Jasper got groomed today. We decided to take a "glamour shot" since he already looked the part.
Troy Davis was scheduled to be murdered by the state of Georgia on Monday, October 27. But today, a stay of execution was issued by the federal appeals court in Atlanta.
Davis' case was recently reviewed by the Supreme Court, but the justices decided not to hear his case. They decided that the recantation of seven of the nine witnesses, a lack of physical evidence, and accusations that another man had admitted to the crime wasn't enough to spare Davis' life.
Who can question that racism is still a major issue in the United States?
This from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
“This is the first step toward a court hearing to consider the new evidence — something we have been asking for for almost a decade now,” attorney Jason Ewart said.
<snip>
On Friday, the court said the stay of execution is conditional. Davis must make a showing he can meet the “stringent requirements” to pursue another round of appeals, the decision said.
The court directed Davis’ lawyers to file a legal brief on their arguments within 15 days. The state Attorney General’s Office has another 10 days to respond.
- [source]
Obviously we have big problems that need serious solutions - the economy, healthcare, education, and the war to name a few. But I'd really love to hear politicians, even at the presidential level, talking about some of the other serious problems facing our nation, problems with much easier solutions. Here's a short list:
* puppy mills: I can understand that breeders perform a necessary service - continuing the supply of specific breeds of dogs that are needed for various reasons (hunting, assisting the blind or disabled, etc.). But what about puppy farms? There should be legislation to regulate or perhaps, better yet, abolish puppy farms. What about a tax credit or some other incentive for spaying or neutering a family pet? What about some incentive for adopting a pet from a local shelter?
* nursing homes: Most people know someone who is in a nursing home. Some are better than others, but who can argue that there needs to be improvements in the care given to the elderly across the board? I'm not sure what the answer is on this one, but it's an issue that should be addressed.
* the homeless: How about increased funding for homeless shelters, drug treatment, and job training? No one enjoys seeing people sleeping on sidewalks or begging. And from the bourgeois viewpoint, homelessness hurts revenue - tourism, shopping, home buying, etc.
Got anything to add to the list? What are some issues you'd love to hear someone bring up?
[UPDATE]
teacherninja suggested the following...
* science education
* military vet care
chandira suggested...
* Native American issues
The Supreme Court released its decision regarding the case of Georgia death-row inmate Troy Davis today. The justices decided not to hear Mr. Davis' case, which allows the state of Georgia to begin again the steps toward executing Troy.
Evidently, the lack of physical evidence combined with the fact that 7 out of 9 witnesses have recanted the testimony was not enough to prompt the justices to hear Troy's case.
I think many opponents of the death penalty and supporters of Troy thought there was a good chance that the court might hear his case. Troy's is an extraordinary case. There is no physical evidence to tie Troy to the murder. None. No weapon, no fingerprints, no DNA, no nothing. Seven of the nine witnesses have changed their stories and some of those seven now implicate another man, Sylvestor "Red" Coles, one of the two witnesses who has not changed his testimony. In addition, there are three other people who never testified at Davis' trial but who have always implicated Coles. In fact, these three people say that Coles admitted killing Officer MacPhail.
It seems as though the Supreme Court has no doubts that Mr. Davis committed the crime and should be executed - how can they be so sure? What are they looking at that we don't see? Race has clearly played a role in Mr. Davis' case up to this point - did race factor into the decision from the highest court in the land?
Larry Cox, executive director for Amnesty International USA, had this to say regarding the court's decision:
“The Supreme Court’s decision is truly shocking, given that significant evidence of Davis’ innocence will never have a chance to be examined. Faulty eyewitness identification is the leading cause of wrongful convictions, and the hallmark of Davis’ case. This was an opportunity for the Court to clarify the constitutionality of putting the innocent to death – and in Davis’ case, his innocence could only be determined with a new hearing or trial.A new execution date will soon be set.
It is disgraceful that the highest court in the land could sink so low when doubts surrounding Davis' guilt are so high."
-- [source]
CNN has an interesting piece listing twenty ways that Obama and Bush are alike.
Anyone who knows me, knows I don't want McCain to win, but they also know that I'm not one of those folks who thinks that Obama is all that great. He isn't, folks. In fact, he's the second worst major candidate running for the office, I'd argue.
