TAPPED thinks the infamous "Voting for Bush is like running in the Special Olympics - Even if you win, you're still retarded" flyer may be a Republican dirty trick. They tell us that Josh Marshall thinks so too, so my confidence is sky high.
This looks like the very picture, with a slightly different caption - "Starting a war in Iraq is like running in the Special Olympics...". And it seems to have been posted in August.
And the phrase seems to be an old internet "joke".
Utterly inconclusive. Some anti-war type may have dreamed this up in August, and then some Rep used it for a dirty trick in October. Or, as noted in one of the stories, some Dem may have thought it was funny and dropped it off in the office (but why the coordinated response? Was it coordinated? And do we believe every word from the Dem volunteers?)
If the outrage is the mock-up of the Special Olympian, which is the direction taken by this press release, that can be blamed on some anti-war maroon somewhere, I suppose, but good luck spinning that. I am more appalled that some Rep would get involved with this, but we will see.
UPDATE: Michelle Malkin has a very different story from TAPPED and the AP in her UPDATEs. She talks to folks who claim the flyer circulated for two weeks, and she has a letter to an editor someone wrote after getting one. Hmm, was the letter published? Is the editor lying or confused when he says he heard complaints about this flyer for two weeks? Can he fax a copy of the article his paper wrote to someone? And when was the article written?
I wouldn't out anything past these assholes, but really, if they were going to do something like this, why do it in that particular state? It doesn't add up.
They'd much rather go with the false outrage over Kerry's comment about Mary Cheney. That'll take the heat off of Dubya's giant whoppers, for a while.
Posted by: Brian | October 15, 2004 at 04:40 PM
Correction: "put."
Posted by: Brian | October 15, 2004 at 04:46 PM
Yeah, a Republican dirty trick that took two or three weeks to break out. If it HAD been a dirty trick, don't you think it would have been "taken national" much quicker?
More importantly, has there been a SINGLE Democrat screw-up that hasn't been blamed on Republicans? They tried to blame Democrat-sponsored draft legislation on Republicans, AND claim that Rather's fake memos were a Karl Rove trick! Democrats have played that hand over and over and over in cases where it's so obviously false, I don't see how anyone could believe it in this case.
Posted by: Robert Crawford | October 15, 2004 at 05:17 PM
Oh -- and let's not forget that the Democrats tried to claim it was a "dirty trick" when Pakistan arrested a key al'Qaeda member after the Democrat convention! And the much-beloved myth of theirs that bin Laden will be arrested/killed sometime in the next two months after being secretly held for the last few years!
Sorry, but I simply cannot bring myself to believe ANY Democrat accusations of dirty tricks unless there's an adult with evidence to back them up. This one doesn't qualify.
Posted by: Robert Crawford | October 15, 2004 at 05:21 PM
Well gosh, that explains that. I guess we can throw that in with all the other Kerry campaign outrages that Democrats have blamed on the evil and omnipresent Karl Rove. How convenient to have a one size fits all explanation for stupidity. Democrats blame partisan Republican operatives for their admitted contact with an "unimpeachable" (chuckle) source for forged documents, Rather blames the same for questioning the documents at all. It's just a wonderful swirl of contempt for American voters.
Posted by: mikem | October 15, 2004 at 05:22 PM
You're right Rob-though you have to hand it to the Dems-getting Bush's New England campaign manager to resign today was pretty masterful.
Posted by: martin | October 15, 2004 at 05:52 PM
yet when a pamphlet purportedly supporting the SBVT was found in a GOP office, none of these guys were screaming dirty tricks, were they? Here's my post, with links.
Posted by: steve | October 15, 2004 at 06:36 PM
Hmm, the two photos are essentially the same as to background. The head shot of Bush has changed, however.
Posted by: TM | October 15, 2004 at 06:50 PM
I'm sorry, but I know the true original picture.
It had nothing to do with politics, it read:
"Arguing on the internet is like the Special Olympics,
Even if you win you are still retarted."
I wish I could find the picture, but it's been used for years even before 9/11. It's for computer nerds who try to stop a stupid argument online.
Posted by: Greg | October 15, 2004 at 07:01 PM
Oh, it's the one he linked too :(
http://carcino.gen.nz/images/image.php/463c5922/arguing.jpg&cb=20030927020448
There you go.
