By Jerry Waxman

I’ve been blessed over the years to have worked with some incredible talent on stage, whose ability to communicate holds me in awe. J. D. Sutton is a gifted actor who, for two hours, so completely commands your attention, you don’t realize the time has elapsed. Back in 1998 my wife saw his original 45 minute performance of Twilight at Monticello at Chapters Book Store which included dinner. She immediately called me and said “this is a play you’ve got to produce.” I called J.D. and we hit it off immediately. We were both from Philadelphia, the Cradle of Liberty, and we were age and education contemporaries. We got together and discussed expanding the play to two acts. We reworked the play and rehearsed for what seemed forever. Our scene shop built him what looked like an exact duplicate of the Monticello room. I booked him to open a week before July 4^th with a special performance on that day. We ran for five weeks and J.D. and I were able to pay a few of our bills (not all) from the profits.

Twilight at Monticello is set in the spring of 1821. Jefferson died on July 4^th 1826 as did John Adams, 50 years to the day after the popular version of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the beginning of the American Revolution. He is getting on in years and is recovering nicely after an autumn and winter suffering from ill health. Since he’s now feeling pretty chipper he has invited you into his home to explain his life and career while he still can. He’s been pretty active since January writing his autobiography and finalizing the campus of the University of Virginia. He has not yet found out about his poor finances due in part to the Depression of 1819. He’ll learn about that later in the year. During the course of the evening Mr. Jefferson talks about his life, loves, his long career, his close associations, his inventions and what he believes to be his greatest failures as well as his greatest accomplishments. Oddly enough, he didn’t consider his political career to be a worthy accomplishment; he felt that it was a duty and responsibility that all citizens should take part in. The hook in the evening is at the end of the performance when Sutton, still in character, dressed as Mr. Jefferson will take questions from the audience. You will be astounded at the facility and ease with which your questions will be answered. After a few minutes Sutton comes back on stage sans costume and answers the questions you REALLY want answered (you know where I’m going with this). This two hour evening is well worth it.

A few years ago during the 2008 campaign I received an e-mail from J.D reminding me that Jefferson only won the 1800 election by one vote, and it was cast in the House of Representatives due to a tie in the Electoral College. Can you imagine what this country would look like today, or if we would even be here today had John Adams (the Royalist) or Aaron Burr won in 1800? I shudder to think of the consequences. Since it was also an election year Sutton included Jefferson’s stated Principles of Government from his first inaugural address on March 4, 1801:

Essential Principles of Government

Friends and Fellow-Citizens:

Called upon to undertake the duties of the first executive office of our country, it is proper that you should understand what I deem to be the essential principles of our Government, and consequently those which ought to shape its Administration.

~ Equal and exact justice to all men, of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political;

~ Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none;

~ The support of the State governments in all their rights, as the most competent administrations for our domestic concerns and the surest bulwarks against anti-republican tendencies;

~ The preservation of General Government in its whole constitutional vigor, as the sheet anchor of our peace at home and our safety abroad;

~ A jealous care of the right of election by the people – a mild and safe corrective of abuses which are lopped by the sword of revolution where peaceable remedies are unprovided;

~ Absolute acquiescence in the decisions of the majority, the vital principle of republics, from which is no appeal but to force, the vital principle and immediate parent of despotism;

~ A well-disciplined militia, our best reliance in peace and for the first moments of war till regulars may relieve them;

~ The supremacy of the civil over the military authority;

~ Economy in the public expense, that labor may be lightly burthened by taxation;

~ The honest payment of our debts, and sacred preservation of the public faith;

~ Encouragement of agriculture, and of commerce as its handmaid;

~ The diffusion of information and arraignment of all abuses at the bar of public reason;

~ Freedom of religion;

~ Freedom of the press;

~ And freedom of person under the protection of the habeas corpus;

~ And trial by juries impartially selected.

These principles form the bright constellation which has lighted our way, and guided our steps through an age of revolution and reformation. The wisdom of our sages and the blood of our heroes has been devoted to its attainment. They should be the creed of our political faith, the text of our civic instruction, the touchstone by which to try the services of those we trust. And should we wander from them in moments of error or alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps, and to regain that road which alone leads to peace, and liberty, and safety.

Since that initial presentation J.D. has taken the show to many places including performances for the Heritage Foundation, RNC, DNC as well as the ACLU. Every citizen, no matter what their political leaning, has a lot to learn from this encounter. He has been praised for his work by both theater critics and political pundits. The Orlando Sentinel said “you won’t see a better rendition on stage of the man from Monticello than this” and the quote from Carpenters Hall at Independence National Historic Park was “an exceptional evening presented by an exceptional actor.”

Twilight at Monticello, an Encounter with Thomas Jefferson will be presented by Hillsborough Community College, Ybor City Performing Arts Bldg., E. Palm Ave. and North 14^th St. Tampa. There are two performances Thurs, March 1 and Sat, March 3 at 7:00 PM. Tickets are: General Admission $10.00, Students and Seniors $5.00. There are no reservations and tickets are sold on a first come, first serve basis.

Hillsborough Community College is also presenting in the same series Richard Coppinger in Clarence Darrow, My Life on Wed, Feb 29 and Fri, Mar 2.

By Jerry Waxman

Interesting stuff blowing in the wind recently. It’s called the baseless blame game. In Oakland the police have conveniently tried to blame Occupy Oakland for a tragic murder in Berkeley using the excuse that their resources were tied up handling peaceful protesters and they could not respond to the 911 call. Here in Orlando there was some vandalism done to a couple of ATM machines in Ocoee by a single person who was caught on camera. WKMG, Channel 6 filed a story at one of the banks involved and the gist of the story is that the Ocoee police speculate that it could be someone affiliated with a group like Occupy Orlando. The investigating officer was not identified and the police department offered no opinion on the matter but that didn’t matter to channel six.. Neither the on air reporter nor the anchors offered any explanation as to why the speculation was centered on the occupy movement, nor offered any reason why it should be. It’s just a ploy to get your attention focused on a group that does not advocate violence in any form by suggesting that they use violence without any proof whatsoever. This was the kind of ploy that Captain Jeffrey MacDonald used in 1969 on the heels of the brutal Manson Family murders of Sharon Tate and Abigail Folger when he was accused and eventually convicted of murdering his family. In those days, forty years ago the country was trapped in the paranoia and fear of “others who do not act or think like us.” Even though it was a few years later, the Patty Hearst affair was part of that period.

