do that.
@retire05:
“GOP contractor arrested for destruction of voter registration applications
By Eric W. Dolan
Thursday, October 18, 2012 20:40 EDT
The Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia announced Thursday that it had arrested the man who allegedly tossed completed voter registration forms in a dumpster.
Police on Thursday arrested 31-year-old Colin Small, who was a voter registration supervisor employed by Pinpoint, an independent firm contracted by the Republican Party of Virginia.
Smith has been charged with four counts of destruction of voter registration applications, eight counts of disclosure of voter registration application, and one count of obstruction of justice.
Now U.S. Reps. Gerald Connolly, James P. Moran Jr. and Bobby Scott, all Democrats, have upped the ante, writing a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder asking for an investigation into vote fraud allegations against both Pinpoint — which employed Small — and Strategic Allied Consulting, another contractor fired by the Republican National Committee that previously employed Small.”
This incident was mentioned as an example of individuals engaging in mischief on behalf of their respective parties. For every example discovered, there are likely hundreds that go undetected.
I apologize for not being able to provide the exact same “link” as what I had originally read. I don’t save articals I read, and I don’t know how to attach “links” even if I did.
“Are you saying that because Blockbuster requires a photo I.D. to rent a movie, they are quilty of racial intimidation against “minorities?” ”
No, I did not say anything about Blockbuster, nor did I mean to imply anything about whatever their business practices might be.
Instead of nit-picking the minute details, why don’t you comment on the big picture? Politics is soft-core Mafia behavior, and sometimes not so soft.
Do you thing constant redistricting serves the electorate well? Is that a worthy expendiature of taxpayer dollars?
@George Wells:
No, you just want to ignore the comparison when it comes to I.D. Why is it wrong to ask for someone’s legal photo I.D. when exercising their right to vote but not when renting a damn movie? And how long are you leftwingers wanting to punish certain states by refusing them to institute voter I.D. laws?
It is a Constitutional requirement (I know you left wingers hate that pesky Constitution). Or do you think Michigan and California should have the same number of representatives they had 100 years ago? People move, the population grows. What I do disagree with is race based districting that allows idiots like Sheila Jackson Lee to remain in office.
@retire05 #7:
Years ago, the Supreme Court stepped in and placed a variety of requirements on certain states that had demonstrated a history of racially-focused voter abuse. (If you disagree with any part of that statement, well, you’re insane.) Now, many years later, a number of those states are working to reverse those court-imposed limitations. Why? Are you REALLY going to suggest that EITHER party has put on its angel wings? That voter intimidation is a thing of the past? That racial animosity is all gone bye-bye? That given a chance, half of those good old Southern boys won’t just slip back into their KKK robes? LOLOLOL. Lord, girl, what planet do you live on?
“It is a Constitutional requirement (I know you left wingers hate that pesky Constitution). Or do you think Michigan and California should have the same number of representatives they had 100 years ago? People move, the population grows.”
This is a gross oversimplification of the real problem, disguised with the ridiculous suggestion that “pesky left-wingers” hate the Constitution and/or haven’t got a clue how representation works. Thanks, stupid BS like that makes it so easy, doesn’t it?
The redistricting that I was referring to was the intentional misrepresentation that one party can achieve when it wins a majority in the legislative body that has responsibility for redistricting. The mischief occurs when the numbers are rearranged so that the majority party holds its districts with slim majorities, while the minority party holds its districts with overwhelming majorities. Once set, these imbalances are nearly impossible to correct, and a voting minority may eventually control the majority of the legislature for a number of years. It’s called “gerrymandering.” Look it up.
“What I do disagree with is race based districting that allows idiots like Sheila Jackson Lee to remain in office.”
This is REALLY funny! You’re defending the very redistricting that causes the Sheila Jackson Lee “problem” you have with it. The representatives are apportioned according to population, right? Ideally, if a population is 30% Black, then 30% of its representatives should represent THEM. No, they don’t HAVE to BE Black, but if the gerrymandering results in 30% of the population having NO representation, then the system is crap.
@George Wells:
Jim’s post was clearly refering to NOM and the IRS, as he never mentioned NOM’s opponents.
You are rambling on about a completely separate subject. This article is not about voter registration, it is about the IRS admittedly targeting a conservative 501(c) group. There have been plenty of prior FA articles regarding the 2012 elections. I’d suggest you re-post those portions of your reply to the an appropriate FA article or post your own. Please try to stay focused.
@Jim S:
I’m sorry Jim, I’ve gone over this FA article as well as the original and I have no idea what image you were referencing.
@George Wells:
Years ago, George? How about FIVE decades ago? And then you accuse me of being “insane” if I disagree with your statement. News flash; the law is old, and outdated and needs to be abolished.
But wait, I thought that an elected representative represented ALL people, no matter their race or religion. Now, you’re saying that only BLACK representatives can represent BLACK people? Are you saying that all those members of the Congressional Black Caucus do not represent their WHITE constituents?
I suggest you look at how the court, not the state legislature, drew the district lines for Texas. Basically, the court disenfranchised all the while, and Hispanic, voters in Sheila Jackson Lee’s district by drawing the lines so that blacks would be the majority. And in case you haven’t noticed, Texas is a minority-majority state, yet affirmative action reins supreme when it comes to drawing congressional district lines. How is that fair?
@Ditto:
I was referring to the leaked document from the IRS that the MOM’s expert was able to “see under the redactions”. If you use the “flatten image” option, the various layers in the image are mashed into one, and you can’t look under anything.
@Jim S:
Thanks for clearing that up.
@Ditto: No problem….
I actually tried this in photoshop… made a document with a block of text, then drew a big black block over it in a separate layer. Save that, reload it and it’s child’s play to simply delete the layer with the block and read the text. If you flatten it before saving it, when you reload it, all that is impossible… at least as far as I can tell. Sorry for going off topic… 😉