DL Open Thread: Friday, June 5, 2020
How Mayor Mike And John Carney Tried To Stop Today’s Protest. A must-read. There are elements of this story that utterly fascinate me. Plus, there is a villain, who is neither Carney nor Purzycki (they are merely feckless). First, I get it. We just had a looting rampage in parts of Wilmington. The governor and the mayor don’t want to see a repeat. Although, talking about all the vacant commercial real estate, which the mayor did, hardly seems like it would be an effective argument for organizers:
Purzycki then said Wilmington has been “fragile for some time and it’s finally coming back.” He pointed to the city’s 2-million square feet of empty office space as an example of its fragility.
“That’s two million square feet where there are no jobs, there’s no economic engine, there’s nothing going on,” he said to the group of more than a dozen community activists.
And that’s about two million square feet where people of color aren’t general welcome, like right around Rodney Square.
At the meeting, the Mayor promised to bring body cameras to Wilmington for the police:
During the meeting, Purzycki pledged to bring police body cameras to Wilmington’s department – a policy long called for in the city. The calls grew louder last year following the shooting death of an armed man by Wilmington Police officers. Police released few details following the incident.
When a woman at the meeting questioned whether he supported body cameras in exchange for a cancellation of the protest, Purzycki said, “I’m not holding up anybody for this.”
“I’m here to give you that commitment, no strings attached,” he said of body cameras.
Which, of course, raises the question: Where the fuck has he been during his over three years in office? He only makes this ‘no strings attached’ offer at a meeting where he’s trying to shut down a protest? Among other issues, people are protesting what the police do and what they get away with. Purzycki has succeeded in making sure that every ‘undesirable’ is rousted from Rodney Square b/c it’s not a ‘good look’. Other than that, he’s been AWOL.
As has been Carney. Check out this quote from his press secretary:
At the meeting, Carney told the attendees he had “engaged” with Owens to get the organizers together. Instead of a protest, Carney wants to work with them to “make changes in policy to address issues around persistent racial inequalities,” Starkey said.
Raising the obvious question, where has he been for three years?
Believe it or not, neither are the True Villain in this piece. That honor goes to the single most prominent symbol of institutionalized police oppression in Delaware: Speaker of the House Pete Schwartzkopf.
Separately on Wednesday, Delaware House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf said activists who decide to peacefully protest when there’s “a 50-50 chance it’s going to turn violent,” should be “held accountable if something bad happens.”
Schwartzkopf, a retired police officer and the leading Democrat in the House, did not state what that accountability would look like. (He also didn’t say what should happen if one of his state cop buddies decides to bust some heads, accountability only extending so far.) His district will host a protest on Friday at 4 pm. in Rehoboth Beach.
At the meeting with the mayor and governor, New Castle County Councilman Jea Street said Delaware’s legislature is “basically run by former police officers and they got a lock on it.”
First of all, why is Pistol Pete sticking his snub nose in this at all? It’s not his district, not even close. Was he speaking as the Speaker of the House, or was he speaking as an ex-cop? A retired Delaware State Police Captain. Does the House Democratic Caucus think Pete speaks for them? Secondly, Jea Street is correct. The cops run the place. It’s why we have a Police Bill Of Rights which enables officers to kill, maim, and beat with impunity. Which is why Carney’s pledge to work to end injustice rings hollow. Until Carney is willing to stand up to the police lobby, both elected and unelected, there will be no justice.
Which is why there will be a protest.
Trump Turns DC (And White House) Into Armed Fortress Over Protest From Mayor. Did I mention the White House?:
The White House is now so heavily fortified that it resembles the monarchical palaces or authoritarian compounds of regimes in faraway lands — strikingly incongruous with the historic role of the executive mansion at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, which since its cornerstone was laid in 1792 has been known as the People’s House and celebrated as an accessible symbol of American democracy.
Police Are Out Of Control In NYC. Just one case study. Police have always been a law unto themselves in New York. Here’s a brief history on how the police basically killed NYC’s vibrant jazz scene through enforcing of so-called cabaret card law.
Trump And Murkowski Divorce. One R Senator is officially off the Trump train. Who’s next? I think this is important.
Texas Rethugs–Racists All. Plus, they’re stoopid. If you’re gonna be a racist, don’t advertise it on social media.
Meet Trump’s Latest USAID Hire. Rails against ‘Our Homo-Empire’.
Latest Jobs Numbers Are–Good? So far, nobody can figure out how this happened. But Trump is already claiming credit. Oh, and this probably kills any more relief for the American people.
Meet Minneapolis’ Police Union Chief. He’s pretty much like every other police union chief. As Alby has argued time and again, police unions are a significant part of the problem.
Testing At Delaware Nursing Homes Still Royally Screwed Up. This time, it’s the state that can’t get its act together.
What do you want to talk about?
Great story on many fronts “ALL GOOD” but you must call “Agent Orange” what he truly is = Bunker Boy. For the not to bright, TRUMP. Love the way you seperate fact from fiction, who really pulls the strings. Keep it coming. Alby used to talk all the time on his show about the “over entitled police” and he was so right. The power structure trembelled when he would call a spade a spade. No one talked more about elected police in the legislature manipulating power and not for the good of our state. Alby used to kick their ass up and down the state. When he spoke everyone got Feringy ears listening. I think Alby should continue on and update WTF is going on with Pistol Pete and his crew down @ Leg-Hall. The Geni is out of the bottle nationally, what about Delaware? Are we not the first state? Don’t we deserve the truth about the flow of power and how it effects us? Alby turn it on please?
