Lesson Learned – Always Listen
I missed Dale Jackson’s show yesterday morning. Yes, I know that Roger Richardson was scheduled to be a guest and that it was an important pre-election show, but, I didn’t listen.
Well, I sure learned my lesson. I missed the biggest event to hit the State of Alabama since WVNN went All Dale All the Time.
Really, I missed Dale joking that Democrats vote on Wednesday, plus I missed seeing Dale’s satirical Press Release which said the same thing. Jackson admits that cutting and pasting the State seal into his press release was a mistake.
From now on, I plan to listen to Dale daily – no excuses, no rolling over, no vacations (well, maybe except for going to the beach, and maybe I’ll just sleep through the first hour, and maybe the dog ate my radio).
The Democrats are going to try to take Dale’s scalp for his stunt – but the joke’s on them – Dale shaves his head. Seriously, Dale may be in trouble a bit and he’s probably got some explaining to do. Secretary of State Beth Chapman’s office seems to have overreacted to the stunt by issuing their alarmist Press Release.
Good for Dale Jackson for standing up for free speech – satire is speech.
We are going to have to agree to disagree on this one. Not all “speech” is protected. The most classic example being, shouting “Fire!” in a crowded theater. Speech that impinges on another’s rights is always more closely scrutinized. As such, anything that would tend to discourage voter activity should and must be looked at more closely.
I truly hope that this was intended as a joke by its originator, but that being said, the very act created a risk that some might believe it and fail to show up at the polls. It also created the risk that someone with less pure motives would use this to intentionally suppress voter turn-out.
What is most troubling is that this seems to be a trend as of late. (Although I’m sure it has a longer history, most notably Nixon’s squad of self-named “rat-****ers”)
In Mo. fake fliers were sent out telling voters the wrong day & polling place.
In Va. voters were told that one party was to vote on one day & the other party on another.
In Fla. voters were told they could vote by phone.
In Penn. voters were told that their polling place had been changed.
No this goes beyond mere satire. This is no joke.
Both parties should take this as very serious matter.
One of Paul’s voters called in upset with the release b/c she said everyone would know how you voted based on the day. Dale seemed to realize then that this thing might be taken seriously.
Don’t forget about the New Black Panthers patrolling polling places… And don’t forget about the Democratic Party trying to hijack the State School Board election last year (Smithwick)…
Real voter suppression is a serious matter – this joke may be stupid but it was not a threat to the political system (and let’s be clear – I don’t think the joke was funny). Once Jackson realized on air that he could be taken seriously he tried to undo it. I understand that his ‘Press Release’ was posted on his website saying it was a joke.
BTW, the applicable Law is The Fair Campaign Practices Act:
Section 17-22A-16 Obstruction, intimidation, etc., of voting rights of others prohibited.
It shall be unlawful for any person to obstruct, intimidate, threaten or coerce any other person for the purpose of interfering with the right of such other person to vote or to vote as he or she may choose, or for the purpose of causing such other person to vote for, or not to vote for, any candidate for state or local office or any other proposition at any election.
(a) A person who violates any provision of this chapter other than Section 17-22A-7 or a reporting requirement under Sections 17-22A-4, 17-22A-5, and 17-22A-8 is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor and subject to a fine of not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000), or imprisonment of not more than one year, or both.
The Attorney General may prosecute for violations of this chapter. Venue for cases involving violations of this chapter shall be in the county in which the alleged violator resides. No prosecution for violation of this chapter shall be commenced later than two years after the date of violation… Additionally, a prosecution brought pursuant to this section shall be prosecuted by the Attorney General or the district attorney for the appropriate jurisdiction, and the venue for any action pursuant to this section shall be in the county in which the alleged violation occurred…
http://www.helplinelaw.com/usa-statutes/alabama/Title%2017%20ELECTIONS./Chapter%2022A%20THE%20FAIR%20CAMPAIGN%20PRACTICES%20ACT.
I wonder what the Madison County District Attorney’s office thinks about this – I guess they’ll take it seriously enough to have a meeting. Or would the investigative process start in the Attorney General’s office?
Wayne — Exactly. Dale and his defenders can laugh all they want about “stupid” voters, but most folks of all political persuasions do not obsess over politics and are not necessarily savvy enough to realize that voting is always a one-day affair and cannot be changed by the Secretary of State because of heavy turnout.
