Category: politics

Don’t Ask Don’t Tell- A Turning Point?

 

It seems almost impossible in this political climate but yes, in just a couple hours, Don't Ask, Don't Tell, will no longer be official government policy. This historic acknowledgment of the right of gay men and women to serve openly in the American military feels like a dramatic shift leftward. That this policy change can happen at the same moment that the GOP has just made substantial gains in Congress and President Obama seems to have become convinced that he must govern in as centrist a manner as possible is particularly extraordinary.

 

Maybe it will be revealed later that DADT repeal is part of a broader quid pro quo. Perhaps it just means the Republican leadership in Congress has decided they don't need the social/religious conservatives as much as they have in the recent past. Otherwise, why would the GOP allow the final vote to happen so quickly? Forcing the DADT vote to happen on a Sunday, after the morning talk shows, seems the play to make if you want to rally the religious right. Simply ceding ground here is puzzling.

 

Unless, that is, the GOP has come to realize that most Americans have finally come around to legitimately accepting that all of us have certain fundamental rights. Even the military brass seems to generally recognize this and, as a friend at a service academy told me recently, "Even though it's [DADT repeal] uncomfortable for us to think about, we know they're [gays] people too". Yes, gays are people too.

 

Ultimately, I believe the broader implication is that we are continually moving toward a country that has full(er) social inclusion for gays and lesbians. I have argued previously that I believe half the states will have a marriage/civil union option within the next decade. This is another overdue step in that direction. 

 

Congratulations, Congress. Thanks for doing the right thing.

 

 

FDO

 

Faux News

 

This article confirming that Fox News specifically and deliberately mimics the talking points of the Republican Party is not at all surprising. Neither is this requirement that global warming be treated as some kind of subversive theory. Yet, I feel as though this additional clarity should force an end to the charade that still exists that Fox News intends to report news in an independent fashion.

 

Having an editorial perspective makes a great deal of sense and I have no trouble with that at all as long as it’s not publicly lied about.  There should be no remaining doubt that Fox News is virtually an organ of the GOP, not particularly different than the Republican National Committee at base. Continuing to give Fox News the credibility associated with mainstream journalistic institutions is unwarranted.

 

 

FDO

 

Update- Here's a study suggesting that Fox News viewers are the most misinformed. Raise your hand if you feel a sense of surprise!

 

Obama as a Bridge- Always.

 

It seems interesting and sad that President Obama has so few ardent supporters left. The reality of his eroding support does not seem congruent with his level of accomplishment in the White House. Things have been tough for him during the first couple years of his Presidency, but he has made some pretty remarkable things happen. I suggested six weeks ago that the principal problem may be that his administration fails to tell its story well. There are not enough efforts to get his message out. I also believe the country has developed a sense of collective amnesia as we have run away from remembering that George W. Bush was our President for 8 years. Even the Republican Party has thoroughly distanced itself from him. Obama suffers from the lack of comparison now, as he benefitted from the constant comparisons in 2007 and 2008.

 

One thing I’ve begun to recognize about the prospect of creating new kinds of messages about the President is that there is no single message to trumpet. This is Barack Obama does not exist on a fixed point. There’s nothing immutable about him. He moves as he needs to move. Always.

 

I’m sure a psychologist could have a field day with this interpretation. Just consider the rough outline of Obama’s story. Half White, half Black. Born in the part of America that feels least like the rest of America. Living as an outsider in virtually every moment of his childhood. Being broke while in the Ivy League. And now, being young, inexperienced and Black in the Oval Office. He moves as he needs to move because he has always needed to do so.

 

That strength may be part of the reason President Obama seems such a natural mediator. In most contexts, that’s a tremendously valuable skill! I believe that he always wants to manage situations so that everyone feels a sense of victory. Just consider who his Secretary of State is!

