Wake up, Rockford! Time for Meyers to GO.

I started out the day with an interview with another former political opponent of Meyers - James Kidd, former Winnebago County Corrections officer, who decided he'd had enough of the shenanigans at the sheriff's department and ran against his boss in 2006. This story might sound familiar to you...

James Kidd, a former Marine sergeant, started with the Sheriff's department as a corrections officer in October of 1999. He's seen a lot since then. Most of it I can't report here because without evidence in my hands I might be liable of libel, and even with it I might not avoid a lawsuit. Kidd is not hard to find around Rockford - I'll let you find him and ask him yourself.

For various reasons he decided to run against his boss. This started him on a trajectory which ended in his firing in June 2008.

During his campaign, a fellow previously unknown to Kidd approached the candidate about hosting a "meet and greet." Fine - nice of a concerned citizen to get involved. Allegedly, when the sheriff got wind of it, he ran a background check on this citizen (is that even legal?). Turns out that this fellow had previously been a registered sex offender. Kidd said that the label should have dropped off the guy's record after 10 years or so, but for some reason it remained. While it apparently didn't reach the threshold of being "news" to the local papers, word went out on the street that Kidd was hanging out with child molesters.

Now, before you say that is just too much of a stretch to believe, this story just crossed my computer screen this morning, before I went to the interview:

Anchorage CBS Affiliate Caught on Voicemail Conspiring Against Alaska’s GOP Senate Candidate

The following voice mail message was inadvertently left on the cell phone of Joe Miller campaign spokesperson Randy DeSoto.

The voices are believed to be those of the news director for CBS Anchorage affiliate KTVA, along with assignment editor Nick McDermott, and other reporters, openly discussing creating, if not fabricating, two stories about Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, Joe Miller.

The following is a transcript of a call recorded after CBS Alaska affiliate KTVA called Joe Miller’s Senate campaign spokesperson. The call failed to disconnect properly. It was later authenticated by McDermott, who sent a text to Randy DeSoto stating, “Damn iPhone… I left you a long message. I thought I hung up. Sorry.”

Caught on tape was a jovial conversation between two news reporters, a male and female. The male said, "... Joe Miller's ... uh ... get a list of the people/campaign workers ... which one's the child molester?"

The female responded, "You know that of all the people that will show up tonight, at least one of them will be a registered sex offender."

This is a pretty old and reliable dirty campaign trick. Get a large enough group together and you'll find at least one sex offender, someone with a criminal background, a racist, a social misfit, whatever - then tag the candidate with hanging out with the wrong crowd.

Other allegations floated around but it seems not much was made about the race in the press and Kidd lost the election with about 36% of the vote. Soon after that, while executing his duties as a union steward, Kidd sat down with some military veterans to discuss changes in the laws as well as general veteran's issues. It seems that some issues were arising with several deputies or corrections officers who were also serving in the military reserves.

One officer Matt Bunk, had been given an ultimatum by a sergeant to choose either the sheriff's department or the military some time before the election, Kidd told me. In January 2007, Jeremy Phfaulme chose the army over the department. Kidd started to press the issue with the department, considering the pressure to leave as a "constructive discharge" - essentially, a forced firing due to their military service. The upstream union representative did not support their complaint, Kidd said, so they filed complaints with the Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office and the EEOC in early 2008.

It seems that Sheriff Meyers had enough. In what Kidd says is retaliation, in June 2008 and within 30 days of the complaint, he was fired. The disciplinary action included charges of excessive use of force, intimidation and conduct unbecoming an officer. Shortly after, Matt Ashman, a reservist and Bronze Star Medal recipient, was fired for excessive absenteeism while on military orders, Kid alleges. Both Kidd and Ashman were denied unemployment benefits, they say by the sheriff's office.

I should add that subsequent to his firing, Ashman and his family lost their home. Kidd had three homes - two which he would rent to deserving ex-prisoners trying to get their feet back on the ground, provided they got jobs and opened checking accounts - no cash. He lost them all. Kidd now operates a landscaping business. Recently suspended Sgt. Aaron Booker will have to deal with having no income for three months. He is the custodial parent of several children and a dog.

Kidd has dogged Meyers publicly for a reason why Ashman was denied unemployment benefits (not on his own behalf), and generally got only a cold shoulder. Here are a couple videos he took at campaign events:





Yes, Sheriff Meyers, "Is there a reason why you won't answer the question?"

At the Tea Party-hosted debate Thursday, he actually took a stab at it. He said that the decision to deny benefits was the responsibility of the county board, stating that it was a "county issue," not a "sheriff's issue." Yet on Saturday at the GOP/Booker rally, Scott denied giving that order and told Kidd to check with Human Resources. So much for that...

But what was most chilling was Kidd's response to a story I told him of someone I knew who had a bit of a run-in with the law on a routine traffic stop (the type of traffic stop which is far too routine in Winnebago county and its municipalities). Things escalated well beyond what was called for in the situation.

"Do you know why that happened?" Kidd asked me, almost rhetorically.

"Noooo...." I said.

"Officers can't use their own judgment anymore for fear of retribution," he said.

Think about that. What with dash cams and automatic radar, the days of "Go forth and sin no more," or "I'll let you off with a warning," are gone in Winnebago county, not for fear of immediate dismissal, but for fear that should they misstep sometime in the future, the Sheriff will have ammunition for retaliative disciplinary action.

At the debate, Meyers also talked about "progressive discipline," which is supposedly the policy of the department and the process by which he justified the action taken against Booker. Interesting that Booker had an actual suspension on his record prior to 2006 when he was given a shift command at the 911 center. Still, he received a near perfect performance appraisal. Just prior to his assignment at the 911 center was the incident with Paul DiVenti, which I discussed in an earlier post, resulting in a letter of reprimand in his file - not a "progressive" disciplinary action. Still, a near-perfect review. A number of other letters and such appeared in his file, while he continued to receive very favorable performance appraisals. Funny that only after he declared his intentions to challenge the sheriff for the job did he find himself dragged before the Merit Commission - a process which played out over many months resulting in a 90-day suspension practically on the eve of election day.

Funny how that "progressive discipline" didn't come into play when in 2006 a deputy was responding to a call at high speed on a busy street at night without lights and siren, and he t-boned another vehicle at an intersection, killing two people and injuring one. That little escapade cost the county (read that: taxpayers) $17 million in settlements, of which less than $5 million was covered by liability insurance. The county had to issue bonds to cover the rest, which will cost the taxpayers another $6.5 million by the time it's paid off in 2029.

But here's the kicker, from the article:

A statement from Bachman family members added: “Equally important is the sheriff’s commitment to finally conduct an internal affairs investigation into all aspects of this horrific crash. We believe this next phase of pursuing justice is critical for the future public safety of other citizens and proper accountability.”

Well, I can't tell you if an internal investigation was conducted, but the officer involved didn't get 90 days off without pay. He didn't get fired, didn't have benefits denied. That kind of progressive discipline it seems is reserved for guys who bring puppies to work, speak harshly to disobedient employees, accidentally nod off in front of a computer screen at the end of a long shift, or go out on military reserve exercises.

Oh, and speaking of nodding off, it seems that Sgt. Booker isn't the only member of the sheriff's department who does that...

Oopsie!

Stay tuned for more... Interesting what one can find while looking up other things!

Hot off the Presses: Rockford Tea Party Supports Booker

This came in this morning from the Rockford Tea Party. It was sent to all local media, but we don't trust 'em. -- APW

Rockford Tea Party Supports Booker for Sheriff


ROCKFORD--The Rockford Tea Party pledges its full support of Aaron Booker, Republican candidate for Winnebago County Sheriff, despite his suspension from duty yesterday.

Calling Booker’s disciplinary hearing a “show trial,” organizer David Hale said it’s time for a change in the sheriff’s office.

