I posted about the NRO's Ed Whelan outing of a liberal blogger that wanted to remain anonymous because he couldn't take any criticism, but now sees the errors of his ways.

My Apologies to Publius

On reflection, I now realize that, completely apart from any debate over our respective rights and completely apart from our competing views on the merits of pseudonymous blogging, I have been uncharitable in my conduct towards the blogger who has used the pseudonym Publius.

Earlier this evening, I sent him an e-mail setting forth my apology for my uncharitable conduct. As I stated in that e-mail, I realize that, unfortunately, it is impossible for me to undo my ill-considered disclosure of his identity. For that reason, I recognize that Publius may understandably regard my apology as inadequate.

The damage is done, but at least an apology came. I hope this sends a message to others (it seems to be a right-wing thing) who similarly believe it's just fine to dig up personal information and expose it about a blogger (or anyone else) who wishes to remain unknown, just because they have a mean streak and a taste for vengeance. It's not fine. You listening, Michelle?

Most people in the blogosphere know what harm Michelle Malkin causes when she posts personal information of groups or people that she disagrees with on her blog. It's a revolting practice, but that's Malkin. I exposed her when she did it to some Santa Cruz students and they asked me for some help, if you remember, back in 2006. (Here's the entire story: Malkin crosses the line Santa Cruz.)

Jane reminded me that it infuriated so many bloggers at the time that even right-wing bloggers wanted to punish her over it. An "Online Integrity" group was formed in response -- one that I would never have joined. Many of us do have ethics.

I listed many more of Malkin's horrendous behavior in outing people in this post: The right wing attacks Henrietta Hughes

Well, she's started a trend that now the NRO's Ed Whelan just practiced on an anonymous blogger who writes on Obsidian Wings. Exposing an Irresponsible Anonymous Blogger

What a bastard. Yes, I almost cursed, but I have my standards...

And Whelan heads up an Ethics center, fergawdsake! That must be some kinda standards they're setting there, huh?

tbogg explains:

That is to say that publius was "irresponsible" in that he criticized Whelan and, for that crime, Whelan wants to f*&k with publius' life. Why else out him? (Publius responds) Oh course the real kicker is that Asshole Ed points out the "poor quality and substance of his [publius] blogging" when the whole problem stemmed from Whelan's inability to write a "quality" post.

(Added): Wow. I had no idea that Whelan had such an extensive history of being wrong and then acting like a whiny bitch when it was pointed out to him. It must be fun to play golf with Ed. "Mulligan!" "Mulligan again!""Whoopsie. I call mulligan."...and you still haven't left the first tee. I'm kidding of course. Whelan doesn't look athletic enough for golf....

Whelan is pond scum, but hey, Ed is a former Bush DOJ/Office of Legal Counsel official during 2001-2004 -- when that Office authorized torture, illegal surveillance and a host of other radical, disgraceful policies -- as well as a former law clerk to Antonin Scalia and current contributor to National Review. Would we expect anything less?

As you know, I'm a huge baseball fan, and even Major League Baseball is saying that Sonia Sotomayor ended the strike that almost destroyed the game under the idiot, Bud Selig.

It was Sotomayor's ruling that forced Major League Baseball players and owners to resume the national pastime in 1995 after a 234-day player strike wiped out the final six weeks of the regular season and the entire postseason in 1994.

On Dec. 23, 1994, with collective bargaining negotiations at a standstill, the owners implemented a salary cap. Commissioner Bud Selig announced at the time: "We are committed to playing the 1995 season and will do so with the best players willing to play."
----
The strike ended when Sotomayor issued a preliminary injunction against the owners on March 31, 1995. Three days later, the day before the season was scheduled to start, the strike was finally over. Sotomayor's decision to effectively order the 1990 work rules to be reinstated received support from a panel of the Court of Appeals for the New York-based Second Circuit, which denied the owners' request to stay the ruling.

Hey, Ted Frank of the NRO, it's not me saying this, but the MLB. It's on their own website.

