"FLIP-FLOP": WE ALL DO IT

    

       After reading the commentary below, please express your own thoughts.  Instructions on how to do so are written at the bottom of this column.  Thank you.

     With less than four days before the Iowa Caucuses, we are now in full swing with the 2016 Presidential Campaign.  As is with all Presidential election cycles, the two-word phrase, "flip-flop" has become part of the political lexicon.  That being said, "flip-flop" is a term that should be eliminated from the tongues of all candidates.  They all..."flip-flop."  Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and liberals...and Independents too - some of which are not loyal to any particular party - every politician...at some point or other..."flip-flops."  And why?  Because we ALL "flip-flop."  Every human being changes his or her mind about something...and more frequently than one may think.

     Just as those individuals running for a political office, all Americans "flip-flop" our opinions on a variety of issues.  Look at it this way...the words, "I changed my mind" are uttered by people everyday.  Think about it.  How many times have you expressed that remark to someone?  We all do...about lots of things.  From what to eat for dinner to where to go on vacation...from the color shirt to buy to what movie to see on Saturday night...everybody "flip-flops."  

     Now granted...changing your mind about a restaurant entree or a style of clothing is not as monumental of a decision as a person switching from being pro-choice to pro-life or vice versa.  But - for one reason or another - people do "flip-flop" their ideas and attitudes.  Be it a politician or the average voter...an American can have second thoughts - or a change of heart - about both minor and major matters. I - along with many...or even most of you - are acquainted with people who - in the past - were...as an example...for a higher minimum wage...but now...because perhaps they own their own business... greed has set in...and they want to pocket more of the bucks for themselves instead of paying more dollars to their hardworking employees.  Or...on the opposite side of the coin...maybe years ago, you were totally against the notion of same-sex marriage....but now...you realize that human rights should be equal for all people...whether straight or gay.  And the possibilities of how you yourself have "flip-flopped" throughout your life...are endless.  Maybe - at the time - you supported a particular President or Congress about going to war...but you eventually realized that such a determination was a mistake... and...if there was a similar occurrence today...your judgment would be different.  And the list goes on and on.  Such "changes of minds" may be your own, or that of a close friend or family member.  Whomever it is...when it comes to "flip-flops"...we all do it.

     So when any Republican accuses one of his or her GOP opponents...or one of the Democratic candidates of "flip-flopping"...or - in all fairness - when one of the Democratic contenders points the finger at someone in either party...of being a "flip-flopper"...let me remind them and you...that we are all part of the same human race...and each of us has the capacity to change his or her mind.  And because of education, personal feelings or any number of other reasons...we all "flip-flop."  Remember this...Ronald Reagan was a Democrat.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

One of the chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author is writing.  The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people throughout the United States of America and all around the world.  If you agree or disagree with my commentary...your views are welcomed.  Tell me that you love what I write...or that you hate it.  Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you prefer.  The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you want about the topics discussed.  Please share The Controversy with others by posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums.  Please also pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.  The Controversy wants to know your thoughts on the column above or on any other editorial or essay written on this blog.

Now, please express your opinions.  Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that appears.  Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on the word "Publish."  Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The Controversy. 

Copyright 2016 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved.

DOGS: OUR BEST FRIENDS...AND OUR PROTECTORS

      After reading the commentary below, please express your own thoughts.  Instructions on how to do so are written at the bottom of this column.  Thank you. 
   

    

      CBS News Correspondent Steve Hartman is a consummate storyteller.  Few reporters are as journalistically poetic as Steve.  I am always impressed...each and every Friday night on the CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley...when at the end of the broadcasts...Steve Hartman treats America with one of his On The Road segments.  And although it was heartbreaking and tragic...the romantic essay he penned...and presented on-air...on January 15th, 2016...was by far one of Steve's greatest.

     It would be wrong of me to tell the story here, as I could not do it justice...as Steve Hartman did.  But I will say that "Man's Best Friend" came to the rescue...and - in this case - saved his owner's life.  For this incredibly heroic German Shepherd - this true-life "police dog" - gave his life by stopping three bullets meant for his master...his partner...a Canton, Ohio police officer.  

     As have I...no doubt many of you have shared your homes with dogs.  And, as all dog lovers will admit - with adoration, appreciation and esteem - dogs are part of our families.  The loyalty...and the devotion...expressed by any person's "canine cousin"...are heartfelt and special.

     We care for our dogs.  They eat with us...they play with us...and they sleep with us - sometimes in our beds.  We love our dogs...and they make us happy.  And in turn...they love us...and we make them happy.  People and dogs love each other.

     Dogs never lose their patience with us.  And they forgive us when we just don't feel up to tossing the ball.

     When we're ill...dogs stick right by us.  Somehow they sense when we are sick...or when we're troubled...or when we're upset.  And when our dogs are not well...we will do absolutely anything...to make them better.

     Dogs truly are our best friends.  We can talk to our dogs.  And even though they can't speak back in a human form of vocal communication...they project their emotions...and are understanding...in other ways.  A lick on our face...or on our nose...can easily sway us...from sadness to smiles.  And when we pat a dog on his or her head...it can bring joy to both of us.

     It doesn't matter to dogs what color our skin is...or what religion we practice.  Dogs don't judge us for being rich or poor...young or old...male or female...Democrat or Republican...straight or gay.  Dogs are not prejudiced in any manner.

     Whether Lassie and Rin Tin Tin
 
on TV and in the movies...or your own pedigreed purebred or rescued pooch from your local animal shelter...dogs are courageous and brave.  Dogs of all sizes, shapes and colors serve in the military...and for police and fire departments.  And dogs have been known to alert their people...when danger is looming. There's a published account about an extraordinary seeing-eye dog...who - on September 11th, 2001 - sought out his blind master in one of the World Trade Center Towers...and led the man down an emergency stairwell...just minutes before the New York City skyscraper collapsed.  And through intelligence, training or instinct...dogs have alarmed a second person...by barking...when a mortal family member has fallen or been hurt...suffered a heart attack or stroke...or are in some other type of distress.  Because we worry about our dogs...and protect our dogs...they worry about us...and protect us.  Dogs are forever faithful...and we rely on them for so much.  Some dogs will even lay down their lives...so one person...or many people...can live - which brings me  


back to Steve Hartman's outstanding, On The Road story.  So...after you read the remainder of this commentary...I urge you to click on the Internet link at the bottom of this column to watch Steve's first-rate reporting.  And if you're like me...a lifelong, dedicated viewer of CBS News...(it was Walter 
Cronkite who inspired me to make journalism a part of my career)...then you've already seen Steve Hartman's piece.  Even so, I encourage you to take the time to check it out again. 

     Dogs cherish us...and treasure us.  Dogs provide unconditionally affectionate companionship.  Through thick and thin...good times and bad times...dogs stay by our sides.  World-famous, American humorist, newspaper columnist, author and actor Will Rogers summed up dogs perfectly.  "If there are no dogs in Heaven...then when I die...I want to go...where they went."

     I can't imagine a world without dogs...as there is no other creature on Earth...like a dog.

     "And that's the way it is."  Wait a second, that's not my tagline.  

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

 
The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

One of the chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author is writing.  The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people throughout the United States of America and all around the world.  If you agree or disagree with my commentary...your views are welcomed.  Tell me that you love what I write...or that you hate it.  Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you prefer.  The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you want about the topics discussed.  Please share The Controversy with others by posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums.  Please also pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.  The Controversy wants to know your thoughts on the column above or on any other editorial or essay written on this blog.

Now, please express your opinions.  Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that appears.  Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on the word "Publish."  Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The Controversy.  

Photo credits:  twitter.com and pbs.com (Steve Hartman #1), cbsnews.com (Steve Hartman #2), wnd.com (CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley), cozitv.com (Lassie), pages.drexel.edu (Rin Tin Tin), deatonpath.georgiahistory.com (Walter Cronkite) and westernclippings.com (Will Rogers)

Copyright 2016 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved. 

