Sorry Negro, you look like just another drug dealer to me.

Hi, it's me,field, your friendly "racism chaser", and I have another story for you:

Terrence Jones is a retired Philadelphia police officer. He was on the force for 11 years until he got a job related injury and decided to settle down in a beautiful South Jersey McMansion with his family. Life was good for Terrence Jones until the night of February 4, 2007. That's the night he met Patrolman Michael Schaeffer. The Patrolman pulled Jones over and asked him why he was exiting an industrial park. He then proceeded to ask Mr. Jones if he had been drinking and if he would allow a vehicle search. Jones told the Patrolman that he never drinks and refused to allow the search of his Lincoln Navigator. (Come on field, he was asking to be stopped. Why don't you black people drive simple cars?) The Patrolman, undaunted, ordered Jones out of his vehicle, frisked him, and then leaned into the vehicle to look around. To top it off, he did a sobriety test after not smelling liquor on Jone's breath and justified it by telling someone on his police radio that Mr. Jones is "just shady".

Now if you think all of that was outrageous; wait, it gets better: Mr. Jones had the nerve to be outraged at the treatment he received at the hands of one of South Jersey's finest, so he did what any angry citizen would do: he wrote a letter to the Police Chief of the township where he was harassed for DWB. What do you think happened? Well, the police chief claimed that he never got the letter, and finally, after Mr. Jones called him, he decided that he he would pick up a copy of the letter from Mr. Jone's home. Of course he never questioned or disciplined the officer involved, and he passed the complaint on to a county investigator.

Fast forward to July of the same year, and to his horror, Mr. Jones found himself looking at 18 months in jail after a grand jury indicted him for filing a false police report. Yep, a false police report! Do you believe that shit? Of course you do, it's why you are reading this blog.

Anyway, fortunately for Mr. Jones, his story had a happy ending. Happy being a relative term, of course.

"Visibly angered, Superior Court Judge M. Christine Allen Jackson had called the case 'chilling' when she found him not guilty. It was over; and Jones sobbed in relief."

"A lot of people came up to me afterward and said they,too, had been stopped for driving while black..they felt nothing would be done if they complained and they didn't want to become a target."

Well, they might as well complain, because they are targets. Not complaining and letting bullshit like this slide will only make a bad situation worse. DWB is bad enough as it is. If we don't call enough attention to these racist cowboys they will think that they can get away with the things they did to folks like Ryan Moats in Dallas (who, by the way, accepted the ignorant officer's apology, just like I told you he would) and Terrence Jones in South Jersey.

Terrence Jones and Ryan Moats were lucky, there were police cameras to video tape what happened to them as they drove while black. Quite a few folks have not been so lucky.

"Jones believed the tape saved him. 'It would have been my word against the police officers', he said. 'I might have been doing 18 months in jail."

Or worse Mr. Jones, you might have been dead.

Full story here:

If he goes to confession, then can he speak?

"Cheer, cheer for Old Notre Dame, Wake up the echoes cheering her name, Send a volley cheer on high, Shake down the thunder from the sky! What though the odds be great or small, Old Notre Dame will win over all, "

You will excuse me if I don't feel like cheering for "Old Notre Dame" right about now.

So let me get this straight: Quite a few folks in the Notre Dame family are upset because his O ness is scheduled to speak at their May 17th commencement. The faithful are appalled that the institution would dare offer an invitation to a man who is pro choice, pro stem cell research and pro civil unions. The nerve! How dare he think he can speak at their school with those positions. Who cares if he is the president of these divided states, the man is a sinner not a saint.

The Bishop of South Bend himself, John D'Arcy, said he will not be attending. And they have launched anti Obama websites and garnished over 157,000 signatures of angry alumni who object to his O ness stepping foot on the hallowed grounds under the golden dome.

But I want to go back in a little time machine with my Catholic brothers and sisters. Come on with me now, and let's put ourselves at the very same university while another president speaks. See him? That's George W. Bush; a man who supports the death penalty and who started a war that cost over [$]4,000 A-merry-cans and a countless number of Iraqis their lives.

