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The Iceman cometh

Just so you know, this post has nothing to do with the famous play by Eugene O’Neill by the same name. Some of the subject matter in the play may have a role in what will follow here, though. But this isn’t theater. With the recent shootings of American citizens by ICE officers in Minneapolis, that city has become yet another bellwether for the testing of the American soul. ICE is America on the rocks. In this post we look at the origins and astrology of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, commonly known by its acronym ICE. We have seen the ICE men, and they are here. But first, a song… Continue reading “The Iceman cometh”

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The George Floyd riots: A closer look (Updated 4 June at end)

On the 25th of May this year in a suburb of Minneapolis, George Perry Floyd was murdered by a policeman during a routine callout. That is the public perception (see update at end for more details). He wasn’t shot trying to flee. He apparently wasn’t even resisting arrest. He was instead pinned to the ground by three police officers because he was afraid and claustrophobic, pinned to the point that he was suffocated and later died of a heart attack, according to the autopsy report. And yes, he was black. It was a strange thing to have happened, though, for several reasons. The arrest and pinning, with his loss of consciousness, was recorded for posterity on two cell phones and a security camera and soon went viral. The police seemed nonchalant. The nation exploded in protests and riots as a result. The world stood in solidarity with the protests. But why has this event caused such an outpouring when people die at the hands of police nearly every day in the United States? We’ll look at why here. Continue reading “The George Floyd riots: A closer look (Updated 4 June at end)”