Category Archives: Ron Paul

The political history of Texas is one of colorful, headline-grabbing politicians. From Sam Houston to Lyndon Johnson to Ann Richards to Ron Paul, the characters whove occupied high office in this state are famousand infamousfor their big personalities and the often unusual ways they have of saying and doing things. Junior senator Ted Cruz is no exception. Long considered a striver whod do anything to attain a seat in government, Cruz became nationally renowned for trying to shut down that very government in 2013. The Republican senator reveled in his role as a political heel throughout the Obama era, before enduring a turn as a begrudging yes-man during the Trump presidency. Now that hes returned to his more natural state during another Democratic administration, weve created the Ted Cruz Watch, to help readers track the senators latest doings and his whereaboutsbe they in D.C., Texas, or, say, Cancun.

September 29, 2021:

Ahead of the NBA season, Cruz, a noted basketball enthusiast, has a handful of new favorite players: Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving, Golden State forward Andrew Wiggins, Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac, and Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal. The makings of a formidable starting five, to be sure, but the Texas senator appreciates them for their work off the court: the group are among a handful of NBA players who have refused to provide the league with confirmation that theyve received a COVID-19 vaccine. On Tuesday, Cruz tweeted his support for the Unvaxxed All-Stars.

Cruzs relationship to the vaccine is complicated. He says hes vaccinated. He added in May that the jab has given us a lot of freedom. And Ted Cruz loves freedom! However, hes simultaneously argued against proposed government vaccine mandates, describing them as authoritarianism. Though some local restrictions will prevent unvaccinated players from entering arenas in certain cities, such as the Barclays Center and Madison Square Garden in New York and the Chase Center in San Francisco, the NBA has imposed no such mandate. The leagues rules only indicate that unvaccinated players, who are restricted from certain social activities such as dining with teammates, are likely to have less fun on the road than their vaccinated teammates.

Whats the source, then, of Cruzs vocal support for players who are refusing a vaccine that no one is mandating they get, that he himself has received, and that he has heralded for bringing Americans more freedom? Its all about owning the libs. Cruz, a staunch opponent of abortion, ended his tweet with the longtime pro-choice mantra your body, your choice. Standing with the players whove chosen not to get vaccinatedor who wont confirm they have beenby repurposing a catchphrase used by his political opponents is unlikely to get the NBA to change its relatively light policies around unvaccinated players. But failure to score actual points has never stopped the senator from trying to dunk on his opponents.

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Ted Cruz Tries to Dunk on Libs by Backing Anti-Vax NBA Stars - Texas Monthly

BLOWING ROCK, N.C. Paul Hunt Broyhill, furniture industry icon and philanthropist, passed away October 5, at age 97.

He is survived by his wife, Karen Rabon Broyhill; his sister, Allene Broyhill Stevens; his brother retired U.S. Senator James T. Broyhill and wife, Louise; his daughters, Caron Broyhill and Claire Broyhill; and his son, Hunt Broyhill, and wife, LeAnne. He is also survived by seven grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

Burial will be private at the family cemetery, Broyhill Memorial Park, with Dr. David Smith and Rev. Josh Hughes officiating. Serving as pallbearers will be John Knox Wilson, Paul Hunt Broyhill II, Michael Jacobs, Tim Greene, Marcus Darby and Chris Hall.

Earlier this year, the Home Furnishings Hall of Fame, to which Broyhill was inducted in 2004, renamed its Future Leaders Award the Paul Broyhill Future Leaders Award to recognize his outstanding contributions to developing industry leaders. Underwritten by a gift from the Broyhill Family Foundation, the Paul Broyhill Future Leaders Award will be given annually to five emerging leaders.

Paul Broyhill was known as an innovator in management, production, distribution, and marketing. The Broyhill management style centered on the belief that employees were the companys most valued asset.

His Broyhill U internal company leadership training program developed many of the furniture industrys current leaders and has become an aspirational model of sales and leadership training. Paul Broyhill was also an industry pioneer in creating an employee profit-sharing plan. More than just building plants, I like to think I built people, Broyhill often said.

An innovator unafraid to deviate from the status quo, he often traveled offshore to study new designs and uncover state-of-the-art equipment that he used to revolutionize furniture production. He developed innovative distribution methods so that the product was available quickly in all parts of the country.

