Rationally self-interested Superboy:
Even Superboy was susceptible to the influence of Ayn Rand’s master-race bodice-rippers…until he hit puberty.
We’ve got a storm brewing north of our undisclosed location: It’s been windy as hell all day, and I hear the rip currents at the beach are unusually strong. (I wouldn’t know since I don’t set foot on the beach this time of the year. I need shade, which is notably lacking at our nearby beaches.)
What’s happening in your part of the world on this fine Monday afternoon?
ETA: Spare a thought for faithful commenter Mnemosyne, who got some bad news today. Strength and courage.
ETA2: Violent protests going down in Baltimore.
[Cover via Buzzfeed]
RaflW
Baltimore is a mess. Yikes.
(note: I’m not there, just watching the cops and youth bashing it out. Ugh)
Bobby B.
Watching MSNBC report about officers injured in clashes. Quotes from officers. No quote from Freddie Grey so far. Pundits have said “I think…” a number of times.
Keith G
@RaflW: Dear god it’s terrible. Just wonder how much more spiraling this event will continue to do until it’s been completely out of control. Unfortunately it’s pretty out of control of. The folks on the street just need to fucking stop it.
RaflW
Twitter has pictures of people hit by rubber bullets.
Baltimore police say 7 cops injured, one is “unresponsive” which sounds bad but they are not saying critically injured, so not sure what that means – severe concussion?
It is, really, a $&%# mess.
JPL
Betty, Thank you for mentioning the post, Mnemosyne, wrote. Hugs to the whole family.
RaflW
@Keith G:
IMO both the police and the protesters need to back down, yet I have no idea how they get to there.
Also, too, this:
Doesn’t justify violence, but the Baltimore community is rightfully very angry over the horrible mess the cops created and are not adequately addressing.
Germy Shoemangler
Nylabone Dog Chews sold in a puppy starter kit are being recalled for possible salmonella contamination. The Food and Drug Administration says there’s a potential risk that dogs or humans handling the bone-shaped chews could be infected. The recall is voluntary and no illnesses have been linked to the product.
Keith G
@RaflW: They have every right and in fact should be encouraged to protest the horrible events that happened to Mr. Gray. But not this. This is not justified and is ultimately counterproductive.
kc
This is so bad: https://twitter.com/EricaLG/status/592777824253116416
Cacti
With the SCOTUS oral arguments for the marriage equality cases (Obergefell v. Hodges) set for tomorrow…
I’m predicting that Roberts will make a surprise switch and the final vote will end up 6-3.
He’s deeply conscious of his legacy, and I think he will avail himself of this no cost opportunity to look like less of an ogre to future generations.
I expect a deeply unhinged dissent from Scalia once the decision is published.
Amir Khalid
I’ve almost reached the end of my Spanish learning kit — It’s Take Off in Spanish published by Oxford University Press, from a series I highly recommend (I’ve also used the German and French kits).
RaflW
Not being there, I don’t know how the confrontation started this afternoon. But what I do believe is that the Baltimore P.D. has a violent history and while that does not justify injuring cops, this is also not just some kids venting.
This is about more than the recent killing of Freddie Gray and the bullshit the cops threw out before getting caught in their lies about it. They have deep police problems in Baltimore (and of course other cities).
Again, this does not justify a violent response. I don’t condone it. But I don’t find “this doesn’t help” responses to, well, help. Riots are a terrible tactic. But sometimes a population gets pushed just so far.
Mandalay
Our servile media run to the aid of the authorities, and publish unsubstantiated drivel from the cops….
In other words, it’s a pile of bullshit.
This is how it’s done time after time: create a (black) bogeyman fantasy so that the public can see the cops as the victims, and get our media stenographers to tell the world.
RaflW
@Cacti: I think that is quite possible, and for the less-unhinged end of the conservative spectrum, I think it will start to signal that this culture war item is spent.
More cynically, I think Roberts ruling with the majority on freedom to marry might give him maneuvering room to sabotage ACA. Not that I exactly expect that, but a feint left could be the windup for a right jab (I know nothing about boxing. So sue me if I got that wrong).
Schlemazel
The frat bros were all butthurt today because Ayn Paul supports the use of drones. It made matters worse that I had pointed out to them some time ago that if he ever got into the WH he would suddenly have a change of heart on war, pot, hookers and several other things. I reminded them of this and how sure they were so sure he was too honest to change like that.
I finally half-convinced them that for all his fat talk about libertarianism Koch only send money to corporate GOP’ers with any consistency. It was the seeds of doubt & I am watering them heavily hoping that it will turn into the tree of knowledge that will pry them away from the movement
Trollhattan
@RaflW:
Time zones away so don’t really know what’s occurring in Baltimore but of course hope peace and calm prevail.
I suspect few are surprised this is occurring, given the damning frequency of similar events around the country. It was bound to blow up somewhere, if not Baltimore then somewhere else. So how do we stop it from repeating elsewhere? Those who remember the ’60s understand the fires can jump from city to city in a hell of a hurry.
