Thoughts on Equality

Recently, the California Supreme Court upheld Proposition 8's ban on same sex marriage. Some people believe that since the majority of California citizens voted for Prop 8, then that makes it right. I don't see it that way, because the constitution protects an individual's basic rights under the equal protection and due process clauses, and that cannot be taken away by a vote.
If the Civil Rights Act of 1965 had been "put to a vote," instead of put into law, it too would have been voted down like Prop 8. The majority isn't always right and they shouldn't always rule.

Ted Olson, a conservative, and former Solicitor General for the Bush administration has filed a suit in California federal court seeking to overturn Prop 8. Read about it here: http://www.americablog.com/2009/05/bush-solicitor-general-ted-olson.html

How ironic that Prop 8's affirmation occurred on the same day President Obama nominated Sonia Sotomayor as the first Hispanic woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. His decision is viewed as progressive. I'm glad he chose a woman, and someone who has an inspiring life story, growing up in a housing project in the Bronx, going on to Princeton University (graduating 2nd in her class) and then on to Yale Law School. Sotomayor graduated Summa Cum Lauda, and has more experience (almost 17 years) than any U.S. Supreme Court Justice nominated in the past 75 years. And yet many Republicans are kvetching (what else is new?) and questioning her intelligence and qualifications. She has said that as a Latina she brings a different perspective to the court. Some R's are calling her a racist over that remark. Glenn Beck refers to her as "that Hispanic chick lady" but that's not racist. I don't recall anyone questioning Samuel Alito's intelligence because he's a white male. I think the people calling her racist and questioning her intelligence are the racists. And the dimwits. Here's a great source for information about the Supreme Court http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/

So we have our first African-American President and our first Latina heading to the U.S. Supreme Court and this moves us light years towards equality. Finally. But we are taking a step backward regarding gay rights and individual rights as humans (Prop 8, "Don't Ask Don't Tell" in our military). Separate is not equal. And the racist reaction from the Right to Sotomayor's nomination tells me that women and Hispanics are still not viewed as equal to the white males who are accustomed to running America.

Thoughts on Equality

Recently, the California Supreme Court upheld Proposition 8's ban on same sex marriage. Some people believe that since the majority of California citizens voted for Prop 8, then that makes it right. I don't see it that way, because the constitution protects an individual's basic rights under the equal protection and due process clauses, and that cannot be taken away by a vote.
If the Civil Rights Act of 1965 had been "put to a vote," instead of put into law, it too would have been voted down like Prop 8. The majority isn't always right and they shouldn't always rule.

Ted Olson, a conservative, and former Solicitor General for the Bush administration has filed a suit in California federal court seeking to overturn Prop 8. Read about it here: http://www.americablog.com/2009/05/bush-solicitor-general-ted-olson.html

How ironic that Prop 8's affirmation occurred on the same day President Obama nominated Sonia Sotomayor as the first Hispanic woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. His decision is viewed as progressive. I'm glad he chose a woman, and someone who has an inspiring life story, growing up in a housing project in the Bronx, going on to Princeton University (graduating 2nd in her class) and then on to Yale Law School. Sotomayor graduated Summa Cum Lauda, and has more experience (almost 17 years) than any U.S. Supreme Court Justice nominated in the past 75 years. And yet many Republicans are kvetching (what else is new?) and questioning her intelligence and qualifications. She has said that as a Latina she brings a different perspective to the court. Some R's are calling her a racist over that remark. Glenn Beck refers to her as "that Hispanic chick lady" but that's not racist. I don't recall anyone questioning Samuel Alito's intelligence because he's a white male. I think the people calling her racist and questioning her intelligence are the racists. And the dimwits. Here's a great source for information about the Supreme Court http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/

So we have our first African-American President and our first Latina heading to the U.S. Supreme Court and this moves us light years towards equality. Finally. But we are taking a step backward regarding gay rights and individual rights as humans (Prop 8, "Don't Ask Don't Tell" in our military). Separate is not equal. And the racist reaction from the Right to Sotomayor's nomination tells me that women and Hispanics are still not viewed as equal to the white males who are accustomed to running America.

