First of all, read
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
Next up is something I received in my inbox late last night by a family member.
A guy named Philip Berg has filed a lawsuit, A FREAKIN' LAWSUIT, challenging Obama's claim that he is a natural-born citizen. The claim is that Obama had 30 days to produce the documents Berg demanded and that Obama did not produce those documents and is hence, defaulted on a lawsuit, making him ineligible to be President.
To be fair, not very many average citizens understand the very complex legal processes, so without this background, one might not have the tools to discimenate the claim.
The problem is that legal proceedings are not this simple. But the bottom line is that Obama has NOT been found guilty of "defaulting" on a lawsuit at this time. Besides the fact that Obama HAS produced the necessary documents to prove his birth to the satisfaction of the committee that decides these things.
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Frances Gill" < >
> To: undisclosed-recipients, :
> Subject: [Fwd: [ACTION ALERT] The Death of Obama's Campaign]
> Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2008 21:18:57 -0400
>
>
> Regardless of the accuracy of the allegations in the lawsuit, Obama has
> defaulted on a federal lawsuit. And if certain of the allegations are
> true, and the Constitution is still in effect to some degree, then he is
> not qualified to hold the Office of President of the United States.
>
> Frances
>
> P.S. For those who want to know, I consider myself either independent or
> constitutional. The most honest candidate we had, IMHO, was Ron Paul. He
> has thrown his support to Chuck Baldwin of the Constitution Party.
>
> -------- Forwarded Message --------
> From: Restore the Republic! <alerts@restoretherepublic.com>
> To: Frances < >
> Subject: [ACTION ALERT] The Death of Obama's Campaign
> Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2008 15:50:39 -0400
>
> Immediate action required:
> ===================================================================
>
> Obama defaults on Federal Lawsuit Jeopardizes Presidential Run - Now
> ineligible for Candidacy
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
> Step one:
> Read this press release:
>
> http://www.restoretherepublic.com/elections/obama-dnc-admit-all-allegations-in-berg-v-obama
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
> Step two:
> Contact media with message below. If you would like to call the media
> also their phone numbers can be found at the end of this email.
>
> Copy and paste this block of email addressed and send them the sample
> email.
>
> netaudr@abc.com, nightline@abcnews.com, 2020@abc.com,
> evening@cbsnews.com, earlyshow@cbs.com, 60minutes@cbsnews.com,
> 48hours@cbsnews.com, ftn@cbsnews.com, info@cnbc.com,
> comments@foxnews.com, Special@foxnews.com, Foxreport@foxnews.com,
> Oreilly@foxnews.com, Hannity@foxnews.com, Colmes@foxnews.com,
> Ontherecord@foxnews.com, dateline@nbc.com, hardball@msnbc.com,
> joe@msnbc.com, nightly@nbc.com, today@nbc.com, newshour@pbs.org,
> ombudsman@npr.org, ElRushbo@eibnet.com, phil.boyce@citcomm.com,
> letters@latimes.com, readers.rep@latimes.com, letters@nytimes.com,
> news-tips@nytimes.com, senioreditor@nytimes.com, editor@usatoday.com,
> wsj.ltrs@wsj.com, wsjcontact@dowjones.com, letters@washpost.com,
> ombudsman@washpost.com, letters@newsweek.com, letters@time.com,
> letters@usnews.com, info@ap.org, tips@upi.com
>
> Sample email:
>
> To Whom it may concern,
>
> It has been brought to my attention that Obama (and the DNC) has
> defaulted on a federal lawsuit that reveals the true origins of his
> birth in Kenya making him ineligible to run for the office of President
> of the United States. Please investigate this press release and report
> your findings to the American people. You can find a copy of the press
> release here:
> http://www.restoretherepublic.com/elections/obama-dnc-admit-all-allegations-in-berg-v-obama
>
>
> Thank you for your attention in this matter of national significance,
>
> [insert name]
> [insert city, state where you live]
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
>
>
> Step three:
> Forward this action alert
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
> Step four:
> Change history
>
> ===================================================================
>
> Media Contacts:
>
> (media contacts list cut ecause LJ says this post is too long. You can google Obama Defaults and find the list there if you really want to)>
> Comments and Tips: tips@upi.com
>
>
> Sent from your friends at:
> RestoreTheRepublic.com, 3149 Dundee Rd #176, Northbrook, Illinois 60062,
> USA
>
> From: "Frances Gill" < >
> To: undisclosed-recipients, :
> Subject: [Fwd: [ACTION ALERT] The Death of Obama's Campaign]
> Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2008 21:18:57 -0400
>
>
> Regardless of the accuracy of the allegations in the lawsuit, Obama has
> defaulted on a federal lawsuit. And if certain of the allegations are
> true, and the Constitution is still in effect to some degree, then he is
> not qualified to hold the Office of President of the United States.
