DECEMBER 19, 2018

NEWS AND VIEWS

SANDERS NEWS TODAY

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/magazine/bernie-sanders-says-he-has-no-idea-how-his-campaign-got-young-people-so-engaged/2018/12/17/85ae25e6-edc4-11e8-96d4-0d23f2aaad09_story.html
Magazine
Bernie Sanders says he has no idea how his campaign got young people so engaged
By KK Ottesen
December 18, 2018

PHOTOGRAPH -- Bernie Sanders is a U.S. senator from Vermont. (KK Ottesen/For The Washington Post)

Bernie Sanders, U.S. senator from Vermont and the longest-serving independent in Congress, ran for president in 2016. His latest book, “Where We Go From Here,” was released in November.

One criticism people have is that you’re sort of a lone-wolf candidate — not a go-along, get-along-with-the-party type — and for that reason wouldn’t be able to govern. What do you say to that?

How many of those people have been to 13 states in the last month supporting Democratic candidates? I just came back from running all over the country. And I went to 30 states for Clinton. I knocked my brains out. I think where the problems come is that I often support candidates that the Democratic establishment does not, so the Democratic establishment doesn’t like me. But I could give you the names of dozens of people who are very happy to work with me and get my support.

You got more votes from people under 30 in the primaries than Clinton and Trump combined. That’s sort of the Holy Grail. How have you been able to capture young people’s imagination?

Got me. I don’t know. When you find out, give me a ring. When we began the campaign, I swear to you that no one sat down and said, “Okay, look, we’ve got to focus on young people.” That thought never occurred to us. We just went out, and we did what we did. Honest to God, people would really be stunned if they knew how ill-prepared we were for a major national campaign. And running against Clinton, we took on the entire — underlined — political establishment. No governor supported us. One member of the Senate. Handful of members of the House. No big-city mayors. In every single state, we had to take on the statewide Democratic Party.

But if you explain your ideas to people, to working people, great things can happen. I remember at a rally a guy comes up to me, he says, “Bernie, you know why I like you?” “Why?” “Because you treat us like we’re intelligent human beings.” That was after a speech that was probably an hour and 15 minutes about issues facing the American people, which bored the media completely. They didn’t really write about the speech. Oh, God, Bernie Sanders is giving the same: Rich are getting richer, da-da-da-da-da. But you had 10,000 people there, paying attention, listening. There is a hunger in this country for people to tell the truth about what’s going on. Not just in cheap rhetoric or 140-[character] tweets. People want to know why we are where we are. And we did that. People said, Thank you. You’re treating us intelligently. We appreciate that. Young people, maybe, especially.

You’ve talked about the influence of the wealthy in politics. Given how heavily weighted politics are in that direction, did you ever think you’d get this far?

The answer is capital N, capital O, underlined and bolded. No. If my parents were alive today … I mean, in the Senate, you hang out with certain types of people. Some from the upper class whose parents tell them, train them, send them to private schools; they’re groomed to be president of the United States. In the back of their minds, there is the belief they could be president. The idea that I would be a United States senator, let alone a candidate for president of the United States, would have been absolutely unthinkable in the house that I grew up in.

What is some advice you share?

I was just in Arizona at a small meeting with mostly Latino kids, activists. And some kid asked me, "What advice would you give people who are going to be out canvassing, knocking on doors?"

I said, "Look, you're going to be very nervous. But just keep pushing." In Vermont, we have mayoral elections in March. So that means you got to campaign in January and February. Pretty cold. I would literally knock on doors and be sweating. Because it's scary. You know, Who is this guy knocking on the door? But it becomes easier. And it often turns out to be a good experience. You get blown away by the intelligence of people. Where you would least expect it. Like, many years ago, I was at a county fair. People come in from the sticks — very, very rural. And this guy, who hadn't shaved in a week, came up to me — very rednecky-type guy. He says, "You one of those guys that supports gay marriage?" I thought, Oh, God, here we go. I said, "Yeah, I do." And he said, "Good! My sister's gay."

What do people tend to misunderstand or not expect about you?

Well, that I am taller than they think. Television makes you short and fat. That's number one. And I think the word "socialism" gets people a little bit nervous if they don't know what we mean by that. Three years ago, when we started talking about an agenda that worked for working families and not just the 1 percent, time and again, we were attacked, not just by Hillary Clinton, but by editorial writers all over this country that we were way, way out of touch with where the American people are, that our ideas are extreme, radical, fringe ideas.

If you look at the polling today, virtually every idea that we campaigned on has strong majority support. So, I'm very proud that taking those ideas all over this country, winning over 13 million votes and winning 22 states, made people aware that these ideas are not radical ideas, but the direction that we should be going. I think the American people are far less divided on what they want to see for the future of this country than many perceive. The reason that people like Trump can win elections is they understand there's a lot of pain out there. And for too long, the Democratic Party has not recognized that pain. But people are hurting. Five blocks away, there are moms who cannot afford to find decent-quality child care in the city of Burlington. Just a fact. Okay? And we have to talk about those issues.

In your book, you talk about colleagues who are retiring with a bit of envy. Could you see doing that anytime soon?

Anybody in politics will tell you, especially in this moment, it’s a tough life. I have some good friends who said, Okay, we’ve done it 30, 40 years, and that’s enough. And I understand that. As my wife will tell you, it’s been a long time since we’ve had a vacation, which is not a good thing. But, you know, I have seven beautiful grandchildren, four kids, and I do feel a moral necessity to do what I can to make this a world in which they can live good lives. And I’m in a position where I have some influence. And, at this moment, I just cannot walk away from that.

This interview has been edited and condensed. Follow KK Ottesen on Twitter: @kkOttesen.


AN ISRAEL BOYCOTT BILL

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2018/12/19/bernie-sanders-new-plan-force-genuine-debate-congress-israel/
The Plum Line Opinion
Bernie Sanders’s new plan to force a genuine debate in Congress on Israel
By Paul Waldman
Opinion writer
December 19 at 12:18 PM

PHOTOGRAPH – TRUMP AND NETANYAHU LINKING HANDS

Earlier this week I wrote about the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, a piece of legislation that some Democrats and Republicans are hoping to quietly attach to a budget bill so it can be passed into law. The bill would bar American companies and individuals from participating in certain boycotts of Israel, and, though even its supporters say it would have minimal practical impact, it represents a serious attack on fundamental principles of free speech.

The bill is also part of a broad nationwide movement playing out at both the federal and state level to quash criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud government and its policies toward Palestinians, an effort that Democrats unfortunately have participated in far too often.

Now two senators — Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) — have a plan to try to do something about this. They are coming out against that measure, which could help realize the larger goal of forcing a genuine debate in Congress that does not place such criticism off limits.

It is a lack of debate about Israel — not just about the Netanyahu government’s policies but also about how we in America should react to them — that allows provisions such as the Israel Anti-Boycott Act to flourish. But that also means that if you draw enough attention to them, things can change. We may be at a point where politicians who would previously have gone along precisely because it seemed like the easiest thing to do given that few people were watching are now having second thoughts. And that’s what makes this an important lesson in how politics works.

Sanders and Feinstein represent two influential Jewish senators from different points on the ideological spectrum. On Wednesday morning, they sent a letter urging Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) not to include the IABA in the latest budget bill. Here’s part of what they wrote:

The bill would prohibit and penalize certain constitutionally-protected political activity aimed solely at Israeli settlements in the West Bank, thereby extending US legal protection to the very settlements the United States has opposed as illegitimate and harmful to the cause of Israeli-Palestinian peace for more than 50 years. Whether one opposes such targeted measures or not, criminalizing acts such as the mere furnishing of information on companies that do business in the settlements would represent a significant and heavy-handed departure from five decades of bipartisan opposition to the settlement enterprise. At a time when the Netanyahu government is pursuing policies clearly aimed at foreclosing the two-state solution, it is deeply disappointing that Congress would consider penalizing criticism of those policies.

Now for some context. In the past few years, Republicans have elevated “support for Israel” to a core conservative belief, which in their case means not support for Israel in general but support for policies that deny any rights to Palestinians and seek to expand West Bank settlements so that returning land to them will become impossible. The unspoken but clear long-term vision of both the Israeli and American right is that if the Palestinians are made to suffer enough, they will eventually give up their hopes of self-determination and accept their miserable lot. Both the Netanyahu government and the Trump administrationn have stopped even pretending that they support a two-state solution.

That will not change. But what can change is how Democrats approach this issue. The reason that so often so many Democrats go along with the Republican approach for “support for Israel” is that it seems like the easiest thing to do. That’s because there’s an imbalance of power at play which determines the risks politicians face for taking certain positions. For instance, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) is a well-organized and well-funded lobby with the ability to reward its friends and punish its opponents. Groups that advocate Palestinian rights are not nearly as powerful. Which is why, despite the fact that AIPAC has long been not “the Israel lobby” as it styles itself but, in truth, the Likud lobby, Democratic politicians still troop to its meetings to proclaim their “support for Israel.”

And when something like the Anti-Israel Boycott Act came up, I'm sure more than a few Democratic senators and congressman said to themselves, "This is really an affront to free speech. But what is opposing it going to get me? The only people who will notice are the ones who'll be angry."

But what’s important about calculations like that is that they’re open to change. When you have a bill such as this one, the more attention it gets, the more opposition will rise. Especially for Democrats, the cost of supporting it begins to increase. If it hadn’t started getting attention over the past few days, Sanders and Feinstein might not have written that letter to make their opposition vocal. And now other Democrats might be having second thoughts too, and could decide they have enough cover to pull back their support.