A Great Time at Mayfair

Allentown's Mayfair Festival of the Arts seemed to us to be another big success this year. We had a great time. Gianni had fun painting the huge and colorful mural created by our good friend and fellow Chen artist, Ro Geseck. And Bill and I had fun sharing some giggles w/ Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski over how everything in Allentown has been "falling apart" (wink wink) since he was elected (according to the "fair & balanced" local NeoCon blahgs, that is).

Even in tight economic times, people still love to attend outdoor family festivals. The weather on Monday was perfect for watching local legends The Daddy Licks Band who drew a large and loyal and loud (and dancing!) crowd to the Cabaret Main Stage to close out the festival as the headliners. Bill (Mr. Dottie) was The Daddy Licks Band's promo-driver manager back in the 1980s. In July 2006, The Villas organized (and opened for) the Daddy Licks Band's "Scott Hott Benefit/Reunion Show" at The Sterling Hotel in Downtown Allentown and the "DLB" guys had so much fun playing together again (after a nearly 15 year hiatus) they decided to reunite permanently! "Look for a full-length CD of all new Daddy Licks songs later this year," says DLB manager Bob Mania (wink wink) a.k.a. Mr. Dottie.

Mayfair is such a great place to reconnect with old (and current) friends, and fellow musicians, and if we listed everyone who gave us bear hugs and well-wishes yesterday I know we'd forget some, so thank you, to everyone who gave us all that much-appreciated warmth, and w/ a very special thanks to Judge Edward Reibman.

We know Mayfair has had its problems in the past, but we hope the festival can continue to be a success, even though it now has competition from The Iron Pigs, and the Sands Casino. Charging a small entrance fee has helped the festival get through financial difficulties. We don't mind paying $4 for the entire festival. That's less than a dollar a day. And what we like best about Mayfair is that it showcases local talent which we have in abundance in Allentown and the Lehigh Valley. So Rock On, Mayfair!

Photos: Gianni Villa paints mural, The Daddy Licks Band and Dancers.

A Great Time at Mayfair

Allentown's Mayfair Festival of the Arts seemed to us to be another big success this year. We had a great time. Gianni had fun painting the huge and colorful mural created by our good friend and fellow Chen artist, Ro Geseck. And Bill and I had fun sharing some giggles w/ Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski over how everything in Allentown has been "falling apart" (wink wink) since he was elected (according to the "fair & balanced" local NeoCon blahgs, that is).

Even in tight economic times, people still love to attend outdoor family festivals. The weather on Monday was perfect for watching local legends The Daddy Licks Band who drew a large and loyal and loud (and dancing!) crowd to the Cabaret Main Stage to close out the festival as the headliners. Bill (Mr. Dottie) was The Daddy Licks Band's promo-driver manager back in the 1980s. In July 2006, The Villas organized (and opened for) the Daddy Licks Band's "Scott Hott Benefit/Reunion Show" at The Sterling Hotel in Downtown Allentown and the "DLB" guys had so much fun playing together again (after a nearly 15 year hiatus) they decided to reunite permanently! "Look for a full-length CD of all new Daddy Licks songs later this year," says DLB manager Bob Mania (wink wink) a.k.a. Mr. Dottie.

Mayfair is such a great place to reconnect with old (and current) friends, and fellow musicians, and if we listed everyone who gave us bear hugs and well-wishes yesterday I know we'd forget some, so thank you, to everyone who gave us all that much-appreciated warmth, and w/ a very special thanks to Judge Edward Reibman.

We know Mayfair has had its problems in the past, but we hope the festival can continue to be a success, even though it now has competition from The Iron Pigs, and the Sands Casino. Charging a small entrance fee has helped the festival get through financial difficulties. We don't mind paying $4 for the entire festival. That's less than a dollar a day. And what we like best about Mayfair is that it showcases local talent which we have in abundance in Allentown and the Lehigh Valley. So Rock On, Mayfair!

Photos: Gianni Villa paints mural, The Daddy Licks Band and Dancers.

An Appeal For Justice

Readers, on Tuesday afternoon, May 19, 2009, Wind Gap, Northampton County District "Justice" Adrianne L. Masut found me guilty of summary harassment and ordered me to pay one hundred dollars ($100.00).

