Category: Bob Small

Will Marianne Williams Spoil Kennedy Bid?

Will Marianne Williams Spoil Kennedy Bid?

By Bob Small

Democrats are fond of the term “spoiler” in reference to candidates they consider “fringe” candidates, with no realistic chance of winning, but possibly siphoning votes away from the :machine” candidates.

During my active time with the Green Party, both Jill Stein and Ralph Nader were dubbed “spoilers” who might cause their candidates to lose.  If the best candidate you can choose is Hillary Clinton rather than Bernie Sanders, say, you’ve probably already spoiled your chances for victory.

In her second run at the Presidency, Marianne’s website lists some illuminating ideas.  However, she may only be spoiling the chances of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, the  other major Democratic candidate.

On her website, one could wade through her eight page “Economic Bill of Rights” and discover some quality ideas such as the right for universal quality healthcare and the right  to an equitable and fair justice system.  Other sections are equally verbose. Health is nine pages; Climate Action, 8 pages, and Why I’m Running is seven pages.

Some of the alternative parties that I used to run with insisted on handing out double-sided flyers and I would want to scream “Who are you trying to reach?”  Less is always more in these instances.

One place where Marianne will do well is Fairfield, Iowa but they are in a highly spiritual universe that probably doesn’t exist in over one-tenth, if that, of our country.

And like many others, she may lack the “people skills” required for a lengthy campaign.

Her decision-making may also be called into question.

If Marianne Williamson is not a “spoiler”, she is, at best, a “vanity Candidate”, like Chris Christie or Francis Suarez.  Hopefully, she gets what she wants from her campaign.

Will Marianne Williams Spoil Kennedy Bid?

Juneteenth Our Most Recent Holiday

Juneteenth Our Most Recent Holiday

By Bob Small

Today, June 19, is Juneteenth, the most recent of our 11 Federal Holidays, having been signed into law on June 17, 2021.

It  commemorates  June 14, 1865 when the Juneteenth Order (General Order #3), co-written by General Gordon Granger and his subordinate Major Frederick Emery, was posted throughout Galveston, TX.

Pennsylvania deems the day an “official annual observance”,  first recognized as an observance in 2019.

Texas was the first state to recognize Juneteenth as a permanent state holiday, it does not recognize the day as an observance.?!

Opal Lee is called “the grandmother of Juneteenth”. She began a walking campaign at the the age of 89 (2016) which eventually led to the creation of the Juneteenth holiday. She has written a Juneteenth children’s book. She is raising funds for a National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, the same city where, as a child, she watched her house being burnt down by a white mob. She is quite an extraordinary woman.

Not all Afro-Americans see Juneteenth in the same way;  Professor Robert A.. Brown of Morehouse notes “Lawmakers have been more willing to engage in performative symbolism than passing laws to make substantive change”.

He cites police reform and reparations as two roads not yet taken. Others add voting rights to this list.

Though others still celebrate.

Juneteenth Our Most Recent Holiday

Confederate Flag Burning Is Illegal In Some Places

Confederate Flag Burning Is Illegal In Some Places

By Bob Small

We live in a land where it’s legal to burn a US Flag but illegal to burn a Confederate Flag.

At least maybe. The Supreme Court has yet to rule about banning flag burning regarding those that aren’t our national symbol of unity.

In Spence vs Washington (1974) the Court, after all, rejected the state of Washington’s argument that “promoting respect for the flag or preserving the flag as a symbol of the nation constituted important government interests”.

The Court reinforced it in 1989 in the 5-4 Texas vs Johnson decision.

We honor the rulings of the US Supreme Court, even when we disagree with them.  

This means Pennsylvania can’t pass an anti-flag burning law, without a Federal one that passes Supreme Court muster.

Gene Stilp has been on a flag-burning tour of central Pennsylvania.   However, in November, he reached a $10,000 settlement with Bellefonte, Pa., and has numerous other suits against various towns including State College.

In several Southern States, there is a Confederate Flag Day, this year having been on March 4.

I missed it too.

It was signed into Arkansas law by Governor Orval Faubus on Feb. 28, 1957.

There have been clashes over the Confederate Flag Day.  

The burning of the Confederate Flag is illegal in some Southern States.

