The Gates Conundrum: Racism or Police “Authority”
Whenever I read about an incident such as the one which happened with Henry Louis Gates Jr, in which a police officer arrests someone for, essentially, not paying them enough respect, the old Cartman...
View ArticleWhy Assange and Wikileaks have won this round
The odd thing about Wikileaks is that their success has been assured, not by what they leaked, though there is some important information there, but by their enemies. The massive and indiscriminant...
View ArticleLondon Riots #3: Context
Wow, just wow: One journalist wrote that he was surprised how many people in Tottenham knew of and were critical of the IPCC, but there should be nothing surprising about this. When you look at the...
View ArticleThe murder of two NY policemen in retaliation—
at least ostensibly for the police murders of Garner and Brown has ignited a frenzy. The murderer, Brinsley, was a violent man who had committed other crimes. I will simply note that such tragic...
View ArticleThe nature of a corporation and how it changed in the 1980s
By Matt Stoller Let’s start with Pfizer, which announced the acquisition of generics maker Hospira for $17B this week. Pfizer isn’t a drug company. Pfizer is a financial company that happens to own...
View ArticleThis ain’t Wonderland, this is Ferguson, Missouri, antechamber of Hell
Conditions in the Ferguson city jail: “They are kept in overcrowded cells; they are denied toothbrushes, toothpaste, and soap; they are subjected to the constant stench of excrement and refuse in their...
View ArticleAs Baltimore Riots
I don’t have a great deal to say about this. I’ll simply note that if you shove peoples faces into the concrete enough, it’s not strange that they will riot. Given the well documented rate at which...
View ArticleThe Enforcer Class
If you are a left-winger who wants to, in effect, overthrow a racist oligarchical system, the police are not your friends. Nor, need I point out, are corrections officers. Nor is most of the court...
View ArticleThe Vast Injustice of Linking Gun Purchases to the No-Fly List
So, Obama wants Congress to make it so that people on the No-Fly List can’t buy guns. This is a terrible idea, and if you are for it, you are a terrible person. The No-Fly List itself is a terrible...
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Police Now Steal More than Burglars
According to Harpers, in 2014 police seized more assets than burglars stole. This is trickle-down kleptocracy in action. America is ruled by thieves, con artists, and corrupt officials (even if much of...
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Manufacturing Violent People
One of the largely unacknowledged problems of prison is that it manufactures bad people. When someone is arrested, it is often a traumatic event. It’s backed up by the promise of violence, and even...
View ArticleProtect Yourself from Political Violence in the Age of Facial Recognition and...
We’re seeing a rise in right-wing militia violence, condoned by police. Police themselves are already using facial recognition to identify protesters. American authoritarianism is likely to follow the...
View ArticleThe Labor Shortage And the New Criminalization
The level of stupid in what passes for “discourse” in the Western world never ceases to amaze. Employers are shocked that they are having trouble filling low wage jobs and blame enhanced unemployment...
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