only a few minutes in, but this is interesting summary of recent events.

Luckbox,

Have you come across the Obama chef paddle boarding accident at all. Very weird narrative. Their personal chef, who may or not be able to swim (there are videos of him doing laps in a pool with fins on) is paddle boarding around Marthas Vineyard sometime late at night with an unknown person. Then at some point falls off the paddle board and instantly drowns.

If you stop to think, does this story make any sense at all? It really doesn't. Who goes paddle boarding late at night, much less someone that apparently doesn't have the capacity to even stay afloat for a few seconds if they fall off? Who was he with? What were they doing? How did he even get to where he drowned? It was a couple miles away from the Obama's house. Did he paddle board all the way to the drowning spot?

And except for some right wing Twitter/X personalities, no one is even asking the most basic questions of what was going on. There is just a compete wall of silence. Even gossip magazines (such as DailyMail), which are normally all over this type of story, are curiously uninterested.

I did see the story when it first happened but haven't seen any follow up. I agree that it sounds fishy, although I assume that people do get shitfaced and drown from time to time.

Of course, kelhus is lying again, there are hundreds of news articles about his death.

Here's one from the AP:

Enable accessibility
Menu
AP Logo
Show Search

‘Euphoria’ star Angus Cloud dead at 25
Russia-Ukraine war
Pee-wee Herman actor Paul Reubens dies
USWNT avoided World Cup elimination
Lori Vallow Daybell sentenced

AP FACT CHECK
FACT FOCUS: No head trauma or suspicious circumstances in drowning of Obamas’ chef, police say
FILE - White House Chef Tafari Campbell smiles, Nov. 6, 2008, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. Social media users are casting doubt about the drowning death of Campbell, former President Barack Obama’s personal chef, on Martha’s Vineyard on Sunday, July 23, 2023. His body was recovered Monday, July 24. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds, File)
FILE - White House Chef Tafari Campbell smiles, Nov. 6, 2008, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington. Social media users are casting doubt about the drowning death of Campbell, former President Barack Obama’s personal chef, on Martha’s Vineyard on Sunday, July 23, 2023. His body was recovered Monday, July 24. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds, File)

BY PHILIP MARCELO AND MELISSA GOLDIN
Updated 6:47 PM EDT, July 26, 2023
Share
The drowning death of former President Barack Obama’s personal chef on Martha’s Vineyard this week is sparking a frenzy of false claims on social media, as users share conspiracy theories and baseless speculation about what happened.

Many are suggesting, without evidence, that Tafari Campbell died under questionable circumstances, claiming he knew how to swim and was in calm, shallow water. Others are sharing patently untrue statements, such as that he was found with head injuries or was equipped with a life vest.

But Massachusetts authorities confirmed on Wednesday that Campbell didn’t suffer any head trauma, nor was he wearing a life vest, and there’s no evidence the death was suspicious. They said he lost his balance while standing on his paddleboard and struggled to stay afloat when he fell into the water. Water safety experts also stressed that even strong swimmers can drown, regardless of the type of water they’re in.

Here’s a closer look at the misinformation circulating around the death, and the actual facts.

OTHER NEWS
FILE - Three crosses stand, surrounded by flowers, in Egg Harbor Township, N.J., Nov. 14, 2007, not far from the area where four Atlantic City-area prostitutes were found slain. On Nov. 20, 2006, the bodies of Molly Jean Dilts, Barbara Breidor, Tracy Ann Roberts, and Kim Raffo were discovered in a ditch behind a string of cut-rate motels known for drugs and prostitution. The cases remain unsolved in July 2023. (AP Photo/Mel Evans, File)
Breakthrough in Long Island serial killings shines light on the many unsolved murders of sex workers
Words decorate the concrete steps up to a bronze plate with the likeness of former President Barack Obama at the Plaza where then student Obama made his first political speech "A Protest against Apartheid" on Feb. 18, 1981, at Occidental College in Los Angeles, seen on Thursday, July 27, 2023. Occidental College is the latest school to end legacy admissions in the wake of a Supreme Court decision removing race from admissions decisions. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Obama’s first college is latest to end legacy admissions
This still image from video provided by Robert Addie shows three humpback whales leaping from the water off the coast of Cape Cod, Mass., on Monday, July 24, 2023. Robert Addie, celebrating his birthday on the ocean with his three daughters, captured video of the three humpback whales leaping from the water in near perfect unison. (Robert Addie via AP)
‘Whale ballet': Video shows 3 humpbacks jump in unison, a birthday surprise for man and daughters
CLAIM: Campbell suspiciously suffered blunt force injuries to the head and had been wearing a life vest when he died.