Occupy Orlando’s media team was quick to respond to the baseless allegations. Here’s a copy of their press release:

Ocoee Police Dept smears Occupy Orlando with baseless accusations of ATM vandalism
WKMG Channel 6 News reporter Eric Von Anchen says “police believe” Occupy Orlando is responsible for attacks

February 22, 2012 – ORLANDO, FL – Occupy Orlando was surprised to learn that the Ocoee Police Department is publicly accusing Occupy Orlando of vandalism on two ATM machines located at Bank of America and SunTrust branches in Ocoee. In the television report on WKMG Local 6 news, anchor Lauren Rowe reports that “investigators are trying to figure out what triggered a man to attack,” several ATMs.

Occupy Orlando remains dedicated to preserving a peaceful, nonviolent movement dedicated to empowering the 99 Percent.

Channel 13 also showed the video but refrained from any speculation. The Orlando Sentinel wrote about the incident and never once mentioned Occupy Orlando. Members of Occupy Orlando through their website and social media networks are upset with Channel 6 and their reporting of the incident and they are demanding that WKMG issue a formal retraction.

The people of Occupy Orlando are at a loss to explain why an incident in Ocoee would be tied to them. “The young man in the video appears to be well dressed and neatly groomed person driving a late model clean car; that is not what WKMG would want the public to see as a stereotypical occupier” said one veteran Occupy Orlando member. That happened in Ocoee and we’re in Downtown Orlando working on important issues that affect everyone. Don’t blame Occupy Orlando for that.”

Nope. You just can’t make stuff like that up……oh, wait……or can you?

By Jerry Waxman

If you’re thinking that the occupy movements are fading away you might want to consider thinking twice. While the larger cities have been foolishly wasting whatever political capital and credibility they still have on trying to obliterate the camps, other camps in smaller cities and towns. It is true that many of these occupy sites have lost some population there is a hard core of idealists that refuse to let it go away. If you think that that the occupations haven’t had an impact, then you are wrong again. In Orlando city, county and school board officials have felt the impact of ordinary people watching them and keeping tabs. The conversations have changed. When something new or radical challenges the establishment the first reaction is to quell the opposition. Cities will use force, which will only give them a temporary advantage. The occupy movements are learning every day how to adapt to the conditions.

Saul Alinsky has risen, like Lazarus, from the grave.

Recently Newt Gingrich has invoked the name of Saul Alinsky as something evil. Alinsky was the organizing genius, through his Industrial Areas Foundation, that got communities and unions throughout the country organized into positive action to improve their lot in life throughout the thirties, forties and fifties. He also spent considerable time in jail, which only helped the causes he worked for become more resolute. It was never a deterrent. In the sixties he read the signs correctly and noted that the middle class was to be the next target of the establishment. All throughout his career Alinsky never joined any of the organizations that he worked with and never entered into an action without being invited by the oppressed group. He never imposed himself or his organization on them. Interestingly, his initial funding came from a member of the Pritzker dynasty. I could include links here but that makes your job too easy. Take the time and read about Alinsky, especially his 1968 Playboy interview. It’s no wonder that Gingrich demonizes him. He’s scared to death of what would have happened if Alinsky had lived to organize the middle class.

Dick Armey thought enough of Alinsky that he made “Rules for Radicals,” Alinsky’s 1968 best seller required reading for his Astroturf Tea Party organization. Some of the tactics worked for a short while, but as in “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” once the wrong hands get hold of the information it backfires on them. That’s because Alinsky’s strategies are designed for community action that is positive in nature, not destructive. Recent repressive and oppressive laws, either proposed or passed by Republican controlled state legislatures and Governors, is meeting severe resistance from all kinds of community groups. Wisconsin and Ohio are good examples. Wisconsin voters will likely recall Governor Scott Walker and a few more legislators and the voters of Ohio overturned a recent anti-collective bargaining law. Community outrage had its effect on the Florida Senate’s 19-21 recent defeat of the Prison Privatization bill, despite Governor Rick Scott’s support.

Hope springs eternal

Occupy members have been active in Tallahassee since the beginning of the legislative period, along with members of the AFL-CIO, Organize Now, and a host of other community groups, so it is no coincidence that new groups are starting to spring up. The press release arrived on Feb. 9 that The Hope Church will host the “Occupy Our Community” Panel Symposium on Friday, February 24, 2012, 6:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m., at 3032 Monte Carlo Trail, Orlando, Florida 32805. The event is supposed to raise awareness of growth challenges in the neighborhood of Washington Shores, while addressing potential solutions for shaping a community that can deliver greater economic vitality. Washington Shores is a west Orlando neighborhood established by a civic group more than 65 years ago.

“Citizens of the Washington Shores community rank among the highest in Orlando in joblessness, and experience significant economic, health and educational disparities,” states Bishop Allen T.D. Wiggins, Senior Pastor, at The Hope Church. “Given this, I’m pleased to know that our “Occupy Our Community” forums will stimulate much needed conversation with key stakeholders about what is required to implement a paradigm shift in this economically disadvantaged area,” he adds.  Scheduled panelists include: Allie L. Braswell, Jr., President, Central Florida Urban League; Dr. Robert M. Spooney, President, African-American Chamber of Commerce of Central Florida; David Rucker, President, Greater Washington Shores Area Association; Clinton Salter, Community Resident; Tezlyn Figaro, Founder/CEO, The Allied Group; Virginia Whittington, Metroplan Orlando; Dr. Larry Mills, Senior Pastor, Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church; and Derrick McRae, Senior Pastor, The Experience Christian Center. The program will be moderated by Don Miller, radio host, the Big 810 AM; Frank Mitchell, Business Strategist; and Pastor Sharon Riley.  This is an admirable position for the community to take. One can hope that these discussions will lead to positive action.

Lights, Camera Action!

The demise of ACORN stopped the organization from further being effective. It did not stop the people who worked for ACORN from being civic activists. Many of them are working with other organizing groups. Former ACORN activists started the “Pink Slip Rick” movement in Florida which continues to grow. About three weeks ago a new group giving itself the working title Orlando Unity formed and started to meet. This is a loosely based assembly of occupiers, union members, organizers and activists who regard action over words. While forming ideas is important the implementation of effective action is just as important. This is a group of people who are actually doers. The meeting was to take place Sunday at a union hall in College Park, however, the hall was being used, due to a scheduling snafu, by a group of Elvis impersonators. Coming on the heels of Whitney Houston’s death (more on that in a future column) on Saturday it seemed eerie.

