I largely have avoided commenting on the strange “Committee on Justice for Mike Nifong” organization, put together by a self-described “lay person,” Sidney Harr. The group, which demands restoration of Mike Nifong’s law license, portrays the disgraced ex-DA as a victim of a conspiracy involving Attorney General Roy Cooper, the North Carolina Bar, various defense attorneys, Judge Osmond Smith, Moezeldin Elmostafa, the North Carolina legislature (for enacting the law, which Nifong ignored, requiring prosecutors to turn over all test results from NTO’s), and (perhaps) other, unnamed co-conspirators in Durham, in North Carolina, in other states, and in other countries as well. Given the vastness of the conspiracy against him, it’s remarkable that Nifong was able to sustain his groundless prosecution for as long as he did.
The blog and accompanying website nonetheless make for an enlightening read, if only for a glimpse at the ill-concealed rage against the lacrosse players that fueled Nifong’s political base in Durham (and, for that matter, the Group of 88 at Duke). In recent weeks, Harr has put together a “comic strip”—all in “good, clean fun,” and “not malicious,” he claimed—that, among other things, purports to find humor in the experiences of the players’ parents. He also penned a post wildly alleging the bribery of Elmostafa, a theory so bizarre even Nifong never made it.
Harr’s blog and website are an appropriate tribute to Nifong, in terms of both tone and intellectual quality. And, to the extent that Harr sustains the character assault against the lacrosse players, he is, ironically, helping the players’ civil suits, by showing the continued damage to their reputations from the improper actions of Nifong and the Durham Police Department.
31 comments:
KC,
Why can't your site look this cool??
C'mon, put some habanero peppers on these Boston baked beans! :)
RRH
An absolutely moronic website and blog. I've lost about 10 IQ points trying to sort through Harr's maze of obsfucation. This Harr fellow's reasoning is so convoluted it's apparent that he suffers from some type of psychosis and is in serious denial much like the rest of Durham.
PS: Mr Harr if you are reading this blog, please put your keyboard down and call your psychiatrist. It's time to get your meds adjusted.
Is Harr a Communist?
The website is lots of fun. As I perused the comic strip, I couldn't help but think of an equally laughable situation---"there are no earmarks in the stimulus package".
I guess the only thing we can hear now is unfiltered garbage. Pork in the stimulus and bull in the comic strip. Anyone got a poultry joke????????
If Wonderland has the 'power' used by Crystal (Bless her heart) to levitate in that bathroom then it is only fair that Nifong should use a little of that same power to survive a vast conspiracy.
Equal opportunity and diversity consideration for the allocation of Wonderland power is important, don't you know.
Even if your ship has hit the sand.
::
GP
Harr seems to be somewhat mentally challenged. This is the reason why the 3 families of the frame should recieve millions, because morones like this just keep feeding the lie.
My Mama told me that we're known by the company we keep.
I think that Nifong's problems would be solved if he could just get a job in Washington with the new Administration.
That website is painful to navigate.
I didn't find the comic strip referenced. I did find broken links, and many, many areas to be filled in in the future.
It's amazing what you can accomplish with a simple text website. The graphics and fancy buttons detract from any kind of message being sent.
I need the Sunshine Band's help with a mystery. I have conducted a population search each day for the last three days for Michael J. Burch in the Durham County Jail and have been unable to locate him. I have used that particular site before in searching for Burch, and I've found him listed every time.
Thinking that he might have quietly pled guilty, I checked the NCDOC site, but they have no mention of him, nor does the NC sex offender registry. (Interestingly, a search areound the 610 Buchanan area finds plenty of actual, convicted rapists and other sex offenders).
There has also been no recent reporting on the Burch case. All of the on-line news articles deal with his initial arrest or his subsequent rape charge.
Did the Sheriff move Burch because of over-crowding or safety reasons? Has the District Attorney quietly nolle prossed the case? Did he make bond? Has he recently been sentenced with his status yet to be logged in by the NCDOC? Nothing would surprise me -- including operator error.
*********************
Perhaps the Plaintiffs' attorneys should send a letter to Nifong's attorney informing him of the conspiracy site and the continuing defamation and damages, giving Nifong the opportunity to use his prestige with these weirdos to shut them down. Then, ask Nifong about it during his deposition. What fun they could have! MOO! Gregory
Maybe we should dub Mr. Harr as Mr. Harr de Harr Harr for all the credibility he has.
Excellent post, K.C. If cannot help but wonder if Nifong has any connection to this guy, or if he truly is working alone. As we already have seen, there were a lot of people in Durham willing to break the law in order to push this frame, and that includes members of the Duke administration who illegally gave Nifong FERPA-protected information, and then lied in court in the summer of 2006 in a sham hearing in which Duke's lawyers pretended they had refused to give up that information.
We have seen lie after lie coming from Durham, and the lying continues. That is why I cannot help but think that Nifong or at least someone from his camp is in touch with Harr.
The only way this will be solved is when Duke basketball begins a recruiting decline because other programs will throw this case in recruits faces.
Period.
If basketball revenue declines significantly Broadhead might grow some balls. BTW Ilive in LA now and this year the two best high school players in SoCal have declared for..North Carolina. LA to Chapel Hill is a long way from here and "the word" is that the recruiters got to the parents and laid this entire thing out there including the Duke faculty hostility to athletes.
Why not UCLA? Easy, their coach is clearly a defensive specialist and offensive guys won't go there. The NBA recruits PPG, not holding other players below their per game average.
I don't buy in to this super duper conspiracy as presented by this talented cartoonist. Neither do I buy in to the consortium of conspirators as presented in the civil suits. It does appear to me that both Nifong and Cooper have used this case to further their political goals.
One of the blog entries at justice4nifong.com refers to the illegally-withheld DNA evidence as "non-exculpatory."
A novel position, to say the least.
who is Sidney Harr?
Breathtaking! If its not a parody that is really trying to appear authentic, it is just breathtaking. The work involved is enormous. Even The 88 all together didn't put in this much effort. What is the goal? Can't wait for the t-shirts!
The main argument of the website appears to be that Nifong isn't the most unethical prosecutor in NC, and if other prosecutors can get away with worse, then it is sooooo unfair that Nifong is punished.
The most chilling statement I saw:
"At first blush, the accusations in the document of misconduct and wrongdoing committed by Attorney Nifong appear to be quite damning. However, when compared to the misdeeds of other state prosecutors, which are far more egregious and subject innocent defendants to much greater injustice, the claims by the State Bar against Mr. Nifong seem to be quite trivial."
If there is a better argument for continuing the lawsuits in Durham, I haven't seen it.
-RD
I checked out the accompanying website and think it is appropriate that the symbol of impartial justice, Lady Justice, behind Mr Nifong is not wearing a blindfold. This reflects the Durham style of tilted justice. The scales of justice will be tilted.
That website is an assault on the senses.
It reminds me of the facade atop a pinball machine I once saw at a desolate road stop in a canyon of Cheyenne, Wyoming.
I was nineteen at the time and my father had just come out of a divorce and wanted drive out west to Seattle to visit his family.
It was summertime and I was between my freshmen and sophomore years at university.
I had never been cross-country by car and we took six days to do it.
As my father was buying gasoline, I went across the street to pick up a few pairs of bikini panties.
The store had swinging doors like the saloons in all those western movies and it was filled with Kitty-of-Gun-Smoke lingerie.
Afterward, I went into that gasoline station and saw the aforementioned pinball machine.
It was goofy and tacky.....with too many users.
Quite bizarre.
Viewing that cartoonish website with a photo of Nifong---sans the wart on his forehead---all fresh and new, brought to mind that equally strange memory from days gone by.
Like Mikey.......days gone by.
Without knowing the mental health history of the cartoonist (beyond the fact that he is a cartoonist - ha!), I am inclined to think it is an elaborate joke. It reminds me a lot of the old "National Lampoon" comic book parodies, which portrayed various inappropriate people as superheroes. It's too bizarre to be for real, in my opinion. Of course, I imagine he is being taken quite seriously by some, including wishful, delusional Nifong supporters.
MOO Gregory @ 6:46 AM writes:
"I have conducted a population search each day for the last three days for Michael J. Burch in the Durham County Jail and have been unable to locate him.
I recall that he had a court date on or about February 9th, but given that this is Durham, there are several possible explanations as to the whereabouts of Burch:
(1) He is attending a "Black Students' Day" hosted by Duke University's Karla Holloway where, in the finest traditions of the Old South, selected black incoming freshmen are herded into small groups, given name tags, examined, and bid on to become students at universities now located on the property of former plantations.
(2) Due to Burch's "relevant life experiences," he has been granted a Master's Degree in African-American Studies from Duke and has been hired in the Women's Studies Department at Duke as a tenured professor.
(3) He is co-hosting, together with Larry Moneta, a series of hard-hitting lectures titled: "The reality of collegiate life and of experimentation and some of the consequences of students not necessarily always being in the right place at the right time."
