California Court Cites Me

Ok. I know that a blog is no place to brag. However, today a California court ruled that a prior juvenile conviction could not later be used to enhance a sentence for a subsequent crime committed as an adult. What is notable about this decision is that I had articulated this position in a published article that I penned while in law school. (http://www.cardozolawreview.com/PastIssues/SCHNEIDER.WEBSITE.pdf)

My basic argument was that the Supreme Court in Apprendi v. New Jersey had stated that except for the fact of a prior conviction, anything that increased a sentence beyond the statutory maximum must be submitted to a jury and proved beyond a reasonable doubt. The Supreme Court did not require prior convictions to be submitted to a jury under the theory that the defendant had already received due process in the prior adjudication. Included in due process is the right to a jury trial. However, juveniles do not have a right to a jury trial. Hence, I argue that after Apprendi, a juvenile adjudication in which there was no right to a jury trial cannot be used to later enhance an adult sentence.

Today, a California court agreed with me. http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/opinions/documents/H028798A.PDF

"The sole issue in this appeal is whether it is constitutional to use juvenile adjudications to increase the maximum punishment for an offense, in light of the United States Supreme Court’s opinions in Apprendi v. New Jersey (2000) 530 U.S. 466 (Apprendi) and Blakely v. Washington (2004) 542 U.S. 296 (Blakely).In concluding that it is not, we respectfully disagree with our colleagues on this court and others, and join the small but growing number of courts across the country that have likewise concluded that Apprendi and its progeny compel us to recognize that the Sixth Amendment right to a jury trial is an integral part of the process that is due before a prior conviction may be used to increase the maximum sentence for a criminal offense."

Although I expect this case to be appealed to the California Supreme Court, it is an important development in the criminal law. Allowing juvenile convictions to later enhance adult sentences allows the State to pull a bait and switch on the juvenile defendant. In exchange for a more lenient justice system, the juvenile gives up certain constitutional protections, namely the right to a jury trial. However, if that juvenile commits a crime as an adult, the State argues that the juvenile conviction should be used to enhance a sentence as if the juvenile conviction was just like any other conviction. Such a process allows states to make an end run around Constitutional due process.

Anyway, I don't know if any of you will find this interesting or important. I certainly was excited. I just gave an interview to a San Francisco legal journal called "The Reporter," and I understand there may be an article on Thursday if anyone is interested.

Colts Adjust, Pats Go Home

First off, let me say, that was one of the single most entertaining game I have ever watched. Certainly that is the most invested I have been in a game that my beloved Jets were not a part of.

With that out of the way, lets get directly to the questions that everyone is, or should be asking today. What happened to the Patriots? Five minutes, thirty five seconds into the second quarter I sighed at the realization that the Pats were going to the super bowl yet again, and would likely win. This game was looking like a typical Bill Belichick, super genius, vs. Peyton Manning, super choke, mismatch. New England went punt, touchdown, touchdown, interception for a touchdown, punt, kneel down. Their offense was efficient and their defense dominant. Manning on the other hand was struggling to get anything done offensively. 3 and out, long drive for a field goal, interception for a TD, 3 and out, 15 play drive for a FG. The score at the half was 21-6. NE was dominant. Their defense had Peyton's number again.

But something funny happened in the second half. The Colts adjusted and the Patriots did not. Except for Ellis Hobbs returning kicks, the Patriots were not prepared to play the second half. Indy got the ball and scored a TD. The air should have been out of the Colts when Hobbs returned the ensuing kickoff 80 yards to the Colts 20 and 5 plays later the Pats had a controversial touchdown. but the Colts just came right back and scored another TD, forced a 3 and out and scored another TD. This looked like a Rocky movie. Rocky was getting his face mashed in the entire fight, but he was still standing, still throwing punches of his own, and as long as he was throwing punches, as long as he was still standing on his feet, he had a chance.

Another short field field goal by the Patriots. At some point you had to figure that Manning would throw the crucial interception, or the Patriots defense would make the key stop as they have done, year after year. But not yet as Peyton drove the Colts to another tying field goal. About 5 minutes left, New England has the ball on their own 46 yard line. 5 plays later they have a 3 point lead.

