prosecutorial misconduct (tags)
prosecutors lie and mislead judges
Baltimore cops and the rotten core of policing (tags)
The explosive trial of eight of Baltimore Police’s Gun Trace Task Force has exposed some of the worst misconduct imaginable — from robbery and extortion to faking evidence, planting drugs, and stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars, drugs and valuables from their victims. The eight cops involved have left a wake of destruction within Baltimore’s most vulnerable community. And even doubled their pay through fake overtime while doing it. In trials concluded in January, all either pleaded or were found guilty and face sentences of up to 60 years for racketeering, robbery and conspiracy.
Baltimore police union balks at policy requiring officers to pay some legal damages themse (tags)
Baltimore police union balks at policy requiring officers to pay some legal damages themselves
Baltimore Cops Kept Toy Guns to Plant Just in Case They Shot an Unarmed Person (tags)
Baltimore Cops Kept Toy Guns to Plant Just in Case They Shot an Unarmed Person
Baltimore Students Offer Solutions to Stop Police Brutality (tags)
Baltimore Students Offer Solutions to Stop Police Brutality
San Diegans March in Support of Chrissy Lee Polis, Transgender Rights (tags)
The San Diego Alliance for Marriage Equality (S.A.M.E.) and All Out at City, the Queer student group at San Diego City College, drew about 70 people to a march and rally they staged outside the McDonald’s in Hillcrest April 30 in support of Transgender rights. The rally was in support of Chrissy Lee Polis,the 24-year-old Transgender woman who was beaten up by two teenage girls in a women’s restroom at a McDonald’s in Baltimore April 18, while McDonald’s staff and customers looked on and only one person actually tried to stop the attack. One McDonald’s employee filmed the incident on a video-equipped cell phone and posted the clip to the Internet, where it “went viral” and shocked the conscience of many people who saw it. S.A.M.E., All Out at City and various individuals, many of them Transgender, seized the teachable moment to hold an event that held Transgender rights central to the overall struggle for Queer equality.
John Waters Pays Homage to his Role Models (Book Review) (tags)
John Waters is a Baltimore Icon! He’s a film director, producer, author and a recovering Catholic. The then-Maryland Censor Board panned many of his early flicks, “as pure garbage.” Waters is openly gay. His latest book is “Role Models.” In it, Waters reveals the people who have influenced and have helped to shape his own complex persona. Waters confesses in his tome that he voted for Barack Obama because “he ‘was’ a friend of Bill Ayers!”
Rudacille’s Tome: A Must-Read for Labor Buffs (Review) (tags)
In 1959, Bethlehem’ Sparrows Point plant, outside Baltimore, was “the largest steelworks in the world.” In its heyday, it employed 36,000 workers. Bethlehem went into bankruptcy in 2001, and many of its retirees at the “Point” got screwed out of their benefits. Deborah Rudacille’s book, “Roots of Steel,” recreates, via compelling “oral histories,” the history of the Point; the collapse of Bethlehem, an industrial titan; and the baleful impact that it had on the lives of its union workers and communities that they lived in.
Systemic Injustice Against Two Longtime Political Prisoners (tags)
40 years in prison hell though innocent
“This Dream Called Death,” a novelzine, by Stephen Janis (A Review) (tags)
Stephen Janis builds his tale, “This Dream Called Death,” in one bone-chilling scene after another, with a writing style that suits the genre. His descriptions of the city of Balaise are first rate. As the tension escalates, the character of the narrator evolves, too, into a much more sympathetic figure. Janis takes you for a ride into a history, a nightmare, which I fear, may be only one more 9/11 incident away from becoming our reality!
Maryland’s Marty O’Gov Turns His Back on Fallen Mayor Dixon! (tags)
As a result of a plea deal, Baltimore’s Mayor Sheila Dixon will leave office, on Feb. 4, 2010. She was recently found guilty of stealing $530 worth of gift cards intended “for the poor.” Before the ink was dry on the agreement, however, Dixon’s ex-crony, the former mayor, and now Maryland Governor, Martin O’Malley, was pretending that she no longer existed. Appropriately, the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre said, “Hell is other people.”
