Ex-felons: The Voting Dilema

Sentencing Project

Mike Clemente, 26, had been on probation for 8 years-- so many years that he assumed he lost his right to the franchise, until Melissa Lavoie, Yale Class of 2012, registered him to vote.

By the end of the day, Lavoie, a representative of “Unlock the Vote” --the New Haven Re-Entry Initiative’s campaign to register former prisoners in the city-- had registered 53 people with felony convictions: white, African American and Hispanic individuals — men and women.

According to The Sentencing Project report, State-Level Estimates of Felon Disenfranchisement in the United States, 2010, Connecticut is one of only 19 states that allows individuals on probation to vote. Only in Maine and Vermont are inmates granted the right to vote, and laws in four states — Iowa, Florida, Kentucky, and Virginia — enforce permanent disenfranchisement for anyone convicted of felonies

Philly Fraternal Order of Police endorses fundraiser for cop who punched woman from behind

DailyKos

In an unbelievable display of tone-deafness, the Philadelphia chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police is renting out its hall for members who want to raise money for Jonathan Josey, the former cop who deservedly lost his badge for decking a woman from behind.

The police union will fete the 19-year veteran with a $30-per-person benefit Oct. 28. "Come On Out and Support ONE OF OUR OWN" reads a flier inviting officers to the five-hour, Sunday-afternoon event at the FOP Hall on Spring Garden near Broad. Proceeds will help Josey with living expenses, because he no longer gets a paycheck, FOP President John McNesby said.

Josey hasn't drawn a paycheck since October 3, when police commissioner Charles Ramsey suspended him for 30 days with intent to dismiss.  McNesby, however, is using the occasion to double down on his support for Josey, even though this technically isn't an FOP event.

"It was inappropriate for the city to apologize to this woman and drop the charges until the investigation was complete," McNesby said. "And we still don't believe it's a fireable offense."

He emphasized the event isn't an official FOP benefit, even though it's being advertised on FOP letterhead and the union's website. Rather, "it's a benefit that is going to be held at the FOP hall, by officers and co-workers. They're using our building."

Still, he added, "we are in support of it."

Um, John?  How in the world can you defend someone who took six steps toward Aida Guzman before punching her from behind?  There's a word for that--assault.  And that, to my mind, is why Ramsey summarily fired him--if anyone else were to do what Josey did, that person would be arrested.

Iran Offers Compromise: considers halting uranium enrichment

Rt.com

Tehran may stop its enrichment of high-grade uranium if it is given nuclear fuel for research and medical reactors in exchange, Iranian officials said. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ramin Mehmanparast said during a Eurasian media summit in Kazakhstan on Friday that, "If a guarantee is provided to supply the 20 percent [enriched] fuel for the Tehran Research Reactor, our officials are ready to enter talks.” German newspaper Der Spiegel earlier quoted Iran’s Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi as saying that, "If our right to enrichment is recognized, we are prepared to offer an exchange.”

South African police use tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesting platinum miners

RT.com

Police fired teargas and rubber bullets in an effort to disperse around 1,000 striking miners protesting near an Amplats (Anglo American Platinum) mineshaft in Rustenburg, South Africa, on Friday night. The incident followed an earlier demonstration this week, in which two people were killed and 40 arrested as workers went on strike to demand a pay rise. Amplats, the world's largest platinum producer, recently sacked 12,000 employees, saying they failed to attend disciplinary hearings. Since August, over 75,000 miners across South Africa announced a general strike on demands including better working conditions.

Rush Limbaugh's Proof Of An Iranian Nuclear Weapon: A Picture Of A Missile

Media Matters for America

Rush Limbaugh claimed that a picture given to him by "friends in the military" was proof of an Iranian missile that could be used for a nuclear weapon. But U.S. officials and defense experts have explained that Iran is not capable of having a nuclear weapon at this time.

During the October 11 vice presidential debate, Vice President Joe Biden stated that "we will not allow the Iranians to get a nuclear weapon." Biden went on to explain that even if the Iranians "get to the point where they can enrich uranium enough to put into a weapon ... they don't have a weapon to put it into."

Limbaugh disagreed with the vice president's statement that the Iranians did not have a weapon for a nuclear bomb. On the October 12 edition of his syndicated radio show, Limbaugh mocked Biden, purporting to quote him as saying, "They don't have a missile. But I'm telling you, they don't have a weapon."

