Hopefully he'll be forced to sell his collection
 

Whilst we appreciate great collections, we find particularly satisfying that one of the many voices of the ultra left has been silenced. Perhaps, with a bit of luck, that silence will last a long-long time...and the prices on high grade
Kalazamoo Bats, Four Base Hits and other 19th century will come down as quickly as the liberals have been silenced.

There is justice after all.

We do buy from ultra-liberals

MSNBC suspends Keith Olbermann
Anchor made contributions to the Democratic party

By Ted Johnson
Keith Olbermann

Olbermann


Keith Olbermann has been suspended indefinitely without pay for making compaign contributions to three Democratic candidates this cycle.

MSNBC president Phil Griffin issued a terse statement in which he said, "I became aware of Keith's political contributions late last night. Mindful of NBC News policy and standards, I have suspended him indefinitely without pay."

Politico reported on Friday that Olbermann donated $2,400 each to two Arizona representatives, Raul Grijalva and Gabrielle Giffords, as well as Jack Conway, a Senate contender in Kentucky, in violation of NBC News policy.

Before his suspension was announced, Olbermann told Politico, "I did not privately or publicly encourage anyone else to donate to these campaigns nor to any others in this election or any previous ones, nor have I previously donated to any political campaign at any level."

Olbermann has been critical of News Corp.'s donations to the Republican Governors Assn. this past cycle, and there has been some concern that his campaign contributions not only undermine those arguments but his attacks on spending by independent groups that do not have to disclose their donors.

News organizations typically bar employees from making campaign contributions, and although Olbermann is by no means an objective reporter and has not tried to portray himself as one, he still was apparently required to comply with the policy of the NBC News division.

Chris Hayes, a frequent on-air contributor, will fill in for Olbermann tonight.

His suspension is likely to set up a debate over whether cable news personalities, already unabashed in expressing political points of view or advocating for causes and even candidates, can also engage in elections via campaign contributions.

At Fox News, Sean Hannity has appeared at fund-raisers and has given to candidates and political action committees, including a contribution to Rep. Michele Bachmann's PAC in August.

But even among its commentators, Fox News has tried to reign in some activities. In April, Hannity was billed as the headliner at a Tea Party event and fund-raiser in Cincinnati, but the network ordered him not to participate. The network's VP of programming, Bill Shine, said at the time, "Fox News never agreed to allow the Cincinnati Tea Party organizers to use Sean Hannity's program to profit from broadcasting his show from the event." The action came just one week after News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch told a Washington forum, "I don't think we should be supporting the Tea Party or any party."

Cool thread!? :confused:

This is why Bruce is Bruce and I, for one, wouldn't sell anything to him if he was the last person standing.

Ugh! Politics have invaded my safe place!

Ain't no ray of sunshine
 

Ray

We doubt you have any items that meet our standards.

And when you pass, and your collection is offered for sale,
we will, in fact be able to cherry pick want we want, should there
be some heretofore unknown item for our museum quality collection

Hope you and Keith are forever suspended.

Bruce

Deleted because it was properly moved.

Bruce, you are really a jerk

olbermann
 

nothing wrong with a newscaster or anyone donating as long as they do not promote the candidate on their show
and does anybody actually believe that dorskind actually owns any cards

Jay,

You REALLY need to start using the "Quote" feature so we know which jerk you're talking to! :D:D:D

Bruce,

My understanding was that your health was so poor that it was you who was circling the drain, both physically and financially.

Glad to hear you're feeling, and doing, better!

Sorry Jim--I clarified my post

And people wonder why some people would rather find other baseball card boards to use.

Ray - don't judge the board by one idiot.

Jay -
 

Jay

It is free country. We, for example, never worked for scandal ridden company that nearly brought the economy to its knees.

We simply reported the facts about a well-know collector.

And you who are so quick to call someone a jerk, would we are sure buy a 19th century card on your want list...if Bid Ladden was the seller. So let's call a spade a spade.

