things of importance

Jeff Goldblum

Cornel West on Knowledge

Cornel West on knowledge
by dropping_knowledge

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

The Supreme Love and Revolutionary Funk of Dr. Cornel West, Philosopher of the Blues

Preview:

'He comes under frequent fire from his own comrades on the left for his insistence that moral values must be at the heart of any movement worth dying for, which to his mind is the only kind worth fighting for.

“It’s all about witness, brother,” he tells me one evening in his office, rocking in his chair. “Every person who bears witness has to have the depth of conviction of a martyr. You have to be willing to die. That’s the statement allowing you to live.”'

http://killingthebuddha.com/mag/witness/the-supreme-love-and-revolutionary-funk-of-dr-cornel-west-philosopher-of-the-blues/

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Gays Are the New Niggers

I’ve resisted for a while the urge to equate the gay rights movement with that of the civil rights movement. In my mind I thought the struggles African-Americans faced were way more egregious than the strife of LGBT people. But as I began to be more acceptant of my own sexuality and started taking a closer look at gay issues, I noticed that LGBT people’s struggles are analogous to that of black people at the height of the civil rights movement. While in D.C. I went to an anti-gay marriage rally that was organized by and for black religious leaders. I saw a sign that read “This is not a civil rights issue” and thought people used that same argument to prevent inter-racial marriage and perpetuate ‘separate but equal’ and Jim Crow.

Killingthebuddha.com has an amazing piece, written by the Rev. Osagyefo Uhuru Sekou that covers this topic. A link to the article is below.

http://killingthebuddha.com/mag/damnation/gays-are-the-new-niggers/

Monday, June 29, 2009

US Combat Troops Complete Iraq Withdrawal

(AP) Iraqi forces assumed formal control of Baghdad and other cities Tuesday after American troops handed over security in urban areas in a defining step toward ending the U.S. combat role in the country. A countdown clock broadcast on Iraqi TV ticked to zero as the midnight deadline passed for U.S. combat troops to finish their pullback to bases outside cities.

"The withdrawal of American troops is completed now from all cities after everything they sacrificed for the sake of security," said Sadiq al-Rikabi, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. "We are now celebrating the restoration of sovereignty."

(AP) Iraqi forces assumed formal control of Baghdad and other cities Tuesday after American troops handed over security in urban areas in a defining step toward ending the U.S. combat role in the country. A countdown clock broadcast on Iraqi TV ticked to zero as the midnight deadline passed for U.S. combat troops to finish their pullback to bases outside cities.

"The withdrawal of American troops is completed now from all cities after everything they sacrificed for the sake of security," said Sadiq al-Rikabi, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. "We are now celebrating the restoration of sovereignty."

If the Iraqis can hold down violence in the coming months, it will show the country is finally on the road to stability. If they fail, it will pose a challenge to President Barack Obama's pledge to end an unpopular war that has claimed the lives of more than 4,300 U.S. troops and tens of thousands of Iraqis.

The gathering at the Baghdad park was unprecedented in size for such a postwar event in a city where people tend to avoid large gatherings for fear of suicide bombers. They ignored an appeal by Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi to stay away from crowded places during the U.S. pullback, which has seen more than 250 people killed in bombings over the past 10 days.

Security at the party was stifling, as it was throughout much of Baghdad where increased checkpoints dotted the streets and identity checks were methodical. Police using bomb sniffers searched every man, woman and child who attended the party.

In a ceremony rich with symbolism, the top U.S. military commander in Baghdad, Maj. Gen. Daniel Bolger, gave his Iraqi counterpart the keys to the former defense ministry building, which had served as a joint base.

"On the eve of the 30th of June 2009 in accord with a security agreement between Iraq and America, Iraqis take the lead in Baghdad," Bolger said.

The withdrawal, required under a U.S.-Iraqi security pact, marks the first major step toward withdrawing all American forces from the country by Dec. 31, 2011. Obama has said all combat troops will be gone by the end of August 2010.

