Spoiler Alert: He Ain't Goin' to Jail

It's time to Break It Down!

 

Let me begin by stipulating, this will be as short as it is unpopular among persons who generally oppose Donald Trump. As I’ve noted previously, many of my close friends and family members are underwhelmed when I write about politics, and not surprisingly, they are maximally underwhelmed when I write about Donald Trump. For those folks, consider this. In 2024, the following have passed:

 

1.    New Year’s Day

2.    Imani (the last day of Kwanzaa

3.    Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday

4.    Black History Month

5.    Groundhog Day

6.    Super Bowl

7.    Lincoln’s Birthday

8.    Ash Wednesday

9.    Valentine’s Day

10. Washington’s Birthday

11. Presidents Day 

12. Women’s History Month

13. Daylight Saving Time

14. NCAA Basketball Tournament(s)

15. Ramadan

16. St. Patrick’s Day

17. Spring

18. Palm Sunday

19. Good Friday

20. Easter 

21. Tax Freedom Day (North Carolina)

22. Tax Day

23. Boston Marathon

24. First Day of Passover

25. Earth Day

 

In other words, here we are at the 115^th day of the year, more that two dozen notable yearly events have occurred, and I have not written a single story singularly focused on Donald Trump. Well, I’m here to tell you, that changes today.

 

The first of four Trump trials, “Falsifying Records, aka Hush Money, commenced with jury selection last week. It resumed Monday, kicking off with testimony from David Pecker, CEO of American Publishing until August 2020. He was the publisher of several magazines, most notably, for the purposes of this post, National Enquirer, where he was alleged to have executed a strategy known as Catch and Kill, to prevent negative stories from being published about Trump. The basic concept entailed buying exclusive rights to stories (negative to Trump) and not publishing them; simultaneously ensuring no other outlet could publish the stories. There are plenty of sordid details…and you can read about them elsewhere. I do not have a lot to say. In fact, the Title says it all. “Spoiler Alert: He Ain’t Goin’ to Jail!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

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Deja Vu All Over Again: The Mike Johnson Edition

It's time to Break It Down!

 

In January 2023, after an historic 15 ballots, Kevin McCarthy ascended to the Speakership of the United States House of Representatives. For the duration of McCarthy’s 9-month long tenure, he and the Biden Administration were at loggerheads. For the GOP’s part, the standoff culminated with McCarthy negotiating a debt-ceiling deal with the Biden administration.

 

One of the key provisions of the deal that allowed McCarthy to become Speaker was agreeing that a single GOP House member could call for the speakership to be vacated. The GOP started with a razor-thin majority that has only gotten progressively smaller. By Friday of this week, the Republican Conference will have devolved to a one-member majority. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s go back.

 

After reaching the Debt-ceiling agreement in September 2023, The GOP Caucus led by a host of ultra-right-wing conservatives, including Jim Jordan called for vacating the Speaker’s position. The vote passed, and the Party required several votes, before finally landing on the little-known Mike Johnson as McCarthy’s successor.

 

October was also the month Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing over 1,200, and taking over 200 hostages. Since that time, Biden and Democrats have been attempting to secure funding for Israel and Ukraine. GOP House members have been reticent to agree. Also, Democrats in conjunction with GOP Senator James Langford negotiated an agreement on policy to address the Southern Border. However, Donald Trump advised Republicans not to accept the agreement, because he wanted to run on the migrant issue. Subsequently, the House refused to consider the matter.

 

Marjorie Taylor Greene, a self-proclaimed Trump protégé is now engaged in a pressure campaign to remove Johnson from the Speaker’s post. She was animated by Johnson opting to work with Democrats to pass significant pieces of appropriations bills opposed by conservative members of the Republican conference. Despite her biting rhetoric, including, basically calling Johnson a Democrat, she has yet to bring a motion to vacate. Greene, from Georgia, has succeeded in enlisting the support of another member, Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie. In announcing his support for Greene, he predicted Johnson would lose by more votes than McCarthy.

 

That brings me back to the House GOP working margin; soon to be one vote. It’s clear, ennui has set in among members of the House GOP Conference. Several have gone on record suggesting it would be a bad idea to revisit vacating the Chair. A few have express doubts that the matter will come to a vote. Given the razor thin GOP majority, Democrats may have an outsized roll in any such effort. In fact, as the conversation has unfolded, at least a couple of Democrats have indicated they would consider voting to retain Johnson. That may or may not come to pass. But what we know at the moment is, we are staring down the barrel of “Déjà Vu All Over Again: The Mike Johnson Edition!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right-hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects related to this post, consult the link below:

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/16/politics/mike-johnson-revolt-house-gop-leadership/index.html

http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2024/04/deja-vu-all-over-again-mike-johnson.html

Don't Get It Twisted: It's Just Business

It's time to Break It Down!

 

Exhale! The past three weeks, culminating with the Women’s and Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship Games, on Sunday afternoon, and Monday evening, respectively, were a whirlwind of mostly exciting, frequently surprising outcomes, that at the end of the day wound up with the chalkiest of conclusions. The top two number one seeds faced each other in the Finals of both the Men’s and Women’s Tournaments, with the overall number seed prevailing by double digits in their respective Tournament. South Carolina beat Iowa 87-75, and Connecticut, which won all six of its Tournament Games by double digits, eclipsed (see what I did there…the Solar Eclipse was earlier Monday…Purdue 75-60.

 

Throughout the course of the Tournament, I heard and saw much more chatter and coverage of the Women’s Tournament than in previous years. Much if not most the feedback emanating about the Women’s Tournament dealt, directly or indirectly, with Caitlin Clark.

 

For a segment of the viewing public, this was problematic. For many, it took on an almost sinister nature. It seemed that quite a few people, a lot, but not all of them, genuine sports fans, believed there was a media conspiracy to hype Ms. Clark, to the detriment of Black women athletes. And to be clear, while this was principally a Black thing, it was (and still is, I’m sure), not relegated to women. Part of this may be due to the fact that for years, sports were deemed to be the sole province of men. First of all, if that were ever the case, it is not that way today. In fact, there have been female athletes for eons, so, while the breakdown may be more balanced today, men have never ‘owned’ sports.

 

In the minds of a lot of Black folks, Basketball belongs to “us;” it’s ‘our’ game. It’s not, of course. Even though we account for a majority of player in the NBA, and on a good many college basketball teams, the game has always been comprised of players of other persuasions. For heaven’s sake, the NBA logo captures the likeness of Jerry West (that may change one day), along with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird was one of the players instrumental in saving the NBA from a spiraling decline in the 70’s and early 80’s. When Magic Johnson won the MVP of the 1980 NBA Finals, the League was so unpopular that the NBA Finals were not shown on live television. The games were shown as tape-delayed telecasts. A year earlier, Johnson and his Michigan State team has met, ad defeated Larry Bird and his up to that point undefeated Indiana State team in the 1979 NCAA Title Game. Afterward, Johnson was drafted by the Lakers, and Bird was drafted by the Celtics. The rest is history.

 

I say all that to say, there really is no mystery, or conspiracy tied to why Caitlin Clark gets the treatment from the media. There is little more mystery tied to why even some White (Black one too, I’m sure) WNBA are taking exception to her. Caitlin has an element of style and flair that draws attention to herself. That can easily be off-putting to players and fans alike. More often than not, however, she backs it up…on the court, where it matters most.

 

As a sports fan, and avid observer of sports, especially basketball, what I see, when I watch CC, is the player whom the WNBA, and its television partners envision as the next Box Office mega-star. Is it possible they could be wrong? Of course it is. The NBA, which has considerably more experience and cachet than the W, they’ve had several Number 1 Draft Picks who were flat-out busts, including Pervis Ellison, Kwame Brown, Greg Oden, and Anthony Bennett. So, yes, it could happen. But I don’t expect it to.

 

Clark is projected to be the WNBA’s Number 1 Draft Pick. If she can avoid injury, she’s likely to live up to the hype. She’s known for her prolific shooting. This year, according to the NCAA, more than 60 of her 3-point shots made were taken from beyond 26 feet. Just to be clear, the NBA 3-point Line is 23.75 feet, at it’s farthest. She pulls up from distance with impunity and made 38.5. of her 3-point attempts this year as a senior. But she’s not just a gunner. She has stout handles and passes willingly. She holds the NCAA D-1 Tournament all-time women’s records for points, assists, and 3-pointers.

 

The fascination with Caitlin, the NCAA’s, the media, and the fans (those who like her, and those who don’t), is tied to the fact that she shows up. Her Iowa team lost in the Title Game to a dominant, undefeated Dawn Staley coached South Carolina team. After giving up 18 first quarter points to Clark, South Carolina made adjustments, and she scored only 12 points the rest of the game. Still, that’s 30 for the game. Two of her most notable adversaries, Angel Reese, a player from LSU, and Coach Staley, complimented her for helping lift the profile of Women’s basketball. The Title game on Sunday was viewed by an average 18.9 million people, and by as many as 24 million, making it the most watched college basketball game. Ever. 