You have a great collection, but when it comes to great cards, politics goes out the window. Remember you paid us a record price for a Kalamazzo Bat Team card of Pittsburgh.

Finally, we never call Keith a jerk, we simply indicated that we were pleased to see that NBC has silenced his voice for breaking the very rules he attacked
the great people at Fox.

And it would be nice if there was less competition in themarketplace. Time to stick to trading and basbeall cards. And do what is RIGHT for America!

Bruce

LOL! Don't worry. I kinda knew.

Ray,

What Matt said.

After reading some of your posts, I just have to ask....exactly how many..."WE's" live in that head of yours? And why do you post your opinions on these type of topics on a forum that has cards, sports and memorabilia as the primary focus? I have no idea who you are but apparently several other forum members do. Make a positive contribution to this forum toward the hobby or go elsewhere with your drama!

"...would we are sure buy a 19th century card on your want list...if Bid Ladden was the seller. So let's call a spade a spade."

"Remember you paid us a record price for a Kalamazzo Bat Team card of Pittsburgh."


I guess you proved your point

Is there a good one you can reference (one without Bruce) ? I would like to check it out.

The great people at Fox.....Blecch! Come on Bruce, let's call a spade a spade.

Jerk
 

Bruce- "WE" all think that these boards are the wrong place for your nonsense. Why not post over at the Rush Limbaugh forums?

Free to speak, inappropriate forum
 

"Yankee 51" is free to express his opinions, of course. And I am free to reply that he is a fool, and a rude one at that.
Hank Thomas

Does anyone know if Olbermann has a particular focus to his collecting?

And Hank, you behave yourself.

Ken

Ken,

I have sold Keith some cards in the past. His "focus" seems to be very widespread. He has an extensive collection in all areas, from vintage to modern. He was truly a very nice guy to deal with. He hates to mix politics and the hobby.

eBay
 

I have sold a few different baseball items to him on eBay in the past. He was a quick payer and never asked me about my Political leanings. In terms of him being a collector, he is OK with me.

I hope Bruce,s health is fine and you won,t find a better collector than Bruce. I have met him several times over about 30 years and even though we collect on different levels he was very helpful in person. CN

Oh, I get it, because Bruce was helpful in person, he can start a thread wanting someone to lose their collection because of his political views. That makes sense. :eek:

I just read online that MSNBC will soon be merging with Comcast, which very well might change the direction of the station from its liberal POV. If that is true, then shows like Countdown would likely be dropped anyway. I suspect there is more to this story that we will find out about down the road.

Does anyone know What Rush collects?

going against the grain.....again
 

Well, I was out yesterday when this thread started. I am going to go against the grain here. I think Bruce was within his rights to post the thread and comments he posted. While I don't want to get political, or have the board get political, Keith O is a great collector, regardless of his political views and this is certainly newsworthy stuff in my opinion. I will probably get lambasted for my thoughts on this subject but that is ok. Folks will know how I feel. I feel that as long as it has to do with vintage cards then it can be talked about on the board. I probably wouldn't have even moved this thread but since another moderator did, then so be it. I won't reverse that decision by a colleague.

How freaking stale of a place would this be if the mods were censoring stuff all of the time. How can you know if you disagree with someone, or think they are an idiot :), if we don't let them express themselves? "Disagreement" makes the world go around, and there will be a lot of it in this thread, no doubt. If someone thinks this board sucks because this thread is let go, well, that is their right to say that too. In a thread like this I doubt the participants can stay private if they make strong statements, but other than that, I see no big problem with it. As far as Keith making contributions to a political candidate that is between him and his company that he is contracted to work for. I have always had good dealings with him and consider him another fine collector. I have different political views than many of my good friends on the board but that doesn't mean we aren't friends. Friends can disagree with each other and still be civil. I hope that is the way the thread goes. Those are my thoughts as of now but I reserve the right to hear arguments and change my mind if I am persuaded to.:) best regards

BTW, I do disagree with Bruce's thoughts, I just prefer to let him express them.