That process could be pushed along if we begin to debate the way conservatives all over the country are pushing to quash any dissension from right-wing Israeli policies. As I said, this piece of legislation is part of a nationwide effort in which two dozen states have passed laws forbidding the state to contract with companies that support boycotts of Israeli products. The result is cases like this one, in which a speech pathologist in Texas who contracts with a school district to work with students was told that she would have to sign what was in effect a loyalty oath to the Netanyahu government, promising not to support any boycott of Israel, as though that could possibly have anything do so with her work. She refused to sign, and sued instead. Now the ACLU is also suing over the Texas law, which the state will fight; Gov. Greg Abbott has said, "Anti-Israel policies are anti-Texas policies."

That’s obviously ludicrous, and there’s a strong case to be made that the greatest long-term threat to Israel is precisely the policies toward the Palestinians that critics of the Netanyahu government — both within and outside Israel — would like to see changed, and that people such as Abbott support (and yes, there are some Democrats who enthusiastically support them too). But without something resembling a real debate, the American public doesn’t hear why someone can simultaneously support Israel, oppose a particular set of Israeli policies, and oppose restrictions on the free speech rights of Americans. All they’ll learn is that there’s a “pro-Israel” bill out there, and if you oppose it you must be “anti-Israel.”

In their letter, Sanders and Feinstein hint at the need to undercut this basic mind-set. They stress that the Senate must “debate” the new measure as “freestanding legislation" on “its merits.” That is, its specifics must be debated, and not as a reflexive indicator of “pro-Israel” or “anti-Israel” sentiment.

I’ve long argued that the very idea of “pro-Israel” vs. “anti-Israel” is not just the enemy of rational thought and moral thinking, but also plays right into the hands of the American and Israeli right (you’ll notice that we don’t use that formulation with any other country; nobody talks about being “pro-China” or “anti-Canada”). It’s up to Democrats to create a more complete debate on this issue, because Republicans certainly aren’t going to do it. And standing up against laws that forbid Americans from expressing certain opinions would be an excellent place to start.


Paul Waldman
Paul Waldman is an opinion writer for the Plum Line blog. Follow


https://www.vox.com/2018/12/19/18148681/joe-biden-bernie-sanders-approval-rating
Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are both way more popular than Donald Trump
Biden, in particular, is popular with everyone.
By Matthew Yglesias@mattyglesiasmatt@vox.com Dec 19, 2018, 1:00pm EST

PHOTOGRAPH – SANDERS TAKING AN OATH WITH BIDEN

Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders are the best-known members of the Democratic Party’s very crowded 2020 primary field, and they are both more popular than Donald Trump, according to a new Quinnipiac University national poll.

The two other moderately well-known Democrats — Elizabeth Warren and Michael Bloomberg — both fare less well with underwater favorable ratings. Everyone else, including Beto O’Rourke, Sherrod Brown, Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, and Kirsten Gillibrand, is fairly obscure, with a majority of the public offering no opinion so far.

These early polling results are of limited ultimate relevance, especially with so many people in the field who simply aren’t well-known at this point. But the fact that Warren and Bloomberg are both unpopular while Biden and Sanders are both popular is a useful reminder that mass opinion does not feature an enormous amount of ideological consistency. Meanwhile, the field is likely to continue to be large because Trump’s approval numbers are frankly terrible — 40 percent favorable to 56 percent unfavorable — even though the economy has been performing well.

Basically, any ambitious politician is going to look at those numbers and think, “I can beat that guy.” And maybe they can!

Biden and Bernie are both popular
In contrast to Trump, Joe Biden’s numbers look fantastic with a 53/33 favorable/unfavorable split. Democrats love Biden, with 84 percent approving, and he’s above water with essentially all demographic subcategories:

African Americans love Biden, 73-12.
A lot of Latinos don’t know who he is, but those who do like him 46-18.
White people like Biden, too, by a 52-38 margin. Biden even does okay with white men (49-43) and white voters with no college degree (44-41).
Biden does best with voters under 35 (60-21) but also does pretty well with old people (54-33).
Bernie Sanders is distinctly less popular than Biden at 44-42 and, accordingly, is less uniformly popular across demographic groups.

African Americans (55-26) and Latinos (52-26) like Bernie, but he’s slightly underwater (43-45) with whites, faring especially poorly with white men (40-51) and working-class whites (38-44).
Young people really like Sanders (57-29), but old people do not (40-45).
Democrats like Sanders (74-13), but independents do not (39-43).
All things considered, these actual numbers cut against a lot of online narratives. Sanders is more popular with women than with men, and more popular with people of color than with whites — it’s the normal pattern of support for progressive politics in America and no sign of “Bernie Bros” running amok.

At the same time, contrary to some of the pro-Bernie versions of these narratives, there’s no particular sign that working-class whites are clamoring for democratic socialism. They’re simply more conservative than white college graduates, and consequently like Sanders less than the professional class does and less than they like Joe Biden.

Last but by no means least, the years-long twitter dual between Sanders’s insurgent army and the establishment is not in evidence in the polling. Both Bernie and Biden are extremely popular with self-identified Democrats, and the lesser-known contenders like O’Rourke, Harris, etc. are all extremely popular among those Democrats who have heard of them.

Trump, by contrast, is in really bad shape.

Donald Trump is unpopular
Trump’s numbers in this poll are so bad that his favorable rating is underwater with white voters, who dislike him by a 46-50 margin.

To get a flavor of how bad that is, no Democratic presidential candidate has ever won the white vote since 1964. White men do like Trump (53-45), as do whites with no college degree (56-42), but white women (41-55) and white college graduates (37-59) really do not. Young people (27-68) hate him; old people (41-56) don’t particularly like him either.

Presidents recover from bad mid-session approval ratings all the time (both Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama had rough numbers at this point), but normally, that’s because an improvement in underlying economic conditions powers them to victory. Dislike of Trump seems much more specific to Trump rather than to the state of the economy, so it’s understandable that basically everyone in the universe is eager to run against him.

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https://www.cbsnews.com/news/texas-girl-brain-tumor-11-year-old-girls-brain-tumor-disappears-in-medical-mystery/
By DR. TARA NARULA CBS NEWS December 18, 2018, 6:46 PM
11-year-old girl's brain tumor disappears in medical mystery

When 11-year-old Roxli Doss was diagnosed with what appeared to be a rare, inoperable brain tumor in June, she faced it with courage. Each year, some 300 children in the U.S. are diagnosed with this particular brain tumor, known as a diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, or DIPG.

There is no cure, and less than 1 percent of people who develop one survive beyond five years.

"It is a devastating disease. You have decreased ability to swallow, sometimes vision loss, decreased ability to talk. Eventually difficulty with breathing," said Dr. Virginia Harrod, Roxli's doctor at Dell Children's Medical Center in Austin.

b3-narula-medical-miracle-121819-aircut-frame-1538.jpg
Roxli Doss DOSS FAMILY
Roxli was given months to live. As she went through weeks of radiation, her parents Scott and Gena Doss prayed for a miracle.

"We got it," Gena said.

"Praise God, we did," Scott added.

Typically, radiation is a life-extending treatment and not a cure. But just over two months after being diagnosed, the tumor appeared to have completely gone away.

Doctors can't explain the remarkable response.

"It was actually unbelievable. The tumor is undetectable on an MRI scan, which is very unusual," Dr. Harrod said.

Doctors acknowledge the tumor may return, but for now Roxli is just as active as she ever was. For the Doss family, Christmas came a little early this year.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/17/sanders-advisor-meets-with-potential-campaign-staff-in-south-carolina.html
Bernie Sanders advisor meets with potential campaign staff in South Carolina as the senator considers a 2020 run for president

One of Bernie Sanders' key campaign advisors from 2016 visited South Carolina to talk to potential campaign staff in case the Vermont liberal decides to make another run for president.

The wide-ranging discussions included talk about putting together a team in the state if Sanders decides to enter the 2020 Democratic primary, according to people with knowledge of the discussions.

Sanders lost the 2016 South Carolina primary by a large margin, and allies have said he would need to bolster his operations there if he wants to win this time around.

Brian Schwartz | @schwartzbCNBC
Published 23 Hours Ago DECEMBER 19, 2108

Getty Images
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks at a campaign rally for Randy Bryce on February 24, 2018 in Racine, Wisconsin.

One of Sen. Bernie Sanders' key advisors during the 2016 election traveled to the early primary state of South Carolina last week to meet with potential 2020 campaign staff and discuss whether the liberal lawmaker will make another run for president, CNBC has learned.

Robert Becker, the former 2016 Sanders Iowa state director, traveled to Columbia, S.C., and conducted one-on-one meetings with some veteran members of Sanders' previous campaign for the White House, according to three people familiar with the conversations. The wide-ranging discussions included talk about putting together a team in the state if Sanders decides to enter the 2020 Democratic primary, according to people with knowledge of the discussions.

It is not clear, however, whether Becker was operating in an official capacity on behalf of Sanders. Jeff Weaver, who ran Sanders' 2016 campaign, told CNBC that Becker "doesn't work for the campaign because there is no campaign" and that there have been no discussions about bringing him into a potential 2020 campaign.

"I get stories everyday of people trying to run around and talk to people to see if they want to work for Bernie.This is going on all over the place," Weaver said. "It doesn't surprise me there are former employees of Bernie who may also be supportive of Bernie, discussing the idea of him making another run."

Becker did not return repeated requests for comment.

While the first contests of the 2020 election cycle won't happen for more than a year, potential Democratic candidates are already jockeying for position in key states by gauging support among strategists, donors and potential campaign staff. South Carolina – which is slated to hold its primary in February 2020 after Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada – will be crucial in helping the party sort out its eventual nominee to take on President Donald Trump.

The meetings came at a time when Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist who caucuses with Democrats in the Senate, is actively considering another run for president. The leaders of his last campaign are looking to expand their operation after falling to the eventual Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton four years ago. Clinton crushed Sanders in South Carolina, 73 percent to 26 percent, on her way to sweeping the southern states during primary season.

In an interview with CNBC last month, Weaver said a potential new Sanders campaign should have "a more robust political department and even more field staffers" working in states.

