“The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. An evil soul producing holy witness Is like a villain with a smiling cheek, A goodly apple rotten at the heart. O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!” – The Merchant of Venice, Act I, Scene 3

The last time I checked, the ultimate authority on the law in the United States is the Constitution. In their quest for rationalizing cruel and unusual treatment of migrants, Trump’s officials have decided to bypass this document, claiming the moral high ground by using biblical verses.

There is a larger point besides the inappropriateness and sordid history of this particular verse, namely that the Attorney General has chosen to make a theocratic argument. I said it before, and I’ll say it again, creating a theocratic state is the ultimate goal of a majority of conservative Republicans in government.

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Advocates for traditional political parties all-too-often have a vested interest in convincing the public the next election is going to change the way things are. It’s understandable, I suppose, for them to want to keep the attention and donor dollars focused on their mission.

The reality is that elections don’t mean squat without other forms of political expression. Rallies, protests, educational events, letter writing, and plain ol’ organizing are what drive the electoral process. Voting –especially in the primaries– ultimately amounts to a bargaining session, where we’re asked to make choices somewhere between what’s desired and what’s doable.

I’ve noticed over the years the choices get better as the political noise gets louder.   [Read more…]

The latest victims of America’s gun madness are students at Santa Fe High School, about 30 miles outside of Houston, Texas. As I’m writing this, the death count is at ten, with more at local hospitals being treated for injuries. 

The shooter, who is in custody, was found with an AR-15 style rifle, a pistol, a shotgun, and pipe bombs.
 

Today’s outrage raises the count to twenty-two school shooting events in 2018. Ten of these have happened since the February massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.

Today’s outrage happened just one week after NRA President (and felon) Oliver North called the Parkland kids terrorists, and two weeks after Donald Trump and Mike Pence were shilling at the NRA convention and inciting violence.   [Read more…]

At an election rally in Indiana, this week supporters of the President were chanting “lock her up” as he went on stage, referring to his opponent in the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton. The pre-midterm event also including a suggestion from the stage that extending Trump’s presidency beyond two terms was a viable option.

Our environment is being fouled, the rule of law is being degraded, personal greed has replaced service to the nation, extremists and bigotry are venerated, and increasing oppression by race, gender, and class are the order of the day.  And, oh yeah, how’s that $1.50 a week in increased income from ‘tax reform’ doing when it comes to escalating insurance premiums (Trumpcare) and soaring gas prices (backing out of the Iran deal)?

Think the gas tax was bad? Just wait until you see what instability in the Middle East does to prices at the pump. Donald Trump’s name won’t be on the primary election ballot, but the names of his enablers will be.    [Read more…]

The Union-Tribune and Times of San Diego have both posted stories about a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit filed on Thursday.  A San Carlos Albertsons is alleged to have created a hostile work environment and harassed Hispanic employees by forbidding them from speaking Spanish on the premises, even to each other on break or to Spanish-speaking customers.

From the Times of San Diego:

Beginning in late 2012, the Albertsons store on Lake Murray Boulevard near Navajo Road prohibited employees from speaking Spanish around non-Spanish speakers, including when they spoke to Spanish-speaking customers and during breaks, the suit said.   [Read more…]