An icon takes a stance.

    John Lewis, the civil rights icon who literally bled so that America could  become a more perfect union, is coming under fire from people in the majority population for daring to speak his mind when it comes to Мистер trump.

Mr Lewis, when pressed by Chuck Todd of NBC, declared that he believed that Donald trump was an illegitimate president, and, as a result, he would not be attending his inauguration.

Oh the outrage!

Anderson Cooper spoke for most white Americans when he said the following:

 "I get he doesn’t like Donald Trump,” Coopersaid, “I get he doesn’t accept the results of the election, but is this helpful in any way?… If a Republican had said this about President-elect Hillary Clinton, Democrats would be up in arms.” [Source]

The president-elect has been saying for years that the president is an illegitimate president by questioning where he was born, but there was no outrage from the right, and no real outrage from the left. In fact, Мистер trump built his political career on that lie.

So now John Lewis is some kind of radical whose hatred for whitey is such that it is causing him to disrespect the presidency and the  traditions in our country.

This, of course, is the same John Lewis who forgave the racist klansman who beat his brains in and tried to kill him in South Carolina back in 1961. There is not a racist bone in the man's body, and I am sure that it has never occurred to America that his position about trump is coming from a place of principle.

So it has come to this. Democratic and republican leaders are trying to encourage Lewis to change his mind.

"Republican Senator Ben Sasse, who took a principled anti-Trump stance during the election last year, publicly reached out to Lewis on Twitter tonight encouraging him to attend the inauguration a week from today:

 To John Lewis, one of my heroes:

Please come to the Inauguration. It isn't about a man. It is a celebration of peaceful transfer of power.

6:51 PM - 13 Jan 2017"

 

With all due respect to the senator, it is about "a man",  a very bad one. 

And thank you John Lewis for having the courage to speak up for what you believe in; just like you did back in the fifties and sixties. 

You know, like I do, that history has a way of repeating itself.    

*Pic from johnlewisforcongress.com

 

Mr. "shucky ducky" and his "boss".

Now that racism has gone mainstream and it's cool to disparage black folks and claim "political correctness" when we try to respond to said racism, I have to wonder how certain Negroes who claim that we are living in post-racial America feel about all of this.

We certainly know how Herman Cain feels.

"Former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain has resurfaced to give a ringing endorsement of Donald Trump.

Donald Trump has shown outstanding leadership skills in operating his chain of companies for several decades. He can translate that into running the White House,” said Cain, in an interview with the Conservative Chronicle. “I would be proud to call him boss.”

Cain recently gave a clownish performance at a Donald Trump rally in Atlanta on Wednesday. According to Raw Story, he opened his comments by proclaiming, “Aw, shucky ducky! This sounds like a shucky ducky kind of crowd on a shucky ducky kind of day, here to support an aw, shucky ducky kind of candidate!”

He then launched into a passionate defense of Donald Trump, who has made, anti-Muslim and anti-Latino comments.

“Allow me to set the record straight about one of the biggest lies out there about Donald Trump — and I hope the liberals and the liberal media is listening — Donald Trump is not a racist!” he said."

Is there a bigger Steppin Fetchit  type Negro on the political scene than Herman? (Wait, I apologize to Steppin Fetchit, he looks like Malcolm X next to this clown.) I am embarrassed for him if he is not embarrassed for himself. "I am proud to call him boss"?!

Negro, please!

Finally, tomorrow will be a year since those horrific shootings in Charleston, South Carolina. It was a horrific and vicious crime which grabbed national headlines because of where it took place and the motivations of the murderer.

Now, ironically, in spite of all these promises of "change", race relations has actually gotten worse in this country since the election of one Barack Obama. And one candidate for president is wisely using the rise of white supremacist to bolster his chances of winning the entire thing.

The sad thing is that so far his political calculations have proven to be spot on.

*Pic from motherjones.com

Confederate endorsements and killing sprees.

   From the dog bites man department, this pro-confederate flag group in South Carolina endorsed Donald trump for president.

"COLUMBIA, S.C. — A South Carolina group dedicated to “defense of the proudly Confederate South” rallied at the State House here on

Saturday, showcasing a mixture of Confederate flags and signs supporting Donald Trump as the Republican presidential primary unfolded across the state.

 

The South Carolina Conservative Action Council said the event was held in observance of the anniversary of the burning of Columbia after Union soldiers invaded the city in February 1865. Along with marking the burning of Columbia, the rally promoted the group’s recent endorsement of Trump’s presidential campaign. Trump eventually won the South Carolina primary handily, creating an even bigger problem for the Republican establishment.  