Referred to in Furniture Today as a game-changer, Paul Broyhill was the first to market his product in national home magazines like Life and Look, and on television game shows such as The Price is Right and Lets Make a Deal. From a cadre of 20 salesmen in 1948, he eventually built a sales force of greater than 300 in a company with more than 7,000 workers and 6 million square feet of manufacturing space.

Under his leadership, Broyhill became the most recognizable name in home furnishings.

He later sold the company to Interco and in 1985 left the company, using the proceeds to found the Broyhill Family Foundation. The foundation has given millions of dollars to support higher education, medical research and other charitable endeavors. Endowment funds at numerous universities and hospitals provide ongoing support of programs and research.

Paul and his brother, U.S. Senator Jim Broyhill, were instrumental in establishing Caldwell Community College & Technical Institute. Paul believed that students who did not want to attend a four-year college needed career education alternatives.

In 2004, Paul Broyhill was inducted into the Furniture Hall of Fame, joining his father who had been inducted years earlier.

At the time Paul Broyhill sold the company in the early 1980s, they were the most advanced furniture manufacturing operation in that era. His designs, his factories and his sales force were the absolute best at everything, Ron Wanek, chairman of Ashley Furniture Industries and a fellow Hall of Fame member told Furniture Today. He was a fabulous man and a real contributor to the industry. I always had aspirations of being as good as they were. He was an inspiration.

The rest is here:
Industry icon Paul Broyhill passes - Furniture Today

WASHINGTON (JTA) Rand Paul, the Republican senator from Kentucky, is the latest lawmaker to get in the way of $1 billion in new assistance to Israel to replenish its Iron Dome anti-missile system.

Paul on Thursday revealed himself to be the single senator refusing to hotline the bill now that it has been approved by the U.S. House of Representatives. Hotlining is when all 100 senators agree to allow a bill to go straight to the floor for a vote, substantially accelerating the process.

Paul is one of the most outspoken opponents of foreign assistance, and for a period a number of years ago proposed eliminating assistance to Israel. Now, aspokesperson for Paul told Politico that Paul will drop his objection to the Iron Dome hotlining if the $1 billion comes from proposed assistance to Afghanistan.

In an email Friday, Paul told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that all 50 Republicans in the Senate backed his formula for using money from funds designated for Afghanistan. but Democrats were opposed.

All 50 Republicans have agreed to my hotline to fully fund Iron Dome with funds that might otherwise go to the Taliban, he said. Democrats are holding my bill to fund Iron Dome.

Pauls stand is the latest wrinkle in a funding request that has roiled Congress. Progressives last week squelched a plan by the Democratic leadership in the House to slip the money into an unrelated emergency stopgap government funding bill, saying the last-minute inclusion undercut congressional conventions.

Instead, the Democratic leadership advanced the funding in a standalone bill, which the House approved after a brief debate. The standalone bill passed overwhelmingly, including among progressives in the Democratic caucus.

Israel asked for the $1 billion, which is in addition to $500 million the Iron Dome gets each year, to replenish supplies after Israels Gaza conflict in May.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee on Twitter urged Paul to stand with our ally Israel.

Blocking emergency funding to ensure Israel can protect its citizens from terrorist rockets rewards Hamas and undermines Americas interests & values, the lobby said.

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In one more hurdle for Iron Dome, Rand Paul refuses to fast-track $1 billion in new funding - JTA News - Jewish Telegraphic Agency

For decades the Communist Party of Cuba has blamed the United States for Cubas misery and poverty, alluding to the blockade that the U.S. maintains against Cuba. However, the alleged blockade wielded by the island is in reality a trade embargo that only makes it impossible for people and companies in certain sectors within the United States to do business with Cuba, the rest of the world can trade freely with the island.

Even the United States annually exports about $277 million in goods to Cuba despite the trade embargo, a majority of these exports are foodstuffs.

In addition, despite the establishment of a dictatorial regime in Cuba that has been in power for more than 60 years without any kind of alternation, elections or basic freedoms, the whole world recognizes the communist authorities and Cuba has a presence in all multilateral international organizations, the main one being the United Nations.

