For but a moment, whilst the Group of 20 [G20] met in London's ancient financial capital, ,"The City," the roars of remorse, could be heard. Words of woe had been whispered in hushed tones for quite some time. Scholars spoke of various possibilities on occasion. Whether Senior Economic Fellows from various think-tanks thought a system to be dead, alive, or near doomed, there was perhaps a bit of agreement. "I see what you mean. It is broken," Economist Mark Thoma mused more than a year ago.
Negotiations began in November. Decisions were reached during the month of December. By January, a retention bonus was awarded to the individual considered most superlative within the staff. President Barack Obama presented the gift. American International Group, Incorporated [AIG] executives did not receive the windfall. Nor did someone "separate" from the previous President garner the honors. Gold was not placed at the door of a New Deal Democrat. No, dollars and command were delivered to a truly Progressive person. Insider, Timothy Geithner was the recipient of a title that would sustain his service. Mister Geithner was given a reward that was worth far more than mere millions in greenbacks. Power and influence are priceless.
It is difficult, even impossible, to accept President Obama's "New strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan" as described by him in a formal speech on March 27. It fails by imperial and non-imperial standards.
First the imperial: Chalmers Johnson, a former CIA agent, reports in his book Nemesis: "The Carter administration deliberately provoked the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. In his 1996 memoir, former CIA Director Robert Gates acknowledges that the American intelligence services began to aid the anti-Soviet mujahideen guerillas not after the Russian invasion but six months before it. President Carter's purpose was to provoke a full-scale Soviet military intervention to tie down the USSR." Will an expanded military effort in Afghanistan tie down the U.S. as it did the USSR?
It is March, again. Just as I have been for years, in this month I am haunted by the hate we, humans, propagate. March 19th is the sixth anniversary of "unnecessary wars". The phrase is not mine alone. Public servants, Ambassadors, and former Presidents have proclaimed as I have. Foreign Secretaries and domestic Diplomats deem the war was a mistake. Then there are the people.
For years, many blacks have just come to accept that integration was the path to success in America. Blacks who have been able to have deftly navigated the integration maze either through employment, education, or athletic achievement. And once reaching the pinnacle of their success they have chosen to leave their neighborhoods, friends, and communities to relocate into white America where they take on mythical status as being more than black. To whites they become not like those other blacks and therefore become more acceptable to their white sensibilities. And in some cases blacks believe they have some mythical characteristics that separate them from other blacks. In their wake they leave behind a community that is devoid of role models and success stories. They leave behind a community that is becoming more financially and morally bankrupt.
President Obama indicated through his press secretary that his administration would review its policy toward Afghanistan before making a decision about sending additional troops to fight in that country. Richard Holbrooke, his envoy, was in the Afghanistan/Pakistan region talking with leaders about how best to address the military and political situation. Obama also met with advisers at the Pentagon and the State Department.
As recently as February 15, it was reported that Obama "is refusing to be rushed into his first decision to send troops into combat . . . questioning the time table, the mission and even the composition of the new forces." However, Obama changed his mind on February 17, authorizing 17,000 additional soldiers and Marines for Afghanistan in what he described as an urgent bid to stabilize a deteriorating and neglected country, joining the 30,000 U.S. troops already there.
Obama will be sending more troops to Afghanistan before he has begun to fulfill a promised rapid withdrawal of troops from Iraq. His order leaves crucial questions of strategy and tactics in Afghanistan unanswered until the strategy review is completed in April. Antiwar groups criticized Obama's decision. Tom Andrews, director of Win Without War said, "The president is committing these troops before he's determined what the mission is..... We need to avoid the slippery slope of military escalation."
The new President of the United States addressed a joint session of Congress for the first time, on February 24, 2009. Republicans were all a twitter. Grand Old Party Legislators, thumbs and fingers in flight, sent text messages to their constituents while Barack Obama stood before the nation and its leaders. Senators and Representatives from the Right were careful not to have their hands seen on camera. The persons elected to represent the people preferred to obfuscate the truth; they cared not what the Commander-In-Chief might say. As they anxiously awaited the voice of Grand Old Party, Governor Bobby Jindal, the person who would offer the Republican rebuttal, those on the right of the aisle refused to listen.