Duncan cracks me up.

Jim Geraghty Comes Undone

As I noted at the time, the United States is a nation of 300 million people. They aren't all named Fred Jones. Assuming that a name is fake just because it is unusual, or "funny," or the same as the name of a celebrity, is nothing short of stupid.

Unfortunately, that's a lesson some people have to learn the hard way. Jed L at Daily Kos points out that the National Review's Jim Geraghty made a fool of himself by mocking American Prospect writer Adam Serwer based on just such an assumption:

Now, unless A. Serwer thinks that there is actually a registered voter named "Duran Duran" in New Mexico, he ought to refrain from sputtering that those who disagree with him are 'racist' and 'paranoid.'

You see where this is going, don't you? Yep.

Here's Geraghty's follow-up:

UPDATE: I am floored by the fact that the white pages for Albuquereque, New Mexico has a listing for "Duran Duran." Mea culpa.

For those of you who don't know, I did tour with Duran Duran a few years ago.

K-Lo---Please, make it stop. It hurts.

If Obama could go to Germany and give a speech in English and be not only understood but well-received, why does he say we all need to learn another language? 

(illustration by Tom Tomorrow)

Revisionist wingnut Jonah Golberg, aka Doughy Pantload, is asking for input on what you "think Bush’s legacy will be."

Not kidding. I suspect we may have at least a few readers who wouldn't mind helping him out.

Obama's family must be Commies. That's a new one.

John Cole:

Lisa Schiffren at the Corner, perfect representative of the modern GOP:

Obama and I are roughly the same age. I grew up in liberal circles in New York City — a place to which people who wished to rebel against their upbringings had gravitated for generations. And yet, all of my mixed race, black/white classmates throughout my youth, some of whom I am still in contact with, were the product of very culturally specific unions. They were always the offspring of a white mother, (in my circles, she was usually Jewish, but elsewhere not necessarily) and usually a highly educated black father. And how had these two come together at a time when it was neither natural nor easy for such relationships to flourish? Always through politics. No, not the young Republicans. Usually the Communist Youth League. Or maybe a different arm of the CPUSA. But, for a white woman to marry a black man in 1958, or 60, there was almost inevitably a connection to explicit Communist politics.

***

Time for some investigative journalism about the Obama family’s background, now that his chances of being president have increased so much.

Cole: You know what that means- someone needs some pictures of 60’s era countertops. CITIZEN JOURNALISTS, YOU HAVE YOUR MARCHING ORDERS!

Lisa Schiffrin at The Corner is a loathsome creature.

I love Digby's phrase: "Conservative Borg." It says it all, doesn't it?

All the blogosphere loves a celebration, especially when it's a book launch party! Congratulations to celebrated author Jonah Goldberg on his new book, Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning.

In tonight's open thread below, please be the most civil and articulate liberal fascist you can be.

K-Lo from the NRO:

Readers are really into Cheney being president for awhile. Suggestions for Acting President Cheney include

Bomb Iran.
Commute the sentences of those border agents.
Fire Mike Chertoff.
Tell Harry Reid to ... well, you know...
Pardon Scooter.

Wingnut Welfare at its finest. This is the base of the current Republican party. Heaven help us.

"The National Review’s Jonah Goldberg, waxing poetically about what could have been in the UK..."

I live near LAX and what Atrios says is true. They still limit who comes in at times and now they are much tougher on people when they pull up to the curb to unload their bags. I can understand it though..He links to this BBC article.

They have also described seeing two Asian men, one of whom was on fire, who had been in the car. 

One of them has died. Thankfully, nobody was seriously hurt. I guess if we profiled the way Malkin would like---they would have gotten through anyway...(BK in the comment section says that: In England the term Asian means someone is of Pakistani or Indian descent or appearance)

Larry Johnson sent me a post yesterday, but check this one out on Glasgow... How do you think the media is handling this one?

