Law and Order Special Victims Unit Reviews D

This is a set of reviews of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I’ll often do no more than make brief notes about an episode, although occasionally I’ll go deeper. Also, often there are dissenting main characters on almost any political issue, but you can usually tell what the general position of the show is. All the rest of the reviews are available by clicking on the l&osvu label at the bottom.

(Now that I’m getting into some of the episodes that involve the character John Munch, I’m going to ignore most of his political statements)

“Assumptions” Season 20 Wikipedia summary is: “A Muslim woman appears to be assaulted in a synagogue and two teenage boys are seen fleeing the scene, which prompts the Special Victims Unit to come in and investigate. The case quickly is confirmed as a hate crime and controversy quickly erupts. However, the case takes a shocking twist when it is discovered that the Muslim woman may not be telling the exact truth. Later in the episode it's revealed that the Muslim woman was raped by her ex-husband. He knew she was a lesbian and due to Sharia Law he believed she was still his wife. Meanwhile, Benson receives news that Rob Miller, who raped defense attorney Nikki Staines, has been released from prison on bail, leaving Benson shocked and dismayed.”

 

Israel/Palestine, Anti-Muslim Bigotry 

The two main issues are the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and social conservatism among Muslims. The Muslim woman is a City Council person who takes a very public position in support of the Palestinians and there is great hostility towards her from the Jewish population. The idea is that she is allegedly anti-semitic because of her support for the the Palestinians.

It’s not inherently anti-Semitic to support the Palestinians, although it can be, as I have written in several essays that are found here, here, here, and here. But supporting the Palestinians is usually based on a very good argument, a version of which I deploy here.                                

There’s hardly anything in the episode about anti-semitism among the Arab community of NYC, but there’s plenty about anti-muslim bigotry among supporters of Israel.

The other main issue is social conservatism among Muslims, something that I think a lot of progressives ignore. One really awesome part of this episode is that the victim is a RELIGIOUSLY OBSERVANT MUSLIM LESBIAN. You don’t hear about that everyday. In fact, a briefly-appearing character stupidly assumes she believes in Sharia (very conservative Islam) because she wears a hijab.

One of the last things is that this Muslim, Palestinian-supporting City Council member is an anti- eviction activist.

Lastly, I’d say that in America there’s not much anti-semitism of the Nazi sort or the left-wing sort or the Arab/Muslim sort. But there is one type of anti-Semitism that is unrecognized by most people and that is the Evangelical kind. I discuss that and some related stuff here.

“Payback” Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “Two detectives from the NYPD's Special Victims Unit, Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler, investigate the stabbing and castration of a cab driver, only to learn that the victim had purchased a phony hack license from an inmate (Matt Skollar) at Rikers Island. Further investigation reveals that the dead man was a Serbian soldier named Stefan Tanzic, who had been indicted on charges of ethnic cleansing. Herself a child of rape, Benson has trouble separating herself from the case after realizing that the victim was a rapist. Stabler tries to keep her from crossing the line in her attempts to protect suspects whom she feels were justified in their actions.”

 

Bosnia/Kosovo/NATO

I like the part about the rape-infused ethnic cleansing that took place in the Serb campaign in Bosnia around 1994. Although a lot of leftists weren’t sympathetic because Serbia was seen as in conflict with the US, I always was very concerned about the muslims of Bosnia. That’s based partly in hind-sight on the fact that Serbia consistently went after it’s neighbors in very heavy-handed way- first Croatia, then Bosnia, then Kosovo. Also, I was political friends with a Bosnian woman who said that what the Serbs did in Bosnia and Kosovo was wrong. Because of this I have mixed feelings about the NATO war against Serbia over Kosovo- there were some bad things about it (bombing civilian targets), but I think it was for a good cause.

There were some weird references to homosexuals and one very minor character was gay.

“Hysteria” Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “When a young woman is found dead, she is initially believed to be a prostitute and the latest victim of a serial killer. As they look into her home life, however, Benson and Stabler realize that the victim does not fit the pattern, and may not be connected to the other deaths after all. After Munch's instincts lead the team to believe their suspect is a cop (Joe Lisi), Cragen consults his old friend Det. Lennie Briscoe for help. “
 

This is one where a cop is (one of) the bad guy(s), in this case a misogynist. In all fairness, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s less sexism than racism among police. They seem like they’re very much against violence against women.

“Stocks and Bondage” Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “When a financial analyst and devotee of BDSM is found strangled to death in a leather harness in her bedroom, Benson and Stabler at first suspect either suicide or accidental death from autoerotic asphyxiation However, the discovery of a large quantity of hidden diamonds leads the detectives into a shadowy world of money laundering and securities fraud.”

At one point the head of SVU talks to a witness who is an undocumented immigrant and makes it clear that he’s not with immigration.

Roseanne Reviews F

This is a set of reviews of Roseanne episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I will focus only on the political aspects and will mention what percent of lines spoken by non-family members are spoken by people of color.

“Sweet Dreams” Episode 8, Season 2. Wikipedia summary is: “Roseanne tries to relax in the bathtub despite constant interruptions from her family; she ends up dreaming about murdering her husband and kids. The dream ends with Roseanne on trial, her family back from the dead to testify on her behalf, and a lavish musical number.”

Probably about 50 lines were by non-family members and none were by people of color.

“We Gather Together” Episode 9, Season 2. Wikipedia summary is: “On Thanksgiving Day, Jackie finally tells her mother about her new police career. They end up being the main event with their bickering and snickering flowing throughout the holiday feast. After dinner, Dan gets a huge shock when he learns his father is romancing Crystal.”

Of about 15 lines by non-family members, none are by people of color.