"Now, that doesn't mean that questions of Taiwan, Tibet, human rights, the whole range of challenges that we often engage on with the Chinese, are not part of the agenda. But we pretty much know what they are going to say. We have to continue to press them but our pressing on those issues can't interfere with the global economic crisis, the global climate change crisis, and the security crises. ~ Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton (February 20, 2009)
The news appeared in cyberspace on Friday, February 20, 2009. As Yogi Berra once elucidated, it was as déjà vu, all over again. International and domestic activists have come to realize, once again, America is a democracy dependent on dollars. Amnesty International advocates shook their heads, wondered, and worried of what might be. Students for a Free Tibet collectively shrugged their shoulders and expressed a shared distress. Citizens at home, in America, barely blinked. An avid Obama supporter, was resigned to realities that, only weeks ago, she might not have thought she would willingly accept. Moneybag democracy lives. Hillary Clinton serves the President, the precedent past, present, and perhaps, future.
The history of Black Americans is a glorious one. It is a chronicle filled with much triumph, as well as many trials and tribulations. Yet, many debate whether a month that commemorates people, pitch in color, defies reason. Do the days dedicated to the acknowledgement of African American achievements divide us as a nation? The answer, some say is a complex one. Consider the thoughts of Columnist, Clarence Page of The Chicago Tribune. Is Black History Month already history? Well, it depends. Another view comes from a fellow Journalist and contributor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Cynthia Tucker. She is more emphatic in her evaluation. Ms Tucker writes; Month robs blacks of part in U.S. history. It seems the subject, Black History Month, segregates opinions.
Millions in America were focused on the future. Billions, worldwide, anxiously awaited change. On January 20, 2009, the Presidential Inauguration was broadcast hither and yon. Barely a television, radio, computer monitor, or big screen was turned off. Most all tuned in to see Barack Obama take the Oath of Office. Nary a one were as moved as they were on that occasion.
Even several Republicans said they were excited. For countless, it seemed a light was turned on. Finally, the American people, our allies, and those who are often characterized as adversaries, had hope. We, collectively, believe it was possible to walk through the din that had been our doom and envision an Earth united.
The world was wowed with thoughts of what would be, as were many Constitutional scholars, concerned citizens, and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. Yet, there remained a persistent thought; our potential would not be fully realized. Several understood, as Senator Whitehouse so solemnly expressed in a speech presented on the Senate floor, a day after the festivities, As We Look Forward We Must Also Look Back. Few had an opportunity to see or hear an oration that was perhaps as honest and historic as the Presidents.
Update . . . A bell rings. The sound reverberates. A sentiment shared aloud resonates within the heart, mind, body, and soul of persons who heard the message. No matter the actions taken afterward, sullen statements are not easily erased from memory.
Days before Congress was asked to pass the stimulus package, the President uttered the now famous phrase; "I won," Republicans, as could have been expected, expressed resentment. Immediately, subsequent to President Obama's statement Democrats were said to have followed the Chief Executive's lead. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was asked if he thought Republicans might block the initiative. Empathically, he replied; "No." Today we know differently. In the House, the measure received no support from the Grand Old Party.
As we await approval from the Senate we may wish to consider, the past. Words that evoke division have a lasting effect.
Please peruse a missive penned shortly after President Obama reacted to pressure from the "Right."
It was 11:22 Ante Meridian, on January 21, 2009. I did as I rarely do. I stood silently and watched television. As one who listens to what is aired, and does so from another room, this was an unusual occurrence. However, the Cherokee wisdom of wolves, an illustration that represents the internal strife within every human being beckoned me.
Then, at the very same hour on the very next day, again I was compelled to do what is odd for me. I did not say a word as I glared at humanitarian actions took place on the screen. President Barack Obama proclaimed, by Executive Order, the United States would not torture. Nor would we, as a nation, detain presumed "combatants" without a just trial. On each occasion, I was in awe as I gazed upon what I had not imagined would come to pass. Upon reflection, the two events seem to be related.
If that is all there is, and there is more than we ever imagined, then let us keep dancing. Let us sing, and have a ball. If that is all, then we, as a country, have much. We can see the errors of our ways. We can change. Yes we can.
A Democratic society adjusts to situation. We alter course when we have gone astray. The people can choose another direction. Neighbors unite. Belatedly, as it may sometimes be, we can come together and work more wisely. We have. We are the American way, at last. At long, long last, our love has come along.
The lonely days are over. Life is like a song. At last, the skies above are blue. Our hearts were wrapped up in clover the night we looked at you, America reborn.
