So much of the current news cycle is dominated by gossip and innuendo, or substantive stories about events that I have discussed already.  Looking at both sides of the ledger, a short list includes:

• The Nigerian Girls’ Kidnapping
• The mystery of Flight 370
• The Donald Sterling saga
• The Monica Lewinsky-Hillary Clinton-Karl Rove controversy, and of course,
• The Solange Knowles Jay Carter dustup

While I occasionally re-visit an issue, not today, and I’m passing on the anything I haven’t done from that list, as least for now..

Frequently I reference the proverbial notion of the “Exceptional American,” usually in jest, if not derision.  Today’s subject, however, earned that sobriquet.  Yesterday, President Obama awarded Sgt. Kyle J. White the Medal of Honor during a White House ceremony.  The former active-duty Army Sergeant received the medal for his courageous actions during combat in Nuristan Province, Afghanistan.

I do not reject Exceptionalism on its face.  The concept, used in context, is certainly a viable one.  Political blowhards most often fail to provide proper context, or any reasonable facsimile.

President Obama described Sgt. White’s heroism and selflessness in explicit detail, as he said:

“Most of the unit had been forced to slide down the cliff to the valley below.  But Kyle saw a teammate — Specialist Kain Schilling — trying to treat his own shattered arm, using a tree as cover — what Kain later called “the smallest tree on Earth.”  I’m sure that’s how it felt.  Kyle sprinted through enemy fire to Kain’s side and began applying a tourniquet — shielding Kain with his own body as gunfire shredded that tree.

Then Kyle saw another man down — Marine Sergeant Phillip Bocks — in the open, 30 feet behind them, but too injured to reach cover.  Kyle remembers thinking, “It’s just a matter of time before I’m dead.  If that’s going to happen, I might as well help someone while I can.”

With bullets impacting all around him, Kyle ran to Bocks and began to pull the injured Marine to cover.  But worried that he’d expose Bocks to more gunfire, Kyle retreated.  The enemy rounds followed him.  He ran out again, pulling Bocks a little farther.  And once more he retreated to distract the enemy fire.  Once more he went out — over and over thinking to himself, “I’m not going to make it.”  Kyle could feel the pressure of the rounds going by him.  But somehow, miraculously, they never hit him.  Not once.  One of his teammates said it was as if Kyle was moving “faster than a speeding bullet”.

And finally, Kyle succeeded in pulling his comrade to cover.  Tragically, there on that cliff, Sergeant Bocks succumbed to his wounds.  But in his final moments, this American Marine surely found some solace in Kyle White — the American soldier who, until the very end, was there by his side.

Now, that other injured soldier, Kain Shilling, was still out there.  And he had sustained another injury, this time to his knee.  Kyle ran out once more to Kain’s side.  Kyle ripped off his own belt for a tourniquet, and soon got his hands on a working radio.  The voice of Charlie One Six Romeo came into base.  Crouching behind that lone tree, Kyle began calling in airstrikes to take out enemy positions.

Kyle stayed with Specialist Schilling as night fell.  And Kain was too badly injured to move.  Kyle was starting to feel the fog of his own concussions set in, but he knew that he was Kain’s best chance to get out alive, so Kyle took charge and ordered the Afghan soldiers to form a security perimeter.  He called in a MEDEVAC and made sure Kain and the other injured were safely on board.  And only then did Kyle finally allow himself to be lifted out.

As the helicopter pulled away, Kyle looked out the window, watching the darkness as they pulled away from that single tree on the cliff.  “When you’re deployed,” he later said, “those people become your family.  What you really care about is:  I want to get this guy to the left and to the right home.”

That’s Exceptional, and worthy of the claim.  Moreover, Sgt. White’s story did not end with that helicopter ride.  With the help of the Post-9/11 GI Bill, he earned a degree from UNC-Charlotte and now works as an investment analyst at a RBC Capital Markets in Charlotte, NC.

The story of Kyle Jerome White is that of “An Exceptional American: The Genuine Article!”  His bona fides are beyond dispute.  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/Kyle_J._White

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/05/13/4907715/ex-soldier-receives-medal-of-honor.html

http://www.businessinsider.com/investment-analyst-medal-of-honor-2014-4

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kyle-white/34/4a6/125

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/13/us/medal-of-honor/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2014/05/13/president-obama-awards-medal-honor-sgt-kyle-j-white

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-awards-medal-of-honor-to-kyle-j-white/

http://www.army.mil/medalofhonor/white/profile/index.html

http://www.usatoday.com/story/theoval/2014/05/13/obama-medal-of-honor-kyle-j-white/9027827/

http://freebeacon.com/national-security/kyle-white-to-receive-medal-of-honor-tuesday/

The Congregation of the People of Tradition for Proselytism and Jihad is quite a mouthful.  That is the formal nomenclature for the organization better known widely by its Hausa name, Boko Haram, which translates to Western education is sinful.  The group is an Islamic jihadist and takfiri militant and terrorist movement based in the northeast of Nigeria, north Cameroon, and Niger.  A central tenet of the organization is to establish a “pure” Islamic state rules by sharia law.

