Blood & Soul

[H2O Man]

(1)“A champion is someone who gets up when he can't.” – Jack Dempsey; world heavyweight champion, 1919-1926.

Over the years that I've been a participant on this forum, I've frequently said that all of real life imitates the sport of boxing. While it's a bit tongue-in-cheek, it also sums up a significant portion of my life's experiences …. and the way, for better or for worse, that I view life in the most serious sense. Hence, for this essay, one of a series on the topics of OWS and voting, I'm going to start with boxing, in hopes that it may help to illustrate the second two sections of this contribution to DU:GD.

I grew up in a poor, violent setting. That was the reality of my household, my neighborhood, my school, and most parts of my everyday life. My family was poor enough that when I had a condition that resulted in the loss of most of my teeth at once, early in school, medical care was out of the question. What is a dirty kid -- wearing worn-out and out-of-style hand-me-down clothes, without the ability to speak in a manner that others could understand – to do? I learned to fight!

Boxing was the only multi-generational family heirloom I valued. I did not have a chip on my shoulder: I had a boulder. Anger, frustration, hostility, and a deep sense of social inferiority were the friends that I spent my time with. Although I was of at least average intelligence, I was not a child or youngster that many school teachers were likely to invest much time with. But I could surely fight.

By the time I was 13, one of the top boxing magazines in the world had carried an article on me; one of the best European sports journalists was convinced that I would become a world champion boxer. I still hold two of the ten fastest knockouts in NYS amateur boxing history. In my 329 bouts, I had only lost nine times ….. and if any fool who beat me ever gave me a rematch, I savaged them.

My friend and mentor, the Hurricane, had taught me the art of knocking an opponent through the ropes, and clear out of the ring. I still have old scrapbooks, with newspaper articles about my upcoming professional career, to be guided by the explosive-punching, ex-middleweight contender. But a funny thing happened along the path that I believed would lead to that world title. The Hurricane told me that I had learned all that I needed to from boxing, and that it was time to hang up the gloves, and to sit down in a college classroom. For the measure of a healthy society was not in the number of top athletes or millionaires or rock stars it produces, he said; it is found in that society that feeds its hungry children, that provides health care to its sick and elderly, and which shows true compassion to those in need. More, a true “champion” is the person who works for social justice, without requiring any recognition whatsoever.

I'm an old man now, and can't even remember how many amateur titles I won off the top of my head. I tend to think fondly of those days, a sure sign that I am far removed from them. I still enjoy watching some boxing, and talking with fighters. And I still hate losing.




(2)“As much as I love boxing, I hate it. And as much as I hate it, I love it.” – Budd Schulberg

In the many decades since my last boxing match, I have found substitutes for that competition. My favorite is growing roses. But I have other gardens to tend to, which include the struggle for social justice. These activities have involved both electoral/ representative democracy, and direct/ participatory democracy: working on voter education, registration, and participation; lobbying elected representatives; running for office; taking part in legal cases on the local, state, and national level; writing letters to editors, guest editorials, and being co-editor of a Native American newspaper; having articles published in magazines; publishing books; organizing and attending rallies and marches; and public speaking.

Public speaking is my least favorite activity. Perhaps not surprisingly, it is also becoming one of my very favorite things to do. Being of limited intellectual ability, and with less than zero social graces, I've found myself approaching opportunities to speak in public similar to the way I approached boxing matches so many years ago. It is hard to explain: to box, one must be well-prepared, which always involves an internal journey; but it also requires that one master the task of going outside of one's self in the hours before competition. And so it is – at least for me – with public speaking.

Last week, I noted in an OP here that my cousin was scheduled to speak at a rally in Binghamton, NY, on Thursday. However, a meeting with attorneys and state officials raised the likelihood that he could not be there on time; hence, I was asked to “fill in.” While I would very much have preferred to have him speak – as certainly would be the organizers and the crowd – I agreed to speak. My preparation
was made more difficult than usual ….. and I'm not saying this to feel sorry for myself ….. because of my physical disabilities. My legs had recently decided not to work, and I had fallen, very hard, right onto my face in our driveway. My very bruised body was aching since, and the numerous cuts from my face hitting the crushed-stone are still not fully healed. After a couple of what have become never-ending doctors' appointments, my wife insisted that I resist the temptation to attend a couple of planned meetings, including the rally in Binghamton.

That combination of stubborness and stupidity that defines my lack of judgement won out, however. While Binghamton is a long drive on a good day, and I'm not familiar with the streets there, I knew exactly where I was going – having hitch-hiked to a theater there in April of 1975, and fought on a professional boxing card a couple blocks away in May, '75. Obviously, I got “lost,” and instead of getting to my destination an hour early, I arrived right on time.

