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Archive for the ‘politics’ Category

Georgia GOP State Convention: Peaches Have Black Pits..Usually

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , on May 18, 2013 | 2 Comments »

The Georgia Republican State Convention is popping this weekend so it’s time to play “count the negroes.”   I will get calls from Black GOP friends and associates regarding the size vehicle you could put all of the African-Americans at this event in at one time comfortably.   Escalade seems appropriate because we love ourselves some Cadillacs.

 
Georgia contains the best Black area in the world, Atlanta, and therefore, the state has many many business-oriented, self-made Blacks who are conservative to moderate on paper.   Secondly, outside of Atlanta, Blacks are use to functioning with GOP elected leaders.   The opportunity has been there for GOP candidates to enjoy 10, 20, or maybe 30% of the Black vote but they don’t want it because the regular GOP crew would see sizable Black numbers as an indicator of liberalism.

 
The 2014 U.S. Senate primary on the GOP side could be decided by a few votes.   This week, former Secretary of State Karen Handel jumped into the race.   This former Atlanta area elected official could have been governor if she cultivated a little of the Black support she experienced in the ATL but she was defeated in a primary runoff by 2500 votes.   Of course, the maneuver I am suggesting would have required Black voting in the GOP primary but wise folks know that the Dem team is weak in Georgia so the GOP primary is often where leaders are picked. I do it all the time.
 

Rep. Jack Kingston is in the senate race also. …Jack…cool Jack….my man Jack.  Careful, Jack. Please.   One on one, Kingston is one friendly guy but the GOP information (or disinformation) machine requires the delivery of rough talking point (yes, the Dems do the same thing.)   Jack is well liked in the Black community from Augusta to Warner Robins to Valdosta because he supports our military bases and farms.   So, Kingston should play that Rep. Austin Scott/Rep. Sanford Bishop nice guy role by voting the party line but limited the non-policy attacks on the president from the other party.   The Obama administration is currently giving them plenty of real targets so fire away nicely.

 
Handel or Kingston could get 20% of their primary votes from crossover Blacks who aren’t GOP if they play their cards right.   The percentage is more than enough to tip the scales to victory and if Michelle Nunn doesn’t jump into the race, the whole state should vote in the GOP primary.

 

In the land of MLK, “I have a dream” that one day the GOP—the party of Lincoln- will have a state convention with brothers and sistas with goatees and naturals.   I mean the bros should have goatees.   You know, guys who grew up on Black self-reliance discussions at the dinner table. People who are uncomfortable with the government being all up in their business.   People who don’t need the state to tell them to care for and feed their children.

 
Surprisingly, Clarence Thomas is one the most afro-centric cats on the nation stage and as Chuck D said about someone else “don’t tell me that you understand until you hear the man.”   A new Black conservatism could be based on Thomas’s book about his grandfather. Black southerners are primed to be separated from real liberals and from the thug element of the hip hop culture.   However, we can’t find a home inside the Right because the far Right likes ugly talk too much.   What’s a brother to do?

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Politics: Be Careful What You Say Out Loud

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 6, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

An old southern adage states “be careful what you say out loud.”  Everything you think isn’t supposed to be said when and where you think it—maybe it shouldn’t be spoken at all but it’s clearly understood.   I wanted to touch on a few of those “out loud” matters.

 
A leader in the Democratic Party of Georgia recently got in hot water for saying that the party must “clear the field” in next year’s primaries. Everyone knows that the Dems here are poorly organized.  I want to say out loud that Dems create policies that support people who don’t vote—oh, they can go to every local high school football game but they can vote on the regular.  Non-voting working folks have no right to complaint governmental actions and laws.  Hush.

 
The only hope Dems have in southern red states is to go into those legendary, smoke-filled backrooms and decide who their candidates should be without primary contests.  I forgot that people can’t smoke inside anymore but you get the point.

 
For U.S. Senate, Rep. John Barrow and Michelle Nunn are the best options but they have zero hope if they battle in the summer.  Actually, their only hope is that the GOP primary voters will select controversial Rep. Paul Broun.   I am not supposed to say this out loud but the Dems should switch over and vote for Broun in the primary because he would be the easier target in the general election.   The Obama machine would be in full force in November against Broun.  Money would pour into Georgia from sea to shining sea.

 
I am not supposed to say that I voted for GOP Senator Saxby Chambliss in the past because south Georgia regional interests (ag, military, transportation) are more important than party politics to me.  I can’t believe that GOP voters won’t admit that Rep. Sanford Bishop has their backs on these issues—dam it, say it out loud.  Oh, Bishop is the enemy and Broun is a conservative super hero.  Yeah, “Senator” Broun would likely ended most farm programs.

 
I am not supposed to say out loud that non-GOPers better consider voting for the best available candidate in the GOP primary because that is where the senator might be chosen.  Personally, I like candidates like Jack Kingston who- while being full-blooded conservative- have a history of explaining their views to those who vote against them.  That is called the democratic process.

 
Finally, I shouldn’t say out loud that we should cultivate the next crop of leaders now because waiting until they decide to retire is too late.  Who is next when Rep. John Lewis gracefully concludes that he has fought the good fight.  In southwest Georgia, the replacement for Rep. Bishop should be the next generation Black leader—someone who teaches about the limited role of government.  We have some folks in mind but we aren’t saying…out loud.

http://www.myajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/fearing-another-bruising-primary-democrats-seek-to/nXS7q/?icmp=ajc_internallink_textlink_apr2013_ajcstubtomyajc_launch

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T.V. Brainwashed: “Married To Medicine” isn’t Georgia

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 24, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

The horrific, cowardly acts in Boston last year were carried out by young men who were brainwashed and/or radicalized. An argument can be made that all or most of us could be or have been radicalized on some level when inundated with too much of a particular point of view.

Blacks in America would be a good place to start this discussion. We knew upon arriving on these shores that wrongful actions brought us here. But, we had to patiently wait until the mid-1970s to experience the freedoms of this free nation. Americans who believe in the Christian Bible know our book is filled with references to waiting on the Lord and to me, being humbled by suffering prepares us for heaven as a proposed to those who think they have heaven on earth. Those cats might have a dated with a fire on the other side.

My friends from the Taxed Enough Already Party (TEA) are correct in many ways on taxes but they don’t have the patience of Black folks. If these guys don’t get what they want now, they are ready for an actual revolution…now.

People on both ends of the political spectrum often constantly listen to and read information from pumped-up sources. Too much of these opinions at one time can lead to an overdose. For example, viewers should know how to watch T.V. shows in their proper entertainment context.

