I am at my wit’s end today after hearing the bullying from the Obama Campaign had lead to the resignation of Geraldine Ferraro as the Honorary Fundraising Chairman for Hillary Clinton’s Presidential Campaign. Actually, I have had it up to brim with the posturing, the snide comments, and the apparent dismantling going on in the Democratic Party. Finger pointing is going on, on both sides, but the comments are REALLY starting to get ridiculous, noxious, and honestly, damaging to the Democratic Party.

Have we forgotten that if John McCain is elected, we have a man who is willing to trade his principles for the sake of power? I mean McCain went from being a fierce independent, the man who co-authored the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Bill and being such a progressive that John Kerry considered him as a running mate in 2004, to being a George W. Bush sycophant. John McCain is willing to trade the principles and “independence” he champions so he can win power. That would be a continuation of Karl Rove, Iraq, Rising Gas Prices, Falling Wages, the Protection of Law-Breaking Senators like Larry Craig & Dave Vitter, while the Destruction of the Basic Civil Liberties guaranteed to all American citizens.

We are at a crossroads and Obama’s campaign calls Hillary Clinton a monster and Geraldine Ferraro a rascist. It’s all become destructive and the worse thing we have seen since the Civil War. Obama supporters are uncomfortable around family and friends who are Clinton supporters. What has been considered a wealth of riches, in terms of having a choice between a qualified African-American and a qualified Female, for President, has turned into a nightmare.

The worst part is neither side is yielding way and really they should not. Each has a legitimate claim to keep running for President. But also the longer they run, the deeper the divide, and the greater chance McCain has of winning in the fall. So is the answer the Draft of someone else who can unify the party like Al Gore, Jr., Wesley K. Clark, maybe even say another woman candidate with an African-American running mate? Well thats pandering and the wrong approach.

What is the answer? Obama-Clinton or Clinton-Obama is not the answer unfortunately because it would never happen and never would work. You think the JFK-LBJ feud was bad, wait till Round Two which is even more bloody.

My prediction is whomever loses the convention nod will be like the Republicans in 1976, where Ford won the nomination and Reagan won the soul of the party and came back four years later to win the nomination and the White House for eight year.

Stay tuned….

Today, two men are attempting to ressurect their political careers but more importantly the future of their state at the ballot box. In 1987, Steve Beshear after serving as State Senator, Attorney General, and Lt. Governor conceded a race for Governor in the Democratic primary as pictured above. In 1996, he tried to come back and he was defeated for U.S. Senate. The same year in Mississippi, a young man who had seen his dad concedes three races for Governor in the Democratic primary including 1987, conceded his own race for U.S. Congress with a smile and a wave goodbye.

Both of these men are not the stereotypical liberal or progressive Democrats like myself or whom I support. But they are what I call FAIR DEMOCRATS. They are guided deeply by their faith and their common bond to see the best for their state. Their campaigns have focused on access to affordable health care, creating more jobs and raising the economic prosperity, while protecting and providing for the senior citizens. If one rereads Jesus Christs Sermon on the Mount, they will see Christ said to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit those in prison, and take care of one another. Both of these men who attend and are active in their own churches have listened to this and done that in their lives.

I don’t claim that Steve Beshear in Kentucky or John Arthur Eaves, Jr. in Mississippi have all the answers or plans. But I know they both care deeply for the betterment of their state. They both are fair and just and will serve their states with pride and a sense of common benefit for all, not just a select few like the current occupants of the Governorships in those states.

The polls say this will be a blowout for Beshear while Eaves is closing fast but still behind. Below are the pictures that I hope mirror dual victory celebrations tonight for both of these men and their states.

Sorry for my absence, as I have been focused on schoolwork, personal life, and other pursuits. However, in this time, I have taken considerable time to ponder and consider the legacy of Albino Luciani, better known as His Holiness, Pope John Paul I. From August 26th to September 28th, just a mere 33 days in 1978, this man reigned as the Supreme Pontiff and Vicar of Christ’s Church here on earth. Heir to the legacy of Saint Peter and so many other great men, he was at the very core a true pastor, and I believe a true Saint. But a Saint of what?

For some history is of their own making but for others history is thrust upon them. For a rare few, destiny dictates the need for a certain person, but they believe they do not rise to the challenge when in essence they do. As humans, we seek recognition that our work and our purpose on earth has somehow been fulfilled. Yet, we also want a legacy quite often. The Ancient Greeks believed immortality was achieved through those who carried their name on. In Sir William Shakespere’s play, Hamlet, he implores the character Horatio, Hamlet’s best friend, to carry on his legacy and to tell his story. Recently, a new book has come out about the letters of Mother Teresa and the periods of mournful agony and loneliness she felt while serving God. Yet in humility and obiedience she served him none the less.

