Time flies when you are having fun....

I am not big on celebrations or milestones. I honestly can't remember the last time I really celebrated my birthday. So I am somewhat hesitant to talk about the one year anniversary of this blog. Still, I feel that I must, if only because I need to have a a sort of measuring stick in terms of where I was and where I am going.

I started this blog after being banned from house negro LaShawn Barber's blog. I remember thinking at the time; "how the hell can she ban me from a blog for giving my opinions and views?" But then I thought about it, and said to myself; you know what, it's her blog, and she can do whatever the f**k she wants to with it. So rather than bitch and moan about Ms. Things right to boot me I started my own.

Now when I started this blog, I vowed to myself, that unlike LaShawn and others, I would never ban someone from commenting or reading my blog no matter how much I disagreed with them or their views. That just seems so f*****g unamerican to me. I swear some people just get off on being able to ban someones IP address or screening and blocking the comments of those they don't agree with. Which is why having my own blog is such a beautiful thing, because I can say whatever is on my mind (which I always do) without restraint or censor.

So overall, this has been a great exercises for me. And after over 45,000 page hits, 84 links (and counting), and a bunch of great readers and posters later, I couldn't be happier. Oh, and speaking of links, let me say this for the record: I will link every blog that links me. Because I feel that every blogger's voice should be heard, and we should do everything we can to share each others messages and thoughts with others on the web. To me, us bloggers are like a family, and we are joined in thoughts and ideas by this electronic medium called the Internet. There is just so much potential in this blogging thing that I think we should all take advantage of it. This is why I get so pissed off when some of these bourgeoisie bloggers (you know who you are) try to exclude up and coming bloggers because they don't agree with all of their views, or they think these other bloggers are beneath them. F**k that! Every one has a voice and we should do our best to spread what others have to say. Especially us black folks, because we are already being marginalized in the world wide web by others. If you don't believe me, just go to some of these other web sites from the majority population, or go to one of these blogger conventions and see how much of us "Negroes" you see there. I can guarantee you that you will feel like you are at an NHL fu****g game in Winnipeg.

Which brings me to another reason I got into this blogging thing. After seeing the net roots movement among white liberals, and how successful it was, I started to think about the lack of a cohesive black progressive voice on the net. I started to wonder why some of us black bloggers who have a different perspective on the issues and who have something to say about all the f****d up sh** affecting black folks in America aren't expressing ourselves out here. Sure there is the black conservative brotherhood, and I applaud them for doing their thing. But there wasn't when I started, and still isn't now, real black independent progressives unifying around the sh** that affects us and our communities. So I started blogging to find like minded voices and to get input from like minded people on the web. And in truth, I have found some. There are some other voices out there spitting truth on a regular basis, and keeping it one hundred percent with people who read their blogs. Look no further than the sites I have linked here to find some of those voices. But there should be more, and we should be more unified as black bloggers, because let's make no mistake about it, there is strength in numbers. Sadly, ever since slavery, we as black folks have had some issues unifying. Some of us wanted to stay in the house and enjoy its comforts. And we would have done damn near anything to stay out of the fields. Well, fast forward a couple of hundred years and it's no different now than it was then. Some of us (you know who you are) would rather play the safe negro role, and address bull shit issues on your blogs, hoping to attract "charlie" and his ilk in your quest for greater exposure and readership, and ultimately dollars. All the while steering clear of the issues that you really need to be addressing, and the shit that really effects your community.

Sorry folks, I didn't mean to go on a rant, but.....hey, I wouldn't be the field if I didn't. So thanks again to everyone who has helped to make this a successful year by commenting, reading, and allowing me to share the blogosphere with you.

Before I go, I was tagged by the good peeps over at Coyote Angry who wanted me to list five blogs that really make me think. This is a tough one, because different blogs make me do different things, and it's hard separating what makes me think from what I just enjoy. For instance, I enjoy reading blogs like La Bella-Noire,Nat Turner's Revenge,Too Sense, and Skeptical Brotha. For information, I say f**k Drudge. I enjoy reading Voice Of A Native Son,African American Black Opinion and Afro Netizen. For comments on my blog, I love hearing from the likes of I am not star jones,Liz,and mahndisa. Mmmmm, so now the five that makes me think. OK I would say The Free Slave ,Mirror On America,The Strange Death Of Liberal America ,The Anti Essentialist Conundrum, The Book Of Asabagna, and my man over at Exodus Mentality a close 5A; all make me think. Whew, that was deep, and I am sure I am leaving out some folks. Hey, let's just put it this way, if you are linked on this blog I am feeling you.

I'm out.

"Whitosphere vs. Blackosphere"

I want to post about something I saw over at My DD ,a progressive net roots web site whose primary focus seems to be the advancement of democratic party candidates.

 Now in the spirit of true disclosure, I have to say that I have posted on My DD from time to time, and I even link the site here on my own blog.

 But an African American blogger raised some very good points while posting over there about the lack of links to black bloggers on many of these so called progressive white sites, and the lack of black participation ( I think he said 2%) on the white web sites. So I thought that it was worth talking about. Now this brother-I think his name is Francis Holland- seems to have a (excuse this reference ladies) "hard on" for the people at Daily Kos (who apparently banned him from their site) and My DD. So I understand that there is an element of sour- grapes with his position. Still, he raised some interesting points, and this is a subject worth discussing among people of all colors on the Internet.

I understand that this is a touchy subject for many progressives, because 90% of the time blacks and liberal white progressives see eye to eye on many core issues and causes. But what about the huge elephant in the room? Yes, that one; race. I guess we have to ask ourselves: do we have to get along on the racial issues in order to come together and promote issues that we all care about? Can we practice a form of "blogger apartheid" -as Mr. Holland refers to it- on the net, yet come together around certain issues and politicians who we all support? Honestly, I am not sure I know the answer to that. I thought some of the responses the brother got to his post was really interesting. Some of the commentators were upset that he would inject race into such a "color blind" forum as the Internet. Yeah right, when was the Internet ever color blind? Give me a fu****g break! The Internet is no more color blind than any other aspect of society. (Like when I post as the field-negro folks don't know that I am black.) So that's a bogus argument, and it's the type of hypocritical argument on racial matters which absolutely drives me crazy. I saw where my man from My DD was defending Markos over at Daily Kos and declaring that "he is not a racist".  First, how the f**k does he know this? Because they are kindred spirits on matters of politics? I don't think so!

Now I thought  that Jill Tubman had the best answers and most thoughtful response to Mr. Holland's concerns, because she put the entire debate in its proper context: "White progressives address politics more directly whereas black bloggers are addressing it indirectly, as it affects us more as a community." I co-sign with her on that. If you read most black blogs we address political and social issues as they affect us as a community and not society as a whole. So maybe we can never really become truly as one with our white ideological soul-mates on the webs because our interests when it comes to day to day issues are so diverse.

Mr. Holland seems to be screaming for more black inclusion in the Whitosphere, and more black links to sites like Daily Kos and My DD, etc. This is where my man and I tend to part company. I personally could give a f**k whether My DD or Daily Kos-- or any of the other so called white progressive blogs-- link me or even include me in their discussion. Honestly, their issues aren't my issues. I know they have very strong political beliefs and are tied to the democratic party and its leaders; but not me, and this is going to surprise some people. But I would just as soon vote for a republican over a democrat if I thought that he/she had my people's best interest at heart. So I really don't give a f**k which party a particular politician belongs to. The reason I happen to despise most republicans is that they just happen to be the most f****d up when it comes to matters of race. But don't get it twisted;  a lot of democrats are just as f****d up when it comes to this issue. And I will never walk lock step with any one party. NEVER! This is what separates me from the Daily Kos and My DD crowd, and what I think ultimately might separate me from people who are crying for inclusion.

Call me a separatist, but I am more proud to be linked to sites like Skeptical Brotha, Freeslave, and Mirror On America than to the more popular progressive white sites like Kos, My DD, and their ilk. And, for the record, I have links to white sites on my blog as well. -My man konagod and the aforementioned My DD comes to mind- so maybe I am not such a separatist after all.

I am glad Mr. Holland raised this subject, as it needed to be addressed. But my position on this is pretty clear, although I understand the opposite school of thought: We should try to learn about each other and from a political standpoint, it benefits the democratic party to get  feed- back from its most reliable constituents.

But you can't force inclusion on people, I don't care how progressive they claim to be. We have given up on the republicans because we realize that they have given up on us. Maybe we should take that position with the democrats as well.