There was another condemnation of the Mayor in the media today, even the Journal. After a Judge granted $6,000,000 to the family of one of their shooting victims, the family said they had asked first to just sit down with Mayor Berry to see if APD could be improved. The Mayor never responded.
Eric Cantor losing to an even further rightwing immigrant hating wacko could be looked at in two ways. It will either marginalize the GOP into a silly entity, or it will paralyze the House of Representatives even more with fundamentalism from the fringe. Hopefully the first. But in the meantime the country will suffer and demonizing of immigrants will continue. In about 200 years or so this vaguely disguised racism of non white immigrants will cease, because we all will be brown. But will the country survive that long?
The Bernalillo County Commission did the right thing by saying voters will decide on the proposed increase in gross receipts taxes to fund open space purchases. Usually, I would vote for such a tax but I need to be convinced they know what to do with the money. I haven't seen a plan.
The Albuquerque Journal did a cool thing the other day by giving free digital subscriptions to the Washington Post for a year. It looks like they are trying everything now to make themselves more viable. Mostly it helps, but it won't be fully successful until a new editor is found who will return the publication to a more even mannered editorial stance. And, they need to keep the editorial page opinions from leaking into the news coverage, or non coverage. But I will say their editorial this morning was more even handed when they condemned APD from gagging officers from talking with the DOJ investigation. The one thing the Journal doesn't like is gag orders.
Eric Cantor losing to an even further rightwing immigrant hating wacko could be looked at in two ways. It will either marginalize the GOP into a silly entity, or it will paralyze the House of Representatives even more with fundamentalism from the fringe. Hopefully the first. But in the meantime the country will suffer and demonizing of immigrants will continue. In about 200 years or so this vaguely disguised racism of non white immigrants will cease, because we all will be brown. But will the country survive that long?
The Bernalillo County Commission did the right thing by saying voters will decide on the proposed increase in gross receipts taxes to fund open space purchases. Usually, I would vote for such a tax but I need to be convinced they know what to do with the money. I haven't seen a plan.
The Albuquerque Journal did a cool thing the other day by giving free digital subscriptions to the Washington Post for a year. It looks like they are trying everything now to make themselves more viable. Mostly it helps, but it won't be fully successful until a new editor is found who will return the publication to a more even mannered editorial stance. And, they need to keep the editorial page opinions from leaking into the news coverage, or non coverage. But I will say their editorial this morning was more even handed when they condemned APD from gagging officers from talking with the DOJ investigation. The one thing the Journal doesn't like is gag orders.
12 comments:
Jim
Can you tell us how much we will be paying the Torres family? Is it $6,000,000 or is it $400,000? The Journal and KOAT are saying it is capped at $400,000 but KOB and KRQE are both saying it is $6,000,000.
Which one is it and why?
The Alb Journal has lost ALL credibility over the last 3 and a half years. Eric Cantor's defeat is HUGE. Pay attention Martinez et al. Watch and learn as we New Mexicans take our State back.
S BeyondaMee,
Before you start claiming to take down Martinez based on Cantor’s loss, you should read this:
http://www.cnn.com/2014/06/10/politics/primaries-cantor/
We have those same type of conservatives that caused him to lose trying to destroy this state with the Martinez/Berry machine. We have a lot of work to do. We must work smarter and harder than them if we want to save this state.
But the Journal's repressive slant on Mayor's office protestor is discouraging. Our mainstream monopoly paper is a PR tool, and only reports true when forced to and evidence is overwhelming or has gone national. Not example of free press. Thank God for the Internet!
My ear is to the ground. I have heard the rumbling since 2010 when Martinez slashed funding for the Commission on the Status of NM Women. Rumbling since she tried to compromise women's reproductive rights. Maybe you guys don't realize just HOW ticked off the women are. Rumbling when she started the Destruction of the Dept of Health. Rumbling when she gutted the Behavioral Health system. I am starting to hear a cracking noise now.
S BeyondaMee,
And may the rumblings of people like you and me and all of the others who are fed up with this corruption turn into a ROAR. And if Martinez doesn't hear us ROAR, then we should follow in the protesters footsteps and do a sit in at her office. Maybe then she'll realize that she can't treat New Mexicans as if they are stupid followers of her propaganda.
Cuidado Martinez, cuidado!
