The Press-Dispatch

July 12, 2017

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C-12 Opinion Wednesday, July 12, 2017 The Press-Dispatch first, last and always, you are an American." Today's new citizens have no such uplifting ex- perience. They have passed a standardized, multiple- choice test, often admin- istered in their native lan- guage rather than in Eng- lish, that resembles a triv- ia quiz ("Who was the first president? How many states are in the U.S.? "). They have demonstrated their English in an equally perfuncto- ry chat with an interview- er who knows they have passed the test; if they can write down a semblance of just one of two dictated sen- tences ("The American flag is red, white, and blue"), they pass — and spelling and punctuation don't count. Then, still in the nonde- script local office of the INS, a bureaucrat reads them the oath. If they have brought their two standard photos, they can go straight to the passport office to be set up for their next trip "home" — to China, Honduras, Poland or Sierra Leone. This scene is sadly sym- bolic of the way Ameri- cans of all stripes are being taught nowadays to think about their citizenship and their national identity. The national motto, E pluri- bus unum, remains on the books: Out of many, one. But the unity that we once prized is eroding. What used to be seen as a melting pot, producing distinctive Amer- icans from a hodgepodge of nationalities, has cooled to a salad bowl whose contents retain their original shapes and flavors. America has endured much over its history, includ- ing a bloody civil war. Yet it has always drawn together, and it always will, provided we never lose sight of the principles that first forged our great nation — and be- queathed our great unity. Ed Feulner is the president of the Heritage Foundation (heritage.org). Continued from page 11 UNITY Continued from page 11 FIREWORKS Continued from page 11 GAME words were "I'm awful tired now, Hank. I've got to go to bed. And while I laid there with Red just a few steps away, the angels came and took him into the last gold- en stage." The power of Christ had overwhelmed Foley. It is as simple as that. The words from the Book of Acts still echo the power of redemp- tion and regeneration. In an act of desperation, a Philippian jailer who feared for his life asked Paul, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved? " Paul replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved..." It is that simple to change the direction of your life. Christ's call is still to the small and to the great. Think about it! Continued from page 11 GOOD END Continued from page 11 COLLEGES rupt and despotic regimes, who spend their time court- ing and catering to the de- mands of the army of aid or- ganizations." Her views have, of course, painted a huge target on her back, and she has been de- nounced by figures as well- known as Bill Gates and her former Harvard professor, Jeffrey Sachs. The common flaw in their criticism is that they fail to distinguish, as Moyo does, between emer- gency, humanitarian aid and long-term structural aid. That analytical failure is especially unforgivable in Sachs' case, since he taught the distinction to the young- er Moyo, back at Harvard. It's often said that the definition of insanity is do- ing the same thing over and over, expecting different re- sults. But I don't think it's al- ways insanity. It can also be indifference to the result. Maybe it's just a lot of fun, so why not keep doing it over and over? Maybe underdeveloped, dysfunctional, post-Colo- nial economies and opaque Western aid budgets are a playground for North Amer- ican and European elites. How annoying that Moyo should disturb their game. Importantly, Moyo is not a pessimist. She believes the squalor and despair of her native region is reversible. Her prescription bears a re- markable resemblance to Jefferson's. To the 33-year-old who wrote the Declaration of In- dependence, add another ac- complishment: he has out- lined the solution to the ag- ony of A frica. "Peace, com- merce and honest friendship with all nations; entangling alliances with none." Court Report CRIMINAL Pike Circuit court Penny J. Dupire charged with do- mestic battery, a level 6 felony. Summer N. Bailey charged with do- mestic battery, a level 6 felony. TRAFFIC AND MISDEMEANOR Pike Circuit Court Rene Chavarria-Flores charged with count I operating a vehicle while intoxi- cated and count II operating a motor ve- hicle without ever receiving a license. Lacielee Marshall charged with ille- gal consumption of an alcoholic bever- age. Ashlee L. Latham charged with pos- session of marijuana. CIVIL DOCKET Pike Circuit Court Natalie Ramirez sues Robert Ramirez for dissolution of marriage. SMALL CLAIMS Pike Circuit Court Marilyn Robinson and Steven Owen Robinson sue Jeremy Hay on complaint. Petersburg Waterworks sues Dusty Davis on complaint. INFRACTIONS Pike Circuit Court Anthony Bruner charged with speed- ing, 91 mph in a 70 zone. Austin Dotterweich charged with driving while suspended. Ryan Lechner charged with operat- ing a motor vehicle