Category: government

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

On By Rick McIn books, ethics, government, human rights, moviesLeave a comment

I post on Juneteenth, the day celebrating the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the United States.

Small Great Things (2016) was recommended for those who want to learn more about racism.

The American author, Jodi Picoult, is a white woman.

I’m a super privileged white man.

And I did learn from this book.  Especially many of the subtle instances where Black Americans are stereotyped by oblivious whites.  It made me wonder how many times I’ve done the same things.  I am often oblivious of the feelings of those around me.

The story concentrates on an African-American labor/delivery (L&D) nurse, Ruth Jefferson, in charge of newborns at a Connecticut hospital.

Ruth is ordered not to touch or go near the baby of a white supremacist couple. After the baby dies in her care, Ruth is charged with murder, and taken to court.

Small Great Things is being adapted into a film starring Viola Davis and Julia Roberts.

P.S.

I happened to have recently read a big chunk of The Innocents Abroad (1869) by Mark Twain, one of the best-selling travel books of all time.  Of course Twain was a humorist, skilled at making me laugh.

He’s an American imperialist abroad, mocking everyone and everything he finds abroad.  It was off-putting.  Later in life he became an ardent anti-imperialist.

Twain was an adamant supporter of the abolition of slavery and the emancipation of slaves, even going so far as to say, “Lincoln‘s Proclamation … not only set the black slaves free, but set the white man free also”.  Yet in his travel book you have to call him a racist.

That I found also off-putting.

The only instance of praise for anyone in the first part of the book, however, was for an African American tour guide working in Europe.  The only good guide they had in months.

make sure you have ID when stopped by police

On By Rick McIn ethics, government, human rightsLeave a comment

Standard procedure for bad cops is to say you “fit the description“ of some imaginary criminal as an excuse to question / hassle.

While I feel badly for the good police officers wrongly accused, at this one moment in time it’s OK with me.

If they can’t handle public scrutiny, get a new job.

#BlackLivesMatter

 

Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable

On By Rick McIn education, ethics, government, happiness, things getting betterLeave a comment

20-year old Taylor Wilson wrote the best article I’ve read so far on the 2020 Black Lives Matters protests.

Racism is housing discrimination, food inequity, mass incarceration, underfunded schools, unequal access to sport, over-policing, voter disenfranchisement, the war on drugs, hiring discrimination, unequal access to healthcare, and a flawed criminal justice system that far too often lets officers go unchecked for abusing their power. 

I am tired of seeing Black people beaten and murdered by police. I am deeply disturbed by the lack of accountability for police officers who so blatantly cause harm, shielded by a blue wall of silence that seems impenetrable by the justice system. …

Dr. King – “I Have a Dream”

Almost 56 years after the Civil Rights Act was signed, and Black people are STILL fighting for equal protection under the law and the genuine right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. …

Enough is enough. “Thoughts and prayers” is no longer a sufficient response …

Denounce racism when it’s not convenient for you. In rooms where there are no Black people. … In every space, especially those in which you hold a position of power or influence, leverage your privilege. Do not stay silent. Be explicitly anti-racist and hold others accountable for their words and actions. …

If reading this made you uncomfortable, good. 

Get comfortable being uncomfortable because I promise you, this is just the beginning.

Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable

FOX News: “Not Racist, But #1 With Racists”

On By Rick McIn ethics, government, human rightsLeave a comment

My bible the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

I’m not a racist.  But am I an anti-racist?

I believe I am.  I hope I am. 

Here’s the checklist:

If you watch FOX National News, you are a racist. You enable racists like racist President Trump.

2020 USA – What’s Going On?

On By Rick McIn ethics, government, musicLeave a comment

I was offline cycling for 6 days of the protests and riots, folks angered about American police brutality against African Americans.

Happy to miss so much of that pain and anger. Actually.

It’s not easy to see any way the USA will be less divided anytime soon. If 40% of Americans still support Trump after his gross incompetence, they’ll go to the grave believing he was some kind of genius.

Marvin Gaye:

Mother, mother
There’s too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother
There’s far too many of you dying
You know we’ve got to find a way
To bring some lovin’ here today, yeah

Father, father
We don’t need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate …

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Thanks Jane.

Contagion (2011 film)

On By Rick McIn ethics, food, government, movies, travelLeave a comment

Contagion is a 2011 American thriller film directed by Steven Soderbergh.

Its ensemble cast includes Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Winslet, Bryan Cranston, …

Jude Law is the conspiracy theorist flogging a fake cure.

… The film has received renewed popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are many parallels between the fictitious MEV-1 and COVID-19. 

But MEV-1 is much more severe. More like the 1918 Flu.

In a flashback, a bulldozer razes palm trees while clearing a rainforest in China that disturbs the natural habitat of some bats. One bat finds shelter in a pig farm and drops an infected piece of banana, which is eaten by a pig. The pig is slaughtered and prepared by a chef in a Macau casino, who transmits the virus to Beth (Paltrow) in a handshake.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

U.S. Federal minimum wage SHOULD be $20

On By Rick McIn economics, ethics, governmentLeave a comment

One huge and unsustainable dynamic of the U.S. economic system is the growing gap between rich and poor.

That’s going to reverse direction. One way or another.

BEST would be the Democrats taking power. And effecting a small part of the changes they’ve claimed to want.

Worst would be another 4 years of Trump stupid, incompetent and wasteful corruption.

Read No Mercy / No Malice – What We Leave Behind

I support free trade

On By Rick McIn economics, governmentLeave a comment

Free trade is one way to ensure efficient use of resources.

In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold liberal economic positions while economically left-wing and nationalist political parties generally support protectionism, the opposite of free trade.

So when you see Trump impose tariffs, know that he’s a protectionist. And nationalist. Not a fiscal conservative.

Since at least 2005 there’s been increasing distrust in ‘globalisation’. We ended up with idiots like Trump making decisions, his unsuccessful trade war with China, for example. Both sides lose in trade wars.

Expect everything to get more expensive and/or unavailable as free trade continues to decline.

Singapore is the #1 ranked nation as of 2016 in the Global Enabling Trade Report published by the World Economic Forum.

It is made up of four sub-indexes:

  1. Market access
  2. Border administration
  3. Transport and communications infrastructure
  4. Business environment

USA is #22. Canada #24.

Trade with Singapore

There is a broad consensus among economists that protectionism has a negative effect on economic growth and economic welfare while free trade and the reduction of trade barriers has a positive effect on economic growth and economic stability.

One bit of good news – USMCA Free Trade Agreement will come into effect soon. That’s NAFTA 2.0 with minor tinkering of auto exports, steel and aluminum tariffs, dairy, egg, and poultry markets.

The agreement also provides updated intellectual property protections.