Finally, the Patriots defense makes the plays you have grown to expect them to make. 3 plays by the Colts, 0 yards and a punt. They only have 2 time-outs because they lost one in a futile challenge. The Colts had one of the worst rushing defenses in the league. New England had an efficient, pounding running game. A first down and the game was basically over.

But, uncharacteristic of the Patriots, they take an inexcusable too many men in the huddle penalty, backing them up 5 yards. Now they need 15 yards to win the game. That was a Herm Edwards penalty, not a Bill Belichick penalty. Needed to run out the clock, Belichick throws. 7 Yards on first down. 4 yards on second down. Time out Colts. Game on the line. Ball in Tom Brady's hand. I say to my wife. Damn Tom Brady is going to pick up this first down. He does it every time. I was again resigned to another Patriots Super Bowl.

I am caught up in the emotion. I scream out loud. Tom Brady did something very unusual. Not only didn't he pick up the first down, but he almost ended the game himself as Bob Sanders should have had the interception and returned it for a TD. Instead it was just a pass breakup and a touchback later, The ball was in Peyton Manning's hands with 2:17 left. I figured in about 2 or 3 plays Teddi Bruschi would intercept a pass intended for Dallas Clark and I'd have to watch Bill Belichick be sloshed with Gatorade yet again. Maybe it was the losses of Romeo Crennel and Eric Mangini. maybe it was the aging linebacker core, or maybe it was the make shift secondary playing without Rodney Harrison. But, with the help of a questionable roughing the passer call on Tully Banta-Cain, Rocky had finally turned the corner on Apollo Creed. Unlike Rocky 1, where Rocky couldn't pull it out, this time, the Colts were Rocky 2. Surviving everything the Pats had to offer until they finally threw the punch that won the game in the last second.

This time it was Tom Brady who couldn't complete the pass when he had to. This time it was Tom Brady who had the game end after throwing an interception. This time it was Patriots fans, who for once, left the game decrying what could have been. Peyton Manning put his knee down. Tony Dungy exhaled having finally gotten over the hump. The State of Indiana cried tears of joy having finally slayed the playoff beast. The NFL said "shit!" knowing that the super bowl would never come close to as entertaining as this came. And in a luxury box in the RCA Dome, a sullen Eli Manning realized that Peyton Manning just created another expectation, another point of comparison, another level, that Eli could never live up to.

I don't this spells the end to the Era of the Patriots. They need to get younger and better at WR (If you had to point to a "goat" in this game, the only choice would be Reche Caldwell, who dropped 2 TDS, including one where the Colts simply forgot to cover him). They need an influx of youth and speed at LB, and they need help in the secondary, especially if Asante Samuel leaves as a free agent. These are the things that Patriots fans are thinking about right now. Because, like the fans of every team but two, they are counting the days to the NFL draft.

The Clutch (and anti-Clutch)

In every sport there is the one guy that you know is going to produce in the clutch. The historical names are pretty easy to generate. No one was ever more clutch than basketball's Michael Jordan. Hockey's Claude Lemieux (no relation to Mario), just had a knack for scoring important playoff goals (for every team he played on). With 2 minutes left on the clock, up by 6, no defensive back wanted John Elway or Joe Montana lining up on the other side of the line of scrimmage. On the other hand, there are also those players that have a history of disappearing when their teams need them the most. Ron Hextall's 5-hole always seemed bigger in the big games. Phillies fans still have nightmare's of Jim Fregosi handing the ball to Mitch Williams in the World Series. Its unfair to have Scott Norwood on the list for one missed kick, but it did cost his team the Super Bowl. I have devised my lists of the most clutch current players and the anti-clutch current players. Please feel free to add your own.

CLUTCH

Golf - This is a no-brainer. Tiger Woods might be the most clutch golfer ever.

Tennis - Roger Federer simply does not lose (except the occasional lose to Nadal, typically on clay). There is a reason Federer and Woods hang out together.

