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February 06
Although this case now relegated to history as a footnote to the historic Brown v. Board of Education, I think it is worth spending a few minutes reading the dissenting opinion to the majority decision that established the doctrine of "separate, but equal." I have always found Justice Harlan's opinion quite brilliant.
While there may be in Louisiana persons of different races who are not citizens of the United States, the words in the act, "white and colored races," necessarily include all citizens of the United States of both races residing in that State. So that we have before us a state enactment that compels, under penalties, the separation of the two races in railroad passenger coaches, and makes it a crime for a citizen of either race to enter a coach that has been assigned to citi-zens of the other race...
In respect of civil rights, common to all citizens, the Constitution of the United States does not, I think, permit any public authority to know the race of those entitled to be protected in the enjoyment of such rights. Every true man has pride of race, and under appropriate circumstances when the rights of others, his equals before the law, are not to be affected, it is his privilege to express such pride and to take such action based upon it as to him seems proper. But I deny that any legislative body or judicial tribunal may have regard to the race of citizens when the civil rights of those citizens are not involved. Indeed, such legislation, as that here in question, is inconsistent not only with that equality of rights which pertains to citizenship, National and State, but with the personal liberty enjoyed by every one within the United States...
The white race deems itself to be the dominant race in this country. And so it is, in prestige, in achievements, in education, in wealth and in power. So, I doubt not, it will continue to be for all time, if it remains true to its great heritage and holds fast to the principles of constitutional liberty. But in view of the Constitution, in the eye of the law, there is in this country no superior, dominant, ruling class of citizens. There is no caste here. Our Constitution is color-blind, and neither knows nor tolerates classes among citizens. In respect of civil rights, all citizens are equal before the law. The humblest is the peer of the most powerful. The law regards man as man, and takes no account of his surroundings or of his color when his civil rights as guaranteed by the supreme law of the land are involved. It is, therefore, to be regretted that this high tribunal, the final expositor of the fundamental law of the land, has reached the conclusion that it is compe-tent for a State to regulate the enjoyment by citizens of their civil rights solely upon the basis of race.
In my opinion, the judgment this day rendered will, in time, prove to be quite as pernicious as the decision made by this tribunal in the Dred Scott case...The present decision, it may well be apprehended, will not only stimulate aggressions, more or less brutal and irritating, upon the admitted rights of colored citizens, but will encourage the belief that it is possible, by means of state enactments, to defeat the beneficent purposes which the people of the United States had in view when they adopted the recent amendments of the Constitution, by one of which the blacks of this country were made citizens of the United States and of the States in which they respectively reside, and whose privileges and immunities, as citizens, the States are forbidden to abridge. Sixty millions of whites are in no danger from the presence here of eight millions of blacks. The destinies of the two races, in this country, are indissolubly linked together, and the interests of both require that the common government of all shall not permit the seeds of race hate to be planted under the sanction of law. What can more certainly arouse race hate, what more certainly create and perpetuate a feeling of distrust between these races, than state enactments, which, in fact, proceed on the ground that colored citizens are so inferior and degraded that they cannot be allowed to sit in public coaches occupied by white citizens? That, as all will admit, is the real meaning of such legislation as was enacted in Louisiana...
If evils will result from the commingling of the two races upon public highways established for the benefit of all, they will be infinitely less than those that will surely come from state legislation regulating the enjoyment of civil rights upon the basis of race. We boast of the freedom enjoyed by our people above all other peoples. But it is difficult to reconcile that boast with a state of the law which, practically, puts the brand of servitude and degradation upon a large class of our fellow-citizens, our equals before the law...
I am of opinion that the statute of Louisiana is inconsistent with the personal liberty of citizens, white and black, in that State, and hostile to both the spirit and letter of the Constitution of the United States. If laws of like character should be enacted in the several States of the Union, the effect would be in the highest degree mischievous. Slavery, as an institution tolerated by law would, it is true, have disappeared from our country, but there would remain a power in the States, by sinister legislation, to interfere with the full enjoyment of the blessings of freedom; to regulate civil rights, common to all citizens upon the basis of race; and to place in a condition of legal inferiority a large body of American citizens, now constituting a part of the political community called the People of the United States, for whom, and by whom through representatives, our government is administered. Well, the embattled Mayor of SFO (who if you remember had an affair with his buddy's (who worked for him) wife (who also worked for him) causing his buddy to resign) did what any good American would do in his shoes - blame it on substance abuse.
Newsom, 39, said that although "my problems with alcohol are not an excuse for my personal lapses in judgment," he had stopped drinking and wanted professional help staying sober.
"Upon reflection with friends and family this weekend, I have come to the conclusion that I will be a better person without alcohol in my life," Newsom said in a statement.
He could have said instead: "I have come to the conclusion that I will be a better person if I don't sleep with the wife of any of my buddies or employees or sleep with any of my employees either for that matter." Of course this would be too honest. Blame the booze. February 05
You have to read the whole article and twist you brain a few times like one of those Cirque Du Soleil gymnasts to fully appreciate how bizarre this editorial is (even by Green Peace standards).
Green party slams Vista Landfill nightmare
http://www.greenparty.org.uk/news/2851
This is just nuts. Does anyone actually believe this kind of stuff?
I might give this WSOTW just for calling out the "Green Party Female
Principal Speaker" and "Green Party Male Principal Speaker."
I guess GP must be Plessey Vs Furgeson fans.
Too funny.
Read the following passage and determine the source:
(LEESBURG, VA)…Landmark Legal Foundation today nominated nationally syndicated radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.