“Brain Dead Poets Society” Episode 10, Season 2. Wikipedia summary is: “Darlene's homework poem wins teacher recognition, and she is asked to read it at the school's Culture Night. Roseanne is thrilled, but Darlene does not want to go. Roseanne puts her foot down, and the family goes to the event, where Darlene's reading strikes an emotional chord with all.”

Out of about 25-30 lines by non-family members, none are by people of color.

“Lobo-Cop” Episode 11, Season 2. Wikipedia summary is: “Roseanne gets a second job at the Lobo Lounge, but soon discovers that she and Dan are spending too much time apart.”

Out of about 50 lines by non-family members, about 10% are by people of color.

“Chicken Hearts” Episode 13, Season 2. Wikipedia summary is: “Roseanne's new job at a fast-food restaurant includes an obnoxious teenaged boss. When she invites him to dinner to try to butter him up for better shift hours, his nasty attitude soon convinces everyone that Roseanne deserves better treatment. Glenn Shadix guest-stars as an indecisive customer.”

This episode is, of all the episodes that are about labor and management, probably the furtherest from being pro-union. It DOES however illustrate a labor-management problem and one aspect of why it’s important to talk about working families. Ideally parents shouldn’t have to work when it’s inconvenient for their family life. They’re contributing greatly to our society by raising children and our society should help them with that.

Of about 40 lines by non-family members, none are by people of color.

Law and Order Special Victims Unit Reviews C

This is a set of reviews of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I’ll often do no more than make brief notes about an episode, although occasionally I’ll go deeper. Also, often there are dissenting main characters on almost any political issue, but you can usually tell what the general position of the show is. All the rest of the reviews are available by clicking on the l&osvu label at the bottom.

“Missing” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is: “The Special Victims Unit are called in after a little girl is found in the trunk of an abandoned car. The girl says her kidnapper wore yellow the same color as Big Bird and the detectives discover that she was adopted by two gay men after a surrogacy arrangement. After interrogating many suspects, the detectives find the girls kidnapper but they also learn that her kidnapper may not be who he claims to be and uncover a years kept secret kept by his mother, who may not be as innocent as she says she is.”

There is a gay male couple and this time it goes a bit further than the normal anti-homophobia of the show, because they have a child (one artificially inseminated a surrogate and the other adopted). Although that stopped being controversial about 15 years ago, it still is more significant than if they were child-less.

“Dearly Beloved” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is “The Special Victims Unit are called in after a woman crashes a wedding claiming that the groom, a therapist, raped her. The detectives talk to several people, who claim that the woman has stalked them at times after sending inappropriate messages on Facebook and Instagram, which challenges the woman’s integrity. However, when it is discovered that the woman is pregnant with her alleged rapist's baby, the woman confides to Benson that she doesn’t know if she can have the baby due to being unable to love it and an upset Benson tells Rollins something that she overheard her mother say years ago.”

Abortion

There are two minor things and one bigger thing worth commenting on. First, the villain, a white man, is at the beginning about to get married to an Asian-American woman. Second, there a brief appearance by another Asian-American woman who is gay

The episode kind of brings up the subject of rape and abortion, even though there is no attempt made to stop a rape victim from having one. As I wrote elsewhere on this blog,

“I’m pro-choice for the following reasons: I don’t know whether or not the fetus is alive but I am sure that A) women should control their own bodies, B) without the right to choose they can’t have full equality, and C) if men could also get pregnant there would be a massive pro-choice majority in this country.”

If I were a pro-lifer, I would believe in making some exceptions and the very first one would be for rape survivors. As the show states, some survivors who get pregnant by their attacker choose to have then child, but if they choose to have an abortion that should be an option. It’s one reason I support Sinn Fein, now the largest party in Ireland. I’m not sure what their current position on abortion is, but they used to be the kind of pro-life party that made a lot of exceptions, including for rape.

“The Good Girl” Season 20 Wikipedia summary is: “The Special Victims Unit are called in to investigate a complicated pregnancy case involving a thirteen year old girl. Benson works to try and find out who the baby’s father is, but getting the answer becomes complicated when the teenage girl is reluctant to expose the baby’s father. She refuses to speak to Benson and the Special Victims Unit, prompting Benson to believe that the baby’s father might be someone close to the teenage girl who may have taken advantage of her.”

There’s a bit about homophobia where a gay teacher at a Catholic Middle School is in the closet because he would be rejected by them. It’s also noteworthy that he’s a white man in a relationship with a black man.

I also learned something pretty sick. In  Missouri, adults can marry children, I think starting at around 10. It’s sick.

“Diss” Season 20 Wikipedia summary is: “When a pop star is assaulted in her own home, the Special Victims Unit are called in to investigate what happened. The detectives soon find out that the pop star’s husband had a heated public feud with another competing recording artist, which could easily have been the motive for the assault. Just as Tutuola gets deep into the case, it is discovered that his family ties to one of the suspects of the assault and as a result, Stone, who is taking the case seriously, orders Benson to take him off the case.”

One of the characters is a bi-racial man and another is his mom. I know that’s not as unusual as it was 20 years ago, but still…. There’s also some stuff about how cops treat black people.

Roseanne Reviews E

This is a set of reviews of Roseanne episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I will focus only on the political aspects and will mention what percent of lines spoken by non-family members are spoken by people of color.

“The Little Sister” Episode 2, Season 2 Wikipedia Summary is: “Jackie takes umbrage at Roseanne's snarky remarks about her career ambitions when she reveals that she has enrolled in the police academy. Becky gets caught reading Dan's girlie magazine; and Darlene commiserates with a drunken Jackie about her frustrations over being the little sister.”

