Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Iraq snapshot

Wednesday, March 26, 2020.  The main news story today has to be that CBS NEWS has a culture of assault and harassment and we all saw why via Gayle King and Norah O'Donnell last night.


Prime time yesterday, CBS NEWS hosted seven Democratic Party presidential contenders -- or 'contestants,' as Michael Bloomberg termed it (since it's all a game to him anyway) -- for a supposed debate.  The contenders were front-runner Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Tom Steyer, Amy Klobuchar, Pete Buttigieg, Joe Biden and the previously mentioned toxic Bloomberg. 

The . . .  Bloomberg didn't think of a term for the ones asking questions.  It's hard to call them moderators and I think even host is stretching it.  Let's first note the community coverage (I'm including Ann because she's noting Bloomberg being scared of Elizabeth) of the debate:





  • As many noted in their coverage, there were no rules being followed and the only one who insisted upon the time being followed was Margaret Brennan (CBS' FACE THE NATION).  Some will say that Gayle King or Norah O'Donnell would object.  Yes, but they wouldn't stop the speaker.  Only Margaret was serious.  (The two men were worthless we're not even naming them.  They were barely present and they looked and acted ridiculous.)


    But what Gayle and Norah really drove home was why CBS NEWS has a #METOO problem.

    That was on full display last night and they should be ashamed and CBS NEWS needs to start insisting that all on airs are participating in training regarding what is and is not appropriate in the work place.  This is not a joke.  What America saw as downright offensive and would have been if two men from ABC had been the main hosts.  Coming from CBS NEWS it was appalling.

    From CBS' transcript of the debate here's the moment that indicts and embarrasses all of CBS NEWS:

    WARREN: I'd like to respond.
    O'DONNELL: Go ahead, Senator.
    WARREN: He [Bloomberg] called me out by name.
    BIDEN: There was a -- I thought...
    WARREN: ... and referred to what I talk about as a "sideshow." You know, this is personal for me. When I was 21 years old, I got my first job as a special education teacher. I loved that job. And by the end of the first year, I was visibly pregnant.
    The principal wished me luck and gave my job to someone else. Pregnancy discrimination, you bet. But I was 21 years old. I didn't have a union to protect me. And I didn't have any federal law on my side. So I packed up my stuff, and I went home. At least I didn't have a boss who said to me, "Kill it," the way that Mayor Bloomberg is alleged to have said...
    BLOOMBERG: I never said that. Oh, come on.
    WARREN: ... to one of his pregnant employees. People want a chance to hear...
    (AUDIENCE BOOS)
    People want a chance to hear from the women who have worked for...
    (CROSSTALK)
    BLOOMBERG: I never said that. And for the record, if she was a teacher in New York City, she would never have had that problem. We treated our teachers the right way, and the unions will tell you exactly that. 
    (APPLAUSE)
    O'DONNELL: Well, Mayor Bloomberg, Senator Warren has raised...
    WARREN: Then let us -- let us have -- the women have an opportunity to speak. The Bloomberg corporations and Mayor Bloomberg himself have been accused of discrimination. They are bound by nondisclosures so that they cannot speak. If he says there is nothing to hide here, then sign a blanket release and let those women speak out...
    (APPLAUSE)
    (CROSSTALK)
    WARREN: ... so that they can tell their stories the way I can tell my story without having the fear they're going to be sued by a billionaire.
    (CROSSTALK)
    O'DONNELL: Thank you. Thank you. We have a number of issues to discuss tonight, but I want to give the mayor an opportunity to respond, because she has raised concerns about women in your workplace. At the last debate, you said some of your female employees might not have liked some of your jokes. Did these women take your jokes wrong? Or were you wrong to make the jokes?
    BLOOMBERG: Probably wrong to make the jokes. I don't remember what they were. So I assume -- if it bothered them, I was wrong, and I apologize. I'm sorry for that.
    But what happened here is we went back 40 years and we could only find three cases where women said they were uncomfortable. Nobody accused me of doing anything other than just making a comment or two. And what the senator did suggest was that we release these women from the nondisclosure agreement. I did that two days later, and my company has said we will not use nondisclosure agreements ever again. The senator has got it. And I don't know what else she wants us to do.
    WARREN: Oh, I'll be clear.
    BLOOMBERG: We're following exactly what she asked to do.
    WARREN: I'll tell you exactly what I want you to do.
    BLOOMBERG: And the trouble is with this senator, enough is never enough for what this -- I'm going to start focusing on some of these other things. We just cannot continue to re-litigate this every time. We did what she asked. And, thank you, we've probably made the world better because of it. And by my company renouncing using these, we probably changed, hopefully, the corporate landscape all across America. 
    BUTTIGIEG: If you get nominated, we'll be re-litigating this all year.
    (CROSSTALK)
    WARREN: Sorry, Mayor, you did not do what I asked.
    KING: Senator Warren, that is a very serious charge that you leveled at the mayor.
    WARREN: Yes.
    KING: He told a woman to get an abortion. What evidence do you have of that?
    WARREN: Her own words.
    KING: And, Mayor Bloomberg, could you respond to this?
    BLOOMBERG: I never said it, period, end of story. Categorically never said it. When it was accused -- when I was accused of doing it, we couldn't figure out what she was talking about. But right now, I'm sorry if she heard what she thought she heard, or whatever happened. I didn't take any pleasure in that. And we've just got to go on. But I never said it. Come on.
    WARREN: What I asked the mayor to do is to do a release of all people who have discrimination claims...
    BLOOMBERG: We are doing that, Senator.
    (CROSSTALK)
    O'DONNELL: We want to get to the -- we want to get to the issue -- we want to get to the issue of electability and the ideological difference within the Democratic Party. 


