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Israel vs Iran. Something to Think About

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

Tonight more saber rattling in the Middle East. Or is it more serious this time? Israel and Iran may well be on the warpath, and our navy is, right now, in the Strait of Hormuz, patrolling the 35 mile wide oilpath between Iran and Iraq with warships.

This is from a concerned (anonymous) reader,:

Iran’s rise to power is thanks to President George W. Bush and his Iraq war. Thanks to him we removed a historic enemy of Iran, Saddam Hussein, from the picture, and they are now poised to take over the Middle East. Remember in the 1980s when Iraq and Iran went to war? During the first portion of that war Iran was whipping Iraq’s behind and so Reagan sent none other than our good pal Mister Rumsfeld to Iraq to sell him WMDs. We did this in hopes of preventing one powerful force from taking over the world’s oil supply. We succeeded up until 2003 when we removed Saddam from power and now the Shia muslims dominate Iraq. So, Iran has virtually conquered Iraq without firing a shot, but by parliamentary elections.

Remember that before, Saddam used chemical weapons against Iran. That country suffered a million casualties, and would not give up the fight. The people of Iran are the descendants of the Persians, one of the fiercest warrior cultures to ever walk the Earth in ancient times. Fighting them would be equivalent to Japan during the second world war. They would not stop fighting for anything, once they are awakened.

There is a dangerous potential effect of war with Iran and that is a world wide reprisal (Jihad?) against Jews, mainly from Muslims. Factor in that there are about one billion plus Muslims in the world and about fifteen million Jews world wide. It is not too far fetched to see such places as Europe and America go up in smoke as war erupts between these two groups. To back this claim, all one has to do is look at the rising anti-Semitism that is sweeping the globe. The amount of anti-Jewish violence that could come about would make the 1930s pale in comparison.

It is safe to assume that war between Iran and Israel will break out because they are the two toughest kids in the Middle Eastern neighborhood. However, the royal families of such countries as Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Kuwait secretly met with Israeli officials and gave them their blessing to stop the encroaching threat of Iran into their territory. If war does not break out soon, I estimate that in about ten years Iran will have already spread its sphere of influence into these countries to gain control of their oil supplies, and in effect rule the world economy.

I have heard that the Israeli people are always prepared for war at any time. I have also read that their high school graduates are required to serve in their military for a period of time. They have a very strong military, and a sense of defending their own from enemies. They have proven in the past that they can prevail against impossible odds in war. But if a major war breaks out in the middle east, will this be enough for them to survive? Most likely no. You see, Israel’s military has been portrayed as a smaller version of America’s military, but they are still dependant on the world’s super power to step in on their behalf if things get too tough.

However, some of the things that I have seen from the Obama administration makes me think they are not interested in protecting Israel if they were in a bind. What happens if your big brother leaves you among a bunch of mean, older kids? The little brother will have to step up and beat the bigger kids to a pulp or suffer a humiliating defeat. The Obama administration abandoning Israel adds credence to the idea that they will attack Iran soon, because they have no choice.

I would wager that Israel could take this war on their own for a short period of time, but without the help of America they are ultimately doomed. I could imagine the Muslims swallowing Israel whole unless America stepped in to save them. If not, they will ultimately go nuclear and deliver serious damage to their enemies and both sides will fall. Basically a scenario where you defeat your enemy, but he has caused so much damage to you that you will soon collapse yourself.

Even if America did intervene on Israel’s behalf, I am not sure how we could help them. The two wars that we are in and the operating cost of our overseas empire have now crossed the one trillion dollar mark. America is not in any kind of shape to fight another war, let alone a potential world war, which this would escalate into, if it were to happen. Coupled with mass unemployment, debt, the collapsing environment (gulf oil soil?), wide open borders, fall of the dollar, mistrust of political leaders, etc, I do not see any way we could help without faltering ourselves. It is truly sad that countries that look to us for guidance, leadership and protection will soon have to depend on themselves for these things . . .

This reader goes on to suggest the healing power of prayer.

My comment is to say that this is a disturbing yet thoughtful analysis and should be read. I can’t help comparing our present stagnant economic state with the thirty’s experience and the ensuing war which brought about positive economic change – and I lived through both those periods. War doesn’t just happen. It creeps up, arriving in increments, which was true of WWI and WWII, looking for a trigger.  The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria started the first, the breaking of the Munich Agreement the second . . . Meanwhile, we amuse ourselves with Tea Party posturings and Awards season frantics, while serious business is going on outside and beyond our eye line. Is war in our interest? Not now, not ever, given today’s weapons. I think Obama knows that, and will not lead this nation into an unwinnable war. The clue being that he is set to complete the return of our occupying troops. Will they get jobs back home again?  That’s another story, but for now, for my money, he’s welcome to saber rattle too.  I think he knows what he’s doing, and he has excellent people around him. We don’t need a Churchill or MacArthur. Maybe a Lincoln. Visionary, but firm.

To Fly Again…

By John Clark on Posted in A SPACE FOR NOSTALGIA, COMMENTARY-Passing parade

Denied to me now, I’m afraid;  Judge Gold caused me to lose my Piper Cherokee 6.

However, that didn’t stop me from encouraging my son Ben to learn to fly it, and later – to keep him out of trouble and stop being a waiter – to consider a career in aviation.  That he did, became an instructor, married one of his students, and now flies international for Delta.  We don’t connect any more, but I hope he’s minding his Ps and Qs.

