Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Miles Archer
Miles Archer's Journal
Miles Archer's Journal
May 23, 2016
32 Arrested (including a children’s minister) in Knoxville Human Trafficking Operation
The "Facebook Trending" post says that two pastors were arrested.https://www.facebook.com/topic/Tennessee-Bureau-of-Investigation/116157818396513?source=whfrt&position=2&trqid=6288018850338597461
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation: 2 Pastors Arrested for Sex Trafficking in Undercover Operation
Jason Kennedy and Zubin Parakh were arrested for seeking sex with a minor in an undercover operation targeting sex trafficking and prostitution that saw 32 taken into custody, the agency said.
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation: 2 Pastors Arrested for Sex Trafficking in Undercover Operation
Jason Kennedy and Zubin Parakh were arrested for seeking sex with a minor in an undercover operation targeting sex trafficking and prostitution that saw 32 taken into custody, the agency said.
KNOXVILLE – A three-day operation by Special Agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and detectives with the Knoxville Police Department to combat human trafficking in Knoxville has resulted in the arrest of 32 men and women on prostitution and human trafficking-related charges. Two of the men, including a children’s minister, responded to ads for what they thought were girls under the age of 18. The Knoxville anti-trafficking operation, called “Operation Someone Like Me”, is the fifth operation of its kind in the state between the TBI and partner agencies to help identify, investigate and prosecute trafficking, and rescue victims.
With the partnership including the Knoxville Police Department, Community Coalition Against Human Trafficking, End Slavery Tennessee, and Second Life Chattanooga, TBI Agents and intelligence analysts embarked on an undercover operation to identify potential victims of trafficking, arrest those seeking to purchase illicit sex from a juvenile, and learn more about the specific nuances of this type of crime.
“Finding these people who are trying to buy Tennessee children is a priority for us,” says TBI Director Mark Gwyn. “We want anyone responding to these ads to think there may be a TBI Agent on the other end of it. We will do whatever we can to make a difference in reducing the human trafficking that takes place in Tennessee.”
During the three-day operation, undercover Agents posted ads on Backpage.com. During that time, more than 300 contacts were made to those ads. In one ad the Agents posed as a juvenile girl. That ad received more than two dozen contacts.
https://tbinews.wordpress.com/2016/05/20/32-arrested-in-knoxville-human-trafficking-operation/
With the partnership including the Knoxville Police Department, Community Coalition Against Human Trafficking, End Slavery Tennessee, and Second Life Chattanooga, TBI Agents and intelligence analysts embarked on an undercover operation to identify potential victims of trafficking, arrest those seeking to purchase illicit sex from a juvenile, and learn more about the specific nuances of this type of crime.
“Finding these people who are trying to buy Tennessee children is a priority for us,” says TBI Director Mark Gwyn. “We want anyone responding to these ads to think there may be a TBI Agent on the other end of it. We will do whatever we can to make a difference in reducing the human trafficking that takes place in Tennessee.”
During the three-day operation, undercover Agents posted ads on Backpage.com. During that time, more than 300 contacts were made to those ads. In one ad the Agents posed as a juvenile girl. That ad received more than two dozen contacts.
https://tbinews.wordpress.com/2016/05/20/32-arrested-in-knoxville-human-trafficking-operation/
May 23, 2016
CNN - 2016: The year of the unlikable candidate?
Voters often talk about casting their ballot for the "lesser of two evils" in a presidential election. This year, that seems especially true: most voters really don't seem to like Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump.
As the race heads toward the general election, polling finds both candidates to be by far the least popular likely party nominees in decades--a dynamic that signals a bruising and nasty battle between now and November.
An ABC/Washington Post poll released Sunday found Clinton and Trump each at 57 percent unfavorable--higher than any other party nominees since the history of the Post-ABC poll. Trump's favorability rating was 40 percent (a 17-point deficit), while Clinton's was 41 percent (a 16-point deficit).
And asked whether they were voting for their candidate or against the other candidate, approximately half of each candidate's supporters said they were voting to vote against the other candidate. Among Clinton supporters, 48 percent said their vote was a vote for Clinton, while an equal percentage said it was a vote against Trump; among Trump supporters, 44 percent said they were voting for Trump versus 53 percent said they were voting against Clinton.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/2016-the-year-of-the-unlikable-presidential-candidate/
As the race heads toward the general election, polling finds both candidates to be by far the least popular likely party nominees in decades--a dynamic that signals a bruising and nasty battle between now and November.
