March 17, 2016

Five Deputies Disciplined in Connection with Trump Rally Assault (Video of Second Assault)

Source: Fayetteville Observer

Five Cumberland County deputies disciplined in connection with Trump rally assault

By Michael Futch, Staff writer Updated 9 hrs ago

The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office says it has disciplined five deputies following an investigation arising from a videotaped assault at the March 9 Donald Trump presidential rally at the Crown Coliseum.

News of the disciplinary action came on the same day as allegations of a second assault during the rally surfaced with a second video posted on social media.

A college student from Fayetteville posted the video online that shows him being verbally and possibly physically assaulted while sheriff's deputies are escorting him from the political rally.

00:00 / 02:48
Adedayo Adeniyi, 20, a Nigerian who attends East Carolina University in Greenville, has said in interviews with The New York Daily News and the East Carolinian college newspaper that a Trump rally-goer slapped him in the face as authorities led him out of the Crown Coliseum, where the rally was held.

Adeniyi said in the published accounts that he was not protesting when deputies told him he had to go. Adeniyi alleges that deputies randomly targeted and tossed him from the event because he's black.

A Sheriff's Office news release said Wednesday that three deputies were demoted in rank and suspended for five days each without pay "for unsatisfactory performance and for failing to discharge the duties and policies of the Office of Sheriff."

Read more: http://www.fayobserver.com/news/crime_courts/five-cumberland-county-deputies-disciplined-in-connection-with-trump-rally/article_aa73709b-a2cb-5d7b-92c8-c4279a80238d.html

March 17, 2016

SeaWorld Says It Will End Killer Whale Breeding Program

Source: Associated Press

SeaWorld says it will end killer whale breeding program

BY FREIDA FRISARO
MAR. 17, 2016 7:22 AM EDT

MIAMI (AP) — SeaWorld is ending its practice of killer whale breeding following years of controversy over keeping orcas in captivity.

The company announced Thursday morning the breeding program will end immediately. The company also announced a partnership with the Humane Society.

The company will also end theatrical shows and introduce "new, inspiring natural orca encounters." The new shows will begin next year at the SeaWorld Entertainment Inc.'s San Diego park.

SeaWorld president and CEO Joel Manby said in a statement that the company introduced more than 400 million guests to orcas and is proud of its part in contributing to the human understanding of the whales.

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/d40fe0eca3e3468c94da646f50a40259

March 16, 2016

BREAKING: Obama to Nominate Merrick Garland for Supreme Court, AP Reports

Source: Associated Press

Obama Said to Choose Garland to Replace Scalia on Supreme Court

Greg Stohr
Mike Dorning
Steven T. Dennis
March 16, 2016 — 10:05 AM EDT Updated on March 16, 2016 — 10:30 AM EDT

President Barack Obama plans to nominate Merrick Garland, chief judge of the federal appeals court in Washington and one of the most respected jurists in the country, to fill the U.S. Supreme Court seat opened by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, according to a White House official and other people familiar with the matter.

Republicans have vowed to obstruct any Obama nominee for Scalia’s seat. The president plans to announce the nomination at 11 a.m. Washington time in the White House Rose Garden. The people who identified Garland requested anonymity ahead of the president’s announcement.

In a statement earlier Wednesday, Obama said his nominee will be "eminently qualified" to join the nation’s highest court, has an "unquestionable mastery of law" and "unimpeachable credentials." He asked for a fair hearing and up-or-down vote in the Senate.

"That is what the Constitution dictates, and that’s what the American people expect and deserve," the president said.
Garland will be an ideologically moderate nominee who in other contexts would have broad bipartisan appeal. When Obama considered Garland for a high court vacancy in 2010, Senator Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican, called the judge "terrific" and said he could be confirmed to the Supreme Court "virtually unanimously."

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/trackers/2016-03-16/obama-to-nominate-merrick-garland-for-supreme-court-ap-reports-iluwzj0o

March 16, 2016

"Don't Despair. After March 15, Entire Last Half of Elected Delegate Race is Favorable to Bernie..."

https://plus.google.com/+OleOlson/posts/D8EKNtnfnpF

Don't despair: After March 15th the entire last half of the elected delegate race is favorable to Bernie #FeelTheBern #PrimaryDay
Clinton won in at least 3 of the states today, but only 50% of the elected delegates will have been determined after everything is counted today. The front half of the #DemocraticPrimary schedule was horribly front loaded with states where Clinton does best, but from here on out, we move on to states where Bernie can win almost everywhere.

March 16, 2016

Guardian Primary Results Website: All On One Page & Lots of Fun...

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2016/mar/15/florida-illinois-missouri-north-carolina-ohio-live-results-primary-caucuses

March 14, 2016

'Humans of New York' on Facebook: An Open Letter to Donald Trump

An Open Letter to Donald Trump:

Mr. Trump,

I try my hardest not to be political. I’ve refused to interview several of your fellow candidates. I didn’t want to risk any personal goodwill by appearing to take sides in a contentious election. I thought: ‘Maybe the timing is not right.’ But I realize now that there is no correct time to oppose violence and prejudice. The time is always now. Because along with millions of Americans, I’ve come to realize that opposing you is no longer a political decision. It is a moral one.

I’ve watched you retweet racist images. I’ve watched you retweet racist lies. I’ve watched you take 48 hours to disavow white supremacy. I’ve watched you joyfully encourage violence, and promise to ‘pay the legal fees’ of those who commit violence on your behalf. I’ve watched you advocate the use of torture and the murder of terrorists’ families. I’ve watched you gleefully tell stories of executing Muslims with bullets dipped in pig blood. I’ve watched you compare refugees to ‘snakes,’ and claim that ‘Islam hates us.’

