“This world and yonder world are incessantly giving birth:
Every cause is a mother, its effect the child.
When the effect is born, it too becomes a cause
and gives birth to wonderous effects.
These causes are generation on generation,
but it needs a very well lighted eye to see the links in their chain.”
Jalal-ad-din Rumi
The words of the 13th century Persian Sufi poet Rumi can be applied to the conflict in Sidney, New York, where the Town Board is attempting to force a tiny Islamic settlement to destroy its cemetery. The Town Supervisor and two Board members – who are the Supervisor's son-in-law and best friend – are members of the radical right-wing Tea Party. They are abusing the power of office in an effort to inflict their extremist agenda on those around them.
Initially, the anti-Muslim agenda of the Sidney Town Board was reported on by Patricia Breakey, in Oneonta's newspaper, The Daily Star. Ms. Breakey heads that paper's Delaware County News Bureau. Then, Andrew Reinbach of Huffington Post followed up with an essay that placed the conflict in the rural, upstate community into the national spotlight. Soon, Keith Olbermann of MSNBC's Countdown named the Sidney Supervisor the “Worst Person in the World.”
In the week that followed, as media sources ranging from The Colbert Report, to CNN, to regional (Syracuse) and local (Norwich) newspapers began shining a spotlight on the the Sidney Town Board. Several area residents began to organize grass roots efforts to both oppose the Board's unprovoked attack on the Islamic settlement, and to remove Supervisor Bob McCarthy from office. Although McCarthy has only been in office a brief time, local people uncovered other slimy activities, including what appears to be a criminal misappropriation of tax-payers' money; and a bizarre letter to a county department head, in which McCarthy attacked DWI laws and their enforcement, public education, and aired his hatred of our state and federal government.
Residents of the town and surrounding area – including democrats, republicans, independents, and others – have joined together in response to the Sidney Town Board's hateful attack on the citizens who live on the Sufi farm on Wheat Hill Road in Sidney Center. They recognize that the rotted contents of the Tea Party agenda can be used as the compost from which a green shoot of true democracy can sprout. Some of those people, including several who I have had the pleasure of working with in past environmental and civil rights efforts, have contacted me and asked me to join in their effort.
It would be easy to look at this conflict, taking part in an isolated corner of our country, and view it as a disturbing yet pathetic example of the diseased state of the radical right. Certainly, one would have trouble watching Stephen Colbert's report on the controversy and not enjoying a good laugh. And, because of the speed of the 24-hour cable news cycle, it could be easy to loose track of the story, as the next Sidney Town Board meeting isn't until October 14.
However, the conflict isn't really funny, and it does not simply reflect poorly on one community. There will be a significant amount of media attention focusing on that 10-14 meeting in Sidney. Hence, whatever actions that people take today will contribute to that green sprout in grass roots democracy. I again urge people to contact NY Governor David Patterson. Request that he take action on the growing controversy in Sidney. Ask him to send a high-level representative to the 10-14 meeting, which will take place at 7 pm at the Sidney Civic Center, on Liberty Street.
Governor Patterson's office is aware of what is going on in Sidney. The Governor is, because of NYS law, in a unique position to put an end to Supervisor Bob McCarthy's sad imitation of Senator Joseph McCarthy. Please contact his office at the below link:
http://www.ny.gov/governor/contact/index.h...
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