All posts by James

About James

James Seidler is a writer living in Chicago. The editor for the now-defunct humor publication FLYMF, he has now decided to maintain his web presence and smart remarks through this blog.

My Letter in the Sun-Times

Politics, Well Worth Reading

I had a letter, “Tell Both Sides,” published in today’s Chicago Sun-Times. It was in response to an article yesterday that accompanied policeman as they raided a suspected drug-dealer’s home using a no-knock warrant.

Tell Both Sides

To balance your enthusiastic portrayal of no-knock police raids in “Police! Search Warrant!,” you should present some of the tragic outcomes that have taken place as a result of policemen forcing themselves into people’s homes.

Mistaken identities, lying informants and simple miscommunication have led to people dying and killing police officers. At the same time, giving police a green light to bash their way into people’s homes in response to nonviolent drug crimes represents a dangerous advancement in the militarization of law enforcement.

I’m happy enough with the letter, although I wished I’d emphasized a little more how disorienting–and dangerous–it is for people to wake to a group of armed men rushing into their house. Even if the intruders are shouting “Police,” it’s not surprising that residents take it to be a home invasion, and often respond with force. These no-knock raids are borne from a fear that people will flush their drugs, but that seems a bar too low to countenance military-style police groups breaking into people’s homes in pursuit of non-violent crimes.

Libertarian reporter Radley Balko has written a lot on the subject.

Republicans Polled: Results Not Promising

Politics

Democratic political site Daily Kos recently commissioned a poll of Republican beliefs. The results are disheartening for anyone who believes in, I don’t know, plurality or a civil society.

Here are a couple “highlights.” You can view the full results here.

Should Barack Obama be impeached, or not?

Yes 39
No 32
Not Sure 29

Do you believe Barack Obama was born in the United States, or not?

Yes 42
No 36
Not Sure 22

Do you believe Sarah Palin is more qualified to be President than Barack Obama?

Yes 53
No 14
Not Sure 33

Do you believe Barack Obama is a racist who hates White people?

Yes 31
No 36
Not Sure 33

Global Warming Denialism in the Chicago Sun-Times

Science

In today’s Chicago Sun-Times, I was frustrated to see boilerplate global-warming denialism given a half-page in the “Easy” section, whatever that means. I’ve recently started purchasing newspapers again, and I enjoy it, but part of the reason I stopped was their penchant for giving equal time to uninformed bullshit.

My letter to the editor:

I don’t see any scientific credentials for Betsy Hart, but I’m inclined to trust the “global warming alarmists” of the National Academy of Sciences, who called in a joint statement for the government to “seize all opportunities” to address global climate change that “is happening even faster than previously estimated.”

The seasons may vary, but the trend is clear: Greenhouse gas emissions have increased dramatically, thanks to the burning of fossil fuels. These gases cause warming. And, as NASA data has shown, the “past decade was the warmest on record.”

Why has Hart been given her platform–a clear opinion piece that appears in the middle of a news section? Is it called the Easy section because it’s easy to avoid journalistic standards within?

I would enjoy seeing a real scientist respond to her piece point-by-point, but that would give it more attention than it deserves.