Although on the surface, everything appeared wonderful, I soon found that there was some of the minor tensions between the various groups that were involved in organizing this rather large rally. One group in particular was attempting to “run the show.” That's not necessarily a bad thing thing, of course, because there needs to be structure. The biggest problem seemed to be that one young lady from the group “in charge” was unhappy because “Occupy Binghamton” was there, and reportedly had a slightly different agenda for the public meeting with the NYS DEC that would follow the rally.

To make a long story short, although the person from her group that was in charge of scheduling the speakers had put me on the list, she took it upon herself to “cross me off” that list. When members of three of the other participating groups were unable to get a meaningful response from her on why she had done so, they approached the man in charge. He then came over to me, said that he definitely did want me to speak, and assured me that he had placed me back on the list. I would close the show, he said, adding that he had specifically instructed the young lady to call me up to the stage, and to introduce me as the last speaker. He added that he had wanted to introduce me, but that he had to get inside of the theater where the DEC was setting up.

The woman decided otherwise. I was there, ready to speak, and she opted not to introduce me, instead saying the program was over, and cutting the mike, hurried off stage.

People from the other groups there were saying things like, “Wow! I can't believe that (she) did that,” and other similar things. I watched her for a few moments, as she hurried from news camera to news camera, to make sure that her face would be on the news. And I decided to go have a chat with her. Away from the cameras and other people, I told her that it wasn't just that she was rude to me as an individual – she responded with, “I don't even know you or who you represent” – but that her attitude was causing her to act in a manner that risked dividing the various groups. I asked that when she got home, she look in a mirror and think about what caused her to behave this way, and to give serious consideration to identifying ways that she could place group unity before her individual need for attention and a sense of power.




(3)“I didn't push Cory. I wanted him to decide if he wanted to get into boxing, and he did. Can't blame it on me.” – Leon Spinks, former world heavyweight champion, on his son's boxing career.

My oldest son ran for office this fall. Although we live in a part of upstate New York where there are far more republicans and tea party members, than Democrats, he believed that he could buck the odds, and win a seat on the local Town Board. There were other individuals – most of whom are Democrats – who ran for office in other communities throughout republican upstate New York.

One of my closest friends, a Lakota man who lives in one of the most red-neck towns in existence, also ran. Perhaps the “high-point” of his campaign took place while he was going door-to-door, and an unstable human being answered his door with a shot gun. This fellow ordered my friend off of his property, and actually walked behind him – with the gun pointed at my friend's back – to his automobile. (The local police determined that this violated no law.)

The high-point in my son's campaign was perhaps the speech he made at the town's “Meet the Candidates” forum. He stood out from the other six candidates not only because he was a Democrat, and there three republicans and three tea partiers beside of him, but because he gave an outstanding speech.

Unlike me, he is entirely comfortable with public speaking. He had outlined his speech in the afternoon hours before the forum. After the forum ended, I said that I thought that there was a very real chance – based upon the crowd's reactions – that he could get enough of the republican and tea party votes to win …. something no Democrat has done in many a decade here. But both the head of the local Democratic Party and my younger son (the best campaign manager in our region) said no, that few non-democrats would be able to identify with my son. They said the republicans an tea partiers from our town were engaged in an angry feud, and that my son's presentation was in a tongue foreign to both groups.

My son and my friend both lost on Election Day. The republican candidates won every contest in our town, and in my friend's, as well. I think that the fact that Democratic candidates did win some upsets in other high-profile contests in a seven county region that we followed made these two question themselves. They both hated losing.




(4)“Boxing is not the sport that I thought it was, due to all the politics.” – Gerry Cooney

I'm not confident that the three previous sections appear as related, to the potential reader, as they are in my own mind. In trying to find a “conclusion,” I'm reminded of many years ago, when telling me that it was time to walk away from boxing, the Hurricane said, “You do have three souls, you know.” So, too, does the struggle for social justice. As Erik H. Erikson pointed out, we tend to encounter the same “problems” at each level as we go. It can be no other way.

We face internal conflicts, which are often the most difficult on any path. There are also petty conflicts within those groups we are part of in the struggle for social justice ….. and by no coincidence, they frequently are the result of individuals – both others and ourselves – having not achieved those victories over ourselves at that first level. And even when our groups begin to function properly, we will always face resistance from those on the outside …. be it the extreme example of the shot gun carrier, or the building conflict between republicans an tea-partiers.

When we examine the examples from the past or the present, large and small, these very dynamics are always present. So long as people are focused on their own career, be it in boxing or politics, there will be fights. As long as individuals and groups believe that outcomes are dependent upon their holding the reins of power, there will be conflicts that create and expand divisions between other individuals and groups. And even when as individuals and groups, we are functioning near our peek potential, there will still be tensions and defeats. Again, it can be no other way – because that would require that the very dynamics which create the “problems” be “different” – which would mean that there was not the injustice we struggle with, to begin with.

