I’ve not posted for a while. I read the Corner or David Brooks’ column or Nooners’ latest drivel about how things were much better back when Ronald Reagan was getting shot and, while I want to make fun of it, I really just find it all too depressing for words.
Thank heavens for Texts from Dog, which restores my faith in humanity each and every day.
Thanks to Larkspur for sending me there in the first place.
kindness
Happy 4-20 all. Wait till you’ve completed your responsible activities before communing with the spirit of Bob Marley.
Justin
This was originally done by Louis the cat: http://louisvsrick.com/.
But Dog is pretty good.
gaz
Those were the days =)
JGabriel
I know it’s almost 30 years old, which makes it almost old enough to run for Senate, but I think this should be the: Theme song for the Romney campaign.
.
gaz
@kindness: If you don’t have any hash-oil, you are not doing it right. (by it, I mean celebrating hitler’s birthday of course /snark)
Now if y’all will excuse me for a moment…
* cough cough, choke *
ruemara
not sure if I’d want a dog after reading some of those texts.
Sarah, Proud and Tall
@gaz:
That may not be exactly what she said, but my eyes were glazing over by the third line…
gaz
@Sarah, Proud and Tall: No worries. I’ll be patient while you replenish your inner well of supreme snark. It’s worth it =)
Odie Hugh Manatee
@kindness:
Thanks, but every day is 4 20 for me. :)
May you all have a smokin’ good day!
lamh35
So Zimmerman granted bail at $150,000. I suspect the big MSM story will be Zimmerman’s “apology” to family and the photo of his “head injury” released by ABC.
That will be enough for FOXNews, KKKlanity and the rest of the extreme RW Zimmerman apologist.
Serious question though, not to relate the 2 cases, but I don’t remember and I’m at work, so unable to use da google, but was OJ released on bond during his murder trial? Or for a closer date, how about Casey Anthony?
JGabriel
__
__
BREAKING: Just headlines, no links yet, but George Zimmerman’s bail has been set at $150,000.
Edited To Add: Link: TPM
.
burnspbesq
If you were in the bail-bond business, would you fund Zimmerman? I’m not sure I would. I think he’s a major flight risk.
Elizabelle
Sad to see that jackhole got bail.
Wanted him to sit in jail every single day until his trial.
Since who knows what a jury of his “peers” will decide.
SatanicPanic
@JGabriel: That’s it? Sheesh if Hannity can spend $300K on a terrible painting of the president burning the constitution, I’m sure he could cough up $150K for his buddy.
JGabriel
@burnspbesq:
Nope, but I’m sure a racist gun-lovin’ wingnut billionaire will kick in to fund Zimmerman’s release.
.
Elizabelle
Sarah P&T: did you see that Jonathan Frid, aka Barnabas Collins, slipped this mortal coil on Friday the 13th?
I loved tuning in “Dark Shadows” after school. It got kind of dumb, eventually, but it was quite good for a while.
I still have my 45 of “Quentin’s Theme.”
You couldn’t pay me to listen to it, though.
Ben Franklin
Hoo boy! Is it even conceivable?
http://dawn.com/2012/04/20/pakistan-us-exploring-joint-ownership-of-drone-attacks/
“We are striving to have genuine co-ownership of the drone operations,” a senior Pakistani diplomat, who has been regularly briefed on the ongoing behind-the-scenes negotiations between Islamabad and Washington, told Dawn on Thursday.
gaz
@Odie Hugh Manatee: I hear you. =)
Luckily some of my friends go all out today – and I get treats. =) woof.
gaz
@JGabriel: This can only end badly.
JGabriel
SatanicPanic:
The prosecutors asked for no bail, or $1 million bond, but the family pleaded lack of wealth and asked for $15k. I guess the judge thought $150k was a fair compromise.
.
gaz
@JGabriel: * cough * flight risk * cough *
If the prosecutors did not argue that, then they are incompetent, IMO.
