2014 archive
Bill of Particulars 0
Farnsworth is back, and he’s still pissed.
A Matter of Perspective 0
Some while ago, I heard a black actor I forget who talk about breaking into the Hollywood movie industry. He said one thing that stuck in my mind, that, if a black man wants to be an actor, he must accept that his first roles will be as a criminal or a thug.
It is distressing that that is the case. And it doesn’t stop with “entertainment” casting, as Professor Sonora Jha of Seattle University points out in considering news coverage of race-related issues. She considers the coverage of events in Ferguson, Missouri:
Such “ghettoized” representation of diverse communities in news coverage is nothing new. Indeed, research has shown over and over again that news media tend to focus on white, authoritative, male sources. This preference becomes especially heightened in coverage of crime, disaster and even civil disobedience.
Do read the rest. It helps explain why David Brooks still has a job.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Party politely.
Their wounds are not life-threatening, Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder said. The shooting occurred near the Minneapolis Central Library by the intersection of Hennepin Ave and N. 3rd Street.
The police have no idea (as my father would have said) “who shot John.”
Bloodlust 0
Leonard Pitts, Jr., considers Texas’s rush to execute a man who is clearly mentally ill. A snippet:
But Panetti doesn’t live in a rational place. He lives in America. Worse, he lives in Texas.
They love their executions in Rick Perry’s kingdom.
State-sanctioned sadism. It’s a thing.
Bolted 0
Many years ago when I lived in Northern Virginia, my roommates and I went out to a little backwater Mexican restaurant that my then-local rag said didn’t look like much but had great food.
While we were there, a rather large party came in, ordered and scarfed up lots of food, then picked a fight with the waiter. While the waiter was going for help, they left. In short, they bolted the check. We were quite taken aback at the effrontery.
On the bright side, at least they did not use explosives.
In related gastronomic news, my two or three regular readers know that, after living in the greater Philadelphia co-prosperity sphere for over a quarter-century, I am fussy about my hoagies and cheesesteaks. Many eateries in these parts seem to think that putting some facsimile of beef and some cheese-like substance, along with random other ingredients of dubious lineage, between two pieces of bread somehow morphs the concoction into a “Philly Cheesesteak.” Usually, it’s something that, if you tried to sell it in Philly, would get you tossed into the Schuylkill after your knees were shot out.
Consequently, when I see “cheesesteak” on the menu, I ask the server to “Tell me about your cheesesteak.” If the response includes “sauce” or several other key words, I order the grilled cheese. You must be truly talented to screw up a grilled cheese.
I had a cheesesteak at a local Jersey Mike’s tonight. I must say, it was a proper cheesesteak, not just meat- and cheese-like substances on some bun-like thing.
It was almost as good as the one at Elias, which is exquisite and to die for.
QOTD 0
Frederick the Great:
If my soldiers were to begin to think, not one of them would remain in the army.
All the News that Fits 0
At the Guardian, Jeb Lund examines wingnut media’s efforts to spin away the murder of Eric Garner. A snippet:
It turns out the answer is going back to the old playbook – where racism is the fault of its victims, where the discussion floats above the facts on the ground, and symbols are attacked with symbols. It doesn’t matter what happened to Eric Garner when what he represents is wrong.
A Creche Course in Hypocrisy 0
Daniel Ruth is not amused by the annual nattering over nativity scenes.
Or think of it this way. For the better part of 11 months, there are probably more sins, lapses of ethics, payoffs and duplicitous backstabbing in the Capitol than in Game of Thrones. And then in December, Florida’s feedbag of power is supposed to be transformed into an ecumenical haven honoring the Yuletide spirit.
Not just in Florida, folks.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Study politeness.
KUAC reports (http://is.gd/pSH7MN) the body of the 48-year-old male student was found in a campus parking lot Thursday.
The Wrong Room 0
When I was very young, maybe eight or nine or ten I’m not quite sure when, my mother, my brother, and I took the bus to visit my grandmother in South Carolina. My father was to join us later.
During a layover, I walked into the wrong waiting room–the “colored” waiting room, as the sign said–in the bus station in Raleigh, North Carolina. Conversation stopped and all eyes looked at me, the little white kid in the doorway.
I have never felt more alone.
I would never wish what I felt then–the loneliness, the isolation, the other-ness–on anyone.
It’s time to make it stop, to make it stop for everyone.
The Nonsense of War 0
Fort Nonsense, that is. The remains of this small earthwork Civil War fort have recently been turned into a historical park in Mathews County, Virgina. Here are some pictures of what’s left.