Hockey - Martin Brodeur. Simply put, goaltending wins in the playoffs and there is not goaltender I would rather have in that situation that Martin Brodeur. Brodeur ranks up there with Patrick Roy as one of the best to ever play the game. The Devils were mostly able to survive the retirement of Scott Stevens, I don't know how they will survive when Brodeur finally hangs up his skates.

Baseball - Here's the thing. The obvious answer is Derek Jeter. The Yankees have just won the World Series too many times, and Jeter has just been the player who seems to make the plays that helps them win. I happen to think that a lot of it is just hype, but I can't think of anyone who belongs here more than DJ. Mariano would have had a chance but he has been on the mound when the Yanks lost a world series, and when they lost a 3-0 lead to Boston. I still think he is one of the most dominant closers to ever pitch, but he can't compete in the Mr. Clutch competition.

Basketball - This is not my area of expertise, and I can't think of any one player who belongs in this category. I can see an argument for Kobe or Jason Kidd. I will rely on people more informed than me on this one.

Football - When I first started thinking about this, I dreaded the fact that I was going to put Tom Brady down. However, the more I thought about it, the more I think it is a different Patriot who gets the gold. All of Tom's Brady successes have 1 thing in common, Adam Vinitiari. Tom Brady is a great QB. However, he has gotten a lot of help. The tuck rule and Adam V's heroics got him his first one. Adam V. got him his second one. The entire time he has had the mad genius cooking up his defense. Heck, even in the win over the Chargers, it wasn't Brady who saved the day, but an incredibly smart Troy Brown (this is a subject for another diary, but that play by Brown just shows what kind of players they have in NE!!). At the same time, Adam V. has lined up by himself, sometimes in the snow, sometimes in a dome, but always with the game on the line and nailed the kick. With the game on the line and within 50 yards, seeing Adam V lining up for the kick would make me cry if I were the opposing team. I know it is tough to give the award to a kicker, but too many important games have been won on his foot.

The Anti-Clutch

Golf - Phil Mickelson had this one all wrapped up until he went a won a major. He has been playing so well lately that the award is going to go to Greg Norman who won a lot less than he should have, or Jean Van de Velde, who was a relative nobody who had the British Open all sewed up only to choke in one of the greatest chokes in golf history.

Tennis - Ok. This one comes from women's tennis. The answer is easily Anna Kournikova. So much hype so few victories. Not only that, but her only attribute was that she was the best looking woman on the tour which she ceased to be once Maria Sharapova joined the tour.

Hockey - It is tough to single out a particular hockey player who is "un-clutch." I mean, it was easy to point out Ron Hextall, like I said, because he always seemed to give up a bad goal at a bad time. The best I can come up with recently is Eric Lindros. Now, Lindros did have some good playoffs. From 1994 to 1997 he averaged at least a point per game in the playoffs. However, he never led his team to a Stanley Cup win, was part of multiple Flyers collapses, and was one of many victims of Scott Stevens' playoff intensity. A quick look at his statistics reveals that Lindros, who came into the league hyped like no one before, hasn't even been to the playoffs since 2000.

Baseball - my original image is Kenny Rogers walking in the winning run in an extra inning playoff game. However, his record in last years playoffs might have saved him the indignity of be Mr. Anti-clutch. Maybe I am tainted by recent events, but Alex Rodriguez has to be considered Mr. Anti-clutch right now. His last 3 playoff series he has hit .258, .133, and .071, with a total of 2 HRs and 5 RBIs. All one need to do is compare those playoff numbers to his paycheck and its a pretty easy conclusion. I wonder if ever before in history Mr. Clutch played right next to Mr. Anti-clutch.

Basketball - My basketball answer is going to be a little bit of a cheat. Again, it might just be my lack of knowledge about basketball, but my Mr. Anti-clutch does not fail in the playoffs because he can't lead his team to the playoffs. The fact of the matter is that every team Stephon Marbury leaves gets immediately better and every team Marbury goes to gets remarkably worse.