It was an, um, surprising verdict, since the Complaining Witness, Bernie O'Hare, presented no evidence and no documentation to prove his claim that "Bill Villa posted over 500 comments" at his blog on 9/29/08.

And don't forget: the burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt was on O'Hare.

So we were expecting to see account records from Internet service providers, and expert testimony on IP numbers, and hard copy matchings (a-ha!) of those 500 comments w/ "Bill Villa's IP number!"

Nah.

Instead, O'Hare just breezily told the Magistrate that he has a "sitemeter" on his blog and that it was his "opinion" that "Bill Villa posted those comments" and that he was "positive Bill Villa did it, Your Honor."

And this was good enough for DJ Adrianne Masut who pronounced me guilty of summary harassment based solely on O'Hare's word.

Yup.

Curiously, DJ Masut skirted completely around (and didn't rule on) the "repeated invitations to fist fight" and "break your jaw" stuff in O'Hare's harassment complaint (i.e., the "flashy" items O'Hare used to hoodwink easily duped NorCo DA John Morganelli into "OK-ing" O'Hare's complaint forward and into Magisterial Court), likely because my attorney had earlier revealed those falsely sworn affidavit claims to be flat-out lies on O'Hare's part. But O'Hare's tarnished word was "gold" on the 500 comments ... as DJ Masut saw it.

We filed an appeal immediately.

Stay tuned for Round 2 in front of a Northampton County Court of Common Pleas Judge in 6 months or so ...

UpDate: REVERSED ON APPEAL IN 20 SECONDS

UpDate: O'HARE SUED IN LEHIGH COUNTY

An Appeal For Justice

Readers, on Tuesday afternoon, May 19, 2009, Wind Gap, Northampton County District "Justice" Adrianne L. Masut found me guilty of summary harassment and ordered me to pay one hundred dollars ($100.00).

It was an, um, surprising verdict, since the Complaining Witness, Bernie O'Hare, presented no evidence and no documentation to prove his claim that "Bill Villa posted over 500 comments" at his blog on 9/29/08.

And don't forget: the burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt was on O'Hare.

So we were expecting to see account records from Internet service providers, and expert testimony on IP numbers, and hard copy matchings (a-ha!) of those 500 comments w/ "Bill Villa's IP number!"

Nah.

Instead, O'Hare just breezily told the Magistrate that he has a "sitemeter" on his blog and that it was his "opinion" that "Bill Villa posted those comments" and that he was "positive Bill Villa did it, Your Honor."

And this was good enough for DJ Adrianne Masut who pronounced me guilty of summary harassment based solely on O'Hare's word.

Yup.

Curiously, DJ Masut skirted completely around (and didn't rule on) the "repeated invitations to fist fight" and "break your jaw" stuff in O'Hare's harassment complaint (i.e., the "flashy" items O'Hare used to hoodwink easily duped NorCo DA John Morganelli into "OK-ing" O'Hare's complaint forward and into Magisterial Court), likely because my attorney had earlier revealed those falsely sworn affidavit claims to be flat-out lies on O'Hare's part. But O'Hare's tarnished word was "gold" on the 500 comments ... as DJ Masut saw it.

We filed an appeal immediately.

Stay tuned for Round 2 in front of a Northampton County Court of Common Pleas Judge in 6 months or so ...

UpDate: REVERSED ON APPEAL IN 20 SECONDS

UpDate: O'HARE SUED IN LEHIGH COUNTY

Allentown Moving Forward (well, most of us)

Recently, Allentown residents received a really cool newsletter in the mail from Mayor Pawlowski. It's called Allentown Alive: a quarterly update of what is happening in our city. At first glance, we thought it was maybe reelection campaign propaganda (not that there's anything wrong w/ that) but it's not. This newsletter is loaded with information about the Mayor's existing plans and programs, and boy, is our Mayor Pawlowski ambitious and hard-working or what? Wow!

A quick and ongoing way to get the latest scoop on Mayor Pawlowski is to follow Ed on Twitter. It's really interesting to see all that Mayor Ed is doing.