“Sheriff (Richard) Meyers has shown a pattern of mismanagement, dishonesty and nepotism in the department,” Hale said. “We believe that Booker’s prosecution was politically motivated and is entirely without merit, and we are behind him 100 percent.”

In fact, on September 29, Tea Party participants voted unanimously in favor of Booker on a sample ballot.

Winnebago county has had the highest crime rate in the state of Illinois for several years. Recent reports of disorder at the 911 call center, cheating on civil exam scores, the firing of deputies for absenteeism relating to military reserve exercises and other department abuses under Sheriff Meyers’ command call into question his ability to continue to lead the department in an efficient manner and to protect and serve the citizens.

“While we honor Meyers’ service to his country and to the sheriff’s department, we believe it is time for him to step down. Booker has shown a commitment to the Constitutions of the United States and Illinois and a dedication to preserving both the safety and the rights of Winnebago residents,” Hale said.

Hang Down Your Head, Bill Brady...

Ugh. Gotta love Facebook. You get stuff fresh from the source, unfiltered by biased media.

This morning, this gem from Bill Brady, likely the next governor of Illinois:

After a hard fought primary, Illinois has a unified Republican ticket. Despite the tight race, differences we may have had are resolved. Our ticket is strong and dedicated to all the people of Illinois. I am pleased to appear with Mark Kirk throughout the State today. Come on out and show your support!

I know you have to play the game, Mr. Brady, and once you win this one you'll be indebted to the Illinois machine. But I hope you will realize that you're even more indebted to the PEOPLE who will ELECT YOU. The machine works against us in ...so many ways. Up here in Rockford, the machine has virtually ignored some excellent Republican candidates, left them scratching for money just for campaign signs, as the central committee is literally throwing races. We even have Republicans in Winnebago county endorsing DEMOCRAT candidates, showing loyalty to a "Courthouse Party," and throwing the Republican electorate (as well as their CHOSEN candidates) under the bus.

I pray, sir, that you will remember that it's not the party elites who will make or break you - it's the good people of Illinois who are sick to death of being manipulated and disenfranchised. I don't know a good conservative who feels anything but REVULSION at the prospect of voting for Kirk. I swear, if our primaries were still being held in April rather than February, we would have had a good, solid conservative as our candidate. Most Tea Partiers up here plan to either write in a 3rd party candidate or not vote at all, even if it means a win for Giannoulius. We're tired of being told "You'd better vote for this despicable RINO or else!!!" Well, sir, we have gone so long without adequate representation that we know from experience that the "or else" isn't much worse than the RINO.

So go ahead and play your political game now - I know you must. But know that it will not make you any friends outside of Chicago, nor among Constitutional conservatives. Good luck on Tuesday. Maybe after that you can concentrate on representing We the People, not We the Party Elites. At least, I hope you can.

The dirtiest race just got dirtier...

(A continuation of my earlier story...)

Well, the verdict is in. Booker found guilty on all counts but one: sexual harassment. The only good news is that the sheriff didn't get what he wanted - a demotion. Instead, the merit commission gave Booker 90 days off, without pay, and what amounts to probation for a year. In the environment I described, were a mere joke between friends can result in disciplinary action even when the friend vouches for the fact that it was a joke and no harm was done or offense taken, good luck with that, Aaron.

But here's the sad thing - it wasn't just a proud and honorable man who was chastised today. It was the good citizens of Winnebago county - the ones who elected him as their candidate. The sheriff could have chosen to run an honorable campaign on the issues, and there are plenty of them. Winnebago county has the distinction of having the highest crime rate in the state of Illinois, nearly 6,000 per 100,000 population. That's substantially higher, by more than 1,000, than even Cook county where Chicago is located. (Click here for Illinois State Police crime data by county - PDF format only.)

Granted - much of that crime is in Rockford, and without question something is amiss there, but the Sheriff is still the top law enforcement official in the county and can go far to coordinate efforts between municipal departments and implement interdepartmental crime prevention programs and improve reporting and intelligence. But still, something is critically wrong in Winnebago. The local media was A.W.O.L. on coverage of this race, but got their undies all in a twist over the salaciousness of the charges against Booker.

