So this story has taken a sad turn... As I understand it, even with all of the facts out, Fox has announced that Smollet has been the "consummate professional" on the set and will not be written out of the script for future episodes of "Empire"...
As a point of reference, Roseanne Barr, who I have no affection for at all, tweeted something racist and she was fired, her show was cancelled and her agent dropped her all in the course of 11 hours after the tweet.
I find it odd that they released the two brothers without charging them. Aren’t they just as guilty of staging this attack for money if their story is true? They didn’t turn themselves in and offer their side of the story until they were arrested at Ohare airport, probably trying to escape capture.
Aside from testifying against Jessie's Mullett, there's not much illegal in their participation if all Mr. Mullett wanted to do was make a claim, get his fame, and move along. They probably didn't know that he would have taken it to the lengths he did and got the police involved as heavily as he did.
As for them being allowed on the plane, I think they left before the police were able to ID them.
Nope...The investigator said they had them id’d and they knew they purchased round trip tickets, so they waited until they returned to nab them and question them two weeks later. How did they know for sure they’d return? They couldn’t be certain on that but they still let them out of the country. They could have ended the investigation two weeks earlier saving their valuable resources.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
Rosanne admitted her mistake. Jussie maintains his innocence. Even a-holes like Jussie deserve due process. Not that anyone will believe him now but he is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law right? Not once have I heard “Jussie allegedly committed this crime.” March 14th is his next day in court. Let’s see what else turns up before then.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
Even a-holes like Jussie deserve due process. Not that anyone will believe him now but he is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law right? Not once have I heard “Jussie allegedly committed this crime.” March 14th is his next day in court. Let’s see what else turns up before then.
Kinda like people on here with Judge Kavanaugh, right?
At DT, context and meaning are a scarecrow kicking at moving goalposts.
[quote]The only real difference is that the left, because of age and demographics, is far more active on all social media except FB so things that support the left spread faster and broader...
Gen-Z is looking promising. They tend to think for themselves a bit more and not be lemmings to either side.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
Even a-holes like Jussie deserve due process. Not that anyone will believe him now but he is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law right? Not once have I heard “Jussie allegedly committed this crime.” March 14th is his next day in court. Let’s see what else turns up before then.
Kinda like people on here with Judge Kavanaugh, right?
Whatabout?
The FBI spent as much or more time and money investigating Jussie and this incident than they did on investigating Kavanaugh on the attempted rape allegations. Notice the word allegations and the word allegedly aren’t being used with Jussie?
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
There was a very lovely piece by Charles Barkley on NBA TNT. I've been watching it for a few days. Its one of the funniest things I've seen in quite a while!
I love Charles Barkley. He is always hilarious, and he doesnt follow a crowd. He says what he wants to and doesnt give a crap if people like it or not.
I’ve been saying (not as eloquently) this for years, we have gotten so bad with what he is saying here that when white people even suggest what he is saying, it’s racist. Only when a black man comes to the same conclusion that it becomes compelling, which only speaks further to what he is saying.
Well thought out and well said. The acting oppressed versus being oppressed issue is a very interesting phenomenon. You see it quite often concerning women - like the "Dream Crazier" commercial (who exactly is preventing these women from doing what they love?) - and in the dumbing and vilifying of men in the media and in particular the entertainment and advertising industries (anyone see the commercial for the new Budweiser?) . Practically every man in sitcoms is a moron, clown, or completely helpless without a woman.
Am I aware that there are still inequalities (particularly concerning pay)? Yes. Do I believe women still get harassed and sexually assaulted? Of course. But there is this tidal wave of culture that is "man hating", particularly "white man hating" within mainstream media and entertainment.
Frankly, I find it somewhat hurtful and extremely insulting, and at times it causes me to utter a silent and intolerant GFYS. And in the end, I'm not really sure what it is that the creators of this misguided tripe are trying to accomplish. The philosophy of tearing others down to build oneself up is stupidly unhelpful, as we've seen with Smollett.
Do I feel this is one of the most important issues facing society today? No, I don't. Not yet anyway. But it's there.
