DeSantis: Hang 'Em High, Disney Sues DeSantis, MTG Says the Darndest Things (Again), Why an Ex-NBA Player Escaped from Florida, Racist Guardsman Leaker Wants to Be Mass Murderer, Steely Dan Sings
DeSantis: Hang 'Em High, Disney Sues DeSantis, MTG Says the Darndest Things (Again), Why an Ex-NBA Player Escaped from Florida, Racist Guardsman Leaker Wants to Be Mass Murderer, Steely Dan Sings
kareem.substack.com
My take on news, pop culture, sports, and whatever else interests me.
I’d rather be woke than asleep. As Ben Franklin said “our republic is founded on the principle that it will continue only as long as the people keep democracy alive.” Thank you Dwayne Wade, Zooey Zephyr, the Tennessee Three, and Amanda Zurawski, for your wokeness and keeping democracy alive.
I agree with you RE the horror of DeSantis and the death penalty verdict changes, but you are misunderstanding the quote. A death penalty case is made up of 2 verdicts. The first unanimous verdict results in the conviction. Usually, the second penalty must be unanimous in order to impose death. DeSantis is whining about why when you have a unanimous verdict for conviction do you need a second unanimous verdict for death. It’s this second unanimous verdict that he is scrapping.
It’s a horror show. The USA has such harsh penalties for crime. Even life without parole, the sentence that is imposed when the jury does not impose death in a capital case is atrociously harsh. There really is no reason why every prisoner, no matter the crime, should not be offered the possibility of parole. People change over time. And just because you have the possibility of parole does not mean you get granted release.
Hey thanks for continually fighting for putting logic, data, facts and science into the public discussions on the topics you cover. So much of modern sensibilities tend to be about gut reaction opinions instead of logic and research. That kind off thinking truly does show off the Dunning-Kruger effect that you mentioned.
Land an airplane? Hell, we can't even elect representatives capable of appearing in public without making fools of themselves and of us. But thank you for, well, sharing the things we know and love with those of our kind as generously and as graciously as you do. Good reason to get up on a Monday morning!
Larry Carlton did much of the REAL guitar work on the Steely Dan recordings. He's an awesome guitarist, and a down-to-earth person. I've met him in the past.
Many thanks for a great selection of topics once again. And appreciate the highlighting of Steely Dan and the observation about Donald Fagan's empowering line. Hadn't heard that explanation before. Listening to Steely Dan always takes me to a peaceful place. Great way to kick off a busy Monday!
Desanctimonious is going down!! My prediction. Even GOP members are telling him to chill & settle the deal with Disney. He is so hell-bent on absolute control that his obsession with Mickey will result in his destruction. His illiterate ill-informed cohorts can continue to spout their blabberings because that is all they are. Total & utter nonsense. Idiots!
D Wade is fortunate he could move out of the swampy state. He is now part owner of the Utah Jazz & appears at their games. Don't know if his family moved here, because this state has also passed draconian laws aimed at preventing any care for transgender youth.
And Montana. Keeping out Zephyr. And Kerri Seekins-Crowe. She would rather her child commit suicide than go through any transition. What's the matter with you lady? She's your child. You gave birth to her. It's your duty to care for & protect her. Despicable!
AND - in spite of what anyone has written here, Chef Curry cooked yesterday & scored 50 points. Amazing day for him. He is one of the greatest ever. And most entertaining. And Magic gave him a great tribute. The toddler video was totally cute.
Thank you Kareem. Education is the only way to keep a society & nation free. We cannot permit our country to backslide into the dark ages.
I've said this many times before - I moved from Florida at the same time as Mr. Wade. It got REALLY bad there in 2019 and keeps getting worse. My sister and niece still live there and I'm worried about them. They're a mother/daughter living with a toddler, and often get mistaken for a couple.
I've also stated that politicians should be required to pass mental health and civics (as in the type of exams that immigrants take en route to becoming citizens - these new immigrants know civics better than most politicians).
Woke versus Broke - we all know that you can't fix stupid, but you can enlighten the ignorant.
Now it's time for your Lakers to take down Steph Curry. I loved his Dad, but I find him irritating. He's starting to look like Whitman Mayo (Grady from Sanford and Son).
The death penalty change is horrific, and there’s no question it results from the Parkland case. Since 9 jurors voted for death, DeathSantis wants to make sure the next time 9 vote yes, it will go through. Never mind the fact that those three jurors were factually correct; Cruz was and is deeply disturbed.
As far as Deacon Blues goes, it may be my favorite Steely Dan song. I love the lyrics and fabulous jazz sound. Thanks for recalling it to me.
A lot of wealthy, older residents of New York City have bought homes in Florida, some for tax reasons. The wealthy are largely insulated from politics as their children are past school age and they can afford to live in enclaves, including Palm Beach and parts of Miami., that are insular.
I wonder if this trend reverses at some point. I also wonder if businesses will eventually find it hard to attract a young and educated workforce to Florida.
