Got this from Politico:
You better think twice before messing with Gov. Nikki Haley; she’s a black belt.
On Wednesday the South Carolina governor was presented with an honorary fourth-degree black belt. She was also shown breaking a board with an open-handed punch in a video released by her office.
“I earned an honorary 4th degree Black Belt today! Check out this video,” Haley wrote on her official Facebook page. “We are fans of Tae Kwon Do in South Carolina.”
You know, if my sensei were still around (“Bow to your sensei!“), he might express a bit of doubt about the way that rather gentle heel-of-the-hand tap causing that board to break into three pieces, but I guess the gov has just learned to channel her chi in a particularly effective manner.
Yeah…
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OK, this is no big deal, but I can’t help commenting on the gov’s choice of words — proclaiming that she “earned” the honorary black belt.
It’s kind of related to the magical thinking that causes her to take upon herself powers not granted her in law, which Cindi discusses in her column today (“Gov. Nikki Haley and the stuff of tyrants and dictators“). The governor is like, “I’m governor! I get to do this stuff!” which seems to me related to the kind of mindset that declares that she “earned” the black belt…
Not exactly the same thing, but it seems to arise from a similar view of the world and her place in it…
It would just have been so easy for her to put the “earned” in quotes, as a sort of wink at herself. Perhaps she thought it was understood…
Sorta like calling out BPS to bust the Occupiers, based on neither authority over BPS, nor any actual law broken…..
not on the books
Why? Should it be illegal to lose your home and have to live on the streets? Well, yes. We should ensure that everyone has a secure home, but until we do?
What about freedom to petition the government about grievances? Freedom of assembly? Freedom to be in public places?
Mab, I think the Occupiers were a bunch of nincompoops, but they weren’t disruptive. They didn’t impede anyone from doing anything or going anywhere. Heck, it wasn’t really that many people. They were just…there. At the time, there was no law actually on point (that I’m aware of) they were charged with breaking. If they wanted to do this, they should have been able to be there.
Having said that, I don’t think they would have been allowed to “camp”. You can’t set up a semi-permanent residence on the Statehouse grounds. You can be there to protest, even if your protest is simply being there. However, that would preclude sleeping, or doing other prohibited things, in my opinion. Sleep isn’t political speech. I agree with Kathryn on this in that the eviction of the occupiers was probably wrongful, but if she and I were writing an opinion, she and I would vote the same way, but I would likely write a separate opinion as to why.
I would have been much more passive-agressive than Haley. I would have just let them do their thing. They would have given it up, eventually. This wrongful arrest is exactly what they wanted.
###”Mab’s Not Here.”### –but would agree with you, were he or she TO be:
“…wrongful arrest is exactly what they wanted.”
^^^For the attention of Spinal Tap^^^
The State cannot dictate the form a protest may take. A nonviolent sit-in is well within our First Amendment rights. Heck, they weren’t even distracting traffic like the Stop Abortion guy with the baby dolls, who is frequently over by the Ur Maurice’s by the airport. Reasonable, content-neutral restrictions on time and place, not enacted ex post facto, are okay. This means the mothers of military killed in action, say, or the Tea Party can’t do something not permitted left-wing protesters.
And protesters are never vagrants. Homeless people are vagrants. Apples and apples.
Pretty sure I posted this back when the “Occupy” crap was going on:
SC Code of Laws:
SECTION 10-11-20. Unauthorized use of State House or grounds
SECTION 10-11-30. Trespassing, damaging or defacing certain state property
SECTION 10-11-100. Other police officers to enforce laws on certain state property
Columbia Code of Ordinances:
Sec. 14-105. – Urban camping and improper use of public places.
Not sure those were on the books, but I bet the Court knew what laws were and were not applicable.
Just reading the Code does not tell you what the law is.
Court isn’t always right.
Nope, but a Federal Appeals Court is probably right a lot more often than a non lawyer…..
Though Juan may disagree!
Ain’t that the truth.
I’m assuming Vincent Sheheen is working out at the Cobra Kai dojo while his handlers stand around the mat chanting “Sweep the leg!”
Well, you know it’s gotta strike fear into his heart when she disintegrates that board with the merest touch. Imagine what she could have done if she had HIT it…
I want to see her catch a fly with chopsticks. Then, I’ll be impressed.
When you can take the pebble from my hand, it will be time for you to leave….
Please, please, please, Grasshopper, take the pebble and go!
How come no huge push by The State, et al. , for a strong governor? I mean not an imaginary honorary strong one…..
That “board” looks off. Are they all set up as two thin pieces of wood with spacers in between at the top and bottom to make it look thicker? That’s what I see in the video. And maybe made of balsa wood, as it splits really cleanly. Unless it’s prescored to split there. Anyways, looks a set up for the cameras. Sure hope she means for it to be a joke, or at least tongue in cheek. Just seems kind of dumb to me.
A breakaway board is not hard to engineer. Zillions of high school theater groups know how.
We now officially have karate wooden board “truthers”.
Wonders never cease.
Argh! I have seen the enemy, and it is me!
Board truthers, beauty pageant truthers…
Oh, it’s honorary. I thought getting a black belt takes years of practice and dedication. Governot Nikki Haley is lacking in those two attributes.
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^^^To the attention of the digit head(s)^^^