Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Well, At Least It's Not Another Bakke

Which went 8-1, but not in the way the numbers suggest. But ifrst, the outrage: And the comedy: Okay, let's (kinda, sorta) get down to it: Gotta agree; Alito's concurrence is insane.  Makes you wonder what they'll do with something like this (coming soon to a courtroom near you, though this one is from Florida):

At DeSantis’ request, the State Board of Education voted to bar lessons and discussions on the concept of critical race theory and “The 1619 Project.”

None of Florida’s school districts taught the theory before the ban, state education officials acknowledged. But DeSantis, leading up to his reelection bid in 2022, has railed against critical race theory, a legal academic concept that examines systemic racism in American institutions and policies, because he says it is an attempt to indoctrinate children against the United States.

So if I mention the "1619 Project" in a Florida classroom, am I subject to disciplinary action?  Sounds like a 1st Amendment case to me.  And if you remember Gov. Absent wants to put the same measure on the special session agenda (maybe in July, maybe later) even though he supposedly signed a law banning it already, DeSantis is why.  The real decisions as to what is on the curriculum of Texas public schools is made by the Texas State Board of Education.  Gov. Absent obviously feels he doesn't have enough clout there; or he wants to one-up DeSantis by carving his objections into law.

But there's that pesky 1st Amendment again.  Of course, what does he care?  He also claims to have made Texas a "second amendment sanctuary state," which is equally meaningless (who's gonna be the first hapless state official to tell an AUSA they can't enforce the federal ban on felons possessing firearms in Texas?).  But hey, it keeps the elephants (and the black helicopters!) away, right?


*I forgot the explain the title.  When I was studying Con Law, Bakke was still in memory green.  It was a decision on affirmative action where the courts ruled that idea to be constitutional, but the use of racial quotas to achieve it was not.  Yeah, clear as mud.  It also resulted in 8 different opinions, from which one had to stitch together a crazy quilt of a conclusion; not on the holding so much as how the court reached it.  Gordian's knot would be easier to unravel.  The comparisons to the current holding are still valid, IMHLO.

Posted by at No comments:

The Truth Shall Make You Free

Which is probably why so many people are afraid of it.
Posted by at No comments:

I Like To Think...

...people like this don't vote, because they can't figure out how to.

Seriously.

(No, they don't concern me.  I've known people like this my whole life.  As the Hithchiker's Guide to the Galaxy said of Earth in general: "mostly harmless."  They don't scare me.  They don't worry me.  It is good to know where they are once in awhile; mostly for their sakes.)
Authorities are divided over whether this is a death wish, or a death threat. Or just a sign of the death of public education. ☠️ 
Posted by at No comments:

Tuesday, June 22, 2021

In A Sense, Isn't Society To Blame?

I liked the movie version better:

Posted by at No comments:

As Goes the SBC...?

Where’s all the people?

Ed Litton is now President of the Southern Baptist Convention.  What that means depends on who you ask.  National Review (the house organ of the late, unlamented racist William F. Buckley) calls him a "turtle on a fence post," although that's not the criticism I took it to be (turns out it's from a sermon by Litton).  Indeed, NR seems approving:

“If you look throughout Scripture, whether it was Joseph or Esther or Nehemiah or Ezra or especially Daniel, God took every one of those people in as servants, and that’s the picture we need to get,” he told me. “It’s counterintuitive,” he said, but he believes that, “as we go into our cities and serve, God raises our influence so that we can speak truth to power at just the right moment.”

That's fine; I'm not here to argue with him, anyway.  Arizona Central calls him a "reconciler," and notes there is much reconciliation to do:

Late last year, the Rev. Joel A. Bowman Sr. announced he was leaving the SBC following a statement from Southern Baptist seminary presidents rejecting critical race theory. 

The presidents wrote that they "stand together on historic Southern Baptist condemnations of racism in any form" but added their belief that critical race theory is "incompatible with the Baptist Faith & Message."

