Knowledge is like a garden; if it is not cultivated,

it cannot be harvested.

African Proverb

Northwind Traders Newsletter May 2016

The Not-So-Hidden Subtext Behind the

Government Shutdown

By Dr. Brian K. Clardy, Associate Professor

Humanities and Fine Arts

Former BFSA President, Dr. Clardy shares his thoughts

regarding the recent shutdown of our federal government.

The philosopher George Wilhelm Friederich Hegel was often

quoted as saying, “We learn from history that we learn nothing

from history.” And if his attributed dictum is a valid one then we

can easily project this mode of thought on the recent political

fiasco to overtake the Washington Beltway.

What the nation witnessed during two weeks in October 2013

was racism unhinged.

The government shutdown, and the threat of a legislatively

induced default, had nothing to do with the conflicting nature of

the roles of government, or even the naturally adversarial scope

of the two party system, as it did the complexion of the man in

the Oval Office.

There……..I said it.

It all began with Republican Texas (and first year freshman)

Senator Ted Cruz and his filibuster against the Affordable Care

Act which had been successfully litigated in Congress, given

judicial sanction by the Supreme Court, and validated by the

voters.

This side show continued with House Republicans whose

intransigence mirrored those of the Calhoun nullification crowd

of the early Nineteenth Century and whose Speaker who

displayed the backbone of a rotten turnip. By continuously

NOVEMBER 2013

The not so subtle, continued…

insisting that the Health Care law be overhauled (which

let’s be serious, President Obama was not going to

sign the repeal…….even if passed by the Senate), this

allowed the “Party of Rush Limbaugh” to stall for time

and induce the biggest political fiasco in our lifetime.

But what was so telling about this Shakespearean

tragedy was its vitriolic rhetoric and hell bent

insistence that President Obama was somehow “less

than” or “The Other” as the centerpiece of the Right’s

argument.

It seemed as if they somehow could not get over the

results of the 2008 or 2012 elections………the fact that

Obama eliminated Usama Bin Laden……………

showed his birth certificate to shut Donald Trump up

(if not temporarily)……and brought about the end of

the Iraq War. None of it mattered. Obama’s enemies

were determined to bring his presidency to a halt, even

if it meant derailing the operations of the Federal

government and crashing the American economy into a

mountain.

Which all of this reckless behavior begs the

question: would this have happened if the

President’s name was Barry Smith and if he bore a

striking resemblance to Barry Manilow?

Probably not.

But the disciples of the Far Right revealed a lot about

their own character.

They were willing to sacrifice America’s full faith and

credit, and freeze the operations of its government, out

of pure racial animosity. Not only was this a purely un-

patriotic act but it was shameful to the point of

collective nausea and sense of outrage.

And my gut tells me that this is only Act II. This will

probably happen once again as yet another deadline

approaches.

My hope is that the collective conscience of the nation

will be rattled to the point that the issue is as clear as

Waterford Crystal and that the American people will

answer with their votes in the next, and subsequent

elections, to throw out the bigots who manufactured

this crisis and replace them with clear headed

statesmen and women who can look beyond race and a

reactionary agenda to do the people’s business.

Employee Accomplishments

Lt. William A. Battle (photo left) was inducted into

Gamma Beta Phi on Sunday, October 6th. Gamma Beta

Phi is a national collegiate honor and service organization

focusing on community and educational service. We

congratulate and salute Lieutenant Battle on his

accomplishment!

Morris White (photo r ight) was recently named to the

National Association of Collegiate Marketing

Administrator’s Young Professionals Committee

(NACMAYP). Only four sports marketing professionals

are chosen for this honor. He and the others will help up

and coming sports business professionals get to the next

level of athletic administration. Congratulations Mr.

White on your appointment!

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Staff Spotlight

Kenneth O. Davis works in

Facilities Management as an

evening custodian on the Building

Services Team. He is responsible

for cleaning bathrooms in all

campus buildings. Mr. Davis

enjoys watching football. Mr.

Davis grew up in Chicago,

Illinois.

Faculty Spotlight Dr. Kenny Taylor is the Program Director

and Assistant Professor of the Community

Leadership and Human Services Program.

