Of Books and Birthdays

I had the distinct pleasure of attending the South Carolina Book Festival at the Convention yesterday with some friends.

Embarrassingly, I admit it was my first time at the Festival - and despite the dreary weather, the temperament inside the convention center was anything but. Hundreds of folks - mostly older - meandering through the floor, going up and down the make shift aisles visiting the stalls of Booksellers and Publishers alike - and digging through the stacks, as it were, of the antiquarians who came from far and wide to tempt the bibliophile and bibliomaniac with their collections of 1st and 2nd editions and ancient texts. If you saw my twitter yesterday you'll have noticed I was all a twitter over a leather bound Biblia Sacra (Vulgata) from 1743, in decent condition with gold trimmed pages for the low, low price of $200.00, here's a similar example.

Perhaps the Antiquarians were unaware that we're in a recession, that or my bibliophilia is in check and I've not quite slipped over to bibliomania. The difference between the two, I would learn later from none other than Nicholas A. Basbanes, being the Bibliophile is the master and possessor of books, while the bibliomaniac - is their slave.

Consequentially after hearing Mr. Basbanes speak I purchased three of his books: A Gentle Madness, Patience & Fortitude, and Every Book Its Reader. Mr. Basbanes being himself a renowned scholar of the book, who as it is blogs. (Here's his post about being in USC's library vault in special collections)

Mr. Basbanes was at the festival to memorialize the late Matthew Bruccoli who was the premier F. Scott Fitzgerald scholar, tenured at the USC and who donated his entire collection of Fitzgerald Works and Memorabilia (worth over $2m) to the school. Mr. Bruccoli, a friend of Basbanes, was also one of the subjects Every Book Its Reader.

Before hearing Basbanes though I sat in on a discussion of Colonial and Revolutionary South Carolina - three scholar authors were there presenting their respective works on the subject - with the most intriguing subjects, in my opinion, being the work presented by Dr. Patricia Causey Nichols (Voices of Our Ancestors) and Ed Southern, (Voices of the American Revolution in the Carolinas). Consequently I purchased Mr. Southern's tome as it's a collection of personal accounts that he edited. He also signed the work for me.

I ended the day at the flying saucer with a cold pint of beer.

So what do Books have to do with Birthdays? In this post not much. It's a title for alliterative effect and theirs no way to actually appropriately joining the two subjects except thusly.

My Birthday is coming up a week from Tuesday. On March 10, 2009 I'll turn the grand old age of 26. I've spoken with my better half and mentioned it to some but this year - to all those friends and loved ones that read this blog, as well as other interested parties - I ask that in lieu of gifts or any shared activity that all who are able and wish to do so make a donation to the Nickelodeon. The suggested amount would of course be $26.00 but any amount according to one's capabilities or willingness will suffice.

So who will do it? To celebrate my birthday this year who will help me celebrate by making a donation. Save the money, friends, of going to dinner with me - instead give it to the Nick to help them in their efforts as they move closer to relocating.

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Definitely Overhyped... is it over rated?

Ah Columbia, I've had the opportunity to write about you, and what has transpired within your walls over the life of this blog. I've been fortunate to live here for the past eight years. In that time I've seen this city grow, businesses go and come, neighborhoods fall and rise. For in Columbia there is always a feeling of expectant hope, labored but expextant.

Nothing illustrates that point more than my visit to the new Esplanade at Canalside this morning.
I took a walk at Canalside and thought, this is it? Really? Canalside, which is the development by the River which used to be the State Prison, is being operated by the Beach Co. Canalside was the brain child of a decade or more of city leadership and developers blessed by the River Alliance to push Columbia where it was naturally want to go - towards the River.

What I found when I got to there was not what I was expecting.

Parks serve multiple purposes. Not only are they a source of recreation and entertainment for residents and the surrounding communities, but they also serve to inspire and even limit development. The Riverfront & Canal side park was to do all of the above.

The Esplanade which is the cities first expansion of the Canal Side park in some years was dedicated on Friday (which garnered literary mention in these pages here). What I saw was disappointing. Let me emphasise that at this stage in the game it's definitely overhyped, and as I gazed up and down the river from the wall, I couldn't help but see what will be very difficult empasses for the remainder of the nine phase project.

Wow, 9 phases which will culminate a 25+ year movement towards the water and one that city leaders hope will ultimately and finally give Columbia a sense of identy and direction, but is it over rated?

I don't quite know the answer to that question. It is, as I've already stated, a natural inclination for folks to migrate towards water. Cities while famous for 'sitting on a hill' also arise and cling to bodies of water, especially rivers. But I can't get the challenges such a project has faced and are still to face out of my head.

