I went to Lucia's house for an English lesson but she wasn't there. I waited a bit in my car until I saw her walking up the hill with Simon and Regina in tow. The minute Simon saw me, he started running towards me with a big smile on his face, calling my name. Lucia had to let go of the harness so he wouldn't get hurt. I got a big hug and all was right in the world. Other than that, a very ordinary day with beautiful weather. This weekend is supposed to be warmer than usual and dry. Good for the Alzheimer's walk on Sunday.
Short Takes
The Guardian — An Oklahoma court has stunned local prosecutors with a declaration that state law doesn’t criminalize oral sex with a victim who is completely unconscious.
The ruling, a unanimous decision by the state’s criminal appeals court, is sparking outrage among critics who say the judicial system was engaged in victim-blaming and buying outdated notions about rape.
But legal experts and victims’ advocates said they viewed the ruling as a sign of something larger: the troubling gaps that still exist between the nation’s patchwork of laws and evolving ideas about rape and consent. …
But several legal experts declined to fault the appeals court, saying instead that the ruling should be a wake-up call for legislators to update Oklahoma’s laws.
Michelle Anderson, the dean of the CUNY School of Law who has written extensively about rape law, called the ruling “appropriate” but the law “archaic”.
“This is a call for the legislature to change the statute, which is entirely out of step with what other states have done in this area and what Oklahoma should do,” she said. “It creates a huge loophole for sexual abuse that makes no sense.”
So, will this Republican state amend its laws to close the loop hole? I think the answer to that lies in the word "Republican". There is a petition on Care2 — Oklahoma: Stand United Against Rape
"The bill that will stop this kind of injustice in the future is named for this young victim. “Justice for J.W. Act of 2016” aims to include unconscious persons in the list of those who can’t give consent for sexual acts. The bill’s author, Representative Scott Biggs, said: “I am horrified by the idea that we would allow these depraved rapists to face a lower charge simply because the victim is unconscious.”"
This young woman, indeed all women, should not have to be victimised by a rapist and then victimised by the law.
Truth-out — …House Judiciary Committee hearing room on April 21, when nine members of Congress, their staff and 200 activists gathered to address the present crisis in US democracy: voter suppression and the manipulation of US elections.
In 2016 – the first presidential election since the US Supreme Court's gutting of the Voting Rights Act – a slew of new malicious laws and tactics are disenfranchising millions of Americans, even as the private control of US vote-counting technology has come under renewed scrutiny in a primary season marked by allegations of fraud and election rigging. …
"The most dangerous thing in our democracy right now is the fact that partisan, for-profit corporations using secret proprietary software provide the voting hardware and the software to register us to vote, count our votes and report election results," Fitrakis said. "I want to know why these private companies who are not using open-source software are counting our votes, registering our votes and then doing the central tabulation."
I find it interesting that there are some Republicans seemingly breaking with the party and look at voter suppression and the manipulation of US elections. Or am I not reading this correctly? Everybody should be very concerned about the level of voter suppression. It should be one citizen, one vote . . . and no, corporations are not people and money is not free speech. Can the Congress have this in place for the November 2016 general election?
Raw Story — Stephen Colbert mocked Ted Cruz for selecting Carly Fiorina as his running mate after suffering another round of devastating primary losses.
“That is bold,” Colbert said. “After Tuesday’s huge wins by Clinton and Trump, Bernie Sanders saw the writing on the wall and laid off hundreds of staffers. Meanwhile, Ted Cruz saw the writing and covered it up with a ‘hang in there, baby’ poster.”
Of course he mocked them! And now there is more reason — Mike Pence of Indiana has endorsed Cruz. When will they learn?
Politico — The word “Lucifer” lit up the Internet in the past 24 hours — after news surfaced that former House Speaker John Boehner used the name to describe his former congressional colleague and GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz.
Nice to see that Agent Orange has not lost his acerbic touch in retirement.
My Universe —
I have some hang ups!
I'm hiding from the dog!
Will somebody get me a ladder please!
Working in the packaging department!
6 Responses to “Squatch’s Open Thread — 29/04/2016”
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
Voter suppression and rigging are not new. It's been alive and well for the past 50 years or more. Stealing elections is not new. I remember as a kid, when dead people voted in democratic primaries in Chicago. I'm pleased that people are finally doing something about the software in voting machines being privatized. It should never have happened to begin with. What were they thinking?
"The most dangerous thing in our democracy right now is the fact that partisan, for-profit corporations using secret proprietary software provide the voting hardware and the software to register us to vote, count our votes and report election results," Fitrakis said. "I want to know why these private companies who are not using open-source software are counting our votes, registering our votes and then doing the central tabulation."
Answer: money for democrats and power for republicans…peace.
The Guardian: Double whammy against women and their rights! Sickening. I definitely signed petition. Thanks.
Raw Story: Cruz is very odd. "Whaifos rancheros", priceless!! That song she sang creeps me out.
Politicio: I guess he has to get on the bandwagon too. I'm sure he's enjoying this, and retirement. LOL.
My Universe: Aww……cats are like that. The one on the side of the house is amazing. Mine jumps up on the garage door when it's open, so she can peer outside, I don't know how she does it. Hugs from a child is priceless, and to be treasured. Since I'm retired now, I miss that interaction with the students. After a tornado hit part of the town early this morning, the weather has cleared up, but more rain is coming. Enjoy your day, and Thanks, Lynn.
80° Sunday in Portland, so you should nget at least 75°.
I fully agree. It's a travesty.
Rhile they were delaying its passage and sabotaging its contewnt, Republicans gave plenty of lip service ro Obamacare too. When they say they favor voting rights, consider it a delaying tactic,
I srill think TRUSed Uranus is just horny.
Cruz us most responsible fir dribing Agent Orange into retirement.
that's one packed puddy tat!
Guardian – I'm with the legal experts who say "the ruling should be a wake-up call for legislators to update Oklahoma’s laws." Courts are not supposed to make law. It the law as written is outrageous, they may have to make outrageous decisions.
Truthout – Well, Hank Johnson is certainly singing one of my songs – that if Republicans can't manage to make a legislative body vote in pure evil, they do the next best thing – starve the public good by cutting off funding to anything they don't like. That's a win-win, because it brings them short term results while at the same time giving them ammunition to push privatization at a future date. Also, off topic but not really – Dr. Barber is a moral giant, and anyone who does not listen to him is a moral midget (and that's throwing roses at it).
Raw Story – It didn't work for Reagan. And Ted Cruz, sir, is no Reagan! (And this Carly is no singer – but you didn't need me to tell you that!)
Politico – Yes – the's quite a quote, isn't it? It kind of encapsulates Sam Bee's profile of Ted that TC shared a few days ago.
Good luck with the Alzheimer walk, Lynn. But promise me you'll step out if your feet or knees start to play up. Can't have you injured and in a chair for days or weeks however good the cause is and however much you want to get as much money in for it.
TG: The legal experts may have a point that the appeals court shouldn't be blamed for their verdict if all they did was to uphold the law as it is in Oklahoma. If they are doing their job correctly in the appeals court, which is determining if the law has been applied correctly in the lower court, there's little else they can do. They could however take this case as a reason to propose changing the terribly outdate and misogynist Oklahoma law to reflect the altered views on rape. But if they're Republicans like the majority of legislators in Oklahoma there's little chance of that and they will continue hiding behind crappy laws. So I've signed the petition.
Truth-out: You've got to be kidding, most of the voting-process is in hands of partisan for-profit corporations? Really? I don't even know where to begin to explain how wrong this is…I'm just too flabbergasted.
RS: Actually, the YouTube title of Stephen Colbert's video really says it all for me: Ted Cruz Announces His Loosing Mate.
Politico: I think there's only one thing that is truly bipartisan in Congress and that is the feeling expressed by: "I've never worked with a more miserable son of a bitch in my life."
My Universe: Cat's are a lot like people; there are smart cats and there a dumb cats…and then there are cats you'd call Republicans.
Signed the Oklahoma petition earlier. This seems typical of Red states…living in the past.
Truth Out: And, one of the companies providing votingmachines, is Mitt Romney's!
Raw Story: Aside from Cruz' imbecility…did Carly really sing that song? Was that not some weird lip synching trick? Has recreational Hashish been available to her, legal, or otherwise? Can this political season get still weirder? Tell me that I was hallucinating. Is she prepping to sing her way through Fireside Chats?