SENATOR BYRD NEEDS YOUR HELP

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

The GOP is already plotting to run an unprecedented negative ad blitz-dr dobson has went on record as targeting byrd.

every day, the papers in wv are full of letters from wingnuts trashing byrd. (usually from out-of state)

i can only write so many rebuttals and get them printed. if you have the time, please send a contribution in defending one of the bravest voices in the senate. i've included a list of papers to hit in order of priority.

even a brief blurb of would help. please take the time if you can. don't let them do to byrd what they did to daschle and cleland.

if not, we get a constant barrage of stuff like this, left unchallenged:
" Byrd oozes with hatred for Bush

Editor:

I totally and completely disagree with the letter titled “Byrd-Kennedy link is a good thing” printed on Feb. 8.

I totally agree with the letter titled “Liberal Byrd gains a foe” on Feb. 3 by Roger L. Hatfield.

Sen. Byrd as a former card-carrying member of the KKK viciously attacked Condoleezza Rice during her secretary of state hearings.

The senator’s hatred for George W. Bush is so great that it is oozing from the pores of his skin.

Your editorial page recently had two commentaries on Sen. Byrd. One stated the many things named after him. (Way too many in my opinion.) Most of them are a result of Washington pork-barrel projects.

The other article said Sen. Byrd must go down the same road that Tom Daschle took on Election Day. Next Election Day should be his last.

Jim Richardson
Oak Hill"
from today's daily mail

---
charleston daily mail
rw newspaper of the capitol-editors and columnist have made it a mission to unseat byrd in '06
http://www.dailymail.com/static/letters/

charleston gazette
state's largest newspaper-left-leaning, but still getting two or three anti-byrd letters a week
http://wvgazette.com/section/letter/200503065

parkersburg
rightwing paper in north http://www.newsandsentinel.com/letters/letters.asp

huntington herald-dispatch
wv's 2nd largest city-endorsed kerry, but getting at least one a week
http://www.herald-dispatch.com/hdinfo/letters.html

[Skink]

1. At least Byrd would be the oldest of the.............

asassinated! They hate him.

[liberalhistorian]

2. The courage it must take him

to be able to stand up against tremendous opposition like that time after time! Was he really a member of the KKK, though?

[rfranklin]

4. Yes, and he has renounced that era of his life and that organization...

while the right wing Republicans have embraced all the unreformed and Neo-racists which is why the South is so solidly Red these days.

[BiggJawn]

5. Yes, afraid so....

When he was a young man.
So you should hate him.

I made fun of "homos" when I was a young man.
you should probably hate me, too, if you want to be a "Good Liberal". Uber-Lefties insist neither of us can change.

[liberalhistorian]

7. Good point.

People really can and often do change, I've seen it firsthand many times. As long as he's genuinely renounced it and no longer believes any of their shit, he shouldn't still have that held over his head.

[Swamp Rat]

6. At one time, yes.

http://www.answers.com/topic/robert-byrd

You'll find that only RW nutjobs talk about this now as it is politically expedient... after they have folded their sheets and put them in the closet until the next meeting. Around 1994 Byrd made a formal apology to all African Americans and was given a clean bill of health by the NAACP and other groups.

[yorkiemommie1]

3. i'm writing letters

Senator Byrd is a scholar. He is eloquent and a student of history. And he uses big words. That's not going to endear him to the masses.

[Skink]

8. It's the only thing we have left.

He the man.

[GetTheRightVote]

9. My letter concerning Sen. Bryd. I call him as well.

Dear Editor:

The citizens of West Virginia must be very pride of their Senator Bryd. I am from the midwest but when I see a Senator of strength and character such as Senator Bryd, it makes me what to move to that state. He is a man of truth and of straight words without excuses. This is the type of man to whom you can turn to in a time of need and know that he will not leave you unprotected. The state of West Virginia can hold her head of high with a man such as Senator Bryd bringing her to the front of the line of intregity. My hat goes off to you and your Senator, I wish he were mine respectfully.

Regards,


:kick:

[Skink]

10. Kennedy could still now take the place.

N/T

[nolabels]

11. What would you like us to tell them about him

I believe the guy, Senator Byrd has more human in him in his little pinky than Bush has in whole body. Should we tell them that he stands for states that have a vested interest in keep the senates roll of protecting states rights like the one he represents.

