The Health of Public Education: Are We Preparing American Students for College?

July 28th 2008
By: Dr. Alan Roper

Only 54 percent of students entering four-year colleges in 1997 had a degree six years later, - most of whom dropped out within the first year after high school. Since the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Legislation of 2002, college preparedness may have become a minor consideration in the world of high stakes testing tied to school funding and resource allocation. The ultimate outcome of this practice may be a disservice to the student, who quickly finds out they’re in over their head in the college or university they’ve been admitted to.

There certainly was a time when a high school education alone provided opportunities for employment, or a professional career. Many people from the “baby boomer” generation did quite well without a college degree, using their talent, hard work, and ingenuity or entrepreneurship as a means to success. The world has changed significantly since then, and young people entering the job market without a college degree will have significantly fewer options. From 1979 to 2003, the inflation-adjusted hourly wages earned by recent high school graduates (one to five years past graduation) have fallen by 17.4% among men and by 4.9% among women. Thus, the quality of jobs available to recent high school graduates has deteriorated remarkably over the last few decades, (EPI, 2004).

College level work will require critical thinking skills, ability to develop conclusions from several resources using inductive reasoning, ability to work both independently and in groups, and a strong set of writing skills that include an ability to use research and analysis. The current focus on testable outcomes in timed reading, mathematics, and social and natural sciences will not prepare students for this type of scholarly work.

“A recurring criticism of tests used in high-stakes decision making is that they distort instruction and force teachers to ‘teach to the test.’ The criticism is not without merit. The public pressure on students, teachers, principals, and school superintendents to raise scores on high-stakes tests is tremendous, and the temptation to tailor and restrict instruction to only that which will be tested is almost irresistible” (Bond, 2007). Teaching to the test in public education may be necessary to ensure funding and the school’s existence, but the lack of student preparedness for college level work seems to be amplified in the process.

Traditional measures used in high schools to measure student achievement such as attendance, graduation and even college matriculation rates (e.g. admission to a college or university) are important, but they may no longer represent sufficient indicators of student preparedness for college level academics, or provide adequate student skills for higher education. When you also consider that since the No Child Left Behind Legislation of 2002, state assessment systems and accountability plans, adequate yearly progress (AYP) measurement, and the school report card system have focused public education learning into a small group of quantifiable academic disciplines.

What can you do about it?
The public has the power to change public education. Even if you don’t have children, grandchildren, or family members in public schools, you have a vested interest in ensuring a future workforce that can meet the demands of the job market 10, 20, or 50 years from now. Be wary of educational reform measures that promise quantifiable accountability. Ask questions of those who design public education in your area. Get involved, regardless of who you are, this is your issue.

Dr. Alan R. Roper,
Professor, University of Phoenix;
Adjunct Professor at Golden Gate University;
Senior Education Specialist, Judicial Council of California

Resources:
Associated Press feature, 2005, U.S. college drop-out rate sparks concern: Educators turn attention to getting students all the way to graduation, New York

Bond, L. 2007, Teaching to the Test, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, retrieved July 28, 2008 from http://www.carnegiefoundation.org/perspectives/sub.asp?key=245&subkey=579

The Economic Policy Institute, 2004, The State of Working America 2004/2005, Copyright © 2008 by The Economic Policy Institute. All rights reserved.

The Picture You won't See on the Tube!

July 31st 2008

By Daddy

Photo from Larry King

Not much to say here. No really. I mean it this time.

Anyway, one picture is worth a thousand words.

PEACE!

Thanks for sending this out Mr. King.

McCain’s flourishing flip-flop list

July 31st 2008

UPDATE

And if we’re playing by Republican rules, McCain’s “inconsistencies” should be a fairly serious problem.With this in mind, for the first time in months, I thought now would be a good time to update the list of John McCain’s Biggest Flip-Flops. There have been some key additions since the last time I did this (in November).

* McCain pledged in February 2008 that he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Specifically, McCain if he were a “‘read my lips’ candidate, no new taxes, no matter what?” referring to George H.W. Bush’s 1988 pledge. “No new taxes,” McCain responded. Two weeks later, McCain said, “I’m not making a ‘read my lips’ statement, in that I will not raise taxes.”

* McCain’s campaign unveiled a Social Security policy that the senator would implement if elected, which did not include a Bush-like privatization scheme. In March 2008, McCain denounced his own campaign’s policy.

* In February 2008, McCain abandoned his opposition to waterboarding.

* In November 2007, McCain reversed his previous position on a long-term presence for U.S. troops in Iraq, arguing that the “nature of the society in Iraq” and the “religious aspects” of the country make it inevitable that the United States “eventually withdraws.”

Two months later, McCain reversed back, saying he’s prepared to leave U.S. troops in Iraq for 100 years.

* McCain used to champion the Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty’s behalf before a Senate committee. Now he opposes it.

* McCain was a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants’ kids who graduate from high school. Now he’s against it.

* On immigration policy in general, McCain announced in February 2008 that he would vote against his own legislation.

* In 2006, McCain sponsored legislation to require grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. In 2007, after receiving “feedback” on the proposal, McCain told far-right activist groups that he opposes his own measure.

* McCain said before the war in Iraq, “We will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” Four years later, McCain said he knew all along that the war in Iraq war was “probably going to be long and hard and tough.”

* McCain said he was the “greatest critic” of Rumsfeld’s failed Iraq policy. In December 2003, McCain praised the same strategy as “a mission accomplished.” In March 2004, he said, “I’m confident we’re on the right course.” In December 2005, he said, “Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course.”

* McCain went from saying he would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade to saying the exact opposite.

* McCain went from saying gay marriage should be allowed, to saying gay marriage shouldn’t be allowed.

* McCain criticized TV preacher Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance” in 2002, but then decided to cozy up to the man who said Americans “deserved” the 9/11 attacks.

* McCain used to oppose Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy, but he reversed course in February.

* On a related note, he said 2005 that he opposed the tax cuts because they were “too tilted to the wealthy.” By 2007, he denied ever having said this, and insisted he opposed the cuts because of increased government spending.

* In 2000, McCain accused Texas businessmen Sam and Charles Wyly of being corrupt, spending “dirty money” to help finance Bush’s presidential campaign. McCain not only filed a complaint against the Wylys for allegedly violating campaign finance law, he also lashed out at them publicly. In April, McCain reached out to the Wylys for support.

* McCain supported a major campaign-finance reform measure that bore his name. In June 2007, he abandoned his own legislation.

* McCain opposed a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr., before he supported it.