without financial re- sponsibility. Misty McCandless charged with seatbelt violation. Colton Motz charged with speeding, 44 mph in a 30 zone. Steven Mullens charged with speed- ing, 67 mph in a 55 zone. Savanah Riley charged with 69 mph in a 55 zone. Alex Roberts charged with speed- ing, 64 mph in a 55 zone. Steve Swanson charged with seat- belt violation. Kieren Adler charged with speed- ing, 75 mph in a 55 zone. Skyler Duggins charged with speed- ing, 88 mph in a 70 zone. Elijah Dunham charged with speed- ing, 84 mph in a 70 zone. Abdulrahman Najem charged with speeding, 84 mph in a 70 zone. Randi Riley charged with speeding, 55 mph in a 45 zone. Patrice Anthony charged with speeding, 79 mph in a 70 zone. Prateek Kanodia charged with speeding, 79 mph in a 70 zone. Editor's note: Star Parker is off this week. The following column is by Ber- nard Goldberg. I have long believed that Donald Trump has a special knack, a particu- lar gift for making his most dedicated fans look foolish. These are people like Sean Spicer and Kellyanne Conway and the conser- vative media loyalists who defend the president even when he's saying things that aren't true; or who earnestly rep- resent his latest position only to have him come up with a completely differ- ent position 10 minutes later. They're also people like Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who shameless- ly defends the president's vicious and needlessly personal tweets, as she did after Trump fired off an ugly barrage against two MSNBC morning show hosts who have been vicious and per- sonal themselves, calling the president everything from demented to unpatri- otic, a man who doesn't love his coun- try. But Mika and Joe are just two T V talking heads who have figured out that bashing Donald Trump is good for business. Donald Trump on the oth- er hand is the president of the United States of America – and that makes his sin worse. I almost feel sorry for these peo- ple who defend the president no mat- ter what, but no one is forcing them to stick around and be humiliated. There's no law that says they have to be the president's sycophants. But Donald Trump has another spe- cial knack. He also makes his most pas- sionate enemies look foolish. He induc- es in these people the dreaded Trump Derangement Syndrome, which re- sults in them looking worse than him. For instance, Trump-hating liberals will proudly tell you they're part of the "resistance" which means that if Don- ald Trump is for it, they're against it. That's bad enough, but I'll bet if you in- jected Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pe- losi with sodium pento- thal (truth serum) they'd tell you that resistance is only the appetizer. The main course is termina- tion of the Trump presi- dency. Collusion with the Rus- sians to throw the presi- dential election would be grounds for bringing him down, but so far there's not a shred of evidence to support that theory or any other that would warrant Congresswoman Maxine Water's fa- vorite word – impeachment. Trump Derangement Syndrome is no laughing matter, except when it is. When the president decided to leave the Paris Climate Accord, a progres- sive writer in the Nation magazine called it a "crime against humanity." But if that's so, what name should we attach to the use of poison gas against civilians, including children, in Syria? President Trump's nonstop prom- ise during the campaign to uproot Obamacare is tantamount to murder in Trump Derangement land. Bernie Sanders says if the Trump-backed GOP bill passes "thousands of peo- ple will die" – a strangely precise 217 thousand over the next decade, accord- ing to the left-wing Center for Ameri- can Progress. Hillary Clinton tweeted, "If Republicans pass this bill, they're the death party." Campus intellectuals, of course, have long had an aversion to Repub- licans, but nothing like the animus they've shown to Donald Trump who they've routinely compared to Hitler. Moshik Temkin, a Harvard associate professor of history, recently wrote in The New York Times that, "similarities abound" between Hitler, Mussolini and Donald Trump "like their jingoism and contempt for democratic institutions." And yet, "Compared to Hitler, Mr. Trump looks less threatening then he actually is. Unlike Mr. Trump, European fascists were deeply ideological and would have despised his decadence. ... And the story of Hitler and Mus- solini is flattering to most Americans: We defeated them." In other words, let's not compare Donald Trump to Hitler. Not because it's unfair to Donald Trump but be- cause in some ways it's unfair to Hitler. Hitler may have been a mass murder- er but still he would despise Trump's "decadence." Besides, the Hitler story "is flattering to most Americans." I'm glad he lost and we won, but "flatter- ing" is a word "most Americans," I'm pretty sure, would not associate with the story of Adolf Hitler. For the record, I'm no fan of Don- ald Trump. I don't like his desperate need for adulation or his thin skin or the vindictiveness that goes with it. I don't like the needless scraps he gets into. I don't like his many (let's just call them) untruths. But there's something I'm starting to dislike more than all of that: his en- emies. Not just the unhinged variety like Madonna, who wants to blow up the White House, or Kathy Griffin, who would like to behead him, but also the more mainstream liberals in Con- gress who won't stop resisting until they terminate his presidency. It's a rare talent this president pos- sesses. It's not easy making both your most passionate fans and your most passionate antagonists look foolish. But Donald Trump has managed to do just that. experience. Everyone seems to just be relaxed, with lots of smiles, lots of good will, lots of everything we as Ameri- cans enjoy and hopefully not take for granted. It is so hard to explain this feeling. • • • Now that I have a little bit more time to watch the news in between what keeps me so busy- my new full-time job taking care of grandkids, I am going through the motions of analyzing and sorting out good news, truthful news, slanted agendas, and yes – what has been labeled as fake news. I think just like any well informed and reasonably intelligent person, I can sort out the truth pretty much. I feel disappointed and frustrated when I repeatedly hear negative news, over and over, because I think they do not contribute to the wellness and greatness of this country we live in. While we respect freedom of the press to report news, it becomes a different ball game when journalists become so focused on repeatedly targeting their perspective and agenda. We have to be aware the world watches how we be- have, because whether we like it or not, the world of electronics and social me- dia have changed the way information is spread globally. And also let's face it, whether we like it or not, America in- tentionally or unintentionally projects it's vision and hopes and dreams and values over the entire planet. Again, another hard thing to ex- plain. So how do we now as American Citizens influence our course of nation building? Well, on my part, of course participating in the elections and com- municating with our lawmakers by let- ters, emails, or phone calls is a good way to do that. Believe me, they do lis- ten especially when a large amount of communications reaches their of- fices. So, for the sake of our children and grandchildren, lets make a sacri- fice and do our part. • • • Humor of the week: A friend of mine who is turning 75 sent me these. "I just realized that I haven't done the Hokey Pokey in more than 10 years. I guess when you get older, you forget what's it all about." "As I've gotten older, I thought I was starting to get lazy. But it turns out I am just being more energy efficient." "You know you are getting older when you have to wear your glasses in the shower to shave your legs." Wife talking to her husband and says- " I think you need a hearing test." Hus- band responds and says," Why do you think I need a hairy chest? " Have a great week. trustees want better knowl- edge about university go- ings-on, they should hire a campus ombudsman who is independent of the adminis- tration and accountable on- ly to the board of trustees. The university malaise re- flects a larger societal prob- lem. Mansfield says cul- ture used to mean refine- ment. Today, he says, it "just means the way a society hap- pens to think, and there's no value judgment in it any longer." For many of today's Americans, one cultural val- ue is just as good as another. Walter E. Williams is a professor of economics at George Mason University. bridge player. She's on the same team as East, and she sees that unless she makes a move here, the trick will go to North and South, thanks to that opening Ace. But, West doesn't have any Hearts, so she cannot fol- low suit. She does, howev- er, have a couple of Clubs, and in this hypothetical sce- nario, North won the bid- ding with a bid of 4C (Four Clubs). So, Clubs are trump cards! Trump cards trump other cards, pretty simple, and have their own internal hierarchy of "Ace wins" just like non-trump cards. West decides it's her time to shine and plays her low- est trump card, the Six of Clubs. Since it's a trump, it wins the trick, and East and West take an early lead in the hand. And, since West won the trick, she will play first (also called "lead") dur- ing the next trick. Phew, this column is too long already! We'll conclude with my absolutely terrible advice on bridge bidding next week, and finally an- swer the question: "When isn't there a dummy? " So, to conclude, the stuff of the week: Book... The Jungle Books by Rudyard Kipling. They are nothing like the movie! Mowgli is a stone-cold killer. Music... The Thump Monks. They do cool, creepy ambiances that would fit right into a noir or psycho- logical horror film. And I be- lieve they give a fair bit of their tracks away for free. Coffee... Right now I don't care as long as it's cold and has caffeine in it. Haiku... The apparition of these fac- es in the crowd; Petals on a wet, black bough. -Ezra Pound Have a great week! Continued from page 11 RELATIONS Quick as a Click! 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