I have no idea why 10 Americans, in Haiti on a humanitarian mission, thought it would be a good idea to take 33 Haitian kids to an orphanage in the Dominican Republic. No one that I have seen has suggested that they were paid or had any insidious motive. My guess is that they were trying to help, but doing so in a naive and arrogant way.
With that in mind, a few thoughts:
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The Supreme Court will soon hear a series of cases on whether or not juveniles can be sentenced to life without parole for crimes that aren’t murder.
Personally, I think it is silly to sentence a juvenile to life without parole for any crime.
Take this quote, which is actually a defense of the practice by the National District Attorneys Association: “permanent incarceration for the most violent, hardened juvenile offenders is by no means ‘cruel.’”
Let’s think for a minute about the phrase “hardened juvenile”. Continue reading »
There is an article in the New York Times today that I think raises an interesting question: how many times must a harmless act be repeated to become hurtful?
Here’s the background information on the lawsuit: In Minneapolis area there are two elite private high schools, Breck and Blake. They are both small, extremely expensive, and highly selective private schools. They are also where the rich and famous send their kids. In 2007, one of the heirs to the Dayton fortune (his great-grandfather founded a department store chain and his uncle was a United States Senator from Minnesota) transferred, as a high school junior, from Breck to Blake, despite having gone to Breck since kindergarten. The article doesn’t say why, but shortly before then he had reported harassment from fellow classmates–harassment that escalated after the transfer and including repeated phone calls at all hours of the day and small scale vandalism to his house (eggs thrown, human excrement and used tampons left behind, etc.). Continue reading »
I apologize for my extended absence. I could tell you a story about taking care of a two-year old, getting the flu, and then working on a book (all of which are true), but the greater reality is that I simply allowed myself to get out of the habit of posting here. But I’ve missed it–mostly the discussions–so I’m back now and read to rant about one of my favorite topics: the short-sightedness of fools. Ah, it’s good to be back.
A couple weeks ago, I saw on Fox & Friends (if you think the name is bad, you should see the show) a segment on Where Your Tax Dollars Are Going, or something similar. Continue reading »
Sit down in a circle everybody, because Uncle Mike is going to tell the story of the arrest of Henry Louis Gates, Jr., with editorial comments injected. (I’ve been taking care of a two year old all week, sorry.)
Our story begins with Professor Gates returning from a trip to find himself locked out of his house. So he and his driver, I suppose to save the time and money on calling a locksmith, force the front-door open. This happens in the middle of the day on a bright and sunny Thursday. Both he and his driver are black. His driver is relatively young and fit; Gates is a little frail looking, he’s well over fifty, and is recovering from bronchitis. Continue reading »
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