fiction and musings from a gay black dude with delusions above his station
Torture has no justification. There is not, nor ever will be, a reason to torture someone. All the rationalizations are hogwash. Torture has one, singular motivator: revenge. Revenge is a part of our mythos. Cultures throughout the ages have envisioned angry gods exacting revenge upon indolent citizens, or even each other. We follow in their footsteps. Theater…
My husband and I went to dinner last night at one of our favorite restaurants in Berkeley. On the way, we saw a group of about 8 or more motorcycle cops gathered at a corner gas station just down the block from where we were going. As we waited for the light to change so…
During the Trayvon Martin tragedy, one question lingered in the back of the head: what if his killer, George Zimmerman, had been a police officer? Now we know. There have been exceptions to the narrative, where an officer had to go to trial over a killing committed under shady circumstances. There was Johannes Mehserle, the…
We all hide from monsters sometimes. Part of the Doctor Who legacy continues to be its penchant for sending its younger fans hiding behind the relative safety of the sofa, terrified of the monster of the week. We all hide from monsters, but sometimes for different reasons. I haven’t written a word about Ferguson or…
“Love him, and let him love you.” – James Baldwin Out of nowhere, my friend started making loud, “Eww!” sounds. Over and over again, “Eeeeewwwww!!!” I was like, what? He said he saw two men on the TV, kissing. I had missed it. He continued to register his disgust on our eardrums. My other friend…
Defenders of the death penalty like to claim that it is not about vengeance, but about justice. I completely disagree. The death penalty is wholly and fully about vengeance. Our most base instincts feed its existence. It is the ultimate comeuppance. Death penalty defenders maintain that it removes criminals from society so that they cannot commit crimes…
Cliven Bundy for me has been nothing more than a sideshow freak. His sole useful purpose has been to demonstrate, yet again, how desperate the radical right is for a hero to champion in their unremitting war against their loss of privilege. Here we have random white dude who has been breaking the law for…
Those who use religion as a bludgeon to pummel anyone who fails to follow their dogma are getting desperate. Despite years of proselytizing, society Just Won’t Get It. States continue to grant marriage equality rights. Courts continue to overturn anti same-sex marriage laws. And to make matters worse, the dreaded Affordable Care Act had made…
Members of the 1% have been pitching hissy fits lately over perceived slights and injustices. One recently declared that there is a “war” against the 1% and then compared the outrage over the rich to the Nazi anti-Jewish pogrom Kristallnacht. He later apologized, sort of. Last weekend, Think Progress highlighted comments by Bayer CEO Marijn…
So let me get this straight. BART management signed a contract with their unions on October 21. Apparently, three folks representing management signed the contract. One of them was their highly paid negotiator. Now, nearly a month later, BART is saying they had no idea that a provision in the contract calls for paid FMLA…