Possibly the biggest issue is that the Esplanade is not handicapped accesible to/from the rest of Riverfront & Canal Side park, but then again - neither is any of the developed 'housing' with its exposed stair cases and architecture reminiscent of private Student Housing rahter than riverfront village for that matter of mixed commerce and residencies.

The big picture is that the greenway and river front park would be extended from the current park originally constructed circa the Year of our Lord (and my birth) 1983, all the way passed the (aaaah!) State Museum! to the Carolina Inovista Campus scheduled to extend between Gervais and Grandby Park.

Then there's the devil in the details. Like how is the Esplanade going to tie into the rest of the park? How is the Canal Side going to connect with the portion of the Greenway opposite it by the State Museum? When will USC begin on their 'world class waterfront park'?

The problem is the City and it's partners instead of answering all questions at one time acts in a piecemeal fashion. There are many reasons, some valid, some not - including funding. And this is the essence of that 'labored' part of the metaphor used earlier. Columbia while willing to think big - is slow to materialize the big design, and when it comes to execution the idea is lost in the focus on the individual project. What happens is a development that can take a decade or more when designs for each segment go through draft after draft and a disjointed image appears as everything is completed in hodged podged fashion.

What's left to be seen now is how and when the city completes it's portion of the Parkway and when USC begins whether the whole thing can be pulled off, even if it is seamful.

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Reefer Madness? Commerce Secretary's "Smoke" and Mirrors latest in Sanford "High" Unemployment Scandal

:::Update Below:::

First it was the report that Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Phelps had come to Columbia and spent most of his time in a marijuana and drunken stupor.

Then came the report that the Federalis are planning on using the South Carolina National Guard to investigate and dismantle any possible connection between drug smuggling, gangs and terrorism.

Now the Commerce Secretary has come forward and stated that one of the reasons for South Carolina's third in the nation unemployment rate is the number of failures associated with on-the-job drug screening and more pointedly failures of pre-employment drug tests. In fact it's the pursuit of this information that has been cited as a point of contention between the Administration and ESC. The State reports,

Taylor's request for that data was at the center of Sanford's Jan. 22 threat to fire the commission's three members if they don't deliver the information by midnight Monday. Taylor said the information is critical to putting people back to work and putting money back into the jobless claims trust fund. Taylor says he's hearing that part of the challenge in helping people find work can be linked to job-seekers flunking pre-hiring drug tests, but he did not provide data to quantify the problem.

And while Taylor would argue that he couldn't provide the data because the ESC doesn't provide him the information (circular logic?), anecdotaly I have had persons in economic development confirm that drug use is a cited factor in unemployment causation in South Carolina (you don't say?) BUT it's not so great a factor, nor is it the most pressing causal effect for South Carolina's unemployment. For that you'd have to look at worker training, which is - you guessed it - the purview of the Department of Commerce.

What this is ladies and gentlemen is yet another distraction from the abysmal failures of this administration. Now I don't pretend to know the mind of Mr. Taylor, that would make him utter such a supercilious statement. One thing is for certain, such public statements, which are admittedly 'unpopular,' as the Secretary knew they would be, do nothing but further damage South Carolina's efforts to draw business to this state.

Interestingly enough no Republican (i.e. consultant firm mouth piece) has commented on this gaffe, I wonder why that could be.

:::Update:::

The State link above for was the temporary story yesterday evening. The Newspaper ran a more indepth story this morning with contributions from AP writers. Taylor sticks his foot even further down his throat as he exclaims,

People have the perception, Taylor said, that when a worker loses his or her job in South Carolina, it is because a plant closed or the person was laid off. “I don’t think that’s the case,” he said.

Employees sometimes are let go because of absenteeism or for other self-induced reasons, Taylor said, which may include drug use or alcoholism.

And while that may be true in 'ok' economic times - at this point with the economy tanking it's absurd to even suggest that such 'self-induced reasons' explain or even come close to explaining the unprecedented unemployment in this state. And folks who are in touch and experience the loss around this state know that at worst this is yet another wild, subversive, paranoid and not to be sustantiated theory of Secretary Taylor or at best just another distraction by a FAILED Administration.

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Connecting the Dots

This week I took a bit of a pause on my political writing and just permitted time to read what others were writing and discussing. Part of this was to highlight some aspects of South Carolina and "connect some dots."

On Monday Karen Owens, President of the Silver Crescent Coalition, wrote an Op-Ed in The State stressing the need for the Palmetto State to improve education, especially towards manufacturing. By Thursday, Noelle Phillips wrote an article address the future jobs that South Carolina should be striving towards jobs needed in the future. In addition, she provides a quote from USC President Harris Pastides:

"Ladies and gentlemen, we're all waiting for a rebound, an economic rebound," Pastides said. "When it comes, we need to have an educated work force, a technically trained work force."

