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Archive for July, 2010

Jul 30

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Young Democrats of America (YDA) Invalidate Young Democrats of Louisiana (YDL) Elections

I was a witness to these elections, and with all due respect to everyone involved, this ruling seems a little insane. No one took minutes? Really?

This is shameful.

The ruling:

To: Young Democrats of America National Committee

CC: Mr. Rod Snyder, Acting YDA President, Ms. Emily Robinson, YDA Secretary

From: YDA Judicial Council Chair Matthew Silverstein (on behalf of the YDA Judicial Council)

Date: July 16, 2010

Re: Judicial Council Recommendation Regarding Young Democrats of Louisiana Elections
______________________________________________________________________

Facts:

1. On or about June 1, 2010, the Young Democrats of America was notified by Ralph Johnson of the following concerns:

1. Christopher Plummer, YDL EVP, through his capacity as Election Commissioner, had placed a restriction on the acceptance of proxy votes of members of YDL. This restriction was that the proxies had to be delivered by June 9, 2010 in order to be counted. YDL’s convention was to be held on June 11, 2010.
2. Christopher Plummer, YDL EVP, through his capacity as Election Commissioner, had removed Ralph Johnson’s name from the ballot as a candidate for president of YDL. Mr. Johnson had previously been certified as a candidate for president of YDL.
3. A candidate for president of YDL, Jason Hughes, of Orleans Parish had allegedly been certified as a candidate in violation of the YDL Constitution.

2. Mr. Johnson, at that time, requested review of these allegations by the YDA Judicial Council and the assistance of YDA.

3. Following a review of the YDL constitution, YDA declined involvement and instructed Mr. Johnson to seek the review of the YDL Rules and Charter Committee.

4. Mr. Johnson, in his capacity as president of YDL, called a meeting of the Rules and Charter committee of YDL. The YDL Rules and Charter committee is chaired by the EVP of YDL by virtue of the YDL Constitution. Christopher Plummer objected to the holding of a meeting which had not been called by the chair, himself. A motion was made by a member of the committee to hold a meeting to hear the matters, which was seconded by another member of the committee.

1. The president of YDL has the authority to populate the committees, and Mr. Johnson had done so following YDA’s instruction to have the committee review the issue. Allegedly these members were approved by a vote of the Executive Committee of YDL.
2. After a number of questions were asked of Mr. Plummer, he left the call.
3. The committee then voted to remove Mr. Plummer as Elections Commissioner, voted to replace Mr. Plummer with Charlee Renaud, and voted to reinstate Mr. Johnson on the ballot as a candidate for president of YDL.

5. YDL convention and elections were held on June 11, 2010.

6. On June 15, 2010, YDA was asked to refer to the Judicial Council for review a complaint of a number of procedural deficiencies occurring during YDL state convention with regard to the election of National Committee members (President, National Committeewoman and Committeeman). This request was made jointly by Ralph Johnson and Katrina Rogers.

7. A request for more detailed information was made by acting YDA President Rod Snyder.

8. On or about June 17, 2010 YDA received a supplemental memorandum establishing twelve more detailed complaints of deficiencies from Ralph Johnson and Katrina Rogers. Those complaints are as follows:

