Sex and Politics and Screeds and Attitude

3/31/2022

the nazis in ukraine

that's the latest from 'eletronic intifada.' and let's put that with 'rt' via 'dissident voice:'

The Russian military has presented documents showing Ukraine’s interest in using drones to deliver weaponized pathogens developed in US-funded biolabs. Names of US officials involved in the biolabs projects, and the role the current US president’s son played in the program, were also made public during the special briefing on Thursday.

One of the key pieces of evidence was a letter from the Ukrainian company Motor Sich to the Turkish drone manufacturer Baykar Makina – makers of the Bayraktar TB2 and Akinci UAVs – dated December 15, 2021. The Ukrainians specifically asked if the drones could carry 20 liters of aerosolized payload to a range of 300 kilometers – putting them in range of a dozen major Russian cities and almost all of Belarus.

“We are talking about the development by the Kiev regime of technical means of delivery and use of biological weapons with the possibility of their use against the Russian Federation,” said Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, commander of the Russian Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Protection Forces.

you really have to wonder how long the corporate media and certain personalities think they can get away with their garbage?

let's close with c.i.'s 'Iraq snapshot:'

Thursday, March 31, 2022.. Robert Pether remains in an Iraqi jail, Julian Assange remains persecuted, Iraq still can't name a president and Jada Pinkett remains bald.

Kicking off with the assault of Chris Rock, let's note this from Jimmy Dore about how Will Smith's assault is now encouraging others to call for assaulting comedians.

It's amazing. And, as Elaine pointed out:

I like Jonathan Turley but I think he's missed the boat on one issue.

He rightly documents the attacks on free speech. So far, however, he has not written of Will Smith attacking Chris Rock at the Oscars. Maybe he is doing a column on it?

If so, he may be holding the topic for that reason.

But I would argue that all the attacks on free speech, all the self-righteous grand-standing to justify censoring people. We see that in the attack, we see that in some of the responses to the attack.

I support free speech.

What Will Smith did was outrageous. Some of the reactions to the assault have been even more outrageous.

This is part of the attack on free speech. It's also something more.

I'm remembering having to learn the name of Nicholas Sandman. My life was fine without ever knowing his name. But he was made into a national incident and a monster by the same group that's defening Will and talking how hard it is on Jada Pankitt. Nicholas didn't do anything to warrant the outrage or the hate heaped on him. But Will slapped Chris Rock on a national statge -- that Will wasn't supposed to be on -- in front of the whole world and lairs and whores want to pretend like it's okay?

I've read that garbage THE WASHINGTON POST published from the dumb idiot who wanted to argue in favor of Jada and tell you it was race and sexism and Jada was the victim.

You stupid f**king idiot. You are the reason outlets used to argue that women couldn't cover abortion -- they were women and they could get pregnant so they couldn't be objective was the claim.. We saw that same thing with the idiot in Congress who Tweeted applauding the assualt because she's bald too.

Get over yourselves. Being bald? If that's the worst thing in your life, you should be thanking your higher power, personal god, whatever that this is all you're facing.

And stop applauding Will for 'defending' his wife while claiming to be a feminist.

A woman needs rescued? That's offensive. A woman can't handle words? That's offensive.

You certainly are trapped in your gender roles as you stumble around at the corner of race and gender.

And you miss the reality of the actual trope that's at play -- because you can't/won't refute the systematic racism of the system you are electing to endorse, embrace and play with it.

A woman needs defending, you argue, so Will was alright to do what he did.

Hmm.

As you spew your garbage endlessly, do you not realize what you're doing?

Because the way I see it, violence gainst a Black man is again being justified because someone claims a woman's 'honor' has been besmirched.

Emmett Till wasn't an exception, he's just one of the few that's widely known. Time and again, Black men were targeted in the US with the claim that they had dishonored a woman in some way. Women? We can defend ourselves. Claiming otherwise is a cute way for men to justify attacking others. Claiming that we can't defend ourselves -- not even from words -- is sexism.

But that reality is ignored and Chris Rock is attacked.

Chris Rock deserved to be attacked because he's Black?

I'd drop your faux feminism and your academic nonsense and grasp the reality of the situation. Violence against a Black man is once again being justified and minimized.

Don't tell me #BlackLivesMatter when you think it is perfectly acceptable for Chris Rock to be assaulted while performing an act he was asked by the Academy to perform on live television.

Chris Rock has been very nice about this and very kind. And who's sticking up for him? (I know Chris Rock and consider him a friend.) No one. Whores like Pee-Pee in his mouth Diddy lied -- and I told you he was lying -- to protect Will Smith. Who's defending Chris.

Chris was the one attacked.

And Jada, ya still bald.

And it's still not the end of the world, and you're still not going to die from it.

Chris was invited on that stage. Will was not. Chris was doing exactly what he was asked to do by the Academy. And he got assaulted. There's no excuse for that. There's no defense for that. And shame on anyone applauding that attack and not grasping that they are falling into the historical racist construct that says it is okay to assault a Black man to defend a woman's 'honor.'

An attack on free speech is what the persecution of Julian Assange is all about. US President Joe Biden continues to persecute the journalist for opening the truth up to the world. Attacking Julian is about intimidating any journalist in the future with knowledge of War Crimes carried out by the US so that the journalist will not report them.

John Jiggins (INDEPENDENT AUSTRALIA) reports:

In marked contrast to the war in Ukraine, the Iraqi war was covered by journalists embedded with the invading forces.

Civilian deaths were dismissed as “collateral damage”.

When WikiLeaks showed us what “collateral damage” looked like from the perspective of Iraqi civilians, releasing a video of a massacre by an Apache helicopter gun crew of Iraqi civilians and two Reuter journalists, Julian Assange called it Collateral Murder.

