Governor Jan Brewer of Arizona has refused to pardon a man who has spent 35 years in prison for murders he didn't commit. He was framed by his wife, an employee of the local sheriff's department. Why would a sitting governor do such a thing? The speculation is that because she is running for re-election, she cannot afford to "look soft on crime." We have all heard this phrase or a variant of it for as long as we have bothered to keep up with politics. It is one of the most enduring cliches of American electoral politics, that a candidate must "look tough on crime" to be seriously electable. Leave for the moment the question whether the cliche is even accurate (count me a skeptic). That cliche is part of a wider phenomenon that has twisted the American criminal justice system into something that is far more criminal than just, part of a mindset divorced from the principles of the Founding Fathers that has taken one thing that used to be so great about this country and turned it into exactly what our Revolutionary forefathers fought against. That phenomenon is the "It-will-never-happen-to-me" syndrome. Too many of our criminal laws are made and approved by politicians and an electorate who assume they will never have those laws applied to them, and who therefore don't bother to think through the real world consequences of the laws.
The Founding Fathers formed a system of "innocent until proven guilty" that placed limitations on the prosecutorial power of the state because they personally had been subject to the prosecutorial powers of the British Empire, and they knew how it felt. They felt the injustices personally, and they were determined not to inflict those injustices on their fellow citizens. They sought to protect future generations of Americans from what had been done to them. They knew what it felt like to be staring down the barrel of the government's gun. As a result, they insisted on the right to attorney, limitations on search and seizure, the right to a public trial in front of a jury of their peers, with the right to confront one's accusers. They also fashioned a limited criminal code and tried to codify the idea that people had all the rights not specifically proscribed, with a government that had only the powers specifically enumerated. They recognized that the people with power over others are the true threat.
We have forgotten that truism. We have fallen prey to the age-old technique of fear-mongering, and allowed laws to be passed that flout all of the principles upon which our criminal justice system supposedly rests. Politicians and the electorate have conspired together to craft a criminal code that is voluminous, cruel, and arbitrary. We have developed a criminal procedure that protects arbitrary searches, deceives the citizenry, assumes guilt, stacks the deck in favor of the prosecution, and locks people away for long periods of time over trivial offenses. We lock people up at a rate far in excess of any other nation on earth. The "freest country on earth" has the most citizens locked up.
The way it works is like this: some politician needs votes to get elected, or needs votes for a pet piece of legislation. So he seizes upon some news story, or some heart-wrenching letter from a constituent, about a heinous crime and he builds a caricature of the offender. The target offender group is always politically powerless for one reason or another. He then uses that caricature to blow the issue into a major "threat to public safety and order," a crisis requiring immediate action, and promises to "get tough" on this new threat. The people respond to the threat with outrage, and demand immediate action. A law gets passed punishing offenders severely. The public is grateful, the politician gets what he wants, and everyone is happy.
The problem is that the caricature is not accurate. It is not the Serial Killer, the Drug
Pusher, or the Deadbeat Dad who commits the vast majority of the offenses and goes to prison for years. It is someone you know, a real person. The vast majority of crimes are committed not by Criminals, but by real people with real lives who feel real feelings and make real dumb decisions. In my personal experience as a criminal defense lawyer, I have come across very few "Criminals," and very many scared and desperate people who reacted to fear of loss with some very stupid decisions. I've liked most of my clients. Most of them are actually pretty decent people. I could see myself being in their situation if things were a little different in my life. And the system treats them abominably, because it doesn't view them as people. It views them as two-dimensional cardboard cutouts, because that is the way the laws view them, because that is the way they are presented to a gullible public by a cynical ruling elite.
Most of the worst abuses of our criminal justice system that result in people being locked away for years (and rendered virtually unemployable) unnecessarily result from this phenomenon of passing laws targeting caricatures. If we want to roll back these abuses and prevent ourselves from falling for this technique in the future, all we need to do is remember to "walk a mile in another man's shoes" before judging him. When some politician proposes a new "get tough on crime" law, imagine yourself being in the situation where you might commit that crime. Does it make you an evil person by itself? Should you be locked away for years because of it? Should you be ostracized and denied opportunities for the remainder of your life because of it? Can you imagine gray areas and mitigating circumstances? Is the true situation necessarily as stark and extreme as it is being protrayed?
I want to confront these abuses. I want to show how the Drug War, marijuana prohibition, mandatory minimum sentences, three-time loser laws, and many other similar laws resulting in our massive incarceration rate and huge law enforcement budgets get their driving force from this caricature phenomenon, and how they destroy real lives by the millions. I want to delve into the realities and consequences of these laws, and propose real alternatives. We need to constantly seek to do what the Founding Fathers did, and view the law as something that could be applied to us. We need to attempt to view our fellow citizens as People Like Us, and not cardboard cutouts depicting some stereotyped Other. We should seek to make the American criminal justice system about Justice, the way we all want it to be.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
OK, so it wasn't 3-0 but USA won group C and will play Ghana in the round of 16 on Saturday. Saturday happens to be my First Anniversary! Landon, Clint, Tim and Jozy, y'all can give me the best anniversary present possible if you WIN! I am hoping for Uruguay to beat South Korea for two reasons: 1) I can't stand South Korea and 2) Beating Uruguay will bring more prestige.
I have nothing to say about the game that hasn't already been said, but I will add my voice to those acclaiming this team for it's heart and refusal to die. I'm not one for jingoism, but I will say this team is everything I like to root for in a sports team or any group of people. I have found the USMNT to be well worthy of fanatical support since qualification for the 2002 World Cup, and this edition is the best of all. It is gratifying to see Landon Donovan mature into a great team leader, and I see the best yet to come for him in this Cup.