     Gayle King: "What evidence do you have of that?" 

    Time and again, Gayle and Norah painted themselves as the failing kids in class who never cracked a book.  There's a reason no one respects Gayle and that she has to whine on Instagram that mean old CBS isn't treating her right.  She's not a journalist.

    A journalist would have known that THE WASHINGTON POST published the "kill it" story on February 15th


    But others viewed them more darkly, seeing them as blunt examples of what they considered to be a hostile environment, artifacts of a workplace employees said was saturated with degrading comments.
    Several lawsuits have been filed over the years alleging that women were discriminated against at Bloomberg’s business-information company, including a case brought by a federal agency and one filed by a former employee, who blamed Bloomberg for creating a culture of sexual harassment and degradation.
    The most high-profile case was from a former saleswoman. She sued Bloomberg personally as well as his company, alleging workplace discrimination. She alleged Bloomberg told her to “kill it” when he learned she was pregnant. Bloomberg has denied her allegation under oath, and he reached a confidential settlement with the saleswoman.

    The Washington Post interviewed a former Bloomberg employee, David Zielenziger, who said he witnessed the conversation with the saleswoman. Zielenziger, who said he had not previously spoken publicly about the matter, said Bloomberg’s behavior toward the woman was “outrageous. I understood why she took offense.”
    As Mike Bloomberg celebrated his 48th birthday in 1990, a top aide at the company he founded presented him with a booklet of profane, sexist quotes she attributed to him.
    A good salesperson is like a man who tries to pick up women at a bar by saying, “Do you want to f---? He gets turned down a lot — but he gets f----- a lot, too!” Bloomberg was quoted in the booklet as saying. Bloomberg also allegedly said that his company’s financial information computers “will do everything, including give you [oral sex]. I guess that puts a lot of you girls out of business.”
    At the time, some Bloomberg staffers said, they laughed off the comments in the 32-page booklet, “The Wit and Wisdom of Michael Bloomberg,” as a macho side of one of the nerdiest men on Wall Street. 

    They have a link to the court document but, clearly, Gayle King doesn't read.  She certainly doesn't follow the news.  This is true of Nora as well and was obvious in their earlier 'topic' of Russia when they were unaware of what Jake Tapper and CNN had reported.  They are idiots -- Norah and Gayle and they really showed it last night.

    A woman's right to choose is at risk.  Reproductive rights activists will be rallying in front of the Supreme Court on March 4th.  There are several cases winding their way up to the highest court.

    But abortion wasn't an issue for 'the ladies' Gayle and Norah.

    And they couldn't be bothered with the issue of childcare.  (Gayla has no children, Norah has three being raised by help.)

    They couldn't be bothered with any issue that touched specifically on the wives of women.

    Assault is a crime.  They wanted to talk crime in terms of race.  That's all they wanted to do with crime.  Women of all races can be assaulted.


