Walking While White: Elderly Man Beaten After Saying ‘Remember Trayvon’
by Sam Rolley
Dallas Watts, a 78-year-old veteran from Toledo, Ohio, did not allow weapons in his house while his children were growing up, so he doesn’t own a firearm . But, after being beaten by six juveniles aged 11 to 17 last Saturday in the name of Trayvon Martin, he says he will buy a gun and obtain a permit.
Watts’ story is a bit ironic.
According to the Toledo Blade, the elderly man was on his way home from a convenience store at about 4:45 p.m. on Saturday with not skittles and iced tea, but two bags of pork rinds that he planned to feed his dogs for treats. It was then that he was approached by a group of six boys, some of whom were white and some black.
Watts recounted that one of the youths pointed at him and ordered the others to “take him down,” to which Watts said he replied, “Why me? Remember Trayvon! Remember Trayvon!”
“I meant it as a peaceful way,” Watts said. “What happened to Trayvon, I was not responsible for, I live 1,000 miles away! But they kept saying, ‘Kill him! Kill Him! Kill him!’ because I’m a white man.”
The elderly man’s remark reportedly set the youths into a rage as one punched him in the back of the head knocking him to the ground, at which point he was drop-kicked in the chest. One of the boys then allegedly placed his foot on the back of Watts’ neck as another shouted, “Kill him.”
According to a police report, the boys then began kicking him ruthlessly and repeatedly and shouting, “[Get] that white [man]. This is for Trayvon … Trayvon lives, white [man]. Kill that white [man].”
When a bystander shouted at the boys, they reportedly ran away.
Of the remark about Trayvon Martin, Watts said he was simply trying to reason with the boys before they beat him.
“All I meant by saying ‘remember Trayvon’ is to remember what happened to him, don’t duplicate it here,” Watts told Toledo Blade. “The only reason I mentioned Trayvon, that was my defense, don’t pick on me. I am not your enemy.”
Only three of the juveniles have been charged in relation to the case. The 11-year-old and 17-year-old are charged with robbery and are being held by authorities. According to Fox Toledo, the third was charged with disorderly conduct. The 17-year-old was facing a previous felony assault charge stemming from a shooting that occurred March 18, according to reports. Local police are still investigating the incident.
“You don’t pick somebody’s body up off the sidewalk and let somebody else give him a lick to kick the ribs,” Watts said. “That was malicious intent. That was a hate crime and I want them punished for it!”
Watts, who is battered but expected to make a full recovery, has reportedly contacted a lawyer and is working to file hate charges with the U.S. Attorney General’s office. Toledo detectives on Wednesday, however, said that they do not believe the attack was racially motivated despite Watt’s allegations that the youths repeatedly made verbal references to his being white, according to reports.
An interview with Watts from Fox Toledo:
FOX TOLEDO
Watts’ story is a bit ironic.
According to the Toledo Blade, the elderly man was on his way home from a convenience store at about 4:45 p.m. on Saturday with not skittles and iced tea, but two bags of pork rinds that he planned to feed his dogs for treats. It was then that he was approached by a group of six boys, some of whom were white and some black.
Watts recounted that one of the youths pointed at him and ordered the others to “take him down,” to which Watts said he replied, “Why me? Remember Trayvon! Remember Trayvon!”
“I meant it as a peaceful way,” Watts said. “What happened to Trayvon, I was not responsible for, I live 1,000 miles away! But they kept saying, ‘Kill him! Kill Him! Kill him!’ because I’m a white man.”
The elderly man’s remark reportedly set the youths into a rage as one punched him in the back of the head knocking him to the ground, at which point he was drop-kicked in the chest. One of the boys then allegedly placed his foot on the back of Watts’ neck as another shouted, “Kill him.”
According to a police report, the boys then began kicking him ruthlessly and repeatedly and shouting, “[Get] that white [man]. This is for Trayvon … Trayvon lives, white [man]. Kill that white [man].”
When a bystander shouted at the boys, they reportedly ran away.
Of the remark about Trayvon Martin, Watts said he was simply trying to reason with the boys before they beat him.
“All I meant by saying ‘remember Trayvon’ is to remember what happened to him, don’t duplicate it here,” Watts told Toledo Blade. “The only reason I mentioned Trayvon, that was my defense, don’t pick on me. I am not your enemy.”
Only three of the juveniles have been charged in relation to the case. The 11-year-old and 17-year-old are charged with robbery and are being held by authorities. According to Fox Toledo, the third was charged with disorderly conduct. The 17-year-old was facing a previous felony assault charge stemming from a shooting that occurred March 18, according to reports. Local police are still investigating the incident.
“You don’t pick somebody’s body up off the sidewalk and let somebody else give him a lick to kick the ribs,” Watts said. “That was malicious intent. That was a hate crime and I want them punished for it!”
Watts, who is battered but expected to make a full recovery, has reportedly contacted a lawyer and is working to file hate charges with the U.S. Attorney General’s office. Toledo detectives on Wednesday, however, said that they do not believe the attack was racially motivated despite Watt’s allegations that the youths repeatedly made verbal references to his being white, according to reports.
An interview with Watts from Fox Toledo:
According to Watts’ account of his ordeal, walking while white—merely being white—was his crime in the eyes of the youths who beat him. And, according to his account, for being white he was viewed as racist. But the police say “case closed” on the possibility of hate being the motivation in the attack.
It has been said by scholars who study race relations that the term “reverse racism” means nothing, as racism is racism. Perhaps in light of the recent heavy focus on race in the Nation, they should re-examine the term for a new meaning: Being viewed as a racist for simply not belonging to a minority race. Regarding the case of Martin, many people have pondered whether the story would have so captivated—and in some circles, enraged— the Nation if George Zimmerman had been portrayed as a man of white and Hispanic descent rather than simply white in initial media reports.
White, frail, elderly, bald, sporting a long beard—or as one clever commenter to an online story put it: looking nothing like Barack Obama’s could-be son—Watts will likely get little support for his hate crime charge from the same type of people who are so adamantly seeking justice for Martin. Justice may well be blind, but often the people who demand and administer justice in America certainly are not.
Does The Media Want A Race War?
by Chip Wood
I have had it with all of the irresponsible, sensationalistic comments about the death of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla.
It’s no surprise that Al Sharpton and his fellow rabble-rouser, Jesse Jackson, are doing everything they can to stir passions to the boiling point. That’s been their modus operandi for more than 20 years. Does anybody remember Tawana Brawley, the fake rape victim Sharpton used as his first stepping-stone to national fame (or should I say infamy)?
But I can’t remember a time when the media were so eager to give nationwide publicity to every vicious lie and racist accusation. Forget about trying to get calmer heads to prevail or any of that nonsense about not rushing to judgment. The media want someone’s head on a platter (or at least George Zimmerman’s body in jail). And they want it now.
If they have to doctor the facts a bit to get it, so what? They’re willing to use some incredibly dishonest means to see that “justice” is done.
NBC was guilty of one of the most egregious examples, when it ran a clip on the “Today” show of George Zimmerman’s call to 911. According to the excerpt NBC broadcast, Zimmerman said, “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. He looks black.”
Obviously, NBC wanted its audience to believe that Zimmerman is a Neanderthal racist who wouldn’t hesitate to gun down an innocent 17-year-old just because he was black.
As it turns out, Zimmerman did utter those words. But the clever editors at NBC left out some incredibly important dialogue that occurred between the two sentences. Here’s what was actually said:
Zimmerman: “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about.”
911 Dispatcher: “OK. And this guy, is he black, white or Hispanic?”
Zimmerman: “He looks black.”
Clearly, Zimmerman was simply answering the dispatcher’s question. He did not equate Martin’s race with “being up to no good.” But that’s not how NBC portrayed it. I guess Sharpton has a buddy in their editing room.
As you probably know, Zimmerman claims that after calling 911, he did not continue to follow Martin, as many of his critics contend. Instead, he says he returned to his SUV when Martin approached him. Words were exchanged, then Martin punched him in the face, knocked him to the ground and started beating him. An eyewitness says he saw Martin on top of Zimmerman, who was yelling: “Help, help!”
That was when Zimmerman shot his assailant. So far, the police have not released any evidence that contradicts his claim. Just to make sure the facts come out, however, Florida Governor Rick Scott has asked State Attorney Angela Corey to take over the investigation. Corey has a reputation in Florida as a tough, no-nonsense prosecutor. So there is no reason to believe she will be part of any cover-up.
That, of course, is not enough for Sharpton and his cronies. They are threatening to “escalate” the demonstrations if Zimmerman is not immediately arrested. The New Black Panthers Party has gone even farther, offering up a bounty for Zimmerman.
And where is our President in all of this? He says that “If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon Martin.” You do have two daughters, Mr. President. Does either one of them look like Aliyah Shell?
In case you’ve never heard of Aliyah, she was a 6-year-old black girl in Chicago who was shot to death last month while sitting with her mother on the front porch of her home. She was one of 10 blacks murdered in Chicago over St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Police say all 10 were murdered by other blacks.
In fact, according to FBI statistics, 93 percent of all blacks murdered in this country are killed by other blacks. But Jesse Jackson insists that “blacks are under attack.” And Spike Lee obviously had whites in mind when he wrote, “You can’t keep killing black children.”
Meanwhile, the media continue to do everything they can to treat Martin like a saint (Don’t you just love the innocent-looking baby pictures of him they show over and over again?) while trying to cast doubt on anything Zimmerman says in his own defense.
Attacked and beaten by the youth? ABC News says that “no abrasions or blood can be seen” in the surveillance video that was shot when Zimmerman arrived at the Sanford police station.
