Middle Names
This is a double repost, about the custom of middle names. It was published in this format in 2011. Today, a middle name is like a body part or an excuse.. everyone has one. It has not always been that way. The part about Presidential middle names was written during the 2008 campaign. Pictures are from The Library of Congress .
With the commentary about the middle name of Barack Hussein Obama, perhaps it is time for a look at the lessons of history. George Washington did not have a middle name. Nor the rest of the early Presidents. The first one to have a middle name (or initial) is John Quincy Adams. J.Q. Adams is the first son of a president to hold the office. The second one proved to be unfortunate.
The next POTUS to show a middle initial was William Henry Harrison. He was the first victim of the Zero Factor, in which Presidents elected in years ending in zero died in office. This tradition was ended by Ronald Wilson Reagan.
Another Zero Factor President, Abraham Lincoln, did not have a middle name. Ulysses S. Grant was born Hiram Ulysses Grant. One legend has a mistake on a school application giving him the middle name Simpson, after his mother’s maiden name. Moving into the twentieth century, William Howard Taft was referred to by all three names.
In many ways, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the first president of the modern age. For some reason, his middle name was frequently used, and the initials FDR became popular. Presidential initials did not become popular again until JFK and LBJ. After FDR went to the fireside chat in the sky, Harry S. Truman became president. The S stood for nothing.
The next president whose middle name was frequently used was John Fitzgerald Kennedy. Could this be a subtle dig at his Irish background, much as the current noise about Barack Hussein Obama? As for Baines and Milhous, those middle names both seemed to fit the personality of the man.
After Lightbulb Lyndon, the use of Presidential middle names went into decline. Gerald Rudolph Ford would be a good trivia question. George Herbert Walker Bush downplayed his quadruple initials, perhaps knowing that many people don’t trust a man with two middle names. George Walker Bush is frequently referred to by his middle initial.
In the 2008 election, we had a dark skinned man with a Muslim middle name. We had a white haired republican with the middle name of Sidney. And we had a married woman, who uses her maiden name as a middle name. Her original middle name is Diane. 2012 saw Willard Mitt Romney try to get elected. In 2016, Bernard Sanders was a Democratic challenger. Mr. Sanders does not have a middle name, leading to an unflattering set of initials.
While researching this feature, PG noticed that many of the early presidents did not have middle names . Apparently, before the American Revolution, middle names were seldom given. For some reason the custom caught on during the 19th century. When America started to draft men for World War I, the draft papers included a space for the middle name.
One possible reason for middle names was population density and increased family size. Many people began to have the same first name (or Christian name) and last name (Surname). Middle names were a way to distinguish between Jimmy Bob Jones and Jimmy Joe Jones. There was possibly a bit of status involved in having more than one name.
Women have long used the maiden name as a middle name after marriage. Girls were often not given middle names for this reason. The hyphenated Maiden-Married name is a fairly recent custom (Which this author hopes is a fad that will go away).
While middle names were originally a decoration, many are now used as a primary identification. PG is referred to as a diminutive of his middle name, which can be confusing when authorities insist on using his first name. The middle name is also a handy alternative for someone who gets tired of the name they are called by. There is also this thought …”I think parents give kids middle names so the kids will know when they are really p****d at them.”
Home Churched
A poem appeared at Chamblee54 yesterday. The pictures were from a photo mural on North Avenue. There were two people in each shot, with a white bar in the middle. The text was adjusted, so that the white bar was a compliment, rather than a distraction. The result was G-d Doesnot Write Books.
There are 20 words used: my thoughts are my business ~ practice outweigh beliefs ~ g-d doesnot write books ~ thought about jesus doesnot ~ affect life after death.
The text comes from a post, at a blog called 22 Words. At the time, comments at 22 words were limited to 22 words. 22w is much more *commercial* now. Here is the story.
Abraham at twentytwowords wrote… “When I asked about churches last week, some of you reminded me you’re not Christian.So…Non-Christian readers, what (non)religion are you?” That is 23 words.
PG answered the original post “home churched”. He decided to answer the follow up question. Unlike most of the others to answer, PG wanted to keep this under 22 words. … PG decided that this label thing was not going to work. Labels belong on jars, and PG’s hair is a half inch over jarhead level. The best solution was to write a list of beliefs.
1. My beliefs are my business. 2. Practice outweighs belief. 3. G-d probably exists. 4. G-d does not write books. 5. Jesus has nothing to do with life after death. This is 25 words. Three words need to go. Line 4 states that G-d does not write books. This implies that G-d does, indeed, exist. Line 3 can be eliminated, and the answer reduced to 22 words.
America is a religious country. To many, this means Christianity. This religion is based on beliefs, rather than practices. The beliefs of Christianity tend to fall into four categories: G-d, the Bible, Jesus, and life after death. There is a lot of disagreement.
There was a comment. Christ Centered Teaching February 17, 2015 at 7:33 pm “So if your thoughts are your business, why share them here with others?” Jesus worshipers are good at arguments.
Religious themes have been used for content in Western art for centuries. Painting, music, and architecture have been devoted to images of Jesus. How many of these image makers are true believers? This is especially true in team sports like music and architecture. Is the bricklayer at the Cathedral saved? Is the gospel music keyboards man born again?
PG has used the bible as text on several occasions. He also uses public domain works by others, including Walt Whitman, William Blake, and Emily Dickinson. Just because you use a text in a graphic work does not mean that you are expressing a belief in the content.