This intervention played an important role in ending the illegal UK, U.S. and Australian invasion of a sovereign nation, and because of this, the war criminals he exposed are destroying Julian Assange with the consent of the Australian Government, claiming he is the criminal.

But Assange was a hero for peace.

For the Apache helicopter crew, the civilians on the ground were dehumanised. Like boys playing a computer game, they exclaimed “light ‘em up!” as they blew apart their victims from their unseen platform a mile in the sky.

When a good samaritan stopped to help those still living, he and his children were ruthlessly machine-gunned. The crew blamed their father, saying he shouldn’t have brought children to a war zone.

Let's note two reports from 60 MINUTES>

And let's note that this 60 MINUTES in Austrtalia. In the US, nothing. In the US, whose president is persecuting Julian Assange? Silence.

Julian's 'crime' is journalism. He is targed by the president of the United States. And you have to look to 60 MINUTES in aonther country to get coverage.

Julian remains persecuted. And the silence goes a long, long way towards explaining why that continues.

Meg Sherman (DISSIDENT VOICE) observes:

Hard working, principled journalists — who’d be legends and treasures in a long lost era of good press ethics in society — and their sources are paying a high price out of their human rights under the aegis of a craven new age of US imperialism. Most modern states bar the integration of legitimate journalistic activity with the penal code, like those currently being deployed to get Julian Assange. But in the data age, with less developed laws around the link between technology and sources, criminalisation is being embraced, or at least is being seized upon in the moment before laws and regulation are clarified and tightened up to get Assange.

But it stinks. For one evidence cited in attempts to justify his arrest and pursuit under the law are at best dubious, at worst slanderous. Moreover in a zeitgeist defined by Brexit negotiations steeped deep in the rhetoric of protecting parliamentary sovereignty it ought to worry us British courts are willing to yield to the whims of US courts who are willing to put Assange away for life, or kill him, for the crime of doing journalism.

It’s time that the establishment drops pretences and stops using the phrase “no man is above the law” as if the mantra is still meaningful. Either justice is a right or its not. For so many, conspicuously all in the business of exposing corruption, they don’t get it. It’s time to reform society’s treatment of whistleblowers and remove all legal obstructions to their freedoms.

Joe Biden has become a threat to a free press and to the First Amendment. Margaret Kimberley (BLACK AGENDA REPORT) addresses the damage that Joe's doing with his words:

“I mean what I say when I say it!” Those words were spoken by president elect Joe Biden in December 2020 during a meeting with a group described as “civil rights leaders.” Video of the meeting was leaked and Biden’s insulting and dismissive attitude towards Black people was clear even to those who ignored this tendency he has shown throughout his 50 years of public life.

Biden did us a favor by revealing himself and by telling us to pay attention when he speaks. That advice should be followed no matter how strange his words may seem. Even in his bad tempered confusion, Biden always reveals what he is doing.

He recently made news for all the wrong reasons during his recent trip to Europe where he attended a combination G7 summit and NATO meeting in Brussels followed by a trip to Poland.

At the NATO meeting he rather nonchalantly informed the people of the world that they will all suffer because of the misguided effort to punish Russia with sanctions. “With regard to food shortages, yes we did talk about food shortages and it’s going to be real. The price of these sanctions is not just imposed upon Russia. It's imposed upon an awful lot of countries as well, including European countries and our country as well. And because both Russia and Ukraine have been the bread basket of Europe in terms of wheat for example.” Ukraine won’t have a good harvest in the near future and Russia won’t be able to sell what it grows. That means rising prices for those scarce wheat products that may still be available. Biden’s casual tone is an indication he thinks people and governments all over the world should accept the oncoming disaster he created without complaint.

Not content to disrupt global food supplies he also announced his future plans for Ukraine. He said this to 82nd Airborne troops stationed in Poland. "And you’re going to see when you’re there. And you — some — some of you have been there. You’re going to see — you’re going to see women, young people standing — standing the middle of — in front of a damn tank, just saying, 'I’m not leaving. I’m holding my ground.' They’re incredible." Why are U.S. troops going to see anything in Ukraine? He tried to clean it up with “you may have already seen it” but he was saying that he intends to have US troops deployed in a country where Russia already has forces. His photo opportunity turned into the announcement of a hot war.

The most remarkable Biden statement that his apologists call a “gaffe ” also took place in Poland. He gave what was supposed to be a conventional speech portraying the U.S. as the beacon of freedom and democracy while Russia is really bad. His remarks should have been fairly standard and unexceptional but as always Biden told us what he was up to. In referring to Vladimir Putin he said, "This man cannot remain in power."

The clarifications and backpedaling were immediate, but no one could unhear Biden’s words. Despite all denials to the contrary, Biden is after regime change against the Russian government and his actions prove it. The very idea that Russia’s government will fall because of sanctions pressure is ludicrous. But once again, Biden gave a heads up in July 2021 .

“When I was with Mr. Putin, who has a real problem. He's sitting on top of an economy that has nuclear weapons and oil wells and nothing else. Nothing else. Their economy is, what, the eighth smallest in the world now, largest in the world? He knows he's in real trouble, which makes him even more dangerous, in my view."

As the US government pursues conflict with Russia, the site of the ongoing war that the US started, Iraq, gets worse and worse. As we noted yesterday, for the third time this year, Iraq held a session of Parliament to elect a president. nd for the the third time -- this year -- they failed to do so.

This year. We're in the third month of this year.

Three times, they have failed.

The parliamentary election was held when? October 10th. And they are supposed to move quickly. They didn't. That is why they are now almost two months beyond the date set in their own Constitution for naming a president.

They can't name a prime minister until they have a president.