I am a journalist, Mr. Trump. And over the last two years I have conducted extensive interviews with hundreds of Muslims, chosen at random, on the streets of Iran, Iraq, and Pakistan. I’ve also interviewed hundreds of Syrian and Iraqi refugees across seven different countries. And I can confirm— the hateful one is you.

Those of us who have been paying attention will not allow you to rebrand yourself. You are not a ‘unifier.’ You are not ‘presidential.’ You are not a ‘victim’ of the very anger that you’ve joyfully enflamed for months. You are a man who has encouraged prejudice and violence in the pursuit of personal power. And though your words will no doubt change over the next few months, you will always remain who you are.

Sincerely,
Brandon Stanton

https://www.facebook.com/humansofnewyork/posts/1207382856002479

March 14, 2016

TOM TOMORROW: Primary Phenomena. (I think he's voting for Sanders...)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511487621

March 14, 2016

TOM TOMORROW: Further Primary Phenomena

DAILY KOS LINK: http://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/3/14/1500655/-Cartoon-Further-phenomena

March 14, 2016

February Breaks Global Temperature Records by 'Shocking' Amount

Source: The Guardian

February breaks global temperature records by 'shocking' amount

Warnings of climate emergency after surface temperatures 1.35C warmer than average temperature for the month

Michael Slezak
@MikeySlezak email
Monday 14 March 2016 00.32 EDT Last modified on Monday 14 March 2016 00.33 EDT

Global temperatures in February smashed previous monthly records by an unprecedented amount, according to Nasa data, sparking warnings of a climate emergency.

The result was “a true shocker, and yet another reminder of the incessant long-term rise in global temperature resulting from human-produced greenhouse gases”, wrote Jeff Masters and Bob Henson in a blog on the Weather Underground, which analysed the data released on Saturday.

It confirms preliminary analysis from earlier in March, indicating the record-breaking temperatures.

The global surface temperatures across land and ocean in February were 1.35C warmer than the average temperature for the month, from the baseline period of 1951-1980.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/mar/14/february-breaks-global-temperature-records-by-shocking-amount

March 14, 2016

The death penalty is a disaster morally, legally, and practically.

There's no particularly good reason to be torn about it or apply it just "rarely."

http://www.amnestyusa.org/our-work/issues/death-penalty/us-death-penalty-facts



https://www.aclu.org/case-against-death-penalty

http://www.icomdp.org/arguments-against-the-death-penalty/

The risk of executing innocent people exists in any justice system
There have been and always will be cases of executions of innocent people. No matter how developed a justice system is, it will always remain susceptible to human failure. Unlike prison sentences, the death penalty is irreversible and irreparable.

The arbitrary application of the death penalty can never be ruled out
The death penalty is often used in a disproportional manner against the poor, minorities and members of racial, ethnic, political and religious groups.

The death penalty is incompatible with human rights and human dignity
The death penalty violates the right to life which happens to be the most basic of all human rights. It also violates the right not to be subjected to torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment. Furthermore, the death penalty undermines human dignity which is inherent to every human being.

The death penalty does not deter crime effectively
The death penalty lacks the deterrent effect which is commonly referred to by its advocates. As recently stated by the General Assembly of the United Nations, “there is no conclusive evidence of the deterrent value of the death penalty” (UNGA Resolution 65/206). It is noteworthy that in many retentionist states, the effectiveness of the death penalty in order to prevent crime is being seriously questioned by a continuously increasing number of law enforcement professionals.

Public opinion is not a major stumbling block for abolition
Public support for the death penalty does not necessarily mean that taking away the life of a human being by the state is right. There are undisputed historical precedences where gross human rights violations had had the support of a majority of the people, but which were condemned vigorously later on. It is the job of leading figures and politicians to underline the incompatibility of capital punishment with human rights and human dignity.

It needs to be pointed out that public support for the death penalty is inextricably linked to the desire of the people to be free from crime. However, there exist more effective ways to prevent crime.


http://www.listland.com/top-10-reasons-death-penalty-abolished/

- snip -

7. Exoneration

The Death Penalty Prevents Exoneration

In singer Alanis Morissette’s 1995 hit “Ironic”, she sings the verse “…it’s a death row pardon two minutes too late.” Morissette clearly didn’t know the definition of irony, as she spent close to four minutes describing things that were unfortunate or just plain old terrible. Still, the lyric reminds us of the irreversible consequences that can occur from continued enforcement of the death penalty.

What if an inmate sentenced to death is later found to be innocent of their convictions? What if the uncovering of this innocence comes after a lethal injection has already been administered?

This is much more than a hypothetical. A study titled “Rate of false convictions of criminal defendants who are sentenced to death” published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America found that over four percent of prisoners sentenced to death in the United States are innocent. The team of researchers analyzed 7,482 death sentences from 1973 to 2004. Out of all these cases, it was found that 1.6 percent were later exonerated, and 4.1 percent should have been exonerated.

If a conviction is ever overturned, it can take decades at the very least. However, there are several documented cases of prisoners being released years after imprisonment. Life sentences serve as a better alternative to the death penalty in order to protect the potentially innocent.

6. Cost

Failing to Abolish the Death Penalty is a waste of money.

The cost of the death penalty as opposed to a life sentence without parole is exponential. Due to the extra measures taken in judicial proceedings, lawyer fees, extended trials, and expert witnesses, costs end up being higher. A Cost Study by the Sacramento Bee noted that California would save $90 million per year if it were to completely eliminate the death penalty.

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