See what he is doing? He is giving the commencement address, and it is May, 2001. Do you hear the protest over his visit? Is the Bishop there to welcome him? Yep, that would be the Bishop sitting in the front row. So why the vitriol over his O ness? Wasn't Jimmy Carter pro choice? Wasn't he allowed to speak under the golden dome in 1977? Of course he was, but this is different.....right Catholics?

If many of you have your way Barack Hussein Obama will not be the ninth A-merry-can president to receive an Honorary degree from your fine institution. So maybe you should ask yourselves: what would the Pope do? Hey, I just saw him in African with a bunch of Africans (please don't get me started)running behind his popemobile, so I really don't think he would mind if a half African was allowed to speak at his largest institution of higher learning in North America.

Oh well, good luck president Obama. I know you are the president of all A-merry-cans, but I don't think all of us believe it. To some, you are still a sinner. I don't care of you can walk on water.

,

Is one of the "Kings of Comedy" a fraud?

I get e-mails from friends and readers all the time turning me on unjust things that have happened to different people in these divided states of A-merry-ca. (Like the story on my sidebar about the Scott sisters. And I am still waiting to hear from Abilene Christian University after hearing from the former African American head of their student body, Daniel Paul Watkins, who was, in his words, removed from his position without good cause) One such e-mail was from Tracy Carson, whose mother, Sharon P. Carson, recently wrote a book about African American relationships. Problem is, the famous comedian Steve Harvey just wrote a book that is very similar, not only in title but in content. So in the words of another famous comedian: it makes me want to go hmmmm.

Here is Ms. Carson's press release:

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRLog (Press Release) – Mar 01, 2009 – Did Steve Harvey copy the book title Act Like A Lady Think Like A Man And theme from an earlier book? Book with same title & theme copyrighted and published by Sharon P. Carson in 2003 CHICAGO, IL – Sharon P. Carson the author of the original title; Act Like A Lady –Think Like A Man, watched the February 27th episode of the Ophra [sic] show on which Steve Harvey was promoting his book of the same title. She was hoping that Steve would reveal to Oprah where he got the title and the theme for the book. It just seemed odd to her that his book had the same title and theme as her book that was copyrighted in 2003. Thinking of all the self - published poets and authors like herself who have a hard time finding publishers for their materials, she was hoping for perhaps some recognition that the idea for the book might have come from her, especially since upon subsequently purchasing the book, she found some interesting parallels. But then she thought that it was not unusual for a high profiled person to take a great title and theme, rewrite a book and use their celebrity to sell it. This she says happens too often to the unsung poets, authors and entrepreneurs of the world. Steve wrote in his book that his hope was to “empower you with a wide-open look into the minds of men”. Sharon P. Carson wrote in her book in 2003 that women need to gain some insight into how men think in terms of relationships. Sharon also noted that in chapter 8 of Steve Harvey’s book titled “Why Men Cheat” he came to the same conclusion that she did in chapter 37 of her book, titled “Why would a man cheat”; “because they can”.

Sharon actively promoted her book before the release in January 2009 of Steve Harvey’s book and would not like to see her promotion efforts hindered. She feels that her book has much to offer from a woman’s perspective and seeks empower women to practice self love and tough love in relationships. Before the publication of Steve Harvey’s book of the same title, Sharon bought the domain name; http://www.actlikealadythinklikeaman.com/ from which she has been selling her book. She has also held seminars with women at a Chicago University in promotion of her book and can be viewed on the following youtube clip as she was being interviewed on a cable television program about her book in 2007 ; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxVVQX15X2Y. Sharon hopes that her earlier book with the same title will finally receive the recognition it deserves and is currently consulting with attorneys regarding her options."