Went to the Huntington Library the other day with my first son Jonathan, and noticed the upcoming exhibit featuring the development of  U.S. Aviation, from its beginnings to the present.  What a glorious story that is!

Indeed, I whiled away the last ten dead years doodling for Wikipedia, and researched and wrote the story of the now defunct  and forgotten Glendale Airport, which was once the gateway to the West Coast. Frequented by the likes of Howard Hughes, Amelia Earhart, and the black Tuskegee Airmen, it later served as the training ground and repair station for thousands of WWII airmen and their fighting machines. The surviving classically designed control tower, surrounded by humdrum factories and warehouses, was acquired by the Walt Disney company, with headquarters nearby.  There many a movie was shot, and its current lack of maintenance and continued state of disrepair is quite shocking.  Shame on you, Walt Disney!  May one wish that the company and Glendale city provide funds and jobs to restore it?

Here, read this, it has such stories to tell.  Grand Central Airport, Glendale

At these times of hardship, us oldsters like to harken back to not so very long ago, to the years when America was industrious in manufacturing, and provided jobs for all.  When we were the New World, a shining light of hope for the less advantaged.

Perhaps our memories will help motivate and energize today’s youngsters to recapture the pride we’ve lost.  Pondering our history, at least they’ll get some perspective.

A Market Meltup on Wednesday October 5th, 2011

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, MY STOCK MARKET, Uncategorized

In less than 45 minutes yesterday, just before the usual dreaded down day close, Wall Street, as expressed by the Dow, went up 4%!

45 minutes? A concerted effort by market makers (aka “they”) is what this was. A scientific forensic investigation should be mounted to find out how it is that a huge market can act with all participants in concert with each other. Assume you’re a bear, like most hurting knowledgeable people are. Unless one has the money to be a “fundamental short”, it means put options. And how does the market fix it? Well, for one thing try and get a 3-month-out-option, the preferred one in terms of price and the ability to survive one reversal. They are simply not available. You are forced to either buy a 2 month out or a 4 month and longer, which are expensive. Why is this true (except for very active stocks)?

It’s called artificial rigging. Nothing to do with government, or regulators. “They” do it because “they” can, and “they” have insider knowledge, and work like a gang. And “they” are stealing our money, uncaught. Oh to have the privilege of roaming the floor of the stock exchange!

One could laugh it off by saying that Wall Street is wanking (masturbating) in a lengthening and expanding trading range, to a fantasy of future prosperity. The drop (droop?) will come for the mass orgy of the world’s participants.

Richard Fine, Found Guilty of Moral Turpitude?

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, Links to Cases & Litigants, Links to Courts & Judges, Links to new justice

Our friend Richard Fine, (ex-Esq.) sat in one of the worst jails, the Men’s Central jail in Los Angeles, alone and ignored for a year and a half.  He believed in a cause, the cause of honesty and fair dealing by the exalted arbiters – Judges – who hold sway on the lives and well-being of our citizens.

How is it that this can happen here in California?  We are the only state of the union that has a special Court presided over by judges. If the State Bar determines that an attorney’s actions involve probable misconduct, formal charges are filed with the State Bar Court by the bar’s prosecutors (through the office of chief trial counsel). There, it’s considered whether lawyers have misbehaved.  The court hears the charges and also has the power to recommend that the California Supreme Court suspend or disbar attorneys found to have committed acts of professional misconduct or convicted of serious crimes.  When a finding is made, the decision then goes before the Bar, where they decide whether they agree with it.  If you see signs of self-dealing and conflict of interest, you will find it here.

Richard appealed.  What were his serious crimes?  Read the following, from the introduction to their Opinion and Order:-

Respondent Richard Isaac Fine appeals a hearing judge’s decision finding him culpable of committing 16 violations involving moral turpitude in multiple civil proceedings. Citing respondent’s “pattern of deliberately and repeatedly misusing this state’s statutory process for challenging a judicial officer’s qualifications” followed by a “campaign” of repeatedly filing meritless lawsuits in federal court, the hearing judge recommended respondent’s disbarment and ordered that he be involuntarily enrolled as an inactive member of the State Bar of California in accordance with the provisions of Business and Professions Code section 6007, subdivision (c)(4). Respondent attacks the legal sufficiency of the culpability findings and raises several constitutional claims for the first time on appeal. The State Bar urges us to affirm the hearing judge’s findings and recommendation. Following our independent review (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 9.12), we find that the hearing judge has fairly and fully reviewed the testimonial and documentary evidence, and rendered the appropriate findings. Although we reverse the culpability determinations on certain counts and find culpability on others the hearing judge dismissed, these modifications do not impact our ultimate recommendation. In addition to respondent’s pattern of misconduct over about a three-year period, his misleading and dishonest statements in his pleadings are a common theme throughout this proceeding. Based on the overwhelming evidence of respondent’s repeated abuse of the judicial process, we agree with the hearing judge that disbarment is the only appropriate discipline recommendation.

And so, by this decision, we can assume that they think that Richard has been immobilized, rendered harmless.  I disagree, for what they’ve done is to anger the electorate. They will rise up in protest when enough individuals have been deprived of their freedoms, a number which is growing by the day.

Meanwhile, Richard is now one of us.  He intends to file motions as an honorable Pro Per, seeking to immobilize each and every judge guilty of taking funds from Los Angeles County tax-payers, to which they were not entitled. And we can do the same, as he teaches us here.