The police report made at the time says that Zimmerman’s nose was bleeding and his back was covered in grass stains when he arrived at the police station. His lawyer said his client went to the doctor the next day and was treated for a broken nose.
But of course facts don’t matter to agitators who are looking for a cause célèbre.
Even some liberals have acknowledged what’s been happening. Writing in The New York Times, Bill Keller referred to Al Sharpton’s rabble-rousing as “the kind of demagoguery that could prejudice a prosecution or mobilize a mob.” Then he added, “Is it not creepy, by the way, that Spike Lee was tweeting the suspected home address of George Zimmerman? As if to say, ‘Go get him!’”
Of course, as you probably heard, the leftist film producer (and host of a million-dollar fund-raiser for Barack Obama) got the house number wrong. Instead of terrorizing Zimmerman, he gave the street address of an elderly couple who fled their home in fear. Lee later apologized for sending out the wrong address — but not for trying to create problems for Zimmerman.
Last week Bobby Rush, a black Congressman from Chicago who says he is proud to have been a member of the Black Panthers, demonstrated his support for Martin by appearing on the House floor in a hoodie and sunglasses. He was escorted off the floor a few moments later for violating House rules on decorum.
Of course, Rush had achieved exactly what he wanted: more one-sided publicity in the national media. To my knowledge, he has said absolutely nothing about the murder of so many blacks, including Aliyah, in the district he actually represents. After all, those are merely statistics, while Martin’s death is an opportunity.
Who was it who said that the Democrats should never let a crisis go to waste? Clearly, Sharpton, Jackson and their cohorts will use this tragedy all they can. Too bad the national media are so willing to help them.
Until next time, keep some powder dry.
–Chip Wood
SCREENSHOT
While video of George Zimmerman played, ABC News reporter Matt Gutman said: "Take a closer look at this video. We slow it down. No visible blood on his head or his nose or his clothes. We know he never went to the emergency room that night."
It’s no surprise that Al Sharpton and his fellow rabble-rouser, Jesse Jackson, are doing everything they can to stir passions to the boiling point. That’s been their modus operandi for more than 20 years. Does anybody remember Tawana Brawley, the fake rape victim Sharpton used as his first stepping-stone to national fame (or should I say infamy)?
But I can’t remember a time when the media were so eager to give nationwide publicity to every vicious lie and racist accusation. Forget about trying to get calmer heads to prevail or any of that nonsense about not rushing to judgment. The media want someone’s head on a platter (or at least George Zimmerman’s body in jail). And they want it now.
If they have to doctor the facts a bit to get it, so what? They’re willing to use some incredibly dishonest means to see that “justice” is done.
NBC was guilty of one of the most egregious examples, when it ran a clip on the “Today” show of George Zimmerman’s call to 911. According to the excerpt NBC broadcast, Zimmerman said, “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. He looks black.”
Obviously, NBC wanted its audience to believe that Zimmerman is a Neanderthal racist who wouldn’t hesitate to gun down an innocent 17-year-old just because he was black.
As it turns out, Zimmerman did utter those words. But the clever editors at NBC left out some incredibly important dialogue that occurred between the two sentences. Here’s what was actually said:
Zimmerman: “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about.”
911 Dispatcher: “OK. And this guy, is he black, white or Hispanic?”
Zimmerman: “He looks black.”
Clearly, Zimmerman was simply answering the dispatcher’s question. He did not equate Martin’s race with “being up to no good.” But that’s not how NBC portrayed it. I guess Sharpton has a buddy in their editing room.
As you probably know, Zimmerman claims that after calling 911, he did not continue to follow Martin, as many of his critics contend. Instead, he says he returned to his SUV when Martin approached him. Words were exchanged, then Martin punched him in the face, knocked him to the ground and started beating him. An eyewitness says he saw Martin on top of Zimmerman, who was yelling: “Help, help!”
That was when Zimmerman shot his assailant. So far, the police have not released any evidence that contradicts his claim. Just to make sure the facts come out, however, Florida Governor Rick Scott has asked State Attorney Angela Corey to take over the investigation. Corey has a reputation in Florida as a tough, no-nonsense prosecutor. So there is no reason to believe she will be part of any cover-up.
That, of course, is not enough for Sharpton and his cronies. They are threatening to “escalate” the demonstrations if Zimmerman is not immediately arrested. The New Black Panthers Party has gone even farther, offering up a bounty for Zimmerman.
And where is our President in all of this? He says that “If I had a son, he would look like Trayvon Martin.” You do have two daughters, Mr. President. Does either one of them look like Aliyah Shell?
In case you’ve never heard of Aliyah, she was a 6-year-old black girl in Chicago who was shot to death last month while sitting with her mother on the front porch of her home. She was one of 10 blacks murdered in Chicago over St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Police say all 10 were murdered by other blacks.