It has yet to be ascertained whether the bans would pass constitutional muster, however, as nobody has apparently been arrested while attempting to burn one.

The Confederate Flag is a symbol of an unfortunate myth. It would be nice to see it simply pass into history.

Couldn’t we come to the place where we mourn all American soldiers who have died during war as Americans?

Lastly, why give such power to a symbol? Why should the burning of any flag substitutes as shorthand for a cogent argument for a political stand?

Confederate Flag Burning Is Illegal In Some Places

Bob Small Oscar Rules

Bob Small Oscar Rules

By Bob Small

These would be the new Bob Small inclusion/exclusion rules for the 2024 Oscars.  We would not try to bake in any “diversity”, though this should be naturally  happening as our society diversifies, not by any rules. My limitations are language and time. Nothing else. Much simpler.

We should add that we are DVD/VHS only people as we no longer have cable and do not stream, or philosophic reasons. (That is a separate post) We’re dependent on DVD Netflix, Delaware County Library System and Thrift stores.

Every year we try to sample at least a few of the recent Oscar winning films. We do have our criteria and/or prejudices. Whether or not this is cultural imperialism, my feeling is that any film nominated for an Oscar by the Academy of Motion PictureArts and Sciences should be in English unless it is for Best International Feature Film.

Now we do watch (Indian) Bollywood Musicals and Operas, most of which are in other languages, but we don’t really need the subtitles to get the gist of what’s going on.  But we tried to watch “Everything Everywhere All at Once” but were quickly and unilaterally defeated in that effort, in trying to follow the subtitles. 

We did get through ” Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”, but missed about one third, again due to subtitles.  We’ll pass on the other foreign language films, including All Quiet on the Western Front, Bardo, Full Chronicle of Truths, The Quiet Girl, and Triangle of Sadness.  We’ll still watch RRR because it’s from India.  Maybe we are cultural imperialists.

Another objection we have is bloated films over two hours, though there are exceptions such as  King Kong (1976) ,Twilight’s last Gleaming , and The High and The Mighty.  This is subjectivity from times of watch-watching  i.e.  watching the 1997 Titanic in a Delco Theater and thinking “did he drown yet?”

Among the winners over two hours were;  Avatar:The Way of Water, Babylon, Blonde, Elvis, The Fabelmans, and Tar.

Who is the 2023 Hollywood audience for these films?  Are there still people going to movie theaters or is it all cable, streaming, etc?

We still plan to see;

Babylon

The Banshees of Inasbern

The Batman (“cause it’s a Batman movie)

Causeway

Empire of Light

The Fabelmans (because it’s Spielberg)

Living

RRR (it’s from India, isn’t it?)

Tar

What would be your inclusion exclusion rules for the 2024 Oscars.?

Bob Small Oscar Rules
Bob Small Oscar Rules

Memorial Day Shouldn’t Be Commercialized

Memorial Day Shouldn’t Be Commercialized

By Bob Small

Memorial Day is observed on the last Monday of May, to honor US Troops who have died in service. Its original name was Decoration Day.  Waterloo, N.Y. claims to be the first locale to  observe Decoration Day on May 5, 1866.  though other areas also claim that honor.  The mutation to “Memorial Day Sales”, can only be seen as a function of American Capitalism and a betrayal of its original intent.

See below for some related websites,  including one Joe Biden invention.,

https://www.veteransforpeace.org Home | Veterans For Peace

https://allegheny.crimewatchpa.com › brentwoodboropd › 17167 › post › national-police-week-2023 

https://vva.org › memorial-day-2023

Memorial Day 2023 | Vietnam Veterans of America

We may just want to examine how often there are needless fatalities during war.

One of the best movies about this, which we just recently screened –we’ll miss Netflix DVD when it goes — was Tora! Tora! Tora! from 1970.

This under-appreciated movie clarifies that not all in the Japanese government agreed with the idea of attacking Pearl Harbor.

 It notes that U.S. decision makers were more afraid of sabotage than a military attack.

It points out the a tactical mistake of moving US Fleet from the relative safety of San Diego to Pearl Harbor.

This, like many bad decisions were made by the FDR Administration without consulting the major players in the Navy.  This lack of communication between the White House and the Military seems not to have an end date

Then there was the decision to leave the planes on the ground and others.