Follwing the results of October 10th, too many corporate outlets in the west tried to spin reality. Reailty was that the turnout was the lowest ever. Further reality is that turn out has gone repeatedly ever since Joe Biden (via The Erbil Agreement) overturned the 2010 election results. The people didn't want Nouri al-Maliki to have a seond term. The White House did. The result was the rise of ISIS, yes. But it also resulted in an eroison of trust in the ballot box -- something many of us were warning of at that time.

The whorish corporate press wanted to name Moqtada al-Sadr a victor, hurrah! A kingmaker, they called him. They didn't bother to note that not only did he not win enough seats to form a government on his own but that his group also got less votes than they did in the previous elections.

Moqtada was hailed by the western press -- as though he'd never been responsible for the deaths of US troops, as though he'd never attacked Iraq's LGBTQ community, as though he wasn't attempting to curtail the rights of women. all of that was washed away.

Reality, Moqtada's not a kingmaker.

Reality, Nouri al-Maliki continues to stall and delay him. What Nouri's not personally carrying out is other people copying Nouri's previous plays.

And Moqtada, hailed by the corporate press backin October, still can't form a government. We're tend days away from April 10th, ten days away six months since the elections. And the political stalemate continues.

None of this is surprising if anyone had paid attention. We did. I'm not suprised at all and I said over and over that Moqtada was not a kingmaker, that nothing indicated he was, that facts argued he had lost support. But facts and today's corporate press are at opposite ends. They're openly hostile to one another.

The western press that sold the illegal war still can't get the facts right all this time later.

Salam Faraj and Laure al-Khoury (AL-MONITOR) note:

Six months after Iraq's parliamentary vote, the war-scarred country is no closer to electing a president amid a bitter political stalemate that has thrown institutions into limbo.

Wrangling between rival Muslim Shiite blocs in the assembly on Wednesday scuppered the legislature's third attempt to elect a head of state.

Though a largely ceremonial role, the president determines the country's next prime minister who will in turn form a cabinet to be voted in by an absolute majority of lawmakers.

- What is the hold-up? -

A schism running through the so-called "Shiite house" of Iraqi politics lies at the heart of the impasse.

Firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr has long claimed the largest bloc in parliament, with 73 seats out of the 329-member legislature.

But his bloc does not have enough members to establish a clear majority -- forcing him to reach out to form an untraditional alliance.

Eschewing the more predictable grouping with other Shiite factions, Sadr has chosen to ally with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Sunni parties to form a coalition dubbed "Saving the Homeland", with 155 seats.

The coalition backs KDP candidate Rebar Ahmed for the presidency -- a post reserved for Kurds, while the post of prime minister by convention goes to a Shiite.

Shirking the tradition of forming a "consensus government" between Shiite parties, Sadr hopes to put forth a "majority government" led by his cousin, Iraq's ambassador to Britain Jaafar al-Sadr.

This has placed his coalition at loggerheads with the Coordination Framework -- a powerful force that includes former premier Nuri al-Maliki's party and the Iran-backed Fatah Alliance, the political arm of the Shiite-led former paramilitary group Hashed al-Shaabi.

The stalemate continues. So does the imprisonment of an Austrailan citizen. Robert Pether was imprisoned in IRaq with no access to justice or fairness. He was locked away and his medical needs were ignored. He remains impisoned. THE GUARDIAN notes that the United Nations has called his imprisonment and that of his collegaue Khalid Radwan an "enfoced disappearance." Erin Pearson (THE AGE) reports:

A United Nations body is calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Australian man Robert Pether from an Iraqi jail cell, finding his detention contravenes international law.

A report from the UN’s Working Group on Arbitrary Detention this month found the imprisonment of Mr Pether and his colleague Khalid Radwan to be arbitrary and in contravention of international law.

The report found the men were “lured” into returning to Iraq on the pretext of assisting in an investigation and “arbitrarily detained, without any legal basis” ever since.

Mr Pether, an Australian engineer and father of three, was arrested in Iraq alongside an Egyptian colleague in April. They were both later jailed following a dispute between their employer and the Central Bank of Iraq.

The working group said it was of the opinion the men were then forcibly “disappeared” during the first few days of their detention and their capacity to defend themselves was “undermined and compromised” during subsequent court proceedings.

Maybe ahead of next year's Academy Awards, Mila can announce that she once again misspoke about what country she was from and that, this time, it was really Australia and then she can ask for a moment of silence to honor the persecuted Robert Pether and Julian Assange?

The following sites updated:

3/29/2022

the awful will and jada

some 1 e-mailed 'with all that's going on in the world, why are you writing about will smith?'

presumably, since it's my site, it's because i have an opinion on it.

also assault is an issue.

can you imagine how he treats people on sets? he was out in public, dressed to the 9s, and knew he was on worldwide television when he decided to run up on stage and slap chris rock. i don't think that's an fluke, i think that's how he truly is. i'm not in the industry, c.i. is. she's covered it again because of that reason and because her friends are asking her to. but it is news.

shame on you if you don't think it is.

did he need to slap a woman for you to care?

did he need to stab some 1 for your to care?

shoot them?

what level of violence is acceptable to you from a grown man.

grown and then some. as c.i. worded it today, will's a few blocks from 'elderly' - he's middle-aged right now.

this is not appropriate behavior.

if this had happened at an auto convention, the car industry would have fired him immediately.

because he's a celebrity, some people want to give him a pass.

i'm not going to.

my work was p.r. and before i took an early retirement, i had already heard all the rumors about will. drugs, sleeps with every 1 - male and female. diva. throws tantrums on sets. throws items on sets. a monster to work with.

will's actions were outrageous and they took place in front of the entire world. his actions were his decision. choosing to act that way on live television was his decision.

what he did was appalling.

jada pinkett is bald. oh damn well. chris rock didn't make her bald with his 1 liner and if he had mocked her cruelly and at length, will still didn't have the right to assault some 1.

