quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
https://abc.go.com/feedback

Give 'em an earful. You must use a legitimate email address. You will get an auto-response to your submission and if you use a bogus email address, that email bounces back to them as undeliverable, and then they just dump your comments without even bothering to look at them.

Sent

Is someone who has sexual indiscretions in their youth a peckerdillo?

I feel like I need the $5 printed program to keep up with all the players...

quote:

Originally posted by Leemur:
What’s the next step after “dumpster fire?”

Next up, the media finally found a Republican state senator who was editor of the 1968 VMI yearbook that had blackface photos in it! This will probably become the focus of media attention now.

https://pilotonline.com/news/g...e9-ff7814740140.html

Virginia Sen. Tommy Norment was an editor for VMI yearbook filled with racist photos and slurs

A Virginia Military Institute yearbook overseen by future state Senate Majority Leader Tommy Norment in 1968 features a host of racist photos and slurs, including blackface.

The revelation about one of Virginia's most powerful Republicans comes as the state’s Democratic governor and attorney general are facing calls to resign over their own admissions they wore blackface as young men.

Norment, R-James City County, was managing editor of The Bomb publication that year. He went to VMI in Lexington after graduating from James Blair High School in Williamsburg and has been a state senator since 1992.

On one page of the yearbook, a student poses in blackface, surrounded by others in costumes at a party. Another page features a photo of two men in blackface holding a football.

The N-word is used at least once. A student listed as being from Bangkok, Thailand, is referred to as a “Chink” and “Jap.”

A blurb under one man’s picture says: "He was known as the 'Barracks Jew’ having his fingers in the finances of the entire Corps."

The Bomb has been published continuously since 1897.

When a reporter asked Norment to talk about the yearbook Thursday, the majority leader said, “The only thing I’m talking about today is the budget.”

“I’m here to pass a budget today,” he added when pressed as he headed into a Republican Caucus meeting in late morning.

Virginia’s lawmakers are already reeling after a series of disclosures about the state’s top three Democratic officials. Many have called for Gov. Ralph Northam to resign after a page from his 1984 medical school yearbook surfaced showing a photo of a man in blackface and KKK robe. Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax has been accused of sexually assaulting a woman at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, and Attorney General Mark Herring admitted this week to dressing in blackface during his time at University of Virginia.

“It has been the objective of this year’s Bomb staff to concentrate on the VMI as it exists in actuality, not in theory,” Norment wrote in the yearbook on a page for its editors. “There is an ever-broadening chasm between the two positions. With the completion of this editorial and the 1968 Bomb, I regretfully leave behind the theme ‘Honor Above Self’ and the loyalty of a few selected Brother Rats. Work on the Bomb has permitted me to release four years of inhibitions. And now, I am sorry our work is completed. It is a feeling only genuinely understood by those of us who labored in the ‘den of inequity.’”

Northam also attended VMI, graduating in 1981. His yearbook lists his nickname as “Coonman.” He said friends gave him that name, and he’s not sure why.

Scot Marsh, a close friend of Northam’s at VMI, estimated about seven out of 10 cadets had nicknames back then. Some were given by their classmates and others by their “dykes,” or first-class mentors. The protegees were referred to as “rats.”

It wasn’t uncommon for some of the nicknames to be considered slurs or offensive. After flipping through his yearbook Saturday, Marsh said he noticed a man was dubbed “Jew” and another “Pan Face.”

Often the names were embarrassing and meant to poke fun of someone’s appearance.

“I probably wouldn’t start a job interview, ‘Hey, my nickname at VMI was Anvil Head,’” he said.

Marsh said he didn’t remember Northam having a nickname in those days and reached out to some of his classmates to find out whether they knew the origins of “Coonman.” He still doesn’t have an answer, he said. But it’s not a name he believes his former classmate would have picked himself.

“This racial thing, it shocks me,” he said.

After reviewing all of the happenings in my state over the past week, I've come to the conclusion that we should declare our ~250 year experiment with self government a failure and humbly beg the Brits to take us back as a colony.

We'll be better this time and send y'all plenty of cotton and tobacco. We'll buy your tea, manufactured goods, and whatever other shit.

