It’s time to Break It Down!

(This post appeared originally in this space on August 31, 2011. It was re-purposed and presented again September 3, 2014. Today, September 7, 2016, it has been edited and updated to reflect the most recent unemployment data.)

Monday was Labor Day.  At its core, According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Labor Day in the United States was designed to commemorate the creation of the labor movement; dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers.  The holiday focuses on contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well being of our country.

First observed in September 1882, the event has always been observed on the first Monday of the month.  Initiated by the Central Labor Union of New York, the celebration became a federal holiday in 1894.

In addition to its formal structure and purpose, Labor Day has a number of symbolic associations.  It is considered:

• The unofficial “End of Summer”
• The last 3-Day warm weather weekend for vacationers
• By High Society standards, the last day for which it is appropriate for women to wear white
• The beginning of the College Football Season (the preceding Saturday)
• The start of the NFL Season (typically the following Thursday; this year, the previous)
• The conventional kick-off of hard core political campaign season (which this year includes a Presidential Election)
• Back–to-School shopping

On the formal side, while the Labor Department’s blurb omits any reference to it, Labor Day also validates and recognizes an often controversial mechanism that frequently divides American opinion; the labor union.  Scorned by many who fancy themselves as Free Enterprise Capitalists, unions and their members have not only been actively involved historically, in debates that framed public policy for American workers, they have won or forced hard-earned concessions that in the shimmering glow of reflective perspective, must be considered to have fundamentally altered the playing field (known as the workplace), including:

• Pensions
• Health Care Benefits
• Paid Vacations
• Equal Pay to women
• The Development of Child Labor Laws
• The 5-Day Work Week
• The 40-Hour Work Week
• The 8-Hour Work Day
• Worker’s Compensation benefits
• Female Flight Attendants permitted to marry

These and many other important cherished and effective employee rights are attributable to the efforts of the American Labor Movement.  But, this is not an ode to Labor Unions.  Unions also have downsides.  They create or contribute to:

• The potential for strikes
• Additional costs to all employees (membership dues; whether a member or not)
• Loss of individuality (ability to represent one’s self in a grievance)
• Subject to fines & discipline by the Union
• Disincentives to productivity and competition
• Lack of promotions
• Burdensome salary demands (relative to the market)
• Loss of profits (and/or pay) due to strike
• Inefficient & ineffective contracts
• Increased unemployment due to failure to reach agreement w/management

The first Labor Day celebration was led by a Labor Union.  The history of the Day has been linked, inextricably, with Labor organizations, ever since.  But if it is the American Worker the Day was intended to commemorate, Labor Day 2011 was set in an auspicious and trenchant backdrop:

• The Unemployment Rate in the U.S. was reported to be 9.1% in July 2011
• The economy added only 117,000 jobs in July (154,000 in the private sector, -37,000 government jobs lost); better than expected, but still a dismally low number
• Businesses are stockpiling $2 trillion in cash

Three years hence, the picture, thankfully, was much improved:

• The Unemployment Rate in the U. was reported to be 6.2% in July 2014
• The economy added 209,000 jobs in July 2014
• (August2014 employment data will be released the first Friday in September)

In 2011, President Obama, announced after the Debt Ceiling Deal on August 2nd, that he would present a jobs proposal for Congress to consider, and was set to do so, after Labor Day, (on September 8th).  The proposal included a combination of tax cuts, spending on infrastructure, and measures designed to assist the long-term unemployed, while bolstering certain sectors of the economy.  This potion sounds eerily similar to the ideas Democrats proposed when negotiating the Debt Deal.

Republicans were lined up to oppose the plan, suggesting instead, among other things, a Balanced Budget Amendment; a balm the GOP/Tea Party also suggested during the Debt Deal negotiation.  In short, there was little expectation for significant movement, or the adoption of sweeping legislation to address the lack of jobs in America…and there wasn’t.  What we had instead was, déjà vu…all over, again!  Then, I was compelled to ask, “Labor Day: Where Is The Celebration?” Fast forward three years, and the truth is the labor dynamics in this country have improved appreciably. However, our country is still beset by challenges.

Each day we are faced with a series of old, and it seems developing challenges abroad. Syrian, Iraq, the Ukraine, Russia, North Korea, China, Somalia, are all global hot spots, just to name a few. Then of course, there is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the burgeoning by ISIS/ISIL, also known as the Islamic State. And oh yeah, we are still winding down in Afghanistan.

In the August 2016 Jobs Report, issued September 2, 2016, the nation’s Job’s Report has continued to improve:

• The Unemployment Rate in the U.S. was reported at 4.9%
• The economy added 151,000 jobs in August 2016
• Paychecks grew 2.4% compared to a year ago
• Jobs Growth record extended to 78 consecutive months

August job growth is historically volatile, and is the slowest month for job growth since the Reports have been published. The increase in jobs was notable, but not as substantial as the 275,000 in July. While the number was disappointing, it was not surprising, given the trend for the month of August.  Moreover, the number more than doubles the 5-year average for the month of August, which is 71,000. It is also important to add, the Unemployment Rate remained below 5%.

Unlike in 2011, in 2014, and again Monday, in my opinion, Labor day brought us more of a day of respite and reflection in honor of our country’s Labor Movement. On top of all that don’t forget, as the sixth bullet from the top advises, the conventional kick-off of the hard-core political campaign season is upon us. The General Election is just 62 days away, and with it, the selection of our next President just nine weeks from yesterday. By all means be sure to exercise your franchise; vote.

It’s “Labor Day – Three Years Later, Actually Five Years Now,” and while we’ve got plenty of issues to temper our celebration, we should indeed celebrate America’s phenomenal Labor Movement. I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Day

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_unions_in_the_United_States

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._Martin_Luther_King

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_movement

http://www.dol.gov/opa/aboutdol/laborday.htm

http://www.lutins.org/labor.html

http://www.mackinac.org/2313

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Walker_(politician)

http://www.njfac.org/us19.htm

http://www.atlist.org/organizations/labor-unions.aspx

http://www.ncsl.org/?tabid=13307

http://wallstcheatsheet.com/economy/finally-some-decent-economic-news-u-s-economy-added-jobs-in-july.html/

http://articles.cnn.com/2011-08-17/politics/obama.jobs.speech_1_job-growth-debt-reduction-proposal-unemployment-rate?_s=PM:POLITICS

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/27/republicans-slam-president-on-jobs/

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf

http://money.cnn.com/2016/09/02/news/economy/august-jobs-report/

http://www.pgm-blog.com/the-us-jobs-report-of-september-2-2016/

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2016/09/august-jobs-report/498539/?utm_source=feed

http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/09/01/heres-how-to-trade-fridays-big-jobs-report.html

http://www.mainstreetalliance.org/august_jobs_numbers_double_5_year_average

It’s time to Break It Down!

The challenges of living in and leveraging the dynamic opportunities of a multicultural society such as that found in the United States of America are many. There are more reasons for that than I could ever address adequately in any single blog post. Today I will take a brief look at our nation’s Anthem, and examine several “Key” related points, pun intended, including the man who penned it, the little known third verse, the antipathy toward black athletes who dare point out the inconsistencies and/or inequities related to the fundamentals of our Constitution, its Amendments, our Creed, and of course, the Anthem.

I cannot begin to recall how many times I have heard Conservatives remind us that ours is an exceptional nation. This characterization implies an unimpeachable blessing bestowed upon us by no less than the almighty God, an inherent righteousness assigned to any and all causes that America deigns to endorse, as well as an irreducible validation of our systems and values, e.g., Capitalism, Free Enterprise, and the irresistible force that is the power of the United States Military Industrial Complex.

Since this past weekend we have engaged in a national dialogue, much of it digitally, about an NFL player opting not to stand for the National Anthem. Colin Kaepernick is a member of the San Francisco 49’ers, in fact a quarterback who incidentally is currently not projected as a starter at his position. Mr. Kaepernick cited his concern about blacks dying in the streets and officers getting paid leave, which is frequently the most onerous consequence to them, resulting from their actions.

Kaepernick is an African American, the son of a white mother and a black father. He was adopted and raised by white parents. Not surprisingly, as has come to be the norm, social media has erupted over this so-called controversy. Many critics across racial lines have suggested that neither the timing, nor the venue in which he expressed his stated concerns was appropriate. As you might imagine, he drew pointed ire from Veterans and Veterans’ groups. Moreover, he attracted a spate of racial epithets from a number of white people.

It is also important to note that some Veterans supported him, and others at least supported his right to exercise his First Amendment rights; a point I will come back to later. At least one Veteran’s group also extended its support, and it must be observed, not all whites thought he was wrong to express the sentiments he did.

America is an exceedingly complex society. It has been that way since the outset, and when one looks back at our evolution and development as a nation state, it is fair to say at this juncture, our complexity increases almost daily. We used to describe our country as a melting pot. Subsequent metaphors many of us adopted for a time included a tossed salad, and a quilt. Today, we are comprised of a global consortium of interconnected communities representing every corner of the world. We are rapidly approaching that magical moment when white people will no longer represent the majority of the American population. Undoubtedly, there are those who submit that when that barrier is crossed, we will no longer be great. Sigh!

Consider that backdrop when you evaluate Kaepernick’s actions and comments. The comments and the varied responses are a reflection of a broadening chasm between people who look at America and see an Empire receding rapidly from a glorious past, and those who view a burgeoning giant ready to rise triumphantly into a brilliant future marked by immeasurable contributions from our growing diverse communities. The contrast is almost as stark as the distinction between isolationist Maoist China and the American society that boldly embraced the notion of E Pluribus Unum (Out of many, one).

Colin Kaepernick’s battle is neither his alone, nor a new one. As recently as two weeks ago during the 2016 Summer Olympics, American Gymnast Gabby Douglas was flayed because as she stood (and she did stand) on the Medal Stand with her four Olympic teammates, she did not place her hand over her heart, as her teammates did during the Anthem. She did not announce any protest, before or after her appearance, and in fact later apologized for having been a distraction. Nevertheless, her action, or lack thereof, became a huge issue. By the same token, in those same Olympics, American Wrestlers similarly did not place their hands on their hearts, and (are you surprised) there was no furor. Now if I note that Ms. Douglas was black and the Wrestlers were white, someone will ask, why does everything have to be racialized? I not only agree, I would ask, why didn’t anyone think of that before singling out the black American Gymnast…but not the white American Wrestlers? I’m just saying!

But this is bigger, much bigger than that. When Muhammad Ali declared himself a conscientious objector in 1967 and refused to serve in the Vietnam War, he was effectively pilloried. He lost his Title as the Heavyweight Boxing Champion, his boxing license, his passport, and three of what could have been the most productive years in his boxing career, spanning from ages 25 to nearly 29. If only there had been the Internet and social media in that era, I can only imagine the fallout that would have resulted.