What kind of a weak-ass, "I disagree" post is that? Your entire post is missing all the spit, all the fire, all the venom!

You need to take a serious lesson from Bruce. You didn't issue one death wish, one financial collapse wish, or even a wish for failing health!


Against the grain... my ass.


:D:D:D

I agree....
 

I know...I need to be more of an a-hole. I am working on it though!!

I might be more tolerant of Bruce's right wing views if he could at least spell Kalamazoo Bats correctly. I mean, if you own one, you have to spell it right.

Bruce's post had nothing to do with vintage cards, and any defense of him is flat-out weak. He is basically the playground bully that no-one has the guts to get rid of. I don't know for sure, but I think it possible that KO is a member of this board...non-participating, but at least signed up. So wouldn't Bruce's original post be considered an unprovoked attack on another board member? And even if KO isn't a member, the post was merely an excuse to spew the same crap he is always spewing. Doesn't take a genius (or maybe is does) to see it.

Really. Weak.

Ray Holmes

Barry, glad to see you've clilmbed out from under your bed! See, the world is still standing after Tuesday! And just think -- all that money I'm saving from the fact that my taxes won't be going up now I'm going to spend on cards. And maybe a third car. God is good.

I don't agree with many of the things that Keith says but I respect the guy. He's a strong force for his views and I think he was treated ridiculously by MSNBC. For that place to suspend him is just a joke. Since when has Keith ever pretended to be unbiased? Since when has MSNBC ever pretended to be unbiased? Suspending him was just a pretext for something else, no doubt.

And how can anyone dislike the guy considering his love for vintage cards and for all that he has done for the hobby? He's never ripped anyone off and he's passionate about the hobby that we love pretty much the most in the world. I hope he kicks MSNBC's ass and gets a bigger contract someplace else (CNN?). And I have no doubt he will because as anyone who follows his career knows, the dude lands on his feet.

your opinion
 

That is your opinion Ray. And I absolutely, completely disagree with it, but I will defend your right to say it. It's not about "standing up" to Bruce. He's been suspended before when it was warranted. It's about letting folks say what they want to. Like I say, you can have your opinion too, even though I think it's idiotic and retarded. KO is a member of the board. I didn't see a personal attack on him...maybe you did? I guess you are a self proclaimed genius? It's great to know another one besides myself :D:D.

Jeff- my Giants won on Monday, my other team got walloped Tuesday, I'm batting .500 for the week.

If Comcast does merge with MSNBC it's likely Keith and Rachel are gone anyway. Their respective shows were immensely popular in 2008 leading up to Obama's election; today they are less relevant and are losing a big segment of their audiences. So changes are likely to be made soon.

I'm not sure I've ever run across anyone on the internet who is less secure in themselves than Bruce. I hate to go all Bill Frist on him and diagnose him from afar, but he's got problems. He may pretend to be a nice guy in person, but that's only because he wants you to die so he can have your cards. Bruce can have all the money (and cards) in the world, but obviously that is not making him happy. His ENTIRE self worth lies in his collection and he lets us know that with every single post he makes.

And as far as I'm concerned this thread is an attack on a fellow forum member because Bruce would like to see him lose his collection. Perhaps Keith is only a lurker...I've seen him post a few times, but if any member here started a thread in which they'd like to see a fellow member lose their collection (And having a different political view is not provocation) they should be suspended or banned.

while I understand your points Dan....
 

I have re-read this thread several times and given it some thought. While I understand your points Dan, I feel Keith (hi Keith if you are reading) is in the public eye and, as such, there will be people for and against him, and that is part of his celebrity. While I have no idea, and no care about Keith's finances, except I always hope everyone does well, part of his worth (and pay) is certainly based on his "celebrity". This stuff just comes with the territory. I didn't see Bruce wishing him any physical harm or being way too vulgar. I think we should all be civil on the board and Bruce is acting like jerk towards Keith, but I truly don't think he would try to physically harm him or anyone, in any way, except for defending himself. Maybe I am wrong but I don't think so. Bruce was only expressing his opinion about a public figure and posted a current news story.
And just like everyone else on the board, I defend your right to your opinion too. For the record, I think Keith O is a heck of a nice guy and a great collector. Our views on politics are different though. Now I will run to cover...:) best regards

Agree 100%!