i guess we should all be glad that 'mad magazine' is no more. imagine what will would have done if the mad writers and artists who sent up 'independence day' were present. (and how sad that to note a really big will smith movie, i have to drop back to the 90s but that really is the last time he ever carried a film on his own shoulders to the box office.)

if that had been my daughter pulling that stunt at her school, i would've grounded her and she would have made an apology that was a real apolgoy not will smith's garbage on 'instagram.'

and that was only made because the academy is gong to have to take some sort of action.

they'll have to. too many people are outraged. and they should be.

he's a so-so actor whose best box office is long behind him. and yet they choose to welcome him, award him, and he paid them back by spitting on the telecasst and tarnishing the image of the awards themselves and of the industry.

there's also the issue of not wanting to look the other way currently because that will say it's okay.

next year, russell crowe wants to slug (and he'd slug - unlike will smith, russell crowe is a man) jimmy kimmel over some joke, all he has to do is say, 'well it was no big deal when will smith did it.'

this needs to stop. the academy awards have prestige, they are not the source awards. they are not cutting edge. they are formal and people dress formally.

will smith doesn't how to act in public and that's probably the nicest thing i can say about him.

now let me turn to an e-mail i actually liked. lucy e-mailed to say that she read along each week on 'the cleaning lady' but couldn't watch due to her schedule. she finally had a weekend to herself last week and she streamed all the episodes on hulu. she loved the show.

i love it too, lucy. i hope there will be a season 2. (fox hasn't announced that yet.)

it really was a show that you could sink your teeth into and enjoy.

i don't think there was an episode of 'dynasty' last week, by the way.

let's close with c.i.'s 'Iraq snapshot:'

Tuesday, March 29, 2022. We return to the topic of yesterday . . .

Let's pick up with Will Smith's assault on Chris Rock. A few issues were raised in e-mails and I was thinking about following up to answer or include those and P Diddy had to comment to news outlets but then Will released his 'apology' and I knew we'd have to go another day.

First off, P-Diddy, you're trash. You degraded J-Lo's image when she was with you, you lowered her brand. And that's not just because of the shootings. Not just.

If you missed it, PeePee Diddy has interjected himself into the story. He wants you to know, hand to God, pinkie swear, that he's talked to Chris Rock and he's talked to Wil Smith -- he's the Jimmy Carter of the entertainment world (in his mind), and they're just fine ane . . .

We don't give a crap what you say. Get it through your head, music man. This was not your event. This was an event for the film industry. We don't need to herar from your trashy ass. You're nobody in the film world. You're a failed actor who probably showed more than he realized when he tried to act. Pee Pee Diddy, no one needs to hear from you. Most of us don't believe you. But what you think's going on doesn't really matter to the indursty that you are not a part of.

Supposedly, late yesterday, Will Smith issued an apology. He didn't.

And I won't lie like CNN did. CNN 'quotes' him. Here's the actual words.

Violence in all of its forms is poisonous and destructive. My behavior at last night’s Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada’s medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally.

I would like to publicly apologize to you, Chris. I was out of line and I was wrong. I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.

I would also like to apologize to the Academy, the producers of the show, all the attendees and everyone watching around the world. I would like to apologize to the Williams Family and my King Richard Family. I deeply regret that my behavior has stained what has been an otherwise gorgeous journey for all of us.

I am a work in progress.

Sincerely,

Will

What a load of garbage. I say that as somoeone his publicist called about the 'apology.' Point of fact, I am not leading the backlash. For me, the Academy Awards outrage was the silence over Urkaine and the White people while never a minute of silence for the Arabs around the world -- not in Iraq, not in Syria, not . . .

That was the focus of the thing I wrote the night of the Awards. As I explained in yesterday's snapshot, at the after parties, it kept being brought up and those who know I write here had read it and were reading it and were telling me that I missed the big news of the night and . . . . I'm not leading anything. Every year I do campaign for friends to to be nominated and to win. I also do my part to ensure that certain people do not win. (Yes, I did enjoy Sunday night.) Will Smith is not an actor of note or merit. I was opposed to him winning -- and I did not vote for him -- but a few weeks back, when it became obvious he stood a good chance of winning, I didn't swing into action to try to tip the scales against him. He didn't matter enough to me. I had other dogs in that fight and stayed focused on preventing them from winning. (Again, Sunday was a very good night for me.)

When I was called about the statement being crafted, I said very clearly that he didn't need to bring Jada into it. I said he needed to take responsiblity for his actions, that he was a middle aged man, and he needed to apologize to Chris and to the industry.

He couldn't do that. If he were your child and started making excuses for someone he struck at school during his so-called apology, you'd stop him.

And let's get something else clear.

I've had cancer. Twice. I've had chemo. I don't want to hear about poor Jada's 'medical condition.' She's bald. Big deal. It's not life threatening. It hurts her vanity? Too damn bad. Wear a wig. Or don't tell the world about it.

She's bald. Jokes have been made about bald people forever and a day. As bald jokes go, "Can't wait for GI JANE 2," is not that harsh. He could have made a Kojak joke.

Willie's not taking accountability. And for the member of Congress that applauded this b.s? Ayanna Soyini Pressley, you are unfit to serve in Congress. That pains me to say. But you are unfit. We have noted you here and I have often been impressed with you but you're applauding that violence is disgusting. Oh, you're bald too so we all have to walk on egg shells1!!! F**k you. If you were speaking and someone came up onstage and slapped you, I don't think you'd be offering a Tweet of glee. Your hypocrisy and your inability to see beyond yourself goes to how unfit you really are. I am very disappointed.

Jada's bald. Get over it.

