Osama bin Laden - dead

Quick post.

Obama on bin Laden, during his campaign.




George W. Bush on bin Laden, in 2002.



'Nuff said.

Obama 2012 meeting in Bessemer

I'm going to fast forward past the president's speech today because regardless of what he says or how satisfied little ole me is with his vision and his budget proposal, more important is that he gets elected to a second term in 2012.

There is an organizational meeting of the Bessemer Cutoff - OFA Team on Thursday at 6:15 at the Bessemer Library.

I can't imagine Obama winning Alabama in 2012 (although I do believe in miracles). But in 2008, he carried Jefferson County, and I want to make sure he does the same in 2012. And I do expect him to carry more counties in the state than he did two years ago, because the Republicans and their potential candidates are making fools of themselves with their medicaid slashing budget proposals and their birther rhetoric.

There is a clear danger to our country in allowing Republicans to gain more power in Washington, and that includes the White House and Congress.

If you don't live in the Bessemer Cutoff, you can find an organizing event in your area of the state by going here. There are 5 groups in Jefferson County (they may not all be on the web site yet).

Obama won 13 Alabama counties in 2008.

Obama carried Jefferson, Sumter, Greene, Hale, Perry, Marengo, Dallas, Wilcox, Lowndes, Montgomery, Macon, Bullock and Russell counties in 2008. Let's add a few more counties; Mobile, Conecuh, Barbour, Chambers, Pickens...maybe even Tuscaloosa.

Here is how the Europeans are viewing the president entering the race.




Come join us Thursday night - 6:15 at the Bessemer Library. I may be a few minutes late, I have another meeting prior to this one that I have to attend.

I'm in

Barack Obama is the first candidate of either party to make it official.




I'm like Ed. I don't agree with everything Obama has done. In fact, some of my important issues got brushed aside while the president dealt with the mess he inherited.

I'm already convinced that Obama will be next to impossible to beat in 2012, and shared poll results in January to back me up.

But since January, as we have seen what the Republicans in congress want to do, it is absolutely necessary that Obama keeps the White House. And along with this, Democrats need to regain the house. But this is about the presidency.

There will be plenty of time to look at the issues (environment, energy, LGBT rights, wars, economy) over the next year and a half. But right now, it's just about the candidates.

Let's look at some of the competition, even though none of these potential candidates has made it official.

Donald Trump has only one issue - being top birther. In 2009 we all saw Obama's birth certificate and I wrote a newspaper column about it. Surely Trump does not really believe that Obama was not born in the United States. He needs to pay more attention to Bessemer Opinions.

Newt Gingrich has had too many wives and too many affairs.

Sarah Palin can see Alaska from her porch, (and Canada).

Michele Bachmann has made so many crazy statements and come up with so many goofy ideas that only the most far out Americans would ever want her to lead the country.

Mitt Romney is a Mormon and even though that in itself should not make a difference, Americans might be wary of a president that is against coffee and hot tea (among other things).

Mike Huckabee is a dominionist, and that alone should scare the wits out of you.

But even if the Republicans could come up with a decent conservative candidate, I think after seeing the agenda of the Republicans in congress that most Americans will reject their slash and burn type of government and will want to remain with the cool and calm Obama that has guided us through the storm.



So I'm in. Are you? Visit the Obama 2012 web site.

As I said before, this campaign season is going to be enjoyable and entertaining.

Discourse: Us v Them

The public discourse over the last 100 years or so has really not changed. We think the current contentious campaigns for public office are something new. Conservatives act as though this is the first time liberals have threatened to implement a progressive agenda, and progressives are raising the alarm that Christian extremists will return us to the dark ages.

I was watching the PBS series God in America between football games yesterday and learned that during the 20th century the dominant debate revolved around the inerrant nature of scripture, highlighted by the "Scopes monkey trial" in Dayton, TN in 1925.

But let's go back to 1895. In that year, the Woman's Bible was published by Elizabeth Cady Stanton. This challenged the traditional role of subservience for women that was the common Christian interpretation of the Bible. The nation was shocked. Some conservatives still resist the ways that women serve in the work place and in politics. Just ask Lilly Ledbetter.

In 1915, conservative Protestants published a series of pamphlets titled "The Fundamentals". The series stresses the inerrancy of the Bible, the virgin birth and the resurrection of the body. The Fundamentalist movement began and the name still identifies those with such strict beliefs.

