Maryland legislator wants to take public assistance from “rioters”

Delegate Patrick McDonough (that’s him, campaigning up above) is a tool, and he has been since 2012, when he first suggested that low-income Maryland residents lose public assistance if they are found running counter to “riot” laws. Here. Listen for yourself. McDonough recently said on his radio show:  “I think that you could make the case that …

The fruits of segregation

Read this essay by Richard Rothstein at The Economic Policy Institute Blog. It’s awesome and includes things like this: Whenever young black men riot in response to police brutality or murder, as they have done in Baltimore this week, we’re tempted to think we can address the problem by improving police quality—training officers not to …

Baltimore resident schools the media

Just watch this. Listen to this man talking about the [white] media that only visits Baltimore when there’s a riot. He say: “You’re not here reporting about the boarded-up homes, and the homeless people under MLK.” He says: “You can’t tell me to  move off my street. I pay the tax dollars for this. I’m …

So where will we be when Baltimore “calms down?”

Back to “business as usual?” Back to an unquiet calm that’s waiting for the next indecent shooting, the next wrong traffic stop, the next harassment? (For the broader view, read this by the great Ta-Nehisi Coates, of The Atlantic, and this year’s Stowe Prize winner. He writes, of his watching his native city: Now, tonight, …

Uh…Penn State?

Childhood sex abuse survivors are appalled at your behavior. My friend Janice suggests we all take a moment at noon today to think about victims of child sex abuse, and send them our love. I think that is a beautiful idea. And thanks, Jac, for the link.