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I Get To Respond
By Greg L | 18 March 2008 | Manassas City | 41 Comments
Five days after publishing an irresponsible hit-piece editorial which smears me as being a “nativist”, the Manassas Urinal-Massager finally allowed my response to be printed, two days after they initially promised it would appear. Here’s what I submitted, which is pretty close to what actually got published:
On March 13th this paper published an editorial that attacked me as a “nativist”, a conclusion based entirely on a report by the Southern Poverty Law Center which is littered with obvious outright lies. In endorsing this outrageous effort to shut down the debate, this newspaper reaches a new low of journalistic malfeasance which can only accelerate their steady decline into irrelevance and financial ruin.
The Manassas Journal-Messenger is well aware that I did not establish Help Save Herndon or Help Save Virginia, just two of more than a dozen outright lies presented by the SPLC as fact. Normally, when one intends to commit “journalism”, the appearance of obvious falsehoods in a public statement would prompt one to question the validity of the report’s conclusions. Not so for the Journal-Messenger, which apparently saw confirmation of their obvious editorial bias, prompting the quick endorsement of a faulty conclusion based on nothing but a pile of deliberate falsehoods.
Smearing anyone who is ‘battling the influx of illegal immigrants into our country’ as a ‘nativist’ is precisely the irresponsible behavior of which the editorial board accuses me. While the editorial board expresses their profound concern that the reputation of the county suffers as a result of inflammatory debate, it actually endorses statements such as “A dangerous mix of nativist intolerance, armed and untrained civilians, and wild-eyed conspiracy theories could easily explode into violence.” Readers, the editorial board apparently views you as crazed gun-toting rednecks who are but one step removed from engaging in a race war. Such utter hypocracy marks a new and thoroughly disturbing low.
A claim that the SPLC’s irresponsible hit piece “serves only to cement the image of Prince William County and the surrounding jurisdictions as a haven for intolerance” can only hold true when media outlets take such reckless disregard for the truth seriously and intentionally promote clear falsehoods. It is ridiculous that Fauquier County would be viewed as a “haven for intolerance” simply because we have had our fill of those who violate the law and wish to restore lawful behavior in our communitiy. Yet if the Manassas Journal-Messenger can pidgeonhole a well-justified intolerance of unlawful behavior as being irredeemably racist, it may well succeed in trashing the reputation of this community, which overwhelmingly supports efforts to reduce illegal immigration in a responsible manner that is consistent with the preservation of our civil liberties.
While the behavior of some illegal aliens is a matter of record and can be proven or disproven, as can the impacts they impose on our community, those whom the editorial board and ideological fellow travellers smear as “intolerant” or “nativists” for decrying the unlawful presence of illegal aliens have no means to prove their innocence. Once smeared as a racist or ‘nativist’, there is no means of proving that you are not. The message that the Manassas Journal-Messenger sends with this is clear: if you disagree with us and manage to win the debate, we will attempt to trash your reputation.
While this paper devotes it’s minimalist local coverage to an outrageous effort to smear me as a ‘nativist’, it steadfastly ignores that many of our public facilities and schools suffer less overcrowding, that our healthcare system is less endangered, that dangerous criminal aliens are now being systematically removed from our community, and that residential overcrowding has dramatically abated as a result of the policies that I have advocated. It also steadfastly ignores that another organization in the debate promotes amnesty for illegal aliens alongside their public pronouncements of financial and material support for a foreign guerilla movement which regularly spouts communist and anarchist rhetoric. The uneven coverage of this debate, and the biased treatment this paper inflicts upon those who engage in it are thoroughly appalling.
Were I not likely considered a “public figure” under the Supreme Court Case New York Times v. Sullivan, and thus forced to demonstrate “actual malice” in a defamation action against this paper, this outrageous and irresponsible behavior by this paper’s editorial board would have rapidly become the subject of a lawsuit. Instead, it will probably be up to the readers to judge whether spreading obvious falsehoods in an attempt to wrongly defame a local citizen is justifiable behavior for this newspaper, and whether such exhibitions of clear bias can possibly constitute responsible journalism.
For those interested in the pile of outright lies that the SPLC decided to promote, and which the Manassas Urinal-Massager uncritically endorsed, here’s the scoop:
Greg Letiecq, 42
Manassas, Va.
