The testimonies today were heartbreaking. Two teenage girls, a nine year old girl, a female firefighter who wanted to help medically but they refused to let her. A man who kept calling for Chauvin to lift his knee off George Floyd’s neck, realized he had just witnessed a murder and called 911. They all watched him die, and they are all haunted by his preventable death. And tonight, I am haunted by their testimony. They all will live with the trauma of what they witnessed for the rest of their lives. - one a nine year old girl, two 17 year old girls, one of which had the courage and the wisdom to capture that video on the other’s phone. This nightmare will follow them forever. The firefighter who knew this man was dying and couldn’t persuade the officers to let her check for a pulse, noting that the placement and pressure of Derek Chauvin’s knee on George Floyd’s neck would have caused him intense pain. This country will live with the trauma of what happened for decades to come.
I find the defense's argument flawed that George Floyd had comorbidities that caused his death. If I were on the jury, I would want to know whether George Floyd would have died that day of those comorbidities but for the intervention of a knee on his neck while on his stomach, handcuffed, with the weight of 2 "grown men" on his back (not counting Chauvin).
I am a (retired) police use of force instructor. I have taught the LVNR (lateral vascular neck restraint, aka carotid restraint, both of which are mechanically different from a choke hold, a martial arts submission hold) and I have been taught (because I was too close to retirement to have the department train me to be an instructor) taser application. On our force matrix/guide/continuum, consideration of a persons age, visible medical conditions, or disability was ALWAYS a concern and mentioned in all of our training. We also taught that force is applied until compliance is gained, then the person is restrained, the force application stops, and medical care is given if necessary. Concerns regarding positional asphyxia were also emphasized, and restrained subjects were never to be placed either prone or supine for any length of time.
I cannot fathom the casual indifference displayed by Chauvin.
Like I mentioned yesterday, a small nurse and I managed to take down crazy large men in a psych hospital with no weapons and without killing them. If they were too large a code was called and every assistant rushed to the unit to help. There were 4 pigs on scene and yet they killed a man WHO WAS IN HANDCUFFS. The other 3 should be charged with felony murder just like with any gang killing.
Chauvin’s posture looked indifferent, but, the look on his face was pure arrogance. I read that he was not only the officer in charge, but, also training new officers. So they all obeyed his command to hold Mr Floyd down and keep witnesses away. He was setting an example. God help us all.
Thank you for your comments. Similar opinion voiced by a guest on CNN, a former police commissioner from PA....” force is applied until compliance is gained, then the person is restrained, the force application stops, and medical care is given if necessary. Concerns regarding positional asphyxia were also emphasized, and restrained subjects were never to be placed either prone or supine for any length of time.” He was already cuffed, he was not resisting; the part where Chauvin exhorted him to “get up, get in the car” over and over was sickening, as his knee was still in place. He didn’t even move when the ambulance arrived...and I thought those guys were a little too casual also.
Ally The casual indifference you mention was apparently personal. There are officers whose previous histories with their perps leads to such personal indifference. I am not a prosecutor but I feel there is a case for first degree murder here. I also believe we will be lucky if Chauvin goes to jail for any length of time
Agreed. All the techniques and technicalities mean nothing when police act subjectively, as Chauvin did with Mr Floyd because they had a prior history. Then there's pulling Mr Floyd out of the car. Someone handcuffed and subdued in a police car is complying, period. There is no need for officers to instigate violent contact.
Hello TPJ, it’s me. I am responding to an offer you made back in early February when you invited me to suggest books to read, index and footnotes only. If you see this post, here’s my suggestion: Reincarnation: The Phoenix Fire Mystery, Sylvia Cranston, ed.
Ally, I couldn't say that Chauvin was 'indifferent' about what he was doing. He looked quite purposeful is his behavior. Does he care that he killed George Floyd? I don't know how he feels about the attention. Chauvin's feelings, that's hard to know.
Yes! What evil is that?! I guess he is a sociopath.... and will the defense try to pull out the old ‘mental issues’ and ‘abused as a child?!’ He and those people make me so sick! And they are police officers?!
I differ in what I saw. It seemed to me that he had "zoned out". It was as if he lost a sense of where he was or what he was doing. Especially in light of onlookers and other professionals pleading with him to stop what he was doing.
He did not care. He showed depraved indifference to the risk of the loss of life. He had a crowd of cops around him. They could have put Mr. Floyd in the police car at any time. His pose, the smirk on his face, he looked as though he was enjoying the spectacle and the sense of his own power.
That’s a very empathetic perspective. And it very well may be that when the ‘switch’ is flipped inside a psychopath’s brain... like they go to ‘dial tone’, it may be a subtle defense mechanism to separate them from their actions?!
His eyes locked with both the eyes of the young woman who was videoing him and with the lens on her camera. He was fully aware of what he was doing and of the fact that he was both observed and being recorded. His eyes were focussed and he smirked as he looked into the camera. That is about as far from being "zoned out" as you can get. I am of the opinion that not only was he fully aware of what he was doing, he also assumed that the fact he had witnesses made no difference. He assumed he would simply get away with it- because up to now, cops always had.
Annie, my memory of Chauvin's face is very vivid. He was starring down the camera with a cruel, fixed, determined, territorial defiance. He was a human animal on his prey daring anyone to interfere. What a memory. I can feel the experience of seeing him as I describe it here.
I don't buy that. He was a trained and experienced police officer who was training others. For him to "freeze" in a chaotic situation defies his job description. Especially when he was the one in control of that situation.
Your point is well made. The same argument was fomented by right wing Trump supporters spreading the canard that Doctors were reaping “bounties” on COVID-19 patients applying false certificates of death to people who died of heart failure while coincidently having COVID-19.
But there is also a classic “Black thug” defense strategy being promoted as well. That is to show that he was big, dangerous, high on drugs and of course Black. A real “gangsta” who got what he deserved.
I’ve seen this disgusting dog whistling racist ploy played out in the Trayvon Martin murder here in Flawriduh.
I watched the 9 minute 29 second video. The prosecutor is right. The video says it all. Chauvin committed Murder in the Second Degree. He is a genuine sociopath if ever there was one.
And he did it effortlessly and I felt he was enjoying his power whilst his comrades protected him from anyone intervening. No one needs a jury for this kind of blatant crime against humanity.
This is the exact argument I presented to a "nonvaxer" today, who "doesn't believe more than 500,000 Americans have died from covid. I asked her if she believed Floyd died from a guy kneeling on his neck until he lost consciousness, or did he just have a heart attack, cause that's their defense of the indefensible.
And what did the non-believer/non-vaxer say in response? We all saw the murder for ourselves. The evidence is traumatizing for normal people to witness. These impunity laws for government employees and how the Supreme Court protects them is one more thing on our country's list of Things to Do for Change to protect our citizens from corrupt officials.
can we stop using those who want the vaccine and those who don’t a reason to create more divisiveness ? Do we really need any more of that in this country?
I’m sorry, Elaine, but it is not us here who are creating the divisiveness. It is those that refuse to use their common sense and intellect to actually look at the truth and make decisions based on that. A good friend from college told me yesterday that she wasn’t able to spend Easter with her family because she got the vaccine. What? Yep. Her ill-informed relatives said she would “shed” the virus when she saw them. None of the vaccines even use virus in their development and the two main ones use mRNA technology. This is not a hidden fact. But the lies that spread this nonsense are what is causing the divisiveness.
And those "fearless" individuals who refuse the vaccine don't understand (or care) that if they're not vaccinated and catch the virus, they will pass it to others who haven't been able to get an appointment to be vaccinated. It is not all about them and their rights!
How sad. I am pleased that Biden and his administration regularly references science in his comments, because it’s going to take several years to make a dent in the anti-science view of the previous occupants of the White House.
I still maintain that people have the right to their own choices and when we take those choices away (And make fun of them because we think they’re not as smart as we are)it’s going to come back to haunt us. I’m 70 and I’ve come to a place in my life that I’m really grateful for which is that I make my choices based on what I think are facts and I am aware that at some point I may find out that those facts are really not true. We are all doing the best we can. I still maintain that people have the right to their own choices and when we take those choices away because we feel they are not educated enough or not aware enough, it’s going to come back to haunt us.
"I still maintain that people have the right to their own choices"
Thank you, Elaine. I usually appreciate your comments, but this is off the mark. In a pandemic no one lives or decides in a vacuum. People who go maskless or unvaccinated affect other people's health beyond simple matters of convenience or personal philosophies of rights. They effectively choose to place others at risk who have not made the same choice, and that is not a right; it is wrong.
It's not because they're perceived as ignorant or stupid, though they may well be factors. It's because of real, actual consequences of not contributing to protect public health. Your concerns are abstract, they are possibilities; the contrary view addresses concrete realities.
Here in MA a couple of years ago, Gov Baker mandated flu shots for all. Now he rejects mandating Covid vaccination. Why? Because he panders to business and other interests with selfish agendas. Perhaps worse, it looks like he's running for president and is trawling for votes from Trumpsky supporters. That has nothing to do with protecting public health in the state that elected him, and much to do with his political ambitions. In late Jan he also, infamously, expressed qualified approval of the Jan 6 insurrectionists, similar to Trumpsky saying there were "good people on both sides" in the 2017 Charlottesville tragedy.
With rights come responsibilities and obligations We can't have one without the other.
Hi Elaine. When it comes to science and factual information, people certainly can make the choice to ignore or deny it, but their denial does not alter the truth and the people who point that out are not "taking those choices away." People are entitled to their opinions, but empirical, factual data is not subject to opinion. Choosing not to become vaccinated based on faulty science and conspiracy nonsense while claiming it to be a choice or a right is, well, not very logical.
Elaine, respectfully, people who refuse to wear masks, social distance, and reject a vaccine are not affecting only themselves. They affect everyone around themselves - family, friends, and strangers. As I said earlier, if they never leave their house and don't allow visitors, and then refuse to practice proven means to prevent the virus's spread, that could be acceptable; but if their decisions end up affecting me or others, then it's flatly not okay. I've been at home for about a year. I go out only to buy groceries or other essential errands, and wear a mask and maintain distance from others. We cancelled Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays and vacations. None of that hurt, considering that I endangered nobody and we were as safe as possible. It has been a difficult, sad year, but I know I didn't contribute to the ghastly number of deaths. Over half a million died, and many could have been saved had everyone done what so many did and used common sense. This often has little to do with intelligence, but everything to do with character.
