Wonkette
Child molester scandals are not funny, like hooker-diaper scandals, or comically implausible, like the Larry Craig wide stance scandal, and they reveal no particular hypocrisy like the old “Gay-hating Republican hates gays, except when they are sucking their cocks” scandals. Child molester scandals are horrible for the accused and the accuser. (Also, your editor is completely creeped out by commenters who are a little bit too excited about describing what terrible creative punishments should be visited on child molesters, so you can just nip that one in the bud.) So. A guy who ran the Pueblo, Colorado office of the McCain campaign has been accused, for the second time in a week and the fifth time since 1982, of molesting a child.
There is basically no comedy to be wrung from this, so we will not even try, except for this weird bit of detail: an alleged victim said the accused, Jeffrey Bartleson, was “wearing clothes the same as John McCain.” What on earth does that mean? Like, pants and a shirt?
Also the alleged molester volunteered in church groups, a hospital drug rehab unit, and of course in politics, which should make all you civic-minded types reconsider your commitments lest you look like a child predator.
Pueblo manager for McCain campaign arrested on molestation charges [The Colorado Independent]
This is not a stimulus package I can believe in.
Police arrested the former manager of Sen. John McCain’s Pueblo presidential campaign office Wednesday on charges he sexually assaulted a 5-year-old boy left in his care so the boy’s mother could attend a rally for McCain’s running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin…
OMFG… words do not suffice…
Poor kid, though.
Like, pants and a shirt?
Perhaps they mean the clothes McCain wore while a prisoner for five and a half years, Alan.
SKS, child molester scandals are fucking creepy, but it seems to be a major plank in the Repub Party’s platform to totally fuck anyone and everyone over who doesn’t donate to the Repub party.
What did Ken post yesterday about that Republitard fuckwad from Texas and what he said about insurgency and Taliban? Something like, the Taliban are religious wack jobs who like to bugger little boys and the Republicans are religious wack jobs who like to bugger little boys.
Serolf Divad:
Family values.
GAH! That guy’s photo says it all. What mother in their right mind would trust their child to someone who looked like that?
pondscum:
Palin Supporter, nuff said.
…an alleged victim said the accused, Jeffrey Bartleson, was “wearing clothes the same as John McCain.” What on earth does that mean?
Perhaps something like this?
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/04/09/twins.jpg
Child molestors are one instance where I support the death penalty. The recidivism rate is well over 80%, rehab simply doesn’t work on most of them. I think they are the personification of evil and have no sympathy for them regardless of their background. I do not harbor elaborate punishment scenarios as some seem to, I says off them and move on. Not as a deterrent, but just to get the worthless scumbags out of circulation permanently.
Social conservativism has devolved into this strange little cult seeking to impose endless rules on all of society in the hopes that said rules will prevent the social conservatives from doing all the strange and horrible things they dream about every night.
Smoking meth with gay prostitutes.
Wearing diapers with straight prostitutes.
IMing teenage boys.
Cruising airport shitters.
Buggering five-year-olds.
This people are seriously fucked in the head.
“Clothes like John McCain” :
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3102/2617430584_bcd9a4fba7_o.jpg
Two things that you should never place in the care of a Repuke: your money and your children.
BOO sex perverts.
HEEEEENNGGHH….ick.
Woodwards Friend: Yeah, watching the Teddy “bear” Haggard documentary, the first two minutes are just him telling his ‘congregation’ to not do stuff you have to keep a secret, not be a hypocrite, and not [random bible-thumper rule]. It makes the rest almost unbearable.
“clothes like John McCain.”
Yeah–WTF could that even mean? It isn’t like McCain has some instantly recognizable or signature “look.”
More family values for Mona Charen.
rev_matt_y: I completely agree. My best friend was repeatedly abused as a child, the fucker was a family member and was never caught. Anyone who dare sexually assault a child should be killed. AND you’re right, the recidivism rate is astronomically high.