WRONG: Greg Letiecq is not 42 years old.
More than 50 immigration-restriction state bills and local ordinances were introduced in Virginia over the course of 2007, although the overwhelming majority of them were voted down. The few that passed were concentrated mostly in a small cluster of counties in northern Virginia that has become a nest to thousands of nativists marching to the tune of former Maryland Army National Guard infantryman Greg Letiecq.
Letiecq is head of the nativist extremist organization Help Save Manassas, which boasts more than 2,000 members.
WRONG: At the time of publication, Help Save Manassas had 1970 members, and is not at all a “nativist extremist organization”. Extremists do not have their legislative agenda endorsed repeatedly by bi-partisan unanimous majorities — that’s quite obviously what is called “mainstream.”
He also runs “Black Velvet Bruce Li,” one of the most popular anti-immigration blogs in the region. On it, Letiecq refers to day-labor centers as “open-air toilets” and describes Latino pro-immigrant activists as “mobs of machete-wielding radicals wearing ski masks” who are part of a global “Zapatista” conspiracy that also includes “burning cars in the suburbs of Paris.”
LIE COUNT: 1. References to “mobs of machete-wielding radicals” and “burning cars in the suburbs of Paris” was a description of pictures posted on the official website of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (see http://galeria.ezln.org.mx/thumbnails.php?album=7), and was not descriptive of local anti-immigration activists as the SPLC claims. I never made such statements about local groups that support the interests of illegal aliens. (see actual website article, press release)
Letiecq formed Help Save Manassas in April 2007. Members protested at day-labor sites and successfully pressured the Prince William County Board of Supervisors to pass a local ordinance severely limiting the access of immigrants to public benefits. The ordinance, co-authored by Letiecq, became law in July 2007. Later that year, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the groundbreaking law, clearing the way for similar ordinances in other communities.
LIE COUNT: 2-4
Help Save Manassas has never engaged in a protest of any kind, much less at a day laborer site.
I did not “co-author” the Rule of Law Resolution, but brought constitutional lawyers and members of the Board of County Supervisors together to draft the ordinance along with several members of the community.
The Rule of law resolution is not an ordinance, but a statement of policy that has never been enacted into law.
Since then, Letiecq has branded the “Help Save” moniker by helping to establish six spin-off groups in Virginia (”Help Save” Fairfax, Hampton Roads, Herndon, Loudon, Stafford and Old Dominion) and one in Maryland. This network is part of the Coalition on Illegal Aliens, whose members include small-town mayors, county commissioners and city council members, many of whom are also members of one or more “Help Save” chapters.
LIE COUNT: 5-13
I did not “brand” the “Help Save moniker” and subsequent to the formation of Help Save Manassas have not been involved in the establishment a single organization using that phrase.
I did not establish Help Save Fairfax, Help Save Hampton Roads, the city of Herndon (or Help Save Herndon), Loudoun County (or Help Save Loudoun), Stafford County or “Old Dominion”, or any organizations in the State of Maryland. None of these organizations are members of the “Coalition on Illegal Aliens”, which is comprised solely of local governments in the Commonwealth of Virginia. I did assist in the formation of Save Stafford in Stafford County, VA and Save The Old Dominion.
Not everyone in Manassas thinks their city needs saving. The Manassas Park City Council last year lambasted Letiecq’s “false representation of the city’s position,” calling his efforts “a vigilante agenda that the city believes is irresponsible and offensive.”
But Letiecq shows no signs of letting up. “We are obliged to defend our embattled culture before we inexorably veer off onto [a] destructive path,” he wrote in “Our Culture Under Assault,” an essay in the December issue of Frontline, his group’s newsletter. “Whether our battle is combating the ‘press one for English’ insanity, or preventing the pollution of our longstanding cultural traditions with pagan harvest rituals from Mexico in our Christmas celebrations, we must engage in the struggle.”