Posted by: Greg | October 15, 2004 at 07:02 PM
Probably because the Alachua Republicans actually made that flyer, though they attribute it to a "volunteer."
Here's a link
Posted by: Mantis | October 15, 2004 at 07:12 PM
The Democrats blaming the Republicans after every one of these self inflicted disasters has strong echos of the arabs saying it was the Jooooos after every one of their self inflicted disasters.
Posted by: Brett | October 15, 2004 at 07:47 PM
It was a Republican dirty trick that it was being distributed in a Democratic campaign HQ in Tennessee.
Right.
Brooklyn Bridge for sale, cheap!
Posted by: David R. Block | October 15, 2004 at 08:43 PM
sorry, I was responding to steve. Different flyer.
Posted by: Mantis | October 15, 2004 at 09:00 PM
Michelle Malkin has a post up on her site (http://michellemalkin.com/archives/000659.htm) that says it was a member of the Democratic Party state headquarters, but not Fitzhugh, that's responsible. Guess there are now some hard feelings between the local Dems and the "big guys" about stupid campaign tricks. Maybe it's true, maybe it isn't, but if Karl Rove were truly responsible for everything the Dems claim he is, he'd have to be ten men.
Posted by: Old Patriot | October 15, 2004 at 11:08 PM
I just wanted to confirm what Greg said above, about the original use of the picture.
Posted by: susan | October 16, 2004 at 01:18 AM
Voting for Kerry is like running next to a swimming pool with scissors. Even if you get away without severe injuries, you're still stupid.
Posted by: AST | October 16, 2004 at 01:35 AM
and this from Malkin (calling Joshua Michael Marshall)
Update IV: Democrats told the Associated Press that the infamous anti-Bush Special Olympics flyer was planted by a political opponent, implying it was a Republican.
James Mitchell, the man whom the Traditional Values Coalition (TVC) promised could finger Fitzhugh, is quoted by the AP saying Fitzhugh was not responsible. "I don't want it pinned on Fitzhugh," the AP quotes Mitchell. "I want it pinned on the one who done it. Fitzhugh is a nice man." The report also claims that Mitchell "said he has no idea where it came from."
But that's not what Mitchell told me this morning. I told him that another news report quoted him saying that he didn't know where the flyer came from; I asked him if that was accurate and if he could tell me where the flyers originated. "The Democratic headquarters here." Are you sure, I asked him. "Yes," he said unequivocally. You mean the Democratic headquarters office downtown that also serves as the Fitzhugh campaign office? "Yes," he repeated. When I asked if he thought the Fitzhugh campaign was responsible for the flyer, which had been circulating around town for two weeks according to the local newspaper editor, Mitchell told me "I think it was a fellow from the campaign." Whoever it was, he was, "mean and stupid" and "it makes me mad because this hurts special needs kids."
Posted by: peapies | October 16, 2004 at 02:39 AM
Hmmm.
I don't think anyone really believes it was done by a Republican. But if Karl Rove really were responsible then I think we would all be required to re-elect Bush.
Anyone smart enough to employ a guy who can do all that, that's genius that is.
Posted by: ed | October 16, 2004 at 12:37 PM
how dare you? that is so heartless to make funof those people. just remember...what goes around comes around...see ya in the real world
p.s. i agree with greg
Posted by: allie | April 30, 2006 at 09:40 PM
how dare you? that is so heartless to make funof those people. just remember...what goes around comes around...see ya in the real world
p.s. i agree with greg
Posted by: allie | April 30, 2006 at 09:40 PM
how dare you? that is so heartless to make funof those people. just remember...what goes around comes around...see ya in the real world
p.s. i agree with greg
Posted by: allie | April 30, 2006 at 09:40 PM
that picture is mean and hurtful. some people have disabilities in the world, and you're poking fun at them. im disgusted.
Posted by: Wasim | June 01, 2006 at 11:02 AM
Who cares whether it was done by a Republican or Democrat, don't any of you break free from your political labels long enough to understand what an idiotic image that is? Whoever put this out there, they need to keep in mind that they could be in a car wreck tomorrow and be in a mentally disabled state. Wow, wouldn't that be karma biting somebody's ass off?
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