Politics Plus

I can't say it has been a slow week for outrage – rather the reverse, but so much of the material calling for outrage has actually gotten publicity I don't want to rehash it for the ladies. They can get overloaded too, you know. This, though, seems to me to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with it. As a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. These roughly translate as "unceasing," "grudging," and "vengeful destruction."

It's not unusual for a very wealthy person to be completely lacking in understanding of how most people live.  It is, perhaps, noteworthy when one openly voices that lack of understanding so openly, and so clearly showing his opinion that most of us are simply not grateful enough.  Steve Schwartzman is such a man.   

DAVOS, Switzerland — As income inequality and healthcare costs rise in the United States and as an economic slowdown may be on the horizon, one of the world’s richest men expressed surprise that U.S. voters seem so angry in advance of the 2016 presidential election. Speaking at a gathering of corporate and government leaders in Switzerland, Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman told Bloomberg Television that he is bewildered about why Americans seem so discontented.

“I find the whole thing astonishing and what’s remarkable is the amount of anger whether it’s on the Republican side or the Democratic side,” the Wall Street mogul said at the World Economic Forum in Davos. “Bernie Sanders, to me, is almost more stunning than some of what’s going on in the Republican side. How is that happening, why is that happening?”

Yes, why would average Americans be upset when everything is going so good for me? My butler's servant says the poor are happy to toil in the sweatshops.

Schwarzman’s private equity firm, Blackstone, manages — and makes fees from — billions of dollars of pensioners’ assets, and was recently fined by federal regulators for not properly disclosing fee terms to its investors. The investors harmed by Blackstone’s conduct included public retirement systems in California, Florida and New Jersey…

Schwarzman has made national headlines likening tax increases on the wealthy to the Nazi invasion of Poland.

Actually, this type of talk does sound terribly familiar.  One can find it many places in literature.  After several in the comment section after the article referenced Dickens, the author added his own comment with this quote from A Tale of Two Cities:  

  "Pardon, Monsieur the Marquis!" said a ragged and submissive man, "it is a child."
  "Why does he make that abominable noise? Is it his child?"
  "Excuse me, Monsieur the Marquis—it is a pity—yes."
  The fountain was a little removed; for the street opened, where it was, into a space some ten or twelve yards square.   As the tall man suddenly got up from the ground, and came running at the carriage, Monsieur the Marquis clapped his hand for an instant on his sword-hilt.
  "Killed!" shrieked the man, in wild desperation, extending both arms at their length above his head, and staring at him.   "Dead!"
   The people closed round, and looked at Monsieur the Marquis. There was nothing revealed by the many eyes that looked at him but watchfulness and eagerness; there was no visible menacing or anger. Neither did the people say anything; after the first cry, they had been silent, and they remained so. The voice of the submissive man who had spoken, was flat and tame in its extreme submission. Monsieur the Marquis ran his eyes over them all, as if they had been mere rats come out of their holes.
He took out his purse.
  "It is extraordinary to me," said he, "that you people cannot take care of yourselves and your children. One or the other of you is for ever in the way. How do I know what injury you have done my horses. See! Give him that."
  He threw out a gold coin for the valet to pick up, and all the heads craned forward that all the eyes might look down at it as it fell   The tall man called out again with a most unearthly cry, "Dead!"

Truthfully, I suppose this kind of what is often called "tone deafness" is all too common and may not deserve having all three of you – um, counsel him.  The problem is, the tone deafness is so engrained now that it will take all three of you to make a dent in it – if, indeed, all three of you is enough.  But I hope you will try.  Thank you.    

Oh, wait – there is just one other little thing.  It's this Ted Sessoms, the pastor of the Arbor Springs Baptist Church in Samantha Alabama.  He sent out a letter to make sure that everyone knows, with regard to Syrian refugees, that (his) "God gave specific instructions to destroy these people (even their women, children and animals)."  He explains how this applies to Muslims, who "are not victims when it comes to their lifelong hatred of us and our belief in Christ."  (So apparently he is not aware, or doesn't care, that a large and disproportionate number of the present refugees are Christians.  Or, for that matter, that the Founding Fathers of our nation wrote widely on how one of the benefits of separating church and state was that it would grant equality to Muslims and Hindus.)

