Here is a video from my Mom and Dad's band, Heart and Soul, performing at their place, the Riverside Music Stage, in Montcalm, WV, Mercer County. Dad is on lead vocals and mom is on the drums.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Confederates Stink
I invite you to read the following “conversation” I had with a fellow poster on youtube. The video in question (posted below) is a Euro dance version of “Country Roads”, the West Virginia national anthem.
In the video, a Confederate flag can be seen in the background. Please notice how soon this “gentleman” resorts to insulting my education (big mistake) and our state. One more nominee for the Jackass Awards.
____________________
eric5906 (3 weeks ago)
Cool Confederate flag in the background.
wvexile (3 days ago)
which is a little out of place, since WV fought for the Union against people who though owning other human beings was a good idea. As a native West Virginian, please don't link us with the Confederacy.
eric5906 (3 days ago)
Don't worry, I'd never link you people with the South. Sounds like you need a history lesson, buddy. Look at all your Yankee generals: almost ALL owned slaves, including your drunken Grant. Lincoln stole WV and made it into a sham/psuedo state.
wvexile (2 days ago)
I have a masters in history, thanks. While it's true that a number of northerners had slaves prior to the war (which can never be excused or whitewashed) they didn't base an entire political system upon it, and then FIGHT to keep humans enslaved. Rich southern leaders duped poor white southerners to kill themselves for the benefit of wealthy plantation owners. Rich southerners have a long tradition of screwing over the poor, regardless of color. Just look at who is in the White House.
eric5906 (12 hours ago)
Delighted that you have a masters. Just look at who brought all the slaves and propagated it for the first 70 yrs. Rich Yankee, Northerners. Tell me how these "southern leaders duped poor whites" into dying? Excuse me, but I don't think you can get hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life for a handful of "wealthy plantation owners". I think that is a common myth that is now accepted as truth.
wvexile (1 minute ago)
"Tell me how these "southern leaders duped poor whites" into dying?" - The same way we still do it; dishonest appeals to patriotism, demonization of the "enemy", and general propaganda. There have always been ways for the ruling class in every society to convince people to fight for a cause not their own by confusing the issues involved.
eric5906 (12 hours ago)
I think it is quite the opposite: rich Yankees duped the North into fighting a horrible war that benefited the rich. The South was fighting for their independence from a voluntary union. Over 30 of my ancestors fought for Confederacy - true patriots in the tradition of Thomas Jefferson and Co! Needless to say, I would've joined in with 'em.
wvexile (2 minutes ago)
No issue is black and white. Yes, Northerners and the British made money by slave trafficking. But in both cases, by the 1850's, many had "repented" and those regions were home to the leading emancipation movements. Such cannot be said of the South. I too have Confederate ancestors. It is something I try to live down, in little ways, everyday. All families have ancestral shame. It appears we will agree to disagree, but remember instead of looking for excuses, examine the facts.
_________
Notice also that he never refutes that the Confederacy was a slave based culture, rebelling for the “right” to extend and maintain slavery. I am fully aware that the actual arguments are far more nuanced, however, when some knuckle-dragging apologist starts talking about how the Civil War was about “States’ Rights” just ask them this: the state’s right to do what exactly? The South did not attempt to leave the Union over a tariff dispute, or interstate commerce. They rebelled because Lincoln promised to LIMIT slavery. That was the root cause. Saying it was about state’s rights is like saying WWII was only about redressing the inequities of the WWI peace tresty without talking about the Nazi plans for genocide and world domination.
And, for the last time, West Virginias ARE NOT SOUTHERNERS, not historically or culturally. We are Appalachians. Period.
I was tempted to ask him how it felt for his ancestors to get beat by a drunk that graduated at the bottom of his West Point class (Grant) but that wouldn't be Christian. But, then again neither was owning slaves.
The video in question:
In the video, a Confederate flag can be seen in the background. Please notice how soon this “gentleman” resorts to insulting my education (big mistake) and our state. One more nominee for the Jackass Awards.