Football – He gets another chance this weekend, but right now the answer has to be Peyton Manning. Thus far, the Colts have won this playoff year despite Manning. Manning has been stellar throughout the regular seasons, leading an offensive juggernaut. However, he has consistently failed to get things done in the playoffs, including a shutout by my beloved Jets. Manning’s big game failures date back to college. Manning has more talent than any other QB in the league. However, until he wins a Super Bowl, or at least gets to one, he will just be an example of why talent alone is not enough in the NFL.

An Important Article about Israel/Palestine

Precisely because expectations of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's trips to the Middle East usually plunge lower than the Dead Sea, she seems to feel that she can quietly gauge receptivity to new approaches to the Israeli-Palestinian situation without setting off world headlines.

As President George W. Bush puts forth a new strategy in an uphill battle in Iraq, there have been calls from British Prime Minister Tony Blair and others abroad, as well as calls by the Iraq Study Group (Baker-Hamilton Commission) at home, to demonstrate progress on the Israeli-Palestinian front. Moreover, Rice entered this administration as one of its brightest lights and now is portrayed by some in the media as lacking diplomatic achievement.

It is against this backdrop that Rice wonders if the Israelis and Palestinians might be willing to accept broad principles that would govern a final status deal. The advantages are clear: 1) An unprecedented statement by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in a speech at Sde Boker about Palestinian "full sovereignty" pending security performance led to no backlash in Israel. 2) Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Rice's kindred spirit, ardently believes a "diplomatic horizon" could facilitate rather than hinder the revival of even the original three-phased sequence of the moribund roadmap since there would no longer be any question about the shape of its ultimate destination. 3) Critically, reaching such principles could vindicate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in his struggle against Hamas as he asserts that the key to a final status deal is negotiations and not violence. 4) It is very tantalizing to at least some in the Bush administration to point to such principles as being not sharply at odds with the Saudi initiative even if terms are not identical, viewing such a move as cementing further the anti-Iran alliance among many Arab states led by Riyadh.

However, the drawbacks are also equally evident: weak leadership on both sides of the Palestinian-Israeli divide. Can Abbas, who is locked in a power-struggle with Hamas, compromise on the issue of Palestinian refugees or will he be reviled as someone who betrayed the Palestinian cause? With very poor polling numbers ever since the war last summer, can Olmert agree to Palestinian sovereignty in East Jerusalem without leading to sharp political turmoil in Israel? Moreover, if grand diplomatic pronouncements are not matched with deeds, will Hamas not exploit this and declare it the latest proof that negotiations are bankrupt? If we learned anything from 2000, it is that to try and fail has violent consequences. While the sequence here would be different, the Middle East corollary of philosopher George Santayana's famous edict haunts all: everyone remembers the past, but all repeat the same mistakes anyway.

Undoubtedly, public attention during her trip is likely to focus on security and economic confidence-building ideas that would improve daily life and could effectively bolster Abbas. Washington believes US inaction could guarantee that the Hamas militia in Gaza dubbed the "Executive Force"--now numbering 6,000 and headed for 12,000--gobbles up smaller Fateh security services. To do nothing means acquiescing to a twist on the old intifada bumper sticker: "let Hamas win". However, Rice wants to think bigger than confidence-building.

She does not know if Olmert is ready for such an approach, and one would be wrong to assume that the cautious Rice would publicly dive into something like this without the requisite backing of the parties. At the same time, it is hard to believe that Rice would raise such issues without the blessing of President Bush.

As Rice visits the region, she should dispel some of the mythology that exists in the Arab world on Middle East peacemaking.

1. "If Israel does not go to final status talks, this shows it does not want peace." This is the reductionist, land-driven narrative that sees gradualism as an Israeli plot. It received a boost in the US last year due to contributions by American academics who are not Middle East experts (Walt/Mearsheimer) and by former President Jimmy Carter. This narrative conveniently ignores the fact that some of the biggest obstacles to resolving this conflict in 2000 were not land, but issues of refugees and security. Through land swaps, land seems the most easily resolved of these issues. The other issues helped doom the talks in 2000 and seem even less resolvable now. Apart from the impasse on refugees, security is a problem as well. From the Israeli side, how could the IDF withdraw from virtually the entire West Bank when 1,000 Qassam rockets have fallen on Israel from Gaza since its 2005 pullout? The distinction that Israel views final status talks as desirable but not feasible is seldom heard in the Arab world, even if the difference is heaven and earth.