As for me, I am a lifelong New Yorker and I'm happy to escape occasionally to good weather in places other than Florida.
I would love your take sometime on how you take in all these wretched pieces of news and awful takes from politicos etc and don't let it get you down! I wish I could do a better job at staying informed but also staying happy/sane.
MTG is in a huff about the Dems not scheduling a debate? That’s communism? I took it as a pretty conclusive sign that American democracy was in big trouble in 2020 when the Republican party didn’t need no stinkin’ platform. No policy stances for their convention. Their official platform was “whatever Trump says”. WTF.
Thank you as always for your insights. My mind hurts when I hear the continued racist, misogynistic, ant-LGBTQ, anti-woke, anti-counter culture and illogical and ill-informed comments from MTG and the host of other Right Wing Nut Jobs (RWNJ). Their hatred is all consuming and spreading. I see friends, even in the military standing up for the little Fascist Air Guard traitor and would be mass murderer. One tried to do a “whataboutism” regarding liberals in the military and I said “when was the last time you saw a liberal in the military threatening mass-murder? And when did guys like him become honored conservatives? The last time that I checked, this was not a conservative value.” He didn’t reply. Anyway, have a great week. Let me know when you get my book.
Thank you Kareem. I so appreciate your take on these matters. Statistics I found indicate, that as of end of 2019, 41% of people on death row are Black - almost entirely men. The death penalty needs to go. It is a barbaric and is purely performed for retribution/vengeance. It has nothing to do with deterrence- that is born out in study after study, and clearly shows no interest in rehabilitation. Our judicial system is badly broken - and this is probably the most egregious symptom.
A great (albeit infuriating and at times heartbreaking) is Just Mercy. Cannot recommend this book and the work of the Equal Justice Initiative highly enough.
De Santis seems completely unhinged these days. I appreciate your take that his attack is an assault on the "free speech" of corporations.
This is an interesting use of the term, since the alleged right of speech for corporations is the principle by which the Supreme Court overturned campaign spending limits. Perhaps one could say that as far as Republicans are concerned, the only rights of speech that corporations should have is to donate to their campaigns.
But one could ask a more fundamental question about whether corporations -- as legal entities, not people -- should be endowed with any rights at all.
So much here and I value every single word. Especially as a Canadian. Just wondering how it is that the US views itself as a world leader when many of its policies are aligned with some of the worst countries in the world. The death penalty for example. Aside from Japan, I am pretty sure the others are not industrialized countries. Or, we can lump a bunch up of insane polarizing policies with DeSantis. He is scary. My husband and I sold our home in Naples specifically because of the politics in that state. We can’t vote there but we don’t have to own a home there. Spend our money and time elsewhere.
I’d rather be woke than asleep. As Ben Franklin said “our republic is founded on the principle that it will continue only as long as the people keep democracy alive.” Thank you Dwayne Wade, Zooey Zephyr, the Tennessee Three, and Amanda Zurawski, for your wokeness and keeping democracy alive.
I agree with you RE the horror of DeSantis and the death penalty verdict changes, but you are misunderstanding the quote. A death penalty case is made up of 2 verdicts. The first unanimous verdict results in the conviction. Usually, the second penalty must be unanimous in order to impose death. DeSantis is whining about why when you have a unanimous verdict for conviction do you need a second unanimous verdict for death. It’s this second unanimous verdict that he is scrapping.
It’s a horror show. The USA has such harsh penalties for crime. Even life without parole, the sentence that is imposed when the jury does not impose death in a capital case is atrociously harsh. There really is no reason why every prisoner, no matter the crime, should not be offered the possibility of parole. People change over time. And just because you have the possibility of parole does not mean you get granted release.
Hey thanks for continually fighting for putting logic, data, facts and science into the public discussions on the topics you cover. So much of modern sensibilities tend to be about gut reaction opinions instead of logic and research. That kind off thinking truly does show off the Dunning-Kruger effect that you mentioned.
Land an airplane? Hell, we can't even elect representatives capable of appearing in public without making fools of themselves and of us. But thank you for, well, sharing the things we know and love with those of our kind as generously and as graciously as you do. Good reason to get up on a Monday morning!
Larry Carlton did much of the REAL guitar work on the Steely Dan recordings. He's an awesome guitarist, and a down-to-earth person. I've met him in the past.
Many thanks for a great selection of topics once again. And appreciate the highlighting of Steely Dan and the observation about Donald Fagan's empowering line. Hadn't heard that explanation before. Listening to Steely Dan always takes me to a peaceful place. Great way to kick off a busy Monday!
Desanctimonious is going down!! My prediction. Even GOP members are telling him to chill & settle the deal with Disney. He is so hell-bent on absolute control that his obsession with Mickey will result in his destruction. His illiterate ill-informed cohorts can continue to spout their blabberings because that is all they are. Total & utter nonsense. Idiots!
