No Conservative Plagiarizers?
Topic: The ConWeb
A Dec. 1 column by Rachel Alexander at GOPUSA, headlined "Why only liberals plagiarize," states the following:

Ever wonder why it’s always liberal writers that get caught plagiarizing? The reason is not what you might expect. It is because most information is written with a liberal bias, so liberal writers doing research are not forced to rewrite it. Conservatives surfing through news articles could not copy and paste parts of most articles they find into their writing without sounding ridiculous.

Rachel, meet Joseph Farah. And Jeff Gannon (former employee of GOPUSA's ex-sister site, Talon News).

Making A List
Topic: The ConWeb
So we made some blogger's list of "liberal loser" websites. We're unclear as to why, since we're not very good liberals -- ConWebWatch does no liberal advocacy. And we don't criticize conservative news for being conservative, we criticize it for being bad journalism. We even asked why in the comments on this post, but have not received an answer.

Oh, well...

CFIF: We Love Torture!
Topic: The ConWeb
The Center for Individual Freedom, whom we've most recently noted as making bogus claims about judicial picks, recently sent out a email via NewsMax's mailing list encouraging folks to pay CFIF $20 (preferably more) to send out blast faxes opposing the anti-torture bill. (Here's the link to the CFIF site on this.) How does CFIF back the idea of torture? Mostly by not calling it that:

You may be alive today because some interrogator wasn’t too fastidious about how he got his information from some proud, smirking jihadist.

[...]

No cruel or inhuman treatment... that sounds reasonable... or does it?

But the phrase “degrading treatment” – which could have been invented by Amnesty International -- is so vague and full of holes you could drive a Hummer through it.

Solitary confinement, harsh language, ridicule, mild threats, good-cop-bad-cop -- the Senate wants to outlaw all of these standard questioning techniques and restrict interrogators to the etiquette of a ladies’ lawn party.

These terrorists are butchering women and children all over the globe -- as well as launching sneak attacks on our troops – and we’re supposed to walk on egg shells when we try to find out which Americans they intend to kill next?

Exactly what are our troops suppose to do when questioning these terrorist thugs in an attempt to save American lives?

"Pretty please Mr. terrorist... I beg you...could you please tell us the details of your NEXT attack on innocent Americans?"

That's about the size of it folks. After all, we will now have to be extra careful not to do ANYTHING THAT WOULD DEGRADE OR INSULT THESE KILLERS!

[...]

Let’s Clear Up A Few Things Right Now

We don’t torture prisoners. We don’t blindfold them, threaten them with execution, and televise their pathetic pleas for life.

We don’t condone cruel and unusual punishments. We don’t lop off prisoners’ heads in front of TV cameras or on the world wide web.

With few exceptions, we treat prisoners as humanely as any enemy has ever treated its enemies. Ask the handful of U.S. troops who survived captivity how the terrorists treated them.

Abu-Gharib was the exception -- not the rule -- and mere child's play in comparison to how these terrorists, murderers and thugs treat our people -- or even their own people for that matter.

The only atrocities going on at Guantanamo Bay are the atrocities that these murderers and thugs who are being detained are heaping upon the fine U.S. soldiers assigned to guard them.

We give these terrorists their own Korans, prayer rugs, clean living conditions, indoor plumbing and three square meals a day... many of them NEVER had it so good.

Never underestimate the power to rationalize.

Proof?
Topic: The ConWeb
Both WorldNetDaily and NewsMax are flogging MSNBC's Chris Matthews' complaint that a Democratic fact sheet about Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito is somehow racially inflammatory because it notes that as a prosecutor, Alito failed to obtain convictions against Italian mob figures. Alito is of Italian descent.

One thing you won't find in those stories: actual evidence of this alleged racism, i.e., what the fact sheet actually says. That's because it doesn't support Matthews' accusation.

Tim Chapman of Townhall has posted the talking points at issue. The word "Italian" doesn't even appear. If there's an ethnic slur here, we couldn't find it.

Don't expect WND or NewsMax to set the record straight; telling the truth about non-conservatives isn't one of their strong points.

Sending a Message
Topic: The ConWeb
An Oct. 24 WorldNetDaily article makes a big deal out of a "homosexual debauchery party" being canceled because of Hurricane Wilma and how some have attributed this year's destructive hurricanes on "the hand of God punishing the U.S. for its national breaking of biblical laws."

But FrontPageMag.com reports the following:

Due to Hurricane Wilma, the Restoration Weekend for Oct 27-30, 2005 has been cancelled. There is no power in the area, and the Breakers Hotel is closed. We will try to reschedule the event within the next two months. We are very sorry, but these circumstances are beyond our control. -- David Horowitz and Mike Finch

Restoration Weekend is Horowitz's annual conservative gathering.

How do we know that God wasn't sending a message to David Horowitz instead of to gays?

Gay-Bashing Week
Topic: The ConWeb
It's apparently gay-bashing week on the ConWeb, where it's forbidden to say anything nice about homosexuals:

-- An Oct. 19 CNSNews.com article accused conservative leader Grover Norquist of "an act of utter betrayal" and being "traitorous." Was it because of his close ties to Muslims? Nope; he was the featured speaker at a fund-raiser for the Dallas chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans.

-- WorldNetDaily pushes the depiction-equals-endorsement logical fallacy in an Oct. 18 article claiming that Time magazine's recent cover story on gay teens "is being denounced by critics as blatant homosexual propaganda."

This was accompanied by the chapter from David Kupelian's (yes the Matrix guy) "The Marketing of Evil" that purports to describe "how 'gay rights' is being sold to America." Some highlights:

-- "Deep down, people of conscience know homosexuality is neither an innocent, inborn 'minority' characteristic like skin color, nor a conscious choice to become evil and to corrupt others."

