Facts can be proven but statistics are much more easily bent. Could this be a perfect example?

Looks like Laura Bush's war on gangs isn't going all that great, just like her husband's war on terror.

Blast from the past after the jump...

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This article by Dr. Edward Rhymes originated on the Black Agenda Report.
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It is one of the most intelligent discourses I've read about the recent controversy over rap music and violence. In fact, though radical, the Black Agenda Report expresses views us white folks seldom get to hear from "the people" themselves. The authors on this site tend to be a bit academic, but that's great, because they actually present good arguments for their points of view. Because of ingrained, historical seperatism in our country, most of us only get to understand the black community's thinking through white-owned, mostly conservative (and mostly racist-driven) news. Not really knowing many black people tends to limit our undertsanding of the Black community. We tend to lump that group together in a way that is often completely distorted. A broad mind should want to peer into its own dark cave corners if it seeks to be illuminated. The Black Agenda Report does just that for me. This article really probes our concern that Black rap music is violent and causing our all our kids to glorify sex and crime.

Dr. Rhymes points out the existing duplicity quite nicely.

"My assertion was, and remains to be, that the mainstream media and society-at-large, appear to have not so much of a problem with the glorification of sex and violence, but rather with who is doing the glorifying. In it I stated that "if the brutality and violence in gangsta rap was truly the real issue, then shouldn't a series like The Sopranos be held to the same standard? If we are so concerned about bloodshed, then how did movies like 'The Godfather,' 'The Untouchables' and 'Goodfellas' become classics?"

Rhymes is not a defender of violence.

"Young people, for better or worse, are looking for and craving authenticity. Now, because this quality is in such rare-supply in today's society, they gravitate towards those who appear to be "real" and "true to the game." Tragically, they appreciate the explicitness without detesting or critically deconstructing what the person is being explicit about."

He says White men have been crooning about violence for years, but few people took them to task.

"The exaltation of drugs, misogyny and violence in music lyrics has a history that predates NWA, Ice Cube, Ice T and Snoop Dogg. Elton John's 1977 song "Tickin," was about a young man who goes into a bar and kills 14 people; Bruce Springsteen's "Nebraska," featured a couple on a shooting spree, and his "Johnny 99," was about a gun-waving laid-off worker; and Stephen Sondheim's score for "Assassins," which presented songs mostly in the first person about would-be and successful presidential assassins.

Eric Clapton's "Cocaine" and the Beatles' "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" (LSD) as well as almost anything by Jefferson Airplane or Spaceship. Several songs from "Tommy" and Pink Floyd's "The Wall" are well known drug songs. "Catholic girls," "Centerfold," "Sugar Walls" by Van Halen were raunchy, misogynistic, lust-driven rock refrains.

Even the country music legend Kenny Rogers in his legendary ballad, "Coward Of The County," spoke of a violent gang-rape and then a triple-homicide by the song's hero to avenge his assaulted lover. Marilyn Manson declared that one of the aims of his provocative persona was to see how much it would take to get the moralists as mad at white artists as they got about 2LiveCrew. He said it took fake boobs, Satanism, simulated sex on stage, death and angst along with semi-explicit lyrics, to get the same screaming the 2LiveCrew got for one song. Manson thought this reaction was hypocritical and hilarious.

Hmm...somehow I never really thought about that...

The big question is are they walling them in or walling them out?

Even before anybody had any evidence that Cho Seung-Hui, the shooter at Virginia Tech, was "mentally ill", the talking heads on TV were making hay with the idea that students should be watching fellow classmates for "signs" of mental illness. Considering that it is estimated that 20% of the students (and god only knows how many faculty members)at Virginia Tech knowingly suffer from depression, you can imagine a little shiver of shame and fear ran down their spines. They probably felt terrified someone might find out they were being treated for depression, post traumatic syndrome, bi-polar illeness, or schitzophernia.

Read more...

Rocketsquirrel's good advice below notwithstanding, this is a big story, and for those at work who couldn't see it, here's a summary of the Virginia Tech press briefing that just concluded.

Read more...

Reports: up to 22 killed in Virginia Tech shooting rampage. Shooter reported killed. Others, possibly as many as 28, reported wounded.

UPDATE: ATF says shooter killed himself, two 9mm handguns recovered. White male, connection to university unknown at this time.

UPDATE: Wounded victim who was shot in upper arm says shooter was "Asian", walked in and started firing at random, shot several students and possibly the professor, left, tried to come back in, they barricaded the door and he began firing through the door.

UPDATE: Reports now say 32 dead. Student journalists from the school paper are posting updates at a temporary alternate site.

UPDATE: CNN reports that the death toll is up to 33. They include the gunman in the count.

UPDATE: AP reports that Virginia Tech officials confirm shooter was a student.

UPDATE: CNN single source report (i.e. not confirmed) that a Glock 9mm and "a .22" were recovered.

UPDATE: NBC reporting that the shooter purchased both handguns in Virginia.

UPDATE: New revelations about the shooter's state of mind.

UPDATE: The Hillbilly Savants blog has an extensive roundup.

Blog accounts from the campus:

Ruination Day

Madness on campus

Rather scared

Virginia Tech shootout (scroll down)

Insane freshman year

Holy....

Today is the International Day Of Peace, established by the UN in 1981. On this day of peace, we learn that torture in Iraq is now worse than it was under Saddam.

Happy Peace Day.

It is commonly held that "those who do not learn from the past are condemned to repeat it."

Or "insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results."

Despite this received wisdom, the fix is apparently in regarding resolution of tensions in the Middle East. Following the "flimsy pretext" model of prosecuting "pre-emptive conflict resolution," in order to teach the uppity Lebanese militia a lesson, it's time to "shock and awe" the nation of Syria.

Or so says the buzz among some of the GOP's most breathless defenders, anyway:

I have long thought that maybe the U.S. should have gone after Syria's Baathist regime before Iraq's. Maybe history is giving us a second chance to do the right thing. No, we don' t need to invade and occupy Syria. Just help Israel destroy Assad's military with massive air power, and let his regime fall.

Because that worked out so well for us in Iraq???

(Note the use of the phrase, "history is giving us a second chance." Does this mean that we blew our first chance to do the the right thing? In common usage, "second chance" often means what happens when you get off of a wayward path in life -- addiction, crime, infidelity, e.g. -- and start living in sobriety. Or maybe this is code for the sort of body armor that our troops have had to supply for themselves.)

(rant continued on the flip...)

Billions of dollars unaccounted for and lost in Iraq, no problem.

Need help in a pinch? Need to get out of an active war zone? Well, there's an option to be billed later for "services rendered."

July 15, 2006

This information is current as of today, Sat Jul 15 12:20:12 2006.

A message to the American citizens in Lebanon:

The Department of State continues to work with the Department of Defense on a plan to help American citizens depart Lebanon. As of the morning of July 15, we are looking at how we might transport Americans to Cyprus. Once in Cyprus, Americans can then board commercial aircraft for onward travel. Commercial airlines provide the safest and most efficient repatriation options to final destinations.

The Department of State reminds American citizens that the U.S. government does not provide no-cost transportation but does have the authority to provide repatriation loans to those in financial need. For the portion of your trip directly handled by the U.S. Government we will ask you to sign a promissory note and we will bill you at a later date. In a subsequent message, when we have specific details about the transporation arrangments, we will inform you about the costs you will incur. We will also work with commercial aircraft to ensure that they have adequate flights to help you depart Cyprus and connect to your final destination.

The Department of State continues to work around the clock and will continue to send updates as appropriate.

The NYT has a fascinating bit on possible plans for airlines to sell, get this, standing tickets. The best part is the description of the "seat" one would get:

Airbus has been quietly pitching the standing-room-only option to Asian carriers, though none have agreed to it yet. Passengers in the standing section would be propped against a padded backboard, held in place with a harness, according to experts who have seen a proposal.

