ghostsinthemachine
ghostsinthemachine's JournalWhite man trying to buy gun shoots self in penis — blames it on a black guy
South Dakota man is currently in custody after telling police officers he was shot in the penis by a “black guy” when he actually shot himself while attempting to purchase a gun illegally, reports the Argus Leader.
Convicted felon Donald Anthony Watson, 43, was admitted to a local emergency room late at night on Sept. 6 for a gunshot wound to his penis, and told local law enforcement that he had been shot during a botched robbery.
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/09/white-man-trying-to-buy-gun-shoots-self-in-penis-blames-it-on-a-black-guy/
You really can't make this shit up. even if you wanted to.
11 Ways White America Avoids Taking Responsibility for its Racism
am white. I write and teach about what it means to be white in a society that proclaims race meaningless, yet remains deeply divided by race. A fundamental but very challenging part of my work is moving white people from an individual understanding of racism—i.e. only some people are racist and those people are bad—to a structural understanding. A structural understanding recognizes racism as a default system that institutionalizes an unequal distribution of resources and power between white people and people of color. This system is historic, taken for granted, deeply embedded, and it works to the benefit of whites.
The two most effective beliefs that prevent us (whites) from seeing racism as a system are:
that racists are bad people and
that racism is conscious dislike;
if we are well-intended and do not consciously dislike people of color, we cannot be racist. This is why it is so common for white people to cite their friends and family members as evidence of their lack of racism. However, when you understand racism as a system of structured relations into which we are all socialized, you understand that intentions are irrelevant. And when you understand how socialization works, you understand that much of racial bias is unconscious. Negative messages about people of color circulate all around us. While having friends of color is better than not having them, it doesn’t change the overall system or prevent racism from surfacing in our relationships. The societal default is white superiority and we are fed a steady diet of it 24/7. To not actively seek to interrupt racism is to internalize and accept it.
As part of my work I teach, lead and participate in affinity groups, facilitate workshops, and mentor other whites on recognizing and interrupting racism in our lives. As a facilitator, I am in a position to give white people feedback on how their unintentional racism is manifesting. This has allowed me to repeatedly observe several common patterns of response. The most common by far is outrage:
How dare you suggest that
More. Here: http://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/11-ways-white-america-avoids-taking-responsibility-its-racism
Who's happy the Pope is Canonizing Father Junipero Serra?
http://abc7news.com/religion/pope-francis-scheduled-to-bestow-sainthood-on-father-junipero-serra/997334/Me, not so much. Been in CA all my life and studied Father Serra in school. Visited many of the Missions too. BUT, found out some truths and was not so impressed.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: If ISIS Represents Islam, Then The KKK Represents Christianity (VIDEO)
It’s a distinguishing fact of human psychology that people hate to be stereotyped, but love stereotyping others.
In today’s context, the issue of whether or not the Islamic State, a group of radical extremists terrorizing the Middle East, can be considered “Muslim” is at the forefront of a debate that’s taking place across the world. In the United States, the conversation became even more heated after President Obama remarked that “ISIL is not ‘Islamic'” but a “terrorist organization, pure and simple.”
If taken literally, Obama’s claim is dubious. The Atlantic ran a cover story by Graeme Wood that essentially debunked the idea. Like it or not, Wood argued, ISIS is Islamic, in that they derive their ideology – however warped – from Islamic teachings.
The most-articulate spokesmen for that position are the Islamic State’s officials and supporters themselves. They refer derisively to “moderns.” In conversation, they insist that they will not—cannot—waver from governing precepts that were embedded in Islam by the Prophet Muhammad and his earliest followers. They often speak in codes and allusions that sound odd or old-fashioned to non-Muslims, but refer to specific traditions and texts of early Islam.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: If ISIS Represents Islam, Then The KKK Represents Christianity (VIDEO)
Author: Jameson Parker February 17, 2015 3:07 pm
It’s a distinguishing fact of human psychology that people hate to be stereotyped, but love stereotyping others.