If the judge ignored that, the judge is incompetent, again, IMO.
Meh. This is not a good omen.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
From The Guardian
What difference does it make how old he was? Leaving aside the odd mentality that sees another person walking down the street and wonders if he’s “armed”, wouldn’t that uncertainty lead him to stay in his flipping truck? For you law talkers, Zimmerman took the stand, which is apparently almost unheard of. Would what he says in this hearing come back at him in the trial?
kindness
@gaz: Actually I’m carded here in CA and Harborside Healthcare does indeed sell several varieties of that magic health component. It isn’t my normal cup of tea but maybe I’ll make an exception today.
Is Zimmerman safer in jail or out of it? That is quite the head scratcher there. Lord knows there are those that would love to do the guy harm both in & out of the big house.
gaz
@kindness: WA laws are kind of crappy, so I won’t get a card – though I could qualify.
A) It’s only an “affirmative defense” meaning they can still arrest you and hold you for arraignment, in any case – the police often do not, but you’re at their mercy.
B) You basically sign away much of your protections against being searched. Or worse, your home being searched.
B is why I won’t get one. I think CA is probably better about this, but in WA getting a license just makes you a target of Law Enforcement, as far as I am concerned.
If I wanted to not worry about it all, I’d just move back to seattle. Nobody gives a shit in a seattle, regardless of any laws. You can smoke in public, in most areas. I used to buy my weed from the Hollywood video on Broadway. It was good shit too =)
gaz
@kindness: As far as zimmerman, let’s just say it never even crossed my mind to worry about his personal safety. You must be a better person than I.
cheers
Rosalita
I’ve seen a few of those texts, hilarious
Mickey
Sorry, I don’t get it. So these are computer generated or just some flunkys sitting behind keyboards replying in their best dog voice?
Sorry, don’t see the entertainment value but whatever turns you on I guess.
Odie Hugh Manatee
@gaz:
Truly, a friend with weed is a friend indeed!
I make it a point to go all out all day, every day. I smoke like an old steam locomotive. That’s why I almost always have a smile on my face. If I’m out, I don’t smile as much.
I can tell you that I do smile a LOT, and have been doing so for many years now.
Ben Franklin
What a shock;
The list of private entities with certificates to operate drones includes Academi; listed under their old name Blackwater Airships llc.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2012/04/faa-releases-its-list-drone-certificates-leaves-many-questions-unanswered
burnspbesq
@JGabriel:
I hope I’m wrong, but I provisionally FTFY.
Belafon (formerly anonevent)
@Mickey: Data? Is that you?
yopd1
BatDog was the best one.
Progressive Voice
No news about Cindy Sheehan and her refusal to pay taxes to fund aggressive war?
I guess she only gets coverage from the “mainstream” liberals when she is against Bush, huh?
War and Empire: it’s OK when Obama does it.
dedc79
Lawyer Dog is pretty funny too. For lawyers, anyway.
Progressive Voice
So…while my comment is in moderation hell because of a link, how about some coverage of Cindy Sheehan’s latest act of civil disobedience against the Empire? She is refusing to pay taxes to fund aggressive war–I guess if this were under Bush she would be a hero, but under Obama, just a loon, am I right?
Brachiator
@JGabriel:
RE: If you were in the bail-bond business, would you fund Zimmerman?
I don’t know. Couldn’t the NRA hold a rally for Zimmerman?
More seriously, Zimmerman has been co-operative with authorities, and hasn’t shown any signs of being a flight risk. And the dumbass Florida “stand your ground” laws appear to work in his favor. There is no particular reason for him to flee. It’s not like he’s a Roman Polanski.
