Southern trees bear a strange fruit,

Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,

Black body swinging in the Southern breeze,

Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.

Pastoral scene of the gallant South,

The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth,

Scent of magnolia sweet and fresh,

And the sudden smell of burning flesh!

Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck,

For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,

For the sun to rot, for a tree to drop,

Here is a strange and bitter crop.

[Amnesty International: Georgia Kills Troy Davis]

[Sister Helen Prejean: Would Jesus Pull the Plug?]

“Ron Paul told TPM on Wednesday that even if there’s a ‘case or two’ that makes Americans uncomfortable, the government should stay out of the health care business. Even if one of the cases in question is his former campaign manager, Kent Snyder, who died with $400,000 in unpaid medical bills after being unable to secure health insurance due to a pre-existing condition.”

This has been a pretty shitty week for those of us who were horrified by the debt ceiling drama, and who think about things like the future of the country.

And then we have freak shows like this revival in Houston…

…or repulsive levels of child poverty in America.

But then I read something that just made my fucking day, and so I want to share it with my fellow Stinquers.  The source? None other than Dolly Parton, but it doesn’t involve lesbians at the amusement park.

Read more »

Multiple sources are telling reporters that last week in the presence of other justices, Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice David Prosser grabbed Justice Ann Walsh Bradley around the neck in an argument in her chambers.  The argument happened before the court’s release of a decision upholding a bill to curtail the collective bargaining rights of public employees.  Bradley had asked Prosser to leave her office during the meeting, at which point he grabbed her by the neck with both of his hands.  Capitol Police have launched an investigation and neither Prosser nor Bradley would confirm or deny the account of what happened that had been conveyed to reporters.

Seems that Justice Prosser has an anger management issue when dealing with his uppity lady judge colleagues. He admitted in March that he called Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson a “bitch” and threatened to “destroy” her during a closed-door meeting.

Prosser was reelected earlier this year in a contested election featuring lost and found ballots and Governor Scott Walker and Sarah Palin campaigning for him.

[Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel]

Last Friday the Kansas Legislature approved a bill that would prohibit health insurance companies from offering their customers coverage for abortion procedures, unless the woman’s life was endangered by continuing the pregnancy.

GOP Representative Pete DeGraaf, who also is a pastor, called for the prohibition even in cases where a woman is pregnant as a result of rape.  A female colleague of Rep. DeGraaf argued that this would be further punishment of a rape victim, to which he replied:

“We do need to plan ahead, don’t we, in life?”

She responded, “And so women need to plan ahead for issues that they have no control over with pregnancy?”

DeGraaf retorted, “I have a spare tire on my car.  I also have life insurance. I have a lot of things that I plan ahead for.”

If any Stinquers want to take a break from smashing their heads on their desks, DeGraaf’s Web site lists his office number as 785-296-7693, his home phone as 316-777-0715, and his e-mail as pete.degraaf@house.ks.gov.  You’ll also note that the first-term legislator has sponsored a bill to create “covenant marriages” in Kansas.

[Kos]

“Overturning a common law dating back to the English Magna Carta of 1215, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Hoosiers have no right to resist unlawful police entry into their homes.” [Northwest Indiana Times]

“A Texas high school teacher has been placed on administrative leave following an incident where he allegedly told a 9th grade Muslim girl in his algebra class ‘I bet that you’re grieving’ on Monday following the death of Osama bin Laden.” [TPM] Bonus cross-cultural reference: Algebra?