The DISH
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Vol. 11 Issue 23…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…June 8, 2008
Excerpt: President Abraham Lincoln's Second
Inaugural Address (3-4-65)
Fellow-Countrymen:
......One-eighth of the whole population were colored slaves, not distributed generally over the Union, but localized in the southern part of it. These slaves constituted a peculiar and powerful interest. All knew that this interest was somehow the cause of the war. To strengthen, perpetuate, and extend this interest was the object for which the insurgents would rend the Union even by war, while the Government claimed no right to do more than to restrict the territorial enlargement of it.
Neither party expected for the war the magnitude or the duration which it has already attained. Neither anticipated that the cause of the conflict might cease with or even before the conflict itself should cease. Each looked for an easier triumph and a result less fundamental and astounding. Both read the same Bible and pray to the same God, and each invokes His aid against the other. It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God's assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men's faces, but let us judge not, that we be not judged.
The prayers of both could not be answered. That of neither has been answered fully. The Almighty has His own purposes. "Woe unto the world because of offenses; for it must needs be that offenses come, but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh." If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of those offenses which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which, having continued through His appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the believers in a living God always ascribe to Him? Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said "the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether."
With malice toward none, with
charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right,
let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds,
to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his
orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among
ourselves and with all nations.
By John Burl Smith
Just over one hundred and
forty-three years ago President Abraham Lincoln delivered his Second Inaugural
Address, while the United States of America (USA) continued to tear at itself
in a Civil War. Although the circumstances are different today, the US is
poised on a very similar precipice. This fractured nation has endured a long
and tortured period, and again war is at the heart of its pain. Fathers,
mothers, sons and daughters are dying under arms; the national treasury has
been drained, and those who saw this horrible misadventure as a means to wealth
and power turn blind eyes to the folly in their choice, as well as deaf ears to
the cries for peace. Without the power of God in our hands, we cannot recall
this tragic and senseless loss. All that is left is to heed President Lincoln's
admonition "to bind up the nation's wounds."
Now that the Democratic Party's nomination fight is over, the first step is to
seal the breach. When Sen. Barack Obama began his campaign, he drew on the
symbolism of President Lincoln and spoke eloquently of his admiration for this
heroic figure. Following continual struggle against those he felt were trying
to destroy the Union and with thousands of lives lost, Lincoln, a man of
character and vision, saw a chance to heal a broken nation. Fighting the desire
for revenge, he put the needs of the nation above all other considerations and
reached out saying, "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with
firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right," in order to seal
the breach.
With the Democratic Party virtually split down the middle, the first demand on
Sen. Obama is to heal the wounds inflected on the party during the campaign by
embracing Sen. Hillary Clinton as his vice president. Such an appeal to unity
would reflect his readiness to lead a nation as large and great as America.
After healing the party, Sen. Obama must seal the breach in American society by
facing the same challenge that confronted President Lincoln.
America is a society made up of descendants of slaves and slave masters.
Consequently, as Lincoln observed, "a house divided will not stand."
For President Lincoln it was never a question of saving or helping slaves; it
was a question of saving the "Union." If Sen. Obama's identification
with President Lincoln extends beyond rhetoric, his commitment should at least
reflect Lincoln's concern for the despair and pain of America's legacy of
slavery. Healing the socioeconomic divide left over from slavery will save
America and set it aright to face the enormous challenges in the world today.
The next President must seal the breach between the US and the world.
Representing a nation that reflects white supremacy will not enhance the US'
diplomatic standing in a world that grows increasingly darker each day. Nations
of color are already a majority in the United Nations. Their economic power
grows as the dollar declines. America cannot rely on its military power to
continue running the world any more than England could at the end of the 19th
century.
"President" Obama must heal the breach between America and an
emerging world of color and woman. His choice of Sen. Clinton as vice president
will not only show his strength and leadership but his vision. A new world is
on the horizon. For the US to lead it, it first must be a part of it. Sen.
Obama can be a healer and grow in stature or an insider, making deals for his
buddies. Sealing and healing the breaches will bind up this nation's wounds and
that will make change real!