An ABC/Washington Post poll released Sunday found Clinton and Trump each at 57 percent unfavorable--higher than any other party nominees since the history of the Post-ABC poll. Trump's favorability rating was 40 percent (a 17-point deficit), while Clinton's was 41 percent (a 16-point deficit).
And asked whether they were voting for their candidate or against the other candidate, approximately half of each candidate's supporters said they were voting to vote against the other candidate. Among Clinton supporters, 48 percent said their vote was a vote for Clinton, while an equal percentage said it was a vote against Trump; among Trump supporters, 44 percent said they were voting for Trump versus 53 percent said they were voting against Clinton.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/2016-the-year-of-the-unlikable-presidential-candidate/
May 22, 2016
"We need an election which does not have two candidates who are really very, very strongly disliked"
Bernie Sanders says that American voters would see voting for Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump in a general election as “the lesser of two evils.”
“That’s what the American people are saying,” the Vermont senator said on ABC’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos” on Sunday. “If you look at the favorability ratings of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, both of them have very, very high unfavorables.”
According to an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released Sunday, 58 percent of registered voters view Trump unfavorably, while 54 percent view Clinton the same way — the highest unfavorable ratings for likely general election candidates in the history of the survey. (A CNN/ORC poll released earlier this month found similar record unfavorable ratings for Trump and Clinton.)
“We need a campaign, an election, coming up which does not have two candidates who are really very, very strongly disliked,” Sanders said. “I don’t want to see the American people voting for the lesser of two evils. I want the American people to be voting for a vision of economic justice, of social justice, of environmental justice, of racial justice. That is the campaign we are running, and that’s why we are getting the support we are.”
https://www.yahoo.com/news/bernie-hillary-trump-lesser-two-000000187.html
“That’s what the American people are saying,” the Vermont senator said on ABC’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos” on Sunday. “If you look at the favorability ratings of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, both of them have very, very high unfavorables.”
According to an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll released Sunday, 58 percent of registered voters view Trump unfavorably, while 54 percent view Clinton the same way — the highest unfavorable ratings for likely general election candidates in the history of the survey. (A CNN/ORC poll released earlier this month found similar record unfavorable ratings for Trump and Clinton.)
“We need a campaign, an election, coming up which does not have two candidates who are really very, very strongly disliked,” Sanders said. “I don’t want to see the American people voting for the lesser of two evils. I want the American people to be voting for a vision of economic justice, of social justice, of environmental justice, of racial justice. That is the campaign we are running, and that’s why we are getting the support we are.”
https://www.yahoo.com/news/bernie-hillary-trump-lesser-two-000000187.html
May 22, 2016
SNL - "Oh Hillary...I'll miss that lack of charm."
May 22, 2016
"Group That Has Pushed for Anti-Gay Crackdowns Abroad, you're doing a heckuva job."
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/05/george-w-bush-praises-anti-gay-anti-abortion-hate-group
George W. Bush Praises Group That Has Pushed for Anti-Gay Crackdowns Abroad
The former president sent a letter commending the World Congress of Families after receiving an award from the controversial organization.
Hannah LevintovaMay 20, 2016 4:05 PM
Earlier this week, former President George W. Bush accepted an award from the World Congress of Families, a social conservative group that has played a leading role in fostering anti-gay movements and legislation abroad, including a widely condemned measure in Russia that criminalized the public expression of same-sex relationships.
The World Congress of Families, which awarded Bush its "Family and Democracy Pro-Life Award" at its conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, is the main project of the Illinois-based Howard Center for Family, Religion and Society. In 2014, Mother Jones reported on the group's involvement in helping to bolster the nascent anti-gay movement in Russia, where WCF representatives met with legislators and other high-ranking individuals who helped pass the so-called "gay propaganda" law. The law, which inspired anti-gay attacks in Russia, garnered international outrage in advance of the Winter Olympics held in Sochi. The WCF has also supported anti-gay rallies, legislation, and more throughout Eastern Europe, in countries like Serbia, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, and the Czech Republic. The organization has been designated an anti-LGBT hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which called it "one of the key driving forces behind the U.S. Religious Right's global export of homophobia and sexism."
Bush did not attend the WCF conference this week, but he sent a letter thanking the group for the pro-life award and praising its work: "I commend your efforts to recognize the importance of families in building nations. Your work improves many lives and makes the world better."
George W. Bush Praises Group That Has Pushed for Anti-Gay Crackdowns Abroad
The former president sent a letter commending the World Congress of Families after receiving an award from the controversial organization.
