The KKK president.

    I am not sure what all the fuss is about this Michael Wolff book about Mr. trump.

I mean let's face it, everything in the book only confirms what those of us with half of a brain already knew about the man.

Still, what  I found most fascinating was the revelation about his views when it comes to the Klan.
(We already know how the Klan feels about him.)

"After a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, President Donald Trump privately rationalized why someone would join the KKK, suggesting the racist group doesn’t believe what it used to, a book published this week with insider details on the Trump White House claims.

In Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, author Michael Wolff wrote that when Trump finally addressed the August 2017 rally—saying “racism is evil” and that the KKK and other groups that cause violence around it “are repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans”—it was “a reluctant mini-grovel,” and the president “was clearly reading forced lines.” 

After his KKK remarks, Trump got on Marine One and spewed his actual beliefs while traveling.

Trending: Diet Coke Is The Secret To Long Life, Centenarian Claims

"Privately, he kept trying to rationalize why someone would be a member of the KKK—that is, they might not actually believe what the KKK believed, and the KKK probably does not believe what it used to believe," Wolff wrote. "And, anyway, who really knows what the KKK believes now? In fact, he said, his own father was accused of being involved with the KKK—not true. (In fact, yes, true.)."As Wolff notes, Trump’s father, Fred Trump, was arrested after a KKK riot in Queens, New York, in 1927." [Source]

"There are good people on both sides'", says the president. 

Now we know why he feels this way. 

*Pic from dailymail.co.uk.

The myth of "post-racialism".

"What the hell do you have to lose?"

That's what Donald trump told African Americans when he was trolling us for our votes in the last presidential elections.

Well, here we are nine months into his presidency, and already his question has been answered: It seems that we have quite a lot to lose with a Donald trump presidency.

Jamelle Bouie certainly things so.

"Most Americans believe active discrimination is a declining concern. They believe that despite the challenges our society currently faces, we are at least past the era of outright and explicit exclusion. The case for this belief rests on the fact that black Americans and other nonwhites have seen increased opportunities for professional advancement since the civil rights movement, as well as a growing prominence in American life. Our culture has also by now generally accepted inclusive principles. It helps, too, that this belief fits our national narrative of progress: our broad sense that, despite lingering conflicts and resentments, the present is a more just and humane place than the past and that the future shows the same promise.

 

But it isn’t true. Things may actually be getting worse, and not just in the casual interactions that comprise daily existence. There is hard evidence that explicit racial discrimination remains a major part of American life in the early 21^st century.
 

Just look at the startling results of a recent meta-analysis of available research into job market discrimination that found “no change in the level of hiring discrimination against African Americans over the past 25 years.” After identifying all existing field experiments (published or unpublished) on labor market discrimination in the U.S, the researchers narrowed their field of inquiry to 24 studies containing 30 different estimates of discrimination against blacks and Latinos since 1989—a data set representing tens of thousands of applications submitted for tens of thousands of jobs. In analyzing that data, what they found was stasis. Throughout the period, whites received an average 36 percent more job callbacks than blacks, and 24 percent more than Latinos. “Contrary to widespread assumptions about the declining significance of race, the magnitude and consistency of discrimination we observe over time is a sobering counterpoint,” they conclude, while offering the caveat and possibility that discrimination diminished in the two decades prior to 1989. If true, that still leaves the United States with pervasive discrimination in hiring, a phenomenon that may explain part of the racial employment gap, which leaves black Americans with double the unemployment of white Americans, in good times and bad.

How do we square this reality of discrimination with the acceptance of racially egalitarian views among white Americans? The short answer is that there’s a disconnect. Many white Americans express opposition to the most hateful forms of racism while holding prejudiced views and facilitating racist behavior. A new Reuters-Ipsos poll, taken in the aftermath of August’s violent neo-Nazi protest in Charlottesville, Virginia, illustrates this paradox, showing both wide condemnation of white supremacists and substantial support for white nationalist slogans. Although 89 percent of respondents agreed that “all races should be treated equally”—and 70 percent agreed that “all races are equal”—35 percent of whites said that America must “protect and preserve its White European Heritage” and 47 percent agreed that “white people are currently under attack in this country.”