Then there is Taiwan, which has characteristics very similar to those of Cuba, since it is also an island that is close to one of the two world powersChina. In the case of the authorities of Taipei they have been completely blocked by the Asian giant, since China claims sovereignty over the island.

Taiwan is recognized by only a dozen nations around the world, has no representation in the United Nations, and its official name cannot even be pronounced at any international event: be it an Olympic Games, a United Nations General Assembly, or even by the embassies of most countries in the worldincluding the United States. And yet, despite all these difficulties, today Taiwans economy is one of the most important in the world, with a poverty rate of 0.7%, as opposed to Cuba, which has one of the most depressed economies on the planet and 90% of its population living in poverty. What is the difference between the two islands? The economic and political model they applied in their nations.

Cuba and Taiwan, despite being located at two different poles of the planet earth, have very similar characteristics, the one that most resembles them is the fact that they are less than 200 kilometers away from the two superpowers of the worldthe United States and China respectivelyand suffer trade embargoes or political blockades by the neighboring superpowers; on the other hand, Cuba has a little more than 11. 3 million inhabitantsa couple of million more have fled the country, while Taiwan has 23.5 million residents, despite the fact that Cuba has a land area about three times larger.

Despite the similarities, both nations are currently a long way apart in terms of economic, social, cultural, and technological development, as well as individual freedoms and democracy. Today, Taiwans economy is five times larger than Cubas, but fifty years ago things were not so different, in the 1970s the GDP of both countries was similar and the largest industry of both was agriculture.

The painful results of the cultural revolution in Mao Zedongs communist China, which caused the death by famine of at least 30 million Chinese, illuminated the path of the regions governments, who quickly understood that the failed model of putting the State in control of the means of production would make them all more vulnerable and miserable.

Then the Peoples Republic of Chinas neighbors began a series of economic and political reforms that would drastically change the quality of life of their inhabitants; Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and, of course, Taiwan, would begin to open their markets, encourage private enterprise and transform their authoritarian regimes into nations with democratic institutions, and little by little the sun began to shine for the so-called Asian tigers.

Despite territorial limitations and Chinas political blockade of the island, Taiwans inclusive institutions paved the way for the production of technology to supply a severely deficient world market. Taiwanese entrepreneurs began to specialize in the production of semiconductors, those microchips that today we find in all electrical devices in the world, from computers to smartphones and even cars, and little by little the poor island of the past became a rich and developed country.

Currently, Taiwan has the sixth freest economy according to the Index of Economic Freedom, Singapore is the first nation in this section, while Malaysia ranks 22nd and South Korea 24th.

In an article published by the Taiwanese embassy in Mexico, the authorities stated that: Taiwan, thanks to the policies of its government, began a rapid and overwhelming commercial development, becoming a stable industrial economy. Today it is the 22nd largest economy in the world. This allowed it to establish relations with countries that were in search of good trade relations.

In the same brief they explain the transition that occurred in Taipei:

Despite having started as a one-party military dictatorship, in the 1990s it began a process of democratization that today has it as one of the freest countries in the world, with high rates of press freedom, health service, public education, economic freedom and human development. That is why communist China sees Taiwan, and its international recognition, as an existential threat. The contrast is stark. Democracy has not only proven that it can work, but has brought multiple benefits to the population. The Taiwanese have a better quality of life, and opportunities for personal development, than the average Chinese on the mainland. And all this within a framework of freedoms that are unthinkable in a communist China that censures dissidence and whose ruling party increasingly tightens its control over all aspects of the country.

On the other side of the planet, in Cuba, they decided to cover their eyes with the results of the cultural revolution perpetrated in China, and with the collapse of the Soviet Union. While Taiwan took off with a capitalist model, Cuba remained anchored in the old revolutionary dogmas of Fidel Castro, who far from trying to change, he sought to expand his regime of misery in the rest of the continent, achieving it quite successfully in countries such as Venezuela and Nicaragua.

The Cuban revolution took power on the island in 1959 by force of arms and never let go again. With popular slogans such as redistribution of wealth, supposed aid to the poor, and socialism, Fidel Castro began to expropriate land and private companies to be managed by the state, and in a short time Cuba, which used to be one of the largest producers and exporters of sugar in the world, found that it could no longer even produce sugar for internal consumption and had to import it.

