May 20, 2015

They want to outlaw Palestine solidarity

Lawmakers of both parties are proving that they will stop at nothing--even blatantly unconstitutional bills--to smear the BDS campaign against Israel, writes Eric Ruder.

PRO-ISRAEL ORGANIZATIONS are pushing for legislation in Illinois and at the federal level to punish institutions and corporations that honor the Palestinian call for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) on behalf of the internationally recognized legal rights of Palestinians.

Illinois State Bill 1761, which compels state entities such as pension funds to divest from any company that refuses to do business with Israel, passed the Illinois Senate and House without a single "no" vote in either chamber, and now heads to Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, who has pledged to sign the bill.

Illinois legislators are playing with fire with this legislation. Boycotts are a constitutionally protected form of speech and association--a point carefully argued in another context in this open letter by leading pro-Palestine legal voices. Not only that, but Illinois should not be shielding Israel from boycotts to protest Israeli human rights abuses and settlements, and it should not be punishing companies that have decided to adopt an ethical posture toward Israel.

At the federal level, Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Illinois) and Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) succeeded in amending fast-track trade legislation pending in congressional committees to add similar punitive measures against boycotts of Israel. According to the American Jewish Committee, which supports the amendments, the revision to the trade promotion authority legislation sought by the Obama administration establishes:



Read more: http://socialistworker.org/2015/05/19/they-want-to-outlaw-palestine-solidarity

May 20, 2015

Legal experts say Texas abortion bill probably unconstitutional

AUSTIN — Texas’ latest proposal to restrict abortion rights is likely to land the state back in court, constitutional law experts say.

A bill offered by Rep. Geanie Morrison, R-Victoria, would require all women to show government identification to get an abortion and add restrictions to the legal process minors use to get an abortion without parental consent. The ID provision in particular is unprecedented and could be seen as an undue barrier to the procedure, legal experts say.

The bill passed the House last week after hours of debate. Its Senate sponsor, Republican Charles Perry of Lubbock, said Tuesday that he was considering making changes to address concerns raised in a committee hearing on the bill. The committee voted Tuesday to approve the measure without changes, and it next goes to the full Senate for a vote.

Supporters say they aim to “close loopholes” in the current judicial bypass process that allows those younger than 18 who may have suffered abuse or neglect to get an abortion without notifying a parent.

Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/headlines/20150519-legal-experts-say-texas-abortion-bill-probably-unconstitutional.ece

May 20, 2015

Waco Texas Shooting Leads Investigators To Secret Army Base Almost Within Sight Of “Tragedy”

[font color=green]Note: I'm posting this story because after the shooting skirmish in Waco we all need a good laugh and I can't think of anything better than laughing at RW conspiracy hoaxers.[/font]



The goings on around the nation lately, especially in the great state of Texas, have been so well scripted that one might think… well, that they’ve been scripted.

According to wikipedia, the U.S. Government has moved 88,000 troops into Texas this month. 88,000! That’s more than was originally deployed to Kuwait for Operation Desert Storm!



Now that most of the troops are in place, we have our first of what many are calling the catalyst, the gas on the fire to get it blazing, in the shooting that took place in Waco, where at least 9 bikers from rivaling gangs were left dead. The only question is, was this a set up?



No one is denying that the incident actually took place. Great Americans who live in Waco were quick to take to online media outlets and attest to the event, many claiming their town has been put on lock-down. However, the question remains, “Was a seed planted? Did someone infiltrate this group of thugs to get this going in order to come in and take away even more of your gun rights? To implement Martial Law?”

Have more laughs at the patriots still using fixed-width Courier font at: http://patriotnewswire.com/2015/05/waco-texas-shooting-leads-investigators-to-secret-army-base-almost-within-sight-of-tragedy/

May 20, 2015

Disrupt The Narrative (Texas Monthly interview with Hannah Giles who made ACORN videos with O'Keefe)

At age 19, Hannah Giles became a rock star of the conservative movement after she and provocateur videographer and conservative activist James O’Keefe posed as a prostitute and her pimp to run a 2009 hidden-camera sting on the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, ACORN. Republicans often accused the left-leaning organization of committing voter fraud, and the Giles/O’Keefe videos seemed to show ACORN workers were encouraging them to set up a child prostitution ring. Official investigations in three states found no criminal wrongdoing by ACORN workers and reported that the videos were heavily edited to put ACORN workers in the worst light. But the damage was done, ACORN lost both its government and private funding and went out of business. Giles’s husband later was arrested for attempting to enter U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu’s office disguised as a telephone repairman. They have been conservative activists in the past.

