Tag: indiana

Chris Bain Understands Sacrifice

One might have expected that Chris Bain would serve in the military.

He was after all born at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in southern California and every male in his family had served in one branch of the military or another.

Obviously, he was going to enter the military, but the question remained — what branch.

“My dad was a Marine. My dad educated me and said don’t be a Marine just because I am a Marine and to pick the branch I wanted. I researched the Army and the Marines,” said Bain, who lives in Pennsylvania and was in Shelby County earlier this month as part of Indiana Grand Racing and Casino’s Salute to Our Armed Forces presentation, along with Helping Hands For Freedom.

“I had both the Army and Marines recruiters sitting there and I asked them both one question that helped me make my decision. I asked them if I didn’t like my career choice, could I change it. The Marines recruiter said no. The Army recruiter said I could put in a request and I liked his answer and decided to go with the Army. I tell people all the time when I was born, I was one of the few and the proud and when it came time for me to serve, I wanted to be all I could be,” Bain said.

In 1992, Bain enlisted in the Army and was sent to Somalia.

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Indiana, Gov. Mike Pence and Religious Freedom – Update

The Indiana General Assembly and Gov. Mike Pence gave a lesson in U.S. history and politics after passing into law an ill-considered “Religious Freedom” bill last week.

Pence and Republican legislators apparently thought the religious freedom law would be a feather in their caps, endearing them to the far right Republican base and assuring continued election success.

Instead they found themselves in the middle of a public relations firestorm that rapidly was blowing back on them and probably eliminating Pence from any future serious presidential consideration.

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The New Jim Crow

Please forgive me, but I had to check my calendar three times today to ensure that it read 2013 because it seems we are back in the Jim Crow era.

That is the case, at least, for a few residents and a teacher from Sullivan, Indiana, which is located 25 miles south of Terre Haute in the southwestern portion of the Hoosier State.

While many of us realize we are in the 21st Century and act accordingly, there is a small select few, who still long for the days of “Separate, but Equal” treatment when it comes to their neighbors.

In case you have missed the circus, it has arrived with all three rings and a big tent in Sullivan

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How Far Do We Still Have To Go?

The final shots of the Civil War sounded 146 years ago.

Brown vs. the Board was 57 years ago, and, 48 years ago, the famous” I Have a Dream” speech was delivered. However, one has to question just how far we haven’t come when it comes to racism in this country.

The actions of a select few at games at Triton Central Friday and at a high school in Tennessee have me wondering what exactly is going on when people think it’s “cool” to hurl racial slurs at the opposition.

It is absolutely disgraceful that, in 2011, some of us can’t see beyond the color of a person’s skin.

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