Brewer tells the truth

The national progressive echo chamber had quite a fit last week when former Gov. Jan Brewer brushed off the suggestion that Hispanics would cause Hillary Clinton to win Arizona. "Nah," she told the Boston Globe, "They don't get out and vote. They don't vote." The thought police pounced, condemnations flooded Facebook, and a Twitter lynch mob gathered at such a racist statement.

But she told the truth. Rare for her, perhaps unprecedented, but accurate for once.

Hispanics made up 30 percent of the population of Maricopa County in 2014, compared with only 16 percent in 1990. Yet in that critical election, their voter participation rate was in the single digits. And it can't be explained away by saying that low-income people vote less. The low-income Anglos vote religiously and conservatively.

Brewer, an accidental governor when St. Janet read the future and decamped for D.C. and then California, did much to help ensure this. As Secretary of State, charged with overseeing elections, she was also chair of the state Bush re-election committee in 2004. I'm sure polling locations were abundant and well handled in majority Latino precincts. Then, running on her own, she defeated the eminently better-qualified Terry Goddard on the strength of her backing the anti-immigrant SB 1070.

As I have written before, SB 1070 had little to do with illegal immigration and everything to do with ginning up the old Midwestern-immigrant Anglo GOP base and intimidating Mexican-American citizens. And one of the dirty secrets was that not a few older Mexican-Americans, who had seen their neighborhoods, schools, and culture most destabilized by the wave of illegals in the 2000s, quietly supported the bill, too.

But the problem of low Hispanic turnout predates the embarrassing, finger-in-the-face-of-the-president Jan Brewer, a woman who would drive down the class level of the trashiest trailer park.

Mexican-Americans faced a long history of discrimination in Phoenix and Arizona. They were over-represented among the victims of the shameful 1917 Bisbee Deportation. Many citizens were caught up in another mass deportation during the Great Depression. In the Civil Rights Era, Republicans such as future Chief Justice of the United States William Rehnquist ran Operation Eagle Eye in south Phoenix to intimidate minority voters.

This is not a simple narrative. In the 1870s, Phoenix's first town marshal was Enrique "Henry" Garfias, the son of a Mexican army general and a lawman out of the classic Old West. Adam Diaz was the first Hispanic elected to the Phoenix City Council, in 1953. Nevertheless, in such an environment, one learned to keep one's head down. Structural issues may disproportionately lower Hispanic turnout, although the data are lacking. Arizona doesn't have automatic or exclusive vote-by-mail (such as Washington, Oregon and Colorado) and Hispanics may be more likely to hold down two or even three jobs, without the ability to take time off to stand in long lines. Cultural issues that also come into play, things outside my areas of expertise (but feel free to weigh in on the comments thread). Mexico has a long history of wide class separations and deference to the patron.

Nor is the problem of low Hispanic turnout restricted to Arizona. Texas has a much larger Hispanic population, but it is deeply underrepresented in state and local politics. The Lone Star State does have a history of pockets of Hispanic strength on the west side of San Antonio and in the Rio Grande Valley — masterfully courted by Lyndon Johnson and epitomized by long-serving U.S. Rep. Henry Gonzalez. But this bloc was often "voted," bribed, and manipulated by powerful Anglo patrons, whether LBJ or the "Duke of Duval," George Parr. Even now, being a Hispanic politician in Texas — home of the charismatic Castro brothers — is fraught for a Democrat.

California is a different story. Everyone knows that Proposition 187, which sought to deny state benefits to illegal immigrants, was a catalyst for Hispanic political involvement and destroyed the Republican Party which backed the measure. It was the folly of Pete Wilson, a good San Diego mayor and terrible governor. But reality is more nuanced. When passed by voters in 1994, Prop. 187 garnered nearly 59 percent of the vote including from some conservative Hispanics. But it left a bad aftertaste and died from lawsuits and neglect.

The Golden State's Hispanic political clout has deep roots in Los Angeles, to the Chicano movement of the 1940s. Cesar Chavez, although from Arizona, did his most effective organizing in California. So an infrastructure was already in place. Increased immigration in recent decades has added to it immeasurably. Thus, Antonio Villaraigosa was able to build a base of Hispanic and union support to become LA mayor in 2005. Loretta Sanchez was elected to Congress in 1996 representing a fast-changing Orange County district and defeating conservative firebrand "B-1 Bob" Dornan. The state that sent Reagan to Sacramento and then Washington is no more. But this was built on a robust Hispanic political machine decades in the building, as well as an overall population that has grown ever more liberal.