In fact, according to FBI statistics, 93 percent of all blacks murdered in this country are killed by other blacks. But Jesse Jackson insists that “blacks are under attack.” And Spike Lee obviously had whites in mind when he wrote, “You can’t keep killing black children.”
Meanwhile, the media continue to do everything they can to treat Martin like a saint (Don’t you just love the innocent-looking baby pictures of him they show over and over again?) while trying to cast doubt on anything Zimmerman says in his own defense.
Attacked and beaten by the youth? ABC News says that “no abrasions or blood can be seen” in the surveillance video that was shot when Zimmerman arrived at the Sanford police station.
The police report made at the time says that Zimmerman’s nose was bleeding and his back was covered in grass stains when he arrived at the police station. His lawyer said his client went to the doctor the next day and was treated for a broken nose.
But of course facts don’t matter to agitators who are looking for a cause célèbre.
Even some liberals have acknowledged what’s been happening. Writing in The New York Times, Bill Keller referred to Al Sharpton’s rabble-rousing as “the kind of demagoguery that could prejudice a prosecution or mobilize a mob.” Then he added, “Is it not creepy, by the way, that Spike Lee was tweeting the suspected home address of George Zimmerman? As if to say, ‘Go get him!’”
Of course, as you probably heard, the leftist film producer (and host of a million-dollar fund-raiser for Barack Obama) got the house number wrong. Instead of terrorizing Zimmerman, he gave the street address of an elderly couple who fled their home in fear. Lee later apologized for sending out the wrong address — but not for trying to create problems for Zimmerman.
Last week Bobby Rush, a black Congressman from Chicago who says he is proud to have been a member of the Black Panthers, demonstrated his support for Martin by appearing on the House floor in a hoodie and sunglasses. He was escorted off the floor a few moments later for violating House rules on decorum.
Of course, Rush had achieved exactly what he wanted: more one-sided publicity in the national media. To my knowledge, he has said absolutely nothing about the murder of so many blacks, including Aliyah, in the district he actually represents. After all, those are merely statistics, while Martin’s death is an opportunity.
Who was it who said that the Democrats should never let a crisis go to waste? Clearly, Sharpton, Jackson and their cohorts will use this tragedy all they can. Too bad the national media are so willing to help them.
Until next time, keep some powder dry.
–Chip Wood
Christians forced to endorse homosexual agenda?
A local printshop in Lexington Kentucky is facing the full hatred of the radical Homosexual Lobby.
Hands On Originals is a small apparel company owned and operated by devout Christians.
But when they unwittingly bid on and won a job to produce t-shirts for a local homosexual event, they felt it would send an inappropriate message.
It was only after winning the job that the owners learn that the t-shirts were covered in pro-homosexual propaganda...
...and they just couldn’t go through with the order.
Co-owner Blaine Adamson told the press that his Christian company would never agree to support the Homosexual Agenda.
But in an act of good will, Hands On Originals arranged for another shop to handle the order for the very same cost.
But this was not good enough for the local homosexual activists.
You see they refuse to accept that the majority of Americans disagree with their lifestyles and agenda.
The group behind the t-shirt, the Gay and Lesbian Services Organization immediately filed a complaint with the government, charging the Christian apparel company with hate crimes.
And as ridiculous as that seems, it was taken seriously.
Hands On Originals is now under investigation by the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Human Rights Commission -- a front for the Homosexual Lobby.
But it gets even worse. The mayor of Lexington Jim Gray -- an open and radical homosexual activist -- has launched a public crusade against them, using his official position and power to punish the company who dared to oppose the Homosexual Agenda.
And he is causing serious financial problems for the apparel manufacturer.
The City of Lexington has done business with this local employer for years, but now Mayor Gray has put a stop to that.
The Fayette County public school system -- another long time customer -- has put all orders on hold before the investigation is even complete.
The teachers have been ordered to boycott Hands On Originals for the foreseeable future.
And the University of Kentucky has joined with the school system and the City in this destructive boycott, announcing that it will not renew the contract for sports apparel that Hands On Originals has faithfully fulfilled for years.
The loss of all three customers is a serious blow to the company, and could very lead to its closing.
That public officials would use their authority to punish a thriving business for supporting Christian morals is absolutely disgusting.
In these harsh economic times it is criminal for Mayor Gray to destroy jobs and livelihoods -- all in the name of the radical Homosexual Lobby.
That’s why Public Advocate supporters should call Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear’s office and demand that he immediately investigate Mayor Gray's abuse of power and the University of Kentucky's obviously political decisions.
Mayor Gray and his cronies are seeking to do irreparable harm to the local economy and to the Family.
So please, call Governor Beshear at (502) 564-2611 and demand that he put a stop to this abuse of power by the Homosexual Lobby and their allies.
Everyone has the right to say no to the Homosexual Lobby.