In commenting on this article, "Out There" says, "Really that’s funny God and I had tea the other day and she told me for a fact that helping out refugees made her very happy. I would guess that Pastor Ted has tune into the wrong channel again he is getting his info from the right-wing favorite source the Lucifer channel. Seem his kind get confused rather easily they just don’t seem to know the different between the Heaven and Hell channels."  I believe you ladies are just the ones who can improve his education and clarity.  Thanks again.

We'll be back next time.  Have a good week, everyone.

(Bonus video – IF it works – if not, the URL is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibuNJteJEH0 – and let me know in a comment.)

Just one thing this week which seems to me to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with. Just as a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. These roughly translate as "unceasing," "grudging," and "vengeful destruction."

The thing is, ladies, this guy lives just the up the street and around the corner from me.  (OK, the "street" is I-25 and the "corner" is the interchange with I-70, but he's still in my state.)  His name is Jerry Sonnenberg.       

He is in a position of authority, to which he was elected by the people who live around him.  (Many of them voted to "secede" from the state a while ago.  Maybe you could chase them all into Kansas.  Not everyone there, just those who voted for him, would be fine.)

Recently our President gave a speech about putting some reatrictions on guns – I know you don't need them for your work, but I'm sure you know what they are.  They kill people.  That's what they are made to do is kill people.  Unless they are killing animals.  They are not like swords and spears; they kill from a distance; sometimes a very long distance.  And they aren't limited to killing one person at a time.  Some can kill many prople with just one motion.  And people here have been using them to do just that.  A little over three years ago, one person used a few of them to kill six adults and 20 tiny children in their achool. 

When our President referred to that incident, he had tears in his eyes.  The tears that this Sonnenberg person wants to use as gun oil to lubricate his rifle.

Our President is a humble man.  He doesn'r grab publicity for a lot of the things he does.  So it's possible, maybe even likely, that this Sonnenberg person didn't know this about him.  But when he went to Sandy Hook after those 26 deaths, this is what he did, as described by an eyewirness:

I went downstairs to greet President Obama when he arrived, and I provided an overview of the situation. “Two families per classroom … The first is … and their child was … The second is … and their child was … We’ll tell you the rest as you go.”

The president took a deep breath and steeled himself, and went into the first classroom. And what happened next I’ll never forget.

Person after person received an engulfing hug from our commander in chief. He’d say, “Tell me about your son. … Tell me about your daughter,” and then hold pictures of the lost beloved as their parents described favorite foods, television shows, and the sound of their laughter. For the younger siblings of those who had passed away—many of them two, three, or four years old, too young to understand it all—the president would grab them and toss them, laughing, up into the air, and then hand them a box of White House M&M’s, which were always kept close at hand. In each room, I saw his eyes water, but he did not break.

And then the entire scene would repeat—for hours. Over and over and over again, through well over a hundred relatives of the fallen, each one equally broken, wrecked by the loss. After each classroom, we would go back into those fluorescent hallways and walk through the names of the coming families, and then the president would dive back in, like a soldier returning to a tour of duty in a worthy but wearing war. We spent what felt like a lifetime in those classrooms, and every single person received the same tender treatment. The same hugs. The same looks, directly in their eyes. The same sincere offer of support and prayer.

I would say our President earned every tear that was shed during that speech.  I would speak differently about this Sonnenberg person.  But I will let Amy Runyon-Harms, the director of the group Progress Now Colorado, say it for me instead: 

"Thanks to Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, the right wing’s boundless contempt for the President is now an insult to the victims he wept for.  Sen. Sonnenberg is a disgrace to the Colorado Senate, and to the victims and survivors of mass shootings that have occurred in our state,  We want President Obama and all victims of gun violence to know that Jerry Sonnenberg does not speak for Colorado.”

Alecto, Megaera, Tisiphone – I don't care which of you takes this guy on, or if you all want to share the job.  Just – get him out of here.  Thanks.

The offensive photo has been removed from the story; but I had seen it and found a copy.  I thought the Erinyes needed to see it.  The photo of ammosexual Sonnenberg handling his – ahem – is from the story.  Amy Runyon-Harms is better looking; her photo is a publicity still from PBS.

The Erinyes and I will be back with more new material when we can.  See you then.

More incidents which seem to me to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with. Just as a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. These roughly translate as "unceasing," "grudging," and "vengeful destruction."

