On this Labor Day Weekend...we, as Americans - some Americans, not all - are provided with a day off from work...and a day of festivities - tomorrow, Monday, September 1st, 2014 - to honor the working people of the United States. As defined by Wikipedia...Labor Day "is a celebration of the American labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of their country."
But throughout my entire childhood and nearly all of my adult life - for me...and for millions and millions of other people across the nation - Labor Day represented a day for The Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor Day Telethon. Unfortunately and shamefully...Jerry was wrongfully fired by MDA executives after his 2010 program. The telethon - a 21 and a half-hour annual event was reduced to 6 hours in 2011 - without Jerry - to 3 hours in 2012...to 2 hours in 2013...and to a scheduled 2 hours for this year, 2014.
MDA has lost millions and millions of dollars since Jerry was removed as the host of the telethon and as the National Chairman of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Without Jerry...published reports of the organization's federal tax returns have shown that MDA hasn't been able to collect as much as 50 percent of the money pledged.
Although it's been four years since Jerry Lewis was cruelly terminated as the host of HIS telethon...I am still amazed...and somewhat angry...by the MDA's insensitive and cold-hearted actions to give him the axe when Jerry was so instrumental in building the Muscular Dystrophy Association...raising billions of dollars to better the lives of "Jerry's Kids"...and for making The Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor Day Telethon an American tradition and a national treasure for more than half a century.
I have no respect for the people who now run the Muscular Dystrophy Association. I still make my contribution every year because I wouldn't want to hurt the people of our country who suffer from any of the neuromuscular diseases that my dollars might help. But how did the Board of Directors of the MDA take away control of an organization...from a man - a beloved hero - who made the MDA and the telethon what they were from the very beginning? The stupidity of the MDA brass...to boot out someone...whose accomplishments made its foundation as successful as it was for nearly 60 years...made no sense to me...and I never will understand their lunatic logic.
Each year The Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor Day Telethon was one of television's biggest productions. It was a huge extravaganza that brought star power to America's television screens. But more importantly...Jerry brought love...passion...laughter...and tears...to each of us who were watching...and - as was Jerry - we were all devoted to the telethon so that the tote board exceeded at least...one more dollar...over the previous year's total.
It hurts to not see Jerry Lewis on Labor Day. Labor Day is not the same without Jerry and his telethon. The Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor Day Telethon was a Jerry Lewis brand...and it was something special for Jerry...for the MDA...and for all of us. Now...without Jerry...it is nothing.
Jerry Lewis is one of the world's greatest humanitarians of all time. He is an icon...who with his heart...his hands...and his head...developed a telethon and an organization, which benefited nearly every human on the planet Earth in one way or another. Jerry Lewis is symbolic of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Therefore...to dissect that symbol...the inept leaders of the MDA did not only make a poor decision...but simply put...they were wrong. To put Jerry Lewis out to pasture - so to speak - when he still had so much to offer... and so much to do...was disgraceful. After all...if it ain't broke...don't fix it.
Jerry Lewis began his telethons to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association in 1952. Until 1965...Jerry hosted local telethons including those that aired on television stations in New York City for the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area. In 1966...The Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor Day Telethon became syndicated and a national happening. Over a period of almost six decades...Jerry Lewis was responsible for raising nearly 3 billion dollars for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Jerry spent practically his entire adult life unselfishly helping his "kids."
To not see Jerry Lewis sing his closing song at the end of each telethon... is sorely missed on Labor Day. As it brought tears to Jerry's eyes...and tears to our eyes while he sang it...Jerry's performance of "You'll Never Walk Alone" put a smile on all the faces of "Jerry's Kids"...and on all the faces of us who watched...because we knew...Jerry did it again. He hosted and produced a telethon that entertained us...informed us...educated us...and not only raised awareness of the seriousness and severity of neuromuscular diseases...but Jerry raised more and more money to prolong the lives and the quality of life for an enormous amount of people.
I discovered a video on YouTube...which I urge you to watch today...if like me...you too are having "Jerry Lewis withdrawal"...and have a desire and a need...to see Jerry sing his signature trademark. It will take you down memory lane with Jerry singing from 1976 through his last telethon in 2010. So I hope you will click on the link below...(you may have to copy and paste the link in to your browser)...and that you will embrace the five minutes and thirteen seconds of Jerry Lewis and "You'll Never Walk Alone." I promise you...it will give you a warm and fuzzy feeling on this Labor Day Weekend.
