Replies to post #151142 on Tornado Alley (PROG)

[fuagf]

Racism is something i could never understand
Yet, like cancer it is always there somewhere
No rhyme no reason doesn't matter the season

Racism is something i could never understand
Can't be natural like a volcano, a hurricane
Guess it's just environment is not natural sometimes

Racism is something i could never understand
It's ugliness, it's irrationality, it's totality
It's creep .. it's seep .. it's sickness

Racism is something i could never understand
It's sad, it's brutal, it sucks big time
Racism is most cruel, most vile, most ignorant.

Racism is such a vicious, horrible, terrible state.

(just a few of my feelings on racism just now)

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Racism Is Around Me Everywhere

Of human ignorance I am almost in despair
For racism is around me everywhere
But like they say sheer ignorance is bliss
Just like Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss.

Some people carry their honour in a flag
And of their Nationality they brag
They feel superior and they differentiate
And against those who are different they discriminate.

So many people still judged by their race
For such there never ought to be a place
'A fair go' those untruthful words I do recall
There is no such a thing as a 'fair go for all'.

Though we live in a so called democracy
Of racism we never will be free
They judge you by where you come from and the colour of your skin
For many equality and respect seems impossible to win.

It's been awhile since the days of Martin Luther King
His name to it has a familiar ring
If against racism he did not choose to strive
Today the great man he would be alive.

So many holding the reins of power not spiritually aware
And racism is around me everywhere
And racism only leads to division and war
Just goes to show how ignorant some are.

Create Date : Sunday, March 16, 2008
Update Date : Monday, March 21, 2011

Francis Duggan

[F6]

"It takes balls to execute an innocent man"


Rick Perry
AP/Salon

Did a questionable execution actually help Rick Perry's political career?

By Justin Elliott
Wednesday, Aug 3, 2011 16:06 ET

Here's a telling glimpse into the worldview of the Republican base, at least in Texas.

Regular readers will remember the case of Cameron Todd Willingham, a convicted arsonist who was executed on Gov. Rick Perry's watch several years ago despite a last-minute request for a stay and strong doubts about the case by scientific experts. (Full background here [ http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/06/25/cameron_todd_willingham_rick_perry/index.html (below)].)

It turns out that Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, who unsuccessfully challenged Perry in the 2010 GOP gubernatorial primary, explored Perry's potential vulnerability on the issue, Politico reports [ http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0811/60593.html ]. But when the Hutchison campaign asked a focus group about Willingham, it received this startling response:

Multiple former Hutchison advisers recalled asking a focus group about the charge that Perry may have presided over the execution of an innocent man – Cameron Todd Willingham – and got this response from a primary voter: "It takes balls to execute an innocent man."

Hutchison did at least once try to attack Perry on the issue, blasting [ http://camerontoddwillingham.com/?p=260 ] his 2009 decision to shake up a state commission investigating possible abuses by investigators in the case. She accused him of "trying to ramrod a covering-up." (It's not clear whether this was before or after the focus group.)

In response, Perry's campaign was hardly apologetic. His spokesman emailed a reporter that, if Perry’s rivals "oppose the death penalty for someone who murdered his three children, beat his wife while she was pregnant with twins in an effort to force an abortion, repeatedly changed his story, who confessed and whose last words were an obscenity laced tirade aimed at his ex wife, and whose conviction was upheld numerous times over the course of more than a decade, including nine times by federal courts then they should just say so."

Perry went on to cruise to a 20-point victory in the primary and an easy win in the general election.

There's no evidence criticism of Perry over the Willingham case got any traction. But that focus group quote leaves one wondering, did the controversy actually help him in the GOP primary? If Perry jumps into the presidential contest, don't expect his primary rivals to bring up this old case ...

Copyright ©2011 Salon Media Group, Inc.

