Joe Sonka January 23rd, 2008
Here’s the video of the report from the Paducah NBC affiliate WPSD on Heather Ryan’s situation.
Note the flat denial that Mitch or any of his staff were involved at the end of the clip. Gee… where have I heard that before????
Still waiting for the “comment” from the Paducah Film Society on this matter. (Hint, reporters, there’s your smoking gun)
Joe Sonka January 23rd, 2008
(crossposted at BlueGrassRoots)
Mark Hebert on his blog today writes a post trying to characterize Heather Ryan as a crazy person for daring to ask her Senator a question (yes, the thought of an elected public official actually having to listen or speak to a constitutent is an insane notion).
So, I have some questions for Mark Hebert…
Is it “strange” when you “chase” down people with your camera and ask them questions? Didn’t you do the same thing to McConnell after the Don Stewart email surfaced smearing the Frost family? Or is it only “strange” when the commoners do that, as they are not “serious” people like Mark Hebert? And do you “use your position” with WHAS in order to get access to these people?
Who are “McConnell’s folks” that you refer to in the piece? Did you talk to them personally? What are their names? Did they refuse to go on the record? Did you call Mitch McConnell’s office? Did you ask them how asking a person a question in a public alley is “using her position?
Did you even bother to talk to Heather Ryan herself, as I know who had her phone number? Or do important people like Mark Hebert not associate with “strange” commoners like Heather Ryan, who think they are special enough to ask someone like Mitch McConnell a question?
If fact, why don’t you all ask him these questions yourself?
Mark Hebert, WHAS- 502.582.7220, mark.hebert@whas11.com
Joe Sonka January 22nd, 2008
(crossposted at BlueGrassRoots)
OK, as you all know by now, Mitch McConnell has succeeded in his efforts to get Heather Ryan fired for simply filming him and asking about the war in Iraq.
Now…. what can we do?
FIRST
This mother of two who supports her family is now out of a job. But Heather is also a Mary Kay saleswoman. To help her support her family in these trying times, think of buying some of her products at her Mary Kay site. Valentine's Day is coming up, so there's your angle, fellas.
SECOND
Call Heather's cowardly employers at Maiden Alley Cinema and give them a piece of your mind.
(270) 441-7007
(888) 442-7007
Jason Coltharp, (JCOLTHARP@whitlow-law.com) secretary and spokesman for Paducah Film Society Board of Directors
Jay Siska, chairman of the board
Be sure to ask them, ‘if you are a non-partisan non-profit, why are you letting Mitch McConnell film his re-election campaign commercials there?’
THIRD
Write a letter to the editor and call EVERY media outlet in Kentucky that has TOTALLY IGNORED this story (The Puducah sun is the only publication to even talk to Heather). And believe me, they all know about this and are CHOOSING to ignore it.
Here's a handy Letter to the editor finder for the paper near you at the KY GOP site. Thanks, fellas.
Ryan Alessi- 859-231-1303, ralessi@herald-leader.com
Jack Brammer- 859-231-1302, jbrammer@herald-leader.com
John Stamper- 859-231-3204, jstamper@herald-leader.com
John Cheves- jcheves@herald-leader.com
James Carroll, 202-906-8141, jcarroll@courier-journal.com
Joe Gerth, 582-4702, jgerth@courier-journal.com
Stephenie Steitzer, 502-875-5136, ssteitzer@gannett.com
Mark Hebert - 502.582.7220, mark.hebert@whas11.com
Pat Crowley- 859.578.5581, pcrowley@enquirer.com
Joe Sonka January 22nd, 2008
(crossposted at BlueGrassRoots and DailyKos, go recommend it!!!)
Here’s Heather’s latest email and the video of the encounter with Mitch McConnell. As you can plainly see, Mitch’s staff blatantly lied about their behavior to her employers, telling them that they banged on the windows of the SUV and shouted “I hope you die!” at McConnell. There’s absolutely nothing here to warrant being fired. This is FAR from over.
Hi Everyone,
You asked for it and finally, I found a technical geek to upload it onto my computer and into YouTube for your viewing scrutiny. As you can see, there is nothing on here to provoke my dismissal as Executive Director of the Paducah Film Society. As you will also notice, Heaven and I are not being disorderly or threatening, as Senator Mitch McConnell’s camp states in their smear campaign against me.
Remember, this is raw and I am a fund-raiser - not a videographer, so forgive the amateur quality …
Heather
Joe Sonka January 21st, 2008
(crossposted at BlueGrassRoots)
This is truly a sad day for our state and our country, as Mitch McConnell has finally succeeded in having Heather Ryan fired, simply because she wanted to ask her Senator about the war in Iraq. Here is her latest email update. This will NOT stand, and this is NOT over. More to come soon. For the backstory on this, read here, here, here, here, and here.)
Friends and Family, It is with complete shock and utter dismay that I come to you this afternoon of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, January 21, 2008. As you may have guessed, a dramatic turn of events happened less than an hour ago while I was at my office in Downtown Paducah, KY. I was fired from my position as the Executive Director of the Maiden Alley Cinema for the incident in which Heaven and I asked Mitch McConnell about the war in Iraq.
It is absolutely unbelievable to me that such a powerful Senator would target a low income family simply to flex his political muscle. But believe it folks, I am now jobless, on the day in which we use to remember the great Civil Rights Leader, Martin Luther King, Jr., because I dared to speak out.
