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The Harassment And Bullying Of Anthony Weiner By New York Media: Disgraceful!

Ronald Leave a comment

The New York media has always been more difficult and aggressive than most other media, but what they have just done to former Congressman Anthony Weiner is totally disgraceful!

The New York Daily News and the New York Post, both well known for being “rags” rather than reputable journalism, destroyed Anthony Weiner, harrassed, hounded, and bullied him to the extreme, sensationalized his faults and misdeeds to such an extent that it was literally impossible for him to survive in office!

Did Anthony Weiner conduct himself in a proper fashion on the internet, on Twitter and Facebook? Obviously, NO, but did his sins deserve the kind of mistreatment that he suffered?

The author thinks other politicians have conducted themselves in far worse fashion and have not been assaulted in such a vicious way!

And the fact that his party, the Democratic Party, also brought such great pressure on him is very different than what the Republican Party does with its transgressors! And in so doing, we have lost a major progressive voice for the middle and lower classes!

No one is saying to give Anthony Weiner a free ride, and overlook his faults, but if his district wanted him to stay, that should have been the ultimate decision maker!

So, as suggested yesterday by the author, Anthony Weiner, IF he is willing to do it, should announce for the special election, and leave it to the people to decide in his district, as to whether they want him back or not. Democracy should rule, not the reckless and insulting behavior of the New York media, best defined as TRASH!

The Democratic Party Image Hurt By John Edwards And Anthony Weiner: Is Either Political Party Able To Avoid Scandal And Effectively Govern The Nation?

Ronald 1 Comment

Just as the Democratic Party has been able to celebrate the gaining of Congressional District 26 in upstate New York in a special election to fill the seat of Republican Chris Lee, who resigned over a bare chest pic on the internet, they are beset by the indictment of former Senator John Edwards on misuse of Presidential campaign contributions to cover up his illicit relationship and the fathering of a child, and now by Congressman Anthony Weiner for his Twitter, Facebook, and internet conversations and pics that could best be described as raunchy!

But then the Republican Party has also had its ups and downs, and it seems a constant battle for each political party to stay above water in public opinion image!

That is why many often express willingness to be independent and have nonpartisans in public office, to do what is best for the American people.

But that is, unfortunately, not the history of political parties since the time of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, and the reality is that the American people, by overwhelming numbers and the system mechanics that are in place, will continue to make a choice between candidates of the two major parties, and if dissatisfied, throw the “rascals” out on a regular basis.

The only problem with that will be the lack of institutional experience if there is constant turnover, and a group of “rookies” taking over and leaving every few years.

The question will have to be answered whether we are going to expect “perfect” people in public office, or realize the weaknesses of human nature and stop expecting our political leadership to come across as saintly, when even religious leadership and other fields of high respect produce many imperfect people.

Do we want mediocre people in office, as long as they are somehow utopian and seemingly perfect in their behavior, or are we willing to accept that the “great” people in public office, from the time of Benjamin Franklin to Bill Clinton and beyond, have “skeletons in the closet”?

The Anthony Weiner Disaster: No Solution Is Good!

Ronald Leave a comment

New York Congressman Anthony Weiner, admired by many for his willingness to fight for his principles, and hated by Republicans because of his strong attacks on their party and its policies, has put himself in an impossible position by his involvement in “sexting” on Twitter, Facebook, and on email.

For a member of Congress to be involved in a sex scandal is nothing new, unfortunately, but his lies and deceit for a week make his finally “coming clean” much more problematical. It is sad how a talented politician can be so self destructive, and can risk his career, and his new marriage, all because he has no self control over his sexual urges.

Should Weiner resign? Some would say yes, and others would say no, but some politicians have stuck it out, and have survived, such as Senator David Vitter of Louisiana, and President Bill Clinton. Of course, many more have quit under the pressure, and the intensity of the attacks, and a planned investigation by the House Ethics Committee, and the lack of public support by his Democratic colleagues are telling signs of his likely failure to be able to stay in office and leave it to the citizens of his congressional district to decide his fate.

In fact, his seat is likely to be disappearing during reapportionment of seats in the House of Representatives, with the fact that two congressional districts will be eliminated for the state of New York in any case.

So, sadly, Weiner, who once hoped to run for NYC Mayor, is probably doomed and likely to be forced out soon. Public scrutiny of public figures makes one realize that if he or she cannot keep his behavior within norms, then his or her humiliation and embarrassment is legion, so expect Weiner to resign under fire very soon as another victim of his own shortcomings!

A Day Of Historic Proportions: Egypt’s Revolution Triumphs!

Ronald Leave a comment

Today is a day of celebration for Egypt, the Middle East, and the whole world.

