Semi-regular political linkspam

Everything happens so much. I haven't heard from my cousin who lives in Houston; I hope he's okay. All we can do from here is watch, and hope, and give money if we can. (But avoid the American Red Cross. Their many problems have been well-documented; for one source, ProPublica has conducted a series of investigations into their alleged misuse of funds.)

• In the wake of Charlottesville, there has been a lot of discussion about the proper response to white supremacist protests. While I was raised with a deep commitment to non-violence, I'm starting to wonder about my stance. This article about a non-violent protesters experiences with antifa in Charlottesville gave me a lot to think about.


• This is not to say that I don't believe in positive, peaceful protest! I attended such a march myself, and another counter-protest created a giant heart on Ocean Beach.


• An op-ed from USA Today (yes, really; the famously apolitical newspaper has gotten much more opinionated in the last year or so) criticizes the way some people focus on the women, Jewish folks, and people of color in the Trump administration, reminding us that it's not the job of people of color to fix racism, of women to fix patriarchy, or of Jews to fix antisemitism. I do think it's fair for us to ask why they work with the man in the first place, but I agree it's unfair to put more heat on them than on the (many many many) white men in positions of power.


• Media critic Carlos Maza with a great video on why Trump supporters so rarely change their mind when his lies are challenged. It's not new or original research, but it's presented very well -- and it doesn't let liberals off the hook for doing the same thing.


• There's a lot to say about Trump's pardon of convicted criminal Joe Arpaio, former sheriff from Arizona. A lot of it comes from the Phoenix New Times, an independent paper that has been writing about Arpaio's crimes for years. This Twitter thread collects a lot of important -- and stomach-churning -- information about what all he's done.


• Bad enough that Arpaio is a racist scumbag. This pardon -- mere weeks after the verdict was handed down, before he was even sentenced -- also shows the depths of Trump's contempt for the rule of law. It sends a signal to his allies: "do what you want, I'll keep you out of jail." Recall that one of his reactions to the Mueller probe was to speculate that he might be able to pardon himself. (Answer: no, probably not. But the fact that he even asked the question....)


• On the other hand, questions remain about whether the right of the presidential pardon really is unlimited. MSNBC takes a look at the possible implications.


• We already knew that the mainstream media's coverage of the 2016 election was a large part of what put the current occupant in the Oval Office, but I appreciate having this Harvard University study to cite as yet more proof that the media spent far more time on Clinton's scandals than on Trump's scandals, or on policy issues for either candidate.


• Remember how a federal court threw out North Carolina's state legislature districts and told them to start over? The new maps aren't much better. Yet more evidence that we need to get state legislatures out of the business of drawing their own electoral maps.


• You may recall Ellen Pao, who sued powerhouse venture capital firm Kliener Perkins for sex discrimination. She lost in court, but there isn't much question that her decision to fight back motivated more women to talk about their experiences, especially in the VC sector. She's written a book about her experiences, and I found this excerpt both powerful and moving.


• I am normally in favor of transformative works, but this I can get behind: the creator of Pepe the Frog is suing white supremacists who try to profit off using the image of his character.