@lamh35:
Simpson undermined his chance of getting bail with the slow speed chase. Didn’t follow the Casey Anthony case at all.
gex
@burnspbesq: This is what wingnut welfare is made for, dude.
burnspbesq
@Brachiator:
How about a bake sale? You’d buy a Glock-shaped brownie for two bucks, wouldn’t you? And an oatmeal raisin clip (the extended one with 33 raisins).
lamh35
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Zimmerman’s apology “I’m sorry for you loss”??? WTF. The son didnt’ just up and die. You (Zimmerman) KILLED him. This wasn’t some long death after illness or random act of violence…YOU (Zimmerman)KILLED him.
What was the point of that apology any darn way? “I’m sorry for your loss”, more like “I’m sorry, I killed your son”.
And he family of course testified that he wasn’t violent, well there is a dead kid and his family who would beg to differ.
…Ugh, I already know that this case will be a hard one for me. I didn’t follow Casey Anthony, OJ was when I was 19, but this one hear is gonna kill me. I am really hoping for the best for this family, the Martins, but my gut is telling me they are gonna have to settle for an arrest and that’s just ashame.
gaz
@Brachiator:
I think the real question is – “Is there any reason you’d NOT run from a murder charge? Anything keeping you here? Any kind of reason we should think you’ll show up for trial should we let you leave?”
10% of $150k (plus whatever collateral you managed to scrape together) is NOTHING compared to a murder beef.
At some point, the less wealth the guy has, the LESS likely he is to stick around for a trial.
burnspbesq
And which case did the Supremes save for this term’s last day of oral arguments? Arizona v. U.S., the challenge to SB 1070.
It’s next Wednesday.
I can’t have popcorn, because I’m on a low-carb routine. More baby carrots, please.
The Other Chuck
My first thought at seeing those texts wasn’t “Dog” so much as “Newt Gingrich”
ruemara
@lamh35: I felt it would be hard to just get an arrest. Let it go and focus on ALEC. I don’t think there will be a conviction, but we at least had the justice of an actual investigation instead of that whole “nothing to see here, just some dead black kid”, thing.
joeyess
I have a Chihuahua that I call Matilda. I also call her Mattie Moons, Matilda Mooney Tunes, or simply Mooney.
This just tickled me in the right spot today.
Thank you.
Brachiator
@burnspbesq:
It would not surprise me to see some conservative talk radio station try to organize a Zimmerman defense fund, with a little backstop from the NRA.
@gaz:
Uh, no. Not necessarily the case at all.
And there is too much media spotlight here. If Zimmerman fled, TMZ and the National Enquirer would be tracking him down harder than the cops.
Culture of Truth
A protective cover. okey dokey.
Yutsano
@gaz:
Let’s see…Mom is a Peruvian national and still has ties there. If they didn’t seize his passport they are REALLY incompetent.
@burnspbesq:
Bondsmen take this risk all the time. And they calculate how much concern of flight there is. But if I were going to pony up that 90% I’d want a full financial statement from both him and his parents and collateralize any property. And make sure both Zimmerman pere and Zimmerman fils are on the hook.
Culture of Truth
He’s going to wear a GPS tracker.
hmmmmmm
kindness
@gaz: Out here in CA when you get carded the one thing they stress is that you can still get locked up if you’re on Federal property and you still have to obey DUI laws. The eligibility for a card are ridiculously bountiful. Sure it’s a scam but it’s a scam I’ll happily participate in. My card is with the local Oakland Co-op which shares it’s membership data with any of clubs that call for verification but not the government. There’s a state card too but to me, that’s like taping a bust me sign to my back & then being surprised my data fell into the wrong hands.
300baud
The focus on Zimmerman KILLS ME. Zimmerman is not the main problem. The fucking police department was the problem. America’s acceptance of casual racism was the problem.
My big fear with this is that everybody’s going to get so distracted by a media circus around Zimmerman that when the trial’s done everybody will say, “Whew! We fixed that one!” and forget about all the other effects of institutional racism that will carry on below the radar.
jncc
I am just amazed that Zimmerman got bail. This guy intentionally picked out a black child to stalk and kill. Zimmerman had “100 pounds of muscle” on the kid but he still chased after him even after a police officer told him EXPLICITLY not to do so. He shot Martin for no reason and then was beating Martin for 10 seconds while Martin cried out for help. Zimmerman then shot him a second time. You can hear this on the 911 call by the woman who called the police after she heard the first shot. This was obviously an intentional, premeditated murder.