I ask Megaera to turn her attention with me to the small college town of Prairie View, TX, the home of Prairie View A&M University, which was the alma mater of Sandra Bland, and which had just hired her as a summer program associate, the day she was stopped by a state trooper, ostensibly for failure to signal a lane change.

From some video footage of the event, it appears that the lane change to which the officer was referring in the stop was the change of lane she made because he had gone past her going the opposite direction, turned around, turned on flashers and siren, and appeared to want her to stop, which she did.

Now why might an officer stop a driver for failure to signal a lane change which was at his orders (which appears to be expecting the driver to be psychic)?  Well,

Texas has no state income tax, and money for social services must come from somewhere. Gouging people with traffic tickets and criminal convictions is an easy way for the state, counties, and municipalities to collect lots of money.

They do it through a byzantine schedule of fees. The state keeps most of the money, but counties and cities retain a percentage. There’s a $25 “records-management” fee, for instance. A $15 “judicial fund” fee. Fifteen dollars added to each bail-bond payment. The list goes on, with scores of charges. As a former Waller County Justice of the Peace described it, a trivial infraction can rack up charges totaling as much as $500.

The most arbitrary pinch comes from what’s known in Texas as the “Consolidated Court Cost.” Added to a fine, it’s a fixed amount imposed upon everyone who pleads guilty or is convicted of any offense, no matter how small. The fee is $40 for a non-jailable misdemeanor like a traffic ticket, $83 for a higher-level misdemeanor, and $133 for a felony.

Note that the author of this article even says this is grudging, although she spells it "gouging."  She refers to the Texas Fair Defense Project, which aims to "challenge policies that jail poor people because they can’t afford bail-bond fees and post-conviction fines and costs."

What I would like is for someone to explain to me how it can be considered profitable to sock poor people with fees and costs which are uncollectable, and therefore end up keeping them in jail, which costs something and brings in nothing.  I think they are doing it wrong.  Perhaps Megaera should be explaining to the state of Texas exactly how wrong they are doing it.  (BTW, Prairie View A&M itself actually gets a lot of what monies they do collect.  Ironic, isn't it?)

One thing Alecto is probably used to by now is fraud and hypocrisy from right wing candidates for election and from their election teams.  In fact, she is probably as tired of it as I am.  But, poor thing, it's her job. 

You may remember over the past few weeks Katrina Pierson, the National Spokesperson for the Trump campaign, discussing Trump's ideas for dealing with Muslims, and, when asked if those ideas were not discriminatory, saying "So what?  They're Muslims."  A real sweetie.  She got some more attention in the past few days wearing a necklace made out of bullets – not to bring attention to 90 Americans fatally shot each day; just, apparently, as a fashion statement.  Criticized, she responded "Maybe I'll wear a fetus next time."

She did herself, in 2014, run for Congress in Texas in 2014, but her campaign was derailed by revelations that, not only was she once arrested for shoplifting in JC Penney's, but that in 2012 and 2013, while working as a consultant for Ted Cruz's campaign, she had collected at least $11,000.00 in unemployment benefits.  Golly gee.

So, you think Trump keeps her around to make himself look honest by comparison?  That is also an old, old story. 

Tisiphone usually gets the ones that are covered with blood – and this week is no exception.  Here's the headline: "Sadistic Cops Make K-9 Maul Unarmed Suicidal Teen – Caught Planning and Celebrating It in Texts," and I'm sorry to say that every word of that is borne out with fact.  I'll make the picture small, but it is still ugly, ugly, ugly.

The mother of 18-year-old Jared Lemay of North Port, FL learned that he was about to commit suicide, and called police, presumably to stop this from happening.  Instead – the K-9 unit's lead handler texted to another handler to come and join in.  "COME GET UR BITE."  This handler, you see, was new, and his dog had not yet bitten anyone.

The police entered the garage where the teen, hearing their arrival, had hidden in a trash can.  One officer lifted the can lid, saw the teen, repaced the lid, and forcefully pushed over the can so that the teen fell out.  At that moment, the new handler sicced the new dog.  Jared received injuries to his face and back.

After Jared was taken to the emergency room, another officer texted the new handler "CONGRATS" (for his dog's first bite).