    Hours before the debate started, Senator Patty Murray's office issued the following:


    Feb 25 2020
    Senator Murray and five of her Senate colleagues sent a letter to the Veterans Affairs (VA) Inspector General requesting an investigation regarding allegations that VA officials—led by Secretary Wilkie—attempted to discredit a veteran after she reported being assaulted
    ProPublica: VA Secretary Looked for Dirt on a House Staffer Who Reported Sexual Assault in a VA Hospital, Complaint Says – MORE HERE
    Senators: “The Secretary’s failure to take corrective action and, even worse, to retaliate against the veteran, is absolutely unacceptable” 
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, led Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) in demanding an investigation into the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) handling of a sexual assault reported by a veteran at the Washington, D.C. VA Medical Center (DC VAMC). The letter follows recent reports that VA officials, led by VA Secretary Robert Wilkie, actively sought to discredit the veteran who reported being assaulted, and mischaracterized the initial VA Inspector General (VA IG) investigation of the reported assault.
    “Secretary Wilkie’s decision to cast doubt, paint the individual as dishonest, and discredit her traumatic experience demonstrates VA’s continued inability to ensure women veterans are welcomed and supported by the country they have served,” wrote the senators. “Furthermore, this type of toxic leadership undermines the hardworking, dedicated professional staff at VA, and makes it less likely that women veterans – the largest growing demographic of veterans – will seek the care and benefits from the VA that they have earned through their service.”
    The veteran, a senior policy adviser for the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee’s Women Veterans Task Force, first reported the assault to several VA employees who declined to take any action, and it was not until she notified her doctor that police were called and an investigation began. The investigation ultimately didn’t result in criminal charges due in part to a lack of functioning cameras in the DC VAMC. Secretary Wilkie afterwards mischaracterized the assault allegation as “unsubstantiated,” which the VA IG quickly corrected as false. Subsequent media reports have alleged that starting in October, Secretary Wilkie sought out damaging information on the veteran and discussed with VA officials and a member of Congress potentially using the information to discredit her. If true, as Senator Murray and her colleagues argue in their letter, these actions by Secretary Wilkie and the lack of counter-action from other VA officials constitute an egregious abuse of power and create a dangerous environment at VA facilities, especially for women veterans.
    “The failure of the DC VAMC to protect and support this veteran at the time of the incident – from the lack of bystander intervention, to a lapse in following protocol – should have been immediately corrected by the Secretary. The Secretary’s failure to take corrective action and, even worse, to retaliate against the veteran, is absolutely unacceptable,” the senators’ letter continued.
    In response to these allegations, and in order to ensure that VA is creating a safe environment for all veterans, the senators in their letter call for a full investigation into Secretary Wilkie and other VA officials’ actions.
    A copy of the letter can be found HERE and below:
    February 24, 2020
    The Honorable Michael J. Missal
    Inspector General
    Department of Veterans Affairs
    810 Vermont Ave NW
    Washington, DC 20571
    Dear Mr. Missal:
    We are writing to request a full investigation into Secretary Wilkie and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) handling of a sexual assault reported by a veteran at the Washington, D.C. VA Medical Center (DC VAMC), including the deeply concerning reports that VA officials improperly sought information about the individual’s past and mischaracterized the results of your investigation into the assault in order to discredit her.
    When the assault took place in September 2019, the individual reported the incident to several VA employees who took no action. VA police were not called until the veteran notified her doctor. As you know, the matter was referred to your office as required by federal regulation and the investigation was closed without bringing criminal charges, apparently due in part to the lack of functioning cameras – which is a deeply concerning failure of the DC VAMC to maintain a safe environment.
    On January 15, after your investigation was closed, Secretary Wilkie sent a letter to House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Mark Takano referring to the sexual assault claim as “unsubstantiated,” stating that such a claim “could deter our Veterans from seeking the care they need and deserve.” We appreciate that your office responded the same day, clarifying that the independent investigation did not find the claims to be “unsubstantiated” and reminding the Secretary that VA leaders had already been warned against mischaracterizing the outcome of the investigation. While that clarification was helpful and appreciated, it cannot reverse the damage done by Secretary Wilkie.
    Media reports on a complaint made to the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee allege that between October 2019 and January 2020, Secretary Wilkie sought damaging information about the veteran, including attempting to investigate her military record. Additionally, according to media reports, the Secretary discussed the information he had collected with other VA officials and even a member of Congress, and suggested to Department public affairs officials that the information could be used to undermine the veteran’s allegations. If these reports are true, such an abuse of power and government resources would be outrageous and inexcusable. If the reports of a member of Congress being involved are true, the matter should be immediately referred to the Ethics Committee for their investigation and disciplinary action.
    Secretary Wilkie’s decision to cast doubt, paint the individual as dishonest, and discredit her traumatic experience demonstrates VA’s continued inability to ensure women veterans are welcomed and supported by the country they have served. Furthermore, this type of toxic leadership undermines the hardworking, dedicated professional staff at VA, and makes it less likely that women veterans – the largest growing demographic of veterans – will seek the care and benefits from the VA that they have earned through their service. The failure of the DC VAMC to protect and support this veteran at the time of the incident – from the lack of bystander intervention, to a lapse in following protocol – should have been immediately corrected by the Secretary. The Secretary’s failure to take corrective action and, even worse, to retaliate against the veteran, is absolutely unacceptable.
    Veterans trust VA to provide them with the highest quality care. When that trust is violated, all veterans suffer, and when individuals who report misconduct are retaliated against, survivors are less likely to report assaults or harassment. In order to restore confidence in VA’s ability to foster a safe environment, we are requesting a full investigation to review any missteps that occurred in this case and recommendations to correct course.
    It is important that VA take all forms of sexual violence seriously and that VA employees enforce policies to prevent future incidents from occurring. This investigation should assess the response at every level to review if DC VAMC employees were informed of appropriate sexual assault response and reporting mechanisms, and if they took appropriate action when the sexual assault was reported to them. The investigation should also evaluate the effectiveness of existing policies to prevent and respond to sexual violence at the DC VAMC and agency-wide. Additionally, we ask that you examine the roles that VA officials, including their subordinates and former officials, played throughout the handling of the reported assault, including the agency’s initial response and the Secretary’s January 15, 2020, letter to Chairman Mark Takano. This should include whether any current or former VA official sought information on the individual or directed another employee to do so.
    Survivors of sexual assault, including survivors of Military Sexual Trauma and sexual assault at VA facilities, need to know the Department – and the justice system at large – will take their reports seriously and provide them with adequate support. This example must be set at the top, with the Secretary.
    The Department of Veterans Affairs is the second largest federal agency and should be a leader in best practices for preventing sexual violence and supporting survivors. We expect your findings will support initiatives to improve VA’s policies on sexual violence. We appreciate your efforts to ensure all veterans can receive the care and support they have earned in a safe, welcoming environment.
    Sincerely,
    ###


