Steverson Collection Book Club Celebrates 100th Session.

Opening of the Steverson Collection, Veszprem, Hungary.

One Hundred is a measuring stick in many ways. Historians write in 100 year cycles. Nations celebrate centennials. Presidents are measured by the accomplishment of their first 100 days in office.

In Korea, the first 100 days is a very special time for parents and a newborn baby. It is the time that increases the newborns potential of success on earth. Historically, the survival rates before the first 100 days was very minimal, the rates would drastically increase after the first 100 days. Therefore, throughout history and even today many parents are still celebrating the first 100 days with a large party. Some adoptive parents will have fun celebrating this party after the first 100 days after the ‘gotcha day” in Korea. It is a time to not only celebrate the child’s life however also to celebrate the parents.

Some American Presidents do a lot in their first hundred days (FDR, Reagan), and others just worry a lot (Kennedy).

The first-hundred-day yardstick places too much emphasis on easily quantifiable early achievements, directing attention to the number of laws passed. Passing laws isn’t necessarily the best indicator of a strong presidency. When a president’s party controls the Congress, it’s easy for him to sign bills that were queued up before he arrived — something that may hearten his supporters but doesn’t attest to great vision or legislative prowess.
 

In a better world leaders wouldn’t be judged so much on their early accomplishments. They would be given time to make mistakes and learn; they could focus on long term vision and not have to worry so much about tactical maneuvering. In a better world a lot of things would be different. Lambs would lie down with lions, for example, and goodness and niceness would prevail.

It’s not that our first hundred sessions will either doom us to failure or guarantee our success. It’s just that new beginnings are times when momentum builds or it doesn’t, when opinion are formed about whether an enterprise will be worth its salt.

I am happy to say that we at the Steverson Collection Book Club have passed the test. We are alive and well. We are growing and expanding our outreach. We have not just survived; we have triumphed.

Fortunately, we found ourselves in Veszprem, Hungary  in a university town with a very literate population and an electronic library already on the internet. Ms. Judy Pallman was a gift from God. And Judy Bertalan, the Director of the American Corner, is an angel to work with. Together they are a dynamic pair. The entire Steverson Collection was posted on the internet library within days of being inventoried. The books can be accessed from anywhere in the world. Books can be put on reserve from the remotest outpost in Hungary.

After the Opening Ceremony of the Steverson Collection on 23 April, 2009 the

American Corner Veszprem was excited to announce the start of the

Steverson Collection Book Club (ekmk.hu). The Club’s aim is to give the reading public a chance to get

acquainted with the vast collection of books in the generous donation from Judge London

Steverson and his family.  This Book Club is run by booklovers, for booklovers.

The members are at the heart of all the club does.

Variety will be at the heart of our Club. The Steverson Collection contains thousands of used and rare English language books on a variety of subjects of interest; such as, History, Humor, Satire, Myths & Legends, Philosophy, Poetry, Shakespeare, Religion, Reference,

Travel & Leisure, Exploration (The Silk Road, The Spice Route, The

Northwest Passage, Antrarctica, The North Pole, and more…)

Steverson Collection Book Club Celebrates 100th Session on 8 November 2011.

The Steverson Collection Book Club will celebrate its 100th Session on 8 November 2011. The Book Club meets every Tuesday in the American Corner, Veszprem, Hungary.

Do you like reading? Join the unique Steverson Collection Book Club. Meet new friends. Memberhip is free, the language English. You can win a valuable English language book every month.Times: 16:30-17:30, Tuesdays, continuing. Venue: American Corner, Eötvös Károly County Library and Cultural Institute, Veszprém, Komakút tér 3.

American Corners are United States Department of State-sponsored initiative inaugurated worldwide more than 10 years ago. Since 2000, the U.S. has launched 245 American Corners in approximately 60 countries. “American Corners” serve as regional resource centers for information and programs highlighting American culture, history, current events, and government. “American Corners” typically host discussion groups, seminars, digital video conferencing (DVCs), poster exhibits, and meetings with U.S. and local specialists on a wide range of American-focused topics. They act as a regional repository for the use of American-themed books, videos, DVDs, and CD-ROMs and provide free internet access and educational materials. Operated as partnerships, the U.S. provides equipment and materials while host institutions provide staffing and the free use of space.