>
> Frances
>
> P.S. For those who want to know, I consider myself either independent or
> constitutional. The most honest candidate we had, IMHO, was Ron Paul. He
> has thrown his support to Chuck Baldwin of the Constitution Party.
>
> -------- Forwarded Message --------
> From: Restore the Republic! <alerts@restoretherepublic.com>
> To: Frances < >
> Subject: [ACTION ALERT] The Death of Obama's Campaign
> Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2008 15:50:39 -0400
>
> Immediate action required:
> ===================================================================
>
> Obama defaults on Federal Lawsuit Jeopardizes Presidential Run - Now
> ineligible for Candidacy
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
> Step one:
> Read this press release:
>
> http://www.restoretherepublic.com/elections/obama-dnc-admit-all-allegations-in-berg-v-obama
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
> Step two:
> Contact media with message below. If you would like to call the media
> also their phone numbers can be found at the end of this email.
>
> Copy and paste this block of email addressed and send them the sample
> email.
>
> netaudr@abc.com, nightline@abcnews.com, 2020@abc.com,
> evening@cbsnews.com, earlyshow@cbs.com, 60minutes@cbsnews.com,
> 48hours@cbsnews.com, ftn@cbsnews.com, info@cnbc.com,
> comments@foxnews.com, Special@foxnews.com, Foxreport@foxnews.com,
> Oreilly@foxnews.com, Hannity@foxnews.com, Colmes@foxnews.com,
> Ontherecord@foxnews.com, dateline@nbc.com, hardball@msnbc.com,
> joe@msnbc.com, nightly@nbc.com, today@nbc.com, newshour@pbs.org,
> ombudsman@npr.org, ElRushbo@eibnet.com, phil.boyce@citcomm.com,
> letters@latimes.com, readers.rep@latimes.com, letters@nytimes.com,
> news-tips@nytimes.com, senioreditor@nytimes.com, editor@usatoday.com,
> wsj.ltrs@wsj.com, wsjcontact@dowjones.com, letters@washpost.com,
> ombudsman@washpost.com, letters@newsweek.com, letters@time.com,
> letters@usnews.com, info@ap.org, tips@upi.com
>
> Sample email:
>
> To Whom it may concern,
>
> It has been brought to my attention that Obama (and the DNC) has
> defaulted on a federal lawsuit that reveals the true origins of his
> birth in Kenya making him ineligible to run for the office of President
> of the United States. Please investigate this press release and report
> your findings to the American people. You can find a copy of the press
> release here:
> http://www.restoretherepublic.com/elections/obama-dnc-admit-all-allegations-in-berg-v-obama
>
>
> Thank you for your attention in this matter of national significance,
>
> [insert name]
> [insert city, state where you live]
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
>
>
> Step three:
> Forward this action alert
>
> ===================================================================
>
>
> Step four:
> Change history
>
> ===================================================================
>
> Media Contacts:
>
> (media contacts list cut ecause LJ says this post is too long. You can google Obama Defaults and find the list there if you really want to)>
> Comments and Tips: tips@upi.com
>
>
> Sent from your friends at:
> RestoreTheRepublic.com, 3149 Dundee Rd #176, Northbrook, Illinois 60062,
> USA
>
Obama has not defaulted on any lawsuit. Philip Berg filed a lawsuit against Obama which
was dismissed for lack of standing. Berg has filed a second lawsuit against Obama, who
has once again filed a motion for dismissal for lack of standing. The motion is
currently being considered. There are several problems with the claim that Obama has
"defaulted". "The first, and most obvious, is the seemingly watertight argument that
pursuant to Rule 26(f), a request for admission may only be served after the conference
for the purpose of planning discovery detailed under that rule, and therefore the 30-day
time limit on Berg's request has not yet begun." The second is that the motion for
dismissal hasn't been decided upon yet, and if the courts dismiss the lawsuit against
Obama on the grounds that Berg has no standing, Obama is not *required* to produce the
documents demanded by Berg.
