Robert Wayne Holsey And Will Robinson
December 9 is the scheduled day for the execution of Robert Wayne Holsey. On “December 17, 1995, Robert Wayne Holsey was arrested and charged for the murder of Baldwin County Sheriff’s Deputy William E. Robinson IV. There apparently is little doubt that Wayne Holsey (his family calls him Wayne) committed the crime. Here is the Murderpedia account:
“The evidence at trial showed that shortly before 1:30 a.m. on December 17, 1995, Holsey entered the Jet Food Store in Milledgeville with a gun and demanded money. After receiving money from the store’s cash register, Holsey directed the store clerk to open the store’s lottery machine. Although Holsey ordered the clerk into a back room, the clerk was able to observe Holsey leave in a small red automobile. The clerk immediately called the police and provided a description of Holsey and his car.
Less than four minutes after Holsey left the food store, Deputy Sheriff Will Robinson stopped a red Ford Probe at a nearby motel. He relayed the vehicle’s license plate number by radio and approached the vehicle; Holsey then fired. Forensic evidence showed that the deputy suffered a fatal head wound.
Several guests at the motel observed a person matching Holsey’s description returning to the red Ford Probe and speeding away. The police soon discovered the vehicle and gave chase, but Holsey was able to avoid apprehension. One witness testified that she observed the red Ford Probe and recognized Holsey, with whom she was personally acquainted.
Holsey’s girlfriend testified that shortly after the shooting Holsey called and asked her to meet him at his sister’s house. He told her to drive her blue Jeep Cherokee rather than her red automobile because the police were searching for a red Ford Probe. When she arrived at the house, Holsey was hiding behind a fence. Holsey had his girlfriend drive him past the murder scene. When she refused his request to be driven to his mother’s house where he could monitor a police scanner, Holsey had her drive him through back roads to his sister’s house where she had picked him up. Holsey instructed her to park directly behind the red Ford Probe in order to conceal its license plate.
While Holsey and his girlfriend were still in the Jeep, a law enforcement officer drove up to the red Ford Probe. The officer checked the Probe’s license plate number, which matched the number transmitted by the victim. The officer then illuminated the Cherokee and the Probe with his headlights and transmitted a request for additional support.
When Holsey exited the Cherokee “very quickly,” the officer turned on his blue police lights, exited his own vehicle, drew his service weapon, and twice commanded Holsey to raise his hands. Holsey failed to comply, began looking around as though searching for an escape route, and, after the officer threatened to shoot, Holsey finally raised his hands.
The officer then commanded Holsey to lie prone on the ground. When the chief deputy sheriff arrived less than two minutes later, he confirmed that the Probe’s license plate number matched the number from the victim’s radio call and discovered a fresh bullet hole in the back of the Probe. He then awakened and interviewed the occupants of the residence. The occupants, Holsey’s sister and another woman who was the owner of the Probe, both stated that Holsey had borrowed the vehicle that night. The chief deputy then, less than fifteen minutes after Holsey was initially detained, asked Holsey his name and placed him under arrest.
Clothes matching the description of those worn by the armed robbery perpetrator were discovered nearby. Shoes removed from Holsey after his arrest matched the description given by witnesses to both the armed robbery and the murder. A sample of blood taken from one of the shoes proved through DNA analysis to be consistent with the blood of the victim.”
Mother Jones has an excellent article about what happened at the trial. If you have a few minutes, you should read it. They tell the story much better than this slack blogger.
Wayne Holsey had an alcoholic for a lawyer. Andy Prince had recently gone to an emergency room with a blood alcohol level of .345. He was drinking a quart of vodka a night during the murder trial. Mr. Prince had numerous other issues, and was eventually disbarred. Mother Jones discusses Mr. Prince in great detail. Brian Andrew Prince died December 2, 2011.
Several details about Mr. Holsey were not told to the jury. Mr. Holsey has an I.Q. of 70, and is considered borderline disabled. He grew up with considerable abuse, in a house that neighbors called the “torture chamber.” If the jury had known this, the sentence might have been different.
The District Attorney has a different view of Mr. Prince. “Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit District Attorney Fred Bright convicted Wayne Holsey and will argue against clemency. His recollection of Prince is different. “He was the go to guy for the death penalty defense lawyer at the time.”
