January 6 and 7, 2017


News and Views


THIS ONE IS TOO CLOSE TO HOME. AS LONG AS OUR CULTURE AS A WHOLE AND LAW ENFORCEMENT IN PARTICULAR DEAL WITH MENTAL ILLNESS AS IMAGINARY RATHER THAN TERRIBLY REAL AND THE CAUSE OF THESE “CRIMES” WE WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE THEM. IT ALSO SHOULD BE MENTIONED – AGAIN – THAT HE WAS IN POSSESSION OF A HAND GUN WHEN HE HAD A HISTORY OF MENTAL ILLNESS IN ALASKA. TO ME, HANGING AROUND ON STREET CORNERS AND MUGGING OR RAPING PEOPLE IS “CRIME.” INSANITY IS AN ILLNESS.

THE FBI IN ALASKA DID CALL LOCAL POLICE WHO, TO THEIR CREDIT, “REFERRED HIM” FOR PSYCHIATRIC “EVALUATION,” BUT I FOUND NO MENTION IN THIS ARTICLE OF HIS BEING KEPT FOR INVOLUNTARY COMMITMENT TO A HOSPITAL, THOUGH HE WAS EXHIBITING A SERIOUS DEPARTURE FROM RATIONALITY SINCE RETURNING FROM THE MILITARY, TRIED TO STRANGLE HIS GIRLFRIEND, WAS FOUND IN POSSESSION OF CHILD PORNOGRAPHY, AND DURING HIS DEPLOYMENT WAS AWOL NUMEROUS TIMES AND SHOWED “UNSATISFACTORY PERFORMANCE.” ILLNESS IS VERY LIKELY TO SHOW UP IN THESE WAYS.

THE SECOND ARTICLE STATES THAT “HE HAD CHECKED INTO A HOSPITAL,” BUT APPARENTLY, HE WASN’T KEPT LONG ENOUGH TO DO SOME GOOD. WHEN HE GOT HOME HIS FAMILY SAID HE “LOST HIS MIND” BUT STILL DIDN’T GET HIM INTO AN EFFECTIVE TREATMENT PROGRAM, AND THE MILITARY DIDN’T DIAGNOSE PTSD IN THE SITUATION. SOCIETY FAILED HIM. MENTAL ILLNESS WHICH INCLUDES BIZARRE DELUSIONS AND HALLUCIATIONS IS A SERIOUS CONDITION. IT ISN’T “SIN,” BUT THE RESULTS CAN TRULY BE “EVIL.”

BY FAR THE MOST OF THESE SHOOTINGS THAT I HAVE READ ABOUT INCLUDE SOME HISTORY OF MENTAL PROBLEMS, AND OFTEN A FAILURE TO FOLLOW THROUGH ON RECOMMENDED TREATMENT PLANS ON THE PART OF THE PATIENT OR THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR HIS TREATMENT. THAT’S ALSO HOW SO MANY OF THESE PEOPLE END UP LIVING ON THE STREETS, ALSO. THEY SIMPLY CANNOT HANDLE DAILY LIFE ON THEIR OWN.

THE APPLICATION OF SOME OF OUR CIVIL RIGHTS TO A CASE OF SEVERE ILLNESS IN WHICH THE PATIENT CANNOT BE DEPENDED UPON TO TAKE HIS MEDS AND SEE HIS PSYCHIATRIST REGULARLY IS REALLY FOOLISH. WE NEED TO WISE UP ON THIS AND CHANGE THE LAW/CONSTITUTION AS NECESSARY TO STOP SUCH A PERSON BEFORE HE ACTS OUT IN A DEVASTATING WAY. MOST OF THOSE YOUNG GUYS WHO TAKE OFF TO JOIN ISIS ARE ALSO DERANGED. PEOPLE DON’T ALWAYS HAVE AN OBVIOUS APPEARANCE OF BEING INSANE WHEN THEY ACTUALLY ARE.

SEE THE NEWS ARTICLES BELOW, ESPECIALLY THAT FROM JANUARY 7 IN WHICH THE BROTHER DISCUSSES THE SITUATION. HE STATES MY POINT EXACTLY.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/shots-fired-fort-lauderdale-airport/

Fort Lauderdale airport shooting leaves multiple people dead
CBS/AP
January 6, 2017, 1:19 PM

VIEW GALLERY -- Police assist people seeking cover outside of Terminal 2 at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport after a shooting took place in the baggage claim area on Jan. 6, 2017, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. JOE RAEDLE/GETTY IMAGES
Play VIDEO -- Fort Lauderdale airport shooting witness says gunman was not trying to leave
Play VIDEO -- Aerial view of Ft. Lauderdale airport after deadly shooting
Photograph -- esteban-santiago-fort-lauderdale-shooting-2-2017-1-6.jpg, Esteban Santiago LAW ENFORCEMENT SOURCES


FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- A gunman opened fire in the baggage claim area at the Fort Lauderdale airport Friday, killing five people and wounding eight before being taken into custody in an attack that sent panicked passengers running out of the terminal and onto the tarmac, authorities said.

The gunman was identified as Esteban Santiago-Ruiz, 26, who had active-duty military identification on him and was born in New Jersey, law enforcement sources told CBS News.

Federal law enforcement officials told CBS News’ Jeff Pegues that Santiago-Ruiz had gotten in an argument on one leg of his flight from Alaska to Florida, and the second leg of the trip was on a Delta flight.

The motive remains under investigation, and law enforcement officials said there is immediate link to terrorism. They currently investigated the argument, sources said.

In Nov. 2016, Santiago-Ruiz walked into an FBI office in Anchorage and claimed he was being forced to fight for ISIS, law enforcement sources told CBS News. He was sent to a psychiatric hospital after police were called, sources said.

He was also investigated as part of a child porn investigation in either 2011 or 2012, law enforcement sources told CBS News. Three weapons and a computer were seized, but no charges were filed, sources said.

Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida said it was unclear whether the military ID was the gunman’s.

“We don’t know a motive at this point,” Nelson said. “This could well be someone who is mentally deranged, or in fact it could be someone who had a much more sinister motive that we have to worry about every day, and that is terrorism. We can’t conclude that.”