The second American Corner in Hungary opened in the city of Veszprém on July 8, 2005. The Corner is located at the “Eötvös Károly Megyei Könyvtár” (Eötvös Károly County Library) a library that accommodates the needs of 200,000 visitors annually. The Corner is a joint effort by the U.S. Embassy in Budapest, and the local and county governments of Veszprém. Visit the Corner’s web site: www.veszprem.americancorner.hu

Female Officer Defends Honor Against Male Officers on ‘Love Boat’, CGC Rush, Balboni vs. USCG

Good article about the most significant court case concerning a female officer supposedly having an affair with a subordinate on the Rush…I was happy when I got my Retiree magazine this month and saw she retired as a Captain…I was stationed with her after this incident and they were still messing with her…before she reported aboard, word had already leaked out about her situation…the scuttlebutt was humming along with all types of stories, none flattering about her…I found her to be very professional and truly down to earth…she just wanted a chance to prove herself in a man’s world…Thanks must go out to retired Judge London Steverson since he represented her and the gentlemen she was alleged to have had an affair with…reading the prosecutors remarks was chilling, he had no compassion, respect and definitely no business in a court room. This case was back in the 80s, how far have the Coast Guard has come when you talk about treatment of our ladies in uniform.

Balboni news article

Also available at : “Coast Guard Captain tells Court of steamy sex at sea“

An American Tragedy, The Webster Smith Case Was a Coast Guard Tragedy.

The Webster Smith Story is an American tragedy.  It is not just the story of a Black Coast Guard Academy cadet; it is the story of an American family. It is the story of his mother, Belinda; and his father, Cleon; his wife, Lindsey and their daughter; and of his sister and brothers. It is the story of the friends of Webster Smith. They have all been harmed by the violence directed at their son, brother, husband, father and friend.

At the Coast Guard Academy, Webster Smith was a member of the Eclipse, Track Team, Football team, Regimental Staff, and a Swab summer Staff. He represented the Coast Guard in Washington DC concerning fitness and nutrition programs. He received numerous silver stars and never received a demerit prior the incident and investigation in 2005 that led to his court-martial.

To his classmates, teachers, and coaches Webster Smith appeared to be a magnetic, charming and gifted man, who had risen above his circumstances. Yet, in a moment, as if in the twinkling of an eye, a swift series of events diminished his popularity, vilified his name, and assailed his honor. His image was converted by senior Coast Guard officers from a popular athlete and nice guy to that of a sexual predator and public enemy number one at the Coast Guard Academy.

 

Webster Smith had dared to dream some big dreams. Like Alex Haley he had dared to believe that he could rise in the USCG to the highest level to which his talents and initiative could take him.

 

His parents were middle class African Americans. His father, Cleon Smith, was a graduate of the Coast Guard Academy in the Class of 1978 along with Vice Admiral Manson K. Brown.

 

His mother, Belinda Ingram Smith, believed in God and a good education. After finishing college she went on to become the first Black female Crime Scene Investigator (CSI) in the history of the Winston-Salem police Department.

This unbelievable turn about in what had been a Black success story is a singularly American tragedy.

That a cadet so deeply respected and loved by his coaches and classmates could evoke such an outpouring of hate and anger from the senior officers at the Coast Guard Academy is a Coast Guard tragedy and an American tragedy.

All of the female cadets involved with and associated with Webster Smith escaped clean without any consequences for their actions or their behavior. Mother Nature was the only one who exacted a penalty. Natural Law resulted in a pregnancy for his girlfriend. An abortion followed.