As for why he hasn't produced them if he has nothing to hide, well, Berg is requesting a
total of 18 documents as proof of citizenship, some of which are legally IMPOSSIBLE to
obtain. Obama will not be *able* to produce those documents. No other candidate for
Presidency has ever been required to produce these documents as proof of citizenship.
Obama HAS produced all documentation required of all candidates for proof of citizenship
and has been vetted by the committee who decides who is eligible to run as a Presidential
Candidate. 5 separate and independent agencies have validated that the birth certificate
that Obama has produced is authentic. In addition, an old archival copy of a local
Hawaiian newspaper was found for the week of Obama's birth that lists his birth
announcement, including the hospital. If this is a coverup conspiracy, it started with
Obama's grandparents 48 years ago placing a phony birth announcement for the purposes of
covering up their grandson's true birthplace in case he ran for president half a decade
later.
Philip Berg may not even be eligible to file this lawsuit in the first place. He has
filed similar lawsuits against two other people, including John McCain for the exact same
claims. Both previous suits were dismissed for lack of standing. His initial lawsuit
against Obama for this claim was also dismissed for lack of standing. Berg is also a
member of an organization whose mission is to "denounce the Democratic Party" and he is
using any means possible.
Research is the key when perpetuating internet rumors. Please look at resources that are
not so obviously biased in the direction you want to believe before spreading them.
http://www.whatsyourevidence.com/
In addition, check out Greta Christina's Harm Reduction Model Of Politics, which
illustrates why voting for a third party candiate in a close Presidential election like
this one will, in effect, give the candidate you like the least an extra vote
(http://gretachristina.typepad.com/greta_christinas_weblog/2008/10/the-harm-reduction-model-of-politics.html). Presidential elections are not the place for protesting. No one who cares will hear you and the candidate you favor the least benefits from your
error.
There are plenty of legitimate reasons to not like Obama, we do not need these trumped-up
accusations on top of them. The Obama campaign is certainly not immune to the
half-truths that are the hallmark of politics, but this case is not one of them.
If you receive any notice about this lawsuit, please help to stem the tide and point people in the direction of Truth. www.whatsyourevidence.com is a great resource because it takes each and every claim made and evaluates it based on available evidence and nothing else. Unfortunately, it's can be a little bulky and tough to grasp, as taking apart claims and evaluating for the truth so often is. As someone once said, a lie will make it halfway around the world before the truth has even had time to get its shoes on.
I know a lot of us prefer to simply ignore our relatives when they send out emails that we disagree with (and for some of you out there, your family is so far gone that I totally understand your decision and the following doesn't apply to you), but this election is too important and the race is too close to let ignorance go unchallenged. Even by family members we wish to remain civil with and ignoring them is less trouble than pointing out the flaws in their arguments.
***EDIT***
Oh, and something I forgot to put in the email, but Berg has also filed lawsuits against Bush and Cheney, alleging that they plotted 9/11 and demanding that they be arrested and tried for treason and war crimes. This guy is a loon.
Score One For The Truth!
Date: 10/23/08 04:02 pm (UTC)From:**Pushing back the ocean, one broom at a time.
no subject
Date: 10/25/08 03:15 am (UTC)From:gary baumgarten has just spammed my LJ with a comment to tell me that Philip Berg will be appearing on his show.
I deleted it because I don't allow spammers to use my journal for unsolicited spammers.
But I'm making a comment about it because I want to make it clear that
I DON'T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT PHILIP BERG. He's a fucking nutcase conspiracy theorist who needs mental evaluation and a penalty to make sure he STOPS WASTING TAXPAYER MONEY ON FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS.
So I'm boycotting your show, Mr. Baumgarten, because Philip Berg does not deserve any more media attention for his outrageous tactics and claims.
Now, maybe I might revise that opinion if you come back to tell me that you plan to rip him a new one, ridiculing him for his absurd lawsuit. In that case, I will at least owe you an apology for the spam accusations, but I still think this wackaloon deserves no further air time.