Florida Gov. Rick Scott gave a press conference at 5:15 p.m. ET and said he had reached out to President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence.

“This is a senseless act of evil,” Scott said.

President Obama was briefed by his homeland security adviser, the White House said.

A witness, Mark Lea, told CBSN he shooter appeared to be in his mid-twenties, and described it as “random shooting.” “Just shooting people that were ducked behind, underneath the chairs ... people were yelling, screaming, frantically trying to get out of any door they could, or hide under chairs, luggage to do anything they could to get out of the line of fire.”

Lea said the shooter was “calm as can be ... he just walked in and started shooting. He wasn’t frantic, he wasn’t psychotic.” He said he was 50 feet away from the gunman, who was carrying a 9-mm weapon. Lea estimated that the suspected shot about 24 rounds,

Lea said that after that after firing the shots, the gunman walked out of “door 2” and “lay spread-eagle on the floor and waited for law enforcement to arrive.

He told CBS Minnesota that “people started yelling and screaming running for any exit they could.”

“It sounded at first like firecrackers, and then we figured out what actually was going on. There was actually a shooter,” Lea told CBS Minnesota.

Then the attacker threw down his weapon and lay spread-eagle on the ground until he was taken into custody, Lea said.

Nearly an hour after the sheriff’s office said a suspect was in custody, people started running across the tarmac, CBS Miami station WFOR-TV reports. Sheriff Scott Israel told reporters there was no confirmation of any additional shooting.

“At this point it looks like he acted alone,” Israel said.

Chip LaMarca, a Broward County commissioner, was briefed on the airport shooting by the sheriff’s office. He told The Associated Press that the shooter had arrived in Fort Lauderdale aboard a Canadian flight with a gun in a checked bag.

“After he claimed his bag, he went into the bathroom and loaded the gun and started shooting. We don’t know why,” LaMarca said.

It is legal for airline passengers to carry guns and ammunition as long as the firearms are put in a checked bag - not in a carry-on - and are unloaded and locked in a hard-sided container. Guns must be declared to the airline at check-in.

Air Canada said that it had no record of the suspect as a passenger or of checked guns on its flights to Fort Lauderdale. Delta did not comment if the suspect took one of their flights, but issued a statement to CBS News that the airline is cooperating with the investigation.

“Specially trained Delta Care Team members have been activated and are traveling to Fort Lauderdale to assist families and friends of customers and employees who may have been impacted by the shooting at the Fort Lauderdale International Airport,” Delta wrote in a statement.

A man with a bleeding wound sits on a curb during a shooting at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Jan. 6, 2017. COURTESY MAXWILL SOLUTIONS

The attack took place at Terminal 2, which serves Delta Air Lines and Air Canada.

Israel said five people were killed and eight were wounded. Their condition was not disclosed. He said the gunman was arrested unharmed, with no law enforcement officers firing any shots, and was being questioned by the FBI.

The sheriff urged people to not call 911 for information about the shooting. Facebook enabled its safety check feature so users could report their status on the social media platform.

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Broward Sheriff ✔ @browardsheriff
Please don't tie up 911. Call-takers have no info. If you must call, dial our non-emergency number: 954-764-4357.
2:29 PM - 6 Jan 2017
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The airport suspended operations as law enforcement authorities rushed to the scene and emergency medical workers treated at least one bleeding victim on the tarmac.

People spilled onto the tarmac, some carrying luggage, and some ran from both Terminals 1 and 2, hiding behind cars or anything else they could find to shield themselves.

Video posted on Instagram appeared to show several people wounded in the baggage claim area of the terminal. One person appeared to be lying in a pool of blood with a head wound.

Police assist people seeking cover outside of Terminal 2 at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport after a shooting took place in the baggage claim area on Jan. 6, 2017, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Paramedics could also be seen treating a bleeding victim outside the airport. Hundreds of people stood on the tarmac as an ambulance drove by.

Flights already in the air and headed for the airport were delayed or diverted, and those that had yet to take off for Fort Lauderdale were held on the ground.

John Schilcher told Fox News said he came up to the baggage claim and heard the first gunshot as he picked up his bag off a carousel.

“The person next to me fell to the ground and then I started hearing other pops. And as this happened, other people started falling and you could hear it and smell it, and people on either side of me were going down and I just dropped to the ground,” said Schilcher, who was there with his wife and mother-in-law.

“The firing just went on and on,” he said.

He said the gunman emptied his weapon and reloaded, and “it was eerily quiet.”

“I was down on the floor, when we finally looked up there was a policeman standing over me,” Schilcher said. “That’s when I assumed it was safe.”

Former White House spokesman Ari Fleischer tweeted that he was at the airport when shots were fired and “everyone is running.”

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Ari Fleischer ✔ @AriFleischer
I'm at the Ft. Lauderdale Airport. Shots have been fired. Everyone is running.
12:57 PM - 6 Jan 2017 · Dania Beach, FL
7,114 7,114 Retweets 4,137 4,137 likes



https://www.yahoo.com/news/family-shooting-suspect-lost-mind-tour-iraq-000351214.html

Family: Shooting suspect 'lost his mind' after tour in Iraq
Associated Press
JASON DEAREN
January 6, 2017

The man police say opened fire with a gun from his checked baggage at a Florida airport had a history of mental health issues — some of which followed his military service in Iraq — and was receiving psychological treatment at his home in Alaska, his relatives said Friday after the deadly shooting.

"Only thing I could tell you was when he came out of Iraq, he wasn't feeling too good," his uncle, Hernan Rivera, told The Record newspaper (http://bit.ly/2j04ghF ).

Esteban Santiago, 26, deployed in 2010 as part of the Puerto Rico National Guard, spending a year with an engineering battalion, according to Guard spokesman Maj. Paul Dahlen.

In recent years, Santiago had been living in Anchorage, Alaska, his brother, Bryan Santiago, told The Associated Press from Puerto Rico. Bryan Santiago said his brother's girlfriend had recently called the family to alert them to his treatment.

In November, Esteban told FBI agents in Alaska that the government was controlling his mind and was forcing him to watch Islamic State group videos, a law enforcement official said. The official was not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation by name and spoke Friday on condition of anonymity.

The FBI agents notified the police after the interview with Esteban Santiago, who took him in for a mental health evaluation.

Bryan Santiago said his brother never spoke to him directly about his medical issues.

"We have not talked for the past three weeks," Bryan Santiago said. "That's a bit unusual ... I'm in shock. He was a serious person ... He was a normal person."

Esteban Santiago was born in New Jersey but moved to Puerto Rico when he was 2, his brother said. He grew up in the southern coastal town of Penuelas before joining the Guard in 2007.

Since returning from Iraq, Santiago served in the Army Reserves and the Alaska National Guard in Fairbanks. He was serving as a combat engineer in the Guard before his discharge for "unsatisfactory performance," said Lt. Col. Candis Olmstead, a spokeswoman. His military rank upon discharge was E3, private 1st class, and he worked one weekend a month with an additional 15 days of training yearly, Olmstead said.

She would not elaborate on his discharge, but the Pentagon said he'd gone AWOL several times and was demoted and discharged.

Still, he'd had some successes during his military career, being awarded a number of medals and commendations including the Iraq Campaign Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.

His uncle and aunt in New Jersey were trying to make sense of what they were hearing about Santiago after his arrest at the Fort Lauderdale airport. FBI agents arrived at their house to question them, and reporters swarmed around.

Maria Ruiz told The Record that her nephew had recently become a father and was struggling.

"It was like he lost his mind," she said in Spanish of his return from Iraq. "He said he saw things."

In Anchorage, police officers told reporters that they were interviewing people at an address for Santiago but wouldn't give details and were keeping journalists away from the home. FBI agents were also seen at the scene by neighbors.

Santiago was flying from Anchorage on a Delta flight and had checked only one piece of luggage — the one containing the gun.

He was involved in a number of minor court cases in Alaska, including fines for not having proof of insurance and a criminal mischief case that led to a deferred sentence. His attorney, Max Holmquist, declined to discuss his client with an AP reporter.


Danica Coto in San Juan, Puerto Rico; Becky Bohrer in Juneau, Alaska; and Lolita C. Baldor and Eric Tucker in Washington contributed to this report.


EARLIER BRUSHES WITH THE LAW

http://heavy.com/news/2017/01/esteban-santiago-fort-lauderdale-airport-shooter-shooting-active-gunman-suspect-photo-citizen-isis-florida-facebook-new-jersey-victims-military/

Esteban Santiago: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
Published 3:09 pm EST, January 6, 2017 Updated 4:55 am EST, January 7, 2017
By Jessica McBride


. . . .

Santiago, 26, is a former U.S. Army Reservist, born in New Jersey, according to NBC News. The account that Santiago may have heard voices telling him to fight for ISIS – a story he allegedly gave to the FBI at the time – came from CNN. George L. Piro, the special agent in charge of the FBI in Miami, said at the evening news conference on January 6 that the investigation spans multiple states, and he confirmed that Santiago had sought out the FBI in Alaska a few months back.

“We have not ruled out terrorism,” Piro said. “Any connections, communication – anything you can imagine, I assure you, we are pursuing every possible lead.”

There were reports of other red flags in the alleged gunman’s behavior.

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Jennifer Griffin ✔ @JenGriffinFNC
Fed law enforcement source tells me Santiago #floridaairportshooting suspect investigated multiple times by FBI and Army CID. @foxnews
7:37 PM - 6 Jan 2017 · Washington, DC
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The Broward County Sheriff said that the accused gunman was not wounded in the attack, surrendered to a deputy, and is now being grilled by federal law enforcement.

Pete Williams of NBC reported that the shooter, whose roots are in Puerto Rico, served in Iraq and returned mentally unstable. The accused shooter had prior contact with the criminal justice system in Alaska after that; court documents obtained by Heavy show he was accused of trying to strangle his girlfriend but was given a deferred prosecution agreement (you can see the documents in the last section of this story).

Despite a subsequent panic, there is no second active shooter, and the gunman is alleged to have acted alone, the Broward County Sheriff said.

. . .

1. Santiago ‘Walked Into an FBI Office in Anchorage & Claimed He Was Being Forced to Fight For ISIS,’ Sources Told CBS
esteban santiago
Esteban Santiago. (Esteban Santiago/Twitter)

Esteban Santiago’s family and law enforcement sources say he has a history of mental health issues, NBC News reports.

CNN reported that Santiago had allegedly been hearing voices telling him to join ISIS and that he had checked into a hospital. In addition to the possible terrorism motive, according to CNN, authorities are also investigating whether there was an altercation on the flight.

According to CBS News, authorities say Santiago allegedly “had gotten in an argument on one leg of his flight from Alaska to Florida, and the second leg of the trip was on a Delta flight.” A full database check revealed no connections between Santiago and terror groups, CBS reported.

. . . .

One of CNN’s experts suggested on television that some have interpreted the hand signal in the above photo as potentially being an “ISIS finger sign,” although that is far from proven. A 2014 report said ISIS fighters were “now using a single, raised index finger as the symbol of their cause” that refers to the tawhid, “the belief in the oneness of God and a key component of the Muslim religion.” Again, this is far from clear in Santiago’s case, and his finger signal could mean something else entirely.

Piro confirmed the FBI contact. He said in the news conference that Santiago came in voluntarily and spoke with FBI agents. “He (Santiago) clearly stated he did not intend to harm anybody. However, his erratic behavior concerned FBI agents who were interviewing him… he was taken into custody by the local police and taken to a medical facility for a mental health evaluation,” Piro said. “We looked at his contacts and did our inter agency checks and at that point” the case was closed.

ABC News reported that Santiago “worked for a security company called Signal 88 in Anchorage…In November, he showed up to the FBI’s field office in Anchorage, where he espoused conspiracy theories, including one claim the U.S. government was trying to force him to watch ISIS videos.” ABC reported that Santiago allegedly “appeared incoherent at times,” so he was referred to local law enforcement to have his mental health evaluated. (Anchorage police referred Heavy to the FBI for any questions.)

View image on Twitter
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NBC New York ✔ @NBCNewYork
BREAKING: Family confirms this is Esteban Santiago, the alleged Fort Lauderdale Airport shooter http://4.nbcny.com/CYXEOzL
4:42 PM - 6 Jan 2017
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Family members painted a more complex picture.

