Tag Archives: Barack Obama

The Way I See It Today: I’ve Seen the Future, And It Ain’t Lookin’ Pretty….

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…..at least for Democratic elected officials in Houston, Texas, where the first Black Tea Party was formed. 

Organizers call it the Crispus Attucks Tea Party, and according to the Fox News report I came across by way of a post on the right-leaning website Big Government, the CATP has attracted African-Americans with a wide range of political leanings to its ranks, including long time Democrats. 

GASP!!!

Now before you pelt me with tomatoes and eggs, hear me out.  I’m a native Chicagoan, a Democrat, and a reluctant Obama supporter.  I won’t go into why I drank the Obama kool-aid, but I’ll just say that I wish I had a kool-aid tester before I drank it. 

Perhaps the effects of the Obama kool-aid have begun to wear off? Maybe the change we were supposed to believe in only amounted to “chump change?” Let’s see:  Despite the fact that we’re supposed to be in the midst of an economic upswing, record unemployment persists among Whites, and it’s even higher among African-Americans.  Those who are working are in fear of losing their jobs. People are losing their homes and finding their quality of life in grave jeopardy of disappearing into the mist, if it hasn’t dissolved into oblivion already.

Perhaps what’s going on down in Houston, which, according to Wikipedia, is the fourth-largest city in the United States, should make us sit up and take notice?  If the Tea Party can garner enough interest and support among African-Americans in the 4th largest city in the United States, then where next? My hometown Chicago? Los Angeles?  NYC? Baltimore?  Philadelphia? 

Will it make Democrats sit up and take notice?  Given their track record for coming to the soiree late, probably not until the last minute.  Apparently, the Crispus Attucks Tea Party is not on Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee‘s radar screen.  According to the Fox News report, she was invited to attend the inaugural meeting but declined.  Bad move, Congresswoman Lee.  People are tired of being taken for granted, of being taxed without adequate representation, and of being led to believe that their elected officials are acting in their best interests when in fact they are engaging in all kinds of “questionable activities.” 

*side eye to Rep. Jackson Lee*

I’m not suggesting that African-Americans will defect en masse from the Democratic Party. That will never happen.  There will always be African-Americans who will be die-hard Democrats, who think like this guy:  “It’s just not in my system to want to identify with any other party than Democrat”.  He’s a loyal kool-aid sipper, and as long as we have folks like that who refuse to explore other options because it’s “not in his system” to do so, well, it makes no sense to waste one’s time attempting to change their minds.  Chances are, these are the same people who are okay with things just the way they are.

 But what I am suggesting is that if the Democrats don’t find a way to address the concerns of a growing segment of its African-American base that is pretty sick and tired of the status quo, they think the run up to the mid-term elections was a bit of a scare?  The mid-terms will be a picnic compared to the 2012 election cycle.  Democrats are in for a rude awakening if they continue to sit on their hands and take their base for granted. 

They are in for a rude awakening. Remember Velma Hart? Roll the tape.

The Way I See It Today: Great Depression, Mancession….Not Much Has Changed, Has It??

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(Picture from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, courtesy of the National Archives and Records Administration.)

Today, I’m reading American Experience:  Working In America by Catherine Reef.  As the title suggests, work and what it means to be American are forever intertwined, sometimes inexplicably, other times (and more often than not), plainly and clearly (and darkly, depending upon who you ask). 

:-)

While  reading a chapter on the Great Depression, I came across this passage, which was an anonymous letter to FDR in 1936 from a 12-year-old boy:

“I’m a boy of 12 years…My father hasn’t worked for 5 months. He went plenty of times to relief, he filled out application. [sic]  They won’t give us anything. I don’t know why….We haven’t paid 4 months rent, Everyday the landlord rings the door bell, we don’t open the door for him.  We are afraid that will be put out, been put out before, and don’t want to happen again.  We haven’t paid the gas bill, and the electric bill, haven’t paid grocery bill for 3 months.  My brother goes to Lane Tech High School.  he’s eighteen years old, hasn’t gone to school for 2 weeks because he got no carfare.  I have a sister she’s twenty years, she can’t find work.  My father, he staying home.  All the time he’s crying because he can’t find work.  I told him why are you crying daddy, and daddy said why shouldn’t I cry when there is nothing in the house.  I feel sorry for him.  That night I couldn’t sleep. …Were [sic] American citizens and were born in Chicago, Ill. and I don’t know why they don’t help us….” 

