VOICES & EDUCATION
The best and the brightest; The worst and the dumbest
I
t is May 22. American deaths from COVID-19 have reached a staggering 95,000 plus, the highest in the world. This pandemic has stolen our friends, neighbors and families in the blink of an historical eye in barely three months. Daily, two thousand or more are being added to this ignominious list, whose names will remain etched in our hearts and memorie It is tens of thousands more than the 58,220 Americans killed during the many long years of the ill-fated Vietnam War, of which the hallowed names of the dead are etched in granite to live as a reminder and memorial to their gallant sacrifices. I reflect on the Vietnam war because too few folks remember how divided our country was over that hollow tragedy. As a UCLA graduate student, I vividly recall running from the police on campus as they fired teargas and viciously swung truncheons — they seemed to be having
DAVID TAUB
fun. Us students wore masks, too, but for vastly different reasons. When the most trusted name in journalism, Walter Cronkite, told the nation that “the war is lost,” LBJ knew he was done. “I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president …" he announced to a stunned public. The toxic reality of sharp destructive divisions engulfing our republic today is not so dissimilar from what I experienced half a century ago. Both were engendered by a failure of leadership. David Halberstam, a brilliant historian, published The Best and the Brightest in 1969. He vividly demon-
strated that decisions by our smartest civilian and military leaders were responsible for the shameful deaths of many thousands of America’s young warriors (and millions of southeast Asians, mostly civilians), all for naught. That list of LBJ’s best and brightest included the Bundy brothers, LBJ’s closest advisors, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, General Maxwell Taylor and members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. General McMaster, Trump’s first Secretary of Defense, and his “best and brightest,” (regrettably McMaster did not last long at the military’s helm) published a searing indictment, titled Dereliction of Duty (1997), detailing the vast government conspiracy of out-and-out lies intentionally perpetrated by LBJ and his henchmen to underwrite their decisions. A devastating recital, what Mark Twain would tell us was, “lies, damned lies and
statistics.” Remember the daily statistic of “enemy body counts,” a disgusting index that indicated we were “winning?” The mother of all lies. There are too many correspondences between these seminal events — the Vietnam War and COVID-19 pandemic — to give me comfort that we are again being led by our “best and brightest.” Outrageous lies and falsehoods laid upon the American people about COVID-19 by our “leaders,” parallel the volcanic interface with Americans characterizing the Johnson Vietnam era. We all know how that turned out: Not so good. I have opined at length about the critical importance of trust in our government, which continues to slip away, as a flood of polls reveals that a majority of the public is losing confidence in government. Providing strong and competent governing captaincy is difficult enough in “normal” times; even more
so in abnormal times. We need our “best and brightest” guiding us through the treacherous minefield of our most existential challenge in over a century. Fortunately, a cadre of our “best and brightest” heroes seems to be located in the health and science arenas. Sadly however, too many national and state leaders are intent on either ignoring them or contradicting their sage common-sense advice. Instead, they proffer outlandish conspiracy theories or imaginary protective remedies. Indeed, our real heroes are now being called “the enemy” by our so-called “leaders.” Hello! In case you haven’t noticed, the “enemy” is a coronavirus-caused illness named COVID-19. Our leaders have politicized and weaponized what should be a unified, non-partisan, cooperative effort to conquer this non-partisan killer. Instead, we get daily
servings of cold pabulum, masquerading as truth (small “t”), spewed from lying mouths for personal naked political purposes. It is just the groan of “white” noise — division, distraction, destruction. Have we now “the worst and the dumbest?” Our political leaders should be guided by our third President, Thomas Jefferson, truly one of the best and brightest minds of any generation: “He who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and a third time, till at length it becomes habitual: he tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world’s believing. This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all its good dispositions.” To that, I say, Amen! David M. Taub was Mayor of Beaufort from 1990 through 1999, and served as a Beaufort County Magistrate Judge from 2010 to 2015. He may be contacted at david.m.taub42@gmail. com.