Hannah LevintovaMay 20, 2016 4:05 PM
Earlier this week, former President George W. Bush accepted an award from the World Congress of Families, a social conservative group that has played a leading role in fostering anti-gay movements and legislation abroad, including a widely condemned measure in Russia that criminalized the public expression of same-sex relationships.
The World Congress of Families, which awarded Bush its "Family and Democracy Pro-Life Award" at its conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, is the main project of the Illinois-based Howard Center for Family, Religion and Society. In 2014, Mother Jones reported on the group's involvement in helping to bolster the nascent anti-gay movement in Russia, where WCF representatives met with legislators and other high-ranking individuals who helped pass the so-called "gay propaganda" law. The law, which inspired anti-gay attacks in Russia, garnered international outrage in advance of the Winter Olympics held in Sochi. The WCF has also supported anti-gay rallies, legislation, and more throughout Eastern Europe, in countries like Serbia, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, and the Czech Republic. The organization has been designated an anti-LGBT hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which called it "one of the key driving forces behind the U.S. Religious Right's global export of homophobia and sexism."
Bush did not attend the WCF conference this week, but he sent a letter thanking the group for the pro-life award and praising its work: "I commend your efforts to recognize the importance of families in building nations. Your work improves many lives and makes the world better."
May 21, 2016
Stephen Colbert on Kanye: "I wanna take everything I've learned about lunch and put in a bun"
May 21, 2016
And in General Discussion: Primaries, 6 months before the election, we are once again in the season of fighting and fucking too much, with some of us feeling that if we don't have sex, our only other option is to fight some poor SOB to the death.
I'm going to cut right to the chase. Do you folks know CaliforniaPeggy? If not, you are missing out on one of the best and brightest rock stars DU has to offer. Now, I do understand that some people have a negative, almost allergic reaction to individual DUers receiving high praise (I've seen those reactions many times). But tough it up, Buttercup. She's a poet, a photographer, a woman who is what they generally refer to as "whip-smart," witty, and a riot. You may have seen her address DUers as "My Dear (fill in a DUer's name here). And on rare and unexpected occasions she will be moved to let forth a flurry of f-bombs that has her cheering section in fits of laughter.
"So what," you may be thinking.
Well, she is also one of the kindest and most compassionate people you will ever meet, either in CyberSpace or in person.
One time, she and I were having a private conversation, and I mentioned...in passing...that things were going rough. I didn't elaborate, I just said that the first of the month was coming and I was struggling to "meet my nut," as our loan shark friends might say.
I didn't ask for help, but she offered it. I was kind of stunned, thinking "She has problems of her own, and her own bills to pay, but she's offering to help me?"
I didn't take her up on that because I'm one of those "I have to fix this myself" guys...as naive and arrogant and unenlightened as that may be...but I was moved and touched and it forever cemented the image in my mind that I already had of her being a wonderful human being.
If you're still reading this (and I'm sure many of you aren't), you may still be thinking "So what?"
Here's the money shot: CaliforniaPeggy is not a troll, not a disruptor, not a "n00b," not a recent member with a "low post count" or any of the other "Let's throw her in the lake and if she's made of wood she's not a witch" criteria people use when things get hot and heavy on DU, as they are right now.
She's an institution, and there have been a few times when I have seen her politely offer her opinion and then the wolf pack surrounded in an attempt to eviscerate her.
Got that?
She wasn't "being a dick." She wasn't being "rude, over the top, or otherwise inappropriate."
She expressed her opinion and got slammed hard and mercilessly for that.
So how did she handle it?
She didn't understand the reason for the viciousness. She understands disagreement...hell, anyone who comes to this site "seeking agreement" is going to be shit our of luck again and again and again. She is not an "approval seeker," and if someone "enlightens" her, she's all for enlightenment. It's almost like she drives around town with an "I HEART ENLIGHTENMENT" bumper sticker on her car.
She just didn't understand why people were attacking her on a personal level, making unfounded accusations, unleashing their inner asshole all over her as a human being, rather than simply someone who expressed an opinion they didn't agree with.
A lot of people rose to her defense. A lot.
And she took it all in stride. She "considered the source." She didn't post a melodramatic "I'm leaving DU" post, she didn't return the venom.
She retained her status as an effing rock star, and those of you who are weary of the level of discourse we reach in GDP may want to consider doing the same.
Look at where we are. There are people here who want to point to Barry Goldwater and say that Trump is going to meet the same fate. Maybe he will, maybe he won't.
