Philosopher, writer and editor Martha Nussbaum explored the role of anger in movements led by Martin Luther King Jr., Ghandi, and Nelson Mandela in a lecture titled “Anger and Revolutionary Justice” on Wednesday as part of the 10th Christian Culture Lecture at Saint Mary’s.Nussbaum began the lecture by reflecting on an ancient Greek story in which Athena persuades the Furies in a city to re-orient themselves and adopt attitudes of benevolence, thus liberating the city with justice because of the transition, she said.“Political justice does not put a cage around resentment, it must ultimately transform it from something barely human, excessively bloodthirsty, to something human,” she said. ” … Anger with all its ugliness is a very popular emotion. Many people think it is impossible to carry out justice without anger.”Nussbaum said many people believe anger is a necessary component in supporting one’s beliefs and defending self-worth and often involves the idea of ‘payback,’ or retribution.“The most popular issue in the sphere of criminal justice today is retribution, that is, the view that the law must punish transgressions in a manner that embodies the spirit of justified anger,” Nussbaum said. “ … Anger is at the heart of revolutionary transformation.“We think about payback all the time,” Nussbaum said. “It is very common to think that the proportionality between crime and punishment somehow makes good. Only it doesn’t.”Nussbaum described three paths to deal with anger: the path of status, which is self-focused, the payback path, which results in the offender suffering, or the better, more rational spirit of looking forward and ‘do what makes sense’ option.This third rational option requires a stage known as the “transition stage” and is the stage used by the three leaders in the transition from anger to passionate hope, she said.One must take courage and learn from the legacies of three noble, successful freedom movements conducted in the spirit of non-anger — those of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela, Nussbaum said.“Now there is indeed anger in King’s [I Have a Dream] speech, at least at first … but King gets busy reshaping it to work and thought for how could it [anger] be made good,” Nussbaum said.Nussbaum said a strategy of transition anger is necessary, which she defined as a movement from anger with all its defects into a forward constructive form and work.“Anger towards opponents is to be transformed into a mental attitude that carefully separates the deed from the doer. … After all, the ultimate goal, as King says, is to create the world where all can live together,” Nussbaum said.Mandela also embraced this method, Nussbaum said.“Payback was natural and easy, Mandela took the difficult course. … A generous spirit was far more useful for the nation,” Nussbaum said. “Mandala asked, ‘How shall I produce cooperation and friendship?’ It is this remarkable capacity for generosity that was Mandela’s genius.“It’s a difficult goal, but it’s that goal that I’m recommending for both individuals and institutions. Anger is a prominent threat. … I hesitate to end with a slogan that will portray my age, but it really is time to ‘Give Peace a Chance.’”Tags: Christian Culture Lecture, martha nussbaum
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NRFF on the March Again after Ratification of its Constitution
Speaking after the meeting, elated boss of NRFF, Kelechi Mbagwu said, “I feel relieved at this stage because if we had failed, we would have been back to square one. A country that is not internationally recognised is not going to live up to its full potential,” he remarked.He commended members of the board for their show of solidarity and said the board was now set for business and hoped to actualised most of its programme this year following the interest of several corporate bodies who are waiting in the wings moments the international body endorses the legitimacy of the board.“As for what we are set to do now, the local league has to be properly funded. At the moment we have 20 teams, next year we look forward to an increase in that number and so on.â€Mbagwu also said that some corporate bodies like Fidelity Bank and Vodacom have indicated interest in funding Nigerian rugby.On his part, Khaled Babbou who represented Rugby Afrique said he was happy with what he saw. “This is what we have been waiting for and rugby is set to open a new chapter in Nigeria and we will be happy to welcome the country back to the international fold.He, however, said that he would have to submit a report to the continental body and believes the outcome would be positive. “And it is not going to be long,†he assured Nigerian rugby stakeholders.Share this:FacebookRedditTwitterPrintPinterestEmailWhatsAppSkypeLinkedInTumblrPocketTelegram Femi SolajaThe Nigeria Rugby Football Federation (NRFF) has now put behind the problem that affected the smooth running of its activities following the ratification of the federation’s constitution by the elected board led by Kelechi Mbagwu.With this, NRFF has taken a giant step towards getting readmitted by the International Rugby Union who had mandated the Nigerian body to hold it Annual General Meeting and ratify its constitution.At an extra-ordinary Annual General Meeting, attended by delegates from the various state chapters, and representative of the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), Ministry of Youth and Sports, and an EXCO member of the continental governing body, Rugby Afrique, the federation endorsed the constitution and set out a programme of action for the 2018 season.
Iowa Court of Appeals affirms Mason City man’s lascivious acts conviction
MASON CITY — A Mason City man’s lascivious acts with a child conviction has been affirmed by the Iowa Court of Appeals. 59-year-old Patrick Holt was arrested in January of last year after being accused of molesting a girl under the age of 12 at his home in the 1400 block of North Federal. The girl reported the alleged abuse to authorities in June of 2017, saying that Holt touched her sexually and showed her pornography three or four years ago. A Cerro Gordo County jury convicted Holt after a three-day trial, with District Judge James Drew sentencing him to ten years in prison after denying a motion to overturn the conviction and a request for a new trial. Holt appealed his conviction, saying the court erred in denying him a new trial, that his counsel was ineffective for failing to object to testimony from an expert witness, that the court erred by instructing the jury on general and specific intent, and that the court abused its discretion in issuing the sentence. The Court of Appeals in their ruling did not agree with any of Holt’s issues and affirmed the conviction and sentence.