It's pretty clear that the situation at the 911 centers is a nightmare. These are the true first responders to citizens' emergencies - the ones who make sure that a police officer or fire truck or ambulance arrive to help on time, and that they have the necessary backup. The current setup was essentially the brainchild of Meyers - Booker had to live with it.

And once again, as is the case so frequently in northern Illinois, there's no help for the Republican candidate from the state central committee. Few TV and radio ads for Booker, while cable is plastered wall-to-wall with Meyers' ads. The allegedly Republican coroner, Sue Fiduccia, has jumped ship and endorsed Meyers, along with Boone county sheriff, Republican Duane Wirth, showing their loyalty to the "Courthouse Party" as predicted by Chuck Sweeney in November 2009. And when the much-beleaguered Republican state senator Dave Syverson found his name accidentally included in a list of supporters on Booker's website, he promptly and adamantly demanded his name be removed. Nice, huh?

I can only hope that the good people in Winnebago county will decide to take a sledgehammer to the Good-Ol'-Boys' network and decide that it's time for a change. Booker has promised to drop the county's crime rate ranking to "at least out of the top 10." Maybe he can, maybe he can't. But it doesn't seem he can do any worse than the incumbent.

Winnebago Sheriff's Race Dirty as Hell

This is a weird one. Here are the candidates:

Sheriff Richard (Dick) Meyers, Democrat, incumbent. Navy veteran. Became deputy sheriff in 1968, appointed to sheriff's post by the county board in 1997, won election to the post in 1998 and re-elected in 2002 and 2006.

Sgt. Aaron Booker, Republican, challenger. Ex-marine. Began law enforcement career in Loves Park in 1983, joined sheriff's department in 1993. Promoted to sergeant in 2006. Now running against his boss. Assigned to supervise a shift at the county's consolidated 911 call center in 2006 - a pet project of Meyers.

Booker and Meyers have pledged to run a gentleman's campaign, and as far as their ads are concerned, they have held to their agreement. Booker is running on the platform that the department "needs improvement" and has suggested nepotism and mismanagement. Not hard to believe when the sitting sheriff has been sitting in the top chair for more than 12 years.

Meyers' campaign has focused on his experience. (Unfortunately, his commercial doesn't seem to be available on the web, but he has some background videos on YouTube.) Neither is screaming to the streets how rotten and crooked the other is. Sounds nice, huh? Almost refreshing considering the current political environment.

Well, not really. When Booker announced in November 2009, running in the GOP primary against Randy Sturm, a well-known local guy and former Winnebago County Board member, political observers already recognized that things could get interesting. Rockford Register Star senior editor Chuck Sweeney opined on November 30:

Should Booker win, I’ll be interested to see what happens to the informal organization I call “the Courthouse Party.” Both Republicans and Democrats inhabit this party, and these officeholders tend to look out for one another to maintain their incumbency. Will the GOP members of the Courthouse Party stand by their man, Meyers, or go with the winner of the GOP primary? Stay tuned.

Heh. He got more than he bargained for.

Booker won the primary on February 2, 2010, and Sturm endorsed him soon after. Then things, at least on the surface, became quiet. Very quiet. But behind the scenes, the wheels were turning in the Sheriff's office.

In early January, a group of 911 operators filed a complaint with the Sheriff regarding Booker's conduct, alleging that Booker was quick to anger and had created a hostile work environment, that he would sleep on the job and (gasp!) would bring a puppy to work, and other stuff that most of us who have worked in an office, especially a busy, stressful and overworked one, would consider pretty minor. At least, I would. Normally, such issues would be filed through a union grievance process, but in this situation, the Sheriff decided that an internal investigation was required. In an unprecedented move, the department hired an outside investigator to look into the accusations. The investigator, former sheriff's Lt. Steve Pirages, had extensive experience in criminal investigation but none in internal investigation, and Booker remained unapprised of his situation until the query was well underway.