1. The elections chairman failed to properly put rules in place for the Election of National Committee Members (i.e. State President and National Committeewoman) and subsequently the entire elected YDL Executive Committee.
2. The elections chairman systematically ignored constitutional provisions within our YDL Constitution and YDA Charter and Bylaws as well as he failed to consult or utilize Robert’s Rules of Order as required in our constitution.
3. The elections chairman was partial and biased maintaining and having inappropriate conversations with other candidates that were not privy to all candidates, including but not limited to developing and strategizing schemes to influence elections and sharing improper information with other candidates to whom he was aligned in an effort to aid their activities.
4. The elections chairman unilaterally disqualified a candidate from the elections on inappropriate grounds without the authority to do so. After which, YDA was consulted and stated that the YDL Rules & Charter Committee had original jurisdiction of the matter. The Committee was constituted and met to adjudicate the matter with, an YDA Representative present, and made several decisions overruling prior decisions of the elections chairman. The said chairman ignored those rulings.
5. The elections chairman disenfranchised membership by requiring members who submitted proxies to have registered and paid registration for the convention, but gave them no prior notice that there was a requirement for the proxies to be accepted until after registration and the business session had been called to order by the state president. There had been no notification in any previous correspondence to membership or officers that this would have been a requirement. Never before has registration for the meeting or payment of registration been a requirement to submit a proxy at any meeting, conference, or convention of Young Democrats of Louisiana. It violates YDA discrimination clauses in regards to economic status as well as DNC and LDP rules.
6. The elections chairman in conflict with item 5 (which is inappropriate) allowed those who were present, but had not registered and/or paid to vote.
7. The elections chairman allowed proxy votes to be voted inconsistent with the instructions and/or wishes, in writing and verbally, of the person issuing such proxy.
8. The elections chairman ignored the membership wishes when a vote was called for stating “he had the power to make the decision and a motion would be improper,” thus leaving a duly made and seconded motion to overturn him on the convention floor under threat of calling campus police if it was persisted, thereby forcing members to be silent on issues they would have otherwise spoke up against and vote under duress, a clear method of voter intimidation.
9. The elections chairman promulgated and allowed violations to occur inconsistent with YDA CHARTER ARTICLE XI, SECTION 1115 Requirements; Restrictions. No law or rule of any chartered unit may conflict with this Charter and any provision which does so conflict shall be null and void. Every unit shall be required to hold a general convention not less than biennially. The National Committee shall have authority to revoke the Charter of any unit for violation of any law or rule of the Democratic Party, at any level. Restrictions on voting commonly referred to as “unit rule” are prohibited. Units shall not discriminate on the grounds of race, religion, national origin, economic status, gender or sexual orientation.
10. The elections chairman promulgated and allowed violations to occur inconsistent with YDA CHARTER ARTICLE XI, SECTION 1140 Rules. Each official body of the Young Democrats of America created under the authority of this Charter shall adopt and conduct its affairs in accordance with written rules, which rules shall be consistent with the Charter and the Bylaws and other provisions adopted pursuant to authority of the Charter, including resolutions or other actions of the National Convention or National Committee. The National Committee shall maintain copies of all such rules and shall make them available upon request.
11. The elections chairman promulgated and allowed violations to occur in direct violation of YDA’s guarantees to members in YDA Charter Article XI, Section 1150 in particular Sections 1150(a), 1150(e), and 1150(f).
12. The elections chairman promulgated and allowed violations to occur inconsistent with YDA BYLAWS ARTICLE, SECTION 405 Selection of Chartered Unit Representation. Each chartered unit shall provide for the selection and, where vacancies occur, the replacement of its representatives on the National Committee. Each unit shall provide certification to the Secretary of their representatives, and such certification shall be made by the presiding officer of the chartered unit they represent provided, however, that such certification may be waived by the National Committee by a two-thirds (2/3) vote.

9. On June 20, 2010, Matthew Silverstein, Chair of the YDA Judicial Council called for a meeting, to be held on June 30, 2010, of the YDA Judicial Council after being referred the issue by the President in accordance with Section 830 of the YDA Bylaws.

10. A meeting of the YDA Judicial Council was held on June 30, 2010. In the meeting, lasting over two hours, testimony from numerous members of YDL was presented concerning the conduct of the elections of YDL on July 11, 2010. A second hearing was called for to be held on July 11, 2010.

11. On July 1, 2010, the YDA Judicial Council was presented with numerous emails and documents generated leading up to the State Convention of YDL. A recording of the YDL Rules and Charter Committee meeting occurring on June 9, 2010.

12. On July 11, 2010, the YDA Judicial Council convened for a second meeting to provide time for additional witness testimony.

Analysis of Pertinent Testimony

The focus of the question referred to the YDA Judicial Council and thereby the focus of this opinion, and these recommendations, is upon the propriety of the YDL elections concerning the President, National Committeeman and National Committeewoman as they have an active role in YDA and YDA has a direct interest in assuring the legitimacy of elections of its own officials.

It became clear through questioning and testimony presented during both meetings of the Judicial Council that no official minutes were taken of the YDL State Convention. No official record of events was available to be presented, and, therefore, the YDA Judicial Council was forced to rely on often conflicting witness testimony as to the conduct of the elections of the YDL officials, most importantly YDL officials that, by virtue of their office, hold seats on the National Committee of YDA.

A few facts were uncontested, and confirmed with the testimony of Christopher Plummer: the credentials committee of YDL neither met, nor provided a report to convention, as to the authenticated voting members of YDL; and no attempt was made to reference, follow or utilize the procedures required by the YDL Constitution, YDA Charter and Bylaws, and/or Robert’s Rules of Order. It was also uncontested that certain proxies were denied, based upon the requirement that the alleged YDL members submitting proxies register for convention, which was put into effect on the day of convention without prior notice. Un-contradicted testimony was offered that had these proxies been counted the results of the elections would have been different.

These facts alone warrant the following opinion and recommendations. It is the opinion of the YDA Judicial Council that the Young Democrats of Louisiana’s attempted convention of June 11, 2010 was so devoid of proper order and procedure that the election results cannot be considered as official acts of the Young Democrats of Louisiana.

Furthermore, we recommend to the YDA National Committee that it provide guidance to the officials of YDL and oversee the rules and procedures concerning an upcoming election to be scheduled by the YDL. Additionally, we recommend that the involvement of the YDA Southcentral Region Director be requested, as well as the involvement of the Democratic Party of Louisiana. We also recommend that YDA provide active guidance to YDL in revising its Constitution and Bylaws.

