Good Morning
Today’s post will focus on discrimination, hate and hate crimes. Whether it is outright racism… unquestionable prejudice…probable intolerance or a hint of bigotry with a touch of “that just ain’t right” sexism.
First up however, a quick look at what is going on in Ferguson:
Another Night Of Unrest During Tenth Night Of Protests In Ferguson
After nine nights of unrest met with tear gas, riot gear and a National Guard presence, Tuesday night in Ferguson, Missouri began peacefully. But by midnight central time, tensions began to rise.
Many protesters marched along West Florissant Avenue, chanting “no justice no peace,” and “hands up, don’t shoot,” while others loitered looking on. Police were not enforcing Capt. Ron Johnson’s rule forcing protesters to keep moving or risk removal.
While people were relieved at the initial lack of confrontation Tuesday night, everyone recognized how fragile the situation was and that it could turn instantly.
I really don’t know what happened overnight, but Holder did make a statement about the situation.
Eric Holder Pens Message to Ferguson Ahead of Wednesday’s Visit
Attorney General Eric Holder will visit Ferguson, Missouri on Wednesday to get briefed by local authorities on the situation there following the fatal shooting of 18-year-old unarmed Michael Brown by police officer Darren Wilson. But before he arrives, Holder has written a message to the people of Ferguson for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
“At a time when so much may seem uncertain, the people of Ferguson can have confidence that the Justice Department intends to learn — in a fair and thorough manner — exactly what happened,” Holder writes.
He says he plans to “meet personally with community leaders, FBI investigators and federal prosecutors from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to receive detailed briefings on the status of this case” while in Ferguson tomorrow.
Holder urges an “end to the acts of violence in the streets of Ferguson,” saying that “they seriously undermine, rather than advance, the cause of justice.” He also vows that the Justice Department will “defend the right of protesters to peacefully demonstrate and for the media to cover a story that must be told.”
Here’s some thoughts regarding Holder’s statement and his plans to go to Ferguson:
Wall Street Journal editor: Eric Holder should tell Ferguson protesters to ‘pull up their pants’
Yeah, go and read what Wall Street Journal editorial board member Jason Riley had to say…
…Holder was there as part of President Barack Obama’s efforts to play “race-healer-in-chief.”
“These looters and rioters do not need to hear from the attorney general that criticism of Obama is race-based,” Riley told host Bret Bauer. “What they need to hear from this Black man in this position — the nation’s leading law enforcement official — is that they need to stay out of trouble with the law. They need to pull up their pants and finish school and take care of their kids. That is the message they need to hear.”
Riley is African-American, and he is not the only black man who is making outrageous statements like this. Check this out, – Tea Party Leader: Black ‘Thugs’ Do Not Deserve Due Process (VIDEO)
Then you have reaction to the statement made by Missouri Gov. Nixon, from John Marshall at TPM: Is That an Editing Error?
I want to be very clear on the point I’m about to make so that I’m not misunderstood. Gov. Nixon of Missouri put out a statement this evening on the situation in Ferguson. Much of it is boilerplate that wouldn’t surprise or inspire you. (I’m reprinting it in its entirety at the end of this post.) The gist is that to move forward peace needs to be restored in Ferguson and there needs to be justice in the case of the precipitating event – the death of Michael Brown. (There is a separate controversy over Nixon’s decision not to appoint a special prosecutor – which I think is a mistake.) But in the key line – the part two of his statement he says that “a vigorous prosecution must now be pursued.”
Now, let me be clear. This is not remotely to suggest that the facts will not show that a prosecution is in order. Based on what we know publicly, it seems very likely that there should be. But let’s not let the justified outrage at what’s transpired obscure a simple fact. There’s a great deal we in the public do not know about what happened. This goes without saying. There will be sworn witness statements, forensic evidence about Brown and Wilson and a lot else. Indeed, it’s one of the significant problems in this saga that so little information has been released. But there’s a process: a full investigation and then a decision by a prosecutor. That hasn’t happened yet.