The investigation was complete by late February or early March. But nothing happened. On April 10, Booker received his annual performance appraisal which contained an overall rating of above average - somewhat down from his previous appraisals of near-perfect to perfect, but hardly cause for concern, given the circumstances.

In August, Sheriff Meyers let the other shoe drop. He empaneled a Merit Commission, comprised of citizens hand-picked by the sheriff, and filed charges of intimidation, harassment, threatening behavior and sexual discrimination against Booker and seeking his demotion from sergeant to deputy. It struck many locals as odd that there was a five-month lag between the conclusion of the investigation and the actual pursuit of disciplinary action, but we've been assured by the department's Chief Deputy Kurt Ditzler (the number two guy) that this is all routine and is, of course, not politically motivated. And of course, we believe him (wink, wink).

The Merit Commission, realizing the urgency of the matter and the need for the challenging candidate to either clear his name or take his lumps before the November 2 election, set a hearing for August 26, but then canceled it, eventually rescheduling it for October 5. Booker pointed out that had the charges been serious, he would have been placed on paid administrative leave. Of course, we believe him (no winks - the charges, if true, would expose the sheriff's department to a whopper of a lawsuit, and that wouldn't be very good management. But then again, a paid administrative leave would give Booker an awful lot of time to campaign, and that wouldn't be very good politics, but I digress.)

Meanwhile, the local papers were doing hardly any coverage on the candidates at all. Nothing, except printing a few letters to the editor here and there. Then on October 5, all hell broke loose, and the Merit Commission, as well as the good people of Winnebago county, have been subjected to a true dog and pony show. Minus the ponies, but the dogs were there, with State's Attorney Joe Bruscato making much of allegations that Booker brought a puppy to work. Also in the center ring were weeping women and pontificating police officials, and the poor commissioners had to sit through this for three days, all looking very serious and pensive (and some looking as if they'd merely been glued to their chairs, or replaced by works of art by Tussaud). The media went into a frenzy, witnessing the most exciting, if not the cheesiest political tussle in memory. Three days of "death by a thousand paper cuts," without Booker having a chance to present his defense, and the Merit Commission closed the proceedings until OCTOBER 27 - mere DAYS before the election. If there was any doubt in anyone's mind that this circus was politically motivated, they were immediately dispelled.

Meanwhile, the manure-slinging marathon was picked up by the masses. On October 18, an anonymous Samaritan probably from within the department released a package of pornographic emails that had circulated around the department, including the addresses of the forwarders and creating a paper trail leading all the way up to the Sheriff's office, creating a huge flap in local media. Several deputies have claimed they were discharged illegally for absenteeism due to their activities in military reserves, but have had difficulty finding a local attorney to represent them (surprise, surprise). A former sheriff's Lieutenant, Steve Kudsma, admitted being told to alter the results of the sergeant's exam scores of Meyers' own son. An ex-911 operator, recently retired, wrote a guest column exposing chaos at the county's emergency response center and accusing Meyers of misappropriation of funds. The Rockford Register Star in an unabashedly gutless move, said it would "choose" a sheriff's candidate, adding that it would not be an "endorsement." (Funny that they ran a poll on that announcement. Booker wins hands down with 60%, Meyers trails with 23%, 15% being so fed up as to commit to "leave it blank.")

Meanwhile, Booker finally had a chance to defend himself on Wednesday at the continuation of the Merit Commission hearings. He remained a gentleman, even though it was largely a "he said, she said" course of events. He declined to call his accusers "liars," preferring to characterize their charges and accounts of incidents as "inaccurate." But the worst act in this sideshow was the cross-examination by the State's Attorney of a true hero, Paul DiVenti, who took the stand to defend Booker, his long-time friend and former partner.

In an attempt to establish a pattern of disobedience to orders and procedures, the State's Attorney dragged out a number of disciplinary actions which had been placed in Booker's file over the past few years, most of which I assume were minor as the sergeant was not asked to read the nature of the infractions. One, however, from 2006, involved an incident with a deputy on his shift.

