US Politics Mega-thread - Page 1247

On August 23 2014 00:15 Gorsameth wrote:

again, wtf is it. some guys graduation video. you give 0 background, 0 reasons to click the link.
Im sorry i thought i was on teamliquid, not twitter.

On August 23 2014 00:30 Stratos_speAr wrote:


A 5% difference that doesn't change the point whatsoever.

On August 23 2014 00:35 Roswell wrote:

You guys seriously need to lighten up a bit. I was pointing out that since there is no news regarding Michael Brown, news sites actually post his fucking graduation day video as "Latest Headlines."

On August 23 2014 00:57 Gorsameth wrote:

And your reaction to this none news was to then also spread it to this thread for more none news.

My problem is a link like that with no backstory or context is utterly pointless. If you wanted the make the point how about just saying that there is so little news they are posting everything they can find?

Five-and-a-half years have passed since an earthen dam holding toxic coal ash from a coal plant failed in Harriman, Tenn., spilling more than a billion gallons of the ash into rivers and forests, and destroying several homes. The TVA Kingston Fossil Plant disaster was widely considered one of the worst in U.S. history, or at least one of the biggest by volume. And it’s still causing headaches, hundreds of miles away.

Last week, Environmental Protection Agency investigators traveled to Uniontown, Ala., to interview residents and activists who say a local landfill that accepted much of the Tennessee coal ash is polluting air and water sources nearby, causing people who live in the area to become sick. The residents of the poor, predominantly black area say they are being unfairly burdened with the literal remnants of a disaster they had nothing to do with.

"The landfill is a hill, a mountain, and it’s scary," said Esther Calhoun, a 51-year-old resident that has lived in Uniontown for most of her life. "Who wants to live in a place that might be bad for your health? But most of us are on a fixed income. We’re stuck here."

The Arrowhead Landfill has been controversial from the start, even before the coal ash from Tennessee began arriving by the trainload in 2009. But after the facility expanded in 2012, community activism heated up, and residents asked the EPA to intervene. They charged that the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits agencies that receive federal funding from discrimination.

It’s unclear when the EPA will decide on the case, but residents and activists say the fact that EPA officials came to Uniontown last week is a sign they are taking the claims seriously. They say they hope the EPA will act to force Arrowhead to relocate, or at least implement more stringent air and water quality monitors to make sure the coal ash isn’t disturbing nearby residents.

"We know the state has failed here, so it’s time for the EPA to step in," said John Wathen, an activist with local nonprofit Hurricane Creekkeeper. "We’re kind of grasping at straws here and this is the last straw."

On August 23 2014 00:00 Wolfstan wrote:
Are the police not considered part of the community down there? Do they live in the same neighborhoods, shop at the same stores, send their kids to the same schools? If not, maybe have rules saying you have to live within 10 miles of the precinct. (I know we have a problem with politicians able to run in districts they don't live in.)

Are law enforcement is not seen as an enemy up here, but just as members of the community enforcing the laws. Maybe have police shoot hoops like Calgary police play street hockey? I don't think it would be terrible to do what happened when the police simply took me home when underage drinking instead of starting the process to juvenile court appearances. Maybe that is the elusive "white privilege" that I'm blind to see.

The Obama administration rolled out a plan on Friday to protect access to copay-free birth control for women in response to the Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby ruling.

A new "proposed rule" by the Department of Health and Human Services lets female employees of for-profit businesses, like Hobby Lobby, obtain birth control directly from their insurer, at no extra cost, if their boss opts out of covering the service in the company's insurance plan for religious reasons.

The move extends an accommodation that already exists for non-profit organizations, which are allowed to refuse to cover for birth control. In short, the religious owners can pass the cost on to the insurer so that they're no longer complicit in what they view as sin.

"Women across the country deserve access to recommended preventive services that are important to their health, no matter where they work,” said HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell. "Today's announcement reinforces our commitment to providing women with access to coverage for contraception, while respecting religious considerations raised by non-profit organizations and closely held for-profit companies."

On August 23 2014 00:00 Wolfstan wrote:
Are the police not considered part of the community down there? Do they live in the same neighborhoods, shop at the same stores, send their kids to the same schools? If not, maybe have rules saying you have to live within 10 miles of the precinct. (I know we have a problem with politicians able to run in districts they don't live in.)