It’s an entirely different matter for members of the public to demand a prosecution. But this is the Governor of the state, the elected official who has ultimate responsibility for carrying out the laws of the state. It’s simply crazy for him to be saying there has to be a prosecution. It’s so inappropriate that I think it’s highly likely that this is actually an editing error – or someone doing the writing who just didn’t grasp the significance of the word choice.
But even if that’s the case, the principle is so basic and important that it’s important to note: the Governor shouldn’t be publicly assuming that Wilson must be prosecuted or that a prosecution must happen for justice to be served.
BTW, Getty released a statement as well…regarding their photojournalist who was arrested Monday night. Statement from Pancho Bernasconi, VP, News, on the arrest of Getty Images staff photographer Scott Olson in Ferguson | Getty Images Press Room | Latest company news, media announcements and information
We at Getty Images stand firmly behind our colleague Scott Olson and the right to report from Ferguson. Getty Images is working to secure his release as soon as possible.
We strongly object to his arrest and are committed to ensuring he is able to resume his important work of capturing some of the most iconic images of this news story.
Now we get to the other stories making news that touch on the subject of this post. Hate.
The Horrific Risk Of Gun Violence For Black Kids In America, In 4 Charts
In a moving letter to the family of Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin’s mother, Sybrina Fulton, mourned the American epidemic of gun violence against children:
I will support you and your efforts to seek justice for your Michael and the countless other Michaels & Trayvons of our country. The 20 Sandy Hook children. Jordan Davis. Oscar Grant. Kendrick Johnson. Sean Bell. Hadya Pendleton. The Aurora shooting victims. The list is too numerous to adequately mention them all. According to The Children’s Defense Fund, gun violence is the second leading cause of death for children ages 1-19. That is a horrible fact.
Brown, who was shot and killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, earlier this month, and Martin, who was slain in Florida by a former neighborhood watch captain in 2012, were both unarmed black teenagers who lost their lives to gun violence.
Fulton’s letter lamented all child gun deaths — and the numbers in the U.S. dwarf those in other wealthy nations, without separating the victims by race or age. The 2013 report she mentioned notes that gun violence is not only the second leading cause of death for American children, behind car accidents, but the leading cause of death for black American children.
Guns kill more black children in America than car accidents….Take a look at that link for a series of graphs and statistical charts that show in shocking clarity how truly dangerous it is to be a young black male in the US.
Then of course you have those children who are being sent back to Central America, according to Atrios…We Do Love Children , in one word…
oy
I know that I posted this next link in the comments a few days ago, but it connects with the theme of this thread so here it is again: When The Media Treats White Suspects And Killers Better Than Black Victims
Alright, up next…a hate crime can not be a hate crime if it is white on white violence? Huh? Mississippi Man Shot After Reporting Cross Burning In Yard
A Mississippi sheriff says a man was beaten and shot two weeks after calling authorities to report a cross burning in his yard, and investigators are trying to determine whether the attack was prompted by people being upset that the man was visited by his mixed-race grandchildren.
I won’t quote anymore from the article because it is a very convoluted situation. Best for you to go and read it all yourself…ugh, that is all I can say about that.
Here is an update on that shooting near Banjoville, in the tourist town of Helen GA (I wouldn’t say the phrase “something’s not kosher” about this story applies, but there is something fishy here.): Stray bullet wounds 1, kills another on other side of Ga. street | www.ajc.com
Newly naturalized as a U.S. citizen, May Araim looked forward to traveling freely as an American to her native Iraq. First, though, she needed to see a cousin from Atlanta whose cancer might prove fatal before Araim returned.
Araim, 68, of Houston was walking with her cousin, two other women and two male relatives late Saturday in the northeast Georgia resort town of Helen. Across North Main Street in the faux-Alpine village, a gunshot cracked. Araim fell to the ground, wounded in the side, and rapidly bled to death.
[...]
Araim, who was Muslim, and her three female companions were wearing hijab, the traditional Islamic head covering that symbolizes modesty for women in public, her nephew, Omar Araim, said Monday.