When you take a book of poetry, and use it as a tool of authority, you compromise the beauty of that work. Maybe, by using the poetry of the Bible as text for graphic poems, some of this beauty can be restored. The Jesus worshipers can still use the magic book as a sales tool, promoting a scheme for life after death. The text has been abused for centuries.
Pictures today are from “The Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library”.
Beneduck Arnold
What did one flag say to the other flag? Nothing. It just waved!
What’s red, white, black and blue? Uncle Sam falling down the steps!
What would you get if you crossed Washington’s home with nasty insects? Mt. Vermin!
What did a patriot put on his dry skin? Revo-lotion!
Which colonists told the most jokes? Punsylvanians!
What was General Washington’s favorite tree? The infantry!
Where did George Washington buy his hatchet? At the chopping mall!
What quacks, has webbed feet, and betrays his country? Beneduck Arnold!
Did you hear the one about the Liberty Bell? Yeah, it cracked me up!
What would you get if you crossed a patriot with a small curly-haired dog? Yankee Poodle!
Why did Paul Revere ride his horse from Boston to Lexington? The horse was too heavy to carry!
What happened as a result of the Stamp Act? The Americans licked the British!
This is a repost. Picture are from The Library of Congress.
Dr. McWhorter Vs Dr. Peterson
“Jordan Peterson Questioned By Linguist John McWhorter on Pronoun Stance” is the video that started it all. Dr. Jordan Bernt Peterson, aka “The stupid person’s smart person,” was appearing at the Aspen Ideas Festival. During the Q&A, he was queried by Dr. John Hamilton McWhorter V, who is one of “the Black guys on Bloggingheaads TV”. The moderator was Bari Weiss, the namer of the Intellectual Dark Web. PG posted the video link to a *radical community* facebook page, with the note “This is a thoughtful conversation about gender and pronouns.” Some were not amused.
In the video, JHM asks JBP “I teach trans students. And I’m asked often to call people singularly they. It started probably about four years ago. It struck me as very odd. I’m 52. And some of them you can tell that it’s coming from a very deep place. That’s how they feel, and they deeply need to be called they. Some of them, my horse sense says, that they’re kind of enjoying giving me a certain shock, and there’s a certain theatrical element. That’s my horse sense … my general feeling has been that whatever they ask I just go with it, and let’s change the usage of the pronouns because we have a lot to do. … You said that how you make the difference in deciding these cases is that you have psychological training, and you can tell. What I want to know is, for my own elucidation and also because many of us wondered but then it kind of went by: How do you know?”
JBP replied. “Well, first of all I wouldn’t know … I would be willing to do that despite the fact that I might be wrong. Having said that, in any reasonable situation I would err on the side of addressing the person in the manner in which they want to be addressed. But that’s not the issue for me. The issue is that now I’m compelled by law to do so. It’s like: No, not doing it. Not now, because it’s compelled by law, so that’s the end of the game so far as I’m concerned. There’s no excuse for compelling it by law. I don’t think it was an isolated legislative move. I think it was part and parcel of a whole series of legislative moves that have been made. I think it’s an attempt by a certain radical ideology to get the linguistic upper hand, which I think is a terrible thing to do…. ”
Bill C-16 was a proposal in the Canadien Parliament. It would, essentially, extend Civil Rights protection to Gender Identity issues. The bill was passed by Parliament, and is now law. JBP gained some fame, and notoriety, with his opposition to C16.
One issue in this video is whether, or not, the use of non-preferred pronouns is against the law. According to Brenda Cossman, a professor of law at the University of Toronto, Peterson is “fundamentally mischaracterizing” Bill C-16. “I don’t know if he’s misunderstanding it, but he’s mischaracterizing it,” Cossman says. … Cossman says it seems Peterson is trying to argue that the misuse of pronouns could constitute hate speech. “I don’t think there’s any legal expert that would say that [this] would meet the threshold for hate speech in Canada,” she says. Our courts have a very high threshold for what kind of comments actually constitutes hate speech, and the nature of speech would have to be much more extreme than simply pronoun misuse, according to Cossman.”
During the Facebook conversation, PG made this comment: ” I agree with Dr. McWhorter that, as a matter of respect, you should call someone by their preferred pronoun. I may have doubts about their sincerity, but I will call them what they want to be called. … I am not familiar with the C-16 struggle. Apparently, there was some Canadien legislation regarding these issues. While I don’t have a problem calling someone they, I really don’t see this as an appropriate issue for legal action. That may not be what the proposed law said, and I don’t want to research it now. However, if C-16 mandated singular they, then I would agree with Dr. Peterson…. which might be the only time I ever agree with him.” Now it appears that this notion … that the law requires the use of singular they … is a creation of JBP’s overheated imagination.
The video linked above does not include a section of the discussion preceding the question by JHM. This exchange changes the character of the conversation between JBP and JHM. PG did not know about this previous exchange when he posted his ill fated comment on facebook. Here is the exchange, between BW and JBP.
BW: “You are often characterized, at least in the mainstream press, as being transphobic. If you had a student come to you and say, I was born female, I now identify as male, I want you to call me by male pronouns. Would you say yes to that?” JBP: “Well, it would depend on the student and the context and why I thought they were asking me and what I believe their demand actually characterized, and all of that. Because that can be done in a way that is genuine and acceptable, and a way that is manipulative and unacceptable. And if it was genuine and acceptable then I would have no problem with it. And if it was manipulative and unacceptable then not a chance.”
