December 1, 2024

Misadministration

“Judges, lawyers and politicians have a license to steal. We don’t need one.”
-- Carlo Gambino


The announcement about Charlie Kushner brings to mind the very topic that I was going to discuss on the last essay I posted upon this forum. What are the connections between business, politics, and organized crime? In that last essay, I sought to document the dangers we face due to corporations having far, far more socio-political power than citizens. Here, I'd like to talk about organized crime and politics.

Now, among many other relatives employed at all levels of law enforcement & intelligence, I had two uncles who were NYS BCI Senior Investigators. One of these two often worked under cover in his younger years. From my uncles, I learned that there were all types of organized crime. "Mafia" and "Cosa Nostra" are a specific ethnic group. "Mob" is the general term they used for organized gangs of criminals of all types.

"We don't really care when they kill each other," my uncle told me. "It's when they kill human beings that we do." I learned about his experiences undercover in Albany, NY, where he infiltrated the Irish mob that was connected to Boston. Of being in a meeting in a room in a highrise, where the group suspected they had been infiltrated by a cop. They hung some poor fool out a window, thinking it was him. My uncle joined the chorus of, "Drop him!"

His widow told my son & I about an event from that time that haunted him. One night, he was hanging with other members. For no reason, the others beat an old man to death. My uncle couldn't break cover to rescue the guy. So I think he had a pretty good idea of the nature of the mob. His brother -- the other legendary senior investigator -- worked with federal agents to put the mobsters that ran boxing in our region into the federal pen. (This despite these men being really extra nice to my brothers & I when we boxed. We were dumb teenagers!)

I remember my uncle saying there are two things to keep in mind. The first was that the belief the top mobsters were smart was false. They were guys who couldn't make a living in business without having to break the law. They just dared to break the law violently, often using tough guys who couldn't spell their own names for muscle. (They did attempt to "hire" my oldest brother, who was savage when he fought.)

The second thing, he said, was that up to the 1970s, they had a code of honor and would rather spend time in prison than cut a deal to help themselves. He said that generation's kids were pampered bullies, who used cocaine, were violent for fun, and couldn't keep their mouth shut. They usually took the first deal offered to them.

Maybe it's just me, but I find myself thinking about two connvicted felons ....... the one who was had started in real estate in 1968, declared bankruptcy a few times, and is about to inhabit the White House again, and Charlie Kushner, who started in real estate in 1985. And how both donated to politicians in order to get good treatment and not prosecuted .... until both were.

Now, buying influence is one thing. But buying politicians is another. For many years, corporations have written the laws on things like the environment that politicians have eagerly passed. They set limits on how much toxic chemicals they can expose human beings to. They have figured out how to do what mob bosses weren't intelligent enough to do. Pass the laws that make their crimes legal. More than that, they dictate much of our country's foreign policy. So they have way, way more political power than you or I. Heck, they've even hypnotized a large enough percentage of the population to elect the ass clown of mob bosses as president. Twice.

That is what we are up against, from top to bottom. It can seem somewhat overwhelming, I suspect. But it is up to us to do our best to halt this decline. So the first thing is to try to slow down the rate of decay. I'll suggest looking to the US Constitution to start. Studying the who thing, including the Bill of Rights. Not in the Amendment 2 fixation the brain-dead maga cult does, of course, but in a positive way. This is just my opinion, of course, but it might prove better than hand-wringing. I could be wrong.

November 29, 2024

The Machine

"The machine that we built would never save us" -- Jimi Hendrix


A machine is defined as "an apparatus using or applying mechanical power and having several parts, each with a definite function and together performing a particular task." And a corporation is defined as "a group of people or company authorized by law to act as a single entity." Neither machines nor corporations are human beings, though humans have obvious associations with both.

Willard Mitt Romney said corporations are "of course" people. The US Supreme Court ruled in a similar fashion in Citizens United. These are, of course, the same people who have decided they have the right to limit women's health care, based upon their religion. I think the majority of people -- despite the election results -- wish that the court focus more on the rights, responsibilities, and needs of actual living human beings.

This has me thinking about an environmental activist who died last year, Jerry Irwin Mander. His 1978 book, "Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television" was interesting. I have his 1991, "In the Absence of the Sacred," which has quite a lot of interesting information in it. And he was friends with Onondaga Faithkeeper Oren Lyons, who I've also been friends with since the 1980s. The book delivers parts of Oren's thinking, and it has a lot to say about machines and corporations.

I'll keep this relatively brief by just skimming over some of Mander's thoughts on corporations.

1. The profit imperative. For profit is the ultimate goal of all corporate decisions.
2. The growth imperative. Profits = growth = profits.
3. Competition and aggression.
4. Amorality. They aren't huan, and thus have no conscience.
5. Hierarchy.
6. Dehumanization. Both the community and environment are objectified.
7. Exploitation. This includes resources and labor.
8. Ephemerality. They are legal creations that exist only on paper.
9. Opposition to nature.
10. Homogenization.

This is not to say that there are not corporations run by socially conscious, good people. There are, of course. But these are a tiny button on a large coat. By no coincidence, they are not the ones that have coated the environment with toxic wastes. Nor are they the ones that coat their puppets in DC with contributions. Those contributions have strings attached.

Are we thus helpless? No. Now, in one of his essays, Mander quoted the late journalist A. J. Liebling: "Freedom of the press is guaranteed, but only if you own one.” I'm reminded of when a friend was complaining about the quality of the television news. My brother scolded him, saying no American had the right to complain about television when there were public libraries. That Amendment 1 provided rights, but also responsibilities.

Back in the late 1700s, when a hostile foreign force was oppressing my ancestors, including outlawing education, my great (X7) grandfather was a hedge school master. Classes were held in fields off the highways and biways. At its best, DU serves as a hedge school along the information highway. It helps us think outside the box that the corporations that sell the media create to trap our thinking. That box too often limits even intelligent people to binary thinking. And that, of course, includes people being puzzled by the Native American vote, for one small example.

November 26, 2024

One after 101

“A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader. A great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves.” —Eleanor Roosevelt


I read a comment by DUer "muriel_volestrangler" today that got me thinking that maybe a quick review of DU-Sociology 101 would be of value. There have been several OPs and numerous comments blaming President Biden, Merrick Garland, and even Jack Smith for the failure of the DOJ to prosecute and convict the sociopathic felon for the numerous federal crimes he is guilty as sin for.

Perhaps a review of both types and styles of leadership would be of worthy of consideration. And as an added bonus, I will add a brief review of the justice system. A combined understanding of these is essential, in my opinion, because there is going to be a test on it from January 20, 2025 to January 20, 2029. Hopefully, it will not be the final exam.

There are three types of leadership: Tradition, generally associated with tribal people who do things "the way they have always been done." Bureaucratic, which one understands if they have a unique issue when entering the Department of Motor Vehicles. And charismatic, which involves a leader who captures the imagination of his/her followers, and is a shooting star usually replaced by their aide with bureaucratic skills.

There are five styles of leadership. These include the authoritarian, which is the felon's wettest dream. There is the democratic style that encourages group participation and consensus-building. There is expressive leadership, most often found in non-profit social services groups focused on caring about human beings. There are instrumental leaders, who have specific goals in mind. And there are laissez-faire leaders, who are hands-off and allow group members autonomy in decision-making.

Rather than have an open-book pop quiz, here are the answers. Joe Biden, like every US president with but one exception, provided bureaucratic leadership throughout his political career. His style encouraged group participation and building consensus. More, when it came to the DOJ, he correctly took a laissez-faire approach. Merrick Garlan has been a bureaucratic leader, though he has followed the traditions of the DOJ in investigating organized crime. However, one can debate if that was appropriate in the case of the felon. Jack Smith also works within bureaucracy, though he seemed somewhat charismatic when appointed. His style is definitely instrumental, with clear goals.

Now, for a quick comment on the US justice system. It is, by definition, a bureaucracy. Thus, like the DMV, it is geared to deal with the most common issues in the same way. For example, it tends to deal with traffic tickets the same way. But it is imperfect. Most people realize it is a two-tiered system, with wealthy people treated differently than the poor or middle class. Obviously, there are other factors that can come into play, including one's skin color. There is corruption. If one enjoys wealth and social status, they can hire lawyers who can delay a case. In this instance, the case was dragged out until the felon won the 2024 presidential election.

I hope that this information assists in the understanding of why things have unfolded the way they have. I'm not happy, nor am I saying, "Oh well. Shit happens." Rather, we need to understand systems in order that we might use them to our advantage. And keep the focus on the actual criminals.

November 26, 2024

Oneiric Noir

"Garland should have gone after Mark Meadows. The J6 Select committee sent Garland a criminal referral for Meadows and Chesebro.

Meadows was the middle man between TSF and the Willard Hotel, Meadows kept Trump's hands clean." -- gab13by13
https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=19761990


This evening, I've been on two internet sites: a private facebook group of women who have been opposed to the felon since his first term, and DU. The women's group was started by a lady who was a few years behind me in high school, and over the years, has spread to a select membership that goes across the land. Most are grandmothers, some are mothers, and a couple other men were included after me.

There were, as to be expected, several posts by people unhappy about Jack Smith's action today. But there wasn't a single negative on any of those threads about Jack Smith. There were numerous posts that included angry comments about Merrick Garland. Here is a typical one:

"The failed SC nomination should have been the end of it for Garland. He was only nominated because he was so milquetoast and unobjectionable that Obama thought Republican senators would accept him as a nominee. It has irritated me to no end that Biden named him as AG and kept him this whole time. It should have been Sally Yates."

Now, that's the type of person you can have an intelligent conversation with. I was thus interested in finding equally intelligent discussions on DU. The gab13by13 quote at the top was, in my opinion, the most common sense I saw. I have posted positive things about Garland in the past. And even now, I'm disappointed, but not outraged. He has been programmed by education and experience to organize things in a specific order.

He relied on the pyramid approach, used when dealing with organized crime. Start at the base, and work your way up. But two factors were in play: the bottom feeders had no direct contact with the next level up, and the top dog was planning to run for president for a third time. Considering how quickly the January 6 Committee was able to put together a strong case, the DOJ could have, too. Jack Smith could have been appointed very early one. At the same time, there are intelligent people who think Garland did a good job under the circumstances ..... and this Supreme Court.

No matter if I agree or disagree with people, when they make intelligent, rational points, I enjoy conversations with them. But there are others I find less interesting. That includes those expressing outrage that Jack Smith has somehow betrayed them and America. I have asked what else they think Mr. Smith could have done better, and what they think he needed to do between today and January 20? No responses yet. I had hoped they might at least say they hoped Mr. Smith would finish and release his report.

Next I saw an OP that I mistakenlt thought was a tribute to the Beatles song, "I'm Down." But it was about being done. Without even reading it, I responded by saying that I, too, was done ..... I had gone to the bank, picked up groceries, fed the animals, walked the dog, and completed the required housework. Finally, I could get down to taking any steps that might help our surviving the next four years. So I e-mailed the DOJ with a message to AG Garland: please have Mr. Smith complete and release his report. And that's something everyone can do. It beats complaining.

November 24, 2024

Regarding Index Cards

"COUNTERINTELLIGENCE PROGRAM
BLACK NATIONALIST - HATE GROUPS
RACIAL INTELLIGENCE 3/4/68

[...]

GOALS
~~~~~
For maximum effectiveness of the Counterintelligence Program, and to prevent wasted effort, long-range goals are being set.

1. Prevent the COALITION of militant black nationalist groups. In unity there is strength; a truism that is no less valid for all its triteness. An effective coalition of black nationalist groups might be the first step toward a real "Mau Mau" [Black revolutionary army] in America, the beginning of a true black revolution.

2. Prevent the RISE OF A "MESSIAH" who could unify, and electrify, the militant black nationalist movement. Malcolm X might have been such a "messiah;" he is the martyr of the movement today. Martin Luther King, Stokely Carmichael and Elijah Muhammed all aspire to this position. Elijah Muhammed is less of a threat because of his age. King could be a very real contender for this position should he abandon his supposed "obedience" to "white, liberal doctrines" (nonviolence) and embrace black nationalism. Carmichael has the necessary charisma to be a real threat in this way.


3. Prevent VIOLENCE on the part of black nationalist groups. This is of course of primary importance, and is, of course, a goal of our investigative activity; it should also be a goal of the Counterintelligence Program to pinpoint potential troublemakers and neutralize them before they exercise their potential for violence.

4. Prevent militant black nationalist groups and leaders from gaining RESPECTABILITY, by discrediting them to three separate segments of the community. The goal of discrediting black nationalists must be handled tactically in three ways. You must discredit those groups and individuals to, first, the responsible Negro community. Second, they must be discredited to the white community, both the responsible community and to "liberals" who have vestiges of sympathy for militant black nationalist simply because they are Negroes. Third, these groups must be discredited in the eyes of Negro radicals, the followers of the movement. This last area requires entirely different tactics from the first two. Publicity about violent tendencies and radical statements merely enhances black nationalists to the last group; it adds "respectability" in a different way.

5. A final goal should be to prevent the long-range GROWTH of militant black organizations, especially among youth. Specific tactics to prevent these groups from converting young people must be developed. [...]

TARGETS
~~~~~~~

Primary targets of the Counterintelligence Program, Black Nationalist-Hate Groups, should be the most violent and radical groups and their leaders. We should emphasize those leaders and organizations that are nationwide in scope and are most capable of disrupting this country. These targets, members, and followers of the:

Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
Revolutionary Action Movement (RAM)
Nation of Islam (NOI)

Offices handling these cases and those of Stokely Carmichael of SNCC, H. Rap Brown of SNCC, Martin Luther King of SCLC, Maxwell Stanford of RAM, and Elijah Muhammed of NOI, should be alert for counterintelligence suggestions."
-- FBI Memo



Despite this being a high-tech society, index cards remain popular. People use them for a number of things. Yet this is not the reason that I am writing about them today. For people of my generation grew up in a time when index cards were used in one specific manner that helped define an era. And with the next administration coming in, I thought it might be good to review index cards.

Why now? Was it because I watched a documentary on Fred Hampton last night? The powerful young leader, who was identified by the FBI as a radical threat as a teenager. Who was united grass roots groups from society's margins. Who openly advocated for a program that served breakfast to children from low-income homes, surely a national security issue. I mean, what's next? Free lunch programs in schools?

Or perhaps a conversation with someone uniformed on the "cards" of American Indian Movement (AIM) leaders. I remember that a friend who taught at an area college loaded up a car-load of students to head to Wounded Knee in early March of 1973. They were pulled over by the FBI before they made it out of NYS. The agents just wanted to let them know that they knew where they were going.

I thought of the various people who had index cards that I knew, from very well to casually. Rubin, Oren, Daniel, Abbie, Paul, Phillip, and Angela. Could such a program start up again in 2025? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that J. Edgar Hoover was as paranoid a diseased human being as the felon. I thought about two of the felons top rabid dogs, Steve Bannon and Stephan Miller, feeding the felon information on the 1798's four Alien and Sedition Acts ......

Now, 1798 is an important year in my family's history. My great X7 grandfather was sentenced to death by a foreign invader, for serving as the poet of the United Irishmen. His life was spared, but the extended detention in a dungeon destroyed his health. His cousin Robert Emmet was not so lucky -- he was hung and then beheaded on September 20, 1803. His speech upon sentencing is one of history's greatest.

Back to Hoover, who worked with index cards as a young library employee. What groups did he identify? During WW2, without congressional or judical oversight, Hoover created the Alien Enemy Control/ Custodial Detention Program. Sounds safe as a mother's milk, unless your family came from Germany, Italy, or Japan. He was later told -- twice -- that his index card files were unconstitutional, and to get rid of them.

So Hoover simply changed the name of the program. And it expanded it to include color-coded index cards for different levels of threats. Under one newly-named program, there were three levels. You didn't want to be at Level One. You'd find Martin Luther King, Jr. and John Lennon. At Level Two, you'd have found Arlo Guthrie. And Level One would be those debating politics on the internet.

There are numerous other sub-groups in the index card files. The "Rabble Rouser Index" included Jerry Rubin, Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., and Howard Zinn. There was also one of particular interest to Hoover, the "Sexual Deviants," which from his public utterances, definitely included King and likely President Kennedy. Today, of course, it would include the incoming administration.

November 20, 2024

Bend the Arc

https://www.bendthearc.us/call_protect_dissent

"We need your voice urgently to protect our ability to organize and dissent under the incoming Trump administration.

This week, the House of Representatives will vote on H.R. 9495, the so-called "Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act."

The name is misleading: This bill would actually give Trump the power to investigate and effectively shut down any tax-exempt organization. ......"


I've posted information from Bend the Arc several times here on DU. I recognize it as one of the most important activist organizations we have. Please read the full page linked above, and make the calls.

I note that last week, only 50 Democrats were saying they would vote "no." Since Bend the Arc started contacting representatives, that number has reached 144.

Let's roll.

November 16, 2024

Dollars & Dimes

"Important elements of democracy existed in the infant American republic of the 1780s, but the republic was not democratic. Nor, in the minds of those who governed it, was it supposed to be. A republic -- the res publica, or 'public thing,' was meant to secure the common good through the ministrations of the most worthy, enlightened men. A democracy -- derived from demos krateo, 'rule of the people' -- dangerously handed power to the impassioned, unenlighted masses."
-- Sean Wilentz, "The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln," W.W. Norton & Company, 2005, page xvii of preface.


In recent decades, we have considered two political parties -- the Democratic and republicans in control of most elections. There have been a few minor third party candidates, generally annoying pests, that may have influenced the outcome of presidential elections. But the numerous third parties accounted for a small percentage of voters.

Yet 2024 has changed the landscape, with independent voters now outnumbering either the Democratic or republican party. In fact, independents out-voted either major party for the first time. Perhaps, as members of the Democratic Party, we should remember the words of President Lyndon Johnson six decades ago: "We must change to master change."

This obviously doesn't mean compromising our values, or leaving the party. It does mean studying history, rather than memes, and focusing on the relatively rapid growth of the number of independent voters. And considering some of the implications of numerous third parties.

One of the interesting features of the antebellum America in the mid-1800s was the number of parties that were active in national political life. Now, we all remember the felon saying people didn't know that Lincoln was a republican. Hopefully, every person aged 7 and over knows that. But less hopeful is encountering people who don't know that the Democratic and republican parties were very different in that era.

They represented different sides on the issue of slavery, which led to the Civil War. Republicans then understood the war was about slavery; republicans today hypnotized into believing that it was abo0ut states' rights. Thus, we see that being that ignorant about true history is dangerous. It leads people to want to ban actual history books from school libraries, so that children do not learn how barbaric slavery was, nor the KKK/ Jim Crow eras that followed.

I assume most here are familiar with the "Know Nothing" party, true name: "American Party." It's #1 issue was those darned Irish catholic immigrants. They formed dangerous gangs, those darned Irish. Getting drunk, stealing, and fighting. There was the "Constitutional Unity Party," that advocated relying on the US Constitution as a living docu8ment. There was the "Whig Party," mainly in New England and New York -- including the doctor who used to live in this house.

The Whigs had split off from the "National Republican Party." They were primarily a middle class party. Among other things, they were aware of class warfare. There was the "Free Soil Party." They denounced the 1852 Compromise. And you also had the "Liberty Party," which had a more conservative wing that sought progress through traditional means, and a radical branch that was against slavey, included women activists, and demanded equal rights for all.

Then, of course, came the Civil War, which historians note came between the Golden Age and the Gilded Age. The "Gilded Age" took its name from the 1873 novel by Mark Twain, about greed and political corruption. Now, obviously, thing are very different today, for they did not have cell phones back then. Still, for an exercise few will think interesting, let's consider the various third parties of the modern era that have made it to being on the ballot in national elections.

Let's look at the 2022 statistics. The Green Party had .19% of registered voters. The Constitution Party had .11%. The Libertarian Party had .06%, and the Working Families Party had .05%. Coming in a distant last place was the Reform Party, with under 4,500 members nation-wide.

And there are numerous ones even smaller than the Reform Party, that never make it onto the ballot. These include, but are not limited to, the Christian Liberty Party. Anyone here that can identify both which candidate they backed in 2024, and the most noble goal of their wholly crusade to end the cruel oppression of white christian nationalists in America wins a free subscription to my posts on DU. Enter as many guesses as you want.

So, the combined total of these minority parties is .41%. Yet, since the republican party and Russian intelligence now bought the Green Party, it grew. This, despite the fracturing of the Green Party of the United States (GPUS) in the 1990s, when it was being co-opted from its original intent. Many here still blame Ralph Nader's 2000 Green Party run for Al Gore's having the USSC say he lost Florida, despite having more votes. Fewer blame the state's Jewish population for giving Pat Buchanan almost as many votes in Florida, thanks to the infamous butterfly ballots.

If one thinks Ralph played a role, in 2016, Jill Stein got close to a million & a half votes. That was more than the combined number of GPUS (aka Green PUS) votes in the last three elections. However, she was not a factor nation-wide in 2024. Her getting 22% in Dearborn does stand out. But not as much as the number of independent voters being larger this year than either the Democratic Party or the republic party.

There can be honest and sincere differences of opinion regarding exactly what our party can and must do to combat the greed, corruption, and attempted destruction of the rule of law in an age gilded with fool's gold. A good number of people I respect on this forum agreed with the campaign's bringing Dick Cheney on stage. I didn't, because I viewed it as stepping over a dollar to pick up a dime.

November 14, 2024

Social Composting

"I was doing time in the universal mind ....." -- Jim Morrison



If you are reading this at the same time you are sure that certain that the sociopathic felon's plan to nominate unconvicted sex offender Matt Gaetz for Attorney General is further evidence of an attack on democracy and decency -- I think it's worse -- I hope that you read this with an open mind. (Note: same signal with Tulsi Gabbard for DNI.)

Despite my recognizing that those who read my rants are likely tired of my saying this, I will start by saying it again. All organic life on Earth -- from the single-celled beings to human empires -- either grow or decay. Humans have recognized this in the context of empires for thousands of years. As I've noted X1000, it is the higher meaning of the esoteric story of the Tower of Babel. (Those of lower understanding mistake it for why some people speak English, French, Russian, etc.)

Most people who are familiar with sociology understand how the sun has set on ancient and more recent empires. For it is much easier to see the full picture when one is outside of the frame. For what is variously known as societal-, civilizational-, and systematic collapse, does not usually take place quickly. It requires the synergy of a number of factors. Let's take a brief look at some of these.

(None of this should be mistaken for my original thinking. It's from a number of sociologists who are far smarter than me. I began studying these things in college, and have continued that habit ever since.)

The two that most people could identify without reading the books I have are government corruption and an over-stretched military. It is important to recognize that this rot can be found in autocratic, democratic, or republic forms of government. And per military, there is often a need to hire "private" forces, a.k.a. mercenaries.

Another factor that is often found is the exhaustion of soil. The reduction in foods from the soil adds to the social stratification between the haves and have nots. This includes the raising of food sources from cows to chickens, that rely on plant foods. And this is but one of the ways that the "public health" is degraded. It's siblings include toxic environments that result from human and industrial wastes, drug use and abuse, and disease.

Add "bright, shiny things." A common features in decaying empires is distractions from serious thought, with attention focused on amusement and entertainment. Pleasure-seeking can be as addictive as a drug, and blind us. I suggest reading about studies of teenagers' reactions to having their cell phones taken away for a few hours.

These features tend to bring about another, where a group of the population becomes fixated on a political ideology of nationalism and jingoism. This includes the mixing of politics with religion. This will result in an increased investment in social Darwinism. This opens the door for that group to determine who will be in power, including the winner of the most recent presidential election in this country. And every tyrant in human history has known that by identifying a "common enemy" -- or enemies -- they can get a large percentage of a population to forget their low level of being. And to rejoice in acting upon their hate.

There are other factors, of course, but in an effort to keep this shorter than I am tempted to, I'll end here. For now, anyhow. But not before I add that we are helpless victims, or the audience in Miami watching the decay of Morrison on stage. We must be activists, artists, and farmers, to bring about a new growth out of the compost the sociopathic felon is scattering about. That is one of the potentials available to us.

November 12, 2024

If Six was Nine

"Rubin Carter embarked upon a journey of reconciliation many years ago. His path was longer and more difficult than others who had preceded him, for Rubin's Spirit was dead. .... I commend Rubin Carter and the dedication he has for others. He has journeyed a long way and has touched the hearts and souls of many whom he has come into contact. His rich heart is now alive in love, compassion, and understanding."
-- Nelson Mandela, foreword to Eye of the Hurricane


I was on another internet forum of Democratic Party members yesterday. A person asked where do we go now? What direction should our party move in during the future? I suggested that at the grass roots level, we might benefit from studying Gandhi and King, and attempting to apply their wisdom to the current situation.

As could be expected, the majority of those responding were expressing "rage." Indeed, one woman let me know that she found my comment weak. She was fully invested in being outraged. Now, I can appreciate that people are extremely upset by the election results. I can relate to anger and rage. Yes, I can. Likewise, I accept that I am weakly human. That is why I study others who were much stronger and wiser than I.

A lot of words can be used to accurately describe Rubin Carter, but I do not think that "weak" is one of them. Although the woman's attack on her image of who I am and what I was saying was soon removed, for sake of discussion, I responded by focusing on some of Rubin's teachings. He did not advocate submitting to bad people. Instead, he favored chosing the setting of where one would contest human beings' injustices and violence. More, he spoke of what "weapons" were more likely to bring about victories, and what ones result in self-destruction.

For example, when he traveled to Texas to talk to (then) Governor Bush, he told me that George W. was the coldest human being he ever met. He said that Bush was "giddy" about executing people. Years later, when Bush was president, Rubin traveled with Mandela to try to prevent the war in Iraq. I'll never forget him calling me late one night -- he was on the other side of the Earth -- when he was traveling with Nelson Mandela.

And I remember the night Rubin was speaking at Binghamton University in 2001. He was telling how angry he was when he was in prison, comparing himself to "a grizzly bear in heat, who ain't getting none." Above the audience's laughter, everyone could hear my 4-four year old daughter yelling at her 6-year old sister, enraged about the closeness of their seats. "That's it! That's exactly it!," Rubin said, before introducing my daughters and I to the audience.

The next day, a professor contacted me, to ask if I could get Rubin to add a chapter to her book. He was working on his second autobiography, and we talked frequently at night. The professor's book was about her inability to forgive her long-dead parents. She was friends with one of my friends, a psychologist, and from what I knew of her -- and after talking with her about her book -- I thought Rubin could make an important contribution.

Below are quotes from Rubin's contribution. I know that it is not exactly where most Democrats might be open to hearing now. And that is fine. Still, I am hoping some might recognize it as a direction to move in. -- H2O Man


"I spent 20 years in prison, in a hell hole where people every day tried to strip me of my dignity. I did nothing to be there. I was given a triple life sentence for a crime I did not, could not, and would not commit. I did not belong there. Because I refused to follow their rules, I spent 10 out of my 20 years in solitary confinement -- 6 feet under ground, 5 slices of stale bread a day. I was stinking and starving. There was no morning, noon, or night -- just different shades of darkness.

"Hate took over everything, I was furious at everyone -- the two lying criminals, all the people that sent me to prison, the racist white jury who accepted the decision. All I could see was man's inhumanity to man, police brutality. All I could smell was the vile stench of shit. Simmering anger and hatred consumed me. I was existing in a living hell....

"I had to understand conditioning. People are not born hasting othersor themselves. Their hate did not need to become my hate. ..... I had to get rid of the bitterness and anguish. They only consume. I came to an understanding of who and what I am. Like Victor Frankl wrote about the concentration camps, I realized that prison provided me the tools to become all that I could be. I was able to seize the opportunity to use these horrible conditions to find something above the law. I had an opportunity to go on an anthropological expedition into an unnatural laboratory of the human spirit. ....

"Hate can only produce hate. That's why all these wars are going on, all this insanity. There's too much anger in the U.S. People are too afraid, too numbed out. We need to wipe out all of this hatred, fear, distrust, and violence. We need to understand, forgive, and love."

November 7, 2024

Four Daze

"Truth forever on the scaffold, wrong forever on the throne. Yet that scaffold sways the future, And, behind the dim unknown, Standeth God within the shadow, Keeping watch above his own." -- James Russell Lowell, "The Present Crises," 1845


It was a strange four days.

Two days before the election, I learned that one of my best friends over the past fifty years had died. He had lived a full life, though it included a lot of suffering. His son died a tragic death at the age of 17. His wife never got over that painful loss, and eventually took her own life. I will never forget the three of them.

The next day, I learned my 43-year old cousin was in a coma. She was not going to recover, and died early this morning. Twenty years ago, her brother & sister-in-law's eleven year old son died in his sleep. Shortly after that, she found her best friend/ sister-in-law, who had taken her own life. My cousin never recovered from finding her.

Then came Election Day. I was fully confident that VP Harris would win. By early evening, I turned off the news. But the next twelve hours included communications from a wide variety of family and friends. They were saying things that I am still too numb to really consider ..... Was there corruption? The numbers don't make sense. The Harris-Walz campaign was outstanding. Or it was flawed.

It is too early for me to reach any conclusions. I can say the numbers don't add up to me. Plus a friend with an extensive military career -- though now retired -- told me he is very suspicious. At the same time, I know that hatred, sexism, and racism are in style in our country.

In the next few days, I will huddle with my books about/ by Gandhi and King. And read a select few old letters from the Hurricane. But right now, I am numb.