For a good summation of all these points, and many more, go to the trivia section of the IMDB Website on this movie.

As a comparison, to how we handle the day to honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, Russia had it’s annual Victory Day celebration on May 9;

They don’t seem to have any “Victory Day Sales”, or start any vacations at their “Black Sea”shore which granted might be problematic at this time, but they do remember their losses in World War 2. 

Maybe they have the right idea.

Memorial Day Shouldn't Be Commercialized

Cowardice Is Hollywood Tradition

Cowardice Is Hollywood Tradition

By Bob Small

Hollywood has a sordid history of refusing to have a moral backbone, from racist films such as Birth of a Nation (1915) to the failure to oppose the 1934 Hays Production Code to acceptance of a blacklist to numerous other other things.

Now, this same Hollywood, has created “new inclusion rules” for Oscar consideration.

The standards are requirements for on screen representations 30 percent of smaller roles are played by women, LGBTQ, disabled people, or ethnic minorities.

Also, creative leadership with similar quotas.

Also, industry access.  Again these are quotas for “under-represented groups”. 

But whose definitions are we using?

There is also an audience development standard.

The late Kirstie Alley responded by saying  “Can you imagine telling Picasso what had to be in his paintings.?”

Richard Dreyfuss has also spoken in opposition to these new rules extensively

“It’s an art. No one should be telling me as an artist that I have to give in to the latest, most current idea of what morality is,” he said.

Let me just add that the 2004 version of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, with Al Pacino is tremendous.  Pacino, it should be noted, is not Jewish.

Guess this should be remade with Woody Allen, Larry David, or Paul Rudd  or…….

Cowardice Is Hollywood Tradition

Cowardice Is Hollywood Tradition

Mozart Symphonies And Social Knowledge

Mozart Symphonies And Social Knowledge

By Bob Small

The program notes from an April 29 Swarthmore College student concert noted that Mozart had written over 50 Symphonies.  My previous understanding, from my first attempt at a college education, was that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had written 41 Symphonies, no more and no less!  I understood this the same way that I understood our universe had a total of nine planets.

However, prior to sending an angry email to the Chair of the Swarthmore Music Department, it was time to use Duck Duck Go for some independent research.  

What I found was that Brittanica lists “50 odd” symphonies, while Wikipedia says there were sorta 56.

Neither of these agreed with my understanding of 41 Symphonies.  Then again, in August 2006, Pluto was “deplanetized”.  

Assuming this is not “wokery”.  Could Mars, the planet of war, be next to be removed? Shouldn’t we all support peace?

Seriously, some of what was “social knowledge” of half a century ago, has changed.  For one instance, though many of us had a permanently single relative, we may have thought the term “queer” but rarely used it, in my family at least, as that would be “impolite”.  Now we acknowledge Gays and Lesbians do exist, and have a right to.

However, social knowledge wise, we still do not “normalize”  pedophiles, despite NAMBLA as the general agreement that minors do not have the maturity to make this decision.

This leads to the question of what other commonly accepted social knowledge of 2023 will have been reconsidered in say 2033 and how do we decide what should and shouldn’t be?  All responses welcome.

Back to Mozart, Patricia Johnson of Curtis, one of four Musicologists who I contacted, said “it’s unlikely we’ll ever have a definitive answer”. As to the number of symphonies.

Which leads to the question of will there ever be a definitive commonly accepted social knowledge?

And should there be?

Mozart Symphonies And Social Knowledge

Mozart Symphonies And Social Knowledge

Swarthmore Republicans Out Of The Closet

Swarthmore Republicans Out Of The Closet

By Bob Small

In Swarthmore, we pretty much believe “everything is everything” and do not question most desires.

Drag Queen Children’s Story Hour?

Check. 

Five story condo in the middle of town?

Check.

You may even start seeing “Joe Biden again, I guess” signs popping up. 

But even “woke” Swarthmore can’t sleep on this. 

Nikki Haley Campaign signs on Swarthmore lawns that are not No Mow May Lawns 

This means that there are active Republicans living in Swarthmore. And we thought we had driven them all underground. Well, they have “come out”

Many see Nikki as an “antidote” to Trumpism and a reply to Bidenism.