Whether Lampien saw Araim and the other women before the shooting was not clear. Neither the Helen police nor the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which took over the case Sunday, responded to requests for information Monday. The Helen police deleted information about the shooting posted Sunday on the department’s Facebook page.
The case fueled online debate about a new Georgia law that greatly expanded the rights of gun owners to carry weapons in public places, such as bars. The new statute, which took effect last month, has been labeled the “Guns Everywhere” law.
It was not known whether Lampien, the owner of a commercial and industrial air conditioning company, had a concealed-carry permit for his handgun. Nor was it known whether he had removed the weapon from a holster before the shot fired. Lampien received a minor hand injury and was treated at a Gainesville hospital.
“Maybe the shooting was accidental,” Omar Araim said by telephone from his home in California. “But what was the guy doing drawing a gun in the middle of a crowd?”
Good thing GBI took over the investigation. May I remind you that the police office told/ordered the wait staff at the restaurant not to speak to the press or to talk to anyone. It makes me think that perhaps there is more here than just an asshole with a “concealed carry” gun. Mugshot of Lampien at that link too.
Macy’s is in the news: Macy’s to Pay $650,000 to Resolve Bias Inquiry – NYTimes.com
After an 18-month investigation, Macy’s has agreed to pay a $650,000 fine and hire an independent monitor to address complaints that minority shoppers faced heightened surveillance and, in some cases, wrongful detention at its flagship store in Midtown Manhattan.
The investigation, conducted by the state attorney general’s office, reviewed the internal “loss prevention” procedures employed by Macy’s at its Herald Square store as well as allegations that black and Hispanic shoppers were unfairly targeted by security officials. The inquiry found that Macy’s “detained African-Americans, Hispanics and other minorities for allegedly shoplifting at significantly higher rates relative to whites,” a settlement agreement to be released on Wednesday said.
Moving on with another racial profiling link: N.C. Sheriff Terry Johnson On Trial For Racial Profiling : NPR
Justice Department officials say Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson illegally targeted Latino drivers and detained people without probable cause. Johnson’s attorneys say the charges are baseless.
That shit happens here in Banjoville…the cops wait for the Mexicans as they leave the Catholic Church after Spanish Mass. You can read the results on the arrest report in the local newspaper, these people are always arrested for a series of charges with broken tail light, or failure to use turning signal being the lowest level charge on the list.
More on those gun nuts “protecting” our Southern border. Police: Militias complicate situation on Texas border | AccessNorthGa
And if it is not the militia with AR-15, what about high school resource officers? Compton School Board Approves AR-15 Rifles for Campus Police – The Atlantic
The school board in Compton, California, has voted to arm campus police officers with AR-15 rifles, according to the Los Angeles public radio station KPCC. Some parents and students are expressing discomfort, citing the same sorts of concerns sparked by the militarized police force of Ferguson, Missouri. In Compton, the local police union says its officers are hardly alone in seeking such weapons:
Currently, the following School Districts authorize their Police Officers to deploy these weapons; Los Angeles School PD, Baldwin Park School PD, Santa Ana School PD, Fontana School PD, San Bernandino School PD.
Here is the latest shit out of the religious right: Some evangelicals in Republican Party are feeling left out, see no standard-bearer – The Washington Post
“Values voters have been treated as the stepchildren of the family, while the party has wanted to get on with so-called more electorally popular ideas,” Bauer said. “The Republican base will not tolerate another candidate foisted upon us as a guy who can win.”
Discontent among evangelicals could have implications for the GOP next year as campaigning for the presidential nomination escalates in early-voting states such as Iowa, where social conservatives are a major bloc. Their presence could complicate matters for top-tier candidates such as Christie and Paul who want to remain viable in a general election but will feel pressure to appeal to religious voters. A surge of support for more fiery contenders such as Carson or former senator Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) could turn candidate debates into a spectacle while pulling everyone to the right, affecting the party’s image more broadly.
Assholes.