Booker had recently been promoted to sergeant, and one of his duties was to review daily reports from deputies on his shift. One day the sergeant reviewed a report of DiVenti's. The two of them, according to Booker's testimony, were friends and regularly ribbed each other. Booker returned it to the deputy in a folder and placed on it a Post-It note saying, "Who the f--- trained you?" The deputy left it on his desk, where it was seen by Deputy Sheriff Ditzler, who brought disciplinary action in the form of a letter of reprimand against Booker. Booker said that DiVenti was subsequently interviewed, and having taken no offense to what he considered a joke between friends, the disciplinary action was to have been removed from Booker's file. Booker was surprised to find upon examining his file this year, after the current charges were brought, that the letter was still in his file.

Since then, DiVenti was involved in a very serious accident in the line of duty which rendered him disabled. DiVenti took the stand on Wednesday, in good spirits despite the situation. He spoke slowly, but thoughtfully and deliberately, and he confirmed the details Booker had offered earlier. Then the State's Attorney's Civil Division Chief David Kurlinkus was assigned to cross-examine. Kurlinkus is a rather jovial-looking fellow, vaguely resembling Gabe Kaplan in Welcome Back, Kotter. Before the cross, he was amiably chatting with hearing observers and seemed to be quite the nice guy. But then he had his shot at DiVenti. He started out asking about the events and the nature of his relationship with Booker. Fair enough. He then began questioning DiVenti about his accident, bringing up his serious injuries. Booker's attorney objected on the grounds of relevance. Kurlinkus responded that he was trying to establish that the witness "wasn't fit to express an opinion" due to the result of his injuries. The commission allowed Kurlinkus to continue his questioning. He concluded with asking if DiVenti was taking pain medication, which was confirmed. Damage done.

In my opinion, it was the most despicable attack on a witness that I have ever seen in a courtroom, and I've seen a lot. DiVenti was crestfallen, and if I'm any judge of body language, the commission was not impressed. I was angry, and spent the better part of the rest of the hearing glaring at Kurklinkus, hoping to communicate how utterly repulsed I was by the allegation that this HERO was unqualified to recall who his friends were. Win at all costs.

Then Ditzler took the stand and testified that the disciplinary action was indeed the result of a complaint by DiVenti, despite the officer's own testimony. Again, despicable. Then the commission closed the day's proceedings and went into deliberations yesterday (Thursday).

Last night, both candidates appeared at a debate in Rockton organized by the Northern Illinois Tea Party. Their restraint was commendable, and when asked to comment on his superior, Booker declined to criticize Meyers on his agreement not to engage in negative campaigning. Afterward, the two even shook hands and exchanged greetings. Neither disparaged the other during almost two hours of questioning - it was a marvel. But the dirty bits are still playing out, even while the candidates avoid full frontal attacks in the public forum.

I was just informed that the commission will reconvene at 2:30 today, the Friday before the election. They'll go into private session, then will be expected to announce their decision. I'll post here as soon as I get back.

Update:
The verdict is in. Read about it here.

For a complete history of this race, click this link for a search of the Rockford Register Star. Results are in reverse chronological order.

Guest Column: Birth of the Tea Party by David Hale

Friends and other gentle readers ... I have a meeting to attend today, so I am posting this guest column, complements of David Hale, organizer of the Rockford Tea Party. David has been a tireless worker for the cause and has been in the trenches for several years. This is my way of saying "THANK YOU, DAVID!" On the eve of this very important election, your work is very much appreciated!

The Birth of the Tea Party

By David Hale

The Tea Party started. Yes, there was a rant heard round the world by TV commentator Rick Santelli, little-known outside the financial world, on of all channels CNBC -- one of the hated, reviled media outlets that conservatives had been deriding for years. It’s what made the moment even more glorious and literally revolutionary; that one of their own would turn on them and bite. In that Revolutionary and Glorious moment that shot some sense back into millions of Americans, many in the Tea Party movement had already been stirring in the quiet of their homes, over drinks in bars and on AM Radio stations on every back road across America. The moment was actually a crescendo of years and years of what many people felt was abuse from our Publicly Elected and 4th-rail, self-appointed establishment wannabe media power brokers.

