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Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

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If you are still in the GOP, you are an extremist.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

I was promised a recession.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

Meanwhile over at truth Social, the former president is busy confessing to crimes.

Presidents are not kings, and Plaintiff is not President.

T R E 4 5 O N

Tick tock motherfuckers!

Their freedom requires your slavery.

Just because you believe it, that doesn’t make it true.

No one could have predicted…

The revolution will be supervised.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

Republicans in disarray!

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

A dilettante blog from the great progressive state of West Virginia.

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They traffic in fear. it is their only currency. if we are fearful, they are winning.

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No One Could Have Predicted

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That an anti-Muslim flame-thrower would try to turn his followers’ fear into cash:

Jon Ritzheimer, the man who organized an anti-Muslim protest rally and “draw Muhammad” cartoon contest on Friday in Phoenix, reportedly launched a GoFundMe page to raise $10 million to “protect his family.”

KPNX television reporter Brahm Resnik tweeted on Sunday that Ritzheimer had set up a GoFundMe page to raise $10 million to “protect his family or run against” Sen. John McCain (R-AZ).

The_Man_Made_Mad_with_Fear_by_Gustave_Courbet

It is, of course, not impossible that Ritzheimer might be at risk.  See Hebdo, Charlie and Theo Van Gogh, e.g.  Obviously, none here wish Ritzheimer more than regular ridicule, and it is my devout hope that the Muslim community in this country continues to act as they have so far:  emphasizing that sheer dicktitude on display, and demonstrating the virtues of another path:

The contentious nature of Ritzheimer’s protest on Friday didn’t prevent some productive interaction between the two sides. From the Washington Post:

Jason Leger, a Phoenix resident wearing one of the profanity-laced shirts, accepted an invitation to join the evening prayer inside the mosque, and said the experience changed him.

“It was something I’ve never seen before. I took my shoes off. I kneeled. I saw a bunch of peaceful people. We all got along,” Leger said. “They made me feel welcome, you know. I just think everybody’s points are getting misconstrued, saying things out of emotion, saying things they don’t believe.”

Paul Griffin, who had earlier said he didn’t care if his t-shirt was offensive, assured a small crowd of Muslims at the end of the rally that he wouldn’t wear it again.

“I promise, the next time you see me, I won’t be wearing this shirt,” he told one man while shaking his hand and smiling. “I won’t wear it again.”

But to return to the defining thread of this kind of nonsense:  whether or not Ritzheimer may indeed face anything more than scorn, you have to be impressed — not in a good way — at hiseffortless pivot to the trough.  Rage and bigotry as a profit maximizing strategy.

Poltroon!
ETA: Seems the campaign has been pulled.  Ah, well. It’s the thought that counts.
Image:  Gustave Courbet, The Man Made Mad with Fear, c 1843-44.

Reader Interactions

124Comments

  4. 4.

    JPL

    During the event, I streamed the local Fox news out of Phoenix and the coverage appeared to be fair in the beginning. They mentioned that it was a terrible idea to be walking around with AK 47’s in front of a house of worship. They also mentioned that there were far more supporting the right to worship. After the event, it somehow turned to the fact that terrorism is causes by Muslims and that Obama didn’t call the Ft. Hood murders terrorism. At that point, I didn’t think it was necessary to listen anymore. It’s always Obama to those people.

  5. 5.

    Villago Delenda Est

    Rage and bigotry as a profit maximizing strategy.

    One of the most telling sins of this fucked up country. The fundigelicals live by it.

  6. 6.

    Warren Terra

    I’m pretty sure doing the “donate here for my possible run against John McCain” as a GoFundMe campaign is illegal – actual political campaign donations are handled quite differently, and aren’t interchangeable with “buy me a big house in a gated community”.

  8. 8.

    OzarkHillbilly

    Obviously, none here wish Ritzheimer more than regular ridicule,

    Speak for yourself. I wish this dickhead a huge shit sandwich everyday for the rest of what I hope is a very long life.

  9. 9.

    LWA (Liberal With Attitude)

    @Warren Terra:

    actual political campaign donations are handled quite differently, and aren’t interchangeable with “buy me a big house in a gated community”.

    All appearances to the contrary notwithstanding.

  11. 11.

    dmsilev

    to raise $10 million to “protect his family or run against” Sen. John McCain (R-AZ).

    I know John McCain is a cantankerous and grudge-holding jackass, but I doubt he’d order a hit on this guy’s family.

  12. 12.

    Botsplainer

    Obviously, none here wish Ritzheimer more than regular ridicule…

    Personally, I can say I wouldn’t mind seeing him shrug this mortal coil quickly in order to make Earth a better place.

    The method is unimportant but I’d like it on Pay Per View…

  13. 13.

    JPL

    It appears that the entire event was a scam to raise money. Can the police charge him for the cost of extra security? It sure would be nice to think so.

  14. 14.

    srv

    Let’s just pick an unihhabited island somewhere and challenge ISIS to a Battle Royale. Do a kickstarter to send as many Ritzheimers as possible.