CBS News Correspondent Steve Hartman's On The Road Story
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/hundreds-honor-ohio-police-k9-jethro-killed-protecting-partner/

MARCO RUBIO AND GUNS EQUALS SCARY

     On the CBS News broadcast, Face The Nation with John Dickerson - Sunday, January 17th, 2016 - John asked Republican Presidential Candidate and Florida Senator Marco Rubio why he recently purchased a firearm.  Rubio replied, "I was previously a firearm holder, as well.  This was an additional one.  I'm a strong supporter of the Second Amendment.  I have a right to protect my family if someone were to come after us.  In fact, if ISIS were to visit us or our communities at any moment, the last line of defense between ISIS and my family is the ability that I have to protect my family...from them...or from a criminal...or anyone else who seeks to do us harm.  Millions of Americans feel that way."

     Are we regressing to the days of the old west when Bat Masterson, Wyatt Earp and the cowboys of Dodge City and Tombstone shot people dead on the streets?  Marco Rubio's statement, in part...and based on the structure of the wording he articulated...was irresponsible and careless. I have no issue that Senator Rubio wants to protect his family.  I recognize that the safety of his wife and children is paramount in his life...and I commend him for that.  But guarding them...and defending them...by drawing a gun - as if he was Marshal Matt 

Dillon in an episode of Gunsmoke - is not the way to go in 2016.  Furthermore, does the Senator from "The Sunshine State" really think that ISIS terrorists are going to come banging down the front door of his house?  Obviously, I do understand that a burglar or other element of danger could possibly be a threat to either Senator Rubio or his family - just as it is anybody else - but whether it is the Senator or any one of the "millions of Americans" that he referred to in his interview with John Dickerson...I am totally against any person carrying a gun who is not wearing a badge.

 
     If Marco Rubio - or any Republican with his beliefs - ends up becoming President of the United States...we're in big trouble as a nation...as long as he feels that Americans can go "bang bang" with a home revolver or a pistol in a holster...whenever they think their life is in jeopardy.  That's why we have police officers.

     We can't go back in time...one-hundred, one-hundred-fifty or two-hundred years.  America needs less guns...not more.  And a Presidential Candidate who makes the declaration that Senator Rubio did on Face The Nation...is not only reckless...but frightening.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

One of the chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author is writing.  The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people throughout the United States of America and all around the world.  If you agree or disagree...your views are welcomed.  Tell me that you love what I write...or that you hate it.  Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you prefer.  The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you want about the topics discussed.  Please share The Controversy with others by posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums.  Please also pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.  The Controversy wants to know your thoughts on the column above or on any other commentary or essay written on this blog.

Now, please express your opinions.  Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that appears.  Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on the word "Publish."  Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The Controversy. 

Photo credits:  redalertpolitics.com (Senator Marco Rubio), kshs.org (Bat Masterson), biography.com (Wyatt Earp), nndb.com (Marshal Matt Dillon of Gunsmoke) and adweek.com (John Dickerson of Face The Nation)

Copyright 2016 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved.

SURVEY SAYS: LET'S GIVE STEVE HARVEY A BREAK

       After reading the commentary below, please express your own thoughts.  Instructions on how to do so are written at the bottom of this column.  Thank you. 

      Have you ever made a mistake?  Have you ever inadvertently said something or done something in error?  Have you ever blundered or botched-up anything at all...but you did it without malice or intent...yet unfortunately, it hurt somebody else?  The answer to all these questions is probably...yes.  So then let's stop skewering television personality Steve Harvey like a shish-kebab over hot coals.

     At the live Fox broadcast of the December 20th, 2015 Miss Universe Pageant, master of ceremonies Steve Harvey - best known as the host of the game show, Family Feud, and his own daytime TV talk program titled, Steve Harvey - wrongly read the card in his hand...and identified Miss Columbia as Miss Universe 2015.  Two minutes and fifteen seconds later, Harvey - and undoubtedly his producers - realized the snafu...and Steve expressed the startling statement, "I have to apologize."  In actuality...printed on the card were the words..."The first runner-up is Columbia."  And - as we all now know - seconds later, Miss Philippines was crowned the pageant winner.

     Harvey - mortified by his blooper - apologized with great sincerity...first on-the-air by articulating, "I will take responsibility for this.  It was my mistake."  And then, in a tweet following the broadcast.  Harvey wrote on Twitter..."This was a terribly honest, human mistake...and I am so regretful." He also tearfully asked for forgiveness on his talk show. 

