I’m writing for tomorrow, day 136. It’s been another busy day. It started out hectic when I realized the migrating to a different server discombobulated the email settings for those accounts. Cleaning up that mess took a couple hours. Store to Door delivered groceries and I put them away. I got a lot of personal paperwork done. Tomorrow will be a High Holy Day in the Church of the Ellipsoid Orb.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 3:58 (average 5:03) to do it, click here. How did you do?
Fantasy Football:
Players, the first game of the new season is tonight (Thursday). Have your lineups set.
Short Takes:
From Upworthy: When a white supremacist gunman shot 10 people, killing six, at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin, some speculated he thought his victims were Muslim. Comedian W. Kamau Bell had a few choice things to say about that.
He could just as easily have substituted Republican, because the Republican party supports the white supremacy movement.
From NY Times: Thirty years after their convictions in the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in rural North Carolina, based on confessions that they quickly repudiated and said were coerced, two mentally disabled half brothers were declared innocent and ordered released Tuesday by a judge here.
The case against the men, always weak, fell apart after DNA evidence implicated another man whose possible involvement had been somehow overlooked by the authorities even though he lived only a block from where the victim’s body was found, and he had admitted to committing a similar rape and murder around the same time.
The startling shift in fortunes for the men, Henry Lee McCollum, 50, who has spent three decades on death row, and Leon Brown, 46, who was serving a life sentence, provided one of the most dramatic examples yet of the potential harm from false, coerced confessions and of the power of DNA tests to exonerate the innocent.
Republicans want to weaken the appeal process so they can execute people more quickly. Death means never having to admit to injustice. Republicans are pro-death. Situations like this are one reason why I say we need to join the civilized world and outlaw the death penalty in favor of natural life, or at the very least apply capital punishment only to members of Congress.
From The New Yorker:
A used tool that has been on the market for several months was purchased on Tuesday for the whopping price of $1.8 million.
While it may not have set a new record, the sale price raised eyebrows, with many observers noting that $1.8 million was a lot to pay for this particular tool…
Andy is right! Since the going rate for chicken dung is less that a dollar a pound, this sack of it is way overpriced!
Cartoon:
10 Responses to “Open Thread–9/4/2014”
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5:47 Still extra careful around large animals.
Upworthy – It would be nice if brilliant explanations like this could be seen by those who need to know. Allthough I suppose they would just dig in anyway.
NY Times – I suppose if you can believe climate change is a hoax there's nothing difficult about believeing DNA evidemce is less compelling than a tainted confession. Lewis Carroll only expected the White Queen to believe six impossible things before breakfast on a good day, but Republicans surpass that number on a daily basis. If only we could wake up from our nightmare as easily as shaking a kitten (not too hard, wouldn't want to hurt it.) On a related note though not quite on topic, did everyone see "Call the Cops" by Rob Hustle? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlY9C6pzxKc (trigger wanring for just about anything)
New Yorker – What a hoot! Lona (Care2), you probably didn't google "Eric Cantor" or "Eric Cantor new job." He is the used tool in question. Well, we knew it would happen. Too bad there is nothing to do but laugh.
Cartoon – No kidding.
It seems to me that the wonderful thing that links both the Upworthy and the NY Times pieces is that the victims have managed to forgive the perpetrators and to bring love, forgiveness and grace to the situation, in a completely remarkable and exceptional way. How I wish everyone could do that – the world would be a very different place!
4:34 I took me longer because I saw 4 horses.
3:34 The 4 horses of the apocalypse?
I choked on #4! 🙁
FF ~ I'm all set and have no one in tonight's games.
Upworthy ~ Excellent!
NY Times ~ This was Antonin Scalia's "OOPS moment". In 1994, he argued that Mr. McCullom deservred the lethal injection. Justice Blackmun dissented.
New Yorker ~ Wall St. bought themselves a real turd.
Cartoon ~ How right you are!
Puzzle — 3:34 The 4 horses of the apocalypse?
Upworthy — Excellent and his delivery really makes it funny. When the murders of the Sikh worshipers happened, I was stunned at the level of ignorance displayed by some Americans. There is ignorance of this type in every country but I guess I expected more of a country that claims to be exceptional and the leader of the free world. During the summer of 1970, a group of music students from my high school in Ontario went to the US for an international competition. When they came back, some of my classmates told me of the treatment they received . . . not very nice. What's more, they were astounded at the lack of knowledge of the American students they met. To me, it is that same ignorance that seems to percolate today.
NY Times — Just two more reasons why the death penalty, aka state sanctioned murder, should be abolished. There is too much politics in the justice system . . . prosecutors wanting to move up the food chain and being judged on their conviction rates whether those convictions are solid or not. Too much clamouring from the public for speedy settling of cases so they can feel safe again. It seems that the theory of the fast food system has invaded every walk of life . . . otherwise known as instant gratification. We all get caught up in it, one way or another . . . my big thing, computer response times. Slower response just rots my socks! But a miscarriage of justice because of hasty work and jumping to unfounded conclusions, especially when a person's life is on the line, rots my socks even more, much more!
The New Yorker — One person's trash is another person's treasure!
Clearly, this rusty, used tool is somebody's treasure . . . but then there is no accounting for some people's tastes!
Cartoon — That sounds about right for the state of US political action in DC. There was a piece that I posted on Care2, an "Open Letter To President Obama About The 2014 Elections – From A Woman Voter" http://samuel-warde.com/2014/03/open-letter-president-obama-2014-elections-woman-voter/ that pushes some buttons hoping to light a fire under the POTUS and the Democrats for a 2014 and 2016 win. This reminded me of it.
Upworthy: I love this video, it is entertaining as well as educational.
NY Times: I agree with you TC. We should have eliminated the death penalty years ago.
The New Yorker: Andy is right, as usual. That tool is way over priced.
Cartoon: So true. If I were a Republican and stubbed my toe I would find a way to blame Obama.
Woe is me! I fell asleep meditating omn the Ellipsoid Orn on a high Holy day! 🙁
Have to vew up at the crack of dawn for physical therapy. Color me gone.
Hi TC. Not able to communicate recently as my computer was having a "cow".Almost thrown through the window.
When,oh when is the USA coing to join the civilised world and end the Death Penalty?.! (just a thought. )
One more thought.someone tell Mr Cantor.
The LOVE of money is the root of All evil. Take Care. Eric. Look what it did to the McDonalds in Virginia!!