Peace On That

Lessons of the Election

2009-11-04T08:42:00.000-08:00

The pundits and ideologist will tell you that there were some profound messages sent to politicians as it relates to the elections results in New Jersey and Virginia governor races. They’ll look at the NY-23 race and highlight the significance of the race and what it means for the Congressional races of 2010.

Many of them will be right on some levels but mostly they will not give you the gist of what really took place and what it means. I am no political insider or historian but I’ve followed politics long enough to know that what seems complicated to the media and politicians are very simple to the voters.

And that is my perspective on this. What the voters said and what politicians can learn from it.

All Politics are local: Never forget this. The three major elections may very well have some national implications but they are first and foremost local races. In Virginia, it was a rematch of Deeds and McDowell. McDowell, the conservative, ran a basic campaign and discussed the issues facing the people of Virginia. Deeds, conversely, talked about a paper McDowell wrote almost two decades ago. That didn’t work in the Presidential race and it certainly won’t work in a race for governor.

The New Jersey race came down to Gov. Corzine’s record. Taxes, jobs, corruption was the meme of that race and Corzine was behind the eight ball on all three. Christy ran a poor campaign but when the incumbent has no accomplishments to point out, he’s in for a long election night.

In the NY-23rd race is now the poster child for this lesson. The Conservative Party candidate, backed by a lot of big-named Conservatives did an interview where it was clear he had no idea of the issues that matter to the people in that district. Dick Army, a GOP operative then went on to say that those issue were parochial. That was a major misstep. Those issues matter. People will first care if the trash is being collected and that the garbage is being removed well before they care about making a statement about the President’s agenda. Any mayor worth his salt would tell you the same.

It’s Not About Obama… It is about Obama: It sounds crazy but both sides have a point. Although the races came down to local issues, there is a mood in this country that the Democrats are overreaching and people are anxious. That sentiment is ignored at the peril of the Democrat Party. The Democrats now have a year to SHOW that their policies will indeed make America a better place. History is not on their side. More often than not, the Party in power loses seats in midterm elections and 2010 should be no different. How many seats are lost is up the strength of the candidate and the economy as a whole. As an outsider it is possible to run on rhetoric. As an incumbent, you must run on accomplishments.
Conservatism is not dead: Karl Rove made the grave mistake of making remarks about a permanent majority for the GOP. The same holds true for Democrats. Conservatism is a main staple of American politics. Its issue is not that people no longer believed in it, it’s just that when those who touted it as their basis for governing didn’t abide by its principles once in power. Neo-Cons are gone (for now, but they’ll be back). Conservatism is not like being a Libertarian where it sounds good but no one believes you could actually govern a country in that fashion. It is possible to run the government using Conservative principles. So they’ll always be around and Liberals would be better served if we listened to them.

Tea baggers and Shill Conservatism equals loss: Forty percent of Americans identify themselves as “conservative”. But a very small segment of that 40 percent would say they believe Obama is not American, the Liberals are the enemy of America or that Creationism and Evolution should have equal standing in a science class. Yes, the Glenn Becks and Rush Limbaugh’s of the world can draw ratings but remember, even with their ratings, these individuals are have a daily listening audience of maybe three percent of the American populous. The two GOP candidates in New Jersey and Virginia didn’t win by screaming socialism and Marxism. Note how Sarah Palin campaigned for neither and both won but the candidate she publicly supported, lost in the NY-23rd. There is a way back for Republicans but it’s not through a tea bagging revolt rally.

There are not coattails in midterm elections: A President can help lose a lot of seats during the mid-term elections but he can’t win many. Democrats must realize that the enthusiastic electorate of an historical campaign run cannot be duplicated for Congressmen and governors. Pundits are asking where were all of the young people and minorities that voted during the election. They were at home not giving a damn about the choices on the ticket. It is up to the candidate to generate the enthusiasm. You must give people a reason to come out and support you. The opposition has built-in enthusiasm. Not the case for an incumbent.

There is nothing scientific about any of this. Once you remove your partisan goggles, it is clear what the way forward is for both parties.

Test Site

2009-11-02T10:35:00.000-08:00

this test

Friday’s List-O-Rama: What the boss is really saying

2009-08-28T09:24:00.000-07:00

Corporate communication is an art form that takes several years to master. As one who has sat through many meetings and fireside chats, I am well aware of the underline meaning of management lingo. For those of you just entering the workforce, this is my quick guide to the lexicon of Corporate America and by extension, a graduate level education for managers who are not well versed in the art of dealing with the peasants.

So here are 15 sayings in Corporate America and what they really mean.

1. Let’s think out of the box: To date, all of your ideas suck and we are still hemorrhaging money like a drunken sailor in a whore house.

2. I’m looking for your to knock the ball outta the park: Just because I pay you peanuts does not mean I don’t expect you to work like I’m paying you as though you were making my salary. So STFU and give me more.

3. The ball is in your court – STFU and do your job.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE LIST

John Stewart At His Best

2009-03-05T07:55:00.001-08:00

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

CNBC Gives Financial Advice

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

Michael Steele Running Into Problems

2009-03-04T10:50:00.000-08:00

This is what I wrote the day after Michael Steele was elected the head of the RNC

I’m not surprised that Michael Steele was elected head of the RNC. The GOP needs to re-brand itself into a contemporary Party. I think he’s going to have a hard time expanding the Party considering that the core of the Republican Party doesn’t believe in its moderates. He’ll have to figure out how to make himself and not Rush Limbaugh the voice of the Party. That will not be easy. READ POST

I’m almost amazed as to how right I was about this. There is wind that GOPers are not happy with Mr. Steele as evident reading this:

"I think it's been a disaster of a first month," a Republican insider tells the DC Examiner. "He needs to disappear for 60 days, go and staff the building, put his personal energy into making sure he has the people he wants, and go from there.
That's what people are hoping he will do."
"It's not good," says another. "People feel that it's been very erratic at a time when we really need some sort of stabilizing force."
So far, Steele has responded with defiance. In an interview with Politico, he dismissed GOP critics as "nervous Nellies." SOURCE

It is too early to count Steele out but the clock is now ticking. I assume that after this week we will see less of Steele for a few months. My guess is that he’d much rather be out front waxing memes with the media rather be behind the scenes doing the grunt work of building an organization. He probably thought his face alone was enough but he’d better learn to balance both roles better real soon because if the GOP does not make significant gains in 2010, Michael Steele is gone.

To All My Blogging Friends

2009-02-26T11:40:00.001-08:00

I've been working on a new blog call All World Crew. The site is live now but I won't start pushing it until Sunday. What I am asking from you guys is that you put a link for that blog on your blog. It will help me start generating some traffic. I'll return the favor of course!!!

I just your help pushing this blog. I'll still do this blog as I need an outlet to talk crap. But for the most part, I'll be working on the sports blog. Thanks in advance.

Drop me a comment over there when you check it and let me know what you think.
James

Stranger Danger Jindal

2009-02-25T07:44:00.000-08:00

I have never witnessed a meteor burn as it enters the earth’s atmosphere. Just this past week scientist saw a gamma blast that is 9000 times more powerful than a supernova. That must have been some site. For average folk like me, last night afforded us the greatest opportunity to witness a cosmic explosion up-close and personal as the rising star called Bobby Jindal 2012 flailed and came crashing to earth in spectacular form.

Given the thankless task of what many consider one of President Obama’s finest speeches, Gov. Jindal lurched into our homes like mad scientist ready to explain how he has created a machine that could destroy the world and would use it if we did not submit to his rule. He then rambled on about soup cans, store aisle and how American can do anything in a tone that generally used by strangers dangling candy to children when trying to lure them into the car.

Once Gov. Stranger Danger Jindal got into the “substance” of his speech (and I use that term as loosely as one possibly could) he must have thought he was talking to a nation full of 4-year-olds. The melodic, folksy, southern drawl with a hint of Pashto further highlighted the creepiness of the address and mercifully ended with me thinking that I just finished watching a perverted episode of Romper Room.

Between Caribou Barbie and Stranger Danger Jindal, the GOP is poised for a character filled primary. The only thing that will come from SDJ’s “response” (and I have to use that term looser than a French whore) is that people will sit down with their children today and use the footage as an example of creepy people to stay away from.

Black Community Reaction to Stimulus Package

2009-02-23T13:51:00.000-08:00

I am going to discuss this topic on my upcoming show but I wanted to get a sense of what you guys had to say. Let me set it up. I've been listening to WVON and hearing complaints about how the stimulus package does not address the specific needs of the black community. There is rumbling that putting so much money towards infrastructure does not create jobs for black people because we are not in that industry in great numbers. A lot of black people are in the service industry and that is where Barak Obama should have targeted stimulus in order to help our community.

I also want to tie this discussion in with a previous discussion about spending money in the black community. The theory of having money circulate in our community to create economic development is nothing new and there is ample evidence that the "multiplier effect" is sound economic policy.

But the question I have is are we thinking too small when it comes to economic development? While it would be nice to do all of my shopping with African Americans, it is also true that globalization means that a lot of businesses have to compete in a highly competitive arena. So rather than holler about what money is not coming in, we should look at where the economic activity is taking place and look to get a part of the pie.

For instance, Youngstown Ohio created an incubator project for high tech companies after losing its manufacturing base. The incubator has created several profitable companies with more growing because of the collaborative nature of the system.

Then there is the pastor, Van Jones, in Oakland, CA who received grants to train low-income people on green-construction jobs and organic foods. (Read More)

Both are innovative approaches to creating jobs and economic development and they are in areas where this administration is making its biggest investment. So while I hear complaints about what we are not getting, I'm not seeing any innovating thinking as to what we ought to be doing.

The Urban League has a few good programs but what of the small black owned businesses in Chicago taking charge. Do we have incubator projects initiated by the private sector? Is the city of Chicago or black tech businesses in particular thinking of the next generation of products that will come from nanotechnology?

Again, I ask all of this because I believe our politicians think incrementally when the times call for bold initiatives. I will read you comments on the show and I look forward to a robust discussion.

T.I. Spoof - Obama, Whatever You Like

2009-02-17T17:50:00.000-08:00

Entertainment News: Suge Knight - Transformers - Jayson Williams Pisses in Sink

2009-02-17T06:46:00.000-08:00

It seems that Suge Knight is losing is mojo. For the longest time, he was the beast of hip hop. I remember when Death Row Records ruled hip hop? Now it seems that Suge spends more time on his back than he does in the office.

The man responsible for putting Suge Knight in hospital over the weekend is not Akon's manager.

Reports surfaced earlier today (February 15) that Knight ended up in hospital last night after brawling with Robert Carnes Jr. at an Akon hosted party at the W Hotel in Arizona.

Police who arrived at the scene witnessed Carnes Jr. hit Knight twice in the head and had to taser both men to end the brawl.

According to TMZ, Knight fractured several bones in his face and has been discharged from the local hospital where he received treatment.

Carnes Jr. told police that he was Akon's business manager but the singer's publicist released a statement to TMZ denying Carnes Jr's claims.

"He is not Akon's business manager, David Bolno is," said Akon's publicist.

Carnes Jr. is still in custody and has been charged with one count of felony aggravated assault.

This marks the second time in nine months that Knight has ended up in hospital due to a brawl. Last year the mogul was knocked out cold at a Los Angeles nightspot after getting to brawl with a local barber.

Akon had left the party when the altercation occured.
Source

In case you don't remember. Here is Suge Knight getting knocked out at another party. Maybe the dude should just stay at home:

Jason Williams:

Remember when Jayson Williams killed his limo driver playing around with a loaded gun. I always thought the guy was a little off and it seems that his divorce proceedings will reveal even more nuttiness:

The has-been hoopster who's still facing criminal charges in the death of a limo driver was sued Friday by his wife, who says the former Phoenix Suns No. 1 draft pick liked to go No. 1 in a sink.

Tanya Young Williams filed divorce papers in Manhattan Supreme Court in which she accuses the ex-Nets star of faking stomach cancer and suicide, and of threatening to kill her. Source

I've heard of taking a leak while in the pool (which is nasty), but how does one regard pissing in the sink? The same sink you fill to wash your face.

A Friday Funny - How Officer Ricky Got Signed

2009-02-13T07:26:00.000-08:00

This is from 50 Cents' new website thisis50.com

Friday's Top Ten: 10 Worst Rappers

2009-02-12T10:30:00.000-08:00

UPDATE (FEB 2009): This post was first made back in 2005 and since then my opinion has changed quite a bit. Most notably my take on Lil Wayne. In 2005, I thought he was the worst rapper of all time but he has proven to me that he does not belong on this list. So, replacing Lil Wayne as the worst rapper is Vanilla Ice. Lloyd Banks also has been removed from this list and in his place we have Tony Yayo (this after hearing more of his music and crying like a bitch to 50). The jury is still out for Mike Jones so he will make the honorable mention roll until I have time to suffer through more evidence.

I'm going to present a new list of Top 10 every Friday. There are a lot of bad rappers out there but I purged my memory of MC's and I think most of the people I mention would fall on any rap fan's list of worst rappers. But if they didn't, I don't give a damn because to me... these cats suck to the highest of sucktivity.

Top Ten: 10 Worst Rappers of All-Time

1.(3) Vanilla Ice – Hell, everything that needs to be said has already been said about this cat.
2.(-) Tony Yayo – It's bad enough he can't rap. But not being able to rap plus not having the good sense not to kill the goose that lay the golden egg is a crime. Crying over how bad he f---ed up is what got him to number two.
3. (5) Chingy – Marketing is a hell of an art. That is the only reason Chingy sold anything. Luda hooked him up. But they say never kill the goose that lays the golden eggs. Chingy didn’t learn that and for that, he has been exposed as the wack rapper he always was. Moved up the chart after hearing one of his songs on Youtube. The more I experience him, the worse he gets.
4.(-) Marky Mark - I had completely forgotten about this rapper until I say that pile of human feces he called a Max Payne. It's an appropriate title for a movie that gave me heart burn. All this movie did was remind me of just how bad of a rapper he once was.
4.(3) Lil Romeo – Ok, pops put you on the scene but you are garbage. Maybe one day you’ll grow into a respectable rapper. But right now, you suck.
5(4). E40 – The worst the west coast has ever produced (and the west has produced a lot of bad rappers). His voice is annoying and his style is… is… hell, what style? I can’t even think of one good record that I’ve ever heard from him. When I hear one of his songs or see him on TV, I just automatically say, "nigga please" and reach to tune him out.
6. Lil John – God, I can not stand this dude. How the hell did he get a record deal. His most famous line is.. Whhhaaaat!!! I challenge someone to come up with one verse the brother has recited that made you go 'damn, that was tight'. You can't because all that comes to mind with Whhhaaaaat. And the top five rappers should be ashamed of themselves that they rank higher than this bastard. Lets face it, if you have a 'Lil' in front of your name - you suck.
7. Jermaine Dupri – I give the man props on his business skills. But he still sucks as a rapper.
8. Coolio – If it wasn’t’ for the hair and the Lakeside beat, we would have never known you.
10. Young MC – This man represents everything that went wrong when white folks started liking rap. From young MC came rap in television commercials and news anchors ending the telecast saying ‘bust the move.’ He should be number 1 except the (9) rappers before him are just too inept not be where they are. Young MC single-handly brought about the demise of rap as an urban genre. I hope you are happy with yourself.

I have to do a Honorable Mention because I just want to communicate to the following rappers that I have not overlooked the fact that as rappers, ya'll suck as well.

Honorable Mentions: (Mike Jones), Nelly, Tone Loce, DJ Quick, Luke, Mase, Lil Flip, Charlie Baltimore

Entertainment Rumors and Beef

2009-02-11T07:12:00.000-08:00

Here is the lastest that I read on AllHipHop.com

According to unverified sources, Rihanna and Chris Brown broke up two weeks ago. Rihanna didn't want to break up with Chris, but he was reportedly done with her. Management forced him to act "lovey" for the Clive Davis' pre-Grammy party. He didn't want to. Rihanna's publicist, in confidence, asked him to the same. He agreed. They attended the Clive Davis party together. Management allegedly asked for Chris to drive with Rihanna in his car after the event was over for paparazzi pictures.

According to my sources, Rihanna started acting like they were in a relationship still, not realizing that it was indeed completely over. Chris told her he wasn't really with her, it was for publicity and that she needed to get it through her head that it was over. Adding insult to injury - like my previous source said - Chris picked up a girl he had a date with that night WHILE Rihanna was in the car. So, the girl was in the car like a third WHEEL.

It would appear that Chris has completely moved on from Rihanna from this new girl. My source tells me that Chris was actually acting very childish for doing his in front of Rihanna. Suddenly, Rihanna snapped and that's the situation got crazy, my sources say. Rihanna allegedly punched Chris in the face while she was screaming, and then he hit started hitting her back. Noticing there was blood, somebody called 911 and my sources say "the girl" is the one that made that call.

Here is my take. As I posted yesterday, Chris Brown has seen domestic violence in his personal life. Understand, when you are continually exposed to something as a child, it becomes a part of you. It may manifest in different ways, positive or negative, but that experience becomes a part of your DNA. So, if the story is true and Rhianna started dropping handles on CB, his reaction may not be the same as a dude who grew up in a home where he didn't see his old man going upside his moms head.

So when Rhianna started landing haymakers, instead of putting her in a chokehold, as I am apt to do - he starts treating the sister like a punching bag. And you know it's bad when the new chick calls the police. This is all conjecture on my part because we don't really know what happens. But... as it stands now, CB has some problems but at the same time, trying to get a pissed off Caribbean chick off you is a daunting task and a karate chop to the back of the throat may be you only recourse. And as Chris Rock said, Not that condone it... but I understand.

Here are some additional links and it doesn't look good for CB at all:

Rihanna's Injuries -- "Horrific"

Chris Brown & Beef

2009-02-10T08:08:00.000-08:00

There are a lot of words going around regarding this story, but Chris Brown would be wise to recall his own words.

Another Quick Thought Monday

2009-02-09T07:09:00.000-08:00

I've been off the blogs for a minute trying to get my business started, but there are some things that happened the past week that interest me.

First, the Grammy Awards was pretty good. I was impressed with the collaborative performances. TI and Justin Timberlake, Lil Wayne and Robin Thicke, and the Stevie Wonder with the Jonas Brothers. It is the only award show that I would be interested in seeing live. And props to Jennifer Hudson. She is such a beautiful woman. Oh, and Cold Play is my favorite rock group.

Second thought. Why do they even bother with the Pro Bowl game? I watch for about 45 seconds then grew board of the entire ordeal and turned back to HGTV.

Well that's it. Back to the hustle.

Monday Quick Thoughs

2009-02-02T07:31:00.001-08:00

Super Bowl

The Super Bowl game was much better than I anticipated and I did find myself pulling for the underdog at times. However, I think the better team won and as a Steelers fan, I’m happy about it. It is funny how the past two weeks sports writers talked about the Arizona receivers and a Pittsburgh receiver gets the game MVP.

As much as I love the Bears, I must admit that the Steelers are the best ran pro football organization in the league. They are always competitive and never stray far from their core identity.

Michael Steele

I’m not surprised that Michael Steele was elected head of the RNC. The GOP needs to re-brand itself into a contemporary Party. I think he’s going to have a hard time expanding the Party considering that the core of the Republican Party doesn’t believe in its moderates. He’ll have to figure out how to make himself and not Rush Limbaugh the voice of the Party. That will not be easy.

Stimulus Bill

I think Obama may have dropped the ball on this. He let the House Democrats put forth a bill that included a lot of stuff that has nothing to do with stimulating job growth. Most members in the House (Republican and Democrat) are tone deaf when it comes to politics and its hard to expect much from them. There are some things that are good for the long-term that should be there but about $100 billion is crap.

Something needs to get done and hopefully the Senate will get things in order but I think politics is going to ruin the bill. I do respect Obama for reaching out to Republicans and he must continue to do so because it will be easy to fall into partisan politics. He should leave that up to the media and bloggers and remain open to all ideas.

FDA: DON'T TRUST, JUST VERIFY

2009-01-29T07:46:00.000-08:00

I just read an article in Fast Company about the story behind bisphenaol A (BPA), and how the chemical industry manipulates the data to ensure its continued use. According to the article, BPA is found in almost everything from CD’s and DVD’s, to cell phones, eyeglasses and drinking bottles. It’s also used in infant-formula cans and clear plastic baby bottles. Numerous studies have shown that when heated, the chemical can latch onto to food and liquids.

