Oh boy are these guys good!
Let's backtrack a bit and follow the logic:
1. Invade Iraq in order to...(We still really can't be sure about this. My best guess - large defense contracts to close allies of the Bush Administration, but that is a bit cynical.)
2. Completely destabilize (aka "liberate") the country by removing a tyrannical leader AND demanding that the historically-divisive rift between the Sunni and Shiite branches of Islam be healed by a newly-elected parliamentary government.
3. Make complete asses of ourselves in the eyes of the Iraqi people and the international community by failing to 1) democratize as advertised, 2) stabilize an increasingly anti-US insurgency, or 3) find weapons of mass destruction and/or terrorists.
4. Ditch the warmongering, line-toeing Republicans from Congress and elect a bunch of moderately conservative, agenda-less Democrats in their place.
5. Realize we can't get out of a five year war until we drop the responsibility on somebody else. Only problem, Iran and Syria are the only ones sitting in on the auction.
But let's take a look at some recent developments, which, as the BBC News concludes, may be seen as politically motivated jockeying, rather than a genuine attempt to reach a point of resolution in our bungling of "Operation Iraqi Freedom."
Of course, based on the obvious inability of anyone in the military, Congress or the White House to solve the problem before now, I would just conclude that no one has any idea how to do it and still make it look like the US is running the show.
More logic:
Two days ago, the US "leaks" a memo reporting doubts that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki can't handle the heat in Iraq. [Is this some kind of pscyhological projection? Are we mistaking the Iraqi Prime Minister for our waffling President? Has anyone actually given Maliki an opportunity to do anything yet?]
Meanwhile, Iraqi President Jalal Talibani speaks with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmanidejad. They figure out that they both have a lot more to gain than we do in establishing a functioning, powerful government in Iraq, so they best collaborate to prevent further increases in sectarian violence and get us the fuck out of there. [Just imagine the laugh riot that meeting was! Tee hee, how can we get rid of the US?]
Yesterday, Bush goes to meet Maliki, who stands him up [the different stories on all sides only serve to illustrate the truth - Maliki was pissed about that leak and decided to show Bush that he's not the one in control].
Today, Bush makes a long term commitment: no doubts about Maliki, no premature pull-outs, no matter what anybody else says.
And then, Joint Chiefs Chairman General Pace, who basically denies anything specific and tries to confuse the public with overarching statements of rhetoric and asshole sunshine, backs him up.
11.28.2006
Free Fucking Forever!
Men! Wake up from your fantasies of fucking without consequence and do it for real!
Don't you hate getting those voicemails four months after you broke up with that zany bitch that say..."Greg, please call me. I have something really important to talk to you about."
And, on the off chance that said zany bitch is calling to inform you of a previously-contracted STD, you call her back and..."Greg. I'm pregnant." drops out of her filthy hole (not that filthy hole, the one in her head...sorry, the one in her head that you can fit your cock in).
And even when you hang up on her she keeps calling back and saying the same thing. And a little while after you've been ignoring her calls, you wake up in a sweat, crying in the night having just dreamed about a little boy that looks just like you being pushed in a swing by a guy that looks like a responsible father, then you turn and realize it's you. So you decide that, based on some soft, sickening feeling in your chest or an effectively overwhelming sense of guilt, or maybe even genuine paternal instincts, you call her back and decide to take some responsibility for it.
Well, I hate getting those calls, and I hate the stab of evil in my heart when I wake up in the middle of the night and decide that the best solution is clearly to pay for an abortion, brokered through my lawyer.
But there is a solution! The brilliant Brits have been developing the male contraceptive - finally! You can never trust those clingy bitches and their whole "forgetting to take the pill" routine. Yeah.
So now I can take my reproductive choices into my own hands. Problem is, none of you fucks will go in for the test, so they may never market it!
Fools, fools, fools! You'll all go to hell with the souls of your murdered children on your backs. And it's worse after they've had a couple birthdays. Even though God approves of sacrificing your children, the US Supreme Court sure doesn't - those pansies.
Don't you hate getting those voicemails four months after you broke up with that zany bitch that say..."Greg, please call me. I have something really important to talk to you about."
And, on the off chance that said zany bitch is calling to inform you of a previously-contracted STD, you call her back and..."Greg. I'm pregnant." drops out of her filthy hole (not that filthy hole, the one in her head...sorry, the one in her head that you can fit your cock in).
And even when you hang up on her she keeps calling back and saying the same thing. And a little while after you've been ignoring her calls, you wake up in a sweat, crying in the night having just dreamed about a little boy that looks just like you being pushed in a swing by a guy that looks like a responsible father, then you turn and realize it's you. So you decide that, based on some soft, sickening feeling in your chest or an effectively overwhelming sense of guilt, or maybe even genuine paternal instincts, you call her back and decide to take some responsibility for it.