“Smoking, drinking, never thinking of tomorrow, nonchalant.

Diamonds shining, dancing dining with some man in a restaurant……”

The first action will be coming shortly as it was learned that the Florida Senate had just whizzed SB 7210 through committee and would bring it on the floor on Thursday, Feb. 16. The bill specifically cuts the minimum wage for tipped restaurant employees from $4.65 per hour down to the federal Restaurant worker’s wage of $2.13 per hour. The battle for higher Florida server wages was fought in a 2005 constitutional amendment and the conservatives have never forgotten it. The Florida Lodging and Restaurant Association, as well as Darden Restaurants, who operate Red Lobster, The Olive Garden, Longhorn, The Capital Grille and Bahama Breeze and OSI Partners, who operate Outback Steakhouse, Bonefish Grill, Carrabba’s and others are solidly behind this bill, which most likely was written by lobbyists from the Florida Lodging and Restaurant Association. The effect of the bill is to cut $100.00 per week from the earnings of a typical server in these and other restaurants. Since the Association says the two large chains are already having good years, and they predict record profits for the next year this only confirms that they want to guarantee their profits on the backs of their employees. Actions are being planned right now to address this by Orlando Unity and other allied groups, plus there will be a delegation from Miami in Tallahassee to address this with legislators. The politicians in Tallahassee are also going to try to push through a speedup foreclosure bill which will take away people’s rights to go to court over their foreclosure action. Expect lots of community actions and fireworks over this political hot potato, which will be the subject of my next column, unless I feel inspired to write about Whitney Houston and right now I’m fighting the urge successfully.

Introducing the 1948 Studebaker*

Discretion got the better of me after the Florida Democratic Party State Convention held at Disney’s Contemporary Resort back at the end of October so I didn’t write anything about it rather than say anything negative. Let’s just say that the highlight of the convention was Friday night when Debbie Wasserman Schultz and VP Joe Biden took the floor at a closed big dollar a plate dinner. The rest of the convention could have been phoned in without actually being there and I could have taken advantage of  any of Disney’s great golf courses. Sure, the Saturday night parties were great but I didn’t have to spend the money to attend the convention for that. My point is that being at the Contemporary was an absolute disaster for people who weren’t staying there and the only thing accomplished was that they would re-elect the President. Short sighted move if you ask me. The fact that the party did not schedule a primary had an adverse affect on this state.

The comparison to the 1948 Studebaker comes from an observation I made when my father bought one and drove it home for the first time. Like many others I said “Gee, which way is it going?” It really did have great styling and was far ahead of the Big Three for a few years. Unfortunately, Studebaker rested on its laurels for too long and had to merge with the more conservative Packard  Motor Co (Are you catching my drift here?). That merger didn’t last too long and by the mid sixties it was all over. My question is “Gee, which way is the Florida Democratic Party going?” By blindly cutting off any and all discussion of finding a primary opponent the party insured a win for tax cutting legislation in Orange County and probably several other counties and cities in the state. Without a primary there is no measuring of grass roots support for any policies or positions that any candidate may take. Without a primary Democrats just didn’t go to the polls. We really don’t need to fight voter suppression laws as long as we have disengaged and disinterested Democrats and that is squarely in the lap of the state party. The party needs to find out which direction it is going and should at least trade up to a 1962 Avanti, preferably made in this country, not Canada.

* The car pictured here is most likely a 1950 model. The 1948 grille was flatter and looked more like a Chrysler Corp front. The 1950 Bullet (or T-33 Jet) nose just looks better and it is more modern.

By Jerry Waxman

Word got around a few weeks ago that U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights (wow! That’s a mouthful, and no acronym!) will be holding a field hearing, its first ever, anywhere in Tampa, Florida on Jan 25^th. The purpose for this hearing is to examine the impact of Florida’s new voting law, HB1355, which restricts early voting and makes it nearly impossible for third party groups such as the League of Women Voters to help people to register to vote by imposing steep fines for even the slightest infractions of the new rule. It turns out that this was done at the urging of Florida Senator Bill Nelson who voiced deep concern about the new legislation.

Nelson has been hard at work since before the legislation was passed, writing letters to Governor Rick Scott asking him to veto the pending legislation on May 5, 2011 and again on October 25 asking him to reconsider and repeal it. He has written several letters to major newspapers across the state warning of the negative impact of this legislation. After being ignored by Scott Senator Nelson reached out to Senator Durbin and asked him to hold hearings on the issue. He also on Nov. 3^rd wrote to U.S. Attorney General asking the Justice Dept. to get involved.

Durbin, meanwhile had been holding hearings on voter disenfranchisement since the beginning of September. Florida is not the only state involved. Twelve states have already passed similar laws in the past year and others have pending legislation. Nelson testified before Durbin’s subcommittee on Sept. 8^th about his real concerns. Durbin also sent Scott a letter but received no reply Durbin agreed with Nelson that hearings had to be held and the request was approved by Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy.

During the ensuing weeks progressive groups in Central Florida were discussing attending the hearings and adding their voices to the witness list. Occupy Orlando, which maintains a friendly relationship with these groups, was also prepared to have individual members attend. What was not apparent, however, was any statewide organized effort to be a factor at the event. Finally, about ten days prior to the event Michael Steimle of the Florida Democratic Party (on Facebook) sent out information about their planned rally before the hearings. Well, someone at the state party level finally woke up from their collective stupor and realized that this is a BFD and that they should do something about it. After all, HB 1355 is aimed specifically at people who most likely vote for Democrats, and it is a direct slap in the face to all who fought the civil rights battles back in the 50’s and 60’s and all who fought in our wars for our right to vote as well as our other hard fought for freedoms.

Phone calls came from Tony Scelzo who works with AFSCME retirees who was counting on getting as many people there as possible. Clare Flannery, Senator Nelson’s Assistant Press Secretary sent lots of information regarding what would be discussed during the hearing, including a partial list of witnesses who would be testifying. Durbin’s office was handling the details and anyone who wanted to testify had to be cleared by them.

