Why "Recipe-gate" matters.

[Skinner]

By now, I suspect that most of you have heard the humorous little anecdote posted on the Huffington Post yesterday:

On a section of McCain's site called "Cindy's Recipes," you can find seven recipes attributed to Cindy McCain, each with the heading "McCain Family Recipe." ... Some of the "McCain Family Recipes," were in fact, word-for-word copies of recipes on the Food Network site.

It's a minor gaffe, probably good for perhaps a day or two of "this is kinda funny" press coverage and nothing more. Some people were pushing the plagiarism angle, which is technically true, but I suspect that in the minds of the press corps plagiarizing Rachel Ray doesn't rise to the level of allegedly plagiarizing, oh, Neil Kinnock or Deval Patrick. Plus, it's the candidate's wife, not the actual candidate. To be honest, I don't think it would be a bad thing to learn that if/when Cindy McCain does cook she sometimes uses Food Network recipes -- as long as she were to give them credit, rather than pass them off as "McCain Family Recipes." I use Food Network recipes, too. I sure as heck don't ever make up my *own* recipes -- most people don't. Why on earth we would expect the wives of our presidential candidates to make up their own recipes is beyond me.

I think there is a case to be made that this cuts to the heart of the "elitism" issue. The whole point of putting "McCain Family Recipes" on the website is to make Cindy McCain -- and by association, John McCain -- look more like a middle-American homemaker rather than an heiress whose wealth may may exceed $100 million. And who may not have ever cooked anything in her life. It's amazing that politicians are still able to get away with pretending to be something that they are not. You'd think the voters would have wised up to this kind of political theater by now. Instead of voting based on who bakes the best cookies, vote based on who'll give you the best health care. But apparently, they haven't.

So, there's that. But I don't think that is the worst part of this whole thing.

It just so happens that when I first heard about this story, I was having a conference call with my two fellow DU Admins, EarlG and Elad. I swear to you -- ask EarlG and Elad -- this is what I said:

"I'll tell you what happened here. This was not Cindy McCain's screw up. What happened is the McCain campaign wanted to put some recipes on their website, so some low-level McCain staffer asked an intern with nothing to do to get on Google and find some recipes to put on the website."

Lo and behold, if we are to believe the McCain campaign response, I was right:

Yesterday, Huffington Post reported that at least three McCain "family recipes" on a section of the senator’s presidential campaign site were "word-for-word copies of recipes on the Food Network site." TMZ.com now reports that the McCain campaign has already taken down the recipes and is branding the affair a "low-level unpaid staff debacle." The staffer in question has reportedly been "swiftly dealt with."

You read that right -- they blamed a volunteer.

Not only that, but the volunteer was "swiftly dealt with." No, they didn't discipline the overpriced Internet strategist who decided to put "McCain family recipes" on the campaign website. No, they didn't discipline the mid-level McCain staffer who gave this all-important job to a volunteer. They didn't even admit that it was fucked-up to have a section of their website for Cindy McCain to post her family recipes -- without actually asking Cindy McCain to provide the damn recipes herself.

No. They they blamed the intern. The unpaid volunteer who works their ass off for their hero John McCain for *NOTHING* has been thrown under the bus.

This, my friends, is why "Recipe-gate" matters. This is about values. It's about how you treat the little guy. It's about being grateful for the thousands of unpaid, unknown nobodies who support your campaign.

I have run this website for seven years, and we could not do it without our staff of unpaid volunteer moderators. I admit that I do not always treat them as well as they deserve. They do a great job, and this website would be IMPOSSIBLE without their help. Sometimes they make mistakes -- they are human, after all. But when that happens the responsibility is my own. Even on those rare occasions when I have to overturn their decisions, I try not to appear to be throwing a moderator under the bus in public. This is why we don't let you trash the moderators. Because they give their hearts-and-souls for this place, and they get nothing in return, except the satisfaction of knowing they are helping.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

1. When Cindy McCain can credibly make...

Tuna Hot Dish and Southern Fried Chicken and soda biscuits, in front of a panel of judges and with no help, just raw ingredients, then she can leave The Shaolin Temple.

[roguevalley]

38. I agree with Skinner on this. I have two recipes from my great-grandma

a to die for apple pie and a cinnamon-wine sauce. We have never told anyone the recipe, even though they have begged. Women are picky that way. Some google-eyed kid got the ax. too bad

[King Coal]

97. Skinner has got this all fouled up, as usual. The truth of the matter, which can be easily proved,

is that the Food Network copied these recipes from The McCain Family Cookbook. Cindy grew up in restaurants all throughout the southwest. At the tender age of 14 she was running the egg pans for the breakfast shift at the Durango Diner in Durango, CO. and working 2:00 pm to 10:00 pm at the Chief Diner twice a week during the same time. Two years later she was working the broiler at Velma's Steak House six days a week. I never saw her dad in anything but cook pants in his whole life, and her mom must have slung hash in every cafe in town. I'm sure if anyone did any recipe swiping it was Emeril or Rachael. Did you know that she worked for Wolfgang Puck when he was working the Strater in the sixties and early seventies? Yep, she's no slouch in the kitchen.

King

[Skinner]

109. Ha!

:rofl:

[Divine Discontent]

149. I demand you post that applie pie recipe for DUers to enjoy

or you are a horribly mean spirited individual!!!!!!!!!

[roguevalley]

157. BWAHAHA! I will give you a clue. You use granny smith apples

and you pile them about a foot high. There is lemon juice, tons of cinnamon and sugar (More cinnamon than sugar) and you bake it until it turns golden brown and the stuff inside bubbles. There is more but that is key. NEVER be afraid to stack those apples. I like mine still a wee tad crispy. Also, swish a tad of water in the apple pan until the cinnamon left over mixes into it. Pour a bit of it into the pie. That will help make the juice juicy. :+

[pengillian101]

158. I never understood that idea for not sharing recipes,

"I have two recipes from my great-grandma a to die for apple pie and a cinnamon-wine sauce. We have never told anyone the recipe, even though they have begged. Women are picky that way."
--------------

Gads, I will never ever understand that mind set. Someone has a fantastic recipe, yet keeps it to to themselves so no one else can make it. I understand that if you make a living off the recipe, otherwise, why not share? Why take it to the grave with you? Nowadays the internet makes pretty much all recipes available.