It’s possible this disconnect stems from the profound segregation that still shapes and defines life in the United States. Even if they live in diverse metropolitan areas, most white Americans still live in largely white neighborhoods and suburbs (some white by circumstance, others by policy, intimidation, and worse), send their children to white schools, and attend white churches. Their actual contact with nonwhites is minimal and circumscribed, an environment that can inculcate discriminatory beliefs, habits of mind, and behaviors, even as they endorse America’s egalitarian civic creed.

More pressing than the sociology of white racism, however, is its practical effects: a widening wealth gap between blacks and whites. Between 1983 and 2013, according to a new report from the Institute for Policy Studies, the wealth of the median black household declined 75 percent (from $6,800 to $1,700), and the median Latino household declined 50 percent (from $4,000 to $2,000). At the same time, wealth for the median white household increased 14 percent from $102,000 to $116,800. It’s an almost unbelievable contrast, and by 2020, black and Latino households are projected to lose even more wealth: 18 percent for the former, 12 percent for the latter. After those declines, the median white household will own 86 times more wealth than its black counterpart, and 68 times more wealth than its Latino one. This isn’t a wealth gap—it’s a wealth chasm.

If nothing is done, that chasm will grow larger. By 2024, “the continued rise in racial wealth inequality between median black, Latino and white households is projected to lead White households to own 99 and 75 times more wealth than their black and Latino counterparts, respectively.” Even black incomes are stagnant and declining: The median black household makes substantially less today than it did in 2000. And if the wealth gap is left unaddressed, then by 2053, median household wealth for whites will grow to $137,000, while that for blacks will hit zero.

The myth of “post-racialism” has by now largely been dispelled, in part because of movements like Black Lives Matter—as well as the rise of Donald Trump to the presidency of the United States. And there seems to be a growing awareness that “colorblindness” does more to entrench racial disadvantage than rectify it. Thankfully, there are policies that can begin to address this profound racial wealth gap. But we have yet to have any kind of discussion about it, even as we barrel toward a world where most blacks and Latinos live on the edge of immiseration. The racial wealth gap isn’t yet a national priority. It needs to be." [Source]

Unfortunately, Jamelle, we will have to wait at least four more years for that to happen.

 

Thursday news.

America, I would like to remind you of a few things:

First, your president has still not visited Charlottesville, Virginia.

Second, he is planning another rally to stroke his ego in Arizona, where he is apparently planning to pardon a known racist and convicted criminal. (The mayor of Phoenix is asking him not to come.) You would think that he would head to Virginia first.

Third, there was a terror attack in Spain today, and the president of the United States tweeted a debunked urban legend from history in response to it.

Fourth, there are debates going on in this country now about confederate statues. (Where are all the statues for the abolitionist and the brave people who led slave revolts?) Believe it or not most Americans are cool with having them around. Personally, if it was up to me, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington would be taken down from Mount Rushmore.

Fifth, How long will General Kelly last in the White House?

Finally, the fact that Mr. trump's lawyer felt it necessary to show us a collage of all of his black friends on twitter is telling. (See, some of his best friends are black,)


  





   

Profile in cowardice.

It's hilarious to me how some folks (see white people) are shocked at what they are seeing in Charlottesville, Virginia They are openly wonder how we could have come to this. "We have taken a step back when it comes to race relations." Or, "What happened ? We are a better country than this."

Ahhhm, no we are not.

Where have these people been for the past two years? Didn't they notice how the man who is sitting in the White House came to power? How can they watch Donald trump's rise over the past two years and not be convinced that racism is alive and well? I guess many of them were suckered into the phony narrative that all those trump voters were just disgruntled blue collar white folks who had lost their jobs. Some of them even believed that a lot of them were Obama voters at one time. Just like the pundits on television were telling them.  Obviously this is not the case.

Anyway, the alt-right came to UVA this weekend,  and after marching with torches on Friday night, they took to the streets Saturday. That's when things got ugly. Three people are dead after a domestic terrorist used his car as a weapon to kill an innocent protestor,  and two state troopers lost their lives when a police helicopter crashed on the way to the scene. 