Then the police did no investigation at all and just took Zimmerman’s word for everything. It’s very suspicious that the new witness who claims that she saw Martin straddling Zimmerman and beating him did not come forward until weeks after the incident.
Those are the facts, right?
Alex
Don’t forget to include the latest internet meme of the day/hour/minute — Lawyer Dog! http://www.quickmeme.com/Lawyer-Dog/
JGabriel
__
__
300baud:
Those are all problems, but the main problem, IMHO, is organizations, like ALEC, founded to write and push conservative extremist legislation — such as Florida’s Stand Your Ground law — and funded by wealthy right-wing billionaires and corporations.
.
catclub
@jncc: “even after a police officer told him EXPLICITLY not to do so.”
Well, not precisely. In the 911 tape it is something like:
GZ: ‘I am following him’
911: ‘You don’t need to do that.’
Not exactly a clear command – like ‘Stop doing that’.
Watch the Movie ‘Rashomon’ to know what the facts will turn out to be in this case.
jncc
Sorry catclub, Mr. Cole himself said that the police EXPLICITLY told Zimmerman not to follow Martin. He even put it in all caps like that.
So it MUST be true.
Brachiator
@300baud:
Uh, no. Zimerman killed Martin. Presumably, you are alive and able to blog.
He was the main problem as far as young Martin was concerned.
burnspbesq
@jncc:
No, those aren’t the facts. Those are your beliefs. And unless you have access to the entire case file, your beliefs are no more likely to be correct than anyone else’s.
The facts are what a jury finds based on the evidence.
Culture of Truth
I don’t believe he was shot twice. In any case, the trial is to determine the facts. Bail is not punishment, though it sometimes seems that way.
jncc
Well, I don’t know what all of you people are talking about. Those are the facts as they have been presented to me here on balloon juice.
Based on these facts Zimmerman is obviously guilty and only some kind of racist would think that a trial is even necessary.
muddy
@kindness: Taunting me, just taunting me. Empty bowl event for charity, come to my house for details.
In VT there is permission to grow if you are sick, of course it does not do much good if you don’t know where to get seeds nor cuttings locally. Buying seeds out of state or out of US is a federal issue, so that’s bad, and as you say when you are on the state list, the feds probably mind your business. Be easier to buy an illicit bag, but nowadays they don’t tend to come with seeds.
They passed a law for dispensaries here last year, but just keep “studying” it, and none have come to pass. They approved it for 4 places in the state, 1000 patients each. I think there are less than 500 people on the state list now. It’s not like CA through the health dept, here it is through the Public Safety (aka popo), they run background check on you and all.
I wrote them a letter saying that giving permission is swell, it’s about as much use to me as permission to fly to the moon.
Brachiator
@jncc:
You’re joking, right?
Or sadly misinformed.
Catsy
@gaz: This.
Though I must say nobody seems to care in Bellevue either.
Schlemizel
I don’t know how many of you have been following the case in OK of the kid who decided to kill black people at random because a black man had killed his father & “gotten away with it”. (I wonder if the killer had been white would this yahoo be out killing random white guys but thats for another time)
The story is ‘dad’ interrupted a burglary in progress at a neighbors place & started after the perp with a stick or a bat. Dad had hit perp at least once. Perp shot dad under SYG. He was convicted of attempted burglary but not prosecuted because of SYG and he “felt his life was in danger”.
So, despite the fact that Z initiated the conflict appears to have escalated it and then shot an unarmed guy, he will probably walk. I don’t think that will be a happy day for the nation.
SYG actually makes it impossible to defend yourself (or property) unless you can kill your opponent. Once he or she is dead you are free to claim fear for your life & are free to go. Every state with SYG has seen an increase in gun homicides, as bad as Z might be the real crime is SYG which permits guys like Z the power to take a life.
