The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Zilla Bears No Ill Will Toward Me Over The Absurd Tick Post

Posted on | July 2, 2012 | 22 Comments

by Smitty

I just got an email from Zilla, who suffers from Lyme disease, concerning the tick post yesterday. In truth, I was struck by the physical similarity of the tick’s abdomen spot to the Apple logo, and went for a sophomoric riff, without even giving Zilla a thought.

To those who, perhaps not seriously, sought to cast guilt upon me in the comments: I do have a finely-tuned conscience, but plays to guilt and fear really never get to it.

Zilla is a cool lady, and totally merits whatever support you can spare.

Category: Zilla of the Resistance

A Drawer Full of Sockpuppets: Another Neal Rauhauser ‘Persona’ Exposed

Posted on | July 2, 2012 | 44 Comments

Neal Rauhauser was a speaker at the 2010 Netroots Nation conference

“Soliciting assistance in his plots — recruiting a gang of followers — functions psychologically as a means for Rauhauser to validate his grandiose narcissistic conception of himself as a heroic leader.”
— Robert Stacy McCain, June 15

FROM AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
One of the most persistent characteristics of Neal Rauhauser is his use of online aliases. He’s a sort of sockpuppet factory and once wrote that he had created more than 100 Twitter accounts. Some of those accounts were apparently created for Democrat politicians who had hired Rauhauser’s Progressive PST consulting firm. However, it is known that Rauhauser has also operated a number of intentionally deceptive online aliases, the protection of which was the subject of a very interesting treatise Rauhauser wrote on “persona management.”

Did I say “very interesting”? Why would Rauhauser be so obsessively concerned with “IP address concealment,” offering advice on how to protect a “persona” on a laptop with such elaborate measures that these secrets would be secure even “if you’re arrested and questioned”?

What criminal online behavior, conducted under a secret identity, requires that kind of protection? We can only speculate on possible answers to that question, and let’s just stick to the known facts: Rauhauser habitually uses online personas, such as the “Gaped Crusader” alias with which he cyberstalked and harassed Patrick “Patterico” Frey.

So today, while researching some background on the Progressive PST consulting firm that Rauhuaser co-founded with Beth Becker in 2009, I stumbled onto a Daily Kos diary from March 2010:

I had a back channel discussion with a member of [Georgia Democrat Rep. Hank Johnson’s] staff, and Congressman Johnson gave us a truly amazing thirty minutes of his time on Monday, answering questions about health care reform, his job as the southeast regional whip, and giving us some insight into what Congress will do next … and how we can help.
Present for the interview were Sandi Behrns, Karoli Kuns, Jesse LaGreca, Beth Becker, and Neal Rauhauser.

Hmmmm. Becker and Rauhauser are both mentioned, along with Sandi Behnns, who subsequently joined Progressive PST in 2010. This item about the Hank Johnson interview was the last DKos diary posted under the account called simply “twitter,” and it aroused my curiosity.

The “twitter” DKos account was created in October 2009 and posted 10 diaries and 68 comments before becoming inactive after March 23, 2010. What sort of subject matter did “twitter” write about? One was the “Kossack Twitter Mojo Report,” which showed that Neal Rauhauser’s account (“Stranded Wind”) was one of the top 10 Daily Kos contributors, according to Klout rankings. Although Rauhauser had only 1,056 followers on Twitter as of March 19, 2010, his Klout ranking was nearly as high as DKos founder Markos Moulitsas, who had 11,541 followers.

The first time the “twitter” account ranked Kossacks by their “mojo” (on Feb. 26, 2010) Rauhauser actually ranked second and “twitter” wrote:

[T]he ranking system we use, @Klout, can determine how many of those followers are actually paying attention. This is important — remember those automated processes? Twitter is infested with salesbots and they breed. If you get one and you don’t promptly squish it the next day it’ll have a dozen of its species follow you and it’ll spiral out of control from there. @StrandedWind does the programming for this stuff and he blocks five accounts for every four real people he gets.
What about the ones without any True Reach at all? Well, to get the full picture on an account they have to sign up for a @Klout account. We can get them to rank lists for us, but digging through followers requires that they have Oauth access, a safe way to share details about your account with their service.
We like Klout for rankings but it changes slowly, just like a real world poll. You definitely need an account there to fully participate, but for day to day exploration @Twitalyzer does similar things and it has lots of fun ways to look at your position on Twitter, find others who are interested in the same things you are, and so forth. If you’re brand new and looking for good people to connect with you should take some of the more active people on this list and put them into @Followerwonk.
If you want to get on [Twitter] and get hooked up right away Followerwonk is an immense help. One of the very best places to start is checking into the friends that are shared by @StrandedWind and @Sandibehrns, two of the top rated Progressive activists on Twitter.

You see? The “twitter” account was actually Rauhauser, using a third-person sockpuppet voice that would proclaim to the progressive community at Daily Kos — the top blog on the Left — that Neal Rauhauser was really a super-savvy social-networking guy.

Self-promotion was one of the original purposes of Rauhauser’s deceptive sockpuppetry. This “twitter” account is at least the third DKos identity Rauhauser is known to have used, along with “Stranded Wind” and “Iowa Boy” (the latter of which transmitted ugly gossip about Rauhauser’s ex-wife). Rauhauser is obsessed with online secrecy and deception, and has used his various aliases to manipulate both his enemies and allies.

Go read Patrick Read’s 2010 TwitterGate follow-up, “Democrat Cyber Stealth Revealed: Neal Rauhauser & Radical Thugs,” and contemplate how Rauhauser acquired the influence that he used for such purposes.

Study Rauhauser’s history long enough, and you understand that his progressive friends were exploited by Rauhauser for purposes that had very little to do with advancing any legitimate political or policy goals, but had a great deal to do with Rauhauser’s self-aggrandizing effort to make himself a sort of kingpin/hero of the Left.

Rauhauser is ultimately his own worst enemy.

He is rather like the fellow who imagines himself a shrewd poker player but who has a number of “tells” that enable other players to know when he’s bluffing. His habits are deeply engrained and predictable, and his inevitable blunders make Rauhauser perhaps even more dangerous to his allies than he is to his enemies.

In recent days, Rauhauser has committed new blunders, and when his latest errors are revealed, his friends will suffer new embarassments.

— Robert Stacy McCain, Whereabouts Unknown

 
Update (Smitty): welcome, Instapundit readers. Check out Saturday’s Stephen Kruiser video.
 

 

 

THE KIMBERLIN FILES:

 

 


Category: The Kimberlin Files

Neal Rauhauser’s War on Women

Posted on | July 2, 2012 | 14 Comments

How much is Brett Kimberlin paying his associate Neal Rauhauser? Apparently not enough to enable Rauhauser to make his child-support payments: Rauhauser is reported to be more than $30,000 behind on his child-support and has paid only $70 this year.

He once boasted of using martial arts against his ex-wife.

Category: The Kimberlin Files

LIVE AT FIVE: 07.02.12

Posted on | July 2, 2012 | 2 Comments

— compiled by Wombat-socho


TOP NEWS
Institutional Revolutionary Party Projected To Win In Mexican Elections

A woman votes in Atlacomulco

PRI claims win in Presidential election for first time in 12 years, also projected to win majorities in both legislative houses



Former Israeli PM Yitzhak Shamir Dies, 96
Will be buried today at Mt. Herzl alongside wife

Former DPJ Chief Ozawa Leaves Ruling Party Over Sales Tax
51 other legislators join him, in a blow to PM Noda



POLITICS
Obamacare Decision Good For Raising Money

Romney campaign: up over $5.5 million since decision announced

Obama campaign claims to have outraised Romney but won’t release figures

Rangel’s Victory Margin Shrinks As Primary Challengers Head To Court

Gunman In Ft. Bragg Shooting Dies

GOP Leaders See November As Time To Defeat Obamacare

DOJ Refuses To Prosecute Holder, But “Fast & Furious” Investigation Far From Over


Governor Perdue Vetoes Bill To Allow Hydraulic Fracturing In North Carolina

Gun Group Finances Shooting Camp With Chicago Gun Buyback Program

Governor Jindal Says Louisiana Won’t Implement Obamacare



THE ECONOMY, STUPID
Oil Slides Below $84 On Waning EUphoria, Signs Of Weakening PRC Economy: NYMEX $83.79, Brent $96.16
Doubts Greet Plan For Eurozone Bank Regulator
HSBC Says PRC Factory Activity Worsening
Bristol-Myers To Buy Amylin For $5.3 Billion
USPS To Begin Processing Plant Consolidations
Germany’s Linde To Buy Lincare In $4.6 Billion Deal
Thousands Protest Construction of Walmart In LA’s Chinatown
Samsung Seeks Stay On Galaxy Nexus Injunction
Apple Pays $60 Million To Settle PRC Trademark Suit Over iPad Name
Best Buy Slashes Prices On New Apple Laptops
Booker Goes #Waywire
Amazon Cloud Outage Takes Down Netflix, Instagram, Pinterest, More
Twitter Turns Off Tweets To LinkedIn
Nike+ FuelBand ICE Makes Fitness Transparent



SPORTS
Mariners’ Offense Still Missing In Extra-Inning Loss To Red Sox

"So, either of you guys heard anything about these so-called bats?"

M’s not clearing Mendoza line at Safeco

Michael Jordan’s Son Arrested After Omaha Hotel Scuffle

Mets’ Three Errors Costly In 8-3 Loss To Dodgers


Rangers’ Darvish Fans 11, Still Loses To A’s 3-1

Rosters Unveiled For 83rd All-Star Game

Erica Enders Becomes First Female NHRA Pro Stock Winner

No Runs, No Answers As Astros Lose Series To Cubs

Nationals Beat The Heat And The Braves, 8-4



FAMOUS FOR BEING FAMOUS
Katie And Suri Move Out

Katie Holmes and Suri Cruise

Mother and daughter move out of Cruise’s NYC apartment into their own digs
Related: Co$ Denies Tailing Holmes

Chris Brown Busted For Gun Possession At BET Awards



Miley Cyrus Wins Over Future In-Laws

Hilaria Thomas Marries Some Famous Dirtbag

Kunis & Kutcher Openly Affectionate During Lunch Date

Ted And Magic Mike Take Box Office Lead

Young Potter Stars Split As The Magic Wears Off



FOREIGNERS
Thousands Protest In Hong Kong As PRC Installs New Governor
Gunmen Attack Churches In Northeast Kenya
Coptic Emigres Fear For Egypt’s Future
Turkey Scrambles Jets On Syrian Border
Syrian Opposition Rejects Peace Plan Over Assad
Cameron Facing Rebellion Over EU Plans
Pakistan Says Mumbai Attackers Were Helped By 40 Indians
Iceland Reelects President For Fifth Term
Venezuela’s Presidential Campaign Officially Begins



BLOGS & STUFF
Legal Insurrection: Alone Again, Naturally
NRO Corner: Did Roberts Cave To Media Pressure?
Gateway Pundit: Audio Of Obama Lawyer Arguing Mandate Is Tax Stuns WH Chief Of Staff
Weekly Standard Blog: WaPo Blames “Manmade Climate Warming” For Devastating Weekend Storm
American Power: Washington May Be Without Power For Days
Unfortunately that doesn’t include Congress or the bureaucracy.
Protein Wisdom: “How Liberals Win”
Glenn Reynolds: The Supreme Court, Obamacare, And Legitimacy
Just One Minute: Taubes And The Emerging Conventional Wisdom On Refined Carbs
Potluck: A Tale Of One Tragedy And Two Campaigns

Category: Live at Five

Updated Doom Tick Turns You Into Vegan, Apple Zealot

Posted on | July 1, 2012 | 24 Comments

by Smitty

HotAir’s bug scare is bad, but we can do worse. Far worse:

And if that doesn’t mess you up, there is work on a still newer bug that can turn you into a vegan Apple zealot who drives a Prius.

Category: humor

As Long As We’re Viewing ObamaCare With Integrity, What About Social Security?

Posted on | July 1, 2012 | 11 Comments

by Smitty

The main reason I figured the SCOTUS was going to find ObamaCare Constitutional was that punting it could open up challenges to the rest of the Progressive project, e.g. Social Security.

Progressivism is antithetical to liberty as we know it. The silver lining crew is attempting to find something good in the Thursday’s whuppin’. And you can re-fight it like a Civil War battle all you like. Whether or not history shows that Roberts gave us the Full Denton doesn’t matter: that’s the decision.

So, instead, let us prove ourselves an exceptional nation. Let’s muster all the patriotic attorneys general, and the great conservative legal minds, and set about saying that a tax is a tax; that godforsaken sacred cow Ponzi scheme known as Social Security is a tax, and send it to the butcher along with ObamaCare.

Who is with me?

Update: linked at Daley Gator

Category: Health Care, Social Security

SCOTUS Chief Justice-At-Large Paul Anka Rejected ObamaCare For Lack Of Integrity

Posted on | July 1, 2012 | 3 Comments

by Smitty

[There has been a lot of curiosity about the behind-the-scenes maneuvering that triggered the SCOTUS to shift the ObamaCare penalty to a tax. This blog has recovered a secret transcript of the deliberations with SCOTUS Chief Justice-at-Large Paul Anka, as he led the Supreme Court to enlightenment.]

Anka: “First order of business: no penalties masquerading as taxes. Understand that? You see these taxes that everybody’s paying? Everybody pu–where’s the…where’s the gal on the end? The former White House Counsel.”

Roberts: “You weren’t calling it a tax.”

Kagan: “I know.”

Anka: “The other gal on the end there, the taxer! Taxer! Didn’t I say taxes?”

Roberts: “Yeah. I thought he was covered.”

Anka: “You thought, you thought. You thought. . .you thought eight things tonight. You’re on friggin’ notice, John. OK?

  • The people get taxes. Don’t make a friggin’ maniac out of me.
  • The people get taxes. Do you understand? We not gonna be ‘as strong as our weakest link’.
  • The people get taxes. (You understand that?) This is like football, baseball, like anything else.
  • The people get taxes. That’s just the friggin’ way it is. What’s it gonna be, guys? Who are you watching?

(What’s your problem?)

I don’t get it. I don’t get it. Do you understand that? You want your jobs? Where’s Joe? There is a lot of loose stuff going on, and I am telling you, you guys are on thin ice. All right? I am telling you right now. And when I friggin’ move, I slice like a friggin’ hammer. You’ve seen it, and I’ll do it again. You understand that? That’s just the friggin’ way it is.

Every one of your friggin’ checks cash with the amount on it. Do any of your checks bounce? Do you all get full value on your money? I want full value on your friggin’ service. Do you hear me? Do you understand that? That’s just the way it is around here.

I’m warning you. I’m the only important one on that stage. You understand that? You want to lose a job? Do you? Then put me some friggin’ knowledge in here.

Tell me what’s wrong. He’s the only one with his hands up, and he cuts off. Now give me some intelligent friggin’ answers. Who are you watchin’?

Where’s Joe? I don’t get it. I don’t get it. You understand that? I am telling you that this job is on thin ice. And you know how fast I move. I don’t care if you’re a white man, a production manager, an agent or a theater owner like last night. Do you understand?

I have a new philosophy. I don’t care if it’s Jesus Christ. I’m the only important one on that stage. I’m warning you. Is that good enough? For all of you? I’m on that kind of an integrity kick. Do you understand? Do you understand where I’m coming from with integrity? If you guys had better understand the same thing. Because you’re all replaceable.

Do you like your jobs? Do you want your jobs? Do you? Then you’d better protect hers. That’s just the friggin’ way it is. Get it friggin’ right. That’s just the way it is around here. Do you hear me? Do you understand that? Don’t make a friggin’ maniac out of me.

NSFW reference

Category: Farce, humor, Supreme Court

Ten Questions for Brandon Darby

Posted on | July 1, 2012 | 53 Comments

BRANDON DARBY (photo by Todd Wiseman/Texas Tribune)

(If Brandon Darby isn’t No. 1 on the radical Left’s hate list, it’s only because they hate so many people they can’t keep track anymore. In 2008, Darby worked undercover with the FBI to foil a planned domestic terrorist attack on the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis. Since then, Darby has become a columnist for Breitbart.com. His courage was praised by the late Andrew Breitbart, and Darby spoke movingly of his friendship with Andrew at a March memorial service. In recent weeks, Darby has been paying close attention to the story surrounding Brett Kimberlin, Neal Rauhauser and the harassment of conservatives. He agreed to the following e-mail interview about the story. — RSM)

1. How long have you been following the Brett Kimberlin story, and how did you become interested in it?

The Kimberlin/Rauhuaser issue isn’t unique to Kimberlin and Rauhuaser. The details and specifics are, but the gist of it is prevalent in the American Left. The gist is that the people we call “far Left crazies” are actually very well organized and calculated and they operate on behalf of, with the support of, and to the benefit of more mainstream and moderate left-of-center political players.
My interest in this particular issue came up because I began to realize that they acted like bullies. They exhibited a tendency to go after people who were quite innocent of anything other than simply voicing their political concerns and addressing what seemed to be a criminal enterprise operating with mainstream Democratic Party funding and interests.
People I cared for like Mandy Nagy have been being harassed by this network for a long time. My only regret is that I didn’t start taking arrows for my friends on this sooner.

2. What is the most interesting aspect of the story to you?

The most interesting aspect is in watching the Right finally wake up and realize that ignoring “the crazies” isn’t actually ignoring crazy fringes, per se. It’s actually ignoring well funded and organized shock troops whose goal is to destroy anyone who challenges their masters.

3. How does Neal Rauhauser fit into the story?

Rauhuaser seems to be employed or brought in by Kimberlin as an operative. He also seems to be brought in by another similiar network in Florida that created the faux public outrage against Rush Limbaugh in the Stop Rush campaign.

4. A lot of people are focused on the SWATting aspect of this story: First, Mike Stack, then Patterico, then Erick Erickson, and now Aaron Walker. How much do we definitely know about who is behind these dangerous hoaxes and why they’re happening?

It seems to me that the issue is simply this: There exists a group or loosely affiliated entity that receives funding through a front group nonprofit from mainstream left-of-center interests. That group defends the mainstream interests by engaging in campaigns of deception and destruction. They utilize blackhat Anonymous hackers, fake personas, lawfare, and engage in deep intel operations and attention shifting against their funders foes. Some in the Right blogosphere began to catch on, and consequently they were SWATed. Others began to catch on, and they were SWATed. Then the story received more attention than the dirty tricks entity wanted to receive.

5. Recently, some people have actually tried to claim that you were responsible for SWATtings. What is that all about? Why you?

Let’s be clear: By some, you mean the Kimberlin/Rauhauser network and another network who is directly tied to them from Florida, the Matt Edelstein/Matt Osborne network.
The issue seems clear to me. Some parts of this network never intended to receive this much attention. Now they are realizing they are likely going to face justice and get caught. It seems they are now engaging in a preemptive defense strategy where they are making public allegations focusing on someone connected to the FBI, so that when they get busted they can claim that they were close to “uncovering the truth” and their charges are nothing more than political retribution from the FBI or an effort from the FBI to silence them for “getting too close” to the truth. Like it or not, that’s something the New York Times and their ideological Middle Eastern counterpart, Al Jazeera, would eat up. They might even nullify a jury with such a scheme, because it only takes one for them to get off.

