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Feb

13

Follow-up: Tasered yoga instructor committed no crime; UK okays use on kids

Filed Under Civil Rights, Courts, Crime, Culture, Government, Law, Mental health, Science, Social Issues, Tech | 6 Comments

Last December, I wrote about the case of Elizabeth Beeland, a 35 year old mother who, during the course of shopping in a Daytona, Florida Best Buy last November, was Tasered. Of course it’s not that simple and now we have the full story updated:

An Ormond Beach yoga instructor zapped by a police Taser inside a Best Buy store will not be prosecuted, the State Attorney’s Office decided Friday.

Elizabeth Beeland, 35, was arrested and taken to jail, charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest Nov. 26. Her arrest and the actions of the police officer inside the store caused a furor of debate in the community.

But, state attorney spokeswoman Linda Pruitt said, “There’s no evidence that Ms. Beeland committed a crime.”

That day, Beeland, a yoga teacher and holistic healer, had gone to the electronics store on International Speedway Boulevard to buy a CD player for her father. As she handed the cashier her purchase and a credit card, though, Beeland received a call from her husband concerning bad news about the couple’s daughter.

An emotional Beeland stepped outside the store so she could speak to her husband privately. She left her credit card with the cashier and her transaction unfinished.

That move indirectly sparked a series of miscommunications that ended with Beeland getting shot in the abdomen with a 50,000-volt Taser by officer Claudia Wright.

Meanwhile, The Daily Mail is reporting that the use of Tasers has been okay for its non-armed police forces. That makes no sense to me since I thought that the use of the Taser is to prevent the kind of injury that could be inflicted by firearms?

Amnesty International claims Tasers have been responsible for 220 deaths in America since 2001. Many cities and police forces there have banned their use against minors.

Two years ago in Chicago a 14-year-old boy went into cardiac arrest after being shot with one. Medics had to use a defibrillator four times to resuscitate him.

Taser International, the American firm that makes the device, said tests on pigs suggested the weapons were safe.

The Association of Chief Police Officers, which issues guidance to forces on the use of weapons, said Tasers would be made “readily available” for “conflict management” at incidents of “violence and threats of violence of such severity that they will need force”.

Non-firearms officers in ten forces will be trained to use the weapons. Every incident they are involved in will be assessed over a 12-month trial period.

Again – if Tasers are to be used to de-escalate incidents of violence or threats of violence, when kids are involved, don’t you think your police force has some serious problems if they don’t have techniques other than a Taser that can control a child? Go ahead – give me all the reasons how a Taser is somehow more humane:

Tasers work by firing metal barbs into the skin which then discharge an electrical charge which is designed to disable someone long enough to allow police to detain them safely.

Hmm – okay, yeah, no – that does not sound more humane than the restraints I know mental health professionals use with violent kids.

Someone help us here.

Hattip Progress Ohio.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 10:29 pm February 13th, 2008 in Civil Rights, Courts, Crime, Culture, Government, Law, Mental health, Science, Social Issues, Tech | 6 Comments 

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Feb

13

Jew not welcome opponent in political race

Filed Under Campaigning, Congress, Elections, Politics, Religion, Social Issues, Voting | 5 Comments

From the Washington Post:

If you thought race was an uncomfortable issue in the Democratic presidential primary, wait ’til you get a load of what’s going on in the Democratic primary in the Memphis area’s 9th District of Tennessee, where a shockingly worded flier paints Jewish Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) as a Jesus hater.

“Memphis Congressman Steve Cohen and the JEWS HATE Jesus,” blares the flier, which Cohen himself received in the mail — inducing gasps — last week.

Circulated by an African-American minister from Murfreesboro Tenn., which isn’t even in Cohen’s district, the literature encourages other black leaders in Memphis to “see to it that one and ONLY one black Christian faces this opponent of Christ and Christianity in the 2008 election.”

Cohen’s main opponent in the August 5 Democratic primary in his predominantly African-American district is Nikki Tinker, who is black. The Commercial Appeal wrote an editorial in Wednesday’s paper condemning Tinker for not speaking out against the anti-Semitic literature.

“What does Nikki Tinker think about anti-Semitic literature being circulated that might help her unseat 9th District Congressman Steve Cohen in the Democratic primary next August?” the editorial asked. “The question goes to the character of the woman who wants to represent the 9th District, and 9th District voters deserve an answer. But Tinker declined to return a phone call about the flier.”