 

Several neo-Confederate and white supremacist groups have expressed support for Trump. His campaign did not respond to multiple requests for a comment from Yahoo News asking whether it accepts the SCCAC’s endorsement and why such groups are drawn to Trump."

 

Hey, it must have helped, because trump easily beat his two  one Cuban American and one Canadian opponent in the South Carolina primary Saturday night. (Maybe this is why Cruz was trying to paint trump as being anti-confederate.) In the words of my Philly homeboys, McFadden & Whitehead, there ain't no stoppin him now.  Jeb dropping out (Americans have seen enough Bushes for one lifetime) gives Rubio a glimmer of hope, but in my humble opinion it will not be enough. Yes, Marco will get some cash now, but money alone can't win you elections anymore.

 

Just ask Jeb.   

 

 Finally, did you hear the horrific story of that Uber driver who killed six people at random in Michigan this weekend? Scary stuff.  It makes you want to delete your Uber app and just start taking the good old yellow cabs again.  

 

And there are reports that he was picking up fares in the middle of his killing spree.

 

They are saying that the guy is an "average Joe" with no prior criminal record, and that they still don't  have a motive. 

 

Six innocent people minding their own business only to have their lives cut short by this monster.

The motive might be that he is just an evil dude who hates people.

 

 "Joshua B. Plotkin ‏@jplotkin 52m52 minutes ago Philadelphia, PA                          

Joshua B. Plotkin Retweeted Michⓐel Eisen

@fieldnegro https://twitter.com/mbeisen/status/701503541920141312 …

Joshua B. Plotkin added,

Michⓐel Eisen @mbeisen

Yes, America, that's right. The problem with #Kalamazoo shooter Jason Dalton was that it was too easy for him to become an @Uber driver. "

 

Joshua, we know that really wasn't the problem, and we know what it really was too easy for him to get his hands on. And guess what; it wasn't that contract with Uber.

 

But I am just going to let that one sit out there,  cause....you know.... *blue in the face*.    

 

*Pics from yahoo.com & wgntv.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Living with hateful symbols.

Well we know that Donald Trump has the support of at least one family here in Pistolvania.

"The place: East Huntingdon Township, Pennsylvania. The problem: A Confederate flag display with a black baby doll hanging from a noose with a knife in its back.

Rachel Szolek was driving through West Overton Village when she saw the racially offensive display on a fence near on someone’s property.

“We actually turned around because we had passed the house,” Szolek told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4.  “And there it was, and the first thing was shock.”

Szolek took a photo of the display with her cell phone and posted the image to Facebook.

Action News 4 reporter Beau Berman got wind of the story and tracked down East Huntingdon Township’s supervisor Paul Hodgkiss.

Hodgkiss said that he was “definitely against anything like that in our township.”

Officials in a nearby community admitted that they have been hearing about the display for months but could not do anything about it because the area was outside their jurisdiction.

The display was eventually taken down minutes after Berman knocked on the homeowner’s door to ask questions. "{Story with video}

Not sure why this racist family took down their display. In truth, they have every right to have it there. I mean it is, after all, on their property.   

The fact of the matter is 70% of Donald's supporters in South Carolina want their confederate flags to fly freely, and they are hoping that electing the trumpster will free them from this PC world we live in.

I guess if trump was president that family in  East Huntingdon, Pennsylvania would not have to worry about being shamed into removing their display of bigotry and intolerance.

Look, I know a lot of racists believe it's cool show their confederate pride, but you can't just throw that symbol of slavery and oppression in our faces and expect us to be cool with it.

This poor family enjoying a Mardi Gras parade in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, did not deserve to be harassed by some racist while they tried to just have a good time. (*See pic)  And neither did some folks down in Georgia trying to celebrate a child's birthday. 

This kind of behavior will invariably lead to backlash:

"JACKSON, Mich. — An 18-year-old man has been found guilty of threatening several people riding in a pickup truck that was displaying a Confederate flag.

The Jackson Citizen Patriot reports Monday that a jury convicted Kantpreet Singh on Friday of felonious assault and weapons charges.

Jackson County Assistant Prosecutor Steven Idema says the 17-year-old driver of the pickup, a 13-year-old boy and a female were stopped at an intersection on July 24, 2015 when another motorist pulled alongside. The other driver brandished a handgun and verbally threatened the people in the pickup.

Idema says the 17-year-old driver had moved to Michigan from Alabama and “was showing his southern pride and his southern heritage” with the Confederate flag. A U.S. flag also was displayed on the truck." [Source]

Not cool young man. You have to control your anger. I know it's frustrating, but you can't go breaking the law because you get angry at ignorant people. Just go out and vote and make sure that you do your best to keep the kind of people out of office that would make it cool to display offensive symbols.