2. "Everyone knows what the solution is but the parties just do not know how to get there." This makes it sound as if all that is missing is a book on diplomatic etiquette. In fact, rejectionism and terrorism are not marginal phenomena, as Hamas currently heads the Palestinian Authority government.

3. "The Arabs states are for peace. They put forward the Arab Initiative in 2002." It is axiomatic that Arab leaders will urge Rice to press Israel, but it is far from clear that they will do their share. Even though the Arab Initiative is an improvement on the past, there is no doubt that this is a very asymmetrical peace plan. The initiative requires Israel first to do all the front-loaded work by getting out of the West Bank and Golan Heights, with Arab reciprocation delayed, hence less binding. This process would be far more effective if Arab states were to take parallel steps to reinforce progress on all sides. This would bolster the center among Israel and the Palestinians, providing the latter with key political cover. If the Quartet's roadmap is to be revived, it should be matched by an Arab roadmap.

5. "The whole problem of the Arab-Israel conflict is that Israel enjoys too much support in Washington." The Walt/Mearsheimer/Carter thesis is a familiar echo of what famed American historian Richard Hofstadter described in his essay, "The Paranoid Strain in American Politics", about the American right's scapegoating of liberals as communists during the McCarthy period. Perhaps it is not surprising that scapegoating occurs during periods of turmoil like the Iraq War, but it is also unfair. American Jews did not stop Bill Clinton from proposing the partitioning of Jerusalem in 2000, for example.

6. "Everything in the Middle East is linked to the Arab-Israel conflict." Since September 11, 2001, the American public has been treated to an endless seminar on the Arab world. Its conclusion has been that Islamism has very deep cultural and political roots, linked to dysfunctionalism in Arab regimes but not driven by the Arab-Israel conflict. The 2000-2004 intifada did not cause a single Arab regime to fall; al-Qaeda prepared its plots at the height of US peacemaking in the Middle East in the 1990s. The Sunni insurgency in Iraq's Anbar province is not driven by the dynamics of Israelis and Palestinians. The US should be involved in the search for a two-state solution not because of Iraq, but because it wants to find problem-solving solutions that give dignity to both Israelis and Palestinians alike. An elevated debate that avoids unchallenged slogans as well as a carefully orchestrated policy that avoids the pitfalls ahead could even prove Santayana's Middle East corollary to be wrong.

David Makovsky is director of the Project on the Middle East Peace Process at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, where his latest monograph is Lessons and Implications of the Lebanon War: A Preliminary Assessment (2006).

From: http://bitterlemons-international.org/inside.php?id=666

A Dream Deferred

What Happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore --
and then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over --
like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags like
like a heavy load?

Or does it explode?

-- Langston Hughes

A little over a week ago I was sitting on an airplane listening to Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream Speech." I had downloaded it from a website called Learnoutloud (www.learnoutloud.com). I can't remember having listened to or read the entire speech before, having only heard or learned about the highlights in school. As I listened to the speech, it struck me how much of what Dr. King said today, and how little of his vision we had actually achieved.

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

This was the first thing that struck me. Clearly, the basic tenant of Dr. King's speech have been achieved, that is the basic freedom of Black people, the end of Jim Crow. However, looking around the country, it is still overwhelmingly true that Black people still live in an island of poverty. In 2003, the last year I had data for, so if you have something more recent please post it as a comment, the poverty rate among people who listed their only race as black, was 24.4%. In comparison, White people had 8.2%, 11.% for Asians, and 22.5% for Hispanics. (http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/income_wealth/002484.html)

Black poverty was exposed following Hurricane Katrina. It was the Black poor of Louisiana and Mississippi who were left behind to die. It was the Black poor who was left behind. It was the Black poor who was suffering at the Superdome. This was the type of poverty and racial inequality that Dr. King and an entire generation of civil rights activists was fighting against. It wasn't just the right to sit on the front of the bus. It was a fight to rise the Black people of Louisiana and Mississippi out of extreme poverty, a situation we still find them in today.