Well, I hate getting those calls, and I hate the stab of evil in my heart when I wake up in the middle of the night and decide that the best solution is clearly to pay for an abortion, brokered through my lawyer.
But there is a solution! The brilliant Brits have been developing the male contraceptive - finally! You can never trust those clingy bitches and their whole "forgetting to take the pill" routine. Yeah.
So now I can take my reproductive choices into my own hands. Problem is, none of you fucks will go in for the test, so they may never market it!
Fools, fools, fools! You'll all go to hell with the souls of your murdered children on your backs. And it's worse after they've had a couple birthdays. Even though God approves of sacrificing your children, the US Supreme Court sure doesn't - those pansies.
Truth to Light
Mr Bell has not missed the point. His son is dead, and it's all about the politics.
There are three unmissable issues encompassed by the events of Sean Bell's killing by three members of the NYC Police Department.
1) The police in New York City have behaved in this situation and in others as if the law does not apply to them.
2) Racial tension exists today just as it has for the entire course of US (and world) history.
3) The political system of this city is not, and can not, be the source of the solution to either of these problems.
Regarding point 1:
I can't count the number of times I have seen police in their vehicles cruising through lights with a little "woop-woop" of the siren, gazing suspiciously at all us plebes on the street, as if we're up to some law breaking. Oh, the hypocrisy.
I compare the running of a red light with the fatal shooting of an unarmed citizen merely to illustrate the attitude of those who exercise the power of law enforcement.
When the enforcers feel it is their prerogative to bend or break the law in situations when there is no compelling reason to do so (and it can certainly be argued that there is no compelling reason to do so), it can be inferred by extension, that the same belief will apply to all situations. Thus, on the basis of a police officer's theory that Sean Bell or one of his companions could be carrying a weapon, and/or using a moving car to intentionally harm one of the other officers, it should be no surprise that they might not operate under the requisite guidelines.
I do not intend to prematurely convict the police officers of committing a crime, nor to exhonerate them on the basis of inadequate evidence. No one dares to argue with the conclusion that excessive force was used by the police.
The issue at hand is the sense of entitlement exhibited by the police department in their role as protectors of the populace - they have adopted a set of behaviors that illustrate a fundamental philosophical and moral failing in their duties. Their job is to uphold the law and defend the public from the law-breakers. Their actions reflect something different - the desire to use the law to their advantage in all situations, and to avoid punishment under the same laws they enforce, which supposedly hold them to a higher standard of behavior (if we can associate more rules with higher principles).
There are certainly other elements to address: repeated incidents of excessive force in similar circumstances, ongoing ethical and procedural training within the PD, extenuating events and response, morality of undercover law enforcement, etc.
Regarding point 2:
With reference to point 1, it is true that the police are constantly overstepping their bounds, and it is also true that black people are more often the target of their enthusiasm than others. And inviting a bunch of local black leaders into City Hall (I'll refrain from the obvious plantation metaphors here) does not solve the problem.
I could include an exhaustive list of the instances of racism illustrated by the interactions between the governors and the governed, but I don't feel like finding that many links. Plus, you have your own, for sure.
What I do want to say is this: while white people are mostly in control (and slowly realizing that they are vastly outnumbered by the non-caucasian members of the human species) they are going to grab hold of that power dynamic and drain it for every drop of superiority and control they can.
If the race war hasn't already started, these 50 shots are not going to do it.
(Just a side note: If inter-ethnic and inter-racial wars are actually happening right now, how are we going to pick sides? And why hasn't someone made this into a videogame yet?)
Regarding point 3:
Sanction the police, mourn the victim, pet the favored black leaders and promise them action if they promise you votes. Does anyone actually expect this to solve anything? Call me cynical, but I think the only real source of a solution for this problem is on the ground. And it's at least four generations of major mind-shift away.
My suggestions for improved racial relations:
Integrate the public and private school systems through an income-bracket quota system (that does not factor race into its admissions decisions).
Redraw the zoning lines to include a certain percentage of stratified-income housing in each neighborhood, and include laws against gerrymandering.
Dump every police cruiser into the recycling bin, and replace them with open-sided electric zip-cars, and schedule foot patrols for every officer, every shift.
Rotate the beats of police officers citywide, regardless of seniority, requiring each officer to serve at least 6 months in each borough within 3 years.
Integrate bookstores, drug stores, clothing stores, grocery stores, music stores - get rid of those ridiculous "Black" and "Latino" and "Asian" sections.
Place a ban on all racial or ethnic qualifiers in media, i.e. "some of the community's black leaders" will become "some of the community's leaders".