Dr. Taylor is responsible for teaching

undergraduate and graduate courses across

the Nonprofit Leadership Studies

curriculum both in the classroom and

online, developing a research agenda,

providing service to the university

community, and serving as an advisor to

students in the academic major. As Academic Program Director of the

Nonprofit Leadership Studies program he provides leadership to ongoing

program development/curriculum/operational activities, and manages his

program’s membership with the Nonprofit Leadership Alliance.

Dr. Taylor was born and raised on the south side of Chicago. His hobbies

include anything to do with classic cars and home restoration.

November 12th Meeting Agenda

12:30 pm Call to Order and Dining (August Moon)

12:45 pm Brief Business Meeting

1:00 pm Dr. Lou Davidson Tillson, Professor

Organizational Communication

1:30 pm Adjourn

Workshop Title: Career Promotion Tips

Tired of watching other workers advance with their careers as you continue to exceed expectations,

without promotions you deserve? Successful workers create their own

paths leading to promotions.

Dr. Lou Davidson Tillson is a full professor and member of the graduate

faculty in the Department of Organizational Communication. She earned

her Ph.D. in organizational communication from The Ohio University in

1992 and has taught at Murray State University for the past 21 years. Dr.

Tillson has held multiple administrative positions during her tenure at

MSU, including Basic Course Director, Assistant Dean for the College of

Fine Arts and Communication, and Hart College Head. An award-

winning professor, she regularly teaches Interpersonal Communication in

the Workplace, Managing Public Speaking Anxiety, Health Communica-

tion, and the Senior Seminar in Organizational Communication, for

which she’s supervised more than 750 undergraduate research projects. She has co-authored a public

speaking textbook, published 29 articles, and delivered more than 70 formal presentations. Dr. Tillson

has received the Murray State University Board of Regents Award for Teaching Excellence (twice),

and the Omicron Delta Kappa Advisor of the Year award for her work with the national communica-

tion honor society (Lambda Pi Eta). She has been named Communication Professional of the Year by

the Kentucky Communication Association.

UPCOMING EVENTS

NO

V

OMA Hump Night, November 6, 4:00 pm-Stables, Curris Center BFSA Meeting, November 12, 12:30 pm-August Moon (dutch). Guest Speaker: Dr. Lou Davidson Tillson-How

to get promoted and/or tenured

DE

C

OMA Hump Night, December 4, 4:00 pm-Dance Lounge, Curris Center BFSA Holiday Party, December 7, 6:00 pm-Oakhurst

JA

N‘1

4

OMA MLK Jr. Day of Service, January 20, 10:00 am-Large Ballroom, Curris Center OMA MLK Jr. Community Service Project, January 25, 4:00 pm-Large Ballroom, Curris Center

BFSA Meeting, January 20, 1-3:00 pm-Oakhurst, Guest Speakers: Mr. Patrick White-Financial Planning Tips

and Mrs. Tina White-Skin Care Tips (split sessions)

FE

B

OMA 8th Annual African American Heritage Gala, February 15, 6:00 pm-Carson Center, Paducah

National Association of African American Studies and Affiliates, February 10-15, 2014, Baton Rouge, LA

MA

R

American Association of Blacks in Higher Education, March 13-15, 2014, Atlanta, GA

50th Anniversary Commemoration of 1964 March on Frankfort led by Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. ,

March 5, 11 a.m. - 1:30 p.m., Frankfort, KY

AP

RIL

OMA Annual Diversity Achievement Awards, April 4, 7:00 pm-Large Ballroom, Curris Center

MA

Y

OMA Spring Hitimu Celebration, May 9, 7:00 pm-Theater, Curris Center

Special Thank You

The Executive Board wishes to thank Dr. Don

Robertson, Vice President of Student Affairs

and Mr. Mike Young, Associate Vice

President of Student Affairs and BFSA

Director of Scholarships. On Thursday,

October 24th, the Office of Student Affairs

sponsored an appreciation luncheon for Black

faculty and staff of the university in the

Commonwealth Dining Room of the Curris

Center.

Membership Application

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Annual Membership Dues are $25.00 due at the beginning of the fall semester for the entire academic year. Please

make checks payable to Murray State University, put BFSA in the “memo” and forward to Donald Adongo, BFSA

Treasurer at 6-A7 Faculty Hall.