If women are equal, they should be treated as equal. Not a single woman was disciplined under the UCMJ or the cadet regulations. All of the female cadets involved in the Webster Smith case graduated and were commissioned as Coast Guard officers. Their testimony at the court-martial painted a picture of female cadets who were untrustworthy, arrogant, and certainly not ladies. Their conduct was unbecoming an officer and a lady. (Read more at www.judgelondonsteverson.com)

These women were witnesses at a public trial yet they were accorded the equivalent of rape shield protection. This was not a rape case. Not one of the women had been raped. There was testimony of consensual sex acts. Some of the consensual sex acts were unlawful because, among other things, they occurred in Chase Hall, or at Academy functions. How could unlawful consensual sex acts result in charges against only one of the participants? It takes two to tango.

 

Is it wrong for Black people to ask if there is a double standard? Would that amount to paranoia on the part of Black people? Or would that be considered playing the race card simply to inquire? Is it absurd to believe that anything more than pure chance resulted in the court-martial of Webster Smith? The fact that he was court-martialed speaks to a social reality that African-Americans are acutely aware of in America. Race is not a card to be dealt, but it determines whom the dealer is and who gets dealt a losing hand.

 

According to a 2008 General Accounting Office Report, from 2003 to 2006 there were NO sexual-harassment complaints at the Coast Guard Academy, but there were 12 incidents of sexual assault reported to the Coast Guard Investigative Service(CGIS), with one incident in 2003, one in 2004, “NONE” in 2005 and 10 in 2006. It is hard to conceive of the facts relied upon by, Captain Douglas Wisniewski, the Commandant Of Cadets when he asserted  in 2005 that there was a climate of fear of sexual assault in Chase Hall.The 10 incidents reported in 2006 would appear to have occurred after the Webster Smith court-martial. Webster Smith was removed from Chase Hall in 2005. Who was doing all of the sexual assaulting in 2006? Why were none of these people brought to justice? They could have been tried along with Webster Smith.

 

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal of Webster Smith. The justices declined to hear the case without comment. The decision of the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) became the final decision in the case.

 

Thirteen female cadets and 11 males at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy (CGA) reported anonymously in an April 2008 survey that they experienced “unwanted sexual contact,” ranging from touching to forced sexual acts, during the 2007-08 school year. More than three-quarters said that alcohol or drugs were involved and that the offender was a fellow cadet.
None of the women sought professional help and only 7 percent discussed the incident with authorities.

 

When Alexander Hamilton organized the Revenue Cutter Service in 1790 it was established in the Department of the Treasury. Later it became known as the Coast Guard. In 1966 it was placed in the Department of Transportation. Today it is the nucleus of the Department of Homeland Security. Webster Smith’s case is currently being reviewed for clemency by the Secretary of the Department of Home Land Security, Janet Napolitano.

Webster Smith would have made an excellent military officer. It is Webster Smith and people like him that I want on the wall as our last line of defense for our American way of life protecting us from the great unwashed horde that is coming. Secretary Napolitano who do you want on that wall?

(Read more at www.judgelondonsteverson.com)

Supreme Court Refuses To Hear Webster Smith’s Appeal.

The Webster Smith case was a litmus test for justice in America. Every once in a while a case comes along that puts our humanity as a people, and as Americans on trial. Everything that we profess to stand for as Americans was on trial. Our sense of Justice in America and particularly in the U. S. Military was on trial. This was no ordinary trial. Our humanity was on trial. Our system of justice was on trial. This case dissolved the deceptive façade and exposed certain moral deficiencies in our system of justice.

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal of the conviction of Webster Smith, the only Coast Guard Academy cadet ever court-martialed.

Smith’s conviction in 2006 on extortion, sodomy and indecent-assault charges – while he was acquitted on a rape count – had previously been upheld by the Coast Guard Court of Criminal Appeals and, in March, by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

Smith had sought a Supreme Court review based largely on the argument that he had not been able to question the credibility of one of his accusers, known only as Cadet SR.

The right to confront one’s accusers is guaranteed under the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. But the Armed Forces appeals court, in a 3-2 vote, ruled that judges have the discretion to bar testimony so long as the issue involved is not deemed necessary to the case. (Footnote 1.)

