Congressman Weiner's inappropriate tweet

[TraneWreck]

Evidence IS available. IP logs, for example. And the cops are in a much better position to both determine the availability of evidence and actually doing the investigation than his lawyer is.

Did everyone defending him just turn their brains off in regards to his lawyer and not calling the cops? Your excuses simply aren't credible.

Evidence is available for people to banter on the internet. Criminal inquiries and civil lawsuits are a different matter.

And please, this wasn't a rape or a murder or some crime with a victim that needed immediate attention. There's no rush on this. He was smart to consult a lawyer before flying off.

But please, you call the cops everytime your e-mail gets hacked?

Oh, so honesty is just a right-wing thing?

Yeah, you might want to rethink that position.

Were that my position, I would rethink it. Sanctimonious and inconsistent application of the "honesty" principle is a right wing thing.

 

[Ziggurat]

First, that's a bit of a false dichotomy. He could be telling the truth about not sending the photo and trying to cover up an embarrassing cyber-relationship with the coed.

That would be quite the set of coincidences (and even if true, then his actions are hardly victimless). Sorry, I'm going with Occam's razor on this one.

Also, do you suppose there is any human who has never lied about anything? Do you expect politicians to be different?

Oh, I fully expect Weiner to be a complete and utter ass, because that's what I think he is. That doesn't give him a pass on bald-faced, uncredible, sanctimonious lying. And no, I don't think the standard I'm setting here is out of reach of a person with integrity.

I would say it matters if they're lying about things that affect their work in office. Otherwise, not so much.

I disagree. It speaks to his character, and a person's character has quite a lot to do with how they wield power, even on otherwise unrelated issues.

 

[Denver]

Glenn Beck is having a field day with this today. He went an hour and a half on it.
Weiner was apparently the guy who went after Beck for using fear mongering tactics to market gold (via Goldline).

Mostly Beck's take is: Weiner said it was a hack. Then changed to say it was a prank, and will not answer any other questions. Beck is concerned that if this was a hack, congress may not be secure, and so a thorough investigation should be done on this. Mr Beck urges the Republicans in congress to insist on this investigation. For national security's sake.

 

[BenBurch]

Richard Seed disagrees.

I'd just like to point out that Dick graduated cum laude from Harvard.

And then there is the (retired?) NASCAR driver Dick Trickle.

 

[Ziggurat]

Evidence is available for people to banter on the internet. Criminal inquiries and civil lawsuits are a different matter.

I'm not talking about evidence that you and I have. I'm talking about evidence like the IP address logs that Twitter has. Which the cops could easily request and obtain, IF a criminal complaint was filed. Hell, Weiner might be able to get it even without the cops, if he wanted it. But strangely, he and his defenders seem completely uninterested in it. It's as if you already suspect that such logs won't support your case. Quite curious, really.

And please, this wasn't a rape or a murder or some crime with a victim that needed immediate attention.

It's just a career-damaging cyber-attack against a sitting congressman.

Sorry, but that DOES need immediate attention, because the damage to his reputation is being done daily.

But please, you call the cops everytime your e-mail gets hacked?

I've never had my email get hacked. But if such a hack threatened my career and future ambitions, then damn straight I'd call the cops.

Unless he did it, Weiner gains nothing by delaying calling the cops.

 

[JoeTheJuggler]

Unless he did it, Weiner gains nothing by delaying calling the cops.

I've already laid out a plausible scenario where Weiner does gain by trying to keep things quiet. You claimed it's not likely by a misuse of Occam's Razor.

What unnecessary entities has my explanation created? In fact, given the evidence, the scenario I laid out is probably the most parsimonious explanation of the facts. (He was flirting or something with the coed, but Breitbart or someone else invented the story of him sending that photo. Weiner is motivated to keep things quiet.)

ETA: In the scenario I'm suggesting, Weiner is perhaps guilty of misusing the word "hacked" which is why he has since been sticking with "prank".

ETA: Also, if there is to be an investigation, wouldn't it be a matter for the FBI and not any local police? Since the story hit the news since it's been a story that would threaten Weiner's career, the authorities in question should be aware of it. For Weiner to request (or demand) an investigation would not only further threaten matters he'd like to keep quiet, but would also, as I said, make him look more like a Whiner than a Weiner. (Sorry--couldn't resist.)

In other words, what does he gain by calling the cops?

 

[Brainster]

Link to the tweet on Tweet Congress?

Here's Tweet Congress. You'll have to hit the "more" button about a thousand times, but I admire your skeptical perseverance.

 

[TraneWreck]

I'm not talking about evidence that you and I have. I'm talking about evidence like the IP address logs that Twitter has. Which the cops could easily request and obtain, IF a criminal complaint was filed. Hell, Weiner might be able to get it even without the cops, if he wanted it. But strangely, he and his defenders seem completely uninterested in it. It's as if you already suspect that such logs won't support your case. Quite curious, really.

This story is less than a week old. Weiner hired an attorney, consulted with him, and doubtless that attorney is communicating with law enforcement.

Once again, this is not an emergency. The lack of immediate, hair-on-fire response to a hacked twitter account is indicative of nothing.

There will be no Bronco chase in this matter.