The Southern Poverty Law Center puts it’s credibility as an organization at significant risk basing blanket condemnations upon such utterly shoddy research. It is readily apparent that they have no idea what they are talking about and that their conclusions are fundamentally flawed. The reckless disregard for the truth displayed by the Southern Poverty Law Center in their recent publication attacking me and several other highly regarded organizations and individuals demonstrates that the fine organization that once battled so valiantly for justice is now but a hollow shell of its former glory, prone to exhibiting poor legal judgment, and incapable of determining the truth.
Thirteen lies, all endorsed by the shoddy and irresponsible editorial staff at the Manassas Urinal-Massager. Who would have thought this possible?
The opinions expressed here are solely the views of the author, and not representative of the position of any organization, political party, doughnut shop, knitting guild, or waste recycling facility, but may be correctly attributed to the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy. If anything in the above article has offended you, please click here to receive an immediate apology.
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41 Comments
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Your use of the expression “Manassas Urinal-Massager” lowers your standing as a serious leader. It’s not funny; it’s something a fresh teenager might think up. I watched you on TV; you look good and speak well. As you’ll be getting more public appearences (Im sure you will) it’s important that you have dignity. Your dignity suffers when you write about newspapers with “cute” names. If the bloggers want to use the expressions, OK, but I think you, yourself, ought to avoid it. Just some friendly advise.
I agree with Krutis on your nickname for the MJM. I understand your justifiable contempt for them, but it’s a less than adult method.
Excellent response to the Nativist article in today’s Manassas Journal Messenger / Potomac News. Very well written. I see a speaking tour in your future, however I do agree Krutis. Don’t lower yourself to others standard.
I think Krutis is right as well. Identify the Manassas Journal Messenger by its proper name. If you are going to criticize them for calling you a “nativist”, don’t get down in the mud with them by calling them the “Urinial Messager”. Your highlighting shoddy journalism and an absence of professionalism on the part of the papers editorial board is quite effective on its own.
Disagree with Krutis - using “Manassas Urinal-Messager”
is not the mark of a “fresh teenager”, but a sign
of a stale tedious teenager who demeans his own
statements by using the term. Besides, MJM is shorter.
Gee a discussion about the “MUM vs MJM” This is a blog in case you have not noticed and as such the use of euphemisms is appropriate. Greg’s use of “urinal” is a much more generous and delicate term than what it really should be called.
Nicely done Greg.
We can call it the Manassas Bird Cage Liner. That’s what it’s used for in my house.
Big Dog, you have fleas. Quit scratching around here because you have become tedious.
cdubbs, Mando jfk, Che’
Sorry if I offended your exquisite taste in vocabulary!
Krusty,
I think Greg’s descriptive name for MJM is accurate. Of course in my opinion, the MJM is not worth using for toilet paper. I still think it is a shame that trees had to be sacrificed to produce the garbage called Manassas Journal Messenger.
Prince William County deserves a decent paper. Whoever does start a decent paper in this county will put the MJM out of business forever.
I could certainly testify that any reference to Greg “co-authoring” the Rule of Law Resolution is a blatant lie without any basis in fact. Regardless of the MJM’s penchant for mendacity, this story has no legs and hopefully this is the end of it.
If it’s not worth using for toilet paper (ouch!), how come it’s worth so many words on this blog? You could choose to ignore it and pretend it doesn’t exist. Maybe it’d go away.
Krusty,
You can’t pretend a piece of garbage doesn’t exist. If you ignore it the odor increases. The best thing to do is throw it in the landfill or burn it.
Oh, Krutis and Big Dog, get over yourselves. MUM is a perfect name for the pseudojournalism garbage.
glad to see they actually printed your rebuttal…
While it may go well with some BVBL posters, sophomoric
crudeness ill serves Greg’s apparent desire to be treated
with more respect. He has some good and valuable
points to make, but they are diminished when he stoops
to name calling in his postings.
Would note that Greg always comes across as a reasoned
and articulate champion of his cause on TV and the radio.
Why not on the net?
Greg, it’s a bad idea to listen when your critics start giving you helpful suggestions. Stick to your guns my friend, it’s working!
Krusty, you couldn’t even begin to offend me. I pity you, and hope that trying to be offensive on this blog is not your primary activity in life.