For decades, the Cuban revolution was able to stay in power exclusively thanks to the financing offered by the Soviet Union with the aim of increasing the ideological enemies in the backyard of the United States. After the fall of the USSR, in the 90s Cuba lived one of the worst decades of its history, until the political astuteness of Fidel Castro managed to put Hugo Chavez in power in Venezuela, and since then they lived off the oil of that country, until the same failed socialist model ended up ruining the nation with the largest oil reserves in the world, and Cuba was again involved in a tremendous economic crisis, with millions of citizens in extreme poverty, which has recently provoked one of the largest civil uprisings against the communist authorities.

Cuba and Taiwan began the decade of the 70s with similar economies, but today the GDP of the Caribbean island is five times less than that of Taiwan, and 90% of its population lives in poverty, while in the Asian island only 0.7% of its population is poor.

It is definitely not the fault of the blockade, but of socialism.

A version of this article originally appeared in El American.

Excerpt from:
Taiwan's Wealth Shows Cuba's Poverty Is the Result of Socialism, Not a Blockade - Foundation for Economic Education

By Ron GriffittsContributing Columnist

The 2005 World Series took place between the Chicago White Sox 99-63, managed by Ozzie Guillen who played shortstop for the Sox for thirteen years and had as general manager Ken Williams. They were in their first series since 1959 when Al Lopez was manager, Early Wynn started and Ted Kluszewski had two home runs against the Dodgers in game one.

They were led in batting by Paul Konerko 40 HR, 100 RBI, 98 RS, Joe Crede 22 HR, 62 RBI, Jermaine Dye 31 HR, 86 RBI, Carl Everett 23 HR, 87 RBI and Scott Podsednik 59 SB, .290 BA.

Their pitching staff was led by Mark Buehrne 16-8, Freddy Green 14-8, Jon Garland 18-10, Jose Contreras 15-7 and in the bullpen Dustin Hermanson 2.04 ERA, 34 SV, Cliff Politte 7-1, 2.00 ERA and Neal Cotts 4-0, 1.94 ERA.

They faced the Houston Astros 89-73, playing in their first World Series and managed by former Astros player Phil Garner with general manager Tim Purpura and were led on offense by Lance Berkman 24 HR, 82 RBI, Craig Biggio, playing in his 18th season in the majors, 26 HR, 69 RBI, 94 RS, Morgan Ensberg 36 HR, 101 RBI, 86 RS, Jason Lane 26 HR, 78 RBI and Willy Taveras 34 SB, .291 BA, 82 RS.

It is interesting to note neither team had a starter batting over .300.

The Astro pitching staff was led by starters Roy Oswalt 20-12, 2.94 ERA, Andy Petitte 17-9, 2.39 ERA, Roger Clemens 13-8, 1.87 ERA, Brandon Backe 10-8 and relievers Brad Lidge 42 SV, 2.79 ERA, Chad Qualls 6-4 and Dan Wheeler 2.21 ERA.

Game one was held at U S Cellular Field on the south side of Chicago and was tied 3-3 going into the fourth inning until Joe Crede homered off of Wandy Rodriquez which proved to be the winning run as the Sox go on to a 5-3 victory.

Jose Contreras went seven innings for the win and Jermaine Dye added a home run for Chicago and Mike Lamb one for Houston.

In game two the Astros had a 4-2 lead behind Andy Petitte going into the bottom of the seventh inning until Paul Konerko connected for a grand slam home run off of Chad Qualls to make the score 6-4 Chicago.

The Astros tied it with two runs in the top of the ninth on a two run single by Jose Vizcaino and the game went to the bottom of the ninth tied 6-6.

With one out and Brad Lidge pitching Scott Podsednik lofted a home run over the right center field wall and the Sox go up two games to none with a 7-6 win.

For game three the teams switched to Minute Maid Park in Houston for the first World Series game there ever. This was a key game as Houston did not want to lose at home and led 4-0 behind Roy Oswalt going into the top of the fifth inning.

Joe Crede led off with solo home run and before the side was retired the Sox scored five runs highlighted by a two run single by A. J. Pierzynski for 5-4 lead.