The Rev. and Mrs. Bracy

The rally was scheduled to begin at 11:30 AM in front of the Hillsborough County Courthouse.TV news trucks endlessly wrapped around the corner. CNN was there and was interviewing high profile civil rights activists like The Rev. Gerald Bracy and his wife LaVon, who are civic activists in Orlando. By the time 11:30 rolled around there were over 500 people in attendance with only a handful of Tea Partiers holding signs saying “Pink Slip Bill” and defending HB1355. One other protester in the crowd was shouting that he had voted for Obama in 2008 and that Obama had betrayed all progressives. He was put in his place by Tony Fransetta, a fiery 76 year old Korean War disabled veteran who is head of the half million member Alliance for Retired Americans in Florida. Fransetta was also the first speaker on the rally program, introduced by Allison Morano, Vice Chair of the Florida Democratic Party, who also acted as emcee. Our camera was not ready so we missed the first two minutes of video but here is Fransetta speaking passionately.

Morano then introduced in succession Jen Fenn, head of the Florida Young Dems, Dominique Gellin, a UCF student who is head of all Florida College Dems, former state representative Bob Enriquez who spoke of minority representation, State Rep. and incoming House Minority Leader Perry Thurston, who spoke about the legislative battles over HB1355, State Rep. Mark Pafford who also addressed HB 1355 and State Rep. for the Tampa area Betty Reed who told the crowd “Not This Time.”  The most passionate speech was given by the Rev. Charles S. McKenzie Jr., state coordinator for the Rainbow Push Coalition spoke about the civil rights battles of the 60’s and the signing into law of the Voting Rights Act by President Lyndon Johnson and the continuing struggles by minorities to vote. Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod Smith closed the proceedings stating that it’s a hard act to follow the Rev. McKenzie, yet he did vow to continue fighting the legislation.

After going through the courthouse security check over three to four hundred interested spectators went upstairs to the ninth floor to attend the hearings. The Judicial Conference Room barely holds over one hundred and fifty people, so most spectators had to wait in the overflow rooms or in the hall. Once in the hearing room (yes, press credentials needed to be shown) the whole press corps was cordoned off into what appeared to be the jury area. Fighting for space, in order to set up cameras was like a Capture the Flag game or the basement sales at Alexander’s. They were like sardines standing up in their can, yet everyone was helping each other set up and offering extra cables to those who needed them. Once everything was set up, Nelson’s Press Deputy handed out a press packet and shortly afterwards one of Durbin’s staffers handed out a voluminous packet that both stated the hearings purpose and his prepared remarks, as well as the names, qualifications and prepared remarks of the seven panelists chosen to testify. It seems the only thing left to chance were the answers that the panelists would give during the Question and Answer period and based on the prepared statements you could bet that the questions weren’t going to be too probing

The whole event took on the feel of a professional touring company doing a staged play reading of a familiar show. There was the proper air of (harrumph, harrumph) solemnity. No one expected the specter of Senator Johnny Iselin bursting in and declaring that there were exactly 57 communists in the Supervisor of Elections office, and no one expected Dalton Trumbo to plead the fifth. No Joseph Welch was going to protest the ruthless questioning of these witnesses. No Alexander Butterfield was going to shock us with his revelations under questioning and no Woody Allen was going to tell them to go (expletive deleted) themselves. No, the folks who orchestrate these things have learned their lessons well and after years of rehears….er..practice have honed this into a finely tuned art. This is not a fact finding mission-they already know the facts. They know beforehand where they are going with this and they know within one or two percentage points where the conclusion is. This is strictly a show for the public to let the public know that they are doing their job with all of the (harrumph, harrumph) officiousness and solemnity they can muster.

Orlando Activists Phyliss Hancock and David Rucker

Senator Durbin opened the proceedings and did mention that he had invited Republican members of the subcommittee to join him in the hearings. They did decline, however they recommended one witness who will appear in the first panel. Durbin also invited Governor Scott to testify but received no reply. The prepared remarks briefly outlined the complaints about HB1355 and he talked about the history of fighting for voting rights in the country. Senator Nelson then had the opportunity to give his opening remarks. Here’s a video of the opening remarks. The first panel was introduced: Ann McFall, Supervisor of Elections in Volusia County, Michael Ertel, Supervisor of Elections in Seminole County and the Hon. Bruce Smathers, former Florida Secretary of State. The only panelist in the first three who chose to defend HB1355 was Ertel, a Republican. Here’s a video of their prepared statements. McFall spoke about the noted case of a teacher who faced steep fines by helping her students to register. She also noted that the state legislature had not consulted any of the Supervisors for input into HB1355. Ertel tried to ease the situation by noting that he offered to deputize all of his school principals to avoid third party involvement. After the panelists gave their remarks they were subjected to a round of questions.  During the round of questions Ertel drew hoots from the gallery as he tried to evade direct questions. McFall, also a Republican, said that there is no evidence whatsoever of voter fraud, which is the basis of the legislation.

The Second round of panelists were Dr. Daniel Smith, Professor of Political Science at the University of Florida; Daryl Parks, President of the National Bar Association; Brent A. Wilkes, National Executive Director, League of United Latin American Citizens, and Sara Pemberton, President, Florida College System Student Government Association. Parks, Wilkes and Pemberton addressed the difficulties and hardships faced by students and minorities that the new law imposes. Smith, however used statistical data to graphically show how restrictive HB 1355 is. His statistical evidence was in direct opposition to Ertel’s testimony. During the question and answer session all panelists confirmed their testimony to the delight of the gallery. Durbin, as the sole member of the subcommittee agreed with their findings as did Nelson. End of the (harrumph, harrumph) staged readi…..er hearings.

What happened in the press conference after the hearings was much more revealing. Senator Durbin was asked if there was direct thread between HB1355 and similar legislation in 35 states. His reply was in the affirmative, stating that there is real evidence that ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) a conservative not-for-profit heavily financed by the Koch brothers and other conservative groups is behind these legislative actions. When asked if the President could do something about it, he partially deflected the question by saying that the president could have the Justice Department get involved to see if these laws are in violation of the Voting Rights Act, and he could not speak for the administration. He did, however, falter a little when he could not remember the full name of the acronym ALEC. He treated the name as though it was a first time revelation. For the citizens of Florida it may be a first time revelation but every senator and representative in Washington knows who they are and how they operate and they have known it for a long time. The question is was it a dramatic trick or just an honest lapse as everyone is prone to do at times? Most likely it was just an ooooops moment. Give this readi…er hearing 4 stars. Had it been more spontaneous it would merit five (harrumph!).

By Jerry Waxman

Chapter Three-

Curley, Larry or Moe?

