CPAC: A Trip Back to the Future

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It’s time to Break It Down!

While the Catholic Church Worldwide was busy in Rome, electing, welcoming, and confirming a new Pope Francis I, in case you managed to miss it, the ultra-conservative wing of the Republican Party was ensconced inWashington, DC, rallying around an impressive array of the reigning Right Wing Illuminati.  The list of invited conservative luminaries included Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, Sarah Palin, Rick Santorum,Tim Scott, Mitt Romney, Allen West, Bobby Jindal, and Jeb Bush, to name just 10.  Conspicuous by his absence (and lack of an invitation), was New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, whom many view as the early odds-on favorite to claim the GOP nomination in 2016.

As the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) convened in the nation’s Capital for its 40th Annual Confab, many observers noted a fairly active episode of trench warfare; nothing less than a battle for the soul of the Party.  And who is the opponent of record?  Believe it or not, the Republican National Committee (RNC) has staked itself out as the entity standing as the antithesis of CPAC.

In a freshly minted report commissioned by the RNC the narrative is framed such that it tears the CPAC/GOP-Tea Party a proverbial “new one.”   One characterization in the LA Timesasserts that the report “Reads like an anti-GOP critique from the“lame stream media.”  The report maintains the GOP, as currently constituted is:

  • Too rigidly ideological
  • Too enthralled with greedy corporations
  • Too disconnected from nonwhite and young voters
  • In desperate need of new ideas

The report was authored by a collection of folks straight out of the Bush faction of the Republican Party.  Prominent among them were Ari Fleischer, George W. Bush’s White House spokesman, Sally Bradshaw, a veteran advisor to former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, and RNC Committeeman Henry Barbour, nephew of Haley Barbour, the former Mississippi Governor and RNC Chairman, who worked on the Presidential  campaign of Vice President George H. W. Bush in 1988.  Completing the five-member group of authors are two additional RNC members, whose race and ethnicity make them atypical Republicans – Glenn McCall, an African American from South Carolina, andZori Fonalledas, a Latina from Puerto Rico.

In gathering input for the report, the 5-member panel solicited input from 50,000rank-and-file party members.  Information gathered from focus groups (composed of Republicans) indicate that a great many Americansperceive Republicans as:

  • Narrow-minded
  • Out of touch
  • Homophobic
  • Stuffy old white men
  • Interested only in the welfare of rich people
  • A turn-off to young voters
  • Disinterested in attracting minorities to the Party

In addition to these findings, the report also suggests a number of philosophical adjustments that “true conservatives” view as anathema.  For example, the report argues, “We have to blow the whistle at corporate malfeasance and attack corporate welfare. We should speak out when CEO’s receive tens of millions of dollars in retirement packages but middle-class workers have not has a meaningful raise in years.”

That rhetoric could easily be mistaken for a statement from the Democratic Party, oft described by conservatives as “class warfare.”

It can be argued, however, that an even more highly charged position taken by the report is the endorsement of comprehensive immigration reform.  In DC,CPAC heard right-wing commentator Ann Coulter blasted the report, insisting that immigration reform equates to amnesty, and amounts to political suicide for the GOP. She claimed, “If amnesty goes through, America becomes California and no Republican will ever win another national election.”

In its heated reaction, CPAC provided a vivid example of the fevered, insular mindset that the RNC committee sees as a huge problem for the party.

“The Republican Party needs to stop talking to itself,” the report opines.  The writers went on to say, “We have become expert in how to provide ideological reinforcement to like-minded people, but devastatingly we have lost the ability to be persuasive with, or welcoming to, those who do not agree with us on every issue.”

Ironically, while the RNC is saying let us open the doors to new people and new ideas, a litany ofCPAC speakers was composed almost entirely of insular ideologues, gay-bashers, gun fetishists, religious fundamentalists, birth control foes, and devotees of wacky conspiracy theories.  CPACheadliners such as Sara Palin, Rick Santorum, Michele Bachmann, Allen West, Donald Trump, and the National Rifle Association’s Wayne LaPierre do not represent a new direction for the GOP.  They represent exactly what the RNC is warning against; “CPAC: A Trip Back to the Future.”  Have no doubt; there is a battle afoot for the soul of the GOP.

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.comor http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

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

http://news.yahoo.com/republican-disarray-on-full-display-at-cpac-151848460.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1qw3IbGOpo&list=UUXgSdJoSGVClzLFb63CYyOw

http://theeverlastinggopstoppers.com/2013/03/white-cpac-attendee-african-americans-allowed-vote-africa-video/

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57574789/7-takeaways-from-cpac-2013/

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/03/19/palin-cpac-fact-check-budget/2001297/

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-republican-soul-20130318,0,5342922.story

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/03/rnc-autopsy-may-rile-up-base-89010_Page2.html

http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/hannity/2013/03/19/sen-rand-paul-talks-cpac-straw-poll-victory-looks-ahead-2016

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/sarah-palin-cpac-speech-2013-big-gulp-bloomberg-18753388

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/16/ann-coulter-cpac_n_2892646.html

http://www.buzzfeed.com/chrisgeidner/at-cpac-the-marriage-fight-is-over

http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/16/politics/cpac-5-things

“Pontiff-ication: 15 Papal Trivia Firsts!”

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It’s time to Break It Down!

Yesterday’s billowing black smoke from the Sistine Chapel meant no new Pope; back to the drawing board.  Cardinal Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger was elected Pontiffby the Conclave of Cardinals on April 19, 2005, three days after his 78th birthday.  He went on to serve 7 years and a little over 10months as Pope Benedict XVI, the 265th Bishop of Rome.  Though he had reached an advanced age prior to his elevation, it is worth noting that Cardinal Ratzinger is not the oldest man elected Pope.  It is just as noteworthy that the youngest person to assume the position was a teenager at the time.  (See both in the list below).   

Most of us are familiar with the broad strokes of the Pope and the Catholic Church, i.e., the Pope is the head of the Catholic Church, Romeis considered the home of the Catholic Church, and the Catholic Churchis the world’s largest Christian Church, with over 1.2 billion members, worldwide.  Yet, there are lots of nuggets unknown to most of us non-Catholics, as well as a few not generally known by Catholics.    

By now, virtually everyone with access to print media, TV/cable news, and/or the WorldWideWeb, knows Pope Benedict XVI resigned his Papacy, effective February 28, 2013, and is now Pope Emeritus.  Yesterday, the Conclave of Cardinals met for the first time to cast ballots to elect a new Pope.  According to the procedural regimen of the Catholic Church, the Cardinals in the Papal Conclave will continue to meet daily and vote until one of the Cardinals receives 77 votes; 2/3 of the 115 Cardinalsparticipating in this Conclave.  Once a Cardinalreceives the necessary 2/3 majority vote, white smoke will emanate from the Sistine Chapel, signaling the election of the 266th Pope.

