The Experience of Ron EdwardsA Renaissance Black Man in a White Man's WorldA Beacon for Freedom in the City
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June, 27, 2019 #14: A Paralyzed Nation Prepares for 2020. Will Democratic Institutions Survive?
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
As we prepare for the General Election of 2020, many theories about the future abound in the Republican and Democratic parties, as around the world, as many aggressively discuss and debate what future action to take. Whose dreams about the future will prevail?
Under the surface of preparing and controlling our attempts to design and make the future is a disturbing fear: what does the future hold? How do movies influence our dreams, movie such as "1984," "War of the Worlds," "Back to the Future," "Planet of the Apes," "Soylent Green," and "Mad Max?" Are these warnings or predictions? Will we think and act wisely about our future? As Steve Jobs said in 1983, "The Future Isn't What It Used to Be."
Some of us remember the 1941 book, Escape from Freedom," about the fear of freedom that causes people to seek safety in authoritarians, dictators, and various "leaders,' whether liberal or conservative, whether government or non-government, whether tribal around identity or special interests, who want to tell us peace and our safety will be ours if we just follow them.
In a recent column we noted Americans have been traditionally blessed by the voices of great thinkers, Black and White. Such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, FDR, JFK, Nelson Mandella, Mahatma Ghandi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Where are the thinkers today? When will they step forward? Where are the voices that will help us end our paralysis? .
Again I ask: what thinkers in our institutions and in our communities, will aid us in maintaining some balance regarding the perspectives and overviews that can help us understand the actions to take to achieve the prize and avoid fear and paralysis? We have offered over 50 solution papers for the conversation.
Who will survive the 2020 election? A white person? An African American? A man? A woman? Regardless, any president's policy successes are ours, just as any president's policy failures are ours as well. As we move forward, ponder well the 2020 election and the history, promises, and achievements of its cast of characters. Out of the group of over 20, who will bring a vision and action to get us out of our paralysis? Will we think for ourselves?
The world's nations don't seem comfortable offering peace. Whose foreign future vision will prevail? America's? China's? Russia's? Iran's? Africa's? Venuezuela's?
Many theories are kicked around for how to play the peace and diplomacy game other than just hoping for the best. Many are understandably afraid, given so much doubt and hatred based on religion and race, and on envy and resentment. Much thus comes down to fear. The fear of losing our way of life, the fear of losing our wealth, the fear of losing our future, the fear of losing our communities.
So, let's think of great minds around the world that are trying to think through the fear and apprehension, through the anger and frustration. In America, African Americans understand apprehension and fear better than most, as they have experienced it the most, with Native Americans understanding it even more.
Should we play the game, ignore today' fears and failures, and say we'll succeed tomorrow? Will there be a tomorrow for a next time? Far too many people have only hope to get by toanother day. What will be our options as we move towards the election of 2020? Only the Almighty can answer these questions. We need to hear voices that know what they are talking about. Absent such thinkers' voices, fear will prevail, not peace. Will we move forward or backward?
Stay tuned.
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
June, 20, 2019 #13: A City Under Siege. Guns and other Violence. Will words in reports be backed up with words put to action?
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
Not since Minneapolis was called "Murderopolis" have Twin City African America communities felt agony from failed answers for dealing with violence in our communities. During a period two weeks ago, eight African American women were shot and wounded in five separate incidents in the Twin Cities, including women stabbed in the middle of Hennepin Avenue.
The East Side of St. Paul has become a battle ground for gang violence, with the Rondo Dale community especially feeling the results of renewed violence, just as in North and South Minneapolis, as violence devastates communities.
The Twin Cities are not alone. For example, in a two-week period recently, in Chicago, nearly 100 were shot or stabbed.
There is great concern in many quarters regarding violence. Families go to bed at night and wake up in the morning to sounds of gunfire. Official and unofficial meetings and conversations, continue in government and in profits and non-profits, including churches, think tanks, universities and policy centers, not to mention demonstrations.
Across America, will we again follow Martin Luther King's non-violence approach, and judge others by their character and not their color or shade of color, or will we continue with violence in response to words in reports, newspapers and oral comments?
Some say violence in all its forms is creating a brain drain, a kind of brain flight from the African American communities, as problem solvers in Black communities bail out, as seen, for example, in California, Illinois, New York and Minnesota, as they head for places like Arizona, Atlanta, Texas, Washington DC., etc. ).
Do those leaving know something the rest of us don't know or won't consider?
Could it be that when talk at meetings and printed words in plans, programs, new papers and social media, whether official or unofficial, don't solve problems, brains seem to move on to ply their rhetoric elsewhere? Are guns and other forms of violence to then become the order of the day?
Elected and appointed officials are more cautious as their approaches to solving violence fail. Will any of the $2 million of the the $20M settlement in the case of Mohammed Noor go to fighting violence rather than to just reward the family of the victim?
The Minneapolis Foundation, among others, claims to have solutions implementable by the right people and organizations to solve problems. Why haven't they been able to effectively address gun, knife, and fist violence in families, schools, work places, neighborhoods, streets and alleys, after solution words were put on paper?
When leaders and thinkers abandon their communities, hopelessness follows. Needed are actions to not only provide positive visions for African American communities, as brains flee, but to also raise up local brains that will stay.
The pattern: unkept promises to verify real project employment numbers. Could this be another reason for both continued violence, whether by guns, knives, or fists, and the brain drain / brain flight?
When will success claims finally be authenticated for such specific projects and their results, such as the Hollman Project in the late 1990s - 2000s, or, since then, street and rail projects, professional stadiums and ball parks, and other private sector, government and education building projects? Or will a major result be the on-going lowering of confidence in African American community leaders, who too often talk the walk but do not walk their talk to reduce violence?
Is leadership silent in exchange for being quiet about violence and racial division visions that will never come, as they who developed the failed visions wait quietly to leave town? We have strong suspicions that this is what it is.
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
Ed. Note
Most violent weekend in Chicago this year: At least 52 shot, 10 fatally...
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-met-50-shot-10-fatally-weekend-gun-violence-20190603-story.html, June 3, 2019.
The level of violence, which typically spikes during the summer months, eclipsed that of the three-day Memorial Day weekend, when at least 43 people were shot, seven of them fatally.
June, 6, 2019 #12: Trump's real-life 'game of thrones'
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
As of the writing of this column, President Donald Trump and his advisors are continuing to play their own "game of thrones" with countries who would do the U.S. harm.
As I wrote in my July 6, 2019 column, the biggest thrones confronting the United States and the world, include:
With the exception of Russia, these countries are all nations of color.
With Trump's direction, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Advisor John Bolton have become messengers of potential war and death. How much conflict will the president stir up, let simmer, and then stir up again?
The U.S. has troops stationed in nearly 150 countries, with some 800 military bases around the world, 76 in Latin America. We are still involved in armed conflict in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Central Africa. Now what?
It makes one wonder what Trump's understanding is of the various parts of the world. Is he properly educated on the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) between North and South Korea, the Persian Gulf states, and Latin America, as he flirts with danger?
Currently, 28,000 Americans are in the DMZ that separates North and South Korea. And what about the nearly three million Arab and Persian soldiers in the Persian Gulf, not to mention the 128,000 in the Venezuela military in a country twice the size of Iraq?
Does the Trump administration understand what the casualty figures could be, with so many troops used as chips in this game of thrones? But, the question that must always be asked is what would be "acceptable" casualties in any conflict? What is an acceptable casualty figure for both sides of the current state of affairs? How are casualties seen as worth it?
The American public does not know how to ask those questions nor the question of what makes an American. Americans are actually more apprehensive of war today than in the early days following Sept. 11, although some Trump supporters won't admit it.
What is Trump's rationale? What is his voice of logic and reason? Without a voice of reason, the result could be great tragedy between now and the 2020 election.
This is not like shopping in a supermarket, starring in a hit series about war or play-acting at an amusement park. This is serious.
Is Trump marching to the 1930 drums of former UK Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain while playing the game of Munich? Do we really know? Those too young to remember are part of the masses who do not recognize how dangerous this world situation is.
Trump. Pompeo. Bolton. Are these three horsemen of the apocalypse riding toward death and mayhem, expecting nations to follow them over the cliff — and not ask questions?
We ask the president: how many lives will be lost in this continued quest to establish this "game of thrones" legacy? God help us all, and God bless America.
Stay tuned.
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
May, 30, 2019 #11: Is war with Iran right? What will be the casualties?
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
As of the writing of this column, Donald Trump and his advisors continue to play their game of thrones with those who would do us harm. Donald Trump clearly has a list of countries he is willing to confront.
The biggest thrones challenging us are:
Let's be mindful that with the exception of Russia, these countries are nations of color.
The United States raised most countries from the rubble of World War II (including the "axis" of Germany, Japan, and Italy, as well as England and France). We have troops stationed in nearly 150 countries, with some 800 military bases around the world, 76 in Latin America. We are still involved in armed conflict in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Central Africa. Now what?
How much conflict will the President stir up, let simmer, and then stir up again? The question that must always be asked, as I did in this column a year ago: what would be "acceptable" casualties in any conflict? How are casualties seen as worth it?
Secretary of State Pompeo and National Security advisor Bolton are messengers of potential war and death. Americans are more apprehensive today than the early days after 9/11, although some Trump supporters won't admit it.
As we said in this column several weeks ago, this Republic has been blessed since 1776, with leaders who were American heroes, including Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, the two Roosevelts, and JFK. What is Trump's rationale? What is his voice of "logic" and "reason?"
Without a voice of reason, the result could be great tragedy between now and the 2020 election. One wonders what Donald Trump's understanding is of the various parts of the world, especially the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) between North and South Korea, the Persian Gulf states, and Latin America? Is he flirting with danger or being realistic?
We ask the President: what is an acceptable casualty figure for both sides? Currently, 28,000 Americans are in the DMZ that separates North and South Korea. And what about the nearly 3 million Arab and Persian soldiers in the Persian Gulf, not to mention the 128,000 in the Venezuela military, in a country twice the size of Iraq?
The Trump Administration understands what the casualty figures could be, with many troops used as chips in this game. The American Public does not know how to ask that question nor the question of what makes an American?
This is not like shopping in a super market nor like making a motion picture in Hollywood or play acting at an amusement park. This is serious. Is Donald Trump marching to the drummer whose name was Neville Chamberlain while playing the game of Munich? Us "oldsters" know. Those too young to remember are part of the masses who do not recognize how dangerous this administration could be. Trump. Pompeo. Bolton. The three horsemen of the apocalypse, riding toward death and mayhem, who expect nations to follow them over the cliff and not ask questions.
We ask the President? how many lives will be lost in this continued quest to establish an American game of thrones legacy? God help us all, and God bless America.
Stay tuned.
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
May, 16, 2019 #10: Noor and $20 million; Noor imprisoned in Oak Park Heights
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
The saga of Mohammed Noor has ended. A jury of his peers found him guilty on Tuesday, April 30, 2019, of the fatal shooting of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, in 2017, the first time a Minnesota police officer has been found guilty of an on-duty murder, charging Noor with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The jury acquitted him of the most serious count — second-degree murder.
The Star Tribune reported that Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman has "defended every prevous police shooting investigation his office has reviewed — and cleared of criminal wrongdoing — as "superb."
Three days later, Fri, May 3rd, at 6 am, Mohammed Noor was taken by a rented Greyhound bus to the Minnesota maximum security prison at Oak Parks Heights. He is to be sentenced by the Judge on June 7th. No major newspaper, as of the writing of this story, has reported Noor's circumstances.
Judges signing orders to remove prisoners from the Hennepin County Jail to the Minnesota Super max, are not required to provide factual information, other than to say it was for security reasons. That is broad and vague and is fraught with additional opportunity for cruel and unusual punishment for this man of color. The rumors are that Mohammed Noor will not survive inside that notorious super max prison.
The nation is aware that the most severe punishment, short of his death, has been imposed. The Star Tribune talks of an appeal but it is, in our opinion, that Mohammed Noor will never survive to know the results of his appeal. We would be remiss in this column if we did not point out that in order to silence the Somali community, their leadership has been told that deportation of even native born Somalis will take place if they are publicly critical of the prosecution of the trial and of his current imprisonment in the super max prison facility at Oak Park Heights.
Questions easily come to mind. Is this is another return to a time of selective acts of slavery, when there were no rights that a black person had, that the white justice system was just for whites.? Is the respect here modeled after Guantanamo and the secret courts? We were a tad surprised that Mr. Noor's attorney of record did not immediately let the general public know the actions taken against Mr. Noor, and the dangers he faces in regards to his life and future survival.
It is no accident that Mr. Noor is being housed in close proximity to neo-Nazis and was transferred with sympathizers that were being transferred from the Iowa prison in Ft. Madison, Iowa.
Why is there such a lack of concern for the future safety of Mohammed Noor?. All that the communities of color can do is pray for his survival and safety. $20 million goes a long way in determining what types of things have to happen to facilitate the ultimate vendetta against Mohammed Noor. Contrary to what is being said, it is about race, and it is a warning to the sons and daughters of the African regarding what the future could hold in justice and liberty that have become fake declarations. We are not seeing the justice of white justice on display.
It has not gone unnoticed that we also saw Black justice that week, when Senior U.S. District Judge Michael Davis, intervened, after the Noor verdict, to get the settlement talks in the Jamar Clark lawsuit resumed, that has been shamefully delayed for over 2 years. Jamar Clark was shot dead by police in 2015.
Will there be a "transformative" amount for the Clark family as for Damon family.
Stay tune.
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
Ed. notes from Ron:
May, 02, 2019 #09: Trump vs. the United States. President gears up for Supreme Court Battle
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
On Monday, April 22, President Donald Trump and the Trump organization filed suit against the U.S. House of Representatives House Oversight Committee (chaired by Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland), suing to prevent the financial records of the Trump organizations and family from being obtained from their accounting firm.
This is setting a legal precedent of a President suing the country of which he is the President. It will be the fact forever attached to his name, that the Donald Trump suing the USA was also the President of the USA.
This will test the limits of the Supreme Court of the United States (referred to as SCOTUS). - My analysis is that President Trump seems to expect the 9-member Supreme Court to vote in favor of his case when it reaches the Court, overturning the 535 members of Congress (Senators plus Representatives). But the votes that will truly judge this case will be the millions of voters who vote in the election of 2020.
We said in this column two weeks ago that this president is going to wear down the stamina and the energy of the SCOTUS, despite advisors convinced this is not the path to take, just as members of Congress have determined the path of multiple investigations and, potentially, impeachment (also against advisors). Will these paths combine to shred the Constitution and create more division? Will the SCOTUS represent a greater support platform for the president than the congress and the American public? At stake is the stability of our country.
The president continues to say the US economy and military are as strong as they have ever been in our history. Will this last? Will it be temporary under Trump? Can Democrats act such that it brings the country together to make the good news long lasting and not temporary? Is this nation tough enough, strong enough, committed enough and honest enough to show the courage to bring the nation back together again? Our question is not about the prosperity bus but about who will be pushed to the back of the prosperity bus. This is about both parties, as seen in this April 24, 2019 Star Tribune headline, about Democratic Governor Tim Walz's proposed budget: Lowest income-Minnesotans hit hardest by Gov. Tim Walz.
Let's be candid about 2020: the two parties have made their bets about which path to take. Yet I see no contender in the Democratic Party nor any challenger in the Republican Party who are prepared to provide the leadership this country so desperately needs for results that are long term, not just short term.
Americans have long had the confidence that someone who would always step up to take the challenge and be victorious. My chilling feeling is that the messenger we await is not about to arrive. How will "Trump vs. the United states of America" go? A frightening question. It does not bode well for unity nor for preserving the importance and efficacy of the nation's Constitution, especially if either party sacrifices "We the people" for "we the party," and hold "life" and "liberty" and "the pursuit of happiness" for one side and not for the other side?
This is what the 1st amendment and USA ideas for institutions of democracy are all about. Those who wish to tinker with what we call the United States of America must first offer a prayer for strength and guidance for how and for which path. That is what the court case Trump vs. the USA will be about: which path. Let us pray for strength, vision, and the wisdom for this decision. God knows we need that. Hence our prayers.
Stay tuned.
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
April, 18, 2019 #08: The Noor Trial Begins. Jury Selection has ended.
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
Article On April 8 2019, Hennepin County District Judge Kathryn Quaintance gaveled the opening of the trial of Mohammed Noor, former Minneapolis police officer, on trial for the July 15, 2017 shooting death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond.
The shooting tragedy for both sides is not denied. For some, the shooting death shall forever live in infamy. For others, the legal process up to this point has been one of suspicion, as seen in legal questions reported by the Star Tribune the morning of the first day of the trial, that the presiding judge changed her mind to allow showing video to the public, due to the intervening in this trial by both official Minneapolis and multiple news organizations.
Originally charged with 3rd degree murder and 1st degree manslaughter, County Attorney Michael Freeman, a year later, in 2018, fresh from victory of being elected for another four-year term, upgraded the charge against Mohammed Noor to 2nd degree murder. This is the first time in the history of Minnesota that a peace officer has been charged with both offenses.
In our next column, in two weeks, we will write of the significance of the racial complexion of the jury. There has already been controversy in regard to the number of both media and citizens that will be allowed in one of the smallest courtrooms in the government center. The Australian media has almost as many seats as the American media, by order of the presiding judge.
According to Anglo Saxon law, the prosecution goes first. In presenting its case against Mohammed Noor, the prosecution may call as many as 50 witnesses who allegedly have knowledge regarding the shooting, even though only four were in the alley. Prosecution witnesses will tell their stories, attempting to reflect on Mohammed Noor in the most negative of ways. The complexities are why the Judge has indicated why it is often difficult for a trial to be fair. In our March 21, 2019 column, we acknowledged this regarding any trial pursuing justice. Justice is based on rules. In our March 15 2018 column, we wrote that it appeared that part of the Noor trial will be based on a mis-interpretation of the Minnesota Constitution.
Among the questions we hope the trial answers is who, other than the homicide detectives, called Justine's fiancé in his room at his hotel in NYC (or Las Vegas; we have heard both). And who from the Minneapolis Police Department called government 0fficials in Australia and provided information to Australia's Prime Minister Turnbull, alleging the violent nature and the poor training of Black officers in the Minneapolis Police Department?
What calls were made on the night of July 15 and early morning of July 16? Were these calls authorized by the command staff in the MPD? These questions are reinforced by articles presented in Australian papers and by other Australian media.
As of the writing of this column, the defense was debating whether to put Mohammed Noors on the stand in this very volatile case. Why is it only one other Somali in the 5th precinct, who was acting as a supervisor of that night for the city, was told of the death of Justine, and ordered to disengage and not carry out his responsibility or supervision? That raises other questions regarding bias toward Somalis. In the interest of unity and fairness, these and other questions should be answered under oath. Failure to do less supports the judge's concern about a fair trial and a true effort to reach a fair conclusion on the spectrum dealing with levels of guilt and intent.
Stay tuned.
Coming
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
April, 04, 2019 #07: Special counsel reports "no collusion" with the Russians.Attorney General to rule on whether obstruction took place
Through My Eyes, the Minneapolis Story Continues..."
A weekly column by Ron Edwards, as featured in the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
After a little over two years, Special Counsel Robert Mueller has forwarded his findings to the Attorney General of the United States (a 4-page summary is on line, as we wait for more). The report's conclusion of "no collusion" between Trump and his campaign with the Russians, has Democrats and mainstream journalists in a meltdown, as the belief is how else could Trump have beaten Hillary?
This "no collusion conclusion" reveals how many elected and appointed politicians, and their staffs, including 2020 candidates, and the journalists that spread their talking points, have not only fooled us, but that they have believed only their view could prevail, demonstrating how little they understand about the difference between their views and the Constitution's directives that govern the process in general and how the Congress failed to follow its own Special Counsel rules.
We can only conclude that Cable TV and print media are exposed as being intellectually shallow, historically ignorant, incompetent and lacking in knowledge and understanding of the constitution and the USA institutions entrusted to them for safeguarding the rights of American citizens now and into the future, including the Constitution's rules for political engagement and all matters pertaining to the election of 2016. Legislators and mainstream journalists should be embarrassed.
These legislators and journalists, the alleged guardians of the constitution, have been behaving as little children on a political playground, where name calling and petty actions expose their laziness and lack of understanding of what they should have understood about the Special Counsel's report, dragging the American public through their bureaucratic mud.
House Democrats are setting Mueller's report aside, ordering eighty-one new investigations, as both Maxine Waters and House Judicial Committee Chairman Adler have said the Mueller report is not the end but instead just the beginning of investigating trump.
One can only imagine how many law suits from legislative committees and various public interest groups will flow from these 81 investigations, the result of which will exhaust the Supreme Court with endless cases of litigation.
News outlets (print, broadcast and digital), including those in the Twin Cities, will also be exhausted by all the moves and counter moves. Will it take a second civil war between the political left and right to bring order?
Abraham Lincoln said "Truth is generally the best vindication against slander." With all the counter "truths," which truth will prevail? What will be the price paid by main stream media for misleading readers and viewers for over two years with the claim that Muellers report would show that all was "settled:" that Trump colluded with the Russians to defeat Hilary.
I know how difficult it will be for some to accept my conclusion that "Vladamir Putin has won," as the campaign dossier that started all of this was aided and abetted by Russia's meddling, which it has done for over 30 years. Russia/Putin's success in helping to control and interfere in the American election has gone beyond anything those in the Kremlin could have dreamt up.
Many ask how this will affect the 2020 election. Both sides say it will help their side get elected. Whichever way it goes after the meltdown over the Mueller Report's unexpected "no collusion" conclusion, the questions remain: will "God Bless America?" "Will God help deliver us from mainstream journalism's ineptness, laziness, and indifference? How long will "America the beautiful" remain America the confused and duped? Finally, will American sons and daughters have to fall on internal fields of battle in order to preserve this nation?
Offer a prayer not only for yourself but for all of us. We will need it.
Stay tuned.
For Ron Edwards biography and list of his books and hosted radio and TV program, go to www.TheMinneapolisStory.com.
Permission is granted to reproduce The Minneapolis Story columns, blog entires and solution papers. Please cite the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder and www.TheMinneapolisStory.com for the columns. Please cite www.TheMinneapolisStory.com for blog entries and solution papers.
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