Over a four year period, the K-9 handlers of the North Port Police Department commanded their dogs to attack more than the K-9 handlers of Sarasota, Bradenton, Palmetto, Venice, and Punta Gorda COMBINED.

Charles Mesloh, a former K-9 handler for the Venice Police Department, called Bush’s messages to Dietz “horrifying” and said a serious investigation is warranted.

“This is people deciding in advance deciding how they’re going to hurt someone,” said Mesloh. “In my opinion it should be investigated by the Department of Justice. I have defended agencies accused of civil rights violations in the past, and I have never seen anything that has approached what I have seen in this report.”  (emphasis mine)

By the way, although there is never any shortage of material for the Furies, I will not be doing it every week going forward.  Maybe I should say, "Because there is no shortage of material."  Human beings can only stand so much outrage, and this is an election year.

More incidents which seem to me to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with. Just as a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. These roughly translate as "unceasing," "grudging," and "vengeful destruction."

One thing many US women hoped after Roe v Wade was handed down in 1973. was that the era of coat hangers was over – except, of course, for hanging clothes.  But it has turned out to be unceasing.   

Raw Story:  A Tennessee woman who tried to abort her own pregnancy in September has been charged with first degree attempted murder.  (It doesn't get much rawer than that, does it?

Detective Tommy Roberts determined that 31-year-old Anna Yocca attempted to “self-abort” her pregnancy in September.  Police said that Yocca filled her bathroom tub with hot water, got in and then “took a coat hanger and attempted to self-abort her pregnancy.”  Roberts wrote that Yocca became “concerned about her safety” after she lost a lot of blood. She was taken to Saint Thomas Rutherford Hospital by her boyfriend.

She didn't deny that she wanted to end her pregnancy.  "However, doctors were able to save the baby, which weighed only 1.5 pounds at birth. It will reportedly need medical care for the rest of its life because of damage done to the lungs, heart and eyes during the abortion attempt." 

A grand jury indicted her last week.  She is of course in jail; workers at Amazon fulfillment centers can't afford bail, even were their wages not getting stolen, and certainly not $200,000.00 bail.  Alecto, I see three individuals or groups here.  First, the doctors who thought it was a good idea to keep a 1.5 pound baby alive in those circumstances.  Second, Detective Roberts.  Third, the grand jury.  Perhaps you can try to — um, reason with all three.

That story also had an element if grudging women the right to be human.  This story, from Equality Now, also has an element of unceasing, since FGM has been going on for literally centuries.  But I am focusing on the element here of the grudging of justice.  It was a doctor who performed the FGM from which 13-year old Sahir al-Batea died.  Her father, who took her to the clinic for the procedure, and Dr. Raslan Fadl, who performed it, were both charged.  It is illegal – a criminal offense since 2008.

Both Dad and Doctor were tried and acquitted, but the prosecution appealed, and on January 26, 2015, the appeals court sentenced Dr Fadl to two years and three monthe – three months for performing FGM and two years for manslaughter.  (Dad was given a three month suspended sentence.)  OK, I hear you say "That's not enough," and I concur, but it would at least be something IF he were serving it.  He never reported to prison, he was never remanded to prison, he has not served a day.  His clinic, which was to be closed for a year, was never closed, and he has been performing FGM daily.  Megaera, I hear Egypt is lovely this time of year.

And now to Kentucky, where a "Christian"-run homeless shelter is exercising vengeful destruction of women, and children as well.  The vengeful here is not REvenge, just common or garden variety hate and fear.  At least I understand that to be the case.  If there is in fact any fancied revenge, that would be a whole other ball of neuroses.

Billy Woodward, the cold-hearted Emergency Christian Ministries Director, defended the ban and justified it by saying it is based on teachings in the Bible.  Furthermore, Woodward claims that his actions were not “biased or prejudiced whatsoever.” He reasoned that homeless women were utilizing the shelter as an impromptu dating or hookup service that he was not having any part of, “They say, ‘We’re homeless, maybe we can find somebody, a mate or something.’ They want to meet or slip in a room occasionally and we can’t have that."

Tisiphone, I realize that Megaera and Alecto could also have an interest, but they are busy right now.  I know you can handle it.

I should let everyone know that I do not intend to run an article in this series next week. It is too close to Christmas, and it can get too depressing, and besides, we are probably all busy with much happier things.