Servo:
A Republican, a priest and a child molester show up at a fancy restaurant for dinner. The maitre ‘d scans the dining room and the seating chart and inquires: “Will anyone be joining you sir, or shall I seat you at a table for one?”
Origami:
Ketchup-stained and smelling of urine.
Can we stop for a minute and talk about the image at the top of the page? Because according to that bear its not “comedy” that is being “wrung” from this.
but Rahm Emanuel lived in a basement in D.C. that was not ZONED FOR THAT USE… terrible…
rev_matt_y: I agree with you.
Poor kid.
The Republican Party: “Kid-tested, Pederast-approved”
Careful everyone, Denby’s watching.
“clothes like John McCain.”
I’m going to go with a grandpa sweater.
A guy who ran the Pueblo, Colorado office of the McCain campaign has been accused, for the second time in a week and the fifth time since 1982, of molesting a child.
He’s been doing this since 1982? Holy, holy, holy shit.
Also, WTF? This guy was accused of this three times prior and he gets to run a campaign office that he can turn into his own twisted day care? I thought the Republican Party was all “law & order,” “tough on crime,” etc.
…so how long do you guys think before he blames his “kiddie fukking” on some imaginary alcohol dependency? Personally that whole “Alcoholism Defense” always pissed me off; giving us alcoholics a bad name. I have been drinking for half of my 27 year life and I have never felt the urge to screw a 5 year old boy!
While I recognize and embrace our female editor’s efforts of keeping the cretinous and punishable comments off her post, I really feel a sense of lame right now. I mean this is a man who had been arrested five times for child molestation but never convicted. I wont say anything more, because I will be banned if I do, but Mistrez_Mish: damn dood that is depressing and totally not what I want to hear when hitting up Wonkette first thing in the morning.
These comments may lead many to suicide— I may not even make it to coffee.
No child left behind! Woot!
Rielle Hunter: Thank you.
It’s interesting how the media and the public almost intuitively know how are the bad guys. Nobody expects the conservatives to do anything less than molest the children. When something like this comes up people are in some freaky way satisfied: the monster acts as the monster should, and everything is in order.
This is slightly less funny than terminal cancer. David Denby will be expounding on this in Snark II: The Revenge.
Also, your editor is completely creeped out by commenters who are a little bit too excited about describing what terrible creative punishments should be visited on child molesters
I think they should get ass cancer.
Inappropriate?
podscum: This mother:
After reading about Bartleson’s arrest last week, a McCain campaign worker from Pueblo contacted police and said she believed her son had been assaulted by Bartleson in October when the boy spent the night at Bartleson’s house.
Why didn’t she believe it in October?
So the boy told his mother that he had been molested by this turd in October, but she didn’t call the police until last week when she had seen a report that he had been arrested for the same charge involving another child.
This is further proof that all Sarah Palin rallies were attended by knucle dragging dingbats.
How does the McCain campaign hire this douche with three strikes already against him, nevermind that he was not convicted.
Woodwards Friend: Religion has always been about controlling human behavior. Religion set the basis for all laws, good and bad, we (the world) use to control our behavior. It is the expectation that either the laws of the devine or the resultant laws of man will END such behavior that is the basis for all our hypocrisy. Our “achievements” as humans and our religions that tell us that we are “higher” than base animals by devine right have endowed us with a hubris that makes us act surprised when our base instincts and genetic predispositions manifest themselves in actions that shock our falsely created moral sense of self.
The human condition is not pleasent, no matter how many big screen TVs we own. In the US we find this behavior abhorrent, but in many cultures, this is the action of a village chief.
Only a human can actively construct the mental cognitive dissonance to work to promote a set of rules for behavior that runs directly counter to their own behavior.
rev_matt_y: But there’s really no difference between a child molester and a rapist of adult humans. Both are 100% vile. And there’s really no difference between a rapist and a murderer. They’re all horrid - they all destroy lives. So picking and choosing who is worthy of the death penalty, if anyone…is just slippery.
All three have high recidivism rates. All three anger and disgust me equally. I don’t feel less terrible for a woman who was raped, than I do for a child who was, ya know? So I can’t reconcile how one is more pathetic than another.