Don’t forget that Judicial Watch has been doing its thing too.  It carries more weight than Richard Fine, and it would be most unlikely that one would see their West Coast lawyer Sterling Norris, Esq., who wrote and filed the paperwork, finding himself removed from the rolls of active lawyers.  They filed their original complaint back in April 2006, in the Sturgeon vs. County of Los Angeles case, and while it has been beaten at every turn, it remains to be seen whether they’ll take it to the United States Supreme Court. You can read the history of the twists and turns here.

Watch American democracy in action, because it’s fascinating and very very important.  The Supreme Court will most likely not want to dirty its hands and will deny consideration of the issue.  As a last chance, it will be left for action from the White House.  Obama now has a record of stepping into places usually avoided by his predecessors.  He recognizes that America has a stake in preserving the integrity of the Constitution and our Rule of Law and not just in name only.   It needs to be demonstrated as a significant arm of his foreign policy, and he does have a safe law degree.

MALE SEX PROBLEMS

By John Clark on Posted in A SPACE FOR REFLECTION, COMMENTARY-Passing parade

What do the names Weiner, Spitzer, Edwards, Schwarzenegger, Clinton, Gingrich, Strauss-Kahn, Woods, Boehner, Craig – the list goes on and on – what do they have in common? Why, an inability to keep their trousers zipped. Their stories detail the circumstances where men have lost sexual boundaries to the detriment of assorted reputations, and in some cases jobs and marriages. And to the intense glee of the media and the public in this most hypocritical of all societies.

And all they were doing was displaying an inability to control what Bernard Shaw dubbed the “Life Force”.   Mark Twain  wrote “The very thought of  it excites him; opportunity sets him wild; in this state he will risk life, reputation, everything … to make good that opportunity and ride it to the overwhelming climax.”

Well, I have a solution to this, a solution guaranteed to curb this kind of uncontrolled behavior.

In Topanga, where I used to live, there existed the most wonderful of hangouts, a quite famous nudist resort that went by the name Elysium Fields. It was created back in the sixties by a Life Magazine photographer named Ed Lange, in memory of his mother.  I happened upon it when driving my kids to their first day of the new school term, and being asked to pick up some children at an address off the Canyon road. Imagine my shock when I drove through the gates on to the site, and was greeted by a lovely naked lady, 2 dressed kids in tow, stepping out of a trailer. I then looked around, and noticed a few equally naked people staking out claims on the grass, spreading their towels, and eying the nearby swimming pool, for it was going to be a hot day.

As I drove away, I muttered to myself that this was something to really think about. Should I join a movement to get the place closed down? Or maybe consider taking out membership? Curiosity and common sense prevailed, and it was the latter course I took. I remained a member until, after Ed’s death, there was a power struggle with his daughters, who chose to sell the entire estate to the highest bidder, a hotel magnate, I believe, his sole domain.

It was there I met a new English friend, Noel Pugh, an illustrator and sketch artist, who drew the logo for me that you see above.  He lived in a cabin by the pool.  I need to state that in all the years I went there, never did I see a single case of inappropriate behavior.  No exhibitionistic displays, or any man with an erection.  On one occasion I took a friend as a guest, a noted publisher of pornography, who on leaving said to me that he would never go again, because in his opinion, the place was anti-sex, and one big turnoff. It has a strange effect – compulsive urges just seem to disappear.

I frequently took my kids, and my wife, and truly believe that it gave all of us a broader and healthier outlook on life.

The likes of those men above, and many more, carry a huge burden.  Unable to cope with power conflicts going up against their inner demons, they feel an urge to go one step further, which might be fine, except it comes at the expense of others.  I guarantee that a sentence of a few weeks’ confinement at a nudist resort would cure them forever. The trouble is, there are few such places left. Perhaps because they impose a threat to the fashion industry, the entertainment industry, the advertising industry, TV shows like TMZ, Entertainment Tonight and the Playboy Channel, and tabloids like the National Enquirer and Daily Mail. Anti-American, but there it is.

D.A. Cooley obliged to institute lawsuit to recover money paid to Judges

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, Links to Courts & Judges

Sterling Norris, an ex-D.A., was perhaps best known for going after the criminal behavior of serial killers, the best-known of them being Ted Bundy.

Now he works for Judicial Watch, the public interest watchdog that looks after the best interests of the common public.

This time he seems to be going after the (alleged) criminal behavior of our judges in the California system of judgeships in Superior Court.

Read his letter and attached brief addressed to D.A Steve Cooley.

Cooley – April 13, 2011[1]

But here’s a thought…   Will Steve run again?  Will he care to undertake this huge responsibility during his endgame?

We got part of the answer.  He will not run again, and is endorsing his second-in-command, Chief Deputy District Attorney Jacqueline Lacey, as “the most qualified leader to run the nation’s largest local prosecutorial office.”  He says he has “complete faith in Jackie’s skilled leadership and commitment to the office’s mission,” and is hosting a fundraiser for her on June 9 at the City Club.

The part he doesn’t answer is whether she’ll pursue the case against the judges. Also, whether this played any part in his decision not to run again for a fourth term.

Charles Bronson’s Estate Sues Warner Bros., MGM

By John Clark on Posted in ACTORS' & DIRECTORS' CORNER, COMMENTARY-Passing parade

Of course, their suit is about residuals for past work performed by this actor. They should know not to cross him, even in death!