Tucker (whose rating are on life support) had on Jonah to talk about his new "Dick Cheney Fan Club" article and boy, did he have a grand old time sharing the love of Dick Cheney. As Jonah loquaciously describes his feelings about Cheney----Tucker asked him why lefties simply hate Darthman. What reason could any civilized person on the face of the earth have for disliking Mr. Cheney? Goldberg's answer left me speechless. Email Jonah here....

Download | play Download | play (rough transcript)

Tucker: ....you're apt to see hyperventilation. People hate Cheney on this visceral level. What is so hate-able about Dick Cheney?

Goldberg: I have no, I really...I truly have no idea. I like Dick Cheney. Love to have a beer with the guy---I think one of the things that bothers them is that he doesn't care! The opposite of love isn't hate---it's indifference....

Cheney simply doesn't care, that's what did it....I mean, WTF? Have a cold one with him by all means, but it seems Jonah downed a twelve pack before he went on the air....He's either not very bright, really doesn't know---or is lying...What say you, Mr. Goldberg? I'm sure he'll tell you he's brilliant since he works for the wingnut welfare queens over at the NRO....Well, here's a few reasons why Cheney's such an odious man:

1) Architect (along with his neocon cabal) of the worst foreign blunder in U.S. history and an immoral war.

2) Cheerleader and or "chief of torture." Just ask Condi and Colin.

3) Mr. Law and Order doesn't actually obey the law regarding his office.

4) Secret Energy Commission meeting

5) Chickenhawk (five deferments) who sends others off to fight his wars.

6) The leaking of Valerie's Plame name.

7) Scooter Libby and Mary Matalin.

Please add to the list...

Goldberg apologizes for Bush too. I thought #43 was elected to actually know something about policy and not be a fraking "moral" cheerleader. And...attacking countries that haven't attacked us is "immoral."

Watch this short segment about Bush's veto of the stem cell bill on Hardball and then you'll understand why our country is so divided. The press allows people like Deroy, who won't tell the truth and knows that they won't tell the truth to deceive and cloud important issues to this nation....Deroy Murdock of the NRO actually uses the "Snowflakes Project" as an argument against research...I mean, he is insidious.

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Murdock: But I don‘t think the way to address that disease and others is through the destruction of human embryos. These embryos are not destined to be thrown away. In fact, there is an organization called Snowflakes Adoption Agency in Orange County, California, and they have placed these embryos, which they have actually implanted in utero. And about 120 or 130 or so kids have been born and are alive and well, and are out playing hopscotch ---Well, there are 400,000. What I think we should do is encourage more of them to be adopted. The idea that these are going to be thrown away is not so—

See how easy that was? Notice the way Deroy delivers his false talking points? He would have made an excellent conman back in the good old west--selling bottles of "youth tonic" to unsuspecting settlers. They say the same things over and over again....You don't need a calculator to know the ratio factors between 120-130 and 400,000. The Christian community is not interested in adopting "snowflakes."

Going to the C&L archives, Bush used these Snowflake kids in a photo op back in '05 .Tony Snow called the research "murder" and Josh Bolton was on MTP to explain...A lot of federal money is being invested in the Snowflake Project since it was started with hardly any takers...

And Jon Stewart takes a look back at Bush's first veto on stem cell research and Tony Snow...

 Timmeh forgot to mention his role in the Scooter Libby case today during the panel discussion that featured two--free Scooter loving NRO'ers...What's the deal, Meet the Press? And is the Republican base against the rule of law now?

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Christy has the whole deal posted here....

O’Beirne and York are clearly partisan writers, both working for the conservative National Review.  I’ve met Byron a few times and I think it is safe to say that he considers himself not only conservative, but also that he has vested a lot of interest in pushing the Libby end of the case whenever possible in media appearances and in his columns....read on

 I would guess that the NRO, Fred Thompson, Mary Matalin, Joe Degenova, Victoria Toensing and the Washinton Post are all shedding tears for Scooter...