-- "Today, thanks to America's politically correct 'gay-friendly' culture, millions of human beings in the grip of this same unnatural sexual compulsion find it much easier to accept – even to wear as a badge of honor."

-- "So merely by using the term gay rights, and persuading politicians and the media to adopt this terminology, activists seeking to transform America have framed the terms of the debate in their favor almost before the contest begins."

-- "Okay, you might be wondering, even granting the movement's cutting-edge marketing savvy, how do you sell middle America on those five hundred sex partners and weird sexual practices?"

-- "You might wonder: Where and when will this 'gay rights' public relations steamroller stop? The end game is not only to bring about the complete acceptance of homosexuality, including same-sex marriage, but also to prohibit and even criminalize public criticism of homosexuality, including the quotation of biblical passages disapproving of homosexuality."

-- "Their campaign will not end until Christians and other traditionalists opposing homosexuality are shut up, discredited, and utterly silenced – and all because of a little factor we've forgotten about in our cleverness, namely this: In truth, there is something wrong with homosexuality. Simply put, it is unnatural and self-destructive – just as Western civilization has long understood it."

-- "To the homosexual living in denial, then, even a loving offer of help from, say, a Christian ex-gay ministry or 'reparative therapy' counselor (to help overcome homosexual addiction) feels like the most vile, abusive hatred. In fact, it's real love – which we misinterpret as hatred and "bigotry" simply because it causes us to confront a truth that is not welcome in us."

-- "In the end, we have to ask ourselves which is worse – the previous era in America, when homosexuals were reviled and driven underground? Or today's America, when the pendulum has swung so far in the other direction that those in the grip of powerful self-destructive compulsions are fawned over and lionized as heroes?"

Kupelian clearly favors the former.

Quote of the Day
Topic: The ConWeb
Apparently, if you hurt Tom DeLay, you hurt foster children:

Just as Senator Jesse Helms had been portrayed negatively in the media so has DeLay. Recently a new home for foster children was dedicated in Houston. DeLay saw that it was built. Most people are unaware of what DeLay has done to get foster children out of often abusive situations. That doesn't fit with the image of "The Hammer."

-- Free Congress Foundation's Paul Weyrich, in an Oct. 13 commentary on Accuracy in Media, NewsMax and CNSNews.com.

By the way, Weyrich dubiously claims in this column that "The Hammer ... is what the national media has called DeLay because DeLay is the first Republican Leader in modern times to attempt to enforce party discipline." This implies that DeLay doesn't embrace the nickname; in fact, he does.

New Article: Supreme Confusion
Topic: The ConWeb
Accuracy in Media attacks WorldNetDaily! The Media Research Center bashes NBC for not reporting criticism of President Bush! NewsMax accuses Robert Bork of borking! The Harriet Miers nomination is turning the ConWeb topsy-turvy. Read more.

New Article: A Tale of Two Prosecutors
Topic: The ConWeb
The ConWeb eagerly advanced charges of partisanship against Tom DeLay's prosecutor, Ronnie Earle -- but it did the exact opposite when the prosecutor was Ken Starr and the target was Bill Clinton. Read more.

Arrogant Massie
Topic: The ConWeb
Project 21 issued a press release quoting Mychal Massie denouncing Rep. Charles Rangel for saying "George Bush is our Bull Connor" -- even though Massie himself has used the exact same slur against Sen. Harry Reid.

Talk about chutzpah. And arrogance.

You Knew This Already
Topic: The ConWeb
Initial ConWeb coverage of the indictment of Rep. Tom DeLay is going predictably. Reports by WorldNetDaily and CNSNews.com played up accusations by DeLay and his spokesman, Kevin Madden, that the Texas prosecutor who filed the charges, Ronnie Earle, is a partisan seeking political retribution against DeLay without noting that Earle has prosecuted more Democratic officials than Republicans. (WND earns extra points for using the term "Democrat Party" even though there is no such thing.)

NewsMax put the following headline on an Associated Press article: "DeLay Calls Prosecutor a 'Partisan Fanatic'."

UPDATE: NewsBuster's Greg Sheffield also makes a big deal of Earle being a Democrat without noting that Earle has prosecuted more Democrats than Republicans.

New Article: Responsibility Apologists
Topic: The ConWeb
The ConWeb makes it abundantly clear what President Bush was -- and wasn't -- taking responsibility for regarding Hurricane Katrina. Plus: NewsBusters gets busted trying to pass on a faulty report blaming Democrats for Michael Brown being FEMA director, and other Katrina distortions on the ConWeb. Read more.

New Article: Anyone But Bush
Topic: The ConWeb
The ConWeb gets the memo, starts looking for ways to deflect blame away from the Bush administration for the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Will likely be updated later today with the latest defenses of Bush. Read more.

The Blame
Topic: The ConWeb
Note to Frank Salvato, the Media Research Center and others upset that people are blaming President Bush for the poor response to Hurricane Katrina:

Conservatives were blaming President Clinton for 9/11 the day of the attacks, and we don't recall you complaining about that.

Discover the Name-Calling
Topic: The ConWeb
So, the giant pulsing brain that is David Horowitz's DiscoverTheNetworks.org has gotten around to posting its funhouse-mirror profile of my employer, Media Matters. Frankly, we're a bit disappointed, and for reasons other than the article's distortions and factual errors (which are no surprise).

Despite the fact that Richard Poe, managing editor of DTN's Moonbat Central blog, doesn't like me, I somehow escaped being singled out in DTN's Media Matters profile. Then again, I'm still waiting for a reponse from Poe to ConWebWatch's deconstruction of his 10-part WorldNetDaily series that involves something other than personal attacks on me.

Of course, if I had actually gotten any facts wrong in my article, Poe would have screaming it all over Moonbat Central by now.