Bright said from his side of the table, Prince was a tough opponent regardless of whether or not he was an alcoholic at the time. “It wouldn’t shock me that he drank at night. I’m not there so I wouldn’t know, but that wouldn’t shock me,” But Bright says what Prince did at night doesn’t matter. He says in court, Prince was formidable. “During the day when he was in court he was sober, he was lucid, he was a fighter, he worked his tail off.”
The case went through the standard protocol of appeals. On Sept. 14, 2012, “The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, in a 2-1 decision issued Thursday, said that even though Robert Wayne Holsey’s trial lawyers did not do a competent job, their deficient performance did not prejudice the outcome of the trial.”
Circuit Judge Ed Carnes wrote the 104-page lead opinion in the case. Senior Circuit Judge J.L. Edmondson wrote a concurring opinion. He criticized the lead opinion for being too long. “In my experience, longish opinions always present a strong possibility of error lurking somewhere in the text. That the opinion writer is a skilled and careful judge does not eliminate the risk. Furthermore, no one wishes to join in an opinion that they do not understand fully.”
UPDATE: Wayne Holsey died at 10:51 pm, December 9, 2014. According to reporter Randall Savage, who witnessed the execution, Wayne Holsey addressed the father of his victim: “Mr. Robinson, I’m sorry for taking your son’s life that night: I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me and my family.” Pictures are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
Fairyland: A Memoir Of My Father
Fairyland: A Memoir of My Father was published last year. It got some attention in Atlanta, where the story started. A few weeks ago, a copy appeared at the Chamblee library. It was time.
Steve Abbott and Barbara Binder were grad students at Emory. They met, fell in love, and got married. On December 6, 1970, Alysia Rebecca Abbott was born.
As might be predicted for a couple that met at an SDS meeting, the Abbotts had an unconventional relationship. They lived for a while in a decaying mansion on Clifton Road, with a few dozen commune neighbors. Truth be told, the Abbotts might have wound up with a divorce. Instead, on August 28, 1973, Barbara was killed in an automobile accident.
Steve had always been bisexual. If you have any doubts, see this cover he drew for The Great Speckled Bird. After Barbara died, he took his daughter to San Francisco. After a couple of stops, they wound up at 545 Asbury Street. Steve wrote poetry. Alysia grew into a young lady.
When it was time, Alysia went to college in New York. Barbara Binder Abbott was from a “comfortable” family, and the Binders stayed in touch with their granddaughter. Meanwhile, Steve turned up HIV+. Eventually, his condition required Alysia to move home. On December 2, 1992, he took his last breath.
Alysia Abbott can tell a story. Fairyland is an entertaining read, even when the story is tough to take. Hopefully, there will be more reading product from the lady.
This is the dedication: “for my mother and my father, and for Annabel, so she may some time know where her mother “was at.”” Annabel has a brother, Finn. He is profoundly autistic. When the NPR book promotion interview was given, Finn could not talk.
A few months ago, PG heard Annabelle, a song by Gillian Welch. The chorus rhymes Jesus with please us. PG found this to be upsetting. He wondered if he was going to go the rest of his life being triggered by Jesus. And now, the author of this deeply moving book has a daughter, with a very similar name. Annabel will have an autistic younger brother to grow up with.
The second part of this feature is a repost. It is the story of a World Aids Day rally, December 1, 1992. The next day Steve Abbott died. Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
1992 was a year for PG. His father died in February. In July, PG went to Europe. It was a bad, bad year for friends with aids. Several were recruited by the grim reaper.
By the time December 1 came around, PG was ready for another year. In those days, PG was working in an architect office downtown, and had lots of free time. There was a rally for World Aids Day at the state capitol, and PG saw a chance for free entertainment. A podium was set up in the rotunda, and a series of speakers declaimed. One man said to use a condom every time you FUCK. He seemed to enjoy screaming the F word in the state capitol.
A man named Doug Teper spoke. He was the only state legislator to speak, and he criticized the organizers for not inviting him. Later, PG … who lived in Mr. Teper’s district … asked him for a business card. Mr. Teper forgot to bring his business cards. (PG was standing next to Mr. Teper when a speaker demanded health care for everyone. PG leaned over and said, how are we going to pay for this? Mr. Teper shrugged. Twenty two years later, we still don’t know.)
