In his years on SCOTUS, I have learned to despise Justice Clarence Thomas. My bulls**t meter tops out whenever I think about Thomas. From his confirmation hearings when the Anita Hill accusations became public, to his ultra-conservative views that seemed contrary to logic, to his recent dissenting opinion disallowing NY state’s restrictions on the right to carry in public places. My opinion got worse, as the role of his wife in the Trump administration became clear. She was a conflict of interest flashing in big neon lights. His refusal to recuse himself on cases involving the 2020 presidential election and the January 6 insurrection, which his wife Ginny was instrumental in influencing Trump’s strategy, was unprofessional and a disgrace to the other members of SCOTUS.
The recent story about his not disclosing lavish gifts and annual vacations received from Harlan Crow has put me over the top. His excuse that he and Crow have been friends for a long time is so misleading it makes me sick. He met Crow for the first time after he was appointed to SCOTUS.
Here is the article from ProPublica revealed . Read it for yourself and you be the judge of his ethics or lack thereof.
Quote of the Day: “When a justice’s lifestyle is being subsidized by the rich and famous, it absolutely corrodes public trust. Quite frankly, it makes my heart sink.” Virginia Canter, a former government ethics lawyer who served in administrations of both parties now at the watchdog group CREW.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
FUBAR is the only way I can describe how this country worships guns. It never occurred to me that states and municipalities would auction off guns to the public that were previously used in the commitment of criminal acts. Then I heard about the following related to Kentucky. You cannot make this stuff up.
In an effort to sidestep a state law that mandates guns seized by law enforcement be auctioned off by the Kentucky State Police, Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said Thursday that the city would now disable firearms before turning them over to the state police force. Going forward, he said, the Louisville Metro Police Department will render seized firearms inoperable by removing their firing pins before giving them to the Kentucky State Police. That action, however, will not render the firearms permanently inoperable; the firing pins will be sent to the Kentucky State Police alongside the weapon and can be reinstalled. “These guns that are used to commit crimes end up back on our streets,” said Greenberg during a press conference at Metro Hall. “And too often, guns that are used to commit crimes are used to commit another crime. That needs to stop.”
Reporting by the Courier Journal in 2021 found that over the course of six years, 31 guns auctioned off by the Kentucky State Police were later tied to a criminal case in Louisville. Louisville will also place “warning stickers” on disabled guns turned over to the Kentucky State Police stating that the firearm may have been used in a homicide.
Only in America.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
One of my very close friends and workout partner was a trainer at the Washtenaw County Police Academy for decades. After the mass murder in Louisville earlier this week, we talked about the difference in what happened in the Louisville incident and the Nashville incident where the police evaluated and eliminated the threat, versus what happened in Evalde, when multiple agencies stood around for over an hour before they eventually eliminated the threat. He told me that one of the things he always looked for in a potential police academy graduate was trying to determine if the candidate would be one who would engage when faced with a threat or whether the candidate would retreat and wait for others. He said it was not something he was ever sure of when evaluating a candidate, but it was something he was always looking for as he evaluated candidates. I found this very interesting especially considering what happened in the three different situations in Nashville, Louisville and Evalde.
Feel free to share my blog or to sign up to receive it directly in your email. See the sign-up at the bottom of the blog below the video.
Quote of the Day: See above.
Orchid of the Day: Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg. See above story.
Onion of the Day: Detroit Tiger shortstop Javier Baez, when you have a $140 million contract, the least you can do is hustle out of the box and know how many outs there are. See my Video of the day.
Question of the Day: Does it make any sense to auction off guns that have previously been used in a criminal act?
Image of the Day: Javier Baez deserved to get benched after this.