Memories

Today is the one year anniversary of the passing of Andrew Breitbart.  

This morning I was thinking about when I last saw him.  Last year at CPAC you may remember the occupy movement promised to come and protest.  So they did.  I was outside with my video camera marching around with them.  Shortly thereafter Andrew Breitbart made his way out. He of course wanted to mix it up, but the police were a little worried about violence, so they made the CPAC attendees get closer to the hotel while the protestors were down in the street.  So I got the chance to hang out with Breitbart for a short time.  We were mixing up with the protestors.  It was a very good time.  

Good times.............bittersweet memories.

DC Blogger Tribute to Andrew Breitbart - Video

Saturday night there was a blogger get together to pay respects to the late Andrew Breitbart.  We were asked not to quote anyone or release any video. There were many speeches by people the knew Breitbart very well and shared their stories.  Anita Moncrief gave a very touching speech about how Andrew helped her after all the attacks from the left after she exposed the voted fraud being done by ACORN.  Stacy McCain also gave a great speech on the evening.

I found an official video of the evenings events.

Enjoy:


Andrew Breitbart Tribute Video from Ben Howe on Vimeo.

I Am Breitbart

The illustrious Woodsterman created this.  Feel free to take it and spread it far and wide.

I am Breitbart.  The best thing we can do in his memory is carry on the fight.

Oh, by the way Woodie makes great little boxes as well.  Check out his site for your shopping needs as well as a good laugh.

Honoring Breitbart

There is a sadness that is permeating the people on the right today.  A fearless warrior has left us today.  A man who was willing to shine a bright light on the hypocrisy that surrounds our politics today.  He was fearless.  He was tenacious.  He also was a son, a brother, a son-in-law, a husband, and a father.  His eldest child is just 12 years old.

I have been reading the tributes to him around the blogosphere.  Some made by people who only knew of him.  Others by people who met him.  And some who could rightly call him a friend.  They are very touching.  Some surprises are there as well.  Media Matters handled it with dignity:

Media Matters has a long history with Andrew Breitbart. We've disagreed more than we've found common ground, but there was never any question of Andrew's passion for and commitment to what he believed.

Our thoughts and prayers are with his family today.

Of course there are those on the left that have not.  The twitter feeds will make your hair curl and frankly ashamed.  They are all too willing --eager really -- to bring up Breitbart's response after the passing of liberal lion Ted Kennedy, which was not his best moment, to justify their own hate filled over the top glee at the death of a man who was too young to die.

We also have the people on the right who have already are out with the conspiracy theories that he was murdered.  Some of the accused are George Soros, President Obama, The CIA (apparently they invented a some sort of dart that gives people heart attacks without leaving a trace except a red spot where the dart hits them), and lest we forget Bill Ayers.

What is being lost in all of this is his family.  He has four young children who are dealing with the loss of their beloved daddy.  From all the accounts I have ever heard from people who really knew him, he was a very happily married man and a doting father.  This is a devastating loss for them.

There will be an autopsy.  His father in law has made a public statement that he had a history of heart problems.  I personally knew two people who died very young from natural causes.  Both under the age of 40.  Someone I have known since elementary school has heart problems so severe he can longer work.  These issues started in his late 20's.  These things do happen to young people.

Andrew Breitbart tried to shine a bright light on the truth.  He firmly believed in it.  To honor his memory we owe him and his family some time to process this loss.  To respect the fact that he has young children.  There will be plenty of time after the coroners determine the true cause of death to talk about what happened.  Today should be about honoring a man who stood up for what he believed in.  Regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum, as human beings, we owe his family the time to mourn their loss with dignity and respect.   Above all, we owe Breitbart the truth, not theories that have no basis in fact.

I read somewhere today that he was a devout atheist.  I don't know if that is true or not.  But in case it is, Andrew, may your spirit live on in the hearts and minds of your children.  There are foremost in my thoughts today.

Jonah Goldberg Pays Tribute to his Friend Andrew Breitbart

Jonah has known Andrew Breitbart longer and better than most of us.  He is still in shock and is mourning his friend and colleague.

A Warrior Leaves Us - RIP Breitbart

I love my job. I love fighting for what I believe in. I love having fun while doing it. I love reporting stories that the Complex refuses to report. I love fighting back, I love finding allies, and—famously—I enjoy making enemies.

Three years ago, I was mostly a behind-the-scenes guy who linked to stuff on a very popular website. I always wondered what it would be like to enter the public realm to fight for what I believe in. I’ve lost friends, perhaps dozens. But I’ve gained hundreds, thousands—who knows?—of allies. At the end of the day, I can look at myself in the mirror, and I sleep very well at night.