In the 1920's, commercial radio programming began, and Christian evangelists dominated the airways, as they still do. Billy Sunday, Sister Aimee McPherson and Father Charlie Coughlin were popular radio personalities of the 1920's and 1930's.

In 1925 the Scopes trial pitted fundamentalist orator William Jennings Bryan against trial attorney Clarence Darrow. While the trial focused on the accusation that high school biology teacher John Scopes was violating the law by teaching evolution, the underlying theme was whether the Bible should be interpreted literally or not. Darrow got the court to agree to let Bryan take the stand to defend the Bible. Darrow tore him up. The proceedings were broadcast nationwide over the radio. The trial judge throws out Bryan's testimony, Scopes is found guilty of teaching evolution, the decision is overturned on a technicality, and Bryan dies a few days later.



The press claims the trial is a big defeat for the fundamentalists, and thus begins (or reinforces) the animosity between conservatives and the mainstream media that continues today.

With Bryan's death the fundamentalists retreated from the public sphere. Modernist thought expands.

Of course history tells us that the fundamentalists make a resurgence in the latter half of the 20th Century.

History also tells us that we can go back even further to document the divide in this country. President Obama is criticized for his statement that we are not a Christian nation.

"One of the great strengths of the United States," the President said at a press conference in Turkey in 2009 , "is ... we have a very large Christian population -- we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation. We consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values."

Maybe, rather than being an indication that Obama is not a Christian (he is) it is an indication that he is educated (many are not).

In 1797 president John Adams signed the Treaty of Tripoli, assuring the Muslim nation that we will not start a religious war. Article 11 states:

"As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility, of Mussulmen; and, as the said States never entered into any war, or act of hostility against any Mahometan nation, it is declared by the parties, that no pretext arising from religious opinions, shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries."

Now Adams was present when the documents that created our country were written. In fact, he was one of the Founding Fathers and therefore should have a pretty good idea what the consensus was.

Religious conservatives want to deny history and deny science. The battle continues.

Update: A reader has strongly suggested seeing the movie, "Inherit the Wind" staring Spencer Tracy, about the Scopes Monkey Trial. Here it is on Netflix. I second his recommendation.

The end of war

Well the unjust war has ended. The work continues. The problems are not solved. The troops responded to the call honorably.

I wrote a letter to The Western Star in March 2003 before the war began, but President Bush didn't read it. Or if he did, he ignored it.

Here is the letter, which followed an editorial the week before about patriotism.

March 5, 2003

I agree with your editorial comment about dissent being patriotic. It is hard to speak out against war when those who do so are criticized as being pro-terrorist. No one denies that Saddam Hussein is evil, or that he needs to be removed from power. But why is war the answer?

When we see or hear of violence among young people, everyone agrees that people need to be taught, at an early age, about conflict resolution, that violence is not the answer. Yet, what kind of example are our leaders setting for them when they have tunnel vision that can only focus on war? They are saying that violence is the only answer and do not want to give diplomacy and inspections a chance. Either they are blinded by this “ratings grabbing” war and their desire to control more of the world’s oil, or they just don’t have the brain power to think of any other way to resolve this crisis.

We hear over and over that terrorism is the enemy, yet the worst terrorist in the world hunkers down and hides for a year or so, and we forget all about him, while he regroups and makes plans for more acts against us. How many times have you heard President Bush speak of Osama bin Laden in the last year? All he had to do is hide and he is forgotten.

Saddam will probably do the same thing…we tear up his country, he tosses a few chemical weapons at our troops or Israel, killing our troops and our allies, then he can go into hiding for a while so we can forget about him.

How many of those leaders, from the president on down, have a son or daughter in the armed forces that is on the way or already in the Middle East? Probably none. I would be willing to bet that a large majority of citizens whose children or spouses are about to enter this war are not for it. Yet they, and the rest of us, find ourselves in the position of being loyal and supportive to our troops, while not supporting the cause for which they might die.

If we find, through war, that Saddam has no weapons of mass destruction, we will have spent billions of dollars and killed thousands to discover what we could have learned through peaceful means. If fact if he does have weapons of mass destruction, no one thinks we will be able to find and destroy all of them before he has used them on someone, somewhere. Iraq is like Pandora’s Box, and by opening it who knows what the consequences will be.

Unfortunately, we will probably soon find out.

Then the war started and two weeks later the Western Star published another of my letters.

March 26, 2003

The war against Iraq has begun and our attention must now focus on supporting our troops and praying that this conflict will end quickly with minimal loss of life.

We do not know how far the effects of this war will reach, so let us remember in our thoughts and prayers not only for our soldiers and their loved ones, but those who are affected throughout the world, including the innocent citizens of Iraq, who have already suffered through two recent wars and years of repression and sanctions.

As we learn of the tragedies and casualties of this war, let us use this as motivation to become adherents of nonviolence, and to study the works of Gandhi and King, who taught us that we must be the change we wish to see in the world.

President Obama was very generous in his speech last night, avoiding placing blame for the unjust invasion or saying "I told you so" about the weapons of mass destruction or the obvious truths about Iraq not being responsible for 9-11 or any of the other made up reasons that the prior administration used do fight "daddy's war."

I'll just be generous too, other than that last paragraph, and wish only the best for the troops returning home, that they will be able to return to normal life, and for those who are being re-deployed to Afghanistan, I wish you safe passage and a quick resolve to the conflict in that country so that you, too, can return home safely, soon.

And let's not forget the 50,000 troops that remain in Iraq. We hope for your safety and await your return home as well.

The Party of Solutions

AKA, the Democrats.

In contrast to the Party of No, the Democrats have now made law what generations of Americans have fought for for a century. Democrats and Republicans have been aware of the need, and have worked to pass health care reform since the time of Teddy Roosevelt.

However, with this president, the Republicans were replaced by the Party of No, whose strategy leading into this was to lead Barack Obama to his Waterloo.

This doesn't look like Waterloo to me. This was the scene in the East Room just after Obama signed the historic legislation.

The Right to health care is now a reality. The Party of No is already working to take away this right, or, in effect, throwing children and sick people back off the rolls of the insured.

Great plan, John McCain and John Boehner and other "leaders" of the GOP.

No more speculating. No more hyperbole. Just facts.

In Alabama, 641,527 uninsured people will be able to get health insurance. Thank a Democrat (with a vote).

400,000 patients will become eligible for Medicaid. You will have access to health care where you did not have it before. Thank a Democrat (with a vote).

This year, before the November elections, children with pre-existing conditions will now be covered with insurance. Parents, thank a Democrat (with a vote).

This year, parents can begin to keep their young adult children on their policies until age 26. Parents, and young adults, thank a Democrat (with a vote).

Within three months, people in Alabama who have been excluded from insurance because of pre-existing conditions will have access to a national high-risk pool to get subsidized premiums. Thank a Democrat (with a vote).

Seniors, your benefits are safe and the donut hole in your prescription drug coverage is closing. Seniors, thank a Democrat (with a vote).

People with existing medical conditions who are using up their benefits, the lifetime dollar cap is being eliminated this year. Thank a Democrat (with a vote).

This year, tax credits for small business owners will make purchasing insurance for employees more affordable. Small business owners, thank a Democrat (with a vote).

Barack Obama has now taken a place in history, and is without a doubt the leader of the Democratic Party now. Here he is at the bill signing.

Whoever posted the comment the other day that progressives are a dying breed needs to re-think.

Security does not come without a cost

The following was written by a friend of mine, who gave me permission to reprint it here.

Recently, a few of our leaders have called for "war taxes" to help support our soldiers in the field and their efforts in the two wars in which our nation is involved. Typically, most of us don't like taxes but we as Americans should stand behind those calling for such taxes because by so doing we will provide vital support for our soldiers who are serving, on our behalves, in dangerous places to defend our nation.

George Bush should have initiated those taxes when we went to war in Afghanistan and Iraq (instead he cut taxes) and Barack Obama and all Americans, particularly those who are for military action in these two regions, should be for them.

We say we are for our military. We say we want to defend America. We say we appreciate all who are sacrificing to defend our nation from enemies domestic and abroad. We say we want to stand by our soldiers who have paid painful sacrifices on our behalves. But when we are asked to make a personal sacrifice to help pay for the cost of all of that we say "No!"

What hypocrites we are.

Yes, I know we've got to pay for our groceries and housing and car repairs and medical care. Those are necessary. But are we willing to do without that 50" TV - or 60 to 300 channels of cable TV - or going out to eat two or three times a week - or upgrading our computer to something with all the bells and whistles - or taking a cheaper vacation - or making our car last longer? Are we willing to sacrifice some of the "comforts" of our lives to pay for what we declare that we are for? Or are we going to pass those bills on to our children and grandchildren?

Shame on us! Shame on our leaders! Paying taxes, particularly those that provide for the vital and essential defense of our nation, is an act of patriotism!

Richard B. Hanna

Comedy among the pols

On my Examiner.com site I've posted an open letter explaining Why marching in Washington is important. Please feel free to forward the link or the letter to those you know.

Who knew that Congressman Barney Frank was such a comedian. He appeared on Jay Leno's 10 @ 10 last night. Rush Limbaugh deserved this.



And President Barack Obama showed his lighter side as well, on Letterman. (Sorry about the ads)




OK, I agree, the president was black before the election (and still is), but remember, 30 or 40 percent of people didn't vote for him, and it's from those people that the vocal racists are emerging.

My column in tomorrow's Western Tribune gives three reasons we need to support the public option in health care. Here's a clue, one of them has to do with Jesus.

The Arc of the Moral Universe

Many in the GLBT community feel that two of the many issues facing us are the most important: equality in marriage and repeal of "Don't Ask Don't Tell."

Favorable outcomes are inevitable, the only question is when? "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice," to paraphrase abolitionist Theodore Parker (1853) (A phrase made famous by Martin Luther King, Jr in 1967, echoed by Barack Obama in 2008).

Three items of interest that make me think sooner rather than later.

1. Rep. Patrick Murphy D. PA) says it is his job to "quarterback" the effort to pass legislation to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell. He has 152 co-sponsors (and need 218 votes to pass). Murphy is an Iraq veteran and a blue dog democrat and recognizes that over 13,000 troops have been discharged, not because of sexual activity but because of sexual orientation.



Like Rachel says, he's the right guy to be leading this fight.

2. Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley has filed a suit in federal court seeking to void the Defense of Marriage Act. She says DOMA is discriminatory and puts her state in conflict with the Federal government.

"Among many of its arguments, Coakley's suit argues that DOMA requires Massachusetts to violate the constitutional rights of its citizens by treating married heterosexual couples and married same-sex couples differently when doling out Medicaid benefits and Social Security payouts to spouses. Coakley brought up another example: Massachusetts is given federal money to maintain a military cemetery that doesn’t allow the same-sex spouses of fallen soldiers to be buried there."

My prediction, given the slow pace that lawsuits take, is that congress will overturn DOMA before the lawsuit does. Or, given the slow pace that congress takes, they may sit on their thumbs and wait to see how the court handles it.

At any rate, something will happen.

3. Steve Hildebrand said in an interview with Rex Wockner that President Obama is listening and is on top of things with the gay issues.


Photo Credit Rex Wockner

Openly gay Steve Hildebrand was Barack Obama's deputy national campaign director. He has spoken with the president in the last couple of weeks. Here are some highlights.

Regarding the justice department brief that upset so many gays: "he did not read the brief in advance but he subsequently has read the brief and was not happy at all with both the direction as well as the language that was used -- and that he expects much better from his administration."

On Don't Ask Don't Tell: "Barack Obama as president and commander in chief is, and will continue to go through, a process, methodically, to get the ducks in a row in order to get the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell done in a successful way that isn't just going to happen overnight."

On the power of the gay community: "I think too many people in the gay community do not push their elected officials as hard as they should. If you had 20 gay people together in a room and asked how many of them actually have reached out and either called, e-mailed or sent a letter to their member of Congress over the last two months, I would say the vast, vast majority of them will have done nothing...We need more voices, we need louder voices, and we need to tell politicians at every level we're not willing to take their excuses anymore."

On gay frustration with the president: "He can't change the world overnight and -- I'm doing my best to say this without providing excuses -- but this is a president who was handed a larger number of really big issues to deal with at the beginning of his presidency than any other president in history. He's got to get an economy moving, he's got to get the troops out of Iraq, there's a lot of big, big problems. At the same time, he is working within his administration to try and get in a position to get some meaningful things done to help the gay community achieve equality."

