Welcome to the site of the Mudflats archives. This blog was active from May 2008 – December 2008 and includes all articles posted during the 2008 campaign season. You can utilize the categories, and search features in the sidebar to find what you’re looking for.
Occasionally if we experience an outage, this site will be utilized for current posts and information.
To visit the current active blog, please go to www.themudflats.net.
[The current site www.themudflats.net is experiencing a huge amount of traffic today. This article is reposted from the current site so you can read it here in the archives. Please check back later in the day to get on the current site. Thanks for your patience. ~Jeanne Devon]
By Ken Morris, Co-author of Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin, a Memoir of Our Tumultuous Years
Mudflats Friends:
When I first appeared on Jeanne’s groundbreaking pages well over one year ago, I wrote about participating in the eBay auction to buy a meal with Sarah Palin to benefit a worthy veterans’ charity. A short time later, after losing that auction to what looked like a rigged bid, I then offered through Mudflats an additional $200,000 for that same charity if Sarah would answer civil question over a second meal, on the record, with the likes of Jeanne, Rachel Maddow, Shannyn Moore, and Keith Olbermann.
While I waited in vain for an answer from your ex-governor, I managed to contact Frank Bailey and his wonderful wife Neen. Over fourteen months ago, after substantive dialogue, we decided to pursue a memoir. Two months later, I realized I needed Jeanne Devon to help me navigate the million details of Alaskan politics and personalities. I invited (actually, demanded) she join the team. Frank balked at first. After all, he’s conservative and she’s a liberal blogger. I insisted they meet or I’d walk away from the project. Well, no surprise, he embraced her inclusion after only a second cup of coffee.
For over a year—that’s right, friends, over a year—we worked in silence. We spent countless hours (on my end, upwards of 70 hours per week) constructing what we believed was an important book, based on documented truth. Within the last month, we finished a marketable draft. Not a final draft–we anticipate changes, both additions and deletions–but something that our agent believed would result in substantial interest in the publishing world. You can imagine our joy.
Then the manuscript was sent out, illegally, to the media. Why? Good question (Jeanne and I have discussed writing-up this disturbing story-behind-the-story with its ethics be damned. New Yorker, are you interested? Rolling Stone?).
With permission from my legal team, Jeanne and I decided to post what is known as a Cease and Desist order. And while there are many other unnamed parties who have engaged in unethical behavior and violated copyright law (you should be ashamed of yourselves), this is the most shocking.
What is written below includes only part of what we sent to this now-officially-named individual, but is, I believe, self-explanatory (a similar letter is going out to those we have identified as also unlawfully reproducing portions of our work). I guess you can say we are not rolling over, and for those who ignore law and morality, we are not going away:
BONFANTE STEINBECK, A PROFESSIONAL LAW CORPORATION
February 20, 2011
SENDER INFORMATION:
Ken Morris, Frank Bailey and Jeanne DevonRECIPIENT INFORMATION:
Joe McGinnissRE: COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT
Dear Sir:
I write on behalf of Ken Morris, Frank Bailey and Jeanne Devon (collectively, the “Copyright
Owners”). The Copyright Owners are co-owners of the copyright in the unpublished manuscript
entitled “Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin: A Memoir of our Tumultuous Years” (the “Work”).
Between February 16, 2011 and February 18, 2011 you were the recipient of an unlawfully
distributed version of the Work. Although you knew that the Work was (i) distributed to you in
strict confidence, and (ii) an unpublished manuscript, you choose to unlawfully distribute the
Work to multiple news outlets, bloggers, political activists, and any one else you felt might be
interested.As a result of your actions, hundreds of articles and blogs have been published detailing the
Work. Some of the publications have summarized the Work in great detail, and others have
reproduced the Work’s content verbatim. As an author, you are well aware that your actions have
significantly impaired the Copyright Owners ability to market the book….…The Copyright Owners believe your actions were done with the single intent of destroying the
marketability of the Work. It is no secret that you are writing your own “tell-all” book about
Sarah Palin. By releasing the Work prior to publication, you have limited the actual interest in
the Work and thereby salvaged the marketability of your own book. This matter appears to be no
more than that of a jealous author sabotaging a competitor via unlawful and unscrupulous means.The Copyright Owners are currently reviewing their legal options and I can assure this is not the
last time you will hear from them. Besides showing an utter lack of professionalism, you have,
at a minimum, willfully caused significant damages by engaging in unfair competition and
violations of copyright law. In order to minimize the damages caused by your actions, the
Copyright Owners hereby demand that you cease and desist from distributing any portion of the
Work. Additionally, the Copyright Owners demand that you provide a full list of the parties to
whom you distributed the Work.This letter is not intended as, and may not be construed to be, a complete recitation of the facts or
circumstances connected with this matter. Furthermore, any statement contained in this letter is
not intended as, and may not be construed to be, a waiver or relinquishment of any of the
Copyright Owners’ rights or remedies under law, all of which the Copyright Owners hereby
expressly reserve.Please feel free to contact me to discuss this matter further.