 

At the end of the day, that translates to green, and that is the color that motivates the NCAA, its media partners, and product sponsors. “Don’t Get It Twisted: It’s Just Business!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

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For more detailed information on a variety of aspects related to this post, consult the link below:

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Relentlessly Assailing, Denouncing, & Disassembling DEI: A Primer on Turning Back the Clock

It's time to Break It Down!

 

Attacking, rolling back, or otherwise eliminating DEI initiatives is becoming a favorite current-day White empowerment strategy; a proverbial go-to move of choice, for those determined to cast White people as the preeminent victims of race-based discrimination in America. While this faux issue is flatly ridiculous on its face, the segment of the populace that has popularized such pithy, but absurd catchphrases as, “Jews will not replace us,” and “There are good people on both sides,” has effectively embedded this narrative into the psyche of countless self-identifying Republicans and conservatives. The practice has become, sort of a starter kit, if you will, for launching a broadscale initiative to turn back the clock on racial progress. Such measures comprise the bulwark action item for the contemporary zealous opposition to CRT.

 

It’s utterly amazing how much the majority, or in some cases, the plurality now, wants to institutionalize a variety of methodologies to prevent the transfer of knowledge about ways in which Black people, and other People of Color, have been historically marginalized, discriminated against, and in too many instances, straight up murdered, under the color and/or, protection of the law. We know such measures were codified in legal and legislative actions from the nascent days of the Republic. But if one believes in the premise of an on-going effort to perfect the Union, it seems taking on the truth in a direct manner, rather than resorting to deflecting, dissembling, denying, and ultimately, destroying mechanisms that would enlighten the masses, would be the prudent, if not the only course of action for our great American Experiment.

 

This List of States Trying to Stop DEI is Terrifying:

 

Ohio, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Utah, Arizona, Kansas, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia, two dozen, or nearly half of the 50 states have all adopted, or have pending legislation, to put the brakes on racial uplift.

 

It is well-documented that the history of enslaved people in America extended literally, for centuries. How can one sensibly, reasonably, or effectively argue that in a span of 60 years or less (the civil rights act was passed in 1965/the voting rights act was passed in 1965), the playing field has been leveled, and all the legal and extra-legal methods used to stymie Black progress have been excised, repudiated, or rectified? Moreover, even if they were, and they certainly aren’t, where are the reparations, the recompense, the payment for the blood, sweat, and tears, for the lives needlessly and ruthlessly taken, for the men and women who built the foundations of this country from the ground up…for free?

 

What is the current GOP/conservative design to deal with this heinous treatment? Eliminate affirmative action, discontinue minority scholarships, and abrogate voting rights, especially in minority voting districts. In other words, “Relentlessly Assailing, Denouncing, & Disassembling DEI: A Primer on Turning Back the Clock!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right-hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects related to this post, consult the links below:     

https://www.theroot.com/a-list-of-states-that-have-banned-limited-and-attacked-1851360019

http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2024/04/relentlessly-assailing-denouncing.html

This Ish is Someone's Idea of the American Dream: Let That Sink In

It's time to Break It Down!

 

Usually, I provide my take on the issues of the day, while penning a post. But occasionally, I run across a story that I don’t deign to reframe. I like it just the way it is. Such is the case today, with a story by, CNN’sGeorge Ramsay, Jill Martin, David Close, and Wayne Sterling. They wrote about what should have been a depiction of a sporting event, but that instead, devolved into recounting the rough and tumble experiences of a group of athletes who were subjected, firsthand, to an American staple, racism in the first degree. Don’t tell Nikki.

 

Without further ado, check it out.

Reporting by CNN’s George Ramsey and Jill Martin, with contributions from David Close and Wayne Sterling.

The Utah women’s basketball team had to switch hotels after experiencing what head coach Lynne Roberts called “racial hate crimes” ahead of its first NCAA tournament game.

According to Roberts, the team was staying at a hotel in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, last week when the incidents occurred. This was before a first-round game against South Dakota State in Spokane, Washington, about 30 miles away.

“We had several instances of some kind of racial hate crimes towards our program, and (it was) incredibly upsetting for all of us,” Roberts told reporters on Monday.