JBP said one thing first…. that he would call a student *they* if it was “genuine and acceptable.” After the questions by JHM, the focus became whether, or not, the law was requiring the usage of non-binary pronouns. This is not the first time that JBP has been too slick for his own good.
Was the question by JHM sincere, or was he trolling JBP? JHM was clearly playing with JBP. “Are you saying that psychological theory has nothing to teach us about this? Because you’re talking around my question. You’re gorgeously articulate. You’re smarter than me. Does psychology have anything to teach us or not? Yes or no?
It is tough to say. It may have been a combination of sincerity and rhetoric. Whatever the motivation there, the question struck a nerve with PG. It is easier to just be careful, use the preferred pronouns, and keep your concerns to yourself. Trans issues are a part of modern life. You don’t have to understand everything.
Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. The quotes are from a transcript published in this artice, Jordan Peterson Comes to Aspen.
Copperhead Snake
Protesters Gather At Pride, 4th Precinct After Mpls. Police Shooting ~ Neighbors Recount Moment Of Fatal Mpls. Police Shooting ~ White Extinction Anxiety ~ this is just the beginning ~ gizmodo Gizmodo Media Group is an online media company and blog network operated by Univision Communications in its Fusion Media Group division. The company was created from assets acquired from Gawker Media during its bankruptcy in 2016. On June 10, 2016, Gawker Media filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after the company was ordered to pay $115 million in compensatory damages and a further $25 million in punitive damages in Bollea v. Gawker. On August 16, 2016, Univision Communications purchased Gawker for $135 million. The purchase did not include the flagship website Gawker. It included the websites Gizmodo, Jezebel, Deadspin, Kotaku, Jalopnik, and Lifehacker. Univision named the unit Gizmodo Media Group after one of its blogs, Gizmodo, in an effort to distance itself from the Gawker name. ~ woke support group ~ Muhammad Ashraf, the president of the Virginia-based Nationwide Chauffeured Services, said Monday that replacing the car could cost tens of thousands of dollars. ~ gizmodo thread ~ Animated Video Tells the Story of Jean-Paul Sartre & Albert Camus’ Famous Falling Out (1952) ~ Patrick Henry to Robert Pleasants 18 Jan. 1773 Would any one believe that I am Master of Slaves of my own purchase! I am drawn along by ye. general inconvenience of living without them, I will not, I cannot justify it. ~ Employee at Obion County Highway Department says he found racist manual on the job ~ Copperhead snake bites Alabama girl swimming in pool ~ Donald Trump’s 54 most outrageously over-the-top lines from his North Dakota speech ~ Did Hollywood Whitewash Stonewall? ~ i cheated on her ~ The Tawdry and Dumb Nazi Charge ~ I found this on a review of my blog. .@JohnHMcWhorter “Trump was not elected because of racism. … Trump was elected because people are tired of being called racist ~ spheres ~ Hit Parade: The Deadbeat Club Edition, Part 1 ~ @KaivanShroff Maxine Waters was lectured by white elites on both the Right & Left for encouraging peaceful protest. As a result, she has received death threats and been forced to cancel events. But Sarah Sanders gets extra security because she didn’t get to gorge at Red Hen. #WHITEPRIVILEGE ~ Kendrick Lamar’s Reason Why White People Can’t Say The N-Word Deserves A Standing Ovation ~ All-you-can eat restaurant shuts down after customers ate all they could ~ 31: Interview with Atlanta Spoken Word Poet, Theresa Davis ~ On Pride’s Radical Potential: The Question Isn’t ‘Who Should Be at Pride?’ But ‘What Are We Doing?’ ~ Jordan Peterson Questioned By Linguist John McWhorter on Pronoun Stance ~ Today’s protests in Iran suggest revolution is brewing ~ I had a bright idea. @chamblee54 Was the Red Hen/Sarah H. Sanders episode a set up? When i tried to post it to faceook, i got this error message: Your Request Couldn’t be Processed There was a problem with this request. We’re working on getting it fixed as soon as we can. ~ If a hockey player is taking a shot, he does not want to go high ~ Is the condescending approval of #MaxineWaters racist? Would a white woman acting like that be cheered on? ~ @NeinQuarterly I once knew an optimist. Drowned in a glass half full of water. ~ @MAGAusafirst Insult the voters you need to get elected for president by calling them deplorable #OddWaysToInsult ~ Civility is not for the benefit of your perceived enemy. Civility is for your benefit. When the other side drags you down to their level of comic book bad behavior, the oppressor wins. ~ Civility is not for the benefit of your perceived enemy. Civility is for your benefit. When the other side drags you down to their level of comic book bad behavior, the oppressor wins. ~ Speaking of appeasement… after a recent Trump dump, the press was trotting out the Neville Chamberlain comparisons. The text of Mr. Chamberlain’s “peace for our time” comment was trotted out. It seems as though Mr. Chamberlain used the phrase “peace with honor” in his comments. This was a favorite saying of Richard Nixon, when he was trying to get us out of Vietnam. ~ here is the poem from last night at java monkey. This was performed before the storm hit:
woman the authorities came to blame ~ dye her hair clumsy red profanity
remember me to one who knows their shame ~ be governed by purple insanity
a memory is all you still owe me ~ tomorrow will never be nonchalant
for doin’ what you did and gettin’ free ~ know what you need but I know what you want
coulda been the champion of the world ~ vagabond rapping at your door unfurled
says be in my dream if i can be in yours ~ i just might tell you the truth she deplores
vagabond rapping at your door unfurled ~ but I used a little too much force
i just might tell you the truth she deplores ~ handful of rain tempting you to divorce
but I used a little too much force ~ says be in my dream if i can be in yours
handful of rain tempting you to divorce ~ coulda been the champion of the world
pictures today are from The Library of Congress. ~ selah
Page 99
PG woke up one Sunday morning, and started to look in his archive. He found a post from July 2009, Genius And Heroin Part One. The G&H book had been mentioned in a couple of blogs, The Page 69 Test and The Page 99 Test. Both of these blogs are still publishing nine years later. The idea is to critique a book by what is on page 69, or page 99.