And another article to make you ill:
Byron York | The Reformers Trying to Remake the Republican Party | Foreign Affairs
Are they blind or deaf to the things that are happening in various states’ legislatures? And what? Not a word from the Jesus Freaks about the tear gas being used in Ferguson:
Tear Gas Is an Abortifacient. Why Won’t the Anti-Abortion Movement Oppose It? | The Nation
…though rigorous studies are few, there is evidence that tear gas is an abortifacient. In 2011, Chile temporarily suspended its use after a University of Chile study linked it to miscarriage and fetal harm. Investigating the use of tear gas in Bahrain in 2012, Physicians for Human Rights found that local doctors were reporting increased numbers of miscarriages in exposed areas. And UN officials have connected tear gas to miscarriages in the Palestinian territories.
This means it’s likely that police in Ferguson, Missouri, have been spraying abortion-causing chemicals on crowds of civilians. Recently at TheNation.com, Dani McClain wrote about the killing of black youth as a reproductive justice issue, one that goes to the heart of the rights of parents to raise their children in peace, safety and dignity. She’s correct, of course, but if the anti-abortion movement were actually concerned about the well-being of the unborn, then the violence in Ferguson would be a pro-life issue as well.
There is also this: Tear gas is banned in international warfare — and in use in Ferguson, MO – Yahoo News
Tear gas is a chemical weapon that the Geneva Convention bans from use in international warfare. In the Ferguson, Missouri, protests, police have used it repeatedly to disperse crowds.
“I’m very concerned about the increased use, and the much laxer attitude we’ve developed towards the potential health effects,” says Sven-Eric Jordt, a scientist at Duke University who researches tear gas.
Jordt says we know a decent amount about how tear gas effects the body in the short-term: it activates pain receptors, especially in the eyes, forcing the eyelids to squeeze shut and tear uncontrollably. Jordt, who himself was tear-gassed during a protest in Germany in the 1980s, describes the sensation as “like cutting an onion but about 100 times more severe.”
Lots more info at that link.
On to discrimination….Work-Life Balance Flexible Schedules Easier for Men | New Republic
One unfortunate real-world application of that persistent double standard, according to a new study, may be that people are more supportive when fathers ask for flexible work arrangements to accommodate childcare than when mothers make the same requests. These men are also more likely to be perceived as admirable and less likely to be seen as uncommitted to their careers. Christin Munsch, associate professor of sociology at Furman University in South Carolina, presented her research Monday at the annual convention of the American Sociological Association in San Francisco.
Read the rest at link.
But wait there’s more: Have insurers found new ways to avoid the sick? | AccessNorthGa
Ending insurance discrimination against the sick was a central goal of the nation’s health care overhaul, but leading patient groups say that promise is being undermined by new barriers from insurers.
The insurance industry responds that critics are confusing legitimate cost-control with bias. Some state regulators, however, say there’s reason to be concerned about policies that shift costs to patients and narrow their choices of hospitals and doctors.
Now a quick link dump:
Here’s What $100 Is Worth In Each State
Heads up for Boston Boomer, Pat and X and anyone else up in the Boston area: Highly Contagious Parvovirus Kills 15 Dogs In Lowell « CBS Boston
Hot damn! Mo’ne Davis becomes first Little Leaguer to make the cover of Sports Illustrated | Big League Stew – Yahoo Sports
Next, it is Laura Ingalls Wilder, for idiots: X-rated Little House On The Prairie memoirs to be released this fall | Mail Online
Just for me: Pygmy’s Short Stature is Genetic | Reasons for Height Differences | Tall & Short Populations
Nice tribute to Robin Williams:
RIP…Longtime SNL announcer Don Pardo dies at 96
And lastly some Onion articles that will make you laugh your ass off.
The Pros And Cons Of Waiting To Have Children | The Onion – America’s Finest News Source
PROS
Obligation to one day care for elderly mother psychologically reinforced in child from infancy
Peace of mind from knowing you gave hopes and dreams a fair shot
Have already collected decades of unsubstantiated and dangerous theories on child-rearing
Problems in marriage have had more time to mature
CONS
No daycare facility in your retirement community
More pros and cons at link.
