tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79053392024-03-13T14:49:46.232-04:00Word of the PeopleBecause the People should not be afraid of the Government, Government should be afraid of the People.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.comBlogger1397125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-85669653547930548262009-10-09T16:06:00.002-04:002009-10-09T16:13:21.054-04:00Putting The Prize in PerspectiveJust wanna mention, since it seems necessary, just because I disagree with the Nobel award committee over selecting Obama for their prize, doesn't mean that this is some "travesty of justice" or whatever the <a href="http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/10/peace-prize-reax-i.html">Fox Fanatics are saying</a>. It's their award and they can give it to the f'ing Predator if they want. I just think it's putting the cart before the horse.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-57848218799118149522009-10-09T15:55:00.002-04:002009-10-09T15:57:08.236-04:00Obama Wins Nobel Peace Prize.<a href="http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/10/09/2093914.aspx">For what?</a>Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-27610199032944333462009-08-26T09:03:00.003-04:002009-08-26T09:08:48.332-04:00R.I.P.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_TSLjzmpBw7M/SpUy_fqWNNI/AAAAAAAAA9I/X5HBDdhPeQw/s1600-h/tedkennedy_19621.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 284px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_TSLjzmpBw7M/SpUy_fqWNNI/AAAAAAAAA9I/X5HBDdhPeQw/s400/tedkennedy_19621.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374257796748817618" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32491712/">Ted Kennedy</a>, Senate leader and liberal firebrand died today. He was 77.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-53211933572723084102009-08-11T10:00:00.002-04:002009-08-11T10:05:38.962-04:00Why I Wouldn't Not Want to be a SenatorWatching Arlen Specter's town hall meeting on Heath Care Reform on MSNBC, and boy are they grilling him up like a spare rib. Half of the people are barely coherent, but the other half are giving very reasoned arguments against the bill(s?) and Specter is floundering like a fish. These town halls, the way they're done now, aren't getting the job done, primarily because they representatives don't know how to talk to people and secondly, because they bill(s?) in the house seem to suck. I'm still for health reform, but I really wish they'd done these meetings before they presented anything and taken some of this criticism to the board. My prediction? Something will pass, and the Dems will get whipped in the midterm. This really looks bad.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-2864119884391932572009-08-07T11:58:00.002-04:002009-08-07T12:02:46.714-04:00John Hughes R.I.P.<a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32320427/ns/entertainment-movies/">Kinda depressed</a>. The man gave shape to my childhood and teen years. If you haven't, pick up The Breakfast Club and Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. Awesome.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-26984504202569423702009-08-04T11:49:00.002-04:002009-08-04T12:08:52.019-04:00Article of the DayJulian Sanchez has a piece <a href="http://www.juliansanchez.com/2009/08/03/symbolic-belief/">well worth reading</a> about the birthers and what he calls "symbolic beliefs." Money quote:<br /><br />"The classic case of a “symbolic belief” is what Orwell dubbed “doublethink”: propositions you profess publicly, maybe even sincerely believe you believe, even while, on another level, there’s some part of you that knows better, so that the false belief doesn’t actually get you into practical trouble. Pseudobeliefs may serve any number of functions; I’m using the phrase “symbolic belief” for the ones that either work as a public expression of some associated attitude, or play some role in defining the holder’s self-conception. In a post from last week, a commenter <a href="http://www.juliansanchez.com/2009/07/29/i-think-what/#comment-8572">pointed out</a> that there really are vegetarians and vegans, especially in certain punk scenes, who purport to believe that animals are not only morally equal to, but perhaps even morally superior to human beings. As he also pointed out, though, none of them really act as though they believe anything of the sort. Now, you might say that we already have a word for this: Hypocrisy. But I think it’s worth preserving a separate term here, because we usually use that term for people who specifically promote <em>standards of behavior</em> that they either consciously don’t really hold or <em>do</em> hold but are just incapable of adhering to (from weakness of will or whatever), and conceal this inability out of shame or fear. Symbolic beliefs, as I’m conceiving of them, are “sincere”—in that the person holding them probably isn’t consciously or reflexively aware that they’re false, but also shallow, insofar as a subconscious lack of commitment to the truth of the belief renders it behaviorally inert. For those who aren’t hardcore birthers, I’d hazard that the real meaning of professing either uncertainty or positive disbelief in the claim that he was born in the U.S. is something like: “I consider Obama phony, dishonest, and un-American.” It’s not, I hasten to say, that they <em>really</em> believe, deep-down, that Obama was born in Hawaii. It’s more that—as with H.G. Frankfurt’s definition of “bullshit”—the literal truth or falsity of the proposition is a matter of indifference; it’s not really the point."