Dr. David Satcher
Born March 2, 1941 in Anniston,
Alabama, David Satcher contracted whooping cough at age two. The black
physician that came to the family's farm to treat his illness advised his parents
that he did not expect the child to survive. Despite Dr. Jackson's dire
prognostication, he spent the day by David's side, counseling his parents on
what to do to give David the best chance to live. Satcher grew up hearing the
story about his bout with whooping cough and the doctor that saved his life; it
inspired him to study medicine.
In 1963, Satcher graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta. He received his
M.D. and Ph.D. from Case Western Reserve University (1970). He did
residency/fellowship training at the Strong Memorial Hospital, University of
Rochester, the UCLA School of Medicine and Public Health and the King-Drew
Medical Center in Los Angeles. A fellow of the American Academy of Family
Physicians, the American College of Preventive Medicine, and American College
of Physicians, Dr. Satcher served as Interim Dean of the Charles R. Drew
Postgraduate Medical School (1977 - 1979). During his tenure, he negotiated an
agreement with the UCLA School of Medicine and Board of Regents to create the
King-Drew Department of Family Medicine, which he chaired. He also directed the
King-Drew Sickle Cell Research Center for six years.
From 1979 to 1982, Dr. Satcher served as professor and Chairman of the
Department of Community Medicine and Family Practice at Morehouse School of
Medicine and as President of Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee
(1982 to 1993), where he founded the Journal of Health Care for the Poor and
Underserved. Dr. Satcher held the posts of Director of the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention and Administrator of the Agency for Toxic Substances and
Disease Registry (1993 - 1998).
A Phi Beta Kappa, member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society, Dr. Satcher is
a former Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar and Macy Faculty Fellow. He is
the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including top awards from the
American Medical Association, the American College of Physicians, the American
Academy of Family Physicians, and Ebony magazine. Recipient of the
Breslow Award in Public Health (1995), the New York Academy of Medicine
Lifetime Achievement Award (1997), the Bennie Mays Trailblazer Award and the
Jimmy and Roslyn Carter Award for Humanitarian Contributions to the Health of
Humankind from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, Dr. Satcher has
been a consistent and vocal critic of health disparities.
From February 13, 1998 to August 5, 2002, Dr. Satcher served as the first black
male US Surgeon General; he also served as Assistant Secretary for Health from
1998 to 2001, only the second person to have held both posts simultaneously. As
Surgeon General and Assistant Secretary of Health, Dr. Satcher listened to the
American people and responded with effective programs. He led efforts to
eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health, an initiative incorporated
as one of the two major goals of Healthy People 2010, the ten-year national
health agenda. He released Surgeon General's reports on tobacco and health;
mental health; children's mental health, health disparities and mental
retardation, and culture, race and ethnicity; suicide prevention; a national
strategy to prevent suicide; oral health; sexual health and responsible sexual
behavior; youth violence prevention; and overweight and obesity.
On returning to the private sector, Dr. Satcher served as a fellow at the
Kaiser Family Foundation, before assuming the post of Director of the National
Center for Primary Care at the Morehouse School of Medicine (2002). In June
2006, Dr. Satcher established the Satcher Health Leadership Institute (SHLI) at
Morehouse School of Medicine as a natural extension of his experience in
improving public health policy for all Americans and his commitment to
eliminating health disparities for minorities, the poor and other disadvantaged
groups.
He supports a Medicare-for-all style single payer health plan, in which
insurance companies would be eliminated and the government would pay health
care costs directly to providers. A champion at promoting healthy lifestyles,
Dr. Satcher is an avid jogger and enjoys tennis, gardening, and reading. The
father of four resides in Atlanta with his wife, Nola. (Sources: www.surgeongeneral.gov and http://en.wikipedia.org)
How can I escape the dreaded weed (Excerpt)
By Rex Tyler
This dreaded weed it has me in its clutches
I cannot for the life of me break free
The only time, I can say that I am beaten
Is when the mask of
sleep reduces me
To jelly, comatose and breathing loudly
I float to regions far away from here
But as soon as I wake up I cannot stop myself
The dreaded weed has
really to be near
It's then its writhing aura will entice me
Soak me, get inside me, to be strong
No matter what I say, it’s there for me each day
I cough, my chest is
tight, I know it's wrong
And somehow it imprisons me with vigor
Wraps me up in the paper which I light
Immediately I do this I feel better
I feel the smoke that
turns my body white
I know that smoke is bad, I know it, sadly
My eyes are red I stink of dreaded weed
Tobacco, Nicotine, Tar and the rest of it
This habit that I
have, where will it lead?
Down the road to Hell on Earth each morning
Back to God knows where and out beyond
4 quid I must find at least each morning
I wish, I wish, I had
a magic wand
I'd wave it, and I'd wish for instant freedom
No thoughts of smoke or dreaded nicotine
But sadly these are thoughts now of a person
Who knows he's little
more than a machine
At 36 I feel this sense of torpor
My body doesn't look or feel the same
I hate the fact I'm overcome by this drug
It is a drug, I know
what people claim
All sorts of fat excuses for its usage
But when I think about it there's this key
Addiction that is really pure and simple
Addicted to this
wretched weed I be
The wife has put her spoke in with my problem
She's told me, she just hates the wretched smell
It permeates the house, it’s in our bedroom
And her clothes too
they really have the tell
Tale signs of nicotine, and she is upset
She says that I can kip downstairs alone
If the dreaded weed means more to me indeed
Than her then she
will moan and moan and moan
Till all the cows have come home and gone bye-bye's
I've got to kick this wretched habit now!
And so she starts now starving me of loving
I just go through the
motions anyhow!
And so I had a bout of hypnotherapy
Lobelia, Oh! goodness I feel sick
Patches on my arms and gum a plenty
I'll tell you this
lots getting on my wick
It now has been 8 days and not one ciggy
My mouth is dry my head feels just like lead
I need a fag, go on one drag for breakfast
But I hear the voice
of my wife in my head
Tobacco: A Toxic Substance
Smoke makes people cough...Smoke
makes people wheeze...Smoke hurts people's throats...Smoke makes people
sneeze...Smoke is bad for people...Don't ever smoke, please!
According to Dr. David Satcher, a
former U.S. surgeon general and director of the Center of Excellence on Health
Disparities at Morehouse School of Medicine, "Nicotine is one of the most
addicting drugs known to man." It is the principle drug in tobacco.
Cigarettes, tobacco products, are the major delivery system for nicotine.
In addition to nicotine, a Danish Cancer Society report in 2005 established
that cigarettes contain a number of added chemicals that are linked to health
risks. A study conducted by a UCLA research team and funded by the National
Institute of Mental Health, "found that 100 of the 599 documented
cigarette additives have "pharmacological" actions that camouflage
the negative impact of smoke in the environment by masking odor, visibility and
irritation (without equivalent efforts to decrease the harmful effects of
second-hand smoke). These additives also enhance or maintain nicotine delivery;
and mask symptoms and illnesses associated with smoking behaviors."
Tobacco use poses a wide range of health risks, including blindness, stroke,
heart attacks, osteoporosis, and numerous forms of lung cancer and lung
disease. The 599 additives found in cigarettes function as a delivery system
for toxic chemicals and carcinogens. In addition to the health risks for
smokers posed by tobacco use, secondhand smokers are exposed to hundreds of
chemicals that are either toxic and/or carcinogenic.
In the state of Georgia, 17.2% (93,100) of high school students smoke. More
than 13,100 young people under the age of eighteen become new daily smokers
each year. The number of children exposed to secondhand smoke at home exceeds
400,000. Of the state's adult population, 19.4% (1,340,300) are smokers.
Despite their lethality, tobacco products are among the least regulated
consumer goods in the USA, unlike other drugs, cosmetics and food. Even dog
food comes under FDA regulation. The massive body of research suggests a need
to regulate tobacco as well as cigarette additives.
Politics of Menthol
Annually, smoking and other
tobacco use kill more than 400,000 US citizens and cost the nation more than
$96 billion in health care. Daily, 1,200 lives are lost and more than 1,000
young people become new cigarette smokers. These alarming statistics call for
tobacco industry regulation. Yet, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does
not currently regulate this industry's products.