But sadly, our "newspaper" rarely reports on Mayor Pawlowski's positive efforts anymore. Lately, because they are so desperate for readers, and to pander to our area's lunatic fringe NeoCons, The Morning Call has lapdog cub reporter Jarrett Renshaw "aping" the loony Pawlowski bashing he reads at the local NeoCon blogs. The "newspaper" (which supports Pawlowski) knows its two-faced charade won't make even the slightest dent in Mayor Pawlowski's cruise to reelection in November, but shameless whores that they are, they'll gladly swap an "Anti-Pawlowski" (wink wink) perception for a few more readers. Very clever, these Morning Callers, albeit totally bankrupt in the integrity and credibility departments. We doubt cubby Jarrett Renshaw is in on the joke. Ditto the MC subscription-renewing NeoCons.

On a related subject, calling all disgruntled NeoCons!
Don't miss KvetchFest, organized by South Whitehall Township's whining expert on all things Allentown, Mike "3%" Molovinsky who "has a plan" (wink wink) to SAVE OUR SITY!

Allentown Moving Forward (well, most of us)

Recently, Allentown residents received a really cool newsletter in the mail from Mayor Pawlowski. It's called Allentown Alive: a quarterly update of what is happening in our city. At first glance, we thought it was maybe reelection campaign propaganda (not that there's anything wrong w/ that) but it's not. This newsletter is loaded with information about the Mayor's existing plans and programs, and boy, is our Mayor Pawlowski ambitious and hard-working or what? Wow!

A quick and ongoing way to get the latest scoop on Mayor Pawlowski is to follow Ed on Twitter. It's really interesting to see all that Mayor Ed is doing.

But sadly, our "newspaper" rarely reports on Mayor Pawlowski's positive efforts anymore. Lately, because they are so desperate for readers, and to pander to our area's lunatic fringe NeoCons, The Morning Call has lapdog cub reporter Jarrett Renshaw "aping" the loony Pawlowski bashing he reads at the local NeoCon blogs. The "newspaper" (which supports Pawlowski) knows its two-faced charade won't make even the slightest dent in Mayor Pawlowski's cruise to reelection in November, but shameless whores that they are, they'll gladly swap an "Anti-Pawlowski" (wink wink) perception for a few more readers. Very clever, these Morning Callers, albeit totally bankrupt in the integrity and credibility departments. We doubt cubby Jarrett Renshaw is in on the joke. Ditto the MC subscription-renewing NeoCons.

On a related subject, calling all disgruntled NeoCons!
Don't miss KvetchFest, organized by South Whitehall Township's whining expert on all things Allentown, Mike "3%" Molovinsky who "has a plan" (wink wink) to SAVE OUR SITY!

Go Home and Shut Up

Former Chief of Staff to Colin Powell, Republican Lawrence Wilkerson  was on the Rachel Maddow Show Tuesday night and had some choice words of wisdom for our nation's creep of an ex-veep, Dick Cheney. 

Don't miss Wilkerson's poetry on

YouTube ... 

Let's face it, Dick Cheney is pathetic. He should be in jail for war crimes and more people, including Republicans, should tell the liar Cheney (in Wilkerson's words) to "go home and shut up."

Wilkerson says that Cheney puts out "idiocy of the first order." We agree. Here's an example: Cheney said that he'd "rather have Rush Limbaugh in the GOP than Colin Powell." I see. So a drug addicted, racist, sexist, gas bag makes for a good leader? I guess those characteristics are fitting, considering the sorry state of the GOP. 

Allowing Dick Cheney's sore loser buttinsky fear mongering enables it to fester and flower. Giving him a forum in the media is wrong and bad for America. On a local level, it's akin to the way people allow the hate mongering at The Morning Call Forum and the Nazi "enforcers" of our local blogosphere to fester and flower. 

But I must admit, it is kinda fun watching the former U.S. veep self-destruct ... 

same way it's been fun watching Morning Call veep Glenn Kranzley self-destruct (Kranzley gets the boot in 19 days). 

Like Cheney, Kranzley puts out "idiocy of the first order."  

Both veeps should go home and shut up. 

Go Home and Shut Up

Former Chief of Staff to Colin Powell, Republican Lawrence Wilkerson  was on the Rachel Maddow Show Tuesday night and had some choice words of wisdom for our nation's creep of an ex-veep, Dick Cheney. 

