Update from the Heartland
No.605
15.7.13 – 21.7.13
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
To all,
The follow-up news items:
-- Another relevant and important observation regarding the
on-going NSA TS-SCI PRISM warrantless surveillance program [599 & sub]:
“Keeping the NSA in Perspective”
by George Friedman
STRATFOR – Geopolitical Weekly
Published: Tuesday, July 16, 2013 - 04:01
-- An excellent, unofficial animation of the Asiana 214
landing accident [603, 604]:
-- Everyone likes to proclaim the jury has spoken in the
Zimmerman trial [604], yet we have
every talking head blathering about everything except the verdict. Our favorite race-baiter Reverend Al
Sharpton has instigated nationwide protests demanding “Justice for Trayvon”
with the clear message that the verdict was not justice, not reasonable, and
otherwise not acceptable. The
Martin family is considering a wrongful death suit, and the Federales are considering a civil rights case against
Zimmerman, which is groundless based on the public evidence. Then, we have President Obama and
Attorney General Holder giving us various versions of the
there-but-for-the-grace-of-God rationale for using the Zimmerman trial and
verdict to press home the assault on Stand Your Ground laws and gun
control. Zimmerman is the
convenient scapegoat for the larger political agenda. [Please note other opinions in the Comments Section below.]
Another
perspective regarding the Biblical text with respect to homosexuality:
“The Problem of Homophobia in Leviticus, and How Genesis
Solves It”
by Rabbi Michael Rothbaum (Rabbi/educator, Beth Chaim
Congregation, Danville, California)
Huffington Post
Posted: 07/10/2013; 3:45 pm
News from the economic front:
-- The People’s Republic of China (PRC) 2Q2013 Gross Domestic
Product (GDP) rose 7.5% compared with a year earlier, the second straight
quarterly slowdown for the world’s No. 2 economy.
London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (LIBOR)
Debacle [552]:
-- The U.K.’s Serious Fraud Office charged two former RP
Martin Holdings brokers –Terry Farr and James Gilmour – with offenses of
conspiracy to defraud in connection with the manipulation of LIBOR. They were arrested on 11.December.2012, and
will face trial at Westminster Magistrates' Court.
Comments
and contributions from Update no.604:
“Thanks as always Cap. Sitting 'out back' having some lunch
under a sun brolly temp running at 28degs C. 82F on old money.
“Interesting comments on Asiana flt. 214. Even flying a
glider solo you always remain very aware of approach speeds and rate of descent
inputs. There is no going around
again. Full stop. We shall have to see dear boy. (Anglo Saxon speak).”
My reply:
Nice
to hear y’all are enjoying summer while it is there. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Re:
Asiana 214. Indeed! Every pilot is taught (although some
pilots fail to learn) that you fly the aircraft first, then worry about other
things. There were four qualified
pilots in the cockpit that morning, no known mechanical or navigation issues,
and they were all apparently so far behind the airplane they were virtually out
of control. There has been a lot
of discussion about the effects of culture on the crew’s performance. If so, Asiana has a lot of re-education
to do. The airline will not be on
my list of acceptable air transport companies, for myself or my family.
Another contribution:
“I concur that the jury did its job- the prosecution did not
prove its case…it did a poor job, but was hindered by the FL laws (see below)_
and the facts (or lack thereof) in the case. It was a viable case, and I
believe could have resulted in a manslaughter conviction if pressed better.
“There is another side to the Martin tragedy- that a
teenager, walking peacefully to his father’s home, after going to a convenience
store and buying candy and ice tea, is killed by a wanna-be cop who followed
him- simply because of his color. That we know- he was profiled by
Zimmerman, an aspect that shouldn’t be ignored. He had a history of
this..according to the NY Post “George
Zimmerman has placed at least 46 calls to 911 in the last eight years. In the
last year, his calls focused on blacks in his gated community”.
“Remember what Zimmerman told the
dispatcher "Fucking punks," Zimmerman told the police dispatcher
that night. "These assholes. They always get away."
