We've been trying to chip away at mass incarceration in WV for a while now, both for adults and for kids in the juvenile justice system. This NY Times op-ed provides a good summary of why it just doesn't make sense.
One thing that does make sense is substance abuse treatment. WV just launched its first residential treatment program for regional jail inmates. That's kind of a big deal since many inmates aren't eligible for parole without treatment.
Off topic, I really hope the WV legislature doesn't revisit the bogus "religious freedom" license to discriminate bill in the future. Here's what an editor at the Gazette-Mail had to say about that.
Showing posts with label discrimination. Show all posts
Showing posts with label discrimination. Show all posts
April 21, 2016
February 24, 2016
Annals of meanness
It has occurred to me during this session of the WV legislature that not only do some people not like gays and lesbians but they think about them a lot.
They think about them when it is daytime. They think about them when it is night.
They think about them when the sun is shining. They think about them when it rains.
They think about them in winter. They think about them in spring, summer and fall.
They think about them when the moon is waxing full and when it is waning. And they think about them during full and new moons.
They think about them when the redbud blooms and when the rivers frost.
They think about them when puppies play together and when kittens chase string.
In a word, they probably think about them way more than is healthy.
I could go on to say that they don't like them on a boat or with a goat, but you probably get the idea by now.
The most recent example of this is a resolution introduced in the WV senate that would make it illegal for local governments to pass nondiscrimination ordinances. Not to put too fine a point on it, but apparently it's not enough for some people to be mean; they want to legally compel others to be as well.
I hope at some point people who obsess about this kind of thing get over it. Or, failing that, that they at least get the memo that some of us aren't into their ****.
They think about them when it is daytime. They think about them when it is night.
They think about them when the sun is shining. They think about them when it rains.
They think about them in winter. They think about them in spring, summer and fall.
They think about them when the moon is waxing full and when it is waning. And they think about them during full and new moons.
They think about them when the redbud blooms and when the rivers frost.
They think about them when puppies play together and when kittens chase string.
In a word, they probably think about them way more than is healthy.
I could go on to say that they don't like them on a boat or with a goat, but you probably get the idea by now.
The most recent example of this is a resolution introduced in the WV senate that would make it illegal for local governments to pass nondiscrimination ordinances. Not to put too fine a point on it, but apparently it's not enough for some people to be mean; they want to legally compel others to be as well.
I hope at some point people who obsess about this kind of thing get over it. Or, failing that, that they at least get the memo that some of us aren't into their ****.
January 29, 2016
More Orwellian language
The latest Front Porch podcast is about the misnamed Religious Freedom Restoration Act, now under consideration in the WV legislature. I thought this was going to be a good one, but it has been severely cut, with some of the best parts taken out. Editors...
February 26, 2015
Stop the presses--I agree with Wal-Mart!
There is still a good bit of foaming and howling going on at the WV legislature. As I mentioned yesterday, one example of such is a bill that would make it illegal for cities and counties to pass anti-discrimination ordinances for things like sexual orientation.
It makes me wonder what's next: maybe require people suspected of homosexuality to wear pink triangles?
This legislation is similar to a bill passed in Arkansas which even Wal-Mart found to be over the top. Here's what the retail giant had to say about why this is a bad idea:
Let the record show that I'm with them for once.
It makes me wonder what's next: maybe require people suspected of homosexuality to wear pink triangles?
This legislation is similar to a bill passed in Arkansas which even Wal-Mart found to be over the top. Here's what the retail giant had to say about why this is a bad idea:
Every day, in our stores, we see firsthand the benefits diversity and inclusion have on our associates, customers and communities we serve. It all starts with the core basic belief of respect for the individual. And that means understanding and respecting differences and being inclusive of all people...We feel this legislation is counter to this core basic belief and sends the wrong message about Arkansas.
Let the record show that I'm with them for once.
February 25, 2015
What about the Twinkie?
I ran into a friend of mine today at the state asylum legislature and we were commenting on the rather extreme level of Whack these days.
It kind of reminds me of the Twinkie discussion in the first Ghostbusters movie that went something like this:
Substitute West Virginia for New York and Whack for psychokinetic energy and it would work pretty well.
Here's the latest example: one bill now advancing through the House, HB2881, misnamed the WV Intrastate Commerce Improvement Act, would basically make it illegal for cities and counties to pass anti-discrimination ordinances on the basis of sexual orientation.
The Twinkie just keeps getting bigger.
Foam and howl, guys.
It kind of reminds me of the Twinkie discussion in the first Ghostbusters movie that went something like this:
Well, let's say this Twinkie represents the normal amount of psychokinetic energy in the New York area. Based on this morning's sample, it would be a Twinkie... thirty-five feet long, weighing approximately six hundred pounds.
Substitute West Virginia for New York and Whack for psychokinetic energy and it would work pretty well.
Here's the latest example: one bill now advancing through the House, HB2881, misnamed the WV Intrastate Commerce Improvement Act, would basically make it illegal for cities and counties to pass anti-discrimination ordinances on the basis of sexual orientation.
The Twinkie just keeps getting bigger.
Foam and howl, guys.
February 08, 2012
An injury to one...
According to a poll taken in January, around 61 percent of West Virginians oppose discrimination in employment based on sexual orientation. The nationwide number is even higher. Each year, groups like Fairness WV tries to nudge the legislature into passing anti discriminatory measures.
Such efforts got a boost today when both the state AFLCIO and the United Mine Workers of America publicly supported anti discriminatory legislation, claiming that this was a basic matter of workplace fairness. In places where discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation isn't forbidden by law, a union contract is often the only protection such workers enjoy.
Congratulations to the labor movement for standing on the principles that a worker is a worker is a worker and an injury to one is an injury to all.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
News Feed (RSS & Atom)