Maybe one day the unions will be able to negotiate that all income for all shows goes into a common escrow pot. From that account, revenue and expenses would be distributed equitably, according to a given plan administered by an independent fiduciary. As any accountant should know, debits and credits are supposed to balance. Another way to say this is that goods and services equal money, and money equals goods and services, the amounts fixed by governing contracts.
However, let no man or woman hold their breath. The producers maintain a stranglehold on this possibility, and the unions seem to be powerless to change it. Guess they retain better lawyers.

At the Chelsea Flower Show

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, My Family and Me

I just read in the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail of the celebrities attending the annual Chelsea Flower show in London. Another opportunity to show off their hats.

I see that my old sister-in-law Vanessa was there with her daughter Joely. She named a rose in honor of her other daughter Natasha, who died as the result of a foolish escapade on the slopes of a Canadian ski run a couple of years ago.

I cannot help but ask her why she could not do the same for her young sister Lynn, who has just past the first anniversary of her death on the flats of Kent, Connecticut.

It could be named THE PRINCESS MARGARET ROSE (get it?).  For Lynn felt she was always the second favorite daughter in her family.

Could “Two and a Half Men” Be Better Than Ever With Ashton Kutcher?

By John Clark on Posted in ACTORS' & DIRECTORS' CORNER, COMMENTARY-Passing parade

I just read a review of 2 1/2 Men by a “communications professor” by the name of Robert Thompson.  He admitted that while watching and critiquing the show, he would rather be balancing his checkbook.

The fact is, 2 1/2 Men is the only truly honest depiction of male and female behavior in our current American and possibly worldwide culture. It deals with real-life situations, and the greed, dishonesty and scamming that goes on at all levels of society and industry, producing the norms of life today. Its popularity, continuing with huge audience followers watching reruns, deny the premise put forth by this professor of communications.

From the working professional’s viewpoint, it is clear that the core of the show is the relationship between 2 brothers, Charlie and Alan, played by Sheen and Cryer.  They are joint protagonists, and Sheen is the perfect foil for Cryer.  Their interplay is worthy of the best of the Smothers Brothers, Laurel and Hardy and the 3 Stooges, the difference being that they are never seen to be “performing”, but just are; believable at every moment. The writing is so superior that one can sit through each show many times.  There is a kind of inevitability in the substance of the patter, and one discovers nuances in funny lines with deep meaning. I myself relax in the evening watching yet again another episode.  I have 72 of them saved.  I recommend almost every episode as a model for the aspiring writer learning how to shape a script, with perfect character, plot, and story development.

It is a shame that a political situation developed between Sheen, joint creator Lorre, Warner Bros. and CBS.  It has been decided that they should continue the run of this golden goose without Sheen.  But it won’t and it shouldn’t work.

What Sheen and Cryer should do is develop their own show with an entirely different setting, and an entirely different family, and continue the exploration of familial situations for 2 disparate brothers. Of course, they would lose their supporting cast, which would be unfortunate.  Apart from anything else, and aside from the show, it would be fun to watch how these parties will squabble over the age-old conundrum of who creates, and therefore owns, the fictitious characters of entertainment. Actors vs. writers vs. directors vs. financial backers.  Another legal drama in the making.  And they will suffer from the absence of Lorre, who is a writing genius, as well as the supporting cast, unequaled in anything I have ever seen.

If any sample of our civilization should be crammed into a space capsule for aliens to see, it would be every episode of 2 1/2 Men as it presently exists.

On Jim Cramer, hitting an alltime high

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, MY STOCK MARKET

An article in the NY Times magazine caught my eye. All about the clown antics of a certain Booyah Bozo by the name of Jim Cramer. You will be aware of him if you have hours to kill in front of the TV set, and own a set of securities of diminishing value.

In the old days, we used to go down to our broker (most often Merrill Lynch), and waste hours watching the tape go by, with a cup of coffee and a newspaper. And, of course, trade information and rumors. Outright promotion by the broker was a no-no.

So what’s changed? We still become transfixed by the tape, and allow ourselves to be entertained by a clown who should be doing standup in the boondocks.  He is technically ignorant, doesn’t analyze charts, and won’t suggest shorting when the time is right.  He’s for straight gambling on the long side, and bets on the truthfulness of fundamental valuations, which is a sure way to lose the house, and to the house.  As for broker promotion, that’s been replaced by CNBC promotion.  Opinions?  Well, they’re free, and you know what values attach to free.

It’s best to accept the fact that a stock is worth exactly what it’s selling for, at any given moment. The price contains all known and unknown details, where the devil usually lurks.  To be bullish on anything in a down market, or bearish in an up market requires skill and guts.  It also requires a knowledge of the workings of the market, as portrayed in squiggles on a chart.  You are not an “insider”, but you just might make an educated guess after studying trendlines and classic patterns of tops and bottoms for a roadmap.  Just be aware that the smart money already holds the stock, and needs to unload on to a gullible public.  Mr. Cramer’s job appears to be to set them up.

The game is very serious, and to have fun using other people’s hard earned money is contemptible. And to interview CEOs pretending to reveal inside information while they promote their company’s products has to be for the entertainment of very gullible people.

Stock commentators should be forced to reveal their portfolios, even just a paper portfolio. The record would then speak for itself for all to see.  And they should be registered and conform to Blue Sky laws, like other money managers. And the SEC should come out.  Where are they hiding?

THE DONALD TRUMP AND SARAH PALIN PLATFORM!

