CURRENT AMERICAN POLITICS AREN'T THE MOST VIOLENT AND UGLY IN U.S. HISTORY

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

 

Think American politics are nasty today? That’s nothing compared to the violent 1800s | Opinion

BY PATRICK TUOHEY REGULAR OPINION CORRESPONDENT

UPDATED MAY 30, 2024 4:41 PM

 

The 2024 presidential campaign is full of drama, and pundits left and right say this is the worst we’ve ever seen — either in action, tone or pettiness.

 

It isn’t, by far.

 

Since our founding, American politics has been rough and tumble — even downright nasty. Voters were told in 1800 that Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, would destroy the country and openly promote prostitution, incest and adultery. Jefferson’s opponent, John Adams? Dubbed, “His Rotundity” and accused of wanting to start a kingly dynasty.

 

Things weren’t any gentler in Congress, where verbal altercations between Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Marjorie Taylor Greene seem almost quaint compared to the legislature’s violent history.

 

A duel claimed Alexander Hamilton in 1804, but that didn’t stop the practice among legislators. Representatives often carried guns and knives onto the House floor, and in 1838, Rep. William Graves of Kentucky shot Maine Rep. Jonathan Cilley to death in a duel.

 

Congress banned dueling in 1839, but the violence didn’t end.

 

In 1856, Preston “Bully” Brooks, a representative from South Carolina, attacked Massachusetts Sen. Charles Sumner with a gold-tipped walking cane. The attack, in response to Sumner’s speeches against South Carolina’s senator during debates over whether Kansas should be admitted a slave state or free, was brutal. It took Sumner three years to recover.

 

Accusations of election cheating, also a near-daily occurrence in the current cycle, have a rich history as well. In 1824, Andrew Jackson won the popular vote but none of the four candidates had a majority of the Electoral College, so the election went to the House of Representatives. There, Speaker Henry Clay, who had been a candidate for president as well, had his electors pledge themselves to John Quincy Adams. Upon Adams’ swearing in, he appointed Clay to be secretary of state. You can imagine the howls over the “corrupt bargain” from Jackson’s supporters.

 

Our forefathers couldn’t be counted on to take the high road, either.

 

John C. Calhoun, a senator from South Carolina, is the only man to serve as vice president to two presidents back when the position was given to whoever got the second-most votes. As vice president to Andrew Jackson, Calhoun battled with Secretary of State Martin Van Buren for the president’s favor. When Jackson appointed Van Buren as ambassador to England in 1831, Calhoun’s supporters lobbied both for and against Van Buren to engineer a tie — the only way Calhoun could cast his vote against “Old Kinderhook.”

 

According to “Hero Of Two Worlds,” Mike Duncan’s biography of Gilbert du Motier the Marquis de Lafayette, a bit earlier in 1824, some of Lafayette’s entourage encountered “hard-core Jacksonian partisans in the Pennsylvania militia who threatened to take up arms if their man lost.” After Jackson was defeated, those same Pennsylvania partisans demurred when asked if they were prepared to make good on their threat of violence. They responded, “we went, in truth, to great lengths, but our opponents disregarded it and acted properly. Now that it is settled, all we have to do is obey. We will support Adams as zealously as if he were our candidate, but at the same time keep a close watch on his administration. … Four years is soon past, and the consequences of a bad election are easily obviated.”

 

Violence erupted a few decades later when Abraham Lincoln was elected as a Republican, the party that replaced the Whigs. Democratic states in the South, fearing Lincoln would abolish slavery, seceded and took up arms. More than 600,000 Americans died.

 

Despite hand-wringing about a civil war on Fox News and MSNBC, we are nowhere near where we were in the 1860s. The 2024 election will likely be filled with as much pettiness, name-calling and threats of violence as any prior. That’s politics. The rest of us should act as honorably as those Pennsylvania Jacksonians did in 1824: Fight for our candidates, respect results and vow to do it all over again in 2028.

 

Patrick Tuohey is co-founder of Better Cities Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused on municipal policy solutions, and a senior fellow at the Show-Me Institute, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to Missouri state policy work.

 

This story was originally published May 30, 2024, 9:57 AM.