<br /><br />While this is all very interesting and brings out some thought provoking points, I think there is much more to this that needs to be fleshed out. Particularly its racial component which he doesn't being up. The chart he discusses is showing in that it finds that the birther debate is much more intense in Southern states and I don't think I need to argue too much that the South has deep unresolved issues with racial equality. As Josh Marshall insightfully commented, "...the best way to understand the 'birther' craze is as a proxy for people who don't want to accept a black man with a Arabic-derived first name as President of the United States. Really as simple as that." That is the real heart of what Sanchez calls the birthers belief that Obama is "phony, dishonest, and un-American." If that is the case then is it a "symbolic belief" whose "lack of belief renders is behavorially inert?" The 9/11 truthers I believe may be more of a case of Sanchez's "symbolic belief" simply because their premise doesn't have the underline historic strength of racism. Although I grant the foundation of the truthers <span style="font-style: italic;">might be</span> a general fear of government, but that seems, in our country, more fuzzy and vague--less actionable on an individual or small group level--than racism. If a person has a hatred of government they can do less to hurt government than a person who hates a particular race can hurt a person of a particular race. I think a true "symbolic belief" makes it more unlikely that they would act on it, in proportion to how preventively taxing the action could be.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-54336791208271220422009-08-04T11:33:00.004-04:002009-08-04T11:42:36.454-04:00I Believe In Harvey Obama<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TSLjzmpBw7M/SnhU1A7X1gI/AAAAAAAAA84/QioxYxAR-S0/s1600-h/6a00d83451c45669e2011571623459970c-500wi.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 274px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TSLjzmpBw7M/SnhU1A7X1gI/AAAAAAAAA84/QioxYxAR-S0/s400/6a00d83451c45669e2011571623459970c-500wi.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366132225770771970" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Recently this poster has been showing up in the CA area. <a href="http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/08/whitey.html">Sully notes</a> the complete absurdity of its image:<br /><br />"It's graphically striking, but politically obtuse. The Joker is a wild man; Obama is no-drama; the Joker is an anarchist; Obama is a community organizer. Obama's careful politicking, his almost painful resistance to emotionalism, are worth lampooning, because they at least show an understanding of him, which is essential to successful mockery. But portraying him as an anarchist white terrorist recently made famous by Heath Ledger? To prove what exactly? Or is even asking for a reason at this point a silly thing to do?"<br /><br />But seeing this it reminded me of the days before the election when I wore two pins on my book bag. The first was an Obama campaign button and the second (shown below) often elicited strange reactions.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_TSLjzmpBw7M/SnhV01efUEI/AAAAAAAAA9A/kMF4GOCPP3o/s1600-h/CTC-3211-image6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_TSLjzmpBw7M/SnhV01efUEI/AAAAAAAAA9A/kMF4GOCPP3o/s400/CTC-3211-image6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366133322208464962" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I wore the two side by side to remind my self that no man deserves complete and unquestioning faith. I felt the urge to think of Obama as some type of messiah, but like Dent, even those with the best intentions can go astray. To me if there is a connection between <span style="font-style: italic;">The Dark Knight</span> and Obama it is this, not the Joker and not Batman.<br /><br />The good news is that if Obama does go Harvey Dent's way, the blue dogs and birthers better hide their two sided coins.