Seinfeld doesn’t reflect all of my Jewish friends; Homeland doesn’t reflect all of my Muslim friends and the Real Housewives of Atlanta only reflects the lifestyles of about a dozen families in the ATL.

Oh, we should talk about Married To Medicine, the latest effort of the gay agenda at Bravo to make everyone else look foolish. (Kidding)

When I was a child, people said that politics was show business for ugly people. But, reality television has blown that out of the water…like blowing stumps on Swamp People. Today, the music T.V. channels have no music videos and the history channel has little history on it’s main channel. It’s all about reality shows and the affect of American culture could be cancerous.

The fight between lovely sistas in ball gowns last week on Married To Medicine should in no way reflect the behavior of Black professionals in Georgia. Bravo searched high and low (really low) for people who would trade dignity for instant fame. Oh, I knew as a child that lawyers, bankers, professors and physicians were regular people away from work and subject to the same drama as anyone else. Actually, my college sweetheart contends that her colleagues in the medical profession are socially awkward because they spent so many years in the books while others were learning social skills.

An old adage states “just because you paid for college, doesn’t mean you have class.” We have a problem in the Black community that centers on the desire for wealth. We like people to see us with shiny stuff in shiny cars heading to fancy meals at fancy places. If your natural abilities didn’t provide you the means to get this stuff, you can always marry well if you are smoking hot.

The Mariah lady to M to M is simply hood and will always be hood. The show is produced in some way in association with her production company. So, she sat in a board room at Bravo and pitched this product with promises of cattiness, ugliness and fights. The two lady doctors are classy as is the attractive woman Toya, who was basically jumped by Mariah. Of course, the hood has people without money who have class and they lack of money could be based on their refusal to compromise their integrity wealth.

So, people across America watch messy T.V. about groups of Americans they don’t know and formulate faulted opinions. “He is not this child’s father…either.” Then during the news hour, Fox News tells you that you are paying for these people to hang out all day while you are at work making money that a Kenyan born president will take from your check. On the other side of the extreme, MSNBC is doing the same thing from the stay point of “the government can fix all the problems in the nation with enough tax money….no one in America should be outside the middle class.” Huh? Can everyone be middle class? Isn’t the government ensuring a minimum quality of life basically socialism?

Fox, MSMBC and Bravo don’t brainwashing as well as the hip hop culture. Did I love hip hop as a college student? Yes sir, I was proud that urban youth created an art medium to reflect the realities of their situations. But today, life is imitating art because youth are glamorizing thugs and strippers while some students are actually downplaying their academic success. On his quality reality show last week, rapper T.I. told his kids that he never met a thug who wanted to be a thug. My man told them to rap about having a nice life. T.I. is the king of the South.

In summary, we need to be careful what we watch and hear because forces can radicalize you before you know it. In a diverse nation, there is no substitute for getting to know (humanizing) others. When we know each other, we can start the process of explaining now personal choices and decisions have consequences. If not, the next generation of Black southerners might include people that some people (including positive Blacks) will want to rightfully avoid.

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Education Management Corporation: Legal Troubles Continue

Posted in politics on April 17, 2013 | 1 Comment »

Education Management Corporation (EDMC) (NASDAQ:EDMC) Legal Troubles Continue

Posted on Monday, April 15, 2013

PRESS RELEASE

http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/print/236572

http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/education-management-corporation-edmc-nasdaqedmc-legal-troubles-continue-236572.htm

EDMC (NASDAQ:EDMC) is embroiled in a multibillion dollar fraud case brought by the Department of Justice (DOJ); several employee whistleblower suits; a recent investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); and now a unfair labor charge filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Sylvester, GA — (SBWIRE) — 04/15/2013 — Education Management Corporation (EDMC) (NASDAQ:EDMC), the nation’s second largest provider of for-profit education, is under investigation by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) as a result of charges that the company discriminated against employees for union organizing efforts, enforced illegal company policies and engaged in a number of other unfair labor practices.

A number of current and former EDMC (http://www.edmc.edu/) employees allege that EDMC engaged in unfair labor practices and policies that violated federal labor laws and the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The employees filed charges with the NLRB against EDMC and the Art Institute of California. According to the charges, EDMC routinely subjected employees to harassment for requesting and taking entitled sick leave, maternity leave and vacation time. In addition, certain employees complained of being harassed over taking legally entitled rest breaks and properly recording work hours that resulted in overtime pay.

Employees were said to have also complained of questionable compliance practices and being pressured to break rules and enroll unqualified students in order to meet hyper aggressive revenue goals. After complaining of untenable work conditions, reporting the abuses to senior management and engaging in efforts to organize a labor union, the employees say they faced retaliatory discipline, reduced work privileges, poor performance reviews and termination in some cases. If the allegations are true, EDMC violated employees Section 7 rights under the NLRA which gives both union and non-union employees the right to engage in concerted activities such as discussing work conditions and acting together to resolve work related issues.

The latest NLRB controversy is just one of many charges and lawsuits currently pending against EDMC, which is owned by Goldman Sachs (41%). Both EDMC stock price and its student enrollment numbers have been severely impacted by its negative publicity. On March 12, 2013, NASDAQ:EDMC stock shares closed at $4.627 per share, which is significantly below its current 52 week High of $16.16 per share. The company is engaged in a multi-billion dollar fraud suit commenced by the Department of Justice (DOJ) under the False Claims Act (FCA) that is currently pending. It also faces a shareholder derivative suit brought by the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Retirement Systems (OLERS) and scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). EDMC recently announced an SEC investigation few weeks ago and also has additional pending whistleblower suits under the FCA, Sarbanes-Oxley (S0X), the Dodd-Frank Act and the SEC Whistleblower Bounty Program.

EDMC employees who have additional information regarding questionable company practices or would like to learn more about ongoing employees claims, or who may have questions concerning EDMC employee rights or upcoming union organizing activities, please contact Ted Sadler at projectlogicga.com

Media Relations Contact

Ted Sadler or Helen Blocker
helen@hbagroup-intl.com Contact HBAGroup

http://www.helenblockeradams.com/

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Carlton Fletcher on Half-raised Fools

Posted in politics, tagged , , on April 15, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

I have had it up to here with half-raised folks and don’t want to hear about rights and bla bla bla. Yes, in our free society, people have a right to have kids when they want and with whom they want. But, someone must say that developing a baby into a productive, responsible person is one of the hardest things in life. Young people who terrorize senior citzens are actually domestic terrorists to me.