In today’s context, the issue of whether or not the Islamic State, a group of radical extremists terrorizing the Middle East, can be considered “Muslim” is at the forefront of a debate that’s taking place across the world. In the United States, the conversation became even more heated after President Obama remarked that “ISIL is not ‘Islamic'” but a “terrorist organization, pure and simple.”
If taken literally, Obama’s claim is dubious. The Atlantic ran a cover story by Graeme Wood that essentially debunked the idea. Like it or not, Wood argued, ISIS is Islamic, in that they derive their ideology – however warped – from Islamic teachings.
The most-articulate spokesmen for that position are the Islamic State’s officials and supporters themselves. They refer derisively to “moderns.” In conversation, they insist that they will not—cannot—waver from governing precepts that were embedded in Islam by the Prophet Muhammad and his earliest followers. They often speak in codes and allusions that sound odd or old-fashioned to non-Muslims, but refer to specific traditions and texts of early Islam.
Members of ISIS certainly believe they are Muslim and acting in strict concordance with that ideology.
A more careful reading of Obama’s remarks, however, suggests that he wasn’t arguing that the members of ISIS aren’t Muslims (as conservative media attacked him for), but that when you think of Islam, you would be remiss to view it as symbolized in ISIS. They may be Muslims, but they are certainly no ambassadors for Islam – the faith that over 1 billion people on Earth worship.
Furthermore, ISIS has positioned itself as conquerors, targeting weak areas in wartorn countries and quickly seizing land. Their behavior is driven not just by Islam, but by the practical concerns of a nascent group trying to gain power. It’s no secret that much of what ISIS does is driven by monetary concerns. They seize oil refineries, poppy fields, banks vaults, and hostages in order to enrich themselves and increase their might. Ignoring that motivation means making a huge mistake.
Enter former basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, himself a Muslim, who made the point with a profound eloquence.
While speaking to MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Abdul-Jabbar said viewing ISIS as representing Islam would be like viewing the Ku Klux Klan as representing Christianity. Both groups derive their ideologies from religion, but neither can be said to make a claim for the vast majority of people within them.
“You can make parallels to things that have happened here in America. Like the Ku Klux Klan saying they are the Christian knights,” Abdul-Jabbar pointed out. “And they do not practice Christianity.”
In much the same way as ISIS, the KKK and other hate groups have always used religion as a way of justifying atrocities and hatred towards other groups.
“People use that as an excuse. It’s not an excuse, it’s no excuse and oppressing one group means that we have to look out, all groups have to get together to fight that type of oppression, because we all should be free.”
MORE HERE: http://www.addictinginfo.org/2015/02/17/kareem-abdul-jabbar-if-isis-represents-islam-then-the-kkk-represents-christianity-video/
Family confirms California teen who was beaten by police was on his way to school, didn't jaywalk
Family confirms California teen who was beaten by police was on his way to school, didn't jaywalk
s name is Emilio Mayfield and we now know that moments before he was confronted, assaulted, and arrested by police on the morning of Wednesday, September 16, he was catching public transportation to his local school.
In his first interview after the brutal and excessive assault, Mayfield opened up about what happened on that Stockton, California street and how he sees himself in spite of it all.
“I see myself as a great young man, successful in school. I feel traumatized. I was beaten and slammed on the floor."
Both Mayfield and the police also now confirm that he was not "jaywalking" as had been previously reported, but that he simply stepped into a lane adjacent to the sidewalk that was reserved for busses. No curb exists between the sidewalk and this lane and Emilio, according to eyewitnesses, stepped in the bus lane for about two seconds when he was confronted by an officer for doing so.