 

Unfortunately, all those compromises and efforts at conciliation make it hard for him to lead. And, personally, Obama’s approach makes it hard for me to understand what matters most to the President. I don’t remember the last time he resolved to do (or not do) something because he cared about it enough NOT to compromise about it. Even though I think he’s made some fantastic successes, I imagine there’s not much he has done in office to inspire continuing faith in many people. There’s nothing to be counted on just because it exists at his core. There doesn’t seem to be a core.

 

 

FDO

 

Bush’s Book Part 2

 

Where are the articles comparing Karl Rove’s book to George W. Bush’s book?

Since Rove seems to have fictionalized some of his account, does Bush correct the story? Are the trouble spots, uh, I mean, decision points, critical ones? Have we already decided that we just don’t care anymore? Never mind. I shouldn’t ask the question if I can’t accept the answer…

 

FDO

 

New Evidence for Expanded Health Insurance

 

Health insurance should no longer be seen as optional. The CDC has released a new report that indicates more than 59 million Americans were without health insurance for some portion of 2009. Adults between 18 and 64 accounted for 50 million of that total. This is another great indication that broader health care inclusion for this country was a real necessity.

 

Everyone knows that the costs of health care, or worse, the costs of going without health care, are extraordinary. What has not received enough attention is the depth and breadth of the problem. This issue is not about poverty or race or even the recession. It’s about individuals and families being overwhelmed by systems they don’t understand and costs they can’t manage. That is precisely when the government should intervene. The Obama administration should broadcast this report as loudly as possible to help make the case that health care reform is critical and repealing it would be disastrously cruel. Besides, as I recently asked, when Americans begin receiving additional coverage, who among us will want it to go away?

 

 

FDO

 

Bush’s Book

 

I’m not that interested in reading what President George W. Bush has to say about the topics he’s interested in discussing. Today is the release date for his book but I have a very different list of things I want to know. Namely, what were his immediate reactions to some of the events that happened while he was in office.

 

These aren’t the most important things, just important things Bush wouldn’t necessarily have known about it in advance. First responses are always telling. Inquiring minds want to know.

 

Here’s my list:

 

The first American has died in Afghanistan

Daniel Pearl is killed

Pat Tillman

Columbia disaster

Saddam Hussein’s capture

Re-election is confirmed (Remember that in the 2004 Election Bush almost lost in a similar fashion to the 2000 Election he won. That year, Ohio could have disrupted the popular vote/Electoral College relationship.)

Colin Powell’s resignation

Fidel Castro’s resignation

Sarah Palin as John McCain’s VP choice

Barack Obama winning Nobel Peace Prize

 

 

FDO

 

Governing First, Elections Second

 

Will Saletan wrote:

Politicians have tried and failed for decades to enact universal health care. This time, they succeeded. In 2008, Democrats won the presidency and both houses of Congress, and by the thinnest of margins, they rammed a bill through. They weren't going to get another opportunity for a very long time. It cost them their majority, and it was worth it.

And that's not counting financial regulation, economic stimulus, college lending reform, and all the other bills that became law under Pelosi. So spare me the tears and gloating about her so-called failure. If John Boehner is speaker of the House for the next 20 years, he'll be lucky to match her achievements.

 

 

While I disagree with Saletan on the merits of health care reform, I think his points here are underreported and extremely important. Modern American politics now seems to be more about elections than about governing. Certainly, it’s more about elections than Big Picture governing. (Of course, when one party consistently claims that government is inherently problematic, I suppose that makes perfect sense.)

 

The transformative legislation that has been passed in the last two years will create long term changes in the US. While some of those changes are currently controversial, how many folks will argue in, say 2015, that they want to get rid of the laundry list of projects, programs and developments embedded in that legislation? Well, how many people want us to get rid of Social Security? Or Medicare? Or the federal interstate system? People may say they hate big government but they sure do like what it provides.

 

Ultimately, producing valuable results is what people want most from our government and the Obama era has already moved us in that direction. So yes, there is a real chance that Obama will be a one term President. There is also a real chance that in 50 years, he’ll be perceived as the best one term President. Not the trade he’d suggest, but certainly a good one.

