Kevin Marshall's America
Don’t get me wrong. I believe a candidate’s faith is very important and should be one of the criteria people use to decide who gets their vote. I just don’t believe it should matter which faith is in play.
Faith is not just about believing in God or a higher power, but in those select few elected by the people to act on our behalf in the governing of this country, faith is about character.
We must remember, as much as we use the term democracy to describe our system of government, it’s actually a republic. The people don’t make decisions on how they are governed. We elect others to do that for us. In doing so, it is in our best interests to do what we can to ensure that those officeholders are individuals of strong character.
I’m not surprised that someone can be as childishly naive and closed-minded in regard to faith or lack thereof as a qualification to obtain an elected position. I am, however, a bit aghast that a website like the Knick Ledger, which seeks to be seen as a legitimate news/media outlet in this area, would reproduce it.
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Earth | Time Lapse View from Space | Fly Over | Nasa, ISS from Michael König on Vimeo.
Levity.
Since the start of Occupy Albany, there’s been a rift between Albany’s municipal government and the state of New York. While Cuomo had wanted the protestors removed immediately, the Mayor’s Office, police, and the Council wanted to give them the right to stay and demonstrate in Academy Park. It even gave them exceptions, allowing them to camp out and stay out past the curfew established by law.
Tonight, as All Over Albany recaps, they crossed over to Lafayette Park with the knowledge that the cameras would show up and the State police would enforce the law by removing protestors. About 24 (maybe more?) were arrested, then immediately released.
This is where I get fed up and tell you to go home.
Rather than re-write what I already wrote in response to one of the protestors, a well meaning fellow who I think has just lost perspective like so many others, here’s a quick image snap:
The optimist in me says it’s all just misguided. But the cynic in me was waiting for this moment all along, where it exposed what’s really behind this. It’s an attempt to join, not an attempt to thumb the nose at authority.
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In case you missed it, Rick Perry sank himself last night.
Note: what he named are Departments, not agencies, but that’s just semantics.
Well, it was inevitable. The problem with Perry from the start is that he ran on being the new George W. Bush. He had Bush’s “aw shucks” mentality, down-home ethics, and perception of a simpleton, but was lacking any of the charm or charisma that’s required to pull it off.
So what was that third thing Rick Perry wanted to eliminate? I’ve narrowed it down to 10 possibilities.
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development
- The Ministry of Silly Walks
- Penn State
- a stick of butter
- the Holy Spirit
- The Legislative Branch
- the Santa Maria
- Hank Williams, Jr.’s song for Monday Night Football
- that he’s ever gonna love you, even though he wants you and he needs you.
- N*****head
John P. Surma, Vice President of Penn State's Board of Trustees, announces the firing of President Graham Spanier and football head coach Joe Paterno.
Penn State students and alumni siding with Joe Paterno: you’re wrong.
There aren’t any if, ands, or buts about it. There isn’t a discussion to be had about what could have been done differently. Claiming ignorance of extent is not a valid excuse. Neither is invoking the phrase “hindsight” as a means of deflection.
Joe Paterno was told, and knew, that Jerry Sandusky was abusing a child. Instead of going to the proper authorities to ensure the safety of that child and all of Sandusky’s other victims – which no matter how many have come forward there will likely be others that out of shame and scarring from the activities will opt not to revisit it – he chose instead to quell a fire that might have provided temporary discomfort to the school.
Yet, the worst case scenario would have been that the school would be under a dark cloud temporarily for the actions of one man. It would have been a distraction, but it would have been brief. Instead, Joe Paterno and others at Penn State decided it was best if they swept it under the rug as quickly and quietly as possible.
It was a bad decision from a PR and logistical standpoint, and that alone deserves firing.
But that’s neither here nor there. Because the decision was wrong on a moral and ethical level.
As I’ve written in this space before, sports figures occupy a curious space in our culture. As cynical as it becomes, athletes and coaches are easily lionized. When the reality doesn’t fit the image that has been crafted for them, fans get very upset. They feel betrayed, even if the person in question did not necessarily purport to be the very thing that we find out they weren’t.