6. You’ve worked with the FBI before. I know that some people are frustrated at the slow pace of the investigation. Members of Congress have asked the Attorney General to make the SWATting investigation a priority. Is the FBI incompetent? Do they not care if people get SWATted? Or is SWATting a difficult crime to solve?

Let’s make a distinction between the devoted men and women who bust their ass in the FBI and the organization’s politically appointed leadership and their appointed executive managers. The FBI is the most competent investigative force in the world — when they focus. The issue is in getting them to focus. The men and women can’t focus without the approval of their leadership. It’s that simple. As a citizenry, we have to understand this and focus our attention and efforts on that leadership.
Though I can’t or won’t get into specifics, I can discuss the historical issues I’ve seen that seems to be similiar to what we are seeing in this case. It seems likely that their are indeed many Special Agents who care abut this SWATing threat and how it pertains to an effort to silence free speech. It also seems likely that the leadership of the FBI and DOJ as a whole isn’t assigning resources as the Special Agents are likely requesting.
The centralization of resources and decision making has been centralized in an unprecedented manner since Eric Holder took over the Justice Department. The focus on what appears to be a point-based system of promotion within the FBI also seems to be at fault here. This simply results in executive management focusing on quick and simple cases that result in quickly resolved prosecutions. It’s the same reason we didn’t see civil rights charges against the “RNC Welcoming Committee,” the 2008 manifestation of the groups we now call Occupy that set out with the stated goal of “shutting the RNC down by any means necessary.” It would’ve been a politically charged prosecution, Holder didn’t want it. There are easier ways for his appointees to “earn points.”

7. People have told me that, for a long time, Andrew Breitbart didn’t seem to “get” the importance of the Kimberlin story, or understand why Rauhauser’s involvement was newsworthy. But I understand that, in the last week or so of his life, Breitbart became very interested in the story. Can you explain what happened there?

I think people forget to look at the issues Andrew was covering. It’s easy to say someone should’ve done this or should’ve done that. But we have to consider that there’s only so much time in the day. He was focused on other aspects and cases of this common manifestation I spoke of earlier. He was focused on other instances of the mainstream Left using shock troops. . . .
He did realize that he was a target of what I call the Kimberlin/Rauhauser network. I think he didn’t realize until that point that they were so organized and calculated.

8. Back in February, Neal Rauhauser published a paper that claimed there was this vast conspiracy involving a lot of people: Breitbart, Mike Stack, Mandy Nagy, “Zapem,” James O’Keefe and even the security firm HBGary. Do you think Rauhauser actually believes that stuff? Was there ever any kind of conspiracy like that?

There was and is no conspiracy like that. The simple facts are these: People have a right to look at and report on networks of criminals. People have an obligation to report criminals to law enforcement when there are victims involved. The fact that the mainstream Left chooses to employ convicted bombers and other criminals is their own choice.

9. Why haven’t the major media gotten involved in covering this story? I mean, Walker’s SWATting happened in the Virginia suburbs of D.C., so that’s right in the Washington Post’s backyard and – nothing. Same thing with Patterico and the L.A. Times. Same thing with Mike Stack and the New York Times – I mean, Stack lives in New Jersey and he helped bring down Anthony Weiner, so he’s kind of local news for them. Is this about bias? Or is it just that the story is so complicated?

The story seems complicated until you put it into the historical perspective it exists within. Then it is quite simple. Left media doesn’t cover the story because many of them are involved with the networks of operatives we are discussing.

10. How would you summarize this story in a nutshell? What’s the one thing that people really need to understand about all this?

Just remember, the Right calls out, marginalizes, and rejects their “crazies.” The Right’s “crazies” are an anomaly. The Left embraces, defends, and supports their “crazies.” In fact, the Left’s crazies are vital and needed components to the dehumanization and deceptive methodology leftist thought depends upon. This is why the Left historically minimizes the crimes of their “crazies” and engages in a whore-defense against the victims of the Left’s crazies.

Update (Smitty): welcome, Instapundit readers!
 


Category: Andrew Breitbart, Brandon Darby, Terrorism, The Kimberlin Files
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