There are people here who have made a choice between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton and are passionate about their decision and express it, daily.
Then there are the dicks.
Some of them might be "moles," "n00bs," whatever.
But even on our best days, when there is not an election cycle surrounding us, DU can be either a place for lively, intelligent, witty, passionate discourse, or it can feel like the waiting room at the proctologist's office.
No one has "all the answers." I don't, you don't, Peggy doesn't, Skinner doesn't, Obama doesn't, Bernie doesn't, Hillary doesn't.
But a conversation doesn't define you. It can change your perspective, or it can make you stand your ground on what you believe, but it doesn't give anyone the right to marginalize you as a human being.
So for everyone here who is feeling the weight of the snark and sarcasm and "know it all" behavior, my words of encouragement to you are the timeless "this too shall pass" cliche.
It will get worse before it gets better.
There will be a thinning of the herd, and there will be more moles and n00bs.
So...effing...what.
It's a nicely programmed chat room, for God's sake.
It's not your life, and unless you know people here in a face-to-face relationship, it's not something that should crush you if the wolves circle around you.
Take inspiration from CaliforniaPeggy, via the paraphrased words of Bob Dylan...she made it through, you can make it too.
Skoal.
All I Really Need to Know About Surviving Conversations In GDP I Learned From CaliforniaPeggy
OK, so it's May 2016, we're going to elect our next President in 6 months, and DU is once again at "Pon Farr" level in GDP.
Even the most casual Star Trek fan knows that Pon Farr is the season in which Spock, a Vulcan, must mate or fight to the death.
It's also the reason Jack Nicholson gave in "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" for his being assigned to a mental health facility ("Well, as near as I can figure out, it's 'cuz I fight and fuck too much"
.
And in General Discussion: Primaries, 6 months before the election, we are once again in the season of fighting and fucking too much, with some of us feeling that if we don't have sex, our only other option is to fight some poor SOB to the death.
I'm going to cut right to the chase. Do you folks know CaliforniaPeggy? If not, you are missing out on one of the best and brightest rock stars DU has to offer. Now, I do understand that some people have a negative, almost allergic reaction to individual DUers receiving high praise (I've seen those reactions many times). But tough it up, Buttercup. She's a poet, a photographer, a woman who is what they generally refer to as "whip-smart," witty, and a riot. You may have seen her address DUers as "My Dear (fill in a DUer's name here). And on rare and unexpected occasions she will be moved to let forth a flurry of f-bombs that has her cheering section in fits of laughter.
"So what," you may be thinking.
Well, she is also one of the kindest and most compassionate people you will ever meet, either in CyberSpace or in person.
One time, she and I were having a private conversation, and I mentioned...in passing...that things were going rough. I didn't elaborate, I just said that the first of the month was coming and I was struggling to "meet my nut," as our loan shark friends might say.
I didn't ask for help, but she offered it. I was kind of stunned, thinking "She has problems of her own, and her own bills to pay, but she's offering to help me?"
I didn't take her up on that because I'm one of those "I have to fix this myself" guys...as naive and arrogant and unenlightened as that may be...but I was moved and touched and it forever cemented the image in my mind that I already had of her being a wonderful human being.
If you're still reading this (and I'm sure many of you aren't), you may still be thinking "So what?"
Here's the money shot: CaliforniaPeggy is not a troll, not a disruptor, not a "n00b," not a recent member with a "low post count" or any of the other "Let's throw her in the lake and if she's made of wood she's not a witch" criteria people use when things get hot and heavy on DU, as they are right now.
She's an institution, and there have been a few times when I have seen her politely offer her opinion and then the wolf pack surrounded in an attempt to eviscerate her.
Got that?
She wasn't "being a dick." She wasn't being "rude, over the top, or otherwise inappropriate."
She expressed her opinion and got slammed hard and mercilessly for that.
So how did she handle it?
She didn't understand the reason for the viciousness. She understands disagreement...hell, anyone who comes to this site "seeking agreement" is going to be shit our of luck again and again and again. She is not an "approval seeker," and if someone "enlightens" her, she's all for enlightenment. It's almost like she drives around town with an "I HEART ENLIGHTENMENT" bumper sticker on her car.
She just didn't understand why people were attacking her on a personal level, making unfounded accusations, unleashing their inner asshole all over her as a human being, rather than simply someone who expressed an opinion they didn't agree with.
A lot of people rose to her defense. A lot.
And she took it all in stride. She "considered the source." She didn't post a melodramatic "I'm leaving DU" post, she didn't return the venom.