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

Donald Trump for President with his running mate Sarah Palin, please go for it.  Or we wouldn’t even mind Palin for president and Trump underneath her, although one thinks that the Donald doesn’t like to be number two.

 But just as McCain showed his statesmanship last time by assuring the election of Obama, it will now be re-assured.  Obama will be re-elected, and the Republican party will once again be dumped.

And so it goes, with continued weird U.S. elections.  Long Live U.S. style democracy!

 

Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters lunch meetings

By John Clark on Posted in ACTORS' & DIRECTORS' CORNER, COMMENTARY-Passing parade

This is a wonderful gathering of old-timers, like myself. If you’ve been in the business for 20 years or more, you qualify to apply for membership. We meet for a hearty lunch about once a month (except for summer) at the Sportsman’s Lodge in the Valley. There is always an honoree, being gently roasted by a panel of fellow workers on the dais.

Lately, the place has been more than usually crowded with participants of the Showbiz. My photographer pal, Dave Keeler, wanders around snapping pictures, and if you’re lucky, he might catch you with some old friends, which he did for me at a recent meeting. (If you click on the picture, it will enlarge it.)

 

 

If you’re interested in joining, this is their website.  Just find somebody who’ll sponsor you.

 

 

 

 

The Brits aren’t coming, THEY’RE HERE!

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

Tonight, PIERS MORGAN, 45, starts his CNN contract on air, replacing the redoubtable Larry King, 77, in the time-slot of Larry King Live. King avoided controversy.  Morgan looks for it.  He comes from his editorship of the London tabloids The Sun, The News of the World, and the Daily Mirror. Interesting choice.  I was only aware of him as a judge on America’s Got Talent.

But last night I saw him as an interviewer on a 2 year old show from England, with his take on Hollywood in January 2009 from the British POV. Much has happened since then due to the economy, but one remark of his rings in my ears.

"Talent success in Hollywood is measured by how much money you make – for others."

That is so true, and is why so many lives fall apart when the talented souls are no longer useful to the real world, and are left with personal identity crises.  I’ve always avoided the middle men, the agents and managers and press agents, since my child actor days and the following 33 years with the late Lynn Redgrave.  Now?  My bad!

Then I watched the Golden Globes.  Host Ricky Gervais is not my favorite comedian, with his scattershot technique.  But the shots he lobbed to any and all sitting there were what we used to call Home Truths, nobody being spared. And my question is, is America going through a phase of self flagellation? If so, then Morgan will last just so long as he’s put up with. But his style will obsolesce the likes of Barbara Walters and Regis Philbin for a while. However, middle America won’t like him at all. Will that translate into money problems for CNN, the advertisers and the like?  CNN is in it for the money, and as long as it comes in, he’s there to stay.  But I think he won’t last too long.

Good luck to him, a healthy change – for now. Look forward to real debate Oxford style, instead of the steady stream of one-sided right wing invective which flows from most well paid radio talk show hosts, who assume we are a nation of idiots, and ignore the fact that there are a lot of schizophrenics out there. But that’s a whole other subject!

PRESIDENTS AND WORLD PEACE?

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

January 16, 2011

One senses that things are looking up today mainly, I think, because of upcoming changes in world leadership all around.

Chinese president Hu Jintao pays us a State Visit on Tuesday, bearing signs of flexibility.  Our own president Barack Obama promised change as part of his election platform, and is just the guy to be welcoming him to the White House.

In North Korea we have peace-making signs from president Kim Jong-il, possibly because he is turning over the reins to his son Kim Jong-un, who no doubt has some ideas of his own. And of course they want a piece of the South’s action.

Then we have president Fidel Castro, mellowing with age, who has already handed the reins over to his younger brother, now president Raul Castro.

Wouldn’t it be surprising if we find that this country stops marginalizing itself with its self-imposed title of Leader of the World, stops falling back on waving its superior weaponry like some schoolyard bully, and sits down as equals and partners with communists and socialists and liberals and conservatives?  Then we can do what we all do best and want most, which is to embrace and improve our families, our children, our grandchildren, our health, and our homes. That, we all have in common. And freedom to travel anywhere and everywhere will be restored after nearly a century of restrictions.

Thank you internet!

FINE FINALLY FREED!

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, Links to Cases & Litigants

UPDATE Friday, January 14, 2011

Fine and his daughter Victoria need to get their act together.  If his 18 month coercive confinement in solitary is to have any meaning and a good result, we, his supporters, need to be kept informed. The latest information that I had was that he would be in court number 86 down at the Stanley Mosk courthouse at 9:30am, in front of Judge Ann Jones.  I went.  Nada. Nothing. Coming home, I find after much computer searching that she had recused herself as one of the accused judges, and the case was reassigned to department 85 in front of Judge Robert O’Brien with no date for a hearing, back on December 16th.  How are his admirers to know if they are not on someone’s personal email list?

It’s not good enough for a fan site. It needs a blog kept up-to-date by Richard Fine himself. Enough said!

********************

September 18, 2010

This is BIG news.  He won! It can be done! As a PRO PER too!

From the L.A.Times, Scott Glover, September 18, 2010:

LAWYER ABRUPTLY FREED FROM JAIL
Richard Fine, 70, had spent a year and a half behind bars on contempt charges.  Richard Fine has contended he was being targeted because of his challenges to county-funded benefits that judges receive on top of their state pay.

