About one in ten Americans have some kind of criminal record that renders them effectively unemployable in vast sectors of the economy where even companies like Home Depot subject their workers to random drug tests and automatically disqualify anyone from employment for the slightest of prior infractions. Moreover those same unemployable people are typically not allowed to sign a lease, car loan or any other significant financial document.

So yeah, pooh pooh even laugh at Obama's 'revelation' that he used to do coke, smoke weed and whatnot. Because you are or you know someone who's life as an American has been badly blunted by that already. And it only looks to get worse.

Nationally, about 3 out of 5 prisoners are there for non violent drug felonies under mandatory sentencing. And for the folks who don't go to jail, a drug conviction is a black mark that rivals child abuse or assault. Often applications will call out drug violations separately on their employment forms with a note that says "Any prior conviction for any drug violation disqualifies......"

In my state, the public universities use the police as security and then hide behind the excuse "we're just a college" to circumvent the 4th Amendment of the Constitution for as they call it, public safety reasons. Then, since they use the police, the police simply arrest whoever they like after having been allowed to search w/o a warrant and just cause. The college then stands back and says "Well that's not our issue." Moreover, crimes committed on state property, drug crimes carry with them, as a matter of state law, a 50% MORE severe penalty, fine, punishment and/or incarceration.

The upside to any of this is that more or less everyone of the up and coming generation is going to have some kind of criminal record. And we as a country can begin to act rationally to change the laws or we as a country can sink into 3rd world fascism and poverty. Either way, keep laughing, it's starting to get real funny out there.

In 1952 the Dems beat each other brains in, split the ticket and lead the way to Ike's victory.

Or about 3x what the Cubans themselves threw out during the Marielitos boatlift. So before you paint this as big bad Angelino and widdle weak peaceful peaceloving people of peace of Habana, it might help to ask why all those people are leaving.

Help I'm living with my heroin addicted rapist who stole all his mother's life savings and is a racist to boot. Should I leave or stay for the children's sake?

sincerely

Lifelong anorexic depressed MFA Bennington '87 ex Catholic ninja

"Another" San Fran tragedy....in a city known for.....tragedies? I mean it truly sucks, this shooting. Welcome to America, Joan. I bet not a single Democratic candidate this go round will say word one about gun violence. It's all Iraq all of the time.

No. No. Yes (spouse is an attorney). I'm a mere economist. A home is the largest purchase most people ever make. For a few hundred bucks it pays to hire an expert. My last ReFi our red pencil changes ran to several pages. Seriously, if you have a few hundred thousand dollars and not enough common sense to spend a few dollars to have someone who knows look after your interests or at least explain to you what they are then you're not long for keeping that money no matter what. You are, to be kind, an idiot.

Sorry but no amount of regulation is going to protect everyone from their own stupidity and greed, all of the time.

While simultaneously 'sort-of' applauding the Medieval Persians living in a society you have never and will never and would never experience yourselves, then that is what you will do.

Of course we are all evil and they get it right. Of course feminism is a war against the fat white man in America, he who enslaves. Of course niqaab is an expression of empowerment or at worst, no worse than skinny models and their weight-ism.

Yes yes Margaret Sanger, Emma Lazarus, Elenore Roosevelt, Rachel Carson, Gloria Steinem, Virginia Woolfe, Madame Curie and all the others, are today running around Tehran bootstrapping them all to the glorious future while we sink into the morass of feudalism, and slavery.

Yes I'm sure of it.

Like all the people we imagine we're worse than.

A quality biodegradable paper bag will do just fine.

Funny isn't it?

The older and more dried up they are the easier they are to pick up.

there. ya happy now?

We're never allowed to speak a truth or any opinion that deviates from the official posture lest someone get mobs of people boiling into the streets threatening coverage on the cable news. Right or wrong, good or bad, there's a script of the correct words and phrases all candidates, just like all beauty pageant contestants have to follow. All NFL players and rappers have to thank Jesus all candidates have to lay a wreath on the pyre of One True American History. And that's fine. Go mouth your officious and precious words and the morons who hear it will check off the appropriate boxes on their crib sheet and decide who lies about tolerance the best and vote for them.

I wonder though what MLK would say about the Black ministers in Memphis who are fighting with their own democratic Congressman to get rid of anti hate speech legislation because it would infringe on their desire to be homophobic shitheads? Seriously, I wonder what he would say?