Elaine, l would like to elaborate on the stance of freedom of choice. Let us first accept the argument, while putting it in context. We are dealing with a worldwide health crisis. We live a country that can vaccinate the entire population, for whom it is necessary, in a month or so. There is ample scientific and medical evidence that if people continue to wear their face masks and about 75% of the population takes the vaccine, which have proven to be immensely effective in protecting individuals, we will soon thereafter be able to return to close to normal daily life. Unfortunately, social-media has sites rife with misinformation and conspiracy theories at odds with the facts. People who are vulnerable to that sort of propaganda/alternative facts’ and others who only want to do what they feel like doing without regard for the health of others, represent a societal threat. In a health and moral crisis such as this, what do you recommend?
Just a thought, I don’t mean to offend anyone, but the people who seem to be perpetuating the stance that it is their “choice”, not to get the vaccine are the same people that don’t understand the right of every women to “choose” what to do with her body. Now, they may argue that one choice ends a life, but aren’t they putting our lives at risk?
As for the comment that Florida is a different world, it certainly is. I have watched three republican governors destroy Special Education. I know that because I taught Special Education for 21 years. Sorry for the soap box.
People have a lot of rights. But all of those come with consequences. Once the vaccine is fully distributed we need to consider restrictions for school, employment, etc. That sorts out the anti vaxxers right to pass along disease and my right to stay alive.
What should haunt one is the knowledge that the heartless insistence that one has the right to reject the COVIID 19 vaccine may lead to the death of many others.
There are some pretty far fetched opinions, aren’t there? But there are also opinions somewhere in the middle. It’s not either logical people making decisions OR crazy uninformed People . There’s a whole gray area. My professor used to say to me “always watch the gray area”. That’s where the truth is.
Elaine, people who do not believe that 545,000 people have died is petrifying. This is not divisiveness, this is conspiracy theorists who have been brainwashed. If no one helps them to wake up, you have a country that can be completely taken over by those who believe they are superior in all things. Take the SS for instance in the the 1930's hauling innocent people off to jail because they believe what the Fuhrer told them about Jews being vermin and beneath them. This is about ethical behaviors and stopping a pandemic where I know people who have suffered horrific deaths from this virus. You have a right to be passive, we have a right to want to end this pandemic and to want protection for ourselves and one another.
How do you propose to stop fanatics and conspiracy theorists in all walks of life if you do not call them out on their ignorance— PARTICULARLY when their actions and beliefs can lethally harm others? I do not see this as divisive as much as educational for the good of the whole.
That the people died...that is certain and doubt is unforgiveable ignorance.....As long as you remember that 80% of the deaths in Europe have been of people with significant possibly lethal "other" medical conditions. In France the health institution even gets a budget increase for every death that they certify as "covid related" ....my mother in law's death was certified as covid related ....which was true in a way as the isolation led her to "giving up"...but she had no symptomes what so ever and was in good health for her 94 years until she was quarantined.
Their other defense--there was a crowd gathered yelling at Chauvin who was afraid--makes no sense. First, per the video, there was no "crowd" (in the common use of that descriptor) nor fear on Chauvin's face. Second, isn't that counterintuitive? If he truly was in fear, why didn't he stop? His actions clearly upset on-lookers and this defense shows he was aware that it did. The testifying witnesses clearly were fearful of Chauvin or they would have done more to stop him, as I understand their testimony. I agree with other commenters who are concerned about the jury in Minneapolis.
Yes! based on the video from several angles there were less onlooker then one would typically see at the scene of a bad car wreck. You may recall how the defense constantly urged the witnesses to agree that there was a large mob and lots of chaos... The Black guy was absolutely correct to call Chauvin a “bum” which he did not tie together with the F-Bomb much at all which frankly surprised me.
I want to know why? Why with three cops subduing Floyd, who after being pulled from the police car to the ground was more than willing to cooperate after Chauvin put the choke knee on his neck; Three cops whi made NO attempt to upright him, to calm him or put him back in the car. I mean just what were they waiting for except for him to be dead.
There is no proof that Chauvin was afraid. He will need to take the stand to give that evidence. Otherwise, this is just defense counsel wool-gathering...
Sadly, education and infrastructure.... and both would surely benefit everyone, and perhaps stem the tide of racism and unemployment..... it’s so screwed up, everywhere.
I’m so sick of Matt, Gym, MTG etc. S1 must be passed and seems to have the support of both sides. These cretins must be voted out. Or sent to prison where they belong.
Republicans in congress don't care what a majority of Americans want. They care about pleasing their corporate sponsors. Followthemoney.org (not .com).
I must admit I'm tired of hearing about all these powerful men and their sexual shenanigans. The solution is "simple" at least for elected officials ... Vote in women. Patriarchy is so tiresome. However, please note that the opposite of patriarchy is not matriarchy; it is egalitarianism.
I'm not sure that this is sufficient to stop these men. In the UK, the slightest "proveable" sniff of a sex scandale involving a politician in the papers and "he" resigns.....no question.... then he fights to "clear his name" ....f he can. There have been some nasty occasions of accusations that are falacious but on the whole it keeps the system in reasonable shape.....as long as they continue to have "hungry" journalists. This imposes a necessity on all politicians to be exceedingly cautious and discrete in their private "dealings".
Yes, Stuart, I believe in due process and hate this trial by innuendo and judgement in the court of public opinion. Here is how I was quoted in the WSJ when Senator Franken was being accused over a twenty year old incident and resigned.
“In our haste to accuse and judge, we have lost the principle of fairness. Would rather Sen. Franken had gone through the Ethics Committee process so we could put some of our outrage where it belongs: on the coverups, mistreatment of women who speak up
and use of taxpayer money to keep them silent. Members of Congress can’t be exempt from its own laws!” Few politicians can claim the moral high ground these days.
As a corporate manager, I did defend a man who worked for me when he IMO was falsely accused of sexual harassment. I was seen as a traitor to all womanhood! There's always a bigger picture here than you'll see in the jump-to-conclusions media coverage. Where is our sense of fairness!
I also hope that some day we will also get back to the simple pleasures of non-dominant, mutual flirting...part of the more innocent pleasures in life and a key part played for us all in developing our adult plummage and not just our fertility rituals and sexual attractiveness.
Unfortunately, sometimes sexual scandal follows female elected officials. My county finally voted in Katie Hill, a democrat for congress in 2018. She was sworn in January 2019 and wound up resigning in November 2019. Why? She was having an affair with a staffer and her ex-husband posted revenge porn pictures of her online. Instead of going through the whole ethics review etc. She decided it was better for her to resign. After a hard fought election last year, my representative is again a Republican man. I am hoping we can vote him out in 2022.
Money and/or sex are the big motivators for misbehavior, along with power. And where power is involed, it seems likely that at least one of the others is, too.
Here come the Koch bothers again. Somebody help me before I explode. I'm so sick of these super wealthy people ruling our freewill in politics. H.R. 1 has got to pass. The filibuster has got to go.
Given the fact that Kentucky just passed a law that gives the legislature the power to appoint McConnell’s replacement, I wonder if Mitch isn’t looking at indictment and therefore preparing to slither away in the dark of night and dirty money sooner rather than later.
Start a campaign to boycott the Koch fraternity's products. Publicize their holdings and their donations to Pacs, Pols etc. They have no shame but it could snowball. The only place you can really hurt these people is in their pocket.
To be clear, David Koch died at his home in Southampton, New York, on August 23, 2019, at the age of 79. Koch's wife, Julia Koch, (age 58) and their three children inherited a 42% stake in Koch Industries from Koch upon his death.
At the beginning there were 3 brothers and their father etc before them. “This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed home, this little piggy had roast beef, this little piggy had none and this little piggy cried wee wee wee all the way home. (Tom Thumb, 1760)
The fact that congressional Republicans are working to block legislation popular with their own party aptly illustrates where they are as a political entity today. That is why they are doing all they can to avoid fair, open, honest elections.
I’m really beginning to believe, with every new success by the Biden Administration, we may be witnessing the death throes of a major political party. I believe as the filibuster goes, so goes the Trump/Republican Party. It’s all they have left.
So let’s get rid of it, pass the voting rights bill, and move forward into the 21st Century.
Making voting more difficult for voters also affects the Republican voters.....another group of people that the GOP doesn't apparently want to hear from.
I agree with your sentiments but not your conclusion. 74 million voters wanted a man whose lies and incompetence caused at least 400,000 deaths and provoked a violent attempt to empower an autocratic government. They are still with us and if HR-1 fails to become law may well take the House and posssibly the Senate in 2022 and install an autocracy in 2024.
In a better world, Eugene Goodman would be the face of American policing. But it is Derek Chauvin for the foreseeable future. For the sake of the country, and humanity, I hope he's convicted on the most serious charges and punished fully.
I love this! Will use that elsewhere on social media.
Neighbors in my HOA-controlled community put up a Thin Blue Line flag that failed to go through the ARC process. It stayed up and was ignored for months. I reported the violation to the Board in a Zoom meeting. At first, this lily-white community in a very red district pushed back against my concern. I explained, if allowed to stay up, the HOA can't discriminate based on messaging and they could look forward to my BLM flag going up soon if the flag remained. While the legal reasoning is dubious in this context, it apparently resonated and the flag has come down. I'm generally not in favor of an overly controlling HOA; however, in this instance, I was pleased with the outcome.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was quoted: “We are not supporting doing any vaccine passports in the state of Florida,” “It’s completely unacceptable for either the government or the private sector to impose upon you the requirement that you show proof of vaccine to just simply be able to participate in normal society.”
Though I doubt DeSantis has any concerns about requiring certain proof in order to vote.
I will get a Covid Passport in just the same way as I will get a regular passport and an innoculation booklet to prove I had yellow fever immunization or any other immunization which might be required to travel. All governments require passports and some require proof of yellow fever immunization.
Marjorie Taylor Greene has called a vaccination passport "Biden's Mark of the Beast," and further notes that any company/corporation that insists on it as a requirement, will be engaging in "corporate communism." Where does she get all this rubbish from?
she is the congresswoman for my district in N.W.Georgia, Ms. Greene rented an apartment in Rome so she could run here, she actually lives in another district. for the most part she ran unopposed . We are a rural district that is slowly turning blue as more and more suburbs are being created here. She is an embarrassment who feeds the stereotype of the dumb redneck from Georgia
Since you are in her district, please keep us informed as to whether she will be running again in 2022 and who her opponent is. There are funding efforts to work against the "worst of the worst". For example, Bruno Amato is running against Kevin McCarthy and there are already efforts (Twitter based) to support Bruno. MTG and Matt Gaetz (if he runs again) are two additional targets. Last year I supported Gaetz's opponent who did well, just not good enough.