The peaceful overthrow of Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak in a democratic non violent revolution is a cause for euphoria, and it gives a warning to the other Middle East autocracies, and dictatorship everywhere, including Iran and North Korea. It is a followup of the liberation of Eastern Europe in 1989, symbolized by the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The power of social media, which cannot be easily controlled or monitored, is a method by which the masses can express their desires and lead to removal of despots. No one could have imagined the impact of Facebook and Twitter on the events that transpired in Egypt. Imagine, that in 18 days, Egypt transformed, and a thirty year dictatorship collapsed.

Egypt has now experienced two events of massive proportions that took 18 days to develop–this present revolution, and the Yom Kippur War where Anwar Sadat defeated Israel and took some land back in 1973 from the earlier 1967 Six Day War, but yet moved toward American friendship soon after and eventually to a peace agreement with Israel, including recognition of Israel, and a joint Nobel Peace Prize for Sadat and Israel’s leader, Menachem Begin.

This is also a moment to salute President Barack Obama, who handled this historic crisis deftly, supporting the masses of Egypt and pressuring Mubarak in private, while using carefully crafted language in public. No one could have handled this crisis better, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates did a fantastic job in assisting him and others to deal with this transforming event. This will go down as one of his greatest triumphs in the Presidency!

Even better, Barack Obama comes across as a hero to ordinary Egyptians, and by his open minded attitude to the Muslim world, he makes us a safer nation, but with full awareness that there are radical Muslim enemies who wish this nation ill, but diplomacy is essential if there is ever to be a potential for long term peace in the 21st century world!

Arkansas School Board Member Clint McCance MUST Be Removed For Anti Gay Hate Mongering! :(

Ronald 1 Comment

Clint McCance, the Vice President of the School Board of the Midland school district in northern Arkansas, who claims to be a “good Christian” has stirred up a tremendous outrage among decent people by issuing an anti gay tirade on his Facebook account! 🙁

Calling gays “fags” and “queers”, McCance asserted that he is disgusted that there is so much sympathy being expressed for gay kids who have committed suicide in recent weeks!

He said it would be best that all gays commit suicide, and that it was good that gays cannot procreate!

He also said that if his kids were gay, he would disown them, but that they were aware that they could not expect his love and support, were they to reveal themselves as gay!

It is horrible enough that such an excuse for a human being exists, and that he would treat his own children in such a despicable way, were they to be gay!

But it is absolutely unacceptable for such a hate monger and bigot to be involved on a school board which deals with the growth and development of children and adolescents, with the certainty that some are already, or will discover that they are gay!

No school board should contain people who promote such hate and narrow mindedness!

There must be a recall movement to remove this scum from the school board! Find another career, Mr. McCance, but not around children who will become your victims, and not around children who will feel they have an endorsement to bully other adolescents who might be gay!

What a disgrace and a commentary on supposedly “good Christians” who promote hate and prejudice in the name of Jesus Christ, who would not approve of such behavior!

Death Threats Against Barack Obama: Is Racism A Contributing Factor?

Ronald Leave a comment

The news that Facebook had someone, who was a subscriber, set up a poll on whether President Obama should be killed, is a danger sign of how far we have gone in an irresponsible way in our public rhetoric, and radio talk show hosts share a great amount of responsibility for this by inciting people with hateful, extremist language which provokes unstable people to the point that we have this outrageous development.

Of course, many will say that every President faces bitter attacks and has death threats, but we now know that the threats against the life of President Obama are 400 percent greater than against President Bush. This is occurring while Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck and their ilk call Obama a “racist”, “fascist”, “communist”, “socialist”, “muslim”, “terrorist”, and a Kenyan, not born in the United States.

Many would say there is no racism involved, but one has to differ, and say it is obvious that at least 30 percent of the nation, heavily Southern but not solely so, is unable to accept Obama because he is African American. Of course, Obama is not going to say this, but former President Jimmy Carter was correct in his assessment, as much as many people wanted to deny it and attack him for saying it.

This is a difficult time, with the highest unemployment numbers since the Great Depression, high numbers of foreclosures, more people in desperate circumstances than we have seen in seventy years, but it is not a justifiable reason for such a dramatic increase in death threats, unless one is willing to look in the mirror and admit that racism is the major factor.

Change is always scary and certainly contributes to a sense of insecurity that can create unrest. Certainly, also, African Americans can be as racist as whites can. No one is trying to say that whites are unique in their reactions, but in this case, with an African American President in office, and the obvious growth of websites attacking Obama, joined with the right wing media attacks being the worst they have ever been, we have to say that the point is being reached where freedom of speech is reaching a point of “drawing a line in the sand”.

The Schenck V US case of 1919 set up the idea of limits on freedom of speech–that one does not have the right to shout “fire in a crowded theatre and endanger others”, therefore–that if speech presents a “clear and present danger to others”, it can be prosecuted.

The incendiary talk show hosts have caused a lot of this problem, and Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck and their ilk will have blood on their hands if violence, god forbid, ensues against President Obama. It is time to tone down the rhetoric, gentlemen, and respect the office, if not the man, in the Presidency, and tell your listeners that it is time to desist from the promotion of hate and racism!