February 2020 Chit Chat

Hi It's Me!!!  What's new?

Hi

Not very much indeed

I hope for GOOD news
Soon

You all ok?

Ciao to everyone

Happy Super Bowl Sunday Everyone!!!

Hi it's me, .

Ohhh
Super Bowl

Have fun

annemarie wrote:Hi it's me, .

Ciao

Hi, it's me! Nice to have you back. It's been too long. Hope all is well.

WOWZERS.....HI ITS ME !!

HOPE YOU ARE WELL.

Ciao it’s me! Come back and chat with us soon!

Actor Kirk Douglas has died he was 103 years old.

it's me wrote:Hi

Not very much indeed

I hope for GOOD news
Soon

You all ok?

Ciao to everyone

True friends love fried fish .... so Jerry Fish said it best ....

Thinking about you!!!  

https://www.bing.com/th?id=OIP.qsSwsH3rNE9ZXl-bI_sgDAHaJ9&pid=Api&rs=1

The star of the wild wild west Robert Conrad passed a way he was 84 years old.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7982115/Dozens-gun-lovers-flock-Salt-Lake-City-firearm-rally.html


[size=34]Article moved to the serious side[/size]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7976525/Judge-accused-calling-juror-Aunt-Jemima-suspended.html

[size=34]Pennsylvania judge is suspended after 'repeatedly calling a black female juror 'Aunt Jemima' while talking to lawyers' as bar association calls for state conduct investigation[/size]

• Judge Mark Tranquilli was suspended after being accused of referring to a black female juror as 'Aunt Jemima' repeatedly in comments
  
  
• Comments were made in his chambers following the acquittal of a drug suspect on January 24 
  
  
• Tranquilli was temporarily reassigned to summary appeals on Tuesday following an interview of the judge by court administration staff
  
  
• He will be forbidden from hearing any case and will be restricted to 'administrative duties only, effective immediately' 
  
  
• Aunt Jemima has racist origins as it comes from a vaudeville era song 'Old Aunt Jemima'
  
  
• The character was based off the mammie - a black woman who worked for white families, nursing their children 
  
  

By ASSOCIATED PRESS and MATTHEW WRIGHT FOR DAILYMAIL.COM 
PUBLISHED: 19:42 EST, 6 February 2020 | UPDATED: 15:38 EST, 8 February 2020


A Pennsylvania judge accused of making racist comments about a juror was barred from hearing any cases, according to a court order issued Thursday.
Judge Mark Tranquilli was suspended after being accused of referring to a black female juror as 'Aunt Jemima' repeatedly in comments he made in his chambers following the acquittal of a drug suspect on January 24. 
Tranquilli was temporarily reassigned to summary appeals on Tuesday following an interview of the judge by court administration staff. He will be forbidden from hearing any case and will be restricted to 'administrative duties only, effective immediately.'


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Judge Mark Tranquilli was suspended after being accused of referring to a black female juror as 'Aunt Jemima' repeatedly in comments he made in his chambers following the acquittal of a drug suspect on January 24
'Judge Tranquilli shall not preside over any cases during this assigment,' a court order states.

The judge allegedly made the comments in his chambers in the presence of the prosecutor, Ted Dutkowski, and the defense attorney, Joe Otte.
He is said to have been upset that a suspect was found not guilty, adding that Dutkowski should have done a better job at vetting jurors.
Tranquilli did not responded to requests for comment this week.

Defense attorney Joe Otte complained about the judge's remarks
Aunt Jemima has racist origins as it comes from a vaudeville era song 'Old Aunt Jemima.' The character was based off the mammie - a black woman who worked for white families, nursing their children. It is now commonly associated with syrup and pancake mix. 
Defense attorney Otte filed a complaint on January 25, following the chambers meeting where the judge expressed 'dissatisfaction with the jury'.
The complaint alleged that Tranquilli berated Dutkowski for making a 'terrible decision by allowing "Aunt Jemima" on the jury'. 
He allegedly went on to say that 'her baby daddy probably sells heroin and that her presumed bias in favor of heroin dealers had caused or contributed to the not guilty verdict', ABC News reported.
Lori McMaster, president of the Allegheny County Bar Association, released a statement saying that an investigation would be launched into Tranquilli's comments. 
'In remaining steadfast to the Allegheny County Bar Association's mission and values, we have a duty to our members, our clients, and the African - American and broader communities at large, to continue to take action to eliminate implicit and explicit racial bias in our legal system,' she said. 