Sincerely,
Dean M. Steinbeck
First results are in with 27% of the vote
AK Senate – Murkowski (write in) 39% Miller (R) 34% McAdams (D) 25%
AK House – Don Young (R) 66% Harry Crawford (D) 33%
AK Governor – Sean Parnell (R) 57% Ethan Berkowitz (D) 39%
9:31pm
Those numbers are holding across the board with 34% of precincts reporting. Southeast Alaska and rural areas have not reported in yet.
9:49pm
And still they hold at 40% returns.
10:08pm
Don Young has entered the building. Guess what he had on his arm? Yes, the Mayor’s party planner. No, I am not kidding. This may require a trip to the beer garden.
There are chants of Don Young! Don Young! Don Young! Whoops and hollers. He’s doing the rounds with the TV stations. Lots of sign wavers with the same yellow sign he’s had for probably all 20 terms.
10:20
Scott McAdams is in the house. Cheers went up from all corners of the room. Overheard opponents’ supporters talking about what a great campaign he ran. He’s talking to TV right now and saying we’re waiting for the numbers from Southeast Alaska and Bush Alaska to come in.
10:30
Bill Wielechowski (the best Bill in Juneau) is in the house. Looks like he held his seat. So did Pete Petersen who faced tough opposition from a Karpetbagger from Kodiak. Chris Tuck also kept his spot in the legislature. All three of them are definitely “good guys.” We need to appreciate these victories which really mean a lot too.
10:48
Sean Parnell (R) has entered with scads of red balloons and cowbells. Interviewing with Mead Treadwell on Channel 2. He has taken the governor’s race.
10:52
With 68% of the vote, the AK Senate race sits at
Write-In 39.33%
Joe Miller 35.32%
Scott McAdams 24.36%
This is very close. If ALL of the write in votes are for Murkowski, this is a tenuous lead at best. This doesn’t count in voter error and legal challenges which are sure to come.
10:55pm
Joe Miller sign wavers are here. Not too many… and no sign of the Bearded One. ADN reported via Twitter that he refused to talk to the press and will not be coming to Election Central. Is anyone surprised?
***Having problems keeping the site up. If you can’t get on, go to mudflats.wordpress.com for backup.*****
11:19pm
Scott McAdams just sat down to talk with Shannyn on the air. He said he’s proud of the campaign.
Lisa Murkowski is in the house. Chants of “six more years.” She’s being interviewed by Channel 2 now.
Now there are chants of “We made history!” That one is premature at best. With only four points separating her and Joe Miller, and all the perils of a write-in campaign yet to be navigated, we undoubtedly will be following this election for a while longer than we’d hoped.
11:41
Senator Bill Wielechowski is on the air with Shannyn Moore. He retained his seat in a fairly conservative district. He has knocked on about 7000 doors in his district. Shoe leather, and sincere hard work has paid off for “the best Bill in Juneau.”
11:42pm
Thomas Van Flein, the attorney for Sarah Palin and Joe Miller is in the house. Neither of his clients are present.
The hall is starting to clear out, and the TV crews are packing up.
12:00am
McAdams, Scott T. DEM 24.15%
Miller, Joe REP 64212 34.89%
Write-in Votes 73551 39.96%
With 78% of the districts reporting
Alright, time for me to pack it up too. Murkowski is not declaring victory, because obviously we don’t know anything. It’s going to be more drama, folks. Buckle up.
Candidate for Gov. Ethan Berkowitz was also there and AK Sen Hollis French was the enthusiastic Master of Ceremonies.
On my way home (sigh) it started snowing. I’m hoping we just get a dusting or I’m afraid how the first snow of the year might effect the voting. Here’s hoping the main Mudflats site is up soon, the snow stops and the voting is through the roof!
Hello all,
Welcome to another moment of Zen….
(That’s our happy way of saying we’re having server/wordpress problems) As the new WordPress gets updated, we’ve been experiencing intermittent issues that result in you not being able to access the blog, and sometimes the forums too…
WordPress often “gives us the opportunity to practice patience and tolerance” and they also do provide us with this lovely snowfall back on the old blog, and also a place to leave comments while we wait.