In July, a close friend had died. Jim lived in Loganville, in Walton County. PG stood behind a statue of George Walton during the rally.
PG saw a person named Gene Holloway at the rally, and went to talk to him. Years earlier, when Betty Ford was the first lady, PG was taken to his eighteenth birthday party. A couple of years after the rally, PG saw an obituary for Gene Holloway.
Fleetwood Mac
PG has read the autobiography of Mick Fleetwood. If this had been a made up tale of fiction, no one would believe it. Mick is not the manufacturer of enemas, nor the namesake of a Cadillac Model. The possibility does exist that he has used those two products.
John Mayall gave his guitar player, Peter Green, some studio time as a birthday present. “The Green God” used a rhythm section from the Bluesbreakers, Mick Fleetwood (drums) and John McVie (bass). At the end of the day, Mr. Green wrote “Fleetwood Mac” on the can holding the tapes.
Before long, Mr. Green started his own band, and named it after the rhythm section. (Does anyone know the bass player and drummer of the Atlanta Rhythm Section?) Fleetwood Mac started as a blues band, and became popular in England. Mr. Fleetwood celebrated by getting together with Jenny Boyd, who became his wife. Miss Boyd is the sister of Patti Boyd, the wife of George Harrison, aka Layla.
The first Fleetwood Mac album in the USA was “Then Play On”. The first show in Atlanta was at the Oglethorpe University gym, and by all accounts was a wild night. PG saw the sign advertising the event, but did not attend.
About the time of “Then Play On”, Peter Green started to get a bit weird. He dropped out of the band, but Jeremy Spencer and Danny Kirwan were still playing guitars. For a little while. Jeremy Spencer took a walk outside a Los Angeles hotel, and got recruited by the Children of G-d. Danny Kirwan had some issues, and decided to leave the band. Bob Welch stopped by for a few years, joined by Christine McVie, the wife of John.
The band was managed at this time by Clifford Davies, who by all accounts was a nasty piece of work. A man named Bob Weston had joined the band, and lasted until he had an affair with Jenny Fleetwood. Mr. Weston was fired, and a tour canceled. Clifford Davies decided that he owned the name Fleetwood Mac, and hired a group of players to go out and do shows. Fleetwood and the Mcvies were not amused, and Mick Fleetwood took over as the manager of the band.
By 1974, the band was pushing along, and selling about 300,000 copies of each album. On Halloween night 1974, Fleetwood Mac played at the Omni with Jefferson Starship. PG was at the Municipal Auditorium that night, seeing Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt.
In late 1974 Mick was looking for a studio. He came to a place, and an album came on the speakers, Mick was impressed by the guitar player. Soon after, Bob Welch felt the need to leave the band, and Mick thought the guitar player he heard at the studio was a good fit. (The band never did auditions, just asked people they liked to join). The guitar player was Lindsay Buckingham, and his girlfriend/musical partner was Stevie Nicks. This was the band that set sales records.
The first album with Buckingham/Nicks, simply titled “Fleetwood Mac”, became a phenomenon. The band was soon headlining in stadiums, and was on every fm radio station in the land. The band went into the studio to record a follow up. The second album took over a year to produce, and saw the McVies and the Fleetwoods get divorced. Buckingham and Nicks split their common law arrangement. Out of the turmoil came “Rumours”, which has sold roughly thirty million copies.
On August 29, 1978, PG got to see Fleetwood Mac at the Omni. Mick Fleetwood was on top of his game, pounding the skins with a glee that could be seen from the cheap seats. Fleetwood was a highlight, standing two meters tall and creating havoc on the drum stand.
Reading the book tells the rest of the story. Fleetwood’s father had died earlier that summer, and Mick was devastated. The band was straining under the pressures of super duper stardom. Mick had attempted a reconciliation with his wife, which was a painful failure. There was an affair between Mick and Stevie Nicks at this time. The idea that Mick Fleetwood could perform like he did that night tells you what a trooper he was.
The story continues. The book was written in 1991. There might be a volume two. This is a repost.
The Burning Of Atlanta
Around this time 150 years ago, Atlanta was on fire. General Sherman was preparing for his March to the sea, and wanted to destroy anything of value in the city. The fire is reported as being on 11-15 of November, depending on what source you use.