 

 

FDO

 

BTW- I think Obama has an excellent chance at winning re-election in 2012. He has a great combination of skills for campaigning. He’ll also have an improved economy, the incumbency edge and a long list of sound bite worthy successes. I also believe there will be ‘hate fatigue’ in which many folks will be turned off by the constant barrage of vitriol thrown his way. One of the important lessons of John Kerry’s 2004 race is that the independents who vote in Presidential elections, but not mid-term elections, will be much more likely to vote for someone as opposed to against someone.

 

 

Justified Use of Force (for Oscar Grant)

 

 

Every year there’s a new one

A Diallou, King or me

Clamoring loudly

Faces on TV

We ask so many questions

But no one’s forced to answer


 

With sympathy’s short half-life

Soon most are hoping for the noise to stop

And the questions to disappear once again

Just like us

In our lives

And our deaths

 

 

 

 © Gayle Force Press 2003

 

RIP Oscar Grant

 

Once again, Black folks in California are publicly distressed about a police shooting. This time, the victim was Oscar Grant, a 22 year old Black man who was shot and killed by a White police officer in a subway at the beginning of 2009. The officer was convicted of the shooting (involuntary manslaughter) and given a 2 year sentence. The frighteningly short sentence is the source of the protests. The officer, Johannes Mehserle, will probably be out of jail by Memorial Day 2011. 


The CNN article linked above is indicative of the attention that's been/being paid to the entire situation. Grant's name does not appear until the 11th paragraph. 10 paragraphs before this dead person is even acknowledged by name. 

 

The basic outline of the shooting is tragically familiar. White officer kills unarmed Black man. Momentary outrage. Down the memory hole. Wait a little while. Repeat. 

 

A few years ago, I wrote about this cycle of police violence but I wasn't bold enough to follow it to the ultimate conclusion for so many young Black men, death. Instead, I wrote about the violence that wounds, heals and scars. Today, that doesn't feel like quite enough. It's not quite enough for me. It's not quite enough for Oscar Grant. But it's all I can give him now. 

 

 

FDO

Ta-Nehisi Coates on a Culture of Poverty

 

<Sigh>

 

I immediately related in many ways to Ta-Nehisi Coates' recent post about almost beating someone up at a professional gathering. In the super short version, TNC was accosted by a stranger. TNC and the stranger had an interaction that got heated and then got superheated. When TNC tried to physically leave the situation, the stranger followed him and refused to end the exchange until TNC made it clear he was willing to move from verbal to physical. The guy left. (Hey, I can admit that I still have the occasional dayflash about beating the hell outta someone.)

 

 

Fortunately, I think, I never wore the tough pose very well either. That lack of fit made it much easier to take off when I needed. The notion of code shifting is very important because those of us who do it well simply have more choices than those who don't. It sounds to me that the conversation TNC had at the party shifted into being a confrontation and his default response to confrontation is radically different than his default response to conversation. He shifted codes subconsciously.

 

 

This gets to the broader notion of poverty's culture in that TNC had lots of teachers for both the 'street' and 'elite' codes he now knows well. Most kids who grow up poor only get one set. That's one of the core reasons why I believe many elite institutions hold more value for non-elites than for elites. My poor students, Black and White, get much more out of our program than the rich kids do. The poor kids learn academics and culture. The rich kids just learn academics. That's largely because my school replicates many of the norms and themes of elite life. One area where I think we push some rich kids to code shift is our emphasis on social justice. They don't get those kinds of messages from the rest of their culture and the leaps many of them have to make to embrace social justice as a value often mirror the leaps poor kids here make to personal restraint (which I argue is an elite value).

 

 

The kind of restraint TNC wishes he'd demonstrated in the story he relates fits perfectly in The Atlantic but would be laughable if he were telling the story to his friends at the domino table. My guess is that he would feel pressure to alter the ending in that setting. In the new telling he'd probably make sure his friends knew a) how serious he was in his threat b) how well the threat worked and c) how much he wishes he'd been able to act out the threat.

 

 

But maybe I'm just projecting.

 

 

FDO