ACORN employees enable child prostitution & tax fraud

[Avatar]

Yeah, good point. Or if they'd done the right thing in the first place.

--A

[ParanoiA]

Thing is though, the only part of this story that actually offends me is the concession to child prostitution. If I were ACORN I'd be more apt to defend the institution of consentual adult prostitution and tax evading tactics. ACORN isn't commissioning a crime, I don't think. However, not suggesting even a lazy defense of children is unforgiveable.

I don't know. Kind of torn I guess, because while I realize that there's nothing inherently noble about cherry picking "unfair" laws to violate, my impulse is to support any disrespect to such invasive laws.

At the end of the day, ACORN cannot be trusted with public funds, that's for sure.

[Farsailer]

If ACORN is going to tell people how to evade taxes, isn't that biting the hand that was feeding them? But I forgot that's a Saul Alinsky thing: feed the government as many problems as it can, in hopes that the government gets crunched under by the weight of all the different things going off the rails.

[Zarathustra]

Thing is though, the only part of this story that actually offends me is the concession to child prostitution. If I were ACORN I'd be more apt to defend the institution of consentual adult prostitution and tax evading tactics. ACORN isn't commissioning a crime, I don't think. However, not suggesting even a lazy defense of children is unforgiveable.

I don't know. Kind of torn I guess, because while I realize that there's nothing inherently noble about cherry picking "unfair" laws to violate, my impulse is to support any disrespect to such invasive laws.

At the end of the day, ACORN cannot be trusted with public funds, that's for sure.

That's an honest Libertarian look at this issue. I don't have a problem with prostitution, either. And I'm against income tax. However, there is nothing Libertarian about using millions of tax payer dollars for "community organizing," and then advising people on how to cheat on their taxes. Libertarians aren't advocating tax evasion (breaking the law), but rather changing the laws. If I have to pay my taxes, I object to others evading the same laws I have to obey, or using my tax dollars to help others evade them.

But I don't blame anyone for wanting to reduce their tax burden. Perhaps ACORN should start supporting Libertarians, if this is their philosophy.

[Tjol]

Thing is though, the only part of this story that actually offends me is the concession to child prostitution. If I were ACORN I'd be more apt to defend the institution of consentual adult prostitution and tax evading tactics. ACORN isn't commissioning a crime, I don't think. However, not suggesting even a lazy defense of children is unforgiveable.

I don't know. Kind of torn I guess, because while I realize that there's nothing inherently noble about cherry picking "unfair" laws to violate, my impulse is to support any disrespect to such invasive laws.

At the end of the day, ACORN cannot be trusted with public funds, that's for sure.

That's an honest Libertarian look at this issue. I don't have a problem with prostitution, either. And I'm against income tax. However, there is nothing Libertarian about using millions of tax payer dollars for "community organizing," and then advising people on how to cheat on their taxes. Libertarians aren't advocating tax evasion (breaking the law), but rather changing the laws. If I have to pay my taxes, I object to others evading the same laws I have to obey, or using my tax dollars to help others evade them.

But I don't blame anyone for wanting to reduce their tax burden. Perhaps ACORN should start supporting Libertarians, if this is their philosophy.

I don't mind anyone trying to help people pay the least possible amount of taxes... unless those same people are at the same time supporting politicians who are trying to force people to pay an unreasonable portion of their incomes.

(Again, if this should make anyone defensive... I live in California, where the Dems keep raising taxes, and the few panty waisted Reps in Sacramento will rollover for them in exchange for a piece or two of Sacramento lobbyist).

[Zarathustra]

. . . and again (#5). . .

This time, the ACORN employee offers advice on how to smuggle under-aged hookers into the country.

BTW, in a radio interview, Charlie Gibson of ABC News was asked why ABC isn't covering this story, he claimed he didn't know about it! This is after Congress had voted to kick ACORN out of the Census, and to stop giving them tax-payer funds. How the hell does ABC's main news anchor not know about this story? (But for some reason he's an expert on the Bush Doctrine.)

This link has John Stewart's hilarious take on the whole situation. At the 4:30 mark, his commentary on the absence of this story in the mainstream media begins. Worth a look.

[The Dreaming]

This is worth reading for a laugh - from Acorn's website.

www.acorn.org/index.php?id=12439&tx_ttn ... a11a0d72b3

When the actors approached Ms. Kaelke with their provocative costuming and outlandish scenario, she could not take them seriously. So she met their outrageousness with her own personal style of outrageousness. She matched their false scenario with her own false scenarios.

"They were not believable", said Ms. Kaelke of the two actors. "Somewhat entertaining, but they weren't even good actors. I didn't know what to make of them. They were clearly playing with me. I decided to shock them as much as they were shocking me. Like Stephen Colbert does – saying the most outrageous things with a straightface." While her sense of humor might not be funny to many people, the fact is that she spun false scenario afterfalse scenario and the videographer ate them up.