To supplement the burgeoning conversation that is currently underway regarding the Catholic Church, as the Papal Conclaveendeavors to elect a new Pope, I offer the following 15 elements of trivia firsts:

1.      St. Peter is said, according to Catholic tradition, to have been the first Pope, as well as the one who brought Christianityto Rome.  However, there is evidence to indicate Christianity came to Romewell before Peter, and even once there, he did not serve as Bishop or any sort of leader.  Ultimately, Catholics insist that Jesushimself anointed Peter to the position, and they use Scripturalreferences to support their claim.Perhaps the best example is Matthew 16: 18-19 – “(18) And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.  (19) I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”  New International Version (NIV)

2.      St. Sixtus I (Xystus)First know Pope to have also been the son of a Priest.  During his era, there was no requirement that priests be celibate.

3.      St. Pius I First real Bishopof Rome.  Prior to this the Christian community was governed by a council of elders or deacons.  Pius was the first “Bishop”who exercised sole authority.

4.      St. Victor I First AfricanPope.First Pope to attempt to exert authority outside Rome and neighboring communities.  He threatened excommunication for anyone who refused to celebrate Easteron Sunday and was soundly rebuked for it – at the time, the Bishop of Rome was not justified in telling others what to do in this way,

5.      St. Pontain First Pope to resign.  Pontain was arrested and sentenced to labor in the mines of Sardinia.  Because of his sentence, Pope Pontain abdicated on September 28, 235 AD, to prevent a power vacuum.

6.      St. Innocent I First Popewhose father was a Pope, Anastasius I.  Had Anastasius’marriage not been valid, Innocent would have been an illegitimate child, and therefore ineligible for the priesthood.

7.      St. Gelasius I First Pope to use the title “Vicar of Christ.”  Last Popeof African descent, though born in Rome.

8.      John II First Pope to adopt a new name when elected – but only because his given name was that of a pagan god, Mercurius

9.      Pelagius I First Pope not actually elected; he was simply appointed by the Emperor Justinian.

10.Adrian I Oldest person elected Pope (80)

11.Adrian II Last married Pope.  His wife Setphaniaand his daughter lived in the Vatican palace with him.

12.Boniface VI When Bonifacewas elected Pope, he had already beendefrocked twice because of immoral behavior.

13.Sergius III Sergiusordered the murder of his two immediate predecessors, Leo, and Christopher.

14.John XI First (and presumably only) Pope who was the illegitimate son of a previous Pope (Sergius III).

15.John XII Youngest person elected Pope (18); first and only teenager elected to the position of Pope.

The trend during the past century or so is to elect a Pope within 3 days on average. If that pattern holds, the world will be introduced to the next Pope this week.  The Papal Conclave will resume its efforts again this morning.  Meanwhile, relax and take a quick tour of a few Papalparticulars you probably didn’t know; “Pontiff-ication: 15 Papal Trivia Firsts!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

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

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+16%3A18-19&version=NIV

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Cardinal Sins: Catholicism and the Question of Priestly Celibacy

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It’s time to Break It Down!

In 1859, Charles Dickens penned the classic A Tale of Two Cities.  The opening paragraph, one of the most famous in all of literature, reads thusly:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way–in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

For whatever it’s worth, recent events in the Catholic Church summon for me thoughts of those pointed analogies.  Of course, I must first admit I approach this conversation from the perspective of a non-Catholic.  As such, it’s perfectly fine for all the practicing members of the Faith to dismiss my views as the feeble rant of someone without a clue.

With that disclaimer out of the way, here goes.  Last Thursday, Pope Benedict XVI (Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger)left behind Vatican City, the Papal Ring, and his red Pradas; becoming the first Pope to resign since Pope Gregory XII in 1415, and the first to do so of his own volition since Pope Celestine Vin 1294 (719 years ago).  He is expected to return to the Vatican City and live out his retirement in the newly renovated Mater Ecclesiae monastery.

There has been rampant speculation and numerous conspiracy theories about why, after more than seven centuries, a Pope chose to opt out.  To be fair, this Pope has a number of health challenges, and he cited those maladies as the basis for his decision to leave his elevated station.  Still, in full disclosure, much of the chum being circulated about reasons, at least tangentially associated with the Pope’s departure, is downright salacious.  Theories comprise a generous mixture of sex, lies, hypocrisy, secrecy, and of course, money.  No word of videotape…yet!

Christendom acknowledges acts against God as sin.The most objectionable elements of these acts are often referred to asCardinal Sins, Capital Vices, or The Seven Deadly Sins. 

The Roman Catholic Church divides sin into two categories: venial sins, in which guilt is relatively minor, and the more severe mortal sins.  In order to eliminate any confusion, theCardinal Sins referred to in this post are Cardinal Sins because…they were committed by Roman Catholic Cardinals; not birds, not the Baseball Team, or the Football Team, but men; Roman Catholic Priests.

This post points to two highly placed Catholic officials, and examines the different ways they are responding to their virtual perp walks.  So it is, rather than, A Tale of Two Cities, a tale of two Cardinals; prelates from different continents, but both influential heavyweights in their own spheres.

On the American Left Coast, the Archbishop of Metropolitan Los Angeles, José Horacio Gómez, removed Cardinal Roger Mahony of all his public and episcopal duties in the Archdioceseof Los  Angeles, on January 31, 2013.  The Archbishop took this action after the release of personnel files documenting priest sexual abuse cases during Cardinal Mahaony’s tenure.

In 1985, Pope John Paul II appointed Mahony Archbishop of Los Angeles; he made him a Cardinal in 1991.In July 2007, Mahoney and the Catholic Church in Los Angelesapologized for abuses by priests after 508 victims reached a record-breaking settlement worth $660 million, and an average payout of $1.3 million per plaintiff.  At the time Mahony described the abuse as a “terrible sin and crime.”  That agreement dwarfed a similar settlement paid by the Archdiocese of Boston, where Massachusettslaw places a legal dollar cap on how much a non-profit group can be required to pay.

Deliver Us From Evil, a 2006 documentary chronicles accusations that Cardinal Mahony knew that a priest serving under him, Oliver O’Grady, a native of the Republic of Ireland, had a two decades long history of sexually abusing and molesting children (including one infant), but that he failed to keep him away from children.The film claims that in a 1984 (was this Orwellian?) a Stockton police investigation into sexual abuse allegations against O’Grady was reportedly closed after diocesan officials promised to remove the priest from any contact with children.  Instead, Mahony reassigned O’Grady to a parish approximately 50 miles east, in San Andreas, where O’Grady continued to molest children.By 2012, authorities obtained internal Church documents showing Mahony had organized the movement of sexual predators across jurisdictional boundaries to complicate any possible prosecution.  In 1987 he prohibited a priest from seeking therapy for his urges on the grounds that a therapist might report the crimes to police.