Greg, EXCELLENT reply to the MJM. You expose them for who they are, biased liberal illegal alien lovers that seek to undermine those that are fighting for the rule of law and to RESTORE our PWC as it was once was, if that’s possible. With their one-sided biased reporting, the MJM does a disservice to our community. In addition, they have not the courage to investigate and expose the Mexicanos Sin Fronteras group for who they are and what they represent: Marxist racist America hating malcontents who preach and spew nothing that is good, but who seek to undermine our community, government and this GREAT AMERICA! We must keep up the good fight and take back our neighborhods and this GREAT AMERICA, WHATEVER it takes!
jfk 1:44 - I wasn’t trying to be offensive, but evidently you felt I was. Greg, I believe, is smart enough to know that he has to live up to a certain standard because of his newly acquired status as a leader in PWC, and I’m saying this with all sincerety. Certainly you want your spokesperson to be looked upon as a dignified persona. If he has to go down in the mud to keep his followers, then he’ll eventually go down too.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1987510/posts
“U.S. Must Learn European Immigration Lessons”
I think we can all learn a lot from this article.
Why don’t some of you whiners start a new local paper? You all seem to know so much about journalism you ought to be able to make a go of it.
I thought your response to the editorial was great!
Greg
I am surprised the SPLC didn’t have you responsible for the Lindbergh kidnapping, global warming and the recent misfortunes of their savior, the pope of hope, Barrack Obama.
The SPLC are just left of Trotsky, lies and misinformation is standard fare for this group of America hating collectivists. It apperas that SPLC has found it’s northern virginia Pravda.
Good work !
Those of us in HSL have your back.
Greg Letiecq wrote in the MJM:
“Readers, the editorial board apparently views you as crazed gun-toting rednecks who are but one step removed from engaging in a race war.”
Ummm….you mean you’re not? You’d never know that from reading your blog and the comments of your supporters. I don’t know if you are gun-toting (though that would be a safe bet), but the rest of the description works for me.
There is no journalistic ethics among the MJM or its parent company times-commie news
Good rejoinder, though I had to laugh at the prospect of you going to court to vindicate your rights against smears.
Greg, I support you, but I think you let your temper get the better of you here. The other things you’ve had printed have been reasonable in tone and well written, which really helps people see that everyone who is against illegal immigration is not a crazed, gun-toting, redneck. But this piece was not up to your standards. It wasn’t well written, and in a lot of it you came across as a shrill teenager, or a crazed, gun-toting redneck. I think it would have been better if you had waited a day or two before responding so that you cooled off a little. James Young is right, too. The idea of you suing someone for smears is too hilarious. But seriously, I could see the grounds for a case against SPLC, but what would be the grounds for suing the MJM?
Greg, Ace has his head you know where. Your reply was no temper tantrum, but a piece of journalism art. Again, you nailed the MJM for their liberal, socialist, illegal alien apologist doctrines. It appears some people are just envious and jealous of your writing abilities.
Even before I became involved with HSM, I referred to the paper as the Journal Mess.
I like your term “Manassas Urinal-Massager”. It’s much more descriptively correct than the moniker they assign themselves.
Krusty, you cannot offend me, because I understand you. I do think you should take advantage of the great spring weather; go take a long walk and get some exercise. Too much time in front of a computer is bad for anyone.
It’s completely ironic that you would say Greg’s phrase is “something a fresh teenager” would dream up. That also describes your antics on this website. Someone once said that when a person calls another names, he is often projecting those things out that he feels about himself. Do you think there is any truth to that?
The 8:37 post was from me.
I dont want to seem harsh, but I think you should have dumbed down the language. Everyone who knows the big words already agrees with you. You need smaller words for those you wish to sway. I did think it was brillant, though.
To the extent that I got comments about my writing (as opposed to the content) when I was writing my Pot. News column, “faithmy,” it was on precisely those grounds. So I can’t join your criticism. The goal of an op-ed should be to persuade and elevate. I cannot speak for Greg, but I considered it a compliment when someone told me they had to go to the dictionary to understand a word I used in my column.
It was meant as a tongue in cheek comment. I forget sometimes that noone can see me smirk on the internet. I was also being a little snotty about the people who oppose Greg.
The vitriolic labels the pro-illegal immigration cronies like to use, that the term “racist” is one of their favorites to describe anyone who is against illegal immigration, a pathetic attempt to use the race card to try and shield illegal immigrants from accepting responsibility for breaking the law, and shield themselves for supporting such a travesty.
