A lot more news out there today than yesterday (which is why I didn’t do one yesterday):
- ‘Bloodbath’ In Cairo As Troops Move On Morsi Supporters (NPR) — Some estimate as many as 300 killed. Veep ElBaradei steps down in protest.
- U.S. Condemns Crackdown, but Doesn’t Alter Policy (NYT) — Kerry doesn’t indicate what we do intend to do in response.
- Grant gets 30 years for killing Gabrielle Swainson (thestate.com) — A plea deal. Grant had nothing to say.
- DHEC board: Templeton doing great job on TB (thestate.com) — The board that hired her. The board that was appointed by the governor. The vote of confidence was made by conference call, and we don’t know WHY they think she’s doing so well.
- Manning ‘sorry for hurting US’ (BBC) — So, he’s on the record as acknowledging he’s not some heroic whistleblower. Good. They still need to throw the book at him.
- Jesse Jackson Jr. sentenced to 30 months in prison for misuse of funds (WashPost) — I hadn’t really been following this. Looks like they sorted it out without me.
Related Posts
Here’s a statement Lindsey Graham put out on the Egypt situation:
“The only hope to stop the violence is to create dialogue between all groups within Egypt marching toward writing a new constitution and elections. ”
-Lindsey
What a completely useless thing to say. It’s about like saying, “The best way to reduce the murder rate is to get everyone to stop killing each other”. Or “The best way to end unemployment is to get people back to work”. As they say the devil is in the details. But of course no matter what the Obama administration does it will be slammed as wrong by the deadweight members of the GOP.
Obama/Clinton/Kerry’s foreign policy record is a train wreck of colossal proportions. Why should Egypt resolve itself any better than the:
Failed state in Iraq
Genocide in Syria
Reset with Russia
Spying on citizens of th world
All of which Obama & Co. has bungled.
Colossal proportions Silence? Sure beats the hundreds of thousands killed during the previous administration because of a war based on lies. Not to mention the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil in the history of the nation.
Egypt is certainly a mess but decades of living under the leadership of a strongman are not ended overnight with a magical appearance of full blown democracy. This has to all play out in a messy sort of way. And for the past century Russia has been a challenge to deal with.
There are some positive developments which the ouster of Ghadaffi in Libya, a moderation in Iran as witnessed by the election of more moderate factions, a sharp drop in American troops abroad, a general decline in terrorist activity around the world.
No era is free of problems so Silence’s list is typical of what is faced by any American president. A fair and balanced evaluation of the world today is really not so tumultuous when viewed in those terms. Just ask Woodrow Wilson, FDR or Dwight Eisenhower if they had it easy.
And just what the hell is different in Graham’s comment than the one made by the Adams family butler, Lurch, disguised as John Kerry, Secretary of State? Maybe he and Obama can get together after the vacation at Martha’s Vineyard, have a beer and come up with another meeting to discuss having another meeting to discuss all of the previous meaningless meetings so they can table the topic for further discussions. Then when things continue to go in the gutter, Obama can make a public statement from the current hot topic sandbox, draw a line in the sandbox sand and promptly move onto another sandbox to draw more meaningless lines.
If either one had the gonads to call the military take-over in Egypt exactly what it is, a legitimate coup, then the $1.3 billion in aid would be cut off and then it could go toward filling the gap Obama’s sequester created and maybe shutting Obama’s trap about how much damage the sequester is doing.
This is what we get when a total incompetent is elected to run the country. Maybe you should watch the video of the interview with Obama’s former aid, Reggie Love, when he revealed that during the infamous “Bin Laden” raid where Obama was hunkered down in the corner, watching intently only lasted long enough for a photo-op. Obama, Love, and some others left to play Spades because Obama couldn’t just sit and watch the events unfold on the screen. But, he can for damn sure spike the Bin Laden football at every opportunity, can’t he?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2393832/Obama-personal-aide-Reggie-Love-says-president-played-cards-bin-Laden-raid.html
And GWB is skewered because he didn’t jump up like his hair was on fire when he was first informed of the plane hitting the first of the Twin Towers?