Limbaugh, whose daily radio show is heard by more than 20 million people on more than 600 radio stations in the United States and around the world, was nominated for the prestigious award for his “nearly two decades of tireless efforts to promote liberty, equality and opportunity for all humankind, regardless of race, creed, economic stratum or national origin. These are the only real cornerstones of just and lasting peace throughout the world,” said Landmark President Mark R. Levin.
“Rush Limbaugh is the foremost advocate for freedom and democracy in the world today,” explained Levin. “Everyday he gives voice to the values of democratic governance, individual opportunity and the just, equal application of the rule of law – and it is fitting that the Nobel Committee recognize the power of these ideals to build a truly peaceful world for future generations.”
Is it:
A) A headline from The Onion
B) An actual press release from someone that nominated every conservative’s favorite druggie for the Nobel Peace Prize.
C) Something written by a dude dropping LSD and watching Fox News
D) Evidence that being nominated for a Nobel Prize is as exclusive as going to the bathroom
Real answer B and D.
http://www.landmarklegal.org/uploads/Limbaugh%20Nobel.htm">http://www.landmarklegal.org/uploads/Limbaugh%20Nobel.htm
Although a part of me believes that Arnie’s own camp “leaked” the tapes, in general this part of being a public figure is something I have a lot of sympathy for – you are expected to politically correct in speech (even if not in action) and are given almost no leeway for being human.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/02/05/schwarzenegger.tapes.ap/index.html
Recordings of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger reveal the Republican griping about Democratic and Republican lawmakers alike and expressing sympathy for Mexican immigrants, but saying they should embrace the United States. In one of the recordings released Sunday, he complains that Democratic Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez, with whom he has cooperated on efforts to rebuild California's infrastructure and fight global warming, was at times a "political operator" who would tell Schwarzenegger one thing behind closed doors and say something else in public. He also describes Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, an Oakland Democrat, as "a very sick man."
Myself – I would be screwed if my everyday conversations made it to CNN (and let’s not even talk about the conversations I had in college). February 03
This week there were two news stories this week that I found interesting.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1120AP_HS_Coach_Fired.html
LEEDS, Maine -- A high school coach who told his players at halftime to reach into their pants to "check their manhood" before returning to the basketball court was fired.
Mike Remillard was confronted after Leavitt Area High School Principal Patrick Hartnett learned that the coach told his players that the Jan. 23 game against Mount Ararat "was about who had the biggest (male genitalia) in town," Hartnett said in a statement.
"He then required his players to all stand up and put their hands down their pants and check their manhood," Hartnett said. All but one player followed the coach's instructions.
…
Remillard, who cites Texas Tech basketball coach Bob Knight as his role model, told the Sun Journal newspaper that having his players "check their manhood" is "normal locker room banter from Fort Kent, Maine, to San Diego, California."
My Take
Obviously in these types of incidents there is a lot unreported, like the coach’s relationship with the community and the school that might be the real cause of the firing and this specific incident is just the opportunity to carry out the dismissal. I am not sure I get this. It does to me sound like normal locker room banter – certainly tame compared to what I remember from playing hockey and football. What do you think should he have been fired for this action? I say no.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16949432/site/newsweek/
According to the paper’s Thursday edition, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom had been caught in an affair with a female staffer who just happened to be married to one of his closest friends. The affair, which was described as brief, took place in 2005, when Newsom was going through a divorce from his wife, Fox News commentator Kimberly Guilfoyle, and his paramour worked as the mayor’s appointments secretary. Her husband, one of Newsom’s top advisers, worked down the hall. On Wednesday, according to the Chronicle, the betrayed husband, Alex Tourk, quit his job as manager of Newsom’s re-election campaign after his wife, Ruby, confessed to her dalliance, apparently as part of the therapy she was undergoing for substance abuse. A day later, the mayor was forced into a confession of his own. “I want to make it clear that everything you’ve heard and read is true,” an ashen-faced Newsom said during a packed press conference at city hall. “I am deeply sorry and am accountable for what has occurred and now have begun the process of reconciling it.”
My Take
Interesting that the good Mayor took accountability but the person most victimized, Tourk, is the one without a job. I think there are some fascinating questions about the whether the Mayor should be forced or otherwise compelled to step down. In the corporate world this would be a fairly big deal as the woman was an employee of the Mayor. So why does the Mayor who claim accountability not really hold himself accountable? February 02
Looks like the ever-funny Bob Simms is getting his 15 minutes:
http://www.greatwriting.co.uk/content/section/3/67/
Mr. Simms you see should be writing an editorial for the New Yorker, but instead his love of T-SQL statements and other such nonsense apparently is too strong. Here is one that hopes Mr. Simms can one day enter the American British Idol: Spoken Word Edition. I never get tired of responding to messages with custom Achievement pitcures.
Too much fun.
I love these guys – the marketers that deal in personal information. They are so crafty. I love that they openly declare they will be selling your personal information to anyone and everyone in their “Privacy Statement” which in their case should be called “a lack of privacy statement.” I saw this one today – it is great:
Valentine's Day Gift Giving Report
The “Privacy Statement” boldly declares:
“You might be a marketer's dream, but if you do not want to receive on a regular basis ads or opportunities (such as to take surveys), or if you are not comfortable with having us transfer your PII to TPGs and numerous TPMs, or with having them possibly transfer it to still more people, then this Site is not for you and you should exit now.”
Really, does anyone but me read Privacy Statements?
Ben Ever wanted to put normal household objects in the blender? Me too. Of course you could not use you average Hamilton Beach cheapy from the close-out shelf at Target - you would need a V8 rocket blender. If you are already drooling at the prospects of such a creation of the divine - yeah baby - the game is on.
As a side note - who know that a company could sell $900 blenders? Must be one kick-ass blender.
Enjoy this week's WSOTW - much props to the good people at Blendtec for not only inventing the V8 rocket blender, but also to think like 13 year olds.
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