Sen Mitch McConnell got comfortable and loose

Sen. Mitch McConnell at CSM breakfast

I guess it’s human nature to feel comfortable when you are in the company of people who look and think like you.

For the last two-and-a-half years Republicans have been feeling extremely comfortable and loose lipped. When they make jokes and unflattering statements about President Obama, they get resounding approval and applause. 

Not only is that kind of reception a “hugging welcome” for a guest speaker, it opens the door to say whatever he or she wants without fear of rejection, ridicule or an audience boo-down.

That’s how comfortable Kentucky's Republican  Senator Mitch McConnell was when he was a  guest panelists at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast, June 22.
   
McConnell said, “The only thing I can tell you at this point is that there are differences. I’m not sure that these kind of differences might not have been there in a more latent form when you had a Republican president. But I do think there is more of a tendency to pull together when the guy in the White House is on your side.

“So I think some of these views were probably held by some of my members even in the previous administration, but party loyalty tended to mute them. So yeah, I think there are clearly differences, and I think a lot of our members, not having a Republican in the White House, feels more free to express their reservations, which might have been somewhat muted during the previous administration.”

McConnell was talking about President Obama committing America’s help to stave off a potential genocide after dictator Mummar Gaddafi unequivocally stated that he “would have no mercy” against Libyans rising up against him. He said his army would go on a house to house killing spree.

Regardless of the warning, some Democrats and the majority of Republicans are not happy. They said President Obama did not get permission from Congress to participate in the Libyan scrimmage.  They had no intentions of agreeing with him. They just wanted to see him grovel and plead for their cooperation.

The 1973 War Powers Act states that the president is supposed to halt military involvement if Congress has not formally approved it within 60 days. Republicans say President Obama has not explained America’s purpose for teaming with NATO and going into Libya. The President sent Congress a letter of explanation.

On April 10, 1999, members of Congress filed a lawsuit against Bill Clinton, citing he violated the Constitution and the War Powers Act, when he sanctioned America’s leading role in NATO’s intervention in Kosovo. Seventeen members of Congress participated in the lawsuit. A number of Democrats and Republicans, led by Dennis Kucinich, have filed a similar lawsuit against President Obama. They said he violated the War Powers Act. Kucinich did not participate in the lawsuit against Clinton.

According to a May 6, 1999 article in Salon, the White House continues to insist it doesn't need the permission of Congress to mount military action against Yugoslavia. "We believe the president does have the authority to conduct this campaign," says NSC spokesman Leavy. "There's constitutional precedent. In 1995, we engaged in military action in Bosnia in order to bring the Serbs to the negotiating table. President Bush sent 20,000 troops to Somalia. What we've done is consistent with the War Powers Resolution.”

"The whole War Powers Act is a very vague and hazy area," adds a senior White House official. It's never been tested to the Supreme Court level."

 “To add to the mixed messages, on Thursday the House is expected to vote in support of $12.9 billion to fund the military operations it won't support -- even though President Clinton requested less than half that. House Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, has explained this as a way to support our troops, while not necessarily supporting the policy that put them there.” (Salon)

John Kerry said last week no president has ever come before Congress under the 1973 War Powers Act, but now is a good time "to start with President Obama." The media are aware of this little overlooked fact, but refused to write about it, leaving the impression that Obama is the only president in history to "violate" the War Powers Act.

Today House Republicans and Democrats delivered a confusing solution to their opposition to  President Obama. First they voted against authorizing the use of American forces in Libya,  an hour later they voted not to limit funding. That sounds an awful lot like Dick Armey's statement.

McConnell said their slogan for the 2012 presidential election will be "Obama made it worse."

when the shoe is on the other's foot

when the shoe is on the other's foot

it is okay for me to scream at you

and tell you what's on my mind

but when the shoe is on someone else's foot

those words had better be said in kind

beating around the bush is not my choice

when i put you in your place

but when the shoe is on someone else's foot

truth is hard for me to face

it makes me feel good to put you down

and let you know who is in command

but when the shoe is on someone else's foot

respect is what i demand

when i criticize and taunt you

it makes me feel so tall

but when the shoe is on someone else's foot

i claim the glory, i want to claim it all

don't ask me to defend you at any time

who cares if people think the worst of you

but when the shoe is on someone else's foot

loyalty must shine through

how can we be so callous in our actions

ignoring the Golden Rule

do unto others as you'd  have them do unto you

makes it impossible for to be cruel

if we would practice the Golden Rule

in dealing with our fellow man

life will be a size fit all

when the shoe is in another's hand

copyrighted  by Helen r. Wilson

the main ingredient

I picked a flower beside the road

and carried it home with me

I decided it could grow in beauty

if I would just leave it be

feeling I had done my part

I left it alone to grow

as the days turned into week

the flower lost its glow

the earth beneath its wilting stem

was cracked and dry as sand

"Lord, " I prayed with tear filled eyes

"Please let it live again"

