i actually found a different way, using one of the functions from the text editor itself, the function:
Code:
vB_Editor['vB_Editor_001'].insert_text(text)
seems to work well for what i needed, though there does seem to be an error from the text editor whenever anything is inserted in firefox at least, either using the function or referencing the textarea through javascript dom, though the error doesn't affect anything in the editor or posting, that i have seen.