And for the record, Keith is an entertainer, not a journalist. I know the line gets muddy sometimes, but Rush, Glenn Beck (with 2 "n's, Jeff), O'Reilly, and Rachel Madow are all there to entertain people. They exist for ratings, not news. Hating him for what he says just shows a lack of understanding with how the world works. That's exactly what I have come to expect from Bruce.

I agree with you Jim. All those you cited are there to entertain their audience and garner the highest possible ratings. They combine the news of the day with whatever angle their fans want hear. It's based on the news...but it's not really news.

I completely disagree...He may be a celebrity, but since he has spent time in here, done many deals with lots of people here and most certainly lurks here then he should be afforded the same protections that ALL members should have.

Jeffrey Lichtman is somewhat of a celebrity, he is often in the news, and is frequently on WABC radio...if someone were to start a thread hoping he loses his collection because of something completely unrelated to the hobby I would think that was out of bounds.

LOL Dan, that would be the nicest thing anyone said about me today! :)

And PS--Keith is not being paid for a few days -- rest assured the last thing he's worried about is his finances right now.

Yes, yes, YES you can.

Im just gonna shake my head in dis-belief and move on to the next thread!

Vicodin.

(sorry - low hanging fruit and this thread has already ...uhhh... been tarnished)

punishment
 

I am soliciting private opinions on this situation since I seem to be in a very minor subset on my thoughts on this subject. I have emailed a few of my member/friends privately, already, to get their feedback but am interested in anyone that wants to let me know your feelings on banishment or suspension, pertaining to Bruce starting this thread. I still don't see the severity rising to that level but I have been wrong before. Please email to leonl@flash.net if you would like to give your opinion. I just think this will be a more stale place if we start censoring very much....but what do I know? If we don't let folks hang themselves how will we know what they think?

Thanks to anyone that wants to give your opinion to me...I appreciate the help and insight. best regards

I say let it ride Leon,
I have to hand it to Bruce; I almost never read this section of the board but this post got me over here.
Good. bad, or ugly Bruce starts entertaining threads.
Personally I thought his post was ironically hilarious on so many levels.
I'm pretty sure Keith would never need to squeeze two nickels out of Bruce. Bruce would also probably be the first one to wet himself if he ever got the chance to see Keith's collection.

BTW I'm also sure Keith probably receives a lot worse, hateful comments than what Bruce said.

Knowing that the groundlings are being solicited to help decide his fate might be punishment enough for Bruce.

I'm not going to say publicly whether or not Bruce should be suspended; that's not my call. But I will say that Bruce's sole purpose for linking the news story about Keith was to mock his liberal politics, and to make a political comment of some sort. Although Keith is a major collector and has posted on this board, the only hobby connection Bruce made was he hoped this would cause Keith financial hardship, and in some convoluted thought process, Bruce hoped to be able to buy his collection on the cheap (which of course he wouldn't, since many others would offer far more than he would).

Suspension is up to the moderators, not me. But the thread was not cool.

How about a poll?
That should be fun.

My distaste for Bruce is well known. I abhor the intent of this thread. As Barry stated, the only purpose was to make some claim that this proves that conservative politics trumps liberal thought and wish financial failure on a fellow collector.

This post has no place on a hobby board.

However, in no way should Bruce be suspended or banned for this action. As reprehensible as the original premise was, it doesn't come close to reaching that level. It may show us the workings of a narrow minded, hateful individual, but the world has plenty of those kind.