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-61702308651762805052009-08-03T09:21:00.003-04:002009-08-03T09:27:34.594-04:00What I Did Over the WeekendSaw Tool at All Points West:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/utgZ7AEWX-M&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/utgZ7AEWX-M&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />It was dope, and Tool is amazing (though I feel unfulfilled. I suppose that comes when you have too many good songs in your resume. I don't feel I've really seen them unless they do "Prison Sex" and "Right in Two", but that's just me), but I can't do open air concerts anymore. I'm just too old to stand in the middle of thousands of people surrounded by weed smoke, B.O., and tattoos, while I stand ankle deep in mud. But as a swan song, you can't go wrong with this.<br /><br />This was also VERY awesome:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oLjviXcdCUc&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oLjviXcdCUc&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-29190824018688629682009-07-29T10:07:00.003-04:002009-07-29T10:09:31.969-04:00Royal RumbleFrom <a href="http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2009/07/28/tnrtv-when-lawmaking-gets-bloody-parliamentary-brawls.aspx">TNR</a>, when politicians wild out:<br /><br />The flip kills it.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-6169991802487935912009-07-29T09:54:00.002-04:002009-07-29T10:01:22.411-04:00And Because I MustShatner reads Palin:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/b7_UHHA5peY&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/b7_UHHA5peY&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />And because it's just as cool, Shatner reading Elton John:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/DvQwXOCKNLY&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/DvQwXOCKNLY&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />That's the stuff. You know, I never blamed Shatner for this foolishness, but what were the producers thinking?Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-18933622241467450822009-07-29T09:37:00.002-04:002009-07-29T09:40:10.724-04:00Talk About the Pot Calling the Kettle...Glenn Beck calls Obama a racist:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/MI_0Kt_e3Go&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MI_0Kt_e3Go&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Imagine, all this because Obama called a white cop 'stupid'. What do you think Beck would have done if Obama had of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmett_Till">winked at a white woman</a>?Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-92073764389386416962009-07-29T09:32:00.002-04:002009-07-29T09:36:22.544-04:00I'm Down With This<a href="http://business.theatlantic.com/2009/07/in_praise_of_the_four-day_workweek.php">Friday's off...forever</a>:<br /><br />"Forget everybody working for the weekend. In Utah all government employees have shifted to a four-day workweek, and the state is calling it a win-win-win for its budget, workers and clean air. Utah has saved $1.8 million in electrical bills in the last year, the air has been spared an estimated 6,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide, and workers are thrilled. Eighty-two percent of them say they prefer the new arrangement, which still enforces the 40-hour week by requiring 10 or more hours a day Monday - Friday."<br /><br />Spread the word.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-65063874300059983082009-07-27T11:14:00.003-04:002009-07-27T11:21:30.311-04:00Second ChanceI'm down with <a href="http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2009/07/25/let-vick-play.aspx">Judis' argument</a> for letting Michael Vick play. I think not giving him a second chance is only maximizing the immorality of his own actions. If society is better than him we'll show this talented player that we have more mercy then he showed his animals.<br /><br />The bonus? When Vick gets his head knocked off <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQ1iVRRu6w0">Lawrence Taylor style</a> from a blindside blitz we can debate over who gets to toss his carcass on an electrified fence.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-43157864858430439582009-07-27T11:08:00.002-04:002009-07-27T11:10:56.909-04:00Off the Chain<a href="http://www.comicbookresources.com:8080/?page=video&show_id=130621">Tron Legacy</a>:<br /><br /><object data="http://www.comicbookresources.com/VIEW/flowplayer.commercial-3.0.7.