She retained her status as an effing rock star, and those of you who are weary of the level of discourse we reach in GDP may want to consider doing the same.
Look at where we are. There are people here who want to point to Barry Goldwater and say that Trump is going to meet the same fate. Maybe he will, maybe he won't.
There are people here who have made a choice between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton and are passionate about their decision and express it, daily.
Then there are the dicks.
Some of them might be "moles," "n00bs," whatever.
But even on our best days, when there is not an election cycle surrounding us, DU can be either a place for lively, intelligent, witty, passionate discourse, or it can feel like the waiting room at the proctologist's office.
No one has "all the answers." I don't, you don't, Peggy doesn't, Skinner doesn't, Obama doesn't, Bernie doesn't, Hillary doesn't.
But a conversation doesn't define you. It can change your perspective, or it can make you stand your ground on what you believe, but it doesn't give anyone the right to marginalize you as a human being.
So for everyone here who is feeling the weight of the snark and sarcasm and "know it all" behavior, my words of encouragement to you are the timeless "this too shall pass" cliche.
It will get worse before it gets better.
There will be a thinning of the herd, and there will be more moles and n00bs.
So...effing...what.
It's a nicely programmed chat room, for God's sake.
It's not your life, and unless you know people here in a face-to-face relationship, it's not something that should crush you if the wolves circle around you.
Take inspiration from CaliforniaPeggy, via the paraphrased words of Bob Dylan...she made it through, you can make it too.
Skoal.
May 20, 2016
Sir Paul McCartney, 100% class act.
Paul McCartney Invites Lucky Kid To Play Bass Because He’s Paul
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paul-mccartney-invites-kid-on-stage-to-play-bass-because-hes-paul_us_573d8f23e4b0646cbeec2c0a
This is why certain Rock Gods become more god-like with time.
Paul McCartney thought he’d be autographing a doll for an adoring 10-year-old fan from the stage in Buenos Aires Tuesday night, but the kid wanted a little more, according to Entertainment Weekly. “I want to play bass with you,” 10-year-old Leila Lacase said.
Who wouldn’t want to play bass with Paul McCartney, kid?
But the Beatle made it happen. “I didn’t see this coming,” he told the crowd, according to Rolling Stone.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/paul-mccartney-invites-kid-on-stage-to-play-bass-because-hes-paul_us_573d8f23e4b0646cbeec2c0a
This is why certain Rock Gods become more god-like with time.
Paul McCartney thought he’d be autographing a doll for an adoring 10-year-old fan from the stage in Buenos Aires Tuesday night, but the kid wanted a little more, according to Entertainment Weekly. “I want to play bass with you,” 10-year-old Leila Lacase said.
Who wouldn’t want to play bass with Paul McCartney, kid?
But the Beatle made it happen. “I didn’t see this coming,” he told the crowd, according to Rolling Stone.
May 19, 2016
The ever-principled Mitt Romney BAILS on his #NeverTrump "3rd Party Candidate" hobby,
Washington (CNN)Mitt Romney won't launch a third-party presidential campaign of his own and has stopped trying to recruit somebody else to do it.
The 2012 Republican nominee had attempted to recruit a challenger to Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. But prospects like Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse said no, and Romney is now dropping his efforts, a source familiar with Romney's thinking told CNN. The news was first reported by Yahoo News.
It's the latest blow to the "Never Trump" movement -- a group of conservatives led by Romney, blogger Erick Erickson and The Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol -- to find an alternative to Trump.
Romney still hopes a candidate will emerge.
But an adviser to the "Never Trump" efforts confirmed Tuesday night that the efforts are looking grim.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/18/politics/mitt-romney-never-trump-independent-2016-campaign/index.html
The 2012 Republican nominee had attempted to recruit a challenger to Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. But prospects like Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse said no, and Romney is now dropping his efforts, a source familiar with Romney's thinking told CNN. The news was first reported by Yahoo News.
It's the latest blow to the "Never Trump" movement -- a group of conservatives led by Romney, blogger Erick Erickson and The Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol -- to find an alternative to Trump.
Romney still hopes a candidate will emerge.
But an adviser to the "Never Trump" efforts confirmed Tuesday night that the efforts are looking grim.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/18/politics/mitt-romney-never-trump-independent-2016-campaign/index.html
Profile Information
Name: Miles ArcherGender: Male
Hometown: Hamilton Massachusetts
Home country: USA
Current location: Nevada
Member since: Wed Oct 16, 2013, 07:49 PM
Number of posts: 18,837