This hasn't happened in Arizona, yet — despite the activism of people such as Joe Eddie Lopez and Alfredo Gutierrez in the 1960s and 1970s. Chicanos Por La Causa, a noble organization, is too dependent on city money and relationships to be in firebrand opposition. Decades of GOP attacks — from scandalously low school funding to SB 1070 — have been met by "they don't vote," at least not in enough numbers. And all the years of liberals hoping they would turn the state purple or blue hasn't changed this. Instead, it has emboldened the GOP, which controls both houses of the Legislature and all statewide offices, to become ever more extreme and white supremacist.

I don't want this to be the case. I hope it changes. But I also remember the 2006 march against draconian rules changes proposed in Congress against illegal immigration. In Phoenix, approximately 100,000 people marched down Grand Avenue to the state capitol, an astonishing turnout for a city not known for big protests. And the Anglos were afraid. The next morning, I went to the gym where Alfredo Gutierrez was on the Stairmaster. Despite my upbeat assessment, he only shrugged: "But will they vote?"

If Hillary Clinton does win Arizona, which I doubt, the big factor will be the Latter-day Saints. The church doesn't like Trump, just as it didn't care for SB 1070 and Russell Pearce. Mormons won't vote for Hillary, but they may well withhold their vote on the presidential ballot or vote for the Libertarian.

 

 

Comments

[Anon]

Wish I could argue with your analysis Rogue, but I agree.

[soleri]

I was watching a talking head on cable TV yesterday talk about Arizona and that the uptick in Hispanic registrations coupled with polling suggesting Trump would get around 22% of their vote likely meant Clinton would carry Arizona. I'm skeptical, too, but the dam will eventually break. What is baffling is why anyone who isn't a complete airhead or a stone-cold racist would vote for Trump, 22% of Hispanics included.

I think Jan Brewer beat Terry Goddard because she's "vivid", from her bleached blond hair and toothy smile to her Neanderthal politics. Goddard, by contrast, is thoughtful and boring. The same can be said of Hillary Clinton who knows policy inside out and whose political experience is deep and vetted. She's "untrustworthy" in contrast to a lifelong con artist and demagogue. Welcome to America.

Democracy is not a panacea. It's baffling to me that Republicans, in particular, believe so many transparently false and stupid things. The disconnect between reality and their obsessions is troubling, to say the least. But there's no other way forward except on this increasingly potholed road we travel on. There used to be guardrails here that would keep us from going over the cliff of truthiness. No more. We're mainlining lies and insanity now directly off the internet where the only standard is one's own confirmation bias.

Our inner demons are now weaponized for voting. The good news is that younger people don't tend to absorb "news" from the web so much as "culture" from music videos and movies. But even here the danger signs are present, particularly on Facebook which has allowed wholesale ingestion of bullshit into our political bloodstream. In 1964, a mostly sane candidate from the fringe, Barry Goldwater, was swamped in landslide election. This year. a much more dangerous and unhinged candidate, Donald Trump, will get significantly closer to winning. We should be very concerned not so much about him but ourselves. We are failing Civics 101.

[Paul Benjamin]

> Arizona doesn't have vote-by-mail

?? Arizona has the PEVL (Permanent Early Voting List). I don't have numbers for the state but looking at the voters in the Phoenix Elementary School District, about 70% of the ballots cast in the 2012 General Election were by mail.

[100 Octane]

I have voted by mail in ballot since the early 2000s. Will do so this year as well.

[Sandverbena]

Brewer might have gotten this tiny thing right, but yesterday she was in the news accusing the women who came out against Trump as "waterboarding"him. That is wrong for so many, many reasons.

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/politicalinsider/2016/10/23/jan-brewer-donald-trump-waterboarded-female-accusers/92643674/

[Nick Nichols]

I have a mail in ballot on my desk awaiting time to fill it ou.

