The real problem with Scott Walker's "Crime" ad that no one is talking about

(Warning-This post involves child abuse resulting in deaths. Multiple. It was hard to write and may be hard to read)

Originally posted at Daily Kos

If you have been following the events in Wisconsin, you have probably seen this attack ad released by Friends of Scott Walker



"This 2-year-old spent six days in intensive care after being severely beaten," says the Walker ad's narrator. "But Tom Barrett’s police department didn’t consider it a violent crime." The ad then shows crime statistics and asserts "violent crime is up" in Milwaukee. The controversial ad-which has been criticized by the criminologist who was quoted as "misleading"- took center stage at last weeks debate, in one of the most emotionally charged moments of the night:

"He's running a commercial right now that shows a dead baby," Barrett said during the debate. "It shows a picture of a dead baby. This is Willie Horton stuff. That baby died."  

"You're running a commercial attacking my integrity, claiming that I had something to do with this, and you know that's false," added Barrett, his voice rising. "You tell me whether you think I had anything to do with that."  

Walker began to respond, saying, "No, I'm asking you --" Before he could finish, Barrett cut him off. 

"I'll tell you right now, I had nothing to do with that," Barrett said. "You should be ashamed of that commercial, Scott Walker."

Like many who watched the debate, I was confused by Tom Barret's statement. The ad states that the child spent 2 weeks in the ICU, but doesn't mention a death. I hoped that he had misspoken. Sadly, he did not.

According to the report by the Journal Sentinel cited by the ad, the child they are referring to is 2 year old Karmari Curtis

MILWAUKEE -- An arrest has been made in the death of a 2-year-old boy brought to the hospital on Saturday April 2nd. The man in custody is the mother's boyfriend, and police said it's not the first time the suspect is accused of abusing the child.  

Officers went to an apartment building near 22nd Street and Wisconsin Avenue on Saturday, after the 26-year-old man living there took his girlfriend's 2-year-old son to the hospital.Police said the toddler was pronounced dead at 6:27 p.m. The boyfriend was arrested shortly after.  

Monday, no one was at the boyfriend's apartment, where police said the abuse happened, but a neighbor told 12 News there was nothing suspicious Saturday night. "I didn't hear anything," said Rosie Ballard, neighbor. "I was in bed when the police came." Police said it was the same victim, and Benson ruptured the toddler's liver at the same apartment while the child was in his care Oct. 25. 12 News also obtained the no-contact order filed against Benson. His trial was set for this May. 

Neighbors said the toddler and his mother did not live at the apartment but would visit frequently. Neighbors didn't see anything unusual when they came this weekend. "Friday night, I maybe heard a little noise, but when I hear bumping or knocking something I pay no attention to it because sometimes it happens," said Ballard. 

Police have not said what the child's injuries are as officers continue to investigate, and the department has put a non-disclosure on the medical examiner's report. An autopsy was to be performed today. 

The Department of Children and Families released a statement from Arlene Happach, the director of the Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare. It reads, "This child's death is a tragedy, and our deepest sympathy is with his family and others who loved him. We are investigating the role of the bureau in this case."

So why did the Walker campaign leave out the fact that Karmari was murdered? Granted, it could have been to avoid admitting that they were ghoulish enough to use a deceased child as a political prop-but using a battered one isn't really that much better. And such a horrific murder would certainly play right in to the narrative of a crime-ridden Milwaukee under Tom Barrett.

But perhaps there is another reason why Scott Walkers campaign didn't mention it-Perhaps because it would lead to the fact that, at the time of Karmari's death, he was known to the Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare (BMCW)-a state-run agency that Scott Walker was ultimately responsible for overseeing. And perhaps more importantly, the fact that the BMCW was one of the first government agencies subjected to the privatization treatment that Scott Walker is now trying to inflict on the rest of Wisconsin's governmental functions, with disastrous consequences.

George Tierny of Greenville South Carolina-Golf Caddy, Insufferable Woman-hating Fuckwit, help make him famous!

