Crappy Halloween

Good Riddance

Wheelchair-bound Boston gangster James 'Whitey' Bulger Jr. has been beaten to death in a savage attack by fellow federal inmates.

Bulger was found dead by guards on Tuesday morning at USP Hazelton, a high-security federal prison in Bruceton Mills, West Virginia. He was 89.  Bulger was in general population when three inmates rolled his wheelchair to a corner out of view of surveillance cameras, beat him in the head with a lock in a sock, and attempted to gouge his eyes out with a shiv.

The former head of south Boston's 'Winter Hill Gang', Bulger was convicted in 2013 of killing at least 11 people and was serving two life sentences at the time of his death.

It emerged in Bulger's 2013 trial that he had served as an FBI informant as far back as 1975, though he always denied it. The deal gave Bulger virtual impunity to commit any crime he wanted for decades - except for murder.  Jack Nicholson's character in the 2006 film "The Departed" was based on Bulger.

Law enforcement sources say that Bulger, at the time of his death, had been talking about outing people in the top echelon of the controversial FBI informant program.  The same sources claim he hadn't even been processed at the West Virginia facility when he was killed. But someone who knew he was being transferred put the word out - the killer (or killers) had to know he was coming-- and they were obviously prepared.  

You Reap What You Sow

Last week, an unhinged white nationalist mailed 14 pipe bombs.  Another unhinged white nationalist killed two people in Kentucky.  Days later, another white nationalist killed 11 people in a Pittsburgh synagogue.

Also last week, Donald Trump admitted that he was also a nationalist, and his repeated incitement of violence and disdain to the media and various progressive figures has only fueled other white nationalists into action.

Donald Trump’s administration has long been accused of failing to condemn religious bigotry. Jewish groups scolded the president last year for not mentioning Jews or antisemitism in a statement about the Holocaust.

Following August violence at a rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, where

white supremacists waved insignia from Nazi Germany and yelled “Jews will not replace us”, Trump was slammed for suggesting a moral equivalency between members of the far right and counter-demonstrators. “You had people that were very fine people on both sides,” he said.

The surge of bigotry and violence that is blooming across America is a bitter product of the hate and intolerance promoted by Trump during his first two years in office.  I'm quite sure there will be no recognition by the Orangeman of his role in these recent tragedies.

Bad Hair Day Trumps Synagogue Massacre

President Trump stirred controversy by joking about his 'bad hair day' and tweeting about the World Series, just hours after a gunman slaughtered 11 people at a synagogue.

He first told a young farmers convention in Indianapolis on Saturday morning that he almost cancelled the events because the weather wreaked havoc with his hair, and not the massacre in Pittsburgh.  Later in the evening he then took to social media while watching Game 4 of the series between the Dodgers and the Red Sox, and questioned the pitching changes.

Trump tweeted from inside the White House while there was a vigil to the victims outside.   Twitter users were outraged at the ill-timed remarks, with some describing them as 'vile', 'callous' and 'repugnant'.

Five Star Movement Failing to Take Care of Basics

Thousands of people have taken to the streets of Rome to protest at the Italian capital's run-down state.  Demonstrators gathered outside the city hall to denounce Mayor Virginia Raggi for failing to tackle issues including uncollected rubbish and potholed roads.

Raggi took control of Rome in 2016 for the Five Star Movement (M5S), which formed a national coalition government earlier this year.  Her popularity has fallen after failing to address the indebted city's issues.  The protest follows the collapse of an escalator on one of the main metro stations, which injured more than 20 people earlier this week.

Demonstrators' favorite prop was the ubiquitous plastic orange netting that continues to cordon off areas of damaged roads, dangerous pavements and fallen trees that have been chronically ignored by the city administration.

Other problems that the city faces include rats and wild boar roaming the streets and poor transport services - some 20 buses have reportedly caught fire this year alone.  Videos posted online have shown a number of wild boar running through the streets and feasting on rubbish.