He's said/done far worse in the past. My expectations of Bruce are so low, I'm sure we will see far worse going forward. But we shouldn't ban him for being a moron (apologies to all other morons for lumping him in.)

Lots of deep thoughts on this page. Heavy, hand-wringingly deep thoughts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ax96iVmTCI

In Jest
 

Since it's just watercooler talk, it would be harsh to ban them from their basic sustenance, but they could be assigned this task for the next month.
http://cache4.asset-cache.net/xc/200...123AA3B5A18ED0
They could divide the task amongest themselves, so it wouldn't be that much of a hardship on any single one of them.

That's my paper loss common's worth.

"He hates to mix politics and the hobby"

hear hear!

Bruce is provocateur, he posts most often for the purpose of getting a reaction. Many take the bait. In this instance he is reveling in someone's misfortune bc that person is on the opposite side of the political spectrum from him. I don't give a rat's patoot if you ban/punish him or not. The best medicine is to ignore him for it is the attention/reaction he seeks most.

As an aside for MSNBC to get self righteous about one of their commentators making a political donation is inane. No one considers these people, regeardless of the network, to be impartial newspeople. As pointed out these folks are entertainers plain and simple.

HR is always the voice of reason and sanity.......I'm up in the air about banning. Sometimes it's nice to be reminded just how much of moron Bruce continues to be. I think he's a sad, lonely person who revels in others misery. As for Olbermann, there's probably not 1-2% of what he espouses that I agree with but this is America (last time i checked) and he's got a right to say it. In fact, he gets paid a LOT of money to say it. I'm sure a few days or weeks off without pay won't hurt him, but I don't see where MSNBC (GE) comes off by suspending him. I guess he knew the policy but for commentators to be held to the same standard as a newscaster seems odd to me. I've sold stuff to Keith and as a collector I certainly respect his collection. He was always nice to me in any transaction. Hopefully saber heads will prevail and he will be back. I liked him much more on Sportscenter however.

final decision
 

After giving it more thought and soliciting opinions on what to do, it was almost a tie. It was about 50/50 on banning/suspending. Personally, I never thought this thread, and Bruce's posts, arose to that level of punishment, and I still don't. As few people know, but has always been on the board, there is a personal section when you click on someone's name. You can find contact info, all of the member's posts and threads and other board related info. There is also a section that says "Infractions." If you look under Bruce's infractions you will see that he still has one there (the very few times we have given an infraction we have usually made them for one year). So, Bruce had one still active. I am not sure if that was when he got suspended from before, for a month, or not, but it swayed my opinion to take an action. He is suspended from the board for 2 months. It's not a matter I take lightly and I hate to do it, but I feel it was warranted because of the previous infraction....not to mention the other 3 moderators were of a different opinion than I on this matter. This is the part of moderating I don't care for..Lets please get back to collecting........best regards

I always tried to cut him slack because Barry had mentioned that off-line he was not the same bombastic, petulant and self-absorbed person he comes across as on-line, but enough is enough. I think the suspension is just. I achieve no joy over the action but the culmination of many threats and mean-spirited attacks on my fellow collectors over the years hoisted him on his own petard.
Back to baseball cards...

MSNBC TV to reinstate suspended host Keith Olbermann on Tuesday - NBC Universal

http://www.nbcuniversal.presscentre....D=2&ClientID=7

So can he read but not post or can he not even read? Good news about Olbermann although I don't watch MSNBC.......ever.......

there are ways
 

There are ways he can still read but not sure if he will know that, or if he will want to..........oh well. From his actions and words I don't think he would care about any of us. Also, I hope folks won't comment too much about him since he won't be able to defend himself.

In a perfect world Keith and Bruce would serve concurrent suspensions and be re-instated to job and board at the same hour on the same day. :cool:

I was pretty vocal this time around about Bruce, but believe me when I say suspension brings no satisfaction. I'd much rather he somehow, miraculously, be a cool guy. I am glad to know, however, that you can't be as shit*y a person as Bruce constantly seemed to want to be on the board and always get away with it.

and one more thing
 

For the record Brucii sent an email to me, which to me, looked like he was threatening legal action, copying a/his lawyer. I just don't have time for him anymore and he is now banned indefinitely. best regards

Indefinitely? So he'll be back Tuesday night? :)

making it sound nice....
 