Boko Haram has a history of attacking Christians and government targets, bombing churches, attacking schools and police stations, and kidnapping Western tourists.  Recently, the group captured global headlines due to having claimed credit for kidnapping more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls.  The group’s leader, Abubakar Shekau, says the girls, kidnapped from their boarding school three weeks ago, will be sold.  Unconfirmed reports indicate some of the girls have been sold into slavery for the sum of $12 each.  A number of the girls have also been forced to marry their abductors.

The young girls, aged 15-18, were studying for exams when they were taken from their dormitories in the town of Chibok, in Borno state.   The kidnapping resulted in 276 girls still being held captive, while 53 girls escaped.

Earlier this week, the group validated its thread to kidnap more Christian girls they attacked a Nigerian village and took 8 more girls; this time ages 12-15.  The most recent abductions followed closely a video in which Abubakar Shekau threatened to take even more Christian girls, force them to convert to Islam, and sell them into slavery.  This latest raid pushed the total number of kidnapped girls to more than 300.

In the video, Shekau exclaimed:

“I abducted your girls.  By Allah, I will sell them in the marketplace.”

President Obama, in an ABC interview yesterday, called the abductions “heartbreaking and outrageous.”  Also yesterday, the White House reported Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who welcomed the offer of American support.  The

United States has said it is prepared to send a team of military and law enforcement personnel to assist in the search for kidnap victims.  While President Obama and Secretary Kerry’s words and actions signal the U.S. moving toward involvement in this calamity, it remains an atrocity that has commanded attention globally, and one that should incite a worldwide response.

In Nigeria, there has been a furor over the level of activity the government has initiated in response to the abductions.  The President responded by insisting that the government has been active involved in trying to resolve the kidnappings, but is not broadcasting it.  In an unflattering comparison to the U.S, he noted:

 “We’ve done a lot – but we are not talking about it.  We’re not Americans.  We’re not showing people, you know, but it does not mean that we are not doing something.”

While I think that’s an interesting approach to take when discussing an ally whose support you hope to enlist, in the realm of the obvious, he is President of Nigeria, not the U.S., so that retort likely has currency in his country, and ultimately, that’s most of what matters.  On the other hand, I can hear the howls of the “Exceptional America” contingent.  It would not be surprising to see some of them, who typically favor military intervention whenever possible, to suggest the U.S. dial back it’s efforts in this Nigerian debacle.

Despite any heartburn that might ensue, based on President Jonathan’s remarks, these heinous actions demand a response from countries of goodwill around the world.  That alone should be enough to engage the United States of America, beacon of freedom, worldwide.  That is who we believe we are.  Is it not?

“Boko Haram: Terror Personified” – let’s see what we can do to resolve this atrocity.  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/Boko_Haram

http://www.dw.de/boko-haram-claims-abduction-of-more-than-200-nigerian-schoolgirls/a-17613825

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/05/06/hundreds-girls-still-missing-in-nigeria/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/06/suspected-boko-haram-gunm_n_5272612.html

http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/06/world/africa/nigeria-abducted-girls/

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/06/suspected-boko-haram-gunmen-kidnap-girls-village-nigeria

http://www.voanews.com/content/suspected-boko-haram-gunmen-kidnap-eight-more-girls-in-nigeria/1908567.html

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27298614

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27294630

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/06/us-nigeria-girls-idUSBREA450IO20140506

Admittedly, I almost never plan ahead what I am going to write about.  The 24-hour news cycle is far too dynamic to get ahead of oneself in that way.  Still, as last week was winding down, I thought I had zeroed in on what would be today’s topic.  Then came Ciiven Bundy’s lucky day…last Saturday.

On the surface, it seemed more likely to be a day Donald Sterling would celebrate.  Why, you might ask?  Well, Saturday was Donald Tokowitz Sterling’s (Donald added the surname Sterling as an adult) 80th birthday.  Indeed, it was one for the ages, and it is certain to be one he remembers indefinitely.

As it turned out, it was far more than a birthday for Mr. Sterling.  It was special to Mr. Bundy because thanks to the media explosion surrounding Sterling’s taped phone call to a woman described as his ex-girlfriend, or an employee, or both, depending upon who is providing the explanation of her role, Bundy’s romanticizing of Slavery is a distant memory (except for those in the Nevada desert), supplanted by Sterling-gate.

In a quick CliffsNotes-like version of Bundy’s story, he is a Nevadan rancher who took a stand against the Federal Government.  He stopped paying fees to the Feds Bureau of Land Management for the land on which his cattle grazed, claiming the land as his own.  This apparently heroic stand endeared him to the Right, the GOP in general, and especially the Tea Party element.  Alas, given the spotlight to highlight his 15 minutes of fame, Bundy weighed-in during a New York Times interview that blacks might be “better off as slaves, picking cotton.”  Almost immediately, the newest heartthrob of the Right Wing movement was spurned by a number of his newfound friends, including Senators Rand Paul (Kentucky) and Dean Heller (Nevada), as well as media maven Sean Hannity.  Then came the explosion of the Sterling incident upon the scene.  End of story.

Sterling-gate came to our collective national attention Saturday when TMZ revealed and released portions of a taped conversation it alleged to be between Mr. Sterling (he would later verify that it was his voice on the audio recording) and a woman they identified as his girlfriend, V. Stiviano.  Sterling has owned the Los Angeles Clippers since 1981.  The man skewered Ms. Stiviano for having posted a picture of herself with Magic Johnson on Instagram.