Despite Tuesday's formal pullback, some U.S. troops will remain in the cities to train and advise Iraqi forces. U.S. troops will return to the cities only if asked. The U.S. military will continue combat operations in rural areas and near the border, but only with the Iraqi government's permission.

The U.S. has not said how many troops will be in the cities in advisory roles, but the vast majority of the more than 130,000 U.S. forces remaining in the country will be in large bases scattered outside cities.

There have been some worries that the 650,000-member Iraqi military is not ready to maintain stability and deal with a stubborn insurgency.

Privately, many U.S. officers worry the Iraqis will be overwhelmed if violence surges, having relied for years on the Americans for nearly everything.

"We think they are ready," U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill told The Associated Press in an interview Monday. He said his main concern was that a lack of progress in efforts to reconcile Shiite, Sunnis and Kurds was feeding the violence that still marks the daily lives of many Iraqis.

"Frankly they need to pick up the pace," Hill said of the national reconciliation effort.

The commander of U.S. troops in the Middle East, Gen. David Petraeus, expressed concern about the spate of high-profile bombings but said the average daily number of attacks remained low at 10 to 15 compared with 160 in June 2007.

"While certainly there will be challenges _ there are many difficult political issues, social issues, governmental development issues _ we feel confident in the Iraqi security forces continuing the process of taking over the security tasks in their own country," said Petraeus after meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Cairo.

Despite some concerns, al-Maliki appears eager to see the Americans leave and has urged Iraqis to hold steady against any rise in violence. Ahead of national elections next year, al-Maliki is portraying himself as the leader who defeated terrorism and ended the U.S. occupation.

Iraqi officials said they are expecting some violence but would not allow it to trigger the sectarianism that nearly sparked a civil war in 2006-2007.

At that time, death squads roamed the streets, slaughtering members of the rival Muslim sect. Bombs rocked Baghdad daily _ until thousands of U.S. troops poured in, establishing neighborhood bases and taking control of the Iraqi capital and other cities.

While the U.S. troop surge strategy was successful in stemming the bloodshed, many Iraqis also saw it as an affront to their national pride.

On a visit to Ramadi, a Sunni city 70 miles west of the capital, Interior Minister Jawad al-Bolani, a Shiite, told the AP that when the sun rises on Tuesday "Iraqi citizens will see no U.S. soldiers in their cities. They will see only Iraqi troops protecting them."

___

Associated Press Writer Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Ramadi contributed to this report.

Labor Secretary Outraged Over Defaced Gay Pride Posters

From the New York Times:

Labor Secretary Hilda Solis issued a warning letter to departmental employees late last week, after posters celebrating Gay Pride Month hanging in 35 department elevators since June 22 have been either defaced or removed altogether.

In an e-mail message sent to the entire department, Ms. Solis, who helped found the House of Representative’s Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Caucus when she was in Congress, said she was outraged by the behavior.

“It appears, however, that some members of the Labor Department team have a different view, as it has come to my attention that most of the posters have been continually defaced or removed,” Ms. Solis wrote. “On several occasions, even the poster frames have been torn completely off the elevator walls.”

“I do not believe these actions represent the majority of our employees, so I refuse to let this situation define us.

The posters will stay up throughout the month and will be replaced immediately if they are damaged or removed, according to the letter.

The administration has been trying to assuage gay rights advocates, who have been unhappy with the slow pace take by Obama officials of initiatives on their agenda. President Obama and the first lady are holding are reception this Monday night with more than 200 advocates.

In recent weeks, the gay community has criticized the administration for not being assertive enough on their issues. Mr. Obama has yet to act on a campaign promises to overturn Don’t Ask Don’t tell, the military policy barring gays and lesbians from open service and to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. On Capitol Hill gay rights face plenty of obstacles, despite the democratic majority.

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Really, Louisiana?

The video above is of amateur rapper "Hurricane Chris" performing his new song "Halle Berry." The only problem is that Hurricane Chris was performing his routine in the Louisiana legislature.

