Sauced Gander
Being a response to Chris Gerrib's Sauce for the Goose.
Chris starts out reasonably well by noting:
In the 1970s, Ayers was, let's be frank, a left-wing terrorist.
By his own admission, William Ayers is an un-repentant domestic terrorist who only regrets that he did not do more. More than setting off a bomb in the United States Capitol Building.
In 2001 Ayers released a book, Fugitive Days, in which he discussed participating in the bombings of New York City Police Headquarters in 1970, the Capitol building in 1971, and the Pentagon in 1972. Because of a water leak caused by the Pentagon bombing, aerial bombardments had to be halted for several days. Ayers writes:
Although the bomb that rocked the Pentagon was itsy-bitsy - weighing close to two pounds - it caused 'tens of thousands of dollars' of damage. The operation cost under $500, and no one was killed or even hurt. In that same time, the Pentagon spent tens of millions of dollars and dropped tens of thousands of pounds of explosives on Viet Nam, killing or wounding thousands of human beings, causing hundreds of millions of dollars of damage.[11]
Furthermore, the records emerging from the Chicago Annenberg Challenge indicate that Obama and Ayers worked closely and regularly together from 1995 through 1999, and subsequently together on the board of the Woods Fund of Chicago through at least 2001. For those keeping track, that's six years of close working association.
G. Gordon Liddy (George Gordon Battle Liddy) was convicted of conspiracy, burglary and illegal wiretapping. None of which are violent crimes, and none of which rise to the level of terrorism by any reasonable definition of the term. None of Liddy's co-conspirators managed to blow themselves (or anyone else) up or kill any policemen (or anyone else) in the course of their conspiracy, unlike Ayers.
The "parallel" drawn by the Chicago Tribune article that Chris links states the following:
How close are McCain and Liddy? At least as close as Obama and Ayers appear to be. In 1998, Liddy's home was the site of a McCain fundraiser. Over the years, he has made at least four contributions totaling $5,000 to the senator's campaigns -- including $1,000 this year.
Last November, McCain went on his radio show. Liddy greeted him as "an old friend," and McCain sounded like one. "I'm proud of you, I'm proud of your family," he gushed. "It's always a pleasure for me to come on your program, Gordon, and congratulations on your continued success and adherence to the principles and philosophies that keep our nation great."
No, that's not as close. That's not six years of working together on a regular basis on the boards of two related charitable foundations.
Yes, it's more money. But Liddy was not McCain's entry point into politics, whereas Ayers hosted Obama's first campaign event in his first run for office.
No, Liddy was not and is not a terrorist.
The inability of Chris to see this distinctions is troubling...
Chris starts out reasonably well by noting:
In the 1970s, Ayers was, let's be frank, a left-wing terrorist.
By his own admission, William Ayers is an un-repentant domestic terrorist who only regrets that he did not do more. More than setting off a bomb in the United States Capitol Building.
In 2001 Ayers released a book, Fugitive Days, in which he discussed participating in the bombings of New York City Police Headquarters in 1970, the Capitol building in 1971, and the Pentagon in 1972. Because of a water leak caused by the Pentagon bombing, aerial bombardments had to be halted for several days. Ayers writes:
Although the bomb that rocked the Pentagon was itsy-bitsy - weighing close to two pounds - it caused 'tens of thousands of dollars' of damage. The operation cost under $500, and no one was killed or even hurt. In that same time, the Pentagon spent tens of millions of dollars and dropped tens of thousands of pounds of explosives on Viet Nam, killing or wounding thousands of human beings, causing hundreds of millions of dollars of damage.[11]
Furthermore, the records emerging from the Chicago Annenberg Challenge indicate that Obama and Ayers worked closely and regularly together from 1995 through 1999, and subsequently together on the board of the Woods Fund of Chicago through at least 2001. For those keeping track, that's six years of close working association.
G. Gordon Liddy (George Gordon Battle Liddy) was convicted of conspiracy, burglary and illegal wiretapping. None of which are violent crimes, and none of which rise to the level of terrorism by any reasonable definition of the term. None of Liddy's co-conspirators managed to blow themselves (or anyone else) up or kill any policemen (or anyone else) in the course of their conspiracy, unlike Ayers.
The "parallel" drawn by the Chicago Tribune article that Chris links states the following:
How close are McCain and Liddy? At least as close as Obama and Ayers appear to be. In 1998, Liddy's home was the site of a McCain fundraiser. Over the years, he has made at least four contributions totaling $5,000 to the senator's campaigns -- including $1,000 this year.
Last November, McCain went on his radio show. Liddy greeted him as "an old friend," and McCain sounded like one. "I'm proud of you, I'm proud of your family," he gushed. "It's always a pleasure for me to come on your program, Gordon, and congratulations on your continued success and adherence to the principles and philosophies that keep our nation great."
No, that's not as close. That's not six years of working together on a regular basis on the boards of two related charitable foundations.
Yes, it's more money. But Liddy was not McCain's entry point into politics, whereas Ayers hosted Obama's first campaign event in his first run for office.
No, Liddy was not and is not a terrorist.
The inability of Chris to see this distinctions is troubling...