In my Sunday morning newspaper, columnist Carlton Fletcher of the Albany Herald details a story about a group of young punks being disrespectful to an older couple. We must have a new type politician/policy maker that design public policy in a way that encourages people having kids when they are really ready.

The passage of time is the ultimate neutralizer in life

 

http://www.albanyherald.com/news/2013/apr/13/passage-time-ultimate-neutralizer-life/

Carlton Fletcher

Time waits for no one, and we’re running out of time.

— Friends of Distinction

My blood started boiling as I surveyed the scene, and I found myself amazed anew at the human race’s capacity for cruelty.

A pack of young men, four strong, walked away from where an older couple stood looking warily after them. The four were laughing uncontrolably, pointing at the couple and falling all over each other in their mirth.

The old couple looked wounded, but not in any physical way. It was more a look of embarrassed resignation, of stunned disbelief. I noticed tears on the woman’s cheeks.

Trying to size up the situation, I asked the couple if they were OK. The man waved off my concern.

“No big deal,” he said. “Just some young hoodlums showing off and letting off steam.”

The woman, though, said nothing. She silently walked away, the tears flowing freely. I watched her slip quietly into their nearby vehicle and asked the man again if they were really all right.

He stood looking at me for a moment before saying anything.

“You know how it is with young kids,” he said with a long sigh. “They’re out roaming around with all that energy and nothing to do, and they have to let it out somewhere. I figure we’ve all done that at some time in our lives.

“But that doesn’t stop their words from hurting.”

The man stopped talking abruptly, as if he’d said too much. I actually looked around to see if the kids were coming back, then let the silence linger for a moment before asking if he wanted to talk about the incident.

“Oh, it’s just kids being stupid kids,” he said. “They made some cracks about us being old and used some language that got my dander up. I said something to them — told them to have some respect — and that got them going.

“They ran at us like they meant to hurt us, then stopped and said some real mean things.”

The man stopped again, and this time a look of hurt enveloped his face. It’s a look that touched my heart.

“They called my wife things like ‘pig’ and ‘sow’ and screamed how ugly she was,” the man said quietly. “They called her some nasty things that I wouldn’t repeat. I wanted to go after them, but I was scared they’d hurt my wife.”

Tears welled in the man’s eyes.

“That woman is the sweetest, kindest woman God ever created,” he said. “She’s been through more than her share over the years, put up with just about every kind of hardship you can think of. She just doesn’t deserve to be treated so mean.”

I offered my condolences and asked the man if he wanted me to contact law enforcement.

“Nah,” he said, “ain’t no need for that. We’re just gonna head on home now. I’ll have to see if I can’t find a way to make my wife feel better.”

I offer what I know are insufficient words to try and bolster the man’s feelings, but he waves me off.

“Son,” he said, “I’m not really concerned about those young punks. It makes me mad that they hurt my wife’s feelings, but she’ll get over it in time. I probably would have fought all four of them in my younger days, but those days are long gone.

“That’s one thing about life: It marches on. I was like those boys in a lot of ways when I was their age, but look at me now. And my wife may not win any beauty contests, these days, but, son, back in her day she turned every man’s eye. Heck, she’s still that beautiful young woman to me.”

He smiled at the memory.

“I figure time will catch up with those boys like it does all of us,” he said. “I won’t be around to see them get theirs, but I can rest easy knowing that, sooner or later, it will happen.

“Time gets us all.”

As the man shuffled off to join his wife in their car, I watched him with mixed feelings of respect and sadness. I was thankful that I’d happened upon him — in spite of the circumstances — but I couldn’t help but think about that look of bewildered hurt on his wife’s face.

As the couple drove away, I found myself dwelling on the man’s parting words: Time gets us all.

Email Metro Editor Carlton Fletcher at carlton.fletcher@albanyherald.com.

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Jackie Robinson, Arthur Ashe, Muhammad Ali and Clarence Thomas: Race Men

Posted in politics on April 11, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

With Mr. Jackie Robinson on the big screen and Tiger Woods on the little screen, we have the perfect opportunity to have a discussion about the influence of sports stars.  I don’t need a film to tell me about Mr. Robinson because my father did.

 
Jack Roosevelt Robinson, a Cairo, Georgia native, is the reason I dreamed as a kid about attending UCLA rather than playing ball in the Southeastern Conference.  If it takes the National Guard to get folks like me into a college, it will be a while before that school and is cool with me. Robison was a letterman in four sports in Westwood before becoming one of the first Black officers in the military.  Have you seen the film about Robinson being court-martialed for not going to the back of the bus in Fort Hood, Texas?

 
Better yet, my man Ken Burn’s documentary “Baseball” spent an episode on Robinson and viewers learned that he was considered a “race man.” I like that term.    If you are a person who has a preoccupation with moving your race forward, you are a race man.  The opposite of race men would be Tiger Woods and Michael Jeffery Jordan.    Oh, I love the sports success of these two but their first concern is Nike…not Negro.

 
When the Black pride protest of Carlos and Smith with the Black gloves at the Mexico City Olympics took place, Jackie Robinson said they were wrong for bringing protest on the field of sports.   UCLA race man Arthur Ashe was a hero to me because he blended sports performance with appropriate social change.   Most Americans first learned that we should fight apartheid in South Africa because Ashe refused to play tennis there.   Ashe was the epitome of elegance and smoothness and the youth today would be benefit from getting to know him.

 
Muhammad Ali’s embrace of Black Nationalism was bolder than his courage in the ring.   What if …what if…what if. What if Malcolm X wasn’t killed and his post-Mecca approach became the blueprint for race men rather than the King model.  I still can’t get with the idea of non-violent protest.  To me, getting your rifle when someone is burning a church (while people are inside) is natural self-defense.

 
But, most importantly, America in general never listened to the fundamental principles of nationalism.  The core beliefs are simply a form of conservatism.   Yeah, Clarence Thomas should have been more important than Jesse Jackson because his grandfather raised a young man who was a serious race man.

 
Thomas is pissed that governmental involvement made some of Black Americans soft and weak. Before Jackie Robinson broke into Major League Baseball, we had a Negro League whose all-stars beat the New York Yankees.  Cobb, Ruth and DiMaggio did complete against us during the regular season.   Before the color line was broken, we also had strong business districts in every city and town—usually across the train tracks.  Today, Black people spend money all over town but those businesses aren’t invested in the community.