My guess is these newspapers are mostly owned by large news corporations and don't really give a damn what the smaller states want. Hell mostly, these corporations probably don't even care what large countries want if they can find a way around it

The editors of paper probably answer to these guys directly

WHO OWNS WHAT
Media News Group
Media News Group
1560 Broadway, Ste. 2100
Denver, CO 80202
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
www.medianewsgroup.com

from this link
http://www.cjr.org/tools/owners/

[Genki]

12. Yes, Sen. Byrd needs help~~SOS from WV

Byrd was in the Klan sixty years ago, for a very short period of time. He left when he recognized that it was not the kind of organization that he was led to believe.

The rightwing always travels back sixty years to find something to smear Senator Byrd with, any time he makes one of his eloquent and truthful speeches, never addressing the issues he raises. They never deny the truth of what he says.

But since they insist on going back sixty years in Senator Byrd's case, let's travel back sixty years in the Bush family history and what do we find? According to a lawsuit filed by Holocaust victims and documents released under the FIA, we can trace the Bush family fortune as having its origins with Bush's grandfather's dealing with the Nazis, information which was covered up when Bush's grandfather ran for Senate in the fifties.

West Virginia just experienced the most expensive and one of the nastiest State Supreme Court battles in US history, with the bought and paid for Rethug Brent Benjamin defeating labor friendly Warren McGraw, a decent man who was unable to stand up against being outspent ten to one. So the Rethug smear machine is in full swing and were peppering the papers with their propaganda against Senator Byrd even before this last speech.

Please, he is in badly in need of support to help to ward off the attack machine.

[Genki]

13. Kick for Senator Byrd

...he does need help.

[nolabels]

14. What's the plan?

Send some clue or someting to my box and or correct me here

Here is the letter I am wanting to send

Dear editor,

I have been hearing about your newspaper and how it targeting the Honorable Senator Byrd. I really don’t believe you would be up to such things. I mean this would make no sense unless you really didn’t care about the state you hail from. This is all assumption of course. I have even heard of some news media outlets even claiming the Senator is Un-American because of things that occurred fifty years ago.

It would appear to me if these things were really happening that there must be some underling cause of it all. What ever the reasoning I think it would be your best interest not to engage in it. Senator Byrd is one of the cornerstones in our democratic republic and deserves the respect he earned through all hard work he has done in Senate and for the Senate through the years. The Senator is cogent and well informed and has much experience in government. In short the Senator is asset to us all no matter where your home state is and it would behoove you to see and understand that

[lala_rawraw]

15. Hitler Enabler Act

Cut, print, leave everwhere you go... here is the link:
http://www.furnitureforthepeople.com/actpat.htm

GOP Hitler Act/Patriot Act

[AngryAmish]

16. Se. Byrd has spent his entire life fighting for our ideals

He truly means what it means to be a Democrat today, and always has. We must not abandon him now.

[nolabels]

18. Think about what you posted

Intellectually we are kind of like his offspring, his kids if you will (for us younger folk). Guys like that we owe a lot to. With out people like him that understands everybody is different, we might all be doing the goose step (even if we didn't want to :P )

[elshiva]

17. I called Sen. Byrd's office to support his stance on the filibuster.

I believe a man can change and I believe he has. His pro-filibuster speech of March 1, 2005 is on his website and it IS very good.

[stillcool]

19. I had a little fun with this one...

Good Evening, I just recently read some rather disturbing news regarding the trashing of Senator Byrd. While I'm sure many of your readers are well informed, I think it would be very helpful to consider the source of the mud being slung. In this time we find ourselves no accusation by any politician, or political cause, can go unchallenged. These are distressing times for our country, when the truth is rarer than hens teeth. Unless it comes from the horse's mouth, it is probably a product of the other end (of the horse)

[oasis]

20. kick

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

21. UPDATE - some suggestions

thanks to all who responded

as far as what i would say, i would portray the senator as an american doing his duty and not blindly accepting the word of authority.

some of their attacks have focused on the condi confirmation with numerous kkk references (aka letting hannity think for them)

i'm sure the nazi distortions will be all over the letters page in coming weeks

basically, just say a few kind words to counter this flood

and as far as mentioning the fact that the paper is targeting byrd, i would only reserve this charge for the daily mail, who are blatantly doing it through columnists and printing selective posting to their vent line service (which is a call in/email thing where you can leave brief one-two sentence messages anonymously for publication-i know many people who have tried to counter the antibyrd stuff there and have not been printed. it's on the letters page, if you want to click on it and give it a try, but i'd advise saving it for a letter. the vent line is a joke)

the others are maintaining neutrality for now, but are just printing the floods of rw activist propaganda they're being sent