It’s Baltimore, Hon!: Did Mayor Dixon Steal from the Poor? (tags)
High comedy will hit Baltimore, on Monday, Nov. 9, 2009. Mayor Sheila Dixon’s trial on theft charges begins. She’s accused of stealing about $1,500 of gift cards slated for the poor. The Mayor denies any wrongdoing. There’s an ex-boyfriend, a developer, in the mix. He’s already copped a plea in another City Hall corruption case and plans to testify against the Mayor. Oh, where is the iconic film maker John Waters when we need him the most?
Edgar Allan Poe: A Tragic, but Talented, American Original (tags)
Edgar Allan Poe, poet, novelist and literary critic, died in 1849, age 40, under mysterious circumstances, in Baltimore, MD. The British author, Peter Ackroyd, insightfully captures the trials and tribulations of this great man of letters in his latest tome, “Poe: A Life Cut Short.” Poe invented the modern detective story and his poem, “The Raven,” is a classic in the genre. Ackroyd reveals Poe’s battle with the bottle, and adds a wrinkle: his aversion to sex!
It’s The Money, Stupid!: Over $1 Billion Raised for Prez Race! (tags)
The candidates for the White House have raised over $1 billion in their quest to win the election on Nov. 4, 2008. The Dems’ Sen. Barack Obama has racked in $639 million, while the GOP’s nominee, John McCain, has taken in $360 million. The four other Third Party candidates for the presidency have brought in about $5.5 million. The only thing we know for sure is this: When big money contributions dominate the electoral process, the people lose!
Leonard Bernstein’s “Mass” Speaks to Today’s World (tags)
Political and religious authority is crumbling in a crisis of faith. The late Leonard Bernstein put those themes, and much more, in his concert triumph, “Mass.” After eight years of Bush-Cheney, the priest/pedophile scandal, coupled with the costly Wall St. Bailout, the loss of trust in our institutions is rampant. If the people want real change, they are going to have to rely on themselves, and on each other to create, in unity, the world that they desire.
City Hall Scandal Hits Baltimore After “The Wire” Exits (tags)
There is never a dull moment in Baltimore, Maryland. It seems as soon as HBO’s “The Wire” program left town, our Mayor, Sheila Dixon, became the subject of a state corruption probe. It’s all mostly about two fur coats and some travel trips with an ex-boyfriend. At the time, he was a developer doing business with the city. Does it add up to bribery or is it a tempest in a teapot? The Grand Jury holds the answer to that question. Stay tuned.
AFL-CIO’s John J. Sweeney Fears “an American Nightmare!” (tags)
On April 8, 2008, John J. Sweeney said in Baltimore, MD, that the country is going down the tubes and dragging working class people with it. He’s the head of the national AFL-CIO. He added that in November: “We have an opportunity to reverse these awful trends.” On May 1, 2008, West coast dockworkers are calling a work stoppage to protest the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Perhaps, Mr. Sweeney will join them on the picket line. Stay tuned.
"Science in the White House": David Baltimore (tags)
"The White House and the US Congress have shown little respect for science in the last years. The government obviously does not understand the importance of independence for science. Unfree scientific thinking does not work."
U.S. Catholic Bishops “See No Evil” in the War Party (tags)
The Bush-Cheney Gang has been running the country into the ground the last seven years, while creating a framework for a fascist police state. It has also slaughtered 1.2 million Iraqis and sent 3,867 of our finest sons and daughters to a early grave in an illegal and immoral war. But, you wouldn’t know it from any of the results of the annual conference of U.S. Catholic Bishops. To them, abortion is the greatest evil facing Mankind! Go figure!
The Baltimore Examiner Is Wrong About the Iraqi War (tags)
On July 11, 2007, the Baltimore Examiner published an editorial cheerleading a continuation of the Iraqi War and propping up the conflict’s main instigator, the liar-in-chief, President George W. Bush. The Examiner insisted: “[Bush] is right on Iraq and that he deserves America’s support.” The Examiner is wrong! Bush warrants impeachment for lying the country into the war and a federal prison cell next to his partner-in-crime--V. P. Dick Cheney!
