A Life With No Value – The Sequel “Me & My Lying Eyes”

I’m sorry somehow I must have slipped and fell into Mr. Peabody’s Way Back Machine because I could swear I’m living in Jim Crow era 1932. Yesterday it was announced that a Grand Jury would not hand down an indictment for the police officer who killed Eric Garner in New York last summer…apparently videotaped evidence is meaningless. I found it strangely bizarre because as you know these are post racial times in which we live…at least according to certain Supreme Court Justices. Seriously all this talk of having cops wear cameras would be a complete waste. A better idea may be to tape these crazy ass secret Grand Jury proceedings to see what the hell is going on with them. Or perhaps it’s time to bypass the Grand Jury altogether and take these cases directly to a federal prosecutor. It seems apparent, well at least to me that there is a conflict of interest with state and local prosecutors and police officers. Why are these police officers allowed to be investigated by the very people they work with every day? In the case of Michael Brown in Ferguson the prosecutor purposely presented the Grand Jury with as much conflicting evidence as he could and ignored the witnesses who stated he was shot with his hands up and any others whose version conflicted with that of Officer Darren Wilson as he deemed their testimony unreliable. In both the Brown and Garner cases the police officer was allowed to testify to the Grand Jury, which no competent lawyer would ever allow his client to do…unless perhaps there was an immunity offer or a guarantee of no prosecution. Of course neither of these officers was cross examined either.

If you have not yet seen the video please check it out here and listen closely to the audio, I’ll wait. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1ka4oKu1jo . There is little doubt as to what happened and the problem is obvious, it’s one of constant harassment of poor and minority citizens and it has created a culture of killer cops. This man was not an immediate danger to anyone, as we so often hear from police and no one feared for their life. He was not armed or threatening and as far as resisting arrest he was never told he was under arrest to begin with and even if he was, the degree of force used was definitely unwarranted. He simply asked to be left alone as he had been harassed numerous times by the police for the horrific and heinous crime of selling untaxed loose cigarettes…by the way he had no cigarettes on him at the time of his death. This was cold blooded murder plan and simple. In fact the coroner ruled his death a homicide so can someone please explain to me why this officer was not indicted. There were no conflicting witness statements, there were no outrageous claims of Eric Garner charging the police it’s all right there on the video. Let’s put aside the use of the illegal choke hold, this officer jumped on Mr. Garner’s back as if he was some wild untamed animal and brought him face down on to the concrete. Then the entire team of officers, who apparently just happened to be out on tax evader patrol, piled on him like they were trying to recover a loose ball fumble.

Here’s the thing, everyone talks about simply cooperating with the police when stopped to avoid confrontation but it’s not that simple. If I’m stopped by the police I’m going to ask why, now maybe that’s just me and it may piss off some hot headed police officer but you do have a right to know why you’re being arrested. If you watch the video it’s apparent from the conversation that the officer speaking to Eric Garner knows him from previous arrest for selling cigarettes but Mr. Garner wants to know why he was being harassed that day. Where were the cigarettes he was selling THAT day? This apparently wasn’t the first time he had been harassed which is why he was upset and fed up as he stated “it ends today” ironically moments before he was killed. Avoiding confrontation works both ways. These officers are supposedly trained so why did Rambo who jumped him from behind in mid conversation with the other officer continue to choke him with a knee placed in his back as he pleaded “I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe” over and over? The man was obviously obese did you not think cutting off his air supply would cause serious damage and ignoring that, why wasn’t CPR administered when it became apparent he wasn’t breathing? Why the arrest for the simple crime of selling untaxed loose cigarettes to begin with? Loose cigarettes you can get at your local liquor store for 50 cents apiece…untaxed. This was not some perilous life or death  situation where there was no time for these questions to be answered and certainly not a situation requiring the death penalty. So again, why no indictment? If not for murder why not manslaughter or even negligible homicide, why nothing? Why is it that the killing of Black men by White police officers is continually judged as justified?

As a side note, the young man filming the incident was indicted the following month by a Grand Jury on a charge of weapons possession. He’s Latino and says he was set up by the police in retaliation for filming and posting the video but the Grand Jury decided to indict him anyway…no surprise there. Of course the police wouldn’t resort to framing and railroading this guy just for filming and making public their illegal and fatal arrest.  Oh, and just one more thing, fuck you Charles Barkley you should stick to sports commentating…dumb ass.

“I'm minding my business, officer, I’m minding my business. Please just leave me alone. I told you the last time, please just leave me alone. Please, please, don't touch me. Do not touch me.  I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe.”