JMHO
"I am undeterred and I am undaunted." --Kevin Stefanski
"Big hairy American winning machines." --Baker Mayfield
Well thought out and well said. The acting oppressed versus being oppressed issue is a very interesting phenomenon. You see it quite often concerning women - like the "Dream Crazier" commercial (who exactly is preventing these women from doing what they love?) - and in the dumbing and vilifying of men in the media and in particular the entertainment and advertising industries (anyone see the commercial for the new Budweiser?) . Practically every man in sitcoms is a moron, clown, or completely helpless without a woman.
Am I aware that there are still inequalities (particularly concerning pay)? Yes. Do I believe women still get harassed and sexually assaulted? Of course. But there is this tidal wave of culture that is "man hating", particularly "white man hating" within mainstream media and entertainment.
Frankly, I find it somewhat hurtful and extremely insulting, and at times it causes me to utter a silent and intolerant GFYS. And in the end, I'm not really sure what it is that the creators of this misguided tripe are trying to accomplish. The philosophy of tearing others down to build oneself up is stupidly unhelpful, as we've seen with Smollett.
Do I feel this is one of the most important issues facing society today? No, I don't. Not yet anyway. But it's there.
JMHO
I'm a white man and I say if you can't take the "white man hating" being used to point out the unbalanced and unfair things in our society that "white men" often take for granted, then you are not much of a man at all. Anyone who dislikes it can go cuddle up with your blanky and have a good cry.
That's cool. If you've read any of my posts you may know I don't really care what you say, but you're certainly entitled to enjoy your self-loathing. I just happen to believe there doesn't need to be any type of hating going on. If this type of approach is supposed to perpetuate some kind of rebalancing because life has been unfair, then it's a ridiculous notion. As I stated, putting one class down to uplift another doesn't work. (Kind of like you thinking your post makes you seem somehow enlightened, but doesn't really. See, I may think your heart is in the right place, but I'll likely dismiss your message as shallow and meaningless.) I'll tell you what does work though, good parenting, education, and tolerance.
"I am undeterred and I am undaunted." --Kevin Stefanski
"Big hairy American winning machines." --Baker Mayfield
That's cool. If you've read any of my posts you may know I don't really care what you say, but you're certainly entitled to enjoy your self-loathing. I just happen to believe there doesn't need to be any type of hating going on. If this is supposed to be some type of rebalancing because life has been unfair, then it's a ridiculous notion. As I stated, putting one class down to uplift another doesn't work. (Kind of like you thinking your post makes you seem somehow enlightened, but doesn't really. See, I may think your heart is in the right place, but I'll likely dismiss your message as shallow and meaningless.) I'll tell you what does work though, good parenting, education, and tolerance.
Self-loathing? It's not self loathing to realize something you might be doing is hurting another. It's not self loathing to want to know what that thing might be and do something to change. It's not self loathing to care about others even when they are not 100% like us.
I don't think the perceived "white man hating" is hating at all. It's a way to get a point across by making you uncomfortable with facts. SCARY STUFF.
BUT I 100% AGREE WITH:
Quote:
I'll tell you what does work though, good parenting, education, and tolerance.
I'm not doing anything to hurt anyone. And my simply being born a white man doesn't hurt anyone either. If you are hurting others for some reason (its doubtful it's happening simply because you are a white man, you should reflect on that), perhaps the messaging is good for you. And if that is the case, I hope your despicable behavior changes radically. And it's too bad it took that type of messaging for you to realize it. Just so you know, I'm never uncomfortable with facts. I'm am however uncomfortable with stupidity as this type of messaging perpetuates.
"I am undeterred and I am undaunted." --Kevin Stefanski
"Big hairy American winning machines." --Baker Mayfield
I'm not doing anything to hurt anyone. And my simply being born a white man doesn't hurt anyone either. If you are hurting others for some reason (its doubtful it's happening simply because you are a white man, you should reflect on that), perhaps the messaging is good for you. And if that is the case, I hope your despicable behavior changes radically. And it's too bad it took that type of messaging for you to realize it. Just so you know, I'm never uncomfortable with facts. I'm am however uncomfortable with stupidity as this type of messaging perpetuates.
You seem to be upset. I'm not attacking you and did not mean to in my previous posts. I'm only stating how I feel about this line of thought.
You might not personally be doing anything wrong, and that's cool if you are not. But most of the 'white man hating' I've seen is not directed at any individual but at our society as a whole and is used to point out injustices like black men being jailed at a much higher rate than whites.