Friday, June 26, 2009

Jackson dies, almost takes internet with him

From CNN:

How many people does it take to break the Internet? On June 25, we found out it's just one -- if that one is Michael Jackson.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/06/26/michael.jackson.internet/index.html

House of Representatives Hold Moment of Silence for Jackson

Yesterday pop Icon Michael Jackson, 50, died of cardiac arrest in California. Today Rep. Jesse Jackson, JR. addressed the house to hold a moment of silence for the King of Pop.

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Jon Stewart on Gov. Sanford

Jon Stewart apologized last night for having said South Carolina Mark Sanford was on the Appalachian Trail having sex with a coyote when in fact he was in Argentina having sex with a married woman.

Sanford held a press conference yesterday after being missing for seven days. He apologized to his wife and four sons for the betrayal and resigned as head of the Republican Governors Association.

Governor Mark Sanford's Affair

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

More on Metro's Red Line

The Metro train car that slammed into another on the Red Line yesterday evening was two months past due for scheduled maintenance on its brakes, and the car was an older model that federal officials had recommended be replaced because of concerns about its safety in a crash, officials said today.

Nine people were killed in the crash, including five whose bodies were removed from the wreckage today. The accident was the deadliest in the 33-year history of Metro.

According to a Metro source knowledgeable about railcar maintenance, the first car of the striking train was two months behind on a scheduled maintenance for changing out brakes and brake components.

"These components are supposed to be changed out to prevent failures," the source said.

This morning, a spokeswoman for the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the crash, said that the train that slammed into the back of the other did not have data recorders that would have detailed its movements before the crash.

Also, a federal official said that the car was an older model, of a kind that Metro had been advised to replace because of concerns about how it would stand up in a collision. Metro did not do so, its leaders said, because they believed it would be too costly and complicated. Instead, they made some improvements to the trains' braking systems and emergency exits.

Officials have not said whether they believe that the delayed maintenance played any role in the accident, or whether they believe another type of rail car would have performed better in Monday's crash.

The impact was so powerful that the striking train car was compressed to about one-third its original size, D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) said.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation by both city and federal authorities. They were said to be focusing on the possibility of an operator error paired with a failure of the train's electronic safety systems.

These systems, designed to automatically stop a train heading for a collision, were supposed to make this kind of crash impossible.

Officials have identified all of the dead. Jeanice McMillan, 42, of Springfield, was the operator of the striking train. The rest were passengers: retired Maj. Gen. David F. Wherley Jr., who headed the D.C. National Guard, and his wife Ann Wherley, both 62; Lavonda King, 23; Veronica DuBose, 29; Cameron Williams, 37; Dennis Hawkins, 64; Mary Doolittle, 59, and Ana Fernandez, 40.

Today, passengers from inside the train are describing scenes of confusion and pain: One man found himself on the other train's roof, knocked out of his shoes. A teenage girl watched as the woman sitting next to her died from a wound caused by jagged metal debris.

The floor of the train disappeared below the feet of the horrified passengers. Several of the dead were crushed, their bodies not located until a crane removed part of the striking train this morning. Firefighters had to use heavy rescue equipment to cut open the cars to reach survivors trapped inside. At least 76 people were injured.

"The scene is one that no one should ever see," Metro General Manager John B. Catoe Jr. said at 9:30 a.m., after confirming that a total of nine bodies had been recovered. "There is unbelievable destruction and damage. What I saw was far worse than anything you can imagine."

The recovery effort and investigation will continue today, shutting down some parts of the Red Line and MARC commuter rail's Brunswick line. Officials advised the public to brace for a difficult evening commute.. Red Line trains traveled at a maximum speed of 35 mph this morning, significantly slower than usual.

Debbie Hersman of the National Transportation Safety Board said the safety agency asked Metro to add data recorders after a 2004 crash and found it unacceptable that the system had not done so. The train that was struck was more modern and did have recorders, she said, which will provide some information about conditions at the time of the crash.

Hersman and Catoe emphasized at the news conference that the cause of the collision, just outside the Fort Totten Station in Northeast Washington, is not yet known. Although more crash-worthy rail cars probably could have reduced the number of dead and the severity of injuries, it is too early to say whether different or improved rail cars could have prevented the collision.

