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Sangakkara stresses that the players today are a product of the island’s cricket heritage
Sri Lanka cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara in conversation with Mr. Nimal Welgama, Managing Director of Upali Newspapers Limited at the launch of Rex Clementine’s book ‘From Rags to Riches’. Minister of Sports Mahindananda Aluthgamage is also in the picture.
Excerpts from Kumar Sangakkara’s keynote speech:
Reverend Fathers and the members of the clergy, distinguished guests, invitees, the members of the media and, of course, the author of this wonderful book, Mr. Rex Clementine. I was taken aback and a bit surprised when Rex spoke to me personally and extended this invitation, but it was a pleasant surprise. I have known Rex as a journalist with an intense passion for the game ever since I started my national cricketing career. From that day onwards, it was very clear to me that this passion that drove Rex, the belief that he had in himself and his profession, was going to make his relationship with the cricket team and also the administration a very tempestuous one.
With Rex, there’s never going to be smooth sailing. With him, and I can vouch for that personally, no one will be able to escape investigation, inspection and analysis and at, sometimes, his displeasure. I have also been at times, at the receiving end of his praise and also his criticism. That’s something that I always have admired in Rex. I have never said this before to him openly, but this evening, having seen his book and having seen him over the last 10 years, I say this.
We as cricketers lead a very sheltered life. We have everything done for us. Sometimes, more often that not, we tend to get a bit too full of ourselves. We sometimes very wrongly think that we are special creations who ‘are above the rest of the mortals on earth’. Especially in the Asian sub-continent, cricketers very easily can get carried away with this. At the same time, we human beings, we of course never want to accept criticism, questioning of our ability, of our thinking, of our performances, but it is something that Rex and a few other dedicated and passionate journalists, who follow this sport everyday, who turn up for every press conference and who spend hours in research, who spend days asking the questions that need to be asked, getting the insight that the public needs to see, trying to get to know the players and deliver to the public, things they never see. And Rex has done that, fearlessly.
With his praise, he’s unsparing. With his questioning, he’s unsparing. With his criticism, no one can escape. I believe Rex has contributed a lot to cricket; the coverage of cricket and also the image of the cricketers themselves in this country. He has fearlessly and with a lot of belief, held strong to his views. Whether it be in his columns in newspapers or whether it be on ‘Sirasa TV’ with Mr. Arjuna Ranatunga. He has always held firm to his convictions.
He has also been a very intense topic of conversation sometimes even in our dressing room. However much we argue and analyse and we talk about him, at the end of the day, as cricketers we realise that there are things that need to be said, immeterial of whether we agree with that or not. Whether it’s comfortable with us or not. Journalism is a noble profession and his one article makes us stop and think, reflect, think some more, question ourselves a bit and make better informed decisions. I congratulate Rex today for going one step further and producing this magnificent book.
My father always told me to play cricket; it’s not just about batting and bowling and knowing how to score runs or take wickets or to field. To excel at something, you need to know its culture. You need to embrace its history. Books on cricket, which are very rare in Sri Lanka, published by Sri Lankan authors, is the best way of knowing who you are as a cricketer today and why you are here.
We sometimes think that we are here because we are talented; I am here because I can score runs and I am here because I have done the hard work in the club tournaments, in the ‘A’ side, in the national side and proved myself over and over again. To be able to sit here and stand here today in front of you. But in my view, I am just one part of Sri Lanka’s very rich cricketing legacy. I am a creation of that legacy. I am who I am today because of the great cricketers who are seated here today at this very table and in the audience, who paved the way for us to enjoy everything we have today. The hard journeys; the push for international recognition, the courage they have shown in the face of discrimation; the courage they have shown in the field in the absence of protective equipment; the courage that they have shown in the way they have carried themselves. The 1996 champions were part of that legacy. They won that World Cup because of the efforts of Sri Lankan cricketers’ efforts in past World Cups.
We are playing this 2011 World Cup as a result of those heroic efforts. Everything I have today; my lifestyle, my profession, my fame, my earnings, EVERYTHING, is a consequence of that legacy. For that, cricketers today must be very humble and very grateful. Because, without those, cricketers and without the fans, the person who watches us play, we are nothing.
In this book, I think, Rex has touched upon those thoughts, making a great cricketer, a great team. The dynamics, the works behind the scenes to create what we see on the field. Team spirit or the lack of it. A competent administration or the lack of it. Selection headaches, controversies. The thinking of players, the extremes to which players, administrators and fans will go to win a World Cup. And they do go for extremes – for Aravinda to become a vegetarian is very very extreme. But sometimes, we only see what we see on the field. We don’t get an opportunity to see behind the faces of cricketers to hear them voice their honest thoughts.
In press conferences today, we are asked questions and we give very well rehearsed, non-controversial answers. If we didn’t have the Cricket Board contracts, that bind us, I am sure the press conferences would be much more interesting.
But in a cricketers’ life time, very rarely can he speak candidly and Rex has given the great cricketers who have represented this country that opportunity, to vividly present their thoughts, their fears, their confidence, the things that made them tick, the things that worked for them in World Cups and the things that didn’t. I believe that it’s a very important thing for everyone to understand.
We are all mortals, we all make mistakes and we all passionately represent our country. We don our national colours and we look each other in the eye and we go to represent 20 million people on the field. We carry the dreams of the entire nation with us. We have seen in the past how important that has been in the Sri Lankan context. Through national strife, through conflict, throughout the war, through the tsunami and most other happenings, the social panacea that heals everything is cricket. This book will give an insight into what it takes to win the most coveted price in the cricketing world.
Rex, once again, thank you for inviting me and thank you even more for presenting and authoring this book. I believe that without any encouragement, you will continue with your crusade.
I believe seeing a more personal side of you today with your faith as your foundation; I see you doing greater things in the future. I would like to leave with one thought for all of you, which Rex has realised. A weak man has his doubts before the decision. A strong man has them afterwards.
Letter to the editor from Nimal Bhareti, 24 March 2011
I read with great interest the excellent and polished keynote address delivered by Kumar Sangakkara at the launching of Rex Clementine’s book “From rags to riches” published in today’s Island. It was a speech not just of a cricketer, but also the deep and analytical thoughts of a voracious reader which he is reputed to be and lawyer, a very rare combination indeed these days where many cricketers just go after material gain. His in depth analysis of cricketers, their weaknesses and their limitations and his comments on the legacies of cricketers of the past and of the 1996 World Cup victory were simply brilliant.
As for Rex Clementine, he is by far the best sports writer and commentator. I haven’t seen his book but I make it a point to read all his articles and commentaries. I would specially wish to refer to the series of recent interviews with past cricketers and cricket administrators which threw much light on the Sri Lanka Cricket Board, its glorious days and its gradual decay. As Kumar has pointed out, RC’s comments are completely unbiased, very analytical and frank. It was indeed a compliment to him when Kumar mentioned that his comments were even discussed seriously in the dressing rooms. Unlike some sports writers he never pays pooja to individual cicketers or administrators.
Congrats Sanga on your brilliant address and a bouquet to Rex Clementine for his very educative and analytical writing.
Nimal Bhareti
Filed under cricket and life, performance, politics and cricket


Half of Aussies won’t vaccinate for flu
Only half of Australians plan to vaccinate against influenza this year, despite NSW suffering through one of its worst seasons last year.
About 55 per cent of Aussies don’t intend to vaccinate before the upcoming flu season, a poll commissioned by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia has found.
The survey of 1000 people has also revealed Australian adults are often misinformed about the virus, which kills about 3,000 people across the nation each year.
Around three out of four people (77 per cent) aren’t aware the disease can remain active when airborne for more than 45 minutes, the poll released on Tuesday showed.
It has also found more than half (57 per cent) of Australians mistakenly think they are at a low risk of contracting the flu.
Pharmacy Guild of Australia president George Tambassis said the flu virus can affect even fit and healthy people, and vaccinating against the disease is the best way for people to protect not only themselves but the broader community.
“Flu vaccinations promote community immunity,” Mr Tambassis said in a statement on Tuesday.
“If enough people are vaccinated against the infection, they can help protect those unable to be vaccinated, including immunocompromised/sick, or very young infants.”
NSW recorded more than 100,000 cases of influenza notifications last flu season – one of the busiest since the 2009 pandemic.
Almost one in two baby boomers were vaccinated last year while less than a third of millennials had the jab, the guild’s survey showed.
Categories: Health, Lifestyle


Red Cross of Constantine
This article is about the Christian order of freemasonry. For the Catholic order of chivalry, see Order of the Holy Sepulchre.