The UK govt locks people up over mean tweets and gets seriously bent out of shape over Nazi pug salute videos filmed by dank persons. Nah

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Shugart:
After reviewing all of the happenings in my state over the past week, I've come to the conclusion that we should declare our ~250 year experiment with self government a failure and humbly beg the Brits to take us back as a colony.

We'll be better this time and send y'all plenty of cotton and tobacco. We'll buy your tea, manufactured goods, and whatever other shit.

And I'm handing over all of my guns since the Queen will protect me.

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
The UK govt locks people up over mean tweets ... Nah

I can't understand that. Mean Streets is a great movie and one of my favs...Oh wait...

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Shugart:
After reviewing all of the happenings in my state over the past week, I've come to the conclusion that we should declare our ~250 year experiment with self government a failure and humbly beg the Brits to take us back as a colony.

We'll be better this time and send y'all plenty of cotton and tobacco. We'll buy your tea, manufactured goods, and whatever other shit.

Yeah, well... no.
The Brits own experiment with self government currently looks like a bigger failure than ours!

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Shugart:
After reviewing all of the happenings in my state over the past week, I've come to the conclusion that we should declare our ~250 year experiment with self government a failure and humbly beg the Brits to take us back as a colony.

We'll be better this time and send y'all plenty of cotton and tobacco. We'll buy your tea, manufactured goods, and whatever other shit.

Her Majesty is too smart to accept Virginia.

Va. Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax demands retraction from NBC over reports that he used profanity toward accuser

https://www.richmond.com/news/...92-f1c3966e69df.html

A lawyer for Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax sent a letter to NBCUniversal demanding NBC correct reports from reporters that Fairfax directed profanities toward the professor who accused him of a sexual assault in 2004.

Rakesh Kilaru of Wilkinson Walsh + Eskovitz sent the letter Wednesday demanding NBC cease and desist from reporting that Fairfax said "f--- that b----" at Vanessa Tyson in a private caucus meeting on Monday night, and cease and desist from attributing any other false and unsubstantiated statements to Fairfax.

The letter said NBC reporting staff told Fairfax's communications director, Lauren Burke, that NBC would "be pulling the initial false reports," but said tweets from reporters remained online.

"As the Lieutenant Governor's Chief of Staff has already explained to NBC reporters, the Lieutenant Governor did not say "f--- that b----" in connection with Dr. Tyson - as several NBC reporters have falsely claimed - or otherwise direct any profane language toward her," the letter said. "The comments NBC reporters published, which were allegedly made at a private caucus meeting, have no credible sourcing. Comments that were never made cannot be reliably sourced."

Fairfax did use profanity "in describing his general frustration over the false allegations that have been made against him," the letter said, but "he would not and did not speak about Dr. Tyson in the crass manner NBC reporters have suggested."

After tweeting the claim and attributing it to anonymous sources, NBC reporters later tweeted that Fairfax's chief of staff said the comment was never made. Kilaru's letter said "this is not nearly enough. This is not a situation where there are two sides to a story that merit reporting. There is what actually happened, and there is what NBC reporters tweeted this morning."

NBC reporters did not report why they granted anonymity for their sources to make the claim.

An email to NBC requesting comment was not immediately returned Thursday morning.

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Shugart:
After reviewing all of the happenings in my state over the past week, I've come to the conclusion that we should declare our ~250 year experiment with self government a failure and humbly beg the Brits to take us back as a colony.

We'll be better this time and send y'all plenty of cotton and tobacco. We'll buy your tea, manufactured goods, and whatever other shit.

Uhhhh, weren't they just a week or two ago re-establishing an escape plan for the queen and her hubby given the amount of unrest they projected to be possible there? We are indeed screwed up, but I think the Brits are miles ahead of us.

That's interesting, because this morning I read a report that his staff agreed he had used the F word, but not the B word. Even if he did not say it I bet he was thinking it.

quote:

Originally posted by stiab:
That's interesting, because this morning I read a report that his staff agreed he had used the F word, but not the B word. Even if he did not say it I bet he was thinking it.

I'm thinking he channeled his inner Marion Barry

Virginia Gov. Northam, isolated, gets space to ponder his fate as Democrats absorb scandals

https://www.washingtonpost.com...ocal-politics&wpmk=1

RICHMOND — Embattled Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) appeared to be in a stronger position Thursday as the scandals engulfing the state’s other two top officeholders made it less likely he would be forced to step down during the General Assembly session.