The November fire was the second great fire in Atlanta that year. On September 2, the city was conquered by the Union Army. The fleeing Confederates blew up a munitions depot, and set a large part of the city on fire. This is the fire Scarlet O’Hara flees in “Gone With The Wind”.
After a series of bloody battles, the city was shelled by Yankee forces for forty days. There were many civilian casualties. General Sherman was tired of the war, angry at Atlanta, and ready for action. This is despite the fact that many in Atlanta were opposed to secession.
Click here to hear a lecture by Marc Wortman at the Atlanta History Center. Mr Wortman is the author of “The Bonfire: The Siege and Burning of Atlanta”. The hour of talk is fascinating. The pictures are from The Library of Congress This is a repost.
Concrete Events
There were two events in Atlanta yesterday. In the afternoon, some people decided to play in the freeway. The fishwrapper reports Protesters temporarily block Downtown Connector.
The action was a protest against police brutality, and Micheal Brown. The hashtag involved was #blacklivesmatter. How this action will affect life in Missouri is uncertain. Maybe this helped a Missouri team win game two of the world series.
After the pumpkinfest event went out of control, many have drawn comparisons between how things are handled. The word is that white children can go crazy, without consequences, while black children get shot by police. The incident on the downtown connector was at least one time where unarmed black people engage in dangerous activity without being shot.
A mile or so northwest of the Grady curve is the Krog Tunnel. The venerable passage sits under the railroad tracks between Cabbagetown and Inman Park. It is a concrete palimpsest of graffiti, with new offerings spraypainted all the time. Some call it iconic.
Some doofus thought it would be cool to block off this thoroughfare, and have a party. The neighborhood disagreed. The city said go ahead. The Krog Masquerade was set to happen. Lots of neighborhood people were not happy with the arrangement.
Last night, the neighbors got revenge. Krog Tunnel buffed in protest of Masquerade ball. The crazy quilt of street art was painted over. After the party, the tunnel art will get a fresh start, with a new background. It is part of the process. #krogisnotforsale
Pictures for today’s entertainment are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”. These pictures were taken May 17, 1955, at Southeastern Movie Festival, a Motion Picture Theatre Owners and Operators of Georgia event.
Nine Years
September 21, 2005, saw the first Chamblee54 post. Nine years later, the world has not changed. In the past 108 months, there have been two blogging services. Yes, people still use blogspot.
The WordPress phase began in 2008, and had been far superior. Here are a few stats … 201,357 views, 3,630 comments, 2941 posts, 38,977 pictures. The viral post has not happened.
This looks like a day without much to say. Chamblee54 is not going anywhere, unlike many blogs that roared in 2005. Pictures are from The Library of Congress. Thanks for stopping by.
I Have A Dream
PG stumbled onto a blog post about a speech. It was delivered August 28, 1963, by Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. You have probably heard the money quote many times, but how many have heard the entire 881 words. PG had not, and decided to take a look.
The speech is really a sermon. It is delivered with the cadence, and rhetorical flourishes, of the church. Dr. King was a minister. The Jesus worship church is a huge player in African America. The fact that slaves were introduced to this religion by their owners seems to be forgotten.
The term used is Negro. This was the polite word in 1963. The custom of saying Black started in the late sixties, at least partially inspired by James Brown. Negro began to be seen as an insult, along with the infamous N-word … which is really just a lazy way of saying Negro.
As the speech is working up to the climax, there is a line “But not only there; let freedom ring from the Stone Mountain of Georgia!” Today, Stone Mountain is a middle class black community. DeKalb County is mostly black, and the political leadership is African American. This was a long way from happening in 1963.
Twelve weeks after Dr. King gave his speech, President John Kennedy was killed. Part of the reaction to this tragedy was the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The next year saw the Voting Rights Act, and escalation of the war in Vietnam. It seemed that for every step forward, there was a half step back. People lost patience with non violence. America did not implode, but somehow survived. It is now fifty one years later. Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
Richards
A comment at a recent post mentioned “Jenning’s Rose Room, a classic poor white juke and dance hall … where Trader Joes now sits.” PG had been in that building when it was called Richards. Pictures are from ” The Special Collections and Archives,Georgia State University Library”.
