I don't disagree on any particular point

Approximately thirty local high school and UW students gathered Wednesday afternoon in Victor Steinbrueck Park near the Pike Place Public Market to protest the shooting of John T. Williams by SPD officer Ian Birk in addition to several other incidents of excess force in recent months. The rally was well attended by members of the press. The official inquest into Williams' death concluded late last week with mixed results, the Stranger has full coverage here.

Here's a look at the literature distributed at the event:

Police are the Absolute Enemy

Prosecute SPD gun-thug Ian Birk for Murder

We Demand Justice for John T. Williams

As I say, I don't disagree on any particular point. At least not with the central argument that SPD training and policies failed on a grand scale in the Williams case. For many in the general public, the release of dashboard camera footage from Birk's squad car last month spelled the end of his career with the SPD.

Yet, these activists are attempting to make so many points, some of them vastly disconnected from the core issue, that their arguments as a whole fail to persuade. I suggested to one of the pamphleteers, distributing literature for the Seattle Anti-Imperialist Committee, that it might be more effective to narrow their arguments -- to focus on ensuring full a investigation of SPD policies and demanding reform. He replied that they were attempting to " draw a larger picture" of systematic problems throughout the U.S. justice system. When I asked if that was an effective approach, he didn't have an answer.

The two groups arguing from a far left position, The Seattle Anti-Imperialist Committee and the Puget Sound Anarchists, both offer up criticism of the police force without proposing any concrete proposals for a solution to the problem. The Anarchist pamphlet is hostile even to the idea of dialogue on the issue: "[i]n the face of hot anger, the con artists deftly gesture towards the open doors of the democratic system through a better world is promised. . . the most insidious aspect of their effort to clean the blood from their hands is the attempt to find 'solutions.'" These groups are using police brutality as a starting point to indict the entire government and economic structure of the United States.

So go ahead, smash the state -- these arguments aren't going to do anything to ensure justice for Williams or change SPD policies. If you're not going to advocate for reform within the existing systems of governance, those systems are going to ignore you. Wake me when the Anarchist / Communist Revolution starts, I'll want to snap some photos.

A recurring theme throughout all of these pamphlets is the claim that Birk should be charged with murder. The videotape of the shooting works in Birk's favor here -- the quick succession of events, the fact that Williams could have been considered armed, the highly speculative question of whether or not Birk should have considered Williams a threat -- these factors make even a second degree murder prosecution problematic. How is justice better served: by an unsuccessful prosecution on the more serious charge of murder, or a successful prosecution for manslaughter in the first degree?

But I'm only contributing to the problem here -- there are enough people in both the public and the press passing judgment on this case, playing armchair district attorney. A decision from King County prosecutor Daniel T. Satterberg regarding filling criminal charges against Birk is expected in the near future.

Consider the Source

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I didn't think too much of this pamphlet when I came across it six months ago. Anti-Papist sentiments, while not uncommon in Protestant tracts, have fallen somewhat out of style. Rather than criticizing Catholics for their loyalty to the Pope, or portraying the Pope as the Anti-Christ, more topical criticism has been leveled in recent years due to the multitude of sex abuse cases brought against Catholic priests. Nothing all that new here.

From a rhetorical perspective, the author commits a logical fallacy not uncommon with theistic thinkers: cum hoc ergo propter hoc -- correlation does not imply causation. By this logic, one could claim a direct link between global warming and the dwindling pirate population. Again, nothing all that new or surprising.

Then I took a look at organization distributing this particular piece of nonsense:

" FOUKE, Ark. — Six children have been placed in temporary state custody as they are interviewed in the wake of a raid on a church compound as part of a child-porn investigation, Arkansas police said Sunday.

The children will be under the care of the state Department of Human Services during the interviews, said state police spokesman Bill Sadler. He didn't say how long the interviews would last.

More than 100 federal and state police raided the Tony Alamo Christian Ministries in the small southwestern Arkansas town of Fouke on Saturday as part of a two-year investigation into child abuse and pornography allegations against convicted tax evader Tony Alamo."