It's not a life threatening condition, stop pretending like it's cancer or MS or any real disease that threatens someone's life. Women have worn wigs forever and a day. If she choose not to, more power to her. But don't then whine because someone makes a single sentence joke.

And, for the record, Jada would be damn lucky to star in GI JANE II. It's not like she's had a film career in years, not as a leading lady. And, like Will, she's aging out of the roles. So she'd be damn lucky to star in GI JANES II.

What Will did was offensive.

Most of the e-mails are noting that he'd be expelled from a school for doing what he did.

And that is true. Equally ture, he's not a child. He's not 14 or 15. He's not a young man, even. He's a middle aged man lliving a few blocks from elderly.

He is responsible for his actions. He is responsible for the message he sends.

That dopey apology began the minute the Academy announced that they were conducting a formal investigation into the events. Thats when he decided he couldn't just stay silent (and the plan was to then go on Jimmy Kimmel and crack some jokes).

This was an industry event. Any other industry that he pulled that crap in, he'd be out of it right now. They wouldn't be making excuses for him or give a damn that his wife is bald.

They would note that this was an industry event and he degraded the industry. He brought his trashy ways into the venue and then stormed the stage to attack an invited persenter.

You need to grasp that, if you haven't already.

Because the industry is film, it's televised around the world. So the whole world saw. It lives on forever on YOUTUBE.

He embarrassed the industry. And we're only more embarrassed because on the night he acted the fool, we gave him an award.

He spat on the event.

Again, my big concern was Iraq.

But I did listen at the after parties as people made solid points. What he did was offensive.

This is not some b.s. awards show. No offense, but it's not The People's Choice Awards or The American Music Awards. It's the industry itself handing out these awards. It may seem silly on the outside and on the inside of the industry but it is our awards that we choose to hand out, our night when we honor film.

Amd over a single semtemce. Will Smith thought he had the right to leap form his seat in the midst of a presentation, storm the stage and assault the presenter.

That is not allowed. That is outrageous.

(And, as many of you note in your e-mails -- it was a woman who had made jokes about the very 'dramatic' marriage of Will and Jada from the stage and Will didn't go after her).

Chris Rock's joke was mild. And I hate that we have to say that. It doesn't matter what Chris Rock said. In no world would that be allowed.

At an industry event, Chevy Chase destroyed his career. It wasn't the Academy Awards. But he felt the need to show just hostile (with words only) he could be and he made statements that were offensive. That's why Chevy ended up on TV -- and was lucky to end up on TV. His opportunites dried up throughout the 90s and he was offered garbage. And the reason was the stunt he pulled at an industry event.

If he'd done that on live television at the Academy Awards, he never would have been able to be cast in COMMUNITY.

Will Smith embarrassed the industry.

Mila was brought on so that the Academy could put on their best and most caring face for the public. Ah, look at them, they care, they really, really care.

Awards, as always, frequently went out to undeserving winners because the Academy liked the 'look' of awarding a film about uplift or whatever.

And there in the middle of this celebration -- and carefully crafted p.r. -- Will elected to act the fool.

He didn't just disgrace himself, he disgraced the industry.

And he woke up today and, guess what, Jada's still bald.

Chris Rock didn't make her bald.

Again, she doesn't have cancer, she's not dealing with a life threatening condition. She is losing her hair. It happens and you can go natural, you can wear scarves, hats, wigs , whatever.

Because of Will's actions there are now safety concerns. I was noting the jokes that Helen and Judi would show up next year with armies of bodyguards. And they were jokes. At the after parties. But now?

People are really worried.

What if they're presenting an award next year and some Will Smith doesn't like the joke or doesn't like the winner and storms on stage?

This has never happened in the history of the awards. 94 times, statues have been handed out. Never.

This is not minor. This was not some one outside the industry streaking across the stage. This was someone the industry chose to recognize and he responded with violence.

He shouldn't be at any Academy event ever again -- that includes the awards. That pass shold be pulled from him immediately.

Any efforts to look the other way or not come down hard will encourage others.

This was an industry event. He dsigraced himself, he disgraced the industry and he brought physical violence onto the stage. That's outrageous.

I'm not calling for him to lose his award. If others do, that's fine. And that is a possibility. But I am now joining with the many other voices saying that the Academy has to take a very strong stand on this matter and that we never need to see the producer of this show again since he failed to protect Chris Rock. Where was security Why wasn't Will imemediately evicted as he should have been?

Calls were made and they were all the wrong calls.

I don't even know if he deserved to give an acceptance speech to be honest. Not after that stunt. They should have played music once he was handed the award and that should have been it. His actions didn't deserve a reward.

That there are people out there justifying Will's actions and minimizing them goes to what a dangerous precedent could be set. And that's why the Academy needs to come down hard.

Still in the US (and California) there's news regarding Omar Abdulsattar Ameen, the Iraqi refugee who is fighting to remain in the US. Don Thompson (AP) reports):

A U.S. immigration judge in California has halted the deportation of an Iraqi refugee to Iraq for fear that he could be tortured if he were returned there. Assistant Chief Immigration Judge Tara Naselow-Nahas in November ruled that Omar Abdulsattar Ameen was eligible to be deported because he lied on his immigration papers. The decision came even though a federal judge earlier rejected allegations that he had killed a police officer on behalf of the Islamic State group. On Monday, advocates praised Naselow-Nahas’ decision blocking Ameen’s deportation to Iraq, although she ruled against him on other grounds. U.S. immigration officials declined comment.

Brittnay Johnson (KCRA) adds:

This is a case KCRA 3 Investigates has been following since Ameen was arrested in 2018. The U.S. Government claimed Ameen was a terrorist with ISIS and that he murdered an Iraqi police officer. Not only did it turn out that "Ameen" was not in Iraq at the time the alleged murder happened in 2014, but the judge also found the government's evidence had "substantial deficiencies" and is "ultimately unpersuasive," which led to the decision not to deport Ameen to Iraq.