[blaxabbath]

I am still shocked by people who wait to vote on election day, considering the history of issues we've had around polling sites. And I'm not just talking about, for lack of a better word, corruption. We have our most important activity, as a nation, handled by volunteers with little training who are dealing with a public that is even less-familiar with the rules. We have long lines on election day for the same reason we have long lines at the DMV -- there's just a lot of bodies we're trying to move through there and a lot of the public doesn't show up prepared.

Yes, there are still potential issues with mail ins (I got a call from the AG's office one year b/c I cast a provisional after the county sent me a letter in the 11th hour that my signature didn't match my mail in) but it is the better option. Period. I have a friend who is active and vocal about the need for AZ hispanics to GOTV. She posted so many videos of the lines from the primary in March and I could only shake my head because mail ins are the better approach.

"Will they vote?" I don't know. But I can tell you voting is easy. I read about names purged from the voter rolls during the primary -- I honestly don't know if that's a legitimate issue. But voting isn't like grocery shopping. Geography doesn't matter and, frankly, scheduling doesn't matter if you mail in.

But, then again, the youth voting percentage is still low and I would think they'd be the first ones to utilize the convenience of mail in voting so what do I know?

[Cal Lash]

Brewer and Trump.
"There are two possible reactions to social ostracism--either a man determines to be better, purer and kindler or he goes bad, challenges the world and does even worse things. This last is by far the common-est reaction to stigma."
John Steinbeck from Cannery Row.

[Paul Benjamin]

Looking at likely voters, ones who have voted in at least 2 elections since 2011, in the district that I am keeping track of, 29.1% have returned ballots so far (and those ballots have been processed).

[phxSUNSfan]

I'm a Millennial and I prefer voting on election day. I do not mail in my ballot. It's hard to put into words why, but I like the experience and the feeling I get. I do so much virtually that there are a few sacred things I prefer to do physically. The civic engagement and being among the throngs willing to vote is one of them.

While voting during the Presidential Preference Election (it wasn't the Primary in Arizona as the primary in AZ is different, we select the candidates for the parties during the Preference Election) lines were unreasonably long due to the incompetence of Maricopa County Recorder, Hellen Purcell. Maricopa County should go back to the original 200+ polling sites for the General Election.

[Cal Lash]

Phxsunfan, I agree. I always enjoyed voting in person and didn't mind standing in line surveying the crowd and chatting a bit.
Time has put a stop to that and I now very boringly fill out my mail in.

And I agree on your 200 plus polling places. But, There is a lot more to the historical Purcell story than has come to light. And I doubt it will see the light.

Now that I filled out my ballot and sent it on its way, I ran across this over on Medium Daily Digest and thought Soleri might like it or maybe not like it?

“I’d rather vote for what I want and not get it, than vote for what I don’t want and get it.” — Eugene V. Debs

[Ruben Perez]

For the train fans on this blog:

As the Trump engine prepares to go over the cliff, the following boxcars are welded to him and will go over the cliff with him.

Boxcar Brewer
Boxcar Guiliani
Boxcar Christie
Boxcar Newt

Kellyanne Conway is the damsel tied to the rail as the train runs over her.

Hannity is on the train as the "journalist" covering the wreck.

Trains are fun.

[Cal Lash]

RUBEN,Speaking of Trains, I note U posted this at 8:07 PM. At dusk train engine switches from coal to sour mash.

[VAP]

Just for the record, the author did not say there wasn't mail-in ballots. What was said that they were not automatic as they are in other states. Some people are not inclined to request an early ballot, especially those who have a distrust of government. Look at the history of hispanics and a distrust of banks.

[Cal Lash]

Thanks VAP ?
Visiting assistant professor?
Maybe a study on how long haul truck drivers created the world of "handles".
Or what drives the desire for hiding?
Maybe a entry code to make sure posters aren't robots?

PS, Phxsunfan, was that you in the back row at the Film Bar showing of SEED, yesterday?

[phxSUNSfan]

Hey Cal, no I'm in Flagstaff at the moment, freezing my ass off. I do love the vibe up here though.

[Cal Lash]

There are some hot spots close to my Favorite Flagstaff book store, Starlight.

[100 Octane]

@ VAP I believe the text of the post has been edited, but I wouldn't argue the point.

[Ruben Perez]

cal,

I've given your comments the thoughtful, respectful consideration they deserve and I think you may be on to something.