Reckless Daughter: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell is a book PG adopted from the Chamblee library. A journalist had a series of interviews with Joni, and morphed a book out of it. Maybe a look at pages 69 and 99 will give us some text to go between the pictures.
On page 69, Joni is a young lady, performing in Miami Beach. She has had a baby, left her husband, and is trying to make it as a musician. One night in a club, David Crosby saw her, and saw the future. The two became a couple, which did not last very long. Joni and David went to California, where David introduced her to some buddies in the music business. David produced Joni’s first album, and apparently did not know what he was doing. Both of them moved on.
On page 99, Joni has put out her second album, and is gaining momentum. It is 1969, and America is in turmoil over Vietnam. The author, David Yaffe, goes into some detail about the mood of America in 1969. Mr. Yaffe was born in 1973. Why does he discuss the mood of 1969?.
Pictures, for this Sunday morning space filler, are from The Library of Congress. The Montana photographs were taken by Marion Post Wolcott in August, 1941.
The Night Muhammad Ali Fought In Atlanta
Many have noted that Muhammad Ali lit the Olympic torch in 1996. Few seem to remember another Atlanta appearance from the former Cassius Clay. It happened October 26, 1970, at the Municipal Auditorium. To get to this point, lets borrow a few lines from a Courier-Journal Ali Timeline.
1960 – “Clay defeats Zbigniew Pietrzykowski of Poland on Sept. 5 to win the light-heavyweight boxing gold medal at the Olympics in Rome…”
1962 – “Clay hears Elijah Muhammad speak for the first time. He meets another Nation of Islam leader, Malcolm X, who becomes a friend and adviser. – On March 9, the military draft board classifies Clay 1-A, meaning he is fit and available to be called into the Army…”
1964 -” Because of a low score on the Army intelligence test, Clay is reclassified 1-Y, not qualified for military service, in January. “I said I was The Greatest,” he explains. “I never said I was the smartest.” – Clay scores a stunning seventh-round technical knockout over 7-1 favorite Sonny Liston on Feb. 25 at the Miami Convention Center, winning the world heavyweight championship at age 22. – In response to a reporter’s question the day after the fight, Clay confirms he is a member of the Nation of Islam, saying: “I believe in Allah and in peace. … I’m not a Christian anymore. … Followers of Allah are the sweetest people in the world. They don’t tote weapons. They pray five times a day.” – A rift grows between Elijah Muhammad and Malcolm X. Ali sides with Elijah, causing grief for Malcolm. – Casting off his “slave name,” Clay adopts the temporary name Cassius X. Later he announces that Elijah has bestowed on him the name Muhammad Ali. The name means “Praiseworthy One.”…”
1965 – “Ali knocks out Liston in the first round of their rematch, before only 4,280 fans in Lewiston, Maine, on May 25. Liston falls under a “phantom” punch that apparently few people see, giving rise to suspicions that he threw the fight. Former champion Joe Louis eventually declares Ali “unfit” to hold the title. – In October, former champion Floyd Patterson says: “Cassius Clay is disgracing himself and the Negro race.” On Nov. 22, Ali delivers a punishing defeat to Patterson, in part, he says, because Patterson refuses to call him Ali….”
1966 – “With the Vietnam War heating up, the Army lowers test-score standards, reclassifying Ali 1-A — fit for service. – “Man, I ain’t got no quarrel with them Viet Cong,” he says to reporters who call him at home in Miami. He later explains that “no Viet Cong ever called me nigger.” – Ali asks to be reclassified a conscientious objector to military service. A hearing officer sides with him, but the draft board keeps him 1-A, armed with a U.S. Justice Department opinion that Ali’s objections to military service are political not religious….”
1967 – “On April 28, Ali refuses induction into the Army in Houston.” “It is the light of my consciousness as a Muslim minister and my own personal convictions that I take my stand in rejecting the call to be inducted in the armed services,” Ali stated after refusing induction on April 28, 1967. “I have searched my conscience and I find I cannot be true to my belief in my religion by accepting such a call.” He was convicted of draft evasion on June 20, 1967. Ali was sentenced to five years in prison and fined $10,000, the maximum penalty for the offense. He remained free on a $5,000 bond while he appealed his conviction. Ali was also stripped of the World Heavyweight Championship by the New York State Athletic Commission and the World Boxing Association, systematically denied a boxing license in every state and stripped of his passport. “
For three and a half years, Mr. Ali was unable to fight in the ring. The WBA had a tournament, and installed their own champion. People tried to set up a fight for Mr. Ali, but were blocked by politicians, and state boxing authorities. California Governor Ronald Reagan said “That draft dodger will never fight in my state, period.” Then someone had the idea to have the fight in Atlanta.
Atlanta has never been a boxing town. There was no boxing commission. The Municipal Auditorium, the only venue that could host, was a dump. As Ring magazine tells the story: “So it was the height of irony that it was Atlanta, a city that occupied the heart of the Deep South, that provided the breakthrough. State Senator Leroy Johnson and Governor Lester Maddox helped pave the way for a most improbable return by persuading the City of Atlanta Athletic Commission to grant Ali a boxing license on Aug. 12, 1970. Shortly thereafter, it was announced Ali would fight Jerry Quarry on Oct. 26 at the City Auditorium in Atlanta. The bout was scheduled for 15 rounds, probably in recognition of Ali’s status as lineal heavyweight champion.” (Other sources say that Governor Maddox was opposed to hosting the fight, but was powerless to stop it.)
The opponent was Jerry Quarry, whose white skin was apparent that night. His obituary notes: :His most famous night was in Atlanta, Georgia, in October 1970, when he was the “fall-guy” for Ali’s comeback from his three- year exile. Quarry was stopped because of a badly cut eye in the third round. It brought him his biggest payday, $338,000. … By 1995 he was in the care of his brother James, and was suffering from severe pugilistic dementia.” Jerry Quarry died January 3, 1999.
The fight was not much of a contest. It lasted three rounds, before the referee stopped the match. Mr. Ali fought for ten more years, and regained the Heavyweight Championship twice. “On June 28, 1971, the Supreme Court unanimously overturns Ali’s 4-year-old draft conviction, saying that his claims as a conscientious objector were based on religion and were sincere.”
The fight was the occasion for a display of black pride, and black money. The New Yorker essayist George Plimpton remembered that invasion of the Harlem peacocks in their enormous purple Cadillacs: “I’d never seen crowds as fancy, especially the men – felt hatbands and feathered capes, and the stilted shoes, the heels like polished ebony, and many smoking stuff in odd meerschaum pipes.”
“The times reported that the bout was like “a page out of the roaring twenties. … The ladies had beads down to the hem of their maxi-skirts. One man wore an ankle length mink coat, with a high hat of mink to match. … Diana Ross sat in the forth row, ringside, with a bouffant, Afro-American hair-do that stretched out 10 inches on each side.” Many of those in attendance were invited to a party.
“Engraved invitations to one party in particular had been passed around to the hustlers in New York a week earlier and in Atlanta in the days leading up to the fight. The invitations announced that “Fireball” was throwing a party at 2819 Handy Drive, in Collier Heights.
The Handy Drive house happened to be one of several properties that “Chicken Man” Williams owned. He’d given a friend, an Atlantan-turned-New-Yorker known as “Fireball,” permission to use the house. He’d even helped build a craps table the week before so all the big-time gamblers who were sure to show up could “roll the bones.”
Williams’ girlfriend, Barbara Smith, skipped the fight to help prepare for the party. She and two girlfriends were busy in the kitchen when they heard the front door open. The fight was still going on, so Smith went to the front, expecting to meet an early bird. She was greeted by three men in ski masks standing in the hallway. All were armed; one was pointing a shotgun at her face. …
An estimated 80 to 200 people had arrived at the house expecting to party, only to be fleeced by masked men with shotguns. According to news accounts, the victims were led to the basement, then ordered to strip to their underwear, throw all their valuables in a pile and lay on the floor…
As more victims arrived, floor space in the basement became scarce, so the gunmen ordered the victims to lie on top of each other. Cash and jewelry was swept into pillowcases. That went on for hours as more and more people kept showing up. By 3 a.m., the half-naked victims were stacked like cordwood on top of each other.
Not one shot was fired. But as they left, the gunmen took Smith and one of her friends hostage and told everyone else to stay put. Three hours later, they dropped the women off on the other side of town and gave them $10 each for cab fare. By that time, the investigation was underway.
Creative Loafing has a terrific story about the party at Chicken Man’s house. If you have a few minutes, it is worth your time. Ditto for this newspaper story, in the sucky google books format.
A key person in the story is J.D. Hudson. One of the first eight black Atlanta policemen, Lt. Hudson was Mr. Ali’s bodyguard the night of the fight. Lt. Hudson wound up conducting the investigation of the party at Chicken Man’s house. Lt. Hudson met Gordon “Chicken Man” Williams, under rather unpleasant circumstances, in 1949.
Lt. Hudson never suspected Chicken Man of being part of the robbery. “From the time he took over the case, Hudson says, he knew Williams wasn’t responsible — even though other investigators already had pinned the crime on him. For one thing, Hudson could place Williams at the fight at the time the gunmen were at the house setting up the crime.
For another, Hudson says, “I knew [Williams] wasn’t dumb enough to pull a stunt like that. This was a man who ran [a] million-dollar operation from a pay phone on a street corner. He was smart. He could’ve run IBM or Coke. There’s no way he would’ve risked all that to pay somebody off. This was pulled off by a bunch of young thugs who were trying to knock over a party, and when they got there and saw how big it was, they improvised.”
Chicken Man went to prison in the seventies, and became a minister. He served as the Pastor of the Salem Baptist Church. Gordon Williams died December 6, 2014. J.D.Hudson died June 4, 2009. The men who robbed the party goers were killed a few months after the fight.
Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. This is a repost.
Catalog Part Nine
Sonnets are the gateway drug. Fourteen lines, iambic pentameter, abab rhyme scheme. The first eight lines are part one, the last six lines are part two. There is more to it, but I am not an academic. I do poetry to have fun, and create beauty. When you find that free verse is too costly, the structure of restrictive poetic formats can be liberating. Someone named Shakespeare wrote sonnetsr.