     What more does anybody want from the charming and charismatic Steve Harvey?  He made an "honest, human mistake"...admitted his fault...and has said he was sorry...over and over again.  So then why has he been the butt of jokes and criticism - for nearly a month - from people all over the Internet and elsewhere on social media?  Why have other celebrities continued to mock him for his primetime flub?

     On the January 6th, 2016 People's Choice Awards on CBS, actress Jane Lynch - who was front and center with the hosting duties - spoofed Steve Harvey by presenting a fake award to actor Thomas Lennon.  But Lynch immediately corrected herself by saying, "I'm sorry.  I have to apologize here.  First runner-up is Tom Lennon.  The winner is Miss Columbia."  A model then appeared in the spotlight; not the real Miss Columbia.

     And on the January 10th, 2016 live, Beverly Hills broadcast of the Golden Globe Awards on NBC, actor Jamie Foxx made fun of Steve Harvey by facetiously - and in jest - revealing the wrong winner for Best Original Score for a Motion Picture.  Foxx - on stage with actress Lily James - announced the title of a movie that wasn't even nominated.  With practically every star in the Beverly Hilton ballroom laughing...Foxx said, "I'm sorry, folks.  I made a mistake.  It's right here on the card."

     Let's give Steve Harvey a break.  The Emmy Award winning entertainer was

embarrassed by his Miss Universe Pageant slip-up and has acknowledged it.  Now it's time America let's Steve put his boo-boo behind him.  After all... unless you're God...we've all made them.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

One of the chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author is writing.  The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people throughout the United States of America and all around the world.  If you agree or disagree...your views are welcomed.  Tell me that you love what I write...or that you hate it.  Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you prefer.  The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you want about the topics discussed.  Please share The Controversy with others by posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums.  Please also pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.  The Controversy wants to know your thoughts on the column above or on any other commentary or essay written on this blog.

Now, please express your opinions.  Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that appears.  Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on the word "Publish."  Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The Controversy. 

Photo credits:  abc7news.com (Steve Harvey - Photo #1), digitalspy.com (Jane Lynch and Thomas Lennon), nydailynews.com (Jamie Foxx and Lily James) and radiofacts.com (Steve Harvey - Photo #2)

Copyright 2016 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved.

A PRESIDENT WITH CLASS DELIVERS HIS FINAL STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS

      After reading the commentary below, please express your own thoughts.  Instructions on how to do so are written at the bottom of this column.  Thank you.     

     President Obama's State Of The Union Address - presented to a joint session of Congress and the people of the United States of America - on Tuesday, January 12th, 2016...was infinitely and immeasurably inspiring.  The President - distinguished as always - spoke with breathtaking and spectacular eloquence.  Mr. Obama articulated with Presidential perfection and passion... an impressive and absorbing speech...that illustrated the phenomenal accomplishments of paramount significance...for which the President has achieved...throughout the last seven years.

     But Barack Obama is far from done.  With one year remaining in his second term as President and Commander-In-Chief...Mr. Obama sketched a descriptive outlook of his hopes, dreams and designs...for the United States...and for a "peaceful planet."  But in order for the U.S. to realize an encouraging and promising future - not just in 2016, but in the near distance and beyond - the President says, "It will only happen if we fix our politics."

     Unfortunately, Republicans in Congress have hampered the President's progress on many issues of importance...while he has been the occupant of The Oval Office.  But if ALL Americans - Democrats, Republicans and Independents - stand together...and agree to "compromise"...as President Obama noted...then he... and Members of the House of Representatives and Senate...can move onward and upward...so that each and every one of us...can live our lives with prosperity, tranquility, splendor and brilliance...and, as a result...be joyous and jubilant.  After all...that's much of what America is all about.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again." 

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

One of the chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author is writing.  The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people throughout the United States of America and all around the world.  If you agree or disagree...your views are welcomed.  Tell me that you love what I write...or that you hate it.  Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you prefer.  The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you want about the topics discussed.  Please share The Controversy with others by posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums.  Please also pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.  The Controversy wants to know your thoughts on the column above or on any other commentary or essay written on this blog.

Now, please express your opinions.  Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that appears.  Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on the word "Publish."  Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The Controversy. 

Photo credits: reuters.com (President Barack Obama - Photo #1) and whhspatriotpress.com (President Barack Obama - Photo #2)

Copyright 2016 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved.

