Motley Moose – Archive

Clayton Lockett began to convulse and mumble before he sat up on the gurney and said “something’s wrong” about 15 minutes after the execution at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary began, KJRH-TV reported.

An Associated Press reporter noted Lockett was “breathing heavily, writhing on the gurney, clenching his teeth and straining to lift his head off the pillow.” Reports also indicate he uttered “oh, man.”

Prison officials closed the blinds minutes later .. http://www.nydailynews.com/new…

Clayton Lockett died of a heart attack more than 40 minutes after the start of the execution.

Good morning meese! Happy happy Wednesday!

The common Moose, Alces alces, unlike other members of the deer family, is a solitary animal that doesn’t form herds. Not so its rarer but nearest relative, Alces purplius, the Motley Moose. Though sometimes solitary, the Motley Moose herds in ever shifting groups at the local watering hole to exchange news and just pass the time.

I post a weekly diary of historical notes, arts & science items, foreign news (often receiving little notice in the US) and whimsical pieces from the outside world that I often feature in “Cheers & Jeers”.

OK, you’ve been warned – here is this week’s tomfoolery material that I posted.

Taking a time-out today from all the racist ugly, and tippin’ my top hat to the man who for me epitomizes the greatest American music.  

Today is the 115th anniversary of the birth, in Washington DC of Edward Kennedy Ellington-better known worldwide as the “Duke”.

Ellington’s Washington

Duke Ellington (1899-1974) grew up in Washington, D.C. during one of the most difficult periods for African-Americans. Social and political conditions for blacks were worsening in not only the South, but also the North. Many blacks were migrating from the South to the North hoping for a better life. In 1896, The United States Supreme Court declared racial segregation legal in public facilities in Plessy v. Ferguson. In Washington, D.C., segregation was greatly increasing. The Lincoln Memorial towered over the city as a symbol of equality, yet at its dedication in 1918, blacks had to sit in a segregated area. Despite all of these tensions, many blacks drew from the strength of the community, the vitality and the spirit of their rich culture. Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington was such a person whose strong pride worked effectively against the forces of racism. He fought this battle against racial problems and tensions with ease and grace.

The Obama Administration has released its first report from the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault.

Vice President Biden spoke at 2:30pm Eastern.

Not Alone – Protecting Students from Sexual Assault:

One in five women is sexually assaulted while in college.  Most often, it happens her freshman or sophomore year.  In the great majority of cases, it’s by someone she knows – and also most often, she does not report what happened.  And though fewer, men, too, are victimized.

The Administration is committed to putting an end to this violence. That’s why the President established the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault on January 22, 2014, with a mandate to strengthen federal enforcement efforts and provide schools with additional tools to combat sexual assault on their campuses.

Today, the Task Force is announcing a series of actions to: (1)  identify the scope of the problem on college campuses, (2) help prevent campus sexual assault, (3) help schools respond effectively when a student is assaulted, and (4) improve, and make more transparent, the federal government’s enforcement efforts.  We will continue to pursue additional executive or legislative actions in the future.

These steps build on the Administration’s previous work to combat sexual assault.  The Task Force formulated its recommendations after a 90-day review period during which it heard from thousands of people from across the country — via 27 online and in-person listening sessions and written comments from a wide variety of stakeholders.[…]

Part of that initiative is a new web site: www.NotAlone.gov

More …

  Make sure you let your peeps

  know where to find you!  

I am putting this in a separate diary and on the front page for this marvelous bit:

If John McCain — and the entire goddamn Republican party, including the Republicans who pop up on liberal MSNBC — had had their way, we would now be in our sixth year of having this fking dimwit one short gasp away from the nuclear launch codes.

  Good morning Motley Meese! Hope your weekend was lovely.

Making headlines in the sports world over the weekend were remarks purportedly made by the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.

An audio recording purportedly of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling making racist remarks to his girlfriend is being investigated by the NBA.

In the recording, the man believed to be Sterling questions his girlfriend, V. Stiviano, about her association with minorities. TMZ reports that Stiviano, who is black and Mexican, posted a picture of her with Magic Johnson on Instagram, a photo that has since been removed.

“It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you’re associating with black people. Do you have to?” the man believed to be Sterling says. He continues, “You can sleep with [black people]. You can bring them in, you can do whatever you want. The little I ask you is not to promote it on that … and not to bring them to my games.” http://espn.go.com/los-angeles…  

  Make sure you let your peeps

  know where to find you!