 
Robinson and Ashe would be disappointed with the negativity that African Americans are bring on ourselves today—you can’t blame that on others. Finally, the marriage of Jackie and Rachel Robinson is how it is done. She is lovely to this day.

 
The character building part of sports is more important that physical fitness. If our youth spent half the time they spend on basketball and football on homework, they would be successful in professional life.  Many major league baseball teams have only one or two African Americans players. The bros aren’t feeling baseball but baseball players can make money into their forties.   We are going to be fine when we get back to who we use to be.

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Shady For-Profit Colleges: Waste, Fraud and a Ruse

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , on April 7, 2013 | 2 Comments »

Recently, we came across the issue of faux colleges and their activities with federal funds. These so-called schools are hitting the economically challenged communities in America in several different ways.

http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/education-management-corporation-nasdaqedmc-accused-by-employees-of-concealing-evidence-in-billion-dollar-fraud-case-231823.htm

First, many of these proprietary schools sign up students for degrees and programs that wouldn’t be useful in the job market. They actually target people who aren’t savvy enough to realize that the money they will be receiving is a student loan rather than a grant. These students trust these shady schools because their involvement with the federal student loan system gives them the creditability of the U.S. government.

 
In 1991 while working as a congressional staffer, I spent an hour in the congressman’s office with a local school officials explaining why said school was on new list of high default institutions and was being kicked out of the federal student finance system. Come on now; your “graduates” default rate is over 80%. Clearly, your clients weren’t students searching for financial aid but were financial aid searching for students.
Secondly, employees of these schools who have functioning moral compasses don’t have the hearts to continue selling false hope and future personal money pitfalls. Remember, student loan debt is one of the only debts that cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. Employees who don’t meet recruitment quotas or those who question the fudging of numbers to governmental oversight entities will feel the wrath of management.

 
But, where are the Black and Hispanic members of congress during this fleecing of minority America. Oh, those brothers and sisters are at their own fund-raisers with their hands out to the parent companies of these schools. Taxpayers fund K-12, state colleges and state technical schools. So, why pay much more to attend for-profit schools. This article about Everest College explains the whole mess.

http://www.jsonline.com/watchdog/noquarter/jobplacement-performance-of-everest-college-proves-dismal-gp6s4go-169976496.html

Okay, I will admit that I am one of the people who likes the Everest parodies on you tube but this is serious. We need a grassroot movement to educate the public and members of congress about this schools and their treatment of students and employees.

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For-Profit Colleges: Schemes and Games

Posted in politics, tagged , , , on April 4, 2013 | 2 Comments »

loans

Is every college really a college? An industry has developed around funneling unwitting people into a questionable segment of the educational system and the federal government could be directly or indirectly involved.  Today the for profit higher education sector is mired daily in controversies and its benefits to those it purports to serve is questionable at  best.  This press release is an example of the problem.

http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/education-management-corporation-nasdaqedmc-accused-by-employees-of-concealing-evidence-in-billion-dollar-fraud-case-231823.htm

 

Firstly, college and technical college, like anything worth doing, should be hard. In my day, students said they “took” this degree and that degree from creditable institutions. You knew the creditability because the schools were state institutions or private ones accredited by known sources. While I loved President Obama, I disagree with his effort to have everyone go to college (higher training and life-long learning, yes) but college is different. I hate commercials about making college easy and working around busy schedules. If I spent the first six years of my adult life eating noodles and writing papers, a person who went directly into the workforce to make money is in a different situation. Many of my friends who make six-figures simply took a job weeks after high school or went into the military and worked their way up.

To be honest, people who are “between opportunities” often consider school as an educational option that brings money into the household and there is nothing wrong with that. They should enroll in the local state college or select a major at the state-run technical colleges.

However, proprietary or for-profit schools are signing up loads of students from minority communities who aren’t familiar with the financial aid process. “Just sign here and you will have some cash in your hand every few months.” These students don’t know that most of this money is simply a student loan, the cost of the school is higher than a state school and some of the diplomas they might receive wouldn’t be as accepted as traditional ones. The wiki page on this topic is a real eye opener.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprietary_schools

“If this problem was true, surely my congressman would be on top of this matter.” Child, please. The Wall Street firms behind these schools are some of the biggest contributors to both political parties. The student loan default rate for these schools is astronomically high and taxpayers’ money ultimately secures the loans. We are starting to hear more and more from former employees of the corporations behind these schools and the federal investigators are learning the real deal.

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Alicia Keys “Brand New Me” Is A Great Political Anthem

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , on March 5, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

To me, Alicia  Keys has written the political song of the decade unbeknownst to her.   She was writing about love or whatever but the lyrics capture my feelings and concerns for the troubled environment in the political/policy arena.

The arena stinks out loud these days.  People are more interested in fighting the opposition than building solutions which improve our great nation.   Is the tail wagging the dog because people in official Washington are battling and giggling while the rest of the nation scratches our heads.

Look, I don’t hate members of any political party and hope that leaders can constructively dialog with each other.   While television fuels intramural conflicts among Americans, I personal believe (like General Colin Powell) that a silent majority of people in the political center and seeks healthy communication at the policy-making table.

I feel sorry for those who live for negativity and thrive on angst.  My life is too short to spend it bitter—that takes too much energy.   We should look at A. Keyes words as if they were written to ugly-acting political folks on both sides.

To be hopefully, I personally feel that we have many good-hearted Americans in the arena.   To start, I like the spirit of Barrack Obama, Jon Huntsman, Condi Rice, Colin Powell, Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush.   Also, the guys at No Labels are on the right track.  As readers of this blog know, I am a moderate Dem who votes for good people with secondary regard for party.   I am more interested in solutions, peace and regional issues.   Plus, good old plain talk is music to my ears.

In my community, the leaders that get us back to self-reliance and away from governmental preoccupation will be golden.   Politically, I am a brand new kind of me and I feel better than I did during my hyper-partisan college years.   Is anyone with me?   I know that rural southerners generally seek the good in people and situations.