I hope that what I've said here makes sense to those forum members who are actively engaged in The Good Fight. I hope that it has worth your while to read this wordy contribution to the on-going discussion & debate on the Democratic Underground. For while the examples that I have discussed are of no particular importance, in and of themselves, I think they might relate to some of the dynamics we all tend to encounter in that struggle for social justice which requires our best efforts. Thank you for reading this.

Peace,
H2O Man

[bigtree]

1. ha

that was very insightful.

I know that the things you outlined become more apparent and relevant after losing a couple bouts. We learn that there really isn't likely to be a knockout in these political fights, most likely a draw or a decision. Thankfully, we're usually too thick to care, and we press on.

How wonderful to see your family so enthusiastically reflect your own hunger for the fight. Best regards to all . . . K&R

[H2O Man]

5. In a long struggle,

it's important to accept that you might not "win" every round -- at least not on the judges' scorecards -- but that you can still lay the groundwork for the rounds to come. I do believe that the late, great Smokin' Joe Frazier proved that! Chief Waterman and I "lost" the first case we took to court .... a "hometown decision" ..... but we were undefeated in the next five cases we fought. Those five "wins" could not have happened without the groundwork we laid down in that "loss."

It's also important to re-define what "win" means ..... any and every time we do our best, it is a victory. Again, in terms of that first "loss" that Chief Waterman and I had: we knew we had changed the way that a large portion of the non-Indian public viewed issues such as the one we fought for. More, we knew that a number of elected representatives, appointed bureaucrats (who hold the vast majority of governmental positions), and corporate leaders had been put on notice that "business as usual" was no longer possible. And I think you would agree that, despite the fact my son and friend "lost" their individual election contests, the fact that previously unchallenged positions are now being challenged, makes that same point. Yes, we lost one round, but this is a long struggle.

I suspect -- though this is entirely speculation on my part -- that the OP might have provided you with some insight on some of the rougher edges that I still have, from time to time. For a brief moment, for example, when that lady did not call me up to speak, I could feel that old self, warming up in the dressing room, suggesting that maybe he should get up on stage. Ha! How dare she? Doesn't she know who I am? But far more important is that I know who I am, and who I no longer am. As I saw her going from camera to camera, or focusing on talking to the politicians and their aides, rather than the common folk, I knew that had once been me. (The person there, with the most political power, had actually once worked for my aunt, when she held the same position. Small world, sometimes.) The rally itself was the victory.

[bigtree]

7. we love to see the flaws

. . . especially in competent individuals.

They remind us of our own potential, even as we struggle for some success out of our own incompetency and flaws. We are graced by your confession of your own humanity and ambition to see our own selves in that experience as integral in each and every instigation of democracy we stubbornly exercise; even when our voices don't do much more than just reinforce the ones with the most elevation.

Ha! How dare you!

[H2O Man]

9. I recently saw

Keith O. interview an elderly peace activist, who had been pepper-sprayed at an "Occupy" event. She spoke about having one of the women from the "Berrigan wing" of the Catholic Church tell her that it is important that we be willing to risk taking a step beyond our "comfort zone." I loved it.

I wish that I could say that I have done exactly that, more frequently than I have. But there is always "now."

[Liberal_in_LA]

2. I know nothing about boxing but kick anyway.

[H2O Man]

10. Thanks!

It's a strange and violent sport, boxing. A hurt sport. But I've met the most gentle and thoughtful individuals, in those men who box ..... and met the most heartless people in promoters.

I hope that my OP made clear that while boxing was the vehicle, it wasn't the issue that I was focusing upon.

Your friend,
Pat


(PS: My doctors & I do have a routine we act upon when my wife accompanies me to my appointments. Several of them play along, by telling us, at the end of the appointment, that they recommend that I make a "come-back" in boxing. My wife does not think it's funny, though.)

[Zorra]

3. Persistence and determination can take us a long way.

These characteristics are foundations for success in most difficult endeavors.

An important thing for us all to keep in our minds right now.

There's a storm coming, for sure.

[H2O Man]

11. Right.

It's one thing to say that "we are the ones we've been waiting for." It's quite another to grasp that it actually true; and still another to take the steps that this reality demands.

[immoderate]

4. Sports presents a simplified model for many aspects of life.

It separates conflict and competition out of typical human activity. It allows well for analogy and example, but I wonder if it gives up any real knowledge.

Interesting that you were advised to get out and back to real life, because boxing had nothing left to teach you.

Thanks for your stories, and I am pissed that that woman wouldn't let you speak. :grr: It may have been a relief considering your general reluctance, but once you're prepared, and waiting for the bell which doesn't go off, you're left with that feeling of committedness interruptus.

--imm

[mmonk]

6. Worthwhile, yes.

Many points to consider including the value in different voices being able to articulate their position freely, without censure, or exclusion.

I'm rather shocked, but not surprised at your Lakota friend's experience.

Keep up the good fight. I know you enough to know you will.

[Tsiyu]

8. Another DU treasure

Thanks H20 Man


K&R