PENNSYLVANIA MAN ALLEGEDLY THREW TODDLER INTO PACK-N-PLAY SO HARD FAMILY'S CHIHUAHUA WAS KILLED

PEOPLE

 

Pa. Man Allegedly Threw Toddler into Pack-n-Play So Hard that Family's Chihuahua Was Killed

Bryan Morales Gracia, 34, of Altoona, is facing child endangerment and animal cruelty charges, police said

 

A Pennsylvania man is facing criminal charges after being accused of throwing a toddler so hard into a Pack-n-Play that their pet Chihuahua was fatally crushed, say authorities.

 

On May 26, Bryan Morales Gracia, 34, of Altoona, was arrested and charged with aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of a child, recklessly endangering Another person, cruelty to animals, simple assault and harassment.

 

Authorities learned about the incident on May 25 at about 10:57 p.m., when Altoona police officers responded to a call about an adult male allegedly assaulting an 18-month old in an apartment, the Altoona Police Department said in a statement.

 

A witness who parked outside the building and could see into the bedroom window of Morales Gracia’s apartment called police, claiming a man — later identified by police as Morales Gracia — could be seen repeatedly striking the child before throwing the child into a Pack-n-Play, police said.

 

Officers got to the apartment and found an injured toddler and a dead Chihuahua, per the statement.

 

“It was determined that the child and Chihuahua are often placed into the Pack-n-Play together and were on this night,” police said. “During this incident, the child was thrown into the Pack-n-Play with such force that it fatally wounded the Chihuahua.”

 

The witness told police she ran up to the window and yelled at Morales Gracia to stop hitting the child, police said, according to the affidavit of probable cause, obtained by the Altoona Mirror.

 

The witness alleged the suspect was “smacking the child repeatedly,” the affidavit states, according to the Mirror.

 

The child was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

 

According to the affidavit of probable cause, Morales Gracia told police he struck the child for hitting the dog, which he said the child often does, the Mirror reports.

 

He said he placed the child on top of the dog by mistake, the affidavit said, according to the Mirror.

 

Morales Gracia remains held at the Blair County Prison on $25,000 straight cash bail.

 

He is scheduled to return to court on July 5.

 

It is unclear whether he has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.

 

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

DAD GETS BAD PARENTING RAP ON REDDIT FOR MISHANDLING HIS KID'S REQUEST

Fox News

 

Dad gets bad parenting rap on Reddit for mishandling his kids' questions

Wife is upset at how husband handled key parenting task; now, the dilemma has gone viral

By Maureen Mackey Fox News

Published May 28, 2024 8:22am EDT

 

A father who shared his story on the popular Reddit page, known as AITA ("Am I the a--hole?"), has not been getting much love from others about what happened.

 

Some 5,000 people have so far reacted to his story in less than 24 hours, and the overwhelming verdict is that the hapless dad mishandled a key parenting task.

 

"I have two kids, who are 2 and 4 years old," wrote the father.

 

"And one thing I try to reinforce with them is that if Mom or Dad says ‘no,’ if they go to the other parent — the answer they will get is no."

 

He added, "Which means if they ask my wife, and she says no, regardless of how I feel on the matter, I'm going to back her up. And I expect my wife to do the same."

 

Then came the problem.

 

"Well, this morning," wrote the dad, going by the username "Acrobatic-Garbage-52," "we were getting ready to leave and [our] 4-year-old asked my wife if she could get out a game that always makes a mess."

 

The man added, "So my wife said no."

 

Immediately, however, the 4-year-old then "turned to me and asked the same question."

 

So the dad replied, "No, your mom told you no."

 

The father wrote that this answer "upset my wife, and I don't quite understand why." and he then asked others for their opinion of how he handled it.

 

"The way you phrased it had an undertone of, ‘Mom is a killjoy and I might have said yes.’"

 

They delivered their verdicts.

 

In the top "upvoted" response on the platform, a commenter tried to explain to the man why he botched things.

 

"I think, ‘Your mom already answered you,’ is much better," this commenter wrote.

 

Others also weighed in to help the dad see the light.

 

"I get what you were trying to do," wrote another person, "which was teach your child that if they get a ‘no’ from one parent, they shouldn't ask the other parent. But the way you phrased it [had] an undertone of, ‘Mom is a killjoy and I might have said yes.’"

 

Another person responding to the dilemma put it this way, "The problem is not with what you are doing, but how you are phrasing it."