The Red Cross of Constantine, or more formally the Masonic and Military Order of the Red Cross of Constantine and the Appendant Orders of the Holy Sepulchre and of St John the Evangelist, is a Christian fraternal order of Freemasonry. Candidates for the order must already be members of Craft Freemasonry (lodge) and Royal Arch Freemasonry (chapter); they must also be members of the Christian religion, and proclaim their belief in the Christian doctrine of the Holy Trinity.[1]
The breast jewels (medals) worn by members of the English jurisdiction of the Order.
The Masonic and Military Order of the Red Cross of Constantine is a three-degree Order of masonry, and with its "Appendant Orders" a total of five degrees are conferred within this system. Installation as a “Knight of the Red Cross of Constantine” is admission to the Order’s first degree. There are two more degrees which follow, and also the two other distinct Orders of Masonry (both Christian in character) which are under the control of each national (or regional) Grand Imperial Conclave of the Order.
1 The Order of the Red Cross of Constantine
1.1 First Degree – Knight-Mason
1.2 Second Degree – Priest-Mason (or Installed Eusebius)
1.3 Third Degree – Prince-Mason
2 The Appendant Orders
2.1 The Order of the Holy Sepulchre
2.2 The Order of St John the Evangelist
4 International extent
4.2 Former jurisdictions
5.1 Original chivalric orders
The Order of the Red Cross of ConstantineEdit
The Cross fleury with IHSV, symbol of the Order of the Red Cross of Constantine.
First Degree – Knight-MasonEdit
On admission to the Order a member becomes a Knight-Mason, or a Knight of the Red Cross of Constantine. This ceremony is known as installation, and is performed in a ‘Conclave’. A Conclave is the regular unit of this Order, and the name for any assembly of members of the Order’s first degree. The ceremony is short and simple, but teaches valuable moral lessons to the candidate, based upon the story of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great,[2] and the Battle of the Milvian Bridge.
Second Degree – Priest-Mason (or Installed Eusebius)Edit
On election to serve as Viceroy (the second in command of a Conclave), a member must be admitted to the second degree, by which ceremony he becomes a Venerable Priest-Mason, or an Installed Eusebius. This ceremony is performed in a ‘College’ of Priests-Mason. A College is the name for any assembly of members of the Order’s second degree. The ceremony is highly spiritual in nature, and incorporates more overtly religious symbolism and ritual. Having received this degree the Installed Eusebius or Priest-Mason is entitled to serve as Viceroy in his own, or any other, Conclave or College. In general this degree may only be conferred on those elected to serve as Viceroy of a Conclave, although exceptions are possible by dispensation.
Third Degree – Prince-MasonEdit
On election to serve as Sovereign (the leader of a Conclave), a member must be admitted to the third degree, by which ceremony he becomes a Perfect Prince-Mason. The ceremony is performed in a ‘Senate’ of Princes-Mason. A Senate is the name for any assembly of members of the Order’s third degree. Having received this degree the Prince-Mason is entitled to serve as Sovereign in his own, or any other, Conclave or Senate. Except by dispensation, this degree is only ever conferred on those elected as Sovereign. As with all masonic degrees, it may only be conferred on a person once - therefore a person becoming Sovereign for a second time, or in a different Conclave, would be appointed and installed into office, and would not go for a second time through the full degree ceremony.
The Appendant OrdersEdit
The Jerusalem cross within a circle and cross, symbol of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre.
The crowned eagle, symbol of the Order of Saint John the Evangelist.
Two additional Christian Orders of Masonry are under the control of the Grand Imperial Conclaves (national ruling bodies) of the Red Cross of Constantine. One is the Order of the Holy Sepulchre and the other is the Order of St John the Evangelist. Each of these Orders consists of a single degree or ceremony, and although the two Orders are conferred separately, they are usually conferred on the same day, one straight after the other. It is a rule of most jurisdictions that a member of the first degree of the Red Cross of Constantine must subsequently take these two Appendant Orders, before he may be considered qualified to proceed to the second and third degrees of the Red Cross of Constantine.
The Order of the Holy SepulchreEdit
The Masonic Order should not be confused with the identically named Order of the Holy Sepulchre within the Roman Catholic Church. Although both Orders recall the same historical events, there is no actual connection between them. The Masonic Order of the Holy Sepulchre has a long and complex ritual of symbolic meaning, based upon the legend of knights guarding the supposed place of burial of Jesus Christ. Both the Masonic and ecclesiastical Orders take the Jerusalem Cross as their symbol, but whereas the ecclesiastical Order displays this cross in red on a white shield,[3] the Masonic Order displays the cross within a circle set at the centre of a Cross potent; on the jewel (medal) of the Order, this badge is further enclosed within a black and gold lozenge.[4] A meeting of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre takes place in a ‘Sanctuary’,[5] and the presiding officer is called the 'Prelate'.
The Order of St John the EvangelistEdit
This Order is conferred in a short ceremony of an overtly Christian character; it is common for the Order of St John the Evangelist to be conferred on the same day as the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, one ceremony occurring straight after the other. A meeting of the Order of St John the Evangelist takes place in a ‘Commandery’,[5] and the presiding officer is called the 'Commander'. The jewel of the Order of St John the Evangelist features a silver eagle with its wings extended, to which a crown is added in reference to the role of Commander, or any member of the Order who is a current or past Commander. The eagle is a traditional symbol of St John the Evangelist.[6]
The position of the Red Cross of Constantine among the Masonic appendant bodies in England and Wales
Since at least the 18th century, Freemasonry has incorporated symbols and rituals of several Medieval military orders in a number of Masonic bodies, most notably, in the "Red Cross of Constantine" (derived from the Military Constantinian Order), the "Order of Malta" (derived from the Sovereign Military Order of Malta), and the "Order of the Temple" (derived from the historical Knights Templar), the latter two featuring prominently in the York Rite.
Tracing the precise origins of these Orders has proved problematic to historians, not least due to the large number of fraternal organisations whose titles include, or have historically included, the phrase "Red Cross". It seems likely that the Order of the Red Cross of Constantine was being worked in England by 1780, but following several re-organisations the earliest documented date of the Order in its present form is 1865, when its constitution was formally established by Robert Wentworth Little.[7] In time it became one of the ten 'additional' Masonic Orders (or families of Orders) controlled from a common headquarters at Mark Masons' Hall, London. Following the establishment of Conclaves in overseas nations, a number of sovereign foreign Grand Imperial Councils (ruling bodies) have been established.
International extentEdit
The Order of the Red Cross of Constantine operates around the world in more than 40 different nations. All regular jurisdictions trace their historical origin to the Grand Imperial Conclave for England and Wales. The following table shows the countries in which the Order is active, and the national or state jurisdiction responsible for the Order in that country.
Jurisdiction (Grand Imperial Conclave - "GIC")
GIC for NSW and ACT
GIC for Queensland
GIC for South Australia
GIC for Victoria
GIC for Western Australia
Uniquely, Australia has separate State jurisdictions, for each mainland State.
No national GIC exists.
Australia (Tasmania) GIC of Scotland Tasmania Division, of the GIC of Scotland, in the sole authority on Tasmania.
GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas
GIC of Scotland
English Conclaves belong to Jamaica Division.
Scottish Conclaves belong to Caribbean Division.
English Conclaves administered from London.
Belgium GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Benelux Division
Benin GIC for Benin Established on 24 May 2017 out of the former Benin Division of the GIC for France.
Brazil GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Bulgaria GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Canada GIC of Canada There are also two Conclaves in British Columbia under the GIC of Scotland.
Croatia GIC for Croatia
Cyprus GIC for Cyprus There is also one Conclave (Akritas Conclave No 14, Nicosia) controlled by the GIC for Greece.[8]
Denmark The RCC is recognised as being controlled by the Swedish Rite Grand Lodge of Denmark
England GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas
Finland GIC for Finland
France GIC for France
GIC of Germany
The German GIC has jurisdiction across the country. Additionally, there are (by mutual consent) three Conclaves still operating as a Division under the GIC of Scotland (one each in Sigillum, Berlin, and Bremen).
Greece GIC for Greece & its Conclaves abroad
Guatemala United GIC of the USA, Mexico, & the Philippines Division of Mexico & Guatemala
Guinea (region) GIC for the Gulf of Guinea Controls Conclaves throughout the region, from Togo to Gabon.
Not currently recognised as regular by the GIC for England.
Hong Kong GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
India GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Italy GIC for Italy Except the island of Sicily.