THE FACTS: Massachusetts State Police and the state medical examiner’s office say there was no external trauma or injuries on Campbell’s body.

Dave Procopio, a state police spokesperson, also confirmed the 45-year-old Dumfries, Virginia, resident was not wearing a personal flotation device nor was he leashed to his paddleboard when he went under the water on Sunday evening.

In a statement provided Wednesday, he said the agency’s investigation and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner’s initial post-mortem examination have “found no evidence that the death was suspicious.”

Another paddleboarder told police that Campbell, who had worked as a chef for the Obamas since their time in the White House, had been standing on his board when he lost his balance and fell in.

The other paddleboarder had tried to swim to Campbell as he struggled to stay afloat, but they weren’t able to reach him “in time,” the statement said.

The paddleboarder then swam ashore and notified another person, who called 911.

____
CLAIM: Former President Barack Obama was paddleboarding with Campbell when he died.

THE FACTS: The other paddleboarder who witnessed the incident was not Obama, former first lady Michelle Obama nor the couple’s two adult daughters, state police confirm.

Procopio said the family, which has long vacationed on the resort island off Massachusetts, had been elsewhere Sunday evening.

“I won’t comment on where exactly President and Mrs. Obama were, but they were not at the house or with Mr. Campbell that evening,” he said.

The Obamas’ 6,892-square-foot estate sits on 30 acres overlooking Edgartown Great Pond, where Campbell drowned.

Procopio declined to identify the other paddler who had been with Campbell, saying the agency generally does not identify witnesses.

As to exactly where the Obamas were on the island Sunday, a spokesperson for the former president declined to comment Wednesday.

___
CLAIM: The medical examiner’s office has “called off” its autopsy.

THE FACTS: That’s false. The initial post-mortem examination of the body is complete, leading officials to conclude the death wasn’t suspicious.

Officials are now just awaiting the results of toxicology tests, which generally take several weeks, according to Procopio.

“For the autopsy to be considered complete, the toxicology tests would be finalized and the results reviewed,” he said.

___
CLAIM: Campbell’s death is suspicious because he knew how to swim and was in a pond with access to a paddleboard he could have held onto.

THE FACTS: Water safety experts told the AP that none of these factors would necessarily prevent someone from drowning, a tragedy that often occurs quickly and silently.

Some online are pointing to a video on Campbell’s Instagram account that shows a man swimming laps at a pool as evidence that the chef was an able swimmer.

Although the level of Campbell’s swimming abilities is unclear, Adam Katchmarchi, executive director of the National Drowning Prevention Alliance, said that even the best swimmers can and do drown.

For example, they may suffer a medical emergency that prevents them from staying afloat, even if they have an object such as a paddleboard to hold onto. Or they may find themselves in an environment they’re not trained to handle — like tides or currents — especially if they overestimate their strength and stamina.

Additionally, a pond is not necessarily safe just because it’s smaller and less volatile than other bodies of water. Murky waters can obscure hazards beneath the surface, and safety equipment or assistance are not always available nearby.

What’s more, Edgartown Great Pond is not all that shallow, as some online had claimed. Campbell’s body was found about 100 feet (30 meters) from shore at a depth of about 8 feet (2.4 meters), according to state police.

The pond has an average depth of 3 to 4.3 feet. But people can drown in far shallower water, so long as their mouth and nose are submerged, said Tom Gill, vice president of the United States Lifesaving Association.