The New York Times, in January 2013, editorialized: “No member of the Roman Catholic hierarchy fought longer and more energetically thanCardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angelesto conceal the decades-long scandal involving the rape and intimidation of children by rogue priests. For years, the cardinal withheld seamy church records from parents, victims and the public, brandishing endless litigation and fatuous claims of confidentiality.”

The only additional piece of information you need to know is, “This man is one of the 115 Cardinals who will be part of the Papal conclave to elect the next Pope.”

Cardinal Keith O’Brien was Britain’s highest ranking Catholic leader…until Monday of last week.  He has been accused of improper conduct with priests – an unprecedented first head to roll in the sometimes tawdry passion play that has ensued in the wake of Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to resign.

O’Brien, who was also the Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, resigned from those posts too.  For the record, the Vatican maintains that Pope Benedict accepted his resignation purely because he was nearing the retirement age of 75 – not because of accusations…wink, wink.  However, O’Brien issued a statement saying he would skip the conclave because he did not want to become the focus of media attention at such a delicate time for the Catholic Church.

In addition, O’Brien said through a spokesman, he is contesting the allegations of reported in a British newspaper, Sunday, February 24th, that three priests had files complaints to the Vatican alleging that the Cardinal acted inappropriately with them.  The newspaper did not name the priests, but said their allegations date back to the 1980’s.The behavior was not detailed in the story.

This is the first time a Cardinal has recused himself from a Papal conclave because of personal scandal.  The episode follows closely a grass roots campaign to shame another Cardinal, Roger Mahony, into refraining from participating because of his role in protecting sexually abusive priests.  As noted above, however, Cardinal Mahony has, in defiant fashion, opted to ignore the calls for him to decline participation in the conclave to elect a new Pope.

An interesting, if not key distinction in the behavior of the two Cardinals is that in Los Angeles, Cardinal Mahoney has been shown to have covered up the indiscretions of other priests (a category of violation that has historically shielded accused bishops of sanction), whereas, in St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Cardinal O’Brien has been accused personally of improper behavior.  It seems likely; this difference in focus is the basis for the difference in the two men’s decision on whether to attend the conclave to elect the Pope.

There are undoubtedly a great many sociological evaluations and assessments delving into why these issues are plaguing the Catholic Church.  Without exhausting the full range of possibilities, one observation screams so loudly, it is difficult to ignore. 

Mark Dowd, a former Dominican Friar and currently a freelance writer, wrote in The Guardian last Monday, that a series of respondents were interviewed through a program called Queer and Catholic.  He notes that:

“We interviewed clerics and ex-seminarians in the UK, US and Rome and uncovered a huge irony: the very institution that teaches that the homosexual orientation is “intrinsically disordered” attracts gay candidates for the priesthood in numbers way in excess of what one would expect, based on numbers in society at large. One seminary rector based on his own experience told me the number was at least 50%.”

For its part, the Catholic Church’sposition is certainly not that there are no gay priests.  Rather, their vows should trump their nature.  That may be the design, and in a perfect world, that might be precisely as it would play out.  Alas, in the real world scenarios with which we are faced, we are left to ask, “How’s that working for you?”

That Pope Benedict XVI, frail though he admits he is, has by retiring, positioned himself to return to his long held academic pursuits, is at least in some ways a positive outcome of this Papacy.  It had been more that 700 years since a Pope took such an unusual course.  May the Pope Emeritus enjoy his remaining time, and immerse himself in pursuits that will continue to accrue to the love of his life; the Catholic Church.

That the Catholic Church finds itself roiled by controversy of such a prurient nature is a most unfortunate circumstance for the institution.  By all appearances, the combination of contemporary folkways and mores, in conjunction with the will of many people who call themselves Catholic will serve to make complicated all efforts to resolve the many dynamic issues related to this matter.  Yet, at their core, Catholics are believers, and it is written in Mark 9: 23: “Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.”

So, In a Dickensian kind of way, it is the best of times, it is the worst of times.Meanwhile, it is also time we took a closer look at “Cardinal Sins: Catholicism and the Question of Priestly Celibacy.”

I’m done; holla back.

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.comor http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/feb/26/anti-gay-rhetoric-of-religious-leaders

The Double-A, Reprised!

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It’s time to Break It Down!

There are many current events that vied for todays post.  Pope Benedict transitions to, His Holiness Benedict XVI, Emeritus Pope at the end of tomorrow, lacking some unforseen miracle, the next round of budget malaise, otherwise known as, The Sequester, begins Friday, conservatives are still in apoplexy over First Lady, Michelle Obama, announcing Argo’s Oscar, in South Africa, another Oscar (Pistorius) finds himself embroiled in controversy after killing his girlfriend…(Reeva Steenkamp) on Valentine’s Day, and another Black History Month comes to a close tomorrow.  Alas, I opted for none of the above.

Instead, I chose to take a walk down memory lane.  Five years ago today I wrote a post about the venerable and vaunted Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Tournament.  At the time the event was in its third year in Charlotte.  In honor of that post, and in recognition of the fact that the CIAA, Time Warner Arena (Formerly Bobcats’ Arena), and the Charlotte community are doing it again this week, I am reprising that edition. 

The Conference, which celebrated a century of great basketball last year also selected a new Commissioner in 2012; Ms. Jacqie Carpenter.  The conference’s first female Commissioner, was lured from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), where she held down a number of responsible positions, including head of the Men’s NCAA Division I Championship.

The following information first appeared, as it does below, in the February 27, 2008 edition of “Break It Down!”          

Over the course of six months of blogging, I have come to accept the inescapable certainty of natural law. To wit, during holidays, there will be more recreating than reading. As a result, I have adopted a Prime Directive similar to that of James Tiberius Kirk, intrepid Captain of the USS Enterprise. My General Order #1 is, to take no action to interfere with the normal affairs of the readership.

I have it on good authority that this week, the attention, and schedule of many of the readers of this periodical will be focused on the 63rd edition of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Basketball Tournament. Now I can hear some saying what is that? Others are bemusedly thinking that is no holiday. And some are simply waiting for me to…Break It Down!

Well for starters, I will stipulate that for the next five weeks, Charlotte will be transformed into the center of the CBU, College Basketball Universe. The metamorphosis began on Monday, February 25th when the CIAA Women’s Tournament kicked-off at Bobcat’s Arena in Charlotte. The basketball and festivities, and there are a lot of both, conclude on Saturday, March 1st, with the crowning of both the 2008 Men’s, and Women’s Tournament Champions.

The Double-A, as the event is affectionately called, is not a battery, nor a shoe size. Neither is it really a holiday; it is actually a holi-week! I will address that later, in greater detail.

In less than two weeks after the CIAA packs it in, the vaunted Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Tournament will take up residence at Bobcat’s Arena, as Charlotte hosts the Conference’s 55th Tournament, March 13th – 16th. Finally, after another much needed pause, the third in the trio of collegiate basketball sporting events, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Eastern Regional Basketball Tournament takes center stage, also at Bobcat’s Arena, March 27th and 29th.

