Racism – Page 19 – Politics Plus

Open Thread April 15, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:37 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics, Religion

Apr 152022

Yesterday I overslept – the only surpise there is that it didn’t happen sooner after the weekend. But at least I had gotten pretty well caught up the previous day, so I was able to keep up.

Cartoon

Short Takes –

Why ‘bad’ ads appear on ‘good’ websites – a computer scientist explains
Quote – Programmatic advertising is a powerful tool that allows advertisers to target and reach people on a huge range of websites. As a doctoral student in computer science, I study how malicious online advertisers take advantage of this system and use online ads to spread scams or malware to millions of people. This means that online advertising companies have a big responsibility to prevent harmful ads from reaching users, but they sometimes fall short.
Click through for more detailed explanation, I used to see people in comments complaining about site advertising (and assuming everyone else was seeing what they were seeing) on a daily basis Nowadays I don’t. But the problem is still real – in fact worse, because not it has infested newsletters (from large sites which use a mail service to send them out.) Not that anyone here ever does … but never click on an ad in a newsletter, even from a trusted site.

Dr. Seuss’ Banned Anti-War ‘The Butter Battle Book’ Is Now a Netflix Kids’ Show
Quote – Written in 1984, The Butter Battle Book centered around the war between an orange race called Zooks and a blue race called Yooks. Their countries were divided by a wall over a disagreement on which was the right way to butter bread: Yooks preferred them butter-side up while the Zooks preferred butter-side down. Given the time of the book’s publication, The Butter Battle Book was considered a direct commentary on the Cold War. Seuss unapologetically delved into exploring the consequences of nationalism and the nature of war via the military-industrial complex. Most of the book focused on a heated arms race that got so deadly, it ended with a dour, open-ended conclusion.
Click through for synopsis of original, synopsis of adaptation, and a trailer (plus a link to a John Olver video torching Ted Cruz ove Dr. Seuss which is probably not new.) Theodor Geisel was not a perfect person … but his propensity for making people think (which too many people don’t like) was a great gift.

truthout (OpEd) – Republicans Refuse to Name Courthouse After Black Judge in Overtly Racist Move
Quote – Hatchett retired from the court in 1999 and went into private practice. He passed away last year at age 88, a widely praised and highly admired jurist. “Joe Hatchett is a person who lives and has lived by the ethical precepts which have historically guided the conduct of truly great judges and lawyers of our past and present,” said former American Bar Association (ABA) President Chesterfield Smith when Hatchett was awarded the Florida Supreme Court Historical Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award. “Joe Hatchett to me exemplifies what is best in an American judge, one who is sometimes lonely, but one who never shirks standing alone.”
Click through for full opinion. Yes, this is truthout, and yes, truthout is pretty far left. Bu there’s only one phrase in it I could conceivably disagree with, and that because it is too kind to Republicans. See what you think.

Food For Thought:

Video Thread 4/8/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:25 pm Open Thread, Politics

Apr 082022

Glenn Kirschner – Ivanka Trump testifies to Jan. 6 committee. If truthful, her testimony would incriminate her father

Meidas Touch – Republican SHAMED for most racist campaign ad to date!!

The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party

MSNBC – GOP Smears Political Opponents As ‘Pro-Pedophile’: The QAnon Part Out Loud

Robert Reich – Full Testimony Regarding Corporate Profits and Inflation to Senate Budget Committee (Yes, this is long for this thread. But it is under 20 minutes, and the circumsytances are special.)

Stray Labrador Won’t Let Rescuers Near Her Puppies

Beau – Let’s talk about crime and peacekeepers in Ukraine….

Open Thread April 4, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:46 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Apr 042022

Yesterday, I actually managed to place a grocery order in themorning and schedule it for this evening. And it actually came a little after six (I asked fror a window from 6-8) and by 8 I hadeverything that neded to be put away, put awat. And no substitutes. A couple of things missing or shorted, and the dishwashing liquid leaked over a bunch of things, but didn’t actually destroy anything, just made them icky to put away.

Cartoon 04 MLK loaded

Short Takes –

Crooks & Liars – Fortenberry, Convicted Liar And Thin-skinned Bully, Resigns
Quote – Nebraska Republican Congressman Jeff Fortenberry is a convicted liar who has now resigned. Good. But he has never been held accountable for abusing the power of his office to hunt down and threaten the jobs of people who criticized him with a joke. You might remember his Chief of Staff made national news for threatening a state university professor for LIKING a Facebook post of a sign calling him Fartenberry.
Click through for more. While he heeds to be held accountable (and probably won’t) for his bullying, this is still good news. One down, 193 (or thereabouts) to go.

Letters from an American – March 31, 2022
Quote – Today, Judge Mark E. Walker of the Federal District Court in Tallahassee, Florida, struck down much of the new elections law passed by the Florida legislature after the 2020 election. This is the first time a federal court has sought to overrule the recent attempts of Republican-dominated state legislatures to rig the vote, and Walker made thorough work of it…. “This case is about our sacred right to vote,” Walker wrote, “won at great cost in blood and treasure. Courts have long recognized that, because “the right to exercise the franchise in a free and unimpaired manner is preservative of other basic civil and political rights, any alleged infringement of the right of citizens to vote must be carefully and meticulously scrutinized.”
Click through for story and sources. While we can’t depend on this not being appeales, not on keeping the ground gained if it’s appealed, it is still hopeful. Heather, BTW, has been on a roll. I’ll be sharing more of her in the next few days.