 – From Down and Out in the Great Depression (McElvaine, ed., p 117)

Hmmmm….. “I don’t know why they don’t help us…”

Powerful words from a precocious 12-year old boy from my hometown almost 75 years ago.

I wonder what an average 12-year-old (boy or girl) in 2010, forced to watch his unemployed father (remember, this is a Mancession, although plenty of men lost their jobs during the Great Depression) or mother attempt to stave off the sharks, wolves and vultures would say if I asked him if he or she felt that the government was doing all it could to help them stay above water? 

Do you think would his/her response be any different from the boy’s from 1936?  Probably not.

And that 12-year-old may be insightful enough to offer concrete reasons in support of his answer, given his access to the Internet and the 24/7/365 news cycle….

Puts a little something on your mind, doesn’t it?

And for a country that purports to value hard work, earning an honest living, and being productive, why is it so hard for America’s best and brightest to find sustainable, meaningful and proactive ways to get people back to work?  Why are we dragging our feet on this? Shouldn’t this be our first priority?

And why must it require that people in crisis jump through endless hoops of fire and brimstone just to get the level and type of transitional assistance that can help them maintain a decent standard of living for themselves and their families?  Do we really want people in need to be able to do what is necessary to stabilize their living situation?  Or do we secretly delight in scapegoating and shaming others who have fallen on hard times so that we can make ourselves feel better? 

And why do I feel like, when it’s all said and done, that Americans just don’t give a damn about your average American worker?  If we did, someone please explain to me why November 2nd went the way that it did. 

It all seems so simple, but ask yourself…if a child can get it, why in the heck can’t we??

(UPDATE, May 13, 2011:  At the end of April 2011, the national, seasonally adjusted unemployment rate continues to be a staggering 9%, as per the Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey.  I wrote this post in November 2010.  What is the freakin problem?)

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The Way I See It Today: The World Has Gone Stark Raving Mad. That Is All.

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I never thought I would write something in this vein, but I felt I had to.  I can’t take it anymore. 

 After reading The Village Voice article penned by Steven Thrasher and entitled “White America Has Lost Its Mind,” and all 200+ comments, I have come to the conclusion that the entire world has lost its collective mind.

And there’s nothing that can help us get it back.

Yes, people, we’re screwed. 

We’ve got Blacks screaming at White folk.

White folks railing against non-Whites.

Gays hollerin’ at straight folks.

Straight folk condemning gay folk.

Christians attacking Muslims.

Muslims burning American flags.

The rich looking down on the poor.

The poor cursing the rich.

This shit is crazy.  I’ve never seen anything like it.

Everyone has something to say, but no one is listening. 

More troubling, is this:  If the solution to all of our problems hurtled to the Earth, no one would hear it crash, and we would all die as a result of ignoring it. We would be too busy arguing and back biting and debating and pontificating to even care about saving our own collective asses.

Shut the fuck up already!  Damn! 

Why is it so important that we all be heard?  Whatever happened to having a civil conversation, where, let’s see, I talk, you listen, then you talk, and I listen, and we come to a shared understanding about what the issue may be?Oh yeah, we’re all mind readers and know exactly what someone is going to say before he or she says it.  NOPE – WRONG ANSWER. 

 Why do people think that their problems are somehow more important, more pressing that the problems of other people’s?  News flash:  Frankly, no one gives a shit.   