There should be a law against that sudden residency. My son and his family lived south of you - I met goid people there. I pray she is soundly defeated in 2022.
i will be glad when people who get up every morning wondering what is the "vilest thing I can say today", no longer profit financially or politically for trafficking hate and vitriol.
Except for the ridiculous words used to describe what she’s trying to convey, I’d say she might be talking about Americans free to choose for themselves. Just a thought.
A LOT of this crap she spouts has its roots in evangelical/fundamentalist churches that are ubiquitous here. I'm sure there's a connection there somewhere. I'm not sure what "church" she's a member of, but I can pretty much guarantee it's probably pretty wacko.
The State of Florida requires proof of measles immunity to attend public education facilities all the way through college. Funny how the governor is ok with that!
Yes but when I had a "vaccination" passport in the past it was to go to do a job in any of the countries that the previous presidential perpetraiter infamously labeled "Sh**hole Countries" for the UN/World Bank etc. where death might result for the otherwise perfectly healthy like the countries residents and not to live normally in my own community for the foreseeable future. The English do not even allow their government to impose an Identity Card never mind a health certificate. The French, who are infinitely more "dirigiste" and closely governed might it would seem be less difficult but there is significant opposition already to the very heavy curb on civil and civic rights that the epidemic has already engendered.
How governments or companies chose to deal with Covid passports could affect privacy rights - true. That is particularly important to those who chose not to obtain a jab. But I don't care about my privacy on this issue any more than I am concerned about my privacy in showing my passport when I enter a country.
A doctor I know suggested many months ago that we should have vaccine restaurants, theatres and other businesses once the vaccines have really spread in order to buck up our economy sooner rather than later. Not a big deal to be that kind of "carrier" to begin to move our world forward again.
All the evidence in France points to the "fact" that Cinemas, Theaters, restaurants and bars have never created hotspots of covid infection.....but they are firmly closed. The true hotspots are the family homes of one and all who have not been wearing mask etc.
When I received my two Moderna vaccinations, I was told by the nurses to keep a copy of the shot record on my phone and to keep the original in a safe place WITH my passport to use for travel. This was back in February and apparently it was standard advice offered by medical personnel. The shot record is more than just a record of the vaccination - it is a record of the TYPE and the DATE which is helpful for research purposes. I suppose there will always be people who worry about being "tracked" (good luck with that - there are cameras in every nook and cranny imaginable these days), but I am appreciative that if something were to go awry with this vaccination, or if I were to acquire a variant strain after having been vaccinated, I would want that data available to perhaps keep me alive!
Yes Cathy, some shots were obligatory others volontary...but heavily recommended. Unfortunately the last 2 attempts at making vaccination obligatory in France have been the latest Hepatitis B or C something or other vaccine which is now accused of all the sins of creation and the bureaucratic attempt to impose a consolidated vaccine of 11 vaccines for newly born when several of the individual shots were known to create significant "discomfort" for the baby...and together?. This doesn't give the system and the government much credibility especially when you add in recent "thalidamide-like" drug scandals in the country and the whole fiasco of tainted blood transfusionj supplies. As well as them "cocking up" mask supply which they said were even dangerous in the start, test kit provision and logistics, tracing systems, lockdown-open up timing and severity and now vaccine supply and distribution. The people are quite rightly pissed off and are shaping up to jump up and down seriously on their politicians and bureaucrats of all stripes.
When I traveled internationally (to Europe!) in the 1960s I had to have a certificate of vaccination for all kinds of things: cholera, typhus, smallpox . . . So the idea of a Covid passport makes a lot of sense to me. But like everything else, it is politicized because the people who claim to value "life" are really interested only in themselves.
A little before my time unfortunately. Although i was travelling around Europe "on my thumb" from a very early age (6ft 6in tall and 200lbs rugby physique helped solve security concerns) i didn't cross the Atlantic till I was 22 in1972. My first "health passport" was for a stay in then war-torn eastern regions of Nigeria to do a feasibility study for a brewery in 1974...locally more money went on beer than food!
The problem with Republicans like Ron DeSantis is that there is no consistency in their position. Last year he signed into legislation a requirement that government and some in the private businesses confirm employment eligibility based on immigration status:
Considering our track record (USA), I'm more inclined to think other countries will want us to have proof of vaccine. And don't Republicans want to require it of others entering the US like at the Mexican border.. Anyway it's not a passport, it's just proof you've been vaccinated. If circumstances warrant, that proof may be necessary.
I hope Gaetz goes to his just deserts on Newsmax or whatever right wing tabloid agency will have him that will make him less dangerous in the halls of Congress. Whatever company hires him will get what they deserve and want.....another slimeball. The GQP will hopefully get exactly what they deserve more losses in congress both in the House and Senate.
As I watch the testimony in the George Floyd case I find myself praying that this will not go the way of almost all the previous cases brought against police officers across the country for use of excessive force....acquittal. So many cases that would have seemed easy to get a guilty verdict have gone on to acquittal.
What took my heart and threw it on the ground yesterday was the video of the Asian woman being thrown to the ground , beaten and kicked while at least two men watched from inside a building and did less than nothing. The absolute callousness of the one man walking up and closing the door while the attack went on left me once again ashamed for my countrymen and our society.
Pamela, I'm with you: I want to expose them all, including bystanders who consider the assault of an older non-white woman to be some kind of sadistic entertainment. However, as quite a few NPR journalists who are covering the Chauvin trial have been saying: the likelihood of this execrable example of pathological white male savagery being convicted--or his conviction being sustained as it goes up the appeals process--is perishingly small. What I hope is that even if acquitted the very public nature of the ways in which white men have their thumbs on the scales of justice will create a backlash against them. One result of the BLM protests: the numbers of police murdering black people have apparently gone down significantly since the summer. So the canard of the "scary" black man whom the white police officer just has to shoot to kill is exposed.
The problem is that there are SOOOOO MANY THINGS that we have to pay attention to, a lot will get and is getting lost in the morass of the daily news dump. The news might be promising with respect to the prosecution of the execrables, but how quickly will those news stories be replaced by others? Keeping this stuff in the public eye is part of the challenge we face.
I don't know if you caught the comment by the GA state trooper who arrested GA Rep Park Cannon....that he felt threatened by her, mind you she was in heels, a suit and was probably less than twice his size. He wasn't threatened by her presence..I think he was threatened by her skin color.
It was all on camera, and there was no resistance to his cuffing her behind her back. He then marched her backward through the door. Threatened? Really?
Linda, I, too, have this dark nagging sense that what is before us, appalling as it is, masks the larger, potentially more threatening issues that are bearing down on us. It's as if we are being distracted and only seeing through a pinhole. I really don't mean to be negative because there are so many good, caring things happening in spite of the dark acts. But, the manipulation of "importance" by the press and social media in search of revenues distorts reality. There seems to be two ways of looking at current history; first, what's happening in plain sight, and the second is what's happening out of sight. We only, if ever, get to know what's happening out sight, decades later and only through the rare revelations and the deeper research and understanding by historians such as the radiant HCR.
The murder of George Floyd was a self evident lynching, perpetrated to "teach a lesson." To all who witnessed it, the lesson was Black lives don't matter, police rule the streets, they can act with impunity, and you disrespect them at great peril. It was an act of brutality used to display dominance to the local community, and also as a teachable moment for the trainee officers on the scene.
There is an incredible amount of tension riding on the verdict of this trial. I haven't seen any mention yet of the Rodney King riots of '92. I have the feeling an acquittal here will make those look like a practice run.
Sadly I think you are correct. I am somewhat surprised that the fact that George Floyd and Chauvin knew each other and had worked together at a bar has not received much comment. It may point toward a bit of personal conflict that was ongoing even before the arrest and murder.
I felt the same about the Asian woman who is my age. If reports are accurate, the two men in the lobby are "security guards" for the apartment building and have been placed on administrative leave. Likely they will simply be recycled elsewhere by their employer.
I can't imagine not responding to that incident. I see this in my neighborhood where Trumpers chase children who are descendents of parents from India. They scream "go back where you came from". I'm almost 69 but felt impelled to act. I organized the neighborhood to confront this with local police. So far so good but I'm hoping that good weather doesn't bring the cockroaches out of the shadows again.
Did you know that he has been captured, and was found to have been convicted of stabbing his mother to death in 2002 and was imprisoned, but was released @2018?!!!
I had read some time ago that MG has a rather "shady" history and that papa has been there to rescue him more than once. Perhaps this investigation will uncover what has since been buried and he will ultimately have to face the consequences.
Yes, I can picture him coming home from school in his short pants and blazer crying that 'the kids are so mean to me!!!' and his father saying, 'well come on now, we'll go visit those kids and I will give them thing or two to think about next time'!
When someone here mentioned yesterday that Trump was claiming that his insurrectionists were trading "hugs and kisses" with the Capitol Police, I thought it was a joke. Among all the other wreckage, the last President has thoroughly killed satire -- nothing could be weirder than his reality.
As for Matt Gaetz, his creepiness comes across even in still photographs, to my eyes. Somehow I suspect that no one is safe when Gaetz is feeling drunk and randy, not the teenagers next door, not the family pets.
Sorry for the excessive snark, but somehow I don't think I was ever going to get confirmed to that Cabinet position anyway...
Thank you, as always, Dr. HCR, for your incredible, important synopsis and perspective of the day's news. I am reading an old Civil War book, "Co. Aytch" by confederate private Sam R. Watkins. Twenty years after the war, he wrote: "I see broken homes and broken hearts. I see war in all of its desolation. I see a country ruined and impoverished. I see a nation disfranchised and maltreated. I see a commonwealth forced to pay dishonest and fraudulent bonds that were issued to crush people. I see sycophants licking the boot of the country's oppressor. I see other and many wrongs perpetrated upon a conquered people...The tale is told. The world moves on, the sun shines as brightly as before, the flowers bloom as beautifully, the birds sing their carols as sweetly, the trees nod and low their leafy tops..."
White men always have--this is why prosecution of rape, domestic abuse, child abuse, and hate crimes in general are so difficult: the real victims are demonized and become the prosecuted while the white boyz whine about oppression and temptation.