It's just a career-damaging cyber-attack against a sitting congressman.

It will be completely forgotten about in less than two weeks. REMEMBER WHEN MICHAEL JACKSON DIED AND THE WORLD STOPPED TURNING?!?!

Not a big deal, not a big story, it will all pass by.

Sorry, but that DOES need immediate attention, because the damage to his reputation is being done daily.

There is no damage to his reputation, just vapid nonsense from right wing goofballs. Weiner is fortunate to hail from a smart area of the country, they don't care about this.

I've never had my email get hacked. But if such a hack threatened my career and future ambitions, then damn straight I'd call the cops.

Unless he did it, Weiner gains nothing by delaying calling the cops.

Just time to consult with his attorney and figure out what happened.

 

[lomiller]

How hard is it to "hack" a twitter account?

In this case it looks like his Facebook page was hacked and the twitter feed there was then used to send the message. Facebook is notoriously for it’s lax security.

 

[Ziggurat]

This story is less than a week old. Weiner hired an attorney, consulted with him, and doubtless that attorney is communicating with law enforcement.

That is actually very much in doubt.

There is no damage to his reputation

This is whistling past the graveyard.

 

[A Laughing Baby]

Here's Tweet Congress. You'll have to hit the "more" button about a thousand times, but I admire your skeptical perseverance.

It's now his responsibility to back up your claim?

 

[Ziggurat]

Also, if there is to be an investigation, wouldn't it be a matter for the FBI and not any local police?

Quite possibly. I've been loose with my use of the term "cops", you may substitute whatever law enforcement agency is appropriate.

Since the story hit the news since it's been a story that would threaten Weiner's career, the authorities in question should be aware of it. For Weiner to request (or demand) an investigation would not only further threaten matters he'd like to keep quiet

It doesn't matter if they're aware of the story, unless he files a complaint then they have no actual evidence that any crime even happened. They're not going to investigate without a complaint. And that's the way it should be.

In other words, what does he gain by calling the cops?

What he gains is a criminal investigation which could both prove that he didn't send the tweet and punish whoever did. And that will not happen without a criminal complaint.

 

[leftysergeant]

Okay, hold it right here. If this act was done more or less in public, shopuldn't a few thousand people have seen it and said something? Do you really think that more than 75% of the people following Weiner like him? A lot of people would love to slam Weiner because they cannot stand real men. There must have been hundreds who would have jumped at a chance to hurt Weiner watching him.

But only one person has gone public and that slimeball took the information to a fake journalist who almost falls off the bottom of the evolutionary scale to put it up on the internet for wider viewing. Most interesting.

 

[Neally]

And please, this wasn't a rape or a murder or some crime with a victim that needed immediate attention. There's no rush on this. He was smart to consult a lawyer before flying off.

Shear nonsense. If his account was hacked as he claims, there could be a key logger on his computer, extracting confidential official business information. If it was an internal prank, someone unauthorized in is staff or close to his staff could have access to much more than just his Twitter account. In short there could be many security breaches way beyond his Twitter account that deserves immediate reporting and investigating by the police.

 

[Brainster]

It's now his responsibility to back up your claim?

Okay, see here, where a screencap is posted.

Faux-skeptics incoming in 3,2,1...

 

[TraneWreck]

That is actually very much in doubt.

You really don't much understand what lawyers do.

This is whistling past the graveyard.

I am anxious for you to bump this thread in two weeks. The reaction will be, "oh yeah, I remember that stupid **** now."

This will pass on and be forgotten save for a small circle of zealots. It will give them a fresh topic to deal with between bouts of claiming that Vince Foster was murdered and Obama is from Kenya.

 

[TraneWreck]

Shear nonsense. If his account was hacked as he claims, there could be a key logger on his computer, extracting confidential official business information. If it was an internal prank, someone unauthorized in is staff or close to his staff could have access to much more than just his Twitter account. In short there could be many security breaches way beyond his Twitter account that deserves immediate reporting and investigating by the police.

No, it's just stupid.

Unless, wait, you've uncovered a massive scandal, THERE ARE NO I.T. PEOPLE ON CAPITOL HILL!!!!

 

[leftysergeant]

Okay, see here, where a screencap is posted.

Faux-skeptics incoming in 3,2,1...

Don't be so smug. It is not "faux skepticism" to call you something short of rational when, to back your position, you offer a screen capture from Big BS.com without corroborating statements from the top clerics of every major world religion signed in their own blood.

You have, in effect, put a suspected criminal on the stand as a witness against an identifiable victim.

Please tell me you are not a lawyer.

 

[A Laughing Baby]

Okay, see here, where a screencap is posted.

Faux-skeptics incoming in 3,2,1...

A screencap on a blog isn't going to cut it for me, but since you've established that you're going to say "it's on this thing but I'm not going to be bothered to look for it myself," I'll go look for it.

 

[Unabogie]

Okay, see here, where a screencap is posted.

Faux-skeptics incoming in 3,2,1...

You just posted a link to a known fabricator. A guy who posted edited videos. A guy who has zero credibility. Have anything NOT from Breitbart?

Do you really trust anything that confirms your biases, or are there limits?