A Congressman of the People: Parren J. Mitchell (RIP) (tags)
Rep. Parren J. Mitchell, age 85, died on May 28, 2007. He served the people of Baltimore, MD, for eight terms in the U.S. Congress (1971-87). He was fighter for Civil Rights, who opposed the Vietnam War and pushed for the impeachment of Richard M. Nixon. Today, by contrast, Maryland is stuck with U.S. Sen., Barbara A. Mikulski. She supports funding for the Iraqi War, with no conditions, and condones the wrongdoings of President George W. Bush.
BMORE'S GOT YOUR BACK: Solidarity with immigrants and victims of LAPD police brutality (tags)
On Monday, May 5, Baltimore organized a rally to show solidarity with Los Angeles immigrants attacked by LAPD, and to support immigrants' rights nationwide. Immigrants are facing a growing climate of hostility and violence, from police brutality to I.C.E. raids which have displaced hundreds of workers from their families.
“Pro Surge” Mikulski Is Paving the Way for Hillary! (tags)
Want-to-be president, Sen. Hillary “War Lite” Clinton (D-NY), recently gushed over U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD). She said that “Pro-Surge” Mikulski had “paved” the way for her. Indeed, Mikulski has done a lot of paving, especially with respect to the manufacturing jobs lost on her watch. In addition, Mikulski persists in supporting funding for the Iraqi War. Now, it has been disclosed that she knew the Bush-Cheney Gang was lying about the war.
The U.S. military announced the deaths of 11 more U.S. troops in Iraq (tags)
“Pro Surge” Mikulski Is Paving the Way for Hillary!
“Pro Surge” Mikulski Is Paving the Way for Hillary! (tags)
Want-to-be president, Sen. Hillary “War Lite” Clinton (D-NY), recently gushed over U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD). She said that “Pro-Surge” Mikulski had “paved” the way for her. Indeed, Mikulski has done a lot of paving, especially with respect to the manufacturing jobs lost on her watch. In addition, Mikulski persists in supporting funding for the Iraqi War. Now, it has been disclosed that she knew the Bush-Cheney Gang was lying about the war.
Complicit Democrats Ripped at Pro Peace Rally (tags)
As a result of the Bush-Cheney Gang’s insane “Surge” strategy, 1,300 Maryland Nation Guard members will be deployed to the hell hole that is Iraq. On May 3, 2007, in Baltimore, a rally was held to protest that action. Maryland State Del. Jill P. Carter blasted U.S. Senators Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin for funding the war and then saying that they wanted to “protect the troops.” She called that bizarre conduct: “politically schizophrenic.”
The Zell[ing] Out of the Baltimore Sun (tags)
Sam Zell, a multibillionaire and “committed Zionist,” will soon gain control of the LA Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Baltimore Sun, and 23 TV stations. Zell, an AIPAC supporter, has promised he won’t interfere with the news sections of any of the media outlets. I think he’s another Mortimer B. Zuckerman of the NY Daily News, who pushed for the Iraqi War. America--prepare for a “Dark Age!”
Locals Protest Vulture Capitalists and the Iraqi War (tags)
On March 19, 2007, the Baltimore City Council unanimously approved a Resolution condemning the Iraqi War, the lies that got us into it, George W. Bush’s insane “Surge,” and demanded the troops be “safely” withdrawn from that conflict. On that same night, a Peace Rally was held at St. Vincent de Paul RC Church. The Rev. Heber Brown III said: “It’s time for us to raise hell for peace in our churches.” The event was sponsored by the local UPJ group.
James Howard Kunstler: “America, Think Downscale!” (tags)
America is headed for “a long emergence,” according to author, James H. Kunstler. He’s convinced that the days of the economy running on a cheap supply of fast-fading oil will soon be history. He spoke at Loyola College in Baltimore, MD, on Feb. 20, 2007. Kunstler said it’s time for the country to think: “Downscale!” He sees hard times ahead. Kunstler also doesn’t think much of how the U.S. looks either. He said much of it is a “piece of crap.”
David Simon: “We’re Headed Towards Separate Americas!” (tags)
The award-winning author of the acclaimed HBO program, “The Wire,” painted a grim picture of this country. David Simon said: “We’re headed [towards] separate Americas.” Speaking at Loyola College, in Baltimore, MD, on Feb. 6, 2007, he said that “unencumbered Capitalism has become our God.” In our greedy society, Simon underscored: “Human are worth less, not more: less.” He said America is going to be a “more brutish, cynical and divided place.”
