Back to Black
The honouring of a past president only serves to highlight the frailties of the incumbent.
Joanne Black
On a recent, cold, Washington DC night, my daughter, two of her friends and I joined several thousand others queuing for hours outside the Capitol to witness the lying-in-state of the late President George HW Bush. I was no great supporter of Bush when he was in office, but this occasion was an opportunity to reflect on a life of public service.
In DC’s present political environment in which Donald Trump caustically tweets that his former Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, is “dumb as a rock”, it often feels that the only reflecting going on is in rear-view mirrors when parallel parking.
By the time the line had snaked its way into the Capitol, we had befriended the man standing behind us. He’d originally come from Wisconsin, before moving to DC years ago as an intern on Capitol Hill. We learnt not only that he was a Democrat who had swapped sides to vote for the late President, but also that our new friend’s star sign was “Aquarius on the cusp of Pisces”, whatever that means, a piece of information elicited by one of my daughter’s friends. All astrology is gibberish to me.
As we reached the Capitol entrance, where, to be honest, the attraction of the guard of honour had become secondary to the prospect of central heating, we were approached by a Belgian TV news crew. They asked my daughter’s friend why she was there. She made a suitable reply then gestured to our American friend and said politely, “but you should ask this man. He’s very nice.” Then she added, helpfully, “and he’s an Aquarius, also”. That was my cue to pretend that I belonged to a different group of people, but soon we were inside the beautiful round room under the cupola that makes the Capitol one of the world’s most recognisable buildings.
Washington DC, with its magnificent public spaces steeped in the worthy ideals of democracy (however short the country falls in achieving them), handles big public occasions well. The mood in the Capitol was respectful and sombre. Bush’s death, and the focus on his family, was a reminder that, like all of us, presidents have vulnerabilities and inadequacies. None will ever be perfect.
That still does not explain, for me, quite how the US ended up with President Trump. I am told he is a Gemini. That does not help me either.
Alot more people should apologise for apologising after being deemed to have caused offence when none was taken or intended.
Boston’s Dorchester Historical Society is the latest to apologise after being called out by one of those people who get their moral jollies from finger-pointing. Dorchester is a predominantly African-American neighbourhood and its historical society sent out an invitation featuring a photo of a local building surrounded by snow. Splashed across the picture was the line, “We’re dreaming of a white Dorchester”.
On Twitter, a self-appointed guardian of political correctness wrote, “The message of a white Christmas implies others are left out. Maybe not intentional but not how it appears. Faux Pas.” In response, the society deleted its invitation and apologised. “We are very truly sorry about our graphic … we were simply changing the words to the classic Christmas carol and did not think it through properly.”
Think what through? That someone might be offended by snow being called white? The apology is worse than the calling out. A pithy response is usually best. I suggest, “piss off”.
Since there is (almost) no chance of Christmas being white in New Zealand, may all your Christmases be commonsense.
In DC, it often feels that the only reflecting going on is in rear-view mirrors when parallel parking.