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/08/03/perry_willingham_survey/index.html [comments at http://letters.salon.com/politics/war_room/2011/08/03/perry_willingham_survey/view/?show=all ]


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The darkest chapter of Rick Perry's career


Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Cameron Todd Willingham
incendiarymovie.com

Did the potential presidential hopeful sign off on the execution of an innocent man?

By Justin Elliott
Saturday, Jun 25, 2011 11:01 ET

Did Texas Gov. Rick Perry sign off on the execution of an innocent man?

As Perry flirts with a presidential candidacy, the long-disputed case of Cameron Todd Willingham, executed in 2004 for an arson that many fire experts believe he did not commit, is emerging again.

Willingham was convicted of setting a 1991 fire that destroyed his house and killed his three young daughters. Perry denied a last-minute request for a stay of execution in 2004 based on new scientific analysis that there was no evidence of arson at the house. And he later removed several members of a state panel investigating the case -- a move designed to delay a politically damaging report from the panel, critics charge.

In April, a state commission investigating the case finally issued [ http://www.texastribune.org/texas-dept-criminal-justice/cameron-todd-willingham/board-approves-report-on-willingham-/ ; http://open.salon.com/blog/scottcobb/2011/04/14/text_of_draft_report_on_todd_willingham_case_by_texas_forensic_science_commission ] a lengthy report calling for more training for fire investigators. It is now awaiting a legal opinion on whether it can rule that fire investigators in the Willingham case were negligent or guilty of misconduct -- a conclusion that, if it is made, would likely generate more damaging headlines for Perry [update: "Texas ruling ends inquiry in death penalty case", http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article/article?f=/n/a/2011/07/29/national/a150051D82.DTL ].

To learn more about the case, I spoke with Steve Mims, co-director of a recent documentary [ http://www.incendiarymovie.com/INCENDIARY/INCENDIARY.html (YouTube trailer below)] on the case, "Incendiary." The transcript has been edited for length and clarity; the trailer for the film is at the bottom of this post.

For people who have not been following this case, what's this all about?

In 1991 there was a fire at Cameron Todd Willingham's residence in Corsicana, Texas, which killed his three daughters. He had a trial in 1992 and he was convicted of arson and sentenced to be executed. He was then on death row from 1992 to 2004 when he was executed. At the time he was convicted, the authorities used the arson investigation techniques that were known by these local guys in Corsicana. But it turns out the process they used at the trial was not current to the standards of that time for investigating arson.

While Willingham was on death row, a fire scientist in Austin got a chance from an appeals attorney to review the case materials. That scientist wrote a report outlining his conclusion that there was no evidence of arson. His report went to the governor's office a few days before the execution, with Willingham's appeals attorney asking for a stay and a 30-day review based on the new analysis. That request was declined by Rick Perry. So he was executed in spite of the fact of a scientific opinion that there was no evidence of arson.

What do we know about the thinking that went into Perry's decision to reject the request for a stay in 2004?

The only thing that we know is via Willingham's appeals attorney, who spoke to someone in the governor's office. That staffer said that the governor had taken a look at it and didn't see anything that would warrant postponement of the execution. That's basically all we know about it.

Why is the case still in the public eye so many years later?

Well, eventually the Texas Legislature formed a body called the Texas Forensic Science Commission to look at cases where there had been possible abuses. The Innocence Project brought the Willingham case to that commission because of the concerns about bad science being used to convict a person for murder. The commission hired independent scientific experts to look at the case and eventually it had two reports finding that there was no evidence of arson. That brings us up to October of 2009 when the Forensic Science Commission was about to accept a verbal report from one of the scientists about his findings. And the governor removed three members of the commission -- the chairman and two others -- which in effect canceled that presentation.

By this time we were shooting the film, originally inspired by David Grann's extensive and terrific article [ http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/09/07/090907fa_fact_grann (first item at http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=41255143 )] in the New Yorker. So it evolved from a project that was initially about science and law to also include this political story about an apparent attempt to slow down a process whereby the truth would come out about the Willingham case.