As of my writing this post, the president has failed to condemn the white supremacist and his alt-right friends for their actions that brought terror to the streets of Charlottesville. Rather than forcefully and openly condemning them, he blamed "many sides" for the madness and mayhem that visited the sleepy college town of Charlottesville, Virginia.

But why would he condemn them? He needs them to even have a chance of winning again, and they have been his most loyal supporters.  It would have taken real courage to condemn, and our president is a coward. So that was not going to happen.  

We are all the mayor of Charlottesville tonight.

“Well, look at the campaign he ran. I mean, look at the intentional courting––both on the one hand of all these white supremacists, white nationalists, groups like that, anti-Semitic groups, and then look on the other hand––the repeated failure to condemn, denounce, silence, you know, put to bed all those different efforts just like we saw yesterday. This is not hard.”

He added, “There’s two words that need to be said over and over again. Domestic terrorism and white supremacy. That is exactly what we saw on display this weekend, and we just aren’t seeing leadership from the White House.”

*Pic from youtube.com

  
 

Hillary vs. Donald.

Tonight is election night here in Philly, and as I stated in previous posts, it seems that we are heading for a showdown between the orange one and Hillary in November.

With all due respect to the political Batman and Robin, all the partnering and scheming in the world will not stop trump's big mo.

Sorry folks, there are just too many clueless people in America. Every angry white man in America will be pulling the lever for trump, and those who are not already registered are breaking their necks to get on the voter rolls.

The two leading candidates are already looking around for a running mate.

Hillary is thinking male Latino, and trump is thinking, woman. Any woman.   

Finally, speaking of elections, shout out to the governor of Virginia for restoring the voting rights of over 200,000 felons.

"Gov. Terry McAuliffe will allow more than 200,000 ex-cons in Virginia to register to vote in the upcoming presidential election, one of the biggest actions taken by a state to instantly restore voting rights.

The change applies to all felons who have completed their sentences and been released from supervised probation or parole. The Democratic governor’s decision particularly affects black residents of Virginia: 1 in 4 African Americans in the state has been permanently banned from voting because of laws restricting the rights of those with convictions.

“Once you have served your time and you’ve finished up your supervised parole. . .I want you back as a full citizen of the commonwealth,” McAuliffe said. “I want you to have a job. I want you paying taxes, and you can’t be a second-class citizen.” [Source]

That's a beautiful thing. True democracy in action.

Contrast that to the federal Judge in North Carolina who upheld the voting rules laws in that state which makes it harder for citizens to vote. 

"The opinion, by Judge Thomas D. Schroeder of Federal District Court in Winston-Salem, upheld the repeal of a provision that allowed people to register and vote on the same day. It also upheld a seven-day reduction in the early-voting period; the end of preregistration, which allowed some people to sign up before their 18th birthdays; and the repeal of a provision that allowed for the counting of ballots cast outside voters’ home precinct.

 

It also left intact North Carolina’s voter identification requirement, which legislators softened last year to permit residents to cast ballots, even if they lack the required documentation, if they submit affidavits.

 

The ruling could have significant repercussions in North Carolina, a state that Barack Obama barely won in 2008, and that the Republican Mitt Romney barely won four years later.

 

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, which sits in Richmond, Va., will be the first to consider an appeal, which the law’s opponents said they would pursue." [Source]

 

Stay vigilant and engaged people. There are a lot of things going on in this country which you need to be know about. 

 

I am watching Donald trump's victory speech now, and he is telling his supporters that he will bring back jobs and make America great again, and blah blah blah.

 

 Hillary's speech will be next.

 

Buckle up people.  

 

*Pic from abcnews.go.com  

 

 

 

Finally, some Cowboys I can cheer for, and tased to death in Virginia.

The field Negro education series continues.

Shame on me for not knowing about the following story. It took the events taking place at the University of Missouri over the past few days to bring it to the fore.  

