The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1301434
The Press-Dispatch Wednesday, October 21, 2020 C-7 OPINION Submit Letters to the Editor: Letters must be signed and received by noon on Mondays. Email: editor@pressdispatch.net or bring in a hard copy: 820 E. Poplar Street, Petersburg Race for the Cure By Star Parker Points to Ponder By Rev. Ford Bond Conservative answers for poverty The Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Bar- rett provide a fitting warm-up act to the presidential election that will fol- low in a few weeks. The rancor pouring forth from this confirmation flows from the very deep divide in the nation: conserva- tive versus liberal, that will decide who will be our next president and what kind of nation we will pass on to our children and grandchildren. Against this background, my or- ganization, Center for Urban Re- newal and Education, or Urban- CURE, hosts its annual policy sum- mit in Washington, D.C., where pas- tors come from all over America and convene to examine public policy and principles that will bring health and wealth to our nation's most dis- tressed communities. Our guest speakers include Dr. Je- rome Adams, Surgeon General of the United States, and Jack Brewer, a for- mer NFL defensive safety who is now a businessman, college professor and vocal conservative Christian. We will also announce the launch of a new State of Black America proj- ect, a partnership between Urban- CURE and prominent conservative policy institute the Claremont Insti- tute. This will be a new and innovative venture where, for the first time, black American life will be system- atically examined and recommenda- tions will be made for how to end the cycle of poverty through the applica- tion of conservative principles. The late Harry V. Jaffa, the great Claremont Institute scholar, not- ed that the Constitution's purpose is stated in its preamble: to "secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity." "What is a blessing? " asks Jaffa. It is "what is good in the eyes of God." Jaffa also reminds us that, in the closing paragraph of the Declara- tion of Independence, the signers appealed to "the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our in- tentions." It should be clear that the moral chaos, the rote meaninglessness, that defines what those on the left today conceive to be freedom, has lit- tle to do with the vision of freedom of the Christian men and women who founded and built the nation. It is an unfortunate fluke of history that in the 1960s, the time when the civil rights movement crystallized and black Americans achieved equal treatment politically, what should have long before been achieved mor- ally, was a time of moral unraveling of the country. Religion and moral principles were increasingly seen as a barrier to free- dom, rather than its source. Prayer was banished from school, abortion-on-demand legalized. But the choice of man is not wheth- er to believe. The only choice is what to believe. As religion was pushed out of the public square, the new religion be- came government. Government pro- grams were increasingly seen to be the path to salvation, rather than per- sonal commitment to eternal truths. In 1960, about 25% of the federal budget was payments to individuals. Today, it is 70 % . The popularization of culture that says your life is somebody else's re - sponsibility deeply hurt the commu- nities that were the weakest in the 1960s: our black communities. Politicization of our culture is striking a fatal blow, with govern- ment debt exceeding the size of our entire economy. Degradation of the sanctity of life and the sanctity of marriage has torn apart our commu- nities, particularly our at-risk com- munities. This is the discussion we will be having with our pastors convening in Washington. The poor are not poor because the rich are rich. Those who have achieved much in America should be viewed as ex- amples of what can be achieved in a great, free nation. Government's job is to protect our lives and our property. It is the job of every citizen, of ev - ery race and ethnicity, to live prop- erly and responsibly so that each of us can achieve the potential given us by our Creator. Continued on page 8 Continued on page 8 Continued on page 8 I found this article very interest- ing and appropriate for many read- ers. I painfully admit I am in the age group described. However, I think this can be applicable as well to the lower age group, and hopefully for those not in this category yet. (Be- lieve me, you'll be there someday. And most times you'll be surprised how fast you got there.) The article is titled, "Crossing Sev- enty and Heading Toward Eighty." Here it is: 1. A fter loving my parents, my siblings, my loved one, my children, my extended family and my friends, I have now started to love myself. 2. I realize I am not "Atlas", the world does not rest on my shoulders. 3. I have stopped bargaining with vegetable and fruit vendors. A few pennies more is not going to break me, but it might help the poor hard- working fellow save for his or her child's school fees. 4. I leave my waitress a generous tip. The extra money might bring a smile to her face. She is toiling much harder for a living than I am. 5. I have stopped telling the elder- ly that they have al- ready narrated that story many times. The story makes them walk down memory lane and relive their past. 6. I have learned not to correct peo- ple even when I know they are not on the side of truth. The onus of making everyone per- fect is not on me. Peace is more pre- cious than perfection. Those who are in error will eventually fall down by their own doing. 