Upon motion, the YDA Judicial Council unanimously recommends that the YDA National Committee disregard, void and invalidate the attempted elections and the results flowing from the YDL convention of June 11, 2010.

The election results have not been certified as valid by the President of YDL, as is required by the Charter and Bylaws of the YDA prior to the seating of National Committee members from that state. We also recommend that the National Committee suspend and deny the seating of the President, National Committeeman and National Committeewoman from the State of Louisiana until a new and proper election is conducted.

*******************************************************

Sometimes, sunshine can hurt, but it’s absolutely imperative. As I said earlier, I was present for these elections.

I don’t dispute the integrity of the YDA Judicial Committee’s findings, but I also reject the validity of proxy votes for an organization under probationary status.

There are two sides to every story, of course, but anyone who attended the convention should be able to attest to the complete pandemonium. It’s not too surprising that YDA felt the need to intervene.

Still, it’s disheartening– not because it invalidated the elections of some good people who simply wanted to serve, but because it speaks to an overall lack of unity and professionalism.

Jul 29

1 Comment

Geaux Justin

Believe the hype.

On a personal note and in yet another attempt to hitch my wagon to his star, I will always consider Justin Cronin as a personal mentor.

When I was a freshman in college, the class schedule handbook printed the wrong time and the wrong location for one of the most popular courses on campus: A personal essay class with Dr. Marsha Recknagel. I’d heard that her classes usually attracted nearly a hundred students on the first day and that she only chose ten to fourteen students based on the quality of their writing samples. But there was a rumor that Rice printed the wrong information about her class. An upperclassman told me to show up at 2:30 on Tuesday in the new Humanities Building.

Fifteen people showed up. She took nearly all of us in.

Today, nearly a decade later, I am still very close friends with at least four people that I first met in the class, including Marsha. (The next semester, by the way, Rice printed the correct time and location for her class, and as usual, she had to wade through dozens of writing samples before determining who would make the cut. I was lucky, in many ways).

One month into the class, my father died, suddenly and unexpectedly. When I returned to Rice a week afterward, I took solace in Marsha’s personal essay class. Marsha and the class inspired me to pursue writing.

The next year, as a sophomore, there was an opening for a new fiction writing professor. Rice had selected a short-list for open, classroom-style interviews, and for whatever reason, I was allowed to sit in as a student. Each candidate would read a sample from his or her latest published book and then answer a barrage of questions from the audience (“What do you think of Updike’s ‘Rabbit’ series?” “Explain what postcolonial literature means to you,” etc.). Even for a member of the audience, the whole thing seemed intimidating.

Justin Cronin, the one candidate who went to Harvard and the Iowa Writers Workshop, was the third or fourth interview. He’d just won the Pen/Hemingway Award for Best New Work of Fiction for his book Mary and O’Neil. He began by reading a passage from his book, and I promise to you: By the middle of his reading, you could hear people- grown, adult professionals, most of whom had never read his book- weeping aloud. It was a little crazy; I was in awe.

The passage from which he read was about a wife giving birth, told from the perspective of a husband who hadn’t entirely reconciled the deaths of his parents. It may sound benign, but it was gut-wrenching, poignant stuff.

After his reading, I chatted with him outside. I think I may have told him that I’d never seen anyone make a group of professors weep like that. He seemed like a nice, personable guy, even with a 19-year-old punk like me.

I doubt it made any difference. I wasn’t a voting member of the selection committee. I was a student observer. But I remember lobbying, though I wouldn’t have used that word at the time, for Justin to be hired. After hearing his reading and then actually reading his entire book, I wanted to campaign for him.

It turns out: I didn’t need to. Justin was hired almost immediately.

I’m not sure how many classes I ended up taking from Justin, four, maybe five, if you include the literary journal he launched with his students. It was never redundant. He taught constantly.

Without a doubt, Marsha Recknagel and Justin Cronin were the most influential college professors in my own undergraduate career. Marsha taught me to be fearless, yet always fair and ethical in how I express myself. Justin taught me how to be analytical, self-critical, balanced, and real. He instilled within me a deep appreciation for contemporary fiction. He didn’t just teach me to love writing; he taught me how to write. (Writing is different than blogging, and for better or worse, I taught myself how to blog).

I don’t think it’s necessary for me to review his newest book. It’s been reviewed by practically everyone. It’s a big deal, because, yes, it’s a great, great, great book.

My point is: Justin Cronin isn’t only an amazingly talented writer; he’s also an incredible teacher and a caring friend.

Geaux Justin.

Jul 27

Arna Bontemps Museum

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to speak at length with Gwendolyn Y. Elmore, the Executive Director of the Arna Bontemps Museum in Downtown Alexandria. We spoke about the mission of the museum, the challenges it is currently facing, and the legacy of Arna Bontemps, who is largely recognized as one of the leading writers of the Harlem Renaissance.