“We probably will never know what
really happened- we only have Zimmerman’s version, but if Zimmerman had
followed the police dispatcher’s advice (and why did he call the PD in the
first place), this would not have happened. And maybe the fact that
Zimmerman got a gun and was made a watch volunteer over his neighborhood should
be questioned in light of his past history, which includes assault on a police
officer and other violence. There is a reason that several police agencies did
not hire him as a policeman, and it is understood that he tried with several
jurisdictions. One cop wrote that once he blew his polygraph, (never got to his
physical, which is another issue), he was blacklisted.
“Joe Scarborough wrote today in
Politico the following, which pretty much echoes my thoughts (and I don’t
always agree with him, esp on military affairs).
“The Trayvon Martin case
highlights more than the flaws of Florida law or the inadequacies of courtroom
justice. It also paints in vivid display the vulgar state of American political
culture. ... The Zimmerman verdict showed just how politicized every speck of
American life has become for a hyper-partisan political class that has little
in common with most Americans. In fact, they are probably why most Americans
hate politics. ... I am angry that George Zimmerman could chase a teenager through
his neighborhood, ignore a dispatcher's pleas, make racially charged
statements, provoke a confrontation with a young man armed only with Skittles,
and pull the trigger that ended that teenager's life, only to walk away without
as much as a misdemeanor attached to his name.
“‘But I also know that the
laws of Florida favored the
defense, that the prosecution overreached in its efforts to convict Zimmerman
on a second-degree murder charge, and that we will never know which man was
screaming for help in the moments that George Zimmerman killed Trayvon Martin.’
“Yes, Zimmerman will be facing a
permanent impact over this for the rest of his life- he should. That’s life-acts have consequences- and
had he exercised better judgment, then he wouldn’t be facing a life of looking
over his shoulder. Ironically, his brother decries the possibility of
Zimmerman facing vigilante action- when Zimmerman’s own actions can be seen as
just that. And his wife will be going to trial soon on a charge of perjury-
related to lying to the court about the couple’s finances. She may well
go to jail for hard time (and courts deal very seriously with
perjury-especially to a judge’s questions) and he remains free of
custody- but not free of consequences.”
My response:
We
agree at the outset. The presented
facts did not support second-degree murder, and I think the prosecutors knew
it. The source of that error was
above them. We debated the verdict
at our family gathering last Sunday.
Daughter-in-law believes he was guilty of second-degree murder. Youngest son thought manslaughter. I think the only realistic shot they
had, given the facts as we knew them before trial, was involuntary
manslaughter. It is telling that
the local police and prosecutors did not see the case, based on the facts they
collected. This was a political
trial for public consumption, in my humble opinion.
The
portrayal of Trayvon Martin as a peaceful innocent boy simply out on an evening
stroll for a bag of Skittles, who was accosted by a racist, wannabe cop with
murder in his heart, is just flat wrong and not supported by the facts.
Could
it be that all those 911 calls were in fact correct, and the dark skin
pigmentation of the suspects was simply reality? The “punks” and “assholes” monikers had no color, but
certainly reflected frustration with law enforcement protection (or lack of
same) for his neighborhood.
Sure,
if Zimmerman had stayed in the car, the chain of events might have been
broken. Likewise, if Martin had
simply kept walking rather than turning to confront Zimmerman, the chain might
have been broken as well.
Zimmerman had just as much right to that sidewalk that night as Martin
did; let us not forget that fact.
I
do not agree with your assessment of Zimmerman’s worthiness for Neighborhood
Watch. He cared about his
community, which is more than I can say about a lot of folks. We live on a good-size lake with a
walkway around it and none of it lighted.
We have had a number of burglaries in the area. I have confronted a number of people
seen loitering on that walk at night.
So far, they have all been kids.
But, they could easily be someone more nefarious. When I do investigate, I assume they
are bad men, and I do not go unarmed.
Does that make me a bad person?
I
do not agree with Joe Scarborough’s assessment.
We
condemn Zimmerman’s judgment. Why
do we not condemn Martin’s judgment?
He was a direct party to the result. Why do we assume Martin is exactly as he is portrayed, and
we assume exactly the opposite for Zimmerman?
I
simply do not see Martin as the innocent he is portrayed to be in popular
mythology. Crump’s public
statement is a travesty and an insult to the memory of Emmett Till and Medgar
Evers, beyond the reverse-racism implicit in his choice of words.