There is no telling what the original use of the building at 931 Monroe Drive was. It was across the street from Grady Stadium, and adjacent to Piedmont Park. The railroad tracks that became the beltline ran behind it. The parking lot was primitive, with a marquee sign built at some point. (PG drove by that sign several nights and saw that Lynyrd Skynyrd was playing.)
There was another nightclub building on the hill behind JRR. One night, PG went to see a jazz band there, accompanied by someone who lived in a nearby house. After seeing the band, PG was led to a horse stable behind the bar. The horses were not well maintained … you could see the ribs sticking out. There is a story of a goat getting loose from the stable, and being chased out of the jazz bar during happy hour.
Jennings Rose Room was before PG’s time. There is a story that some men had lunch there, and made a bet. The idea was to hit a golf ball from the JRR parking lot, and putt it into a hole at Piedmont Park. A biscuit was used as a tee. The first shot went across the street, onto the field at the stadium. Eventually, the ball was hit across Tenth Street, onto a green, and into the cup.
At some point, Jennings Rose Room closed. A gay club called Chuck’s Rathskeller was opened in that location. A rock and roll club or two did business there. Then Richards opened.
The first time PG was in the house was after a Johnny Winter concert at the Fox. There were rumors of visiting musicians dropping by Richards to play after their shows. Mr. Winter was only onstage for a couple of minutes after PG got there.
The most memorable trip to Richards was during the summer of 1973. The headliner was Rory Gallagher, who was ok but not spectacular. The opening act was Sopwith Camel, one of the forgotten bands of the seventies. They performed a novelty hit, “Hello Hello”. Someone in the audience liked it, and paid them to do it again. The band wound up doing “Hello Hello” five times, and said that was the most money they made in a long time.
Average White Band was making the rounds that fall, and had a show at Richards. A lot of the audience was black, and they hit the dance floor in unison when “Pick up the Pieces” was played. Fellow Scotsman Alex Harvey was in town, and joined AWB to sing “I heard it through the grapevine”.
Muddy Waters played at Richards one night. The band did most of the playing, with Mr. Waters tossing in a few licks on bottleneck guitar. He might have sang a couple of times.
About this time, Iggy Pop played a few shows at Richards. One night, someone snuck up on him, and gave him a hug. It was Elton John, wearing a gorilla suit.
PG saw three more shows (that he can remember) at Richards. Richie Havens was worth the two dollar admission. Soft Machine played in the winter of 1974. Larry Coryell played a show that summer, with the Mike Greene Band opening. PG got to talk to Mike Greene that night. The National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences (who do the Grammy Awards) had a President named C. Michael Greene at one time. PG thinks this is the person he talked to that night.
Two friends of PG went, as their first date, to see Spirit at Richards. They were married a few years later. Towards the end of 1974, Richards was running out of steam. They advertised a New Years Eve show starring B.B. King, and sold high priced tickets. When the crowd showed up for the show, they found the doors locked. Richards had closed.
The next tenant for 931 Monroe Drive was going to be Cabaret After Dark, a gay club. There was a fire the night before the grand opening. The building was never used again. Eventually, a shopping center was built on the site.
UPDATE: Here is an article, from the Great Speckled Bird, about Richards. This is a repost.
Living Walls 2014
It has turned into a summertime tradition. The Living Walls conference invades Atlanta the third week in August. The heat helps the paint dry faster. On the third Sunday, PG and Uzi venture downtown to look at the murals. This happened in 2010, 2011, 2011, 2012, and 2013.
Each year, PG prints a map to guide him. Previously, the information has been on the LW website. In 2014, the list of walls was available only in the print edition of Creative Loafing. PG posted his list on the LW twitter feed, and facebook page. Both times it was taken down.
Whatever. This sunday drive starts at the Goat Farm. This collection of old industrial buildings houses an art collective, and at least two goats. It turns out the GF hosted a party for LW, but did not have any major murals. The goats ignored the visitors.
The next stop was “ACROSS FROM THE W MIDTOWN.” This is probably the hotel in Colony Square. It has gone by many names over the years. This facility is not adjacent to any of the older buildings that typically host a mural. A drive down 14th street did not reveal any art walls, living or dead.