Seriously, this whole situation is so farcical I can't even wrap my head around it anymore. And the ruling party is going to escape it unscathed once again.

[sindatur]

This is worth reading for a laugh - from Acorn's website.

www.acorn.org/index.php?id=12439&tx_ttn ... a11a0d72b3

When the actors approached Ms. Kaelke with their provocative costuming and outlandish scenario, she could not take them seriously. So she met their outrageousness with her own personal style of outrageousness. She matched their false scenario with her own false scenarios.

"They were not believable", said Ms. Kaelke of the two actors. "Somewhat entertaining, but they weren't even good actors. I didn't know what to make of them. They were clearly playing with me. I decided to shock them as much as they were shocking me. Like Stephen Colbert does – saying the most outrageous things with a straightface." While her sense of humor might not be funny to many people, the fact is that she spun false scenario afterfalse scenario and the videographer ate them up.

Seriously, this whole situation is so farcical I can't even wrap my head around it anymore. And the ruling party is going to escape it unscathed once again.

That excuse only works if she did something about it, such as contact her boss, or the police right away.

[Cail]

Yeah, that's about as laughable as having a "wide stance".

[Avatar]

And the ruling party is going to escape it unscathed once again.

Well, technically it's not their fault. They don't set the policy or whatever for the group. And they did (something about the census?) take action to cut ties or whatever. Don't know if you can blame them.

--A

[Zarathustra]

The Dems can't be blamed for ACORN's actions. But they could have investigated them a long time ago, back when the voter registration fraud was out of control in multiple states. No group with such little control over its employees should have ever received millions of tax payer money.

[Avatar]

Well, they could have done. I'd agree with that, although, I'd ask whether it's the dems job to investigate them?

--A

[Tjol]

Well, they could have done. I'd agree with that, although, I'd ask whether it's the dems job to investigate them?

--A

It's the dems job, and the mainstream media's for that matter, to apply critical thought to their political allies just as much as their political enemies.

[Avatar]

Well, perhaps so. I'm thinking more along the lines of it being the police's job to conduct investigations into illegal activity.

--A

[The Dreaming]

Any orginization that recieves massive amounts of federal funds should be held to a high ethical standard. I think taking the federal government's money makes it the federal government's job to act as overseer to these organizations. Frankly, Democrats control our government. It was mentioned earlier that Pelosi actually stopped attempts to investigate the allegations of voter fraud. I think this makes he look pretty *personally* bad, and serves as a reminder that the opposition party isn't always just an obstruction, and they don't deserve to be dismissed out of hand when legitimate concerns are raised as to how the government is allocating it's funds and how they are monitoring their investments. Acorn is clearly an example of federal money pissed away on an undeserving group. (If such advice is as commonplace as it seems in those videos, who knows how much revenue is being lost and justice obstructed.)

Hopefully this makes people realize that granting essentially supreme power to people with a singular political agenda (which the dems unarguably have now, with a filibuster poof majority and the white house) is ludicrously reckless. The two party system works so well because of the system of checks and balances built into the constitution.

I really wish the reps would take advantage of this situation to get their act together, find *real* secular, intellectual leadership, and start acting as a voice of reason instead of a voice of petulance.

Pelosi's head should roll for this. It should have rolled months ago, but she's still clinging to power. Ruining her political career would be an undeniable gain for this country. (Ideally, she and Limbaugh would both lose it together, maybe we can bring Cheney out of retirement and have him shoot both of em.)

[Cybrweez]

Any orginization that recieves massive amounts of federal funds should be held to a high ethical standard.

Yea, its like you accept bailout money, we can cap your bonuses. Same sort of thing. But don't be surprised that dems wouldn't look into them, ACORN in turn supported dems. Its called politics.

[Avatar]

Any orginization that recieves massive amounts of federal funds should be held to a high ethical standard.

Yea, its like you accept bailout money, we can cap your bonuses.

Agreed.

--A

[Plissken]

The Dems can't be blamed for ACORN's actions. But they could have investigated them a long time ago, back when the voter registration fraud was out of control in multiple states. No group with such little control over its employees should have ever received millions of tax payer money.

I was under the impression that ACORN had been investigated several times, and usually without a finding of wrongdoing. Is that incorrect?

[sindatur]

So...The President isn't following ACORN situation closely enough to even know they are getting lots of Tax dollars, so he can't comment on wether there should be an investigation or not, because the country has bigger problems, yet he was able to comment on Kanye West (not that I think his Kanye West comment was wrong, just don't follow the logic) and several other things recently. Isn't the spending and oversight of the spending amongst the biggest concerns of the country?

[Tjol]

Well, perhaps so. I'm thinking more along the lines of it being the police's job to conduct investigations into illegal activity.

--A

What if the police get their paycheck from a mayor or governor or otherwise who received substantial monies from ACORN during their last political campaign?

Do they have the thing called a 'citizen's arrest' in South Africa?