____________________
eric5906 (3 weeks ago)
Cool Confederate flag in the background.
wvexile (3 days ago)
which is a little out of place, since WV fought for the Union against people who though owning other human beings was a good idea. As a native West Virginian, please don't link us with the Confederacy.
eric5906 (3 days ago)
Don't worry, I'd never link you people with the South. Sounds like you need a history lesson, buddy. Look at all your Yankee generals: almost ALL owned slaves, including your drunken Grant. Lincoln stole WV and made it into a sham/psuedo state.
wvexile (2 days ago)
I have a masters in history, thanks. While it's true that a number of northerners had slaves prior to the war (which can never be excused or whitewashed) they didn't base an entire political system upon it, and then FIGHT to keep humans enslaved. Rich southern leaders duped poor white southerners to kill themselves for the benefit of wealthy plantation owners. Rich southerners have a long tradition of screwing over the poor, regardless of color. Just look at who is in the White House.
eric5906 (12 hours ago)
Delighted that you have a masters. Just look at who brought all the slaves and propagated it for the first 70 yrs. Rich Yankee, Northerners. Tell me how these "southern leaders duped poor whites" into dying? Excuse me, but I don't think you can get hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life for a handful of "wealthy plantation owners". I think that is a common myth that is now accepted as truth.
wvexile (1 minute ago)
"Tell me how these "southern leaders duped poor whites" into dying?" - The same way we still do it; dishonest appeals to patriotism, demonization of the "enemy", and general propaganda. There have always been ways for the ruling class in every society to convince people to fight for a cause not their own by confusing the issues involved.
eric5906 (12 hours ago)
I think it is quite the opposite: rich Yankees duped the North into fighting a horrible war that benefited the rich. The South was fighting for their independence from a voluntary union. Over 30 of my ancestors fought for Confederacy - true patriots in the tradition of Thomas Jefferson and Co! Needless to say, I would've joined in with 'em.
wvexile (2 minutes ago)
No issue is black and white. Yes, Northerners and the British made money by slave trafficking. But in both cases, by the 1850's, many had "repented" and those regions were home to the leading emancipation movements. Such cannot be said of the South. I too have Confederate ancestors. It is something I try to live down, in little ways, everyday. All families have ancestral shame. It appears we will agree to disagree, but remember instead of looking for excuses, examine the facts.
_________
Notice also that he never refutes that the Confederacy was a slave based culture, rebelling for the “right” to extend and maintain slavery. I am fully aware that the actual arguments are far more nuanced, however, when some knuckle-dragging apologist starts talking about how the Civil War was about “States’ Rights” just ask them this: the state’s right to do what exactly? The South did not attempt to leave the Union over a tariff dispute, or interstate commerce. They rebelled because Lincoln promised to LIMIT slavery. That was the root cause. Saying it was about state’s rights is like saying WWII was only about redressing the inequities of the WWI peace tresty without talking about the Nazi plans for genocide and world domination.
And, for the last time, West Virginias ARE NOT SOUTHERNERS, not historically or culturally. We are Appalachians. Period.
I was tempted to ask him how it felt for his ancestors to get beat by a drunk that graduated at the bottom of his West Point class (Grant) but that wouldn't be Christian. But, then again neither was owning slaves.
The video in question:
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Hoopies
I was giving a presentation in East Liverpool, OH yesterday on cultural barriers to higher education. East Liverpool is a small, but a one time much larger, town right at the point where OH, PA and WV meet on the Ohio River. There I met a fellow WV native who was working and teaching in the Human Resource field who grew up in Chester, WV which on this small stage acted as New Jersey to East Liverpool’s New York City.
He informed me that despite being so close and similar, East Liverpool residents have historically looked down on their neighbors across the river. Apparently, instead of being called “hillbillies” the East Liverpudlians called West Virginians “Hoopies.” This was an insult I had never heard before.
It comes from the conceit that back when East Liverpool was the Pottery Capitol of the World, (practically the Paris of the Ohio River!) West Virginians looking for jobs were only fit and smart enough to bang together the metal strips needed for barrel construction. Jackasses.