It's the latest chic and a sure fire winner to attract any lazy journalist; an unfortunate spin-off of the BLM, LBGetc movements. They have created a bandwagon that anyone can join.
Ah, but....are they a minority? Perhaps, depends whose definition you use. But that won't stop them if you give them the idea. I have a few names to add to that list from here in France if the "victimized minority" can be international.
Wanna bet that Gaetz dad tried to buy the victims silence? Then later finding out the fbi had her wear a wire, retroactively claiming she was attempting blackmail him? The cover up will be as bad or worse than the crime.
I now see it differently after reading Watkins book. In 1861, to them it was industrialized vs agrarian, indentured servants vs slavery, it was all the power vs NO power. It was North vs South until he ends with "The privates" ((the subject of his book) did what they were told for the good of their "nation." Recontruction then failed them. And continues to fail the workers of this country, so a scam artist like tRump could (and still can) rev their descendents up with hate. We must respond to our brothers (in my case literally) with understanding and truth, and Biden's recovery package and Biden's infrastructure package and ... Watkins begins and ends the book with "The United States of America had no north, no south, no east, no west. Because the sun neither rises or sets., the earth simply turns on its axis...We are one and undivided."
Trump used Hitler’s “stabbed in the back” myth: Dolchstosslegende.
After World War 2, Austria adopted a “victim theory” of being victims of Hitler, having different cultural ancestry from the Germans, courting the votes of former Nazis, minimizing the Holocaust, and avoiding reparations. Children’s school books were used to perpetuate this propaganda. It took 43 years before the “victim theory” was turned around in Austria through policy and installation of Holocaust memorials.
I read Faulkner to understand the tragedy of the agrarian South. Absalom, Absalom! is set in Mississippi before, during. and after the war. What brings down the protagonist
Sutpen is not simply the dispossession that the obvious propagandist Watkins bewails, but rather the White racist shame of discovering Black ancestry.
The fact that Matt Gaetz was the lone House vote against a human trafficking law in 2017 is, shall we say, curious. And during his Fox interview with Tucker Carlson, he claimed the NYT reported details about the alleged extortion of his family, ruining the investigation. False. The Time reported no such thing. Curioser and curiouser.
I can report that I'm aware of some residents of Escambia County Florida, which Gaetz represents, that have flipped Blue after having their eyes opened under the last administration. These folks were followers of the GQP since Reagan suckered them in. Reagan did so much damage. I'm always appalled when he's described in adoring terms.
I have not the slightest doubt that Chauvin meant to kill George Floyd, he totally knew what he was doing. As far as Matt Gates goes, that was a news treat for late in the day. I’ll bet Liz Cheney is howling, if I was her I know I would be. See you all in the morning, daytime that is, it promises to be a very interesting read.
"In the 2020 federal election cycle, dark-money groups spent more than a billion dollars. More than 654 million came from just fifteen groups, the top of which is connected to McConnell." Who are these fifteen groups and how is the top one connected to McConnell? And which party/candidates are these fifteen buying/supporting? I would assume they would be backing who they can control of any party.
Digging into Jane Mayer's article leads to her observation that dark money cuts both ways: "...the vast majority of dark money from undisclosed sources over the past decade has supported conservative causes and candidates. Democrats, however, are catching up. In 2020, for the first time in any Presidential election, liberal dark-money groups far outspent their conservative counterparts, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics..."
Center for Responsive Politics has their list of top donors to politically active nonprofits since 2008:
"Kyle McKenzie, the research director for the Koch-run advocacy group Stand Together, told fellow-conservatives and Republican congressional staffers on the call...that the worst thing conservatives could do would be to try to 'engage with the other side' on the argument that the legislation 'stops billionaires from buying elections.' McKenzie admitted, 'Unfortunately, we’ve found that that is a winning message, for both the general public and also conservatives.' He said that when his group tested 'tons of other' arguments in support of the bill, the one condemning billionaires buying elections was the most persuasive—people 'found that to be most convincing, and it riled them up the most.'”
We routinely complain how bad Democrats are at messaging. Well, here is the fix:
HR1/S1 For the People Act stops billionaires from buying elections!
We will still be much better of if the Dark Money from both sides goes to the government in taxes rather than going to buy ads on TV/internet/billboards etc. or for paying for the myriad of rather useless and voracious "propaganda think tanks" which offer a safe haven for politicians that people have tried to get rid of and which subvert the academic neutrality of our universities.
janjamm it is key to realize this. The uber rich don’t really care who they buy they just need the results. Accountability and transparency will enhance our Republic’s ability to survive.
I watch a good deal of the testimony yesterday in the trial about the death of George Floyd. On the surface, this trial appears to have a reasonable jury composition and dignified proceeding. Minneapolis is considered by several civil rights organizations to be one of the least friendly places for people of color to live. I'm not sure why, but that observation bothers me. My faith in the jury system is about 4 out of ten based on my own experience as a juror and on my 80 years of life observing it from afar, especially for people of color. I fear, perhaps irrationally, that this police officer will not be convicted. I would like to have my faith in the American court system, the jury system, restored or strengthened. I am also afraid of what will happen no matter the outcome of this trial.
The testimonies today were heartbreaking. Two teenage girls, a nine year old girl, a female firefighter who wanted to help medically but they refused to let her. A man who kept calling for Chauvin to lift his knee off George Floyd’s neck, realized he had just witnessed a murder and called 911. They all watched him die, and they are all haunted by his preventable death. And tonight, I am haunted by their testimony. They all will live with the trauma of what they witnessed for the rest of their lives. - one a nine year old girl, two 17 year old girls, one of which had the courage and the wisdom to capture that video on the other’s phone. This nightmare will follow them forever. The firefighter who knew this man was dying and couldn’t persuade the officers to let her check for a pulse, noting that the placement and pressure of Derek Chauvin’s knee on George Floyd’s neck would have caused him intense pain. This country will live with the trauma of what happened for decades to come.
I find the defense's argument flawed that George Floyd had comorbidities that caused his death. If I were on the jury, I would want to know whether George Floyd would have died that day of those comorbidities but for the intervention of a knee on his neck while on his stomach, handcuffed, with the weight of 2 "grown men" on his back (not counting Chauvin).
I am a (retired) police use of force instructor. I have taught the LVNR (lateral vascular neck restraint, aka carotid restraint, both of which are mechanically different from a choke hold, a martial arts submission hold) and I have been taught (because I was too close to retirement to have the department train me to be an instructor) taser application. On our force matrix/guide/continuum, consideration of a persons age, visible medical conditions, or disability was ALWAYS a concern and mentioned in all of our training. We also taught that force is applied until compliance is gained, then the person is restrained, the force application stops, and medical care is given if necessary. Concerns regarding positional asphyxia were also emphasized, and restrained subjects were never to be placed either prone or supine for any length of time.
I cannot fathom the casual indifference displayed by Chauvin.
Like I mentioned yesterday, a small nurse and I managed to take down crazy large men in a psych hospital with no weapons and without killing them. If they were too large a code was called and every assistant rushed to the unit to help. There were 4 pigs on scene and yet they killed a man WHO WAS IN HANDCUFFS. The other 3 should be charged with felony murder just like with any gang killing.
Chauvin’s posture looked indifferent, but, the look on his face was pure arrogance. I read that he was not only the officer in charge, but, also training new officers. So they all obeyed his command to hold Mr Floyd down and keep witnesses away. He was setting an example. God help us all.
I hope the prosecution has expert witnesses as articulate as you.
Thank you for your comments. Similar opinion voiced by a guest on CNN, a former police commissioner from PA....” force is applied until compliance is gained, then the person is restrained, the force application stops, and medical care is given if necessary. Concerns regarding positional asphyxia were also emphasized, and restrained subjects were never to be placed either prone or supine for any length of time.” He was already cuffed, he was not resisting; the part where Chauvin exhorted him to “get up, get in the car” over and over was sickening, as his knee was still in place. He didn’t even move when the ambulance arrived...and I thought those guys were a little too casual also.
If Chauvin's motive was law enforcement, he did everything wrong. If Chauvin's motive was personal, he did everything right.
Thank you, Ally. I hope the expert testimony that is to come will include witnesses of your caliber.
Ally The casual indifference you mention was apparently personal. There are officers whose previous histories with their perps leads to such personal indifference. I am not a prosecutor but I feel there is a case for first degree murder here. I also believe we will be lucky if Chauvin goes to jail for any length of time
Agreed. All the techniques and technicalities mean nothing when police act subjectively, as Chauvin did with Mr Floyd because they had a prior history. Then there's pulling Mr Floyd out of the car. Someone handcuffed and subdued in a police car is complying, period. There is no need for officers to instigate violent contact.
Hello TPJ, it’s me. I am responding to an offer you made back in early February when you invited me to suggest books to read, index and footnotes only. If you see this post, here’s my suggestion: Reincarnation: The Phoenix Fire Mystery, Sylvia Cranston, ed.
Ally, I couldn't say that Chauvin was 'indifferent' about what he was doing. He looked quite purposeful is his behavior. Does he care that he killed George Floyd? I don't know how he feels about the attention. Chauvin's feelings, that's hard to know.
Chauvin did not appear indifferent or absent to me, rather determined. To have HIS way.
Yes! What evil is that?! I guess he is a sociopath.... and will the defense try to pull out the old ‘mental issues’ and ‘abused as a child?!’ He and those people make me so sick! And they are police officers?!
Those in training will say they had to follow his lead. But as humans, they did not.
I differ in what I saw. It seemed to me that he had "zoned out". It was as if he lost a sense of where he was or what he was doing. Especially in light of onlookers and other professionals pleading with him to stop what he was doing.
He did not care. He showed depraved indifference to the risk of the loss of life. He had a crowd of cops around him. They could have put Mr. Floyd in the police car at any time. His pose, the smirk on his face, he looked as though he was enjoying the spectacle and the sense of his own power.
That’s a very empathetic perspective. And it very well may be that when the ‘switch’ is flipped inside a psychopath’s brain... like they go to ‘dial tone’, it may be a subtle defense mechanism to separate them from their actions?!
Cynthia, Your description of disruptive brain function was brilliant, whether non-fiction or fiction is conveys the danger.
Differences in perception, that's what makes juror duty among other forms of group activity so fascinating.