This weekend featured an arts festival in Piedmont Park. This means lots of traffic on the one way streets around the park. Monroe Drive, in the best of times, is a slow crawl. It was a time to be patient.
You drive down Monroe until it become Boulevard. A right turn on Ralph McGill leads to the next wall. It is on a building under renovation, with a fence preventing a clear view of the mural. A small version is on a nearby building.
Stop J is Randolph & Irwin, near the beltline. PG thinks it will be one of the buildings nearby, and drives by a house with the painting. The next stop is a building at the corner of Edgewood and Boulevard. This building has hosted a Living Wall before, and featured Wall K.
PG pulled into the parking lot. As he got out of the vehicle, a young man came up. “I’m here to park your car” “Is this a valet parking lot?” “Yes, it is fifteen dollars to park here.”
Going around the block to DeKalb Avenue, PG came out on Hillard Street. There was supposed to be a wall near Edgewood. There was, but PG could not find a convenient spot to leave the vehicle, while he took the picture. Wall M was at 262 Edgewood, on the other side of I-85. It was not found. Neither was Wall F at 145 Auburn Avenue.
PG went down Auburn, over the streetcar tracks, with a APD cruiser behind him. He turned right on Boulevard, got a free picture of Wall K. The pastel splendor of the Boulevard tunnel picked up the spirits. A right onto Memorial revealed Oakland Cemetery to be untouched by developers.
Wall D was at 495 Whitehall. This is getting into the part of Atlanta that many people are not familiar with. This is where the bicycle tour of the Walls was heading. PG invented a parking spot by the railroad crossing, and got his pictures. The next stop, Wall G, did not allow itself to be found.
By now, it was getting close to dinner time. There were two walls remaining in the Central Business District. Wall B, at 135 Walton Street, was in a mess of one way streets, and aggressively staffed pay to park zones. Wall A, at 156 Forsyth, had a benign parking spot in front. The services of a bail bondsman across the street were not necessary.
Now, on to dinner. PG and Uzi had meant to go to the Golden Corral on Lawrenceville Hiway for some time, but it was too crowded to contemplate. Tucker’s dependable Piccadilly cafeteria offered freshly heated chicken tenders for the hungry art lover.
After sitting down to eat, an asian man walked up to the table. He started pointing to his hair, and asking if it looks real. PG politely said he couldn’t tell, while Uzi said that it did, indeed. look real. The man, satisfied with the quality of his rug, sat back down at another table.
Impeach Nixon And Agnew
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“the arm chair activism is bullshit and does nothing for the charities they’re promoting” Not only that, it can do serious damage to your community. ~ One night, Bob Mould was rehearsing in Athens GA. The 40 watt club had a cancellation, and asked him to play. His band did not have a name. He was in a Waffle House in Athens, and looked on the table, and saw a pack of sugar. ~To begin with, he was at a house party, not a bar. Second, there is a good bit of uncertainty as to what happened. Some say it was an argument. Some say it was a discussion that got out of hand. Remember, this was early new years day morning. People at a party are liable to be drunk, and do stupid things. This includes Mr. O’Donovan. You also might wonder why Mr. O’Donovan brought a knife to a new years eve party. The articles I saw do not specify what type of knife. I suspect it was not a pocket knife.~ Joe.My.God. ~ “He was yelling. I was yelling, but it was not an argument. That’s the way we expressed our opinion.” Urica Bell Morrow GA ~30 We are going to run out of water someday ~ “In the scope of large-scale evangelical opinion, we are merely a whispered voice of dissent—and every effort will be made to silence that whisper. People who claim to be “Spirit-filled” and people who tout the virtues of tolerance are awfully quick to get angry, aren’t they? That’s because in a culture like ours where diversity, inclusivity, and tranquility are deemed higher values than truth, there will be strong resistance to any message that exposes the fallacies of popular opinions” It has been my experience that many professional Jesus worshipers are mean, angry people. They use Jesus as a tool of their anger. When you point this out, i. e. “expose the fallacies of popular opinions” they get even angrier. ~Maybe you should say what some Palestinians did. They are individuals. Also, that is East Jerusalem, not Gaza. ~ Asking for a link got me called a racist ~ The first time I went to XYZ mountain was my thirtieth birthday. ~ I don’t go there much anymore, and did not notice. So they left the front, and took out the back. I have mixed feelings. I was only inside once or twice, and it was not in good shape. ~ There is a house down the street from me that is being mcmansionized. Last night I rode by, and saw the oak tree in front being cut down. For some reason, that affected me more than the house being torn down. ~ The spell check suggestion for mcmansionized is simonized. ~ The twenty four hour syndrome. You are in a magical place, and beside yourself with glee. After a while, reality creeps back in. You realize that you still carry the same