Now if this had happened to an office manager for the Obama campaign, Drudge would have pulled out at least three sirens and the 84-point font.
jagorev: Ooo ooo!! Uncontrolled cell multiplication in the colon. YOU ARE ONTO SOMETHING.
To keep this non-offensive however, how about we give child molesters teddy bears and gum drops? It can maybe help them change their ways? Also?
Origami: “Clothes like Rudy Gulliani,” on the other hand, covers a lot of interesting territory.
“How” -> “who”. Me idiot.
shortsshortsshorts: Shorts, for you. And if that doesn’t get you through to coffee, maybe this will.
oldguy: Some parents choose to not report abuse because they feel the legal process will be more damaging to their child. Perhaps hearing about the other cases tipped the mother over to wanting to report. Or maybe the kid didn’t say anything until the other reports came out.
I think even a *shudder* Palin-supporter would believe their kid if they said they were molested.
AngryBlakGuy: Neither have I. But I did paint my bathroom a hideous color while drunk.
rev_matt_y: …geez, now you are gonna make me have to defend the creepy pedophiles! Besides the fact that I have an ABSOLUTE aversion to capital punishment, there plenty of reason why you should NOT fry each and every one of them.
1) Pedophilia is actually considered a mental illness by the DSM-IV. Which would make it extremely unethical(unless in Texas or Florida) to execute them.
2) There have been several instances where the wrong person has been arrested and convicted for something haven’t done.
EXAMPLE
-A child misidentifying their abuser
-A parent trying to exact revenge on another parent
-An attempt by a child to get attention
3) Our penal system is literally just one step above that of a third world country. There is almost NO emphasis on reforming/treating inmates. Instead its simply a warehousing system. Recidivism for the total population of formerly incarcerated individuals is very high regardless of the type of crime.
Ok, dude, please tell me that isn’t Pedo Bear’s jiz on the ‘children at play’ sign…(*throws up in mouth a little*)
“Also, your editor is completely creeped out by commenters who are a little bit too excited about describing what terrible creative punishments should be visited on child molesters, so you can just nip that one in the bud.”
Like:
A) Throwing him in a pit of Scooter’s rape bears
or
B) Locking him overnight in the Amsterdam torture museum with a pair of psychotic teenagers
or
C)”Nipping his bud”
or
D) Just sending him to prison where he will molested (ironic!)
Nobody tell Jindal about this. He’ll run all the way to Colorado and come after this guy’s nutsack like an rabid badger.
OffTheRecord: Not grandpa sweaters. Gay sweaters.
http://wonkette.com/277308/gay-sweaters-cost-walnuts-primaries
Nigerian Business Executive: Why does Coulter seem strikingly more attractive with a beard?
magic titty: …actually, “rapist” and “pedophiles” are very different. You have to look beyond the obvious “sexual” aspect of each crime and focus on what drives individuals to commit these terrible acts. For many rapist, rape is simply about imposing their will upon another individual(i.e. “Power”). Whereas the majority of child molesters for some reason or another have had their sexual development halted. Therefore they don’t feel comfortable engaging other adults sexually(texbook case: Michael Jackson). Both of these individuals would undergo totally different kinds of rehabilitation to address their mental health issues.
What is it with Republican congressmen, Catholic priests, Scout masters, and female teachers of late? Is there some substance in young boys’ underpants that is like cocaine to these people?
I’ve seen young boys’ genitals…they are just not that interesting.
AfghanVet: I totally agree with you.
AngryBlakGuy: I totally agree with you as well.
I also agree with the guy who says pedo’s should get bear-raped. Or at least buttsexed by someone with a really Big One. No reach-around though.
Stray Cat Blues - The Rolling Stones
I hear the click-clack of your feet on the stairs
I know you’re no scare-eyed honey.
There’ll be a feast if you just come upstairs
But it’s no hanging matter
It’s no capital crime
I can see that you’re fifteen years old
No I don’t want your I.D.