"We would need people who can reach out to local grassroots leaders and local elected party officials," he said at the time. Weaver also noted that his team have not opened any field offices at this stage.

Becker appeared to be making moves in this direction with his visit to South Carolina. According to people who spoke with Becker, he seemed to be on unofficial duties for the Sanders team as he gauged interest in putting a team together in South Carolina. One of the people who spoke with him privately warned that the Sanders team will have to improve its state wide operation if they want to win over voters.

"It seemed like he was working with the Bernie team, but unofficially," this person, a former Sanders South Carolina campaign official, told CNBC on the condition of anonymity. "He was definitely gauging interest of people who may want to rejoin the campaign. They can't do do the same thing they did last time if they want a chance in South Carolina."

This person, who is unlikely to work with Sanders this time around, also noted that other 2020 hopefuls have been reaching out to measure interest in joining their organizations. The person would not say which campaigns have called due to ongoing and private negotiations.

Tough road for Sanders in South Carolina

Weaver, the Sanders 2016 campaign manager, conceded that the senator would have to start visiting the state relatively soon and boost his campaign staff in South Carolina if he wants to pull off a victory in what's likely to be a competitive and loaded primary field.

"We would start much earlier then last time. We started relatively late there. If you are running early and have more time, you will be able to build a campaign infrastructure there." Weaver said. A former senior South Carolina campaign official said that Sanders made his way into the state in summer 2015. He announced his candidacy for presidency in April of that year.

During this year's congressional midterm campaign, Sanders made a surprise trip to South Carolina for a rally in support of "Medicare for All." Just two weeks before the elections, Sanders called for an extension to the age limit of Medicare and drew a crowd of over 900 people to the event.

South Carolina is a reliably conservative state, where Republican presidential candidates tend to win by double-digit margins over their Democratic rivals. Trump defeated Clinton by more than 14 percentage points two years ago. But South Carolina is the first southern state on the primary schedule, and a key gauge of potential black voters' support for candidates. Clinton won more than 80 percent of South Carolina's black vote in her 2016 primary battle with Sanders.

Democratic leaders in the state are eager to get the race going.

"The folks here are excited. They are ready and they are looking forward to see all the candidates come through South Carolina," Trav Robertson, the state party chair, told CNBC in an interview. "What we are looking for from our candidate in this state is two things. One is to help our local candidates get elected and the other is for someone who has a clear opportunity to beat Donald Trump."

A spokesman for Sanders' office in Washington, D.C., did not return a request for comment.

Sanders isn't the only potential Democratic presidential candidate gearing up for the primary season.

Strategists close to former Vice President Joe Biden, who has publicly and privately been saying he's yet to decide on whether he will take part in the next presidential election, have been reaching out to potential field staff in the first caucus and primary states of Iowa and New Hampshire, according to two sources with knowledge of the talks. A spokesman for Biden declined to comment.

Senator Cory Booker has also met with operatives in the Granite and Hawkeye states, including Jim Demers, a former state chairman for Barack Obama's campaign.

Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke and his inner circle have had conversations with a variety of party leaders, including Obama, who spoke to the three term congressman after he just lost to Ted Cruz in a battle for his Senate seat. His associates have also heard from members of Obama's New Hampshire and Iowa campaigns.

While South Carolina may be a major hurdle for Sanders to climb, he continues to do well in recent polls of possible candidates, including a CNN survey that saw him garner 14 percent and rank second behind Biden. In a poll released on Saturday asking voters in Iowa who they favor as their nominee, Biden and Sanders were in the lead again.

Brian Schwartz
Politics and Finance Reporter for CNBC.com


HERE WE GO AGAIN. THERE ARE SOME REDOS THAT NEED TO BE MADE ON LITTLE THINGS LIKE HOW TO GET RID OF A REAL VILLAIN IN THE HIGHEST POSITONS OF POWER. THIS IS VERY DISCOURAGING TO ME.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/12/18/dozens-of-complaints-against-brett-kavanaugh-dismissed.html?recirc=taboolainternal
Dozens of 'serious' conduct complaints against Justice Brett Kavanaugh are dismissed because he was confirmed to the Supreme Court

Federal judges reviewing complaints lodged against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh said Tuesday that the allegations against the former federal appeals court judge are "serious."

But they ruled that it must dismiss them without determining their merits because of Kavanaugh's October confirmation by the U.S. Senate.

Judge Timothy Tymkovich wrote that "the complaints must be dismissed because an intervening event — Justice Kavanaugh's confirmation to the Supreme Court — has made the complaints no longer appropriate for consideration under the [Judicial Conduct and Disability Act]."

Tucker Higgins | @tuckerhiggins
Published 21 Hours Ago Updated 18 Mins Ago
DECEMBER 19, 2018

VIDEO -- Dozens of 'serious' conduct complaints against Justice Brett Kavanaugh are dismissed 1:29 DURATION

Federal judges reviewing complaints lodged against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh said Tuesday that the allegations against the former federal appeals court judge are "serious" but that they must dismiss them without determining their merits because of Kavanaugh's October confirmation by the U.S. Senate.

Timothy Tymkovich, the Chief Circuit Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, wrote in an order that "the complaints must be dismissed because an intervening event — Justice Kavanaugh's confirmation to the Supreme Court — has made the complaints no longer appropriate for consideration under the [Judicial Conduct and Disability Act]."

The decision was widely expected.

The Judicial Conduct and Disability Act outlines procedures for filing complaints against federal judges, but the 1980 law does not cover Supreme Court justices.

In the order, Tymkovich said that most of the complaints include allegations of false statements under oath during Kavanaugh's D.C. Circuit confirmation hearings in 2004 and 2006 as well as during his Supreme Court confirmation hearings earlier this year. Kavanaugh, President Donald Trump's second nominee to the top court, was accused of sexual misconduct before he was confirmed. He emphatically denied the allegations.

Tymkovich disclosed copies of the complaints with identifying information redacted on the 10th Circuit's website.

RELATED -- Regulatory agencies will have a lot less power with Kavanaugh on SCOTUS, says expert Regulatory agencies will have a lot less power with Kavanaugh on SCOTUS, says expert
10:31 AM ET Tue, 9 Oct 2018 | 01:24

They included allegations that Kavanaugh "falsely testified about his personal conduct, behavior, and recollection of events" prior to joining the federal judiciary and that he "displayed partisan bias and lack of judicial temperament."

Kavanaugh was dogged by allegations during the confirmation process that he sexually assaulted women decades ago while in high school and college. Christine Blasey Ford, one of the women who accused Kavanaugh of misconduct, testified before Congress that Kavanaugh pinned her down on a bed in the early 1980s, groped her, and attempted to remove her clothing.

Kavanaugh denied all of the allegations against him. In his testimony rebutting Ford's claims, he castigated Democrats for holding up his nomination because they were "fueled with apparent pent-up anger about President Trump and the 2016 election" and seeking "revenge on behalf of the Clintons."

That prompted thousands of law school faculty to sign onto a letter opposing Kavanaugh's confirmation because "he did not display the impartiality and judicial temperament requisite to sit on the highest court of our land."

RELATED -- Brett Kavanaugh an incremental positive for the markets: Expert Brett Kavanaugh an incremental positive for the markets: Expert
6:17 PM ET Mon, 8 Oct 2018 | 06:16

Tymkovich, a George W. Bush appointee, declined to recuse himself from the probe into Kavanaugh after a complaint was filed requesting that he do so. The complaint, Tymkovich said in a separate order, alleged that Kavanaugh advocated for Tymkovich's confirmation.

"The source for the allegations appears to be documents provided to the Senate Judiciary Committee during Justice Kavanaugh's Supreme Court confirmation hearing," Tymkovich wrote. "A search of those documents reveals only that Justice Kavanaugh sent an email shortly after I was confirmed proposing a press release about numerous judicial nominees, one of whom was me."

Tucker Higgins
News Associate


THIS IS ONE OF SEVERAL ARTICLES THIS YEAR ON A WHITE PERSON TAKING IT UPON HIMSELF TO “ENFORCE” THE LOCAL (WHITE) POPULATION’S UNWRITTEN LAW AGAINST INTEGRATION, THESE 60 YEARS SINCE THE CIVIL RIGHTS ISSUE WAS SETTLED. THINGS LIKE THIS HAVE HAPPENED MORE SINCE PRESIDENT TRUMP’S OUTRAGEOUS CAMPAIGN AND ESPECIALLY HIS ELECTION. IT SADDENS ME. WATCH THIS VIDEO.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/stephanie-sebby-strempel-pool-patrol-paula-pleads-guilty-to-assaulting-black-teen-at-pool/
White woman dubbed "Pool Patrol Paula" pleads guilty to assaulting black teen at pool
UPDATED ON: DECEMBER 11, 2018 / 11:32 AM / CBS/AP

PHOTOGRAPH -- Stephanie Sebby-Strempel was caught on camera
RHE CAPERS
VIDEO – BLACK TEEN SPEAKS AFTER POOL ATTACK
VIDEO – CBS THIS MORNING 4:21 DURATION

SUMMERVILLE, S.C. -- A white South Carolina woman who was dubbed "Pool Patrol Paula" has pleaded guilty to assault and battery for hitting a black teenager and telling him to leave a community swimming pool. News outlets report that 38-year-old Stephanie Sebby-Strempel pleaded guilty Monday to the June assault and was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine.

Sebby-Strempel had told the 15-year-old boy, Darshaun RocQuemore Simmons, that he didn't belong at the Summerville pool, according to a Dorchester County sheriff's report.

Simmons, who goes by DJ, told CBS News in July he was invited to the pool by a friend when Sebby-Stremple approached him. He said she verbally and physically assaulted him and forced him to leave.

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Stephanie Sebby-Strempel was caught on camera
RHE CAPERS

"This lady walked up to us and was like ya'll have to leave," Simmons said. "We said, 'Yes ma'am.' When I started walking out she just started hitting me. ... It was shocking."

