Open Thread For June 24, 2017

Filed in Delaware, National by on June 24, 2017

Putin was Directly Involved In Electing TrumpSimply one of the most important stories of this or any other year. Read it, even if it means subscribing. In fact, you should subscribe. As the Washington Post’s masthead reads, “Democracy Dies In Darkness”.

But the Trump Administration Isn’t Concerned, Even If Intelligence Agencies Are.  It doesn’t help that there’s not even a Potemkin Village structure in place at the State Department. Russians know about Potemkin Villages.

SOS Tillerson Tosses ‘Child Soldier’ Protocols Out The Window. Ignores recommendations of staff and removes Iraq and Myanmar from list. Read the article and find out why.

Another Fox Guarding The Henhouse.  Trump’s ‘voter fraud’ guru gets sanctioned. BTW, he’s also running for governor of Kansas.

How Secret Corporate Database Places Activists On ‘Terrorist’ Watch List.  Might be tough for Quakers to get loans any more…

Why Heller’s No On Trumpcare Matters. As unpopular as Heller is, Nevada’s term-limited R governor Brian Sandoval is wildly popular. The governor has been outspoken in his opposition to Trumpcare.  From both a policy and political move, Heller’s vote is borne of necessity.  He’s likely to stay a no.

State Senator Pettyjohn Charged With Felony. Tried to bring his gun onto a plane. Claimed he forgot he had it. Too bad he didn’t have John Atkins’ legislative ‘Get Out of Trouble Free’ card.  To me, the bigger joke is that he was headed to a legislative education conference in New Orleans, aka a junket paid for by the taxpayers.

What do you want to talk about?

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  1. Jason330 says:

    That Pettyjohn gun story would be hilarious is it wasn’t so pitiful. What a joke.

  2. puck says:

    UD professor says Otto Warmbier got ‘what he deserved’

    People from all over the country are calling for a University of Delaware adjunct professor to be fired after she wrote on Facebook Tuesday that Otto Warmbier “got exactly what he deserved” after being taken into custody by North Korea, falling into a coma and dying.

    On her personal Facebook page, Kathy Dettwyler, an anthropology professor, wrote that Warmbier was “typical of a mindset of a lot of the young, white, rich, clueless males who come into my classes.”

    “These are the same kids who cry about their grades because they didn’t think they’d really have to read and study the material to get a good grade … His parents ultimately are to blame for his growing up thinking he could get away with whatever he wanted. Maybe in the US, where young, white, rich, clueless white males routinely get away with raping women. Not so much in North Korea.

    Some progressive women have become completely unhinged by White Male Derangement Syndrome. Not so long ago you could read similar viewpoints right here in Delaware Liberal.

  3. I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss what she said until it’s placed in context.

    And I sure as shit don’t want to see her fired based on this. I think progressives are looking to pull the trigger on stuff like this way too quickly. Like those who said they’d cancel their subscriptions to the NYTimes b/c the Times had the nerve to hire a conservative writer for the Op-Ed pages.

  4. puck says:

    Mark my words, if this thread goes on long enough somebody will call Warmbier a rapist.

  5. Please. I had professors in college who said things that, under today’s nearly totalitarian standards, would be considered heretical. They were also really good professors as they challenged our critical thinking skills.

    You can bet that the demagogues in Dover will be screaming about this on Tuesday. All the more reason for a liberal blog NOT to call for her firing.

  6. puck says:

    I’m not calling for her firing, just smacking my forehead.

  7. If/when the Dover demagogues call for her ouster, will you stand with her or with silencing her voice?

  8. puck says:

    I’ll stand aside. I also won’t protest Kathy Griffin losing her gigs.

    There are more important battles to fight.

  9. If the DINO’s had their way, probably only Ed Freel and his Third Way acolytes would teach UD students anything about public policy. Or economics, for that matter. Which would suck. Greatly.

  10. puck says:

    Warmbier was reportedly the nicest guy in the world and had good grades, yet over his grave Prof. Dettwyler turned him into a poster child for privileged rapists and undeserved grade entitlement, based on her own twisted prejudices. Who the hell thinks that way?

    I wouldn’t want either my daughter or my son writing papers catering to that mindset. I won’t call for her to be fired but if it happens I won’t be sad.

    And if future candidates for office turn out to have taken her classes, I want oppo research to pull their term papers for review.

  11. I, uh, think you just exposed yourself big-time there. Not that you didn’t expose your blatant sexism with your first comments.

    Don’t know if you went to college, but great professors don’t want students writing papers that ‘cater to their mindset’. They’re looking for intellectual rigor.

  12. puck says:

    Yes, I went to Columbia and also UD. I’ve had the best and the worst teachers in both places. Do you think I don’t know what I’m talking about? I think YOU exposed yourself.

    She’s an adjunct without tenure and is probably already fired.

  13. Arthur says:

    The real political race is just heating up: who will get indicted first – Trump or Bernie

  14. Well, Puck you’ve exposed yourself as a believer in ‘Female Derangement Syndrome’ and someone who would punish speech you deem as offensive.

    Not sure how I’ve exposed myself, but after eight years here, it can’t be something I haven’t exposed previously.

  15. chris says:

    These universities usually don’t have the guts to fire these pathetic professors. Although Yale just fired an Asian female prof who was calling poor people “white trash” in some tweets. Good for Yale!

    Yeah, Jane Sanders is lawyering up big time… the Clintons must be loving that story.

  16. puck says:

    Let’s see if the “academic freedom” crowd rallies round Dettwyler or not. Not many employees can survive being caught wishing harm on their customers.

  17. alby says:

    “Like those who said they’d cancel their subscriptions to the NYTimes b/c the Times had the nerve to hire a conservative writer for the Op-Ed pages.”

    I strongly considered it. The NYTimes got a big circulation boost after Trump’s election. I don’t think those subscribers wanted their money spent on a right-wing apologist. I know I didn’t, and I’m still considering canceling my subscription.

    First, though, I’m going to ask them if they can’t at least move Brett Stephens to a weekday. I have a weekend-only subscription.

    “Warmbier was reportedly the nicest guy in the world and had good grades, yet … Prof. Dettwyler turned him into a poster child for privileged rapists and undeserved grade entitlement”

    You state this as if someone who was nice and got good grades could not act privileged. The only thing I know about this guy was that 1) he went to North Korea and 2) he tried to fuck with one of their propaganda posters. Those seem like the actions of someone unaware that he could be turned into a political pawn, which seems unwise — or, in the parlance of our times, privileged.

    “Let’s see if the “academic freedom” crowd rallies round Dettwyler or not.”

    I would think not, simply because this did not happen in the context of her job.

    “Not many employees can survive being caught wishing harm on their customers.’

    I strongly advise you to avoid eating in restaurants.

  18. anonymous redux says:

    I would let dettwyler speak just as I would let charles murray etc. speak on college campuses. but she’s a fool.

  19. RE Vanella says:

    She said something that I don’t know much about. Some people seem to disagree with her tone & point-of-view. Let’s move on.