Culture of Truth
@jncc: Oh I’m sorry. You’re a moron. Please carry on.
Schlemizel
@Brachiator: @Culture of Truth:
JNCC is a troll trying to be ‘funny’ it seems to be working in that it is getting a reaction
Suffern ACE
@Brachiator: Suddenly, we’re concerned that our justice system doesn’t find facts, but instead is designed to railroad people into jail time, sometimes for political purposes. That of course is always a concern. You’re just supposed to be concerned about that in certain instances.
Interrobang
@burnspbesq: Damn, dude, I’m trying to goldbrick here, and I can’t do it if people like you keep making me choke with laughter. I will have you know that I had a precise mental image of an oatmeal-raisin clip, with exactly (counted by wingnut hands) thirty-three raisins in it.
The sad thing is that now I want an oatmeal-raisin cookie and a chocolate brownie, and given that I’m allergic to dairy products (and at work), that is all kinds of not happening.
jncc
@Schlemizel: If you aren’t outraged, you aren’t paying attention.
Calouste
@Schlemizel:
Stand Your Ground laws are basically “Whoever Kills the Other Wins” laws.
Origuy
@Schlemizel: The story I heard was the that the homeowner interrupted the burglary, the burglar, whom the homeowner apparently recognized, left, and the homeowner called his friend, the ‘dad’, who tracked down the burglar. Vigilante justice. So the burglary and the conflict were two separate events.
Southern Beale
It’s Good News Friday! I round-up of positive news to keep us all from jumping off that ledge ….
jncc
@Calouste: The interesting thing here is that if Zimmerman’s story is true [[and, of course, we all know it is lies, lies, lies]] then he would likely be acquitted in any state, not just those with SYG laws.
According to Zimmerman, he was walking back to his car without making contact with Martin, when Martin said something to him and then attacked him from behind knocking Zimmerman to the ground where Martin then got on top of him and started slamming Zimmerman’s head into the ground.
Under that scenario, Zimmerman was not the initiator and he could not retreat so SYG would not even come into play.
But, like I said Zimmerman’s story is clearly lies, lies, lies. And SYG laws are so bad that they must have played a role in causing all of this.
Suffern ACE
@Calouste: They do create this odd situation where it is better (for the winning party) for a fight to become deadly rather than the police come and break it up. Think about that in this case. Had the Martin and Zimmerman been found while still fighting, there may have been an attempt by the police to determine who was at fault or even mistemeanor charges brought against both. But once someone is shot dead, the police aren’t supposed to investigate? Look first for signs of self-defense and if they find any, nothing happens.
FlipYrWhig
I have no idea why that image is (theoretically) humorous. Is it a dog owner thing?
sydney
Good News Friday-
Check-out CU/Boulder a public University, shut off from the public.
jncc
@Suffern ACE: Spot on, you are. It is obvious that anyone who cares about Zimmerman being railroaded by a justice system driven by public opinion obviously has just suddenly developed this concern and has never cared about anyone else being railroaded before.
Suffern ACE
@jncc: Well, if you believe that the justice system is so unfair such that charges and a trial after actions resulted in death are a miscarriage of justice in themselves, then come out and say so. That might be worth talking about.
mellowjohn
@Elizabelle:
or so they would have us believe…
jncc
Oh no Suffern, I have learned my lesson.
You see, back before the scales fell from my eyes, I raised some questions about why people were so sure about the evidence against Zimmerman around here. After some of Balloon Juice’s folks posted stuff that didn’t quite seem to match up with facts out there (posting that Zimmerman had 100 pounds of muscle on Martin, or that Zimmerman fired twice or that the police had EXPLICITLY told Zimmerman not to follow) I learned that raising such questions made me a racist.
And while I think Das Racist is kind of a cool band, I wouldn’t want to ever be called that.
