What in the hell is really going on in Florida?

I mean really?

For the past 2 weeks, the state of Florida has engaged in federal violations of the Voters' Rights Act.   The newest pawn of Governor Rick "I grew up in the section 8 housing" Scott is Florida Secretary of State, Ken Detzner, who has vowed to purge the ballot rolls of "illegal voters", i.e., blacks and non-white Hispanics.  They have been mainly targeting Miami's home county, Miami-Dade, in South Florida as the place where the proof is in the pudding with the great purge of 2012.  The Miami Herald found that 1,600 of the 2,600 voters purged were Hispanic and non-partisan independent voters.  Now isn't this just plain "peachy", Rick Scott's administration is trying illegal voting.  Meanwhile, the US Department of Justice has called them to stop.

According to Miami CBS-owned-and-operated affiliate, WFOR:

Out of the list of 2,700, the Herald found that more than 500 have come forward as lawful citizens. A total of 40 people in the list have been identified as non-citizens.

The bright side is now all 67 of Florida's county supervisors of elections have halted their voter purge from rolls against Scott's orders.  It is likely they are trying to prevent themselves from being federally indicted by the DOJ.

Also former governor Charlie Crist's skeletons have seemed to crept out out of the closet.  Maybe it's just me posted a story this morning about the former governor and his covert methods to hide his sexcapades with men.  

According to the Fort Myers News-Press and Gannett-owned sister property in Tampa Bay the CBS-affiliate, WTSP, a report done by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement on the allegations of impropriety of state chairman Jim Greer.

The allegations come from Damon Chase, Jim Greer's attorney. Chase told John Morgan of Morgan and Morgan where Charlie Crist works, that if had to depose the former Governor, Crist would be embarrassed by the following issues:

- Charlie Crist is a homosexual and had homosexual relationships with at least two men who were paid to leave the state to avoid embarrassing then Governor Crist.

- Charlie Crist attempted to kiss Greer at a hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.

- Gov. Crist had drunken escapades and his security detail had to cover for him.

- Charlie Crist attempted to run over people while he was intoxicated and operating a golf cart.

Morgan responded saying that even if Crist was a homosexual, it had nothing to do with the case, and the allegations were just were just an attempt to embarrass Crist.

In addition, Morgan said if the former Governor were a homosexual he would have to be a 'sick s.o.b. to try to kiss Porky the Pig' which was a reference to Greer.

Morgan also said the allegations were similar to a cheap lawyer trick, asking when did you stop beating your wife or asking when was the last time he had sexual intercourse although he used a more crude term "with your neighbor's sheep".

It seems that Crist was a busy ho with his men...

Charlie, it is time to come on back out the closet because we all know you crawled back into it back in the 1990s when you were trying to climb up the political ladder.  Also do Ms. "Franco-American" heiress a favor and let her find a man whom is actually heterosexual and monogamous so she doesn't feel "used" when all this shit does hit the fan.  SMH

Eddie Long attempts to silence his accusers with money

Well, I guess good ol' Eddie Long had decided to "keep it on the hush" rather than "fight it to the very end" as he claimed months ago before his nearly 25,000 congregation in Lithonia (Georgia).  Oh hell, oh well.  It just displays to me the burden of proof he was fucking with those males and is an ephebophile and one whom has some strong homosexual undertones to their being.

A Case of WTF and SMH: The murder of well-renowned black gay lecturer and writer Don Belton

I've been laying low for the last few days with enjoying the holiday and getting out and about, but I did notice the LGBT blogosphere's coverage of Indiana University lecturer and writer Don Belton's murder at the hands of an ex-marine and clearly closeted white male, Michael J. Griffin, Jr. in Monroe County, Indiana.  It's a bizarre case where Griffin swears he was sexually assaulted twice by Belton and came to his residence to demand an apology, but ended up stabbing him multiple times with a butcher knife and killing him.  HUH? 

OK, most rational people would have reported this assault to the proper authorities and then not go back to the private residence of the alleged offender.  That's as about as logical as a rape victim going to the home of their rapist asking for an apology, IT JUST DOESN'T ADD UP.  That's why I've come to the conclusion of this, Belton and Griffin had a sexual encounter twice where Griffin may have been intoxinated, but it was consensual.  However, Griffin realized that he has a girlfriend (who actually ratted him out to the authorities about the murder) and an image to uphold in the community as the quintessential veteran of war and hero in his predominately conservative and white community, but his encounters with Belton would have placed this into serious jeopardy so eliminate that threat ~ aka "gay panic" defense. 

Another perspective on this is the racial dynamic.  I realize that this case took place in Indiana, one of the most racially contentious states in the Union, so the jury is going to be majority white and likely socially conservative.  This doesn't bode well although overwhelmingly the evidence of this case shows that Belton was the victim whereas Griffin as the deranged, sexually frustrated offender.  Another thing is the fact that Belton was a highly-regarded black intellectual, but he chose to deal with an empty headed and in all practically thoughts a homely looking white guy with self-worth issues.  I'm wondering why didn't Mr. Belton try to interact with guys with higher standards and more mentally-balanced?  There are way more males of all ethnicities that were out (like he was) and had more going for themselves, but he basically put his life in risk for that!  I mean WOW, it distrubs me how so many black males with so much going for them that would just put themselves in such bad situations for wack ass "trade" or whatever you want to dub them instead of just getting out and dealing with people who are more comfortable with themselves.  The interracial dynamic is negligible IMHO, but if you are going to go interracial HAVE SOME STANDARDS. 

I'm not giving a pass to so of my fellow posters on Rod 2.0 and Pam's House Blend who have basically admonished and chastised their fellow posters for having a divergent opinion than themselves about this situation (or any story).  It's called an opinion, and everybody has one so get over it!  My opinion is that Mr. Belton could have reached higher in standards because a number of things could have been prevented if he had just done that.  Honestly, this case is practically no different than the situation where somebody has met somebody from an online hook-up site like Adam4Adam, Craigslist, Men4Now and it went horrible wrong.  It's sad, but it true and I will point that out.

This is just disturbing how this went down, but I'm not going to sit on the sidelines and not say what's on my mind about his.  You gotta have standards about any guy, black men, but if you are going to deal with a person of another ethnic background, you should sustain those standards and not lower them just because "oooo, it's... and he has a tight body".  SMDH

Former Judge Thomas is apparently bipolar or something...

The opening arguments of the trial of former judge Herman Thomas began Friday (unfortunately, I've been M.I.A., and missed it).  The 48-year-old husband and father faces more than 70 charges, including sex abuse, sodomy, assault, kidnapping and extortion in connection with 14 alleged victims who were criminal defendants or otherwise under his supervision as judge. Boy, was it DETAILED. 

The Mobile Press-Register covered the opening arguments of Mobile County chief assistant district attorney Nicki Patterson:

Thomas would pick men without fathers in their lives and who were in need of help, Patterson said, sometimes checking them out of jail.

Using the judges' secure elevator, he brought the men to an eighth-floor office with a glass panel that had been covered with paper, she said.
Inside, she said, Thomas told the young men to strip down and be paddled, or be sent back to jail. During the spankings, some of the men turned around to see Thomas masturbating or having an "obvious erection in his pants," Patterson said.

Patterson said Thomas also ordered men to masturbate or engage in oral sex with him.

Prosecution also accused Thomas of pulling certain inmates or defendants of that specified demographic from other judges' docket to handle and rule on the case himself.  They also called their first witness Circuit Judge Charles Gaddick, who was asked directly by Assistant District Attorney Martha Tierney if he would ever or had dinner with a defendant and Gaddick replied, "I've never been to dinner with a defendant, period."

According to the Thomas's lawyer, Jeff Deen, Thomas was the founder of the Mobile chapter of the 100 Black Men, and a "pillar of the community".  Deen also countered that the other judges asked Thomas personally to take these cases for a variety of reasons. 

This all went down while his wife was sitting there listening and watching the opening arguments by prosecution. 
 
After reading that about the details of that you can tell dude is a freaky ass clown and just nasty as hell.  Masturbating, paddling oral sex, and allegedly anal sex as well.  WOW, WOW, WOW, WOW!  You can't make this type of stuff up.  I'm going to stay on top of this for sure because this is only going to get more scandalous as it goes.  This along with Birmingham mayor's Larry Langford's trial will make this week VERY INTERESTING. 

Former Mobile County Judge is facing trial for over 80 charges including sodomy and kidnapping

Former Mobile County circuit judge Herman Thomas faces over 80 different charges from a Mobile County grand jury including kidnapping and sodomy. Thomas, 48, was a rising star in Alabama politics with an enviable track record at the polls: a black Democrat who kept getting elected in a county overwhelmingly white and increasingly Republican. He seemed to have it all. Respect as a circuit judge and at one time the Democratic Party's choice to be the first black federal judge in south Alabama. Then his career on the bench collapsed  first under allegations that he was bringing inmates into his office and spanking them with a paddle, then with an indictment that accuses him of having sex with male inmates in exchange for leniency. The trial on charges of sodomy, kidnapping, sex abuse, extortion, assault and ethics violations that involved oral and anal sex, as well as the spankings started this week.

About 15 former and current inmates have told prosecution that they had oral and/or anal sex with the judge for reduced charges. The reports of inmates having to pull down their underwear for spankings with a wooden paddle.  Also Mobile County jail and state prison records checkout reaffirm that the inmates were in the judge's custody or at his office along with the evidence of an inmate's semen in the judge's office carpet.  The inmates also were able to describe in detail Thomas' unmarked windowless office, and other inmates spotted marks after paddlings on the inmates.

Thomas, a judge well known for his distant bow ties, stepped down from the bench in late 2007 after the paddling allegations surfaced.  Chief Assistant District Attorney Nicki Patterson said authorities began looking at Thomas after he changed a jail sentence in 2006 for his cousin, former Mobile County school commissioner David Thomas, even though the case was being handled by another judge. Other cases that Thomas had taken over from other judges without their approval soon surfaced, she said.

The Alabama Bar Association began to investigate him on the grounds of judicial ethics, and later suspended his license.  Friends of Thomas including his attorney have refuted the allegations about sexual liaisons between Thomas and male plaintiffs for reduced sentences.

''A big bunch of bullsh*t that ain't going nowhere... Isn't it amazing to you they're all saying the same thing, Isn't it amazing? You know, these are uneducated people using words like 'confidential information' and so on.''
Robert "Cowboy Bob" Clark, defense attorney for Alabama Judge Herman Thomas

 Whereas others were more dumbfound and shocked by the charges:

''Everyone thought he had a lot of concern for people who got into criminal difficulty. All of this was a surprise to everyone.''
Braxton Kittrell, a retired Mobile County Circuit Judge, who remains dumbfounded along with most people who knew Judge Herman Thomas

The Mobile chapter of the NAACP has defended Thomas and claims race is behind his prosecution.  Many including his attorney calls it a "a high-tech lynching" by some in power in Mobile.

"They don't like uppity black folks, and that's what they consider Herman." Robert "Cowboy Bob" Clark, defense attorney for Alabama Judge Herman Thomas

However, all the inmates making the claims are black. 

Thomas grew up in Mobile and returned home after law school at Florida State University to become an assistant district attorney.  At the time, the majority white county had no black judges, and local officials were concerned that a federal judge might end countywide elections for judges. Local Democrats and lawyers recruited Thomas because he had a reputation as a young, bright lawyer and was widely respected for his civic activities.  They got a Republican governor to appoint him to a vacancy in 1990 and he later won election to a full term.  In 1997, Alabama's presidential advisory committee recommended President Bill Clinton appoint Thomas as the first black federal judge in the southern district of Alabama. The nomination was never acted on after Thomas failed to get the American Bar Association's top rating and amid some squabbling within the party.

Thomas still enjoys support in Mobile. He and his wife Linda are frequently seen in public, and he continues to keep a high profile, including maintaining leadership roles in several civic organizations.
Edington said Thomas was particularly proud when he got to see his teenage twin daughters march in President Barack Obama's inaugural parade as members of Mobile's Azalea Trail Maids.

WOW, WOW, WOW!  Now, this is some crazy sh*t!  He is just as freaky as hell, and he had the audacity to still parade around town with his wife and daughters like it's alright.  SMDH