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What triggered the Ragsdale meltdown
Submitted by Number9 on Sat, 2006/10/21 - 9:02am.
Rebecca Ferrar And Matt Lakin of the News Sentinel have a column today in the KNS that corroborates charges made by Tyler Harber in the three part Betty Bean column in the Halls Shopper News.
While there is a deep well of both comedy and drama in the 33 pages of emails that explores the soap opera like atmosphere of the KNOX GOP these emails ask the larger question, how can there not be an investigation of Tyler Harber?
Monday at 2:00 PM Knox County Commission will vote on whether the Commission should investigate Tyler Harber's employment with Knox County. 13 votes are required and yesterday Knox County Commissioner Lumpy Lambert said on AM 1180 that 9 votes are available and the remaining 4 votes may come in over the weekend.
People years from now will ask how this whole thing blew up so badly. It appears that the desire for the KNOX GOP mailing list was a powerful lure and when this prize collided with Mayor Mike Ragsdale's temper there was an explosion. If Mayor Ragsdale had not called Chad Tindell and lost his temper, as Tyler Harber alleges, perhaps this whole affair would have not ignited.
Many people will be upset no matter has this is resolved. Now Knox County awaits the decision of County Commission. What will they decide?
I regret a couple of the pointed comments I made about Brian Hornback. I have apologized directly to Chairman Hornback. I had worked hard for years building up the party. I felt it had come crumbling down in a day. I was getting dozens of emails and calls from the media and party activists. I was angry and made the comment to one person, never thinking that my emails would be stolen and appear in the KNS a year and a half later.
Frankly, until this morning I hadn't read the emails since that time. I don't have a copy. I do think a thorough reading shows that my goal was to stand up for the party's property, hard working volunteers and Republican officeholders.
Submitted by spintrep on Sat, 2006/10/21 - 10:17pm.
CBT, I hadn't been aware of who you were on this blog up to this point. (I remember you from k2k too?)
I haven't been tracking this other issue that closely until now, except to wonder how Knox County government is connected... how and why Tyler H. was hired... and what he might have been doing at the taxpayer's expense.
It seems at a glance that you are quite reasonable under the circumstances in the emails and in your response to this entire affair.
The bad actors here sound like a small cadre of powermongers... acting with some bizarre and deceptive behavior. With the scorched earth tactics employed, I can't imagine how they are managing to attract volunteers or allies after all this is revealed. And the motivations... were they primarily just self serving... or were they operating for the benefit of some powerful elected official(s). It reflects quite poorly on the Ragsdale administration... and the R party committee for not doing anything about it in response by now.
Question: Were these emails also something that could be stolen from a web based email account that could have been accessed by password? (that would seem a much lesser "crime")
Second. If it was your home computer for sure, is the fact that employees of Knox Co. having these emails copied and printed not evidence enough to link them to your home computer being compromised? (an aside for me, is all this on County time??)
And "the list." Is it considered "stolen"? Is the list not rightfully the property of the R party committee after the change of chairman? And if not, how so?
Another thing I don't get. Even if I'm a loyalist R that doesn't want the further embarrassment of changing the chairman again right away... hasn't leaving him in there made things much worse at this point? Is this guy really so tight with Rags or Tim to merit such latitude WRT his actions? Is the wider R committee membership beholden to the wishes or directives of the elected officeholders over their own autonomy? Wouldn't there be whispers privately, expressing the need to clean house at this point? Or are they protecting him like Foley until after the upcoming election?
BH's signature tag "You can lead a bitter life, or... " makes a lot more sense to me now. He must be the object of considerable scorn (or at least disgust) in many quarters.
And finally, I'm sure you and others who are part of these emails released (wasn't print, right?) by the KNS could feel outrage (separate issue, i'm sure,) but I would stand tall if I were one of the straight shooters in this mess. I don't read anything in them that tarnishes the "good guys."
I'm sorry your private emails are being read all over east Tennessee. I know I'd hate it if that happened to me.
OTOH, don't apologize for what you called BH. "An idiot or a liar" seems a pretty good summary to me - and I thought that long before he was party chair.
Knox GOP Chairman Brian Hornback responds here to the News Sentinel article, in third person none the less.
The long and short of it is Brian will enjoy this beautiful Saturday with family and friends and he will meet later with his crack team of political experts. Communications will come only from the bunker of Brian's Bog and no where else.
In edition, the News Sentinel is unethical and they are doody heads. Will threats be made to the News Sentinel? Will Jessica discover Chester's affair? These questions - and many others - will be answered in the next episode of Soap, the Knox GOP series.
At what point will the Knox GOP rethink the course they are on?
From the bunker of Brian's Bog:
Brian Hornback of Brian's Blog read the Saturday edition of the Knoxville News-Sentinel online this morning. A couple of Scripps writers have written a story in today's paper. In addition Scripps published some emails on the Knoxville News-Sentinel website that discuss Chairman Hornback and the Republican Party Re-organization some 19 months ago.
Brian this morning and afternoon will be coaching the 2 youth soccer teams that he has coached since August 2006, he will enjoy the UT -vs- Alabama football game with family and friends. Sometime this evening and into tomorrow he will discuss with advisors closest to him what if any response is needed.
Any statements that will be made, will originate from Brian's Blog. This morning is the second time that Scripps reporters have failed to seek comment from him on stories written about him. The first story resulted in a complaint being filed with Scripps Publisher concerning a breach of journalistic ethics by one of its reporters.
Submitted by redmondkr on Sat, 2006/10/21 - 5:25pm.
GBA once stated in a comment on these pages that he had never in his life witnessed an animated cartoon so he won't get this. The rest will when I quote a famous star of television and the silver screen:
Submitted by Eleanor A on Sat, 2006/10/21 - 6:43pm.
Confidential to CBT:
>I hope you make a lot of money off the backs of the Party and
> volunteers who collected and organized all that data.
This is illegal...political organizations are PACs. You can't get that info for one reason (helping a political campaign) and then turn around and use it for your own private gain.
The third party writing reminds me of the Jimmy episode of Seinfeld. Does Brian do it to give the illusion he has a vast support team over at Brian's Bog? Or is it just for some humor?
Submitted by Bbeanster on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 6:57pm.
We at Betty Bean's email address are awed by the awesomeness of this prose:
"Chairman Hornback will continue to led the Knox County Republican Party. In his efforts the Party is unified and in the countywide election of August 3, 2006 the results were a County-wide Republican Sweep." That gives us goosebumps.
And just think: "The Knox County Commission is currently led by a 14-5 Republican majority due to Chairman Hornback's efforts to unify all members of the Party," our crack team of researchers couldn't help but note that in the dark days before the ascent of Mr. Chairman Hornback, the Republicans enjoyed a 15-4 majority. Evidently it wasn't quite a sweep.
In case any of you are confused by the third-party dialogue in Brian's Blog, the detractor who he says got less than 25% in the recent primary was me. While I'm sure Brian can feel my pain of losing, some facts might help. I received about 28%. Not bad considering it was a three-way race against an incumbent appointed by County Commission (33%) and (the eventual winner) who raised and spent $80,000-100,000 (39%). Andy Jackson will make a fine judge. Any of you who has any question about how I conduct myself in elections should ask Andy. I'm confident of his response.
Submitted by SteveMule on Sat, 2006/10/21 - 9:09pm.
Mr. Hornback was on the Knox County School Board, 5th District I think, I might be wrong on which district, tho. He still keeps up with the goings on there and his blog can be very, very informative, altho you have to put up with an always present, and at times overbearing, if not purely insufferable (but always unstated) feeling that he wants you to think he could do it better.
As for his use of center justification - guys, it's his blog! He can do whatever he wants with it. So what if he's "unique" in that regard? There's still plenty of material to bap him over the head with besides that.
The incorrect and overuse of the comma are probably the most comman errors in English (American) grammer. That said, he should borrow one of Brian's Bloggers Kids school books and review. He will, like I was when I did it, be amazed at how much more sense it all makes now - rather than back when we were in school. I hated English in school, just absolutely despised it - now it's cool.
Submitted by Jeanne (not verified) on Sat, 2006/10/21 - 10:22pm.
Steve - Overusing the comma is a common mistake, but nobody does it quite like Brian.
I recently read a funny book by Lynne Truss titled: Eats Shoots and Leaves - The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation. I recommend it for all of us who think we know how to punctuate.
Where else will you learn that banana's is so common a mistake that it's known as the grocer's apostrophe?
Submitted by go vols (not verified) on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 10:15am.
what do the local partys executive commettees do other than fight about foolish things?...what was the big deal about givin the shurif a republican list?..years ago the democrats voted not to give Danny Mayfield our list...i told danny it wasn't worth much but he still wanted it...back then the democrats split between the Bill Powell real Democrats...& those that were for the non partisan mayfield..bill young
Submitted by Sandra Clark on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 11:03am.
As Chad Tindell keeps saying, the issue is not the content of the e-mails. It's that they were stolen and used by Team Ragsdale. Mike Arms quoted from the stolen e-mails in material provided to County Commission just last Monday. Did they turn the e-mails over to law enforcement or keep them? Or both? Can't have it both ways.
Submitted by Tiny Tim (not verified) on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 1:03pm.
These guys take themselves, way, way to seriously, in their role and their perceived importance in the community. They're all wanna bees, they've busted the county piggy bank, giving themselves all $100,000 a year salaries, to do what, play political brinksmanship with all of the locals.
Watch how relevant they are after next month's election.
These guys are going to make Don Sundquist look like a boy scout.
Submitted by bill young on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 1:45pm.
sandra,i understand stealing is stealing...but members of these dog-gone party executive committees like to fight with their own party incumbents & each other more than they want to beat the other party...if the incumbent republican sheriff wants the republican party list..give him the damn list..hell,the democrats are no better,look at all the bullshit we had during the county elections...my feeling is,incumbents of both partys,believe the executive committees are a pain in the ass.
It's amazing what people assume. To be clear, I told every Republican elected official they could use the list. I just wouldn't give the list. I told them, give me your mail piece, I'll have the office prepare it and a mailing house put the addresses on it. The party keeps the valuable list and no Republican official is preferred over another. And, no candidate or official ever pays for it. This is how most political parties use and protect valuable lists. This is also how an effective party helps candidates get elected.
Also, you need to understand this "list". It's not just some mailing list. Myself and others who worked in the Bush-Cheney campaign had the idea to get everyone who came into the campaign office to get a sticker, sign, anything, give money or buy something (hat, shirt, etc.) to sign a list, with name, address, phone, email. I would give thank-yous and credit for others who worked in the campaign, but I won't use people's name without permission. We had college volunteers working daily to compile the list into a database. The list numbered in the thousands. These are the people candidates want to reach. It was political gold.
And, the KNS is simply dead wrong in it's reference to Sheriff Hutchison. Apparently KNS writers saw a reference I made to TH and thought Tim Hutchison. Some would say this shows you the mind-set at the KNS. All the emails talk about Tyler Harber (aka TH)! Geez. The Sheriff never once asked me about this list.
I have complaints about the KNS posting all these emails. I don't see how the contents are relevant and I told them so last Friday. Plus, there are names, addresses, phone numbers. And, the emails are from local journalists, me and four or five others. It was never public record. I guess if I drove over to Bruce Hartman's house, stole mail out of his mailbox and then got someone to post it on the internet, it would be ok. Yes? We're still talking about this issue.
Submitted by Socialist With ... on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 7:39pm.
Chad, like others have said before, I think the theft of your personal correspondence was an abominable act, and I sympathize with the feeling of invasion you must have over this. I'm not sure that publishing them constitutes "journalism," since the content of the emails doesn't seem relevant to very much that Harber alleged in Betty Bean's columns. The fact that they were stolen and given to Ragsdale certainly is relevant, but the content doesn't seem to be.
Having said that, I'll admit that I did read the emails on the KNS website. I guess most people have an innate nosy streak, and reading those emails sure did pique it in me. The KNS, of course, is happy to oblige that nosy streak in their readers. Sadly, the satisfaction of morbid, vicarious curiosity seems to be what passes for "news" in that newsroom these days (just see the 15-year-old girl's birthday party for another example).