    Make it an annual event.

  15. 15.

    jl

    Guy should have entered the GOP pres primary. (edit: only 9 are declared right now, so still a chance to make the big debate stage for a guy who has a knack for publicity)

    And, glad a few teabagger souls were brave enough to meet people at the mosque and changed their minds and hearts, at least a little bit.

  17. 17.

    jl

    Part of me feels sad. Why not let a winner win? A guy gets a couple of million $, he could afford some cool ancient Scythian swag:

    2,400-Year-Old Ancient Gold Bongs Unearthed In Russia

    ” A team of archaeologists has discovered a pair of gold “bongs,” or water pipes, in southern Russia. The artifacts, which are made of pure gold, are believed to be around 2,400 years old.

    According to the archaeologists, tribal chiefs used the ancient paraphernalia to smoke opium and cannabis….

    The archaeologists believe the pair of treasures belonged to the Scythians… ”

    http://www.ibtimes.com/2400-year-old-ancient-gold-bongs-unearthed-russia-1947171

  18. 18.

    Botsplainer

    @jl:

    Guy should have entered the GOP pres primary. (edit: only 9 are declared right now, so still a chance to make the big debate stage for a guy who has a knack for publicity)

    That’s only 45% of a Duggar vagina’s worth of clowns.

    There’s plenty more room out there for more candidates.

  19. 19.

    beltane

    I almost feel like I’m missing out on something by not partaking of the wingnut Fountain of Grift. If I just erected a homophobic or Islamophobic statue on my lawn I’d probably be able to rake in enough money to fund my chidrens’ college education.

  20. 20.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @JPL:

    You used the words “Fox” and “fair” in the same sentence. Please tell me you haven’t gone over to the Dark Side.

  21. 21.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @beltane: You’re one of us poor saps who have the disease of scruples.

    The Duggars, Hastert, and every televangelist ever are missing that. Which explains their actions.

  22. 22.

    Baud

    @beltane: I know we don’t want to admit this, but it takes a certain degree of talent to be successful at the grift.

  23. 23.

    JPL

    @SiubhanDuinne: It was the local Phoenix station and I said appeared to be fair and then the local fox channel blamed Obama.
    Even our local Fox channel appears unbiased and then suddenly blames Obama. They just can’t help themselves.

  24. 24.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @beltane: It’s not so much that you are missing out on something; it’s more that you aren’t missing something – call it a conscience, a soul, a sense of decency, something like that.

  27. 27.

    beltane

    Starting one’s own fundie church seems like the best form of grift. It’s a more reliable form of income than these one-off, outrage generated revenue bonanzas.

  30. 30.

    Howard Beale IV

    Poor Michelle Malkin: IN an article she worore comparing Bernie Sanderos policies to the current condition in Venezuela, it seems the editors at NRO put up a doctored photo that was supposed to be a Venezuelan supermarket but was actually one from Austin TX before Hurricane Kartrina hit. Little Green Footballs shredded that picture six ways from Sunday and proceeded to tear into Malkin, who said: “it’s not my fault-it’s up to whoever publishes my article who obtains the picture (in this case, NRO)”. Well, needless to say, that didn’t go over very well, to the point she’s actually pissed at NRO for not publicly stating they screwed up.

    As far as this whole charade goes, I’ll outsource it to Alan Parsons.

  31. 31.

    catclub

    @dmsilev:

    I know John McCain is a cantankerous and grudge-holding jackass, but I doubt he’d order a hit on this guy’s family.

    But didn’t Lindsey Graham already promise to do that to anyone who looked at him funny.

  33. 33.

    beltane

    Is Mitt Romney expected to squeeze into the clown car? They could use a designated driver.

  37. 37.

    Doug R

    I think that t-shirt works best wrapped around your head as a covering. assalamualaikum

  40. 40.

    fuckwit

    Is someone keeping a running list of the clowns somewhere? I’m getting confused. It has to be about a dozen now, I think.

  45. 45.

    El Caganer

    So sad seeing that advanced Ritzheimer’s Syndrome, when somebody’s grift just falls completely apart.

  46. 46.

    Poopyman

    @Baud: Well, he’s a lawyer, so I expect he’s referring the ability to argue either side of any argument, possibly switching in midstream, and being able to totally nail the dismount.

    Ditto OO, of course.

    ETA: Nym Fail. Sorry BQ.

  53. 53.

    Chris

    @Howard Beale IV:

    Malkin, who said: “it’s not my fault-it’s up to whoever publishes my article who obtains the picture (in this case, NRO)”

    Sounds like their unpaid intern was putting an amount of effort into the job commensurate with his salary.

  56. 56.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    While Poopyman may indeed have come to Balloon Juice tonight for an argument, a simple denial of that assertion by Omnes Omnibus is somewhat unproductive as arguments go, as well as less than engaging. Much to my surprise, since OO is quite clever, if occasionally short of commas.

  62. 62.