YBFaL — I could have done without the hoary “fire in a crowded theater” analogy. Here’s the thing: FALSELY yelling “fire” in a crowded building isn’t really “speech” for First Amendment purposes at all, any more than pulling a fire alarm is “speech.” Or, to take another example, if a mobster says “Shoot him, Bugsy,” and Bugsy shoots him, and the mobster is prosecuted for murder, he doesn’t have a First Amendment defense. The First Amendment is intended to protect debate and discussion about issues of public concern, not the giving of orders or false fire alarms, or for that matter, the illegal interference in the voting process. I do not believe Dale crossed the line of illegality, but he certainly crossed the line of propriety.
I’m with Reactionary on this one.
That was freakin’ great! I will never miss another DJ show!
Categories: Breaking News, Elections, Government, Politics
Staff
WVNN morning radio show host Dale Jackson.
MONTGOMERY, AL – The host of a Huntsville radio talk show who posted on the Internet a fake news release prominently using the official state seal could be facing a felony charge, a spokesman for the state attorney general’s office said today.
Chris Bence, spokesman for Attorney General Troy King, said Secretary of State Beth Chapman had turned a copy of the phony press release over to the attorney general’s office, and that a preliminary investigation is under way.
WVNN radio host Dale Jackson posted on the station’s Web site the release that said those who planned to vote for Democrat Laura Hall shouldn’t vote until Wednesday because of overcrowding at the polls. Hall lost the state Senate special election to Republican Paul Sanford.
Jackson told The Times’ Tuesday night he had been informed by Chapman’s office that unauthorized use of the seal was not allowed and he conceded that he should not have used the seal.
However, he defended the fake press release – which purported to be issued by “Marion S. Barber, secretary of the Office of Electoral Elections” — as “parody” and said the it is “absurd” to think that anyone would take it seriously.
When U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile, was attorney general in 1995, his office issued an advisory opinion that says using the official state seal or an image or facsimile of it to further trade or business violates state law. A conviction could bring a prison term of up to 10 years.
Bence said an attorney in King’s office will review the material and the incident, and decide whether it should be turned over to the investigative unit. It could ultimately be presented to a grand jury, he said.
“They’ll have to look into it and they’ll come up with a ruling,” Jackson said when informed of the investigation. He declined further comment.
Tags: Dale Jackson, District 7, election, WVNN
Print This Page | Send To A Friend | Permalink (Learn More)
Jack whined, “Wayne — Exactly. Dale and his defenders can laugh all they want about ’stupid’ voters, but most folks of all political persuasions do not obsess over politics and are not necessarily savvy enough to realize that voting is always a one-day affair and cannot be changed by the Secretary of State because of heavy turnout.”
Anyone not “savvy enough” to determine an election date is not bright enough to vote – and should not be permitted to even approach a polling place. In fact, anyone who is a net tax taker should not be permitted to vote, but that’s another discussion for another time. I guess it’s safe to assume Hall supporters aren’t very “savvy.” In fact, they probably didn’t even make it out of bed until after Dale was off the air. And that begs the question, exactly which two Hall supporters heard Dale’s spoof?
Johnny Reb — That was whining? Please. As for your other comments, they make little sense given that the caller Wayne referred to was a Sanford voter. Say what you want, but I know (and I’ll bet you do, too) a lot of people who would probably fall for that sort of thing, bless their hearts. They may not be the savviest or smartest folks around (or maybe they’re just gullible), but they still have the right to vote, the last I checked anyway.
So, the AG is actually talking about going after folks who use the state seal illegally? I see it used illegally frequently. A lot of the campaign material over the last few years contains “illegal” use of the state seal.
The AG should enforce the illegal use against everyone and not just against a radio guy who let a joke get out of hand.
It is worthwhile to go to the AG’s site and read the 1995 opinion. It is hard for me to see how this will fit under a commercial use. Further the section that makes commercial use of the seal illegal is almost never enforced. If it was then the makers of lapel pins, tie tacs etc that use the state seal would be prosecuted.
The statute cited by Reactionary is probably the closest fit but even that may be hard to pursue.
That said it was an incredibly stupid thing to do and unfortunately as a result, all the talk today is about the “press release” not Sanford’s victory.
Poor Dale. I feel bad for him that he opened this can of worms. I for one know that wisdom sometimes comes from bad judgement. We all live, learn and pay the price. I hope his price is not too great.
It would really be a stretch to say that Dale used the State Seal for commercial use. Back when I was in ABI, there were some complaints about a car dealership using the state seal in newspaper ads to sell cars. Nobody wanted to prosecute and they were doing exactly what the law forbid. I’ve never heard of anyone being convicted under this statute.
If all he did was post it on his personal website, there’s no way the law applies. I don’t remember seeing anything for sale on his site. That being said, if the law made it a felony to use the State Seal for any foolish purpose; he would be guilty as sin. I’ve always thought that was a dumb joke; but if it was against the law to tell a dumb joke, I’d be in prison.
Jack said, ‘bless their hearts.’ Isn’t that sweet? Spoken like a true paternalistic massah on the Democratic Plantation. Gotta keep the dolts voting, else few Democrat candidates would ever be elected.
Based on the body of comments I’ve seen from Jack here, implying that he is sympathetic to the Democrat Party is laughable.
Put the crack pipe down, Johnny. I think you’ve hit bottom.
ON THE POINT OF THIS POST: Jackson’s website is one of the many Alabama political blogs and websites that I try to take at least a glimpse of every day. I saw the post being discussed on his website, and despite the state seal (how many people know what the official state seal looks like, anyway?) as soon as I read the text I immediately knew that it was a hoax of the type one might expect to be posted on April 1 of any year. I’m surprised that anyone who saw it could think otherwise. If anyone did, that may go a long way toward explaining why some legislators in Alabama are in office and are returned to office for too many years by voters.
QUESTION: I see a photo in the top right corner of this page with Civil War type cannons in it. The photo appears to be on a ridge with another ridge in the background, a lot like Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga where similar cannons and Civil War monuments were just outside the windows of Missionary Ridge Grammar School (since demolished) when I was enrolled there. So my question is, where was that photo made?
Heck, The AG might be indicted before Dale.
I knew it. I told you so…Dale’s stupid prank will get him in hot water. Thank goodness he isn’t a big celebrity – may be they will go easy on him. I don’t understand why Dale gave Dems and anti-Republicans ammunition to fire. What was he thinking – obviously he didn’t. BTW, if Laura Hall won – we wouldn’t be talking about this right now.
Don – good eye – the picture was taken in January at Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga. The photo is Dent’s Alabama Battery of six 12# Napoleons: during the battle the battery lost 7 killed, 1 officer and 20 men wounded and captured, 5 guns and 2 caisons and 35 horses captured. One gun section was emplaced in the rear and escaped.
I just realized that I haven’t made it clear here at Flashpoint: I think that Dale’s joke was inappropriate. I think it was a stupid joke (but very common), but not one that rises to the level of criminality. I support the Secretary of State’s office and the Attorney General’s office for taking this seriously and I support their investigation. I also appreciate WVNN for standing by Dale Jackson. I’m pretty sure Dale learned something from this – and probably more than just how to make it onto TV.
While I’m at it, I appreciate ‘My Liberal Best Friend’ for standing by me when I’ve done stupid things (and no, we don’t really need to list them – the worst ones are public record already ;)
I don’t generally consider myself “stupid”but I guess I am according to Dale and some bloggers here because I believed the announcement from Dale plausible. Over the last five months things I once would have thought “can’t happen here in the good old USA” have and continue to do so. Almost every day we are seeing ex post facto laws, bills of attainder, and other types of actions by our governments (plural) that seem to be obviously unconstitutional. We have judges being nominated to the highest court in the land who brag that they make judgments of law based on their “feelings” as part of their judgement of law. And it doesn’t seem to matter!! The AIG bonus fiasco is one excellent example, continuing violations of the 10th amendment another, and the USG as primary common stockholders of major corporations a third.
Another example, this time local. One year ago who would have believed that a local government housing agency could secretly purchase a privately-owned apartment complex and evict existing tenants who were current on their rent, with no criminal conduct at issue, and with no recourse for the tenants. They simply make too much money. Then replace those tenants with others of the agency’s own choosing. And then, to top it off, once exposed, to essentially tell the local residents “too bad, too late, it’s a fait accompli-get over it”. It can happen here – it
is happening here. Also, the idea of flipping a coin for an election is not so far fetched as it may seem. A two-second Googling brought hundreds of results. Maybe Dale should have googled it himself before he spouted to those he called stupid in his audience.
I think the reaction to Dale’s joke in terms of the relatively large number of people who heard and reacted to it speaks more about the conditions and climate of our society than it does us, the people who believed it.
To me the joke only worked because in today’s society it is an entirely plausible scenario. Dale may have accidently stumbled in to an interesting commentary on the current mind set of our community, if not our nation.
I guess “corny” joke is a more accurate description than “stupid” joke.