Instead of a boiler, we would have a still installed in the engine compartment. The steam\alcohol vapors would drive the train, the coils would be arranged above the coal tender to help cool the vapors. The coils would end up at a spout in the Bar car and bingo, whiskey for the customers.

So that this post is relevant to the title, Brewer would, of course, be in the Bar car sipping on Cal's Iowa Fire Water. Aged Arizona whiskey. Aged for over 5 minutes.

[100 Octane]

This writer seems sincere...

http://www.latinorebels.com/2015/09/13/latinos-dont-vote-but-why-should-they/

Also wonder how Prop 205 and 206 will do and will it bring voters out.

[B. Franklin]

"Jan Brewer, a woman who would drive down the class level of the trashiest trailer park."

That says it all, doesn't it?

And yet, she has ardent supporters, her own cadre of true-believers. She also has, at least for the time being, a national voice. For a lot of people, Jan Brewer is the face of Arizona.

If the Latinos don't come out to vote against Trump, when will they ever come out to vote? How much worse does a candidate have to be to end their fear/indifference?

[Cal Lash]

Naw Ruben, Trump wins and Giuliani gets to be US Attorney General. Arpaio gets DEA, Brewer gets Homeland Security and Christie doesn't get a pardon as he flip flopped.
AND
for your train and right across from the train tracks
in my home town:
https://www.menuism.com/restaurants/cals-fine-food-spirits-indianola-373192

[Cal Lash]

FLDS, ( the Kingstons) backers try to throw election to House of Representatives:
Evan (Mecham?) McMullin for President?
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/09/us/politics/evan-mcmullin-independent-candidate.html?_r=0
Article on the most twisted organized crime group: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/inside-the-order-one-mormon-cults-secret-empire-20110615
Current Kingston leader: http://www.icsahome.com/groups/kingstonclan
Previous Kingston leader: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ortell_Kingston

Without a doubt this is the scariest election in my 76 years!

[Cal Lash]

I noted in today's Internet sites That Fox newscaster, Lou Dobbs (I am not a Dobbs or Fox news follower) has "tweeted" about the "Mormon Mafia" and presidential candidate, McMullin. However he provides almost no backup for his statement.
The FLDS Kingston family has long been a force in Utah, mostly gone un-noticed outside of Utah while Short Creek FLDS have been in the news over the years.

[Rogue Columnist]

This is a must read:

https://thinkprogress.org/study-finds-republican-voter-suppression-is-even-more-effective-than-you-think-3b2562ae2f52#.vhw9cgogo

[INPHX]

Should a person who is not a bona fide US Citizen be allowed to vote in an election?

[Rogue Columnist]

For those of you not on Facebook or Twitter, here are 14 new important stories on Arizona's Continuing Crisis:

http://www.roguecolumnist.com/rogue_columnist/arizonas-continuing-crisi.html

[Cal Lash]

"Bona Fide"

I was born in a down by the river rural Iowa dilapidated farmhouse with only my penniless but white parents present. For 65 years I had no birth certificate. But I voted in every election from the age of 21 on. I served in the Air Force and I became a cop with no birth certificate.
When I went to apply for Social Security I was required to provide a birth certificate. After several months and $40 dollars the state of Iowa manufactured a document that satisfied Social Securities requirements, so that I could receive my Social Security monthly payment of less than $300.

So is "Bona Fide" is just another way of saying U aint White U cant vote? And maybe TODAY we have decided poor people shouldn't be allowed to vote?

So maybe there should be a program that reaches out and easily and efficiently facilitates obtaining a Bona Fide identity.
A program that assists those with difficulty in obtaining a "proper" voting identity.

Did U all help someone this election to obtain the means to vote?

[Hattie]

Good background and analysis. I got a lot out of this.

[Ruben Perez]

Mr. cal,

when you were born, Iowa was still a territory and don't be forgetting your $8,000 per month police pension.

[B. Franklin]

"Bona fide" is Latin for "a person that INPHX approves of."

Without "bona fide", there might be "rampant voter fraud", that mythical horned beast that haunts the dreams of good, solid Republicans everywhere.

[INPHX]

Well, of course no one wants to answer a simple, straightforward question.

The answer is clearly "No."

Now, we can argue forever about what someone should show to prove that they are a US Citizen.

