Keith Olbermann ReceIves a Death Threat, and the New York Post Thinks It's Pretty Darn Funny

The New York Post's unctuous Page Six "reported" it, but it's also been independently confirmed that MSNBC's Keith Olbermann -- whose brave commentaries of late taking to task the Bush Administration (and President Bush himself) have invited genuine comparisons to Edward R. Murrow -- opened a suspicious letter with a California postmark that was mailed to his New York City home late Tuesday night and out poured a white powdery substance. A threatening note inside reportedly indicated that this represented revenge for his outspoken on-air views of late.

It turns out the powder was laundry detergent and (thank God) not anthrax or any other toxic substance. But Olbermann obviously didn't know it was harmless until later on and, panic-stricken, called 911 at about 12:30 a.m. ET early this morning, according to the Page Six item. While preliminary tests of the powder confirmed the detergent finding, Olbermann, as a precaution, asked to be taken to the hospital just to be certain.

Now, whom among us would have treated this as a ho-hum, given the anthrax mail attacks of five years back? No one. Yet the famously right-leaning Post (published by Fox chairman Rupert Murdoch) naturally allowed its politics to get in the way while reporting what was in fact a legitimate and frightening death threat against a journalist whom someone was looking to intimidate and paralyze with fear.

Here is the Post item, and I also copy it here in full so you need not stain your computer hard drive by actually having to link to these reprehensible oafs:

POWDER PUFF SPOOKS KEITH

MSNBC loudmouth Keith Olbermann flipped out when he opened his home mail yesterday. The acerbic host of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" was terrified when he opened a suspicious-looking letter with a California postmark and a batch of white powder poured out. A note inside warned Olbermann, who's a frequent critic of President Bush's policies, that it was payback for some of his on-air shtick. The caustic commentator panicked and frantically called 911 at about 12:30 a.m., sources told The Post's Philip Messing. An NYPD HazMat unit rushed to Olbermann's pad on Central Park South, but preliminary tests indicated the substance was harmless soap powder. However, that wasn't enough to satisfy Olbermann, who insisted on a checkup. He asked to be taken to St. Luke's Hospital, where doctors looked him over and sent him home. Whether they gave him a lollipop on the way out isn't known. Olbermann had no comment.

Note the sarcasm and cheeky snark, from the headline on down. They refer to a man who received a serious and authentic warning shot at his home address as "acerbic," "caustic" and a "loudmouth" who "flipped out" and "was terrified," as if being badly shaken after receiving what he understandably presumed was a deadly biological agent made him a wimp. Yeah I mean, gee, what moron would think it was actual anthrax, huh? And what relevence is there in noting parenthetically that Olbermann is "a frequent critic of President Bush's policies"? Because he is, the presumption is that he of course deserved it, right? And that he's a girly-man wuss to boot?

Page Six ought to be completely ashamed to publish a mocking dismissal of what is in fact a serious news story and try to pass it off as journalistic, not to mention putting its contempt for the left above its humanity. But then, it has a long and illustrious track record of being both shameless and inhuman, so this is perfectly in keeping with its style.

UPDATE! UPDATE! -- At 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on MSNBC's "Countdown" show tonight, not only will Olbermann be addressing the powder incident; he will also take time to point out how the NY Post (via Page Six) may have interfered with an FBI investigation of terroristic threats with its mocking item.

Just for fun, my friend Rich Procter crafted his prediction of how a Page Six item would have read had the same thing happened to Fox News personality and NY Post icon Bill O'Reilly rather than Olbermann. I present it here for your indignation and amusement.

TERRORISTS TARGET FOX PUNDIT -- COPS CLAIM AL QAEDA LINK

Beloved Fox news personality Bill O'Reilly was stunned by a terrorist attack in his home mail yesterday. The dynamic host of "The O'Reilly Factor" was wary when he opened a suspicious-looking letter with a California postmark and an anthrax-like powder poured out. A note inside warned O'Reilly, one of President Bush's most vigorous defenders that it was 'payback' for his implacable stance against Islamofascist terrorists. The stalwart commentator calmly dialed 911 at about 12:30 a.m., sources told The Post's Philip Messing. An NYPD HazMat united rushed to O'Reilly's home, but preliminary tests confirmed what O'Reilly himself suspected -- the substance was harmless soap powder. Although Mr. O'Reilly insisted the incident go no further, authorities persuaded him to go to St. Luke's Hospital, where doctors gave him a clean bill of health. O'Reilly, who reportedly has been a "high value target" for Al Qaeda terrorists, had no comment, but his steely glare and determined stride showed reporters he was unshaken by this attempt on his life.

Comments

[moe berg]

if you remember, the post was actually targeted in the 2001 anthrax attacks. as a result, one of their desk assistants came down with a cutaneous case on her middle finger. i'm sure no one at the paper was shaken at all when that happened.