In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check — a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

This raises a very simple question. Where is the fight today? Our struggle for civil rights is in a defensive mode. Instead of pushing to continue the struggle for true equality, we are in a defensive mode, trying to stave off attempts to end affirmative action. In the summer of 1963 there was an urgency, but as is the same with so many struggles for equality, the momentum stops well short of the ultimate goal. The images of Bull Conner and his fire hose, the story of Michael Schwerner, Andrew Goodman, and James Chaney, galvanized a nation, north and south, east and west, and Jim Crow was defeated. But so much more was left to be done. The fine print. The stuff that would prove much harder because simple changes in the law was not the objective. But Black leaders were murdered and undermined and White conservatives started a backlash against all civil rights movements, particularly for race and gender equality. And today, with so much left to do, the photos of Katrina, and the stories of Sean Bell, Amadou Diallo, Abner Louima, and Ousmane Zongo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amadou_Diallo) have failed to rekindle our fight for basic equality.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.

As we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied, as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We can never be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

Here Dr. King makes an important distinction between the right to vote, and having someone to vote for. Certainly, the right to vote is one of the achievements of the civil rights movement. Although, as I will discuss shortly, creative ways have been found to depress the Black vote. But Dr. King also talks about having something, or someone to vote for. He talks about such distrust and frustration with the system that Black people have nothing to vote for.

One of my frustrations with politics, and indeed today's civil rights community, is that people seem to have forgotten about the struggle. While affirmative action and the disparity in health care remain a central part of the Democratic agenda, there are so many Race issues that just aren't talked about enough today. The Death Penalty is an issue of race that politicians are scared to attack for fear of looking soft on crime. Along those lines, or criminal justice system as a whole, and particularly the war on drugs, are issues of race that people are afraid to address. Poverty, ghettos, and gun violence are all issues of race that we have made so little progress in fighting. What would Dr. King think if he were alive today to witness that the Death Penalty was overwhelmingly used on Blacks and Hispanics. What would Dr. King think about the shacks of Mississippi and the ghettos of New York. What would Dr. King think about the level of gun violence in Black communities and the level of black on black crime. And most importantly, what would Dr. King thing about the paltry attempts that are being made in Washington, and in state legislatures to address these societal ills.

It is not just a matter of having the political will to address these ills. As I said, although the right to vote is one of the signature achievements of the civil rights movements, creative ways to depress the black vote have been found. One of the most common is laws prohibiting voting by felons. This brings together so many of the things previously mentioned. Poverty, police, the drug war, gun violence, and fatalistic thinking. We live in a society that criminalizes certain behavior, and because of that criminalization, takes away the right to vote. Not surprisingly, this has an overwhelming affect on the Black community. As of 2004, 4.7 million Americans, 13% of which were Black, were denied the right to vote because they were felons. The 13% for Blacks was seven times the national average. (http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/11/opinion/11SUN1.html?ex=1247284800&en=1ff1291f81330c2a&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland)
You can't deny the politics involved. Black people vote overwhelmingly for Democrats. For the most part, the people pushing for criminalization of certain behavior, and then purging the voting rolls of felons, are Republicans. Thus, purging the voting rolls of Black voters is a way to help Republicans get elected. This was a story in 2000 Florida, and it was a story in 2004 Ohio. Perhaps I see a conspiracy where the isn't one. But the way I see it we tolerate poverty and lack of opportunity for minorities, we criminalize behavior that predominantly pertains to minorities, we strip felons of the right to vote, and then we call anyone who wants to change it "soft on crime."

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.

I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!

Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California!

But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, When we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

The final question I have, is does anyone still have a dream. Does anyone still dream of equality or have we reached the point where we have achieved what we will, and any other achievements will have to come by sheer momentum alone. Have we abandoned the urgency of equality? Where is the next Dr. King. Where is the next person who can galvanize a nation in order to finish a job that ended prematurely. Freedom does ring in the sense that segregation as law has been defeated. But Freedom's ring has been muted by the defacto segregation in our nation's cities and schools. Freedom does ring in the sense that there are Black people in the House of Representatives. But freedom's ring is muted by the fact that all of them represent majority minority districts. Dr. King's basic dream, that we will judge people by the content of their character and not the color of their skin has not been achieved. And so today, on Martin Luther King Jr. day. In a new era, with a new leadership in Congress, I send out my hope that we can finish the job. I send out hope that we can give more than just lip service to the true issues of racial inequality that afflict our nation.

