Misguided Hatred

A staffer for Republican Rep. Stephen Fincher (TN) took to Facebook this week to attack Sasha and Malia Obama, President Barack Obama’s daughters, for failing to show what she deemed to be sufficient respect for their father’s annual pardoning of a Thanksgiving turkey.

According to Gawker, Elizabeth Lauten, former new media political director for the Republican National Committee, wrote an open letter to the two girls, attacking their facial expressions and clothing choices.

“Dear Sasha and Malia,” wrote Lauten, “I get that you’re both in those awful teen years, but you’re part of the First Family, try showing a little class. At least respect the part that you play. Then again your mother and father don’t respect their positions very much, or the nation for that matter, so I’m guessing you’re coming up a little short in the ‘good role model’ department.”

She continued, “Nevertheless, stretch yourself, rise to the occasion. Act like being in the White House matters to you. Dress like you deserve respect, not a spot at a bar. And certainly don’t make faces during televised, public events.”

Both girls rolled their eyes when their father made a joke, as teen girls typically do when their father says something he thinks is funny.

Gawker’s Hudson Hondo wrote, “For most people, Sasha and Malia Obama’s spiritless appearance at this year’s White House turkey pardon was a lesson about humility, showing how even the world’s most powerful man is still just ‘ugh, Dad’ to his teenage daughters.”  (US News)

The Republican's disparaging of President Obama continues, even to the point of taking jabs at his daughters.  How quickly they forget Dubya's "youthful" arrest for DUI, as well as his daughter's alcohol related arrests.

I've always thought the "presidential pardoning" of a turkey was a bit hokey and if I was there I'd be rolling my eyes too.  But, Republican Staffer Lauten has taken the hatred of Obama to another totally misguided level.  I have no clue who Lauten is, but she certainly fits the profile of someone they can add to the Republican clown car.  

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Ferguson, Missouri Postmortem

I have purposely waited to comment on the Ferguson, Missouri shooting because I wanted to see how it all played out over time.  Now that the grand jury has ruled that Officer Wilson will not be criminally charged, that portion of the incident is over (even though he may be later charged with federal civil rights violations).

In the interest of full disclosure I will mention that after graduation from college I went into law enforcement as a uniformed police officer and later a plain clothes investigator over a period of 12 years.  Later in my career I was also the director of the state affiliate of the ACLU and obtained a postgraduate degree in Paralegal Studies.  

I do not think I am qualified to pass judgment in the Wilson case, even though I have read Wilson’s entire grand jury testimony.  I do, however, feel I am qualified to comment from a police perspective, as well as a civil rights perspective.  

In many airplane crashes they determined that a combination of fatal factors contribute to the crash. I think a number of factors contributed to the Ferguson shooting and resulting protests.

1)  Media 

Most obvious is the quick and comprehensive media coverage.  I don’t fault the media for doing their job.  I do fault the media viewers for not thinking critically and independently.  Many are quick to opine without knowing all the facts.  That is why I waited to comment until more facts were available.  Unfortunately (or fortunately, as the case may be), continued daily media coverage stokes the sensationalism. 

2)  Militarization of Police

Years back when I was a police officer there was a notion of policing called “community policing”, which essentially sought to have police officers as a part of the community.  Kind of a “precincts” concept, but more in depth.  Even in large cities an effort was made to get police officers out of the central command building and into facilities in the neighborhoods.  Officers were encouraged to get out the car and talk to people - like walking a beat in the old days. As a young officer I thought this was a good idea and found that walking the streets, especially the downtown area, was beneficial.  But, that concept was short-lived.   

We have gotten away from community policing, for whatever reasons, including tight budgets, fewer officers covering more territory, laziness, etc.  Over time this has led to an attitude of “us vs. them.”  Even worse, police departments have become more militarized (see my blog entry “War On Us”, June 25, 2014).  A uniformed police officer is striking in appearance, as they should be, however a police officer with a buzz haircut and jackboots is intimidating.  

3)  Affirmative Action

As the conservatives have taken over in this country, including the Supreme Court, stalwart civil rights laws have been overturned, including affirmative action in public employment  and education.  They throw out the catch phrase “reverse discrimination” and when applied to the hiring of police it insures that a majority of police officers will be white, even in predominately minority communities like Ferguson.  I believe this is a mistake.  I do not think whites are intimidated by a black or hispanic police officer, but blacks and hispanics are clearly intimidated by a white officer - and for good reason.

There is sufficient evidence that targeting and profiling of minorities exists.  A good example is Maricopa County, Arizona where the courts have determined just that and placed the Sheriff’s Department under a court order to cease profiling of minorities (see my blog post “Reining In Joe”, October 3, 2013).