Later, Limbaugh went after Biden again, claiming that "I've got a picture ... right here" of an Iranian missile. Pointing to his computer, he continued:

LIMBAUGH: Who says the Iranians don't have a missile? I've got a picture of one right here. I have friends in the military. They have pictures of things. There's a picture -- aren't the Iranians test-firing missiles over there? I don't know where they are ending up. But who says they don't have a missile, Joey? Who's telling him?

UN: Iran must halt capital punishment

Jurist

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) [official website] called on Iran Friday to immediately stop all executions [press release], including 11 planned for Saturday. The OHCHR stated that Iran has failed to provide the accused with due process and fair trials and that the death penalty is not appropriate for certain crimes for which Iran is using it, including drug offenses. The UN has repeatedly called on Iran to abandon the death penalty, but instead the country has increased the number of people it is executing. More than 300 people have been executed in

Shot fired at Obama campaign field office in Denver

Citizens for Legit Gov

Police say someone fired a shot at an Obama campaign field office in Denver on Friday afternoon. No one was injured, though people were inside the offices when the incident occurred, said Denver police spokeswoman Raquel Lopez. The incident happened at about 3 p.m. at the campaign's offices on West Ninth Avenue near Acoma Street, Lopez said.

Burger King, Wendy's Worked with Farm that Tortured cows

IdahoStatesman

An Idaho dairy farm linked to Burger King, In-N-Out and other food companies has been accused by an animal rights group of “some of the most abusive treatment of animals” it had ever seen.

Undercover video footage provided by Mercy For Animals shows employees at Bettencourt Dairies, which has more than 60,000 cows, stomping on and beating cattle, twisting their tails and using a tractor to drag one animal by its chained neck.

The Murtaugh, Idaho, dairy works with cheese producers and suppliers, which in turn have deals with fast-food chains. Burger King said in a statement that it had suspended its indirect relationship with the dairy.

Mercy for Animals also alerted authorities at the Idaho State Department of Agriculture. Three Bettencourt workers now face misdemeanor animal cruelty charges, which were filed in August, according to Twin Falls County (Idaho) Prosecutor Grant P. Loebs.

One worker, Jesus Garza, has been arraigned, Loebs said, while authorities have warrants out for another worker and a “low-level manager.”

Oil prices climb on persistent Middle East tensions

Raw Story

Global oil prices climbed Thursday on the back of geopolitical jitters surrounding Syria, but a rise in US inventories moderated the price gains in US trade.

In New York, the main contract, WTI light sweet crude for delivery in November, rose to $92.07 a barrel, up 82 cents from Wednesday.

London’s Brent contract for November delivery gained $1.38 to $115.71 a barrel, the highest level since mid-September.

“Brent is continuing to profit from the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and from the delays in the resumption of North Sea production,” said Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch.

Scheduled maintenance on facilities in the North Sea has trimmed some crude production and delivery.

Meanwhile Turkey’s interception Wednesday of a Syrian Air aircraft en route from Moscow to Damascus, forcing it to land in Turkey, added to the ongoing tensions that have seen cross-border shooting over the past week.

Syria called the interception of the plane on Wednesday “another sign of the hostile policies of the Erdogan government, which harbors (rebels) and bombs Syrian territory,” the foreign ministry said, referring to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In the United States, the Department of Energy said that crude inventories surged by 1.7 million barrels in the week ending October 5, refinery utilization fell, and US crude imports also dropped, painting a picture overall of slightly lower demand.

Photo: Puppetician Mittens Breaking Ground at Public Broadcasting, 2005

 
Democratic Underground

Click here: http://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2012/10/05/mitt-romney-helped-create-subsidy-for-movies-while-governor-despite-supporting-cuts-for-pbs/8eOiaAyx59AYhWPrnH4wNL/story.html?s_campaign=sm_tw to read about how Gov. Romney signed a bill that would later ensure millions of dollars in funding for nefarious, budget-killing public TV in Massachusetts for years to come. 

Genocide Watch: White Party Freaks Continue to Propagandize Black on White Violence /White Victimization Lie

WND - a white racist site

The “Knockout Games” have come to Pennsylvania: Two bouts. Both on video.

Starting in Pittsburgh earlier this month, a mob of six black people walking through a downtown alley they saw Jim Addlespurger coming from the opposite direction.

One of the mob reared back and punched the 50-year-old English teacher in the face. Addlespurger fell to the curb, unconscious, unable to prevent his face from directly striking the curb.

