In Kentucky Derby parlance, the dead horse ain’t gettin’ off the track any time soon. The idea’s not to beat the dead horse any more, but there was a story that appeared today which continues to raise some issues about the Newt Gingrich-Pink Visual story.

Over the weekend Sean from www.pornlegends.com who does the weekly wrap-up of news for this website awarded both the Gingrich camp and Pink Visual the Dope of the Week award. Mainly for the reason that Gingrich’s people named Pink Visual’s Allison Vivas Entrepreneur of the Year then rescinded when it was discovered Vivas owned a porn company. But not before Vivas issued a press release acknowledging the honor. It was Sean’s thinking that both camps deserved a Dope distinction. One for not doing due diligence, the other for assuming that porn is actually being accepted by the mainstream.

After Sean made his comments, an objection came from Pink Visual suggesting it was Sean who was the dope because Pink Visual knew this to be a sham all along and that Vivas’ comments were to be construed as biting sarcasm.

However, if you go to
www.examiner.com/x-20994-Raleigh-Progressive-Examiner~y2009m9d16-Newt-and-the-Pink-Visual-Award-An-Opportunity-Lost you will see a photo of the award with Vivas’ name on it.

Here’s Sean to add his two or three cents:

“It appears I shook a hornet’s nest concerning Pink Visual’s president Allison Vivas. She won last week’s Adultfyi.com’s Dope of the Week award after her company issued a press release [www.adultfyi.com/read.php?ID=37243 ] announcing she was the winner of the American Solutions for Winning the Future’s Entrepreneur of the Year award. After reading her quotes in the release I couldn’t believe that she would actually think a conservative group led by none other than Newt Gingrich would actually give an award to anyone in the porn industry.

Gene later posted an email from “Quentin” explaining that the press release and Ms. Vivas’ quotes were “obvious sarcasm.” Quentin also explained: “Maybe somebody should clue Sean in on the fact that the award itself is a fund-raising sham, and not a real award to begin with.” [Read Quentin’s email here: www.adultfyi.com/read.php?ID=37284 ]

Quentin really took me to task. In fact, I took a lot of good-natured ribbing about it. That is until Gene posted a story written by Michael Tuck in which it’s mentioned that the award Vivas was to have received actually exists. The story even includes a mockup photo of the award. www.examiner.com/x-20994-Raleigh-Progressive-Examiner~y2009m9d16-Newt-and-the-Pink-Visual-Award-An-Opportunity-Lost#comments

I decided to research this subject a little more: I read the fax to Allison Vavas [www.thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/aswf_letter.pdf ] informing her that she had in fact been named the 2009 Entrepreneur of the Year. The fax didn’t mention anything about it being a fundraising event. It didn’t mention anything about money at all. I suspect if it was a “sham” some dope from Pink Visual must have actually contacted this organization to get the particulars about the award.

I also find it difficult to believe that Vivas’ quotes in the press release were “obvious sarcasm.” I’m guessing it all of a sudden became sarcasm in their attempt to save face after Gingrich’s people realized their error and canceled the invite.

“The attention seekers that they are, a photo of Allison Vivas standing next to Gingrich after receiving her award would have provided Pink Visual an endless supply of self-generated media coverage. After all, they enjoy making news about themselves. Who could forget Pink Visual’s attempt to grab the limelight during the Octomom coverage, www.adultfyi.com/read.php?ID=33178 or the Super Bowl porn incident? www.adultfyi.com/read.php?ID=32962

“Oh, by the way, Octomom never did get that ‘full year’s worth of diapers.’ I guess that story was “obvious sarcasm” as well.

“I wish I could write more, but I have to start writing my letter to Santa Claus so I can beat the Christmas rush. Oh, and I can’t be late for my conservative conservation meeting: tonight we discuss clubbing bald eagles and baby seals.

“PS – Remember to read my column this Sunday to see who this week’s Dope of the Week winner is. Wanna guess?”