WHAT WILL IT TAKE?

      After reading the commentary below, please express your own thoughts.  Instructions on how to do so are written at the bottom of this column.  Thank you.   

     How many more people in the United States need to be viciously attacked and brutally murdered by gunfire?  How many more Americans need to die... before those of you who don't want more stringent gun control laws...realize that GUNS ARE WEAPONS OF DEATH AND DOOM?  Oh I know those seven words are going to spark turmoil and a deluge of controversy - and I hope it does - because that is my intention.  But...what will it take?  Do one-hundred people need to be shot and killed?  Or must we wait until five-hundred of our fellow citizens are blasted away by spraying bullets?  Will it be after one-thousand students - peacefully sitting in their elementary school, high school or college classrooms - are riddled with ammo from assault weapons?  I ask you.  What will it take?

     In 1999...after the catastrophic carnage at Colorado's Columbine High School...I recall a time of sadness and sorrow, which led to an open discussion among Americans; those who love guns...and those who loathe them.  And then...in 2012...after the heartbreaking, chilling murders of twenty first graders - twenty little boys and girls...twenty sinless souls - at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut...the tragic event prompted a renewed debate about gun control in the United States.  A deranged gunman invaded the school...and stole the lives of those pure, pristine and precious pupils... along with six adult educators.  Therefore, we must tackle the mayhem of gun use before the irrational and evil behavior of depraved psychopaths...destroy the U.S....and destroy us.

     Since the Republican Congress won't get off their butts and pass laws to protect the people of our great nation...thankfully, we have a President who has the grit and guts to stand up to the GOP - and the NRA - with a series of executive actions.  President Obama's efforts - which he announced with heartfelt emotion to the country - from The White House - on Tuesday, January 5th, 2016 - will help reduce the gun violence that kills an average of eighty-eight Americans everyday.  The Congressional Members of the Senate and House Of Representatives must join forces with the President to write common-sense legislation...that will keep safe...you, me and every person...who calls the United States...home. 

     President Obama's executive actions will close background-check loopholes.  And the President's courageous achievement will keep guns from being purchased...by dangerous and despicable predators...who could storm a school, a shopping center, a sports stadium or other venue...while pulling the triggers of handguns and other deadly firearms.  Bypassing Congress...Mr. Obama's executive actions will likely save the lives of hundreds - if not thousands of Americans - who could be killed in a horrifying and cataclysmic way.

     Federal reports estimate there are more than 300-million guns in the United States.  And according to the U.S. Census Bureau - as I write this commentary - America's population, including men, women and children, is approaching 325-million people.  That's an average of nearly one gun per person.  And that - as I stated - includes counting children.  Therefore, in reality, it is considerably more per adult.  

     After the Sandy Hook massacre - according to a Washington Post poll - 90% of Americans support universal background checks.  So then...why is President Obama getting grief for his recent executive actions?  From Columbine to Sandy Hook to San Bernardino...with homicide following homicide...before, in between and after...why are Republicans on Capitol Hill - and other conservatives nationwide - chiding the President?

     There are some of you who are reading this editorial who are undoubtedly going to bite my head off with your words of criticism.  And you may even despise me for the remarks I have expressed in this column.  But guess what? I don't care.

     How many more families need to grieve because a loved one was shot to death by a certifiable maniac who has gone berserk?  How many more moms and dads need to cry themselves to sleep every night because they lost a child at the destructive hands of an unconscionably evil or mentally unbalanced person?  So when you go to vote in November...for President, for Senators, for Members Of The House, for Governors, and for State Legislators...and you're ready to pull the lever...or color in the little circle on your ballot...think about the more than thirty-thousand Americans every year whose lives are cut short by guns.  And then make sure you choose a Democrat...not a Republican.

      When the Bill Of Rights and the entire U.S. Constitution were penned more than two centuries ago...it was a different world...a different time.  Yes I realize that the mere suggestion to revise - or even trash - the Second Amendment...is unrealistic and not at all possible...but new gun control laws need to be passed.  The senseless deaths of so many innocent people - which have become too frequent - must be prevented.  We must cleanse our country from the arsenal of guns...that are used to murder guiltless and harmless Americans...who in no way deserve to be slaughtered.  If our forefathers, in 1787, had a crystal ball with a look in to the 21st Century...I don't believe a Second Amendment - as it is - would have ever been written.  The likes of James Madison, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams would have never allowed such an Amendment in our Constitution.