And I can see that you’re so far from home
But it’s no hanging matter
It’s no capital crime
Oh yeah, you’re a strange stray cat
Oh yeah, don’tcha scratch like that
Oh yeah, you’re a strange stray cat
I bet, bet your mama don’t know you scream like that
I bet your mother don’t know you can spit like that.
You look so weird and you’re so far from home
But you don’t really miss your mother
Don’t look so scared I’m no mad-brained bear
But it’s no hanging matter
It’s no capital crime
Oh, yeah
Woo!
I bet your mama don’t know that you scatch like that
I bet she don’t know you can bite like that.
You say you got a friend, that she’s wilder than you
Why don’t you bring her upstairs
If she’s so wild then she can join in too
It’s no hanging matter
It’s no capital crime
Oh yeah, you’re a strange stray cat
Oh yeah, don’tcha scratch like that
Oh yeah, you’re a strange stray cat
I bet you mama don’t know you can bite like that
I’ll bet she never saw you scratch my back
_______________________________
What the hell is wrong with Mick Jagger? I mean holy shit. What a STUD?
AngryBlakGuy: Oh I absolutely agree with you. I think the point I might have failed at making, was that I don’t have a worse feeling for a specific victim of any of these acts. So why should I feel different about the punishment of the offender? The psychological makeup of that offender is another matter. One to which this country and no country will ever begin to properly address. Lock them in cages seems to be the way it will always be, no matter how poorly that works.
And sorry to be over-posting in such a ludicrous manner, but here in SF we appreciate initiatives *achem* that address these matters: http://www.queerty.com/gay-rape-campaign-up-in-san-fran-20070621/
Serolf Divad: A Republican, a priest and a child molester show up at a fancy restaurant for dinner. The maitre ‘d scans the dining room and the seating chart and inquires: “Will anyone be joining you sir, or shall I seat you at a table for one?”
WIN.
It’s not funny because it’s true.
queeraselvis v 2.0: Yeah seriously, some of his victims are old enough to be the parents of his latest victims. That shit is creepy and I can’t believe he’s been allowed to just go around and wear clothes the same as McCain all this time.
AfghanVet: I know what your saying:
When you really think about it, it’s kinda weird what we think is weird. Even so, the weird stuff still totally weirds us out, y’know?
Weird.
[/takes another bong hit with Phelps]
AfghanVet: Also, my big screen TV is a force for good, not evil.
(So much Star Trek , so little time.)
AfghanVet: I’m sorry but that post was too long for me to read on a Friday morning. I saw you had the words “achievements” and “higher” in there, so I assume it was about smoking pot and playing Xbox 360, which gets a big thumbs up from me. Way to go, AfghanVet!
In his defense, the 5-year old totally looked 7.
Godot: Ha! Beat you to the dope-smoking joke, buddy!
Blah blah blah. All I want to know is whether he paid his taxes, or corrected errors on his returns and paid back taxes. Because paying your taxes is the truest judge of character in America today. Once we get past that all important hurdle, we can worry about the mere minutiae of his personal life, such as pedophilia.
Woodwards Friend: That’s what *I* keep trying to tell people! The Christians do such a bad job of acting Christian that they figure it can’t be their fault, or God’s fault. It’s the fault of the rest of us for having a civilization just teeming with so much temptation! Neither Radical Islam nor Radical Christianity can *POSSIBLY* work for the guilt-tormented sin-filled scumbags who follow these cults, until the rest of us are forced to go along with it!
It’s all related to the battle cry of the sociopathic psychopath: “Look what you made me do!”
Simple. Seriously, glad I’m not the only one who sees this.
Neon Trotsky: That is really strange. If you could walk into the McCain campaign office in a medium sized western city you could run the whole operation. He must have been up to date with the IRS, though.
jodyleek: Not only that, but … young boys *reek*! At their best, they smell like sharp cheese. At their worst? Beggars description. I raised two sons. Their room smelled like a not-particularly-well-kept zoo. Everything in that room was always sticky. Sans supervision, their hygiene habits were unspeakable, until each of them, around 14, became obsessed with showering.