Prologue

On

 November 5

early morning the

Police arrested three

people for trespassing in

Senator Beth Johnson Park,

the site of Occupy Orlando. All

three were charged with the violation

of Statute 810.09(2)(A) a first degree mis-

demeanor. Wm. Ezell was hosting a teach-in

about First Amendment rights to a small group of

die hards when several squad cars pulled up and

warned everyone to vacate the park. Many did but a

reluctant few wanted to finish the teach-in. The police did

not wait and moved in. After his arraignment his trial date was

set for January 25. Ezell’s lawyer, Shayan Elahi was part of

Occupy Orlando’s legal team associated with the National Law-

yer’s Guild and ready to defend any Occupier against what he felt

were “frivolous” charges. Elahi is no stranger to controversy. Two years

ago he embarrassed the Right Wing establishment by successfully having

the Courts return Rifka Bary to Ohio for adjudication, Bary, having been lured

to Orlando via the internet by an evangelical church. Last year he was success-

ful in having all charges dropped against Orlando Food Not Bombs and leaving the

city with egg on its face. Since these were state charges a State Attorney had to be the

prosecutor, The State Attorney declined to prosecute. The city, still smarting from a chalking

charge fiasco was not to be deterred. They still pressed for a trial that day. The only problem was

that city prosecutors cannot prosecute state charges. You could see Elahi sharpening his

fangs for the kill. But wait! The city’s alternate prosecutor asked for a continuance in order to

amend the charges so that the city can prosecute. After all, this is an election year , So,………

The city’s prosecutor had a family emergency on the morning of the 25^th and was not there.  Judge Bell said that there was another prosecutor in the courtroom and that the trial should proceed. That wasn’t the case. The city asked for a continuance because they had not been aware that the charges could not be prosecuted by them, and that they needed time to amend the state charges to reflect city ordinances. They also at that time asked for a non-jury trial. Ezell stood on his constitutional rights to a speedy trial by his peers. The city countered with a plea bargain but Ezell would have none of it. The judge granted the continuance and a jury trial and set a late February date.

Outside the courthouse, Ezell and Elahi held a brief conference for all of the interested supporters. Will the City of Orlando continue its dogged desire to convict someone? Will the city wind up with dirt on its face in addition to the egg? Nyuk, Nyuk Nyuk! Will anyone else have to go to court and waste taxpayer money? Woo, Woo Woo! Will William Ezell get his day in court? Maybe the Shadow knows but we don’t, so stay tuned for the next exciting chapter……coming soon!

By Jerry Waxman

The moon belongs to everyone. The best things in life are free.
The stars belong to everyone. They gleam there for you and me

Freedom means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Webster’s Dictionary has numerous descriptions of the word being used in different contexts. Progressives just assume that the entire Bill of Rights is under attack by conservative politicians and judges including their freedom of choice. Conservatives use the word as a Pavlovan prompt in order to whip up the crowd. They say that their freedoms have already been taken away with the passage of Obamacare and other similar legislation as well as government restrictions on businesses and that a conservative government must overturn all restrictions on their freedom including the freedom to hate.

Nowhere was this more evident than in Downtown Orlando over Saturday and Sunday, January 22^nd and 23^rd. With the Republican Primary election only a week away a group calling itself Conservatives United 2012 planned a large rally at the Walt Disney Amphitheater in Lake Eola Park with spectacular speakers like Samuel Wurzelbacher aka known as Joe the Plumber, former Congressman and State Attorney General Bill McCollum who spoke as if he needed a heavy dose of Ritalin and keynote speaker Herman Cain who proved why Vaudeville is dead and not coming back. The attendance figures were disappointing to say the least. Under 400 people were in the space but take out the security teams the candidate staffs the event staffs, vendors and sponsors booths and the event was lucky to attract 200 people including the bused in people from West Palm Beach and out of that there were at least 20 people from Occupy Orlando on the premises taking it all in. The only non-white faces we saw were, obviously, Herman Cain, a few occupiers and some picnickers walking through. A couple of local candidates were collecting signatures. Rick Santorum had a local team on the ground but the feel of the event was definitely directed towards Newt Gingrich. It was his collective memory challenged crowd that was there cheering on every utterance of McCollum’s almost incoherent rant.

David “Duckie” Wasman with “Joe the Plumber”

My wife and granddaughter went to the playground on the other end of the park while I tried to make sense of the event. We did have a short conversation with media creation Joe the Plumber who intimated to David “Duckie” Wasman that both these conservatives and the occupiers are not that far apart on most issues, something he would not ever say in public. Local Tea Party type Matt Falconer was urging people to vote against the proposed ballot initiative on Jan 31 that would allow corporations to avoid paying property taxes for 10 years if they merely promised to create jobs. Actually, Falconer made good sense this day and apparently a lot of the attendees were in agreement with him. Only registered Republicans and people signed up for absentee ballots were officially notified that this was a general ballot item. In all though, it seemed like a scene out of 1984 with a collective hate for “Big Brother” (code for Barak Obama).

This get together being a thinly veiled push for Newt Gingrich I was reminded that I received via Facebook friend that classic picture of Newt’s wife Calista, she of the molded plastic face and perfectly arced hair with that totally scary faraway look in her eyes plus the photoshopped image of Newt as Chucky. This modern day Medusa looks like her own victim. I guess the snakes were edited out. A thought came to mind; If the mythological Helen of Troy was the face that launched a thousand ships, then Calista of Newt is the face that could sink them.

The flowers in spring, the robins that sing,

the sunbeams that shine, they’re yours, they’re mine

A day later was Occupy Orlando’s 99^th day of existence and it was to be celebrated by re-occupying Senator Beth Johnson Park for the day. The appropriate teams for food, media, et al were in place at the park well in advance of the march and not a policeman in sight. All park rules were strictly obeyed. The march started at City Hall and ended at the park around 12:00 PM. No formal agenda for the day, just a day to hang out and relax, eat, drink (no alcohol) welcome newcomers and get together with old friends. There were some teach-ins about the state legislature and community building. Several bands provided music and everybody had a good time. This kind of freedom is worth fighting for.

Media star Tim Osmar

Nome

Tim Osmar is a free man today, having spent several weeks in jail on a charge that the State Attorney’s office refused to prosecute-writing on the sidewalk with chalk. The city had selectively used this prosecution after having allowed merchants to do it in violation of city ordinances two years ago. Known only as Nome, this young man was arrested for jaywalking in front of the park before the move to City Hall. Both Nome and Tim have retained an attorney who is filing charges in Federal Court for violating their civil rights. Any fines or awards won have been promised to Occupy Orlando.