Just ask Cindy McCain, lol.

Why didn't John's Mom - who is still living - supply some REAL family recipes? Bet no one asked her.

My friends have always shared great recipes. And I have a ton of them written on napkins, typewritten and written on 3x5 cards, etc. kept in several recipe 3-ring binders. What a treasure that is to me. Most of them are now fully available online because folks just LIKE to share good recipes. I wonder if everyone's great-grandma's recipes aren't online, also. Try searching keyword ingredients into a search engine and I'd bet you'll find similar recipes.

:hi:

[sandnsea]

2. Doesn't this belong in GD:P??

Call a moderator!!

:rofl:

:hi:

[Skinner]

3. It's about John McCain.

GDP is for threads about the Democratic primary.

[sandnsea]

21. I thought we stuck the GE there last time too

Not that I'd rely on my memory for much of anything anymore.

[papau]

84. Not that I'd rely on my memory for much of anything anymore" I can relate to that :-)

[madinmaryland]

23. CALL YOUR MODERATOR!!! RIGHT ******* NOW!!

[Gonnuts]

147. I've fucking had it!

115 recs for THIS?

Please, would someone tell me why there is NOTHING up on DU about the Torture Meetings and bush getting on national TV and saying, "Yeah, we torture and I approve of it - so fuck'n what? You whanna do something about it?"

Well, apparently not. Because the lack of attention to this mind-boggling bitch-slap to our laws and honor is deafen. Someone should be asking Obama, Clinton and McCain what they think about impeaching NOW - not "after" they maybe get elected. Yesterday Repukes blocked a bill that would have replaced thousands of E-voting machines with paper-trail ones, in time for election, because "it would cost too much" - $685 million. About 2 1/2 days in Iraq. (nothing on that either)

Every fiber in your being has to be singed right now. Controlled rage should be resonating from every communication you make, and we should be making many. This should make you more than just take pause - this should make you take MAJOR ACTION!

Maybe it hasn't sunk in yet? Maybe we've been hit with so many broad-sides we've gone numb ... fine, "numb" I can understand - but this - this shouldn't make us DUMB too!

Get this through your heads - IT'S AGAINST THE LAW to even get together and TALK about making torture legal!!! It's like a group of people getting together and seriously talking about robbing a bank. Laws have been so relaxed now that all you need is "intent" to form a criminal conspiracy. Robbing a bank is against the law - therefore - planning to rob one is part of the act and there fore also against the law. Torture is against the law. And "torture" has been well defined for a long time, as it's been around for a long time, the definition of "torture" didn't start with a pimp of an AG and some whore attorney that thinks he knows more than the Founding Fathers. IT's AGAINST THE FUCKING LAW! You can't make torture legal anymore than you can make bank robbing legal. (although they've done a petty good job of that too)

Article 4 of the United Nations Convention on Torture, which the United States has signed and ratified-and which the ACLU identifies as "the most important international human rights treaty that deals exclusively with torture" - makes it illegal for individual nations to rewrite their laws to permit torture. The article states: "Each State Party shall ensure that all acts of torture are offences under its criminal law. The same shall apply to an attempt to commit torture and to an act by any person which constitutes complicity or participation in torture."

Get off your asses folks, because if they can get away with this one they can get away with attcking Iran, and you won't have to worry about any rigged election.

[MADem]

4. I called it. Immediately. It won't stick, though.

Some truths are just self-evident: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=5511496&mesg_id=5511554

Now you watch--the next thing they'll do is play UP the fact that Cindy is rich as Roosevelt...and she's profoundly "charitable." She'll make the Clintons look cheap by comparison. She's got lotsa money to throw around, and a foundation that churns it out.

That's how you paper over a mess like this.

[Skinner]

7. Self-delete.

Wrong place. Sorry.

[Dora]

15. The charity angle won't work with Cindy McCain.

She started a charity years ago to distribute drugs (medical, not recreational) in third world countries. And in the meantime, she was stealing drugs for her own personal use. The Phoenix New Times weekly had some good stuff on it.

[MADem]

29. Yeah, it will. She "atoned" for that. She's big on LAND MINES, like Diana.

She got her adopted daughter as a result of her charity work. She was a pal of Mother Theresa's.

She's been very public about the "pills" biz. Even went on TV and sobbed about it last campaign. That dog won't hunt--she's been "humanized" by that experience. At least that's what the "media" is telling us what to think....

[Bonobo]

5. I understand, but it is too complex by half to be usable against them.

[Skinner]

9. That's true.

And the other problem is that this doesn't jibe with the standard MSM narrative that Republicans understand middle America, while Democrats are the "cultural elite."

[King Coal]

99. See post 97.

[Grinchie]

145. Actually, I think we "ARE" cultural elite

Most of the people here at DU are intellectual, independent thinkers. We see the destruction of the environment and the harm caused to all of us by the dismantling of our educational system. We are the ones that identified the recession years ago, and did something to prepare for it.

The trouble with us is that we don't like to fight, so the powers that be take advantage of our unwillingness to get into the trenches and fight these bastards on their own turf.

So, it took us 8 long years to get a venue where we can discuss the absurdity of the MSM Machine and counter their false message. We have learned to use their weapons of words and lies against them, and boy does it feel good. We see through the Corporate message in a flash, and we are not afraid to call them out on it.

They are all running scared, and what is surprising to me is that Hillary Clinton bought into the Corporate marketing machine and she is surprised that it's not working anymore.

Finally, we have Obama that speaks well, stands behind what he says, right or wrong, and is a figurehead for a potential purge of all the poisions that lurk within our newly bloated, unhealthy government.

Hillary is tainted beyond repair, and even though I don't hold her responsible for foisting GMO's on us, she was part of the machine that helped bring us to the point of food insecurity, as well as the economic collapse that we are experiencing today.

[EFerrari]

6. I bet the McCain volunteers don't get keys to the hot tub.

:)

You're so right that this is about values. The local politicians I've worked for would NEVER do something like that because leadership doesn't meean CYOA at any cost to the people who look up to you.

[mohinoaklawnillinois]

8. Once again this only demonstrates the total

hypocrisy that is John McCain.

He claims to be a "war hero" but yet he will not vote for the GI Bill that Jim Webb is proposing. He claims to be against torture but waterboarding is OK with him. His name is on a campaign finance reform bill but yet he's playing games with that as well.

Typical Repuke behavior, you're 100% correct Skinner!!! Do as I say, not as I do.

[EFerrari]

13. Cindy McCain: Spring Volunteer Soup.

Boil one volunteer in hot water until scum forms. Clarify, and serve with mendacity garnish. Serves: media.

[MADem]

33. Or "roasted volunteer au jus!" Roast one volunteer over coals until well and truly done.

Discard in trash when fully incinerated.

Invite media to another barbecue--serve steaks, ribs and all sorts of tasty chow instead--make sure open bar is well stocked.

[KoKo]

122. Also it signals that in "Torture Gate" McCain is for holding only the "few bad apples" to account..

If we take "Recipe Gate" out a little further from Skinner's analogy, it might not be too much of a stretch to say this shows that McCain will operate exactly like "Bush 43" when it comes to never holding anyone high up in the chain accountable when he can throw a low level lackey under the bus.

We need to try to get more exposure of this out there as to how McBush will run the country. Total character flaw that will have more negative ramifications for our economy and justice system which are both already near collapse in credibility in the world and at home.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

10. My dear Skinner...

And I can say, as a former moderator, that you do indeed treat us well, and any discipline happens privately, as it should...

I know you value us.

The way the McCain campaign is treating its volunteer is shameful, and an indication of its core values.

Thank you for having the best-run, best organized, best EVERYTHING possible website, evah!

K&R

:patriot:

[Zodiak]

11. You make an excellent point, Skinner

This is about how the little guy is treated....it has ALWAYS been about this, even if the attention is focused somewhere else.

And by the way, Alton Brown has the BEST recipes. Especially brined turkey!

[Cassandra]

20. Alton Brown has scientifically accurate recipes.

Conservatives prefer "intelligently designed" recipes which adhere strictly to biblical principles, whether the results are worthwhile or not.

[Zodiak]

42. That must be why I like him so much n/t

[Ichingcarpenter]

12. I thought it was funny, pertinent and important enough

Or I wouldn't have started an OP on it... They lie and I'm tired of
this Linsey England bullshit culture.

[cynatnite]

14. I have a tendency to blow off stuff like this...

It goes way under my radar. Thanks for showing why this does matter, Skinner.

You, your cohorts and the mods all do a great job and we should appreciate the hard work everyone does here.

When shit rolls downhill it hits us on the bottom the hardest.

[Skinner]

18. To be honest, blowing off stuff like this is probably the correct response.

What's annoying is that stuff like this only seems to stick to Democrats.

[Nickster]

25. You mean like a candidate's choice of orange juice? :-)

[KSinTX]

26. That's because Dems aren't lockstep types

or throwing huge BBQs for the press at their homes! John McCain has figured out the perfect ego stroke for these "journalist" types and it works ... as well, or better, than the Bush administration's embedding of journalists at the start of the war. They make them part of the "team" and foster esprit de corps. How do you think the military turns rebellious young civilians into flag-waving patriots?

[cbayer]

16. It is indeed cowardly to tar and feather the lowest on the totem pole.

It speaks volumes about principles and is antithetical to the tenets of the democratic party.

[Seabiscuit]

92. Remember how Bushco threw the low-level Abu Ghraib people under the bus?

When it was all directed by people at least as high as Rumsfeld, and 99.9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999% certainty, Bush himself?

[cbayer]

146. Exactly.

The lack of accountability was sickening. I want leadership that says "The buck stops here". Bush will never take responsibility for the hell he has created and McCain's actions just mimic his.

[Seabiscuit]

159. McAnus is just a cookie-cutter Shrub.

[tabasco]

17. They want t portray the happy reich-wing home life!

Obedient wife in the kitchen where she belongs.

She gave up the multi-millionaire drug addict lifestyle and has become "John's little woman."

That's a hell of a man - can turn around an uppity gal like that!

[liam_laddie]

142. Ms. McCain in an apron?

BTW, isn't it time for her to adopt the more age-appropriate "Cynthia" or "RichWhitePlasticWoman?"
Wonder if she ever gets near an oven...:rofl:

[Ohio Joe]

19. I wonder if the intern will realize...

what an asshat McCain is now? Probably not, if he had powers of reasoning he would have been working for one of our candidates.

[KSinTX]

31. Joe, be nice! Poor kid was probably just caught in the headlights n/t

[Ohio Joe]

32. bwahahaha

Good one :)

Welcome to DU :hi:

[Ichingcarpenter]

22. Lynndie England, Dr.Phil's low level staffer, a few rotten apples..... etc.

The list just grows all the time doesn't it?


If you don't know about Dr.Phil paying bail for one of the cheerleaders that beat the shit
out that kid. He blamed that $36,000 payment to the bail bondsman to a low level staffer.

[BlooInBloo]

24. But... But... Clinton says *Obama* is elite! I'm so confused. (sobs)

[La Lioness Priyanka]

133. i love how for some of you attacking our candidates is more important than attacking mccain

:eyes:

[SpiralHawk]

27. Because this case again illustrates republicon so-called ethics, The K and...

the R.

[Gold Metal Flake]

28. DU treats ex-mods like CRAP!

I was promised free McDonald's hash browns IN PERPETUITY for my mod service. I got one lousy coupon in the mail and then NOTHING!

:mad:

[yardwork]

47. You got a coupon in the mail? I got nothin! Where's my coupon, Skinner?!!

I'll bet Romeo ate it.

[Harry Monroe]

30. Skinner, instead of using the tired old worn cliche...

..."thrown under the bus", let's instead say that the poor unpaid overworked intern was thrown in a blender set on frappe.

[SteppingRazor]

34. Wait, I'm not getting paid for this???!!!!111!!

[Maeve]

35. Yeah, but the hot tub and free margaritas count for something...

Or...did you miss out on those, too? :party: :toast: :beer: :hangover:

[SteppingRazor]

37. Miss out on them? You know as well as I do that I'm the best margarita maker in the Mod Squad

:toast:

[Wickerman]

48. you could certainly make them faster

I'm bone dry over here!

:toast:

[greatauntoftriplets]

74. Can I please have a mai-tai instead?

Please????

[maddezmom]

80. I was thinking we should add Mojito's

to the drink list. :D

[Lochloosa]

103. I prefer a shot and a beer

just saying

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

107. A shot & beer is ok, but

I hate all the foam spewing out of the blender when I make one.

Margueritas are a lot easier to clean up after.

:hi:

[cynatnite]

39. I knew there were perks!

All that crying about how under appreciated the mods are seemed a little too drama queenish. :evilgrin:

Exposed at last. Bwahahahaha

[bullwinkle428]

36. They've turned this little molehill into a mountain, and I can explain why!

There is NO WAY IN HELL that a VOLUNTEER would have any access at all to the website!!!

:mad: :mad: :mad:

Look, I spent a good amount of time during the Fall 2006 campaign season working for my local county Democrats. There were "operations rooms" where the local party officals and other local honchos had access to, that were strictly off-limits to volunteers. For those that can't figure out why, just think about Watergate. How easy would it be for some slimy little GOP mole to garner some potentially dangerous strategic information to damage someone's campaign??


Just imagine the implications, if a volunteer mole put up something on that website like "Klansmen for McCain"!! The screenshot heard 'round the world! :rofl:

[Muttocracy]

87. actually, that's a good point

Either someone else posted this volunteer/intern's stuff without any quality control, or they're giving access to people who shouldn't have it. Either one is sloppy management, and we've had enough of that for a long time.

[bklyncowgirl]

102. Obama gets laughed at for his apparent familiarity with the price of arugula at Whole Foods

Meanwhile, the McCain campaign mounts a recipe cribbed from the Food Network website on their website in order to make millionaire heiress Cindy McCain seem like a downhome domestic goddess.

Obama's familiarity with arugula prices would seem to indicate that the man has actually gone to a supermarket with the intention to actually buy some food--even if it is arugula.

Does anyone really think that Hillary Clinton does her own shopping or that John McCain has ever stepped into a supermarket, even an upscale one, for any purpose other than a phot op?

This whole elitist thing is ridiculous. These people are all elitists. They have more money than you and me. They have better education than most of us and for the good of this country they had better be smarter than you and me or we are in big trouble.

[bullwinkle428]

119. Exactly - it's like what they were talking about on the Stephanie Miller show yesterday...

"Guess what...these candidates for President are not like you! Dubya Bush is NOT a ranch hand, clearing brush and looking to sit down with you for a beer!" :rofl:

[crispini]

40. Right on!

Interesting perspective. :D

[cali]

41. Isn't it silly?

this actually makes me sad.

[CTyankee]

45. About the volunteer, yes.

But I must say I got a huge laugh from just the IDEA of Arizona Ahi tuna!

And also just the idea of Cindy in a kitchen. That woman probably wouldn't boil water for fear of wilting her hair...

[Johonny]

43. anyone else disagree

The most likely out come will be this intern will land a nice job some where else based on his recommendation from John McCain. When he applies to the heritage foundation they'll call up McCain and they'll say "oh yeah this guy is great. He's the type you want working for you. Loyal fall on your sword type." I think Bush Co. has pretty much shown party loyalty is rewarded in the Republican party. Small time election workers are expected to fall on their sword and time and time again over the last 7+ years have gladly done so. So basically this person is and likely will get something in return for this.

[tigereye]

44. hmm, what about that cabana in Bermuda that I was promised?

:rofl:

[yardwork]

46. As a former mod, I can attest to the fact that you and the other Admins treat volunteers very well!

This incident shows the difference between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. We are a party of values. The Republicans are made up of individuals held together by one common desire - money.

And that's really what it comes down to in the end.

[bluescribbler]

116. Two values, actually

Money and Power. Power attracts money. Money buys power. 'Round and 'round and 'round we go. Where we stop, nobody knows. :puke:

[yardwork]

128. I was going to say Money and Power, but the kind of power the right-wing wants is centered on money.

They aren't interested in the power of doing good, the power of love, the power of forgiveness, the power of enlightenment, the power of a connection to a higher spiritual existence, the power of being free of the desire for worldly possessions. They only want the kind of power that money brings.

They are spiritually bankrupt and it shows in every aspect of their lives and behavior. Skinner's right - this recipe incident illustrates it perfectly.

[bluescribbler]

155. Not quite

They also want the power that allows them to control other people. That's why they insist on the right to listen in on our telephone conversations, the right to control our sexuality, the right to force their religion/superstitions upon us, among other things.

[satya]

49. K&R. nt

[Contrary1]

50. You are all assuming there really was

a low level volunteer involved. And according to the rebuttal, that low level volunteer
actually tried one of the recipes and thought it was delish.
Okydokey.

[rasputin1952]

51. I often wondered how John McCain kept that youthful look...

But you have to dig pretty deep to find that recipe he uses, as it is in an old tome rarely seen except by Cindy.

See McCain is actually 187 years of age, and if it were not for this old family recipe, he'd actually look his age:

Youth and Indiscretion

3 quarts boiling water, heavily salted w/the tears of hungry chidren
2 tbs melted lard
3 eyes of newt (Gingrich, '3rd eye' optional)
3 tsps oil of pressed toad
1 cup oil, pressed from Reagan's hair
1/2 cup sweat from those who actually work for a living
3# fatback
1# rabbit "pellets"
14-18 Brussels's Sprouts
1 lg Red potato diced
3 stalks rhubarb
15-20 digits, fresh/frozen, from the various sites where torture is permissible
dash of "Nancy Reagan Spice Mix", Reagan family secret recipe; dried bones and surplus ear wax

Bring down from boil to lukewarm until it congeals. Serve in unwashed Trent Lott "hairbowl".


Goes well w/a fifth of gin, straight up.


Bona petit

[juno jones]

58. My family has a similar recipie

only ours includes 'ditch-born-babe'. Do you think it works as well without it? That'd be great if it did, ditch born babes are really getting scarce these days. ;)

Your recipe shows far more creativity than Cindy's entire oevure. As a cook, I give an A+.

Thank you, Skinner. I hadn't really heard about this in any detail. I agree with you.

[rasputin1952]

65. I can't afford "ditch-born-babe"...

:(

However, I can get "Nancy Reagan Spice Weasels" by the dozen, they're pretty cheap these days. cheney has a truck load of them, and you can't miss his truck either, it's that ice cream truck covered in human skulls, the speakers look like Cony's mouth and play Flight of the Valkyries; (I think he uses it to attract waifs and street urchins, using them to keep his own life going).

[juno jones]

82. LOL!

:rofl:


You very funny. :hi:

[Breeze54]

52. I actually hadn't heard about it but you are right on the money!

"This is about values." :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Rethugs don't have values, as we all know and McCain is no different. He's a sleaze bag and has a lot of "history" that isn't so 'heroic' at all. Good post and thanks for enlightening me. I've been avoiding the whole McCain thing, as I don't think he has a snowballs chance in hell of winning and I've been dismissive of him. Perhaps it's time to sit up and pay attention now. The infighting in GD-P concerning "He said, She said" is what's really putting me off. It's time to beat McCain!!

:kick: & Recommended

[Ilsa]

53. "It's about how you treat the little guy. " So true. This is a new

aspect of the story that has come out since I heard about the recipes this morning. I didn't know they threw a volunteer under the bus for this. It also goes to Cindy McCain's drug problem when she and John had that man fired when she was the one screwing up.

[knitter4democracy]

54. The Kerry campaign did the same thing. It's stupid.

If someone cooks, they cook. If they don't, they don't (and I hope they have the money for that). It's stupid to have these cookie bake-offs and "down home" recipe pages on the website and crap. Maybe it works somewhere with someone, but most women I know see right through it. No one expects the First Lady to be Martha or anything.

[malaise]

55. But But but

Isn't Obama the elitist?

:rofl:

[Richard Steele]

56. It's a microcosm displaying every reason that McCain is unfit to hold office.

The basic dishonesty, the deliberate phoniness, the arrogance, the laziness,
the refusal to accept responsibility, the betrayal & backstabbing...

One word that describes this, and all modern "Conservatives" like McCain:
SOCIOPATHIC.

[varkam]

57. Skinner hits us when no one is looking.

I'm really tired of having to tell people in GDP "Oh, it's nothing. I just...I fell down the stairs...clumsy, really..."

:D

Skinner, you treat us great - though we are running low on margarita mix.

In all seriousness, though, I think you, Elad, and EarlG do a fantastic place of keeping this place up and running and the other mods are also fantastic. I really couldn't think of any other place on the intertubes that I'd rather call my home. :toast:

[Crabby Appleton]

59. That's what I'd guess happened, seen it happen before

"I'll tell you what happened here. This was not Cindy McCain's screw up. What happened is the McCain campaign wanted to put some recipes on their website, so some low-level McCain staffer asked an intern with nothing to do to get on Google and find some recipes to put on the website."

[GoneOffShore]

60. "Swiftly dealt with"?

Oh dear. Gitmo for that low level staffer.

[Stinky The Clown]

61. It may not even technically be plagarism. Recipes are very hard to copyright

From the US copyright office's website:

Mere listings of ingredients as in recipes, formulas, compounds or prescriptions are not subject to copyright protection. However, where a recipe or formula is accompanied by substantial literary expression in the form of an explanation or directions, or when there is a combination of recipes, as in a cookbook, there may be a basis for copyright protection.

Protection under the copyright law (title 17 of the United States Code, section 102) extends only to “original works of authorship” that are fixed in a tangible form (a copy). “Original” means merely that the author produced the work by his own intellectual effort, as distinguished from copying an existing work. Copyright protection may extend to a description, explanation, or illustration, assuming that the requirements of the copyright law are met.

To register the directions or instructions of a recipe or cookbook, send the following three elements in the same envelope or package to the Library of Congress, Copyright Office, 101 Independence Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20559-6000.

1. A completed application Form TX;
2. A nonrefundable filing fee (Current Fees)
3. A nonreturnable deposit of the work. The deposit requirements depend on whether the work has been published at the time of registration:

* If the work is unpublished, one complete copy.
* If the work was first published in the United States on or after January 1, 1978, two complete copies of the best edition.
* If the work was first published in the United States before January 1, 1978, two complete copies as first published.
* If the work was first published outside the United States, one complete copy of the work as first published.
* If the work is a contribution to a collective work, and published after January 1, 1978, one complete copy of the best edition of the collective work or a photocopy of the contribution itself as it was published in the collective work.

Copyright protects only the particular manner of an author’s expression in literary, artistic, or musical form. Copyright protection does not extend to names, titles, short phrases, ideas, systems, or methods.

My recipe for pasta has four ingredients. How can that be copyrightable?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=236x44014#44015

[Dreamer Tatum]

62. Respectfully disagree. Hear me out.

"Senator, your wife lied about family recipes."

"Maybe, Senator, but you personally lied about landing under sniper fire. Repeatedly."


It's an absurd discussion. Once the dust settled, who lied about what really isn't going to matter. That's the beauty of Dem inconsistencies coming out now. What was revealed in April will seem like eons ago after the convention.

[maddezmom]

63. I don't mind you throwing me under the bus

But could you increase the lower the temp in the hot tub, this old lady can't stand the heat. :D

[unhappycamper]

66. Yea, I'll second that maddezmom

It's that extra log that makes the hot tub a tad warm.

