Thanksgiving, Christmas and Memories

An article that I wrote for our newsletter at my Business Unit
November 26, 2008
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It is that time of the year refered to as the Holidays: the period from Thanksgiving to New Year’s. There are a number of holidays celebrated during this time. These include Thanksgiving, Christmas, Eid al-Adha, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year’s Day. Some of these are celebrated by larger sections of our population than others but each serves a purpose to its followers.
Thankfulness or gratitude is an attitude that serves us well to adopt. We have much to be thankful for, not the least of which is to be living in this great country. The lifestyle and opportunities that is available to even the least privileged in the United States is a significant improvement over that in most other parts of the world. We can be thankful for freedom, peaceful elections, health, the comforts of home, our spouses, our children and extended family. Be thankful for delicious holiday meals and time to celebrate with our friends and family. We can also say a prayer of thanks for our active and inactive Service families that represent freedom in this country and all around the world at this time. I encourage you to take some time and list the things that you are thankful for and teach your kids to do the same.
In the Unites States, Christmas, of course, is the largest and most significant celebration of the holidays. Christmas is, first and foremost, a religious celebration. It has also come to include secular celebrations and economic significance for the retail businesses. Christmas has always been one of my favorite times of the year because of the celebrations, the music, the religious significance and the memories that come back each year.
Christmas is also a time to be thankful. Even though we were poor, my mother, with the resources she had, made Christmas special and significant for us. I always remember those times each year. Because I did not know any different, I thought that we had the greatest Christmas times with my seven brothers and sisters and dozens of aunts, uncles and cousins. I did not realize how poor we were since that is the only life I knew. It was also one of the two times a year we got new clothes and shoes. When school started in August we got new school uniforms and schools shoes. At Christmas we got one new set of church clothes and one pair of church shoes. They had to last then entire year. My mother never allowed us to think that we were poor and never complained about what she did not have, at least for me to hear. I now understand how she could be so thankful with so little and still find enough to share with neighbors who had less.
I remember growing up in the Caribbean and having a warm Christmas but wishing I could experience snow and a white Christmas. Now I live in Utah and wish for a warm Christmas again with a palm trees on the beach while watching the white Christmas on the television. This is the second Christmas I do not need a telephone line my mother to say, Merry Christmas. I now tell her in my prayers. The memories are just as real as before.
So in the spirit of the holidays, to all who celebrate Eid, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and those who do not celebrate, I wish you: Happy Holidays!

However for those of us who celebrate Christmas in its original form, there is only one way to say it:
Merry Christmas!

Historical Celebration...Then What?

Today, we have a new President: the first black president of the United States of America: Mr. Barrack Obama. What a great day in our history. The tears are flowing, the cheers are rising, the elation is sky high. We must celebrate that we as the people have risen beyond the negative and low expectations of the civil rights noise makers and the political talking-heads and chosen the candidate of our choice.
I am still amazed at how many people keep saying that they never believed this could happen in America in our life time. Why not? Are we so tied to the historical sins that we cannot look forward? Can we chant Dr. Martin Luther King's words on one hand while pushing the dream away with the other hand? Should we choose to live in racial isolation while claiming racial equality? Should we let mental and social mediocrity reign in the face of definite progress and racial integration?
Today is clearly a day of celebration. The voices of the self-proclaimed civil rights opportunists have been silenced by the actions of the once silent majority who now proclaim loudly with their feet and hands that 'yes, we can' elect an American to the highest office in the land without regard to the color of their skin. Michelle Obama was wrong; Jessie Jackson was wrong; Al Sherpton was wrong; Geraldine Farraro was wrong; Hillary Clinton was wrong; Bill Clinton was also wrong; all the super delegates who pledged their support to Hillary Clinton before the people even voted in the primaries were wrong. America is a country that can rise to an occasion in spite of those who still see the word through 'colored' glasses.
President elect Obama is the now the one chosen to lead this country. Whether we agree with his politics or not, he is now our president. We need to give him the chance to lead and show if he really can accomplish what he laid out over the last two years. He will soon find out, if he does not already know, that the President cannot do all the things that get people excited in political speeches. The President needs the other branches of government to accomplish the promises of a campaign that did not require judicial or congressional scruitiny and constitutional conformity. The chants of an enamored crowd or popularity polls does not necessarily make good public policy or fiscal sustainability. As the president, we must give him his full four years to at least try.
There is not enough money in the public troughs to feed every hand that is lining up for a handout. There is not enough wealth in the "wealthy ranks" to pay all the bills that his promises will generate. There is not enough money of wall street to pay all the bad loans made on Main Street and there is not enough people on Main Street who will be able to keep the homes that they could not afford ten years ago when the bail out is going to those who cause the problems in the first place.
So our new President will have to do what every good leader does when the honeymoon wears off: he will have to come to reality of what he can and cannot do alone and who he needs to get on his side to be successful. He will also learn that people who are not in business for themselves need to work to earn a living in jobs that are provided by those who own businesses and invest in the markets. I am sure that he already knows that success is not illegal and that remember that poverty is only glamorous during political campaigns.
When the earned celebrations are over, the streets are cleared and the inaugural staff is settled in, life in America goes on and we expect results and honesty from both Republican and Democratic Presidents, at home and abroad, socially and economically, whether they be black, white, male or female.
Congratulations President-elect Obama! Now, let's get something done that will out last your term in office. Maybe you can begin by getting the Congress to actually address critical issues in substantive and efffective ways between their book-signing tours and European trips.