It did not take long for the next episode. At the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, American Track and Field Team members Tommie Smith, the fastest man in the world at the time, and John Carlos each wore a black glove and black socks as they raised their arms in a salute to unity with people fighting internationally for human rights around the world when  they received their Gold and Bronze Medals, respectively. Smith actually set a World Record in the race (200 Meters) that would last for eleven years. The two were immediately sent home and faced significant fallout for the duration of their careers. While many of us know this, a lesser known footnote about that race is Silver Medalist Peter Norman, of Australia, also felt moved by the two runners support of global human rights, and also wore a badge in support for the effort. His career was also forever affected by that fateful act. Australia had it’s own issues and operated a system similar to South African Apartheid that affected the country’s Aborigines. Norman was never permitted to compete for Australia again.

Decades later, Ali, at his funeral earlier this year was honored and given a hero’s Rites. His actions from 50 years ago are viewed through a different lens these days. Even Smith and Carlos’ actions today generally receive favorable reviews by most Americans. It’s difficult to predict if Kaepernick will be looked at similarly at some point in the future.

But there’s more. The Anthem itself must be assessed in its fullness, rather than based on just the single verse that is sung at most events. Francis Scott Key, wrote the Anthem during a battle at Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland, September 13-14, 1813. Like many of the notable Southern elites of his time, Key was a slave owner. He was a Marylander, and yes, Maryland is a Southern State. The infamous Mason-Dixon Line runs through the state; more accurately, it separates Maryland and Pennsylvania.

Most folks have no idea the Star Spangled Banner has four verses. The song was originally a poem, “The Defence of Fort McHenry.” The third verse rather graphically and pointedly speaks to spilling the blood of slaves and sending them to their graves. Yes, that was indeed a sign of the times, but now…is not then! When I reflect upon it, I find it surprising that many more people, especially African Americans, do not stand or cover their heart during the Anthem…and I’m reasonably sure if more people knew the history, there would be less acquiescence with the rituals. Here’s hoping this post spreads the word. See verse three below, and after verse three the Anthem in its entirety:

“And where is that band who so vauntingly swore

That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion,

A home and a country should leave us no more!

Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave

From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:

And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!”

The Star Spangled Banner Lyrics

By Francis Scott Key 1814

Oh, say can you see by the dawn’s early light

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?

Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,

O’er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?

And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,

Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.

Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,

Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,

What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,

As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?

Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,

In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:

‘Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore

That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion,

A home and a country should leave us no more!

Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps’ pollution.

No refuge could save the hireling and slave

From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:

And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand

Between their loved home and the war’s desolation!

Blest with victory and peace, may the heav’n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.

Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,

And this be our motto: “In God is our trust.”

And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

All things considered, there are many vexing issues related to this dust-up. There is of course, the disparate treatment of America’s black and white athletes when they run afoul of Anthem Rituals. It is also unfathomable how any person prone to a balanced perspective could ignore the implications of a slave owner’s theme song adopted as the country’s national standard. Finally, there is the issue of honoring those who serve.

I did not serve, but I do have a number of Veterans in my family. I love, honor and respect each and every one of them. But let’s be clear, they and every man and woman who served and fought, did so for our freedoms…all of them. Specifically, they did not fight just for the Second Amendment. Yes, we have the right to bear arms. But without question, they also fought for the First Amendment, which if you are counting, comes before the Second. This means you; I, and Colin Kaepernick all have Freedom of Speech. As such, he is not only able to sit during the National Anthem, he may do so knowing that those who serve do so in order to ensure that he can do just that. So, the next time this issue arises, be mindful of the…“Star Spangled Protest: The Verse You Missed!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.”

Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Kaepernick

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabby_Douglas

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmoud_Abdul-Rauf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ali

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommie_Smith

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Carlos

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Norman

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/08/09/gabby-douglas-hand-heart-olympics/

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/king-no-gabby-douglas-anthem-outrage-white-olympic-medalists-article-1.2760918

http://www.counterpunch.org/2004/03/12/an-interview-with-toni-smith/

http://www.espn.com/nba/news/story?id=3592734

http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/29/sport/colin-kaepernick-flag-protest-has-history-trnd/index.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Scott_Key

http://holyjoe.org/poetry/key.htm

It’s time to Break It Down!

Though it’s been three weeks since I’ve written about 2016 Presidential Politics, the Campaign has indeed continued apace. Both Parties have held their respective Conventions and are gearing up to do battle for the next seventy days or so.

For her part, Team Clinton continues, and I would expect will for the duration of the campaign, to absorb hits about her use of email, this time involving the Clinton Foundation. Mr. Trump has gone so far as to refer to emails that appear to connect the Foundation, Secretary Clinton, and wealthy donors seeking meetings as evidence of a Pay-to-Play scheme. He has called for a Special Prosecutor to be named to investigate the matter. Needless to say, that would be a very convenient outcome, from his perspective.

For his part, Team Trump has found itself in an interesting position. After having an eventful, though largely positive (for him) Republican National Convention, he received a significant 6-point bounce the following week that saw him surpass Hillary in the Polls going into the week of the Democratic National Convention. Then came the Democratic Convention, which brought its own 7-point bounce, which catapulted Mrs. Clinton back into a lead in most Polls.

Then things really got interesting. The Trump Campaign hit a number of sour notes, including one with a Gold Star Family. The offshoot in summary was many of the Polls were unkind to Mr. Trump. He trailed by double digits in several, including in some states where Republicans are expecting to contend, or even to have a slight advantage, such as Pennsylvania and North Carolina.

It is clear the Trump Campaign found these developments unsettling. So with roughly 80 days to go before Election Day, Team Trump undertook it’s second significant shake-up and installed it’s third new Leadership Team. This time Paul Manafort, who in the spring replaced Corey Lewandowski as Campaign Chair, was displaced on August 17^th, by the duo of Kellyanne Conway, Campaign Chair, and Stephen Bannon, Campaign CEO. Conway is the head of her own Polling Firm, and Bannon is a former executive at Breitbart News.

I may be one of the few people who truly believes this is still genuinely a race. I absolutely think Donald Trump continues to have a viable shot, no pun intended Second Amendment people, at becoming the 45^th POTUS. Let me be clear, I think Mrs. Clinton will win. However, today anyway, I feel given the amount of time left, and the number of unknown variables that may still impact the outcome, Donald J. Trump still has a puncher’s chance. And he’s obviously going to keep flailing away.

Today though, I want to take a moment to examine one of Mr. Trump’s most recent cavalier (in my opinion, anyway) premises. This should not take long. Last Thursday, Donald Trump came to Charlotte, NC and among other things launched his initial pitch to African Americans. The next day in Dimondale, Michigan, Trump continued to hone, refine, and embolden his pitch to the African American community. Recent polls suggest he is polling 1 to 2 percent nationally among African Americans, and actually zero in a couple of swing states, Pennsylvania and Ohio. With metrics like that, it is easy enough to understand why he would consider targeting, again, no pun intended Second Amendment people, African Americans as a group with whom he would like to expand his support.

With that disclaimer, it is important to note a couple of distinct issues:

• The first is that Mr. Trump chose to issue his most passionate plea to date for African American support in, as I noted above, Dimondale, Michigan. Dimondale, according to the 2010 Census is 93% white, and includes 9, as in one less than 10, African Americans, which translates into .73%. To be clear, that is less than three quarters of one percent.
• The second point I want to elevate is the language Mr. Trump chose to use to implore support among African Americans. He said, and I quote, “What the hell do you have to lose?” That is the more indelicate version of today’s title. Fine, call the title politically correct, if you must. But to be sure, the larger point here is, whether Donald Trump, his surrogates, his supporters, and his newly minted Campaign Leadership Team realize and appreciate, there are millions of African Americans who not only take great exception to the brazen temerity of the query, but who would be happy to respond…if only he would come to some location that actually presented him with an audience of living, breathing African Americans.

While I think the question is disrespectful, he upped the ante on the downright ludicrous by insisting if elected, in his 2020 reelection bid, he would actually garner more than 95% of the black vote. OK, if, as Mr. Trump eventually claimed, his insistence that President Obama founded ISIS was sarcasm, his black vote assertion, on its face, is sheer hyperbole. President Obama, in his reelection bid attracted 93% of the black vote. For Mr. Trump to fix his mouth to say he would better that is laughable. Hilarious in fact!

This has been a fairly popular discussion over the course of the past several days. In winding down this conversation, I will leave you with three responses, including one of my own, to Mr. Trump’s presumptuous sounding question. Before I get to the responses, let me expand on the meaning of “presumptuous sounding.” It is a fairly common consensus that Mr. trump is really not seeking to expand or increase his support among African Americans. Instead, he is executing a strategy to increase his level of palatability among white voters, many of whom have expressed the notion that he is not Presidential, that many of his rants are racist and or bigoted, and that his proposed Muslim ban and wall separating us from Mexico are in a word, contemptuous.

Now, here are responses from two of my friends and me regarding “what we have to lose:”

1. JW said, ”Donald Trump paints a bleak picture of Black Americans and asks, “What the hell do you have to lose?” Join me in the self portrait of a Black man’s what’s to lose challenge: This Black man is a comfortably retired Ph. D, all five kids college educated, two with advanced degrees, living in a country club community, multi-lingual, no arrest records, a registered Democrat and veteran. What’s to lose? My standing as an intelligent individual with a full serving of political integrity. Chime in brothers…”
2. KW said, ”Trump’s assertion requires critical analysis. Let’s start with my immediate family: I am a product of Detroit public schools. I have three college degrees including a Masters Degree in Organizational Management. My wife is a product of public schools in her hometown. She has two college degrees including a Bachelors of Science degree. One of our daughters graduated from college at the age of 17! She earned two more degrees from UCLA (a public university). Our oldest daughter has three college degrees. Our 22-year-old son has two college degrees and will earn a third degree in May 2017. Our youngest daughter earns her first college degree in May 2017 and she will be 19 years old. So: earned degrees in the Williams household: 13 to date with two more expected in May 2017. Oh, I forgot. That’s impossible because we are all Black. I also forgot to mention all 13 degrees were conferred with honors ranging from Cum Laude to Summa Cum Laude. Trump: Get away from me with that minutia. You embarrass Republicans and Americans. BTW: what college did your wife graduate from??? Feel free to share this. I wrote and approved this message.”
3. I said, ”African American, two degrees, 34+ year career in public service, retired, blogger, with some definite ideas about what’s at stake if African Americans and America gamble on Donald Trump. I think Mr. Trump is simultaneously pandering to blacks while enflaming the white racist voting bloc, in an effort to offset the lack of support he is sure to garner from us. Such racist and bigoted appeals are certain to harden the shell that already makes life challenging for black folks trying to navigate our society. And then, there is this… Of course you already know this, but you may not have seen it here.” http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/18/opinion/why-blacks-loathe-trump.html?_r=0

In case you were contemplating whether Donald Trump is sarcastic or just full of…call it hyperbole (to keep it clean), this discussion sums it up pretty well, in my opinion. In fact, the post responds even more cogently to the inquiry, “What The Aitch Do You Have To Lose?”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.”

Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

 Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/19/politics/donald-trump-african-american-voters/index.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kellyanne_Conway

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Manafort

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corey_Lewandowski

http://censusviewer.com/city/MI/Dimondale

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/08/20/its-hard-to-imagine-a-much-worse-pitch-donald-trump-could-have-made-for-the-black-vote/

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/18/opinion/why-blacks-loathe-trump.html?_r=0

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-black-voters_us_57b77ac1e4b03d5136888aaf

http://www.businessinsider.com/stephen-colbert-donald-trump-black-voters-2016-8

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/donald-trumps-poor-pitch-to-black-voters/

It’s time to “Break It Down!”

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY “BREAK IT DOWN!”

Last week, in the spirit of the Olympics, I reprised a Gabby Douglas story from four years ago, primarily due to the fact a number of folks just couldn’t let it go, when it came to Gabby’s tresses. Today, partly due to the Olympics, which are now in full swing, and partly to acknowledge the anniversary of “Break It Down,” I am revisiting my inaugural post.

Tempus fugit (Time Flies)!  Saturday will mark another significant milestone in the life and development of “Break It Down!”  I initiated this blog August 20, 2007, on a lark…almost a dare.  That was nine years (and 476 editions) ago.  Having related the story several times over the past several years, I will not repeat the complete details today.

I will note that on that summer’s eve, I contemplated, in five paragraphs, the experience, or in reality the lack thereof, of then Senator Barack Obama, as he navigated the early stages of his historic Presidential Campaign.  The prodigious parameters of that history were not evident at the time.  To be sure, over the next 14-½ months, he bested the odds and won not only the Democratic Nomination, but also the Presidency.  In so doing, my lack of conviction, along with that of many others, in Mr. Obama’s ability to claim the nation’s biggest political prize exposed for what it was; a patently errant assessment.

I want to make one more note about the blog.  In addition to this week marking the Sixth Anniversary of Break It Down, this week’s post commemorates the Four-year Anniversary of my using WordPress as my primary Host Platform.  The link, http://TheSphinxofCharlotte.com is simpler and more straightforward than the Blogger (Blogspot) link, http://TheSphinxofCharlotte.blogspot.com.  The site design and presentation at Word Press is cleaner, and less busy than the one at Blogger.  Please note, while I may migrate Break It Down exclusively to WordPress, the blog remains available at both sites for the foreseeable future.

So this was the message in Post #1, five brisk paragraphs and a sign-off:

In an apparent calculated act of derring-do, Obama declares the virtue of inexperience. Gotta love it!   😉

Personal footnote of recollection: I recall Jimmy Carter running the “anti-Washington” (i.e., lack of Capitol Hill experience) campaign in ’75-76. You know what, it worked.

The problem was, once JC sent all the reigning bureaucrats & policy wonks home, he was left with an assembly of newbies who didn’t understand how to get things done in DC. The result was a very smart guy, genuine humanitarian, and erstwhile successful leader presided over a disastrous presidency, fraught with innumerable policy failures (see the Shah of Iran, double-digit inflation, & the outrageous Interest/Mortgage rate morass) and public relations gaffes (remember the killer rabbit, and the failed helicopter gambit).

Fortunately for him he was able to live long enough and subsequently do enough good deeds to distance himself from most of an unremarkable tenure as a one-term president, followed by a resounding defeat by that cowboy actor Teflon guy.

Of course none of that has anything to do with Obama…except in the unlikely even he prevails, let’s hope he doesn’t take that inexperience thing too far. As W constantly reminds us, getting to the White House is one thing (after all, he’s done it twice), providing prudent and effective leadership once there is quite another.

’06!

Posted on Mon, Aug. 20, 2007

Just for perspective, see a story the news carried on the subject that day:

DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFULS DEBATE IN IOWA

Obama posits virtue of inexperience

What rivals criticize as naiveté, he presents as break from status quo

MIKE GLOVER

Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa –Democrat Barack Obama on Sunday tried to parlay his relative lack of national experience into a positive attribute, chiding his rivals for adhering to “conventional thinking” that led the country to war and has divided the country.

In their latest debate, the candidates also said they favored more federal action to address economic woes that have resulted from a housing slump and tighter credit. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson called the current financial crisis “the Katrina of the mortgage-lending industry.”

Prodded by moderator George Stephanopoulos at the outset of the debate, Obama’s rivals critiqued his recent comments on Pakistan and whether he would meet with foreign leaders — including North Korea’s head of state — without conditions.

“To prepare for this debate I rode in the bumper cars at the state fair,” the first-term senator from Illinois said to laughter and applause from the audience at Drake University.

The debate capped an intense week of politicking in Iowa, an early voting state in the process of picking a nominee. The Iowa State Fair is a magnet for White House hopefuls each presidential election.

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., directly addressing a question about Obama’s relative inexperience, said: “You’re not going to have time in January of ’09 to get ready for this job.” Dodd has served in Congress for more than 30 years.

Former Sen. John Edwards said Obama’s opinions “add something to this debate.” But Edwards said politicians who aspire to be president should not talk about hypothetical solutions to serious problems.

“It effectively limits your options,” Edwards said.

Obama said he could handle the rigors of international diplomacy and noted that many in the race, including Dodd, Edwards and Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Joe Biden, voted to authorize the Iraq war in 2002.

“Nobody had more experience than Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney and many of the people on this stage that authorized this war,” Obama said. “And it indicates how we get into trouble when we engage in the sort of conventional thinking that has become the habit in Washington.”

The debate, hosted and broadcast nationally by ABC, took place less than five months before Iowa caucus-goers begin the process of selecting the parties’ presidential nominees.

As we reflect upon the Campaign of 2008 it really does harken the recognition of how swiftly time and events pass.  Indeed, I am reminded, especially, of how a supremely confident Senator from Illinois approached his moment.  I shall always recall that it propelled me to write the words, “Obama Plays the Inexperience Card!” Needless to say, he has gained an enormous amount of experience in the intervening years.

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.”

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It’s time to Break It Down!

Originally posted on 8/8/12, during the Summer Olympics in London.

Four years ago, I wrote a post that ordinarily would have feted Gabby Douglas on the occasion of her having won two Gold Medals.  She exercised her considerable and magnificent skills to render stellar performances in winning both an individual Gold Medal, as well as a Gold for the all around best performance in Women’s Gymnastics.

Instead, due to a perverse spike in news coverage, I decided to write about a case of black hair shaming of Olympian Gabby Douglas. She was subjected an all out Twitter assault as a result of her appearance at the London Games. We are now a week into the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, and Gabby is back on the scene as a member of a dominant American Gymnastics team, and inexplicably, once more, on blast. Her hair is front and center, yet again. Since my thoughts on such self-debasing behavior haven’t changed one iota, I decided to re-post the August 8, 2012 Edition of “Break It Down!”

I am going to leave the 2012 story, unredacted, below. But I do want to at least address briefly this doubling down, if you will, on Gabby and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Hair Day. If the uproar in 2012 was disappointing, and it surely was, then this week’s meltdown is disappointing on steroids. That is to say, in the unlikely event, anyone under the sun did not know better in 2012, in the name of everything that is not arrested development, having gone through 2012, they should know better by now.

Today, as then, it is largely a Twitter upheaval. I am not going to link the comments this time. If you really must know, consult your favorite Search Engine, or of course, Twitter. With minimal effort, you can find all the sobering ugly details.

Lots of people have a fundamental issue with natural hair. Put a microscope on that and take a closer look, and many African Americans have an even larger problem with it. Refine the review even more narrowly, and it is a near certainty that African American women as a group, not every single one of them, of course, have an even greater problem still…with natural hair.

First and foremost, I am not picking on black women. My mother was a black woman, God rest her soul. I love black women. I even understand the notion that the issue of hair is one that black women take quite seriously. That is especially true when  the subject is themselves, or other black women. In a way, it is fair submit, black women view this through the prism of a Sovereign Sisterhood, and they enthusiastically seek to protect their brand. And yes, I put it that way largely because much, if not most of the chatter has emanated from black women. In full disclosure it is worth noting, at least this time, substantial pushback has been reported.  Of course, if you know me, you know I have an affinity for natural hair…my own.

The thing is, my beautiful Nubian Queens, Gabby is still, and always will be your sister. However, in this moment in Rio she is a 20-year old athlete, singularly focused on going for Gold. By the way, that means she was only 16 when she was subjected to this madness in London in 2012. At any rate, to wind this down, Gabby is on a business trip, and her athletic prowess and execution are the story, not her edges. Besides, Black Hair Matters! The End!

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton can thank the Gabby Hair Haters; otherwise, I’d be writing about the defection of 50 National Security experts from the ranks of Trump voters, and his controversial Wilmington, NC Rally dog whistle statement about “the 2^nd Amendment people,” and how they might intervene against Hillary Clinton…or any Supreme Court Nominees she might submit, and/or how Hillary is still trying to come to terms with answering questions about her email and the fact that the father of the recent Orlando shooter was seated behind her at a recent Kissimmee, FL Rally. Not to worry; we have nearly 3 months left to explore what’s happening with the campaigns. Undoubtedly, we will return to politics.

Meanwhile, GO TEAM USA!

There is no doubt Gabrielle Christina Victoria “Gabby” Douglas is a star in the vast firmament of gymnasts!

I promise to make this short and sweet.  Ok, maybe short will have to do.

It is possible; I might have been persuaded before the start of the 2012 Summer Olympic games, to believe that I would craft a post about the games.  However, under no circumstances could I have imagined it would have been about gymnastics, Women’s Gymnastics no less.

I’d like to say Gabby Douglas’ history-making performances made the difference, and served as the catalyst for my choosing this topic.  Alas, sadly in fact, while her performances were scintillating indeed, it was not her mastery of the craft, or her superlative artistry that sold me on this topic.

No, it was not that an amazing athlete plied her skills with power, poise, and precision that caused me to choose this topic, though she was amazing and her routines were powerful, poised, and precise.  It was not the history-making nature of her performances; yet she was the first African American to win Olympic Gold Medals in both the individual and team all-around competitions.  And it was not that Gabby blended seamlessly with the other four members of the Fab 5 to turn in a series of sterling performances for Team America, despite the fact she did…in fact, she was, or did, all of the above!

I decided to write about Gabby’s Olympic exploits because so many of her “Sisters,” and I use the term guardedly, shamed themselves by deciding to make a spectacle of themselves, rather than revel in Ms. Douglas’ spectacular accomplishments.  To put it tersely, a group of “Ugly Americans,” far too many of whom were African American women, elevated Gabby’s hair to “News of the Day” status, when all she did was show her Championship mettle.  I love black women, but “Sisters,” this was, to put it mildly, “not your finest hour.”