No, I cannot understand the appeal of young boys to *anyone*, despite much historical evidence that it’s a common fancy.
At least most of those Hot Horny Teacher Ladies limited their depredations to young men who had at least developed the habit of showering.
And it just now occurred to me why boys of 14 would want to retreat into a nice private shower 3 or 4 times a day. Sigh … Now I’m also rethinking that remark about the sticky room …
Perhaps Jeffery Bartelson should take a cue from Florida’s state committeewoman Carol Carter and tell the boy’s mother that he’s sorry that she feels his behavior toward her son was inappropriate.
Maybe he was wearing $500 loafers like McCain. Or maybe it was an exact replica of an outfit McCain had worn, in a kind of “Single White Female” way.
Mcinnis Read ‘Tribute’ To Bartleson Into Congressional Record In 2003
2/5/09 The Colorado Independent
Child sex assault suspect Jeffrey Claude Bartleson, the former manager of Sen. John McCain’s presidential campaign office in Pueblo, was praised in the Congressional Record in 2003 by former Rep. Scott McInnis, who represented Pueblo before leaving the House of Representatives in 2004.
On a page filled with tributes to constituents — a common practice for any member of Congress — the Glenwood Springs Republican salutes Bartleson’s work as a foster parent and his role founding the Interfaith Hospitality Network, “one of Pueblo’s newest self-help organizations.”
*********
Bartleson also founded a Boy Hospitality Network in his boxers.
G O P = Gang Of Pedophiles….Group Of Perverts….Goons Of Pansexuality
Bottom line….sicko’s
iolanthe:
I think you just provided the answer. Their similarity is the attraction. Filthy, tempermental brats that are deaf to authority and reason, even if they will ultimately benefit.
Wait, wait, wait. This is his fifth time being accused? Shit, didn’t Michael Jackson only get accused twice and everyone was screaming for his head? Once or twice might be a mistake or false accusations, but five times? It becomes implausible that five different kids over the course of twenty-seven years might make up the same cruel lie. And the mom/Palin fan just left her kid with this dude? I guess if they can’t be bothered to vet their VP nominee they cant be bothered to vet their babysitters.
DangerousLiberal: ..
Blah, if it was your ass in jeopardy you would only think about if a pervert paid his taxes and not about the assault on your son’s ass….you are dangerous and demented…
AngryBlakGuy: As much as the crime may appall me, I agree with you. One of the biggest failings of our justice system, and a large part of the reason that there is no treatment or reheabilitation is the “tough on crime” political mentality. Certain crimes are “sexier” in terms of media coverage and public interest, which draws politicans like rot draws flies. They pass mandatory minimum sentences and promise to put dope-smokers, etc. in jail, which they conviently forget is a finite space. As a consequence, less “sexy” criminals are released early to make room for the “sexy crimes”. Arsonists, for example, are released early in order to imprison drug offenders. Child molestation is sensational, as crimes go. See Nancy Grace or “Law and Order SVU” for details. People worry about child molesters in a way they never worry about arsonists. As a consequence they are willing to pawn off the burden of rational, emotionless analysis of the problem in favor of punishments as cruel and far-fetched as possible. Because the general public, the media and the politicans all want to punish them horribly, there is no treatment and without treatment, there must be, and is, an astronomically high recidivism rate. Unfortunatly, I see no course by which this trend might be corrected.
Colander: That’s considered punishment? Am I at the right site?
Another child-raping ReThuglican, hmmm? Those guys are soooo predicable…
Funny, he doesn’t look Catholic
AngryBlakGuy: There’s also the whole “business” side of prisons.
Out here in Az, a lot of the prisons are privately-run and government funded. Of course they’re only going to focus on incarceration.
No Prisoners = No $Muneez$
Don’t ever let your kids go on “retreats” with religious leaders.
Youth pastor is synonymous with child molester.
We might need a bit of Shria Law here. What would the Muslins do with him?