RANDOM THOUGHTS #10 - CONFEDERATE FLAG, JONI MITCHELL, SUPREME COURT

CONFEDERATE FLAG

To be clear, the followers of the Confederacy were insurrectionists, traitors. And they were racists. The Confederate States Constitution explicitly institutionalized slavery. And the Confederacy lost the Civil War. So...

If the Confederate flag is, as many Southerners like to proclaim, symbolic of their heritage, of who they are, then they are traitorous racist losers. But if they want to identify themselves that way, who am I to argue? Just don't fly that rag in a place of honor in public.

JONI MITCHELL
David Crosby says that Joni has suffered an aneurism and cannot speak. I send my best wishes. The soundtrack of my life has been dominated by two women - Joni and Grace Slick. Grace for those times that I needed a kick in the pants. Joni for the quiet times.

Peace and Love, Ladies!



SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
Historic SCOTUS Week #1

SCOTUS really had no choice. Why? Because the country is clearly divided in a way that could not stand. With an estimated 70% of the population living in states where same-sex marriage has been to some extent institutionalized, married gay and lesbian couples from those states would increasingly find cause for action in those states that refused to recognize those marriages and denied, for instance, such rights as hospital visitation or intestate inheritance. The only parallel that comes to mind in American history is the organization of the country into free states and slave states.

Forget Scalia's rant. Scalia thinks that the debate isn't over until his side wins. But SCOTUS did not subvert democracy with this ruling. The scales had already tipped. Hundreds of thousands of legally married gay and lesbian couple exist. If tomorrow, several thousand of them move en masse from Massachusetts to South Dakota - a state whose Constitution bans same-sex marriage, civil unions, and any marriage-like contract between unmarried persons - have those legally married couples in essence given up their rights? Or is it incumbent in our federal system to protect those rights? 30% of the country had failed to get on board before this week. Should that 30% have been allowed to define the rights of the other 70%? As a nation of laws, one of our legal system's duties is to protect the minority from the majority. But in this case, majority rules.

OBAMACARE
Historic SCOTUS Week #2

SCOTUS held that the purpose of the ACA was clear, that denying subsidies to those who lived in states opting for federal exchanges clearly subverted the intent of Congress, and that, even as written, the Act could be construed as including the federal exchanges. (That last a direct swipe by Roberts at Scalia's childish dissent.) If you write 500 page bills, there will almost certainly be typos and/or internal inconsistencies. If you write five page bills, people will argue endlessly over the details. You can't win. Except in this case, we did. Congressional intent was clear and two-thirds of the Court acted responsibly.

RANDOM THOUGHTS #9 - FELONIOUS PARENTING, RACHEL DOLEZAL, OBAMACARE

FELONIOUS PARENTING
I recently read a news story that left me dumbfounded. It seems that an 11-year-old Florida boy came home to a locked house, didn't have a key, and so he spent an hour and a half shooting hoops in the back yard while he waited for his folks. No big deal, right?

Wrong.

A neighbor called police. When the parents arrived, having been delayed on their return from work by traffic, they were arrested for felony neglect. Cuffed and strip searched. As I understand it, the boy and his younger brother (who was in proper day care) were removed from the home in favor of a relative who quickly asked the state to take over their care. The two boys would have ended up in foster care had the eldest not asked to see the judge and begged to be sent back home. The boys were then only allowed back with their parents under strict guidelines.

My parents were felons. I never knew.

There were even aggravating circumstances in my case. My parents let me drink water straight from the garden hose. For years, I walked a quarter-mile by myself to my school bus stop. And after school, if I wanted to go into town to visit friends, I had to walk a mile, part way along a state highway. In fact, the only rules that I can remember regarding after-school and summer playtime was that I "be safe" and make it home in time for dinner. Often, my parents didn't know where I was and who I was with.

My parents were felons. I never knew.

RACHEL DOLEZAL
Makes me crazy. She's black if she says that she is? Really, Whoopi? Really?

I'm sorry, but facts is facts. Snoop is black. Eminem is white. That doesn't say anything about their music or their audience. But two plus two equals four and not some number approximating four.

There may very well come a day when the preponderance of the population is so racially diverse that it would be well nigh impossible to assign such rigid categories as we do today. Indeed, having worked in an agency that collected demographics on thousands of heads of households over many years, I can attest to the fact that the category 'Mixed Race' has grown from a side note to nearly a plurality. But until we are all the color of coffee (light with two sugars, please), there's reality and there's fantasy. Let's not elevate someone whose reality is as confused as Dolezal's to the level of a game changer.

OBAMACARE
I expect that I will be writing more about healthcare after the Supreme Court publishes its decision on the legality of subsidizing the federal exchanges. But there's one thing that's been simmering among some folks that I know that needs to be addressed - the cost of insurance under Obamacare. Many of my friends oppose Obamacare based on those increased costs. I have three quick comments.

