Jaded Times

It was bound to happen, the great Halloween backlash.

Some Europeans are speaking out against our October 31st ways. This hits me as off, this dissing of a holiday where Americans,who often keep themselves locked up in their own fortresses, actually journey out into their community, on foot.

the mayor of Rankweil, a town near the border with Switzerland, has launched a one-man campaign disparaging Halloween as a “bad American habit”

But in terms of American habits is this one really bad? Compared to our hyper-consumerism and responsibility for over 25% of the world’s total oil consumption.
I can see where they’re coming from with some of their arguments, such as with their desire to keep their country’s specific customs stronger than those that have jumped over because of the dominance of American pop culture.

Then some of their reasons just makes me think they’re trying to convince me to party:

Italy’s Papaboys, a group of pope devotees who include some of the young Catholics who cheer wildly at Vatican events, have urged Christians not to take part in what they consider “a party in honor of Satan and hell,” and plan to stage prayer vigils nationwide that night.

This fun American holiday can also lead to gruesome headlines such as “Suicide Mistaken for Halloween Decoration”. So come on out! and give something sweet or get something sour as they say in Germany.

Oh and here’ s pumpkin tip for European celebrants: White is the new Orange. Though, I’m more of a traditionalist in this regard. Save the white pumpkins for Princess balls and coming-out-parties or something.

Is your apartment too small for a real Jack O’Lantern? Then feel free to fly over here and carve your own virtual Jack.

. . . but be warned most of them just end up coming out odd looking, which scares me.

More on the Iraq Group’s Scooter Libby’s Indictment later. Though it’s surprising right? Y’know considering the following responses of Scott McClellan at a October 7, 2003 Press Briefing:

The President — no one wants to get to the bottom of this more than the President of the United States. And the sooner the better.

Q Scott, you have said that you, personally, went to Scooter Libby, Karl Rove and Elliot Abrams to ask them if they were the leakers. Is that what happened? Why did you do that, and can you describe the conversations you had with them? What was the question you asked?

Unfortunately, in Washington, D.C., at a time like this, there are a lot of rumors and innuendo. There are unsubstantiated accusations that are made. And that’s exactly what happened in the case of these three individuals. They’re good individuals, they’re important members of our White House team, and that’s why I spoke with them, so that I could come back to you and say that they were not involved. I had no doubt of that in the beginning, but I like to check my information to make sure it’s accurate before I report back to you, and that’s exactly what I did.

Q So you’re saying — you’re saying categorically those three individuals were not the leakers or did not authorize the leaks; is that what you’re saying?

That’s correct. I’ve spoken with them.

(Ok, so maybe it’s not that surprising.)

“She really was a heroine to us. She was an ordinary woman and we were ordinary kids, and it seems we had a relationship. … For me it opened up the possibility and also instructed me that it wouldn’t be easy, but it would be worth it in the end.” _ Minnijean Brown Trickey, a member of the Little Rock Nine who desegregated Little Rock Central High School in 1957.

More quotes on Rosa Parks can be found here.

I recommend reading this educational lesson that clearly explains some of the more complex points surrounding the day Rosa Parks was arrested and the Montgomery Bus Boycott , in contrast to the simple way the story is often taught. It is based on an article by Educator Herbert Kohl (author of “She Would Not Be Moved”).

Jack Thompson, anti-gaming advocate and “lawyer” (I will continue using quotations as long as he continues using words he does not understand) has gone even further off the deep end than since our last story. Todd will be writing a longer piece about this later today, but here is a quick glimpse into the chaotic ramblings of a madman:

“Because of my prominence, for better or worse, on this public safety problem, a ‘gamer’ a few months ago decided to threaten to kill me via the Internet. I received thousands of e-mails from a kid who was able to blast e-mail me using a service in Ireland that made the death threats appear to come from the following e-mail address: georgewbush@whitehouse.gov. Because of the domain name, the Secret Service here in Miami got involved and shut that extortion down…Now there is new extortion, and it is coming from a Seattle company called Penny Arcade.

Mr Thompson, you are now (along with the White House) on our list of people who will be receiving free copies of the dictionary. But, as these things take time to arrive, here is a legal definition of “extortion”, courtesy of lectlaw.com:

EXTORTION – The use, or the express or implicit threat of the use, of violence or other criminal means to cause harm to person, reputation, or property as a means to obtain property from someone else with his consent. USC 18. The Hobbs Act defines “extortion” as “the obtaining of property from another, with his consent, induced by wrongful use of actual or threatened force, violence, or fear, or under color of official right.” 18 U.S.C. S 1951(b)(2).

We know Delay has had some “shady dealings”. We know he has been fingerprinted. We know he’s had his mugshots (though they look more like PR shots). We know he had to find $10,000 (hopefully not donated by a lobbyist or corporation) to get baile out of prison. What we didn’t know is that, according to an April WP article, he may not be right in the head (ok, we knew that too, but we never had proof). According to his lawyer:

“the majority leader has always believed and continues to believe that all appropriate expenses for the U.K. trip were paid by the National Center for Public Policy Research.”

