Our Failed Political Establishment

Late Night Open Thread: IN UNION THERE IS STRENGTH

by Anne Laurie| September 25, 202311:02 pm| 59 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads, Our Failed Political Establishment, Proud to Be A Democrat, Show Us on the Doll Where the Invisible Hand Touched You, The War On Women, Assholes

@emilyslist stands in solidarity with the @UAW workers. For years, the Big Three auto companies have raked in profits while workers continue to get left behind. It's time to put people over profit and ensure every worker gets a fair contract.

— Laphonza Butler (@LaphonzaB) September 25, 2023

… But Jonathan Martin’s well-insulated fellow ‘journalists’ all chortled at his retort!

Who asked for your empty theater criticism, hack?

— American Eagle Kaiju (@TonyMoonbeam) September 25, 2023

Aw they were *this* close to getting your approval but they blew it! https://t.co/Tg2EoZOx0x

— Not up for trouble, please stop asking (@agraybee) September 25, 2023

Are you issuing this ultimatum to all advocacy groups expressing solidarity or just the women?

— Caitlin Legacki ??????? (@caitleg) September 25, 2023

Exhibit…I lost count a long time ago actually…that calling Politico Tiger Beat on the Potomac is an insult to the original.

— Atticus (@AtticusLabrador) September 25, 2023

The unwritten rule of political journalism is that hypocrisy, real or imagined, is the only vice you can critique from a "neutral" standpoint. Therefore, if you don't have any standards or principled, you're functionally immune. If you do, it's open season. https://t.co/TthSTJ4Uq5

— Nathan Goldwag ???? (@GoldwagNathan) September 25, 2023

Late Night Open Thread: IN UNION THERE IS STRENGTHPost + Comments (59)

Let’s Talk About The Marion County Record

by TaMara| August 13, 202311:00 am| 73 Comments

This post is in: Asshole, Media, Our Failed Political Establishment, Politics, Republican Crime Syndicate

In case you missed it, this is chilling:

Eric Meyer, publisher of the Marion County Record, answers questions in his newspaper office Friday after police seized computers, servers, cellphones and other items. He says he doesn’t know how they will get the newspaper out on Tuesday, but, “We will publish something.” (Sam Bailey/Kansas Reflector)

MARION — In an unprecedented raid Friday, local law enforcement seized computers, cellphones and reporting materials from the Marion County Record office, the newspaper’s reporters, and the publisher’s home.

Eric Meyer, owner and publisher of the newspaper, said police were motivated by a confidential source who leaked sensitive documents to the newspaper, and the message was clear: “Mind your own business or we’re going to step on you.”

The city’s entire five-officer police force and two sheriff’s deputies took “everything we have,” Meyer said, and it wasn’t clear how the newspaper staff would take the weekly publication to press Tuesday night.

The raid followed news stories about a restaurant owner who kicked reporters out of a meeting last week with U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner, and revelations about the restaurant owner’s lack of a driver’s license and conviction for drunken driving.

Meyer said he had never heard of police raiding a newspaper office during his 20 years at the Milwaukee Journal or 26 years teaching journalism at the University of Illinois.

“It’s going to have a chilling effect on us even tackling issues,” Meyer said, as well as “a chilling effect on people giving us information.”

The search warrant, signed by Marion County District Court Magistrate Judge Laura Viar, appears to violate federal law that provides protections against searching and seizing materials from journalists. The law requires law enforcement to subpoena materials instead. Viar didn’t respond to a request to comment for this story or explain why she would authorize a potentially illegal raid. Read more here

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And it gets worse:

It is not hyperbole to say that this attack on the people’s right to know appears to have killed the Marion County Record’s Joan Meyer. From Melinda Henneberger: https://t.co/EqU8bElgLo

— The Kansas City Star (@KCStar) August 13, 2023

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Here’s a paywall-free version of my column about the police raid on the Marion County Record newspaper. #ksleg https://t.co/gIBGF1ezTs

— Joel Mathis (@joelmmathis) August 12, 2023

marionrecord.com

Back in the 1990s, on my very first day at my very first newspaper job, my boss — a sometimes-crusty, often-jolly Battle of the Bulge veteran by the name of Bill Meyer — told me to call up a local businessman who was, rumor had it, about to open a new branch of a popular chain restaurant in our small central Kansas town.