Until people speak up about these things we can't change them for the better. So yes, I don't see it as negative speech. I don't think 40 showing support for Trump is negative either, I don't have to like it, but it's his right to feel that way if he chooses. I don't even mind you saying that you think I'm stupid, despicable, radical, etc. I listen to reasonable feedback and try filter the ridiculous. From time to time I do change, nobody is perfect we all make mistakes and do things we later regret.
Eve- The funny thing is that I barely know who Jussie is other than what little I saw in the news. So if that was meant to be hurtful in some way, you missed the target Eve. Your unwavering petty attacks since I said Kitchens first interview made him sound like he was either playing country dumb or a big dumb hick have been amusing. Even when I'm not talking to you, you pipe in with an attack like it's your job. Same thing Vambo used to do.
then you are not much of a man at all. Anyone who dislikes it can go cuddle up with your blanky and have a good cry.
Or this:
Quote:
I'm not attacking you and did not mean to in my previous posts
Quote:
most of the 'white man hating' I've seen is not directed at any individual but at our society as a whole and is used to point out injustices like black men being jailed at a much higher rate than whites.
Most of the hating I was talking about is perpetuated by the media for advertising or entertainment purposes. Cultural outrage over injustices is an entirely different thing. One that deserves attention, contemplation, discussion and resolution. The two shouldn't be confused but clearly are.
Quote:
Until people speak up about these things we can't change them for the better.
Again, we are not talking about the same thing. Discussion about injustice is good. Disparaging any class is not good. See the difference?
Quote:
I don't see it as negative speech.
The you're not seeing it clearly.
Quote:
I don't even mind you saying that you think I'm stupid, despicable, radical, etc.
I never said I think you're any of those things. I don't know you well enough to know. Perhaps read what I wrote again.
Quote:
From time to time I do change,
What's the saying? Evolve or die?
Quote:
nobody is perfect we all make mistakes and do things we later regret.
I absolutely agree.
"I am undeterred and I am undaunted." --Kevin Stefanski
"Big hairy American winning machines." --Baker Mayfield
You can't recognize that both black men being jailed at a higher rate exists and white men being demeaned on a regular basis exists. It's one or the other and the latter makes you a racist.
I did chuckle though at "Generation Z – diverse and on track to be the most well-educated generation yet." with all posts on here about our educational system being so poor.
But on the article itself. I have said for years and posted many times about this... "When it comes to views on race, the two younger generations are more likely than older generations to say that blacks are treated less fairly than whites in the United States today. And they are much more likely than their elders to approve of NFL players kneeling during the national anthem as a sign of protest."
That the only REAL fix for racism and prejudice is time. Each Generation become more accepting of others and less dividing. But yet, here we all fight about our differences, perpetuating hate and discontent.
We don't have to agree with each other, to respect each others opinion.
It's actually a little endearing, before the check I just thought of him as a despicable human being, now, at least, there is a lot more "stupid idiot" in the mix.
When Nikki Joly's Jackson home burned down in 2017, some believed the fire was a hate crime against the transgender, gay-rights activist who had fought for a local anti-discrimination ordinance.
But now, instead of a victim, the 54-year-old is accused of being the perpetrator.
The Michigan case is gaining national attention as the American public draws parallels to the situation involving Jussie Smollett, where the supposed victim in a hate crime became the accused. Authorities concluded the attack on Smollett was a hoax.
“Real hate crimes are on the rise,” Graham Cassano, associate professor of sociology at Oakland University, said Monday. “But as these crimes increase and become publicized, it’s not surprising to me that people would take the opportunity to use this to their advantage and fabricate hate crimes.”
Authorities are accusing Joly, who was named Citizen of the Year by the Jackson Citizen Patriot last year, of setting fire to his own home and killing his pets, two dogs and three cats. He has been charged with first-degree arson.
More:
Mitch Albom: The real victim in the Jussie Smollett case
Downriver dog rescuers in legal fight with 'Pit Bulls and Parolees' star
A hearing has been set for March 8 in Jackson County Circuit Court.
"We determined it pretty quickly to be an arson," Elmer Hitt, Jackson’s director of police and fire services, said Monday. "We investigated it over what probably was a year’s time before the prosecutor ended up issuing charges.”