So the timing of Perry's removal of these commissioners -- what was going on with the investigation?

They were removed two days before a scientist named Craig Beyler was scheduled to formally present his findings that there was no evidence for arson. Perry appointed a new chair of the commission and the body did not meet again until the end of January 2010. Now, part of the backdrop of this was this was all going on in the middle of the Republican gubernatorial primary. So the case had become an issue because of the attention this investigation was getting.

Were you able to talk to Perry?

No. As a matter of fact during that time he wouldn't even debate anybody as part of the campaign. What we do have is an excellent interview done by Evan Smith of the Texas Tribune, the only person Perry sat down with. Perry said that he believed the scientific evidence was correct and that the judicial process had been correct. It's impossible to know what his thinking is. But objectively you can look at it and conclude there is no political upside to going out on a limb to someone you think is guilty and who you think has committed a heinous crime.

[ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ341zGrjEs ]

Copyright ©2011 Salon Media Group, Inc.

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/06/25/cameron_todd_willingham_rick_perry/index.html [comments at http://letters.salon.com/politics/war_room/2011/06/25/cameron_todd_willingham_rick_perry/view/?show=all ]


===


(linked in) http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=41255143 and preceding and following

[F6]

Victim's sister: No death penalty

Written by Jerry Mitchell
10:35 PM, Sep. 14, 2011

The beating and killing of James C. Anderson has drawn national outrage, but his sister said his killer or killers shouldn't be executed.

"Those responsible for James' death not only ended the life of a talented and wonderful man," Barbara Anderson Young wrote in her letter Wednesday to Hinds County District Attorney Robert Shuler Smith. "They also have caused our family unspeakable pain and grief. But our loss will not be lessened by the state taking the life of another."

The June 26 slaying of Anderson in Jackson has sparked attention across the country as an alleged hate crime.

Smith said the letter resolves the question of the family's wishes, which he said would "weigh heavily" in deciding whether to pursue the death penalty against 19-year-old Deryl Dedmon Jr. of Brandon, who is charged with capital murder. Another defendant, John Aaron Rice, 18, of Brandon, is charged with simple assault.

A capital murder conviction carries the death penalty or life without parole. Those convicted of murder can petition for parole starting at age 65.

In her letter, Young quoted Coretta Scott King in explaining her opposition to capital punishment: "An evil deed is not redeemed by an evil deed of retaliation. Justice is never advanced in the taking of human life."

Young wrote that the family's opposition to the death penalty is "deeply rooted in our religious faith, a faith that was central in James' life as well. Our Savior Jesus Christ rejected the old way of an eye for an eye and taught us instead to turn the other cheek. He died that we might have everlasting life and, in doing so, asked that the lives of the two common criminals nailed to the crosses beside him be spared. We can do no less."

She said the family also opposes any execution "because it historically has been used in Mississippi and the South primarily against people of color for killing whites. Executing James' killers will not help to balance the scales. But sparing them may help to spark a dialogue that one day will lead to the elimination of capital punishment."

The killing is being investigated by Jackson police, the U.S. Department of Justice and Smith's office.

Young thanked them Wednesday for their investigations.

"We hope that the criminal prosecutions will send a strong and clear message to those with hate in their hearts. We simply ask that that message be tempered with the love of our Savior," she wrote.

The family has started the James C. Anderson Foundation for Racial Tolerance "to help build bridges between the races," she said. "We appeal to men and women of goodwill to join hands with our family in launching a renewed movement of reconciliation, acceptance and hope."

Anderson's family is suing Dedmon, Rice and five other Rankin County teenagers, alleging their involvement in his death. The lawsuit, filed Sept. 6 in Hinds County Circuit Court, seeks unspecified damages.

In addition to Dedmon and Rice, the other teenagers being sued are William Kirk Montgomery, Sarah Graves, Shelbie Richards, John Blaylock and Dylan Butler. Other than Dedmon and Rice, none of the others has been charged, but authorities continue to investigate.