Ms. Carson, if it is in fact true that Steve Harvey got his idea for his book from you, it is not right and you should be compensated. Personally, I really hope that Steve Harvey knew nothing about Ms. Carson's book before he wrote his own. (I hear a movie might even be in the works) But here is hoping that if he did get his ideas from Ms. Carson he will come clean.

As a blogger who encourages independent publishing, it would be disappointing to see someone use their celebrity to take advantage of the hard work that someone else did.

Oprah has already been duped once on her show, I would hate to see it happen to Ms. Thing again.

Why do you blacks always try to escape the police by driving to the emergency room?

I first heard of Ryan Moats a few years ago after the Eagles drafted him to be the oft injured Bryan Westbrook's backup. He had some talent, but everyone in Eagle Nation knew that Moats couldn't read the Eagle's complex playbook. Still, he seemed like a decent guy, and I was glad to see that he landed on his feet after the Eagles cut him.

Fast forward four years, and Ryan Moats is in the news again. I didn't want to blog about this story last night, I wanted to really scrutinize the tape and get all the facts before I went on my usual "racism chasing" rant. Besides, I was too pissed, and when I am pissed I can't really focus on writing until I calm down a little bit. I am calm now.

Ryan Moats might not have been able to read the Eagle's playbook, but he sure got the playbook of life down pat. I watched his incredible restraint with that Dallas police officer (What the hell is wrong with these law enforcement folks in Texas? I guess, as someone commented on "Deadspin", it's still illegal to DWB in Texas), and all I could think was I could never do that. Sure, as a black man I know all the rules of survival when stopped by the po po, especially if I am on another planet like Texas. I know to keep my hands where they can be seen. I know to point to where my registration and insurance card is, and to tell the officer when I am reaching for it. And I know to dial my programmed home number in my cell phone (to get my home recording device) as the officer approaches my car, and keeping my cell phone on all times. I know to make sure I make a mental note of the officer's badge number and his name. And finally, I know to always show my pearly whites before my yes and no sirs.

I am sure that Ryan Moats knows most of those rules, too. And I am sure that the rules would have worked just fine if it was just a routine traffic stop for a real [or imagined] traffic violation. But this was no normal traffic stop. I don't have to repeat it. You all know the story by now. Ryan Moat's mother- in- law lay dying in the hospital and he was trying to get the family to see her one last time before she went to meet her maker.

Of course we also know by now that Robert Powell wasn't having it. This nig....I mean man in this fancy truck talking back to him had to be taught a lesson in how not to be uppity and to respect authority. What followed was painful to watch and listen to. But everyone of you who have been guilty of DWB can relate; and for you, I am sure it was more painful to watch than it was for others. I know it was for me.

Ryan Moats is lucky to be alive, he might not have learned the Eagles playbook, and it cost him a job in Philly, but learning the playbook of life might have saved his own, and allowed him to live to see one more training camp.

"I wish to publicly and sincerely apologize to the Moats family, my colleagues in the Dallas Police Department, and to all those who have been rightfully angered by my actions on March 18, 2009. After stopping Mr. Moats' vehicle, I showed poor judgment and insensitivity to Mr. Moats and his family by my words and actions, Powell's statement reads."

"Poor judgement"? That's what ignorance and racism is called these days? "Poor judgement"?I hear Mr. Powell is trying to reach Moats to personally apologize. Moats will probably take the call and tell the officer that all is forgiven. That's a part of the playbook,too. Always forgive and take the high road. If you are black in A-merry-ca, that's the part of the playbook that you have memorized: forgive and forget. That always works out. That is, of course, until the next officer Powell comes along, and there is a dashboard camera to see him.

Maybe they just don't like her arms.

This post is going to be like a homework assignment. It's a little research I am doing and I am really serious about this one.

So here is the question and the challenge:

Does anyone reading this have a link to an article from a left wing blogger, news outlet, or pundit, trashing Laura Bush in ways like this ,(The guy's name is Pretlusky, and have you seen him? No wonder he is bitter)and this? Or, even this?

