The 90's: The Last Great Decade? Part 1: Great Expectations

--The National Geographic Channel did a short mini-series entitled, The 90's: The Last Great Decade?  It has 3 parts, so I thought I'd do a post on each part and give a rundown.

--Since, the 90's was when I entered adulthood, I remember almost everything that is mentioned very well.  In many cases, I remember where I was and what I was doing when the events unfolded.  Yet, I did learn some new things, because for the first 3 years of the 90's I was in college and paying no attention to the outside world.

Some of the contributors who were interviewed as part of the series:
-Rob Lowe (he narrates all 3 episodes)
-Newt Gingrich
-Tucker Carlson
-Jerry Springer
-Colin Powell
-P.J. O'Rourke
-Monica Lewinsky
-Detective Tom Lange
-Matthew Perry
--Roseanne 

Part One: Great Expectations

1) Gulf War
--On August 2, 1990 Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait.  CNN was the first news organization to air live from Baghdad when a war had started.  Kuwait is liberated.

2) Humvees and Hummers
--The humvee got a lot of good press from the war.  The humvee led to the creation of the hummer.  Arnold Schwarzenegger ended up buying 2 of the first ones.

3) Roseanne
--She credits herself in this series as being the one who got President Bill Clinton elected.  I'm not sure thats true, but even if it was, it definitely isn't something to brag about ;-).

4) Clinton's Election
--I had all 4 of my kids while Clinton was in office.  It was because of his presidency that I woke up and started paying attention to politics and current events.  I was outraged by his lack of morality.

This series credits Clinton and his team with inventing the spin machine for how to get out of tough spots, and Clinton had many.  James Carville was the leader and can probably be credited for keeping Clinton from being impeached.

5) Vanilla Ice and the Hip Hop Culture
--Vanilla Ice had a quick rise to fame, even though it didn't last long.

6) The Fresh Prince of Bel-air
--The series credited Will Smith and cast on the Fresh Prince with giving a new and better image of the black man.

--My oldest son used to get very excited when this show came on and would "dance" in his high chair to the theme song.  The show always came on when I was fixing supper.

7) Rodney King
--This was an event that I didn't know much about because I was in college when it happened.  And while I was outraged about about the Rodney King beating, and think the police shouldn't have been acquitted, it doesn't excuse or justify what happened afterwards.

--I was horrified as I watched the footage of black men beating and almost killing Reginald Denny.  Denny's skull was fractured 91 times.  Titus Murphy was one of the four people who rescued Denny and got him to the hospital.  He was a true hero.

--The riots ended up killing 55 people and causing $1 billion in damages.  How is killing innocent people and ruining businesses in your own neighborhood going to fix police brutality?

8) Clarence Thomas
--There are few things that outrage me as much as Anita Hill being used by liberals to try and destroy Clarence Thomas's life, character and chance to be a Supreme Court Justice.  Thank goodness she wasn't successful, but it bothers me to this day that many still mistakenly believe he was guilty.    Anita Hill is a disgrace to all the women who have been genuinely sexually harrassed.

--And the U.S. is fortunate that Thomas is on the supreme court, he is an honorable man.

9) Thelma and Louise
--A rogue movie in the 90's.

10) The Rise of the Bimbo
--Anna Nicole Smith got a breast enlargement and it led to a huge rise in women getting the surgery.

--She was one of the first people to become famous for no rhyme or reason, but many would follow.

11) The Decade of the Internet
--The world wide web transforms people's lives.

--Bill Gates makes computers accessible and affordable for everyone.  By 2013, Gates is the world's #1 philanthropist.

--In the 80's, there was a movie called, Revenge of the Nerds.  In the 90's, the movie actually happens.

12) Generation X
--Nirvana is one of the many voices of Generation X.  Kurt Cobain commits suicide.

13) Reality TV
--The Real World launches a new genre of TV, reality TV.

--Court TV airs the Jeffrey Dahmer trial live.

14) The 1993 World Trade Center Bombing
--It was treated as a criminal justice matter and the men who were responsible were arrested.  It should've been seen as an act of war.