Houston tied the game in the bottom of the eighth and the game went into extra innings until in the top of the fourteenth inning Joe Crede led off with a solo home run and the Sox added another run in the inning for a 7-5 lead.

The Astros had two runners on with two outs in the bottom of the inning but Mark Buehle came in to get the last out and Chicago goes up 3-0.

Game four was the most tightly pitched game of the series and was scoreless until Jermaine Dye singled in Willie Harris with the games only run in the top of the eighth inning and the Sox win the game 1-0 and the series.

The difference in the two teams was in their respective bullpens as the White Sox held leads better than the Astros on their way to their first World Series title since 1917.

Jermaine Dye got the series MVP and Houston returned in 2017 while the White Sox have not been back to a fall classic since 2005 but this year have clinched the AL Central Division and will be in the playoffs as well as the Astros who have clinched the AL West Division.

Statistics were from baseball-reference.com and baseball-almanac.com.

Ron Griffitts a contributing columnist for The Daily Advocate.

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2005 World Series White Sox and Astros - The Daily Advocate

Steve Nash knows how crowded his frontcourt is. He knows theres a lot of veteran talent and some promising young kids. Getting to a rotation is, as he said Friday, going to be a challenge.

We had an opportunity to get three or four veterans at the minimum. We thought it would be better to get the best players we can and work through that rather than not having the players and trying to figure it out, said Nash Friday.

It will be a challenge. Those guys have to sacrifice. Well have to play for something bigger than ourselves and find a way to affect the group positively whether theyre playing or in the rotation or not in the rotation or youre not even suiting up some nights I think were all here for a bigger goal and thats to see this team be at its best level.

So expect a lot of line-ups, some experiments, in the teams remaining practices and preseason games, starting Friday vs. the Bucks at Barclays Center. But so far, so good. The first experiment, running LaMarcus Aldridge and Paul Millsap together, seems to have worked out well.

Wasnt bad, Steve Nash said of the veteran big men playing together. Paul brings a versatility, and LaMarcus obviously brings his skill set as a true big for us. Theyre both intelligent, know how to play, can play off each other, even if its not a traditional look for our team.

They both had a really good camp. Both moved well, played well, showed their intellect and skill set. I thought they played quite well together even though its not something that weve necessarily done traditionally, played the two bigger guys.

It was pretty smooth, Millsap said of his time on the court with Aldridge. And the way we play, we feel we can implement anybody in the system and be successful, so as long as were moving and were cutting and were playing for each other, its gonna look good.

At the end of last season, after Aldridge went down, Nash started another big with an award-adorned resume, Blake Griffin, at the 5. He didnt play Sunday vs. the Lakers. Nor did Kevin Durant who will occasionally man the big man positions along with other positions in the regular season.

That said, the numbers as well as the win were encouraging. Paul Millsap had a double double of 10 and 10 plus three assists while Aldridge finished with six points, four rebounds and tied a team-high with three assists in little more than a quarters worth of action, playing 14:43 for the game. Also, he used his size and cunning to battle DeAndre Jordan and Dwight Howard, the Lakers counterpart to him and Millsap.

Nash praised Aldridge in particular during training camp in San Diego.

He looked good. He had a good week of camp and it looks like hes moving well. Confident. Doesnt look like hes missed a beat, said Nash. Were really pleased with him. Excited, one, just to have him back playing the game, back with us, because we enjoyed having him last year. Its icing on the cake that he played so well and looks good.

Its great to have him back. We really enjoyed having him last year for a brief period of time. We were all really sad and devastated for him when he had to retire. He was fitting into our team, but more importantly him having to step away from the game was tough. So to have him back is a great story, and hes been not only a pleasure to coach but he looks good. Playing well, moving well. Im almost a little surprised, considering the layoff and everything that went on.

Nic Claxton will likely get bigger and hopefully more effective minutes Friday night than he did Sunday afternoon vs. the Lakers. He had three straight offensive foul calls early that seemed to take him out of his game and he finished with three points, three boards, three turnovers and six personal fouls. Nash seemed to shrug it off. It is after all, preseason.