While reading those emails, it was totally obvious (at least to me) that "TH" meant "Tyler Harber."
I also think you're right about the analogy with Bruce Hartman's mail, since the KNS essentially published stolen property. I really don't think they should have done that.
--Socialist With A Gold Card
"I'm a socialist with a gold card. I firmly believe we need a revolution; I'm just concerned that I won't be able to get good moisturizer afterwards." --Brett Butler
Submitted by Number9 on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 11:14pm.
Mike Arms quoted from the stolen e-mails in material provided to County Commission just last Monday. Did they turn the e-mails over to law enforcement or keep them? Or both?
The affidavits released last week create more questions than they answer. Do these people on Team Ragsdale have a photo-graphic memory or is there a more logical explanation? It looks like the answer is that Team Ragsdale kept a copy. Tomorrow in County Commission someone needs to step up. What did Mike Arms know and when did he know it?
Please don't recommend that dangerously bad book without at least pointing your victim to Louis Menand's scathing review in The New Yorker.
The first punctuation mistake in “Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation(Gotham; $17.50), by Lynne Truss, a British writer, appears in the dedication, where a nonrestrictive clause is not preceded by a comma. It is a wild ride downhill from there.“Eats, Shoots & Leaves presents itself as a call to arms, in a world spinning rapidly into subliteracy, by a hip yet unapologetic curmudgeon, a stickler for the rules of writing. But it’s hard to fend off the suspicion that the whole thing might be a hoax.
Submitted by Jeanne (not verified) on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 8:38pm.
"The third party writing reminds me of the Jimmy episode of Seinfeld. Does Brian do it to give the illusion he has a vast support team over at Brian's Bog? Or is it just for some humor?"
I’ve wondered about this also. Writing in the third person can lend an aire of authority and sophistication when done with skill and maybe that’s what Brian’s blog, aka Brian Hornback, aka Chairman Hornback believes he’s accomplishing. Or maybe it's just his way of dealing with three identities.
I think humor is simply an unintended result as well as a saving grace.
Heyduke - You see “dangerously bad” where I see humorous and informative. I'm not familiar with Menand's reviews; does he always write like he’s got a branch up his butt?
Submitted by Hildegard on Mon, 2006/10/23 - 10:02am.
"Heyduke - You see 'dangerously bad' where I see humorous and informative. I'm not familiar with Menand's reviews; does he always write like he’s got a branch up his butt?"
Not that you asked me, but fwiw: Louis Menand is probably the most respected American cultural historian alive. He comes from a long line of intellectuals and writers about the American experience (his mother is a biographer of John Adams, I think.) Menand won the Pulitzer Prize for his book The Metaphyscial Club, which is essentially an American history book covering people like Oliver Wendell Holmes and William James. He also writes regularly for the New Yorker and the New York Review of Books. He's revered as one of the top literary critics in any language, and is passionate about the cultivation of the English language. Oh, and he teaches literature at Harvard.
Not sure if he has a branch up his butt, but he would probably appreciate the alliterative quality of your quip.
Now, back to your regularly scheduled county e-mail saga that will go...nowhere and then...fizzle out and then...people will say, dang that Ragsdale.
I've known Chad slightly since early k2k days. We disagree about 100% on political matters, but I've always found him to be pleasant, a gentleman and a reasonable person to talk (or argue) with.
And God knows I'm not a Republican, but I admired the way he handled the county chairmanship. He seemed be bring a lot of professionalism to the job.
It also looks like he may be the only person in this entire Ragsdale/Harber/Hornback mess who's acted with any class at all.
So here's to Chad. I'm sorry for what you're having to go through.
Can anyone translate this latest message from Brian's Bog? Is it a coded message?
UPDATE to the UPDATE: 7:52 p.m. A certain tabloid publication with a tabloid Editor reports that as of 6:00 p.m. October 22, 2006 there was no Update. The time stamp is 4:31 p.m. for the Updated post. This tabloid inserted this item as a "Gossip or lie". Since this item is clearly a lie. Can anything this tabloid editor print be considered truthful? Enquiring minds want to know.