* McCain was against presidential candidates campaigning at Bob Jones University before he was for it.

* McCain was anti-ethanol. Now he’s pro-ethanol.

* McCain was both for and against state promotion of the Confederate flag.

* McCain decided in 2000 that he didn’t want anything to do with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, believing he “would taint the image of the ‘Straight Talk Express.’” Kissinger is now the Honorary Co-Chair for his presidential campaign in New York.

Now, it’s worth noting that there are worse qualities in a presidential candidate than changing one’s mind about a policy matter or two. McCain has been in Congress for decades; he’s bound to shift now and then on various controversies.

But therein lies the point — McCain was consistent on most of these issues, right up until he started running for president, at which point he conveniently abandoned practically every position he used to hold. The problem isn’t just the incessant flip-flops; it’s the shameless pandering and hollow convictions behind the incessant flip-flops.

Ludacris Raps About Obama, Upsetting Many

July 30, 2008, 7:11 pm

By Mike Nizza

Ludacris has a crush on Obama, and all would be well today if he had created a song as inviting as some other musically-inclined supporters.

Instead, in the song, “Politics,” he did what he does best when matched with a booming baseline — rapping without regard for anyone who might be offended. (You can listen to it here).
Offended, as it turns out, is precisely how many people should feel, according to a wide range of commentators — including Senator Obama’s spokesman.

“This song is not only outrageously offensive to Senator Clinton, Reverend Jackson, Senator McCain, and President Bush,” a spokesman, Bill Burton, said in a statement. “It is offensive to all of us who are trying to raise our children with the values we hold dear.”

At a time in the presidential campaign when both sides stand accused of going too negative, Ludacris — who once bragged in a song that he was “from the school of hard knocks, sneak peeks and low blows” — most certainly did.

Senator Clinton was called “irrelevant” and also a nasty name common in hip-hop lyrics but not in the remarks of presidential candidates. Senator McCain was the recipient of something that could be a schoolyard joke or an especially repulsive malediction, depending on the audience: “McCain don’t belong in any chair unless he’s paralyzed.”

President Bush was also declared irrelevant, as well as “the worst of all 43 presidents” and “mentally handicapped.” Reverend Jackson got off relatively easy as a “slick” politician.
Of course, this is precisely the kind of performance that won Ludacris fans around the world, three Grammy awards and Hollywood appeal.

It also earned him a place on Senator Obama’s iPod, a detail reported in June that Ludacris bragged about in the song:
With a slot in the president’s iPod, Obama shouted himSaid I handle my biz and I’m one of his favorite rappers.

He was referring to a Rolling Stone interview in which Mr. Obama mentioned Ludacris, Jay-Z and Russell Simmons as “great talents and great businessmen.” He also said that “it would be nice if I could have my daughters listen to their music without me worrying that they were getting bad images of themselves.”

Both points were reiterated today by Mr. Burton, “While Ludacris is a talented individual he should be ashamed of these lyrics.” But the campaign was apparently referring to the misogyny and materialism, and not Ludacris’ bold prediction that would suit it just fine: “The first black president is destined and it’s meant to be.”

Obama’s Arrogance?

July 31th 2008
By: Daddy

This will be a quick one.

Why is it when a Black man is sure of himself it’s called arrogance, but when a White man is sure of himself it’s called confidence?

Dana Milbank / Washington Post Columnist:

"Some say the supremely confident Obama -- nearly 100 days from the election, he pronounces that "the odds of us winning are very good" -- has become a president-in-waiting. But in truth, he doesn't need to wait: He has already amassed the trappings of the office, without those pesky decisions.
On his presidential-style visit to the Western Wall in Jerusalem last week, Obama left a written prayer, intercepted by an Israeli newspaper, asking God to "help me guard against pride and despair." He seems to have the despair part under control, but the pride could be a problem".

It seems to me what they’re saying is he’s an uppity Nigger!

Okay, now I know that seems a bit much, but for Black folks that’s exactly what it sounds like! Are Blacks the only folks that see a confident MAN running for President?

Let’s be honest. Barack Obama has run a very well planned campaign. All we hear from John McCain are attacks on Obama. “Obama is the cause of high oil prices”. “Obama is the cause of more fighting in Iraq”.” It’s Obama's fault my wife doesn’t love me anymore”. Somebody give me a break please! Is that what the nation has come to view as the most prominent and qualified person to fill the office of the president? (I hate to talk about your momma she’s a dear old soul).
Well you know what I mean.

I want John McCain to explain to me how opening up more offshore drilling is going to bring down the price of oil. I know it seems like a no-brainer, but won’t the oil companies just raise the price again?

And why won’t he explain why we don’t drill on leased sites that the oil companies already have?

Sure you can tell me all you want how Barack Obama can't do this, and can’t do that. But please tell me how YOU can get it done.

No matter what you may think of Barack Obama, you have to admit one thing. The man knows how run a campaign. This brings me back to an earlier question. Do we want to elect the person that can’t even run a competitive campaign? I mean if you can’t manage the few millions of dollars for your campaign, how can you be trusted to run the country with trillions of dollars at stake? Or trusted with millions of lives at stake.

John McCain hasn’t spoken on the issues for a while now. He goaded Barack into going to the Middle East, and then to Europe. Now they’re trying to say it was a purely political trip. Say what?????

Could it be that they were waiting for Barack to fall on his face? I don’t know about you, but when the brother walked on stage in Germany to the applause of over 200,000 people he seem to be exactly where he wanted to be. He walked out there and handled his business. Large and in charge!!

There is also the new argument that so what? There were a lot of people in Germany, but they can’t vote.

Now this has to be the dumbest statement yet. Or is it the Repubs don’t give a damn how the rest of the world feels about the United States? Well, we already have the answer to that one.

And then they jumped all over him for not visiting the troops in hospitals in Germany. It doesn’t matter to them that the man has been visiting troops for a while now. He also visited injured troops in Iraq, and Afghanistan. Maybe they’re just mad he didn’t invite them all to tag along.

My thought is that the repubs didn’t expect this guy to be as good as he is.
Obviously they’ve been thinking of the stereotype. And that will be their downfall.

You all have a great and blessed day. PEACE

'Long-overdue vindication' comes for 28 black soldiers cleared in a 1944 lynching.

