A letter to the editor, published today in the Martinsville Bulletin has unfortunately revived ROSCOEgate. Bill Wyatt, owner of WYAT40 television read the letter on the air this morning and then gave a VERY INACCURATE account of the controversy. To summarize, he led viewers unaccustomed to blogs into thinking that Roscoe Reynolds’ pal Joe Stanley’s behavior (”just pulling a funny”) and the subsequent response by the Old Dominion Blog Alliance (”some group of Republicans”) was typical of the Virginia political blogosphere. There was no mention of Joe Stanley being no typical blogger but the Chairman of the Franklin County Democratic Committee.

In spinning his yarn, Bill Wyatt named Alton Foley as being involved in the brouhaha and inferred that Alton was somehow the instigator. Alton called the show and offered to set the record straight. During the on-air call, Bill invited Alton to come on his evening talk show Talk of the Town tonight to explain it. Bill also said that he would be inviting Joe Stanley to join them. Alton has accepted and I have no idea what Joe will do. My “woman’s intuition” says he’ll stay home. Being accountable is hardly a trademark of a person who believes the ends always justify the means.

From the Roanoke Times:

In January 2006, Stanley unseated Gary Furrow to become chairman of the Franklin County Democratic Committee. The coup was hardly bloodless, though Stanley has avoided speaking of it except in vague terms, and Furrow did not return calls requesting comment on the matter.

My opinion is that anyone capable of pulling off a coup that is not bloodless within his own party didn’t think twice about linking our group of Virginia bloggers to a group advocating lowering the age of consent so that “men” can legally have sex with little boys. I don’t take offense easily but as the mother of a nine-year old boy, Joe’s actions made by blood run cold…and then boil. The ODBA is not a faceless acronym at which one can recklessly throw barbs - to me its members are friends which I hold dear. They are honorable people - I’m willing to bet that if I asked them to name the most despicable group (before Joe connected us to NAMBLA, that is) they could think of, NONE OF THEM would suggest a group of pedophiles. We just don’t think like that.

In Joe’s Mea Culpa he says, “I started to point it to a prominent Democratic site, but I don’t know of anyone who wants to be associated with these hate mongers and flat-earthers.” Did he check with NAMBLA to see if THEY wanted to be associated with us? Linking us to moveon.org would be “a funny.” Child rape is not.

Joe has created a diversion to draw attention away from his candidate, Roscoe Reynolds, and I don’t blame him. He calls the ODBA a “gutless invertebrate.” Isn’t it ironic that he called Roscoe one of several “elected invertebrae” on his blog? (As well as naming Roscoe, Pickle of the Week.)

Joe did ask a good question, though:

After years in office, who do you think is more culpable for the economic situation in Martinsville, Armstrong, Marshall, and Reynolds, or a blogger two hundred miles away?

Anyway, anyone interested in watching tonight’s show, with or without Joe can do so via streaming video by going to http://ustream.tv/channel/martinsville-media

Talk of the Town is scheduled to air at 7 pm.