"She called me the N-word and she called me a punk," he said.

Cellphone video posted online showed video Sebby-Strempel yelling and hitting him.

The woman later resisted arrest, shoving one detective into a wall and biting another hard enough to break skin. She was fired from her job.

First published on December 11, 2018

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.


MEN SUPPORTING MEN AT ANY COST. MAYBE WOMEN NEED TO HIT THE STREETS IN LARGE NUMBERS AGAIN. THE PRESIDENT AT UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS DID TAKE DECISIVE ACTION AGAINST THIS PROBABLY WEALTHY AND BAPTIST YOUNG VILLAIN, BUT BAYLOR IS ON MY BAD GUYS LIST. I ESPECIALLY HATE IT WHEN MONETARY POWER CAUSES A RELIGIOUS GROUP TO ACCEPT A PHILOSOPHY OF CORRUPTION AS SEEMS TO HAVE OCCURRED IN THIS CASE. LOOK AT THE TIES OF THE JUDGE, PROSECUTORS AND OTHERS WITH BAYLOR. THAT ISN’T JUST MY OPINION, EITHER, BUT THAT OF TWO OR MORE OF THE WRITERS OF THE SERIES OF STORIES THAT ARE HERE. AT LEAST BREEZE THROUGH AS MANY OF THESE STORIES ON RAPE AND THE UNIVERSITY WOMAN, ESPECIALLY AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY, AS YOU CAN DIGEST AT ONE TIME. THERE ARE 5 OR 6, AND EACH IS SIMILAR AND ALSO DIFFERENT, SO THEY SHOULD COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER.

THERE’S NOTHING TO REQUIRE THAT ANDERSON WON’T BE ALLOWED TO PROCEED UNIMPEDED AFTER THIS SITUATION BLOWS OVER, THOUGH, SO HE HAS IN EFFECT WON. HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN REQUIRED TO REGISTER AS A SEX OFFENDER, AT LEAST FOR A PERIOD OF TIME, FIVE OR SIX YEARS MAYBE.

SEE ALSO THE STORY BELOW THIS ABOUT THE JUDGE WHO GAVE THE RULING AND HIS CONNECTION TO BAYLOR.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jacob-anderson-former-baylor-student-accused-of-rape-banned-from-university-of-texas-at-dallas-campus-following-uproar/
Student accused of rape banned from campus following uproar
UPDATED ON: DECEMBER 13, 2018 / 11:00 AM / CBS NEWS

Dallas – A University of Texas at Dallas student was banned from campus following a day of uproar and a petition that swelled to more than 23,000 signatures, CBS DFW reports. Jacob Anderson, a 23-year-old former fraternity president at Baylor University who was accused of raping a teenage sophomore in 2016, avoided serving jail time after a controversial plea deal this week.

He has been attending UT Dallas since he left Baylor and was set to graduate.

On Wednesday, UT Dallas President Richard Benson released a statement saying, "Based on recent court action and other information over the last several days, that student will not participate in UTD commencement activities, will not attend UT Dallas graduate school and will not be present on campus as a student or a guest."

"I am grateful to the UT Dallas students, faculty and other community members who have shared their concerns, disappointments and outrage over this student's presence on our campus," he added.

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Statement from University of Texas at Dallas President Richard C. Benson:

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Anderson was indicted on sexual assault charges in 2016 and pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of unlawful restraint. A no contest plea means a defendant does not admit guilt but will offer no defense.

The judge in the case, Ralph Strother, said Anderson must undergo counseling and pay a $400 fine. He faces three years of deferred probation but will not have to register as a sex offender.

First published on December 13, 2018

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


JUDGE STROTHER – THIS ARTICLE SAYS THAT STROTHER HAS A HISTORY OF GIVING LIGHT SENTENCES FOR BAYLOR STUDENTS. JUST BAYLOR? ARE THEY BY ANY CHANCE LAW STUDENTS? DOES THE JUDGE HAVE A FRIENDLY DEAL WITH THE UNIVERSITY TO KEEP IT’S NAME CLEAN? WHAT OTHER CASES ARE THERE THAT STROTHER DECIDED? WHAT TYPE OF “UNLAWFUL RESTRAINT” WAS INVOLVED? NORMALLY THAT TERM IS USED AS AN ADD ON TO A RAPE OR OTHER CRIMINAL CASE, BUT HERE IT IS THE ONLY CHARGE.

THIS JUDGE NEEDS TO BE REMOVED FROM THE BENCH, AND THE LAW THAT ALLOWS SUCH AN INTERPRETATION SHOULD BE TIGHTENED UP CONSIDERABLY. SEE THE ARTICLE BELOW ON “UNLAWFUL RESTRAINT." IT IS LIKE THE DREAM WHIP THAT REPLACED REAL WHIPPED CREAM YEARS AGO. AH, BUT I REMEMBER THE REAL THING. DREAM WHIP HAS THE TEXTURE AND THE COLOR, BUT NOT THE TASTE OR THE WEIGHT.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jacob-anderson-case-judge-who-approved-no-jail-time-for-baylor-university-student-accused-of-rape-history-of-light-sentences/
CBS NEWS December 11, 2018, 9:19 AM
Judge who approved no jail time for alleged Baylor rapist allowed light sentences in similar cases

A former Baylor University fraternity president accused of raping a teenage sophomore in 2016 will avoid jail time after pleading to a lesser charge in a deal approved by a judge who has allowed light sentences in other cases involving sexual assault allegations.

The judge in this case, Ralph Strother*, said 23-year-old Jacob Anderson must undergo counseling and pay a $400 fine. Anderson initially faced years in prison and having to register for life as a sex offender. Under the deal with prosecutors, he pleaded no contest to one charge of unlawful restraint*. Anderson now faces three years of deferred probation but will not have to register as a sex offender.

This is at least the third time judge Strother has approved probation for men accused of sexually assaulting Baylor students. One was after a guilty plea in a 2013 rape case and another earlier this year included a 30-day jail sentence served on weekends.

Anderson's alleged victim said she's "devastated" and her supporters are worried about the message it will send. She told police in 2016 the former Baylor fraternity president repeatedly raped her at an off-campus house party where alcohol was served. She said he gagged and choked her until she lost consciousness.

Following Monday's plea agreement the woman, known as "Donna Doe," addressed the judge in court saying, "I am devastated by your decision…he stole my…virginity and power over my body and you let him keep it for all eternity."

Baylor graduate student Erin Albin started an online petition expressing outrage over the deal that has already gathered more than 85,000 signatures.

"I think people are finally realizing this is a problem and that survivors aren't taken seriously…We see time and time again, everything from the national level down to the local level of a lot of people, mainly men, getting away with things like this," Albin said.

In a statement Monday, prosecutor Hilary LaBorde said Anderson's plea deal was "the best outcome given the facts of the case. Conflicting evidence and statements exist…making the original allegation difficult to prove beyond a reasonable doubt." She said all the facts must be considered and there's information that hasn't been made public.

"In these type of cases unless you've had a body cam on both of these individuals from start to finish recording not only the video but the audio, none of these cases will ever be cut and dried," former prosecutor Vinoo Varghese said.

In court, the judge said there is a lot of information the public doesn't know about in this case. We have reached out to the judge to find out more but he has not responded to our calls and emails.

In Texas the charge of unlawful restraint is a third-degree felony, meaning Anderson faced a possible sentence of two to 10 years if convicted of that charge.

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


“UNLAWFUL RESTRAINT*” --
https://www.quora.com/What-constitutes-unlawful-restraint

What constitutes unlawful restraint?

George M. Zuganelis

George M. Zuganelis, Happily Retired and Recovering Attorney at Law - Nothing I Say Is Legal Advice (1978-present)

Answered Jun 12, 2017 · Author has 1.2k answers and 226.2k answer views

Unlawful restrain, in Illinois, is restraining someone from going from one place to another while the restrainer is committing a crime. It’s most often used as an add on charge in rape cases, robbery cases, aggravated assault with a gun, etc.

134 Views

JUDGE RALPH STROTHER*

https://www.kcentv.com/article/news/local/should-judge-ralph-strother-resign-legal-expert-liz-mitchell-weighs-in/500-623772782

LOCAL
Should Judge Ralph Strother resign? Legal expert Liz Mitchell weighs in
A legal expert weighs in as after a petition calls for McLennan County Judge Ralph Strother to resign days after he accepted a plea deal offered to a former Baylor fraternity president accused of rape.
Author: Andrew Moore
Published: 10:46 PM CST December 16, 2018
Updated: 9:27 AM CST December 17, 2018

WACO, Texas — An online petition calling for McLennan County Judge Ralph Strother to resign has nearly 50,000 signatures a week after he accepted a plea deal offered to former Baylor fraternity president Jacob Anderson who was accused of rape.

Under the plea deal, Anderson will serve three years probation, pay a $400 fine, and attend counseling.

But did Strother do anything to warrant a resignation? KCEN Channel 6 legal expert, Liz Mitchell, weighs in.

Did Judge Strother have the power to break the plea deal?

Mitchell: "It is. It is within the judge's power."

Would Judge Strother have a reason to break the deal?

Mitchell: "The judge is neutral. He doesn't have a dog in the fight, so to speak. And it's important to note, the judge does not know all the facts of the case until he hears the case. During the plea, things might have been brought to his attention about issues with the case as to why it was reduced to a lesser included offense, however, the judge is not doing any investigating."

When would a judge typically reject a plea deal?

Mitchell: "You see that often when a defendant is wavering or not as to whether they are truly guilty. If in the process of taking the plea bargain the defendant starts making statements about how they are not really guilty, how they are innocent, then the judge cannot in good faith accept the plea. If both sides have come to an agreement that they think is fair and just, more times than not the judge is going to feel inclined to plead the case and move it off of the docket."

Why should the judge not "second guess" the prosecutor?

