Please sign the petition below to remove the statue of Jefferson Davis currently in Kentucky’s Capitol Rotunda, and replace it with a tribute to Muhammad Ali, “the Louisville Lip” and “the Greatest of All Time.”
I just heard from the Ali family: It is the Champ’s belief that Islam prohibits three-dimensional representations of living Muslims. Accordingly, I have adjusted the petition to call for a two-dimensional representation of Ali (a portrait, picture or mural) in lieu of a statue.
UPDATE (Tuesday, December 2, 2014)
In this interview with WHAS-TV’s Joe Arnold, Governor Steve Beshear endorses the idea of honoring Muhammad Ali in the State Capitol (although he disagrees with removing Davis). Arnold explores the idea further on his weekly show, “The Powers that Be.”
Click here to check out WDRB-TV’s Lawrence Smith’s coverage of the story.
And here’s my op-ed in Ali’s hometown paper, the Louisville Courier-Journal.
UPDATE (Saturday, June 4, 2016)
In the wake of the 2015 Charlestown tragedy, in which a Confederate flag-waving murderer united the nation against racism, all of the most powerful Kentucky policymakers — U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell, Governor Matt Bevin, Senate President Robert Stivers and House Speaker Greg Stumbo — called for the removal of the Davis statue from the Rotunda. Today, as we commemorate last night’s passing of Muhammad Ali, there is no better moment to replace the symbol of Kentucky’s worst era with a tribute to The Greatest of All Time.
UPDATE (Wednesday, June 8, 2016):
Great piece by Lawrence Smith of WDRB-TV in Louisville on the petition drive to replace Jefferson Davis’ statue in the Capitol Rotunda with a tribute to Muhammad Ali.
UPDATE (Thursday, June 9, 2016):
Excellent piece on the petition drive by Jack Brammer that was featured on the front page of the Lexington Herald-Leader.
Highlight of the article:
Miller said he has received a few “angry comments” on his call to honor Ali.
“One of them encouraged me to kill myself,” he said. “You can quote me that I have decided not to take their advice.”
UPDATE (Friday, June 10, 2016)
The petition drives continues to show the Big Mo(hammed): check out these stories from WKYU-FM public radio in Bowling Green and WKYT-TV, Channel 27 in Lexington:
UPDATE (Saturday, June 11, 2016):
Still not convinced? Check out this excerpt from today’s New York Times:
By Mark Nickolas, on Mon May 2, 2011 at 12:45 PM ET
Two quick thoughts/observations on the Bin Laden aftermath:
First, it is quite a sight to be met upon arrival at a subway station in Manhattan by police officers carrying automatic weapons in plain view. It lessens the amount of caffeine you need to get the day started.
Second, it dawned on me this morning while watching the news that, in the history of mankind, I doubt there’s ever been a more bad ass group of people going after a single man in one singular movement like there was yesterday with those 15 ‘Seal Team 6’ members — the most elite of the top secret, black-ops, U.S. special forces — landing their helicopters in Bin Laden’s backyard and then daring him to start a fire-fight. (Here’s a great link to an article about Seal Team 6’s historic mission.)
In fact, I can’t even think of a movie that assembled such a group. Just one of these guys equals Rambo. Imagine 15 of them at once…wild stuff.
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon May 2, 2011 at 12:00 PM ET
Today, we introduce our newest contributing recovering politician, Andrew Romanoff, through the magic of video Skype.
Andrew served as Speaker of the House for the Colorado state House of Representatives until he was term-limited in 2010. That year, he bucked the state and national Democratic establishment by challenging his party’s U.S. Senator, Michael Bennet, who had been appointed to that office by the Democratic governor and supported by President Obama. Despite this challenge — and with an assist from President Clinton who endorsed him — Andrew almost pulled the upset of the election cycle.
Now a Senior Advisor for International Development Enterprises, Andrew shares with The RP his thoughts about his race, term limits, and global conflict and development:
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon May 2, 2011 at 9:30 AM ET
I wrote earlier that today is a today of celebration.
But perhaps it is even more a day of remembrance. Let us never forget the thousands of Americans — of nearly ever race, creed and ethnicity — who perished on 9/11 because of Osama bin Laden’s conspiracy of mass murder.
Did you lose a friend or loved one? Did someone you love narrowly escape death?
Please use the comments section below to share your stories:
UPDATE:
A reader, Daniel Solzman, reminded me that today is the Jewish holiday, Yom Hashoah, the Day of Remembrance, the day on which we solemnly remember the 6 million Jews and millions of others who perished during the Holocaust.
And then my daughter, Emily, reminded me that yesterday was the 66th anniversary of the day on which the world learned that Hitler had died. (May 1, 1945.)
As my wife, Lisa, constantly preaches, there are no coincidences.
By Jonathan Miller, on Mon May 2, 2011 at 8:33 AM ET
I’m traveling this week, went to sleep early, and awoke to a half dozen texts from my teenage daughters.
Uh oh.
When I read the joy and excitement in their messages, I remembered that their first politicial memory – the first real-world memory for all young Americans of their generation – was 9/11. This is America’s first post-partisan generation; they care much more about their country and their communities than partisan labels. When I turned on the TV this morning, I saw thousands upon thousands of young people, singing and dancing in the streets of Times Square, Ohio State’s campus, DC’s Pennsylvania Avenue, etc., etc.
So today is not a Democratic moment, or a Republican moment. It is an American moment. It is events like these that encouraged me to start this web site. It is my sincere hope that the unity we see today can be replicated and extended beyond this brief period of celebration.
We’ll have more to say on justice and Bin Laden. But right now, let’s bask in the joy of our kids and grandkids. As we determine to fix this broken, hyper partisan political system, remember: It is all about them.
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Apr 29, 2011 at 5:00 PM ET
I hope you enjoyed women’s week at The Recovering Politician.
If there is a theme for next weeks, it’s the United States Senate. All of our new contributing RPs introduced next week have either served in that august body, or ran a race that fell just short. I think you will enjoy their stories.
Hope you enjoy a fun and dry(!) weekend. See you on Monday.
By Chris Schulz, RP Staff, on Fri Apr 29, 2011 at 1:30 PM ET
Politics of the Planet
In the Pacific Northwest, buildings are starting to become “net-zero water”. This involves recycling rainwater and “grey water” as well as composting waste. [yahoo.com]
For all the ladies out there, instead of buying clothes at the mall, make your next wardrobe from recyclables. [cnn.com]
Those flowers that you plant in your garden may not be exactly what you think they are. Lowe’s and Home Depot are in an “arms race” for the best plants. [wsj.com]
Birds that act as “tape-recorders” allow us to examine changes in lifestyle and habitat. [npr. org]
By Jonathan Miller, on Fri Apr 29, 2011 at 12:30 PM ET
Those readers familiar with national politics might remember “Walkin’ Lawton” Chiles, the Florida legend who walked from the western most point of the Florida panhandle all the way to Key West during his 1970 bid for the U.S. Senate. The walk became his signature action, so he incorporated it through his many future statewide campaigns.
In 2010, our own contributing RP Loranne Ausley took the gimmick another “step,” and ventured on a bike trek from Tallahasse to West Palm Beach to convince her opponent to finally engage in a civil debate. (Read about what Loranne is up to in her inaugural post.) Here is a report of her efforts:
Blog this!