(full AP story here.)

Turns out this was distributed by Tony Alamo Christian Ministries Worldwide. Pastor Alamo - legal name Bernie Lazar Hoffman -- was convicted of 10 counts of interstate transportation of minors for illegal sexual purposes, rape, sexual assault, and contributing to the delinquency of minors and sentenced to 175 years in federal prison.

Alamo was convicted on July 24, 2009. The fact that his followers continue to distribute Alamo tracts over a year after he was sent to prison is a testament to the resiliency of cult indoctrination. I'm also a bit surprised at how far this pamphlet as traveled geographically from Alamo's base in Arkansas.

CNN interview conducted after Alamo's arrest:

Does it work?

Does it work? Do the words or images presented persuade the given audience? It's the most basic critique of any rhetoric.

Yes and no. According to the 2008 American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS), the number of American's who self-identified as Christian decreased from 86% to 76% from 1990 to 2008. Immigration from Latin America paid a large role in stabilizing these numbers for the period, providing an infusion of 9 million Catholics. The survey concludes that "[t]he challenge to Christianity in the U.S. does not come from other religions, but rather from a rejection of all forms of organized religion" with 15% of the population now identifying as "no stated religious preference, atheist, or agnostic."

The cultural dominance of Christianity may be somewhat diminished, but the ARIS report also notes a change in the character of spirituality in the United States:

"Much of this decline in Mainline identification is due to the growing public preference for the generic “Christian” response and the recent growth in the popularity of the “non-denominational Christian” response. Fewer than 200,000 people favored this term in 1990 but in 2008 it accounts for over eight million Americans. Another notable finding is the rise in the preference to self-identify as “Born Again” or “Evangelical” rather than with any Christian tradition, church or denomination. "

The percentage that identified as "Born Again or Evangelical Christians" increased to 34% across all Christian denominations. So, within their own base, the street preachers aren't doing too badly.

We are living in a world that is growing both more and less rational simultaneously. The statistics support what we see every week in the headlines: for every school district pushing Creationism somewhere, there's another rolling out a comprehensive sex-ed program. For every Bill O'Reilly, there's a Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Here's a selection of the more amusing and disturbing items being passed out by the Jesus dealers:

Where did they go? - This is a particularly nasty piece of business. Manages to oversimplify christian doctrine, demonize U.S. domestic and foreign policy and depict followers of Islam as bloodthirsty murders in thirteen short pages.

Heart Trouble? - the heart that beats in your chest is a cesspool of evil. But Christianity is a religion of love and life affirmation, right?

Jesus! - More guilt and threats of eternal damnation in cartoon form.

I would not have permitted you to harm my tribe

The world refuses to cool. Peace is just the brief period between wars. And if one is to experience any kind of safety or security, it's within the confines of one's own tribe. Or at least, that's the message underneath the more overt religious views being propagated by the faithful who took to the streets this Saturday afternoon. Join or die. Submit to our superior ideals or find yourself punished in this life of the next.

Here's a tribe you might not be familiar with -- or at least I wasn't until recently -- the Black Hebrew Israelite movement. If you've never had the pleasure of being called a cracker to your face, these are the folks you'll want to share a few uncomfortable moments with on a crowded city sidewalk. While there are multiple sects of the Black Hebrew Israelite movement, which have adapted various elements of mainstream Christianity and Judaism into their religious practices, their core doctrine is that Black Africans are the true descendants of the Ancient Israelites. Active primarily in the United States, adherents of Black Hebrew Israelite sects were estimated at around 200,000 through the 1990s.

Membership has been on the rise since 2000, after prophecies of the second coming and apocalypse failed to materialize resulted in a schisms within the Israelite Church of God in Jesus Christ. New leadership emerged, headed by Jermaine Grant, who updated the church's message by embracing contemporary R&B culture.

