OK, here we go: this is just one of the stomach churning stories I alluded to at the start of the last post. Terrance has the full story and links here and here. Briefly: Laurel Hester and her partner of six years, Stacie Andree, registered as domestic partners a year ago, when Hester was diagnosed with lung cancer. Hester now has months to live, and New Jersey law has a loophole of sorts that allows the five assholes pictured above, the Ocean County freeholders board, to decide whether Andree will get Hester's pension when she dies (it will mean the difference between keeping or losing the house they bought together). The board has said no. You can send them email; keep in mind that these scumbags have all the power here, since there's no way to change the law before Hester dies, so forgo the satisfaction of a vicious rant and try to get them to do the right thing. Here's what I sent:

Sirs --

I write to ask you to do the decent thing in respect of Lt Laurel Hester. She has earned that pension, and the right to say to whom it will pass when she dies, with almost a quarter of a century in service to her community. It is simply unjust to deny her that right.

The world is watching. Please show them that American justice has compassion at its core. Please do the right, the fair, the just, the American thing -- and grant Lt Hester's request.

Before I could write that, I had to get this out of my system:

You maggots. You self-righteous, self-satisfied, evil fucking bastards.

Laurel Hester worked her whole life in public service; she's earned that pension and the right to say to whom it will pass on her death, and you have no right to deny her that. You happen to have the opportunity -- the law has made an error, and handed you the opportunity to hurt someone -- and you're falling all over yourselves in your rush to take it.

You contemptible excuses for human beings. If there is a God of eternal torture, as the good Christians tell me, be assured that He is setting aside coals and pincers for you even as you read this.

The spousal unit tells me that Hester may be able to sidestep this whole thing by granting Andree power of attorney. I have the feeling that there's a reason that won't work, or they'd have simply done it and avoided the fuss. Any lawyers reading this? I didn't explain it properly -- spousal unit didn't realise it was an inheritance issue, for which power of attorney is no use.