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.comicbookresources.com/VIEW/flowplayer.commercial-3.0.7.swf"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="flashvars" value="config={"key":"#$042fd170e0a29c4abc3","playlist":[{"url":"http://serve.castfire.com/video/130621/trailers-ws_2009-07-25-141107.jpg","scaling":"orig"},{"url":"http://serve.castfire.com/video/130621/trailers-ws_2009-07-25-141107.flv","autoPlay":false}],"play":{"url":"http://www.comicbookresources.com/assets/images/play_button.png","opacity":0.8,"label":null,"replayLabel":"Play again","fadeSpeed":500,"rotateSpeed":50,"width":200,"height":200},"logo":{"url":"http://www.comicbookresources.com/assets/images/cbr_watermark.png","top":20,"right":20,"opacity":1,"fullscreenOnly":false,"displayTime":0,"fadeSpeed":0,"linkUrl":"http://www.comicbookresources.com/video"},"plugins":{"controls":{"url":"http://www.comicbookresources.com/VIEW/flowplayer.controls-3.0.4.swf","buttonColor":"#000000","bufferGradient":"none","progressGradient":"medium","backgroundColor":"#0719a2","buttonOverColor":"#7e1116","sliderColor":"#000000","timeColor":"#01DAFF","borderRadius":"0","progressColor":"#0d1773","sliderGradient":"none","durationColor":"#ffffff","bufferColor":"#5661c8","opacity":1},"liverail":{"url":"http://static.liverail.com/libas3/flowplayer/LiveRailPlugin303.swf","LR_USE_JUNCTION":"true","LR_PUBLISHER_ID":"9206670f","LR_ADMAP":"ov%3Adefault%3A5%2C50%25%3Bin%3Adefault%3A0%25"}},"clip":{}}"></object><br /><br />This, by itself, makes the movie season of 2010 better than what we've seen so far this year. Bring out a new Batman and life is complete.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-51081892214392274892009-07-27T11:04:00.001-04:002009-07-27T11:07:20.566-04:00Simple<a href="http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2009/07/that_simple.php?ref=fpblg">Josh Marshall on the birthers</a>:<br /><br />"Others have said this. But the best way to understand the 'birther' craze is as a proxy for people who don't want to accept a black man with a Arabic-derived first name as President of the United States. Really as simple as that."<br /><br />Bingo.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-13074757268743071542009-07-27T10:37:00.003-04:002009-07-27T10:58:02.793-04:00Children Don't Make the Best LawyersMY brings up an <a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/07/americas-poor-living-in-law-free-zone.php">important issue</a>:<br /><p>"Related to Friday’s post about DC <a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/07/programs-for-the-poor-become-poor-programs.php">cutting funds for legal services</a>, my colleague Ian Millhiser had a nice post yesterday about how one of the things poor people need to do without in America is <a href="http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2009/07/25/legal-services/">adequate legal representation</a> with one study indicating that as much as 80 percent of poor people’s legal needs go unmet. Even if you think that’s exaggerated, it’s clear enough as soon as you think about it that many of their needs will necessarily go unmet. This makes something of a sham out of the rule of law in the United States, as legal rights are worthless without a reasonable means to enforce them. </p> <p>"And it doesn’t need to be this way. As Ian writes, “At the low end, Germany and Finland spent three times as much of their gross domestic product as we do on civil legal services for the poor. At the high end, England outspends the United States twelve times.”</p><p>Its funny how often we forget this simple issue, and it's even more ironic that I forgot this issue. Backstory: When I was around 12, my mother went, well let's just say that in many ways she checked out. She decided that she didn't need to work; and, accordingly, didn't need to pay her bills. When the eviction notices started to come in, and I had to take the reins as head of the household I discovered that there were few places to go to get legal help. There was obviously legal aid, but their motto should be "sorry, we're underfunded" since I heard that from them every other sentence. From 12 through 17 I was forced every year to go to court myself and act as my own legal counsel, filing paperwork, talking to the judge, arguing with lawyers and finally going down to welfare to fill out their forms to get whatever government aid I could.<br /></p><p>I suppose I didn't really think of legal services to be as important as health care because I had (and perhaps still have) a feeling that this was all my mother's fault, as that I didn't recognize that she had some type of mental illness, and still continues to go, as far as I know, untreated. (My father, by the way, didn't live with us; my parents were divorced and he was homeless at the time) There are legal solutions for these issue, particularly when there is a child in the home, but the onus to find those solutions is up to the household when much of this could be addressed, and relatively easy, through an attorney. However, even with having something like 80 percent of the world's lawyers in the US, most people go without coverage (I never thought of it percetage-wise, but I can't really see how the 80 percent number MY cites is off--I never met anyone growing up in Harlem that had a lawyer on retainer). I still can't say that this is as pressing a need as say health coverage, but it is an issue that we should discuss. I often think now that running around doing all this legal work when I was a kid helped me grow into the academic I am now, however I have a huge gap in my childhood from the experience and while I was lucky to be as successful as I was, I don't think children make the best lawyers.