Mitchell: "(With) all of this pressure for the judge to reject the plea deal, like I said, the judge doesn't know all the evidence surrounding this case that the district attorney's office does. The judge hasn't conducted any outside investigation and thoroughly vetted witnesses, looked through victim statements, read prior inconsistent statements like the district attorney's office has.

Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the KCENTV app now!


LOOK AT THE “WEASEL WORDS” IN THIS DA’S COMMENTS ABOUT JUDGE STROTHER. "FROM MY KNOWLEDGE ... IT WOULD BE MY OPINION ... I WOULD THINK.”

https://www.kwtx.com/content/news/Waco--DA-elect-defends-embattled-judge-502974181.html
Waco: DA-elect defends embattled judge
Updated: Mon 5:15 PM, Dec 17, 2018

PHOTOGRAPH -- Barry Johnson. (Campaign photo/file)

WACO, Texas (KWTX) Incoming McLennan County District Attorney Barry Johnson, who takes office in January, is defending embattled State District Judge Ralph Strother, who is under fire for accepting a plea deal in a sexual assault case involving an ex-Baylor fraternity president.

Johnson declined Monday to comment on the plea bargain arrangement, but did defend Strother.

"From my knowledge Judge Strother is straight as an arrow (who) has integrity beyond reproach,” he said.

“He had a difficult decision to make (and) it would be my opinion that Judge Strother looked at that case very carefully.”

"My father was a judge here for 40 years and Judge Strother even mentored under him, I would think he took into consideration all of the facts before making his decision on Anderson," Johnson said.

On Dec. 10, Strother accepted the state’s plea agreement and sentenced Jacob Walter Anderson, 24, to three years on deferred probation, which if he completes will leave him without a criminal record.

Anderson, on Oct. 15, pleaded no contest to the charge, a third-degree felony, after Assistant District Attorney Hilary LaBorde and Anderson’s defense counsel reached a plea agreement.

In May 2016, Anderson was indicted on four counts of sexual assault in connection with an alleged rape in February 2015 in which the victim was left lying outside unconscious.

Since the sentencing Monday, Strother said, he has received a large number of emails attacking him and his family including one whose writer expressed a hope for his “premature death.”


https://heavy.com/news/2018/12/judge-ralph-strother/
Judge Ralph Strother: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
PHOTOGRAPH -- Judge Ralph Strother allowed accused rapist Jacob Walter Anderson to escape jail time. McLennan County Jail/KWTX screenshot
By Igor Derysh
Updated Dec 11, 2018 at 4:20pm

Judge Ralph Strother is a Texas judge under fire for allowing former Baylor frat president Jacob Walter Anderson escape prison time after he was charged with raping a teenage student.

Anderson, the 23-year-old former head of Baylor’s Phi Delta Theta fraternity, was charged with sexually assaulting a sophomore at an off-campus party in February of 2016 when the alleged victim was 19, The Waco Tribune-Herald reported.

Strother allowed Anderson to serve no jail time after accepting his plea bargain. Prosecutors agreed to allow Anderson to plead no contest to a third-degree felony charge of unlawful restraint and receive deferred probation and pay a $400 fine. He will not have to register as a sex offender after prosecutors agreed to drop four counts of sexual assault.

Anderson’s victim cried loudly in court as Strother accepted the plea deal. She criticized Strother, prosecutor Hilary LaBorde, who agreed to the deal, and McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna, who did not attend the hearing.

“If I had the courage to come back to Waco and face my rapist and testify, you could at least have had enough respect for me to show up today,” she said. “You both will have to live with this decision to let a rapist run free in society without any warning to future victims. I wonder if you will have nightmares every night watching Jacob rape me over and over again?”

Anderson now attends the University of Texas at Dallas and works for a real estate development company in Dallas.

Here’s what you need to know:

1. Judge Ralph Strother Said Public Opinions on The Case Were ‘Totally Uninformed’

The accuser said that Anderson sexually assaulted her at a frat party in 2016. She said that Anderson offered her a drink that made her feel sick. When he took her outside to get some air, he assaulted her, she said.

She added that she went “completely unconscious” before Anderson “dumped me face down in the dirt and left me there to die” while she was “half-naked.”

Anderson faced four counts of sexual assault but prosecutors agreed to let him plead “no contest” to a much lesser charge that will allow him to avoid prison and registering as a sex offender. He will instead only be required to serve three years of probation,The Waco Tribune-Herald reported

Prior to handing down his decision to accept the plea deal, Strother acknowledged that the case had drawn added media attention and added that not much about this case has been normal.”

He said that most of the public comments he had received via email and saw on social media were “not fully informed, misinformed or totally uninformed.”

2. Jacob Anderson’s Accuser Told the Court, ‘He Raped Me and Left Me To Die’

The Waco Tribune-Herald reported that the victim cried loudly in court as Strother handed down the decision and urged him to let her have her day in court.

In a victim impact statement, she told Strother that she was devastated that he approved the bargain. She also critcized prosecutor Hilary LaBorde, who agreed to the deal with Anderson, and called out McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna for not attending the hearing.

“If I had the courage to come back to Waco and face my rapist and testify, you could at least have had enough respect for me to show up today,” she said. “You both will have to live with this decision to let a rapist run free in society without any warning to future victims. I wonder if you will have nightmares every night watching Jacob rape me over and over again?”

She also addressed Anderson, detailing her allegations in graphic detail.

“Jacob Walter Anderson. It must be horrible to be you,” she said. “To know what you did to me. To know you are a rapist. To know that you almost killed me. To know that you ruined my life, stole my virginity and stole many other things from me.”

“When I was completely unconscious, he dumped me face down in the dirt and left me there to die,” the statement added. “He had taken what he wanted, had proven his power over my body. He then walked home and went to bed without a second thought to the ravaged, half-dead woman he had left behind.”

“I wonder if other women in Waco will report their rapes if Jacob Anderson gets this plea? Why would they bother?” she wrote.

LaBorde said in a public statement that she believed the plea deal was the “best outcome given the facts of the case,” NBC News reported.

“Given the claims made public, I understand why people are upset. However, all of the facts must be considered and there are many facts the public does not have,” LaBorde said. “In approving this agreement, Judge Strother had access to all the statements that have ever been made by all people involved and agreed that the plea agreement offered was appropriate in this case.”

3. Strother & Prosecutor Hilary LaBorde Have Faced Public Outrage for Their Handling of the Case

After the ruling, the accuser’s attorney, Vic Feazell, said in a statement to NBC News that “our entire system failed this young woman. In 40 years of law practice, I’ve never seen anything like this.”

LaBorde defended he decision by citing another similar case that resulted in an acquittal.

“[The jury] engaged in a lot of victim blaming — and the behavior of that victim and [this victim] is very similar,” she wrote. “It’s my opinion that our jurors aren’t ready to blame rapists and not victims when there isn’t concrete proof of more than one victim.”

Paul Cassell, a former federal prosecutor who is now a law professor at the University of Utah, slammed LaBorde’s decision to The Washington Post.

“The prosecutor’s own evaluation of the case make clear that she is relying on an inappropriate consideration – specifically a prospective juror’s likely belief in ‘rape myths*’ – in striking this remarkable deal,” he said. “Given the violence alleged, this is not a split-the-difference case. Either the victim was forcibly raped or not – pick one or the other. It’s hard to understand why the prosecutor can somehow propose to view the facts through rose-colored glasses as some sort of low-level sexual misconduct appropriate for a probationary sentence.”

The victim’s mother also rejected LaBorde’s claims in an interview with The Waco Tribune-Herald.

“She never told us about that (first) one, and she had not even spoken to the witnesses or even read the Title IX report yet,” the woman’s mother said. “She never bothered to put one ounce of effort into this case. She led (the victim) on and put her through this knowing she was going to betray her the whole time.”

4. Strother Has a History of Light Sentences for Accused Rapists

CBC News Alerts
✔
@CBCAlerts
· Dec 10, 2018
Texas judge accepts plea bargain allowing man accused of repeatedly raping a woman at a Baylor University party to avoid serving jail time. Jacob Walter Anderson pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of unlawful restraint and has agreed to seek counselling and pay a $400 fine.


CBC News Alerts
✔
@CBCAlerts
This marks at least the 3rd time Judge Ralph Strother has approved probation for men accused of sexually assaulting students at Baylor University, a private Christian university in Waco, Texas.

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In 2016, Strother similarly sentenced a man to deferred probation after he pleaded guilty to raping a former Baylor University student in 2013 while she was drunk. Strother ordered the man to pay for the victim’s counseling, The New York Daily News reported.

Earlier this year, Strother sentenced a man to felony probation for sexually assaulting a former Baylor student who the man claimed consented. Strother’s punishment included 30 days in jail, but the man was allowed to serve the time on weekends while he pursued a degree at the University of Texas.

5. More Than 90,000 People Haved Signed a Petition Protesting the Ruling

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Christina Bauert
@christina4media
Petition to convince McLennan Co judge to reject Jacob Anderson's plea deal is taking off. As of Saturday evening almost 11,000 people have signed the petition.

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More than 93,000 people have signed a petition started by Baylor graduate student Erin Albin to protest the decision.

“By agreeing to this plea, (prosecutor Hilary LaBorde and the McLennan County DA’s office have allowed that rape is not longer a crime in Texas,” the petition says.

“They are telling the rapists and sexual predators ‘Go ahead and violently rape, choke to near death, and abandon your unconscious, ravaged and used-up victim and we will make sure you get some counseling. Even if a grand jury indicts you on four counts of sexual assault, we don’t care,’” the page says.


OKAY. SO THERE ARE MANY WAYS THAT JURY BIAS CAN SKEW A DECISION. THAT IS NO REASON NOT TO PRESS THE CHARGES. DON'T COUNT THE CHICKENS BEFORE THEY HATCH. IF YOU DO LOSE, THEN VIEW IT IS A GOOD DEED THAT CAN BE USED TO BALANCE OUT OUR BAD. THESE WHITE WASHES HAVE BEEN GOING ON SINCE I'VE BEEN WATCHING POLITICS IN THE 1960S. JUST BECAUSE HUMANS ARE BOTH GOOD AND EVIL DOESN'T MEAN THAT WE CAN GIVE UP TRYING -- NOT IN AMERICA.

