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Too Many Foxes In The Hen House
C. Blythe Andrews 1901-1977 (1945)
C. Blythe Andrews, Jr. 1930-2010 (1977)
I
t probably won't be long
now. After Attorney Gen- eral Jeff Sessions was caught lying to the Senate Judiciary Committee about his contacts with Russian diplomats during Donald Trump's presidential campaign, it's becoming more and more apparent that the col- lateral damage from continuous improprieties by the people Trump chose to be a part of his administration could lead to his tenure in office being cut dra- matically short.
I think we all had a feeling that a Trump presidency was going to be a disaster. But I don't believe anyone thought it would be this chaotic.
Scandals occur so frequently in this administration that it's hard to keep up with them all. Every controversy seems to barely last 24-hours before an- other arrives to snatch up the re- maining oxygen in the room.
The interesting thing is that they each appear to follow the same theme... Members of Trump's campaign having dealings with Russian officials during a time when the commu- nist state was accused of inter-
fering with America's demo- cratic process.
It doesn't take a Sherlock Holmes type intuitiveness to connect the dots of the picture taking shape. If the F.B.I. con- firmed that Russia influenced the 2016 presidential election, and each of Trump's top aides had secret meetings with the same Russian ambassador dur- ing that period, simple common sense suggests that, at the very least, something highly inappro- priate was taking place behind the scenes.
The strong odor of smoke we smell may not be coming from Trump's ears alone. It may very well be bellowing from the growing fire that's about to burn the White House to the ground.
If everything being reported turns out to be true, Trump would replace Richard Nixon as the biggest embarrassment this nation has ever seen. And the campaign he once began to have Hillary Clinton incarcer- ated would, ironically, be aimed into his direction.
As far as Sessions is con- cerned, what should alarm everyone is that the current U. S.
Attorney General lied about the part he played in the alleged conspiracy while under oath.
This is the person who is supposed to be the boss of every federal agent, U. S. attorney and judge in the country. If he does- n't respect his position, as the chief warden of justice, enough to tell the truth, how can we have faith that the system under his leadership will ever be capa- ble of doing the right thing?
After Sessions' blatant per- jury it's hard to believe that he still has a job this morning. I mean, the last time I checked, lying on an application or in a job interview was an offense worthy of termination. But, I guess, when you're down with "Team Trump" engaging in unethical behavior simply solid- ifies the fact that you belong.
Unfortunately, this is what typically happens when a crook is elected to office. It's not un- common for him to install unsa- vory goons in key positions power while he runs roughshod over the entire operation.
What we're witnessing now should be a huge wake up call to anyone who believed that cast- ing a vote was a waste of time. If this classic display of corruption doesn't motivate people to run to the polls in 2018 and 2020 then, I think it's safe to say, nothing will.
Reality On Ice is © by the Florida Sentinel Bulletin Pub- lishing Company. You can write to Mr. Barr at: Clarence Barr 43110-018, Oakdale F. C. I., P. O. BOX 5000, Oakdale, LA 71463.
And What Say The Band Of Brothers?
ou know their names by heart . . . James “Jimmy”
Carter, George H. W. Bush, his son George W. Bush, William “Bill” Jefferson Clinton, Barack Hussein Obama, all Presidents of the United States . . . all, still living. No other nation on the face of the earth can claim such an illustrious fraternity. But pride in our history is only an anecdote. The most important question is “What role, if any, are the mem- bers of the world’s most celebrated lodge prepared to play during days like these?”
The answer is not only complex, but if considered seri- ously could turn out to be unsettlingly dangerous. What dreams may haunt a former Commander-In-Chief as he stands by and watches that which he fought for be trampled in the dust of political double-talk?
Surely, it has happened to Bill Clinton who left his fol- lower a treasury that was the envy of American history. Cer- tainly, it annoys Jimmy Carter as he watches present day politics cause world leaders to wonder if our nation is about to flirt with dictatorship.
Most certainly, it unnerves Barack Obama who brought medical help to millions only to see it gnawed away by Con- servative termites. And the Bushes, too, must watch in silent disbelief as their legacy turns to dust.
But will they stand quietly by like American presidents have done for past generations? While their fellow Ameri- cans scream for “HELP.
In these days of false facts and threatened reprisal, will the members of this great fraternity ignore their own safety to help save our Democracy? We can only hope so.
Y
TUESDAY, MARCH 7, 2017 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5
Mary Seacole: Florence Nightingale’s Contemporary
PART I
ebruary was the month
of National Black Nurses Day, a day in which members of the National Black Nurses Association celebrated the day on Capitol Hill in Washington, D. C. Hundreds of Black nurses convened and visited Congressional repre- sentatives in an effort to edu- cate Congress on the nursing shortage, the nursing profes- sion, and health care dispari- ties.
Locally, Black nurses of Hillsborough County Histori- cal Organization, founded by
Rev. Dr. Pauline Cole, re- tired nurse, held a scholarship luncheon recently where local Black nurses were recognized, two nursing students received scholarships, and I was in- spired to write this column.
In elementary school, I was taught about and idolized well-known nurse Florence Nightingale, who was can- onized for her work with wounded soldiers during the Crimean War.
Little did we know that there was a Black nurse who was equally as popular among the wounded soldiers in the British Army. Her name was
Mary Jane Grant Seacole, and she was one of the earliest Black women to serve as care- giver of the sick.
Seacole, born in 1805 in Kingston, Jamaica, was the daughter of a Scottish Lieu- tenant in the British Army and a well-known free Jamaican woman who practiced herbal medicine. Seacole had no for- mal nursing training, but learned all that she knew from her mother and practiced what she learned from her mother on her dolls and pets until she grew old enough to help her mother heal people.
During the 1850 cholera epidemic which killed more than 32,000 Jamaicans, Sea- cole treated cholera victims and discovered the concept of the contagion theory in noting that the cholera outbreak ap- peared to have come from a ship from New Orleans. She also worked at the British Army Hospital.
F
Make Release Of Tax Returns Law!
ow that all of America and the Free World know that
President Donald Trump “side-stepped the truth” and has no proven intent to release his tax returns in this life, Congress should immediately enact a law that requires all presidential candidates to release their tax returns for three years immediately preceding their official filing to run for of- fice, don’t you think?
If not, our nation stands as a hypocrite in the political arena as long as we require income tax disclosure by candi- dates for other less important federal positions and allow presidential candidates to escape the same disclosure.
Indeed, presidential candidates should be held to higher standards. Or do you think President Obama could have got- ten away with lying about or hiding his tax returns? No doubt, all of Trump’s nominees for Cabinet sub-cabinet, and Depart- ment leadership positions were required to submit their tax returns for review by the U. S. Senate.
Moreover, if any of those nominees had unpaid taxes, they would have had to pay them immediately or withdraw from
N
TO BE CONTINUED
nomination. So, why does Congress tuck tail and refuse to require the same accountability for the person who will supervise all of the nominees?
Accountability, avoiding conflict of interest, questionable business partnerships, financial management skills, and memberships in questionable groups, charitable giving history and other information can be determined from viewing their president’s tax returns.
Americans should be concerned as to the reasons President Trump refuses to release his income tax returns.