A review of Ken Burns’ “Jackie Robinson” (PBS)

“ ♪ Did you see Jackie Robinson hit that ball?
It went zoomin 'cross the left field wall.
Yeah boy, yes, yes. Jackie hits that ball. ♪

♪ And when he swung his bat,
the crowd went wild,
because he knocked that ball a solid mile.
Yeah boy, yes, yes. Jackie hits that ball. ♪ ”

– Buddy Johnson's “Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball?” (1949), with a famous recording by Count Basie in that same year

Before Jackie Robinson, baseball was segregated, with the Black players in a separate league

It has been said that baseball is a profoundly conservative game, which sometimes managed to be years ahead of its time. That is certainly the case with Jackie Robinson; since long before the civil rights movement of the 1960's, Jackie Robinson broke the “color barrier” in 1947. He was the first African American ever to play in the Major Leagues on a permanent basis. There were actually a few African Americans who had played in the Major Leagues before him, and who had been “light-skinned” enough that they could almost pass for “White.” But when their racial background was discovered, they were unfortunately kicked out of Major League Baseball for this reason. Before Jackie Robinson, African Americans were thus forced to play in a segregated set of leagues known as the “Negro Leagues.” (The term “Negro” was considered non-offensive at this time.) It was only after Jackie Robinson permanently broke the color barrier in 1947 that baseball was finally integrated.

Robinson with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1954

Reading about the trial of Socrates in the original Greek

“The unexamined life is not worth living.”

– Socrates at his trial, as recorded by Plato's “Apology”

Before beginning this project, I had just finished reading C. A. E. Luschnig's “An Introduction to Ancient Greek: A Literary Approach.” (More about that here.) I had earlier determined that after getting through this book, my first use of this (admittedly limited) proficiency would be to read all of the primary sources about the trial of Socrates in the original Greek. There aren't very many of them, I should add here, so I knew that this was a manageable task. Thus, I started doing so immediately after reading the introductory textbook about Greek.

Socrates

The “Fundamental Orders of Connecticut” may be the world’s first written constitution

“I pass over the constitutions of Rhode Island and Connecticut, because they were formed prior to the Revolution, and even before the principle under examination had become an object of political attention.”

– James Madison, in the Federalist Papers (Federalist No. 47)

Some consider this document to be the world’s first written constitution

The United States Constitution was the first written constitution for an entire nation. But there were actually several state constitutions that came before it, which were mostly found in the thirteen colonies that became the early United States. They already had functioning democracies by the time they declared their independence in 1776, and had more than a century of democratic experience by this time. Although the writers of the Constitution would also draw upon the experiences of Greece and Rome (not to mention Great Britain), they would also be drawing upon their own experience as well, and upon the constitutions of their own states. Some would consider the world’s first “constitution” (in the modern Western sense of that word) to be the “Fundamental Orders of Connecticut,” a document that was written in 1639 – nearly a century and a half before the United States Constitution was written in 1787. Some would dispute the claim that the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut were truly the world’s first constitution, I should note here, and I suppose it depends somewhat upon how you define this word. But however you define it, it would nonetheless seem fair to say that the “Fundamental Orders of Connecticut” were groundbreaking; and that they were a considerable influence on the United States Constitution.

The British Parliament was the main model for the United States Congress

“It will be the business of this chapter to consider the British parliament; in which the legislative power, and (of course) the supreme and absolute authority of the state, is vested by our constitution.”

