Melissa Neese has changed her tune!
The Georgia woman gained some fleeting notoriety last week after turning her Halloween display into a blood-curdling display of partisanship, by which we mean having the “Shadow of Death” lurking behind an effigy of Barack Obama.
Said Neese at the time: “It’s kind of like the shadow of death behind Obama. We’re kind of more of McCain advocates. It’s just to encourage people to vote. That’s about it. I haven’t really finished it [display]. I was going to put pumpkins and a vote sign up there.”
Not everyone enjoyed Neese’s morbid, easily misconstrued message, and now she’s circulating an email begging for forgiveness and insisting she’s changed things about. Rather than being haunted by the shadow of death, Obama’s now flanked by a mannequin that appears to be Hillary Clinton, a figure many Republicans equate with the shadow of death.
How about we take this to the next level?
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Writes Neese in her entirely capitalized email, which also doubles as a nightmare of grammatic error:
FIRST OF ALL I WOULD LIKE TO SAY SORRY TO ANY ONE THAT WAS OFFENDED BY MY DISPLAY. YOUR [sic] RIGHT IT WAS DONE IN BAD TASTE AND WITH OUT FOR-THOUGHT [sic]. THE REASON FOR THIS IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK.
I SIMPLY DID NOT AND WAS NOT THINKING OF MR. OBAMA AS A BLACK MAN AND THAT IT WOULD BE LOOKED AT IN A RACIST WAY. I WAS NOT EVEN DONE WITH THE DISPLAY WHEN THE NEWS MAN CAME BY. I WAS GOING TO MIX HALLOWEEN AND THE ELECTION, WITH THE INTENTIONS TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR WHO THEY WANTED AND MAKE THERE [sic] VOICE HEARD .
SINCE THIS HAS AIRED, I HAVE CHANGED MY DISPLAY AND IN MUCH MORE TASTE-FULL [sic] FASHION. SO NOW THAT I HAVE BEEN MARKED AS A RACIST AND GOD KNOWS WHAT ELSE BY PEOPLE THAT DO NOT EVEN KNOW ME, BY THE WAY MARTIN LUTHER KING IS ONE OF MY HEROES OF ALL TIME.
Oh, well, in that case…
Read Neese’s entire email, after the jump. We have not altered it in anyway except for breaking it into more manageable paragraphs.
I SENT THIS TO WSBTV AND WITH UPDATED PICTURE BUT I WAS RIGHT THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN AIRING MY APOLOGIES FOR THEY RE AIRED THE SAME NEWS CAST SUNDAY MORNING WITH NO MENTION OF APOLOGY
I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THOUGH WHAT IS A RACIST ? WE ALL KNOW ONE OF THEM IS PEOPLE THAT HATE FOLKS FOR THE COLOR OF THERE SKIN ,BUT WHAT ABOUT THOSE THAT HATE JUST ON ONE COMMENT WITH OUT TRULY KNOWING WHO THEY REALLY ARE ? I PERSONA LY HATE NO ONE ,THE BIBLE TEACHES US TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER AND NOT TO JUDGE ,AND IT DOES NOT EXCLUDES ANY ONE
FIRST OF ALL I WOULD LIKE TO SAY SORRY TO ANY ONE THAT WAS OFFENDED
BY MY DISPLAY .
YOUR RIGHT IT WAS DONE IN BAD TASTE AND WITH OUT FOR-THOUGHT.
THE REASON FOR THIS IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK .I SIMPLY DID NOT AND WAS NOT THINKING OF MR. OBAMA AS A BLACK MAN AND THAT IT WOULD BE LOOKED AT IN A RACIST WAY .
I WAS NOT EVEN DONE WITH THE DISPLAY WHEN THE NEWS MAN CAME BY
I WAS GOING TO MIX HALLOWEEN AND THE ELECTION , WITH THE INTENTIONS TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR WHO THEY WANTED AND MAKE THERE VOICE HEARD .SINCE THIS HAS AIRED ,I HAVE CHANGED MY DISPLAY AND IN MUCH MORE TASTE-FULL FASHION .
SO NOW THAT I HAVE BEEN MARKED AS A RACIST AND GOD KNOWS WHAT ELSE BY PEOPLE THAT DO NOT EVEN KNOW ME ,BY THE WAY MARTIN LUTHER KING IS ONE OF MY HEROES OF ALL TIME .
BUT THAT’S NOT WHAT MY POINT IS .FOR IF ANY THING WILL COME OUT OF THIS ,PEOPLE WILL GO OUT AND VOTE ON NOVEMBER 4TH
THEN MAYBE THIS WILL NOT HAVE ALL BEEN FOR NOTHING AT MY EXPENSE .IT WILL HAVE BEEN WORTH IT
FOR EVERY ONE HAS SEEN THE OLD DISPLAY AND MY NAME IS TARNISHED FOREVER AND THE NEWS PROBABLY WONT COME BY AND FILM THE NEW DISPLAY AND THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN MAKING A WRONG RIGHT .I ASK ,YOU THAT KNOW ME AND KNOW THAT I AM NOT A RACIST TO FORWARD THIS TO ANY ONE THAT WILL LISTEN AND THAT MY APOLOGIES WILL BE HEARD
THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS ALL
fredo777
Well, I think (despite her grammatical errors) it was good of her to clarify her intended meaning + appreciate that she changed the display so as not to send a potentially violent message.
As an artist, I understand that she has certain freedoms of expression, even if her display was potentially offensive. However, my real gripe with the original display was only that I felt it could be seen as an endorsement of violence or death upon Obama which I found kind of a dangerous statement.
All in all, I’m pleased with how she’s handled herself after the critique but also respect her right to free expression.
CastleRock
Oh Jesus Christ, so now freedom of expression is fucked in this country, too? Give me a fucking break!
CHURCHILL-Y
Falling in line, being a good German, obligatory government mandated political correctness, governmental intimidation run amok, the US Constitution in shreds. The future sure looks bright now that the election has been decided by Acorn, african Americans, the Nation of Islam, illegals, the media and every non-US citizen of the world.
If you’re Gay and you fail to see how this is gonna comeback and bite you in the ass, then you’re no longer a reasoning human being.
fredo777
More inane blather from the bigot.
Lovely. Didn’t know illegals + non-US citizens could vote in an election + have said votes count. Interesting.
CHURCHILL-Y
^ With the help of the Acorn they can dear and you know it.
And you wouldn’t know what “freedoms of expression” are even if you had been born in a Nation that guaranteed them to its citizens.
Oh wait, you have(or so you say).
Guess when one doesn’t have a real connection to a nation’s beginnings one can’t really cherish its ideals.
fredo777
A connection to a nation’s beginnings?
Oh, right, meaning the Native Americans.
Nope. I’m not Native American.
Btw, the GOP have been working with ACORN for years.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/13/acorn-mccain-and-gop-used_n_134284.html
Done + done.
CHURCHILL-Y
Noncitizen voters undermine elections:
http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/stories/2008/07/15/votinged.html
Hires Criminals to register voters also:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiQ5Ysrvi1M
CHURCHILL-Y
Acorn and the underage:
http://www.courant.com/community/news/hfd/hc-ctyouthvote0919.artsep19,0,3741645.story
CHURCHILL-Y
Acorn in NC:
“Elections Chief Asks For Voter Fraud Probe
From The Herald Sun
By Matthew E. Milliken
September 19, 2008
DURHAM, N.C. — A Durham official is asking state elections administrators to check approximately 80 voter registration forms for possible fraud.
Mike Ashe, Durham County’s elections director, said the forms were among about 4,000 submitted to his office over the past four to six weeks by a national left-wing group called Acorn, for Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now.
“They will be turned over to the State Board of Elections for investigation and prosecution,†Ashe said of the questionable documents.
Most of the forms at issue bear one of six names. Ashe was not sure whether the people named existed or not.
Many of the papers are incomplete, which Ashe said is a nuisance, not a crime. But the group contains very different versions of what are purportedly the same person’s signatures.
Signing another person’s name on a voter registration form can result in up to 15 months in prison.
…
A woman who visited the elections office Wednesday said that Tamion Richardson of Buffalo Way had received a mailing stating that he had been registered to vote. The woman, who said she was Richardson’s mother, said he was 14 years old and ineligible to vote.
…
Also, elections officials have received calls from people saying they had received new voter registration cards with incorrect information.”
CHURCHILL-Y
All you do is throw mud and false accusations 777, but hey to you anyone who has not drunk the Obamakoolaid is a “bigot”. No matter how many examples of fraud and criminal activity are linked to him.
fredo777
I love how a noted + blatant bigot claims that I think they are a bigot only because they don’t support Obama when there are plenty of other statements + postings that suggest that “person’s” anti-black bias (“Moesha777”, etc.), much of it not even regarding Obama specifically.
Sounds like someone is drinking his own brand of Kool-Aid + it ain’t yours truly.
fredo777
Also, it’s hilariously hypocritical that someone who spends over 90% of their posts regarding the election mud-slinging against Obama, calls someone else out for throwing mud + accusations.
Pot, kettle.
fredo777
What’s more, there aren’t many examples of fraud or criminal activity “linked” to him. There are claims of fraud + criminal activity linked to people he knows (some of which are speculative, fabricated, or misconstrued altogether), much like there are examples of anti-American separatist activity linked to those Palin knows (or is married to) or criminal/unethical/fraudulent activity to those McCain knows/has known, some of which is also speculative.
Who cares? When Obama or McCain or Palin themselves are found guilty of committing a crime or doing something unethical, I’ll pay attention. Oh, wait, Palin was found to have abused her power.
Well, aside from that little no-no.
fredo777
Not to be outdonw, looks like McCain has been “pallin’ around with” his own radicals:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-oped0504chapmanmay04,0,6238795.column
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carl-bernstein/ayers-and-the-mccain-g-go_b_134256.html
fredo777
* outdone
I should really stop typing one-handed.
Mr C
Fredo777 Why debate this idiot? Bitch is DUMB, ANGRY, and just plain pathetic!
Of course we all know by him calling you Moesha he is being racist. But he needs to direct that anger at his Mom. It’s her fault he exists. Not ours.
Online all day trying to find things to connect Obama to it. Now the BITCH is in love with Sarah Stalin who doesn’t like us Gays.
Talk about drinking KQQL-AID
michael
Fredo my love, I agree with you but stop debating this piece of dung. He’s not really gay anyway, gay people have a heart. This thing is disrespectful and does not deserve to be fed. No one cares what it has to say anyway. I doubt if its winning any converts if thats its intention.
fredo777
Yeah, I know. <3
I vowed to ignore the asshole a while back but that was before I left Queerty for a while. I’ll go back to brushing that guy off, actually.
Misty
Have you guys actually read any of this??? Whether you agree, which obviously you don’t, Churchill-y was providing some support to his argument. You guys, on the other hand, began name calling and gave very little support for your argument. Where did the Moesha thing come from anyway? Was there some other post cause I first saw it in Fredo777 then Mr C put it in Churchill-y’s mouth as proof of “racism”?? Really?? My question is, how can people be so ready to throw all their trust into a politician, any politician? Have we all forgotten that they ALL promise the world in every election and then disappoint us in the end?
fredo777
Misty, you don’t know the backstory behind the “Moesha” thing because you’re jumping into a conversation without knowing all of the pertinent information. Not advisable.
It’s common knowledge here that the-one-who-shall-not-be-named is wont to racist rants. To answer your question, which I gather is probably rhetorical, I don’t trust any human being fully; we are all capable of lying + are flawed.
That’s not the point, however, in backing a candidate. You choose the person who most speaks to what changes you want in gov’t. + that you feel is most suited to the job, for whatever reason. For me, the only logical choice is the Obama/Biden ticket.