Saturday will be huge. I would say that as round of 16 games go it could not be bigger than the 2002 game, but any World Cup knockout stage game is of monumental import and historic significance. If we win, we will be one of a very few nations to make it to the quarterfinals of two World Cups in the twenty-first century. Despite what people will want to say about our style or quality of play, those types of results in the most significant tournament in world soccer necessarily make a nation a member of the elite. The world will have to admit that the USA has become a world soccer power. It is a goal that I and many other Americans formed in the mid-90s as we were drawn into this game. For me it was 1997 when my son was five and our soccer careers (his playing and mine coaching) began. Thinking back to where American soccer was then and comparing it to what I see now -- on youth and scholastic fields as much as on professional and World Cup fields -- the growth in our game is astounding and something that everyone who has been a part of US Soccer (and that includes ALL youth players and coaches, as we are all members of the USSF) can be proud of. The efforts of ALL of us have brought the USA to this historic moment, having won a group for the first time in modern soccer history.
I know that over on The Shin Guardian they are saying that the USA might be only the third or fourth best team in this knockout group, but I don't seeing any of these teams knocking us out. This team has grit and perseverance. It has Will. It is going to take a Power to put us out of this tournament, and neither Uruguay, Ghana, nor South Korea is a Power. The semi-final berth is there, and Landon Donovan is going to lead this team into it.
I have nothing to say about the game that hasn't already been said, but I will add my voice to those acclaiming this team for it's heart and refusal to die. I'm not one for jingoism, but I will say this team is everything I like to root for in a sports team or any group of people. I have found the USMNT to be well worthy of fanatical support since qualification for the 2002 World Cup, and this edition is the best of all. It is gratifying to see Landon Donovan mature into a great team leader, and I see the best yet to come for him in this Cup.
Saturday will be huge. I would say that as round of 16 games go it could not be bigger than the 2002 game, but any World Cup knockout stage game is of monumental import and historic significance. If we win, we will be one of a very few nations to make it to the quarterfinals of two World Cups in the twenty-first century. Despite what people will want to say about our style or quality of play, those types of results in the most significant tournament in world soccer necessarily make a nation a member of the elite. The world will have to admit that the USA has become a world soccer power. It is a goal that I and many other Americans formed in the mid-90s as we were drawn into this game. For me it was 1997 when my son was five and our soccer careers (his playing and mine coaching) began. Thinking back to where American soccer was then and comparing it to what I see now -- on youth and scholastic fields as much as on professional and World Cup fields -- the growth in our game is astounding and something that everyone who has been a part of US Soccer (and that includes ALL youth players and coaches, as we are all members of the USSF) can be proud of. The efforts of ALL of us have brought the USA to this historic moment, having won a group for the first time in modern soccer history.
I know that over on The Shin Guardian they are saying that the USA might be only the third or fourth best team in this knockout group, but I don't seeing any of these teams knocking us out. This team has grit and perseverance. It has Will. It is going to take a Power to put us out of this tournament, and neither Uruguay, Ghana, nor South Korea is a Power. The semi-final berth is there, and Landon Donovan is going to lead this team into it.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Filip Bondy is like the football commentator who says halfway through the fourth quarter that the trailing team 'has to score here to get back in this game,' then the team fails to score there but comes back to win later. He wrote in the daily news that the USA had to beat Slovenia to stay alive. We all know what happened, and the USA is still very much alive.
Fact is, the USA is not only in great shape to advance, but also to win the group. Contrary to Bondy's reflexive negativity, the USA is probably the most likely team to win the group outright. The only way the USA does not have a chance to win the group is if Slovenia defeats England, an outcome that while quite possible is unlikely. The English side has too much quality to continue playing punchless football. A draw is the worst result likely for England. If England and Slovenia draw, a US win over Algeria will put USA top of the group unless Slovenia scores more goals than USA scores. Highly unlikely the Slovenes will pull that off if the USA is winning its game.
If England beats Slovenia, it will depend on goal differential. If USA defeats Algeria by more than England defeats Slovenia, then the USA wins the group, and vice versa. If the margins of victory are the same, USA wins the group unless England scores 2 more goals than USA scores. Again, highly unlikely.
Basically, if USA beats Algeria by two goals, that will probably make USA the group winner. Winning a WC group will be a step forward for US Soccer, regardless of what happens in the knockout stages. It will also set USA up for a deeper tournament run.
I feel good about this USA team, and think this is going to be a special Cup for America. In fact, I am predicting a SEMI-FINAL appearance! Yes, I am irrationally exuberant, but with reason. I love the heart of this team and believe that they will catapult from the Slovenia injustice to a series of good performances. We have seen that the USA can beat and compete with the BEST when playing at our best. I believe that Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Carlos Bocanegra and Michael Bradley will will this team to strong performances from here on out. Cup history is replete with deep runs from teams that struggled early in group play.
This team has ability. Jozy Altidore is going to score some big goals. Landon Donovan is a world-class elite player, and he is finally in his prime. Remember, he was the outstanding player of the U-17 World Cup back in the day, and that tournament featured some names that are among the pantheon of today's pros. Bradley is the type of young, up-and-coming professionals who make their bones in the World Cup. He's a tremendous player and will prove it. He has more big goals in him. Clint Dempsey is able to make magic. We are coming into our own as an attacking team.
Defense is the problem, and I would pin it at concentration. Our guys have not been able to bring the constant focus that is required for defense. I think the Slovenia game will focus our men. Nothing like a sense of having been wronged to motivate men. If our defense prevents the lapses in coverage, Howard will deliver clean sheets.