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A woman playing Aunt Jemima in 1951. Multiple women have been tapped to play the iconic role
'As such, the ACBA is demanding a complete investigation by the Judicial Conduct Board of Pennsylvania of Judge Tranquilli's alleged communications to ensure that this matter receives prompt attention and a just resolution.' 
On Wednesday, the Black Political Empowerment Project released a statement calling Dutkowski 'courageous' for coming forward and writing a complaint about Judge Tranquilli.
'With his racist views on record he need not be in position to judge anyone or anything,' the group added. 'We strongly oppose Judge Tranquilli to be able to review or rule on magistrate cases which we understand would range from traffic fines to truancy, for which he has recently been re-assigned to do.' 
'We already have too many African Americans and Black youths being negatively affected by bad decisions of the "justice" system.
They also questioned in Tranquilli had a longer history with racist tendencies.
'We understand too that Judge Tranquilli had earned a reputation for being "tough on crime and defendants",' they said.
'We can't help but wonder if his "toughness" was in actuality a series of racially-based rulings, which may have led to some African Americans being sentenced inappropriately and unfairly, and possibly negatively affecting their lives, maybe in some cases for a number of years!'


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On Wednesday, the Black Political Empowerment Project released a statement calling Dutkowski 'courageous' for coming forward and writing a complaint about Judge Tranquilli

[size=34] The complex origins of Aunt Jemima and the black women who played her[/size]

Many women have been tapped as Aunt Jemima over the years, with the first being Nancy Green in 1890, according to the pancake company's website. 
But Aunt Jemima traces its origins even earlier, starting with the 1875 vaudeville/minstrel song 'Old Aunt Jemima'. The character was based off the racist stereotype of the mammie and was sometimes performed by a white man in blackface. A mammie (or mammy) was a black woman who cared for a white family and took care of their children. 
Green was born a slave in Kentucky in the 1830s but would become known for her cooking. Green's Aunt Jemima was so popular, she even prompted the brand to change its name.
After Green, multiple women were credited with putting Aunt Jemima on the map across the country. 

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Anna Robinson (pictured) and Anna Short Harrington are just two of the women most known for taking on the 'iconic' role
Anna Robinson and Anna Short Harrington are just two of the women most known for taking on the 'iconic' role. 
Quaker Oats filed its first registration of the Aunt Jemima trademark in 1937. 
In 2015, a judge dismissed a case from two people claiming to be related to Harrington, who demanded that they be paid billions that they claimed the women were owed, according to the Wrap.[/size]

UGH!!!!!!!!!  This is one sick, sick country! 

Annemarie,

What's wrong with the reference the judge made?

heartlove - Read the whole article. It will tell you what was wrong with what he said - unless you find nothing wrong with equating a 21st century African-American woman with an image of a slave.

Very well put, Lizzy

I find it interesting, that Annemarie find these types of articles worth posting.  If anyone finds this article offensive, in any way, WHY POST IT.  Aunt Jemima is post Civil War, not slavery.

I find it particularly interesting that she posted it in chit chat instead of the serious thread.  Does she not find this level of racism serious, oppose to something to chit chat about?  

On a lighter note, I grew up putting Aunt Jemima on my pancakes with no offense to the lady of the bottle.  If the judge was talking about a fat white women and Mrs. Butterworth what do you think the response would be?  

The institution of Slavery and post civil war jim crow was a brutal, ungodly way of life rooted in paganism.  Similar to the twisted wicked pagan ideology driven by the Islamic State.  When either rears it's ugliness, it should be taken to task.  It's a serious topic, nothing anyone should consider "chit-Chat".

Given how much Annemarie does for us on this website I find your comments particularly unhelpful.

Maybe you should have posted it first in the category of your choice

I find the Judge's comments completely offensive and would not have posted it at all.  I'm not sure what Annemarie does that is any different than everyone else who post here.  I come here because it is a George Clooney Fan site.  

Quote:  A (mostly) friendly George Clooney fan site updated daily with all the latest Clooney news, Clooney gossip, Clooney videos and Clooney pictures. Need more Clooney? It's all here!

I don't expect to find an article about a Judge with racist overtones in chit chat.  I understand other things are posted on the website, there is a thread for serious topics like this one.

Well, who's to say what should and shouldn't be in which category? It certainly isn't you or I, so clearly this conversation is going nowhere

Right

The article was posted in chit chat by mistake .

Right

What I find interesting is how one person can take both sides of an issue at the same time. You don't know what he said that was offensive but you are offended by what he said. You don't know why anyone would post something they found offensive - yet here you are, discussing it.

(By the way, the Aunt Jemima character may not have been used for advertising purposes until the 20th century, but it the image refers back to the enslaved women who cared for their masters' children - "Mammy" - the unpaid nanny of the plantation culture.)

No matter where this article was posted - and we've all posted things in the wrong thread on occasion - it is obviously of interest or we wouldn't be discussing it. If you're not interested, don't participate in the discussion.

Lizzy,

My original statement was address to Annemarie, she posted the article and I wanted to know HER thoughts; Annemarie never stated she thought it was offensive.

Aunt Jemima
Fictional Character

"Aunt Jemima is a brand of pancake mix, syrup, and other breakfast foods owned by the Quaker Oats Company of Chicago, a subsidiary of PepsiCo. The trademark dates to 1893, although Aunt Jemima pancake mix debuted in 1889. The Quaker Oats Company first registered the Aunt Jemima trademark in April 1937. Aunt Jemima originally came from a minstrel show as one of their pantheon of stereotypical Black characters. The character appears to have been a Reconstruction era addition to that cast." Bing Search

I was interested in why Annemarie posted the article, that's why I asked the question. A lot of people don't read the serious thread, this will get a lot more readers/attention in the chit chat thread. Believe what you want to believe as to why it's in the chit chat thread.

I put the article here by accident I was in a hurry and not paying attention it happens. It is simple if you read the heading you can tell what the article is about. If you don't like the subject simply don't read it.

Right

PAN & Jo and anyone else in the UK - Just saw a story about the wild weather you've been having.High winds, flooding and power outages! Wow! Is everyone ok? I hope you're all staying warm and dry and safe.

Yup, I was hiding away from the weather, although we didn't get the worst of it here in the west country. I was meant to be stripping wallpaper in my new home, but instead huddled under the duvet in my flat and let it all pass over me. The wallpaper will always be there.

Katie - Glad you're o.k..And you're right - the wallpaper will always be there, (Been there, done that - way too many times! I guess I'm a slow learner. Kept re-papering. Finally realised it's much easier to stick to paint!) Hope the rest of the decorating is going well. I always thought it was fun.

Hope the weather has improved and everyone has come through in one piece. We're heading for a deep freeze at the end of the week, so keep warm thoughts for us.

Oh boy, you keep warm there!  We've got another storm headed this way soon, but I'm hoping it'll hit the north harder than us (sorry northern folks!).

Not so sure about the 'fun' part of my home yet. I'm just realising that having been involved in the construction of several luxury resorts, my standards of normal aren't everyone else's.  When I bought the place, my family all said it needs work (which it does, I knew that going in) but my response was, nah, it just needs full rewiring, all the radiators to be moved, installation of an upstairs wet room, renovation of the downstairs bathroom, a new kitchen, two walls knocking down, one ceiling knocking down, every room to be stripped of 90s wallpaper, re-plastered and repainted, all internal doors to be replaced all ceilings to be skimmed and plastered, all floors to have wooden floorboards to be laid down and it'll be fiiiiiiiiine!  What was I thinking???

I'm not even thinking about the garden until 2022.

Hi Katie,

Other than Aunt Jemima and Mrs. Butterworth, What's new?

Katie -LOL!!! It might have been easier to just knock it down and start from scratch! Or aren't you allowed to do that over there? Seems I read somewhere that your building codes are very strict. Here it's fairly common for people to buy something and either gut it or totally knock it down and rebuild. But then again, most of our buildings aren't as historically relevant as yours

It seems like you'll have to deal with every building trade imaginable. I hope they are more reliable and trustworthy than they are here. The kind of work you're talking about could be a nightmare to get done over here. - and cost the earth! Good luck!

Good luck with the weather, too. I just saw a Post article about the North Atlantic storms coming up. It sounds like this is going to be a rotten week for everyone. Stay safe and warm!

I wonder...  Do I ever get anything right?