baggage as before. ~ You hear a lot about Israeli military superiority. In this country, we can see the overwhelming superiority of the Israeli PR machine. ~ Don’t be obtuse. ~ six words to eliminate just, should, but, always, actually, never, ~ i dont want to talk about it i have no influence on that conflict the children of gaza were not even born when 911 took place i am sick and tired of this confilct i support israel with my taxes and i am not going to give them my peace of mind ~ I am writing a post about facebook interrupting my sunday morning peace of mind. There will be historic pictures. They will be more enjoyable than the text. Neither the text, nor the pictures, will affect the conflict I am writing about. ~ the banker who puts the douche back in fiduciary ~ When you give a shit do you gift wrap it? Concern for your neighbor is a wonderful thing. To express this concern by using a vulgar word is puzzling. This vulgar word represents animal waste. There should be a way of expressing concern for your neighbor that smells better. ~ The english language has some quirks. So many people refer to anything and everything as *feces*. It is said that profanity is a substitute for thought. This is probably the case with the majority of *waste* slinging in everyday discourse. ~ “People may say I can’t sing, but no one can ever say I didn’t sing.” Florence Foster Jenkins ~ And the Arby’s is now a Starbucks. ~ I am surprised the Krystal/Starbucks on 7th street is still there, assuming that it is ~ I am curious to see what they do with the Starbucks on 7th since the red brick building behind it is designated as a historic building. I lived in that building when the Starbucks was a Krystal that brought all the scum of the earth to that corner. The building was designed by Neil Reed was the first residential building in Georgia with steel beam construction. The small garden in back had the only peachtree on (OK, adjacent to) Peachtree street. ~ Creem magazine called that Krystal the roughest hamburger stand in America. ~ And it was! The manager was a no-nonsense lady with a steel-gray bouffant hairdo with the demeanor of a prison matron. She was tough as nails and took no shit off anybody. I guess you had to be to manage that place. ~ 756 West Peachtree is a designated hysteric landmark. ~ The Fox network should change it’s name to wolf, as in the boy who cried wolf. After years of constant Obama bashing, few believed them about Benghazi. ~ I wouldn’t put my hand there ~ how long have we been, about seven miles… no its more like a quarter mile … thats why you see a lot of gays in real good shape ~ The Soviet Union declared war against Japan on August 8, 1945, This was accompanied by an invasion of Japanese occupied Manchuria. Many feel that this was a key factor in Japan’s decision to surrender. ~ Phil Ochs was included in the Great Southeast Music Hall’s autograph lobby wall. He said “Impeach Nixon and Agnew Phil Ochs” ~ Wow, Luther – that must have been very close to the time he killed himself. ~ Mr. Ochs died in 1976. Tricky Dick resigned forty years ago this week. The night of his resignation, I saw Rahsaan Roland Kirk at the Music Hall. ~ 0.01% used, leaves room for 54 million more emails. ~ It’s there as an option. As others have mentioned above if you go to your blog’s Dashboard and navigate to Posts > Add New it will load the traditional editor. ~ “Depression is a mental affliction, yes, but also spiritual.” For once I agree with you. I think of the misery that is caused by mean, agressive christianists. They think having an opinion about life after death makes the abuse worthwhile. It is profoundly depressing. I see Jesus through his believers treat me. Today a popular christianist blogger is trolling for traffic by exploiting the death of a man who brought joy to millions.~ Some people may not be able to see this attachment because of its privacy settings .~ I don’t like the new interface. I have only used it once. 1- I don’t know if something is saved, or published. 2- You cannot preview the post in a separate window. I like to have both the edit page, and the preview, on my screen when I edit 3- I did not see the shortlink. This is handy for twitter. 4- Putting the various options in a sidebar, and drastically reducing the size of the edit window, is a bad idea. 5- This morning, I was in a hurry to get to work. I had a post prepared, and just enough time to get it posted. This was a terrible time to deal with a new interface. ~ @imPalestine Yesterday, I went to Gaza’s graveyard to visit my grandma’s grave. I didn’t find it. It was hit by a missile. I saw my grandma’s bones. ~ “He was yelling. I was yelling, but it was not an argument. That’s the way we expressed our opinion.” ~ Maybe the man is standing on the bridge because too many strangers have yelled at him. Sometimes your good intentions cause more harm than good. ~ The sunglasses mirror selfie ~ pictures from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”. ~ selah
Every 36 Hours
The issue of black people killed by police is in the public eye. PG saw a tweet, saying that a black person was killed by the police every 28 hours. There was a link to a report, Report on Black People Executed with out Trial by Police, Security Guards and Self-Appointed Law Enforcers January 1 – June 30, 2012. The report looks at 120 POC between 01-01-2012 and 06-30-2012.