In the audio portion of the story, Sterling can be heard telling Ms. Stiviano, among other things:

• Do not to bring black people to my games
• Why are you taking pictures with minorities
• Yes it bothers me that you associate with black people
• Why publicize it (your admiration for black people)?
• Why are you bringing them to my games?
• Maybe you’re stupid
• Feed him, f..k him; don’t put him in your Instagram, and don’t bring him to my games

For his part, Magic Johnson replied on Twitter that he was aware of Sterling’s rant, and that he and his wife Cookie would not be attending any more Clippers’ games as long as Sterling is the owner.

There is a good deal of irony associated with how all of this is unfolding.  The Clippers, for years among the worst teams in the NBA is having one of its best seasons ever.  They played the Golden State Warriors on Sunday (the day after) and lost a game that was practically over before it started.  Regardless of whether it was a factor, bolstered by Commissioner Silver’s decision, the Clippers, having returned home to the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and claimed a 113-103 victory of the Golden State Warriors (1:38 a.m. EDT).  The Clippers now lead the Best-of-Seven series three games to two, and they have a chance to clinch the series Thursday night in Oakland.

Yesterday, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver held a press conference during which he revealed the results of the NBA’s investigation into Sterling-gate.  The League’s inquiry was thorough, but swift, as Silver had promised.  The judgment, all-encompassing.  Commissioner Silver:

• Issued Sterling, the NBA’s longest tenured owner, a lifetime ban (from NBA Game decision-making, games, practices, & facilities)
• Levied a $2.5 million fine (the League max)
• Urged owners to vote (3/4 Majority required) to force Sterling to sell the team

Ultimately, this will be a birthday Mr. Sterling remembers for all the wrong reasons.  “Happy Birthday Donald: Enjoy The Gift of Irony!”

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://abcnews.go.com/US/cliven-bundy-controversial/story?id=23468481

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/katrina-vanden-heuvel-cliven-bundy-and-the-entitlement-of-the-privileged/2014/04/29/8f34849e-cf05-11e3-937f-d3026234b51c_story.html

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

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/christinebrennan/2014/04/29/commissioner-adam-silver-bans-donald-sterling-clippers-owner/8470785/

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

http://theweek.com/article/index/260569/speedreads-nba-investigating-racist-comments-attributed-to-clippers-owner-donald-sterling

http://www.tmz.com/2014/04/26/donald-sterling-clippers-owner-black-people-racist-audio-magic-johnson

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/sports/sixers/Report-Clippers-owner-Donald-Sterling-told-girlfriend-not-to-bring-black-people-to-game.html

http://nesn.com/2014/04/adam-silver-press-conference-live-nba-commissioner-speaks-about-donald-sterling-incident/

http://www.realclearsports.com/lists/top_10_despised_owners/donald_sterling_clippers.html

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2014/04/donald_sterling_s_racist_history_the_l_a_clippers_owner_hurt_more_minorities.html

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2014/04/28/mock_shock_donald_sterling_is_a_typical_hollywood_racist_and_everyone_knew_it

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/04/28/donald-sterling-and-the-neverending-fantasy-of-democrat-racism.html

http://www.csnchicago.com/bulls/michael-jordan-responds-donald-sterlings-comments?p=ya5nbcs&ocid=yahoo

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-04-28/donald-sterling-has-no-future-with-the-los-angeles-clippers

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/lifetime-ban-donald-sterling/story?id=23518874

http://abcnews.go.com/US/nba-donald-sterling-banned-life-fined-25m/story?id=23513899

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2014/04/29/clippers-owner-donald-sterling-banned-for-life-from-nba-fined-25-million-by-nba/

http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-donald-sterling-nba-lifetime-ban-20140429,0,3465134.story#axzz30KW0USu0

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) held in an opinion yesterday, by a vote of 6-2 (Justice Elena Kagan did not participate in the case, presumably because of a conflict of interest based on her work as Solicitor General), that a Michigan lower court did not have the authority to set aside a measure approved in a 2006 referendum supported by 58% of voters, banning the use of race as a criteria in college admissions.  Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the dissenting opinion; Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg joined her in opposition to the ruling.

This may prove to be a pivotal decision in what has become a national debate over the issue of affirmative action.  It prevents publicly funded colleges (in Michigan) from extending “preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin.”

That is a lofty sounding pronouncement, and to many, undoubtedly sounds perfectly reasonable.  But, is it?

Well, that depends on your point of view.  Three Justices, Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Anthony Kennedy, and Justice Samuel Alito, wrote the majority opinion.  Justice Kennedy wrote:

“This case is not about how the debate about racial preferences should be resolved.  It is about who may resolve it.  Michigan voters used the initiative system to bypass public officials who were deemed not responsive to the concerns of a majority of the voters with respect to a policy of granting race-based preferences that raises difficult and delicate issues.”

Three other Justices, Antonin Scalia, Stephen Breyer, and Clarence Thomas joined in the prevailing opinion.  Interestingly, as it turned out, this opinion resulted in the gentlemen of SCOTUS seeing it one way, and the gentlewomen of the Court seeing it quite differently.  In toto, the Justices wrote more than one hundred pages, spanning 5 distinct opinions, to get to this ruling.

• Justice Kennedy, joined by Chief Justice Roberts & Justice Alito wrote the main opinion for the majority
• Justices Scalia & Thomas added a separate element to the majority opinion
• Justice Breyer, normally aligned with the liberal wing of the Court offered his spin on the majority opinion
• Chief Justice Roberts made a terse retort to the minority opinion
• Justice Sotomayor, joined by Justice Ginsburg, wrote the 58 page minority opinion; longer than the other four opinions put combined

Speaking of Justice Sotomayor’s opinion, she channeled denizens of pop culture, from Director Haim Tabakman’s 2009 movie “Eyes Wide Open,” to Dr. Cornel West’s 1994 book, “Race Matters,” when she wrote:

“This refusal to accept the stark reality that race matters is regrettable.  The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to speak openly and candidly on the subject of race, and to apply the Constitution with eyes open to the unfortunate effects of centuries of racial discrimination.  As member of the judiciary tasked with intervening to carry out the guarantee of equal protection, we ought not sit back and wish away, rather than confront, the racial inequality that exists in our society.”

However, Justice Sotomayor did not just use pop cultural icons to make her point.  She recast Chief Justice Roberts’s remarks from a  2007 opinion, in which he wrote:

“The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.”

The comeback was not lost on the Chief Justice.  It led to his own rejoinder, which he wrote separately from Justice Kennedy:

“People can disagree in good faith on this issue, but it similarly does more harm than good to question the openness and candor of those on either side of the debate.”

In the parlance of the streets, that exchange amounts to a catfight amongst the Supremes.  Justice Sotomayor, an alumna of Princeton University, and of Yale University’s Law School, is a product of affirmative action (not unlike her countervailing cohort on the Bench, Justice Thomas).  Her opinion may have reflected that cognizance.  She, unlike Justice Thomas, recognizes and has embraced the correlation between affirmative action and her current success.  She wrote in her 2013 memoir, “My Beloved World,” ”For years, I lived the day-to-day reality of affirmative action.”

In articulating her message, Justice Sotomayor referenced directly the confounding exigencies of history, including slavery and Jim Crow, but she also spoke about the contemporary malevolence of “recent examples of discriminatory changes to state voting laws.”  She may have lost the battle, but she certainly made her point.

There are a number of States that currently employ an affirmative action ban, including Florida, California, Texas, Washington, and of course, Michigan.  It is considered likely that yesterday’s SCOTUS results will energize efforts to increase that number.  From the erosion of the Voting Rights Act to the scuttling of affirmative action measures, the landscape across America is changing.  In taking stock of the direction we often appear to be heading, I am loath to call that “exceptional,” but hey, that’s just me.  For now, it is what it is, and what it is, is…”The Supremes Strike Another Blow Against Affirmative Action!”  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.supremecourt.gov/opinions/13pdf/12-682_j4ek.pdf

http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/11-345_l5gm.pdf

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/16/education/michigans-affirmative-action-ban-is-ruled-unconstitutional.html?_r=0

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/22/justice/scotus-michigan-affirmative-action/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/23/us/supreme-court-michigan-affirmative-action-ban.html?_r=0

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/04/22/supreme-court-affirmative-action-michigan/4481923/

http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/12/us/affirmative-action-fast-facts/index.html

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/06/24/us/affirmative-action-bans.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/23/us/turning-to-new-means-of-promoting-diversity.html

http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/12pdf/11-345_l5gm.pdf

In what must come as the shocking revelations to most African Americans, a poll conducted by the Pew Research Center determined that a majority of Americans say President Obama is not black. In two Presidential Elections, President Obama outpolled his opponents on average, 94% to 4%. To be fair, Democrats traditionally maintain an advantage over Republicans with the black electorate. Still, 4%, which is the number that both Senator McCain and Governor Romney polled in their respective elections against Mr. Obama, must be considered a low, if not paltry total.

Then Senator Obama captured 95% of the black vote in 2008 to Senator John McCain’s 4%. He also outpolled Senator McCain among Hispanics, 66% to 31%, and held the same margin with voters under the age of 30. He garnered 56% of women voters, and forged a virtual tie with 49% of men. More white men, 41%, voted for Senator Obama than any Democrat since Jimmy Carter. An imposing 71% of first time voters cast their ballot for Mr. Obama, compared to 29% for Mr. McCain. Mr. Obama won the Catholic vote 54% to 46%, won the Asian vote 63% to 34%, and won 78% of the Jewish vote.

Senator Obama won 66% of single voters, he won 51% of married voters, while suburban-rural voters split 50-50. Among high wage earners, those making $200,000 or more in 2007, 53% voted for Mr. Obama. Finally, 85% of Democrats who voted for Hillary Clinton in the primaries, voted for Barack Obama in the general election.

In 2012, President Obama fell off his 2008 pace, but still logged 93% of the black vote. Undoubtedly, the former Illinois Senator’s ability to galvanize support within the African American community in such a way was tied to the perception of its affinity with him.

He also beat Mr. Romney among Hispanics 71% tor 24%, and among Asians, 73% to 22%. He won the age 18-29 years old demographic by 60% to 35%, and won the 30-44 years old age group by 52% to 41%. Among women, he received 55% of the vote, down a percentage point from 2008, while he fell 5 percentage points among men, to 44%. In his second election, President Obama dominated vote totals for Americans who earn under $50,000.

For those who earn less than $30,000 per year, the President led 63% to 31%, and for those earning between $30,000 and $49,000, the President attracted 57% of the vote to Governor Romney’s 39%. Among those earning more than $50,000 per year, President Obama lost by a substantial margin, 42% to 53%. The margin was even greater for those earning more than $100,000 per year, 38% to 54%. These higher income-based results represent a reversal from 2008.

Party loyalty was high, as might be anticipated. Democrats supported the President by a margin of 92% to 4%, while Republicans voted for the Governor 93% to 3%. President Obama ceded Independent voters to Governor Romney, 42% TO 50%.

So, let’s get back to that poll. Slightly more than one quarter, 27% of Americans, say President Obama is black. Contrast this with 52% who say he is mixed race. On some level this newly emerging narrative is surprising, but not on every level. W. E. B. Du Bois noted in his transcendent 1903 treatise, The Souls of Black Folks, “For the problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of the color-line.” After more than eleven decades, and significant progress in many arenas and endeavors, his words ring as true today as they did 111 years ago.

Suffice it to say our nation wrestles with issues of race, ethnicity, and culture. During the initial Obama Presidential Campaign in 2008 there was a popular discussion about Mr. Obama’s candidacy, and his election, were it to come to pass. The premise held we were transitioning into a state called post-racial America. The essence of the arguments in support of this mythical universe is that the willingness of our country, burdened by centuries of slave-based guilt, to elect a black man to the highest office in the land would enable us to metamophosize into some idyllic racial space, thus jettisoning said guilt in the process.

The argument was silly and self-serving at the time. Surely, the elevation of one man to a seat of power, even if that seat were considered that of the most powerful man on the planet, could not erase all the slings and arrows absorbed and endured over centuries debasing abuse. It did not.

However, now that history is firmly in the rear view mirror, and President Obama not only not only ran, won and governed, but ran and won a second time, it appears there is an effort to re-write the script. Remember that black guy who became President. Well…”as it turns out, he wasn’t really black after all.” Really?

I don’t pretend to know the motivation of those who constructed the Pew Poll. I do know there is an effort afoot to lessen the impact of the “browning” of America. Categorizing the President, whom by the way self-identifies as black, as mixed race is one of the component steps of that effort.

Technically, mixed race is not a new American concept. At least as far back as the first collaboration between slave master and impregnated slave, there have been mixed race individuals among us. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you what the children of those unions were called. Just in case, I do, the word-of-the-day was slave.

Among blacks, 55% considered the President black, while only 24% of whites, and 23% of Hispanics did so. The reality is, that’s OK. He has one white parent and one black parent, so he is of mixed race heritage. It just so happens that mixed race and black are not mutually exclusive. That is the central point I wish to underscore before this new narrative gets blown out of proportion.

In summary, you can call him mixed race, or you can call him a Socialist, or you can call him Mr. Obama, or any of a host of other less charitable names often used to refer to him. Moreover, despite the results, “Pew Study: Majority of Americans Say President Obama is Not Black” – for me, he is, and shall ever be, President Obama…and oh yeah, he’s black.

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: https://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.pewresearch.org/packages/the-next-america/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2014/04/14/is-barack-obama-black/

http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/04/14/poll-majority-of-americans-say-obama-is-mixed-race-not-black/

http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/04/15/only-27-percent-us-residents-say-president-obama-black

http://www.hnn.us/article/155290

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/she-the-people/wp/2014/04/15/most-americans-say-obama-is-not-black-heres-why-that-pew-poll-is-wrong/

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/03/us/politics/03census.html?_r=2&

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1083335/Breakdown-demographics-reveals-black-voters-swept-Obama-White-House.html

http://www.statisticbrain.com/2012-presidential-voter-support-by-demographic/

http://www.bartleby.com/114/

From this writer’s vantage point, thirty-three days later, those who know are not talking; those who are talking do not know.  The End!

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: https://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://thesphinxofcharlotte.com/2014/03/19/when-no-news-is-all-the-news-you-have/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_Airlines_Flight_370

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/08/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-no-new-black-box-like-sounds-heard/

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-a-most-promising-lead-in-search-area/

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Latest-News-Wires/2014/0408/Malaysia-Airlines-Flight-370-How-long-will-black-box-signals-last-video

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/08/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane/?hpt=hp_t1

http://abcnews.go.com/International/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-now/story?id=23220741

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/04/08/malaysia-plane-search/7451461/

http://www.weather.com/tv/tvshows/americas-morning-headquarters/missing-malaysia-airlines-plane-flight-370-update-20140317

On yesterday, April 1^st, President Obama announced that over 7.1 million Americans have enrolled for the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  This was a significant announcement.  What that means is, as of March 31, the end of the initial enrollment period for Obamacare, the program exceeded its initial enrollment goal, despite the copious foray of outrageous slings and arrows launched by a variety of haters.

After months of speculation, skepticism, and flat out derision, the total provided a surprising, and no doubt satisfying victory for the President.  The race for enrollment began in October and spanned six months.  In the initial stages, the computer system established to facilitate enrollment was plagued with problems.  Actual sign-up was so sporadic, there were reports of customers trying for hours, unsuccessfully, just to log on to the system…and still not being able to do so.

Opponents of the ACA, many of the same Republicans who garnered so much disdain for the ill-conceived notion of shutting down the Government, discovered newfound energy and an improbable resurgence due to the ineffective rollout.  The GOP moved from widely scorned to openly ebullient in a matter of weeks.  Conversely, Democrats, who never wholeheartedly embraced the ACA in the first place, went from moderately confident, to routinely avoiding the President and calling for their own revisions to Obamacare.

All the while, the President and his team moved deliberately in their efforts to right the ship, and continually expressed confidence the program would deliver the goods.  The message the Obama Administration continued to hang its hat on was that the problem was centered in the computer system design, not the premise or the purpose of the ACA.  He argued that tens of millions of Americans lacked coverage, and would be better served by the ACA than the current system, or by repealing Obama, with no replacement, which was for all practical purposes, the substance of the Republican alternative.

The GOP has rolled the dice with its relentlessly strident opposition to the ACA.  On March 5, The GOP-led House of Representatives took its 50^th vote to repeal, rescind, or remake Obamacare.  House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, and Speaker of the House John Boehner are among the GOP leaders who continue to look for ever new and more inventive ways to attack the program and undermine a President their Party placed a premium on defeating and nullifying since before his initial Inauguration.  The Plan, as it were, was to attack the President’s key advisers, oppose his economic proposals, pounce upon vulnerable Democrats, win back the House in 2010, and defeat President Obama in 2012.  While they did not achieve all their objectives, after all, Mr. Obama is still President, their zeal and commitment has not receded.

As the first quarter of 2014 is a memory, and the races for November campaigns heat up, it will be interesting to see how fervently Republicans stick to the script on its attempts to repeal a program for which millions of Americans have signed-up.  By enrolling in the ACA, many of these Americans are becoming insured for the first time.  Many more are obtaining better and or more comprehensive coverage, and others still able to rid themselves of lifetime capes, of nettlesome precondition clauses.  When the dust settles, will the Party of No continue to adhere to its position; despite the likelihood large blocks of voters will have derived considerable benefit from the program they have so enthusiastically scorned?

Yesterday, in claiming victory President Obama noted “The program approved by Congress in 2010 – with no Republican support and vilified relentlessly by the GOP as government overreach – has been a force for good.”

The battle is by no means over.  The 7.1 million number represents only those who have signed-up for coverage.  Not all of them have paid.  They will have until mid-April to complete the process, however.

Ultimately, this is a victory for the President, and for the millions of Americans who were uninsured or underinsured.  The GOP, undoubtedly, will continue its efforts to destroy Obamacare.  The key question is will they pay a price for it at the polls in November.  The answer to that query is months away.  However, we know with irreducible certitude at the moment is, “Obamacare Hits Target: No April Fools’ Gag!”

I’m done holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: https://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/Patient_Protection_and_Affordable_Care_Act

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/01/politics/obamacare-signups-target/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/politicsnow/la-pn-white-house-obamacare-signups-20140401,0,5012651.story#axzz2xgqEQLwT

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2014/03/not-again-house-gop-takes-50th-vote-to-change-obamacare/

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/obama-hits-target-of-7-million-sign-ups-for-health-insurance-1.2594376

http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottgottlieb/2014/04/01/obamacare-enrollment-didnt-close-monday-it-remains-open-indefinately/

http://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/healthcaregov-activity-surges-final-hours

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/mar/27/obamacare-health-exchange-enrollment-meets-goal/

http://www.news.nom.co/white-house-meets-goal-of-7-8701524-news/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/25/robert-draper-anti-obama-campaign_n_1452899.html

Nearly eight months ago, I wrote about a series of coordinated, pernicious attacks on voting rights in North Carolina. As we approach the end of the first quarter of this year, Election Day 2014 is just over seven months away. Obviously, Primaries are even closer.

In June 2013, the Supreme Court’s decision in Shelby County v. Holder effectively nullified Section 5, a key provision of the Voting Rights Act by striking down Section 4.  In July, the North Carolina State Legislature passed an omnibus bill (HB 589) that many consider the signature voter suppression law in the country.

In my July 31, 2013 Blog, I discussed a number of measures enacted in the Old North State that will curtail access to executing the voting franchise by many North Carolinians. In that post I noted, “The North Carolina General Assembly approved a Voter ID law on steroids.  The House approved a bill in April that required Voter ID.  The Senate then, in the closing days of the session, added 40 pages and over 50 provisions.”

The law not only requires voters to provide a government ID in order to execute their ballot; in addition to disenfranchising 319,000 voters who do not have such an ID (Driver’s License, State ID, Military ID, and U.S. Passport), the bill also:

Ends same day registration

Rescinds automatic restoration of voting rights to ex-felons

Legalizes the right for any person to stand in a polling place and issue a challenge to ones right to vote

Eliminates straight ticket voting

Abolishes pre-registration by 17 year-olds

Reduces Early Voting from 17 days to 10 days

Requires voters to make all address updates or other changes at least 25 days prior to Election Day

Weakens disclosure requirements intended to make clear who underwrites campaign ads

Permits political parties to raise unlimited corporate donations

Raises the cap on individual donations from $4,000 to $5,000

Supporters of the measure insist the new law will “restore faith in elections, and prevent voter fraud, which they say is endemic and undetected (a patently contradictory assertion).  Republican partisans make this claim, despite the fact the State Board of Elections there has been one (only one) case of voter fraud identified since 2012.

Conversely, opponents of the law, including nonpartisan voting rights groups, Democrats, and Libertarians contend the true goal of the initiative is to suppress voter turnout among young, old, poor, and minority voters.  More than 300,000 North Carolina voters do not possess the requisite ID; most are students, the elderly, the poor, or black. It does not the keenest of observers to recognize President Obama won all those voting blocs except the elderly in both 2008 and 2012.  Further, according to North Carolina voting statistics, Democrats are more likely to vote early, and more prone to vote straight ticket.

It is totally fair and appropriate to concede that North Carolina is by no means alone in passing measures similar to this law.  In fact most Southern states have instituted such laws in the past year. However, as a proud North Carolinian, born and bred, I do take personal exception to this abridgement of rights. Fortunately, my position is not unique.

The National Commission on Voting Rights (NCVR) is holding a series of hearings across the country to consider acts of voting discrimination and various other election challenges. The NCVR is entity that evolved from the National Commission on the Voting Rights Act.  The new group will hold the tenth of its hearings in Rocky Mount, NC on March 28, 2014.  This hearing is organized by a coalition of voting rights and civil rights groups, including:

• The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
• NC NAACP
• ACLU of North Carolina
• UNC Center for Civil Rights
• Southern Coalition for Social Justice
• Advancement Project
• Democracy North Carolina

At the hearing, a panel will take testimony on a number of topics that include:

• Barriers to access for individuals with disabilities
• African American & Latino voters
• The impact of new voting rules on students
• Needs of rural voters
• Impact of State laws on rural Counties in the State

If you believe this issue is important, and/or if you know others who believe it is an essential undertaking, and you are a North Carolinian, I encourage you to consider attending the NCVR Hearing.  See pertinent details below:

WHAT: National Commission on Voting Rights, North Carolina Hearing

Panels – There will be formal panels of witnesses representing voting rights organizations, community leaders, election officials, and other stakeholders. Witnesses are encouraged to submit written testimony in advance of the hearing. The panel of commissioners will also receive the testimony orally and may ask follow up questions.


Open Public Testimony – There will several open public testimony periods for voters to testify about their experiences.

WHEN:  Friday, March 28, 2014, 9:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

WHERE: OIC of Rocky Mount, 402 East Virginia St., Rocky Mount, NC 27802

How You Can Get Involved!

• Share your voting experience and/or tell us about voting changes in your community: http://aftershelby.lawyerscommittee.org
• Attend a hearing (details below)
• Call the 1-866-OUR-VOTE Hotline to report voting changes in your community

“It’s 2014: Is Your Right to Vote Secure?” I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: https://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://thesphinxofcharlotte.com/2013/07/31/nc-voter-id-law-taking-our-country-back/

http://signup.lawyerscommittee.org/p/salsa/event/common/public/?event_KEY=423086

http://www.lawyerscommittee.org/projects/voting_rights/page?id=0144

http://www.advancementproject.org/resources/entry/statement-of-katie-oconnor-to-north-carolina-house-elections-committee

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10694048

http://arcnc.org/file/2013/NCVR.pdf

https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/9744-voters-speak-out-ncvr?locale=en

http://citizenjames72.blogspot.com/2014/03/national-commission-on-voting-rights.html

http://www.protectcivilrights.org/pdf/voting/NorthCarolinaVRA.pdf

http://www.thenation.com/blog/177577/north-carolina-shows-why-voting-rights-act-still-needed#

Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which disappeared in the early morning hours of March 8, after takeoff from Kuala Lumpur en route to Beijing, has been the source of many questions and very few answers.  At least 26 countries are or have been in search of the Boeing 777 airliner and it’s 239 passengers and crew for the past 11 days, and counting.  As news stories go, this one has captivated the focus of multiple news outlets.  In fact, for at least one cable outlet, it has been elevated to virtually 24/7 status.

I understand that an Airline finding itself with a missing aircraft, 239 missing passengers, and a missing crew, is a huge deal.  That the passengers and crew have been missing for nigh on two weeks makes for unfathomable tension, frustration, fear, and a host of other emotions for families and friends.  Yet, I am stunned by the ability of agencies, which purport to report the news, to continue to conceive new and more creative ways to say I/we don’t know what happened to the plane, the passengers, or the crew, but…here, dear viewer, is our newest unsubstantiated theory.

In no small way, this phenomenon appears to take a potential tragedy, and leverage from it, every available ounce of emotional capital.  That the practice has led to a ratings bonanza makes it completely understandable, in an, “it’s just a calculated business decision” kind of way.  Yet, for an industry that was once relied upon to report the news, rather than gin up, and spread conjecture, it should be equally understood that the decision to operate in this way fundamentally changes the dynamic of what heretofore was called the news cycle, and not in a good way.  This epic spate of “reporting” may not represent the all time nadir of on air news, but it the current sequence continues uninterrupted much longer the question must at least be debated.