But until your mind is right on whether or not someone who is not a US Citizen should be allowed to vote, you don't even need to debate about what they should have to show to prove it.

Mr. Franklin:

Well, I' m sure you're just as right as you usually are. Which is funny, because if you read the link that Rogue posted, (I understand you aversion to links- helps you stay narrow and focused) the author is alleging voter fraud because of voter ID laws.

Get it? VOTER FRAUD.

But of course, just on the GOP side.

Wait- "racist" GOP side.

Cal -glad it turned out. That little bit of work with Iowa probably makes the SS payments seem even sweeter.

I guess you'd prefer SS pay people who can't prove their birth and that they are who they claim to be?

I think a former cop might call that "fraud"??

[Cal Lash]

INPHX said, "I guess you'd prefer SS pay people who can't prove their birth and that they are who they claim to be? I think a former cop might call that "fraud"??"

I am glad someone decided I was born, "legally". And SS payments to someone not eligible IS fraud.

How about all that social security money "illegal aliens paid". Could build a wall with that.

Ruben, HA, I retired in 1991 at $2250. per month but as a Republican and a union member and president I have paid very little for medical and dental, since 1991.

[B. Franklin]

One billion votes cast since 2000.

31 cases of "voter fraud."

Clearly, the Republic is in peril!

The only consistent voter fraud I can see is Republicans pretending that they care about voters.

[Cal Lash]

Speaking of fraud, book Shane Huber.
https://www.thenation.com/article/north-carolina-republicans-tried-to-disenfranchise-a-100-year-old-african-american-woman/

[Cal Lash]

clarification, I paid little for medical and dental as a result of my union activity. And I happened to be a Republican while doing such and still am. Vote for Jose Mujica.

[Cal Lash]

Rigged elections, another opinion.
https://consortiumnews.com/2016/10/27/the-modern-history-of-rigged-us-elections/

[Cal Lash]

Franklin, now 32.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/voter-fraud-donald-trump-iowa_us_5813e775e4b0390e69d075a4

[Cal Lash]

Note: I attended Amy Goodman's great talk last nite at ASU OLD MAIN. AND she has a new book out, Democracy Now.

[Cal Lash]

Did Wiener screw Hillary?

[Rogue Columnist]

Cal,

See the top two stories on The Front Page.

Problem isn't just perception of Hillary — even though these emails aren't hers — but endangers Democrats taking the Senate. And if they don't, prepare for four years of more scorched-earth obstruction.

[Cal Lash]

What do James Comey and Sandra Oconnor have in common?

"Comey has created that misleading impression that could change the outcome of a presidential election, an act that, if uncorrected, will undoubtedly go down as one of the darkest moments in the bureau’s history."

Well not being a "professional" and not to smart and "unqualified", I will leave all this to the PROFESSIONALS.

Glad I wrote in Jose Mujica a solid married dude with a small house, three-legged dog and 1987 Volkswagen Beetle.

[Rogue Columnist]

On a previous column, Ross just posted this:

"So Rogue. What do you make of this week's fodder, I mean news. How about the arrest of all those unarmed Americans defending their lands and waters? Gassed, beaten, bitten, and strip searched by a militarized police force paid to defend the rights of a soulless corporation out to pump as much C02 into the atmosphere as possible before it gets declared a Planetary bio-toxin.

"On the same day we are shocked to hear of the letting off, Scot free, of a basket of deplorable welfare cowboys and wanabees who staged an armed invasion of a Federal Wildlife Refuge? Whata country!

"Now we got the head of the FBI apparently giving the Attorney General the finger and letting out the State Secret that there are more emails to be looked at and maybe there could be a problem. With so many emails still unaccounted for that isn't as surprising as the timing. Am I just a conspiracy theorist or does it look like there may be a little strife within the security state?"

My reaction:

It does get curiouser and curiouser.

The dichotomy between Dakota and Malheur is stark. And the easy au courant explanation is simply "white privilege." While I have no doubt that a bunch of black folks playing Bundy "militia" would have met a different response, the glib answer is unsatisfying. For one thing, plenty of white protesters are at the pipeline site. And the cops shoot plenty of whites.