It seems that no matter how far down you are on society’s totem pole there is always someone else to demonize or belittle; how else to feel better about yourself? Certainly not elect leaders who know what they’re doing, who can uplift the state’s economics and image.
All I can say is Thank God for Mississippi (and VA Tech fans).
He informed me that despite being so close and similar, East Liverpool residents have historically looked down on their neighbors across the river. Apparently, instead of being called “hillbillies” the East Liverpudlians called West Virginians “Hoopies.” This was an insult I had never heard before.
It comes from the conceit that back when East Liverpool was the Pottery Capitol of the World, (practically the Paris of the Ohio River!) West Virginians looking for jobs were only fit and smart enough to bang together the metal strips needed for barrel construction. Jackasses.
It seems that no matter how far down you are on society’s totem pole there is always someone else to demonize or belittle; how else to feel better about yourself? Certainly not elect leaders who know what they’re doing, who can uplift the state’s economics and image.
All I can say is Thank God for Mississippi (and VA Tech fans).
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
I Made a Film!
Here is a little film I did for a contest with some friends a year or so ago. Nothing great but I like to share:
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
B'Bye Mr. President
So, David Hardesty has decided to retire from WVU, effective Sept. 20, 2007, as the longest serving president in the institution's history (though falling short of Concord University's Jerry Beasley, who has served as that institution's president since 1985). I was graduating just as Neil Bucklew was leaving and Hardesty was taking office.
There was some controversy at the time of his hiring. After all, Hardesty had no real academic administrative experience coming from the world of corporate and tax law. Hardesty was no doubt intelligent, (WVU, Oxford, Rhodes Scholar, Harvard Law) but many felt he would not be able to handle the political eddies of higher education or the unique details of university governance.
That was a miscalculation. First of all, WVU, being the flagship institution, for good or ill sets the agenda for higher education in West Virginia more than any other body including, the largely clueless Legislature.
Secondly, the fears were based on a misunderstanding of the role of a modern major university president; namely, the fear that someone occupying that seat must be able to handle the intricacies of academic development, faculty management, etc. Nonsense. When you operate at the level of WVU president, you can hire people to handle the nuts and bolts of everyday and academic operations. While small college and university presidents must be more skilled in the ways of academia, a major university president has but two duties that s/he must shoulder for themselves; raising money and maintaining and enlarging institutional prestige.
By that standard, Hardesty has been a success. Research funding has doubled and enrollment, powered by out-of-state bargain hunters and PROMISE scholarship fueled WV students has increased by 5,000, or about 20%. Plus, he hired the right football coach and got lucky in having a GREAT basketball coach fall into his lap. Partnerships with NASA, the FBI and the biometrics industry have also given WVU a luster of the high tech world.
In fact, his only great PR plunder was his insistence on “Free Speech Zones” that would have limited campus protests to specific, isolated areas. Perhaps President Hardesty forgot that it is in the nature of a university to be a free speech zone in its entirety.
So what does this say for the next WVU president? I would not be surprised if a former or soon- to-be former politician makes a bid for the seat. After all who has more experience in the schmoozing and fundraising skills so necessary for the job? There might be as big a scramble for this vacated position as when Bob Byrd finally calls it quits (sit down, John Raese).
There was some controversy at the time of his hiring. After all, Hardesty had no real academic administrative experience coming from the world of corporate and tax law. Hardesty was no doubt intelligent, (WVU, Oxford, Rhodes Scholar, Harvard Law) but many felt he would not be able to handle the political eddies of higher education or the unique details of university governance.
That was a miscalculation. First of all, WVU, being the flagship institution, for good or ill sets the agenda for higher education in West Virginia more than any other body including, the largely clueless Legislature.
Secondly, the fears were based on a misunderstanding of the role of a modern major university president; namely, the fear that someone occupying that seat must be able to handle the intricacies of academic development, faculty management, etc. Nonsense. When you operate at the level of WVU president, you can hire people to handle the nuts and bolts of everyday and academic operations. While small college and university presidents must be more skilled in the ways of academia, a major university president has but two duties that s/he must shoulder for themselves; raising money and maintaining and enlarging institutional prestige.
By that standard, Hardesty has been a success. Research funding has doubled and enrollment, powered by out-of-state bargain hunters and PROMISE scholarship fueled WV students has increased by 5,000, or about 20%. Plus, he hired the right football coach and got lucky in having a GREAT basketball coach fall into his lap. Partnerships with NASA, the FBI and the biometrics industry have also given WVU a luster of the high tech world.
In fact, his only great PR plunder was his insistence on “Free Speech Zones” that would have limited campus protests to specific, isolated areas. Perhaps President Hardesty forgot that it is in the nature of a university to be a free speech zone in its entirety.
So what does this say for the next WVU president? I would not be surprised if a former or soon- to-be former politician makes a bid for the seat. After all who has more experience in the schmoozing and fundraising skills so necessary for the job? There might be as big a scramble for this vacated position as when Bob Byrd finally calls it quits (sit down, John Raese).
Monday, August 21, 2006
Loyal Fans, Disloyal State
As a frighteningly loyal WVU fan and graduate, I really have not cared about playing Marshall University in any sport. Yes, we share a state, but that's all really. And Marshall offers no real advantage over WVU academically, because it is too big to offer small classes, and too small to offer a more diverse cultural setting.
Don’t get me wrong, MU has potential, but I am afraid that with the notable exception of the School of Medicine, that they have very little vision.
However, I have been looking forward to the smackdown of all smackdowns that WVU will deliver to the Herd in a legally mandated game on September 2nd. Especially after the past basketball season when Marshall made way too much noise about defeating the WVU basketball team during last year's excellent run. (To show just how serious of an academic institution they are, they briefly featured the victory on their top web page. Classy. You’d have thought they’d won the national championship. As my friend Skip used to say, “Act like you’ve done it before!”) I really think that even when their destruction is assured, that Coach RRod will be the LAST person to call off the dogs.
Marring my enjoyment of the sacrifice / game is the announcement that it will be called the “Friends of Coal Bowl.” Yuck. You might as well have called it the Buffalo Creek Bowl. (I would have settled for the Mountain State Bowl, The Uncivil War, etc.)
Now, I could spill tons of bile at this self-loathing decision by our so-called leaders, the coal industry and their promotional shills (I'm looking at you Don Nehlen), but why re-invent the wheel?
For enough properly aimed bile for 125 people, read this.
I wish everyone at the game would show up wearing gold shirts that simply say "Remember Sago". Now that's a good idea. In fact here you go, priced at cost. Who's with me?
Don’t get me wrong, MU has potential, but I am afraid that with the notable exception of the School of Medicine, that they have very little vision.
However, I have been looking forward to the smackdown of all smackdowns that WVU will deliver to the Herd in a legally mandated game on September 2nd. Especially after the past basketball season when Marshall made way too much noise about defeating the WVU basketball team during last year's excellent run. (To show just how serious of an academic institution they are, they briefly featured the victory on their top web page. Classy. You’d have thought they’d won the national championship. As my friend Skip used to say, “Act like you’ve done it before!”) I really think that even when their destruction is assured, that Coach RRod will be the LAST person to call off the dogs.
Marring my enjoyment of the sacrifice / game is the announcement that it will be called the “Friends of Coal Bowl.” Yuck. You might as well have called it the Buffalo Creek Bowl. (I would have settled for the Mountain State Bowl, The Uncivil War, etc.)
Now, I could spill tons of bile at this self-loathing decision by our so-called leaders, the coal industry and their promotional shills (I'm looking at you Don Nehlen), but why re-invent the wheel?
For enough properly aimed bile for 125 people, read this.
I wish everyone at the game would show up wearing gold shirts that simply say "Remember Sago". Now that's a good idea. In fact here you go, priced at cost. Who's with me?
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Good God.
Good God. (No pun intended.) I got over this type of thing in high school and stopped arguing about it in college. How can anyone, with any sense of democracy and understanding of the law, actually think it is okay for a big oil painting of Jesus to hang out side of a principal’s office in a public school?
Yet that is just what is happening in Bridgeport, WV.
From MSNBC:
“The painting, which depicts Jesus in sepia tones on a large canvas and hangs outside the principal's office, has been at the school for 37 years. A guidance counselor left it behind upon retirement.”
The regular list of cultural warriors have lined up to fight this never-ending battle with all of the typical misconceptions. The ACLU v. the life-of-quiet-desperation types. It must be said that most of the misconceptions are emanating from the Jesus Camp. The dumbest misunderstanding is the Bible Bleaters contention that someone is trying to take religion out of public school. This is alarmist bullshit. It would be just as illegal and unethical to ban student prayer as it would be to require it. It isn’t that prayer should be banned, but that mandatory prayer, or prayer at official functions or led by public officials in their official capacity is flatly unconstitutional. Again, something most of us should have learned in high school civics.
The second problem with these zealots is the way they interpret the term "religion." They, as always, seem to think that a religious neutral environment where all religions are given the same rights and privileges is “anti-Christian”. Fundamentalist Christians believe this because, just like the other worldwide evangelical, zero-sum enterprise of fanatical Islam, religion = only Christianity. Therefore, when a court mandates "religious neutrality" it is translated to their misguided, problematic brains as “Jesus was an Asshole,” which he most certainly WAS NOT, though a number of his modern so-called followers certainly are.
A few months ago, I was at something most West Virginias do not believe exists, let alone see; a public school with a majority religion that wasn’t Christianity. It was in a majority Jewish suburb of Cleveland. Guess what? They had tons of religious Jewish imagery throughout the school. See, people of other religions can be just as narrow-minded as Bridgeport Christians, and I was duly offended. Not by the religion itself, but rather the identification of a public school with a specific religious community. Unlike Eric Cartman's hero, Mel Gibson, I like Jews. And Christians and Muslims, etc. Actually, I like some of them and I dislike some of them, but based only on their individual character flaws, not on their stance concerning the baby Jesus, or how many conservative radio hosts can dance on the head of an Oxycontin. I mean, non-Christians are just like real people and everything.
What if it had been a majority Islamic school? I wonder if the same people who defend a public school’s endorsement of Christianity with one of those cheesy Jesus pictures your grandma owned would be so happy if their child attended a school where the 99 names of God were inscribed in the library and most of the students prayed to Mecca right before lunch?
In a great update to the case, the picture of Jesus (or Jaysus as too many of my fellow West Virginians would say) was stolen from Bridgeport High School. Wouldn’t it be funny, if it was the school administration who did it so that they could make the problem go away without backing down?
Original Story:
http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2006/08/west_virginia_s.html
Monday, August 14, 2006
Down, and Out of West Virginia
For those of you not in the know, after living in, working for and generally supporting the State of West Virginia for 34 years, I recently left my position at Concord University for a higher paying job with more career opportunities at a university in Ohio.
Not that this was really part of my grand plan. If I'd had my wish, I certainly would have stayed at CU or at least in WV for the rest of my career, but there comes a time when you have to decide that you know how valuable and capable you are, even if others fail to see it. So, after TWO rejections by Marshall, (in which the SAME PERSON got the job I wanted TWICE; see if I ever apply there again) and a continuing tradition by Concord of refusing to promote from within, I took the hint and moved on. It may be a little irrational, but in some ways I feel that my state, or at least those who lead its higher education establishment, rejected my service. So, with that in mind you can understand my appalled reaction to this story from the WV Political Sweatbox, detailing the scandle of greed and ungrateful attitude of someone theoretically working for the people of WV. That someone who is a convict and abuser of the public trust can so casually throw away a job at a salary that would have kept me in WV is more than galling, and as my wife pointed out, a little sad of all concerned.
It just seems like WV continues to encourage the many of its loyal, capable sons and daughters to leave while making room for the outsiders, the incompetent and/or the visionless.
Not that this was really part of my grand plan. If I'd had my wish, I certainly would have stayed at CU or at least in WV for the rest of my career, but there comes a time when you have to decide that you know how valuable and capable you are, even if others fail to see it. So, after TWO rejections by Marshall, (in which the SAME PERSON got the job I wanted TWICE; see if I ever apply there again) and a continuing tradition by Concord of refusing to promote from within, I took the hint and moved on. It may be a little irrational, but in some ways I feel that my state, or at least those who lead its higher education establishment, rejected my service. So, with that in mind you can understand my appalled reaction to this story from the WV Political Sweatbox, detailing the scandle of greed and ungrateful attitude of someone theoretically working for the people of WV. That someone who is a convict and abuser of the public trust can so casually throw away a job at a salary that would have kept me in WV is more than galling, and as my wife pointed out, a little sad of all concerned.
It just seems like WV continues to encourage the many of its loyal, capable sons and daughters to leave while making room for the outsiders, the incompetent and/or the visionless.
At Least We have Football
Football is the sport that most of America looks forward to. In a time of niche marketing and narrowcasting, football has become the real national pastime. It is certainly a good time to be a football fan in West Virginia:
- The WVU football team: Top Ten, and a legitimate proto-superstar in Steve Slaton.
- Marshall, while having an appointment with destruction in their opener with WVU, does have a major movie coming out in "We Are Marshall", based on the 1970 Marshall Football Team plane crash. If the admissions office has any brains, they will send a free ticket to every high school senior on their recruiting lists.
- The All-American Football League, which will feature graduates of major university programs playing together in their old stadiums, is considering a Morgantown team (go here to vote for WVU)
- And the Bluefield Barons, a second year team in the very semi-pro Alliance Football League, (AFL) coming off an undefeated, league championship rookie season, have started to play again. (currently 2-0)
It also says a lot about the leadership of the Bluefield, WV community. It is a shame that in just one year year the people of Bluefield can build a football team to dominate (actually humiliate) an entire football league, but for nearly 40 years haven't been able to revive an economy since the end of labor-intensive coal mining. Many missed oppoutunities inculde barring mall and shopping center developments from the city limits as threats to the good old boy power structure and watching them set up just outside of town, operating as permanent tax base destroyers.
At least we have good football teams.
BTW, here's a music video of a song about the 1970 plane crash:
Now, to cleanse the palette for we WVU fans...
Friday, August 11, 2006
Big Fish in a Small Pond
For many of us who grew up in the Motherland (WV), the experience of being a big fish in a small pond (the somewhat talented person whose abilities are magnified by living in a tiny town without much competition) is a something of a common experience.
Here is an ad from BET for a rapper by the name of "6'6 240" who is called "WV's #1 Hip Hop artist."
Talk about your small ponds...
According to his Bio, Mr. 240 is a WVU student currently a DJ for WVU's U92 FM.
Other Info:
Accomplishments:
2003 4th place finish (out of 850) in the E.A.R.S. Talent Contest NYC.
Audition finalist MTV "Freestyle" Competition.
Ludacris was on the judging pannel.
Projects
8 Independent Album releases since 1999
Show Appreances include:
Dmx, Nas,Lil Kim,Trina,Bubba Sparaxxx, TI, D-Block
BoneCrusher, Ying Tang Twinz, Rosco P.Coldchain
2NMC Nashville Music Conference Showcase
Here is an ad from BET for a rapper by the name of "6'6 240" who is called "WV's #1 Hip Hop artist."
Talk about your small ponds...
According to his Bio, Mr. 240 is a WVU student currently a DJ for WVU's U92 FM.
Other Info:
Accomplishments:
2003 4th place finish (out of 850) in the E.A.R.S. Talent Contest NYC.
Audition finalist MTV "Freestyle" Competition.
Ludacris was on the judging pannel.
Projects
8 Independent Album releases since 1999
Show Appreances include:
Dmx, Nas,Lil Kim,Trina,Bubba Sparaxxx, TI, D-Block
BoneCrusher, Ying Tang Twinz, Rosco P.Coldchain
2NMC Nashville Music Conference Showcase
Cheezy, But Oddly Satisfying
This remix and simple video of Country Roads is weirdly funny but somehow endearing.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