Are law enforcement is not seen as an enemy up here, but just as members of the community enforcing the laws. Maybe have police shoot hoops like Calgary police play street hockey? I don't think it would be terrible to do what happened when the police simply took me home when underage drinking instead of starting the process to juvenile court appearances. Maybe that is the elusive "white privilege" that I'm blind to see.

We certainly have our problems with police using deadly force. Source But looking at the article and the comments below, race never came up once. More transparency, accountability and community involvement can result in astronomical approval ratings. Are these things happening in the US, if not, is this a model that can help reduce the systemic problem between the justice system and minority communities?

I feel successful models are out there and solutions don't have to be reinvent the fucking wheel(like healthcare reform). I still find the term "black community" much more difficult to wrap my head around than "poor community."

On average among the 75 cities, 49 percent of black police officers and 47 percent of Hispanic officers live within the city limits. But just 35 percent of white police officers do. The disparity is starkest in cities with largely black populations. In Detroit, for example, 57 percent of black police officers live in the city but just 8 percent of white ones do. Memphis, Tennessee; Baltimore; Birmingham, Alabama; and Jackson, Mississippi — also majority black — likewise have large racial gaps in where their police officers live.

On August 23 2014 03:46 GreenHorizons wrote:



Since you're Canadian I'll forgive you for your ignorance But no the cops literally are not part of the community. Someone posted information about how white people on average have upwards of 90%+ white network, combine that with the statistics on the population and where police live and the picture becomes clearer.

Yes the police taking you home is exactly that white privilege you have a hard time seeing.

On August 23 2014 05:11 Wolfstan wrote:


So are these terrible policies to implement? Live within the community you serve? Be transparent and accountable to the citizens? Have the kids and teens see police as members of the community and not just "the man" in a uniform? Are American schoolchildren taking field trips to the police station? Police officers playing hoops with kids between calls? Or is there some deep-seeded 'Murican reason that prevents community involvement that I'm not seeing? Racism can't be the only reason you guys don't see your cops as people too.

On August 23 2014 05:11 Wolfstan wrote:


So are these terrible policies to implement? Live within the community you serve? Be transparent and accountable to the citizens? Have the kids and teens see police as members of the community and not just "the man" in a uniform? Are American schoolchildren taking field trips to the police station? Police officers playing hoops with kids between calls? Or is there some deep-seeded 'Murican reason that prevents community involvement that I'm not seeing? Racism can't be the only reason you guys don't see your cops as people too.

On August 23 2014 05:11 Wolfstan wrote:


So are these terrible policies to implement? Live within the community you serve? Be transparent and accountable to the citizens? Have the kids and teens see police as members of the community and not just "the man" in a uniform? Are American schoolchildren taking field trips to the police station? Police officers playing hoops with kids between calls? Or is there some deep-seeded 'Murican reason that prevents community involvement that I'm not seeing? Racism can't be the only reason you guys don't see your cops as people too.

On August 23 2014 05:41 JonnyBNoHo wrote:

I went on a school trip to the police station as a kid. Most schools have community officers too. DARE officers made frequent trips to schools as well. I don't know anyone irl that doesn't view the police as part of their community. Some cops or police chiefs have a reputation as being 'dicks', but no more so than any other group of people.

On August 23 2014 05:41 JonnyBNoHo wrote:

I went on a school trip to the police station as a kid. Most schools have community officers too. DARE officers made frequent trips to schools as well. I don't know anyone irl that doesn't view the police as part of their community. Some cops or police chiefs have a reputation as being 'dicks', but no more so than any other group of people.

On August 23 2014 05:41 JonnyBNoHo wrote:

I went on a school trip to the police station as a kid. Most schools have community officers too. DARE officers made frequent trips to schools as well. I don't know anyone irl that doesn't view the police as part of their community. Some cops or police chiefs have a reputation as being 'dicks', but no more so than any other group of people.

On August 23 2014 05:46 Gorsameth wrote:

Are you black and living in a bad neighborhood? Because that's the communities people are talking about. Not White Middle Class neighborhoods.

On August 23 2014 06:05 JonnyBNoHo wrote:

No, but I used to work in Springfield and most people thought fine of the cops.

On August 23 2014 06:13 Crushinator wrote:


Why did your job involve interviewing people about their views on the police?