Fasten your seat belts and enjoy the ride. A 3-0 thumping of Algeria will put the USA on top of the group, and into the round of 16 against Ghana or Serbia. I want Ghana. I want revenge for that 2006 travesty. After that, one upset win of a more favored team puts us in the semifinals where a true contender subdues us in a taut, thrilling match that leaves US fans thirsting for more.
Fact is, the USA is not only in great shape to advance, but also to win the group. Contrary to Bondy's reflexive negativity, the USA is probably the most likely team to win the group outright. The only way the USA does not have a chance to win the group is if Slovenia defeats England, an outcome that while quite possible is unlikely. The English side has too much quality to continue playing punchless football. A draw is the worst result likely for England. If England and Slovenia draw, a US win over Algeria will put USA top of the group unless Slovenia scores more goals than USA scores. Highly unlikely the Slovenes will pull that off if the USA is winning its game.
If England beats Slovenia, it will depend on goal differential. If USA defeats Algeria by more than England defeats Slovenia, then the USA wins the group, and vice versa. If the margins of victory are the same, USA wins the group unless England scores 2 more goals than USA scores. Again, highly unlikely.
Basically, if USA beats Algeria by two goals, that will probably make USA the group winner. Winning a WC group will be a step forward for US Soccer, regardless of what happens in the knockout stages. It will also set USA up for a deeper tournament run.
I feel good about this USA team, and think this is going to be a special Cup for America. In fact, I am predicting a SEMI-FINAL appearance! Yes, I am irrationally exuberant, but with reason. I love the heart of this team and believe that they will catapult from the Slovenia injustice to a series of good performances. We have seen that the USA can beat and compete with the BEST when playing at our best. I believe that Landon Donovan, Tim Howard, Carlos Bocanegra and Michael Bradley will will this team to strong performances from here on out. Cup history is replete with deep runs from teams that struggled early in group play.
This team has ability. Jozy Altidore is going to score some big goals. Landon Donovan is a world-class elite player, and he is finally in his prime. Remember, he was the outstanding player of the U-17 World Cup back in the day, and that tournament featured some names that are among the pantheon of today's pros. Bradley is the type of young, up-and-coming professionals who make their bones in the World Cup. He's a tremendous player and will prove it. He has more big goals in him. Clint Dempsey is able to make magic. We are coming into our own as an attacking team.
Defense is the problem, and I would pin it at concentration. Our guys have not been able to bring the constant focus that is required for defense. I think the Slovenia game will focus our men. Nothing like a sense of having been wronged to motivate men. If our defense prevents the lapses in coverage, Howard will deliver clean sheets.
Fasten your seat belts and enjoy the ride. A 3-0 thumping of Algeria will put the USA on top of the group, and into the round of 16 against Ghana or Serbia. I want Ghana. I want revenge for that 2006 travesty. After that, one upset win of a more favored team puts us in the semifinals where a true contender subdues us in a taut, thrilling match that leaves US fans thirsting for more.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
The Next American Hero: Tim Howard
I've been a fan of Howard for about ten years now. It is wonderful to see him get his chance on this stage. I guess he was the keeper in '06, but that team was dysfunctional. Now there is a solid team in front of him, and he provided the edge in outperforming England. Even after getting cleated in the chest, possibly suffering broken ribs, he didn't let it show and played an outstanding match. He's had bigger performances, such as Spain last year in the Confederations Cup, where the US withstood a more potent onslaught, but this one is to date the most significant.
It seems that Oguchi Onyewu was as much at fault for the England goal as was the more obvious Ricardo Clark. Yes, Clark should have marked Gerrard's run, but Onyewu abandoned his space in the back four to go for the ball, and it was that space Gerrard ran through. Had Onyewu maintained discipline, he would have been in position to defend the pass to Gerrard. Onyewu made the same mistake several times, but only that one was punished.
Overall, though, the US defense did quite well. Lampard, Gerrard and Rooney are an attacking trio as able as any in the world, and they were held in check. Rooney was a non-factor for most of the game, and even late was not able to impose on the game. We will need better from Onyewu in future games, but he was playing his first full game, and his first meaningful game at all, since October.
Next up is Slovenia on my daughter's birthday. I know next to nothing about Slovenia except that it is an eastern European side. I have no idea if we should be favored or not, but I want to see a win. If we win that game, we will probably be in shape to advance. But I don't want to just advance. I want to win the group. I want the prestige and the competitive advantage of winning the group. I'm looking for Landon Donovan to lead us there. A goalkeeping hero can keep you in the game, but it takes a field player to win it.
It seems that Oguchi Onyewu was as much at fault for the England goal as was the more obvious Ricardo Clark. Yes, Clark should have marked Gerrard's run, but Onyewu abandoned his space in the back four to go for the ball, and it was that space Gerrard ran through. Had Onyewu maintained discipline, he would have been in position to defend the pass to Gerrard. Onyewu made the same mistake several times, but only that one was punished.
Overall, though, the US defense did quite well. Lampard, Gerrard and Rooney are an attacking trio as able as any in the world, and they were held in check. Rooney was a non-factor for most of the game, and even late was not able to impose on the game. We will need better from Onyewu in future games, but he was playing his first full game, and his first meaningful game at all, since October.
Next up is Slovenia on my daughter's birthday. I know next to nothing about Slovenia except that it is an eastern European side. I have no idea if we should be favored or not, but I want to see a win. If we win that game, we will probably be in shape to advance. But I don't want to just advance. I want to win the group. I want the prestige and the competitive advantage of winning the group. I'm looking for Landon Donovan to lead us there. A goalkeeping hero can keep you in the game, but it takes a field player to win it.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Our system is going bankrupt. Is there anyone who really thinks, deep down in his unconscious processes where most of the real work of thinking takes place, that we can go on living this way for a long time? Really? You really believe that we can support this level of expense and debt indefinitely? We are a debtor nation. We are a consumer nation. We borrow and buy. That is our function in the world economy. We depend on the rest of the world for everything.
When I think about the number of people on public assistance -- and I don't mean the stereotypical worthless shits lying around making babies and collecting a welfare check -- the demographics, the job prospects out there, the amount of unpaid child support and student loans, the amount of debt in general, health care costs, and the potential solutions that are within the realm of possibility as serious alternatives in this political system, I do not see how the American people can keep this economy afloat for long. Wages are so low and obligations so high that I see many people who work 40 hour weeks and cannot afford to live. When you can't get a decent room for one person for less than $500 a month, and a typical full-time retail worker makes $7.50 an hour, you've got people trying to pay rent and live on take-home of around $1000 per month. Put a child support order for $245 per month for two children, and an order for $160 for another child by another mother, and you now have another person in a completely dependent position. If he's really stupid in his late teens and early twenties, he'll have a couple more kids with about $350 more in court-ordered support. He also has arrearages in all of his cases, is ordered to pay another $150 toward his arrearages, and every two or three months he is back in court with another court-appointed lawyer trying to stay out of jail for non-payment of support. He will file a motion to reduce or two, and usually get denied. Eventually, he will be sent to jail. He will lose his job. Now he will be on the looking-for-work/going-to-jail treadmill, and a system that has no mercy for losers like him will just send him to jail over and over again, expecting him each time to get out and within a week get work that allows him to pay that $900 per month in child support. These expectations are completely without basis in reality.
And into all this the new President offers --
"And did they get you to trade . . . cold comfort for change?"
When I think about the number of people on public assistance -- and I don't mean the stereotypical worthless shits lying around making babies and collecting a welfare check -- the demographics, the job prospects out there, the amount of unpaid child support and student loans, the amount of debt in general, health care costs, and the potential solutions that are within the realm of possibility as serious alternatives in this political system, I do not see how the American people can keep this economy afloat for long. Wages are so low and obligations so high that I see many people who work 40 hour weeks and cannot afford to live. When you can't get a decent room for one person for less than $500 a month, and a typical full-time retail worker makes $7.50 an hour, you've got people trying to pay rent and live on take-home of around $1000 per month. Put a child support order for $245 per month for two children, and an order for $160 for another child by another mother, and you now have another person in a completely dependent position. If he's really stupid in his late teens and early twenties, he'll have a couple more kids with about $350 more in court-ordered support. He also has arrearages in all of his cases, is ordered to pay another $150 toward his arrearages, and every two or three months he is back in court with another court-appointed lawyer trying to stay out of jail for non-payment of support. He will file a motion to reduce or two, and usually get denied. Eventually, he will be sent to jail. He will lose his job. Now he will be on the looking-for-work/going-to-jail treadmill, and a system that has no mercy for losers like him will just send him to jail over and over again, expecting him each time to get out and within a week get work that allows him to pay that $900 per month in child support. These expectations are completely without basis in reality.
And into all this the new President offers --
"And did they get you to trade . . . cold comfort for change?"
Sunday, February 28, 2010
An Homage to Whitman
To the world I sound out my barbarian yawp
I am a Man!
I will not be a mouse
scurrying silently in the cracks and crevices of life
venturing out in the deep of night to steal a crumb, a speck, a mote
I will stride boldly forth in the light of day
Wrap my fist around the neck of life
And drink deep a draught
I declare to the world
I am a Man!
A Free Man
I will live as such
Not still my voice
Or hide my eyes
Not deny my power
Nor dim my shine
My voice will ring out
My boistrous laughter I will release
Let the timid shiver and cast furtive glances
My glare will sweep the field
And out will boom my barbarian yawp
I am a Man!
Surprise, surprise, do not avert your eyes. There is nothing to see here but can you turn away? Fascination claims you.
OK, that was nonsensical, but it came off the fingertips. Today is the last day of February. Tomorrow is March. A boundary line will be crossed.
Here at Grace House we are trying to put together a new way of life for ourselves. We are trying to break free from the corporate economy and create our own. We are trying to link into the Local economy, trying to be part of this movement the truth of which, and the right of which, I have only recently come to grasp. It is our salvation. We began our compost heap yesterday. Today we will plant our first seeds. Tomorrow we will begin making our own paper. We will produce for our needs, and produce surplus for exchange. We are living communally. We are attempting to govern ourselves and resolve conflicts through communication and consensus decision-making. It is about being the change you want. It is about taking care of ourselves and each other.
I'm not sure how well it will go, as none of us is an experienced grower. But we will give it a go. I just know I don't want to be dependent on supermarkets and transnational corporations for my food. And I don't want to live as an atomized individual anymore. I want to be interdependent upon the people around me.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
My wife has the most perfect lips in the world
My mouth knows no pleasure greater than joining with those lips
They are my gateway to ethereal realms
No surface is more exquisite to the touch than the skin of her back
Trailing my fingers down the flow of her back is like dragging one's tongue through a trickle of pure, fresh honey
No fruit tastes as sweet as the base of her neck
No fiber is finer than her firegold strands of hair wrapped around my fingers
She is my Nirvana
My Paradise
She is the terminus of all my searching
In her my spirit rests
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Long Time, No Write
My mind has wandered away from this blog of late. I have written some personal blog entries, and even one or two on What Is To Be Done? But I have gotten very busy with my business, and my creativity has suffered. I have gotten away from the creative state of mind, so to speak. Sometimes I miss it with a poignance that only a guy approaching middle age can have.
Still, thoughts have percolated, and at times while walking I have felt the flow. I remain committed to developing the next political philosophy of liberty. I am convinced that people need to walk away from the corporate society, because the corporate society has no use for people. Those of us not fortunate enough to be born into the elite, or driven enough (i.e., soulless and unbalanced people) to obsess our way into it, are increasingly unnecessary to the corporate world. This "globalization" is accelerating the depersonalization of the world. America has for some twenty five years been a society of disposable people, and that trend is accelerating as technology enables more and more areas of labor to be replaced by machines. So if the corporate world has no use for us, what use have we for it?
Another thought that I keep coming back to is that a people who cannot produce their own basic needs are by definition a dependent people. When you depend on another for your basic needs, you are at his mercy. How many of us could feed ourselves should the money economy collapse? The less a community produces its own basic needs, the more vulnerable and unstable is that community, subject to the whims of external forces.
My hostility to corporations grows daily. They are exploitation machines. I want to get them and their products out of my life. I want to get rid of the TV. The TV is the corporate machine's primary method of controlling our minds. The more we sit in front of it, the more their messages are bombarded into our brains. The internet has become nearly as bad. Even books are getting there, although the impending death of Barnes & Noble might have some impact on that. Of course, Amazon.Com is the barbarian invader pillaging B&N, and that's pretty damn corporate and homogenizing in itself.
Of course, I am using my corporate-made computer, listening to corporate music, using the corporate internet, while wearing my corporate-made clothing, and getting ready to drive my corporate-made car to court.
Jefferson owned slaves.
Still, thoughts have percolated, and at times while walking I have felt the flow. I remain committed to developing the next political philosophy of liberty. I am convinced that people need to walk away from the corporate society, because the corporate society has no use for people. Those of us not fortunate enough to be born into the elite, or driven enough (i.e., soulless and unbalanced people) to obsess our way into it, are increasingly unnecessary to the corporate world. This "globalization" is accelerating the depersonalization of the world. America has for some twenty five years been a society of disposable people, and that trend is accelerating as technology enables more and more areas of labor to be replaced by machines. So if the corporate world has no use for us, what use have we for it?
Another thought that I keep coming back to is that a people who cannot produce their own basic needs are by definition a dependent people. When you depend on another for your basic needs, you are at his mercy. How many of us could feed ourselves should the money economy collapse? The less a community produces its own basic needs, the more vulnerable and unstable is that community, subject to the whims of external forces.
My hostility to corporations grows daily. They are exploitation machines. I want to get them and their products out of my life. I want to get rid of the TV. The TV is the corporate machine's primary method of controlling our minds. The more we sit in front of it, the more their messages are bombarded into our brains. The internet has become nearly as bad. Even books are getting there, although the impending death of Barnes & Noble might have some impact on that. Of course, Amazon.Com is the barbarian invader pillaging B&N, and that's pretty damn corporate and homogenizing in itself.
Of course, I am using my corporate-made computer, listening to corporate music, using the corporate internet, while wearing my corporate-made clothing, and getting ready to drive my corporate-made car to court.
Jefferson owned slaves.
Monday, February 1, 2010
The mind of Jefferson Junior has conceived another creative project. That sentence was just a convoluted way of not beginning this entry with "I". This project would further the legalization agenda. I have two creative priorities - legalization of marijuana and promoting the revolution. The nonviolent revolution. The revolution through election. OK, anyway, paranoia served, I can now get to the point.
My new creative endeavor is a nonfiction book tentatively titled "The 1973 Nixon Commission: An Opportunity Lost." For those who don't know, in 1972 President Nixon empaneled a blue ribbon commission to study marihuana (sic) and make policy recommendations. This panel was made up of heavyweight experts of unimpeachable credentials. The panel did what such panels tend to do: it took its mission seriously and delved into the issue. The panel then did what such panels should not do if they want their recommendations to be followed: it surprised Nixon by recommending legalization. The panel was not supposed to do that. It was supposed to lend intellectual legitimacy to Nixon's intended crackdown on drugs. As soon as its report was issued, Nixon set about discrediting it.
I would like to tell this story in detail. I want to put it in the historical context of independent policy studies of marijuana, which have tended nearly unanimously to recommend legalization. Studies of scientific literature have tended to discredit the hyped risks and harms and find the drug to be relatively benign and even of some promising potential uses. American policy toward the drug is somewhat mystifying intellectually when viewed from the perspective of such studies.
Anyway, that is my idea. I think I will pursue it. Just another thing on my plate. My plate overfloweth. That is ok, I am happiest in those circumstances. I like having too much to do. I just need to manage my time. I need to give enough hours to the law practice to keep that going, then devote my other hours to my various demands.
I have such a thirst for knowledge. I want to learn so many things. I would love to spend hours every day reading and researching. Then other hours writing. Alas, stretches of hours for doing those things are rare.
There are not enough photographs on this blog right now.
My new creative endeavor is a nonfiction book tentatively titled "The 1973 Nixon Commission: An Opportunity Lost." For those who don't know, in 1972 President Nixon empaneled a blue ribbon commission to study marihuana (sic) and make policy recommendations. This panel was made up of heavyweight experts of unimpeachable credentials. The panel did what such panels tend to do: it took its mission seriously and delved into the issue. The panel then did what such panels should not do if they want their recommendations to be followed: it surprised Nixon by recommending legalization. The panel was not supposed to do that. It was supposed to lend intellectual legitimacy to Nixon's intended crackdown on drugs. As soon as its report was issued, Nixon set about discrediting it.
I would like to tell this story in detail. I want to put it in the historical context of independent policy studies of marijuana, which have tended nearly unanimously to recommend legalization. Studies of scientific literature have tended to discredit the hyped risks and harms and find the drug to be relatively benign and even of some promising potential uses. American policy toward the drug is somewhat mystifying intellectually when viewed from the perspective of such studies.
Anyway, that is my idea. I think I will pursue it. Just another thing on my plate. My plate overfloweth. That is ok, I am happiest in those circumstances. I like having too much to do. I just need to manage my time. I need to give enough hours to the law practice to keep that going, then devote my other hours to my various demands.
I have such a thirst for knowledge. I want to learn so many things. I would love to spend hours every day reading and researching. Then other hours writing. Alas, stretches of hours for doing those things are rare.
There are not enough photographs on this blog right now.
"Columbus Vindicated"
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Should Evolution Still Be Taught In School?
Darwin was wrong. Science was wrong. It was with some pleasure that I read about epigenetics in Time Magazine. Now, I'm certain the reporter got several key points completely wrong, because reporters always do, but clearly this discovery is somewhat embarrassing for the Evolution believers. Don't get me wrong -- I'm no Creationist. I simply know that Evolution is scarcely less an issue of Faith. What I love is seeing Science forced to admit that it has been Wrong for so many years about something so fundamental to its theory of creation. I like seeing hubris shot down wherever it is found.
But Darwin was wrong and I was right. I have theorized for some time that genes change over the course of a life and that the genes passed on at one point would be different than those passed on at another point. Things like cancer and mutations were what I looked at.
The most disturbing aspect of this discovery is the effect it will have on the potential for increased social control. The idea that today's decision can directly effect generations of descendants is going to increase the temptation for the Controllers to criminalize a lot of activities. Not to mention the power to turn on and off our genes selectively. Yeah, great, we can use this discovery to cure a lot of diseases and further purify the human race. Our Master Race will be so beautiful and polite, perfect and athletic. Everybody will be athletes and dancers, singers and artists, creating the earthly Nirvana thanks to Pharmakon and Epigenetech.
While the other billions starve because the Combots drive them off the good land and away from the valuable resources. You know, those who can't afford designer babies and Domestic Robots.
So, now that Evolution has proven to be fallible theory and not Incontrovertible Fact, should it still be taught in school?
But Darwin was wrong and I was right. I have theorized for some time that genes change over the course of a life and that the genes passed on at one point would be different than those passed on at another point. Things like cancer and mutations were what I looked at.
The most disturbing aspect of this discovery is the effect it will have on the potential for increased social control. The idea that today's decision can directly effect generations of descendants is going to increase the temptation for the Controllers to criminalize a lot of activities. Not to mention the power to turn on and off our genes selectively. Yeah, great, we can use this discovery to cure a lot of diseases and further purify the human race. Our Master Race will be so beautiful and polite, perfect and athletic. Everybody will be athletes and dancers, singers and artists, creating the earthly Nirvana thanks to Pharmakon and Epigenetech.
While the other billions starve because the Combots drive them off the good land and away from the valuable resources. You know, those who can't afford designer babies and Domestic Robots.
So, now that Evolution has proven to be fallible theory and not Incontrovertible Fact, should it still be taught in school?
Thursday, January 14, 2010
PeriPateticking Around
If you've checked my profile, you know I have a couple other blogs. I also have a private one that none of you guys who aren't reading this blog have access to. So, while this particular blog has not been active for a while, I have been posting regularly. I have been devoting my time to organizing my thoughts on marijuana legalization, my new book, and some deep religiphilosophical explorations. The last has me really questioning my sanity, and the sanity of the society around me. I have also been very busy with my practice, which is a good thing. It means that survival begins to look better.
My thinking has once again veered sharply radical. Bitterly opposed to The Way Things Are. The system is just fucked up, and we all know that. Now is the responsibility to do something and not just continue to obliviously grant it our consent. We need to make our Change, and not count on just electing some guy president who says "Change" and "Hope." Yes, we need those things, and it was good that he brought those words back into the political discourse, but WE need to BE our Change and Hope. If we want Change that is going to benefit US, WE have to make it happen.
How do we do that? We have to research and learn, develop our principles as individuals, and figure out how we can put them into practice. We need to gather with like-minded people and pool resources to make our common vision real. And, we need to ally with different-minded people who share our core interests or principles in pursuit of those interests and principles against those people who are actively seeking to harm our interests and destroy our principles.
It's just a shame that the middle class always sides with the Rich against the Poor. I guess the middle class hopes that it will be granted entry to the Rich, and not become the Poor. Side with the winner. Unfortunately, only a very few of the middle class ever gain entry into the Rich -- like one in a 10,000 or 100,000 -- while the Rich-serving policies of the last 25 years have pushed thousands if not millions of the middle class into the Poor. The middle class is like the runty, dorky twelve-year-old hanging around with the high school varsity football players hoping to be let into their pickup game. They shove him aside and laugh at him, and next weekend he's out there again, hopping and skipping at their heels saying, "Can I play? Can I play?" He's a fucking moron! That's what he is: a crazy fucking moron!
-- All new construction should be required to generate at least half its own energy, and recycle at least half its incoming water. Including renovation, remodeling, and addition.