Dr. Suzan D. Johnson Cook Honors MLK Jr.’s Memory (tags)
Martin Luther King Jr., a hero of the Civil Rights Movement, was assassinated in Memphis, TN, on April 4, 1968. His impressive legacy, however, lives on. For the last 25 years, the Enoch Pratt Library in Baltimore has honored his memory with a commemorative lecture. On Jan. 13, 2007, Dr. Suzan Johnson Cook filled that role with distinction. She called on her audience to do their part, “to make a difference,” and to be “strengthened by our struggle.”
New Orleans police setting up overnight checkpoints (tags)
New Orleans police setting up overnight checkpoints
Corporations taking over New Jersey's toll-roads (tags)
Corporations taking over New Jersey's toll-roads
Immense ice shelf breaks off in Canadian Arctic (tags)
Immense ice shelf breaks off in Canadian Arctic
five years of infamy: close Guantanamo (tags)
five years of infamy: close Guantanamo
More Americans hungry, homeless in 2006 (tags)
More Americans hungry, homeless in 2006
Protesting Colin Powell’s Deception (tags)
One of the principal co-conspirators in selling the Iraqi War was Colin Powell, the ex-U.S. Secretary of State. Few will ever forget his deception-filled speech before the UN, on Feb. 5, 2003, which helped launched the Neocon-inspired conflict. His own aide, Col. Lawrence Wilkinson, called it “a hoax on the American people.” Powell was in Baltimore on Dec. 5, 2006, to give a talk. Activists, led by the “Citizens for Peace” group, protested his gig.
Kevin Zeese Blasts "Special Interests" at Senate Debate (tags)
In an historic first, a three-way debate was held between the candidates running for the office of U.S. Senate in Maryland. Kevin Zeese, the “Unity Candidate,” blasted the Democrats and Republicans in the Congress for selling the country out “to the special interests.” Unlike his opponents, Lt. Gov. Michael Steele and Rep. Ben Cardin, Zeese offered specific proposals to solve the many problems facing the people of the state of Maryland.
Mayor Martin O’Malley Pimps for Israel Lobby (tags)
U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) is a politician that regularly sucks up to the powerful Israel Lobby. Fortunately, she has an opponent in this year’s primary, Jonathan Tasini, who is calling her on her shameless behavior. In Baltimore, Mayor Martin O’Malley, who wants to be governor of Maryland, is following in Clinton’s footsteps. When the Israel Lobby called a rally, on 07/25/06, to boost support for Israel, O’Malley showed up to do its bidding.
The Rev. Billy Graham is No Phil Berrigan! (tags)
The Rev. Billy Graham was in Baltimore recently doing his religious revival thing. For years, he was a crony of warmongering presidents, like Richard M. Nixon. Rev. Graham’s preaching never attracted me. However, the life work of the late Phil Berrigan, an ex-Josephite priest, had a profound influence on me, and others. Berrigan spoke the truth to power. He relentlessly took on the War Party and spent 11 of his 79 years in prison for his protest actions.
Ralph Nader: “Americans Need Moral Courage!” (tags)
Ralph Nader spoke at a campaign rally, in Baltimore, MD, on behalf of Kevin Zeese, who’s running as an Independent for a U.S. Senate seat. Nader called his former press secretary, “a great candidate.” An activist’s activist, Nader said a vast majority of Americans need a dose of “moral courage.” They have allowed “a few,” to rule over the many. “Democracy,” Nader said, “isn’t a slogan. People need to get motivated, show up and get organized.”
Kevin Zeese: “Both Parties Selling Country to Highest Bidder!” (tags)
Kevin Zeese, an independent candidate for U.S. Senate in Maryland, accused both parties, Democrats and Republicans, of “selling the country to the highest bidder.” He spoke at a Forum, in Baltimore, MD, on June 4, 2006. Zeese emphasized the importance of breaking the straightjacket the two parties have on the voters in order to give them a real choice. Zeese also underscored that our fragile environment is headed for a global disaster, unless serious policy changes are made within the next five to ten years.
