Today the US Supreme Court has acted to balance the inequitable disparity between the punishment for crack cocaine and the punishment for powder cocaine.  Five grams of crack earns you a mandatory five years in prison, while it takes a full 500 grams of powder cocaine to get you five years.  Considering that crack is predominantly found in the inner city among black populations and powder cocaine in white society.

Despite this step in the right direction, there will remain a giant disparity between the way black and white people treated.  Michael Vick gets 23 months in prison and Scooter Libby gets 30 months. Michael Vick's crime was against dogs.  Scooter Libby's was against humanity.  Yet, there is a mere 7 months difference between their sentences.  (And Libby's sentence was commuted by Bush.)

Clearly, there is  a two tiered system of justice in this country.
Call me a pessimist, but it will continue to be that way forever, while our attention is distracted from this harsh reality by the isolated incidents of  minor adjustment like the one issued by the Supreme Court today.

Anyone who abuses animals like Michael, shows they are not civilized enough to dwell amongst most of us..He still has State Charges coming and I hope he gets another two years.I used to be a Major Michael Vick fan at Tech and Atlanta and now I think he isn't worthy of spit.
 I am glad the Supreme Court made the Cocaine charges more fair and yes we do have a long way to go..One thing that really gripes my ass is a lot of times when  White Cheerleader type from a nice hood gets caught shoplifting they call her parents and kick her out of the store forever..Bit when a young minority girl gets caught shoplifting they call the cops and press charges..Thats Bullshit!!!

 

-- Modified on 12/10/2007 5:09:54 PM

Michael Vick is one of the greatest sports tragedies in recent history.  

Just seeing him in that prison jump suit shows how far this young man has fallen.

Someone with so much potential and talent resulted to dog fighting.  

I think the feds came down too hard on Michael Vick on sentencing and wanted to set an example out of him.

Michael Vick as an NFL player shouldn't have been involved in dog fighting, neither should anybody else. He's just like many young black men in the U.S. spending parts of their lives in prison. More education and choosing better company of friends can change this though.

I hope he is a changed man when he gets out of prison snd can start a new life.  

-- Modified on 12/10/2007 10:51:49 PM

Just some additional perspective,  but Scooter Libby ended up with a sentence of 0 months in prison thanks to George W. Bush.

For once, we are in complete agreement.

It's a cold day in Hell, isn't it.

Script, just sit down and take another snort on the whiskey bottle. You have bought into pseudo-liberal garbage and bullshit for so long that you are obviously incapable of rational thought.

The man had an athletic scholarship that took him out of the "hood", he was offered a stellar educational opportunity, and no doubt as a pro football player he had ample exposure to a better company of friends. Still, he chose the low road.

A rotten apple is a rotten apple no matter how many good apples you surround it with. All you needed to do was observe his demeanor all throughout the entire eposide. This was not a man suffering the pangs of guilt and remorse. This was a thug going through the motions after he got caught.
Michael Vick is simply a rotten apple.

You are right though, the Feds wanted to make an example of him. Now lets see if the NFL can look beyond the bottom line for once, and ban this cruel amoral individual from pro football once he's released from the pen.

I better gas up and get out of town..I agree with Doc.

Stop crying.  Blacks commit more crime.........
Thats why they go to jail more often.  As for Scooter Libby's crime against who???? (HUMANITY)
What did Sandy Burger do again????? HE was charged with what????
(selective in your outrage only shows a bias view)

People love dogs, thats why Vick is in jail.  Many treat their dogs like kids and view them that way, innocent and defenseless.  Thats why the outrage.

Maybe pigs can fly, because here I am telling DocGonzo about the evil of Big business.ROFL

The NFL may ban Vick, but what's more likely is that no team will actually want him by the time he is eligible to play again.

The shelf life on a dropback quarterback who uses his btrains as well as his athleticism is much longer than someone like Vick. The baggage that Vick would bring to a team would only be worth it if he were still a game breaking superstar. Two years out of football should effectively end Michael Vick's NFL career. he may end up in Europe or Canada, but not the NFL.

I feel sorry for his mother, I've met her and she is a wonderful woman. She did manage to get her two sons through college, too bad she couldn't get the thug out of either of them. What a waste.

that can mitigate crime.   As an example, taking a  can of vienna sausages to feed your family is one thing; taking a wide-screen TV when the electricity is out is another.

IOW, it's not always as simple as black and/or white.  We don't know for sure which it was, but that's why I'm the devil's advocate.

You might get to about the same analysis along economic lines, rather than racial ones, ie noting that there are higher crime rates in lower economic groups.

Then you would get into the chicken vs egg argument, with no possible progress.

Note that Latin America generally doesn't identify blacks as any person with any african heritage, but make distinctions of degree.

IOW, you could consider the specifics:  nobody is willing to say what Vick did was not all that big of a deal, and nobody feels sorry for him.  OTOH, Libby's role was critical to an entire political party.   Sure it was deceit and corrupt, but you know the rest.  Lock him up and the entire GOP could be at risk.

No, I don't think it's a 2-tier system.  There are many more subtle grades.   Vick's problem may well have been having more money than he knew WTF to do with.  Libby, OTOH, doesn't have a problem - the GOP is our problem.

a boot camp for NFL Draftees. That have it every year in La Costa in Carlsbad CA. In this boot camp they discuss racism, women, and money. I doubt if many of us at such early age would have the maturity to handle the big money. With money comes responsiblities and problems.

Several years ago I met the mother of a 1st round NFL running back. She and her co-workers told me the NFL scouts and security agents interviewed them as part of their background check and draft evaulation.

In evaluating character, the number one determining factor these scouts studied was how the young man handled money. This running back by the way is successful on the gridiron and in life.

His mom is a wonderful woman and a model of frugality. On her modest income she could have easily afforded her son's college tuition if he wasn't such a terrific football player.

-- Modified on 12/12/2007 8:03:06 PM

"GOP the problem"? If it wasn't for the GOP the libbies would have everyone picking shit with the chickens except for the sheep herders like Kerry, Kennedy, PissOffSki, AlGore, Edwards, and their other "chosen few" bastards. No, The GOP is not the problem, merely the target of the venom from the lefty sheep who are being skinned by their sheep herders. It is merely a diversion from what ought to be their real target, the Commie Left Sheep Herders.

The same people that want Libby in jail for a lie did during an investigation did not want Clinton jailed for a lie under oath.  It is selective out rage.  The same Libby haters never seem to ask for Sandy Burger to be put on trial. There was nothing to investigate with Libby, until he lied.  There was no crime being figured out.  It was an exuse to investigate GOP top guys thats all.

Vick did  a vial act that most Americans find horrid.  Libby, who cares????

These thugs on crack were killing people for 5 bucks, committing assaults and other major crimes. With the crack epidemic, came an onslaught of violent crime. This had not been happening in the white communities with cocain.
Now, you want to know why crime has declined so much? Because the crackheads are in prison. If the thugs are resentenced, and set free in droves, mark my word, crime will increase.

Lets be realistic people.

Got to love the Urban communtiy, they beg you to fix the crime and murder problem on their streets.  Then they spit on the police or say they are racist.  Save ME! Save ME! get the fuck out of here LOL

As for it could happen anywhere, HAHAHAHAH why are the rest of us living in nice safe areas.  IF you act like an animal, let your kids act like animals and the rest of your area does the same, they you are a fucking ZOO.

I am a vegan and an animals rights person and I am also VERY anti-racist... I have refused to see clients who spouted their racist NONSENSE while on appointments with me... they are paying me for sex, NOT for compliance with their ignorance!!!

topgunbbv, I don't know if you are just trying to get a rise out of people, but your words are EXTREMELY insulting! Do I understand you correctly in that you are likening black and Latino kids in cities to zoo exhibits?!?!

This metaphor only works if you view institutionalized racism as CAGE that keeps people entrapped in crappy jobs and lousy living situations because when they go for job interviews or try to get housing loans, they come up against BIGOTS like YOU!

According to wikipedia, "56% of arrestees were "White", 42% were "Black", and 2% were of other races...[but] 70% of prisoners in the United States are non-Whites."

Funny, I thought you said blacks commit MORE crimes... I guess you're WRONG.  Blacks just can't on average afford as good of lawyers... NOW THAT'S A CRIME.

The Government says I am a cracker but even though I love all ladies I definitely show my preference towards Ebony and Asian babes.Whats up with that?

Stop making excuses.
Blacks are still approx 25% of the population, and exceed 70% of those in prison. They are not there because they can't afford good attorneys. One does not need an attorney if they are not breaking the law. Right? Of course.
It also appears that wikipedia has lumped hispanics into the white category. Even worse for your theory.
Don't confuse my statements with bigotry. You can do the math.

I don't think that finding black or asian women erotic qualifies as racist in the least. Variety is the spice of life.  I always enjoy seeing people from different racial and cultural backgrounds as a fun change of pace. I've joked with friends that I've gone on an erotic tour of the world from the comfort of my hotel room... VIVA LA DIFFERENCE.

Cindy