Who Went Shopping Today?

Is Alabama Next?

America surpised many of us, myself included, when it voted a black man into the White House. But now another black man, Artur Davis, has the audacity to think he can be elected governor of Alabama.

Really? Alabama?

I like Davis, and he is one of the few members of Congress that I feel truly tries to know the issues. But is he smokin' weed or what?

Seriously, I'm only half joking here. Think about it, does he actually have a chance in Alabama or is it just wishful thinking? Are we asking for too much, too soon?

Score One For Fox News

"So are the all-powerful liberal media responsible for the election of Barack Obama?" Rem Rieder asks in the December/January issue of the American Journalism Review.

"I'm with Shepard Smith on this one," says Rieder.

"The Fox News Channel anchor was listening to a comedian named Nick DiPaolo start to go off on the dreaded Fourth Estate and how it was all 'in the tank' for That One when Smith went off a little himself.

"'Oh, please,' he interjected. 'The mainstream media reflected what was happening in this nation. It did not drive it. The blogs didn't drive this movement. The media didn't drive this movement.'"

". . . The truth is, the Obama campaign was well-organized, disciplined, virtually error-free. Obama was an inspiring candidate to many, a dazzling public speaker with an inspiring storyline.

"The McCain campaign, in contrast, was a train wreck, lurching from message to message. And McCain, who can be an immensely appealing figure, seemed angry and unfocused.

". . . McCain got his negative publicity the old-fashioned way. He earned it." "So are the all-powerful liberal media responsible for the election of Barack Obama?" Rem Rieder asks in the December/January issue of the American Journalism Review.

"I'm with Shepard Smith on this one.

"The Fox News Channel anchor was listening to a comedian named Nick DiPaolo start to go off on the dreaded Fourth Estate and how it was all 'in the tank' for That One when Smith went off a little himself.

"'Oh, please,' he interjected. 'The mainstream media reflected what was happening in this nation. It did not drive it. The blogs didn't drive this movement. The media didn't drive this movement.'"

". . . The truth is, the Obama campaign was well-organized, disciplined, virtually error-free. Obama was an inspiring candidate to many, a dazzling public speaker with an inspiring storyline.

"The McCain campaign, in contrast, was a train wreck, lurching from message to message. And McCain, who can be an immensely appealing figure, seemed angry and unfocused.

". . . McCain got his negative publicity the old-fashioned way. He earned it."

Change of Heart?

Virginia, which has some of the harshest policies regarding illegal immigration, is now softening its stance.

The state is now considering a host of services designed to help immigrants rather than penalize them, such as offering in-state tuition to those who meet specific criteria and creating an immigration assistance office, The Washington Post reported Monday.

Virginia officials credit the change of heart to a better "understanding of the state’s limitations on a largely federal issue and backlash at the voting booth," the Post states. They also say there is waning public interest in immigration in the face of a growing economic crisis.

The news comes a day after Gannet News Service reported that President-elect Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., reached an agreement that will make way for Congress to pass comprehensive immigration legislation.

The legislation, if it wins approval, would make some undocumented immigrants eligible for certain federal programs, including student aid, according to an interview the news service conducted with Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev.

The Bush Administration tried to push through an immigration bill last year, but it failed amid partisan rancor and public outcry.

BREAKING: BOND STEPS DOWN AS NAACP CHIEF

From The Baltimore Afro American

Long-time civil rights icon Julian Bond announced he will step down as national board chairman of the NAACP. He will serve out his final term through February 2009 and not seek reelection.

“This is the time for renewal. We have dynamic new leadership,” Bond said in a statement. “The country has a new President in Barack Obama; the organization has a new CEO in Benjamin Jealous, and we’ll soon have a new Chairman of the NAACP Board. The NAACP and the country are in good hands.”

The NAACP said that Bond informed board members in a letter that, although he would not run for reelection as chairman of the national board, he will remain on the board and run for reelection to the board when his three-year term ends.