    Remember that because we'll come back to it for another reason in a little bit.  But Norah and Gayle couldn't bother their feather brains with reality like that.

    Gayle wanted to know what proof Elizabeth Warren had -- because Gayle's apparently a functional illiterate.  The proof is the report by THE WASHINGTON POST.  Bloomberg saying he didn't say it is not a dismissal.  It goes to exactly why he needs to release all the women from the non-disclosure agreements.  But Gayle and Norah didn't want that conversation -- it was more important to those two idiots to discuss 'electability.'  'Electability' is determined by the voters, not by the candidates.  We'll get back to that too.

    CBS NEWS has a real problem with harassment in the workplace.  Norah used that to get herself a spot hosting the CBS EVENING NEWS.  She hasn't helped ratings and won't but she can stay for awhile as CBS tries to live down all they've tolerated and looked the other way on.

    Remember Charlie Rose?

    Michael Bloomberg does.  He's on record saying CBS shouldn't have fired his friend Charlie Rose.

    Gayle and Norah were co-hosts with Charlie Rose and they're on record as shocked -- simply shocked -- that all these women could come forward about Charlie and they -- Gayle and Norah -- never knew or saw anything.

    As they demonstrated last night in the debate, they don't want to see anything.

    A very real and a very serious issue was raised by Elizabeth Warren.  Not by Norah or Gayle because women's issues are just too 'icky' for 'the ladies.'

    This was disgraceful.  This was shameful.

    As the nation watched, two CBS employees turned their back on the issue to move on to a fluff issue that was handled in a fluff manner.

    CBS NEWS is responsible for the actions of Charlie Rose and their other employees who assaulted and harassed.  Last night was the perfect opportunity to demonstrate that a lesson had been learned and that it was a new day at CBS.  Instead, two uneducated and uninformed bimbos rushed to shut down one of the few real conversations that took place in the debate.

    If Bloomberg told a pregnant woman "kill it," America has a right to know -- if he's trying to become president, America has a right to know.

    Shame on CBS for putting two bimbos in charge of the debate.  Shame on Gayle and Norah for refusing to embrace and acknowledge their own gender or, for that matter, their own participation in the actions of Charlie Rose. 