Don't miss Wilkerson's poetry on

YouTube ... 

Let's face it, Dick Cheney is pathetic. He should be in jail for war crimes and more people, including Republicans, should tell the liar Cheney (in Wilkerson's words) to "go home and shut up."

Wilkerson says that Cheney puts out "idiocy of the first order." We agree. Here's an example: Cheney said that he'd "rather have Rush Limbaugh in the GOP than Colin Powell." I see. So a drug addicted, racist, sexist, gas bag makes for a good leader? I guess those characteristics are fitting, considering the sorry state of the GOP. 

Allowing Dick Cheney's sore loser buttinsky fear mongering enables it to fester and flower. Giving him a forum in the media is wrong and bad for America. On a local level, it's akin to the way people allow the hate mongering at The Morning Call Forum and the Nazi "enforcers" of our local blogosphere to fester and flower. 

But I must admit, it is kinda fun watching the former U.S. veep self-destruct ... 

same way it's been fun watching Morning Call veep Glenn Kranzley self-destruct (Kranzley gets the boot in 19 days). 

Like Cheney, Kranzley puts out "idiocy of the first order."  

Both veeps should go home and shut up. 

Newspapers as Nonprofits

Our founding fathers established a press system because they realized the necessity to inform all citizens. It was public policy. The news as a public good. They knew that an informed citizenry was essential to democracy.

Now, due to the failing economy, the internet, media consolidation ( i.e. big corporate takeovers) and a failing business model based on circulation and ad revenue, these are dark times for the venerable printed newspaper. And a tragedy for democracy.

I read this the other day: WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government could provide tax breaks for newspapers or allow them to operate as nonprofits to help the struggling business survive, Sen. John Kerry said Wednesday.

Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland is proposing legislation (The Newspaper Revitalization Act)

http://cardin.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=310392 which would allow newspapers to restructure as nonprofits. The purpose of this legislation is to save local papers and community papers, not the big media conglomerates. Nonprofit status would allow for advertising and subscriptions to be tax exempt. The newspaper would subsist on tax deductible donations and contributions. As a nonprofit, the newspaper would not be allowed to make political endorsements. They would be allowed to operate for educational purposes, like NPR or PBS.

This sounds good to me, because it would allow for many perspectives and different points of view. Media consolidation has suppressed the diverse voices in our community. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concentration_of_media_ownership

And this would be one way to help local and community newspapers to stay afloat, hopefully preserving some investigative journalism.

Newspapers as Nonprofits

Our founding fathers established a press system because they realized the necessity to inform all citizens. It was public policy. The news as a public good. They knew that an informed citizenry was essential to democracy.

Now, due to the failing economy, the internet, media consolidation ( i.e. big corporate takeovers) and a failing business model based on circulation and ad revenue, these are dark times for the venerable printed newspaper. And a tragedy for democracy.

I read this the other day: WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. government could provide tax breaks for newspapers or allow them to operate as nonprofits to help the struggling business survive, Sen. John Kerry said Wednesday.

Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland is proposing legislation (The Newspaper Revitalization Act)

http://cardin.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=310392 which would allow newspapers to restructure as nonprofits. The purpose of this legislation is to save local papers and community papers, not the big media conglomerates. Nonprofit status would allow for advertising and subscriptions to be tax exempt. The newspaper would subsist on tax deductible donations and contributions. As a nonprofit, the newspaper would not be allowed to make political endorsements. They would be allowed to operate for educational purposes, like NPR or PBS.

This sounds good to me, because it would allow for many perspectives and different points of view. Media consolidation has suppressed the diverse voices in our community. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concentration_of_media_ownership

And this would be one way to help local and community newspapers to stay afloat, hopefully preserving some investigative journalism.

Replace Justice Souter With a Liberal Woman

David Souter, a left-leaning Supreme Court Justice, will be retiring, so it would make sense for Obama to appoint another liberal judge. Appointing a smart, liberal woman would make the most sense. In fact, the more liberal the better, to counter-balance Justices Thomas, Roberts, Alito, and Scalia who are all hard righties.

It would be normal to have 4 0r 5 women judges serving on the US Supreme Court. Women make up the majority of our population, a majority of the electorate, and women earn almost half of all the law degrees awarded each year (source: Generation Me by Jean M. Twenge, 2007).