A Shortage of Leaders

After years of observation and seeking, I have come to the conclusion that we are suffering from a shortage of leadership. We have an abundance of managers, supervisors and followers but leaders are few. One of the reasons, I attribute to this is the mis-definition and role of a leader. We elect people to manage systems, we hire mangers to run companies and keep them going. Managers hire supervisors to ensure that the process they manage are not interrupted. This is supposed to make our organizations successful, and in business, create profits. Unfortunately, too many businesses are unprofitable and organizations are stagnant and dying. Sadly, this can also be said of our country.

Countries, organizations and business are successful because they are led by Leaders not managed by Managers. Managers are concerned with quarterly profits (good or bad); leaders are concerned with long term sustainability. Managers are concerned with their department's success above all else; leaders are concerned with the vision. mission and purpose of their organizations so that the Managers have processes to manage and profits can be made. 

The current condition of the USA and the electoral campaigns, demonstrates our current lack of national leadership. We lack leadership in energy and environmental strategies; we lack leadership in alternative sources of oil and energy generation; we lack leadership in immigration control and protecting our boarders; we lack leadership in education reform and accountability; we lack leadership in tax policy and fiscal responsibility. Finally, we lack leadership in harmonizing our country towards common goals. So many people are so concerned by being liked by others and other countries that they are willing to give up our liberties and unique qualities to be like everyone else.

Barrack Obama is talking about change without definition and clarification . He is handsome and dynamic but lacks depth. He has a large following but they are all standing in a circle without direction. Hillary Clinton is talking about experience and health care. She has offered up credible information on neither. Their Democratic party is supposed to be the party if inclusion but only when you vote for the right people, usually Hillary. Both are vociferously critical of President Bush's policies but they have none better to offer. John McCain is so consumed with being a Republican who is moderate and independent that we no longer know where he stands. Where are the leaders?

I have come to the conclusion that most politicians are not leaders, they are power brokers. We have expected people who usually become aquatinted with critical issues from staffers and news reports and summary notes to become experts by virtue of election. 

Church select Pastors and Board members using metrics that have little to do with leadership, vision and passion. After the vote members sit around looking for the Pastors to lead and set a course for change. Every good pastor and board member works hard to come up with something that should get the church going again. Unfortunately these programs usually are centered around managing ecclesiastical processes and keeping the doors open (paying bills). These are management processes that may show short term growth but soon burn out for lack of spiritual depth, mediocre expectations and poor metrics. Title and election do not necessarily mean leadership.  

Leaders have a passion for their calling and their organizations.

Leaders manage processes when needed but soon get back to focusing on the big picture: vision, mission and purpose.

Leaders manage people and motivate them to become their very best.

Leaders succeed by helping others succeed. They are not intimidated by the success of others.

Leaders are willing to sacrifice short term bad profits in order to create sustainable and lasting successes. Success brings profits.

Leaders are not afraid to be unpopular in the face of value, principle and integrity.

Leaders call others to accomplish great things rather than call names.

Where are the leaders? We have developed a center for training new, existing and potential leaders to develop their skills, talents and hone their focus. Check us out at 

www.leaderinus.net

God has blessed us with leaders to be our mentors and challenge us to change in order to accomplish our dreams. We'd like to share it with you.

A Bright Day In America Still Requires Good Choices

This is a very bright day in America. The dream of Dr. King is alive and well. There is both an electable woman and an electable black man running for the highest office in the land. As a black man, I could not be more excited or elated that this country has the opportunity once again to show that a person can be judged by their ability and the content of their character rather than the color of their skin or their gender.