"It is a big deal," Ilyce Shugall with Immigrant Legal Defense and part of Ameen's defense team, said. "It's a big deal for two reasons; really one, because the judge found that he does need protection from removal to Iraq and made a finding a very clear finding that she believes it is more likely than not that he would be tortured if returned. The second reason it's a big deal is because it's now the third time that a court has found that the government cannot prove that Mr. Ameen was involved in terrorist organizations or terrorist activities."

No, it is not safe in Iraq. The judge recongizes what the Academy Awards did not. Tomorrow, Baghdad is supposed to be the location of the vote for a president. Twice that has failed.

The following sites updated:

3/28/2022

will smith should be banned from future oscar presentations

will smith? the oscars should have had him escorted out. he resorted to violence and did so on a global, live television events. there is no excuse for allowing him to remain at the ceremony.

he didn't deserve an oscar and he proved it with his stunt.

that he has still not publicly apologized to chris rock? goes to what a little bitch will smith actually is.

he's big enough to assault chris rock on stage but not big enough to say 'i'm sorry.'

he's trash and he'll always be trash.

some1 made a joke he didn't like? boo-hoo titty baby.

he needs to be banned from all future oscar telecasts. he can be nominated, he can even win. but he's demonstrated he is not fit to be with others. a message needs to be sent - a strong message - to ensure it doesn't happen again.

here's 'the gay gaston.'

let's close with c.i.'s ''Iraq snapshot:'

Monday, Marcb 28, 2022. Hollywood celebrates and elevates a homophobe while LGBTQs in Iraq remain targeted.

Let's start with the Academy Awards. "What about the suffering of the Iraqi people" went up last night and per those attending three after parties last night, I buried the lead.

A 53-year0old man went onstage and physically assaulted a comedian in the midst of a live broadcast Some are making jokes -- like how Judi Dench and Helen Mirren will show up surrounded by bodyguards prepared to throw down. A director -- who's African-American and insisted that made the remark not racist --p=put it bluntly, "It's the Academy Awards not The Source Awards." Others felt Jada needed to put her sub-cuck on a leash when she takes him out in public since he can't control himmself.

It shouldn't have to be said but it apparently does: Your wife being a joke in a sereis of one liners does not require your comment. If you want to comment, you can say it after the ceremony. To interrupt a live ceremony is appallling and to do so with your hands is outrageous.

"Never in the history of the Acadmy" was the phrase I kept hearing. Over and over. (Which is why so many insisted I buried the lead in last night's post.) It was outrageous and I noted it. (I did not disclose that I knew Chris Rock -- the man Little Willie Smith attacked -- and that I consider Chris a friend. Little Willie's tantrum was not the focus of the post and I didn't think it needed to be noted. Little Cuck Willie is now the focus and I am disclosing regarding Chris Rock.)

This was the 94th annual Academy Awards and never before has this happened.

Will Smith's actions were outrageous and he needs to apologize for them.

He disgraced himself but who cares about that? He's a half-assed actor who can't deliver at the box office anymore and he did serious damage to himself within the industry last night. But this is a disgrace to the industry and not the face we try to present to the world. It was also offensive in that a middle-aged man resorted to violence when he was unhappy with a joke. And he did it on an awards show, he did it on a show that's supposed to celebrate the best of the industry.

His garbage should have him run out of the industry.

He won the award on the same night, Best Actor.

It's the least important actng award the Academy gives out. And it was obvious he was going to win it two weeks ago which is why Ava and I noted:

Excellence isn't rewarded. It's certainly not rewarded at the Academy Awards. The only exceptions being Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress in a good year. The statues are not handed out to the deserving. Men -- in both male actor categories -- win because Academy members liked the films they were in and because the Academy thinks it makes them look good. That's why there are so few memorable performances among the winners for Best Actor.

Anthony Hopkins for his performance in THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS is a rare win. More often it's pedestrian performances in pedestrian films that the Academy thinks hugging will make them look good.

Actors win Academy awards are winning based upon what Academy members feel about the film they appeared in.

Women win for acting. They have to go all out, most years. While men can be stoic (stiff) onscreen but still win.

Bette Davis, Jane Fonda, women like that have to really deliver. They have to dig deep and serve it up onscreen.

If you doubt it, think about Sally Kirkland. ANNA (1987) was one of the worst films ever. But Sally did deliver in it and she got a Best Actress nomination. You won't catch any actor -- even if he delivers -- from a third-rate, C-picture getting nominated. And actors are rarely asked to deliver any real range when being handed an Academy Award. Think about that when they're handing out Oscars at the end of the month.

And think about the fact that when a woman wins she has delivered. If she wins twice -- for example, Jane Fonda, Bette Davis, Jessica Lange, Hillary Swank, Olivia de Havillind, etc -- then she's really something. That list would include Renée Zellweger

He played a dad that the industry wanted to glorify. He gave a lousy performance. An Academy Award winning actress insisted to me that he was "overdue" for the award. And the homophobia that he's displayed for years? "It's not important." Really? Then why don't you say it publily. Say that publicly. You've got one foot in the grave and will be dead before the 2020s draw to a close. Say it. Your career is over. Say it. And grasp that the minute you say it out loud, your death does not mean people say, "Oh, too bad. I really liked her." No, instead, they say, "THat ______. F((k her and may she rot in hell."

She was one of those whining a few years back that Will hadn't been nominated. This is a very obvious blind item, you should be able to figure her out and maybe then grasp that those idiots who are applauding her for pro-gay statements in the 70s need to stop praising her.

It was more important, she insisted, that Will win because of his race than that Will be held accountable for his homophobia.