Italy (Sicily) United GIC of the USA, Mexico, & the Philippines The American jurisdiction claims authority over the island of Sicily.[9]
Jamaica GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Jamaica Division
Kenya GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Luxembourg GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Benelux Division
Madagascar GIC for France Madagascar Division
Malaysia GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Malta GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Mauritius GIC for Mauritius Established in October 2019 out of the former Mauritius Division of the GIC for France.
Mexico United GIC of the USA, Mexico, & the Philippines Division of Mexico & Guatemala
Netherlands GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Benelux Division
New Zealand GIC for New Zealand
Norway The RCC is recognised as being controlled by the Swedish Rite Grand Lodge of Norway
Papua New Guinea GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Philippines United GIC of the USA, Mexico, & the Philippines
Scotland GIC of Scotland
Singapore GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Conclaves administered from London.
Slovenia GIC for Italy Italian conclaves in Slovenia are due to establish an autonomous Grand Imperial Conclave.
South Africa GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas Eastern Cape Division
Natal Division
Transvaal, Orange Free State, & Northern Cape Division
There is also a single Conclave in Johannesburg under the GIC of Scotland.
Sweden The RCC is recognised as being controlled by the Swedish Rite Grand Lodge of Sweden
Trinidad and Tobago GIC of Scotland Caribbean Division
(except Maine) United GIC of the USA, Mexico, & the Philippines All US territory except the State of Maine.
Maine GIC for the State of Maine Maine remains independent, unlike other States.[10]
Wales GIC for England & Wales & its Divisions & Conclaves overseas
North AmericaEdit
The Order had arrived in Canada by 1869 (McLeod Moore Conclave No 13, St John's, New Brunswick), with nine more Conclaves warranted in 1870 (one in Montreal, and the others in the Ontarian cities of Hamilton, London, Peterborough, Toronto, Kingston, Orillia, Trenton, and Belleville) by the English Grand Imperial Conclave,[11]: 55 which had appointed Colonel W. J. B. MacLeod Moore as the Chief Inspector General of the Order for the Dominion of Canada.[12] Although the Canadian members were highly instrumental in introducing the Order into the United States, where it sought independence within just months, the Order in Canada remained under English control for twenty years, until the Grand Imperial Council of Canada was established in 1890.
The Grand Imperial Council of the United States of America, Mexico, and the Philippines has jurisdiction throughout the United States, except the State of Maine. According to its own centenary history, the first American Conclave was United States Premier Conclave No 38 at Washington, Pennsylvania (now Conclave No 1 in America).[12] However, the records of the English Grand Conclave show warrant No 38 applying to St James' Conclave at Maitland, in Canada. Both sources agree that it was consecrated on 14 December 1870. The English records show the first Conclaves consecrated in the United States to have been Cleveland Conclave No 39 at Cleveland, Ohio, and Cincinnati Conclave No 40 at Cincinnati, Ohio, both consecrated in 1871.[11]: 55–56
In 1871 and 1872 a large number of Conclaves were consecrated in Pennsylvania, Illinois, and New York,[11]: 56–58 and during 1872 sovereign Grand Imperial Councils were founded in all three States, starting with Pennsylvania on 14 June 1872. In the following three years, Grand Imperial Conclaves were established in the states of Massachusetts, Michigan, Kentucky, Indiana, Vermont, Maine and New Jersey.[12] In 1907 most of the individual jurisdictions were united into the GIC of the United States of America, and in 1946 the name was changed to reflect the operation of Conclaves in Mexico and the Philippines.[13]
In 1894, the Grand Imperial Council of Pennsylvania had withdrawn from the Union and established a rival jurisdiction. The two rival authorities, having long co-existed, entered into dialogue in the 1950s, and were reconciled and reunited on 18 February 1958,[12][13] into the single jurisdiction for almost the whole of the United States.
The Red Cross Masons of Maine have chosen to maintain their independence, with their own Grand Imperial Council. The State of Vermont also had its own independent Grand Imperial Council until 1997; in that year Vermont voted to close its independent body, and to be incorporated into the United GIC.[14]
Former jurisdictionsEdit
There is a small number of places where the Order has commenced work, but subsequently withdrawn, the earliest being the British Crown dependencies of Jersey and Guernsey. Doyle Conclave No 7 in Court Place, Guernsey, and Concord Conclave No 8 in St Helier, Jersey, were consecrated in 1868 at a time when the Order had just 6 Conclaves (4 in London and 2 in Edinburgh), but they were short-lived, and both had been removed from the role of Conclaves by 1923. A similar story applies to the British overseas territory of Gibraltar, where Mediterranean Conclave No 11 was consecrated in 1870, but did not survive.[15]: 58
In addition, a number of Conclaves were founded in territories of the British Empire or later British dependencies, but failed to survive the changing demographics of independence. Examples of these include Aden Conclave at Aden in modern-day Yemen, Indus Valley Conclave at Mooltan in modern-day Pakistan, St Louis & St Cyprian Conclave in Tunis, Tunisia, Excelsior Conclave at Moulmein in Burma, Lanka Conclave in Sri Lanka, and Rhodesia Conclave in Mufulira in northern Zambia.[15]: 61–65
In 1942 the Grand Imperial Council of Scotland chartered a new Conclave to meet in Belfast, Northern Ireland. However, following complaints from the Irish masonic authorities the conclave was never consecrated.[16] There remains no Red Cross masonry in Ireland.
Knights Templar (Freemasonry)
Original chivalric ordersEdit
Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George
Order of the Holy Sepulchre
^ Jackson, Keith (1980). Beyond the Craft (First ed.). Shepperton, Middlesex: Lewis Masonic. ISBN 0-85318-248-5.
^ Details here of the basis of the ritual story, and the history of Constantine.
^ See the website of the Order.
^ Illustrated at this site.
^ a b "Freemasonry Today periodical (Issue Winter 2003)". UGLE. Archived from the original on 2010-09-27. Retrieved 2010-09-24.
^ See "art" section of his entry at The Catholic Encyclopedia on-line.
^ These dates, names, and details are rehearsed on this history page, written by the Hampshire Division of the Order.
^ See GIC for Greece List of Conclaves.
^ See Eboracum Conclave website.
^ See RCC American history here.
^ a b c Report of Proceedings and Year Book. London: Grand Imperial Conclave of England & Wales. 2013. ISBN 978-0-85318-435-5.
^ a b c d Duncan, Herbert, ed. (1972). "Historical Sketch" (PDF). United Grand Imperial Council of the United States, Mexico, & The Philippines. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
^ a b "The History of the Order". Grand Imperial Conclave for Croatia. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
^ Details on the final page of this York Rite publication.
^ a b "Roll of Conclaves". Report of Proceedings and Yearbook (2020 ed.). London: Mark Masons Hall Ltd. 4 December 2020. ISBN 978-1-913974-00-8.
^ "Conclaves". Roll of the Grand Conclave (2018-2019 ed.). Perth, Scotland: Grand Imperial Council of Scotland. 2018. p. 10.
Red Cross of Constantine in England and Wales (website under construction)
Red Cross of Constantine in the United States of America and Mexico
Grand Imperial Council of Maine
Red Cross of Constantine in Scotland
Grand Imperial Conclave of New South Wales & Australian Capital Territory
Page of links to multiple Red Cross of Constantine official websites.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Red_Cross_of_Constantine&oldid=1020135497"


The Myth of the Rule of Law and the Future of Repression
By Keith Preston on December 21, 2011 • ( 1 Comment )
My latest piece for AlternativeRight.Com.
Richard’s post, “Obama’s Ennabling Act,” raises some interesting questions regarding the significance of the recently passed National Defense Authorization Act, and its probable impact, that I believe merit further discussion. The editorial issued on December 17 by the editors of Taki’s Magazine, “The Government v. Everyone,” represents fairly well the shared consensus of critics of the NDAA whose ranks include conservative constitutionalists and left-wing civil libertarians alike. While I share the opposition to the Act voiced by these critics, I also believe that Richard is correct to point out the questionable presumptions regarding legal and constitutional theory and alarmist rhetoric that have dominated the critics’ arguments.
Wholesale abrogation of core provisions of the U.S. Constitution is hardly rare in American history. The literature of leftist or libertarian historians of American politics is filled with references to the Alien and Sedition Act, Lincoln’s assumption of dictatorial powers during the Civil War, the repression of the labor movement during WWI, the internment of the Japanese during WW2 and so forth. Mainstream liberal critics of these aspects of American history will lament the manner by whichAmerica supposedly strays so frequently from her high-minded ideals, whereas more radical leftist critics will insist such episodes illustrate what a rotten society America always was right from the beginning.