Submitted by Eleanor A on Sun, 2006/10/22 - 10:00pm.
I have complaints about the KNS posting all these emails. I don't see how the contents are relevant and I told them so last Friday. Plus, there are names, addresses, phone numbers. And, the emails are from local journalists, me and four or five others. It was never public record. I guess if I drove over to Bruce Hartman's house, stole mail out of his mailbox and then got someone to post it on the internet, it would be ok. Yes? We're still talking about this issue.
Hell is freezing over, but I agree with you. They really shouldn't have done that, and you might have a case were you to try to bring suit against them for invasion of privacy. There's no clear public good being served here, just a bunch of dirty laundry that exists in every political operation.
Submitted by Jimbo (not verified) on Mon, 2006/10/23 - 5:59am.
The most damning statement made by the Sheriff:
'I do not politically advertise by email as Ragsdale and a few others do. They wanted the emails so badly that they were willing to break the law in order to obtain them.
....and hornback beat on the Democrats for their infighting.
I thought, for a while, he was right. But now, what a friggin hypocrite.
I'm half way through the email on kns. Someone should write a book on this one.
I regret a couple of the pointed comments I made about Brian Hornback. I have apologized directly to Chairman Hornback. I had worked hard for years building up the party. I felt it had come crumbling down in a day. I was getting dozens of emails and calls from the media and party activists. I was angry and made the comment to one person, never thinking that my emails would be stolen and appear in the KNS a year and a half later.
Frankly, until this morning I hadn't read the emails since that time. I don't have a copy. I do think a thorough reading shows that my goal was to stand up for the party's property, hard working volunteers and Republican officeholders.
Boy, I would certainly understand your impulse to get out of politics. Lie down with dogs, get up with fleas.
But I guess that means you would vouch for the authenticity of these communications?
____________________________
Forget patriotism. Instapundit.com is the last refuge of scoundrels.
CBT, I hadn't been aware of who you were on this blog up to this point. (I remember you from k2k too?)
I haven't been tracking this other issue that closely until now, except to wonder how Knox County government is connected... how and why Tyler H. was hired... and what he might have been doing at the taxpayer's expense.
It seems at a glance that you are quite reasonable under the circumstances in the emails and in your response to this entire affair.
The bad actors here sound like a small cadre of powermongers... acting with some bizarre and deceptive behavior. With the scorched earth tactics employed, I can't imagine how they are managing to attract volunteers or allies after all this is revealed. And the motivations... were they primarily just self serving... or were they operating for the benefit of some powerful elected official(s). It reflects quite poorly on the Ragsdale administration... and the R party committee for not doing anything about it in response by now.
Question: Were these emails also something that could be stolen from a web based email account that could have been accessed by password? (that would seem a much lesser "crime")
Second. If it was your home computer for sure, is the fact that employees of Knox Co. having these emails copied and printed not evidence enough to link them to your home computer being compromised? (an aside for me, is all this on County time??)
And "the list." Is it considered "stolen"? Is the list not rightfully the property of the R party committee after the change of chairman? And if not, how so?
Another thing I don't get. Even if I'm a loyalist R that doesn't want the further embarrassment of changing the chairman again right away... hasn't leaving him in there made things much worse at this point? Is this guy really so tight with Rags or Tim to merit such latitude WRT his actions? Is the wider R committee membership beholden to the wishes or directives of the elected officeholders over their own autonomy? Wouldn't there be whispers privately, expressing the need to clean house at this point? Or are they protecting him like Foley until after the upcoming election?
BH's signature tag "You can lead a bitter life, or... " makes a lot more sense to me now. He must be the object of considerable scorn (or at least disgust) in many quarters.
And finally, I'm sure you and others who are part of these emails released (wasn't print, right?) by the KNS could feel outrage (separate issue, i'm sure,) but I would stand tall if I were one of the straight shooters in this mess. I don't read anything in them that tarnishes the "good guys."
Chad,
I'm sorry your private emails are being read all over east Tennessee. I know I'd hate it if that happened to me.