George Bush just happened to be the man against whom we directed all that energy. It only escalated under Barack Obama. It would have happened if it were Hillary. It may have even happened if it were McCain. But it happened to be the eloquently-speaking and very attractive, almost Leave-it-to-Beaver type guy that we came to discover is anything but an All-American, “let’s have a Budwiser over wings” type American. But nobody accedes to that level of power without being smarter than hell and craftier than a Missouri Quilter. That person has to be every identifiable American character, to include the Beave, a Rothschild, a Clinton, a Mr. Smith. Wise as a serpent. Innocent as a dove. He seemed to be. We have come to find he espoused the most radical agenda Americans have yet encountered. Was it by some conspiratorial pre-plan or because this man truly believes in Socialism?

For two years now the media has loved the Tea Party and hated the Tea Party, and a symbiotic relationship drove them both forward. And though the Tea Party would exist without the media, it certainly gained steam because of the media. In fact, the Tea Party never expected the media to pay it this close attention. This is a major reason why the Tea Party has almost as many enemies as it does participants, adding to that old adage that “There is no bad press,” or “All press is good press.”

With people literally marching in the streets, the media was stunned that people who had thus far kept a safe distance from government, calling into radio stations and venting or occupying their Lazy Boy chairs yelling at the TV, would actually have the temerity to challenge the government and put tension on the institutions that are built up to maintain order. To add to their confusion, the people were marching -- not hiding in alleys or merely planting signs in their front yards. They were actually forming like an army in very public places and taking their marches to government seats of power, In-Your-Face fashion. How could they? Only radicals are allowed to do that, rioting on the streets of Seattle, or the streets of Anywhere, USA, or at G8 Summits where gas masks are issued as part of the gift packages that participants receive to stave off the effects of tear gas being lobbed at rioting Anarchists and would-be anti-war protestors.

Those first Tea Parties were anxious days. The buildup the media had done actually backfired. Instead of rioting and looting and destroying as was predicted, we were talking and actually making sense. They expected riots and tear gas and racists running around in white sheets, but what they got was innovative, creative sign-making, fathers and children and pregnant women with their toddlers in baby carriages and baby boomers dressed up like a shot from a scene from Back to the Future in Revolutionary War-Era costumes. The reality was that while the media had built up the Tea Party as a bunch of disgruntled but raving lunatic-fringe racists, we were actually people that closely resembled their parents, their wives and their children. But while that original media narrative lingers, the mud they threw didn’t.

Over and over, the Tea Party has shocked the media and laid waste to their pre-built, fabricated-for-TV perceptions. The Tea Party has thwarted the media’s effort to create perception, becoming a finely tuned grassroots organization that has proven that the American People who make up the Tea Party are much more media-savvy than the media is. Every time people in the media attempted to paint the Tea Party with broad strokes, the Tea Party has washed clean that painted perception. That has happened since day one.

We didn’t riot. We didn’t need masks for tear gas, and we didn’t carry Molotov cocktails. We looked nothing like the left wing rioters that pop up at G8 Summits around the world. We even cleaned up our mess when we left. The media has yet to figure us out and has yet to paint an accurate picture of who we are. That is actually not their fault. They cannot paint that picture because they cannot figure out that we are made up of every kind of people, and every iteration of humanity you can imagine. We are Americans.