His eyes locked with both the eyes of the young woman who was videoing him and with the lens on her camera. He was fully aware of what he was doing and of the fact that he was both observed and being recorded. His eyes were focussed and he smirked as he looked into the camera. That is about as far from being "zoned out" as you can get. I am of the opinion that not only was he fully aware of what he was doing, he also assumed that the fact he had witnesses made no difference. He assumed he would simply get away with it- because up to now, cops always had.
Annie, my memory of Chauvin's face is very vivid. He was starring down the camera with a cruel, fixed, determined, territorial defiance. He was a human animal on his prey daring anyone to interfere. What a memory. I can feel the experience of seeing him as I describe it here.
I don't buy that. He was a trained and experienced police officer who was training others. For him to "freeze" in a chaotic situation defies his job description. Especially when he was the one in control of that situation.
Good point.
Yikes! That sounds too much like a defense. Your honor, I just zoned out and did not know what I was doing.
I think it is a mental illness defense, but counsel did not claim that as the defendant is pleading not guilty.
Thank you for the clear explanation
Your point is well made. The same argument was fomented by right wing Trump supporters spreading the canard that Doctors were reaping “bounties” on COVID-19 patients applying false certificates of death to people who died of heart failure while coincidently having COVID-19.
But there is also a classic “Black thug” defense strategy being promoted as well. That is to show that he was big, dangerous, high on drugs and of course Black. A real “gangsta” who got what he deserved.
I’ve seen this disgusting dog whistling racist ploy played out in the Trayvon Martin murder here in Flawriduh.
I watched the 9 minute 29 second video. The prosecutor is right. The video says it all. Chauvin committed Murder in the Second Degree. He is a genuine sociopath if ever there was one.
Rodney King's video also said it all, as did Eric Garner's, and Walter Scott's, etc., etc. White supremacy is a powerful dragon.
Especially accompanied with hostility and an overpowering need for power.
And he did it effortlessly and I felt he was enjoying his power whilst his comrades protected him from anyone intervening. No one needs a jury for this kind of blatant crime against humanity.
Yes, bully showing off for his followers.
Yes!
This is the exact argument I presented to a "nonvaxer" today, who "doesn't believe more than 500,000 Americans have died from covid. I asked her if she believed Floyd died from a guy kneeling on his neck until he lost consciousness, or did he just have a heart attack, cause that's their defense of the indefensible.
And what did the non-believer/non-vaxer say in response? We all saw the murder for ourselves. The evidence is traumatizing for normal people to witness. These impunity laws for government employees and how the Supreme Court protects them is one more thing on our country's list of Things to Do for Change to protect our citizens from corrupt officials.
Her response, also disappointing, "I haven't seen the video, I do not want to see it."
Sigh, we need an engaged citizenry too, eh?
“I don’t WANT to see it” applies to all of it including the 500,000 dead. It is exactly the problem. Our minds are rather amazing
At times I’ve been envious of those who can’t see that which is right in front of them
can we stop using those who want the vaccine and those who don’t a reason to create more divisiveness ? Do we really need any more of that in this country?
I’m sorry, Elaine, but it is not us here who are creating the divisiveness. It is those that refuse to use their common sense and intellect to actually look at the truth and make decisions based on that. A good friend from college told me yesterday that she wasn’t able to spend Easter with her family because she got the vaccine. What? Yep. Her ill-informed relatives said she would “shed” the virus when she saw them. None of the vaccines even use virus in their development and the two main ones use mRNA technology. This is not a hidden fact. But the lies that spread this nonsense are what is causing the divisiveness.
And those "fearless" individuals who refuse the vaccine don't understand (or care) that if they're not vaccinated and catch the virus, they will pass it to others who haven't been able to get an appointment to be vaccinated. It is not all about them and their rights!
Not unlike those who have been ignoring CDC guidance around travel, social distancing and mask wearing. Many understand. Many don’t care.
How sad. I am pleased that Biden and his administration regularly references science in his comments, because it’s going to take several years to make a dent in the anti-science view of the previous occupants of the White House.
I still maintain that people have the right to their own choices and when we take those choices away (And make fun of them because we think they’re not as smart as we are)it’s going to come back to haunt us. I’m 70 and I’ve come to a place in my life that I’m really grateful for which is that I make my choices based on what I think are facts and I am aware that at some point I may find out that those facts are really not true. We are all doing the best we can. I still maintain that people have the right to their own choices and when we take those choices away because we feel they are not educated enough or not aware enough, it’s going to come back to haunt us.
"I still maintain that people have the right to their own choices"
Thank you, Elaine. I usually appreciate your comments, but this is off the mark. In a pandemic no one lives or decides in a vacuum. People who go maskless or unvaccinated affect other people's health beyond simple matters of convenience or personal philosophies of rights. They effectively choose to place others at risk who have not made the same choice, and that is not a right; it is wrong.
It's not because they're perceived as ignorant or stupid, though they may well be factors. It's because of real, actual consequences of not contributing to protect public health. Your concerns are abstract, they are possibilities; the contrary view addresses concrete realities.
Here in MA a couple of years ago, Gov Baker mandated flu shots for all. Now he rejects mandating Covid vaccination. Why? Because he panders to business and other interests with selfish agendas. Perhaps worse, it looks like he's running for president and is trawling for votes from Trumpsky supporters. That has nothing to do with protecting public health in the state that elected him, and much to do with his political ambitions. In late Jan he also, infamously, expressed qualified approval of the Jan 6 insurrectionists, similar to Trumpsky saying there were "good people on both sides" in the 2017 Charlottesville tragedy.
With rights come responsibilities and obligations We can't have one without the other.
So, If I choose to drive 100 MPH in a 40 MPH zone, that's OK?
If I have a deadly sexually transmitted disease and choose to have sex without a condom, that's OK?
If I could be harboring a deadly airborne virus and choose not to wear a mask when in close proximity to others, that's OK?
Hi Elaine. When it comes to science and factual information, people certainly can make the choice to ignore or deny it, but their denial does not alter the truth and the people who point that out are not "taking those choices away." People are entitled to their opinions, but empirical, factual data is not subject to opinion. Choosing not to become vaccinated based on faulty science and conspiracy nonsense while claiming it to be a choice or a right is, well, not very logical.
Elaine, respectfully, people who refuse to wear masks, social distance, and reject a vaccine are not affecting only themselves. They affect everyone around themselves - family, friends, and strangers. As I said earlier, if they never leave their house and don't allow visitors, and then refuse to practice proven means to prevent the virus's spread, that could be acceptable; but if their decisions end up affecting me or others, then it's flatly not okay. I've been at home for about a year. I go out only to buy groceries or other essential errands, and wear a mask and maintain distance from others. We cancelled Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays and vacations. None of that hurt, considering that I endangered nobody and we were as safe as possible. It has been a difficult, sad year, but I know I didn't contribute to the ghastly number of deaths. Over half a million died, and many could have been saved had everyone done what so many did and used common sense. This often has little to do with intelligence, but everything to do with character.
Elaine, l would like to elaborate on the stance of freedom of choice. Let us first accept the argument, while putting it in context. We are dealing with a worldwide health crisis. We live a country that can vaccinate the entire population, for whom it is necessary, in a month or so. There is ample scientific and medical evidence that if people continue to wear their face masks and about 75% of the population takes the vaccine, which have proven to be immensely effective in protecting individuals, we will soon thereafter be able to return to close to normal daily life. Unfortunately, social-media has sites rife with misinformation and conspiracy theories at odds with the facts. People who are vulnerable to that sort of propaganda/alternative facts’ and others who only want to do what they feel like doing without regard for the health of others, represent a societal threat. In a health and moral crisis such as this, what do you recommend?
Phyllis D. Florida
Just a thought, I don’t mean to offend anyone, but the people who seem to be perpetuating the stance that it is their “choice”, not to get the vaccine are the same people that don’t understand the right of every women to “choose” what to do with her body. Now, they may argue that one choice ends a life, but aren’t they putting our lives at risk?
As for the comment that Florida is a different world, it certainly is. I have watched three republican governors destroy Special Education. I know that because I taught Special Education for 21 years. Sorry for the soap box.
People have a lot of rights. But all of those come with consequences. Once the vaccine is fully distributed we need to consider restrictions for school, employment, etc. That sorts out the anti vaxxers right to pass along disease and my right to stay alive.
What should haunt one is the knowledge that the heartless insistence that one has the right to reject the COVIID 19 vaccine may lead to the death of many others.
If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.
There are some pretty far fetched opinions, aren’t there? But there are also opinions somewhere in the middle. It’s not either logical people making decisions OR crazy uninformed People . There’s a whole gray area. My professor used to say to me “always watch the gray area”. That’s where the truth is.
Elaine, people who do not believe that 545,000 people have died is petrifying. This is not divisiveness, this is conspiracy theorists who have been brainwashed. If no one helps them to wake up, you have a country that can be completely taken over by those who believe they are superior in all things. Take the SS for instance in the the 1930's hauling innocent people off to jail because they believe what the Fuhrer told them about Jews being vermin and beneath them. This is about ethical behaviors and stopping a pandemic where I know people who have suffered horrific deaths from this virus. You have a right to be passive, we have a right to want to end this pandemic and to want protection for ourselves and one another.
How do you propose to stop fanatics and conspiracy theorists in all walks of life if you do not call them out on their ignorance— PARTICULARLY when their actions and beliefs can lethally harm others? I do not see this as divisive as much as educational for the good of the whole.
That the people died...that is certain and doubt is unforgiveable ignorance.....As long as you remember that 80% of the deaths in Europe have been of people with significant possibly lethal "other" medical conditions. In France the health institution even gets a budget increase for every death that they certify as "covid related" ....my mother in law's death was certified as covid related ....which was true in a way as the isolation led her to "giving up"...but she had no symptomes what so ever and was in good health for her 94 years until she was quarantined.
No, we can't. Public health is just that, public. Those who refuse to get a vaccination
(or wear a mask) in the name of their "choice", affect my health. Like second hand smoke, they infect the air i breathe.
Kelly Sullivan (FL)just now
Their other defense--there was a crowd gathered yelling at Chauvin who was afraid--makes no sense. First, per the video, there was no "crowd" (in the common use of that descriptor) nor fear on Chauvin's face. Second, isn't that counterintuitive? If he truly was in fear, why didn't he stop? His actions clearly upset on-lookers and this defense shows he was aware that it did. The testifying witnesses clearly were fearful of Chauvin or they would have done more to stop him, as I understand their testimony. I agree with other commenters who are concerned about the jury in Minneapolis.