BPA in the body acts as a synthetic form of estrogen, which can cause infertility or cancer. Most of the studies stating that BPA is safe come from industry sponsored research. But there are studies from consumer groups and institutional research that come to a different conclusion but the FDA relies heavily on the research provided by the industry. Additionally, there are organizations such as The Weinberg Group that specialize in defending companies that produce dangerous chemicals and the “PR problem” that comes with it. The defended the use of fen-phen and ephedra in such a way that it took ten years to finally pull the drugs from the market.

I believe everyone should read this article but it will not only educate you on the chemical but it really shines a light on how inadequate the FDA is in protecting us and how little corporations care about the safety of the American consumer.

This is even more evident with the recent salmonella outbreak that we now know was caused by tainted peanut butter. Think about that for a moment. TAINTED PEANUT BUTTER. People are being killed by the Keebler Elf. And I do say killed because it has come to light that a company’s own test identified the contamination but instead of pulling the product, they shopped for a negative result. This shopping occurs time and time again and it is the public that pays the tab.

The response from the FDA and the Georgia Department of Agriculture is that they relied upon the test provided by the company. Should we not be concerned about this process? We relied upon the banks to regulate themselves and look where that got us. We have companies knowingly producing hazardous products but because of financial concerns, they place the public at risk. Now because of the criminal acts of a peanut butter manufacturer, eight people are dead and over 500 have been sickened by their product.

Where is the outrage? I realize that this is a complicated issue and not at all sexy. But seriously, the media spent a week discussing a “lipstick on a pig” comment by Barak Obama. Certainly our safety deserves more attention than that.

Until the FDA steps up to the plate and the chemical industry comes clean, the best thing to do is purchase glass baby bottle and you can go to Amazon.com BPA-Free product listing: Also, be very cautious of anything you read in the Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology journal as they are sponsored by the same people that tried to convince you that fen-phen was a safe product.

The Criminal Minded of Stereotypical Absurdity

2009-01-27T08:47:00.000-08:00

There was a time when you could listen to a news report and right away know the race of the victim or perpetrator of the report simply based on the description of the incident. I must admit, I just knew the DC sniper was some pissed off white boy from Kentucky. It has gotten to the point that you can’t put anything past any race. We now have ample evidence that black folks are just as sick, demented and crazy as our white brethren.

However, full integration has to taken place in one area when it comes to black people: and that is being killed by exotic animals. Oh, we’ll get mauled by a pit bull and I’ve known a few to be killed after hitting a deer. But the brunt of this absurdity still rest with non-African Americans. Let’s take for example: getting killed by a tiger. The circumstances under which one is killed by a tiger will determine if it is indeed tragedy or comedic relief for the rest of us.

If you go on a safari and happen to end up in the belly of a tiger, that is a tragedy. If you are a zoo keeper and get mauled by a tiger, we could consider that a tragedy as well. However, if you are eaten by a tiger that is in a zoo and your entrance into said zoo was through the turnstile, then we have every right to laugh at your dumb ass. Oh, the laughs continue when you are then caught shoplifting a Wii after seeing your buddy mauled by aforementioned tiger. So until some dudes named Mookie and Raheem get themselves killed trying to retrieve the blunt they dropped in the tiger pit, I’m reserving meeting ones maker by the teeth of a caged carnivorous animal to those outside of the African American community.

Now, as I’ve stated before, black folk have proven themselves very adept in getting into situation where there are no reasonable explanations for the level of dumbness that is before us. The DC sniper was act of terrorism and although I do not believe in the death penalty, if we are going to have the law on the books, he is one that is deserving of such a fate. But that’s a sick crime not a dumb one.

Dumb crimes, which I believe dwell primarily in world of black folk can be seen in all of its glory with the likes of OJ Simpson and Congressman Jefferson. You see, only a black man could get away with murdering two white people then get sent to prison for attempting to steal a picture that was stolen from him of woman he murdered. The irony is not lost on anyone and I believe God not only want to punish him, but give all of us something to laugh about in the process. Yes, white folks get their comeuppance (Bernie Madoff comes to mind) but never in such comedic form.

We can say the same for Congressman Jefferson. What makes this so uniquely black is not the bribery, or that he hid the money, or even that he hid it in his freezer. What makes this so black is that he actually tried to explain away the money in the freezer. Only a black man would do that: “You see officer, it’s not what it looks like. There’s a perfectly good explanation why I got $90,000 in the freezer.” I could go on with this joke but we all know anything that follows would be absurd no matter how plausible is sounded.

As one of those that believe in equal opportunity and diversity, I’m still holding on to some of these stereotypes. I’m sure one day black people will get mauled by lions at Brookfield Zoo and some black Warren Buffet type will end up in jail for stealing $50 billion. Then those jokes will fade away. After all, there was a time when discussing a black president would garner hysterical laughter. Go figure.

It's Not All Black and White

2009-01-26T11:33:00.000-08:00

The thing about blogging is that most bloggers are not very comfortable with ambiguity. I read the blogs of conservatives and liberals and most people will not even entertain the idea that their opinion may not encompass all of the parameters to a particular situation. This is very true with it comes to the hot button issues: abortion, gay marriage, torture, tax cuts and so on and so on.

Abortion: This past week was the something anniversary (I won’t even bother to get the exact number…look it up) of Roe v Wade and of course there was a little brouhaha from both sides. The question that no one ever answers is what would happen if we overturned RvW? “Let the states decides…” yeah I get that part but what happens if a state bans abortion? Would it become a criminal act? Who gets charged, the doctor, the woman or both? Would the charge be murder? Would the law apply even if the woman gets an abortion in a state where it is legal?

Gay Marriage: A gay couple can purchase a house together. They can draw up legal documents protecting joint assets. If fact of the 1600 laws that govern marriage, a gay couple is not banned from creating a legal binding contract that encompasses most of those laws… as long as they don’t call it marriage. That’s like saying I can use all of the ingredients needed for a salad as long as I don’t call the final a salad.

This is what our collective civil discourse has become. Polar stances, black and white with gray being treated as the red-headed stepchild. There are very few who are willing to quiver about their opinion for fear of not being seen as principled.

Well, the world is complicated and I think we should be wary of the simple suggestions to solve complicated situations. Because if the answers were so simple I think we would have resolved a lot of these issues a long time ago.

Friday's Listings

2009-01-23T08:11:00.000-08:00

The Inauguration not only ushered in a new era of American governance, but marked the death of some things important and not-so important.

1. Twelve strait hours of news coverage: Do we really need a play-by-play of every little thing that happens? Why do I need to know who made the socks the Marines are wearing? After the first few hours you could tell the talking heads had ran out of things to say. Whenever that happens you know the pundits will attempt to out cliché one another and as interesting as that is to watch, even that gets old after about 15 minutes.

2.The word “Historic”: Yeah, it was an historic event but damn if I didn’t hear that word every 15 seconds. We should completely ban the use of that word for the rest of Obama’s presidency.

3. “Did you ever think you’d live to see this day?”: Did anybody? Talk about fishing for emotional television… No, I never thought I’d live to see a day when a black man is president… but hell, I never thought I’d live to see the day when the Cardinals make it to the Super Bowl!

4. Bows on Hats: Aretha Franklin is the Queen but I wouldn’t be surprised if Disney tries to sue her for copyright infringement. Minnie don’t you weep, they’ll return you bow before the week is up. On the bright side, all she needed was a strong rubber band attached to it and she could have flown out of there and avoided the traffic.

5. Poetry: I’m sure Elizabeth Alexander is an excellent writer and poet. I am not poet laureate and who am I to question a woman who has a Ph.D from the University of Pennsylvania? Still, I was not at all enthralled by her poem. Maybe it’s the way she read it. Say what you will about rap, at least its entertaining and it rhymes.

6.President Bush: He truly looked uncomfortable and I was happy that Obama dug at him at times. The world is a safer place today because we no longer have a dry drunk running this country (into the ground).

7.Neo-Cons: I read the blogs. They are grasping ever so fervently to their bitter straws in the hopes of maintaining some relevance. Their posting pictures of the National Mall after the crowds have left..”oohh, lookie here. See how much trash they left behind. What is Obama going to do about that?” Yes, it’s pitiful but it’ll take them a few years to get their footing.

The Day After History is Made

2009-01-21T07:48:00.000-08:00

Having a black president affords us the opportunity to ponder the words of great African Americans that paved the way for this moment in history. If we recall the words of Dr. King, he spoke:

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

We can now say that for most African Americans, this condition no longer exists. However, there are many that live under similar conditions, not shackled by the color of their skin but by the mediocrity of their education and the severity of their poverty. This is the challenge of our generation and we will have to engage to ensure that in 40 years, these vices too will come to pass.

This calls us to be mindful that President Obama cannot do this by himself. He needs the people to advocate and lobby for changes in policy. If we want President Obama to succeed, then we must at times push him and at other times, support him. Fredrick Douglass spelled out an agenda that people must claim:

"Let me give you a word of the philosophy of reform. The whole history of the progress of human liberty shows that all concessions yet made to her august claims, have been born of earnest struggle. The conflict has been exciting, agitating, all-absorbing, and for the time being, putting all other tumults to silence. It must do this or it does nothing. If there is no struggle there is no progress. Those who profess to favor freedom and yet depreciate agitation, are men who want crops without plowing up the ground, they want rain without thunder and lightening. They want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters."

"This struggle may be a moral one, or it may be a physical one, and it may be both moral and physical, but it must be a struggle. Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will. Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them, and these will continue till they are resisted with either words or blows, or with both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress. In the light of these ideas, Negroes will be hunted at the North, and held and flogged at the South so long as they submit to those devilish outrages, and make no resistance, either moral or physical. Men may not get all they pay for in this world; but they must certainly pay for all they get. If we ever get free from the oppressions and wrongs heaped upon us, we must pay for their removal. We must do this by labor, by suffering, by sacrifice, and if needs be, by our lives and the lives of others."

Frederick Douglass, 1857

The past eight years has been one of anti-intellectual discourse and ostracizing those that had the nerve to dissent. Those days are behind us. Now we can truly discuss the issues. I’m sure many conservatives will cling to their petty diatribes as evident with the postings on Townhall.com. But if Ann Coulter’s recent book sales are any indication, Conservatives are tuning out to voices of the far-right fringe, but we will see how long that theory holds water.

Today, I am feeling good about the future on this country and Aretha is STILL the Queen!!!

And It is Done

2009-01-20T11:58:00.001-08:00

So we now have the 44th President of the United States. It is a great moment in American History.

A New Day - Nuff Said

2009-01-20T07:32:00.001-08:00

Random Thoughts

2009-01-16T07:56:00.000-08:00

After listing to Bush’s yawning farewell address, I couldn’t help but wonder exactly what the hell is he talking about. He made Iraq it sound as though Iraq was going swell and Afghanistan isn’t on the verge of complete chaos. He made no mention of the current economic crisis but to his credit finally vanquished the “52 straight months of economic growth” line.

I’m sure Bush’s point was to have the speech be one that historians can look back on and discover how right he was. I doubt that will happen but just in case I’ll keep the blog up so people can google and re-discover just how inept of a president he was.

NOTORIOUS

The movie comes out today and my fellow blogger TopMack has an interesting take on what was really going down behind all the bling. I have no intention of seeing the movie but not because I don’t like Biggie. In fact, the opposite is true; I am a big fan of his music. However, I can help but look at the previews and believe this movie will fall well short of my cinematic expectations. For people who thought Friday After Next was a good movie, this film is their Casablanca.

I, however, am a harsh critic of movies and do not suffer mediocrity lightly – especially considering the cost of movie tickets and popcorn. I’ve read the reviews of reputable critics but I recall that these same critics thought American Gangster was a great movie when it just barely passed for being good.

Are You Kidding Me

2009-01-15T14:23:00.000-08:00

I just read this:

BALTIMORE – A city housing official pleaded guilty Thursday to stealing gift cards meant for needy children, becoming the latest public figure snagged in a probe that led to Mayor Sheila Dixon's indictment last week.

Lindbergh Carpenter Jr., 44, of Owings Mills pleaded guilty to stealing $140 worth of gift cards bought with city money for a Christmas program.

The cards never went to needy children. Instead, Carpenter used them to pay for part of a Nintendo Wii video game console for his own family, prosecutors said. Read

This is the type of crap that make people hate public officials. To some, $140 may not seem like a lot of money but it is the principle of the matter. To steal from poor children is about as low as one can go. It is especially low when you consider that he stole from needy children to buy A GAME!!! Not to feed his children; not to keep the heat on in the house; not to buy groceries. He purchased a game.

Someone needs to kick his arse!!!!

Just A Thought - The Weather Report

2009-01-14T07:26:00.001-08:00

On Monday evening, there was endless coverage of the pending onslaught winter was about to deal Chicago. I seldom bother with weather reports but this time I decided to be proactive and take a sick day and save my self the trouble of commuting during a blizzard. I awoke Tuesday morning, not blistering cold temperatures and blowing snow, but to sunshine and sub-zero wind chills.

This is not the type of weather that Chicagoans worry about. And its certainly not the type of weather I deem fit for a sick day. No, a proper sick day is used in the summer to extend a weekend when the temperatures are in the mid-80’s. A sick day is for a drive to Wisconsin Dells or spending the day at Lincoln Park Zoo.

It seems as though the weather reports look to scare the crap out of people any time we get more than 2 inches of snow as though we’ve never had snow before. Unless the temperatures falls to 20-below or 12 inches of snow is on the way, there is no need to make a big fuss about the weather. C’mon Chicago, lets get it together. Cowboy the f--- up and save those sick days for the Taste.

NFL Playoff Weekend

2009-01-12T08:00:00.000-08:00

Of the many things that took place over the weekend, none were more important than the NFL Playoffs. I am relieved that the Giants are no longer in the running and as I predicted, Carolina is not a Super Bowl caliber team.

Today’s papers are filled with headlines of “Shock!” as three underdogs won and only one home team won. The only surprise is how badly Carolina got beat by the Cardinals. Is it that surprising that Eli Manning had trouble with the Eagles secondary? How surprised are we that the Titans couldn’t score against Baltimore’s defense? Last week there was discussion that the Chargers may not miss LT considering how Sproles racked over 300 all-purpose yards against the Colts. Um… whatever. The Colts and the Steelers are two entirely different animals and any comparisons between the two should stop at “they are both NFL teams”.

I predict the Eagles and Ravens will win next week but I will not be surprised if the Cardinals and Steelers pull it out. Either way, the Super Bowl will be interesting despite the old-fart halftime show. We’ll discuss that on another post.

The Perils of Identity Politics

2009-01-07T08:07:00.000-08:00

It was presumed that one of the casualties of Obama’s victory would be the black-identity politics that catapulted many Civil Rights leaders into the political arena. For over four decades these leaders have sought and secured power by airing the grievances of the black community and attaining retribution for the centuries of inequality. On November 5, the eulogies of these leaders were written. Unbeknownst to the majority community, the younger generation has been working on these eulogies for some time. Young politically astute voters in the black community have for years called for the replacement of Civil Rights leaders in the political arena as they seemed more concerned with maintaining their own statuses than with the economic empowerment of the black community.

This past week, Rep. Bobby Rush confirmed the necessity of writing this eulogy when in defense of Roland Burris, Bobby Rush equated opposition with that of segregation. Here is man that is screaming for the inclusion of a black person in the US Senate but did not support Barak Obama when he first ran for Senate. At that time there were no blacks in the Senate, yet Rep. Bobby Rush chose to support a white candidate. Can you say hypocrisy?

There are legitimate legal arguments for seating Burris and I am sure that in the near future he will become the Junior Senator from the state of Illinois, but his skin color is not one of them and a lot of young black people are upset with how this has turned into a racial issue. Black people will just have to come to grips with the reality that not every political fight requires a racial component in order to make a compelling argument.

As for Roland Burris, he should have handled this appointment differently. Rather than make a spectacle of himself, he should have worked behind the scenes to ensure a smooth transition. The law is on his side, but the political theater counts for a lot and on that front he has bombed.

What the Senate Seat Will Cost

2009-01-05T07:10:00.000-08:00

There is a lot of handwringing in the Chicago black community over the appointment of Roland Burris. Our beloved governor has saw fit to make the appointment despite the criminal complaint that he tried to sell the seat to the highest bidder. He (the governor) is now facing the likelihood of impeachment and in one final finger gesture on his way out, has given the state another controversy.

There are many in the black community who feel that it is necessary to have an African American replace President-Elect Obama and have suggested that not seating Burris would equate to a modern day lynching. Listening to the local talk show, African Americans are intent on keeping the seat with someone from “our community”.

All politics being local, I understand this idea but it is short-sighted of the African American community to take up this cause and what today may seem like a gain may not be the case come 2010. First, Roland Burris is 71 years-old and will probably not run for re-election. This will make it difficult for any African American to begin the process of running for the seat as the field will be wide open, leaving only the most established politicians with the means to mount a campaign running for the office. On the Democrat side, Jan Schakowsky, Lisa Madigan and Jesse Jackson Jr. are possible candidates. Tammy Duckworth is a long-shot but could mount an effective campaign. All of these individuals would have a hard time winning considering the cloud that Blago is leaving behind.

The alternative should be cause for concern as well. If Roland Burris decides to run for re-election, he will have a very difficult time beating any Republican. He is turning his appointment into a race issue but it is impossible to win state-wide elections in Illinois if you do not get large swaths of the white and Latino communities. Roland Burris lost when he ran for governor, Senator and even lost when he ran for Mayor of Chicago. If race-politics were in his favor then he certainly should have won the race for Mayor. Since winning the Attorney General post, he has not shown he can win state-wide and that should not only be a concern to those who believe that an African American should hold the seat, but a concern to the Democrat Party.

If an African America were to replace Barak Obama, a special election would have been a good opportunity to take advantage of a motivated electorate. But many in the African American community were afraid that the Blago fiasco would empower Republicans to go to the polls so here we are. I for one am more concerned with keeping the Senate seat in the hands of the Democrats than I am with keeping it in “our community”.

There isn’t much anyone can do to keep Burris from taking the job, but I feel that in two years we will see the true cost of this appointment and sadly it will have nothing to do with the job that Burris does as Senator.

Merry Christmas From Chicago

2008-12-24T07:36:00.000-08:00

Michigan Avenue

State Street & the Chicago Theater

Santa Rides the El

The El Train Decorated for Christmas

The Start of the Festival of Lights

The Parade of Lights Festival Down Michigan Ave

Mickey Lights Up The Magnificant Mile

The True Meaning of Christmas

I wish all of you a Merry Christmas and for those who do not celebrate, Happy Holidays. Enjoy being with the family and be of good cheer. It's been a great year and the blessing is that we're still here. I'm done blogging for the rest of the year and I'll see you guys in 2009!!!

Holla

What's In A Name?

2008-12-17T14:15:00.000-08:00

I have no idea what goes through people minds when their naming their children, but it is clear that some folks shouldn’t be allowed to do it. Take a walk through the ‘hood and you will hear a host of “Afrocentric” sounding names. Though I don’t think Shaniqwa and Terenique sound very ethnic at all. Since those names have been around for some time, I think people are getting use to them.

People sometimes forget that children have to deal with the name given them throughout their adult life. Celebrities have this really bad. Madonna naming her children Lourdes and Rocco is crazy. Here are some other strange and odd names of celebrities:

Toni Braxton – Denin Cole (son)
Christie Brinklie – Sailor Lee (daughter)
Tom Cruise – Suri (son)
Richard Gere – Homer Jigme (son) where the hell did Jigme come from?
Kate Hudson – Ryder Russell (son)

There is an entire list here: Link. It’s actually pretty sad when you read it.

But the article I read today takes the cake for bad baby names. A couple has gone the extra mile by naming their children Adolf Hitler Campbell and Joycelyn Aryan Nation Campbell. That’s correct, some idiot parents actually named their daughter Aryan Nation. This is a cruel thing to do to a child because she will have to carry that for the rest of her life. (Read Article )

It is one thing for celebrities coming up with weird names after a night of puffing smoke, but naming a child after abhorrent human beings and racist organizations is tantamount to child abuse. I for one would not allow my children to befriend these children because I would be afraid of them being around the parents.

People, please… stop with the madness. I understand culturally relevant names and being a little creative. But remember, little Homer is going to be a teenager one day and Homer is probably not a name you want to carry while trying to survive high school. Can you imagine the jokes that Sailor will hear? And poor Adolf, his parents have set him up for a very lonely life. They’ll be known as “those kids with the racist names”.

Read Article

Question: What is the most creative name of a person you know.

My Answer: Stormy

Miss World - PHEWY

2008-12-15T08:51:00.000-08:00

From 109 countries around the world, these fluzzies touted minimal talent, average beauty and a total disregard for cleavage. It was a beauty contest worthy of its insignificance and lack of prominence.