– William Blackstone’s “Commentaries on the Laws of England” (1765), Book 1, Chapter 2

The “supreme and absolute authority of the state” was in the legislature

William Blackstone once said that the British Constitution vests the “supreme and absolute authority of the state” in the Parliament. Like Montesquieu before him, Blackstone was a believer in separation of powers (more on that subject here). He believed that the Parliament should be a separate branch of government from the executive authority – which, at that time, was the monarchy. “In all tyrannical governments,” Blackstone also said, “the supreme magistracy, or the right both of making and of enforcing the laws, is vested in one and the same man, or one and the same body of men.” (Source: Blackstone’s “Commentaries,” Book 1, Chapter 2) Wherever these two powers are united together, he said, “there can be no public liberty … [for] The magistrate may enact tyrannical laws, and execute them in a tyrannical manner.” (Source: Blackstone’s “Commentaries,” Book 1, Chapter 2) The magistrate “is possessed, in quality of dispenser of justice, with all the power which he as legislator thinks proper to give himself. But, where the legislative and executive authority are in distinct hands,” he continued, “the former will take care not to entrust the latter with so large a power, as may tend to the subversion of its own independence, and therewith of the liberty of the subject.” (Source: Blackstone’s “Commentaries,” Book 1, Chapter 2) This, he believed, would happen if there were not a Parliament to check the power of the king.

Sir William Blackstone

5 surprising ways that the Congress was modeled on the British Parliament

“... in the main the constitution of parliament, as it now stands, was marked out so long ago as the seventeenth year of king John, A. D. 1215, in the great charter granted by that prince … And this constitution has subsisted in fact at least from the year 1266, 49 Hen. III : there being still extant writs of that date, to summon knights, citizens, and burgesses to parliament.”

– William Blackstone’s “Commentaries on the Laws of England” (1765), Book 1, Chapter 2

There's more similarity between the Congress and the Parliament than meets the eye …

In both big and small ways, the Congress was modeled on the Parliament of Great Britain. In bigger ways, it is a legislative body that is kept separate from the other branches. It is even divided into two houses, with only the lower house having the ability to “originate” taxing bills. And originally, only the lower house was elected – although both houses of our Congress are now directly elected by the people. But it is not just these ways in which these two legislative bodies are similar – they are also similar in many smaller ways, and in many finer details. You might be surprised at what some of these “details” actually are, so it might be helpful to look at a few of them here. I will be using Sir William Blackstone's “Commentaries on the Laws of England” as a source throughout, since Alexander Hamilton used it as a source in the Federalist Papers. (All quotations from Blackstone's “Commentaries” in this particular post are from Book 1, Chapter 2. Therefore, I will not note this every time.)

Sir William Blackstone

A review of PBS's “Citizen King” (Martin Luther King, Jr.)

“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”

– Martin Luther King's “I Have A Dream” speech (August 28, 1963)

This program about Martin Luther King doesn't do justice to the great civil rights leader …

This program has many of the ingredients needed for a great film about the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. It has photographs, newspaper headlines, and even actual footage of the period being depicted. It interviews people who knew him, and many others who lived through these times. These interviews are compelling, and have a great potential to tell the story. But this film is also missing some essential elements needed for a good documentary. Most importantly, it is missing any kind of narration; and thus has no narrative to hold the story together. They have to make some awkward transitions from one interview clip into another, without any narrations to ease these transitions. This is a major weakness in a documentary about history, and it is more the sort of thing that I would expect from a news network than from an educational network like PBS. Indeed, this program feels more journalistic than historical; and lacks the epic scale needed in a history film.

Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.

How fractions are used in the United States Constitution

One of the most well-known clauses in the original Constitution was known as the “Three-Fifths Clause.” This name comes from a fraction in the clause, which is no longer in effect. But there are other fractions in the Constitution which are still in effect.

For example, you can find the fractions “one-fifth,” “one-third,” “two-thirds,” and “three-fourths” in various parts of the Constitution that are still in effect. Even the concept of a “majority” is something of a fractional concept – that is, more than one-half.

With 50 states, 100 Senators, and 435 Representatives …

Thus, if you really want to understand the Constitution, you have to know your fractions. Some examples are available below, along with sources to back them up:

United States Capitol

Funny Congress quotes and jokes

You wanna hear a joke? Congress.

"We hang the petty thieves, and appoint the great ones to public office." - Aesop

United States Capitol, the building where the Congress meets