The next big test of freedom will be William Ezell’s trespassing trial. Ezell and others were arrested and charged with a state statute rather than a city statute. Maximum sentence on a city misdemeanor is 60 days plus a fine. The state laws can be up to a year. The State Attorney’s office refused to prosecute, however this time the city is not backing down. The trial is set for Tuesday, Jan 24. His attorney, Shayan Elahi, feels confident that Ezell will walk out a free man. Elahi is no stranger to controversial cases and he has a good track record of wins. The occupiers are making preparations to occupy the courtroom when Ezell comes to trial.

In the end, whether we agree or disagree with either of the two groups, it takes an awful lot of vigilance to insure your ability to be free to be who you are. It is something to think about. Feel free to do so.

And love can come to everyone; the best things in life are free

The Best Things in Life Are Free© Henderson, DeSylva, Brown

By Jerry Waxman

The group Move to Amend.org had been planning this action for a long time. Occupy Orlando and other occupations throughout the nation joined with them in planning the event. Occupy the Courts went into effect on Friday, January 20^th and in some cases lasted through Saturday. The objective was to occupy the Federal Courts to object to the Citizens United Ruling as well as corporate dominance of our financial system. There were separate actions in many cities throughout 49 states.

Occupy Orlando took their stand at the Federal Courthouse at 401 E. Central Blvd in Orlando. The crowd started to assemble slowly but by 10:00 AM a respectable crowd of about 45 had assembled and it was time to start. The security guards on duty were pleasant and as helpful as possible, and they allowed free access to most areas except the steps which they insisted must remain clear for safety reasons. No one dared to test these rules, instead saving their energy for the soap box. Over twenty people made speeches as to why they are part of the movement or why they support the occupation.

The  Rev. Dr. Gregory Van Wilson of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Brevard was the first speaker whose theme was Anti-authoritarianism. Many other speakers contributed their stories and views, some even twice. Occupy Orlando Media Team member, Rebecca Cruz served as MC and was followed by Waltrout Graccione, Who was born in Germany. Occupy Orlando member Blair Edwards was followed by Occupy Orlando member William Ezell. Criminal Defense Attorney Hastings Jones spoke eloquently about how the one percent controls the justice system. Retired college professor Harold Ramsberger spoke about how our money is manipulated. Occupy Orlando member Kat Duerr spoke about her activism. Roger Levine from Occupy Port St. Lucie was in Orlando along with two other friends. Occupy Orlando member

Sue Casterline spoke about her involvement. Science Dave Dunning gave two lectures. Occupy Orlando member Rudy Roberts spoke about his recent experiences. Georgette Picarsky told why she supports the occupation. Lore Rosenthal, an activist fromGreenbelt, MD. spoke about her experiences. Tim Adams, Diego, Emily Rogers and Anna Dinenik all members of Occupy Orlando also told their stories. Poet Tim Ramsay read one of his special verses. After a short break for lunch everyone came back and recreated the ceremony for the Funeral for the Bill of Rights that Occupy Orlando held a month earlier at the Orange County Courthouse.

By Jerry Waxman

It really had to be important. Yes, the White House had a message so important that it couldn’t have been given in the Oval Office. It needed the right atmosphere for maximum effect. It was so important that the details were not released until 24 hours before the event. So important was it that the media hardly had time to respond for clearance by the 12:30 PM Wednesday deadline. I didn’t get the message until 8:00 Wednesday evening. Such important stuff can’t wait. During the years 1967 through 1969 I had top secret clearance when I was in the service so I know how important these important things can be. By the time I responded the White House web site’s Reservation Page had been taken off line; after all, important things can’t wait.

Given that I’ve enjoyed secret clearance in the past and have been cleared by seven Central Florida school boards as well as Broward County plus press clearance for Joe Biden’s speech at the Florida Democratic Convention not three months ago I figured that I would have no problem getting cleared for the press area in the Magic Kingdom. Wrong-O! The young security guard at the parking lot at the Contemporary Hotel said that if I wasn’t on the list I couldn’t gain access to the press area. This was the same security guard who personally walked me through the Joe Biden event. No one seemed to be willing to make phone calls to their superiors so that I could gain access. I guess that it is so important that they didn’t want as much local press there as possible, or else they were much too busy, after all this important event had international implications. This was so important that Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer had to leave the US Mayors Conference in Washington D.C. and hop a ride on Air Force One to be here where the President introduced him with the adjective “Outstanding”. Wow! Talk about being out of touch.

Okay, so I drove home and watched it on my 52” HD screen and recorded the whole thirteen minutes while eating a casual lunch. Yes the whole thirteen minutes. Hardly worth the effort considering the travel arrangements: the use of Air Force One, causing delays of traffic to and from the airport and all the hoopla attached to a presidential visit. You would think that all this important stuff was announcing that Medical Science has just found the cure for Cancer and Diabetes combined. If that were only true. The real reason for this was to announce to the world that in addition to the Travel Promotion Act which helps reduce the wait time for people in other countries to get visas to travel here the President was going to direct the State Department to include countries with growing economies, citing China, Brazil and India, on the speeded up list in order to kick start an increase in tourism, not just here in Florida, but all over the country. “We Can’t Wait” is the order of the day referring to Congress’s lethargic attitude toward job creation.

The sky was blue, and high above…………

Yes it was a picture perfect day in which the President was framed in front of Cinderella’s castle in a perfect setting to discuss his initiative. He was personable, self-deprecating and jocular enough claiming that it would be the first time his daughters envied him and pointing out that with Mickey Mouse in attendance someone finally has bigger ears than he. All he needed was Tinker Bell fluttering around spreading magic dust. He wanted to make the US top tourist destination in the world. More tourism equals more jobs as the saying goes. Sure, the intention is good-no one would argue that. But tourism is the last industry that is going to spur high paying, meaningful and lasting career employment. High speed rail, revitalization of the Space Coast, meaningful manufacturing jobs and high paying technical jobs are what is needed. Citing a conservative code word he said “Florida is open for business”. Hey, Mr. President, I’ve got news for you. So are 49 other states, some of which actually know how to attract good businesses. Tourism is the last thing we need, but it’s all we can get. Tourists from overseas don’t see our crumbling infrastructure, our impoverished school systems, our dismal cultural scene where we have no symphony, no ballet, no opera company, no first class professional resident theaters-the kind of assets that attract businesses to the area where their executive have to live. Tourists are in a bubble from the time they fly in until the time they fly out. Pure Fantasyland.