Rome's first female mayor says she is making progress tackling the city's problems, and needs more time to finish the job.  But critics say things are getting worse, not better.

Living In TrumpWorld

Bomb Scare: Post Script

More details are emerging in the pipe bomb incidents that have targeted six liberal opponents of Donald Trump.

George Soros' home was the first one hit.   A small pipe bomb was found inside a package that had been left in the mailbox outside of the billionaire's home in the New York City suburb of Katonah on Monday.   A Soros employee opened the package just inside the gates, which were not near his quarters.  They immediately called police, who were able to 'detonate the device safely.

On Tuesday night a suspicious package was then discovered at Hillary and Bill Clinton's home in Chappaqua, New York.  On Wednesday morning the Secret Service intercepted a package en route to Obama's Washington DC office .

A suspicious package addressed to former CIA director John Brennan was found in the mail room of CNN's New York Bureau just hours later.  CNN evacuated after the pipe bomb and an envelope of white powder was discovered.

Suspicious packages were also found in the office of Florida Rep Debbie Wasserman Schultz as well as California congresswoman Maxine Waters.  The package discovered at the Schultz's office had been addressed to former Attorney General Eric Holder. . Schultz's office was listed as the return address-- and since the Holder address was incorrect, it was sent to Schultz..

The six pipe bombs each had matching characteristics, according to law enforcement officials.. The crude devices were contrived of PVC tubing attached to a digital clock, available for purchase on Amazon. They included sulfur as explosives and shards of glass as shrapnel.

The pipe bomb that was sent to CNN's office featured an image that appears to be from a meme that is popular on right-wing websites.  The graphic is taken from a right-wing parody of an ISIS flag.

World News Bureau, a right-wing parody site, first created the fake ISIS flag for an article titled 'ISIS Vows Retribution for Counterfeit Flags'.  The flag has since become a popular meme that is frequently shared on right-wing websites.

World News Bureau is run by a man who goes by the name Scooter Van Neuter, who is known for commenting on websites including Breitbart and The Daily Caller and had his Twitter account permanently suspended in 2017.

In the meantime, Trump and GOP candidates seemingly remain ignorant of their responsibility for inciting such attacks-- and continue their charged politic attacks on Hillary Clinton and the media. 

Without even a hint of irony, Trump last night said the media has “a responsibility to set a civil tone and to stop the endless hostility.”  Trump's political tone in the last two years has been far short of civil, however:

 

Megyn Kelly is a Fucking Liar

By now, everybody has heard about former Fox News hatemonger Megyn Kelly attempt to justify use of blackface on Halloween-- and worse yet, she assembled an all-white panel to discuss the topic.

Kelly tried to apologize this morning, saying that where she grew up, people dressed up in blackface on Halloween all the time and there were no racial overtones to it.  Bullshit.  I know people that grew up in upstate New York and they have told me that no one EVER walked around in blackface on Halloween . . . or any other time of the year.  And no one EVER would have dreamed of doing so-- due to the widespread awareness of the offensiveness of blackface.   I grew up in the Midwest and was exposed to a lot of open racism-- but not even an unabashed racist would have dared walk around in blackface for any reason whatsoever.

Megyn Kelly said in her apology today, "Yesterday I learned.  I learned that the history of blackface being used in awful ways by racists in this country."  If that's true, I'd also like Kelly to explain to everyone how it is possible that a college educated lawyer (like herself) makes it through all that schooling without ever learning about the history of blackface in this county?  Such ignorance beggars belief-- and frankly, it can't be believed.

If that isn't enough to convince you-- let me call your attention to an August 2016 interview conducted by Megyn Kelly.  While interviewing Pastor Mark Burns (two years ago), Kelly made it very clear that she knew that the use of black face was unacceptable.  The Pastor had previously tweeted a picture of Hillary Clinton in blackface and during the interview, Kelly took him to task for that tweet, and demanded he explain why he would share such an offensive post. 