NTSB investigators will be looking at possible mechanical causes, signal failures and operator training, among other issues, Hersman said.

The 1000 series of trains makes up about 30 percent of the fleet and is being phased out. Catoe did not have an immediate response at the news conference about why more of the safety board's recommendations were not followed, but said the agency would do a full investigation.

Fenty said two people injured in the crash remain in critical condition after being hospitalized overnight.

D.C. Fire Chief Dennis L. Rubin said cadaver dogs were used in the search for victims, and the wooded areas on either side of the tracks had been thoroughly searched for any survivors or dead. Rescue crews also used thermal imaging, looking for changes in temperature, to help find the bodies.

The NTSB has assigned a railroad investigator and two specialists from its office of transportation disaster assistance. The Metro board is having a special meeting.

Although the investigation is just beginning, certain systems are designed to prevent an accident like yesterday's. During morning and afternoon rush hours, all trains except longer eight-car trains typically operate in automatic mode, meaning their movements are controlled by computerized systems and the central Operations Control Center. Both trains in yesterday's crash were six-car trains. But officials would not say whether the trains were in automatic mode or being operated manually.

Investigators will probably focus on a possible failure of Metro's computerized signal system, which is designed to prevent trains from coming close enough to collide, as well as operator error, according to former Metro officials. McMillan was relatively inexperienced, having begun driving trains in December, officials said. Train operators must first operate a bus for a year before they can apply to operate the train. They then receive about 12 weeks of training.

The computerized system should work whether trains are being operated manually or by computer.

But even if the signal system failed to stop the train, the operator should have intervened and applied emergency brakes, safety experts familiar with Metro's operations say. The position of the second train after the crash -- the fact that its first car came to rest atop the other train -- indicates that the second train was traveling at high speed. In the section of track where the accident occurred, the maximum speed is supposed to be 58 mph. Metro officials would not say how fast the trains were going because of the ongoing NTSB investigation.

There was no maintenance work scheduled in the relatively long, flat section of track between the stations. For many weeks, trains were slowed because of a weakness in the track bed that Metro said it repaired this spring.

This is the third serious Metrorail crash since 1996. The last fatal train crash occurred 13 years ago, when a Red Line train overshot the Shady Grove platform on an icy night and plowed into another train. The operator died. In November 2004, a Red Line train rolled backward down a steep stretch of track and smashed into another train at the Woodley Park Station. Twenty people were injured, but there were no fatalities.

The deadliest accident in the system's history before yesterday occurred in 1982, when a six-car Orange Line train bound for New Carrollton derailed near the Federal Triangle Station when an improperly aligned switch caused it to enter the wrong track. Three passengers were killed.

Too Much Marriage Equality?

As of late, I’ve been wondering if members of the LGBT population were focusing too much money, effort and, most importantly, time in the fight for marriage equality.

Don’t get me wrong, I think marriage rights should be afforded to any couple that wants to marry, but I also believe we should spend at least equal time working to pass an inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), getting hate crime protections and mending the fences between the LGBT population, just to name a few.

With regard to ENDA, only 20 states and the District of Columbia prohibit workplace discrimination based on gender identity and/or sexual orientation. That leaves about 30 other states where LGBT people can be fired just for being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. I, like a lot of other people, don’t really see how your sexuality can be a measure of how well you will or will not perform your job.

Maybe it’s because I live in the Deep South and people here, for lack of a better phrase, are bat shit crazy. But whenever I leave the comfort of my house and venture out in public with another LGBT person I often think: “is today the day I’m going to get my ass beat by some homophobic Jesus freak?” I’ve had people tell me hate crimes protection do more harm than good, and to those people I say, talk to me after you’ve had your life threatened for doing nothing more than being yourself.

I’m really interested to hear what other LGBT people and allies think about the marriage equality debate. Are we spending too much time debating marriage equality? Or are we not doing enough to secure marriage rights for everyone?

Monday, June 22, 2009

Barney Frank Files Bill to Decriminalize Pot

A controversial law in Massachusetts could go national if Congressman Barney Frank gets his way.