4)  Deadly Force

As part of my police training we attended classes on deadly force.  Back then it was titled “Shoot, don’t shoot.”  They used a roll up screen and projector to play out scenarios of when to shoot and when not to shoot.  Today I’m sure that seems simplistic, but the videos, along with classroom instructions, sticks out in my mind as the most important part of the training.  I have no idea what the training involves today and it is no doubt far more sophisticated.  I still wonder if it is enough today.

In my blog post “A War On Us” I wrote the following, “When we were in the Southwest this past winter there seemed to be an unusual amount of police shootings.  Most noticeable was Albuquerque, where the police department allegedly has a history of aggressive and unwarranted shootings .

Records show that 26 people have been killed by city police in Albuquerque since 2010, a per capita rate of officer-involved deaths higher than New York City and Chicago. Forty people have been wounded by police over the same period of time. So far, the city has paid out $30 million in settlements and officials acknowledge that amount will grow.  (CNN)”

Even as recently as November 23rd, a 12-year-old Cleveland, Ohio boy was shot and killed by a first year rookie police officer. Police say the boy was holding a replica gun resembling a semiautomatic pistol.  Even though they had the protection of the police car and there were two officers, within seconds of arriving one officer made the decision to shoot.  

Granted there is more media coverage, but it seems to me aggressive police actions and shootings are increasing.  The power of arrest assumes an awesome responsibility, but the use of deadly force assumes an even higher duty to act judiciously. 

5)  Grand Jury

The grand jury's functional independence from the judicial branch is evident both in the scope of its power to investigate criminal wrongdoing, and in the manner in which that power is exercised. Unlike [a] [c]ourt, whose jurisdiction is predicated upon a specific case or controversy, the grand jury can investigate merely on suspicion that the law is being violated, or even because it wants assurance that it is not. United States v. R. Enterprises, 498 U.S. 292 (1991) 

It need not identify the offender it suspects, or even the precise nature of the offense it is investigating. Blair v. United States, 250 U.S. 273 (1919)

The grand jury requires no authorization from its constituting court to initiate an investigation, see Hale, supra, 201 U.S., at 59-60, 65, 26

Nor does the prosecutor require leave of court to seek a grand jury indictment.

And in its day-to-day functioning, the grand jury generally operates without the interference of a presiding judge. See Calandra, supra, 414 U.S., at 343, 94 S.Ct., at 617

It swears in its own witnesses and deliberates in total secrecy, Fed.Rule Crim.Proc. 6(c), United States v. Sells Engineering, Inc., 463 U.S., at 424-425, 103 S.Ct., at 3138.

The point of these citations is that the grand jury is independent of any other judicial or governmental proceedings and that they have wide latitude.  They are essentially charged with determining if there is probable cause for a suspect to be charged with a crime.  In most cases a grand jury is impanelled and guided by the prosecuting attorney.  This is fundamentally questionable.

In the Ferguson case, Prosecutor McCulloch allowed Wilson to testify for hours and made sure the grand jury was aware of every possible piece of evidence that could benefit Wilson. After the grand jury decision, McCulloch explained that the refusal to indict resulted from the combination of contradictory eyewitness testimony and other exculpatory evidence. Many legal experts contend that the way the prosecutor presented the evidence virtually guaranteed that there would be no indictment, and therefore no trial. 

McCulloch’s final instructions to the jurors was, “You must find probable cause to believe that Darren Wilson did not act in lawful self-defense and you must find probable cause to believe that Darren Wilson did not use lawful force in making an arrest. If you find those things, which is kind of like finding a negative, you cannot return an indictment on anything or true bill unless you find both of those things. Because both are complete defenses to any offense and they both have been raised in his, in the evidence.”

Years back when I was a deputy sheriff three robbery suspects were being pursued by an adjoining county deputy and they came into our county.  The suspect vehicle was stopped on the side of the highway switching license plates when I witnessed the other deputy shoot at the vehicle as it sped away.  He clearly knew other officers were in the area and in pursuit, including me. 

I pursued the vehicle and once it crashed in an open field one suspect got out and ran.  I did not shoot at him because there was no where he could go far on foot and there was another suspect in the car.  When I approached the car I saw that he was dead from a shotgun blast from the other deputy.  I radioed for an independent state patrol investigator.  When the sheriff from the other county arrived he told me he canceled my call for an investigator and to fill out an motor vehicle accident report.  I refused, telling him I knew a fatal gunshot wound from a vehicle accident.  He got aggressive, but I told him he was now standing in my county and to back off.  Long story short, I prevailed.  