Giles and Basel afterward moved to Texas and set up the American Phoenix Foundation to promote investigative journalism by young conservative activists. Giles in speeches tells audiences that there is a need to bypass the mainstream media with investigations that “disrupt the narrative.” As part of that, they say they have hired 16 workers to use hidden cameras to investigate Texas legislators, an investigation that has angered both lawmakers and lobbyists.

Giles and Basel sat down with me in the Texas Monthly offices for an hour this week to discuss their project and philosophy. My approach to the interview was to be a neutral solicitor of information so the readers can decide for themselves the motives behind Giles and Basel: Whether this is a pure investigation; is intended to oust House Speaker Joe Straus’s conservative allies; is a real scandal of lobbyists and legislators; or, whether the Texas Capitol’s legislators, lobbyists and journalists have all just been punked. We’ll know if the first video is released in June.

To make reading easier, I have broken the interview into topical parts. I have tried to be as light-handed as possible in the editing for brevity and to increase the clarity of my questions.

Read more: http://www.texasmonthly.com/burka-blog

Cross-posted in the Texas Group.

May 20, 2015

Disrupt The Narrative (Texas Monthly interview with Hannah Giles who made ACORN videos with O'Keefe)

At age 19, Hannah Giles became a rock star of the conservative movement after she and provocateur videographer and conservative activist James O’Keefe posed as a prostitute and her pimp to run a 2009 hidden-camera sting on the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, ACORN. Republicans often accused the left-leaning organization of committing voter fraud, and the Giles/O’Keefe videos seemed to show ACORN workers were encouraging them to set up a child prostitution ring. Official investigations in three states found no criminal wrongdoing by ACORN workers and reported that the videos were heavily edited to put ACORN workers in the worst light. But the damage was done, ACORN lost both its government and private funding and went out of business. Giles’s husband later was arrested for attempting to enter U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu’s office disguised as a telephone repairman. They have been conservative activists in the past.

Giles and Basel afterward moved to Texas and set up the American Phoenix Foundation to promote investigative journalism by young conservative activists. Giles in speeches tells audiences that there is a need to bypass the mainstream media with investigations that “disrupt the narrative.” As part of that, they say they have hired 16 workers to use hidden cameras to investigate Texas legislators, an investigation that has angered both lawmakers and lobbyists.

Giles and Basel sat down with me in the Texas Monthly offices for an hour this week to discuss their project and philosophy. My approach to the interview was to be a neutral solicitor of information so the readers can decide for themselves the motives behind Giles and Basel: Whether this is a pure investigation; is intended to oust House Speaker Joe Straus’s conservative allies; is a real scandal of lobbyists and legislators; or, whether the Texas Capitol’s legislators, lobbyists and journalists have all just been punked. We’ll know if the first video is released in June.

To make reading easier, I have broken the interview into topical parts. I have tried to be as light-handed as possible in the editing for brevity and to increase the clarity of my questions.

Read more: http://www.texasmonthly.com/burka-blog

ETA: Cross-posted in General Discussion.

May 20, 2015

After Waco Shootout, Lawmakers Continue Open Carry Push

The day after a deadly confrontation between rival biker gangs in Waco, top Texas lawmakers defended a proposal to loosen the state's handgun laws.

"This bill does not have anything to do with what went on yesterday," said state Sen. Joan Huffman, a Houston Republican who leads the Senate State Affairs Committee, during a previously scheduled hearing on gun legislation.

Some critics told the panel Monday that a proposal to allow concealed handgun license holders to openly carry the firearms would have made the Waco shooting worse. But the panel approved the bill and sent it to the full Senate, where it is likely to have enough votes to pass.