A Review of My Grandfather's Son

"Keep a clear eye toward life's end. Do not forget your purpose and destiny as God's creature. What you are in His sight is what you are and nothing more. Do not let worldly cares and and anxieties or the pressures of office blot out the divine life within you or the voice of God's spirit guiding you in your great task of leading humanity to wholeness. If you open yourself to God and his plan printed deeply in your heart, God will open Himself to you."--St. Francis of Assisi

Thomas recited this prayer daily for sustenance and guidance to help him cope with controversy.

I got this book for Christmas and was able to read it while on vacation in Michigan. I can't say enough good things about this book. It is a MUST READ for everyone whether you are a conservative, moderate or even a liberal. It is the compelling true life story of a man who rose from poverty against all odds to become a Supreme Court Justice.

Thomas is very honest about his life, struggles, faith and what he faced through it all. I think the most difficult thing about what he went through during the hearings is how he was so unjustly accused. One of the reasons he was picked was that he had no skeletons in his closet and was a man of integrity. He went out of his way to help Anita Hill in every step of her career and yet she repaid him by blemishing his record by her outlandish claims. Yet, even through the difficult times his faith became stronger than ever and he learned who his friends were.

Once again, you find out what kind of person someone is by how they face trials. Instead of becoming bitter Thompson only allowed this trial to make him stronger. I was astonished that some liberal critics said he appeared to have a "chip on his shoulder" in the book and in the interviews. Nothing could be further from the truth in the picture I saw of him in all the interviews and especially the book.

Another thing I gained from reading the book was a new found respect for former U.S. Senator John Danforth. Danforth is a very moderate Republican and I have vehemently disagreed with him on several issues but his treatment, loyalty and friendship to Thomas was unwavering. He was one of the first people to take a chance on Thomas when others were unwilling to give him a chance and he weathered the storm with Thomas through the hearings. Anyone who has that caliber of character deserves my respect whether I agree with him on certain issues or not.

The book so inspired and moved me that I'm going to write Thomas a personal letter telling him how much it meant to me.

Book Rating--10 out of 10 stars!!

My Grandfather's Son

I'm a huge fan of Justice Clarence Thomas. He is a great man who has been unfairly demonized by the left. The left tried to bork him and take him down during his confirmation hearing with trumped up charges of sexual harassment. Never mind the fact that we've had a sitting president who actually did commit such acts and was defended by the very feminists who went after Thomas.

Clarence Thomas has said relatively little in his defense up until now. He has come out with his autobiography, My Grandfather's Son. Last night he was on 60 Minutes, go here to see the video. Today, he is going to be on Rush's show for a rare 90 minute interview. I'm very excited, and plan on tuning in. Here is a little of what Rush had to say about it when talking to a caller last week:

"He's going to be in the second and third hour. It's going to be the first 90-minute interview we've ever done with anybody. I taped it after the program yesterday because the first day of the new term of the Supreme Court is on Monday, and he couldn't make it live.

He has two segments on 60 Minutes Sunday night. By the way, the name of the book is My Grandfather's Son. He did two interview segments for 60 minutes. ABC has been following him around, too. Jan Crawford Greenburg is their court writer. She is a good reporter. I don't mean to harm her reputation saying that with her peers, but she's a good reporter. She has followed him around with the crew for I think Primetime or 20/20, whatever the show is. He's going to be all over the place later in the week next week. But I have to tell you something about this interview and I don't want to give any of it away.

Other than to say, I start out with him when his mother gave him up. She couldn't afford him and his brother, and his grandfather took him in, and the title of the book is My Grandfather's Son. I started from there, and I didn't get to the confirmation hearings 'til what was like the end of the first hour. But during this interview -- and I don't want to give away any secrets here -- Dawn, who was here transcribing what he was saying for me in case I had trouble understanding him, which I didn't, cried twice."

I'll have to find room in my budget to purchase both Thomas's & Ann's new book, I'm off to Sam's tomorrow!!

Other interviews:
Clarence Thomas: A Silent Justice Speaks Out

Others blogging:
Patterico's Pontifications
Chip's Church Chat
Born Again Redneck
Bloviating Zeppelin