Prof. Cronnan wrote an op ed piece published in the NYT which discusses corporate involvement in Wisconsin Governor Walker's union busting activities which serves only the interest of folks like the Koch brothers while demonizing state workers.
Cronan asks who and what's behind the legislation Walker rammed through here and discusses a semi-secret conservative organization known as ALEC and thoughtfully explores the conservative heart behind it with academic rigor and respect. Even so, I admit I felt chilled all the way here in NM on a very warm day after reading through that and after perusing ALEC's site.
Now he's being targeted for retaliation by Republicans in Wisconsin where he is a working professor of history.
Evil days, my friends. Evil deeds. Greed has become the master of the mighty. Make no mistake: We working people are their targets and the greedy have but one goal for us: yokes and collars.
I will not submit.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
More On Teachers: Taylor Mali At Wordsonfire "What Do You Make?"
This was put in my path tonight regarding defense of teachers and I just loved it. I know my teachers made a difference. They made it so I don't live my life in ignorance.
So introducing Taylor Mali at Wordsonfire, a spoken word event.
So introducing Taylor Mali at Wordsonfire, a spoken word event.
American Dreamers: Sometimes A TV Show Can Ask The Right Questions
This is a message... there is a message in this episode of Harry's Law. It speaks to who we are and are not as Americans in handling our immigration issues, but also who and what the soul of a nation is as well as what the soul of law may be. Not glib.
YouTube - MSNBC - Banksters & Government Exposed FINALLY by Mainstream News!
YouTube - MSNBC - Banksters & Government Exposed FINALLY by Mainstream News!
This needs to get passed around to everyone you know! One heck of a story about our economy here!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Despicible Rape Story Where The "Victim" Lied
This issue of rape is hard enough. We who live through it are never fully healed... I've dealt with mine getting close to 50 years and there are days when a smell, a sound, or even a flash of color or a tone of voice can be enough to revive everything.
One of the horrible things that a woman can do is make a false accusation of rape. It victimizes good men who don't and would never consider raping anyone, not even for a nano-second. It ties up public resources from the police to the District Attorney's and Public Defender's offices. It demolishes the legitimate rape claims of people who have been assaulted and injured in a way that is nothing short of profoundly life changing.
Yet there are women who are so cynical that they will do that. ABC News and The Daily Beast told the story here and here . This woman used a false rape claim to conceal her murder of a coworker. Both acts are heinous and despicable. There is no defense for her lie. There is no excuse she can ever make that will spark compassionate understanding in my heart for her doing that. It is people like her, after all, who create a climate where outsiders can say that an 11 year old girl who was gang raped in Cleveland, TX must've deserved it because of the way she was dressed or because she took a ride in a guy's car. That is the egregious, unforgivable part of false rape claims.
Because of women like her, the real victims of rape end up being blamed, trivialized, shamed and worse.
One of the horrible things that a woman can do is make a false accusation of rape. It victimizes good men who don't and would never consider raping anyone, not even for a nano-second. It ties up public resources from the police to the District Attorney's and Public Defender's offices. It demolishes the legitimate rape claims of people who have been assaulted and injured in a way that is nothing short of profoundly life changing.
Yet there are women who are so cynical that they will do that. ABC News and The Daily Beast told the story here and here . This woman used a false rape claim to conceal her murder of a coworker. Both acts are heinous and despicable. There is no defense for her lie. There is no excuse she can ever make that will spark compassionate understanding in my heart for her doing that. It is people like her, after all, who create a climate where outsiders can say that an 11 year old girl who was gang raped in Cleveland, TX must've deserved it because of the way she was dressed or because she took a ride in a guy's car. That is the egregious, unforgivable part of false rape claims.