The word the system uses is probably more accurate; FOREVER, I was making it sound a bit less harsh. :o

Don't suspend a guy for having an opinion different then yours.

My opinion, lock the thread and lets move on to more friendly and important issues.. nobody is right, nobody is wrong....we just agree to disagree!

"forever"
 

I understand Jim. And I was in that camp too.....I was going to go with a verbal warning until I noticed he already had a current infraction for the same thing. Then I made it a 2 mos suspension, which I could have been politely talked into lowering, if an apology or something would have been done. Then his idiotic email, copying his lawyer and threatening legal action just pushed me over the edge. "Forever" is a long time and I doubt I will keep that stance. But Bruce does things that are detrimental to the welfare of the board, and those are bannable violations (especially after multiple instances). I am an easy going person. Look how much I fought for him in this thread. I don't hate the guy at all, quite the contrary. I just get tired of defending him, and then to have him threaten legal action as I am doing so, just turned me off. What can I say? I wish the whole thing would have never happened but I didn't start the thread wishing ill will on another member. best regards

It wasn't about a difference of opinion or "agreeing to disagree". It was about wishing a fellow board member to lose his job, lose his collection and income so that the poster can get some items cheaper for himself. How is that appropriate or have anything to do with a reasonable discussion about baseball memorabilia?

This is a baseball card forum--not a political forum or forum of hate. Why shouldn't some degree of civility be a requirement? If this was the only time and just a heated emotional slip up....I would agree with more or less letting it go. I'm tolerant of other views and mistakes. But the death threats and constant very ugly personal attacks from this person ever since I have been a member are very unpleasant. It never ceases. Our society increasing seems to almost relish uncivil dialogue but surely there is a line somewhere.

I, for one, want to know more about this board member who brought the economy "to its knees!"

That's powerful stuff. (And I'm sorry if I made fun of you for the "jerk" comment. I didn't mean it. Please don't hurt me!) :)





In reflection, this is one of the funniest lines ever. The irony is too thick to cut.

I say good riddance...Bruce may have contributed the occasional interesting post, but he almost always ruined it in some way, and I can guarantee his ulterior motive for most of his posts was to find a seller for something he coveted. And if you ever help the guy out don't expect any thank you from him.. He can claim he was being attacked, but for the most part he gave as good as he got, and frankly anyone who posts on a message board in the royal "We" is just asking for it. He is without doubt the rudest member this forum has ever had.

I also think it's hilarious that he threatens Leon with legal action for banning him on a message forum THAT LEON OWNS. Doesn't Bruce believe in property rights???

Bruce of course won't sue Leon because he has no case. But what seems clear is that if Leon lets him back on the board, it will be business as usual, with Bruce treating everyone rudely he doesn't like. I would welcome him back if he agreed to take a different approach, but he won't.

No....the funniest part of this thread was Bruce telling Jay Miller he'd (Jay) buy a card from Bin Laden if he needed it on one breath and then immediately telling Jay that he'd paid Bruce a record price for a Kalamazoo Bats team cabinet to which Jay replied that Bruce had proved his point in his own post. THAT was humor you just can't make up.

Congrats to Olbermann......guess he can put that ramen noodle soup back to the back of his pantry. Break out the Progresso............

Barry,

I've been meaning to speak with you about sentence structure. :)

You know Jim, I changed that sentence at the last minute. I didn't like it the first way I had it...and I don't like it so much this way either. But I'll just leave it.

Don't worry, Barry. I'll find the other half of that infinitive. I think I see it way over ther...wait, no, that's a squirrel.

Well... bye.

http://photos.imageevent.com/exhibit...ze/wellbye.jpg