“Ask him when it’s going to open,” Bill told me. “And ask him if he’s going to serve beer.”

It wasn’t an idle question. The businessman owned another restaurant from the same franchise the next town over, in a small Mennonite community, and certainly no beer was served there.

So I did what I was told. I called the businessman. I asked him about his new restaurant. And, finally — not thinking much of it — asked him the final question: Would the new establishment serve beer?

There was a long silence on the phone.

“What kind of reporter are you anyway?” he sputtered. “What do you think you’re doing asking questions like that?” If memory serves, he then hung up on me. It was an unexpectedly fractious start to my journalism career.

The paper where I had just started? The Marion County Record.

You’ve probably heard of the newspaper by now. It was raided Friday by the Marion police, many of its computers and all the other stuff its staff uses to, well, put out the newspaper, were hauled away with no guarantee of their quick or safe return.

“We’re going to have to reinvent the wheel to put out this week’s paper,” Eric Meyer, Bill’s son, told me on Friday after news of the raid became public and very quickly went viral nationally.

We’re not entirely sure of the reasons behind the raid. Marion’s police chief wasn’t taking questions, at least initially. But the apparent cause — unsurprisingly to me, given my own first-day memories of the paper — had something to do with the paper’s unpublished investigation of a liquor license for a catering business.

The mixture of alcohol, business and journalism in Marion has always been touchy, apparently.

Since we don’t know the full details behind the raid, though, I’m not going to get into all the nitty-gritty. Bill, who died in 2006, wouldn’t want me to write without having a firm command of all the facts.

But it’s scary when police raid a newspaper. It looks and smells like a threat to the First Amendment. Investigators had better have a damned good — even extraordinary — justification for the search warrant. God help them otherwise.

I do want you to know about the Marion County Record, though.

It’s one of those small town newspapers that serves as both the backbone of its community, and of the journalism profession at large. I wasn’t the only young reporter to get my start there: Bill — a member of the Kansas Newspaper Hall of Fame and a KU alum who had the Jayhawk fight song played at his funeral — regularly hosted summer interns from the university, sending them back out into the world after a few months of doing everything: Taking pictures, writing features, covering city council meetings, you name it. It was an immersive education.

Sometimes, the paper threw elbows. Bill once told me about coming into work to find a bullet hole in his office window.

Small town journalism is a delicate balance, though. Everybody knows everybody. You can’t hide from the people you write about. When the paper ran a rather prominent correction about an error I’d made, I was razzed on the streets of Marion for a solid week.

A few years before he passed, Bill called me to talk about maybe coming back to town. It’s a nice community, he told me, a place where you can serve that community and make a comfortable living.

He loved the town. And he loved the newspaper. Rural Kansas and community journalism both face brisk headwinds these days. The two situations are probably related. Whatever the outcome of this ugly mess, Marion and its newspaper will still need each other to survive.

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I think the best thing we can do to help this small paper get through this is to subscribe (here).

Personally, I think Police Chief Gideon Cody, Magistrate Judge Laura Viar, and drunk driver Kari Newell are about to go through some things.

(note: the dying bird is randomly NOT supplying the full tweet, so you may have to click through to see images. Apologies).

Let’s Talk About The Marion County RecordPost + Comments (73)

Friday Night Open Thread: SC(R)OTUS Leaker Remains ‘A Mystery’

by Anne Laurie| January 20, 20238:04 pm| 85 Comments

This post is in: Activist Judges!, Open Threads, Our Failed Political Establishment, Republican Venality

None of the Supreme Court justices nor their spouses were implicated in the investigation of the leaked draft opinion that overturned Roe v. Wade— but unlike court employees who were questioned, they were not asked to sign affidavits. https://t.co/CJKxjhtF6v

— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) January 20, 2023

If one of the remaining LIBERAL (honest) judges or their clerks had been responsible, the Mystery Leak would’ve been solved within twelve hours of the big reveal. So, the real question: Which one of the Far Right Wing’s hand-picked mouthpieces got ahead of themselves, and how long will it be until the truth leaks out when they can’t resist taking credit?

In the marshal’s defense putting a member of this Supreme Court under oath does not historically stop them from lying https://t.co/m3Eloc4Xvd

— Aaron (@BobbyBigWheel) January 20, 2023

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The statement doesn't say what sorts of questions Curley asked the justices or say anything about their computers or phones.

— Greg Stohr (@GregStohr) January 20, 2023

Anyone notice the irony of obsessing over who broke the compact of privacy about a decision that itself broke a 50-year compact with all the women of America? Or the oddity of pretending the Justices aren’t protecting the leaker by not calling in the FBI?https://t.co/bxLKRXHOv5

— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) January 19, 2023

… In a 20-page report, the court’s marshal, Gail A. Curley, who oversaw the inquiry, said that investigators had conducted 126 formal interviews of 97 employees, all of whom had denied being the source of the leak. But several employees acknowledged that they had told their spouses or partners about the draft opinion and the vote count in violation of the court’s confidentiality rules, the report said.

The investigation did not determine that any of those discussions led to a copy of the draft opinion becoming public, however. Investigators also found no forensic evidence of who may have leaked the opinion in examining the court’s “computer devices, networks, printers and available call and text logs,” the report said.

The findings raised the possibility that no one will be held to account for one of the most stunning breaches of secrecy in the Supreme Court’s history. The leak left the court in a state of mutual suspicion about whether a clerk or even a justice betrayed its code of silence about rulings before they are announced.

The inconclusive report comes as opinion polls have shown weakened trust that the court is motivated by the law rather than by politics, with a conservative supermajority that has steadily moved to the right in the most consequential cases…

Supreme Court's inability to find the leaker adds to its credibility problems via @JoanBiskupic https://t.co/ZscMbl2NJu

— Ryan Struyk (@ryanstruyk) January 20, 2023

A timeless quote from American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson…

“The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our spoons.”

… which I first ran across while reading another renowned American philosopher, writing during the previous Gilded Age.

Friday Night Open Thread: SC(R)OTUS Leaker Remains ‘A Mystery’Post + Comments (85)

Squishable Morning Thread

by Betty Cracker| July 8, 202211:54 am| Leave a Comment

This post is in: Balloon Juice, Commentary, Foreign Affairs, Open Threads, Our Failed Political Establishment

The opening of an AP article about GOP candidates in Michigan who are vying to take on Governor Gretchen Whitmer — whoa:

WASHINGTON (AP) — A leading contender for the Republican nomination for governor in Michigan was sued in the 1990s, accused of using racial slurs about Black people in the workplace and sexually harassing his employees.

One of his rivals pleaded not guilty in federal court on Thursday to misdemeanor charges after authorities said he rallied Donald Trump’s supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 insurrection. Another candidate is a chiropractor and self-help guru who hawked supplements he falsely claimed treated COVID-19.

And even the contender who has garnered mainstream support had an “admittedly lame” hobby acting in low-budget horror pictures, one of which included a zombie biting off a man’s genitals.

The first batch of Republican gubernatorial candidates in Michigan got kicked out for submitting petitions with fake signatures, so this is the second string. Michigan Republicans, y’all. Looks like the zombie junk biter might be the best of a bad lot.

In other news, a chorus of “mainstream” Republicans are rising up to denounce criticism of Ron DeSantis as hysterical overreaction that is objectively pro-Trump. Sounds like the Murdoch memo has been received. Look for more hagiography and indignant hissing in the months to come.

In international news, so far, we still don’t know what motive was behind the assassination of former PM Shinzo Abe of Japan. The Times has a still photo of the moment the assassin was captured, and the homemade gun he used is visible. It looks like two metal tubes wrapped up in duct tape.

Open thread.

Squishable Morning ThreadPost + Comments

Staying Safe While Protesting Redux

by Adam L Silverman| July 1, 20222:32 am| 33 Comments

This post is in: Balloon Juice, Civil Rights, Commentary, Domestic Politics, Gay Rights Are human Rights, Open Threads, Organizing & Resistance, Our Failed Political Establishment, Politics, Silverman on Security, The War On Women, Women's Rights

I have been informed that a number of you all were asking if we could repost my suggestions for staying safe while protesting. Watergirl was good enough to proactively go and dig at least one of the versions/reposts of the original post from December 2018. We’ll resume our war updates tomorrow night.

I’ve made an addition or two to the original list, but if you’ve decided you need to go to a march or a rally, the list below is for you.

I want to remind everyone that we’ve seen a number of acts of violence, by both domestic right wing extremists like the Proud Boys or Patriot Front and from law enforcement, directed at people attending both Pride events and marches and rallies in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs. We have also seen at least one individual decide to drive around oncoming traffic in an attempt to murder marchers by driving over them in his truck. Given that a number of states have passed laws allowing drivers to treat marchers and rally goers in the street as threats and because they’re threats drive over them, please check your state laws to see whether that might be something you need to worry about.

(Originally posted on 18 December 2016)

Congress shall make no law… abridging…the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. — Amendment 1, Bill of Rights, US Constitution

One of our readers/commenters emailed me about a week ago and asked if I would put up a post about personal security for those going to peaceably assemble to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. I put a list together and ran it past a select group of our Balloon Juice legal eagles (those I’ve corresponded with before/have corresponded with me, so if you didn’t get asked, don’t be insulted I didn’t want to just impose on you with a cold request) – thank you all for getting back to me. Here’s my list of what I think anyone going to peacefully assemble should do to enhance their personal security.

Go with a buddy, that way you have at least one person looking out for you/watching your back and vice versa.
Carry cash and make sure to carry a valid picture ID!
Bring a pocket flashlight.
Get and wear a go pro that is automatically updating to the cloud.
Bring a pocket charger for your cell phone and go pro regardless of whether it is supposed to be a long day.
I you’re bringing them with you, make sure your personal electronic devices – phones, tablets, and wearables like smart watches – all have sufficient password protection and encryption on them. And have them set to upload to the cloud at a regular interval.
Turn off fingerprint, face, or other biometric access to unlock your phone and delete your finger prints, face scans, and/or other biometris from the memory. Some jurisdictions allow law enforcement to compel you to unlock your phone if it has finger print or face scan based access. Or get a disposable phone just for this occasion.
Turn off your phone and other personal electronic devices option to connect to known WiFi as it can be used as a way to fail your encryption. Also, turn off the GPS locators and tracking on them as well!
Bring a bandana or neck gaiter and water so you can make a make shift gas mask in case things get out of hand and tear gas or pepper spray is deployed.
Bring a couple of bottles of saline eye rinse in case you need to rinse your eyes out if tear gas or pepper spray is deployed.
Bring plenty of water and some snacks to make sure you’re properly hydrated and you’ve got enough fuel in your system to get through the day.
Dress in layers so you are prepared for the weather and make sure you have good shoes/boots and a change of socks in case they should get wet. A set of silk base layer undersocks is a good idea regardless of the weather. They’ll help keep your feet warm or cool as needed and they’ll provide some protection in case your shoes/boots and socks get wet. And something to keep the back of your neck and your ears warm if you’re going to be someplace cold.
Bring/wear a hat to keep the sun off your head or to keep it warm depending on the weather.
Bring/wear eye protection. Specifically sunglasses that are impact rated. (You should be able to pick up military surplus ones pretty cheap).
Sunscreen, skin moisturizer, and lip balm. Even if its cold you’ll need these.
If you need to take regular/routine prescription medication: bring it in its original container, with the prescription details on the label. If its a gel based application and comes in a packet, make sure you’ve got a hard copy of the prescription with you.
Be aware of your surroundings at all times. You don’t have to be paranoid, but have a sufficient level of situational awareness. If something looks and/or feels hinky or the hair on the back of your neck stands up, head on home or go get a drink and something or go back to your hotel. Know who and what is around you, keep your valuables in front pockets or in secure/securable purses/bags, and keep those where they can’t be easily snatched or accessed.
Have a contact plan for both linking up and communicating in case one gets separated from anyone you’re with.
Have a contact plan to stay in touch with someone who isn’t at the march, but knows that you’re there and a regular set of contact times.
Have a lawyer you can contact if necessary and that your outside contact could contact if you don’t check in. Make sure you have all of your contact’s phone numbers memorized in case your phone is damaged or taken by law enforcement should the worst happen and you’re arrested. Write them on your arm in sharpie if you want double redundancy.
Bring a sharpie to take down badge numbers if necessary. And if necessary write them on your hand.
This is a new one: Put together a first aid kit and buy a velcro attaching red cross patch to place on it. The minimum basics should be: saline solution, at least two tourniquets, at least two Israeli bandages, and quick clot – both the gauze pads and the granule applicator system – in addition to the basics like band aids, regular gauze, both cloth coaches tape and paper tape, antibac gel, anti-burn/sunburn spray or gel, anti-itch gel, etc. We have unfortunately reached the point where everyone should have tourniquets and quickclot with them all the time.