Here is your fundamental Neo-Con: proof all around him and he sticks to his irrational, unfounded beliefs. Let’s check out some other DeLayed reactions:

I have violated no law, no regulation, no rule of the House

This is a frivolous indictment. I am indicted just for the reason to make me step aside as majority leader. This is politics at its sleaziest, and people will recognize that and see it for what it is.

In a criminal court, you have to have the intent to commit a crime. They can’t find one here.
***
I did nothing wrong. I did nothing wrong. I broke no laws. I broke no rules of the House. Chris, this has been going on for 10 years. The Democrats announced and put it on their Web site that they were going to take me down. In 1993, I had ethics charges filed against me — dismissed. 1995, I had ethics charges filed against me — dismissed. I had a racketeering suit filed against me by the Democrat Campaign Committee. It was dismissed. More ethics charges came, and they were dismissed…I have never been found to have broken any rules of the House, nor any law.

(Source: Mike Wallace interview, Oct 2nd)

According to the BBC, an arrest warrant was issued for Tom DeLay on charges of breaking campaign law

Officials said the warrant is a routine step. But it means that before his court appearance, Mr DeLay is likely to be fingerprinted and photographed.

There is a god.

Oddly, it’s not a RSS-feed worthy story for CNN.com, FoxNews.com, or MSNBC.com (based on feeds present at time of article). Weird, that.

More of a cute story, I suppose, but I felt like sharing.

A bill, written by lobbyists of credit card companies like Citibank and which makes it far much more difficult for consumers to declare bankruptcy, has passed into law today. The bill won a dramatic victory in the senate, receiving unanimous Republican support (17 Democrats voted for this as well, so no guff from you leftist whiners). It is a much-needed victory for the oppressed rich white men and multi-national creditors and corporations. How it “benefits” you and I?

If your income allows you to pay 25 percent of your debts, you may not be eligible for Chapter 7 bankruptcy anymore.

*Debtors now will have to provide a certificate of credit counseling and a repayment plan from an approved agency within 180 days of filing. They also will have to complete a financial management course.

*Certain recent purchases, from here on, must be repaid.

*With additional paperwork to complete, lawyer fees will be higher, raising the total cost of a bankruptcy from about $1,000 to an estimated $1,350.

90% of bankruptcies are filed as a result of job loss, medical bills, or divorce/deaths in the family, according to Elizabeth Warren, Harvard Law professor interviewed this morning by Al Franken.

Link: Chicago Sun Times

This will serve as a few additional thoughts on the bankruptcy bill (please read Dave’s post above for more details). Late last night on the eve of the law, I couldn’t get my mind to finish this entry . . . maybe I was thinking about the 30 billion dollars of credit card company profits from last year . . . and how the bill won’t make these same companies do anything to stop their predatory lending . . . or was I thinking of future disasters (natural disasters are not cited as an allowed special circumstance), though Katrina Victims are permitted some breaks this time around.

I wonder how many American weren’t even aware as they woke up this morning that it had become much more difficult to file for banktfuptcy. Many Americans don’t seem to keep much of an eyes on what those suits on Capitol Hill are up to. I mentioned bankruptcy to a co-worker who’d been through several hard financial times, and she said she wanted to save it for when she really needed it – completely unaware that her days to get her chapter 7 on were dwindling.

Has it become any harder for corporations to declare bankruptcy which helps screw their workers out of funds who then in turn will have a much harder time declaring personal bankruptcy? I don’t think so.

I think the present was wrapped in a big fat bow.

Link: Paul Krugman Editorial

In the fall of the 2000, I had this really bad feeling about what would happen if Bush became president. Unlike some of my peers, I suspected that yeah it really did matter who was sitting in the White House, and a premonition told me that it better not be Bush. When I told my then boyfriend of those fears, he said something to the effect of “What are you worried about about no one’s gonna vote for that clown”.

Then on November 7th, 200o, I sat with a bottle of wine in my apartment located on the same block as the New York Times (bf working, friend “this is getting depressing” had bailed earlier), which is notable because I imagined the reporters, who were maybe all of 2 buildings away from me, slugging down coffee as they dashed out articles on the topsy-turvy events transpiring.

What’s done is done the saying goes but here’s some of Gore’s words on what would be different:

We would not have invaded a country that didn’t attack us. We would not have taken money from the working families and given it to the most wealthy families.

He also seems to be aware of the 1st Amendment:

We would not be trying to control and intimidate the news media. We would not be routinely torturing people. We would be a different country.

Tracey Schmitt, spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee:

called Gore’s comments ‘fictitious rants that border on dangerous.’

Sure thing. His words are a helluva a lot more dangerous than an illegal war with 1,976 Americans dead and a minimum of 26,568 Iraqi Civilians dead. Give me a fucking break Tracey.