A crazed Obama fan took a knife to the face of a 20-year-old McCain campaign worker in a politically motivated attack Wednesday.
In an incident which seems like it epitomizes much of the anger and bitterness of this election season, a McCain campaign worker from College Station, Texas who was in Pittsburgh helping to work a phone bank was robbed and then attacked, brutalized, and disfigured in what appears to be a politically motivated hate crime.…
Article comments
— go to most recent comments26 - Baritone
The report on the lie-detector test, it was reported, revealed "inconsistencies" in the young woman's story. So far, authorities haven't said more than that.
But. All you McCainiacs should be wary of dull knife bearing Obama backers roaming the streets just looking for you to carve an epitaph on the McCain campaign into your cheeks.
B
27 - Lisa Solod Warren
Anyonw remember Susan Smith?
28 - Cory
This is absolute BS of the highest caliber and I hope this disgusting cow is prosecuted for this blatant, shameful hoax.
29 - Mark
Has anyone here ever considered that the attacker carved the "B" on her face while she was on the ground from above her head??? Thus the reason for it being upside down, DAAH!
30 - Anna Creech
Man, the McCain campaign is pulling out the stops to make people afraid to vote for Obama. This is what happens when you can't win on your own merit.
31 - Lee Richards
#2: Dave is really losing it now:
"This confirms... the fanatacism of Obama supporters."
Like Colin Powell?
Even if it really happened, it confirms nothing about the tens of millions of good, thoughtful and honorable Americans who support Obama.
Your statement is shameful stereotyping, with more than a hint of an appeal to fear and prejudice. You libel and demonize others you don't even know with an indecent disregard for their right to think differently than you do.
And if it REALLY did happen, the victim is indeed fortuante that the attacker was not a rapist who got her pregnant, since Palin's Rapist Progeny Protection Doctrine would leave the young lady completely out of luck as far as terminating the pregnancy was concerned.
32 - Deb
@#23 - let's see.. 58 year old Obama canvasser beaten by McCain supporter - you'll only find the news on the Wisconsin news sites. Obama's camp declined to make a comment on the incident. so much for that theory.
33 - lLumpy
wow. the hate here is palpable. I bet some of u would like to carve an O on her other cheek to go with the B.
34 - MADEBOXER
My problem with this is the same as the police.
1. She did not mention the political angle when she initially talked with police.
2. She waited 45 minutes after the alleged attack before calling to police
3. She didn't seem to stressed out to go immediately to the hospital, instead going to a friend's house
4. She supposedly went to a hospital after refusing medical attention when filing the report
5. She has now escalated her story to include sexual assault
6. No witnesses, not evidence, not even a paper from the hospital she claimed she finally sought help from.... nothing
Is this a misguided attempt to help McCain?
She is appearing to be the fanatic here.
35 - Baritone
I'm amazed that Dave would even publish this article. That the story is a hoax is becoming more apparent. Indeed, as is pointed out above, there is no apparent swelling of her eye and as even Dave points out, the "B" looks to have been applied with something less than a knife blade.
I would have thought that Dave would have let some of the dust settle on this story before jumping on it to post it here.
Regardless, obviously feelings are high on both sides of the campaign. The great majority of people would never consider doing physical violence to members of the opposition. As witness the shout outs at some of the McCain and Palin rallies, there are apparently McCainiacs who are of a violent mind. I don't doubt that the same can be said of some Obama devotees. That hardly reaches the level that Dave suggests in his comment above. His "confirmaton" is bogus.
B
36 - Dr Dreadful
Lumpy, an S would be more appropriate than an O.
37 - Glenn Contrarian
Dave -
DID YOU EVEN READ THE STORY? The link you gave was posted on the 23rd. Today's the 24th. When did the attack happen? If it happened less than a week ago, then how could something carved in the skin possibly be so well-healed (as the photo makes obvious) in so short a period of time when it was supposedly CARVED into her face with a knife????
Tell you what, Dave - why don't you go searching to see how many black men have been freed from prison after their rape convictions were overturned by DNA evidence?
Woman cries, "the black man did it!" The local whites get all riled up, convinced of the black man's guilt, no trial necessary...and that's how many a black man got lynched down South, Dave.
This is pretty common throughout history. How about Googling "blood libel" to see the excuse anti-Semites used to kill thousands of Jews?
AND YOU YOURSELF are not immune to this emotional conviction-without-trial, as is made obvious by the very fact that you posted this article.
Please remove your emotions and look at the facts. Let the facts determine your belief, instead of letting your belief determine the facts.
38 - El Bicho
"the hate here is palpable."
yeah, people hate a hoax and those who try to pass it off.
39 - neoskeptic
todd didn't "offer" to take a lie detector, the police have requested it.
a black eye doesn't turn that shade of black immediately, first it is red, swollen for several hours. where's the swelling?
this whole thing smells fishy.
40 - Baritone
BTW This is a link to a story regarding current Republican voter fraud.
B
41 - Clavos
and that's how many a black man got lynched down South, Dave.
True, but not just "down South, B-tone.
Your prejudice is showing.
According to this study, published by Yale:
However, there were lynchings in the North and West. In fact, every state in the continental United States with the exception of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Vermont has had lynching casualties.
42 - Dan(Miller)
Is there any truth to the rumor that Michael Nifong is now en route to investigate this? He was recently seen panhandling for bus fare, according to usually unreliable sources.
Dan(Miller)
43 - Les Slater
from AP:
"Police say bank surveillance footage doesn't show her at an ATM where she says she was attacked.
"Todd, who is white, now says she was knocked unconscious and doesn't remember being cut. She now says she only discovered the wound later."
44 - moon
This looks very fake to me.
And even more to the point, if the victim had been a person with an Obama bumpersticker, I have just the tiniest weesiest sneakingest feeling that Nalle would have cried FAKE at the top of his lungs.
Self-analysis is shocking absent from this forum.
45 - Will
She just confessed to the whole thing being a fake.
46 - zingzing
dave: "That said, if this story is even partly true - and we've got no evidence to contradict it at this point - it confirms everything I've observed elsewhere about the fanaticism of Obama supporters."
oh, for fuck's sake, dave. you're crossing lines time and time again these days. this is really, really insulting. i can't even begin to describe just how idiotic that statement is. you need your damn head examined. smooches.
if this turns out to be a hoax, are you going to paint all mccain supporters as dumbass hicks from the sticks? nah, you wouldn't do that.
seriously, dave... i used to respect you as at least somewhat even-handed. this election has brought out the right winger in you to almost r.j. or archie levels. it's pretty despicable. feh.
47 - zingzing
ha! it's all a hoax.
next time some asshole yells "kill him!" at a mccain rally, i strongly suggest you look at yourself, dave.
48 - El Bicho
"aggies are too dumb to lie."
apparently not
49 - Will
Sorry, last one. The whole story.
50 - pablo
Egg all over your hysterical,frothing at the mouth hate filled article once again Dave. Your gig is up, you have been exposed for what you are Mr. Political editor of this blog, and if you had any self respect at all, you would resign your position as the editor. Thank you once again Nalle for showing us all your true colors.
From Joe Mandak Associated Press
October 24, 2008
"A McCain campaign volunteer who reported that a tall black man robbed her and then cut a “B” onto her cheek after seeing a McCain bumper sticker on her car has been given a polygraph test because of “inconsistencies” in her story, police said.
Among other things, police said photos and bank card information from an automated teller machine where the college student claimed she was robbed do not show her using the machine at the time, police said.
Pittsburgh police spokeswoman Diane Richard wouldn’t release the polygraph results, but said, “we’re still looking at some inconsistencies” in the woman’s story.
Police said the student, Ashley Todd, of College Station, Texas, who is white, told them she was attacked by a 6-foot-4 black man Wednesday night.
Richard said police have not ruled out that the woman was attacked as she claimed, and said inconsistencies deal primarily with how she described the attack.
“We’re just trying to judge the validity of some of the information we received from her,” Richard said. “We understand when you are under duress that sometimes you can’t recollect things. We’re just looking at all the angles.”
51 - John
Well, the girl already DID do the polygraph, which seems weird that the police would even question a victim to that extent, except that they said there were several inconsistencies in her story.
I feel bad for her if this did happen, however I have to say I called BS yesterday when I read it.
As for the "Crazed Obama Supporters" LOL
That's a joke right contard?
Democratic Headquarters in Murfreesboro Vandalized
Incident Makes Second This Week
Olympia Democratic Party headquarters vandalized
The Olympian • Published October 23, 2008
Democratic headquarters vandalized in Lawrence October 4, 2004
Democratic headquarters vandalized The Daily News Published September 9, 2004
Glass smashed at Dems' Denver HQ The Denver Post Friday Oct. 24, 2008
52 - Baritone
Liar, liar, McCain's campaign's on fire!
BTW - Clav, I said nothing about lynchings, southern or otherwise.
B
53 - moon
Pablo,
Dave will not resign from here, ever. His corpse will be incinerated by BC and the ashes dumped in the White House rose garden, along with a garish wreath from his clones and sycophants.
He did not resign when he was caught posting under the name vox populi and saying that he agreed with Nalle's opinion and had seen Nalle's sources.
He stonewalled it--a la Richard Nixon.
54 - Baritone
This poor, silly, misguided girl. I know nothing of her except that she is apparently prone to prevarication. Maybe the McCain campaign should foot the bill for her defense. I doubt that she will do any jail time, but she has certainly put herself in a predicament that will affect her future badly. She will be living with this for a long while. It's not going to look good on her resume'.
Tell us Dave, what does this turn of events "confirm" for you?
B
55 - zingzing
this is where dave goes silent.
56 - moon
And well he SHOULD.
His face is becoming permanently yellow from all that egg on it.
57 - Dr Dreadful
Can I get you a slice of humble pie, Dave?
I have raspberry, rotten apple, banana peel or sour grape.
58 - El Bicho
The story itself was worth reporting on. However, Dave made the mistake of letting his bias seep through. Michelle Malkin thought the story was fabricated and I don't believe she's pro-Obama. Dave's comments are where he completely loses any credibility.
59 - rabjack
hey dude, where's the update? or doesn't the truth matter as much as the opportunity to score political points?
60 - moon
It was worth reporting on, but was reported on much more professionally on other sites--Editor & Publisher being only one.
61 - NancyGail
Conflicting stories to police doesn't help. Lie detector inadmissable in court, btw. Unrealiable.
62 - Cindy D
"aggies are too dumb to lie."
But, "bubbas" are apparently revered.
Just making sure you noticed that I noticed that Dave.
63 - Baritone
Apparently, the girl's story broke down via sources other than the lie detector. I don't know if she, herself finally caved, but the police firmly reported that the mishap was all a hoax.
I don't know if Ms. Todd thought she was actually doing something to help the McCain campaign, or if she was just goofing, doing this all for a laugh. Ha, ha. As I noted, all she has accomplished is to raise up a shit storm around herself that will take a long time to live down. Well, at least she's now had her 15 minutes. On to bigger and better things Ashley. Go Aggies!
B
64 - Dawn
Can we please issue an official update in the body of the post? It really looks bad at this point to not point out this was a complete hoax. And a dumb one at that.
65 - pablo
Dave,
You start out your article labled "news" with the following paragraph.
"In an incident which seems like it epitomizes much of the anger and bitterness of this election season, a McCain campaign worker from College Station, Texas who was in Pittsburgh helping to work a phone bank was robbed and then attacked, brutalized, and disfigured in what appears to be a politically motivated hate crime."
You assert this not only as a writer, but as the political editor of Blogcritics.org, as a fact.
Then you you go on to put more egg on your face with the rest of the bs you wrote.
About 6 months ago, I submitted an article that as I recall was written under the label of "opinion" on why I think that Al Qaeda is a myth.
As I had already submitted another article on why I did not believe in the official government conspiracy theory about 9/11 which was FORBIDDEN to write about and rejected.
I also had the Al Qaeda myth article rejected by YOU bubba, for no other reason that you rejected my premise, ie my OPINION.
You sir are a disgrace to this online magazine, and your hypocrisy is sickening.
As I was censored recently for using the god forbid deragatory word "bubba" by Christopher Rose, and now this complete bs written by you under the guise of NEWS, I am now in the process of composing an articulate, well written, letter to the owner of this online magazine concerning the overt hypocrisy of both you and Mr. Rose.
You have personally attacked me on numerous occasions instead of either debating me on the issues or ignoring me. As you are the editor of this part of blogcritics I do hold you to a higher degree of professionalism than the average writer or commenter on here.
I do not do this lightly Dave, and have refrained in the past from writing Mr. Olson in the past. No more, you should either stop commenting or remove yourself as the editor, and I will do everything that I can to see that this happens.
I am not interested in your response, excuses, or any other lame attempt to present yourself as professional. You are not.
As we say here in California Davey boy.
Once a bub-- always a bub--
cheers bucko
Pablo
66 - Bobby Slacks
UPDATE:
The lie detector test showed inconsistencies in her story. There is absolutely no video of her taking money out of an ATM at the location she claims the incident occurred.
She is now back peddling on the whole story.
Apparently, it was just a ploy thought up after an actual attack took place. Her friend, and she, thought it would give them a "JOE" the Plumber star boost, while casting a racial shadow on the Obama camp...depicting African Americans as violent criminals, who seek Obama's Presidency at all costs.
Silly, stupid, college girl, prank.
The "B" is backwards, which was the first red flag. The fact that the "B" is not actually carved in her face, the surface of the skin not broken...it is more of a welt, than an abrasion, or, incise wound.
No medical treatment was sought, and the Police have only begun to investigate.
67 - Bobby Slacks
Monica Lewinsky with an Ugly Mug, instead of a Blue Dress. ;)
68 - Les Slater
"It really looks bad at this point..."
It is bad. Are you suggesting prettifying the post, and/or BC?
69 - Jet
Dave, check CNN, Wolf Blitzer has breaking news about this item!
70 - Jet
CNN has just announced that this woman made the whole thing up. Pittsburgh Police made the announcement to Wolf Blitzer.
McCain must really be getting desparate...
71 - Georgio
I came on this site early this mourning and this was the first article I read ..I was impressed with all the detective work most of you made and now it is late afternoon and the truth has come out so I thought I would come back just to see what Dave had to say now but his silence is deafening
72 - Les Slater
Dawn #66,
The body of the post should not be edited. It should stand.
The owners of BC have had plenty of time to disavow before it got to the point of the accuser breaking down and admitting it was a hoax.
Les
73 - Dawn
Can we stop attacking Dave, a respected member of the BC org on a matter that was reported in major news outlets. Obviously this was a hoax, and Dave will have to update it, but all these personal attacks against the man only serve to make YOU the commenter look bad. Can we please tone it down a bit, please?
74 - Les Slater
Dawn,
Changing the post at this point would reflect more on the integrity of BC than on Dave.
Les
75 - moon
Dawn,
You wouldn't also be called Vox Populi now, wouldya?