So for Megyn Kelly to say today that she didn't know about the offensive nature of using blackface is just a bald-faced LIE.  I don't know if I can watch any NBC show anymore unless they fire this shallow, ignorant and hateful woman.

A Day In Trump's Life

Not Prince's Music

The Art of Dictatorship

Warren Validates Her Ancestry; Trump Reneges on His Promise

Senator and Democratic presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren has long been taunted by racist remarks from Trump, calling her "Pocahontas".   White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders has also repeatedly claimed that Warren "lied about her heritage to advance her career."

In July of this year, Trump said “I will give you a million dollars to your favorite charity, paid for by Trump, if you take the test and it shows you're an Indian. I have a feeling she will say no.”

Last week, rump told Fox News “She can't prove anything ... You know what? I have more Indian blood in me than she does. I have none, unfortunately. I have none.”

Senator Warren finally decided to take a DNA test and Stanford researcher Carlos Bustamante concluded that “the vast majority” of Warren’s ancestry is European, but he added that “the results strongly support the existence of an unadmixed Native American ancestor.”

Bustamante calculated that Warren’s pure Native American ancestor appears in her family tree “in the range of 6-10 generations ago.” That timing fits Warren’s family lore, passed down during her Oklahoma upbringing, that her great-great-great-grandmother, O.C. Sarah Smith, was at least partially Native American.

To no one's surprise, Trump reneged on his pledge.  He dismissed the news, saying, “Who cares. Who cares.”  When pressed by reporters on his $1 million pledge, the Orangeman denied ever having said it: “I didn’t say that. You better read it again.”

China Legalizes Interment Camps in Attempt to Wipe Out Uighur Culture

China’s far northwestern region of Xinjiang has retroactively legalized the use of internment camps where up to one million Muslims are being held.

Amid sustained international criticism, Chinese authorities have revised legislation to allow the regional government to officially permit the use of “education and training centers” to incarcerate “people influenced by extremism”.

Chinese authorities deny that the internment camps exist but say petty criminals are sent to vocational “training centers”. Former detainees say they were forced to denounce Islam and profess loyalty to the Communist party in what they describe as political indoctrination camps.

The new legislation directs the centers to teach the Mandarin language and provide occupational and legal education, as well as “ideological education, psychological rehabilitation and behavior correction”.  The new legislation also  bars “refusing public goods like radio and television.”

Existing laws already banned Uighur and other minorities from having more children than their Han Chinese counterparts.  In addition, wearing of veils is disallowed, as well as refusing to listen to public radio and television broadcasts.

Beijing has spent decades trying to suppress the local culture and any pro-independence sentiment in Xinjiang. Part of Beijing's long-term strategy is to implement a massive influx of Han Chinese and encourage Han-ownership of local businesses. 

Members of Uighur, Kazakh and other Muslim minorities who live abroad say they have not been able to contact relatives in China, while authorities are placing children separated from their detained or exiled parents into dozens of state-run orphanages across Xinjiang.

Too Little Too Late For Many Catholics

Pope Francis has stripped two Chilean bishops of their duties as priests amid claims that they are linked to the sexual abuse of minors.  All 34 of Chile's bishops had offered their resignations to the Pope over their role in covering up sexual abuse, but the pontiff has removed only five (three were removed in June).

More than 100 Catholic clergy are being investigated in Chile over alleged sex crimes and attempts to cover them up.  Police have raided offices and seized Church documents in the capital Santiago and the city of Rancagua as part of their criminal investigation.  Last month, Pope Francis defrocked former 88-year-old priest Fernando Karadima for having sexually abused minors.

The move to defrock the two Chilean archbishops came a day after Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Washington DC archbishop Donald Wuerl, who has long been criticized for his handling of sexual abuse cases in the U.S.  A Pennsylvania grand jury report on sex abuse released this past summer said he had allowed accused priests to be reassigned or reinstated.  Unfortunately, the Pope has allowed Wuerl to retain his title of cardinal and continue in his role until a successor is named.