Also expect to see more minutes for DayRon Sharpe, whos likely to spend a lot of his time in Long Island. The 19-year-old had a surprisingly good game in his first pro outing, scoring 13 points and grabbing six rebounds in 14 minutes. His performance in training camp impressed the coach. Expect him to take more shots on the perimeter. The Nets see potential there as well as underneath.

He hasnt gotten a lot of shots up here, Nash had said Thursday. But in the future, I think hes capable. He has a soft touch and he can make shots. But thats definitely something hes got to develop.

I mean, shooters shoot. They shoot every day. So if youre trying to become a shooter or you are a shooter, you have to shoot every day if thats where youre going. If youre not a shooter, maybe thats not a part of your development. A guy like that, just like the other shooters on the team, you got to shoot every day and get better at it.

The Nets didnt play James Johnson Sunday. Hell probably start to get some minutes starting Friday.

There will probably be more than just experimentation coming up. Therell be roster decisions. Although the Nets think they see a multi-position in Sekou Doumbouya, hes primarily a defensive big right now. DeVontae Cacok is another big with defensive chops whos facing the numbers game.

But as Alex Schiffer wrote Monday, its a problem a lot of coaches would like to have.

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Frontcourt experiment seemed to work for LaMarcus Aldridge and Paul Millsap - NetsDaily

The Taliban didn't regain control of Afghanistan overnight, and while their return to power was years in the making, the Trump administration's agreement with the group last year helped speed up the process, Lisa Curtis, the director of the Indo-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, writes for Foreign Affairs.

Curtis zeroed in on three errors the negotiation team, led by Zalmay Khalilzad, made out of "desperation to conclude a deal" and put an end to the decades-long U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan. The first, she writes, was believing the Taliban would eventually sit down with the Afghan government to hash out a long-term political settlement. This led Washington to exclude Kabul from their talks with the Taliban in Qatar, which Curtis argues "prematurely conferred legitimacy on the" insurgents.

The next mistake, in Curtis' opinion, was that the U.S. didn't "condition the pace of talks on Taliban violence levels." Negotiations continued even amid escalating violence on the ground in Afghanistan, and ultimately the Taliban only had to "reduce violence for six days before signing the agreement." Finally, Curtis believes the Trump administration was operating under "wishful thinking" that the Taliban was seriously interested in political negotiations instead of fighting their way back to power. The U.S., therefore, forced Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners without simultaneously securing a "commensurate concession" from the group.

"The United States would have been far better off negotiating its withdrawal directly with the Afghan government, something that Ghani himself proposed in early 2019," Curtis writes. "By doing so, the United States would have avoided demoralizing its Afghan partners as Washington pulled back U.S. forces." Read about how Curtis thinks the Biden administration should deal with the Taliban going forward at Foreign Affairs.

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3 U.S. negotiating errors that previewed the Taliban's return - The Week Magazine

After Mike Richards' short-lived stint as Jeopardy! host, Mayim Bialik is again stepping behind the lectern and it sounds like she's ready to stay there.

The Big Bang Theory star will take over asJeopardy! guest host Monday after Richards, the former executive producer of Jeopardy!,resigned as its new host after a single day of taping.In an essay in Newsweek, Bialik reflected that when she previously served as one of the guest hosts ofJeopardy!, she remembers thinking, "I don't want to leave."

"When I left The Big Bang Theory, I said that there would never be another job like it," she says. "It was the best job I had ever had, besides being a parent. I can now say that there is no other job I'd rather have than this job on Jeopardy!. I joke that I would give up my first child to host permanently! I think my son and I have a close enough bond that he will come back to me!"

Jeopardy!'s previous plan for replacing late host Alex Trebek was to have Richards host the regular daily show and Bialik host primetime and spinoff shows. But after Richards stepped down due to past offensive podcast comments, there has been speculation that Bialik could be hired for the full-time gig, assuming she's able to fit it into her schedule.Another frontrunner is former champion Ken Jennings, and Jeopardy! recently announced Bialik and Jennings will share hosting duties until the end of the year. A permanent daily host has still yet to be announced.

In her Newsweek essay, Bialik also reflected a bit on the Richards controversy, saying she doesn't "wish ill on him, or anyone," and adding, "The complexity of these situations is not something that can be summed up easily."She also pays tribute to Trebek, writing, "It probably sounds crazy, but you definitely feel Alex's presence on that stage."

