It’s another super-busy day, because I have the Monthly Report to write, and I have an essay to write on why prisoners’ memories of crimes committed years before, don’t always line up with police reports and victim statements.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 2:59 (average 4:51). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Lynn’s New Mouse:
Short Takes:
From Daily Kos: Yesterday Georgia became the first southern state to ban the box.
This policy, signed into law by Governor Nathan Deal through an executive order, postpones questions about a job applicant’s criminal history until it is demonstrated that he or she is one of the most qualified candidates. The policy also requires that the applicant have the opportunity to explain his or her criminal history before denial, and that only a relevant conviction will be used as the basis for disqualification. – See more at: http://www.gjp.org/…
Kudos to the people of Georgia. Frankly, I’m surprised that Raw Deal didn’t veto it. In Oregon, only Multnomah County (one if the three that make up the Portland Metro Area) and the City of Portland have banned the box.
From NY Times: The Justice Department has nearly completed a highly critical report accusing the police in Ferguson, Mo., of making discriminatory traffic stops of African-Americans that created years of racial animosity leading up to an officer’s shooting of a black teenager last summer, law enforcement officials said.
According to several officials who have been briefed on the report’s conclusions, the report criticizes the city for disproportionately ticketing and arresting African-Americans and relying on the fines to balance the city’s budget. The report, which is expected to be released as early as this week, will force Ferguson officials to either negotiate a settlement with the Justice Department or face being sued by it on civil rights charges.
Oh My! The Ferguson PD is racist?!!? Are you as surprised as I am?
From Washington Post: …ISDS would allow foreign companies to challenge U.S. laws — and potentially to pick up huge payouts from taxpayers — without ever stepping foot in a U.S. court. Here’s how it would work. Imagine that the United States bans a toxic chemical that is often added to gasoline because of its health and environmental consequences. If a foreign company that makes the toxic chemical opposes the law, it would normally have to challenge it in a U.S. court. But with ISDS, the company could skip the U.S. courts and go before an international panel of arbitrators. If the company won, the ruling couldn’t be challenged in U.S. courts, and the arbitration panel could require American taxpayers to cough up millions — and even billions — of dollars in damages.
If that seems shocking, buckle your seat belt. ISDS could lead to gigantic fines, but it wouldn’t employ independent judges. Instead, highly paid corporate lawyers would go back and forth between representing corporations one day and sitting in judgment the next. Maybe that makes sense in an arbitration between two corporations, but not in cases between corporations and governments. If you’re a lawyer looking to maintain or attract high-paying corporate clients, how likely are you to rule against those corporations when it’s your turn in the judge’s seat?
If the tilt toward giant corporations wasn’t clear enough, consider who would get to use this special court: only international investors, which are, by and large, big corporations. So if a Vietnamese company with U.S. operations wanted to challenge an increase in the U.S. minimum wage, it could use ISDS. But if an American labor union believed Vietnam was allowing Vietnamese companies to pay slave wages in violation of trade commitments, the union would have to make its case in the Vietnamese courts…
This just a snippet from an article by Elizabeth Warren, explaining a huge reason to oppose the TPP. I urge you to click through to read it all.
Cartoon:
24 Responses to “Open Thread–3/2/2015”
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CA law changed a couple of years ago so it can only be asked if directly relevant to the job duties.
No surprise on Ferguson–main question is whether they are willing to change those practices.
Glad we have Warren explaining ISDS embedded in TPP problems.
I bet most of those putting forward restrictive voting laws are clueless about Grover Cleveland's administration.
Liz really helps.
4:29 average still 4:51. Now if it were from an actual Kangaroo, it might be appetizing to a puddy tat. I hope Lynn's mouse works better than mine (to be fair, I think my mouse issues are really browser issues LOL).
Daily Kos – I share your surprise, but it works for me. I wish it were in effect everywhere. The comments on site make a big deal (no pun intended) out of "WHAT box??!?" Personally, just reading the headline, I thought it would be about solitary confinement. But I certainly didn;t feel cheated because I was wrong. Sheesh.
NY TImes – TC, I think I am EXACTLY as surprised as you are – which is, not at all.
WaPo – This provision slipped by us in NAFTA and other "trade agreements" because no one had ever used it then. Now that we have seen the horrendous abuse by corporations and the havoc it causes, there is NO excuse to agree to it again.
Cartoon – JL, don't you mean Grover Cleveland's administrationS? He was the President who messed up the count.
EXACTLY! – Not at all!
Tomorrow "The Beebs" (I ain't talking Justin – but Bibi) will be addressing a joint session of Congress. Just a reminder of a recent time he also appeared before Congress when he said this:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/26/world/middleeast/kerry-reminds-congress-netanyahu-advised-us-to-invade-iraq.html?smid=tw-NYTOpenSource&seid=auto&_r=3
So much for Bibi's ability as a prognosticator
That sounds like he and Boehner are a perfect fit for each other.
He predicted Itan would kabe Nikes on 3 – 5 years… in 1992!
Please allow me to take a few minutes of your time to introduce you to my adopted hometown for the past 36 years of Kansas City, MO (KCMO). Just today I came across two time-lapse videos of KCMO that I think are particularly well-done.