Unexpected twists Hitt said that, initially, some in the community perceived the blaze to be a hate crime. Investigators considered that too, but ruled out the possibility as evidence pointing to Joly came to light.
Hitt declined to offer a motive for the house fire, but acknowledged that some people in Jackson were probably rattled — perhaps in a similar way to the Smollett case — by the police investigation's unexpected outcome and charge.
In the higher-profile hate crime case that turned on its head last week, Smollett, a 36-year-old actor on the TV drama "Empire," alleged to Chicago police he had been a victim.
Smollett was arrested on charges that he set up the assault.
Actor Jussie Smollett leaves Cook County jail after posting bond on Feb. 21 in Chicago. Actor Jussie Smollett leaves Cook County jail after posting bond on Feb. 21 in Chicago. (Photo11: Nuccio DiNuzzo, Getty Images)
Smollett, who is black and gay, said that masked men yelled racial slurs, attacked him, put a rope around his neck and made references to MAGA, the acronym for President Donald Trump's campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again."
But, Chicago police said, their investigation found evidence that Smollett staged the crime, possibly to portray himself as a victim and boost his salary as an actor, and lied to police.
Citizen of the Year Joly, a transgender man, was touted as Jackon's 2018 citizen of the year by the local newspaper and described as an activist who had endured slights and still re-energized a movement.
He tried to "pass an ordinance in Jackson protecting people against discrimination because they are gay, because they are transgender, because they aren't as some say they should be."
The newspaper's long profile described the Detroit native as someone who had been on his own since his adoptive parents ousted him at 15, had been sexually assaulted, and subjected to "insulting gender questions" and "refused service in bars or restaurants."
Joly, the article said, was "born female," but "prefers a masculine pronoun" and has long "been activist-minded even if it was not always openly."
It also mentioned the fire on Aug. 10, 2017, in which his home was burned down.
In the profile, Joly said that he was "really in shock for quite a while" after the fire. He teared at the thought of his dogs, who perished in the blaze, and organized a weapons training course at a gun range to fight fear.
A few months later, Joly was charged with setting the fire.
Fake hate crimes In the Joly case, police suspicion was based on a timeline of events, phone records, physical evidence and witness statements. Joly had the "means and opportunity to start the fire," according to a report published by MLive.com in October.
The MLive article said security camera video showed Joly filling a gas can before the fire, gasoline was on his clothing, a witness smelled gas on him, photographs seemed to be missing from the walls, and after the fire, Joly received $50,000 in donations.
Joly's attorney, Andrew Abood, challenged the police conclusion.
"What they have is a coincidence and a coincidence is not proof beyond reasonable doubt," MLive quoted Abood saying. "They are trying to convict on circumstantial evidence and theory when they have no direct evidence in the case."
Still, Cassano said that when presumed victims of hate crimes are actually the perpetrators, "it's terrible for social movements in general" and terrible, specifically, for people "facing real hate crimes."
In 2018 alone, the civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Campaign, tracked 26 deaths of transgender people in the U.S. as a result of violence. So far this year, the group identified one death.
The most recent stats from the FBI showed 7,106 hate crimes in 2017, up 17 percent from the year before. Of those crimes, nearly 60 percent of the victims were targeted because of race and ethnicity and nearly 16 percent because of sexual orientation.
"When someone comes along and fabricates a hate crime it calls into question people who have really experienced these things," Cassano said. "It's absolutely awful. It really, to my mind, is incomprehensible."
Wilfred Reilly, an associate professor of political science at Kentucky State University in Frankfort who has studied fake hate crimes, wrote that the fact that Smollett’s case is being alleged a hoax "shouldn’t surprise anyone."
Reilly didn't mention the Joly case but made the case in an opinion piece for USA TODAY and a book "Hate Crime Hoax: How the Left is Selling a Fake Race War" that "a great many hate crime stories turn out to be hoaxes."
The professor said he found more than 400 confirmed hate hoaxes, and he concluded that "what hate hoaxers actually do is worsen generally good race relations, and distract attention from real problems."
Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com.
. Practically every man in sitcoms is a moron, clown, or completely helpless without a woman. ![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/hfMNC7T.jpg)