I’m proud to say that I was along for the ride
I
t’s Sunday morning and I’m sitting at our narrow, wooden-planked dining room table with my first cup of coffee. This simple, farmhouse style table seats six, although we have, on occasion, squeezed in eight people. Lately, this is where I’ve done my writing. I have a small room, upstairs, that was once the venue for most of my writing. That room is decorated— floor to ceiling—with thin black frames containing old columns, black and white photographs of our young son, and fading posters that advertise book signings. One of these posters says that Bernie Schein, John Warley, Pat Conroy and I will be signing books on Sunday, May 20, 2014, on the Concourse Level at the South Carolina Book Festival. It’s important to know that I’ve done maybe a half
T
he fifth commandment in the Bible states “Thou Shall honor thy father and thy mother.” There is more to that commandment, but you get the gist of the meaning. It is during this period between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, I am reminded of my own parents and pleased to say, that I honor my parents every day. Because even though they have both been gone for more than 10 years, they are still “long upon the land” and live in my head. Their expressions keep popping up and I say “Okay,
SCOTT GRABER
dozen book signings. Most were humiliating affairs where I sat at a folding table, alone, waiting for someone to approach and ask for a book and a signature. Sometimes I would sell a couple of books, to a couple of good friends, and then slink out of the store putting a box of unsold books into the back of my 1992 Volvo. In terms of the South Carolina Book Festival, I was not actually invited. Pat Conroy had been recruited, sought-after, and said he would attend if John, Bernie and I were also invited. And
so, at 2 p.m. on a long ago Sunday afternoon, I found myself on stage staring-back at 500 book-loving festival folk. Pat began with an expansive introduction of his three Fitzgerald-like friends and their three soon-tobe best-selling novels. He explained that each of us had five minutes to pitch our book. I went first. My novel concerned a father trying to rescue his son from war-ravaged Congo. I knew going-in that nobody in the audience cared about Congo, or its endless civil war, and everyone present was here for Pat. So I was surprised when I got a little laughter, a smattering of applause and the notion that nobody was sleeping. Thus emboldened, I began to think might sell some books; but unaware I was going past my five minutes.
John Warley came next and he, like me, knew these minutes were precious and (perhaps) John also went past his time. When Bernie got the spotlight he was angry — but he was also funny and provoked and profane; and somehow compressed his story into the very few minutes that were left. But then — at the signing that followed — Bernie let John and me know the depth and breadth of his anger and our selfabsorbed venality. While Bernie ranted we were also setting ourselves up, at a table, to sign our respective novels. We were preparing our smile; our small talk; wondering whether we might experience a touch of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome at the end of a long evening of book signing. And from where we sat could see that most of the
500 folks in the auditorium had lined-up for books. But, of course, it didn’t take long before we realized they had lined up for Pat. Not for us. I think Bernie and John sold a dozen books; I might have sold two. This was painful for me because I had to sit, smiling, pen poised and ready, while hundreds of people slowly filed past me and my stack of unsigned, unsold books on their way to Pat — the master story-teller of our time. I also knew that Pat’s publisher had told him to stop signing after two hours; that these marathon signings were not good for his hands or his wrists. But he did not stop. He sat there — finding a person, a teacher, an experience he had in common with the book-buyer. And Pat would give each of these persons
(who sometimes carried five or six of his books in their arms) a moment they would never forget. There was an “Author’s Dining Room” where the “Presenters” could find complimentary sandwiches and salads. I liked this room because I could meet real authors like Hanoch McCarty and Ron Rash. Often they would say, “Scott Graber? I don’t remember reading anything you have written.” Then, after a 10-second delay, “Wait a minute! I know you. You’re the Congo guy. And you’re friends with Pat Conroy.” Rather than feel defensive, I would feel proud, contented with this characterization. It’s strange perhaps, but I still feel that way. Scott Graber is a lawyer, novelist, veteran columnist and longtime resident of Port Royal. Email Scott at cscottgraber@gmail.com.
Honor thy mother and thy father
LEE SCOTT
Now what?
highlighting daily life observations
Claire and Dave, I hear you.” One of the phrases is “Buck up.” My father loved to say this one. It was said to me or one of my siblings when we would be whining because the tire on a bicycle was low
or maybe we missed our favorite television show. It may have been because someone snubbed us, or we stubbed a toe. Unless we were bleeding and sobbing, we would hear. “Buck up!” Now in his defense, I will say that it was usually followed by productive comments recommending that if there was something wrong, we should attempt to address it ourselves but it was also a reminder that he had confidence in us to handle a situation. When I went looking for definitions for “Buck Up”,
I found one from the Free Dictionary online. “To adopt a positive outlook, attitude, or mood when one is upset or discouraged.” When I told a friend about Dad’s comments, she thought they were a bit harsh, but in truth, we always knew that Dad said it with love and kindness. I think he learned it from his own father. Grandpa Smith was 6 years old when his own father died, and I think his mother had a lot to deal with my grandfather and his six older siblings. “Buck up” probably worked very well for her.
My mother had other versions like “Grow up,” “Stop your whining,” or maybe “Count your blessings,” but the sentiment was the same. Your life is pretty darn good and if you have a problem handle it yourself or ask for help, but do not complain about it. I have been hearing Dad and Mom lately when I have been whining about my hair salon and pool closed, along with other mild inconveniences. The “Buck up” reverberates in my brain as I guiltily sit on my back porch on a beautiful afternoon reading
a book or talking with my grandkids on FaceTime. So, even though I did not appreciate some of their quips in response to my grumbling when I was a child, it is nice to still honor them to this day. Congratulations, I have bucked up. Lee Scott, a writer and recent retiree, shares her everyday observations about life after career. A former commercial banker responsible for helping her clients to reach their business objectives, Scott now translates those analytical skills to her writings. She lives on St. Helena Island and enjoys boating, traveling and reading.
BOE approves referendum project architects for summer projects From staff reports The Beaufort County Board of Education has approved architects for two major referendum projects as well as construction companies for renovations at 20 additional schools. The Board approved Charleston-based LS3P Associates LTP to design Robert Smalls International Academy’s replacement building, and West Columbia-based Jumper Carter Sease Architects to design renovations at Battery Creek High Schools.
A8
MAY 28–JUNE 3, 2020
“These are two major projects resulting from the referendum approved by voters in November,” Superintendent Frank Rodriguez said in a release. “The new building for Robert Smalls is the referendum’s single biggest project, and it’s something that will be a leading fixture in the community for decades to come. Battery Creek’s renovations will modernize the entire high school and its athletic facilities.” The Board also has approved guaranteed maximum
prices for four construction companies to do renovations at 20 schools: • Thompson Turner Construction will build, for a guaranteed maximum price of $14.6 million, projects at Broad River Elementary, Coosa Elementary, Lady’s Island Middle, Mossy Oaks Elementary, Beaufort High, St. Helena Early Childhood Center, Whale Branch Early College High and Right Choices. • Contract Construction will
build, for a guaranteed maximum price of $5.7 million, projects at Whale Branch Elementary and Whale Branch Middle. • H.G. Reynolds Co., Inc. will build, for a guaranteed maximum price of $18.2 million, renovations at Beaufort Elementary. • M.B. Kahn Construction Co. will build, for a guaranteed maximum price of $12.8 million, projects at Bluffton Elementary, Bluffton Middle, H.E. McCracken Middle, Hilton Head
Island Early Childhood Center, Hilton Head Island Elementary, Hilton Head Island School for the Creative Arts, Hilton Head Island Middle, Hilton Head Island High and Okatie Elementary. The summer projects are related to safety/security, technology upgrades, playground improvements at some schools and athletic facilities improvements at others. Architectural and construction firms competed for
the referendum work by submitting proposals. Finalists were interviewed, and their proposals were independently evaluated and scored by review panels composed of school principals, community members and district staff. Competing firms were scored on numerous criteria that included such areas as past performance, personnel qualifications, demonstrated ability to complete projects on time and on budget, and related experience on similar projects.
