Toddlers in Court: The Cruel Absurdity of Trump's Child Separation Policy

by Nomad

According to attorneys in Texas, California and Washington, D.C., children as young as three have been ordered to appear in court (without legal representation) for their own deportation proceedings.

You might be surprised to learn that requiring unaccompanied minors to go through deportation alone is not a new practice. However under Trump's zero-tolerance policy, More children - and some much younger- are now being ordered to appear before a judge.

Thomas Paine and the Despotic Danger of the Unaccountable Presidency

by Nomad

A Nation Turning Its Back on Its Own Glory

The last years of Thomas Paine, one of America's first and most outspoken intellectuals, were bitter ones. The American political activist and philosopher had left in the spring of 1787, bound for France.
A strong supporter for the anti-royalist side, he was caught up in the lethal throes of the revolution there. Charged with crimes against the state, Paine was arrested in December 1793 and was imprisoned for a year in Luxembourg Prison (formerly a palace.)
His survival was, by his own account, based solely on sheer luck. 

Sanity Sunday- The Lullabies and Ballads of Jackie Oates

by Nomad

English folk singer and fiddle player, Jackie Oates hails from Staffordshire. Since her debut in 2006, Oates has released 6 albums. According to her bio, she was a finalist in the BBC Radio 2 Young Folk Awards 2003 and has performed extensively at festivals and venues across the country and beyond. 

Righteous and Wrong: Why Trump's Immigrant policy is Anti-Christian, Cruel, and Doomed

by Nomad

Justifying the Indefensible

When Attorney General Jeff Sessions used a Bible verse to justify separating immigrant children from their families, a milestone in America's march toward a Christian theocracy was reached.

Instead of citing decades of legal precedent, Mr. Sessions quoted Romans 13.

Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.

Later, Press Secretary (and uber-Christian) Sarah Huckabee Sanders  endorsed Sessions by telling the shell-shocked White House news corp “it is very biblical to enforce the law.” And yet, at no place in the Bible does it say that splitting up families or caging children is a particularly Christian thing to do.

Sanity Sunday- Piano Music by Tristan Eckerson

by Nomad

According to his biography, since his teenage years, musician Tristan Eckerson has lived the life of a nomad. His musical career has taken him to a range of places like Charleston, South Carolina, San Sebastian, Spain, San Francisco, California, Seattle, Washington, and Asheville, North Carolina.

Throughout his travels he has written music and performed in multiple groups on both U.S. Coasts, Canada, and Europe, recording with members of the Ray Charles Orchestra, writing string arrangements for the Magik*Magik Orchestra, receiving his Master's degree in Music Production and Sound Design from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, and writing original music for multiple award-winning films, commercials, and animation projects.

Stéphane Hessel and the Importance of Being Outraged

by Nomad

Stéphane Frédéric Hessel isn't a name you are likely to recognize but that doesn't mean he wasn't an influential person who lived an uneventful life.
Before his death five years ago, the New York Times called Hessel “one of the last living heroes of the darkest era of the twentieth century.”

Families Torn Apart and Kids in Cages: Moral Outrage in the Comment Section

by Nomad

Today, the AP featured a story about the living conditions of the hundreds of immigrant children currently being warehoused in South Texas.

Nearly 2,000 children have been taken from their parents since Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the policy, which directs Homeland Security officials to refer all cases of illegal entry into the United States for prosecution. Church groups and human rights advocates have sharply criticized the policy, calling it inhumane.

Cancerous Presidency: Donald Trump's Strange and Deadly Love Affair with Asbestos

by Nomad

Back in August 2016, Nomadic Politics featured a post on Trump's peculiar relationship with the carcinogen asbestos. The other day, I took a look at that post and decided it was time to update it.

Trump's Outlandish Claim

Of all of the Trump's absurd notions, one of the most peculiar is his ideas about the World Trade Center and asbestos. In his opinion, if only the world had listened to him, the Twin Towers would not have fallen.
Had, he claimed, contractors not been forced to use an alternative fire retardant, the World Trade Center would have been able to withstand the attack. If only asbestos had been used, the Twin Towers would still be standing today. 

How Gerrymandering Negatively Impacts the Economic Development of a District

by Nomad

We all know that gerrymandering as a tool to win elections has proved advantageous. Some critics have claimed that this partisan tactic has in recent years become more extreme and has begun to warp democracy.

In a search for the facts, researchers at Boston College decided to look a bit closer. They began by asking a simple question: How does gerrymandering affect the quality of political representation in a district?

Sanity Sunday - A Selection of Dream Pop Songs

by Nomad  

I've long ago given up trying to follow musical genres and sub-genres. It just seemed impossible but it does help you find the type of music you like.
After listening to some music I enjoyed this week, I learned that alternative rock and neo-psychedelia (another unknown genre) hooked up sometime in the 80s and had a love child called Dream Pop.
As a subgenre, Dream Pop is all about atmosphere and often features "breathy vocals and processed, echo-laden guitars and synthesizers." The lyrics tend to be short poems.
I think you will find this style soothing on the nerves.