    CBS NEWS has a very real problem and last night made it clear that it's not a problem in the past.

    Let's go to electability because Pete Buttigieg keeps bringing it up.

    That would be low polling Pete.

    Pete is convinced that Bernie Sanders is going to hurt the ticket.  Pete's launching his own one-boy-Red-scare.  Bernie will drive voters away being a Democratic Socialist.

    Gloria Steinem is a Democratic Socialist.  How many movies and documentaries has she been the subject of recently.  America doesn't seem to have a problem with that.  Rev Jesse Jackson also calls into question this ridiculous notion.  It's not an issue as evidenced by Bernie's support nation wide.

    But, Pete, you don't have that same support.

    Let's be Thomas Friedman and bring in cab drivers and taxi cab confessions.  A Nigerian taxi driver in South Carolina probably explained one of Pete's stumbling blocks Monday morning when he told us he couldn't vote for Pete because every time Pete speaks, all he can think of is that you Pete sucks cock with that mouth.  He then apologized for saying "cock."

    Pete, are you the best spokesperson for 'electability'?  You're polling poorly across the nation and, yes, it is a nation with some homophobes.  But you're not defending your own electability -- is it that you can't? -- you're instead attacking someone else's -- someone who is higher in the polls than you.

    A real debate -- which we clearly won't get this cycle -- would stop you in the middle of one your tantrums about electability and say, "Hey, do you think that you, a gay man, being top of the ticket might hurt down the ticket candidates?"

    The people decide electability.  They might decide Pete is, they might not.  But at present, Pete repeatedly makes attacks on Bernie's electability while acting as though he himself has no electability issues.  Pete, your own brother-in-law is calling you out and won't vote for you.  Maybe stop throwing stones at others.

    Back to Patty Murray.

    Pete loves to play toy soldier, doesn't he.  He was a good little secretary in the military.  He didn't see combat, he wasn't Tulsi Gabbard, but he was great with the steno pad. 

    And he's great about bringing up his 'service' without ever telling anyone what he did since he didn't do all that much.

    If Tulsi had been on stage, maybe Patty Murray's issue would have been raised.  If Seth Moulton was still in the race, maybe Patty's issue would have been raised.

    But time and again, Pete uses his military experience to boast and play macho but he never uses it to address these needs of veterans or current service members.

    Does no one notice that Toy Soldier Pete came off the assembly line without that function?

    I speak with veterans groups regularly.  Veterans of today's wars have many complaints.  One of the biggest right now is that the long promised electronic record that would start while you were serving and then follow you into your veterans status is still not here.  What is going on?

    And why is is that Pete can't speak of this issue or any other one that has anything to do with veterans?

    There's a reason veterans don't trust him -- and it's not homophobia.  They don't trust him because he has a platform and they don't feel he uses it to raise veterans issues.

    Pete loves to speak and he interrupts and attacks everyone on stage frequently.  But somehow, he never, ever gets around to addressing veterans issues.


    The debate was a farce and only Margaret Brennan (among CBS NEWS employees) emerged unscathed.  That's not an endorsement of her questions, that is an endorsement of her holding candidates to the rules.  Here's another reality.  If they speak past their time, cut their microphones off.  That will teach them to follow the rules.

    During the debate, Michael Bloomberg bragged about buying the Congress in the last election.  "Bought."  No one bothered to follow up on that or to ask him how he thought "buying" helped democracy.  It was a depraved and disgusting debate and it will remain a mark of shame for CBS NEWS. 

    In Iraq, the protests continue.




    1. In Baghdad's busy protest site of Tahrir Square, hundreds rallied against Iraq's ruling elite, despite pleas from the Ministry of Health that demonstrators steer clear of public places and remain at home



    And the attacks on the protesters continue.

    Riot police is once again using deadly tear gas canisters agaisnt protesters near Tahrir Square in which can easily extract a human’s body. This photo is from an activist named Haider. He also shared the moment of a protester has his head split.




    And responses?

    The world was rightly shocked by the gruesome fatalities these military-grade grenades inflicted on . In Oct we investigated what they are. New forensic analysis with will show why they’re so deadly. Coming soon...



    Coming soon?  Oh, goody.  You've been working since October and it's coming soon?  It's the end of February, so I guess there's no real rush, right?  We're just talking about people's lives, right?  Take that coffee break, Amnesty International, take it all month long.


    The following sites updated: