More good people than bad…

We heard a lot last week about concerns regarding open carry at the Republican National Convention. Stephen Loomis, president of Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association, went so far as to suggest that open carry should be banned, stating “… I don’t care if it’s constitutional or not…” (reaffirming the need for the 2nd amendment in the process). This is particularly disconcerting given that he represents police officers who are sworn to uphold the law and the constitution. I can’t be the only citizen uneasy about Loomis’ willingness to suspend the constitution as he sees fit. Is there any wonder why people are apprehensive about the militarization of our police?

Yet, what we didn’t hear about is more important:

No shootings. No accidental gunshots. No gun crime. And no issues with open carry.

There are a lot more good people than bad. When good people are legally and sufficiently armed to be able to protect themselves and their families from those who would use force against them, the bad people don’t stand a chance. As it turns out, the criminals know this, too, and they simply choose to stay home or go elsewhere.

Ridiculous excuses abound…

North Miami shooting: Police officer identified who shot unarmed man

Already, the excuses are flying, and they border on the absurd.The most ridiculous excuse? Try this one:

“The officer, Rivera said, had been aiming for the patient beside Kinsey, whom he thought posed a danger.” [‘Rivera’ refers to John Rivera, president of the Dade County Police Benevolent Association]

Tell me, someone, please: why in the world would you need to shoot ANYONE sitting on the ground playing with a toy truck, let alone his handler who is laying on the ground with hands in the air? Continue reading “Ridiculous excuses abound…”

Discrimination OK if based on politics…?

I abhor this kind of obvious bias. It shows just how skewed the system has become. Here’s a CNN headline:

Queen upset Trump used ‘We Are the Champions’ – again

Queen’s problem? According to band member Brian May,  Trump didn’t get “permission” from the band to use their song. However, according to RNC Communications Director Sean Spencer they did license the rights to use it, just as anyone else wishing to honor copyright law would have had to do.

Ok – so don’t read anything into this next statement. It is meant to be provocative, and so will touch on a “hot-button” topic for many people. However, it’s not meant to express a personal viewpoint or opinion – it’s just meant to point out the hypocrisy of Queen making such a biased remark. In any event, here it goes:

Queen thinks that they should be allowed to discriminate against customers who want to use their services  (in this case, access to a music catalog) based solely on the customer’s political beliefs. How do you think this would go over if it ran the other way? Say, if someone wanted to not bake a wedding cake for a Queen member because of Queen’s beliefs (political or other)? Yeah, I though so…

We cannot tolerate discrimination of any kind – to do so invites discrimination of all kinds.  Queen is welcome to independently voice their opposition to a politician using their music, but to imply that someone should be denied use of their “product” due to their political leanings is no less egregious then denying  service due to sexual orientation, skin color, or religion.

Shame on you, Queen.

I told you so…

Turkey’s Erdogan declares three-month state of emergency following failed coup

Erdogan, who said the measures were put in place to “take all steps needed to eliminate the threat against democracy,” stopped short of declaring full martial law. He said that the state of emergency was “strictly a measure taken to overcome terror.”

Why is it that acts of oppression by leaders are so often claimed to be in the name of preserving democracy? (and why do we so often believe it?)

Turkey detains more judges and military officers

Already, nearly 10,000 people have been arrested while hundreds of schools have been closed. And nearly 60,000 civil service employees have been dismissed from their posts since the failed coup Friday.

Does this sound like democracy and freedom? I didn’t think so…

Fear Grips Turkey Amid Government Crackdown After Failed Coup

“These are the families of the traitors,” a passerby whispers to his friend.

Fear is a powerful weapon. It is frequently used by despots and terrorists.

Charley Reese…

… was, in my opinion, a crotchety old bastard. I like that.

The column referenced below has been purported to be his last. However, most legitimate sources disagree. I am not willing to spend much time investigating this assertion, as it is unimportant to me. What is important is that I agree with some of what he has to say.

The link below is to the article at the Orlando Sentinel, where he is purported to have worked during this time. This gives credibility to the column, but not to its designation as his “last”. Still, it is a good read.

Charley Reese

Obama the Scientist

I received this link to an interesting op-ed piece in the LA Times from a friend:

Obama is not a scientist. JAMA shouldn’t pretend he is.

I am perfectly comfortable with the President submitting editorials on his beliefs or accomplishments; being President should not be an impediment to the dissemination of ones ideas. I also believe in a free press. But op-ed disguised as a peer-reviewed research paper… ? Peer reviewed research papers from prestigious journals such as JAMA are frequently cited as fact, as I’m sure this one will be by supporters of President Obama’s policies. However, under the circumstances I think that a significant disclosure preamble would be in order as to the true nature of the article.

Cleveland police and the constitution

The Cleveland police don’t want law-abiding citizens to open carry firearms at the GOP convention next week. However, the way they want to accomplish this is very disconcerting. In short, they want to ignore the U.S. and Ohio state constitutions as well as Ohio law. Here’s an excerpt from a CNN article that should make everyone think hard about this issue, regardless of which side you take in the gun debate Continue reading “Cleveland police and the constitution”

How democracy dies…

The headline from NPR gives a clue as to what will come:

Turkey Says 6,000 People Have Been Detained After Failed Coup

Some of these people being detained are judges or opposition leaders. As some have noted, this seems to be an opportunity for Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to “clean out” some unwanted (pronounced “uncooperative”) elements of the government.