Allegations of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy worldwide continue to affect the Church.  Last month, a leaked Church report revealed more than 3,600 children in Germany were assaulted by Catholic priests between 1946 and 2014.Most of the victims were boys, and more than half were aged 13 or younger.  In July, Australian Catholic archbishop Philip Wilson was sentenced to 12 months in detention for concealing historic child sexual abuse - the most senior Catholic globally to be convicted of the crime.

Sexual abuse by Catholic priests in the United States exploded in public awareness back in 2002 when an investigation by The Boston Globe generated widespread media coverage of sexual abuse by Catholic priests in the Boston archdiocese. 

Since then, actions against the perpetrators and those who covered up their crimes have largely resulted from lawsuits and criminal claims led by sexual abuse victims, not by proactive moves by the upper levels of the Catholic church.  

The Catholic Church is fairly flat organizationally, which should have allowed the Vatican to respond quickly to allegations of sexual abuse--but it hasn't.    Critics of this slow response have accused the Vatican of favoring the rights of accused priests over those of its victims.  It also should be noted that it is a federal crime to be aware of a sexual abuse allegation and fail to report it to the police.

In 2005 Pope Benedict faced allegations that he was personally involved in covering up sexual abuse, but he was able to successfully avoid criminal prosecution by claiming diplomatic immunity.   For over a decade following the Boston Globe investigation, the Catholic church continued to avoid dealing with the sexual abuse issue at its highest level, insisting that all matters be dealt with at the Episcopal or Diocesan level.

IN 2011, when Pope Benedict's Vatican finally issued global guidelines on dealing with sexual abuse, the new guidelines still failed to make reporting of sexual abuse (to civil authorities) mandatory-- in clear violation of U.S. federal law.

It is believed that only one Catholic Church official has (to date) ever been convicted of covering up sexual abuse in the United States.   Monsignor William Lynn of Philadelphia was found guilty of child endangerment in 2012 and sentenced to 3 years in prison.

Your Privacy Is At Risk Even If You Haven't Had Your DNA Tested

A new Columbia University study has found that so many people have had their DNA sequenced that they've put other people's privacy in jeopardy.

According to the study, more than half of Americans could be identified by name if all you had to start with was a sample of their DNA and a few basic facts, such as the region where they live and about how old they might be.  More than 1 million Americans have already published their genetic information, and dozens more do so every day.  The researchers behind the new study say that once 3 million Americans have uploaded their genomes to public genealogy websites, nearly everyone in the U.S. would be identifiable by their DNA alone and just a few additional clues.

There are two developing trends that have made this possible. One of them is the rise of direct-to-consumer genetic testing. Companies such as Ancestry.com and 23andMe can sequence anyone’s DNA for about $100. All you have to do is provide a sample of saliva and drop it in the mail.  The other essential element is the proliferation of publicly searchable genealogy databases like GEDmatch, which are used by people looking for lost relatives or by adopted children looking for their natural parents. Anyone can upload a full genome to these sites and powerful computers will crunch through it, looking for stretches of matching DNA sequences that can be used to build out a family tree.

To test the growing power of these sites, researchers led by Columbia University computer scientist Yaniv Erlich set out to see whether they could find a person’s name — and thus, her identity — if all they had to go on was a piece of her DNA and a small amount of biographical information.

They started by uploading a full DNA sequence from a random Utah woman  to GEDmatch and ran a search to see if she had any relations on the site.They found two: one in North Dakota and one in Wyoming.  By comparing the DNA of all three relatives, Erlich’s team was able to find a common ancestral couple that were the Utah woman’s great-grandparents.

Next, the researchers scoured genealogical websites and other sources for additional descendants of that long-ago couple. They found 10 children and hundreds of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  Then they started culling their massive list of descendants. They eliminated all the men from the sample, then those who were not alive when the Utah woman’s DNA was sequenced. The authors also knew that their subject was married and how many children she had, which helped them zero in on their target.  After a day's worth of work, they researchers were able to correctly name the owner of the DNA sample.