Meanwhile, conservatives will lament how the noble, almost god-like efforts of the revered “Founding Fathers” have been perverted and destroyed by subsequent generations of evil or misguided liberals, socialists, atheists, or whomever, thereby plunging the nation into the present dark era of big government and moral decadence. These systems of political mythology not withstanding, a more realist-driven analysis of the history of the actual practice of American statecraft might conclude that such instances of the state stepping outside of its own proclaimed ideals or breaking its own ruled transpire because, well, that’s what states do.
Carl Schmitt considered the essence of politics to be the existence of organized collectives with the potential to engage in lethal conflict with one another. Max Weber defined the state as an entity claiming a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence. Schmitt’s dictum, “Sovereign is he who decides on the state of exception,” indicates there must be some ultimate rule-making authority that decides what constitutes “legitimacy” and what does not, and that this sovereign entity is consequently not bound by its own rules. This principle is descriptive rather than prescriptive or normative in nature. Schmitt’s conception of the political is simply an analysis of “how things work” as opposed to “what ought to be.”
Like all other political collectives, the United States possesses a body of political mythology whose function is to convey legitimacy upon its own state. For Americans, this mythology takes on the form of what Robert Bellah identified as the “civil religion.” The tenants of this civil religion grant Americans a unique and exceptional place in history as the Promethean purveyors of “freedom,” “democracy,” “equality,” “opportunity,” or some other supposedly noble ideal. According to this mythology, America takes on the role of a providential nation that is in some way particularly favored by either a vague, deist-like divine force (Jefferson’s “nature’s god”) in the mainstream politico-religious culture, or the biblical god in the case of the evangelicals, or the progressive forces of history for left-wing secularists. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution are the sacred writings of the American civil religion. It is no coincidence that constitutional fundamentalists and religious fundamentalists are often the same people. Prominent “founding fathers” such as Washington or Madison assume the role of prophets or patriarchs akin to Moses and Abraham.
In American political and legal culture, this civil religion and body of political mythology becomes intertwined with the liberal myth of the “rule of law.” According to this conception, “law” takes on an almost mystical quality and the Constitution becomes a kind of magical artifact (like the genie’s lantern) whose invocation will ostensibly ward off tyrants. This legal mythology is often expressed through slogans such as “We should be a nation of laws and not men” (as though laws are somehow codified by forces or entities other than mere mortal humans) and public officials caught acting outside strict adherence to legal boundaries are sometimes vilified for violation of “the rule of law.” (I recall comical pieties of this type being expressed during the Iran-Contra scandal of the late 1980s.) Ultimately, of course, there is no such thing as “the rule of law.” There is only the rule of the “sovereign.” The law is always subordinate to the sovereign rather than vice versa. Schmitt’s conception of the political indicates that the world is comprised first and foremost of brawling collectives struggling on behalf of each of their existential prerogatives. The practice of politics amounts to street-gang warfare writ large where the overriding principle becomes “protect one’s turf!” rather than “rule of law.”
As an aside, I am sometimes asked how my general adherence to Schmittian political theory can be reconciled with my anarchist beliefs. However, it was my own anarchism that initially attracted me to the thought of Schmitt. His recognition of the essence of the political as organized collectives with the potential to engage in lethal conflict and his understanding of sovereignty as exemption from the rule-making authority of the state have the ironic effect of stripping away and destroying the systems of mythology on which states are built. Schmitt’s analysis of the nature of the state is so penetrating that it gives the game away. Politics is simply about maintaining power. Period.
Another irony is that Schmitt helped to clarify my anarchist beliefs considerably. I adhere to the dictionary definition of anarchism as the goal of replacing the state with a confederation or agglomeration of voluntary communities (while recognizing a certain degree of subjectivity to the question of what is “voluntary” and what is not). Theoretically, anarchist communities could certainly reflect the values of ideological anarchists like Kropotkin, Rothbard, or Dorothy Day. But such communities could also be organized on the model of South Africa’s Orania, or traditionalist communities like the Hasidim or Amish, or fringe cultural elements like UFO true-believers. Paradoxically, such communities could otherwise reflect the “normal” values of Middle America(minus the state).
The concept of fourth generation warfare provides a key insight as to how political anarchism can be reconciled with the political theory of Carl Schmitt. According to fourth generation theory as it has been outlined by Martin Van Creveld and William S. Lind, the state is in the process of receding as the loyalties of populations are being transferred to other entities such as religions, tribes, ideological movements, gangs, cults, paramilitaries, or whatever. Scenarios are emerging with increasing frequency where such non-state actors engage in warfare with states or in the place of states. Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which has essentially replaced the Lebanese state as both the defender of the nation and as the provider of necessary services on which the broader population depends, is a standard model of a fourth generation entity. In other words, Hezbollah has replaced the state as the sovereign entity in Lebanese society.
Another example is Columbia’s FARC, which has likewise dislodged the Colombian state as the sovereign in FARC-controlled territorial regions. The implication of this for political anarchism is that for the anarchist goal of autonomous, voluntary communities to succeed, a non-state entity (or collection of entities) must emerge that is capable of protecting the communities from conquest or subversion and possesses the will to do so. In other words, for anarchism to work there must be in place the equivalent of an anarchist version of Hezbollah that replaces the state as the sovereign in the wider society, probably in the form of a decentralized militia confederation similar to that organized by the Anarchists of Catalonia during the Spanish Civil War…in case anyone was wondering.
The Future of Repression
Dealing with more immediate questions, the passage of the National Defense Authorization Act raises the issue of to what level repression carried out by the American state in the future will be taken, and of what particular form this repression will assume. I agree with Richard that it is improbable that NDAA represents any significant change of direction or dramatic acceleration in these areas. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that American political dissidents (the readers of AlternativeRight.Com, for instance) will be subject to mass arrests and indefinite detention without trial. Such tactics are likely to be reserved for individuals, primarily foreigners, genuinely involved or believed to be involved in the planning of acts of actual terrorism against American targets. There is at present very little of that within the context of domestic American society.
However, the unwarranted nature of Alex Jones-style alarmism does not mean there is no danger on the horizon. What is needed is a healthy medium between panic and complacency. Richard has argued that our present systems of soft totalitarianism that we find in the contemporary Western world may well give way to hard totalitarianism as Cultural Marxism/Totalitarian Humanism continues to tighten its grip. While this is a concern that I share and a prophecy that I regrettably think has a considerable chance of fulfillment, the question arises of what form “hard” totalitarianism might take in the future of the West.
It is unlikely we will ever develop states in the West that are organized on the classical totalitarian model complete with over the top pageantry and heads of states with strange uniforms and facial hair, given the way in which these are inimical to the universalist ideology, globalist ambitions, commercial interests, and aesthetic values of Western elites. Rather, I suspect the future of Western repression will take on either one of two forms (or perhaps a combination of both).
One of these is a model where repression rarely involves long term imprisonment or state-sponsored lethal action against dissidents. Instead, such repression might take on the form of persistent and arbitrary harassment, or the ongoing escalation of the use of professional and economic sanctions, targeting the families and associates of dissidents, or the petty criminalization of those who speak or act in defiance of establishment ideology. Richard has discussed the recent events involving Emma West and David Duke, and well as his own treatment at the hands of the Canadian authorities, and I suspect it is state action of this type that will largely define Western repression in the foreseeable future.
The state may not murder you or put you in prison for decades without trial, but you may lose your job, have your professional licensees revoked or the social service authorities threaten to remove your children from your home, or be subject to significant but brief harassment by legal authorities. You man find yourself brought up on minor criminal charges (akin to those that might be levied against a shoplifter or a pot smoker) if you utter the wrong words. Likewise, the state will increasingly look the other way as the use of extra-legal violence by leftist and other pro-system thugs is employed against dissenters. Indeed, much of what I have outlined here is already taking place and it can be expected that such incidents will become much more frequent and severe in the years and decades ahead. What I have outlined in this paragraph largely defines the practice of political repression as it currently exists in the West, particularly outside the United States, where traditions upholding free speech do not run quite as deeply.
However, this by no means indicates that Americans are off the hook. An even greater issue of concern, particularly for the United States, involves the convergence of four factors within contemporary American society and statecraft. These are the decline of the American empire in spite of the continuation of America’s massive military-industrial complex, mass immigration and radical demographic transformation, rapid economic deterioration and the disappearance of the conventional American middle class, and the growth of the general apparatus of state repression over the last four decades (the prison-industrial complex frequently criticized by the Left, for instance).
The combination of mass Third World immigration and ongoing economic decline, if continued uninterrupted, will have the effect of replicating the traditional Third World model class system in theU.S. (and perhaps much of the West over time). A class system organized on the basis of an opulent few at the top and impoverished many among the masses (the Brasillian model, for instance) will likely be accompanied by escalating social unrest and political instability. Such trends will be ever more greatly exacerbated by growing social, cultural, and ethnic conflict brought about by demographic change.