<br /></p>Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-740984497252234112009-07-27T10:07:00.002-04:002009-07-27T10:14:56.519-04:00Some Final Words on Gates-GateMy final blast of steam occurred in <a href="http://planetill.com/2009/07/gatesgate-everything-is-not-racism/#comments">my reaction to Bill Starlin's article</a> over at Planet Ill, but for a more tempered and just response, I'll pass the mike <a href="http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/07/gatesgate.html#more">to Sully</a>:<br /><br />"...I do think it's necessary to remember that policemen are our servants, not our masters. We pay their salary - and they'd better treat us right. And I find the many comments that we should always show deference to the man with the gun and the badge and never publicly criticize cops to be alarmingly authoritarian in its implications.<p> </p> <p>"If a cop gives you trouble in your own home after it is perfectly clear that no crime has taken place, you have every right to tell him to get the hell out of your house; and he has no right to hang around. You also have every right to give him your opinion of his police work or his haircut if you so wish.</p><p>"There is a distinction, in other words, between a deference to cops based on trust and a deference based on fear. I find the idea that mouthing off to a cop in your own home is enough to get you arrested a disturbing feature of the post-9/11 police state. My gut sense of the interaction is that Crowley - used to total deference and fear from those he interacts with - was simply appalled at being harangued so vituperatively, especially by a black man (but race was not the only factor), and quickly realized he had no grounds to arrest Gates in his home, and so lured him outside to get the pretext of "disorderly conduct" in front of seven people. Yes, Skip over-reacted after a long flight and an embarrassing battle with his door; but Crowley - a cop who declared that he was a Republican to the media for no apparent reason - got the man who didn't kowtow to him in cuffs as revenge. The very fact that the charges were dropped tells you who was in the wrong, according to the Cambridge police.</p><p>"I don't know about you, but I prefer societies in which the exercize of free speech in your own home does not lead to being arrested - especially just to teach you a lesson on how to be deferent to police"</p><p>I think it's laughable and sad that the party whose members think that Obama is going to open up socialist concentration camps to "educate" our children, and who take him to task for taking away our civil liberities seem to have no problem with officers violating a person's home and arresting them for no reason. It really, really worries me.<br /></p>Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-26218344031416805882009-07-25T09:58:00.002-04:002009-07-25T10:11:25.282-04:00And What's This Shit About Having a Beer?Yes, I'm still pissed. If you're looking for some reasoned, calm blogging check back Tuesday. Until then...<br /><br />What's up with the President saying that Gates and his arresting officer should sit down and have a beer with one another? Thinking about it now, that, in and of itself, is pretty stupid. What this officer did to Gates wasn't some little harmless embarrassing mistake, it was a gross humiliation. To be ducked walked out of his own home, past his neighbors to assuage the ego of this cop. Not only that, but as an older black man getting arrested can be terrifying. You're talking about a group of people who come from a generation where getting arrested can be a sentence of death and torture. Where you can walk into a building and come out in a bodybag. Particularly when you know that what you're being charged with is complete BS. Usually that needs to be covered up, and you know what some cops do when they need to do a cover up? Put you underground and cover you up with dirt. Yeah, maybe that sounds a bit extreme, but it has happened and it does happen. Again, if you think I'm making this shit up then you need to read a book, or maybe ask an old black dude about their experience with cops. I'm betting not too many will have first or second hand experiences (usually coming from family members) that are pleasant. Obviously, I don't know how Gates felt but I'm sure it wasn't good, and it certainly doesn't seem like an experience you'd like to rehash with the arresting officer over a Goddamned beer.<br /><br />And how would that exchange go?<br /><br />Officer: Hey Gates, remember when you cursed at me from inside your own house and I arrested you, and slapped the cuffs over your wrists, and then pushed you outside on your lawn so people could take pictures, like I was hunting Zebra in Africa? Wasn't that fun?<br /><br />Gates: Why don't you go fuck yourself.<br /><br />Officer: (Pulling out the cuffs) Yeah, I like reliving the experience over reminiscing too.