“rape myths*”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_myth
Rape myth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rape myths are prejudicial, stereotyped and false beliefs about sexual assaults, rapists, and rape victims. They often serve to excuse sexual aggression, create hostility toward victims, and bias criminal prosecution.[1][2][3]

Extensive research has been conducted about types, acceptance, and impact of rape myths.[4] Rape myths significantly influence the perspectives of jurors, investigative agencies, judges, perpetrators, and victims.[5] False views about rape lead to victim blaming, shaming, questioning of the victim's honesty, and other problems. Determination of the guilt of the accused, and sentencing for sexual crimes, are also influenced by these beliefs.[6][page needed]

Development of the concept
Rape myths originate from various cultural stereotypes, such as traditional gender roles, acceptance of interpersonal violence, and misunderstanding the nature of sexual assault.[1]

Rape myths first became a topic of research during the 1970s, when a number of studies and books explored the concept.[7][8][9] In 1974, for example, feminist writer Susan Brownmiller decried "male myths of rape" which "deliberately obscure the true nature of rape" in her book Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape.[7] The same year, criminologists Julia and Herman Schwendinger studied common misconceptions about rape, including the notion that rape was impossible - i.e., that any woman who really wanted to could prevent a rape - the idea victims of rape were "asking for it," and the idea that men rape because of "uncontrollable passions." They termed these misconceptions "sexist myths" which "influence the treatment of women victims."[9] Both Brownmiller's work and the Schwendingers' study suggested that rape myths perpetuated male violence against women by placing blame on the victim, excusing the rapist, and minimizing or justifying the act of rape.[10]

Common rape myths

Common rape myths may include:

That women commonly or routinely lie about rape.[15][16][17][11][18][10][19][20]
That what the victim is wearing can lead to a sexual assault, or that rape is the victim's fault if they wore revealing clothes.[15][11][18][21][22][1][23][19]
That victims bear responsibility for an assault if they were intoxicated when it happened.[15][24][25][26]
That most rapes are committed by strangers.[16][17][21][27] (In reality, most rapes are committed by friends, family, or other individuals known to the victim.)[28][5][29][20]
That when a male pays for a dinner or date, a woman is expected to reciprocate with intercourse.[15][16][18]
That women who are raped often deserve it - particularly if they entered a man's home or got in his car, or that such actions indicate consent to sex.[16][1][19]
That it is not rape unless the victim fights/physically resists, or that it is not rape unless the victim is physically coerced or injured.[30][16][21][23] (In reality, many rapes do not involve physical coercion, as in cases where the victim is impaired/unconscious, or where an unequal power relationship forces the victim to submit.)[31][32][33][30]
That a woman should be able to avoid rape by "fighting off" the rapist, and that she has the responsibility to do so.[5][1]
That some women secretly want to be raped.[17][21][19][20]
That it is impossible to rape one's wife or intimate partner.[17][21][19]
That rape is simply unwanted sex, not a violent crime.[17]
That women "ask for" rape - for example, by flirting, dressing provocatively, consuming alcohol or behaving promiscuously[1] - or that only certain "kinds of" women (i.e., "bad girls") are raped.[11][1][10][34][19][20]
That men are unable to control themselves once they become sexually excited, that women are responsible for rape if they allow things to go too far,[16][21][23] or that consent to kissing, petting, etc. constitutes consent to intercourse.[35]
That women commonly falsely allege rape out of spite, to overcome guilt after a sexual encounter they regret, to cover up an unwanted pregnancy, or for attention.[21][23]
That rape is primarily sexually motivated. (Many researchers have suggested that power and/or anger, not sex, are often the dominant motivator of rapes).[27][36]
That most rapists are psychotic or mentally ill.[36][19][20]
That consent to one sexual encounter constitutes consent to another (i.e., that it cannot be rape if the victim and rapist have previously had consensual sex).[35]
That "real" victims report rape immediately. (In reality, victims often don't report rapes immediately due to societal pressure, possible backlash, and trauma such as rape related post traumatic stress disorder, also known as rape trauma syndrome. Victims of rape may also feel feelings of guilt and shame which deter them from reporting the crime, or doing so promptly.)[37][38][3][39][40][41]

Rape myths involving male victims

Most of the rape myths listed above deal with the rape of women by men. There has been less research on perceptions of rapes of male victims, whether by women or by other men. The following have been identified:[42] Rape myths can stem from the media and are largely held by the general population. Research suggests that a common myth is that men experience little trauma when perpetrated by a woman.[43]

That being raped by a male attacker is synonymous with the loss of masculinity.
That men who are sexually assaulted by men must be gay.
That men are incapable of functioning sexually unless they are sexually aroused.
That men cannot be forced to have sex against their will.
That men are less affected by sexual assault than women.
That men are in a constant state of readiness to accept any sexual opportunity.
That a man is expected to be able to defend himself against sexual assault.
They may also include the following beliefs:[44][42]

"Denial": That male rape does not exist.
"Blame": That male rape is victim's fault.
"Trauma": That men are less traumatized by the rape.
The latter two categories show higher myth acceptance in the case when the perpetrator is a female.[44][42]

Problems arising out of rape myths

The prevalence of rape myths is a major reason for rape victim blaming and stigmatization.[2][3] Rape myths can cause victims of rape to blame themselves for their rape, or to not report their assault, and they can also shape the responses of judges and juries, causing a negative impact on rape victims.[19] Some studies have shown that police officers are often distrustful of rape victims' account of their victimization, and that many of them believe some common rape myths.[17][45][46]

Due to reported higher rape myth acceptance among males than females, as well as because of other gender-based differences in perceptions and standpoints, one analysis by Patricia Yancey Martin, John R. Reynolds and Shelley Keith suggested that "a judiciary made up solely of men differs from one made up of more equal proportions of women and men".[23][47] This commentary is furthered by the writings of Mallios and Meisner, who state that rape myth acceptance is problematic in judicial settings. They assert that voir dire can be used to curb jury bias related to preconceived notions regarding rape.[48] This problem is further heightened by the fact that investigative agencies, various participants in the Legal System, and points of contacts for rape victims, for example the nearest doctor, are likelier to be male, than female. The 2015 book Asking for It by Kate Harding talks about common rape myths and about the differences between male and female rapes. One in five women and one in seventy-one men in the United States will find out what it's like to be raped, according to Harding. She writes, "Women are no more important than any other potential victims, but we are the primary targets of the messages and myths that sustain rape culture. ... Anyone can be raped, but men aren't conditioned to live in terror of it, not are they constantly warned that their clothing, travel choices, alcohol consumption, and expressions of sexuality are likely to bring violations upon them."[49]:19

Such stereotypes reduce the inclination of victims to report instances of rape, harassment, and assault. This reduced reporting of crimes might present a rosy picture and would further the problem, by leading to beliefs that these crimes that are reported are fake, false, or unlikely to be true.[citation needed]

In Asking for It, Harding writes of rape that "we tend not to treat it as a serious crime unless there's simultaneously evidence of another one".[49]:11 The author also quotes psychologist David Lisak. He says that "Ultimately, only a tiny handful of rapists ever serve time for rape, a shocking outcome given that we view rape as close kin to murder in the taxonomy of violent crime".[49]:11

Rape myth acceptance

Measures

In 1980, Martha R. Burt introduced the Rape Myth Acceptance Scale (RMA, or RMAS).[1][50] The scale was the first method for measuring an individual's level of belief in rape myths, and became the most widely used.[10] Using Burt's method, rape myth acceptance is measured by asking subjects 19 questions. The first 10 questions each consist of a statement which suggests that rape victims are responsible for their own rape, and ask the subject to assess its truthfulness, rating each statement on a seven-point scale from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree." The 11th statement tests for the inverse of this idea, asking whether or not it is true that any woman can be raped. The remaining questions ask test subjects to guess the proportion of reported rapes that are false, and assess whether they are more or less likely to believe a rape victim based on the victim's personal characteristics (for example, their gender, their race or ethnicity, their age, or their relationship to the test subject).[50]

Burt's original study concluded that many Americans believed in rape myths. More than half of the individuals sampled in her original survey had agreed that "a woman who goes to the home or apartment of a man" on the first date "implies she is willing to have sex," and that in the majority of rapes "the victim was promiscuous or had a bad reputation." More than half of Burt's respondents had suggested 50% or more of reported rapes were reported "only because the woman was trying to get back at a man" or "trying to cover up an illegitimate pregnancy."[1]

Another measure is the 45-item Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale (IRMA), developed by Diana L. Payne, Kimberly A. Lonsway, and Louise F. Fitzgerald in 1999.[10] They concluded that "rape myth acceptance is most adequately conceptualized as consisting of both a general component and seven distinct myth components: She asked for it; It wasn’t really rape; He didn’t mean to; She really wanted it; She lied; Rape is a trivial event; and Rape is a deviant event"[10]

The developers of IRMA analysed responses to a pool of 95 statements about rape to create their scale.[10]

Based on the Illinois Rape Myth Acceptance Scale, the Chinese Rape Myth Acceptance Scale (CMRA) is a culturally-specific myth scale that measures acceptance of rape myths in Chinese society. The scale operates under a culturally-adapted definition of rape, specifically, in China the legal definition of rape makes no provision for marital rape and does not apply to male victims. Additionally, the definition excludes “types of coercive sexual behavior, such as other forms of penetrative sex, including oral sex, anal sex, and penetrations of the vagina or anus by other body parts like fingers or other objects.” The CRMA retains 25 of 45 items from the IRMA scale and produces a five-factor structure. These myth component factors are: rape victims want to be raped; rape allegations are often false; rape must involve violence; victims are responsible for being raped; and, the motivation to rape is understandable.[51]

Media influence on rape myth acceptance

A 2013 online survey of freshmen at a northwestern university[which?] in the United States suggested that women who consumed mainstream sports programming were more likely to accept rape myths, while for both men and women exposure to sports programming decreased the likelihood they would express an intention to intervene if they saw a sexual assault.[52] Another survey[which?] carried out online on a research panel in 2011 found that watching soap operas is associated with higher rape myth acceptance, while the reverse was true of watching crime shows.[53]


Assistant District Attorney Hilary LaBorde

https://dfw.cbslocal.com/2018/12/15/baylor-rape-case-uproar/
Baylor Ties Pervade Rape Case That Sparked Uproar
December 15, 2018 at 2:42 pmFiled Under:Baylor University, Emma Wood, Jacob Walter Anderson, Judge Ralph Strother, Prosecutor Hilary LaBorde, rape, Waco

DALLAS (AP) — The Texas judge who approved a plea deal allowing a former Baylor University student accused of rape to avoid jail time holds three degrees from Baylor. The criminal district attorney overseeing the case holds two. The prosecutor who agreed to the plea agreement graduated from Baylor law school.