The first is "Kansas City Lights" featuring night shots of iconic architecture in KCMO. The second is "Paris of the Plains" which is shot in HD. (Beautiful, but he seems to have a fixation on trains and Union Station for some reason, and he misses quite a few highlights that I certainly think should have been included.)
And the reason that KCMO is called "Paris of the Plains" is that we have the second most boulevards of any city in the world – second only to Paris. (So why he doesn't have ONE boulevard shot, I'll never know.) And we have the second most fountains of any city in the world – second only to Rome.
NOTE: They are best enjoyed Full-Screen and HD, if you have it.
https://vimeo.com/106281351
https://vimeo.com/120814797
I looked at the first video, very nice!
Beautiful!
Daily Kos: Well, well, well! They have been balancing the budget on the backs of the African-American men and women of Ferguson, Missouri! Who’d a thunk?
The NY Times piece has me on pins and needles! The TPP is rotten to the core! We have to be able to see the same thing so we can make a judgement with open eyes! Kudos to Ms. Warren! She is the best weapon we have against the idiots in D.C.!
Amen Viv!
Looks like Lynn needs a cordless mouse now.
Daily Kos: I wish all states would ban the box. I know one young man who got into trouble when he was barely 18, old enough to be an adult, but not mature enough. He served a 90 day jail sentence and was on probation for two years. Then he went to college and got married and has not been in trouble since. He has been denied several jobs that he was well qualified for because of the prior conviction. This is not right.
NY Times: I hope the justice department follows up on this, but after their recent ruling on George Zimmerman, I will be surprised.
Washington Post: Have you noticed how little coverage there has been in our media about this? Calling it NAFTA on steroids is probably mild. From what I have read, it appears that Pres Obama is supporting it, too. I am very disappointed in him on this one. If it passes, we can kiss any prosperity or fairness in the work place goodbye.
Cartoon: Has anyone reminded the Republicans of this?
Republicans don't want to be reminded.
2:43 Sorry TC, but I thought with your COPD, the pollin of that kangaroo paw would not be good.
3:08 I'm very glad you rescued the pretty flower from the Puddy-tat's jaws. Looks like he got your mouse though.
It did not look tasey!
TY TC – good for Georgia; Ferguson should read 'Black Like Me' which I read in the 70s – but if they could,they certainly wouldn't would they – sigh.
Washington Post – the TPP is ALL BAD for us, ordinary people and small businesses – it is bonanza day forever and ever amen for large corporations and the terminally unscrupulous.
Elizabeth Warren's article is good but the merest snippet of the full horror of the TPP – all of us would be totally owned by corporations, and democracy would be dead forever.
It is lunacy to sign it – do politicians really want to be like turkey's voting for Christmas? If they do vote for it they will stand accused of corruption at the very least.
Horror! an errant apostrophe crept in to my post – sincere apologies to all! ('Turkeys' is a plural – oh dear!).
PS could I see a copy of that essay TC – it is something that I am interested in.
Pat, it's turning into a paragraph that will be going into someone else's © pamphlet. Howevewr, I will email it to you when done.
Puzzle — 2:43 Sorry TC, but I thought with your COPD, the pollin of that kangaroo paw would not be good.
My Mouse — Are you trying to steal my mouse TC? Actually you have the wrong mouse. My new mouse, like the old one is wireless. Unlike that non-descript putty coloured mouse, the new mouse has a black base with a top of shades of purple, green, blue, and pink. Really quite spiffy! I have a happy hand now!
Daily Kos — Obviously I have not read the executive order, but I like what I see. I like that the job applicant cannot be asked about their criminal record until it is clear that they are seriously being considered. I also like that the applicant gets to discuss the conviction, and that only a relevant conviction can be used as the basis for disqualification. That is something that always bugged me when I was hiring.
NY Times — I can't say that I am surprised. Given the level of racism and the nature of the job, I think a wholesale change is needed. The Mayor sounds like he is not happy about that prospect. Maybe Ferguson voters should vote for a new mayor and council that will be more representative of the population, in addition to the changes in the police department.
Washington Post — This is similar to the situation with Lone Pine Resources which wants to frack in the St Lawrence River but the Québec government declared a moratoriam on fracking untiil it can be demonstrated as safe. Lone Pine is suing both the Québec government and the Canadian government for $250 million under the NAFTA agreement. http://www.canadians.org/media/lone-pine-resources-files-outrageous-nafta-lawsuit-against-fracking-ban As I understand things, the Lone Pine affair is more straight forward than many of the situations that will arise under the TPP.
Cartoon — At the same time, I think he outlawed literacy tests for many politicians and SCROTUS! They have a real problem reading and understanding the constitution.
The execution of Renee Gissendaner in Georgia has been put on hold because the drug for the lethal injection was cloudy, and presumably Georgia officials do not want any foul ups. Interesting to note, the Groundswell petition is going strong with 77.067 signatures which is 2.5 times more than last night. Gissendaner has also sought clemency. Based on what I have read, she is far more valuable with a life sentence. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/02/kelly-renee-gissendaner-execution_n_6787606.html
Perhaps you could send us a pic of your mouse with your pic og you and the mugs. 🙂
Whoa, A Conservative State with progressive actions.
Lynn Squance ↓
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The New York Times
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