From normboyd40 at Daily Kos

A bullying,ignorant misogynist name George Tierney, a golf caddy living in Greenville, South Carolina, has been reduced to begging and threatening to get removed from Google. It seems Mr. Tierney, who calls himself a former golf professional, (Player? Caddy? pro-shop clerk?) decided to do the Limbaugh by attacking Sandra Fluke (fixed spelling) as a "dick sucker" and a "cunt" on his Twitter page. Now he finds that the whole damn world can read what he wrote and he is threatening legal action to get everything covered up. I suppose it's getting real hard to get a date there in Greenville, or maybe his mommy read the page and was displeased. In any event, this diary has no purpose but to call attention to the T-Blogg story and make Mr. Tierney famous. Who knows? Maybe he'll sue Daily Kos too.

http://tbogg.firedoglake.com/2012/05/20/internet-man-does-not-want-to-be-on-the-google-anymore/?fwcc=1&fwcl=1&fwl

Here are the Tweets in question:

More than happy to do my part! Words have consequences, jackass.

Mitt Romney's "Mothers Day" Ad reveals the height of republican hypocrisy

Mothers Day-a time when we all stop to honor the women in our lives for all of the hard work and sacrifices they make raising our future generations.

Or, if you are Mitt Romney, a perfect opportunity to exploit your wife's health problems and make her into a mommy martyr to pander for donations:

Ann Romney raised 5 boys. She successfully battled breast cancer and multiple sclerosis. But what does White House insider Hilary Rosen say about Ann Romney? "Guess what, his wife has actually never worked a day in her life." And Bill Maher, who gave $1 million supporting Obama, attacks: "Ann Romney has never gotten her ass out of the house." Happy Mother's Day from Barack Obama's Team!

Interesting attack, considering the source. More below the fold.

Books That Changed My Life-"Trauma & Recovery" by Judith Herman, M.D.

(Originally posted on Daily Kos)

I will open this with both a warning, and a bit of an apology-As the title of the book suggests, Judith Herman writes about Trauma. I am a survivor of sexual abuse. The importance of this book simply cannot be discussed without also touching upon some of my experiences with that. I realize this can be an uncomfortable topic, and is not really typical for this series-however, when I was approached about doing an installment for this I couldn’t think of any book that has changed my life more than this one. I also think this book (and hopefully-my review of it too!) is an important read both for trauma survivors and non-survivors alike. For survivors, there are simply no words to explain how much this book helps-it's truly a life-changing read. And non-survivors will come away with a richer understanding and greater empathy for those who have lived through experiences that seem completely foreign and unimaginable. This book forges a robust connection between public and private lives, and does it in a way that can be understood even by those with no background in trauma psychology. Indeed, this is what I found most powerful about Herman's book-it made me feel like I could reconnect with the outside world again.

Fox News Flip Flops, Calls off War on Marriage

Well, that didn't take long!

Yesterday's headline:

 



Todays Headline:
 

Once again, the republican party shows us that they love starting wars-but when it comes to actually fighting them, they are a bunch of chickenhawks.

(From the comments at Daily Kos) Third Version:

Well, Duh!

The Junior Jewfish was a bit perplexed this afternoon when mom started randomly jumping up and down, screaming and hollering in the middle of making her a sandwich.

"What are you so happy about?" she asked.

 I sat her down and told her "President Obama just said that a man should be able to marry a man, and a woman should be able to marry a woman if they love each other, just like everyone else"

 She gave me her most withering 5-year old look and said

 "Well, duh!"

Two simple words-but as far as I'm concerned they say it all:

 1. My kindergartener is smarter than 2 out of 3 North Carolinians

 2. Our hope for the future is not found in the pundits who are greeting the news of Obama's endorsement of marriage equality by calling it "groundbreaking" and "historic"-but in a generation of kids who will grow up knowing the only reasonable response to such an endorsement is...

One of those days...