Local leaders said those connections to the world’s largest Baptist university cast doubt on the handling of the criminal case against ex-Phi Delta Theta president Jacob Walter Anderson, who was accused of repeatedly raping a woman outside a 2016 fraternity party.

Anderson was indicted on sexual assault charges, but the agreement allowed him to plead no contest to unlawful restraint. He must seek counseling and pay a $400 fine but will not have to register as a sex offender. His lawyers say a statement from the woman, which she read in court, is riddled with misrepresentations and distortions. Prosecutors have defended the plea deal.

The case has some similarities to that of ex-Stanford swimmer Brock Turner, who was convicted of sexual assault and sentenced to six month in jail.

While community leaders in Waco said they do not believe or have proof of collusion in the Texas case, they said it shows a failure of the local legal system and reflects a larger culture where preferential treatment is given to people with status in the Baylor community.

“It seems that Waco just shoots itself in the foot just time and time again,” said Mary Duty, a lifelong resident of the Waco area and chair of the McLennan County Democratic Party.

Duty said Judge Ralph Strother, who presided in the Anderson case, was known in the community as a nice and decent man. She said the sentencing goes “completely against the grain” of his reputation and left many disappointed.

The unwelcome attention hit Baylor about two years after a sexual assault scandal surrounding the football program engulfed the school, leading to the firing of then-football coach Art Briles, resignation of the Athletic Director Ian McCaw and the demotion of the university’s president, Ken Starr, who later resigned. Baylor has reached settlements with several women who say they were sexually assaulted by football players and their stories were ignored.

The local legal system also has been tarred by the handling of a 2015 shootout involving rival biker clubs and police in Waco that left nine bikers dead. McLennan County Criminal District Attorney Abel Reyna brought charges against more than a hundred bikers. He was ousted by voters in the Republican primary in March. At that time he had failed to convict anyone for the killings. He will leave office at the end of the year.

The Baylor ties run deep in Waco — a city of about 136,000 people located between Austin and Dallas bolstered by the economic impact of the university. Baylor has more than 20,000 students, faculty and staff in Texas. Nearly one of every five employed people in Waco work in education and health services, according to September figures from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Mark Osler, a former Baylor law professor who left in 2010, said a county with prosecutors and judges from the same background can create a dangerous situation where bias could occur. It’s better, he said, to have diversity in background and employ people not tied to Baylor.

Judge Strother completed his undergraduate degree at Baylor in 1965 and received his law degree in 1982. Strother also received a master’s degree in political science from the university in 1967.

Criminal District Attorney Reyna holds two degrees from the university and graduated from the law school in 1997.

In an affidavit filed last year, Reyna’s former top assistant accused him of giving preferential treatment to political supporters, dismissing criminal cases for friends and major campaign donors.

Prosecutor Hilary LaBorde, who agreed to the plea deal, graduated from the Baylor law school in 2002. LaBorde has faced criticism over an email in which she suggested jurors would take Anderson’s side because there was only one alleged victim. Texas prosecutors have recognized LaBorde for her expertise in sex-crime cases and she won sexual assault convictions against two football players during the school’s scandal.

LaBorde defended the plea deal in a statement, saying conflicting accounts and evidence made the original accusation difficult to prove “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

“As a prosecutor, my goal is no more victims,” she said. “I believe that is best accomplished when there is a consequence rather than an acquittal.”

Baylor student Paige Hardy, an advocate on campus for survivors of sexual abuse, said the university did the right thing in the Anderson case, expelling him after an investigation and suspending the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. But she said the outcome of the criminal case was “a slap in the face.”

“It’s like, well what did we even learn from our mistakes? What did we even learn from the football scandals?” she said.

While Baylor has moved forward and improved the reporting process for sexual assault, Baylor’s problems stem in part from a “toxic evangelical” narrative, Hardy said, referring to its Baptist roots.

“You have these donors and these administrators who often times don’t want to address the fact that students are having sex and students are drinking,” she said.

Waco clinical psychologist Emma Wood, who used to work at the Baylor counseling center, said her clients come to her because of the sexual and spiritual trauma they’ve experienced at the university and at large churches in the area.

“I see a lot of trauma survivors,” said Wood, who left the university and reached a settlement with the administration over claims of discrimination and sexism. “In fact, that’s the majority of my case load.”

(© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)


THIS STORY DISTURBS ME, BECAUSE WHILE I DON’T CARE FOR TRUMP, IT SOUNDS LIKE A LIE ON THE PART OF THE ACTOR CHRISTIAN BALE TO ME. AS STORIES GO, IT’S JUST TOO BIZARRE. HE SHOULD RETRACT THE STATEMENT. IT’S UNPROVEN AND ALMOST CERTAINLY UNTRUE.

IF IT IS TRUE, PUBLISHING IT IN THE NEWS IS NOT THE WAY TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM, BECAUSE THERE IS A REAL “PROBLEM” OF NATIONAL SECURITY INVOLVED. FIRST, PROVE IT, AND SECOND, TAKE IT TO CONGRESS AND NOT THE NEWS. THIS LOOKS A BIT LIKE A DESIRE FOR SOME MORE AND BETTER PRESS ON BALE’S PART.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/donald-trump-thought-christian-bale-was-actually-bruce-wayne-when-they-met/
Christian Bale says Trump thought he was actually Bruce Wayne when they met
BY SOPHIE LEWIS
UPDATED ON: DECEMBER 12, 2018 / 3:36 PM / CBS NEWS

How would you react if you came face to face with Christian Bale dressed for his role in a Batman movie? Apparently, it happened once to Donald Trump, and Bale found the future president's reaction "quite entertaining."

Bale says he met Mr. Trump back in 2011 while filming a scene for "The Dark Knight Rises" at Trump Tower. Bale shared the hilarious tale with Variety at the red carpet premiere of "Vice," in which he stars as former Vice President Dick Cheney.

"I met him, one time," Bale told Variety's Marc Malkin of Mr. Trump. "We were filming on 'Batman' in Trump Tower and he said, 'Come on up to the office.'"

"I think he thought I was Bruce Wayne, because I was dressed as Bruce Wayne. So he talked to me like I was Bruce Wayne and I just went along with it, really. It was quite entertaining. I had no idea at the time that he would think about running for president."

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He added that the story told in "Vice," about Cheney's powerful role in George W. Bush's administration, "is part of how we got to be here with that, uh, 'Individual 1' being president" — referring to Mr. Trump by the designation used in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's recent court filings.

Unfortunately, Bale didn't answer the question of who he thought should play Trump in a movie.

First published on December 12, 2018

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.


IT’S SANDERS AND BIDEN, NECK AND NECK, APPROACHING THE LAST QUARTER. I ALWAYS READ POLLS, BUT IT’S NOTHING BUT A SNAPSHOT IN TIME. THE TIME THAT REALLY MATTERS IS ELECTION DAY.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2018/12/18/trouncing-biden-and-beto-bernie-sanders-emerges-clear-frontrunner-2020-straw-poll
Published on
Tuesday, December 18, 2018
byCommon Dreams
Trouncing Biden and Beto, Bernie Sanders Emerges as Clear Frontrunner in 2020 Straw Poll
"I think people in Washington are (again) underestimating the potential strength of a Sanders campaign (which could actually be part of his strength again)."

byJake Johnson, staff writer

PHOTOGRAPH -- Bernie Sanders at a campaign rally in Santa Monica, California. (Photo: Marcus Yam/Getty Images)

While an outsized chunk of the corporate media's early 2020 coverage has been centered on the speculation and big donor enthusiasm surrounding centrist Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke's possible White House bid, a new straw poll released on Tuesday found that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is far and away the leading presidential choice among progressives eager to take down President Donald Trump and forge ahead with a bold agenda.

"If the senator runs (I hope he does), he will have the best organizing program of any 2020 candidate."
—Winnie Wong, People for Bernie

Conducted by Democracy for America (DFA)—a political action committee with over a million members—the survey found that Sanders topped the ever-growing list of potential Democratic candidates with 36 percent support, followed by former Vice President Joe Biden at 15 percent and O'Rourke at 12 percent.

All other possible candidates included in the straw poll, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), earned less than 10 percent support.

The Intercept's Ryan Grim argued that the DFA survey shows political elites may once again be underestimating Sanders, who consistently polls as the most popular politician in the country.

Though Sanders emerged from the early survey as the strong front-runner, DFA executive director and incoming chair Charles Chamberlain said in a statement, "Progressive support in the 2020 Democratic primary is up for grabs and so is Democracy for America's endorsement."