He is recovering at home from his injuries.

Police identified and arrested the assailant, later identified by the Post-Gazette as Dajour Washington.

See the Big List of black mob violence.

According to the Post, he told police he was having a bad day. His grandmother, “the Rev. Marlene Green-Davis, said she watched surveillance footage of the attack on the TV news but never thought Dajour could have been involved until her son told her the boy had been arrested. “I can’t believe it,” she said. “I lost my appetite. I couldn’t eat dinner. Not my baby.”

Rev. Green-Davis said Dajour lived with her for about five years between the ages of 2 and 7 and visits her often, as he did after the teacher was punched.

The assault was captured in living color on security cameras in the alley.

The attacks are part of an epidemic of hundreds of cases of black mob violence in more than 80 cities over the last three years, as documented in the book “White Girl Bleed a Lot: The return of racial violence to America and how the media ignore it.”

Dr. Thomas Sowell said he had no idea how bad the problem of mob racial violence was until he read “White Girl Bleed a Lot.” It has gotten worse since then.

And more people are starting to notice and speak out about it.

The reporters and editors of the local media in Pittsburgh may have thought that race had nothing to do with six black people attacking a white teacher.

But readers – black and white – of Pittsburgh news sites posted comments by the hundreds: Most condemning the press for not reporting the race of the suspected criminals. Others said the white people do the same thing all the time so it is not fair selecting black people for special attention.

Comments to the Post-Gazette’s website were disabled. But the CBS affiliate let the comments loose. Said Lil Detroit:

“KDKA radio is running the story without mention of race. The P-G only mentioned it after 7PM, noting that a 15 year old had assaulted a teacher, with few details (other than the perp already had a parole officer).

“The mayor’s spokesperson said it was ‘just a random act’.

“Downtown Pgh is NOT safe, this is just a more notable incident.”

And Ken Plowman observed:

“And if you are assaulted and stand your ground , you are a racist and had no right, maybe even arrested and put on trial yourself.”

Then came the pushback. Shanaya Jo’neice said:

“I am BLACK! I am a WOMAN! I am not an animal even though you are acting like one. I am not an APE! Both races have crimes it is apart of life. What about The Colorado Movie Theater Shooting, Virginia Tech, The Columbine etc.?”

Others say black mob violence against white people in Pittsburgh has been happening for a long time.

Minnesota ranks worst in racial homeowning gap

StarTribune

New numbers just out show some distributing trends in the homeownership rates of whites and folks of color. The new stats, compiled by MInnesota Compass, show minority home ownership dropping in the metro area from 2008 to 2011 despite households of color rising overall by 15 percent in the same period.

So, if you're a real estate agent, the growing segment of the population is buying fewer homes.

And the gap between homeownership among whites and minorites continues to widen. 

The numbers reflect embarrassing state trends: Here's a chart that shows Minnesota ranked dead last when it comes to the gap in home ownership between people of color and white homeowners.

From 2008 to 2011 in the Twin Cities area, there has  has been a real drop in the homeownership rate among households headed by a person of color, from 45.7 percent to 37.2 percent. That compares to a much less dramatic decline among households headed by a non-Hispanic white, down from 78..4 percent to just under  77 percent.

Montana Tribal Members Sue For Equal Access to Polls

ThinkProgress

Angry about a lack of voting services in their communities, a group of Montana tribal members filed suit in federal court on Wednesday seeking an order for local election officials to provide satellite voting stations on their reservations. The plaintiffs, members of the Crow, Northern Cheyenne and Fort Belknap tribes, allege under the Voting Rights Act that it is discriminatory to make them drive long distances to county seats to exercise their right to vote. In some cases, they have to drive as far as 113 miles round trip to vote.

The suit alleges:

“Allowing a non-Indian majority county to establish in-person absentee locations at county courthouses but denying the same level of voter access to Indian majority communities is evidence of an invidious discrimination by state and county officials.”

O.J. Seamans (Lakota), Executive Director of Four Directions, a national voting rights organization and party to the suit, said the organization offered to help pay for the satellite voting offices, but county officials refused. “Right now, practically speaking, most Native American Indians in Montana have one day to vote in person—November 6—and no more days to late-register. White people have 20 days. That’s not equal access,” Seamans told Indian Country Today Media Network.