Bowman, who is one of several Black pastors who have left the denomination in recent years, said in a tweet that the SBC has "no credibility on the issue of racism."  

Frankly, I don't see a lot of reconciling over coming together on that issue, but I don't single out the SBC on that.  I'd say that about any group of white Americans.  If you're interested in the horse race:

Litton, the longtime pastor of Redemption Church in Saraland, Alabama, a congregation with 3,900 members, was considered a long shot in the presidential race. Two other candidates — Georgia pastor Mike Stone, a leader among critics of current SBC leaders, and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Al Mohler — had been considered the favorites.

Mohler was knocked out during the first round of ballots, receiving about a quarter of votes. In a runoff, Litton got 52% of the vote, and Stone got close to 48%. 

The point being Litton won because the extremes fell to the wayside.   "Extremes" here requires careful context I can't really provide, except that Mohler is, or has been, a pretty hard-shell fundamentalist/literalist.  To say I disagree with Mohler on almost all things ecclesiological and theological is a gross understatement.  I doubt we even pray to the same God.  But apparently the "favorites," for one reason or another, failed, and the dark horse won the race.

There's a lesson there for all the pundits and GOP office holders who think Trump has a death grip on the party and/or the country.  The SBC is very conservative already.  It would seem to be fertile ground for Trumpism.  Yet that seems to be precisely what the Convention rejected.  I think this is in keeping with their culture and traditions (every institution has those).  I also think this doesn't bode well for Trumpism in the country at large.

What does it mean for the SBC?  Well, the more things change, the more they remain the same.  Litton may reconcile some groups; but moving the SBC toward greater recognition of the sin of slavery, the "original sin" of this country, and the multiple sins it has spawned down to this day?  Yeah, don't expect the SBC to be "woke" any time soon.  It has been pointed out recently, in this context, that the Rev. Dr. King was a Baptist. True; but he wasn't a Southern Baptist.  The SBC is gonna do what it's gonna do; but if the SBC doesn't want to go any further Trump than it already has, that tells me most of the conservative parts of the country don't want to, either.  Not enough to really keep Trumpism alive, anyway.

Posted by at No comments:

The Consequences Of Covid?

No,  these two things are not directly connected.  But they could indicate a sea change is coming to America.  And while the Democratic party is hardly All Bernie Sanders All The Time, Bernie is going to appear much more to be leading this parade than Donald Trump or Mitch McConnell; or Ron DeSantis, for that matter.

Good times are comin'; but they're sure comin' slow.
Posted by at No comments:

Trust Politico To Get Texas Politics Completely Wrong

Not one Democrat is quoted in the story. The Texas border wall, which will never be more than a fiction, is treated as a national game changer. And Abbott, we learn, has surmounted February (even voters in Texas don’t have memories that short) because of the wall he’ll never build, which makes him the GOP’s “tip of the spear.” 

Seriously?

A rubber spear, maybe. The kind I had as a kid.

If this is the “resistance” to Biden, he’s assured of a second term. Too bad that won’t end Politico’s taste for sycophancy.
Posted by at No comments:

I Suspect We Need A Further Discussion…

..,about what “justice”means.

Or we could cut to the chase and just kill him in order to keep ten criminals in jail. Well, we can tell him that’s what we’re doing. We’ll see what he thinks of “justice” then.
Posted by at 2 comments:

But The Deficit!

Yeah, but! Except the "deficit spending" during WWII didn't bother anybody, because: WAR! FREEDOM!  And that wasn't wrong.  Now the deficit spending is infrastructure and people, and that's wrong because...?  Money?

