Month: March 2018

As a born and raised South Carolinian, I know first-hand that there are a variety of southern traditions that we pass down through generations.  Food centered traditions are an important part of southern life, and it would not be so dear to our mother’s hearts if the food were not considered special, or unique to our region. Grits are a southern staple that you will surely find in any southerner’s home, along with sweet tea and chicken ready to fry.  Here in Charleston we love our benne wafers, which are silver dollar sized sesame seed cookies that are crunchy and sweet.  Throughout much of the state you are sure to find restaurants that serve “country cooking” and in addition to okra, there is one more traditional southern green that you will find on almost every menu: the collard green. It should come as no surprise that my favorite piece of legislation was passed on June 2, 2011, designating the collard green as the official state vegetable (SC House of Rep., 2013).

Collard greens have always had a place at the southern table, but the history of the leafy green vegetable is worldwide and ancient.  Collard greens are the oldest member of the cabbage family and as reported in Whats Cooking America? (2017), the Greeks would grow them.  While the ancient Greeks may have been the first to grow the dark green vegetables, we have the African slaves of the American South to thank for conjuring up the tastiest way to consume these nutrient rich vegetables. Today collard greens are cooked much the same way they would have been in the late 1800’s, boiling the leaves with a ham hock in a big pot of water.  Collard greens, as with a few other unique southern dishes, are decidedly an acquired, regional taste.  However, their history in the South and their recognizably by every true southerner makes them a natural choice for South Carolina’s state vegetable.

According to the State House website, South Carolina ranks second in the nation in collard green production, a little-known fact worth bragging about at any southern dinner table. “Article 9, Chapter 1, Title 1 of the 1976 Code, Section 1-1-681. Collard greens are the official vegetable of the State” is my favorite piece of legislation because it is so uniquely South Carolinian.  While it may seem like a frivolous piece of legislation, the roots of the bill are deeply southern, steeped in generations of tradition and kept alive by our grandmother’s cooking, storytelling, and cornbread.

This post first appeared in Ten Two News online on March 13, 2018. Reprinted here upon the author’s request and consent.

I had planned my next column to continue my thoughts on police perspectives; however, something happened during the writing phase which changed my thoughts and plans.

Chicago Police Cmdr. Paul Bauer was shot and killed in the line of duty.

Paul and I were assigned to the same unit many years ago. He also would visit my friend, the late Captain Mark Marianovich, while Mark was battling cancer at Northwestern Memorial Hospital early last year. Paul was a good man and his sacrifice to the city of Chicago is one that causes deep scars to the men and women who serve, not just in Chicago, but everywhere.

Paul’s death brought back memories for me of being a member of the Emerald Society Bagpipe Band and the Chicago Police Pipes and Drums. We played at all the funerals for the line-of-duty deaths over the course of 20 years. Participating in events which pay respects to our fallen sisters and brothers is both humbling and an honor. Our comrades who gave their lives to the municipalities they protect and serve was something I took very seriously and still reflect on often.

Honoring our fallen is a great tradition in law enforcement that dates back to its formalized inception. Police officers lining the streets during funeral processions, bagpipe bands playing and eulogies about the person who gave their life in service are a culturally unique part of this phenomenon.

Officers train and prepare for situations which are dangerous on a daily basis, and many of us handle situations that most civilians wouldn’t even think of getting involved in. Police officers are the last line of defense to keep total chaos and anarchy from the guardians of peace and tranquility.

As of late, our brothers and sisters have been getting beat up pretty good in social media, media and other avenues people use to spread negativity about what we do while having no actual knowledge about the profession. This negative energy sometimes overwhelms us and, as I have studied in the past, impacts the ability of many people to carry out their daily duties as it relates to traditional police work.

Paul’s death is significant because, just like all law enforcement professionals paying the ultimate sacrifice, he was a guardian of the peace. He was someone who ran into danger rather than running away from it.

In the Bible, Matthew speaks of the eight Beatitudes Jesus Christ taught us. Two of the Beatitudes come to my mind when I think of police officers and other law enforcement professionals. They are:

“Blessed are the merciful: they shall have mercy shown them.”

“Blessed are the peacemakers: they shall be recognized as children of God.”

This tragic situation also made me reflect on another biblical writing by John who said, “No one can have greater love than to lay down his life for his friends.”

In Paul’s case, he was chasing someone for his fellow officers who called for assistance. Many officers do this every single day, never knowing who the offender might be or what they might be capable of doing. Yet, officers will pursue the offender without hesitation.

As thoughts raced through my head and ideas began to circle, I decided to really focus on the nature of line-of-duty deaths. I did some research using the numbers from the Officer Down Memorial Page from January 2002 through the beginning of this month.

During that span of time, there were a total of 2,583 on-duty deaths. The causes of those deaths are illustrated below.

Gunfire led to the most deaths of an officer lost while doing his or her job, followed by vehicle crashes and heart attacks to comprise the leading causes.

The deadliest year for law enforcement during the time period researched was 2007 with 206 line-of-duty deaths. The top two leading causes of law enforcement deaths that year – gunfire and automobile crashes – mirrored the overall trend of my research that covered 16-plus years of data.

The number says a lot, but the fact each and every one of these deaths represented a life cut short in the name of protecting and serving others speaks louder. Next time, I’ll share more about the information I collected.

Until then, please be good to each other, stay safe and remember the words of Matthew when he said, “Blessed are the peacemakers: they shall be recognized as children of God.”

“At times the halls of power are so glutted with special pleaders that government itself seems to be gagging.” (Thomas, 1986, p. 26)

This quote brings to mind imagery of lawmakers being so bombarded by special pleaders that they are in essence on a gag order under which they are essentially prohibited from sharing the details and information that go into private deals being made in the halls rather than on the actual voting floor. As special pleading typically involves persuading to do something by only sharing the facts that support their case, the best lobbyists are providing information to lawmakers about the issues that concern only their clients or themselves personally, while they do their best to manipulate lawmakers to vote in their direction and neglect the needs of the population at large.

The pros of interest groups are that they can contribute to a healthy democratic process by being the voice for those who otherwise, may not have the opportunity to be heard. Lobbyists have the ability to motivate our legislators to pass laws that benefit both large groups and smaller, more specific groups across all spectrums.  I think they also have the ability to provide positive solutions for legislators through their inside and expert knowledge in certain areas in which legislators may not be well versed.  This can be helpful in assisting elected officials in making educated decisions respective to passing legislation.  In a pure sense, lobbying and special interest groups are beneficial to our public policy process.  However, when money and power come into play, things become complicated and ripe for corruption.

While special interest groups can be positive, they typically have a negative connotation.  Interest groups are often involved in negative issues like being too specialized in their initiatives; only seeking benefit for themselves and/or for a small subset of the population.  While special pleading and sometimes questionable moral/ethical behavior is a common occurrence in our public policy process; interest groups have also been known to participate in blatantly, more sinister corrupt behavior such as bribery and fraud to serve their own interests.

When elected officials, who have a duty to serve their constituents’ interests and the public good, are allowed to benefit by making policies to serve the interests of specific private parties, conflicts of interest arise.  The process of special pleading for interest groups carries great potential for conflicts of interest, which can quickly lead to an inadvertent or intentional failure of policy makers to adequately represent and serve or to act in the best interest of their constituents. This is the ultimate consequence of special pleading.

The First Amendment right to petition brings another ironic dynamic into play, especially as it relates to lobbyists.  Lobbyists seem to have more access to office holders than ever before.  However, groups that are not aligned with the current government have the freedom to petition but often that falls on deaf ears.  I included info below on the top 10 interest groups and to which members of the 114^th Congress they are giving in the 2018 cycle.  I also included the link to the info which shows additional info on the overall biggest interest groups, top groups giving to each of the two major parties, and more.

Top Interest Groups Giving to Members of Congress, 2018 Cycle

Who’s got the most juice on Capitol Hill? Here’s a list of the top interest groups contributing to members of the 114th Congress during the 2017-2018 election cycle. The first list shows the overall 50 biggest interest groups. The other two highlight the top 25 interest groups giving to members of each of the two major parties. In all cases, the Top Recipient listed is the individual member of the 114th Congress who received the most from the interest group. Totals shown here include only the money that went to current incumbents in Congress.

http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/mems.php