Born in 1902, Arna Bontemps spent the first few years of his life in a small house in Downtown Alexandria. Today, the house serves as the Arna Bontemps Museum, which is the very first African-American museum in the State of Louisiana and is included in the State’s African-American Heritage Tour. Bontemps was noted as a poet, but he was versatile as a writer; he wrote fiction, non-fiction, personal essays, and even books for children.

Years ago, I wrote about Bontemps and the museum in Alexandria. At the time, I didn’t understand the importance of supporting a museum honoring someone who only lived here for a few years. Of course, I’d never been to the museum, and I hadn’t read anything Mr. Bontemps had ever written. But I thought my point was logical: If he was important to the Harlem Renaissance, then why wouldn’t the museum be in Harlem?

It was a naive way of looking at things, and I have since learned of the importance of this small museum as a cultural institution, a regional touchstone, and an historical timepiece. After speaking with Ms. Elmore yesterday, I learned something else: I learned what Alexandria meant to Arna Bontemps, as a writer and a person.

Even though Bontemps lived most of his life in Los Angeles and Harlem, it is clear that he always felt deeply tied to his roots in Alexandria. I asked Ms. Elmore to recommend something that Bontemps wrote, and the first thing she mentioned was a personal essay titled “Why I Returned.” You can read a longer excerpt here, but the essay begins:

Bontemps returned to Alexandria in order to tell the one true story he could ever possibly write: His own. It is difficult to imagine this experience didn’t change him as a writer. It’s probably the reason his late wife insisted that Alexandria would be the only proper place for Bontemps to be memorialized with a museum. He was a part of a movement in Harlem, but, to him, “returning” meant going back to Alexandria.

Ms. Elmore also recommended I read a poem by Bontemps titled “Hope.”

Hope

Lone and dismal; hushed and dark,

Upon the waves floats an empty bark.

The stars go out; the raindrops fall,

And through the night comes a ghostly call–

My lone and dismal life’s a-float

Upon the seas like an empty boat.

Above the heights where the sea-gulls soar,

The thunder lifts its resonant roar.

Like a jagged arrow a flash is sent,

That splits the clouds with a double rent.

And just beyond my bark that drifts,

Moonbeams steal through the kindly rifts.

I feel thankful to live in a community that celebrates its artists.

I pledged to Ms. Elmore to do whatever I can to locate resources to sustain the work of the Arna Bontemps Museum. It isn’t simply about honoring one man’s legacy; it’s a learning institution, a place that offers cooking classes and workshops and programs for children.

So, first thing’s first, pick up some Arna Bontemps, particularly if you’re from Alexandria. His books are his living legacy.

And second, support the Arna Bontemps Museum. Here is their website. Like all museums in the State, they’re dealing with big cutbacks. A donation, even if it’s small, is the best way of acknowledging the museum’s importance to our community, and it will make a difference.

Jul 25

Pulled

Updates: Sorry, I am not going to allow cowardly, anonymous bigots writing on behalf of a political candidate to convince me to resign. The real story in all of this is JacquesBarack: How a political campaign is sheepishly hiding behind the cover of an anonymous blog in order to launch incendiary attacks against people with the courage and fortitude to put their name behind their words, even when it opens them up for attack.

The blogger(s) responsible for JacquesBarack have continued to defame, ridicule, and insult me for being disabled, all the while insisting that I should lose my job for retracting a post on my personal website.  Apparently, the very people who have labeled me “Fetal Freddy” (because they believe I suffer from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome instead of Cerebral Palsy- Isn’t that hilarious? Aren’t Von Jennings’s friends doing such a great job?) are aghast that I criticized someone else’s actions in their official capacity- a statement I pulled, by the way. I would imagine this particular official is vehemently opposed to JacquesBarack doing his bidding, but that won’t stop JacquesBarack from continuing their bigoted campaign. (Hey, if you want to attack my record and performance in my current job, go right ahead. I can defend my record. But if you continue to attack me by making fun of my disability, then you look like nothing more than a bigoted spokesperson for Von Jennings).

I took down the previous post.

It was stupid, cavalier, and not nearly as clever as I initially thought. Sometimes, I get carried away with language, and the point gets swallowed up by my propensity for rhetorical flourishes. Sometimes, I’m just wrong.

In this case, I tried to take a very complex issue and turn it into an unfair and overly simplistic hypothetical.

It wasn’t very professional of me.

The post was so tortuously assembled that Greg Aymond thought I was actually attacking people for whom I have the utmost respect. That’s my fault.

I actually took the post down before I read Mr. Aymond’s response, but I imagine that he will probably write something about how I pulled the post offline. Because he seems to write about everything I write.

So let me nip this in the bud: I was wrong.

No one ever tells me what to publish. This is all my own self-edited commentary, which has its own inherent hazards. And no one told me to remove any post. Again, I just thought it was not up to the standards I set for myself. It was more concerned with being clever than being fair or accurate. I take full responsibility for that.