I have to confess, before I did this post, I "googled" field Negro and Laura Bush, just to make sure I wasn't being a hypocrite. And nope, I didn't see anything remotely trashing the former first lady. I guess, like most civilized A-merry-cans, no matter how much I despised her husband and his policies, I tried to be respectful to the wife.

No such luck with these petty vindictive people on the right. I guess when you can't win a policy debate you try to get your rocks off in other ways.

It's sad, because I don't remember the frat boy ever having to beg the press to lay off his wife. Not during his presidency, or when he was campaigning for it.

So help me here folks. If you find any of these links, please put it in the comments section. Because I really am curious to know if the left was as disrespectful and cruel to Laura Bush, as the right is to Michelle Obama.

Thanks.

When will it end?

When the revolution finally comes, most A-merry-cans won't even know it unless their favorite show is interrupted by a breaking news update. I have been sitting at this computer for the past hour, and I can 't get a damn thing done. Why? Because Mrs. Field has been at the church of "American Idol" for as long as I have been sitting here.

Some things in life I will never understand. Mrs. Field is a smart woman. In fact, I am pretty sure that her IQ is much higher than mine. She is disciplined focused, and damn good at her job. Yet there she sits, interacting with the television, song after miserable song. Tonight must be Motown night, (because I recognize all the classics they are playing) and if Barack Obama wants to really get in my good graces he will pass a law tomorrow banning all sampling of old Motown songs.

I can hear Randy with his shuck and jive act. "Dude, that wasn't really you dog". (Who talks like that?) And I can hear Paula, and Simon, and the other one (I don't know her name), as each singer mercifully ends their song. And, of course, Mrs. Field has to give her running commentary as well. "Lil Rounds you shouldn't sing that song girl... now that was better... come on Scott, you can do better than that....Anoop, I don't know if you are going to make it...."

No Anoop, you will be fine, I don't know if I am going to make it.

I am going to give the guy with the tight t-shirts and British accent his props. He nailed it with this "American Idol" concept. Put a bunch of people who want to be stars on the tele, and have an entire country vote on who should go or who should stay. It's brilliant! But I still have to wonder: how do they hook people like Mrs Field? One day I plan to ask her, maybe when this season is over.

"You cant hurry love No, you just have to wait She said love don't come easy Its a game of give and take... "

But can we please hurry the end of this show?

"Down with brown."

I heard of a statistic some years ago (I don't remember where) that a dollar lasts an average of just a few hours in the black community, whereas a dollar lasts for a few days in a similar sized Asian community. The point is, black folks are consumers. We know how to spend but we don't know a heck of a lot about saving.

Now comes John and Maggie Anderson of Oak Park, Illinois and their "Ebony Experiment". As most of you know by now, the purpose of this couple's experiment is to buy black for one year. Buying black to them means only patronizing black owned businesses. This is not a simple thing for this couple as they have to drive as much as 14 miles just to buy their groceries.

"More than anything, this is a learning thing," said Maggie Anderson, who grew up in the Liberty City neighborhood of Miami and holds a law degree and an MBA from the University of Chicago. "We know it's controversial, and we knew that coming in."

Maggie, I don't know why it's controversial, there is nothing controversial about wanting to support black businesses and helping to empower your people from an economic standpoint. According to economist Jim Clingman, $850 billion moves through our hands every year, and more than 90% of that money goes outside of the black community. Oh field, come on, this is reverse racism, if white folks said that they weren't supporting black businesses you would be the first one writing about racism. Well, not exactly, but I would be curious. Because I am quite sure that white people never even have to think about the type of businesses that they support. So yeah, if some white family in Topeka Kansas said that they were only going to support white businesses it wouldn't affect their lives one little bit. In fact, if a white family in Philly, Detroit, Boston, Los Angeles, Atlanta,.....[you get the point] said that they were only going to support white businesses we would all be saying; so what? Where is the sacrifice with that? And what exactly is the statement that they are trying to make? These poor people shouldn't be called racist and all types of ignorant things because they want to help make us black folks aware of our poor spending habits. Instead, they should be commended for raising awareness of how we spend our dollars and their willingness to make some sacrifices to do it.