The authors said the same process would work for about 60% of Americans of European descent, who are the people most likely to use genealogical websites, Erlich said. Though the odds of success would be lower for people from other backgrounds, it would still be expected to work for more than half of all Americans, they said.

It's clear that these genetic databases are turning into quite a problem from both a privacy standpoint and in terms of giving healthcare insurance companies a big heads up on pre-existing conditions. Combine that with GOP dreams of eliminating the pre-existing condition requirements and you have the recipe for a permanent under class of uninsurable people starting before they are born.

Kanye West In Bizarre Oval Office Visit

Kanye West sparked a media shit storm yesterday, after meeting with Trump in the oval office and giving a bizarre ten-minute speech in front of a gaggle of reporters and cameramen. 

He repeated his claim that the 13th amendment (which abolished slavery) should be eliminated as it is a "trap" for African Americans.  He also said that his red MAGA hat made him feel like Superman, and that Trump had inspired him to become a billionaire.

After his speech, he took questions from reporters for another ten minutes,  during which he expounded on Chicago's crime and murder rate. "You know, we talk about police murders, which we definitely have to discuss, and we have to bring nobility to the police officers and make them – the police officers are just like us. But there's this whole hate building, right? And that's a major thing about racial tension. And we also, as black people, we have to take a responsibility for what we're doing," he said.

When pressed for a direct answer to a question, West said, "I don't answer questions in simple sound bites. You are tasting a fine wine. It has multiple notes to it. You better play 4-D chess moves like "Minority Report." I mean, it ain't that simple. It's complex'."

The visit was followed by widespread criticism and ridicule, with many even sharing their concern for West's mental health--  while others slammed Trump for failing to do more to help hurricane victims in Florida.

Rapper T.I. he had been invited to attend the meeting with West - but "naturally declined." The rapper, otherwise known as Tip, wrote in a furious Instagram post that he's 'ashamed to have ever been associated' with West.  The lengthy post said in part: "This is the most repulsive,disgraceful, embarrassing act of desperation & auctioning off of one’s soul to gain power I’ve ever seen."

"You ass kissing and boot licking on a whole new level &I refuse to associate myself with something so vile, weak and inconsiderate to the effect this has on the greater good of ALL OUR PEOPLE!!!! I’m a true believer in "It ain’t what you do,it’s how you do it."'

Beyonce and Jay-Z also announced they have decided to sever ties with the rapper and his reality star wife, Kim Kardashian West, because of West's support for Trump.  The couple said in a statement that they are 'sick' of the positive things Kanye has said about the president and believe his political views are 'bullshit.'

I'm With Ya, Dude

Saudit Critic Disappears-- and Is Possibly Murdered-- on Turkish Soil

There are hot rumors that Saudi critic and Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi has been kidnapped or possibly murdered by Saudi Arabian hitmen after entering the Saudi embassy in Istanbul.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has now challenged Saudi Arabia to provide proof that Khashoggi left its consulate after visiting there on Tuesday to obtain paperwork that would allow him to marry his Turkish fiancee, who was waiting outside.

Donald Trump has yet to condemn the actions of Saudi Arabia, express outrage, or call for an investigation into the matter.

Turkey has requested a search of the consulate, after going public with its accusation that Khashoggi had been murdered within its walls.  Saudi Arabia has denied the claims.  Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) said later that Turkish officials are welcome to conduct a search as there is nothing to hide.  However, no search has yet taken place.

Erdogan told reporters: "Consulate officials cannot save themselves by saying that he left the building.  If he left, you have to prove it with footage."

