ok, what's the deal. anybody got a link to a transcript of what she was talking about? O'Reilly is blowing this one out of proportion, I think, (i know, shocker) and I'm interested in seeing the rest of what she was saying. I'd almost wager that she was talking about how doing what she did was wrong...

7/20/2010 10:21:15 PM

.

[Edited on July 20, 2010 at 10:46 PM. Reason : double post, after some lagging/freezing]

7/20/2010 10:38:23 PM

Since you mentioned O'Reilly, this deal specifically with his claims (also makes comparisons to the misleading ACORN editing, & calls out the administration for falling for this):

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

7/20/2010 10:45:46 PM

Quote :

"Shirley Sherrod, a state director with USDA, at an NAACP banquet"

Quote :

"I demand that the NAACP clean up its act and not allow racist speakers at its events!"

-Hooksaw

So I guess now that it was clear she wasn't the director of any gov org at the time, and that she did help the people in question, Hooksaw will issue a clarification from his at least 6 posts on the topic?

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/07/20/agriculture.employee.naacp/index.html

Quote :

"The NAACP said in a statement Tuesday that it was "snookered by Fox News" and conservative website publisher Andrew Breitbart. "Having reviewed the full tape by Shirley Sherrod, who is the woman who was fired by the Department of Agriculture, and most importantly heard the testimony of the white farmers mentioned in this story, we now believe that the organization that edited the documents did so with the intention of deceiving millions of Americans," the statement from NAACP President Benjamin Jealous said. Jealous later posted on his Twitter account that he "Spoke to Ms. Sherrod earlier today and personally apologized. Plan to meet with her face-to-face the next time I'm in Georgia." The organization also urged Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to reconsider Sherrod's resignation from her post as the department's director of rural development for Georgia. Breitbart originally posted the video, which was quickly picked up by Fox News."

Quote :

"But that lawyer failed to help, she said. "I did not discriminate against [the farmer]. And, in fact, I went all out to frantically look for a lawyer at the last minute because the first lawyer we went to was not doing anything to really help him. In fact, that lawyer suggested they should just let the farm go." She was able to find an attorney to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy to help the family stay on the farm, she said."

Quote :

"Spooner says Sherrod accompanied him and his wife to a lawyer in Americus, Georgia, who was able to help them file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which ultimately saved their farm. "If it hadn't been for her, we would've never known who to see or what to do," he said. "She led us right to our success." Spooner's wife, Eloise, remembered Sherrod as "nice-mannered, thoughtful, friendly; a good person." She said that when she saw the story of the tape and Sherrod's resignation on television, "I said, 'That ain't right. They have not treated her right.' ""

Quote :

""She was sharing this account as part of a story of transformation and redemption," the statement said. "In the full video, Ms. Sherrod says she realized that the dislocation of farmers is about 'haves and have nots.' 'It's not just about black people, it's about poor people,' says Sherrod in the speech. 'We have to get to the point where race exists but it doesn't matter.' ""

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 12:43 AM. Reason : .]

7/21/2010 12:43:24 AM

It’s sickening that Brietbart released the cropped video knowing full well what the full context was, in an attempt at a racial smear. Worse yet, the Obama admin took the bait and did what the right-wing media wanted them to do. The saddest part of all is that there’s no good way to call the right out on their blatant race-baiting without having all elements of the right simultaneous say that they’re playing the “race card.”

Who would have thought that in 2010, it would harder to call out people on their racism than in prior decades…?

I think what needs to happen is that she gets her job reinstated, and the the USDA official needs to grow some balls and condemn the blatant misinformation and obfuscation on racial issues coming out of the right recently.

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 1:46 AM. Reason : ]

7/21/2010 1:44:53 AM

The just need to put a warning label at the beginning of each fox news segment that lets its viewers know that the shows are not real news

7/21/2010 3:20:29 AM

There is no "clarification" necessary from me. If I got "snookered," as the NAACP put it, then so did the aforementioned organization, the Obama administration, and a great many others.

This was never really about Shirley Sherrod for me. It's about getting folks to realize that the NAACP, many on the left, and a number of leftists here continually beat conservatives about the head and shoulders with the "RACIST!!!1" charge. And I've had it!