Alicia Keys — Brand New Me

It’s been a while, I’m not who I was before
You look surprised, your words don’t burn me anymore
Been meaning to tell you, but I guess it’s clear to see
Don’t be mad, it’s just the brand new kind of me
Can’t be bad, I found a brand new kind of free
Careful with your ego, he’s the one that we should blame
Had to grab my heart back
God know something had to change
I thought that you’d be happy
I found the one thing I need, why you mad
It’s just the brand new kind of me

It took a long long time to get here
It took a brave, brave girl to try
It took one too many excuses, one too many lies
Don’t be surprised, don’t be surprised

If I talk a little louder
If I speak up when you’re wrong
If I walk a little taller
I’ve been on to you too long
If you noticed that I’m different
Don’t take it personally
Don’t be mad, it’s just the brand new kind of me
And it ain’t bad, I found a brand new kind of free

Oh, it took a long long road to get here
It took a brave brave girl to try
I’ve taken one too many excuses, one too many lies
Don’t be surprised, oh see you look surprised

Hey, if you were a friend, you want to get know me again
If you were worth a while
You’d be happy to see me smile
I’m not expecting sorry
I’m too busy finding myself
I got this
I found me, I found me, yeah
I don’t need your opinion
I’m not waiting for your ok
I’ll never be perfect, but at least now i’m brave
Now, my heart is open
And I can finally breathe
Don’t be mad, it’s just the brand new kind of free
That ain’t bad, I found a brand new kind of me
Don’t be mad, it’s a brand new time for me, yeah

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Hill Harper: Letters To A Young Brother

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , on February 22, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

hill harper
Between Barrack Obama and his Harvard Law School classmate actor Hill Harper, I surprisingly think that Harper could have as big an impact on young Americans of all colors.  Hill has dedicated his life to sharing positive information with others.  Below are my notes from his first book.  The underline sections are the beings of paragraphs that I really found useful.

Letters To A Young Brother: MANifest Your Destiny         Author: Hill Harper

Xii           I want young men to have knowledge of the things that bring them true empowerment: education, a strong sense of purpose, compassion, confidence, and humility to name a few.

Xvi          It is no coincidence that both my mother and father became doctors just as it is no accident that I graduated from Brown University magna cum laude and received graduate degrees with honors from Harvard Law School and the John F. Kennedy School of Government.  My family taught me that doing my best, educating myself, and being in service to others were not optional and that having values and being truthful were not negotiable.

p. 5         You will live longer, become better educated, make more money and be happier than the previous generation.  You are here to improve the human race, and you need to embrace that.

p. 8         A good man is honest, lives his life with integrity, and behaves responsibly.

p. 9         Be Balanced

p. 13      You can’t pick your family, but you can pick your friends.

p. 14      While it is important to have friends, it’s also important to realize that you, completely on your own, have to be able to make yourself happy.

p. 17      There is nothing wrong

p.  20     Luckily, as I matured

p. 21      Rejection is God’s protection

p. 21      So the most important thing I learned is that my absentee parent didn’t leave me, she left the situation.  My mom left the relationship with my father because she felt she had no other choice.  Even though your father may have left when you were a baby, it’s important that you realize he didn’t leave you.  He didn’t even know you.  Your father left for reasons that had nothing to do with you.

p. 24      Truth be told

p. 24      Also, you may not

p. 33      Will Smith: Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like.

p. 34      School, as hard as it may seem, is easier than the real world.

p. 36      The only two areas in your life where you should allow yourself to owe someone else money is for school (education debt) and when you buy your house – and notice I’m saying “when” you buy your house not “if” – that’s what we call “mortgage debt.”

p. 42      Hey, man

p. 44      General Colin Powell: “There are no secrets to success.  It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.”

p. 44      “Working smart” means using your brains first to formulate a plan of how to “work” most effectively.  If you are working smart, you are first very clear about what you want to achieve – that’s your goal. Then, before you take the first step toward achieving that goal, you use all the knowledge and information you have at your disposal to decide what the most effective route will be to get there.

p. 66      “There are some things that money can’t buy.”  In fact,, if you break it down, money can buy one thing, and one thing only and you know what that is?  Options.  Money cannot buy you freedom or happiness or love.  If you have enough money, it gives you options as to what you can do in your life and with your life.

p. 68      More focus needs to be put on developing an inner happiness, doing what you love, and having faith that if you do these things, the money will come.

p. 69      For instance

p. 74      The first car

p. 79      Girls are attracted

p. 81      Women care about much more than just external things.  A woman wants a man who will treat her with respect and wants to do fun things with her and make her laugh.

p. 82      Sanaa Lathan: All I want to know is can I talk to him?  Is he really interested in getting to know how my mind works?  Does he truly listen when we talk?  Do we have fun, do we laugh, and ultimately how do I feel when we’re together?  Be careful of wearing too much bling cuz it might outshine your better qualities.

p. 87      Throughout the history of the world more men have been brought down and had their lives destroyed because of their irresponsible sexual activity than by any other single act.

p. 88      Sex is not a bad thing.

p. 89      And remember, just because a woman wants to have sex with you, it doesn’t mean you should feel you have to have sex with her.

p. 90      Men have lost

p.  92     Gabrielle Union: Oftentimes as girls and women

p. 99      Let’s face it-mistakes

p. 101    Mistakes are decisions we have control over.  And you can make a mistake in an instant, which is why it’s important to know who you are and what you stand for before you find yourself in a situation where you make a wrong decision.

p.  103   It seems a recurring theme

p.  111   So let me set you straight- making money is not a goal.  Making money is a result.

p. 114    If you find what you love to do then, ‘hard work’ becomes easy – it’s more fun than just chillin’ or doing some job just for the money.  If you’re doing something you love, working hard at it is more fun than working just to work; now that’s hard!

p. 116    Venus Williams: School is very important

p. 122    Here are some questions

p. 128    I’ll give you an example….Barrack Obama

p. 129    You have to first, dream; and second, work hard to achieve those dreams.

p. 135    “There are three kinds of people: Those who make things happen; those who wait for things to happen; and those who sit and wonder what happen.”

p.  155   Every day we are faced with challenges and choices.  Some are harder than others.  And sometimes, what seems like a big deal at the time doesn’t matter at all a week later.  The one thing I’ve learned is that if I approach each day with an attitude of gratitude, even the most difficult challenges fail to bring me down.

p. 156    Obama: Life appears to be hard

p. 161    Wealth comes from knowing both your value in the world, as well as the value of the blessings life has brought you- family, friends, future opportunities, health, and the opportunity for true unreasonable happiness.  You win when you embrace all of these and look toward the future with a positive attitude.  So yes, you are wealthy already if you just look around you.

p. 163    Another wealth component

 

p. 167    Mantras and affirmations are strong tools that have been used for thousands of years in prayer and meditation.

I promise:

-          To be strong so that nothing can disturb my peace of mind.

-          To make everyone feel that there is something special in them.

-          To look at the positive side of everything and make my optimism come true.

-          To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as I am about my own.

-          To learn from the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.

-          To have a cheerful presence at all times and give every living creature I meet a smile.

-          To give so much time and effort to the improvement of myself that I have no time to criticize others.

-          To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.

-          To be a light for others, not a judge of others.

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Naturally: African Americans, Jack Kingston and the U.S. Senate race

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 10, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

My thoughts on the future of Black political centrists in the South have been two weeks and/or two decades in the making.   So, brace yourself for an unusual brainstorm.  The open U.S. Senate race in Georgia next year forces us to plot our best plan for representation.

 
Senator Saxby Chambliss is an establishment Republican and I have appreciated his service regarding the regional issues of agriculture, military and veterans.   Rep. Sanford Bishop, Rep. Jack Kingston, now Georgia Governor Nathan Deal and those who went to congress in the early 1990s worked together on issues of vital importance to the peach state.   In this Progressives vs. the Tea Party era, I miss that old school dialog.

 
For two weeks, I have been hearing that the Democrats won’t likely field a viable Senate candidate and the practical part of me says that moderate to conservative Georgia Dems could and should vote in the GOP primary next year to ensure that we don’t have a divider  representing our diverse state.

 
I was thinking about who is a “natural” Democrat or “natural” Republican last week and it made my head hurt.   While watching to the T.V. show TMZ, a story came on about Raspberry favoring of food.  It turns out that a food can be labeled as naturally Raspberry because it is natural and taste like Raspberry but it comes from the backside of a beaver. http://www.befoodsmart.com/blog/tag/raspberry-flavor/

 
That isn’t natural to me and it’s not natural to force everyone in a big state like Georgia into two political parties and expected them to naturally and neatly stay there.   A few years ago, the Georgia Dems lost two rising young stars to the GOP.   Ashley Bell of Gainesville and blogger Andre Walker of Atlanta were on CNN explaining their rationale and it seemed natural to me.   Before, they were my brothers and today they are still my brothers.   Walker once wished happy birthday on facebook to the naturalized American actress Charlize Theron, whom he considered an African-American because she is an American born in South Africa. Huh?

 
I personally like the No Labels political movement because we shouldn’t run away trying to put people neatly into boxes and categories. Like they say at church, we should look at a person’s “thoughts, words, and deeds.”

 
A Black conservative from the ATL told me yesterday that Rep. Tom Price looks good to him in the race for U.S. Senate.  I asked about his track record for explaining conservatism to non-conservatives and dude could say anything.   Remember, the wave created by the Tea Party doesn’t cotton well to conservatives talking with others without yelling.  Moderates and liberals are often viewed as the enemy.

 
Look, on Capitol Hill, I worked for Rep. Charles Hatcher, Rep. Don Johnson and Rep. Sanford Bishop and all three strongly insisted that we listened to and served everyone in the congressional district—not just the people who voted for them.   I was personal friends with a staffer in Rep. Kingston’s office and would hang after work with her at conservative functions because she was a natural hair wearing, smart Spelman College woman.   Yeah, Jack had a Spelman grad in a major position on his legislative team.   I talked with Kingston alone at a reception one night for 15 minutes and came away with an appreciation for his commitment to southern Georgia.   He mentioned that he promoted south Georgia colleges and universities during his time in the Georgia statehouse because students should get quality educations in our part of the state also.

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/59464/october-18-2005/better-know-a-district—georgia-s-1st—jack-kingston

 
We would trip about Kingston going to political forums at Savannah State University without staff.   The guy loves the lively debate. Actually, he was the first member of congress to brave Stephan Colbert’s “Better Know a District” segment.   Because Kingston briefly lived in Ethiopia as a child, Colbert decided that he is an African American—like Charlize Theron.   There you have it; Jack Kingston is an African American who might run for U.S. Senate next year.   Some wiseacre is going to Kingston knows as much about the southern African American experience as my man President Obama.   I will leave that alone but he like knows more than most GOP candidates for Senate.

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What Dems Should Do about Saxby’s Senate Seat

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on January 27, 2013 | 1 Comment »

Moderates need to use the coming Georgia U.S. Senate race as an opportunity to flex our “king making, scale tipping” muscles. Sen. Saxby Chambliss is an old school pro-business Republican rather than a new school pro-crazy drama starter. The far Right wants him gone and they want him to take any member of congress who talks with the other side with him.  No.

The extreme radical element of the GOP shouldn’t run Georgia or America. They are small in numbers yet vocal and crafty. Well, the reasonable center is huge and somewhat homeless regarding political parties. Since Georgia is a red state because the Democratic Party is poorly organized, Saxby’s replacement will likely be decided in a July primary rather than a November general election. Rep. Sanford Bishop, Rep. John Barrow or Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed could beat a Tea Party candidate but that is too risky.

Moderate Democrats must consider the possibility of swaying the Republican primary to a Saxby-like conservative. This move keeps a zealot out Georgia’s Senate office. Personally, I would pick Rep. Austin Scott or Rep. Jack Kingston because I want one of the two Senators to come from south Georgia and have a history of serving agriculture and military areas.

Since rural Georgia Democrats are as conservative as California Republicans, we can dig the whole no labels approach to governing—voting for a less bitter conservative would be easy.  We need solutions; we need peaceful dialog.  We need someone who will join with the Blue Dogs, Jon Huntsman, Barrack Obama, Condi Rice, Jeb Bush and Colin Powell to get about the business of fixing what is broken with our government and our mindsets.

Furthermore, candidacies for this Senate seat will likely open up U.S. House seats and I want to see some variety in the Georgia congressional delegation. A minority or woman in the Georgia congressional delegation from the GOP side would be peachy keen because someone should be at the table to say “enough with the silliness…let’s do the people’s work and govern.”

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I’m Different: Two Chainz, Politics and Southern Mindsets

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , on January 8, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

Surprisingly, I agree with the rapper Two Chainz’s preoccupation with “I’m different.” We need some different mindsets in many aspects of our public and private lives because what has happen in the past simply isn’t fair, isn’t working and has us on a path to destruction.

Politicians: I have been waiting for two decades for a new type southerner officeholder/policymaker.  We need leaders who will tell the people the cold, hard facts—straight, no chaser; the good, the bad and the ugly.  A congressman or woman who goes to every community, builds trust, then sits on the tailgate of a pickup truck and tells the God’s honest truth about pulling everything on the fiscal table.

I have never been a fan of conservative columnist Cal Thomas but last month he wrote a classic about conservatives needing to “show up.”  The late Rep. Jack Kemp would show up in every neighborhood and people could sense his sincerity. Former RNC chairman Michael Steele tried to create a new subsection of conservatives who regularly dialoged with the other side and with regular non Republican folks but the Tea Party Movement wasn’t having that kind of different.

Tea Party People: America would be better off if those people weren’t so ticked off.  Their fiscal and governmental concerns are valid but being angry isn’t healthy or helpful.  Look, Black people have every right to be pissed with our bondage history in this nation but we (like the Native Americans) can’t carry that bitterness in our hearts.  The issues that have the Tea Partiers upset is still a pebble when compared to the boulder of slavery but we all need to make peace and move forward with positive energy.

Southern Youth: While this blog post started with Two Chainz I must take issue with the mindset of our kids.  The glamorization of thugs and strippers found in today’s hip hop is (in my opinion) is moving Black folks backwards.  In my neighborhood, the clean-cut kids with belts on their pants who speak English properly are different and I am so cheering for them.  The “yes, sir..no,sir” young ladies in my town are the remnants of our southern Black elegance.  That elegance is what we saw in the movie “The Help.”  I wrote a blog post once about Justice Clarence Thomas’s book about his grandfather.  Thomas’s grandfather didn’t like the government having the right to ask questions about what happens in his house.  I love that.

http://projectlogicga.com/2012/01/23/clarence-thomas-good-brother/

Hell, I will tell you about two chains.  The first chain was wrought iron and put by masters around the necks of slaves.  The second chains, which are golden, are in current times and put around the necks of slaves by slaves themselves.  I am different because I haven’t worn chains or any precious metal jewelry since 1979.  We need music like “De La Soul is on a roll…Black medallions…no gold.”  Two Chainz says “I wish a N-word would…like a kitchen cabinet.”  I wish the youth would watch our hip hop on VH1 Soul then view a Cosby Show marathon.

 

In summary, I hope that we create a movement of different in my community because what we are doing and where we are heading isn’t working.  We spend too much energy and time on the wrong things then struggle and suffer as a result.  All I want for my birthday is some guys who don’t reference to women as big booty garden tools. While Two Chainz says “me and you are cut from a different fabric,” I say that we are all woven into the same tapestry.

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Hillary Clinton: Clear the Field

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , on December 10, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

That Hillary Clinton is sitting in the catbird seat.  She will be serving the nation in or out of office— directly or indirectly.  We know that she has first dibs on the next Democratic nomination because she is overqualified to be president and took one for the team by being gracious in defeat.  Secondly, the juggernaut of two Clintons and two Obamas will be a campaign force of epic proportions.

But check this out: the Dem Team will “clear the field” for her.  In other words, no other candidates enter the primary and she saves the energy and resources that might be used.  The 2012 GOP presidential results might have been different if Romney didn’t stand on the stage with that cast of characters and didn’t have to fight for the far right vote during the primary—so thanks.  If the GOP cleared the field for hipper congressional candidates, they would have a foothold with the Middle.  But, they let Tea Party cats win primaries and those guys are D.O.A. in November. 

On Meet the Press this weekend, they said that polls indicate that Clinton would get 62% of the Republican women vote—“ouch”, game, set, match.  My conservative friends call it identity politics but Hillary and Obama are super without regard to that stuff.  Yes, I would have voted for the Colin Powell or Condi Rice for president.

I see the indirect benefit of Hillary 2016 as this: if the GOP has any hope, they must court the middle and/or the rest of America.  They policies must reflect the interest of the nation wider and not just their circle.  And for that, Hillary will be helping the game while chilling, doing daily zumba and not lifting a finger.  How many times have we told the right that they need to create and cultivate a division similar to the Dem’s Blue Dogs.  But, the hardheaded never learn.  Hillary is going the beat them like a drum.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_politics

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Saxby Chambliss, Eric Erickson and Austin Scott: Viewed from the Middle

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , , , on November 28, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

The buzz around Georgia politics is that Eric Erickson of CNN and Red State might challenge Sen. Saxby Chambliss.  Saxby (he told us to call him that) was nice to me once a long time ago during a congressional ag staffers visit to Taylor County, Georgia, and I will never forget that.  He leaves when he is ready to go and if the far Right wants to push him for rebuffing his 20 year old tax pledge, their primary numbers can be replace by crossover moderates. 

Perhaps, Erickson of Bibb County could get the House of Representatives seat when Austin Scott exits for the U.S. Senate.  The polarization of the electorate that we have experienced in the last few years could be seen coming from a mile away.  I have always thought of Austin as a trendsetter who might be a great national leader and we are at a pivotal time when such leaders should emerge. 

Actually, the conservative movement would look better in my community if the recent election results moved them to listen to Republicans like Jeb Bush and Jon Huntsman.

The Democrats should start developing future Senate candidates closer to the middle modeled after Rep. Sanford Bishop and the Republicans should do the same with Austin in mind.

 Isakson and Chambliss are more statesmen at this point than politicians and that is a good thing.  I was thinking about the past, present and future Georgia congressional delegation while watching the legislative maneuvering in the movie Lincoln.  Austin Scott has that House seat on lock but he should function like a person who wants to win statewide in the future based on relationships and connections cultivated now.   What would old Abe do?

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Michelle Obama, Darius Rucker and Lynrd Skynrd: Simple Life Is Alright

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , , , on November 17, 2012 | 2 Comments »

I could do more for the future of young Americans with this blog post than Obama and Romney combined.  The central concept is live a simple life.  With secondary regard for whom is or isn’t president, folks need to develop their faith, eat right and exercise, grow their career and minimize lust for material things.

Obama is the key—Michelle Obama.  The first lady’s personal history is the story of a Chi-town girl who got her homework, focused in class and honored her parents with her actions.  As we would say back in the day, I like how she “carried herself.”  We spend billions of state, local and federal governmental dollars addressing personal problems that some Americans went out of their way to create.  They should have been living the simple life. 

Last week, a country song came on the truck radio called “Alright” and it was all about enjoying a basic existence.  I don’t want to get side tracked about how country music is really blue-eyed blues, and rock and roll is blue-eyed soul which was stolen. 

Anyway, I searched the net for the song and it is actually by Darius Rucker, the brother who turned to country after fronting the pop/rock group Hottie and the Blowfish.  Peace, love and happiness to Brother Rucker and his song is similar to the rural vibe of many tunes in that genre.  As quiet as it is kept, my favorite cd of all time is Lynrd Skynyrd greatest hit compilation called “Gold and Platinum.”  Rucker’s song feels like Skynyrd’s “Simple Man” and both songs seem to be based on what you tell kids at home and at church. 

On that same cd is the mellow cut “Comin Home.”  It’s all about missing being at home.  While cities are nice to visit, living 10 to 15 miles from an urban area is cool to me.  As more rural Americans move away from direct involvement with agriculture, opportunities persist in food inspection, processing and distribution.  When people grow weary of the congested North and the struggling Rust Belt, they should consider Georgia other than Atlanta (someone needs to pick up that city and shake it until some of those people fall out.) 

Bottonline: if you live a simple life, you can limit drama, stress and strain.

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Plantation Mentality of Politics 2012

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , on November 6, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

Plantation with modern bridge

To be honest, you should never operate an entity or enterprise without input from all involved people.  On this election day, I can’t help but thing that this election is one of the last of it’s types–or should be. 

The Republicans think they know what is best for this nation and the Democrats think the same thing.  If I put on my old polly sci major hat and observe the situation the way Dr. Hollis taught us at college, I might conclude that the Dems better reflect a cross-section of the American people.

My conservative friends will quickly point out that the majority might be wrong and then the pull out the slavery example from our history.  Well, if you want to talk about that period, we should consider the plantation mentality that makes a small group think their prosperity is good for everyone (i.e. apartheid in South Africa, trickle-down economics in America.)  

Today, they call it plutocracy, rule by the wealth.  I personally think Governor Romney as an elder in his church has done a thousand times more to help needy people than the average American.  But, I also think that this smart, likeable guy is the Trojan horse that gets the plutocrats into the White House. 

We can’t keep having elections where most of the members of a major party look like each other.  Also, the people in that party shouldn’t hate other nations where a religion runs the government while they are trying to do the same thing here.  And don’t get me started on the idea that all members of another party are godless heathens.  As Dr. Hollis, Attorney Tucker and the other professors taught us at Black college, government functions best when all voices are heard. 

When the GOP goes back to the drawing board after this victory or defeat, they should consider using various color markers because (mark my word) that plantation mentality only leads to civic war.  (You know that is what some folks want.)   The silly thing to me is that the GOP doesn’t realize that could have 15% of the vote in my community if they keep to the issues of jobs/economy rather than letting the far right push social issues.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutocracy

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Romney and Obama during Hurricane Sandy: Fought the Good Fight

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , on October 30, 2012 | 1 Comment »

Our thoughts and prayers go out to those directly or indirectly affected by Hurricane Sandy—that would be every American. (It’s four a.m. and I don’t know if that should be affected or effected but during troubled time, I don’t care.)

I am proud that President Obama and Governor Romney limited their campaigns because of the storm.  To me, the Obama of the first debate didn’t see a need to campaign much more anyway.  He did what he wanted to do for the nation and if said nation didn’t like it….peace.  He saw no need for a hard sell after giving it his all. 

At the same time, I don’t think Romney recognizes the “him” that he is presenting in order to win the election.  I think he is a moderate who ran as a far Right conservative to win the GOP primary— now, he wouldn’t mine leaning back to the middle to get over the hump.

These campaigns needed suspending and any future donation money should go to storm relief families.  Oh, and get ready for some nuts to start talking about heaven’s hand in the election by way of the storm.  Heaven only knows if that is the case; but, I will say that I have never seen an incumbent candidate more at peace with the coming results.  You could say he is thinking “let the chips fall where they may” or Obama is reading 2 Timothy 4:7 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” 

I have a feeling that if giving the choice between (a) being a great disaster president over the next week yet losing the election because he didn’t make a  final push or  (b) winning the election by keeping one eye on the storm recovery and one eye on the campaign—Obama would quickly pick choice A but maybe being a great disaster president wins the election.  Yes, Romney managed the disaster at the Salt Lake City Olympics but that isn’t the same thing.  

In times like these, the leader of the free world should take a minute to hit a few gospel classics on you tube after his prayers—that “Order My Steps” song and the one about “Victory is Mine.”  What about “By and By.” 

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Too Close–Obama v. Romney

Posted in politics, tagged , , , , , , on October 19, 2012 | 3 Comments »

We need to remember that more is on the table than Obama’s or Romney’s political career; those guys will be fine.  It’s all about jobs, the economy, gas prices and the role of government. 

The election is too close in more ways than one.  The occupant of the White House could come down to 15,000 or 1,500 voters in a few states.  The election could be won if that number of people took 15 minutes to early vote.  

The future of the Democratic Party in the South is also in the balance.  If this president isn’t enough for you, we should toss in the towel.  After Clinton-Gore helped the nation so much, Gore’s election to the White House should have been easy but is it ever easy when dealing with some folks.  The working people alone should be enough to win reelection for Obama but those same people (people who can freeze for three hours at a high school football game) can’t take half an hour to hit the polling place for president, other offices and ballot initiatives.  

Moderates and centrists have no future home in a national party with the Tea Party but being a free agent is a possibility.  We are too close to a presidential second term and those who remember the Clinton years know that that is when a president loosens up and starts swing for the fences—looking to make history.  Obama’s first second term historical move should be to tell the people that they suck out loud.  He should start with the Kennedy line about “what you can do for your country” then read them/us the riot act.

In the first debate, the president was being too cool.  He had a vibe that said, “hey, I am not begging…I did what I could and if you are feeling it…nice…if not, peace.

Governor Romney isn’t the issue—he is a decent guy.  Those around Romney should scare folks to the polls.  I can imagine being ticked on Thanksgiving if we drop this election by a hair.  We need to have the energy and zest of that guy in the “Too Close” video.   ”So I’ll be on my way.”

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The New Normal: Democrats vs. Republicans with a twist

Posted in politics, tagged , , , on October 10, 2012 | Leave a Comment »

I have been watching NBC’s show “The New Normal” to support Georgia homegirl NeNe Leakes.  They recently had an episode titled “Obama Mama” that covered the major political issues well.  Hell, the show’s character debated President Obama’s positions better than Obama during the Denver debate.

1418571  Democrats vs. Republicans Clip

From All in the Family to Modern Family to the New Normal, T.V. can shape or soften opinions.  Dennis Haysbert, the guy from the insurance ads, contents that his role as president on Fox’s “24” prepped the nation for Obama.  I don’t know about that but he was presidential. We need to see some fire from POTUS Obama during the future debates because too much is on the table to be cool.   

Americans  in real life should able to have a health, civic discussion of the issues with coming to blows.

Full Episode: Obama Mama   

http://www.nbc.com/the-new-normal/video/obama-mama/1418604/

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