“He is a regular person, spiritual, a good person,” his brother, Bryan Santiago, told NBC News, adding that he hadn’t heard from his brother in several weeks.

The shooter has U.S. citizenship and was born in the United States, according to the Broward County sheriff. His family roots are in Puerto Rico.

NBC News reported that Santiago has relatives in Union City, New Jersey. He had lived in Alaska and Naples, Florida, according to public records.

According to the Mirror, the shooter “was apprehended by authorities when he stopped shooting to reload, witnesses said.”

. . . .

THE RAX @dfwrax
How could shooter fly @AirCanada from Anchorage to Minneapolis to Fort Lauderdale? AC does not fly US to US it has to be Cdn/US #FLL

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Air Canada ✔ @AirCanada
@dfwrax We can confirm that we have no record of such a passenger by that name, or checked guns, on any of our flights to Fort Lauderdale.
4:25 PM - 6 Jan 2017
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According to NBC News, he flew on Delta Flight no. 1088 from Anchorage to Minneapolis and then on Delta flight no. 2182 from Minneapolis to Fort Lauderdale.

. . . .

2. He Served in Iraq & Was Discharged From the Army Reserves for Unsatisfactory Performance

“He was pro-America,” Bryan Santiago told NBC News.

Bryan Santiago said his brother developed mental health problems after his time in Iraq, but was not diagnosed with PTSD.

esteban santiago
Esteban Santiago. (Badoo/Esteban Santiago)

He said his brother might have had a “flashback” from his military experience.

His aunt also said he had issues after serving overseas:

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princess lia @MariaLiaCalvo
Santiago's aunt speaking to Telemundo: Esteban went to Iraq. When he came back he wasn't doing well. Then 6 months later, his dad died.
4:43 PM - 6 Jan 2017
11 11 Retweets 3 3 likes
CNN reported that Santiago’s aunt said he was the youngest of five siblings and was acting strangely when he returned from Iraq. The aunt said she was sorry, sad, and “asked God to be merciful,” reported CNN.

Santiago was discharged as a combat engineer and his rank was private first class, NBC reports. He did own a handgun, his brother said. CNN reported that Santiago allegedly simply stopped showing up at the Guard. The Palm Beach Post reported that the National Guard gave these details of Santiago’s service:

View image on Twitter
View image on Twitter
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Kristina Webb ✔ @KristinaWebb
Info from Alaska National Guard on Esteban Santiago, @FLLFlyer shooter.
5:33 PM - 6 Jan 2017
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3. Police Say He Traveled With Only His Gun Case & Opened Fire at Random in the Baggage Area

. . . .

The gunman then tossed down the gun and “lay spread-eagle on the ground,” reported MSNBC.

There were reports he had no other luggage but the weapon.

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Salvador Hernandez ✔ @SalHernandez
Anchorage Airport police chief confirms Fort Lauderdale shooting suspect boarded Delta flight w no other bags other than gun in a hard case
8:24 PM - 6 Jan 2017
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Eyewitness Steve Frappier told CNN’s Anderson Cooper that he “saw the shooter.” Most of the people and the victims were at the front of the luggage conveyer belt, he said. He heard more popping sounds while he was on the floor. “I was seeing people in front of me get hit. There was a man probably 10 feet away from me who was shot in the head and his wife collapsed on top of him.” The shooter also shot someone who was on the floor, Frappier told Cooper. “He said absolutely nothing…all you could hear was just the popping of the gun.”

Frappier told Cooper he was wearing a backpack, and at one point the gunman shot toward his direction. A bullet ricocheted, and he later realized the bullet had struck his laptop in his backpack. He said luggage was falling onto him too, but the laptop may have acted as a shield that saved his life.

4. Santiago Has a Child & Girlfriend in Alaska

. . . .

antiago’s brother told NBC News the suspected gunman had a girlfriend and a child in Anchorage, where he had been living.

Bryan Santiago told the news network his brother was “fighting with a lot of people” while in Alaska, including his girlfriend, and was “receiving psychological counseling.” Bryan Santiago said his brother had relationship issues.

5. The Suspect Was Accused of Domestic Violence in Alaska & Was Once Investigated for Child Porn

. . . .

The relationship was indeed troubled.

The court documents, obtained by Heavy from the Alaska municipal prosecutor, alleged that a woman had reported last January that her boyfriend, Esteban Santiago, “was yelling at her while she was in the bathroom on the toilet. Santiago then forced his way into the bathroom breaking the door, and door frame in the process.”

She told authorities that he continued to yell at (word removed): “get the f-ck out b-tch, while strangling her and smacking her in the side of the head.” The complaining officer said no physical injuries were seen.

“Officers attempted to locate and contact Santiago, in multiple locations. Photographs were taken of (the accuser) and the bathroom door,” the court document reported. Heavy is not naming the accuser as she is an alleged victim of domestic violence.

A month later, in February 2016, Santiago was accused by the Anchorage municipal prosecutor of violating the conditions of his release by allegedly failing to adhere to court restrictions. “During a compliance check, APD officers found defendant at the residence (of the girlfriend) in violation” of the conditions.

The court documents alleged: “Defendant admitted he had been at the residence – and with (the girlfriend) – in violation of his conditions since he had been released from custody on or about January 17, 2016 in the pending case.”

The case did not result in conviction.

Seneca Theno, the municipal prosecutor, told Heavy of the case’s disposition, “16-278 is in deferred prosecution status. Defendant pled to both charges (courtview is incorrect) and is required to abide by bail conditions and other special conditions related to the deferred prosecution agreement (DSA). It is not clear to me whether the terms of that agreement were put on record at the hearing 3/24/16, so at this time they remain confidential. Continued sentencing hearing is scheduled for 3/28/17. The other case, 16-1478, was dismissed in exchange for the plea to the DSA in the 278 case.”

You can read the court documents here: [SEE WEBSITE.]

According to NBC Washington, “Alaskan court records show an Esteban Santiago with the same date of birth was charged with two misdemeanors last year; one count was dismissed and Santiago was due back in court on the second this coming March.”

The Daily Beast reported that an assault case “was related to domestic violence” and was “resolved in March when Santiago entered into a deferred prosecution agreement, an alternative to adjudication where a state prosecutor dismissed the charges in exchange for Esteban’s completion of requirements that are unknown.”