For the Family,
Eugene Delgaudio
President, Public Advocate of the United States
P.S. Please prayerfully consider chipping in with a donation of $10 or more to help Public Advocate fight for traditional values.
Rand Paul: Stop the spending
I don't know about you, but I believe there is something wrong with a government that adds over 4.1 BILLION dollars to its national debt every day.
Spending is out of control. I hope you agree this is a problem.
Our federal deficit now stands at 1.5 trillion dollars and our national debt is a staggering 14.1 trillion dollar ball and chain on our economy -- over $45,500 for every American (even children).
I have a plan to put a stop to it. Right now.
Last year, Republicans in Washington overwhelmingly voted for both a Balanced Budget amendment to the constitution, and for the Cut, Cap and Balance plan.
What do those two things have in common? Both of them required the budget to be in balance in less than 5 years.
I am happy to announce that I have introduced a full budget plan in the US Senate to do just that.
TO CUT four cabinet agencies, including the Department of Education.
TO CAP welfare and medicaid programs, block grant them, and send them back to the states.
TO BALANCE in its 5th year, with years 6-10 in surplus.
My plan spends trillions less than both the President's laughable budget and the House-passed Ryan budget, which does not go far enough in controlling spending.
I am writing you today because I need your help leading the fight to reduce federal spending by passing the Paul Balanced Budget Plan.
Americans are demanding the reduction of government spending, but we must unite to make it clear to Congress that there are only two options.
Vote to massively reduce federal spending or pay the price in 2012.
Congress saw the strength of the Tea Party movement in November, but it will mean nothing if you and I let up now.
Right now there are numerous bills from both parties that only reduce spending by a fraction.
These big government politicians want to splash out a drop when we need to pour the bucket!
They believe you will be appeased by them merely cutting a billion here and there when we need to cut trillions.
Well, their tricks aren't going to work this time.
Will you take the first step now by signing the RAND-PAC Paul Budget Petition?
Your petition will make it clear to your senators that federal spending is a major problem and it must be drastically cut now.
Specifically, my budget will:
** ELIMINATE four cabinet agencies.
** CUT most domestic spending back to 2008, pre-stimulus levels.
** FIX the defense sequester.
** ENACT meaningful welfare and medicaid reform.
** TEAR UP the old tax code and replace it with a Flat Tax.
The good news is, because of Senate rules, there WILL be a vote on the Paul Balanced Budget in the coming weeks, perhaps as early as the week I return to Washington later this month.So time is short.
Your signed petition will enable RAND-PAC to lead the fight in forcing a vote on this crucial legislation.
In fact, RAND-PAC has plans to reach over 3 million like-minded conservatives in the next 30 days to garner support for the Paul Balanced Budget.
Will you work with me to pass the Paul Balanced Budget?
If so, please click here to sign the petition right away.
Together I know you and I and millions of fed up Americans will return our government to a functional level of spending that allows our economy to thrive and create jobs.
Unfortunately, our plan to contact these millions of Americans isn't cheap.
Which is why I hope you will agree to make a generous contribution of $25, $50, $100 or more to RAND-PAC after signing your petition.
If that is too much, please consider chipping in with a donation of $10.
I know you are sick and tired of the direction our country is headed. And I'm sure you don't need me to tell you that you are not alone in your frustration. Isn't it time you and I and every other beaten-down American banded together for change?
I believe it is.
Is it too much to ask that our government spend within in reason so you and future generations aren't stripped of every hard-earned penny?
I don't think so.
If you agree, stand with me by clicking here to sign the Paul balanced budget petition now.
I know I can count on you.
For Liberty,
Rand Paul
United States Senator
P.S. Our government's spending is out of control.
Our national debt is at 14.1 trillion dollars and grows by over 4 billion dollars per day!
I am leading the fight along with RAND-PAC to see to it that government spending is reduced through my Balanced budget.
And I want to invite you to be among the first to stand with me and RAND-PAC by signing the petition by clicking here.
After you sign the petition, I hope you will make a donation to RAND-PAC of $25, $50, $100 or more.
If that is too much, please consider chipping in with a donation of $10 or more.
Your donation will be vital in reaching the millions of Americans like you who are fed up with out-of-control federal spending.
Will you join with me in fighting for reduced government spending?
Ron Paul draws overflow crowd at UCLA town hall meeting
LOS ANGELES - Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul used an appearance Wednesday night before an overflow crowd at Straus Stadium at the Los Angeles Tennis Center at UCLA to reiterate his calls for a smaller federal government and to change the nation's foreign policy.
"The problem... boils down to one thing -- government is way too big," Paul said, drawing cheers from the crowd estimated at between 6,000-7,000, filling the 5,800-seat stadium, with others climbing nearby trees to see the speech.
The 12-term Texas congressman repeated his call for repealing the 16th Amendment that permitted the federal income tax. Paul has said that restraining federal spending by enforcing the Constitution's limits on the federal government's power would make the income tax unnecessary.