*Pic from facebook.





 

The bigotry of paternalism.

   I have couple of things on my mind, so I m going to get right to it.

Let me start with these elections and what has been happening in the democratic primary as the candidates head towards South Carolina.

It's no secret that there are more African American democratic voters in South Carolina than there are white ones, and so, as politicians tend to do, the pandering has begun.

I read Charles Blow's excellent article on "Bernie-Splaining", and his take on progressives and their penchant for treating us black folks like their children was on point. Let's call it the bigotry of paternalism. Trust me, I am not new to this rodeo. I have called out white progressives for this before. In fact, I was one of the first so black bloggers to do so, because it is something that has always bothered me about progressives. 

Bernie and his people have fallen into that trap, and I couldn't get that image of him and Rev. Al posing at their breakfast at Sylvia's for all the word to see, out of my mind. Taking a picture with Rev. Al (a man who most black folks will tell you does not represent us) just reinforced the perception ---by those of us who are in on the joke--- that progressives really don't get it.

I feel for Charles Blow when he says the following:

"I cannot tell you the number of people who have commented to me on social media that they don’t understand this support. “Don’t black folks understand that Bernie best represents their interests?” the argument generally goes. But from there, it can lead to a comparison between Sanders and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.; to an assertion that Sanders is the Barack Obama that we really wanted.... If only black people knew more, understood better, where the candidates stood — now and over their lifetimes — they would make a better choice, the right choice.

 

The level of condescension in these comments is staggering.

 

Sanders is a solid candidate and his integrity and earnestness are admirable, but that can get lost in the noise of advocacy.

 

Tucked among all this Bernie-splaining by some supporters, it appears to me, is a not-so-subtle, not-so-innocuous savior syndrome and paternalistic patronage that I find so grossly offensive that it boggles the mind that such language should emanate from the mouths — or keyboards — of supposed progressives.

 

But then I am reminded that the idea that black folks are infantile and must be told what to do and what to think is not confined by ideological barriers. The ideological difference is that one side prefers punishment and the other pity, and neither is a thing in which most black folks delight.

 

 

It is not so much that black voters love Clinton and loathe Sanders. Indeed, in The Nation magazine, the estimable Michelle Alexander makes a strong case in an essay titled “Why Hillary Clinton Doesn’t Deserve the Black Vote.” For many there isn’t much passion for either candidate. Instead, black folks are trying to keep their feet planted in reality and choose from among politicians who have historically promised much and delivered little. It is often a choice between the devil you know and the one you don’t, or more precisely, among the friend who betrays you, the stranger who entices you and the enemy who seeks to destroy you."  

 

 

The truth is, until we as black folks get our own political house in order, we are stuck with choosing between the two dominant parties in America.  History shows that none of them have been particularly beneficial to our cause. It's just that sometimes we have to hold our nose and support the party ---or the ideology--- that will hurt us the least.

 

I, like Blow, will use an extensive quote from the brilliant James Baldwin to drive home my point.

 

'Of all Americans, Negroes distrust politicians most, or, more accurately, they have been best trained to expect nothing from them; more than other Americans, they are always aware of the enormous gap between election promises and their daily lives. It is true that the promises excite them, but this is not because they are taken as proof of good intentions. They are the proof of something more concrete than intentions: that the Negro situation is not static, that changes have occurred, and are occurring and will occur — this, in spite of the daily, dead-end monotony. It is this daily, dead-end monotony, though, as well as the wise desire not to be betrayed by too much hoping, which causes them to look on politicians with such an extraordinarily disenchanted eye.
This fatalistic indifference is something that drives the optimistic American liberal quite mad; he is prone, in his more exasperated moments, to refer to Negroes as political children, an appellation not entirely just. Negro liberals, being consulted, assure us that this is something that will disappear with “education,” a vast, all-purpose term, conjuring up visions of sunlit housing projects, stacks of copybooks and a race of well-soaped, dark-skinned people who never slur their R’s. Actually, this is not so much political irresponsibility as the product of experience, experience which no amount of education can quite efface.

“Our people” have functioned in this country for nearly a century as political weapons, the trump card up the enemies’ sleeve; anything promised Negroes at election time is also a threat leveled at the opposition; in the struggle for mastery the Negro is the pawn."'

Church!!!

Finally, Canyon Boykin and Dick Cheney have some things in common. I am sure you have heard of Dick Cheney, but you have probably never heard of Canyon Boykin.  

