Irony: /'aI.r .ni/, noun - particularly striking examples of incongruities observed in everyday life between what was intended or said and what actually happened:

A powerful federal arts commission is urging that the sculpture of Martin Luther King Jr. proposed for a memorial on the Tidal Basin be reworked because it is too "confrontational" and reminiscent of political art in totalitarian states.

The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts thinks "the colossal scale and Social Realist style of the proposed statue recalls a genre of political sculpture that has recently been pulled down in other countries," commission secretary Thomas Luebke said in a letter in April.

Hillary and David Duke would be so proud.  I especially love the not-so-subtle comparison between MLK and Sadaam Hussein. 

The commission at least seems to tacitly admit the "Social Realism" behind the design itself.  Fact is, the establishment was never (nor are they today) comfortable with the man that Dr. Martin Luther King actually was.  Instead, they like to repackage him in kinder, gentler terms.  But let's be clear about this - Dr.  King was a fighter - his weapon was non-violence - the sword that heals - but it was a weapon nonetheless - and infinitely more effective in its coercive force than Thor's Hammer itself.

This is a man who shed blood - actual blood - fighting for a just and equal society.  He lost literally everything in the process.  And while he made great strides, a half-century later, a prominent and respected women running for president of the United States still feels comfortable enough to publicly extol her supreme whiteness over her opponent. 

Despite the Clinton's blatant race-baiting, I've no doubt that Dr. King would have continued to love us, love this country, and continue his campaign for universal justice.  But you better believe he'd be stoic, firm, and yes - mad as hell. 

A few years back, I had the pleasure of working closely with a few of Dr. King's chief strategists who have continued down the path he set even today.  I seem to recall one of the mentioning the importance of keeping the history real.  Without such efforts, they quip, fifty years from now Martin Luther King will be a white man.

Or if the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts has their say, something a little more like this: