Steve Gilliard, 1966-2007

This is really sad.

Steve Gilliard, 1966-2007

It is with tremendous sadness that we must convey the news that Steve Gilliard, editor and publisher of The News Blog (www.thenewsblog.net), passed away early this morning. He was 41.

To those who have come to trust The News Blog and its insightful, brash and unapologetic editorial tone, we have Steve to thank from the bottom of our hearts. Steve helped lead many discussions that mattered to all of us, and he tackled subjects and interest categories where others feared to tread.

Steve was a great writer/blogger who I had the pleasure of chatting with throughout the Lieberman/Lamont race last year. He was an admirer of my work (as well as all the blogs in Connecticut) and named me one of his favorite local/state bloggers of 2006.

Juan Melli and CT Blogger-They do the dirty work of local and state poliitcs, which will never lead to glory or riches, but is needed because if you think federal government has problems.....these guys are heroes to me.

I'm really going to miss chatting with him about the Connecticut politics...I learned a great deal from his writings and the progressive blogosphere lost a great mind. My thought and prayers goes out to his family at this time of grief.

T.V. talk show host uses racial slur against CTBlogger, calls on people to kill undocumented immigrants

(In an effort to expose the anti-immigrant bigotry in Danbury, here's my latest cross-post from HatCityBLOG regarding a local T.V. talk show host (and the Vice-President of a local anti-immigrant group) who openly calls on people to shoot members of the immigrant community)

It seems like Tom Bennett has been busy on YouTube and on his show throwing insults and racial slurs at yours truly.

Since the start of HatCityBLOG's campaign to request Comcast to terminate Bennett's contract and show, letters of complaints have been flowing into the inboxes of Local Access Coordinators Dave King and Candiann Roswell. Unfortunately, the local bigot/wedding D.J. doesn't seem to get the message and has gone as far as bragged about using profane language on his show.

I think it's safe to say that this bigot is digging a hole for himself.

Here's a sample of comments Bennett made on YouTube in response to my video footage of him using a sexual explicit remark with a 15 year old female minor. Take special not of the comments from Big(o)T is bold (WARNING: Explicit language used).

bigtprd

As anyone can see and hear, it was a setup by ctblogger. Also I did not call her she called the show telling the screener she was over eighteen. No rules have been broken, all within guidelines and approved. There is a nob called on off they put them on TVs. Ctblogger thank you for our ratings have gone up 30%.

[...]



ctblogger
1. Your so-called "screener" never ask for anyone age.

2. I don't have to "set" you up. You have no problem putting your foot in your mouth without my help.

3. She called the show yet it was YOU who used the term "eating" which is inappropriate at any age.

4. There is a contract which Comcast requires you to sign and you choose to ignore.

5. Comcast does not keep ratings.

6. Your disgusting.

[...]



TheGeckoNinja

isnt the appropriate term "having oral sex"? instead of "eating out"?

[...]

bigtprd

Yeah, Oral sex is kewl, But I do so like using eating out, It has more effect, like it is discusting, filthy, shameful, rotten, I could go on.

[...]

bigtprd

You really believe I'm racist? well I'm not. Just because an asshole say's it does not mean it's true. Nogger has the skin? problem. You just don't want it that way. Because he is black he wants to be Al sharpton. And Knowing that should wake you up.

[...]

bigtprd

And nig you don't get it. I don't give a shit ass hole. Your a fucking scumbag that will get his turn. Gee, and I'm being kewl, Not even upset. And your a peice of shit. Now you must think were friends calling me Tom. You slime, you don't know me. Oh, by the way Comcast has many more letters of love the big T then your hate shit. Call Dave he'll tell you, LOL. And your day's also.

[...]

ctblogger

No Tom, the only asshole is you and your use of profane, indecent language on Comcast WILL come to an end. The public in Danbury have spoken in force to Comcast and your days on public access will come to an end due to your own fat mouth.

[...]

bigtprd

You gonna stop me here to nogger, or is that niglor,

[...]

bigtprd

Get it straight moron! We are from from being buddy or buddy's. scare you! why are you in the dark? Hey they can see you. oh, when you smile.

[...]

bigtprd

I can only hope that it will happen. I win no matter what. I'm none of what yopu claim you moron. If any of you out here do not use any type of profanty do as you will. The ones that use any type of profanity think before you condem Me. I use profanity in a tasteful way to make a point. Watch on google and then make your own decision. Don't be a follower of evil which ctblogger is.

[...]

ctblogger

"I use profanity in a tasteful way to make a point."

Thanks for admitting the obvious...that you use profanity against the rules and regulations of Comcast.

You should stop with the messages while you're ahead..you're digging a hole for yourself.

[...]

bigtprd

I have nothing to loose. I can go on for the rest of my life. What do you have? I have done that frigan show and if it is over then so be it. I will go on! And sooner or latter we meet some were, oh well! I get I what I want. And you will get what ever.

[...]

ctblogger

And sooner or latter we meet some were, oh well!

Is that suppose to "scare" me or something..too funny.

Keep digging that hole buddy...

[...]

bigtprd

You are for Homo's and illegal Immigrants and that is the only reason you are attacking me with lies. Your black and you think that is going to get you somewhere by using your racist bull crap. Let me tell you spook man, it won't. Again I say, I have had 28 wonderful years on our talkshow. If it comes to a stop, oh well, I'll be a happy camper. But, you'll still be black with a attitude towards whites.

[...]

ctblogger

"Let me tell you spook man"

-nuff said.

While defending his use of profanity on Comcast, while dishing out the laundry list of racial slurs and threats, Bennett jumps on his television show and continues his foul-mouthed racial rant (I thought the racial slur "spook" went out of fashion in the 60s).

During this same episode, Bennett and his co-hosts (including Elise Marciano's anti-immigration group Vice President John McGowan) ONCE AGAIN go over the top and repeatedly incite people to kill members of the immigrant community.



So, lets review.

* Bennett admits and defends his use of profanity.

* Bennett issues a list of racial slurs directed at me on his show thus violating Comcast rules and regulation Section E-4:

No obscene material, sexually explicit conduct, or material soliciting or promoting unlawful conduct.

* Bennett and his co-hosts repeatedly talk about "shooting" members of the immigrant community thus violating Comcast rules and regulation Section E-5:

5. No material which incites violent or harmful acts on other persons.

Remember, Comcast public access is the PUBLIC's channel. Since Tom Bennett has repeated violated the rules and guidelines of Comcast, the only remedy for this situation is to immediately terminate the contracts of Producer Carol and Tom Bennett, cancel the BigT Talk & Variety show, and ban all individuals associated with the show from the studio.

Let Comcast know that the public has had enough of BigT's nonsense and DEMAND HIS IMMEDIATE REMOVAL.

Dave King: Head Coordinator, Comcast Public Access

Phone: 203-792-1265

Email: Dave_King@cable.comcast.com

Candiann Roswell, Public Access Coordinator

Phone: 203-792-1265

Email: Candiann_Roswell2@cable.comcast.com

When emailing Comcast, please cc: HatCityBLOG (hatcityblog@yahoo.com) so we can place your message on the site (privacy will be honored).

Republican Minority leader DeLuca affidavit exposes ties with trashman James Galante

Seems like Minority Leader Louis DeLuca had a VERY close relationship with the trash king James Galante (you know, the guy who has ties to to a Genovese crime family member). Seems like DeLuca meet with Galante and asked him for a "favor" regarding a problem he had with someone and is now the minority leader is in a bit a trouble.

Actually, he's in a LOT of trouble.

UPDATE: Here's a better report on the story which includes how the Republican leaders are attempting to circle the wagons.

Senate Minority Leader Louis DeLuca was arrested Friday on charges that he asked a businessman at the center of a federal racketeering probe to rough up someone the senator believed had abused a relative.

State and federal authorities said DeLuca in 2005 sought help from James Galante, a Danbury trash hauler who first caught DeLuca's eye by making a large charitable contribution. Galante is currently awaiting trial on 72 counts of tax fraud, racketeering, threatening and extortion.

[...]

"When you approach someone who is alleged to be a member of organized crime or affiliated with organized crime and you ask for this help, and you slip a note to them in a diner as opposed to even having a conversation, I think it's fair to draw an inference that you don't exactly have the best of intentions," U.S. Attorney Kevin O'Connor said Friday.

[...]

DeLuca is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Waterbury Superior Court.

"I tried to protect a family member who was vulnerable, who was in a physically abusive domestic relationship and who needed help," DeLuca said in a written statement. "My family and I went to the police three times to get help for my relative, but the police said that they couldn't help because the victim wouldn't file a complaint."

DeLuca said he was frustrated by the situation and discussed it with Galante. Authorities said the conversation occurred in April 2005 in a Woodbury diner, where Galante passed DeLuca a note that asked, "Do you want me to have someone pay him a visit?"

Authorities said DeLuca told Galante he wanted the offender roughed up and gave Galante the name and address of the alleged abuser.

The assault never happened. Prosecutors, who recovered the note in a search of Galante's home, said they stopped the beating by parking a police car in front of the associate's house.

Insane...it's like the Sopranos in Connecticut.

Here's a press release from the State of CT's Division of Criminal Justice.

Chief State’s Attorney Kevin T. Kane and Kevin J. O’Connor, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced today the arrest of LOUIS DeLUCA of Woodbury on one count for Conspiracy to Commit Threatening in the Second Degree.

Mr. DeLuca, who is the State Senator from the 32nd District and the Minority Leader of the Connecticut State Senate, is accused of conspiring with a Danbury-area businessman to arrange a threat against an individual whom Mr. DeLuca believed had abused one of his relatives.

The arrest is the result of information discovered in the course of a federal investigation of the businessman, who operates several trash hauling companies in western Connecticut and is under a 117-count federal indictment. The case against Mr. DeLuca will be jointly prosecuted in Waterbury Superior Court by the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney and the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Mr. DeLuca met with the businessman in April 2005 and described a problem that Mr. DeLuca was having with an individual whom he believed had abused one of his relatives. At that meeting, the businessman passed Mr. DeLuca a note containing the written question, "Do you want me to have someone pay him a visit?" Mr. DeLuca said "yes" and provided the businessman with the name and address of the intended target. The plan was subsequently called off, however, when authorities learned of it and made their presence known to the businessman's associate who was to have carried out the plan, the warrant alleges.

Mr. DeLuca was arrested today by Inspectors from the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney. He was released on a Written Promise to Appear in Waterbury Superior Court, G.A. No. 4, on Monday, June 4, 2007.

Conspiracy to Commit Threatening in the Second Degree is a class A misdemeanor punishable by a term of incarceration not to exceed one year and a fine not to exceed $2,000. The charge is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The best source of information regarding this story is from the great Christine Stuart of CTNewsJunkie.

The arrest warrant affidavit that lead to Senator Louis DeLuca’s arrest Friday claims DeLuca had a “close and confidential relationship with” Danbury trash hauler James Galante, who has ties to a Genovese crime family member.

The relationship “would explain why DeLuca would seek out Businessman A’s assistance and why Businessman A would be willing to help DeLuca,” the affidavit states. Galante is referred to as Businessman A in the affidavit.

In Sept. 2006 an undercover federal agent, posing as a business associate of Galante, met with DeLuca. At that meeting DeLuca told the agent, “anytime [Businessman A] needs anything, anything, within my power, that I can do, I will do.” DeLuca then told the agent he was shocked when Galante was indicted because he “is not a careless guy.” Then DeLuca advised the agent that if they needed his assistance the best way to contact him is through a specific individual because “nobody knows [about] that relationship.”

Two days later DeLuca met with the undercover agent again. The agent asked DeLuca to influence legislation to help Galante. DeLuca said, “I can’t influence it at this point because it’s out of my hands, but if it gets to the point where I have appointments, I can influence it that way. You know, if somebody, if it’s a commission that needs to be in that, that, is gonna be a watchdog on CRRA and make recommendations then I’ll make an appoint...generally I get an appointment.”

During this conversation the affidavit says DeLuca refused $5,000 in cash from the agent, saying he was “afraid them guys...tracing things and shit like that.” He later told the agent to tell Galante to “hang in there and I’ll keep my eyes and ears open.”

On Sept. 21, 2006 DeLuca had a meeting with FBI agents and “admitted that his true purpose of his meeting with Businessman A had nothing to do with securing employment for the target, but rather was to see if Businessman A could pay a visit to the target identified by DeLuca in order to scare him,” the affidavit states.

It was also learned during the course of the investigation that Galante made a large donation in 2001 to a charitable cause sponsored by DeLuca. “Thereafter, DeLuca used his influence to cause Businessman A to be named ‘Italian-American Man of the Year’ by the Connecticut Italian-American legislative caucus. These facts were later confirmed by DeLuca,” according to the affidavit.

Stuart has the affidavit and will make it available online later tonight.

UPDATE: Here's a copy of the arrest affidavit (pdf format). Hat tip again to CTNewsJunkie for scanning the document.

Gov Rell vetoed tax package

That was quick.

Senator Dodd new TV ad hits the airwaves

Outlining his stance on global warming, Senator Dodd released his latest ad, entitled "Global," in Iowa and New Hampshire.