The editorial also noted that last summer Cohen came under attack from black ministers who challenged the congressman’s support for federal hate crimes legislation to protect gay rights. The paper wrote that the “real motive” behind the ministers’ attacks was revealed later by Rev. Robert Poindexter who, according to the Commercial Appeal, said of Cohen: “He’s not black and he can’t represent me, that’s just the bottom line.”

And yet, this year, in our presidential primaries, particularly the Democratic primaries, we’re trying to tell people, young, old, men, women, black, white, and of every other categorizable detail, that not a single one of those details matters when they go to vote. Right? RIGHT?

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:55 pm February 13th, 2008 in Campaigning, Congress, Elections, Politics, Religion, Social Issues, Voting | 5 Comments 

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Feb

13

OEA: 2008 presidential candidates on education

Filed Under Barack Obama, Campaigning, Economy, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Ohio, Politics, WH2008 | 1 Comment

The Ohio Education Association has posted comparisons of how the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates plan to address education issues. Hattip to The Daily Briefing.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:23 pm February 13th, 2008 in Barack Obama, Campaigning, Economy, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Ohio, Politics, WH2008 | 1 Comment 

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Feb

13

WCPN Sound of Ideas hosts OH-10 candidates during regional roundtable

Filed Under Announcements, Barbara Anne Ferris, Cleveland+, Congress, Dennis Kucinich, Elections, Jim Trakas, Joe Cimperman, Ohio, Politics, Primary, Rosemary Palmer, Tom O'Grady, WCPN/SOI | Comments Off

No, I won’t be on but it looks like it will be an interesting show anyway. ;)   My only qualm – having the two women and two male roundtable panelists plus the host.  When the male candidates sit down, might I suggest that there be at least one if not two female roundtable panelists?

Listen live tomorrow morning from 9-10am, here.

Listen at your convenience from here after the broadcast.

Here’s the line-up:

Reporters’ Roundtable Takes on the Tenth
Aired Thursday, February 14, 2008
Ohio’s Tenth Congressional District includes much of Cleveland’s west side, a swath of suburbs from Bay Village to Glen Willow and just one future congressional representative. There are five candidates vying for the Democratic nomination in the tenth, and we’ll get to know all of them and their Republican counterparts. Before you vote in March join us on the roundtable to question the candidates. Tomorrow, we’ll talk to Barbara Ferris and Rosemary Palmer. Join the conversation Thursday morning at 9.

Guests:
Reporters: Mike McIntyre of The Plain Dealer and Jay Miller of Crain’s Cleveland Business
Candidates: Rosemary Palmer and Barbara Ferris 

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 7:20 pm February 13th, 2008 in Announcements, Barbara Anne Ferris, Cleveland+, Congress, Dennis Kucinich, Elections, Jim Trakas, Joe Cimperman, Ohio, Politics, Primary, Rosemary Palmer, Tom O'Grady, WCPN/SOI | Comments Off 

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Feb

13

Clinton supporter asks: If Obama wins, then what?

Filed Under Barack Obama, Campaigning, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Politics, WH2008 | 55 Comments

No, not me, but a co-blogger at The Moderate Voice.  Here’s the post and here’s an excerpt (the original is even longer):

…Obama’s impassioned supporters [jump] into the fray.  Look under any Hillary-friendly or Obama-skeptical blog post by a fellow Dem and you’ll find them there in the comments, getting the gist but missing the point and snapping like crocodiles at any question about the appropriateness of making Obama our candidate before we’ve had more time to get to know him or the media, more time to vet him.

Do you wonder, as I do, how people got the idea that this relative newcomer to national politics has the credentials, experience, and other requisites for cleaning up after George W. Bush?  Saying so is a sure recipe, as I’ve found, for getting called a fool,  a moron, an idiot, amoral, brain-washed, a Hillary shill, a tool of the Clinton establishment, and  a tool.

…

Meanwhile, not one supporter has risen to the challenge of telling me—if I’m stuck with him, I really need to know—what superior or equivalent credentials or experience they can cite to indicate that he is currently better qualified than Hillary to be the Chief Executive of the United States.