Jerry Lewis WAS the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Jerry Lewis WAS the Labor Day telethon. But Jerry Lewis IS STILL...the heart and soul that breathed life in to the MDA and HIS telethon...and IS STILL...the heart and soul that breathed life in to HIS "kids."
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
"We'll talk again."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=O3-j9zLfChg
The Controversy is a publication
of GBD Productions. Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B.
Duglin.
One of the
chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to
entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author
is writing. The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people
throughout the United States of America and all around the world. If you agree
or disagree...your views are welcomed. Tell me that you love what I write...or
that you hate it. Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you
prefer. The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you
want about the topics discussed. Please share The Controversy with others by
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pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories. The Controversy wants to know your
thoughts on the column above or on any other commentary or essay written on this
blog.
The Controversy will make an effort to
publish a new commentary every Sunday. Unscheduled essays may appear, from time
to time, on other days as well
Now, please express your opinions.
Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that
appears. Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on
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Controversy.
Copyright 2014 Gary B. Duglin and
TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
Is there any justice in the world?
Whether the psychopathic ISIS monster...who barbarically beheaded an innocent American journalist in Syria on August 19th, 2014...is captured and killed...it will still not bring justice to the fact that a United States citizen was executed for no deserving reason whatsoever.
Whether the Palestinian animals of Hamas...who savagely slaughter men, women and children of Israel...are stopped...it will still not bring justice to the turmoil in the Middle East unless total peace comes to Israel and the Gaza Strip.
And whether a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri is arrested and indicted on criminal charges for excessive force in the August 9th, 2014 killing of an unarmed, black teenager - who may have done something wrong...and perhaps something illegal - but certainly the alleged theft of a box of cigars does not warrant any person without a weapon to be shot to death by a cop who reportedly riddled the young man with six bullets.
Let me ask you. Are black people in the United States of America truly equal to white people? If you think the answer is yes...you are clearly mistaken. They, of course, should be equal - as ALL AMERICANS should be equal - but the sad truth is...they are not.
Whether it's proven or not...that 18-year old Michael Brown - in Ferguson, Missouri - was killed in an atrocious act of racism...or whether
facts are determined that Ferguson Police Department Officer Darren Wilson had reasonable cause to gun down Brown...black people overall...are in no way treated as equal to those of us who are white.
I'm about to write a word that I don't care to use, but unfortunately, I have had to spell out in the past...and that is the "H" word - that is the word...HATE. Why must some people in this country...and in this world... hate?
Let us not forget that ISIS - as was and as is al-Qaeda - are organizations whose members feel their entire essence for existence...their total reason for living...is to kill Americans.
Let us remember that Hamas is a group of horrendous haters...who are sworn to brutally massacre everything that is Israel...and who believe in the despicable destruction of the Jewish state. The vile, vicious and violent villains of Hamas...wrongfully think they have the moral right - as deplorable as it is - to use military action against Israel at anytime.
And in the United States...despite the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - 50 years ago - despite the fact that not only once - but twice - Americans elected a black President...tragically there are still people in our country - a great quantity of people in our nation - who disgustingly believe... if your skin color is black...or brown...you are different...you are not equal to those whose bodies are encased by white skin..and you are bigots...who are focused on being prejudiced against all in the African-American race.
Was the shooting of Michael Brown...an act of racism? The facts are not yet established. True...there are reportedly four witnesses...who say the Ferguson policeman wickedly murdered the teenager...and left his lifeless body on a street of his hometown for four hours...following allegations of a low-level crime. And then...what about the release - by the Ferguson Police Department - of the convenience store video? It was undoubtedly circulated and publicized to besmirch a victim of a deadly shooting...by attempting to tarnish Michael Brown...even after he was dead. Revealing those images - those video pictures - was very, very wrong. And all it did...was cause an incendiary effect...throughout Ferguson, Missouri...and elsewhere in the United States.
That video was a postmortem character assassination. Even if Michael Brown - in the convenience store - had committed a minor crime...he did not deserve to die. He did not deserve to be shot six times. Brown's mother and father did not deserve to lose their son over a box of cigars that cost forty-eight dollars and ninety-nine cents.