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow

-- Langston Hughes

A Jets Post-Mortem

Three days removed from the Jets tough playoff loss to the Patriots, I can finally do an assessment of the 2006 New York Jets. They were a mediocre team, well-coached, and with an easy schedule. In my estimation, they won the games they were supposed to and lost the ones they supposed to, with the exception of the questionable loss to the Browns. The 2007 season figures to be tougher, with the schedule of a wildcard team instead of the powder puff schedule they had this year. As such, changes and improvements must be in store. Here is my assessment of where the Jets stand, position by position, and what they need to focus on in the off-season.

QB - Eric Mangini, while praising Chad Pennington, said that he will have to win the job again next year. I expect him to do so, but I expect that it might be his last year. I am a big Chad Pennington backer. Its hard not to like such a smart and gutsy QB. However, I finally realize that Pennington is merely an All-Star version of Trent Dilfer. Pennington is smarter and better than Dilfer ever was, but at the same time, Pennington is a game manager. He can't win games with his arm. The Jets will never have a dynamic, vertical passing game with Pennington at the helm. Certainly, you can win a super bowl with Chad Pennington as your QB, but every other position on your team has to be rock solid. Kellen Clemens is the future at the position and I expect he will eventually take over, likely in 2008.

RB - The Jets went with a RB by committee approach this year to replace Hall of Famer Curtis Martin. Houston, Barlow and Rookie Leon Washington did an admirable job, but realistically, the Jets need to find an every down back. Washington will be part of the Jets offense next year in a Kevin Faulk/Dave Megget/early Tiki Barber role. I suspect that either Barlow or Houston will be back as well. The other will either be released or, if they can get a late round pick, traded. The Jets will consider San Diego Restricted Free Agent Michael Turner, but otherwise I suspect they will take a shot in the draft. The tow names I would watch are Marshawn Lynch and Michael Bush. It would be a dream if Adrian Peterson somehow fell to the Jets.

FB - The Jets could do anything at this position. BJ Askew has shown nothing to suggest the Jets will be in a rush to bring him back. The Jets also have James Hodgkins, Stacy Tutt, and can use a TE like Sean Ryan. It would be pretty cool if the Jets spent one of their extra 2nd round picks on Rutgers FB and folk hero, Brian Leonard.

WR - I think the Jets are set at this position except for depth. Coles, Cotchery and Brad Smith can all be penciled in. After that it is an open competition with Justin McCareins, perhaps Tim Dwight. I have to admit to not getting too excited about who the 4th and 5th WRs will be. Whoever they are, they will be lucky to get 10 passes thrown to them all year and will be mostly special teams contributors. TE - I think the Jets finally realize that Chris Baker can be a weapon for them. I don't expect the Jets to address this position.

OLine - This was last year's project. Mangold and Ferguson are set, as is Pete Kendall and Brandon Moore. Anthony Clement, who did an admirable job at RT, is the only one up in the air. If the Jets don't bring him back, I expect the position to be filled by Adrian Jones or some unexciting signing. I don't see the Jets addressing anything during the draft until the 2nd day when you could see them grabbing a guard to eventually replace Kendall or someone who might project as competition at RT.

