Category: Domestic Affairs,

Hillary Clinton is imperfect but the only choice for president: Editorial | NOLA.com

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Gulf Coast Region,Leave a comment

…For New Orleanians, perhaps the most compelling contrast between Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton is his intolerance and her inclusiveness. New Orleans has diversity in its DNA. A president who routinely degrades African-Americans, Hispanics, Muslims and women could not, and would not, represent us.

Our nation is divided. Healing it will require strength, emotional intelligence and respect for all people’s humanity and dignity. We don’t believe Hillary Clinton is everything America needs in a president. But we have no doubt that she is the best choice on the 2016 ballot to move the country forward.

Hillary Clinton is imperfect but the only choice for president: Editorial | NOLA.com

hmmm

Amy Goodman Is Facing Jail Time for Reporting on the Dakota Access Pipeline. That Should Scare Us All. 

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Update: Case dismissed! On Monday, October 17, District Judge John Grinsteiner rejected the riot charge that had been leveled against Amy Goodman for her coverage of a September 3rd Dakota Access Pipeline protest.

Amy Goodman Is Facing Jail Time for Reporting on the Dakota Access Pipeline. That Should Scare Us All. | The Nation

Good on that judge!

Retired four-star general pleads guilty to leaking classified info to media 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Media and Culture,, Military,Leave a comment

The former vice chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff pled guilty in federal court Monday, admitting he lied to the FBI when questioned about whether he provided two journalists with top secret information in 2012.

Retired four-star general pleads guilty to leaking classified info to media – CNNPolitics.com

hmmm

What Is Going On At The Border Isn’t Illegal Immigration. It’s Much Trickier.  

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, The Americas,Leave a comment

…This distinction between the shifting demographics at the border isn’t just semantics. It’s not so much an illegal immigration problem, but rather, a steady stream of asylum-seekers.

U.S. officials have known for years that a significant number of Central American migrants are actually turning themselves in at Border Patrol stations and begging for protection. And because they’re asylum-seekers, agents can’t simply turn them away or immediately deport them. The United States has a legal obligation to accept the thousands of migrants until their asylum claims are processed.

“It’s not just economic migrants that are trying to get to the United States for a better living,” Meyer said. “The numbers constitute a high degree of people fleeing for their lives.”

The Obama administration initially responded ..by filling up immigrant detention centers with mothers and their children while their asylum claims were assessed.

The intention was to swiftly process and deport the detainees.

[Authorities found] …that the vast majority of the detained families passed the first of many tests on their asylum applications — more than 86 percent of immigrants held in family detention showed a “credible fear” of returning to their home countries, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. It meant they could remain in the United States to follow their applications to the end.

Illegal Immigration Is Changing. Border Security Is Still Catching Up – NBC News

hmmm

Trump’s Talk of a Rigged Vote is Dangerous to Democracy

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

His accusations alone, experts say, could inflict long-standing damage on the US political system itself by eroding trust in the probity of the electoral process.

Ever since a weary George Washington rode home to Mount Vernon in 1797, American democracy has rested on a cherished principle: the transfer of power from an outgoing president to a successor widely seen as legitimate.

“The most important thing in the system is that the winners win and the losers lose,” said Mark Braden, former chief counsel of the Republican National Committee. “Almost as important as that is that the rational people that support the loser believes that the winner won.”

…Trump’s repeated claims that the election is already being rigged are the electoral equivalent of the nuclear option.

Essentially, he is saying in advance that the election is illegitimate rather than challenging the results after signs of wrongdoing once the votes are counted.

…Meanwhile, pressure is rising on key Republicans to repudiate Trump’s claims.

Election 2016: Why Trump’s talk of a rigged vote is so dangerous – CNNPolitics.com

hmmmm

FBI and State Department say there was no quid pro quo over Clinton email 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

“Not only is there no proof. It’s absolutely not true, a completely false allegation. It just didn’t happen that way,” John Kirby, State Department spokesman told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on “New Day” Tuesday. “There was no bargain sought by the FBI. There was no bargain rendered. This was simply an inner agency conversation about the classification over one particular email. So there was no wrongdoing here.”

At issue are somewhat contradictory interview notes contained in the crop of newly released FBI documents. In one, an FBI official recounted hearing second-hand that the State Department had offered a “quid pro quo” in exchange for declassifying an email. In another, a different FBI official said he told State Department he’d look into the email, if State Department looked into his request for personnel in Iraq.