So who leads the charge on this educated trained workforce? Some would say those involved in education, such as the state's technical colleges and universities. That is partially true.

But I gleaned on interesting insight that worker training is needed on all levels, especially those with little education and must acquire the necessary skills. This percentage represents a sizable portion of the state's workforce and the ones likely to experience unemployment first.

So who is responsible for this workforce training? Governor Mark Sanford. Where can one find the leader in this workforce training? At Governor Sanford's Department of Commerce.

Then what is Sanford doing? He and the Department of Commerce are instead attacking the state's Employment Security Commission over the unemployment numbers and the access to confidential data.

Instead of solving the problem, it appears the governor is using "smoke & mirrors" to deflect criticism from his poor management. Including the poor management he has conducted with the Department of Social Services, the debate around SLED, and now the state's high unemployment rates.

It appears that the buck does not stop at Sanford's desk. Instead, it goes wherever he points his little finger.

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QOTD: Up in Smoke?

The flipped-back baseball cap alone is worth more hard time than any hit of South Carolina Chronic

- Mike Edison, former editor of

High Times

On Phelp's smoking a bong while at USC from the Daily Beast, obviously Mr. Edison is aware of South Carolina fashion....

But something else of note - when it comes to the absurdity and pearl necklace grabbing of some in the American Media, even Kathleen Parker - conservative columnist extraordinare - who resides in our Camden, SC agrees with Mr. Edison that people need to get over pot and stop lying about it. Both are worth a read.

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That explains why Michael Phelps was schlepping around Columbia, SC and USC for over a week

Is it swimming pretty boy Michael Phelps smoking a bong in Columbia, SC?


well the hat sure looks familiar at the very least....


A British Tabloid has answered a question I was asking in November. Just why was Michael Phelps in Columbia, SC for over a week?



Well the answer may (or may not) suprise you. According to the newspaper he was 'getting wasted' and may have been smoking pot with USC students at - of all places - a house party.


According to News of the World:


One party-goer who witnessed the star’s behaviour told the News of the World: “He was out of control from the moment he got there.

“If he continues to party like that I’d be amazed if he ever won any more medals again.”


Phelps’ aides went into a panic over our story and offered us a raft of extraordinary incentives not to run the bong picture.

It was on November 6, weeks after his Beijing triumph, that 23-year-old Phelps surprised students at the University Of South Carolina in Columbia by showing up unannounced at a house party.

He was visiting Jordan Matthews, a girl he was secretly seeing who was a student there.
Our source revealed: “Michael came to visit Jordan but ended up just getting wasted every night.


“He arrived with a group of girls hanging all over him. Jaws hit the floor when he walked in. You don’t get many celebrities in Columbia, so when Phelps comes to your party it’s a very big deal.

Obnoxious

“He didn’t know many people so you’d think he’d be a little shy. But he was loud, obnoxious and slamming beers from the get-go.

“Every girl wanted a piece of him and every guy wanted to be his best buddy. He couldn’t get enough of all the attention.”

As he basked in his hero status, Phelps knocked back beers and shots of spirits. And when a student offered him the glass bong engraved with red writing, he did not hesitate, says our source.

The 6ft 4ins athlete, in a white T-shirt and navy cap worn back to front, clasped the device in his huge hands and inhaled deeply.

Our source said: “You could tell Michael had smoked before. He grabbed the bong and a lighter and knew exactly what to do.

“He looked just as natural with a bong in his hands as he does swimming in the pool. He was the gold medal winner of bong hits. Michael ended up getting a little paranoid, though, because before too long he looked like he was nervous and ran out of the place.”


But the next night, Phelps was out partying again. The source added: “He was right back at it at Pavlov’s bar.

“Like the night before he was holding court, throwing back shots two at a time and pouring drinks to every cute girl.”




Pavlovs is a familiar bar to South Carolina folks - it seems like every other day you can't pick up a copy of The State Newspaper and hear that a member of the Gamecock Football Team has been arrested for public drunkeness, underage drinking, or fighting - so it's no suprise that an athelete would go to the locally infamous bar in a week long orgy of drinking and partying.

The only question now is, who would be an asshole enough to turn Phelps in? From the sounds of it, it's a jealous male, perhaps who felt inadequate around Phelps, or jilted that he couldn't pal around with him. And for what would they turn him in, some coin? Bringing yet again more embarassment to the community? I say who ever this source is is a big 'ole Douche, with a capital D.

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The Times of Harvey Milk

The Nickelodeon Theater is playing The Times of Harvey Milk, for one night only - tomorrow night January 14 at 6:00. It's a part of the Nick's community film forum and will be followed by a panel discussion. For tickets click here.

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QOTD: I'm a Lesbian, seriously I just had gay sex with that girl.

