90 Miles From Tyranny

Thursday, February 24, 2022

The 90 Miles Mystery Box: Episode #1639

You have come across a mystery box. But what is inside?

It could be literally anything from the serene to the horrific,

from the beautiful to the repugnant,

from the mysterious to the familiar.

If you decide to open it, you could be disappointed,

you could be inspired, you could be appalled.

This is not for the faint of heart or the easily offended.

You have been warned.

The Most Ridiculous Thing I've Seen So Far Today #4

Visage à trois #68

Three Videos For Your Viewing Pleasure:

La petite mort bonus video:

Videos That Are:

Usually Short.
Usually Timely.
Usually Scraped, Gleaned And Pilfered From Social Media.

Visage à trois #2

Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #257

Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #256

Binghamton University Forces Maoist Professor to Drop Policy of Prioritizing Non-White Students in Class Discussions

A professor at Binghamton University used class participation policies inspired by Chinese tyrant Mao Zedong. However, she is now being forced to reverse course after right-wing students raised enough of a commotion to make the university take action against the professor.

According to a report by Logan Dubil at Campus Reform, the “Class Discussion Guidelines” section of Ana Maria Candela’s “Social Change -Introduction to Sociology” syllabus directs white male students to allow “non-white folks” to speak before these white male students can speak. The guidelines start off with a quotation about speaking from Chairman Mao.

Mao was the founding father of the People’s Republic of China and Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party. During his rule from 1943 to 1976, Mao presided over tyrannical experiments such as the “Great Leap Forward” and the “Cultural Revolution” which resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of people.

“No investigation, no right to speak,” the quote stated in the document for the “Social Change -Introduction to Sociology” class at Binghamton University.

The quotation “helps to convey the idea that speaking, during class discussions, should be based on having done your investigative work,” Candela stated.

The professor’s work primarily “focuses on Chinese migrations to Latin America and on the global dimensions of Chinese history and China’s social transformations,” per her university webpage.

Candela used “progressive stacking” to determine how much they participate and speak during class discussions. Race and gender were factored in determining who should receive speaking priorities, according to the syllabus that Campus Reform was able to obtain.

At its core, “progressive stacking” relies on students’ race and gender to determine if their ideas have merit and how much they can interact in discussions.

“This [policy] means that wetry to give priority to non-white folks, to women, and to shy and quiet people who rarely raise their hands,” the syllabus outline. “It also means that if you are white, male, or someone privileged by the racial and gender structures of our society to have your voice easily voiced and heard, we will often ask you to hold off on your questions or comments to give others priority and will come back to you a bit later or at another time.”

When Campus Reform reached out to Ryan Yarosh, the senior director of media and public relations, he revealed that Candela was “counseled” by the university because her class syllabus was not in compliance with the 2021-2022 Faculty-Staff Handbook.

However, outrage stemming from the revelation of these controversial course guidelines has prompted Candela to take out the section of her syllabus that priortizes non-white studetns participation in class discussions.

According to a National Review report, Binghamton University compelled Candela to remove this part of her syllabus after determining that the guidelines were in violation of the university‘s faculty staff handbook.

Universities have become leftist think tanks and must be exposed for...

Visage à trois #67

Three Videos For Your Viewing Pleasure:

La petite mort bonus video:

Videos That Are:

Usually Short.
Usually Timely.
Usually Scraped, Gleaned And Pilfered From Social Media.

Visage à trois #2

Feds Seize Family's Assets Without Issuing a Single Charge, All Because of Amazon's Claims Against the Dad

The life-changing experience of one Seattle, Washington, family is shining light on a practice being abused by federal officials.

According to Reason, Carl Nelson was working as a real estate transaction manager for Amazon. He lived with his wife, Amy Sterner Nelson, and their four daughters in a home in West Seattle.

Yet the family’s life was turned upside down when the FBI suddenly seized nearly $1 million from them over an unproven allegation.

In April 2020, federal agents arrived at the Nelson’s house to inform them Amazon had accused Carl Nelson of not providing “honest services,” Reason reported.

Specifically, Amazon alleged Nelson provided extra benefits or deals for certain companies that in turn provided him illegal kickbacks. Nelson has continually denied the allegations.

“That never happened and is exactly why I’ve fought as long and hard as I have,” Nelson said, according to Reason. “It’s that simple.”

Sadly for the Nelson family, the FBI did not need a conviction when they arrived at the family’s residence in 2020. They were allowed to seize approximately $892,000 in funds from the family.

“We went from living a life where we were both working full-time to provide for our four daughters to really figuring out how we were going to make it month to month,” Amy Nelson said. “It’s completely changed my belief in fairness.”

According to Reason, the FBI seized funds that did not even come from Carl Nelson, the alleged criminal. Instead, they took money from “nearly every corner of the Nelson’s world,” including savings from Amy Nelson that she accrued during her time as an attorney.

The FBI agreed last week to a settlement that would return $525,000 to the Nelson family, while the family would have to forfeit $109,000, Reason reported. The rest of the money has gone towards court fees.

Even so, this will hardly help life go back to normal, Amy said. The family has already been forced to sell their house and car, liquidate retirement savings and move into Amy’s sister’s basement. They were forced to remove their four daughters from the Seattle school they attended.

According to Bloomberg, Amy was forced to close the Riveter, a co-working start up that she founded focused on helping women. In addition, Amy said Carl is still embroiled in a massive lawsuit, and the $525,000 will likely go to attorney’s fees.

“It’s hard,” Amy said, according to Reason. “Not much has changed for us.”

Amy set up a GoFundMe to help the family try and survive such difficult times. As of Monday, it had raised about $70,000.

Almost two years after the FBI seizure, Amazon has still not levied a single criminal charge against Carl, Reason reported. However, a civil case Amazon brought against Carl and another former employee has seen plenty of drama in its own right.

According to The Wall Street Journal, U.S. District Court Judge Liam O’Grady removed himself from the case in January 2022 after it was revealed that his wife held $22,000 in Amazon stock during the case. O’Grady had ruled in Amazon’s favor since the case began about 20 months prior.

O’Grady said he was reluctant to leave the case because his wife sold the stock in December, and he had previously denied knowledge of his wife’s holdings.

“However, perception of the fair administration of justice — both by the public and by the parties in the case — is of the highest importance to the Court,” he wrote, according to the Journal.

The Nelson are far from the only ones who have become victims of a practice known as “civil asset forfeiture,” Reason reported.

Americans across the country have had funds or possessions seized by federal officials without being charged with a crime in recent years, and Institute for Justice attorney Dan Alban said the practice has plenty of...