      In a commentary I published for The Controversy on December 17th, 2012, I wrote..."I pray there are no more bloodbaths - no more shooting sprees - and that we never again have to speak the words, 'Oh my God...not again.'"  Unless more gun control laws are passed...I have a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach...that we will be uttering those five words...for a long time to come.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

One of the chief goals of a blog...one of the major reasons to publish a blog...is to entice others to express their opinions about the subject for which the author is writing.  The Controversy is being read by a tremendous amount of people throughout the United States of America and all around the world.  If you agree or disagree...your views are welcomed.  Tell me that you love what I write...or that you hate it.  Give your name...make up one...or remain anonymous if you prefer.  The Controversy is your outlet to speak your mind and to say what you want about the topics discussed.  Please share The Controversy with others by posting it on Facebook, Twitter and on other social media forums.  Please also pass a link to everyone in your e-mail directories.  The Controversy wants to know your thoughts on the column above or on any other commentary or essay written on this blog.

Now, please express your opinions.  Just click on the word "Comments" below and write your remarks in the box that appears.  Make sure please that when you finish your statement that you click on the word "Publish."  Thank you for your thoughts and thank you for reading The Controversy. 

Photo credits:  aei.org (President Barack Obama, 1st Photo), atlantablackstar. com (President Barack Obama, 2nd Photo), biography.com (President James Madison and President Thomas Jefferson) and wikipedia.org (President John Adams)

Copyright 2016 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved.

DO NOT COMPARE BILL CLINTON TO BILL COSBY

       After reading the commentary below, please express your own thoughts.  Instructions on how to do so are written at the bottom of this column.  Thank you.

     Happy New Year to all my readers of The Controversy.  Here's wishing everyone a very happy and healthy 2016; and I thank each of you for your continued loyalty to The Controversy.  Now, to my commentary.

     If you're a regular reader of The Controversy - since I began writing and publishing editorials in November, 2012 - then you are well aware that I am a staunch supporter of both former President Bill Clinton and Democratic Presidential Candidate - the former Secretary of State - Hillary Clinton.  Therefore - with full disclosure aside - it really disturbs me that there are people - over the last several days - who are comparing President Clinton with Bill Cosby.

     Despite the fact that Bill Cosby was charged on Wednesday, December 30th, 2015 with aggravated indecent assault, the actor and comedian - an entertainment superstar for more than 50 years - has not been convicted of any crime.  So let's give this American all the rights for which the United States Constitution allows; and that is...his day in court.  Whether Cosby is guilty or innocent of the accusations against him...is not up to media critics or anybody else in our country...unless they are sitting in the jury box at the performer's trial.  Prosecutors in Pennsylvania believe...that in 2004... Cosby molested a woman for whom he was acquainted.  The 12-year statute of limitations was to expire in January...just days after Cosby was taken in to custody.  He was released after posting ten percent of one-million dollars bail.

     If Bill Cosby did drug the woman in question in order to engage in a sexual activity - which, of course, has not been proven - Bill Clinton has never, ever drugged anyone.  Furthermore...no judge, no prosecutor and no law enforcement officer anywhere in the United States has ever stated that the former President, former Arkansas Governor and former Arkansas Attorney General was involved in any illegal sexual encounter.

     So all you Clinton haters...STOP!  Stop making President Bill Clinton out as a criminal sexual offender.  He is NOT!  And let's not permit conservative talk radio, cable television news and/or social media to convict Bill Cosby before a jury of his peers hears the evidence.  I - nor anyone else - do not know whether he is guilty or not guilty.  But Bill Cosby deserves to be represented by legal counsel.  Let us remember...he is innocent...until proven otherwise.  

     This is still the United States of America.  So let's respect and trust what our forefathers wrote more than two centuries ago.  It's what makes our nation great.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

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Photo credits:  freep.com and gannett.com (Bill and Hillary Clinton) and people.com and timeinc.net (Bill Cosby)

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