First, prior to Obamacare, healthcare costs in the US were increasing at double-digit percentage rates year after year. Healthcare inflation was a primary driver in increases in the cost of living. How quickly we forget.

Secondly, increases in cost to folks already insured was inevitable given the increased numbers of newly insured, particularly since people with pre-existing conditions could no longer be denied coverage. There were simply not enough young, healthy, and uninsured new signups to keep rates low.

Finally, if you want to address the cost of health insurance, it's time that we addressed the cost of healthcare. Why do we spend twice as much per capita on healthcare in the US than they do in just about every other modern industrialized economy? And having done so, why are our outcomes so far down the list? For a country that is supposed to be a meritocracy, why do we tolerate higher infant mortality rates, higher child mortality rates, and lower life expectancies than our European cousins?

LE PETIT CHOEUR D'OCCITANIE - A REVIEW

Every year, a group called Friends of the Organ present concerts to the benefit of the maintenance fund for the fine pipe organ in the Catholic church in Cazouls-les-Beziers, the town in which we owned our first home in France. We've attended a couple of those concerts in the past and have not been disappointed. One night, two local choirs gave separate recitals, then joined en masse for a few final numbers. High level, pleasing albeit amateur performances. On another occasion, a soprano of regional renown entertained us most professionally. So we were on board when we learned that Le Petit Choeur d'Occitanie (The Little Occitan Choir) would be performing Renaissance music in costume in the church this past weekend.

I cannot tell a lie. The concert was amateurish beyond excuse. Perhaps a test run for new material, perhaps a case of aspirations outstripping ability, whatever the reason, the concert was simply an embarrassment. I will not go into detail. It was bad. Period.

Why write about it, then? Why not just give them a pass? If I have nothing good to say, why say anything at all?

As a restaurant reviewer in another life, I made it clear to my editors that I would not praise a meal that didn't meet certain standards. When a venue later to be named one of the 100 top restaurants in the States served my wife inedible skate, I had no alternative but to report the transgression. My insistence on honesty cost me my job. As a reviewer who has commented on every venue that I have visited since moving to France, and as my own editor, can I expect any less of myself today?

RANDOM THOUGHTS #8 - ROLLING STONES, STAIRWAY, CATHOLIC LEAGUE

ROLLING STONES
When 70 year-old Mick Jagger puts on a tight-fitting knit body suit, waves his arms in a cringe-worthy imitation of Twyla Tharp while strutting across the stage in Texas recently during the intro to Gimme Shelter, and the local newspaper critic raves about how rocking and relevant the Stones still are, can this mean anything other than that the Vandals are at the gates and Rome is about to fall?

STAIRWAY
On the other hand, just in case that you've forgotten...

CATHOLIC LEAGUE
Pope Francis is taking it from all sides.

First, very Catholic Rick Santorum says that Francis should leave discussion of climate change to the scientists, ignoring the fact that the Pope has a post-secondary certification in chemistry (although not a college degree as is sometimes reported) and that he's THE POPE, for heaven's sake. Since when do good Catholics tell the Pope to shut up?

Then Catholic League President Bill Donohue says that, although humans are clearly tasked in the Bible to be stewards of the Earth, there is nothing inherently evil about air pollution. Donohue is quoted further as saying that such issues as capital punishment and helping the poor are debatable and that the Pope is not necessarily the final word on such matters as far as Catholics are concerned, given that such topics don't involve the true purview of a Pope, faith and morals. You see, the First Amendment doesn't apply to the Pope. He's Italian. Or Argentinian. Whatever...

How do practicing Catholic's decide when to listen to the Pope and when his views are irrelevant? What is religion if not authoritarian, starting with an all-powerful God whose dictates are interpreted by his appointed earthly representatives? And who has more religious authority than the Pope? I can just imagine Santorum confronting a returning Jesus, complaining that it would cost the government too much money to feed the hungry and clothe the naked given the need to beef up the defense budget. How do you think that argument would fly with God's Son?

LA BONNE HUMEUR, CAZOULS-LES-BEZIERS - RESTAURANT REVIEW

There are restaurants with bars and bars that serve food. La Bonne Humeur in Cazouls-les-Beziers falls into the latter category. But don't be fooled. Lunch is well-prepared, substantial, and reasonably priced. We stopped by recently to pass the time while our car was being serviced and were not disappointed. The outside seating was shaded and comfortable although the road noise could be a bit much. The lunch crowd was clearly composed of friendly locals who enjoyed each others' company - including an Irish couple who sat next to us. They had retired to the village several years earlier and lunch at La Bonne Humeur more frequently than they had been since it's changed hands for the better.

Starters included a choice of charcuterie, crudities, salad, or chick peas in vinaigrette. Not fancy but the salad was well constructed and the chick peas were an unfamiliar twist. Mains included encornet (cuttle fish - a squiddy sort of thing), faux filet, and duck breast. Cathey's encornet came in a light tomato sauce, non-Italian, with peppers and lots of garlic, properly slow-cooked. My duck breast was seared on the outside and pink on the inside. Fine. Frites or rice on the side. For dessert, Cathey had the cheeses (goat, bleu, and brie) and I had the floating island. Both satisfactory. (One of our neighbors had the fruit salad and it was clearly out of a can.)