What's completely preposterous is attempting to rationalize how in the hell a 250-pound officer with his night stick drawn ended up on top a kid on his way to school because he stepped in the bus lane. This case is the epitome of excessive force and likely would not have happened to anyone other than a young black boy.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/09/22/1423731/-Family-confirms-California-teen-who-was-beaten-by-police-was-on-his-way-to-school-didn-t-jaywalk?detail=facebook
Ben Carson Shattering Stereotype About Brain Surgeons Being Smart
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Brain surgeons, long burdened with the onerous reputation of being among the smartest people in the world, are expressing relief that the Republican Presidential candidate Ben Carson is shattering that stereotype once and for all.
In interviews with brain surgeons across the country, the doctors revealed the enormous pressure they felt to live up to their profession’s inflated renown for intelligence before Carson entered the race.
“When people found out I was a brain surgeon they would always assume I was some kind of a genius,” said Harland Dorrinson, a neurosurgeon in Toledo, Ohio. “Now they are beginning to understand that you can know a lot about brain surgery and virtually nothing about anything else.”
Dorrinson said that acquaintances used to view him as a source of wisdom on a wide range of subjects, but added, “Ever since Ben Carson said that prisons make people gay, that’s really fallen off.”
MORE HERE: http://www.newyorker.com/humor/borowitz-report/ben-carson-shattering-stereotype-about-brain-surgeons-being-smart
Missouri (R)s Use Override Session to Allow Companies to Act as Private Police Forces
The Missouri Legislature, which exists as a super-majority Republican held body in both the senate and the house, closed out their veto session with a resounding rebuke of governor Jay Nixon.
Republicans, intent on seeing legislation move forward that put controls on city governments and provided expanded powers to predatory lenders and corporate employers pushed forward executive overrides on several pieces of legislation:
HB 618 – Expands the types of medical professionals who can attest to a cause of death, to include physicians’ assistants, assistant physicians and advance practice registered nurses.
HB1022 – Changes the state’s restrictions for insurance refund or rebate programs.
HB1098 – Changes the state’s financial requirements for out-of-state trust companies.
HB878 – Expands the arrest and property-seizure powers of private corporate security personnel.
SB20 – Exempts commercial laundries from paying sales or use taxes on materials and utilities.
SB142 – Requires the state Department of Resources to give the General Assembly an “impact implementation report” for actions required by the EPA under the federal Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act.
SB345 – Increases the fee that banks can change consumers for loans of 30 days or more, to a maximum of $100. Limit now is $75.
The bills, which provide expanded rights by lenders to require greater fees on short term loans, as well as rules that provide for a task force to refute requests by the EPA all act as part of the current agenda.
Out of all the legislation rebuked in this session, many find themselves deeply troubled by HB878, a bill that flew under that radar which Governor Jay Nixon referred to as "troubling". With HB878 now the law of the land in Missouri, corporations are allowed - with minor paperwork and little training - to offer their own private police forces that have the power to arrest and detain individuals as well as seize/confiscate property. The complete legislation is visible here: http://www.house.mo.gov/...
Under it, corporate officers are provided free roam of the state:
19 3. The authority and jurisdiction of a corporate security advisor shall be limited only by
20 the geographical limits of the state, unless the corporate security advisor's license is recognized
21 by the laws or regulations of another state or the federal government.
Private Security firms also voiced their surprise and concern when the bill passed.
An Evangelical responds to Sanders' speech at Liberty U
An Evangelical pastoral counselor and Liberty University graduate posted a short sermon about Bernie Sanders' speech at Liberty University to reddit yesterday:
Bernie is the voice of Justice crying out in the desert. Evangelicals like me are convicted by his message. (audio, a little under 17 minutes)
He was convicting the Christian leaders and the religious leaders in that university, and calling us out for being complicit in the abandonment of those who suffer, the least of these, and siding with the powerful and rich, the masters of this world. And he was convicting us and calling us out, and we scorned him, and we stared him down; and, with sour faces, we thought, "Who is this wacko, and why do all these people seem to follow him, seem to like him – this wild-haired Jew, crying out from the wilderness of the political left, in his hoarse voice?"
