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In debating me over the issue of institutional
racism, Chris Stewart argued that black people should stop blaming the system and stop making babies they can't properly raise,
etc. His magic words are PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY. Mr. Personal Responsibility refused to confirm or deny that he owned the
website that hosted the "parody" of Tammy Lee's web site and that he played a role in creating the "parody" of Tammy Lee's
web
site, until after the election was over.
-See "Chris Stewart: A conservative in DFL clothing"
http://dougmannlnc.com/id99.html
It
looks like a majority of those on the Minneapolis issues list who have weighed in on the subject have called on Mr. Stewart
to resign and / or advocate kicking him off the board. However, Mr. Stewart is not yet a member of the Minneapolis School
Board. He can't resign until he gets sworn in. And if he is sworn in, it is doubtful that he could be kicked off the board
for conduct that didn't disqualify him from taking the oath of office in the first place. The Tammy Lee "parody" and Mr. Stewart's
evasion of responsibility for creating it may not be sufficient grounds for taking action to disqualify Stewart from taking
office.
Mr. Stewart's claim that the content of his web site, which he privatized just after his cover was blown by
those damn bloggers, is ridiculous. Stewart was very active in promoting his web site, and the "parody" of Tammy Lee's web
site was reportedly near the top of the list of items one could find via a search engine using the words "Tammy Lee for Congress."
In
defense of the Star-Tribune's decision to not cover the election eve press conference, Strib education beat writer Steve Brandt
writes,
"As for why no story was printed out of the Lee press conference for the election-day paper on the basis of
one candidate's assertion, the Star Tribune is very cautious about printing last-minute charges without a response from the
target. That's something that differentiates the MSM from blogs. Some people like to throw up anything and see if it sticks.
If that's your threshold for reporting, fine. But for all the Star Tribune's faults, that's not our M.O."
- Steve Brandt,
The "Chris Stewart admits to whatever" Topic, http://forums.e-democracy.org/minneapolis/groups/mpls/messages/view_email?id=105933&show_thread=1
The Strib's decision to not cover Lee's election eve press conference wasn't based on professional or ethical standards.
It was based on political expediency. The Strib editorial board did not want any of their picks for the school board to lose.
Tammy Lee's "assertion" that Chris Stewart was responsible for the "parody" of her web site was not unsubstantiated. Lee had
rather strong evidence of Stewart's ownership of the web site that hosted the parody of Lee's web site, and of Stewart's secret
identity, i.e., The Reverend Rahelio Soleil. And Stewart did respond to Lee's allegation before she brought it out at the
press conference. The response was 'no comment.'
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