The most unexplored part of the Malheur "occupation" and trial is who is really bankrolling this? Powerful right-wing interests want the people's lands, held in trust for future generations, privatized for quick profit. Not merely BLM land but national forests and national parks. Who benefits? Also, jurors were selected from around the state and Oregon, like Washington, is very red outside its metros. I lament the lack of curiosity on the part of the press. But this is what happens when newsrooms lose 40 percent of their journalists since 2007 and coverage is dumbed down and homogenized. The over-reaction to the pipeline protest needs similar deep dives.

The email release appears timed to help the GOP keep the Senate. Comey is trying to cover his ass with Congress. But the tactical effect is in helping Republicans down-ballot.

[cal lash]

Will Johnson get 5 or more percent of the vote?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/10/28/professor-whos-predicted-30-years-of-presidential-elections-correctly-is-doubling-down-on-a-trump-win/

[soleri]

I sat on a couple of juries in Phoenix, both criminal cases. In both of them, the defendants pleaded innocent since they didn't like the plea bargains they were offered. Neither had any exculpatory evidence and the prosecution's cases were airtight. In both cases, it was like pulling teeth to get holdout jury members to simply acknowledge these realities. It was almost as if they were expecting, ala Perry Mason, for the "real killer" to confess in a dramatic deus-ex-machine conclusion to both trials. There was speculation about unseen evidence and whether some witnesses were the real perpetrators. Our deliberations were testy and very nearly ended up in hung juries.

I wasn't surprised at the Malheur verdict for this reason. We are always looking for hidden meanings and the mind is a fertile playground for explanations that are "novelistic" in their scope. We love stories. The problem with politics is that these stories don't always have to be true to be compelling. Hillary Clinton is boring, so why not turn her into this evil sorceress using e-mails to hide the worst crimes in American history? The human mind cannot simply accept that some people are exactly what they appear to be. Projection fills in the missing details from a witch's brew of speculation.

Discussions in this blog can really get waylaid by this tendency. I think it's safe to say what this election comes down to and it's not a referendum on turning this country into Uruguay, Denmark, or Caligula's Rome. It's not about who you "like" or find "authentic". TV, sadly, has turned many of us into dopes.

There are various issues, trends, power vectors, and real-world frustrations we can discuss, but the moment we get lost in conspiracy theories, whether they involve cosmic evil or "oligarchy" or sinister global cabals, we're no longer in reality. Rather, we're discussing whose fantasy scenario is the most compelling. Politics cannot fix our boutique complaints about GMOs, white privilege, or bathroom anxieties. It can't repair the "culture" or stop time. This is not reality. It can address modest choices on the advancing edge of our political debate. That's it.

One presidential candidate is fairly realistic about what can be achieved and the other "major" candidate is a TV reality star. That's all that is going on here. I'm not surprised that this laughably unqualified media figure is competitive. Most Americans cannot pass a simple civics test. Half can't name the three branches of government. Many are vague about the most basic physical facts of life itself. Democracy, alas, is not for the faint of heart. I want more humility here among us "hard-working citizens who play by the rules and only ask for blah blah blah". I want us to stop asking politics to be something that it isn't - an all-encompassing explanation for a litany of complaints that is beyond the power of government to solve or even address.

[Cal Lash]

Well said Soleri,
One of your excellent singing poetry posts The best of Burroughs and Cummings combined with some Winston Churchill tossed in.

[INPHX]

Gee. Agreement.

I don't think white privilege has anything to do with it (or course, I'm a vile racist), but when you occupy land owned by the United States while armed to the teeth, you should go to prison for a long, long time.

Same with the Dakota protesters. You might sympathize with their cause, but the arrests are easily vindicated with property rights. The fight is through injunctions and the courts.

[Cal Lash]

Interesting the slow reaction and timidness and lack of use of force with the white FLDS morons, except with the idiot in his rampaging big truck getting shot in Oregon. (Intetesting parallel with the white corporation security guard in a rampaging truck in ND).
Regardless of the causes, In my opinion the kooks from Nevada had no cause in Oregon. No one was digging up thier ancestors or violating sacred tribal grounds or theatening to pollute a major river water source for millions of human beings and animals. I suggest had the trial been held in New York or California the out come would have been "guilty" on all counts.
And in ND Law enforcement actions were outwardly prejudice. Arresting reporters (Amy Goodman ) for trespassing and when that didn't work, "Riot". Fortunately that insane charge got quickly dismissed. But watch a lot of Indians and their supporters get convicted.
I see little comparison of causes between the seemingly mentally deficient FLDS folks and American Indians that Europeans have been Genociding since 1450. Hopefully the courts and legislators will prevail in stopping another pipeline. But hope is a fools desire and likely the people's war against large Corprations will go on until the queen and king lose their heads.

