Scandal pool drowned in spam... Real prizes!

July 24, 2009, 8:36PM

Originally posted about five minutes before the spam attack. So, I'm re-posting. Sorry, guys.

Hey everybody, let's play Scandal Pool!

I was getting bored since it had been a couple weeks since a Repub had a public meltdown, so began planning this...
Then we get the Paul Stanley thing, and a spam dump destroys my post before anyone notices...
But hey, we're still on.

I'm putting up Amazon gift certificates (or other online retailers or charities, if they offer e-certificates) to whatever TPM readers can correctly guess the next political figure caught in scandal. Up to $60 in prizes!
Erica & sweetmolly, please try again and I am so rooting for either of your scandals to win.

Date Pool - $10 to the person who (first) correctly predicts the date something breaks
Identity Pool - $10 to the person who correctly identifies the skunk. Must be prominent political or national-biased-media person. "Celebrities" are excluded as they live on scandal.
Nature of the Scandal Pool. - $10 to the best guess as to the breaking scandal. "Sex" does not do it, too easy. "Longstanding affair", maybe.
Hypocrisy Bonus - $10 to the person who can peg a perp who has publicly denounced the very behavior they're busted for (Unpaid Hetero Adultery Exemption: Must have voted to impeach Clinton, a la Mark Sanford, or otherwise been really obnoxious about it.)
X-acta Pool: Hit all four of the above for an additional $10.
Felony/Resignation Bonus: Additional $10 if a winner of one of the above is publicly arrested or resigns his/her office (not meaningless positions like internal party committees) within 1 week of scandal breaking. "Somebody gets arrested" isn't going to cut it without a name.

Rules:

Judging done solely by me, though consensus of TPM readers can help.
Limit one winner per scandal, except:

Two people can win in different categories. (identity & date for example)
If the X-Acta Pool (#5) is not hit because of different winners, I will award two $5 "second-place" prizes in the other five categories, whichever pops up first.

Expiration: Pool expires when

$60 worth of prizes are won, or
when a national health care bill with "public option" is signed into law,
whichever comes first. So get crackin', scandal -prone politicos!

Post your guesses as a comment. (Yes, it is a shameless bid to get to the top of the comments list - but fun, too.)

Additional $20 bonus if anyone can prove right-wing "dirty tricks" behind the 7/24 Spam Attack at TPM!

Last one in the pool is a rotten egg!

7 Comments

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I think Lindsay Graham is next in line for a scandal.

I think the story will break on the Friday (9/4/09) before Labor Day, forcing all the cable network people to cancel their plans in the Hamptons.

The story will result in some sort of tearful apology followed by rehab at Promises in Malibu. then he will hang out with other Promises alums (Ben Affleck, Robert Downey Jr., Ozzie Osbourne's kids, one of the Olsen twins, the two Coreys).

I'm still working on the specifics of the scandal. Manorexia? Ex-lax abuse? Huffing STP?

It's going to be worse than thigh stroking, I know. Bigger than Miss Pittypat. I'm conflicted by that David Brooks "story" as what self-respecting journalist would endure more than a fleeting hand to thigh action. Even an intern would flick the person's hand away. Or drop a utensil and elbow the guy.

Posted by sweetmolly
July 24, 2009 9:19 PM | Reply | Permalink

TPM Spam Attack - Follow the Money

First, some flunky ("Chip") from Ivanwald took spare change from the communal cookie jar and redeemed it at the Coinstar machine at the Kroger's supermarket in Arlington.

Then Chip found three bums outside the store and paid each of them $20 each to go with him to the local public library where he showed them how to sign up for TPM and use a flash drive that had pre-formatted text for fake erectile dysfunction drug ads.

Sergey Putnakov, Paul Davenport and Christian Debt Consolidation worked feverishly from 8:30 am until after 1:00 pm to piss off ClosetLuddite, Cville Dem, Orlando, Ramona, Synch, GregorZap, LavenderLightning, Aunt Sam, Obey, sweetmolly, LisB, and the new guy Eric who thought the frenzy was an initiation for new, witty bloggers. It was like a mosh pit gone terribly wrong. Worse than Altamont. Unexpressed liberal hysteria is not a pretty sight. Please note; Lalo was visibly absent. Coincidence?

The spamming was so fast and furious that some crazed bloggers mistook sweetmolly’s snark as gumshoe sleuthing. There was no time to investigate because threes bums were so quick and learned how to disable the comments.

Posted by sweetmolly
July 24, 2009 9:46 PM | Reply | Permalink

Yeah, it was pretty funny! So is your comment above. You're pretty quick with the material at hand. LOL

Posted by Ramona in reply to a comment from sweetmolly
July 25, 2009 7:26 PM | Reply | Permalink

I think improv snarking is a contact sport.

Posted by sweetmolly
July 25, 2009 8:15 PM | Reply | Permalink

(flying leap from left)

(chicken successfully tackles Molly's discarded slipper)

Yeah!

Posted by Bwakfat in reply to a comment from sweetmolly
July 25, 2009 8:42 PM | Reply | Permalink

Bwak, don't let Fred M. deem snarking less than useful.

Posted by sweetmolly in reply to a comment from Bwakfat
July 26, 2009 3:25 PM | Reply | Permalink

(sharpens pitchfork)

I'm trying, Molly. You're doing a pretty good job of it yourownself.

Posted by Bwakfat in reply to a comment from sweetmolly
July 26, 2009 3:35 PM | Reply | Permalink