As I thought about the conversation which trended in the Twittersphere and proliferated on other social media for several days, India.Arie’s tune, “I Am Not My Hair” came to mind.  Released originally, November 15, 2005, the nearly 7-year old standard should be required listening for each and everyone who got “caught-up” in Olympic Hair-gate.  Gabby’s hair, her ponytail, and/or her “kitchen” (and y’all know what I mean…if you don’t, see definition #3), simply should not have been a concern.

Gabby went to the London Olympics to compete with her teammates and peers from 204 countries around the world.  She was tasked with vying for medals against the world’s best in their respective gymnastic disciplines.  That she won two Gold Medals confirms that she passed her tests with flying colors (Red, White & Blue, of course).

Gabby’s combination of performance and personality has spurred analysts to predict she will cash in on a marketing bonanza once she returns stateside.  As a matter of fact, her likeness appeared on the Kellogg’s Corn Flakes box the day after her individual Gold Medal triumph.  It is anticipated that she will earn millions in endorsements, trading on her historic Olympic success.

My short-term prediction is that when we see Ms. Douglas next, in her post-Olympics life, she will be appearing on The Today Show, The Tonight Show, and the TV circuit in general.  Moreover, to the great pleasure of her recent critics, she is certain to be elegantly coiffed, splendidly dressed, and looking like a million bucks…which she’ll be worth…literally.

Can’t you just imagine Breakfast at Gabby’s?  You can be sure, in this version of the story, her “kitchen” will feature prominently, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes; along with her smiling picture, (laughing all the way to the bank, eh), adorning the box.

Oh yeah, She will definitely introduce herself, proclaiming, “My Name is Gabby Douglas; I Am Not My Hair!”

I’m done.  Don’t just holla; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: : http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

A new post is published each Wednesday. For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabrielle_Douglas

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIne_GGnezI

http://todayinlondonblog.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/08/07/13161200-gabby-douglas-mom-weighs-in-on-hair-controversy?lite

http://espn.go.com/olympics/summer/2012/espnw/story/_/id/8232063/espnw-gabby-douglas-hair-criticized-social-media-sites

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinion-la/la-ol-gabby-douglas-hair-gender-race-20120803,0,2974115.story

http://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/la-sp-oly-notes-20120807,0,1766101.story

http://www.examiner.com/article/gabby-douglas-million-dollar-endorsements-already-on-kellogg-s-cornflakes-box

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Am_Not_My_Hair

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtYarYhKa9c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mop9csVOF6E

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4b2Sex5pLV0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_5jIt0f5Z4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7rSv5NvAK8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krV0dNimaCo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmZ-jAkmDiU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l18IJs1YsIo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TyK7dL-p18

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgizvw0EUCY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyjQiEHEhdo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSQNOSltJks

http://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/la-sp-oly-gabby-douglas-marketing-20120808,0,7580377.story

http://www.essence.com/2016/08/08/gabby-douglas-hair-haters-twitter-claps-back

https://www.yahoo.com/beauty/really-were-talking-gabby-douglass-000000324.html

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1698641/

It’s time to Break It Down!

The two major Party political conventions are now in the rear view mirror. Last week, Donald Trump received a 6-point bounce from the GOP Convention, which was held in Cleveland the previous week, and he surged ahead of Hillary Clinton according to a CNN/ORC Poll.

Whether in a head-to-head matchup between the two candidates, or in a four-way matchup that included the Green Party candidate, Jill Stein, and Libertarian Gary Johnson, Trump led. One-on-one with Mrs. Clinton, Trump’s lead was 48% to 45%. When the other two candidates were entered into the equation, the lead was 44% to 39% in favor of Trump, with Johnson garnering 9% and Stein 3%.

This week, following the Democratic Convention in Philadelphia, Clinton received a similar bounce, 7 points to be exact, according to a new CNN/ORC Poll. As a result, this week she surged back ahead. Just as with Trump the previous week, Clinton leads in both a head-to-head matchup with Trump, as well as in the four-way scenario, including Stein and Johnson. When looking just at Clinton and Trump, she leads 52% to 43%. In a four-way scenario, it’s Clinton leading 45% to 37%, with Johnson and Stein at 9% and 5%, respectively.

Coming out of the conventions the tempo of election season will ratchet up, possibly sharply. If anything is clear about this election year, it’s not typical. To be fair, each Presidential campaign is unique in its own right. But this year…that is true on steroids. While both candidates approach November’s election with historic negatives, only 34% view Mrs. Clinton as honest and trustworthy, while Mr. Trump tops that with a whopping 35%, I think most observers, whether supporters or detractors, see Donald Trump as the most unusual candidate in our life time. I have not even heard anyone suggest anyone as a close second.

A key aspect of this point of view is both the folks who are for him, as well as those who oppose him agree this is true. It is the underlying foundation of why this is so that results in disagreement. His surrogates argue, and his supporters seem to concur, that Trump is bringing a robust sense of self, and a limitless confidence that though we are broken as a nation, he can and will fix us. In fact, he boasted at the GOP Convention that he is the only one capable of pulling off this amazing feat. Quite naturally, the candidate endorses this characterization of himself.

Alternately, his detractors view Trump as divisive, dangerous, and delusional, and many are effusive in saying that is the case. It is far from surprising that Democrats as a group take the latter view. One would anticipate that Republicans as a group embrace the former view, and many do, especially rank and file voters. However, that explicit factoid does not cloud an obvious caveat. There is a clear and possibly widening breach within the Grand Old Party. This is not a new development. A number of Trump’s 16 vanquished competitors tried to paint him as everything from not being a conservative to in more than a few instances, not even being a Republican.

For his part, Mr. Trump has repeatedly found ways to bring discomfort to and elicit disdain from members of his own Party. He debased most of his Primary competitors, he declared Senator John McCain was not a war hero…ostensibly, because he was captured, and, after the Democratic Convention, he took on Khizr and Ghazala Khan, the parents of U.S. Army Captain Humayun Khan. Captain Khan, an American citizen of Pakistani heritage was born in the United Arab Emirates. He moved to the United States with his parents when he was two years old, and was killed June 8, 2004 during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

By attacking honored members of the group known as American Gold Star families, Mr. Trump effectively abandoned his Build a Wall platform plank and instead channeled a version of Ronald Reagan when he uttered the phrase, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” Trump crossed a line that some in the military consider sacrosanct, and that even many of his erstwhile GOP cronies consider, a bridge too far. In doing so, he tore down the wall of partisanship that usually delineates Republicans and Democrats during Presidential Campaigns. A number of Republicans issued statements supporting the Khans, and several went further and denounced Trump. My own observation is denunciation without rescinding endorsements is a vacuous endeavor, signifying they either didn’t really stand behind the verbal wrist slap they are giving Trump, and they still really fervently support him, or…they no longer support Trump, but do not find it politically tenable to say that in clear and unequivocal terms.

Gold Star families are families that have lost a loved one in a war. Mr. Khan, who spoke at the Democratic National Convention, took exception to Donald Trump’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the United States. He wondered aloud if Trump had ever read the Constitution, and offered to loan him his own copy. He opined that Trump has sacrificed nothing, nor anyone. In turn, Trump, who fancies himself a counter puncher took a day or two to respond, but Saturday he did, and he has barely stopped since then.

He questioned whether Mr. Khan wrote his own speech, or if the Clinton Campaign penned it, he argued that he has sacrificed…by creating thousands, actually tens of thousands of jobs, appearing to equate employing people with the Khan’s having lost a son. He also rhetorically asked if there was a reason Mrs. Khan didn’t speak, after which he suggested that perhaps she wasn’t allowed to do so. Most Americans outside Team Trump understood this to be a direct swipe at Mrs. Khan’s Muslim faith. Mr. Trump and everyone related to his campaign disavowed that view.

Republicans were already generally beside themselves because Democrats were able to usurp several of the GOP’s pet themes, including love of country and support for the military. Trump’s reflexive pushback against a Gold Star family escalated their concern to near hyperventilation. The depth to which key members of the Party could no longer restrain themselves was evident as Party luminaries, including John McCain, Paul Ryan, and Mitch McConnell spoke out in support of the Khans, and some cases offered scathing rebuttals of Trump’s sentiments. By yesterday, a number of high-ranking Republicans declared they would be voting for Mrs. Clinton.

According to NPR, Senator McCain issued the most comprehensive statement, nearly 700 words, in which he drew a bright red line delineating Trump and his comments from the Republican Party. He said:

“I hope Americans understand that the remarks do not represent the views of our Republican Party, its officers, or candidates.”

Senator McCain also called upon Trump to set a better example, warned that Arizona is watching, thanked the Khans for immigrating to America, and assured them their son’s service and sacrifice will never be forgotten.

Senator McConnell, according to Politico, offered a subtler, more tempered response. He said:

“Captain Khan was an American hero, and like all Americans, I’m grateful for the sacrifices that selfless young men like Capt. Khan and their families have made in the war on terror. All Americans should value the patriotic service of the patriots who volunteer to selflessly defend us in the armed services.”

Speaker Ryan, as reported by Reuters News Sunday, made a terse, but poignant statement on the situation. Speaking of Captain Khan, he said:

“His sacrifice – and that of Khizr and Ghazala Khan – should always be honored. Period.”

Yesterday, Mr. Trump announced that he would not be endorsing Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and Senator John McCain in their pending Primary Election bids. Just a day earlier he gave a shout out to Ryan’s competitor in the upcoming Wisconsin Primary, Paul Nehlen. CNN reported that in Ryan’s case Mr. Trump said:

“I like Paul, but these are horrible times for our country. We need very strong leadership. We need very, very strong leadership. And I’m just not quite there yet. I’m not quite there yet,”

The last sentence approximates a phrase Mr. Ryan used shortly after Trump had vanquished the field of 16, and was the last man standing among GOP candidates for President. He did not immediately endorse Trump. Ryan did eventually endorse the nominee.

In Senator McCain’s case, as referenced above, he and Trump have clashed dating back to early in the campaign. In explaining his position on not endorsing the Senator, Trump said:

“I’ve never been there with John McCain because I’ve always felt that he should have done a much better job for the vets.”

Fortunately for Senator McConnell, he is not up for re-election. As such, he does not have to spend any time contemplating a Trump endorsement, or lack thereof. It is worth noting, Ryan and McCain are expected to prevail in their primary races.

Yesterday, Trump created a bit of controversy as he accepted a Veteran’s Purple Heart and commented that he’d “always wanted one of those…this is much easier.” Not surprisingly, that created some pushback.

Last night one of Trump’s surrogates attempted to deflect (I think it’s called a pivot in campaign parlance) from the resultant raging firestorm by blaming the death of Captain Khan on decisions made by President Obama and Secretary Clinton. Katrina Pierson, who frequently appears on CNN to defend Candidate Trump made the following claim to Wolf Blitzer:

“It was under Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton that changed the rules of engagements that probably cost his life! So I don’t understand why it’s so hard to understand why Donald Trump was confused.”