The American state has at its disposal an enormous military industrial complex that, frankly, wants to remain in business even as foreign military adventures continue to become less politically and economically viable. Likewise, the ongoing domestic wars waged by the American state against drugs, crime, gangs, guns, et. al. have generated a rather large “police industrial complex” with American borders. Libertarian writers such as William Norman Grigg have diligently documented the ongoing process of the militarization of American law enforcement and the continued blurring of distinctions between the rules of engagement involving soldiers on the battlefield on one hand and policemen dealing with civilians on the other. The literature of libertarian critics is filled with horror stories of, for instance, small town mayors having their household pets blown away by SWAT team membersduring the course of bungled drug raids.
The point is that as economic and social unrest, along with increasingly intense demographic conflict, continues to arise as it likely will in the foreseeable American future, the state will have at its disposal a significant apparatus for the carrying out of genuinely brutal repression of the kind normally associated with Latin American or Middle Eastern countries. Recall, for example, the “disappeared” ofLatin America during the 1970s and 1980s. It is not improbable that we dissidents in the totalitarian humanist states of the postmodern West will face a dangerous brush with such circumstances at some point in the future.
A Year of Upheaval, A Year of Upping the Stakes
The Stark Truth: Interview with William Norman Grigg
“According to this conception, “law” takes on an almost mystical quality and the Constitution becomes a kind of magical artifact…”
You see this is those youtube videos where some poor sap is quoting statutes as the bronze are slamming his head into the pavement as if it were an incantation.
A lot of Americans, myself included need to learn how to fall out of love with the founding fathers. I think that on some sort of subconscious level we are still prone to adhere to the law of the heroes and will not feel entitled to question their authority until we accomplish some similar noble deeds. What this entails is ambiguous but I guess we’ll know when we’re there.
“One of these is a model where repression rarely involves long term imprisonment or state-sponsored lethal action against dissidents. Instead, such repression might take on the form of persistent and arbitrary harassment, or the ongoing escalation of the use of professional and economic sanctions, targeting the families and associates of dissidents, or the petty criminalization of those who speak or act in defiance of establishment ideology.”
This is effective but more like damage control, more tactic than policy. There is not much money to be made in this approach so I can’t imagine it being an established protocol. Someone has to be making money somewhere for any mechanism to last. We are past the point of of employing force to protect profit, force itself must turn profit.
“It is not improbable that we dissidents in the totalitarian humanist states of the postmodern West will face a dangerous brush with such circumstances at some point in the future.”
At this point I would encourage any bright young motivated dissidents to stay out of the game. Like right now, make this the last time you visit this site, keep your name clean and adopt the outward appearance of the Bourgeoisie, buy a Volvo and keep your mouth shut. Get in there, join the Army, become a rockstar, whatever, don’t be where they will be looking for you. Be subtle, be quiet, when you see the opportunity be heroic.
A Misunderstood Idea: Troy Southgate's National-Anarchist Movement (N-AM) Manifesto
Personality Types And Religion
Something sounds kind of familiar about this
The Supreme Court, and the Prospects for National Divorce
Peter Zeihan - How China is going to Vanish


High school group relaxes soccer rules on religious headwear
Feb. 11, 2021 at 9:48 am Updated Feb. 11, 2021 at 9:48 am
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The National Federation of State High School Associations announced Thursday that it will no longer require state approval to allow soccer players to wear religious headwear during games.
Under the new regulations, religious headwear cannot be made of abrasive or hard material and must fit securely. Head coverings for medical or cosmetic reasons will still require a physician’s statement before a state high school association can grant approval.
Previously, state athletic associations had to approve all head coverings.
The decision comes one week after the national governing body announced a similar rules change in volleyball.
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports


“I believe that it will be the kids who grow up and learn in diverse communities who will solve the problems of inequality and injustice in the United States.”–Dr. Melanie (Ferrara) Finkenbinder, Valedictorian, Class of 2000
November 4, 2016 November 4, 2016 ~ selexperience	~ Leave a comment
SEL teachers are always making a difference in the lives of their students, although they may not realize how much of a lasting difference they’re making every day. Melanie Kay (Ferrara) Finkenbinder, Valedictorian of the Class of 2000, spoke with us recently about what she’s been up to since graduation and how her teachers and her time at South Euclid-Lyndhurst Schools influenced the person she has become.
Working now as a primary care physician at Lower Lights Christian Health Center in Columbus, Melanie serves the Latin American immigrant population. She is also a medical student educator and is pursuing a Master’s degree in Global Public Health. “The part of Columbus our clinic serves is a food desert. There are few grocery stores in the area and many of our patients are food insecure. One new initiative in our health center is the addition of a free ‘grocery store’ right in our building.” Melanie is devoted to improving the health of Columbus’s Latino population—making sure they have equal access to health care in spite of the poverty and discrimination she sees her patients face everyday.
After leaving Brush, Melanie attended Washington University in St. Louis and went on to medical school at The Ohio State University. Melanie is married to David, a structural engineer, and they have two sons: Paul (3) and Henry (1).
Melanie’s Spanish language classes at Brush have paid off, as did her semester abroad in Chile during college. She uses her foreign language skills every day as she speaks Spanish to her patients and to her children at home. In discussing her time at Brush, Melanie reflects on the classes and teachers that made a difference in her life and helped shape her future. “Ms. Doerder’s AP Biology class was hugely formative. It’s how I, and at least six of my classmates become interested in medical science, and decided to become physicians.
The AP teachers and their hands-on approach influenced me to excel. Ms. Cassidy, Mr. Welsh, Mr. Mastrobuono, Mr. Nemecek, and Ms. Clemson helped me to become a leader and learn to work as a team member.” In addition to her AP classes, Melanie was very involved at Brush, serving on Student Congress, participating in the theater program, and being part of the softball, soccer, and swimming teams.
Melanie’s future goal is to move with her family to a developing country to help set up a health system from the ground up. This desire to help the underserved and level the playing field is common among many Brush graduates. Melanie feels that attending SEL Schools made a difference in her perspective about the world. “The more that we continue to segregate ourselves by skin color and religion, the more we will continue to misunderstand each other. I believe that it will be the kids who grow up and learn in diverse communities who will solve the problems of inequality and injustice in the United States.”
“We don’t live in a world where everyone is the same, so why should our school experience be any different from what’s out there in the real world?” –Mary Noakes Mosquera, Brush Valedictorian 2010
August 23, 2016 November 4, 2016 ~ selexperience	~ Leave a comment
In her 2010 Valedictory speech, Mary Noakes Mosquera had some sage advice for her fellow Brush graduates: “We define greatness and success for ourselves.” Mary has been defining her own success in the years since her graduation. After graduating summa cum laude from the Dietetics program at Ohio State University and completing her Dietetic Internship at Bradley University, Mary moved to Long Island in New York where she accepted a position as a Registered Dietician at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. She hopes to someday open her own private practice, centered on nutrition education and stress management through yoga and meditation.
Mary considers her SEL school career to have been a positive experience that helped shape her world view and set her up for success in life. “Attending a diverse school and making friends with people who were different from me helped in my academic career as well as in my professional life”. She mentioned that when she arrived at Ohio State some of her classmates had a harder time interacting with different kinds of people and seemed less open minded. “Attending SEL Schools made me realize that no matter what someone looks like, we all have the same wants and needs.”
When she thinks back on her school career, Mary recalls many memorable teachers who made their subjects come alive for her. “I had Mr. Beck for freshman English. He challenged everyone to do their best and inspired me to work hard and find meaning in what I was learning. That’s why he was my favorite teacher.” She recalled his creative lesson plans and the way he would go above and beyond every day to make students want to learn. Mary acknowledges that the negative perceptions of SEL Schools caused her and her classmates to work harder to prove that those perceptions were unfounded. “The perception of being ‘less than’ made us work harder to be ‘more than”, recalls Mary.
In August of 2014, Mary married her OSU classmate, Juan Mosquera, who now works at a non-profit devoted to helping kids learn to cope with negative emotions through yoga and meditation, called YES! For Schools. The couple hopes to someday move back to Ohio, but for now are enjoying their lives in New York.
In closing, Mary offers these words: “To any parent who is worried about the diverse environment at SEL Schools preventing their kid from getting a good education, don’t be. Sure, diversity can be messy and complicated, but we don’t live in a world where everyone is the same, so why should our school experience be any different from what’s out there in the real world? I’ve heard it said that ‘our diversity will not be a barrier, but rather a reason for our success’. And in my educational experience, that’s been completely true.”


Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Road to 100 Deluxe Edition (Hardcover)
By Kevin Eastman, Tom Waltz, Dave Wachter (Illustrator), Michael Dialynas (Illustrator)
The landmark 100th issue of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles gets the celebration it deserves in this special hardcover edition.
Concluding the epic "City At War" storyline, issue #100 brings nearly eight years of action-packed continuity by TMNT co-creater Kevin Eastman and series co-writer Tom Waltz to its dramatic finale. Featuring art by Dan Duncan, Dave Wachter, Sophie Campbell, Mateus Santolouco, and more.
But that's not all. In addition to the landmark issue, join TMNT scholar Patrick Ehlers for a review of the road to 100 issues through an in-depth look at everything that came before. This authoritative study of IDW's TMNT continuity is the perfect companion for such a notable comic book milestone, bringing the story into sharp focus for new fans or readers that have been there since the start.
Tom Waltz is a former active duty U.S. Marine, Desert Storm vet, and former California National Guard Military Policeman. He is an editor for IDW Publishing, and the writer of critically-acclaimed comics and graphic novels, including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; The Last Fall; Finding Peace (with Nathan St John); the Silent Hill books Sinner's Reward, Past Life,and Anne's Story; and others. He has also written for video games, including Silent Hill: Downpour, Ghostbusters: Sanctum of Slime, and the TMNT games Brothers Unite, and Mutants in Manhattan. He grew up in Clinton, Michigan, and lives in San Diego with his wife and two children.
Kevin Eastman was born in 1962 in Portland, Maine, and began drawing as soon as he was able to hold a crayon. His discovery of comic books gave meaning to his crazed doodling. After finding the work of Jack Kirby, Russ Heath, Richard Corben, Vaughn Bode and John Severin, he began to hone his craft. His first published work appeared in 1980, a year before he met Peter Laird. In May 1984, he and Laird published Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1, creating the hit heroes in a half-shell. Eastman co-writes Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for IDW.
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Comics & Graphic Novels / Media Tie-In
Comics & Graphic Novels / Superheroes
Comics & Graphic Novels / Science Fiction
Hardcover (February 9th, 2021): $59.99
Hardcover (January 21st, 2020): $59.99
Paperback (March 1st, 2022): $29.99
Paperback (June 5th, 2018): $29.99
Hardcover (July 20th, 2021): $59.99
Hardcover (August 6th, 2019): $59.99
Hardcover (September 6th, 2016): $59.99
Hardcover (January 8th, 2019): $59.99
Paperback (February 2nd, 2021): $29.99
Hardcover (March 29th, 2016): $59.99
Paperback (October 2nd, 2018): $29.99
Hardcover (February 23rd, 2016): $24.99


UVA running game was successful at Miami, should help offense moving forward
Posted on Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021, 9:57 pm
By Jerry Ratcliffe
UVA senior Wayne Taulapapa led a strong rushing attack at Miami Thursday. (Photo: UVA Athletics)
Virginia’s running game came to life at Hard Rock Stadium last Thursday night, a trend Cavalier fans would love to see continue as the team heads to Louisville with some momentum.
Finally, the Wahoos will return to a normal schedule after these kickoff times three of the last four weeks: Illinois at home on a Saturday, but with a starting time of 11 a.m.; Friday night at home against Wake Forest; then Thursday night on the road at Miami.
The Louisville game on Saturday is set to begin at 3 p.m. on ACC Network.
One of the keys in UVA’s 30-28 win at Miami was the Cavaliers establishing a running game early and not having to play from behind. In the previous back-to-back losses to UNC and Wake, Bronco Mendenhall’s team trailed early and shelved the running game in favor of a passing attack. That wasn’t necessary at Miami.
As a result, the Cavaliers rushed for 181 yards (211 before sack yardage was subtracted) and 10 first downs on the ground. UVA’s corps of runners collectively averaged 5.2 yards per rush, well above what Mendenhall requires for success.
“Mike Hollins runs violently and fiercely but Keytaon (Thompson), it just seems like every time you give him the ball, something happens positively for our team,” Mendenhall said. “And then Wayne Taulapapa … that combination.
“I don’t think it was the plays that were called, it was just the effort and heart that they played with. And, man, is that inspiring. And they know it. After the game, they just looked at each other and they know because they tried so dang hard, and that is so fun to see.”
Taulapapa, coming off concussion protocol, was the Cavaliers’ leading rusher with 62 yards on 11 carries, including a touchdown and a 27-yard run. He averaged 5.6 yards per carry.
Thompson only had three carries, but made the most of them with his versatility. He averaged 15.7 yards per carry for 47 yards, including a 34-yarder.
Hollins rushed 10 times for 38 yards and a touchdown, and had a 25-yard pickup.
Quarterback Brennan Armstrong rushed seven times for 19 yards (38 before sack yardage was subtracted), including a 14-yarder.
If Virginia can continue to wisely use its running game to take some pressure off Armstrong and the passing game, it should help the Cavaliers going forward in the next three weeks against Louisville, Duke and Georgia Tech.


The Draft Democratic Platform and the Environment
The Democrats are promising bold climate action but not committing to details.
The Republicans have decided not to update their 2016 platform, but the Democrats now have a draft of their 2020 platform. The platform essentially calls for aggressively moving beyond Obama’s actions (and eliminating Trump’s). For those who are in a rush, I’ll start with the takeaways.
Here are some of the most important aspects of the 2020 Platform:
The 2020 Platform goes well beyond the 2016 Platform, which itself went further than the Obama Administration’s actions.
The 2020 Platform sets ambitious deadlines for cutting carbon, including a goal of net zero by 2050.
The 2020 Platform also calls for a dramatic expansion of federal protection for public lands and water bodies.
Most of the platform’s proposals would require firm control of the Senate as well as the White House, in order to pass legislation.
Now, let’s examine the platform a little more closely and how it compares with the 2016 version.
Climate Change in the 2020 Platform
The 2016 Platform. It’s useful to take a look back at the Democrats’ 2016 platform to see how things have changed. The 2016 platform set the following goals:
Reducing greenhouse gases more than 80% below 2005 levels by 2050.
Getting 50% of U.S. electricity from clean energy sources by 2020.
Reducing methane emissions from oil and gas by at least 40-45% below 2005 levels by 2025.
How 2020 Compares. Now consider the goals of the 2020 platform:
Net-zero energy by 2050.
Zero-carbon electricity by 2035
Net-zero greenhouse gas emissions for all new buildings by 2030
United States must do its “fair share” to reach the goal to, and for the United States to do its “fair share” to keep global warming less than 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial times.
To achieve these goals, the 2020 platform calls for:
500,000 electric vehicle charging stations by 2030 (about 20 times as many as today).
500 million solar panels and 60,000 wind turbines
A carbon-adjustment fee at the borders to penalize countries that don’t keep their commitments under the Paris Agreement.
Public Lands and Waters in the 2020 Platform
The 2016 Platform. Again, it may be helpful to start with the 2016 platform. Here were the key positions on America’s waters and public lands:
Opposes drilling in the Arctic and off the Atlantic Coast.
Proposes phasing down extraction of fossil fuels.
Expanding renewable energy production on public lands.
Reaffirming core protections of the Endangered Species Act.
Establishing restrictions on discharges from the giant Pebble mine in Alaska.
How 2020 Compares. Once again, the 2020 platform goes big, calling for conserving 30% of America’s lands and waters by 2030 (compared with 12% today). It also calls for ending new permits for fossil fuel production on federal land and for reversing the Trump Administration’s new restrictions on environmental impact statements. Protections for national monuments like Bears Ears would be immediately restored.
Trump has dedicated himself to eliminating the environmental protections created in the Obama years. Biden wants to do another U-turn, but to accelerate far beyond what Obama did.
2020 election, 2020 presidential election, Climate Politics, environmental politics
One Reply to “The Draft Democratic Platform and the Environment”
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Consider the People’s Global Resource Bank democracy
Wetlands, the Clean Water Act & the Supreme Court: the Sacketts Return to Washington


Sir Peter Cosgrove
Peter Cosgrove graduated in 1968 from the Royal Military College, Duntroon. Early in his military career, he fought in Vietnam, commanding a rifle platoon. He was awarded the Military Cross in 1971 for his performance and leadership during an assault on enemy positions.
In 1972, he served as Aide de Camp to Governor-General Sir Paul Hasluck. He returned to regimental life as second in command of a Company, rising to Adjutant then Company Commander in the Army’s 5th Battalion Royal Australian Regiment (5 RAR), then 5/7 RAR in Holsworthy, Sydney. Subsequent appointments included a period as a tactics instructor at the Army’s Infantry Centre in Singleton, New South Wales; a year’s study at the United States Marine Corps Staff College in Quantico, USA; extended periods of duty in the United Kingdom and India; and command of 1 RAR. He was appointed a Member in the Military Division of the Order of Australia (AM) for his service in command in 1983-84.
Peter Cosgrove came to national attention in 1999 when, as Commander of the International Task Force East Timor (INTERFET), he was responsible for overseeing that country’s transition to independence. For his leadership in this role he was promoted to Companion in the Military Division of the Order of Australia (AC).
Promoted to Lieutenant General, he was appointed Chief of Army in 2000. After further promotion to General, he served as Chief of the Defence Force from 2002 to 2005. He retired from the Australian Defence Force in 2005. Subsequently, he accepted positions on several boards, including QANTAS, Cardno and the Australian Rugby Union. He was appointed by the Queensland Government to lead the taskforce rebuilding communities in the Innisfail region following the devastation caused by Cyclone Larry in 2006. From 2007 to 2012, he chaired the Council of the Australian War Memorial, and served as Chancellor of the Australian Catholic University from 2010 until early 2014.
On 25 March 2014, General Cosgrove became a Knight in the Order of Australia when he was sworn in as Governor-General (2014-2019).


Anonymous Hacker’s Message to Congress on SOPA
Anonymous hackers had sent a message to congress on SOPA and PIPA legislation, though the message was sent at the end of 2011, but its effectiveness can be witnessed now, when Anonymous has done what they mentioned in their message to congress by taking down the US and French government websites.
Hello American Congress. We are Anonymous. Your proposal of the so-called Online Piracy Bill is a blatant act of violation to the constitutional rights of American citizens. You claim that the bill is being passed to prevent online piracy, but anyone with eyes and ears can tell that this is false.
Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas.)…we know that you don’t like us, and that’s acceptable to Anonymous. We don’t like you either. This bill will make it unlawful to post copyrighted data Such as tips and walkthroughs in games, and sports highlights. More importantly, it will allow social media sites to remove re-posted videos and data from the internet. This, however, is unacceptable to Anonymous. The American Government supports the fight for democracy and Freedom of information in other countries, but when it comes to their own land they attempt to demolish it with brute force and censorship. The one thing they are yet to understand is that you can’t arrest an idea. You can’t kill an idea, and you can’t stop an idea. Every act of violence against the protesters across the globe simply fuels the fire. You do not understand that for each of us that falls, ten more will take his place. You do not understand that corporate media has been forced to show the events happening around America and across the globe. You do not understand that ideas, people, countries, beliefs and religions will fade, but the internet will remain. To pass this bill will cause public outcry, which will greatly improve our movement.
We, Anonymous, know that this is a hidden campaign to destroy the ability of people across the world to connect and share their experiences with one another. To the American Congress:
If you pass this bill, you will pay for it.
We are Anonymous.
We are Legion.
We do not forgive.
We do not forget.
To the American Congress
Expect us.
Anonymous message to congress
Anonymous on Sopa and Pipa
destroy bill SOPA
Waqas
I am a UK-based cybersecurity journalist with a passion for covering the latest happenings in cyber security and tech world. I am also into gaming, reading and investigative journalism
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Paschal Donohoe TD
Brexit, the Budget and Walking the Line
Paschal Donohoe TD, Minister for Finance and Public Service & Reform
I might start by saying, without wishing to cause offence to our gracious hosts, that this my second favourite event of the week, because not much could eclipse the excitement of Saturday night’s U2 concert in Croke Park that I am attending this weekend. In a few nights time, the streets of Ballybough will be bathed in the music of Ireland’s original stadium band playing in our original national stadium. Track six on their Joshua Tree album is called Red Hill Mining Town and rarely played live, tells the story of the closure of the coal mines in mid-1980s Britain.
In doing so, it also tells the story of the social and political consequences of the wholesale withdrawal of a major industry- and source of jobs- from communities in many parts of England and Wales.
To quote the opening verse;
The seam is split
The coal face cracked
The lines are long
There’s no going back
Through hands of steel
And heart of stone
Our labour day
Has come and gone
The song is steeped in a sense of abandonment. And it is that feeling of abandonment that is now a feeling for far too many and that provides the backdrop for last year’s referendum in Britain, the Presidential election in the US and other electoral outcomes. Because when Bono sings later…
You’re all that’s left to hold on to
…we have to acknowledge that a growing number of voters are asking what is there to hold on to in a world moving so quickly and who have examined and rejected the existing political and economic frameworks which many would claim have served us well.
Having quoted from Bono, I might read you a short extract from an entirely different source, Dani Rodick from the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University who says;
Until recently, it looked as if the world’s economic and political order was set on an established, predictable course.. Advanced democracies would be led by centrist political elites, trying to address inequality and exclusion at home while remaining committed to an open economy.
All of these conventional assumptions have been upended by recent developments – the Brexit vote, Donald Trump’s victory, and the rise of populist-nationalist parties in continental Europe.
Electoral outcomes in Britain, America and elsewhere are challenges to the previous settled economic and political orthodoxy that, it was once thought, would endure forever. Now that orthodoxy is threatened. Indeed, it is perhaps no longer even orthodox to suggest it will endure.
I remember feeling this in the most acute way when I went to wake up my kids on the morning of the Brexit result and thinking, for the first time, that they may not live under the same institutions and enjoy the same freedoms as I did growing up. Since the 2008 financial collapse, the social disorder that followed, and the delayed electoral response to both, none of us in the profession of politics are anything but aware of how greatly things have changed.
THE WINDS THAT BLEW US HERE
But to be aware of something is not the same as to understand it, or understand why it has happened. In order to chart a new course – which we will – we must first come to terms with the winds that blew us here.
What has happened in our global body politic, and what is underway now, are consequences of deeper socio-economic forces that, just as the coal mine closures, have been with us for some time. Ruchir Sharma, the Chief Global Strategist at Morgan Stanley has described these as the 3Ds – depopulation, deleveraging and deglobalization. To start with the first “D” – depopulation.
The annual growth in the global working age population has shrunk every year since the 1980s, with a particularly sharp fall in 2005. In the 1980s, 17 of the 20 largest emerging economies had a working age population growth rate above 2%, but that number fell steadily from 17 to just two, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, in this decade. And by 2020, all the major emerging economies are projected to have working age population growth rates below the 2% mark. For example in the US, growth in the working age population has declined from 1.2% in the early years of this century to 0.3% in 2016, the lowest rate since 1951. Visit many central European countries and their key political issues is shrinking populations as well.
The second “D” is Deleveraging. For anyone from the Plain English Society, that means paying off debt or at least avoiding more of it. By 2008, global debt had surged from 100% of GDP in late 1980s to 300%. This was clearly unsustainable and now we find ourselves in a situation where further borrowing, either private or public, to fund further consumption or investment is not as easy as it was. This is highlighted by our recent publication of GNI* data – a new, perhaps more accurate way of measuring the strengths and weaknesses of the Irish economy, that shows debt levels in this country of 105%. Put simply, growth is essential for long term investment.
And then there is third “D” – deglobalisation. Ask most people about globalisation and global trade and they will probably tell you that such trade has increased in recent years, all industries are more globalised and the inexorable march of the integrated world economy goes on. This is, in fact, not true. In 1980, when U2 had their first international hit, the volume of cross border trade between nations stood at 30% of global GDP. By 2008 it had grown to 60%. However, this has now decreased to 55%.
Policy fracture is evident on global trade, such as the inability of the EU and US to reach agreement on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or TTIP. Set against the backdrop of hostility to free trade from those on the extreme right and extreme left, and the scepticism towards it by many more citizens, a way through has not been found. Indeed, as a committed globalist myself, I find that the debate around globalisation to be increasingly confrontational and increasingly divisive.
So it is these three phenomena;
slowing population growth,
a realisation that borrowing does not cure all ills, and
the turning away from a globalised system by many
… that have played a crucial role in bringing us to where we are now.
And that last point – the distrust of trade deals and our system of global commerce, rooted in the distrust of the entire system – the system of government, of finance, of the establishment – is one of the reasons we are faced with a EU without the UK and a White House without Hillary Clinton. This change, this new order has resulted in a new political dispensation.
Stephen King, the economist, not the horror writer, in his latest book, Grave New World, which I admit sounds a little horrific, contends that;
For those of us living in the West, we have found it all too easy to claim that our own good fortune will continue and that, in time, it will inevitably spread far and wide. It’s time to wake up to the reality.
Well, consider ourselves awake – and aware.
Kate Malby, a journalist and left-leaning Tory, wrote in the Guardian yesterday that the party of which she is a member, the party that her immigrant parents joined because they believed it was the only party to protect Britain against the radicalism that had fuelled the war in Europe from which they had fled, was now itself a source of instability.
One not need look any further than our own Dáil to see the mirror image of this – a far-left that resists change, and engages in thuggery traditionally associated with the ugly far-right. Nowadays, to be moderate is to be radical.
HOPE RETURNS
But the message I have for you tonight is not one of despair or helplessness. It is one of confidence and hope. The April 2017 World Economic Outlook, to name just one indicator, points to a robust growth outlook. Global economic growth has moved from 3.1% in 2016 to 3.6% in 2018. Stronger economic activity and a reduced deflationary risk point to a positive outlook. The European economy is growing. The Eurozone is projecting growth of 1.8% this year with only a small number of countries now in breach of the Excessive Deficit Procedure. This may sound technical, but it isn’t.
Growth means jobs.
Growth means homes.
Growth means schools, hospitals and guards on the streets.
And the absence of growth means the absence of these things.
I see this every day in my job. Ireland’s economy is being fixed. And that means we can begin to repair our society too. Across Europe, populist momentum is weakening. Marine Le Pen was seen off in France by Emmanuel Macron, in spectacular style. In the Netherlands, Austria and Spain, the centre has reasserted itself. We are also seeing strong progress on new institutions and ways of working. We see progress on EU trade agreements with Japan and Canada. The resolution of banks in Spain and Italy was made with no contagion in their own economies let alone elsewhere.
Such a scenario would have been considered a pipedream only a few short years ago. And as the UK consumes itself with Brexit, the EU is thinking bigger. Debates about deepening integration in areas like energy and banking show that there is life – vibrant life – in the old dog yet.
As a committed European, I am heartened that the latest Eurobarometer poll shows that 56 per cent of respondents across the union say they are optimistic, up 6 percentage points in the last six months. They asked 28,000 people the question, by the way. Polls have also shown a surge of support for the union across most of the 27 countries in the wake of the Brexit vote. Those of us in the political centre were often accused of the politics of TINA – There is No Alternative.
However, what might now be happening is that the alternative has been presented, and people are seeing the strength of our case. For example, 88% of Irish people want us to remain in the EU – amongst full time students, the number is 99%. And across the Union, positivity is on the rebound. A Pew survey in June showed approval for the EU had increased since the since the Brexit referendum. 63% of people in the 10 EU countries had favourable views about the Union – up 18 points in Germany and France, 15 in Spain, 13 in the Netherlands – and 10 in Britain! And less than one in five of the EU citizens surveyed wanted their country to leave the European Union. The predicted exodus from the EU has not materialised. Hope has returned, or at least is returning, to the European Union and all who believe in it. The challenge now is to turn that hope into more tangible results.
IRELAND STANDS READY
And when I say tangible results, I am referring to the maintaining and accelerating of the progress we have already seen;
in our labour market,
In our public investment programme,
In the ending of forced net emigration
…and all the other improvements that have helped soothe the pain of the economic and social catastrophe that befell us at the end of the last decade.
I have said many times that the only way to deliver this is to ensure that the political centre holds. The policies of the far left – profligate spending, higher taxes on businesses, a “let someone else pay for it”, would all break this country. But the centre holding is not, in itself enough. The centre must also regenerate – because a static political equilibrium in a changing world is not tenable. Holding can too quickly become either stagnation or the status quo.
My assessment is that the global economic environment and order is changing, as opposed to crumbling. We have many problems, some of which are deeply ingrained in communities. In politics, it is easy to blame globalisation for these problems. Indeed, Dani Rodrki, who I have already cited, says;
Economists understand that trade causes job displacement and income losses for some groups. But they have a harder time making sense of why trade gets picked on so much by populists both on the right and the left. After all, imports are only one source of churn in labour markets, and typically not even the most important source. Demand shocks, technological changes, and the ordinary course of competition with other, domestic firms produce much greater labour displacement than increases in import penetration.
The answer as to why the populists attack trade is the attraction of simple rhetoric and simplistic answers to complex problems. But we in the political centre must resist that. I believe that small countries like Ireland are well placed in this debate.
As a small country, we are open to globalisation- indeed, we are one of the most globalised nations on earth, according to the KOF globalisation index, which is a measure of the globalised nature of countries on a social, economic and political level. Our economy is powered, in no small part, by foreign direct investment. In turn, we have reached out to the world. Our diaspora lives and works in almost every country on the globe. We are exporters of everything from Botox to tictacs. And when it comes to creating jobs – trade is two-way street. While American companies have created many jobs here, Irish companies have created similar numbers of jobs in America. A fact that I love mentioning whenever I go there!
Periods of growth followed by periods of recession are a deeply unfortunate component of the economic cycle. But in Ireland we enjoy a level of social cohesion and flexibility, or intangible infrastructure as some economists call it, that allows us to respond to the ebb and flow of those economic cycles. Key to this – to delivering for our citizens – is to respond to all this uncertainty, all this risk, by creating as much certainty as we can. Our corporation tax policy is a case in point. What we have learned is that predictability of the rate and the certainty that it will not change is as important as the 12.5% rate itself, because it allows businesses to plan, invest and grow. This approach can be applied elsewhere – to our planning system, to our rules around data privacy and a host of other areas. These days, certainty matters in a new way. At a time of volatility, offering predictability and order to citizens, to employers and to investors has an enormous value.
So, it is with all this in mind
The changed political landscape
The return of hope to our imperfect Union and
The great potential for Ireland, as a globalised country, at the centre of the world, as Time magazine put it
…that I sit down to shape the Budget in October. Which, I am sure, you are all very eager to hear about!
I have already articulated how the Government will approach Budget 2018;
Firstly, at a time of economic growth, we will strengthen our ability to deal with future shocks. We will continue to get our house in order by eliminate the deficit and getting our national debt down.
If you have a small open economy with a currency that it does not print, when things go bad, they can go really bad. When they go well, they can go really well. We will use the benefits of the latter to ease the pain of the former.
Secondly, we will reprioritise capital investment.
I believe strongly that investing in transport, communications, health and housing infrastructure not only promotes social cohesion but also grows the long-term productivity capacity of economy, helping in the creation of a virtuous cycle of investment and progress. By 2021, we will be investing nearly 8 billion euro per annum in upgrading our infrastructure – an increase of 85% on the level of investment last year.
And thirdly, we will outline our plans to integrate our capital investment programme within a proper planning and spatial framework.
While Budget Day will be some weeks before the National Planning Framework and Ten Year Capital Plan will be published, it will act as a signpost for a planned programme of investment that sees us spend money on the right projects in the right places. All of this, of course, is not to forget that in 2018 alone, we will be spending 60 billion euro as a country, in every area from health to housing, the arts to the army, so that our society is supported and our country can again thrive. We will also continue to work towards a tax system that rewards work, and realises the potential that the Republic of Opportunity, to which the Taoiseach referred, can bring.
But I should also say that Brexit and the broader geo-political developments to which I referred are not the only threats we face. Managing a small, open economy is never easy and the threat of overheating is there. Despite the nasty tone of many in Irish politics, it is my job to cut through the noise and do what is right, not what seems to be right to some people who shout the loudest. I will not risk our hard won economic sovereignty by allowing the economy overheat and succumb to capacity constraints. It would be a disservice, to put it mildly, to all those who depend on public services every day. Instead, I will take a balanced look at the demands made upon me, based upon the resources that are available.
James Connolly said in 1910 that “the Irish question [was] a social question”. He was not wrong. For me, the economy, and all that goes with it, like sound public finances, sustainable debt levels, the balance of trade, levels of taxation- is all about making this society better. Making Ireland a place where all can work, raise a family if they wish or start a business if they wish. Where everyone can avail of the healthcare that is their right, the education that is their entitlement and the roof over their head that is their requirement. But we can only provide that if we get the fundamentals right. That is what I will do in October, and at all times.
I started by talking about U2 and I will finish by quoting the late, great Johnny Cash – an artist given a new audience in later years when he covered “One” and an apt person for a Minister for Finance to quote, I hope you agree.
Johnny “kept his eyes wide open all the time” and Johnny always “walked the line”.
Not bad advice.
John and Pat Hume attending the opening of the MacGill Summer School in the company of the former President of the Methodist Church in Ireland Rev. Harold Good
Tribute to John Hume
Dr Brendan Halligan
Towards a Democratic Way of Life
Gerard Howlin