A lIfe With No Value

Ok I’m not an attorney but I’ve seen countless episodes of Law & Order and never once have I seen a prosecutor act as defense council for the accused and not one time has the prosecutor presented evidence to the Grand Jury without a recommendation of charges. Like some episode right out of Bizarro World, this is exactly what St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch did with the Grand Jury charged with deciding whether or not to indict Officer Darren Wilson for the murder of Mike Brown. He chose the evidence he wanted them to see and pretty much said “go for it, you’re on your own”.  There were no options given on how to charge the officer. He also allowed the testimony of Officer Wilson to be presented without dispute, testimony by the way which is virtually unheard of in Grand Jury proceedings. So last night when announcing the Grand Jury’s decision prosecutor McCullough gave this strange rambling speech chastising the media and attacking the witnesses he claimed were biased. To be clear what he said was that all the witnesses in defense of Darren Wilson’s account of the events were credible and accurate while those who opposed were confused and unreliable. From beginning to end he did nothing but offer excuses for Darren Wilson and justifications for the non-indictment. Oh, and according to him social media is the devil. He offered what he considered to be the facts in the case but what he failed to mention was his bias, his refusal to recuse himself and the fact that he gets to choose what evidence is submitted to the Grand Jury.

Of course the facts presented are to be considered but what also has to be considered is the history of violence by white cops against African-Americans in the community. And again you don’t let a cop come in and give his side of the story uncontested. While the officer was given the benefit of the doubt with his contrived “he was reaching for my gun defense”, no such benefit was given to Michael Brown. There was no advocate for his side of the story. There was no one to contest Officer Wilson’s account.  A trial would have allowed for that. A grand jury does not hear all of the evidence in the case they only hear what is presented by the prosecutor. A trial would have allowed for more evidence. Instead this prosecutor chose the testimony, how it was presented and chose to allow only the evidence that made Michael Brown look bad. And once again a black unarmed youth is responsible for his own death. I encourage you to read Darren Wilson’s account of the incident here it is ridiculously unbelievable: http://www.vox.com/2014/11/25/7281165/darren-wilsons-story-side

Sick & Tired

A few thoughts.  

• I’m sick of conservatives complaining that people are “pulling the race card” every time someone mentions race. This is real life people not some stupid ass poker game and isn’t it funny how racists are the only ones who claim racism doesn't exist? Just because you are blind to or perhaps simply do not recognize racism doesn’t diminish its being. When racism is pointed out, rather than denying its existence a simple acknowledgment would add a much more valid contribution to the argument. These are the same people who refuse to accept the reality of white privilege while yearning for the good ole days. 

 

• I find it really irritating when a White colleague says to me “you know you’re extremely articulate”, as if it’s an anomaly for a Black man to use proper English and therefore some sort of compliment. We don’t all walk around grabbing our crotches, calling women bitches and acting like wannabe gangsters. Equally offensive is when a White person attempts to be down by calling me bro and spouting Ebonics…shut the hell up! 

• People need to stop saying, “Love the sinner hate the sin”. It’s extremely condescending, as if you think you are somehow superior to me. Fuck you. Homosexuality is a gifted, unbidden, unchosen, innate state of being. It is not a behavior, nor is it sinful. And being Gay is not a lifestyle, that’s just a stupid term used by antigay bigots to demean Gay people. Unless you consider getting up every morning at 4 AM to hit the gym, working a full 8 hour day, arriving home to eat dinner, feed my dogs and share my day’s events with my partner, watch some TV and then hitting the sack only to do it all over again some sort of deviant lifestyle. Oh and I’ve said it before but it bears repeating, whether a state issues a marriage license to two men or two women is not a matter to be determined by someone else’s religious convictions, so get over it. And stop blaming everything bad that happens on Gay people and Gay marriage. I’ve checked my Gay Guide to Causing Natural Disasters extensively and I can’t find Ebola mentioned anywhere…maybe I need an updated copy. This is what happens when you allow your official gay membership card to lapse.

• People who use the phrase "political correctness" as a weapon to admonish others with whom they disagree are those who would like to have an argument, but can't actually make one. It's a meaningless, vacant expression from thoughtless vacuous people. It would be more honest to admit you don't have an argument or you don’t care, and accept the implications of what that makes you. Or better yet why don’t you make more efficient use of that time by catching up on your closet organization, you could back-up your computer or maybe clean out that lent trap in your dryer.

• I’m tired of heterosexual people who say they are sick of Gay people coming out and “throwing their sex lives in our face”. Or they say “I don’t going around announcing I’m straight”.  Really?  People who come out are not coming out because it's an easy thing, they are not coming out to irritate and rile straight people. They do it to create comfort and security in large numbers.  They come out because they don't have some of the same rights heterosexuals take for granted. They come out to make it easier for those who follow. And straight people don’t have to announce they’re straight, it’s assumed.  Straight people have not been threatened with eternal damnation or demeaned and humiliated because of their sexuality. They haven't been told they're not eligible for basic rights because of who they love. They don't have anything to overcome…well at least not as it relates to their sexuality.  

• People who don’t vote are idiots. Not only are you ignoring the sacrifices and hardships those before us endured to get us the vote but every time your apathetic, uninvolved, my vote doesn’t count ass neglects to vote, some tea bag republican does. The same tea bag republican who doesn’t believe in science, wants to control what a woman does with her body and more importantly wants to suppress your dumbass the right to vote to begin with. And don’t tell me you’re not voting because you didn’t get everything you were promised in the last election. Boo fucking hoo, get over it. Get up off your lazy ass and go vote.  