Yes! based on the video from several angles there were less onlooker then one would typically see at the scene of a bad car wreck. You may recall how the defense constantly urged the witnesses to agree that there was a large mob and lots of chaos... The Black guy was absolutely correct to call Chauvin a “bum” which he did not tie together with the F-Bomb much at all which frankly surprised me.
I want to know why? Why with three cops subduing Floyd, who after being pulled from the police car to the ground was more than willing to cooperate after Chauvin put the choke knee on his neck; Three cops whi made NO attempt to upright him, to calm him or put him back in the car. I mean just what were they waiting for except for him to be dead.
There is no proof that Chauvin was afraid. He will need to take the stand to give that evidence. Otherwise, this is just defense counsel wool-gathering...
I watched his face during the entire video, and saw not a trace of fear.
We know the answer to that question - NO!
The witnesses should sue Chauvin and the Minneapolis Police Dept over the pain and suffering they suffered and still endure.
I heard that this has already cost the city of Mpls $27,000,000.... and it’s not over yet!
Imagine what the city could have done with 27 million dollars.
Sadly, education and infrastructure.... and both would surely benefit everyone, and perhaps stem the tide of racism and unemployment..... it’s so screwed up, everywhere.
I love that you referred to him as “personality Tucker Carlson”, negating any notion of him being a bona fide journalist.
I liked that too. Now we should omit the word “news” in any sentence that mentions Fox.
"Fox Gossip: All the News That's Not Fit to Print"
and that they might get sued for if they did.
All the news that's $h!t to print.
We're gettin' there: "Fox Spews All the News that's $h!t to Print!"
Just think of the circulation figures of the "newspapers" that you pick up at the supermarket check-out desk.
Prop Fox (propaganda)
Fox Spews
Ooh, Imogene. When combined with mine: "Fox Spews All The News That's Not Fit to Print"!!
In the UK Fox CANNOT refer to themselves as a news organization AT ALL. They are entertainment.
Entertainment only for masochists.
Me to. What a dig! Luv it
Actually, I think the correct category is "angertainment". Pat, I'll take that category for $200. /snark
Angertainment! Absolutely spot-on perfect. Well done.
I’m so sick of Matt, Gym, MTG etc. S1 must be passed and seems to have the support of both sides. These cretins must be voted out. Or sent to prison where they belong.
Republicans in congress don't care what a majority of Americans want. They care about pleasing their corporate sponsors. Followthemoney.org (not .com).
Wow, aside from the dark money factor for both parties, the progress by the Democrats in 2020 is astounding:
In 2016 and 2018, campaign money raised by Democrats and Republicans was about 50-50.
2020 federal: Democrats $6.2 billion versus Republicans $3.4 billion
and in 2016, Democrats raised $2.1 billion
https://www.followthemoney.org/
Did you drill down to where those donations came from?
Great question. The Dems MUST MUST MUST walk the walk of transparency and honesty.
Someone else will have to pick up the ball to drill down in your followthemoney link. Related info is in Jane Mayer’s reference:
Center for Responsive Politics has their list of top donors to politically active nonprofits since 2008:
http://www.opensecrets.org/dark-money/top-donors
Yes, open secrets is also good.
Wow. The Chamber of Commerce is the largest "donor"!
Ellie, I visited opensecrets and that is the intended site. I confuse the two because they have similar info, but opensecrets has a better search.
Fascinating website. I found my name and my cumulative political donations.
Always.
Evelyn: lose their seats and THEN go to jail! Both, not either/or!
Some of the cretins are resigning or just flaming out.
Not Enough
I must admit I'm tired of hearing about all these powerful men and their sexual shenanigans. The solution is "simple" at least for elected officials ... Vote in women. Patriarchy is so tiresome. However, please note that the opposite of patriarchy is not matriarchy; it is egalitarianism.
I sure hope it’s true Cathy— I love the sound of egalitarianism and democracy.
I'm not sure that this is sufficient to stop these men. In the UK, the slightest "proveable" sniff of a sex scandale involving a politician in the papers and "he" resigns.....no question.... then he fights to "clear his name" ....f he can. There have been some nasty occasions of accusations that are falacious but on the whole it keeps the system in reasonable shape.....as long as they continue to have "hungry" journalists. This imposes a necessity on all politicians to be exceedingly cautious and discrete in their private "dealings".
Yes, Stuart, I believe in due process and hate this trial by innuendo and judgement in the court of public opinion. Here is how I was quoted in the WSJ when Senator Franken was being accused over a twenty year old incident and resigned.
“In our haste to accuse and judge, we have lost the principle of fairness. Would rather Sen. Franken had gone through the Ethics Committee process so we could put some of our outrage where it belongs: on the coverups, mistreatment of women who speak up
and use of taxpayer money to keep them silent. Members of Congress can’t be exempt from its own laws!” Few politicians can claim the moral high ground these days.
As a corporate manager, I did defend a man who worked for me when he IMO was falsely accused of sexual harassment. I was seen as a traitor to all womanhood! There's always a bigger picture here than you'll see in the jump-to-conclusions media coverage. Where is our sense of fairness!
I also hope that some day we will also get back to the simple pleasures of non-dominant, mutual flirting...part of the more innocent pleasures in life and a key part played for us all in developing our adult plummage and not just our fertility rituals and sexual attractiveness.
Yes, sometimes a hug is just a hug.
Fun and games!
Unfortunately, sometimes sexual scandal follows female elected officials. My county finally voted in Katie Hill, a democrat for congress in 2018. She was sworn in January 2019 and wound up resigning in November 2019. Why? She was having an affair with a staffer and her ex-husband posted revenge porn pictures of her online. Instead of going through the whole ethics review etc. She decided it was better for her to resign. After a hard fought election last year, my representative is again a Republican man. I am hoping we can vote him out in 2022.
It always seems to come back to power not sex, doesn't it.
Money and/or sex are the big motivators for misbehavior, along with power. And where power is involed, it seems likely that at least one of the others is, too.
Here come the Koch bothers again. Somebody help me before I explode. I'm so sick of these super wealthy people ruling our freewill in politics. H.R. 1 has got to pass. The filibuster has got to go.
Given the fact that Kentucky just passed a law that gives the legislature the power to appoint McConnell’s replacement, I wonder if Mitch isn’t looking at indictment and therefore preparing to slither away in the dark of night and dirty money sooner rather than later.
Ugh, I can't stand the thought of him "slithering away" but he's got to go so our democracy can stay!
oh boy...
Spread the word:
HR1/S1 For the People Act stops billionaires from buying elections!
https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/inside-the-koch-backed-effort-to-block-the-largest-election-reform-bill-in-half-a-century
Thanks for slogan and link to Mayer. ❤️🤍💙
There are times that recordings are oh, so welcome.
Start a campaign to boycott the Koch fraternity's products. Publicize their holdings and their donations to Pacs, Pols etc. They have no shame but it could snowball. The only place you can really hurt these people is in their pocket.
To be clear, David Koch died at his home in Southampton, New York, on August 23, 2019, at the age of 79. Koch's wife, Julia Koch, (age 58) and their three children inherited a 42% stake in Koch Industries from Koch upon his death.
One of the Koch brothers died.
At the beginning there were 3 brothers and their father etc before them. “This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed home, this little piggy had roast beef, this little piggy had none and this little piggy cried wee wee wee all the way home. (Tom Thumb, 1760)
I always liked that story Stuart! Merci.
There were 4 brothers. David & Charles tried to cheat the oldest out of his share. "Dark Money" had an interesting chapter on it.
The fact that congressional Republicans are working to block legislation popular with their own party aptly illustrates where they are as a political entity today. That is why they are doing all they can to avoid fair, open, honest elections.
I’m really beginning to believe, with every new success by the Biden Administration, we may be witnessing the death throes of a major political party. I believe as the filibuster goes, so goes the Trump/Republican Party. It’s all they have left.
So let’s get rid of it, pass the voting rights bill, and move forward into the 21st Century.
I'll give up an AMEN to that brother. Move on people, this isn't the 18th Century.
Making voting more difficult for voters also affects the Republican voters.....another group of people that the GOP doesn't apparently want to hear from.
For the People is aptly named.
I agree with your sentiments but not your conclusion. 74 million voters wanted a man whose lies and incompetence caused at least 400,000 deaths and provoked a violent attempt to empower an autocratic government. They are still with us and if HR-1 fails to become law may well take the House and posssibly the Senate in 2022 and install an autocracy in 2024.
That is why, as I said, it is essential to pass HR-1. Without that, as you say, it can, and probably will, fall apart.
We can only hope.
In a better world, Eugene Goodman would be the face of American policing. But it is Derek Chauvin for the foreseeable future. For the sake of the country, and humanity, I hope he's convicted on the most serious charges and punished fully.
And if he isn’t prosecuted to the fullest there will be hell to pay.
I agree. If acquitted it will be a very long, "hot" summer.
Pam didn’t you live in Marblehead?
I love this! Will use that elsewhere on social media.
Neighbors in my HOA-controlled community put up a Thin Blue Line flag that failed to go through the ARC process. It stayed up and was ignored for months. I reported the violation to the Board in a Zoom meeting. At first, this lily-white community in a very red district pushed back against my concern. I explained, if allowed to stay up, the HOA can't discriminate based on messaging and they could look forward to my BLM flag going up soon if the flag remained. While the legal reasoning is dubious in this context, it apparently resonated and the flag has come down. I'm generally not in favor of an overly controlling HOA; however, in this instance, I was pleased with the outcome.
Another interesting news item today was the issue of the GOP being opposed to Covid passports. See: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-vaccine-passports-desantis/2021/03/30/eeb41124-9171-11eb-9668-89be11273c09_story.html
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was quoted: “We are not supporting doing any vaccine passports in the state of Florida,” “It’s completely unacceptable for either the government or the private sector to impose upon you the requirement that you show proof of vaccine to just simply be able to participate in normal society.”
Though I doubt DeSantis has any concerns about requiring certain proof in order to vote.
I will get a Covid Passport in just the same way as I will get a regular passport and an innoculation booklet to prove I had yellow fever immunization or any other immunization which might be required to travel. All governments require passports and some require proof of yellow fever immunization.
