The response of many to rodeo-clown-gate has been over the top. I, personally, do not like any political antics at public events. So, almost never am I up for public political parody. You couldn't get away from it when Bush was president. The outspoken people who were all about vile personal attack during the Bush era are the speech and thought nazis of the Obama era.
Then and now, personal nonsense substitutes for substantive reasoning.
It is a tradition to lampoon public officials in countries where the government cannot abridge free speech. That limit is specifically there so the government cannot stifle criticism or expressions of discontent. It needs to be done regularly so we can see where we stand in keeping government at bay in its lust to usurp basic rights and stifle opposition. Like testing boards as you cross a wooden bridge--maybe the one to the 21t century that Bill Clinton built.
When organizations play shill, and useful idiots leap at the opportunity to play victim on behalf of an oppressive government, it gets kind of creepy.
The National Association for the Advancement of Cerebral Paralysis thinks wearing an Obama mask is a hate crime. Because Obama is black. I'm not sure if DOJ and other jackboot agencies took heed but NAACP is calling for all sorts of probes into this rodeo clown's life; to ferret out civil rights violations or maybe a dislike of blacks. The head of NAACP in Missouri thinks discrimination, as in I don't like you, is illegal. Well, only if it is a black person being parodied and not being admired. That woman is clearly so steeped in racism, and her job depends upon controversy-real or not--that she has thrown basic logic and reason out the window. Facts be damned!!! I'm a victim. Because I say so.
You do not have to go far to find people in NAACP who dislike whites, and who make statements which affirm that preference. Not a crime in my mind. It is not even a crime when black comedians stereotype and lampoon whites. It is crime to lampoon the president if he is black and you aren't.
Actually, if a black criticizes or makes fun of Obama, he is obviously not black inside. How can a black think independently and be black? That seems to be the way some people believe. Idiots. How much credence would any white be given who used that argument and bully tactics on whites? Those who try are hard to find and have no audience. Not so the bully blacks who demand that all blacks think the same. They have the support of Chris Matthews and other horses' asses who think so little of blacks that it makes sense to them that independent thinking would get you shunned in "the black community". I live in the rabbit and coyote community.
The absolute absurdity of the reasoning is sad. I can see objecting to something, but don't pretend it is a federal crime. It is not.
I do not like most of that type of parody, but so what? This hyper sensitivity to imagined horrors is nothing but a grab for power and attention. It is also a clear affront to free speech.
People pretend because everyone fears the racist label, or the Uncle Tom label. Too bad they don't fear the pretending moron label more.
Sometimes I don't like white people or black people. Everyone has the right to like or dislike anyone or any group. At least in my view. It is what you do with these preferences that matters. I do not count making jokes or avoiding those you dislike as anything that calls for governmental scrutiny. Not in a free country. Or a sane one.
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Here's a surprise: I think it is a waste of time and money sending Jesse, Jr. to jail. Why not make him ineligible for any government job, elected office, grant, or contract, and work out some kind of restitution plan. He spent money that wasn't his, he can spend it back, even if he has to work a minimum wage job and pay $10 per week. In the private market, I'm guessing his skill set is not in great demand.
He was dealt a very light sentence, relative to what he could have received. I am not big on sending people to jail when the crime is not a violent one. Focussing on restitution and amends makes far more sense. The US is way too cage crazy. Lock 'em up!!! It is rarely a worthwhile solution.
The public loses because it costs more to keep people in jail than many of us make in a year. The victims lose because their losses are rarely recouped. And the perp loses because he is now living in the world of prison, which means the riffraff make the rules, more or less. Unlikely that the perp won't be just as defective upon release.
The other way, if they don't cooperate with the restitution plan, just drop them off in gangland with a toy gun, and unpopular colors for that region. e.g., red bandana in the 'hood that only accepts blue.
Anyway, I am not a fan of the Jacksons or their tendency to use racial extortion tactics and double standards, but I would not have sent them to prison. It will do no one a shred of good, and it is expensive. I hate the prison set up so much, I wouldn't even send people I don't like up the river.
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A friend had a swamp cooler stored away. She traded it to me for some work on a bench. It only uses about 80 watts, and works wonders. These things rely on fresh air because, otherwise the air inside becomes too humid for any cooling to occur. Work it right and it makes things very nice. I could not believe how nice and cool it was inside on this 90 deg., sunny day.
And I don't feel guilty, because I'm using no more power than I was pre-swamp cooler. If it is hot and humid, you are out of luck. It is rarely very humid here when it is hot. Forget using one of these east of the Mississippi, or even close to that far east. One of the blessings of the west---there is so much desert and the humidity is low enough for evaporative cooling to mean something.
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Can't make comments any easier, I don't think. People are having trouble--google tries to kidnap them. I'll loosen up one more thing and let's see. Please give it a try