Last week, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiff in the landmark case of  Boumediene v Bush. The case involved the rights of an individual who was deemed an enemy combatant and held in the notorious Guatanamo Bay prison in Cuba. The Supreme Court, via a slim majority of an emerging coalition of Ginsberg, Kennedy, Souter, Stevens, and Breyer, ruled that prisoners held at Guantanamo have the right to challenge their imprisonment in the US Courts.

The conservatives believe it's the end of the world--how will we ever be able to combat terrorism if we can't lock up people suspected of terrorism, torture them, refuse them a hearing, and lock them away?

Tim Russert can't be dead. He was only a little overweight, always had a lot of energy, never stopped working, just like me.

Tim Russert can't be dead. He's got a wife and son, just like me.

Tim Russert can't be dead. He was a lawyer who changed careers, just like me.

Tim Russert can't be dead. He grew up in a gritty Midwest town and never left his roots behind, just like me.

Tim Russert can't be dead. He lived through the 60s, loved baseball, and enjoyed politics, just like me.

Tim Russert can't be dead. He's got an old man he likes to tell stories about, just like me.

Tim Russert can't be dead.

He was the best at what he did.

Based on everything I heard and read about him, he was a decent guy who always remained grounded.

From the first time I saw him on TV years ago, I liked him, felt a connection to him.

And now I'm feeling about as mortal as I've felt in a long time.

Tim Russert, dead at age 58.

Damn.

So, guys, this story, "Red on Red," set in Elkhart in that time when "gas was cheap and RVs sold for less than ten grand" is for you.

I'm fortunate enough that while I've not reached a point with my writing where my novels have been noticed, my short stories usually find a publisher and some have even received modest acclaim. In the last couple of years I've written four stories set in Elkhart in the late 60s, early 70s. "Homecoming" took third prize in SEAK's Legal Fiction Contest. "Redemption," which I hope to post soon on this blog, has just made the second cut in a prestigious competition (so I learned today). "Savage Nights," took first prize in a contest last summer. And I just recently completed "Red on Red."

The Tet Offensive kicked off the night of January 30 with over 100 simultaneous attacks against American targets throughout South Viet Nam. The offensive was intended to inspire an uprising against the Americans, who were in disarray at home. Eugene McCarthy had already launched a campaign against President Johnson on the single issue of bringing the troops home. General Westmoreland was predicting outright victory with light at the end of the tunnel, but he thought he needed another 200,000 troops in addition to the half million US troops already in country. The Tet attacks were strategically unsuccessful, mopped up in 24 hours, but the impact was more far reaching. An already skittish nation watched on the evening news as the US Embassy in Saigon came under enemy fire. A famous photo of the execution of a bound Viet Cong soldier at point blank range by the commander of the South Vietnamese police added fuel to the fire--a doubtful country sensed chaos, defeat, and wasted lives.

Title VII created the EEOC and specifically prohibits discrimination in employment practices. Enacted in the wake of the Civil War, Section 1981 provides that "all persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall have the same right in every State and Territory to make and enforce contracts. . . as is enjoyed by white citizens.” Rev. Stat. §1977, 42 U. S. C. §1981(a).

We all need to get behind him. There are three reasons Democrats must win in November.

1. John McCain is dead wrong about Iraq. We need to get out as soon as possible, as advocated by both Hillary and Obama, so that Iraq and the other Muslim states take ownership of the mess we've created. We need to accept how it all shakes out. Of the two, only Obama realizes that our continued role of policeman is no more than a death sentence for thousands of more young Americans. He will get us out of the mess Bush and the neo-cons created. He will strengthen the homeland against further attacks from terrorists.

Pulled into our slip

Said hi to Mike and Rusty

Dennis, Dave and all the rest

Listened to the song

Sung by men we love

Watched Reilly play before the stage

Took communion at the bar

Sang with Ray and Robert Earl

Gurf and Steve and Merle

Guy and Van and Jimmy B

You Red Neck Mother, Mother we have known so well

Took some shrapnel at the Bay of Pigs

Lost two fingers on a Gulf oil rig

Stopped half way back

Peed starboardside with Reilly at my hip

Drink 'til all the drink is done

Eat 'til all the food is gone

Sing 'til all the songs are sung

Love 'til they put me down.

Until they put me down.

I never believed Sampson was a saint. My point was that he was no worse than anyone else and probably the best IU could have gotten in the wake of the Bobby Knight and Mike Davis disgrace. 

Let's face it, the idea that NCAA basketball is an amateur sport played by student athletes is a myth. NCAA basketball at schools like IU is nothing more than a farm sport for the NBA--we need to let go of the myth of student-athletes and amateurism.

In the last two weeks I've had three reasons for celebration. The third arrived just this morning.

The week before last, I received notification that a story I recently wrote for a theme contest will be featured on the publisher's website for two months later this year. That story, which is a little edgier than my mainstream fiction, will appear under a psuedonym.

I support Hillary Clinton for President because she's seasoned, she's been thoroughly vetted by the press and the country, and she's the first woman candidate with the credentials and experience to lead the country.