They try to do this so that anti-illegal immigration forces will back down for fear of public shame, but the logic of their attacks is flawed when one looks at the broader picture, and that the previous waves of mass immigration from European, i.e. the “white” countries in the 19th and early 20th centuries came here LEGALLY, made an effort to learn our language and customs, and way of life, and therefore assimilated into American Society. Maybe they were forced to come here legally because they had to sail over an ocean and could not exploit a poorly secured land border, but that does not change the fact that they obeyed the law, and the current wave of immigrants are breaking the law.
The pro-illegal immigration forces that want amnesty are completely out of touch with mainstream American society - just look at most of the comments here - the majority of the posters are against illegal immigration, and most people I know who are against illegal immigration have no problem with LEGAL immigration, regardless of country of origin, ethnicity, etc.
They try to paint us as fear-mongering demagogues because it is the only weapon that they have against the cold, hard facts: that we are a country of dwindling resources being asked (forced, really - they did not ask, they just snuck over the border) to support illegals who are driving down wages for the lower middle class, draining government tax dollars that they do not put back into the system because they do not pay taxes, and creating a division in American society by not assimilating into our culture and refusing to learn our language. To many of them, we are the “gringos”, and some of them even believe in “reconqista”, the re-capture of the American southwest, which they conveniently forget that we rightfully won in both war and by purchasing much of the land from Mexico.
It is not our fault that Mexico is one of the most corrupt governments on the face of the planet, which has led to the impoverishment of their people. And it is absurd that they come here and demand rights that they are not legally entitled to when they should be forcing change in their home country. I think that they are actually taking advantage of liberals that make excuses for them - laughing while the liberal, pro-illegal immigration forces do their work for them, because they have no intention of assimilating into American society. The liberals should also look at the fall of other great nations as Amy Chua has, and understand that non-homogenous societies tend to fall apart, from the Roman Empire to the Soviet Union.
I do agree with many of Amy Chua’s points from her article, such as strict immigration quotas based on country of origin and levels of education. But she misses the point that Mark Krikorian makes, which is that a mass immigration of unskilled peoples is incompatible with an advanced society that places a greater value on education and already spends to much money on a welfare state.
Plus, what about all the poor and homeless people in the US that were born here and have paid whatever taxes they can their whole lives? It outrages me that our tax dollars are being used to pay for education, hospitalization, and increased law enforcement needed for illegal immigrants when the money should be used to cover the needs of those here rightfully and legally.
The pro-illegal immigration forces are self-righteous hypocrites that fail to see the broader implications to our society, and are actually complicit in hastening it’s downfall. As Mark points out, the public knows that the media, government (and businesses that exploit the inexpensive illegal labor) have no solidarity with the average mainstream U.S. citizen, and no interest in preserving American sovereignty, even if our society has given them rights and freedoms that very few nations offer. What will they say when society starts unraveling? That it was the Republican’s fault? That they wish they could go back to the good old days? They will blame everyone but themselves, but we will all be to shame for allowing them to get away with it, and for it to happen in the first place by not holding our government accountable for the chaos at the border, and for enforcing our laws.
Excellent write-up BL! I couldn’t have said it better myself!
Greg
I agree with not using the term, Manassas Urinal Massager. Why bring yourself down to their level. I find it offensive.
Greg,
For those of us who view your work & agree with your position on immigration, I ask you to continue to lead us through troubling times. You currently have local officials on the ropes………..actually being a voice that has changed policy.
If you were not a serious threat to the manner in which PWC officials (soon to be followed by other jurisdictions) conduct policy related to immigration, I would think your off-handed references to journalistic rags like the MJM were funny.
But serious problems require serious people to find solutions. Like it or not Greg you have become our leader, and the voice of our position. Those who wish to silence you find joy in your references to the MJM. It makes you appear “over the top.”
Your credibility as a rational opponent to the illegal invasion leads me to believe your future will soon include network news opinion commentary. So labeling a local paper remarkably thin with balanced news makes you look like your shadow boxing.
So Greg..think you might accept certain invites? I for one think you should.