Their actions have certainly made me reconsider just how much I am "down with brown" when it comes to my spending. My dentist, my lawyer and my family doctor is black, and so is my accountant. But I have to admit that I don't take a longer drive to West Philly or Germantown to support a black owned food market. And I sure as hell don't think about where I make my typical day to day consumer purchases. If I did, it would be easier for me, because I live in Philly and there are quite a few minority owned businesses, here. You black folks who live deep in suburbia or in a rural part of a red state might have a harder time being "down with brown" when it comes to your spending. So I would imagine that an experiment like this one would be that much harder for you.

Still, at least you can try your experiment on the low. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson, by putting themselves out there, have no such luxury. Their lives are now open books, and they will be praised (as I am doing here) and vilified.

It's a shame, because this is an area where black folks really need to get a grip. What we really need a big ass group therapy session. Now if we can just find a black shrink to conduct it.

Those trashy Obamas: Just don't shoot them Tammy.

"From the March 23 broadcast of Talk Radio Network's The Laura Ingraham Show:

BRUCE: But here's Michelle Obama explaining to some kids what it was like for her growing up because she sounded like a white person, whatever that means.
OBAMA [audio clip]: I did do my best, getting good grades was always important to me, and it wasn't because my parents were -
BRUCE: It's all about her.
OBAMA [audio clip]: -- hounding me or that they had the expectation, it was just something that I wanted for myself. I wanted an A. And I didn't care whether it was cool, 'cause I remember there were kids around my neighborhood who would say, "Ooh, you talk funny, you talk like a white girl." I heard that growing up my whole life, and I was like I don't even know what that means, but you know what? I'm still getting my A.
BRUCE: What? What? What -- what is that? And then she devolves into that weird fake accent, like Hillary did when talking to black people. What? What is that? That's, that -- you know what that is.
DAVID AFTER DENTIST [audio clip]: Is this going to be forever?
BRUCE: Yeah, that - remember nitrous oxide kid, on You Tube. No it's not going to be forever, nitrous oxide kid. It's not. Can you -- can you believe that?
OBAMA [audio clip]: So do I need to introduce myself?
BRUCE: What a shame. That must've just ruined her damn day. "I wanted the A for myself, and I wanted to do it, and ooh, they said you sounded like a white person, I don't know what that means, but uhh." Huh?

Man, oh, man. That's who he's married to, what does that tell you? This is what we've got -- you know what we've got? We've got trash in the White House. Trash is a, is a thing that is color blind, it can cross all eco -- ecosocionomic kind of categories, you can work on Wall Street or work at the Wal-Mart. Trash are people who use other people to get things, who patronize others, who consider you bitter and clingy."

I would like to thank Ben Dimiero and the folks over at Media Matters for hipping me to that little gem.

I know some of you Obamaholics might be incensed at the thought of some right wing loon on the radio calling your boy "trash", but I am not, I expect this kind of shit from extremist. And to be honest, I might have called the frat boy a lot worse. Thing is, I am pretty sure that he was well into his presidency and destroying our country before I resorted to calling him such names.

That's not the case here. Not with this Obama guy. The distaste is real, and the hatred is so genuine you can feel it. It leads one to wonder if they hate a little more about the guy than just his politics. Hey, I understand hate and politics, in my home country we kill our political opponents, but that's not the A-merry-can way. We are a little more civil to each other here. At least that's what we tell ourselves.

So what is it? Is it his looks? His [too] perfect family? The fact that he was editor of The Harvard Law Review? The fact that he has stifled the politics of identity and fear? I am guessing it's all of the above. If you are one of these right wing losers with their troubled personal lives, their social pathologies, and all of their outdated politics; it's easy to see why they would hate the guy. Throw in the fact that he is black (or pretty damn close to it) and the gumbo of hate and envy is complete.