Turkish officials say they have "concrete proof" of the killing which they believe was carried out by a 15-person Saudi team who arrived in the country just days prior.  No evidence has been publicly released, but it is rumored that the evidence consist of audio and video recordings, where sounds of torture and killing can be heard.   Turkish officials further claim that Khashoggi was killed on the premises of the embassy, his body dismembered, removed in vans for transport to Saudi diplomatic aircraft, and then flown out of the country.

These allegations of what the Saudi authorities may have done to one of their most prominent critics are horrific.  It is no surprise that no condemnation has come from Trump, who has not been ashamed of his support (and what some characterize as admiration) for the thin-skinned despot prince. 

A former editor of the al-Watan newspaper and a short-lived Saudi TV news channel, Khashoggi was for years seen as close to the Saudi royal family. He served as an adviser to senior Saudi officials.  After several of his friends were arrested, his column was cancelled by the al-Hayat newspaper and he was allegedly warned to stop tweeting,  After MBS was appointed crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Khashoggi left the country for the U.S where he began to write opinion pieces for the Washington Post and continued to appear on Arab and Western TV channels.

The incident is certain to further damage the relationship between Turkey and Saudi Arabia, which was already strained.  Turkey backed Qatar when it was being targeted by a Saudi blockade, and it also backed Saudi Arabia's arch-rival Iran during its U.S. trade disputes.

Trumpian Take on Banksy

India School Girls Attacked For Protesting Verbal Harrassment

Thirty-six schoolgirls in a remote town in India have been treated in hospital after they were attacked by a large crowd of teenage boys and their parents when they complained of sexual harassment.

Six boys and one woman were arrested in the north-eastern state of Bihar after the attack, which took place at the girls’ boarding school.

The girls-- ranging from 10 to 14 years old-- had been playing in a sports area on Saturday night at their school in Triveniganj  when a group of teenage boys began making lewd comments towards them.  The girls argued back with the boys, who initially backed off.  20 minutes later, however, a group of the boys and some parents returned,  carrying bamboo sticks and iron rods.

“They dragged us by our ponytails, assaulted us with bamboo sticks and kicked and punched,” said Gudia, one of 36 girls who were treated in the hospital after the attack.  “We were totally unarmed and had nothing to protect us. I saw many of my friends lying on the ground and crying with pain.”

“They had been always teasing us and scribbling dirty words on the walls of our school,” Gudia added, saying that she and other girls had tried to report the harassment to local government officials but were not taken seriously.

Police have arrested nine suspects.  Most of the injured children were discharged from the hospital and returned to the school  A local official said many of the girls were shaken and feared further violence.

“Apparently, they are suffering from psychological fear, but we are arranging entertaining movies on the campus to calm down their tension and dispel any such fear from their minds,” said district magistrate Baidyanath Yadav.  “We are also counseling them so that they could get better soon.”

Yadav said police were being deployed and that a higher fence would be put up around the school to prevent outsiders from entering the campus.



Sexual violence has become a major political issue in Bihar, one of India’s poorest states, after an audit of 110 women’s care homes found varying reports of abuse.



India as a whole has been reckoning with sexual assault since a 2012 gang-rape and murder that galvanised women’s movements and led to an overhaul of rape laws. Activists say attitudes are slowly changing, particularly in large cities, but that conditions are generally worse for women in remote and rural areas.

Banksy Stunt Leaves Art World in Shreds

British street artist Banksy has played what could be one of the most audacious stunts in art history, arranging for one of his best-known works to self-destruct after being sold at auction for $1.4 million.

"Girl With Balloon" was the final item in an auction at Sotheby’s in London.  Its sale price reached the artist’s previous auction record, and when the hammer came down on the sale, the canvas began to pass through a shredder which had been secretly installed in the frame.

Sotheby’s, which declined to identify the buyer, said in a statement:  “We have talked with the successful purchaser who was surprised by the story. We are in discussion about next steps.”

The next day, Banksy posted a video on his Instagram page which showed a shredder being fitted to the frame of the painting.  It opened with the caption: “A few years ago, I secretly built a shredder into a painting.”  The clip shows a hooded figure putting the finishing touches on the device, before text appears on the screen saying: “In case it was ever put up for auction.”

