By Steve Rhodes
1. “We have something special for niggers.”
2. “The day before [Dr. John Raba] revealed that in the wake of his letter to Police Superintendent Richard Brzeczek urging an investigation into Wilson’s allegations of torture, he received a call from Cook County Board President George Dunne that suggested, in essence, that he needn’t involve himself in such matters,” John Conroy reports from the Jon Burge trial for Vocalo.
“Burge attorney Marc Martin worked up some sarcasm in getting Raba to admit that he’d never mentioned Dunne’s call before in all the times he’d testified. On re-direct by prosecutor Betsy Biffl he was asked why he’d never mentioned this intercession from one of the city’s most powerful politicians. ‘It was the first time anyone ever asked me,’ Raba said.”
3. “Earlier Thursday, a family lawyer who met Burge while she was on a date with another officer in the late 1980s said Burge told her that defendants didn’t have any rights and said Andrew Wilson, another of his alleged victims, ‘got what he deserved,'” the Sun-Times reports.
“Diane Panos said Burge also ‘ridiculed’ her for aspiring to be a criminal defense attorney and justified beating suspects to get a confession.”
And:
“An Indianapolis woman said former Chicago Police Cmdr. Jon Burge once boasted to her about how fellow officers threw a man in a car trunk and beat another suspect with a bat or stick,” the Sun-Times reports.
“‘He thought it was funny, and he was acting arrogant,’ Darlene C. Lopez testified [Wednesday], recounting the tales Burge told her and others aboard his boat roughly 30 years ago.”
The fact that it took this long to prosecute Burge – and for perjury because the statute of limitations on torture has run out – doesn’t make the story old or boring, it makes the story that much more tragic and compelling, given that so many people seemed to know what was happening at Area 2.
3. Meanwhile, in that other trial thingie, the ghost of Barack Obama haunts the Blagojevich proceedings if anyone cares to look.
Blago’s former chief of staff Lon Monk testified on Thursday that Blagojevich schemed to appoint then-Illinois Senate President Emil Jones to Obama’s U.S. Senate seat if Jones would derail an ethics bill that would have limited Blagojevich’s fundraising from state contractors.
The deal was dashed when Obama, under pressure from editorial boards he was wooing, called Jones and told him to get it passed.
Why the ghost of Obama, then? Because Jones was Obama’s self-described “political mentor.” Just as Tony Rezko was Obama’s self-described “political godfather.”
Just as Obama was a vigorous supporter and endorser of Rod Blagojevich.
But apparently Obama, whom we are constantly reminded is a very smart man – maybe the smartest on the planet! – didn’t know nuttin’ ’bout nuttin’.
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The problem with Obama was never that he “palled around with terrorists.” It was that he palled around with the Machine.
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“At Kalamazoo Graduation, Obama Gives Students a Principle to Guide Them.”
I’ll save you from having to click through: The principle is personal responsibility.
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Obama on Millennium Park: “If I told you how I really felt, I’d be committing political suicide right now.”
Some folks kept their mouths shut about torture; Obama kept his mouth shut about Millennium Park. He wanted Daley’s endorsement – as well as the help of Daley’s often-illegal political operation.
4. The Week in WTF: From Walter Jacobson to Mark Kirk.
5. Racing’s got problems – including Zenyatta’s selfish connections and Arlington’s ridiculous promotions.
6. The Crosstown Cup Comedy Series!
7. Sunil!
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The Beachwood Tip Line: Plumb the depths.
Posted on June 11, 2010