We are still the people, but "We, the People", have gotten lazy.

And, some of the people who were not originally intended as "We, the People", are rightfully pissed.

Let us state right up front that the people who wrote the founding documents of this federation of independent states, were White, Male, Landowning, Protestant, slave owning bastards who wrote up a government for themselves and people like them.

Others were not likely to be protected as noted by Washington himself after the Revolution with regards to one nearly tolerable other group, Catholics:

As mankind become more liberal they will be more apt to allow that all those who conduct themselves as worthy members of the community are equally entitled to the protection of civil government. I hope ever to see America among the foremost nations in examples of justice and liberality. And I presume that your fellow-citizens will not forget the patriotic part which you took in the accomplishment of their Revolution, and the establishment of their government; or the important assistance which they received from a nation in which the Roman Catholic faith is professed.

Quite the admission there that some are less equal to others.

But that does not negate in any way the beauty, power, and resiliency of the system they wrote.

The tools that make up that system have a history that instructs on their power and use.  

We should all master them to thwart those who would sully the country with attempts to limit those documents outside the ways listed in the documents on how to change the documents. 

Is a trademark of a place valid in the United States? We think not (it sure isn't in Britain as Canary Wharf Apartments learned).

Did William J. Thomashower overplay his hand ? We think he did in a few ways.

This simple T-Shirt design by roxysteeparlour.com has been attacked by William J. Thomashower on behalf of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation.

First etsy.com and then amazon.com bowed to his will.

They covered their corporate behinds but there remains the Battle of the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

THE GROWLER: a years late followup to some heated discussions about the future of journalism ...

which led to a process diagram sketched on the back of an envelope that was promptly ignored for years.

Then a media echo chamber of silliness effectively cauterized a Democratic-leaning populace into a zombie-like apathy at the polls.

Not only must objective critical analysis occur (whether or not we call it journalism), that work needs to be given a fertile and sustainable soil from which to spring.

The Growler is that soil.

Read on to see what we want to become.

We chose the name theGrowler from our remembrances of the our long-since left this mortal coil pet Alaskan Malamute, Attu, named after the western-most Aleutian island.

Attu took great pleasure in growling when she sensed danger.

That being said, here are some links to growlers and some discussion tabs.

OR NO JUSTICE  FOR ANYONE TOMORROW.

We waited patiently for a decision after oral argument, more than three (3) months.

That was after waiting more than 2.5 years to be calendared (after the appeals were fully briefed by both sides and ready to be argued).

This was after filing appeals that were sure shot wins that should have corrected lower court shortcomings:

• --non-initiating plaintiff appearing without standing and later perjury to cover up appearing without standing,
• --lack of court ordered notice,
• --refusal to allow attorney to appear who had filed motion and
• --whether, on the record before the court, created and submitted by only the plaintiff, was it more than a year from default (statutory time allotted to respond) to the motion seeking a judgment of that default (if so the case was abandoned). 

As we had put non-trivial effort into the appeals and addressed both the strong points of our argument and any perceived weak points with argument, logic and case law specifically on point, we awaited decisions in 4 appeals expecting that the court would address the arguments and the case law presented and synthesize it with the facts of the case and the record on appeal and come to a reasoned decision.

Additionally, after we raised jurisdictional arguments for the first time at oral argument, a basic right for all people, the lead judge said the Second Department had an excellent reputation to uphold and that the court would get to the bottom of the issues.

We were shocked that the panel did not address, or even acknowledge, the jurisdictional arguments.

We were also sorely disappointed with decisions in the four appeals where :

1. -- the Appellate Court made up facts,
2. -- the Appellate Court misrepresented appellants's allegation of extrinsic fraud with one for intrinsic fraud thereby invoking a statute of limitations for intrinsic fraud that does not exist for extrinsic fraud,
3. -- the Appellate Court selectively quoted a case directly on point to ignore the dispositive fact that an order was no longer in effect,
4. --and, in the most interesting appeal, the Appellate Court just reiterated a challenged conclusion of law the lower court citing the same case as the lower court without addressing the arguments and decades of cases noted in the Appeal Brief finding exactly the opposite. 

This is especially troubling since the case cited by both courts makes absolutely no sense when actually broken into component parts.  

The fourth appeal was procedurally dismissed in a way we found appalling as it puts a ridiculous burden on all litigants, especially pro se (self represented) litigants, when it is clear from the record presented that the lower court refused to hear a motion by an attorney without a notice of appearance when the client was present at the hearing, a situation where a notice of appearance is not required or useful, resulting in a clear lack of Opportunity to be Heard, a due process violation negating any subsequent decisions.

We long fought, some 20 years, to make the Brooklyn Lyceum an arts facility and we are not willing, after waiting 2.5 years just to get the appeal heard, to be brushed off like so much dandruff.

To that end, shining a little light on these simple issues, issues that are core to the American justice system, seems like a good idea such that others in the future can see things for what they are sooner.

If you, JAFO, find yourself convinced of these simple issues we will shortly explain, you can help, and maybe we can help you.

Help by becoming J.A.F.O., Just Another F***ing Observer.

It is simple. Read some documents, watch a couple of minutes of court video and evaluate what you have read. Sign and mail/email an affidavit to us.

Help the Brooklyn Lyceum by paying it forward by paying attention now to ensure others due process later.

Early in the Millenium, educated young people migrated to (cheap) places where they could congregate. 

They sought adventure there, in the coastal cities, places where many of there parents had fled in the decades long exodus to the suburbs (Levittown, Naperville, ...)

Then the recession struck, a by product of specious financial regulation and billions and billions on questionable wars to protect, mostly, oil interests.

This may have just been a blip in history, but those young-ish needed to eat, and put a roof over their heads.

Once congregated, they became a market unto themselves with critical mass enough to support almost anything as long as they were willing to live in the abandoned carcass of the cities.

Being a recession and all, they created their own economies by reinventing artisanal craftsmanship everywhere there had been just bland commodities for decades.

Beer, Pizza, chocolate, coffee, COFFEE, soda, mustard, mayonnaise, peppers, cupcakes, barbeque, whiskey, theater, music,  ...

It was if a great cry arose and said, YUCK!

Nowhere was this most evident than in Brooklyn, close enough to the wellspring of all media, Manhattan, but far away enough for cheap rents in nearly abandoned neighborhoods (Bushwick?).

They worked this for awhile and even elected the first black president, in part, by using nascent social media and sending droves of people to toss-up states door to door. 

Then they went about their non-political business as the economy slowly recovered.

Until 2016, the vote heard round the world.

All the media championed a candidate that had a several million vote advantage OVERALL, but failed to address the chess game afoot, the ELECTORAL COLLEGE, the only game that mattered (whether you agreed with the rules or not, they are the rules in play).

It is often said that votes are yards and states are touchdowns.

Who hasn't seen a team garner massive yardage but fail in the red zone.

The losers complained that they didn't know it was about touchdowns, but that yards should be the only metric.

They then complained that social media was used to influence voters, as if that hadn't been the case in 2008, whether foreign backed or not.  Disingenuous at best.

Btu then came the 2018 mid-terms and a shift in the firmament occurred.  Longstanding politicians saw the handwriting on the wall and did not run for re-election.  Other long time elected officials played the same old game and got beat by any other perspective than holding on to power for the boomer generation.

Thus, Ocasio-Cortez.