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-77081329671532164262009-07-24T14:55:00.002-04:002009-07-24T15:02:44.196-04:00Sorta SickI'm trying to give myself time to think about Obama calling the police officer who arrested Gates and then coming out and basically, <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/">apologizing for his "stupid" comments</a>. CNN is praising him for "calming the situation down"--as if there was going to be a race riot or something coming up--and what a great political move this was (right now they're laughing about it and wondering what beer the Prez will have with the officer and Gates when they take up the invitation to have a beer and talk it over), and all I can think about is:<br /><br />a) Good to know that if you arrest a black man over BS, you get the President to call you--but heaven help we talk to Iran...<br /><br />b) Glad we can all sweep this under the rug--once again folks we can get resolution on the cheap! Whoo Hoo! Now we can get back to discussing MJ.<br /><br />Sorry, I'm just a bit bitter. I really can't believe Obama actually called him...Jesus...Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-46878221919606127062009-07-24T10:37:00.003-04:002009-07-24T11:06:46.014-04:00I DisagreeFar be it from me to disagree with someone I respect like MY, I have to take issue with this <a href="http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/07/bias-racism-being-a-jerk-and-abuse-of-power.php">statement</a> (in bold):<br /><br />"Meanwhile, note that racial motivations or there absence have really nothing to do with the nature of Officer Crowley’s misconduct. What happened basically is that Crowley accused Gates, whether for good reason or not, of breaking into his own home. Gates, pissed off, offended Crowley. At which point Crowley, even though he was now perfectly aware that Gates was not guilty of anything, decided to exact revenge by manipulating the situation to create a trumped-up disorderly conduct charge. That’s not professional policing, and it’s not a good use of the City of Cambridge’s law enforcement resources. That’s why the charges were dropped, and that’s why it’s fair to say that Crowley was acting stupidly racial issues aside.*<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">"* To consider a race-free instance, I was actually treated extremely rudely by an MPDC officer yesterday. I, wisely, just decided to not worry about it and move on. But suppose I’d decided to respond to him being rude by overreacting and blowing up at him. And then he decided to respond to me being rude by finding some pretext on which to arrest me. Neither the fact that the cop’s not a racist nor the fact that I had overreacted would make retaliating with a trumped-up charge the right way for the cop to respond.</span>"<br /><br />Now let me tell you a story:<br /><br />About four years or so ago, I lived in an apartment building with some of my frat brothers in Harlem, NYC. One night after having some drinks, one of my bros (he's white) decided to go to a bar on the upper west side. So, pretty tipsy, on our way to shit faced, we go to the corner of 140th and Amsterdam, and jump into one of the many Dominican gypsy cabs the circulated in the area. (At this time, before gentrification really took hold, you'd catch hypothermia waiting for a yellow cab).<br /><br />Anyway, a cab picks us up and we go about a block before a cop pulls us over. As a black kid, with a terror of police that comes from being raised in Harlem, and raised by black parents who never wanted me to have anything to do with cops (including calling on them for help). I immediately sober up, sit up straight and pull my wallet out getting ready to show them ID or my library card if they ask.<br /><br />One of them approaches the driver and his partner taps on the side of the back seat where my brother is sitting. He lowers the window.<br /><br />The cop says, "What are you boys doing in this neighborhood?"<br /><br />Immediately I pull out my ID, ready to show it to the cop, and begin, "We live down the street, and we're going downto--<br /><br />My brother cuts me off.<br /><br />"We're buying crack to sell it downtown."<br /><br />I turned red and begin to shake. "Jesus Christ!" I yell. "No we are not officer."<br /><br />My brother then pulls his bookbag that is next to him and shows it to the officer. "I have 12 Uzis in her and a kilo of blow, what the fuck do you think we're doing up here? We live here? Or can't white people live in Harlem?"<br /><br />By this time I have my face in my hands, and I'm thinking that when they pull me out of the car I better remember to shield my head.<br /><br />"So you think you're a comedian?" The cop says.<br /><br />"No, you're the fucking joke you racist son-of-a-bitch." My bro shouts. "You think cause I'm white and he's black and we're in a cab going downtown you can just pull us over for any dumb shit. Well fuck you ok?"