There was also a report that Santiago was allegedly investigated for child porn.

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CBS News ✔ @CBSNews
MORE: In 2011 or 2012, suspect was investigated for child porn, but there was not enough evidence to prosecute, sources tell CBS News.
5:00 PM - 6 Jan 2017
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Anchorage police told Heavy they were referring all calls to the FBI. Here’s part of the court record from Anchorage:

estebanrecord

CBS News also reports that Santiago was once investigated for possession of child pornography, in either 2011 or 201, but there was not enough evidence to charge him. Investigators seized a computer and three weapons at that time, CBS reports.

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL - JANUARY 06: People seek cover on the tarmac of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International airport after a shooting took place near the baggage claim on January 6, 2017 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Officials are reporting that five people wear [sic] killed and eight wounded in an attack from a single gunman. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Officials believe Santiago acted alone.

There were early reports that there might be more than one active shooter as people at the airport were told to take shelter as authorities searched for a second possible shooter. NBC Miami said some people had fainted as people ran for safety and were evacuated. There was a massive law enforcement response as authorities – from the ATF to the FBI and local police – hunted for a possible second shooter.

By later in the afternoon, the sheriff confirmed there was only one gunman, and he says that gunman was Esteban Santiago.

Esteban Santiago Ruiz: Photos of Accused Fort Lauderdale Shooter
Esteban Santiago Ruiz is identified as the accused Fort Lauderdale airport mass shooter. Five people died and eight were wounded in the shooting. See photos.

Fort Lauderdale Airport Active Shooter: Videos & Photos

There is a Fort Lauderdale airport active shooter and videos and photos are flooding in from the scene of the shooting. Five people were killed and eight more injured in the attack.

Jessica McBride is a Heavy contributor. She was a crime, government, and breaking news reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and reporter for the Waukesha Freeman newspaper. Her award-winning work has appeared in numerous magazine, newspaper, and online publications. She has also appeared as a crime reporter on Investigation Discovery Channel, History Channel, and Oxygen Channel. She can be reached by email at jessica.mcbride@heavy.com.
January 7, 2017 12:10 pm



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/fort-lauderdale-airport-shooting-suspect-brother-us-government-failed-him/

Fort Lauderdale airport shooting suspect's brother says U.S. gov't failed him
CBS/AP
January 7, 2017, 3:39 PM


PENUELAS, Puerto Rico -- The brother of a man accused of killing five people at a Florida airport questioned Saturday why his brother was allowed to keep his gun after U.S. authorities knew he’d become increasingly paranoid and was hearing voices.

Esteban Santiago was federally charged on Saturday with an act of violence at an international airport resulting in death - which carries a maximum punishment of execution - and weapons charges.

According to the charging documents, Santiago confessed to investigators that he planned the attack. He said he claimed his bag, took it to bathroom, loaded it, and put in his waistband.

Play VIDEO
Florida airport shooting suspect was known by FBI agents

Santiago, 26, had trouble controlling his anger after serving in Iraq and told his brother that he felt he was being chased and controlled by the CIA through secret online messages. When he told agents at an FBI field office his paranoid thoughts in November, he was evaluated for four days, then released without any follow-up medication or therapy.

“The FBI failed there,” Bryan Santiago told The Associated Press. “We’re not talking about someone who emerged from anonymity to do something like this.”

Speaking in Spanish outside his family’s house in Penuelas, the brother said: “The federal government already knew about this for months, they had been evaluating him for a while, but they didn’t do anything.”

Bryan Santiago speaks about his brother Esteban, a man accused of shooting five people at a Florida airport, in Penuelas, Puerto Rico, Jan. 7, 2017. AP

A law enforcement source said when Santiago -- who had been living in Anchorage, Alaska -- walked into the FBI office in November, he had a handgun in his possession, CBS News senior investigative producer Pat Milton reports. It is not known if the handgun was the 9mm handgun that authorities said Santiago used in the Florida attack on Friday.

The weapon had been taken away when he entered the FBI reception area and was held while he was interviewed by the FBI, Milton reports. When the Anchorage Police Department transported Santiago to the hospital, they took possession of the weapon. The law enforcement source said that apparently the police department returned the weapon to Santiago after he received a medical evaluation.

A U.S. law enforcement official briefed on the investigation told CBS News that Santiago had said that his mind was being controlled by the CIA and the U.S. government and that he was being forced to watch videos from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.

The FBI office in Alaska declined to comment ahead of a Saturday news conference.

There were other signs of trouble. Santiago was charged in a domestic violence case in January 2016, damaging a door when he forced his way into a bathroom at his girlfriend’s Anchorage home. The woman told officers he yelled at her to leave, choked her and smacked her on the side of the head, according to charging documents.

A month later, municipal prosecutors said he violated the conditions of his release when officers found him at her home during a routine check. He told police he had lived there since he was released from custody the previous month. His Anchorage attorney, Max Holmquist, declined to discuss his client.

Bryan Santiago said his brother had requested psychological help but barely received any.

“I told him to go to church or to seek professional help,” he said.

Family members have said Esteban Santiago changed after serving a yearlong tour in Iraq. He was born in New Jersey but moved to Puerto Rico when he was 2, his brother said. He grew up in Penuelas before joining the Guard in 2007.

He deployed in 2010 as part of the Puerto Rico National Guard, spending a year with an engineering battalion, according to Guard spokesman Maj. Paul Dahlen.

Esteban Santiago’s mother wiped tears from her eyes as she stood inside a screen door Saturday. She said her son had been tremendously affected by seeing a bomb explode near two friends while serving in Iraq.

Lt. Col. Candis Olmstead, a Guard spokeswoman, told The New York Times that two soldiers in Santiago’s company had died during his stint in Iraq.

Former neighbor Ursula Candelario in Penuelas recalled seeing Esteban Santiago grow up and said people used to salute him after he joined the Guard. “He was very peaceful, very educated, very serious,” she said. “We’re in shock. I couldn’t believe it.”