So I got my mind right. I am much more at peace now that I see things as black and white.
Brachiator
@Schlemizel:
Ah, that explains a lot.
@Suffern ACE:
No, it’s that some of the understandable venting of frustration here has nothing to do with any understanding, or even misunderstanding, of the justice system.
In a crazy way, this is one of the unintended consequence of this stupid “stand your ground” law. The police can investigate, but once a person invokes a claim of “I was in fear for my life,” an investigative hurdle is created. By design, and in large part courtesy of the gun lobby.
gaz
@Culture of Truth:
At least they’ll know * when * he tries to bolt, and know the vicinity of where he took off from.
A gps tracker is not a cell.
gaz
as far as I’m concerned, any case where bail on a murder 1 or murder 2 charge was 150k is pretty light.
I’d expect them to be in a position to have a lot more to lose, given the stakes. Anybody, mind you, not just George Zimmerman
jncc
@gaz: “A gps tracker is not a cell.”
I was wondering about that … I mean they can put GPS transmitters on ducks so you can track their migration, so it seems that you could make one small enough, and secure enough, to attach to a person.
Mnemosyne
@jncc:
No, it was the fact that you thought that citing any of the above factual errors somehow justified Zimmerman shooting Martin dead that got you labeled a racist.
I’m still waiting for one of you guys to explain why a kid who’s being followed by a random guy in his car is not supposed to fight back if the guy gets out of his car and runs after him.
jncc
Yes, you are spot on.
I did say that the shooting was justified because people would subsequently make errors posting about Zimmerman’s weight a few weeks later. I was so, so wrong.
And, so I can properly repent, could you send me a link to where I said that?
I mean you aren’t just some pathetic shit brain who makes up allegations about other people, are you?
Mnemosyne
@jncc:
Dude, you just said this right in this very thread:
If you think Zimmerman is being railroaded, then you think he’s innocent, or at a minimum that he was justified in killing Trayvon Martin.
So, defend your position. In what way was Zimmerman justified in killing a kid that Zimmerman chose to chase down, even if that kid did manage to get in a few punches before Zimmerman shot him?
jncc
I would like to thank memonysine for giving me a another piece of the factual puzzle about what happened so I can get my mind right. Here are the facts of what happened, with memonysine’s addition in bold.
I am just amazed that Zimmerman got bail. This guy intentionally picked out a black child to stalk and kill. Zimmerman ran after Martin. Zimmerman had “100 pounds of muscle” on the kid but he still chased after him even after a police officer told him EXPLICITLY not to do so. He shot Martin for no reason and then was beating Martin for 10 seconds while Martin cried out for help. Zimmerman then shot him a second time. You can hear this on the 911 call by the woman who called the police after she heard the first shot. This was obviously an intentional, premeditated murder.
Then the police did no investigation at all and just took Zimmerman’s word for everything. It’s very suspicious that the new witness who claims that she saw Martin straddling Zimmerman and beating him did not come forward until weeks after the incident.
Mnemosyne
@jncc:
Wait, so now you’re claiming that Zimmerman never even got out of his car? What happened in your world?
Again, since you’re convinced that Zimmerman is innocent, you explain to us what happened since now apparently you’re not even willing to admit that Zimmerman exited his car.
Mnemosyne
So, since jncc only wants to deal with known facts, let’s go with them:
Zimmerman followed Martin in his car.
Zimmerman called 911 to report a suspicious person and said that he was following him.
At some point, Zimmerman exited his car.
Zimmerman shot and killed Martin.
Martin was unarmed.
Somehow, from these facts, jncc has determined that Zimmerman is being “railroaded” because he has been charged with a crime in Martin’s death.
gaz
@jncc: lolwut?
a cell is a room that you lock somebody in when you want to make sure they can’t go anywhere.
a gps device is a gadget that tells you where someone is up until the moment they disable or remove the device.
Does being incredibly obtuse come naturally to you, or did you have to work at it?