March 7, 2020

Is Schumer working the refs for the Obamacare hearing?

Hearing is March 15, decision much later. Is Schumer reminding Roberts of his role in history?

If so, I approve.

March 4, 2020

Bernie lost his moment

Presidential candidates have had moments that have defined their campaigns ... Obama when he talked about reverend white and race, JFK when he spoke about Catholicism to Texas southern Baptists, GHW Bush with the vision thing (and checking his watch), Clinton on 60minutes (“I have caused pain in my marriage”). Bernie’s 60 minutes interview was a lost moment. Things began to turn there. It’s not the academic point he made about Castro; it was the academic manner in which he made his point about Castro. A little less detachment, a little more feeling. When Bernie talks from the heart, it’s effective. When he screams about oligarchs and brushes off totalitarianism, he steps away from most Americans. I don’t know just how he could have reeled us in, but that was his moment. He might not get another one.

February 27, 2020

Unity message from President Obama

I received this message and request for donation from President Obama:

Mary --
It is our collective responsibility as Democrats and as Americans to build a strong party that is well-prepared to win back the White House. I know from experience that’s something we can only do together, Mary, and here’s why:
You and I have the luxury of thinking ahead to the general election -- but our candidates do not. They’re preparing for the next primary contest and spending their time and energy making their cases to voters.
This is important work, but it also puts the eventual Democratic nominee at a disadvantage going into the general election. Our urgent priority is to make sure our nominee and candidates down the ballot have everything they need to take on Republicans and their massive fundraising machine in November.
I will wholeheartedly support whichever candidate wins our party’s nomination. And now I’m asking you, Mary: Will you join me in supporting the Democratic Unity Fund with a $500 contribution today? Our party’s nominee and Democrats nationwide are counting on your investment

The sentence, "I will wholeheartedly support whichever candidate wins our party's nomination" was highlighted.

Good reminder that we are all in this together. Thank you, our once and always President!

February 4, 2020

No more caucuses

Also, no more Winner Take All in the primaries. Let’s have one person, one vote, and apportion the delegates based on the votes. The concept of winning states instead of votes is diluting the power of the vote in the national elections ... let’s not do the same in the primaries

January 16, 2020

Questions for Parnas and Hyde

Where did Hyde’s money come from?
He’s hanging around Trump Tower drunk all day
His landscaping business went under
He donated thousands to trump/RNC - was he the go between? Was that Russian money?
NYC rents are 4500 to get a bunk bed. Where was he living in NYC? Trump Tower? Who paid his rent?
Where was he texting from when he said he had the ambassador under surveillance?
Did Ahearn (sp) contact secret service when parnas told him Hyde was stalking ambassador?
Did parnas tell Rudy Hyde was stalking ambassador?
Where does parnas’s money come from?

October 3, 2019

Botham Jean brother does not get us off the hook

https://karyncarlo.net/2019/10/03/dear-white-people-about-botham-jean-forgiveness-justice-and-cheap-grace/?fbclid=IwAR0AYUP59KQLPgdxD4KNlmgrrfU5PNQt2yMhsWuBVuFgv1Qr017O3nuCzAI

Justice, and Cheap Grace

Yesterday we watched the sentencing of a white woman, a former cop, convicted of murdering a black man named Botham Jean in his own apartment, unarmed, eating ice cream. She received the very minimal sentence of 10 years following which the brother of the murder victim gave her a big hug and said he forgave her. Many Christians applaud that hug saying it was an extraordinary act of grace on his part. Having never walked in his shoes I will not judge him. However as a white woman, also a former cop, and Christian theologian I will judge the way so many of us in the white community are so quick to applaud black people for forgiving white murderers. We did it following the Charleston nine and here we go again.

We are quick to point to the way in which Jesus forgave his own killers even as he suffered on the cross and we hold that up as the model for victims to adhere to today. But wait a minute. Is that fair? As we usually do with Bible stories we cast ourselves in the role of Jesus but really white people in the U.S. are the Romans in this story. We are the crucifiers not the crucified, the defenders of brutal empire who perhaps feel a little guilty at the scene of yet another lynching taking place in our name. As such we hear “father forgive them” as good news. Even though we have killed Jesus and brutalized his people we need not really fear hell. Even the victim himself does not hold us accountable. We are innocent. We did not know what we were doing. Good news right? Wrong.

Forgiveness without repentance is what theologian Dietrich Bonhoefer, quoting Adam Clayton Powell, called cheap grace. It lets us believe we are off the hook for our evil without demanding any real change on our part. In the case of the murder of Botham Jean cheap grace lets us white people maintain our sense of innocence and goodness without first facing up to the role we all play, knowingly or not, in maintaining systemic racism. In this case it allows us to avoid looking at the particularly brutal history of black men and white women. We don’t have to think about the thousands of lynchings, unjust crucifixions, that happened in our country due to black men being unjustly accused of raping white women. We don’t have to think about the way in which white women to this day are seen as fragile and innocent (particularly if they are or make themselves blond) while black men are perceived as threatening and dangerous even when they are in their own homes eating ice cream. In other words we do not need to see let alone repent of our sins. But is that the gospel? Is that grace?