Should the worst happen and you get caught up in a peaceable assembly that suddenly turns not so peaceable or that law enforcement decides to declare an unlawful assembly so they can brake things up:

Do not resist law enforcement. Just do what they say, let your arms go limp, and do what you can to avoid a reflex response to resist – that can get you charged with assault on a law enforcement officer.
Be respectful and polite when dealing with the authorities – law enforcement, the National Park Service, whoever.
If you are arrested, ask for a lawyer and then shut up. Do not say anything else or answer any other questions until your lawyer arrives. In fact let the lawyer do the talking.
And make sure you have the name and phone number of the attorney you want, if you have a preference, ready to go. Memorize it and write it on your arm in sharpie!

One last item: some of you probably carry a pocket knife or multi-tool everywhere. Or everywhere that you’re normally allowed. I would recommend not carrying anything on your possession that could be construed as a concealed weapon or even an openly carried one. Even if you’re in a state/jurisdiction that allows for concealed or open carry of knives and/or other weapons – don’t. Being part of a march or peaceful assembly that turns ugly is not a good time to attempt firearms (or knife) normalization.

Stay Frosty!

Open thread!

Staying Safe While Protesting ReduxPost + Comments (33)

I wonder if trump will be tried as an adult.

Republican obstruction dressed up as bipartisanship. Again.

And so it is for the politically and morally bankrupt Kevin McCarthy.

A sufficient plurality of insane, greedy people can tank any democratic system ever devised, apparently.

RIP Zandar. We are still here fighting the stupid, now in your honor.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

So many bastards, so little time.

You cannot shame the shameless.

Just because you believe it, that doesn’t make it true.

When we show up, we win.

Everybody saw this coming.

We’ll be taking my thoughts and prayers to the ballot box.

Insiders who complain to politico: please report to the white house office of shut the fuck up.

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

It’s a doggy dog world.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Schmidt just says fuck it, opens a tea shop.

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

I’m more Christian than these people and I’m an atheist.

Biden: Oh no. We’ve upset Big Pharma again.

Quote tweet friends, screenshot enemies.

“Cheese and Kraken paired together for the appetizer trial.”

Late Night Open Thread: IN UNION THERE IS STRENGTH

Let’s Talk About The Marion County Record

Friday Night Open Thread: SC(R)OTUS Leaker Remains ‘A Mystery’

Squishable Morning Thread

Staying Safe While Protesting Redux