Since I was at the library, I picked up John Cornwell’s novel, A Thief In The Night, which was an analytical and serious investigation into the sudden death of this Pope. This is a man who never sought greatness and yet by his mere being exuded and taught more about true Christianity in 33 Days then many before him. Yet he is sadly overlooked. His sudden death and the subsequent “Who shot JR” culture of the period, as well as a major investigation/audit of the Vatican Bank made John Paul I’s death seem sinister and plotted. In actuality, it was a combination of simple things that brought his own demise, at a most inopportune time.

Here is a man who refused to wear the triple tiara crown, refused to use the royal we when speaking, and mixed both C.S. Lewis and Pinocchio into his sermons in that brief period. On three separate occasions, this Pontiff, Vicar of the Holy Roman Catholic Church, and heir of Saint Peter humbled himself during a sacred mass to serve in the role of an altar server. Some portray this as weakness and almost Hollywoodesque with a Peter Sellers-like character in the role of Pope. Yet John Paul I’s decision to humanize the Papacy made it easier for John Paul II to reach out to others and show a human and simpler side to the Papacy.

Had he lived, John Paul I would have been more revolutionary than John Paul II. Theologically he was progressive and ahead of his time. The Pope soon after his election had made statements indicating that he believed the church’s position on contraception was immoral and outdated. In conversation with several people, the Pope had indicated that a rethink of the encyclical Humanae Vitae was needed, allowing the use of the contraceptive pill among the faithful. The late Pope supported these comments by reference to malnutrition in the Third World, with the words “God does not always provide.” Luciani had been elected to the Papacy largely through the support of Cardinals from the Third World, with whom he had shared a desire for a “Third World” Pope when he arrived at the Conclave that ultimately elected him John Paul I. 

John Paul I most likely died as the result of a pulmonary embolism. It is a fact that fact that Luciani had experienced a retinal embolism in 1976. He drank 4-5 cups of coffee regularly. At the time of his election, he has stopped taking a blood coangulant during the conclave, and his feet swelled up. So much so he could not wear the slippers provided to him. There are other factors that this book brings out.

In the end, I believe Albino Luciani, should be dubbed the SAINT of WHAT IF. What if there had been a progressive Pope in the 1980’s who focused on changing society through its views of sexuality and social norms rather than through the more political Cold War Pope. It was not to be and it was God’s will otherwise.

Either way, I see in this “SMILING POPE” the face of a good man who at another point in history would have become immortal by showing that Christianity is not about forcing ideology or views of God on someone. Rather its about focusing on the here and now and meeting people where they are and caring for them there. 

Do you remember when the Iraqi War began. Those who tried to convince us that this war was for defending freedom, bringing democracy to Iraq, continuing the War on Terror & Al-Queda, but it wasn’t about oil. In fact here are some examples by the Republican conservatives who tried to convince us :

http://www.inthenationalinterest.com/Articles/Vol2Issue9/vol2issue9kohlhaas.html  (Richard M. Nixon Center)

http://home.uchicago.edu/~gbecker/Businessweek/BW/2003/03_17_2003.pdf  (Business Week)

This mantra was continued by Australia Prime Minister, John Howard (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19609710/) although President George W. Bush would reverse course and say thats why we should be in Iraq (http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/08/31/bush_gives_new_reason_for_iraq_war/) to the Boston Herald of all newspapers. While I am not always the first one beating the war drums, I do have to ask, why are we ignoring Burma. Bush condeming Burma’s ruling Junta is like wagging your finger at a petulant child and saying, “Naughty, naughty!”

Yesterday, the Junta (who have renamed Burma – Myanmar) turned its forces loose on a crowd demonstrating. In the process, the troops shot an innocent Japanese newsman. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/player/nol/newsid_7010000/newsid_7018000?redirect=7018029.stm&news=1&bbram=1&bbwm=1&nbram=1&nbwm=1&asb=1) and they have cut the internet to the nation when their atrocities were getting out to the world (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7011884.stm)

So when will we the Western World and the International Community step in and say ENOUGH?

After all, the most saddest sign is how they have slaughtered innocent Bhuddist monks and nuns, who while non-violently protesting were still unarmed. We laud Mahatma Ghandi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Nelson Mandela for non-violent protesting but we say nothing when holy men and holy women are dragged off, beaten, and killed!

It is time for us to act and say enough is enough.