Boykin is the Mississippi cop who shot Ricky Ball to death and is now suing to get his job back because he alleges that he was fired because he is white.

Check out the two links above and tell me if you think that Mr. Boykin deserves to have his job back, or if he should be sitting in jail.

Then there is Dick Cheney. Remember that hunting buddy he shot in the face some ten years ago? Well, as luck would have it, he has still not apologized to the poor man. 

"The Texas lawyer Dick Cheney sprayed with birdshot during a traumatic 2006 hunting trip recently bagged his first quail since the terrifying rifle mishap 10 years ago — but there has still never been a vice presidential apology.

Harry Whittington still has pellets lodged into his right cheek and neck from the Feb. 11, 2006 quail hunting trip, which went awry when the former vice president accidentally shot him in the face, he told the Daily News Thursday.

The 88-year-old lawyer said his son-in-law and some friends took him quail hunting last month in his hometown of Goliad, marking the first time he fired a shotgun in a decade....

Cheney’s shot sprayed as many as 200 birdshot pellets into Whittington’s face, neck and chest during the 2006 hunting trip at Texas' Armstrong ranch. While the then-vice president admitted that he was “the guy who pulled the trigger,” he never said a public “sorry” to his wounded co-hunter"
[Source]

Yep, I would say that Dick and Canyon have lots in common. I will let you figure out what it is.  

*Pic from npr.org.

 

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  


    

Dr. Ben's remedy.

"I want to plant in people's minds what to do in a situation like this. Because unfortunately this is probably not going to be the last time this happens," he told CBS. Earlier, Carson had said that if he had been present at the Oregon attack, he would "not just stand there and let him shoot me. I would say, 'Hey guys, everybody attack him. He may shoot me, but he can't get us all.'"

????????

No words.

Anyway, keep in mind that this man is polling number two in the republican primary race for president.

Still, apparently Dr.Ben feels that he can speak this way about this issue because he has had his own personal experience to call on.

"Carson also told to SiriusXM radio host Karen Hunter on Wednesday that he was once held at gunpoint at a Popeye's fried chicken fast food restaurant in Baltimore. But his approach was nothing like the one he advocated.

"Guy comes in, puts the gun in my ribs. And I just said, "I believe that you want the guy behind the counter,'" Carson recounted in his usual, laid-back tone. "He said, 'Oh, okay,' and moved on."

First of all Dr. Ben, what the hell are you doing at Popeye's? As a physician,you,of all people,  should know that fried foods are not good for you.

Honestly, the guy holding the gun on Dr. Ben probably fell asleep when the good doctor started talking. When he (the robber) said, "Oh okay",  he was just waking up.

Serious question: Why can't the republican party recruit a serious African American candidate to represent them on the national stage? (Colin Powell where are you?) First Herman Cain and now this guy. It's embarrassing.

Finally, speaking of republican presidential candidates. Now that you can get around South Carolina easier in a boat than you can a car, their senior senator is asking for federal aid.

It's funny how that works. You should never turn your back on others because one day you might be in the same boat. (No pun intended.)

Lindsey Graham thought that it was cool to play politics and vote against Sandy storm relief  for the people in New Jersey. Now his decision is coming back to haunt him, and he swears that he doesn't remember ever voting against getting the people of New Jersey federal funds.

Lindsey, maybe this will help refresh your memory:

"South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham is seeking federal aid after his home state was ravaged by deadly floods amid historic rainfall triggered by Hurricane Joaquin.

“Let’s just get through this thing,” Graham said in an interview with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on “The Situation Room” Monday. “And whatever it costs, it costs.”

But in 2013, Graham was among 36 Senate Republicans who voted against giving similar aid to New Jersey in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. (The bill passed in a 62 to 36 vote.)

Graham told Blitzer he didn’t remember opposing the $50.5 billion Sandy relief bill.

“I’m all for helping the people in New Jersey. I don’t really remember me voting that way,” Graham said. “I don’t really recall that, but I’d be glad to look and tell you why I did vote no, if I did.”

Graham wasn’t the only 2016 presidential candidate to oppose Sandy relief. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz also voted against the package.

“Hurricane Sandy inflicted devastating damage on the East Coast, and Congress appropriately responded with hurricane relief. Unfortunately, cynical politicians in Washington could not resist loading up this relief bill with billions in new spending utterly unrelated to Sandy,” Cruz told the Houston Chronicle at the time. “This bill is symptomatic of a larger problem in Washington — an addiction to spending money we do not have. The United States Senate should not be in the business of exploiting victims of natural disasters.” [Source]

And check out the words of Ted Cruz quoted above.

Well, as it turns out, he has a problem as well.

"But as floodwaters raged in Texas earlier this year, Cruz praised the federal support his state was receiving.

“We’re seeing cooperation from state government, the local government and the federal government all standing together at a time of great challenge,” Cruz said".

On second thought, I think that Dr. Ben will do just fine in the republican primary. 

*Pic from blackenterprise.com

   

The confederacy fights back.

The right wing is now in full revolt mode. They believe that they are losing the war for the heart and soul of their beloved country, and they are not going to go down without a fight. 

While some people in the country are busy celebrating the official removal of the confederate flag from state grounds in South Carolina (a move that was long overdue, and that only came about because nine innocent people were  slaughtered by a defender of said flag), the friends of the confederacy and their right wing friends were regrouping to fight back against the tide of Yankee love sweeping over the country.

Pat Buchanan has all but declared that another Civil War is looming , and  he is calling for "mass right-wing civil disobedience." (Now that's funny, because I thought that is what we have been getting in Washington  for the past eight years.) 

He claims that it's the latest rulings from the Supreme Court legalizing same sex marriages and allowing the ACA to stand that has set him off, but Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles can see that it's the attack on the symbol of the confederacy that really sent him over the top.

He has lots of company. Over the past few days we have seen rallies and protests in support of the flag. Poor Nikki Haley, bless her pandering heart, has been attacked relentlessly on facebook and twitter for being a n**#%r lover.

Rocker Kid Rock has told us all to kiss his ass  (dude, you're from Michigan) and the right- wing editorials and pundits have already started about the flag not being a problem and that it's just a piece of cloth. Blah. Blah. Blah.

My prediction: In a  year or two this phase that Americans are going through will pass. And Wal Mart, Sears and Amazon will be moving products with the "stars and bars" just like they were before.
Politicians will no longer be on television moralizing about the offensive nature of the symbol, and everything that happened in South Carolina will fade from our collective memories.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I submit that what we see happening in the United States today is an apt illustration of why the Confederate flag was raised in the first place. What we see materializing before our very eyes is tyranny: tyranny over the freedom of expression, tyranny over the freedom of association, tyranny over the freedom of speech, and tyranny over the freedom of conscience.

In 1864, Confederate General Patrick Cleburne warned his fellow southerners of the historical consequences should the South lose their war for independence. He was truly a prophet. He said if the South lost, “It means that the history of this heroic struggle will be written by the enemy. That our youth will be trained by Northern school teachers; will learn from Northern school books their version of the war; will be impressed by all of the influences of History and Education to regard our gallant debt as traitors and our maimed veterans as fit subjects for derision.” No truer words were ever spoken.

The idea that the Confederate flag (actually, there were five of them) stood for racism, bigotry, hatred, and slavery is just so much hogwash. In fact, if one truly wants to discover who the racist was in 1861, just read the words of Mr. Lincoln." [Source]

That folks, was Megyn Kelly, the most popular voice on right wing television. In that same article she says that the confederate flag should be raised; not taken down.

Stay vigilant people, and know your history. I have a feeling that it will be repeating itself real soon. 

*Pic from forwardprogressives.com

What Washington should learn from South Carolina.

I think it's amazing how some folks in America approach racism. (No, I am not talking about that new MTV doc where white folks talk about race. We will  talk more about that later.)

Take for instance the republicans in Washington. On a day when lawmakers in South Carolina decided that it was time for that symbol of racism to come off of their state grounds, the clowns in Washington are actually debating whether it is appropriate to remove that very same flag from National Park Service run cemeteries and federal lands.

“We all witnessed the people of Charleston and the people of South Carolina come together in a respectful way to deal with, frankly, what was a very horrific crime and a difficult issue about the Confederate flag,” Boehner told reporters Thursday morning. “I actually think it’s time for some adults here in the Congress to actually sit down and have a conversation about how to address this issue.”

 

The Ohio Republican confirmed the cancelation of a planned vote that would’ve reversed amendments successfully added by House Democrats this week that would ban the use of federal funds for displaying the Confederate flag on federal land.

 

“That bill is going to sit in abeyance until we come to some resolution,” Boehner said."

 

"Difficult issue"? Just WTF is so difficult about it? If congressional republicans really want to act like "adults" they will stop playing political games to appease that part of their base that is stuck in the fifties and refuse to join the rest of us in the 21st Century.

 

“What exactly is the tradition of the Confederate battle flag that we’re supporting?” Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, asked shortly before Boehner’s announcement. “Is it slavery, rape, kidnap, treason, genocide, or all of the above?”

 

That would be all of the above.