By Kim Murphy, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer July 27, 2008

SEATTLE -- It was a crime so improbable that many had trouble believing it could have happened at all: Three black soldiers stood accused of lynching an Italian prisoner of war, found dangling from a wire on an obstacle training course at Ft. Lawton in the middle of World War II.The subsequent trial of the three men, along with 40 other black enlistees charged with rioting, became the largest and longest Army court-martial of the war, and the only recorded instance in U.S. history in which black men stood trial for a mob lynching


By the time it was over, 28 men had been convicted on rioting charges and two of them were also found guilty of manslaughter in connection with the 1944 hanging.



Despite their protests of innocence -- and the government's own secret investigation showing the prosecution's case was poisonously flawed -- the men were sentenced to hard labor and forfeiture of military pay and benefits, and were given dishonorable discharges.

Twenty-six of the men went to their graves with the stain of wartime dishonor still on their records. It wasn't until Saturday, in a low-key ceremony on a wide lawn at the Army base in Seattle, that history switched gears. A senior Army official handed out certificates setting aside the convictions and converting the discharges to honorable status, in recognition -- 64 years after the fact -- that prosecutors' 'egregious error' had resulted in a trial that was 'fundamentally unfair.'


'I grieve for an Army that failed to honor its own values at Ft. Lawton,' said Ronald J. James, an assistant Army secretary, as he handed out the certificates to surviving family members.'


The Army is genuinely sorry. I am sorry. Sorry for your husbands, loved ones, fathers and grandfathers, for the lost years of their lives,' James said, calling the ceremony a 'long-overdue vindication.

'Not one of the soldiers were on hand to accept the apology. One of the two still living did try to attend -- 83-year-old Samuel Snow from Leesburg, Fla. -- but he was hospitalized with heart palpitations in downtown Seattle just hours before the observance.


'My father never held any animosity,' said Snow's son, Ray.


'He said, 'Son, God has been good to me. If I hold this in my heart, then I can't walk in forgiveness.' Really, it energized him. It was the fuel that drove him: 'Bring on all the things that are supposed to stop me from achieving.' This was all liquid oxygen for him.


'The case of the Ft. Lawton 28 had been little known in recent years, though the court-martial in 1944 was widely covered in the news at the time.


It wasn't until former television journalist Jack Hamann came upon the Italian soldier's grave in 1986 and began years of research that archival material was uncovered, demonstrating fatal flaws in the government's case -- and pointing to the likelihood that the Italian prisoner was killed by a white man.

Immediately after the lynching, the Army inspector general had conducted an exhaustive investigation that raised major questions about the evidence against the accused.But the Army had appointed only two defense lawyers to handle all 43 men, giving them 10 days to prepare their case, and they were not permitted to see the report.


The prosecutor was Col. Leon Jaworski, who in 1973 became the special prosecutor in the Watergate case involving the administration of President Nixon.'Jaworski disingenuously -- and, it's clear now, illegally and unethically -- said, 'Sorry, that's not what you think it is, and you can't have it.'

He fought, and got the court to agree not to let it in,' Hamann said in an interview. Jaworski died in 1982.Hamann wrote a 2005 book about the case, 'On American Soil.


'Based in large part on the evidence disclosed in the book, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records reviewed the case last year and ruled unanimously to overturn the convictions and grant retroactive honorable discharges.


'I don't think very often they come out and say our largest and longest court-martial of this giant war, World War II, was fatally flawed,' Hamann said.'But the Army has been a driver of this, by getting out ahead of it and saying, 'We want to let our constituents know we're not hiding behind this. We've read the evidence, we agree, we checked it out ourselves.'


'The junior defense counsel in the case, Howard Noyd, now 93, said he and his partner had known from the beginning that 'justice was sacrificed' and his clients were wrongly charged.'It's just a remarkable story. I didn't expect we would ever come to final justice,' Noyd said.Walt Prevost, 65, the owner of a pharmacy in Watts, traveled to Seattle on behalf of his late father, Willie Prevost, who he said never talked about the case before his death in 1998.'I talked to a lot of the other families, and they all say the same thing: They never talked about it.


We knew absolutely nothing about [my father's] Army career. It was something he was really impacted by in an adverse way, so he would never talk about it,' Prevost said.'But I would say my family suffered severely as a result of the Ft. Lawton tragedy,' he said. His mother was forced to raise her four children with no income or Army benefits while his father was in prison, he said.Hamann said that though most of the prison terms were relatively short, the convicted soldiers would have been affected their entire lives.


'You're talking about 50 years of no GI Bill, no VA, no ability to get a civil service job with that dishonorable discharge,' Hamann said.Some reparations are being offered: back pay for the prison time. Snow was sent a $725 check, which he didn't bother to cash.Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) is pushing legislation that would grant the soldiers full reparations.


'The main thing is he never got to do the things he wanted to do,' said Beverly Evans, a South Los Angeles resident whose father, Luther Larkin, was convicted in the lynching. He died a month before she was born, in 1948.James, the assistant Army secretary, ended his calm but emotional address with a declaration that he would not end it as most such speeches conclude.


'The usual closing is something like 'God bless the Army, and God bless the United States of America,' but frankly that doesn't seem right or appropriate for this time -- I have unpaid debts and unpaid dues,' James said.'Therefore, I would like to close by saying: God bless Samuel Snow, God bless the Ft. Lawton 28, and God bless your family and friends.'kim.murphy@latimes.com

http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-apology27-2008jul27,0,2749242,full.story

Thanks to my Cuz Terry for sending this out. PEACE!

JUST SPREADING THE WORD!!!!!

A Note From Latoya Epps


Dear MoveOn member,
Standing before a room of oil company executives in June, John McCain flip-flopped and declared support for coastal oil drilling. Now the Washington Post is reporting that, within days, oil and gas execs ponied up nearly $1 million to elect McCain.

1 It's another piece of evidence that in a McCain White House, oil companies will call the shots—just as they have with President Bush.
Yesterday, MoveOn members jumped into action in response to the Post story, placing "For Sale" signs on McCain headquarters in 10 battleground states to call public attention to it.

2 At the same time, McCain made our point for us, holding a photo-op yesterday in front of a California oil well and renewing his push for offshore drilling.

3 McCain's hoping to use gas prices as a wedge issue to win the election. That's why it's so critical that we keep spreading the message that McCain's been heavily influenced by the oil companies—and so we can't count on him to solve the energy crisis. When people think of Bush, they think "oil," but that's not true of McCain yet—even though his energy policy is almost identical to Bush's and his campaign is literally run by oil lobbyists!