<br /><br />"How about we see how tough you are down at the station?"<br /><br />"Yeah, and we'll see how tough you are when I put a false arrest suit into the NYPD, and shove my lawyer so far down your ass that your kids will be shitting law degrees! So why don't you get back in your car and go down to Broadway and get your rocks off making Dominican's lay on the ground."<br /><br />At this point I'm just waiting to get the shit kicked out of me. I actually thought that I was supposed to get the shit kicked outta me. And then--surprise, surprise--the cop looks at us for two more seconds and then waves to his partner.<br /><br />"You keep outta trouble."<br /><br />And he walks away. The cab driver and I look at my friend like we've seen a fucking unicorn. He shrugs and says.<br /><br />"Hey, when you're white, you're all right."<br /><br />Now, I'm not saying that we got off that night because my friend was white--plenty of white people get beat up by the police every day. But I am sure that if my brother had of mouthed off like that, in Harlem, at night, obviously intoxicated, and was black, that chances would have been higher that we would have gotten, at the least, arrested. I'm not saying that it positively would have, but there is no doubt in my mind that the chances would have been higher. And that's the point. Not that police corruption and abuses of power are directly in corrolation to race, but that they intersect, that the chances that cops would abuse their power are linked to the color of a person's skin. It's the nature of the beast, and anyone who can't see that is blind to reality of the nation they live in.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-64782549443584826492009-07-24T10:25:00.002-04:002009-07-24T10:32:42.652-04:00TranslationMaybe its because I'm black, or an elitist or whatever, but this is what I hear when I watch this <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/22/liz-cheney-defends-birthe_n_242555.html">video clip</a>:<br /><br />Angry white woman: I'm angry that the President of the United States is black! He's black! Can't you see he's black! I mean it's written all over his black face! My daddy was white! I'm white! And the President should be white! Can't you white men do something about this or should be go to war again!?!?<br /><br />James Carville: That woman is crazy.<br /><br />Liz Cheney: That woman is not crazy. She has a point. Obama is black.<br /><br />Carville: So?<br /><br />Cheney: Damnit, don't you understand?<br /><br />Larry King: You both make good points. We'll be right back to discuss Michael Jackson. Was <span style="font-style: italic;">he</span> black?<br /><br />And that, my friends, is our racial debate.Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-39392276707992744132009-07-24T10:14:00.002-04:002009-07-24T10:18:47.227-04:00A Deeper Issue<a href="http://ta-nehisicoates.theatlantic.com/archives/2009/07/incredible.php">What the F is going on with cops</a>?<br /><br />PS: And Coates is right, I understand the idea that cops would look after their own, but damn, what do you have to do to get fired? Are they trying to be as inept as big business? Next thing you know they'll want bonuses...Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-5086799202961728692009-07-24T10:06:00.003-04:002009-07-24T10:14:46.018-04:00Can You Close A Can of Worms?Obama follows in <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2009/07/obama-bush-policies.html">Cheney's footsteps</a>. Not by shooting someone in the face, but it looks like his committees will be secret as well:<br /><br />"Obama administration officials have rejected a watchdog group's request for a list of healthcare industry executives who've been meeting secretly in the White House with Obama staffers to discuss healthcare changes being drafted there and in Congress."<br /><br />Sigh...Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-12779701360077915792009-07-24T09:37:00.003-04:002009-07-24T10:05:03.162-04:00You're Both RightOver at Sully's Blog, guest blogger Conor Friedersdorf <a href="http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/07/is-this-the-instance-of-police-misconduct-to-obsess-about.html">points out</a> how unfortunate it is that it took the Gates case for Obama to directly address the endemic racism in this country when so many poor and unknown blacks are unjustly harassed by the police every day:<br /><br />"Isn't it notable that six months into his presidency, the most prominent advocacy President Obama has done on behalf of minorities mistreated by police is to stand up for his Ivy League buddy? Somehow I imagine that Professor Gates would've fared just fine absent help from Harvard's most prominent alumnus. <p>"Whereas if President Obama spoke up at a press conference on behalf of people wrongly imprisoned due to <a href="http://www.reason.com/blog/show/134118.html">"testimony" by police dogs</a>, or advocated for those <a href="http://www.philly.com/dailynews/local/20090617_Again_a_woman_alleges_indecent_assault_by_same_cop_during_a_narcotics_raid.html">sexually assaulted by an officer</a>, or spoke against prosecutors who <a href="http://www.theagitator.com/2009/05/18/prosecutors-blocking-access-to-dna-testing/">block access to DNA testing</a>, or called out the officer who <a href="http://www.theagitator.com/2009/06/06/no-charges/">choked a paramedic</a>, or objected to the practice of <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-07-19/dogs-in-a-deadly-crossfire/full/">police killing family pets</a>, or asked the Innocence Project for a clear cut case of injustice to publicize..."