A huge kudos to Byrd and his office for that.

[Mass]

Defending other democrats against the attacks of the far right wing, not attacking them using the same smears, is what I expect of Democratic senators and congresspeople.

So, Senator Byrd, for that, I love you.

http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/news/opinion/16624914.htm

Sen. Byrd's office responds

ROBERT Maranto's op-ed about Sen. John Kerry is asinine, and the quotation he attributed to Sen. Robert Byrd is completely false. To think that Mr. Maranto is shaping the minds of young people gives one considerable pause.

Sen. Kerry has dedicated his life to public service. He served in the military. He saved the lives of fellow soldiers. And, for many years, he has represented the people of Massachusetts in the Senate, where his ideas and knowledge have helped to make this nation a better place for all Americans.

To create outright false quotations from current and former members of Congress for the sole purpose of denigrating a man who continues to serve his country honorably and forthrightly is irresponsible. Mr. Maranto's venom has no regard for the truth.

I would hope that the Daily News would have a higher regard for the veracity of information that it provides to its readers than to continue to publish this trash.

Tom Gavin, Communications Director

U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd's Office

http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/news/opinion/16624914.htm

:loveya::loveya::loveya::loveya:

[rosesaylavee]

1. That's the way its done.

Scorn is a big deterrent to bullies.

edit for spelling

[blm]

14. Finally - a Democrat who will DEFEND other Dems instead of piling on with the RW machine.

Whenever a Dem was under unfair attack, Kerry was usually among the first to defend them - nice to see someone reciprocating for a change.

Thankyou Sen. Byrd for acting like a Democrat.

[salin]

2. ?

at the bottom of the page:
Editor's note: The op-ed was a parody, meant to spoof of the senator's treatment by the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth in the 2004 presidential race.


What was the op-ed to which this was a response? Or was this response the parody? I am missing something.

[Mass]

3. The oped was supposedly a parody.

http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/news/opinion/16585467.htm

[rosesaylavee]

4. Creeps.

I wonder if Byrd's office responded to an op-ed that they thought was real... and instead of the paper informing his office, ran the letter with the editor's note.

[Mass]

5. The problem is that some parodies are as vicious as real op-ed and

that authors simply hope to get away with them calling them parodies.

This parody was actually an attack on Kerry's record, repeating all the RW smears.

Read the letter: they knew perfectly well it was a parody, but it was a parody aimed at attacking Kerry, and Byrd's office reacted correctly.

[rosesaylavee]

9. That's good to know then.

I was concerned that the OPed got a double whammy in - hitting Kerry and then Byrd.

[nuxvomica]

6. I read the Op-Ed and it's a fairly pointless piece of writing

It ends with a parody of swift-boating that does not attack the swift boaters but rather uses their techniques to say the Kerry has done nothing in the Senate. I don't think Robert Maranto understands what parody is all about and in this case the claim of parody is certainly no defense. Here's the link: http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/news/opinion/16585467.htm

[salin]

11. That wasn't parody - that was just nasty jabs both

at Kerry and at other Senators. Glad that Byrd's folks responded - even if the piece was clearly make-believe rather than serious quotes.

thanks for filling that blank in for me.

[Eurobabe]

15. As a Villanova alum, this guy is a disgrace to the university! I just blasted him...

personally at his Villanova email address, you can do the same if you'd like:

http://www.villanova.edu/artsci/psc/facstaff/?mail=[e-mail]

I'm going to dig up his performance on GradeMy Professor and we'll post what the students think of this douche bag. His Op-Ed was a poor piece of sophomoric humor. He should stick to lecturing undergraduates and put down the pen.

[karynnj]

18. It was not labelled satire or parody

Nor was there a note that the quotes were not real - which Byrd's letter blasts.

The op-ed (that I don't have a link to) read like a SBVT ad with both Democratic and Republican Senators trashing his 22 years in the Senate. Suffice it to say, it repeated every RW theme I know. His credentials as a history professor from Villanova give it some credence that it doesn't deserve.

[livvy]

7. Parody shmarody...that was a nasty op-ed.

Kudos to Byrd. If it walks like a duck...you know the rest. Byrd knew exactly what that op-ed's purpose was. Thank you, sir.

[Lasher]

8. That was a pretty vicious attack against Kerry

The article was just as factual as the Swift Boaters' 2004 attacks were. Calling it a parody doesn't make it a bit more ethical. Good for Byrd's office calling them on it.

[sarge43]

10. Lovely

That's how a gentleman says "Lying sack ..."

[SaveOurDemocracy]

12. Parody? Wolf in sheep's clothing...

We ALL know the wingnuts will read that 'parody' as fact. Just another bogus attack on John Kerry. I'm glad Byrd's office responded to the misinformation swiftly and strongly.

[blm]

13. The writer really believes his point, and he's a POLITICAL SCIENCE TEACHER.

He has no working knowledge of IranContra, BCCI, CIA drugrunnning, or that Kerry crafted the bill that tracks terror funding years BEFORE 9-11, but Bush wasn't enforcing it before 9-11.

He knew nothing about Kerry's reputation as SMALL BUSINESS" top lawmaker in DC.

This "Professor" writes like he received his degree from RLU. Rush Limbaugh University.

Are people REALIZING that there has been a SYSTEMATIC piling on against Kerry for FOUR straight years now?

Do some here really need to wonder why some of his supporters are constantly defending him against ALL the liars and betrayers of our country? There IS an establishment power in place to take down truthtellers in the anti-corruption, open government wing of the Democratic Party.

[Eurobabe]

16. Well this guy has a whole two reviews on RateMyProfessor

Evidently he's a fan of Milton Friedman, who influenced Reagan = Reaganomics.

Friedman supposedly influenced: Augusto Pinochet , Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, Donald Rumsfeld.

That's all I need to know. :puke:

[goclark]

17. CSPAN has his historic speaech of 02 against *'s War Plan

It was classic.

If anyone has the video it is well worth seeing.

Love Sen. Byrd

[Laurab]

19. RW doesn't understand "parody"

or satire, or for that matter, humor, as far as I can tell. If in fact that was a "parody" it was a poor excuse for one.

I can think of far better targets for this guy, who apparently has a lot of time to waste on writing nonsense.

I'm glad Senator Byrd responded - it WAS trash.

[wisteria]

20. We need a lot more of Dem leaders doing the right thing and defending other Dems from the RW lies.

I an going to e-mail Senator Bird and thank him for making this kind move.

[ProSense]

21. Excellent! There's a terrific

diary posted at Daily Kos.

[BlueIris]

22. Senator Byrd still rocks my socks.

Yeah, Senator Byrd.