7. I give compliments freely and generously. Compliments are a mood enhancer not only for the recipient, but also for me. And a small tip for the recipient of the compliment: Nev- er, never turn it down, and just say "Thank you" with a big smile. 8. I have learned not to bother about a crease or a spot on my shirt. Personality speaks louder than ap- pearances. 9. I walk away from peo- ple who don't value me. They may not know my worth, but I do. 10. I remain cool when somebody plays dirty or runs me down or outruns me in the rat race. I am not a rat and nei- ther am I in a race. 11. I am learning not to be embarrassed by my emo- tions. It's my emotions that make me human. 12. I have learned that it's better to drop the ego than to break a rela- tionship. My ego will keep me aloof, whereas with sound relationships, I will never be alone. 13. I have learned to live each day as if it's the last. A fter all, it might in- deed be the last. 14. I am doing my best to make myself and others happy, for happi- ness is a choice. • • • My Point of View By H. K. Fenol, Jr., M.D. Crossing 70 and heading toward 80 Heritage Viewpoint By Anthony B. Kim Taiwan, U.S. building on strong relationship Continued on page 8 Continued on page 8 Minority View By Walter E. Williams Racial deception Christ is not divided Historically, the worst known pan- demic was the Black Death of 1347- 1351, which resulted in the death of at least one-third of the population living in Europe and Asia [between 75 –200 million people]. Historians write, "The Black Death was terrifyingly, indiscrimi- nately contagious: the mere touch- ing of the clothes appeared to itself to communicate the malady to the toucher." Sound familiar? The pan- demic was caused by a bacteria that can be killed by an inexpensive shot of penicillin, which was not available until the 1940s. Within the last 10 months, COVID-19 has been hyped by pol- iticians and the media as a mod- ern Black Death, which it is not. The World Health Organization has released its reassessment of COVID-19, and it is a flu virus and perhaps shutting down the economy was not the best approach. In February 11, 2020, the Chinese released figures showing that those with heart/lung issues had a mortal- ity rate of 10.5 percent; while those with no know health issues risk stood at 0.9 percent - similar to the season- al flu. You decide what this means, but before you dismiss COVID-19 as a hoax, be mindful it is deadly to the elderly and to people with serious health issues [some nursing homes mortality rates were above 60 per- cent]. COVID-19 has been captured by the political process and has inten- sified the division in the nation. This divisiveness and rancor is on display, and though COVID-19 is a legitimate issue, it is not "The" issue of the cam- paign. A recent post suggests that the Democrats have been wildly suc- cessful in convincing people they will die if they don't stay locked in the closet. The Right claims the masks do not work! The Left responds, "Though the masks may not pre- vent the spread of COVID, it is slow- ing it down thus keeping the hospi- tals from becoming overwhelmed. Those who do not wear masks and social distance are prolonging the pandemic and are endangering fel- low citizens." On the other end of the spectrum, Republicans and Libertarians are voicing their disgust with the lock- down and insist that the measures imposed by government are squeez- ing the life out of the nation. The Left is calling them reactionaries. The Right responds, "We are feed up with being told how we have to respond to an overblown health crisis. Wearing a mask is like trying to keep mosqui- tos out with chicken wire. The masks are the perfect stereotypical liberal solution. They don't really accom- plish anything other than to make the people wearing them feel better about themselves and morally supe- rior to those who don't wear them. COVID-19's ability to divide is not limited to the political process. It has invaded all aspects of life, and the church is not immune. Churches have had serious internal squabbles over whether to reopen, suspend ser- vices, conduct worship in their park- ing lots, or Livestream on YouTube. But it doesn't end there. Parishioners have taken sides. One group demands that people at- tending in-person worship must have their temperature taken as they en- ter, wear face coverings during the entire service, no offering plates be passed, no congregation singing be allowed and some form of policing take place. The other faction dismiss these demands as hysteria but will abide with face coverings, but with no policing. The result is that those who want to error on the side of caution threat- en that unless the "rules" are en- forced that they will absolutely not attend until COVID-19 is a thing of the past. Likewise, those who con- sider COVID-19 as an overblown flu virus, threaten they will not attend until the church returns to "normal." Health concerns are a major issue to all of us, and for the church to be divided over COVID-19 is unprece- dented. Recent pandemics, such as the mumps, seasonal flu, SARs, and the swine flu, have been dealt with by society at large and the church The guiding principle should be "Do No Harm" and everyone agrees; yet there is a variety of definitions of that term. The extremes that reside within the issue claims the other side The United States and Taiwan have long been strong partners that are committed to free markets, the rule of law, and democracy. Cooper- ation continues to grow, pragmatical- ly, step by step. A liberalizing, bilateral trade and investment agreement is the logical next step for upgrading mutual trust and expanding economic interac- tion between the two long-time part- ners. In the meantime, the recent- ly signed Framework to Strengthen Infrastructure Finance and Market Building Cooperation is a welcome step forward in notching up U.S.