Politics.NET

On October 11th, I wrote the playbook . On November 13th, I wrote an update to that post . Today is the final installment in the series. In the first two, I laid out how law enforcement officials use the system to a) kill minorities and b) ensure that the killers are not brought to justice. All while seeming to be doing their hardest to ensure justice. How do you do it? Part 1 : You intentionally sabotage your own case to the grand jury Part 2 : You put the victim on trial and leak information damaging to the case against the killer cop Part 3 is the inevitable result that most killer cops are never indicted . In the Tamir Rice case, part 3 was dropped today: no indictment. Shocker, right? The DA did everything he could to ensure the grand jury would not indict. Do black lives matter? I guess it depends on who you ask. To the cops and DAs in these very high profile cases that never indict or never get conviction because they deliberately over-charges and fails to get an i...

I am filling out a McDonald's satisfaction survey and ran into this question: Seriously? Who goes around recommending McDonald's to others? McDonald's are like gas stations; on every corner and one is just as good as the next. That's the beauty/curse of being a franchise, no? Every restaurant serves pretty much the same food. Person A: Hey, can you recommend a great place to grab a quick lunch? Person B: Oh yes. You have to go to this great place I know. The food is great and the service is excellent. Person A: Really? Now I've gotta see this place. Where is it? Person B: It's the McDonald's on All Saints Road. The food is to die* for. And they had this other gem on the survey: * some would claim that's literally :)

Last month, I wrote about the playbook . It's how insiders in the justice system use it against minorities. Specifically, I mentioned the prosecutor in the Tamir Rice case and how I felt he was preparing to tank the case just like the Micheal Brown prosecutor did. Well, the next play in the book was executed last night: he released another external report by a cop from another district. http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2015/11/new_report_finds_tamir_rice_sh.html I believe the next step is the DA will fail to get an indictment and the criminal case will be over. Another unarmed black boy killed with no justice. His family will file and probably win a civil suit against the police dept; and that'll be the end of it. Meanwhile a guy declared unfit to be a police officer will continue doing just that even after killing an unarmed boy. Update:  http://blog.tundey.net/2015/12/the-playbook-part-3.html

So this one time I went to my boss to request raise. To prove I deserved a raise, I listed all the times I was late to work; the times I skipped out early; the times I deployed my code without testing it; I listed the times I took 2-hour lunches. Surprisingly, I didn't get the raise. Obviously, that's not a true story. But there's a report that the "prosecutor" in the Tamir Rice case has released 2 external reports that justified the murder of the boy. Which, by my count, makes it the second case where a prosecutor intentionally sabotages his own case before the grand jury. This is from the playbook of how to tank your own case. I am not a lawyer but from the little I know, the prosecutor is supposed to be an advocate for the victim. If a prosecutor takes a case to the grand jury, that's because s/he believes the accused is guilty. So why would these experienced adopt this tactic that guarantees they won't get the result even a first year law student (or...

Listening to Donald Trump's town hall last night, it dawned on me: we are in the age of the Idiot Philosopher™. Simply put: Idiot Philosophers are morons who think they know everything. Until now, they could be found in bars, fishing holes, tailgate parties, superbowl parties and thanksgiving dinners where they spurn their tales and offered solutions to things beyond their realm of expertise (i.e. nothing!), But with thrusting of Sarah Palin (Moron from Wasilla™) into the political limelight, idiot philosophers have become more popular and enboldened. Like Senator Thom Tillis who wants restaurant workers not to wash their hands after using the bathroom . Or Trump who wants to deport 11 million people . Or those lefty morons who are convinced vaccines are killing us . Or the guy who has zero economics degree but is convinced an increase in minimum wage will kill small business jobs (despite all the economists who say this isn't the case). Of course, part of this can be blame...

Every once in a while, chauffeuring these kids around gets interesting. This happens when the conversation between them takes a turn towards what I like to call the existential and I simply stay out of it. Today's turn led them to ask "Who decided summer was going to be so long?" It started with Dara. Dara: Summer is too long. I miss Mrs Strine so much [Mrs Strine was their kindergarten teacher] Random talk about how the school is empty during summer and students have to hang out with their families...Then: Toni: Summer and winter are so long. I wonder who made them so long Even though I wasn't looking, I could imagine the gears turning in their little heads. Eventually: Dara: It was the first baby! Toni: The first baby? Dara: Yes, the first baby came out and saw the seasons and decided how long they'll be Me? I wondered whether I should blow their minds and ask where the "first baby" came from. But I decided it'll be mean to do that to...