Most people, sports fans or not, are familiar with the NCAA Tournament. The phrase, The Road To The Final Four, has been oft repeated for many years. It’s a National phenomenon. The ACC Tournament now includes teams from Boston to Miami, and is also a widely popular brand, know throughout the Country. Fewer people know about the CIAA. But that does not diminish its appeal, success, or venerable history.

While many may find it surprising, the Double-A is older than the ACC Tournament. In fact, the Conference is much older than the ACC, having been established in 1912. The ACC was formed in 1953. The CIAA Tournament also boasts a level of success on par with its better known, younger counterpart. For the third year in a row, the event has sold out Bobcats Arena months in advance. Like the ACC, there are no general ticket sales. Tickets are allocated to member Institutions (the ten member colleges and universities), and sold through them.

The 2007 CIAA Tournament entertained 165,000 fans and patrons at its various events. To be sure, the CIAA is not just a basketball tournament. Its part reunion, part party, part history lesson, and all fun! The Conference has already reached an accord for a three-year extension, ensuring that Charlotte will host the event through 2011.

The Tournament features great men’s and women’s basketball. Several of the CIAA’s best have left, and continue to leave, their mark on the NBA. Vernon Earl “The Pearl” Monroe (Winston-Salem State University/Baltimore Bullets & New York Knicks), Alvin “Al” Attles (NC A&T State University/Philadelphia-San Francisco Warriors), Sam Jones (North Carolina Central University/Boston Celtics), Derrick “Rick” Mahorn (Hampton University/Detroit Pistons), Charles Oakley (Virginia Union University/New York Knicks), Ben Wallace (Virginia Union University/Detroit Pistons & Cleveland Cavaliers), Terry Davis (Virginia Union University/Dallas Mavericks), Ronald “Flip” Murray (Shaw University/Detroit Pistons), and Darrell Armstrong (Fayetteville State University/Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks, & Indiana Pacers) are all CIAA alumni.

There are currently ten member schools in the CIAA. Two more are scheduled to join, Lincoln University (Pennsylvania), and Chowan University (Murfreesboro, NC), for football only. The ranks currently include public and private colleges and universities in North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland:

Member schools

Eastern Division

Bowie State University Elizabeth City State University Saint Paul’s College Virginia State University Virginia Union University

Western Division

Fayetteville State University Johnson C. Smith University Livingstone College Saint Augustine’s College Shaw University

Bowie State University

Location – Bowie, Maryland

Founded – 1865 Affiliation – Public Enrollment – 5,454

Nickname – Bulldogs

Varsity Sports – 11 Joined – 1979

Elizabeth City State University

Location – Elizabeth City, North Carolina

Founded – 1891 Affiliation – Public

Enrollment – 3,025 Nickname – Vikings

Varsity Sports – 10

Joined – 1957

Fayetteville State University

Location – Fayetteville, North Carolina

Founded – 1867 Affiliation – Public Enrollment – 6,085

Nickname – Broncos

Varsity Sports – 10 Joined – 1954

Johnson C. Smith University

Location – Charlotte, North Carolina

Founded – 1867 Affiliation – Private/Non-sectarian

Enrollment – 2,500

Nickname – Golden Bulls

Varsity Sports – 13 Joined – 1926

Livingstone College

Location – Salisbury, North Carolina

Founded – 1879 Affiliation – Private/African Methodist Episcopal Zion

Enrollment – 1,100

Nickname – Blue Bears

Varsity – 11

Joined – 1931

St. Augustine’s College†

Location – Raleigh, North Carolina

Founded – 1867

Affiliation – Private/Episcopal

Enrollment – 1,700

Nickname – Falcons Varsity Sports – 14

Joined – 1933

Saint Paul’s College†

Location – Lawrenceville, Virginia

Founded – 1888 Affiliation – Private/Episcopal

Enrollment – 750 Nickname – Tigers Varsity Sports – 14 Joined – 1923

Shaw University† Location – Raleigh, North Carolina

Founded – 1865

Affiliation – Private/Baptist

Enrollment – 2,500

Nickname – Bears Varsity Sports – 13

Joined – 1912

Virginia State University

Location – Petersburg, Virginia

Founded – 1882

Affiliation – Public Enrollment – 4,300

Nickname – Trojans

Varsity Sports – 14 Joined – 1920

Virginia Union University

Location – Richmond, Virginia

Founded – 1865

Affiliation – Private/Baptist

Enrollment – 1,525

Nickname – Panthers Varsity Sports – 12

Joined – 1912

If you have never attended the Double-A, and have the opportunity, by all means do so. Just be advised, this is not your father’s Oldsmo…, I mean tournament. The activity is non-stop, and multi-dimensional. There are multiple venues, and it is common to see folks engaged in milling about, visiting, viewing exhibits, eating, watching people and a host of other endeavors…during games.

By the same token, there are staunch fans of the game who wouldn’t think of missing the action on the court. Fortunately for them, there is a virtual panoramic parade of activity going on inside the arena, ranging from Mr. CIAA, to cheerleaders of teams that have been eliminated, haven’t played yet, or just not playing at the time, but who are committed to providing their own fashion show.

As an alumnus of a CIAA constituent member institution, I am intensely interested because I have a stake in the outcome…no matter how much of a long shot it is. But I have found the event to be enjoyable and entertaining on its face. I am certain I would feel this way even were I not the proud owner of a degree from one of the schools…with no outstanding college loans.

The fun is just getting started. Catch it if you can. I am out; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.comor http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://www.charlottesports.org/ciaa/

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/CIAA_History

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Commissioner

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Schedule_of_Events

http://206.142.5.6/ec_promo/107/promoproducts.asp?TFSession=S8FdSEwZzWv9ht4heUPr09kI3k3m9j4ccKFUnC8NY3HFhv1M5bDqV3YYxCk71Pjn

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/CIAA_After_Party

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/2008_CIAA_Ford_Fan_Experience

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Sonic_Boom

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Black_Magic

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/2007_Tournament_Highlights

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/2008_CIAA_McDonald

http://www.earthquakeproductions.net/

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Mobile_Marketing_Tour

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Press_Kit

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Press_Conferences

http://www.ciaatournament.org/content/page/title/Sponsors

Essie Mae Washington-Williams: Scion of a Contradictory Icon

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Essie Mae Washington-Williams is not a household name; she is not someone with whom most Americans are familiar.  That she died early this month probably resulted in far more attention than she would have desired.  For 78 of her 87 years, Mrs. Williams lived, in a sense, a shadowy existence.  Nothing really sinister; just by choice mostly, declining to reveal in totality, the full and complete dimensions of her famous heritage and lineage.

In December, 2003, Mrs. Williams decided to share, by entering into the public domain, a deeply personal secret of more than seven decades.Back home, in her native South Carolina, she went on record, telling an assembly of more than 250 reporters that she was the daughter of the legendary and recently deceased, Senator Strom Thurmond, South Carolina.

