The Indians are Dead, Long Live the Spiders

 

Last week, The Cleveland Baseball Franchise released the above statement. The New York Times broke the story that a name change would be announced the day before, and on December 14th, there it was. 

2020 was an incredibly awful year, but for the Change the Mascot organization that has been battling to leave old native themed sports mascots in the past, this year has been a huge success. Since the 70s this movement has been successful in changing mascots at the grade school and collegiate level, and in minor and semi pro leagues. Professional league teams, though, have resisted. 

Something changed this year, making the previously improbable finally a reality. The worst professional league offender, the Washington Redskins, retired the name and logo. They changed to the classy, simple Washington Football Team, and started using a wordmark instead of an Indianhead. And now, following suit, the Cleveland Indians, one of the oldest American baseball teams, using the same name for 105 years, has decided to change. 

This shouldn't be a huge surprise. Cleveland has been making strides in the last few years to move to this obvious conclusion. They retired their racist caricature mascot Chief Wahoo in 2018. However, like the mascot, the Indian name will survive for one more year, the 2021 season being its last. And the franchise will undoubtedly hold onto the trademark as long as possible by releasing Indians imprinted merchandise periodically. I wouldn't be so concerned about this. It's a business decision, and in a year, the franchise will be rebranded and busy peddling their new rebranded merchandise. 

Speaking of that... I hear the franchise may be planning on resurrecting the mascot from a Cleveland precursor franchise. The Spiders could be the second arthropod mascot of a major league team, after the Charlotte Hornets. University of Richmond might be pissed. 

A cause for celebration, surely, even though the Indians could have done as Washington did, and discontinue use immediately. Instead they will wait an entire season. Below is an article from the Washington DC ABC affiliate, which showcases reaction tweets from Indian fans. Some are uplifting and supportive, and some are disappointedly not. 

Identity Crisis: Sports Edition

As released on the franchise twitter machine, and the NFL, the team formally known as the Redskins will take a page from the soccer playbook and rebrand themselves as the Washington Football Team. 

As reported by the Independent, this move will at least be for the 2020/2021 season, and perhaps longer, but as the NFL story seems to say, it won't be a permanent solution. The colors will stay the same, the mascot will "retire", and the helmet logo is to be replaced by players individual numbers, which is something that teams have done in the past, and some colleges still do. 

So... finally the worst offender of racial mascots in post modern history has come to an end. And, in contrast to what detractors have been saying for decades, the team identity doesn't seem to be hurt at all by this. They will still be (literally) their city's team. In fact, due to the name change, presumably the team will be allowed to actually relocate back into the city limits. 

Redskins No More

It finally happened. The Washington Football Team has officially decided to retire their logo and nickname. I've been posting about this a lot in the past. use the search bar here to see all the posts labeled "American Indian" and "sports", you'll find them. 

This decision is huge. The Anti-Indian Mascot movement has been seeking this outcome since the 1970s. Dan Snyder had previously vowed to never change the name as long as he's owner. It has been a one-sided debate against an opposition that was tone-deaf and unwilling to listen. So... what happened to suddenly change minds?

1: There has been a trend in the last ten years to end the use of culturally insensitive mascots in public schools, and public and private universities. California and Maine recently passed legislation. The Cleveland Indians retired Chief Wahoo, The Braves retired the Laughing Brave. 

2: George Floyd's viral death which strengthened Black Lives Matter to a point where the movement can not be ignored anymore. Suddenly, it became very bad for business to be seen on the wrong side of racial civil rights issues. And at the heart of the Indian Mascot issue is colonialism and racism. 

3: Business partners, and advertisers, and then finally minority share holders began to jump ship. This is what ultimately forced the franchise's hand. 

How long will this take? Unclear. It's actually unclear at the moment if there will even be an NFL season starting in 2020 (unlikely). If there is, it is doubtful that the Washington football team would even be able to compete with new branding and a new nickname. There aren't even any official ideas yet for a name change.

However, this idea of changing the name isn't new. Previously, Snyder was granted trademarks to the Washington Warriors. But that trademark had been voided. Other nicknames that had been suggested in the past include the Griffins, Generals, Sentinels, Senators, Renegades, Red Wolves, Redhawks, and Red Tails. 

Hopefully we wont have to wait long until the new name is revealed. At the moment, I'm sure there are plenty of terrible human beings making it clear how angry they are at even the prospect of a new team identity. And I'm also sure there will be plenty of throwback merchandise proudly displayed at NFL games for the foreseeable future. 

Age of Corona: Movie Edition

The Hot Zone said this would happen

This pandemic has us all inside, with our televisions and take out. Joke's on it, we've been practicing for this for decades! What do we watch? Well, movies about how much worse it could be, or maybe a preview into our futures couldn't hurt, right? I'm talking about post apocalypse films. We all love 'em, and we've been making them since the the beginning of film. Everyone knows the Hunger Games, and Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Dead, and Mad Max franchises. Those are the easy, most recognizable ones. Here's a bunch of other good ones probably lost in the shuffle.

After a robot-led mass extinction, nine dolls given sentience struggle to bring life back to a desolated earth. Not only is this post apocalypse, but also an alternate time-line story. Written and directed by Shane Acker, it was released in 2009.

Technically taking place in a post apocalyptic society that turned Manhattan into a penal colony, the plot is a basic escape and survive story. The basic premise is also used in the Batman Arkham City videogame. Released in 1981, written and directed by John Carpenter, this one has a real classic '80s action film feel and deserves its cult following.

Most post apocalypse stories explain the current state of the world as being due to nuclear war, zombies, disease, or robot overlords. Snowpiercer's endtimes catalyst is climate change. The film addresses social status systems even in times of crisis. Directed by Boon Joon-ho, also the director of Parasite, this one should be a new classic in the genre. Plus Captain America is the star. 