On Artur Davis (well, not by name, but): "... for too many decades now of people who say, "Yes, we support equality," but then they go to Washington and they don't do anything about it. They're too wrapped up in figuring out how to win their next election and they're not concerned enough about doing what's right for the American people. "

**************
So, these three items give me confidence that the arc of justice is getting shorter, as my patience is extending a little bit.

Early Spring Gardening

The early spring garden has been planted. Onions, lettuce, collards, mustard greens and cabbage plants are in the ground. More on gardening later.

I'm not going to write about the idiots today, although there are plenty around.

But if you read and watch that, then also accept this.
Obama Birth Announcement from Honolulu Advertiser Sunday August 13, 1961.

And this:
Obama Birth Certificate


And read this from factcheck.org which answers all the stupid questions that these racist, xenophobic, America-hating bigots are raising.

And let me say, that I will not post any comments about the above that are negative or even questioning about our president.

Now, on to gardening. I will post comments on this.

At Lowe's you can by these little soil test kits.

I tested three areas and learned that the pH of the areas is fine but the soil is deficient in Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium. The raised bed, pictured above, was slightly better in nutrients than the other areas I tested, probably because of this.


That is a Nature Mill Automatic Indoor Composter. I put all of our scraps (except bones and celery) in it, and within a few days I have compost. You can include meat, shrimp shells, egg shells, coffee grounds, pasta, stale bread, leftover lima beans...everything. Every few days I get a little load of compost and spread it outside. So far all of the compost produced during the winter has gone on the raised bed. That's one of the neat things about it, it produces compost all year. And it uses minimal energy and recycles all the scraps.

This is where my tomato seeds are planted.

We still have plenty of canned tomatoes from last summer (Disclaimer...the canned tomatoes came from the farmer's market, not from out garden). This year we hope to produce a bumper crop.

You can see last year's collard plants in the garden photo, still producing fresh young leaves. Remember I cooked some on Super Bowl Sunday? I picked about all the leaves that day, and now look, I can get another meal out of them.

Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships

Congratulations to Hank Tyler, fellow columnist for The Western Tribune for picking up the Charles A. Long Outstanding Civic Award at the Bessemer Chamber of Commerce Banquet last night.

Picture Credit: The Western Tribune

President Barack Obama established (yesterday at the National Prayer Breakfast ) his office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Read what Obama said including his testimony at the link.

Read the press release and learn who some of the members of the council are here.

This will be a little more in line with the U. S. Constitution than W's effort, which seemed to put a condition on helping that you believe certain beliefs and share those beliefs with those you are helping or don't help them at all. Something like that.

Anyway, this office will reach out to charities and organizations "no matter their religious or political beliefs" and will be "making community groups an integral part of our economic recovery and poverty a burden fewer have to bear when recovery is complete."

Joshua DuBois, a 26 year old Pentecostal minister, will head the effort. "We're also going to make sure we have a keener eye toward the separation of church and state," he said.

Good.

Western Tribune Column January 28, 2009

Restoring a historic home does not happen overnight.

Fortunately there are dedicated individuals in Bessemer who understand the importance of preserving these sometimes simple, sometimes grand, structures. Slowly, historic Bessemer is being restored.

Restoring the liberties, rights and protections granted by our Constitution will also take some time.

Fortunately our new president understands our Constitution and international law as it relates to human rights and has taken some initial, important steps toward that goal. He has issued several executive orders that set a new path toward an America we can be more proud of.
His orders include shutting down the detention center at Guantanamo Bay and putting an end to torture as a means of extracting information from detainees.

The orders are not that simple, however. He understands that some of those being held may be dangerous, some may need to be returned to other countries, and some may need to be held in detention here in the United States. There are evaluations to be made and new policies to be developed, and for this reason he has established an Interagency Task Force to handle the details. It may take up to a year to complete the task. But the world immediately recognizes the change and a little respect is regained for America.

Opponents cry that we don’t need these terror suspects on U. S. soil, but what they really seem to be saying is they don’t trust the federal detention system. If our prisons are not secure enough to hold the worst of these would be terrorists, then should we trust them to hold the murderers and rapists that are held there now? If the prisons need upgrading, let’s fix them now, to protect from both the terrorists and the murderers.

As for torture, it’s odd to me that the same people who claim to value the very essence of life seem to believe that it’s OK to perform inhumane acts on living humans. Even more surprising is that they still hold those beliefs even when shown that torture does not work.

A civilized society, just as it would not put humans to death as a form of punishment, also would not torture.

And with less inhumane treatment of individuals, the world is made a better place.

The Work Begins...For All of Us

Be sure to read my column this week. It addresses some issues seen here on Bessemer Opinions. It follows this post.

I'm not sure if it was a request or not, but for John, and for the rest of America, here is the President and First Lady's first dance to "At Last" sung by Beyonce. I'm not sure how long this video will stay up, I will try to replace it if it is removed.




I want to clear one thing up. Barack Obama did not flub the oath. Chief Justice John Roberts did. He tried to cue Obama from memory, and screwed up. Obama knew the oath, and kind of laughed it off, but had to decide whether to repeat what Roberts was saying or say it right. Anyway, either then or later he said the complete oath correctly. Two previous presidents had to repeat the oath due to similar issues - Calvin Coolidge and Chester Arthur.

Now that the pageantry is over, the work begins. For all of us. We have been called to service. I have an idea for myself, more on that if it turns out to be doable.

In addition, the Bessemer Historical Homeowners Association agreed last night to look into new service projects (in addition to our work at Jonesboro Community Garden and Davis Middle School) as a way answer the President's challenge by addressing needs in our community.

The administration has begun their work too. Look at the new White House web page, whitehouse.gov .

From there, you will learn that President Obama's first official act was to proclaim January 20 2009 a National Day of Renewal and Reconciliation. Read the whole thing, but the meat of it is this:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 20, 2009, a National Day of Renewal and Reconciliation, and call upon all of our citizens to serve one another and the common purpose of remaking this Nation for our new century.

If you look under the "agenda" tab, you will see Civil Rights listed first, mainly because the list is alphabetical. From there, you can be assured that President Obama recognizes the importance of inclusion and equality for the GLBT community.

But President Obama also recognizes that there are serious issues at hand. He suspended prosecutions at Gitmo . This is seen as a first step in shutting the place down.

Western Tribune column January 21 2009

From Today's paper:

The karma of the nation is changing, and just in the nick of time.

The “miracle on the Hudson,” as the recent jet crash in which all 155 people on board survived has been called, is the latest evidence. The nation is cheering.

The inauguration of President Barack Obama further advances the positive karma of the nation. A strong majority still have positive feelings about the new administration, in spite of all the trouble the country seems to be facing.

Of course I realize there are still those who do not believe. Why, just the other night, I was at a concert in Birmingham, and the people sitting behind me were doing their best to hold on to the negative feelings of the past, and pronouncing the Obama administration as a failure before it even gets started.

And day after day I receive comments on my blog reflecting the same negative outlook.

But most conservatives are cheering Obama on. They realize that the president needs the support of Republicans and Democrats alike in congress to solve the problems we face. They realize that without this support our country may slide into a territory from which we cannot emerge.

Even Cal Thomas, a conservative columnist with whom I rarely agree, is backing the new president.

“Good luck, God bless, and I hope you succeed in the things with which conservatives can agree. And on those things we cannot agree, I at least promise to be more than a naysayer and suggest how they might be done better.”

The time for “naysaying” is over.

After the tragedy of September 11, 2001, president George W. Bush had the support of everyone in the country. While his rush to an unjust war and shredding of the constitution diminished that support, at least he had a clean slate when he started.

Give Obama that chance. Quit complaining when there is not even anything to complain about. Join in the positive feeling the rest of the country is enjoying.

You might be surprised. As your outlook improves, your health will improve. As your health improves, you will feel better and your life with your family and friends will improve.

And you will be contributing positive energy to the karma that benefits us all.

Let Freedom Ring

We have a new president. If you have followed this blog at all, you don't need me re-hashing policy differences or the new direction we will be moving in.

You don't need me to dissect the president's speech.

You don't need me to tell you that Rick Warren's prayer was lack-luster, but that Joseph Lowery's prayer ended with a bang.

"We ask you to help us work for that day
When Black would not be asked to get back,
When Brown can stick around,
When Yellow will be mellow,
When the Red man can get ahead, man,
And when White will embrace what is right."


But you may not know this. There is a drive on to have the president create a new cabinet position: Secretary of the Arts.

A Secretary of the Arts would further legitimize America’s place in Art History and in the international dialog through the many disciplines of art - a language itself. People yearn for arts & culture and if they don’t, most are missing out on education, exposure, self-expression, & a creative outlet for internal strife versus unconstructive outlets that are too often used in our society. Production of art can be both a creative & an intellectual pursuit. Exposure to art has numerous benefits, one being for society as a whole to be elevated. Let’s put an arts leader in the Cabinet to start measuring up to other governments’ commitments to arts & culture.

Read the rest at the link. Sign the petition here. I am number signature number 159466.

On Sunday, Quincy Jones was asked about serving in that position, should it be created. Well of course he would.

Speaking of Arts, how about the Queen of Soul today. Let Freedom Ring, Aretha! You are likely to see replays of the Speech and the Oath, but here is a replay of the Song. Nice hat, too. This was posted by a guy in Germany.

There is something about this new direction that is inspiring musical artists to give us their very best. We saw that on Sunday, Monday and now Tuesday.

Now, let's go watch the parade.

In Honor of Barack Obama

Picture credit: The Obama Tree

Today. We are one.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Those words are from the Declaration of Independence.

It’s that “all men are created equal” part that we are inching toward today.

Yesterday we heard those words repeated as Dr. Martin Luther King’s “Dream” speech was replayed. “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

Since this post is going up before our president elect’s inaugural speech, a comment on that will come later. For now, in recognition of the historic nature of today, I have put on display the historic flags that we use on such occasions.

Seeing the Capitol draped in flags reminded me that Bessemer should have a display as well. Since I haven't seen any other public displays in honor of Obama, I consider this the official-unofficial tribute from Bessemer, Alabama.

The flags, in order, are the Bennington Flag, that tradition says was flown at the Battle of Bennington (actually fought at Wallomsack, New York, not Bennington, Vermont) in 1777. This is the only U. S. historical flag with white stripes rather than red, as the outer stripes.

The next flag is the Betsy Ross flag, the first official flag of our country, with the circular ring of stars, and flown from June 14, 1777 to May 1, 1795.

The “Star Spangled Banner,” with 15 stars, is next. It inspired a song at Ft. McHenry.

Next is one of the flags that flew during the Civil War. This one has 34 stars. The flag changed a few times during the civil war, as states were added during wartime.

Behind it is the flag that flew during World War II, when my father fought in Europe and the Pacific.

The last flag is the flag with 50 stars that is flying today as Barack Obama becomes our 44th President.

America is Beautiful

Did you watch Oprah today? She premiered this song, which she had asked David Foster and will.i.am to write. Faith Hill, Seal, Mary J. Blige and Bono and a choir of kids join in.

Here is a link to watch. America's Song . Downolad it for free until Tuesday afternoon here. Or watch it here. Go full screen. And feel good about our country.




Be sure to visit tomorrow to see what I have done to help Bessemer celebrate.

Almost Divine

1 Day. One day, and our country is racing toward becoming a more perfect union.

Picture credit Hell for Leather magazine

This is a picture of Walter Villa on a 250 RR Harley-Davidson/ Aermacchi in 1976 at the Nürburgring. The person who posted the picture said, "And yes, that numeral 1 on the number-plate means what you think it means."

And number 1 for our country ascends to the presidency in 1 day.

Programming Note: Bessemer Opinions will no longer be posting comments of a hateful nature. This site is not a community forum for debate. Bessemer Opinions is about moving forward, both in our community and in our country. Comments that bring people or groups of people down, without cause, do nothing to help our community or country.

"Almost Divine". Those are the word used by Dianne Mills to describe the convergence of the Martin Luther King Jr, holiday with the inaugural ceremonies of Barack Obama. Dianne hosted a party yesterday to celebrate.

But today is reserved for tributes to Martin Luther King, Jr. Watch this video tribute from Park Community Church in Chicago. Oh, it's different.



Read my post from last year, since Health Care (and war) is still an issue: Martin Luther King Jr: Pro Public Health and Anti War .

If King were still alive, I am sure he would be offering an inaugural prayer. Instead, it was offered by Bishop Gene Robinson yesterday. Here it is. Even if you are not particularly spiritual, read this prayer, as it embodies the spirit of our nation, and if we all heed its words, our nation will soar.

Good afternoon,

Before this celebration begins, please join me in pausing for a moment to ask God’s blessing upon our nation and our next president.

Oh God of our many understandings, we pray that you will bless us with tears, tears for a world in which over a billion people exist on less than a dollar a day, where young women in many lands are beaten and raped for wanting an education, and thousands die a day from malnutrition, malaria and AIDS.

Bless this nation with anger – anger at discrimination at home and abroad, against refugees and immigrants; women, people of color; gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people.

Bless us with discomfort at the easy simplistic answers we prefer to hear from our politicians instead of the truth about ourselves and our world, which we need to face if we are going to rise to the challenges of the future.

Bless us with patience and the knowledge that none of what ails us will be fixed any time soon and the understanding that our next president is a human being, not a messiah. Bless us with humility, open to understanding that our own needs as a nation must always be balanced with those of the world.

Bless us with freedom from mere tolerance, replacing it with a genuine respect and warm embrace of our differences.

Bless us with compassion and generosity, remembering that every religion’s God judges us by the ways we care for the most vulnerable. And God, we give you thanks for your child Barack, as he assumes the office of the president of the United States.

Give him wisdom beyond his years, inspire him with President Lincoln’s reconciling leadership style, President Kennedy’s ability to enlist our best efforts, and Dr. King’s dream of a nation for all people.

Give him a quiet heart, for our ship of state needs a steady calm captain. Give him stirring words, we will need to be inspired and motivated to make the personal and common sacrifices necessary to facing the challenges ahead.

Make him color blind reminding him of his own words that under his leadership there will be neither red nor blue states but a United States. Help him remember his own oppression as a minority, drawing on that experience of discrimination that he might seek to change the lives of those who are still its victims.

Give him strength to find family time and privacy and help him remember that even though he is president, a father only gets one shot at his daughters’ childhoods. And please God, keep him safe. We know we ask too much of our presidents and we’re asking far too much of this one, we implore you oh good and great God to keep him safe. Hold him in the palm of your hand that he might do the work that we have called him to do. That he might find joy in this impossible calling and that, in the end, he might lead us as a nation to a place of integrity, prosperity and peace.

Amen.

Living Like Jesus, Voting for Obama

Picture credit : http://english.sina.com/p/1/2008/0709/170758.html

3 Days. In three days our country begins its recovery.

This picture is of Tai Shan, a panda at the Smithsonian Zoo, celebrating his third birthday earlier this year. The fruit circle, cut to make the numeral, is made of water and gelatin. Tai Shan is the first surviving panda born at the zoo, and still lives with his parents in the National Zoo Fujifilm Giant Panda Habitat. If you are going to Washington over the next few days, maybe you can visit Tai Shan.

Rev. Ed Dobson made pledge to live for a year like Jesus (Story). Dobson was one of the founders of the Moral Majority in the 1980's, now he is vice president for spiritual formation at Cornerstone University.

"The one-time architect of the religious right is in hot water with some conservatives over his statement that living like Jesus during 2008 influenced him to vote for Barack Obama -- his first presidential vote for a Democrat."

"Dobson acknowledged he has been criticized for linking his Obama vote to Jesus. While disagreeing with Obama on abortion, Dobson said the Democrat was closest to the spirit of Jesus' teachings of compassion and peace."

And while we are on the subject of compassion and peace, how about Kay Warren, the "purpose-driven wife" of now-controversial pastor Rick Warren, reminding us of this:

She spoke at Judson college in Marion, AL, and praised Obama for leading the way on HIV testing. She compared today's AIDS epidemic to the biblical references to leprosy.

"I challenge you to find anyplace in the Bible where Jesus asks how someone became sick," she said.

Warren, or Jesus for that matter, was not concerned about people's "lifestyles," to use a divisive term not used in his day. He cared about ministering, healing, bringing the downtrodden and the outcasts into the fold.

If only more of the churches that claim to follow Jesus would actually do so. You've got your angry, judgemental philosophy (and God) or your compassionate, loving philosophy (or God).

I will choose to follow the one Ed Dobson is following this year. The loving, compassionate One.

Oh...4 more days

Picture Credit Vicious Delicious

I forgot to include this.

4 Days. Then America can celebrate.