Marjorie Taylor Greene has called a vaccination passport "Biden's Mark of the Beast," and further notes that any company/corporation that insists on it as a requirement, will be engaging in "corporate communism." Where does she get all this rubbish from?
https://t.co/XtTvqw83tU
She is a QAnon devotee. Russia speaks to her through that microphone.
she is the congresswoman for my district in N.W.Georgia, Ms. Greene rented an apartment in Rome so she could run here, she actually lives in another district. for the most part she ran unopposed . We are a rural district that is slowly turning blue as more and more suburbs are being created here. She is an embarrassment who feeds the stereotype of the dumb redneck from Georgia
Since you are in her district, please keep us informed as to whether she will be running again in 2022 and who her opponent is. There are funding efforts to work against the "worst of the worst". For example, Bruno Amato is running against Kevin McCarthy and there are already efforts (Twitter based) to support Bruno. MTG and Matt Gaetz (if he runs again) are two additional targets. Last year I supported Gaetz's opponent who did well, just not good enough.
several so far including Dems Holly McCormack and Marcus Flowers..this is still staunch Republican district but that is rapidly changing
There should be a law against that sudden residency. My son and his family lived south of you - I met goid people there. I pray she is soundly defeated in 2022.
GOOD People!
Thank you for that update. Sending blue vibes your way!
I'm soooo sorry! You poor thing!
i will be glad when people who get up every morning wondering what is the "vilest thing I can say today", no longer profit financially or politically for trafficking hate and vitriol.
Rowshan Nemazee, she’s dumb as a bag of hammers, and is encouraged by her fellow whackadoodles to just make s**t up.
Except for the ridiculous words used to describe what she’s trying to convey, I’d say she might be talking about Americans free to choose for themselves. Just a thought.
A LOT of this crap she spouts has its roots in evangelical/fundamentalist churches that are ubiquitous here. I'm sure there's a connection there somewhere. I'm not sure what "church" she's a member of, but I can pretty much guarantee it's probably pretty wacko.
The State of Florida requires proof of measles immunity to attend public education facilities all the way through college. Funny how the governor is ok with that!
DeSantis has no idea how to govern so he doesn’t. Instead he obstructs and provides cover for his wealthy donors.
Yes but when I had a "vaccination" passport in the past it was to go to do a job in any of the countries that the previous presidential perpetraiter infamously labeled "Sh**hole Countries" for the UN/World Bank etc. where death might result for the otherwise perfectly healthy like the countries residents and not to live normally in my own community for the foreseeable future. The English do not even allow their government to impose an Identity Card never mind a health certificate. The French, who are infinitely more "dirigiste" and closely governed might it would seem be less difficult but there is significant opposition already to the very heavy curb on civil and civic rights that the epidemic has already engendered.
The G8 are now considering whether they will institute Covid passports:
https://ipolitics.ca/2021/03/29/g7-countries-agree-to-collaborate-on-vaccine-passports-hajdu/
How governments or companies chose to deal with Covid passports could affect privacy rights - true. That is particularly important to those who chose not to obtain a jab. But I don't care about my privacy on this issue any more than I am concerned about my privacy in showing my passport when I enter a country.
This is a flutter that will eventually settle out and I think that sanity will prevail and vaccination proof passports will be welcomed.
A doctor I know suggested many months ago that we should have vaccine restaurants, theatres and other businesses once the vaccines have really spread in order to buck up our economy sooner rather than later. Not a big deal to be that kind of "carrier" to begin to move our world forward again.
Why not?
All the evidence in France points to the "fact" that Cinemas, Theaters, restaurants and bars have never created hotspots of covid infection.....but they are firmly closed. The true hotspots are the family homes of one and all who have not been wearing mask etc.
Sanity will have to prevail, otherwise, Americans will likely be banned from many proof-of-vaccination countries.
Good point Lynell
But when everyone has one they will disappear as being nolonger pertinent
And that will be a great day
When I received my two Moderna vaccinations, I was told by the nurses to keep a copy of the shot record on my phone and to keep the original in a safe place WITH my passport to use for travel. This was back in February and apparently it was standard advice offered by medical personnel. The shot record is more than just a record of the vaccination - it is a record of the TYPE and the DATE which is helpful for research purposes. I suppose there will always be people who worry about being "tracked" (good luck with that - there are cameras in every nook and cranny imaginable these days), but I am appreciative that if something were to go awry with this vaccination, or if I were to acquire a variant strain after having been vaccinated, I would want that data available to perhaps keep me alive!
And at the local grocery store?
Yes, Stuart, I have had a “shot record” all of my life, as has much of the world.
Yes Cathy, some shots were obligatory others volontary...but heavily recommended. Unfortunately the last 2 attempts at making vaccination obligatory in France have been the latest Hepatitis B or C something or other vaccine which is now accused of all the sins of creation and the bureaucratic attempt to impose a consolidated vaccine of 11 vaccines for newly born when several of the individual shots were known to create significant "discomfort" for the baby...and together?. This doesn't give the system and the government much credibility especially when you add in recent "thalidamide-like" drug scandals in the country and the whole fiasco of tainted blood transfusionj supplies. As well as them "cocking up" mask supply which they said were even dangerous in the start, test kit provision and logistics, tracing systems, lockdown-open up timing and severity and now vaccine supply and distribution. The people are quite rightly pissed off and are shaping up to jump up and down seriously on their politicians and bureaucrats of all stripes.
When I traveled internationally (to Europe!) in the 1960s I had to have a certificate of vaccination for all kinds of things: cholera, typhus, smallpox . . . So the idea of a Covid passport makes a lot of sense to me. But like everything else, it is politicized because the people who claim to value "life" are really interested only in themselves.
I had one, too. I remember it was yellow and came, I think from the UN's World Health Organization. Oh, not the WHO!
A little before my time unfortunately. Although i was travelling around Europe "on my thumb" from a very early age (6ft 6in tall and 200lbs rugby physique helped solve security concerns) i didn't cross the Atlantic till I was 22 in1972. My first "health passport" was for a stay in then war-torn eastern regions of Nigeria to do a feasibility study for a brewery in 1974...locally more money went on beer than food!
Amen and me too.
The problem with Republicans like Ron DeSantis is that there is no consistency in their position. Last year he signed into legislation a requirement that government and some in the private businesses confirm employment eligibility based on immigration status:
https://miami.cbslocal.com/2020/07/01/florida-governor-signs-e-verify-legislation/
Considering our track record (USA), I'm more inclined to think other countries will want us to have proof of vaccine. And don't Republicans want to require it of others entering the US like at the Mexican border.. Anyway it's not a passport, it's just proof you've been vaccinated. If circumstances warrant, that proof may be necessary.
I hope Gaetz goes to his just deserts on Newsmax or whatever right wing tabloid agency will have him that will make him less dangerous in the halls of Congress. Whatever company hires him will get what they deserve and want.....another slimeball. The GQP will hopefully get exactly what they deserve more losses in congress both in the House and Senate.
As I watch the testimony in the George Floyd case I find myself praying that this will not go the way of almost all the previous cases brought against police officers across the country for use of excessive force....acquittal. So many cases that would have seemed easy to get a guilty verdict have gone on to acquittal.
What took my heart and threw it on the ground yesterday was the video of the Asian woman being thrown to the ground , beaten and kicked while at least two men watched from inside a building and did less than nothing. The absolute callousness of the one man walking up and closing the door while the attack went on left me once again ashamed for my countrymen and our society.
Pamela, I'm with you: I want to expose them all, including bystanders who consider the assault of an older non-white woman to be some kind of sadistic entertainment. However, as quite a few NPR journalists who are covering the Chauvin trial have been saying: the likelihood of this execrable example of pathological white male savagery being convicted--or his conviction being sustained as it goes up the appeals process--is perishingly small. What I hope is that even if acquitted the very public nature of the ways in which white men have their thumbs on the scales of justice will create a backlash against them. One result of the BLM protests: the numbers of police murdering black people have apparently gone down significantly since the summer. So the canard of the "scary" black man whom the white police officer just has to shoot to kill is exposed.
The problem is that there are SOOOOO MANY THINGS that we have to pay attention to, a lot will get and is getting lost in the morass of the daily news dump. The news might be promising with respect to the prosecution of the execrables, but how quickly will those news stories be replaced by others? Keeping this stuff in the public eye is part of the challenge we face.
I don't know if you caught the comment by the GA state trooper who arrested GA Rep Park Cannon....that he felt threatened by her, mind you she was in heels, a suit and was probably less than twice his size. He wasn't threatened by her presence..I think he was threatened by her skin color.
Pamela, one must know the ribbing the trooper is taking back at the office. And also the epithet used to describe his cowardice.
Good!
Amen
It was all on camera, and there was no resistance to his cuffing her behind her back. He then marched her backward through the door. Threatened? Really?
I know, unbelievable isn't it.
Linda, I, too, have this dark nagging sense that what is before us, appalling as it is, masks the larger, potentially more threatening issues that are bearing down on us. It's as if we are being distracted and only seeing through a pinhole. I really don't mean to be negative because there are so many good, caring things happening in spite of the dark acts. But, the manipulation of "importance" by the press and social media in search of revenues distorts reality. There seems to be two ways of looking at current history; first, what's happening in plain sight, and the second is what's happening out of sight. We only, if ever, get to know what's happening out sight, decades later and only through the rare revelations and the deeper research and understanding by historians such as the radiant HCR.
Unfortunately, here in Charlotte we had federal marshalls serving a warrant, then
killing a young black man on his 32nd birthday in front of his family. We still don't have anymore details
Oh my goodness! What did I miss?!
You missed a horrific event.
I just read about it... dear Lord... what a nightmare..
I am just checking it out now...
The murder of George Floyd was a self evident lynching, perpetrated to "teach a lesson." To all who witnessed it, the lesson was Black lives don't matter, police rule the streets, they can act with impunity, and you disrespect them at great peril. It was an act of brutality used to display dominance to the local community, and also as a teachable moment for the trainee officers on the scene.
There is an incredible amount of tension riding on the verdict of this trial. I haven't seen any mention yet of the Rodney King riots of '92. I have the feeling an acquittal here will make those look like a practice run.
Sadly I think you are correct. I am somewhat surprised that the fact that George Floyd and Chauvin knew each other and had worked together at a bar has not received much comment. It may point toward a bit of personal conflict that was ongoing even before the arrest and murder.
I felt the same about the Asian woman who is my age. If reports are accurate, the two men in the lobby are "security guards" for the apartment building and have been placed on administrative leave. Likely they will simply be recycled elsewhere by their employer.
I hope he goes to prison for life.
Gaetz that is. Oh, Chauvin, too.