4 Here's a video that makes the case, from our friends at Progressive Accountability. Please check it out, then forward it to a few friends, post it on a blog, or stick it on your Facebook page.
Watch video @ http://www.moveon.org/r?r=3987&id=13350-9379473-W1rV9bx&t=1


The energy crisis is shaping up to be a decisive issue in the election. MoveOn's ongoing campaign on the energy crisis has two goals: 1) highlight the progressive solution—a huge plan to shift our economy to clean energy, prevent climate change, and create millions of jobs, and 2) work together to block McCain and the Republicans from pushing gimmicks like drilling to win votes.

Please forward this email to your friends and family to spread the word about John McCain's ties to big oil companies
.
Thanks for all you do.

–Noah, Daniel, Tanya, Karin and the rest of the team

Sources: 1. "Industry Gushed Money After Reversal on Drilling," Washington Post, July 27, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=3985&id=13350-9379473-W1rV9bx&t=3

2. "Activist group protests at McCain headquarters," WHP CBS 21 Harrisburg, July 28, 2008 http://www.moveon.org/r?r=3986&id=13350-9379473-W1rV9bx&t=4

3. "Offshore Drilling is Something We Have to Do," Time Magazine, July 28, 2008 http://thepage.time.com/2008/07/28/oil/

4. "Oil Money: John McCain's Close Ties to the Petroleum Industry," Campaign Money Watch, July 11, 2008 http://www.campaignmoney.org/mccainoil

Thanks for sending this out Latoya!!!!!

I am neither black nor white. I’m both

July 25, 2008
Posted: 03:12pm MDT

I would have sent this to everyone but thought maybe you could post it on your blog.

The ever growing need for bi-racial's to separate themselves from "the rest of us" is a growing trend. This open letter is from Lynn Whitfield's daughter who is both black and white and would prefer to identify herself that way. I don't know what to think. "Mixed" folks have always been black. In my opinion, the white community never considered them anything else....but whose gonna tell that history...

Collinus Hutt


Editor’s Note: Lynn Whitfield is an Emmy Award winning actress famous for her role as Josephine Baker in ‘The Josephine Baker Story.’ Her other films include ‘A Thin Line Between Love and Hate,’ ‘Gone Fishin’’ and ‘Eve’s Bayou.’ Below is a response from her and her daughter after watching Black In America’s ‘The Black Woman and Family.’

Lynn Whitfield Actress

My daughter Grace and I watched the premier of CNN’s groundbreaking “Black in America.” I thought we would have lively discussions around many of the themes concerning black women in this country. However, when she saw the segments on interracial marriage and the children of those relationships, she had a visceral response.I saw an activist being born.

Grace seemed ready to adapt James Brown’s black anthem to her cause: “Say it loud, I’m blended and proud!” I saw my daughter stand up for the equality of blended people like herself in all her olive-complexioned, big curly afro-like glory. She went immediately to the computer with dignity, passion and everything but a fist in the air and wrote the statement you are about to read:
Mixed in America

Grace Gibson (16-year-old daughter of Lynn Whitfield)

Although I found this segment of “Black in America” to be highly informative for the general public, I was disappointed that the interviews in the section on what it is like to be biracial in America seemed to focus only on the more negative aspects. With the eyes of the world now on Barack Obama, I had hoped for a more balanced discussion on what a positive symbol a mixed race person can project.

Obama’s candidacy embodies change and hope for so many in this country of all generations, genders, races and cultures. His message of bringing us all together as Americans is enhanced by his mixed heritage. The biracial person personifies the breaking down of racial barriers that so many fought and died for in the civil rights movement. It is what Dr. Martin Luther King stood for and what his legacy of equality imparts to us today. So one should feel nothing but pride to be mixed in America.

If parents of biracial children are too concerned about what race their children identify and associate with, the only outcome will be confusion. They should rear their children to have enough self-esteem and self-confidence to be their own persons — encouraging them to be strong children who can grow up to be strong biracial adults.

There should be no need for them to say “I am black” or “I am white” because they are neither, yet they are both. Trying to force a choice is often done just to accommodate the people around them. Why should it be so difficult to understand that a person can be and take pride in two races, ethnically and culturally? Those who cannot accept this are perpetuating the kind of ignorance that would only resegregate society by taking away a positive symbol of integration, the mixed child, and restricting him or her to an either-or status.

In a world where a biracial man may well become the next President of the United States, all that a parent should be trying to instill in a child is pride in his or her race or races.

I am proud to be a child born to two loving, talented, creative people – a mother and father who happened to be of African-American and English descent, respectively. I do not feel confused at all nor do I have an identity crisis. I do not feel lost in society nor rejected by any race because I am all races in one.

I am the melting pot, and in our global society, soon all the children of the world will be a mixture of races as well. So why should we try to pick and choose what we want and don’t want our children to be? Why can’t we just accept our common humanity and try to refocus our energies on more pressing matters such as Hurricane Dolly in Texas, infected children in flooded Burmese streets, earthquake victims in China, AIDS patients in Sub-Saharan Africa or those here in Washington, D.C.?
As the world confronts these and other serious challenges to survival, why add more complications by trying to reduce a living symbol of racial harmony to a checked-box identity?

Lavena Johnson Was Raped and Murdered: Then the Army Covered It Up

By Jane Hamsher, FiredoglakePosted on July 28, 2008, Printed on July 29, 2008

The Jamie Leigh Jones-Halliburton rape case was horrific, but what happened to PFC Lavena Johnson in Iraq in 2005 was many orders of magnitudes worse.
The parents of the young Missouri woman were told that she died of self-inflicted gunshot wounds, and her death was ruled a suicide. But her physician father became suspicious after looking at injuries to the body:

After two years of requesting documents, one set of papers provided by the Army included a Xerox copy of a CD. Wondering why the xerox copy was in the documents, Dr. Johnson requested the CD itself. With help from his local Congressional representative, the US Army finally complied. When Dr. Johnson viewed the CD, he was shocked to see photographs taken by Army investigators of his daughter's body as it lay where her body had been found, as well as other photographs of her disrobed body taken during the investigation.

The photographs revealed that Lavena, a small woman, barely 5 feet tall and weighing less than 100 pounds, had been struck in the face with a blunt instrument, perhaps a weapon stock. Her nose was broken and her teeth knocked backwards. One elbow was distended. The back of her clothes had debris on them indicating she had been dragged from one location to another. The photographs of her disrobed body showed bruises, scratch marks and teeth imprints on the upper part of her body. The right side of her back as well as her right hand had been burned apparently from a flammable liquid poured on her and then lighted. The photographs of her genital area revealed massive bruising and lacerations. A corrosive liquid had been poured into her genital area, probably to destroy DNA evidence of sexual assault.

Despite the bruises, scratches, teeth imprints and burns on her body, Lavena was found completely dressed in the burning tent. There was a blood trail from outside a contractor's tent to inside the tent. She apparently had been dressed after the attack and her attacker placed her body into the tent and set it on fire.

Jane Hamsher is the founder of FireDogLake. Her work has also appeared on the Huffington Post, Alternet and The American Prospect.

Black In America – CNN

July 28th 2008
By: Daddymix

My rant today is that we Black folks now see everyday what we’ve known all our lives. And that is no matter if a man is half White, and half Black he is still viewed as a Black man. And that goes for if he's half Black, and half anythings else he is still a Black man. Or Nigger in some circles. And I most likely will not live long enough to see that change.

It’s just science fiction to me that no matter where you go people look down on you if you’re Black. I’ve had the opportunity to travel a bit in my lifetime, and this always just freaks me out. I’ve been to Asia, Europe, Canada, and Mexico, and it’s the same no matter what country you go to. I mean come on now! You don’t even know me, but you’re already convinced that I’m up to no good. You know nothing about me, but in your mind I belong to the dregs of the earth.

The question is what do we do? Or should we do anything at all? I mean if there are some people that truly believe we do not have a place here in this country what can we really do about it?

I was watching the Black in America program on CNN. I didn’t really get off on it. Like I’ve said before, it was education for White folks.

But what I really would have liked to have seen was how many Black folks do really well in this country. I know they showed a few folks doing well, but the program to me made it seem like (and this is just an example) that for every one person doing well, there are millions not doing anything.

When in reality the number of Blacks in this country that make a decent living, and don’t do or sell drugs, or rob people is quite large. But these programs on race to me do nothing more than show the rest of the world there some very bad Black folks out here. Therefore to them we’re all lowlifes. And those who do well were the product of Affirmative Action. Why can’t we have specials about the Black folks who do well? About those that take care of their children, and are upstanding citizens in their neighborhoods?

We are constantly bombarded with feel good stories about White folks and their families. Don’t we feel good? Aren’t there any feel good stories out there for us?

Personally I have a big family. And out of all of those we have the one fuckup. Every family Black or White or whatever has that one person that just can’t seem to get it together. But you would never know that about by watching these special presentations.

Answer this for me. If we know that at least 45% of Black males in prison today have sentences that do not fit the crime, why haven’t they been retried? Why hasn’t CNN done an expose’ on this problem. Why don’t they get that camera and microphone up into the face of the prosecutors that know these men are unjustly incarcerated? Look how many Black men were found innocent in Texas behind DNA testing. So I can’t believe that every single Black man in prison today belongs there. And for the Black men that still want to do crime, let them do the time. Hell they already know if they get jammed up it will be most likely for the long run. Stupid. Just plain stupid!

I believe it’s time to celebrate the Black family. For all of the great things we have done, and for the great things some of us are doing now. Celebrate the struggle of a people to overcome racism and become part of a world that really doesn't want you here. For all of the Black men who stand up and take care of their children. For all of the Black men who take care of their wives. For Black men who worship their God, and pass that knowledge to their children. For the Black woman, for without her we fail. For the Black folks that came years before us, and set the pace for us to overcome. There is a list of accomplishments and inventions flying around the internet, and the majority of Whites, and Blacks have no idea it exists. That Black folks have made it possible for America to live a little easier from their works like the door knob, and the stop light. And for those who do not want to change their bad habits we should start now trying to come up with a solution to drop these folks off on a deserted island, and let them fend for themselves. If we could just get rid of those who brag on doing time in prison. The one's that sell drugs in neighborhoods and bring down the value of homes, and property. The ones who break into homes and steal hard earned possessions. The ones who constantly drag the rest of us down to their level. Yeah. Those people!

. There are a lot of folks trying to bring these people into the 21st century, but for some it will do no good. There are some Black children that once they get a taste of crime, it’s what they want to do. But then there are Black children that once they get a taste of a good education, and by good I mean spending time with a tutor, they see that they can do the work successfully, go on to graduate high school, and some on to college. But you’re still going to have those that just don’t give a f*@k.


You all have a great and blessed day. PEACE!

Daddy.

A GOOD BLACK MAN

By : ANONYMOUS BLACK WOMAN
August 18th 2006

Good Black Men are indeed all around us. We pass them in the streets, in the malls and the halls at work. Most we can't see because we don't know what a good man really looks like.

He usually isn't flashy enough or rich enough to turn our heads. He might not wear a suit or push a Lexus. He might not have a body like Tyson with a Denzel face. But, as you mature, you realize it's better to find someone who's got your back rather than someone who turns your head.

A good black man doesn't agree wholeheartedly with everything you say. He doesn't just tell you what you want to hear and do the opposite. He doesn't declare how sensitive, sweet, caring, sincere, loving and long suffering he is. (He doesn't have to because it shows). He has his own opinions and yours may clash, but he doesn't have to degrade you to prove he's right. He even admits at times to being wrong, especially if you are willing to do the same.

A good black man is not going to meet every item on your checklist. He is human with frailties and faults mixed in with all of his wonderful, strong attributes. He needs your love and respect. He needs to feel that you don't live to catch him doing something wrong so you can declare, Aha, I caught you! I knew you were a dog!!

A good black man isn't insecure about his woman having great achievements. In fact he is her number one supporter and becomes disappointed with her when she begins to lose herself, for the sake of not hurting his feelings, or just want to make him happy. His happiness comes with seeing her excel in her dreams and accomplishing her goals. For as she excels and is exalted; a good woman, will bring her good man right along with her.

A good black man doesn't necessarily give you a huge birthday or Valentine gift. He shows his love in the ways that are comfortable to him. Don't judge him by TV standards. No one is really living a fairy-tale. You'll miss out on your own fairy tale by buying into the myth that men are no good. It's just not true.

Black Men, we salute you, and thank you for who you are and all you've done.

IF YOU WISH: Pass this along to some of the Good Black Men you know and a few women that need to read it ... so that they can recognize a Good Black Man!!!

'Extreme Home Makeover' House Threatened With Foreclosure

POSTED: 5:49 pm EDT July 24, 2008
UPDATED: 6:56 pm EDT July 24, 2008

CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. -- An Extreme Home Makeover may be going bust. The first metro family who got a new home is facing foreclosure.
Channel 2 followed the progress as an army of volunteers swarmed a Clayton County neighborhood to build a new home for a deserving family on "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" in 2005. When the show came to town, no one could have predicted what would happen less than four years later -- foreclosure.
A foreclosure notice appeared last Friday, a $450,000 second mortgage they took out less than 15 months ago was in default.
Patricia Harper, the homeowner, told Channel 2 she and her husband had struck a deal with Chase Home Finance to rescue their "extreme" home. Chase said they couldn't confirm that claim.
· SLIDESHOW: Clayton County Extreme Makeover
"I didn't really know what the circumstances were, I was kind of surprised. I was really surprised to read that," said neighbor Doris Rhodenizer.
Lake City mayor Willie Oswalt was among the 1,800 volunteers helping "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" build the Harper's new home 3 ½ years ago. Beazer Homes of Atlanta was the main sponsor. The mayor said he is baffled.
"Beazer gave them $100,000 cash, paid their mortgage off and they still can't make it," said Oswalt.
Harper told Channel 2 they invested the loan proceeds in a construction business and the business hasn't been good. She didn't say how much of the money is left.
"What's going to happen is instead of keep paying my mortgage, I'm going to take my money and not pay my mortgage because I'm being harassed," said Harper.

A Great Day in Denver

July 25th 2008

Hello Everyone.

I know you’ve been wondering what the hell happened to the picture!
Well it’s been a busy year, and we have it just about ready to sell.
I have to thank Jessica and Chris Fischer with Funkiphino for all their
help getting this ready.

We have decided to print a silhouette that will go with the photo.
This will allow everyone to identify each musician. But we’ve ran into a snag.
We can’t seem to identify everyone in the photo.

So what we’re going to do is start selling the poster, and hopefully after
a few people see it they will be able to give us the names of those folks
we couldn’t recognize.

I will be back with you next week with more information.

You all have a great and blessed weekend. PEACE!

Book Review - The Shack

The Shack Written By William P. Young
Review By Larry F.D. King

But for starters, how about this:

I have recently read (and reread) a novel by William P. Young, entitled "The Shack". I have found it so inspiring and enriching that I have purchased and GIVEN AWAY some fourteen (14) copies to family and friends, for their enjoyment and edification. I encourage all of your bloggers to read "The Shack", and weigh in with their impressions. They WON'T be disappointed! I don't want to give away the PLOT of this excellent work of fiction, but suffice to say that in the course of a very good story, he turns several fundamental tenets of traditional Christian thinking completely on their HEADS! And I wholeheartedly AGREE...

I recently looked out on Dr. James Dobson's - with whom I FREQUENTLY DISAGREE for manifold reasons - website, http://www.focusonthefamily.com/, and found one link regarding "The Shack". It was a critical book review published some time ago by Tom Neven on "The Line" at: http://www.boundlessline.org/2008/06/the-shack-ramsh.html.


Tom Neven's review is titled "The Shack: Ramshackle Theology". He DEFINITELY finds fault with the book, and considers it heresy. He states that William P. Young has a "low view of Scripture, and in fact mocks anyone who believes that there is such a thing as correct doctrine". Neven goes on to say: "If one is to teach error, it is important to do away with Scripture, either by adding to it (Mormonism), mistranslating it (Jehovah's Witnesses) or simply mocking it (The Shack, Brian McLaren and some other "emergent" types)."

Here's his concluding statement:

"Young's ramshackle theology, unfortunately, is giving a lot of people an incomplete and false image of God. He is doing them no favors".

Daddy, I have a VERY hard time with Neven's review for three reasons:

1) He seems to have forgotten, or overlooked the fact that "The Shack" is a work of FICTION, not a monograph of Christian doctrine. According to the website, Young wrote the book to purge his own troubled soul and to explain his difficult upbringing to his children. Most people understand that a novelist has the right to poetic license. Probably some finer points of traditional ecclesiastical doctrine have been slightly bent or distorted. However, I don't believe that Young has BREACHED the spirit of the Bible as Holy Scripture in any way whatsoever. Further, his bends or distortions don't dilute the primary message of protagonist Mack(enzie) Phillips' - and by extension, all of mankind as creation - basic, fundamental NEED to discover and embrace a LOVED and LOVING RELATIONSHIP with the Holy Trinity.

2) After John and the other Disciples rebuked a man outside their group for casting out devils in Christ's name, Jesus himself replied, "... Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us" - Luke 9:50b (KJV). To the extent that "The Shack" promotes discussion about the Trinity, causes people to think more seriously about their relationship to Our Lord, or leads a SINGLE SOUL to a deeper, more enriched Christian life, then in my humble opinion, Young is absolutely FOR CHRIST, and the book is worth its weight in GOLD. I am persuaded that this is the intent behind Jesus' words quoted above.

3) Finally, the direct attack Neven wages against Young, Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Brian McLaren (of whom I've never heard) and others, is paradigmatic of the kind of narrow-minded, "my-way-or-you're-goin'-to-Hell" thinking that divides Americans into scores of denominations and makes so MANY people SICK of "organized religion"! He'd rather be "right" (in his own mind that is) than understanding or compassionate. He'd rather be self-justified than tolerant, and he'd rather divide than unite. From my viewpoint, this is the "leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees" of which Christ warns us to "take heed and beware" in the Gospel of Matthew 16:6 (KJV).

But don't take my word for it. READ "THE SHACK" FOR YOURSELF and then give Big Head Lar' the 4-1-1!

Peezy fo' sheezy,
Lareezy
_______________________________________________
Larry W. King
Software Development

Subject: Baltimore Miseducation From: Chuck Smith Sent: Wednesday, July 02, 2008 1:21 PM

HARD TIMES AT DOUGLASS HIGH: A NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND REPORT CARD

Inside an inner-city Baltimore high school where teachers and students face the challenges of a 2002 education-reform act.

An HBO Documentary.

I felt compelled to weigh in on this discussion. I did watch the program and I became angry for several different reasons. For those who have not yet seen the program, it is about Frederick Douglass High School in Baltimore. Douglass is reputedly the oldest "historically black" high school in the country. One of its more famous alums is Thurgood Marshall.

The points raised by Mr. Wilburn are very pertinent, but I would quibble with him on some very minor things that really are not important for the larger discussion. With that said, Larry's point about moving kids along the system is well taken, but it is not anything new. Social promotion has been going on in our public school systems long before any of us were born. The insidious factor of the current use of social promotion is the philosophy upon which it is founded. The current flavor-of-the-month educational philosophy is that kids cannot have their self-esteem dinged.By that I mean, the paramount thing, other than the silly-assed standardized tests, is to assure that every child feels good about him or her self.

While this may seem to be a laudable goal, I suggest that the effort merely cripples our children. By way of example, in the Montgomery County(Maryland) School System, one of the largest and most affluent public school systems in the country, we have a grading policy of: 1) giving students agrade of no less of 50% if they make a legitimate effort on an assessment;and 2) allowing students to re-take certain assessments to improve theirgrade. The philosophy being that if the student gets good grades, the student will feel good about himself.

When this grading policy was first promulgated, it included that homework could not count as a part of a student's grade; that portion of the policy has since been modified to make homework no more than 10% of a student's grade. My experience with this policy as both a parent and ateacher in the system leads me to the conclusion that the grading policy is a misguided effort to bolster kids' grades and by extension, their self-esteem.

All this policy has taught the kids to do is to scam the system. The first words out of many of my students' mouths when I announce an assessmentis: "can we do a make-up on this?" Think about the implications of that question. The students know that maximum effort on the initial test or quiz is not necessary because they get a mulligan. The system is teaching them that maximum effort is not necessary because a second (or third under some circumstances) chance is available. This policy is the definition of insanity!

Turning back to the documentary, there is a point in it where a Spanish teacher is talking to one of her students who is failing the class becausehe doesn't come to class and when he does, he does no work. The teacher is trying to reach this knucklehead by telling him that he is capable of doing the work and all the teacher needs to see from him is some effort. Her thinly-veiled message is "if you do SOMETHING, I will pass you." The student understands the message, but his response is that he thinks that she should pass him "for doing nothing."

The teacher, not believing what she is hearing, repeats his statement to him just to make sure that she understands that he is demanding that she pass him in the class without him doing any work. The documentary does not show what she said to the student after she clarified his comment, but if it would have been me, I would have called that idiot everything except a child of God. The exchange between the Spanish teacher and her student really summed up the "problem" with the educational system.

As depicted in the documentary, many of our kids have a sense of entitlement. By this I mean that they feel as if someone, somewhere in the world owes them something. In my classrooms, I see this sense of entitlement across all socio-economic boundaries and across all races. Our children really believe that the fact of their existence means that they should "have." Lost in the entitlement, however, is the concept that one needs to work for the "have." Unfortunately, our society and educational system play into this sense of entitlement by perpetuating the self-esteemat all costs philosophy.

I do not have a solution to the problem of our educational system other than to try to eliminate the entitlement type of thinking one kid at a time.I, of course, end up being the bad guy because I do not "give" grades; my students get what they earn. Nonetheless, I do know that in many instances the lack of parental involvement in the schools is a result of learned behavior. The parents of my students' parents were not involved in their children's schools, so how would the current set of parents know the expected behavior? Moreover, many of my students' parents had bad experiences during their limited academic careers. Why should they want to have anything to do with the schools now?

We are caught in a vicious circle that requires people to learn how to advocate for themselves and their children in order for the cycle to end. Federal programs, such as the comically named No Child Left Behind law, are not the answer. We need an entirely new paradigm for public education. The nine month academic year cycle is an anachronistic vestige of anagricultural society that no longer exists. Our boundaries of elementary, middle, and secondary school may no longer fit students either developmentally or metacognitively. Yet, we keep doing things in the same manner and wondering why the why the results are not different!

I will climb off of the soap-box now. Charles (Chuck) T. Smith II

Subject: Condoleezza Rice Comments On Race/Denver

Subject: Condoleezza Rice Kept It Real

Sen. Barack Obama has called for a national discussion on race in America, and one of the folks who sure didn't hold back when asked was Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.In a discussion with the editorial board of the Washington Times on Thursday, Rice called racism a 'birth defect' of America , and said that black Americans have loved the nation even when it didn't love us.

The Times reported:'Black Americans were a founding popula tion,' she said. 'Africans and Europeans came here and founded this country together - Europeans by choice and Africans in chains. That's not a very pretty reality of our founding.

''As a result, Miss Rice told editors and reporters at The Washington Times, 'descendants of slaves did not get much of a head start, and I think you continue to see some of the effects of that.''

That particular birth defect makes it hard for us to confront it, hard for us to talk about it, and hard for us to realize that it has continuing relevance for who we are today,' she said.

Rice later said: ' America doesn't have an easy time dealing with race,' Miss Rice said, adding that members of her family have 'endured terrible humiliations.''What I would like understood as a black American is that black Americans loved and had faith in this country even when this country didn't love and have faith in them - and that's our legacy,' she said.

Wow, was all I could say to t hat.What was even more stunning was the relative lack of coverage on this issue. I was told CNN's 'The Situation Room' did a piece on her comments Friday. But when I surfed the Net to see follow-up stories in other papers, it has pretty much been ignored, except for some briefs.

Why would the mainstream media be so dismissive of Rice's comments? Imagine if Rev. Al Sharpton or Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. said such a thing. Do you think they would have gotten ripped?

The fact of the matter is that Rice was right on the money with her comments, and should be commended. She spoke honestly and openly about the issue, and deserves credit for speaking the truth.

I just wish my colleagues in the media would do a better job at advancing the issue of race in America and our sordid history.We went bonkers about the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, but when Rice, the nation's chief diplomat, spoke truthfully, it barely made a ripple.

Roland S. Mart in, CNN Contributorwww.rolandsmartin.com

Things That Make You Go Hum!!!!!

Black conservatives conflicted on Obama campaign

By FREDERIC J. FROMMER, Associated Press Writer
Sunday, June 15, 2008

Black conservative talk show host Armstrong Williams has never voted for a Democrat for president. That could change this year with Barack Obama as the Democratic Party's nominee.
"I don't necessarily like his policies; I don't like much that he advocates, but for the first time in my life, history thrusts me to really seriously think about it," Williams said. "I can honestly say I have no idea who I'm going to pull that lever for in November. And to me, that's incredible."
Just as Obama has touched black Democratic voters, he has engendered conflicting emotions among black Republicans. They revel over the possibility of a black president but wrestle with the thought that the Illinois senator doesn't sit beside them ideologically.
"Among black conservatives," Williams said, "they tell me privately, it would be very hard to vote against him in November."
Perhaps sensing the possibility of such a shift, Republican presidential candidate John McCain has made some efforts to lure black voters. He recently told Essence magazine that he would attend the NAACP's annual convention next month, and he noted that he recently traveled to Selma, Ala., scene of seminal voting rights protests in the 1960s, and "talked about the need to include 'forgotten Americans.'"
Still, the Arizona senator has a tall order in winning black votes, no doubt made taller by running against a black opponent. In 2004, blacks chose Democrat John Kerry over President Bush by an 88 percent to 11 percent margin, according to exit polls.
J.C. Watts, a former Oklahoma congressman who once was part of the GOP House leadership, said he's thinking of voting for Obama. Watts said he's still a Republican, but he criticizes his party for neglecting the black community. Black Republicans, he said, have to concede that while they might not agree with Democrats on issues, at least that party reaches out to them.
"And Obama highlights that even more," Watts said, adding that he expects Obama to take on issues such as poverty and urban policy. "Republicans often seem indifferent to those things."
Likewise, retired Gen. Colin Powell, who became the country's first black secretary of state under President George W. Bush, said both candidates are qualified and that he will not necessarily vote for the Republican.
"I will vote for the individual I think that brings the best set of tools to the problems of 21st-century America and the 21st-century world regardless of party, regardless of anything else other than the most qualified candidate," Powell said Thursday in Vancouver in comments reported by The Globe and Mail in Toronto.
Writer and actor Joseph C. Phillips got so excited about Obama earlier this year that he started calling himself an "Obamacan" — Obama Republican. Phillips, who appeared on "The Cosby Show" as Denise Huxtable's husband, Navy Lt. Martin Kendall, said he has wavered since, but he is still thinking about voting for Obama.
"I am wondering if this is the time where we get over the hump, where an Obama victory will finally, at long last, move us beyond some of the old conversations about race," Phillips said. "That possibly, just possibly, this great country can finally be forgiven for its original sin, or find some absolution."
Yet Phillips, author of the book "He Talk Like a White Boy," realizes the irony of voting for a candidate based on race to get beyond race.
"We have to not judge him based on his race, but on his desirability as a political candidate," he said. "And based on that, I have a lot of disagreements with him on a lot of issues. I go back and forth."
Michael Steele, the Republican former lieutenant governor of Maryland who lost a Senate race there in 2006, said he is proud of Obama as a black man, but that "come November, I will do everything in my power to defeat him." Electing Obama, he said, would not automatically solve the woes of the black community.
"I think people who try to put this sort of messianic mantle on Barack's nomination are a little bit misguided," he said.
John McWhorter, a self-described political moderate who is a senior fellow at the conservative Manhattan Institute and a New York Sun columnist, said Obama's Democratic Party victory "proves that while there still is some racism in the United States, there is not enough to matter in any serious manner. This is a watershed moment."
"Obama is probably more to the left than I would prefer on a lot of issues," he adds. "But this issue of getting past race for real is such a wedge issue for me. And he is so intelligent, and I think he would be a perfectly competent president, that I'm for him. I want him to get in because, in a way, it will put me out of a job."
James T. Harris, a Milwaukee radio talk show host and public speaker, said he opposes Obama "with love in my heart."
"We are of the same generation. He's African American and I'm an American of African descent. We both have lovely wives and beautiful children," Harris said. "Other than that, we've got nothing in common. I hope he loses every state."
Moderate Republican Edward Brooke, who blazed his own trail in Massachusetts in 1966 as the first black popularly elected U.S. senator, said he is "extremely proud and confident and joyful" to see Obama ascend. Obama sent Brooke a signed copy of his book, inscribed, "Thank you for paving the way," and Brooke sent his own signed book to Obama, calling the presumed Democratic nominee "a worthy bearer of the torch."
Brooke, who now lives in Florida, won't say which candidate will get his endorsement, but he does say that race won't be a factor in his decision.
"This is the most important election in our history," Brooke said. "And with the world in the condition that it is, I think we've got to get the best person we can get."
Williams, the commentator, says his 82-year-old mother, who also hasn't voted for a Democratic presidential candidate, has already made up her mind.
"She is so proud of Senator Barack Obama, and she has made it clear to all of us that she's voting for him in November," Williams relates. "That is historic. Every time I call her, she asks, 'How's Obama doing?' They feel as if they are a part of this. Because she said, given the history of this country, she never thought she'd ever live to see this moment."

Small Town America

July 28th 2008
By: Daddymix

This past weekend I did a gig in Paonia, Colorado. It’s a small town in Southwest Colorado with a population of just under 1500 people.

We did a gig for the BMW Motorcycle Rally. This added roughly 10,000 folks to the population for a week.

Now mind you, that I only met 2 Black men in the crowd, but the rest of the folks had a great time partying. No problems. Nothing racist. Just a great party.

While at the hotel in nearby Delta Colorado, my wife made a trip to City Market right next door. While standing in the checkout line she overhears the husband of a couple make disparaging remarks about Barack Obama.

While looking at the newest issue of People magazine with a photo of the Obama family on the cover standing in front of their home the husband says “there he is in his habitat”.
And then the husband goes on to say that Barack Obama is a communist. All the while trying to get his message to as may people he can in the near vicinity.

Thank God my wife didn’t get into it with this couple (which is really rare for her. Mamma don’t take no mess). Although the wife did make a statement that led my wife to believe her husband had embarrassed the hell out of her. I’m also glad that I wasn’t there. I would have had to tear this guy a new asshole.

Being Black in this country has always included bigotry, and racism at times far worse than my wife witnessed over the weekend. And personally I don’t think that’s going to change any time soon. I understand there will always be those White folks that will never find it within themselves to admit how wrong they are by heaping us all into the same barrel.

But that’s not my argument. My argument comes from the fact that there are some people out here of ALL races that must be too stupid to pick up a news paper and read.

First of all I don’t care who you vote for. Now I would rather you vote for Barack Obama, but whomever you chose is okay by me. I mean that’s what voting is all about. Being able to make the choice you want in leadership your own decision.

But don’t spew hater-ration up in this danceree! If you don’t like the man for your choice that’s fine. But don’t go trying to sell malicious lies to those around you without doing your homework.

My father always told me to never worry what other people might say about me, or to me. He said that there are always going to be people that waste precious time worried about things they can not change. And that I shouldn’t fall into their trap of engaging them after a stupid or racist remark. To instead use my time to further myself in this world, and pray to God to accept my soul!

These things I try to do everyday. But every now and then you’re confronted with pure bigotry, racism, and most of all stupidity. And if I had been there with my wife I would have sounded off on the man. “Tell me how you know Barack Obama is a communist”. And why does he have to be in his habitat. Why can’t he just be at home with his family like every other hard working person in A-merry-ca?

You all have a great and blessed day. PEACE!