I'm fed up with leftists and their organizations demagoguing the race issue and using overwhelmingly false charges of racism as a club to bash conservatives. I'm not going to stand for it any longer and I call on all conservatives who do not harbor hate in their hearts (meaning the vast majority) to rise up and stand with me.

Conservatives, the "racism" bludgeon currently wielded by activist leftists is nothing more than a tool used by them to diminish us--take it away from them.

Quote :

"Pick one of Obama's conservative critics, [Spencer] Ackerman wrote, 'Fred Barnes, Karl Rove, who cares — and call them racists.'"

Quote :

"What is necessary is to raise the cost on the right of going after the left. In other words, find a rightwinger's [sic] and smash it through a plate-glass window. Take a snapshot of the bleeding mess and send it out in a Christmas card to let the right know that it needs to live in a state of constant fear. Obviously I mean this rhetorically."

--Spencer Ackerman

http://tinyurl.com/39pgueh

Quote :

"Tainting the tea party movement with the charge of racism is proving to be an effective strategy for Democrats. There is no evidence that tea party adherents are any more racist than other Republicans, and indeed many other Americans. But getting them to spend their time purging their ranks and having candidates distance themselves should help Democrats win in November. Having one's opponent rebut charges of racism is far better than discussing joblessness."

--Mary Frances Berry, Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, where she teaches history and law. Former Chairperson of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.

http://www.politico.com/arena/perm/Mary_Frances_Berry_91E3D9D5-C40D-440C-9D48-1C50CBC60C87.html

And there's this:

Obama Administration Stands By Decision to Fire Sherrod
6hrs 40mins ago

http://politifi.com/news/Obama-Administration-Stands-By-Decision-to-Fire-Sherrod-954033.html

Undoubtedly, the Obama administration will flip-flop on Sherrod's firing--just as it has done on almost every other issue it has come in contact with. If Obama does this, I can simply add it to the already depressingly long list in my "Obama Flip-Flops" thread.

7/21/2010 4:29:45 AM

Sorry dude, but you took this whole thing hook (pun?), line and sinker!

Quote :

"Because the damage was done with these words alone:"

So you are saying that it is okay to take quotes COMPLETELY out of context as long as it serves your purpose (in this case demonstrating that she was somehow a "racist")?

You can redeem yourself by bumping (or requesting the bump thereof) the Faux News thread and using your formidable internet combing powers to crucify them for their complete blowing out of proportion, distortion and flat out lying of this matter.

I will say shame on the Obama Administration for being trolled into doing this by a right wingnut nobody.

7/21/2010 4:57:26 AM

^ I already posted my piece above on this. But let's try a little exercise in which we switch the colors in Sherrod's words (read as if she were a white person):

Quote :

"I was struggling with the fact that so many black white people had lost their farmland, and here I was faced with having to help a white black person save their land. So I didn't give him the full force of what I could do. I did enough."

Quote :

"So, I took him to a white black lawyer. . . . So, I figured that if I took him to one of them that his own kind would take care of him."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrNWw7TGkjo

How does that work for you? I mean, how would you take it?

BTW, I find it curious that you're more concerned with me being "snookered," if this is the case, than you are with the NAACP biting on this and the Obama administration apparently forcing Sherrod to resign.

There is no redemption necessary on my part. If some in the media got it wrong, they got it wrong.

7/21/2010 5:23:43 AM

The "media" in this case being the right wing nutjob that crafted this hoax much like the ACORN scandal. I've already said that the administration is to blame for their role in forcing out this woman without taking full measure of the facts. I am also inclined to call you out as the one who first brought this information, in all of its distorted glory, to our attention and then entrenching through diversion and deflection. Do not take this as a personal slight as I mean none, but you are indeed culpable of perpetuating a defamation.

7/21/2010 5:31:05 AM

Oh boohoo a liberal got unfairly accused of racism and had to resign


There are tears streaming down my fat little cheeks as i contemplate the horror

7/21/2010 5:48:51 AM

Yeah, too bad she wasn't Jewish. . .