That's rejection number 3 from Christopher Wagoner's top six lines of rejection that he's received from various girls he's asked out this year. It's a list that's funny enough that you say "There's no way someone said that to him," and then you realize "You can't make that shit up."

But don't worry Chris is a good sport about it all. Even he realizes the incredulity of it all, and has moved on.

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Michael Phelps still in Columbia, SC?

Michael Phelps has now been in Columbia for a week. Is he still here? If so, why? Is he planning on relocating here? I know he made an appearance at the Gamecock game Saturday where he was introduced to the crowd and apparently he's schlepping around the bar districts in 5 points and the Vista.

Don't get me wrong -- I don't mind that he's here, I think it's a great thing and would love him to stay longer and elevate our city's image even more with his presence, I suppose I just find it quirky - especially considering the love loss between Columbia and most other celebrities, save Kevin Bacon, and those that discover the C.C. (you'll have to figure that little sweet secret out on your own, and if you do - you might see people there, but don't put it in the comment's section, keep it to yourself)

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He stole my dream job....

Photo from Business Week

He stole my dream job, and now he's up for an award from Business Week - 2008 America's Best Young Entrepreneurs. He's a finalists and if you guys have never heard of Josh Hackler, and his Columbia, SC based - USC incubated company, Spanish Vines... what rock have you been living under? 

The Tempranillo is excellent, and  the Macabeo is pretty damned good. You can find the wines here in Columbia, and the company is spreading beyond the capital city. The best part? The wine is value priced, and in this economy you can't beat that! Also I'm reminded of the fact that the higher the price by no means gaurantees the better the taste.

So go buy a bottle, or 10, and don't forget to vote him the 'Best Young Entrepreneur' for this year.

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All Dogs go to Heaven

The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that Uga VI, his given name being Uga V's Whatchagot Loran (how imperial and at the same time redneck sounding), passed away last Friday and that Monday the University held a funeral.

But not just any funeral. The beloved mascot of the University of Georgia's remains were flown on the university's private jet from his home in Savannah, GA, to Athens. Uga VI wasn't alone on the journey as the dog's owners and their family were also in tow on the flight.

Once arrived at the University his body was paraded through the stadium and across the football field to the tune of The Battle Hymn of the Bulldog Nation. In attendance were local officials University and State dignitaries.

The Octogenarian, who so many years ago was instrumental in deigning the current line of Ugas from the Seiler household at the demise of the last "brindle bulldog" in 1942, recounted how it therefore came about that the current bloodline was selected.

The Rev. Claude McBride, a local Baptist Minister, said an invocation concluding the prayer with "Sic 'em, Uga. Woof, woof! Amen."

There was no Pine Box for Uga, his body was then interred with the past Ugas in the Granite Mausoleum of the "Great Uga," shrouded in his Jersey and collar.

Photo from Atlanta Journal Constitution

Folks, I can't make this sh*t up! It's all true. I don't think humanity has seen such goings on over a dog since the days of Pharoh - though perhaps at PETA gatherings, nor such regal and stately accord outside the death of a President or Head of State.

Conversely if the current Cocky died, the most you'll see is President Sorensen eating a two piece with a biscuit, and then casting the bones at the base of the Strom Thurmond Statue to divine who's going to succeed him as President or what the outcome of the this year's football season will be. And to top it all off, this goes to show you that there are more wasteful spenders in the world than the South Carolina Legislature.

As an aside and update, it appears that a Journalist at the AJC are going all post-Tim-Russert on the Uga story and asking, what's the big deal, it's just a dog!

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Andrew Card, USC Presidential Contender

I've seen a couple of reports from the same AP source about behind the scenes lobbying for former Bush White House Cheif of Staff Andrew Card to replace Andrew Sorenson, one report was from WIStv, and the other from The State, in a brief about Harris Pastides withdrawing his name from the UGA Presidential Search.

The Meat and potatoes of the report via WIStv:

Since late April, at least five people have written letters on behalf of the USC alumnus and top Bush aide from 2000 to 2006. The vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board is among those who want Card to replace retiring president Andrew Sorensen.

Card is a Union Pacific Corp. board member. National Transportation Safety Board vice chairman Robert Sumwalt III says he knows Card through his USC ties, not his federal work. Sumwalt says Card has a leadership background and will help raise money for the university Sumwalt's father once ran.

I tried a Google Search for Andrew Card, under their Blogs and found nothing, then News Search, and I found nothing, but what I did find made me laugh. It comes from the site Ohmygov! under breaking stupidity. Did you know that the President and Mr. Card and Mr. Rove gave tours of the White House?

Especially impressive is Mr. Bush's explanation of the decor in the Oval Office.

