“Various and Sundry, 1-24-2011”
* 
Much attention has been given to last Thursday’s 50th anniversary of President Kennedy’s iconic inaugural address, but there was another famous speech that also recently marked its 50th anniversary–President Eisenhower’s farewell address. Perhaps second only to President Washington’s farewell in memory and historical meaning, Ike’s televised final speech to the nation after serving as president throughout almost the entire 1950s is immediately associated with his warning of the influence of the “military industrial complex.” Slate’s David Greenberg writes that Eisenhower’s use of the term has been widely misunderstood. Leslie Gelb of the Council of Foreign Relations explains that Eisenhower’s farewell was superior to Kennedy’s inaugural.
*President Obama’s speech at the January 12 memorial service for the victims of the shootings in Tuscon was widely praised, even by some of his most consistent detractors. Some have suggested that it has contributed to the recent and significant rise in Obama’s approval ratings, though DePauw University political scientist Jonathan Bernstein points out that–though the speech may have contributed to Obama’s growing approval–his rise was building well before the speech.
He handled the delicate and difficult situation deftly, making cogent if politically easy points. Like President Clinton speaking following the Oklahoma City bombing in 1994 and President George W. Bush addressing emergency workers with bullhorn near Ground Zero in the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks on New York City, opinions of Obama’s speech likely benefit from the natural desire people have to be reassured in times of trauma. Obama was sincere and effective in doing that and I liked that he noted that he got approval to disclose the news that, “Gabby opened her eyes,” from her husband. But I cannot shake being bothered by the line so many seem to have loved so much; saying nine-year-old shooting victim Christina Green, “If there are rain puddles in heaven, Christina is jumping through them.” I cannot fathom how I would feel or react if someone said something that seemed so sentimentally trite to me if I was in the situation of Christina’s family.
* Add Ron Franklin to the list of ESPN announcers and analysts–headlined by Mike Tiricio, Sean Salisbury, Harold Reynolds, and Steve Phillips–whose careers and reputations have been damaged by sexual harassment-related charges. Nothing says “Georgia vs. South Carolina” on an autumn Saturday night quite like the clear and dulcet tones of play-by-lay man Ron Franklin. But Franklin’s words got him in trouble, according to reports such as this one describing an exchange he had with ESPN sideline reporter Jeanine Edwards in an Atlanta hotel lobby:
Franklin and Edwards were scheduled to work together for Friday’s Chik-fil-A Bowl and the incident occurred in a pre-game production meeting also attended by ESPN announcers Ed Cunningham and Rod Gilmore.
When the conversation turned to the subject of Gilmore’s wife Marie being elected mayor of Alameda, Calif., Edwards tried to join in but was shut down by Franklin, according to the report.
“Why don’t you leave this to the boys, sweetcakes,” Franklin told her.
“Don’t call me sweetcakes, I don’t like being talked to like that,” Edwards responded.
Franklin then said, “OK then, asshole.”
Franklin was suspended soon after the incident came to light. He apologized for “[saying] some things I shouldn’t have”, but a few days later he was fired by ESPN. Franklin disputes key parts of the reported accounts between him and Edwards and he is suing the network for wrongful termination.