Via Senator Dodd's press release:

Senator and Presidential candidate Chris Dodd's campaign today released a new television advertisement slated to run in Iowa and New Hampshire. The ad highlights Senator Dodd's understanding of the magnitude of what is at stake because of global warming and his bold energy plan to address the crisis.

"With global warming affecting the health of our planet as well as our national security, we can't afford half-measures," said Dodd Campaign Manager Sheryl Cohen. "Chris Dodd is the candidate that recognizes the urgency of the situation and is offering honest and bold solutions that turn our challenges into opportunities."

Dodd is the only candidate to call for a Corporate Carbon Tax, the proceeds from which -- estimated at approximately $50 billion annually -- would fund research into alternative energy sources in order to make America energy independent while taking the lead around the globe on solving the growing crisis of global climate change, all while creating new jobs for Americans.

Dodd's energy plan has won accolades from environmental leaders, including former Vice President Al Gore, who called the Dodd plan "very creative," and Senator John Kerry, who said it is "a serious policy to address a serious problem ... Americans are better off because of Chris' leadership." "Chris Dodd gets it," said former Senator Bill Bradley. Dodd's Corporate Carbon Tax, wrote the Los Angeles Times' Ron Brownstein, "sets Dodd apart from the field."

Another Lieberman photo-op

Makes me sick to my stomach...

"When Are We Going To Get Out Of Here?"

Don't ignore the question Mr. Potato Head Senator Lieberman...

Spc. David Williams, 22, of Boston, Mass., had two note cards in his pocket Wednesday afternoon as he waited for Sen. Joseph Lieberman. Williams serves in the 82nd Airborne Division from Fort Bragg, N.C., the first of the five "surge" brigades to arrive in Iraq, and he was chosen to join the Independent from Connecticut for lunch at a U.S. field base in Baghdad.

The night before, 30 other soldiers crowded around him with questions for the senator.

He wrote them all down. At the top of his note card was the question he got from nearly every one of his fellow soldiers:

"When are we going to get out of here?"

[...]

Next to him, Spc. Will Hedin, 21, of Chester, Conn., thought about what he was going to say.

"We're not making any progress," Hedin said, as he recalled a comrade who was shot by a sniper last week. "It just seems like we drive around and wait to get shot at."

[...]

Then Lieberman walked in, wearing a pair of sunglasses newly purchased from an Iraqi market that the military had taken him to in southeast Baghdad. He'd been equipped with a helmet and flak vest when he toured the market, which he described as bustling.

Earlier, Lieberman had met briefly with Iraqi soldiers and Iraqi police at a Joint Security Station; there are 31 throughout the city now. The senator, who's steadfastly supported the Iraq war along with the current surge of more than 28,000 additional American troops, said things were better.

"I think it's important we don't lose our will," he said. "To pull out would be a disaster."

The soldiers smiled and greeted him, stood with him for pictures and sat down to a lunch of roast beef and turkey sandwiches. It was unclear if they ever asked their questions.

As Lieberman walked out, he said that congressionally mandated withdrawal would be a "victory for al-Qaida and a victory for Iran."

"They're not Pollyannaish about this," he said referring to the young soldiers he ate lunch with. "They know it's not going to be solved in a day or a month."

It isn't clear whether Williams mentioned the last line on his note card, the one that had a star next to it.

"We don't feel like we're making any progress," it said.

This man is SO out of touch with reality.

Al Gore on the war (and other things)

Keith Olbermann asked Al Gore for his opinion on the latest developments in Iraq and the disconnect between the America public and the bloodshed that seems to have no end in sight.

...oh course, Keith also questioned him about running in '08.

Opposing sides of same-sex marriage case debate on BTH

As we wait on a decision on the same-sex marriage State Supreme Court case (Kerrigan and Mock et. al. v. Connecticut Department of Public Health), here's footage of Deacon David W. Reynolds, Legislative Liaison for the Connecticut Catholic Conference and Beth Kerrigan, one of the plaintiffs named in the case, talking about the topic on a recent edition of WTIC's Beyond the Headlines.

Memorial Day with Lenny Kravitz

Here's a little BBQ music for you holiday pleasure.

CTBlog will be back to full speed tomorrow!

Something to think about

As we approach anohter Memorial Day, here is some reading material that everyone should read.

CTBob asks the correct question.

The drunk from New Milford documents the complete failure of the Democratic Party to do what we put them in office to do...STOP THE WAR.

Scarce puts a face on the names.

How many more people need to suffer for this war?