-Tai- wan strategic economic cooperation. The new framework will help the U.S. and Taiwan work together to catalyze the development of quali- ty infrastructure in emerging mar- kets, particularly in the Indo-Pacif- ic region and Latin America, "by un- locking barriers to private-sector in- vestment in infrastructure projects." Such cooperation has consider- able potential to promote best prac- tices in developing countries and strengthen the efficiency of their economic engagement with poten- tial trade and investment partners. In the rapidly evolving world of development as- sistance, with its greater emphasis on the vital role of the private sector in achieving durable economic growth, enhancing U.S.-Tai- wan international infrastructure de- velopment coop- eration presents a unique opportunity to coordinate the two countries' on- going outreach strategies. These in- clude America's Indo-Pacific Strat- egy and Taiwan's New Southbound Policy. Highlighting the vibrant bilater- al relationship between Washing- ton and Taipei, David Stilwell, assis- tant secretary of the State Depart- ment's Bureau of East Asian and Pa- cific A ffairs, underscored during his recent remarks at The Heritage Foundation: The U.S. and Taiwan are estab- lishing a new bilateral economic di- alogue. These talks will explore the full spectrum of our economic rela- tionship—semiconductors, health care, energy, and beyond—with technology at the core … Our relation- ship with Taiwan is not a sub- set of our bilateral relation- ship with the [People's Re- public of China]. Our friend- ship and cooperation with Taiwan stands on its own, fed from the wellsprings of shared values, cultural affin- ity, and commercial and eco- nomic ties. For many years, The Heritage Foundation has also called for in- creased economic cooperation and broader dialogue to address areas of greater private-sector coopera- tion between the U.S. and Taiwan. Such a unique practical partner- ship would reinforce other vital dip- lomatic links between the two allies, particularly given the fact that Tai- wan has proven to be a reliable and strong ally for America in advanc- ing freedom, opportunity, and pros- perity in the region and around the During slavery, many black wom- en, often in a forcible union with a white man, bore mixed-race chil- dren. Based on their percentage of white blood, they were deemed "mu- lattos," "quadroons," "octoroons" or even "hexadecaroons." Depending on skin color, they could pass as white and avoid the gross racial dis- crimination suffered by their darker skinned brothers and sisters. This was portrayed in a 1949 motion pic- ture titled "Pinky" that highlighted "passing" for white. Now the tables have been turned with some white women claiming they are black. For years, Rachel Dolezal claimed that she was black. As a result of her deception, she became president of the Spokane, Washington, office of the NA ACP and an instructor of A fricana stud- ies at Eastern Washington Universi- ty. Her two white parents outed her. Just recently, Jessica Krug, George Washington University professor of history, who for years claimed that she was black, confessed that she was white. Her faculty bio listed her as a scholar in A frican Ameri- can history, imperialism and colo- nialism. Krug, in a fit of contrition, apologized for her "continued appro- priation of a black Caribbean identi- ty." She confessed: "I am not a culture vulture. I am a cul- ture leech." A fter Krug's confession, she resigned from the GWU faculty. An Indianapolis activist for Black Lives Matter, Satchuel Paigelyn Cole, born to two white parents, has admitted to pretending to be black for years. CV Vitolo-Haddad, a grad- uate student at UW's School of Jour- nalism and Mass Communications, after faking her race, has resigned from her teaching position and stepped down as co-president of the school's chapter of the Teaching As- sistants' Association. One cannot be sure about race these days because of "blackfishing," a trend in which people alter their appearance to pres- ent themselves as black. Dolezal, Krug, Cole and others are not the only white women who have benefited from racial fakery. Sen. Eliz- abeth Warren, sometimes called "Pocahontas," claimed that she was of Cherokee In- dian ancestry. That helped her land a job at diversi- ty-hungry Harvard Universi- ty as a professor of law and was paid $400,000 to teach two courses. She described herself as a minority in the Harvard Law School directory and claimed that her great-grandfather was Chero- kee. Not only was her great-grand- father not a Cherokee as she claimed but he was a white man who boasted of shooting a Cherokee Indian. By the way, if as it has now become acceptable to call oneself a woman, when one has the anatomical equip- ment of a male, then why isn't it okay to claim that one is black, Latino or Asian when one is really Caucasian?