I Too Sing America Revisited

“To him, as to the man by whom salvation has been wrought unto our people, we are bound both by law and by his merits that our freedom may be still maintained, and by him, come what may, we mean to stand.”
-Declaration of Arbroath, Scotland 1320

Nearly 700 years ago, these words were inscribed on parchment declaring the support of Robert the Bruce and in doing so the independence of Scotland. It was a proclamation to set a country free from the tyranny of those who would subjugate it, oppressing its people to their own ends.

Seven centuries later, and we are again standing on the precipice of decision and behind a man who represents the best of us. A leader, a president, an American in the truest sense of the word. Not because of the color of his skin, but because of the content of his character.

We hold these truths to be self evident, but over the last four years, they have been anything but. From casual dismissal to blatant disrespect and disregard in scenes all too common to those of us who too “sing America”. But each step he has taken proudly, confidently and always on the tightrope of the “Color Line”.

For make no mistake, beneath all the rhetoric, pundits and campaign slogans lies the truth of the race…Race.

If you want to vote for Romney because you like his positions, economic policy or even his hair, By all means, do so. Support the candidate you believe in, but be willing to accept the consequences of your choice.

But if you’re voting for him to be against Obama, because you believe that the economy, unemployment or even Hurricane Sandy is his fault; if you believe that he’s a secret Muslim socialist out to destroy the American way of life, or because Chuck Norris or Rush Limbaugh told you the country would be destroyed if Obama was re-elected, then you have been hoodwinked, bamboozled and led astray. You have been duped by one of the oldest forms of subtle racism that permeates the tapestry of our country. It is interwoven into phrases like “taking our country back”, “restoring America”, and “class warfare”. And because our country cannot as yet, have an honest an open dialogue about the history of racism, Slavery and the impacts today, they are able to deny the very existence of this phenomenon…like some erstwhile Kaiser Soze or Someone Else’s Problem generator…we are scared to admit our failings and culpability, and so it is easier to blame it on fictitious assertions…it’s just not the truth. It’s not your fault if you fell into this, but it is your responsibility, once you are aware, to pull yourself out and refuse to go back in. To cast off the shackles of lies and misinformation used to create fear.

Most importantly, you vote should not be against a candidate but rather for one, one that you believe in wholeheartedly and will never regret. Too many generations fought for the vote, honor it by doing the right thing and voting for who you believe in.

I believe in Barack Obama.

I believe in him because he acts with honor and integrity. I believe in him because he puts the people ahead of his own agenda. I believe in him because I see the same nobility that was embodied in the Bruce, 700 years ago; I see the same courage that charged the field at Bannockburn for freedom.

I see the Warrior Poet.

And just as my Scottish ancestors, cast off the yoke of oppression, and refused to give in and submit to tyranny, so, too, must we cast aside the lies and misinformation and elect the person who is honestly and truthfully the best person for the job.

For “it is in truth not for glory, nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting, but for freedom - for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with life itself.”

I will fight for my and America’s freedom today by casting my vote for honesty, integrity and truth. I will fight by voting for Barack Obama. Not because he’s the “Black man”, but because he is the "Best man".

An Open Letter to the Granite City Board of Education

April 4, 2012

An Open Letter to the Granite City Board of Education


Granite City School District #9
Board of Education
c/o Superintendent Dr. Harry Briggs
1947 Adams St.
Granite City, IL 62040

Dear Members of the Granite City School District Board of Education:

I am writing to you today as an American of Scottish descent, imploring you to reconsider your decision to not allow a kilt to be worn to the Granite City High School prom. My great grandmother Lily Boyden MacFarlane was the first of our family born in America. We are from a small town called Dunkeld in central Scotland, while my ancestors of Clan MacFarlane hail from the Highlands. I am the Director of Gatherings and the Minnesota Commissioner for the International Clan MacFarlane Society, President of the Minnesota Coalition of Scottish Clans, Board Member of the Minnesota Scottish Fair and Highland Games, Member of the Minnesota Tartan Day Cooperative and a Trustee of the Clan MacFarlane Charitable Trust. I have traveled to my ancestral homelands three times.

I say all this so that it is clear Scottish heritage and culture is both traditional and very much a part of the daily life of myself and those of us involved in our local, national and international Scottish communities. We honor this tradition by donning our cultural attire for annual celebrations, including Burns Nights, Highland Games, and Tartan Day annually on April 6th, the recognition of the signing of the Declaration of Arbroath, Scotland’s Declaration of Independence.

I am also African American. I mention this for two reasons: 1. Due to our nation’s dark past of Slavery, records and information are much harder to locate for this side of my heritage, making my Scottish history that much more important and accessible to me. 2. Due to this history, I risk alienation from those on both sides of my heritage who have difficulty reconciling both in one, making it that much harder to honor my heritage. Even so, I do everyday because it is a part of who and what I am, and to have anyone deny this or how I chose to honor and recognize it is an affront to my very being. It is offensive and it is wrong, and it is what you have done to William Carruba.

More to the point, the reason you have given for denying him the right to wear a kilt to his prom is inaccurate, based upon both the Granite City High School Student Handbook as well as the very history of Granite City itself.

To begin with, there is nothing in the Student Code of Dress which prohibits the wearing of a kilt, merely prescriptive guidelines for color of various articles of clothing, length and condition, etc. There is no regulation which states that either a kilt cannot be worn, or that pants must be worn by males. Further, the handbook gives teachers and administrators the discretion to make decisions on a case-by-case basis, and it gives the superintendent the authority to amend the policy.

So, since your policy does not prohibit the wearing of the kilt, and teachers and administrators have the ability to make decisions and exceptions if they wrongly believe that it does, the question then arises as to why William Carruba is really not being allowed to dress in traditional Scottish attire. Is the discriminatory statement that Principal Jim Greenwald is alleged to have made, and its sentiment, more reflective of an unwritten policy of discrimination in the District? Ironically enough, your decision reflects a bleak time in Scottish history when King George II imposed the “Dress Act” as part of the Act of Proscription in 1746 which outlawed all Highland Dress for the next 32 years as a means of suppressing Scottish heritage and culture. Whatever the reason, discriminatory or not, prohibiting the kilt is not listed in your policies, and therefore is an arbitrary and unnecessary decision.

The Code of Dress for Granite City High School prohibits "see-through" apparel, scantily clad outfits and gang-related apparel, all of which are inappropriate attire customarily worn by miscreants who disrupt the educational environment and generally cause trouble in society. When you group traditional Scottish attire in with these outfits like this, you are denigrating not only members of the American Scottish community, but the very history of Granite City. Your first mayor was James G. McRoberts, a Scot of Clan Donnachaidh. Over the years your mayors have included Kirkpatricks, a Kennedy, a Robertson, a Hodges, a Davis, etc. – all people of Scottish and Irish descent. Many of your first settlers, including Caldwell, Cummings, Waddle and Griffins, were also Scots and Irish. Further, your first mayor was also the first superintendent of the American Steel plant, helping to establish industry in Granite City…meaning that as with America and so many American states and cities, Scottish and Irish people and their culture and heritage have been intimately intertwined with the origins and establishment of your own city. What could be more traditional than that?

Finally, the Student Code of Dress states: “Granite City CUSD #9 encourages a standard in behavior, dress, grooming, and appearance that reflects pride in self, home and school.” And the District Mission states: “This learning environment must offer students the opportunity to practice and adopt the principles, values, and ideals which will help them to become self-sufficient and effective citizens in today’s democratic society. Our goal is to promote learning as a life-long process.” Is not an outfit that has been a part of our tradition for centuries, traditional enough for a high school prom? Is not the support of a student who is honoring his history and heritage, an opportunity to practice and adopt principles, values and ideals to help them to be more self-sufficient? What message are you imparting on this young man and his peers by negating his opportunity for self expression and honoring his heritage? What message are you imparting in emulating a historical oppression of Scottish culture? What lesson are you, as a Board of Education, teaching your students here?

In closing, I wore my kilt for my wedding. There is no more formal, traditional occasion. I have worn it for nearly every formal occasion since. It is a symbol of my family and my pride. It is a symbol of my heritage. Every instance I wear it, I honor my ancestors and our traditions. Every instance I wear it is an opportunity to enlighten people about my culture and heritage. Is this not part of what makes America the multifaceted tableau of cultures that it is? Is this not part of what makes America great?

I would hope that the opportunity to encourage even one of your students to learn more about his culture and heritage would far outweigh any outdated notion of what is “manly” to wear, and that in preparing children for a global society, perhaps it is time to rethink the definition of “traditional” to be more inclusive of other cultures and heritage. Perhaps then, a young man and his peers will learn acceptance rather than discrimination as part of his education in Granite City.

Sincerely,



Jonathan Palmer
President, Minnesota Coalition of Scottish Clans
president@mncsc.org

In Defense of Jon Stewart: An Open Letter to FOX "News"

Dear FOX "News",

I just wanted to say "Thank you". Thank you for all that you do to bring the absurd to light and make clear that which is cleverly hidden by reason and accountability...

You recent media blitz insinuating that Jon Stewart is defaming Herman Cain because he's Black could not have made it more clear just how hypocritical your tagline "fair and balanced" is. Perhaps it is because you're working under a different definition of "fair and balanced" than the rest of the world uses, maybe your commentators have no journalistic integrity that makes them do more than read off cue cards instead of actually examining the merits of statements, or, and this is my favorite, perhaps your entire network escaped from the Bizarro world of Superman comics where everything is the opposite. I'm really banking on this last one because I know where we can get a whole case of Blue Kryptonite to solve this whole thing, quick snap and in a hurry.

Oh, would that it were that easy to defenestrate an entity with the parasitic impact that you have on the body that is the United States of America.

But I digress...

Stop it. Please just stop it.

You are a cancer on the very conscience of our country. Not because you represent a conservative viewpoint, not because you go after those you view as liberal and "left leaning", but because you consistently omit facts, stretch the truth and frame the simplest of things in the most heinous light possible in order to forward your agenda and scare people into following you.

You are fraudulent and a blatant lie that has been perpetrated on the American people.

I hope this is clear and understandable. I'm trying to think of what you would say in this instance and then express the opposite...just so I can express a balanced and fair viewpoint.

To be clear, I love the Daily Show and the Colbert Report.

I think Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are two of the funniest and smartest people in media today, more importantly, they are honest and they have integrity, something which seems to have excused itself from the FOX "News" studios right around the time we started trading in CDs for MP3s. I went to the Rally, I watch the show, but more importantly, I trust them because they are honest about their intentions, their information and what they do.

Oh, and you can actually verify what they say on their shows with reference, sources and research.

The same, unfortunately, cannot be said for FOX "News".

"With great power there must also come great responsibility." A comic book taught me that. A fictional cartoon character espouses a principle so basic yet it escapes the grasp of your network. FOX "News" has one of the largest spheres of influence in the world, but it is squandered away on propoganda and malicious political rhetoric cloaked in the label of "fair and balanced".

So Jon Stewart made fun of Herman Cain and he's a Black man. I'm a Black man and I make fun of Herman Cain. More to the point, I am a fellow Morehouse Man and if Herman Cain were the standard, I would be ashamed to call myself one. But he isn't. He is a sad example of how a significant segment of the Republican party, the Tea Party and FOX "News" continue to use African Americans for their own agenda, not because any of you care about the issues of African Americans but simply because it is expedient and you somehow got the impression that we're all interchangeable.

Expressing an alternative viewpoint is not only healthy, but needed to ensure balance in our world...lying about it, falsely representing yourself in this light knowing full well that all your rhetoric is to cover the agenda you have is so bereft of morals, Rod Blagojevich would back off.

With great power, does come great responsibility and as such, FOX "News", you have a responsibility to your viewers, more importantly to the American people, to stop the intentional misdirection, stop the misleading information and honestly and accurately report the news using actual facts, not something Karl and Sarah put together on a bus ride over. You have a responsibility to be honest, truthful and act with integrity.

So I am writing this, and I'm asking you, FOX "News", to just say "no" and put away the falsehoods, put away the misrepresentation, to put away the lies and be forthright as a news organization should. Because Jon Stewart has done nothing but be fair and balanced in the truest sense of the words, even when having to report on issues that hit close to home.

So you have a choice. You can step up to the plate and do the right thing, or you can continue down a path that will further erode your reputation, sensibility and whatever remains of principles in your studio. The choice is yours, but whichever route you go, leave the hatchet jobs alone. Like him or not, Jon Stewart has been the consummate professional, even when dealing with your network. Stick to battling CNN and MSNBC, rather than using a whole network to attack one man, because, quite frankly, you aren't in his league.

Sincerely,

Jonathan Palmer

If Fox News Is Singing Your Praises, That Should Be A Sign...

and not a good one either...

The recent firing of Juan Williams over some personal profiling comments he made on Fox "News" which subsequently resulted in his being hired by Fox "News" got me to thinking. When I first heard, I wasn't shocked since in our overly PC-ed world, you usually cannot say "boo" in a venue or enclave without getting three complaints against you for defaming the cultural identity of "living challenged Americans" (hey, I worked in a Halloween reference...go me!), but I wasn't sure it was warranted...that is until I started hearing Karl Rove and friends singing his praises like he was the ice cream man and they had just gotten their allowance...and that gave me pause.

See, I like Lou Reed as much as the next person, and don't mind taking a "walk on the wild side" every once in awhile...it's the "Crazy-and-Evil-Side" bus tour where I like to pull the chord and ask the bus driver to let me off.

And if Karl Rove is talking about you like he's giving your eulogy, well, then you're already in the ninth level...

Realistically, Juan's switch is like going from Broadway to the WWF. You're still acting, one of them just has a little more credibility...the simple fact that they call themselves Fox "News" when it's clearly not, should be a clue...

It won't be long now before Bill O'Reilly shows up in a feathered boa and some Zubaz to challenge Wolf Blitzer to a cage match.

But I digress.

When the Dark Lor- I mean, Karl Rove is all over you like white on rice in a glass of milk on a paper plate in a snow storm, I tend to ask a few questions and after looking into things a little more, I can't say that Juan's firing was right or wrong...but as Chris Rock said, now I understand.

See Fox "News" and NPR arguably represent opposite ends of the spectrum and Juan liked to play on both sides of the fence. This was not his first incident of conflict with NPR or controversy. He'd also been a contributor since 1997 on Fox, appear on many of the shows, most notably the O'Reilly Factor where he'd even been a guest host...(guest host?!?!?) Fox loves this kind of thing. Any time they can take a moderate or liberal and turn them to the dark side, even a little like having them straddle the fence, it's a victory. If you can infect light with one sliver of darkness...that darkness will grow, as it did for Juan.

NPR, on the other hand, and I believe rightly so, hates this kind of thing.

Not in the least because the chances of cleansing someone of the bile that is Fox "News" is like curing a terminal disease, miraculous. I mean for all our efforts, all we've managed to get is Alan Colmes (not Alan Keyes, thank God. Really, you all can keep all of that right over there, we have enough crazy on this side).

But the two key points that I think bear noting:

1. Juan has been straddling this fence for too long. You can't "dance with the Devil in the pale moon light" and go to church on Sunday as if nothing has happened, and in this day and age with the culture war that's underway, you can't afford to stand on the sidelines anymore, you have to pick side, X-Men or Brotherhood, and roll with it;

2. With great power comes great responsibility...Juan is certainly entitled to his opinion, but as someone who millions of people listen to and whom Fox would exploit, he has a responsibility to be more judicious in his timing, words and phrasing. Juan's been doing this for a long time and he was well aware of the sensationalistic impression and sound bite that would be created by his "stating his fear", and could have made his point a dozen other ways...why, then, didn't he?
Further having been around Fox before and knowing their racist anti-Muslim sentiment that permeates every broadcast, ever show and every commentator the way your best friend in college puking in the back of your car and then leaving it in the hot Sun for 3 days does your upholstery, he knew they would take this ball and run with it.

And they have.

They have been all over their 24-hour "news" channel calling for a cessation to funding, attacking NPR, wild accusations of racism against them...and Juan has stayed silent...well, except to defend himself and promote his narrative. I get that he's angry. I know he's not happy with them, but responsibly he should be telling Fox to stand down; to allow this to used to attack an institution that he supposedly has believed in and supported like NPR is stepping to the side, standing by and letting the crap happen. Even in the face of adversity, if you're on the sides of the angels, you step up and step in to ensure what's right happens. You don't stand idly by and you don't let setbacks stop you...

There's a battle going on right now for the soul of America. It is being waged on the airwaves and the internet and in the corner store. Fox "News" and the far Right are not merely acting irresponsibly, they are actively and hypocritically undermining our country; more specifically, they are strategically disseminating misinformation to tear asunder the fabric of the very country that they claim to love because it doesn't fit their outdated "old timey" image of what should be...

And we, moderate and liberal, we open-minded have a responsibility to counter this sabotage, to stand against this tyranny that is being thrust upon us and say "No More!" We have a responsibility to pick a side and fight on that side with every strength of sinew we may muster to ensure our country is that which it is meant to be. A shining beacon of hope and truth that is open to everyone.

Coming out of the Bush Administration, we've been dirty for a long while, it's about time we got clean.

It's about time we ante up and kick in.

It's about time WE take our country back from the insanity that has gripped in through fear and prejudice and brave-behind-the-teleprompter sycophants and narcissists.

It's time.

Wake Up America, It's Time To Ante Up and Kick In...

It's been a long time,I shouldn't have left you, without a strong rhyme to step to; think of how many weak shows you slept through, time's up, sorry I kept you...
-I Know You Got Soul, Eric B. & Rakim

I picked that quote by Erik B. & Rakim because it has been a long time since I've written, and when I look at all of the insanity that has gone on around that I might have helped to stem the tide of, I cannot help but feel remorse for not being here when I should have. So from now, at least until the election, I'm going to write as much as I can to show my supporty and loyalty to our President and to our country.

So lend me your ears, my Fellow Americans, for I have words that I would impart to our country...Because that's what it this is about, OUR country.

Recently, our President said something that struck a chord within me:

"It is inexcusable for any Democrat or progressive right now to stand on the sidelines in this midterm election."

Inexcusable.

Unable to be excused.

Unjustifiable.

Unpardonable...

Indefensible.

The mission may not be accomplished, but the message has been received. Time to ante up and kick in...

You see, as someone who has severe constraints on his time, there is often a lot I can't do to get some skin in the game...I don't have the free time to do doorknocking and phone calling; lit dropping does not go well with my plantar faciitus and in this tight economy, there is only so much fundraising one can do...

But, I can write.

I can write and say the things that need to be said. Things that must be said and are not. Things that need to be heard.

And so, I am answering our President's call, to do what needs to be done in the way that I can...by writing. For in writing, I can speak truth to power, I can say what needs to be said, and hopefully, just hopefully, snap some people out of the Matrix-like slumber they have descended into.

Our country has been besieged by terrorists from within, small minded hysterics with delusions of grandeur that prey upon the fears of the populace, igniting blind rage and panic that have loosed an evil upon our country, heretofore unknown...

When did this all change?

When did it become okay to dress up racism as patriotism and avoid culpability?

When did it become okay to limit the diversity between us and call it "family values"?

When did it become okay to shout epithets and and spew intolerance under the guise of protecting freedom?

When did America, stop being America?

It did not, but we have been asleep at the wheel.

We have nodded off in the dead of night, threatening to veer into the ditch of ignorance and lose our way along this path.

We must wake up. WAKE UP!

Our Founding Fathers held to be self evident that all men (people) are created equal, and that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, chief among them being life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness...

In case you didn't realize, that means you can marry whoever you damn well please, regardless of race, color, creed, gender or orientation. There was no asterisk on the Declaration of Independence with a footnote that said: "except 'those' people." To deny this nullif ies your ability to wave the flag and cry freedom.

America, beyond the colonialism that devasted the indigenous people, carried within its founding the principle of religious freedom away from persecutions...

In case you didn't realize, that means that you can build a mosque wherever you damn well please, and standing against this invalidates your right to call yourself a patriot.

They also incorporated into the Constitution the manner and balloting for electing the President and which, when followed, rests the fate of the Country on this one person.

In case you didn't realize, that means that whether you voted for him or not, he IS the President of the United States and should be afforded the same rights, privileges and responsibilities as any before him. To disrespect the man, is to disrespect the office, which is to disrespect the Constitution, and within that, the Country. That does not make you an American, it makes you a coward...

We cannot be the Land of the Free, while any amongst us must hide or deny who they are for fear of retribution.

We cannot be the Home of the Brave, if we are so frightened by culture and individuals that are different from us that we cease to stand up for the founding principles of America--Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

We cannot call ourselves America and not embody and exemplify these principles...principles which only truly count when they're not convenient, when you have to struggle and sacrifice to support them, when you have to stand for them.

So here I stand.

This is a serious time, and we need serious people. Sarah Palin, Glen Beck, your 15 minutes are up. Stop wasting the time of the American people and find a new gig...maybe something in the exciting electronics field or check out Brown College...

Really.

Tea Party, you want to take this country back, then start moving forward and understand that it is not enough to put on a tricorner hat and yell, you have to have substance, and actually study your history.

America, stop following whatever talking head pops up with an idea about a fence or following the money (as long as it doesn't connect to them) and begin to look at the truth behind the rhetoric and shouting to see who is really pulling the strings.

Wake up!

Wake up my country, my fellow Americans, and come together now. Cast aside the tyranny of ignorance and recognize the folly in the ways of the past. Be true to the principles on which we were founded, be true to the best of what is in us, be true to the ideal of what is must mean to be an American...Stand with pride, act with honor and live with integrity.

Wake up and be "one together America", with all the differences of opinion and thought that entails, but with civil discourse and honest debate.

Wake up because we are ONE country and it is time we started acting like it.

(Re)Birth of a Nation

I used to think that our country had reached the magnitude of which I could be ashamed.

Under George W. Bush (or as I call it, the Dark Ages), I thought, foolishly, that the practices and policies which went far beyond free market economics and defending our shores had descended to the lowest depths of reflecting that which is ugly about our country. That which exists as the dark underbelly, tarnishing the bright shining light that is America, land of the free, home of the brave...

I'm sad to say that I was wrong.

I watched the Presidential Address tonight, and was appalled to watch as Republicans held up signs, and legislation, and sat intentionally in their seats, even while Republican-favored platforms were put forth...and one arrogant soul (Representative Joe Wilson, R-SC, who has changed his official Congressional website (http://www.joewilson.house.gov/) so that it only posts his bio and removes contact information, however you can find the contact form here and contact information for him here) called him a liar...

and I was ashamed, once more, to be an American.

Not because there is discord or disagreement amongst politicians, not because they don't wish to support the positions or bills that the President puts forth, but because of the fundamental disrespect inherent in the casual disregard they show for the highest office in the land and the leader of our country. A disrespect and disregard that has never, EVER been there before.

Ever.

But let's be honest, when looking at the 44 Presidents next to each other, it's clear that as they used to sing on Sesame Street, "one of these things is not like the others, one of these things just doesn't belong..."

Or so some would have you believe.

And though it may be couched in terms such as protecting us against socialism, high taxes and death panels, the reality is they believe they are protecting us from something much more dangerous...the Negro!!!!

In 1915 DW Griffith released his "groundbreaking" masterpiece, Birth of a Nation, widely hailed for its technical innovations in camerawork, achievement of the visual language of the cinema and solidification of "Blockbuster"/feature length films...which almost makes you forget that it's a racist piece of propaganda original called the Clansmen and used as a recruiting film for the KKK on into the 70s....

Beginning to see the connection?

No?

Let's step a little further into the Wayback machine and see if history does, in fact, repeat itself.

See the Clansmen--sorry, Birth of a Nation, tells the "heroic" story of how the KKK "saved" the South and by extension the country from the tyrannical rule of Northern (aka East Coast Elite) oppression, and "Negroes" run amuck. The film depicts the common fantasy that African Americans in positions of power, not only have no right to be in office but also disgrace the noble profession through wanton disregard for protocol and sophistication and a socialist agenda to take over the jobs and resources of hard working, upright White people in a gluttony of avarice and sloth. The KKK is so powerful as to move former union and confederate soldiers to join forces against the menace that is...the Negro and his willing White accomplices....routing those forces of evil and saving the country... (like maybe in 2012...)

well, for good upstanding White folk that is...

And now you flash forward to 2009, and that nightmare has become a reality.

The apocalypse has come.

The end of the world is nigh.

For the anti-Christ sits on his throne....

Really???

And every one of them secretly wishes to be "the Little Colonel" (look it up), standing against the wave of Negro injustice and propogation, garnering the forces to deliver the country from the clutches of this modern day Silas Lynch.

Unfortunately, this phantom menace, bent on destroying the country through Health Care Reform and Stimulus packages is no more real than the fiction of Birth...it is a weak attempt at couching the underlying racism that permeates through the hearts and minds of some of our citizenry, given voice through false "teabagging movements" and "average unscripted Americans" showing up at town halls; voices that ring hollow with the taint of that inescapable disease...racism.

Yes, I said it, racism.

See, on the national stage, people are afraid to call this what it is, and the moment you say the word, a huge number of preconceptions arise around what I mean and where this discussion took a turn, but it is, plain and simple. Racism.

Just not your father's brand...

"How do you know?", some will ask. "You can't be sure..." others will say.

No, but while in life there is nothing you can be absolutely sure of...what is clear is that a segment of our country's citizens and elected officials show a blatant disrespect for the holder of an office that two years ago they would have burned you in effigy for merely disagreeing with, the difference is an African American now holds it. And there in lies the key to the riddle.

Like Bilbo's ring, the question of what is and what isn't in the pocket of what we call racism has so many definitions and connotations, that most people shut down when it's mentioned and can't examine the multifacet conundrum that it is.

Racism isn't just burning crosses and race riots, it has transformed and adapted into a quieter, subtler form of the same virulent strain: it is the quiet decision to redistrict and redistribute resources, it is the glass ceiling never shattered, the casual difference in the way people act around different groups, it is a blatant disregard for the office and the authority of the leader of our country. The sheets may have been traded in (well some of the sheets) for business suits, congressional pins and "News" shows, but no matter how much it has changed, the game has remained the same...fear.

We have come so far as a country...crossing racial and cultural boundaries in life, in love, in purpose...the youth today don't see the racial divisions our parents grew up with amongst their friends, corporations engage the communities once oppressed with social conscience and commitment and for the first time in our history, citizens rally around causes ignoring cultural divides, and a person of color is elected to the highest office in the land.

And yet, I am ashamed, because as a country, we have failed. We have failed because we have allowed the least of us, to co-opt our country in an immoral way and stand idly by while they spout lies.

Charlatans and con artists with little to espouse other than hate broadcast it on the airwaves and call it free speech. Manipulators work behind the scenes to organize opposition and stage protests and call it a movement. Scripted pretenders arrive at town halls to read their lines and we call them hard working, honest Americans...and we stand idly by while they pump bile and poison into our life.

We must expect better, we must do better, we must be better. Disagreement and discourse are a part of politics and the American way of life, but without respect, without honorable action, without truth it is little more than pseudo intellectual slam dancing. We are a great nation, but we can be greater. And to do that, we must be a country that puts truth and justice ahead of profit and property and we must shine a beacon on deception and call out those who would hide behind falsehoods and fearmongering.

We must speak truth to power and hold to the light those who would drape their bias and prejudices in scare tactics. We must stay the course as we forge ahead towards a new national conscience of principled idealism. We must cast of these last vestiges or bleaker times and forge ahead bringing the best of us to bear on improving our world, and rising from the ashes of intolerance like a Phoenix onto a new land bringing with it the (Re)Birth of a Nation.

Amen.

30 Days of Night or the Allegory of the McCain Campaign

Today, I'm going to mix things up a bit and review movies instead. We're 30 days out so this seems apropos.


30 Days of Night is a film adaptation of a graphic novel set in Alaska. The plot surrounds a group of vampires who descend on Alaskan towns during the period of Winter when the sun is absent for 30 days and feast on the people living there...


I didn't say there was any similarities....



All I'm saying is that the story has an Alaskan connection and talks about blood thirsty undead who systematically descend upon and destroy innocent, hardworking people by sucking their blood and rending them limb from limb...or garnering a $700B bailout strategy...

Now that's Straight Talk!

Now let's break this movie down a bit and tell me if any of this sounds familiar. So you have this sleepy little town of Barrow (America)
that annually goes through a period where the sun doesn't shine (elections). People who don't want to put up with it leave for other parts (Canada). A stranger, essentially the Vampire Cabal (RNC) front man (W) lays the groundwork by sabotaging the town (destroys all cell phones, breaks the helicopters, kills all the dogs, gets us into a war on false pretenses).

Now the local Sheriff (John McCain) .starts off investigating all these things when the campai- I mean killing starts And a small group of survivors (Romney, Huckabee, Guiliani and the other candidates end up holed up in an abandoned houses and buildings (Ohio and other primary states) trying to survive and figure out their next move. A few things happened, one of the survivors is a senile old man who runs off into the night followed by his son and gets killed (this is either Ron Paul or Fred Thompson, it's hard to be sure...). They stay holed up, even when the vampires enlist a young woman to use as bait. (Sarah Palin) Of course, she's stupid enough to think that the vampires will let her go if she goes along with this, and of course tries to coax other people out to be killed...

Realizing that the only way he can beat them is to join them, the Sheriff (McCain) injects himself with vampire blood (accepts the nomination) and faces off against the vampire leader (Karl Rove). He turns into a vampire (have you seen some of his speeches and ads lately????) but does it to save the town (thus confirming my theory that John McCain is secretly supporting Barack Obama). In the end he watches the Sun rise (Barack) and slowly disintegrates into dust (see November 5, 2008).

I think it's beautiful when art imitates life, and fascinating when life imitates politics.


Strangely enough, Wesley Snipes has played Blade, a half human, half vampire superhero who has all of the strengths and none of their weaknesses and has dedicated his life to destroying vampires...he even has older partner named Whistler (Kris Kristofferson) who's been fighting vampires longer than him and mentors and aids Blade in a supporting role...

Ironic huh?