7/21/2010 5:53:32 AM

^^^^ So, if CNN or MSNBC or the like puts out a story and it's later retracted due to inaccuracy, I'm culpable? You know, if FOX made a mistake here, they wouldn't be the first news organization to do so. Furthermore, if FOX retracts or clarifies this story or aspects of it, I'll be one of the first to say they should have checked it more thoroughly. And it appears now that FOX probably should have done just that--along with both the NAACP and the Obama administration.

One thing I will say in defense of FOX News is, from what I gather, they did not air the Sherrod story until after she had resigned. If this is actually the case, reporting the resignation and Vilsack's statement about it would have been proper. If the story in question was framed improperly by FOX or any other organization, this is also deserving of scrutiny.


[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 6:00 AM. Reason : PS: And the ACORN scandals were, in fact, newsworthy stories. ]

7/21/2010 5:57:24 AM

Quote :

"So, if CNN or MSNBC or the like puts out a story and it's later retracted due to inaccuracy, I'm culpable?"

If you are the first to present us with the story that later turns out to be a blatant falsehood or hideously distorted, then yes.

Quote :

"PS: And the ACORN scandals were, in fact, newsworthy stories."

Sure, all the way up to the point where the right wing activist git who set this all into motion was called the fuck out and hopefully will be prosecuted under the full extent of the law for the crime he committed through his charade. But of course Faux News bought into the lie and continues to spout the nonsense about and tout that fool as a hero.


[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 6:11 AM. Reason : .]

7/21/2010 6:03:20 AM

^^ fox aired the story before she resigned

7/21/2010 6:07:02 AM

^^ Look, man, you're not going to use this issue to club me over the head--figuratively speaking, of course--just like the leftists here and elsewhere are doing calling just about every conservative a racist. You've posted your piece, I've posted mine.

Let's just see where this thing goes over the next few days before you jump the gun like you're accusing me of doing. When I post something that is put out by a major news organization (whether you or anyone else likes them or not), I simply must assume that it's been, at least, double-sourced. I mean, I don't have my own team of reporters to gather info for me.

And you'll pardon me if I don't go to Media Matters, Think Progress, Democratic Underground, or the like to get my news. I'm sure some will post a snarky reply that I would've been better of to go to these sites, but I simply disagree.

^ Well, then Hannity was apparently wrong about that, too. I don't watch FOX News all the time.

7/21/2010 6:27:38 AM

so then it is as I expected. pretty bad hatchet job here. pretty disgusting

7/21/2010 7:06:17 AM

^ Perhaps. But FOX News didn't force Sherrod out of a job--that was the Obama administration.

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 7:12 AM. Reason : And FOX didn't force the NAACP to condemn Sherrod's speech, either. ]

7/21/2010 7:09:15 AM

The bright side of this is that the Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is man enough to admit that his letting go of this woman from her post was a mistake. I wonder if certain agenda-oriented media organizations will do the same.











Nah.

Quote :

"I mean, I don't have my own team of reporters to gather info for me."

Your gaggle of moles or gnomes (gnome moles?) that scour the furthest reaches of the series of tubes that comprise the internet will be very unhappy to hear you say this!

7/21/2010 7:22:20 AM

YES!!! Obama admin is saying they will reconsider Sherrod's firing and might hire her back


This shit is too awesome for words. Obama really coming off like a skilled and decisive leader...

7/21/2010 7:24:01 AM

Flip-Flop Thread bump inc?

Yeah, he fucked up here. As a supporter of his, I'll go ahead and say it.

7/21/2010 7:25:48 AM

little meaningless victories like this are solace for a conservative's soul during this dark era of liberal hegemony

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 7:31 AM. Reason : not that i'm a conservative, mind you.. i'm strictly non-partisan. but if I were, it would be solace]

7/21/2010 7:31:08 AM

^^ I'll make a deal with you. You bump my "Obama Flip-Flops" thread and post Vilsack's flip-flop (with no excuses) and I'll bump the "FOX News" thread and post their clarification/retraction when/if they issue it.

If FOX News doesn't issue such a statement within two days from now and it's clear that FOX was in the wrong, which appears to be the case, I will post a story stating their error/clarification from a news source that would be considered unfriendly to FOX. Deal?

7/21/2010 7:36:07 AM

Fox wasn't in the wrong... This story was always about the NAACP audience's reaction to her description of racist activities.