This is the first episode in which Jackie talk about becoming a cop, something she follows through with later on. Although I could put this in the negative column, since in general I’m not real fond of cops, it could be that the Landford police department have no bad apples at all- it’s probably so small it could be that they’re all good people. So, it’s pro-cop to one degree or another, but it’s also a very anti-racist show so maybe it’s not meant as an uncritical pro-cop message. For my thoughts about Black Lives Matter, see this.

This is also either THE or the first pro-porn episode, although it’s mixed. There’s some talk about the idea that women who do porn come from bad families, which is probably mostly not true. I don’t know if that’s part of the feminist anti-porn argument. In any case, overall it’s sort of pro-porn.

“Guilt by Disassociation” Episode 3, Season 2 Wikipedia summary is: “Roseanne gets her hopes up after a friend recommends her for an office job that would allow her to quit her hated telemarketing. After a quick interview, she lands the job—but the celebration is short-lived, when the offer is revoked due to her lack of computer knowledge.”

This episode is significant because out of about 60 lines by non-family members, about 85% are by people of color. And 1-2 lines is by a spanish-speaking immigrant.

“Somebody Stole My Gal” Episode 4, Season 2. Wikipedia Summary is: “Bert (Kevin Dunn), an emotionally needy architect at Dan's new job site adopts the Conners as a surrogate family, much to their chagrin.”

Out of about 50 lines by non-family members, none are by people of color.

“Five of a Kind” Episode 6, season 2. Wikipedia summary is: “A poker night becomes interesting when Roseanne receives a kiss from Dan's friend Arnie. Roseanne tells Jackie about the kiss but later realizes it was only a platonic gesture.”

Of about 60-75 lines by non-family members, about 30% are by people of color.

“BOO!” Episode 7, season 2. Wikipedia summary is: “The Conners celebrate Halloween. Roseanne and Dan compete to see who is the spookiest. Roseanne tries to rekindle the spirit of Halloween for Becky who is upset after she was not invited to a party.”

Out of about 20 lines spoken by non-family members, none are by people or color.

The Stars and Bars II

Recently great attention has been placed on symbols of the Confederacy in our nation. It almost seems like there is a near consensus that such symbols belong in museums and nowhere else. But Trump, who is still supported to one degree or another by a large minority of the population and might be re-elected, passionately believes that there is nothing wrong with such symbols.

I have named this post “The Stars and Bars II” because I did a post about 11 years ago called “The Stars and Bars.” It’s about how legitimizing the Confederate flag contributed to a woman (whose story I read about in the publication of the Southern Poverty Law Center) becoming a Nazi skinhead.

A lot of people believe that the Confederacy was about independence from tyrannical Washington DC rule instead of being about slavery. But when they considered ending slavery to get military support from Europe and win the war, they decided not to. Slavery was more important to them than independence.

When people invoke states rights in connection with the Confederate cause, what they don’t know or ignore is that the Confederate states were unhappy with those northern states that passed laws interfering with the Fugitive Slave Act and which banned slave-owners from bring slaves with them while inside those states. They were against individual states passing anti-slavery laws.

The Confederacy didn’t believe in freedom. According to the movie “CSA: The Confederate States of America” (which is a fake documentary looking at an alternative history where the South wins), they intended to colonize Latin America if successful.

The idea that the South was oppressed by the North is ridiculous. In two ways their voting population was over-represented in the US government.

First, as I explain towards the bottom of this post, the way the US Senate works is undemocratic to the benefit of the smaller states. I have yet to create a 100% fool-proof argument, but take the number two for two Senators and divide it by the population of Wyoming, the smallest state and do the same thing with California. The tiny percentage of a vote that residents of the former have in the Senate is MUCH bigger than the same for Californians, about 67 times bigger. There is nothing wrong about small states being out-voted by big states, it’s not like living in a small state puts you in a protected class and you need some sort of Affirmative Action. I’m willing to bet that the population of the average Confederate state back then was probably about 1/10 the size of the population of the average Union state (UPDATE 9/4/23 I just found a way to sort of nail this down without a lot of work- the average Confederate state had 5.25 congressional districts and the average Union state (including the border states) had 7.4 congressional districts).

There’s also the 3/5 Compromise, where in terms of allocating US House districts, each slave was counted as 3/5 of a person. I’m sure in some Confederate states before the Civil War, this meant at least an additional House seat.

So, the states that formed the Confederacy had MORE power per non-slave resident than the States that remained in the union. They were not oppressed by the North. Even with their inflated political power, they were often just out-voted. Considering that the Constitution gives every state an additional two votes in the Electoral College based on having two Senators, which creates a small and false degree of equality between the states, that statement applies to the election of Lincoln as well.

They were also, if it’s not obvious, just racist. One example of that is that some Black Union soldiers captured by the Confederacy were killed instead of being held as POWs and more generally Black POWs were treated differently than white POWs.  One of the military installations that Trump wants to keep named after a Confederate general, Fort A.P. Hill, is named after someone who had his men execute Black POWs. According to this (two other things in this post come from there), when Texas seceded, it was explicitly in favor of the idea that the white race is superior.

The Confederacy was all about racism and slavery and had no legitimate claim to being oppressed by the North. The Confederate flag is a symbol of racism and should be removed from anything official and military bases named after Confederate generals should be renamed and statues etc. about the Confederacy should be removed to museums where they belong.

Law and Order Special Victims Unit Reviews B

This is a set of reviews of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I’ll often do no more than make brief notes about an episode, although occasionally I’ll go deeper. Also, often there are dissenting main characters on almost any political issue, but you can usually tell what the general position of the show is. All the rest of the reviews are available by clicking on the l&osvu label at the bottom.

“Caretaker” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is: “The Special Victims Unit is called in to investigate what could possibly be their most heinous and disturbing crime when a father and his daughter are found brutally murdered in their home and his son is found wandering the streets, with stab wounds and blood all over him. The detectives investigate the case while trying not to let their emotions get the better of them and when the murderer (Sasha Alexander) is discovered and the motives of the crime are finally uncovered, it comes as a shock to everyone involved and Benson starts having mixed feelings about the nature of the crime committed.”

There’s an appearance by the gay or bi-sexual psychiatrist who works with the DA’s office.

“Hell’s Kitchen” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is “The Special Victims Unit is called in after a woman (Genevieve Angelson) who works at a trendy popular restaurant is sexually assaulted at a VIP after-party. At first, the victim is reluctant to talk to the detectives, wanting to let it go, but they soon discover that there are more victims and that the rapist's assaults go way back to when the rapist was in high school. The detectives are soon led to an ADA (Jacob Pitts) who is a dedicated advocate for women’s rights, who might be holding secrets related to the case. Meanwhile, Benson becomes stressed as Noah’s defiant behavior continues.”

Capitalism and Sexism

There is one aspect of this worth mentioning. One of the two stories is that of a business owner who rapes his female employees. According to one victim, as a prelude to his assault he said “you want that promotion?” This tests my understanding of feminist-Marxist sociology, but it’s about a male employer abusing his power in relation to his female employees to get sexual gratification from them. If I had a better understanding of that kind of sociology I would probably have a lot more to say.

“Alta Kockers” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is: “When a young, promising transgender author is found murdered and physically assaulted, the Special Victims Unit is called in to investigate the case. The detectives are soon led to two elderly, reclusive brothers (Judd Hirsch and Wallace Shawn) who have both been harboring a terrible secret for several decades, which soon leads to a case of child sexual abuse suffered by both of the men in the past, which could change how the investigation goes when a decades old murder is uncovered. The case becomes extremely distressing for Rollins and Benson, who are both mothers, especially Rollins who is almost ready to give birth.”

It starts with the murder of a woman who works as a transgender prostitute. She’s killed by a john who didn’t know she was biologically male and who insists during questioning that he’s not gay.

“Plastic” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is: “The Special Victims Unit is called in to investigate after a young woman is drugged and sexually assaulted. The woman claims she was raped by a famous celebrity surgeon (Mark Feuerstein) and his girlfriend (Alyssa Sutherland). The investigation soon reveals that there are many victims of the surgeon and his girlfriend and the sexual assault case soon turns into a murder case when a body is found where a sexual assault is taped. Things soon take a rather bizarre and shocking twist when the girlfriend of the surgeon’s former identity is discovered, changing how the case goes when she proves to be not who she claims to be.”

The victim gets assistance from a gay male couple. It’s pretty brief but worth mentioning.

“Part 33” Season 20. Wikiepdia summary is: “Stone starts the court trial of a woman (Amy Rutberg) who murdered her husband, who was a police officer. The woman claims her husband was abusive to her, often raping, beating and intimidating her. The complicated case forces the Special Victims Unit to take sides and fight over what they think is right, particularly Rollins and Carisi, who have a heated argument with each other over their thoughts on the case. Meanwhile, the case brings back traumatic memories for Benson, who starts remembering her ordeal with William Lewis several years ago.”

This is sort of an example of them occasionally going after other cops.

“Facing Demons” Season 20. Wikipedia Summary is: “The Special Victims Unit is called in after a young man who was molested as a child commits suicide and try to investigate who was his rapist. The detectives soon discover that the man was in the same little league team that former squad member and Benson’s ex Brian Cassidy was in. Remembering Cassidy telling him he was molested as a child by his little league coach, Stone visits Cassidy and asks for his help to catch what could be a serial child molester who has been molesting boys for decades.”

There is a gay male couple.

Roseanne Reviews D

This is a set of reviews of Roseanne episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I will focus only on the political aspects and will mention what percent of lines spoken by non-family members are spoken by people of color.

“Workin’ Overtime” Episode 19, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “The Wellman Plastics employees are exhausted after Booker continues to lengthen work shifts due to upped quotas and machinery errors. Even Roseanne, the queen of the circle, cannot handle the pressure—especially when Dan starts working overtime as well. After one too many long days, she takes a breather at a local diner where a waitress provides some perspective about life and loneliness.”

It seems that there is no union. Although there is at least one episode in a later season that is pro-union, and one episode that is about employees buying their factory, there is nothing in this episode that is pro-union. However, it DOES illustrate conflict between management and labor, but not in a way that is pro-union and there is very little pushback by labor, which might be what happens in that situation in reality, but ideally there would be something pro-union in there.

There is a bad joke that is more of a transphobic than an anti-transphobic statement.

Of about 40 lines by non-family members, about 10% are by a Latina work-friend of Roseanne’s (I’m going to slightly edit some of the earlier reviews to reflect that this woman is a Latina, something I just found out (there were two barely perceptible hints, but they could have said her name, and I just finally found her name)).

“Toto, We’re Not In Kansas Anymore” Episode 20, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “A dangerous tornado is heading for Lanford, and the Conners, along with Crystal (who takes shelter at their house), prepare for the storm. Problems arise: Becky insists on retrieving her pet guinea pigs from the garage, while Jackie barely makes it to shelter after a trip to the grocery store, prompting a fight with her and Roseanne.”

There are about 20 lines by a non-family member and all of them are by a white person.

“Death and Stuff” Episode 21, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “During the family's busy weekend activities, a door-to-door salesman drops dead in the Conner kitchen. Roseanne and Dan attempt to conceal the corpse from potential buyers for their washer and dryer. The police officer who responded to their emergency call helps Darlene with a school assignment while waiting for the coroner to arrive.”