</p><p>On the other hand, Anita Bartholomew <a href="http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/07/police-misconduct-contd.html">avers</a> that it is precisely Gates' status that displays the bias of race over class:</p><p>"Gates forces white Americans to face the fact that race <em><strong>does</strong></em> play a role in how the police behave, no matter how much Sgt. Crowley protests to the contrary. A distinguished gentlemen with a cane? A Harvard professor? And he's reduced to this? Who can believe that he would have been hauled to jail if his skin were a different color? </p><p>"We see this and if we're honest, have to face the likelihood that this sort of injustice, if it could happen to him, could and probably does happen to many less distinguished looking, less well-spoken black men."</p><p>To me both are right. It is tragic that it took Gates, an Ivy-League, conservative black professor, to get the our national debate on race going again, when an even <a href="http://ta-nehisicoates.theatlantic.com/archives/2009/07/another_police_killing.php">more tragic example of racism</a> happened not more than two weeks ago. But when discussing this issue I think its important to keep your end goal in mind that being an open and honest dialogue in this country where this issue can be laid on the table and policy can be created to solve the racial injustice in our justice system. Thus, I don't really care which of these examples we're discussing as long as the discussion begins.</p><p>And as far as Obama is concerned, and the implicit charges of elitism that it took a fellow black intellectual to get the President to discuss this matter, I'd like to revisit a key point in Conor's post:</p><p> "I understand, of course, that Pres. Obama was <em>asked</em> about Henry Louis Gates, which is also part of the problem. Wrongly arrest a black men who happens to be a Harvard professor, release him without filing charges, and the national press corps asks the president to comment. Wrongly <em>imprison for years on end</em> a black man who happens to be working class and without celebrity, and the national press corps continues to utterly ignore a criminal justice system that <a href="http://www.innocenceproject.org/know/">routinely convicts innocent people</a>. Apportioning blame for this sorry state of affairs isn't as important as recognizing that the news we get on these matters reflects a value system that is seriously flawed, and that news consumers bear blame for too."</p><p>Precisely. The media is horrible when it comes to these type of things because of its sensationalist nature. They don't wanna talk about race unless it can stir shit up, and in this case getting Obama to use the words "police" and "stupid" in the same sentence was probably a gold nugget. Not to say that I don't think the Cambridge police did act stupidly in this case, but of course the President's words will undoubtedly get twisted and the media will shape this into how Obama is against law enforcement rather than actually discuss some of the explicit racial elements of this case. This is why you can never depend of the media to get to the bottom of anything except a barrel of shit.<br /></p>Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7905339.post-31698697977329683342009-07-16T12:57:00.001-04:002009-07-16T12:59:45.545-04:00Now That's Some Good RacismPat Buchannan. 'Nuff said.<br /><br /><div><iframe height="339" width="425" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/31929409#31929409" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><p style="font-size:11px; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #999; margin-top: 5px; background: transparent; text-align: center; width: 425px;">Visit msnbc.com for <a style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;" href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com">Breaking News</a>, <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032507" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">World News</a>, and <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032072" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">News about the Economy</a></p></div>Teethwriterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14438388599034549992noreply@blogger.com1