A 70-year-old lawyer who was sentenced to jail “indefinitely” on contempt-of-court charges was abruptly released Friday evening after spending a year and a half behind bars.  He was released from Los Angeles County Jail in downtown Los Angeles shortly after 9 p.m. but did not wish to speak to a Times reporter, said his daughter, Victoria.

Fine, an antitrust and taxpayer advocate attorney, was thrown in jail last year by Superior Court Judge David P. Yaffe for failing to answer questions about his finances and for practicing law without a license. [His brave fellow lawyers at the ABA had taken his license away from him - an embarrassment to their lying profession, no doubt!]

The contempt charges stemmed from a case Fine filed on behalf of Marina del Rey homeowners who sued local developers.  He had been ordered to pay sanctions and attorneys’ fees in the case. Fine contends he was being targeted by Yaffe because of his challenges to county-funded benefits that judges receive on top of their state pay.

Rather than comply with Yaffe’s orders and be released from jail, Fine vowed to take his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.  In May, however, the ["justice for all"] court declined to take up his petition, meaning he could have remained in jail indefinitely as Yaffe had ordered.

The judge could not be reached for comment late Friday.

While in solitary confinement, Fine filed habeas corpus petitions for his release with the California Supreme Court, District Court and the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, alleging that Yaffe was biased against him and should have recused himself from the contempt-of-court case.

His imprisonment was “the latest encounter in the 10-year campaign by Fine to restore due process in the California judicial system,” the attorney, who has been representing himself, wrote in his petition to the U.S. Supreme Court.  “Fine is the only attorney, of the approximately 208,000 California attorneys, with the courage to challenge the California judiciary,” he wrote.

In a telephone interview with The Times in May, Fine said the U.S. Supreme Court had made the wrong decision by allowing him to remain in jail.  He said he would be filing another petition.

“I’m in fighting condition,” he said. “They haven’t broken me down, and they won’t break me down.”

RELEASE:

Interesting to note that on September 16, Judge Yaffe made a minute order that Fine should be imprisoned for a further 6 months after which there would be a hearing, and then ON THE VERY NEXT DAY, reversed himself with an order that he should be set free. True, it was the Day of Atonement, (being the first day of Yom Kippur), but I don’t think this moved his change of heart.

I’d rather speculate another reason that this took place. We may never know, but could it have been by Executive Order from the president?

Imagine, he’s sitting across from Ahmadinejad, trying to explain, and complain.  Ahmadinejad  isn’t listening.  Instead, he’s asking how it is that a U.S. citizen is sitting alone in a government prison for a year and a half, on the orders of an American judge, without due process, and brings up images of glass houses.

Obama’s not doing much better with Chavez, who looks at him with a barely concealed smile on his face.

As for Castro, he just slaps his knee, points, and laughs and laughs.

So it becomes a national security issue; there’s a phone call from the White House, and right is finally done. And Yaffe will probably go into hiding after announcing his resignation from the bench.

For a full explanation, and background, to this very shocking very American story, the Full Disclosure Network link provides it here.

And as a lesson to all of us pro pers who would file briefs in court, and could do with a model of clarity and succintness, read Richard’s all-inclusive complaint addressed to some of today’s power brokers.

Disbarment:

As if to twist the knife further, a number of wretched people made the decision to take away his livelihood, which consisted of nearly forty years of unblemished service as an attorney.  Here you will find what the California State Bar Association had to say and do about their problematic brother.  A source of embarrassment maybe?  Or something more sinister? Here he is accused of the crime of “Moral Turpitude”, based, it seems, on his filing of a motion in federal court deemed to be frivolous, and on his habit of consistently harassing judicial officers.

DOWNLOAD PDF OPINION AND ORDER

THREE CHEERS FOR FINE!  WELL DONE!  YOU DID THIS FOR THE DOWNTRODDEN, AND NOW IT’S ONWARDS AND UPWARDS. YOUR SACRIFICE WILL NOT BE FORGOTTEN!

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Copy, Credit, Meals

By John Clark on Posted in ACTORS' & DIRECTORS' CORNER, COMMENTARY-Passing parade

This is addressed to my professional actor friends, full members of the Screen Actors Guild, AFTRA, and Equity.

It is to say that I am tired of being invited by student directors to act in their videos, or films, for their benefit and for nothing.  This is a huge step backward to the very beginnings of these esteemed organizations, back to the twenties and thirties.  Student actors, go ahead.  Professional actors, STOP!

Yes, we are entering a new era in the film making process. Yes, the old rules are a-changing. But no, what remains unchanged is the cold hard fact that we need to earn a fair amount of money to survive. SAG and AFTRA and AEA were conceived to ensure that this happens. But what has taken its place?

I am told that I may perform in an AEA condoned "Equity Waiver" theatrical production. That means that I have the opportunity to "practice my craft" for not much more than car fare.

I am told that I may perform in a SAG or AFTRA condoned  "student production" to "practice my craft" for a copy of the result "for my reel".  My reel has become an essential adjunct in the job-hunting process.  Job hunting has become the premier industry in today’s Hollywood (and New York). Hundreds of websites have come into being, offering job hunting services for a price. And so, the poor actor’s pockets, bare due to the near impossibility of getting paid these days, is made even more bare by the new necessity to subscribe to these websites.

The dignity of the professional actor is severely threatened. The new image is that of a young actor, with pleading in his eyes, one hand out, and the other behind his back, to protect it, I guess. While the producer/director wields his traditional authoritarial stick over the actor, ensuring the continuance of a feudal system tolerated since the dark ages. And the middle men, the managers, the agents, the lawyers, and some teachers and casting directors, earn their living in dependence upon the actors lack of confidence, "teaching" said actors "new tricks".