There is a list of cities where these incidents took place. Atlanta is on top, with 10 deaths. The 10 deaths is actually for Georgia, with one incident taking place near Savannah.
Here are the ten deaths from Georgia. Bear in mind that the information presented here is from the report. For eight of the men, a link is given to a news report.Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
1/1/2012 Canard Arnold, 17, Atlanta GA ~ A white security guard, alleged he felt his life was in danger when Arnold was involved in a shooting with another man, so he fatally shot Arnold. Witnesses say that Arnold was unarmed and running away from a gunfight that others were involved in. Also witnesses say that Arnold never confronted or threatened the security guard. He was shot in the back.
3/1/2012 Freddie Burton Jr, 24, Clayton County ~ Burton allegedly robbed a Jamaican restaurant of $200 at gunpoint. As he was running away from police, he discharged his weapon and escaped. Then he carjacked a vehicle and jumped out of it while it was moving resulting in the car crashing into a house. Burton finally barricaded himself in his sister’s house. A SWAT team failed at negotiating his surrender. A shootout resulted in his death.
3/24/2012 Ervin Jefferson, 18, DeKalb County ~ As he was trying to protect his sister, Jefferson was shot by two security guards who impersonated police officer.
3/27/2012 Tendai Nhekairo, 18, Cobb County ~ Zimbabwean teenager attended Campbell High School. There were conflicting reports about whether his bizarre behavior threatened anyone. Police shot him while he was naked. They alleged he had a knife.
6/16/2012 Marcus Bell, 26, Jonesboro ~ Officers responded to a call about a domestic disturbance. Bell barricaded himself in his apartment but allowed the woman to leave. She showed signs of assault. After a two-hour standoff, officers obtained a warrant for the woman’s assault and forced their way into the apartment. Bell apparently never fired a shot.
6/21/2012 name not released as of 6/29/12 Mount Zion Road, Clayton County ~ Police stopped a car with 5 passengers. One had outstanding warrants. When the officer asked him to step out of the car, suspect allegedly pulled gun from waist and started shooting. One officer and the driver of the car were shot before the suspect was killed.
6/26/2012 Deshone Lamar Travis, 20, Port Wentworth GA ~ Police went to Travis’ home to question him about a robbery. He was uncooperative. Officers “feared for their life” because Travis backed his car towards them. Officers fatally shot him. Witnesses said Travis was driving no more than 5mph and was no threat.
6/27/2012 Christopher Calhoun, 38, Atlanta GA ~ Calhoun was wanted on drug and theft charges in Mississippi. Based on a tip, police found him in the parking lot of an Atlanta mall. Police shot and killed him when he allegedly pointed a gun at them.
6/27/2012 Trevion Davis, 13, Clayton County ~ Police responded to a call about a residential break-in and found three young men in the backyard. The police alleged Trevion “presented that handgun. Subsequently officers fired upon that individual.” One officer shot Trevion in the head. Police later found that the “firearm” was a BB gun
6/28/2012 David Foreman, 31, Brookhaven ~ DeKalb County officers responded to a 911 call about a “domestic dispute”. When officers confronted an agitated Foreman, he held a pistol to his own head. Then he allegedly pointed the weapon at officers who shot him 3 times.
Chamblee54 
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