• To my female friends who are overjoyed to have a gay friend, thank you. But can you please stop with the chile and girl references, this is not the Real Housewives of Atlanta and I am not Miss Warren. And quite honestly I’m the last person you should consult regarding fashion, style or decorating…not that kind of gay. Oh and stop asking if I’m getting married just because they’ve legalized same sex marriage in California. Have you received a save the date notice?

• I can’t stand people who use expressions like “at the end of the day”, what the hell does that even mean? Its 12 noon are you planning on contributing something meaningful to the conversation at the end of the day? And would that be the end of the work day, sunset or at 11:59 PM? Or how about “having said that”, uh yeah I’m standing right here, I heard you say it. What makes you think you need to tell me you said something I just heard you say? This is one of my favorites, “so is it just me?” yep you’re all alone in this one buddy. Maybe you should call for back-up. Lastly this one bugs the hell out of me “know what I mean” well yes actually I do because unlike you I’ve been following the exchange between us but how about I call the redundant police and have your ass arrested for conversation violations.

Whew! Sorry if I’ve offended anyone it wasn’t my intention but I feel a lot better now, thanks…know what I mean?

Ring The Alarm

It’s simple and requires little discussion. If you jump the White House fence, you’re dead…period. How the hell does someone jump the fence, sprint across the White House lawn, run through the front door, which was left open, get “deep inside” the White House and over power a Secret Service  agent before being tackled by an off duty agent? As soon as he landed on the other side of that fence and took his first step, he should have been zapped to dust. Seriously, this is the 21^st century, where were the infrared beam detectors and electric ground plates? Where were the armed motion detector drones and the robotic dogs with the laser beam eyes? Apparently the alarms had been deactivated, which sounds hugely suspicious but shouldn’t a spy satellite from space have been able to detect and eliminate an intruder…WTF! I have a home security system which alerts me when someone deactivates the alarm and lets me know who deactivated it and at what time, I can arm and disarm it remotely and I receive both an email and a phone call if there is an intruder. It’s less than $50 a month and I gotta say it’s a hell of a lot better than the billion dollar White House security system.

The real problem seems to be that The Secret Service does not appear to be overly enthusiastic about protecting this president. Remember them partying with cocaine and hookers in South America when they should have been securing the President. Anyway, why there is ever a need for the alarm to be deactivated is my question and why was the front door left open?

Ding Dong!

Who is it?

Just me the intruder, here to kill the President.

Oh, come on in, it’s open.

Something doesn’t smell right. Weeks earlier the Secret Service allowed an armed felon to ride in the elevator with the President and the idiot refused repeated request to cease filming the President with his cell phone. (Can someone put the President in touch with the security detail Jay-Z had on his elevator ride?) They detained him after the President left the elevator ran a check on him and discovered he was a felon but they didn’t even know he was armed until he turned his gun in himself….again WTF! The head of the Secret Service, Get Smart Julia Pierson who has since resigned says of the agents, “they’re only human, people make mistakes”. Uh no Jules, a mistake is when you use their when you meant there (damn auto correct) you don’t make mistakes with the President of the United States which could cause him his life. You allowed an armed felon within reach of the President because you didn’t do a preliminary background check, that’s not a mistake that’s misconduct. You were tasked with protecting the leader of the free world and you’ve failed miserably.

According to the Washington Post this President has had three times the threats as past presidents, yet the Secret Service seems to be letting a lot of kooky dangerous people get very close to him including some questionable agents. Besides the two most recent incidents there were the reality show nut jobs from the Real Housewives of D.C. who were able to crash the President’s first state dinner in 2010, the fake sign language translator at Mandela’s funeral (actually he was kind of fun to watch) and of course there was the Secret Service agent who was found drunk in an Amsterdam hotel hallway a day before the President was due to arrive after an all-night drunken binge with two of his fellow agents. Thankfully all three were discharged immediately and sent home. By far the best was when there was reported gunfire outside the White House and the Secret Service shrugged it off stating they thought it was a car backfiring or gang activity. Uh, what now? So there’s gang activity outside of the White House and that’s ok? Too ridiculous for discussion. Days later a maid discovered bullet damage in the walls and broken glass on the floor. Seriously, who’s doing the cleaning in the White House, Agatha Christie? It was determined that at least seven bullets hit the building. One pierced a window on the second floor landing in the wall, another hit a nearby window frame and several more landed on the roof. The shooter was later apprehended and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Thankfully he wasn’t a member of the Crips or Bloods or he’d still be out there.

So you know somehow they’ll blame the President for this one too. NBC recently ran a story and the headline read Long List of Breaches and Scandals for Secret Service Under Obama. The implication of course is the scandals and breeches are his responsibility and he has somehow failed. This nonsense is generated and fueled by those suffering from incurable Obama Derangement Syndrome. You’ve seen and heard from these poor afflicted souls, they think that President Obama is responsible for everything wrong in the world.  If your chicken is over cooked in a restaurant, blame Obama. Got a hang nail, blame Obama and don’t get me started on tornadoes, hurricanes and floods. Heaven forbid, but if it happened they’d hold him responsible for his own assassination.