We found a dream that we could speak to, a dream that we can call our own. The vision is one we will, share, forever. America, you are our home sweet home.
"On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.." ~ President Barack H. Obama [Inauguration Speech January 20, 2009]
There are no words to express what today means to many, to any, to you, or to me. I cannot know what others think, or how they feel. I have faith that each of us experiences every moment in a manner that is uniquely ours. I do not presume to be able to articulate for others. I barely know what is true for me on this historic occasion. As Americans collectively stood speechless, President Barack Obama spoke. The text of his oration overwhelmed millions.
It was but a minute after the newly elected President took the "Oath of Office." At 12:01 Post Meridian, on January 20, 2009, the White House web page was changed. In the spirit of a new dawn, the Oval Office gave birth to its baby. The site entered with a scream; yet, hearts filled with joy never heard a sound. The proud parents, the American people, could not be bothered with what in other times might have seemed to be noise. As they looked upon their new Commander-In-Chief, most just stood in awe, amazed that they could have accomplished so much, with so little effort. When love gives rise to greatness, sweat and tears are trivial.
Yesterday I was among the many who went to the Wilmington train station to greet President-elect Obama and Vice-President elect Joe Biden as the train headed toward Washington, DC. Four of us (two Pennsylvania friends accompanied the teen and me) went down. We drove straight into town, parked, and headed down the street without any event.
As we approached the venue, we saw many vendors selling all the usual paraphernalia (buttons, T-shirts, sweat shirts, and various other souvenirs). We went thinking we'd be lucky to get within a block or two, but security was open and in we went. Harriet Tubman Park was the location and we were in the fenced area before we really knew what was happening. We were dressed for the cold and wind, but the weather was not so bad and the crowd blocked any wind there may have been.
(Please ponder the pictures. Walk the streets of Wilmington. Wait at the train station. Reflect on a reality that Jerry, Joe, Barack, and many more experienced on a day that will live large in history. Travel through this link. May you enjoy the reveries.)
Democracy is in play. Politicians take their positions. The people ponder as powerbrokers decide. The stage is set. Tickets are for sale, but only for a select few. Thus is the scenario. Consider the scene. New Yorkers contemplate who might fill a probable vacant Senate seat. Should their representative, Hillary Rodham Clinton, be approved to serve, as Secretary of State, Governor David A. Patterson will appoint another to fill her chair. Therein lies the problem for many of the people in the Empire State. The Constitution allows a State's Chief Executive the authority to assign a seat to whom he, or she, thinks best. People, prominent and prestigious, such as Caroline Kennedy and Andrew M. Cuomo, vie for position, and constituents have no real say. She is the daughter of much beloved and laudable President, John Fitzgerald Kennedy. He is the son of the former nationally renowned Governor of the State, Mario Cuomo.
I am asking you to believe, not just in my ability to bring about a real change in Washington, I'm asking you to believe in yours. ~ Barack Obama
The invitation arrived in an electronic mail. As much as America wishes to be hopeful, I had none. I saw the communiqué and thought it would not be possible. I would never be selected to attend the inauguration. Of all the millions who are moved by this historic occasion, while I am amongst these, my anecdote is and would be far less remarkable. My personal reflection on the Obama election, would not be tragic. Nor would any thought I might muse of move a reader to say, "Yes. She should be seated at the swearing in ceremony."
Whatever I might communicate is certainly of little interest to most, if not all. Surely, the saga of a grandson, or grand-daughter, of a slave, one who worked as their ancestors had, might mesmerize more, or at least a legend such as this would enthrall me. Indeed, it did. Only yesterday, I saw and heard a film essay on James "Little Man" Presley. This steady man in Mississippi began his career when he was six [6.] On camera, this glorious gent recounted his reality of fifty years of work in the cotton fields. He shared his sorrow; as a Black man, he was barred from restaurants and royalties that might be awarded to a white man. "Little Man" Presley also presented his pleasure.
I have a dream. I dream of a day when Americans will separate themselves from a difficult past. I dream of a time when partisan politics will not divide us. In my dream, I see a nation united; one in which Black children, white, Brown, yellow, and red offspring, people of any race, color, or creed will rise above their own imagined limits. It is more than my hope, it is my vision that together, we as a nation can give birth to what others think unbelievable. I have faith that my fellow man and I can give birth to what was not thought possible.
We can restore what was once good, and build what will be better. Old habits need not challenge us. These can be the catalyst for deep and authentic change. We need only begin.
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