Instead, we are asking the $13.00 an hour (or less) Indian techies who are working in call centers that used to support American workers at much better money, Chinese sewing machine operators working for American manufacturers who used to employ American sewers, who probably have to save for years to make the trip and Brazilian laborers who are raping their ecology at the expense of the world’s health to come here so that Disney can employ more $7.00 an hour maids, porters, janitors and busboys. The irony of all this is that Disney will then be able to take advantage of a proposed tax break, offered by the Orange County Commission, that few citizens of the county even know about. There is a Republican primary election on Jan. 31, yet there is a ballot initiative that affects all county residents. In the dark secrecy of night the county commission slipped this initiative in, cognizant that only registered Republicans would be aware of it in any significant numbers. The proposal wants to eliminate property taxes for new businesses coming to the county and existing businesses who promise to create jobs, with no checking system for accountability. Disney wins either way. An economist friend of mine, Jim Callahan, pointed out that Disney now owns Pixar, and if they wanted to they could help the economy of the area just by opening a Pixar unit attached to a university here that would bring jobs that pay much more than $7.00 per hour. Speaking of tourist related jobs, the proposed high speed rail, vetoed by Rick Scott not only lost the money coming into the state, but caused highly technical high paying firms like Siemens to take 2500 jobs out of the state and move to North Carolina. Siemens is not alone. Replacing those jobs is going to be difficult. It’s time to get out of Fantasyland and step into the real world.

Another area that the president could have promoted is the artistic community here and elsewhere. Former Florida Secretary of State Sandra Mortham specifically singled out the arts as having returned four dollars to the local economy for every dollar invested, and a healthy arts community attracts tourism. New York’s Broadway couldn’t survive without the tourist business, oh and guess who controls a lot of Broadway theaters? A healthy arts community of theater, opera, ballet and symphony plus a healthy education system would attract actual business here that would build their offices here, executives and other employees who would buy houses here thereby adding to the local tax base and economy, something tourists do not do.

So much more could have been talked about concerning meaningful job creation but it will have to wait until another time. It was very important to be here to help Disney make more money despite their record profits last year. Well, time to go. After all, he had to go to New York and channel Al Green at a fund raiser; now that’s very important.

By Jerry Waxman

Mother, PLEASE!  I’d rather do it myself!

This has been a pretty full four day weekend for the activist community in Orlando. Celebrating Martin Luther King’s birthday took the wind out of the sails of other activities which should have been included in the festivities because the cause of freedom and equality is directly related to today’s activism. First activity of note was the press conference on Friday, Jan 13 at 10:00 AM by State Reps Darren Soto and Scott Randolph who have introduced HAR 1337, a bill which would allow for vacant Orange County Commission seats to be decided by local elections rather than by appointment from the Governor.

The most recently elected commissioner from District Three, Mildred Fernandez, was removed by then Governor Charlie Crist on alleged charges of corruption. Crist appointed her opponent, Lu Damiani to the post as a babysitter until the results of Fernandez’s trial proved her innocence or guilt.  From all reports Orange County Mayor was satisfied with Damiani and the commission even drew up redistricting plans which favored his election chances. District three is heavily Hispanic and much of that growth has happened since the last redistricting ten years ago. The Black, Latino and Hispanic Alliance, now renamed The Alliance for Justice had been lobbying hard to form a minority district so that their members would have a constant voice on the commission, but to no avail. The new district now has less Hispanics than it did before. Once Fernandez pleaded no contest to the charges the Governor stepped into action and declared to Mayor Jacobs that he wanted a Republican in the seat. Commission seats are supposed to be non-partisan. John Martinez, son of former U.S. Senator Mel Martinez was chosen over Republican Hispanic candidates who actually lived in the district. The Alliance for Justice and Occupy Orlando demonstrated vehemently at Martinez swearing in ceremony.

At a recent bi-partisan County Watch meeting Martinez was guest speaker, telling the assembled about how he was appointed, confirming Governor Scott’s statement that he wanted a Republican in that seat. Picking Martinez over other candidates from the community was a move to shore up support from the still powerful South Florida Cuban community for Scott’s reelection bid in 2014. Outside the meeting members of The Alliance for Justice were protesting vowing never to accept him as their commissioner.

HAR 1337 would end these kinds of appointments and allow for special local elections in the district. Here’s the full video of the press conference and a follow up interview with Trini Quiroz, one of the founders of the Alliance.

Chalk up another win!

Occupy Orlando stalwart, Tim Osmar showed that you can beat City Hall, and in doing so you can humiliate city officials and law enforcement in general. Osmar’s release from jail made both national and international headlines when news services picked up the article in the Orlando Sentinel. Osmar was arrested for writing on City Hall sidewalks in chalk. There is a city ordinance against sidewalk chalking for advertising and promotion, which Mayor Dyer ignored two years ago when he encouraged local business owners to promote The Orlando Magic’s chances in the NBA Playoffs by chalking their sidewalks among other ways to promote the team. Orlando Sentinel Columnist Scott Maxwell

made mention of it in his January 12 article. Osmar missed the holidays spending three weeks in jail instead. He was released and charges dropped because the city contended that he would have served that time if convicted. The real reason is that there’s no way the city could have made those charges stick. Tim’s position is that he was exercising his first amendment right to protest and that his rights were violated both by the police and his overlong incarceration. Tim’s attorney, Richard Wilson, a prominent first amendment specialist is sharpening his fangs and whetting his appetite to put the city in federal court for the abuse that Tim and a few others have suffered. Other occupiers who have been arrested on trespassing charges are expecting to have the charges dropped or be found innocent as well. Once Tim was released Crayola’s stock should have gone up by 5 or 6 points. His release opened the floodgates for occupiers to state their grievances over every square inch of walkable surfaces at City Hall.

