British General Parliamentary Elections, on May 7

Finally found the best source on American TV (C-SPAN Channel 738, via Charter-Spectrum) to follow the upcoming British general (parliamentary) elections, scheduled for May 7. Such a profound contrast to the softball treatment directed toward American candidates; the anchor asks real, pointed questions. The candidates are required to at least make an effort to answer his queries. When they don't, SKYTV's Jeremy Paxton keeps asking till he gets something like a satisfactory response. However, Mr. Paxton appeared to be much harder on Ed Miliband (Labour) than on David Cameron (Conservative). That kind of bias seems almost universal these days. Anyway, I was impressed by Mr. Miliband's poise, intelligence, and what seemed like his basic integrity. I'm going to "like" Ed Miliband, since that's all I can do on his behalf. Was pleased to discover during the televised debate (not live here) that Labour and Tories are running neck-and-neck, at least. I guess I just figured the Tories had "manufactured the consent," vis-a-vis the British corporate media, to coast to victory, even if it be a close one. I can only hope there is great disaffection amongst Britons regarding Conservative policies: Austerity, cuts to the social safety net; messing about with the National Health Service, etc. Go Ed! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a very large turnout come May 7th. (Here's a synopsis of the debate, from "The Independent;" couldn't find a link from SKYTV). http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/generalelection/general-election-tv-debate-the-real-winner-jeremy-paxman-10140318.html Also, coming up: http://www.c-span.org/video/?325021-1/british-political-party-leaders-preelection-debate

Bring the troops home from Afghanistan.... in 2045!

This doesn't surprise me. While I appreciate that the US presence is dramatically reduced from previous levels, I still take exception. Obama is the president who massively escalated the illegal US war against Afghanistan in 2009. Yet another flagrant violation of international law as well as the US Constitution. Nice move, Mr. President, you all-too-willing tool of the military industrial complex. http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/03/24/obama-announces-no-troop-withdrawal-afghanistan-2015

All Lives Matter

You will recall, or can find out by backtracking, that ONE thing I haven't done here is insist the Tony Robinson shooting was a race-based killing. Accordingly, below is another lengthy observation/opinion from my point of view. The commentary below might seem like a matter of "comparing apples and oranges" to some, or merely a digression to others. I saw the "Buddha Bus" across the street from the scene of Tony Robinson's killing last Friday. It had a massive sign on the top: "ALL LIVES MATTER." I couldn't agree more. I've made a good faith effort to judge this most controversial cop shooting case on the facts, as they are known thus far. You can read my previous, hopefully relevant commentary here on this page. But one thing I haven't said till now is just that: "All Lives Matter." I was one of those who protested vociferously after unarmed Paul Heenan was murdered by Officer Stephen Heimsness in November 2012. We protested to the mayor, to the common council, and to Madison's former police chief Noble Wray, who scandalously stonewalled a proper investigation of the case. There was at least one "Justice for Paulie" rally on the steps of the City-County Building. It was a good and spirited rally, but had a much smaller turnout than the demos of the last two+ weeks here in Madison. As hard as this is going to be for some of my Facebook friends to read, I can only conclude that the 'White Guilt," so conspicuous and widespread within Mad Town's "Progressive Community," had something to do with this month's massive protests. At least with respect to the Caucasians who showed up. After all, Paul Heenan was WHITE. It seems if you're White and feel sufficiently guilty and personally responsible for each and every evil historic deed committed by others, you'll probably make a special effort to turn out when it's a Black kid gets killed by the MPD. Rather that say, an innocent White or Hispanic. There's been a significant number of non-Blacks killed by Dane County law Enforcement, some under very questionable circumstances, within recent years. Yes I know, Blacks, especially young Black men are shot by cops at a wildly disproportionate rate. Still.... "ALL LIVES MATTER." https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Paulie-Heenan-Case-Advocacy-Timeline-Page/365447626897037

Still rather fact-starved concerning this shooting

Maybe I've gotten too cautious in my old age. I like to have some definitive, hopefully reliable information - up till now sorely lacking in this case - before I call anyone "Murderer." Even a two-time killer cop. So I'm still awaiting further information before I accuse Officer Kenny so explicitly. But Madison's mainstream media have largely tried their best to speak in platitudes of "reconciliation." I've felt starved for the facts, as they're known at this time. Yes, various human eyewitnesses always seem to remember things quite differently. The exclusive from Britain's Guardian may be a journalistic "smoking gun" as far as this case is concerned, and makes clear It the entire "fight" seems to have gone down within 18 seconds of Officer Kenny forcing entry. (Thanks Diane.) http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/13/tony-terrell-robinson-madison-wisconsin-police-shooting-how-it-happened (Next Day:) What really got to me yesterday is that eighteen second interval between Officer Kenny forcing entry and Tony Robinson's death. The time frame makes it seem all the more possible the cop was knocked on his ass, and responded with a cold-blooded execution. Not insisting this is what happened, as I wasn't there. But the article from the Guardian I posted yesterday makes one really WONDER....