The Southern Poverty Law Center has reported extensively on Black Hebrew Israelite activities in the past few years:

"Confrontations between Hebrew Israelite street preachers and their perceived enemies are growing uglier and gaining increasing attention through video clips circulated to legions of viewers on websites like YouTube. The Israelite School of Universal Practical Knowledge, a sect that is the Israelite Church's main rival, has its own YouTube "channel," or video sharing distribution networks, with over 500 subscribers. One recently circulated Israelite School video, which has been viewed more than 26,000 times, shows a group of robed street preachers harassing a white woman until she bursts into tears. Another shows the preachers applauding as a white man kneels down to kiss the boots of "the prophets of God" while begging forgiveness for the sins of his race."

(Read the entire report, Ready for War.)

I wasn't able to nail down exactly which sect setup camp at Westlake Center today, but here's a sample of their particular brand of crazy:

Black Hebrews 1
Black Hebrews 2
Black Hebrews 3
Black Hebrews 4
Black Hebrews 5
Black Hebrews 6

I found it interesting that these gentlemen had no problem spewing their vitriolic nonsense in public, but stated quite explicitly that I could not photograph their faces.

Lady Paula Merry on Gentrification, Haiti disaster relief.

Just when I though she may have disappeared, Lady Paula Merry strikes again. So gather around everyone and learn all about the dangers of all-white police forces, how the FBI is restricting your rights and Haiti's future as a island trailer park paradise. What's enlightening about these rants, beyond the generalized insanity and paranoia, is how rooted they remain in the events of the day. This is clearly someone who pays attention to the media in one form or another and as a result is in a position to be influenced by the media.

False Equivalants

False equivalency is the rhetorical battleground of the moment -- the concept that both the right and the left are guilty of utilizing violent, anti-establishment language in political discourse, but that the left is less likely to transition from words to action. The republicans have the guns; the democrats don't. This view tends to highlight militants on the right like Timothy McVeigh, but overlooks militants on the left like the SLA and the Weather Underground.

Here in Seattle, resentment and distrust of law enforcement are on the rise in connection with shooting death of John T. Williams, a Native American folk-artists fatally shot by SPD in August 2010. (Cops = Murderers) The city has also played host to numerous demonstrations regarding the FBI's investigation of peace activists in recent months (Build a Wall of Resistance).

Can the possibility that this rhetoric could lead to violence against police officers be discounted? The moment a police officer is killed in the course of a routine traffic stop, this argument will be made by someone in politics or the media. Activists on the left should be as equally motivated as those on the right to consider the consequences of their rhetoric in light of the Tuscon shootings.

The left is also not immune to a little after-the-fact spin, either -- as this pamphlet demonstrates: The Green Scare.

"The acts of 'terrorism' that these defendants have admitted to would be more actually described as simple acts of sabotage. These were attacks against property, never people. Out of the deepest concern for life, the individuals involved took the greatest care to ensure that no people were harmed."

Obviously, these folks are unfamiliar with the law of unintended consequences. Regardless of whether or not people were targeted, these methods share a common element with more conventional definitions of terrorism -- they both attempt to shift public opinion through the coercive force of fear. "When reasoned argument fails, it's time to light something on fire" is the message here. It's this mentality that produced the stricter sentences in these cases.

Save Gaza; Don't Eat Israeli Hummus.

Westlake Center is the location of choice for the weekend activist set. In more agreeable weather, one can sometimes find three to four groups hocking their ideological wares from the sidewalks and plazas. A group of Pro-Palestinian activists braved the cold and damp this afternoon with tales of the Israeli police state. The Seattle Mideast Awareness Campaign recently generated national attention with their attempts to purchase ad space from King County transit featuring similar allegations of Israeli war crimes. Complaints from Pro-Israeli groups lead to King County's decision to pull the ads and a temporary ban on all non-commercial advertisements on metro buses.

How can you help solve the most vexing political situation of the modern world? Simple: don't buy Israeli hummus. See page 6 of Voice of Palestine's pamphlet for details. Chickpeas -- chickpeas are the answer to the problem of Mideast peace.

Tucson Vigil, Westlake Center, 01/13/2011

"He that has destroyed a single life, it is as if he has destroyed a whole world. We weep for those worlds."