Or, as is more often the case, they accuse everyone else of lying.
The facts are the facts, as admitted by Paterno himself to a grand jury and others: he was told Jerry Sandusky was raping a ten-year-old child. And he protected not the victim and future victims, but the offender, by not reporting it to the proper authorities. In other fields of work, and indeed in many primary and secondary schools across the country, Paterno would have been found criminally negligent as a mandated reporter of abuse. That he got away with it was only because Sandusky was craft enough to simply use Penn State as a locale, rather than a means, of securing his prey and executing the heinous acts.
Right now, as I write this, the student body at Penn State is upset because a football coach with a long and storied career was told that what he did was wrong and that he would pay the consequences of not only a bad decision, but one that endangered and ruined the lives and safety of an as yet unknown number of children as young as ten. They are angry, chanting, have set at least two fires and overturned a news truck.
But who can blame them? They are Penn State, where football is more important than anything: truth, safety, property, values, and lives.
It makes me sad to see so many so angry for all the wrong reasons. It’s my hope that “with the benefit of hindsight” they, too, will one day see their error. And to Sandusky’s victims and all victims of sexual abuse for whom their reaction is likely bringing forth some terrible feelings, please note that there are so many more of us out there that aren’t taking the streets, are on your side, and would do the right thing if someone came to us with the same information Joe Paterno had. In fact, for all the coverage the angry students are getting, there are also thousands that are holding a candlelit vigil for the victims of the abuse. Because they, like most other human beings, know that nobody, for any reason, should be allowed to endure such abuse.
Not even for the sake of football.
There’s an Occupy movement that all of you, particularly those who identify as “the 99%”, should partake in:
It’s called Election Day, and it’s happening right now.
If you’ve been engaged in any of the campouts across the nation, whether it be in front of a bronze bull or under a tree in Academy Park in dowtown Albany, then you owe it to yourself and your beliefs to be at your local polling place today. Because you can occupy whatever you want for however long you like, but if you’re not where you need to be when it matters, then what’s the damn point?
Make all the excuses you want – it’s an off year, there aren’t any federal elections, our gripe isn’t with our Mayors, these elections don’t matter. It’s all bunk. Democracy begins in your back yard. If you can’t be bothered to have a voice and take part in the most important elections – the ones that most directly affect your day to day life – then your quarrel should be with internal factors in addition to the 1%. Occupy the voting booth.
Joe Paterno in 2006, four years after an incident of child abuse was allegedly reported to him. Image via wikipedia.
This Saturday, November 12th, the Penn State Nittany Lions football team will take on Nebraska in a home game at Beaver Stadium.
Don’t go.
If you haven’t been following the news the last several days, then you have been spared horrific and atrocious accounts of rampant sexual abuse of children as young as ten years old at the hands of former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky, who used a charity he created called “Second Mile” to prey on disadvantaged and troubled youth.
Allegations were made throughout the years that Sandusky was abusing children. In one instance, an assistant found Sandusky in the midst of a sex act with a child. He reported it to head coach Joe Paterno, who passed the buck upward through the chain.
Other than not allowing use of the facilities, nothing was done nor reported. The abuse continued.
A Grand Jury probe revealed some truly horrifying details. Sandusky, who at one time was thought to be the heir apparent to the man Penn State community members and fans affectionately called “Joe Pa,” is a monster. But just as monstrous was the response – or rather, complete lack thereof – from Penn State officials and Paterno himself. They turned a blind eye to the abuse and allowed it to continue for the sake of keeping it quiet and maintaining the quiet dignity of the football program.
Like in so many other instances on college campuses throughout the country, the right thing took a back seat to a high-profile sports program. Except this time, there is absolutely no justification.
Sandusky committed deplorable acts, but also unforgivable was the inaction of Paterno and others who were by their own admission aware that something was happening. In my mind, he and every other official that was made aware of the allegations and chose to not pursue proper channels are culpable in the abuse of these children.
The controversy has lifted a veil that sports fans have willingly adorned for decades in regards to corruption at the college level and revealed an ugly truth: that nothing but the dollar and maintenance of a public image matters to the Athletic program at Penn State.
Which is why I’m urging anybody in, around, or even remotely associated with Penn State to boycott the next home game. The pleas of assistants and passerbys did nothing, nor did the knowledge that children were being raped. Empty seats, unfortunately, are the only thing that will speak volumes to the college.
Don’t occupy Beaver Stadium. The silence and your absence will be deafening.
Related:
- Joe Paterno’s pathetic response
- Penn State officials face charges (CBS News)
- Sandusky remained presence at Penn State last week (Yahoo Sports)
- Story timeline & updates (CBS Sports)
“If true, the nature and amount of charges made are very shocking to me and all Penn Staters. While I did what I was supposed to with the one charge brought to my attention, like anyone else involved I can’t help but be deeply saddened these matters are alleged to have occurred,” Paterno said in a statement.
The legendary coach said an assistant coach told him in 2002 about an “incident in the shower of our locker room facility.”
“It was obvious that the witness was distraught over what he saw, but he at no time related to me the very specific actions contained in the Grand Jury report. Regardless, it was clear that the witness saw something inappropriate involving Mr. Sandusky. As Coach Sandusky was retired from our coaching staff at that time, I referred the matter to university administrators,” Paterno said.
So you knew there’d been abuse, but you feel okay because you didn’t know the disgusting details and passed the buck?
Fuck you.
Market Block Books will be holding a special fundraiser tomorrow to raise funds for the Troy Public Libraries.
With our economic prospects dimmer, it is more important than ever that we encourage education, literacy, and a genuine enthusiasm for reading in people of all ages. The only available resources many in the community have is the Troy Public Libraries, which sadly face an inevitable shortfall as available funds shrink against rising costs.
So tomorrow, Sunday November 6th, Market Block Books in downtown Troy (290 River St. right on the intersection of River, Front, and 3rd streets) will open with special hours from 10am to 2pm with 20% of all sales going to our libraries.
Go help out local business and our libraries. Two birds with one stone!
If you need recommendations on what to buy:
Chango’s Beads and Two Tone Shoes by William Kennedy
A reporter is witness to turmoil in the form of Castro’s revolt in Cuba in the 1950s and the devastating race riots that plagued Albany and Troy in 1968, finding love and Ernest Hemingway along the way. The latest from the Pulitzer Prize winner might just be his best.
Every Move You Make by M. William Phelps
The true crime writer tackles the case of Troy native Gary Evans, career thief and serial murderer. Inspector Jim Horton, who established a relationship with Evans as a CI and pursued him on and off for roughly 15 years, didn’t even know the extent of his crimes and their nature until Evans dramatic capture and shocking confessions in 1997. The book follows the story from Evans’ beginnings in Troy, to rumors of his involvement in disappearances, and finally to his capture and spectacular finale. To call this a page-turner is an understatement.
I wanted to do a wonderful and inspiring write-up of the day I spent at the Albany Comic Con last Sunday, but time has been in short supply and life has not.
Instead, I will just say what a wonderful thing you missed if you weren’t there. The Holiday Inn on Wolf Road hosted the festivities as they have for several years now. Unlike last Spring, Sunday’s event was back to using both rooms for the Con, which gave more walking space and room to breathe the air shared by creators from stalwart writer Ron Marz to legendary penciler and inker Dick Ayers.
I spoke with Ron, who has encountered controversy in his return to DC Comics due to the setting of the first issue of “Voodoo,” part of the company’s much ballyhooed relaunch this Fall. Me and Ron have developed a friendly rapport over the last couple years stemming from our mutual involvement in the “Mockingbird Marathon” fundraise for Literacy Volunteers of the Capital Region, so I can’t and won’t deign to be wholly objective in the discussion. In case you don’t know, basically Ron is a mysognist and a monster. Well, not really, but that’s what a lot of comic readers on the internet would have you believe. The first issue of “Voodoo,” which is marketed and identified as a Teen book (meaning for more mature/developed readers), takes place in a strip club. It does not glorify the practice, nor is it objectifying in its context: the lead character is a shape-shifting alien who is a stripper for all of the first half of the book for reconaissance. I bought the first two issues from him and read them myself. I think the book and Ron are victims of the fallout from controversies stemming from other (and lesser) offerings birthed by DC’s relaunch; in particular the over-sexualization of the Catwoman character, who ends her first issue straddling Batman on a rooftop and engaging in intercourse with him. On the other hand, the best description I have for “Voodoo” is as sci-fi noir set in the DCU, and the various settings are appropriate for what it’s trying to accomplish. Whether one thinks that’s appropriate for a DC book is something to take up with editorial, not the creators.
I also saw another guy I worked with on the Marathon, Matthew Dow Smith, the penciller for IDW’s “Doctor Who” comics. I finally picked up a trade from him to read. Thus far I’ve only enjoyed his art from afar, which unlike so many other pencilers is stylistic and expressionist rather than trying to restrict itself to modern comic mores. In that sense I feel he’s reminiscent of Mike Mignola, though I’m sure more than one person would bristle at the suggestion. Matthew, in particular, will probably be a little embarrassed by the comparison, but hey, at least it’s a flattering one.
After talking to Matthew I was greeted with a hello from a stranger at an adjacent table. Ian Struckhoff, in an aggressive but pleasant pitch, introduced himself to me and shook my hand. He’s self-publishing writer and creator with a salesman’s knack for engagement. I had a really pleasant conversation with him about the creative process and his own imprint, Black Label Comics. When I got home I read the first issue of his title “The Dark Age,” about a female homicide detective on the trail of a killer who starts hearing about an angel. The issue reveals, through flashbacks, that magic was a very real and functioning aspect of our civilization until it was exterminated by military intervention during the Middle Ages (possibly, and it may be revealed in later issues, as part of the Crusades). The heavy premise could weigh down the book, but to his credit Ian keeps it light and only tells the reader what s/he needs to know to stay in the story. I was glad that the work lived up to the pitch and I’m intrigued to see more of it.
Later in the day I was shocked to see J.M. DeMatteis, who co-wrote and drew one of my favorite books of all time, Justice League International. I fanboyed a little bit, getting his autograph and gushing over his work. I hadn’t paid much attention to the marketing leading up to the Con since I was already going, so his presence was a genuine and pleasant surprise.
Da na nana nana nana da na nana nana nana HENRY
Then, of course, there’s the people walking the floors. Enthusiastic fans chatting up anyone and everyone around them, costumed anime characters, babies dressed as Robin (that’s Eric Newsom‘s adorable and sweet little two-month-old Henry), and a working replica of R2D2. The Con is, as expected, a strange and wonderful assortment of geekdom, but it’s also accessible to the layperson.
The only regret I have is that I was unable to get a moment with Dick Ayers, a truly great and sometimes overlooked artist from the 50s whose work on Western comic “Ghost Rider” (not to be confused with Marvel’s “Ghost Rider”) was incredible. He later worked for Marvel itself and became one of the best inkers the prolific and legendary Jack Kirby ever had. Thankfully, local blog Nippertown got a word with the man in the days leading up to the Con and has a nice little retrospective on his career.
They’ll be back again in the Spring for another Con, and so will I. The official site has more info at Albanycomicbookshow.com.
RECOMMENDED READING
Doctor Who Volume 3: Final Sacrifice
Doctor Who II Volume 2: When Worlds Collide
Artifacts Volume 1 TP
Samurai: Heaven And Earth (Samurai Heaven & Earth) (vol. 1)
Golden Age Ghost Rider
Justice League International, Vol. 1
Justice League International, Vol. 1
STALK ME