I say no. Let’s look at the “father forgive them” scenario again. Jesus of Nazareth who lived as an oppressed Jew under Roman occupation is, like many before him, being crucified as an enemy of state. (Side note- All of you chomping at the bit to inform me that Jesus’s crucifixion/lynching was “not political” because he was “dying for our sins” need to hold off until you read some of my upcoming posts about the racist roots of Anselmian substitutionary atonement theory. All of you who likewise want to blame “the Jews” need a lesson in the history of Christian anti-Semitism. All of you who similarly want to say “we are all equally guilty as sinners regardless of race” need to read a history book. Have I covered all the loopholes? If not I will get back to them. Today we are talking history.) So Jesus has been persecuted by Romans all of his life for preaching good news for the impoverished and oppressed people of Rome now hangs on one of thousands of crosses (which Dr. James Cone rightly identified as lynching trees) designed to support Roman supremacy. Notice that in every one of the passion narratives he has very little to say to his oppressors. At this point he is done talking to them. Notice also that Jesus does not forgive them. He asks God to do so. Notice furthermore that he essentially writes them off as ignorant “for they know not what they do.”

Is that what we, as white citizens of a white supremacist nation want for ourselves? Will we be satisfied by a cheap grace that comes from being written off as ignorant? Will that restore the humanity we have lost to the false and demonic systems of racism and white supremacy? Will enforced (and it is enforced) forgiveness coming from black victims of racist violence be enough to save our souls?

I am going with no on this. I don’t know about you but I want more for myself. When I see a white woman, entrusted to “protect and serve” all people who nontheless harbored racist ideas as evidenced by her texts to co-workers, who illegally entered a black man’s castle, shot him in cold blood, told a nonsense story, played Goldilocks on the stand, and got away with the most minimum sentence, I want to do better than cling to the “but his brother forgave her bless his heart” defense.

I want to hold her and I both accountable, her for murder and me for whatever way I have, knowingly or not, contributed to the systemic racism that caused the murder. I reject cheap grace. I need justice to be done. I need the gift of true repentance for my own sins of racism. I need real soul salvation. I refuse to be written off as one of those who did not know what I was doing. I am better than that and so are you.

July 7, 2019

Title IX - Thank you, America

There is no way that American women would have come so far in soccer and all the international sports without Title IX.

The championships are great, but what Title IX has done for youth development ... character, competition, endurance, confidence, is immeasurable. America (Democrats) once again did the right thing in equalizing money spent on girls.

Now if only we would invest in public school academics with the same enthusiasm we might win the future.

June 27, 2019

Superficial observations

I react to voices and accents. I just do. Probably more so than looks. Can’t help it.

Julian Castro had a strong voice last night. Maybe the best for a big room, big crowd
Booker ... good sound
My guy, Inslee, has a gravely but strong voice. NW accent a bit Canadian-sounding to my ears, but definitely a voice that could be listened to for 8 years.
Elizabeth Warren ... decent voice, not powerful mixed southern and TV bland ... will hold up. Not her best attribute but so good at content, makes you want to listen

Klobuchar ... good voice/not too Minnesotan for the ears
Gabbard ... good voice little Canadian sounding

Does anyone else react positively or negatively to voices?

June 23, 2019

Paying online via PayPal versus credit card

Does anyone here have any opinions one way or the other whether PayPal is preferable to credit card payment when buying items on line?

Last few times I’ve made online payments, PayPal popped up as the first choice. One site (I forget what I was paying for)(flowers I think) was really pushing PayPal.

Is one method more secure than another? Any advantages to PayPal?

June 5, 2019

75 years ago my 20 year old dad was dropped in Normandy

He landed in the water and struggled to get the parachute off before he would drown or suffocate. He pulled it off, looked up, and witnessed his 21 year old lieutenant get shot in the head. My dad was next in command for his squad. Had to scamper around looking for his buddies.

His thoughts on hitting the water: “This is the stupidest thing.”

I learned that war was mostly stupid. And fought by children under the command of old men. And that far better men than my dad (according to him) were slaughtered. That the only thing that made war bearable was the Pax Americana, the Western democratic alliance, NATO, detente.

None of which could be taught to 45. As Mr. Khan told us before November 2016, 45 has sacrificed nothing; he cannot possibly understand loss.

RIP all those of 6/6/44. All 8 of Dad’s children know who you were and what you did.