--Rabbi Alan Cook, Temple De Hirsch Sinai.

A crowd of approximately one hundred gathered tonight in Westlake Park to pay tribute to the victims and survivors of the 01/08/2011 shootings in Tucson. Speakers included Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wa), local representatives of the Democratic and Republican parties and religious leaders.

While this event managed to remain non-partisan, that is hardly the sentiment nationwide. With pundits on the left decrying Sarah Palin's "blood libel" remark and many on the right complaining that President Obama turned his Tuscon speech into a campaign event for 2012, it seems clear that any call for a cessation of hostilities in the culture wars in light of Saturday's events is an unrealistic expectation.

President Lincoln freed the slaves and President Bush freed the White girls

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Utilize public transit in downtown Seattle and you may discover one of Lady Paula Merry Mayowa's missives carefully taped to newspapers and bus schedules around the market. Finding one Mayowa's commentaries on race, class and the immigrant experience used to be an almost daily occurrence. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any new decrees in the past several months. After seeing a few of these, I wondered if there wasn't some kind of code embedded in the rantings; all that "Gray Truck of the Caribbeans" and "the Red Truck of Egypt" business. For more, check out Lady Paul Merry Mayowa on flickr.

Oh, Pamphleteers

I weep for the state of public discourse in these United States. The reelection of George W. Bush, the rise of Glen Beck and Sarah Palin, the health care reform debate, the emergence of the Tea Party and the Birthers, the 2010 mid-term elections: for the past ten years, the power of reasoned discourse has faded and too often failed to persuade. Facts have lost out to fallacies.

It’s the Lyndon Larouche folks that really did me in -- standing on street corners and comparing a democratically elected president of the United States to Adolph Hitler. A false equivalency based on an argument so pencil-thin that it’s not even worth deconstructing.

You can avoid the twenty-four hour new cycle. You can use the internet for it’s intended purpose -- downloading porn. You can turn off talk radio and leave the newspaper moldering on your doorstep, but the hysteria is going to catch up with you eventually. On a Saturday afternoon, minding your own business, just trying to buy a Jamba Juice and some new underwear, you’ll encounter those persistent individuals intent on polluting the public square with their precious, ill-formed opinions. The 9/11 Truthers bearing xeroxed pages foaming with conspiracies. The Pro-Life crowd with their giant posters of dead babies. The street minister greeting you with his bullhorned message of eternal damnation on a bright and beautiful day. I’m just trying to buy Cinnabon and catch a movie -- take your free speech somewhere else.

There’s an urge to rail against these ideologues and their propaganda. To point out the errors in logic. To take the poor creatures aside, grab them by the shoulders and shake some sense into them. But you take a deep breath, walk along and enjoy the rest your overpriced coffee served up with too much milk.
So, I’ve started a little collection. I smile and accept the little lumps of batshit from their eager hands. I’m collecting a kind of folklore: the specious and ephemeral words of the street, damp and brightly colored memes circulated by those who still prefer paper.

Here they are -- today’s key indices in the local insanity market, fresh from the streets of Seattle. All found today, 01/10/2011, between Pike’s Place Public Market and the Downtown library.

Mark of the Beast: RFID. Who knew that Satan had an invested interest in information technology.

Shame on JP Morgan Chase. A local critique of lending practices unrelated to Subprime Mortgages.

Stoddard V. World. Draft of a legal discovery request compiled by one of our fair city's more insane residents. Twenty pages of handwritten notes and eccentric photocopies found in a newspaper box near the library. Page one is included for your viewing pleasure. From what I can tell, this individual is petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court, The United Kingdom, The International Criminal Court in the Haig and The United Nations, in additional to several U.S. State and Federal Courts, for DNA testing of a laundry list of public and private individuals, including: Charlie Sheen, Tommy LaSorta, "X-Files Actor Man," Julia Roberts and Dennis Hopper. Claimant also attempts to file suit against several multinational corporation for outstanding liens and patent violations.

This Can Be Your Life! The best theology comes in comic strip form.