There is so much outright lunacy, injustice, and criminal stupidity in the air this week that I don’t really know where to start, or how to weave it all together, but it seems as if we’re gripped by some kind of global virus clutching at our neurons and snapping at our synapses, urging us individually and collectively to march in lockstep over the lemur cliff of our own schizophrenic death wish. What the hell is going on?
After what seems like another endless two-year tortured OJ spectacle trial, Oscar Pistorius has dodged the biggest deadliest bullets aimed his way. Would that Reeva Steenkamp had been so lucky. Pistorius was found not guilty of murder or even manslaughter after blasting away through the bedroom door at what he claimed to be an intruder. Defense attorneys everywhere must be laughing in their bloated retainers, thanking the gods and the founding fathers and the jury consultants for the cherished stronghold of “beyond reasonable doubt”. This is the ultimate example of “money talks and bullshit walks”. Pistorius was wealthy enough to hire the best defense team money could buy. When he killed his girlfriend in his own bedroom, there were only two witnesses, and one of them left in a body bag. I’m reminded of the legendary Racehorse Haynes, a defense attorney famous for his acquittals of wealthy River Oaks socialites and doctors in Houston in the 1970’s. With Racehorse defending you, you could literally be caught with a smoking gun in your hand and a bleeding body at your feet, and still, “the first one was free”.
The Pistorius case supports my contention that turning a blind eye toward violence against women is not just an American sickness, but a global pandemic. Face it, if Ray Rice had cold-cocked Janay Palmer outside the view of a video camera, he’d still be suiting up for the Baltimore Ravens tonight on Thursday Night Football, and the commentators would all be lauding him for being the fastest toughest meanest little bulldozer to ever line up beside a quarterback…and that’s even if his girlfriend had shown up in an emergency room looking like the victim of a three-care pile-up. It’d be “he said she said” and what she said would be roundly dismissed, because, hell…she probably had it coming to her anyway. I’ve seen multiple comments in multiple blogsites suggesting that there are always two sides to every story, that Rice must have been provoked. The apologists are all over the airwaves and internet. Even Indiana Pacers star forward Paul George got in on the shameful defense of Ray Rice with tweets like: “I don’t condone hittin women or think it’s coo BUT if SHE ain’t trippin I ain’t trippin..Let’s keep it movin lol let that man play!” Boxer Floyd Mayweather chimed in with: “there’s a lot worse that happen in households. It’s just not caught on video, if that’s safe to say.” Please note that Mayweather has himself been convicted of domestic violence and currently is being sued for another assault on another woman.
And what I said two days ago about the NFL not being truly concerned with this epidemic of domestic abuse (along with multiple other violent assaults in various bars and strip clubs and parking lots) is being proven absolutely accurate. Roger Goodell can shuck and jive all he wants, but it’s clear that the NFL did have the elevator tape, and they had it months ago, and that their overweening concern was with putting butts in seats, not with players putting butts on the tile. I’m with Keith Olbermann on this: Goodell should NOT resign…he should be summarily FIRED.
Pistorius isn’t the only one to get away with murder, and Ray Rice isn’t the only one benefitting from the rationalizers, apologists, and violence junkies. You’ve got your mysogynists and your racists, and sadly, some of them aren’t wearing spandex and pads, but blue uniforms with a badge. What with elevator-gate, Ferguson, murdered Michael Brown, and officer Darren Wilson have fallen out of the 24 hour news cycle. Brown’s been dead for nearly a month and Darren Wilson has been heard from exactly zero times while he’s on paid leave. How do you suppose that grand jury inquiry is going? In recent days, two more witnesses have come forward with descriptions of Wilson firing round after round into Brown while Brown faced him with his hands up, one saying Brown was walking slowly forward and one saying Brown was falling forward as he was shot. Anyone wanna bet that Wilson is exonerated with a “justified shooting”? Just wait.
And by the way…we’re going back to war. Not just Iraq this time. Syria. Nothing could possibly go wrong with this plan. Schizophrenic death cult lunacy.
BW
Kibbitz Corner 