She doesn't agree now. She was loudly called out at a party last night when she barged into a conversation a group of us were having and she tried to 'correct' me. She was told she was a dumb bitch -- kind of agree right now -- and that some of us actually have an education -- true -- so maybe she should just shut her damn mouth. Hmm.

I see she took the message to heart because she hasn't Tweeted her congrats to Will or, honestly, anything at all. And she loves her Twitter. But maybe she's thinking this week's big event won't have the turnout she needs if she's promoting a homophobe?

I hae no idea.

But before the ceremony started last night, a line had already been drawn in the industry between those of us who support equality and those who support homophobia.

Supporitng Will is supporting homophobia. He has never apologized for all of his As Ava and I wrote in February:

Self-hatred's long been used to overlook the homophobia of some actors -- Will Smith, rumors insist, is gay. We really don't care if he's gay or straight or bi, we just think he owes everyone a public apology.

ZOOM and the pandemic have meant that we do our various conversations over the internet. No more are we able to go onto campuses or into union halls or whatever. We miss the face to face, honestly. But what we have on the plus side, the up -- as Mike would say, is that we've been able to expand the groups we speak to since we aren't traveling. And one of the groups we've added a lot more of is LGBTQ groups.

Things are better for young LGBTQs than they were for previous generations but things are still not where they should be. As we've enlarged the scope of our groups, a friend who is a therapist asked if we'd mind speaking with her group. They were nine gay men, in their forties, who basically did not feel listened by society or represented in the media. Would we speak to them? Being told that, we were dying to speak to them. And we were not disappointed.

There's a story that's not really told and they brought it to the forefront (as have other gay male groups we've spoken to since). We thank them for that. Like them, we marvel over how this part of the story really isn't told.

Being gay is easier than it used to be. 20 years ago, or even just ten in some places, there was so much harassment. We have honestly advised men who've shared their experiences to consider filing lawsuits. And we're not joking and we're not litigious people.

Films and TV shows thought they were being 'sympathetic' and true telling of the gay kid in school who got picked on by some bully. That's the story we've heard rejected over and over for the last five months from many different groups of gay men.

No, what we've heard is about how the whole school system was after you. That was the bully, yes. And there was usually a coach -- at least one -- and a principal egging them on. Adults were around and they not only were not protecting these children, they were actively participating in harassing them.

And it was accepted back then. It was 'normal.' That's in part due to a point we've made here forever: the socialization of males by this society is one of bullying. Toughen up, don't cry. You can see it, as we've often noted, in two films from the 80s. In both, two characters join the military and are treated horribly. In the one about the male, AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN, Richard Gere is harassed by his drill sergeant (Louis Gossett Jr.) and, instead of rejecting that harassment, we are supposed to applaud it and feel all warm inside. In the other, PRIVATE BENJAMIN, Goldie Hawn and her team get their revenge on the harasser (Eileen Brennan). The male socialization is bullying in this society. That's not acceptable (even with the well known existence of 'mean girls') when it comes to females.

So sometimes, a gay man will offer that maybe the principal was trying to help him by bullying him, by mocking him in front of other students, by sneering at him and calling him a "fairy" and worse in front of the whole school assembly.

We say f**k that. We say sue those assholes. And what about statute of limitations? Who cares. File the paperwork, have it thrown of court as a result of being beyond some time limit. But in between the those two moments, let that elderly abuser know that the world knows what he or she did. And let them sweat it and let them be haunted by it.

They have made no effort to find these former children and apologize to them. So f**k them. To lead a school into targeting a young boy because he's gay? You were an adult. There's no excuse for what you did. And if the court of law can't put you on notice, the court of public opinion certainly can.

NETFLIX is offering AMEND: THE FIGHT FOR AMERICA -- a documentary series. Episode five is "Love." Yes, what the world needs now. Professor Martha S. Jones talks about the impact of LOVING V VIRGINIA -- a breakthrough case that especially impacted her life because her mixed race parents married years before the verdict in LOVING.

This landmark case gets far less attention than it deserves. We've noted it many times such as in 2008:

Loving v. Virginia was a breakthrough, a legal landmark, for the United States. In a debate, Barack Obama was asked, "Senator Obama, the laws banning interracial marriage in the United States were ruled unconstitutional in 1967. What is the difference between a ban on interracial marriage and a ban on gay marriage?" Obama mouthed a lot of nonsense about 'equality' and then went on to state it's a decision for different denominations to make. There should have been a gasp heard round the country.

Barack is a lawyer, a trained legal mind. Though we find it difficult to believe he's never studied Loving v. Viriginia (as difficult to believe as Clarence Thomas' Senate testimony that he'd never thought about Roe v. Wade), we'll allow that maybe it fell into some gap in his education. But as a trained legal mind, he does grasp court billing. "v. Virginia" means versus state. Not versus a denomination.

In that historic case, the Supreme Court of the United States found the laws of the state of Virginia to be unconstitutional and illegal. That finding meant that all states could no longer refuse to issue marriage certificates to couples of different races. Obama's weak-ass response should have been considered weak ass. (John Edwards also embarrassed himself in that debate noting he was against "gay marriage" and "I do not" support it leading us to shout back at the screen, "Gee, John, we weren't aware you were being inundated with proposals!") But it was also dishonest. A law student, forget the former president of the Harvard Law Review, grasps that Loving v. Virginia was not about whether "denominations" could make a decision, it was about what the government could do. To provide perspective, imagine the issue was illegal search and seizure on the part of the government (forbidden by the Constitution) and Obama had responded, "I think it's up to denominations." The government was discriminating and the Supreme Court stood up for the rights of all. A trained legal mind should grasp that. If Obama didn't, he's either not much of a student or he's a really bad liar.