Dedmon is accused of running over Anderson, 49, and robbing him. He has insisted through his attorney that what happened was an accident.

Dedmon's attorney, Cynthia Stewart of Madison, could not be reached Wednesday for comment.

According to the lawsuit, during the evening of June 25 and the pre-dawn hours, the teens were drinking at one or more gatherings in Rankin County.

Dedmon told the teens they should "go f--- with some n-----s," the lawsuit alleges.

They set out in Dedmon's green Ford F-250 truck and Montgomery's Jeep Cherokee, the lawsuit alleges. Those in the Jeep allegedly saw Anderson in the Metro Inn parking lot on Ellis Avenue and contacted Dedmon, leading both vehicles to stop there.

When they got out of their vehicles, Dedmon, Rice, Butler and Blaylock moved toward Anderson, while Montgomery, Graves and Richards stayed behind, the lawsuit alleges.

Dedmon and Rice spoke to Anderson, the lawsuit alleges, and then with the cooperation of other teens, began to attack the black man, inflicting serious injuries.

The lawsuit alleges at one point a teen yelled, "White power!"

After the beating ended, the Jeep drove away, and Dedmon and others returned to his F-250, the lawsuit alleges. "Just as Dedmon turned right, his headlights shown directly on Anderson, ... stumbling in a grassy area near the motel's entrance. Dedmon accelerated ... and struck Anderson with the front of the F-250."

Video of the attack, captured by a motel security camera, can be viewed on www.clarionledger.com [ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2TaoUVg31M , at http://www.clarionledger.com/interactive/article/20110906/MULTIMEDIA/110906029/Video-Killing-caught-surveillance ].

Rice's attorney, Samuel Martin, said Rice was trying to help Anderson, who had locked his keys in his car, before Dedmon arrived.

Martin also suggested during court hearings that the teens were on a beer run that morning, not looking for anyone to harass or assault.

Copyright © 2011 www.clarionledger.com

http://www.clarionledger.com/article/20110915/NEWS/109150341/Victim-s-sister-No-death-penalty


===


Justice Served?



Mississippi law prevents the same-sex partner of James Anderson, who was murdered by a gang of white teenagers in a vicious hate crime, from being named as a plaintiff in a lawsuit against the accused murderers.

By Britt Middleton
Posted: 09/14/2011 11:14 PM EDT

The gruesome murder [ http://www.bet.com/news/national/2011/08/08/video-shows-mississippi-teens-driving-over-and-killing-a-black-man.html ] of James Anderson, 49, of Jackson, Mississippi, stunned the country. Now, Anderson’s same-sex partner is rallying to find justice.

James Bradfield, Anderson’s partner of 17 years, was denied [ http://yourblackworld.com/2011/09/11/mississippi-law-prohibits-same-sex-partner-of-man-killed-in-hate-crime-to-be-named-in-lawsuit/ ] when he asked to be named as a plaintiff in the lawsuit being brought by Anderson’s family.

In the lawsuit, filled a in a Mississippi district court, the family alleges [ http://www.bet.com/news/national/2011/09/06/the-family-of-black-man-killed-in-pickup-truck-hate-crime-files-civil-suit.html ] Anderson’s murderers "set out on a mission" to find and harass African-Americans.

A group of white teens robbed and beat Anderson before running him over with a pick-up truck. Surveillance video from the scene of the crime caught [ http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/06/mississippi.hate.crime/ (first item in the post to which this is a reply)] the attack on tape.

Under Mississippi law, “Same-sex partners have no claim in civil actions like this,” says Morris Dees of the Southern Poverty Law Center [ http://www.splcenter.org/ ] to YourBlackWorld.

According to Dees, Anderson’s sexual orientation did not play a factor in his beating or murder.

Mississippi state law does not recognize same-sex marriage.

© 2011 BET Interactive, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Black Entertainment Television LLC

http://www.bet.com/news/national/2011/09/14/justice-served-.html [no comments yet]