| Mike Pirtle: Even cynical old editor touched by Tuesday’s milestone |
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By: MIKE PIRTLE, Post Publisher and President
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Posted: Sunday, January 25, 2009 8:30 am
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Cynical, old editors can be tough to be to, well, anyone outside of their direct family.
I don’t do cute, never ooh and aah. I can be touched by pureness and honesty of children, people who speak from their hearts and service men and women.
Politics – not so much.
But, I may have gotten something in my eye last Tuesday as I watched Barack Obama sworn in as President of the United States. And, watched the joy among the multitudes assembled on and around the Washington Monument’s huge plaza.
The day’s mantra of “… in my lifetime” rang all too true for me. Having been in public school when integration happened, having seen black classmates forced to sit in the balcony area at movie theaters and having seen two separate water fountains, one, of course, working not very “equal” to the other, the milestone of that moment Tuesday as President Barack Obama held his hand on Lincoln’s Bible was literally breath-taking.
That Obama is so obviously an incredibly intelligent, flexible-thinking and open-minded man, however you feel about his political positions, also gives hope that sometimes the best and brightest do make it to the top in politics.
Against our present challenges, we can but hope and pray he attracts the same from those around him in Washington, including healthy, proper dissent, for the good of the country.
At this time in our history we need the best and the brightest from all who govern.
•••
The national sublime continues to be offset by the state ridiculous for us in Tennessee.
The political infighting among the Republicans in the state House arising from a Democrat-elected speaker is getting way out of hand, most likely to the detriment of the GOP.
Republicans’ anger that one of their members accepted Democrat support, which with his lone vote was enough to make him speaker, to thwart the party’s choice for the House leadership position is certainly understandable.
But, nobody wins from last week’s revelation of a memo supposedly showing the new Speaker, Kent Williams, was guilty of sexual harassment of a fellow representative two years ago.
If the memo and supposed offense were pertinent, they were pertinent two years ago. Releasing the memo now when Williams is reviled by his party, and especially coming from the man who he knocked out of what looked like a lock on the speaker’s position, looks like nothing but political payback at its worst.
The GOP leadership needs to put its righteous anger aside and remember it still controls the House, but won’t be able to make that an actionable position if it continues to attack and diminish its disaffected member.
If you are going to play hardball politics, it is best to remember the winner plays the game with no one knowing what happened but the one with the knife in the back.
•••
Well, hurrah, for Nashville voters.
Our northern neighbors, to their credit, rejected last week an ill-conceived, wasteful referendum to require English only kinda.
Except for branding Davidson/Nashville as officially intolerant of those born elsewhere, the proposed amendment would have accomplished just about nothing as it could not legally apply to matters involving health or public safety, which make up the vast majority of governmental services involving languages difficulties.
Is a common language a proper and useful goal? Yes. Is trying to force it acceptable, useful or functional? No.
The home of an International Airport ought to realize it has reached a larger stage in the world and act accordingly.
Despite the political-grandstanding of one governmental official, Nashville passed a major test.
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Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, no. Just one more football game this year. And, if it wasn’t the last I wouldn’t care about it. (See Hank Haines’ column for perspective.) |
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