[Cal Lash]

INPHX, As a matter of opinion I think the indeginous people of the Americas have sufficient cause to declare war against Europeans. I know a few apaches that contend they have never surrendered and never will!

Ruben, what U think?

[drifter]

Many good ideas in your latest post soleri. Has TV really made us dumb or has the Internet simply allowed the broadly held ignorance of American society a platform to express itself?

My upbringing was one that valued formal education with a respect for recognized and qualified authorities in various fields. Such respect seems to have evaporated over the decades replaced by my GED is just as qualifying to discuss biophysics as a Phd graduate from Cal Tech.

I really need to find a city to hide. Trumpian supremacy will survive November whatever the results and stupidity in this country is as equally regarded as thoughtful intellect.

I don't want to move to Uruguay

[Cal Lash]

Try Why AZ

[Ruben Perez]

A conversation which took place back when Hillary was dealing with how to handle the Bill/ Monica mess.

Devil: first of all Hillary, on behalf of me and the banks, thank you for your soul.

Hillary: you're welcome. To be clear, you said office of the President, right?

Devil: right. However, right before you win, I have to interject one last little wiener into the mix. OK?

Hillary: Seriously? Can't I have a wiener free life from here on out?

Devil: sorry, part of the deal.

Hillary: Alright. But can you throw in the Hispanic vote?

Devil: make the Hispanics vote? Who do you think I am, GOD??

Handshake. Close screen.

[Rogue Columnist]

Soleri is wise, as always. The jury system has its flaws.

But I still believe the movement to take the public lands deserves much more scrutiny and widespread coverage.

[soleri]

Drifter, I think what TV has done is remove most citizens from their streets and neighborhoods. If you're cocooned at home in front of a screen, you're no longer engaged fully, if at all, in your community. You start to think, as TV dramas suggest, that everything has a plot twist and satisfying ending. Just do this and everything will be different! No need to get mired in details or dead ends. If need be, just change the channel.

What has gotten lost all this is the key habit of the civic mind: doubt. Now, anything seems possible no matter how outlandish or incredible. We start to think there are simple answers instead of very complex approaches to governance. An example of this is the idea of "revolution", which sounds really neat precisely because it's not based on anything except wishful thinking. The idea that a highly stratified and complex entity like our economy will change if we just believe hard enough can only happen when citizens are no longer embedded in their community lives. Anyone who has ever participated in a HOA, school district, or parks board knows how fanciful this is. Nothing resists change more than people with a stake in an existing system.

I like to compare our socio-economic reality to a super-tanker. Political gadflies and dreamers would suggest it could be a speed boat if we only simply voted for them and change everything. This is delusional. What we can do is tinker with policy, tax rates, regulations, and trade deals. On the other hand, we will not build a fantasy all, or tear up trade agreements, or ban everyone from a particular religion, or pretend we know more about a foreign threat than our military generals. Anyone who would vote for a charlatan suggesting as much is cognitively impaired.

Hillary Clinton offends a lot of people because she knows stuff, not just top-of-the-head opinions. Trump is complete ignoramus by contrast. The difference between them is between a functional adult and a 12-year old boy with ADHD. This is the first election in my lifetime where "we've gone there", that is, decided to possibly elect someone president as stupid as the average voter. Nothing should scare us more. Most of us are sane enough to realize that we are not equipped and qualified to be president. But as the Dunning-Kruger effect implies, Trump does not know how deep his ignorance is. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect Your GED grad arguing biophysics with a Cal Tech Phd is an apt metaphor for our political delusions.