[KatyaR]

64. But see, Skinner, you APPRECIATE your volunteers--

I'm sure the McCains see them as maybe one step up from the guys that mow their lawn. And they sure aren't going to take the responsibility for something one of those guys did--they're definitely not worth it.

Nice commentary.

[Chovexani]

67. Here's the thing that gets me about this

Why the flying fuck would anyone plagiarize Rachael Ray? Have you seen the shit she comes up with? It's fit for Abu Ghraib.

[lonestarnot]

70. I wouldn't feed that shit to my dogs.

[Chovexani]

71. My cats would murder me in my sleep

If I put ole Ray-Ray's slop near their dishes much less in them. And one of my cats ate a SOCK.

[lonestarnot]

78. And they LIKE shit.

[marlakay]

68. Rachael on msnbc talked about it

she said if it was the dems they would make a huge deal out of it and drag them for days over it. because its her they won't do a thing.

[redqueen]

125. Rachael Ray said that?

Really?

[lonestarnot]

139. Maddow (sp?)

[redqueen]

140. Oh.

:blush: :dunce:

Hahaha... that'd make more sense... still it'd be cool if it was Ray herself! :D

[lonestarnot]

69. How do we know she never cooked anything. Don't you have to "cook" meth?

[Chovexani]

72. LMAO!

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

You win the thread.

She's running neck and neck with Sandra Lee as Worst "Chef" Foisted On Public By Food Network.

[calimary]

73. Such a superb point! Thanks, Skinner!

It's a GREAT point and it's spot-on. That IS why "Recipe-gate" matters. Well, one big reason anyway. It's also the phoniness. The attempt to make her look like a nice, plain-wrap, down-home Betty Crocker-type, when I suspect she doesn't lift a finger to do anything because it might ruin her expensive manicure that she probably gets at least once if not twice a week. She's the last person I'd envision making cookies all day over a hot stove. She'd have her personal chef take care of it.

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

75. Hmm.

[KoKo]

76. You mean that McCain Camp is so "outta touch" they don't realize Million watch Food Channel and

Google Recipes when they are in a pinch ...coming home from work and need to whip up a meal if they don't opt to "eat out?"

John and Cindi ...just aren't "with it" with the way the NEW WORLD WORKS. Googling Recipes and checking out the "Food channel" is the way the New TWO-INCOME families survive!

It can be positioned as PLAGERISM...and OUT OF TOUCH... But, Skinner, if you think our Dems will do this...on either Obama or Clinton side...then you are dreaming. They don't ever want to "touch this stuff" but it hits so many areas of American lives these days...from Old to Young...we are looking for recipes...and those who are "hip and on the Net" no matter their age...are going to end up with a hit on Google for "Food Channel."

OUT OF TOUCH LIAR McCAINS....Rich Cindi doesn't cook and has to find "quick thing for McCain Family Recipes." I wonder why John's Mother didn't supply her with a "worn cookbook saved and loved" like my Masters Degree from Hunter College MIL who was one of those "30's Women" who was ahead of her time...but her legacy to me (God love her) was her worn bound copy of her Recipes she cooked for her Five Boys who were left at home while her Navy Officer Hubby fought WWII and KOREA and she was left to work with her Masters...and raising those boys.

My "MOIL" would have been found it very funny that Cindi Lied about her references...but she would have cautioned me to wait to see if Cindi McCain really knows how to cook and just took a "quick pass" to throw it all off to the food channel to give a quick campaign blurb about her "treasured family recipes." I'd save my WRATH for McCains MOM...who should have saved Cindi from her grief...if she ever COOKED and didn't have Navy Cooks her whole Privileged Life.... :eyes:

[TygrBright]

77. Exactly. Exactly. Exactly.

If you think it's dizzying, maddening, and nauseating to watch the * Admin sacrifice a new victim's bloody, beating heart to the Accountability Gods every couple of days, just WAIT until you see how McSame one-ups them.

disgustedly,
Bright

[Time for change]

79. Yes, very good point

It never occurred to me, but it certainly makes sense.

Why doesn't this occur to anyone in our corporate news media?

[tavalon]

130. Um, it's not their job?

Oh, wait, it is. Never mind.

[flashl]

81. Cheers to Skinner and the mods. nt

[grantcart]

83. and guess what

we have a candidate who doesn't throw anybody under the bus. Not crazy uncle Wright not the person who taped him talking with some friends in a private setting. He doesn't even want to throw Hillary in front of the bus though he has had lots of opportunities.

Its had an impact on me.

I have given up throwing people under the bus.

I'll still give them a shove down the stairs or pull out their chair for a laugh. Maybe by the GE I will be left with only my whoppie cushions.

[CoffeeCat]

85. I'm guessing that there is no intern...

...who was reprimanded.

They're saying that they took action against some hack intern.

They did nothing, but issue a statement.

That intern is most likely still hacking away for McCain.

[jobycom]

86. Amateur handlers. They should have accused the Food Network of plagerizing her!

"Cindy McCain's family recipes were stolen from under her mattress where she kept them in a scrapbook, along with pictures or her daddy taking her ice fishing and her grandma rocking her on the porch swing. These recipes were then brazenly attributed to the Food Network, and her pictures have been passed off as Norman Rockwell and Thomas Kincaide paintings.

"In order to resolve this matter, we have requested that the Attorney General investigate the Food Network's involvement in this matter and use all force necessary to return Cindy's scrapbook to the spot where it belongs, under her great, great, great grandmother's hand-stitched quilt. And as an added precaution, we have ordered the immediate invasion of Syria and Iraq.

"Thank you for your patience and understanding, and pray for the safe return of our scraps."

[DeepModem Mom]

88. K&R, and a big THANK YOU to our mods!

[Usrename]

89. There ya go!

:thumbsup:

[McCamy Taylor]

90. Most important issue in the 2008 campaign thanks to our corporate media

:hide:

http://www.theonion.com/content/video/poll_bullshit_is_most_important

[Skinner]

110. I love that video.

I think of it whenever there is a media frenzy about this kind of thing.