There are about 25 lines by non-family members and practically all of them are by white people.

“Dear Mom and Dad” Episode 22, Season 1. The Wikipedia summary is: “An unannounced visit by Roseanne's parents throws the Conner house into an uproar. Dan and Jackie are pushing a usually outspoken Roseanne to stick up for herself after she is at a loss for words. Hostility and craziness abound, but the biggest shock comes when Bev announces that they are moving to Lanford. Bruce Willis makes a cameo appearance as himself during the end credits.”

There is one flawed anti-homophobic statement. We learn that Roseanne has a gay aunt. It involves a bad joke about female gym teachers, but considering how anti-homophobic the show is later on (looking at the entire series, I think that about 1% of all lines are spoken by characters who are out when they speak those lines, and that goes up to about 3% if we count lines spoken when viewers didn’t know those characters were gay) I think it’s an anti-homophobic statement.

“Let’s Call it Quits” Episode 23, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “The Wellman factory women rebel against the stringent rules imposed by a tough new supervisor. After he raises the cap on the quotas yet again, Roseanne asks him to ease off. The boss agrees, but only if Roseanne agrees to treat him with undeserved respect. When he reneges on the deal by claiming he now controls Roseanne, she, along with Jackie and their friends, permanently clock out. Final regular appearance of George Clooney as Booker.”

This episode finally has some stuff that is near pro-union and at the VERY end turns into something pro-union. It would be better if it resulted in an organizing campaign or some kind of non-union action (I don’t know what the legal boundaries on that are) but it’s still pretty good. It’s a good illustration of abusive management, not to mention stupid management. Besides the argument that it’s just wrong to treat workers like that, setting an unreachable quota can create anxiety, stress and depression that affects their ability to get anywhere near that quota.

Although it would have been better if they had started a union and/or engaged in some kind of collective action, some of the workers DID talk and get a representative, Roseanne, to talk to the supervisor and she negotiated with him and briefly got the quotas lowered. But he clearly had absolutely no respect for workers and he raised the quotas to the earlier, unmeetable level. Shortly after that, Roseanne and her friends leave.

How far is this from being pro-union? The show expresses solid support for unions in at least one later episode and in the 9th season Roseanne and Jackie use some of their lottery wealth to help the factory employees buy the factory., So, this episode is in the context of a pro-labor show. At the very end of this episode those factory workers who left cheer as Roseanne says her name is Sally Field, which must be a reference to the pro-union movie “Norma Rae” where Field plays a pro-union worker.

There’s probably about 85-100 lines by non-family members and about 20% are by a black female friend of Roseanne’s at work.

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Reviews A

This is a set of reviews of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I’ll often do no more than make brief notes about an episode, although occasionally I’ll go deeper. Also, often there are dissenting main characters on almost any political issue, but you can usually tell what the general position of the show is. All the rest of the reviews are available by clicking on the l&osvu label at the bottom.

The first episode is a two-parter, the first called “Man Up” and the second part called 
“Man Down.” The wikipedia summaries are:

“The Special Victims Unit is called in after a fifteen-year-old boy (Bryce Romero) is sexually assaulted. Despite having evidence, he is too scared to name his attacker (Dylan Walsh), making things complicated for the detectives. When the identity of the attacker is discovered, the detectives do their best to protect the teenager from being abused again. Meanwhile, Rollins talks things through with her ex-boyfriend who cheated on her with an escort and also confides in Benson that she is pregnant for a second time. Benson expresses concern to Tutuola that she is not as strong or fast as she used to be.”

and

“The case involving a teenager who was sexually assaulted continues and Stone takes the rapist to court. However, an unexpected verdict comes back, shocking everyone involved. The victim ends up making a tragic decision which results in several people dead and injured and the Special Victims Unit must charge the victim. An upset Stone along with the rest of the squad decide to try their best to charge the boy's rapist as well in order to get justice for all the victims who were killed or injured in the attack. Meanwhile, Rollins starts having doubts about her pregnancy.”

 

Feminism

There are two feminist aspects of this. Overall it’s slightly about taking the idea of pushing someone to “man up” to a point where it becomes sexist. There’s also a moment when Benson says to Rollins about abortion: “This is your decision to make, alone, and I will defend to the death your right to make it, but regret is an awful thing to live with.”

 

Gun Control and Politics

The main element of the second half is a school shooting and this brings up the issue of gun control, something I largely support. I was in college when the Columbine incident took place in 1999 and I think if the “gun show loophole” had been closed it might not have happened. I was surprised to learn recently that in recent years increasingly law enforcement opposes gun control, which seems to me to mean that more than usual they have a double standard and want guns out of the hands of some of the population but are fine with conservatives having guns. They continue to introduce people of color, disproportionately, to the criminal justice system, which seems to usually have a negative effect on your second amendment rights, and search Black people for weapons more than white people, and shoot Black people who don’t even have a gun, but generally are okay with “open-carry” and more specifically treat white people who pose an armed threat to the State with kid gloves while they call for Antifa to be declared a terrorist organization (Antifa and it’s predecessor, the Anti-Racist Action Network, without arms focuses(d) on grassroots fascists (in the past that usually meant Nazi skinheads), not cops).

 

Homophobia

There’s also two bits about homophobia. First, in the first half, the father suggests that if someone is gay they need counseling. In the second half the son is interviewed by a psychiatrist who refers to her wife and the son just says he isn’t gay, but without any hostility, like he rejects his dad’s homophobia.

“Zero Tolerance” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is: “A nine-year-old girl (Scarlett Lopez) is taken from her mother at the U.S.–Mexico border and ends up in a child sex trafficking ring in New York, which quickly comes to the attention of the Special Victims Unit. Benson and Stone try their hardest to reunite the girl with her family within the court system but meet many obstacles along the way. Eventually, Stone decides to ask for help from an old friend. Meanwhile, Rollins decides to give her rocky relationship with Pollack another chance.”