I don't understand economics well, but I understand it well enough to know the federal government is not a household.  It's not even a business. The heart and soul of capitalism is living on borrowed money.  Car dealers, for a simple example, have a "floor loan" that buys the cars on their lot.  As they sell cars, they pay the bank and the bank buys more cars for the dealer to sell.  The loan is never paid off, the dealer never spends the dealership's money to buy cars from the factory.  Deficit spending?  Or capitalism?  A friend explained to me once that you save your money, and spend the bank's money.  So long as what you earn from savings comes close to what you pay in interest, it's gravy.  And that "capital" is why they call it "capitalism."  You spend money, but you spend somebody else's money (I know, I sound dangerously like Trump here.  But the spending shouldn't involve fraud; that's the direction Trump goes.).  Checkbook?  That's your money.  Spend carefully.  Bank loan?  That's the bank's money.  Spend it as you agreed to do with the bank.  This is why rich people have lots of money on hand.  They don't spend their money.  I'm not saying it doesn't resemble a house of cards, but that's capitalism.  I wonder how much these two Senators worry about the deficit the next time the financial system approaches collapse.  Or the entire economy.

And, of course, we could always raise taxes; say, on the rich.

Anyway....
Posted by at No comments:

Gym Jordan Is Playing Stickball.

Jen Psaki is an MLB Hall of Famer.

You'd think AOC alone would have convinced these children to stay off Twitter.  When will they ever learn?
Posted by at No comments:

Monday, June 21, 2021

I'm Guessing....

...that's because he's not involved. Perspective is a funny thing.
Posted by at No comments:

Does Time Actually Move “Forward”?

Before we get to that, a nice summary statement of just what "critical race theory" is, and how it isn't "racism."

The [Ku Klux] Klan worked to put its racist beliefs into action through Jim Crow laws in the South and immigration restrictions for the nation as a whole; critical race theorists have devoted themselves to identifying the remainders of that racism in the law and rooting it out.

And, most obviously, the KKK was a terrorist organization responsible for decades of white supremacist violence that included thousands of murders, mutilations and bombings of African Americans and other minorities. The law school professors behind critical race theory are not.
What brought that explanation on?  Why, the Junior Senator from Texas, of course, who apparently has nothing better to do with his government-funded time:

Despite the vast differences between the Klan and critical race theorists, Cruz twisted himself into knots insisting they were the same by grossly misrepresenting the scholarly field. "Critical race theory says every white person is a racist," the senator asserted. "Critical race theory says America's fundamentally racist and irredeemably racist. Critical race theory seeks to turn us against each other and if someone has a different color skin, seeks to make us hate that person."
To say I've heard this shit before would be an understatement.  I grew up ON this shit.  I learned, early on, that racists were knuckle-draggers who hated "ni**ers" and used that ugly word freely.  In fact, the best way to determine who was a racist was the people who used that word.  Then there were those who were "just" "prejudiced."  As in, "I got nothing against 'em, I just don't want my kid goin' to school with 'em."  Then there were the true liberals, exemplified by Katherine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy as a movie couple who find out their daughter wants to marry one; which was, among non-liberals, an acceptable form of not being racist or prejudiced.  I mean, after all, miscegenation was illegal!  (It wasn't by 1968, but anyway....).

I've limned this problem before: it's all racism.  It's just that some of the racism is acceptable, and some of it isn't.  It still isn't.  Which is what's causing Cruz to squeal like a stuck pig.  Even though he's a racist.  I have no trouble saying that.  I'm a racist, too.  Not because I hated non-whites (whatever that means), but because I've been taught the fictional category of "race" until I can't not think in racial terms.  I am tainted with America's original sin, in just the sense Augustine meant the more Christian term:  I was born into it, and I can't escape it now.

And I equally grew up with the ideas Cruz is just parroting here; there's nothing original in what he says.  He picked it up as a kid, too.  He just didn't have the good sense to put it down again.  With or without critical race theory, I'll say it:  every white person in America is a racist.  Everyone who thinks in terms of race, is a racist.  It has nothing to do with power or lack thereof; if we identify people by skin color or genetics or appearance ("racial characteristics"), we're engaging in racism.  It's that pernicious.  Own it, or you can't do anything about it.