"Each President can put whatever paintings he wants on the walls. I've chosen some paintings that kinda reflect my nature. This is called, A Charge to Keep I Have, by W.H.D. Koerner...The song is based upon a Methodist hymn, A Charge to Keep I Have. A Hymn. The painting is based upon A Hymn called A Charge to Keep I Have and it talks about serving something greater than oneself in life. A President must always keep that in mind."

Check out the video at the site.

I suppose we should just file this under yet another Bushism.

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He stole my dream job

SC Biz is reporting that on a new Columbia businesses that is expanding...

Spanish Vines Inc., a Columbia-based importer and provider of authentic Spanish wine and food products in the nation, has announced a new product line and a new distribution deal that will allow the company to sell its wines throughout the Carolinas.

The company’s 2006 Tempranillo and 2006 Macabeo wines will be carried at retailers throughout the states of North and South Carolina including Earth Fare, Harris Teeter and Whole Foods, as well as several restaurants. The new product line includes a 2007 ‘La Loca’ Moscatel de Espumoso sparkling wine that will debut this summer at retailers and restaurants carrying Spanish Vine wines.

“Our new distribution agreements are the first steps in what we hope will be a temperate yet steady expansion throughout the United States,” said Josh Hackler, founder, president and chairman of Spanish Vines. “We are excited by this opportunity to establish new distribution and retail partnerships and to further our mission of spreading the enjoyment of Spanish wines and culture among U.S. consumers.”

Spanish Vines received critical acclaim for its 2006 Tempranillo red, which received a Silver Medal at the Madrid International Wine Fair 2006, a “Best Buy” among Spanish wines from Wine Enthusiast magazine and an 87 point rating from the Daily Wine Guide. Spanish Vines’ 2006 Macabeo white was recognized in the 2006 Bacchus Wine Competition.

But it's not just the local Business-zine that's taken notice, Spanish Vines, has acheived national recognition beyond the awards. They were featured in a Yahoo article, yesterday that detailed not only their geographic expansion but also their product expansion as well with a new label, 'La Loca' Moscatel de Espumoso, made from 100 percent Moscatel grapes.

That "critical acclaim" for their wine is all the more impressive when you consider Spanish Vines "come from a vineyard in Spain that Spanish Vines has an exclusive contract with. These wines are bottled exclusively for Spanish Vines and are available nowhere else. " (The Daily Gamecock) But even more so than that when you look at who's running the company, a fourth year International Business student named Josh Hackler, who came up with the notion after returning from Studying Abroad in Spain.

Keeping that "critically acclaimed wine" in mind what makes this story even more incredible is the fact that this company started in USC's student business incubator, which gave him a furnished office downtown and $1000 seed capital.

What an incredible life, to go around, have wine and cheese tastings, to sell your wine, and it is your wine and for it to be such a great wine. I do believe Mr. Hackler, has stolen my dream job. Oh well, I hope his business is successful and I can't wait to enjoy a nice glass of Spanish Vines Tempranillo, in the meantime I'll continue to follow their wine blog.

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Is this Backlash for 2006?

Is the Irmo debacle a watershed for backlash against 2006? If you'll remember it was in 2006 that South Carolinians voted overwhelmingly to pass an ammendment to our constitution banning gay marriage and any other type of civil union.

Already in the wake of that peculiar moment in our States sortid storied history, we've seen the State's Major University open a LGBTQ Archive expanding "Queer Studies," municipalities extend rights to the LGBT community, we've seen corporations extend benefits, and we've heard from a variety of leaders that to embrace the new knowledge economy means embracing the creative class which includes.... you guessed it, the LGBT tribe - and all of that is happening here in Columbia, making the State House an Ivory Cement tower, bastion of psuedo-consesrvatism and religious zealotry amidst a sea of progressivism (or as some would prefer to call it liberal fascism).

But is it really a backlash? Or an awakening to cultural awareness. Sen. Jake Knotts (R-Lexington) said in a public hearing during the Marriage Debate that the only way that the LGBT community would defeat the measure was to do as they were doing with him, introduce themselves, make their presence known. Mr. Knotts conceded that if it weren't for the will of his constituency after meeting and hearing the stories of so many LGBT persons, families and supporters that his opinion was already changed. And perhaps that's exactly whats happening here in South Carolina.

The resistance is fading as more and more people get to know Mr. & Mr. or Mrs. & Mrs. Jones next door and understand that, 'hey they're regular people too.' The Economist has an interesting article in this weeks print edition about the California Supreme Court decision to open up marriage.

Across America same-sex couples are becoming more ordinary. Their numbers are growing most rapidly outside traditional magnets like California, New York and Vermont (see map). One of the steepest increases has been in Utah, probably America's most conservative state. Indeed, of the 34 states with above-average increases in the number of gay couples, 21 voted for Mr Bush in 2004. This does not mean there has been a sudden outbreak of homosexuality in conservative states; rather, it means gay couples in such areas are swiftly becoming more open about their relationships. That alters the politics of gay marriage.