Breitbart in his own words.  


He was more than just a warrior for the conservative cause.  He was also a son, a brother, a husband, and father.  Let's hope that the left respects those family members in their time of grief and sorrow over the passing of a man too young to die.  


Rest in Peace Mr. Breitbart and thank you for giving conservatives a voice.  You will me missed.  I talked to him briefly while at CPAC just a few short weeks ago. I told him that I bow to his tenacity.  I wouldn't be brave enough to do what he did.  He leaves us with another important lesson, embrace life you never know when it is your time.  

Seriously Rethinking that Apology to Shirley Sherrod

I, like most other conservatives, felt that Shirley Sherrod was owed an apology after the full tape was released. She was labeled a racist and lost her job for a statement that was edited. At first glance, it seemed that she was treated unfairly, both by conservatives and by Andrew Breitbart.



I posted an apology as well as a warning of what can happen when the race card is used. It is an insidious way of dealing with people. So, the media has decided to turn Ms. Sherrod into some sort of hero. Well, her comments that she has made this week prove that she is no hero. Even during the full speech she says things that are, at very least, race baiting.


She says that God had changed her heart and made her see that it wasn’t about skin color; it was about helping the poor. But, she went on to talk about how the republicans were against Obama due to his skin color. Again, I really want someone on the left to look me in the face and tell me that I, a fiscal conservative, would like the exact same policies if Obama happened to be white. You wont find one, because they all know that it isn’t true. But sadly, the insults and the accusations keep on coming.


No one can say for sure if Breitbart made an honest mistake or he did it on purpose. Your point of view on that will more than likely rest on what side of the aisle you happen to fall politically. But, I think we can all agree he made a mistake releasing the video the way he did.


None of that excuses the remarks that Ms. Sherrod has made since then. She has called the people who are fans of Breitbart of being racists. She also blamed her firing on Fox News. Fox News didn’t run the story until after her resignation had been already announced. So, what exactly is FNC guilty of? I would have to say nothing. Howie Kurtz of CNN and The Washington Post did an article on the timeline of the events of that day and Fox can in no way be blamed.


She has further embarrassed herself by saying that Breitbart wants to go back to the days of slavery. Where in the world is the evidence of that? The chances of him getting to the position he is in at this point in his professional career with that level of racism in his heart is not very good. I am not saying it is impossible, but it indeed unlikely.


There are now many in media that have turned this woman into a hero. A title she in no way deserves. Some are even suggesting that she should be promoted, which just blows my mind. A woman who has made public statements this week that proves that she does indeed still view life through the prism of race doesn’t deserve to be promoted because those views have been exposed. I am willing to say that she is not a racist, having issues with race and being a racist are two different things, but indeed she has issues with race. Is she willing to say that I am not a racist? I think not, after all I am a republican, a tea party member, and I happen to like to Breitbart. Those are three very serious strikes against me as far as she is concerned.




Hey Shirley, you want to see a man that really has gotten past looking at black and white take a look at him:



I guess all the white people in the audience are just faking the love they are showing to Allen West. 

Sherrod and a Lesson in Using the Race Card

Apparently Shirley Sherrod is not a racist woman who was using her position of power to block people from getting equal treatment under the law.  The full video has been released and apologies have been made.  But it shouldn't be the end of the story. 

The story really isn't about Sherrod, she just got caught in the middle of it.  The story is about people who are all too willing to label someone a racist and the fear that it brings out in people.  This happened because the NAACP is starting a fight unnecessarily with the Tea Party movement. 

Sherrod's side of the story is that the Obama administration pressured her into resigning; a charge they deny.  She also said that the NAACP never contacted her before releasing it's original statement condemning her statements of not helping a white man save his farm.  Both of these things are just as disturbing as Andrew Breitbart releasing a video without the full context, and not reporting it in such a way that made that clear. 

Calling someone a racist or even implying it can have very damaging results.  This woman has been publicly ridiculed across the blogoshpere and national television.  She has lost her job (something that should be corrected immediately), and she has been thrust into  a spotlight that she neither asked for or deserved.  This is a lesson in why using the race card should only be done with careful consideration and more than just a single soundbite. 

If you take a look around the conservative blogosphere, you will see the apologies to the unnecessary interruption to Ms. Sherrod's life.  I am still waiting for the left to apologize for the non existent N word incident at the Tea Party Protest in March.