 

This person said, "Your phrasing can be taken to mean, ‘I might have said yes, but your mother said no’ — thereby making her the bad guy."

 

The person went on, "Your kids are too young to understand the kind of ‘united front’ setup that you want to emphasize, therefore you need to stick just with something that is more like ‘No.’ or ‘No, you were already told no.’"

 

Another person on Reddit who commented shared a thoughtful message with the young father.

 

"Talk with your wife. Find out why this upset her," the person wrote, in part. "Make a plan of action of how to deal with it in the future."

 

Yet another commenter shared a similar but far more pointed message.

 

"You should be asking your wife why she's upset, not Reddit," said this commenter. 

ILLEGAL ALIENS FROM AROUND THE WORLD COMING ACROSS U.S. SOUTHERN BORDER

National Review

 

Tear It Down, and They Will Come

By RICH LOWRY

May 28, 2024 6:30 AM

 

Everyone has gotten the message about the southern border.

 

The phrase “a borderless world” has long been a metaphorical way to speak of greater global interconnectedness, but the Biden administration must have taken it literally.

 

The southern border is emphatically not just for Spanish-speaking migrants anymore.

 

It was apparently too narrow-minded and exclusionary only to allow illegal immigrants from Mexico and Central America to walk into the country. This shameful, implicit bias in favor of our own hemisphere has now been rectified.

 

The United States no longer simply has a border to its south with Mexico and, by extension, Central America; it has a border with the world, and is doing just as poor a job enforcing it.

 

Why have a multicultural border crisis when it can be a truly global one?

 

In a notable clip, Bill Melugin of Fox News asked a line of illegal immigrants near San Diego where they were from and came across one lonely migrant from Ecuador, while the rest were from places like Turkey and India, including one from Iran.

 

Todd Bensman of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) reports, “More Chinese nationals are now crossing the Southwest border near San Diego than Mexican nationals.”

 

In fiscal 2024, according to Andrew Arthur of CIS, about 500,000 of the roughly 1.2 million aliens apprehended at the border have been from places besides Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, or Nicaragua.

 

More than 160 countries have been represented in apprehensions at the southern border, raising the question, What’s wrong (or right) with the 30 or so countries that haven’t managed to send anyone?

 

It’s a basic matter of supply and demand. There’s endless demand to come into the United States, and — so long as people are making it in — there’s endless supply, too.

 

It was natural that Mexicans and Central Americans would be the first to take advantage of Biden’s laxness at the border, since they already had well-developed migration networks. As word has gotten out everywhere else that it’s easy to get in, other nationalities are showing up, too, and with time will build their own networks.

 

As we know, the perverseness of the current arrangement is that migrants typically don’t try to evade Border Patrol agents but seek them out so they can surrender and get processed into the country.

 

The Associated Press recently reported from the current migration hot spot of San Diego that groups of migrants gathered, “waiting hours for Border Patrol agents while volunteers deliver hot coffee, instant ramen and bandages for busted knees and swollen ankles.”

 

In one instance, polite Central American illegal immigrants were shouldered aside by pushy Chinese illegal immigrants. “Near Jacumba Hot Springs,” the AP related, “a town of less than 1,000 people, about a dozen people from Latin American countries arrived at a fork in a dirt road around 10 p.m. About 100 Chinese migrants came just before sunrise, many neatly dressed and playfully taking pictures on their phones. Some of the Latin Americans grumbled quietly when the Chinese lined up ahead of them as Border Patrol vehicles arrived.”

 

There are real complications when it comes to holding minors and so-called family units. Single men, though, should be easily transferable over to ICE for detention. Yet, we are releasing into the country single men from far-flung countries who don’t even have a pretense of being asylum-seekers.

 

Another factor here is that Mexico has been cracking down on migrants from Central America, helping Joe Biden by reducing the number of encounters at the border. But Mexico doesn’t appear as interested in keeping migrants from elsewhere from crossing the border. It’s hard for them to send someone back to, say, China, whereas blocked migrants from Central America — if they don’t simply come across the border in November or December after the U.S. presidential election — might eventually end up going home on their own.

 

Meanwhile, if Panamanian president-elect José Raúl Mulino follows through on his promise to close the Darién Gap, it would close off a major access point for migrants from all around the world.