This is corroborated by the original explanation given as to the reason for the video's release. It was retaliation for the NAACP's lackluster attempts to paint the Tea Party as racist.

It's not Fox News' fault that Obama jumped the gun and fired Sherrod. If he were a better leader, he wouldn't be in the awkward position of going back to her, hat in hand, to ask forgiveness

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 7:39 AM. Reason : Stick to the MFing talking points]

7/21/2010 7:38:00 AM

Oh yes, you're non-partisan.













*WIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNK*

To be fair this would be a victory for common sense and civility more so than some kind of conservative monopoly given that it was a conservative that crafted this farce to begin with. This woman is a hero and an inspiration who overcame her personal prejudice to not only save but befriend this once troubled white farm family.

7/21/2010 7:38:42 AM

A memo should be sent out to anyone in a position of power or influence, even the enemy (who of course would promptly disregard it): Regard anything spewed out by Fox News, Drudge Report, BigGovernment, or the rest of the right-wing Gestapo spin machine as a malicious lie, half-truth, or omission unless and until it is corroborated (not merely repeated) by real media organizations, preferably fact-checkers like Politifact, FactCheck, and Snopes.

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 7:49 AM. Reason : also liberal hegemony isn't dark, it's a source of good for the vast majority

7/21/2010 7:47:59 AM

^ yea, until it is reported by such trustworthy newsmen as CBS of memogate fame


Also...

ROFL - story keeps getting better. Sherrod considers turning down any request to rejoin the Dept. of Agriculture. Hahahaha... could this meaningless story get any better?

Would be super funny if Breitbard was sitting on a video with her saying some hardcore racist things and then released it after Obama hired her back. Then she'd get fired all over again...

god i love politics. turnabout is fairplay, liberals.

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 8:26 AM. Reason : ]

7/21/2010 8:24:09 AM

Well, guess now we know that the NAACP is NOT composed of racists. They're just too quick to judge. Nothing new there, of course. The same can probably be said of Obama.

Glad that's settled

7/21/2010 9:17:26 AM

Well actually, the video did show the NAACP audience laughing and approving of her story as she was recounting blatantly racist behavior.

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 9:38 AM. Reason : ]

7/21/2010 9:38:37 AM

The comments are only racist when taken out of context

7/21/2010 9:47:55 AM

No, the point is, as she was recounting the story, in the middle of the story, as she described racist actions, the audience was laughing and approving of the steps she described taking.

this isn't a hard concept to grasp.

She is not a racist today, but the audience certainly voiced approval for specific racist actions that she described taking earlier in her life.

7/21/2010 10:13:51 AM

I really wished the liberals would've attacked the Tea Party with something other than accusations of racism. If the progressive movement is against smaller and less intrusive gov't..then say it and let the chips fall where they may. But now the Tea Party in the guise of Breibart had to counter the NAACP attack with their own accusations of racism using edited snippets of Sherrod's speech. A speech whose ultimate main point was that, for her, racism was the wrong road to take.

Accusations of racism are the most potent weapon one can use in American politics. It has a visceral effect on everyone. Both sides need to be much more careful in its use. It's going to tear this country apart.

This, once again, shows the incompetence of the Obama regime. He has never run a business..and it shows here. One of the lessons a good manager learns is not to hang out an employee before getting all the facts.

This poor Sherrod woman has been unfairly attacked by the right and then hung out to dry by Vilsack and Obama. Obama should apologize, rebuke Vilsack and also apologize for Holder calling the country cowards on race. He should then tell everyone on both sides to lay off the racism attacks.

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 10:54 AM. Reason : .]

7/21/2010 10:47:44 AM

Sherrod blames NAACP for firing
July 20, 2010

Quote :

"Asked about the NAACP's actions during an interview with CNN on Tuesday, Sherrod said the only reason the video surfaced was in response to an NAACP resolution accusing the tea party of using 'racist' tactics. 'They got into a fight with the tea party, and all of this came out as a result of that,' Sherrod said."

Quote :

"'I have done more to advance the causes of civil rights in this area than some of them who are sitting in those positions now with the NAACP,' Sherrod continued. 'They need to learn something about me. They need to know about my work. They need to know what I have contributed through the years.'"