Jul 19

5 Comments

Washington Post Reveals Six “Top Secret” Gov’t Agencies in Alexandria

If you haven’t already, go check out the Washington Post‘s series “Top Secret America.” It’s provocative, incredible stuff. A huge story.

And after a year and a half investigation, even Alexandria, Louisiana popped up on their radar. The Post claims there are six “government work locations” in Central Louisiana that are a part of the so-called “Top Secret America,” but to be sure, they don’t reveal who these agencies are or how many people they employ.

Jul 18

4 Comments

Casinoland

I’m not a big fan of casinos. Often, they’re liminal spaces, like airport terminals and hospitals, places that feel inauthentic, frenetic, yet ubiquitous.

There aren’t any clocks on the walls. When you’re in a casino, you’re supposed to feel as if time is suspended. As long as you’re spending or winning money, the time of day shouldn’t matter, I suppose.

Don’t get me wrong: I’m not morally opposed to casinos or gambling.

I enjoy a friendly game of poker, for example; it’s a game in which skill is typically more important than luck, at least over the long-term. But casinos don’t rake in big cuts from their poker tables. Casinos make their highest returns with slot machines, which is why slot machines are usually the first thing you’ll encounter when walking into a casino, rows and rows of glittering, screaming, neon machines.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve heard people suggest that a casino is the key to revitalizing Downtown Alexandria. We need a riverboat, or maybe we could turn the Hotel Bentley into a casino. Look at Shreveport, they’d say, or Baton Rouge or even New Orleans.

Of course, voters in Rapides Parish have previously determined they don’t want a casino, but that hasn’t stopped people from championing casinos as a panacea.

I’ve never bought into this theory.

There are two gargantuan casinos less than an hour away from Alexandria: Paragon in Marksville and Coushatta in Kinder. Both of these casinos have massive footprints; both even feature adjacent golf courses. They’re self-contained destinations, an easy drive for anyone in the Alexandria area who wants to gamble.

It is difficult if not impossible to envision how a competing casino could be developed in Downtown Alexandria.

But perhaps more importantly, there is little reason to believe that a single casino could catalyze widespread redevelopment. Marksville and Kinder are not exactly boom towns, and despite what some may suggest, Downtown Shreveport still suffers from large pockets of blight, vacancy, and disrepair.

The recent reemergence of Downtown Baton Rouge wasn’t propelled by its casinos. It’s primarily a result of former Governor Mike Foster’s decision to move state government offices downtown. More people work there.

And the casino in New Orleans… you could write a soap opera about it. Although I’m sure they exist, I’ve never met anyone who loves the City of New Orleans because it has a Harrah’s.

Without a doubt, casinos can generate massive profits (and tax revenues), but they shouldn’t be considered catalysts for revitalization.

Some people go a step further. Some argue that casinos, particularly those in struggling communities, can actually exacerbate problems, that they rely on those who are most financially vulnerable. If you don’t have anything, then you don’t have anything to lose, the adage goes.

Ideally, casinos are tourist destinations. Ideally, casinos attract outside dollars. They work well in cities with robust tourism.

And they work well in places like Lake Charles and Kinder because of their proximity to Houston, the nation’s fourth-largest city.

Either way, with the exception of Las Vegas and Atlantic City, the casino, not the city, is the destination, and most casinos ensure that if you don’t want to leave, you won’t have to.

Again, it’s not that I oppose casinos or gambling; I just think it’s myopic to suggest that opening a casino in a place like Downtown Alexandria, which is surrounded by casinos all over the State, would be a real “game-changer.”

And even at the risk of sounding pollyannish, riverboats are cool, but the oft-repeated notion of turning the Hotel Bentley into a casino is not cool. Fortunately, it’s also completely impossible.

Jul 18

Rhodes Scholars

A few months ago, when my family and I were in South Africa, we went on a driving tour of the Cape Town area. We only had a couple of days.

We all rode in the backseat of a Toyota minivan– winding around the coast, the countryside, and the vineyards.

Our driver’s name was Mark, the same as my brother.

Mark happened to be the son of a former, prominent leader of African National Congress. His father, Reggie, was a good friend and former colleague of Nelson Mandela.

I’ve written and spoken about Mark before. He and his family were forced into exile during apartheid. When Mandela was freed from Robben Island, Mark’s family, after being away for decades, returned to South Africa within two weeks. His father was subsequently elected to Parliament.

One of the highlights of his life, Mark claimed, was when he personally accepted an award on behalf of his late mother from Nelson Mandela.

Mark said he hoped that, one day, he could open up his own South African travel agency business.

He’s taking steps. Currently, his website prominently features a glowing endorsement from the director of The Blair Witch Project.

***

My paternal family’s last name is White, and my maternal family’s last name is Rhodes.

Although I am not an expert in my own genealogy, suffice it to say, I know I’m directly related to more than one man named Cecil Rhodes.