All
that said, I have been and remain an outspoken advocate for equal rights
including equal protection under the law for ALL citizens regardless of any one
or combination of the social factors – age, gender, race, ethnicity, political
affiliation, religion, sexual orientation or disability. However, some of this nonsense is going
too far. These protests are not
helping their cause, in my humble opinion. While I want all citizens to enjoy freedom and equal rights,
I will NOT be intimidated or cowed by a small segment of our society simply
because they have dark skin pigmentation and I have a paucity of such
protection.
Contribution to the
Blog:
“Glenn Greenwald has “assumed the role . . .” rather than
“assumed the roll. . .” And either everything or nothing is personal. If you
see nothing personal in PRISM and similar Big Brother operations, I doubt you
are paying attention.
“What makes the Zimmerman protesters “anarchists” rather
than socialists, racists, or an angry mob? Anarchy is a defined position, and
anarchists support that position. These protesters support more government
intervention, not less as the anarchists do. Let us be correct in our name-calling.
“As far as the position argued, Zimmerman had failed at
becoming a policeman and ignored the instructions of those who had succeeded.
He then acted on groundless suspicions and a young man died because of that.
Had he done his duty as he had been trained to do, none of this would have
happened. His acquittal makes any street suffering from a Neighborhood Watch or
similar group less safe because of others like him. Any number of other wannabe
police will now feel free to act on their misguided opinions. I have seen a
local Neighborhood Watch group patrolling a neighborhood near where I lived.
They were not impressive. In fact, they did not even know how to ride bicycles
safely or legally, much less apprehend people who might be criminals. My best
guess is that they represent many others. I would rather the court had not
empowered them to make more mistakes.”
My response to the
Blog:
OMG,
how embarrassing! You are, of
course, precisely correct. I will
at least correct the on-line version tonight. I cannot fix the text already sent. However, I can apologize for my
literary faux pas. Thank you for
the catch.
Re:
personal. That was not the context
of my comment. Yes, of course, we
must all remain vigilant and critical.
My use of the word personal in the context of Greenwald’s words and
action are beginning to suggest he is no longer simply reporting on events but
rather as an agent provocateur.
Re:
Zimmerman protests. My comment /
opinion arises from the observation that most, if not all, of the protests were
peaceful, somber affairs with lots of signs and shouting. The images of hooded men / boys
smashing a government vehicle and starting fires are quite reminiscent of other
public protests that were co-opted by a violent minority. Yes, the protesters are seeking more
government, but the violent elements seek no government, survival of the
fittest, which is quite akin to anarchy.
Bottom line, I have no idea what those violent boys were thinking or
even whether they had a political objective or agenda, but to me, they are
virtual duplicates of others before them; thus, my opinion and comment.
Re:
Zimmerman trial. Your
representation is a popular one both with the Press, media and those so
inclined. I see the facts
presented in court in a fundamentally different way. Regardless, the death of Trayvon Martin was tragic no matter
how we cut it. What has and will
happen to George Zimmerman is equally tragic in my mind. Yes, mistakes were made, but both of
them had a right to be where they were that night. However, the portrayal of Trayvon Martin as this innocent
boy just getting some Skittles who was murdered by a blood-thirsty racist,
wannabe cop simply does not match the facts. Trayvon Martin escalated the events that night, in my
opinion. Zimmerman was getting the
crap beat out of him and he did what had to be done. Could either of them have avoided the fatal conclusion? Yes, absolutely. O.J. Simpson killed Nicole Brown and
Ron Goldman. Trayvon Martin caused
the violent confrontation that resulted in his unfortunate death. Yet, bottom line: “That’s just my
opinion, but I could be wrong.”
. . . follow-up comment:
“I guess the distinction in the Trayvon Martin case is cause
and effect. It is a fact that Neighborhood Watch members are not police
officers and are trained never to attempt an apprehension or confrontation. Had
Zimmerman followed that training we would not be discussing him today.”
. . . my follow-up comment:
Indeed! The problem in this case is, we do not
know whether Zimmerman followed his training. We have insufficient evidence beyond a reasonable doubt to
prove it either way; thus, the jury did what had to be done according to the
law. It is just as likely that Martin
was the actual aggressor, who escalated the situation to violence. None of us will ever know. However, the available evidence
suggests that Martin was the aggressor with an unfortunate outcome for him.
“That’s just my opinion, but I could be wrong.”