-- All new development should be required to promote pedestrian traffic and inhibit vehicular traffic.
-- Parking should be scarce and on the periphery, while buildings are close together and linked by public greens.
-- People should be allowed -- nay, government must recognize that people have the right -- to conduct business at their home and in their yards. The right is not unlimited, and should be denied to limited liability entities. Business size in residences should be limited, but large enough to allow the family to provide itself a life of luxury and travel.
-- Government must recognize that people have the right to grow and enjoy the fruits of any crop they choose on their property. The right is not unlimited, and they can be required to do so in a fashion that protects the rights of their neighbors, but a person who wants to have chickens and devises a way to keep them from waking everybody up every morning should be able to do so. Of course, if we knew our neighbors and had a sense of shared purpose (i.e., we're all in this together) with them, it wouldn't be as much of a problem.
Secessionism is in the news. It is fascinating. It is timely. The world is changing. The days of the nation-state may very well be ending. I read that article with interest, because I, too, have become a secessionist. Not necessarily that I want my state to secede from the Union, but that I want to secede my family from the United States. But not just from the United States: from the world the Superclass is creating. The United States is just the kernel from which the Superclass will create its world. I want no part of it. No, my thinking has been dominated by two related words:
Exile
Exodus
My thinking has once again veered sharply radical. Bitterly opposed to The Way Things Are. The system is just fucked up, and we all know that. Now is the responsibility to do something and not just continue to obliviously grant it our consent. We need to make our Change, and not count on just electing some guy president who says "Change" and "Hope." Yes, we need those things, and it was good that he brought those words back into the political discourse, but WE need to BE our Change and Hope. If we want Change that is going to benefit US, WE have to make it happen.
How do we do that? We have to research and learn, develop our principles as individuals, and figure out how we can put them into practice. We need to gather with like-minded people and pool resources to make our common vision real. And, we need to ally with different-minded people who share our core interests or principles in pursuit of those interests and principles against those people who are actively seeking to harm our interests and destroy our principles.
It's just a shame that the middle class always sides with the Rich against the Poor. I guess the middle class hopes that it will be granted entry to the Rich, and not become the Poor. Side with the winner. Unfortunately, only a very few of the middle class ever gain entry into the Rich -- like one in a 10,000 or 100,000 -- while the Rich-serving policies of the last 25 years have pushed thousands if not millions of the middle class into the Poor. The middle class is like the runty, dorky twelve-year-old hanging around with the high school varsity football players hoping to be let into their pickup game. They shove him aside and laugh at him, and next weekend he's out there again, hopping and skipping at their heels saying, "Can I play? Can I play?" He's a fucking moron! That's what he is: a crazy fucking moron!
-- All new construction should be required to generate at least half its own energy, and recycle at least half its incoming water. Including renovation, remodeling, and addition.
-- All new development should be required to promote pedestrian traffic and inhibit vehicular traffic.
-- Parking should be scarce and on the periphery, while buildings are close together and linked by public greens.
-- People should be allowed -- nay, government must recognize that people have the right -- to conduct business at their home and in their yards. The right is not unlimited, and should be denied to limited liability entities. Business size in residences should be limited, but large enough to allow the family to provide itself a life of luxury and travel.
-- Government must recognize that people have the right to grow and enjoy the fruits of any crop they choose on their property. The right is not unlimited, and they can be required to do so in a fashion that protects the rights of their neighbors, but a person who wants to have chickens and devises a way to keep them from waking everybody up every morning should be able to do so. Of course, if we knew our neighbors and had a sense of shared purpose (i.e., we're all in this together) with them, it wouldn't be as much of a problem.
Secessionism is in the news. It is fascinating. It is timely. The world is changing. The days of the nation-state may very well be ending. I read that article with interest, because I, too, have become a secessionist. Not necessarily that I want my state to secede from the Union, but that I want to secede my family from the United States. But not just from the United States: from the world the Superclass is creating. The United States is just the kernel from which the Superclass will create its world. I want no part of it. No, my thinking has been dominated by two related words:
Exile
Exodus
Open your eyes and look within
Are you satisfied with the life you're livin?
We know where we're going
We know where we're from
We're leaving Babylon
We're going to our Father's land
Come out of him my people
Come out of him
Yes, exile and exodus. Exile is being driven away or leaving your land without agreeing that your ties to it are broken. If you are in exile, you are away from home with the intent to return when you can. You cannot live under the political power of the time, but if that power ends, you will return. Exodus is the flight of a people from a land where they are oppressed to a land where they believe they can live in freedom.
My family is leaving the United States as soon as we can. We want to live in a place that cares about its citizens, that sees providing the basic needs of all as being its primary purpose. We want to live in a place that values health care for its citizens over the ability to project military force over every square inch of the globe, and into the space around it. So we will leave. We don't know where we will go, but it might be to the west coast, given the increasing divergence between those states and Washington, D.C. We might choose internal exile, or internal exodus.
That is primary news piece number one. Our goal is to leave the country. We do not agree with the governance of this country, and we no longer consent to its rule over us. I was born a citizen of the Republic, and I want no part of the Empire.
The other piece of news is my renewed determination to write.
A writer is one who writes, so if you want to be a writer, write. I saw or heard that aphorism somewhere recently. I do not remember where or who said it. I just know that it resonated within me and gave me a mental slap in the face. It is so obvious. If you want to be a writer, write. Don't worry if it will ever sell or if anyone will ever read it. Write it, and let the rest take care of itself.