  However, I must bring my exuberance under control to remind myself that we are electing the President of the United States. We are not electing the female president, the black president or the oldest president. We are electing a president for all Americans. Do these surface distinctions rate significantly in the greater context of choosing the leader of the free world? Is either Hillary Clinton or Barrack Obama the best candidate for the president regardless of their sex or race respectively? Does McCain’s age really matter in this context?

  There are those who say that America has not been ready for this day until now. I disagree. We have been ready for this day for many years. Unfortunately, the right candidates have not stepped up until now. Geraldine Ferraro was not a viable or electable candidate when she ran for vice president. As she has recently displayed, she probably would not be a good candidate today. Neither Jessie Jackson nor Al Sharpton was viable or electable candidates when they ran for the nomination. It would not have mattered if either of them were white or older; they both carried too much baggage. What is happening today, wheather I agree with their politics or not, is that Hillary Clinton, Obama  and McCain are capable and competent enough to create a strong national campaign to be nominated for the office of President. They are at this historical crossroad because they possess enough leadership ability and personal appeal to convince enough Americans to support their individual campaigns.

There is little argument that sex, age or race can make a difference in one’s perspective, one’s world view and one’s mass appeal. That can only take one so far in leading an organization or a nation. What happens when sex, age or race takes back stage to national and international challenges? The President has to lead the country for four years. Will we still be focused on the female president, the white president or the black president if in two years we are still at an impasse on health care coverage, illegal immigration, rising interest rates, aging infrastructure, crowded highways or $5.00 per gallon gasoline at the pump? Will we still be so excited of our historic achievements if taxes increase and college tuition grows by double digits?

When all the excitement dies down and the historic markers are securely in place, I hope that we will elect best candidate for president who will help us continue to create a better America where everyone, regardless of race, age or sex can become the best that we want to be while living in freedom and prosperity.

 

My First Published Opinion in a Major Newspaper

Published in the Salt Lake Tribune on February 24, 2008.

Let Sen. Buttars be judged at the ballot box [That's the title the paper gave]
By Grantley Martelly
Article Last Updated: 02/23/2008 01:39:30 PM MST
   Note: The Opinion refers to comments made on the floor of the Utah Senate by a Utah Senator that were inappropriate, offensive and racist to some in our community.

    I find it rather disingenuous of the NAACP to be representing itself, and for the media to portray it, as the voice piece of all people of color and on matters of race, ethnicity, bigotry, offense or reconciliation. As a matter of independence, I'd like it to be known that the NAACP does not speak for all of us on every matter.
    In the matter with Sen. Chris Buttars, as inappropriate and outrageous as his comments may be, the NAACP is not the sole arbitrator of offensive or racist speech for all people of color and hence it is not imperative that they be consulted or appeased. Sen. Buttars does not have to prostrate himself at their altar or pose for a media-staged apology that may or may not be genuine. This is not to say that organizations such as the NAACP do not serve a role in society to be alert to matters that may affect our civil rights or intervene to bring representation or resolution in instances of violation of civil rights, racism or victimization.
    Sen. Buttars, racist or not, misspoken or deliberate, is a member of a political party, a member of the state Legislature, an elected representative and a member of our community. In any of these capacities, there are proven and effective public and private ways for an offense to be dealt with, for an apology to be made and for reconciliation or retribution to be exacted.
This matter does not have to serve as fodder for another media-based controversy over Buttars versus the NAACP.
    Every instance of inappropriate or offensive language or action does not need a civil rights organization or politically charged figure to resolve it. One does not have to be a person of color to be offended by racist speech or actions. Every person of color is not offended by the same words or actions. Some actions and speech, however, are offensive in any form or instance. The words of Sen. Buttars do not require the interpretation or amplification of a civil rights organization to be interpreted as offensive or inappropriate. We can apply connotative and denotative contextualization to what we see, hear and read without a press release from the NAACP.
    There are other credible, experienced and well-respected community leaders such as The Rev. Dr. France Davis who can be invited to the table and help bring resolution to the matter at hand if this is what is needed. I find it difficult to believe that the Utah Senate cannot handle this matter and bring it to a conclusion. Ultimately the true verdict on Buttars' speech and subsequent actions or lack thereof can be revealed at the ballot box.
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* GRANTLEY MARTELLY resides in Murray.