There is a lot going on with those two sentences, so it is easy to understand why she was confused. That assertion is, in and of itself, an extraordinary claim. More importantly, in the final analysis, it is a clear sign of a surrogate, who like her candidate, spoke in an overhyped, underprepared manner.

Mr. Trump, Ms. Pierson, and a host of Trump acolytes have raised conspiracy theories to a near art form. This claim would require one incredibly otherworldly conspiracy. Why is that, you may ask? I’m glad you inquired!

As cited previously, Captain Khan was killed in Iraq, June 8, 2004. On that date, history reflects the Commander-in-Chief was George W. Bush, and the Secretary of State was Colin Powell. Fact check complete; bye Felicia…I mean Katrina.

The cherry on top of all this dissension is by the end of the yesterday, reports emerged, and were reported by CNN that frustration was boiling over among Team Trump insiders, all the way up to head honcho, Paul Manafort.  As they used to say back in the day, “Keep your ears on.”  This could become a real page turner.

It has been a tough week for the Republican nominee. However, the campaign is long and new and unpredictable events impose themselves on the process frequently. To that end, this too shall pass. Until it does though, it is appropriate, if not essential, to take note of, “The GOP: A Party at Odds With Its Leader!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.”

Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

 Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/02/politics/donald-trump-paul-ryan-john-mccain-endorse-primaries/index.html

http://www.americanow.com/story/society/2016/07/25/cnn-poll-trump-leads-clinton-nationwide-after-gop-convention?fb=an

http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/01/politics/trump-vs-clinton-presidential-polls-election-2016/index.html

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/full-text-khizr-khans-speech-2016-democratic-national/story?id=41043609

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3718041/Muslim-American-Gold-Star-father-Khizr-Khan-says-s-grateful-words-support-Paul-Ryan-Mitch-McConnell-amid-continued-attacks-Trump.html

http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2016/08/01/mccain-hammers-trump-khan-family

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/08/donald-trump-paul-ryan-226543

http://www.voanews.com/content/what-is-a-gold-star-american-family/3444224.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khizr_Khan

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2016/07/31/khizr-khans-speech-ghazala-khans-comments-and-donald-trumps-replies/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humayun_Khan_(soldier)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ghazala-khan-trump_us_579e08a0e4b08a8e8b5e61ba

http://diplomacy.state.gov/berlinwall/www/exhibitions/tear-down-this-wall.html

http://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-responds-to-dnc-speaker-khizr-khan-2016-7

http://www.npr.org/2016/08/01/488213964/gop-criticism-mounts-as-trump-continues-attacks-on-khan-family

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/07/khan-mconnell-trump-226485

http://www.rawstory.com/2016/07/house-speaker-ryan-fixes-trumps-fail-khan-family-sacrifice-should-be-honored/

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/katrina-pierson-implies-obama-clinton-are-to-blame-for-humayan-khans-death-in-2004/

It’s time to Break It Down!

As we greet this new day on planet Earth, there are a number of great truths; few more apparent than that there is a gulf separating the two major political Parties, a space that spans poles (no pun intended). The philosophies and ideologies that frame the views and the accompanying talking points of the Republican Party, which convened last week in Cleveland, are frequently pitted in diametrical opposition to those of the Democratic Party, now underway in Philadelphia.

More often than not, it seems the media, intent upon the devolution of all civil discourse, fans the flames of discord. It may be to garner ratings, or to gain clicks, or to sell newspapers or magazines. Regardless of the intended purpose, far too regularly, a media outlet is front and center in the midst of the resultant turmoil.

Last week, the GOP gave us four days flush with varying degrees of drama. Let me say up front, the early analysis suggests that, at least in the short term, the drama was a plus for Candidate Trump. He started this week with a 6-point bounce, and a lead of then Democratic presumptive nominee Clinton. According to CNN, Trump leads Clinton 44% to 39% in a four-way matchup between the Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, and the Green Party. In a head-to-head match-up with Clinton, he leads 48% to 45%.

If anything I suppose those results give credence to the maxim, “There is no such thing as bad publicity…also framed as “All publicity is good publicity.” At least it seems that way when you consider the chaotic nature of the GOP’s four idyllic days in “Believe-land.” To summarize that amazing moment in time, the highlight of which was formally elevating Donald Trump to the status of Party Nominee, here are my personal highlights:

• Monday – Melania bites Michelle. No, not in a man bites dog kind of way. Rather that is hipster patois for copying one’s style, copping one’s moves, or in this case plagiarizing one’s speech. That may actually have been the low moment of the Convention. It was certainly the negative event that consumed the most media time and energy. It totally “trumped” the day’s earlier events, when a small group of Delegates attempted briefly to oust Trump as the Nominee-in-waiting, and Ohio Governor, John Kasich opted to follow through on his pre-announced plans to skip the Convention (held in Cleveland).
• Tuesday – Dr. Ben Carson uses Alinsky, Lucifer, and Hillary in the expression of a singular circular thought. It was the kind of classic Carson logic with which we have become all too familiar. You know, the sort that assails Obamacare, asserting it is the worst thing for America since slavery. I suppose I should give him credit for ascribing to slavery a negative light. OK, thumbs up, Doc.
• Wednesday – Ted Cruz addresses the GOP Convention, and, after having advised Mr. Trump of his intentions days in advance, and providing a copy of his remarks earlier in the day, to absolutely no one’s surprise, he refused to endorse Donald Trump. Suddenly what had been reported by CNN for two days was treated as a shocking development…by the media. There was gnashing of teeth and wringing of hands, and a general post-mortem consensus that Mr. Trump should have deleted Senator Cruz from the program, given what he knew, and/or Senator Cruz should have, knowing what he knew, just stayed home. But where would the drama have been in that?
• Thursday – Donald Trump talks for 75 minutes in his acceptance speech, a modern day record, before finally “humbly and gratefully” accepting his Party’s nomination. In his uniquely “humble” way, he declared himself the only person capable of resolving the litany of problems he enumerated that require fixing, in order to make America safe, work, first, one, and of course, great…again. If I didn’t know better I’d think a master Reality TV producer engineered their convention. But that’s just me.

This week, it is the Democrat’s turn to step up and show their wares. At the outset, it looked at though the media and the Convention were jointly committed to create just as much excitement, or drama, if you will, as the Republicans brought us last week. Even before the Monday opening, Wiki-Leaks released a series of emails Sunday that showed high ranking officials of the DNC conspiring to devise schemes to denigrate Senator Sanders. The resulting fallout led to the resignation of the DNC Chair, Debbie Wasserman Shultz. Initially, DWS planned to gavel the Convention into Session, and to gavel it closed, even though she had resigned. This…was an incredibly bad idea. Yes, the optics were less than desirable, but more importantly the concept itself was profoundly flawed.

Fortunately, sanity prevailed, and some Democrat, or perhaps several, figured out that the most effective strategy to pursue if you dig yourself into a hole…is to stop digging. To that end, the erstwhile Chair relinquished the remainder of her duties and responsibilities, and stepped to the sideline. The result was, after looking and sounding like a hair-on-fire story throughout Sunday night, and Monday morning, the Democrats reinvented the opening day by the time the Convention was gaveled into Session at 4:00 p.m. Monday afternoon.

The actual Convention session went off largely without a hitch. In fact, the proceedings were so understated from a drama point of view, that CNN’s resident GOP counter-programming critics were either mostly silent, or altogether AWOL. That means, unlike the Trumpster Fire that lasted all four days of last week’s Convention, Day 1 of the Democrat’s Convention was a critical success.

Even after losing DWS, there was still a level of anticipation that Bernie’s supporters would bow up and crash Mrs. Clinton’s party. The media kept trying to keep viewers on the edge of their seats with what ifs, and queries of what might happen next. By the time the evening was over, Senator Sanders, who wrapped up the evening, had given a clear and passionate endorsement of Secretary Clinton, Senator Cory Booker, NJ, gave a stem-winding speech, Senator Elizabeth Warren gave a strong speech touting the candidate that drew high praise, and the cherry on top, though it was not the final speech, was a masterpiece by First Lady Michelle Obama.

By now, we have like last week, traversed half of the Convention. Last night’s highlight, naturally, was a speech by former President Bill Clinton who wove a series of anecdotes and short stories into a compelling tapestry about Mrs. Clinton. There was a considerable amount of discussion about whether Bill would be able to effectively humanize his wife. In all fairness, he has frequently had a blind spot when it comes to Mrs. Clinton. Last night, that did not appear to be the case.

Clinton’s speech on Clinton was substantial in every conceivable dimension. However, it was Bernie Sanders, in fact, who delivered Tuesday’s highlight. The Clinton and Sanders teams negotiated an agreement that led to the Senator formally making a motion that led to the Party nominating Hillary Clinton by acclamation. While I am sure there will be strains of the Never Hillary Movement in the future, that single act moved mountains in diffusing the most substantive elements of any remaining resistance. In effect, Sanders demonstrated he would continue to do his part to unify the Party.

With that said, when Mrs. Clinton, who appeared via satellite Tuesday night, formally accepts the Nomination tomorrow, it will mark the moment when the gloves come off…for all parties. The sparring between the two sides has grown in frequency and tenor in recent weeks. However, methinks, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Years from now, when we look back on it, the crossfire between Clinton and Trump is likely to be deemed legendary. In just under 15 weeks, this whole thing will be a wrap, kit and caboodle. Today we can reflect on Mrs. Clinton having become America’s first female major Party Nominee for President. Indeed, “The Voters (Delegates) Have Spoken: Hillary Is the (Democratic) Nominee!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.”

Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.cnn.com/?refresh=1

http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2016/07/25/cnn-trump-clinton-poll-newday.cnn

http://www.ktiv.com/story/32477726/2016/07/19/melanias-speech-under-fire

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Cruz

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Carson

http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2016/07/25/dnc-convention-michelle-obama-entire-speech-sot.cnn

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/cory-booker-rousing-dnc-speech-rise/story?id=40870837

http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2016/07/25/dnc-convention-elizabeth-warren-entire-speech-sot.cnn

http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-bernie-sanders-convention-speech-transcript-20160725-snap-htmlstory.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/national/watch-donna-braziles-full-speech-at-the-democratic-national-convention/2016/07/26/18425980-5377-11e6-b652-315ae5d4d4dd_video.html

http://www.whio.com/news/news/national/read-bill-clintons-speech-democratic-national-conv/nr5gZ/

It’s time to Break It Down!

Last night was the culmination of 13 months of what can only be appropriately deemed a Trump tour de force. We can now say Trump has been marching inexorably toward the nomination as the Republican’s 2016 candidate for President since June 2015. Last night, Donald J. Trump, Jr. exulted in the dual honor of reading the results of the New York Delegate distribution, and simultaneously putting his father over the requisite 1,237 (of 2,472) Delegates that Party rules require in order for a candidate to clinch the GOP Nomination. There was more business to be handled, for sure, such as Convention Chair Paul Ryan announcing the official tabulated results, but for all practical purposes, it was over when Don, Jr. read the State of New York’s Delegate designation.