I found absolutely nothing even handed about the editorial regarding Eden's gag order and it was another "cover the Mayor's ass" editorial. It should have been a stronger condemnation of the gag order if they meant what they were saying about a free and transparent exchange of information. Instead they condemn the gag order practice and then heap praise on two policy changes Eden has implemented. No mention of Berry or why he would allow such a gag order or if Berry should order his Chief to withdraw the gag order. When is the Journal ever going to hold Berry accountable for his managers actions, including the actions of Chief Administrative Clown Perry??
The Journal also did Editorial a few days ago condemning the UNM professor charged with a felony assault on a police officer for protesting. The Editorial in so many words found the professor guilty as charged and agreed he should be barred from all of City Hall and not just the Mayor's office.
The sooner the Journal folds and this City is rid of this rag once and for all the better.
To take Jim's point about the Eric Cantor loss a little further, I think it will affect the presidential election one way and everything else another way. I think it's understood that you probably can't win a national election any more without the support of Latinos and women, which was why Cantor was supporting some kind of immigration reform. His loss could end any talk of immigration reform in the US congress but likewise, Governor Martinez' role as the party's token Latina could become more important.
In congress and in all other political contests everything could deteriorate in the short term, because people are worried about this election, not the next one. Latinos, nationwide, aren't the majority in many districts yet. However, they may be or soon will be important swing voters. Some southern states, like North Carolina and Georgia, have sizable Hispanic populations already. State and local elected bodies and the US congress will inevitably start resembling New Mexico's.
This isn't to ignore the fact that things might get touchy over the course of those next 200 years. The Tea Party is one indication of that already happening. But as in the case of the African American Civil Rights movement, in the country at large the real pinheads were eventually outnumbered by people whose hearts were in the right place or if not at least had some common sense.
To answer the first comment posting, the State District Judge entered a Judgment for $6,000,000 but under the New Mexico Tort claims act, there is a cap of $400,000 which is all the City has to pay in the State Court case. There is a companion Federal lawsuit and the Torrez family will now ask that the $6,000,000 damages awarded in the State Court be the damages awarded in the Federal wrongful death and civil rights case hoping to force the City to pay the full $6,000,000. The Federal lawsuit trial will occur in September.
NM is a testing ground, as other states have been, for the radical right to try to gut government and in essence control the masses, even by force if necessary as in a police state, funneling money to the elitists via corporate control and the legal system, as in Citizen’s United. Gone are the trickle-down economics of the Reagan era, although they don’t hesitate to disguise their agenda as being noble enough to care about most citizens, even with a trickle. It’s a war that we are fighting within our own country and it’s just the beginning. As the middle class continues to disappear, where most will gradually fall into the poor and struggling class, you will have more movements where citizens will start standing up for their rights.
Martinez, and it should be apparent by now to all, Berry, are part of this elitist community. Remember Martinez was invited by the Tea Party to run for Governor with their support. And she fooled us by making us think that she would balance between efficient government and reasonable taxes. Instead she is gutting government, the state is in crisis due to the safety-net services no longer available and eliminating funding to the cities and counties so they are forced to raise taxes to make up for those much needed funds.
We’re due for a NM Movement, uniting women and minorities, if she gets reelected. If you think she’s been aggressive in gutting government, pervasive corruption, deception and in essence raising taxes indirectly by forcing cities to find monies elsewhere such as gross receipts tax, a regressive tax, and property taxes, just wait. She will be given free rein to continue with her, and her elitists, plan.
As the Tina Turner song goes, “You’d better be good to me.” It’s an interesting time in New Mexico!
I'm not sure if Anonymous thinks the uprising will be limited to women and minorities because it will spring organically from those most oppressed or if she'd prefer it that way or just what, but I don't see the benefit of risking alienating working class whites at least in her polemical writing, which is very inspiring by the way.
Bubba, It’s a bit presumptuous that you think I’m a woman. You are correct on one point, however, that I should have addressed the alpha white class and included those white MEN and women who were not part of the alpha elitists, even if it was by their choice, as part of this movement. Since you are a old trucker, I presume you know what I’m talking about. Some of us remember how it used to be before society evolved. If the alpha male (who were the only leaders before evolution) spoke, you had no choice but to obey and submit. Opportunity was only offered as low-hanging fruit rather than substantive. Now we have choices. And as the middle class gradually disappears, regardless of color, and with the resources and tools to connect, the alpha elitists will continue to lose power. They should study world history to see what the outcome will be. China is well aware of what happens when you suppress the masses to the benefit of the elite.
And yes, it’s polemical to stimulate the apathy out of its slumber in NM and get people to think, which in time will hopefully transfer into action, like voting.
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