"Mel Hamilton would still wrap the black band around his arm on Oct. 17, 1969, the day that altered his life and so many others. He regrets nothing, except perhaps not taking his fight further. It cost him his spot on the Wyoming football team. It led to four decades of finger-pointing and accusations and racism, he said. Hamilton knows he made the right decision when he sees the pride on his children’s faces when they talk about what he did.

Hamilton is one of the Black 14, a group whose story remained buried in history books until this week, when the stand taken by the Missouri football team kindled memories. Missouri’s players received widespread support and sparked instant results, a reaction diametrically opposite from what Hamilton and his 13 teammates endured.

The day before Wyoming played Brigham Young, 14 black players wore black arm bands in protest of the LDS church’s practice of not allowing blacks into the priesthood. The players marched into Coach Lloyd Eaton’s office and asked if they could wear the arm bands at BYU. With little discussion, Eaton screamed at them and kicked all 14 players, many of them starters, off the team for the rest of the season. Eaton told them they could all go play at historically black colleges. Just three ever played for Wyoming again. On campus, white students met them with hostility and, on occasion, flashed them shotguns as they drove around on the back of pick-up trucks.

“The only parallel was the fact that BYU was going to play them this weekend,” Hamilton said Tuesday morning in a phone conversation. “That is the only parallel. These guys had the support of the white football players on their team as well as the head coach. It was the reverse at Wyoming. We had no support from any of the white players. We had no support at first with any of the white coaches.”

 

The disparate reactions showed how much changed in 45 years: the dynamics between players and coaches, between athletes and their campus and between white students and black students. At Wyoming, players made a minor gesture over a racial issue and were outcast. At Missouri, players threatened a boycott over racial tension and provided the final push to oust a school president and chancellor.

The Black 14 incident created lasting ripples. Wyoming’s football team, then a Western Athletic Conference powerhouse coming off a Sun Bowl victory over Florida State, crumbled as it lost the ability to recruit black players; it still has not matched the heights it reached in the late 1960s. Eaton lost his job after the 1970 season, became a scout for the Green Bay Packers and ultimately died alone in Idaho as “a bitter man,” Hamilton said. Hamilton and his teammates fought a financially draining legal battle that ultimately failed in federal court.

Hamilton was born in South Carolina and raised in North Carolina. In college he fell in love with a woman from Wyoming, and they married and settled in her home town of Casper. Other players, including former NFL players Tony McGee and Joe Williams, scattered across the country. In Wyoming, Hamilton felt the fallout.

“I couldn’t go to have a drink or a wine with my wife without somebody in a drunken stupor pointing at me saying, ‘You are the reason Wyoming is not winning today,’ ” Hamilton said. “It never went away for me.”

Racism infected Hamilton’s life. He became the first black principal in the state. He overheard teachers at his school refer to him using slurs. He woke up one morning and saw three sixes drawn in the snow in his front yard.

“My first principalship was sabotaged by racism,” Hamilton said. “I really think that the Black 14 had a lot to do with that fight there. It never really went under the rug with me. I lived it every day.”

 

Even today at bars and restaurants, when people come up to him to applaud him for his part in the Black 14, Hamilton senses they only want an opening to hear what he thinks. He believes they resent him. It wears on him.

Hamilton said he would still make the same stand. He felt refreshed this week when he saw black Missouri football players threaten to boycott if school president Tim Wolfe did not resign amid anger over his response to racial tension on campus. He called it “a reawakening of the struggle.” He didn’t know if college athletes still had the will to incite change. He does now.

“It just makes me feel proud to watch that all week about Missouri and realize that the struggle was still there, and the kids were still aware that institutional racism is well and alive in America,” Hamilton said. “Although the racism has gone underground, it’s still there. We still have to watch for it, and we still have to react. I had lost faith in the young folks up until now. I didn’t think they had realized the struggles before. I’m glad to see I was wrong.”

Every generation, Hamilton believes, helps the next generation. He sees a line — perhaps not a direct one — from what happened in Wyoming in 1969 to what happened in Missouri on Monday afternoon. Forty-five years ago, Hamilton and 13 teammates engaged in a small protest and met a vile reaction. This week, Missouri players demanded change, and less than 48 hours later, the school president quit.