Funeral questions

By John Clark on Posted in A SPACE FOR REFLECTION, COMMENTARY-Passing parade

I was not invited to my ex-wife’s funeral, not even after 33 years of what I esteem to be a good marriage. She did not want me there, and when I went anyway, my son Ben put me in the hospital with the help of the local Kent, Connecticut guards "obeying orders, mein herr."  Awaking, relieved to find that I was not dead too, things did work out for the better.  Now I’ve had time to reflect.  Was I right to go, or wrong? I believe the Irish have it right; friends, enemies, everyone’s welcome, and it’s party time!

I asked "Ask Amy".  She said I was nothing more than a hooligan [maybe I am, but a proud hooligan I hope].  I asked my neighbor, who should know more about these things.  He does, after all, run the local "Hollywood Forever" cemetery. He pointed out that they always obeyed the wishes of the departed, but this was his view:

Personally, I do not feel that anyone should be excluded from a funeral – especially those who most need to find peace with the deceased.  At Thai Buddhist funerals (never private), which we conduct often – a bowl of water is placed on the lap of the deceased.  All of the mourners are given a small cup of water from a golden bowl.  One by one, they pass by the deceased and pour the water into the bowl.  The water represents all that remains unfinished, unexpressed, unsaid between the mourner and the deceased.  To not allow proper mourning, to ignore rituals, to erase or deny death – well – it creates a haunted culture – the living unable to find peace because the dead have not been put to rest.

I like that.  After all, that choice is the last one you are ever likely to make, because, well, it is after all.

Daily Mail at it AGAIN!

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, Links to Media, My Daily Mail complaint

It’s been brought to my attention that the Daily Mail published a piece a few days after the death of my ex that purported to be the result of an "exclusive interview" with me.  It ran under the name of Alison Boshoff (whoever she is) on May 8th, to be accessed all over the world.  It was headlined THE LOVE CHILD WHO BROKE LYNN REDGRAVE’S HEART: In the week the actress died, her ex-husband tells of his shame and regret.  As my readers know, I brought a complaint against them to the British Press Complaints Commission. Daily Mail Complaint detail.

Now, it seems, their MO has changed. Instead of planting their staff on location here in Hollywood, which costs money of course, they use the freelance services of agencies, such as Splash News.  In this case of a Daily Mail "exclusive", there was a knock on my door, and I stood on the front step wrapped in a towel fresh out of the shower, and gave my responses to the news of Lynn’s death as honestly as I could to 2 guys who identified themselves as being from Splash News. (Now I wish they’d been from the A.P., an honest and respected outfit.)  They were certainly genuine and personable and sympathetic. That was it. They had a recorder and a small camera.  I expected to be quoted, and hoped to see my remarks appear in various places.

I count members of the press as friends, on the whole, because I know what it’s like to be one of them, and I believe it’s best not to slam doors in their faces.  I did not expect the Daily Mail to claim an exclusive interview, and then compose an article in their style of Propaganda, and rehash bits of old gossip, bestirring selected commentary from the hoi polloi at the bottom of the article, suggest I co-operated, and then leave the impression that I was paid for an exclusive interview.  Yes I could use the money, but I have never, ever, been paid for any interview at any time in connection with the divorce of Lynn and me. Which is how I came to start this website, to dispense the truth, and anybody is free to quote from it, and some do.  I hope to get a book out of my lifelong adventures in the celebrity trade as I have experienced it as part of my memoirs, and of course I’d want to get out of debt with it, but not this way.  Is it actionable, against the faceless editor bosses and publishers who make the decisions? Who knows. I do know I do not look forward to hiring attorneys.

And, by the way, I feel neither shame nor regret.

ANN O’NEILL, LOUISE ROUG, GINA PICCALO

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade, Links to Courts & Judges, Links to Media

Wikipedia would consider the LA Times to be a “reliable source” in their category “Biographies of Living People”. After all, they were the only ones attending the trial to report on it. So let’s analyze the newspaper’s report, forensically, for the sake of the record, just to investigate whether they are reliable. This is what I wrote immediately after the news appeared:
March 13, 2001
These were the low-lifes that the Los Angeles Times was responsible for concocting this story, although only Roug covered our trial.
The press seems to maintain an unholy alliance with celebrities, probably because they are the source of countless future interviews and collaborative undertakings of mutual benefit, and their unfortunate spouses are not. And as for the general public, they would really prefer not to know any bad things going on in the lives of their favorites, which is understandable, but neither should they be misinformed with celebrity white-washing by the media.
Because I wanted the press to be present at the trials to report on the truth of what was going on for the all important reason that my reputation was at stake, I was glad to meet up front with Louise Roug, sent by the Times. I took her out for lunch. I wanted to know where she was coming from, I wanted to free up her mind in case it was set already. I discovered that she’s full-blooded Danish, as was my mother. We got on fine, and I thought I had an ally in truth. She attended for several days, and had access to the facts.
I had been living for two years under the effects of the stunningly awful reports in the press and television media of what a cad I had been, and I was defending Lynn and my kids by not speaking up. Now the truth was about to be revealed, under oath at trial. What better way for me to clear my name. And to do this, unavoidably without a lawyer, I thought at least would attract attention. The air would be cleared, and I could get on with my life. She attended for several days, and had enough of the facts to create a real story. (As a side note, interesting that not one member of the public dropped by to take a look over the entire ten days of trial.)
Instead, to my utter astonishment, she presented this biased and misrepresented account against me in the service of celebrity Lynn, and to please her editors in support, I now see, of her ambition to become a serious journalist with a foreign posting (at this time, unbelievably, she’s reporting for them from Iraq!). Her publicized view of me still sticks as part of the false view held by Lynn’s fan club. At least that was true until now, where I have a chance to reveal the smoke and mirrors surrounding the case, and provide context with this blawg. If, that is, people will read it.
The account of this trial, of course, belonged on the Business page or the News pages where other trials are reported for the enlightenment of serious readers, not the Entertainments page.
I filed this document with all of its ersatz dirty laundry as part of my Appeal. And it’s on the public record, so that other media, like CNN, could read it.
Bear in mind that much of the detail is for the benefit of others contemplating divorce, to correct the serious smear to my reputation, and to show what the courts can do to you if you are not represented. I don’t think anyone else has the stomach to do this.
I risk revealing the details of how they play dirty with pro per defendants. They may be emulated by opposing professional attorneys, but I know that their law-schools already taught them the same tricks.
Download PDF file