Frank has filed a bill that would eliminate federal penalties for personal possession of less than 100 grams of marijuana.

It would also make the penalty for using marijuana in public just $100.

"I think John Stuart Mill had it right in the 1850s," said Congressman Frank, "when he argued that individuals should have the right to do what they want in private, so long as they don't hurt anyone else. It's a matter of personal liberty. Moreover, our courts are already stressed and our prisons are over-crowded. We don't need to spend our scarce resources prosecuting people who are doing no harm to others."

Frank filed a similar bill last year, but it failed.

The law passed in Massachusetts last November.

Ten other states have also reduced penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana – in some cases they are a civil fine. These states include California, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, and Oregon.

Two Trains Collide on Metro's Red Line in Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON — One Metro transit train smashed into the rear of another at the height of Washington's Monday evening rush hour, killing at least four people and injuring scores of others as cars of the trailing train jackknifed into the air and fell atop the first.

District of Columbia fire spokesman Alan Etter said crews were cutting apart the trains to get people out in what he described as a "mass casualty event." Rescue workers propped steel ladders up to the upper train cars to help survivors escape. Seats from the smashed cars had spilled out onto the track.

D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty said four were dead and many more hurt. Fire Chief Dennis Rubin said rescue workers had treated 70 people at the scene and sent some of them to local hospitals, two with life-threatening injuries. A Metro official the dead included the female operator of the trailing train. Her name was not immediately released.

The crash around 5 p.m. EDT took place on the system's red line, Metro's busiest, which runs below ground for much of its length but is at ground level at the site near the Maryland border.

Metro chief John Cato said the first train was stopped on the tracks, waiting for another to clear the station ahead, when the trailing train plowed into it from behind. Officials had no explanation for the accident.

Passenger Jodie Wickett, a nurse, told CNN she was seated on one train, sending text messages on her phone, when she felt the impact. She said she texted someone that it felt like the train had hit a bump.

"From that point on, it happened so fast, I flew out of the seat and hit my head." Wickett said she stayed at the scene and tried to help. She said "people are just in very bad shape."

"The people that were hurt, the ones that could speak, were calling back as we called out to them," she said. "Lots of people were upset and crying, but there were no screams."

One man said he was riding a bicycle across a bridge over the Metro tracks when the sound of the collision got his attention.

"I didn't see any panic," Barry Student said. "The whole situation was so surreal."

Homeland Security Department spokeswoman Amy Kudwa said less than two hours after the crash that federal authorities had no indication of any terrorism connection.

Metro general manager John Catoe said at least 60 people had been taken off the trains.

"I don't know the reason for this accident," he said. "I would still say the system is safe, but we've had an incident."

The only other time in Metrorail's 33-year history that there were customer fatalities was in January 1982, when three people died as a result of a derailment between the Federal Triangle and Smithsonian Metro stations underneath downtown.

Obama signs anti-smoking bill

From the huffingtonpost:

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama cited his own long struggle to quit the cigarettes he got hooked on as a teenager as he signed the nation's strongest-ever anti-smoking bill Monday and praised it for providing critically needed protections for kids.

"The decades-long effort to protect our children from the harmful effects of tobacco has emerged victorious," Obama said at a signing ceremony in the White House Rose Garden.

The bill marks the latest legislative victory for Obama's first five months. Among his other successes: a $787 billion economic stimulus bill, legislation to expand a state program providing children's health insurance and a bill making it easier for workers to sue for pay discrimination.

The president has frequently spoken, in the White House and on the campaign trail, of his own struggles to quit smoking. He brought it up during Monday's ceremony while criticizing the tobacco industry for marketing its products to young people.
Obama said almost 90 percent of people who smoke began at age 18 or younger, snared in a dangerous and hard-to-kick habit.

"I know _ I was one of these teenagers," Obama said. "So I know how difficult it can be to break this habit when it's been with you for a long time."
Before dozens of invited guests, including children from the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, the president signed legislation giving the Food and Drug Administration unprecedented authority to regulate tobacco.