Congress is considering bipartisan legislation to give the FDA authority to
regulate tobacco and tobacco products. Senate Bill 625, sponsored by Senators
Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and John Cornyn (R-TX) and House Resolution 1108, sponsored
by Representatives Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Tom Davis (R-VA), grant the FDA the
authority to: (1) restrict tobacco advertising and promotions, (2) stop illegal
sales of tobacco products to children, (3) ban candy-flavored cigarettes, (4)
require changes in tobacco products, such as the removal of harmful ingredients
or reduction of nicotine levels, (5) prohibit health claims about so-called
"reduced risk" products that are not scientifically proven or that
would discourage current tobacco users from quitting or encourage new users to
start, (6) require tobacco companies to disclose the contents of tobacco
products, changes to their products and research about the health effects of
their products, (7) require larger and more informative health warnings on tobacco
products, and (8) prohibit terms such as "light", "mild"
and "low-tar" that mislead consumers into believing that certain
cigarettes are safer than others." (Source: http://tobaccofreekids.org/reports/fda/)
The proposed legislation would ban additives, such as chocolate, strawberry and
other candy flavorings. Although these are not currently widely used,
anti-smoking experts claim they appeal to young people and favor banning these
substances. However, menthol, which is the most widely used cigarette additive,
is not among the banned substances in the pending legislation. Menthol
cigarette brands account for more than a quarter of the $70 billion in annual
US cigarette sales. The flavoring reduces the harshness of cigarettes and is
preferred by black American smokers by a margin of 3 to 1, compared to 1 in 4
white smokers.
While the bill's supporters would like tobacco to be regulated, the absence of
menthol from the proposed additive ban appears racist. According to former
health and human services secretary Dr. Louis Sullivan, president emeritus of
Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, the absence of menthol from the list
of banned substances, "gives the appearance that the lives of black youngsters
are valued less than white youngsters." He is calling on Congress to ban
all cigarette flavorings.
Unfortunately, that is not likely to happen. Previous attempts to regulate
tobacco have met with formidable opposition from the powerful tobacco lobby and
congressional representatives from tobacco-growing states. The opposition to
tobacco regulation include the Bush administration.
This time around, with more than half of the Senate in favor of tobacco
regulation, Congress may finally pass a bill to regulate tobacco. Philip Morris
USA, the nation's largest cigarette manufacturer, supports the current
legislation, because it excludes menthol from the list of banned additives.
Some supporters of the legislation, including Dr. David Satcher, are more
concerned with Congress giving the FDA the long overdue authority to regulate
tobacco as a drug, rather than the fact that menthol is not included among the
banned additives.
Grills Smoke Too!
When we think of smoking and
cancer, we generally think of cigarettes and other tobacco products. However,
this season we need to include smoke from the barbecue grill.
It is well-documented that scientists have linked the consumption of large
quantities of red meat to pancreatic, stomach and colon cancer. Additional
studies have shown that an increased risk of developing colorectal, pancreatic
and breast cancer is associated with high intakes of well-done, fried or
barbequed meats.
Research conducted by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), as well as by
Japanese and European scientists, has shown that cooking certain meats at high
temperatures creates chemicals that are not present in uncooked meats. A few of
these chemicals may increase cancer risk. For example, heterocyclic amines
(HCAs) are the carcinogenic chemicals formed from the cooking of muscle meats
such as beef, pork, fowl, and fish. HCAs form when amino acids (the building
blocks of proteins) and creatine (a chemical found in muscles) react at high
cooking temperatures. Researchers have identified 17 different HCAs resulting
from the cooking of muscle meats that may pose human cancer risk.
Four factors influence HCA formation: type of food, cooking method, temperature
and time. HCAs are found in cooked muscle meats; other sources of protein
(milk, eggs, tofu, and organ meats, such as liver) have very little or no HCA
content naturally or when cooked. Temperature is the most important factor in
HCA formation. Frying, broiling, and barbecuing produce the largest amounts of
HCAs because the meats are cooked at very high temperatures.
In addition to HCAs, grillers must be aware of the polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons (PAH) that are formed as muscle meats are cooked on the grill.
PAHs form when fat drippings contact fire and produce smoke. The smoke and
flames that rise up onto the food leave behind PAH carcinogens. PAHs may play a role in the etiology of
gastrointestinal tract cancers. These compounds may act directly as carcinogens
or indirectly through the induction of enzymes that activate other potential
carcinogens, such as those heterocyclic aromatic amines (HCAs).
For more on the link between the smoke from your grill, meat consumption and
cancer, and safe grilling techniques, if you must eat meat, see www.crossroads.com, www.cancer.gov
and the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Disgruntled wants to know:
On Friday, the US Labor Department reported the unemployment rate rose 0.5
percent. Coupled with the more than $10 a barrel increase in the price of oil,
record personal debt, home foreclosures and bankruptcies, and a stock market
decline of nearly 400 points, the rising unemployment rate does not bode well
for the US economy. Conditions were not this bad when George W. Bush jawboned
down the economy to justify a tax cut for his wealthy friends and family. In
fact, before a recession was officially declared, he was mouthing off about the
need for a stimulative tax cut to pull the economy out of the doldrums. Now
that average Americans are experiencing real pain, he won't say recession.
Given this reticence and the fact that his friends and family are making mad
cheddar off of the war and booming oil prices, what will it take for the Bush
administration to declare the economy is in a recession?
Disgruntled
says: It is early, only 10:30 on a Saturday morning. Already, the scent
of charcoal burning drifts through my bedroom window, teasing my nostrils and preparing
my senses for the smell of seared carcass certain to follow. There is nothing
like the aroma of meat grilling. A neighbor is planning a barbecue. On
weekends, many weekdays and definitely holidays, this ritual is replayed
throughout the warm weather months. Unfortunately, my neighbors are oblivious
to the dangers posed by grilling and eating meat and the health risks
associated with the smoke drifting through my window. I keep waiting for the
media to educate the public about these risks, but my wait appears in vain.
Yesterday, I received the latest issue of Good Housekeeping. In
addition to the "Get-Healthy Secrets" of actress Julia Roberts, the
issue's cover claimed the magazine contained the "Easiest-Ever
Grilling." There was no mention of cancer.
Disgruntled
feels: Inconsistent! In the USA, marijuana is an illegal substance.
There is no scientific studies that show it is a carcinogen. Yet, the US
Supreme Court has upheld as constitutional laws that make its possession
illegal. US prisons are filled with people because of this and other illegal
drugs, especially crack cocaine. If marijuana can be classified as a banned
substance, it is entirely inconsistent to allow tobacco to escape regulation.
Mailbox: E-Mails, Faxes and Telephone Calls
Email www.msn.com
The Fed embraces inflation...A top Fed official warns of the hazards of
printing money to solve economic problems. He's right -- and yet the nation's
central bank keeps running the press at top speed...By Bill Fleckenstein...In a
speech last week, Dallas Federal Reserve Bank head Richard Fisher covered a lot
of ground, innocently noting many problems (the worst of which the Fed has
created). He discussed the nation's massive, long-term unfunded Social Security
and Medicare liabilities, putting the amount at roughly $99 trillion. But what
I found objectionable was his temerity in commenting: "We know from
centuries of evidence in countless economies, from ancient Rome to today's
Zimbabwe, that running the printing press to pay off today's bills leads to
much worse problems later on. The inflation that results from the flood of
money into the economy turns out to be far worse than the fiscal pain those
countries hoped to avoid." This is exactly the policy the Fed has pursued,
will pursue and that Fisher himself has voted for. This is a classic example of
the Fed's MO: Talk tough and run the printing press at full speed.
Email http://consortiumblog.com...Libby
Links Cheney To Plame Leak...By Jason Leopold...F.B.I. documents obtained by a
congressional committee indicate that Vice President Dick Cheney may have
authorized his former deputy to leak the identity of covert C.I.A. operative
Valerie Plame Wilson. In a June 3 letter sent to Attorney General Michael
Mukasey, Rep. Henry Waxman, Democratic chairman of the House Oversight and
Government Reform Committee, called on the Justice Department to release
transcripts of interviews that Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald conducted
with George W. Bush and Cheney about the leak of Plame's identity.
Email www.truthout.org...Revealed: Secret Plan
to Keep Iraq Under US Control...By Patrick Cockburn..."A secret deal being
negotiated in Baghdad would perpetuate the American military occupation of Iraq
indefinitely, regardless of the outcome of the US presidential election in
November. The terms of the impending deal, details of which have been leaked to
The Independent, are likely to have an explosive political effect in Iraq.
Iraqi officials fear that the accord, under which US troops would occupy
permanent bases, conduct military operations, arrest Iraqis and enjoy immunity
from Iraqi law, will destabilise Iraq's position in the Middle East and lay the
basis for unending conflict in their country."