Most of them try to lecture me about Hillary—me!—arguing, with a sublime disregard for logic, common sense, or the facts, that her qualifications and experience aren’t any greater than Obama’s, or not enough greater to matter, in light of  his ‘charisma’ and his (their faith in him ensures) pure, untarnished record.

Most say they don’t care about credentials or think his credentials are sufficient.  They like Obama; and that’s all that matters.  I like him too, or till recently I did, but they…  they ‘LIKE him like him’, as the kids say.  And if you say you don’t, they’re all up in your face, demanding that you step outside so they can administer a moral drubbing.

…

Is he up to the job?  Yes, his supporters say.  They ‘know’ this because he has inspired them to believe it.  Maybe they’re right.  But I remain skeptical.  But there is a bright side:  his ascendancy is apparently pleasing to the Hillary-fearing right-wing pundits.  (Obviously, it’s because they too are under Obama’s spell and want him to be president, am I right?)

…

I realize that the ‘conventional wisdom’ is that we’ll turn out to vote for Obama anyway.  He and his campaign advisors certainly seem to assume that they’ll have the support of the whole party no matter what they or their ’surrogates’ do or say.

Oh, really?  Here’s what Ms. Obama said when she was asked on Good Morning America if she’d vote for Hillary if Hillary got the nomination.

ROBERTS: So what if Senator Clinton defeats [Obama], becoming the first woman nominee. Could you see yourself working to support the first woman nomination?

OBAMA: I’d have to think about that. I’d have to think about that, her policies, her approach, her tone. (The Huffington Post)

Good idea.  I’ll have to think equally hard if Obama gets the nomination.  Shall I vote for McCain?  Nah.  But I can stay home.  Or I can write in ‘Hillary Clinton.’  After all, I’ve been pretty turned off by the ‘tone’ and ‘approach’ of the Obama campaign.

…

The person who posted that entry concludes by intimating that she believes many Clinton supporters will not be able to vote for Obama and she wants to know what Obama plans on doing to make amends to Clinton supporters.

As I’ve written repeatedly, I will not have a problem voting for whomever is the Dem candidate in the general, but, as I also have written, I’m disappointed with the chiding and childishness of many, many of the Obama supporters who’ve tangled with me. I have a hard time believing that Sen. Obama would be proud of them for what they’ve done in his name. And in order to ensure that he wins the general, I’d urge them, in these next few weeks, to think about their scorched Earth nastiness.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 2:14 pm February 13th, 2008 in Barack Obama, Campaigning, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Politics, WH2008 | 55 Comments 

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Feb

13

Carnival of Ohio Politics #104 now posted

Filed Under Blogging, Carnivals, Ohio, Politics, Writing | 7 Comments

Thank you to all the contributors – there’s a great selection this week of Ohio bloggers and Ohio and related topics.

You can find them all at the Carnival of Ohio Politics, #104. 

Anyone can join the carnival so long as you write from Ohio and the post(s) are related to Ohio politics.  You can submit up to three entries but Tuesday evenings, 9pm, to the e-mail address, OhioPolCarnival[at]Gmail[dot]com.

Thanks and enjoy the feast.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 12:16 pm February 13th, 2008 in Blogging, Carnivals, Ohio, Politics, Writing | 7 Comments 

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Feb

13

Bill and Chelsea Clinton at CSU, UAkron tomorrow

Filed Under Announcements, Campaigning, Cleveland+, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Ohio, Politics, Primary, WH2008 | Comments Off

UPDATE: From Mark Jablonski (CSU student) in a Buckeye State Blog comment: Bill and Chelsea Clinton will be at the University Center Atrium tomorrow from 11am-12noon for a live question and answer session.  A meet and greet is being sponsored by the CSU Student Government Assn.

Got a Valentine’s who loves politics? Take them to see Bill and Chelsea Clinton tomorrow at Cleveland State University.

1) Tomorrow, Thursday, 2/14

11:30-12:30 for a Q/A Session and Meet and Greet

More when I know.

2) More from Ohio.com

Chelsea Clinton, who is traveling around the state today and Thursday to campaign for Hillary Clinton, her mother, will make a stop at 1:15 p.m. Thursday at the University of Akron.

The exact location of her visit has not yet announced.

Chelsea is traveling to universities and colleges across Ohio. Today, she’ll go to Ohio State University, Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware and Sinclair Community College in Dayton. Besides UA, she’ll also go to Cleveland State University Thursday.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 11:42 am February 13th, 2008 in Announcements, Campaigning, Cleveland+, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Ohio, Politics, Primary, WH2008 | Comments Off 

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Feb

13

Hillary Clinton in Cleveland, Friday: Brush High School rally in Lyndhurst

Filed Under Announcements, Campaigning, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Ohio, Primary, WH2008 | 19 Comments

Thank you to Ohio Daily Blog for the information:

 

 

Rally with Hillary Clinton at Brush High School in Lyndhurst on Friday 2/15

Friday, February 15th

Doors open at 4:00, rally starts at 5:30

5:30pm – 7:00pm

Brush High School
4875 Glenlyn Road
Lyndhurst, OH (map)

RSVP at hillaryclinton.com/Lyndhurst

According to this information from the Cuyahoga County Public Library, Lyndhurst is in OH-10, Dennis Kucinich’s district. That’s kind of wild to me because I know I’m in the 11th. Gotta get out those maps again.

That original info is in fact what the CCPL site says, but thanks to Jeff Coryell in the comments, here’s a map of the 11th District which does indeed appear to include Brush High School.

Lyndhurst is in Republican Bob Spada’s state senate district (24) and Republican Josh Mandel’s state house district (17). Mandel previously was on Lyndhurst’s city council.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:54 am February 13th, 2008 in Announcements, Campaigning, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Ohio, Primary, WH2008 | 19 Comments 

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Feb

13

[UPDATED] Clinton, Obama Cleveland State Univ. Democratic primary debate ticket info

Filed Under Announcements, Barack Obama, Campaigning, Cleveland+, Debates, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Media, Ohio, Politics, Primary, WH2008 | 11 Comments

From the CSU website:

CSU Debate Events

Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have accepted an invitation from Cleveland State and NBC to debate in Cleveland on Tuesday, February 26.

NBC’s Tim Russert and Brian Williams will moderate the event. NBC Nightly News will broadcast live from Cleveland the night of the debate.

Events:

  • A student lottery will be held for tickets. Click here to enter the lottery.
  • Students, faculty and staff can volunteer to work the event. Click here to volunteer.
  • Hardball with Chris Matthews of MSNBC will broadcast live from our Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs Atrium. Ticket sign up will be available online on Thursday, February 21.
  • Campus Watch Parties open to everyone in the CSU community will be announced soon. No sign up is necessary.

More details regarding the event will be released as the information becomes available.

From commenter “DS” – thank you!:

Tickets- available only to CSU Students via a Lottery starting next Tuesday, the 19th. No tickets are available to the general public.

Volunteer- 200 positions available to students/faculty/staff to work behind the scenes. Only the first 200 people to sign up will be accepted. Also starts the 19th.

Hardball- Will be broadcasting live the day of the debate on campus. Ticket sign up for that also on the 19th.

I guess this is all contingent upon whether Clinton actually commits to the debate.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:36 am February 13th, 2008 in Announcements, Barack Obama, Campaigning, Cleveland+, Debates, Elections, Hillary Clinton, Media, Ohio, Politics, Primary, WH2008 | 11 Comments 

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Feb

13

WCPN Sound of Ideas covers Science Debate 2008

Filed Under Announcements, Debates, Elections, Media, Ohio, Politics, Science, Tech, WCPN/SOI | 2 Comments

You can listen live here right now to WCPN’s Sound of Ideas show about Science Debate 2008:

Got Issues? The Candidates and Science
The next President needs a pretty impressive resume–skilled in diplomacy and building consensus quick to understand policy and, with a 150 billion dollar research budget, science. With that in mind, scientists and others have been calling for a debate on scientific topics, and it’s now scheduled for April. Wednesday morning at 9 a.m. we’ll continue our analysis of the issues in the campaigns with a look what the presidential hopefuls are saying and proposing about science, technology and the environment.

Guests:
Mary Wooley, President, Research America
Andrew Revkin, The New York Times
Jeffrey Mervis, Deputy News Editor, Science Magazine

Or you can listen later from here.

Here are my posts about the debate which has now been scheduled for April 18, 2008.  All presidential candidates have been invited.

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By Jill Miller Zimon at 9:28 am February 13th, 2008 in Announcements, Debates, Elections, Media, Ohio, Politics, Science, Tech, WCPN/SOI | 2 Comments 

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