But, that isn’t the end of the story. The next day I was told by the county attorney to go out and find some men who could serve on a grand jury.  When they did meet they ruled the shooting as justified within a few hours.  The grand jury was guided by the county attorney and no other attorney was present to give additional evidence.

Conclusion

I believe the Ferguson shooting was a direct result of fatal circumstances, including a overwhelming white police department in a predominantly black community, thanks in part to conservative courts overturning reasonable affirmative action in hiring of police officers to more fairly represent society. 

I believe Officer Wilson exercised inexcusable judgment in the use of deadly force,  notwithstanding that he was stopping someone suspected of theft.  Only he knows why he opted for his gun instead of his mace. He had already called for back up and should have waited to conduct a chase.

I believe the militarization of the police has led to an “us vs. them” mentality and abandoned community policing which has created a huge chasm between police and the public.

I believe the grand jury process is flawed and skewed unfairly toward the interests of the prosecutor, especially in police shootings. 

These are all circumstances which will contribute to more fatal police shootings in the future, unless changes are made.  

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Forced To Fail

Here we go again.  The detractors of the Affordable Care Act have initiated round two in the Supreme Court and since it takes four justices to admit a case, it appears that it will once again come down to one justice.  If the appeal succeeds, it will deprive millions of Americans of tax-credit subsidies to help them afford health insurance coverage.

The Supreme Court will issue a ruling by the end of June in the case, in which the plaintiffs have appealed a July ruling by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that upheld the subsidies.

At issue is whether the subsidies - a vital component of Obama's 2010 Affordable Care Act, known widely as Obamacare - should be available in all 50 states, or only in some states.

Obamacare set up health insurance exchanges and a system of subsidies to help people afford insurance premiums. The plaintiffs say the language of the law restricts subsidy availability to states that run their own insurance exchanges.

The legal question rests on a phrase in the law that authorizes subsidies for coverage purchased via an "exchange established by the state." The battle is over whether that phrase means subsidies are not available through the federally-run exchange.

If the court found the plaintiff's interpretation to be correct, the subsidies would not be available in 36 states that lack their own health insurance exchanges. In those states, the federal government runs the exchanges.  (Reuters)

The reason 36 states do not have exchanges is because they are controlled by Republicans, plain and simple.  Rather than cooperate on any kind of national health insurance, they refused to implement the exchanges out of spite.  So, what we have now is a half-ass system of universal health insurance, when the only true universal health insurance would be single payer.  With single payer everyone would be covered and we could eliminate the billions of dollars spent on Medicare, Medicaid and VA health insurance.

What this means for my wife and me is that we are once again in the lurch.  When the ACA started there were glitches in the sign up period and long story short, we decided to stay on a group plan we were already enrolled in.  The plan has a $260 annual membership fee and costs us just over $1000 each month, which is a big hit to our monthly retirement funds and is not tax deductible.

Once again we are caught in the lurch, especially since we are in one of the states that has a Republican Governor and Legislature that refused to implement an exchange.  If we sign up for the ACA and the Supreme Court rules that only states with an exchange are eligible for reimbursement, then we will not be admitted back on our current group plan. 

Instead of what is in the best interest of “we the people”, Congress and the health care industry and insurance lobbyists have made sure that their interests are protected.  They are making sure that the Affordable Care Act is forced to fail.

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Followup To Rick Doyle On Net Neutrality

A couple of days ago Rick Doyle did an excellent post about net neutrality (here) and why we, as internet users, should care.  President Obama has called for FCC regulations.  Of course, some in Congress have come out in opposition.  I wondered why anyone in Congress could oppose what is good for us and what the chances are that we would see any regulations.  A recent article may provide some answers to my questions.

Just released campaign contributions received by the Congressmen who will hear testimony from the four major telecom companies (Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Verizon and AT&T) paint a telling picture.  Both Republicans and Democrats received $8 million in this year's election alone, including those on committees who have oversight of the industry.

The Committee on Energy and Commerce and especially the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology are responsible for the oversight of the FCC.  When representatives of the telecom giants appear before Congress to testify on why net neutrality regulation is bad, remember that they are the same people who have donated a boatload of money to the people who will asking the questions.

Below is a chart that shows what the four major telecom companies paid to House representatives who oversee the regulation of those companies:

Below is a chart for the Senate Subcommittee:

In fact, the intimidation has already started.  Reuter's reported that AT&T is halting plans to bring faster internet service to nearly 100 cities until industry regulators make a decision on how to best regulate the Internet and Web traffic.

AT&T’s CEO Randall Stephenson told investors Wednesday the company “can’t go out and invest that kind of money deploying fiber to 100 cities not knowing under what rules those investments will be governed.”  “We think it is prudent to just pause and make sure we have line of sight and understanding as to what those rules would look like.”