So get used to it Obamaholics, this is just the beginning. But honestly, if the Dow keeps hitting 450 plus days, it won't even matter.

"There is nothing left to be outraged about".

So now comes news that a fourth police officer in Oakland is dead, (the family hasn't pulled the life support system yet because the victim is an organ donor) shot by a maniac and life long criminal who swore to his sister that he wasn't going back to jail. His name was Lovelle Mixon, but there was nothing loving about Lovelle.

I am not going to talk about the obvious, because I am sick of sounding like a broken record, but as some of you eloquently stated in the past, this is going to get worse before it gets better.

And let's keep it real with each other. If we are going to be outraged when police officers shoot unarmed men on a train platforms, we need to be equally as outraged when some psycho shoots four police officers who are trying to take him off the street. I am not too familiar with Oakland, so I am not sure about the relationship between citizens and police there. (Maybe some of you folks who comment here on a regular from Oaktown can help me with this) But I am sure someone is going to make excuses for this psycho, and none should be made. Just as none should be made for the officer who shot an unarmed man in the same area not too long ago. Some will argue that the shooter is a product of his circumstances and environment, and considering the behavior of those transit police officers and some police officers in this country, he developed a shoot em first mindset.

That might or might not be true, but he was still a fucking psycho with an obvious long criminal history, and he did not deserve to be living among the rest of us.

"A man who did not want his name to appear in print and who works at a barber shop on the corner of MacArthur Boulevard and 73rd Avenue, said he heard gunshots from outside and went down the block, where he saw two officers lying on the ground near each other.
'I went over to one officer and saw he was bleeding from his helmet pretty bad,' he said. 'The other officer was laying motionless.' He said the officer lying near a car had two gunshot bullets near in his face. One bullet was lodged in his jaw and the other in his neck.

The man said he proceeded to give the officer CPR until police arrived on the scene."

Sorry sir, whoever you are, but you don't deserve the Lovelle Mixons of the world around you, either.

Pimp my point guard.

The following article is old (almost five years) but it is the kind of article that could be posted for the next twenty years and it would still be relevant. I thought about posting it today as I watched all those athletes bust their asses for their schools, while their well paid coaches pranced along beside the court.

"Editor's Note: The nation's top college basketball and football athletes earn millions for their schools, but see very little of it. And yet these so-called "student" athletes have little time for their studies and often earn no academic degree.

It's an exploitative system that must be changed, the writer says.SAN FRANCISCO--With the 2005 collegiate football season underway, African-American athletes are exciting the crowds, drawing in thousands of fans and driving up revenues from TV and radio coverage. And they're being exploited. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) pretends that elite African American athletes filling the stadiums and arenas are student-athletes. In reality the majority of top players, like quarterback Vince Young of the University of Texas and running back Adrian Peterson of Oklahoma University, are first and foremost athletes. Their lives center on practice fields, not classrooms. Coaches dictate their schedules, which are packed with meetings, practices, lifting weights, rehabbing injuries and travel.

Economists Todd Jewell and Robert W. Brown in the late 1990s calculated that athletes of the caliber of Young and Peterson generate $500,000 per year for their universities. It's even more today, considering revenues from college basketball's March Madness, a six-year, $11 billion contract with CBS, and the Bowl Championship Series on ABC, at $500 million over eight years. Premier basketball players generate over $1 million a year.These players are being exploited, receiving only a few thousands in scholarship money while earning enough cash for their universities to provide substantial salaries to a cast of coaches, trainers, administrators and support personnel for non-revenue generating sports such as golf, soccer, lacrosse, swimming and tennis. Those opposed to paying student-athletes argue that a college education is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Indeed, according to Census Bureau 2002 figures, those with B.A. degrees earn an average of $2.1 million over their lifetime, compared to high school graduates' $1.2 million.Unfortunately, not enough of these "student" athletes earn degrees of any kind. Despite efforts to improve graduation rates, the latest stats from the NCAA show that for black football players who entered college from 1997 to 1998, the graduation rates were 49 percent for each of the two years.