Why? Why? Why would a Ferguson, Missouri police officer think that because he wears a badge on his chest that he could shoot dead an unarmed teenager - and all because of the alleged stealing of a box of cigars? That is beyond the heavy use of force.
In the United States...there are an extreme amount of troubled relationships between white people towards black people. There is too much hostility towards black Americans because of their skin color. Is the United States going back in time to before the Civil Rights Act...to before Malcolm X ...
to before Martin Luther King, Jr.?
Young African-American males are immediately thought of as bad when there is suspicious activity...and the wrong response is the automatic dispatch of squad cars with cops and guns. Ferguson, Missouri is not the only municipality in the United States to corner the market on tension between the police and the people of America's cities, towns and villages. Other communities where there is an imbalance between the number of police officers who are white and the population of citizens who are black suffer the same tension. It is criminal that black teenagers...especially black teenage boys - unlike white teenage boys - are fearful of what could happen to them...walking to the local candy store or shopping mall. There are a multitude of bigoted racists in America...and what has happened in Ferguson, has inflamed black people...and white people...in other areas of the United States.
And what about another policeman in Ferguson...who was threatening a protester...and who spewed profanity...as he pointed and waved a semi-automatic assault rifle at one young man in the crowd? The cop was videotaped as he shouted, "I will f---ing kill you." The officer has rightfully been relieved of duty.
It should be noted, however, that the unrest in Ferguson...and the friction between its citizens and the police...are not the norm with police departments nationwide. There are a myriad of stellar law enforcement officers all across the U.S.A. who have distinguished themselves for serving and protecting the people of their communities. They have been properly trained and they treat the citizens of their towns in an appropriate fashion. They are good cops. And they are here to help us when we need them.
But what about Ferguson, Missouri? Was it racism to have military tanks rolling up on to the streets of this tiny suburb of St. Louis...with guns aimed at kids? There may be times for such armored action and police officers with SWAT gear...but as a first response...no way. I, therefore, have this question. If Michael Brown was white...would the order by the Ferguson Police Department have been the same? I doubt it. No...I don't think so.
So where are we with race relations in the United States of America? Clearly...certain white cops throughout the country are racially harassing black people. And where are we - around the globe - with people of one kind hating people of another kind? I venture to say there isn't any decent American who hasn't been disturbed and horrified by the appalling beheading of U.S. journalist James Foley by the heinous terrorist group, ISIS. There is outrage worldwide. And the carnage and bloodshed of Jews in Israel - including the butchery of young boys and girls - are acts of hatred.
Bigotry and hatred are cancers that must be cured. But chemotherapy and radiation won't eradicate these deadly diseases of epidemic proportion. No surgical procedure will change the minds of bigots and haters.
So what do we do? How do we as Americans - how do people all around the world - end the hatred and bigotry throughout the planet Earth? I have no idea. Perhaps...God only knows. And maybe...He doesn't know either.
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
"We'll talk again."
The Controversy is a publication
of GBD Productions. Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B.
Duglin. One of the
chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to
entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author
is writing. The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people
throughout the United States of America and all around the world. If you agree
or disagree...your views are welcomed. Tell me that you love what I write...or
that you hate it. Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you
prefer. The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you
want about the topics discussed. Please share The Controversy with others by
posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums. Please also
pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories. The Controversy wants to know your
thoughts on the column above or on any other commentary or essay written on this
blog.The Controversy will make an effort to
publish a new commentary every Sunday. Unscheduled essays may appear, from time
to time, on other days as well
Now, please express your opinions.
Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that
appears. Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on
the word "Publish." Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The
Controversy. Copyright 2014 Gary B. Duglin and
TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
The night before the tragic, sad, untimely and heartbreaking death of giant superstar entertainer, Robin Williams...the cable television network FLIX ran one of my favorite motion pictures...Dead Poets Society. If you've never seen the movie...first of all, you should. Robin extraordinarily portrays Mr. John Keating...an English teacher at an elite, private prep school. Ironically... part of the story includes the suicide death of one of Mr. Keating's senior students...wonderfully played by Robert Sean Leonard...who defies his father's orders...to quit the lead role in a play at school. Mr. Keating had mentored the student and had earlier advised the boy to talk to his parent and try to make him understand that he wants to be an actor. When the dad discovers that his son is performing in the play anyway...he arrives at the theater...and after a curtain call with standing ovations...takes his son home and tells him that he is enrolling him in to military school...as preparation for college and a career in medicine. But the teenager had no desire to be a doctor...and unable to cope with his future...the young man kills himself.