And, as many great comedians have said, start fucking each other and having mixed babies until everyone's the same color!
There are three unmissable issues encompassed by the events of Sean Bell's killing by three members of the NYC Police Department.
1) The police in New York City have behaved in this situation and in others as if the law does not apply to them.
2) Racial tension exists today just as it has for the entire course of US (and world) history.
3) The political system of this city is not, and can not, be the source of the solution to either of these problems.
Regarding point 1:
I can't count the number of times I have seen police in their vehicles cruising through lights with a little "woop-woop" of the siren, gazing suspiciously at all us plebes on the street, as if we're up to some law breaking. Oh, the hypocrisy.
I compare the running of a red light with the fatal shooting of an unarmed citizen merely to illustrate the attitude of those who exercise the power of law enforcement.
When the enforcers feel it is their prerogative to bend or break the law in situations when there is no compelling reason to do so (and it can certainly be argued that there is no compelling reason to do so), it can be inferred by extension, that the same belief will apply to all situations. Thus, on the basis of a police officer's theory that Sean Bell or one of his companions could be carrying a weapon, and/or using a moving car to intentionally harm one of the other officers, it should be no surprise that they might not operate under the requisite guidelines.
I do not intend to prematurely convict the police officers of committing a crime, nor to exhonerate them on the basis of inadequate evidence. No one dares to argue with the conclusion that excessive force was used by the police.
The issue at hand is the sense of entitlement exhibited by the police department in their role as protectors of the populace - they have adopted a set of behaviors that illustrate a fundamental philosophical and moral failing in their duties. Their job is to uphold the law and defend the public from the law-breakers. Their actions reflect something different - the desire to use the law to their advantage in all situations, and to avoid punishment under the same laws they enforce, which supposedly hold them to a higher standard of behavior (if we can associate more rules with higher principles).
There are certainly other elements to address: repeated incidents of excessive force in similar circumstances, ongoing ethical and procedural training within the PD, extenuating events and response, morality of undercover law enforcement, etc.
Regarding point 2:
With reference to point 1, it is true that the police are constantly overstepping their bounds, and it is also true that black people are more often the target of their enthusiasm than others. And inviting a bunch of local black leaders into City Hall (I'll refrain from the obvious plantation metaphors here) does not solve the problem.
I could include an exhaustive list of the instances of racism illustrated by the interactions between the governors and the governed, but I don't feel like finding that many links. Plus, you have your own, for sure.
What I do want to say is this: while white people are mostly in control (and slowly realizing that they are vastly outnumbered by the non-caucasian members of the human species) they are going to grab hold of that power dynamic and drain it for every drop of superiority and control they can.
If the race war hasn't already started, these 50 shots are not going to do it.
(Just a side note: If inter-ethnic and inter-racial wars are actually happening right now, how are we going to pick sides? And why hasn't someone made this into a videogame yet?)
Regarding point 3:
Sanction the police, mourn the victim, pet the favored black leaders and promise them action if they promise you votes. Does anyone actually expect this to solve anything? Call me cynical, but I think the only real source of a solution for this problem is on the ground. And it's at least four generations of major mind-shift away.
My suggestions for improved racial relations:
Integrate the public and private school systems through an income-bracket quota system (that does not factor race into its admissions decisions).
Redraw the zoning lines to include a certain percentage of stratified-income housing in each neighborhood, and include laws against gerrymandering.
Dump every police cruiser into the recycling bin, and replace them with open-sided electric zip-cars, and schedule foot patrols for every officer, every shift.
Rotate the beats of police officers citywide, regardless of seniority, requiring each officer to serve at least 6 months in each borough within 3 years.
Integrate bookstores, drug stores, clothing stores, grocery stores, music stores - get rid of those ridiculous "Black" and "Latino" and "Asian" sections.
Place a ban on all racial or ethnic qualifiers in media, i.e. "some of the community's black leaders" will become "some of the community's leaders".
And, as many great comedians have said, start fucking each other and having mixed babies until everyone's the same color!
11.26.2006
Happy Hypocrisy
Sometimes real life is so much better than fiction, it makes you wonder why anyone bothers to make up stories. I mean, people actually believe that the stuff in the bible really happened.
But this is about as close as we can get these days.
But this is about as close as we can get these days.
11.14.2006
Africa Kicks Our Ass!
Are you kidding me?!
South Africa, the same South Africa that in only the past 25 years brought apartheid to an end, has passed a law approving same sex marriage.
Really, what else is there to say?
South Africa, the same South Africa that in only the past 25 years brought apartheid to an end, has passed a law approving same sex marriage.
Really, what else is there to say?
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