I was forced to watch part of the Miss World contest last night. I have to say that at times, it was the worst television I’ve ever seen and at other times it was close to the worst television I’ve ever seen. To make it interesting, I started rooting for a few of the girls. My favorites were Miss Venezuela and Miss India. I was also pulling for Miss Trinidad and Miss Angola.

So for those of you lucky enough to not see this sham TV, I’d like to present to you the finalist for the Peace on The Miss PHAT Contest:

Miss Venezuela:

Rating very high on the PHATness scale, Ms. Venezuela easily surpassed 100 other fluzzies but not having a booty that is banging off the tracks may hurt her in the end (no pun intended).

Miss India

Sophisticated, smart, beautiful and funny she is every man’s dream. However, the Miss PHAT Contest places more emphasis on slut-potential and she may just have too much class.

Miss Angola

I am a fan. I am a fan. Ms. Angola has a fun spirit and is exceptionally smart. But we care about body and fineness and she has both of those qualities as well.

Miss Trinidad

The finest of the finalist who I imagine is a great site to see during Carnival.

AND THE WINNER IS!!! (drum role)

Miss Trinidad!!!

In the end, she was the only one that showed us what she got and that made all the difference in the world. As for Miss World 2008, the judges chose some KGB fluzzie to represent the globe. But I guess we couldn’t expect more from Communist.

Blago and the Bars

2008-12-09T07:42:00.000-08:00

Illinois politics is a funny game of shoots and ladder. The direction one takes on the ladder depends on whether you are shooting or getting shot in the back. The good politicians know to carry a lot of bullets but are selective when pulling the trigger. Men like Tony Rezco, Ed Vrdolyak and former Gov. George Ryan shot with reckless abandon hoping to be the last man standing. Then there is Gov. Rob Blagojevich who doesn’t have many friends, few weapons and the aim of a six year old taking a leak in a wind tunnel. Couple that with a big hairdo and even bigger ego and you get one of the worst politicians in Illinois history.

Blago as we like to call him, is being indicted on numerous charges but one being that he was attempting a pay-for-play scheme with the selection of President-elect Obama’s Senate seat. The following is from the Criminal Complaint filed by the FBI:

Paragraph 87: In particular, ROD BLAGOJEVICH has been intercepted conspiring to trade the senate seat for particular positions that the President-elect has the power to appoint (e.g. the Secretary of Health and Human Services). ROD BLAGOJEVICH has also been intercepted conspiring to sell the Senate seat in exchange for his wife’s placement on paid corporate boards or ROD BLAGOJEVICH’s placement at a private foundation in a significant position with a substantial salary. ROD BLAGOJEVICH has also been intercepted conspiring to sell the Senate seat in exchange for millions of dollars in funding for a non-profit organization that he would start and that would employ him at a substantial salary after he left the governorship.

Paragraph 90. Later on November 3, 2008, ROD BLAGOJEVICH spoke with Advisor A. By this time, media reports indicated that Senate Candidate 1, an advisor to the Presidentelect, was interested in the Senate seat if it became vacant, and was likely to be supported by the President-elect. During the call, ROD BLAGOJEVICH stated, “unless I get something real good for [Senate Candidate 1], shit, I’ll just send myself, you know what I’m saying.” ROD BLAGOJEVICH later stated, “I’m going to keep this Senate option for me a real possibility, you know, and therefore I can drive a hard bargain. You hear what I’m saying. And if I don’t get what I want and I’m not satisfied with it, then I’ll just take the Senate seat myself.” Later, ROD BLAGOJEVICH stated that the Senate seat “is a fucking valuable thing, you just don’t give it away for nothing.”

The rest of the complaint reads like the script of a movie. Blago put his foot deep into the mix this time and he should be going away for a long time. It really is a shame that our most recent governors have ended up in prison. That doesn’t say a lot about the selection process. Maybe now we can get an honest governor in Springfield. I feel sorry for the person that gets Obama’s seat because they will have a bullseye on their back the size of Lake Michigan.

Update: Just so everyone is very clear on where I stand. I believe this is a very GOOD DAY for Illinois. I do not support the bastard and am glad to see him go. I can't wait for the perp walk :D Blago is a crook and to have him and Bush out of my hair in the same year is something I thought was possible only in my dreams. Now, all we have to do is get rid of Todd Stroger and I will be riding high on political utopia.

The Big Three

2008-11-17T08:47:00.000-08:00

I really haven't made up my mind whether or not a bailout of the American auto industry is a good idea. My gut tells me that it is not a good thing to do because the Big Three are just beginning to get their act together but they have a long way to go. They put all of their eggs in one basket (SUV's and trucks)while Asian car makers stormed the car market and Europeans cornered the luxury car market.

Living in Chicago, I don't have a need for a car so the only time I drive is when I rent. I have to admit that I like most of the GM cars that I've rented this past year. My favorite was the Saturn Aura. I also drove a Ford Envoy Hybrid to Kentucky and was happy with the gas mileage. American car companies are better in my estimation but $25 billion is a lot of money.

With enough strings attached, I would go along with a bailout. After giving AIG over $150 billion to cover bad paper, I see no reason why we shouldn't spend $25 billion to support 3 million American jobs. But the auto industry has some structural problems that it will have to address. It also needs to move faster with hybrids and electric cars.

As innovative as American companies are, it amazes me that we are so slow to adapt new technology. HDTV is just not catching on in America. I recall seeing HDTV in Japan when I was in the Navy and that was over 18 years ago. With cars, we somehow believe that getting 30 mpg is a big deal. We have the technology to have Hummer get 30 mpg so our cars should be getting 40 mpg at least.

2009 Saturn Aura

If I purchase a new car, it will be a hybrid and more than likely it will be a GM or Ford. But until then, I'm happy spending $20 a week for a bus pass. Owning a car would cost me an additional $500 a month. But I digress.

I am hopeful the Big Three can make a comeback and maybe it's time to think about bringing more manufacturing jobs back to America.

Discussion
1. Do you support a bailout for the Big Three?
2. Is there an American made car that appeals to you?
3. Do you believe American made cars are on par with Toyota and Honda when it comes to quality?

Agent 007: Bond.... James Bond

2008-11-13T10:58:00.000-08:00

UPDATED: I posted this blog a while back but wanted to updated it to celebrate the new James Bond movie that opens tomorrow. Besides Iron Man, Quantum of Solace is the only movie that is on my "must see" list. When I first posted about the new James Bond, Daniel Craig wasn't even on the short list. I wasn't sure about him but he did win me over and now I am once again a 007 fanatic. I do believe this film will have all of the ingredients we all expect in a Bond movie:

(1) Awesome chase seen in exoctic locale.
(1) Shagged hottie in the first 15 minutes
(5) High-tech spy gadgets
(20) Bad guys killed in the first 10 minutes of the film
(300) Additional bad guys killed in a variety of cool ways.
(7) Exoctic cars
End the movie shagging a hottie in an exoctic location with lots of blue water around.

Now, in Casino Royale, bond response when asked how his drink should be made was, "Do I look like I give a damn". This is not the usual "shaken, not stirred" that one would expect. I am hopeful that he has upped his sophiticate and utter that famous phrase. There actually is some scientic reason for that request:

Scientists, specifically biochemists, and martini connoisseurs have investigated the difference between a martini shaken and a martini stirred. According to a study at the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Western Ontario in Canada to determine if the preparation of a martini has an influence on their antioxidant capacity, the shaken gin martinis were able to break down hydrogen peroxide and leave only 0.072% of the peroxide behind, versus the stirred gin martini which left behind 0.157% of the peroxide.[7] The study was done at the time because moderate consumption of alcohol appears to reduce the risk of cataracts, cardiovascular disease, and stroke, none of which afflict the fictional James Bond. Source

Go figure. Anyway, I am looking forward to the movies and will be in the theater tomorrow to watch!!!

PAST BLOG POST BELOW

There aren’t many characters in the movies that men of all ages and race wish they could be, if only for a moment. But, Bond… James Bond is no ordinary man. He is the embodiment of what we wish we were. Good looking, charming, mysteries, brave, a lady killer and able to kick ass with pull of a laser flashlight and an exploding tube of toothpaste and drive away in a $300,000 car with the bad guy’s girl on our lap.

There isn’t a man alive that wouldn’t want to embark on a journey of saving the world while bedding a few good looking dames in the process. Bond is a man… Bond is a hero… Bond is an ICON.

That is why the next James Bond must carry on the tradition of mackin’ broads, defying authority, saving the world and riding off into the sunset leaving the carnage of bad guys and broken hearts in his wake.

There are several actors ready to take the reigns. Hugh Jackman, Ewan McGregor, Jude Law, Heath Ledger, Clive Owen and Orlando Bloom are the frontrunners. I’m not sure either but if I had to pick I’d go with Clive Owens. He has a more mature look and the others are a little too young and pretty for my taste. James Bond is not a pretty boy.

Before we move on to the next Bond, let’s honor the men that portrayed one of the greatest heroes of the 20th Century.

SEAN CONNERY

Sean Connery – The original James Bond on which all others are measured. Connery was the best. Connery had a certain charisma, wit and way with the ladies as well as the cold-blooded, calculated mentality that you expect from the world’s greatest super-spy.

He Starred In:
Dr. No
From Russia With Love
Thunderball
You Only Live Twice
Diamonds are Forever

ROGER MOORE
Roger Moore – I was introduced to Roger Moore before I saw Sean Connery. Roger was not as cold-blooded as Connery. I guess you could call him the family friendly spy. He didn’t kill that much and when he did, it more spectacular than just walking behind the bad guy and breaking his neck. What Roger Moore’s Bond brought to the movies was the anticipation of the Bond Girl, the Bond Ride and the Bond Gadgets. If those were on point you knew you were in for a good movie.

He Starred In:
Live and Let Die
The Man With the Golden Gun
The Spy Who Loved Me
Moonraker
For Your Eyes Only
Octopussy
A View To Kill

TIMOTHY DOLTON

Timothy Dolton – He was ok, and I have to admit that ‘License to Kill’ was tight. But I just didn’t feel him. Too dark, no wit and I didn’t get the feeling that he was a playa on the level Moore and Connery. His two movies were more action-thriller and lacked the light-heartedness of previous Bond movies. I won’t rag on him – he was cool.

He Starred In:
The Living Daylight
License To Kill

PIERCE BRONSON

Pierce Bronson – Truthfully, I wasn’t sure about this cat in the beginning. Although I was a fan of Remington Steele, that didn’t automatically translate to liking him as 007. However, after the first movie, Goldeneye, I became a fan. He took it back to the Connery era – witty, ladies man and dark at the same time.

He Starred In:
Goldeneye
Tomorrow Never Dies
The World Is Not Enough
Die Another Day

Yes We Did

2008-11-05T10:04:00.000-08:00

At the moment, it is hard for me to express what I am feeling. In 76 days the work will begin, but right now, the reality that a new era has begun in America is beginning to set in.

I was in Grant Park last night and it was a beautiful moment. I was surrounded by people from all walks of life. An older white couple sat on the grass behind me; an African American woman sat with her daughter on her lap; another young white woman danced with her daughter. Young white men yelled out Obama along side of young Middle Eastern women. It was a picture of America as she is, as we believe her to be. Songs normally reserved for soccer matches were sung by a group of Italian and Greek men and then others joined, interrupted only by calls of "Yes We Can".

We will get around to discussing the nitty-gritty of the campaign. But for right now, I'm just going to to remember the stories that my grandmother told me of marching with Martin Luther King Jr., and how one day I will tell my children and grand children of the time I campaigned for the first Black President of the United States.

The Electoral College Challenge

2008-10-31T15:29:00.000-07:00

Ok, it is time to put you money where you mouth is. I have my prediction for election night and I am interested in seeing what you guys think. Most of the states are in the bag for either McCain or Obama so I want to concentrate on the swing states and the total number of electoral colleges.

Here is my prediction:

Pennsylvania – Obama
North Carolina – McCain
Virginia – Obama
Florida – McCain
Colorado – Obama
Ohio - McCain
Nevada – Obama

Total EV – Obama 291 McCain 247

Surprises for Obama:
I think Obama has a shot at Missouri, Indiana and Florida.

Surprises for McCain:
McCain may be able to pull off New Hampshire or Nevada.

This will be my last post before the election. Give me your predictions

In Defense of Sarah Palin

2008-10-29T07:28:00.001-07:00

This will probably be the one and only post where I actually side with Sarah Palin. With the $150,000 wardrobe issue, I actually believe that is a non-factor but one that the GOP should stop trying to defend. Elizabeth Hasselback calling the controversy sexist is stupid and the campaign should not have put her on the stump. Not only does she is an idiot, but the sound of her voice make me cringe. How her husband tolerates her I’ll never know.

But the story behind the story is that Sarah Palin is going rogue. She is not happy with the way McCain handlers have presented her and McCain’s camp is placing the blame for their upcoming defeat on Sarah Palin’s dismal performance. I never believe Gov. Palin was ready for prime-time but come November 5, McCain will have to own the defeat. Sarah Palin has nothing to do with it.

Many on the Right have yet to acknowledge that McCain has run a horrible campaign. After locking up the nomination, he went into hibernation. His “green screen” speech was a hot mess. His campaign had no strategy outside of tarnishing Obama. His now infamous, “the fundamentals of the economy are strong” marked his downfall. Certainly Sarah Palin didn’t help and she has yet to recover from the Katie Couric interview. But that too was McCain’s fault. Rather than allow her the opportunity to get her feet wet with reporters, they tossed her into the deep end.

I don’t blame Palin for going rogue. This is John McCain’s last run at the Oval Office and Palin’s first. She has a future and McCain is the past. It will be interesting to see just how far under the bus the McCain camp toss Palin.

The Future of the GOP

Sarah Palin will be a popular figure in the GOP but I doubt she is a lock for the nomination in 2012. First, she may have money but at some point she will have to up some substance on issues. Her biggest problem is that she will have to learn how to attract independents because right now she is a “base” candidate in the vein of Pat Buchanan and that is too narrow of a window to win a national election. She will also have to compete with other up-and-coming GOP candidates. That is not an easy feat especially with Mitt Romney and John Thune waiting in the wings.

But her major hurdle will be that she must navigate the political scene with very little room for error. Any gaffe that reinforces her intellectual lightweight status will be the nail in the coffin for her political career. Another obstacle is staying on the national scene while residing in Alaska. Out of sight, out of mind and no state is further out of site than Alaska. Being governor will not afford her the opportunity to stay on the circuit.

Despite it all, I believe Sarah Palin will attempt to make a run in 2012 but I believe the Republican Party is in for a major overhaul and Palin’s style of politics may not be in favor by the next election cycle.

Why I Hate: Conservative Pundits

2008-10-24T07:22:00.000-07:00

Barak Obama left the campaign trail to visit his ailing grandmother. Most people understand this but leave it up to the talking heads on the right to smear him for the decision.

Yesterday, Brad Blakeman was on MSNBC chastising Obama for using his campaign plane to "go visit grandma". He made this stupid comment in the throes of defending Sarah Palin's $150,000 shopping spree; suggesting that the cost of flying to Hawaii to visit his sick grandmother is more controversial than spending $75,000 at Nieman Marcas.

View Clip Here

Then we have comedian/racist Rush Limbaugh, Michael Savage and James Corsi suggesting that Barak Obama's Hawaii trip is somehow related to his birth certificate.

From Michael Savage:

"And Obama's leaving for Hawaii -- why? Why? What's he doing there? Why's he going there, huh? What's he going there for, huh? Why's he gonna -- the last phase of a race, he's getting off the track just to visit his grandmother? Don't be stupid. It's the birth certificate issue, you fools, you."

From Jerome Corsi:

I'm headed out to Honolulu. I am not convinced that Barack Obama is going because his grandmother is sick. I appreciate that his grandmother is sick and he wants to be with her. I do recall that Barack Obama's mother died of cancer, and he didn't go to be by her side when she died. He relates that in his autobiography, Dreams From My Father. And I'm going out to do what digging I can on the birth certificate.

You can here it for yourself:

These guys are idiots. I think it is sad that there are people out there that actually listen to this crap. Maybe one day people will wake up and we can remove this garbage from the American landscape.

Project Runway: To the White House

2008-10-23T08:41:00.000-07:00

It has been reported the RNC has spent $150,000 dolling up Sarah Palin and et al. That is a lot of money and it probably would have been wise to bypass Barney’s and Saks Fifth Avenue for Macy’s. With that said, as fashionable as Gov. Palin might have been in Alaska, I am sure she needed some polishing to stand on the national stage. There aren’t many of us that wouldn’t need a total upgrade if we were thrust into the spotlights. This is the look Gov. Palin need to show:

The hair could use some work but overall, it’s a good look.

If there is something that we can blast the McCain campaign about with regards to fashion is that they allow John McCain to wear that god-awful blue sport coat with the gold buttons, highlighted with a small-box checkered shirt. Someone should pull Cindy McCain to the side and tell her to get her act together. Wives don’t let husbands look frumpy… especially if you’re worth $100 million.

And then there is this abomination:

Again, there he is with the gold buttons on a blue jacket. MY GOD!!! Are you running for President of the United States or President of the local Moose Lodge? Plus, the jacket is too big and too long. In fact, the pants and the sweater are too large. They should put this Bob Hope ensemble out if its misery. I'm not the only one who thinks this. Check out this post with a series of pictures critiquing McCain's wardrobe.

Now, people are wondering how much does Obama spend on his suits. Well, there is a company called Hartmarx that makes Obama suits. It is the Gold Trumpeter collection and retail for $1500. The suits are 97% wool and 3% cashmere, pleated pants with an inch-and-a-quarter cuff. It’s a good look for him.

They say next to a wife, a good tailor is the best friend a man could ever have. I concur.

Michelle Obama seems to have a good sense of style as well. Unlike Gov. Palin, most of her dresses range somewhere between $150 and $400. Of course, I’m sure she has 100 times more clothes than Obama considering that she can’t wear the same outfit twice.

Joe Biden – Mr Scranton, Pennsylvania – is a very good dresser. This particular outfit seems a bit ornate with the cuff links, lapel pin and the tie making for a busy look. But the dark blue suit and silver hair makes for a classic look.

As opposed to Frumpy McGrump:

Note to self: Place into storage all sweaters received as Christmas gifts by the grandchildren until such time they can be burned or buried in the back yard. Again, Cindy McCain should be flogged for allowing McGruff to leave the house with an alien penis stenciled on his sweater. There is nothing worse than looking old and gay - especiall when your wife looks like a Klingon.

And this final photo is for my own entertainment. McCain’s jacket is too big but who would notice when he’s trying to grab Obama’s ass. It seems as though McCain has a thing for men.

He needs to tuck his shirt in and it wouldn’t hurt to order a little starch. Considering how bad John McCain dresses, having to take Sarah Palin from this:

To this:

is probably the best return on investment the campaign has gotten this fall.

Yes We Can

2008-10-21T20:22:00.001-07:00

Don't believe the polls. There is still much work left to be done. We have the opportunity to change this nation. There are those who are too cynical to want to try or even believe that it is possible. They want to divide us, define us with ideological rants (socialist, Marxist, elite, liberal) - this has worked in the past. But we must change the way we do politics. Can we do it... Yes We Can.

What I Hate: Robocalls

2008-10-21T08:57:00.000-07:00

Robocalls are in the news once again. I live in Chicago, and Illinois is considered a safe state for Barak Obama so it was with great shock that I discovered robocall messages on my voice mail. After listening to them, I really understand why people hate them. Just so you guys can get a feel for what it is like, I transcribed just a few of the messages. It is shameful what these guys have done to the political process.

[Message received today at 10:27 am] Hi, this is Barak Obama and as you know this country is in dire need of change. Not the change that McCain found under the pillows of his sofa and is now using to fund his campaign, but a change in the direction of this country. I’m hoping that I can count on your support on November 4. This message was paid for by the donations I received just a few minutes ago.

[Message received today at 11:05 am] This is John McCain. My friends I am here to inform you that Barak Obama is a socialist pig and has sold his soul to the devil. My friends, we cannot allow this man the opportunity to call for jihad from the Oval Office. I am the type of American that you need. Vote me on November 4, and spare our country from socialism. This message was paid for with public funds.

[Message received today at 12:23pm] Hi, I’m Colin Powell and I am supporting Barak Obama for President. He is exactly what America needs at this time in our history. Support America on November 4. Vote for Barak Obama.

[Message received today at 12:24pm] This is Rick Davis for the McCain Campaign. On November 4, we’re asking you to set aside your worries about the economy, healthcare, wars, Wall Street’s collapse and the overall shitty job that the Republicans have done over the past eight years and tap into your racist subconsciousness and vote for McCain. Though you will be voting against your best interest, at least you can say to your grandchildren that you didn’t vote for a black man.

[Message received today at 1:15pm] It's your friendly neighborhood Maverick here, and I’m paying for this ad with some Food Stamps I swapped for cash. So what is this election really about… Ayers…Ayers… Ayers… Joe the Plumber… ACORN and… um, hold on a sec. What are these kids doing… I know the hell they ain’t playing ball [sound of door opening] Get off my lawn you dirty rotten kids before I…[Click]

[Message received today at 2:51 pm] Heeeey, this is Joey. That’s what my old man called me when we were just scraping by in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Ladies and gentlemen, John McCain, god bless him, is a total dick. He wouldn’t know middle America if it snuck behind him and gave him a good ole fashion weggie. That’s what the kids use to do to me when I was growing up in Willmington, Delaware. And ladies and gentlemen, there is nothing fun about a weggie. That’s what McCain and Palin will bring to the White House, a weggie for middle-America. Small towns across the country will have their whitie tighties scrunched in crack of their economic asses while the corporatcrats walk around in loose fitting, silk, Polo boxers. That's not right. It's not fair. This country needs…what do you mean shut the hell up? [sound of pushing and shoving] Hey, don’t take the mic, I’m not done talking. I’m never done talking… Wait…no… no… nooooooooo [Click]

[Message received today at 3:27 pm] This is Sarah Palin and goshdarnit, I hear Joe’s got a robocall. Ohhh say it aint so Joe. While my opponents are palling around with terrorist and trying to convince mothers to kill their babies, I’m out traveling across real America, exciting the base and trying to keep Obama from completely humiliating ole McGrumpy. So go out a vote and then donate to my 2012 campaign run for President. Don’t be discouraged by my interviews with Katie Couric or the Tina Fey caricature of me. Those carpet-munching bitches will be long forgotten and I’ll be ruler of the free world just in time for Armageddon. God bless ya.

[Message received today at 4:00 pm] Wassup, bitches. This is Paris Hilton. I’m not running for anything but I have more money than any of the douche bags running for office and besides… I’m hot. In two weeks when you finally vote for one of these guys, you’ll go back to your pitiful, mundane, useless lives and they are going to forget about you until the next election cycle. In the meantime, they will make you hate one another, call each other names, then after the election, spend your tax dollars however they please. So why am I telling you this? Do I care? Not in the least. I just firgured you would like to know that I’m rich and it doesn’t matter to me who wins. I’ll see you bitches in the soup lines… while I’m passing by in my Mercedes. Smooches.

Endorsement: Colin Powell

2008-10-19T09:24:00.000-07:00

What does it mean for the Presidential race to have Colin Powell endorse Barak Obama? I think many of us expected this endorsement but now that it is official, but having him come out so strongly is very important. The Right will attempt to disregard this but there are a lot of independents and center-right people who respect Powell and it will have some pull.

"I come to the conclusion that because of his ability to inspire, because of the inclusive nature of his campaign, because he is reaching out all across America, because of who he is and his rhetorical abilities -- and you have to take that into account -- as well as his substance -- he has both style and substance," Powell said. "He has met the standard of being a successful president, being an exceptional president."

I like this statement. It shows that Powell has been paying attention to the race and has come to his decision based on the evidence. I believe most people who support Obama feel the same way about Obama. John McCain is an angry man and feels that he deserves the Presidency. This is probably the same attitude that bedeviled Hillary Clinton. It seems incomprehensible to them that this young man could come out of left field and win.

We will see in the upcoming days what this will mean.

Oh the Agony. I Can't Bear It

2008-10-12T18:29:00.000-07:00

There is no excuse to losing 3 games in the final minutes. There Bears should be 6-0 but to date all of their losses has come with defensive collapses in the final minutes of the game. Coming into the season my figured that the defense would carry the load with the offense but the offense is doing much better then many expected. Hopefully, my beloved Bears will turn things around for the final 2/3 part of the season. We have an opportunity to make a move towards the playoffs. C'mon guys. LETS GO!!!

Barak Obama!!!

2008-10-10T15:13:00.001-07:00

My Country "Tears" of Thee

2008-10-09T10:16:00.000-07:00

I expected the McCain campaign to pull out their bag of tricks sooner or later but I never really expected this level of hatred to rear its head. I am sorry to say that with the election of Barak Obama, the McCain campaign has ushered in a new of 1950’s level or racial hatred. What we are seeing now will not dissipate after November 4. No, what we are seeing is a new generation of racial intolerance which many of us thought was a product of bygone eras.

Make no mistake about it, Bill Ayers is not the issue. He is just a conduit for those to express their hatred and fear and McCain has stoking it with the help of Fixed News. I’ve always thought Sean Hannity was a racist and he has proven me right. But I never expected this from McCain. I never trusted him but I never thought of him as one that would go this deep into the gutter. He has and with it he has dragged American politics into a dangerous arena.

We are now on the precipice of destroying any hope of realizing Dr. King’s dream. If Barak Obama wins in November, half of America will actually believe that he is a terrorist and they will direct their hatred of Obama onto the African American community. Instead of using this opportunity as a means to finally put to rest the most divisive issue of American history, their hatred will invigorate them to work towards eroding the influence of African Americans in our society.

They will seek to destroy Obama and those of us that support him. They will set out to eliminate every Civil Rights gains made in the country. This is what McCain is creating with his campaign. He will regret that his final legacy will be that of a man that was willing to unravel the fabric of American society to win the White House. And he will see the rotten fruits of his labor and it will pain him to know that in the most important election of this generation, he chose the undignified path. With every racist rant from Sean Hannity, it will remind him that he appealed to America’s darkest side.

November 4, 2008 will mark a milestone in American history. There will be very little to celebrate. Either Barak Obama or John McCain will win but America as a whole will lose. Should Obama win, 50% of the electorate will feel that a Muslim Terrorist won and they display their hatred in ways we have never seen. Should Obama lose then 50% of the electorate will feel that stoking the fears of racial hatred is the most powerful force in American politics and despite what we’ve believed, not much progress has been made over the past 40 years.

As much as I love this country, I am sad for her.

The Roundup

2008-10-06T11:37:00.001-07:00

Tomorrow is the 2nd presidential debate and I suspect the economy will be high on the list. After a weekend of mudslinging – much of which I didn’t pay attention to as it is football season and my teams (Illinois, Penn State and Da Bears) all won.

Sarah Palin went dirty as to be expected. When you have no ideas, no vision, no means of communicating a policy, why not send her out to sling mud. But bringing up Williams Ayers is probably the dumbest move as most Americans have no idea who he is and pretty don’t care. However, Charles Keating is a more interesting connection and one that will hurt McCain if Obama chooses to push it. I for one would rather not hear about either of these men and have the campaigns discuss how they are going to lead this country in what is becoming an increasingly difficult situation.

The Bears should be 5-0 right now but we’ll take 3-2 with some weak teams on deck. A good sign considering the Cubs stunk up the joint and the White Sox aren’t doing much better. Not a good post-season for Chicago baseball.

Classic Worst Person In the World

2008-10-03T20:00:00.001-07:00

The Presidential Campaign: Where Does It Goes From Here

2008-10-03T10:06:00.000-07:00

Here is my objective view of the election as it stands today:

While the discussion for the next couple of days will be the Vice President debate, the real story is with the campaign tactics that each candidate is pursuing. McCain pulled out of Michigan and is now going to focus on Maine, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Wisconsin. But before I go there, lets discuss the last night’s debate.

Sarah Palin was in danger of become a caricature and a drag on the McCain ticket. Last night she did just enough to stop the bleeding. If McCain would have allowed Gov. Palin to talk more in the past five weeks, her debate with Joe Biden could have added to the ticket, but instead it simply gave a sigh of relief to the base of the Party. For voters who were looking for serious answers for serious problems, the debate demonstrated that Gov. Palin and communicate the talking points but has no in-depth understanding of the issues.

In an election where independents and new voters will make the difference, a content Republican base is not good enough. From this point on, Gov. Palin will do no more media interviews outside of the friendly confines of Fox News and conservative talk radio. Again, that will do nothing to attract independents and young voters.

The focus now returns back to McCain and five weeks may not be enough time for McCain to turn it around. There are fewer people left to sway and Joe Biden’s proclamation to end the war in Iraq will go a long way with the American people. McCain now has to fight for states that Bush won. And here is the biggest problem for McCain; if the polls are accurate, Obama needs only to pick up 10 electoral votes out of the 115 electoral votes from states considered toss ups. Obama is making a big push in Virginia, North Carolina, Colorado, Nevada, Ohio and Indiana while still holding down Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan. He is also revving up the campaign in Florida and Missouri. He may not win those two states but it forces McCain to fight for them.

Four weeks is a long time but if Obama can stay on message and fight in every battleground state, he should be able to pull this out. What Obama has to fight against is the dumbing down of American intellect by George Bush. I wished more job qualifications were based on the ability to say golly, you betcha and having a beer with Joe six pack. I’d be a millionaire.

Glad Tithing O Ye Bear Fans

2008-09-29T10:53:00.000-07:00

Over the past two weeks, our beloved have sought scourge our loyalty with putrid performances oh so worthy of our disdain. I, having forsaken good judgment and commons sense, tapped into cumulative greatness of Bears history and crowned this the year that we return to our rightful place as lord and overseer of the gridiron.

My first week prediction of victory was like the discovery of a Minority Report from a Pre-Cog and with the hubris of Odysseus, I laid claim to my greatness. To my despair, such boastfulness is rarely reinforced with continued success and my “Mission Accomplished” sign was met with the cruel resemblance of the Bush Doctrine.

Having spat upon the glory of Red Grange, Walter Payton and Gayle Sayers, our beloved placed before us an indigestible feast of iniquity. For two weeks victory was at hand with only a competent display of fortitude necessary to secure glory. But they failed us and retreated into the filthy bowels of Soldier Field, adorned with the fragrance of hot steamy human feces, soiled in their sackless jockstraps.

With the mighty green winged men coming from the east to devour their rotting carcass, the Monsters of the Midway had to dig deep and find the strength to bring victory to the City of the Wind. So when the winged men from the east came calling, lead by the one they call McNabb, our Bears stood and took a bold swipe and beheaded the vermin in such a way that made King Henry VIII take note. Though we take no joy in what happened to Anne Boleyn, there will be no peace in the NFL kingdom until the Bears have produced a rightful heir to throne. The lineage of George “Papa Bear” Halas must be preserved. And with the victory over the Eagles, we consummated once again with our bride while the sultry sounds of the Super Bowl Shuffle played in the background.

And now we march on to greet the lowly Lions, the ghastly Falcons and repulsive Vikings with a renewed determination to destroy these teams and burn their existence in such a way that not even their pathetic, puny souls will emerge from the ashes.

THIS IS CHI-TOWN!!!!!

Fighting Back with Truth

2008-09-04T08:27:00.000-07:00

Now that Sarah Palin has taken the gloves off with her sarcastic-laden speech with very little details as to what she and McCain will do for this country, we would be wise to take a look at her record. She touted her experience as a mayor being “something like a community organizer only with responsibility.” So let’s see what she was responsible for:

As Mayor

During her term in office, Palin cut property taxes and other small taxes on business. But as the Anchorage Daily News points out, “She wasn’t doing this by shrinking government.” During her tenure, the budget of Wasilla (population 5,469 in 2000) “apart from capital projects and debt, rose from $3.9 million in fiscal 1996 to $5.8 million.”

Palin also successfully pushed through a sales tax increase in Wasilla, which went to fund a $15 million sports complex. However, a land dispute over the sight of the complex led to “years of legal wrangling” and cost Wasilla almost $1.7 million, “a lot more than the roughly $125,000 the city would have paid in 1998 if it had closed a deal to buy the property outright.” Wasilla is still facing budget shortfalls from the case today.

When Palin left office in 2002, Wasilla had “racked up nearly $20 million in long-term debt,” or roughly $3,000 of debt per resident.

As a Reformer

As mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired a lobbyist and traveled to Washington annually to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million. In her two years as governor, Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal spending, by far the a largest per-capita request in the nation. While Palin notes she rejected plans to build a $398 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport, that opposition came only after the plan was ridiculed nationally as a "bridge to nowhere."

Note: She may have rejected the “bridge to nowhere” but kept the funds!!!!

She is currently under investigation for abusive power. It’s something she is prone to do as she fired individuals whom she felt didn’t support her while mayor of Wasilla. Considering what the Bush administration did to the Justice Department, this is not a good sign.

Advocate for family and children

She claims that parents with special needs children will have an advocate and friend in the White House. Well, as governor, she cut funds for special needs education from $8.26 million to $3.15 million. That’s a great friend to have, in a ‘hunting buddy of Dick Cheney’ kind of way.

Lies, Lies and more Lies

Major legislation by Obama: legislation that expanded efforts to intercept illegal shipments of weapons of mass destruction and to help destroy conventional weapons stockpiles. The legislation became law last year.

Obama on Taxes

The Tax Policy Center, a think tank run jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, concluded that Obama's plan would increase after-tax income for middle-income taxpayers by about 5 percent by 2012, or nearly $2,200 annually. McCain's plan, which cuts taxes across all income levels, would raise after tax-income for middle-income taxpayers by 3 percent, the center concluded.

Obama would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.

He also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

In conclusion

Obama’s main charge about McCain is that he represents another four years of Bush/Cheney. We know that McCain is with Bush 90% of the time. McCain has tried to distance himself from the Bush legacy. However, he now has Bush cronies running his campaign, he believes in Bush’s approach to the economy and on how the war should be conducted. He has a neo-con partisan on the ticket with him. So what’s the difference between Bush/Cheney and McCain/Palin – lipstick!!!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/04/ap-attacks-praise-stretch_n_123771.html

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/9/3/163229/8631/847/584963

Oh God... This is Really Bad

2008-09-03T21:41:00.000-07:00

We are back to the same ole nasty Republican attack machine. Sarah Palin's speech probably went well with hate-mongering righties but haven't this country had enough of this. We now have Dick Cheney in a skirt.

This woman didn't speak once about the economy. She listed putting an airplane on ebay as part of her experience. The Republicans are sick individuals. You can see that in the tone of this convention. Karl Rove has McCain running way too far to the right and Obama is perfectly clear... voting for McCain will be another four years of Bush.

At least now we can take the gloves off and attack Sarah Palin and show her as the fringe neo-con that she is. By Friday the Obama camp should have a nice punch in the face for this self-proclaimed pitbull with lipstick.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised that Republicans actually enjoyed this sophomoric tirade, but we are talking about people that believe Adam and Eve walked dinosaurs. These truly are the end of times.

The Palin Pick

2008-09-01T11:37:00.001-07:00

Now that we have had a few days to digest John McCain selecting Sarah Palin as his running mate, it is time to make an analysis with clear eyes. My initial thought was that Sarah Palin was an odd pick and didn’t make any sense. In politics, I have learned, there is always a method to the madness. By the reaction of my right-wing friends, McCain made up the enthusiasm deficit and has co-opted the “change” strategy.

Obviously the talking-points were sent out to combat the inexperience argument that has arisen with this selection. I find touting two terms as a mayor of a town smaller than most Chicago suburbs as executive experience adequate enough for Vice President of the United States far fletched – but the right-wingers are making it in earnest. The additional 18 months as governor of a small state is weak as well. However, the experience argument was one that was not working with Obama and it will not work with Palin. After 8 years of Bush, the American people are looking for something different. Obama represents something different and McCain/Palin ticket represents the same. From that perspective, the Palin pick was a good selection.

There is considerable risk to Palin as McCain doesn’t have a relationship with her and have only 60 days to sell her to the American people. Any stumbles by Palin will be magnified and will reflect more harshly on McCain. Just as Obama has little room for error, Palin’s learning curve will be much smaller. At some point she will have to show some political/policy gravitas that will show the American people that she is ready to take the helm as Commander in Chief should anything happen to McCain. Barak Obama had this same test which he answered on his trip to the Middle East and Europe.

How to Attack Palin

The obvious approach would be a direct attack. That is exactly the wrong approach. It is not to the Democrat advantage to have Palin the central issue in this race. John McCain is still the issue and Obama/Biden should spend very little time talking about Palin. The media will do that and surrogates will scrutinize her stance on the issues. Any missteps by Palin will air on the 24 hour cable channels. This is not to say we should underestimate Sarah Palin. As you recall, George HW Bush won with Dan Quayle as a running mate. But it is to say that Obama/Biden can look past her and remain focused on McCain.

Things to stay away from

There are rumors on the Internet stating that Palin is not the mother, but the grandmother of Trig. Now, that is something that I’d rather not deal with. It is something for the National Enquirer to scope out and if it is true… then I’m still not sure how much it matters.

The latest development regarding the pregnancy of her 17-year old daughter is causing a stir. I do not believe that John McCain was aware of this but although it may something about abstinence-only education, it really doesn’t say much about her as a mother. There are many American parents dealing with teenage pregnancy and it should be left as a personal matter for the Palin family.

The Vice President Debate

Low expectations are a burden but not true when it comes to debates and giving speeches. No on expects Sarah Palin to match Joe Biden’s grasp of foreign affairs. She can come off as a light-weight but not clueless. This is a true gift because it means that she has to stand their and not mangle the names of foreign leaders and show some basic understanding of geo-political issues. So she wins the debate if in the end we are saying “she is not a dunce”. That’s a pretty low bar that most political junkies could hurdle.

In the end…

We will see what happens but the race is still Barak Obama’s to lose.

What Would a Black President Mean to America

2008-07-31T09:11:00.000-07:00

This is the question that we so carefully avoid asking. Media pundits discuss the topic in coded language and many conservatives frame the subject in such a way as to stir fear in the American electorate. On any given day you will here terms like “radical”, “is he one of us”, “hard working Americans…” and so on. On the left we have Civil Rights leaders quietly providing tempered support to Obama and others suggesting that they would vote for McCain. Why? What would it mean if America elected Obama as president? Why are so many for fearful and others so hopeful? Lets start with the fears.

Why the Right is a afraid of a black President?
I would be wrong to say that most conservative are racist and this is the basis for their fears. However, I do believe that most racist are conservative so that is a part of it, but I don’t want to paint the entire conservative wing of America with a racist brush but all anecdotal evidence suggest that it is Obama’s race and not his policies that frighten them. The talking heads at Fox News and many rightwing talk show host focus primarily on Obama’s race. It is why they mention his middle name so often. Black American men have always been the pinnacle of the fears of white America. On an episode of the O’Reilly Factor where Bill was discussing immigration, he stated:

“break down the white, Christian, male power structure, which you're a part, and so am I, and they want to bring in millions of foreign nationals to basically break down the structure that we have."

This is the driving fear of a President Obama. The fear of losing absolute power.

Why the Left is afraid of a black President
The Civil Rights movement succeeded because it always had an Ace in the Hole: Human Rights. As progress was made on the Civil Rights front, many of the leaders saw their power and influence wane. My generation and the generation that followed began to question the strategy of Civil Rights organizations that didn’t seem to take into account the progress they made possible. The relevance of its leaders came into doubt. The fear now is that a President Obama would further erode their relevance; not to white America, but to African Americans and other minorities. There is also the legitimate fear that in response to Obama winning, white America will seek to reverse many of the gains made by Civil Rights legislation, using Obama as a means to suggest that all is well in the Republic.

Why the Right would welcome President Obama

The Left’s fear is the Right’s joy. Obama, they believe, would mean that there is no longer a need for Affirmative Action programs. Any claims of racism by minorities would have no legitimacy. Any social program to assist poor African Americans would no longer be necessary because by electing a black man as president, America has remedied its past inequities and the playing field is now level. This is the very claim that is being made with the Arizona ballot initiative end Affirmative Action.

Why the Left would welcome President Obama

Beyond the obvious of ending eight years of Republican rule in the White House, there is a feeling that many of the structural inequities in America will finally have an advocate in Washington. It will also symbolize the crowning jewel of the Civil Rights fight. I grew up hearing that I could do anything I wanted to do, but the President of the United States was the one caveat that stood as a reminder to the reality of racism in this country. When Obama accepts the Democrat nomination, part of the barrier will come down.

Conclusion

I am not sure if Obama will win but this is a perfect test. McCain is the perfect placebo is this case study on America because he does not have an enthusiastic base. This election is truly a reflection on Obama and how comfortable America is with electing a black man. Any other Democrat would win this election going away. So the only think separating Obama from the White House is his skin color and the effectiveness of the right to paint him as the scary black man. Some may believe that a loss would be devastating. Because of McCain’s policies, I believe that to be true.

Obama is a pioneer as is Hillary Clinton. Often times, pioneers do not reap the reward of their effort. Martin Luther King never saw the fruits of his labor. They will be political forces for some time to come. What would a President Obama mean for America? If nothing else, it would that Bill O’Reilly was right in one part: the white male Christian, power structure is breaking down. But instead of immigration – it is hill fellow Americans wielding the hammer.

Technocrati Tags: Barak Obama | Race | Conservatives

Supporting Obama

2008-07-16T07:46:00.000-07:00

The following is a letter is one meant to inspire Obama supporters.

A reader advisory

This article is my response to a Barack supporter in the United States who was
concerned about the the possibility of colour and race being used surreptitiously in concert with elements of the media, to disguise an attempt to deny Barack Obama a fair opportunity to achieve his destiny. The Presidency of the United States of America.

Dear Barack supporter

To be credible, I need to reveal one or two facts about myself before addressing the subject of your concerns. I am a 68 yr old white male and an Australian citizen of Irish and Scottish heritage! As such I am not eligible to vote in your election. However I support Barack Obama for election as the 44th President of the United States, simply because he is by any standard, the most talented, and qualified candidate from either side of the political divide.

Only one candidate has satisfactorily demonstrated the type of skills and leadership qualities people quite rightfully expect to see in a candidate for the office of President. Specifically, in Obama’s overwhelming favour these include: His sound policy positions, diplomatic skills, political skills, sage judgement, people skills, personal ethics, temperament, proven management skills and of course at 47 yrs, his age advantage, when considering the work load and pressures involved in managing the most demanding job in the world.

Back to the original question! The fact is, we like Barack. Personally I wouldn’t care if he was green, had stripes or that he might be lousy at table tennis. I suppose that last bit is possible! None of this matters. People feel close to Obama. They can see he likes people and genuinely cares for them. He touches us through his natural humanity and in the midst of the political crossfire, we admire his strength, resolve, integrity and even politeness. It’s a rare thing we witness.

People know that his words, while beautiful to contemplate, are not false. We are reassured by his easy demeanour and his truth is reflected in the sincerity of his smile. People feel these things. They are confident in his ability because he communicates a clear understanding as to what needs to be done as President to restore people’s faith in the future. This time people are endowing a special man with their trust in addition to their vote. They sense they have arrived at a special place and time in their country’s history. A time many thought would never happen in their lifetime. And they have made their choice. Obama knows this and is respectful of that great responsibility.

Quite openly he has challenged every American to make a commitment to their own future and that of their country. He has invited them to work with him in solving the country’s problems thereby suggesting that together they can build a brighter future for all Americans. A concept readily embraced by people who are voting for change. It is a willing contract between the people and a man of the people, who if they prevail, will be their next President. Such a pact is historic. People can’t wait to start.

Around the globe people are beginning to feel more safe, more connected and more positive about the future at the prospect of an Obama Presidency. Ask anyone in any country, anywhere. Polls are confirming it. People of all age, race, colour, creed and religion have joined together as one, to work and volunteer, most for the first time, to help bring positive change. The ripple effect of this positive momentum is building like a tsunami as it reaches out and begins to touch the lives of people everywhere. It feels like an election for a world President!

Many years ago I read ” The Power of One” an amazing and inspirational book by the famous Australian author Bryce Courtenay. They made a superb movie based on the book. Those of you who have had the privilege to read it will understand it’s relevance to this article.

Please play the short video before reading the ending.

As human beings seeking a better world, we recognise a gifted leader when we see one.
And as Oprah with deep belief said so aptly. ” He is the One ”

The only colour I see in Barack Obama, is the colour of the future! It is a hue which promises to make the world a better place.
And a Presidency which promises to make America bright and beautiful again.

John Hay
Brisbane. Queensland. Australia
Email: john@tellingthoughts.com
Video: “To the Dreamers” produced by: Akin Salawu - AkinScribe5

Copyright John Hay (All rights reserved).

This is a great letter!!! Go Obama

Video: Phil Collins + Eric Clapton

2008-06-05T06:47:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite songs by Phil Collins. Having Eric Clapton made it that much better.

Politics as Basketball: Primary Analysis

2008-06-03T08:17:00.000-07:00

The Lakers and the Celtics will play for the NBA Championship and I am actually looking forward to watching it. As the Democratic primaries come to an end (thank God), I think it is fitting to use a basketball analogy in my analysis of what occurred between Clinton and Obama.

Kobe Bryant in the greatest player in the game today, but he alone is not great enough to take a team the Finals. In recognizing this, Lakers management traded for Pau Gasol and brought in Derrick Fisher. They put together a decent bench and a solid team was formed. The Celtics did the same thing in bringing in Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen. The Celtics also changed their strategy to focus on defense knowing they had enough talent to score points.

We could consider Team Hillary as the Lakers. She had the best players in the world and really is the storied franchise of politics. Her team could score at will and had all the big stars in attendance to watch her take the championship. Her starters were the best and her basic strategy was to pound the opponent so by halftime, the game would be over. Team Obama came in as underdogs and put together a solid team and formed a strategy to play all four quarters and extend the rotation to utilize all of the players on the bench.

At tip-off, Team Hillary goes down early but is looking at the clock figuring that by halftime (Super Tuesday) they will be up far enough to rest the starters. Team Hillary ignores the pick-and-rolls (Hope and Change), solid defense (Internet donations) and the 10 man rotation (grass roots organizations) employed by Team Obama. As halftime nears (Super Tuesday), Team Hillary is exhausted (low on funds). As the horn ushers in the end of the first half, Team Hillary finds itself in a close game with Team Obama.

Team Hillary comes out the second half with a media blitz stating how their starters are outscoring Team Obama starters and how their organization has more season ticket holders (white working class). This, they claim, is the evidence of a true championship team. But Team Hillary has to rest its starters and finds that their bench, which they never figured on needing, isn’t prepared. Team Obama goes on a run (winning 11 contest in a row) and by the time the starters return (Pennsylvania & Ohio), she’s down and the Commission (Super Delegates) is ready to crown Barak and MVP of the finals.

In the end, Team Hillary starters outscored Team Obama’s starters. (that in primary states, Clinton won 1,557.5 delegates, 16 more delegates than Obama's 1,521.5.) But Team Obama’s bench outscored Team Hillary’s bench (In caucus states, Stewart found, Obama won 366 delegates, or 191 more than Clinton's 175.) Team Hillary paid little attention to their bench and though they may be the storied franchise; have the most season ticket holders; have the most banners hanging from the rafters; it is the final score that matters. It’s not about the team that wins the first and third quarter; or the team who starters scored the most points. It is about the final score. And Team Obama won in the category that matters the most – the delegate count.

Two Faces of Conservatism

2008-05-30T08:26:00.000-07:00

At war with Islam or not…

With Bush, the presidential election and the war in Iraq as its backdrop, the divergence of conservatism is amazing. On one side conservatives are pressing as hard as ever in trying to show support for the Iraq war. While this is an understandable position, it flies in the face of those conservatives that believe we are in a war against Islam. So how does one reconcile that we are in a war to bring democracy and stability to a country of Muslims and yet proclaim a war against these very Muslims? Why are we concerned with Mideast peace when we could simply have Israel rid the West Bank of Palestinians and be done with it? I do not understand this and I would like someone to explain it to me.

Winning... by how much we’ll never know

This winning in Iraq thing is something that I am debating on Dee’s blog. I hear the minions on Fox News state how we are winning in Iraq but the odd part about this is that we’re not fighting in Iraq. We’re standing in the gap to ensure that the real fight that is taking place doesn’t escalate. It is the Sunni and Shia sects that are fighting with the Kurds standing idly by waiting to proclaim independence. Outside of body counts, no one is providing the American people exactly what we are getting for our weekly $5 billion investment. Security? I imagine that we could achieve the same level of security we have today for far less money and strain on our military.

Supporting the troops…as long as they fight

Here is where the two faces of Conservatism really hit the road. The squabble over adorning patriotic symbols and spew “support the troop” slogans while our men and women in uniform struggle when they return from Iraq. The military is discharging soldiers for “personality dysfunctions” so they can avoid paying disability caused by PTSD. As stated earlier, no one has a problem spending $5 billion a week to send soldiers to war but balk at paying $50 billion over ten years to assist these soldiers after they’ve given their pound of flesh – or arms, legs, brains, and some their lives. How sickening is it to say to a soldier that after 4 years, 2 tours in Iraq, you still have not sacrificed enough to earn tuition cost to a public university? Sad.

More Signs of the Apocalypse... in a scarf

Michelle Malkin, noted right-wing, manic, fuming, windbag conservative blogger took issue with a scarf that Rachel Ray (my current crush focus) wore for a billboard promoting Dunkin Donuts. She suggested in her, “I’m not suggesting” way that Rachel’s choice of apparel may indicate that the Food Channel diva supports terrorist. Michele says the scarf is a kaffiyeh - a scarf worn by women in the Middle East.

The funny thing about this is that these same Conservatives get on black people for seeing conspiracies in everything. Ok… the government created to AIDS to kill black people – they laugh it off. Police brutality is a problem. They don’t see it – even when it comes with a video of a black man getting his azz whooped on a LA street or a plunger is pulled from the anus of a black man. But now we have a moonbat “suggesting” that the type of scarf someone wears could place them into the terrorist sympathizer camp. Watch out! Your next trip to Ambercrombie & Fitch could get you labeled and enemy combatant. I guess opium and terrorist aren’t the only exports from Afghanistan that we need to worry about.

So sad!!!

Card Services Scam

2008-05-12T15:00:00.000-07:00

Calling Scam

I received a call from today and when I answered it a voice recording stated that they had information regarding my credit card and could lower my interest rate. The recording instructed me to press “1” for a representative. I did that and a man came on the line and said he was with a company that helped people with more than $4000 in credit card debt. I’m not one of those persons so I asked him what company he was with. I got no answer. At that point I hung up.

I called the number back and got a disconnected message. Me being me, I did some snooping on the Internet and found out some information.

There are several scams offering unsuspecting consumers a reduced interest rate on their credit cards. They will ask you for you high balance credit card number and charge you a fee between $700 and $1000. This is a scam and you should not fall for. The golden rule still applies:

1. Do not provide your information to a stranger.
2. If it sounds too good to be true… it is.
3. Ask questions.

There are several phone numbers that they use but the most popular one is 954-424-9037

Check out these sites for more information:

http://honeypot.net/scam-calls-card-services
http://grantingersoll.com/2008/05/08/follow-up-on-consumer-services-and-warranty-activation-services-phone-calls/

Comic Strip: Scene One... Act One

2008-05-06T08:41:00.000-07:00

Thoughts on Barak & Rev. Wright

2008-04-30T10:03:00.000-07:00

At the end of every church service, the pastor of a southside church I attended would say, 'govern yourself accordingly'. This is what Rev. Wright failed to do. The Press Club is not a Sunday morning sermon and they are not apt to respond as a black congregation would. They brought him in looking for cannon fodder and it was his job to leave them with understanding. He was given the world stage to finally present himself in such a way that he would leave as a teacher and prophet and not as a demagogue or as an albatross around the neck of Barak Obama. He failed miserably.

For the past several months I have supported Rev. Wright and Barak Obama. I still support Rev. Wright but there comes a time when a friend must be set aside. Barak Obama is running for the most important and most powerful political office in the world. He will represent the will of the American people – all of her people. And her people have a problem with race relations. We know that. We have seen how they have used Barak’s middle name in disparaging ways. We have seen how they used a photo of him in native African apparel as a means to frighten people. And we have seen how they use Rev. Wright’s words as a means of communicating that Barak Obama is really a black separatist and cannot be trusted. This is the way of the world but we must be smart in combating the lies.

Rev. Wright spoke some truth at the Press Club. However, his rant about defending the black church was off. His statement about the government creating AIDS to kill black people is off. As an aside: the reason that black people can believe the government created AIDS is because the government has in the past purposely infected black people. Remember the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment? Finally, giving the Q-Dog sign might not raise an eye in the black community but on the world stage, it will.

As intelligent and articulate as we know Rev. Wright to be, he failed himself and Barak Obama. The Press Club wanted tabloid snippets and they should have been given intellectual diatribes. Questions should have been answered in such a way as to raise the dialogue from mere politics to the mental condition of this country with regards to race. That didn’t happen and it was a lost opportunity on the reverend’s part.

Barak Obama had no choice but to distance himself from his pastor. There are black people that will disagree with his move but again, Barak Obama is running for President of the United States. There is more at stake and sacrifices must be made for the greater good. In the black community, we tend to want to criticize individuals that don’t stay “down”. That leads to some placing themselves in situations that are not healthy for them. See Michael Vick. See Pacman Jones. And if he is not smart, we’ll see Derrick McFadden fall.

I’m sure it hurt Obama to have to denounce his pastor in such a public manner. I have family that I don’t care to be around but I would hate to have to make an announcement to the world about them. This is the way of politics. But this issue had to put to rest before the General Election and to make the Superdelegates comfortable. There will be some that will say Obama waited too long but they weren’t voting for him anyway. There was a need to have Rev. Wright speak for Rev. Wright and not the Obama campaign. It is now time to focus on the task at hand and that is winning this nomination and beating McCain in November. The attempts to use Rev. Wright as a weapon against Obama will continue - that’s politics. For the sake of both men and this country, I hope they use wisdom and govern themselves accordingly.

This Can't Fly

2008-04-09T10:35:00.000-07:00

I am about sick and tired of these airlines. I had a membership with ATA that would allow me to earn a free round trip ticket after 6 trips. The sorry airline decided to stop servicing Chicago when I reach four flights. I then turned to Southwest Airlines and they did a 2fer on me. Not only did they change their price structure that basically wiped out the minimum wage brothers special, they didn’t add any food for the a flight that now cost $100 more than it did this time last year. To make matters worse, they still haven’t fully changed the cattle call seating system. And we don’t have to mention the safety lapses. I tell you, these airlines are pissing on us like a 14 year old girl at an R Kelly summer camp retreat.

I am now a member with American Airlines and my experience with them has not been a very good one. I have yet to leave out of O’hare on time. In fact, I now go to the airport with the belief that I am entering the bowels of hell from which I may never return. The airlines cannot blame high fuel prices for their shoddy customer service.

Proof that Words Matter

2008-02-28T01:53:00.000-08:00

You have got to be kidding me. I was listening to NPR’s Talk of the Nation and Bill Cunningham was explaining his use of Barak Obama’s middle name. On the show Bill suggest that the use of Barak’s middle name was his way of honoring Sen. Obama in the same vein that one would say John F. Kennedy, or Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Now, how does one refer to Sen. Obama as “Now we have a hack, Chicago-style Daley politician who is picturing himself as change. When he gets done with you, all you’re going to have in your pocket is change”. Then go out of his way to highlight Sen. Obama’s ethnicity with this rant: “he great prophet from Chicago takes the stand and the world leaders who want to kill us will simply be singing Kumbaya together around the table with Barack Obama.”

This is the same man who said on his radio show:

"it would be a shock" if Barack Mohammed Hussein Obama can be elected the president of this country in these difficult terrorist times."

Yet, Bill Cunningham would have us believe that his use of Hussein, Sen. Obama’s middle name, was not a slight of hand insult to disparage Obama’s ethnicity and connect Obama to Islam. Of course the righties were up in arms using their usual straw man argument about being PC. “What’s wrong with mentioning his middle name,” they whine.

Imagine if you will that you are having a heated discussion with an unfriendly individual and in the middle of the verbal exchange the gentlemen pulls out a gun and he places it on the table in front of you. To any sane person, this would be considered an act of intimidation. You would not accept an explanation that he pulled the gun out because he wanted to show it to you because you seem like the type that enjoyed guns. And the fact that conservatives are insulting our intelligence with their defense of Bill Cunningham, further demonstrates why no sane black American should be a part of the Republican Party.

Words, Food for Thought

2008-02-21T08:26:00.000-08:00

I love dining and my selection of restaurants is based on the food, the ambiance because the experience is just as important as the food. I’m not at all interested about the workings of the kitchen so long as what comes out of the kitchen is a delight to my taste buds. Chicago has a lot of restaurants that serve the purpose of ridding one’s appetite, but only a select few have a certain je ne sais quoi about them.

It seems odd how the biggest complaint giving regarding Barak Obama is that he’s a great orator with no substance. Recently, Hillary Clinton stated that “Speeches don’t put food on the table. Speeches don’t fill up your tank, or fill your prescription, or do anything about that stack of bill.”

The GOP has placed aim on this same issue. They do so because let’s face it, no one would mistake Hillary Clinton or John McCain for great speakers. But what is missing in the attack of Obama is that words actually do matter.

If you think about the great leaders of our time, a familiar trait that many had was the ability to communicate with their followers. Not only did they communicate well with constituents and supporters, they inspired them. We don’t pay much attention to Winston Churchill’s day to day decisions during the war. But we do remember his speeches. Ronald Reagan wasn’t called the “Great Trickle Down Economics President”, he is referred to as “The Great Communicator”.

Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, John F Kennedy… all had a vision, political philosophies and ideas… but what set them apart was their ability to inspire, to lead to connect with masses. A leader must have the ability to influence people to action. There are no shortages of ideas and great leadership is not measure by how many bullet points one can come up with to solve problems.

There is a reason why millions tune in to watch the State of the Union address then completely ignore the Ways and Means Committee meetings that airs on C-Span: we have no interest in seeing the making of sausage nor do we want to listen to someone describe how sausage is made. Tell us about the dish. Tell us about the ambience; the music playing in the background, the wine selection. Inspire me to the point where I am anticipating a great dining experience.

I have no doubt that all of the candidates are capable of slaughtering a cow (i.e. present legislations to Congress) and we have two candidates saying with a bad Russian accent, “Come, watch me slaughter fat cow and I feed you,” and another saying “Our featured meats are seasoned to perfection over an open flame to capture their individual flavor to be savored in atmosphere reminiscent of the Rio Grande do Sul of Southern Brazil.”

All serving steak… but I’m dining at the Rio Grande do Sul… bone apatite.

Note: Part of the description comes from the Fogo De Chao website. If you have never dined at a Brazilian steakhouse, you are missing out on one of life’s greatest pleasures.

Conservalib: Pest Control

2008-02-13T09:35:00.000-08:00

Lately the CEO’s of ConservaLib have been receiving a lot of hate mail from pundits and from supporters of John McCain and Hillary Clinton. Many are upset at our pursuit of promoting independent thought and a principled approach to selecting a candidate to the electorate. We realize that they are just haters who are probably in need of a good night of boinking. But none the less, it is our duty to respond to these lowly sex deprived, pathetic little peons trying to get all up in our glamour.

In determining how we should respond, we found that the political environment in which we operate restricts the violent retribution to which we are accustomed. There is also the reality that there are many politicians, political junkies and political bloggers facing the same predicament with haters so a more universal response is in order.

Below you will find images that will help you effectively communicate with the haters and save emotional energy and type space for more productive use. Feel free to use them as you please.

Happy campaigning from your friends at ConservaLib.

CLICK ON THE IMAGE SEE THE LARGER IMAGE

Enthusiasm vs. Apathy

2008-02-05T11:03:00.000-08:00

There is an obvious distinction between the enthusiasm and apathy that doesn’t require much discussion. Enthusiasm connotes excitement in or for a particular event, subject or individual. Apathy is an indifference to or a lack of emotion for an event, subject or individual.

When it comes to political support, enthusiasm is a politician’s best friend next to incumbency. If a politician has neither, then pragmatism is the next best thing. The lowest forms of support are the anti-vote and apathy. The wild card support is the enthusiastic anti-vote which is a totally unreliable because those supporters can so easily become apathetic. And here is where we find Mitt Romney and John McCain.

At this stage of the race, John McCain has garnered pragmatic support. He is the likely nomination so many in the GOP are hedging their bets and throwing him their support. Mitt Romney, who has failed to generate an enthusiastic support, has now become the anti-McCain candidate. McCain, for his part, has mostly pragmatic supporters which is why he leads in the polls.

The problem I see with Mitt Romney’s campaign is that he is always running against McCain or against Hillary Clinton. This type of campaign gives the pragmatic voter an out because they are allowed a, “That may be true but…” statement to validated their pragmatic decision. He does nothing to motivate voters to support him because of what he stands for that is not in contrast to his opponents. Yes, he does have to at times contrast himself with McCain but as you see with McCain and Huckabee, they speak about what they believe in and what they stand for and if you disagree, then so be it. Rudy Giuliani ran on his own terms (as flawed as it was), but he did have an enthusiastic following.

Viewing what is happening on the Democrat side, there are excited voters and since the candidates are very close on policy, it is the intangibles that are motivating people to go to the polls and vote for either Clinton or Obama. If Mitt Romney were to win the Republican nomination, his largest block of voters would be the anti-Democrat or anti-Hillary block. That will not be enough to overcome the overwhelming excitement on the Democrat side. John McCain will have the same problem only he would face an anit-McCain block from his own Party.

No matter what the talking heads and prognosticators tell you, the Presidential election is more about ideology and emotions and has very little to do with policy. Most of us know that any policy presented by the President will go through a bureaucratic blender called the Congress. Though I am no fan of Ronald Reagan with regards to his policy, I readily admit that he was able to inspire Americans and that has been his lasting legacy. I seriously doubt we’ll get that from Mitt Romney and that is why he will not be the next president.

It's Official: I Won't Support Hillary

2008-01-31T08:15:00.000-08:00

I thought about this long and hard and I’ve come to the conclusion that I will not support Hillary Clinton for President unless Barak Obama is her running mate. This is a matter of principle because her campaign has systematically destroyed the excitement that our Party had. We were happy with all three candidates and would support whoever pulled off the nomination. But after Iowa, Hillary panicked and took to gutter politics.

With Rudy Giuliani out of the race, I have no stern opposition to any Republican candidate. I think any of them will be better than Bush and I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Also, I’m not about to vote for the lesser of two evils crap.

We have already seen that hatred for a candidate does not eclipse the apathy a Party has for its own nominee. That is why the Conservatives distrust of McCain will dampen the impact of their hatred for Mrs. Clinton. The Democrats were a lock for this election cycle and the Clintons destroyed.

Unless they do some serious outreach, they will not get my support come November.

Bush, Obama and Rudy

2008-01-29T09:43:00.000-08:00

State of the Union

It was nice to see Bush end his last State of the Union speech. It is the end of an era that I should hope is never repeated. I have never supported the President so it will come as no surprise that I didn’t think much of the speech. Basically, it was a laundry list of things he hasn’t accomplished and would like to now. For instance, he informed Congress to send him a bill with a 50% reduction in earmarks or face a veto. This from a President that didn’t veto a single spending bill until May 2007 after Congress added timelines to the Iraqi occupation.

Overall, I think the Bush Presidency is a failure on many levels. Most of it could probably be blamed on his management style of letting his subordinates have their way and stubbornly supporting them even when the evidence suggested otherwise.

Onward Obama

Obama’s victory in South Carolina was impressive but even more impressive is the events in the wake of Bill and Hillary’s attack of Obama. Though many may not feel that endorsements carry a lot of weight, as surely the case with celebrity endorsements, political endorsements are something entirely different. Endorsements by Ted Kennedy and now Democrat Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas do carry a lot of weight, particularly when it comes to political infrastructure and access to power brokers.

Barak Obama will have some support in the East Coast and will surely take Illinois and Georgia. He will then have to make some inroads in the Plain states and has gotten some important backing in Arizona. After Super Tuesday, Barak Obama should garner enough support to win the nomination even with Hillary having the support of the Party establishment.

Good Bye Rudy

I’ve never supported you and I am so glad that you made the idiotic move of not running in the early states. There are some that want to blame the media for ignoring you but you my friend did this to yourself. You are a one-note Johnny and even your record on 9/11 is suspect. Your appearances in the debates were lackluster and you pandering in Florida is transparent. I think you should refund everyone that paid you to speak to them on the aspects of leadership because you have proven that you don’t know what the hell you are talking about. I have only two words to say to you… I’ll Holla!!!

The Real Rudy on 9/11

2008-01-27T21:07:00.000-08:00

Advertising: ConservaLib Consulting & PR Inc.

2008-01-10T08:42:00.000-08:00

The following is a paid advertising and does not reflect the views of this blog or its commentors...

With such a difficult and challenging election cycle upon us, politicians are scrambling to find experienced campaign consultants to help navigate the treacherous road to the White House.

The current candidates have found the consultation of established political pundits lacking in creativity and disconnected from the true concerns of the average American.

To fill the void of insightful political punditry, two overwhelming intelligent, immensely creative, and at times violent bloggers have joined together to form a new political consulting firm.

ConservaLib Consulting and Public Relations Inc., founded by Liberal blogger, James Manning and Conservative blogger, Dee Vantuyl, brings a fresh approach to political consulting and public relations manipulation. Between them, they have assaulted Presidents, fought with the press and James Manning has even gotten his ass whooped by the President’s mother.

This unique experience enables us to provide insight to a campaign that other consulting firms cannot. The proof is in the results of candidates who didn’t follow our advice.

Dennis Kucinich

Dennis: I think people need to know about the time I saw a UFO and…
James: (Stands up, reaches across the desk and slaps Dennis in the mouth) Shut the hell up about those UFO’s!!!
Dennis: But I saw…
Dee : (Grabs Dennis by the throat) Man the hell up you sorry piece of Liberal feces.
Dennis: (Crying) But why can’t I…
James: Because it’ll make you look crazy. Its bad enough you’re short. You mention those gotdamn UFO’s one more time and I beat the living hell out of your punk ass.
Dennis: (Crying profusely) Moooooommmmmyyyyyyy

THE RESULT

Ron Paul

Dee : Our study shows that Republican voters are not resonating with your message.
Ron: They will… they will I tell you.
James: Did you take your meds?
Ron: I don’t need them… I’m as sane as a cow pissing on a flat rock.
(James and Dee look at one another)
James: (Turning back to Ron) What the fu…
Dee : Whatever, you need to take your meds before the next debate.
Ron: Absolutely not… they make me wet my pants… and say crazy stuff
Dee : How much crazier can it be?
Ron: I start talking about fairies and leprechauns and how they want to take over the world and…

THE RESULT

Fred Thompson

James: Ok Fred, we’ve been going over this for an hour and you haven’t said anything.
Dee : We’re only trying to help. You’re the best conservative in the race but you’re just not…
( Dee notices that Fred’s head in bobbing up and down. There is saliva forming in the corner of his mouth)
Dee : (looking at James) Is he… Is he asleep?
James: (Taking note of Fred’s form) Well I’ll be damn… this bastard is asleep.
( Dee stands up and walks around the desk to stand by Fred’s side. She raises her arm then lowers her elbow into the side of Fred’s head.)
Dee : (Yelling) Wake your punk ass up!

THE RESULT

Joe Biden

Dee : Joe, I think you could do better if you tweaked your message.
Joe: Tweak my message?
James: Yeah, I think you’re a little winded and…
Joe: I’m not winded. I’m just telling the people that’s it’s about time we have the courage to stand up and say to the president ‘Mr. President, you have not only put us in harm’s way you have harmed us. I’m so tired of hearing on this floor about courage. Have the courage to tell the Administration, ’stop this ridiculous policy you have. So as long as the president keeps us on this ridiculous path, taking us off a cliff — I ask my colleagues, does anybody think they’re going to be able to sustain keeping American forces in Iraq , at 160,000, for another year and a half? How many times are we going to ask those 175,000 to rotate, three, four, five, six, seven times? Mr. President, you’re leading us off a cliff. Stop! I think this is a powerful message.
(James and Dee sit with glazed eyes)
Dee: I hate you.
Joe: Mr. Manning, what say you?
James: Huh?

THE RESULT

Don't make the mistakes these dumb bastards made. ConservaLib Inc. can increase your poll numbers, donations and political viability with sound advice from experts who've been there. Make the call today and become next in line to rule the free world (or what few remaining freedoms the Patriot Act allows).

ConservaLib Consulting & Public Relations Inc.
1-800-PIMPN08
Operators Are Standing By

Call today and we'll throw in the New York Times Best Seller, "Lewinsky Technique: Oral secrets to the Oval Office".

HBCU's: Why the Hate

2008-01-09T11:01:00.001-08:00

Once again TownHall.com has presented me with an asinine column written this time by a black man – but to their credit, moronic thoughts are treated equally at TH. This month’s offending moron is Walter E. Williams with a column entitle “Black Colleges”. Mr. Williams cites a study that recounts the experience of a black professor who taught at Stillman College. The professor in the study had a bad experience with the some students at the school, and as TH columnist are apt to do, he extrapolated this ONE professor’s experience to bring an indictment against all HBCU’s.

Mr. Williams notes that only 7 out of 53 HBCU’s have graduating rates above 50%. What Mr. Williams doesn’t tell you is that over the past 10 years, 27 of the top HBCU have seen their graduation rates improve. But according to Williams, “Given these numbers, the preparation and performance of students at most black colleges, one has ask whether these colleges have outlived their usefulness.”

This statement is the opening for bigots to spew their thoughts.

Jim Write:

When is Hollywood going to make a movie about Professor Maxwell's experience. I
guess The Great Debaters is doing well by bringing to the world's attention what a racist place the US was and to Hollywood and the liberal press still is! The bigotry of low expectations! I couldn't agree more!

Bhutto Chimes In with:

Predominantly black high schools are holding pens for juvenile delinquents. Why shouldn't "historically black" ghetto colleges be becoming the same?

Then there is Buzkat:

Dr. Williams describes to a tee the perfect situation that dem/libs want for the black population. Keep them dumb, lazy and on the Democrat plantation in exchange for a few government tidbits. This way only lip service needs to be paid to the concept of equality and liberty for all. Thank you, Lilly, and all the rest of you libs who are destroying this country.

Finally, Loca highlight the main point of many folks:

book "Losing the Race". a book about the unpleasant truth behind black underachievement, the root being the continuing victimization causing a seperation from anything not authentically Black. That includes education. He shows how these black colleges imbue victimization on black students who going in suffered no harm from whites, many coming from successful middle class families. But coming out they have taken on angry victimization. For their own good, perhaps these black colleges have served their usef in a time past but are now only doing harm.

Ok, now that I’ve served you a nice dose of ignorance, how about some real facts regarding HBCU’s.

First, historically black refers to just that; these institutions were created at a time when black people were excluded from state institutions. They are not institutions exclusive to only black people and many black people are attracted to them because of the environment that an HBCU provides for a black student. How does an institution of higher learning ever outlive its purpose? BYU, Notre Dame and Loyola Marymount cater to a specific demographic and no one would suggest that they’ve outlived their purpose.

It is well documented that some HBCU’s have some problems that stem from a lack of leadership within those institutions. A valid discussion regarding HBCU’s is with financing and if they are in a position to create an educational environment that will provide students with the skills to compete in a global economy. We could talk about the possibility of institutions merging or creating partnership with state universities.

But TH and most of its commentors do not concern themselves in-depth analysis of the issues. No, they would rather take advantage of another opportunity to state just how ignorant we black folk are and to that, they lay the blame on Jesse Jackson and other “black leaders”. Why don't we look at some facts regarding HBCU's.

THE FACTS!!!

* HBCUs are responsible for producing approximately 23 percent of all bachelor's degrees, 13 percent of all master's degrees, and 20 percent of all first professional degrees earned by African Americans annually.

*Nine of the top ten colleges that graduate most of the African American students who go on to earn Ph.D.s are HBCUs.

*More than 50 percent of the nation's African American public school teachers and 70 percent of African American dentists and physicians earned degrees at HBCUs.*Over half of all African American professionals are graduates of HBCUs

*In 2000, Xavier University in New Orleans individually produced more successful African American medical school applicants (94) than Johns Hopkins (20), Harvard (37), and the University of Maryland (24) combined. Two other HBCUs also placed in the top ten producers of medical school applicants, including Morehouse (33), and Spelman (38).

*Spellman and Bennett Colleges produce over half of the nation's African American women who go on to earn doctorates in all science fields; more than produced by the Ivy League's Seven Sisters combined (Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Radcliffe, Smith, Wellesley, and Vassar Colleges).

*African American science degree holders: agriculture (51.6 percent), biology (42.2 percent), computer science (35 percent), physical science (43 percent), and social science (23.2 percent).

*HBCUs produce 44 percent of all African American bachelor's degrees awarded for communications technology, 33 percent of bachelor's degrees awarded for engineering technology, and 43 percent of bachelor's degrees awarded for mathematics, and

*African American baccalaureates in mathematics and statistics: Morehouse College

So, you tell me if HBCU’s have outlived their purpose. Based on this information, can we not say that Loco is indeed crazy when he states that HBCU's are doing more harm than good? I say yes.

Discuss It
1. Should we bring an end to HBCU's
2. Does the existence of Historically Black colleges constitute racism on the part of black people

Election Notes - Iowa

2008-01-07T06:53:00.000-08:00

The Presidential election is underway in earnest and already many things have come to light. First, I was absolutely wrong about Barak Obama not being ready for prime-time. In fact, he is prime-time and his strong showing in Iowa has eliminated all doubt whether America would elect a non-white President. I firmly believe that she would and Mr. Obama is just the man to lead this seismic shift in American history.

I was also wrong about the death of the influence that evangelicals have on the Republican Party. They are as strong as ever and although Mike Huckabee may not resonate across many other states, there are enough social conservatives willing to hold on to their principles that Huckabee is now a viable candidate to represent the GOP come November.

There isn’t enough time between the Iowa and New Hampshire elections for candidates to audible their strategy. This does not bode well for Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton. Both are in a position where New Hampshire becomes a must win situation, more so for Hillary than for Romney. Huckabee must simply make a strong showing then hope he can raise enough funds to compete in the states that are voting on February 5.

Rudy Giuliani has placed his bet on Florida but I think that is not going to go well for him since the GOP stripped Florida of half of its delegates. So, morally it may come as a victory but if Huckabee continues to surge and McCain stays competitive, then Giuliani could find himself out of the race before he ever got in.

Overall, this is going to be a very exciting election cycle and my prediction is that Barak Obama will win the Democrat nomination. I’m still not sure about the Republican nominee. That will become clearer after the February 5 primaries.

Ebonics: A Cover for racist thoughts

2007-12-09T16:16:00.000-08:00

There is something amazing going on with the Ebonics debate. It has gone from a movement to improve reading scores of African-American children to a being a façade in covering racist attitudes. Townhall’s columnist, Mike Adams, who has a habit of making racist comments under the guise of political satire, recently wrote an article called “Hooked on Ebonics”. The article made absolutely no sense except to highlight the fact that the writer is irked by the existence of ethnic and racially defined social groups.

One of the groups offered a scholarship for students that spoke Ebonics. In response to that, Mr. Adams writes an email littered with what he deems as Ebonics.

I be really getting tired o' deez automatic responses. Could ya please answer muh ma f****n serious inquiries about yo' program? Ever since da outbreak o' wildfires in Malibu, California, I gots felt uh calling ta give up everything - muh ma f***n job, muh ma f****n home, an' most o' muh ma f****n gat collection ta come he`p whitey California liberals who gots lost mo' in recent weeks than most peeps gain in uh lifetime.

Given dat I be bi-lingual, though not bi-sexual, I feel dat I gots mo' ta offer than da average applicant who speaks only one language. Given muh ma f****n linguistic diversity, I would be ready, willing, an' able ta extend he`p ta those in minority communities once whitey liberals in Southern California iz back on they feet ag'in.
Please take muh ma f****n inquiries mo' seriously than ya gots ta dis here point.

Mike Adams
Word!

After being challenged by a black professor for his antics, Mr. Adams was forced to reveal even more of his racist thoughts in a column entitled, “Ebonic Plague: The New Black Death”. In his column, Mr. Adams recalls a black secretary that could not spell or write very well but was not released from her job because her supervisor considered her communication deficiencies as a cultural problem, not to be used against her. To most people this makes no sense and I don’t know many black people that would support this logic.

But Mr. Adams can’t contain his racisms and suggest that “laziness is the main reason why blacks refuse to criticize the obvious absurdity of Ebonics.” To provide himself some cover, he pens this:

Of course, many people will say that it is not politically correct to suggest that some blacks are lazy. But the existence of a stereotype in no way proves the non-existence of cases conforming to the stereotype. There really are gay hairdressers, you know.

It's a nice try but it falls flat. A racist will always justify their racism by first making a sweeping generalization that truly defines how they feel then narrow their views so they are attributed to an individual rather than an entire race. So it is up to the rest of us to point out the facts. First, Ebonics has never had widespread support in the black community. This is supported by the fact that only the Oakland and Los Angeles school districts have ever formally recognized Ebonics. And many parents… yes black parents, disapproved.

Second, the proponents of Ebonics did not look to teach Ebonics and place it on par with English. They sought to recognize the way in which many black children speak and use that structure as means to help those students make the transition to Standard English. So to suggest that Ebonics is a method to not bother with learning to read or write Standard English is disingenuous, and further illustrates your ignorance and racist ways.

Finally, in Mr. Adams haste to use his newfound ammunition to spew his racist thoughts, he apparently didn’t research the scholarship (rather lazy of him) to understand that the use of Ebonics was in reference to the original name of the USC Black Alumni Association.

Mike Adams simply used this discussion as a means to express his racist views and provided a platform for other racist to interject their racist views as well. Townhall.com has become a bastion of white supremacy discourse disguised as an “exchange of ideas”. The article is crap as is the case with most of the columns written by Mike Adams.

Mass Appeal Radio - 12/08/2007

2007-12-07T08:29:00.000-08:00

Mass Appeal Radio 12/8/07

Hosted by: James Manning, Che Johnson and Danielle Hylton
Time: Saturday, 12pm (CST)
Website: massappealradio.com

Relationships

Last week we ended the show with a discussion on relationships. We’ll continue on that topic in the next show and will focus on starting a relationship on a strong note.

The idea of starting strong is a philosophy in many aspects of life. The football team that wins the coin toss looks to score first to gain momentum. Race car drivers compete for pole position and marathon runners look to get out in front of the pack in order to set the pace for the rest of the field.

A good relationship requires a strong start as well and we’re going to explore the elements that make for that start. We’ll also highlight some of the traits that may indicate if the person running up your anytime minutes has pinhead potential.

Interaction:
1. Do you have rules or guidelines to judge whether or not you should take the next step with someone?
2. What are some of the red flags that you look for when you first start dating?
This Christmas

With the Christmas season upon, it is only appropriate that we take a moment to bask in the excitement and anticipation of the gifts we’re surely to receive (unless you’re expecting a gift from me). Our hostess, Danielle Hylton, had never heard of the Heat Miser. People, not exposing your kids to “A Christmas without Santa Clause” and “Nestor the Long-eared Donkey” constitute as an act of depraved indifference to human life. STOP THE MADNESS!!!

Be a part of the show:

If you would like to get in on the conversation, call 877-864-4869 and be a part of the fun. You can leave your comments to the interaction questions on our blog. I’ll read the best comments on the air. Tune in tomorrow at 12pm (CST).

Upgrading the Blog

2007-12-05T22:07:00.000-08:00

I've grown tired of the old blog look. For 2008 I am going with a fresh look. I'll have the links back up shortly and I'm adding some new links as well. I should have it completed within a week.

Lets Play Jeopardy: Sherri Sheppard

2007-12-04T18:01:00.000-08:00

What is a mix of ignorance and Christian fundamentalist?

Apparently Sherri Sheppard believes, as she so ignorantly stated on “The View”, that nothing predates Christians.

Whoopi: Keep in mind probably when he was around there was no Jesus going on.
Sherri: No, they had Christians back then.
[Cross talk]
Sherri: They had Christians, they threw them to the lions.
[Cross talk]
Whoopi: I think this might predate that.
Joy: They believed in polytheism.
Sherri: I don’t think anything predated Christians.
Joy: No, the ancient Greeks were earlier. It went Greeks, Romans, then Christians.
Sherri: Jesus came first before them.
Whoopi: [Gently, bless her] Not on paper.

There are just too many things that I can say about this but it seems to me that she has never bothered reading any chapter of the Bible before Acts. But someone should tell Sherri that Jesus was a Jew... Oh, and they should also remind Sherri that the Egyptians believed in many Gods, as did the Greeks and Romans.

The Irony of Democracy at Work

2007-12-03T07:08:00.000-08:00

Imagine this: You put to the voters a referendum that allows the President to handpick representatives, suspend the Constitution and all an individual to become President for life (i.e. King). When the referendum goes down in defeat, you then claim it as evident that democracy is working. Irony at it’s finest.

Chavez told reporters at the presidential palace that the outcome of Sunday's balloting had taught him that "Venezuelan democracy is maturing." His respect for the verdict, he asserted, proves he is a true democratic leader.
"From this moment on, let's be calm," he proposed, asking for no more street violence like the clashes that marred pre-vote protests. "There is no dictatorship here."
A senior U.S. official hailed Chavez's referendum defeat Monday as a victory for the country's citizens who want to preserve democracy and prevent Chavez from having unchecked power.
"We felt that this referendum would make Chavez president for life, and that's not ever a welcome development," U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told reporters in Singapore. "In a country that wants to be a democracy, the people spoke, and the people spoke for democracy and against unlimited power."

It is clear that Dee and I may have to make another visit to President Chavez.

Our Young Black Men

2007-12-02T17:45:00.000-08:00

I am currently writing an article on the ancient Egypt and the influence it had in Greek Philosophy. The reason that I am writing the paper is because I am in a running debate on the current status of the black community. In the past three weeks two incidents have occurred that I believe define the problem that is facing the black community.

The first situation involves the murder of Washington Redskins player, Sean Taylor. Apparently, Sean Taylor was killed by several young men that he was familiar with. News accounts suggest that one of the men worked on Mr. Taylor’s lawn and another young man charged is the cousin of a man that is dating Sean Taylor’s sister. So, this was not a random break-in. They were aware of the contents of his home and a simple burglary turned into murder.

The second incident occurred here on the University of Chicago campus. Three young men, all under the age of 20, went of a robbery spree. They robbed several students when they happened up on Amadou Cissie and after robbing him, shot him in the chest. Amadou had just defended his dissertation was to receive his doctorate in chemistry.

What is similar in both of these cases is the fact that both involved teenagers are young men. At some point we are going to have to address this issue in a substantial way. This past summer a group of angry African Americans protested after a police officer shot and killed a young man. At the same time, the neighborhood was reeling from a series of shootings that left over seven young people dead. The only emotion displayed by the community was a vigil.

How is it that we react so angrily when a police officer takes the life of a black child but have no reaction when young black people slaughter themselves? It’s time out for talking. Marching is an inadequate response. In the hours before and after school there should be two black men on every corner within a mile of every school. We should have volunteer security guards at the parks and walking the neighborhoods. Every block should have a block club. We should develop a “Rights of Passage” tradition that will transition boys to men.

It is not that we should ignore police brutality but we should not focus on that issue to the detriment of our ability to recognize the self-inflicted wounds.

Open For Discussion

2007-11-30T08:01:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is the first radio show and we’ll discuss four issues:

The Nature of Black Music
Barry Bonds as Scapegoat
Dating: Men defining how they are unique
Strange / Crazy names for drinks

Topic 1: Rap Music

I have discussed this topic on my blog many times before [past post]. There have been no significant developments in the music industry thus far that warrants a change of heart. Although there are few bright spots with Kanye West and Common, hip hop in general is a creative wasteland. BET had a series of town hall discussions concerning this matter and the artist, T.I. and Nelly regurgitated the same excuses: we’re just talking about what’s going on in the hood. T.I. made one good point in that if he were to rap about social matters and didn’t put half naked women in his video, BET wouldn’t play it.

Rap artist are making that music that kids are buying. By any measure, these kids are buying beats and hooks. An examination of the lyrics will show that there really is no artistry behind the music. Below are the lyrics to Gorilla Zoe’s Hood Nigga:

and i dont need a scale for the work
i can eyeball purp, i am not you jerk
hatin on me will make your situation worse
you dont wanna take a ride in that long black hearse
all eyes on me, shawty im a bomb first
im the truth and they say the truth hurts
Hustle mean hard work, hard work
if you scared go to church
man this rap shit is easy, every beat i get i murk

It would not be fair to compare Gorilla Zoe with BDP or Grand Master Flash so I’ll compare him to some of the gangsta music from the 80’s.

They say I'm violent,they should watch their T.V.
They say I'm brutal,they should check their P.D.
You made me,now your kids rave me
I rap about the life that the city streets gave me
Murder,intrigue,somebody must bleed
Miami Vice is small time,L.A's the big league
From the rollin' 60's to the nickerson "G"
Pueblos,grape street,this is what I see
The jungle,the 30's,the V.N.G.
Life in L.A. ain't no cup of tea

This is from Ice-T “Squeeze the Trigger”. Both songs come from a thug/gangsta mentality but there is a distinct difference in what they deliver.
We’ll also get into the role that women play in hip hop in comparison to what their roles were in the early stages of rap music.

Topic 2: Blame Game

This is a real simple topic: Barry Bonds is the scapegoat. Baseball had a serious crisis before the homerun race between Mark Maguire and Sammy Sosa. We now know that Mark Maguire used steroids or some performance enhancement drug. Personally, for a sport like baseball I don’t see how it makes that much of a difference. Hitting a baseball is very difficult and maybe Barry’s added strength got a few over the fence that may not have gone, but c’mon… the man was headed to the Hall of Fame anyway. And I don’t even want to hear about Babe Ruth. He played in an era where he wasn’t competing against the best athletes.

I'll be reading comments on the air so leave your thoughts and check out the show.

MASS APPEAL RADIO

My Radio Show

2007-11-28T07:08:00.001-08:00

After being a guest on Dee's radio show, I submitted an idea for my own show. The show will air Saturday at noon (CST). I'm pretty excited about it. I'll be back to blogging three times a week and I also have some writing partners so the content of the blog should be fresh. I have a websited dedicated to the show. MassAppealRadio.com Check the site out and I hope you guys listen to the show.

Death in Vanity

2007-11-13T08:54:00.000-08:00

I was surprised when I heard the news that Donda West, mother of rapper, Kanye West died. But when I heard that she may have died due to complications from plastic surgery, I found myself appalled. Any surgery is risky but I don’t think people are fully aware of the risks that go along with plastic surgery. The website, SmartPlasticSurgery.com list the following:

• abnormal heart rhythm
• airway obstruction
• blood clots
• brain damage
• death
• heart attack
• malignant hyperthermia
• nerve damage
• stroke
• temporary paralysis

Considering that cosmetic surgery is an elective procedure, I could never see myself volunteering to go under the knife. But I understand that there are people who are really not happy with their bodies. The question I have is:

Would you have cosmetic surgery?
If so, what about your body or looks would you seek to alter?

Box Office Politics

2007-11-12T07:38:00.000-08:00

Why do conservatives make such a big deal out of box office numbers? Over the past month conservatives have been discussing two moves: Bella and Lions and Lambs. They have used the box office numbers of these two movies as the basis for their arguments regarding Hollywood’s leftist-leanings and how it is ignoring the values of the American movies-goers.

Bella is a relatively small film about a young waitress who finds out that she is pregnant and now must choose between aborting the child or struggle as a single mother. She chooses to have the child and story unfolds. The movie has received rave reviews and won the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival. It had a limited release and all indications are that it is a very good movie and its average gross per screen indicates that it will be a financial success. The number of screens on which it is showing has increased steadily over the last 3 weeks.

Conversely, Lions for Lambs – which I had no interest in seeing – did not do very well at the box office as expected. Having three major stars (Tom Cruise, Meryl Streep, Robert Redford), one would think that it is a blockbuster in the making. However, I saw the previews and there was no way that I was going to waste my time with it. Not because of its message, but simply because it didn’t look like a very good movies. Apparently, a lot of people thought as I did.

Do the success of Bella and the flop of Lions for Lambs reflect the values of Americans or their movie taste? I would suggest that it is the latter. If Lions for Lambs was a quality film on par with Heat (Al Pacino and Robert Di Niro) or Hotel Rwanda (Don Cheadle), it would have been a runaway hit. But the story was not interesting and probably and the previews left the impression that that director was heavy-handed in his excution - essentially, putting more energy in making a point than making an entertaining film.

There are some that argue that Bella could be a box office hit had “leftist Hollywood” had the courage to give it a wide release. However, as is the case like many independent films, it has to build a buzz as was the case with Like Water for Chocolate, Sideways, Little Miss Sunshine, and the Sundance favorite, Hustle and Flow.

I do believe Hollywood pushes social commentary with its movies and television programming. African Americans fought the negative imagery and stereotypes portrayed in films and on television for decades. In many instances, we are still fighting negative portrayals of black people. But the success or failure of that fight is not based on box office numbers, nor should it be.

It would not be wise to praise the studios for their movie selections. The same studio that produced the atrocious Booty Call also produced the critically acclaimed Finding Forrester. In the case of Bella, it would not be wise to suggest that the studio has seen the error of its ways and is now supporting life affirming movies – as it is the same studio that has given us one of the most graphic slasher flicks with its Saw series.

There are very few movies that have a social intent other than attracting as many eyeballs as possible. Often times those intentions are well known as is the case with any Michael Moore movie and the Left Behind series. And they tend to do very well at the box office. Most movies, however, the box office numbers are a reflection of marketing, screen numbers and if the movies are worth the price of admission (and the ungodly cost of popcorn).

BCS Is Crap

2007-10-15T09:10:00.000-07:00

So the BCS standings are out and I am not impressed. I love Big Ten football but Ohio State is not the best college team in the country. In fact, I would place OSU no higher than 4th in the rankings. The BCS is crap and should be done away with. This would be my rankings of the top ten teams in the country.

1. LSU: They lost to a very good Kentucky team that played a flawless game unlike USC that lost to Stanford. Reward Kentucky but I give LSU a pass.

2. California: I still believe this is the best team in a very competitive PAC Ten conference.

3. Oklahoma: They still have to prove something but I think they could be most teams in the country.
4. Ohio State: They are a good team but their schedule is too soft for me to think they are a number one team.

5. South Carolina: The defense is crazy and they’ve shown they that can play with the best.

6. South Florida: If they beat Rutgers and Cincinnati, I will bump them up in the poll.

7. Kentucky: This is a great team and if you take away the loss to South Carolina you could make the case for a higher ranking.

8. Oregon: I like this team and they have the talent to beat anyone in the top 25.

9. Boston College: Haven’t played anyone. I’m a wait and see with this team.

10. West Virginia: I have no feelings regarding this team. They’re ok but probably not much better than the next 7 teams ranked below them.

11. Virginia Tech: See West Virginia.

12. Arizona State: How the BCS got them in the Top Ten I’ll never know. The next two games will show us exactly what’s going on out their in the desert.

13. Thru 25: Who cares? Put any of the next ranked 30 teams in any order from here and a case could be made.

Rudy G. & the GOP

2007-10-12T09:04:00.000-07:00

I haven’t discussed politics in a while but I was over at Chatter’s blog and she has some very interesting post on Rudy Guiliani and his lack of support from James Dobson of Focus on the Family. Rudy is pro-abortion, pro gay marriage, anti-gun, borderline incestor (he married his second cousin), three-time divorcee who has no relationship with his children and has a host of other issues of ill-repute. Yet, he is leading the race for the GOP nomination.

James Dobson’s issue is that Rudy supports a woman’s right to choose. This one issue is enough to not support his presidential bid and has threatened to back a third party candidate in 2008. This is causing some infighting in the GOP ranks and I personally think it is a necessary fight. I think Chatter’s argument is surmised with this quote:

“…this was about right and wrong and that he just couldn't allow Hillary to become president for the sake of this country and the moral issues that he holds dearly.”

An opposing view from Paul, one of many commentors on Chatter’s blog who makes the argument for not supporting Rudy based on his abortion stance:

“For most of us, the only thing we can actually do to advance the pro-life cause is vote for pro-life candidates. If we're voting for a pro-abortion candidate, then in what sense are we pro-life?”

Then there is the comment by CajunTiger to rebuff Paul’s statement:

Paul you haven't answered the MAIN point in this whole "debate". If Rudy does win the nomination, how does not supporting him help the pro-life cause at all? I have no problem with you backing another Repub in the primaries as hard as you want, but if Rudy does win the nomination and Dobson has his way, say hello to President Clinton

There are several factors to consider here. First, fiscal conservatives are upset that social conservatives have dominated the Party for the past ten years. The Republican Party has controlled the White House and Congress for six years and got little to show for it. Dick Army, a noted fiscal conservative is openly challenging James Dobson to wrestle the control that Focus on the Family has forged over the years (source: http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/10/20/news/gop.php) . A Rudy Guiliani nomination would strengthen fiscal conservatives.

Although I can understand Chatter supporting Rudy to avoid a Hillary presidency, in doing so, I believe she and those of like mind undercut their influence in the Party. If Rudy wins the nomination and gets significant support from social conservatives, the like of James Dobson will be silenced for decades. It will set a precedent and it will embolden Rudy to push his agenda which is very different from that of social conservatives in the Republican Party. Future GOP presidential candidates will feel confident in forging a centrist position earlier in the campaign to look electable knowing that not electing a Democrat is the primary motivating factor driving his/her support in the general election.

Where Paul’s stance falls short is that it doesn’t take into account that politics is a game of positions and pragmatism. And the last thing any constituency can afford is to relinquish their position. By supporting a third party candidate, social conservatives will render their voice mute.

The great thing about being a Democrat is that their so many factions that make up the Party that none have the ability to truly dominate the Party’s agenda; which is not at times because Democrats seem to do whatever the hell they please after their elected. But this infighting is the most interesting story in this election cycle and should continue for several elections cycles.

Not a Good Start

2007-09-10T07:25:00.000-07:00

I was not very happy with what I saw from the Chicago Bears yesterday. There was a lot of anxiety about the play of Rex Grossman leading up to the game but he played well enough to win. The one interception was the result of Benard Berrian giving up on his route.

The defense did a good job holding LT but when you turn the ball over 4 times, eventually a team like San Diego is going to capitalize on it. Next week Kansas City comes to town and I expect the Bears to hold Larry Johnson in check as well. KC's defense doesn't come close to San Diego's so I expect the Bears to move the ball.

What really concerns me is the running game. I thought it was a mistake to let Thomas Jones go and my fears were realized. Cedric Benson is not a bad running back but he doesn't strike me as a premiere NFL rusher. Maybe he will prove me wrong but I doubt it. We will see.

Friday's Top Ten - Celebrities I Aint Feelin

2007-05-04T09:32:00.000-07:00

The world famous Friday’s Top Ten returns to the blogaspere. I was talking with a co-worker about actors and actresses and we got to talking about Taye Diggs. I wasn't a big fan of this guy but over the years he’s grown on me. I can stand him now, and in fact, I think he’s a cool cat.

But, there are those celebrities that I just can’t wrap my head around. There is something about them that just irks me. Maybe it’s their talent (or lack thereof), attitude or persona. Either way, I just ain’t feelin’ ‘em.

So, today I present to you the Top Ten Celebrities… I Aint Feelin’

10. Joan Collins – I know she’s funny and Johnny Carson thought highly of her, but I have never enjoyed listening to the cackle-bag. She’s overbearing and I hate the sound of her voice. The fact that she has the audacity to leave of with a second generation of cackle-bags makes her worthy of this list.

9. Rosie O’Donnell – What’s the big deal about this woman. She has mediocre comedic skills, so-so acting skills, and overall, has a horrid personality. I’ve never liked her in anything and I certainly don’t give a damn about her opinion. I can’t even give her credit for being a liberal.

8. Jada Pinkett-Smith – I hate that she is on the list because I loved her when she was on “A Different World”. But over the years she has morphed into something that I find unrecognizable – and disturbing. It seems that she is always “on”. Tavis Smiley interviewed her several years ago and she came off as though she was the second coming of Angela Davis. I haven’t dug her since. The rock band thing doesn’t help.

7. Bill Bellemy – He was funny on the Def Comedy Jam – and then he made Booty Call. That diminished him in my eyes. After a few interviews and his role in “The Brothers”, he fell out of favor with me. In fact, subsequent appearances have only solidified my unraveling fandom.

6. Shemar Moore – I tried several times to give this brother the benefit of the doubt. I didn’t want to seem as though I’m hating on him because of his looks. But over the years he has proven himself to be void of any talent. His not being able to keep his shirt doesn’t raise any confidence in me that his career will last beyond his ability to keep himself in shape.

5. Everyone in G-Unit – It’s no surprise that I don’t like these guys. I don’t like the image they present and I don’t like their music. I wish they would go away.

4. Marques Houston – I have no idea what’s going on with this guy. He has no talent to speak of and lets face it – he’s a bitch of man. I may trip on the metrosexuals - but this cat takes it to a different level. How he keeps putting out albums is beyond me. He has never made a song that I would listen to and cannot act worth a damn. I’m far beyond not feeling this guy – I genuinely can’t stand the sight of the guy.

3. Ann Coulter – If you read my blog you know why she’s rated this high. I’ve learned to tune her out and take what she says with a grain of salt. I’ve gotten to the point where I won’t even waist time consuming airwaves when she is present.

2. Rush Limbaugh – Wind bag. What else can I say about this jerk? I don’t even have to go into details with this one.

AND THE NUMBER ONE CELEBRITY ‘I AINT FEELIN’

1. Nancy Grace – How Miss Tweetie Bird ever got a show is beyond me. She is consumed by her own hate for the world and it comes across the airwaves every night. She is a bitter hag that could use some serious counseling. Under no circumstances will I ever watch her show. Hopefully, CNN will come to their senses and pull her show from the air.

Your Turn:
THE CELEBRITY YOU AINT FEELIN' IS...

How Is Your Health

2007-05-02T10:00:00.000-07:00

I went to my annual eye exam for my contacts. The doctor looked into my eyes and asked me about my cholesterol. I was taken aback a bit, but responded that it was ok. Actually, my total cholesterol number is 217. A bit high but not high enough for medication, or so I thought. Apparently, there are two eye conditions that alert doctors to impending heart disease: arcus senilis and Hollenhorst plaque.

Arcus Senilis causes a thin white line to form around the cornea. This condition is seen in mostly older people but it can happen with young people with very high cholesterol levels. The second condition occurs when cholesterol deposits break and get lodged in the blood vessels of the retina.

I have neither of these conditions. The eye doctors saw cloudiness in my eyes and he said this is the beginning stages and that I should talk with my doctor because diet alone may not be enough to get my cholesterol down.

What I find funny is that I never would have thought about any of these things 20 years ago. But as I get older, health and retirement issues are looming and I can’t ignore them. I’m still in good health and I am planning on getting back into the gym next week. I’ve changed my diet, and I do look to take care of every aspect of my being beyond weightlifting. I still want the guns to look good, but what’s the point of having great arms and a heart that won’t beat?

A toast to living.

What Do You Do To Take Care of Yourself

NFL Draft

2007-04-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

This is one of the most important days of the year. Right now,

1 1 Oakland Russell, JaMarcus QB 6-6 263 Louisiana State
This is a good pick. JaMarcus is by far the superior QB and I think he should be very good.

2 2 Detroit Johnson, Calvin WR 6-4 237 Georgia Tech
I’m not sure if they will keep this pick because they’ve drafted several wide receivers over the past couple drafts, but they could package Mike Williams with someone else and get a defensive guy.

3 3 Cleveland Thomas, Joe OT 6-6 313 Wisconsin
I thought they would take Brady Quinn but they couldn’t run the ball last year so maybe this is a good pick.

4 4 Tampa Bay Adams, Gaines DE 6-5 260 Clemson
I don’t know much about him, but they say he is a little lazy on the run but is a great pass rusher. He will have to improve if he plans on staying in the league past his rookie year.

5 5 Arizona Brown, Levi OT 6-4 328 Penn State
They had to do this. They have the receivers, they have the quarter back, they have the running back. Now they need to protect them with an offensive line.

6 6 Washington Landry, LaRon FS 6-2 205 Louisiana State
Washington has a lot of holes to fill. This is a start but they will need a good free agent session to get that team in position to win.

7 7 Minnesota Peterson, Adrian RB 6-2 218 Oklahoma
The Vikings had a decent running game last year, but with this pick they are looking for a franchise-type running back.

It's 10:38am, I have to get in the shower, will be back. Atlanta is on the clock.

UPDATE

Ok, I ran out of time so I'll just look at some of the more interesting moments in the draft. The big one being Brady Quinn's fall to pick 23 by the Cleveland Browns. I thought BQ was an ok quarterback but there was a lot of hype around him this past weekend. He doesn't have a strong arm and when he wasn't play cream puffs, he was an average QB. The Browns were smart to deal with their most pressing issue - the line, figuring that BQ would be there later in the draft.

I don't think it was a bad thing for him to fall to 23. Hell, the number 1 pick in the draft will have to prove himself just as well.

Trades: New England is stocking their receiving corp and there is no bigger stock than Randy Moss. This is a perfect move for Oakland and New England. Moss is not the type of receiver you want with a rookie QB. However, Tom Brady needed a deep threat after the loss of D. Branch. It will be very interesting.

Bears: They continue to piss me off. But at least they are working on bring Briggs back and I think picking up Archeletta. My beloved is in chaos and will need to do some things to get the situation under control.

Ok, that's it. Sorry Diane... I have to discuss football. We'll hit the Bush boys later.

It's Been A While

2007-02-13T08:53:00.000-08:00

Man, my life is crazy right now. Family, school, work and the Bears lost is taking a toll. I'll try to get back into the mix shortly.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!

2007-01-21T15:17:00.000-08:00

The Life, the Sound, the Music: 1971

2007-01-16T11:15:00.000-08:00

The Life

The youngest of my parents son was born this year. This was the year my beloved Bears moved from Wrigley Field to Soldier Field. Bobby Seale and six other six defendants were acquitted of the charge of conspiring to disrupt the 1968 Democratic National Convention held in Chicago. In 1969, the founder to the Chicago Chapter of the Black Panther Party, Fred Hampton was murdered by the Chicago police.

My uncle returned from Vietnam with a serious addiction to morphine. From what I've been told, my uncle was bitter about the fall of the Black Panther Party and joined the Nation of Islam. This story gets real interesting in 1975.

The Sound

Ike Turner was still beating the crap out of Tina but in between time, they released “Proud Mary”. The one classic that didn’t make it to number one was “Shaft” by Isaac Hayes. If you are a Curtis Mayfield fan then you should pick up his first live album, “Curtis/Live”.

But if you want the true essence of 1971, you need to check out another Chicago product (though he spent a lot of time in Tennessee) Gil Scott-Herron’s album, “Pieces of A Man”. If you want to know who coined the phrase, “the revolution will not be televised”, then look know further. Gil Scott-Herron was one of the first spoken word artist.

The Music

Number One Songs

(Do The) Push and Pull/Rufus Thomas
Bridge Over Troubled Water/ Aretha Franklin
Don't Knock My Love/ Wilson Pickett
Family Affair/ Sly & the Family Stone
Groove Me/ King Floyd
Have You Seen Her/ The Chi-Lites
Hot Pants /James Brown
If I Were Your Woman/Gladys Knight & the Pips
Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)/Marvin Gaye
Jody's Got Your Girl and Gone/Johnnie Taylor
Just My Imagination (Running Away With Me)/The Temptations
Make It Funky (Part 1)/James Brown
Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)/Marvin Gaye
Mr. Big Stuff/Jean Knight
Never Can Say Goodbye/The Jackson 5
Spanish Harlem/Aretha Franklin
Stick-Up/The Honey Cone
Thin Line Between Love and Hate/The Persuaders
Trapped By a Thing Called Love/Denise LaSalle
Want Ads/The Honey Cone
What's Going On/Marvin Gaye

Grammy Winners

Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female
Aretha Franklin for "Don't Play That Song"

Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
B.B. King for "The Thrill Is Gone"

Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group, Vocal or Instrumental
The Delfonics for "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)"

Best Rhythm & Blues Song
General Johnson & Ronald Dunbar (songwriters) for "Patches" performed by Clarence Carter

This Week on Meet The Press

2007-01-12T12:33:00.000-08:00

Announcer: The Bush administration is set to reveal a new strategy for Iraq. Will it work? To discuss this topic and more, former House Majority Whip, Tom Delay. And from the blogasphere, Liberal blogger, James Manning

Tim Russert: Good morning gentlemen. Lets begin with you Tom. The president is expected to endorse a plan that would increase the number of troops in Iraq. Do you support that plan.

Tom Delay: Tim, I support anything the president does. Just last week the president was down in Texas and he invited me to his ranch. He wanted to kick my ass for helping the Dems take over Congress. I obliged the president by bending over and letting him kick the stuffing out of me.

Tim Russert: (Looking warily at Tom) So… you support the president then.

Tom Delay: I do support our president and I’ll do anything he wants. For example… the president wanted some hog mog and his pigs weren’t ripe for it so I cut off my own testicles and the president’s chef sautéed them with mushrooms and onions. They were delicious.

Tim Russert: Let me see if I got this. You ate your own… balls. That sounds… how can I put this?

James Manning: Crazier than a motha… What the hell is wrong with you?

Tim Russert: (Turning to James) So what are Liberal bloggers saying about the President’s impending speech.

James Manning: Tim, first of all thank you for this opportunity. I’m glad you didn’t hold the Polka party incident against me. I think President is short on choices here and a troop surge is about all he has left. I don’t think it will work, but he has no choice. Personally, I think most Liberals want a reduction in troops, not more.

Tim Russert: You have a prediction for the outcome?

James Manning: Yep. It won’t work because Bush won’t send enough troops to do the job. Really, he’s just buying time until he can leave office.

Tom Delay: That is not true. President Bush is committed to winning the war in Iraq. It’s in his heart to win.

Tim Russert: Well, I don’t think anyone truly knows his heart, but…

Tom Delay: I know his heart because I gave it to him.

James Manning: What the hell are you talking about?

Tom Delay: The President’s heart gave out after overdosing on crack so he asked me for mine. I gave him my heart and in return they used a deer heart to put in place of my heart. I support our President and I’ll do anything for him.

James Manning: You are SICK!!! Why don’t you leave the talking to me?

Tim Russert: (To James) Its just like you to want to take over.

James Manning (Throwing hands up) Oh, here it comes. You’re still pissed about the Polka party, huh?

Tim Russert: (Pointing finger) You had no business changing the music. You made me look like a fool.

James Manning: What? All you had to do was follow the instructions. (singing) “Right foot two stomps”, “Left foot two stomps”, “Turn it out”. What the hell is so hard about that?

Tim Russert: You suppose to play music that people have heard.

James Manning: Who the hell hasn’t heard of the Cha Cha Slide?

Tim Russert: A lot people.

James Manning: If an Amish grandmother can do the Cha Cha slide, your beady-eyed behind should be able to do it.

Tim Russert: Well, what about the fact that you played Isaac Hayes during dinnertime.

James Manning: Hey, “Shaft” is a classic.

Tom Delay: Speaking of shaft, I recall when the first lady was out of town and the President was feeling frisky and he called me…

Tim & James: Will you shut the hell up.

James Manning: Why would you book me with this bastard?

Tim Russert: It’s my show, shut the hell up.

James Manning: Man, you’re about five seconds away from…

Tim Russert: From what, trick?

Tom Delay: Speaking of tricks. I recall when our President asked me to turn some tricks to raise campaign funds. I love my president and I’ll support him by doing anything he asked.

James Manning: This nasty bastard. I’m out of here. (stands up and pulls off microphone) I’ll meet you in the parking lot. If you thought me smashing you nose in an accordion was bad.

Tim Russert: Nah Homie. We can do this right now on national TV.

(James looks at Tim then jumps over the table, slamming Tim in the stomach with his left foot. Tim counters with a right cross that connects to James’ jaw. Dazed, James shakes it off and proceeds to place Tim in a headlock and smash his face onto the table. Meanwhile, Tom Delay is curled in a fetal position crying like a bitch.)

Announcer: Tune in next week to “Meet the Press” when James Manning interviews Dick Cheney.

God Episode

2007-01-08T09:52:00.000-08:00

I saw this on You Tube and I thought it was pretty funny.

The Life, the Sounds, the Music: 1970

2007-01-02T17:04:00.000-08:00

This past weekend a Los Angeles radio station had a countdown of the 500 most popular R&B songs of all-time. A few days passed before I found out that the list was comprised of votes from listeners. This isn’t a bad thing but it also skews the results to the taste and experience of radio station’s demographic. Now, I say this with the full understanding that I am a soul music elitist… a purist some might call me. Meaning that greatness of soul music is rooted in the spirit of the music, vocals, lyrics, and spirit.

So, with the next few post I'd like to take you folks through some R&B history that I'm sure other soul music elitist will enjoy. The first stop: 1970.

The Life

I was just turning one in 1970. My mother and father were still married and we were living on 47th street in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. I don't remember much about this time except what I was told. My father and his brothers had a band called "The Masters of Music". They were still playing the blues and touring local clubs.

The Sound

Although Motown still dominated the scene, the music was changing. Vietnam, Black Power and social change dominated the music. Chicago dominated the music spectrum with artist like Curtis Mayfield, Gene Chandler, The Chi-Lites, The Dells, Jerry Butler and Tyrone Davis. And it was the year that Minnie Riperton, a little known artist from the south side of Chicago with a five octave range, released her first ablum. But more on her when we get to 1975. Another Chicago product, Donny Hathaway, released his first album as well.

The Music

Sly & the Family Stone

The Number One Songs

Someday We'll Be Together/ Diana Ross & the Supremes
I Want You Back/The Jackson 5
Thank You /Sly & the Family Stone
Rainy Night In Georgia/Brook Benton
Call Me/Aretha Franklin
ABC/The Jackson 5
Turn Back the Hands Of Time/Tyrone Davis
Love On a Two-Way Street/The Moments
The Love You Save/The Jackson 5
Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours/Stevie Wonder
Don't Play That Song/Aretha Franklin
Ain't No Mountain High Enough/Diana Ross
I'll Be There/The Jackson 5
Super Bad (Part 1)/James Brown
The Tears of a Clown/Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
/The Supremes

Notable Albums

A Tribute to Jack Johnson - Miles Davis

Bitches Brew - Miles Davis - Pharroh’s Dance (For you jazz purist this is not the album for you because Miles threw some funk in the flavor. It’s worth a listen.)

Ella in Budapest, Hungary - Ella Fitzgerald

The Isaac Hayes Movement - Isaac Hayes – I Stand Accused (I love this song. Isaac talks for some time but he jams it. If you have 12 minutes to spare, it would be worth you while to fill the time with this song.)

Sex Machine - James Brown

Spirit in the Dark - Aretha Franklin

ABC - Jackson 5

Psychedelic Shack – The Temptations – Take A Stroll Thru Your Mind (This is a complete departure from what the Temptations were known for. This wasn’t a single but it is the best song on the album)

Portrait – The Fifth Deminsion – On the Beach (This was a semi-hit but I think it’s the best song on the album)

Check Out Your Mind – The Impressions – If There’s A Hell (This was Curtis Mayfield’s last album with the group and this song was another part of the social commentary that set the tone for the entire album. “People Get Ready” is the song that most folks know, but you have to hear the entire album to appreciate it.)

Struttin – The Meters

The Delfonics – The Delfonics – When You Get Right Down To it (I’m sure everyone is familiar with this group. “Didn’t I Blow Your Mind” was the biggest hit but the rest of the album is worth a listen.)

Sign, Sealed, Delivered – Stevie Wonder. – Every song on the album. Listen to it and become a better person.

Turn Back the Hands of Time - Tyrone Davis – Turn Back the Hands of Time (A lot of people are not familiar with Tyrone so you might as well start with his hit)

Are We Ready For A Black President?

2006-12-28T20:46:00.000-08:00

CNN conducted a survey to find out if America was ready to elect a black president. The poll results show that 62% of Americans say they would vote for a black president. The caveat is that 42% of blacks say they do not believe America would vote for a black president.

Personally, I don’t think America is ready for a black person or a woman to take the roll of President of the United States. Northern whites have a hard time winning the south… I just don’t see a black person or woman being competitively close.

Colin Powell was once the flavor of the month and now that attention has turned to Barack Obama. We can go back and forth about white folk reaction to a black person running for president. The ultimate bar to cross is the fear that a black president would completely do away with white privilege.

Barack would first have to deal with the black community. There are a myriad of issues he’d have to deal with but two stand out:

1)Most leading black politicians are from the Civil Rights era and are what we consider “protest politicians”. He will have to convince this segment of the Democrat Party that he will take into account some of their issues even if they are not primary issues. This will be hard because blood was shed for empowerment and they wouldn’t be satisfied with low hanging fruit.

2)Electibility: Just because a poll suggest that Americans are ready for a black president doesn’t make it so. Barack would have to convince black voters that a vote for him is not a vote for the Republican candidate. Obama could carry Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, Oregon and California. If black people are convinced an Obama/? ticket will be competitive, they will get behind another candidate.

It will be interesting and I think John Edwards might give Obama a run for his money. Personally, I can’t see America electing a black or woman for president.

Funny: Dick Cheney Songs

2006-12-26T15:19:00.000-08:00

A play off Elvis' "I'm All Shook Up" - Listen

But this is a classic: Listen

Source: Huffington Post Blog

Columbia House Boycott

2006-12-21T10:37:00.000-08:00

Update: It seems as though my rage has worked. I am getting a full refund on the stealth DVD and they are also refunding my initial membership fee. Plus, I am not obligated to purchase any additional DVD's. I feel like Senke... "Give us us free"

So it looks like I won't have to mail those letters to the board of directors and the CEO. So, it looks as though I can get back to thinking about Christmas instead of plotting to bring about the demise of BMG Music.

I’ve known for many years that Columbia House the black hole of entertainment subscriptions. Usually I never deal with them but I received an email one day saying that I could earn a $500 gift card from Home Depot by participating in a survey. I had my doubts but I love Home Depot so I went ahead with it.

Well, at the end of the survey I was required to subscribe to three offers. Columbia House DVD club was one of them. I went for the hook and now I am sorry that I did. I received my first set of movies with no problem but a few weeks later my account was charge $56 for item I didn’t order.

Apparently CH has a Directors Selection and will automatically ship the DVD if a member doesn’t respond. Well, I’ve been fighting tooth and nail to get my money back. After logging into my account, I noticed that they hadn’t even shipped the movie. Even worse, they didn’t have the movie in stock. This pissed me off.

I called, but the customer service is an automated system and there is no option to speak with a representative. I believe this is done on purpose because CH knows that they are running a scam.

I won’t be deterred. I found the main number to CH on financial statements and started making calls. The first person I talked with transferred me to voice mail and I never heard back from them. My second attempt got me to the accounts payable department in the BMG music division. I left a message and the lady called back. She then went a step further and provided me with another name and phone number.

I’ve made several calls to the individual and have yet to hear back from them. Still, I am not deterred. I wrote a letter and mailed them to some executives and the individual whom phone number I have. They will get this letter every week until my issue is resolved.

But I am going to go a step further. I am going to produce this blog with the hopes that we as consumers can force the Columbia House to change their deceptive business practices. There are many alternatives and we need to exercise our right to quality services in exchange for our hard earned money.

Rage Against the Machine!!!!

I've started a new blog to chronicle this fight. I'll keep you post at:

NEW BLOG: COLUMBIA HOUSE RIPOFF

Neocons Going Home

2006-12-18T08:09:00.000-08:00

I was reading the Vanity Fair article where the Neo-Cons basically stated something about the Bush Administration that many of us has been saying for years… they are incompetent. I certainly don’t agree with the neo-con ideology of spreading democracy but at least the Bush Administration has put that to rest for at least a generation.

Going forward, I’m not impressed with what I’m seeing from Washington. The Iraqi Study Group report is already gathering dust and its members scattering back to their lives after producing what I would have to consider, anticlimactic suggestions.

Bush, meanwhile, is still in denial and now has decided to wait until he’s enjoyed his holiday before presenting to the American people what his plan is for fixing the mess his incompetence created.

One thing that ticked me off in the Vanity Fair article and highlighted the idiocy of Paul Bremmer, was the revelation that instead of building the capacity to produce ice inside of the Green Zone, Bremmer had tons of ice shipped from Kuwait. Imagine that. Our soldier risk their lives to protect convoys, and this bastard decides to ship ice 300 miles across the dessert in convoys that come under insurgency attack.

Now we have Laura Bush is out there blaming the media for her husband’s low poll numbers. As though the fact that Afghanistan falling back into the hands of the Taliban and Iraq being in a Civil War of his creation has nothing to do with it. I won’t dog Laura. It’s not her fault she married a crack head, untreated alcoholic dunce.

I cannot wait until 2008.

The only question I have is:

1. What about the Bush Iraq strategy do you feel is working?

Borrowing Out of Poverty

2006-12-13T19:57:00.000-08:00

Note: This is something I wrote for an assignment but I thought it would be a very interesting conversation for the blog.

Microcredit Discussion

I. What is the system of Microcredit?

Microcredit is a financial concept focused on eradicating poverty and reducing the vulnerability of impoverished people by providing financial assistance that would otherwise be available only through traditional financial institutes. Microcredit institutions extend small, unsecured loans with interest to poor borrowers for either investment or consumption. The typical repayment schedule I set on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. Once borrowers have proven their credit-worthiness, they are allowed to borrow more. (Jason Meade, 2001)

Professor Muhammad Yunus, founder to the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh is credited with establishing Microcredits as a means to fight poverty and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his effort. Mr. Yunus saw that providing small loans to poor individual made substantial changes in their ability to survive and maintain themselves during a crisis. (Jason Meade, 2001) Along with loans, the Grameen Bank provides other financial services to service poor individuals and business enterprises in poverty struck areas.

II. Why is it important to the future of under-developed and emerging nations?

One basic point rendered in the poverty debate is that free enterprise and open markets have a greater impact on reducing poverty than aid. In America, many in the African-American community consider access to capital an economic hurdle and a major factor as to why African-American owned firms have not kept pace with overall growth in the American economy. If microcredit programs can achieve their objective, then I believe it can go a long way in providing access to capital that traditional institutions would not provide.

Another important factor about microcredits is its focus on empowering women. In many cultures women are relegated to subservient roles. Poverty among women is increasing and the problem is more pronounced in patriarch societies where women have very few rights. (Juanita Miller, ND) For women in need of financial resources to fund business ventures, microcredit institutions may be the only options.

As important as this financial system may be, I do wonder if a society can borrow its way out of poverty. Financing entrepreneurial ventures through microcredit financing, although risky, is a tool that could help reduce poverty. However, I fail to see the long-term benefit for a poor borrower that uses the loan for consumption purposes if additional economic development is lacking. Jeffrey Tucker opined that history has shown that wages, management, entrepreneurship, and savings rather than credit is the key to economic success. (Tucker, 2006)

The microcredit concept reminds me of the underground financial institutes that supported the resident in the Chicago south side neighborhood of my youth. My grandmother raised nine grandchildren on a social security check and food stamps. However, money was always scarce. To subsidies what little income she received, my grandmother turned to Mr. Ellis. Mr. Ellis was the local loan shark. He provided whatever funds were needed, with interest along with a 30 day due date.

Another source of credit was provided by the owner of the grocery store, Ms. Durka. Ms. Durka required only a note and a shopping list. This is how my grandmother survived until my brothers and I were of age to make money shoveling snow in the winter and mowing lawns in the summer. Though obviously more complex, microcredits provide the a survival mechanism for poor societies as the loan shark and Ms. Durka provided for my neighborhood.

I can appreciate alternative financial institutes designed to assist the poor. Yet, I believe that the microcredit method should be a part of a comprehensive economic development strategy. With its focus on empowerment and human rights, it is a solid foundation in which to build upon.

Topic for discussion:

1. Is it possible for a society to borrow its way out of poverty?
2. What's the difference between microcredit and pay day loan stores?
3. What is the best method to reduce poverty around the world?

Bibliography:

Tucker, Jeffrey. 2006. “Microcredit or Macrowelfare: The Myth of Grameen” Ludwig von Mises Institute. [Online Article] Retrieved on 12/10/06 at: http://www.mises.org/story/2375

Meade, Jason. 2001. “An Examination of the Microcredit Movement” The Collected Works of Jason Meade. [Online Article] Retrieved on 12/10/06 at: http://www.geocities.com/jasonmeade3000/Microcredit.html

Miller, Juanita. ND. “Poverty Among Women” The Ohio State University Fact Sheet Series. [Online Article] Retrieved on 12/12/06 at: http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/5000/5705.html

Little Known Heisman Facts

2006-12-10T21:25:00.000-08:00

Troy Smith took home the Heisman this year. I’m not sure where how he will do in the NFL, but I thought it would be interesting to look back at the last few Heisman Trophy winners and runner ups and see what happened at the next level.

Here are some interesting facts that I found looking at the Heisman Trophy website. I’m only going as far back as 1980 with my selections.

The Best Football Player to Win the Heisman since 1980
1988 – Barry Sanders

The (3) Best Running Back
1988 – Barry Sanders
1981 – Marcus Allen
1985 – Bo Jackson

The (3) Worst Running Backs
1999 – Ron Dayne
1994 – Rashaan Salaam
1983 – Mike Rozier

Only (2) Wide Receivers have won
1987 – Tim Brown
1991 – Desmond Howard

Best WR not to have won
1984 – Jerry Rice

The Best QB that won
2002 – Carson Palmer

Best QB’s not to have won
1982 – John Elway (2nd in voting)
1981 – Dan Marino (4th in voting)

The Worst QB that won
2003 – Jason White

Most QB’s Played in Super Bowl Game
1983 – Steve Young (2nd in voting) / Super Bowl XXIX
1983 – Jeff Hostler (7th in voting) / Super Bowl XXV
1983 – Boomer Esiason (10th in voting) / Super Bowl XXIII