And the guy kicking the Asian woman on 43rd! How are these people walking around, prancing around like they are superior to all of us! Grrrr
I can't imagine not responding to that incident. I see this in my neighborhood where Trumpers chase children who are descendents of parents from India. They scream "go back where you came from". I'm almost 69 but felt impelled to act. I organized the neighborhood to confront this with local police. So far so good but I'm hoping that good weather doesn't bring the cockroaches out of the shadows again.
You did something. If each of us takes one action.
Good for you! That’s exactly what we need!
It takes a little time to do the right thing. Thank you for spending it the right way!
That was sickening!!
Did you know that he has been captured, and was found to have been convicted of stabbing his mother to death in 2002 and was imprisoned, but was released @2018?!!!
Yes.... it really made me sick...
I'm laughing - was thinking of Supermax, not Newsmax for Gaetz. Seriously though, fingers crossed for a conviction and time for Chauvin.
I had read some time ago that MG has a rather "shady" history and that papa has been there to rescue him more than once. Perhaps this investigation will uncover what has since been buried and he will ultimately have to face the consequences.
Yes, I can picture him coming home from school in his short pants and blazer crying that 'the kids are so mean to me!!!' and his father saying, 'well come on now, we'll go visit those kids and I will give them thing or two to think about next time'!
When someone here mentioned yesterday that Trump was claiming that his insurrectionists were trading "hugs and kisses" with the Capitol Police, I thought it was a joke. Among all the other wreckage, the last President has thoroughly killed satire -- nothing could be weirder than his reality.
As for Matt Gaetz, his creepiness comes across even in still photographs, to my eyes. Somehow I suspect that no one is safe when Gaetz is feeling drunk and randy, not the teenagers next door, not the family pets.
Sorry for the excessive snark, but somehow I don't think I was ever going to get confirmed to that Cabinet position anyway...
LOL, Dan. I promise I would've voted for your confirmation!!
I wondered what was happening in England. Pet dog thefts have apparently tripled over the last year.....I guess Gaetz managed to travel.
Save the family pets from Gaetz—nice ring to it.
Thank you, as always, Dr. HCR, for your incredible, important synopsis and perspective of the day's news. I am reading an old Civil War book, "Co. Aytch" by confederate private Sam R. Watkins. Twenty years after the war, he wrote: "I see broken homes and broken hearts. I see war in all of its desolation. I see a country ruined and impoverished. I see a nation disfranchised and maltreated. I see a commonwealth forced to pay dishonest and fraudulent bonds that were issued to crush people. I see sycophants licking the boot of the country's oppressor. I see other and many wrongs perpetrated upon a conquered people...The tale is told. The world moves on, the sun shines as brightly as before, the flowers bloom as beautifully, the birds sing their carols as sweetly, the trees nod and low their leafy tops..."
So much healing still to be done.
How quickly perpetraitors who lose become self- proclaimed victims.
What a useful new word, Susan. We saw plenty of perpetraitors on Jan 6.
Even with working in the field of domestic violence, it took trump for me to recognize the tactics of the bully-victim.
What I don't understand is how so many people can't see through these guys playing the victim card.
White men always have--this is why prosecution of rape, domestic abuse, child abuse, and hate crimes in general are so difficult: the real victims are demonized and become the prosecuted while the white boyz whine about oppression and temptation.
True, a sad and effective strategy for them for a long time. Until now.
DARVO: Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender.
http://changingminds.org/explanations/behaviors/coping/darvo.htm
It's the latest chic and a sure fire winner to attract any lazy journalist; an unfortunate spin-off of the BLM, LBGetc movements. They have created a bandwagon that anyone can join.
Stuart- maybe PLM- perverts lives matter?
That is funny.
Ah, but....are they a minority? Perhaps, depends whose definition you use. But that won't stop them if you give them the idea. I have a few names to add to that list from here in France if the "victimized minority" can be international.
Wanna bet that Gaetz dad tried to buy the victims silence? Then later finding out the fbi had her wear a wire, retroactively claiming she was attempting blackmail him? The cover up will be as bad or worse than the crime.
They've probably seen it on TV. Pretty poor stuff to be classified representative of the people.
Many twists and turns yet to be revealed. All this to keep us from looking at the relationship between Gaetz and the young male assistant?
Here's Gaetz's interview with People from last June about his "son" Nestor...
https://people.com/politics/matt-gaetz-tells-story-boy-he-raised-as-a-son/
Ted I hope that your suspicions are correct!
These protest patterns of cover up and corruption just keep repeating. Bet he cops a plea to avoid a longer sentence.
I now see it differently after reading Watkins book. In 1861, to them it was industrialized vs agrarian, indentured servants vs slavery, it was all the power vs NO power. It was North vs South until he ends with "The privates" ((the subject of his book) did what they were told for the good of their "nation." Recontruction then failed them. And continues to fail the workers of this country, so a scam artist like tRump could (and still can) rev their descendents up with hate. We must respond to our brothers (in my case literally) with understanding and truth, and Biden's recovery package and Biden's infrastructure package and ... Watkins begins and ends the book with "The United States of America had no north, no south, no east, no west. Because the sun neither rises or sets., the earth simply turns on its axis...We are one and undivided."
Trump used Hitler’s “stabbed in the back” myth: Dolchstosslegende.
After World War 2, Austria adopted a “victim theory” of being victims of Hitler, having different cultural ancestry from the Germans, courting the votes of former Nazis, minimizing the Holocaust, and avoiding reparations. Children’s school books were used to perpetuate this propaganda. It took 43 years before the “victim theory” was turned around in Austria through policy and installation of Holocaust memorials.
But then there are criminals everywhere and in our case tRump fertilized them.
Awful to say but we might not have been too happy trying to get life back together again under a "carpetbagger" administrator.
I read Faulkner to understand the tragedy of the agrarian South. Absalom, Absalom! is set in Mississippi before, during. and after the war. What brings down the protagonist
Sutpen is not simply the dispossession that the obvious propagandist Watkins bewails, but rather the White racist shame of discovering Black ancestry.
Adding Faulkner to Mount Bookpile.
Oh.
The fact that Matt Gaetz was the lone House vote against a human trafficking law in 2017 is, shall we say, curious. And during his Fox interview with Tucker Carlson, he claimed the NYT reported details about the alleged extortion of his family, ruining the investigation. False. The Time reported no such thing. Curioser and curiouser.
Trafficking in human flesh (young and female of course) is exactly one of the things the DOJ is looking into with Gaetz's friend the pol in Florida
I can report that I'm aware of some residents of Escambia County Florida, which Gaetz represents, that have flipped Blue after having their eyes opened under the last administration. These folks were followers of the GQP since Reagan suckered them in. Reagan did so much damage. I'm always appalled when he's described in adoring terms.
Many sleazy rats are charismatic charmers. It works.
One hell of a news day! Your talent for capturing the facts and presenting them so keenly is just awesome. Thank you so very much!
I have not the slightest doubt that Chauvin meant to kill George Floyd, he totally knew what he was doing. As far as Matt Gates goes, that was a news treat for late in the day. I’ll bet Liz Cheney is howling, if I was her I know I would be. See you all in the morning, daytime that is, it promises to be a very interesting read.
"In the 2020 federal election cycle, dark-money groups spent more than a billion dollars. More than 654 million came from just fifteen groups, the top of which is connected to McConnell." Who are these fifteen groups and how is the top one connected to McConnell? And which party/candidates are these fifteen buying/supporting? I would assume they would be backing who they can control of any party.
Digging into Jane Mayer's article leads to her observation that dark money cuts both ways: "...the vast majority of dark money from undisclosed sources over the past decade has supported conservative causes and candidates. Democrats, however, are catching up. In 2020, for the first time in any Presidential election, liberal dark-money groups far outspent their conservative counterparts, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics..."
Center for Responsive Politics has their list of top donors to politically active nonprofits since 2008:
http://www.opensecrets.org/dark-money/top-donors
In the Top 15 are Koch/pseudo-conservative/Republican groups, as well as progressive groups, including:
Sea Change Foundation
ClimateWorks Foundation
Energy Action Fund (until 2017 the Green Tech Action Fund)
*** messaging gem: TELL EVERYONE, HR1/S1 stops billionaires from buying elections! ***
Jane Mayer also notes:
"Kyle McKenzie, the research director for the Koch-run advocacy group Stand Together, told fellow-conservatives and Republican congressional staffers on the call...that the worst thing conservatives could do would be to try to 'engage with the other side' on the argument that the legislation 'stops billionaires from buying elections.' McKenzie admitted, 'Unfortunately, we’ve found that that is a winning message, for both the general public and also conservatives.' He said that when his group tested 'tons of other' arguments in support of the bill, the one condemning billionaires buying elections was the most persuasive—people 'found that to be most convincing, and it riled them up the most.'”
We routinely complain how bad Democrats are at messaging. Well, here is the fix:
HR1/S1 For the People Act stops billionaires from buying elections!
We will still be much better of if the Dark Money from both sides goes to the government in taxes rather than going to buy ads on TV/internet/billboards etc. or for paying for the myriad of rather useless and voracious "propaganda think tanks" which offer a safe haven for politicians that people have tried to get rid of and which subvert the academic neutrality of our universities.
It's a very important understanding, to me, that the corruption by big donor money is bipartisan.
janjamm it is key to realize this. The uber rich don’t really care who they buy they just need the results. Accountability and transparency will enhance our Republic’s ability to survive.
thank you
I watch a good deal of the testimony yesterday in the trial about the death of George Floyd. On the surface, this trial appears to have a reasonable jury composition and dignified proceeding. Minneapolis is considered by several civil rights organizations to be one of the least friendly places for people of color to live. I'm not sure why, but that observation bothers me. My faith in the jury system is about 4 out of ten based on my own experience as a juror and on my 80 years of life observing it from afar, especially for people of color. I fear, perhaps irrationally, that this police officer will not be convicted. I would like to have my faith in the American court system, the jury system, restored or strengthened. I am also afraid of what will happen no matter the outcome of this trial.
Given what has happened to SCOTUS, I too am concerned. (The Federalist Society, which provides the list of ultraconservative judges, is dark money influenced. Please read this article written by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI): https://medium.com/senator-sheldon-whitehouse/the-third-federalist-society-f8a3ff2e19fd
I agree. I worry Chauvin will be acquitted, and then all hell will break loose.
I suspect it is a "perfect storm" thing in the making.