The history, accomplishments, and overarching legacy of Strom Thurman fill a virtual palette with factoids, many of them of the simply amazing variety.The list includes, but is not limited to:

·        He lived to be100 years old

·        He served 40years in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves

·        He attained the rank of Major General (two stars)

·        He served inWorld War II and the Normandy Campaign

·        He was awarded the Legion of Merit (twice)

·        He was awarded theBronze Star with valor

·        He was awarded the Purple Heart

·        He was awarded the World War II Victory Medal

·        He was awardedEuropean-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

·        He was awarded the Order of the Crown

·        He was awarded the Croix de Guerre (FrenchCross of War)

·        He served as the103rd Governor of South Carolina

·        He served as theU.S. Senator from South Carolinafor 48 years

·        He served asPresident Pro Tempore of the United States Senate for 6 years

·        He was the 1stPresident Pro Tempore Emeritus of the United States Senate; a  capacity he held for 2 years

·        He was the onlySenator to reach age 100 while still in office

·        He was the longest serving Dean of the U.S. Senate (14 years)

The Senator’s impressive resume of service and achievement aside, Thurmond was probably best known for his strident ideological posture.  To put it bluntly, Mr. Thurmond was an avowed segregationist for much of his enduring political career.  He ran for Presidentin 1948 as a member of the States Rights Democratic Party (Dixiecrat).  He would go on to represent the State of South Carolina as a Senator, first as a Democrat beginning in 1954, then from 1964, as a Republican.  Senator Thurmond switchedParties because of his opposition to what he perceived as the liberalism of theDemocratic Party, its support for civil rights, and his support for the conservatism of Republican Presidential candidate, Senator Barry Goldwater.

Due to his opposition to the Civil Rights Act of 1957, he conducted the longest filibuster ever by a lone Senator, 24 hours, 18 minutes, nonstop.  He would later oppose the civil rights legislation of 1964 and 1965.  TheSenator always insisted he was never a racist, but opposed excessive federal authority.  He was quoted saying that:

“All the laws of Washington and all the bayonets of the Army cannot force the Negro into our homes, into our schools, our churches and our places of recreation and amusement.”

He attributed the movement for integration to Communist agitators.This would prove to be an interesting juxtaposition, for several reasons.  Starting in the 70’s, he moderated his position on race, yet, he continued defending his early segregationist campaigns on the basis of states’ rights in the context of Southern society at the time.  In other words, he never fully renounced his earlier viewpoints.

With that, we come back full-circle, to Essie Mae.  Six months after Thurmond’sdeath in 2003, it was revealed that at age 22, he had fathered a mixed-race daughter, Essie Mae Washington-Williams, with his family’s maid, Carrie Butler, a 15-year-old black girl. Although Thurmond never publicly acknowledged Essie Mae, he paid for her education at a historically black college and passed other money to her for some time. His children by his marriage eventually acknowledged her.

So it is, as we traverse the second decade of the 21st Century, we are reminded in a post-mortem kind of way, that for all of Senator Thurmond’sspoken commitment to the tenets of separation and segregation; a sort of American Apartheid, in his personal, though down-low life, he fully embraced the principles of interracial harmony and mutual satisfaction (if you know what I mean).

In his own, totally irrational and indefensible way, the Senator undoubtedly rationalized he was doing an honorable thing.After all, he provided the wherewithal for his eldest child to attend college.  What more could she ask?  What more could anyone expect…of a man in his position?

On the other hand, Essie Mae assumed the persona of a fatherless child.  While her siblings enjoyed the complete array of rights and privileges accorded to the children of a Senator, step-sister (in every sense of the term) Essie Mae was neither seen, nor heard.  In 2005 she published a book she wrote with William Stadiem; Dear Senator: A Memoir by the Daughter of Strom Thurmond, in which she explored among other things the various aspects of her dislocation, based upon her mixed-heritage.  It was nominated for a National Book Award and a Pulitzer Prize.

While Mrs. Washington-Williams’ story in not unique in the Americantapestry, it is truly sad.  I am reminded of the Thomas Jefferson–Sally Hemings saga; yet another tale of American irony.

In Psalms 90:10 (NRSV), we are told:

“The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong; even then their span is only toil and trouble; they soon gone, and we fly away.”

Mrs. Washington spent, for all intents and purposes, a lifetime shrouded in humiliating secrecy, when she had done nothing wrong.  She had merely had the misfortune to born in an era when the circumstances of her birth were not validated by the society in which she lived.  She suffered the additional indignity of knowing that everything the father who sired her stood for was antithetical to inclusion and full participation in the broader world.

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.comor http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

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http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/essie-mae-washington-williams-daughter-strom-thurmond-kept

“The State of the Union: The President, The Loyal Opposition, and The Other Loyal Opposition!”

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Last night, President Obama delivered his 5th State of the Union Address; the 1st of his second term.  The moment was pregnant with pomp, pageantry, and historical significance.

Whenever the President takes the stage, steps to the podium, or takes the mic, there are elements of pomp and pageantry.  That this President won election in the first place; secured a second term, and then delivered his 5th address defining the status of our nation is a sequence of events of such momentous historic significance that any and all of the elements would have been considered improbable 5 years ago.  Moreover, in the face of high unemployment and an incredibly motivated opposition, President Obama’s re-election was considered unlikely as recently as a year ago.  So, historic; you bet!

But the history that leapt out at me does not involve President Obama.  It does not apply to the specific tenets raised during the President’s speech, or to Mrs. Obama’s guests.  It doesn’t even apply to former Rocker Ted Nugent attending the function.  Nugent, as you may recall, asserted last summer that if President Obama were re-elected, he (Nugent) would be dead or in jail by that time next year.  Mr. Nugent is the invited guest of Rep. Steve Stockman, Texas.

It is customary for the Republican Party to provide a counterpoint response whenever the Presidentmakes a formal speech.  Last night, the Republican Party inadvertently paid President Obama the ultimate compliment.  Oh, they will never concede the point, or call it that; but the fact of the matter is, by choosing to provide, instead of the traditional Republican Response, two responses, the GOP made several statements, including:

  • They conceded the Republican Party is substantially split, and does not trust its leadership to represent “the Party as a whole.”
  • They demonstrated that the Tea Party Movement (which both of the GOP candidate respondents represented) is apparently split among itself.
  • Their actions showed the President’s convincing win in November among numerous voting blocs, including, women, people of color, Latinos, Asians, and youth, has Republicans shaken to the core.
  • Their reaction served as an admission that the President’s articulation of values,   e.g., investing to grow and strengthen the middle class, a fair tax     system, an affordable and excellent education, and a belief that we are most prosperous when we pursue policies that demonstrate we are all in it together was a winner; their own tactics and designs, not so much.
  • Big ups, Mr. President!

On one hand, in deciding to offer up both Marco Rubio, and Rand Paul, junior Senators from Florida and Kentucky, respectively, as the voices of the loyal, but apparently split opposition, the Republican tag team gave the GOP twice the usual array of options to effectively respond to the President.  In as much as both men have shown early indications of being interested in positioning themselves as potential candidates for President in 2016, their responses served as preliminary auditions for the GOP top spot.

Of course alternately, the whole thing reminded of one of the Newhart episodes that featured, Larry, his brother Darryl…and his other brother Darryl.  Seriously funny stuff; but I digress.  That’s about all there is to say about, “The State of the Union:The President, The Loyal Opposition, and The Other Loyal Opposition!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.comor http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

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Butt, Seriously!

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It’s time to Break It Down!

Bang-gate?  Last month’s news!  Skeetgate?  So last week!

Yes, we have had nearly a month to become accustomed to the First Lady’s new Birthday-do hair style.  While at least one style maven, Karl Lagerfeld, panned FLOTUS’ forehead covering locks, the simple truth is, POTUS deemed the coiffure a critical success; enough said!

Moreover, now that the Obama Administration has released an official photograph of the President “wielding his weapon,” the tenor of that conversation has shifted from one of disbelief that POTUS had ever touched a firearm to one of; his actions are just pandering to the gun lobby.  Of course, the accompanying footnote is, the Rightwill simply never support, what in their view is, his devious plan to separate law abiding American citizens from their Constitutionally given right to possess any gun that is not officially classified as an automatic weapon.  Whatever; like I said, old news!

The next gem of mindless pablum to masquerade as a rant against the First Family has been directed atFLOTUS.  It’s not new, but has resurfaced in the last couple of days.  Most Americans know Mrs. Obama has driven an initiative to promote low-calorie school lunches; it’s known as the “Let’s Move”Campaign.  There is a segment of the populace that resisted Mrs. Obama’sefforts from the outset.  Those folks routinely accused Michelle of trying to foster a Nanny State.  Coincidentally, the same crowd consistently also regularly affixes the Nanny State label to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his efforts to ban the sale, in New York City, of sugary drinks larger than 16ounces.

Bob Grisham, an Alabama high school football coach, made disparaging remarks about the First Lady in a January 27th class.  He referred to “her big butt,” while also flaying “queers” in the same rant.  Coach Grisham’s comments were recorded by a student in the class.  On Monday, he was suspended without pay for10 days for his rant; roughly 90 seconds of which were caught on tape:(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24p88MkcaQQ).  The coach has also been required to attend sensitivity training, and cannot teach his psychology class for the remainder of the semester.

As noted earlier, this tack has been employed before.  Shock jock, Rush Limbaughrepeatedly referred to FLOTUS as Michelle “My Butt”Obama (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WLKYkKqeYE);Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, a Wisconsin Republican, issued an apology after having been overhead loudly referring to Mrs. Obama’s “large posterior:” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCDJVNJDJ4s). It should be noted, Coach Grisham has also said he misspoke; although he did so in an odd way.  He defended his remarks, telling the TimesDaily that he “Misspoke in a debate-style discussion about the state of the country.“  He added, “I have no hatred toward anyone or any group.People that know my heart, they know that.”

Without getting too far down in the weeds concerning this matter, it is worth mentioning that, despite his censure, the reaction to Coach Grisham and his comments have been mixed.  The LGBT community has sounded a tone of outrage, with advocacy groups calling for his firing.  But he also has defenders.

A student in the high school said the matter had been blown out of proportion, and that the coach was joking.One school board member voted against the suspension, which was proposed by the Superintendent.  Upon follow-up, the board member indicated that he supported 5 days, but thought10 days was too severe.

For the purposes of this post, the reference to Mrs. Obama’s derriere is the focus.  However, left to my own devices, I surmise that Coach Grisham’s suspension, and sensitivity training, for the most part, were applied as an official organization response to the coach’s derogatory comments about gays.  For the record, I am fine with that.

However, as for the apparent fixation with Mrs. Obama’s ample curves, evidenced by, Coach Grisham, Representative Sensenbrenner, Mr. Limbaugh, and a varied assortment of other Right Wingers, I am reminded of one of my favorite and most compelling Natural Laws: Haters gotta hate; it’s what they do.  “Butt,Seriously!”

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.comor http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

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http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/butt?s=t

Immigration: A Pathway to Citizenship!

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Yesterday in Las Vegas, Nevada, President Obama said “Now is the time for common sense, comprehensive, immigration reform.”The topic of immigration has been in the Top 10 of most political lists since Mr. Obama entered the White House.In part, this is true because he promised to address Immigration Reform during his first term, but did not do so in a comprehensive way.

After winning a second term, propelled in large part by attracting 70% of the Latino vote, both the President’s promise and Latinos’ insistence that he honor it have surged to a place near the top of the charts in importance.  In fact, it is not just the President and Democrats who feel now is the time to move on this issue.  Republicans, given their surprisingly poor showing in the Presidential and Senatorial elections, are motivated to rehabilitate their relationship with the Latino community.

  • “What’s changed, honestly, is that there is a new, I think, appreciation on both sides of the aisle — including maybe more importantly on the Republican side of the aisle — that we have to enact a comprehensive immigration reform bill.”     (This past Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.)

All of this newfound attention to “dealing with” the issue of immigration strikes me as more than a little ironic.  For decades, I have detected a certain disdain for immigrants.And further back than I have observed, historical evidence, from a variety of citations, indicates immigrants have been subjected to some serious rites of passage as they inured themselves to the “exceptional” existence men and women experience here in America; Land of the free; home of the brave.

The Irish, Polish, and various groups of Latinos, among others, have faced great resistance in their efforts to settle here in America.  But hold up!Let’s go back and examine the sheer hypocrisy of the notion that somehow, immigrants are a bad for America.

Depending upon what or how you remember your American History, Christopher Columbus discovered America.  He didn’t of course, but that is probably how a lot of folks recall it.

In 1492, Columbus landed in the Bahamas.  He made four separate voyages to the Americas, including to the Greater Antilles, to the Lesser Antilles, and to Venezuela.  Columbus, an Italian, claimed all four of these locales for the Spanish Empire.  Christopher was many things; among them, an explorer, a colonizer, a directionally challenged navigator, and perhaps most significantly…a bald-faced liar.

The “Gentleman from Genoa,” after having his proposal rejected by John II, King of Portugal, persuaded King Ferdinand II of Aragon, and Queen Isabella I of Castile (who had united a number of Kingdoms of the Spanish Empire) that he could search for and find a western route to the Orient.  In his quest to reach Japan, he landed in the Bahamas archipelago.  In this and his subsequent voyages, he reported to the Spanish rulers that he’s landed in and was occupying the East Indies.  In support of this falsehood, he “named the inhabitants of the area Indios,” Spanish for Indians.  That was his story and he stuck to it.