The reality, of course, is it ended long before that. It ended when Trump cobbled together sufficient momentum to force his final two GOP Primary competitors, Ted Cruz and John Kasich, to yield and shut down their respective campaigns. A few diehards refused to abandon the notion of Never Trump. This is a concept, by the way, that I repeatedly suggested, quickly after it emerged, had no shot at succeeding.

The Republican National Convention Kicked off Monday. During the afternoon session a few rogue Delegates attempted to launch an insurgency, mainly to disrupt the proceedings, but with no real hope of actually executing any kind of bloodless coup, politically speaking. Trump delegates, Convention Chair Ryan, and Convention Whips made sure noting came of that wild hair.

Having dispensed with the untoward impulses relatively early, the GOP seemed on the road to zeroing in on how best and most fervently to bash Mr. Trump’s opponent in the November Election, Hillary Clinton. However, the highlight of Monday evening festivities was to be a featured appearance by Melania Trump, who was tasked with the unenviable assignment of humanizing the candidate, her husband. By most accounts, her speech was successful, if not in providing any special anecdotes or insights about her husband or his psyche, in casting her as and individual who could proficiently calm her nerves long enough to read from a teleprompter (Donald must be really proud) and convey how she transitioned from having been an immigrant to becoming a citizen…the right way.

While the early feedback noted that she did not accomplish Job 1, framing Donald in a softer light, she did, as a non-politician, hold her own in front of God, a teleprompter, a packed arena, and a television audience of tens of millions. Granted, her husband is the politician, not her, so she should get points for completing the assignment without committing any discernible faux pas. But wait, before the Quicken Loans Arena could be cleared (Monday evening’s proceedings did run long), a counter-theme emerged. It appeared, in weaving her story of the evening, Mrs. Trump may have appropriated substantial parts of several passages from a speech that Mrs. Obama delivered during the 2008 Democratic Convention. There is much more that could be said about this matter, but I suspect you’ve already seen or heard it. In the unlikely event you missed it see the last link below.

Back to the subject at hand, the title makes clear this post focuses on Donald Trump’s biggest victory to date in his quest to become President of the United States. You may recall, the magic number GOP candidates were aiming for and needed to become the Party’s nominee was 1,237. Here is a breakdown of the total Delegates won by candidate:

1. Donald Trump – 1,725 (1,237 Required)
2. Ted Cruz – 475
3. John Kasich – 120
4. Marco Rubio – 114
5. Ben Carson – 7
6. Jeb Bush – 3
7. Rand Paul – 2

When one thinks back and recalls that at one point the Republican field of candidates consisted of 17 candidates, it is certainly appropriate to appreciate that Donald Trump not only survived the crucible of a rigorous campaign, he fundamentally restructured the Republican Party. It may not have a revolution, in Bernie Sanders parlance, but it certainly was a revolt. That may sound extreme at first glance, but think about it in big picture terms. In June of 2015, when he announced his candidacy, Trump’s odds of winning the GOP Nomination were slim, possibly slim and none. While it is conceivable that Ben Carson, and or, Carly Fiorina had longer odds, being a Black Republican or a woman (and like Trump, having no previous political experience) and all, virtually every other candidate was high on the scale of political hierarchy that includes Governors, former Governors, and Senators.

For a little perspective, here is a list of Mr. Trump’s 16 vanquished rivals:

1. Jeb Bush (Former Governor of Florida)
2. Ben Carson (Retired Neurosurgeon)
3. Chris Christie (New Jersey Governor)
4. Ted Cruz (U.S. Senator, Texas)
5. Carly Fiorina (Former Business Executive)
6. Jim Gilmore (Former Virginia Governor)
7. Lindsey Graham (U.S. Senator, South Carolina)
8. Mike Huckabee (Former Governor of Arkansas)
9. Bobby Jindal (Former Governor of Louisiana)
10. John Kasich (Governor of Ohio)
11. George Pataki (Former Governor of New York)
12. Rand Paul (United States Senator, Kentucky)
13. Rick Perry (Former Governor, Texas)
14. Marco Rubio (U.S. Senator, Florida)
15. Rick Santorum (Former U.S. Senator, Pennsylvania)
16. Scott Walker (Governor of Wisconsin)

To go even further back down memory lane, there were times in the early going when many, if not most folks, thought Trump would never actually enter the race, and then a prevailing sentiment was he never release a Financial Statement, and I’m sure almost everyone knows he still has not released his taxes. This last point should not be downplayed. Every candidate since Richard Nixon has done so. By flouting convention and refusing to do so, Mr. Trump is almost certainly setting a precedent that others will surely follow in the future.

The Convention is halfway over. Last night, Tiffany and Donald Trump, Jr., (two of Trump’s children) along with Chris Christie and Ben Carson spoke. From my vantage point, Tiffany gave the speech folks anticipated Melania might have, and Don, Jr. spoke, both about his father and about the political dynamics of the country. He may have been the star of the evening. Christie assiduously prosecuted Hillary Clinton for the vast array of Republican grievances, while Carson ridiculed her links to Saul Alinsky…and his links to Lucifer, and therefore, her links to Lucifer. You had to see it to appreciate it, or to not appreciate it sufficiently.

Just for kicks, last night’s speakers mentioned Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton a lot. However, it is worth noting that, according to CNN, they mentioned Clinton more – Trump 61, Clinton 79. Nothing will unify the GOP like voicing opposition to the Clintons. While we’re at it, it is also interesting to note that 80 (3%) of the 2,472 Delegates to the Convention are African American. That’s more than at Romney’s Convention in 2012, so I suppose the GOP can feel pretty good about itself on that score. It will be interesting to see if the Democrats can match the GOP’s enthusiasm. I’m confident they will exceed the level of diversity.

Tonight’s speakers will include Newt Gingrich, his wife Callista, and Trump’s son Eric. The Party’s Vice Presidential Nominee Mike Pence will also appear. Then of course, Thursday will mark the piece de resistance, when Trump and Pence will officially accept their Nominations. Each day of the Convention has bee thematically labeled. The themes and days were paired, as follows:

• Monday – Make America Safe Again
• Tuesday – Make America Work Again
• Wednesday – Make America First Again
• Thursday – Make America One Again

Don’t worry about the themes though. If last night was any indication, adherence to it may be hit or miss. I will certainly not suggest the Convention has been compelling TV.

The Party and Mr. Trump will likely feel much better about last night’s session than the one Monday night. It is unlikely Tuesday’s speakers will have anything approaching the SNAFU emanating from Melania’s “borrowed” comments,” which Trump and the Party denied, deflected, and/or took an opportunity to dissemble when discussing (as is the Trump-world fact-free way).

Don Jr., however, did not escape scrutiny.  As it turns out, Huffington Post reported he did use words from a passage in the May issue of a conservative periodical called “The American Conservative.” According to HuffPo, the author of the article, F.H. Buckley assisted Trump with his speech, and granted him permission to use the passage in question.  The bottom line is, this is not deemed to be as serious as Melania’s case. I can look ahead and see that this will be an issue moving froward. Look out Philly! See the next-to-the-last link for a more detailed discussion of this instance. This brings me full circle back to the main point…”Trump Towers Over the Never Trump Movement: Drops the Title ‘Presumptive!”‘

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.”

Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

 Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melania_Trump

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump_Jr.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivanka_Trump

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Trump

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiffany_Trump

http://www.starnostar.com/Barron-Trump-Wiki-Barron-William-Trump-Wiki/25731/Star-Celebrity/

http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2016/07/19/rnc-convention-jeff-session-nominates-donald-trump-sot.cnn

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article90627912.html#emlnl=Breaking_News_Alerts

https://www.yahoo.com/news/outbreak-dissent-trump-powers-toward-prize-071013170–election.html?ref=gs

http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/trailguide/la-na-republican-convention-2016-live-1468976559-htmlstory.html

http://wgntv.com/2016/07/19/donald-trump-formally-nominated-as-republican-presidential-candidate/

http://www.wthr.com/story/32480241/donald-trump-clinches-gop-nomination-mike-pence-nominated-for-vp

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2016/jul/19/trump-triumphs-as-gop-nominee-completing-stunning-/

http://www.denverpost.com/2016/07/19/donald-trump-republican-president-nomination/

http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2016/07/19/donald-trump-officially-nominated-at-rnc.html?via=desktop&source=copyurl

http://www.thegreenpapers.com/P16/R-Alloc.phtml

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quicken_Loans_Arena

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/black-republican-delegates-speak-trump-convention-n586776

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/us/elections/2016-presidential-candidates.html?_r=0

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-jr-plagiarism_us_578eef03e4b04ca54ebf7b6c

http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/trailguide/la-na-republican-convention-2016-live-melania-trump-s-rnc-speech-appears-to-1468901655-htmlstory.html

It’s time to Break It Down!

Fact. There are many Americans who simply refuse, under any circumstances, at any time, in any place, to consider the prospect their country in general, and especially themselves in particular, ever tolerate even the hint of a suggestion that they harbor the most remote scintilla of racist thought, deed, or action in exercising their life’s functions. In fact, if you happen to suggest that one of these people is racist, that person will deny it, quickly and robustly, and then just as speedily and fervently, insist that by the mere introduction of such an idea, you, in fact, are the racist.

While I firmly believe this to be true of Americans as a whole, it is in my opinion super-turbo-fied for white Americans. Take a moment to breathe deeply before opting to just go directly to your neutral corner and employ searing eyes and an angry heart to throw shade at such a bodacious premise, or at me for displaying the temerity to author it.

The thing is, there is well-documented, widely accepted American history that explains, at least in part, why so many otherwise intelligent and reasonable Americans think that way, even in the 21^st Century. There are, in some people’s mind, perfectly logical events that underpin the fundamental structure of this premise. Like it or not, this is a thing, a very inconvenient American truth. Let’s take a walk back in the historical annals of time and space.

Meet Dred Scott! Dred Scott sued for his freedom, on the grounds that he and his wife had for years lived in a free state. His case eventually went to the Supreme Court. In his March 6, 1857 ruling, Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court Roger Taney declared that Scott had no right to sue because as a black man he was never intended to be an American.

Speaking of the clause in the Declaration of Independence that “all men are created equal,” Taney wrote:

“It is too clear for dispute, that the enslaved African race were not intended to be included, and formed no part of the people who framed and adopted this declaration.”

Taney went on to say the following:

“The negro has no rights which the white man is bound to respect”

“It is difficult, at this day, to realize the state of public opinion in relation to that unfortunate race which prevailed in the civilized and enlightened portions of the world at the time of the Declaration of Independence, and when the constitution was framed and adopted. But the public history of every European nation displays it in a manner too plain to be mistaken. They had for more than a century before been regarded as beings of an inferior race, and altogether unfit to associate with the white races, either in social or political relations; and so far inferior that they had no rights which the white man was bound to respect, and that the negro might justly and lawfully be reduced to slavery for his benefit.”