Even on the map if one looks at it closely one sees that here in South Carolina the gay population has increased by 15-30% since the 2000 census, as more and more LGBT persons have come to realize that they have a voice and a compelling voice, once their stories are heard.

And these increases are not just in the liberal enclaves like Charleston, they're in Greenville and Florence, and Columbia and even Spartanburg and Aiken and even unto the wiles of Darlington County too. From the Economist:

Palm Springs. The town, which is represented by a Republican congresswoman, a Republican state senator and a Republican assemblywoman, is not easily caricatured as a liberal enclave. It is also increasingly typical of gay America.

The last full census, in 2000, revealed that Palm Springs had a higher proportion of same-sex couples than San Francisco. In California it was second only to West Hollywood, in Los Angeles. Since then it has become a lot more gay. Yet it feels utterly unlike ghettos such as West Hollywood or the Castro, in San Francisco.

Palm Springs has a couple of bars with a strict leather-and-denim dress code, and several hotels where clothing is optional. For the vast majority of its gay residents,
though, social life revolves around nothing more transgressive than cocktails
and dinner parties. The Golden Rainbow senior centre, which Mr Stern helps run,
has started a lesbian bridge night. Although some parts of town are pinker than
others, Palm Springs contains no gay ghetto.

Columbia has six (6) gay bars (thankfully no leather bars or nudist resorts unless you count Pelion *shiver*) and an active program called TakeOver Columbia, where the LGBT community mingles in bars and restaurants not normally frequented by the tribe in an effort of supreme PR, and those traditionally gay establishments may fill to capacity at times with straight and gay clientele alike represent a tiny portion of the group, many of who, like their counterparts in Palm Springs are more apt to spend an evening at home with a dinner party or bridge game with their neighbors or family.

So perhaps that's why there is such a vocal outcry when a Principal at an area high school makes such pronunciations about gay/straight alliance clubs at a school that at the same time sponsors a religious club (FCA/Randy Mecca) and other secular clubs of interest [including the Dinosaur Appreciation Club (D.A.C.)], this is just another step in the long road of becoming socially conscientious of the LGBT communities place in South Carolina society.

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Hallelujah

*This is a link laden piece, and it's worth exploring the links presented*

I was reading Andrew Sullivan's blog this morning and he had a post on the song Hallelujah. The original song was written by Leonard Cohen, and he managed to find the lyrics and post them here along with the second probably more widely known version of the song by Jeff Buckley as performed by KD Lang.

The YouTube video above of course is neither Lang, Buckley or Cohen, but I liked this guys voice and he managed to capture Buckley's spirit pretty well in his playing the song.

If you have a chance to hear the Leonard Cohen (original) version of the song do it (and here's a link).

The song has been reinterpreted lyrically only once by Jeff Buckley, but his version with its melancholic melody has been performed numerous times, once even by John Cale, who plays the Buckley version but attributes it to Cohen.

These are the lyrics to the Jeff Buckley version from AZLyrics:

Well I heard there was a secret chord
that David played and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do ya?
Well it goes like this :
The fourth, the fifth, the minor fall and the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...

Well your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya
And she tied you to her kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...

(Yeah but) Baby I've been here before
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor, (You know)
I used to live alone before I knew ya
And I've seen your flag on the marble arch
and love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah...

Well there was a time when you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show that to me do ya
But remember when I moved in you
And the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah

Hallelujah...

[Instrumental]

Maybe there's a God above
But all I've ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew ya
And it's not a cry that you hear at night
It's not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu...
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu...
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah

Hallellllluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuujjjaahhhh...Hallelllluuuuuujjaaaaaaaaaahhhh

This version is distinctly different from that of Cohen's in terms of melody and tempo and of course Cohen's version and Buckley's version end differently. Cohen's version doesn't have the "Maybe there's a God above/ but all I've ever learned from love," verse but ends thusly:

You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

To me it seems like Buckley's last verse is a lyrically smart way of condensing Cohen's final two verses, but not one that is lacking his own interpretations.

Now for the extremely personal...

I fell in love with this song, the Buckley version, a few years back after a tragic accident in which a special person I knew died. The honest lyrics that express the underlying duality of the nature of "Love" and the inherent contradictions, and the incredibly haunting melody helped me put the grief I had into perspective.

I no longer am grieving the loss of so special a friend today but every time I hear this song I'm drawn back and into some deeper meaning within... about the relationships we share with one another, the give and the take the triumph and the tragedy. I can't explain it but I can feel it within my depths that love is not a victory march, nor is it only a cry you hear at night, and It's not just somebody who's seen the light, It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah, and despite the harshness of those words there's immense truth and grace to them and the sum of the human experience.