Another cult classic apparently in a long list of post apocalyptic themed cult films, this one was adapted from the 1988 indie comicbook of the same name by Alan Martin and James Hewlett. Tank Girl is exactly as advertised. Its about a girl, who owns a tank. The plot diverges from the comic, leaving out important characters like Booga the Kangaroo. The film should be experienced if only for the set design, style, and music. There are plans for a reboot/remake to be released in the next few years starring Margo Robbie, probably. 

Speaking of remakes, and stuff based on indie comicbooks, this movie is chronically underrated. The original Judge Dredd, starring Rambo, flopped in 1995. This film did better, and unlike its predecessor, it has the creator's approval. Comic writer John Wagner said it was "unlike the first film, a true representation of Judge Dredd [...] The character and storyline are pure Dredd". This storyline takes place after nuclear war, and the remaining world population lives within giant city sprawls called Mega-cities. Law and order are carried out by the Judge System, which uses Wild West Sheriff-style Judges that act as police, judge, jury, and executioner. This movie got the Judge Dredd character correct, and deserves a sequel that wont ever happen. 

Because I haven't featured a zombie film yet, here's this one. I'm a huge fan of horror-comedy. Since I saw Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein when I was a kid, this genre has been one of my favorites. Zombieland may be one of the best horror comedy films out there. Shaun of the Dead is very good too, but it isnt exactly a post-apocalypse film. That movie is about Shaun and his friends experiencing the apocalypse as it unfolds. Zombieland, in comparison, is about what happens to survivors after the monster making pandemic has hit its stride. We get to see the characters adapt to new life, and trying to solve problems like what to do about a twinkie craving in the midst of a food shortage. 

I saved the bestest for the lastest. 

Not only is this film a retro sci-fi masterpiece, its also an over the top action film, and a feel good story about friends. Set in the mid '90s in an alternate timeline where, presumably, the world ended in robot perpetuated nuclear holocaust, a teenager meets new friends and fights a despot hoarding water resources. Also, there is a power glove. Also it's a Canadian film, eh. 

Impeached Presidentially

Unless you're been living in a box in the middle of Nowhere for the last year, we've all had a very big share of impeachment news recently. Predictably, there has been a lot of misinformation and general confusion about the process, mostly because, Presidentially, we've only had 3.

Impeachment is the act of impeaching someone. Where does the word come from, and what does it mean? According to the Oxford English Dictionary, to impeach means, in law, at first in a broad sense, "to accuse, bring charges against"; more specifically, of the king or the House of Commons, "to bring formal accusation of treason or other high crime against (someone)". The word evolves from the broad term in the 14th century, to the more specific "accusing a public officer of misconduct" by the 1560s.

Breaking this definition down, impeachment then is the process by which a legislating body, the people's representation in government, can indict a sitting executive for abuses of the power of the office they hold. The US Constitution defines these abuses as "high crimes and misdemeanors". Impeachment, then, is not a trial that will remove a governing official from office, necessarily. Usually it is a first step in that process, and this is true in the United States. 

Speaking of the US Constitution, obviously the idea of impeachment predates the United States. The Constitution borrows this concept from the UK's parliamentary system. This idea of impeachment is also shared by several other sovereign governments. There are 29 other countries with impeachment as part of their constitutions. Both Brazil and South Korea impeached and removed their presidents recently, in 2016.

Impeachment in the United States is not only for presidents. In the Constitution, the president, vice president and "all civil officers" can be subject to impeachment and removal. Civil officers, in this case, means people in government not necessarily elected to office. This has basically meant justices, but also any executively appointed position. In addition to our three presidents, we have also impeached 1 senator (William Blount), 1 Secretary of War (William Belknap), and 15 federal judges. 15 of these 20 officials were then removed from office by the Senate. Both Bucchanen and Nixon had impeachment proceedings started, but not completed. Nixon resigned rather than face impeachment, and Bucchanen was found to not be responsible for the rampant corruption in his administration, and therefore not impeachable.

Our current president has a list of actions that could be deemed impeachable. Let's compare these accusations with historic charges that ended in impeachment.

1: Obstructing Justice

By blocking federal access to information important to an investigation into the president, firing federal prosecutors tasked with investigating the president, intimidating and influencing witnesses through speeches, press releases, and twitter.

Three other cases included obstruction of justice. Two were the presidents Nixon and Clinton, the third was Samuel Kent, a judge.

2: Ignoring the Emoluments Clause

Refusing to step away from businesses and business interests while in office, Trump had opened himself up to scrutiny whether he'd be able to govern in a fair and balanced manner without personal bias. There are many instances of Trump properties and business contacts getting preferential treatment.

There have been 5 impeachment cases due to corruption. Robert Woodrow Archibald was impeached specifically for accepting gifts in exchange for rulings.

3: Soliciting Foreign Interference in US Elections

This one is a bit specific, and as such unprecedented. However, there have been two impeachments that dealt with treason. William Blount was impeached for making deals to take Spanish territory on behalf of Britain. And the US judge West Hughes Humphries was impeached for supporting the Confederacy. In addition to the treasonous argument, this one is connected to the Obstruction of Justice charge.

4: Abuse of Power

This one seems to be a catch-all for just about everything else. In addition to the above charges, which can also be categorized as abusing power, Trump has called for violence and insurrection, engaged in reckless conduct as a diplomat, called for the prosecution and persecution of political opponents, attacked the free press, and violated campaign finance laws.

Four other impeachments were made using the Abuse of Power charge. Nixon was also accused of Abuse of Power.