Since returning from Iraq, Santiago served in the Army Reserves and the Alaska National Guard in Anchorage, Olmstead said. He was serving as a combat engineer in the Guard before his discharge for “unsatisfactory performance.” His military rank upon discharge was E3, private 1st class, and he worked one weekend a month with an additional 15 days of training yearly, Olmstead said.

She would not elaborate on his discharge. The Pentagon said he went AWOL several times and was demoted and discharged.

Play VIDEO
What motivated alleged Fort Lauderdale airport shooter?

While it is unclear if Esteban Santiago had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, as many as one in five veterans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan develop the affliction each year, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. A 2014 Veterans Affairs study found that almost 30 percent of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan who sought treatment at VA hospitals were diagnosed with PTSD symptoms.

His uncle and aunt in New Jersey were trying to make sense of what they were hearing about Santiago. FBI agents arrived at their house to question them on Friday.

Maria Ruiz told The Record newspaper that her nephew had recently become a father to a son and was struggling.

“It was like he lost his mind,” she said in Spanish of his return from Iraq. “He said he saw things.”

Santiago was flying from Anchorage on a Delta flight and had checked only one piece of luggage, which contained the gun.

Sen.-elect Nelson Cruz, who knew the family and represents the town where they live in Puerto Rico, said he had been talking regularly with Bryan Santiago since the shooting.

“They’re very humble and very Christian people,” Cruz said. “They want to tell the families of the victims that they’re extremely saddened and extremely upset by what happened.”

© 2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.



RUSSIAN RUMBLINGS AND TRUMP


http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/01/read-us-intelligence-report-russian-hacking-2016-campaign

Read the US Intelligence Report on Russian Hacking
The intelligence community makes its case. Your move, Donald Trump.

AJ VICENS
JAN. 6, 2017 3:50 PM

Photograph -- Carlo Allegri/Zuma
Click On Document To Scroll Down and Read.


The Office of the Director of National Intelligence on Friday released its declassified report on Russia's efforts to influence the outcome of the 2016 election by hacking Democratic outfits during the campaign.

The report comes a day after top intelligence officials, including Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and National Security Agency Director Michael Rogers, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the issue. During the hearing, Clapper said the intelligence community has grown more "resolute" in its assessment that Russian intelligence was involved in the hacks aimed at the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. On Friday, Clapper, Rogers, FBI Director Jim Comey, and CIA Director John Brennan briefed President-elect Donald Trump on the classified evidence linking Russia to the hacks and the leaking of the swiped emails. After the briefing, Trump released a statement noting that Russia is one of many actors that try to hack US targets, but the statement did not acknowledge the US intelligence community conclusion that Moscow had mounted the cyberattack against the United States as part of an operation to help elect Trump president.

GET THE SCOOP, STRAIGHT FROM MOTHER JONES.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/report-on-russian-hacking-released-by-intelligence-community/

Report on Russian hacking released by intelligence community
By REBECCA SHABAD CBS NEWS
January 6, 2017, 4:25 PM

Photograph -- Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his annual end-of-year news conference in Moscow, Russia, December 23, 2016. REUTERS/SERGEI KARPUKHIN
Play VIDEO -- Kellyanne Conway on why Trump is questioning U.S. intel
Play VIDEO -- Intelligence leaders outline evidence of Russian hacking


Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign involving covert intelligence operations and overt propaganda to undermine faith in the U.S. election, disparage Hillary Clinton and help Donald Trump’s election chances, the intelligence community concluded in a report released Friday afternoon.

“We assess Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign in 2016 aimed at the US presidential election. Russia’s goals were to undermine public faith in the US democratic process, denigrate Secretary Clinton, and harm her electability and potential presidency. We further assess Putin and the Russian Government developed a clear preference for President-elect Trump,” the report said.

The report, prepared by the CIA, FBI and NSA and released as a 15-page declassified version, said that Russia’s activities during the 2016 election were part of Moscow’s longstanding desire to undermine the U.S. democratic process, but their efforts were intensified this time.

“These activities demonstrated a significant escalation in directness, level of activity and scope of effort compared to previous operations,” said the report, which was presented to President Obama Thursday and on which Mr. Trump was briefed Friday.

Russia’s intelligence services, the report confirmed, conducted cyberattacks that targeted “both major U.S. political parties.” As previously reported, the assessment confirmed the intelligence agencies’ confidence that the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence service, used Guccifer 2.0 and DCLeaks.com to release U.S. victim data publicly, and it also relayed material it acquired from the DNC and senior Democratic officials to WikiLeaks.

In addition to those hacks, the report said that Russian intelligence gained and maintained access to “elements of multiple U.S. state or local electoral boards.” However, DHS assessed that “the types of systems Russian actors targeted or compromised were not involved in vote tallying.”

Russia also relied on its government agencies, third-party intermediaries, state-funded media and “paid social media users” to wage a messaging campaign against the U.S. election. This was what Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said was part of a “multifaceted” effort in his testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee at a hearing on Thursday.

The three agencies made clear in their report Friday that they were only charged “with monitoring and assessing the intentions, capabilities, and actions of foreign actors.” They did not make an assessment on whether Russia’s activities had an outcome on the election -- they do not analyze “US political processes or US public opinion,” the report said.

Moscow, the report surmised, learned lessons from this Putin-ordered campaign that will be used to “future influence efforts worldwide, including against US allies and their election processes.”

A short time earlier Friday, Mr. Trump was briefed on the intelligence community’s findings by Clapper, FBI Director James Comey, CIA Director John Brennan and NSA Adm. Mike Rogers. Following the briefing at Trump Tower in New York, Mr. Trump released a statement on what he called a “constructive meeting and conversation” saying that the cyberattacks had “no effect on the outcome of the election.”

“While Russia, China, other countries, outside groups and people are consistently trying to break through the cyber infrastructure of our governmental institutions, businesses and organizations including the Democrat National Committee, there was absolutely no effect on the outcome of the election including the fact that there was no tampering whatsoever with voting machines,” Mr. Trump said.

Earlier Friday, the intelligence chiefs briefed senior lawmakers.

“It was really quite a stunning disclosure,” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-California, said at her weekly press conference. “When you see this report, you will see with confidence how the intelligence community has identified what we have seen.”