Paul also drew cheers when he said "it's time to change our foreign policy. Why don't we look at the Constitution? There's no authority for us to occupy other nations and tell them what to do, so we shouldn't be in the business of occupying."
What the Paul campaign called a town hall meeting came in the midst of a three-day series of appearances by Paul at California campuses organized by Youth for Ron Paul, which has 591 chapters and has recruited more than 53,600 people, according to the campaign.
The trip began Tuesday at Cal State Chico and is scheduled to conclude Thursday night at UC Berkeley.
The Paul campaign is using the trip to attempt to
register more of Paul's supporters as Republicans, enabling them to vote for him in the June 5 California primary. Paul is scheduled to return to the Los Angeles area May 1 for a $2,500 per person fundraiser in Bel Air, where Nassim Taleb, the author of "The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable" is also set to speak.
They Win, We Lose
by Ben Crystal
Since I submitted my column “The Worst Week Ever,” I’ve found myself musing on the politically pathological behavior displayed of late by President Barack Obama and his accomplices. Not that I don’t recognize Obama’s tenure so far has involved some fairly — ahem — befuddling benchmarks; but, as I suggested Tuesday, the Democrats must be in full panic mode. And their reactions under electoral pressure of their own creation remind me of a drug dealer with two strikes on his record getting popped for selling crack to an 8-year-old.
Of course, to hear liberals tell it, they’re as comfortable as the furniture in one of Warren Buffett’s private planes. If we presume the liberal elite are correct and Obama’s re-election is a foregone conclusion, then we can also fairly presume that his erratic behavior is not born of fear of rapidly declining fortunes. Instead, it is a nationwide dance of liberal celebration.
And what a dance it is! The shockingly violent Occupy rallies, the union thug attacks on the people of Wisconsin (among other places), the incursions against the Bill of Rights and the foreign policy miscues are all steps in an elaborate number that has reached a crescendo in Florida. Down in the Sunshine State, Democratic Party leaders and mouthpieces have descended like a biblical plague of locusts. Spurred on by Obama’s ill-advised remarks about Trayvon Martin, leading lights of liberalism — including the “Reverends” (that means you, Jesse Jackson, and the rest of the usual suspects) — appear to be doing their best to incite a race war.
Meanwhile, Obama has reacted to what he feels were excessively insightful Supreme Court questions regarding Obamacare by edging toward a turf war with the judicial branch. Following Obama’s inappropriately disparaging remarks about the “unelected group of people” on the High Court, the three-judge panel at the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals demanded clarification from the Administration, with the Judges issuing a none-too-subtle reminder of just how far the long arm of the law can reach.
In major cities across the Nation — from the crack dens of Washington, D.C., to the festering swamp of New Orleans and from the smoldering ruin of Detroit to the freak shows in California — the Democrats have established hegemony, crime, poverty and misery as the rule. And the same Democrats who would have us believe Obama is guaranteed four more years in the Oval Office are spreading the same seeds of discord across the fruited plain.
I’ll grant that taking as legitimate the Democrats’ proclaimed confidence requires a greater suspension of disbelief than a North Korean propaganda film. But I’m willing to admit it’s possible Obama and his cronies have deluded themselves into believing that they’re unbeatable. If they really are convinced that victory is assured, then it follows that their bizarre behavior is the planned result of their schemes, and the cities I mentioned before are testament to the long-term effects of repeated Democratic victories.
Ill-conceived economic policies resulting in crushing debt, shocking corruption, virtually apocalyptic urban tableaus, a comprehensive disregard for the Constitution and submissive dealings with our adversaries are the modus operandi of Democrats when they think they’re winning.
Food for thought: Why is it that in order for Obama and the Democrats to win, everyone else has to lose?
UPI
President Barack Obama and his accomplices have displayed politically pathological behavior lately.
Of course, to hear liberals tell it, they’re as comfortable as the furniture in one of Warren Buffett’s private planes. If we presume the liberal elite are correct and Obama’s re-election is a foregone conclusion, then we can also fairly presume that his erratic behavior is not born of fear of rapidly declining fortunes. Instead, it is a nationwide dance of liberal celebration.
And what a dance it is! The shockingly violent Occupy rallies, the union thug attacks on the people of Wisconsin (among other places), the incursions against the Bill of Rights and the foreign policy miscues are all steps in an elaborate number that has reached a crescendo in Florida. Down in the Sunshine State, Democratic Party leaders and mouthpieces have descended like a biblical plague of locusts. Spurred on by Obama’s ill-advised remarks about Trayvon Martin, leading lights of liberalism — including the “Reverends” (that means you, Jesse Jackson, and the rest of the usual suspects) — appear to be doing their best to incite a race war.