Because of women like her, the real victims of rape end up being blamed, trivialized, shamed and worse.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Dear Kwan Yin, Right Now I Think I Need A Dose Of The Serenity Prayer
Oh my dear Goddess Kwan Yin. Lemme tell you. Things have gone wild the last few days. Here in the US, our states are fragmenting; politicians are ripping at our Constitution with the backing of major billionaires, trying to take over many states with a view to privatizing the resources of those states. It's theft. And we ordinary working folks, no matter what race we are, have big ol' targets on our asses cos' we got things they still want to strip away. Like our voting rights. And look at that Rep. King dude in Washington holding hearings about Muslim radicalization in America while totally blowing off the notion that American already has a terrorism problem with people who have connections to far right wing ideologies like neo Nazi-ism, nativism and white nationalism! It's disgusting that those guys are ignored. No, no, gotta go after those Muslims. 9/11 and all that. Funny thing is when it came to Rep. King regarding another terror group. He liked the IRA... well, I maybe it's cos they were white and Catholic, but King more than tolerated them! All the while in parts of the Arab world, people are throwing off, or trying to throw off the yokes of oppression and tyranny in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, and Libya for the sake of freedom and democracy. We're losing it and they're choosing it. Next upon our stage (with apologies to ELP) Japan had an 8.9 earthquake followed by a tsunami Friday Damaged in that quake were some nuclear power stations with reactors that are damaged and in all likelihood, as I write this, going to have at least two meltdowns. Disaster upon disaster for those hapless Japanese. I think I'm close to information overload. So many people hurting and in despair yet willing to go on and make it through today and then again through tomorrow. Bewilderment. That's what I feel. A person can only do so much. I forget I'm an al-anon type and should frequently take the Serenity prayer's gentle reminder:
God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The Courage to change the things I can
And the wisdom to know the difference.
Rachel Maddow On The Shock Doctrine In Michigan. Beware Your Freedom Is At Risk!
What is happening in Michigan is criminal and unconstitutional. Rise up! Speak up!
Friday, March 11, 2011
11 Year Old Girls Never Deserve To Be Raped So What Gives You The Right To Blame The Child?
Several news sources including CNN, ABC News, The New York Times and others have written about the 11 year old girl from Cleveland, TX. The headlines have claimed the rape of this girl has split the community while inferring the that the girl and/or her parents and/or way she dressed and/or lack of supervision was the reason she was raped. It's the old "she must've been asking for it" excuse and people are buying into it. The NY Times article by James McKinley Jr. quotes one neighbor as asking: “Where was her mother? What was her mother thinking?”
(My best guess (and hope) is that the victim's mother was at work trying to earn a living to support her family. These days, thats pretty common. The working classes don't have the luxury of being stay at home moms these days. My mind wanders and I wonder why no one asked where the girls father was, but those things are beside the point.)
The girl was 11 years old.
As a child, there a lot of things she lacks. Developmentally, she is not equipped mentally, emotionally or spiritually to handle sex. She is legally incompetent to give consent to have sex under 'normal' circumstances. We as a society recognize this. We know that a child of 11 years is not able to fully understand all the nuances, including long term 10-20, 30 years down the road consequences that go into giving "full and informed consent' regarding sex. The state of Texas says the age of consent is 17. It's that simple. These Texas Statutes define the state's position on child sexual abuse and rape:
- She's not an adult.
- She's not an adolescent.
- She IS a child.
As a child, there a lot of things she lacks. Developmentally, she is not equipped mentally, emotionally or spiritually to handle sex. She is legally incompetent to give consent to have sex under 'normal' circumstances. We as a society recognize this. We know that a child of 11 years is not able to fully understand all the nuances, including long term 10-20, 30 years down the road consequences that go into giving "full and informed consent' regarding sex. The state of Texas says the age of consent is 17. It's that simple. These Texas Statutes define the state's position on child sexual abuse and rape:
Reading the statutes you see that it does not matter one iota whether the girl dressed up trying to emulate her favorite celebrities. It does not matter if she was un-or-undersupervised. It does not matter whether she talked sassy or talked smack or talked like a choir-girl or like a guttersnipe. What DOES matter that she was 11 years old and 18 men forced themselves on and into her body and raped her. They took videos of themselves raping her! Those videos are how they were caught.
This is not a Romeo and Juliet thing with a teenage girl and boy, both over 14 and within three years of each other's ages. Per the NY Times article http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/09/us/09assault.html, force and threats were used and this information was also reported by CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/03/07/texas.rape.arrests/index.html?iref=allsearch amongst other news agencies.
I also wonder whether if this gang rape had a more sinister motive: Were they raping her to 'turn her out' so they could traffick her as a child prostitute. Are the authorities even considering that as part of their investigation? From the reporting, we know some of the men also were known to the police for involvement with drugs and drug trafficking, so them taking the step over to human trafficking isn't exactly improbable.