“See?” Hamilton said. “I obviously can’t take credit for that. But every struggle builds on top of each other. The most important thing is, you fight, you fight, you fight. I’m glad to see the young folk are starting to realize that. We are stronger in numbers.”' [Source]

I hope that you boosters at those powerful SEC  football schools and others are taking note. Can you imagine if your program finds itself in college football obscurity like Wyoming years from now?
Sadly, if you remain insensitive to the needs of your minority students it just might.

Finally, I just saw the video of that poor man (Linwood Lambert) being tased to death in Virginia by law enforcement officials, and it was hard to watch. But I needed to see it, because I have to keep reminding myself of the dangers I face as a man of color when dealing with "color aroused" individuals in positions of authority.

*Pic from The University of Wyoming.

  

Finally, some right wing suggestions for immigration reform, and Jamycheal Mitchell's life mattered as well.

*I thought that immigration reform was a serious subject. If it is, why are some of the GOP candidates saying such crazy things?

Let's start with Scott Walker. This dude things that it might be cool to build a wall on the Canadian US border. You heard that right; a northern wall. 

"Republican presidential candidate and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said on Sunday that a wall along the border between the United States and Canada is a "legitimate issue" to consider.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said that he would build a wall along the border between Mexico and the U.S. to curb illegal immigration — and has vowed that Mexico would foot the bill.

NBC's "Meet The Press" host Chuck Todd asked Walker on the Sunday program if he would consider building a wall along the country's northern border.

Walker said that some people along the campaign trail have raised the issue.

"They raised some very legitimate concerns, including some law enforcement folks that brought that up to me at one of our town hall meetings about a week and a half ago. So that is a legitimate issue for us to look at," Walker told Todd." [Source]

Sorry Scott, this issue is a loser for you. Did you forget that "Mexican is the new black?" Please take a closer look at the racial makeup of the folks up in Canada. They don't look anything like the Mexicans.

And then there is Chris Christie. His idea is just as outrageous. (Man Trump has these guys tripping over themselves to out crazy him.)

"Christie said Saturday that if elected president, he will track undocumented immigrants like FedEx packages.

"I'm going to have Fred Smith, the founder of FedEx, come work for the government for three months. Just come for three months to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and show these people," the New Jersey governor said at a town hall event here.

Christie added that while FedEx can track boxes, the U.S. can't track undocumented immigrants.

"You go online and at any moment, FedEx can tell you where that package is," he said. "Yet we let people come into this country with visas, and the minute they come in, we lose track of them."

Christie added, "We need to have a system that tracks you from the moment you come in and then when your time is up," he said. "However long your visa is, then we go get you and tap you on the shoulder and say, 'Excuse me, it's time to go.'" [Source]

Chris, I am going to use your own words on you: "Excuse me, it's time to go."

**Finally, if you were wondering why all the hue and cry about "black lives matter",  this story might help you to better understand.

"A young black man arrested by police in Portsmouth, Virginia, has been found dead in his jail cell after spending almost four months behind bars – without bail –  for stealing $5 worth of groceries.

Early Wednesday,  Jamycheal Mitchell, who had mental health problems, was discovered lying on the floor of his cell by guards. Prison officials say his death is not being treated as suspicious.

“As of right now it is deemed ‘natural causes’,” said Natasha Perry, the master jail officer at the Hampton Roads regional jail in Portsmouth. Yet Portsmouth police are looking into the circumstances surrounding the death of the 24-year-old.

On April 22nd, Mitchell was accused of stealing a bottle of Mountain Dew, a Snickers bar and a Zebra Cake worth a total of $5 from a 7-Eleven. His family reportedly believes he starved to death after refusing meals and medication at the jail, where he was being held on misdemeanor charges of petty larceny and trespassing.

“His body failed,” said Roxanne Adams, Mitchell’s. “It is extraordinary. The person I saw deceased was not even the same person.” Adams, who is a registered nurse, said Mitchell had practically no muscle mass left and had lost about 65lbs by the time of his death. [Source]

* Pic from theatlantic.com

**Pic from facebook

Vester the coward.

        There was a tragic event in Virginia today, where a lunatic chose to execute two people on live television.

Then, incredibly, he posted the entire thing on Facebook. (I won't give you the link, but you can find it if you want to.) 

We have seen these types of things before, but it's usually terrorists in some far away country  beheading someone to spread terror and win recruits to their cause.

This was some evil dude here in America who decided to kill two innocent people instead of coping with his demons and the social ills of society like the rest of us. This dude was no doubt a coward.

Yes, racism is real, and it's tough being a black man in America at times. Yes, homophobia is real, and it is no doubt hard to be a Gay man in certain circles. But sorry Vester, no matter what type of pressure or burden you are feeling, you do not have the right to kill two innocent people. This makes you no different than the animal who you claimed pushed you over the edge.

Once again a high profile shooting will keep our attention for a while. All the ingredients are there: race, randomness, the media angle. What we won't be having, though, is a gun debate, because very powerful people work overtime to make sure that doesn't happen.

Unfortunately, from the looks of things, their hard work is paying off.      

Finally, I have resisting the urge to call my broker these past few days, but it's getting harder and harder not to pick up the phone. (Gotta love how wingnuts are blaming Obama for the Dow dropping the way it has over the past few days. Dude gets no credit when the Dow is roaring at over 18,000 but he gets blamed if it drops. Sorry wingnuts, you can't have it both ways.)  

Anyway, if I call him now I am pretty sure that he won't answer.  If he did, I won't just hear the usual: "Ride it out Wayne, don't panic; you are in this for the long haul."

I wish that the folks over in China would get their stuff together. This is not our Father's Wall Street. What happens in places like China affects our bottom line here at home.

Nine percent is a big chunk, but the Dow gained over 619 points today, so a brother can smile just a little bit. For now.

*Pic from abcnews.go.com

The manager and the racist.

People always accuse me of racism chasing, and I must admit that I am often guilty as charged. I mean there is so much of it to chase.

Anyway, if we are going to be honest with ourselves, we  have to admit that most cases of racism actually takes place behind the scenes, and cannot be chased because you never know when it's happening or who is practicing it.

Sometimes, though, it's so petty, that you have to wonder why the person practicing said racism would even bother to sweat the small stuff in the first place.

Take for instance the case of a racist  homeowner in Virginia, and a manager of a big box store who is an apologist (which makes him just as bad) for her actions.

"WSET) Lowe's employee Marcus Bradley says he was asked not to make a delivery because he is black. A Lowe's employee is claiming that a manager at a Danville, Virginia store complied with a customer's racist requests, CBS affiliate WSET reports.

Marcus Bradley, an 11-year employee of Lowe's who's black, claims the manager prohibited him and a co-worker from delivering an order to the home of the customer after she specifically requested a white delivery driver.

"I got a phone call telling me to bring the delivery back — saying that I couldn't do the delivery," Bradley told CBS affiliate WSET of the alleged August 3 incident. "I asked him why I couldn’t do it and he said because you’re black and they don’t want you at the house."

WSET confronted the unnamed customer at her home and she said she "had the right to have whatever she wanted and she did not feel bad about making the request for a white driver," according to WSET.

Lowe's told Business Insider that "those who were involved in the decision are no longer with the company."

As soon as it was brought to our attention, we began an investigation and handled the matter swiftly," the company said. "Diversity and inclusion are core values at Lowe's, and under no circumstances should a discriminatory delivery request be honored. Our senior vice president of store operations, Terry Johnson, met with the two drivers last week to apologize and let them know how much we appreciate the work they and all of our drivers do." [Source] 

Sometimes racism, like crime, just doesn't pay. The homeowner did not want the Negro touching her goods and that's her right, but the manager should have had the moral courage to tell the bigoted homeowner that she should take her business elsewhere.

Finally, I saw a video thanks to my twitter friend, the Shaw, which showed a white police officer attempting to arrest a non-violent African American woman in front of her children. As you can imagine, it was not good.

Take a look here and tell me what you think.

I am just thankful that we have cell phone cameras, and that more people seem to understand their rights as it relates to filming police officers.

All I kept thinking after watching that video was thank goodness for the cameras.