Meanwhile, Obama has reacted to what he feels were excessively insightful Supreme Court questions regarding Obamacare by edging toward a turf war with the judicial branch. Following Obama’s inappropriately disparaging remarks about the “unelected group of people” on the High Court, the three-judge panel at the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals demanded clarification from the Administration, with the Judges issuing a none-too-subtle reminder of just how far the long arm of the law can reach.
In major cities across the Nation — from the crack dens of Washington, D.C., to the festering swamp of New Orleans and from the smoldering ruin of Detroit to the freak shows in California — the Democrats have established hegemony, crime, poverty and misery as the rule. And the same Democrats who would have us believe Obama is guaranteed four more years in the Oval Office are spreading the same seeds of discord across the fruited plain.
I’ll grant that taking as legitimate the Democrats’ proclaimed confidence requires a greater suspension of disbelief than a North Korean propaganda film. But I’m willing to admit it’s possible Obama and his cronies have deluded themselves into believing that they’re unbeatable. If they really are convinced that victory is assured, then it follows that their bizarre behavior is the planned result of their schemes, and the cities I mentioned before are testament to the long-term effects of repeated Democratic victories.
Ill-conceived economic policies resulting in crushing debt, shocking corruption, virtually apocalyptic urban tableaus, a comprehensive disregard for the Constitution and submissive dealings with our adversaries are the modus operandi of Democrats when they think they’re winning.
Food for thought: Why is it that in order for Obama and the Democrats to win, everyone else has to lose?
–Ben Crystal
God’s Jury: The Inquisition and the Making of the Modern World by Cullen Murphy
by Bob Livingston
Established by the Catholic church in 1231, the Inquisition was designed to make people adhere to the teachings of the church and make them toe the official church-approved version of Catholicism. And if Cullen Murphy’s book God’s Jury: The Inquisition and the Making of the Modern World stuck to describing the 700-year history of the Inquisition, it might only hold interest for historians who wish to explore how the church functioned as a medieval political power.
Instead, Murphy’s larger purpose is to show how large organizations filled with small-minded bureaucrats can terrorize a population when they have willing foot soldiers to do their bidding. The Inquisition, as Murphy sees it, was just a taste of what big governments would later accomplish when they set their minds to trying to control both how people behave and how they think.
And Murphy points out that today’s technological marvels of communication and surveillance allow government inquisitors to record and track personal behavior in ways the old-time Inquisitorial powers could only dream of. He points out, though, that if you subtract the technological aspects of our modern inquisition, it shares a lot of similarities with what the Catholic church implemented.
Retaining Power
The basic tenet of a bureaucracy, whether it works for the Federal government or a church, is that “Institutions do what they must to retain power. Isn’t it that simple?” That’s a quote that Murphy takes from Eamon Duffy, a historian who has tracked the bloody changeover of England from a Catholic country to a Protestant power in the 16th century.
Murphy shows how the tools of today’s bureaucratic governments are outgrowths of past measures to keep power: “Motivations may change, targets may shift, but the infrastructure builds by increments. Proof of identity, record-keeping, informers, surveillance, denunciation, interrogations: these are the basic instruments. And as medieval kingdoms remade themselves into modern states, the instruments became better and were applied in a more systematic way.”
The transition from the Inquisition to the modern police state picked up steam in France in 1790. It was then that France invented the passport and the identity card. Napoleon and his head of secret police, Joseph Fouche, formulated summaries of all the intelligence, news, rumors and gossip they could gather to make sure they stayed ahead of efforts to depose them.
Later, the Russian Czars modeled their secret police after the French undercover agents. And when the Communists took over Russia, Lenin made the Czar’s bureaucracy into what would later become the KGB. Today the KGB has morphed into the FSB. The FSB, if you can believe it, is even more powerful than the KGB ever was. As Murphy points out, at least the KGB had to report to the Communist Party. Today the Communist Party is gone and the FSB has no one to restrain it.
Preemptive Action
In the United States, Murphy says, these types of efforts at control led to the so-called Palmer raids in the early 20th century. At that time, the attorney general, A. Mitchell Palmer, organized raids “led by the young J. Edgar Hoover, (that) rounded up targeted individuals by the thousands.” As The Washington Post noted in 1920: “There is no time to waste on hairsplitting over infringement of liberties.”
Later, the FBI, led by the same Hoover, would gather files on 25 million Americans. Today, as the Federal government collects more and more information on its citizens under the USA Patriot Act, untold numbers of electronic files are being collected.
Murphy believes that single-minded organizations, whether they are inquisitions or modern police states, are misguided by their belief in their infallibility. He quotes Samuel Johnson’s observation about a man who “seems to me to possess but one idea, and that is a wrong one.”
A bureaucracy that wants everyone to behave like obedient sheep is likewise enslaved to one idea that is a wrong one. But as long as we stay vigilant and fight back against that wrong idea, there’s hope for a freer future.