“It doesn’t even take 8 feet of water,” Gill said. “It could take 1 foot of water.”

___
Associated Press reporter Angelo Fichera in New York contributed to this story.

___
This is part of AP’s effort to address widely shared misinformation, including work with outside companies and organizations to add factual context to misleading content that is circulating online. Learn more about fact-checking at AP.

PHILIP MARCELO
Reporter in Boston focused on immigration and race
twitter
mailto

The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. More than half the world’s population sees AP journalism every day.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
AP.ORG
CAREERS
ACCESSIBILITY STATEMENT
YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS
TERMS OF USE
PRIVACY POLICY
MORE FROM AP NEWS
ABOUT
AP NEWS VALUES AND PRINCIPLES
AP’S ROLE IN ELECTIONS
AP LEADS
AP DEFINITIVE SOURCE BLOG
AP IMAGES SPOTLIGHT BLOG
AP STYLEBOOK
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

twitter
instagram
facebook

Your "evidence" supports my argument, not yours. The gatekeepers are providing no relevant information as to the circumstances how Campbell (who may or may not know how to swim) ended up in the middle of a lake in the middle of the night and drowned. If the goal was to debunk any conspiracy theories, I certainly dont see how that was accomplished by divulging no information at all.

Interestingly, a couple days after this article the information was provided (by whom we aren't sure) he was with a female. Obviously, by only providing this information we are being led to assume this was just an accident that happened while he was having an extramarital affair. Which could be true, or could not. But at least (if true) it is some information to debunk some of the more outlandish conspiracy theories, such as he got in a fistfight with Barrack Obama who murdered him.

Sounds like they're saying he went out on a paddleboard, fell off, and drowned, and they're awaiting toxicology results. If that's actually what happened, what further information are you looking for?

Probably just another case of SADS.

Well, for one the context that would support that this is actually what happened. Because in a vacuum this makes little sense. It also doesn't help that we know authorities have already taken extraordinary actions to conceal information, such as withholding who actually called the police from the public information logs. But then they let it "slip" he was with a female, leading us to assume it was an extramarital affair. Very strange. Which is why I put it in this thread, because this thread is kind of a catch all for official narrative stories where a lot of the information doesn't really add up, but most people uncritically accept it anyways.

Why not? People do stupid **** all the time. And why would there have to be any context to support it?

I'm not saying this is what happened - I have no ****ing idea. I just reject the premise that simply because there's no further info, they must be holding something back. Sometimes there just isn't a lot of info to be had. Man decides on his own to go out on a paddleboard, drowns, not a lot to be said.

Now in this case it seems like you've got little clues that you think add up to something, so have at it! Seems like the perfect thread for it.

Honestly, no clue.

But if we are to believe the report he was a poor enough swimmer that he instantly sank and drowned when he fell off the paddle board (despite no trauma), yet decided it was a good idea to go paddle boarding in the middle of the night and wasn't wearing a life vest or even connected to the board.

I admit I dont know anything about paddle boarding. But it doesn't look particularly stable, so one would assume a high likelihood of falling off at some point, so voluntarily undertaking to go paddle boarding under those circumstances makes no sense. The only thing that makes any sense is if he assumed the water was very shallow so he could stand in it, but even that seems unlikely.

When I first saw this story it actually reminded me of the Portland one that we talked about a lot in this thread. One of those stories where the media puts out a narrative that makes no sense, but everyone just goes along with it anyways.

Trying to follow your train of thought is pretty tough. The police and AP are trying to disclose facts about the incident without disclosing information they do not know or wish to investigate further, if further investigation is required. Such as the tox screen - that will likely be revealed when they obtain the information. No one but you think the police provide And the news reported on information to debunk the conspiracy theories. As you prove, conspiracy theorists are never happy with the information provided.

I provided the AP story to prove that you are once again lying that the MSM is hiding the story. So I think the evidence supports my position.