I had the distinct honour and pleasure of hearing this song performed live in Atlanta as a duet between Rufus and Martha Wainwright with the person for whom I am deeply in love, and with whom I hope to spend the rest of my life. Needless to say it was a powerful experience. And though I couldn't find a version of Martha and Rufus, here's Rufus singing "Hallelujah" live in NYC.

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SC adding another herb to list of illegal drugs

From The State newspaper:

SC could join states criminalizing hallucinogenic herb

The Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. --

A hallucinogenic herb long used in tribal rituals would become illegal in South Carolina under a bill heading to the House floor.

The measure would make Salvia divinorum an illegal drug, in the same category as marijuana and peyote.

A House committee approved the bill Tuesday without debate.

South Carolina is among more than a dozen states where lawmakers are considering such measures.

The National Conference of State Legislatures says the plant has already been banned or restricted in at least eight states since 2005.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, the plant is usually either chewed or smoked, and its hallucinogenic effects can last about 30 minutes.

You know, when I was in college - because there's a time and place for everything, and that's college - I and several friends tried Salvia on a couple of occasions. Hallucinogenic is an understatement. Move over hippies and Tim Leary, that stuff is wild. The experience was so powerful and so haunting.

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Not your father's L'Abri (Hipster Christianity)

Christianity Today has an interesting article on the current state of affairs at the Evangelical mountain retreat center L'Abri, in Switzerland. I've mentioned that locale before because of a book written by the founder's son. After reading this article, it's apparent I need to move that book up on my list. L'Abri it seems has become a hotspot for Christians of the Hipster persuasion .

A lanky 23-year-old whose hair hung in a shaggy curtain over his eyes, Chris first heard of L'Abri during his junior year at the University of South Carolina, when a L'Abri worker came to speak. Like Amelia, Chris had felt paralyzed by expectations at home. His leadership role in Campus Crusade left him no time to sort out his spiritual doubts. When he got here last spring, Laughery recommended that he read Schaeffer's He Is There and He Is Not Silent (1972). Chris wasn't impressed. "Schaeffer seemed to make a ton of assumptions, and he didn't back up many," Chris said. "It was too didactic."

Neither Amelia nor Chris knew exactly what they wanted out of their experience at L'Abri, but they had a word for it: "authenticity." That idea is far more important to today's L'Abri students than winning debates with secular intellectuals or strategizing to overturn Roe v. Wade. Though most hold firmly to conservative social values, they resent the assumption that their faith is chained to a prescribed political position. As Amelia said, "I don't want to be a white American girl who votes for Bush."

That last line about a white girl voting for Bush reminds me of an article in Commonweal which I quoted recently in a post on Linda Ketner - that's a strong statement about the politicizing of American Evangelical Protestantism and the rupture from the traditional understanding of the AEPs place within the politiscape for the current generation. But there's more to learn about these young people at L'Abri.

Between peeling potatoes, hacking at weeds, and laughing through volleyball games on the grassy court overlooking the valley, students explore their faith (or lack of it—the occasional atheist finds his way here) by means very different from the apologetics of Francis Schaeffer. Those few students who have read any of his books consider him largely obsolete. The modernist philosophy that he targeted in most of his writings, the bogeyman of existentialism, is passé. "Now the question is, Is there truth at all?" said worker Thomas Rauchenstein, a soft-spoken Canadian with sandy brown hair and a close-cropped beard. "Postmodernism's critique of truth is more of a factor in students' thinking."

Other than describing physical activities that white people like, this particular quote from the article hits the nail on the head for the Hipster Christian experience, indeed for much of the experience of young Christians growing up in and trying to surge forward from a period of relativism as created in part by scandal (Jim and Tammy Bakker, sex abuse scandals), political disappointment (Reagan, Bush I, Clinton, Bush II), and commodification of the American Religious Experience as espoused by both the emergence of the Mega Church and more recently the results of the Pew Forum's recent Survey of America's Religious Life - all of which engender distrust in leadership and the philosophies espoused because there's a lack of clarity in origin of the doctrines and directions of the leadership and congregations.

"In other words, when students say they seek authenticity, what they really want is certainty, an inner knowing. Convinced that they won't find it intellectually, many pursue that feeling of conviction through experience: in the communal life and worship at L'Abri..."

Ah similar to the notions that we spoke of earlier here from the US News and World Report article - a resurgence in neo-traditionalism for all it's fancies and (also) faults. From that article "I would argue that people are looking for a dialectic, people are looking for a commitment that is grounded but not one that is stagnant. The other part of the dialectic is an openness but not without limits." - Avi Weiss

Dialectic - the ultimate component of the Christian Hipster's arsenal to progress on the road back towards truth.