Hopefully we’ll be back up and running soon.
Thanks for your patience!
~The Mudflats Team
Saturday, December 13 4:20pm Alaska Time
Update: 6:00pm Alaska Time – ServerGuy is on the scene. Server is busy processing gobs of requests from people to get to the site, that the reboot request has to wait in line. Like taking a number at the deli….
Update: 8:15pm Alaska Time – The Deli has closed and sent us away… So now we are in the queue at the Network Operations Center in Dallas to have our plug pulled, and replugged. I’ll keep you posted!
Good night, Mudflatters!
More fun stuff going on in the Mudflats Forum!
The Mudflats Book Club is reading The Green Mile in January, and Three Cups of Tea this month. Get the book and join the discussion! Click the link for details.
The Mudflats Movie Club has picked its first movie – Chocolat. Delicious!
Expert Live Chat: To kick off our series of Live Chats with the Experts, Snoskred will be hosting a chat on the secrets of successful blogging. Join us on December 10th at 9 PM EST with your list of blogging questions! Go to the Forum and click the link in the upper right corner that says Live Chat 24/7!
And if you’re in the mood for an open thread in which to share your thoughts of the moment, join the Night Kitchen already in progress! And here’s a little secret about the Night Kitchen. It’s actually open all the time…even during the day! So if you’ve got an off-topic thought you’ve just got to get out, come on over any time! The table is always set, and there’s a coffee cup with your name on it!
It’s a dark and stormy night here in Anchorage. I know “The Windy City” is already taken, so maybe I’ll just have to start referring to Anchorage as “The Windier City”.
There are LOTS of thing happening over at the Mudflats Forums as we roll into the holiday season! Here are just a few:
December Mudstock Meetups are happening on December 7th in Southern California, and December 13th in Anchorage Alaska! Click the links and get details. Come meet your virtual community in person!
Just in time for the holidays! The Mudflats Recipe Collection: Holiday recipes galore! This collection will be available as The Mudflats Cookbook (pdf) within a week or two….so come and add your secret family recipe.
All submissions are in, but there is still time to vote for your favorite photos for the Mudflats Calendar Photo Contest! I had a hard time choosing my favorites!
And as always, the Night Kitchen is Open and the kettle is on! What’s on your mind?
Well, the blogosphere is starting to hum already. Can you hear it? The blog “Sarah Palin’s Deceptions,” whose focus over the last three months has been “Babygate” has released a very interesting picture of Sarah Palin taken in late March of this year… There is no doubt that this photo will become the topic of conversation across the web in short order, so take a look HERE for the image and a detailed description, and join the discussion in the Night Kitchen thread in the Forum!
Also, I’ve added a new link in the sidebar. It’s an advent calendar, only instead of getting pictures of elves and reindeer, or bits of really mediocre chocolate, you get a Hubble telescope space photo each day! There are three up already, and they are just breathtaking. I’ll be enjoying them as my evening moment of Zen during the crazy holiday season. Enjoy!
I really never anticipated writing more than one post about Christmas ornaments, but this one is hard to resist.
Laura Bush asked members of Congress to pick local painters to decorate ornaments for this year’s 20-foot Fraser fir in the Blue Room. The globes (to be unveiled by the first lady tomorrow) are supposed to showcase something special about each congressional district. Washington state’s Rep. Jim McDermott contacted a local arts organization, which asked Lawrence, a collage artist, to create the local entry.
“I was at first nauseated, then realized it was an opportunity,” said Lawrence, 55, who frequently combines politics and satire in her work and saw this as the perfect way “to highlight Jim McDermott because he’s a hero of mine.”
The nine-inch ball is covered with swirly red and white stripes — and, in tiny glued-on text, salutes the Democratic congressman’s support for a resolution to impeach President Bush. (Also showcased: Washington state’s 1919 labor strike, its suffrage movement and the violent anti-World Trade Organization riots of 1999.) Lawrence sent it off to D.C. in September and was very surprised it was accepted for the tree — and that she was invited to this afternoon’s White House reception for the artists, which she flew to D.C. to attend.
“Apparently, they didn’t read it — or Laura Bush is more progressive than I believed,” Lawrence told us.
How I wish I could tell you that the story ended there. But, alas, when our sneaky artist filled some friends in on the hidden message in the ornament, the news spread like wildfire, and found its way to the White House and the ear of the First Lady. The ornament will not hang on the tree after all.
“Oh, dear,” said Seattle-based artist Deborah Lawrence, who created the red and white ornament that salutes Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) and his support for a resolution to impeach the president. “This doesn’t really surprise me. But it’s disappointing that I won’t get to see it on the tree.”
Lawrence did attend the artists’ reception, but did not get to meet the hostess. I wonder if somebody slipped one of those “Thanks, Santa” Obama ornaments in there. I think I would have had to…
I am happy to announce that the Flickr photo function is now up and running. You’ll see the link to photos in the sidebar towards the bottom. This will make life much easier when posting groups of photos in the future. But to start the experiment, I used some shots I took on Thanksgiving. You may or may not recognize the mudflats you’ve been looking at in the header photo at the top of the page. They are distinctly more frozen than they were last year at this time when I took the photo in the header.
As you can see, I felt like I spent Thanksgiving in a postcard!
The Night Kitchen Open Thread is waiting in the forum!
Night all!
I’ve been missing Brian, my local moose, lately. I saw a lot of him in the fall, but I haven’t seen him for several weeks. It’s dark early now, and I keep thinking to myself that he could be right outside my door and I’d never know. But tonight, I knew.
I went out of town for Thanksgiving, and before I left, I meant to take out the little bowl of fruit and vegetable scraps that was ready to toss on my compost pile, but I forgot. So when I got home, I noticed the contents of the bowl had gotten a little “ripe” in my absence, so I took the bowl and set it outside the back door in the snow, planning on dumping it after I unpacked. And once again, I forgot.
So, tonight, I was sitting here happily typing away, and the dog raised her head from sleep and let out one of those little, short truncated barks. More like a “buf!” But that was it. I didn’t think much of it. Then a minute later I hear someone knocking on the sliding glass door. It’s highly unusual for anyone to knock on that door, especially past midnight, and the door is right next to my computer, so it startled me, and I swung my head around. There, standing, framed perfectly in the glass of the sliding door was enormous Brian, no more than 5 feet from where I sit! I almost jumped out of my skin. I don’t know who I expected to be knocking on my door in the dead of night, but it surely wasn’t a 1500 pound bull moose! Then, I remembered the compost! Sure enough he was trying to get the frozen plant scraps out of the bottom of the plastic bowl that was just about the perfect size to fit over his nose. As he licked the frozen veg-sicle that was stuck to the bottom, his head was moving back and forth, causing his antlers to bonk bonk bonk on the glass.
I raced for the camera, of course, and managed to get some pictures. The flash didn’t seem to bother him too much. Then I sat on the floor to the side of the door and watched the compost antics. He became less and less successful in extracting his snack the deeper into the bowl he got. Finally in frustration he started to stomp on the bowl, which helped, as frozen chunks of carrot and apple core popped out into the snow. Then he’d nibble them up with his lips and stomp again. He’d stop periodically and just stare at me trying to decide whether I was something to worry about. I’m sure he wondered what all the flashing lights were about, but he seemed willing to put up with it in order to enjoy the wonderful frozen treat he’d managed to find.
He stayed a good long while; long after the dog’s hackles had gone down. He stood like a sentinal, watching me intently with great brown eyes even as I began to type this nighttime thread. It looks like he’s gone now. But I have a feeling he will be back, hoping to find another meal at his secret eatery. I won’t make that mistake again, or I’m likely to have antlers crashing through my door at all hours of the night!
The Open Thread is waiting, as always, in the Night Kitchen!
Knock, knock.
Mudflats will be taking a small hiatus today to enjoy the company of friends and family away from phones and electronic devices. On a personal note, I’d like to thank the extended Mudflats community for all your words of support an encouragement over these last two “interesting” months! It would have been impossible to get through that time without you! Although I can’t claim to have read every comment since August 29th, I do get through the vast majority of them, and your insight, analysis, wit and warmth have been astounding. So here’s to Mudflatters everywhere! >>>>tink<<<< (toasts you with your beverage of choice)
I’d also like to thank Snoskred and Sephy for creating the forums and spending untold hours getting everything running, and creating a dynamic alternate space for conversation and interaction. And they couldn’t do it without the help and support of the other administrators (Charcoal and Icy) and the slew of moderators that do their level best to keep things running smoothly. It’s no easy task and I am continually amazed at the sheer amount of man (& woman) hours that goes into it all… >>tink!<<
And also a huge thank you to Mudflatter Lisa who is the creative whiz behind the Mudflats Shop!
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
(And fear not….we have a troll patrol on duty. So if they show up to the party, remember not to feed them! You can pm Snoskred on the forum to hasten the alert!)
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