According to Business Insider (from which comes most of this article’s title) evangelist Bradlee Dean and his You Can Run but You Cannot Hide ministries is suing Rachel Maddow and MSNBC for defamation, claiming that Maddow falsely portrayed Dean as advocating the execution of homosexuals.
This wouldn’t be of interest except that Dean is a birther (says Business Insider) and apparently believes that Obama has declared America a Muslim nation (not the first time I’ve seen a birther say that).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-txsg6KxFI
NBC news responds that they stand by their story. Based on what I have read comparing what Dean said and how Maddow characterized it, I think NBC is in pretty good shape. The plaintiffs have requested a jury trial. Hmmm, is this another opportunity for application of the District’s new anti-SLAPP law?
Learn more:
- Complaint filed by Bradlee Dean and You Can Run but You Cannot Hide International in the Superior Court for the District of Columbia
- The Bradlee Dean – Michele Bachman connection. Slate magazine.
Another birther connection: His lawyer is Larry Klayman, who is also representing WND in its suit against Esquire.
It takes all kind. I think these people bitherism is just the tip of their insanity. If the quotes that are attributed to Bradlee Dean are correct he should save the money on his lawyers and apologize.
Can anyone shed light on why this was filed in DC Superior Court? The complaint states that this is proper because you can hear Bradlee’s radio show in DC, and you can watch Maddow in DC. Does this make sense?
If I recall my Hebrew Bible correctly (Misha, help, please) homosexuality (man lying down with man, as to women, apparently they liked “The L Word”) was an abomination, and thus a death penalty offense. Of course, to execute someone for a death penalty offense the Hebrews required two witnesses, at least one of whom had to warn the potential defendant beforehand. By the time of Christ the death penalty was very rarely used in Israel by the Hebrews. One Rabbi said that if it was used once every 70 years it would be a bloodthirsty Sanhedrin.
And one argument is that that is why they wanted to have Jesus dealt with by the Romans.
His attorney is none other than Larry Klayman who is also representing WND. It is a small little neighborhood in birtherland.
http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2011/07/bradlee_dean_suing_andy_birkey_minnesota_independent_rachel_maddow_msnbc.php
I read the complaint and noticed some funny English at the begionning and at the end – perhaps an indication that it could be last-minute changes by the person responsible for filing, ie Klayman, without consulting someone better at law and language?
Under 2: “Bradlee Dean is renowned and accomplished hard metal rocker” There is an indefinite article missing here
Number 22 is a malapropism based on the double meaning of the word :damages”.
These people have been reading too much Orly Taitz, I thought.
Until I googled the malapropism and found “damages for business losses and to their good WILL” in … the Farah suit against Esquire.
But dropping articles to make it look like translated Russian is bizarre.Are birfers inventing a new version of the English language for their suits?
Not that fanatical Dominionists and other right-wing Christians know this or care, because the Talmud and other rabbinic writings just aren’t the revealed WORD of the LORD and thus don’t count.
*snarl*
By the way, is it normal for US priests or their lawyers to refer to dwindling congregations as “business losses”.
Who was that bleeding-heart liberal again who chased money handlers out of the temple?
Maybe they could start selling indulgences again. Or one-up the Mormons and charge for baptizing all of a person’s ancestors.
I have to say though, I followed the link to the “Bachmann connection” and it continued the trend of everything I read in here about Bachmann fires me up to support her more and more. She is the real deal.
Thanks for encouraging my increasing passion for her campaign.
LOL! Hey, you are free to support, campaign for and vote for any candidate you want. That is the beauty of America and our system of governance.
ROFLMAO
Also, ROFLMAO.
“This wouldn’t be of interest except that Dean is a birther (says Business Insider) and apparently believes that Obama has declared America a Muslim nation (not the first time I’ve seen a birther say that).”
I often wonder where they came up with this one too.
Actually, Obama did say that the US was a Muslim nation in his book, The Audacity of Hope. Here’s the quote:
Yes. Libel claims can be made in any jurisdiction where the defamatory material is published or broadcast.
This principle has been taken to the extreme in England, where it is much easier to sue for libel than in the US. There are examples of claims being made for libel here over books that were never commercially distributed save for a few dozen orders that some UK consumers have placed on Amazon; those Amazon shipments from the US to England have been sufficient for the material to have been “published” in England and for English law to apply. For this reason, London is known as the world capital for libel claims.
The SPEECH Act of 2010, a law to prevent the enforcement of English libel judgments in the US, is one of the few bills in the 111th Congress to enjoy widespread bipartisan support. Given that people can and do view the Rachel Maddow Show online in the UK, I take it that the SPEECH Act is the main reason why Bradlee Dean did not file his claim in England.
Jules — Thanks. I guess that means the plaintiff thinks something about DC law makes it favorable to their case.
Maybe they haven’t heard that DC has an Anti-SLAPP law now.
It would hardly be the first time that a birther was ignorant about the law.