My friend and commenter Brendan has such a way with words:
Dear Secretary Vilsack:
It has come to my attention that you recently forced Shirley Sherrod, a USDA appointee, to resign over what appear to unfounded allegations of racism by noted conservative provocateur Andrew Breitbart. Unfortunately, by taking the word of this well-known con artist at face value, you have fired an innocent person. you need to reinstate her.
Unfortunately for Mr. Breitbart (as well as for you), this has been exposed as a fraud. In fact, the family Sherrod helped called into CNN today to explain that “Sherrod was helpful to her family and that the couple never felt she was being racist while trying to assist them in avoiding foreclosure. ” The family added, “”She treated us really good and got us all we could,” and they do not believe you have treated Ms. Sherrod fairly. (source: http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/07/20/agriculture.employee.naacp/index.html?iref=NS1)
Mr. Vilsack, I would like to know if it is USDA policy to take allegations like those made by Mr. Breitbart at face value, without doing further research.Breitbart, as you should know, was also closely linked to the fraudulent ACORN video, which led Congress to unfairly defund the organization, which was later cleared of any and all wrongdoing. Breitbart was also linked to recent efforts to tap Senator Mary Landrieu’s phone, a crime which one of his accomplices pled guilty to.
As you should know by now, the partisans on the Republican party have been engaged in smear campaigns against Democrats for decades: examples include the Whitewater non-scandal; the Jeremiah Wright non-scandal; the Barack Obama is a secret muslim/socialist/nazi/Kenyan/Martian non-scandal; and so on.
The fact that you believed the allegations made by Breitbart and fired a loyal employee speak very badly to your character and leadership. Do you think that appeasing these lunatics will cause them to leave you alone? Rest assured, they will be back for more. Meanwhile, you have hung an innocent elderly woman out to dry based on the fever dreams of a man who has demonstrated time and time again that he’s a fraud, proving that you’re something of a coward who won’t stand up for his employees.
You should be ASHAMED of yourself.
Sincerely,
Brendan Skwire
Women who regularly use household cleaners and air fresheners are at double the risk of developing breast cancer than those who never use the products.
The study of more than 1,500 women found that solid slow-release air fresheners and anti-mould products had the biggest effect.
Insect repellents, oven and surface cleaners also produced a slight increase.
“Women who reported the highest combined cleaning product use had a doubled risk of breast cancer compared to those with the lowest reported use,” said Dr Julia Brody, from the Silent Spring Institute in the United States.
“Use of air fresheners and products for mould and mildew control were associated with increased risk.”
I had those fake nails done once (more as a novelty) and the whole experience was so toxic. I even called OSHA to find out about why the ventilation was so bad and why workers weren’t wearing respirators, but I was assured there were no long-term effects from all these chemicals — many of which were just sprayed on the Gulf oil spill, by the way.
I really, really, really wish I could have gone to Netroots Nation this year; I couldn’t afford it, and trying to figure out a way to go was just stressing me out big-time.
But I wish I could have made it: I just got an invitation to lunch with AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka for a panel presentation, “Building a Progressive Economic Vision” — with Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alan Grayson. I’ll be sorry to miss that one!
I never wrote about this stupid “controversy” because I remember reading something in my local paper that said it was no big deal. Which doesn’t surprise me, because the polling place where this alleged intimidation occurred was in a minority neighborhood, and I would be very surprised if anyone (other than patronage employees of the GOP-controlled parking authority) was breaking down the walls of the polling place to vote for John McCain.
But the corporate media, bowing to temper tantrums from the right, have pronounced this “news” anyway. Because we all know who really controls the media, and it ain’t us.
Wealth has its privileges — and then these interns grow up to take hereditary high-profile jobs in the media (Luke Russert) or in public office. And then they get to decide which social safety nets should be cut “for your own good.” See how that works?
