Thursday, September 19, 2013

The Stranger: Joel Connelly Tells City Council to Denounce Anti-Gay Laws in Russia

What am I missing?
Who isn't right with this?

Absent any tangible leavers to enact change as there are, our voices in opposition something not to be left to atrophy, we express our free speech precisely because others can not. It is that seemingly intangible thing that is being thrown out on the world stage as an acceptable simptom of an indefensible structure of social norms.

The fact that our representative democracy doesn't "represent" in all its old community or old school ways is a travesty. It's an absolute failure of our system of governess if the only way our city council could voice the displeasure is if we have tangible, or "business" interaction.

WHAT THE FUCK, SALLY CLARK, WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?

How the hell do you think you got where you are? Did somebody owe you a favor?
No, people of this city voted for you to represent us. Please try to do that.


The Stranger: Joel Connelly Tells City Council to Denounce Anti-Gay Laws in Russia

posted by  on THU, SEP 19, 2013 at 4:32 PM

As everyone in the Slogiverse now knows, Seattle City Council president Sally Clark says standing up for bloodied gay Russian youth is off-topic (never mind all the other off-topic resolutions she's supported in the past). But three council members now say they support a resolution on Russia. Meanwhile over at the SeattlePI.com, Joel Connelly—who's no fan of resolutions himself—is coming down hard in favor of a resolution:

The Seattle City Council, a body known for silly and meaningless resolutions, ought to tell Putin what a previously friendly place thinks of Russia's draconian new anti-gay laws, enacted months before the Sochi Winter Olympics....

Seattle City Council President Sally Clark has apparently said that resolutions should be relevant to city business. It's somewhat surprising for a body that embraced the Occupy movement, advocated breaching Snake River dams and almost voted to ban the circus because of its treatment of animals.

We do, however, have another, overriding tradition in these parts — a commitment to human rights... If there is no Council resolution, we send another message: Silence gives consent.

Joel is right. Council Member Jean Godden is right. Council Member Nick Licata is right. Council Member Mike O'Brien is right. And both state senator Ed Murray and Mayor Mike McGinn, who are running against each other, are right. The city should back a resolution.

Sally Clark can be right, too. It should be easy for her, right?

http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2013/09/19/joel-connelly-tells-city-council-to-denounce-anti-gay-laws-in-russia

Have a great day,
Mike Baker
Seattle, Wa

Follow me here:
@TweetMrBaker
Sent from my iPad