Right now, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the sole "token" woman on the Supreme Court.

One woman who has been mentioned for consideration is Obama's Solicitor General, Elena Kagan. Ms. Kagan is a former Harvard Law School Dean. She's young (in her late 40's) and that's a plus.

Back to why appointing a woman is important. In a 2008 award winning paper entitled "Untangling the Causal Effects of Sex on Judging" (Boyd, Martin, and Epstein), findings indicated that male judges rule differently when they share the bench with a woman. And this makes sense. Think about it. Most men (e.g., husbands) function differently when women are around. And, dare I say it, they function better.

Obama says he wants to choose someone with empathy and understanding. A Harvard Law School Study found that twice as many women as men said that "helping others" was one of the most important factors in choosing a career. And according to a study by The Center for Work-Life Policy, only 20% of highly qualified female lawyers said that having a "powerful position" was an important career goal.

Women experience life differently than men, and female moral reasoning is different than a man's. A more gender-balanced Supreme Court would be more normal. And there are many highly qualified brilliant liberal women to fill this position.

Pictured: Solicitor General Elena Kagan

Replace Justice Souter With a Liberal Woman

David Souter, a left-leaning Supreme Court Justice, will be retiring, so it would make sense for Obama to appoint another liberal judge. Appointing a smart, liberal woman would make the most sense. In fact, the more liberal the better, to counter-balance Justices Thomas, Roberts, Alito, and Scalia who are all hard righties.

It would be normal to have 4 0r 5 women judges serving on the US Supreme Court. Women make up the majority of our population, a majority of the electorate, and women earn almost half of all the law degrees awarded each year (source: Generation Me by Jean M. Twenge, 2007).

Right now, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the sole "token" woman on the Supreme Court.

One woman who has been mentioned for consideration is Obama's Solicitor General, Elena Kagan. Ms. Kagan is a former Harvard Law School Dean. She's young (in her late 40's) and that's a plus.

Back to why appointing a woman is important. In a 2008 award winning paper entitled "Untangling the Causal Effects of Sex on Judging" (Boyd, Martin, and Epstein), findings indicated that male judges rule differently when they share the bench with a woman. And this makes sense. Think about it. Most men (e.g., husbands) function differently when women are around. And, dare I say it, they function better.

Obama says he wants to choose someone with empathy and understanding. A Harvard Law School Study found that twice as many women as men said that "helping others" was one of the most important factors in choosing a career. And according to a study by The Center for Work-Life Policy, only 20% of highly qualified female lawyers said that having a "powerful position" was an important career goal.

Women experience life differently than men, and female moral reasoning is different than a man's. A more gender-balanced Supreme Court would be more normal. And there are many highly qualified brilliant liberal women to fill this position.

Pictured: Solicitor General Elena Kagan

LVS MUZZLED BY HACKER

Readers, last night, "someone" (wink wink) hacked into our blog and deleted most of the comments from our first several posts.

Obviously, his main agenda was sabotaging our 4/26/09 post on DA Jim Martin ... that post has the most comments deleted.

We know who did this. You do too.

So much for "Rebecca's Pocket" blog etiquette, eh?

And Pennsylvania law.

Not to worry, readers. I'll change my password. But not my Justice Mission.

UpDate: Readers, we have compelling evidence that we've caught the culprit (O'Hare), w/ the help of some vigilant LVS fans. See the series of comments that starts at Monday, May 4, 2:31pm. Gotcha. Dumb-ass.

LVS MUZZLED BY HACKER

Readers, last night, "someone" (wink wink) hacked into our blog and deleted most of the comments from our first several posts.

Obviously, his main agenda was sabotaging our 4/26/09 post on DA Jim Martin ... that post has the most comments deleted.

We know who did this. You do too.

So much for "Rebecca's Pocket" blog etiquette, eh?

And Pennsylvania law.

Not to worry, readers. I'll change my password. But not my Justice Mission.

UpDate: Readers, we have compelling evidence that we've caught the culprit (O'Hare), w/ the help of some vigilant LVS fans. See the series of comments that starts at Monday, May 4, 2:31pm. Gotcha. Dumb-ass.