While registered voters in most large cities in Montana are able to vote early at their local county clerk and recorder’s office 30 days before election day, those voters are mostly non-Indian. There are almost 50,000 voting age American Indians in Montana, representing 6.5% of the state voting age population. According to the most recent census, the poverty rate for American Indians and Alaska Natives (28.4%) is nearly double the national rate (15.3 %).

This comes during an election where the stakes are high for tribes in Montana. Recent polls place current Senator and member of the Indian Affairs Committee, Jon Tester in a statistical dead heat with candidate Denny Rehberg. And, President Obama was officially adopted as a member of the Crow Tribe in 2008—one of the tribes with plaintiffs bringing the suit. Both Obama and Tester were supporters of legislation important to tribes such as the Tribal Law and Order Act and the SAVE Native Women Act. Due to their unique nation-to-nation relationship as sovereign governments with the President and Congress, federal elections are especially important for tribal members.

Nationally, tribes have been organizing their members to turnout through efforts like Native Vote.

Racist White Media Worried about whether Mike Vick Owns a Dog

The Grio

Does he or doesn’t he?

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick stirred up more questions of whether or not he owns a dog after he tweeted a photo late last week that appeared to include a box of dog treats.

Vick quickly deleted the photo from his Twitter account but not before the Philadelphia sports blogCrossing Board captured it:

The blog also zoomed in on the box in the upper right hand corner:

Vick eventually posted a replacement photo. The one exception? The box of dog treats are cropped out:

Mike Vick

• ✔

@MikeVick

We workin #filmstudy #nodaysoff #bleedgreenpic.twitter.com/3fUHHc0c

4 Oct 12

• Reply
• Retweet
• Favorite

To make matters worse, Vick was asked about his rumored dog ownership after Eagles practiceWednesday. According to NBC 10′s Dan Stamm, Vick wasn’t answering any questions about dogs:

“I’m here to strictly talk about football,” Vick told reporters after practice Wednesday when asked if his family had a pooch. “What goes on in my personal life is not to be talked about. What’s most important right now is the Philadelphia Eagles and getting a win this Sunday.”

In December, 2010 interview with NBC News’ Mara Schiavocampo, Vick hinted at owning a dog one day:

“I would love to get another dog in the future [...] I think it would be a big step for me in the rehabilitation process. I think just to have a pet in my household and to show people that I genuinely care, and my love, and my passion for animals.”

Vick told theGrio’s Todd Johnson in July his new book Finally Free was a “last step” in putting his dogfighting past behind him:

“Just don’t want to continue to talk about it anymore. I think there’s more to talk about other than my wrongdoings and my failures. Let’s talk about [my successes]. And that’s what it’s all about.”

Vick probably prefers not to answer any dog-related questions in the future. This latest episode, however, will not slow those questions down one bit.

Why is The Hill Publishing Dick Morris' UN-Obama Conspiracy Drivel?

Mediamatters

The Hill recently published two falsehood-filled columns by Dick Morris suggesting that President Obama will subjugate the United States to the United Nations.

In a column posted yesterday, Morris claimed that "[s]ecretly, behind closed doors, the nations of the world are negotiating a treaty -- initiated by Russia and China -- to regulate the Internet through the United Nations" that will be signed in December in Dubai. Yet Morris conveniently omitted one relevant fact: The United States opposes any such regulation.

The White House has repeatedly said it "opposes the extension of intergovernmental controls over the Internet" and has "vowed to block any proposals from Russia and other countries that they believe threaten the Internet's current governing structure or give tacit approval to online censorship." 

Indeed, Reuters reported that the U.S. has been "trying to drum up support, both domestically and internationally, to preserve a decentralized Internet" and quoted an unnamed State Department official stating: "This is one of those circumstances where I think it's fair to say there's absolute unanimity. I don't believe you'd find any dissent at all to the view that we would like to keep the Internet free of inter-governmental controls."

Morris has repeatedly claimed that the Obama administration has "secret" plans to regulate the Internet through the United Nations.

In a separate Hill column posted on October 8, Morris claimed that Obama "will invite the United Nations to tax Americans directly" and claimed that "Obama, Hillary and the U.N. are planning" to enact a "U.N.-imposed tax on billionaires all over the world" that would somehow "gradually grow downwards to cover more and more Americans."   

However, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations has stated that it opposes global taxes. A spokesperson told FoxNews.com: "The United States opposes global taxes because we believe that any source of revenue should remain under the control of national authorities. This is an idea that has been kicked around for years. Fortunately, it hasn't gone anywhere, nor will it."