Chief Justice Taney wrote the majority opinion. The court held that Scott was not free based on his residence in either Illinois or Wisconsin because he was not considered a person under the U.S. Constitution–in the opinion of the justices; black people were not considered citizens when the Constitution was drafted in 1787. According to Taney, Dred Scott was the property of his owner, and property could not be taken from a person without due process of law.

In fact, there were free black citizens of the United States in 1787, but Taney and the other justices were attempting to halt further debate on the issue of slavery in the territories. The decision inflamed regional tensions, which burned for another four years before exploding into the Civil War.

Now most people would read the aforementioned and undoubtedly be prone to say, that was a 159 years ago. The United States fought a war (the Civil War) that exorcised the stench of the demons of that ludicrously inhumane ruling. Without a doubt America and black Americans, yes we are Americans, were freed from the heinous circumstances that made such a reckoning by the foremost jurist in the highest court in the land even possible. And you would be right…as it relates to most people.

But most is not all, and in this instance, it is particularly important in the case of one among those numbered in the some, not in the most. Mike Huckabee, former Governor of Arkansas, former Fox News Host, & 2016 GOP Presidential Candidate articulated a belief last summer, while he was pursuing the 2016 Republican nomination for President, that the Dred Scott Decision, rendered by the Taney Supreme Court…is still the law!

Interestingly enough, he made this argument while defending an individual’s right to ignore a Supreme Court ruling. While defending Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis’s refusal to issue marriage licenses out of her religious opposition to same-sex marriage, Mike Huckabee said:

“The Supreme Court’s 1857 ruling in Dred Scott v. Sandford – which held that all blacks, free or enslaved, could not be American citizens – is still the law of the land even though no one follows it.” 

“I’ve been just drilled by TV hosts over the past week, ‘How dare you say that, uh, it’s not the law of the land? Because that’s their phrase, ‘it’s the law of the land.’ Michael, the Dred Scott decision of 1857 still remains to this day the law of the land, which says that black people aren’t fully human. Does anybody still follow the Dred Scott Supreme Court decision?’”

And lest you feel compelled to dismiss this Troglodytic comment as a mere aberration by this pillar of contemporary Republicanism, the former Governor, former Fox News host, and former Presidential candidate has somehow convinced himself that federal “enabling legislation” is necessary in response to court rulings, or they don’t count. Further, he’s also endorsed pre-Civil War nullification schemes and suggested he might deploy federal troops on U.S. soil to prevent women from exercising their reproductive rights. But I digress.

This, all of this, from Robert Taney’s legalistic machinations, to Mike Huckabee’s political ramblings explains, in no uncertain terms why Black Lives Matter (BLM). Almost anyone who follows the Movement, either as a an activist/member, or from an intellectual and/or academic perspective, can tell you that neither the Movement nor the acronym BLM is intended to convey the sentiment that Black Live Matter and others do not, or that Black Lives Matter more than others, or that Black Lives Matter because they are more important than White Lives, Asian Lives, Latino Lives, Native American Lives, or any other lives.

Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi, and Alicia Garza founded #BlackLivesMatter in 2013. The movement began with the use of the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on social media, after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of African-American teen Trayvon Martin. Black Lives Matter became nationally recognized for its street demonstrations following the 2014 deaths of two African Americans: Michael Brown, resulting in protests and unrest in Ferguson, and Eric Garner in New York City.

#BlackLivesMatter is an online forum intended to build connections between Black people and their allies to fight anti-Black racism, to spark dialog among Black people, and to facilitate the types of connections necessary to encourage social action and engagement. All in all, I think that is a noble endeavor.

BLM’s Home Page footer includes the following defining language:

#BlackLivesMatter is an ideological and political intervention in a world where Black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise.  It is an affirmation of Black folks’ contributions to this society, our humanity, and our resilience in the face of deadly oppression.

BLM, in an effort to help familiarize interested parties with their operational objects shares a list of Guiding Principals on its Home Page. Those ideals include:

• Diversity
• Restorative Justice
• Unapologetically Black
• Globalism
• Collective Value
• Transgender Affirming
• Black Women
• Black Villages
• Empathy
• Black Families
• Loving Engagement
• Queer Affirming
• Intergenerational

I’m not a #BLM activist. However, as a black man in America, born and raised in this country, I absolutely understand why the Movement is not only justified it is essential. I unequivocally reject the notion that #BLM is racist. In fact, the Movement is a direct response to disparate treatment on its face. In addition, just in case anyone actually needs to be reminded, it is necessary because of a daunting history of minimizing and denigrating responses to Black Life.

That history, in and of itself would justify such a Movement. However, as I noted above, there is also a contemporary mindset that embraces the notion that Black Lives are not equal, and have no rights that need not be respected (by White men). In an America in which an individual counted among our nation’s thought leaders (Pease do not suggest a man who has served as Governor of a sovereign State of the United States of America is not a significant molder and shaper of public opinion) can openly hold, project, and promote those views…“Black Lives Matter: Of That I Am Certain!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com.

Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.”

Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.ushistory.org/us/32a.asp

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part4/4p2932.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dred_Scott_v._Sandford

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdYSPhETw2Q

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-Fifths_Compromise

http://blacklivesmatter.com

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-police-blacklivesmatter-idUSKCN0ZP04A

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Lives_Matter

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/04/opinion/the-truth-of-black-lives-matter.html?_r=0

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/11/politics/rudy-giuliani-black-lives-matter-inherently-racist/index.html

http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Stop+and+Frisk

http://www.nyclu.org/issues/racial-justice/stop-and-frisk-practices

http://www.nytimes.com/topic/subject/stop-and-frisk-policy-new-york-city-police-department

http://www.ccrjustice.org/home/what-we-do/issues/discriminatory-policing

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/09/19/nyregion/stop-and-frisk-is-all-but-gone-from-new-york.html

http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2016/07/11/vice-president-joe-biden-intv-black-lives-matter-giuliani-comment-sot-tapper-tsr.cnn

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jul/10/philando-castile-killing-nra-racial-divide

http://rare.us/story/nra-finally-comments-on-castile-shooting-after-criticism-heres-what-they-said/

https://latest.com/2016/07/civil-rights-organization-nra-finally-addresses-philando-castile-shooting-calls-it-troubling/

http://uproxx.com/news/nra-dallas-shooting-statement-philando-castile/

https://www.rawstory.com/2016/07/black-dallas-surgeon-tells-police-i-support-you-that-doesnt-mean-i-dont-fear-you/

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/headlines/20160711-black-doctor-describes-night-of-dallas-police-shooting-i-will-care-for-you.-that-doesn-t-mean-that-i-do-not-fear-you.ece

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-dallas-chief-20160711-snap-story.html

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/headlines/20160709-open-carry-creates-confusion-during-dallas-police-ambush-but-supporters-say-law-works.ece

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc-news/watch/man-falsely-accused-in-dallas-speaks-out-721474115753

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/about-that-good-guy-with-a-gun/2016/07/11/3ed098fe-47a2-11e6-acbc-4d4870a079da_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines&wpmm=1

http://www.snappytv.com/tc/2349535

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/12/opinions/is-black-lives-matter-racist-john-mcwhorter/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2016/07/12/don-lemon-shares-racist-encounter-tsr.cnn

http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2016/07/transcript_of_president_obamas.html

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/headlines/20160712-at-memorial-service-obama-comforts-dallas-challenges-the-nation-over-race-violence.ece

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/headlines/20160712-in-dallas-speech-obama-holds-up-mirror-to-a-tense-sorrowful-nation.ece

http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2016/07/baton_rouge_obama_police_shoot.html

It’s time to Break It Down!

In a Presidential Election year, there is one day bigger than all other days. Election Day. As days go, it is the ultimate arbiter in determining who won, who lost, and by how much. Countless micro-statistics will emerge from tens of thousands of tabulators across the country.

Yesterday was not that day. It was, however, huge. A number of the day’s key events fundamentally shaped, altered or completely re-defined the tone and tenor of how the next 125 days, or until the votes are counted on Tuesday evening, November 8, 2016, will unfold.

To summarize briefly, the day included:

1. A statement in an unannounced news conference from FBI Director James Comey, regarding the Clinton e-mail scandal
2. The kickoff of the joint appearance phase of the Democratic Campaign, featuring Hillary Clinton and President Obama at a Clinton rally in Charlotte, NC
3. In a turnabout from the 2014-midterm elections, Democrats from across the state, including the Gubernatorial Candidate, the Lt. Governor candidate, the U.S. Senate candidate, the U.S. House of Representatives candidate, and the State Secretary of Labor candidate, were all in the building. In 2014, Democrats from across the spectrum, nationwide, fled the President like the plague. While he was polling anemically at the time, it is worth noting, he had already won two national elections. Most of the folks who fled President Obama lost anyway. Who knows? Perhaps he could have helped them.
4. A trump Rally in Raleigh, NC, undoubtedly designed to offset the planned Clinton rally in Charlotte, and serendipitously timed to enable The Donald to slam the decision by the FBI not to recommend pressing charges against Clinton.
5. In light of item number 3, above, it is worth noting that Republican Senator Richard Burr and GOP Governor Pat McCrory both found reasons to be out-of-State during Mr. Trump’s rally in the State Capital. It also warrants mentioning that Senator Burr, as I have noted in another blog post, is currently planning to skip the Convention in Cleveland.
6. The much less publicized, but no less critical reaction that one CNN news story entitled “Sanders supporters meltdown over FBI’s Clinton decision”

Last weekend, Secretary Clinton spent 3 and half hours of a holiday (4^th of July) weekend cloistered with the FBI, answering questions about her e-mail server(s). This “voluntary” interview, and it was voluntary; Clinton had actually been requesting it for at least a year, followed by several days an unscheduled, and by most accounts, faux pas of an encounter between Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former President Bill Clinton, potential first, First Dude, on The AG’s plane. Reportedly, Mr. Clinton’s plane was located near Ms. Lynch’s plane on the Tarmac.

Said meeting was purported to have lasted about half hour or so. Not surprisingly, the Republican Party in general, and the Trump Campaign in particular, raised holy heck about the two meeting. It was perceived as highly suspect by virtually all of Mrs. Clinton’s opponents, and certainly regrettable by many of her supporters. The furor that arose following the “chance” encounter prompted AG Lynch to hold a press conference during which she pledged to follow the recommendations of the FBI and federal prosecutors. At that time she indicated she’d made the decision months ago to take this action. That is altogether possible, but the timing, following so closely her meeting with Mr. Clinton, gave Trump and the GOP solid fodder for several news cycles.

After Clinton’s FBI interview Saturday morning, it was generally expected that the Bureau would tale a week or two to mull over the interview before responding. To that end, Tuesday’s response was a surprisingly quick turnaround. And regardless of which side you were on, Director Comey’s announcement had something for you.