…But another interview contained in the same collection said that though Kennedy reached out to FBI about declassifying the email, it was the FBI that brought up getting agents stationed in Iraq.

FBI and State Department say there was no quid pro quo over Clinton email – CNNPolitics.com

 

Two take-aways here.

One: Sounds like typical interdepartmental bullshit to me.

Two: Especially in light of the first take-way, the FBI sound like a bunch of little whiners who are tattling on people for something they engaged in themselves.

Melania Trump Says Attacks on Bill Clinton Are Justified: ‘They’re Asking For It’ 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Chick Stuff,, Domestic Affairs,Leave a comment

Melania Trump Says Attacks on Bill Clinton Are Justified: ‘They’re Asking For It’ – ABC News

 

Using the phrase, “asking for it” when discussing potential sexual assaults is a little weird. Does her keeper know she is she speaking to the press? Perhaps it might be more humane to just give her another does and put her back in the gilded cage….

Mich. cops fatally shoot man who authorities say shot at them

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,Leave a comment

A Michigan police officer fatally shot a man who authorities say had opened fire early Tuesday.

Mich. cops fatally shoot man who authorities say shot at them – NY Daily News

A badge is not a license to kill.

Whether or not this  – as it appears to be – cold blooded murder the cops involved shouldn’t be on the street. Eight shots to take down one person? they are a reckless danger to the community. For the protection of the citizens the officers involved need to be benched if not removed from the force.

6 years after Deepwater Horizon oil spill, thousands of people are still sick 

On By peanutgallerynhIn Environment,, Gulf Coast Region,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

The oil spill, the worst in maritime history, dumped 4.2 million barrels of oil, and officials released 1.8 million gallons of Corexit, a chemical dispersant used to break up the oil, into the Gulf before the well was sealed. Six years later, controversy still rages about the wisdom of carpet-bombing the Gulf with these chemicals, and newly released documents reveal that government scientists expressed concern at the time about the health consequences of mixing such large quantities of dispersants with the millions of barrels of sweet crude. Occupational health experts now believe it created a toxic mix that sickened thousands of locals — including some of the 47,000 people that worked in some capacity on BP’s cleanup operation — crippling them with chemically induced illnesses that doctors are unable to treat.

…“That set off alarms,” recalls Porter, who came to the bleak conclusion that he was being sickened simply by being in the water. He found out later that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration wouldn’t allow its divers in the contaminated waters, according to documents obtained by the Government Accountability Project.

…Combining dispersants with oil unleashes hazardous substances contained in crude, such as heavy metals, benzene, hexane, and toluene, which are known carcinogens that can also cause brain damage. Dispersants like Corexit are a mixture of solvents and surfactants that break down the oil into tiny droplets to make them more easily absorbed into the ground and eaten by microorganisms. But it also makes the toxic parts of the oil small enough to seep through the skin and spread throughout the body.

…Even in May 2010, in the first few weeks of the cleanup, government scientists were already worried about this toxic brew, newly released documents reveal.

…Both the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and BP insist that Corexit itself is as safe as dishwashing liquid; the ingredients in the dispersants are also found in household cleaners, hand lotion, and cosmetics. But the safety manual put out by Nalco, the maker of Corexit, lists some of these chemicals’ health effects: chemical pneumonia, eye irritations, dermatitis, nausea, and internal bleeding. One type of Corexit even contains butoxyethanol, which has been linked to a host of hazards, including respiratory ills, headaches, infertility in women, and miscarriages.
6 years after Deepwater Horizon oil spill, thousands of people are still sick | Grist

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Ruth Bader Ginsburg apologizes for criticizing Colin Kaepernick’s anthem protest

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Media and Culture,, Race,Leave a comment

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has apologized for criticizing the national anthem protests by 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and other athletes.

…”Some of you have inquired about a book interview in which I was asked how I felt about Colin Kaepernick and other NFL players who refused to stand for the national anthem,” Ginsburg’s statement read. “Barely aware of the incident or its purpose, my comments were inappropriately dismissive and harsh. I should have declined to respond.”

Ruth Bader Ginsburg apologizes for criticizing Colin Kaepernick’s anthem protest

 

hmmmm