OTOH, don't apologize for what you called BH. "An idiot or a liar" seems a pretty good summary to me - and I thought that long before he was party chair.
Knox GOP Chairman Brian Hornback responds here to the News Sentinel article, in third person none the less.
The long and short of it is Brian will enjoy this beautiful Saturday with family and friends and he will meet later with his crack team of political experts. Communications will come only from the bunker of Brian's Bog and no where else.
In edition, the News Sentinel is unethical and they are doody heads. Will threats be made to the News Sentinel? Will Jessica discover Chester's affair? These questions - and many others - will be answered in the next episode of Soap, the Knox GOP series.
At what point will the Knox GOP rethink the course they are on?
From the bunker of Brian's Bog:
Doncha love the way everything on his blog is centered? Somebody needs to show him the left-justify button.
"Left justified?" Brian Hornback? He's a right-margin kind of guy.
;-)
____________________________
Forget patriotism. Instapundit.com is the last refuge of scoundrels.
I asked him about that when he started doing it. Turns out he likes it. Go figure ...
Take Care, Be Good and don't play in the street!
SteveMule
Turns out he likes it.
Figures he'd like something that make his readers queasy.
GBA once stated in a comment on these pages that he had never in his life witnessed an animated cartoon so he won't get this. The rest will when I quote a famous star of television and the silver screen:
"What a maroon!"
Confidential to CBT:
>I hope you make a lot of money off the backs of the Party and
> volunteers who collected and organized all that data.
This is illegal...political organizations are PACs. You can't get that info for one reason (helping a political campaign) and then turn around and use it for your own private gain.
Just a thought.
Hmm, Brian seems to have calmed down today. Wonder who talked some sense into him?
And why must he refer to himself in the third person? It's even more irritating than the royal "we."
http://brianhornback.blogspot.com/
The third party writing reminds me of the Jimmy episode of Seinfeld. Does Brian do it to give the illusion he has a vast support team over at Brian's Bog? Or is it just for some humor?
We at Betty Bean's email address are awed by the awesomeness of this prose:
"Chairman Hornback will continue to led the Knox County Republican Party. In his efforts the Party is unified and in the countywide election of August 3, 2006 the results were a County-wide Republican Sweep." That gives us goosebumps.
And just think: "The Knox County Commission is currently led by a 14-5 Republican majority due to Chairman Hornback's efforts to unify all members of the Party," our crack team of researchers couldn't help but note that in the dark days before the ascent of Mr. Chairman Hornback, the Republicans enjoyed a 15-4 majority. Evidently it wasn't quite a sweep.
.....cute!
Brian's Blog gives JustJohnny goosebumps as well. Brian's Blog inspires JustJohnny to become an alcoholic.
BettyBean brings JustJohnny a feeling of peace.
JustJohnny is planning to do something one day with Brian's Blog's (?) remark about NakedHTML.
In case any of you are confused by the third-party dialogue in Brian's Blog, the detractor who he says got less than 25% in the recent primary was me. While I'm sure Brian can feel my pain of losing, some facts might help. I received about 28%. Not bad considering it was a three-way race against an incumbent appointed by County Commission (33%) and (the eventual winner) who raised and spent $80,000-100,000 (39%). Andy Jackson will make a fine judge. Any of you who has any question about how I conduct myself in elections should ask Andy. I'm confident of his response.
"Somebody needs to show him the left-justify button."
Seriously.
Then take away his comma key.
Mr. Hornback was on the Knox County School Board, 5th District I think, I might be wrong on which district, tho. He still keeps up with the goings on there and his blog can be very, very informative, altho you have to put up with an always present, and at times overbearing, if not purely insufferable (but always unstated) feeling that he wants you to think he could do it better.
As for his use of center justification - guys, it's his blog! He can do whatever he wants with it. So what if he's "unique" in that regard? There's still plenty of material to bap him over the head with besides that.
The incorrect and overuse of the comma are probably the most comman errors in English (American) grammer. That said, he should borrow one of Brian's Bloggers Kids school books and review. He will, like I was when I did it, be amazed at how much more sense it all makes now - rather than back when we were in school. I hated English in school, just absolutely despised it - now it's cool.
Take Care, Be Good and don't play in the street!
SteveMule
>The incorrect and overuse of the comma are probably the most comman >errors in English (American) grammer.
Spelling, on the other hand...
Steve - Overusing the comma is a common mistake, but nobody does it quite like Brian.
I recently read a funny book by Lynne Truss titled: Eats Shoots and Leaves - The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation. I recommend it for all of us who think we know how to punctuate.
Where else will you learn that banana's is so common a mistake that it's known as the grocer's apostrophe?
what do the local partys executive commettees do other than fight about foolish things?...what was the big deal about givin the shurif a republican list?..years ago the democrats voted not to give Danny Mayfield our list...i told danny it wasn't worth much but he still wanted it...back then the democrats split between the Bill Powell real Democrats...& those that were for the non partisan mayfield..bill young
As Chad Tindell keeps saying, the issue is not the content of the e-mails. It's that they were stolen and used by Team Ragsdale. Mike Arms quoted from the stolen e-mails in material provided to County Commission just last Monday. Did they turn the e-mails over to law enforcement or keep them? Or both? Can't have it both ways.
These guys take themselves, way, way to seriously, in their role and their perceived importance in the community. They're all wanna bees, they've busted the county piggy bank, giving themselves all $100,000 a year salaries, to do what, play political brinksmanship with all of the locals.
Watch how relevant they are after next month's election.
These guys are going to make Don Sundquist look like a boy scout.
sandra,i understand stealing is stealing...but members of these dog-gone party executive committees like to fight with their own party incumbents & each other more than they want to beat the other party...if the incumbent republican sheriff wants the republican party list..give him the damn list..hell,the democrats are no better,look at all the bullshit we had during the county elections...my feeling is,incumbents of both partys,believe the executive committees are a pain in the ass.
Bill, don't disagree. Heck, I remember the days of Warren Webster.
It's amazing what people assume. To be clear, I told every Republican elected official they could use the list. I just wouldn't give the list. I told them, give me your mail piece, I'll have the office prepare it and a mailing house put the addresses on it. The party keeps the valuable list and no Republican official is preferred over another. And, no candidate or official ever pays for it. This is how most political parties use and protect valuable lists. This is also how an effective party helps candidates get elected.
Also, you need to understand this "list". It's not just some mailing list. Myself and others who worked in the Bush-Cheney campaign had the idea to get everyone who came into the campaign office to get a sticker, sign, anything, give money or buy something (hat, shirt, etc.) to sign a list, with name, address, phone, email. I would give thank-yous and credit for others who worked in the campaign, but I won't use people's name without permission. We had college volunteers working daily to compile the list into a database. The list numbered in the thousands. These are the people candidates want to reach. It was political gold.
And, the KNS is simply dead wrong in it's reference to Sheriff Hutchison. Apparently KNS writers saw a reference I made to TH and thought Tim Hutchison. Some would say this shows you the mind-set at the KNS. All the emails talk about Tyler Harber (aka TH)! Geez. The Sheriff never once asked me about this list.
I have complaints about the KNS posting all these emails. I don't see how the contents are relevant and I told them so last Friday. Plus, there are names, addresses, phone numbers. And, the emails are from local journalists, me and four or five others. It was never public record. I guess if I drove over to Bruce Hartman's house, stole mail out of his mailbox and then got someone to post it on the internet, it would be ok. Yes? We're still talking about this issue.
Chad, like others have said before, I think the theft of your personal correspondence was an abominable act, and I sympathize with the feeling of invasion you must have over this. I'm not sure that publishing them constitutes "journalism," since the content of the emails doesn't seem relevant to very much that Harber alleged in Betty Bean's columns. The fact that they were stolen and given to Ragsdale certainly is relevant, but the content doesn't seem to be.
Having said that, I'll admit that I did read the emails on the KNS website. I guess most people have an innate nosy streak, and reading those emails sure did pique it in me. The KNS, of course, is happy to oblige that nosy streak in their readers. Sadly, the satisfaction of morbid, vicarious curiosity seems to be what passes for "news" in that newsroom these days (just see the 15-year-old girl's birthday party for another example).