The villanelle is the next domino to drop. It is not related to Nell Fenwick, the girlfriend of Dudley Dooright, although it does have a similar name. The villanelle is nineteen lines long, and has a formula of repeating lines. Only two rhyming sounds are used, so poets like words with lots of rhyming possibilities. The most famous example of the villanelle is Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, by Dylan Thomas. A villanelle below is why did the chicken commit suicide
The pantoum is another form based on repeating lines, in a disconcerting order. It can be combined with the sonnet to create the shakestoum. Here, the first eight lines of the sonnet stand as originally written. The second six lines of the sonnet are repeated twice, in a different order. An example of the shakestoum is what did the playtex bra say to the hat? Poetry does not have to be serious.
There are dozens of Poetry Types. The haiku is beyond easy, and can be fun. The acrostic… where the first letter of every line forms a word … is included in this collection. My name has 14 letters, so writing an Mckinnon Luther acrostic sonnet was an offer I could not refuse. Other poems to maybe someday explore include sestina, ghazel, and contrapuntal.
why did the chicken commit suicide
is it a lie or can it be true – she wanted to get to the other side
always looking for fine feathered bride – if the lips are moving that is a clue
why did the chicken commit suicide – a blaze of glory like bonnie and clyde
left nothing but a greasy residue – she wanted to get to the other side
not a good day to swallow her pride – did not get invited to the barbeque
why did the chicken commit suicide – facing a future battered and fried
could not get away to drink a cold brew – she wanted to get to the other side
tired of hearing ’bout yardbird genocide – weary of all the cock a doodle do
why did the chicken commit suicide – she wanted to get to the other side
what did the playtex bra say to the hat? – you go on ahead i’ll give these two a lift.
why didn’t the strip club hire the big cat – because she was a cheetah get my drift
what did one blue eye to the other say? – something smells between us out at large
i tried to buy a neutron the other day – shopkeeper gave it to me without charge
she went out with a girl called simile – doesn’t know what she metaphor you see
a mirror photography career – I could see myself doing it next year
doesn’t know what she metaphor you see – need to sell my vacuum cleaner she fussed
I could see myself doing it next year – ’cause right now it is just collecting dust
need to sell my vacuum cleaner she fussed – a mirror photography career
’cause right now it is just collecting dust – she went out with a girl called simile
is it a lie or can it be true
a perfect example white privilege grump- if the lips are moving that is a clue
oozing pollution what would jesus do- here’s your nose back thanks for the bump
is it a lie or can it be true- colostomy regurgitation stew
remember bette davis what a dump- if the lips are moving that is a clue
see it from a different point of view– little better than your prodigal chump
is it a lie or can it be true- minimum payment was way overdue
true confessions of kardashian rump- if the lips are moving that is a clue
got the right church but the wrong pew- continental style of forrest gump
is it a lie or can it be true- if the lips are moving that is a clue
This wraps up the catalog project. When this thing got started, I did not intend to publish posts about what I found. The idea was to go in, make a list of what I had, and identify the good poems for later use. When I got into 2014, I began to want to post some of the better work. At this time, I am going to post some poems from 2013.
The graphic poems originally were a response to prompts from the trifecta writing contest. The first graphic poem was Laundry, posted October 4, 2013. The text is placed on the right side, instead of in the middle. It was a learning curve. The first poem I want to reprint here is another trifecta prompt.
such a groovy player – permanent scare
what is hidden in there – bigger than her derriere
life is not fair – try not to stare
say a quiet prayer – for the girl with big hair
November 10, 2013, was the 100th anniversary of James Broughton’s birth. I had briefly met Mr. Broughton in 1983, and attended a fund raising event for a film about Mr. Broughton, Big Joy. There was a later blog post, Pauline Kael, Gina James, And James Broughton. On the 100th birthday party (Mr. Broughton died in 1999,) there was a celebration in Atlanta. This poem is the result.
it is this – when misters kiss
shout and twist – follow your own weird
naked dancer splinter risk – 100 birthdays 14 miss
twenty reader poetry bliss – remember in november
big joy in the granite hall – it was over much too soon
he and she and you and y’all – erogeny it is this
Call To Dinner
pg was talking on his phone – while getting ready to go
to dinner he saw his wallet – and car keys and looked for
the phone before realizing – he was talking on that phone
Morticia Addams Had Lunch – with lily munster – lurch served them
having waited tables – since the divorce – morticia left a generous tip
lily got drunk and tried – to leave without paying – thing caught lily
amanda palmer drops the veil – to become a viral sensation
converts rage into mammary tale – forgoes the request for donation
the daily mail saw her boob – they knew the tit not the tune
copacetic reply delights you tube – dangerous lady honeymoon
miss palmer shed her kimono – to call out twat misogyny
much prettier than yoko ono – more musical than deuteronomy
Catalog Part Eight
comma splice walks into a bar it has a drink and then leaves
gerund and infinitive walk into a bar drinking to drink
three intransitive verbs walk into a bar they sit they drink they leave
First They Came
first they came for the weirdos i said nothing because i was normal
then they came for those who frowned i said they have a negative attitude
they came for the lonely and depressed i said nothing because it is their choice
then they came for those they label racist i said nothing i do not defend racism
then they came for me there was no one left to speak up
#SignsOfANeighborFromHell Part One
infected tree falling in the driveway – bathtub on the porch toilet in the dell
sneak out of diner when it’s time to pay – aromatic children smoking dog smell
talk about the babysitter out loud – say this is better than birmingham
garden gnome has pitchfork and crowd – junior plays hopscotch on a pentagram
#signsofaneighborfromhell parts two and three
these are the #signsofaneighborfromhell – dog tries to kill one more chicken
brimstone barbeque with a gnarly smell – cooked on a charcoal grill in the kitchen
sacrifice of goats while you are sleeping – has a personal relationship with jesus
horns on the head pointy tail squeaking – talking in tongues about his penis
she knocks to ask you for a cup of meth – grumpy postal worker with bad breath
big hair honey smokes marlboro butts – all the little boys have mullet haircuts
she lights the garden grill with her finger – fat children ask if are you a swinger
alluvial shit piss and corruption – excremental feculent forgotten
festering fornication suction – dental hygiene of johnny rotten
contaminated vessel of disrepute – wipe silverware clean with your shirt
ewwie gooey vomitory for the loot – grunt and groan diarrhea squirt
bloviating dumpster of human drool – colostomy regurgitation stew
pornographic penile pustule – oozing pollution what would jesus do
It is now time for #NationalPoetryMonth, and another thirty for thirty.
