As we grow older, a lot of things we once valued aren’t as valuable to us as they once were. The way we thought the world works isn’t exactly how the world works. Is it that we have lost faith, or do we just see things for how they really are?
Being popular is more important than being smart… how silly of me.
Having things is more important than having assets… how silly of me.
Not realizing every mistake or sin is fear-based… how silly of me.
Trying to change people rather than being the change I want to see… how silly of me.
What have you realized that you have been silly of? How do you see the world now compared to when you were 18? 21?
*The soundtrack for today’s post is, “How Silly of Me,” by artist 607 (one half of the duo, earFear). You can hear more here.
So the President took Spike Lee’s advice this week and finally got a little mad about he Gulf Oil spill. Not that Spike Lee should ever be listened to on a regular basis, but I was happy he showed a little bit of his ninja side. And what he said was so straight forward I don’t have to even dumb it down for you…
He wants to know “whose ass to kick.” Well Mr. President it’s a really short list…
BP, Transatlantic, Haliburton, and your own administration for failing to react quicker when you guys saw that BP wasn’t willing to spend real money to get this done and tried to find every cheap way possible to fix the oil spill and cause 37% of the Gulf to be uninhabitable by marine life capable of getting this done.
President Barack Obama bluntly defended his administration’s response to the undersea gusher fouling the Gulf of Mexico on Monday, telling an interviewer he has met with experts to learn “whose ass to kick.”
“I was down there a month ago, before most of these talking heads were even paying attention to the Gulf,” Obama told NBC’s “Today” show in an interview scheduled to air Tuesday. “A month ago I was meeting with fishermen down there, standing in the rain talking about what a potential crisis this could be.”
A variety of critics have accused Obama of being too cerebral in his reaction to the undersea gusher now fouling the Gulf of Mexico, of failing to put the full force of the administration and of putting too much trust in oil company BP. But Obama told NBC his deliberations have been more than academic…
“I don’t sit around talking to experts because this is a college seminar,” Obama continued. “We talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers, so I know whose ass to kick.”
Well I ask you my fellow nerds. Who is to blame? “Whose ass to kick?”
Did the President not act fast enough or is his timing impecable?
Do you think this is fake anger to make him seem more concerned than what he is?
When I was in college, there was a dorm at my school called Confederate Memorial Hall. Most of the time it was just called Confederate Hall, which I don’t need to tell you caused many a black people to look like the way Three Six Mafia described Chinese women’s vaginas. It’s just something about the word “Confederate” that brings in thoughts of Kunta Kinte, and him being whipped into the name Toby. The reason for the name, Confederate Memorial Hall, was it was funded by the Daughters of the the Confederacy (DOC) as a memorial to the fallen soldiers of the Confederacy.
Well because of public outcry, the dorm’s name was changed to Memorial Hall. This was done without the DOC’s knowledge, and they sued (rightfully so). Well Vandy was a little smart. The university changed the name in all publications, but left the name on the building facade. They didn’t want to have to give UDC back the $50, 000 that was given to fund the dorm 72 years ago… Which in today’s dollars converts to about $2.2 million… or about a year’s tuition for one student …J/K…only a little. :(
While I was in college, I followed the crowd on this one which was, “Screw them! They made us slaves!” Well now I have to go back on that previous idea. Although slavery was a huge part of the Confederacy, I understand there were numerous other issues that caused that war. And those men, at the time, died for their country fighting for what they believed in. And if their people want to pay for a memorial for that, then I have to say that is all good to me… BUT…We have to see both sides of that: The dark and the light. Sadly, in most wars that are fought, only the winner gets to decide who was right. I’m sure if the South had won, the North would have the same problems with memorials.
“Treason is all a matter of dates ” – From the Movie the Count of Monte Cristo.
I’ll add to that it’s a matter of outcome as well.
But I say all that to keep my topic in perspective.
VA Gov. Bob McDonnell made the declaration that April will be “Confederate History Month”. Now I can see where people would have a problem with this. But let’s be clear (In my Obama voice)… I think it is just as wrong not to have a Confederate History month as it is to not to have Black History Month. He did it for a clear reason. He wanted to honor the past and boost tourism for the state. I don’t have a problem with that. But here is my problem Bob…
How dare you not cite the roll of slavery? Now Bob I don’t have a problem with you honoring your people, but don’t you dare not tell the whole truth. Keep it real son!
I think Martin Luther King was one of the greatest men to walk the Earth. We honor him as well as all black pioneers during Black History month. But let’s be honest. MLK smoked, and he messed around with other women. That’s the truth, and we would do ourselves a disservice not to tell the whole truth no matter how ugly it is.
I’m probably thinking too much on this one when I think about Bob’s merits. (Which I tend to do) But to me that is very careless and mildly racist.
So I don’t have any problem with what you do. I say leave the name Confederate Memorial Hall. I say have your Confederate Month. But don’t forget my heritage in the process.
Today marks the day one year ago that Barack Obama was elected president and uttered the words, “Change has come to America”. Well my fellow nerds I have a question. Has change come to America? I won’t go into all the other things plaguing society, but we’ll just look at it from the black male perspective.
CNN is doing their normal explotive news coverage.
And they bring up some very good examples of brothers doing there thing. But my big issue is most of these brothers were doing their thing before President Obama was elected president. Then I look at stories like the one about Derrion Albert and wonder if his election has meant anything to our young brothers.
Well my answer is yes and no. I don’t believe Barack Obama being elected has done anything to change how black men have acted or will act. I think there has to be an inherent nature to want to be better in order to do better. People say black boys can look to him now and believe they can do anything. I think all young brothers that feel that way after seeing Barack had a want to do great in the first place. Him being elected only confirmed their desires.
I feel like any change in our society must be grass roots. We have to show brothers one on one how to be better. And most of all they have to want to be better. I’m not taking anything away from his election. I think it was great that he was elected and thing it was a great win for the black community. But I don’t think we can look to his election as a defining moment that “change has come to [black] america”.
But anyway… How do you feel? Do you see this past year as a marked improvement for the black male in society in the age of Obama?
The question of whether America is ready to embrace a black President was not answered November 4, 2008 and will likely remain unanswered until the end of Barack Obama’s Presidency and beyond. However, a recent irreverent outburst by Congressman Joe Wilson (R-SC) on the floor of the House of Representatives during the President’s speech to a joint session of congress has caused some to answer the above question in the negative. Maureen Dowd and former President Jimmy Carter have argued that Wilson’s comments were motivated by racism. Others argue that Wilson temporarily lost control of his emotions and his outburst was simply a momentary lapse in civility. I have no authority to judge whether or not Congressman Wilson is a racist, and I will not speculate on the matter. However, I do contend that Congressman Wilson’s outburst was likely influenced by the twin themes of race-based politic and incivility that currently epitomize the Republican opposition.
The type of irreverent behavior exhibited by Wilson can easily be categorized as the height of political incivility. Had such a slanderous offense been hurled at President Andrew Jackson, Wilson would have been asked to meet outside the chamber for a duel. Although stunning in its ostentatiousness, Wilson’s lack of civility has been a trademark of Republican opposition throughout August and on full display in town halls across America. While many Republicans approached these meetings as an opportunity to learn more about competing health care proposals, others arrived armed with republican talking points and determined to disrupt the free flow of information. What’s more, this rancorous tone has been magnified by the race-based politics and name calling of conservative commentators.
Rush Limbaugh and Fox News Networks commentators, the de facto leaders of the conservative party, have been playing offense with the race card since President Obama’s inauguration. Limbaugh has called President Obama an “angry black man,” while Glenn Beck called him a “racist…with serious issues with white people.” Glenn Beck further aggravates the race issue by calling the President’s efforts on health care, “Reparations by Health Care Reform.” Beck contends that “Obama’s health care plan” is “affirmative action on steroids;” designed to give African Americans a privileged position in health care. In one fell swoop, Beck places America back into the pre-civil rights era black versus white binary. His call to white Americans is to “protect your own” because the black president is doing the same at your expense.
Beck, and his fellow extremist foghorns, encourage whites to flock to gun stores and expos to purchase artillery and munitions to defend themselves against the socialist bent on destroying their way of life. To this group, President Obama is not your normal socialist, he is a hybrid Nazi fascist-socialist in the mold of Adolf Hitler. His goal is to destroy white America to make way for the reign of the black “master race.” Outside of being preposterous, this sort of rhetoric is wholly and completely irresponsible. While the First Amendment gives these commentators the right to speak in this manner, it does not make it prudent.
The tone of the current debate has gotten wildly out of hand. Understanding the convergence of race-based politics and incivility is useful in understanding Congressman Wilson’s outburst and the general tenor of the opposition in our current political discourse. Opposition commentators and representatives have employed name calling, race-baiting and fear mongering in their quest to dismantle the President’s agenda. I’m sure they all carry bumper stickers reading “You Lie,” and “Civility, the Loser’s Virtue.”