Is this what President Bush meant when he said he would wage a "Shock and Awe" campaign? Because that is where I am right now. I would write more, but to be perfectly honest friends, I don't know what to say.
Heather Ryan
Joe Sonka January 20th, 2008
(crossposted at BlueGrassRoots)
(This email is from Heather Ryan. For the backstory on this, read here, here, here, and here.)
Hello everyone,
I've received many e-mails and calls requesting updates on the Mitch McConnell/Heather Ryan saga, and relaying your support for me and my family. I appreciate your concern more than I can express! Here is the latest in the ongoing drama, now known as my life.
As expected, I met with my Board of Directors on Friday night to discuss the "incident" with Senator McConnell and his staff, which as you know, happened at the theater in which I am employed. As you are certainly keenly aware, I generally have a great number of words from which I choose to describe my reaction to any given situation. However, when I heard about the character assassination Senator McConnell and his staff pulled on me 72 hours preceding the board meeting, the only phrase I can think of which describes my reaction in this particular case is "shocked shitless". Perhaps it's a Midwestern saying, maybe it's something I learned in boot camp years ago, I'm not sure. I do know that it is neither eloquent nor a fine use of grammar, but it is truly the only way I can describe the utter disgust I felt when I learned what Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell accused me and my daughter of doing….
Apparently, during those many conversations Senator McConnell and his staff shared with his wealthy donors as well as the business and political leaders of the city, he elaborated on what seems to be an entirely different scene from what Heaven and I experienced. Senator McConnell and his big, burly security entourage were terrified of this 5'3" handycam toting mother and her 70 pound pre-teen. According to numerous accounts, they insist that we were wielding antagonistic signs, pounding on the theater's windows, attempting to ruin the filming of his re-election campaign commercial, harassing his security personnel, banging on the SUV which was chauffeuring around the Senator and (this is my personal favorite) screaming, "I hope you die" to the Senator. Now people, I know that we have been through seven rough years of idiocy in the White House, but work with me here. Let's put aside the moron mentality which our leaders desire we use and put to practice some common sense. If you have peeked your head out the door for any portion of the past seven years, you realize that you simply CANNOT make "Terroristic Threats" toward ANYONE in government, let alone the Senior Senator in the Republican Party! Come On! If this were even remotely true, don't you think Heaven and I would be spending a little time visiting our friends in the "Bed and Breakfast" run by the McCracken County Sheriff? These claims are OUTRAGEOUS and make me look like a complete nut case - which is apparently what Senator McConnell intended. His Chief of Staff actually called some of the power players in Paducah from Washington, D.C., the following day, to let them know how "disturbed" both he and the Senator were by our actions (see previous update regarding cutting funding to Paducah pork programs if the nut case [me] remains affiliated with the city). Then, certain members of my board were told to "take care of the situation" - as if they are supposed to channel Tony Soprano. So, that's how we found ourselves in a 6:00 PM emergency meeting of the Board of Directors.
After vehemently denying all of these crazy assertions, we simply popped "exhibit A" into the VCR, which was dragged into the conference room especially for this occasion. Oh look, there we were, in front of the theater, filming McConnell, just as I said we did. Hmmm, oddly enough, we weren't banging on the windows, acting like morons, screaming about our desire for the Senator's demise - we were simply expressing our First Amendment Right to ask the Senator about the War in Iraq. Crazy as it may seem, the tape also showed his overly ambitious, middle management security staff being complete assholes, just as I said they were, and the Senator arrogantly blowing us off, just as I said he did. Needless to say, the meeting broke up shortly thereafter, with some expressions of disgust about being misled, because there is simply no evidence that I was the stark raving lunatic to which Senator McConnell and his staff insisted.
Now, you may still be wondering, "Heather, do you still have a job"? Well friends, that remains to be seen. As just another bizarre twist with this story, certain members of my board were disturbed that this story was posted to a blog by one of my friends and has received a bit of attention on the Internet. I guess I'll know within the next few days. However, as I explained to my board, and as I will explain to everyone who receives this update, when I wrote my first e-mail it was simply a fun conversation between me and my friends about my crazy day. Follow ups were simply that - a follow up to my crazy day. I thank my lucky stars that one of my friends had the forethought to post the story of my crazy day, because as I was putting fingers to keys, Senator McConnell was effectively making me unemployable in the city of Paducah, and perhaps the Commonwealth, as he threatened funding to anyone associated with me and accused me of being a frothing lunatic howling at the moon. Grazie, Don Vito Corleone!
To be continued, I'm sure!
Joe Sonka January 17th, 2008
(crossposted at BlueGrassRoots)
Seriously, why does Mitch McConnell insist on going after the families of 12 year old kids?
First it was 12 year old Graeme Frost, who dared to speak out in favor of expanding SCHIP, which was responsible for him and his sister receiving health care after their accident. For this "crime", his family was drug through the mud with lies in the right-wing blogosphere. And what did Mitch's office do? His Communications Director Don Stewart spread those lies in an email going out to reporters, goading them to dig into his family's background. And when Mitch himself was confronted about this by Mark Hebert? He looked into the camera and lied. Blatantly lied about his offices having no involvement in spreading this dishonest smear.
And now we have Heaven Ryan, the 12 year old who dared to ask her Senator questions about the Iraq War on film. And what does Mitch do in response to her "crime" of free speech? He goes directly after her mother, allegedly threatening to cut off Paducah's pork if she is not fired.
Let us not assassinate these lads any further Senator. You've done enough. Have you no sense of decency sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?
Ditch Mitch KY