This is a heartbreaking story and the galling thing is how few people, if any, in the mainstream media are asking: "Where were the parents of the boys and men who raped that girl? And why weren't the those boys and men taught that rape is wrong under any circumstance?" After all, 18 males participated in raping a child and not one person from the mainstream media has seen fit to ask: "What's wrong with these guys? What's wrong with their thinking? What's wrong with them that they'd participate in raping a child?" Instead, the reporter from the NYT notes, " Sheila Harrison, 48, a hospital worker who says she knows several of the defendants. “These boys have to live with this the rest of their lives.” That's a pretty stellar failure on the part of the NY Times, James McKinney Jr, and his bosses.
Excuse me??? What about the girl? What about the 11 year old girl who did not deserve to be raped? What planet are you all from?
I have yet to hear anyone in the mainstream media ask, "What about the girl?" I'm not in the mainstream media but I want to know: What about the girl? What happens to her? Who is looking out for her best interests?
Sadly I can begin to imagine what she went through as I was also raped as a child. It has been over 44 years and I still have times when I have to re-process that experience. People never get over having been raped. This girl is in for a lifetime of work on herself to have any kind of decent relationship with herself, with her family and community. She will face more personal self-work as she grows into young adulthood and has to face issues about her sexual identity, issues of intimacy with whoever she partners with.
Being a rape survivor will impinge on her relationships over the course of her lifetime. Given the community's response of blaming her, she will be challenged to assert her own personal dignity without feeling shame. I pray for her. I pray that her family's love and care for her will help her develop into a mentally and emotionally healthy woman over the next 8 years or so. I pray she will be able to transcend this horrible experience and make something beautiful of her life for decades to come.
Sadly for one child, Cleveland, Texas, USA is a town without pity, a town without shame, a town without mercy. And the sad truth is, that is true of a lot of cities here and abroad. Why is that?
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Wal-Mart Wine
My buddy Windy in San Francisco sent this to me today. Normally I seldom mention my friends cos they're private and not so web-social. This cracked me up given my current mood about Corporatism and Government, it was so apt.
Wal-Mart announced that sometime in 2011 it will begin offering
customers a new discount item... Wal-Mart's own brand of wine.
The world's largest retail chain is rumored to be teaming up with
Ernest & Julio Gallo Winery of California to produce the spirits at
an affordable price in the $2 to $5 range.
Wine connoisseurs may not be inclined to put a bottle of the Wal-
Mart brand into their shopping carts, but 'There is a market for
inexpensive wine,' said Kathy Micken, professor of marketing at
University of Arkansas , Bentonville. 'However, branding will be
very important.'
Customer surveys were conducted to determine the most attractive
name for the Wal-Mart wine brands and varieties.
The top surveyed names in order of popularity were:
10. Chateau Traileur Parc
9. White Trashfindel
8. Big Red Gulp
7. World Championship Riesling
6. NASCARbernet
5. Chef Boyardeaux
4. Pinot Newt
3. I Can't Believe it's not Vinegar
2. Grape Expectations
1. Nasti Spumante
The beauty of Wal-Mart wine is that it can be served with either
white meat (Possum) or red meat (Squirrel).
Wal-Mart announced that sometime in 2011 it will begin offering
customers a new discount item... Wal-Mart's own brand of wine.
The world's largest retail chain is rumored to be teaming up with
Ernest & Julio Gallo Winery of California to produce the spirits at
an affordable price in the $2 to $5 range.
Wine connoisseurs may not be inclined to put a bottle of the Wal-
Mart brand into their shopping carts, but 'There is a market for
inexpensive wine,' said Kathy Micken, professor of marketing at
University of Arkansas , Bentonville. 'However, branding will be
very important.'
Customer surveys were conducted to determine the most attractive
name for the Wal-Mart wine brands and varieties.
The top surveyed names in order of popularity were:
10. Chateau Traileur Parc
9. White Trashfindel
8. Big Red Gulp
7. World Championship Riesling
6. NASCARbernet
5. Chef Boyardeaux
4. Pinot Newt
3. I Can't Believe it's not Vinegar
2. Grape Expectations
1. Nasti Spumante
The beauty of Wal-Mart wine is that it can be served with either
white meat (Possum) or red meat (Squirrel).
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