 

As it is, Biden has created the most powerful magnet for migration imaginable by putting a giant “entry” sign on the southern border, and even people outside the continent have gotten the message and reacted accordingly. 

LAWSUIT ALLEGES AMERICAN AIRLINES KICKED BLACK MEN OFF PLANE CITING BODY ODOUR

Lawsuit alleges American Airlines kicked group of Black men off plane citing body odor

 

The Hill

 

Group of Black men file racial discrimination lawsuit against American Airlines

BY CHEYANNE M. DANIELS - 05/29/24 10:53 AM ET

 

Three Black men have filed a lawsuit against American Airlines, alleging it forced them and several other Black male passengers to deboard a flight after a white flight attendant complained that a passenger had body odor.

 

The suit, filed Wednesday in New York, stems from an incident on Jan. 5 when the three plaintiffs — Alvin Jackson, Emmanuel Jean Joseph and Xavier Veal — boarded American Airlines Flight 832 from Phoenix to New York. The trio did not know each other and were not seated together.

 

Jackson, a professional musician and music teacher, was heading back to New York after touring in California with his band. Joseph, a professional actor, was heading home after spending the holidays with friends. And Veal had just helped a friend move from New York to the Golden State. Their flight home included a layover in Phoenix.

 

As the men boarded the plane in Phoenix, they say, all seemed normal. But shortly after the pilot announced an anticipated early arrival time, an American Airlines representative approached the plaintiffs one by one and ordered them off the plane without explanation, according to the lawsuit.

 

In total, eight Black male passengers were removed from the plane. Video recordings of the incident show the men demanding to know why they were being removed, with several accusing the staff of discrimination.

 

At least one American representative can be heard saying “I agree” in response to the accusations.

 

When the plaintiffs demanded an explanation as to why they had been removed, a representative said a white male flight attendant had complained about an unidentified passenger’s body odor.

 

At no time were any of the men accused of having offensive body odor, the complaint states.

 

When Joseph stated that the white male flight attendant had treated him differently “just because of the color of [his] skin,” an American representative responded, “Correct. I do not disagree with you.”

 

“What happened to us was wrong. Imagine a flight attendant ordering every white person off a plane because of a complaint about one white person. That would never happen. But that is what happened to us. There is no explanation other than the color of our skin. American Airlines singled us out for being Black, embarrassed us, and humiliated us. Clearly, this was discrimination,” the three plaintiffs said in a statement.

 

Once the men had deboarded, the lawsuit alleges, an American Airlines employee told them they would not be allowed to reboard and would need to be rebooked. But American then informed the plaintiffs there were no other flights that evening to rebook them on.

 

As the men continued to protest their removal, the pilot informed the passengers still on the plane that the men had been removed because of the body odor complaint.

 

After more than an hour delay, the airline eventually reversed its decision and let all eight men reboard the flight. The suit says the plaintiffs were humiliated and traumatized by the experience.

 

“This complaint follows other reported incidents of American Airlines mistreating Black travelers who are simply trying to reach their destinations,” said Michael Kirkpatrick, an attorney for the plaintiffs. “American Airlines’ treatment of the Black men aboard Flight 832 — and countless other Black passengers and passengers of color over many years — cannot be tolerated. Jackson, Joseph, and Veal deserve justice.”

 

Susan Huhta, another attorney for the plaintiffs, added that American Airlines racially profiled the eight men.

 

“If American Airlines received a complaint about a Black male passenger with offensive body odor, but could not verify the complaint, the solution should not have been to eject eight separate Black men from the plane,” said Huhta. “This incident is consistent with a disturbing history of allegations that American Airlines discriminates against Black passengers.”

 

In a statement to The Hill, American Airlines said it is investigating the incident.

 

“We take all claims of discrimination very seriously and want our customers to have a positive experience when they choose to fly with us,” the company said. “Our teams are currently investigating the matter, as the claims do not reflect our core values or our purpose of caring for people.”

 

According to the lawsuit, American Airlines has a history of discriminating against passengers of color, particularly Black passengers, with “substandard treatment.”

 

Previous reported incidents on the airline include an African American man being required to give up his seats on a flight from Washington, D.C., to Raleigh-Durham after he responded to disrespectful and discriminatory comments directed toward him by two white passengers.