In the 2016 Democratic primary, the organization endorsed Sanders over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

"Unlike 2016, no candidate has support strong enough for the Democratic Party establishment to clear the field, which means progressives will have an excellent opportunity over the next year to kick the tires on a wide range of different candidates and find the best one to take on Trump," Chamberlain concluded.

On social media, Sanders supporters touted the DFA poll as further fuel for the "Draft Bernie" 2020 campaign launched earlier this month by former staffers for the Vermont senator's 2016 bid.


"If the senator runs (I hope he does), he will have the best organizing program of any 2020 candidate," declared Winnie Wong, founder of People for Bernie.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License


SAD LITTLE HOSTAGES. THIS TRUMPIAN STATEMENT WAS NEWLY TWEETED ON THE 16TH OF DECEMBER, ACCORDING TO THIS ARTICLE, SO HE MAY BE ABOUT TO START THE SEPARATIONS AGAIN. WILL THIS EVER END?

http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/trump-points-renewed-interest-family-separations-the-border
Trump points to renewed interest in family separations at the border
12/17/18 12:31 PM
By Steve Benen

At a distance, Donald Trump’s practice of separating migrant children from their families at the border appeared to run its course over the summer. In response to international outrage, the Republican president signed an executive order in June curtailing his “zero-tolerance” policy, and soon after, federal courts instructed the administration to reunite the families Trump had kept apart.

The efforts to undo what the White House did haven’t always gone especially well, but it’s also worth acknowledging that Trump doesn’t appear eager to leave this disaster in the past.

“The Democrats [sic] policy of Child Seperation [sic] on the Border during the Obama Administration was far worse than the way we handle it now,” the Republican wrote on Twitter yesterday. “Remember the 2014 picture of children in cages - the Obama years. However, if you don’t separate, FAR more people will come. Smugglers use the kids!”

This wasn’t the first time Trump lied about the Obama-era policy, and the truth is stubborn, whether the current president likes it or not. As the Associated Press explained:

Democratic President Barack Obama did not have a separation policy. The Trump administration didn’t, explicitly, either, but that was the effect of his zero-tolerance policy, which meant that anyone caught crossing the border illegally was to be criminally prosecuted, even those with few or no previous offences.

The policy meant adults were taken to court for criminal proceedings and their children were separated. In most cases, if the charge took longer than 72 hours to process, which is the longest time that children can be held by Customs and Border Protection, children were sent into the care of the Health and Human Services Department. Zero tolerance remains in effect, but Trump signed an executive order June 20 that stopped separations.

Trump also misrepresents 2014 photos of children in holding cells. They did not involve family separation. The photos, taken by The Associated Press during the Obama administration, showed children who came to the border without their parents and were being housed at a Customs and Border Protection center in Nogales, Arizona.

It’s that other part of Trump’s tweet, though, that’s cause for additional concern.

“[I]f you don’t separate,” the Republican wrote, “FAR more people will come.” Trump’s argument seems to be that separating children, including babies, from their families creates a deterrent for other prospective migrants.

We already know the evidence suggests Trump’s family-separation policy was ineffective as a deterrent, but just as important is the fact that he’s making the argument at all. The president’s tweet was effectively a defense of a policy Trump claims he ended months ago.

All of which raises the question of whether the Republican intends to begin separating families anew. Indeed, this comes on the heels of reporting in October that the Trump administration was “weighing” another, modified family-separation policy.

Watch this space.

Explore:
The MaddowBlog, Donald Trump, Equality, Immigration and Immigration Policy


“... ATTRACTED TO DEER PARTS FROM A RECENT HUNTING TRIP THAT WERE LEFT NEAR THE HOME.” LET’S WISE UP, PEOPLE. WE DON’T SEE WILD ANIMALS NOT BECAUSE THEY AREN’T THERE, BUT BECAUSE THEY DON’T WANT TO BE SEEN. HUMANS ARE BUILDING FARTHER AND FARTHER OUT OF CITIES AND INTO WHAT JUST 10 YEARS AGO MAY HAVE BEEN UNOPPOSED BEAR HABITAT, WITH THE RESULT THAT THERE ARE MORE DANGEROUS EVENTS LIKE THIS. I’M SO GLAD TO SEE THAT THIS WOMAN ONLY SUSTAINED SOME INCONSEQUENTIAL BONE FRACTURES AND “PUNCTURE WOUNDS.” OUCH! I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED. THIS SOUNDS LIKE AN EXCITING STORY, BUT NOT THE WAY THIS IS WRITTEN UP. I DO HOPE THAT AFTER THEY "EUTHENIZE" THE BEAR, IF THEY CAN FIND THE RIGHT ONE, THEY WILL TEST IT'S BRAIN FOR RABIES.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/pennsylvania-bear-attack-black-bear-woman-dragged-woods/
Bear attacks woman behind her house, drags her into woods
UPDATED ON: DECEMBER 14, 2018 / 11:15 AM / CBS/AP

A bear attacked a woman behind her home in Pennsylvania, game wardens said. The black bear dragged the woman more than 80 yards into some nearby woods before she was able to escape, CBS affiliate WYOU-TV reports.

The attack happened Wednesday night in Muncy Creek Township, which is located about 16 miles east of Williamsport. Melinda Lebarron was home alone when she stepped outside to have a cigarette and let her dog out, her sister-in-law Lucinda Yoder told the Sun-Gazette newspaper.

After Lebarron was able to free herself, Yoder said she crawled back to her house to call a relative for help. "We're looking into the circumstances of how that occurred, why that occurred and trying to identify the particular bear that may have been involved," Game Warden Kristoffer Krebs told WYOU-TV.

The newspaper reports Lebarron suffered broken ribs, a broken collar bone, multiple puncture wounds and a partial scalping. She was in stable condition Friday.

Her dog was also injured, WNEP-TV reports. Game Warden Supervisor Mike Steingraber said the bear may have been attracted to deer parts from a recent hunting trip that were left near the home.

Multiple bear traps have been set up in response to the attack. If the bear can be trapped, game wardens said it will be euthanized.

First published on December 14, 2018

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.


CERTAIN THINGS ABOUT HOW SOME AMERICANS THINK REALLY ANGER ME, THOUGH I KNOW THEY JUST DON’T KNOW BETTER. OVER AND OVER AND OVER, THIS PARANOIA HAS BEEN REFUTED SCIENTIFICALLY AND DEBUNKED IN THE NEWS, BUT IT EMERGES AGAIN NOW.

I PERSONALLY DO TRUST SCIENTISTS AND DOCTORS TO MAKE GOOD DECISIONS, AND THIS FEAR OF VACCINATIONS GOES BACK SEVERAL HUNDRED YEARS TO THE FIRST USE OF INOCULATIONS AND VACCINE.

I LOOK AT THE POTENTIAL RISK OF A PROCEDURE IN THE LIGHT OF HOW SERIOUS THE DISEASE UNCHECKED WILL BE, AND I USUALLY OPT FOR TREATMENT. AS FOR AUTISM, NEWS REPORTS IN RECENT YEARS HAVE SAID THAT IT AND SEVERAL OTHER BRAIN DISORDERS ARE LINKED TO A GENE, “FRAGILE X,” THOUGH BEYOND THAT THE TRIGGERS ARE (THERE ARE MORE THAN ONE) DIFFERENT FROM CASE TO CASE.

AS FOR REPUBLICANS THESE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, THEY HAVE BEEN TRYING TO STIR UP FEAR OVER THIS ISSUE AS THEY DO OVER THE DANGERS OF “IMMIGRANTS” CARRYING DISEASES. THAT GOES BACK TO THE UNFAIR THINKING THAT THEY ARE “DIRTY.” YAWN...

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mark-green-tennessee-republican-baseless-link-between-vaccines-and-autism/
Tennessee Republican congressman criticized after baseless comment linking vaccines and autism
UPDATED ON: DECEMBER 14, 2018 / 6:45 PM / CBS/AP

Mark Green, a newly elected GOP congressman from Tennessee who is also a medical doctor, received criticism from top state leaders for alleging without evidence that vaccines may cause autism.

"Let me say this about autism," Green said in a town hall on Tuesday. "I have committed to people in my community, up in Montgomery County, to stand on the (Centers for Disease Control) desk and get the real data on vaccines. Because there is some concern that the rise in autism is the result of the preservatives that are in our vaccines."

Green was responding to a question from a mother who has a child with autism asking about Medicaid spending cuts.

The Republican has since walked back his comments, issuing a statement saying that his comments were misconstrued and that his own children have been vaccinated.

"Recent comments I made at a town hall regarding vaccines has [sic] been misconstrued. I want to reiterate my wife and I vaccinated our children, and we believe, and advise others they should have their children vaccinated," the statement said.

The CDC has clearly stated there is no link between vaccines and autism.

However, his remarks received national attention and concerns from health officials worried about potential negative impacts. And by Thursday, Tennessee Department of Health issued a brief but direct statement: "Vaccines do not cause autism. Vaccines save lives."

"The Tennessee Department of Health welcomes discussion with Tennessee clinicians and scientists who would like to examine the evidence on this topic," the statement continued.

That came just hours after Tennessee GOP U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander tweeted a similar statement, complete with an attachment of a video of him praising the benefits of vaccines during a congressional hearing.

Vaccine myth persists as families affected by autism refuse shots

"Sound science is this," Alexander says in the video. "Vaccines save lives. They save the lives of people that are vaccinated. They protect the lives of the vulnerable around them, like infants and those who are ill."

Neither statement mentioned Green. Health Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Hart declined to elaborate, saying the agency's statement spoke for itself.

Green did not immediately respond to an email request from The Associated Press for comment on the subsequent responses.

The Republican, who is not only a doctor but also a former Army surgeon, businessman and cancer survivor, soundly defeated Democrat Justin Kanew in November. He withdrew as President Trump's nominee for Army secretary earlier this year amid criticism of his comments about gay and transgender people.

He is scheduled to be sworn-in on January 3.

First published on December 14, 2018

© 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.