Of course the Republicans used the incident as an excuse to trot out they’re fake concern for our President. It was rather repugnant to see Congressman Darrell Issa and his fellow right wing extremists feigning distress over the safety of the President and his family.  The same self-serving Darrell Issa who has spent the last two years investigating the Benghazi cover up... the man couldn’t prove water is wet. They would have been more convincing had they said they were concerned about property damage caused by the gang member shooter. If they’re smart they’ll introduce a bill to increase the Secret Service budget, which they decreased during the last sequester and attach a rider to it to repeal the Affordable Care Act. When the President vetoes the bill, they would then be able to attack him for recklessly supporting the Affordable Care Act to the detriment of the Secret Service and his own family's safety. Crazy? Yeah, but so are President Obama’s detractors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nightmare On Wilshire Blvd.

Its simple folks, if you don’t want to get shot or arrested quit walking around while Black, it’s your own damn fault. An African-American television producer, Charles Belk, was arrested for bank robbery in Beverly Hills last Friday as he momentarily left a restaurant to add money to a parking meter. Yeah, I know it sounds crazy but it gets worse. Apparently there had been a bank robbery in the area moments earlier and he fit the “description” of one of the suspects. You know the standard description “a tall bald headed Black man”. Thank god I wasn’t in the area or for that matter thank god Kareem Abdul Jabbar wasn’t in the area. Seriously could they possibly be more non-descript or vague? Considering how fashionable bald heads have become among African-American men that description could fit most of the Black men I know. What about skin tone, weight or approximate age? I know they think we all look alike but there’s quite a difference between a tall Black bald headed Shemar Moore and a tall Black bald headed Wesley Snipes…just saying.

In spite of his protestations Mr. Belk was handcuffed and made to sit on the curb at the height of rush hour for 45 minutes where no one bothered to even inform him of why he was being detained. I gotta tell you that has got to be the most humiliating experience ever, made to sit on the curb like some dog in broad daylight while everyone drives around gawking, pointing and making assumptions about you and your character.  And I have to say that while I have seen this “sitting on the curb” punishment inflicted on countless Black and Brown men not once have I seen it done to a White man. So after 45 minutes of curb humiliation he was transported to the Beverly Hills police station where he was booked, finger printed, finally made aware of the charges against him and assessed a $100,000 bail. However he was not allowed to make a phone call or speak to an attorney and no one attempted to check out his alibi, run his ID or attempt to verify he was who he said he was…he fit the description. Oh, and no one ever bothered to read him his rights. Next he was erroneously positively identified by some they all look alike to me White female witness from the bank robbery. At this point after enduring verbal abuse from both the police and an FBI agent they were confident enough to let him contact his attorney. Aided by his attorney he was able to convince them to view the video of the robbery from the bank which they had in their possession the entire time and after 6 hours of mental torture he was released as they realized they had the wrong man…oops. Oh, and they had impounded his car but neglected to inform him. He found out when he went to retrieve it.

Several things come to a rational mind.

• Did the Beverly Hills cop just stop the first bald headed Black man they saw assuming he was the suspect, I mean what other reason would a tall bald headed Black man have to be walking down the streets of Beverly Hills, right? He’s Black so he must be guilty of something.
• Did the cops not realize how vague the description was? I mean were they going to spend the entire day arresting every single bald headed Black man they saw? If the description had been of a tall, bald white man would they have detained the first one they saw and refuse to answer his questions as to why he had been stopped and force him to sit on the curb?
• In the 6 hours he was detained, especially in the first 45 minutes he was curbed, why didn’t someone check his alibi or try to confirm his employment? Did he have a business card? Or did they assume he was a bank robber by day and a Hollywood producer by night. I did a google search and along with the news of his arrest I found his Facebook, twitter and IMDb pages…took all of 10 seconds. You know, simple investigation.
• Charles Belk said the only reason he wasn’t running to get to the meter in time was because he had just received a text. Can you imagine what would’ve happened had he been running down Wilshire Blvd.?
• Wasn’t the car they impounded a clue, after all it was a part of his alibi. Just how many bank robbers do you know who take time to use metered parking?
• If he wasn’t affluent enough to have an attorney on retainer might he still be accused and in jail facing the possibility of a 20 year sentence?
• Can you imagine if there had been a bald headed Black men convention in town?

What happened that day was the Beverly Hills police most likely stopped the first Black man they saw and felt it was absolutely within their authority to accost and arrest him and not listen to his made up fantasies of being a television producer (who ever heard of such a thing for an African-American). The moment they saw him they made up their minds as to who he was and what he was about, plain and simple racial profiling. The same as when a "witness" identifies the first Black person they get shown as the suspect. In the meantime the real suspect escaped…probably on the bus, if he was smart and Charles Belk ends up with an arrest record and in the system. My bad, arrested but charges dropped, as if that fucking helps.