Jesus said love your neighbor; and to be first of all, you must be last and servant of all.  Jesus also said it was easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven; and that despite his Father's house having many mansions, at the end you'll be judged on who you showed kindness to, because in serving them, you served God directly.  There's as much harsh as there is kind in Christ's teachings, as much seemingly exclusionary as there is inclusive.  "Lord, when did we see you?" is the plaintive cry of the lost who realize it's too late now.  Recognize that, Matthew means; or you'll wish you had.

Recognize the original American sin of racism; or we'll never do anything about it.

Rather than believing America is “irredeemably racist,” critical race theorists have stated that their reckoning with the submerged role of racism in America is a path to redeem the nation and fulfill the promises of emancipation and the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments. Critical race theorists also do not seek to turn Americans against each other, but rather to help them understand the actual history of the nation they share as citizens.

While Cruz’s claim that critical race theorists are “every bit as racist” as Klansmen is laughable, it notably fits into a larger historical pattern in which white southerners asserted that the critics of white supremacy were just as bad — or worse — than the defenders of white supremacy.

Exactly.  This is an old, old song.  Cruz is not an original; Cruz is a mouthpiece.  Then again, so is this guy:

 "Thank you for sharing what you really have in your heart," Cash wrote. "You hate white men and white little boys and Christians. I hope I didn't miss anything. My family has crossed cultural lines for many years. Including Hispanic, Black and family members from Malta. And I must say of all the conversations we have had knowone (sic) has ever demonstrated the amount of hate that I see in this email. I will pray that you look at people as individuals rather than by race and look at the content of their character vs what has happened before. Focus on all the great accomplishments we have had in race relations in our Country."

That is a school board member, writing to a parent of children in those schools. The defensiveness is part of the argument; as it is for Cruz.  It's an attempt to negate argument, to refuse to consider alternatives, to demonize the other so no conversation is necessary, or even possible.

I grew up with this shit.  Time is not even a flat circle.  Time is just a smear; of tar, or molasses, I still haven't decided.  I know better than to say this shit is from everlasting to everlasting; but it sure does feel that way sometimes.

Posted by at 3 comments:

Has She Met Her Father?

"Rule of law” is too often in the eye of the beholder.
Posted by at No comments:

Fresh Hot Jingoism



Greg Abbott is starting to look preferable:

“There’s 25 crossings over the river that Texas has. I'm going to close every single one of those in one day because I'm the actual Republican running, and I'm actually going to solve this problem once and for all," [Rep. Don] Huffines told Inside Texas Politics. 

The candidate said he believes that by closing the crossings, the economic impact that would have would force Mexico to act.

"[I’m] going to close all the crossings down for all inbound commercial traffic from Mexico. We're going to make Mexico acquiesce economically to secure their side of the river and stop these cartels."

To be clear, though, the ports of entry are operated by the federal government, not the state. 

But attempting to suspend commercial traffic between the two countries would hurt Texas businesses, since Mexico is the state’s largest trading partner, not to mention exacerbate the already strained supply chain.

Huffines is pissed because Abbott stole his idea for a border wall.  Neither of them can build the damned thing, but Huffines ups the absurdity by declaring he'll close the border crossings.  This is not going to endear him to the border of Texas were people live and cross into Mexico and/or Texas on a daily basis.  That border is just the river down there, something people as far away as Dallas always fail to understand (the El Paso shooter was from the Dallas area.  He thought he was stopping an "invasion.")

“Yes, but in Texas, here's the thing. I'm going to communicate to Mexico, and they know it, they need us a lot more than we need them, and this is a proven tactic that can work,” Huffines explained. “We don't have an option. We have to secure Texas’ border and stop these cartels and this invasion, and I'm not going to be asking permission from the federal government to do that."