Here’s the full declassified report: (Go to website.)
DNI Declassified Report on Russian Hacking by CBS News Politics on Scribd



Trump said, twice in this CBS article, that, “there was absolutely no effect,” but the US Intel community report said that they MAKE NO ASSESSMENT at all of “US political processes or US public opinion,” and did not in this case, so Trump’s statement is made up out of thin air. This is apparently what dealing with Trump’s statements is going to be like in the next 4 years or so. CBS gave both versions together making it easy to see the conflict, but many other news sources are not so open and conscientious. That’s why I like CBS, Mother Jones, NPR, etc.



SANDERS TODAY


http://www.politicususa.com/2017/01/07/bernie-sanders-democratic-leaders-rise-plan-nationwide-rallies-save-healthcare.html

Bernie Sanders And Democratic Leaders Rise Up And Plan Nationwide Rallies To Save Healthcare
By Jason Easley on Sat, Jan 7th, 2017 at 1:17 pm

Sens. Bernie Sanders and Chuck Schumer along with Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi are rallying and leading a national day of action on January 15 to save healthcare.


Sens. Bernie Sanders and Chuck Schumer along with Democratic House Leader Nancy Pelosi are rallying and leading a national day of action on January 15 to save healthcare.

Sanders and Schumer will speak at a rally at the UAW Hall in Warren, Michigan. Pelosi will speak in San Francisco. Other rallies are being organized in Philadelphia, Chicago, and other cities around the country. More rallies will be announced this week, and you can follow the list here.

Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said, “Democrats are united in fighting back against Republicans who want to make America sick again by cutting Medicare, Medicaid and repealing the Affordable Care Act. We are going to link arm in arm and stand together as we fight to protect health care for millions of Americans.”

Leader Pelosi added that Republicans are declaring all out war on healthcare, “After years of the GOP’s fevered, fact-free crusade against the Affordable Care Act, Republicans’ repeal plan will have cold, hard consequences for millions of Americans. The Republican Congress is declaring all-out war on affordable health care in our country, and we must not allow them to Make America Sick Again. Democrats will not stand by and allow Republicans to dismantle the health and economic security of hard-working Americans.”

Sen. Sanders (I-VT) said, “The American people will not allow Republicans to throw 30 million Americans off of health insurance, privatize Medicare, make massive cuts in Medicaid, raise the cost of prescription drugs for seniors and, at the same time, provide massive tax breaks to the top 1 percent.”

A very different and more grassroots Democratic resistance is taking shape. Democrats are transforming from a top-down party to a grassroots movement. Without President Obama to lead them from the White House, Democrats are taking the movement directly to the people, and if they are going to save healthcare in this country for nearly 30 million Americans, they will need your help.

Democrats are leading the charge. The left has moved from resistance to action, and it is time for you to get involved.

Bernie Sanders, chuck schumer, Nancy Pelosi, Our First Stand: Save healthcare, rallies to save healthcare, rallies to save Obamacare

Follow Jason Easley on Twitter
Bernie Sanders And Democratic Leaders Rise Up And Plan Nationwide Rallies To Save Healthcare added by Jason Easley on Sat, Jan 7th, 2017



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ethics-office-sounds-alarm-trump-gop-rushing-cabinet-confirmations/

Ethics office sounds alarm on GOP rushing Trump Cabinet confirmations
By REENA FLORES CBS NEWS
January 7, 2017, 5:31 PM


Just as Cabinet nominees prepare for their confirmation hearings before the Senate next week, a federal ethics watchdog agency is expressing concerns over what it called an unusually rushed process of vetting President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks.

In a letter sent to Senate Democrats Saturday, the director of the Office of Government Ethics, Walter Shaub Jr., said the schedule of Cabinet hearings created “undue pressure on OGE’s staff and agency ethics officials to rush through these important reviews.”

“It has left some of the nominees with potentially unknown or unresolved ethics issues shortly before their scheduled hearings,” Shaub wrote in the letter obtained by CBS News. It was of further “great concern” to Shaub that several of Mr. Trump’s Cabinet selections had yet to complete the office’s full ethics review. For some nominees, the office had not received “even initial draft financial disclosure reports for some of the nominees scheduled for hearings,” according to the ethics director.

Play VIDEO
Confirmation hearings to begin for Trump's cabinet picks

“I am not aware of any occasion in the four decades since OGE was established when the Senate held a confirmation hearing before the nominee had completed the ethics review process,” he said in the letter, addressed to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. The letter, written in response to questions by Senate Democrats on the issue, was also sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

On Saturday afternoon, the Trump transition team pushed back on the concerns expressed in the letter, calling it a “disservice to the country” from the ethics office.

“President-elect Trump is putting together the most qualified administration in history and the transition process is currently running smoothly,” a transition spokesperson said in a statement to CBS News. “In the midst of a historic election where Americans voted to drain the swamp, it is disappointing some have chosen to politicize the process in order to distract from important issues facing our country.”

Over the next week, at least seven Cabinet picks are scheduled to appear before Senate committees, with three scheduled for Wednesday: Mr. Trump’s education chief pick Betsy DeVos, his transportation secretary choice Elaine Chao, and one of his most controversial appointments, Rex Tillerson, a billionaire oil executive with close business ties to Russia, for secretary of state.

But the letter from the Office of Government Ethics, which oversees problems with the executive branch’s potential conflicts of interests, could present a roadblock for Senate Republicans hoping for speedy confirmations.

Shaub warned that it would be “cause for alarm if the Senate were to go forward with hearings on nominees whose reports OGE has not certified.”

“For as long as I remain Director, OGE’s staff and agency ethics officials will not succumb to pressure to cut corners and ignore conflicts of interest,” he said.

Schumer, the new Democratic leader in the Senate, urged Republicans in the upper chamber to “heed the advice of this independent office and stop trying to jam through unvetted nominees.”

The letter “makes crystal clear,” Schumer said in a statement Saturday, that the process to get Cabinet nominees pushed through before they’ve been reviewed by the ethics office is “unprecedented.”

In her own tweet Saturday, Warren also called on the Senate to delay confirmation hearings until ethics reviews were completed, saying it was “ridiculous” for nominees to “drag their feet on ethics paperwork.”