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Bialik: 'No other job I'd rather have than' Jeopardy! host - The Week Magazine

Sally Holt, Rami Shapiro and Ossama Bahloul| Murfreesboro Daily News Journal

Editor's Note: Ron Messier, 76, died Sept. 2, according to his obituary from Woodfin Memorial Chapel.Messier was professor emeritus inhistory at Middle Tennessee State University where he taught Islamic history and historical archaeology from 1972-2004. He served as director of the honors program from 1982-92. He was also a senior lecturer at Vanderbilt University from 1992-2008. Messier was also an author, including"Jesus, One Man Two Faiths: A Dialogue between Christians and Muslims."

A Memorial service will be held Oct. 27 at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 116 N Academy St. inMurfreesboro.

Ron was exceptional in many ways. With his warm approach and genuine friendship, he influenced many around him.

He recognized the power of religion and the role of the religious institution. He was attached to his church and proud of its role within our city.

On a recent Thanksgiving, he wrote about his blessings:

"For a church family that extends selfless love to all whom it comes into contact with no exceptions."

A man with genuine optimism and a clean heart.He once wrote that in response to hatred "solidarity in prayer is a good response."

His optimism influenced his theology. When speaking about the end of the world, he said, "I also believe in the renewal rather than the destruction of the world in which we live."

Ron was generous in his feelings and a true friend. He wrote, "I will be praying for you as you travel. I ask you to do the same for me as I travel to Morocco. Thank you for being my friend."

Our routine lunches were priceless. Through our friendship, we cared for our community using the power of our different faiths. Our friendship was a practical example of what the faith community can do together. Ron truly deserves the bulk of the credit for establishing and fostering this relationship.

Ron was a man with an abundance of energy and a good spirit, eager to participate in any effort that could bring people together and create a better understanding. Even surgery could not stop him. One of our annual conferences was held five days after one of his surgeries and he was able to persuade his surgeon to allow him to attend.He was OK scheduling a luncheon one day after returning from a long journey. Another time when he could not attend an event, he sent a note:

"Here in North Carolina, I will be thinking about you guys. Wish I was with you."

Ron had a deep appreciation for Judaism and Islam and worked closely with the Atlantic Institute to further Americans' understanding of Islam in general and Turkey in particular. We would often appear together on inter-faith panels and could be counted on to articulate what was unique about his faith even as he spoke what was true in all our faiths.

Ron was a generous man, with his time and his wisdom, and actively sought out relationships with others and worked for ways to make the world a better place for all.

Ron, you have been a true friend and a great partner in doing good and simply a beautiful soul. You will be greatly missed.

Our thoughts and prayers with Emily and the family.

Sally Holt is a professor of religion at Belmont University; Rabbi Rami Shapiro is an author of many books, including six onreligion, spirituality and recovery;Imam Ossama Bahloul has beenthe resident scholar at the Islamic Center of Nashville since 2016 and previously served for eight years as thereligious leader at the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro.

Link:
'We lost a dear friend': Ron Messier, former MTSU professor, author remembered as great friend - Daily News Journal

Vice President Mike Pence brings first motorcade to Mackinac Island

Vice President Mike Pence leaves the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island in an eight-vehicle motorcade Saturday. It's the first automobile motorcade on the island, where cars are generally banned.

Paul Egan, Detroit Free Press

Randy "Trucker Randy" Bishop, a Republican activist and former county GOP chairman from northern Michigan, is an ardent supporter of former President Donald Trump who promotes the unsubstantiated and widely debunked viewthat voting equipment was programmed to "shave" votes from Trump and assign them to Democratic President Joe Biden.

Wendy Lynn Day is a former grassroots chair of the Michigan Republican Party who was state director of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's unsuccessful bid for the 2016 presidential nomination. Day, of Livingston County, does not support Trump and believes the fight over the 2020 presidential election is "more of the same" of what she saw in 2016 people "willing to believe anything if it was their side saying it."

Though they have opposing views about Trump, Bishop and Day have something in common. They used to regularly attend the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conferencebut will not be at the 34th biennial event that begins Friday at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. Neither is attributing their absence to concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.