The title of the film...Dead Poets Society...not only refers to the dead poets of great literary works...but the death of a new poet...that being the young student actor...who commits suicide...by using his father's loaded gun. The title also applies to the poet of education...Robin Williams' character, Mr. Keating...whose death comes not to his body...but to his job...when the headmaster of the school fires Mr. Keating...because he believes the student's suicide...was the result of poor and inappropriate advice given to the teenager...by his teacher.
As I noted above...it's ironic that I watched Dead Poets Society...the night before Robin Williams ends up taking his own life. Of course not I...nor anybody else viewing Robin's outstanding performance in this phenomenal film...would have ever predicted...that the life of the genius that was Robin Williams...would be ending...less than 24 hours later.
My words today...are not going to discuss the actual cause of Robin Williams' death...the suspected reason or reasons for his passing...or anything in particular that the mainstream media has already covered. Instead...I don't only want to mourn his parting...but to celebrate and pay tribute...to a life who personally gave me...and many millions of other people across the country and around the world...tremendous pleasure by his creative comedy craftsmanship and dramatic brilliance. Robin Williams deserves no less.
Nobody knows what I'm about to reveal...as I've never spoken of it to anyone...or written about it until this very moment. But...in 1995...when I was diagnosed with and battled prostate cancer...I would watch videos of Robin Williams' sidesplitting stand-up comedy routines...as well as comedy movies such as Mrs. Doubtfire and Good Morning, Vietnam...to bring me laughter...during a tearful time in my life. And in 2012...when I was diagnosed with cancer again - this time cancer of my left kidney - and I was upset and worried that I was going through cancer for a second time...I needed more cheering up...by the spectacular Robin Williams. My family and friends did not know this...and don't know it until now...but I went back to the Robin Williams tapes...to get me through another bout with the "Big C." This time...in addition to the two films named above...laughter came to me...in the form of The Birdcage. Plus...I would watch Patch Adams...where Robin perfectly performs the part of a medical student...who is soon to be a doctor...and who makes children - as well as some adults - who are afflicted with cancer and other serious illnesses...feel good while going through their treatments. Patch Adams was an emotional rollercoaster of laughter and tears...but in a way that aided me through my own pain and suffering. Of course I'm not the only one who forgot about troubles as a result of Robin Williams' laugh-making abilities. His dear friend...the late Christopher Reeve - who we all know became a quadriplegic... after being thrown from a horse during an equestrian competition - would talk of laughing so hard when Robin would visit him that he was lucky not to fall out of his wheelchair. And Inside The Actors Studio host and executive producer James Lipton tells a story about director Steven Spielberg...calling Robin Williams every night after Steven spent a day filming Schindler's List... and Steven asking Robin to..."make me laugh." Robin Williams gave us characters who are full of warmth and life. Thank you, Robin...for all the magnificent moments you made me happy...when I was sad.
I have always been a tremendous fan of Robin Williams, but quite frankly, until I tuned in to some of the television news broadcasts on Monday, August 11th, 2014 - the day Robin had passed away at the age of 63 - and other newscasts on Tuesday, August 12th...I hadn't consciously realized how many of Robin's blockbuster movies were truly my favorites. Good Will Hunting...for which Robin won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar...and the aforementioned Dead Poets Society... Mrs. Doubtfire...The Birdcage...Patch Adams...and Good Morning, Vietnam... just to name a few. And I can never forget Robin's breakout role as the hilarious alien, Mork...first in television's Happy Days... and then in his own series, Mork & Mindy...which was watched weekly by some 60 million people.
Robin Williams was a genuinely gifted man. His performances were passionate and provocative. The Earth has been eclipsed by the dark shadows of his death...but the world was a better place for having Robin part of it.
Robin Williams has left us too soon. There was nobody like him. Whether he tickled our funny bones or touched our hearts throughout his legendary career...nobody could captivate an audience better. Robin Williams was born to entertain us. But this kindhearted soul will forever be remembered not only for his enormous and boundless talents as a performer, but for the depth of his philanthropy and altruism. Robin was generous with his time, his masterful skills and his money. He raised millions of dollars for numerous charities...especially for foundations that helped sick children...the homeless...and for research to help fight AIDS. Robin also gave of himself by entertaining America's military troops all around the world.
It's so sad to think that with all the laughter Robin Williams gave his fans...to help us overcome our troubles...Robin struggled with his own demons...and unfortunately he apparently had nobody to lift his spirits and make him happy. Robin Williams could always make me smile. Too bad I...and the many millions of others who loved him as a performer...couldn't return the favor. It is such a shame that somebody who brought so much laughter to so many people...was inside...filled with sadness and tears. How much pain must Robin Williams have been in? To take his own life is a mystery to me...when he had to know what pain his death would bring to his wife...his three children...his entire family...his friends...and his fans. No person should ever feel so alone. No person should feel unloved. There is always someone to help you. As Mr. Keating in Dead Poets Society told his students..."The poetry...beauty...romance...love - these are what we stay alive for." Why couldn't Robin remember that on Sunday night, August 10th?
I'm sorry for Robin Williams. I'm sorry that someone who made so many people...so happy...was himself...so sad. Robin Williams made us laugh...and Robin Williams made us cry. Today we cry. But with films still yet to be released...Robin isn't finished making us laugh. But then...he never will be.
America and the entire world is a lot less funny without Robin Williams. I will miss Robin Williams. We will all miss him. But, Robin...I won't say goodbye. Instead...I will combine two lines from two of your most famous projects - Dead Poets Society and Mork & Mindy. "O Captain! My Captain... Nanu Nanu."
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
"We'll talk again."
The Controversy is a publication
of GBD Productions. Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B.
Duglin.
One of the chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author is writing. The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people throughout the United States of America and all around the world. If you agree or disagree...your views are welcomed. Tell me that you love what I write...or that you hate it. Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you prefer. The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you want about the topics discussed. Please share The Controversy with others by posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums. Please also pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories. The Controversy wants to know your thoughts on
the column above or on any other commentary or essay written on this blog.
The
Controversy will make an effort to publish a new commentary every Sunday.
Unscheduled essays may appear, from time to time, on other days as
well
Now, please express your opinions. Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that
appears. Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on
the word "Publish." Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The
Controversy.
Copyright 2014 Gary B. Duglin and
TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
The world is going to hell in a handbasket. And regretfully...and sadly... the United States of America is going down the drain with the rest of the planet. The question now is...how are we...the citizens of our great country... going to save our nation...and save ourselves? Americans - ALL AMERICANS - need to trust our President.
Unless you're living in a cave - which, quite frankly, it may be better to not know the following numbers - an NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll from this past Tuesday, August 5th, 2014...basically says that the people of the United States are aggravated, frustrated, disgusted, unhappy and - in plain English - pissed off with our elected politicians.
If you're a regular reader of The Controversy, you know that I'm unofficially the "Cheerleader-in-Chief" of the President Barack Obama Fan Club. I am enthusiastically a great supporter of our 44th President. And if you've been reading my column throughout the last 21 months, you also can come to the conclusion that I go to bed every night and hope, wish and pray that
Hillary Clinton will run for President in 2016, as I am confident and certain that the former Secretary of State, former U.S. Senator from New York and former First Lady will win The White House in a landslide against any - that's right, I said any Republican. And...as I have written in other commentaries...if Hillary Clinton was Hillary Smith...Hillary Jones...or Hillary Any-Last-Name...I'd still think she'd be the best person available to be elected to the highest office in the land in November, 2016. And to say Mrs. Clinton would be outstanding as our President is an understatement. She would be superb.
But with President Hillary Clinton...we also get President Bill Clinton - the single greatest and best President in my lifetime...which is nearly 60 years. So let's face it - in case you haven't already figured out - I'm a Clinton-Clinton-Obama lover. I'm a Democrat. I'm a liberal. And I'm proud of all these labels - if you are one who wants to label me.
All that being said...we've got more than two years to go with President Obama...and - depending on what happens this November with the mid-term elections - we may still have a Congress that doesn't want to work with him.
The NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll says President Obama's approval rating of 40 percent is his very lowest since the President took office on January 20th, 2009.
Republicans in Congress have said for nearly six years that they are against Barack Obama...and all they've done is oppose everything the President does. Americans do not want that. Americans do not want haters. And I'm truly sorry to say...that most Republicans who serve in the United States Senate and House of Representatives...are haters. And I want to believe...that Republican citizens across the U.S.A. are - for the most part - not haters...and they don't want the politicians who represent them...to be haters.
The NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll shows that Republicans in Congress have a paltry 19 percent favorable rating. Democrats who sit in the Senate and House are unfortunately not doing too much better, but at least they're at 31 percent.
Our nation's Constitution was created by our founding forefathers with a "checks and balances" mentality. But with the shockingly bad numbers of the NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll and the severe polarization of our country today..."checks and balances" are a thing of the past. It's plain to see that Republicans in Congress are not willing to work with Democrats - with those on Capitol Hill...or with he who lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Republicans need to do more than criticize and complain about President Obama. Republicans in Congress need to do more than threaten...and then actively shut down the government. Republicans on Capitol Hill need to do more than file a lawsuit against the President of the United States. Republicans need to do more than investigate the 2012 attack on the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya...just to be able to try to hurt the then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton...in case she does decide to seek the Democratic nomination for President in 2016. I can guarantee you that any such efforts by Republicans will be meaningless. All the Republicans in Congress want to do is bitch about anything and everything that President Obama and the Democrats in Congress want to do that could help our country.
Overall - according to the NBC News/ Wall Street Journal Poll - only 14 percent of Americans approve of Congress' job performance. That's the lowest approval rating for any Congress...ever. And a massive 79 percent of the people in our country...disapprove of the work our elected Members of Congress are doing. Amazingly...7 percent of Americans are unsure of their feelings about Congress. I'm always flabbergasted when someone has no opinion whatsoever...especially when an overwhelming majority has two thumbs down on Congress.
What is happening to the U.S.? What is happening...to us? The NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll says 71 percent of Americans believe our country is on the wrong track...while only 22 percent think we are headed in the right direction. Another 5 percent have mixed emotions and 2 percent don't know. These numbers are dismal. They are bleak. They are awful across the board.
How is Washington, D.C. going to turn all of this mess around? The Republican Party is broken. It's fractured. Republicans have no clue how to work with their Democratic counterparts in Congress and a Democratic President. Republicans in the House and Senate have no idea how...and no desire...to get the job done when they have to deal with Democrats.
One of the biggest concerns for Americans - even those of us who are employed - continues to be the economy. I lost my job five years ago - and although I now make a buck, so to speak, doing something else - it is not a position in the field for which I dedicated nearly 40 years of my life. Writing for this blog every week is - for now, at least - a passion without income. I am, therefore, barely surviving from my so-called "day job"...as most Americans are barely surviving. Those who made annual salaries of 40, 60, 80 or 100-thousand dollars or more ten, fifteen or twenty years ago...may now be earning only 20, 30, 40 or 50-thousand dollars. And with half their yearly income...getting through life is almost impossible. Others are still out of work...and not making one thin dime...not one red cent.
Now there is no question - no doubt - that the economy is better today than it was a year ago...or five and a half years ago when Barack Obama took office as President of the United States and inherited a disastrous recession that began as a result of some very bad choices made by President George W. Bush. But still - according to the NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll - 64 percent of Americans are still dissatisfied with the state of the economy in the United States...35 percent are satisfied...and a mere 1 percent is unsure. And 40 percent of Americans say at least one member of their household lost a job within the last five years. We, of course, can thank President Bush for that too. But what about the next generation of Americans? And the generation after that? How do most Americans feel our country will be in the next 20, 30 or 50 years? Well the NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll says 79 percent of Americans believe their children's future is not going to be better than what it is now. Americans are clearly not optimistic about the future of the United States.
True...jobs have been created. And thanks to President Obama...more people are working today than they were several years ago. However...we are not where we were under President Clinton...and we should be. If President Bush didn't put our economy in the tank...we'd be in a better place.
Even those of us who have a job are not making the money we should. Sure, 2 percent of the country may be...98 percent are not. We are not earning enough money to keep up with inflation. We cannot survive on the wages we're being paid when rents are increasing every year...food prices are skyrocketing every week...and the costs of all other products, goods and services have gone through the ceiling...through the roof...and in to the stratosphere.
The majority of Americans want the minimum wage increased...but Republicans in Congress continue to fight against it. President Obama wants the minimum wage to go up from seven dollars and twenty-five cents to ten dollars and ten cents an hour. I think the minimum wage should - at the very least - be doubled. But even at fourteen dollars and fifty cents an hour, it's not a living wage. At a 40-hour work week, that's still only a gross income of $30,160. Of course that's tremendously better than half that amount, but truly not enough to make ends meet and have money left over for savings and for fun.
And for those Americans who are still out of work...the Republican Party refuses to pass a bill for long-term unemployment insurance. Can't the Republicans in Congress be decent enough and compassionate enough towards people who can't find a job? And what about those Americans who bust their butts everyday at one job...at two jobs...or even three jobs...yet they are still living in poverty? No hard working American should be living in poverty.
The United States is crumbling before our eyes. And all the Republicans in Congress care about is destroying President Obama...even if he and the Democrats in the Senate and House will make things better in our country... and make life better for all Americans.
The NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll proves that our Congress today sucks. Our forefathers are certainly rolling over and spinning in their graves. From the first day of the Obama Administration...Republicans have said they would not work with the new Commander-in-Chief. Before the 2012 election... in an interview with the National Journal...the Senate Minority Leader...
Republican Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky admitted that "The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term President." McConnell and other Republicans then didn't seem to care about the country...and apparently now they still don't care. Their only concern is to see President Obama fail.
How will President Obama - over the next two and a half years - be able to sit down with Republicans in Congress and compromise? How will the President and Members of the GOP agree on passing bills to help our country when the Republicans despise President Obama...and their sick sentiments
are similar towards Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California. It's an obvious fact that most Republicans in the House and Senate just don't like President Obama...and because of that...they will do anything they can to prevent the President from any more success during his last couple of years in office.
Despite all of that...I am confident that President Obama is going to succeed...and that he will do everything he can...with the challenges he has to face...while having to deal with a selfish Congress...which is less popular... than he is.
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
"We'll talk again."
The Controversy is a publication
of GBD Productions. Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B.
Duglin.
The
Controversy will make an effort to publish a new commentary every Sunday.
Unscheduled essays may appear, from time to time, on other days as
well.
Please post
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and please pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.
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Copyright 2014 Gary B. Duglin and
TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
"Zero tolerance" is the policy of some high schools across America...and I was recently informed that my alma mater - in a small, suburban town in New Jersey - is following such action.
It disturbs me - to the nth degree - that an educational institution has the right to punish students...who disobey certain rules...when those pupils are not on school grounds.
I surely am not one who condones the consumption of alcoholic beverages or the use of marijuana or other illegal drugs by teenage boys and girls. However, if a student is caught drinking beer or smoking pot at a party, which is not anywhere near the property of his or her high school...nor is the gathering connected - in any way - to an event sponsored by or associated with any entity whatsoever involving the school itself...or its clubs, sports programs or other extra-curricular activities... then the school should not be able to discipline or penalize the student.
A municipality's board of education does not have the right - or at least should not have the right - to control the behavior of one or more of its students...when those individuals are not on the school's campus or are not participating in a school function.
Teenagers are the same as all other American people...the same as any American adult...in the sense that ALL United States citizens have the freedom - within the guidelines of state and federal laws - to do as they please. Of course with teenagers...they also have to abide by the rules set forth by their parents. But no school system should be able to dictate how teens...who attend their schools... should behave...when not seated in their classrooms...or when not engaging in a school-related activity.
And how are the schools learning about the students who are partying with beer, liquor and drugs...or - for that matter - who are doing anything that is against the "Code of Conduct" at a particular educational facility - whether public or private? Well...in many cases...school officials are monitoring kids' actions on social media. Facebook, Twitter and other Internet avenues are unfortunately the students' pathways to punishment by their principals. Social media sites are not only giving teenagers a way to share their innermost private secrets with friends, but since they are posting their thoughts "on line" for the masses to read - especially on Twitter - then numerous schools throughout the country have become "high-tech hall monitors" and school officials are literally spying on the children of America. Some schools are even hiring private technology firms to comb through the cyber-lives of students. My opinion is - that's an abhorrent disgrace.
Now understand me clearly. I am talking about the schools here...not a child's parents. It is the responsibility of mothers and fathers to be aware of actions being performed by their teenage sons and daughters. And if Mommy and Daddy catch their kid making reference to getting drunk...stoned on weed...or high on whatever else may be their drug of choice while at a party... then - by all means - I support those parents and I applaud them for doing what is right by protecting their teenage children so that they are not involving themselves in illegal activities that could also possibly harm them... or harm someone else. And if a parent grounds their kid...takes away his or her privileges...and punishes that teen...those moms and dads are being responsible parents.
Furthermore...it is a no-brainer that parents NEED...and MUST communicate with their children. They must talk with their children...and they must pay attention to what their sons and daughters are doing when they are not in the presence of their family guardians. Those mothers and fathers should - in every sense of the word - "monitor" their kids. But - as for the schools - that is a violation of privacy...and no school should have the right to suspend...expel...or chastise in any way...a student...for something the teenager has done...when the kid is not on school time...school property...or at a school event.
The big question is - can schools legally "throw the book" at a student... for something the teen has done...outside of the classroom...or outside the time when a child is involved with a school function? And not only does this concern such activities as the drinking of alcoholic beverages or other substance abuse...but with anything that the school opposes. For example... some schools have expanded their "Code of Conduct" - which they require students and parents to sign - to include..."respect." That clearly is unconstitutional. For instance...if a kid goes on Facebook or Twitter and says that his or her math teacher is "an idiot" - which perhaps he or she truly is - that's freedom of speech...and ALL - that's right, I said ALL - Americans... including children and teenagers...are protected under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Therefore, no school should be able to reprimand a student for making...what the board of education believes...is a disrespectful comment about a teacher - especially when that remark was made when the teen was not at school.
It's very true that with technology today...nothing is private. And if a teenager posts "on line" that he or she got drunk at a party over the weekend or on "spring break"...and the kid's mom or dad happens to read what their son or daughter wrote...so be it. After all...the teen did stupidly post the comment in a public forum. Therefore, the parents of that teenager have every right to scold their child...or - more importantly - discuss the situation and hopefully teach the teen why he or she should not be drinking alcohol. But the kid's school should have no authority over parties unrelated to the school itself...and therefore...no school should have the right to punish a student when the youngster was hanging out with friends...and their party was in no way tied to the school or any school affair.
Zero tolerance is totally troublesome to me when it affects teenagers' activities that are not at all linked to a school. Tracking a student's day to day movements on social media is absolutely against a teenager's civil rights...and no school should be permitted to do so. After all...the information could be shared...years and decades later...and such action by a high school...could detrimentally impact a person's future when applying to college...when seeking an employment opportunity...or when doing anything else throughout the rest of his or her life.
Student surveillance by schools - outside the school - is wrong. Plain and simple...it's wrong. Schools that do so...are overstepping their bounds. Principals and other school officials are not judges who have been appointed by a state governor or by the President of the United States...nor have they been voter-elected. But some of them are sticking their noses where they don't belong. It's invasive...and should not be allowed. Tweeting, texting and posting messages on Facebook or other social media Websites are the wave of today and - most likely - for many, many more years to come. But when it's being done by teenagers... beware, kids...because "big brother" is watching. And I don't mean the government...or the police...or your parents. It's your schools who have their eyes focused on your every move. And although I don't agree with what some of you may be doing...I do defend your civil rights...which apparently some schools don't. So to the teenagers who may be reading this commentary...be very careful when bragging about your partying and what you think is fun. You could end up...in big trouble.
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
"We'll talk again."
The Controversy is a publication
of GBD Productions. Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B.
Duglin. The
Controversy will make an effort to publish a new commentary every Sunday.
Unscheduled essays may appear, from time to time, on other days as
well.Please post
The Controversy site on your own Facebook pages and on your Twitter accounts;
and please pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.
Now, please express your opinions in
the comment box below. You do not have to register your name and you can remain
totally anonymous if you prefer. The Controversy wants to know your views on
the editorial above and on any other commentary or essay written on this blog.
Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your thoughts in the box that
appears. Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on
the word "Publish." Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The
Controversy. Copyright 2014 Gary B. Duglin and
TheControversy.net. All Rights Reserved.