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Street Preachers reviled revealed

Yahoo! has a news article about street preachers on college campuses.

Here's a snipit from an article by my alma mater's paper - the Daily Gamecock:

"He just started screaming at us and told us the pope is going to hell, and he blasphemed the Madonna, which is really offensive," she said. Several students said they were horrified when he declared the pope was burning in hell.

Matt Callis, associate pastor at the Shack, said he was dismayed by the scene. "I don't know what he represents, but that's definitely not Christianity," he said. Callis said he hoped USC students wouldn't lump all Christians into a group with Thursday's campus visitors." It sucks," he said. "People will look at that and think, 'well, if that's Christianity, then I don't want to be a Christian.'"

I remember the series of preachers that would come through during my tenure at Carolina; always the same questions and rumors - are they really preachers? Is this a sociology experiment?

Well, no it's no experiment - they really are street preachers preaching that everyone except themselves and those who repent and follow their radical (and nebulous) lifestyle will receive salvation.

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Columbia's Progressive Pulse

"It's a no-brainer"*

-Councilman Kirkman Finlay III, on the
importance of LGBT rights in the City of Columbia

In a recent post I commented on how the conservative blogosphere was a lite over a compatriot city councilman sponsoring support of an ordinance for housing protections for LGBT persons.

It's come to my knowledge that certain proposals made by potential city councilman may come to fruition even before the city elections in April which could hamper one of his platform pieces. The legislation I speak of is that contractors, in order to be eligible for city money and contracts, must include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies. The legislation will be initiated by either at large representatives, Tameika Isaac Devine, or Daniel Rickenmann, who's opponent has been a vocal supporter of such an ordinance. That would put Columbia, SC on the map as one of only a handful of cities nation wide to include such requirements - alongside NYC, LA, Chicago, San Francisco to name a few. Beyond that, my source has said that future, very plausible, goals are to get Richland County to mirror Columbia's ordinances and enact similar laws county wide.

Also on the drawing board are seeing how these laws can be duplicated specifically in the locales of Charleston, SC and Florence, SC.

Beyond that - the source said the LGBT community looks to BCBSSC who offers their own employees domestic partner coverage to open that program to the city governments program as a way to skirt the infamous anti-family amendment passed, disbarring the state and its subdivisions from recognizing domestic partnerships/gay marriages.

I asked about a possible 'registration' for same sex couples (and what are traditionally known as common law couples) by the city as part of a study on urban development and as an inclusion in its outlook, but was told that at this time seemed a bit out of the realm of possibility.

The source indicated that at least four of the seven council members are already on board beyond the recent vote on housing, including - Daniel Rickenmann, Tameika I Devine, Sam Davis, and Ann Sinclair whos retiring when her term is up in July. Mr Finlay may be open to the notion so long as it doesn't 'destroy' the economy. All of this is planned to be done quietly so as not to wake the sleeping giants in State Government who are too busy with illegal immigrations and policy think tanks like Palmetto Family Council who are concentrating on the Presidential elections.

*The quote from above was from Councilman Finlay after the unanimous passage of the housing ordinance.

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USC being sued

Saw this in the religion brief's on Yahoo! News, suprised that I've not seen it in TheState, or any other local publication:


_______________________________

Religious group sues University of South Carolina over student fees

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A federal lawsuit alleges that the University of South Carolina discriminates against student religious groups because the school does not give them activity fees available to other student organizations.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled more than a decade ago that universities cannot refuse to give activity fees to religious groups, according to the Alliance Defense Fund Center for Academic Freedom and the Christian Legal Society, who filed the suit.
Russ McKinney, a university spokesman, said he hasn't seen the lawsuit and can't comment.
The advocacy groups said they sent a copy of the suit to the university with a letter saying they will drop the legal action if the school changes its policy within two weeks. The groups are representing the university's Christian Legal Society chapter, which says it was denied fees in February.
"Christian student groups shouldn't be discriminated against for their beliefs," said Casey Mattox, one of the attorneys who filed the lawsuit.

___________________________________

Hmmm... I understand both the Supreme Court Opinion and exactly why the University has been witholding funding from Campus religious organizations. The overwhelming feeling - and this is coming from the Chaplains association is that it's too easy to start a "religious" group on campus that doesn't last, the members of the association have seen many groups form with no formal association to any major religious institution or local congregation and seem to center on a single personality, which causes the group to dissolve after the personality leaves. If the Chaplains have that much difficulty in deciding who to let in their association - then it's no wonder that the university would be wary of giving university students in clubs and groups that aren't tied to the Chaplains association get a little from the kitty.

But at the same time, students can form ad hoc groups and receive funding so long as they attend (Student Goverment) Treasurer's workshops and submit a detailed proposal as to how much they need and what the money is being used for to the Treasurer's office.

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