See, I learned a lot from being married (oh yeah, people don’t wanna do that anymore, because it’s too hard and it requires actually listening to someone else that you may or may not respect).  I learned that it actually requires you to shut your trap up and listen for a change, to exhibit some sensitivity and empathy for someone else’s point of view. 

But I’m learning very quickly that most people aren’t that mature.  That’s why most people rather not get married.

Nothing’s worse in a marriage if you have one person who does all the talking.  Why?  Because chances are, that person isn’t doing any of the listening.  And that sucks if you aren’t being heard.  It sucks even more when you’re the perpetual gabber, and don’t see the signs when the person you’ve talked to death decides to leave your ass because they’re tired of listening to your endless yapping.

And if marriage is a microcosm of larger society, then I see why we as a society are miserable.  I would venture a guess that all the blathering we’re hearing in the public sphere is from the people in relationships who weren’t heard by their partners and find it necessary to dump on the rest of us.

The problem is this:  No one wants to take the time to listen, they are too busy in their own heads, working on a response to what it is you’re saying.  And that response is so far afield that it doesn’t even begin to address what you actually said, because, dammit, you weren’t listening again!

How frustrating is that?!?!?

And if you’re subjected to that all your miserable life, I can see why someone would lose their freaking mind. Everyone’s living in their own heads, as Mr. Thrasher said, and no one bothers to actually look around, listen and process what it is they hear and see because maybe it just doesn’t jibe with what it is they need to believe.

And on a grand scale, if this is going on, as I believe it is, I stand my assertion that we’re all doomed and we’re all gonna die. 

At least we’ll all be shouting and carrying on when it happens.

It’ll be painless.

What if Mr. Obama Said, “F*CK IT!!!!”?

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Since I’m on an Obama roll today, I thought I should post this video that I came across in my Tumblr feed. After watching it, I can’t say that I could honestly blame him if he just said f*ck it…

And it’s funny, after watching him all summer, I got the sense that he might be a bit disengaged. But who can blame him? Folks are making it quite difficult for the man.

Anyway, watch the video:

Thanks to The Daily Dub for sharing this….

*turning back my bottle of Jack Daniel and smoking on a cigarette*

ABOUT TIME, MR. PRESIDENT! Obama says “They talk about me like a dog”

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This minute-long clip of a speech President Obama made yesterday in Milwaukee, Wisconsin has taken the blogosphere by storm.  Seven words have the nation scrambling and scratching their heads, trying to understand why our President went off-message.  It’s amazing how the simple things evade those among us who claim to be the best and the brightest.  It’s actually very simple.

What a country we live in.  For shame, for shame.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand what the heck he meant by what he said.  I hate when people play dumb.

I find it quite hilarious that the media and the blogosphere takes issue with his remark. And you may not like what I’m about to say.  But people who know me know that I don’t have a problem mincing my words.  *shrugs*

You know what I hate? When people (and this includes the mainstream media) dish unwarranted criticism and bullshit out but have a hard time taking it.  What, did you expect that he would just lie down and be a good Black boy?  WRONG. 

This man, our President, has been nothing but gracious and conciliatory. He tried to reach out to the Republican Party and has had his hand slapped down too many times to count.

As Chris Matthews has said over and over again, “He did what you asked of him.  He played by the rules.”  And what has that gained him?  Two years of blatant disrespect.  People whose names I won’t even bother to mention on my blog have used the media to do nothing but nitpick, nitpick, nitpick. And the President has tried to take the high road.  For what?  That strategy hasn’t worked! 

No one on the other side of the aisle (or for that matter, Democrats, either) has given him his just credit for the things that he has managed to pull off.  Oh, but noooooo!  Black folks have to work 10 times as hard and do the job of 1000 people to get credit for anything.  This is how it always has been. And there are no tangible rewards for this!  Unless you enjoy getting picked on, dissected, studied, and denied our humanity.

Well, here’s a news flash.

