#833 – Dick Bernard: The 2014 Minnesota Precinct Caucuses Feb 4.

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Comments follow. Note also the Responses tab for additional comments.
To find your own Precinct Caucus location in Minnesota, click here.
In my state, Minnesota, the evening of Tues Feb. 4, it is Precinct Caucus night for Republicans and Democrats. In my Senate District, the Precinct Caucus will be at the local Tartan High School in Oakdale, and last night I was there with a few others to do the “walk through” – where the rooms are, rest rooms, cafeteria, auditorium, etc. It is a routine kind of exercise – somebody has to organize these caucuses, and they do need organization, but that kind of pre-work is noticed by hardly anyone.
Yet, the seeming lowly Precinct Caucus is arguably the single most important political meeting for all political parties leading to the General Election in early November every second year. It is at these caucuses that persons propose resolutions to help the parties determine their positions on numerous issues, and those who wish run for and are elected to be delegates to a larger political gathering in a few weeks, where candidates for local and state office come to make their pitch. (Usually there are more positions open for delegate than there are candidates interested in running for the privilege of attending another meeting; but, this is the first, essential building block of the political process.)
At the District level, the process continues, as delegates run for and are elected to the State Conventions. Most of these delegates have to run the gauntlet of seeking the office. Others, such as current office holders, as the Governor, have paid their dues and are automatically delegates.
But all of it, including who will be endorsed by the party structure as candidates some months from now, begins with that lowly Precinct Caucus.
Here’s a primer, for my party (click on Precinct Caucus tab). Doubtless, there is a similar primer for the folks “across the aisle”. (Somebody mentioned last night that the Republicans had wanted to rent the same venue in which we are meeting, but we had reserved before them…even where to have a meeting has its competitive aspects, I guess.)
I am one of those unusual creatures that as a matter of routine goes to the caucus and always agrees to be a delegate to the next level, at least.
It takes time, and the meetings are usually not world-class in excitement – say, Super Bowl – but they are far more important than any Super Bowl.
(The singular “excitement” exception, in my memory, was the 2008 Caucus at Oak-Land Junior High School, where THE issue was the preference poll for Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama for President. That night we were in a caucus-related traffic jam nearly a mile west on I-94, and I ultimately had to walk a half mile to the caucus location to simply have the opportunity to scribble a name on a piece of paper giving Presidential preference. (I chose Hillary that time, solely because I thought she had more relevant experience than then Sen. Obama. Now he’s nearly six years our President, and in my opinion an outstanding one. But, it was at those caucuses where he truly began his run for the White House.)
Normally in theses posts I include photographs.
I don’t have any photographs of Precinct Caucuses: they’re usually a few people sitting in a classroom passing resolutions. Paint drying is about as visually exciting. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t important. Caucuses are absolutely crucial to the functioning of our democracy, regardless of party.
Look back at this space in a couple of weeks and I’ll have some photos I took Tuesday night, February 4, 2014….
The off-year caucuses (this year is one of those) are usually most lightly attended despite (my opinion) being the most important, since out of them ultimately are selected the candidates who stand for legislature, Congress, the U.S. Senate etc.
Related Posts: here and here.
Comments:
(note also additional comments added directly to the post, below)
from Fred D: I think for me, a transplant to MN 9 years ago, going to the first caucus was the hardest as I really didn’t know what to expect. But I felt like I was in on the ground floor of something. I remember meeting [to-be Minnesota legislators] for the first time. [Caucus] was a way to feel engaged.

#832 – Dick Bernard: Martin Luther King Day

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Today there’s no school in Woodbury, and on Saturday my spouse said that grandson Ryan, 14, had expressed an interest in going to the film “Twelve Years a Slave“. I had a conflict Sunday afternoon, but suggested today, and if he’s still interested the three of us will probably be in the theatre this afternoon.
It was just an idea from a 14-year old, who’s getting a day off from school, but a most appropriate choice.
It occurred to me this morning that it was 50 years ago, at this time of year, when Martin Luther King’s book, “Why We Can’t Wait” was published.

Published in 1964, and still in print, Why We Can't Wait by Martin Luther King Jr is an outstanding first-person view of the year 1963.

Published in 1964, and still in print, Why We Can’t Wait by Martin Luther King Jr is an outstanding first-person view of the year 1963.


Why We Can’t Wait chronicles the watershed civil rights year of 1963, Birmingham Jail, March on Washington, assassination of President Kennedy and on and on, and is a basic primer for me about that crucial time in history. It is still in print and well worth a read, or re-read.
In turn, January, 1963 was the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, when all of this slavery and discrimination stuff was supposed to end, and, of course, did not.
Now, of course, we are 150 years into freedom, and the problems remain and are seemingly more intense than ever. We have a black President, and that bothers some folks; and efforts are pretty intense in some places to make certain that rights, particularly to vote, are rolled back so that the wrong kind of people are less likely to be able to show up at the polls.
This morning I read a very good summary of today in the United States, which includes a link to a very long article in the New Yorker in which President Obama is interviewed, and in which he says this: “Despite [Abraham Lincoln] being the greatest President, in my mind, in our history, it took another hundred and fifty years before African-Americans had anything approaching formal equality, much less real equality. I think that doesn’t diminish Lincoln’s achievements, but it acknowledges that at the end of the day we’re part of a long-running story. We just try to get our paragraph right…“I just wanted to add one thing to that business about the great-man theory of history. The President of the United States cannot remake our society, and that’s probably a good thing.” Obama then adds, “Not ‘probably’. It’s definitely a good thing.”. (The link to this entire New Yorker article by David Remnick, Going the Distance, in the Jan 27, 2014, issue, is within the post linked at the beginning of this paragraph.)
There is definitely still racial tension in this country: I read it all the time in those abusive angry “forwards” sent to me by zealots – people that I actually know who send on the hate. They have never let go of slavery.
But this country, not even the deepest of the deep south states, is no longer in 1863, or 1963.
There is also disequity that is now far worse than in recent years, and other great problems as well.
But there will be no going back…if people engage in the political process this year.
Have a good day.
And set about making a difference where you live.

#824 – Dick Bernard: "Christmas" Mail; thinking ahead as the New Year begins.

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This is a very long post, and includes very divergent opinions from several people. I pass it along because I think it is interesting, and of current interest and concern. I invite comments. I muse about how to break the ideological polarity that is slowly strangling us as a country. For those readers who do not know me: I was born in 1940, born and reared amongst the so-called greatest generation which survived the Great Depression and WWII, and is now most departed. I am a military veteran (Army 1962-63) from a family full of military veterans, documented at least as far back as 1862-63.
Among ample “Christmas” mail, were two e-items from people I know. The “forward” is printed in its entirety at the end of this post. Following it is an impassioned more personal letter from a friend I’ve known for most of my life.
A third comment, below, is a letter to the editor of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, written by a long-time neighbor two houses over from us, who’s a great guy, mid-80s, who if asked about us would say we’re great neighbors too, though it probably didn’t compute with him that he was, in effect, writing about us in his rant to the world, as we are “liberal” Democrats and active Catholics who might actually agree with portions of his letter. We never have we talked “politics” with him – one picks ones battles. The contents of his letter are not surprising, though it was surprising to see he’d actually written the letter. He and his wife are very nice folks, good to share a neighborhood with, as are we…. [Carol responds to this letter later in this post, before the “forward”.]
(click to enlarge)

Letter to Editor Dec 15, 2013

Letter to Editor Dec 15, 2013


I never decline the angry “forwards” – there are a few who send them regularly. I reply to them; most are false either in fact or implication, most are from people in my generation (older, social security and medicare recipients) and all are in one way or another seething with anger, resentment and full of fear.
But they’re worth looking at (at least so I think) and worth responding to. These folks are an ever smaller minority in this country, but they vote, and they are useful tools for those whose agenda is against their own selfish interests….
In the below instance, I sent the “forward” (“The typical U.S. household” one) to a number of friends, and got some interesting responses, which are passed along as received. I didn’t ask for responses, and I didn’t edit, or remove any. These are people sharing back their own feelings.
As for the folks who send along the angry and false stuff, I feel badly for them, but they simply energize me to do more to make sure their attitude does not result in the kind of “Tea Party Nation” we almost dissolved into between 2010 and 2014.
This is an election year, and if we want positive change, be aware of what happens when greed and anger prevail…. Become aware of the issues, register and vote.
My introduction to the “forward” as I passed it on: The guy who sent this to me is somebody whose Dad was an immigrant. He spent many years in the military, enlisted and civilian, and he’s in a network out west which seems to be heavily military oriented.
I might respond to the [originator] guy though, as with [my friend], who sent it to me, it is wasted words.
This is the bitter, angry, old fringe that still has a lot of power, fueled by anger and, as is said, money.
They believe their own propaganda. You know people like them, certainly.
The only antidote is to work like you’ve never worked to elect some viable alternative. I emphasize “viable”.
The responses to the “forward”, unedited:
from Joyce, a quote from Charles Pierce: “The Scary Liberal is still a formidable bogeyman to people terrified of their own best interests.”
from Jeff: I just delete this stuff… I am not sure what one can honestly say to it. If you posted a point by point rebuttal with reasoned thought, they would only delete it too. No generation deems worship… life goes on.
from Carol: There are no links to these guys, but could you pass this on??
I also am an “old geezer,” I guess (female variety). I voted for Obama. Twice. I don’t understand your reference to “tasting socialism.” As far as “seeing evil face to face,” yes – most any time we watch the news or pick up the newspaper. Evil has been around longer than you or I. I don’t happen to think “evil” resides in the White House (or in a President who happens to be of a different color than I am). I don’t choose to blame the Obama administration for the problems that started before he was even in office. Or those created by a greedy Wall Street.
People like you (and yes, it’s almost always old white men) make me sad. You deserve our nation’s greatest thanks for your military service/sacrifices. You deserve credit for your hard work, raising good families, and for voting. You do not deserve credit for your paranoia or racism. The world changes – with or without your approval. Your bitterness only serves to make people avoid you (trust me, I had angry old uncles…) Those outdoor biffies (my family had one) are gone – along with your “white bread” world. (Back then my German immigrant ancestors were treated with suspicion and persecuted here, by the way. There’s always somebody around we can find who’s scary, and to whom we can feel superior – if we choose.)
Adjust. It’s really not your/my world anymore. You act like “mostly the young people of this nation” had no right to vote for Obama – or maybe to vote at all, without your permission? Befriend someone who doesn’t look exactly like you (maybe one of those feared “immigrants”). You may get a whole new outlook on the life you have left.
from Peter (see also additional response in “responses” section): I’m always a little puzzled when you talk about “viable” candidates. There are several reasons for this. I understand that in your life you have worked in a domain where cooler heads were essential to progress, and moderation could actually work. At the national politics level, however, I don’t think anything works as designed anymore; it has been broken, maybe purposefully, so that now (as your correspondent below believes) money is key. So it boils down to this: money equals viability as a candidate. But we can’t win that game by trying to out-spend the opposition, especially when the opposition is not confined to party lines in the least. We’re playing tennis, while they play football.
That situation is so antithetical to democracy that until it is resolved I don’t consider that we have any vestigial shadow of the thing left to us. It is decades beyond time for national strikes and massive demonstrations, and these have been forestalled, so far, largely by convincing people that they are futile, and the rest by the simple expedient of news blackout. How many of the massive turnouts on the DC Mall this year reached the ears and eyes of, say, 20% of Americans?
What I think we disagree on here is that I believe working to elect a candidate who is “viable” is a dead end, that Obama is doing pretty good for a guy who certainly wouldn’t survive a full term if he stood up to the banksters and the fanatics, but a President is not the real power in the country, nor is Congress, any more. We are now non-voting shareholders in a wholly-owned subsidiary of what Jane Stillwater calls “War Street.” We all need to catch up to this, or we will continue in the downward spiral we see unfolding now. Under that scenario, when enough of us have died off from poverty and pandemic disease that the climate can stabilize, humanity may yet survive. In some very stunted form.
“They don’t think it be like it is but it do.”
Dick’s response to Peter about “viable”: Since 1787, the U.S. has been governed by people elected by rules in place at the time. In order to make any difference at all, you need to be elected, which means you need a majority of the people who vote, to vote for you. There is no alternative. The Tea Party types got in more because more reasonable people didn’t go to the polls in 2010. We got the bitter, anger, selfish folks we deserve, and we’ve seen the results – the Congress with the lowest approval ratings ever in 2013.