A scheduled action for the afternoon by the Direct Action team was to occupy the former site of Occupy Orlando, Senator Beth Johnson Park which houses the Orlando Chamber of Commerce, which they consider to be a wholly owned subsidiary of the city of Orlando. The Chamber sits on city owned land and pays by special arrangement $1.00 per year for rent. Research shows that the relationship between the city and the Chamber goes far beyond the landlord-tenant relationship. Traditionally, local chambers do have good relationships with cities they are in and they should. Governments should work for the economic benefit of all residents and businesses in their constituencies, but they have to draw the line about where that stops, especially where taxpayer dollars are being used without any perceivable benefit to taxpayers as a whole. City Commissioner Robert Stuart and Chamber bigwig Jacob Stuart are brothers. In a city the size of Orlando that’s not unusual. What is unusual is the way the Chamber is set up as several different entities that receive money from the city that does not get spent to better the economic situation of the city itself. Recently, mayoral candidate Michael Cantone criticized the giving of $63,000.00 in city funds ostensibly for an “entrepreneurial academy” is a blatant attempt to get Chamber support for his reelection. Also, on January 10 the Orlando Business Journal reported that Central Florida Workforce may have given the Chamber a questionable and maybe illegal donation of a $300,000.00 gift to promote “economic development”. Critics say that this is nothing more than funneling PAC money to Chamber friendly politicians such as Mayor Dyer, Dean Cannon, Chris Dorworth and others. A few years ago this might have gone under the radar but today with all of the communications and networking sites available very little is going to avoid scrutiny and the occupiers and activists are keenly aware of this. It would be asking too much of Florida’s Attorney General to investigate this because she’s too busy firing good prosecutors. Eric Holder on the other hand seems to be finding his mojo recently so there may yet be hope that these shenanigans might be curtailed.

When you see me coming better step aside

So, freshly armed with “The Chalk Conspiracy” exoneration, the intrepid direct action team showed up at the Chamber and proceeded to chalk up the entrance to the chamber while chanting their disapproval. The protest went along until a Chamber employee called the Police. The first policeman was good natured about it, however the second to arrive was as arrogant as could be and deliberately sped into the Chamber parking lot just missing an occupier. He stopped short and admonished the young man saying (sic) “Get out of my way when you see me driving up!” He then spent the rest of his time talking with the chamber people and his superior. If anyone wants to delve more deeply into Mr. Macho’s act here’s a picture of his car:

We were not able to photograph his badge number or name but this should be a good starting point. The other policeman had a much cooler head and kept his cool. The decision was to let Occupy Orlando protest on the sidewalk leaving space for people to walk by. The reason given was that some female employees felt threatened by the occupiers. That did not go over well with the occupiers or the representatives of the Florida Civil Rights Association who were there to observe. In response the hero of the day Tim Osmar mic checked the group and started a Hokey Pokey routine where the group tested the limits of their patience. After a few more minutes of protest the group felt that it had accomplished its mission it was time to go back to City Hall and get signage ready for the MLK Parade in Orlando.

A small boy walked down a city street, and hope was in his eyes. As he searched the faces of the people he’d meet, or one he could recognize.

Although the official celebration for Martin Luther King Day is Monday, January 16, several celebrations take place over the weekend. Two of these events, parades, take place in Orange County: one in Orlando and one in the city of Eatonville. Activists from Occupy Orlando and the Florida Civil Rights Association, Central Florida AFL-CIO, the Orange County Democrats and UCF College Democrats participated in both celebrations. There were 109 entries in the parade representing schools, fraternities, city and county agencies, fraternities, sororities, African American churches and politicians of every stripe. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orlando City Commissioner led off the parade. Not to be outdone, Orange County Government, led by County Mayor Teresa Jacobs, put together a large float reminiscent of Animal House. State Senator Gary Siplin and District 5 School Board member Kat Gordon both took part. Next in line was US Congresswoman Corrine Brown. Bringing up the rear were Public Defender Bob Wesley, Tax Assessor candidate Rick Singh, Orange County Democrats with new chairman Scott Randolph, Belle Isle Commissioner Lydia Pisano, former Congressman Alan Grayson, and State Attorney candidate Jeff Ashton.

Brother, where are you? They told me that you came this way. Brother, where are you?
They said you came this way.

What was notable about the parade was who didn’t march. There wasn’t any organized effort by the LGBT community to participate. This seems awfully odd given that the city which sponsors the event and the mayor have recently passed a domestic partners registry that benefits the entire LGBT community. There are many reasons to disagree with the mayor’s agenda but this is not one of them. Martin Luther King was about equality for all regardless of race, religion, and gender or lifestyle choice and (to me) it is an absolute offense to his memory that they did not participate. They certainly know how to stage and handle their own parades and events when they want to. This should have been a no-brainer. Another group notable for its absence is the Jewish community. No other ethnic group in history faced both slavery and wholesale extermination and the Jewish community should have a rock solid affinity with the preaching of Dr. King which transcends religion. Sixty years ago the Jewish community was at the forefront of the Civil Rights movement and many of them gave their lives in that pursuit. Since Saturday is the Jewish Sabbath it is perfectly understandable that there were no marchers, but that doesn’t prevent Jewish organizations from enlisting the help of other organizations and churches to carry the banners for them. In orthodox communities there is always the resident “goy” who turns on the electricity or lights the gas and performs any work task that needs to be done. The newly formed Alliance for Justice had some individual members marching with other groups but there was no show of numbers. If they are protesting their treatment by county government they need to show that they have sufficient numbers and this was a prime opportunity. Same goes for the Asian and Muslim communities.

Other than Coca Cola corporate America had no representation. Neither Disney, Universal nor the Chamber, whose members willingly take our money, took advantage of the day to give back something. Kudos to the unions that did participate, but noticeably absent were the Teachers, and the Trades in any significant numbers. There are over 70,000 union members in Central Florida. There are over 30,000 employees, both union and non-union, involved in Public Education in Orange County alone. All of these people are under fierce attack by radical conservative legislators at state and federal levels yet it seems that they won’t speak up for themselves when they have a prime opportunity to do so. The Republican Party had no representation, nor did any white churches who should at least have some kind of ecumenical policy for events like this. Fortunately for all concerned very little media attention was paid to the event. Sunday’s Sentinel had one picture with a small caption buried on page 3 in the B section. The Highland Games got better coverage. The TV stations gave perhaps 15 seconds of air time to the event. Perhaps the organizers should reach out to more people for next year’s parade.

If non participation was the order of the day on Saturday it was partially made up for on Sunday evening when Shiloh Baptist Church held a multi-faith service attended by almost every ethnicity and faith. Mayor Dyer, to his credit, spoke of the need to practice those principles espoused by Dr. King every day. Keynote speaker the Rev. Jim Coffin repeated the sentiments espoused by every other speaker and added “The disparity between rich and poor is no less than it was in his day. We are just as willing to resort to war as we were when he was alive. …In other words, we still have a lot of ground to cover before darkness is dispelled and light reigns supreme.” It seems that we as a society still have a lot to learn and far to travel. Dr. King’s work has barely begun.

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep, but I have promises to keep,
and miles to go before I sleep……………… and miles to go before I sleep.