More jingoistic bullshit. A lot of business interests are going to apprise Mr. Huffines of the realities of trade with Mexico.   And this will tell you how clueless he is:

But the governor acknowledged a reality in this bid for Republican primary voters. Texas does not have any land along the Rio Grande River to construct more border fencing. Abbott asked private landowners to donate that, too.

Huffines was asked on Inside Texas Politics how he would acquire the land to erect a new wall.

“Well, Texas does have condemnation authority, of course. We condemn for highways. First, we'll work with landowners that want to cooperate, but this is not an option we have,” Huffines told the television program.

Actually, if Huffines was the GOP candidate, Democrats might win back the Governor's mansion.  There's few things Texans hate like eminent domain, especially when it's used against their property when that property is on the border and the taking is for a wall.  

I gotta be hopeful a clown like this upends Abbott's candidacy.


Posted by at No comments:

NYC Has An Incredible Record Of Thinking It Is the Center Of The Country

I follow Maggie Haberman's tweets because I get access to good news stories there. I skip all the tweets about the NYC Mayoral race because...not my city.  But people from NYC insist otherwise: Well, I guess; but when it comes to ideas about voting and who can and who can't, Stacey Abrams comes to mind first. And she's not even from New York state.

As for the impact of NY Democrats (by which Mr. Smith means NYC Democrats), a picture is worth a thousand words:


Not that Texans are above (or beneath) such things:


I like to think we have a better sense of humor about it.  OTOH, where did "Juneteenth" come from?  And does anybody outside NYC really care who the Mayor is?  Or even notice how the campaigns are conducting themselves?

Prosecution rests, your Honor.


Posted by at 1 comment:

The Great Chain Of Being A Douche

Especially when you think you speak for God:

“Who are you to say because I can’t see, I can’t enjoy something or do something,” Dickson said.

But Buckley replied, “I’m saying it’s a futile exercise of your time to do something that seems to look God in the face and say, ‘Although I am theoretically blind, in fact, I am not blind.’ ”

Buckley had a grasp of the Great Chain of Being, and he was quite sure where the other humans on the planet belonged on that Chain.  His position, of course, was the superior place of judgment.  From such position he knew blind people should mind their place; it was clearly below his.

Don't judge, you won't be judged.  It's pretty simple, really. 

Posted by at 3 comments:

Oh Yeah, Democracy Is Over

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s poll numbers aren’t what they used to be, and she’s provided fodder for critics who see her failing to meet her own coronavirus rules.

But a year after then-President Donald Trump urged followers to “LIBERATE MICHIGAN” and the FBI scuttled an alleged militia plot to kidnap Whitmer, the GOP has struggled to find a familiar or field-clearing candidate to challenge her in 2022. Many Republican leaders and voters targeting her for defeat are fixated on conspiracy theories and the false conviction that ballot audits such as the partisan one happening in Arizona will prove Trump didn’t lose in 2020.

“Do we even know who’s running?” Toni Shuff, 66, and her friends asked one another on the lawn of the Michigan Capitol last week at a rally for Convention of States, a conservative group that seeks to limit the power of the federal government by amending the Constitution without Congress.

This is the problem with a political party as idol worship:  if it's all about Trump, it doesn't leave room for it to be about much else.  And I'm not sure a campaign platform of "TRUMP WAS ROBBED!" is the best possible bumper sticker for an election being held in 2022, for a state governor.

But, you know, democracy is dead, it's all over but the shoutin', blah blah blah....

Posted by at No comments:

Sunday, June 20, 2021

All The Crap I Learned In High School

See? We destroyed democracy before all you whingers came along.
Posted by at No comments:

This Man Is 75 Years Old

Posted by at No comments:

The Twa Corbies

Can’t write ’em off; can’t force ‘em to protect themselves. Can’t quarantine the masses.

We usually think the divide is forced, not chosen. What about when it is chosen?

Can’t help people who don’t want to help themselves. But can we be a community with them?

Maybe it’s not democracy that’s at stake.
Posted by at 1 comment:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)