[shellgame26]

91. Well said

makes me think of all the low-ranking GI's that got thrown under bus for Abu-Ghraib while no one on the top was held accountable or the other day some poor low-ranking airman got disciplined for the "error" of transporting nuclear materials across the country...that is the Bush legacy and now Mccain's. Accountability falls only on the little guy.

[struggle4progress]

93. Oh no! And I was just about to beg Cindy for her recipe for potato chip sandwiches

[2008]

94. "low-level unpaid staff debacle"

"low-level unpaid staff debacle"

makes it sound like some rodent scurried in through an open service entrance

[krkaufman]

95. I thought it interesting only in that the McCain campaign seems to be saying ...

... that wimmin need to be in the kitchen, doing the cookin'.

[intheflow]

96. "I admit that I do not always treat them as well as they deserve."

:rofl: You have the patience of a saint, Skinner! What with our wild drinkin' and hot tubbin'... ya know the United Way doesn't put up with those kinds of antics. This is the best volunteer gig I've ever had, even my co-workers are great. :toast:

[hfojvt]

98. Isn't there a huge flaw in your argument?

Why do you assume that when they say the staffer has been "swiftly dealt with" that they have actually done anything more than "tell the press that the staffer has been swiftly dealt with"? I mean they blamed some anonymous volunteer, but since that person has not been named it might as well be the Family Circus ghost "not me". It's just a way to keep responsibility and accountability away from the candidate. It's not McCain's fault, nor the fault of anybody that he hired or manages. It's way, way far away, almost in another galaxy, and thus not a bad reflection of his competence or character.

[treestar]

112. It shows a propensity not to take responsibility

So when something gets screwed up at the White House, it'll just be blamed on inferiors.

McBush is head of this organization and he should step up and take the consequences rather than just blame it on a volunteer. The volunteer did the best they could with what they knew. The volunteer wasn't properly instructed or trained. The higher ups are responsible for that. The buck stops on McBush's desk.

[Twist_U_Up]

100. I wonder what the recipe is to fix this problem.....

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/144431/us_presidential_election_can_be_hacked.html

Because it just doesnt matter who does what if they control the vote,now does it?

[Jester Messiah]

101. Yet another "gate"

Gate has jumped the shark. Must we always suffix "-gate" whenever a politician does something stupid? I can't help but think that this practice cheapens the original Watergate.

[yellowcanine]

105. I disagree. I think it shows how serious Watergate was. It is the gold standard. More lowly

scandals aspire to be as significant as Watergate. The fact that they usually fail shows how significant the real deal was.

[yellowcanine]

104. Web Intern Gate: What did John McCain know and when did he know it? Heh.

[Vinca]

106. Gee, I thought every family passed down their Napa cabbage

and ahi tuna recipes through the generations.:rofl:

[izzybeans]

108. Exactly right. The Republican astroturfing of middle class persona needs to stop.

[klook]

111. Three cheers for the DU Mods!

...and for the Admins!!

Toast yourselves with this old Klook Family recipe:

Margaritas

Juice of 1 lime
Kosher salt, to taste
2 ounces clear tequila
1 ounce triple sec

Halve the lime and run it along the rim of a 6 to 8 ounce glass to moisten it. Dip half of the glass rim in Kosher salt. 
Fill a cocktail shaker with 5 ice cubes, the tequila, triple sec and lime juice. Shake and pour into prepared glass.

Cheers! :yourock:

[bluescribbler]

118. Dump the triple sec

Use Grand Marnier or Cointreau instead. Makes a much better drink.

:toast:

[klook]

144. Thanks

I actually use Triple Sec AND Grand Marnier. I was just looking for a Food Network recipe to rip off, in the spirit of the McCain campaign. :9

Actually, both Grand Marnier and Cointreau are questionable because of their hideous labor records, although GM worker conditions have gotten slightly better.

[bluescribbler]

154. Thanks to you. I didn't know that.

[Ganja Ninja]

113. The casual lying has become a consistent trait of Republicans.

They could have just not put up any recipes but instead they chose to lie.

Honesty is a moral values issue. If they are willing to lie about something as trivial as family recipes, then how will they respond when other more important issues that may reflect badly on them come up?

Then the response to getting caught lying by blaming the proverbial "rogue staffer" is reminiscent of so many other GOP administrations that it almost seem robotic.

[Jackpine Radical]

114. I think this response just shows McCain's military background.

It was typical military-style response, in which responsibility is pushed as far down the food chain as possible. It's exactly the same process that we saw at Abu Ghraib, and that I saw work in Vietnam. The brass skates, and some NCO or EM takes the rap.

[orangerevolution]

115. This has Legs, McCain is TOAST!

I better get the the Mcain website to see how Cindy makes her toast.

[greiner3]

117. I believe that the right;

And by association fascists, hold that their leaders can do no wrong. If their leaders look weak then they don't deserve adulation by their minions. This is something that I've always felt and it was my sister (One of the minions) that gave voice to this. It is a form of Hobbes' Leviathan.

http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Hobbes

[derby378]

120. K-and-fucking-R!!

:hi:

[ejbr]

121. DU moderators' SUCK

...CESS is due to their vigilance and patience. :P

[redqueen]

123. Olbermann did a segment on "recipe-gate" last night.

Your take is so much better.

:thumbsup:

[DrZeeLit]

124. EgggZactLee! But will msm cover it this way? Nooooo... they loves McSame.

No matter who gets the short end of the stick.

Thanks,Skinner.
And YES... thanks to all the unsung moderators and volunteers.
I appreciate you all.

[Baby Snooks]

126. She's just following the example of Nancy Reagan...

Nancy Reagan ripped off the IRS by keeping designer gowns and not reporting them as gifts although according to some they weren't really gifts. She just simply decided not to return them..

Cindy McCain doesn't need anyone to loan her designer gowns but the urge to engage in a little larcenous behavior hit, so she ripped off recipes.

Happy days are here again for the truly vacous American woman.

[radonc]

127. no pattern here

abu Ghraib: It was a few bad apples.
Katrina: They should have left sooner or bought cars.
McRecipe stealer: It was the volunteer's fault.

[yardwork]

129. Welcome to DU!

Good post. :thumbsup:

[liberal N proud]

131. Plagiarism is serious no matter how small

[La Lioness Priyanka]

132. great analysis. nt

[CabalPowered]

134. We have a bus?

This is news to me. I'm thinking a field trip is in order.

[Arugula Latte]

135. Yet another example of these old-school campaigns not understanding the Power of Teh Internets

They don't seem to get that people know how to use the "search" function.

[Johnyawl]

136. That brought tears to my eyes, Skinner...

...it's almost enough to make me volunteer to be a moderator again.

Almost.

In a non-election year.

After I retire and have all the time in the world.



Seriously, you, EarlG, Elad, and all the moderators are doing a 'heck of a job', keeping the cats herded.

John

[parkeradison]

137. Regarding "recipe gate"

Good point. Well said.

[holdensphonies]

138. Re: Not newsworthy

I don't care who they blamed it a worthless bit of non-political news.

[backscatter712]

141. Recipe-gate: Cindy McCain's weak attempt to convince us she's actually human...

But I know the secret.

She's got the Innsmouth Look.

She still wears clothes, but she'll take to the water soon...

[Grinchie]

143. Lie enough and it becomes accepted practice

With the number of lies, mis-statements, exaggerations, flip-flops and mis-representations, the ethical void of the government knows no limits. Who would notice something as banal as a recipe? These are the same people that use vague words such as "Enhanced Interrogation Techniques" to justify torture.

Their problem here was that they did not use the term "Functionally Equivalent" GMO Corn, GMO Soybean, or recomend ingredients "Generally Recognized As Safe" (GRAS) which would have absolved them entirely.

As for the intern, well, there are plenty more where that came from, and he/she signed the contract that stated "At Will Employment, and may be terminated at any time for any reason". Whether it is his/her error or the whim of some pissed off higher-up. I highly doubt that it was due to the error, but the fact that it was discovered and the story had legs.

Perhaps we should start patenting recipies to prevent this from ever happening again! Just imagine, an Army of Monsanto Lawyers descending upon John McCains wife!

Actually, I think they would all run away as soon as they encountered Cindy McCain's Aura of Fear(TM)!.

[nichomachus]

148. Q. What does Cindy McCain really make for dinner?

A. Reservations.

[Divine Discontent]

150. damn..

you didn't allow us to use that punchline!!! that was great!

The thought of her in the kitchen, for anything other than a glass of metamucil (for John), is laughable!

[nichomachus]

151. If even that

That's the difference between us and rich people. We think that they are like us, except with more money. That's not true.

The now-deceased queen mother of England never so much as poured herself a glass of water in her entire life. She always had servants to do that for her. Prince Charles has an assistant who puts his toothpaste on his toothbrush for him.

A friend who works for a catering company worked at a party last week in our area. It was at a gated community so posh and private that many people around here don't even know it's there. It was a party for the host's car -- a $1.2 million Bugatti. The hundred or so guests stood around the yard, sipping champagne and nibbling on caviar. The car was driven out of the garage. Everyone gathered around it and applauded. Then it was driven back into the garage, and everyone went on with their champagne and caviar. This is McCain's world.

[Divine Discontent]

152. out of touch elitists - and I hope Obama points out several things like you brought up

in a 'politically correct' manner that still gets it through to the masses. the party for the car, is so funny, weirdos! and the prince having the toothpaste assistant is embarrassing for him - If I was ever alone, I'd ask, why do you let your self esteem be lowered by having a toothpaste assistant, and silly poshness like that - it makes you look without a brain to be able to know how to squeeze the tube!

[nichomachus]

153. You need to understand their world

You can call them weirdos, but it really comes from the elitism of their little world. In our area, there are an awful lot of very rich people who live in gated and heavily guarded enclaves.

They are afraid of and disdainful toward people who aren't "like them," and so they tend to insulate and isolate themselves. They see the same people all day, every day. They play golf together, eat lunch together, have cocktails together, and have dinner together. There are groups and subgroups within their ranks, but it is an incestuous little world. They vacation at the same spots. They fly in private jets. The gated community a few miles from my house has two private jets solely for the use of its residents. And these are vacation homes -- sometimes one of several vacation homes -- and they start at about $4 million.

A friend who is a clergyman was invited to dinner at one of these country club communities. During dinner, the woman sitting next to him grabbed his arm and said "You don't know how good it is to see a new face."

It's a world, you and I can't imagine -- nor would I want to. I'd probably go crazy in about an hour.

When I was first laid off in 2003, I applied for a job at a local estate -- a family vacation home. It is 250 acres with an 18-hole golf course. It had a permanent full-time staff of 120 people. I was interviewed in a home outside the walls of the estate. That home -- four bedroom -- served as the "office." While I was waiting, I noticed that the walls were covered with pictures of "the boss" with Reagan, Bush I, Bush II. I didn't get the job -- and I'm glad I didn't.

[Raksha]

156. Wow...just reading this stuff

gets the chorus from "Marat/Sade" running through my head all over again! Any other Boomer types remember that play? It was a movie too.

Re The now-deceased queen mother of England never so much as poured herself a glass of water in her entire life. She always had servants to do that for her. Prince Charles has an assistant who puts his toothpaste on his toothbrush for him.

A friend who works for a catering company worked at a party last week in our area. It was at a gated community so posh and private that many people around here don't even know it's there. It was a party for the host's car -- a $1.2 million Bugatti. The hundred or so guests stood around the yard, sipping champagne and nibbling on caviar. The car was driven out of the garage. Everyone gathered around it and applauded. Then it was driven back into the garage, and everyone went on with their champagne and caviar. This is McCain's world.

All I have to say to that is...

Down with all of the ruling class,
Throw all the generals out on their ass!

Etc. etc. etc.