Follow
Elizabeth Warren ✔ @SenWarren
This is ridiculous. @realDonaldTrump’s noms can’t drag their feet on ethics paperwork while their Senate friends try to run out the clock.
4:27 PM - 7 Jan 2017
3,069 3,069 Retweets 7,044 7,044 likes

Follow
Elizabeth Warren ✔ @SenWarren
Cabinet officials must put our country's interests before their own. No conf hearings should be held until we’re certain that’s the case.
4:29 PM - 7 Jan 2017
2,512 2,512 Retweets 6,988 6,988 likes

McConnell’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



ONE WAY TO STOP THIS “FOOT DRAGGING,” IS TO SET UP A HARD AND FAST DEADLINE, AFTER WHICH THE CANDIDATE WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED FOR THE APPOINTMENT AT ALL. THAT’S LIKE THE FILIBUSTER. I HAVE NEVER LIKED THE FILIBUSTERS, THOUGH SOME LEGISLATORS DID PUT ON SOME ENTERTAINING SHOWS WHILE DOING IT. I DID LIKE THE SITDOWN STRIKE THAT THE DEMS DID THIS LAST YEAR. THEY LOOKED AS THOUGH THEY WERE HAVING A GOOD TIME DOWN ON THE FLOOR. WHATEVER MEANS IS USED, HOWEVER, ANY UNDUE AND UNFAIR MEANS OF FORCING AN ISSUE IS NOT STATESMANSHIP IN MY EYES, AND THE TRUMP CAMP HAS ALREADY DONE QUITE A FEW SUCH THINGS. “DIRTY TRICKS” OF ALL KINDS ARE JUST THAT. THEY ARE DIRTY.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/duncan-hunter-republican-capitol-artwork-police-pigs/

GOP Congressman removes painting from U.S. Capitol with pig in police uniform
AP January 7, 2017, 8:31 PM

THE PAINTING IN QUESTION: In this Jan. 5, 2017, photo, a painting by David Pulphus hangs in a hallway displaying paintings by high school students selected by their member of congress on Capitol Hill in Washington. AP PHOTO/ZACH GIBSON


“He made sure he returned it safe and sound, all in one piece,” Kasper said.

Hunter did not speak with Clay about the portrait, and Kasper said it was Clay’s prerogative to return the painting to the display. A spokesman for Clay says the congressman was unavailable for comment.

The painting showed a police officer taking aim at protesters with signs saying “history” and “stop kill.” The police officer has an elongated face with tusks, much like a razorback pig. The background includes the Gateway Arch in St. Louis and a young black man looking out from prison bars. One of the figures also appears to show a protester as a wolf.

Clay’s website gives the following description of the artwork: “The painting portrays a colorful landscape of symbolic characters representing social injustice, the tragic events in Ferguson, Missouri, and the lingering elements of inequality in modern American society.”

In August 2014, a white police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, in Ferguson, setting off weeks of protests.

Clay’s office said Cardinal Ritter College Prep High School senior David Pulphus won the lawmaker’s 16th Annual Congressional Art Competition, and “his visually stunning acrylic painting on canvas entitled, ‘Untitled #1’ will be displayed at the U.S. Capitol Complex.”

House Speaker Paul Ryan’s office did not return a call seeking comment on whether he condoned Hunter’s actions.

Drew Hammill, a spokesman for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Hunter “will soon realize that he’s fallen down more than one rabbit hole.”

The reference was to Hunter’s recent admission that his campaign had paid the $600 tab incurred for flying his children’s pet rabbit with the family. Hunter said the charge to the campaign was a mistake and that he had reimbursed the campaign as part of more than $60,000 in questionable charges he had discovered.

Kasper said the congressman has received an outpouring of support from law enforcement organizations and individual officers.

“I am ecstatic with congressman Hunter’s actions,” said Andy Maybo, president of the Fraternal Order of Police chapter in the District of Columbia. “As we all know, this painting should never have made it to the walls of Congress.”

A tunnel leading to the Capitol is filled with paintings and other artwork done by students who enter them in the annual Congressional Art Competition. The nationwide competition began in 1982 and students around the country submit entries to their representative’s office. Panels of district artists select the winner from each district, and the winning works are displayed for one year.



POLITICAL SATIRE, INCLUDING PORTRAYING PEOPLE AS ANIMALS, HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE AT LEAST THE 1700S, AND SOME OF THEM VERY CRUDELY INDEED. PRESIDENT OBAMA AND HIS WIFE WERE SHOWN AS APES IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, WITH WATERMELONS, AND IN OTHER INCINDIARY WAYS. WE NEED TO PUNISH “HATE SPEECH” AND CRIMES MUCH MORE STIFFLY THAN OCCURS AT THIS TIME. IT IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT SHEDS “MORE HEAT THAN LIGHT,” AND DOESN’T IMPROVE OUR DEMOCRATIC SOCIETY AT ALL.

IN PARIS, TOO RECENTLY, THE HIGHLY DISRESPECTFUL PORTRAYALS OF MOHAMMAD SPARKED VIOLENCE WHICH SHOCKED THE WORLD. I THOUGHT THEN, AND I THINK NOW, THAT VICIOUS CARTOONS SHOULD BE DESIGNATED AS HATE CRIMES AND NOT “FREE SPEECH,” AND THAT IF THE PERPETRATORS FIND THEMSELVES IN DANGER OVER IT, IT IS PRETTY MUCH THEIR OWN FAULT. THE REPUBLICANS GET ALL UP IN THE AIR ABOUT FLAG BURNING, AND THIS IS NO DIFFERENT TO ME.

PERSONALLY, OF COURSE, I DON’T APPROVE OF FLAG BURNING, EITHER. EVEN IF WE AREN’T “CONSERVATIVES,” WE NEED TO HAVE SOME LOYALTY TO OUR COUNTRY. HOW ELSE CAN WE PRESERVE IT? WE CAN MAKE OUR POLITICAL STATEMENTS WITHOUT SUCH HATEFUL THINGS -- BY INTELLIGIBLE AND WELL CONSIDERED LANGUAGE PERHAPS. NOTHING INFORMS THE MIND AS MUCH AS LANGUAGE. AFTER ALL, MANY ANTHROPOLOGISTS THINK SPOKEN LANGUAGE IS ONE OF THE PRIMARY THINGS THAT SEPARATES US FROM THE APES!