joy of finding change in a payphone – wear a dress backwards for charm
hillary clinton for president crone – def leppard drummer with right arm
hairball retrieved from shower drain – can be dried out and glued on tight
oreo stuffing fights toothpaste pain – two wrongs do not make you right
out of toilet paper? find a doggie – lick mud you find at a port a pottie
say “you” instead of “u” in a text – when you cry wolf at night after sex
grace to know the difference between – true wisdom and clever string of sheen
blow job boner boogie woogie boo boo – freaky french fry mambo mama gobble
cunnilingus cock sucker gaggle cuckoo – carpetmuncher deepthroat wigglewobble
pussy peepee penis pinga pecker – fellatio hair pie hookup hoover head
johnson junkjuice knobjob chubbydecker – monica lewinsky muff diver fred
skin flute salad sister sixtynine slurp – wang chung verga down wet willie spurt
glimmer lady clitoris dancing stupor – doober your uber upside my goober
lick swallow cowboy sucky fucky witch – gonna suck the chrome off a trailerhitch
henry charles chinaski bukowski – would hate my sonnet if he had a chance
at coffee drinking open mic poetry – dickhater georgia gothic romance
hank thinks poems that rhyme are a bore – like baseball nuns or men who cry
some people think he died in ninety four – california dirt will tell you don’t try
hank still has a racetrack episode – bets on number nine horse to kill
with a twenty fished out of the commode – after taking a dump on top of the bill
forever spitting out poems like hot turds – on the morning after beer drunk words
maybe i never just went very honestly – swashbuckling rutabaga mannequins
i hope that i should but i can’t literally – skedaddle spelunker shenanigans
i’ll try but i’ve got a problem absolutely – brouhaha pumpernickel appetite
irregardless i have to stuff things really – quintessential humbuggery morphodite
strumpet ragamuffin charlie mingus – discombobulated cunnilingus
umpteen bunghole kaleidoscope fantasy – nincompoop fooey latrine manatee
cuckhold phalanx tomfoolery bongo – kumquat lollygag idiot mambo
caucasian opinion is like an asshole – it should be clean quiet kept out of sight
unlike a preacher who covets your soul – and motivates you to go out and fight
put labels on jars not on my brother – conservative racist or liberal
or terrorist who’s always the other – words that divide us like a cannibal
is it a lie or can it be true – if the lips are moving that is a clue
don’t even wait for demagogue shout – the devil knows the bible in and out
media manipulation to spend – never forget we are all god’s children
#ImShowingMyAge
turn the black and white TV knob slow – watch two five eight eleven if you dare
stay up late for the johnny carson show – then television goes off the air
just putting on my shoes is a chore – either take viagra or be obsolete
pay cash for cassettes at record store – dancing to the wqxi beat
leisure suit jacket looked pretty sporty – what once was a 6 pack is now a 40
sing along with hee haw made me smile – where’s the star on a rotary phone dial
no ma’am I dont know what idk means – why would anyone ever say cool beans
#MyDogStoleMyPhoneAnd
#mydogstolemyphoneand found legs to hump – acts like he hasn’t done anything wrong
tweets more coherent than @realdonaldtrump – tail dialing friends taking hits from a bong
invites buddies over for poker night – sent fifi selfies of his doggie junk
texted stormy spaniels got in a fight – called on uber he’s at the bar drunk
ordered pizza with pineapple donuts – listed pals with a picture of their butts
rude message calling our cat a jerk – told teacher i didn’t do my homework
joined barkersonly.com to get dates – when I get a call the stomach vibrates
#BadHygieneTips
bathe in swamp water for a youthful glow – lose your toothbrush? find a live weasel
go lick your vibrator clean tomorrow – dollar store cologne instead of diesel
smoke the breath mints in the urinal – floss is too flimsy try a razor blade
fill both sides of toilet paper y’all – lick bathroom floor at the colonnade
bug spray deodorant in a pinch – perfume covers republican stench
you never have to wipe a clean cut crap – if you piss in the sink with spinal tap
use meth to whiten and strengthen smile – kinky groovy sex at walmart lifestyle
Catalog Part Seven
Wonder Weasel
shake hands with a salami cluster bomb – its got a beat you can dance to it
whitewash the fence with huck and tom – spray whipped cream on a banana split
trigger therapeutic trouser snake – satin head serpent of carnal knowledge
tenderize lumberjack happy tube steak – put mr. kleenex’s kids through college
pull your own baloney pony weight – put relish on your hot dog spaghetti
play tag with your pink torpedo mate – wax one-eyed wonder weasel chevy
plug in semen extraction toaster – calibrate satanic surge protector
ram the ham secret sauce roaster – tip off the crazy hand jive inspector
my faithful darling my sweet-eyed – blackguard schoolgirl be my whore
my mistress as much as you like – your cunt does another dirty thing
your hot cheeks and eyes my little cuntie – fuck your two rosy-tipped bubbies
she wants me to roger her arseways – to come on your face and squirt it over
small things give me a great cockstand – the horn I had was not big enough
I am going to lie down and pull at myself – till I come lie frigging all day looking
here in body now is the place to be – it is never too late to do nothing mate