"I won't support that event on Mackinac in any way, shape or form," said Bishop, who views the conferenceas part of a planned "coronation" of former Detroit Police Chief James Craig as the party's 2022 nominee for governor.

Bishop will skip the conference to emcee an eventwith GOPgubernatorial candidate Garrett Soldano in Antrim County, which became ground zero for conspiracy theories about voting equipment after a Republican clerk's November error causedunofficial results to briefly show Biden getting more votes than Trump in the solidly red county.

Day will not attend despite the fact that Trump is no longer president and Cruzwill be onthe island to give the Friday keynote address.

"I'm not doing a lot of politics right now," said Day, who was stripped of her Michigan GOP post in 2016 for refusing to support Trump.

Attendance isdown from a record 2,370 registrants in 2015, and the usually fully booked Grand Hotel still had weekend rooms available on its website Thursday morning. Michigan Republican Party spokesman Gus Portela said the conference is about soliciting new ideas tohelp defeat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and other Democrats in 2022, and that the party does not take sides in primaries. He expects late registrations will bring attendanceto around 1,500, which he said is comparable to recent years.

Attendance is down at most events during thepandemic, but several Michigan Republicans said heightened partisanship has made them less active in politics, even when they cited family or other reasons for staying away from Mackinac this year.

Among the panel discussions Bishop and Day will missare one about "election integrity" featuring Thor Hearne, a Missouri attorney who filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Trump campaign seeking tohalt the counting of absentee ballots in Detroit, and Minnesota attorney Erick Kaardal, who was referred for sanctions by a federal judgefor filinga "risible" lawsuit against former Vice President Mike Pence, seeking to block certification of theelection results.

Portela said it is important to discuss what can be done to improve election integrity, but the partly isfocused on 2022, not relitigating the 2020 election.

In addition to the speech from Cruz, a potential candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, the conference will feature:

Both former Vice President Mike Pence and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley had been announced as conference speakers, but later canceled.

Mike Bishop, an Oakland County Republican who served two terms in Congress until the end of 2018 and earlier served as majority leader in the state Senate, said he will arrive on Mackinac Island Saturday for a panel discussion on criminal justice reform and leave the same day.

Bishop, who is no relation to Randy Bishop, said the Republican Party tends to be "very good at circular firing squads" and has much work to do to "come together under our principled foundational issues" before the 2022 election.

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But Bishop does not attribute the sag in conference attendance to factional infighting or loss of interest in the wake of Trump's one-term presidency. It likely has more to do with COVID-19, he said.

As for concerns about the integrity of the 2020 election, "I don't think there's any question that there were shenanigans that went on in the electionthere always are," Bishop said.

State legislatures in Michigan and elsewhere are correct to pursue policies to ensure maximum integrity in future elections, said Bishop, who supports strict voter ID laws but said he is not familiar enough with other Republican initiatives to say whether they are reasonable and common sense.

"I don't believe it's voter suppression when you ask someone to produce some valid ID to vote," Bishop said. "But we're so tribal right now, people are at each other's throats and you propose anything that has to do with how voting is done in this country and they immediately call you a racist or some other nasty title. It really worries me about the state of our union right now."

Randy Richardville, a Monroe Republican who also served as majority leader in the state Senate, said he is busy with family obligations and will not be attending the conference, as he has in the past.

Richardville, who is vice-chairman of the Monroe County Board of Commissioners, said he has become less proactive about politicsbecause of the extreme divisiveness between the left and right, except at the local level, where he said he does not see that level ofpartisanship.

But like Mike Bishop, Richardville attributed reduced attention at Mackinac more to concerns about traveling during the pandemic than to party fractures. He said this weekend's conference will be animportant early sign of whether the party can unite around Craig as the best candidate to face Whitmer in 2022.

The 2018 split between backers of GOP gubernatorial candidates Bill Schuette, the former attorney general who won the primary, and Brian Calley, the former lieutenant governor who fought hard against him, never really healed and helped Whitmer win, Richardville said.

Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com.Follow him on Twitter @paulegan4. Read more on Michigan politics and sign up for our elections newsletter.

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Michigan GOP to tackle 'election integrity,' critical race theory at Mackinac conference - Detroit Free Press