RE: Tony Robinson

And now, to address, at length, the killing of 19-year old unarmed Tony Robinson by a Madison cop. I think some people, mostly White liberals, have a rather sentimental view of what cops are, and what cops actually DO. The very nature of law enforcement entails the potential implementation of the most violent tactics imaginable. True, Madison Police are statistically less violent, use less lethal force than cities such as Milwaukee, Albuquerque or New York City. But still.... While Madison's Chief Koval, quoted recently in the Wisconsin State Journal, denies the existence of 1. A systematic pattern of racist abuse among his officers, and 2. The existence of "rougue cops" on the Madison force, I beg to differ. I wish Koval were right, and I understand why he would say such a thing, given his official position. But his assertions are contradicted by "the facts on the ground." (Not to mention the theory of statistical averages - there will always be SOME "rogues," after all.) The common MPD practice of extreme over-reaction and provocation in many, if not all, interactions with black "suspects" often creates an impression dramatically different from Koval's. Especially during traffic stops. In the mind of say, an innocent young Black male motorist who is confronted by numerous heavily-armed Madison officers, all pointing semi-automatic weapons threateningly at himself and his unarmed passengers.... supposedly because he matched the description of some other suspect.... and, what's more.... hopefully, those police weapons aren't FULLY automatic! It happens a lot more than most White Madisonians realize. If I were routinely treated in such a menacing way, which I'm not, I too would be continuously upset, or concerned, or livid, or all of the above. So I was extremely impressed by, and sympathetic to the large, militant, and mostly Black crowd that turned out in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. It all happened so fast. I'd never seen anything quite like it in Madison. Very impressive response, and quite a moderate, verbal reaction on the part of demonstrators, considering the rage and pain so widely shared. Having said that, I'm not yet convinced this White cop (who it must be noted, shot the guy FIVE TIMES!!) killed unarmed Tony Robinson because he was a Black, or bi-racial youth. A strictly racist motivation is POSSIBLE, but that remains to be proved. Officer Kenny may have simply been so afraid, he lost control. He may have been losing the fight. Not a good enough reason to shoot an unarmed suspect five times, it would seem to me. Some well-deserved soul-searching is needed among the top brass about the use of lethal force generally. Madison's weekly, "Isthmus," reports that cops in this state have killed five non-whites and six whites since April 23, 2014. That's the date Wisconsin passed a law requiring officers who kill a person be investigated by a minimum of two investigators from an outside agency. Some were unarmed, like Tony Robinson. That's quite a substantial number, actually! It's WAY too high. I remember when a ROGUE Madison cop killed slight-of-stature, unarmed Madison musician and personality Paul Heenan, who happened to be White. The cop told an unlikely tale about the admittedly drunk Heenan making a move for his service weapon during a November, 2012 altercation. Eyewitnesses to the shooting contradicted Heimsness' account, as the article below reports. Many of us in the community protested THAT police murder, through demonstrations, emails and calls to the mayor and Common Council. And other means. (Check Paul Heenan's Facebook page). The actual facts surrounding Paul Heenan's death have been widely contested during the intervening years. But one thing's for sure - Paul's killer, Officer Heimsness, was FINALLY fired from the MPD in the wake of scandalous revelations about his personal conduct UNRELATED to Mr. Heenan's death. Rogue ex-cop Stephen Heimsness lives comfortably now, on disability pay. http://www.isthmus.com/isthmus/article.php?article=44662 It takes a lot of work to achieve even the most minimal amount of justice, when police unjustifiably kill citizens, of any color. But the recent unpunished killings, by vigilantes and cops nation-wide, of many unarmed Black males probably amounts to a systematic violation of the 14th Amendment's guarantee of Equal Protection Under the Law. Where have all the "radical lawyers" gone?