Police arrested 170 people after nine people died and at least 18 were injured Sunday in the parking lot of a Twin Peaks restaurant. A police officer at the scene called the event one of the worst gun fights he had ever experienced within city limits.

Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2015/05/18/after-waco-shooting-lawmakers-continue-open-carry-/

May 20, 2015

DPS troopers required to work 50 hours a week in new bill

A state subcommittee held out on sending House Bill 11, the sweeping border security legislation, to the Senate Monday so legislators could determine who will have oversight over the bill’s implementation, lawmakers said.

The subcommittee — consisting of state Sens. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury; Bob Hall, R-Edgewood; and Eddie Lucio Jr., D-Brownsville — left the bill pending, meaning they could pass it on to the Senate the next time they consider it. A date hasn’t been set yet, but the last day to consider bills is June 1.

Who will oversee the measures outlined in the bill — most notably, a law enforcement intelligence center in Hidalgo County, 50-hour work weeks for Department of Public Safety troopers and a provision for human smuggling — is still up in the air.

The HB 11 version the House passed in March created an operations oversight committee of five senators, five representatives and one governor-appointed member. Members would give progress reports to the Legislature to “ensure transparency,” according to the bill’s language.

Read more: http://www.themonitor.com/news/local/legislators-still-deciding-who-will-oversee-border-security-measures/article_46b8b4e6-fdb8-11e4-9adf-eb598af4a497.html

May 20, 2015

BobbyJindal plans to issue an executive order enforcing intent of religious freedom bill

Gov. Bobby Jindal issued a statement Tuesday (May 19) saying he plans to issue an executive order to enforce the intent of a religious freedom bill that effectively died about two hours earlier, in the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee.

Read the full statement below:

Rep. Mike Johnson, R-Bossier City, the sponsor of the religious freedom legislation, said he supports the executive order. Asked if he knew Jindal was issuing the order, Johnson said, "I had heard all sorts of rumors over the last few weeks."

Rep. Neil Abramson, D-New Orleans, chairman of the committee that returned Johnson's bill to the calendar Tuesday afternoon, did not know when the House convened around 2 p.m. that an order was issued. The hearing on the religious freedom bill ended shortly after noon.

A joint statement from Equality Louisiana, an LGBT rights group, and Louisiana Progress Action, says the proposed executive order would hurt the state's economy if it seeks to accomplish the same goals as Johnson's bill. The statement also attributed the move to the governor's presidential aspirations.

Read more: http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/05/bobby_jindal_executive_order_r.html

May 20, 2015

Bakery that refused to bake cake with gay slogan loses North Ireland case

Photo: Reuters

Everyone loves Bert and Ernie, right? So what could be controversial about going to a bakery and ordering up a Bert and Ernie cake?

Well, plenty, if the cake is supposed to bear — in addition to the depictions of the two “Sesame Street” characters — the inscription “Support Gay Marriage.”

That is the kind of cake that gay rights activist Gareth Lee ordered in greater Belfast, Northern Ireland, in May 2014 for a function marking the International Day Against Homophobia.

But Lee ordered the cake from the Christian-owned Ashers Baking Co., which refused on the grounds that baking it would conflict with the religious beliefs of the bakery’s owners.

Read more: http://www.outsmartmagazine.com/2015/05/bakery-that-refused-to-bake-cake-with-gay-slogan-loses-n-ireland-case/

May 20, 2015

Ex-Phoenix cop accused of gay sex with minors makes stunning admission

Phoenix, AZ (KPHO) — Handcuffs and jail stripes: It’s a stark contrast from the Phoenix Police uniform Chris Wilson wore for 15 years when he was the one handcuffing bad guys.

“Being on the other side and coming on this side, it’s really hard,” Wilson said.

Wilson agreed to talk exclusively about what lead to his arrest and indictment on 10 counts of sex with a minor.

Wilson said he blames no one but himself.

Read more: http://www.outsmartmagazine.com/2015/05/ex-phoenix-cop-accused-of-gay-sex-with-minors-makes-stunning-admission/