Disqus - Latest Comments for afroacademic

Re: Freddie Gray's death ruled a homicide, criminal charges to be filed

afroacademic — Mon, 04 May 2015 18:27:36 -0000

Ollie - You seem less capable than most of the Freshmen college students I've taught. I didn't post to have a "conversation" with you. Merely point out to you and all who suffered your comments the type of shifty and unfocused "thinking" you seem to traffic in.

Re: Freddie Gray's death ruled a homicide, criminal charges to be filed

afroacademic — Fri, 01 May 2015 19:45:15 -0000

Ollie you seem very intellectually lazy. In 60 seconds I easily found that Marilyn Mosby is from Boston where both her parents were cops. A few more seconds and I knew that the first black police officer in America was hired in Boston in the 1800's. In less than 2 minutes I knew for a fact your comments were not only juvenile but baseless. If I cared to I could point out more ways you are intellectually lazy or dishonest. I will not. Good day sir.

Re: Student Arrested by UW in Sodexo Protests Wins UW Academic Award

afroacademic — Mon, 23 May 2011 12:59:24 -0000

While I don't agree with Observer above the bookstore is unique in that it is a corporate trust and the students do have a stake in the company.

Re: UW Transportation Spending Rose As Department Lobbied for Tax Break

afroacademic — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 20:50:53 -0000

If someone has to explain the difference between a non-profit, public institution of higher education and Amazon then we have larger problems...

Re: Open Thread on Tucson Memorial

afroacademic — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 23:33:50 -0000

I'm surprised it took someone this long to bring this up. To be honest I didn't watch, I read the speech. Mostly because modern audiences always step on the phrasing and pitch of speeches when the president gives them. In campaign mode Obama can factor that in but in this address it was clear that they really messed with the flow.

Anyway I guess I wasn't bothered by the use of the book of Job because it is a major component of the text used in the Talmud. Also issues of death and mourning in Judaism are linked to Job as it informs some mourning traditions. In fact of the books to use I can't think of one much more appropriate. (Yes, I know some of you think no portion of the scriptures or text for any religion should be used in any official speech).

Re: Black America Without A War On Drugs - Ta-Nehisi Coates - National - The Atlantic

afroacademic — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 16:01:46 -0000

You definition of chemist may miss the mark. The Chemistry elements will be similar to the growers economics. It really doesn't take much more than a passable high school chemistry knowledge to make a lot of this stuff. However, what I think you'd see are the advent of more complex luxury drugs made by the chemistry elite (those with college level chemistry). Again there would be tiered market.

Re: DADT Point of Confusion: Gays Can’t Serve Just Yet

afroacademic — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 12:38:46 -0000

The Bill directs the DoD to recommend changes to the UCMJ along with intra-service changes, guidelines, training, etc. to allow for the full repeal and open service of gay's and lesbians.

Re: Stop Snitchin' - Ta-Nehisi Coates - International - The Atlantic

afroacademic — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 20:55:27 -0000

I had a posting mishap of epic proportions. Anyway. I just wanted to ad that I'm not coming at this from a vengeful angle. In fact I don't know if I wouldn't have done the same (to a degree) but I think the idea of bringing the house down is/was a dangerous thing and frankly I don't know if there is any moral high ground in doing it. Chances are you just push things further underground while possibly costing some folks their lives and the US diplomatic core their valuable positions. Further, many of these things were other countries' secrets, do we have the right to divulge them? I'd say not and so we'll have to wait until the scope of the leak is known to make the final judgment.

Re: Wikileaker In Solitary - Ta-Nehisi Coates - National - The Atlantic

afroacademic — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 18:38:53 -0000

I think Coates' last point is where the rub is and why I find posts like Greenwald's underwhelming. As many black folks know this type of confinement is not abnormal and in fact is used as a tool in many American prisons and commonly by law enforcement. Yet, I don't read a lot of post from Greenwald and others about America's prison problems generally.

People like to rail about detainee abuses and confinement of high profile prisoners but fail to connect the dots that this is partially possible because of the prison-industrial complex that we've created. A system that jails a lot of dark people, poor people, and others, and a system that ensures that most of them will return for ever growing terms until they're finally in on 60 to life with or without parole.

So, in light of the military issues and the profile of the accused I care, but not nearly as much and I care about a problem that I've seen claim lives in my family and far too many. Too many folks, like Greenwald, are busy discussing one of the symptoms and avoiding the actual disease. So, I would hope we can agree that this kid, guilty or not, is in a horrid position and arguably an illegal position. Yet, how can we act surprised when people we grew up with end up in a similar room for bad drug deal?

Re: Stop Snitchin' - Ta-Nehisi Coates - International - The Atlantic

afroacademic — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 18:00:33 -0000

While I find these comments interesting they miss the point. I have a security clearance, my dad does, and so does my sister. No matter my reason or theirs if I or they willfully leaked classified documents I'd expect us to go to trial and possible jail, period. I know some people don't like that but I signed a document (a series of them) and I know what the consequences are for divulging classified information. If my peers deemed my actions excusable then they could acquit. That's if I leaked a few things. A leak of this magnitude will take months to properly diagnose in a way so that charges can be made. I feel no sorrow for the private but I hope that he knew the possible consequences when he did this, if so I doubt he's surprised.