    Baud

    @FlipYrWhig:

    Scythians

    Has there in history been a more bad-ass named demographic group? I wish I could say my nationality was Scythian on some form.

  65. 65.

    trollhattan

    O/T Baby steps, but steps in the right direction.

    As labor unions lead a nationwide push for a higher minimum wage, the California Senate on Monday approved raising the state’s required hourly rate to $11 in 2016 and $13 in 2017.

    Under Senate Bill 3, which passed by a vote of 23-15, California’s minimum wage would also begin increasing annually in 2019 based on inflation. The measure heads next to the Assembly.

    “The President of the United States has defined income inequality as the defining challenge of our time,” said Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, who authored the measure. “Wages are growing at the slowest rate relative to corporate profits in the history of the United States of America.”

  74. 74.

    Poopyman

    @Redshift: Nine? Well, we can go a couple of ways with this:

    “The nine are abroad.”[1]

    Or:

    Sleazy, Gropey, Dumpy, Doc, Prancer, ….

    ([1] Feel free to run with that one, folks.)

  78. 78.

    Southern Beale

    WAIT it’s to “protect his family OR run against” McCain? I don’t think you can do that .. it’s either a political contribution or it’s not. THERE ARE RULES, MAN.

  80. 80.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    @Omnes Omnibus: Fair enough.

    Since he is professionally trained, Omnes should not be expected to produce an elegant argument pro bono. He can reasonably expect and demand to be compensated for his time and talent.

    As may I, now that I think about it. And I should not be paid less, simply because of my gender. In fact, there’s a colorable argument to be made that I should be paid more, based on years of practice. Likewise there is an equally colorable argument that I should not be paid more. Indeed, perhaps I should even be paid less than Omnes, based on my time in the non-profit mental health advocacy field, along with time in equestrian management and training.

    Discuss.

  92. 92.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Valdivia: I wasn’t saying I was opposed. Some day I may tell you all about fountain swimming with the English girl.

    @trollhattan: Oddly, that’s just the sort of thing I would do.

  96. 96.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Karen in GA:

    An argument isn’t just contradiction.

    ::strolls off like a boss, head held high, confident that she has won this round::

  103. 103.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Valdivia: For whatever reason (perhaps nostalgia), I am more likely to let the goths in. It might be the hipster mustaches on the steam-punks that puts me off.

  106. 106.

    Valdivia

    @Omnes Omnibus: That’s very cool. Because The Cure, how can one not love that? The most inventive I ever got for Halloween was in grad school when I went to a very debauched party hosted by Chilean gay painter whose house was full of crucifixes (his art, very freudian). I went as a Nabokov character–don’t ask :)

  107. 107.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Valdivia: Humbert Humbert? I had a stock Halloween costume I used for years. An old suit of my dad’s from the 60s, my grandfather’s 1930’s overcoat, and Soviet fur hat I bought in Berlin. I was KGB guy. The overcoat eventually died, the suit as well, but I still have the hat.

  108. 108.

    Valdivia

    @Omnes Omnibus: See that would have been so much cooler, I went as the other character from the same book, much older professor man on my arm (I know, grad school professors, such a cliche). I love the idea of KGB man. Those hats are made to endure eh?

  109. 109.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Valdivia:

    I know, grad school professors, such a cliche

    We all have our cliche phases. Hell, I married an East European blond bombshell – just after I turned 40.

  113. 113.

    Valdivia

    @Omnes Omnibus: if one is going to have a cliche phase, one has to make it a good one I say. Seems you did it in style. I think I did too. It was the scandal du jour at the university.

  114. 114.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Valdivia:

    It was the scandal du jour at the university.

    Excellent. As far as I know, I was one of two people from my undergrad who went to my law school. The other was two years ahead of me at both schools. We both made law review and became editors. She was Ed in Chief; I was Articles Editor. She had sex with the law review faculty adviser on her desk in the law review office and broke up his marriage; I did not. OTOH, I liked her when I knew her in undergrad. She was charming.

  121. 121.

    different-church-lady

    …“protect his family or run against” Sen. John McCain…

    Man, that’s a hell of a choice…

  122. 122.

    jpe

    Can the police charge him for the cost of extra security?

    You’re asking whether we can charge people to protest.

    You can probably figure out the answer to that.

  123. 123.

    boatboy_srq

    @Elizabelle: Shame has very little to do with grift. I keep wondering whether GoFundMe may be the end of the massive multimedia Xtian machine: if grifting the rubes is now suddenly so easy, there’s no need for a massive “cathedral”; no choir to pay; and the only requirements are sensational press coverage, a Website and a GFM account.

  124. 124.

    gratuitous

    Strange that Ritzheimer feels so threatened; doesn’t he have a great big gun so that he isn’t so scared all the time?

    I understand the president of the mosque invited the unruly, armed jackasses in for the evening service, and some of them actually took him up on his offer. And of those who did, a couple of them have completely changed their minds and will no longer participate in these hate sessions. I can’t imagine why that wouldn’t make the news, though.

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