I always remember the advice I gave my sister when she was elected to a school board years ago. She would be the only liberal on what sounded like a very conservative board: “remember, that to get anything accomplished, you first need to find someone to second your motion; and then you need to find two more members who will also vote with you”. It’s simple common sense. And she ended up serving two successful terms. Governing by influence of money and raw power is how things work now. We are the ones who have to change that.
from Bob: Actually, it’s worse than “bitter and angry,” it’s downright stupid! It’s really too bad that some that close to the military is so ignorant. Apparently, when he listed his studies, it noticeably did not include civics, and his history teacher failed miserably. He hasn’t a clue what socialism is.
Then he says the very people who aren’t interested in voting actually elected Obama. And those are the same people traitors like him are trying to suppress in the voting process. He also has to understand the Constitution before he starts spouting off about patriotism.
Then he laments “No jobs, lost mortgages, higher taxes, and less freedom,” most of which have been caused by the Bush/Cheney crowd who I assume he adores.
To put it mildly, this writer is a moron. I’m a “geezer,” but I’m sure not a friend of his.
from Howie: I am not sure why either you or Dick are forwarding this message to anyone. In doing so, you run the risk of putting it into the hands of other crackpots who are teetering on thinking in the same way. I get from one to several of this kind of rant every week. Some I critique and return to the person who sent it to me as a way of cauterizing the infection. Others go right into my “trash” file. I suggest you do one of the same. There is no need to tell others that there are crazies out there. We know. Ten minutes of Fox News accomplishes that goal.
from Carol: Dick- Sometimes I think it’s amusing/amazing to google a line from things like that “old geezer” rant you sent out. This one is all over the place – inc. versions with some interesting edits (below). But check out the end for part of a long online rebuttal… 🙂
from Carol, Jan 4, 2014, responding to Letter to Editor above: Interesting that your (really nice) neighbor blames the “degenerate liberal culture” and Democrats for the law since the state senate voted for it unanimously. And he’s pretty paranoid about it being targeted only against the Catholic Church – not the Boy Scouts, etc.
That “local attorney” has been filing these types of cases for like 30 years (the law firm where I worked was involved in the huge “Father Porter” case). If becoming rich were his goal, he probably arrived there long ago.
I see it’s everybody’s fault but the Catholic Church.
******
“There are those who want to destroy and change this land we love but, like our founders, there is no way we are going to remain silent and allow them to do it without a big time bloody fight.
This land does not belong to the Marxist puppet in the White House nor to the likes of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid.
We didn’t fight for the Socialist Communist States of America, we fought for the “Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.”
on-line response from someone from “Youth Fix-it Brigade”
“So, Gray-Haired Geezer, please don’t stampede to the polls with your walker and your equally delusional friends. As noble as you think your sentiments are, we know they aren’t true. You’ll keep on voting to extend Social Security, to keep Medicaid around so I can subsidize the continuation of your artificially preserved life and you’ll keep sending back the same losers you’ve been sending to congress for the past 50 years. And, you’ll either cause an accident on your way to the polls or drive so slow getting there that you’ll prevent five members of my generation from getting to the ballot box on time to cast their more informed votes.”
* * * * * *
The “forward”, received January 2, 2014 from Robert, via Steve, via who knows how many others:
“The typical U.S. household headed by a person age 65 or older has a net worth 47 times greater than a household headed by someone under 35, according to an analysis of census data released Monday. If all of us “old farts” have all of the money, then let us try to elect someone who might be near honest and not be after feathering their own nests.
They like to refer to us as senior citizens, old fogies, geezers, and in some cases dinosaurs. Some of us are “Baby Boomers” getting ready to retire. Others have been retired for some time. We walk a little slower these days and our eyes and hearing are not what they once were. We have worked hard, raised our children, worshiped our God and grown old together. Yes, we are the ones some refer to as being over the hill, and that is probably true. But before writing us off completely, there are a few things that need to be taken into consideration.
In school we studied English, history, math, and science which enabled us to lead America into the technological age. Most of us remember what outhouses were, many of us with firsthand experience.
We remember the days of telephone party-lines, 25 cent gasoline, and milk and ice being delivered to our homes. For those of you who don’t know what an icebox is, today they are electric and referred to as refrigerators. A few even remember when cars were started with a crank. Yes, we lived those days.
We are probably considered old fashioned and out-dated by many. But there are a few things you need to remember before completely writing us off. We won World War II, fought in Korea and Viet Nam. We can quote The Pledge of Allegiance, and know where to place our hand while doing so. We wore the uniform of our country with pride and lost many friends on the battlefield.
We didn’t fight for the Socialist States of America; we fought for the “Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.” We wore different uniforms but carried the same flag. We know the words to the Star Spangled Banner, America , and America the Beautiful by heart, and you may even see some tears running down our cheeks as we sing. We have lived what many of you have only read in history books and we feel no obligation to apologize to anyone for America.
Yes, we are old and slow these days but rest assured, we have at least one good fight left in us. We have loved this country, fought for it, and died for it, and now we are going to save it. It is our country and nobody is going to take it away from us. We took oaths to defend America against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and that is an oath we plan to keep. There are those who want to destroy this land we love but, like our founders, there is no way we are going to remain silent.
It was mostly the young people of this nation who elected Obama and the Democratic Congress. You fell for the “Hope and Change” which in reality was nothing but “Hype and Lies.”
You have tasted socialism and seen evil face to face, and have found you don’t like it after all. You make a lot of noise, but most are all too interested in their careers or “Climbing the Social Ladder” to be involved in such mundane things as patriotism and voting. Many of those who fell for the “Great Lie” in 2008 are now having buyer’s remorse. With all the education we gave you, you didn’t have sense enough to see through the lies and instead drank the ‘Kool-Aid.’ Now you’re paying the price and complaining about it. No jobs, lost mortgages, higher taxes, and less freedom.
This is what you voted for and this is what you got. We entrusted you with the Torch of Liberty and you traded it for a paycheck and a fancy house.
Well, don’t worry youngsters, the Grey-Haired Brigade is here, and in 2014 we are going to take back our nation. We may drive a little slower than you would like but we get where we’re going, and in 2014 we’re going to the polls by the millions.
This land does not belong to the man in the White House nor to the likes of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. It belongs to “We the People” and “We the People” plan to reclaim our land and our freedom. We hope this time you will do a better job of preserving it and passing it along to our grandchildren. So the next time you have the chance to say the Pledge of Allegiance, Stand up, put your hand over your heart, honor our country, and thank God for the old geezers of the “Grey-Haired Brigade.”
Footnote:
This is spot on. I am another Gray-Haired Geezer signing on. I will circulate this to other Gray-Haired Geezers all over this once great county.
Can you feel the ground shaking???
It’s not an earthquake, it is a STAMPEDE.

Dec 17 letter from someone I’ll call Jim, who I’ve known near 70 years, who is fond of sending “forwards”, mostly false, but this time, spoke personally to me:
“Mr. Bernard . You call yourself a catholic and you support the democrats and Obama. They support abortions even late term abortions. They also support gay marriage. Gay men have anal sex.(Sodomy) and call it love. Sodomy is one of the capitol sins that calls to heaven for vengance . And Obama says after his speech God bless America. I don’t think God listens to him. Israel is under the protection of God. How else could they have won all those wars with the Arabs when they were greatly outnumbered and out gunned. God has said if you support my people I will bless you and if you are against my people I will curse you. Israel can not be taken. Its under the protection of God. Things in our country are getting worse and worse since we took God out of our schools and public places. If kids don’t know the laws of God they will not keep the laws of men. Obama care is a joke and will not work. Hopefully the democrats will loose control of the senate in the elections coming up. Your are not getting any younger you better change your way of thinking before its too late. The last pope said to the Europeans you need to straighten out your moral house or your financial house will never get better. I think this applys to our country also. I suppose you say happy holiday instead of merry christmas.”
I responded, respectfully.
Haven’t heard from him since, but chances are in the near future will come a new batch of “forwards”, churned out wherever such things are churned out, most likely false or so put together as to be false.

#801 – Dick Bernard: Obamascares. The Insanity of it all.

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Last night, while watching the Daily Blathers (some call it “evening news”; a good friend, yesterday, referred to it more precisely and accurately: “CBSNBCABCFOXCNN”), I set to the task of sorting through the paper flotsam and jetsam from my Uncle’s apartment in rural ND.
Like tens of thousands of others, yesterday, and over time, I was trying to sift and sort through mail, receipts, records, etc., that some friend or relative was no longer able to deal with, due to death, disability, or otherwise.
As I sorted, the blather on the evening news programs was about President Obama’s contrition about the (insert your own words) continuing rollout computer problems of (insert your own descriptor), otherwise officially known as the Affordable Care Act.
Just three days earlier my Uncle had made an undesired but necessary move from assisted living, his home in town for the last six years, to the nursing home down the hall. His stuff stayed behind for someone else to deal with: an oft-repeated story everywhere in this country, every day.
In one box was the specific reminder of why he and his sister moved to town in the first place:
Heart Surgery001
It was a folder given to him after successful open heart surgery in April, 2006. The surgery was the only reason he’s still alive, but (in his opinion) that surgery is held as the reason he never fully recovered and could not return to his lifelong occupation of farming. Whether this is so or not can be argued forever. Nonetheless, he held off the grim reaper for what is now an additional seven years. While he couldn’t farm, his general quality of life was pretty good. And at near-89, why should he still want to farm?
Of course, the surgery, and virtually all of the other medical costs for other dilemmas since then, have come under the protective umbrella of Medicare and supplemental benefits of North Dakota Blue Cross/Blue Shield.
What gave him the wherewithal to financially survive, indeed thrive, as an independent farmer was the Medicare program signed into law in the summer of 1965 by President Lyndon Johnson. That earlier version of “Obamacare” was scorned then, too, as socialized medicine, and it was spared withering coverage by the “blathers” of the time by, likely, two main factors: 1) fewer and less technologically advanced news media outlets; and 2) media reporters who were more conscious of reporting news, as opposed to dispensing propaganda.
Now we are engaged in the great unCivil War of simply trying to implement a new imperfect insurance program (and even more imperfect computer program) that will cover more people more efficiently and effectively than the hodgepodge of legitimate and scam “insurance” that now faces America, and excludes from coverage tens millions of Americans, but not my only surviving Uncle and Aunt, who benefit from an assortment of programs which thankfully exist in their time of need.
We’ll get through this hysteria, I hope. For me, a survival strategy will be to quit watching the endless analysis, the faux news, about ACA, at least as portrayed on CBSNBCABCFOXCNN. It is all a bunch of dangerous nonsense.
POSTNOTE:
In the same ‘sifting and sorting’ session last night, we watched an excellent special of CNN on the approaching 50th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Familiar faces appeared there: Walter Cronkite, Lyndon Johnson, on and on…. Just a short while ago CBS celebrated the 50th anniversary of the 30 minute evening news program inaugurated on CBS by Walter Cronkite in the year 1963. Oh, how things have changed.
COMMENTS: one in the comment box below, and the following as well
from Corky: Just finished my 5 year repeat “internal flushing” of the colon yesterday and apparently good news. Now as to the news pundits who state that all these citizens really like their insurance . Or like the movie , the way we were or something like it.Is America brain dead? When you look at medicare billing and the significant reduced cost by medicare administration and the really miniscule and late payments by the insurance carriers . A $200 Dr. office billing and medicare reduces to $70 and medicare supplement F pays less than $20 (3 months after office visit), shows me the system is very busted and hooray for any proposed changes to health care. Michael Steele GOP guru even said this morning that constructive changes need to be proposed by GOP legislators! Did I hear that comment correctly or am I hearing impaired?
from Tref D: Just a lot of hot air on all sides. Eventually I hope it will work out for many folks.

#798 – Dick Bernard: Affordable Care Act. Light Years. Peaking too soon.

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A night or two ago CBS Evening News did what news reports always seem to do: in order to capsulize the latest crisis, they had short interviews with two women in Virginia after Tuesdays election. The unsuccessful candidate for Governor had made Obamacare the prime issue, and while he lost, the margin was less than predicted.
It was a referendum on Obamacare, so went the story.
One of the women hadn’t voted for Obama and didn’t like Obamacare, but had changed her mind when she found out how much she’d benefit by getting into the program. She was a working woman with a small day care business, best I recall.
The other woman was a businesswoman, apparently more prosperous, who was upset that Obamacare would cost her more in premium than the plan she carried.
I’m not sure what the CBS news team was asking me and others to conclude…. For me it made sense: we are an individualistic society, marking wins and losses from our personal perspective.
Yesterday, all the rage was President Obama himself apologizing for something he had said at the time the program was rolled out that was (depending on the report) a lie, dishonest, a mistake only in that the people who had to give up their insurance had substandard policies.)
Of course, then his apology was critiqued. It is all so very American. We lurch from one news report to the next. In perhaps a minute or at the most two we are given the definitive answer to complex problems. And usually we get the news from only the news source that verifies our own bias. I always like the after-report digest of Just Above Sunset, and last nights issue was pretty interesting. You can read Apologies of the Day here.
It is no wonder that we wander around confused about things.
For the enemies of Obamacare, this all seems like a godsend. Not quite so fast….
By accident more than design I spent much of my work career as an organizer of people. Since President Obama has been labeled by the hate words “community organizer”, I feel somewhat in company with him.
I did what he did (and you don’t get over ‘organizing’ – it becomes engrained).
Over many years, often by trial and error, I came to understand certain common sense principles about organizing around an issue.
One of these comes to mind specifically, especially around “Obamacare” (I prefer Obamacares):
1. As I understand the situation, the final deadline for people to enroll under the Affordable Care Act is March 1, 2014. This is about four months in the future. For most of us, that is Light Years away. Adding to this the fact that people tend to procrastinate for all sorts of reasons, the temporary bonanza of the computer botched rollout of the insurance plan will be hard to leverage for political advantage four months from now. (I’ll grant that serious mistakes were made in the testing, etc., of a gigantic new system, but blaming Obama personally, or Sebelius, only goes so far. It was, best I know, a private company that was the subcontractor….)
2. One of the absolute rules of organizing is “don’t peak too soon!” (or “too late”). If you had the perfect organizing plan but you peaked two weeks before the election, you risked losing. You wanted to peak at the last moment before the election, not three days before, or the day after. Of course, there are infinite variables in this business of “peaking”, but the wise strategist tries to factor in these variables. In this case, the “peak” will be in the 2014 election, a year from now. Many, many light years away. And don’t even ask about 2016. And remember Obama won’t be running for reelection then.
3. Of course, the competitive news media needs a “peak” story for their main news program…every day. They, makes no difference ideology, along with their subscribers, are most responsible for this constant frenzy. The constant focus on “ain’t it awful”.
There are many other similar organizing principles that could be identified. The above are enough for now.
But is hard to stay peaked for very long – we all know this from our own personal experience. And remember the “cry wolf” parable. It applies.
Chill.

#779 – Dick Bernard: The not-so-simple art of international diplomacy (and other similar things)

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A short while ago I was looking for the oldest e-mail I had from a recently deceased friend who was anti-war to the very core of his being. It turned out to be a Nov. 10, 2005, e-mail asserting “26 lies by Bush people” about the Iraq War during the George W. Bush administration. If you’re interested, here are the 26: Bob Heberle Nov 10 2005001
About the same time (Sep. 12) came an e-mail to a group from another anti-war friend about the tense Syrian situation: “what is the true reason for [the U.S. planning on] invading Syria or lying to the American people? Regardless of the reason for lying would that not constitute reason of impeachment if not for lying then for war mongering?” Of course, this related to President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry.
Then, just a day or two ago, President Obama spoke at the U.N., and his counterpart President, Rouhani of Iran, spoke at the same venue. But they didn’t meet.
And yesterday came another e-mail listing President Obama’s top 45 lies in his speech at the U.N. Apparently Obama is the champeen liar, and the folks listening to him at the United Nations are easily duped.
All the above assertions come from what most would describe as the Left. Of course, the Right is no stranger to assertions of Liar as well…but these were Lefties talking.
So, rush to judgement on the President? Not so fast.
What’s one to do about all this lyin’? Or is it lying at all?
Who has ever said “my, you look nice today”, when you know he or she doesn’t….
Introduce me to someone who says they don’t lie, and I’ll show you a liar. Of course, this includes me. We all fudge.
During the “26 lies” and “lying…for war mongering” time a couple of weeks ago I got to thinking about the reality of bargaining about anything…and bargaining at the global level is bargaining big-time. I spent a career in bargaining situations. They’re all about the same…the sides feel each other out for interminable periods. Through it all they bob and weave, deception is expected. Like bargaining in a market somewhere.
Bargaining is a complex process.
Starting with the most recent near meeting at the UN between Rouhani and Obama, there was comment about how the two avoided meeting in person. There was no hand-shake, even.
Charley Rose asked President Rouhani about this in an interview which played in part on CBS This Morning today. Essentially, Rouhani said that things like a Presidential hand-shake take time: Iran and the U.S. have had no direct relationship for 35 years, he said, going back to the end of the Shah of Iran and the subsequent hostage situation. He could have gone back further, to 1953 and mentioned the overthrow of a democratically elected Iranian President Mossadegh engineered by the CIA. He didn’t go there.
But everyone at the international diplomacy level, you can bet, understood exactly what he was saying. Stuff like hand-shakes and photo ops and joint statements take time. In due time they will take place. Most of the action now is behind the scenes, between diplomats who know the game…and each other.
Things happen fast. As I was writing this, in came an announcement that Secretary of State John Kerry and his counterpart from Iran will be meeting further on what seems to be another whirlwind and positive development on the middle east situation. First such meeting since 1980, it was said. No cigar, yet, but things are looking a little promising within the international community, and now not only about Syria, but about Iran, too.
And about those “lies” Obama supposedly told in his speech at the UN: With hardly any doubt, everybody in the room knew the context and intent of those remarks, which were most public and part of the international record so long as there are records available.
History will be the judge of what or whether these “lies” were.
And in the lurching way that such things work, perhaps we are witnessing some positive history for a change.
In my opinion, very important global changing actions are taking place at the international level, and the Obama administration is a very important part of that, as are other world government leaders.
None of them are naive, and they are dealing with each other as diplomats need to deal: cautiously, perhaps deviously, above all respectfully, all the while trying to satisfy the rabble out there that is the population of all of their countries.
I see hope more than I see “lies”.
Just my opinion.
Comment
from Wilhelm R, Sep 27, 2013
Your “opinion” seems to be based on a set of assumptions which you do not state or have to state. You let your reader assume them. Could it be that today assumptions are personal and discretionary but not binding on anybody else. It used to be, that assumptions where the foundation on which societies and cultures where built upon and acted as “touch stones” for debate and discussion. Without them we are back in the depth of scholastics which pried itself to be able to take any position and successfully and logically argue its point. In such an environment nothing can get done and nothing can be resolved, everything is relative. In such an environment one does not even have to touch on the essential point a discussion partner raises but instead, all one has to do is to change the assumptions and begin the – an – argument anew. This also seems to lead to a situation where there is no need for taking responsibility for one’s own actions or demand responsibility from anybody else for their actions. May be this explains today’s tendency to urge us to “look forward” and not waste time with looking backwards what has been done has been done… This makes of course perfect sense since one has to assume that those actions were based on different assumptions and those assumptions where and probably still are as good as anybody else’s. They just seem to be lurking around to be picked up by a willing mind. With this however anything goes and justice is what power dictates or allows you to project. ( We seem to be back in the golden age Metamorphosis by Ovid writes about “Aurea prima sata est aetas, quae vindice nullo ….. The age of the golden rule where the gold rules) So what are we crying about. It behooves us – whoever us might be – to obtain and exercise power! … Just my thoughts but willing to not just state but defend them any time …..
from Dick: I like your first two sentences. I have noticed for a long time that hard and fast ‘sides’ develop where only one point of view is entertained, thus no argument, or even listening to another point of view. I’m not sure who reads my columns, here. It is more than a couple, that’s for certain. I try to keep the posts to newspaper column length (ca <700 words), and I write them as if family will read them, many of whom would be in direct opposition to me, ideologically. Re lying, as one who grew up and still is Catholic, the Nuns did a good job on the Lying piece to we younguns. As I recall it, there were two general types of lies: of omission (leaving out some important data); and commission (a whopper). Of course, as one ages and sees communication in action on many fronts, you say infinite variations on those two general themes, but those were two words I remember, for some reason! from NYTimes Bulletin, Sep 27 3:01 CST:
Obama Says He Spoke to Iran’s President by Phone
President Obama said Friday he had spoken by phone with President Hassan Rouhani of Iran, the first direct contact between the leaders of Iran and United States since 1979. Mr. Obama, speaking in the White House briefing room, said the two leaders discussed Iran’s nuclear program and said he was persuaded there was a basis for an agreement.

#778 – Dick Bernard: The Affordable Care Act, President Obama Cares

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Today at the gym I was treated to Sen. Ted Cruz doing his filibuster to supposedly protect Americans from the evil Affordable Care Act (called “Obamacare” by some).
Recently, a majority of the U.S. House of Representatives, for the 42nd time, I believe, voted to repeal Obamacare.
Those who follow this issue know the rest of the story behind these two symbolic – and very sad – actions, where ideologic rigidity and scarcely hidden hatred for the President drive decision making to attempt to destroy programs which will impact positively on everyone in this country.
Sen. Cruz, during his filibuster, spent time reading Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham” to his daughters, and expounding on the symbolism of Star Wars.
I know Cruz is young, but didn’t know how young (I decided to look him up): I have two children older than Cruz is. Dr. Seuss was a household staple in our house; when Star Wars came out in 1977, it was an instant addiction for my oldest son, and I took him to the first showing, and didn’t discourage him from attending the movie many times.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with being young – years ago I was his age, too. But….
Up against the negative fantasies of Cruz et al, abuts a far more positive reality for the tens of millions of people of this United States who are about to have access to affordable health care. Apparently, this is seen as a threat to freedom: creeping socialism, which rhymes with communism, and is a synonym for evil amongst people who should know better, including those who have long reaped the benefits of Medicare and Social Security, or even of corporate and large employer medical care plans, and just don’t get it…and if the Tea Party has its way, will never get it.
So be it.
The people I don’t understand – well, I do understand, but it stretches credulity – are the young people (my oldest childs age – near 50 and down), who feel they don’t need health care, and don’t want to pay for somebody else’s medical problem.
Fools.
Just a couple of hours ago a friend came up to me to tell me about another mutual friend, Tom, who’s healthy as can be, a professional tennis coach, and was doing his daily 20+ mile solitary bike ride yesterday. He stopped at a fast food place for a snack, and choked on the food. Long story short, he had no ID on him, an ambulance picked him up and took him to hospital. He’s in a coma, and the prospects of any kind of recovery at all are dim. It took some hours for his wife to find out why he was so late, or where he was. Likely she used another society institution, 911, or a call to the police department, another civic institution we hope never to have to encounter. They were her safety net in this metropolitan area of 3 million.
When this unknown man was picked up yesterday, there was no question about paying a bill. Our country doesn’t allow people to die on the street.
Maybe that’s why the cynical young say “I don’t have to pay for insurance; they’ll pay for me if I need it”.
Maybe they’re (very sadly) right.
But what if everyone had this selfish attitude?
I learned my lesson about insurance very early, two weeks after I got out of the Army in 1963.
My wife was a new teacher, then, and coincident with my return home she had to quit teaching due to an undiagnosed kidney disease which would ultimately take her life two years later.
I could have gotten hospitalization insurance before she was diagnosed, but “couldn’t afford it”. As it turned out, she was uninsurable even then. Her condition was, it turned out, almost life-long pre-existing. Back then, I learned about things like public welfare, and the role of the greater community as a protective umbrella.
Yes, there are people so selfish and cynical that it doesn’t occur to them to consider themselves part of society. Rather, they prefer to cling to the fantasy that they, and only they, are in charge of their destiny, and everyone else should have the same responsibility.
Fools.
That’s how I see Ted Cruz Inc.

#772 – Dick Bernard: An American Flag, and a message on 9-11-13.

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Before April 12, 2013, I can recall only one time ever entering the imposing near-40 year old Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis MN. Simply, I’ve never been a resident of Hennepin County, Minnesota’s largest. I go there often for various things, including every Sunday for Church, but I’m not a resident.
That single visit to the Government Center was in the distant past to contest a parking ticket.
On the best of days, Traffic Court is a dismal place, and this was no different. On that day, though, having served my sentence with the rest by waiting what seemed like hours for my turn, justice prevailed, and the ticket was forgiven.
April 12, 2013, I entered the Center from the south, and immediately saw a huge American flag there.
(click to enlarge)

At Hennepin County Government April 12, 2013

At Hennepin County Government April 12, 2013


I wondered if there was a story behind the flag, but didn’t get around to ask the question immediately. Some weeks later I was at the Center again, looked more closely at the area around the flag and found no explanation.
Back home I decided to make a phone call to someone at the Center: “do you know the history of this flag?” “No”, came the reply.
I was transferred to someone else in the Tower, who also said they didn’t know, and in turn was transferred to a third person, who wasn’t in the office. I left a message, and subsequently got a return call.
Paydirt: “that flag was mounted after 9-11-01. They just felt they had to do something”, my source said. I didn’t inquire who “they” might be, or exactly when the flag was hoisted. Those questions can be answered at leisure.
More recently, I asked some people I know to ask the same question to someone they might know who frequents the Government Center, and also asked them if they knew the history.
That’s it. One question to one person.
So far, no one I’ve talked to has had any idea why that flag hangs there.
The circumstances surrounding that flag and the lack of knowledge bring forth lots of questions to discuss, but that’s not only the reason for this post.
I was at the Government Center that day in April because of a question about another flagpole, visible through the north window of the Government Center.
Flags of Hennepin County, Minnesota and the United States on the Plaza between the Government Center and Minneapolis City Hall, April 12, 2013

Flags of Hennepin County, Minnesota and the United States on the Plaza between the Government Center and Minneapolis City Hall, April 12, 2013


Until March 27, 2012, one of those flagpoles flew the United Nations flag, as it had flown there for 44 years. It first flew May 1, 1968, as a symbol of Hennepin County and Minneapolis’ friendship with the entire world: world citizenship. It had been taken down March 27, 2012, for specific and erroneous reasons.
(There was a pretext for taking down the flag, not supported by Law. I’ve done the research. The supposed Law was the excuse, but not a valid reason.)
Six of the seven current Hennepin County Commissioners were in office at the time the UN flag was taken down, and decline to give me specific reasons for why this action was taken. I’ve made repeated formal requests. That story, as recorded so far, is accessible here.
No part of the story of the UN Flag suggests disrespect of the U.S. flag.
They just took the flag down, and none of the Commissioners are talking about why, which is other than the reason given with the motion. The silence seems coordinated – “wagons in a circle”.
As we all know, on this particular 9-11, the dominant world talk is about the poison gas tragedy in Syria, and about the possible utility of the United Nations community in doing some of the essential heavy lifting to solve a problem no country can solve itself. The UN is a potential asset to the United States, and the rest of the world, not a liability or embarrassment.
And that U.S. flag, likely mounted post 9-11-01, is a reminder on this 12th anniversary of (in my opinion) excessive remembering of a past tragedy we experienced in the U.S., to remember as well that large numbers of the casualties 9-11-01 were from other countries; and that our response to the tragedy of 9-11 later brought pain and death to far more people in Iraq and Afghanistan, than we suffered here.
We need to reflect on that, too.
Comment from John N, Bloomington MN: That’s a great post Dick. Thanks for sharing. As for the big flag…does a symbol lose its value when nobody knows what it symbolizes?

#759 – Dick Bernard: A bookshelf reminder of Governmental Insanity, and its consequences for those not vigilant and engaged.

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COMMENTS after NOTE 2
Yesterday, I spent a lot of time doing an unpleasant task. A project required going into a family room wall, which necessitated repainting of a small portion of the wall by our bookshelves, and I decided to repaint the entire wall behind the books.
Of course, this required taking out all of the books, first, to get at the wall. We have quite a few in our little library. The book shelf came with our 20 year old house, and isn’t fancy: just a frame with shelving. But it works, which is all that is necessary. And the project made sense, even though I knew what I was getting myself in for.

August 15, 2013

August 15, 2013


Handling the books was almost like rereading them. Both my wife and I have quite a number of books about Germany and World War II and the Holocaust (See Note 2 below) and they drew special attention this day.
Over the years we’ve revisited that insane time, roughly twenty-five years, in civilized Germany’s history. Both of us have ancestry there; I’ve visited German relatives whose Uncles or cousins were German draftees into WWII, farmers, who refused to talk about their experience afterward. Many elders served; some imprisoned; some died in that War.
I’m 73, and was thus alive all of America’s time in WWII. The two of us spent powerful time with about 40 other Christians and Jews in our party at Auschwitz-Birkenau and other horrendous places in 2000.
We’re reasonably close to having “been there, done that”, when it comes to WWII.
Just last week we visited our great German friend, Annelee, who was six when Hitler came to power in 1933, and was very nearly bombed out of existence twice near the end of WWII. She walked nearly 100 miles home, near starving, after the war was lost. She was then 18; she’ll be revisiting her Germany in about a month. Her Dad, who refused to join the Nazis, was drafted, and disappeared in Russia. They know he died in war, not sure where he was buried.
Just a week ago, at her home, I read a gripping book she had given me about the Allied bombing of Germany in the last years of the war. Nearly 600,000 Germans were killed under those bombs, I read. I wrote in part about that book, “Fire and Fury” by Randall Hansen, a couple of days ago. You can read the comments, with link here.
So, why this musing on this most pleasant Minnesota summer day, in 2013?
Ordinary Germans were like us, exactly, ordinary people who bought dreams and supported the politicians who they thought would produce on their promises, and believed the false promises (propaganda), until it was too late. More than once I’ve asked Annelee when she knew the War was lost. Always, she says 1943, when she was about 16. You can tell such things. By then it was too late, and the Nazis in charge just kept charging. Power has little long-term perspective. It “goes down with the ship” and those who think they’re powerless go first.
We are casually dealing with some similar governmental insanity in our own country at this point in time. No, our situation is not exactly the same as WWII era Germany. But we’re not all that much different.
My favorite blogger, Alan, wrote at length about it last evening. His post, here, is long but very well worth a read. It simply summarizes the efforts by what is called the “Tea Party” to leverage their rabble into permanent control of the U.S. government, while blaming others for the dysfunction.

You love the angry disorganized rabble that is the “Tea Party”? Be my guest. Maybe you fancy yourself to be a Tea Partier yourself.
I see Tea Party leaders (and those politicians who see them as their ‘base’) as pretty analogous to the rabble who leveraged discontent into control of the German government in the 1930s with the end results that are amply documented by many of the books in the bookshelf downstairs.
I’d suggest reading the long link, but most of all, think about the craziness of a small minority feeling it can use the government to bend all of us to its philosophy, especially since it is only the most loosely organized band of individualists who probably don’t agree with each other on issues, other than hating the opposition.
It may be tempting to not notice what is going on and enjoy a fine day, perhaps satisfied to blame “politicians” generally for the “mess in Washington”.
But the ball is in every one of our courts. It’s not “them”, it is us who must be, as Gandhi said, “We must be the change we wish to see in the world.”
NOTE 1: Annelee speaks publicly about her experiences in Nazi Germany 1933-45, and she always takes written questions (her hearing was badly damaged as a consequence of the bombing). More than once she’s referred to the lawyer who asked her to comment on how Obama compares to Hitler. The question astounded here.
“There is no comparison at all.”
NOTE 2:
I have noticed a great deal of tension around analogies to Nazi Germany UNLESS it applies to some sinister “other”. Perhaps the reason for this is that the Germans of pre-World War II were people very much like stereotypical “Americans” – white, European, educated, hard-working, “Christian”….
Rev. Martin Niemoeller, famous German dissident who survived the War likely because he was imprisoned, and too well known for the Nazis to execute, made many speeches after the war, which included some variation of the famous quote attributed to him:
First they came for the socialists,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Jew.
Then they came for me,
and there was no one left to speak for me.
If you are interested in a longer academic analysis of what and when the quotation originated, you may wish to visit this web address, which is interesting and may or may not be definitive….
The essence of the quotation is, however, very true. People are easily manipulated. The impoverished Germans after WWI were easily led, in what turned out to be a destructive direction. So it can be for us as well.
There is plenty of “fool’s gold” being dispensed by American politicians these days, and especially the Tea Party version of disrupt and confuse is dangerous to our Democracy. Yes, he ball is in each of our courts.
COMMENTS:
From Bruce Aug. 16: As you’ve said many times, things are complicated. As I’ve said many times, Libertarian roots run deep into American history. I don’t think one should vilify the Tea Party or dismiss it out of hand. Some aspects of the Libertarian view cuts across the political spectrum.
Here is an interesting piece: Julian Assange admires Ron Paul, Rand Paul here.
Response from Dick Aug. 17: Interesting, odd, trio, Julian, Ron, Rand. They could have some interesting conversations if they lived together. Mr. Assange doesn’t seem to be a good example of libertarian ideals, essentially imprisoned as he is in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Leaving aside the reason he is isolated (except by internet), I’m not sure I’d like his idea of freedom.
Yes, it is “complicated”. I’ve become a big admirer of Garry Davis, who in 1948 renounced his U.S. Citizenship and became an unwelcome Citizen of the World since he had no papers identifying him as being without a country. His crime had nothing to do with revealing state secrets; he just was sick of war and killing people because they were within somebody’s political boundaries of the planet. His only crime was inciting freedom from war, as I understand him.
Yes, interesting and odd. It would be interesting to know how the Paul’s would view Assange.

#722 – Dick Bernard: President Obama's May 23 Speech on National Security, a day later

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I wrote before the speech yesterday. That story is accessible here.
The video and transcript of President Obama’s speech are both now accessible here. In my opinion, his speech, yesterday, was of far more than normal importance, and how the body politic deals with the abundant messages, long term, is of great importance to our country.
Two aspects of yesterdays speech were of greatest interest to me.
1. The encouragement to look forward, not backward: to truly put 9-11-01 in the past, where it belongs.
9-11-01 has been drilled into our individual and collective psyche, whether left or right or in-between or having no specific opinion at all.
Reminders of our rear-view-mirror view are not hard to find.
For just a single example: not long ago I was in the Hennepin (MN) Government Center, Minneapolis, the seat of Minnesota’s largest county. In the atrium area was an immense American flag with no signage about why the flag was there.
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U.S. Flag at Hennepin County Government Center April 12, 2013

U.S. Flag at Hennepin County Government Center April 12, 2013


I decided to ask about the flag. The first person, a receptionist answering the phone, had no idea why the flag was there; the person to which I was first referred had no idea either. The third person I talked to said the flag had been there for years, and had been put up in the wake of 9-11-01: “they had to do something“, she said.
I’m still trying to flesh out the entire story of that flag; but my point is, that the reason that flag exists has nothing to do with anything other than the shock of an event that happened almost a dozen years ago…and most likely the vast majority of people who see it have no notion whatsoever about its personal story. It may as well be hanging at half-staff….
I witnessed essentially the same backward looking devotion to 9-11-01 four years ago at the International Peace Garden in the Turtle Mountains of North Dakota-Manitoba. That story is here.
When do we let go, and move on from 9-11-01? That was, I think, one of the Presidents prime messages to everyone, yesterday.
2. The significance of the protestor at the speech:
My spouse had told me someone was protesting at the Presidents speech, and later I saw the entire incident involving the protestor, Medea Benjamin. I’ve met Medea Benjamin, in September, 2008. She wouldn’t remember me. But she would if she looked up her name at the Registry of the United States Peace Foundation website where the entries are listed alphabetically, and checked Dick Bernard here (my entry is right after hers).
Memo to self: I need to gussy my bio up a bit! She and I approach the business of changing opinions a bit differently, but we’re in the same trade.
Consider becoming a Founding Member of the Peace Foundation yourself. I’ve been a Founding Member since 2006. Very few people I know who should be supporting this Foundation have taken the time to join.
But I digress: Medea is a career protestor; her reputation is built on protesting. That is what she does, her job, her role. I’ve known others like her.
The odds that the Secret Service and the President were unaware of her presence yesterday, or of what she would probably do during the speech, are infinitesimally small.
She may not have known, but I feel the Secret Service certainly did. She’s hardly a stranger in protests.
I’m pretty sure I saw one of her colleagues with her in a TV cut yesterday; she’s another activist who used to be in the Foreign Service.
Obviously I don’t know, and no one likely will ever know for certain, but my guess is that Medea was a useful part of the Presidents speech yesterday. Indeed, rather than ignoring or criticizing her, or even looking annoyed, he acknowledged her argument.
The anti-war left should be grateful. The President didn’t have to either allow or (in effect) participate in her performance. He’s made the same point she has before yesterday.
(Back in the 1990s, I recall being in Lafayette Park across the street from the White House, and witnessing one of those ‘made for TV’ demonstrations, where everyone in the ‘performance’ knew the rules, and the objective – to get on the evening news. The police were there, and the protestors, and the coordinator/spokespeople for the protest, and the paddy wagon, and a few media, and everyone was calm and well behaved. But at a certain appointed time, the demonstration took place and the protestors were arrested and hauled away.
Succintly, in my opinion, what people saw on television an hour or so later that day was simply street theatre, made for television.
And that time it was an important issue, too.)
And finally: one of my e-list noted that Ms Benjamin has a new book out, on Drone Warfare. Here’s the link if you’re interested.
But the issues raised by President Obama are very important. Do watch the speech or print out the transcript, and go to work.