DLine - I suspect that this is the position to watch. Like they did last year when they took 2 OLinemen in the 1st round, I could see the Jets spending multiple day 1 picks to address the DLine. The Jets insist on playing a 3-4, even though their personnel is better equipped for a 4-3. DeWayne Robertson actually had a good season even as an undersized nosetackle. Sean Ellis is a good end, but at this point in his career Kimo Von Oelhaffen is a backup. At the end position, there are exciting free agents like Dwight Freeney and Justin Smith. I don't think either really fit as a 3-4 end. There is really great depth at DE in this draft. I don't think Gaines Adams or Quinton Moses will be available, but LaMarr Woodley, Adam Carriker, or Florida's Ray McDonald could be real options. At the tackle position, if Robertson had day 1 trade value I would move him. The Jets need a space eater at the DT position. Vonnie Holliday could be available as could Mammoth Oakland surprise Terdell Sands. The best fit would be Michigan's Alan Branch, but he will be long gone by the time the Jets pick. After that there is Amobi Okoye and Frank Okam. In any event, Eric Mangini was schooled in New England, where they were never afraid to just keep drafting D Linemen. Do not be surprised if the Jets address the D Line in free agency and then again multiple times in the draft.

LB - The key to the 3-4 defense is the linebackers. The Jets have some good ones with Vilma, Hobson, Thomas and Barton. However, this is another position I expect the Jets to attack. They spent a 3rd rd pick on Ohio State wild man Anthony Schlegel last year, who may or may not develop into a decent ILB. Drafting where they do, I would not be surprised to see the Jets go after a guy like Paul Posluszny or Patrick Willis. In fact, if I were to predict right now, I would expect the Jets 1st 3 picks (1st rd, 2nd rd, 2nd rd) to include a RB, DLineman, and LBer.

CB - This is a tricky call. The Jets have Andre Miller, Andre Dyson, Hank Poteat and David Barrett at CB. I think the Jets want Dyson and Miller to be their starters, but Miller simply has not snatched the job. There are a lot of good CBs in this upcoming draft, and I could see the Jets going after one if the board fell that way. I think it is somewhat of a luxury pick, because I think the Jets have bigger needs elsewhere, but at the same time, I don't think they could pass on a guy like Leon Hall in the unlikely event someone of his talent were to slip to them. If the Jets wanted to make a serious run at having a true impact secondary, they might look at a guy like Asante Samuel or Nate Clements, both of whom play in the division. If you want to see the Mangini-Belichicken relationship get really fiery, wait and see what would happen if the Jets threw serious money at Samuel.

S - The Jets are pretty much set at safety where they have the dependable Erik Coleman and the bussing star Kerry Rhodes. Coleman could be improved on, but again it would be a luxury pick. If LaRon Landry was sitting there waiting to be plucked, the Jets might do it, but otherwise I would not expect the Safety position to be seriously addressed. K - The Jets are set at kicker with the aged Aussie Ben Graham at punter and the improving K Mike Nugent. After a dismal start, Nugent proved to be an excellent, dependable kicker this year. However, his kickoffs were routinely, and maddeningly short. A kicker drafted in the 2nd round should not have his kickoffs landing at the 10 yard line. As a fan, it drove me nuts. I don't think the Jets are the type of team to waste a roster spot on a kickoff specialist, but if Nugent doesn't improve in that area, they might have to consider it.

Coaching - If not for the amazing job Sean Payton did with the Saints, Mangini would be the runaway coach of the year. With the exception of the Jaguars game, this Jets team was in every game and ready to fight. Mangini is a good combination of gruff and likeable, and unlike Herm Edwards before him, is a good game day coach. Young Brian Schottenheimer did a great job as O-Coordinator mixing inventive formations and play calling with the right game plan for his personnel. Bob Sutton did an OK job converting the team to a 3-4. The defense was much better during the 2nd half of the season, but they were never able to stop the run nor get to the QB without blitzing. I have faith in these coaches, and with the right players, I think they can build a winner.

GM - Mike Tannenbaum's first season as GM was a success. Ferguson and Mangold solidified the oline and guys like Hank Poteat were valuable contributors by the end of the season. I really liked the 2nd rd swap with Washington which got us both Kellen Clemens, and a high 2nd rd pick this year. Still, it is going to be a tougher draft this year, with the Jets drafting in the late 20s. Tannenbaum may be tempted to trade up with his 2 second round picks, but I don't think he should be deluded into thinking this team is just a player away. The Jets have a lot of holes to fill and it is his job, through the draft, free agency, and the rare trade, to give the coaches the horses they need to create a winner.