It's good that the episode starts off with LOVING because that is at the root of equality. And other cases are cited including LAWRENCE v TEXAS and the appalling BOWERS v HARDWICK. Episode five revolves around the importance of The Fourteenth Amendment and how its importance and relevance leads to the historic OBERGEFELL v HODGES.

We applaud much about the documentary but episode five, for all of its applause, also has to answer for something.

Will Smith produced the series. And probably should have stayed off camera. Why doesn't Will have an Oscar. Well, Jada, it's partly because he's not really an actor -- don't confuse stardom with acting ability -- but it's also because of his hateful past which includes a lot of homophobia and Academy voters just don't embrace hatred and intolerance.

In episode five, Will declares of Cincinnati in the 70s, "The message to its LGBTQ citizens is be quiet, stay hidden or get out." Will, could of course, admit that his message to the LGBTQ citizens has been be quiet, stay hidden, get out or be mocked and demonized.

That is what he has done.

Some try to argue that he's gay or bi in real life. He presents as straight. Take him at his word. But even if he were choking a cock every night, that doesn't justify the damage he has done.

Early on, he told MOVIELINE that the reason he wouldn't kiss Anthony Michael Hall in SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION -- as required in the script and has had happened when it was a stage production without Will Smith -- was because Denzel Washington told him not to.

Did Denzel tell him that?

We have no idea. And the reason we have no idea is because Denzel, a movie star for decades, didn't go public. If he was against gay people or playing one or whatever, he had the brains not to say so publicly.

Will didn't. And this is throughout his career.

Is he homophobic, we wanna know.

How can we tell what's in his soul?

It's in his recordings: "All the filthy stinking nasty people be quiet. All the homeboys that got AIDS be quiet. All the girls out there that don't like guys be quiet." It's in his films -- such as HANCOCK, and BAD BOYS 2. It's in his red carpet encounters.**

Will gave interviews about how ''gross'' two men kissing were. He's done that since, 1991.

We can't tell what's in his soul, we can only register the meaning of his statements and his actions.

Now he just wants to act like it never happened? Like decades of homophobia from a one-time action-movie star didn't have an impact:?

His comments egged on others as much as any teacher or principal at a school.

He needs to publicly apologize. It's that simple.

That's whoo the Academy elected to honor last night. And before he even got handed the award, he'd proven all of us opposed to be accurate. He is an embarrassment.

His actions were outrageous. His toxic behavior is not going to fade away. It is part of his legacy forever more.

It was a disgraceful moment when Will interrupted a live brodcast to physically attack Chris Rock. But it's what all of us warned you about. He's trash. And you don't give trash awards.

The good news is that his stunt resulted in mass revulsion within the industry. He should have been held accountable for his homophobia. Instead, he'll be held accountable for being low class and having no manners. Whatever hurts a homophobe? I'll take it as a win. Gladly.

PINK NEWS notes:

LGBT+ people in Iraq are being hunted, abducted, tortured, raped and murdered by armed groups, including police and security forces, according to a new report.

The report from Human Rights Watch, supported by Iraqi LGBT+ rights group IraQueer, included 54 interviews with LGBT+ Iraqi people, as well as with six witnesses to killings and abductions by armed groups of LGBT+ people.

According to the report, attacks on LGBT+ people were committed by police, government security forces, and state-sponsored armed groups dedicated to hunting down and attacking queer Iraqis.

Of the 54 people interviewed, the report recorded eight cases of abductions, eight cases of attempted murder, four extrajudicial killings, 27 cases of sexual violence —including gang rape — 45 cases of threats to rape and kill, and 42 cases of online targeting by individuals who identified themselves as members of armed groups against LGBT+ people in Iraq.

The need to call out homophobia is greater than ever before. And if you don't grasp that, it's because you're too busy 'caring' about (lip service) whatever the corporate news tells you to care about. Generally speaking, when it's something saturated on corporate news, it's not really anything in need of amplifying. MIDDLE EAST EYE notes:

One 31-year-old Iraqi transgender woman told HRW and IraQueer that she was returning home from work last February when six men in a Hummer stopped her next to a rubbish tip in Baghdad. “They pulled out a razor blade and a screwdriver and poked and cut me all over, especially my ass, crotch, and thighs,” she said.

“They sliced me up and poured around five litres of gasoline all over my body and face and set me alight.”

A 27-year-old gay man from the capital described how he watched four men from an armed group torture his boyfriend in May 2020.

“Then they shot him five times,” he said.

The 54 LGBTQ+ people interviewed said that while they were in detention they were routinely denied food, water, medical care and access to their families.

Colin Stewart (76 CRIMES) notes:

One 27-year-old gay man from Baghdad described how his boyfriend was tortured by four members of an armed group in front of him in May 2020. “Then they shot him five times,” he said.

In eight cases, abuses by armed groups and police, including arbitrary arrest and sexual harassment, were against children as young as 15. Many of those attacked were able to identify the armed group responsible. The groups implicated in the most serious abuses are Asa’ib Ahl al-Haqq, Atabat Mobilization, Badr Organization, Kata’ib Hezbollah, Raba Allah Group, and Saraya al-Salam.

The people interviewed described arrests and routine violence from security officials, who verbally and physically assault them, and arbitrarily arrest and detain them, often without a legal basis.

LGBT people reported abuses during detention including being denied food and water, or the right to contact a lawyer or family members, or get medical care. They said the police sexually assaulted them and physically abused them and forced them to sign pledges stating that they had not been abused.

Last night, the Academy had the chance to do the right thing and not shake hands with homophobia. They didn't do the right thing. And the man they awarded made a mockery of the ceremony and disgraced himself and the Academy. Excuse me, if I don't shed tears for the industry. It got exactly the disrespect it deserved. Here's hoping the ratings were very low.

Let's wind down with Cindy Sheehan on THE BITTER TRUTH.