“It has always been my plan to serve until the Centennial which will be underway in February when my term ends,” said Bond, referring to the centennial celebration of the birth of the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization.
“I’m not resigning. I’m just not running for reelection.”

Bond was elected chairman of the board of the NAACP in 1998. But he began his career in the Civil Rights Movement when, as student at then Morehouse College in 1960, he was a founding member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNNC). From 1960 to 1963, Bond led student protests against segregated public facilities in Georgia.

In 1965, Bond was one of eight Blacks elected to the Georgia House of Representatives. However, Georgia state representatives voted 184-12 not to seat him because of his support of SNNC’s opposition to the Vietnam War.

But in 1966, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the Georgia House denied Bond his right to free speech and they were forced to seat him. He went on to serve four terms in the Georgia House from 1965 to 1975 and six terms in the Georgia Senate from 1975-1986.

Bond, 68, said it was time for him to step back from the rigors of being the organization’s chairman.

“Being Chairman has been a wonderful honor however; it has been more time demanding than anything I’ve ever done,” Bond said. “I’m ready to let a new generation of leaders lead.”

Alan Keyes Sues Obama To Prove Citizenship

Filed Under "Shaking My Head"

Remember Alan Keyes? The guy who keeps running and losing for public office.

Well Keyes is back again. This time the perennial black Republican candidate who lost to Obama in the 2004 Senate race, is now trying to sue Obama, claiming that the new president-elect was not born in the U.S.

Keyes filed suit this week in California Superior Court in Sacramento to stop the state from giving its electoral votes to Obama until evidence is shown to prove Obama was born in the U.S.

Keyes was the presidential candidate of the American Independent Party in the 2008 election and was reportedly listed on the California state ballot. He has run for office several times before and never won.

"Senator Obama has failed to demonstrate that he is a 'natural born citizen,'" Keyes said in his lawsuit (see PDF file here). He argues that failure to grant his request "will cast a pall of doubt on the election process and taint the election results themselves."

The story is old news for the Obama campaign. A web site run by the campaign disputes Keyes's claim and posts an actual copy of the president-elect's birth certificate. Several news agencies have also discounted the story.

The Washington Post investigated months ago and debunked the non citizenship story. And FactCheck.org, an independent research project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, also proved that Obama is, in fact, a natural born U.S. citizen.

The rumor resurfaced just a few days before the election, and on October 31 the Associated Press tracked down the Hawaii Health Department Director, Dr. Chiyome Fukino and the registrar of vital statistics, Alvin Onaka, who confirmed the authenticity of Obama's original birth certificate.

-- The Daily Voice

Black-on-Black Crime, I swear.

To Bail Or Not To Bail... That is the Question

America's auto Industry helped create the black middle class by paying fair wages to working class Black Americans and providing the upward mobility at a time no other industry would.

Now some lawmakers are telling the automakers to toss out long-fought for labor agreements with unions, in order to receive help from the government. This is especially troublesome when already too many companies get away with not providing health benefits, hiring illegal immigrants to do menial jobs for little pay and no benefits.

Basically, the narrative that some are suggesting goes a little something like this: a bailout for the car companies is basically a bailout for part of the middle class, since many members of the middle class work for the auto industry. No place is this truer than in Detroit, Michigan.

In the end, it's the taxpayers who should decide whether to bailout the auto industry the same way we've bailed out the banks. Or, as some Democrats suggest, use some of that bank money to help the car manufacturers.

What do you think?

While you're pondering the question, here's a piece from a colleague's site about the auto bailout and how it is linked to the middle class.

Would You Sell This Car?

Broadview woman owns Obama's old Dodge Neon

State records show President-elect Barack Obama briefly owned Natasha Brown's 2000 Dodge Neon. (November 14, 2008)

(The Chicago Tribune) - Natasha Brown knows what drives Barack Obama, or at least what he used to drive.