Of course, the most famous Cecil Rhodes was a racist, megalomaniacal British imperialist who pillaged and exploited the African diamond market. He named an entire country, Rhodesia, after himself, among other things. He founded the diamond company De Beers, which controls 40% of the world’s diamonds.

And if you’re a Rhodes Scholar like Bill Clinton, Bobby Jindal, or David Vitter, then, for better or worse, you owe a special debt of gratitude to Cecil Rhodes. His estate funds those scholarships.

For what it’s worth- honestly- I have no reason to believe my family is related to world-famous Cecil Rhodes; my family probably just thought it’d be clever to name a few boys “Cecil.”

***

As we drove by the Cecil Rhodes Memorial on Devil’s Peak in Cape Town, South Africa, Mark said, “Cecil Rhodes did three great things in his life.”

“What’s that?” I asked.

“First, he died young,” Mark said. Cecil Rhodes passed away when he was only 48 years old.

“Second thing,” Mark continued, “he never had any children.”

“And the third thing,” Mark said. “Once Rhodes died, he gave us back a lot of his land.”

***

What a legacy.

Jul 15

1 Comment

An Interesting Read

It’s not very often that something nearly a hundred years old would be considered a ‘must read’. However, given our current political climate, our various financial, regulatory, and social issues at hand, and the relative dysfunction of either of our two parties to do much about them, it may be time to take a look at this.

In 1912, Teddy Roosevelt lost the Republican nomination for president to incumbent Taft. His response was to form his own Progressive Party. Known as the Bullmoose party, the Progressives lambasted the corruption of the Republicans and the inability to adjust and get anything done in the Democrats (sound familiar?). Keep in mind that Roosevelt at no point changed his political stance. He had been a lifelong Republican and felt that he was indeed running and forming this party as a true Republican.

The Republican party — his Republican party — was not one of conservatives demanding nothing in life ever change and idealizing a mis-remembered yesteryear that never existed nor never can. His party was not one of so called libertarians professing a myth that no government is the only good government. His Republican party, the party that idealized the stand of Lincoln, and drew its roots from the ideals of Jefferson (yes, I said Jefferson), was a party of progress. It was a party that was born amid massive economic and social strife and who made their original stand, albeit a very nationally painful one, forcing the nation to progress its social system which at the time kept millions of people in bondage.

What Roosevelt cedes in his break with his party is that their progress driven purpose had by this time become corrupted by power and money. The connections and siding with business interests had stripped the party of its ability to push the nation forward as needs to occur with time.

Thus, he formed his own breakaway group from supporters within the Republican Party, and this was, for the most part, the birth of American Progressive Politics.

Excepting the few things specific to the era of this election. I believe you’ll find reading the Progressive Party’s actual 1912 platform to be an eerily familiar mix of political ideas found within both parties platforms today:

Official 1912 Progressive Party Platform

Jul 14

4 Comments

Birtherism

I.

Senator David Vitter, who is now facing unexpected primary opposition from former LA Supreme Court Judge Chet Traylor, was all over the national news yesterday, after he said this at a town hall meeting:

Mr. Vitter, cutting through the mainstream media filter, here is a copy of Barack Obama’s birth certificate:

II.

And “just in case,” Congressional candidate Ravi Sangisetty, an Indian-American who is running for Louisiana’s Third Congressional District as a conservative Democrat, released his birth certificate today:

Of course, you don’t have to be a natural-born citizen to run for Congress. Louisiana Congressman Joseph Cao, for example, was born in Saigon.

Mr. Sangisetty’s campaign shouldn’t have had to do this; they shouldn’t have felt compelled to preemptively assert his authenticity as a natural-born American citizen. But given the ridiculous conspiracies around President Obama’s birth certificate, I suppose they thought they need to put this out, “just in case.”

Not that it would matter.

III.

Obama’s campaign also released a copy of his birth certificate. They even dug up his birth notices in local, Hawaiian newspapers. All of which has been independently verified.

Still, Senator David Vitter implicitly denies the integrity of the President’s birth certificate, and though he claims he doesn’t have cause to bring a lawsuit forward, Vitter supports challenges in the court.

It’s intellectually dishonest and undignified, particularly from a United States Senator. Vitter may disagree with Obama on policy, but when he, in his capacity as a United States Senator, proclaims his support for people who believe, despite the facts and the documentation, that our President was not born in the State of Hawaii, Vitter is providing legitimacy to and cover for easily-disprovable conspiracy theorists.

Incidentally, even though Vitter is the incumbent Republican nominee, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal has refused to endorse him, a sign that the Jindal camp is hedging their bets and is aware of Vitter’s political vulnerabilities.

IV.

I call on Senator David Vitter to publish his birth certificate.

V.

Or alternatively, Mr. Vitter could publicly acknowledge the President is a natural-born citizen who deserves our respect and publicly renounce any notion of Obama’s “illegitimacy,” whether it is founded on lies about citizenship, race, religion, or birthplace.

Mr. Vitter, on paper, is a smart man: an Ivy-League educated Rhodes scholar. So it’s even more difficult to take him seriously when he talks about the mainstream media filter. He seems to be feigning ignorance.

He should know better: I mean, he believes in Birthers? Really?

I mean, really?

VI.

Pathetic.

Jul 11

7 Comments

It Is What It Is

When I was about ten or eleven years old, the Louisiana chapter of a national cerebral palsy charity organization approached my family and asked if I was interested in being their poster child for the year.

I knew it was intended as an honor. I would be helping them, in a small way, raise money for kids just like me.

But I didn’t want to do it.

I said no.

The whole idea made me uneasy. I imagined my picture on the sides of giant, hollow coffee cans, perched on the counters of gas stations and convenience stores. Honestly, it seemed a little terrifying to me.

I didn’t like the way they photographed kids with cerebral palsy.

It wasn’t necessarily supposed to be a good photo of the kid; it was supposed to be a good photo of the kid’s disability: strained stances, contorted and contracted limbs, kids struggling to hold themselves up on a walker or parallel bars, a fleeting and forced smile for the camera.

Sure, I was often that kid. I spent the first fifteen years of my life in and out of hospitals and physical therapy. I’ve had more operations than I can count, and I know there are plenty of photos of me, as a child, awkwardly holding myself upright.

Whenever people would ask about the scars on my back or legs, I’d invent patently absurd stories about a war injury or a shark attack. I’d turn it into an elaborate and obvious joke. Not because the stories about my surgeries were painful to tell, but because I thought the truth was boring, totally unentertaining.

My disability is a banality for me, an everyday fact of life. I wasn’t born any other way. I’ve never experienced life from any other perspective.

It is what it is.

Believe me, I know I have been fortunate. There aren’t many people with cerebral palsy who live independently.

***

I am fortunate, in large part, because I was born to a strong-willed and brilliant father and a tenacious and incredible mother. Both of my parents would not allow me to become complacent. Both of them challenged me, as a kid, to believe that I could live an independent life, as improbable and unlikely as it may have seemed at the time.

***

Recently, I have been publicly ridiculed for my disability. It’s one of the most bizarre things I’ve ever encountered, and it’s unabashedly political.

I guess I’m supposed to feel ashamed and embarrassed, but you know what?

I don’t mind being a 28-year-old a poster child.

Fair warning: I am now obligated to support charitable donations for disabled children in need.

***

I will match your donation to Gillette Children’s Hospital, dollar for dollar, up to $1,000.

Click here to donate. (If you send a receipt of your donation to lamaw at  gmail dot com, I will match up until $1,000).

Jul 10

MSNBC Reports on Vitter Candidacy, Aide Scandal

This doesn’t appear to be going away any time soon.

If you pay close enough attention, you’ll notice that Senator Vitter is answering questions about his former aide during a campaign event in the Alexandria airport terminal (third floor, conference room). And the reporter asking the tough questions sure sounds a lot like R.T. Morgan of KALB.

Jul 10

At the Last Second, Vitter Attracts Well-Known Conservative Opponents

I don’t think anyone really saw this coming.

On the final day for qualifying to run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by David Vitter, two well-known elected officials, a former LA Supreme Court judge, Chet Traylor, and a State Senator, Ernest Wooton, decided to enter the race; both men are conservative Republicans.

Although Wooton was elected as a Republican, he will skip the primary against Vitter and run as an independent in the general election. Wooton won’t be the only conservative “independent” in the general election; at least half a dozen other conservative candidates will likely also be on the general election ballot.

Traylor, however, will challenge Vitter in the Republican primary.  TPM explains:

Vitter has plenty of money in the bank and, with just weeks to go, time on his side. But Traylor could catch up quickly.

Traylor was elected to the court on the strength of support from the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, which suggests that Vitter might have lost the support of the business community (at least over the course of the next several weeks until the primary).

And, in the meantime, Traylor will make Vitter spend money he had planned to save, and nudge him off his anti-Obama message, or at least distract him from it. Traylor appeared Friday evening with Roy Fletcher, a high-powered GOP consultant whose work helped propel Mike Foster to victory in the 1995 gubernatorial race.

Traylor was the very conservative justice who once wrote in an opinion upholding a Louisiana sodomy law that “any claim that private sexual conduct between consenting adults is constitutionally insulated from state proscription is unsupportable,” so you can bet that he’ll blast the already conservative Vitter from the right, and draw blood over Vitter’s high-profile scandals.

This race just got much, much more interesting: The incumbent Senator was handed, at the last minute, serious intra-party opposition.

From Politico:

Traylor’s last-minute filing comes as a huge surprise, however, for both Democrats and Republicans in the state. Roy Fletcher, a Republican political consultant who served as Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) deputy campaign manager in 2000, escorted Traylor to the filing office but said in an e-mail that he is “just a friend” for now. Traylor did not return a phone call requesting an interview.