"Girl With Balloon", which was last year voted the UK’s best-loved work of art, first appeared on a wall in Great Eastern Street in Shoreditch, east London. The 2006 gallery version featured spray paint and acrylic on canvas, mounted on a board.

Website MyArtBroker.com, which resells Banksy pieces, said in a statement:  “Given the media attention this stunt has received, the lucky buyer would see a great return on [what] they paid last night.  This is now part of art history in its shredded state and we’d estimate Banksy has added at a minimum 50% to its value, possibly as high as being worth £2m plus.”

Leaker Nunes In Hot Water

Trump apologist and GOP dimwit Devin Nunes may have something to answer for in a re-election race that is looking to be closer than expected.

Nunes and his family come from a long line of California dairy farmers, which is at the core of his appeal in his district.  Naturally, most people assume the farm his parents own is actually in California, where Nunes has held his seat since 2003. What isn't widely known is that his family moved the dairy farm to Iowa in 2006 and het Nunes has allowed the story to perpetuate to avoid political fallout among his constituents. 

In addition, the Esquire  report claims that the Nunes family farm employs undocumented immigrants.  Anonymous sources  say that almost every dairy farm in Sibley, Iowa, where the dairy farm is located, also uses undocumented workers.   Residents rely on undocumented immigrants for their economy, yet 79 percent of the county voted for Trump. It's hard to square the county’s politics with the fact its economy is driven by undocumented workers, who get paid less than documented workers and, thus, help keep the dairy farms afloat.

Before this new report came to light, Nunes' support in California seemed to be slipping.  While he consistently won election with more than 60% of the vote, several polls over the summer show Nunes with a single-digit lead over his Democratic challenger, Andrew Janz.

Supremely Unqualified

Well, it looks like we're going to have a (ahem, alleged) rapist on the Supreme Court, folks.  Oh-- and a liar too (remember the stolen emails).  Notwithstanding those accusation, it should be clear from Kavanaugh's partisan rant at his confirmation hearing that he is ill-suited in temperament to even be a judge (much less a Supreme Court judge).   Journalist Naomi Klein characterized Kavanaugh as "a snarling gargoyle who can be counted on not just to defend himself but the whole damn frat known as the Republican Party and its billionaire backers-- against all threats to their power and wealth."

It's interesting that all of these privileged white men so easily  dismiss the accusations of assault from a woman yet so easily accept the accusations of men over the years who have leveled pedophilia accusation against catholic priests without a shred of corroborating evidence.  Oh, to be a privileged white man in America!  Obama is long gone and #MeToo be damned-- you have nothing to fear as long as Trump and the GOP steer the agenda. 

And now come reports of this disgusting meme that has been making the GOP rounds of late-- "Beers for Brett"-- which seems to celebrate his habitual abuse of alcohol while underage.  And many of these social media posts also seem to make light of sexual assault.

 

After Kavanaugh is confirmed, the legitimacy of the Supreme Court will now be called into question (remember his threat of "what comes around, goes around"?).  As a result of his shouting, scowling, sniffling and weeping performance before congress, there is wide expectation that Kavanaugh will prove be a judge eager to retaliate against his perceived detractors.   What will be interesting is whether Kavanaugh will become a virtual pariah on the court, serving out his term on the fringe like Clarence Thomas (who rarely asks questions in open court and has never been trusted to write a majority opinion in a landmark case).  Time will tell.

Spam Attack

NYT Calls Bullshit On Source of Trump's Fortune

In a bombshell report, the New York Times has destroyed Trump's claim that he was a self-made, up-by-your-bootstraps entrepreneur who benefited little from his father’s fortune.

According to hundreds of confidential tax returns and financial records, Trump received over $400 million (in today’s dollars) from his father’s real estate empire, starting when he was a toddler and continuing today. And, to bail out his failing businesses, Trump borrowed tens of millions of dollars from his dad-- who was one of the richest people in America in the 1970s.