Amerigo Vespucci, also an Italian, was a financier, cartographer, navigator, and explorer.  Between 1499 and 1502, Vespucci made two voyages to what would later be named America, in his honor.  He disproved the notion that Brazil and the West Indies were Asia’s eastern outskirts, as conjectured by Columbus; instead, they were a separate landmass, hitherto unknown to Afro-Eurasians.  They were part of what was at the time known colloquially as the New World.

But this geo-historic puzzle is not complete.  While not part of the typical American’s lore, Leif Ericson, a Norse explorer arrived in North America, and established a settlement at Vinland, on the northern tip of Newfoundlandin modern day Canada, in 999.  Columbus’ arrival would not occur until 1492, nearly 500 years later.

Columbus, Vespucci, and Ericson had at least two pursuits in common.  They were all explorers, of course, but perhaps more important each of the men was a colonizer.  As such, they claimed the lands they “discovered” for the governments they represented.  Moreover, they were granted considerable authority over the land areas they claimed.

The territory that we now know as the United States of Americawas not successfully settled until much later.  Jamestown Settlement in Virginia was established in 1607.  To clarify; it was not the first colony in the United States.  However, it was the first successful English Colony.

On July 4, 1584, an expedition dispatched by Sir Walter Raleigh landed at Roanoke Island, in Dare County, North Carolina.  On August 18, 1587, Virginia Dare became the first child born in Americato English parents in the short-lived Roanoke Colony.  As such, Ananias Dare and his wife Eleanor  became the first American immigrants to have a child born in the New World.  Ms. Dare became the first child potentially eligible for coverage by the modern-day DREAM Act.  In short, that’s when it all began.  For the next 425 years, life in America has been shaped, molded, and quite frankly dominated by immigrants…and of course slaves.

You see, this is part and parcel to a plethora of dirty little secrets that regularly go untold from day-to-day in America.  Fortunately, we live in an era when unmentioned does not necessarily equate to undocumented.  So it is, when the air is filled with all the bluster and banality about how the well-being of our great Republic is threatened by the scourge of a profusion of immigrants, I remember those expeditions to Roanoke, and to Jamestown; I recall the slavers’ treks to the Port of Charleston, and in quiet reflection, I think about the words of “The New Colossus,” a sonnet, written in 1883 by Emma Lazarus, the words of which were engraved on a bronze plaque mounted on the lower level of the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty in 1903:

With conquering limb astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lightening, and her name

Mother of Exiles.  From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!”  cries she

With silent lips.  “Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!

The more the claptrap continues, the more I think about the words in the opening stanza of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land:”

This land is your land, this land is my land

From the California to the Staten New York Island,

From the Redwood Forest, to the Gulf stream waters,

God blessed Americafor me.

And when I envision the dimensions and demographics of “This Land” when the settlers, or immigrants, or whatever you prefer to call them, arrived, I see that “This Land” was already inhabited.  But that’s not all; I am reminded that large portions of America’s indigenous people were wiped out by virulent strains of a variety of diseases that the Europeans brought to the “New World.”  Moreover, many of those who survived were dispossessed, uprooted; driven away from the only place they had ever called home…or killed, if they resisted.

In clear-eyed retrospect, I can see why many people are so concerned about the inherent dangers of immigration.  If one ascribes the motives and actions of the original settlers and their benefactors to contemporary immigrants, potential consequences could, in their view, indeed be dire.  In fact, if the horizon were to incorporate those dynamics, the gun-lobby’s fixation could also be explained.

Of course, the fact is, we live in a different world.  The challenges, and there are challenges, are different.  Now our charge is to figure out how to integrate immigrants into our nation’s economic machinery; not how to keep them from ripping our country out of our grasp.Through it all, we should remember that as this country was being founded, a simple truth resonated…”Immigration: A Pathway to Citizenship!”  Thus, it is as it has ever been.  Moreover, whether the folks we call founders were Pilgrims, Patriots, or merely pilferers, no one complained about them being extended amnesty.
I’m done; holla back!
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President Obama 2.0: In Our Time!

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Two days ago, our nation’s 44th President addressed the Country in its 57th Inauguration.  It took a while, but on Monday, at long last, President Obama proclaimed in no uncertain terms, and in full-throat, his personal belief that Americais indeed, an exceptional nation.  So often, spokesmen of rival political and ideological factions have derided the President because they contend the President rejects the exceptionalism of America.

Of course, it should be noted, he did so in his own inimitable style; using phraseology that his most robustly ardent critics decried…as they always do, no matter what he says.In this particular instance, what he said was:

  • “What makes us exceptional, what makes us America is our allegiance to an idea articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.

As the President expounded on the relevance of the historic phrase in contemporary terms, he said:

  • Today we continue a never-ending journey to bridge the meaning of those words with the realities of our time. For history tells us that while these truths may be self-evident, they’ve never been self-executing. That while freedom is a gift from God, it must be secured by his people here on earth.

The “Rushites,” the Fox Newsteam, the Tea Party Movement, and Republican elected officials and many of the voters who made them (elected officials) likely winced and released a collective audible sigh, if in fact they bothered to watch/listen to the President’s remarks. 

At Fox News, they get paid to follow and critique the President, so I took a moment to observe the reaction by the Fox Newscrew.  I can say truly, I do not recall a single commentator saying he or she found anything positive in the President’s speech.  If only that were news, original, or even unusual!

As most of you know, Monday was a double bonus for Americans who believe in social justice, value diversity, and hope to see the emergence a progressive American agenda.  I suppose that made it a dual bane for the Right Wing zealotry.  It was the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday and President Obama’s second Inauguration.  POTUS acknowledged and validated the significance of these twin occasions by brilliantly weaving the spirit and themes of various civil rights movements with words and propositions put forth by America’s Founding Fathers in our country’s primordial documents; the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.

At several pauses, pregnant with the weight of the moment, the President infused his remarks with a simple and eloquent phrase, taken directly from the Constitution:“We, the people!”

The opening of the Constitution in its original form is written thusly:

  • “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

President Obama used the golden phrase five times; each time to distill and drive home a salient point central to his address.  They include:

  • “For we, the people, understand that our country cannot succeed when a     shrinking few do very well and a growing many barely make it.”
  • “We, the people, still believe that every citizen deserves a basic measure of     security and dignity.  We must make the hard choices to reduce the cost of health care and the size of our deficit.”
  • “We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves, but to all posterity.  We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations.”
  • “We, the people, still believe that enduring security and lasting peace do not     require perpetual war.”
  • “We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truth that all of us are created equal – is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls and Selma and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and unsung, who left footprints along this great mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot walk alone; to hear a King proclaim that our individual freedom is inextricably bound to the freedom of every soul on Earth.”  