[Verchiel]

The Post's treatment of this incident is pretty deplorable. However, I think their inclusion of the descriptive "a frequent critic of President Bush's policies" while perhaps inviting approving nods of "he deserved it," also puts it out there, front and center, that it is the authoritarian Bush apologists who would react to criticism in this despicable--and illegal--matter.

[Zantar]

Let's hope Keith's fans don't do something silly like mail hundreds of similar soap-filled envelopes to Post goons...

[3reddogs]

I totally agree that the New York Post's tone was totally inappropriate but you have to wonder why it was in the "Page Six" section to begin with. This story hardly qualifies as "gossip" and that's primarily what Page Six is. (The same Page Six, I might add, that was all over the headlines earlier this year when a Page Six staffer solicited $220,000 from a high-profile billionaire in return for a year's "protection" against inaccurate and unflattering items about him appearing in Page Six. Where I come from that's called extortion.)

[JJ]

And Olbermann is such a complete stranger to sarcasim after all, I'm sure he's never heard biting comments about someone ever in his life.

[Ronald Brown]

I wonder if the author thought it was eqally funny when the CIA case had to be postponed and everyone kept out of the courthouse for three hours? I suppose all of the Court security people and counsel and the Judge were offered a lollipop when the threat turned out to be a bag of clothes.

[Boudica]

Keith is intelligent enough to know that the wingnuts are capable of anyhing, and therefore he took the proper actions. If he was frightened by this, he should have been. His fan have been cautioning him to watch his back ever since he began his commentaries. Anyone who has taken the trouble to locate his home address must be viewed as a serious threat. If this is someone's idea of a prank, they are mentally deranged. Mr. Olbermann did the responsible thing. These are dangerous times and there is precedent for anthrax attacks through the mail system. It is not just Mr. Olbermann who received the mail, but all the others handling it who were potentially vulnerable. GOOD JOB KEITH! Don't let the bastards get you down.

[Chief]

As far as I'm concerned, Mr. Olbermann is the real hero here. A lone voice in the wilderness attempting to hold the Administration's feet to the fire, I salute him for his willingness to speak truth to power.

[TS]

and some wonder why there is little to no trust in today's media. this kind of light play of something that could have been far worse makes me sick to my stomach. i am thankful, as i'm sure Olbermann was, to learn this was soap powder, regardless the point was made. i hope that the police investigate this, and prosecute those responsibe to the fullest extent of the law. perhaps in a more timely manner than that of the original anthrax laced letters some five years ago. should they [the police] care to find the culprits of those attacks i think one only needs to look close at the White House. it wouldn't surprise me if evidence is being suppressed in that case. i mean come on with all of today's technology police are able to solve some crimes which have been on the books for decades and often considered unsolved and all because of the latest technologies. and here we are with that technology and not one clue as to who sent out anthrax laced letters. it's a tad odd i think.

[Madison Guy]

Something definitely seems to be stirring in the anthrax swamp again. First, fake death threats (Olbermann) and false alarms, then maybe some of the real stuff. And then we identify overseas evildoers as the likely source (now that the FBI claims, according to WaPo, that 2001 attacks were not domestic after all). Sound familiar? Can you spell October Surprise? Or more likely, November Surprise? (After the Republican congressional majority is safely reelected.)

http://letterfromhere.blogspot.com/2006/09/washington-post-update-what-elephant.html

[Mike]

If you want to show your support for Keith. I'll bet he needs it at a time like this.

KOlbermann@msnbc.com

[OldOldLady Of The Hills]

I agree 150% with Chief. Bravo to Olbermann and you too Ray, for posting about this!

[New York Joe]

Since when has the Post tried to pass anything off as "journalistic"? Good sports section, though.

[KAM]

I suggest the "Page Six" author take some of the soap powder and wash his mouth out!

[jogger]

They fake death threats to intimidate a commentator who dares to speak out against their leader.

They blow up government buildings in America's heartland.

They kill doctors at abortion clinics.

They plant fake news reports in our media.

They build their own propaganda news channel.

They call all those who question thier policies traitors.

The wave the American flag at every turn, wave it over every false move they make.

They want to rid the country of homosexuals

They want a country that is purely Christian and consider all others "lost"

They marginalize real conservatives, and demonize progressive thinking.

They want to ban books they deem filth, or degenerate.

and they wonder why they are compared to Nazis?!

[winterbear]

keith's commentary on the event was very interesting.

It was in the middle of his show.
He was told not to make the attack public.
He claims that the Post tried to trick him by posing as a friend.
No one at the post checked with MSNBC but they said Keith had no comment.

Apparently this did not happen the way they said it did. Keith claims to have been at the hospital for 10 hours. This is after going though hazmat decontamination of his clothes, residence and person.

I am sure the whole thing will be up on youtube very soon. Keith's reaction and commentary on the event were terrific.

[Black Krishna]

HOW DID FOX NEWS KNOW??? HOW COME FOX NEWS WERE THE ONLY REPORTERS THERE???

In all the hubub about the sickly snarkiness, which was disgusting, I think focusing on the investigation and the pricks who ran and vetted the story could be a good lead, at least until it leads to more or is a confirmed dead-end. The only reason Bush is lasting this long is that the White House is in serious cahoots with the right-wing media, and that could mean threatening Keith (or even killing him, as if that's a surprise for these guys) and sending their own journalist out to break the story and help spin the initial response.

This forces the much of the mainstream media to scramble to concoct their own weak set of "talking points" spinning their own weak lies and omissions that keep the public debate within a safe and polarized framework. They use or invent the barest of selectively edited and delivered "facts" with little history or context to prevent the public from understanding what's really happening and who's behind it. Then they endorse criticism that trains people to hate "people" just for being the horrible "people" who "weaken our resolve and endanger the troops" when they believe what they believe, and we have the uninformed calling the most informed "un-American" for trying to inform them.

This fascist dumbing-down is eroding our natural optimism, fraternal trust and respect over time, leaving us vulnerable to the most confident and consistent "talking points" message from the right-wing media's "echo effect", the perfect fascist tool for controlling men and minds. Since having b-lls works, the narrow confines of every debate keep moving to the "right" while the "left" are given positions that are set up to lose, and kept from learning about things like "depleted uranium" that can destroy any right-wing arguments by proving that the U.S. military-industrial warlords don't give a silent damn about the "troops".

This lack of knowledge forces many normal people to make stupid genocidal arguments, like "it was a mistake, but we're in Iraq and Afhganistan so we need to stay to finish the job", when we're not doing any sort of job they can begin to describe. Incidentally, we are doing almost nothing to give the Iraqi's and Afghani's any jobs either, or you'd hear government propagandists brag about it to help hide their other crimes.

There is nothing good happening over there with both soldiers and civilians stuck in a meat-grinder of radiation sickness and death and unprotected by any press or public scrutiny, this is a war crime of Hitlerian calculations, and guys like Keith who have the charisma to make people realize it and wake up are in danger. We need to come out swinging, and remember that many of these guys are rich and hobknob with the elite, Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones even made "Sweet Neo-Con" a couple of years ago, and our artists and leaders know the score and know we're running out of time...

New Eminem Track References Wire Tapping, Political Assassinations, and 9/11

9/11 Blogger
Friday, December 1, 2006

Eminem - Public Enemy #1 - 2.4mb MP3

DOWNLOAD Emp3 - http://www.prisonplanet.com/ arti...11206Eminem.htm

Too many on the "right" are too fascist these days, and enjoy the thick-skulled bloodsport of taking any shot any time at any "liberal" or critic of Bush whether it's warranted or not, and whether it's objectively immoral or not, while high-fiving each other. Some are government agents paid handsomely to mess with us, and as pro's working off the same script they can be natural leaders in a world of confused people on blogs and message boards, not to mention other areas of greater influence.

Their whole strategy is evil, and helps ensure that Karl Rovebots are too loyally brainwashed to see the immorality in lies, greed, torture, stealing elections, drowning New Orleans, sticking thousands in refugee-style FEMA camps, and murdering millions (especially with depleted uranium) around the world, among countless other crimes against God, Man, Philosophy, Common Sense, Cats, whatever. It's getting almost irreversably bad, and we need to take a stand against this insanity.

Keith Olbermann is being seriously attacked because he's seriously attacking the right people, those who need to use violence to silence their critics because their critics are right. These are the same people who would destroy any leaders who can save us from their dystopian dream of endless "War on Terror" re-shaping our economies and societies, and weakening western countries until they're exploited like the Third World while ramping up the prison slave-labor war-machine. This is what we're facing, and Keith is a canary in a coalmine coughing up laundry detergent (for now)...

Since well-before the well-documented COINTELPRO program was illegally launched againt black liberation movements, the elite have been using their tools in U.S. military and intelligence to destroy any chance of anyone inspiring us enough to wake up and see the blood-soaked lie the 20th Century has been, and if they killed John Lennon and dozens of others then Keith Olbermann wouldn't be a problem.

However, when the brownshirts are taught to endorse "anthrax attacks" we have a bigger dilemma: a Bush/Cheney administration given no censure by the media, and given licence by their followers to attack their critics with "anthrax". With licence comes indulgence, and with indulgence comes the fun of everyone else joining in...

"This new fascism is a bit different from the old fascism, eh? It doesn't quite have that old street-fighting quality to it, at least not yet, though when you see recent developments you realize that might not be far off..."

- Webster G. Tarpley
- Journalist/Author/Historian

Peace, (NOW!!!)
BK

[online dating]

It is said in...