 

Immigration

Even before the main story about immigrants kicks in, there is one minor pro-immigrant thing. Probably an average of 5 times a season, the detectives make it clear that they’re not “la migra” (immigration) when seeking witnesses, and that sort of thing happened here. It just occurred to me that it would be good if about 20-30% of the time that involved white immigrants who are undocumented because it wouldn’t hurt if white people understood that amnesty would benefit, for example, undocumented Irish.

The main story is about separating undocumented children from their undocumented parents, something that became a hall-mark of Trump immigration policy in recent years. The show is extremely critical of that. When someone from the Office of Refugee Resettlement comes to take the girl back to a camp, he is identified as the one who took her from her mother’s arms and Benson has him arrested for kidnapping. It doesn’t survive the courts of course, but it’s still a powerful statement.

As usual there is some probably realistic disagreement among the detectives about the issue. The Black detective (“Finn”) is less than totally pro-immigrant and unfortunately when the “we’re all the descendants of immigrants” argument is made, he (kind of reasonably) describes Black history. I think that when it comes from pro-immigrant black people, it’s a reasonable response to a flawed pro-immigrant argument, but otherwise it’s a bullshit response to a flawed pro-immigrant argument. He DOES make a good point about how Black people are treated today (but again, it really has nothing to do with a less-than-totally pro-immigrant position). (a colleague refers to immigrants “yearning to breathe free” and then Finn says “I still can’t breathe free,” likely a reference to the last words of Eric Garner, a black man who was killed in a chokehold by the NYPD)

“Exile” Season 20. Wikipedia summary is: “The Special Victims Unit is called in to investigate the sexual assault of a young homeless woman (Aimée Spring Fortier). The squad soon realizes that the woman has a dual personality which makes things complicated. However, when she goes missing, the squad becomes challenged to not only uncover her whereabouts but also her real identity. The detectives later discover that someone from her past may be responsible and that the assault may have happened a long time ago. However, the squad meet a dead end in their investigation and Benson makes a generous decision to help the victim recover from her ordeal.”

There are two main aspects of this that are abnormal (normal being about sex crimes).

 

Homelessness

First, it touches on homelessness. Like almost everyone I’m concerned about homelessness. I have done very little to help the homeless compared to what I’ve done to help those who just have food insecurity (the last 8-10 years I have spent an average of about 4-6 hours a week volunteering at a food-bank) but about 1% of that work was for the benefit of homeless people and probably a lot of food bank clients would become homeless if not for the food bank, and then the resources available for homeless people would have to be shared by a lot more people than is currently the case- i.e. there would be more competition for beds in shelters.

It also touches a little on the subject of homeless people with mental illness. I think that’s a major cause of homelessness- even moderate (let alone severe) mental illness makes it difficult to function and work and pay bills and stuff. Without Social Security disability programs SSI and SSDI there would be even more homelessness. Also, mental illness can be made worse by anxiety, stress and depression and I’m sure gets worse with becoming homeless. (I describe my mental illness here)

 

Marijuana Legalization

The subject of legal marijuana comes up, and the show expresses support for this when Finn buys a legal marijuana snack. I can’t believe that there are still states where even medical marijuana remains illegal. And when it comes to recreational marijuana, I believe there are still federal obstacles for businesses, especially when it comes to banking. Marijuana is much less deadly than alcohol or tobacco and I believe it is less addictive, although driving stoned is probably as stupid as driving drunk. In general I fully support medical and recreational marijuana, especially the former. I can’t believe how many people our nation sentenced to the hell that prison must be for marijuana-only non-violent “crimes.” It’s sick.

Lastly, the gay or bi-sexual psychiatrist working with the DA’s office has a brief appearance.

Don't Vote GOP: Three New Poems

(this was originally published 4/27/20 but for some reason it stopped showing up, so I am republishing it now)

Here are three more poems. They are all based on offensive lyrics, I explain that here.

For all the poems, you can click on the "lyrics" label the bottom.

1. Stop the Klan. What you think it's about.
2. Irish Citizen Army. The Irish workers' militia of 1913-1916.
3. Don't Vote SDLP. What's wrong with Northern Ireland's Social Democratic and Labour Party.

“Stop the Ku Klux Klan” based on “Stand Up and Be Counted” by either The Klansmen in the 1980s or the racist assholes who originally wrote it several decades ago. Original lyrics are here.

1. In 2017 or 2018 or 2019 there were reports that caravans of refugees from Central America were traveling through Mexico on their way to the US. Trump used this, probably successfully, to whip up anti-immigrant hatred. These were definitely refugees and they were traveling in caravan for security.
2. I believe that there is a spectrum between democratic and undemocratic and I believe that, politically, the US is closer to the democratic end of the spectrum. But my thoughts about how we can make it more democratic politically are here. I worry greatly that Trump is a fascist, literally, and my thoughts about that are in the middle of a post here.

3. Trump is a racist. See this and this. There’s also his comments on the murder of an anti-fascist by a fascist in Charlottesville in 2017. And there’s this, that I published elsewhere on my blog:

[When asked about David Duke endorsing him, his] response in an interview was:

Well, just so you understand, I don’t know anything about David Duke. OK? I don't know anything about what you’re even talking about with white supremacy or white supremacists. So, I don't know. I don’t know, did he endorse me or what’s going on, because, you know, I know nothing about David Duke. I know nothing about white supremacists. And so you're asking me a question that I'm supposed to be talking about people that I know nothing about.