Bradley Beychok, campaign manager for Melancon, said he was pleasantly surprised there was a “viable challenger at the last minute” in the Louisiana Senate Republican primary.

“We look forward to our primary on Aug. 28 and certainly Sen. Vitter has a very competitive primary with a very respected Republican on the same day,” Beychok said.

Jul 6

6 Comments

An Internet Death Wish?

Apparently, I pushed the buttons of the anonymous flamethrower behind the website JacquesBarack, which is published and operated by a supporter of Von Jennings, who is currently running for Mayor of Alexandria.

Considering the content posted by this supporter, I asked Ms. Jennings to publicly and permanently distance herself from the website. Since it launched in February, on an almost daily basis, the website has published ridiculous, hateful, and defamatory accusations against a number of public officials and private citizens, ostensibly in an effort to promote and establish Ms. Jennings’s candidacy. It hasn’t been pretty, and it’s certainly not befitting of someone who seeks to become Mayor.

So, I simply asked Ms. Jennings to respond to this, and instead, I received a direct response from the anonymous publisher of the website, who refers to me as “Fetal Freddy” (more on that, later).

First though, I respect anonymity whenever it is backed up by integrity, but when anonymity is used as a vehicle to launch baseless personal attacks and defame, ridicule, and harass others for the purpose of advancing a specific candidate for a specific office, it’s nothing more than an exercise in public cowardice. It should definitively demonstrate an attempt at circumventing accountability and transparency; it is inherently dishonest.

And considering that this is all apparently being done by a person who (anonymously) supports Von Jennings, I think it is absolutely appropriate and responsible to ask the candidate herself to respond.

Instead, it appears as if the anonymous blogger is prepared and willing to act as a surrogate. To me, that’s telling.

Let me get to the meat of this:

Read more

Jul 4

3 Comments

How Is It That No One Has Commented On

The ridiculously juvenile and asinine Blingee photo in the previous post?

Happy Fourth of July!

Jul 3

9 Comments

Duplicity, Dishonesty, and Dirty Politics

I. Greg Aymond:

Let’s get this straight: I don’t know what Greg Aymond currently does for a living. I know he had a stroke, and I believe this has been a source of suffering for him.

Like me, he is very obviously disabled, though in a completely different way.

He spends an inordinate amount of time publicly chastising people elected to represent his hometown. He believes many of them are criminals. He wants the FBI to intervene.

To me, Greg Aymond’s rants are frequently pathetic, paranoiac, absurd, and ridiculous; they are dangerously detached and often bigoted.

And perhaps this should not be surprising, considering Greg Aymond was once a member of the Ku Klux Klan and recently blogged about the “N**** Street Thugs” of Alexandria, among other things.

Knowing what I know and being fortunate enough to have a front row seat for all of this, I can report, definitively, that when it comes to the levees, Jacques Roy, the LRA, CDBG funds, and other related issues: Greg Aymond has no idea what he is talking or writing about. He’s more interested in slamming the Mayor than in reporting the facts. I’ve read everything Greg has written about the levee situation, and he is clearly and obviously disconnected and uninformed.

Rapides Parish received a waiver in order for the LRA Gustav/Ike money to be allocated for levee repairs. Greg wants to get the FBI involved. Seriously. I guess he thinks that the waiver we received is somehow a part of a grand conspiracy. Riiiight.

One more thing: To AlexCenla, my friend: DUDE, the BIGGEST “drainage” project in Central Louisiana IS levee certification. With all due respect, really?

II. Von Jennings:

Unless and until Von proves otherwise, I will continue to believe that she is personally responsible for the content posted on the website JacquesBarack dot blogspot dot com.

If Von really wants to become Mayor of Alexandria, then she would be wise to publicly and permanently distance herself from the fools who publish the website that endearingly endorses her.

Otherwise, Von Jennings is nothing more than a cowardly bigot.

And yes, I mean it: If Von Jennings refuses to reject the abject hatred posted by her most outspoken online advocates (at JacquesBarack), then Von Jennings is nothing more than a cowardly bigot.

You can’t simply get away with publicly harassing the Mayor’s pregnant wife, Von.

It is absolutely disgusting that you allowed (even if it was passive) your supporter(s) to publish her personal cell phone number, encouraging people to call her as often as possible. You sat idly by as your blogger friends posted a photograph of the Mayor’s six-year-old child, along with a fake letter your friends wrote under the child’s name.

Sick, sick, sick.

Do you honestly believe “your bloggers” are off-limits because they pretend to be anonymous, Von?

Do you think it’s appropriate to suggest that I suffer from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome? I have cerebral palsy, Von. Do you think it’s fair game to publicly defame my mother? You think it’s okay to make fun of my disability?

Repulsive.

I call on Von Jennings to personally and publicly respond to the accusations leveled by her apparent friends at JacquesBarack.

Of course, she will never become Mayor of Alexandria, but in the meantime, Von and her friends are doing an amazing job destroying her credibility and her future.

It’s sad.

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