Most Democrats in Virginia’s congressional delegation stood by their call for him to resign over a racist photo in a 1984 yearbook and his use of blackface that same year, but some privately acknowledged that the reckoning might have to wait. They took a softer stand toward Attorney General Mark R. Herring (D), refraining from calling for his resignation over a blackface incident from his college days.

The delegation could not agree on what to say about Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax (D), who denies allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman in 2004.

In Richmond, the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus echoed those positions late Thursday after long behind-the-scenes deliberations. The lawmakers renewed their call for Northam to resign, an action that emphasized how isolated he continues to be over the photo depicting someone in blackface and someone in a Ku Klux Klan hood and robe on his 1984 medical school yearbook page. Northam was 25 at the time.

Residents in Richmond shared their thoughts on Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) days after a racist photo in his medical school yearbook page surfaced. (Amber Ferguson, Dalton Bennett, Lee Powell/The Washington Post)

But the black caucus, an influential group within Democratic circles, stopped short of calling for Herring’s ouster over his admission Wednesday that he darkened his face to imitate a rapper during a college party in 1980 when he was 19.

“While we appreciate the candor of Attorney General Herring’s disclosure, we await further action on his part to reassure the citizens of the Commonwealth of his fitness for leadership,” the caucus said in a statement.

On Fairfax, the caucus said the “troubling allegations” that he sexually assaulted a woman in Boston during the 2004 Democratic National Convention should be investigated.

“Everybody is still grappling with the allegation and trying to — we all believe it should be taken seriously, but I don’t think you’ll see us reach a conclusion about that,” said Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), who added that the lawmakers would monitor events. “We’re going to watch it over the next couple of days.”

The expanding political crisis in Virginia has left Democratic leaders stymied, deeply worried about long-term damage to the reputation of the state and the party but frozen by uncertainty about what fresh disclosures might come next.

Party leaders have urged elected Democrats to stay off television, say as little as possible publicly and wait to try to regroup until the situation becomes clearer.

“We’re just trying to get some breathing room,” a senior Virginia Democrat said Thursday.

After meeting in his Capitol Hill office Thursday with most of the state’s Democratic congressional delegation, Kaine said they are withholding judgment on Herring, who is trying firm up support from Virginia’s black leaders.

While they continue to call publicly for Northam to resign, most Democrats now want the governor to stay in office at least until there is clarity on the issues involving Fairfax and Herring.

Because the line of succession goes from the governor to lieutenant governor to attorney general, keeping Herring in office is a backstop against handing the Executive Mansion to the third in line, the House Speaker, who is a Republican.

What is more, if Herring leaves office while the General Assembly is in session, the Republican-controlled legislature will choose his replacement.

Kaine, a former Virginia governor, said the state’s Democratic lawmakers in Congress felt Herring had been sincere in his apologies in a way that Northam had not, but the attorney general still “needs to answer questions of the press and the public, too.”

Some Democrats discussed whether it would be possible to conduct an investigation of the Fairfax allegations, as happened during the Supreme Court confirmation of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh. But the only mechanism for doing that would be through the state attorney general’s office — and Herring is hobbled by his own problems.

Meanwhile, Democrats have launched an effort to try to find and expose past misconduct by Republicans, according to two people familiar with the effort. On Thursday, for the first time, unflattering revelations spread to a powerful Virginia Republican.

Senate Majority Leader Thomas K. Norment (R-James City) acknowledged that he was managing editor of the VMI yearbook in 1968 when it featured several photos of people in blackface and included a number of racial slurs, including one use of the n-word.

Norment released a statement disavowing any responsibility for the offensive content, which was first reported by the Virginian-Pilot.

“The use of blackface is abhorrent in our society and I emphatically condemn it,” Norment said in the statement. “As one of seven working on a 359-page yearbook, I cannot endorse or associate myself with every photo, entry, or word on each page. However, I am not in any of the photos referenced on pages 82 or 122, nor did I take any of the photos in question.”

Norment also noted that he supported the racial integration of VMI and said he later led the effort to admit women.

One consequence of the drumbeat of scandals is that it has taken the heat off Northam to resign immediately. He has spent the past few days reaching out to minority leaders, reading and contemplating his future, according to a person close to the governor who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.

Northam got a briefing on the budget Thursday and also made contact with Fairfax and Herring to express concern for their families and well-being. First lady Pam Northam sent text messages of support to the wives of Herring and Fairfax.

And Northam continues to try to prove that he did not appear in the yearbook photo. He has retained a private investigator, as well as IR+Media, an African American-owned crisis management firm based in the District.

And while whispers spread around the capitol in Richmond that still more figures could face embarrassing revelations, lawmakers focused Thursday on the daily grind of legislation.

But Democrats have little as a game plan for the coming weeks. “We’re just trying to stop the bleeding,” a senior Democrat said.

Party leaders fear the turmoil could blunt or reverse what has been a steady rise in Democratic power. Until the past week, the prospects looked good for Democrats to win control of both state chambers in November, when all seats in the General Assembly are on the ballot. That could now be at risk.

Equally worrisome to veteran Democratic leaders is the potential damage to the state and its reputation. One Democrat worried that if this crisis continues without a swift resolution, businesses may balk at investing in Virginia.

That could yet be a triggering moment for party officials — from Sens. Mark R. Warner and Kaine, to Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott and former governor Terry McAuliffe — to move the resolve the crisis, possibly by putting additional pressure on Northam and Fairfax to step aside. But as of Thursday, that did not appear to be imminent.

Northam administration officials have been working over the past few days to keep the machinery of government running and to reassure outsiders that all is under control.

Aubrey L. Layne Jr., Northman’s secretary of finance, said he has been serving as a go-between for the governor in negotiations over the state budget and tax legislation with each party in both chambers.

He also worked to alleviate the concerns of rating agencies about state bonds, assuring them that the budget process is continuing on schedule and that there is not likely to be long-term instability in the executive branch. By Thursday, Layne said, he had spoken to representatives of Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings, and planned to talk to Standard & Poor’s on Friday.

“The political uncertainty, in the short term, is not a concern to them,” Layne said. “If it should go on over a longer term, then it would be a concern.”

The Virginia business community is deeply concerned about the damage that the scandals are causing to the state’s image, but there are no signs it is pressing Northam to resign at this point. That is partly because corporate leaders want to steer clear of the controversy as much as possible, and partly because the story is changing so quickly that it is difficult to stay abreast of the latest developments, Virginia business executives said.

But they added that they could seek Northam’s departure if it became evident that he could no longer govern effectively.

Business leaders viewed the controversy as a major setback for their long-standing efforts to promote an image of Virginia as a tolerant state because of the importance of being able to attract a diverse workforce.

The Greater Washington Board of Trade, traditionally the region’s premier business group, issued a statement that stopped short of urging Northam to resign but made clear its unhappiness.

“As a nonpartisan organization, we don’t call for the election or removal of individual politicians, but we will state the obvious: Any government official in the region or across the nation must be able to represent our diverse citizenry and govern effectively,” Board of Trade President and CEO Jack McDougle said in the statement. “Our region is evolving rapidly and, more than ever, we need strong leadership that unites us.”

What's truly crazy is if you take out the top 3 positions in VA, the guy you're left with in the 4th spot is only there because he won a coin toss. LITERALLY, a f'n coin toss.

Coonman!!


https://www.richmond.com/news/...bd-0b6a3cb1e5f9.html

quote:

Originally posted by stoic-one:
What's truly crazy is if you take out the top 3 positions in VA, the guy you're left with in the 4th spot is only there because he won a coin toss. LITERALLY, a f'n coin toss.

It can’t possibly give us worse results than the voting at this point.

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:



And I'm handing over all of my guns since the Queen will protect me.

Machine guns ready to go?

quote:

Meanwhile, Democrats have launched an effort to try to find and expose past misconduct by Republicans

Of course! We know we're guilty of being all of the things we accuse Republicans of, so we should focus on looking at them instead of ourselves!

quote:

Senate Majority Leader Thomas K. Norment (R-James City) acknowledged that he was managing editor of the VMI yearbook in 1968 when it featured several photos of people in blackface and included a number of racial slurs, including one use of the n-word.

Right. Being a person involved with the yearbook that shows questionable photos is exactly as bad as being the parties in the questionable photos.

It really is a mental disorder.