The name of the other paddle boarder was not provided initially but since the sex is provided you now think there must have been an extramarital affair?

I won't comment on your outlandish murder theory other than to point out that you clearly want to talk about that conspiracy theory with Luckbox. You must be disappointed that it wasn't included in the misinformation portion of the AP article.

Fyp.

Redacting witness identification during an open investigation from a log they control is extraordinary lengths? Just loooooool.

This is a pretty interesting "story" that has been running 3 days without developing at all. So apparently a woman was murdered in a hate crime at a local LA mountain resort area for the simple act of hanging a LGTBQ......... (I dont know the full current code) flag, and then police shot and killed the suspect.

And the leftist MSM, activists and politicians (like the Gov of CA) are employing the usual rhetoric, a few stories even linking this to political actions by DeSantis, Youngkin, etc. However, perhaps even more interesting is that in the 3 days since, not a single detail of this story beyond these basic "facts" have been reported. We dont have a suspect name or any semblance of a timeline of what happened.

At this point this indicates the actual details of what happened dont fit the preferred script, and the narrative being promoted has very little (if any) overlap with the truth of whatever actually happened to cause this tragedy.

Note: I actually have no clue the details of this case. In theory it actually could be a white Christian male Republican voter in a cutoff t shirt and a MAGA hat who murdered a woman for the simple fact of hanging a Pride flag, but given it has been 3 days and the media is still mum, my money is on the no.

Bump.

So now that it has been a few weeks, the investigation should be resolved, and the information that is legally mandated to be publish should be available, correct?

Cliffs: Dunyain has no clues of the details of this case, but since the police didn't release full details within 60 hours (over a weekend, no less), this indicates the narrative being promoted has very little (if any) overlap with the truth of whatever actually happened.

LOL.

You know he's probably right though, right?

Ya because reasons

If the guy doesn't have a Q in his name somewhere then I can look dumb too.

I see.



No idea if that's actually the same guy, but since we're just pointlessly speculating, that certainly seems more compelling than anything Dunyain or you have presented thus far.

And of course it's been widely reported that her Pride flag had been ripped down multiple times previously. But in today's sadly regressing environment for the LGBTQ+ community, it's super important we get out in front of the facts with speculation that the "narrative" is all made up.

I'd say Dunyain is at least partially vindicated. The guy's name wasn't Ibrahim Qassadd but partially.

This is normal procedure, you guys realize that, right?

In a homicide case they won't release much information as it might interfere in the investigations.
So they won't release much, until everything is double checked and the case is sealed and closed, including having nailed complices of the perpetrators. that's how law workes and it makes sense.

Of course you want more information immediatly but release of that information might interfere with the case. Here it could make sense that more people were involved and they are looking into them at the moment.

It bothered me too particularly with the submarine case and the Moscow murder case recently. Everything that is interfering with investgations won't be released. that is also done to protect the victims families.

The guy was an Arab?
Things like this happen in Europe too. It's normal imo.

When ultra orthodox religious people collide with modern people things can escalate everywhere.

Looks like 2nd or probably 3rd or 4th generation Japanese-American

thanks. yeah I see it it now.
In the US they are fighting about flags and killing people over it. weird. didn't know that was going on. Pretty terrible what this guy did, can't understand what drove him.

They are saying they ripped down her flag before. so they might look into that now.

I hope you realize in the real world that this isn't how it works. How it works is the media normally gets information right away (one way or another), and then depending on how badly want to run the story, the media and authorities negotiate a time before they start releasing the info.

But yeah, they just released the suspects name today, and his surname appears Japanese. So we can see why there isn't a ton of interest or urgency by the MSM compared to say the Arbery case. And we still dont really have a timeline how things escalated to the point where the victim and suspect both ended up dead.

The irony is that it appears this guy has a Gab account he spews a lot of hateful stuff on, so it probably actually is the real deal as far as this being an anti LGBTQ hate crime. But the media will still probably soft play it because it doesn't fit the white supremacy angle they prefer to promote.