When I heard Bernie speaking in that way, when I saw that guy on stage at Liberty University, I saw John the Baptist...crying out to the religious leaders, the Pharisees of his day, calling them corrupt and complicit with those who have all the power and all the money and all the wealth, and abandoning the people that God loves, that God cares about...
As I heard Bernie Sanders crying out to the religious leaders at Liberty University, in his hoarse voice, with his wild hair – this Jew – and he proclaimed justice over us, he called us to account, for being complicit with those who are wealthy and those who are powerful, and for abandoning the poor, the least of these, who Jesus said he had come to bring good news to. And in that moment something occurred to me. As I saw Bernie Sanders up there, as I watched him, I realized Bernie Sanders for president is good news for the poor. Bernie Sanders for president is Good News for the poor. Bernie Sanders is gospel for the poor. And Jesus said "I have come to bring gospel" – good news – "to the poor."
MORE:http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/09/16/1421659/-An-Evangelical-responds-to-Sanders-speech-at-Liberty-U#
An Evangelical responds to Sanders' speech at Liberty U
An Evangelical pastoral counselor and Liberty University graduate posted a short sermon about Bernie Sanders' speech at Liberty University to reddit yesterday:
Bernie is the voice of Justice crying out in the desert. Evangelicals like me are convicted by his message. (audio, a little under 17 minutes)
reddit thread
Partial transcript below the squiggle.
He was convicting the Christian leaders and the religious leaders in that university, and calling us out for being complicit in the abandonment of those who suffer, the least of these, and siding with the powerful and rich, the masters of this world. And he was convicting us and calling us out, and we scorned him, and we stared him down; and, with sour faces, we thought, "Who is this wacko, and why do all these people seem to follow him, seem to like him – this wild-haired Jew, crying out from the wilderness of the political left, in his hoarse voice?"
When I heard Bernie speaking in that way, when I saw that guy on stage at Liberty University, I saw John the Baptist...crying out to the religious leaders, the Pharisees of his day, calling them corrupt and complicit with those who have all the power and all the money and all the wealth, and abandoning the people that God loves, that God cares about...
As I heard Bernie Sanders crying out to the religious leaders at Liberty University, in his hoarse voice, with his wild hair – this Jew – and he proclaimed justice over us, he called us to account, for being complicit with those who are wealthy and those who are powerful, and for abandoning the poor, the least of these, who Jesus said he had come to bring good news to. And in that moment something occurred to me. As I saw Bernie Sanders up there, as I watched him, I realized Bernie Sanders for president is good news for the poor. Bernie Sanders for president is Good News for the poor. Bernie Sanders is gospel for the poor. And Jesus said "I have come to bring gospel" – good news – "to the poor."
MORE:http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/09/16/1421659/-An-Evangelical-responds-to-Sanders-speech-at-Liberty-U#
Dislike button on Facebook! (Some thoughts)
From my friend and favorite writer....Alfred Howard
Facebook is adding a dislike button!!!! I'm so fucking stoked. I hope instead of thumbs down its a fully engorged middle finger the size of dikembe mutombo's, so I can be like "fuck your ignorant ass homophobic fear mongering post!!!", "fuck your Muse video", "fuck your baby, he can't even walk yet". Facebook is going to turn into a war zone. The gluten free people are gonna dislike your sandwich, the vegans are gonna dislike your achievement at carnitas snack shack and I'm gonna dislike your selfies. And right on time for the election. No coincidence there. It's probably invented so that Donald Trump can become the Rebecca Black of facebook, a household name by virtue of ubiquitous disdain. Will people use it sparingly and responsibly, simply so when you post about your uncle's death, they don't have to ask queries of social etiquette like "do I "like" this post?" Fuck no! People are going to run amok. If you finish a marathon and post about it, I will take it as a direct affront to my poor physical stamina and dislike it. I'm wondering how bands will fare, especially in a local sphere, will people have the balls to be honest with someone you might run into at Starbucks? Only time will tell. Will the digital hate spill into the streets? Of course, this is America!!!!! Man, I wish you could dislike this post.
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