White House data mining on Facebook with "Commit to Vote" campaign

Starting Saturday night, Facebook users, especially politically active ones, found their walls peppered with a cute little patriotic logo put there by their friends (or, more accurately, an application their friends used) asking them to click on it to "Commit to Vote." This made a big hit, especially among Tea Partiers who most certainly are committed to vote. What they didn't notice is that one of the links to this apparently patriotic app went directly to Barackobama.com. Oops. Seemed like a minor irritation at first (or major, depending on how many of your friends fell for it), but further investigation reveals some really insidious aspects of this seemingly harmless app. A blog on Forbes.com was the first, and so far the only media outlet to report on it:

The Facebook application lets your friends know you plan to vote and encourages them through posting inspirational messages and videos to your wall. Not only does the application want to know all about you, it also wants to know who all of your friends are, along with their religious and political beliefs.

Here's the permissions you must grant this app in order to use it:

Nice, huh? With the click of the mouse, you're authorizing the FRIGGIN' WHITE HOUSE to mine not only YOUR profile, but to gather the names of ALL YOUR FRIENDS, their birthdays, locations and RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL VIEWS. Of course, this is nothing new. It's been known for some time that the White House has been mining data from Facebook, but to my knowledge this is the first time it has done it through an app, which takes advantage of a default security setting of which most Facebook users are probably not aware. That default security setting allows third-party apps that your friends use to access most of your profile information that you may have kept private on your main security settings. So, essentially, when your Facebook friend clicks on the app, they're reporting you and your information to the Federal government.

The White House has gotten in trouble before for this. On August 4, 2009, a White House blogger posted "Facts are Stubborn Things," in which they asked readers to help them track "rumors" about health care reform:

There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation. Since we can’t keep track of all of them here at the White House, we’re asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov.

Well, that last sentence got them into a pile of trouble. At least one physicians' organization sued, Karl Rove called them out for keeping "enemies lists," and Sen. John Conryn sent a letter demanding to know:

• How do you intend to use the names, email addresses, IP addresses, and identities of citizens who are reported to have engaged in "fishy" speech?
• How do you intend to notify citizens who have been reported for "fishy" speech?
• What action do you intend to take against citizens who have been reported for engaging in "fishy" speech?
• Do your own past statements qualify as "disinformation"? For example, is it "disinformation" to note that in 2003 you said: "I happen to be a proponent of a single-payer universal health care plan"?

The email address was taken down almost immediately, but there have been no real answers to those questions. But more than that, it's possible that such information gathering is illegal, as was pointed out by Fox News judicial analyst Judge Andrew Napolitano. He cited the Privacy Act of 1974, which essentially prohibits any federal agency from maintaining records of people exercising their right to free speech.

Isn't that exactly what they were doing with this app?

It is my opinion that what the White House has done now is blatantly illegal, just as the "fishy email" scandal was. My GOD, people, how long are we going to put up with this?

I will post this blog entry far and wide, and I will not rest until this makes national news. Please help by forwarding this to anyone you know who still gives a damn about their rights as guaranteed by our Constitution. I can only do this with your help.

FACEBOOK USERS - PLEASE READ MY NOTE

CRITICAL SECURITY

Obama's data mining scam "Commit to Vote" which is popping up all over Facebook is ONE SCARY APP. If your friends click on it and give permissions, it mines not only THEIR personal information, but a list of their friends (including YOU) and their birthdays, political and religious views and current cities (including YOURS). Block this app now by clicking this link:

http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=111399285589490

On the left side of the screen, under the cute, patriotic-looking logo, click "Block this App." Poof! Done, you think. Not really! You may still have granted permission for apps to mine your data through your friends' activity! You can prevent applications from mining YOUR data at the whim of a friend's click by de-authorizing apps your friends use in your application privacy settings.

From any Facebook page, click on "Account" in the upper right hand corner of the window, and select "Privacy Settings."

http://www.facebook.com/settings/?tab=privacy

At the bottom of the page is a link that says "Applications and Settings," with a link just below to "Edit these settings." The second item on the resulting page is "Info accessible through your friends - Control what information is available to applications and websites when your friends use them." Click on "Edit settings."

Now sit back and be shocked that by default, ALL YOUR INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE TO APPLICATIONS when your friends use them! Nice, huh? Uncheck everything! Then save your settings.

GO FORTH AND DO IT NOW. Then share this note!!