Politics and Gold Plated Steel

Tuesday I worked with Marvin Chernoff on a political spot in Charleston. Linda Ketner For Congress. He told us the amazing story of meeting Martin Luther King Jr, but I have to get permission from him to tell you the details. I will say I had chills.


I dragged David along to do sound, as all my sound buddies were booked. His three Wednesday shows in North Carolina for Clinton had canceled, so Troy (David's business partner) opted not to kill me for taking David away. That is, until the election results from Pennsylvania began coming in and four new shows for Hillary suddenly appeared. But, by then we were driving back to Columbia.

We both really liked Linda. She is a genuine humanitarian, and has good ideas of how to integrate business principals into government. Our favorite was her discussion of the need for outcome based measurements, particularly in education.

I have a feeling Linda would agree---meetings don't equal work!

As the political race here heats up, I've been thinking a lot about Zimbabwe. My theory is that Mugabe is waiting to release the election results, not because he lost (I think everyone knows that), but because he is doing the same thing some mystery people did in Ethiopia. He is secretly switching out all the country's gold for gold plated steel bars and plans to make a get-a-way as soon as he's stolen everything, or anything, valuable left in the country. My theory sputters a bit on the where-will-he-go part. Maybe he will broker a power sharing deal that will allow him to live out his days in his Harare mansion with plenty of . . . everything.

Including "his" gold, perhaps.

Oh, wait, I just read something, guess the Ethiopian gold scammers are no longer a mystery. This scam could be made into a movie. But, I still stand near my Mugabe theory.

And here's a petition to sign, supporting what was begun by the South African dock workers who refused to unload the arms shipment from China to Zimbabwe.

Antiquities

Took the kids to see the Excavating Egypt exhibit at the Columbia Art Museum (COMA) today. I have to say it is just not the same as being there. Basically, in Egypt or in Italy, stuff that is older than our dirt kind of heaps up. Yeah, it's pretty neat, and people like to come over and comment on it. But after awhile, how many death masks or 3' olive jars can a person fit in the living room before there is just no place to sit?

It's different seeing these phenomenal pieces displayed behind 1/2 inch thick plexi, in a room where people stand softly and stare knowingly, lips pursed, at a hieroglyphic laden goat head.

It is nice that they post notes you can read next to the objects. In Cairo, if you want to know what you are looking at, be prepared to spend your life savings on a guide who may or may not speak your language, and may or may not know more than you do about the Rosetta Stone, but will be happy to introduce you to an low-priced, locals-only, approved-by-the-government-for tourists, no-pressure-sales, authentic (!) perfume factory owner/rug dealer/camel renter/papyrus maker when you are done at the museum.