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0710/39961.html

Look out! Now that Sherrod has blamed the NAACP for her firing, the liberals will throw their newfound star under the proverbial bus with a quickness!

This story continues to evolve and it is fascinating.

7/21/2010 10:56:04 AM

without context, she was unfairly attacked

however, as a political appointee, political attacks on her are by and large fair. Charges of racism are always fair in the climate that liberals have created over the years. It is not conservatives' fault that obama knee-jerk fired her.

As much as people criticized bush for standing by his appointees, I guess we can see some of the benefits that loyalty pays in this situation. Obama could have learned a lesson or two from Bush.



[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 11:06 AM. Reason : ]

7/21/2010 10:56:55 AM

^ Good angle. I hadn't thought of that.

7/21/2010 11:02:18 AM

Gotta spin up dat 190% good angle.

7/21/2010 11:11:45 AM

The angles have angles on this one.

7/21/2010 11:19:16 AM

this meaningless kerfuffle is like a diamond for conservatives

7/21/2010 11:28:27 AM

Not really. It's pretty simple actually.

The NAACP pissed of the tea party and to an extent the right wing by labeling the tea party as racists.

As is so common in our ridiculosuly sophomoric culture of 24 hour news-pinion, a right wing ideologue, in order to fight fire with fire, knowingly released an edited tape to turn this woman into a racist, and thereby provide a the right wing with a satisfying Gotcha! moment.

Right wing media outlet picks up and runs with story without doing any further investigation.

The administration, which due to other episodes like this, has become so tightly wound up and fearful of the Glenn Becks of the world, acts swiftly and inappropriately to demand her resignation before knowing all the facts.

It's a bunch of racial tit-for-tat bullshit that serves no purpose other than to provide fodder for Solinari and the like to furiously masturbate to.

7/21/2010 11:39:07 AM

because no conservative has ever been unjustly accused of racism and had their career torpedoed as a result

you'll have to forgive me if I can't find the requisite sympathy in this situation

7/21/2010 1:23:03 PM

Who made that claim?

7/21/2010 1:29:45 PM

srsly?

not even worth answering

7/21/2010 1:36:12 PM

So, unnamed evil liberals have claimed that republicans have never faced similar unfounded charges of racism. Got it.

And that excuses this particular instance.

I'll add you to the list of soap boxers to never take seriously again. Thanks.

7/21/2010 1:50:22 PM

well I mean seriously, if you are going to act as though conservatives have never been unfairly charged with racism then all I can do is

7/21/2010 2:18:55 PM

If I were Obama I'd make a heartfelt apology saying i should've known better than to believe Fox News

kill 2 birds with 1 stone

7/21/2010 2:31:44 PM

Who who at Fox will be fired for this?

7/21/2010 2:35:28 PM

^^^Are you serious? Can you read? I've never claimed conservatives haven't faced similar unfounded racism charges. They undoubtably have. No one is claiming they haven't. That was my question. And even if you could provide an example, it doesn't excuse this instance.

7/21/2010 2:42:10 PM

I didn't say it "excuses" this incident. This incident doesn't need excusal. It is politics at its most banal.

If you are scandalized by this incident then, please, kindly escort yourself away from the news.

Quote :

"If I were Obama I'd make a heartfelt apology saying i should've known better than to believe Fox News kill 2 birds with 1 stone"

It might seem like that to someone that's plugged into the whole OMG FAUX-NEWS paradigm, but to the average person, such vascillation will only reinforce the erratic and unpredictable reputation that he's starting to develop

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 2:50 PM. Reason : ]

7/21/2010 2:49:00 PM

Quote :

"the erratic and unpredictable reputation that he's starting to develop"

[citation needed]

7/21/2010 2:57:15 PM

to be honest, i'm surprised the white house is actually going to apologize to her. i didn't think they'd be humble enough to admit they got duped and were wrong to press her and/or her bosses

i don't even care if makes them look like they were being reactionary to more of the same from the conservatives, it's the right thing to do.

[Edited on July 21, 2010 at 2:59 PM. Reason : .]

7/21/2010 2:57:54 PM