A comment from another
contributor:
“I think I mentioned it when this all started but now as
more and more information comes out as to who/what is behind the push to jail
Zimmerman, fire the police chief, bring in DOJ influence, get the Manager of
Divisiveness-Sharpton to push for demonstrations before, during, and after the
trial, and have the President weigh in on the subject, Holder to continue to
speak out about justice – it is all about how does the present administration
push harder to further an agenda of control over the undermining and
elimination of the 2nd amendment. The Stand Your Ground defense was never used during the
trial but was always brought up by the DOJ before, during, and now after the
trial. The SYG and the upcoming Treaty on small arms control, the push by the
DOJ to examine “self-defense laws”, and the call to reduce violent crime have
nothing or little to do with justice in the recent case but everything to do
with stronger gun control laws.
“Listen to the rhetoric and observe who is in the
background.”
My reply:
I
tend to agree. Race, self-defense
laws, gun control – a liberal smorgasbord – were all the real issue behind this
case. Zimmerman was simply the
conduit for the political agenda.
The signs are too obvious.
We shall soon see how this plays out.
My very best wishes to all. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
2 comments:
The notion that the 9-11 event compares to Pearl Harbor (your linked article) is ludicrous. Had 9-11 been treated as the criminal act it was, the USA would not be in this mess. The Oklahoma City bombing and numerous other precedents going back to Roman times give us the appropriate context for dealing with such incidents. Now we have given the worst elements of government an excuse to remove all civil rights worldwide. Of course, much of the world will not go along with that, which aggravates an already ugly situation.
The Zimmerman trial and its aftermath go on and on, of course. The use of wrongful death suits to bring consequences in situations such as this is not unusual. I will point out here again the hazards of using untrained citizens for police functions. My belief is that this and future incidents will reveal that Neighborhood Watches and other neighborhood snooping activities do more harm than good. We simply cannot rely on random people to control others’ actions. That opportunity draws too many George Zimmermans. “Caring about his community” is not nearly enough qualification, as we have seen.
I will assure you that I or any of my five brothers would have responded similarly to Trayvon Martin if someone had followed us in our youth through the streets of our little town. If we had died in the ensuing incident, someone would have been convicted, assuming they lived long enough to be apprehended by law enforcement rather than the other brothers. We are white.
I will address Biblical issues about homophobia only to the extent of reminding all and sundry that United States law is not, or should not be, based on any given form of religion. I am not a part of the Abrahamic religions and will not address their internal quarrels.
Calvin,
Re: 9/11 vs. Pearl Harbor. Both events were coordinated mass attacks on the United States by international agents. To equate the Murrah Building attack with 9/11 seems to be a much farther stretch to me. The USG has not “removed all civil rights worldwide.” I understand, acknowledge and accept that 9/11 and al-Qa’ida present unique ambiguities, especially in the light of a rather minimalist response by Congress with both AUMF laws, but they were properly enacted and executed laws nonetheless. Exaggeration does not extend the public debate.
Re: Neighborhood Watch. I do agree. It is a watch, i.e., be attentive to who is soliciting or traipsing through your neighborhood. It is not law enforcement. If we do not care for our communities, who will? The police are not sufficient in number to protect everyone all the time. Snooping is much more than watch; snooping involves an invasion of privacy or property. I do not support any snooping.
Re: Zimmerman. The portrayal of George as some gunslinger intent upon murder and denying freedom of movement to Trayvon is wrong, in every way and not supported by facts. Trayvon did not need to die, but I believe he instigated his death; he battered George without consideration that he could be armed. Fortunately for George, he was armed and probably saved his life.
Re: followed. As with you and your brothers, I am attentive to what goes on around me. There are peaceful, non-violent ways to deal with being followed. Trayvon’s choice was not one of those methods.
Re: Judeo-Christian morality. I agree with your observation. I will simply add that our forefathers chose to codify their morality in common law. While some of that morality is appropriate, e.g., murder, theft, endangerment, et cetera, the portions that deal with private conduct are wrong and contrary to the principles of the Declaration and the laws set forth in the Constitution; but, those private morality laws remain on the books and are enforced by zealous, sanctimonious prosecutors. This is my crusade . . . to get government out of our private lives and affairs.
“That’s just my opinion, but I could be wrong.”
Cheers,
Cap
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