We had a glass of rose wine (with an ice cube already in it) and a beer while we waited, a demi of rose with the meal (luke warm and accompanied by a sack of ice cubes), and I finished with a cafe creme. 32 euros.

This was not gourmet eats but nothing flopped and, if the rose had been chilled and the traffic a bit calmer, I might have called La Bonne Humeur above average. As it was, it's decent cheap eats if you find yourself in Cazouls. But be aware, there are better restaurants for lunch within walking distance charging just a few euros apiece more. You decide.

Read more of my reviews HERE.

RANDOM THOUGHTS #7 - STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN/CLIMATE CHANGE, PEE WEE REESE, HILLARY/PROGRESSIVES

STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN/CLIMATE CHANGE

Ted Cruz is taking heat for not being willing to answer questions concerning climate change in relation to the flooding in Texas. He's right and he's wrong when he says that such questions are political and this is not the time to be debating the issue.

Cruz is right because there is simply no way to connect climate change to any single weather event. In fact, flooding in Texas is nothing new. Texas Flood, the tune made famous by Stevie Ray Vaughan on his 1983 debut album of the same name, is actually a cover. The tune was first recorded in 1958, performed and co-written by Larry Davis. (Although probably an Arkansan, Davis is considered a Texas blues man.) So Texans have been singing about flooding for more than 50 years.

Cruz is wrong because it's past time that we had serious discussions about climate change and, if the only time that we're paying attention is during these sorts of events, so be it. As is the case with so many topics of importance, the media needs a hook to anchor an in-depth report - a flood or a fire or a similar disaster. So if flooding in Texas or drought in California or streets awash in Miami is what it takes to get the ball rolling, let's get the ball rolling.

It's not political. It's survival. I have friends living in Florida. Even though the majority are SCUBA certified, I'd prefer that my next visit to them take place on dry land.

PEE WEE REESE
A sports blog that I read occasionally just posted a list of the five greatest shortstops of all time. They were, from the best first, Honus Wagner, Derek Jeter, Cal Ripkin Jr., Ozzie Smith, and Ernie Banks. Not a bad list. However, I have an addition. Pee Wee Reese.

Pee Wee's offensive stats were certainly not up there with four of the five. Pee Wee was a middling hitter at best with one .300 season and a career average of .262. Nor was he as slick a fielder as the likes of Ozzie, the defensive leader of the five, although defense was a hallmark of the Dodger teams of the mid-50s glory days. And I don't propose to include Pee Wee simply because he was the captain of my all-time favorite team - Dem Bums.

No, I include Pee Wee because he was the one guy who looked past Jackie Robinson's skin color and welcomed him to The Show in ways that made a difference. His open public acceptance of Jackie shamed many of his teammates and fans around the country. It was as important a friendship between black and white as any in the history of the civil rights movement.

Pee Wee is in the Hall of Fame as he should be. But he deserves credit for displaying skills far beyond those that he displayed between the lines. READ MORE HERE.

HILLARY/PROGRESSIVES
A funny thing happened to Hubert Humphrey on the way to the Presidency.

Humphrey, one of the most traditionally liberal Democrats ever to hold high public office, was sabotaged by the Left. Robert Kennedy hated LBJ's guts (on a visceral level and totally inappropriately, in my view) and tied Humphrey to a war that Johnson didn't start and couldn't win. Ditto Eugene McCarthy who, more than RFK, was the Peace candidate at the time. Humphrey is supposed to have asked LBJ for permission to take a more dovish public stance on Vietnam but was denied the opportunity by Johnson and decided to stay loyal to his President. Once Bobby was assassinated, Humphrey was a lock. Unfortunately, by the time the general election campaign began, Humphrey's battles with those in the Party who had positioned themselves to the Left of him left him too far behind Nixon to catch up.

Perhaps the most telling bit of irony occurred when Humphrey was booed at a Washington civil rights rally in the summer before the election, ironic because in 1948, 20 years earlier, Humphrey had been booed at the Democratic National Convention for being an early advocate of civil rights legislation and a civil rights plank in the Party platform.

And now we have Hillary who, I grant you, is not the most Progressive of Democrats. The attacks from the Left grow. If she is ultimately the candidate, she could end up in the same situation as Humphrey - too wounded to win the general election. If Hillary is not ultimately the candidate of the Democrats, the slash-and-burn that it will take for someone else to win will almost certainly weaken the Party to the point that the Republicans could walk away with the Presidency and both houses of Congress.

My hope is that Progressives will save their ire for Republicans and conduct a civil primary campaign that doesn't leave scars on the eventual winner. I also hope that Amelia Earhart is found alive and that Miley Cyrus will keep her clothes on in public. What are my chances?