Former Virginia Governor and His Wife

From USA Today:

“Prosecutors are accusing former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, of accepting more than $165,000 in gifts and loans from wealthy businessman Jonnie Williams. The then-chief executive of Virginia-based public company Star Scientific was hoping for the governor’s endorsement for and state research on one of his company’s dietary supplements, Anatabloc, to help boost sales.

A federal grand jury indicted the couple, both 60 at the tine of the trial, on 14 counts of corruption, accepting bribes and obstructing an investigation in January, 10 days after Bob McDonnell left office.”

I am laughing so hard, I can’t write right now. Their defense belongs with the twinkie defense and the Affluenza defense (the rich kid who killed 4 people while DWI who got fancy treatment because he was unable to discern responsible conduct, even after repeated DWIs).

To wit: “I was enabling my wife’s fancy man who paid for my gifts, give me loans that I greedily asked for, all while he serviced and squired my wife and made it rain–while they refrained, but I took no notice–I was too busy performing constituent service like any politician for a citizen who had just promised to loan me $20K; so fair a man am I, I looked the other way when he came by the mansion to see my wife; I trusted her, even though our communication was broken and I was broke; I know it looks bad, but this is straight up. For real.”

I want the book rights! There’s a best seller there.

Body Counts and Style Points

A lot of style points are being racked up in the reporting and debates about the rocket attacks in Israel and Gaza as both sides overlook the fundamentals to see who can build the tallest house of cards.

Hamas is stupid. Its policies are stupid. Its leaders need personal copies of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. Its actions put the lives of civilians at risk. Risks Hamas cannot defend against. Risks its actions invite.

But Israel is killing children. Under no law, no historic precedent, no security demand, no right to exist, no provocation, no threat, no remorse over collateral damage, no rocks thrown or tunnels dug or missiles launched is this right.

Star-crossed Gaza has been a city and region of many battles.

In the 4th century, the wrestlers and boxers of Gaza were among the most famous in the ancient world. Alexander the Great once captured and ruled Gaza. Sampson and Napoleon Bonaparte both camped out there with military units. The Knights Templar—and their Muslim allies–fought the Egyptian army at Gaza. The fierce Saracen army was defeated at Gaza. The Samaritans once had a synagogue there. Gaza was the center of the global frankincense trade.

Today, the children continue playing and dying, no longer safe in the streets or at schools; unable to leave behind the damning visions and witness that make it impossible to breathe.

(After this appeared in the New York Times online, several replies pushed back. Click through to read those who justify the death of children. /wr)

Crime and No Time

Paul Krugman’s NYTimes column today discusses bank regulation and whether the legislation passed under President Obama has been effective in limiting risks and excesses. Click through to read his column, my comment (also below), and one reply. /wr

Bank regulation always brings to mind the idea of criminal intent: why aren’t bankers (and others!) persecuted for their corporate crimes and frauds? Because corporations the people use their free speech to protect corporations the criminals.

For individuals to be held criminally liable personal intent has to be proven–a big hurdle when an employee was only a small actor in the total operation, with no one responsible for the actions, only for supervising the actions or engaging in the actions without knowing they are crimes. Contradictory double-talk, yes; but the law itself makes it hard to move claims of wrong doing from civil to criminal.

To open the door of the jails, new laws must reframe and redefine personal criminal liability within the corporation, but intent will remain a sticking point.

The pass given to corporate criminals is not a question of political will; their crimes are legally protected from all but civil penalties, except in rare cases, usually fraud. Corporate free speech means the company paying billions in fines, executives accepting their bonuses, and never having to say they are sorry. According to the law as now written, doing the crime seldom involves doing the time.

And the company pays the fine.