[Cal Lash]

Good piece on front pages, "if Hillary wins"

[DavidA]

Although I may disagree with much of what our former governor has says, she is (sadly) right in her assessment that Hispanics simply do not vote. As a transplant from Texas, it boggles my mind on why my fellow Latinos do not vote. Language barrier is one reason. My mother, for example, rarely shows up to the polls because she cannot understand the ballot. However, many Hispanics I know speak enough English to vote. My siblings all vote, some for Republicans due to their long-standing dislike of Jimmy Carter when Nicaragua fell to the Sandinistas. (For the record, I don't share their views since I was too small to care back then.) Interestingly, all of my Republican siblings now hate - and I mean hate - Trump, as Mr. Trump reminds them of Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. I see them either sitting this election out or voting Libertarian. They are what I would call die-hard "Never Trumpers".

My hope for Latinos is that they will wake up and realize this is not, for example, Mexico, where the PRI managed to win (i.e. rig) almost every election in the 20th century. They need to realize that their vote is equal weight to that of the Sheldon Adelson. For the future of our democracy, I hope so.

[soleri]

http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/if-hillary-wins-shell-be-grateful-for-comeys-move

The New Yorker piece on the Front Page - If Hillary Wins, She'll Be Grateful Comey Move - needs some pushback. Ryan Lizza is an excellent reporter but the idea proffered here is really counterintuitive. The American right will hate Hillary regardless if they get the dirty innuendos now, later or whenever. It hardly matters. Moreover, Lizza's reporting is contradicted by a great deal more reporting that suggests a politicized FBI with rogue agents feeding reporters storylines meant to keep the "scandal" alive. A bit of perspective here: there was never a hint of concern from Republicans about their own e-mail habits, from the Bush White House, which used an RNC server (all of which were erased), to Condi Rice and Colin Powell. As with all Clinton "scandals", it was ginned up by Republican partisans for a reason: Total Political War.

There were no new Clinton e-mails here and no Clinton e-mail server. The real scandal is the FBI and its violation of the Hatch Act that forbids actively campaigning for political candidates. On top of having a GOP nominee who appears willing to advance Russian security interests, it calls into question just how far state agencies are willing to go to subvert democracy. We already know enough about Vladimir Putin and his disdain for western democracies. Apparently the cancer has spread to the J Edgar Hoover Building in downtown DC.

[Cal Lash]

Soleri, hard to discount your suspicions.
"A selective reading of Comey’s biography makes it pretty easy to paint him as a partisan trying to take down Clinton. He was a registered Republican for most of his adult life, he served as the No. 2 official in the Justice Department during the George W. Bush administration, and he donated to John McCain’s presidential campaign in 2008 and Mitt Romney’s campaign in 2012. While he disappointed conservatives when he announced in July that the FBI would not recommend charges against Clinton, he didn’t leave Republicans totally empty-handed. He took the unusual step of publicly condemning Clinton’s behavior as “extremely careless” and suggesting that a lower-ranking employee who engaged in similar conduct would have possibly been subject to disciplinary action."
HOWEVER:
Try this: https://www.lawfareblog.com/james-comey-hillary-clinton-and-email-investigation-guide-perplexed

[INPHX]

Comey was put is an impossible situation- the previous investigation concluded no criminal charges warranted but HRC's behavior was far from impeccable.

Now, there's new information- does he choke on it until after the election (but then it comes out and he looks like he favored HRC) or does he let the public know now (and look like he favored Trump).

If you like transparency and information, then Comey did the right thing. If, on the other hand, you just want to burrow your head in the sand, then he did the wrong thing.

[Cal Lash]

The FBI short story.
Very little has changed since J Edgar left.
One of J. Edgar's biggest mistakes was assuming that White, CPA's and then LDS agents were what the agency needed. Like many law enforcement agencies the top administration is occupied with Dictatorial bureaucrats primarily interested in their image and enlarging and preserving the agency's power. Hoover delighted in dictating to everyone particularly presidents. HJH lived his position 24/7.

Hard to find a real cop in the bunch and god forbid you let a really component investigator with vast in the field experience become head of an agency.

[Cal Lash]

I suggest it will have little effect on the election but on Comey's career. He will land a cushy consulting job in the private sector.

[INPHX]

Forward, Together !!!!

Dems give schoolchildren all over the USA a lesson in virtue and how to win a debate.

Cheat.

http://money.cnn.com/2016/10/31/media/donna-brazile-cnn-resignation/index.html

[Hattie]

Small people, big signs.