 

In another instance, an African American woman who booked first-class seats for herself and her companion was switched to coach at the ticket counter, while her white companion remained in the first-class seat.

 

In 2017, the NAACP issued a travel advisory warning Black passengers they could be subjected to “disrespectful, discriminatory or unsafe conditions” on American Airlines.

 

Jackson, Joseph and Veal are seeking an award to be determined at trial for punitive damages, including damages for fear, humiliation, embarrassment, mental pain, suffering and inconvenience. 

MADOC'S OPEN MIC THIS FRIDAY 6:30 P.M. AT THE LEGION

Dear Friends:

Friday is coming up soon - and Madoc's Open Mic is on!! So tune up your song list, polish up your instruments, get us on your calendar and in your reminders and get ready for another great night of Live local Music - and FUN!! :D

Jerry will be back with his great sound system and Robert survived a dangerous and excruciating 5 day hike in Killarney so both these guys will be on hand at the Open Mic. Elly and I are taking advantage of an opportunity to visit my sister in Guelph and take in a Garlic Workshop in Dashwood (also picking up a new tool for her tractor) - so we won't be there this once!!

Sandra Pettit is stepping in to take over my role of co-host and name taker, camera person and reminding you who's next! So find Sandra when you get there. (:

I'll miss you but YOU will be having a great time - so I'm NOT worried that you will miss me.

As usual, we will have 2 or 3 mics and stands, 2 monitors, a music stand and the best sound system around manned by Jerry Whyte.

So come on out and support Robert, Sandra and Jerry, see all your good friends at the Legion and have a wonderful time!!

I'll see you June 14 - if not sooner.

Love, Elizabeth 

POSSIBLY THE FIRST EVER BURGER KING COMMERCIAL

Here is what, judging by the fact they're talking about the Whopper as if no one had ever heard of it,  would appear to be Burger King's first television commercial.

ARIZONA FATHER LOCKED SIX YEAR OLD SON IN CLOSET AND STARVED HIM TO DEATH

PEOPLE

 

Ariz. Dad Locked Son, 6, in Closet and Starved Him to Death; Boy Weighed 18 lbs. When He Died

Locked in a closet for 16 hours a day, DeShaun Martinez weighed 18 lbs. when he died, approximately the weight of a 1-year-old, authorities say

By KC Baker  Published on May 24, 2024 04:15PM EDT

 

An Arizona man has been found guilty of murdering the young son he kept locked in a closet by starving him to death.

 

On Thursday, a jury in Coconino County Superior Court in Flagstaff found Anthony Martinez, 28, guilty of first-degree murder in the 2020 death of his 6-year-old son, Deshaun Martinez, the Associated Press reports.

 

He was also found guilty of two counts each of child abuse, kidnapping and aggravated assault on law enforcement officers, according to online court records.

 

The abuse the child had suffered in his young life came to light in early March, 2020, when police responded to a 911 call at Deshaun’s family’s Flagstaff apartment about an unresponsive child, according to arrest records obtained by Fox 10 News.

 

Deshaun was found lying on the floor. His brother was found in a bedroom closet. Deshaun later died at the hospital, the Associated Press reports.

 

The boy weighed just 18 lbs. when he died in March 2020, the autopsy showed, according to the autopsy report obtained by the Arizona Daily Sun. According to the autopsy, Deshaun weighed 34 pounds when he was four years old.

 

The coroner determined that Deshaun died of starvation.

 

According to police, Deshaun and his brother were kept in a closet for about 16 hours a day, according to arrest records obtained by Fox 10 News.

 

The parents allegedly told police that the boys would “steal food” at night, according to the arrest records.

 

The boys' parents also told authorities that Deshaun's malnourishment was caused by a medical condition, the arrest records state.

 

They also said he had stolen diet pills, according to the arrest records.

 

Deshaun also had bruises and cuts when he was found, according to the Associated Press.

 

Martinez, along with the boy’s mother, Elizabeth Archibeque, and his grandmother, Ann Martinez, were all charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping and child abuse, PEOPLE previously reported.

 

In July 2023, Archibeque, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to first-degree murder and child abuse, ABC 15 reports.

 

Ann Martinez pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.

 

Anthony Martinez faces life in prison when he is sentenced on June 28.

 

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages. 

AH: All three should receive the death penalty.