Rick made the case in his blog for why net neutrality is important and FCC regulations are needed.  However, if everything stays the same in Congress with money controlling the outcome, I doubt we will see any regulations.  Congress has a 14% approval rating, yet 95% incumbents were reelected. Who out there thinks anything will change?  

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Wool Over The Eyes

Element Electronics, located in South Carolina, says they are the only American-owned and American-assembled television company. 

They box up their TV’s in red, white and blue packaging with a waving American flag and the slogan “America Matters” on the front and the phrase “assembled in the USA” on the boxes. 

Problem is, the TV’s aren’t made in the USA as implied by Element Electronics and they are barely assembled here.  They are made in China and shipped to Element Electronics nearly fully assembled.  All Element Electronics employees do is unscrew a plastic panel, install a Chinese-made motherboard, close the panel, and return the TVs to their patriotic packaging so that they can be shipped out to Walmart, Target, Meijer, Sam’s Club, and QVC.

The patriotic packaging helps Element Electronics do business with Walmart as part of the retailer’s quarter-trillion-dollar “Made in USA” initiative.  The Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) has touted Element Electronics as an example of manufacturing jobs returning to the U.S.  A complaint has been filed with the FTC asking for for an injunction barring Element from saying that their televisions are assembled stateside.  A product cannot be advertised as assembled in America, according to FTC rules, unless it undergoes a “substantial transformation” on U.S. soil.

Element President Michael O’Shaughnessy told the Wall Street Journal in July that the company has plans to establish a more extensive and complex operation in South Carolina over the next few years as more parts start to be manufactured in America. He also told the newspaper that the conveyor belts and other hardware that make up the physical assembly line in South Carolina were themselves manufactured in China and installed by Chinese engineers.

Looks to me like Element Electronics is trying to pull a fast one.  What’s the old saying about pulling the wool over someone's eyes?

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Richard From British Columbia Gets It

Well said Richard.

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Advertising Bloated World

I added a small icon to the right in this blog that says, "Ad Free."  I can understand wanting to make some pocket change with ads in a blog, and while that isn't as annoying as someone who puts a paypal "donate" button on their blog, it is advertising in a world bloated with ads.

Years ago, before cable and satellite television, advertising was necessary to support stations.  There were less ads then and they weren't as frequent in programming.  Nowadays if you want to watch a one hour program you have to endure 10-15 minutes of ads.  At the very beginning of cable and satellite it was called "pay tv" and the talk was that there would be fewer ads, because after all, you would be "paying" for television.  To this day I've never been able to accept that I have to "pay" for television and sit through ads on programs I am paying to watch.

That brings me to ads on websites and blogs.  Nothing against bloggers who have ads - I just find most advertising a nuisance.  Now it has come to the point where some websites have so many ads, especially the little box ads with a movie, that is takes so long for the ads to load before the main part of the website that it is a real pain.  I'm not a computer geek or techno-nerd, but I did find a spiffy Chrome app that may solve the problem.  It is call "Adblock" and can be found at the "Chrome Store" (I didn't even know Chrome had a store).  Once you get there type in "ad block" in the search and you can select the free ad blocker.  

I'm going to give this ad blocker a whirl and see if it works.  If it does, it will eliminate some of the obnoxious ads in an already advertising bloated world. 

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A Weekend For The Birds

After the Verizon fiasco trying to set up a plan all week (hopefully when we get the new bill we won't be shocked), we decided to hook up the camper on Friday and drive into Lincoln for an indoor antique and flea market Saturday.  The show was at the event center where they have electric hookups for RV's.

The show opened up at 8:00 and I was up and ready by 7:00.  My wife said I was nuts and she wasn't going to go over that early.  I was one of the first ones in the door and wandered around for about an hour until my wife showed up.  

There were a lot of bargains, but mostly stuff we didn't need.  I did, however, pickup a model tank kit.  As readers of this blog know, for the past few winters I restored old antique wind up clocks to pass the long winter days (what's that old say about idle hands and the devil's workshop?).  Since the house is full of clocks, I decided I need something else to work on when stuck indoors before we head south this year.  So, I guess I'll try putting together a model.  We'll see how that goes.

At the same time as the antique/flea market show there was a free farm bird show/contest going on next door.  Chickens, ducks, geese, pigeons and guinea fowl were in rows and rows of cages on display.  I didn't realize there were so many different breeds of exotic chickens.

  

I suppose it takes a special interest to like a farm bird show, but it was as much fun as the antique/flea market.  I guess it was a weekend for the birds.

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