One Spook
Try reading this:
http://justice4nifong.blogspot.com/2009/02/mcfadyen-betrays-trust-of-people-in-his.html
Title: McFadyen betrays the trust of the people in his role as special prosecutor in Johnson case
Sample quote:
>>>By his [Special Prosecutor McFadyen] own admission, he revealed to media types that one of his primary goals as prosecutor in this controversial case was to work on behalf of parents and family of the Wilson teen murder victim Brittany Willis.<<<
Isn't that a bit like those who claim the lacrosse case should have gone to try to the "victim" [CGM] could have HER day in court?
Quote:
>>>So it is obvious that Special Prosecutor McFadyen had an agenda to do what he could against James Johnson from the very start, and it is very clear from the aforementioned statement that his earlier stated lofty goals to be fair and impartial and follow the evidence in this case, was nothing but a façade.<<<
Again, sound familiar to anyone?
The rant against McFadyen could easily be modified to Nifong -- sort of like the Baker letter if "white" was changed to "black."
Don't spend too much time reading the post. You may feel ill if you do.
Burch has a court date on March 16.
Re: Justice for Nifong website...
Is this guy's first name Sidney??? or is it Hardy-Harr? Methinks somebody is either on a lot of medication, or needs to be!
Thanks One Spook and Quasimodo! Very funny and helpful. I still wonder where Burch is spending his time in between court dates. I again checked the Durham County Jail website, and there was no Nichael Jermaine Burch. Maybe he's escaped! MOO! Gregory
Howard... cool post... I hadn't thought about that angle but think that the administration will probably not care. Coach K may, but not the administration. So he might leave, which will alienate some donors, but again, admin won't care.
RoadKill
KC -
You didn't post my last comment regarding the possibility that Mr Harr's website is a hoax.
I suppose it could have looked like spam with all those other links I provided. They were just examples of other "fake" websites that I felt would add some much needed Friday levity. It's your site and I respect your right to moderate comments.
IMHO, it's ironic to imagine a conspiracy theory website created with the intended appearance to continue to defame the lax3 that is in reality a different kind of conspiracy perpetrated to further their civil claim for monetary gain… Wow, talk about through the looking glass :-)
A critic of Mozart told him that one of his pieces had "too many notes in it." Well, there are some who may not appreciate all of the glitz and images in the www.justice4nifong.com web site. Check it out this Sunday, March 1, 2009, in the late afternoon, as Part 3 of Episode II of "The MisAdventures of Super-Duper Cooper" will be posted, along with important news stories on the home page.
Now, I check our website frequently and have no problems navigating around it. I'm no computer whiz, but maybe the person having trouble with the site needs a newer computer, or maybe they're on dial-up.
Our web site is still in its infancy, there is so much more to add to the site. Future plans will have a marketplace where T-shirts, posters, and other items will be marketed along with multi-media features about individuals and issues associated with North Carolina's system of selective justice based on Class and Color.
I even plan on eventually putting a direct link to your web site.
Be sure and check us out this Sunday afternoon!!
"Our website is still in its infancy...."
Yeah, I got that vibe from the bright pink and a soft glow photo of Mikey. Infancy in pastel.
".....North Carolina's system of selective justice based on Class and Color."
Indeed.
That's why Duke University had to pay millions to the lacrosse families.
That's why Mikey "be unemployed" and why he had to auction off his strings.
Unfortunately, color plays a tremendous role in determining who is "worthy of justice" among some.
Have the race hustlers learned nothing from their constant plaintive calls?
Lastly, if that website isn't a parody on how goofy the Nifong enablers and supporters are, I would seriously advise the authors of that place to check into a mental institution.
Just clicked on a few pages of the strange website defending Mikey.
On one of the pages there is a photo of Mikey, Victoria Peterson, Harr, and a man named Steven Matherly.
Now things are getting clearer.
Matherly sends letters to the H-S that are just as loony as that website.
He used to be among the crowd of disruptive people who would cause so much trouble at their school board meetings.
Whether or not he and Victoria Peterson are of sound mind is left to the observer.
What is clear is that both are serious about opinions expressed.
At first I thought it might really be a kind of joke until I saw the photo of Matherly.
This is an example of the jury pool that would have been waiting for the lacrosse players in Durham.
The leader of this organization just made a fool of himself on FM Talk 101.1 yesterday. They should have a podcast of the Handelman show up soonish at fmtalk1011.com if you missed it. The callers pretty much universally said "WTF?" It's worth a listen.
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