Dr. Laura reinventing herself again?

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

I wrote about Dr. Laura Schlessinger awhile back, comparing her to Dr. Toni Grant. So did Betty Bowers, which is also worth recalling.  If you want to know who Betty Bowers is, she’s explained here.  Meanwhile, we will wait with baited breath for the umpteenth coming of Dr. Laura, but in what shape? She claims she will be giving up her radio show.  Back to books, or TV reality appearances? A game show? A Judge on America’s Got Talent? (I can think of others who have done this.)  Perhaps she will go back to this, although I think it’s got a bit past her.

Her callers will have to find some other problem-seeker offering personalized answers. Someone with a little sensitivity, someone who will know whether it is ok to flaunt the "N" word. I do feel a tiny bit sorry for her, truth to tell. For her life as of now will be taken over by others not of her choosing, and I know how that feels.

Chief Justice Ronald George retiring

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

So, Chief Justice Ronald George is retiring next January.  Wants to spend more time "with his family" he says.  Also time for traveling, time to enjoy his retirement. Lucky him.

Let’s have a look at where he will be leaving the system, the system of justice we have endured and continue to endure on his watch here in California.

Here.

And here.

And here.

And here.

And here.

We hope that our next chief justice will see it as his first priority to clean up the shocking performance record of Family Court and Probate judges (usually interchangeable), how they’re elected, and how they operate under their current algorithms. He will have left an array of cases showing legal dysfunction at its worst.  Perhaps now he will have time to think about the legacy he left behind, and the new Keeper can learn from it.

Most of all, it’s time to think about the pro ses and pro pers, who labor under a system that favors lying lawyers, and discourages the use of our courts by we the people, exercising our constitutional right to appear unrepresented in court, and insist on being treated with due respect and equality. Let judges act more like umpires applying the rules, and less like lawyers bending them.

Switzerland gives U.S. Justice the finger!

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

So Roman Polanski goes free!  The sound you hear is the exhalation of breath echoing through the Halls of Hollywood.  A Swiss news agency released the following item:

Polanski was charged with giving drugs and alcohol to a 13-year-old girl before raping her at Jack Nicholson’s Hollywood home in 1977.  According to Polanski, the teen had consented. He spent 42 days in prison undergoing psychiatric evaluation and then fled the country prior to sentencing.  He recently sought dismissal of his case on the grounds of misconduct by the now-deceased judge who had arranged a plea bargain and then reneged on it. Earlier this year the girl – now woman – involved also filed to have the charges dismissed.  At the time of Polanski’s Zurich arrest, many criticised the fact that the case was being brought up so many years after the incident.  The Swiss Filmmakers Association described it as, "not only a grotesque farce of justice, but also an immense cultural scandal".

Justice Minister Widmer-Schlumpf then defended the arrest, saying: "It is the rule of law and everybody is treated the same way, whether it is an ordinary citizen or a famous personality."

It’s worth recalling that Richard Fine, Esq. (same age, see below) challenged the Court, and DID NOT RUN. He trusted that due process would work.  (P.S. He’s still in solitary, over one year later.)

(Spoiler – irony)  How DARE any country criticize the U.S. Justice system. We citizens TRUST it. It is PERFECT!


Beware the Beloved

By John Clark on Posted in COMMENTARY-Passing parade

Some people, aka celebrities, are simple, brilliant, unsullied, and innocent souls.  They deserve to be left alone by the masses (aka us.)  Usually women, and who are we talking about?

Sandra Bullock comes to mind.  As does Barbara Walters, Betty White, Princess Di, Dame Judi Dench, Dame Helen Mirren, Angela Lansbury CBE, and Lynn Redgrave OBE. (the Brits with their intimidating honorifics know how to do this.)

Who, then, are these countless commenters who bestow their deathless pronouncements to protect their heroes at the end of any newsworthy story?  I believe they are fans, yes, but they think they are today’s Greek Chorus, who were a body of people invented by the ancient Greeks to add their voices and give meaning to the onstage events of life’s dramas. Note that the performers wore masks.

But THEIR voices are false. On the report of my attempted attendance at Lynn’s funeral, a fusillade of comments appeared after the Daily Mail’s report.  I repudiate their verdicts.

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