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 "Al Sharpton Goes on Crash Diet; What’s Next, Plastic Surgery?"
06/01/2001
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Let it never be said nor misconstrued that I am, in any way, a supporter or fan of the most
un-reverend Al Sharpton. You know the guy I’m talking about -- none other than the
loudmouth jerk from the Big Apple that does almost anything for publicity or personal
gain.
Sharpton’s latest adventure led him to a protest the US Navy’s bombing exercises on the
Puerto Rican island of Vieques. That little exploit landed him in jail along with three
other literal partners in crime, including New York City Councilman Adolfo Carrion; New
York State Assemblyman Jose Rivera; and Bronx County Democratic Party Chairman Roberto
Ramirez. All were arrested for the same crime – for taking part in protests on May 1
against the Navy’s use of Vieques for military exercises.
All four of the self-serving politicos, humorously dubbed as the “Vieques Four” and led by
Sharpton, are now all sitting comfortably in jail cells, serving time ordered by a federal
judge. Carrion, Rivera, and Ramirez are serving 40 days and the most unholy Al Sharpton is
serving 90 days. Sharpton got an extra 50 days of comfortable, yet free living space
because of a prior conviction of civil disobedience.
One thing that makes this all so hilarious is that Sharpton was jailed just one day after
announcing that he was considering a run in the 2004 presidential election. You see, Al,
the self-appointed defender, loudmouth, and often hinderer of Blacks in America, has
decided “the Black vote” was not represented during the 2000 presidential election and
that he needs to seek the coveted White House office to represent those folks who screwed
up -– on their own -- in the Florida election.
During the past few months, Sharpton has been involving himself mostly in cases involving
racial violence, police brutality, and the Florida presidential vote recount. He even
traveled to Sudan to investigate claims of slavery. Because of these actions, many
political observers believe Sharpton is vying to position himself as a new national leader
in the civil rights movement. Until recent months, Jesse Jackson, another high-profile
loudmouth that likes inciting racial tension, had held that position. Jackson, for the
most part, has managed to get himself shot from the lofty, well-publicized civil rights
arena by fooling around on his wife with a former aide at one of his organizations. The
Rev. Jackson knocked up his gal-pal, and then paid her to keep her mouth shut. Jesse, it
seems, didn’t like getting caught with his fingers in the cookie jar.
The focal point of the entire issue is the US Navy’s use of US Navy property on the island
of Vieques. The Navy uses the area for bombing exercises, and has been using the area for
some six decades. That’s sixty -– yes, I did say 60 –- years, my friend. The Navy contends
the bombing practice is safe, and also maintains that the exercises are vital to national
security. Of course it is. How else would the Navy get to practice bombing runs during
peacetime?
During his court appearance in front of Judge Jose Fuste, Sharpton said he was standing
fast to his publicity-seeking conviction that the military exercises are wrong. Sharpton
also became a self-appointed speaker, decision-maker, and interpreter for the late Martin
Luther King, Jr., and then compared himself to the slain civil rights leader. “If Martin
Luther King were alive, he would have come to Vieques and raised these issues,” Sharpton
told the judge.
The only thing I can see that King and Sharpton have in common is they both have been
convicted of civil disobedience. King had a mission while Sharpton has an over-inflated
ego.
Jail isn’t the place you’d expect -– or even want to see a president, or potential
president sitting, especially for civil disobedience involving national security. The mere
thought of Sharpton even being considered by anyone for the nation’s highest office makes
me cringe in fear. Political analysts, however, say Sharpton’s play may get him some
support from the Black and Hispanic communities, though.
“He will get a lot of attention and that’s something he’s always coveted as a community
activist,” Lee Miringoff, a pollster at Poughkeepsie, New York’s Marist Institute for
Public Opinion. He added that Sharpton “calculated or understood (the protest) would be
intensely supported by some of the electorate.”
At the present time, Johnnie Cochran is busying himself with assembling a team of lawyers
to file an appeal with the First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston. That’s the court
with jurisdiction over Puerto Rico. Sharpton’s spokesperson, Rachel
Noerdlinger, said Sharpton was not prepared for the 90-day sentence because he was subpoenaed one day prior
to his court appearance. Well, duh, doofus! You were arrested and charged with a crime
against the U.S. Government on May 1. Did the loudmouth believe he would never have to
face the music? Did the jerk really not do any trial preparation in the 20-plus days he
had from the time of his arrest to the time of the trial? Yeah, poor Al didn’t know, nor
did he realize that his protest -– trespassing on federal property –- was illegal. Poor,
poor Al, the man who wants to be president. Can’t you just see him fumbling his way
through the White House doors? He would tackle the furniture in the Lincoln bedroom, and
when it’s all destroyed, he would say, “I didn’t know that junk was valuable.”
Noerdlinger said Sharpton “strongly feels that he’s been victimized by the justice
system.” I feel victimized each and every time I see Sharpton’s face on TV news or read
his name in newspaper accounts. I feel victimized that Hillary Clinton is siding with the
loudmouth bigot.
One day after beginning his 90-day jail term, Sharpton announced that he was beginning a
hunger strike. For Al, I prefer to think he has started a new diet, possibly a crash diet.
He said he started the hunger strike/diet to publicize the Navy’s bombing runs on Vieques
and his arrest. See, it all comes down to self-serving publicity. No one really believes
Sharpton will ever endanger his health with a hunger strike, do they?
Sharpton’s current attorney, Sanford Rubenstein, said, “both his legal team and his family
are concerned about Rev. Sharpton’s health, but the hunger strike will continue until the
release of the Vieques Four – as long as that takes.” The comment was made the day
Sharpton began the hunger strike. Does Rubenstein have any commonsense? How about Al’s
family? Does anyone have any commonsense? For Pete’s sake, Al, look at what the Jews
withstood during their internment in Nazi concentration camps. They withstood long periods
of starvation. American prisoners of war have also endured starvation tactics visited upon
them by various governments in times of conflict. Al isn’t going to perish, nor die on the
day he begins a diet, er, hunger strike. Nor will he allow himself to become sick or weak
during the hunger strike.
One suggestion I have for Sharpton is to jump on the scale each morning, in front of
newspaper reporters, and let them see how much weight he is losing as the direct result of
his hunger strike. When he begins losing weight like the Irish Republican Army members did
back in the late 70s and early 80s, I will begin taking Al serious about the hunger
strike. Until then, he is just full of hot air.
While he is in jail, do you think he might consider plastic surgery? He could use a new
look, as well as a new hairstyle.
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- by Dave Jackson (Scoop0901)
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