“Further cross-examination of Cadet SR was not ‘constitutionally required,’ ” according to the appeals court decision. “It was neither material nor vital.”

Smith’s attorneys wanted a chance to question the female cadet because, according to a legal brief, she had lied about the consensual nature of a previous sexual encounter with an enlisted man, contrary to Coast Guard rules and possibly jeopardizing her military career. The female cadet claimed Smith used knowledge of her previous dalliance to extort sexual favors from her.

“The defense maintained that the two cadets’ sexual encounter was consensual and that SR was fabricating her accusations because the encounter occurred in Chase Hall, the Academy dormitory, where sexual activity is prohibited by cadet regulations,” according to a brief in the case.

The court’s minority, including Chief Judge C.J. Effron, agreed that Smith’s attorneys should have been allowed to question the female cadet. In a dissenting opinion, they said Smith’s “allegation that SR had previously lied about a sexual encounter” was relevant to the case.

Last month the Supreme Court rejected Smith’s petition seeking a hearing on the case, effectively making the military appeals court’s decision final.

The case had racial overtones because Smith, who is black, claimed his treatment was harsher than previously meted out to whites at the Coast Guard Academy accused of sexual impropriety. The Department of Homeland Security investigated the allegations in 2007 and denied the complaint.

“Many Supreme Court experts thought the high court might take Smith’s case, but the justices declined the case without comment,” according to the Law And Order blog found at http://lawandorderroybean.blogspot.com.

Efforts to speak with Smith and attorneys on both sides of the case were unsuccessful Monday. Smith, a former Coast Guard football star now living in Houston with his wife and daughter, spent nearly five months in a military prison after receiving a six-month sentence.

Coast Guard spokeswoman Lisa Novak said Monday that Smith’s case is currently in the process of residual clemency, which will allow him to submit additional information before a review of his sentence by Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano.

Novak said Smith also has the right to seek a new trial before the Coast Guard appeals court, if he submits newly discovered evidence, and could also have his record cleared with a presidential pardon. According to Texas law, he will have to register as a sex offender, the National Law Journal reported.

The Smith case resulted in changes at the Coast Guard Academy, which formed a task force after the trial to look into the atmosphere on campus. The report cited a strong association between alcohol abuse and sexual assault as well as a mistrust of the Coast Guard Academy’s leadership among minorities.

Captain  Judith Keene, the first female Commandant of Cadets at the Coast Guard Academy (CGA) pledged a tough stance against campus sexual violence in July 2006 following the court-martial in which cadets testified that such issues were not taken seriously.

A subsequent study by the Government Accountability Office, issued in 2008 after a series of revelations about sexual misconduct at U.S. military academies, said the Coast Guard should be required to report on efforts to stem the tide of sexual assault and harassment cases.

Keene, who was among the first women to graduate from the academy, took over as the military equivalent of the dean of students at CGA. She replaced Captain Douglas Wisniewski, who left for a position at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C..

The Coast Guard Academy will have the first woman superintendent of a military service academy at the helm of the U.S. C. G. A. when classes convene in the summer of 2011. The commandant of the Coast Guard, Adm. Bob Papp, has selected Rear Adm. Sandra L. Stosz, Coast Guard director of reserve and leadership, for the superintendent position. Rear Admiral Stosz graduated from CGA  in 1982 with a bachelor of science degree in Government.

The GAO noted the Coast Guard Academy was the only U.S. military school not required to report to Congress on sexual-misconduct cases.

l.howard@theday.com

 The Day.

Published 12/28/2010 12:00 AM.

Footnote 1.

U.S. Constitution: Sixth Amendment
Sixth Amendment – Rights of Accused in Criminal Prosecutions

Amendment Text |
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense.

Footnote 2.

Article 133. Conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman:
Any commissioned officer, cadet, or midshipman who is convicted of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman shall be punished as a court-martial may direct. (10 USC Sec. 933)