4. The Torah is the main Jewish text.
5. My thoughts about religion are found here, although a lot of those posts are only partly relevant.
6. **58% of this version is me, 42% is the original.

7. I give this poem 3 stars out of 5.

8. UPDATE 6/1/22 I believe there's a spectrum between democratic and undemocratic and I USED to believe we were in the middle but closer to the democratic end of the spectrum. With what the GOP has done in the last couple years I think we might be closer to the UNdemocratic end of the spectrum.

Chorus:
Stand up and be counted, welcome the caravans
Stand up and be counted, and stop the Ku Klux Klan

We are anti-racists and love our democracy true
We always can be counted on, when there's a job to do
We educate our communities day and night, to keep them Klan-free
And proudly display anti-racist bumper-stickers, promoting diversity

Chorus

The Bible’s pretty cool, but so are the Torah and Koran
We believe in gay rights, so fuck the Ku Klux Klan
In search of peace and liberty, with the constitution in hand
We will defeat Trump to save our democratic land

***********

“Irish Citizen Army” based on “Blackshirt and Roses” by Razor’s Edge. Original lyrics are here.

1. This is written from the perspective of an Irish Republican in the 1970s, or 1980s or 1990s in Ireland. The Irish Citizen Army was started in 1913 during a general lock-out (where, in response to labor activism, an employer throws their employees out of the factory, etc.) in Dublin. It was formed to protect workers from attacks by the police.  In 1916, when the Easter Rising (an attempt at getting the British out) took place, while most of the moderate Irish Volunteers failed to participate the (admittedly much smaller) ICA participated fully and James Connolly, the leader of the ICA, was the de facto leader of the uprising. Connolly was a Marxist theoretician and union organizer and considered Ireland’s greatest socialist- there is a train station in Dublin named after him.
2. The Starry Plough is basically the flag of republican socialism, although some non-republican socialists use it. At one point about 10-15 years ago, and maybe still today, the youth wing of the Irish Labour Party used it.
3. Connolly was one of the few European socialists to oppose the nationalism of World War I. (The original refers to WWII)
4. Razor’s Edge were/are British and support(ed) the British and Unionist causes in N. Ireland.
5. **54% of this version is me, 46% is the original.

6. I give this poem 4 stars out of 5.

They created the Starry Plough, an emblem of the Irish working-class
And they spread Marxism, patriotic workers struggling en masse.

(Chorus)
Fuck the British Empire
Ireland still recalls
The Irish Citizen Army
Heroes one and all.

Opposed the nationalist war in Europe, they knew the real enemy.
With the European Working-Class, they were in solidarity.

The flame they lit was not extinguished, still burning in our hearts today.
We're carrying on the fight because the ICA led the way.

(Chorus)

Fuck the British Empire
Ireland still recalls
Connolly and the ICA
Heroes one and all.

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

“Don’t Vote SDLP” based on “Freedom” by Razor’s Edge. Original lyrics are here.

1. This is NOT written from my perspective, but the perspective of  the type of person I probably could have collaborated with politically if I had lived in the Nationalist community of Northern Ireland in the 1970s, 80s or 90s (I’m American). It’s from the perspective of someone who lives in a working-class Nationalist area in the 1990s and is sort of pacifist and a left-wing social-dem and doesn’t like Sinn Fein very much because of the violence and doesn’t like the Social Democratic and Labour Party for the reasons I give here (there are some more thoughts about the SDLP here, while discussing the episode “Rising Star”).
The thing is, the British Labour Party hasn’t ever organized in the North and recently had to be taken to court to allow Northerners to join, but they refuse to let the Party run candidates there (which is more of a good thing than a bad thing). There are multiple tendencies in the BLP when it comes to N. Ireland and I think the dominant one is to support their official sister organization the SDLP. I don’t think they ever called for the IRISH Labour Party to organize there and it wasn’t until tension developed between the ILP and the SDLP in 2001, 2002, and 2003 that the ILP started a transitional process of organizing there that was supposed to result in them running candidates as rivals to those of their official sister party. I did an essay/article/post PARTLY about that here.
So, this person has little or no options for voting (even if the BLP had been running candidates there, this person wouldn’t have voted for them (unless they were comparable to Tony Benn or Ken Livingstone)).
2. The red, white, and blue are the colors of the British flag.
3. The SDLP encouraged their supporters to do little more than vote. They were more or less against marching and probably against rallies as well. It’s true that non-SDLP supporters could have become involved and the inevitable friction with the security forces may have been difficult for stewards to control and a riot could have developed. But they still should have tried it, maybe with double the usual number of stewards. If there weren’t enough good stewards in the SDLP, maybe, in the 1970s and 1980s, they could have acquired the help of members and former members of the Official IRA, whose movement the Provisionals (SF and the IRA) had split from, and which was committed to a relatively non-violent path (I just think it would have been great if they HAD organized marches and I wanted to explain that they could have found a way to do it with a low risk of them turning into riots). The failure to offer mass struggle as an alternative to armed struggle weakened the overall effort to advance the interests of the Nationalist population.
4. The SDLP was socially conservative and although they probably did a better job of attracting Protestants than the Provos did, they were also closer to the Catholic Church.
5. Critics sometimes call the SDLP the Stoop Down Low Party.
6. In the 70s and 80s and probably the 90s as swell, I can imagine SDLP canvassers at election time being uncomfortable when whoever they’re talking with informed them that they’re gay. That homophobia is largely gone now, and I don’t think it was all that hateful in the first place, but they were homophobes.
7. They’re in the Socialist International and today maybe the SI almost deserves them, but with their social conservatism and moderate, almost capitalist, economics, they certainly didn’t belong there in the 1990s and 2000s and probably not in the 70s and 80s.
8. My thoughts about what the Provos did are here.
9. Razor’s Edge were/are British and support(ed) the British and Unionist causes in N. Ireland.
10. **66% of this version is me, 34% is the original.

11. This poem gets 5 stars out of 5.

Sell-out politicians always seem confused
They can’t figure out how to eject the red, white and blue
the only time you matter is on Election Day
so they can grab your vote and then tell you to go pray

(Chorus)
Options, no options
For pacifist social-dems in this community
Options, no options
The Stoops offer no mass struggle opportunities

A community defended by heroes but who then go too far
There are too many problems with their repertoire
But the only time you matter to the Stoops is on Election Day
They really want your vote unless you’re lesbian, bi or gay

Chorus

With their moderate instincts, the community gets left behind
if you think they’re helping us, you must be f*cking blind
the only time you matter is on Election Day
They’re in the International, but they’re pro-life and anti-gay

Roseanne Reviews C

This is a set of reviews of Roseanne episodes. My general thoughts about that show are here. I will focus only on the political aspects and will mention what percent of lines spoken by non-family members are spoken by people of color.

“Canoga Time” Episode 11, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “Roseanne proposes a deal when Dan cannot bear to part with his old "junk" that Roseanne wants to donate to a rummage sale. Darlene forges a passing grade on her report card.”

There’s about 15 lines spoke by a non-family member, but they’re all by a white person.

“Bridge Over Troubled Sonny” Episode 13, Season 1. Wikipedia Summary: “Crystal still struggles to cope with her first husband's death, Sonny, whose body was accidentally buried inside the bridge that Jackie drove them over on their way to work. Roseanne is unsure whether she should tell Crystal about Sonny's infidelities. Crystal finally confronts her emotions and reveals that she knew about Sonny's cheating and had her own affair to spite him. Darlene decides it is cool to smoke until Roseanne finds her pack of cigarettes.”

First, this is the episode I referred to earlier about work-place safety. Unfortunately, they make it sound like he just screwed up, but I would say that there may have been some kind of safety measure that could have prevented his death, and I still think it illustrates how most or at least many working-class jobs are more physically dangerous than all or at least almost all middle-class jobs. And that should be taken into consideration when we look at (in addition to safety measure) rates of compensation and things like breaks during work and hours (i.e. forced over-time) (considering that fatigue can contribute to accidents happening). Every year on the 28th of April, the global labor movement (and apparently many outside the labor movement as well) mark Workers Memorial Day, remembering all those killed or injured on the job. There is more information here and here.

In the COVID0-19 era, there is a new dimension to the issue of workplace safety. I won’t go into it much, but although I once found myself frustrated that Best Buy wasn’t doing work on computers, I overwhelmingly am concerned about people who have had to and are continuing to work in this situation. I can’t believe that we weren’t all wearing masks a long time ago, that would have increased the safety of everyone including workers at, for example, meat-packing plants. I’ve worn a mask 99% of the time that I’m outside a home and my car since about March 15th.

Also, out of about 40 lines by non-family members, all are by white people.

“Mall Story” Episode 16, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “It is time for the annual Landford Mall-A-Thon, and Roseanne and her brood scout out the deals during a Saturday in retail heaven. Roseanne makes Dan buy a new pair of shoes he does not want. Becky finds the perfect dress for the high school dance that Roseanne says is too expensive. Roseanne asks Dan to return the shoes so she can afford to buy the dress for Becky.”

The only thing worth noting is that out of about 40 lines by non-family members, none are by people of color.

“Becky’s Choice” Episode 17, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “Becky must decide between her first crush, Chip, and the infamous "Tongue Bandit". The decision worsens when Roseanne and Dan invite Chip's parents for dinner. During the evening, Roseanne catches Becky in the backyard with the other guy.”

The only thing worth noting is that out of about 40 lines by non-family members, none are by people of color.

“The Slice of Life” Episode 18, Season 1. Wikipedia summary is: “Becky prepares for a slumber party, and Darlene practices to pitch in a baseball game. Darlene is extremely moody, and storms out of the house after arguing with Roseanne. Later, Roseanne gets a phone call that Darlene was rushed to the hospital for an emergency appendectomy. Roseanne is wracked with guilt after Darlene develops complications; Roseanne and Dan anxiously wait for the doctor's prognosis.”

This raises the issue of health-care insurance, although not very critically. I think the only thing critical is it says that parents shouldn’t have to worry about health-care insurance when they’re also worrying about their child being in emergency surgery. It’s not a bad point, and there’s a little bit about dealing with health insurance bureaucracy, but it could be more critical of that industry and/or it could have said something about Roseanne having insurance as part of a union’s Collective Bargaining Agreement.

In this episode about 50% of the lines by a non-family member are by people of color. One of the two people of color, the one with about 45% of all such lines is a surgeon who is a black woman. In some ways that’s pretty cool. The only way I dissent from that is that I have heard that the TV show The Cosby Show actually fueled racism in this country because it gave people the impression that black people had equality in financial terms and had nothing to complain about. I watched it fairly often as a kid and remember one episode that probably didn’t help at all. Cliff wants to buy a car and at the dealership he tries to act like he's down on his luck in order to get a better deal. I’m not making that up.

In general though it’s awesome that 45% of the lines by non-family members were by a black female surgeon.

The other thing I should say about health-care is that the COVID-19 situation just makes health-care reform even more important in multiple ways. The main thing is that although the period of late March and early April wasn’t the apocalyptic disaster it could have been, there would have been less of a disaster and maybe fewer deaths if we had had a health-care system set up for the entire population instead of just for those wealthy enough or lucky enough to have health-care insurance. There would have been plenty of ventilators and ICU beds if we had a system with the capacity to help everyone who needs health care.