Man indicted for badmouthing Senator

readingeagle.com...

Consider what happened to an unemployed American, Bruce Shore, because of e-mails he sent to the Web site of U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky. As reported by Arthur Delaney on huffingtonpost.com, Shore, watching the Senate in inaction on C-Span, was angered when Bunning complained that, gosh, he has missed the Kentucky-South Carolina basketball game because he had to be in Congress to debate an unemployment benefits bill. "I was livid, I was just livid," recalled the 51-year-old Shore. "I’m on unemployment, so it affects me." Here is part of his Feb. 26 messages to Bunning staffers: "Are you’all insane. No checks equal no food for me. Do you get it?" The next month, FBI agents came calling to Shore’s home in Philadelphia. They read him excerpts from his citizen’s complaints and asked whether he was the author, which Shore readily admitted. Apparently these agents had heard something about the First Amendment, and told this indignant American, "All right, we just wanted to make sure it wasn’t anything to worry about."


But the ever-vigilant Obama administration was not satisfied. On May 13 U.S. Marshals appeared at Shore’s door and handed him a grand jury indictment. J

Be careful what your write to senators, if they don't approve they will come after you.

This is insane, he should personally sue everyone involved. The old days are over folks, we live in a fascist tyrannical country.

Hmmm, all I can say, is I can't decide on the excerpt included in the article from this man's message sent to the Senator. What was included in the article was pretty harmless, just an unemployed man venting.

Can't judge this book by the cover though, unless we are able to read the message in it's entirety.

Perhaps he had some sort of veiled threat in there.

reply to post by xstealth


WOW!!!

BYE BYE 1st Amendment!!!! What a crock of BS, seriously, what now we can't say we are disgruntled citizens in email now?

Ah man this is really beginning to suck in America, soon we won't be able to speak anymore at all without bowing our heads and getting on our knees.

The ship is sinking, I should have known when the rats jumped ship a few years ago..



[edit on 24-6-2010 by theability]

The "are yall crazy" was "the threat."

Pretty soon we won't even be allowed to look our 'officials' in the eyes...

reply to post by alaskan


Are you sure about that? The article only includes part of the message the guy sent, and plainly says so.

It just seems a little too convenient to me, that we aren't able to see what he had to say in it's entirety.

From the article:

Here is part of his Feb. 26 messages to Bunning staffers: "Are you’all insane. No checks equal no food for me. Do you get it?"

There you go, it SAYS, that this was only part of the message, so who's to say what else was in there?

Originally posted by alaskan
Pretty soon we won't even be allowed to look our 'officials' in the eyes...

Didn't a congressman get into a physical altercation with a college student last week for that? looks like we're too late!

reply to post by Blanca Rose


Totally my reaction! It would create a huge stink, especially in this political climate to arrest somebody for saying something that is being said by thousands - and on television in countless rallies. There is surely more to this that would bring it into perspective.

Here is another article that explains a little more. It wasn't just one message that this guy sent, he sent several messages.

www.huffingtonpost.com... ph_n_588798.html

Instead of just being angry, Shore took action: He sent several emails to Bunning staffers, blasting the senator for blocking the benefits.

Then, he used a false name and location.

In that letter he signed off as "Brad Shore" from Louisville. He said he did the same thing in several other messages sent via the contact form on Bunning's website. "My assumption was that if he gets an email from Philadelphia, who cares?" he said. "Why would he even care if a guy from Philadelphia gets upset?"

Perhaps he should have put as much effort into finding a job, as he did his letter writing barrage to a senator, about his unemployment benefits!

reply to post by Blanca Rose


Oh no! A false name and location! Is that supposed to make us change our mind? If he mentioned any physical violence outright, do whatever they gotta do though I bet it was twisted in a way that suits their agenda.

If all he did was send several emails, sometimes using an alias, stating that they are crazy, I got no problem with it. I have many old email accounts where I used made up names for really no reason at all. Just didn't feel like putting my info in for all kinds of reasons.

Huffington Post has the full text of one of the letters Mr. Shore sent Mr. Bunning...

Hello,

I am at a LOSS of words for SENATOR BUNTING blocking unemployment benefits for me and my children. If I do NOT get my check next week I WILL HAVE NO FOOD AND WILL BE ON THE STREET.

What kind of people are you? 10 Billion goes to the war every couple days and to Wall street weekly. I want my benefits or there will be people starving and dying.

What is wrong with you people. NOW is NOT the time to play politics with childrens lives.

ARE you'all insane. NO checks equal no food for me. DO YOU GET IT??

IF THIS POLITICAL GRANDSTANDING DOES NOT END TODAY - WE WILL COME TO YOUR OFFICES AND MAKE OUR POINT. YOU ARE PLAYING A LIFE AND DEATH GAME HERE.

DO YOU GET IT.

Brad Shore
Louisville, KY 40202

Shore is actually from Pennsylvania. Representatives and Senators will not respond to emails from outside their districts or states, so he signed it from as being from Louisville.

Originally posted by Blanca Rose
Then, he used a false name and location.

In that letter he signed off as "Brad Shore" from Louisville. He said he did the same thing in several other messages sent via the contact form on Bunning's website. "My assumption was that if he gets an email from Philadelphia, who cares?" he said. "Why would he even care if a guy from Philadelphia gets upset?"

Being that this is Bunning's last year in office, I have sincere doubts he cares what people in Pennsylvania or Kentucky think.

reply to post by TheFinalTruth14


No, it's not my intention to change anybody's mind. However, this thread is based on the guy sending just one message. He sent several, and if you read the article I attatched, what he actually got in trouble for, was this:

But on May 13, U.S. Marshals showed up at Shore's house with a grand jury indictment. Now he's got to appear in federal court in Covington, Ky. on May 28 to answer for felony email harassment. Specifically, the indictment (PDF) says that on Feb. 26, Shore "did utilize a telecommunications device, that is a computer, whether or not communication ensued, without disclosing his identity and with the intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, and harass any person who received the communication."

We don't have the pleasure of being able to read, or know what was contained in the several other messages he sent to the senators office.

Initially, I was shocked at this.

Then I saw the line "YOU ARE PLAYING A LIFE AND DEATH GAME HERE."

I can't imagine NOT getting a visit for saying such a thing to a member of government, no matter what country you live in.

Originally posted by SteveR
Initially, I was shocked at this.

Then I saw the line "YOU ARE PLAYING A LIFE AND DEATH GAME HERE."

I can't imagine NOT getting a visit for saying such a thing to a member of government, no matter what country you live in.

If you can't eat you'll die, I think it's easy to interpret what he meant. If not they send the FBI; but to file charges has gone too far.

reply to post by xstealth


He could also have been contacting food banks, churches, etc., to possibly make other arrangments for food.

What he did instead was harass.

Sometimes the squeaky wheel gets the grease, and he's living proof of that!