Truth, Justice and a load of shitheads!!

America, how far we have come. From a group of rebels that drew up a constitution using the ancient Greek system of government aligned with Masonic principles (check it out). A new nation that embraced enlightenment and created a balance whereby no one pillar of government could wield unlimited power - checks and balances. It also very deliberately ensured the separation of church and state, again a radical yet progressive step.

So, from that great beginning, nearly 240 years ago, where are we now? How great has this nation grown and how truly enlightened are we?

Sad to say that the money men, the religious extremists  and the cattle that get all their information from Limbaugh, Hannity and all the rest of them, have almost succeeded in turning this great nation into something rotten, xenophobic, bigoted and racist. Closed minds are rampant and liberals are called 'Progressives' as an insult and yet it is a compliment. The idea of a black Democrat in the Oval Office has driven so many to the brink of madness. So many speak only in cliches because that's all they hear from the talk shows hosts they fervently listen to. These people do not want to be informed, they have no interest in being informed. What they want is to hear is that all their hatred and scorn for things or people that do not conform to their limited perspective is not only valid but patriotic too. There is nothing wrong with being patriotic, pride in your nation is an absolutely positive thing, yet using patriotism to try and justify your hatred and scorn for those that do not walk and talk like you is seen as acceptable, even patriotic! Ignorance is celebrated and intelligence is derided - hark at Palin and her cozy little clique of yap dogs berate Washington DC for having too many intellectuals. This was a great nation that has been continually dragged down by those who would exploit the nation's people for power. money and their face on the cover of Time magazine. These people and those who need help tying their own shoelaces, people like Ted Nugent who claims to be a patriot but is nothing more than a sack of shit who likes killing things, have such a warped view of what America should be that you hesitate to believe they are actually from planet Earth. I know from experience that there are many people in this nation that America should be proud of, people who's kindness and friendship can take your breath away. I know it takes all kinds.........but I wish there fewer haters and more loving people. Perhaps that will come someday.

I love what America once stood for which is why having found that the reality is.......exploitation, first, last and everything is so disappointing to me.

I love this country and I am so proud to be here but am genuinely shocked by the hatred and ignorance that, thanks to the internet, appears so prevalent.

Let's hope that common sense and decency will prevail and this nation can hold its head up once again.

AAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!

The 10 most stupid, meaningless, bullshit and annoying statements people say that I wish would just fuck off for ever.

These are the top 10 in reverse order.

10) How are you doing?
09) Obama is a goddamn Muslim
08) Obamacare is socialism
07) Immigrants are stealing all our jobs
06) Fox News is fair and balanced
05) This nation was meant to be run on biblical principles (Ted Cruz amongst others)
04) The founding fathers did not intend there to be a separation between church and state (Michelle Bachman on a roll).
03) We love Latinos (Republicans desperately pleading for votes).
02) Democrats created the massive deficit (which they inherited from the last lot and have managed to have wiped out!!)
01) Numero uno that makes me go Elvis on the TV:    Call Now!!!

Your mileage may vary but essentially, I hate people that make statements that are presented as reasoned and constructive but are actually total bullshit.

Well I guess I lost the plot halfway through the list but believe me it is kinda hard to stay detached when you recall the utter shit the far right spout as gospel.

My name is Dave Parry and I approve getting drunk today.

10 things we learned since the internet explosion

Ignorance is bliss.

The internet has become so ubiquitous that we can hardly imagine life without it, probably the biggest impact on people's lives since television. However, the internet has shown us some insights into our world that we would perhaps have been better off not knowing.

1) There are far more assholes in the world than we thought.
2) There far more sick people in the world that we might have thought - I worked in internet telephone support for a while which is where I discovered there was a large demand for carnage videos, execution videos, sexual cruelty videos. Demand that has only increased over time.
3) The crazy religious Christians and the crazy right-wing Americans are not the fabrication of some writer, they exist and in far greater numbers than we would have assumed.
4) Comments on newspaper stories display a large amount of unadulterated hatred, especially for Obama who gets blamed for everything that goes wrong.
5) Ted Nugent is a fucking prick! (That may be a plus actually)
6) The amount of people in this world who believe that FEMA is creating concentration camps to put all dissenters in.
7) The amount of people who believe that the Rapture is real and will be here soon.
8) The degree to which politicians avoid contributing any new ideas and spend their time slagging off or trying to sabotage the other party - leaders? Heard of them but have no idea what they are.
9) There is no longer any concept of truth in reporting issues, both the right and left media distort everything to fit their political agenda.
10) The driving force behind the massive take up of the internet back in the 90's was sex.

The internet is an amazing phenomenon but there is a big downside as it has provided  people with a far clearer picture of society and what a shit hole it pretty much is.

Justice for all?

Can you lend me $100,000?

One of the founding principles of the first world is the concept of 'justice'. Justice is perceived to be a universal concept that ensure the guilty are punished and the innocent are set free. In the first world the guilt or innocence of a person is determined by a jury of his/her peers. Prosecutors present their case to the jury and defenders attempt to convince the jury that the prosecution case is flawed, particularly with regards to the guilt or innocence of their client.  In theory then, the jury hears the evidence and then decides on guilt or innocence. What could go wrong?

Unfortunately, it seems more and more that the accused gets the justice he or she can afford. Is it truly justice when the rich white man can afford the best legal team that money can buy whereas black man from the ghetto gets a public defender who probably as only read the case notes that morning - no question, the black guy is going to jail.

So if justice depends on the amount you can afford to pay for legal representation then that is not justice! It's a form of Russian Roulette where the rich guy's gun has one round in the chamber and the poor guy has five.

To add to the iniquity, District Attorneys and prosecutors are elected, therefore they have vested interest in appearing to be hard on crime. Again it is not about justice but about political status. Perhaps even worse is when appeals are made, sometimes years later, in many cases it can be seen that justices and prosecutors reject appeals, even when there is sufficient evidence to raise questions about guilt - can't have voters thinking you're soft on crime.

For many people dragged through the justice system today, justice did not leave the building, it never entered.

I use rich white men and poor black men as an example of the different 'justice' each gets but really it's all about money and who has it.

The truth is that any major changes to the present system would be so impractical that they could never be implemented - ensuring equal justice for all by having an equal standard of defense representation - how? Could not be done. Make DA's and prosecutors appointed not elected? Never gonna happen.

The only way that a real improvement could be made is to make all prosecution parties and justices appointed not elected, at least removing the conflict of vested interest would give justice some chance of being applied.