When are you going to wake up about Obama? I woke up about GWB after the incursion into Iraq when he failed to do what was necessary to stabilize the country and lessen the chaotic anarchy that ruled for months when the administrator totally screwed up the post occupation efforts.
Just read Silence’s comment about the foreign policy train wrecks by the (3) Horsemen of the Apocalypse.
Bart, I didn’t realize that there is such a thing as a “legitimate coup”. Maybe the administration should appoint Todd Akin as Ambassador to Egypt?
Really Mark? Are you now the language cop, patrolling the blog to catch an adjective used in what you consider to be the wrong context? Then, comparing it to the despicable Todd Akin with a snarky reference about making him Ambassador to Egypt? I think you know exactly what I was trying to convey about the coup in Egypt.
By the way, one of the definitions of the word “legitimate” is: “conforming to accepted rules, standards, etc.”. Now, if the military take-over in Egypt does not meet the “legitimate” definition of a “coup”, please explain to the audience what would be a “legitimate” coup. Based on what has been witnessed by the world, the displacement of Morsi does conform to the accepted rules and standards for an accurate description of a coup.
Are you trying to usurp Kathryn’s official position on Bradwarthen as the language monitor? 🙂
Hey, my coup in 1688 was really legitimate.
We overthrew James II and it was….glorious. 🙂 My coup started the modern English parliamentary democracy and ended absolute power held by the monarch. Also, the Bill of Rights of 1689 became one of the most important documents in the political history of Britain.
Yep, they sure don’t make coups like they used to.
There’s all kinds of legitimate coups.
Coup d’Etat of course, the “stroke of state”
Coup de main, the military equivalent of a sucker punch
Coupe de grace, a merciful killing blow
and my favorite
The Coupe de Ville – a two door Cadillac.
Humor is a lighthearted thing, Bart.
Coupe de Ville? Darn nice vehicle in its day but the later models didn’t have the same character and distinction as the older ones.
Did you catch my last remark? 🙂
And GWB is skewered because he didn’t jump up like his hair was on fire when he was first informed of the plane hitting the first of the Twin Towers?
-Bart
Not skewered at the time. Bush’s performance on that tragic day was a disgrace to the American presidency. His behavior was shameful.
“His behavior was shameful.”…..bud
And exactly what should GWB have done on that day bud? Regale us with your insight, I can hardly wait for your enlightening words.
And here’s a release I got regarding the DHEC story:
Did the DHEC board meet by conference call because they don’t want to risk catching TB?
What about Lee Not So Bright calling Lindsey a community organizer for the Muslim Brotherhood, as Robert highlights. Are SC voters THAT stupid?
“Are SC voters THAT stupid?” – KF
Your question undoubtedly reflects on the quality of education in S.C.. The government monopoly in public education applies just as well to jury members. Inadvertently, your question must beg the efficacy of due process, and fundamental fairness of our courts. Just a reminder.
I have no idea what you are saying….
True dat!
There can be NO doubt that if voters of SC are stupid, members of SC juries are stupis as well. The shameful answer by KF (“I have no idea what you are saying….”) echoed by you Mark, is a pitiful testament to your allegiance to agenda over debate. People pretending intelligence but refusing to debate are no more than political bottom dwellers, and your deserved day will certainly come.
Juan, I may well be stupis, but I would say that of all things that I am a debater is more accurate than an agenda-holder.
Mark – you are a master debater.
Because admitting you cannot understand what the other side is saying is shameful. I guess it is far more honorable to fire back a response, whether or not it is relevant….
Duh. We still have Mark Sanford to kick around don’t we?
Kathryn,
If you have to ask, the answer is likely yes.
Egypt is on it’s way to being a failed state.
A majority of voters may make stupid decisions based on low information, but be excellent jurors when forced to sit still and pay attention during a trial.
Finally, a cogent response. Yet, readers should know what else our lawyer-politicians hope to enact for juries throughout all 50 states:
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2013/08/14/jurors-dont-need-to-know-english-new-mexico-court-says/
What is Vincent Sheheen’s position statement on this issue?