So what’s the moral of the story? Black men stay away from banks, convenience stores, gas stations, restaurants, train stations, bus stops, subway stations, Walmart toy departments and anywhere else you may be accused of being Black. If you feel the need to go out, hire a damn chauffer to drive you around even if you’re just going to the curb to check your mailbox. Oh and make sure he’s White.

I encourage you to read Mr. Belk’s account of his ordeal at the following link:

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10152352402863207&substory_index=0&id=543298206

War Zone

So I turn on the news a few nights ago and as usual military police in riot gear are arresting reporters and protestors in what appears to be some Middle Eastern conflict. After watching for a couple of minutes I realized it wasn’t the Middle East it was Ferguson, Missouri and the protestors were African-Americans objecting to the shooting death of yet another unarmed African-American male. It’s interesting to note that of the dozens of peaceful protestors the first 5 minutes of coverage I watched on CNN were focused on the fraction of knucklehead looters. The African-American male, Michael Brown was shot by a police officer several times. According to news reports, he had been stopped because of jaywalking and according to eye witnesses had offered no resistance and had his hands up attempting to surrender when he was shot repeatedly and then left to die on the sidewalk.

Several things came to mind including the ongoing profiling of African-American males and the continuing devaluation of their lives by American society but what stood out immediately was the militarization of the local police, armed with riot gear including body armor and camouflage, tear gas, assault rifles and tanks like they were defending the Alamo. It resembled a scene right out of the civil rights era, the only thing missing were the vicious attack dogs and the water hoses to wash them down. So instead of reaching out to calm the community peacefully, the local police opted to fan the flames and go the intimidation route, which only fueled the anger and cynicism of the demonstrators who ironically were there protesting their distrust of the police. Again, what the media described as a riot was essentially on the first night of the protests when a bunch of idiots used the event as an excuse to ransack and burn their own community…dumb asses. Much more disturbing and what should have been the focus of the reporting was that peaceful protesters and those attempting to report on events were being harassed and arrested.
 

I gotta say the disparity in the reaction of law enforcement to African-American protesters vs. Whites is amazing. Case in point, the Cliven Bundy stand-off. These protesters showed up at the Bundy ranch in Nevada to “air out their discontent”, demanding that cows be allowed to graze on the tax payers’ dime. Armed with sniper rifles aimed at police they were not threatened with tear gas and faced no one sporting camouflage and there were no tanks. Instead law enforcement backed down and the Bundy cows continued to graze. So protesters gather with assault rifles, point them at police to protest the seizure of cattle from a rancher grazing them on federal land free of charge for years and they are deemed “patriots”.  Unarmed protesters gather to protest the street execution of a teenager and are met with tear gas, rubber bullets, nightsticks, and arrests and they are "thugs." Just imagine what would have happened had the Ferguson protestors showed up armed exercising right to carry laws.    

After delaying and stalling for almost a week and refusing to release the name of the officer involved, today the police chief in Ferguson released the name of the officer along with video which appears to implicate Michael Brown as a suspect in the robbery of a box of cigars at a convenience store minutes before he was shot but it doesn’t justify his killing and does not necessarily vindicate the officer involved. There remain unanswered questions involving his death. Was the officer who stopped Michael Brown even aware that he was a suspect in a robbery? Why did it take so long to interview the eyewitness who was accompanying Michael Brown and why hasn’t he been arrested as a suspect in the robbery? Is there evidence of excessive force by the officer and why hasn’t his account of the shooting been released? An autopsy was performed and released to the police, so was he shot in the back as witnesses indicated and how many times was he shot?

Finally, I realize that not all law enforcement officers are corrupt but I have absolutely no respect for those who are deputized to serve and protect and then become bullies based on assumptions of color. I don’t claim to know what happened when Michael Brown was killed I wasn’t there. I don’t know if the eyewitnesses or the police are telling the truth but I can relate to the frustration felt by the community of protestors and I understand their distrust and disgust.  I also know that adversarial aggressive tactics such as those exhibited against the protestors and reporters in Ferguson as well as the lack of constructive interaction with the community do nothing towards promoting goodwill  As long as these methods are allowed, condoned and encouraged the distrust and skepticism of police in the African-American community will unfortunately continue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nothing Like A New Suit

So this past Wednesday house Republicans voted on and passed a resolution to sue President Obama. According to them the President overstepped his authority by signing an executive order to delay until 2016 the mandate requiring employers with over 50 employees to offer healthcare per the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Of course at the time of his order, the biggest complaint from the Republicans and their corporate masters regarding the ACA was that employers needed more time to prepare and most of them were quite vocal in their demands that the mandate be delayed. Yet when he did exactly what they wanted they complained that he was executing dictatorial laws without legislative consent…to be clear President Obama did exactly what they wanted him to do and now they’re suing him for it. The same Republicans who voted unsuccessfully over 50 times to repeal the ACA are suing the President for following their requests to delay part of a law in order to allow businesses time to get themselves together to provide health insurance to their workers. (Mutters to self) Ok I had to say this ridiculousness out loud to myself to get it straight. I don't understand this lawsuit. Somebody help me, please! Have they changed their minds? Do they want the mandate back? Of course not, this lawsuit is just a distraction…at the expense of our taxpayer dollars. By the way, former President George Bush signed an executive order exactly the same as President Obama to delay implementation of Medicare Part D and nobody sued…Hmm. And you gotta love President Obamas reaction to all of this, “they really need to stop hating, all the time”…classic.