D Wade is fortunate he could move out of the swampy state. He is now part owner of the Utah Jazz & appears at their games. Don't know if his family moved here, because this state has also passed draconian laws aimed at preventing any care for transgender youth.
And Montana. Keeping out Zephyr. And Kerri Seekins-Crowe. She would rather her child commit suicide than go through any transition. What's the matter with you lady? She's your child. You gave birth to her. It's your duty to care for & protect her. Despicable!
AND - in spite of what anyone has written here, Chef Curry cooked yesterday & scored 50 points. Amazing day for him. He is one of the greatest ever. And most entertaining. And Magic gave him a great tribute. The toddler video was totally cute.
Thank you Kareem. Education is the only way to keep a society & nation free. We cannot permit our country to backslide into the dark ages.
Thanks Kareem,
I've said this many times before - I moved from Florida at the same time as Mr. Wade. It got REALLY bad there in 2019 and keeps getting worse. My sister and niece still live there and I'm worried about them. They're a mother/daughter living with a toddler, and often get mistaken for a couple.
I've also stated that politicians should be required to pass mental health and civics (as in the type of exams that immigrants take en route to becoming citizens - these new immigrants know civics better than most politicians).
Woke versus Broke - we all know that you can't fix stupid, but you can enlighten the ignorant.
Now it's time for your Lakers to take down Steph Curry. I loved his Dad, but I find him irritating. He's starting to look like Whitman Mayo (Grady from Sanford and Son).
Peace and Serenity
The death penalty change is horrific, and there’s no question it results from the Parkland case. Since 9 jurors voted for death, DeathSantis wants to make sure the next time 9 vote yes, it will go through. Never mind the fact that those three jurors were factually correct; Cruz was and is deeply disturbed.
As far as Deacon Blues goes, it may be my favorite Steely Dan song. I love the lyrics and fabulous jazz sound. Thanks for recalling it to me.
A lot of wealthy, older residents of New York City have bought homes in Florida, some for tax reasons. The wealthy are largely insulated from politics as their children are past school age and they can afford to live in enclaves, including Palm Beach and parts of Miami., that are insular.
I wonder if this trend reverses at some point. I also wonder if businesses will eventually find it hard to attract a young and educated workforce to Florida.
As for me, I am a lifelong New Yorker and I'm happy to escape occasionally to good weather in places other than Florida.
I would love your take sometime on how you take in all these wretched pieces of news and awful takes from politicos etc and don't let it get you down! I wish I could do a better job at staying informed but also staying happy/sane.
MTG is in a huff about the Dems not scheduling a debate? That’s communism? I took it as a pretty conclusive sign that American democracy was in big trouble in 2020 when the Republican party didn’t need no stinkin’ platform. No policy stances for their convention. Their official platform was “whatever Trump says”. WTF.
Kareem,
Thank you as always for your insights. My mind hurts when I hear the continued racist, misogynistic, ant-LGBTQ, anti-woke, anti-counter culture and illogical and ill-informed comments from MTG and the host of other Right Wing Nut Jobs (RWNJ). Their hatred is all consuming and spreading. I see friends, even in the military standing up for the little Fascist Air Guard traitor and would be mass murderer. One tried to do a “whataboutism” regarding liberals in the military and I said “when was the last time you saw a liberal in the military threatening mass-murder? And when did guys like him become honored conservatives? The last time that I checked, this was not a conservative value.” He didn’t reply. Anyway, have a great week. Let me know when you get my book.
Peace,
Steve
Thank you Kareem. I so appreciate your take on these matters. Statistics I found indicate, that as of end of 2019, 41% of people on death row are Black - almost entirely men. The death penalty needs to go. It is a barbaric and is purely performed for retribution/vengeance. It has nothing to do with deterrence- that is born out in study after study, and clearly shows no interest in rehabilitation. Our judicial system is badly broken - and this is probably the most egregious symptom.
A great (albeit infuriating and at times heartbreaking) is Just Mercy. Cannot recommend this book and the work of the Equal Justice Initiative highly enough.
De Santis seems completely unhinged these days. I appreciate your take that his attack is an assault on the "free speech" of corporations.
This is an interesting use of the term, since the alleged right of speech for corporations is the principle by which the Supreme Court overturned campaign spending limits. Perhaps one could say that as far as Republicans are concerned, the only rights of speech that corporations should have is to donate to their campaigns.
But one could ask a more fundamental question about whether corporations -- as legal entities, not people -- should be endowed with any rights at all.
So much here and I value every single word. Especially as a Canadian. Just wondering how it is that the US views itself as a world leader when many of its policies are aligned with some of the worst countries in the world. The death penalty for example. Aside from Japan, I am pretty sure the others are not industrialized countries. Or, we can lump a bunch up of insane polarizing policies with DeSantis. He is scary. My husband and I sold our home in Naples specifically because of the politics in that state. We can’t vote there but we don’t have to own a home there. Spend our money and time elsewhere.