Report: More Americans Relying On Grandparents To Help Fuck Up Their Kids | The Onion – America’s Finest News Source
According to a study released Wednesday by sociologists at Johns Hopkins University, an increasing number of parents across the country are relying on their own mothers and fathers to help them fuck up their children. “As economic concerns prompt more parents to work longer hours, many are turning to grandparents to assist them in crushing their children’s self-esteem and shaping them into confused, maladjusted adults,” said lead author Dr. Janine Thompkins, who noted that four in 10 grandparents are currently the family’s primary insult-givers to children. “Parents like knowing that while they’re at work, a trusted family member is satisfactorily filling in for them by shouting at their kids in line at the pharmacy or criticizing their weight in front of their friends. And we found that, in most cases, children emerge just as fucked up and traumatized from a grandparent’s constant belittlement as compared to that from their own mother or father.”
Ha, ain’t that the truth!
And this last story, it is as if the author was a fly on the wall at my house, even down to the father being nice and pleading with the son…and mean and yelling at the daughter. Only instead of family of four, with us, it is family of seven. Family’s Horrific 45-Minute Screaming Match Ends In Consensus To Go To Macaroni Grill | The Onion – America’s Finest News Source
Following 45 minutes of intense arguing and bitter protests, a heated screaming match between members of the Carroll family came to an end Thursday evening with a consensus to eat dinner at Macaroni Grill, household sources reported.
The emotionally charged dispute among the family of four, in which parents and children alike alternately shouted insults across the kitchen and sharply criticized each other’s character and food preferences, reportedly concluded when all parties eventually agreed that Macaroni Grill, an Italian-inspired chain eatery, was an acceptable choice for their weekly family restaurant night.
“We always go where you want!” Kristin Carroll, 14, reportedly screamed at her father, John Carroll, touching off the intense, nearly hour-long clash over which mid-priced casual dining establishment the family should patronize.
I swear, we had this same discussion when we took our vacation to Washington DC couple of years ago, and we ended up at Macaroni Grill too!
The quarrel is said to have escalated within minutes, as family members could be heard yelling the phrases “I’m fucking sick of this,” “Cheesecake Factory is off the table,” “I hate pasta,” and “Don’t put words in my mouth” throughout the suburban residence. According to accounts, the protracted period of fierce squabbling included numerous threats to leave the house, repeated usages of the word “unfair,” several personal accusations entirely unrelated to the argument at hand, and suggestions for alternate dinner plans—including Chili’s and California Pizza Kitchen—that were swiftly and angrily rejected.
Approximately 20 minutes into the shouting match, sources reported that a visibly irritated John Carroll brought his 16-year-old son Aiden out of the kitchen and into the downstairs hallway in an effort to reason with him and request that he “act like an adult.”
“What’s the problem here? You like Macaroni Grill,” John Carroll reportedly said, attempting to suppress the anger in his voice and speak in a measured tone. “We’ve been there dozens of times and now you don’t want to go? Come on. It’s good food—everybody likes it there.”
“They have chicken parmesan,” he continued sternly. “You like chicken. Order that.”
Sources confirmed that the family argument intensified when the adolescent returned to the kitchen and asserted that his mother had chosen the restaurant the last three times they dined out, prompting his sister to issue the harsh reprimand “Shut up, you’re making things worse” under her breath.
When daughter Kristin Carroll reportedly complained several minutes later that “Mom can just make spaghetti at home” and that the family “should go to a good restaurant for a change,” her father is said to have cut short her outburst by warning her to “cool it with the attitude” and informing her that “[she] can pick Outback goddamn Steakhouse next time, all right?”
Read the rest of the tale at the link. Just two weeks ago we had another outburst similar to this, only it was over what pizza place to order take out from. But that argument also included three of Jake’s friends and Bebe’s boyfriend in the menagerie. Safe to say, I started a little happy pill cocktail with the addition of Wellbutrin to my Zoloft. Yes, over the edge is where it is at!
So that is one hell of a long ass post. Too damn long! What is up with you today?