LizzyNY wrote:Katie -LOL!!! It might have been easier to just knock it down and start from scratch! Or aren't you allowed to do that over there? Seems I read somewhere that your building codes are very strict. Here it's fairly common for people to buy something and either gut it or totally knock it down and rebuild. But then again, most of our buildings aren't as historically relevant as yours

Nothing historically relevant about my little place, thank goodness. It's a modern home (built in 1961) and just needs a little love and attention. Well ok, quite a lot.

On Monday they're going to knock down two stud walls in my bedroom and also knock down the ceiling. Feeling a little anxious about the ceiling to be honest, given I have to move in in two weeks!

The electrician called to say one of his jobs cancelled so he can start on my place on Tuesday, which is great because: electricity. But a pain because he'll need all the lights for six rooms and I haven't bought a single one. Don't even have an opinion for about five rooms. So I anticipate that this weekend will involve panic-buying lights. Yay!

How's everyone else getting on? Any plans for Valentine's Day?

O.k., I can see why you might want to knock down a couple of walls but why the ceiling? Is it that low, or is it damaged? ( My upstairs neighbor seems to feel you can't clean any piece of furniture without first slamming it to the floor. I live in fear that one day I'll wake up with my ceiling in my bed!)

Good luck with the lights. Maybe you could find some really inexpensive lights for the electrician to use. Des he really need to light all six rooms at once? Maybe he could test them one at a time? (Just trying to save you money and maybe buying lights you don't really like because you're in a hurry.)

Nothing special for Valentine's Day. It's supposed to be freezing here, so a good night for curling up with a nice glass of wine and some nice jazz to set the mood. Hope you have a good one!

Is George Clooney in Los Angeles this weekend?

Why would he be?

I don't know, business maybe...

Who knows?

Lizzy - the ceiling thing was just a fancy I had. It's a dormer room, right under the eaves of the house but was built with a boring, flat ceiling. All being well, it'll be rebuilt sloping up along the original roof-line with the supporting beams running across it.

Looking forward to a weekend of rain here. If George isn't in California, he's a fool.

Aha! A design decision to add more character into the room. I'm sure they'll do a good job and it will turn out lovely (just keep an eye on them while they work - no 2 hour tea breaks or sloppy messes!)

Don't know where George is, but if he's smart he isn't in NY. It's freezing here. First real winter weather we've had this year.

LizzyNY wrote:PAN & Jo and anyone else in the UK - Just saw a story about the wild weather you've been having.High winds, flooding and power outages! Wow! Is everyone ok? I hope you're all staying warm and dry and safe.

IM FINE THANKS LIZZY.....

REAL TROUBLE IN NORTHERN PART

OF ENGLAND THOUGH....POOR FOLK BEING FLOODED 

FOR SECOND TIME !



KATIE....GOOD LUCK WITH ALL YOUR RENOVATIONS....

YOU ARE VERY BRAVE !!

Joanna - Glad you're o.k.. I saw a video online of a BMW floating down a river somewhere in the UK, and people walking knee deep in water! I hope that's not anywhere near any of our friends.

I wonder if G&A are still having flooding problems on their property. Maybe that's where George is - at home trying to pump the Thames out of his back garden!

Latest information Lizzy!

https://flood-warning-information.service.gov.uk/target-area/061WAF24Twyford

So I guess, so far at least, they're not at risk of wet feet. If he's not pumping out his back garden then I have no clue where George might be. Maybe he's home watching the river. Maybe he's in London working on his film. Maybe he's lying in the sun on a beach somewhere. (If that's what he's doing, I hate him! It's 19 degrees F here today!)

Hope everyone stays dry and warm.

My guess is the family is on a nice beach break somewhere since George finished filming.

LizzyNY wrote:Katie - Glad you're o.k..And you're right - the wallpaper will always be there, (Been there, done that - way too many times! I guess I'm a slow learner. Kept re-papering. Finally realised it's much easier to stick to paint!) Hope the rest of the decorating is going well. I always thought it was fun.

Hope the weather has improved and everyone has come through in one piece. We're heading for a deep freeze at the end of the week, so keep warm thoughts for us.

Deep freeze???? Lizzy, there are parts of me freezing, that I didn't know I had!!!

Katie- your projects sound fabulous.  It's your moment to do everything the way you  want it.  To hell with  considering re-sale value.  This is your castle, your dream.   Go for the gusto girlfriend!!