I gently cradled the limping plant

and gave it a loving pat

in just a few short days a living

plant  stood where a dying one sat

I kept it in a sunny place

for all the town to see 

and to remind me that the main

ingredient was the love coming  from me

freedom untitled

freedom removed the chains
that enslaved
my mind
determination unlocked the
chains that would
bind my purpose
hope released the chains
that would suffocate
my joy
but wisdom taught me
how to fee my soul

poems copyrighted  by  Helen R. Wilson

Creating facts that are easily disproved

Chris Matthews, MSNBC

Watching Chris Matthews’ Hardball today I was struck by war stats he threw out at the beginning of his show. The guests were Republicans Michael Steele and Ron Reagan. Matthews, talking about the American causalities in the Afghanistan war, said during the Bush presidency only 630 soldiers were killed from 2001 to 2008; in the case of President Obama, since 2009 to the present, 1,000 soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan.

I wrote the numbers down to make sure I heard them correctly. They were discussing the President’s “two wars” in Afghanistan and Libya, his polices, questioning why Americans were still in Afghanistan. They were all over the place with their expert wisdom. As usual, Matthews was way, way off track!

Going on the Internet I found the information I was looking for at The Washington Post, under the banner “Faces of the Fallen.”  This information assured me even more than Matthews. As usual, he was creating his own facts. His guests did nothing to disabuse him of these wrong numbers. I looked for Afghanistan stats alone but couldn't find them. Fallen soldiers in both wars are combined. Matthews didn't say where he got his statistics.

The “Faces of the Fallen” site was designed by Nelson Hsu and Alyson Hurst and programmed by Andrain Holovaly. To see the complete breakdown with photos, ages, year of death, home state and military branch, go to washingtonpost.com, key in "Faces of the Fallen" to view the site.

To date the total of fatalities in Iraqi and Afghanistan is 6,026. The wounded  was not included in the statistics, but the number is reportedly in the thousands. Wounded soldiers suffer a variety of serious wounds due to IED attacks.

*Barack Obama was not sworn in as president until January 20, 2009.

1994 genocide of Rwandans: No media analysis; no outrage; Clinton said not a word

Skulls, bodies, skeletons of Rwanda victims. The skulls and skeletons are exhibited at the Murambi Technical School, where many victims were killed by the Hutu. The technical school is now a museum.

Every day I watch them, read their biased columns and news stories, I try not to get irritated at the media and talking heads. I try not to scream at my TV or the online newspapers. I just want to know what they mean when say and write that President Obama is "slow to act." 

When they say and write that he does not understand the issues like they do, I want to know what they mean. They say he’s weak and indecisive, and it's causing him to "loose his base."

It’s important to recognize that President Obama has never jumped headfirst into a situation just because media and pundits demand that he jump to their music. They want him to part with information for them to write about and analyze it to death on national TV.

The media complex have determined that President Obama and his administration are doing nothing about Libya. Duh! The president could not pull together

a coalition of countries in one hour, and then hold a press conference to inform them and dictator Mammar Gaddafi of his intended rules of engagement. 

When the President got a coalition together–the U.S., France and Britian- to initiate a No Fly Zone in Libya, with an intent to dismantle Gaddafi’s military, the media and pundits wasted no time stating their "expert" opinions. Some of them, and a number of pandering politicians called the president a “follower” because America did not drop the first bomb. "The President is leading from behind"; "He didn't act fast enough."

 During the Rwanda massacre that started April 7, 1994, and lasting until mid-July, taking the lives of an estimated 500,000 to 1,000,000 Rwandans, the media did not accuse President Bill Clinton of "not acting fast enough."

To satisfy their Reality Show thirst for instant gratification, the media expects President Obama to hold press conferences everyday, and hand out packets of classified information. The same  incurious media and  pundits sat idly by and let the George Bush administration tell them that Saddam Hussein was developing WMDs. Bush said Hussein was responsible for the 9/11 bombings. The media did not protest the lie. They drank every word that Bush, Cheney, Rice, Rove, Rumsfeld and Powell told them.

Had the media hunkered down, committed itself to real investigative reporting, they would have learned that the  George Bush administration lied. Instead, the media were too busy bragging about the swaggering cowboy in the White House. He was their hero. Given they were so lackadaisical during Bush's eight years in office, the media are attempting to make President Obama pay for their laziness and idolizing of Bush.

Politicians from both sides on the fence have said they did not have enough “information”  about the Libyan situation. Therefore, they cannot say with certainty what they would do. They say they do not understand President Obama's goal or plan of action. Dennis Kucinich, a 2007 presidential loser, is calling for impeaching the President.

 Hundreds of slaughtered Rwandans lay on a roadside, piled on top of each other. Even more bloated  bodies of men, women and children floated in rivers like canoes.

 In Rwanda, 1994, it took 100 days for a mass genocide to happen. Hutu hoodlums hunted and killed Rwandans in the small East African nation. Bill Clinton and the United Nations did nothing. Maybe that's because the  clandestine 1993 “humanitarian” attack on Somalia to remove from power, Gen. Mohamad Farrah Ardid, ended in failure. Eighteen American soldiers were killed; 77 wounded. Clinton had to square himself with angry White voters and politicians at home, who were pissed to the gill. He made a choice to back off of the Rwanda massacre.

"From the very start the United States resisted intervention in Rwanda because of national interests, higher priorities and domestic and bureaucratic politics. Moreover, during the three months of killing, the U.S. blocked several opportunities, short of intervention, that could have diminished the slaughter." Frontline,  Ghost of Rwanda.

Michael Sheehan, peacekeeping adviser to Madeleine Albright, said on Frontline, "And I can tell you, having remembered very clearly, there was no one within the United States political spectrum in that period that was calling for an American-led intervention -- no one in the Congress, no one in the executive branch, no one in the military, no one in the press.

Skulls of massacred Rwandans displayed in museum

"There was almost a silence on that issue at the time. It was only later, mid-May and later, as the horrors came into full view, that there were a rush of people, volunteering that [the] Americans should have guided an operation in there. But I can tell you, in late April and early May, in terms of the serious political leadership within the executive branch or in the Congress, there was no big advocates for taking U.S. forces that were basically steaming out of the port of Mogadishu at that same time and reinserting them into central Africa in a very, very unstable situation".

Albright said, "The tragedy in Rwanda was so quick, that I am not sure there was time for a major voice in it. Also, again, I think what's important is to see it within the context of the other things that were happening. Somalia, and watching Americans be dragged through the streets of Mogadishu, was a searing event. Trying to figure out how to deal with the results of that, the lessons learned, and then the lessons don't apply exactly to another situation -- I think it was a very troubling time, in terms of decision making generally. It's that the information wasn't there, and the wherewithal wasn't there to do it".

 As I recall, the media refused to classify the Rwanda massacre an act of genocide. The death total was not large enough to classify as genocide, it was concluded. Media reporting was extremely sparse. It was a civil war between African rivals. Why waste time reporting on it? 

Clinton apologized in 1998 for turning his head. That was too late for the 500,000 to 1,000,000,000 Rwandans who lost their lives for no reason other than politics and power.

Clinton did not want to appear too concerned about Rwanda, especially after the Somalia incident in which the lifeless bodies of three dead Americans were dragged through the streets Mogadishu to loud cheers. So now President Obama must pay for the ineffectiveness of prior presidents. The media and pundits are not missing a beat this time.

Answers to 6/6 quiz: So you think you're smarter than a 5th grader?

1. D
2. B
3. E
4. C
5. A
6. B
7. C
8. C
9. C
10. C

All 10 answers correct? You know your presidential history!

8-6...At east you paid attention in class.

5...Your attention slipped on the ice.

1-4...Pick up your history book, or run for political office!

dry bones//wet bones

dry bones/wet bones

dry bones//wet bones
dead bones lying at the stony feet of Isis

dead bones walking

leggy// lean skeletons
peeled down and gleaming
like brand new pipelines
rushing toward a mystery land 
toward
an unnamed mystic who
fantasized about a woman
one cool day
as he rested
in Mother Earth’s  lap

dry bones//wet bones
 
real teeth clacking
messages somewhere in 
Edenland

can you feel the cold
escaping from
the breath of the wet bones?

an ancient queen constructed
a deep river and filled it with gold
it her was her rejuvenation pool

she frolicked freely with
wet bones//dry bones

she sat in the center of the pool of gold
waiting for the celebration
of dry bones//wet bones
and boundless fertility

god created the whole world in 
6 days
on the 7th day of 7
he laid down his wet bones to rest
in a separate place from
his 6 day creation

from the bones of his nostrils
he gave life to a being called Adam

 Adam said to the
dry bones//wet bones of god
send me a likeness
bearing my
wet bones//dry bones

God obliged

Adam planted a dry bone
around the heart of
the woman’s wet bone

Adam said I
call your name Eve

connecting me to you
connecting your
dry bones to  my dry bones
your wet bones to  my wet bones
connecting your 
flesh to my flesh
my flesh to your flesh

and then the world ended in one day

God wrapped 2 bags of
wet bones in fruit scented leaves
laying them underneath a tree of rain

welcome home my children
you are the dry bones of my wet flesh
marred by a barren cross 
and a crown of thorns

it was I who called him Adam
it was I who called her Eve

let no one set asunder
the bones and flesh
I have bound together

dry bones//wet bones
return to the paradise of your beginning

 copyrighted by dorothy charles banks

Tea party's kryptonite is their demand for political virginity and 'us verses them'

Success is only lasting if it has the potential for a long shelf life. The 2010 midterm elections were unquestionably successful and long for Republicans. They campaigned against President Obama's policies and putting the unemployed back to work.

Something happened in between November and day after President Obama sworn into office. Jobs, the economy and the unemployed were the least of their concerns. The newly elected and re-elected Republicans and tea partiers did not live up to their marriage vows. They promised voters to honor and obey their demands when they joined the prostituted power brokers in Washington. Their two-party prenuptial agreement hinged on the candidate’s word not to fall in lockstep with the “Washington establishment.”

Bullshit! Big money donors began courting and buying Tea Party Republicans before the swearing in ceremony got out of bed for breakfast. They joined the stable of "kept" politicians, all the while tooting their disdain for Washington.

Tea Party politicians and Republicans were as happy as a platoon of ticks feeding on a fat dog. They held pointless conferences. They pranced and paraded in front of media cameras like beauty queens. They rubbed their victory in the faces of Democrats. Republican loving pundits held their own happy press conferences on talk shows.

In this age of quickie annulments and nasty divorces, bamboozled voters thought they were getting gold plated, family values politicians. This was going to be a lasting marriage between the Tea Party and Republicans. To their dismay, events happened that forced supporters to scratch the surface a little deeper. They discovered aluminum underneath the imitation gold. They had voted for phony promise makers.

No one could tell the Tea Party and their supporters that they did not know shit from shinola. They are learning a political lesson the hard way. Now they want to remake the honeymoon bed and rewrite the marriage vows. They have found that nothing is pure in spirit about their allegiance to the GOP or its allegiance to them. Unfortunately they were brainwashed by Republicans and a media hyped agenda.

Sarah Palin

From the onset the Tea Party have been bewitched by Sarah Palin, their Alaskan Knightress in Shiny Armor. With the help of a Palin-struck media, she was empowered to tell lie after lie with impunity. If she said President Obama “palled around with terrorists,” the media complex attached itself to the lie like leeches.

When Palin spread the rumor that the Affordable Care Act had a clause that said doctors would make the lone decision as to who will die and who will live, there was no media backfire. Democrats were late and weak in their responses to the rumor. They left summation of the bill to President Obama. He was up against his own party, an army of orchestrated Republicans, Sarah Palin, the media, and disgruntled voters. Republicans won the war of words about health care reform.

Palin has been credited with being the first to use the term “death panels”. The media knew that death panels were nonexistent, but it refused to explain the truth about the Affordable Care Act. Sarah was allowed to take control of the narrative. Talking- point-pundits said,  “Obamacare is gonna kill grandma.” What the hell!

Tea Party politicians and Republicans jumped in line to dance the bunny hop with Palin. She was allowed to make herself a force within the GOP.  They were, and still are, afraid to speak out against her. They dare not talk about the issues plaguing America, that Palin’s knowledge and political IQ is a blank canvas.

Faster than beer can turn to piss, Republicans, Palin and tea partiers rode the wave of manufactured discontentment all the way to victory November 2010. Republicans behaved badly in every state they won governorships and control of the legislatures.

In Wisconsin with the tearing down of unions, employment terminations and demotions, citizens jumped into action to stop the damage caused by Wisconsin Republicans. Determined citizens have collected enough voter signatures to start the recall of three Republicans, an act that’s been approved by the courts in Wisconsin.

The reelections will take place in July. Unhappy voters are also planning to recall Gov. Scott Walker in January 2012. It will be a game of wait-and-see who will vote against their own best interests by repainting gold over aluminum.

Susu was doing her thing

Susu was doing her thing

Susu was an odd girl

born on a odd day
went all the way insane
on the same kind of odd day
while jumping rope
on Congress Avenue

oddly enough

with her hair slicked tight
behind her pierced ears
her hands jammed in
high pocket pants

Susu improvised a historical event

leading onlookers to believe
that she was Hercules in drag
 
she was doing her thing

“Next show at 9:30 pm”
she abruptly announced before leaving
the crowded avenue

later that evening at a
neighborhood church
Susu reenacted the Lord’s Supper
dressed in a fancy
off-the shoulder  gown
chewing on two week old
dinner mints and sipping
expensive red wine

 

I am drinking the Lord's blood

It's something I have to do

Susu said to the gathering congregation:
here’s to winter clean breath
and a mild case of dizziness

Susu sprinted from
the lavish supper table and
leaned lazily against
a bright flowered wall

fading into the scenery
singing Hi-Ho Silver 
Awayyyyyyyyy

Giddy-up, Susu!

she decided that Jesus was
too profound and powerful to imitate on earth 
so she’d wait until she got to heaven
and then she would imitate him
in the presence of his Father

where is Susu?
A choir boy asked the janitor
 
oh, she stepped into that
flowered wall over there
said she was gonna find
the Lone Ranger and Tonto

she was acting mighty strange
singing loud and carrying on
 
I heard her say she
was doing her thing

copyrighted by dorothy charles banks

Little Lizzy and Uncle Tinny and "they"

Nine-year old Lizzy was an affectionate, outgoing, sensitive child. There were only a few people she met that she didn’t like. One of the people she didn’t like was her Uncle Tinny, and the way he innocently hugged and kissed her cheeks in the presence of her family and cousins. She was his favorite niece and had been for three years.

When Lizzy and Tinny were alone, Tinny dropped the hugging and cheek kissing facade. He would slip his hand under her dress and fondle her private part. She was old enough to know that she didn’t like his hands on her, touching her. Tinny told her what he was doing was normal.

“All little girls like their uncles to touch down there,” he told her. “You can’t tell June and your daddy cause they won’t understand. And they might come and take you away from her and Dallas.”

Tinny didn’t tell Lizzy who “they” were and Lizzy didn’t have the wits to question him. She knew she didn’t like her uncle touching her, but she didn’t want “they” to come and take away from her family. Tinny reminded her repeatedly every time he got her alone. She endured his kissing, hugging and fondling.

Tinny wasn't married. He was Lizzy's oldest uncle and her mother’s only brother. In the eyes of his family, he could do no wrong. He pretended to be affectionate toward all of his nieces and nephews, even cousins. He hugged, kissed and played with all of them to cover his tracks, making sure no suspicions were raised. Who would believe Lizzy if she told how Tinny played under her dress. Her mother and father would have scolded her for making such a ridiculous accusation. June and Dallas taught her that lying was a sin.

“You can always tell me and your daddy what’s on your mind,” June always told her. “No matter what it is, you can tell us, okay?”

Her parents reminded Lizzy how much her uncle loves all of his nieces and nephews. As far as everyone in the family knew, no girls had been molested by anyone inside or outside the family.

When Tinny came to their house on Saturdays to take Lizzy to cartoon matinees, unbeknownst to June and Dallas, trips to the movies were often skipped. On the occasions they did go, Tinny would make a big deal of how Lizzy laughed and had a good time. He stressed that Lizzy wouldn’t have room to eat supper because she ate so much popcorn, candy and soda.

“You’re spoiling my baby,” June would say. “Next time I’m going too, so I can eat popcorn and candy with her.”

“You know you’re welcome. We can all be kids together,” Tinny said, hoping June was joking about going to the movie with them.

On the Saturdays they didn’t go to the movie, Tinny took Lizzy to his apartment, where they would stay for a couple of hours. He freely fondled his niece, all the while reminding her that “they” were going to take her away from her parents if she told them about their secret "game." 

Lizzy liked dresses but she gradually started wearing blue jeans, thinking they would protect her from Tinny's touching. At night she pulled covers over her head, trying to hide from Tinny even though he was not in the room or at their house. One night June went into Lizzy’s room to hang some clothes in her closet. She noticed Lizzy’s head was completely covered.

“Baby girl, you’re going to smother yourself to death if you don’t get the cover off your face,” June said, thinking Lizzy was asleep. She reached to pull the cover off Lizzy face. Her daughter was holding onto the covers for dear life.

“What’s wrong, baby?” June asked, looking concerned. “How come you suddenly sacred of the dark?”

“I just want to cover my head,” Lizzy lied. "I'm not scared."

“If you’re comfortable I guess it’s alright.” Had June pulled back the covers she would have seen that Lizzy was fully dressed in blue jeans and her favorite t-shirt. She was even wearing socks.

Keeping count of the days, knowing that in three more days she would be going the movie with Tinny, Lizzy asked June if she could call her cousin Lamont to see if he wanted to go with them. June told her to call and see if Ester would let him go.

When Tinny came to pick her up on Saturday he was disappointed to learn that they would have company. He smiled to hide his disappointment. “Can I go with y’all every Saturday, too?” Lamont asked, excited.

“We’ll see,” Tinny said. “Your mama might have something for you to do. Never can tell.”

“Next thing you know, you tell all your nieces and nephews and they'll wanting to go too. I wouldn’t wish that on nobody,” June said, kissing Lizzy on her forehead. “Have a good time, and don’t eat too much junk just because Tinny is willing to buy it!”

Tinny lied and said he would not mind if all his nieces and nephews went to the matinee with them. "The more the merrier," Tinny lied.

At the movie, Tinny sat Lizzy in the middle seat, keeping his hand on her knee. She was too uptight to have a good time. Lamont was having such a good time eating popcorn and drinking soda he didn’t notice how quiet Lizzy was. 