In basketball the rates were 41 and 42 percent. Some elite universities have far lower rates.There are also serious doubts about the quality of these athletes' educations. It is true that they have tutors and compulsory study halls not available to most students. They have the security of scholarships, so there are no financial pressures that force other students to drop out. But even if the black athlete graduates, his degree may not be worth much if he has filled his schedule with less than challenging courses. "

More here.

So is Donal Brown right? Are the NCAA schools pimping these young men? Personally, I think some of these coaches are doing just that. When you see coach K crying over losing his kids to graduation, it's not because he is happy that they are going out into the world with a Duke degree. No, he is crying because his basketball team will be losing a great player. Coach K and the NCAA well be fine, thanks to CBS and other corporate sponsors they are swimming in money.

Still, these student athletes have to remember that there is a student before the word athlete, and they should be realistic about their chances of playing the sport they love for money. They need to make the best of their college experience and get their degrees. I know that their pim....I mean coach is always in their ears to watch game films and practice, but they have a bigger responsibility to themselves than to their coach and old State U.

Wouldn't it be nice to hear a coach tell a kid that he should put in as much time in the library as he does at the free throw line? It would be nice, but ain't ever gonna happen. Coach has too much to lose, and he can't stand the risk of having his most valuable commodity forget why he needs him in the first place.

She talks like a First Lady.

"I remember there were kids around my [Chicago] neighborhood who would say, 'Ooh, you talk funny. You talk like a white girl.' I heard that growing up my whole life. I was like, 'I don't even know what that means but I am still getting my A.'"

That's my First Lady continuing her effort to reach out to children of color in D.C., while addressing some children in one of the poorest neighborhoods in the District.

Now a few thoughts about this "talk like a white girl" phenomenon: First, there is no such thing. Either you speak clearly or you don't. When I am in Southern Louisiana I still struggle to understand what folks (black and white) are saying. You folks in Baaastan talk funny to me, too. And so do some of you New Yawkers. In fact, right here in Philly your accent might be different depending on which neighborhood you are from. I can always tell a South Philly accent (they say youze a lot), and a black person from Mt. Airy sounds different from a black person from West Philly. An Irishman from the Northeast? I am all over that as well. Mrs. Field says I talk funny because my Jamaican accent always creeps into my diction. Mrs. Field would have probably been teased a lot in Michelle Obama's neighborhood as well. Mrs. Field was born and raised in South Louisiana, but she managed to craft a very generic accent. It's always fun to see the reaction we get when Mrs. Field makes arrangements over the phone and the people see us in person. Yes, may I help you? I am Mrs. Field, we spoke over the phone. We did? Oh, yes, of course....

Anyway, my point is, people have accents, and we all speak in different ways. The important thing is that we speak well, and in a way that can be clearly understood by whoever is listening to us. Now unfortunately, some of my cousins, well.....it's almost like they don't want the person listening to understand. Unless you are in on the secret slang, you don't deserve to understand what the speaker is saying. For some of us, it's our own way of communicating that might as well be a totally different language. When our children grow up speaking like this it's tough to get them out of it. And damn it, the shit can be embarrassing when they reach adulthood. If I have to strain to understand the conductor on the train, or the person taking my order at the fast food restaurant, that's a problem. Especially when they are supposed to be speaking English. I am not talking about an accent here, I am talking about putting words together that just don't belong. Just what the hell does, you be done messed up, mean? YOU. BE. DONE. MESSED. UP. That is not English, that is some kind of ghetto Morse code that will get you nowhere in school.

Thank you first lady Obama for at least addressing this issue. The kids were wrong of course. It's not speaking "white", it's speaking properly. And it's speaking in a way that can make it easier for them to succeed in school, and ultimately in life.