The Extinguished Senator from Illinois

The drama in the Senate as the 111th Congress of the United States assembled for the first time was palpable. Not since John F. Kennedy's days as the junior senator from Massachusetts has a member of the world's most exclusive club vacated his post because of his selection as president. As any student of the Constitution knows, when a senator resigns office or dies in office, his replacement is made by an appointment from the sitting governor of that state. The Constitution is very specific about this, because our founding fathers considered the Senate as the "upper" body of Congress, not unlike the House of Lords is considered in Great Britain. If a member of the lower house needs replacement, as in the case of the House of Representatives, an election process is instituted. This was a compromise between federalists and those favoring states rights at the time of the drafting of the Constitution. Many of our revered early leaders felt the people should not be entrusted with direct replacement of a member of the upper chamber and named governors as those who could best determine the best person for the job. Sometimes this causes major difficulties. When Louisiana Senator Allen J. Ellender, the 94th president pro tempore of the Senate, died in 1972, he was already in the midst of a re-election campaign against J. Bennett Johnston, who had just lost the gubernatorial election to Edwin Edwards and decided to throw his hat into the ring. Edwards was forced to name someone to the Senate right away whom he could trust. So who did he name to the Senate? Why , none other than his own wife Elaine! She served as the junior Senator from Louisiana from July to November of 1972 and resigned to give eventual winner of the campaign, J. Bennett Johnston, more seniority. Illinois Governor Rob Blagojevich may have been crazy to think he could sell a Senate seat to Obama's replacement, but give the man credit. At least he didn't try to put his wife into the chair. Meanwhile, Roland Burris, the former attorney general of Illinois whom Blagojevich named to fill the vacancy, is clearly enjoying himself at center stage in the media circus. He'll be back again today to try to persuade other Senators that his appointment is legitimate, which I believe it is. Also, there have been a number of former detractors, like Diane Feinstein, who now believe he should be seated among all the other members of the Senate. Burris could be seated as early as today or tomorrow if Feinstein's influence has anything to do about it. Then again, it is possible that Burris may be heading back to Illinois with his proverbial tail between his legs. We shall see. There is also the tale of woe in Minnesota that needs to be played out as the junior senator-to-be Al Franken is being challenged by the incumbent Senator Norm Coleman after a recount certified the former rather than the latter as the winner. That contest will be determined by the courts, a precedent of which was set in the 2000 year election for president. Hmmm... that's a switch. Normally comedians make fun of politicians. What happens when the politicians turn out to be comedians?

A wholly unacceptable holy war

As the Bush regime prepares to give way to the Obama administration, there would seem little time in Washington to focus on world events. But the situation in Israel and in Gaza needs to be examined if only to decry the bloodshed going on unabated by both sides and to try to put in a U.S.-sponsored peace initiative there. It is my understanding from experts who have assessed the situation that the current ground engagement that follows the nearly several days-old Israeli air pummeling could take many weeks to complete and could ramp up the death toll considerably on both sides. That is clearly not acceptable given the whole scale numbers of dead left in the wake of Israeli bombing and shelling. The Israeli response has been planned for well over a year and has been carefully considered after constant barrages from Gaza openly sanctioned by Hamas. Ehud Olmert is acting as the most entrenched Prime Minister Israel can ever have. Despite a shaky future due to suggestions of political pandering and the threat of indictments from his political foes, Olmert is, by nature of the Israeli Constitution, incapable of being driven from office during this period while he is in charge of a caretaker government. This is hard for Americans to understand, but Canadians and members of the United Kingdom know how coalition governments work. Olmert is acting decisively and swiftly because in another month, he will be forced to relinquish his post when new elections are scheduled. It had long been the hope of American interests that the Middle East plans pushed forth by presidents and secretaries of state would materialize into democratically-elected regimes representing governments for the people and by the people. How horrible it must have been for Washington players to have seen the results of the 2006 election that legitimized Hamas as a government in place of the Palestine Authority headed up by Mahmoud Abbas. While both Palestinian groups call themselves freedom fighters, the freedom they most desire makes no contingencies for peaceful coexistence with Israel. What they want is freedom from Israel based on post 1917 and pre-1948 borders, but that will never happen as long as present day U.S. policy and the sovereign nation of Israel exist. The response to the cross border rocket attacks by Hamas seems to be out of proportion. Yet, when one considers that Israel has suffered through thousands of seemingly endless attacks over the last year and a half (most notably in Sderot) and that everyone has lived under imminent threat (including infants and schoolchildren) every day and night during that time, the response may seem more justifiable. I recall that Gaza was given to the Palestine Authority by the Israelis in the hope they would use the land to establish a peaceful government that would improve their people's lot in life. Instead, the continued use of homicide bombers and terrorist rocket attacks have resulted in a controversial security wall being erected and this multi-faceted retaliation by the Israelis. Given this small window of opportunity, I have no doubt the Israeli military will be harsh in its response to Hamas. Veteran Washington players and the President-Elect have largely been mum on what is happening in Gaza right now. The fighting is not localized to Gaza. As an American, I believe the biggest problem to shake out of this conflict has been the organized nationwide response by Palestinian interests. There have been huge rallies with horrible racist banners that advocate launching nuclear attacks against Israel, for example. One might think that these protests are taking place in areas where there are large Islamic populations. Not so. These protests are taking place in metropolitan areas, many in and around major Jewish communities. The protests will not abate until a cease-fire is put into place and that won't happen in my opinion until a military solution finds favor in Israel's eyes with the elimination of Hamas' capacity to launch unchecked rocket attacks in the future. A report in Haaretz suggests the Israelis won't stop Operation Cast Lead until they recapture and reoccupy the entire Gaza Strip. Surely, that won't make the protestors happy, but it may relieve a lot of uneasiness in Washington.

The anniversary of Kosher Computing

Congratulations! I've made it to my first anniversary as a blogger. The past year has proven to be full of challenges and has been a fairly instructive period for me as I took a journeyman's leap into the blogosphere. Yet, it has been richly rewarding and, I hope for you, very productive in terms of output and what I had intended to create with Kosher Computing. Although the number of comments has been a bit lower than what I had hoped, those that have chosen to do so have in almost all cases had salient points they wanted to raise and to which I paid close attention. As a journalist, I have attempted to keep the highest levels of ethics and have tried to be objective in a great many, but not all, cases. A blog tends to be of a very personal nature and therefore requires some subjectivity from time to time. It is my desire to not go overboard in this regard. So, if anyone wishes to object to anything I have written, you need only post a response online. No one has been edited in this past year and I hope that the need will not arise to curtail readers' opinions in the future. With my second year now beginning, I want to continue to pledge myself to the task of reporting items of interest in a fair and timely fashion and to make comments that are deemed appropriate, if not specifically on target. Thank you all for being with me through this first important and formative year. I hope year number two offers us time and opportunity to share and consider a multitude of new thoughts and ideas on a variety of topics.

Wishing you all the best,

Alan

A sweet Sugar for sure

Today marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the New Orleans Mid-Winter Sports Association. While few know the actual name of the committee of businessmen and civic leaders who have put on the Sugar Bowl since its inception in 1934, most everyone knows of the winter football classic that has determined 22 national college football champions. Among the major bowls, only the Rose Bowl in Pasadena is older. So it is with pride and a sense of tradition that I headed off to the Legends Luncheon of the Sugar Bowl at the Grand Ballrooom of the New Orleans Hilton Hotel. Thousands of members, guests and media were able to see 30 past most valuable players and coaches who have graced the gridiron and paced the sidelines in Sugar Bowls of the past. Players like Archie Manning of Ole Miss, Steve and "Snake" Stabler of Alabama, both of whom became New Orleans Saints quarterbacks joined legendary coaches like Vince Dooley, Paul Dietzel, Gene Stallings and Frank Broyles. It was an embarrassment of riches as sports celebrity trumped sports celebrity and WWL-TV's Jim Henderson (a former Saints radio partner with Manning) played host and introduced the figures to the audience one by one with a short biography prior to their emergence from the darkened rear and onto the well-lit podium. The event was just the start of what promised to be a very good game between two very good teams, namely the Utah Utes (12-0) and the sixth-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide (12-1). Alabama, by virtue of its long-standing tradition and ranking in the polls came into the game as a heavy favorite. Utah, the only unbeaten college football team, in 2008 had on more than one occasion wondered aloud why it was not playing for the national championship. Because of what some consider a "weak" schedule and since they lack a major bowl affiliation through a conference , the Utes were kept out of consideration for playing in the BCS Championship Bowl. However, after their performance in the Superdome last night (when they upended Alabama 31-17), the case for their consideration as to owning at least a piece of the national championship could well be made. The Utes showed that, despite what the matchup looked like on paper, their talent, ablility and drive allowed them to take charge of the game from the very first drive. Their domination of Alabama was almost absolute and Nick Saban's team could do nothing more than try to play catchup after finding themselves down 21-0 at the end of the first quarter. The "underdog" Utes showed they had the right stuff and put on a magnificent show for those in attendance or watchig on TV. The New Orleans Mid-Winter Sports Association's Sugar Bowl was a great event, bringing visitors to the city and gaining attention for our fair city. I can't wait until next year's show.

Welcome MMIX

What a difference a day makes, or so says the song of the same title. It is amazing how we make such a big noise and raise such a huge ruckus when we usher in a new year. Would we take the efforts, energies and monies we spend bringing in the new year and instead put it towards erasing poverty, eradicating illness and easing suffering in the world, we might achieve great results. But because of human nature, that will never happen. The reason is that the new year is a personal milestone shared by everyone. It is a vindication that means no matter how well our means or how poorly we are faring in the world, we are still here. Our celebration of the new year recognizes in a strange way our own mortality in that it indicates that we have passed another precise cycle of shared time measurement. The most appropriate verse in the Bible that deals with this is found in Kohelet or Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

Of course, for those of us who grew up in the Sixties, will recognize those words (or words very similar) as lyrics to the immortal classic "Turn, Turn, Turn." Penned by Pete Seeger, that song was one of my favorites by the folk-rock group The Byrds, whose members included Roger McGuinn and David Crosby. Seeger wrote the song back in the Fifties, but didn't release it until 1962. Others who have covered it include The Limeliters, Judy Collins, The Seekers, Dolly Parton, Nina Simone, Chris DeBurgh, and Mary Hopkin, who issued it twice: first as the "b" side to "Those Were the Days" and the later in Welch when it was titled "Tro, Tro, Tro." So, as we prepare to take our places on "The Great Mandala," and look to the promise of 2009, we can't but help look back at the disasters and triumphs of 2008. Although we selected our first African American president in an election process that featured some of the best and the worst moments for our nation last year, we also saw the economy stall and nosedive. Many hundreds of thousands of workers are either out of work or fear they may be victims of the economic crisis in the coming months, not the least of whom are automotive workers. Names like Linens N Things, Mervyns, Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, and Aloha Airways have disappeared. Experts are very cautious these days eyeing giant companies like Circuit City, who filed for bankruptcy protection last year. The costs associated with the Bernard Madoff scandal have only just now become evident. By this time next year we may have a handle on how deep the losses extend. It was only a few days ago that we learned that Kevin Bacon and wife Kyra Sedgwick were but one degree of separation away. Numbers of their losses were not released, but we can only speculate that they were extensive. We also lost a number of highly visible celebrities such as Heath Ledger, Paul Newman and Tim Russert. Yet, through it all we kept our demeanor, recalling the many good things they did in their all-too-short lives while shedding tears for those they left behind. Newspapers in general suffered through another year of downturn, while the Internet scored modest gains. My blog began as just printed words and now is heard over broadcasts of Radio-J. Like any other new year, the world looks to 2009 with expectation and promise and dread and fear. No wonder the Romans cast the two-faced god Janus for the namesake of the first month of the calendar. We are cautious as we look to the past and hopeful as we look to the future. I hope the hard times are over soon enough and that in one more year's time we may see steady progress and, if nothing else, the light at the end of the tunnel.

The final blog of 2008

So far so good. This first year I have blogged about 267 times, meaning that with about 98 exceptions, I have had a daily discourse on the Internet. There were several times due to travel or other considerations (like a busy holiday season), where I was unable to get my blog submitted on time. For those times, I do apologize. So what have I learned thus far in my entry into the blogosphere (now almost a full year since my first tenuous steps)? I have learned that the connections between far-flung people can be quite strong through the blogging process. I have learned that more people are reading these entries than I would have believed initially. I have also learned that it is important to me to write intelligently and with purpose, because no one wants to read a trite, insincere blog. I have attempted to write in an ethical manner, but not necessarily in an objective way. The blogging process screams for subjectivity in much the same manner that a newspaper columnist cannot be impartial and stay valid for his readership. It is, after all, pretty much about crediblity. Can you truly believe the words I am writing? Do I make a compelling case for what I am advocating? If you disagree, can you see my point or would you think it necessary to respond to me via a comment? I have had an incredible number of good friends I have made through this first year, and I resolve to continue to do more of the same in 2009. I hope that I will be a source for information and, perhaps occasionally, for inspiration in the year to come. In the meantime, may all of you enjoy the most blessed of new year's celebrations and may the coming new year bring you continued good health and success in your endeavors. See you next year....

A jug of wine, a loaf of bread, and Edwin

The holidays are making this an extremely short workweek. Due to the placement of New Year's Day on Thursday, it is very doubtful that offices will reopen for one day on Friday, January 2. It is also true that many businesses will shut down for half a day on New Year's Eve. So, the end result is that there are but two full workdays this week, to wit, Monday and Tuesday. So, it was with great pleasure that I took in a concert by Edwin McCain on Sunday night at the New Orleans House of Blues. For those of you who recall "I'll Be" or "I Could Not Ask for More," you know who Edwin McCain is. He is one of the truly great troubadours of rock influenced by soul, jazz, folk and Southern rock. His memorable songs contain insightful commentaries and are full of unalloyed poetry. For those who have been privileged to see him in concert, the experience of his music is heightened ever so much by the dynamism of his powerful stage performances. With saxophonist Craig Shields and guitarist Larry Chaney giving tremendous support onstage, Edwin plays for an hour and a half or more without stopping. Bassist Murray Yanes and drummer Trommel Blassingame round out the band. The focus of the band is Edwin. He is a force of nature to be reckoned with and, for those that attend with their significant others, a nice date night too.