Probably that this is a New Mexico issue and does not bear on South Carolina.
A lawyer’s usual evasion is undoubetly correct, Mark. Yet such an answer would still commit Sheheen, on record and in voters’ eyes, to not supporting another insidious initiative planned by his own party.
There are many other questions he will have to evade at his political peril. We know the liberal press would never ask them, but there are other avenues now.
Kathryn,
I found a reference to the annual “Stella Awards” while doing some research recently. The Stella Awards are based on the McDonald’s infamous “spilled coffee in the lap” outrageous financial award to Stella Liebeck when she took the lid off of her cup of coffee, placed it between her legs and proceeded to drive.
Here is the jury verdict that received the top award, there were several others. Read it and then consider that even in the face of undisputed facts that sometimes the “stupid gene” invades a jury and they award massive amounts of money to other people whose stupid gene takes over.
“This year’s runaway First Place Stella Award winner was Mrs. Merv Grazinski, of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, who purchased a new 32-foot Winnebago motor home. On her first trip home from an OU football game, having driven onto the freeway, she set the cruise control at 70 mph and calmly left the driver’s seat to go to the back of the Winnebago to make herself a sandwich.
Not surprisingly, the motor home left the freeway, crashed and overturned.
Also not surprisingly, Mrs. Grazinski sued Winnebago for not putting in the owner’s manual that she couldn’t actually leave the driver’s seat while the cruise control was set.
The Oklahoma jury awarded her, are you sitting down, $1,750,000 PLUS a new motor home.
Winnebago actually changed their manuals as a result of this suit, just in case Mrs. Grazinski has any relatives who might also buy a motor home. “
You,Bart, did not see all the evidence presented in these cases. Now imagine you have, and the plaintiff’s attorneys are gifted while the defendants lawyers are plodders. The injured plaintiff is sitting right in front of you. McDonald’s is a faceless corporation, and who knows, maybe you burned your mouth on their ridiculously hot coffee (I know I have.).
I am not a huge fan of juries, but just because there are some of what look like bad decisions does not negate the intelligence of juries.
I heard about both of those cases from a business law professor. In the McDonald’s case they were serving the coffee much hotter than their corporate guidelines recommended, and I believe it was not the first incident involving scalding and severe burns at this particular restaurant.
I always thought the Winnebago case was apocryphal.
You are absolutely correct Kathryn, I did not see all of the evidence presented in these cases. But then, did you?
When I buy coffee from McDonalds or any other place, I automatically check to see how hot it is before taking a big swallow. If it is too hot, I wait for it to cool down. Placing an open container of anything between my legs when driving? Not very smart but in Stella’s case, rewarding.
At some point, as with the example about the RV, the person who commits an act of idiocy should be the one held responsible, not Winnebago.
And you hit the nail on the head when you made the point that Mc Donald’s is a faceless corporation when it comes to juries and mega awards. If the situation had been reversed and the president of McDonald’s had stopped at Stella’s drive-thru burger stand and did the same as Stella, if he had sued, the jury would have laughed him out of the courtroom.
No, of course I did not hear all or even any of the evidence presented. I am not passing judgment on the merits of the case, either, merely suggesting an alternative to “juries are dumb.”
I once mentioned Stella to some representatives of the state trial lawyer group, which had come to pitch something or other to the editorial board, and they were all ready for that one, with their impassioned recitation of the terrible burns she received. When they got to the details of just how badly burned she was, and on which specific deeply personal body parts, I asked them to stop. I just didn’t want to be forced to picture the old lady’s, you know, parts…
You would think that a big outfit like McDonald’s could afford the best lawyers around…
” I just didn’t want to be forced to picture the old lady’s, you know, parts…”
Good thing they didn’t describe the process of making a McNugget…
Some of the contributing factors to the severity of a burn are age and gender, especially female. Stella was an 81 year old female and hot coffee that would create a much milder burn in a younger person would be much more severe in someone Stella’s age. In the past, I have had boiling hot coffee spilled on my hand and it left a red area that burned for a few hours and then went away. However, my wife is on a blood thinner and one of the effects of the medication is a thinning of the skin. If she hits her arm on anything, it bruises and bleeds easily. If she accidentally spills a hot liquid on her skin, it burns and leaves a mark for several days, sometimes permanently.
Without getting into the “body parts” details or knowing if Stella was on any medication that caused the skin to become thin, where Stella had the cup of coffee does make a difference in the severity of the burn. If it had been on her hand or arm, the chances are that it would have been much less severe.
Just saying.
I think the Winnebago case is an urban legend.
Actually, bud is right, it is an urban legend – gotcha! bud did his homework.
Just for the sake of clarity, I was the one on the receiving end of the “gotcha”. And, thanks to bud for pointing it out, I went back and verified my so-called facts. It seems the origins of the Winnegago tall tale goes back a while and many have fallen for it, including me. In other words, it never happened. Next time, I will check my facts BEFORE hitting the Post Comment icon. Apologies to all, especially you Kathryn.
Bart
No offense taken, Bart. You are ever the gentleman!
I fell for it to the first time around. But there are plenty of real examples of frivolous lawsuits. But sometimes the ones that seem frivolous actually have a bit of merit. It’s complicated.
“I am not a huge fan of juries..” -KF
Perhaps you meant you are not a huge fan of juries not comprised of professionally licensed jurors? Would all lawyers be grandfathered to serve? What would their pay be compared to the paltry sums jurors now collect? Just wondering.
Huh?
For the record, I never tried a case. I did juvie, uncontested divorce, GAL and DSS cases. For about three years, part time. The rest of the time, I was basically an advisor and negotiator for businesses and municipalities dealing with businesses.
McDonald’s can surely afford the best lawyers, but depends on how you define best. Big corporation defense lawyers did very well at top law schools. They are wizards at all the pre-trial delay techniques. They may not be the most effective at actually trying cases, since they so seldom get to that stage.
Well, that makes sense, I suppose.
No one is good at everything.
If I was suing McDonalds, I’d call in “The Heavy Hitter” – Bill Green.
“One call, that’s all”
McDonalds would be offering me millions to settle out of court as quickly as they could while they trembled in fear.
We laugh at Bill Green, but I expect since he has been doing this sufficiently profitably to run all those ads, he must be very good at it. He only gets paid if he wins.
That’s very true, a lawyer who takes cases on contingency has got to win to make a living. Which is why I’m hiring Akim Anastapoulo “The Hammer”….
It’s really as shame that the SC Bar stopped letting lawyers use nicknames in their commercials.
Litigation ads to individuals is the legal equivalent of gill-net fishing: try to harvest them all and then selectively pick the “winners”. Of course, I’m still not sure how well the clients really end up fairing in that process.
Classic case of the $400-600 per hour corp attorneys going up against the scrappers who get 25-40% (plus “expenses”) of the verdict. Who do you think will prevail? Who will rack up the bigger bill?
Notice they didn’t bring a suit for the kid who slipped on the greasy floor and stuck his or her hand in the deep fryer. Poor little old lady was violated… someone oughta pay, they say.
No wonder corporations feel they are in a loose/loose proposition when it comes to negligent stupidity – and litigious attorneys.
The good ones make a lot more money than the corporoids.
We ought to scrap the jury system if we don’t like the verdicts they/we render. Blaming anyone else is wrong. We have met the enemy and it is us.
Everyone gives lawyers a hard time – until they need one. Lotsa good, hardworking lawyers out there. Just like any profession, there’s a percentage of bad apples.
Lawyers play clean up and get blamed for the mess!
Agreed. The thing is that the unsavory ones follow that old saw “10% of the people are 90% of the problem”.
As with any business, my biggest beef is with those who prey on the unknowing and the vulnerable. I have a lot greater tolerance for those who deal, however badly, with sophisticated (or ought to be sophisticated) parties.