Major Major Major Major
Omg, poor Mnem. Thoughts are with you.
Arm The Homeless
We are going to have to address police/civilian interactions some time in the coming decades. Climate and the natural evolution of societies will only speed up our urbanization.
Seems like we could all use some understanding of the role of law enforcement in our country, going forward.
I propose higher education requirements for police, with a commensurate increase in starting and lifetime pay, but more hiring, fewer hours, and more community outreach. A trade, if you will. Probably there would have to be concessions from unions about the expectation of overtime pay, but in an imaginary America, I would think that would be an acceptable starting point.
Valdivia
Mnemosyne: warmest hugs
RaflW
@Trollhattan: How do we stop it from jumping to other cities? Get cops and mayors out in front of the abusive cop problem, very publicly. Now.
Civil unrest like this goes back to centuries of racism and oppression. But power concedes nothing without a demand. #blacklivesmatter folk and their allies have been demanding accountability since Ferguson, and not adequately getting a response. And of course black folk, minorities, the poor have been seeking redress for decades.
Heck, just reading a quick synopsis of the Watts Riot of 1965, you realize how little has changed, how virtually no power has been ceded in many cities, how accountability is still way too often a sham, and if anything, we’ve the (white) public have been accepting an escalation of the police arms race for a long time now.
How do we stop it from jumping? Maybe a time machine. Not to be flip, but it is probably much too late. As that Watts link says (50 years ago!…)
Despite the reported findings of the gubernatorial commission, following the riot, city leaders and state officials failed to implement measures to improve the social and economic conditions of African Americans…
Betty Cracker
@Arm The Homeless: Excellent suggestions.
CONGRATULATIONS!
@Mandalay: I read this today and it is, in the original meaning of the term, unbelievable. As you say, the servile media just grabbed the press release from the cops and is throwing it out there wholesale.
An even more pernicious variant is claiming that Bloods and Crips have set a dollar amount for rewards for any cops injured or killed. Throwing gasoline on a fire, which is, of course, what both the cops and media want.
Chris
@Arm The Homeless:
I don’t see how we can do that without addressing the fact that our society is awash in firearms. Not to go too easy on the police, but it’s true that American cops face an environment much different and inherently more hostile than their counterparts in Britain or other Western nations, and that this would be true even if we thoroughly addressed all the rot within our police departments.
Since killing the Second Amendment, or even interpreting it along rational lines fit for a 21st century developed nation (or even going back to the Old West standards when Wyatt Earp could ban the carrying of firearms without causing a constitutional uproar) is basically impossible, I think police/civilian relations in this country will continue to be a shit show throughout my lifetime.
WaterGirl
@Germy Shoemangler: Thanks for that information. I had it on my list to buy some of those tomorrow. I think those are the ones I get because they seem to be the only ones not made in China.
Silly me, I thought that made them safer.
Mandalay
@Arm The Homeless:
I propose banning cops from taking anabolic steroids unless prescribed by a doctor. The extent to which they are the cause of ‘roid rage’ behavior by cops is unknown, but there are several symptoms we can see time after time:
– Huge muscle bound cops.
– Cops acting with delusions of grandeur and superiority.
– Cops acting with irrational anger, and disproportionate violence.
Amazingly, there is actually support for this within the police:
Betty Cracker
@Chris: Sad but true.
chopper
jesus mnem, I’m so sorry.
Arm The Homeless
@Chris: I think urbanization brings it to a head. Climate is a wildcard that may press future SCOTUS to reassess the boundaries of the 2A. Stare decisis ain’t what it used to be, at least according to the Roberts court.
But your point is well received. We are awash in guns and a culture that glorifies them. It will take decades to de-program the past two generations. But I tend to believe it is possible to accomplish with handguns, the level of social avoidance that drunk driving and smoking have been relegated to.
@Mandalay:Perhaps having hiring standards that favor people more willing to fall back on some base level of empathy that higher education tends to engender in folks, and fewer hours on the street, may deter the personalities who thrive on the suffering of others.
SiubhanDuinne
Listened briefly to part of the mayor’s press conference (audio only) and there was a string of, I guess, city council members and the like, and after several of these had come on and said “This is not acceptable, this is not to be tolerated,” this one guy came on and said “I’m not going to be as polite and well-mannered as everyone else. I’m pissed off at what’s happening to my city.”
I think after that he said “This is not acceptable, this is not to be tolerated,” but at least he got to use a little bit of Language first.
Mnemosyne
Thanks, all, for the kind responses. I managed to arrange my flight schedule so that (weather gods permitting), I’ll actually arrive in Florida about half an hour before my mom does even though I’m coming from California and she’s coming from Illinois. In a weird way, this is the most expensive way to pick her up at the airport ever … but I think she really needs it.
Paul in KY
@Amir Khalid: Bueno!
SuperHrefna
@Mnemosyne: That is so thoughtful of you, I hope you can look after each other as you face down this terrible time. Big hugs!