Trump's father used a series of elaborate tax avoidance schemes that had baby Trump earning $200,000 a year by the age of three.  On paper, Trump Jr. was a millionaire by age 8. 

Trump has also claimed that his father had “never sheltered” him and that he’d had to figure his own way out of challenging situations.  Trump’s father repeatedly helped rescue him from financial ruin, loaning him millions of dollars and pumping millions more into his failing businesses.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, as several of Trump’s business ventures, including his Atlantic City casinos and the Plaza Hotel, were hurtling toward bankruptcy, four entities that Fred Trump had created paid his son the equivalent of $8.3 million in today’s dollars.

Trump’s dad also infamously sent one of his bookkeepers to Atlantic City in 1990 to buy $3.5 million in casino chips to help his son make a bond payment.

The ruse was discovered and the casino had to pay a fine ― but thanks to his father, Trump “narrowly avoided defaulting on his bonds,” the Times wrote.

Fred Trump wasn’t always able to get his son out of financial trouble, however. Despite the financial “safety net” he attempted to provide, Trump has filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy for his companies six times.

Americans Sore Losers in Ryder Cup

Well, it seems the Americans have been taking the weekend's loss in the Ryder Cup pretty hard.  At the Grand National course in France, the Europeans kicked our butts yet again-- with Phil Mickelson becoming the losing-est American golfer in Ryder cup history and Jim Furyk's four captain's picks going 2-10. 

Patrick Reed, who won his singles match but lost both team matches when paired with Tiger Woods, lamented afterwards about not being paired with Jordan Speith, after their international success together in previous international events.  Talking with the New York Times, Reed said, "The issue's obviously with Jordan not wanting to play with me.  I don't have any issue with Jordan.  When it comes right down to it, I don't care if I like the person I'm paired with or if the person likes me as long as it works and it sets up the team for success.  He and I know how to make each other better.  We know how to get the job done."

An unnamed member of the U.S. squad fired back at Reed on Monday, telling the New York Post that the outspoken Masters Champion (Reed) is "so full of shit.  He would have shot 83 on his own ball Saturday.  He totally screwed Tiger.  He has no clue how to play team golf.  I saw firsthand how bad of a team player he was.  Eleven players understood the concept of team golf and only one didn't  Unfortunately, that one [person] proved to be too costly for the team to overcome."

Now come reports that U.S. teammates Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka had to be separated Sunday night after almost coming to blows in the European team room.    There is no word on that words or issues precipitated the blowup.

Racist Mom Fires Nanny Over White Guilt

A new mom in Manhattan  had been interviewing for a nanny to look after her new-born baby.  However, when Lynsey Plasco-Flaxman realized the woman who had come for the interview – 44-year-old Giselle Maurice – was African American, she tried to send the following text message to her husband, Joel Plasco

"NOOOOOOOOOOO ANOTHER BLACK PERSON."

However, she accidentally sent the racist message to Maurice instead.   When the mean-spirited mom realized her mistake, she fired Maurice on the grounds that she felt ‘uncomfortable.’

Maurice tried resolving the issue through mediation-- but when that failed, she sued the couple for discrimination.  She s seeking compensation after saying the couple told her she was getting the $350-a-day / six-month live-in job.  Maurice told reporters, "I want to show them, look-- you don't do stuff like that."

The family defended its actions, saying that Maurice is trying to extort them.  The husband told reporters, "My wife sent her something that she didn’t mean to say. She’s not a racist. We’re not racist people.  But would you put your children in the hands of someone you’ve been rude to, even if it was a mistake? Your new-born baby?"

Maurice said she would never hurt a child.  "This is my reputation," she countered. "Why would I do something to a baby?  I was willing to work with her and prove her wrong, but it was her conscience, and she couldn’t work with me anymore."