So I am writing again. Writing is my number two time priority now. First is work. Must pay the bills. Second is writing. I guess I should talk about "productive time priority." The people in my life will not be neglected. I love my time with my wife and with my daughter. That time is crucial. That is the time that makes us human.
I have begun another book. When I wrote Broken Doll, I did a couple of things. I got Mary's ghost out of my brain. I told her story. And I completed a book. So only a few people ever read it and I will never sell it or publish it. I wrote it. I am now starting my second book. And it is my first. I am returning to the book I spent my college years writing. I was like a pickup truck in the middle of a wet cornfield. Blind Faith. This time I am going to complete it. The book is my vision from my college years. It is my life's work. This time, I am going to complete it.
In addition, I am blogging. Every day, I will blog something, whether it is in this blog or one of the other blogs. I will not stop. Finally, I am going to return to pamphleteering. It's in my soul. Samizdat was one of the best things I ever did, even though the readership was so small. I will make and print a small journal with news stories and my own writings. I will invite a couple other people to write for it. I will point people to a website for it.
It is suddenly time for me to go.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
I was going to attend the Virginia People's Alliance rally and march on the State Capitol today with my camera, and submit a report, but when we drove by it was so pathetic I didn't want to waste the time. There were about 20 people there. I think the cops and media outnumbered the rallyers.
But then what is the point of a rally and march today when nobody is there. You want to show it to these rich corporations and the legislators by rallying and marching on a day they aren't even in their offices? Wow, that makes your statement loud and clear. No, if you want to put pressure on them, you go in on a weekday. You get an army of unemployed men and women, including high school and college students, and you march down 9th Street at 8:45 A.M. Monday morning.
We have a very long way to go.
But then what is the point of a rally and march today when nobody is there. You want to show it to these rich corporations and the legislators by rallying and marching on a day they aren't even in their offices? Wow, that makes your statement loud and clear. No, if you want to put pressure on them, you go in on a weekday. You get an army of unemployed men and women, including high school and college students, and you march down 9th Street at 8:45 A.M. Monday morning.
We have a very long way to go.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
How long is it polite to sit at a coffee shop for an espresso drink and muffin?
When a bottom-feeding employer can play off good employees and solid citizens against each other to keep hours, wages and demands low, then something is seriously fucked in the Capitalist-worker bargain. This is where we find ourselves after 29 years of Reactionary rule. Good middle class citizens fighting it out for minimum wage work. When you go shopping this week, wherever you go, look around at the people you see working there. They are probably making less than $10 an hour. If you're in a chain store, the store manager is probably making shockingly piss-poor money. Like less than a plumber. And he's top dog in the local store.
That's what our economy has produced. The American Dream reduced to $10/hour and living with your parents or children. You know what? I got no problem with the latter part, because rebuilding our extended families would be a good thing for the country. But it shouldn't be done this way, by devaluing all labor to the point where fewer and fewer people can afford their own place even though they work full time.
It's our own fault. We've rolled over and let them fuck us. As a result, they have gleefully fucked us harder and faster as each year has gone by, each legislative session, each presidential administration, each bullshit business cycle. They plan to wear us out even more, because as with all other deviancies, theirs is a progressive addiction.
I keep reading about the collapse of the world financial system. What collapse? That was the global ponzi scheme that collapsed, the financial system is alive and well. Frankly, this latest recession was probably no worse than any other, except that for the first time the rich lost a lot of money too. They lost half their wealth in a hurry. Damn, some probably even had to sell the fourth or fifth house and delay buying the eighth car. No, for us it is the same as every other recession. But now that the portfolios of the wealthy are rising again, we hear that it is a recovery. Yeah, well, unemployment is not coming down and we are told it is going to be a jobless recovery.
That's no recovery. Do not let them bullshit you. Forget recession and recovery. What we are in is a regression. The Great Regression of the Late American Era, 1981-. The statistics that matter for the people that matter -- the People -- have been consistently dismal for almost thirty years. It has been a sustained regression, coincidentally beginning at the same time Ronald Reagan took over and busted the unions. The political history of America from 1981 to the present has been about the Destruction of Labor. It is time to end that story and begin a new one, the one where the People rise up.
That's what our economy has produced. The American Dream reduced to $10/hour and living with your parents or children. You know what? I got no problem with the latter part, because rebuilding our extended families would be a good thing for the country. But it shouldn't be done this way, by devaluing all labor to the point where fewer and fewer people can afford their own place even though they work full time.
It's our own fault. We've rolled over and let them fuck us. As a result, they have gleefully fucked us harder and faster as each year has gone by, each legislative session, each presidential administration, each bullshit business cycle. They plan to wear us out even more, because as with all other deviancies, theirs is a progressive addiction.
I keep reading about the collapse of the world financial system. What collapse? That was the global ponzi scheme that collapsed, the financial system is alive and well. Frankly, this latest recession was probably no worse than any other, except that for the first time the rich lost a lot of money too. They lost half their wealth in a hurry. Damn, some probably even had to sell the fourth or fifth house and delay buying the eighth car. No, for us it is the same as every other recession. But now that the portfolios of the wealthy are rising again, we hear that it is a recovery. Yeah, well, unemployment is not coming down and we are told it is going to be a jobless recovery.
That's no recovery. Do not let them bullshit you. Forget recession and recovery. What we are in is a regression. The Great Regression of the Late American Era, 1981-. The statistics that matter for the people that matter -- the People -- have been consistently dismal for almost thirty years. It has been a sustained regression, coincidentally beginning at the same time Ronald Reagan took over and busted the unions. The political history of America from 1981 to the present has been about the Destruction of Labor. It is time to end that story and begin a new one, the one where the People rise up.
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