CPR – CU Boulder to host UN human rights summit on climate change
Quote – The University of Colorado Boulder will host a global climate summit in partnership with UN Human Rights. Thought leaders attending the gathering will examine climate change as a human rights crisis. CU Chancellor Phil DiStefano talked about the “Right Here, Right Now Global Climate Summit” in front of alumni and students in Washington, D.C. earlier this week. The idea for the summit came out of the UN climate change conference that took place in Glasgow last year.
Click through for story. This kind of thing is why Colorado MAGAts refer to the city of Boulder as “the People’s Republic of Boulder,” which certainly says at least as much about them as it does about Bloulder.

Food For Thought:

Video Thread 3/31/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:40 am Open Thread, Politics

Mar 312022

Glenn Kirschner – Federal Judge Finds, by a Preponderance of the Evidence, that Trump Committed Crimes Against the US

Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican PArty

MSNBC – Sen. Whitehouse: Three New Supreme Court Justices Being Told What To Do By Donor Front Groups

Robert Reich – The Oligarchy’s Ultimate Political Weapon

Al Franken – Critical Race Theory – An ACTUAL Explanation

Liberal Redneck – Trump’s January 6th Burner Phones

Beau – Let’s talk about Trump, a judge, DOJ, and a ruling…..

Video Thread 3/17/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:57 am Open Thread, Politics

Mar 172022

Glenn Kirschner – Prosecutor’s Brief in Enrique Tarrio/Proud Boys Case Provides More Evidence of Trump’s Conspiracy

The Lincoln Project – Brent Renaud

Meidas Touch – Corporate America: Pull Out Of Russia

MSNBC – It’s Happening Again’: Lessons From Russian Targeting Of Syrian Civilians

Rebel HQ – ~~Southerner~~ Racist Logic Will Make You Lose All Hope (It ain’t just the South – JD) <span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;" class="mce_SELRES_start"></span>

Brent Terhune – Do your job, Brandon!

Beau – Let’s talk about an injunction in Texas….

Open Thread March 14, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:32 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Mar 142022

Yesterday, I managed to make two trips out to the recyclables bin and one tp the trash bin (and neither is actua;;;y full yet. I know there are disadvantages, but DST is far better suited to my biorhythm than standard time. The first day the sunset is an hour later is also the first day I can summon up the energy to schlep stuff around, which I have been putting off for days. (And I didn’t even get up all that early.) So I am on the side of peple who want to keep DST all year (which would also eliminae the stress that comes with “springing forward,” and studies suggest it would also save lives and energy, and have other benefits.) And – I almost forgot – Happy PI Day!

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

The New Yorker – Did George Washington Have an Enslaved Son?
Quote – [West Ford’s] descendants have demanded that Mount Vernon recognize Ford for his contributions to the estate, which was near collapse during the decades after Washington’s death. They also argue—citing oral histories from two branches of the family—that Ford was Washington’s unacknowledged son, a claim that Mount Vernon officials have consistently denied. As that debate continues, Black civic organizations in Gum Springs are engaged in related battles to save their endangered community.
Click through for backstory and current issues. Absolutely no one that I can see except The New Yorker is covering this (but I didn’t search for small local news outlets.) Jefferson’s (white) descendants – most of them – have learned to live with the truth. AreWashington’s tough enough? Also, there is more than genealogy in this story.

Daily Kos (David Neiwert) – ‘Patriot’ threatens Nevada’s governor at restaurant, and Republicans cheer the eliminationism
Quote – This kind of rhetoric is not simply violent but eliminationist in nature: That is, it’s discourse intended not simply to oppose a political or cultural foe but to dehumanize and demonize them, to render them nonhuman objects fit only for elimination—vermin, diseases, existential threats. It’s a powerful precursor to real-world violence because it not only obliterates any compunction about killing, it positively creates permission for it…. [Joey] Gilbert … published a long post on Facebook…. “That time is upon us where these fraudulently elected leaders of ours will not be able to walk the streets alone,”
Click through for discussion. (My Daily Kos newsletter has stopped coming again, but Crooks and Liars is reprinting enough to keep me in touch.) Neiwert has put his finger right on my deepest fears. I lived through the sixties when one leader after another was getting shot and killed. I am still jittery about it. I am not expecting anyone to target me personally … but they don’t have to in order to ruin my life. This is real.

Women’s History – The Conversation – Deaf women fought for the right to vote
Quote – As a researcher of deaf history, including deaf women’s history, I work to illuminate the often hidden history of deaf people and their unique contributions to the world. I have unearthed historical information about deaf women suffragists and assembled it into an online collection chronicling what is known—so far—about these women and their lives. Despite harsh, discriminatory conditions, low pay, and lack of recognition, countless deaf women have fought with brilliance and dedication for personal and professional recognition, including for the right to vote.
Click through for several individual stories. This was publshed last year, but reprinted this year in Yes! Magazine. I prefer original sources in any case, but especially when the original source is one I know everyone can access.

Food For Thought:

Video Thread 3/3/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:48 am Open Thread, Politics

Mar 032022

Glenn Kirschner – Donald Trump’s Election Crimes & the Legal Rights of We The People as Crime Victims

Lincoln Project – CPAC: Day 2

Truth Matters – A Prayer for Ukraine. I did not put hanky alerts on any of these Ukraine-related videos, but I think I should say that, when Zelensky spoke to the UN, the translator got audibly choked up.

Guardian News – Ukrainian president speaks after Kharkiv missile attack: ‘Everything has changed’

Yevgeny Yevtuchenko’s poem “Babi Yar” read in Russian by Yevtuchenko himself, and translated and read in English by the owner of this YouTube channel. The English begins at 3:32.