Established by the Catholic church in 1231, the Inquisition was designed to make people adhere to the teachings of the church and make them toe the official church-approved version of Catholicism. And if Cullen Murphy’s book God’s Jury: The Inquisition and the Making of the Modern World stuck to describing the 700-year history of the Inquisition, it might only hold interest for historians who wish to explore how the church functioned as a medieval political power.
Instead, Murphy’s larger purpose is to show how large organizations filled with small-minded bureaucrats can terrorize a population when they have willing foot soldiers to do their bidding. The Inquisition, as Murphy sees it, was just a taste of what big governments would later accomplish when they set their minds to trying to control both how people behave and how they think.
And Murphy points out that today’s technological marvels of communication and surveillance allow government inquisitors to record and track personal behavior in ways the old-time Inquisitorial powers could only dream of. He points out, though, that if you subtract the technological aspects of our modern inquisition, it shares a lot of similarities with what the Catholic church implemented.
Retaining Power
The basic tenet of a bureaucracy, whether it works for the Federal government or a church, is that “Institutions do what they must to retain power. Isn’t it that simple?” That’s a quote that Murphy takes from Eamon Duffy, a historian who has tracked the bloody changeover of England from a Catholic country to a Protestant power in the 16th century.
Murphy shows how the tools of today’s bureaucratic governments are outgrowths of past measures to keep power: “Motivations may change, targets may shift, but the infrastructure builds by increments. Proof of identity, record-keeping, informers, surveillance, denunciation, interrogations: these are the basic instruments. And as medieval kingdoms remade themselves into modern states, the instruments became better and were applied in a more systematic way.”
The transition from the Inquisition to the modern police state picked up steam in France in 1790. It was then that France invented the passport and the identity card. Napoleon and his head of secret police, Joseph Fouche, formulated summaries of all the intelligence, news, rumors and gossip they could gather to make sure they stayed ahead of efforts to depose them.
Later, the Russian Czars modeled their secret police after the French undercover agents. And when the Communists took over Russia, Lenin made the Czar’s bureaucracy into what would later become the KGB. Today the KGB has morphed into the FSB. The FSB, if you can believe it, is even more powerful than the KGB ever was. As Murphy points out, at least the KGB had to report to the Communist Party. Today the Communist Party is gone and the FSB has no one to restrain it.
Preemptive Action
In the United States, Murphy says, these types of efforts at control led to the so-called Palmer raids in the early 20th century. At that time, the attorney general, A. Mitchell Palmer, organized raids “led by the young J. Edgar Hoover, (that) rounded up targeted individuals by the thousands.” As The Washington Post noted in 1920: “There is no time to waste on hairsplitting over infringement of liberties.”
Later, the FBI, led by the same Hoover, would gather files on 25 million Americans. Today, as the Federal government collects more and more information on its citizens under the USA Patriot Act, untold numbers of electronic files are being collected.
Murphy believes that single-minded organizations, whether they are inquisitions or modern police states, are misguided by their belief in their infallibility. He quotes Samuel Johnson’s observation about a man who “seems to me to possess but one idea, and that is a wrong one.”
A bureaucracy that wants everyone to behave like obedient sheep is likewise enslaved to one idea that is a wrong one. But as long as we stay vigilant and fight back against that wrong idea, there’s hope for a freer future.
York County, PA for Ron Paul 2012 - Volunteer for Polls
Dave Talley
I have started compiling a list of volunteers to work the polls on the 24th (we need you! please make yourself available, do whatever you gotta do to help the cause of liberty) and to canvass the weekend before (looking to blitz on Friday, Saturday & Sunday 4/20-4/22).
I need your help in spreading the word and this email so I can organize our efforts. So PLEASE share with your email list, friends, family members, church members, etc. We need an army of grassroots supporters to man the polling stations.
What I am looking for is the persons name, best contact phone #, email address, can they work poll on the 24th, can they canvass on the weekend before. So either you or they can respond to this email address so I can add you or them to the list. My email address to respond to is: davidtall17313@yahoo.com
THIS WILL BE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WE DO TO GET THE DELEGATES/ALTERNATES ELECTED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!
Fighting for Liberty,
Dave Talley
717-542-7379 cell
I have started compiling a list of volunteers to work the polls on the 24th (we need you! please make yourself available, do whatever you gotta do to help the cause of liberty) and to canvass the weekend before (looking to blitz on Friday, Saturday & Sunday 4/20-4/22).
I need your help in spreading the word and this email so I can organize our efforts. So PLEASE share with your email list, friends, family members, church members, etc. We need an army of grassroots supporters to man the polling stations.
What I am looking for is the persons name, best contact phone #, email address, can they work poll on the 24th, can they canvass on the weekend before. So either you or they can respond to this email address so I can add you or them to the list. My email address to respond to is: davidtall17313@yahoo.com
THIS WILL BE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WE DO TO GET THE DELEGATES/ALTERNATES ELECTED. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!
Fighting for Liberty,
Dave Talley
717-542-7379 cell
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