Which brings to mind:

I can't imagine this standing position would be any more uncomfortable than sitting in coach. I am 6'2" and I fly Delta and US Airways for the most part. Once you get past the woman stungunning people not moving fast enough onto the plane, you are required to fold up like a Buck knife. It requires a shiatsu and Vicodin to cut the edge on my aching knees even after a short flight. Recently, on a flight to Argentina, I had a cramp that rendered me incapable of getting out of the chair to even stretch. Maybe if I am standing I can just unbuckle and jog up and down the aisles when I feel deep vein thrombosis setting in. Hell, they have to let you have some freedom to roam if they are making you stand, strapped to a board. As a matter of fact, I am a regular inmate aboard the Westside IRT here in the Big Apple. I stand for long stretches on my haul from Brooklyn to Midtown, pitching side to side and know just when to grab the bar when the 2 train hits the Park Place interlock. Won't bother me a bit, I guess, and I'd get to hang out with other New Yorkers too.

It does ask the question: Would you stand for a cheaper seat? 

More on the case of Johnia Berry.

This survey's preliminary findings point to a link between people who experience road rage and weapons possession in cars. While guns are not causing road rage or necessarily being used in road rage incidents by people who have them in their vehicles, it is interesting that the proclivity to drive angry correlates with carrying a gun in one's car. I am one of those liberals who thinks that gun ownership is most certainly a constitutional right. Proper licensure, training and experience should be enforced and encouraged to prevent gun violence and prevent possesion of guns by those who are not qualified. Punishment for crimes committed with a gun should not waver, either. In other words, there are people in this world who should not own guns, just as there are people who should not drive, teach school or administer medicine (all acts requiring licensure). It is good to see that science is giving us a glimpse at who are those people who are potentially not qualified and maybe we can develop some metrics that both promote safety AND allow the 2nd Amendment to be honored.

The local war on porn (covered before here) has had its first terrorist attack:

A man armed with a rifle and gasoline set fire to an adult novelty store early this morning, authorities said.

Shortly after 4 a.m. the man walked into the 24-hour Town and Country Book Den, 7011 Clinton Hwy. and began pouring out gasoline and setting fires, according to the store clerk.

Idiot.

The transfer hearing for Campbell County High School shooting suspect Kenneth Bartley, Jr., originally scheduled for tomorrow, has been postponed.

Bartley's attorney, Mike Hatmaker, asked the judge for a continuance in the case and it was granted.

The new hearing date is March 30 and may last two days.

The hearing will determine whether Bartley will be tried as an adult or juvenile in the shooting death of CCHS Assistant Principal Ken Bruce and the wounding of Assistant Principal Jim Pierce and Principal Gary Seale on November 8, 2005.

From Jim Dossett of The LaFollette Press:

The widow of a slain Campbell County High assistant principal scolded the Campbell County Board of Education and central office staff at a Thursday meeting. Jo Bruce directed pointed remarks to board members and central office staffers, saying she was tired of hearing how well school personnel handled the Nov. 8 tragedy in which her husband, Ken, and two other principals were shot.

“You keep saying that everything was done well, but that’s not acceptable.

“As Ken’s wife, I definitely know that something went wrong that day. We all know that something went wrong or three men would not have been shot,” Bruce told board members.

Bruce said she has repeatedly asked the central office to review the school safety plan, but she believes those requests have not been followed.

“Why, when told that the boy had a loaded gun in his pocket, was he (the assailant, Kenneth S. Bartley) not searched?

“The SRO (School Resource Officer) did a good job getting him out of class, but he was still not searched even at Mr. Pierce’s office,” she said.

More:

http://www.lafollettepress.com/headline3.html

Meanwhile, Kenneth Bartley, Jr. will find out next week if he'll be tried as an adult or a juvenile:

http://www.lafollettepress.com/headline1.html