Tinny took Lamont home first. On the way to Lizzy’s house he told her to unzip her blue jeans. He fondled her as he drove. A block from her house he told her to zip her pants, telling her no again, not to say anything to June. As usual, he made Lizzy swear that she would not tell their secret.

As one year rolled into another year and another year, Lizzy turned 12. The molestation was getting more intense. Tinny began sticking a finger into her vagina, staring her in eyes, asking if she was enjoying it. June and Dallas noticed that Lizzy was changing. She was growing irritable, eating more than usual. Her grades dropped from A's to C's. This concerned June and Dallas. Lizzy couldn't tell them why her grades had fallen or why her appetite increased.

“If you don’t slow down on that food, you’re gonna start looking like your Aunt Mattie,” Dallas laughed on night. "And you don't want to get big as she is!" Dallas joked.

“I’ll put her on a diet before I let that happen!” June said. Secretly, she was curious about Lizzy new eating habits.

Lizzy couldn’t tell anyone about the pressure on her. She still believed that “they” were going to take her away from her parents if she told on Tinny. Her frustration and guilt mounted more and more each day, especially when Tinny came to visit.
 
Lizzy's English teacher recognized Lizzy’s personality change. One day she told Lizzy to stay a few minutes after class. Sitting directly in front of Lizzy, she asked what was wrong. “You can tell me, sweetheart. I hate to see you like this. You’re too smart to neglect your grades. I’m worried about you.”

“Nothing is wrong with me, Miss Lacy,” Lizzy said looking down at the floor to avoid eye contact with her teacher. 

She cupped Lizzy face with her hands, the way June does. Lizzy began to cry. “There. There. You don’t have to cry. Whatever is bothering you, just get if off your chest. If you like, I can call your parents.”

“I can’t tell,” Lizzy said, sobbing.

“Tell what, Lizzy?”

“They will take me away from my mommy and daddy.”

The teacher gave her a Kleenex to wipe the tears from her eyes. She knew about Lizzy’s unspoken dilemma, but she wasn't sure. All the signs were familiar to her; grades falling, the erratic behavior, an insistence on wearing jeans, hiding as much of her body as she could. 

Mary Lacy had been molested as a young child by her stepfather. Only difference is, he threatened to kill her mother if she told about their “game.” When she turned 18, Mary told her mother about the 10-year ordeal that ended with her getting pregnant by her stepfather when she was 17. He left town before she and her mother went to the police. She had to baby, giving it up for adoption.

“Who is “they” Lizzy?”

“They will take me away from my mommy and daddy,” she repeated. She couldn't explain who "they' were. Only Uncle Tinny knows who "they" are.

“There is no ‘they’ Lizzy. No one is going to take you away from your parents. I’m going to take you home. I want you to tell you parents what you're telling me.”

“I'm scared to tell them. They'll be mad at me.”

“No they won’t. They love you. They'll understand. I know what happened to you. But I want you to tell your mommy and daddy. You’re not alone in this. Your parents will understand.”

Mary Lacy drove to Lizzy’s house in silence. As they walked up the steps, she squeezed Lizzy’s shoulder in a show of support. June was surprised to see the teacher bringing Lizzy home. She immediately thought Lizzy was in trouble or sick. 

“What did my little girl do?” June asked smiling. Her broad smile wasn’t real. The change in her daughter was of great concern to her and Dallas.

“She didn’t do anything, Mrs. Shipper. Lizzy is a good girl and a good student. She has something to tell you. I’m going to leave so you two alone to talk. I think it will explain why her grades are slipping.”

“Will you stay, Miss Lacy?” Lizzy asked, her eyes and voice pleading for the teacher to stay. She needed her support in case June didn't understand.

Lizzy told the about the molestation, when it began, the Saturday trips to the movies and to Tinny’s apartment. As she expected, June couldn’t believe Lizzy was talking about her brother. He loved children. He would never touch a child inappropriately, let alone molest one of his nieces or nephews. Or cousins. He loved his three sisters, none of whom he had touched inappropriately.

Lizzy added another surprise to her story. Tinny had begun forcing her to touch his "private part." Lizzy said he took her hand and guided it to where he wanted her to touch him. She closed her eyes and obeyed him. His naked penis repulsed her. She told him she didn't want to touch him again. He told her she would get used to it, because she would be touching it more often. He told her one day "I'm gonna stick it in you.” Lizzy had no idea what he was talking about.

June was beginning to feel sick to her stomach. She put her hand to her mouth. Still, she didn’t want to believe what she was hearing. “Baby, are you sure you’re talking about Uncle Tinny? I can’t see him doing something so ugly to his niece. I just can’t see it.”

Lizzy looked at her Mary Lacy for support. She was regretting telling June. Tinny knew his sister wouldn’t believe such an ugly story about him. Mary spoke up, telling June about her early introduction to molestation that led to a pregnancy, and giving up the baby for adoption.

“I’m gonna be sick!” June ran to the bathroom. They could hear her vomiting. She came out 10 minutes later, her face stressed. “Come here, baby girl,” she said to Lizzy, her arms outstretched. “I’m so sorry I didn’t realize what was happening to you. The signs were there but I was too blind to see them or to pay attention. I don’t know how I’m going to tell your daddy. He will kill Tinny. I can't let him go to prison for killing your uncle.”

Lizzy understood what death was. June explained it to her after the death of Dallas's mother. The idea of her loving father killing Tinny scared her even more.

“You're not alone, Mrs. Shipper. Most parents don’t want to believe a family member would molest a child in the family. But it’s not unusual,” Mary said. "It's more common than you think."

June’s mind was spinning. She remembered her brother’s obsession with Lizzy. His buying presents for her. Lizzy's faked illnesses, his babysitting her on Sundays. Dropping by after work, at least three days a week, pretending to be hungry, eating supper with them. They would tease him about being a poor cook.

“I’m gonna find you a wife," June often told Tinny. "I'm talking about one that can cook so you’ll stop eating that fast food.”

“I can’t wait until you find her,” Tinny said, pretending he was interested. "I been looking too."

June’s thoughts were turning to harming her brother in a deadly way. Tinny was on the way to destroying her daughter's life. She didn’t know what affect the molestation would eventually have on Lizzy. That one thought added to her rising anger. How much was Lizzy's future going to be affected by this trauma? 

“I’m so sorry, baby,” she said, apologizing to Lizzy again. She started crying, causing Lizzy to cry.

“Don’t cry, mommy. Don’t cry.”

“I’m leaving now. I'm happy Lizzy revealed her uncle before something awful happened.”

“Thank you, Miss Lacy,” June said between sobs. “I appreciate your help in getting Lizzy to talk. I wish she would've told me first.”

"Sometimes children feel more comfortable telling someone other than their parents. It's all out now. That's all that matters." June thanked Mary Lacy again.

Lizzy and June were sitting on the couch, holding onto each other when Dallas come home. The second he stepped into the living room he knew something was wrong. His wife and daughter were not pulling a joke on him like they sometimes did. But there was no humor in the solemn room this time.

"Just listen to what she's gonna tell you. If I could help it, I wouldn't let her tell you. I'm scared of what you might do," June said warned Dallas, knowing he would try to kill a rock if it harmed his baby girl.

June didn't know how she would stop Dallas if he grabbed his gun and stormed out the door, enroute to Tinny's apartment. She had to keep him calm, making him understand that it will be better to call the police. She knows how difficult it is to reason with Dallas when he's angry. Upon hearing what Tinny had done to his little girl, he would be a hundred miles past angry. Lizzy is the baby he and June thought they would never have.

Still standing in the middle of the living room, Dallas said, "This better be good one you fixing to tell me. Somebody do something to my baby?" he repeated. June winced. There was an edge in Dallas's voice.

"Sit down, honey and let Lizzy talk. Promise us both you won't do something . . ."

"I can't make no promises until I hear what Lizzy got to tell me. It better be good."

"Go a head, Lizzy. Tell your daddy what you told me and Miss Lacy."  After Lizzy repeated her story, Dallas was calm. He walked upstairs to their bedroom. June knew that he was getting his gun. She ran upstairs to stop him. She couldn't let her husband go to prison.

"Dallas, listen to me. It ain't worth it. We can file charges against Tinny. Let the police take care of this. I don't want you getting in trouble."

"I'm not gonna get in no trouble. I just gonna take your low-down brother to jail myself for what he did to my baby. I'm making my own arrest."

"Well then, I'll go with you."

"You stay here with Lizzy. I can handle this." With that Dallas walked out the door, the gun tucked in his waistband. She begged him to leave the gun. He promised he wouldn't shoot Tinny. 

June prayed he wouldn't do anything foolish. "Please, God. Don't let him get in trouble."   

Questions for the reader:

1. Is there an Uncle Tinny in your family?

2. Does Lizzy’s story sound or feel familiar?

3. How would you handle this situation if it were you?

4. What should June and Dallas do about Tinny?

Uncle Tinny comes with many faces. He is usually adored by family members and friends, all of whom will defend him until they learn the real truth. Uncle Tinny is everywhere. Leave a comment telling other readers how you would remedy this problem.

It only matters who said the words: wife Michelle Obama or candidate John McCain

Michelle Obama on the campaign trail in 2008

The media tend to interpret words and news the way it wants to. In this presidential campaign statements made by Michelle Obama and John McCain are either stated in full or heavily edited to fit into sound bites. Noticeably, if the candidate is someone the media likes the news is favorable. If the media are unhappy with a candidate, and rooting for his or her opponent, every word uttered on the campaign trail is taken out of context.

    

Not to my surprise I watched the media preoccupation with Michelle Obama. It inhaled her every word and gesture. Cindy McCain, also campaigning for her husband, got a free ride. She is rich, a mother, expensively dressed and White. Michelle is educated, a lawyer, a working wife and mother and Black.

      
I went on the Internet to read about other political wives that campaigned for and with their husbands. Hillary Clinton made it known early on that she was not going to bake cookies and serve tea in the White House. That statement started angry tongues wagging in Washington. How dare she does not act like a cookie baking homemaker and tea server! The media went into a frenzy. 

When she refused leave President Bill Clinton after his adultery was exposed, Hillary locked the door and threw away the key! White women were ballistic and condemning. Hillary should have walked out on Clinton! Hillary stood her ground. This was her cheating husband; her game and she knew how to play it.

Women were angry that Hillary stood by her man, Bill.  A few of the political wives who readily jumped on Hillary Clinton’s back later found themselves in the same situation. What did they do? They stood by their cheating husbands, all elected politicians! They even stood by them when they confessed their sins and apologized at press conferences. Muddy snow is not clean! 

    

On Friday while looking at MSNBC I watched Dan Abrahams and a panel of four discuss a statement made by McCain on Sean Hannity's, March 13, 2008, Fox news. 

    

I did not see the statement hawked on TV, in newspapers, or conservative talk radio. I found that odd  because these outlets repeated Michelle Obama’s words at nauseam, painting her as an angry Black woman, who has a deep-seated grudge and hatred for America. The same media are blaming her in advance, in the event Barack Obama is defeated by McCain in November. The media and pundits are jaw jacking overtime, desperate to assure voters that Obama's loss to McCain is inevitable. After all, McCain is a Vietnam hero. He should automatically receive more votes than Obama, who has never served in the armed forces.

    

Michelle Obama said in February 2008: “What we’ve seen over this past year is that hope is making a comeback, and not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for a change, and I’ve been desperate to see our country moving in that direction, and not just feeling so alone in my frustration and disappointment. For the first time in my adult life, I am proud of my country".

    

Discussing McCain's capture as a POW, Sean Hannity, asked McCain, “What does that do to a person to spend that much time in solitary confinement?”

Hannity had actually written off McCain's candidacy. Frankly, they did not like him. They talked more against him than for him. When McCain left the other Republican candidates in the dust, the GOP had no choice but the accept that he would get the nomination. Some Republicans publicly admitted that they would have to "hold my nose" to vote for McCain. 

Conservative talkers on radio had nothing good to say about McCain. On the other hand, they had wet dreams about Sarah Palin. They wanted her without McCain.

    

Here is McCain's statement, compared to Michelle Obama's statement: “I think it makes you a better person. Obviously it makes you love America. I really didn’t love America until I was deprived of her company. But probably the most important thing about it, Sean, is that I was privileged to have the opportunity to be in the company of heroes.” 

The media and pundits praised McCain statement. Attacks on Michelle Obama rolled on.

    

Abraham said: “He used a similar phrase about not loving America until he was deprived repeatedly on the trail in his 1999 campaign. I said it last night and I’ll say it again, I think McCain’s comments are eloquent, but why is the right wing and the media in particular, obsessed over Michelle Obama’s comments and basically ignoring McCain? Fox news does not have that video clip online, and get this, any reference to it is now gone from the transcript on foxnews.com.”

    

Two of the panelists agreed with Abraham’s assessment. The other two said what McCain stated was not comparable to Michelle Obama. One of the four, a female, said she is a conservative who does not want to see Barack Obama win the presidency. She is in absolute agreement with Hannity’s constant attacks on Michelle and Barack Obama and everyone connected to them.

    

 “Listen, we are talk show hosts. We are not reporters. So as talk show hosts we are paid for our opinions,” the conservative said, responding to the question of fairness.

    

She added, “Nobody can question McCain’s patriotism when it comes to this country. And the idea that he certainly appreciates America more, when he lost all the wonderful things about America, all the years he was in captivity--who can argue with that.”

    

The second female  said, “John McCain, because of his singular sacrifice, unlike any other we’ve known with our public servants today, is always seen through the prism of this experience, and so it doesn’t matter if he sat on a bar stool and threw back a six pack and said, ‘I’ve never loved my country', we still probably wouldn’t believe him because he has served his country.’”

    

I guess that means Michelle Obama had better watch her words. McCain can freely urinate in America’s face and tell her it’s raining just because he was shot down by the enemy in Vietnam, a country in which he was attempting to bomb.