Tag: in the news

If you visit blogs for sunshine and light, it’s not happening here today. Some of you have asked me what I think of the P*ula Deen fiasco. I don’t think I’m going to make any friends here when I say I think she is getting what she deserves. It’s not that she’s a terrible person, but I have no tolerance for prejudice and racism, not even in stupid callous jokes. She’s known among her colleagues for this. It’s not funny. Ever. Abuse of employees in this manner is never right… and one of her ideas – the hiring of all black men to serve at a dinner party representing a by-gone era she cherishes is kinda disgusting. There is nothing to celebrate about the way black people were treated back-in-the-day. Nostalgic? Hell no. I know she’s sorry now, because she was called on it and is now embarassed. She should be. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That being said… Paula is just a tip on that iceburg. There are many rappers out there who call each other the “N” word. I will never understand this. Here’s something else entirely – why are there magazines such as “Ebony” and events such as “The National Black Writers Conference”, among many other examples? Somehow I don’t think there is a “Snow” magazine in publication and I doubt you’ll find “The National White Writers Conference” in session anywhere. No, I’m pretty sure those would be called… racist. So why keep separating blacks and whites in this manner? And there’s the religious aspect of all of this…We’re all created equally,and if you’re a God believing person, surely you hold this to be true… all his people were created equally, right? He loves all? Yet some of the most religious people I’ve met are also.. prejudice. How do they justify this in their own head, I ask you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The barbaric acts we are seeing in the news are just mind blowing, sometimes literally! How about that Brazilian Referee who was attacked by a player, pulled out his knife in defense, I guess, and killed the player right there on the field! Then, the angry mob came out on the field and beheaded and dismembered the referee!! If you’re so inclined, you can see those graphic photos on the internet. What are they doing there, I ask you. Does the media ever think of the torture that must be to the families of the victims? And why do WE need to see it at all?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Have you been privy to the mess that is the Osc*r Pistor*us investigation? This is what Bill Maher had to say recently… “I wouldn’t shoot her thru the bathroom door” is the new “I wouldn’t kick her out of bed for eating crackers” Funny, but not. Oscar claims he mistakenly shot and killed his girlfriend, who was in the tiny little toilet area of his bathroom which had it’s own door, closed, at the time he shot her. Apparently, he thought she was an intruder. He claims he felt vulnerable in his gated, security camera’d and alarmed home because he did not have his “legs” on. This turns out not to be true according to the evidence, which shows the shooter was standing at a mans normal height judging by the angle of the bullets and how they hit and killed his girlfriend. He shot her several times, all fatal blows… did he not hear her cry out after the first shot? Why would an intruder lock him/herself in a three by three ft. toilet? Did he not look beside him in the bed to see if his girlfriend was there in the bathroom before he jumped up and assumed there was an intruder? She lived there part time, after all. The kicker is… Oscar is free to leave the country and pursue his athletic career while the court system figures all this out. Something smells funny.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Speaking of athletes behaving badly… what a fool a certain football player is for behaving as if he is God and taking the lives of others whenever it suits him. Do you know why he had such a high opinion of himself? Because we pay these guys millions upon millions of dollars, an insane amount really… just because they’re really good with a ball. I can see a million a year if you’re so unbelievably good (and lucky to have that talent) at any given sport. But the salaries they pull are insanity. The NFL is not the only culprit. We treat them like they are Gods, we worship them, throw insane amounts of money at them… so why would we expect them to believe any lesser truth? Our educators, our law enforcement and rescue people, our physicians (well, some) and our farmers, all valuable and necessary and vital people in our communities, are underpaid. Our politicians and athletes are phenomenally overpaid. What’s wrong with this picture.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Zimmerm*an vs. Martin… a sad and tragic case. A young man killed, another’s life most likely ruined by the ensuing mess. This one is tricky. Was Zimmerman attacked in a life threatening manner? Was Martin an innocent just walking through a neighborhood? I don’t know. In general, if a kid of any color is just walking through a neighborhood -not doing anything wrong- , odds are he’s not gonna be shot point blank in the chest. No, there had to be some sort of provocation. However, was it the kind that deserved a bullet to the chest? Was this a hasty move by an overzealous neighborhood watchman? … Sad all around. The truth will never be known with absolute certainty.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Are we becoming a more barbaric society? Or is the media just giving us all the information we weren’t privy to before the internet and instant news gratification? I think the media is going to be our fall from grace in the end. It WILL be our end. There’s my spin, and it’s perfectly OK if you feel differently. I welcome all opinions, as long as you show respect for others opinions.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ PS.. BLogger is being a real bugger today, posting is almost impossible, so I apologize for the poor format. I hope to correct it once blogger straightens up and flies right. (sigh)

UPDATE! Blogger is still wonky…and I find reading a post with poor format is just annoying, so until blogger straightens this out, I’m taking a blog hiatus. As always, thanks for your comments, I enjoy the conversation.

 We don’t watch many TV programs around here, but one that we followed faithfully because it was just so well done, was The Sopranos.  We grew up in Italian families and I was raised on Staten Island, just over the bridge from Jersey, where the show was “homed”.  Anyone living on island was  aware of the NY and NJ mob presence, thankfully unaffected for the most part.  The series was so authentic, and the characters so well cast.  Tony Soprano was a lovable hate-able character , thanks to James Gandolfini.  He was just as effective in other rolls, and ironically, a big hearted teddy bear of a personality in real life.

   Well now, this is a very interesting development. Have you paid any attention to the story of ex-CIA employee Edw*rd Sn*wden and how he outed Big Brother?  In short – he exposed details of a top-secret American program that collects vast streams of phone and Internet data. His claim, in a nut shell,  is that he does not want to live in a society where the government can seize your private information and use it as they see fit.

CNN – “The revelations have set off a furious debate in the United States about whether the surveillance program is a disturbing form of government overreach or an important tool for intelligence agencies trying to prevent attacks against the nation.”

 Personally, I’m on the fence about this one.  I understand the outrage on both sides.   I see a need to track these assh*les who mean to do as many people harm as possible, and I’m all for disrupting their means of communication and thwarting their efforts. This method has already shut down some attempts, if we believe what we’re being told.   I don’t know that I’m comfortable with the knowledge that the government can peer into my personal stuff at any time without my knowing about it.   I also know that I’m not doing anything wrong here that they would find alarming, but where do you draw the line. Where will THEY draw the line.

  As for Mr. Sn*wden, some people say he’s a hero for bringing all this to light, at the expense of his own life, probably.  He was living the good life in Hawaii with a six figure job.  He gave all that up, and left his family!… to get this out to the public because he was so horrified.    Some say he’s a traitor and deserves prosecution in the highest court of law.  We know there was some real deceitful behavior on his part, yes, but was it for the good of the people?  Us? …

  What say you? 

 I’ve been following the Jodi Ar*as trial, curious to see what justice might be served for such a heinous crime.  We’re all too familiar with the recent Cas*y Anth*ny disaster. I wasn’t a regular trial watcher, but I was shocked at the outcome, that’s for sure.   There’s no doubt in recent years my faith in our government as well as our judicial system has tattered and frayed and I know I’m not alone.  It’s true we have one of the most civilized judicial systems in the world, however it’s also flawed. One issue? Proven criminals have too many rights.  Why is this woman, who admittedly obliterated a person hideously, granted permission to twitter from jail, to sell merchandise, to author a book, to give interviews with the media (and receive the hair and makeup assistance she requested).

  So here’s the question I pose to you.  Do you believe in the death penalty?  Jodi is awaiting the verdict on whether she will get life in prison or death. If she gets life, there is the possibility with good behavior she could walk in 20 years.   There’s no doubt she killed her ex boyfriend, horribly so.  If you have no knowledge of the case, she slashed his throat, stabbed him 29 times all over, and shot him in the face. After having sex with him, while he was naked and defenseless in the shower.    Yeah.       She claimed he was always abusive and physically attacked her.  There is no evidence to suggest this, EVER, in his life, or in her history with him. This includes her own journal entries and e-mails, texts to him, etc. etc.  and accounts from his and her friends.  There is PLENTY of evidence that she was a deranged stalker.   Now.. the jury did convict her (Amen) and they concluded the murder was an act of particular cruelty as well. Their final decision is whether or not she dies for her crime.   Do you think she deserves it?    I do.   

    First she asked for the death penalty, because she feels death is the ultimate freedom and she doesn’t want to spend her life in a prison. Those were her words.  (It’s all about her)  Then she changed her mind and is now asking for Mercy, if only to spare her family more pain.  Mercy she did not show her ex boyfriend.  She has not apologized or said she is sorry to the family of her ex.  She won’t even look at them in court.  She continues to grant interviews and continues to trash her victims character to explain her heinous act, even thought there is no one on the face of the earth to cooberate her  information. Just her lies. and she has been caught in hundreds of lies.   She wants her life spared so she can start a book club… start a recycling program at the prison, teach literacy and sign language to other inmates, donate her hair to locks of love.

    Does she deserve to live this life of purpose after what she’s done?  I think Travis would have given anything to have those opportunities.  His chances ended at the age of 30, thanks to her.   No, I don’t think she should be granted this gift of “purpose”.  And I don’t think  “the people”  should have to foot the bill for her existence while incarcerated for Lord knows how long.  Even if she gets the death penalty, she will be on death row for possibly 20 years, is that CRAZY?  There are women on Death Row who were convicted in 1989!  I understand giving her time for an appeal since this is serious stuff… but all those years?  What’s the point then?..

   In cases as horrible as this one, I do believe in the death penalty, but I understand there are many who feel that a life for a life is never justified under any circumstances.   I’d be curious to know what you feel the appropriate punishment would be then.   The question today is, is there a member of that jury who will feel the same.