Here's a short sampling: affirmative action, capital punishment, education, FISA, and gay marriage.
So, for those of you who think Obama is swell and the candidate for liberals, you might want to read this - www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/13/wall.bush-obama/index.html.
Left I on the News has written down three excellent follow-up questions for the two presidential candidates. The bad news is that you'll never hear them be asked, at least not by anyone in the corporate media.
Teaser:
Sens. McCain and Obama, you both have claimed that America is a "force for good in the world." Considering that hundreds of thousands of Iraqis (the best scientific estimate is over one million) died as a result of the U.S. invasion, and an undisputed two million Iraqis have been forced to flee their homeland and another two million internally displaced, and considering that Sunnis and Shias in Iraq used to intermingle and intermarry and are now almost totally separated into ethnic communities separated by huge walls and checkpoints...Visit Left I on the News for more.
A Marxist cop (I know, right?) on Reddit has started a thread today called "Ask a Cop". There are a lot of interesting questions and answers there, so if you get second you check it out. Here's a sample:
Also, what are some things that people either being approached by a cop or being pulled over by a cop can do to help put the officer at ease and less nervous in the situationHe goes into issues like tazers, marijuana, civil disobedience, traffic offenses, bad cops, and a lot more.
Put your hands on the steering wheel at all times. Make eye contact with the officer. Put the car in park when you stop. Try to stop in a safe area, but don't drive half a mile to do it. That's really all you have to do-- it's simple.
and what are some things that people tend to do that they really shouldn't?
Do not open your door. Do not get out of the car. Do not reach for your license in your back pocket. Do not reach across the car for insurance. Wait for the officer to get to your B-Post before you start reaching. Do not make hand motions out of your window. Do not start yelling at the officer (save that for court). Do not refuse to sign the ticket (in most states, you can be arrested for that). There's a lot more to this list. People do the above all the time.
5 - Improve the nutritional value of breakfast and lunch provided to students.
You wouldn't believe what kids are eating in our schools today. When they have apples, the apples are split in half, dipped in some red, sugary substance and turned into candy. Peanutbutter and jelly sandwiches are pre-packaged uncrustables from Smuckers. Actually, nearly everything the kids eat is pre-packaged. It's horrible. The kids hate it. And it doesn't feed their brains.
6 - Stop pulling kids out of classrooms and instead focus on collaboration.
This varies by district. The district in which I teach focuses on collaboration. Students are rarely pulled out of their classrooms for ESOL, EIP, SPED, with the exception for speech therapy. Other districts pull students out of their classrooms for any special instruction. EIP is often abused, allowing homeroom teachers to rid themselves of minority students or students they view as disruptive. Instead of stigmatizing these students, teachers should push-in to classrooms. Collaboration, when done well, is very powerful. It allows for multiple viewpoints, lowers the student-to-teacher ratio, and provides more opportunities for hands-on activities, to name just a few of its benefits.
Eighty-five billion dollars a year for drug prohibition! How about cutting that part of my taxes?
From FireBlade Coffeehouse:
If you support keeping drugs illegal:
You support robberies and assaults on innocent people.
The high prices of drugs caused by prohibition force many drug addicts to turn to robbery in order to pay for their drugs. Legalization would drop drug prices. Drug users would no longer need to rob/assault innocent people in order to support their drug habit. This violence against innocent people would end if drugs were legalized.
You support clogging our prisons and jails with nonviolent people.
Nearly 50% of all people in prison and jail are serving time for nonviolent drug charges. There are thousands of people in prisons for 5, 10, 50 years--even life--for possessing marijuana or cocaine! The average rapist is set free after serving only 3 years in prison, the average murderer is set free after serving only 9 years in prison! To house just one prisoner for one year costs the taxpayer $40,000! The result of these harsh penalties? Drug use has increased! (Tough laws have not stopped me from using marijuana--nor will they ever!)
You support organized crime and drug cartels.
Huge drug cartels and criminal organizations thrive off the enormous profits caused by drug prohibition. These organizations are responsible for thousands of murders! Many of people killed or hurt are innocent people who get in the way! These violent organizations will never be put out of business--unless drugs are legalized.
more after the jump...
Also, check out the Drug War Clock. That's all.
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