She added: “There is so much diversity on a college campus and so you’re just not exposed to that very often … Racism is real. It happens. It’s awful. So, for our players, whether they are White, Black, green, whatever, no one knew how to handle it. It was really upsetting.”

Utah defeated South Dakota State on Saturday before losing 77-66 against Gonzaga in the tournament’s second round on Monday. CNN has contacted Utah and Gonzaga for further comment.

The details of the alleged racist incidents are unclear, but Gonzaga said it may have been disparaging comments.

Following them, Roberts said the Utes switched hotels after just one night before their games in Spokane.

“For our players and staff to not feel safe in an NCAA tournament environment, it’s messed up, and so we moved hotels,” she explained.

“The NCAA and ([host university) Gonzaga worked to get us in a new hotel and we appreciate that. That’s what happened. It was a distraction and upsetting and unfortunate.

“This should be a positive for everybody involved. This should be a joyous time for our program. To have kind of a black eye on this experience is unfortunate.”

Spokane was also a predetermined site for the first two rounds of the men’s tournament. With the Utah, UC Irvine, and South Dakota State women’s teams all staying in the area, hotel space was limited.

After the elimination of some men’s teams, the NCAA and Gonzaga offered Utah and UC Irvine the chance to move to the vacated hotel rooms in Spokane, a source familiar with the situation told CNN.

The source added that, because Utah and UC Irvine had been based in Idaho, Gonzaga had arranged for police escorts to ensure the drive time to the venue did not exceed approximately 30 minutes, which is a condition of being able to host after earning a top-16 seed.

After those two teams were moved into Spokane hotels, police escorts continued to be provided for them, according to the source.

Gonzaga said that it is aware of “racially disparaging comments” to visiting players, adding: “Hate speech in any form is repugnant, shameful and must never be tolerated.

“We worked hard to secure the opportunity to serve as the host institution, and our first priority is and must be the safety and welfare of all student-athletes, coaches, families and supporting staff.”

The NCAA said Tuesday it worked with Gonzaga and Utah to provide increased security for the Utes until new accommodations were arranged in Spokane.

“The NCAA condemns racism and hatred in any form and is committed to providing a world-class athletics and academic experience for student-athletes that fosters lifelong well-being,” it said in a statement. “NCAA championship events represent the pinnacle of a student-athlete’s collegiate career. We are devastated about the Utah team’s experience while traveling to compete on what should have been a weekend competing on the brightest stage and creating some of the fondest memories of their lives.”

The organization thanked local law enforcement for its quick response and “efforts to keep student-athletes safe.”

Idaho’s Republican Gov. Brad Little gave no details but called the incidents the “hateful, unacceptable actions of a few” that Idahoans cannot let “tarnish our state.”

“Idaho leaders and community members at all levels have been consistent and clear about our values – we fully reject racism in all its forms,” he said in a statement. “We condemn bullies who seek to harass and silence others. I will continue the tradition of past Idaho governors in supporting our local leaders in their efforts to eradicate hate and bigotry from our communities.”

“This Ish is Someone’s Idea of the American Dream: Let That Sink In!” I’m done; holla back!

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right-hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects related to this post, consult the links below:

https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/26/sport/utah-basketball-racism-ncaa-tournament-spt-intl/index.html

http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2024/03/this-ish-is-someones-idea-of-american.html

In Black & White: Racism or Just My Imagination

It's time to Break It Down!

 

Just a quick note about a subject that merits much more discourse than I am going to give it today. Yesterday, a former Mississippi sheriff’s deputy who was a member of a group that described itself as the “Goon Squad,” was sentenced to 241 months in prison for his role in torturing two Black men last year, after the two men were reported for staying in a home with a White woman.

 

U.S. Judge Tom Lee, who sentenced Hunter Elward, one of the six “Goon Squad” members, is also set to sentence the other five renegade former lawmen who admitted subjecting Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker to various and sundry acts of racist torture. It is commonplace for White people in America to object to being called racist. In that light, I will not even deign to assert that these former officers were racist. However, due to the Court’s charges, and the defendants’ subsequent admissions, their behavior met the criteria. I’ll leave it at that. You may decide for yourself.

 

Prior to rendering the sentence, Judge Lee characterized Elward’s crime as egregious and despicable,” and opined a “sentence at the top of the guideline range is justified – is more than justified. It’s what the defendant deserves. It’s what the community and the defendant’s victims deserve.”