invite thoughts in don’t serve them tea – to talk to god pray to listen meditate
always remember breathe to be free
White Trash Tinkle
blue eye devil betty crocker – big nose cabbage degenerate
becky bubba crisco cracker – buffy clampett confederate
lily munster elvis fruitcake – yogurt yuppie yaku winkle
ofay opie paleface pancake – whiskey tango white trash tinkle
vegas showman ill-fitting trouser tubes – unpleasant smell emanating outside
stick figure curly hair smiley face boobs – bride of frankenstein makeup petrified
deodorant congealed to little chunks – ensnared among matted armpit jungle
past vomitorium to the privy drunks – pungent bluecheese crumble antifungal
clutching empty bottle of thunderbird – scent that smells like embalming fluid flan
mutilated corpse of mortimer snerd – a cunning plan hatched by a punning clan
muzak thrum of manilow’s greatest hits – bury her husband’s body bleeding misfits
puff the magic dragon fellatio – play a million songs bubba can sing
penis pleasure palace arpeggio – the oral majority happening
happy focus on whimsical motion – gentle enjoyment for the clitoris
magic magenta pillow commotion – liberate sodomy brontosaurus
parade every nerve ending he has – tease us like lovely horndogs we are
play over 6,000 nerve ending jazz – pretend your tongue is a feather guitar
embody purply sensitivity – harmony ecstasy festivity
#NationalTellAJokeDay
two hungry cannibals eating a clown – does this fellow taste funny to you slim
this guy walked into a bar with a frown – man should have looked in front of him
what is a bee born in may a maybe – there was a little girl in nantucket
prisoner takes own mug shot a cell-fie – how do you keep a moron in suspense
Cross The Road
where’s the best place to hide a dead body – try page two of google search results
why was six afraid of seven mommy – because seven ate nine happy adults
need more gates around graveyards because – the people are just dying to get in
why did van gogh become painter who draws – he just didn’t have an ear for music my friend
why did the old duck cross the road kick’n – to prove that he wasn’t just a chicken
why did the duck get arrested out back – maybe because he was peddling quack
why did the chicken commit suicide – he wanted to get to the other side
watermelons marry they cant elope – didn’t like my beard but it grew on me
are the frogs high they are smoking croak – what kind of bee makes milk? a boo bee
to hurt lady gaga poker face taint – you count cows with a cowculator fist
whats red smells like blue paint red paint – goodbye boiling water you will be mist
#aduckwalksintoabar waddle it be – sends pretty lady unwanted duck pic
self medication for the mallardy – get a quack fix from heron dealer nick
a dyslexic duck walks into a bra – gets hammered skips out on his bill
i don’t know the tune but i’ll wing it raw – its donald duck not donald trump chill
Caucasian Cha Cha
many opinions ’bout white folks who dance – some look down their nose at the spectacle
we are having fun so we take the chance – so what if its not quite respectable
some people don’t like caucasian cha cha – no matter what we do or don’t wear
giggle and point and call our moves caca – we will have too much fun to care
jitterbug watusi macarena – suzy q boogie woogie mambo
pom pom jelly roll mosh pit polka – two step electric slide foxtrot disco
an opinion is often compared to a hole – lay down the beat and light up your soul
One of the stars at Java Monkey Speaks performed at a festival in North Carolina. When he got back, there was a comment about white people there, who like goofy looking dancing more that wearing deodorant. What this person did not know was that people who like dancing, more than deodorant, are my kind of people. This poem was read the next week. The star poet, who inspired this protest, was hobnobbing in the lobby while this poem was read.
no matter your childish protestation – jitterbug watusi macarena
decay and ruin of civilization – pom pom jelly roll mosh pit polka
crafting a wig from waterlogged hair – can can charleston madison rumba
g-d is oblivious to your prayer – fandango mashed potato cha cha
a banal and empty platitude piss – two step electric slide foxtrot mambo
will tumble with you into the abyss – suzy q boogie woogie disco
Walk Into A Bar
past present future walk into a bar – heard through the grapevine it was tense
why did the cow cross the road over thar – to get to the udder side of the fence
ham’n cheese sandwich walks into the station – bartender says that we don’t serve food
see the hot new movie constipation – would go but it hasn’t come out yet dude
would you like the milk in a sack son – no dad you can keep it in the carton
how do you make the holy water fit – you just boil the living hell out of it
what did one volcano say to the other – volcano i lava you like a brother
bungee jumping hit bungee speed bump – running with lorena bobbitt scissors
could not remember safe word sisters – was the proofreader for donald trump
look ma no hands hold my beer applaud – erection lasted over five hours
all you can eat marijuana flowers – talk about fight club double dare g-d
peroxide leaches through skull tennessee – hillary clinton suicided me
left iron on tweeting from the bathroom – forgot that jesus flew out of the tomb
wanted to try drano bubble bath – swiped right on hallelujah psychopath
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