Nikki Haley was born as Nimrata Nikki Randhawa, the daughter of (Sikh) Indian Immigrants whose business thrived in South Carolina.  She became a Methodist at some point in her journey.  She was the first female governor of South Carolina (2011-17).  She then became the US Ambassador to the UN (2017-18) under then President Trump, with whom she sometimes agreed. In 1996, she married then US serviceman Michael Haley.  At age 51, she is one of the youngest “declared” GOP Candidates.

Among her positions, she backs Congressional Term limits.

On abortion, she says  “Let’s find national consensus”, a truly radical position.

https://www.nbcnews.com › politics › 2024-election › nikki-haley-2024-candidate-pledging-federal-abortion-ban-not-honest-rcna84365

Nikki Haley: A 2024 candidate’s pledging a federal abortion ban would

This stirred up the SBA (Susan B. Anthony Pro Life America group)

If you want to read more on Nikki Haley, consider this 86-page article in Politico.com

Or this one.

It’s only 22 pages!

Who knows what other candidate signs might pop up in my borough. Chris Christie? Venture Capitalist Vivek Ramaswamy? Miami Mayor Francis Suarez?

This isn’t the Swarthmore I thought I knew.

Swarthmore Republicans Out Of The Closet

Swarthmore Republicans Out Of The Closet Swarthmore Republicans Out Of The Closet

Firefighters Fight In 108th

Firefighters Fight In 108th

By Bob Small

After long term Pennsylvania 108th District Rep Lynda Schlegal-Culver  (12 years) won a special election on Jan. 31 for State Senate District 17, a special election was scheduled to replace her in the 108th.

It will be Tuesday, May 16.

Running are Trevor Finn (D), Michael Stender (R) and Elijah Skretching (L).  

The district  is In Montour and Northampton counties, including Rockefeller Township.  It has been a Republican seat for about 60 years.

For possibly the first time ever in a Pennsylvania State House race, both major Party Candidates are firefighters.

Trevor Finn worked at Finn’s News Agency, the family business.  He has been Commissioner of Montour County since 2004.  He has been operations chief and facilities commissioner if the Montour County Emergency Management Agency.  He has worked as an EMT and volunteer firefighter.  

He lives in Danville with his wife, Betsy, a kindergarten teacher.  They have two children who became teachers.

Michael Stender is a firefighter and a former emergency room technician.

Stender is a lifelong resident of Sunbury and he and his wife have three daughters. He is a Bloomsburg graduate and has done various volunteer work.

The Libertarian Candidate Elijah Scretching spent five years in the Marines. He lives in Northumberland Borough with his wife and daughter.

In a candidate’s debate,  he said “I want the people to have the power, not the government”.  He is in favor of having armed guards in the schools because “We have to stop being reactive and start being proactive.”

Firefighters Fight In 108th

Dem Incumbents Battle Challengers In Chester

Dem Incumbents Battle Challengers In Chester

By Bob Small

If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.

Eldridge Cleave

Incumbents William Morgan and Elizabeth Williams are facing challenges from Tamika M. Gibson and Fred Green in the Chester City Council in the May 16 Democrat Primary.

All participated in the League of Women Voters Forum available on YouTube.

“I hear a lot about plans that are supposed to be coming forward but you had six to eight years to put a plan in place and now because it’s election season, I hear what we’re planning to do,” Ms. Gibson said. “The plan has failed. We need a whole new administration to come forth to implement better plans to change the situation that Chester is in. The plans that you’ve already had don’t work. They haven’t worked. It’s time to get rid of the old and put something new in place so that we can move forward properly.” 

There are a number of YouTube videos of Tamika M. Gibson.

Fred Green is vice-president of Chester Upland School District, and has been a Salvation Army Board Member, a community liaison to Mayor and Council. For more information, see the following websites;

Councilman and Deputy Mayor William Morgan has a bachelor of science in communication from the University of Rhode Island. He was appointed to City Council, when Natis Nichols resigned in September 2016. He had worked for TD Bank as a Financial Services Rep.

Councilwoman and Director of Public Property and Recreation Elizabeth Williams has an associates in Early Childhood Education from Delaware County Community College. She has worked in various capacities for numerous insurance companies.  She is executive director for the Chester Democratic Party and vice-dhair for the Delaware County Democrats.

Dem Incumbents Battle Challengers In Chester
Dem Incumbents Battle Challengers In Chester