Two stories, none involving wayward boys in balloons nor NFL ownership issues, have really grabbed my attention today. The first is out of Hammond, Louisiana where Keith Bardwell, a justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, refused to grant a marriage license to Beth Humphrey and Terence McKay, an interracial couple. Denying that he was a racist, Mr. Bartwell said that he acted out of concern for "the children" that may come from such a union. Such noble concern.

Here's the story from the Associated Press:

A Louisiana justice of the peace said he refused to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple out of concern for any children the couple might have.

Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, says it is his experience that most interracial marriages do not last long.

Neither Bardwell nor the couple immediately returned phone calls from The Associated Press. But Bardwell told the Daily Star of Hammond that he was not a racist.

"I do ceremonies for black couples right here in my house," Bardwell said. "My main concern is for the children."

Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said.

"I don't do interracial marriages because I don't want to put children in a situation they didn't bring on themselves," Bardwell said. "In my heart, I feel the children will later suffer."

If he does an interracial marriage for one couple, he must do the same for all, he said.

"I try to treat everyone equally," he said.

Thirty-year-old Beth Humphrey and 32-year-old Terence McKay, both of Hammond, say they will consult the U.S. Justice Department about filing a discrimination complaint.

Humphrey told the newspaper she called Bardwell on Oct. 6 to inquire about getting a marriage license signed. She says Bardwell's wife told her that Bardwell will not sign marriage licenses for interracial couples.

"It is really astonishing and disappointing to see this come up in 2009," said American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana attorney Katie Schwartzman. "The Supreme Court ruled as far back as 1963 that the government cannot tell people who they can and cannot marry."

The ACLU was preparing a letter for the Louisiana Supreme Court, which oversees the state justices of the peace, asking them to investigate Bardwell and see if they can remove him from office, Schwartzman said.

"He knew he was breaking the law, but continued to do it," Schwartzman said.

According to the clerk of court's office, application for a marriage license must be made three days before the ceremony because there is a 72-hour waiting period. The applicants are asked if they have previously been married. If so, they must show how the marriage ended, such as divorce.

Other than that, all they need is a birth certificate and Social Security card.

The license fee is $35, and the license must be signed by a Louisiana minister, justice of the peace or judge. The original is returned to the clerk's office.

I'd like to think that Mr. Bardwell has conducted his last wedding of any kind but this is Louisiana we're talking about. Mr. Bardwell needs to be removed from office.

The second story is even more tragic and hasn't hit the English language press as yet. In northern Paraguay, two women have been tortured and killed after being accused of being witches. Dorotea Colmán, 50, and María Espínola, 23, died after being submitted to three days of brutal torture by members of the Bya Guaraní ethnic group in Santa Lucía, 220 miles north of Asunción. The women were hung upside down, beaten with sticks and had boiling water poured on them.

A third woman, Irma Benítez, age 20, survived after being rescued by relatives. Paraguay authorities have arrested the leader of the indigenous community. Paraguay is a mixed race (mestizo) country but some 100,000 Guaraní live in isolated communities scattered across the country.

Seventeenth century values are alive and well in 2009.

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In Terminology of the Imperium, the glossary of the novel Dune, Frank Herbert provides the following definition:  

KWISATZ HADERACH: "Shortening of the Way." This is the label applied by the Bene Gesserit to the unknown for which they sought a genetic solution: a male Bene Gesserit whose organic mental powers would bridge space and time.

Is Barack Obama the long awaited
Kwisatz Haderach?

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Crossposted from Town Called Dobson& My Left Wing


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