Eventually, people, EVEN THE PRESIDENT, are going to get tired of being picked on.  And eventually, people who are subjected to what amounts to abuse will fight back.

So, here’s what I think about the dog comment.  Good for you, Mr. President.  It’s high time that you put people in their place.  I’m looking forward to the next 8 weeks!  Take the gloves off and knuckle up, Mr. Obama!  Watch those punks cower and whine like bitches!

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Deconstructing Common’s Take on The Obama Effect

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Blogger Obsidian, over at The Obsidian Files, posted his latest missive  entitled, “What Message Does Barack Obama Send To Black Men & Boys?”

This post explores the impact Obama’s historic presidency has had on all Americans, most importantly, Black Men, who supported him in record numbers. 

After I read his post, which was very good, by the way, I decided to focus in on the below statement: 

 But in the end, it all worked. Barack Hussein Obama, Jr., took the Oath of Office on Jan 20, 2009. It was hailed as a watershed moment in US political history; we had finally done what many thought was the impossible-moreover, his very compelling story, said loud and clear-especially to Black Men and boys-that they could be whatever they wanted to be, if they but played by the rules and worked hard. Reams of such articles and blogposts and Tweets and Facebook messages went out. Rapper/actor Common suggested that the “Obama Effect” would take hold of young Black Men in particular, making a seachange in their outlook and behavior. This latter point was huge in the American public mind-after all, Black Male problems were seen not so much as matters requiring fixes and/or adjustments of public policy, but rather as flaws of the spirit, lapses in judgment and poor decision making. 

 Very interesting.  

So the essence of this quote perhaps implies that Barack Obama’s election and his subsequent first term in office would signal to Black men that they could potentially be rewarded for exercising good judgment, doing the right things, i.e., going to school, being a responsible citizen, making the right choices, and playing by the rules. The reward, in effect, boils down to being accepted by the mainstream, i.e., White America. Which, in effect, would ideally result in access to those opportunities that have been historically closed to them.
 
Yeah, right.
 
That’s a lot to consider, given America’s history and poor track record in this regards.  It’s like attempting to erase a blackboard covered in chalk with a pencil eraser, before the teacher catches you in the act. Virtually impossible.
 
So in an effort to better understand the meaning behind the term “The Obama Effect,” I did a quick and dirty Google search, which not only revealed that many people had a different take on what Obama’s historic feat meant for Blacks and Whites alike, but may of these same people wanted to see the same end, that Obama’s election would somehow magically change the status quo.  
 
Wishful thinking?  Perhaps.
 
So I went back to Obsidian’s post, and clicked on a link that took me to an interview CNN did with Common, a rapper from my hometown, Chicago.  Great, now I can get to the essence of what Common meant when he said what he said he believed Obama’s presidency would change the attitudes of Black men. So now we’re getting somewhere. 
 
As I read the CNN post, I began to understand that Common was essentially suggesting that Obama’s election would have a profound influence on hip-hop artists, and that there would be some trickle-down effect to Black men and boys, and the community at large. 
 
As I read further, I discovered that Common expounded on several key points to further elucidate his premise.  Let’s take a look:
 
1.  He asserts that Hip-Hop would become less preoccupied with those behaviors that have come to negatively define Hip-Hop.  So we’re talking about less bling, less misogyny, etc., etc. As a result, rappers would feel compelled to create more positive and upbeat work, inspiring communities to move away from those “vices that plagued” them for so long.
2. Hip-Hop artists would assert their independence from record labels by taking greater control over the creative process.
 
Now.  I’m not asserting that I have the ability to read Common’s mind. I may be way off with my takeaways from the interview.  If I am, please jump in and tell me what you took away from the post. 
 
With that said, I have to ask.  Was Common on point with what he said?  Or was he speaking in a vacuum? 
 
I humbly submit that Common, although he obviously meant well, missed the mark.  Here’s what I think:  Rappers never claimed to be role models, and to imply that they would clean up their acts and become positive role models for other Black men by virtue of a Black man becoming President seems a bit of a stretch.  
 
Here’s another important consideration.  For the most part, when rappers become successful, they move away from the very communities that they claim to be so loyal to.  So how is this all supposed to happen, Common?  Osmosis?  Telepathy? 
 
Furthermore, I believe that Obama’s presidency is symbolic to Black men for way more reasons than what Common touches on.  How Obama impacts Hip-Hop culture is only a small slice of the bigger pie for Black men.  Contrary to popular beliefs held by the mainstream, Black men want jobs.  They want to provide for their families.  They want respect.  They want dignity.  They want the right to determine and chart their own destiny.  They want to be treated like men.  And they are tired of being misunderstood and judged unfairly. 
 
Certain subgenres of Hip-Hop, I would argue, have not helped at all in this regard.
 
And to be honest, they will continue to want these things, even after Obama leaves office.  Despite what hip-hop tells them.  Despite what the mainstream clings to in their minds. 
 
Now, the larger question out of all of this is, have we realized any of what Common said, two years later? Has Hip-Hop evolved into a more conscious form of expression?  Where is this influx of more conscious, community-minded messages?  I don’t know.  I haven’t seen them.  Maybe you have. 
 
Being a GenXer and having been raised on a steady diet of rap and Hip-Hop since I was a kid, I would say that the golden age of the conscious rapper as I remember it is over.  Don’t get me wrong.  There are conscious rappers out there, and I try to support them when and however I can.  But the pendulum shifted well before Barack Obama came to office, and the only way the pendulum will shift back is if conscious rap is rewarded in the same ways gangsta rap is rewarded.  No one wants to live hand to mouth, Common. So when conscious rap begins to be financially viable for young Black men who aspire to be rap artists, then, well, things will shift.  When more conscious rap gets played on the radio, things will shift. 
 
But until that time, I will wait.  In the meantime, Obama needs to address the pressing concerns of Black men from all walks of life, because when he does, he will begin to lift our entire society out of the mess that it is in.  If Black men continue to be unemployed at disproportionate rates than the mainstream, America will continue to suffer. 
 
This window of opportunity is quickly closing.  Time is running out. 
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A GenXer Celebrates: Mad Men Wins Emmys for Best Drama and Writing for Second Year in a Row – Mad Men – AMC

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Mad Men Wins Emmys for Best Drama and Writing for Second Year in a Row – Mad Men – AMC.

Congratulations AMC…well-deserved.

Winning Emmys two years in a row begs the question:  Why is this show so damn popular, particularly among GenXers?

Could it be  that we long for a more nostalgic time when men were men and women knew their place?  When blacks were nothing more than servants and Latinos and Asians weren’t even on the radar screen?  Roles were defined and people stayed in their lane? Perhaps.

Is it that Baby Boomers never really told us the “truth” about how things really were in mainstream society as it propelled toward what would be known as the Civil Rights Movement?  Perhaps the rose-colored glasses of the Baby Boomers needed to come off.  Perhaps it was time for fresh eyes and minds of some clever GenXers  (Matthew Weiner and his writing team) to take a shot at interpreting the events of the day? Maybe, maybe not.

It’s interesting, and perhaps coincidental, that Mad Men grew in popularity as Barack Obama ran for and was elected as this nation’s first African-American President. How would Don Draper feel about this if he were told that 40 something years later, America would have a black president?  There are a lot of Don Drapers still alive today and probably would have a lot to say about this. 

Perhaps, there’s nothing to look for, no reason to read between the lines.  Perhaps, GenXers just like a good drama, with attractive characters and a Everyman storyline.  Perhaps, we just like what we like.

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Surviving Katrina: 5 Years Later

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Surviving Katrina: Let the light of equality and community shine on

As I reflect on the events of  2005, I remember it as a year of profond contradictions and an important milestone in my own life as a GenXer, struggling to reconcile what I was told and taught as a young woman, and what I was learning on the ground. 

2005 was a year where bitter tears were shed for the lives that were lost. Some lives I had the pleasure of knowing; other lives were faceless, but important nonetheless.  I questioned why certain people had to lose their lives, while others were allowed to live. I would learn later why this is.

2005 was a year where I celebrated life, holding my newborn son in my arms and giving thanks for family through the good and the not so good.  I learned, later, that family is not always comprised of the people who share your genetic material.

It was a year where I learned that when the mind thinks it won over nature, nature will come back with a fury to remind us of how small and insignificant we are.  As much as we lament the collapse of the levees in New Orleans, we must also acknowledge that we have little, if any control, over the elements when they conspire to unleash their power. Water, air, earth, fire, all can consume us when we least expect it.

These candles and the black ribbon remind me that adversity, pain and struggle makes all of us stronger, and that we should never stop celebrating, loving, caring for others, and respecting the gifts of natural beauty that we’ve been entrusted to care for and preserve for future generations.

 How do you choose to remember 2005? And how does that remembrance shape who and what you are now?

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All Roads Lead Back to Obama? Al Sharpton counters Glenn Beck’s Restoring Honor Rally – New York Political Buzz | Examiner.com

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Al Sharpton counters Glenn Beck’s Restoring Honor Rally – New York Political Buzz | Examiner.com.

I came across this Examiner.com article in my search for commentary on the National Action Network‘s “Reclaim the Dream” rally held yesterday in Washington, D.C.  I watched for a little while, but to be honest, my brain was a tiny bit fried after watching the mind-numbing ”Restoring Honor” rally yesterday morning. Sue me.

Anyway, as I was reading this piece, I was wondering, where is this guy going with this?  And I’ll have to admit…it was really not what I expected.  But that’s to be expected.  You spend enough time scouring cyberspace, and more specifically, the blogosphere for some measure of objectivity, you will start to feel like a dehydrated wanderer in the desert, searching for a cool and refreshing drink of water and some shade.

Anyway, I digress.  I think Mr. Vega makes some legitimate points in his post,and it’s clear that he is right-leaning.  There’s nothing wrong with celebrating the contributions and sacrifices made by our troops.  I have family who served in the military.  But I have a question.  If this was the case, why didn’t Beck opt to hold the rally on Veterans Day or Memorial Day for that matter?  There’s a Veterans Memorial in Washington. Why did he feel the need to tie all of it to MLK and his “I Have a Dream” speech?  I’m sure Beck could have tied his rally to speeches made about the valor displayed by our men and women in uniform.

Would have made more sense to me.  I dunno…. *shrugs*

My second, and more pressing question, is this:  What does Barack Obama have to do with any of this?  He was nowhere to be found Saturday.  If Beck’s rally was about restoring honor, reclaiming the American dream, celebrating the troops, etc., and Rev. Al’s rally was about outlining where America fell short in realizing the vision outlined by King, then what does President Obama have to do with any of this?  He didn’t tell them to duke it out yesterday.  This fight is between two guys with differing points of view, neither of which, in my opinion, is going to get us any closer to fixing all what ails us right now.

I can understand someone’s criticism with Al Sharpton, or Glenn Beck for that matter.  But let’s be honest, here, Glenn Beck started all of this back and forth with 2009 comments about Obama being a racist and hating white culture, and ever since then, he and his minions will just not let it go. 

Beck and the Tea Party, and Republicans, in general, say they are for one thing, but their actions point to a very different agenda.  For people like me, I just can’t get with that. A word of advice, for the sake of balanced reporting, leave Obama out of it if he doesn’t have anything to do with it. Stop scapegoating.

Anyway I just have one more tiny request:  Someone please explain to me what the heck is going on.  I’m sure I won’t get a response from Mr. Vega.

With that said, I will resume my search for balanced commentary on the NAN rally. 

Back to your regularly scheduled program….

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