We live in the age of connectivity; a time in which transcontinental travel is routine, and in which communication is both constant and omnipresent.  We are accustomed to using Global Positioning Systems (familiarly known as GPS) to track our movements via mobile phones, automobiles, trains, and even airplanes.  Consequently, when our 12st Century advanced technology is stumped, we, understandably, are at a real loss.  Unfortunately, this is exactly the case in which we find ourselves, as we attempt to unravel the “Mystery of (the missing) Flight 370.

I will not submit to the temptation to add to the litany of theories that abound about what might have happened, what could not have happened, what did not happen, nor what will happen next, as it relates to Flight 370.  Instead, I will simply implore anyone who will listen to consider responding with a concise and earnest reply, no comment, to any question posed, “When No News Is All the News You Have!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: https://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/2014/03/18/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/18/malaysia-scenarios/6559209/

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-probe-digs-into-past-of-all-on-board-missing-boeing-777/

http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/nation/2014/03/18/mh370-leading-theories/6576271/

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/eye-opener-the-mystery-of-flight-370-takes-another-turn/

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/17/world/asia/malaysia-plane-up-to-speed/

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/17/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane-fascination/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/lost-the-mysterious-baffling-disappearance-of-malaysia-flight-370/2014/03/11/1b7e390e-a94f-11e3-b61e-8051b8b52d06_story.html

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2014/03/sunday-on-this-week-the-mystery-of-flight-370/

http://nation.foxnews.com/2014/03/17/flight-370-mystery-investigators-believe-co-pilot-spoke-last-words-reportedly-probe-plane

I cannot say that I am shocked, not even surprised.  Nearly a decade and a half into the 21st Century, that an established major Party elected politician might not only tweet, but also defend these comments:

• “Let’s be honest, 70% of teams in NBA could fold tomorrow + nobody would notice a difference w/ possible exception of increase in streetcrime.”

Sadly, such mischaracterizations have become par for the course.  In recent years, a flurry of politicos have bolstered their conservative bona fides and political cred by uttering biting, if not bigoted and spiteful remarks targeted at or based upon someone’s ethnic group, sexual preference, or gender designation.  Suffice it so say, the NBA is an easy target for such ad hominem attacks.  The League’s employees are all male, and the vast majority of them are black.  Oh yes, by even the most generous of standards they are wealthy.  So, who would possibly fell compelled to rally in their defense?  Well, if the attack is an open rant on Twitter, almost anyone might respond.

Pat Garofalo is a Minnesotan, an elected politician (Minnesota House of Representatives), a member of the Republican Party, and a member of the Twitterverse.  At 7:33 p.m. Central Time (Minnesota) this past Sunday evening, Mr. Garofalo tweeted the bulleted comment above.

The tweet resonated; it was re-tweeted hundreds of times within a two-hour period.  A number of folks on Twitter called the comment racist.  Undaunted by the push back and possibly buttressed by individuals who co-signed and or supported the remarks, Mr. Garofalo defended them.

He said he was:

• “Talking about the NBA’s high arrest rate and that they are the only major pro league that testing positive for marijuana is not a substance abuse violation.”

If that is what you want to believe, it may sound good.  Sound good, or not, it is an inaccurate assertion.  The truth is the NBA’s arrest rate is below the national average. Moreover, the evil pot meme is melting away like the winter’s snow throughout the Southeast.  Marijuana is a legalized substance in two states, is widely available for medical use in another 18 states, and is a minor offense in most states.

It took a while, but the facts actually finally made their way to the Mr. Garofalo.  Subsequently, he apologized for the tweet on Monday.

He said in a statement:

• “I was under the mistaken impression that the National Basketball Association did not test for marijuana. In fact, that is false…That is a drug policy violation and something that’s clearly stated in their collective bargaining agreement.”

You can read the NBA’s anti-drug policy, which specifically mentions marijuana, here.

In summary, this was a story with a happy-ending.  In the span of just one day, an ill-conceived remark was tweeted, vetted, and rescinded.  This was a great example of “Weeding Out…The Inaccuracies!”  If only it were always that simple, and quick.

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: https://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/Pat_Garofalo

https://twitter.com/PatGarofalo/status/442805513697628160

http://extramustard.si.com/category/sign-of-the-apocalypse/

http://www.startribune.com/politics/statelocal/249218011.html

http://www.scribd.com/doc/211699556/Anti-Drug-Agreement-Summary-2013-14

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/26112786-419/minnesota-rep-pat-garofalo-apologizes-for-offensive-nba-tweet.html

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2014/03/10/minnesota-rep-pat-garofalo-nba-tweet-called-racist-prompts-hundreds-responses/

http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-pat-garofalo-nba-20140310,0,2576680.story#axzz2viHdTNsD

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/10/state-rep-pat-garofalo-says-nba-players-are-criminals.html

http://www.twincities.com/breakingnews/ci_25309842/state-rep-pat-garofalos-tweet-about-nba-draws