Obama accused the tobacco industry of targeting young people, exposing them to a "constant and insidious barrage of advertising where they live, where they learn and where they play. Most insidiously, they are offered products with flavorings that mask the taste of tobacco and make it even more tempting."

The new law bans candy and fruit flavors in tobacco products, and it limits advertising that could attract young people.

The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act also allows the FDA to lower the amount of addiction-causing nicotine in tobacco products and block misleading labels such "low tar" and "light." Tobacco companies also will be required to cover their cartons with large graphic warnings.The law won't let the FDA ban nicotine or tobacco outright."It is a law that will save American lives," Obama said.

Anti-smoking advocates looked forward to the bill after years of attempts to control an industry so fundamental to the U.S. that carved tobacco leaves adorn some parts of the Capitol.

Opponents from tobacco-growing states such as top-producing North Carolina argued that the FDA had proved through a series of food safety failures that it was not up to the job of regulation. They also said that instead of unrealistically trying to get smokers to quit or to prevent others from starting, lawmakers should ensure that people have other options, like smokeless tobacco.

As president, George W. Bush opposed the legislation and threatened a veto after it passed the House last year. The Obama administration, by contrast, issued a statement declaring strong support for the measure.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/22/obama-to-sign-antismoking_n_218784.html

South Carolina Gov. goes missing, really?

from CNN:

WASHINGTON (CNN) – After a bruising battle with the state legislature over federal stimulus money, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford has mysteriously stepped out of the public eye.

Even his wife, Jenny, said Monday that she didn’t know where the governor was, according to the Associated Press. But Sanford's office expressed no concern Monday afternoon about his absence.

Sanford spokesman Joel Sawyer said Sanford “put in a lot of time during this last legislative session, and after the session winds down it's not uncommon for him to go out of pocket for a few days at a time to clear his head.”

However, Sawyer added in a statement sent to CNN: “Obviously, that's going to be somewhat out of the question this time given the attention this particular absence has gotten. Before leaving last week, he let staff know his whereabouts and that he'd be difficult to reach. Should any emergencies arise between the times in which he checks in, our staff would obviously be in contact with other state officials as the situation warrants before making any decisions.”

Earlier in the day, Sawyer said Sanford had simply taken some time away from work to “recharge after the stimulus battle.” Sawyer did not address Jenny Sanford’s comments to the AP in either statement.

State Sen. Jake Knotts, a fellow Republican and opponent of Sanford, told CNN that South Carolina law enforcement officials informed him Saturday that the governor had taken a South Carolina Law Enforcement Division vehicle on Thursday and had not yet returned.

"I found out that he was taking frequent trips at odd times of the night in a SLED car with no security," Knotts said. "He would be driving. I got wind that he had taken another one of these types of capers last Thursday, and that nobody knew who he was with.

Knotts added: "On Saturday, I still was getting wind that he had not shown back up and nobody knew where he was."

Knotts said a SLED official told him on Monday that Sanford still had not returned.

"He needs to transfer the power and let the lieutenant governor, which the constitution requires, let him be the person that makes the decisions." Knotts said. "My concern was 'Who would be in charge should an emergency arrive for the safety of the people and citizens of the state?'"

State Senate Minority Leader John Land, a Democrat, accused Sanford of engaging in "erratic" behavior.

"We've been concerned by the governor's erratic behavior for some time," Land said in a prepared statement. "We're praying for him and his family. I hope he is safe and that he contacts the First Lady and his family soon."

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Democrats have moved to the right...

... and the right has moved into a mental hospital

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Sotomayor Quits All-Women's Club

Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor resigned Friday from an elite all-women's club after Republicans questioned her participation in it. Sotomayor said she resigned from the Belizean Grove to prevent the issue from becoming a distraction in her confirmation hearings.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/19/sotomayor-quits-belizean-_n_218307.html

Friday, June 19, 2009

Jon Stewart and Mike Huckabee Debate Abortion

Mike Huckabee Extended Interview Pt. 1

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Mike Huckabee Extended Interview Pt. 2

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Mike Huckabee Extended Interview Pt. 2

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c