While reading those emails, it was totally obvious (at least to me) that "TH" meant "Tyler Harber."
I also think you're right about the analogy with Bruce Hartman's mail, since the KNS essentially published stolen property. I really don't think they should have done that.
--Socialist With A Gold Card
"I'm a socialist with a gold card. I firmly believe we need a revolution; I'm just concerned that I won't be able to get good moisturizer afterwards." --Brett Butler
Mike Arms quoted from the stolen e-mails in material provided to County Commission just last Monday. Did they turn the e-mails over to law enforcement or keep them? Or both?
The affidavits released last week create more questions than they answer. Do these people on Team Ragsdale have a photo-graphic memory or is there a more logical explanation? It looks like the answer is that Team Ragsdale kept a copy. Tomorrow in County Commission someone needs to step up. What did Mike Arms know and when did he know it?
Please don't recommend that dangerously bad book without at least pointing your victim to Louis Menand's scathing review in The New Yorker.
"The third party writing reminds me of the Jimmy episode of Seinfeld. Does Brian do it to give the illusion he has a vast support team over at Brian's Bog? Or is it just for some humor?"
I’ve wondered about this also. Writing in the third person can lend an aire of authority and sophistication when done with skill and maybe that’s what Brian’s blog, aka Brian Hornback, aka Chairman Hornback believes he’s accomplishing. Or maybe it's just his way of dealing with three identities.
I think humor is simply an unintended result as well as a saving grace.
Heyduke - You see “dangerously bad” where I see humorous and informative. I'm not familiar with Menand's reviews; does he always write like he’s got a branch up his butt?
You know it...
I know it...
The American people know it...
Brian's Blog surfs naked HTML!!
(... and cant use speel chek either.)
"Heyduke - You see 'dangerously bad' where I see humorous and informative. I'm not familiar with Menand's reviews; does he always write like he’s got a branch up his butt?"
Not that you asked me, but fwiw: Louis Menand is probably the most respected American cultural historian alive. He comes from a long line of intellectuals and writers about the American experience (his mother is a biographer of John Adams, I think.) Menand won the Pulitzer Prize for his book The Metaphyscial Club, which is essentially an American history book covering people like Oliver Wendell Holmes and William James. He also writes regularly for the New Yorker and the New York Review of Books. He's revered as one of the top literary critics in any language, and is passionate about the cultivation of the English language. Oh, and he teaches literature at Harvard.
Not sure if he has a branch up his butt, but he would probably appreciate the alliterative quality of your quip.
Now, back to your regularly scheduled county e-mail saga that will go...nowhere and then...fizzle out and then...people will say, dang that Ragsdale.
I've known Chad slightly since early k2k days. We disagree about 100% on political matters, but I've always found him to be pleasant, a gentleman and a reasonable person to talk (or argue) with.
And God knows I'm not a Republican, but I admired the way he handled the county chairmanship. He seemed be bring a lot of professionalism to the job.
It also looks like he may be the only person in this entire Ragsdale/Harber/Hornback mess who's acted with any class at all.
So here's to Chad. I'm sorry for what you're having to go through.
Can anyone translate this latest message from Brian's Bog? Is it a coded message?
I have complaints about the KNS posting all these emails. I don't see how the contents are relevant and I told them so last Friday. Plus, there are names, addresses, phone numbers. And, the emails are from local journalists, me and four or five others. It was never public record. I guess if I drove over to Bruce Hartman's house, stole mail out of his mailbox and then got someone to post it on the internet, it would be ok. Yes? We're still talking about this issue.
Hell is freezing over, but I agree with you. They really shouldn't have done that, and you might have a case were you to try to bring suit against them for invasion of privacy. There's no clear public good being served here, just a bunch of dirty laundry that exists in every political operation.
The most damning statement made by the Sheriff:
'I do not politically advertise by email as Ragsdale and a few others do. They wanted the emails so badly that they were willing to break the law in order to obtain them.
Ragsdale Guilty!
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