The 21-year-old Broadview woman owns the 2000 Dodge Neon that once belonged to the president-elect. Illinois secretary of state records show Obama briefly owned the four-door car and sold it to a suburban dealership in January 2005, just a few weeks before being sworn in as a U.S. senator.

Brown, then 18, picked out the Neon while browsing with her father at Park Plaza Dodge in September 2005. Her dad tried to steer her toward another car, but Brown thought the silver sedan was "cute."

She paid $6,000 for the car, which had about 60,000 miles on it. After Brown signed the papers, the salesman told her that Obama once owned the Neon, but back then Brown and her teenage friends didn't consider the junior senator famous enough to care about.

The car's transmission had to be replaced last Thanksgiving, but otherwise it hasn't given her any problems. Brown thought about trading in the car before the election but now thinks it might be more fun to show people the title with the president's signature on it. If the car's value shoots up because it once belonged to Obama, Brown—who cast her vote for the Democrat in her first presidential election—says she would entertain offers.

"I can't believe the president of the United States would be driving around in a Dodge Neon," she says. "It's a little girl car."

African American May Soon Head Republican Party

Coincidence? I think not.

This is what came to mind when I learned the Republicans might put its own brand of African American male as head of the party.

You might remember Steele, he ran but lost a U.S. Senate race in 2006, and served as Lt. Governor of Maryland.

In a statement he released on Thursday, here is part of the reason Steele says he's running for Chairman of the Republican National Committee,

The Republican Party must present a vision for the future of America that relies on our conservative values and core principles. It is wrong to believe the voters have suddenly become liberal. They have just lost any sense of confidence that the Republican Party holds the answers to their problems. We must face the fact that our party has failed in recent years to live up to our own principles -- we have failed to be 'solutions oriented' in addressing the concerns of all Americans.

Now, I'm not saying Republicans are trying to play tit-for-tat with the Democrats, but I do want to say it has been a long time coming for an African American to hold a place of high esteem within the GOP. The last one to achieve such a feat was Colin Powell, and we all know what happened with that.

So what are your thoughts?

Now Bush wants to bailout credit card companies too?

Oh Hells NO!!!!!

U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. said he wants to expand the government's $700 billion bailout program to include credit card, student loan and car loan companies, part of an effort to ensure that households and businesses have access to a broad array of borrowing options.

In a speech this morning, Paulson laid out his priorities for some $350 billion of the bailout fund that remains uncommitted. Much of the first half was used for direct capital investments into banks.

The remainder, Paulson said, should be used to reinvigorate the market for credit cards, student and auto loans -- which combined account for some 40 percent of consumer credit.

"This market, which is vital for lending and growth, has for all practical purposes ground to a halt," Paulson said.

His comments amount to a significant shift in the use of the bailout fund from a program to remove troubled loans from the books of financial institutions, and into an effort to support household and business spending at a time when both are in decline.

Paulson said that the original plans for the Troubled Asset Relief Program -- to buy bad mortgage loans from banks -- has now been shelved in favor of other uses for the money.

Read the rest of the story here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/12/AR2008111201124_pf.html

First question: Why do credit cards companies need my tax dollars? Aren't they already getting enough of my money?

Second question: Is G.W. Bush trying to give away the store before Barack Obama gets into office?

Just damn.

Impeach Obama?

Filed under stupid is as stupid does

'Impeach Obama' groups pop up on Facebook

WASHINGTON (AFP) — Barack Obama has not even been sworn in yet as the 44th president of the United States but groups are springing up online calling for his impeachment.

On Facebook, an "Impeach Barack Obama" group has attracted more than 700 members and a lively debate about the Democrat's election victory on Tuesday over Republican John McCain.

Another Facebook group of the same name has 160 members and urges others to join because "we might as well get a head start on the impeachment of Obama."

"There are a lot of Americans out there that do not fully understand the concept of Socialism or Communism which is why they've elected Obama as president," it says.

Yet another Facebook group, "Impeach Barack Hussein Obama," has 160 members.

It decries that Obama "has voiced support for various unconstitutional programs such as the assault weapons ban, universal healthcare, and various schemes for wealth distribution."

"What are we going to do about it? IMPEACH HIM!" it says.

Obama still has some way to go, however, to equal the number of "Impeach George Bush" groups on Facebook, which lists at least 95 such groups with varying membership.

Obama is to be sworn into office on January 20, 2009. He will be the first African-American president of the United States.

A Long Time Coming

Here is a speech I wrote in June. I have been looking for it over the past few weeks and finally found it two nights ago. Then I had to convert it so that I could post it here. I tweaked the second paragraph to reflect President Elect Obama's historic victory, but the rest remains unchanged.

It's long, but worth the read, especially now. Many of the same things addressed in this speech are issues we're dealing with today. That, and Obama's win is what makes the words in this speech still very relevant today.

-------------------------------------------------

Shortly before his assassination on June 5, 1968 Robert Fitzgerald Kennedy made the following prediction during an interview on Meet the Press: "Things are moving so fast in race relations (in this country) a Negro could be president in 40 years. There’s no question about it," Kennedy continued. "In the next 40 years a Negro can achieve the same position that my brother has."

Today, exactly 40 years later, Barack Obama is the President Elect of the United States of America. President Obama will soon take the same job Robert Kennedy’s brother held and Robert himself might have held had he not been assassinated 90 days into his presidential campaign. Many will venture to tell you that Obama is also the fruit of Martin Luther King’s dream, a dream deferred until now, exactly when Kennedy said it would happen.

Obama often quotes King when talking about why he’s running for president. He calls it the "fierce urgency of now," which comes from a speech King delivered to members of the clergy on his objections to the war in Vietnam.

"We are now faced with the fact, my friends, that tomorrow is today," King said to his audience of mostly ministers on April 7, 1967, nearly a year before his death. "We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked, and dejected with a lost opportunity."

Whether the realization of King’s dream, or a manifestation of Kennedy’s prediction, Barack Obama’s ascent to the highest office in the land isn’t the only manner in which the lives of these two men parallel one another.

I want to share a few other ways in which King and Kennedy were very much alike:

First, both men were staunch advocates for eradicating poverty and racial divisions in this country, and they spent their lives pushing this country to live up to its promises as spelled out by the founders in the U.S. Constitution.

King hoped that one day men and women would be judged by the content of their character and not by their skin color. Similarly, Kennedy worked to end discrimination while also acknowledging that prejudice would continue to be one of America’s greatest challenges. "...we have tried to make progress and we are making progress," Kennedy once said. "We are not going to accept the status quo."

Second, both King and Kennedy were against the war in Vietnam and desperately wanted it to end.

Kennedy actually made opposition to the conflict part of his presidential campaign platform. "Our brave young men are dying in the swamps of Southeast Asia," Kennedy said in a speech he delivered in California on March 24, 1968. "Which of them might have written a poem? Which of them might have cured cancer? Which of them might have played in a World Series or given us the gift of laughter from the stage or helped build a bridge or a university? Which of them would have taught a child to read? It is our responsibility to let these men live... It is indecent if they die because of the empty vanity of their country."

Third, both men were change agents who forever left their mark on this nation. King was a Southern Baptist pastor with a pulpit who galvanized a generation to collectively work to change a system from one of oppression to one of opportunity, for all people, not just blacks. He believed that "injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

Kennedy’s presidential campaign was all about change, especially after his brother was assassinated in 1963. Kennedy experienced another epiphany during a 1966 tour of South Africa, where he witnessed the effects of apartheid first-hand.

In an interview with Look magazine, he said: "At the University of Natal in Durban, I was told the church to which most of the white population belongs teaches apartheid as a moral necessity. A questioner declared that few churches allow black Africans to pray with the white because the Bible says that is the way it should be, because God created Negroes to serve," Kennedy recalled.

"But suppose God is black," Kennedy replied during his visit to the university. "What if we go to Heaven and we, all our lives, have treated the Negro as an inferior, and God is there, and we look up and He is not white? What then is our response?"

Kennedy remembered there was no answer to his question. Only silence.

Both King and Kennedy spoke out against apartheid, and both became the hope of South Africans.

It wasn’t until 1990 that South Africa began to slowly dismantle its apartheid system. In 1992 a whites-only referendum approved the reform process, and on April 27, 1994, the first democratic elections were held there, with people of all races being able to vote.

Indeed, these two men were unmistakable instruments of change. One only has to read what’s inscribed on Kennedy’s gravestone at Arlington National Cemetery. The quote is taken from a speech he gave at the University of Cape Town, South Africa: "Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope..."

Most importantly, however, is the fact that both King and Kennedy had the uncanny ability to connect with ordinary people.

Each built coalitions of unlikely allies. For King it was urban minorities and Jewish civil rights workers who put their lives on the line so that African Americans could vote. Kennedy built upon this coalition, adding Hispanic farm workers and impoverished whites who four years earlier had supported segregationist Alabama Governor George Wallace. "This coalition of have-nots," wrote journalist Jeremy Sherer in the Daily Californian, had conflicts and prejudices within its own ranks; however, what held them together was the belief that Robert Kennedy truly did feel their pain and that he was going to do something about it."

The same can be said about Rev. King.

The 1968 assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4 and of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy on June 5, did not stop people from making change happen.

The 1960s were a time of chaos. Riots were erupting in inner-cities across this country, adding to widespread consternation about where we were going as a country. We were experiencing what many historians call, a crisis of conscience. Conflict raged between seemingly every part of our society- whites versus non-whites, young versus old, the economically privileged versus those who were barred from fully realizing their full potential.

From that emerged two men who were so different, but yet the same. And America was changed forever because both King and Kennedy dared to dream, to hope, to offer the possibility of improving the lives of others, to strike out against injustice, to send forth a tiny ripple of hope.

They alone had the audacity of hope.

On their shoulders Obama now stands. And now he too dares to hope.

And so should we.

Obama Etiquette

Good Morning My People ~

It recently dawned on me that Sen. Barack Obama could actually win this thing. If that happens, there will be a lot of people (some of our co-workers included) who will be afraid that an Obama presidency will usher in the end of days.

They'll be watching us tomorrow for signs of the end times.

To keep the peace and keep a lot of folks from getting nervous, I think we should develop a list of acceptable celebrations and behaviors we should probably avoid – at least for the first few days:

1. No crying, hugging or shouting "Thank you Lord" – at least not in public.

2. No high-fives – at least not unless the area is clear and there are no witnesses.

3. No laughing at the McCain/Palin supporters.

4. No calling in sick on November 5th. They'll get nervous if too many of us don't show up.

5. We're allowed to give each other knowing winks or nods in passing. Just try to keep from grinning too hard.

6. No singing loudly, We've Come this Far By Faith (it will be acceptable to hum softly).

7. No bringing of barbeque ribs or fried chicken for lunch in the company lunchroom for at least a week (no chittlings at all). This may make us seem too ethnic.

8. No leaving kool-aid packages at the water fountain (this might be a sign that poor folks might be getting a break-through).

9. No Cupid Shuffle during breaks (this could indicate a little too much excitement).

10. Please no Moving on Up music (we are going to try to remain humble).

11. No doing the George Jefferson dance (unless you're in your office with the door closed).

12. Please try not to yell----BOOOO YAH!

13. Just in case you're wondering, doing the Running Man, Cabbage patch, or a backhand spring on the highway is 100% okay.

14. No cussing out your boss (of another persuasion) because "I've been waiting for this day all my life!"

15. Don't go into the stores asking for a discount because the President is all of a sudden a distant relative (he my aunts, cousin's nephew's uncle).

16. Don't go out and get drunk and get into it with a Police Officer telling him you now have new rights as an African American and shouting "We have Arrived!" (your ass will still go to jail).

17. No naming every baby boy born in November Barak or Obama, we'll have way too many in the classroom with the same name. Or if it's a girl, no names like Baraka, Barakiana, Barakisha, Barakeema, Barakamichelle', Obamashay, Obamarosa, Obama-mama, or Obamichellerak!

18. No talking smack about politics when you still don't know whatcha talkin' about (this will be a good time to read more to learn more about our government).

19. Don't praise him over God! He's still just a man… a good man that we're very proud of, yet still a man.

20. DO allow him to be a positive example in your life and walk with your head held high when the haters hate, maintain your dignity when faced with adversity, and strive to make this a better world for our children (grand-children)!

If I've missed anything feel free to add to the list. I just want to make sure we're all on the same page when Obama brings this thing home on November 5th.

And if the results turn out differently...I'll be humble, too!

I got this in my email today, I don't know where it originally came from, but I stole it and posting it here.

He's BAA-AACK!

We said he'd come back, and here he is.

And to think, journalists have been giving Sen. John McCain kudos all weekend for not playing the race card the way some of his supporters, including running mate Gov. Sarah Palin, have wanted him to.

All of a sudden on Saturday, Nov. 1, the Pennsylvania GOP released this ad. Just in the nick of time, and right when it looked as if a number of discouraged, depressed Republicans -- who are not enthused about John McCain and his campaign -- might stay home on Election Day. What better way to rev up voters in a swing state than with a splashy ad featuring the Rev. Jeremiah Wright?

Politicians never seem to disappoint me. Oh well, I would ask what took them so long; but knowing what I know about politics, I think the GOP's timing is impeccable actually.

What's sad, though, is that the current Deputy Chairperson of the Pennsylvania GOP is African American. But hey, that shouldn't surprise us either.

Why would anyone want to stop YOU from voting?

Have a plan in case there are lines. Bring some food, drinks, friends, books, games, a chair -- anything that will prevent you and other voters from walking away. Have fun while you wait and encourage your friends and neighbors to stay in line so their vote is counted.

Don't give up--don't walk away without voting.

Two numbers you should have in your phone.

Put these numbers in your phone so you're prepared to report problems and help other voters find their polling place:

866-OUR-VOTE
It's a hotline that's been set up to collect information about problems on election day--lawyers and election protection advocates are ready to respond. It's the best way to make sure someone addresses any problems you see.

The number for your local election board
Have it in case you need to tell someone where they can vote. Enter your zip code at govote.org, then look for 'Contact [your county] election officials' on the right.

Beware of lies, misinformation and dirty tricks; spread the truth.

Political operatives who do not have your best interest at heart are spreading plain lies to frighten new voters. In Philadelphia, anonymous flyers in Black neighborhoods have falsely claimed that voters with unpaid traffic tickets or outstanding warrants will be arrested at the polls. If you hear a scary rumor, it's probably a lie. Call your local election officials to check it out--and make sure your friends and neighbors know the truth.

Leave the Obama or McCain gear at home.

In some places, you won't be allowed into the polling place if you're wearing clothes and pins that support a given candidate. This isn't true everywhere, but it's best to play it safe. You can contact your local board of elections to find out if it's a problem in your area. If it is, bring some extra plain T-shirts or sweaters to loan neighbors who show up unaware of the rule.

Read the ballot carefully, and ask questions!

Some ballots can be confusing even for smart and informed voters. Read instructions on the ballot carefully, and if you're not sure you understand something, ask a poll worker to explain. Remember what happened in 2000 in Florida--a confusing ballot caused thousands of people to mistakenly vote for the wrong Presidential candidate. Don't let that happen to you!