First and foremost, the BFD (see Joe Biden on Obamacare); Comey declined to recommend charges against Secretary Clinton. This really was the total obliteration of the elephant in the room. With one fowl swoop, Mr. Comey said, ”No charges are appropriate in this case,” and simultaneously cleared the deck for the Clinton campaign to complete the process of wrapping up the Democratic nomination in Philadelphia, and took the last breath of oxygen from the Sanders campaign. The acronym BFD is apt here, and by no means hype or overstatement.

Alternately, the Director, whom hard core Democrats know is not only a registered Republican (W Bush’s AG), but also active to the extent that he contributed to the McCain and Romney campaigns in ’08, ’12, respectively, disputed many of the assertions previously made by the secretary. In broad strokes, during his 14-minute report, he said:

• The Clinton State Department was extremely careless in handling emails
• Mrs. Clinton did share at least 115 emails deemed classified/8 deemed top secret
• Security culture at the State Department was lacking
• Hostile actors gained access to the email of others with whom Clinton communicated
• Evidence of violations was found
• He found no evidence of intent to share classified or top secret information
• He found no evidence of intent of disloyalty to the U.S.

At least 5 of those bullets points will serve to ensure that this conversation lives throughout the election process. Trump/GOP talking points are in the bank.  Nevertheless, the record must reflect that the FBI Director did say also the FBI found no evidence of a cover-up, and no evidence that Clinton’s personal email domain was hacked.  Comey put a fine point on the matter by saying “Although there is evidence of potential violations regarding the handling of classified information, our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case.”

In yesterday afternoon’s Clinton rally, which I had the opportunity to attend, the President, turned campaigner-in-chief, and candidate Clinton, worked a raucous crowd at the Charlotte Convention Center. The pair formed a 1-2 punch that excoriated Trump’s ideas, more than the candidate himself. The wall, belittling other races and ethnic groups, banning Muslims, etc., are all ideas that drive a wedge between people rather than bring them together. But beyond the absence of substance from Mr. Trump, the President noted that Mrs. Clinton’s experience is the preeminent super qualifier. In fact, he said, she is the most qualified man or woman to ever seek the office of President of the United States.

For her part, Hillary praised the President for rescuing the nation from a second Great Depression. She asserted that her job, as his successor, would be to secure the change that he facilitated and to take us further in areas of clean energy, continuing to de-nuclearize the world, raise the minimum wage, implement debt-free college, and free community college, and provide a plan to pay for it all, among other things.

Anyone who has ever attended a venue in which the President is featured knows that going to see the President requires a commitment. Folks lined up in advance, stood in the heat waiting for the doors to open, waited for hours once inside, all to see and hear the two candidates whom they so greatly respect and admire. It was not at all surprising that many replied in classic black church call-and-response style, “Preach,” when President Obama said he knew he was preaching to the choir.

In current polling, President Obama has a 50% approval rating on average, which is near historic for a President approaching the end of his second term. The obvious offshoot of that turn of events is that the chickens, in this case scared Democrats; came home to roost. As noted in the third enumerated item above, a plethora of democrats showed up for Mrs. Clinton’s rally. And make no mistake about it, although it was Clinton’s rally, and she paid for the Air Force One flight to Charlotte, the PA Announcer introduced Barack Obama, President of the United States, when the pair came out of the tunnel, they stood behind the Seal of the President of the United States, and he was the keynote speaker, the last to take the podium. It had to be special to return to the City in which he was bestowed the nomination in 2012, in the state he turned blue in 2008, and boost the candidacy of the last person he vanquished in his initial run, also in 2008. It was a good day and a great event for her; it was an outstanding day for him.

Last night the scene shifted to Raleigh, the State’s (North Carolina) Capital. Trump was Trump. He spoke for over an hour (66 minutes) and his bombast was aimed at crooked Hillary, clueless Obama, and a host of rigged systems, including the economic system (people have dropped out of the search for employment and are not counted in determining unemployment rates), the political system (Louisiana was stolen from him, even though he got the most votes, and the system is rigged, even though he won…go figure), and the justice system (how could Hillary not be indicted). He emphasized that Clinton put the safety of the entire country at risk; he noted in particular that her judgment is horrible.

In perhaps his biggest stretch, he accused the Clintons of bribing Attorney General Lynch, who may be considered to serve as AG in a Clinton Administration. This alleged bribe somehow resulted in Clinton not being charged.  Her reward?  Continued employment in Mrs. Clinton’s administration, if she wins. A boon she would, of course be deprived of, should Mrs. Clinton be forced to withdraw from the race. Never mind that as a former AG, Lynch would almost certainly command a much higher salary in the private open marketplace.

Mr. Trump has had a fairly uneven ride on his way to nailing down the nomination. Despite having amassed the number of delegates necessary to secure the nomination, a many Republicans have been reticent to endorse him, more than a few have said they will not vote for him, some even saying they will vote for the Democrat, one is suing to be released from voting for him at the Convention, and at least one, George Will, left the Party, because of Trump. Given that well-documented unevenness, it is no surprise there were prominent no-shows last night in Raleigh. Senator Richard Burr said he needed to be in Washington. Campaign spokesperson Jesse Hunt framed it thusly:

• “After multiple terror attacks associated with the Islamic State this week, Senator Burr is attending to his duties in Washington as Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman.”

In a fluke of nature, Governor McCrory was also unavailable. His spokesman, Ricky Diaz said:

• “The governor’s office said yesterday that he will be heading out-of-state today for a long-scheduled trip with the First Lady, so he’s unable to attend tonight’s event with Mr. Trump.”

If anybody can relate to that cold shoulder Mr. Trump was feeling on a warm summer evening in North Carolina, I’m sure it’s President Obama. Of course, I don’t imagine Mr. Trump will be reaching out to the guy he doesn’t even believe is an American (but does think is a Muslim), anyway.

And then there is Bernie Sanders; perhaps more aptly, there are his supporters. Director Comey’s announcement seemed to have made for one last twist of the dagger for some of the Senator’s most loyal supporters. Among them, there is a vocal minority who hoped, even advocated for a Clinton indictment, which in turn could catapult Senator Sanders back into the nomination conversation. This eternal spring of human breast hope exists, despite a strong indication that if Hillary had been thwarted, Vice President Biden would quite possibly have been inserted as the nominee.  But I digress.

The so-called bitter-enders, folks aligned in both the Sanders and Trump camps, pointed to yesterday’s pending decision as the “FBI Convention.” Oh well, it’s fair to say, in retrospect, that dog didn’t hunt. When Comey made the announcement, there was a social media eruption. The tart responses included the following tweets:

Rosario Dawson

✔

‪@rosariodawson

The ‪#SystemIsRigged indeed. So disgusted. ‪#Demexit ‪#Dexit ‪#BernieOrBust ‪#OurRevolution ‪#NotMeUs ‪#UpToUs ‪#TimeIsNow

https://

twitter.com/sgttim911/stat

us/750375702822842368 

…

1:29 PM – 5 Jul 2016

581 581 Retweets
776 776 likes

Mark Ruffalo

✔

‪@MarkRuffalo

We’re in trouble.

11:38 AM – 5 Jul 2016

1,534 1,534 Retweets
2,907 2,907 likes

Bill Cimbrelo ‪@Bill_Cimbrelo

Today marks a turning point. We now have unequivocal proof of how bad things are. It can only serve to strengthen our resolve ‪#NeverHillary

1:48 PM – 5 Jul 2016

324 324 Retweets
378 378 likes

Teachers For Bernie ‪@BernieTeachers

Just fire them all and get rid of the ‪@FBI. They don’t uphold laws and have proven to waste taxpayer funds.

https://

twitter.com/Conservative_V

W/status/750360975744774148 

…

12:31 PM – 5 Jul 2016

79 79 Retweets
87 87 likes

Arabs For Bernie ‪@ArabsForBernie

We keep asking how many mistakes can one candidate for ‪#POTUS claim before it’s too many. ‪#ClintonEmails ‪#Comey ‪#MadamMistakes

1:01 PM – 5 Jul 2016

97 97 Retweets
109 109 likes

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Shaun King

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‏‪@ShaunKing

Where FBI Director Comey openly said if it was anybody other than Hillary, they’d have serious consequences.

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• 12:49 PM – 5 Jul 2016

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 #BERNIEFACTS ‪@Bernie_Facts

Retweet if the Democratic Party is dead to you

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Nate Summers ‪@Cable90

I guess if you are rich and have political power like ‪@HillaryClinton not even the FBI can touch you ‪#BernieOrBust ‪#StillSanders

2:18 PM – 5 Jul 2016

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Star Stuff

@Statistar30

If you’re an uber rich old white lady -u can break the law, help rig a primary, trade gvmnt favors for $ & never face consequences.Yay Comey

There has been a fair amount of discourse regarding whether Sanders’ supporters as a collective, will join Team Hillary for the closing thrust of the campaign, as Hillary’s supporters did with Team Obama in 2008.  Senator Sanders has said he is going to the Convention and endeavor to alter the platform.  He has also said he will do everything in his power to defeat Donald Trump.  However, he has said, and many of his supporters parrot, that it is up to Hillary to make the changes (essentially adopting his positions) to persuade his supporters to join her.  In a quirk of contemporary politics, the system is deemed rigged by some Sanders supporters because the Campaign with the most votes has not fallen on its sword and conceded to the Campaign that competed admirably…but finished with fewer votes.  It’s a bit of a head scratcher, but we’ll soon see how that works.  The Convention kicks off July 25th.

There have been a lot of hugely important days in the 2016 Campaign. There are sure to be more. But when all things are considered, few have been or are likely to be more important that yesterday; at least not until November 8^th. So I stand by my initial premise; yesterday was the…”Biggest Day of Election 2016…So Far!”

I’m done; holla back!

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 Consult the links below for more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post:

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/02/politics/clinton-meets-with-fbi-as-part-of-email-probe/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/05/politics/fbi-statement-email-server-hillary-clinton-james-comey/index.html

http://freebeacon.com/politics/media-shreds-clinton-fbi-report-email-scandal/

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/07/02/republicans-pounce-fbis-clinton-interview/86641502/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/fbi-interviews-clinton-over-email/2016/07/02/dd024480-4074-11e6-84e8-1580c7db5275_story.html

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/05/politics/obama-clinton-campaign-charlotte/index.html

http://wavy.com/2016/07/05/donald-trump-holds-rally-in-raleigh/

http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/politics-government/article87729127.html

http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/president-obama-hillary-clinton-arrive-in-charlotte-for-campaign-rally/264711390

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/05/politics/bernie-sanders-fbi-hillary-clinton-email/index.html

http://www.witn.com/content/news/Trump-blasts-Clinton-during-Raleigh-rally–385631841.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Comey

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Comey

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernie_Sanders

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Clinton

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama