CapeCodToday Blog Chowder

Groundhog Day in Falmouth

In the 1993 comedy classic Groundhog Day, legendary comic Bill Murray plays weatherman Phil Connors, who covers Groundhog Day in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania for WPBH-TV, then wakes up the next morning, realizing it is that same day.  He lives that same day over and over again until he gets it right. 

It appears that a Falmouth version of that movie is unfolding before our eyes, but it just may be a tragic comedy.  In the local version, entitled Quahog Day, local political activist Sheryl Kozens-Long is the headliner.  In this version, though, she keeps waking up as George Morse, trying to pull his same political stunts, in the hopes that some day, she gets them right.  Her baseless political attack on longtime Selectman Mary "Pat" Flynn is the politics of personal destruction at its worst.  Taking out a recall petition out of simple disagreement with Pat is both a disservice to the public she has herself sworn to serve, and a crushing blow to her own political credibility.  Apparently, Sheryl wasn't paying attention a couple of weeks ago when Sen. Scott Brown was swept into office on a wave of positive campaigning and a rejection of business as usual.  People just do not want the negative stuff any more.  They do, indeed, want real change.  What we saw this week from the Chairman of the Historical Commission, though, was an unfortunate repeat of one of the low moments in recent local political memory, that is, using the recall of an elected official as a personal "gotcha" in an attempt to do nothing more than beat down a dedicated local official.  That's the way it was with the unsuccessful Morse-led recall of Selectman Melissa Freitag, and that's the way it is with Kozens-Long's personal crusade against Pat Flynn. 

A recall, by its very nature, screams of the necessity of an urgent and unavoidable dismissal of a Selectman.  It is the local version of the "high crimes and misdemeanors" that only two U.S. Presidents have faced, and is equally serious for a local elected official.  Here in Falmouth, though, it seems to have become a tool to express mere annoyance, having been used twice in the last couple of months.  Kozens-Long alleges that Selectman Flynn is in "clear violation of the charter," but provides no concrete evidence to support such a serious charge.  She has offered theories and conjecture, but nothing even remotely rising to the level of the truth.  She also noted in her public comments on the subject that a recall is the only means that the citizens can express their displeasure with the actions of an elected representative.  Someone please tell this star of Quahog Day that she can live this Morse-ified day over again and this time, do it right.  The way to express discontent with an elected official is at the ballot box, not through initiative petition, and the elected official that is the target of this effort is up for re-election in May, just three short months away.  To advocate for a special election costing $15,000, at a time when the town is contemplating furloughs and layoffs for its employees, is far more egregious that the nebulous and undocumented charges that Kozens-Long is hurling at an experienced, four-term Selectman. 

Why not just oppose the re-election of the current Chairman?  I have already publicly and in this space offered my thoughts that Pat's experience and thoughtfulness deserve another nod, but our wonderful democratic experiment grants us all the privilege of a voice - each of us our own powerful voice - at the ballot box.  Sheryl Kozens-Long is attempting to thwart the use of that time-honored tradition by turning a provision in our charter that is supposed to be a serious, last-ditch effort to remove a truly wayward local official into a joke.  Someone please tell her that her movie just isn't playing here.

This column is reprinted from the Falmouth Enterprise.

Man beaten with baseball bats at Harwich gas station; Harwich weekly arrests include OUIs

Man beaten with baseball bats at Harwich gas station

Two suspects escape into the woods

   The assault took place at the Gulf Gas Station on Pleasant Lake Ave. (Route 124) in Harwich Saturday night. Map courtesy of Google Maps.

HARWICH - On Saturday evening at approximately 9:40 p.m., Harwich Police Patrol Officers working the 4-12 shift were dispatched to the Gulf Station on Pleasant Lake Ave. for a subject who was reportedly assaulted.

On arrival, Patrol Officer Keith Lincoln saw a female performing first aid on a male subject in front of the Gulf Station.  Patrol Officer Lincoln noted a large amount of blood on the victim's head and face.  The victim told Officer Lincoln that he was assaulted by two black males in grey hooded sweatshirts who struck him with baseball bats.  The suspects allegedly fled on foot south on Pleasant Lake Ave.  The victim was eventually transported to Cape Cod Hospital by the Harwich Fire Department for serious but non life-threatening injuries.

A K-9 and a Criminal Identification Officer were requested from the Barnstable County Sheriff's Office to assist in tracking the suspects and to collect evidence.  Additional Harwich Police Officers searched the area for the suspects and maintained control of the crime scene.

All police units cleared the scene several hours later.  No arrests have been made but police are following several leads.  The Harwich Police are working with the Dennis Police to determine the connection between this incident and the earlier shots fired call at the Royal Palace in West Dennis.

The Harwich Police were also assisted by members of the Brewster Police Department and the Massachusetts State Police.

Release courtesy of the Harwich Police Department.

Harwich PD weekly arrests include 2nd & 3rd OUI offenses

HARWICH - During the period of Sunday, February 21 through Sunday, February 28, the men and women of the Harwich Police Department responded to 253 calls for service. The arrests and criminal complaints below are a few of those resulting from the week's activity.

Release and photos courtesy of the Harwich Police Department.

Editor's note: The information and images (mugshots) are included in this blog as a matter of public information and safety.  Inappropriate comments on this blog post will be deleted.  All individuals are innocent until proven guilty.

Coast Guard responds to vessel aground in Sesuit Harbor

40-foot vessel runs aground off Dennis with three onboard

The Coast Guard responded to a 40-foot vessel that ran aground on a jetty in Sesuit Harbor in Cape Cod Bay near Dennis, Sunday Feb. 28, 2010.

Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England was notified via a 911 call that the vessel had run aground with three people aboard.

Rescue crews from Station Cape Cod Canal and Station Provincetown launched at 3:50 p.m., and are on scene with the vessel and have found that the vessel is hard aground.

The vessel was taking on water until the tide went out. There are no reported injuries at this time.

The Dennis Police Department and Harbormaster were also on scene.

Release courtesy of the USCG. Video and photo by David Curran.

Poll shows Republican Charlie Baker surging - which poll is right?

A tale of two polls - ah one poll
As Dan Kennedy ponted out in his column yesterday:

From the Boston Herald:
Gov. Deval Patrick's standing with voters is so weak that this year's race for governor is shaping up as a contest between his two rivals, a new Suffolk University-7News poll shows.
From the Associated Press:
Gov. Deval Patrick is leading Republican Charles Baker and independent Timothy Cahill in the latest public Massachusetts gubernatorial poll.
So who's right? One answer is that the poll shows Patrick leading with 33 percent. Baker gets 25 percent and Cahill 23 percent. Score one for the AP.
   Yet the Herald's lede does accurately reflect the analysis of pollster David Paleologos, who says, "This race is really between Charlie Baker and Tim Cahill.   Whoever emerges between the Baker-Cahill race is likely to be the winner."
   My gut tells me that Paleologos is being way too aggressive in reading the numbers, even if they are his numbers. It's early. My suspicion is that Cahill will fade away, leaving Baker as Patrick's principal challenger. Patrick's political standing is pretty weak at the moment, but he's a formidable campaigner.
   Let's see where this race stands on Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and Labor Day... MediaNation.

Suffolk University poll announces Baker now in striking distance of Deval Patrick

Tea Party, tax questions also answered

Riding the coattails of Scott Brown's upset win for U.S. Senate, Republican Charlie Baker has jumped into second place and is within striking distance of Gov. Deval Patrick in a tight gubernatorial race, according to the latest Suffolk University/7News poll.

Patrick (33 percent) still leads the tightening field, followed by Baker (25 percent), who edges out Independent candidate and State Treasurer Tim Cahill (23 percent). Green Party candidate Jill Stein has 3 percent, while 16 percent are undecided. In a November, 2009 poll, Patrick led Cahill 36 percent to 26 percent, while Baker, the former Harvard Pilgrim chief executive, was a distant third with only 15 percent.

"Charlie Baker has nearly doubled since the Scott Brown win," said David Paleologos, Director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center. "Baker is where Brown was two weeks before the Senate election - he still trails, but he is surging and within striking distance."

Gubernatorial Primaries

Baker (47 percent) has also strongly overtaken fellow Republican Christy Mihos (17 percent) in the Republican Primary for Governor. In the November Suffolk University/7NEWS poll, Mihos led Baker 33 percent to 30 percent in the GOP Primary.

In the Democratic Primary for Governor, Deval Patrick led his Primary opponent, Grace Ross, by a 59 percent to 15 percent margin with 26 percent undecided.

Patrick's unfavorable rating among all registered voters has hit 50 percent, while 38 percent have a favorable view. And 60 percent say it's time to give someone else a chance compared to 29 percent who say Patrick deserves to be re-elected.

Scott Brown Voters

Despite high popularity (61 percent favorable - 24 percent unfavorable), there are some potential warning signs for Republican Sen. Scott Brown. When self-identified Brown voters were asked why they voted for him in the January 19 special Senate election, less than half (47 percent) said he was the best candidate for the job, while 24 percent said it was a vote against the proposed national healthcare plan, 10 percent said it was more of a vote against Martha Coakley, 10 percent said it was a vote against Democrats in general, and 7 percent said it was more of a vote against Barack Obama.

"For many voters, Brown's win was about opposition to the proposed national health-care plan, Democratic leadership in Washington and Democrats in general," Paleologos said. "If he doesn't demonstrate his independence in Washington, those fickle protest voters may return to a popular Democratic candidate in two years, when Brown will be campaigning for re-election."

Among those who voted for Brown in the Jan. 19 special election, 43 percent say they would vote for Baker, 28 percent would pick Cahill, 11 percent chose Patrick and 2 percent picked Stein, while 16 percent of Brown voters remain undecided for governor.

Tax Cuts

Voters also weighed in on two possible tax cutting ballot measures. Currently, 49 percent of registered voters support reducing the sales tax from 6.25 percent to 3 percent, while 44 percent oppose the question and 7 percent were undecided.

Voters also supported the elimination of the added sales tax on alcohol by a 54 percent to 39 percent margin with 7 percent undecided.

Casinos in Massachusetts were supported by a 57 percent to 34 percent margin with 9 percent undecided.

Tea Party

Despite no organized party in Massachusetts, 13 percent of Massachusetts voters said they would cast a ballot for a Tea Party candidate in an election for U.S. Congress in their district, while 21 percent would vote Republican and 45 percent would vote Democratic.

The make-up of the self-identified Tea Party voters in Massachusetts was as follows:

• Independents 72 percent, Republicans 17 percent, Democrats 9 percent
• Men 62 percent, Women 38 percent
• 45-64 years 60 percent

The statewide survey of 500 Massachusetts registered voters was conducted Feb. 21-24, 2010. The margin of error is +/- 4.4 percent at a 95 percent level of confidence.

Courtesy of the Suffolk University Political Research Center.

Something is rotten in the state of Vancouver

The talk of the gambling world this week is a fix of Olympian proportions.

More than one of my bookmaking friends is leery of today's Olympic ice hockey finals between the US and Canada. The USA team, which was lightly regarded, managed to knock off a juggernaut Canada team in the qualifying rounds.

It was great for the Olympics, and for hockey in general. It set up  gold medal game today (right now) that will put hockey on everyone's mind for one day. Hockey couldn't ask for anything more than a Sunday stage with the whole continent watching.

Canada routed the powerful Russian team to get to this rematch, making more than one bookie refuse to take bets for the gold medal game. Abdullah has no action on this game, and Stacey is stuck in New Hampshire.

I'm not one of those reporters who lets things like Fact get in the way of my wanton speculation. This just makes too much sense.

Hockey is dying on the vine. Teams fold constantly, very little money is made, and they can't get ratings. However, hockey is an excellent sport, and people will love it if they could just get into it a bit.

Which leads us to today's game. Canada now has a stage for their premier export, and they have the chance to score a NFL style ratings coup. They need to entice Middle America, and things have worked out to give us a US/Canada final. The NHL needed this so badly, and it isn't beyond belief to imagine the fix being set.

A dying sport that really isn't that far from catching on.... meets a nationally televised stage with the upper half of the continent watching. All they needed for the stage to be set was for Canada to choke on a meaningless qualifying round game with the USA. Funny how things worked out, no?

I don't see THIS game being fixed today... a hockey loss in the Great White North would be like 9/11 to us. I see Canada winning by 7-3,  although I've been wrong before.

Welcome Spring at the Cape Cod Natural History Conference

The conference, sponsored by the sanctuary and funded in part by the Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank, will feature a fascinating variety of presentations. Topics range from “eel ramps” in local rivers to the habitat of spadefoot toads to spawning surveys of horseshoe crabs. Presenters are drawn from environmental organizations, agencies, and colleges across Cape Cod and Massachusetts. They have deep involvement in their particular area of expertise concerning the identification, behavior, and status of Cape Cod plants, animals or natural communities. 

Now in its 15th year, the conference allows environmental organizations to learn about each other’s research and to exchange ideas. At the same time, it is a great opportunity for the public to learn first-hand about compelling subjects relating to Cape Cod’s ecology, natural history, and conservation. Please click here for the complete conference agenda and plan to join us on Saturday, April 3, 2010 from 9 am to 3 pm at Cape Cod Community College.

See you there for a rewarding day of interaction with the Cape Cod conservation community!

Cape Wind Shoots Itself in the Foot

So what should we think of Cape Wind offering $1 million to each of the Wompanoag tribes to get them to drop their opposition to the wind farm as described in Sunday’s Cape Cod Times?

Did Cape Wind do anything wrong when it offered the tribes money? Did it break any law or breach any ethical barrier?   No.   The tribes were free to accept or deny the offer with no harm done either way.  Cape Wind shouldn’t be criticized for taking a shot at putting this whole thing behind them.

But it was still unwise for Cape Wind to offer the money because of the public relations mess that it has created.   Cedrick Cromwell gets to say:  "This issue has never been about money for us.”  Bettina Washington gets to say:  "We would not consider selling our cultural landscape."  Every Cape Wind critic on the planet will now accuse Cape Wind of being the cynical, money grubbing monster that they’ve always said it was.

Of course, all of this will be hyperbole:  Making the offer wasn’t wrong.  But this was still a horrible public relations move.  Cape Wind really shot itself in the foot on this one.

North of Boston for Za Za and Braciole

"Boston's Old Vegas Strip" is 15 minutes north of Beantown

On Route 1 a few minutes north of Boston, ZaZa's is an eclectic combination of great food, family dining and entertainment and Tapas.

And the best Bracciolatini in a hundred miles at this "family" night spot

By Walter & Patricia Brooks

Let's start out with ZaZa's own Youtube vid.

Pat started with ZaZa Wings in a spicy honey mustard or buffalo sauce with bleu cheese dressing, $8.

I opted for ZaZa's Clams Casino stuffed with crispy pancette, roasted peppers, onions, $10.

The two huge Veal Bracciolatini, rolled and stuffed with asiago cheese, portobello mushroom and prosciutto finished in citrus garlic wine sauce with artichoke hearts, spinach and sun-dried tomatoes served over pappardelle pasta, $20 was remarkable.

Pat devoured her Herb-Rubbed Rack of Lamb
pan-roasted and served au jus with butternut squash and asparagus, $26.

Chef Ricky Alvarenga and manager Christ Rozzi.

When in Boston do as the locals do, and head north for a different scene than downtown.

We've driven past the hundred-plus restaurants on the Route 1 stretch just north of the city, usually on our way to Maine or New Hampshire in the early morning, and it never occurred to us to come back for dinner, until this weekend.

We were seeking a change and took another writer's advise to have dinner at a nightclub, not the usual choice when looking to dine out in Boston.

Luckily Pat and I still listen to others, and ZaZa's, a fifteen minute ride north of our hotel, was a very pleasant surprise.

The owners did a good job with the décor which complemented the food which looked and smelled wonderful wafting its way from the kitchen.

Zaza's changes from a restaurant to a dance club around 10:00 pm.

One guest told us this transformation took longer than they thought it would some nights because they often arrive around 10:30 while the large, circular bar is still six-deep, but the restaurant was still seating people for dinner taking orders.

ZaZa isn't missing a beat and is cashing in on the Tiger Woods drama. The restaurant has a drink called the "Two-Timing Tiger" composed of Grey Goose vodka, extra dirty olive juice and 14 blue cheesy stuffed olives, one for each of Tiger's affairs.

But by 11 pm the dj was doing his thing and the place was thumping.

But the atmosphere is still "family". The night we visited there were babies at one table and a post-wedding bridal shower going on at another.

What we ate:

Pat started with ZaZa Wings in a spicy, hot buffalo sauce with blue cheese dressing, $8, while I opted for ZaZa's Clams Casino stuffed with crispy pancette, roasted peppers and onions, $10.

Then I listened to our waiter and ordered the best Braciole I've had in decades. The order came with two huge Veal Bracciolatini, rolled and stuffed with asiago cheese, portobello mushroom and prosciutto finished in citrus garlic wine sauce with artichoke hearts, spinach and sun-dried tomatoes served over pappardelle pasta, $20, and we couldn't even finish half of this portion.

It was truly a remarkable and memorable dish.

Pat devoured her Herb-Rubbed Rack of Lamb pan-roasted and served au jus with butternut squash and asparagus, $26.

We certainly will return anytime we wend this way around diner time.

The clientele was mostly local, North Shore families. ZaZa's is obviously a favorite of Southern Italian food lovers, and the scene could easily be an out-take from an episode of "The Sopranos" with the only violence being done to one's waste-line.

The Globe loves ZaZa

In a recent review, the Boston Globe wrote, "Men camped out to watch football at the sleek bar, and pairs of women toasted with martinis. With its red interiors, menu of comfort food, and a drink list that reads like a novella, ZaZa is the kind of place where you can spend an entire night. It's fancy enough for dressy clothes, but you'll also be welcome in jeans. The young couple dining next to us had a Dunkin' Donuts cup on the table, and no one seemed to judge.

"The grilled sweet Italian sausage ($16), prepared with Romano cheese and curly pasta known as strozzapreti, was two meals in one, and didn't skimp on the meat. The sliced sausage was tasty when mixed with the bits of leek in the sauce.

"Once the entrees arrived, we decided this place more than justifies its prices, not only in quality, but in quantity."
                           - Boston Globe.

"The grilled yellow fin tuna ($22) is a porterhouse-sized slab of seared fish topped with strips of wasabi sauce and served with basil risotto. The restaurant's signature starter, the ZaZa salad ($10), is a mix of arugula drenched in teriyaki-flavored dressing. The greens are speckled with butternut squash, almonds, and cranberries."

Dinner entrées from $13, lunch from $8

The dinner menu also features many dishes not often found in your local bistro like Ziti a la Vodka which is pasta sautéed in a light plum tomato vodka cream sauce tossed with shrimp, $17, with chicken, $15.

Or try ZaZa's Jumbo Cheese Ravioli in a fresh plum tomato sauce, $12 or the Ziti Rustica made of crispy pancetta and mushrooms in a light cream sauce, $13. Add to this Pappardelle a la Bolognese made of ground pork and beef in pomodoro sauce, $16, or Rigatoni a la Norma sautéed roasted eggplant and mushrooms in a light plum tomato sauce topped with shaved ricotta salata cheese, $15 and Gemelli and Sweet Italian Sausage with leeks, sun-dried tomatoes and black olives in a garlic-oil pecorino romano cheese sauce with topped with shaved parmesan, $16 and you can see how inexpensive ZaZa can be.

And the prices for lunch are less, most entress are $9 and the ZaZa adds pizzas to the mix.

"Return to Me" The Return of Dinner and a Show at ZaZa  with Rich DiMare

Rich MiMare first Thursday every month.

Remember when honor, respect and chivalry meant something? Remember when a wink, a handshake and the slip of a twenty got you a romantic table in the front?

This spring return to "Boston's Old Vegas Strip"- (Route 1N) and fall into a different era beginning March 4 when Za Za presents "Return to Me," the return of dinner and a show featuring Rat Pack standards sung by Rich Dimare of Kiss 108 FM.

The first Thursday of every month Za Za Restaurant will be transcending time with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Bing Crosby. Bring a date or a friend and choose from their fantastic menu and extensive cocktail list. Settle into a dimly lit table and allow the music to take you to a totally different era. For more about Rich DiMare visit his website.

Reservations are recommended for dinner by calling Za Za at (781) 233-6815.

ZaZa Restaurant & Nitery.
It's just north of the Lynn Fells Parkway a mile before the entrance to I-95 and Route 128 at 114 Broadway (Route 1 North) Saugus, MA 01906, (781) 233-6815.
Hours: Mon. - Wed. 11:30am to 10pm. Thur. - Sat. 11:30am to 2am. Sunday 1pm to 9pm

Barnstable sewer cost $675 million; Christy wows Tea Party; "United We Fish" rally draws thousands; "Indivisible" - African-Native-American or Native American?

TODAY's quote: "I am not the darling of the institutional big business people.
I come from the convenience store business where we put pennies together to make a buck. If any customer ever came in to my store and dropped $500 to spend at one of my stores, I'd call 911 and ask that person to be committed."
- Christy Mihos at Tea Party event.

Best Barnstable finance plan for sewers: Everyone pays
$675 million largest single capital project in the town's history

Spreading the cost over the widest possible base is one way members of a special subcommittee on sewering suggest the town pay for a project that over decades is expected to cost about $675 million, the largest single capital project in the town's history.

The sewering is needed to clean up nitrogen in the town's estuaries and it is also needed to protect drinking water in areas where Title V septic systems cannot be installed or are failing... Barnstable Enterprise.
_____

Christy Mihos courts Tea Party members at Westborough breakfast
Says he'll align campaign with Tea Party movement at $10 event

 "They've paid for this road twice.
If you pay for it a third time, that's insanity."

Republican gubernatorial candidate and Cape Cod convenience store entrepreneur Christy Mihos took center stage at a breakfast sponsored by area Tea Party activists yesterday, drawing ripples of applause from a Doubletree Hotel conference room full of people he described as "Main Street, not Wall Street."

Mihos, who said his campaign finances have taken a hit recently, told Tea Partiers he has no plans to drop out of the race and added that his number one goal is to win the support of the 15 percent of state delegates needed to secure a place on the primary ballot.

Records at the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance show that as of his last filing on Feb. 17, Mihos had $905 in his campaign account. G.O.P. favorite and opponent Charles Baker had $1.6 million in his account as of Feb. 5, his last filing... Metrowest Daily News.
_____

United We Fish rally draws thousands to Washington
Fishermen decry new scallop quotas

Gloucester Times Editorial

The United We Fish rally at Capitol Hill drew a crowd estimated between three and four thousand, consisting of an eclectic mix of commercial fishermen, charter and party boat captains, and recreational anglers and tackle shop owners.

Thousands of fishermen rally in D.C.

While the crowd was clearly tilted towards commercial interests (no official numbers are available but I'm guessing the split was about 70-30,) a spirit of unity was observed. Time and time again both the speakers and the crowd addressed the need to unite forces, in order to protect our ability to fish...

"Maybe we argued about allocation yesterday, and maybe we'll argue about it again tomorrow. But today we're here together because if we don't unite there won't be any allocation to talk about" said Jim Hutchinson, Managing Director of the Recreational Fishing Alliance.

The rally attracted some heavy-hitting politicians, as well as the high-liners. Senator Chuck Shumer (D-NY) took the stage early, and was followed by others including Kay Kagen (D-NC) and Barney Frank (D-MA). All spoke of the need to maintain access to fisheries, with much of the talk focusing on the Flexibility in Rebuilding America's Fisheries Act, HR 1584/SB 1255. This bill would change the restrictive timelines for fisheries rebuilding in the Magnuson-Stevens act, and was widely supported by the rally attendees... Sport Fishing magazine. Also see the report in The Cape Codder.
_____

Indivisible: Exhibit re-ignites Indian Wars in Boston
African-Native-American or Native American?

Late last year, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) opened an exhibit "Indivisible." As with the museum itself, the reaction is mixed. One unexpected result is the animosity and controversy it has created among the Massachusetts tribe, the Chappaquiddick of the Wampanoag Nation.

Video of the Mashpee Powwow

The NMAI historian and curator for "Indivisible" Gabrielle Tayac (Piscataway), has mounted an exhibit of various historical events that brought Native Americans and African Americans together. For example members of the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole all held black slaves. Also the black freedom fighters, the Freedmen, helped the Seminoles fight for and gain independence in central Florida. Despite the subsequent miscegenation, racial tensions existed and exist today. "The Cherokee, Creek and Seminole have, in recent decades, tightened rules for membership in their nations and excluded those who did not have at least one Indian ancestor on the early 20th century Dawes Rolls." There are several lawsuits pending in this regard. Also there are instances of Native Americans harboring runaway slaves. "Indivisible" adds to the never-ending topic of racial identity and race relations in the United Sates.

The outcome is that it has pitted members of the Chappaquiddick Tribe of the Wampanoag Indian Nation against one another. For these reasons Boston or Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts may never see "Indivisible."

This is quite true in the case of the Chappaquiddick Tribe of the Wampanoag Indian Nation. This is an important tribe because their members are among the last few who survived the atrocities of early European contact such as disease, war and forced assimilation. There are only about one hundred Chappaquiddick tribal members who have always identified as Native Americans and who have a vested interest in living in the way of their relatives and ancestors and continuing their culture and traditions. It is they who have known their whole lives that they are undeniably Native American.

Among the actual roll of about 200, each member can claim to be Chappaquiddick or part this or that, thus it is impossible to label the Chappaquiddick Tribe as a whole as "African-Native-American" as the exhibit "Indivisible" does. The Sagamore, Seawolfe reports, "We embrace all of our members. And we do have some members who we know have African roots, but no one has ever mentioned being African-American-Indian until recently, after the indivisible exhibit went up... The Examiner.

How Do You Make War On An Abstraction?

                                                            How Do You Make War On An Abstraction?

Terrorism:  Systematic use of violence to create a general climate of fear in a population and thereby bring about a particular political objective.  It has been used throughout history by political organizations of both the left and right, by nationalist and ethnic groups, and by revolutionaries.  Encyclopedia Brittanica.

 War:  Hostile contention by means of armed forces, carried on between nations, states, or rulers, or between parties in the same nation or state. (Citation omitted).  A contest by force between two or more nations, carried on for any purpose or armed conflict of sovereign powers. . . . Black's Law Dictionary, Rev. Fourth Edition.

"He seems to think if he gives terrorists the rights of Americans, let's them lawyer up and reads their Miranda rights, we won't be at war.  He seems to think if we bring the mastermind of 9/11 to New York, give him a lawer and trial in civilian court, we won't  be at war."  -Former V.P. Richard Cheney, re. President Barak Obama, 12/28/2009.

            Just listen to the hollow words of former V.P. Richard Cheney, whose single minded pursuit of corporate profits for his friends in the oil industry has cost a trillion dollars or so in borrowed money and over four thousand American lives, as well as over a hundred thousand deaths of innocent Iraqi citizens.  Then ask yourself what in hell does Cheney know about war?  

           Remember that Cheney is a hollow man who never fought in the war of his generation, in Viet Nam, having "other priorities" than  "defending democracy" in a war he professed to believe in. Yet, he doesn't hesitate to send other young men overseas to die on a fool's errand in service of the corporate elite he so diligently and earnestly serves, while presuming to wrap himself in the flag as he spews the jingoist rhetoric of his ersatz "patriotism."

            Now, having failed to achieve the primary goals of that war, the  long term oil leases and permanent military bases he lusted after in Iraq, and with his party being out of power and not in a position to press the Iraqis further for such spoils of his resource war in their country or to implement Plan B in Iran, Cheney is desperate to maintain the illusion that we are somehow at war with "terrorism," the absurd notion that we can fight an actual "war" against an abstract concept.

            Let's be honest here about what the word "terrorism" means.  It is the use of violence by individuals or non-military groups to induce fear in service of a political objective.  It has never been considered to be the same thing as war, which involves direct and open conflict between two armed forces.  It follows, therefore, that individuals who commit or conspire to commit acts of terrorism are not enemy combatants in a "war," whether or not they are citizens of the country in which the terrorist activity occurs.  They are simply criminals, and must be tried, convicted and sentenced as such.

             Recently, an American citizen crashed an airplane into  an IRS office building in Texas.  I was astounded to hear the television news reader that evening actually say  "it wasn't an act of terrorism" but was just a tax protest.  Neither the Boston Globe nor the Herald the next day referred to this as an act of terrorism either.  The Cape Cod Times got it right however, with the headline "Terror in Texas," because that's just what it was.  So, according to Cheney's logic,  shouldn't we be charging all the domestic  tax protestors who have endorsed that ciminal act  as "enemy combatants" before military tribunals?  Why not?

             There have been many, many domestic terrorist attacks and attempts in America, the most devastating being the 1995 bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City.  The perpetrators, Timothy McVeigh and his companions, were as a matter of course tried and convicted in civilian court for their singular, criminal act of terrorism.  Recently, Attorney Eric Holder announced the conviction under plea agreement of  Afghani native Najibulla Zazi for conspiring to bomb the New York City subway system in 2008, which reminds me of another long ago attempted bombing in the NYC subway.

             Way back in 1975, when I was in law school and long before the word Jihad was commonplace in the American political dialogue, I had an internship clerking with federal Magistrate Gerard Goettel in the Southern District of New York, now retired federal Judge Goettel.  That was in the same courthouse where the Obama administration is seeking to try  Khalid Shaikh Mohammed on criminal charges, the Islamic terrorist  responsible for the September 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center just a few blocks  away.

             One afternoon, two FBI agents interrupted a hearing on a civil case to ask Judge Goettel to accompany them to Bellevue Hospital where a terrorist suspect  was being detained, a young American caught attempting to plant a bomb in the New York subway system.  When he was arrested, however, he told the agents that they wouldn't find the "other bomb" he planted before it went off.      So Judge Goettel, his law clerk and I all rode  through the late afternoon mid-town traffic in the agents' unmarked dark sedan with a flashing blue bubblegum machine slapped on the roof, to the hospital where a doctor was waiting with a syringe.  Judge Goettel issued an order to the doctor, permitting an injection of sodium  pentathol, and the terror suspect talked -fortunately admitting that the "other bomb" was just a ruse to enhance the terror he'd attempted to induce by planting the actual bomb that had been defused. 

               So how does Mr. Cheney propose that we differentiate between Islamist terrorists on the one hand and domestic terrorists like McVeigh on the other hand?  Should the young man arrested in 1975 for attempting to plant a bomb on the New York subway, in service of a violent radical political group, have been charged and tried in military court as an "enemy combatant?"  If not, then why should someone like Najibullah Zazi be treated as an enemy combatant for attempting to commit the very same act of terror for substantially the same reason?  Indeed, why should Khalid Shaikh Mohammed be tried as anything other than the depraved criminal he actually is?

               Terror is terror, no matter who creates it or how.  Unless we want to say that uniformed armed forces in service of a sovereign nation are committing terrorist acts when they kill civilians as "collateral damage" in a declared war, as our troops have clearly done in Iraq and Afghanistan, we must continue to recognize that terrorism is something different from war.  That is both logical and in the best  interest of our judicial system and our constitutional rights.

              We are engaged in actual combat, i.e. war, against Islamic armed forces in Afghanistan, with the Obama administration trying to finish a job that the Bush administration botched in its zeal to divert troops to Iraq in a corrupt and now failed effort to gain control of Saddam's vast oil reserves.  The war in Afghanistan, however, can be justified only as a police action to capture the terrorist criminals responsible for 9/11, which involves making war on the organized Taliban forces that have been protecting them there.   But when non-military individuals take it upon themselves to conspire or to commit mass murder on American soil, they are criminals, not "enemy combatants"  no matter where they come from or what group they belong to, and they must be treated as such, lest we allow them to claim for themselves a far more dignified status than they deserve and thereby validate their conduct in the eyes of both our enemies and those who stand neutral in our military actions overseas.

              The most eloquent statement of this fact is found in the words of Judge William Young of the United States District Court, D. Mass., upon sentencing the "shoe bomber" Richard Reid Reid to life imprisonment for his failed terrorist attempt to blow up an airliner in flight.  Here is the full text of Judge Young's statement:

 >> Ruling by Judge William Young, US District
> >> Court.
> >>
> >> Prior to sentencing, the Judge asked the
> >> defendant if he had anything to say.. His response: After admitting his
> >> guilt to the court for the record, Reid also admitted his 'allegiance to
> >> Osama bin Laden, to Islam, and to the religion of Allah,' defiantly
> >> stating, 'I think I will not apologize for my actions,' and told the
> >> court 'I am at war with your country.'
> >>
> >> Judge Young then delivered the statement quoted
> >> below:
> >>
> >> January 30, 2003, United States vs. Reid.
> >>
> >> Judge Young: 'Mr. Richard C. Reid, hearken now
> >> to the sentence the Court imposes upon you.
> >>
> >> On counts 1, 5 and 6 the Court sentences you to
> >> life in prison in the custody of the United States Attorney General. On
> >> counts 2, 3, 4and 7, the Court sentences you to 20 years in prison on
> >> each count, the sentence on each count to run consecutively. (That's 80
> >> years.)
> >>
> >> On count 8 the Court sentences you to the
> >> mandatory 30 years again, to be served consecutively to the 80 years just
> >> imposed. The Court imposes upon you for each of the eight counts a fine
> >> of $250,000 that's an aggregate fine of $2 million. The Court accepts
> >> the government's recommendation with respect to restitution and orders
> >> restitution in the amount of $298.17 to Andre Bousquet and $5,784 to
> >> American Airlines.
> >>
> >> The Court imposes upon you an $800 special
> >> assessment. The Court imposes upon you five years supervised release
> >> simply because the law requires it. But the life sentences are real life
> >> sentences so I need go no further.
> >>
> >> This is the sentence that is provided for by our
> >> statutes. It is a fair and just sentence. It is a righteous sentence.
> >>
> >> Now, let me explain this to you. We are not
> >> afraid of you or any of your terrorist co-conspirators, Mr. Reid. We are
> >> Americans. We have been through the fire before. There is too much war
> >> talk here and I say that to everyone with the utmost respect. Here in
> >> this court, we deal with individuals as individuals and care for
> >> individuals as individuals. As human beings, we reach out for justice..
> >>
> >> You are not an enemy combatant. You are a
> >> terrorist. You are not a soldier in any war. You are a terrorist. To
> >> give you that reference, to call you a soldier, gives you far too much
> >> stature. Whether the officers of government do it or your attorney does
> >> it, or if you think you are a soldier, you are not----- you are a
> >> terrorist. And we do not negotiate with terrorists. We do not meet with
> >> terrorists. We do not sign documents with terrorists. We hunt them down
> >> one by one and bring them to justice.
> >>
> >> So war talk is way out of line in this court..
> >> You are a big fellow. But you are not that big. You're no warrior. I've
> >> known warriors. You are a terrorist. A species of criminal that is
> >> guilty of multiple attempted murders. In a very real sense, State
> >> Trooper Santiago had it right when you first were taken off that plane
> >> and into custody and you wondered where the press and the TV crews were,
> >> and he said:
> >>
> >> 'You're no big deal.'
> >>
> >> You are no big deal.
> >>
> >> What your able counsel and what the equally able
> >> United States attorneys have grappled with and what I have as honestly as
> >> I know how tried to grapple with, is why you did something so horrific...
> >> What was it that led you here to this courtroom today?
> >>
> >> I have listened respectfully to what you have to
> >> say. And I ask you to search your heart and ask yourself what sort of
> >> unfathomable hate led you to do what you are guilty and admit you are
> >> guilty of doing? And, I have an answer for you. It may not satisfy you,
> >> but as I search this entire record, it comes as close to understanding as
> >> I know.
> >>
> >> It seems to me you hate the one thing that to us
> >> is most precious. You hate our freedom. Our individual freedom. Our
> >> individual freedom to live as we choose, to come and go as we choose, to
> >> believe or not believe as we individually choose. Here, in this society,
> >> the very wind carries freedom. It carries it everywhere from sea to
> >> shining sea. It is because we prize individual freedom so much that you
> >> are here in this beautiful courtroom, so that everyone can see, truly
> >> see, that justice is administered fairly, individually, and discretely.
> >> It is for freedom's sake that your lawyers are striving so vigorously on
> >> your behalf, have filed appeals, will go on in their representation of
> >> you before other judges.
> >>
> >> We Americans are all about freedom. Because we
> >> all know that the way we treat you, Mr. Reid, is the measure of our own
> >> liberties. Make no mistake though. It is yet true that we will bear any
> >> burden; pay any price, to preserve our freedoms. Look around this
> >> courtroom. Mark it well. The world is not going to long remember what
> >> you or I say here. The day after tomorrow, it will be forgotten, but
> >> this, however, will long endure.
> >>
> >> Here in this courtroom and courtrooms all across
> >> America , the American people will gather to see that justice, individual
> >> justice, justice, not war, individual justice is in fact being done. The
> >> very President of the United States through his officers will have to
> >> come into courtrooms and lay out evidence on which specific matters can
> >> be judged and juries of citizens will gather to sit and judge that
> >> evidence democratically, to mold and shape and refine our sense of
> >> justice.
> >>
> >> See that flag, Mr. Reid? That's the flag of the
> >> United States of America . That flag will fly there long after this is
> >> all forgotten. That flag stands for freedom. And it always will.
> >>
> >> Mr. Custody Officer. Stand him down.

 So, how much of Judge Young's comments do you think we ever got to hear on our television sets  -on Fox News, say, or to read in any newspaper except perhaps the New York Times,  in counterpoint to the massive coverage of Cheney's ignorant maunderings we've been subjected to?

          Sure, there's more newsiness in Cheney's remarks, being directly critical of a successor political administration,  but the American public needs to hear what a wise and learned man like Judge Young has to say on such an important issue as terrorism, rather than the know-nothing rants of an intellectual and moral cipher like Cheney.

          Keep in mind that Young is a federal judge, not a politician, while Cheney has a vested interest in maintaining the mass delusion that we are at war with an abstraction such as "terror."  The very last thing Cheney wants to see is for Obama to succeed in Afghanistan, taking out both the Taliban and the leadership of al Qaeda, but it's not just for political reasons as with the GOP's obstructionism on health care.

          Without having some war or other to use as scare fodder, right wing demagogues like Cheney, which today means almost the entire Republican Party, really have nothing else to offer the American public.  But, more importantly, without a "war on terror" against Islamists in the mid-East, political whores for Big Oil like Cheney won't be able to come up with another ready made pretext on which to sell the next invasion to steal another nation's oil, and they'll have to make up lies out of whole cloth rather than innuendo and half-truths as Bush and Cheney did on Iraq.  Clearly,  what we really need today is to hear some federal judge like William Young point to Cheney and tell the Custody Officer to  "stand him down."