When did we ever see 100,000+ Iraqis boldly marching in the streets of their capital, like the Burmese have done, demanding freedom? When did we last ever see people after the crackdowns began come back out in numbers of up to 50,000+ and continue to shout for freedom?

In 1990, a vast majority of the people voted and said they wanted Aung Saan Sui Kyi to be their leader. This military junta jailed her for over 11 yrs. Aung Saan Sui Kyi, daughter of the founder of the modern day nation of Burma, who is a Nobel Peace Prize winner (1991) has said it is up to those of us who have freedom to use it for those who cannot use theirs. More about Aung Saan Sui Kyi is at : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7016360.stm

I end by reminding you of a quote from Nazi Germany by Martin Niemoller, an anti-Nazi German theologian and Lutheran minister who penned these immortal words.

“First they came for the Communists but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists but I was not one of them, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews but I was not Jewish so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.”

Isn’t it time we acted?

Contact the United Nations at : inquiries@un.org

Contact the U.S. Senate at : 1.202.225.3121 and ask to speak to your U.S. Senator, any U.S. Senator, and ask when we will act.

Write on blogs, letters to the editor, and everywhere. Lets speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves right now!

Minnijean Brown

Ernest Green

Thelma Mothershed

Melba Pattillo

Gloria Ray

Terrance Roberts

Jefferson Thomas

Carlotta Walls

Elizabeth Eckford

These were nine young people who along with the help of Daisy L. Bates who sought to do a simple thing. Its hard to imagine just twelve years after the Jewish Holocaust had been uncovered and ninety-three years after African-Americans had been freed in this country that something simple as going to school would be such an issue. Nine individuals who wanted to get an education and for some go to school in their neighborhood. Nine people who were not rabble-rousers or bad people. Nine young people who could easily be your child, your brother, your sister, your best friend who just wanted the freedom to go to school.

They endured shouts, angry crowds, were cursed, spat upon, and eventually the only way they went to school was surrounded by the bayonets of US Soldiers. Who were those who protested, shouted, cursed, and spat upon them….us, their neighbors, fellow Southerners. Clarification, white southerners!

I am white, Christian, and a Southerner. I am proud of that heritage. I know that the God I worship and serve was cursed, yelled at, and spat upon as well as crucified. Those images bring tears of pain to my eyes. I know I am not the only one moved to such emotion. Also, as a Southerner we have heard the stories of Reconstruction and how General Sherman burned plantations and Yankee soldiers in movies are shown raping virtuous Southern women. All this imagery. But some of those who value that legacy and those atrocities turned around and visited the same indignities and assaults upon nine young people. They never hurt anyone and yet they were treated horribly and I am sure irrevocably affected for the rest of their lives.

Now fifty years later we honor them, not just because they should be, but collectively as a community try to come to terms with the horribleness we visited upon individuals. Maybe its time for us to take a page from South Africa’s way that it came to terms with similar problems to resolve this pain we face collectively as a community.

The 1995 Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act, which set up the commission, states that the commission’s aims are to investigate and provide as complete a picture as possible of the nature, causes and extent of gross violations of human rights. Amnesty may be granted to those who make full disclosure of all the relevant facts relating to acts associated with a political objective committed in the course of the conflicts of the past. It is open to perpetrators from both sides of the apartheid divide. Applications have come from police, black militants, right-wing activists and others.

Maybe this can work, but as for us, we celebrate the Little Rock Nine & Mrs. Daisy L. Bates and say a collective, THANK YOU!

Okay I have dabbled a little here and there. Nothing major just social. I thought I could quit but man I have been Jonesing too much so I decided to just give into the beast and begin hardcore. You know you just wake up, in the middle of the night, with shivers, and you think I need to do this now. You try to go back to sleep. You toss and you turn. Your friends eye you suspiciously. They ask what were you doing at 2:15 a.m.? Then you begin to compete with others. You know you can handle it but can you? You want to be in control. You know this is all that its about. You go to somewhere else, where they run the show, wanting to score a hit to calm down. You feverishly peck away and then you release and breathe a sigh of relief. You are euphoric until the next time the urge hits.

Some like Max Brantley, Pat Lynch, and Matilda are hardcore and they are hitting it hot and heavy everyday man. Theres some like Don Elkins who went straight man. They never seem to come along. Some are closet cases like over at ArkFam. I highly suspect its David Sanders so deep in the closet doing it he’s finding Christmas presents, then saying not me man. Then theres new guys on the street like Blake Rutherford with it so flashy and fancy. Its time I get mine. Its time I took control. Its time I make the ultimate fix.

What? I meant blogging. What did you think I meant?

Welcome to the Mind of Drew Pritt, Point by Point!