Re: Stop Snitchin' - Ta-Nehisi Coates - International - The Atlantic

afroacademic — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 17:52:54 -0000

While

Re: Obama told us so

afroacademic — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:37:57 -0000

What all of this "analysis" misses is that healthcare in the Senate is only really at risk for filibuster during the initial vote. Once it is back from committee with the house bill (which seems to have a much stronger public option) it will get an up or down vote. So, I'm not really surprised that some Dems are worried about getting stiffed by relying on Lieberman (one of the 60). He can't be trusted and if they rope Snowe in he'll be less likely to bolt.

So trigger or no, the point is to get a public option to committee no matter what. The fact that so many "Democratic insiders" fail to understand this is unfortunate. Sidenote: when did we start trusting Reid's whip count? This whole trigger nonsense sounds more like the white house wasn't coming up with a solid 60 in its count while Reid was this weekend. The result seems to have been some hedging by the white house to assure it could get 60 with a trigger if Reid's count fell apart at the 11th hour. The pushback seems to have now placed Obama in the "trusting Harry" position we find the White house in this evening.

Re: Be afraid. Be very afraid.

afroacademic — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 11:26:48 -0000

Quixote,

Sorry to pick a bone but as a geologist your comment about skeptics, which there are in my and many disciplines (including climate/atmospheric science), implies that we aren't equipped to understand the science involved when in fact the proxies needed to build a complete deep time temperature curve are here because of the work of geologist on various chemical temperature systems.

While I have no problem picking on economist and physicists who think they know more than they do I think that generally earth scientist are quite in tune with climate change. Heck Geology publishes a few climate change articles a year without fail. I'd posit that the real reason for "skeptics" in the geosciences has been due to often dubious loyalties between scientist and the coal, oil, and gas companies that rely on geologist. That natural relationship between geoscientist and hydrocarbon extracting companies, along with incentives (i.e. cold hard cash) make for a temping career as a "skeptic."

I guess your call for ignorance to explain some deniers in my field is a bit nicer than what I see as the problem.

Re: Be afraid. Be very afraid.

afroacademic — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 11:47:46 -0000

Sorry but there is a scientific consensus and the science is sound. Further, we have data from direct measurements going back hundreds of years that show this warming. Also, I just went to a lecture by one of the chairs of the IPCC and she made an excellent point. In the IPCC scientist from more countries then you can name got together (and I'm talking the US, Saudi Arabia, China, Russia, UK, Germany, Brazil, etc., etc) and agreed line by line on that report. Never have so many scientist from so many schools of thought sat in such unequivocal agreement. Frankly anyone looking to argue with the fact of climate change is not looking at the data or the science, just being played by political hacks. I will gladly admit that when the first IPCC report came out the anthropogenic causal link was not as strong, but even that side of climate change has become increasingly evident.

Hell the new CEO of exxon is talking about climate change. I don't know what kind of people at this point can deny this reality.

Re: Dems Moving on DADT

afroacademic — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:43:17 -0000

"Calling his bluff" sounds like you don't think he'd sign the bill... I think that not wanting to do the heavy lifting of getting a bill past a Congress without a backbone and vetoing a repeal of DADT are worlds apart. But then maybe I've misread you on the issue.

Re: To Observe and Affect

afroacademic — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:53:23 -0000

I don't want to threadjack but Erin W is so right. I've always believed that privacy would be the greatest legal issue of modern time.

Re: Medicine and the Unfree Market

afroacademic — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:39:33 -0000

I think it is always good to point out Mayo and concern treatment in the US because it is not only cost effective, it is one of the only long term care situations where the US has better outcomes than most other countries with similar per capita GDP.

Re: Burning Issue

afroacademic — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 13:29:05 -0000

For a second, just for a second I thought we were past book burning...back to reality like an apple to Newton's head.

Re: What a Country

afroacademic — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 12:06:48 -0000

It looks like the US is 58th (behind large swaths of Africa and Asia, as well as France and Germany in Europe) I think using wikipedia which gets its data from the CIA world Factbook.

Re: I Know This Is Going to Shock You

afroacademic — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:02:58 -0000

When will people get that speech, as free as it is, has consequences... Words have destroyed entire people and some folks want to act like they mean nothing.

Re: Saletan and Slate Hit a New Low

afroacademic — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:58:40 -0000

Sick.

Re: The State Dept. Recognizes Pride Month

afroacademic — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:49:29 -0000

there is a Presidential Proclamation... Here

Re: Racefail

afroacademic — Fri, 29 May 2009 12:05:53 -0000

It is now and will ever be about divide and oppress. Just look at the Irish (before they were white) and Blacks; Eastern Europeans and the blacks; now Latinos and the Blacks... god this isn't new, but good on Ta-Nehisi for slapping it down.

Re: Hysterical Bitch

afroacademic — Thu, 28 May 2009 15:17:55 -0000

shoutz has the right of it. Anyone who's been in a similar situation knows just how hard it is to say something. The fact that some would use this against her is sickening but not surprising.

Re: Detainee Abuse: New Details Reported

afroacademic — Thu, 28 May 2009 11:40:03 -0000

Previously released photos depicted sexual assault... I'm not sure what there is left to prove, we know rape happened in these places, we've seen the photos (Salon released them at some point). I'm still astounded that fewer people remember, which doesn't make me hopefully for any possible outrage if these new photos are ever released.