Snuggly, the security bear (tags)
Snuggly, the security bear
Dollar takes a pounding (tags)
Dollar takes a pounding
Washington offers no relief from soaring gas prices (tags)
News Junkie Scott's Blog (5/01/06)
Hey, General Assembly of MD: ”Reverse Deregulation!” (tags)
Most Marylanders can expect their electric bills to go up by $743 a year-a 74 % increase! In 1999, the legislature deregulated the industry. In a sweetheart deal, BGE was absorbed by Constellation Energy and required to begin buying its electricity on the open market. Meanwhile, BGE’s electric-generating assets, originally paid for by the people, were turned over to Constellation in “a cash-free shuffle.” The ratepayers are now being asked to pay again!
When Propaganda Controls America’s Thinking (tags)
Propaganda is a science. No one knows that better than the Bush-Cheney Gang. It cleverly used every scare tactic and lie available to con the country into the Iraqi War. In the Dubai port deal, those same kinds of ruses were turned against it. George Bush was hoisted up on his own petard. The great Oswald Spengler reminds us of how the Media can influence us, via repetition, into believing any kind of lie. Now, will the U.S. be lied into a war with Iran?
“Best Director” Oscar for Ports Brouhaha Production (tags)
The Iraqi War has been raging for over three years with hardly a peep out of the Congress and/or the Media. Now, a deal which would permit an Arab-owned company to manage stevedore operations in six U.S. ports has sent both into a feeding frenzy. Why? The U.S. Coast Guard is in charge of security at the ports, not the stevedoring outfit. Whoever is behind this ports brouhaha affair deserves an Oscar nomination for - “best director!”
Arab Port Deal Distorted for Political Gain (tags)
Recently, 8,600 U.S. companies have been taken over by foreign ownership, while 20 percent of all U.S. assets are held by foreigners. The politicians were silent. Now, a United Arab Emirates’ enterprise will soon be operating stevedoring companies in six U.S. ports, including Baltimore’s. Its Mayor, Martin O’Malley, almost broke a blood vessel complaining. However, he didn’t say a word while the preceding British outfit was doing the work. Go figure!
Abramoffgate: It’s the Same Sleaze, Just Bigger! (tags)
Jack Abramoff may be the sleaziest influence peddler to hit the halls of power in Congress - ever. As many as 20 Congressmen may be caught up in the crimes of this confessed master briber. Yet, there is nothing really new about corruption scandals on Capitol Hill. The biggest obscenity is this: Brave U.S. soldiers are dying in Iraq in a war sanctioned by the “most corrupt Congress in history,” and started by a wacky President - George W. Bush.
Joe Wilson Rips the Bush-Cheney Gang (tags)
Ex-Ambassador Joe Wilson took the gloves off in a lecture that he gave on Nov. 14, 2005, in Baltimore. He ripped into the “Brownshirts” in the Bush-Cheney Gang; hack columnist, Bob Novak; and the indicted and “cowardly” White House operative, Irv “Scooter” Libby. Wilson speculated that the “outing” of his wife as a CIA agent was done in an attempt to make others “afraid” to speak out about how the country was dragged into the Iraqi war.
Opportunity Knocks for the Green Party (tags)
President George W. Bush’s approval numbers are falling faster than the values of Ken Lay’s Enron stock. Nationwide, Bush is at 39 percent, while in Maryland, he has dipped further to 33 percent. As Bush’s goes, so goes the GOP. It’s time for the Green Party to make its move. The Democrats are part of the corrupt Two-Party duopoly. The country needs an alternative. In MD, Kevin Zeese is running as a Green Party candidate for the U.S. Senate.
America's Middle Class: In the Tank! (tags)
Just about everyday, the news is bad! The economy is going to hell, the Iraqi War continues unabated and the energy crisis is shifting into high gear. One direct result: The Middle Class is disappearing. No Middle Class, no democracy! And yet, our people seem to be sleepwalking through it all. Maybe, Carl Jung was right when he said, “The people can’t stand too much reality.”
Cindy Sheehan Rips War Party in Baltimore Talk (tags)
Cindy Sheehan, and the “Bring Them Home Now Tour,” hit Baltimore City last night. The Shriver auditorium on the Johns Hopkins U. campus was packed to capacity to hear the anti-Iraqi War messages of her and others. Sheehan said, we need an “Opposition Party” and that Congress is mostly made up of cowards, who have given “a liar” and “a maniac,” - George W. Bush - the power to invade Iraq. If Congress doesn’t shape up, she said: “Fire them!”
Along Baltimore City’s Peace Path (tags)
On 09/11/05, demonstrators in Baltimore City turned out to protest rabid militarism and the Iraqi War. If this action also leads political hack, Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD), to speak out against the Iraqi War and to stop funding it, it will be a huge success! Her priority has been to give tens of billions of taxpayers’ money to Israel, while the Chesapeake Bay is dying from “dead zones,” and the levees at N.O. were in desperate need of repairs.
George W. Bush & Raffy Palmeiro: Birds of a Feather! (tags)
George W. Bush lied us into the Iraqi War, but remains unpunished for his wrongdoing. Meanwhile, on the sports front, Raffy Palmeiro of the Baltimore Orioles has tested positive for steroids and been suspended for ten days. Yet, he told Congress he had never used steroids. Rep. Chris Shays said he was “extremely disappointed” about Palmeiro. If so, what should the response of Congress be to all of Bush’s treachery? Think: Impeachment!
George Bush, our “Liar-in-Chief,” is Ignorant of History! (tags)
Baltimore’s patriots defeated the invading British forces in the War of 1812-1814, at Fort McHenry. Yesterday, President Bush, ranted at the Dundalk Marine Terminal, across the harbor from the fort, urging the renewal of the draconian Patriot Act. Bush is our “Liar-in-Chief” and he’s ignorant of history. What’s next? A surveillance device implanted in everyone’s head?
Wireless World: A ruling on wireless taxes (tags)
A story about taxes on mobile phone usage.
From COINTELPRO to the Patriot Act: The long battle for justice and civil liberties (tags)
Jailed Black Panther calls for amnesty
CHERYL SEAL REPORTS: Deals with the Devil: The Anti-Terrorism Drug Scam (tags)
How the most evil, least competent and most inappropriate drug companies (including Donald Rumsfeld's company) are ripping America off in the name of fighting terrorism - while leaving a trail of dead and disabled soldiers.
Cities and states face brutal cutbacks (tags)
BALTIMORE – In what could be called a “Thanksgiving massacre,” public school officials here handed out pink slips to 710 Baltimore City Public School (BCPS) employees. At least 1,000 are expected to have lost their jobs by January.
Cheers for returning troops? (tags)
The below story is horrible! How could any American help speed the war machine? We need to stay a peaceful country and supporting the troops is the wrong way to do it. I urge all that see troops returning home for this so-called-war to let the troops know what you think a simple "boo" or "how could you kill" would do. If the media, troops and administration see that American’s are not happy with what they have turned our peaceful National Guard reserve force into killers for oil they will see more disfavor. Every troop return needs to meet with protest to the war. These national guard troops are supposed to be here to protect the physical united states soil and for state natural emergencies like fire and flood not to go to kill others on foreign soil for his oil.
They're Coming to Take Me Away (tags)
Artie wasn't home when the Baltimore SWAT team broke down the door and then handcuffed his 72-year-old wife to the bedstead for seven hours, while they ransacked the couple's home. Elizabeth is a proud grandmother, in fact, great-grandmother to three youngsters. They took the couple's computer equipment, private papers and $8,000 in cash which the couple kept in their home for safety...for safety.
Baltimore Passes Anti-Patriot Act Resolution (tags)
The Baltimore city council passed an Anti-Patriot Resolution decying violation of civil liberties and hostility to foreigners.
The Nuremberg Principles are the basis for our demand that individuals seeking to prevent crimes against the peace and humanity not be criminalized. Please sign and circulate.
Fund-raiser for GOP pleads guilty in case of child pornography (tags)
A prominent Republican fund-raiser who once said former President Bill Clinton was "a lawbreaker and a terrible example to our nation's young people" pleaded guilty yesterday in Baltimore Circuit Court to production of child pornography.
Support The Baltimore Anti-Racist 28! (tags)
Silence Is Approval! Demand Justice Now!