Ok, so on Thursday, the day after the lawsuit was filed these same Republican obstructionist attempted to pass Immigration Reform legislation in the house, which they control and were foiled not by house Democrats but by the nut ball teabags idiots within their own party. The Cubanadian known as Senator Ted Cruz, who to be clear is a member of the Senate and not Congress, decided to stick his nose in congressional business. (Seriously, is he some Canadian infiltrator intent on bringing down the government?) He decided that the Republican bill doesn’t go far enough to the right so he walked his ass from the senate on over to the house, pulled together his anti-immigration tea party congressional lap dogs and convinced them to vote it down. Well he did buy them pizza and beer which apparently is all it takes to buy a vote nowadays…just saying. So what was house cry baby speaker Boehner’s solution?  He pulled the bill and released this statement, “There are numerous steps the president can and should be taking right now, without the need for congressional action, to secure our borders. Wait, what now? Steps the president can and should be taking right now, without the need for congressional action? You mean like an executive order? The same type of order your ass is suing the president for right now? Oh hell no, this has got to be some type of trick…not gonna work. So instead now with the help of Senator Cruz, ole crazy eyes nut job Michelle Bachman and Texas congressman Louie Gohmert (apparently the KKK was unavailable) the idea is to fashion a bill so far to the right that once it passes the house it has absolutely no chance of passing the democratic controlled senate and even if it did President Obama would veto it and again they make him the bad guy…sheesh.

Here’s the real goal of the current Republican Party folks. Create as much chaos, frustration and anger in the country by tapping into old ass reactionary angry white men frustrated at losing their centuries old hold on the country, exploit social biases wrapped in a flag and use them as marketing tools to garner votes in gerrymandered districts to stay in office. They then spin their inability to govern, actually their refusal to govern to gum up the legislative process and paint it as Presidents Obama's Failure. This nonsensical lawsuit against the President and all that comes with it is simply the latest marketing tool used as a means to that end.

 

This Week In Let’s Blame President Obama and Other Right Wing Nonsense

Former Vice President Dick Cheney wrote an article for the Wall Street Journal in which he stated “Rarely has a U.S. president been so wrong about so much at the expense of so many". I like so many others naturally assumed he was speaking of former President George W. Bush…silly me, he meant President Obama. So in ole Dickie’s opinion, President Obama is worse than the entire cast of presidents who served while slavery was an established institution which allowed for an entire race of people to be systematically raped, tortured and murdered on a daily basis. Worse than those who reigned while countless Native American populations were slaughtered and their land was stolen. Worse than those who allowed Jim Crow legislation and institutional racism to thrive uncontested for years in the south. Really? In the Wall Street Journal article, Mr. Cheney was attempting to blame the President for the recent conflicts arising in Iraq. This from the man who along with President Bush lied to the American public about imaginary Weapons of Mass Destruction in order to wage against Iraq in the first place. In the guise of liberating the Iraqi people, billions of dollars were saved for oil service companies like Halliburton. You remember Halliburton the company where Cheney is the former CEO. This is the same man who along with President Dubya is responsible for the loss of more than 4,500 American lives and over 100,000 Iraqis. I gotta say that statement takes a pair of massively huge cojones Mr. Cheney. He along with many conservative critics believe President Obama should have held American troops in Iraq indefinitely and feel his weak decision to remove troops is the cause for the current unrest. However, these critics leave out the fact that the President of Iraq and the Iraqi Parliament voted to have American troops leave and that President Bush signed a binding agreement to do so before leaving office in 2008. Yep, signed off before President Obama even entered office. Of course Senator Grumpy Pants chimed in insisting that the solution to the current problem is to simply bomb Iraq.

The alleged mastermind said to be responsible for the Benghazi attack was captured this week and of course Republican politicians and pundits claimed it must be some type of diversion by the Obama administration like perhaps to draw attention to Hilary Clinton’s 2016 presidential bid…really? These idiots bombarded the media with ridiculous questions and assertions. Why was it a secret? Why was it a raid? Where was Obama? Where was Hilary? Where’s Waldo and where was he when Kennedy was shot? Is there anything here that can be used to repeal Obamacare or commence impeachment proceedings? Sheesh. The only way the President could get love form these people would be to invade the wrong country, turn record surpluses into deficits and use the banking industry to wreck the national economy…oh wait.

Apparently Rick Perry the governor of Texas feels alcoholics should not be allowed to marry.  Well actually he likened homosexuality to alcohol addiction and based on his views on marriage equality one would conclude…well you get the idea. Seems the ole Governor was defending Texas legislation which would allow Reparative Therapy for children. You know the so-called therapy where they attempt to change the sexual orientation of homosexuals with aversion techniques such as electric shock treatments to the genitals and nausea inducing drugs dispensed while showing the patient homoerotic stimuli. The same Reparative Therapy deemed harmful to individuals both physically and mentally and denounced by virtually every mainstream medical and scientific organization in the country. The Reparative Therapy based on age old assumptions that homosexuality is a mental disorder that can and should be cured. Assumptions that reinforce anti-gay bigotry based on the theory that being homosexual is somehow harmful or wrong and a person can and should change his/her sexual orientation. You know, nonsense. I’d like to see Governor Dumb Ass hooked up to electric shock treatment to see if he can change his sexual orientation. Or at the very least maybe it can be used to cure that drinking problem because being drunk is the only excuse for his ridiculous statements.

Same Ole Story

In the days since last I wrote a lot has happened but not much has changed. Conservative politicians are still walking around pretending that just because a Black man was elected president twice, racism no longer exists and apparently there are members of the Supreme Court who agree with them. These are the same clowns who continue to cut unemployment benefits, food stamps and training programs and then blame the poor for being poor. The same party of obstructionist who failed on their promise to make President Obama a one term president and continually blame him for the woes of the world. Last week President Obama negotiated the release of the only American prisoner of war in Afghanistan, Bowe Bergdahl. In the five years he has been held as a prisoner of war, conservative politicians have fiercely advocated for his release including Republican Senator John McCain who in February stated he would support a prisoner exchange for Bergdahl’s release. Of course the minute it was announced that President Obama had negotiated the release these same conservatives who had accused the President of dragging his heels on the matter flip flopped, including Senator Pinocchio Hypocrite McCain. Seriously, can someone please tell Senator Sour Grapes that he lost the 2008 presidential campaign, he seems not to have gotten the memo. The man needs help he’s suffering from a severe case of POTUS envy. Anyway, all of a sudden Bergdahl was transformed from prisoner of war to a deserting Taliban sympathizer and the President was accused of everything from behaving like an autonomous king (courtesy of Senator Mark Rubio) to abusing executive powers and threatened for the umpteenth time with impeachment (thank you Senator Ted Cruz). Of course there were some Hitler Nazi references a few Benghazi’s and threats to repeal Obamacare thrown in for good measure. Sheesh.

Meanwhile, Donald Sterling the Master of the Clippers Plantation went on an incoherent sociopathic racist rant in a conversation with his mistress. (I say mistress because I’m much too polite to call her a gold digging manipulating street whore…oops) There was something said about her screwing all the Black men she wants as long as she’s not seen in public with them or brings Black people to his Clippers games. Oh and he takes good care of his slaves employees because he gives them things. In an attempt to exonerate himself he agreed to an interview with Anderson Cooper where he continued his dementia fueled foot in mouth tirade attacking Earvin Magic Johnson stating, “I think he should be ashamed of himself. I think he should go into the background. And what does he do for black people? He hasn’t done anything.” He also implied that the original taped conversation was a set-up so that Magic could become the owner of the Clippers (actually not a bad plan) and questioned Magic’s status as a role model to the Black community saying, "Big, Magic Johnson, what has he done?, He's got AIDS."…wow.  So we should ignore the 20 plus years of Magic Johnson investing in and making charitable contributions to the African-American community. Instead because this nut ball was able to buy the silence of the L.A. chapter of the NAACP with his donation, we should just ignore Sterling’s well-documented decades long history of being a racist bigoted L.A. slumlord, illegally evicting Black and Latino tenants form his buildings.  We should ignore the lawsuit filed by former Clippers GM Elgin Baylor against this racist fossil for age and racial discrimination. I mean after all we have a Black president so racism must be dead...right?

Finally in completely unrelated news, Beyonce’s sister Solange comically kicked Jay Z’s ass in an elevator fueling countless expert explanations and comments for her rage. Among my favorites:

• He looked at her funny.
• That's the first hit she's had in years.
• He’s got 100 problems now.
• She was drunk and took something the wrong way. (Mean drunks are the worst.)
• She’s simply upset because her name is Solange. (Wouldn’t you be? Sounds like a former Soviet bloc eastern European country.)

Oh and Jean Kasem wife of the ailing Casey Kasem threw raw meat at his daughter in an apparent act of defiance after being court ordered to release him to her care. WTF??!!!

Two Michaels

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!...What? Ok, ok I know I’m a little late but it’s been a busy year so far. I assume everyone is done with their New Year’s resolutions as the annual 1^st of the year “I’m gonna lose this weight or else” crowd has dissipated from the gym. Seriously every year at the same time they sluggishly storm the gym in groups of 2 to 3 and take over all the machines. The problem is they have no training so they sit around taking up space in their little cliques holding inane conversations about how much weight they’ve pledged to lose, only to gently disappear after about a month or so with the same weight they brought with them…but I digress.

Yes, it’s been a busy year so far but not too busy for the conservative nut ball army as they started the year strong. It appears that white privilege is alive and well as once again black fear has outweighed the criminal justice system and the murderer of another African-American teenage boy goes unpunished. To be clear I know Mr. Michael Dunn was convicted of attempted murder so he will serve time but he managed to skate on the more severe charge of first degree murder, for now anyway. And can someone please explain to me how he’s convicted of trying to murder 3 unsuccessfully but not the actual murder? Also, if the jury didn’t want to convict Dunn of 1^st degree murder they could have opted for 2^nd degree or manslaughter…they chose none. Jurors who obviously thought it was self-defense would not convict on any charge. So this man who now claims he’s the victim (shades of Zimmerman) says he feared for his life as the teenagers were playing “loud thug music”, cursing, talking loud and well generally behaving like teenagers. In his delusional entitled mindset he felt he had no other option as they were disrespecting him, because after all he is white. So when they refused his demand to lower the music, he kills the victim, leaves the scene, orders a pizza and takes a nap. Later when the police inform him none of the teenagers had records he says “they must have somehow flown under the radar, because they were bad”. He also wrote a very telling letter from jail which read in part "It is spooky how racist everyone is up here and how biased towards blacks all the courts are. The jail is full of blacks and they all act like thugs." Um, biased towards Blacks? I guess that explains why the jails are so full of them but maybe someone should send him Webster’s definition of bias for future use of the word. The bottom line is a rational person doesn’t shoot and kill teenagers because he doesn’t like their music or feels disrespected. Unfortunately the jury consisted of those who had made up their minds before the first shot was even fired.

Also in the 1^st of the year news there’s the possibility of an out gay man joining the NFL. The news came from SEC co-defensive player of the year and University of Missouri graduate Michael Sam, who happens to be African-American and who bravely made his announcement prior to the NFL draft. I will say his coming out was met with mostly positive reaction. Of course the bible thumping, religiosity spouting, homophobic bigots showed up in droves because as you know the bible explicitly states that there are to be no gay players in the NFL. Not to mention the “what’s the big deal” idiots who continuously fail to grasp the historical significance of his announcement and the impact it will have on perceptions of gay men…so let me address them first. I’ve stated in previous blog post that just because it’s not a big deal to your straight, narrow minded, close viewed ass and you are unable to or refuse to comprehend that it’s big news to the thousands of gay youth who have been taught to hate who they are and told they are destined to burn in hell doesn’t mean it’s not a big deal. Maybe it's a big deal because he is shattering stereotypes of gay people and has the potential to be the first openly gay player in the NFL.  Of course it's big news but it wouldn’t be if so many people weren't still so damn intolerant.

Like I said the usual suspects showed up condemning his soul to hell but what I found interesting were the detractors from within the NFL. Anonymous coaches were quoted in Sports Illustrated saying “at this point in time it's still a man's-man game”…because as we all know gay men are not real men. And what about “if you knowingly bring someone in there with that sexual orientation, how are the other guys going to deal with it? It's going to be a big distraction”…only if you allow it to be one buddy. Of course there are never any team distractions in professional sports are there? You know like wife beating, murder trials, drugs or dog killers...right?

Then there was the ridiculous statement from New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Velma who said, “Imagine if he's the guy next to me, and you know, I get dressed, naked, taking a shower, the whole nine, and it just so happens he looks at me, how am I supposed to respond?" Ok, apparently I need to make a few things clear to the straight men of the world. First of all stop assuming that every gay man wants to see you naked and have sex with you. Michael Sam who was out to his teammates at the University of Missouri was a frequent visitor to the team locker room and shower and managed to get by without attacking a single straight teammate. This idea that showering with a gay man is something new is ridiculous. (Note to straight men: We’ve been showering with you since the 7th grade.) The implication that when he moves to the NFL he will be unable to control his physical desires in the showers and start humping anything moving is as stupid as it sounds. And just so you know, Jonathan Velma you can’t catch the gay simply by being in close proximity to one. To answer your question, what do you say if he should happen to look at you? I don’t know how about, “Excuse me but because of my narrow minded homophobic fears and insecure sexuality I’m assuming that because you glanced my way it may somehow be a sexual move on your part towards me because you know in my self-delusional world I’m like, all that and could surely pose for the naked edition of ESPN magazine and I know you predatory gays have trouble controlling your desires when it comes to hyper macho straight men such as myself and you couldn’t possibly be here to, you know just take a shower, so could you please close or divert your eyes for the remainder of our locker room session or at least control the urge to have sex with me because I know you must constantly be thinking of me and certainly not of our team’s win-loss record, the game we just played or your plans for the evening, thanks.” He may look at you like you’re crazy in fact it may turn him off and cause him to reconsider any possible friendship he may have been contemplating with you, his teammate but ultimately isn’t that your goal? I don’t know, works for me.