Think about that 2 million square feet of office space, Mayor Mike says. Hey, folks, once we fill these offices, there will be plenty of jobs for your people, sweeping the floors, washing the windows and taking out the trash. We might even find a way to put a few ex-cons on the payroll.
YEP. fuck this prick.
I have no doubt that once these electeds knew they were audio recorded and the press was doing a story that mayor mike had someone write up his statement the other day to get out in front of the bad press.
AGREE on how fucked up all three electeds were on the top story and Pete as worse of the three.
That may explain this –
Organizers pull out of June 5 protest; independent rally still planned
https://www.capegazette.com/article/june-5-protest-rehoboth-canceled/203024
It is not stated that there was pressure to withdraw from government but now I must assume so. Sad.
ALSO damned pissed that Carney is going around intimating that Antifa is active in these DE protests with his coy statements and refusal to give meaningful details. His crappy statements have led the wingnuts to run on their assumptions that he meant that these outsiders are coming from Antifa.
We deserve some fucking clarifying statements from the governor. If anyone has seen anything on this, please let me know.
My comments from last night on the News Journal article:
Let’s see if I’ve got this right. Governor Carney wants to work with the community to “make changes in policy to address issues around persistent racial inequalities. When will that acknowledgement that changes are needed be translated into actually making changes.
And Mayor Purzycki, my advice to you would be that you’ll always be likely to be the symbol of everything that people are angry about as long as you appear to care more about the city’s 2-million square feet of empty office space than the life of an innocent black man or the plight of the black community.
And Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf you said activists who decide to peacefully protest should be held accountable if something bad happens. So let me ask you Mr. Speaker, when will you and all of us political leaders be held accountable for our inaction because SOMETHING BAD HAS HAPPENED AND CONTINUES TO HAPPEN EVERY DAY to these people and their communities.
Representative John Kowalko
TL;DR
Hirsutist.
Don’t make me file copyright infringement charges.
Rep. Kowalko
NY cops are the worst, especially the Central Park Rangers. Just ask Santa
This mayor is pay for play, every day and all the way. He took over Wilmiongton for investers and no one says anything about “GENTRIFACATION” not a _ucking word. He’s got a five man politcal shop on the city payroll. Corporate Dems can not be trusted that is why our vote must be adjusted.
“Where the fuck has he been during his over three years in office?”
Where the fuck have all the Democrats been? It’s indisputable who has been in charge of Delaware and the cities and states where this shit has happened and still happens during this period of systemic and institutional racism by people who supposedly answer to Democrat bosses.
Who is running these institutions? Who is and has been running these cities where all this police brutality is taking place? Always promises and rhetoric, year after year at election time , but nothing ever improves….How can this be explained?
You don’t seem to get it. All they have to do to win is not be Republicans, a brand that has made itself so toxic that Democratic ineptitude is the preferable option.
As for “how can this be,” in most jurisdictions, including Wilmington, New Castle County and the state of Delaware, police forces are a power unto themselves, and no mayor of any flavor has ever been able to put a stop to it. It is rare for any of them to them. When has an anti-union GOPer ever criticized the most powerful union anywhere, let alone on the public payroll. Nah gah hapn.
So be careful brandishing that Bludgeon of Blame, sport, lest we lay the shitful state of the country as a whole at the feet of the people who have run it into the ground, the better to loot the wreckage.
The principal difference between Democrats and Republicans is, was and shall remain the scale of the graft. Democrats are pikers.
RSE
Please do us all a favor and shove your feigned outrage up your collective GOP butt. This is not a Democrat or Republican failure. It is a failure of conscience in all white people. It’s the sense of privilege you and I and all others have that we are different ergo better and just send a sympathy card that’s enough. Spare me your conjured up expression of outrage unless or until you decide to stroke your keyboard as easily as you stroke yourself and indict the inhumanity of that monster Trump and his apologist posse of McConnell, Graham and all of those deranged dictator supporting morons at Fox news. Spare me your outrage at Democrats while you are silent about that subhuman species in the Whitehouse who embraces the tactics of the Pinochets, the Fulgencio Batistas’, Rafael Trujillos’, Somozas’ by ordering armored vehicles and Army troops into our cities to intimidate and kill American citizens exercising their constitutionally guaranteed rights. What have YOU done for the past three and a half years to challenge that despicable wannabe dictator and his legion of gutless Republican corporatists who foment hate, racism and embrace a total lack of respect for humanity?
likey^^^^^^ WTF
Better Something Through Chemistry, Though Living Is Probably the Wrong Word:
Scientists taking soil samples in New Jersey have detected a new class of chemicals they have dubbed ClPFPECAs (chloro-perfluoro-polyether-carboxylate compounds). They suspect the compounds, found at two plants that used to produce PFAs, including Chemours’ Chambers Works, are being substituted for those chemicals; their specific structure is propriety information. Nobody knows whether the compounds, which do not break down in the environment, are harmful to humans.
https://www.inquirer.com/science/climate/new-jersey-pfas-chemicals-solvay-plant-dep-20200604.html