NDP Gets Smart on Crime II

quote:

---

Originally posted by Phrillie:
[b]Anyway, it seems to me that those disenfranchised voters eliminated themselves.[/b]

---

They eliminated themselves by being arrested? That's pretty harsh given that they have done restitution and are living in the community and paying taxes.

quote:

---

Originally posted by Phrillie:
[b]

... [i]from the voting pool[/i] I should have added, for the hard of reading.[/b]

---

Oh they're alive - praise the Lord! You mean these 5 million lawbreakers, of whom 2 million are African Americans, were only deprived of the right to vote - not of life itself? Well what the heck is the big deal? I thought we were on to something really scandalous here.

quote:

---

Originally posted by unionist:
[b]Oh they're alive - praise the Lord! You mean these 5 million lawbreakers, of whom 2 million are African Americans, were only deprived of the right to vote - not of life itself? Well what the heck is the big deal? I thought we were on to something really scandalous here.[/b]

---

If you're telling me that 40% of criminals are African Americans, then I guess those 40% don't get to vote either. Sorry, I have more pressing issues. Like the psychiatrically incarcerated who [b]don't[/b] commit crimes but don't get to vote either.

quote:

---

Originally posted by Phrillie:
[b]

If you're telling me that 40% of criminals are African Americans, then I guess those 40% don't get to vote either. [/b]

---

I'm not telling you anything. I'm just quoting from Fidel's article, from which I learned a great deal. He posted it for your benefit. You should read it.

quote:

---

Though racially neutral on their face, felony disenfranchisement laws have a racially disparate impact. Five million people were barred from voting in the November 2004 election because of a felony conviction; two million of them were African-Americans. Human Rights Watch has said that three in 10 of the next generation of black men will be disenfranchised at some point in their lifetime, and, in states with the most restrictive laws, 40 percent of black men may lose their right to vote permanently.

Latinos are not far behind. In 2003, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund discovered half a million Latino citizens disenfranchised in just the 10 states it surveyed.

---

quote:

---

Originally posted by unionist:
[b]The question you asked was whether Canada bars "criminals" from voting. That's what I suggested you ask your criminology prof. Not about U.S. policy. We already know U.S. policy from Fidel's ACLU article.[/b]

---

Sorry, misread. I don't believe it does or I wouldn't be able to vote.

quote:

---

[b]Though racially neutral on their face, felony disenfranchisement laws have a racially disparate impact. [/b]

---

Right, but only because criminals are racially disparate. We can talk about racial profiling and we can talk about prejudice in the courts but the fact is, right now, more blacks are disenfranchised because more of them are convicted.

Are there no prisons ? Are there no workhouses ?

quote:

---

Originally posted by Phrillie:
[b]

Right, but only because criminals are racially disparate. We can talk about racial profiling and we can talk about prejudice in the courts but the fact is, right now, more blacks are disenfranchised because more of them are convicted.[/b]

---

Of course. That would be their genetic disposition to criminality, right?

quote:

---

Originally posted by Phrillie:
[b]

What are you jabbering on about now, Fidel? And how does this fit in with the fabulous infant mortality rate in Cuba?[/b]

---

Hey, Fidel: Don't answer this, please. She can only succeed if people call her by her true name. Just keep telling jokes.

You're amazing, laine.

I post this:

quote:

---

[b]We can talk about racial profiling and we can talk about prejudice in the courts but the fact is, right now, more blacks are disenfranchised because more of them are convicted.[/b]

---

and you don't want to talk about racial profiling and prejudice. Nah. Much more fun to accuse me of racism because that doesn't, you know, take any effort on your part.

quote:

---

Originally posted by unionist:
[b]

Hey, Fidel: Don't answer this, please. She can only succeed if people call her by her true name. Just keep telling jokes.[/b]

---

They must be cutting back at the troll factory, or something. [img]biggrin.gif" border="0[/img]

That's hilarious, you three. Now how about dealing with what I'm saying? You know, the message not the messenger? Etc.

quote:

---

Originally posted by unionist:
[b]

What message?

You entered a serious thread with a challenge to Fidel, who had exposed the disenfranchisement of millions of U.S. citizens in circumstances that don't behoove a self-styled democratic country.

Then, after Fidel patiently explained and provided a source, you decided you'd start a diversion by saying, "they brought it on themselves". Oh, and it's not racist either as the ACLU thinks - it's just because African Americans choose to commit more crimes!

Then, you gratuitously and unprovokedly ridiculed Fidel by raising the issue of infant mortality in Cuba.

Fidel is a valued member of this community.

Are you sure you're not a Cylon?[/b]

---

Fidel's a valued member? No shit. I thought he was a laughingstock and that's why everybody always told him to shut up and/or stay on topic.

Re: the disenfranchised. It seems to me the problem here is that a U.S. convict isn't allowed to vote. That's a policy that might need changing. I'd support that. It also seems that blacks are overrepresented in the criminal justice system. That's a systemic problem that needs to be addressed. I also support that. But I won't support your implication that it's an intentionally racist policy. Isn't there enough shit going on in this world? Do you really have to invent monsters where they don't exist? I never said that African Americans "choose" to commit crimes. I said that, evidently, they appear to commit 40% of them.

As should have been obvious, unionist, my post was directed at you, not Fidel.

quote:

---

Originally posted by Phrillie:
[b]
Do you really have to invent monsters where they don't exist? I never said that African Americans "choose" to commit crimes. I said that, evidently, they appear to commit 40% of them.[/b]

---

And what about several South African apartheid regimes supported by U.S. governments from Truman to Reagan?. Did the South Africans study segregation in the U.S. before making it policy in their own country ?. More apologetic right-wing pap, please.