 

The terror unfolded on January 24, 2023, with a racist call for extrajudicial violence. A White person called Rankin County Deputy Brett McAlpin to register a complaint that two Black men were staying with a White woman at a house in Braxton, Mississippi. McAlpin told Deputy Christian (ironically named, apparently) Dedmon, who in turn texted a group of White Deputies so willing to use excessive force, they called themselves “The Goon Squad.”

 

This led to the group of six Deputies bursting into the home, with no warrant in hand, and assaulting Jenkins and Parker with stun guns, a sex toy, and other objects. Elward, by his own admission, shoved a gun into Jenkins’ mouth and fired it, in a “mock execution” that went awry.

 

The “Goon Squad” handcuffed Jenkins and Parker and poured milk, alcohol, and chocolate syrup over their faces. They forced them to strip naked and shower together to conceal the resulting disarrayed clutter. They hurled racial slurs at the victims and shocked them with stun guns.

 

After the mock execution went left, they attempted to execute a coverup that including planting drugs and a gun. The false charges associated with that ruse stood for months.

 

Not surprisingly, the victims, Jenkins and Parker called for the “stiffest of sentences” at a news conference Monday.

 

Jenkins noted, “It’s been very hard for me, for us. We are hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.”

 

Jenkins, who was shot in the mouth, endured a lacerated tongue and a broken jaw. He still experiences difficulty speaking and eating.

 

Attorney Malik Shabazz, an attorney for both victims, said the results of the sentencing hearings could have national implications.

 

He went on to say, “Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker continue to suffer emotionally and physically since this horrific and bloody attack by Rankin County Deputies. A message must be sent to police in Mississippi and all over America, that level of criminal conduct will be met with the harshest of consequences.”

 

An investigation by The Associated Press, prior to charges being filed, linked some of the deputies to at least four violent encounters with Black men since 2019, that left two dead and another with long term injuries.

 

In addition to Mr. Elward, the other former officers charged include McAlpin, Dedmon, Jeffrey Middleton, and Daniel Opdyke of the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department, and Joshua Hartfield, a Richland police officer. They pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy against rights, obstruction of justice, deprivation of rights under color of law, discharge of a firearm under a crime of violence, and conspiracy to obstruct justice. Court papers identified Hunter Elward as one of the “Goon Squad” members. The others identified as part of the “Squad” were Middleton and Opdyke.

 

Elward faced a maximum federal sentence of 120 years, plus life in prison and $2.75 million in fines, as does Dedmon. Hartfield faces a possible sentence of 80 years and $1.5 million. McAlpin faces 90 years and $1.75 million, Middleton faces 80 years and $1.5 million, and Opdyke could be sentenced to 100 years with a $2 million fine.

 

All the former officers agreed to prosecutor-recommended sentences ranging from five to 30 years in state court, but time served for separate convictions at the state level will run concurrently with the potentially longer federal sentences.

 

Interestingly, Ranking County, which is majority-white, is just east of the state capital, Jackson, home to one of the highest percentages of Black residents in any major U.S. city. The officers warned Jenkins and Parker to “stay out of Rankin County and go back to Jackson, or ‘their side’ of the Pearl River,” according to court documents, referring to an area with a higher concentration of Black residents.

 

These crimes, committed by men charged with, and authorized to, enforce the law, hearkened back to Mississippi’s dark history, including the 1964 killing of three civil rights workers after a Deputy handed them off to the Ku Klux Klan. People like to pretend such acts are relegated to the past, which brings to mind Faulkner’s sage observance: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”

 

Bryan Bailey is the Sheriff of Rankin County. He supervised the five Deputies who, along with a Richland police officer, committed the crimes. For months, Sheriff Bailey said little about the episode. After his officers pleaded guilty in August, he said the officers had gone rogue, and promised to change the department. Jenkins and Parker have called for his resignation, and they have filed a $400 million civil suit against the department. “In Black & White: Racism or Just My Imagination!”

 

I’m done; holla back!

 

Read my blog anytime by clicking the link: http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com. Find a new post each Wednesday.

 

To subscribe, click on Follow in the bottom right-hand corner of my Home Page at http://thesphinxofcharlotte.com; enter your e-mail address in the designated space, and click on “Sign me up.” Subsequent editions of “Break It Down” will be mailed to your in-box.

 

For more detailed information on a variety of aspects related to this post, consult the links below:

 

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/mississippi-goon-squad-ex-deputy-gets-20-year-sentence-racist-torture-rcna144104

http://thesphinxofcharlotte.blogspot.com/2024/03/in-black-white-racism-or-just-my.html