In choosing his remarks, thePresident elevated the ideals of the Founders, but emphasized need for what comedian, television host, and political commentator Bill Maher refers to as New Rules.  In other words, the principles may be eternal, but the mechanisms for implementation must be altered to fit the times.  President Obama put it this way:

  • “For we have always understood that when times change, so must we, that fidelity to our founding principles requires new responses to new challenges, that preserving our individual freedoms ultimately requires collective action.”

In articulating his second Inaugural message, the President spoke confidently; resolutely.  He seemed to know the moment was his, and he embraced that knowledge.That simple truth serves to ensure that a country often described as split down the middle will not likely soon settle into a nationwide chorus of “We Are The World.”  Add to that a vengeful Right Wing, still bitter from November’sloss, juxtaposed against, Democrats aching to see “their guy” grow a spine and fight more vigorously for issues they believe in.

With that in mind, POTUS used part of his nineteen-minute speech to call for Americans to work collaboratively in an effort to conquer our country’s challenges.  Specifically, he said:

  • “My fellow Americans, we are made for this moment and we will seize it, so long as we seize it together.”

Still, in broaching the subject of seeking cooperation, he resisted the idea that “saving the children…and their future, means deep-sixing Boomers and the elderly.  In fact, he adamantly opposed such a position.  He put it thusly:

  • “But we flatly reject the belief that America must choose between caring for the generation that built this country and investing in the generation that will build its future.”

One sequence, to which conservatives on the news and talk circuits seemed to take utmost umbrage, was the President’s robust defense of Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.  He maintained that America’s commitment to these programs does not sap our initiative; rather it strengthens it.He submitted that these commitments do not make the United  States a country of takers; rather they free us to take the risks that make us great.

In distilling the discussion to its essence, POTUS framed the matter sublimely, saying:

  • “Progress does not compel us to settle century’s long debates about the role of government for all time, but it does require us to act in our time.”

To provide you with a more personal sense of the moment, I have provided links to both video of the President’s speech, as well as the text.  With that I give you a composite of the 2013 Inaugural; “President Obama 2.0: In Our Time!”

I’m done; holla back.

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.comor http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/21/16625065-obama-takes-ceremonial-oath-tells-nation-our-journey-is-not-complete?lite

Conspiracy Theory: Prof Says Newtown Staged…Really?

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It’s time to Break It Down!

It’s difficult to think of a way to upstage the tragedy of the recent shooting of 20 first graders at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut…and ultimately make it worse.  Alas, it has been done.

In a previous post (http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2012/12/this-time-will-be-different.html), I addressed the Newtown shootings.  The events of December 14, 2012 in Newtown are still firmly etched in American current events; I will not deign to reprise them in this space.

Today, President Obama will reveal his proposal to stem gun violence in America.  That endeavor will undoubtedly garner a great deal of attention, and may be the topic of a future post; not today, however.

Instead because I was unable to shake the degree to which I was flabbergasted by the assertions of Florida Atlantic University (FAU/Boca Raton, FL) Professor James Tracy, I will spend a few minutes sharing his views and claims.  Given the degree to which his comments fly in the face of convention, it is surprising, though perhaps fortunate, that his positions have gained so little exposure and traction among the masses.

Mr. Tracy, a tenured associate communications professor, apparently has a history of involvement with conspiracy theories.  Two overarching themes held by the professor, in relation to Sandy Hook, are:

1.     He questions whether the Sandy Hook massacre occurred?

2.     He suggests the entire Sandy Hook scenario was contrived by the Obama administration to promote a gun control agenda.

For the parents of the 20 deceased students, the families of the 6 school administrators who were fatally shot, and even the relatives of the suicidal shooter and his murdered mother, these dual premises must seem at once, crude, offensive, and appalling.  The extent to which Professor Tracy has pushed to redefine the tragedy is truly mind-numbing.  A few examples of his thinking on the Connecticutshootings include:

·        “Regardless of where one stands on the Second Amendment and gun control, it is not unreasonable to suggest the Obama administration complicity or direct oversight of an incident that has in very short order sparked a national debate on the very topic—and not coincidentally remains a key piece of Obama’spolitical platform,” the 47-year-old tenured professor of communication wrote on his blog, memoryholeblog.com.

·        “While it sounds like an outrageous claim, one is left to inquire whether the Sandy Hook shooting ever took place — at least in the way law enforcement authorities and the nation’s news media have described.”

·        Tracy also called a gut-wrenching public appearance by Robert Parker, the father of a first-grader who was shot to death, “contrived,” and asked Florida’s Sun-Sentinel newspaper, “Was this to a certain degree constructed? Was this a drill?”

·        “Something most likely took place,” he told the newspaper. “One is left with the impression that a real tragedy took place.”

·        At one point Tracyeven suggested that no one died in Newtown; rather the characters involved were all actors.

As the toxic fumes of Professor Tracy’s narrative reached wider circles, starting in his own blog, then, coursing through Florida media circles, and eventually reaching national outlets, such as CNN, push back did emerge eventually.  His anti-Obama/anti-mainstream media spin naturally attracted instant currency among those who hate the current POTUS, and from within the segment of the populace that always questions and/or doubts the pronouncements of mainstream media.

However, even some FAUstudents expressed embarrassment at the odd, if not absurd renderings of such a highly placed denizen of the educational institution to which they are inextricably connected.  A number of media and members of the Blogosphere labeled the FAU educator, “The Nutty Professor;” a take-off on the 1963 Jerry Lewis film and/or its 1996/2000 reprise Franchise (Eddie Murphy).  The highest elected official in Newtown, First Selectman Patricia Llodra, called upon FAU to rescind his tenure, and to terminate the professor.

Apparently, Professor Tracy was unprepared for the high volume and sharp tenor of the reaction to his position and resulting commentary.He is now beginning to modulate and walk back some of his most outlandish comments.  The tagline on his blog, Memory Hole is:

  • “We are     not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign     ideas, alien philosophies and competitive values.  For a nation that is afraid to let its     people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation afraid     of its people.” – President John F. Kennedy

As it turns out, James Tracy is discovering not only the truth of that trenchant quote by President Kennedy, but also the power of the truism.  To paraphrase President Obama, “Actions have consequences.”  As a consequence of the professor’s actions, a wide range of factions has risen up to challenge, and moreover, smack down the mendacious lunacy of a ridiculous alternative narrative.So on this day, relax, and don’t believe the hype; “Conspiracy Theory: Prof Says Newtown Was Staged…Really?”

I will leave you with one final thought on the matter of gun violence in our beloved America.  As of yesterday, in the 32 days that have ensued since the Newtownmassacre, 917 Americans have been killed by fire arms.  On average, that’s 28.656 per day…or put another way, the numerical equivalent of Sandy Hook (20 students, 6 teachers and administrators, the shooter’s mother and the shooter), plus .656.  Regardless of ones position on the Second Amendment, the problem is huge.  Action is not just appropriate; it’s required.

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com or http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com. A new post is published each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Followin 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.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Nutty_Professor_(1996_film)