To those I tagged for my what has been the great imperative in my life meme

First let me say thank you. I was pleasantly surprised with each of your responses. But I cannot let you off the hook that easy, with just your response. After you response you must tag 11 others or 10, or did not do 11, I actually included Professor Z as my 11th.

Confused? Anyway, antiessential condundrum explains in her post exactly what you should do when you get confused. Matter of fact what antiessentialist condundrum did, I did too, because I was like what is Professor Z doing? I was question in my life? excitement, necessary? what? So, I answered the question, to the best of my ability. So, I need to read other folks answer to the question, because I am now even more curious as to the great imperative in folks lives after reading antiessential condundrum.

So you need to post up on your site your respond that was left in my comment section, or write a new one one your site and then tag 10 or 11 other folks.

I hate to do this to you. But they call it a Meme and tagging is part of it. Oh I want to add this piece. We need to link to one another to grow the Afrospear. So, will you do that for me?

Have fun,

Peace..and don't forget to link, link. Update link to the Geoffrey Philp the author of this meme.

Republican City Council at large race

Let me take my spoon out my mouth. I wouldn't want anyone thinking I was being spoonfed my opinions. The Republican almost lost Crawford. Yes, Mr. high and mighty Crawford. Now Dr. Crawford was a nice man when he first appeared on the scene as a politician. Oh this was man who would willing to buy his seat, and he did. The Republican party needed him..his money. The Republican Party was happy and Crawford power shift went to his head.

Crawford walked over, made fun of the people. It is the people who vote. And this primary. Crawford did not win the Mr. Popularity contest. It was Marty Bender and a woman who just arrived in the city, talking smack, Liz Brown. Brown ran for a school board member did not win that and can back again, saying I am going to win something. And she did.

What happened Gutzman, Mildred, Morris?

Now I noticed Mildred when I first arrived back in the city. It was few years ago. First, in the courthouse and in the library. Mildred appeared as a hardworking young fellow. But, overtime, you could tell that working as a prosecutor was not a good fit for this ambitious young man. But nevertheless, he ran for office. Too bad Mildred did not understand this one rule as a new comer to politic, ask everyone for your vote, not just your friends.

Gutzman, I picked as a winner. I never seen the man in my life. But it was something about him. He did not say much. I think he held his cards to close.

Morris, was young.

The second rule, if your name is not first on that ballot, you better make sure, that folks know your name and how to spell it. All together now, can you say Cow-Bell, now Dow-Dell.

SAm and Mike thinks he had something to do with Harrison Square. Not Brown was sandwiched in between to well known, Bender and Crawford.

Matter of fact this is what outgoing Sam Talarico had to say

Mike, Name recognition is huge in an at-large race, but dont entirely discount other factors.

1. Crawford took a huge hit from H. Square and Smoking to knock him down to third.

2. Liz Brown is a tireless volunteer within the parochial school system. She is very well known in the catholic community and she ran a nice campaign. She received both newspaper endorsements and she had volunteers at the polls. Liz is wonderful candidate and she seperated from the other newcomers.

3. I think the "anti smoking ordinance" people knew that Bender would try and overturn the ordinance and they gave Bender a few hundred extra votes.

4. From a purely political standpoint, Morris may have been a little foolish to endorse Kelty. As an at-large candidate, you want Kelty AND Peters supporters to support you. He had to have lost a several hundred votes from Peters supporters.

Just some thoughts. We can meet at the Dash In downtown some time this month.

Sam

source

Election:Raced White Power

Freeslave addresses the myth of the melting pot of America. I always thought the United States was made up of immigrants, but Freeslaves sets me straight. Oh don't go getting all sensitive on me. JUST because, I bring us the bad stuff raced white folks have done. Just a little bit of a more inclusive history. I am not suggesting anybody go out and scalp anyone, the article is a good read. Share it with your children.

Katie Couric can you hear me now!

I guess not with CBS News numbers falling, falling>


Katie read what Jack and Jill Politics has to say about diversity in the newsroom.

If America becomes majority people of color, and this sort of imbalance still exists, there will be a painful reckoning for the powerful, who have refused to acknowledge change and won't be prepared when it comes, seemingly from nowhere. This is a wake up call. So wake up yall.

Kathi, I like you, but I expected more women stuff more us stuff. Katie, I need you to stop pushing Bush. Yes, you were cute as a button on that morning entertainment news show, but you are beginning to look like Hillary by the time the evening news comes on.

I did not say sound like Hillary, I said look like. Old and tired, old and tired. No one wants old and tired for their news or their president. I know you got the Benjamins, but I am telling you CBS will drop you like Imus. Did you see how old and tired he looked and he had millions of dollars.

You can do this Katie, you just got to wake up to the real world.

•

News blues. In a weak week for evening newscasts, CBS' Katie Couric hit a record-low 6.1 million viewers, with NBC's Brian Williams at 7.5 million and ABC's Charlie Gibson continuing his recent winning streak with 8.1 million.

Steve Shine boy infiltrate Kelty's Camp

Another blogger picks during the primary.

Many people I’ve spoken to over the months were unaware of what the issues really were surrounding the mayoral race, however that was several months ago. As the months approaching tomorrow went by, people have been becoming more and more aware of just how the city and county elected officials have an undeniable disregard for the will of the people.

In the last few weeks I’ve taken note of an interesting trend. People have become more aware of the Mayoral race and the issues at-hand. They have become incensed with the “status quo” and political ineptness displayed by Crawford and Co with the approval of Harrison Square. How many times does an elected official have to insinuate the constitutes they represent are stupid before we see the light?

It’s time to vote out the good ol’ boy network and the political cronyism that runs rampant in our community. It’s time for a change and the citizen’s of our community are more aware of this now than ever before. Tomorrow, let’s put the past behind us and start anew with fresh new ideas from a field of “more than qualified” candidates.

For Mayor
Matt Kelty

For City Council At-large
Adam Mildred
Bob Morris
Kurt Gutman

Posted by AWB

Fort Wayne Left fawns over Matt Kelty win in hopes that it will help Tom Henry. I don't think they have really looked at the numbers. The Democrats should have been doing what Kelty was doing building grassroot support. Instead they were too busy with their nose in other folks business, meaning the Republican mess.

The general election is going to be a dogfight. The voters of Fort Wayne will have a distinct choice in who will become mayor and lead this city into the future. Matt Kelty has proven to be a formidable campaigner but the Democratic party is energized and ready to seize the day. If Kelty thinks he's already won the mayor's office then he's got another thing coming. Tom Henry will not make the mistakes Peters' campaign did. He will be methodical, professional and victorious.

The Journal Gazette Ben Lanka reports:

Henry faced little challenge against two long-shot candidates and did little campaigning. He named his campaign director only a week ago. Henry had served on the council for 20 years and now runs his own insurance and consulting firm.

Left in Aboite believes in Tom


So long city hall.

Side note here: The headline of the Lanka story is a little..Underdog Kelty tops Peters. Boys will be boys. Speaking of boys..

Advance Indiana suggest Kelty win was from the doing of a group that is purely anti-SAME SEX!!! I believe they have always been part of the Republican party, except now they are picking on Same Sex folks.

But Advance Indiana got a lesson in how Fort Wayne Republican are running things by someone named Christopher Mann:

The city formally annexed Aboite township, politically comparable to Indianapolis annexing Carmel. All Allen Co R's and D's know that it will be a very tough race simply by sheer number count for a D to win in 2007. The fact that no Dem stepped forward to run for Mayor until two days before the Feb deadline demonstrates the lack of D's confidence in obtaining the seat; the Ds had to darn near suspend the 14th Amendment and conscript the poor guy in order to avoid the embarrassment of not fielding a candidate.

Add to the fact that Kelty knows grassroots politics like no other R or D in Allen county...there is no point in disputing that this is Kelty's race to lose. Remember, this guy lost the state rep race to veteran Win Moses in 2002 by only 63 votes. There is every indication that Kelty will outwalk and outwork Henry; Henry will have to work hard *and* hope for some terrible gaffe or scandal in order to pull of a Nov victory.

If there is a city where GOP hopes are "dashed" it would be Kokomo, where incumbent GOP Mayor Matt McKillip, also roundly endorsed by almost the same lineup as Fort Wayne's Kelty, lost to GOP challenger Rick Hamilton.

It is hard to imagine how Kokomo's GOP leadership can reunite after GOP Chairman Craig Dunn's ranting against incumbent Mayor Matt McKillip and his "McKillip is a Nazi" rhethoric. If there is a clear win for Dems this year, Kokomo could be it.

Nazi? HITLER! Wow, all the name calling! And you thought the Republican was the poster child for one big united party!

The Republican clique is broken up

Matt Kelty had to break away from the cliques in his Republican Party. The party prominent leaders had already preselected a new candidate for Mayor, and it was not Kelty. Does Kelty have a chance of winning the republican nomination by challenging the clique mentality of his party by challenging the appointed Nelson Peters. Kelty throws the first blow by making his announcement to the gang.


The party loyalist quickly closed rank. The message. Kelty would not win without the base support. Kelty answered back. A poll was taken suggesting that not only could Kelty win, but he could win without the backing of the party's leaders. Unconvinced, the splinter group went their separate ways touting each other. Until..

On May 8, 2007, after challenge after challenge, Kelty lead his campaign members by foot to the Allen County Republican Headquarters to announce his victory. How appropriate. They made their way down from the first floor of the Towers Bank building. Made their way through the revolving doors on to the pavement. Made their way pass the court house, pass the city county building to rebuild the clique.

There was no victory song playing in the background playing called, a city with room for dreams or on the wings of a prayer . But, there was Nelson Peters who conceded to the architect Kelty. Yes, children there is a moral to this story when dealing with cligues, right can win over might. Or just simply STAND for something.

According to the Journal- Gazette:

Kelty took 50.3 percent of the vote to Peters’ 46.7 percent in the Republican primary, according to unofficial results. Only 661 votes separated the two.

Lanka writes only "661 votes". It takes only one vote in the majority to declare a win. Kelty stated on WOWO to Charley Butcher it was a grass root uprising with the support of his friends. Now the party will have to close rank, again.

Update 8: 15 A.M. Nelson Peters stated on WOWO to Charley Butcher his loss pales when compared to the benchmark that are occuring within his family, his children. And that is the message that is being shouted help the family instead of big business.

The Winners

I missed two of these (in bold)

Fort Wayne Mayor Republican

Kelty


FORT WAYNE CITY CLERK --


At-large City Council
Bender-
Brown
Crawford -


1st District
Smith --

2nd District

SCHMIDT-

3rd District

DIDIER--


4th District

HARPER

5th District

Buskirk

6th District

Smith, Sr.

I missed three in this group (bold)

FORT WAYNE MAYOR DEMOCRAT

Henry


Fort Wayne City Sandra Kennedy-

FORT WAYNE CITY COMMON COUNCIL MEMBER AT LARGE DEMOCRAT


Essex Jr.
Porter-Ross
Shoaff

1st District
Boyd

2nd District

Goldner


3rd District
McBride-

4th District

Langley



5th District


Pape


6th District
Hines

Kelty slayed Peters.

At least that what it appears like at 8:49 p.m. Voters turnout turned in a quick return.

Election Day snippets

Indianapolis Star reports at the polls.

The polls opened at 6 a.m. today for a primary dominated by local races, local issues and charges overnight that both parties are unprepared to run the election.
Republicans and Democrats will be picking candidates for Indianapolis mayor, Carmel mayor, city-county council members, town council members and much more.
The parties exchanged late-night charges accusing the other of being ill-prepared for today's vote.

The volley started at around 10:30 p.m. Monday when Republicans called a 10:45 p.m. news conference to complain that Marion County Clerk Beth White had failed to secure inspectors in over 20 percent of Marion County's precincts.

White, who was not immediately available for comment, had attacked GOP preparedness in past elections in her successful campaign last year.

Then the Democrats countered with their own attack.

They expressed concern late Monday that Republican Secretary of State Todd Rokita is overstepping his legal authority by sending 10 unauthorized deputies to Lake County to monitor today's primary election.

Rokita said last week that he has the legal authority to send poll watchers into any precinct he wants, the Democrats said.

"Under that premise, Todd Rokita could create an army of deputies to canvass the state and intimidate voters for political purposes," said Democratic Party Chairman Dan Parker in a prepared statement.

Rokita wasn't immediately available for comment.

Most voters, however, will likely be focused on races like the Indianapolis mayor's race.

Democrats will be out working to get Mayor Bart Peterson the nomination for another term.

Peterson will start Primary Election Day by casting his ballot at Castleton Church of the Nazarene, 7848 Allisonville Road, at 7:30 a.m.

He will then visit various polling places throughout the county, said party spokesman Terry Burns.

GOP leaders will be pushing to get their preferred candidate for mayor Greg Ballard the nomination.

He plans to visit more than 10 precincts before the polls close at 6 p.m.

No surprise with that news, there was a reason for the lawsuit in requiring I.D. to vote. And the reason did not have anything to do with voters trying to vote more than once but more to do with folks being discouraged from casting their votes.

Here on the planation, in Fort Wayne, voter's turnout has been low. 5% by noontime, with only 60 registered voters out of 300 voters at one precinct voting, reported by 15 news reporter, Brian.

AWB reports to work and finds that 2 of the 4 machines were not sealed. AWB working from Preston Pointe Apartments in Aboite is ..an angry white man. AWB is overseeing Colony Bay according to the liber. site. A comment on his site states:
..the westview church this morning and in the first 1-1/2 hours, 90% of those voting were voting for Matt. Between 8:00 - 9:00 it was more difficult to know who was voting for who. Most people didn’t want to talk to us. I guess bright yellow t-shirts are harsh first thing in the a.m.

The majority of bloggers support Kelty.

Propaganda, Pimping or Sloppy Journalism: the need to support the black press

The Message
By Edrea Davis

For the past few months mainstream media has hyped the “stop snitchin” slogan, giving it a life – and definition – of it’s own. A recent story on CBS News’ 60 Minutes presented a one-dimensional view of snitching that appears to be part of an ongoing propaganda campaign designed to hold hip-hop culture accountable for the dysfunctional criminal justice system, and divert the public’s attention from the real problems in America.



Whether it’s propaganda, pimping, or simply sloppy journalism, the story “Stop Snitchin” was biased and inaccurate. A cursory review of the facts reinforces the urgent need to resurrect the black press as an authentic voice and trustworthy news source capable of dispelling the latest stereotypes.



In the black community it is commonly understood that a snitch is a crafty criminal who negotiates a deal for himself by telling on others. Since the days of slavery, providing information to authorities to gain favor has been viewed negatively. Judas would be considered a snitch primarily because he was one of the disciples, one of the crew.



But, according to the 60 Minutes story, witnesses and concerned citizens are now considered snitches. The report indicated that people of all ages in the black community, even children, are abiding by this so-called code-of-silence out of fear of retaliation. A related story, “A Conspiracy Of Silence, CBS News Investigates: Epidemic Of Witness Intimidation Plagues Justice System” aired a week after the “Stop Snitchin” show.



While it is true that blacks and other minorities have a history of strained relationships with the police, concerned citizens routinely complain about crack houses, slow response times and a lack of police patrols in inner-city neighborhoods. Black people also serve as witnesses and jurors.



Instead of displaying outrage at the suggestion that hip-hop culture has convinced law-abiding “inner-city residents” to participate in a conspiracy against the justice system, many uninformed black people believe and perpetuate this propaganda before checking the source and motives of the messenger.



Since I’m from the “P-Funk” era, I went to allhiphop.com, thuglifearmy.com and eurweb.com to see what the hip-hop generation had to say. Amazingly, about 85% of the posts I read supported the classic definition of snitching. I listened to Chamillionaire’s song “No Snitchin.” The rapper rhymes about a criminal who “was looking at 30 but only did 10.” The song goes on, “streets know the deals you made with the pen.”



I suffered through the foul language of Obie Trice f/Akon, “Snitch.” When the first word in the song was “convict,” I knew it was more talk about criminals. The song says, “started out as a crew…who woulda known he would fold and cower.”



A few clicks later I was on sohh.com watching an interview with rapper, actor and one of the pioneers of hip-hop, Ice-T. He said, “Snitching is not telling on somebody doing something wrong in the ‘hood. It’s when you and your partner are involved in a crime and get caught and you tell on your partner. That’s snitching.”



If I was able to find the meaning of snitching in less than ten clicks of my mouse, I think it’s safe to assume that 60 Minutes, a national news program with a budget and research staff, is aware of the nature and definition of snitching and had no interest in being fair and accurate.



A quick look at pertinent information absent from the story is further evidence that it was propaganda. For instance, 60 Minutes neglected to mention that there was honor among thieves long before hip-hop. Dishonest elected officials, corporate executives, and even the “Boys in Blue” have adhered to a don’t snitch mantra over the years.



Furthermore, where are the statistics to prove the low clearance rate is due to this epidemic? How many of the crimes solved were due to “suburban” people assisting the police? Since hip-hop is credited with fueling this epidemic and white, suburban youth are the major consumers of hip-hop; how does the code-of-silence impact their community? How can any responsible journalist do a story on how black people relate to the police without mentioning the pandemic of police brutality and misconduct cases across the country? With the international media attention surrounding the snitch involved in the police killing of 92-year-old Kathryn Johnston, how can they produce a story on snitching without mentioning problems related to dishonest snitches? Also omitted was the fact that activist’s have been working to dismantle the corrupt snitch system long before hip-hop entrepreneurs started making money off the stop-snitching slogan.



Although 60 Minutes could not cover all of these issues, they could have presented a more balanced story. With minimal research the producers could have found an articulate expert on hip-hop culture like rapper Mos Def or Davey D, a journalist who has written on the issue. An intelligent spokesperson would have taken that shining moment to expose the corrupt snitch system, and, most importantly, change the direction and perception of hip-hop overall. Instead, 60 Minutes empowered an irresponsible rapper to make ignorant, harmful comments.



PART 2: WE KILLED THE MESSENGER
Assuming the stop snitching movement, as mainstream media reports it, is a hoax; the question would be, why do black people passively embrace and accept any message sent by a mainstream messenger? Black people are quick to jump on the bandwagon without doing research, or asking someone more knowledgeable. Anderson Cooper said it on 60 Minutes, so we agree. Much like back in the day when the master had the flu, WE were sick.



Black people complain about mainstream media defining our values and creating leaders by giving voice to a chosen few. Our ancestors didn’t get mad or complain; they got even. They created black publications as good, or better, than their mainstream counterparts. Black newspapers were packed with thoughtful information aimed to educate, inspire, and empower the black community. These political Bibles were passed through the neighborhood and looked upon as the sacred key to overcoming oppressive conditions. People eagerly awaited their weekly messages from respected writers like Fredrick Douglas, W.E.B. DuBois, and Ida B. Wells.



Similar to the impact integration had on black schools, once mainstream newspapers included stories related to the black experience, African-Americans abandoned the black press. Unlike other minorities, as soon as blacks are accepted into mainstream they tend to dump their traditional institutions. Don’t get me wrong, we should embrace diversity in mainstream media and applaud the outstanding work of black journalists and broadcasters fighting for fair coverage on the inside. However, the beloved community desperately needs the black press to separate news from propaganda and fact from fiction.



The Black community is plagued by serious social and economic problems. In the midst of a presidential election cycle we must let America know that we refuse to accept propaganda spoon fed to us by mainstream media. Let advertisers know that if they want to send us a message about our issues, do so through OUR media. Let’s put them on notice that we will depend on black publishers and broadcasters who have sacrificed and struggled to exist, to be the gatekeepers of our information.



Knowledge is a commodity. Support the creators of that product. Lift up TV One, BlackAmericaweb, and BlackPressUSA.. Pick up the phone today and buy a subscription to your local black newspaper. If you advertise, include black media in your advertising plan. For those surfing the net and enjoying thought-provoking writers like Faye Anderson, Anderson@large, Lucius Gantt, Dogonvillage.com or Bruce Dixon at Blackagendareport.com, purchase something at their site, donate, or just click on a google ad and give them a penny.



The press is considered the Fourth Estate. They are the eyes and ears of the people, anointed to keep watch on the government. How can people, oppressed for over 400 years, depend on our oppressors to be our eyes and ears?

###

Edrea Davis is a communications consultant and author of "SnitchCraft," a novel about a nightclub owner set-up by a dishonest snitch. Reach her at edmedia@dogonvillage.com or www.snitchcraft.com.

Fort Wayne May 8, 2007 selection of candidates for office

Fellows are you ready !!! Yep, I made my picks. I am not sure I am going to vote, since I am an independent. But if the races are close, I can always be a spoiler. There are a few races that I am pulling for an upset. But, I am not feeling the party thing. And with the moving of some of the polling places, I think a lot of folks will be discouraged from voting. And the republican driven ID requirement is going to discourage other folks from voting in this little contested election.

You are not going to believe this, especially after you see the slate of candidates running for office. Fort Wayne is the second largest city in Indiana. And you can see that many of the elected positions are unchallenged and some have no one running against them from the other party! So was it should not been too much of a surprise that folks did not show up for the political debate held at IPFW by the political guru, moderator Andy Downs.

This small sampling of candidates should make for a very low voter turnout. The Republicans have a lot riding on this, so the number should be high with the number of candidates seeking the nomination for Mayor.


FORT WAYNE MAYOR DEMOCRAT
Cook
Henry-
Steinke

Fort Wayne City Sandra Kennedy-No challenger and I mean no challenger

FORT WAYNE CITY COMMON COUNCIL MEMBER AT LARGE DEMOCRAT

Arrington, Sr
Billingsley-
Cline
Essex Jr.-
Porter-Ross
Reef
Shoaff-

1st District
Boyd-no challenger

2nd District

Goldner-no challenger


3rd District
McBride-no challenger

4th District

Langley
Raymer-


5th District

Boren-
Pape


6th District
Hines-no challenger

Fort Wayne Mayor Hood and Brown will take votes again from Kelty.


Brown
Hood
Licari
Kelty
Peters -

FORT WAYNE CITY CLERK --go figure


At-large City Council-too many in the field, so Crawford will remain about the selected three.
Bender-
Brown
Crawford -
Gutman -
Mildred
Morris

1st District
Smith --No challenger

2nd District
SCHAAB
SCHMIDT-

3rd District
DIDIER--no challenger


4th District
HARPER-No challenger

5th District
Buskirk--no challenger

6th District
Smith, Sr.--no challenger

What has been the great imperative of my life?

Professor Zero has hit me up for another meme. What has been the great imperative of my life? This meme was started by Geoffrey Philp. Professor Z's imperative:

“[The realization that] the way we do things is not natural, but is rather a constructed system, and that there are many systems. I liked the discovery that one could acquire more than one system, and move between systems.
Indeed, this is what I like. Everything I undertake is, at the most fundamental level, undertaken because it offers the opportunity to walk into a new system and learn to navigate within it.”

Mines? To be heard. Yep. Even when folks tell you to be still, be quiet, or just go away..I will figure out a way to be heard.

This is my third meme. My second one from Professor Z. And I might add this is one is the most personal for me. I learned early in life to hide myself. I learned early to play by myself, being the oldest child. I learned how to be the chameleon. I learned to escape from the crowd, become invisible, not missed, not heard from, and not seen. This worked to my advantage, especially when things would become hectic. I knew how to avoid being bothered when things got hectic. That is until things began to really bother me. But, who would listen to little quiet me, when it came time to speak up?

It was easier to disappear, as a quiet person, no confrontation. Much quieter. The downsides to the quietness, it was viewed as a weakness. Definitely ruled me out as being the most important person in the room. As the quiet one, it seemed as if I was always underfoot or in somebody's way or in the way of others getting too, or going too somewhere. And I was just simply standing there. In the way. Occasionally, I would be brave enough to bother those who were more important, or those more worthy than me a question or two. Hoping to get an answer, and not get dismissed as simply being stupid, dumb, or just a silly girl and sent away.

Tough Love. Teaches you to find answers without asking questions. I just had to listen better and watch for the answers in a less humiliating way. It taught me to learn how to be useful.

I was very useful. You learn lots of stuff by being useful. Because folks always have something they want done, that they do not want to do themselves. And being young, I wanted to prove that I could do stuff, quiet, never saying no and not complaining. Yes, I could do that. I had to do a lot of listening. Because I did not want to suffer being called dumb or stupid. Quiet ones don't want to be made to look dumb. They definitely don't talk back to chance appearing stupid.

That was until Mr. Hedges entered my life. Mr. Hedges was my government teacher. I could be invisible even at school. Nobody cared about my education. Except, maybe me. Nobody, I was just a quiet girl. Something must have been wrong with Mr. Hedges because, he quietly and long windily asked me questions! I could pass a test, no problem. But his questions demanded an oral answer without a a check list of multiple choices. How was I to know if I was providing the right answer?

My oh my, what was I to do? In front of the class, the class would surely laugh at me, and I would prove the quiet one is a stupid one. I had to say something.

A little more about Mr. Hedges who reminded me of William Buckley. It was his dark hair, his skinny face and the Adam's apple protruding from his neck. The way it moved when he spoke caught my attention. And his words and phrases made me listen. Him and Buckley both talked about stuff I did not agree with, about government and black people.

Mr. Hedges would ask me what was the significant of something or other that happened on a daily basis. I who was invisible did not even know the meaning of the word, significant. But, I knew what it meant to be a African-American. I knew my experience was not their experience, Mr. Buckley or Mr. Hedges. And if Mr. Hedges was going to keep asking me questions, I was going to have to tell him what I thought about things. They were all going to have to listen. My classmates.

It was bad enough to show up at school and hope not to be picked on. To figure out what to wear so others would not make fun of you or your hair. Being poor did not help a quiet girl. Some days were spent just avoiding being used as an example by the teacher of how unprepared black children were for learning. But, Mr. Hedges was a teacher asking me to speak up. Trapped in class, with no way out. I stood in front of class and told them what I thought.

Mr. Hedges wanted to know what my thoughts were about a subject. Carl Rowan I relied on alot, to boost my experience. All those years of reading newspapers, magazines, books, and even the bible helped too. Many of them were about African-Americans. Mr. Hedges gave me the chance to speak and everyone in the room had to listen. Boy, did I have something to say and they had to listen. This time it would not be a made up essay about summer trips I never had. It was stuff I knew, read about and watched.

It's my government teacher fault. Sure, I debated with my grandfather and several uncles, but..Mr. Hedges was different. Mr. Hedges listened. And he provided a platform for me to speak every week. Shy me.

Mr. Hedges taught me I had an opinion. And if I had an opinion, I knew other folks had opinions too. But, they did not have Mr. Hedges for a government teacher. So, I would have to put aside my shyness and my shame of being a child of a single mother. I would have to speak up not just for me but for others just like me. It was imperative that I do so. I needed to be heard.

So, here I sit on this blog. I may not be the best writer, but I know I still got something to say. And Mr. Hedges it's all your fault. Now the other part of the meme, I have tagged the following bloggers, please respond to the question at the top of the post:

African-American Political Pundit

Bronze Trinity

antiessentialist conundrum

progress at all cost

The "D" spot

Temple 3

darkStar sprouts off

the content black woman

in the midst of it all

a woman in progress

Why grow the Afrospear?

When Joe Anthony Myspace was taken over by Barack Obama staffer, there was a reason for it. The numbers. Anthony wanted to be paid for his time, and rightly so. However, Anthony failed to get the negotiation going before he made a deal with the Obama camp.

Bronze Trinity has created a master piece that could attract the attention of the Obama camp. It is in place waiting for one just one moment that will send it into history during Obama Campaign. And anyone that follows politics knows something is going to happen. Jonathan Chait writes:

Most political activists can point to one catalyzing event, an episode in each of their lives (or, more often, in the life of their country) that shook them from their complacency and roused them to change the world. You can find many such stories if you troll through the netroots, the online community of liberal bloggers that has quickly become a formidable constituency in Democratic politics. But the episode that seems to come up most often is the Florida recount. For instance, Markos Moulitsas Zúniga and Jerome Armstrong's book, Crashing the Gate, the closest thing to a manifesto of the netroots movement, begins like this:


Five years ago, the Republicans took over the government through nondemocratic means. Establishment Democrats, for the most part, stood back and watched as a partisan judicial body halted the counting of presidential votes. While conservative activists led the charge on behalf of their party, there was nothing happening on our side. That was the spark. Fed-up progressive activists began organizing online. Fueled by the new technologies--the web, blogging tools, internet search engines--this new generation of activists challenged the moribund Democratic Party establishment

Who are these bloggers? My bet is none belong to the Afrospear:

The netroots harbor a similar anti-Washington populism and, like the conservative movement, have set about creating alternative institutions and social networks. Some of them--such as Media Matters, which monitors conservative bias in the news, or the New Politics Institute, which promotes innovative approaches to organizing--are based in Washington. (Neither is a creation of the netroots, but both are closely allied and hire bloggers as fellows.) Others are virtual. The most important of these is an e-mail list called Townhouse. It includes "many bloggers and other representatives of the netroots as well as a large number of partisan journalists and grassroots groups," Moulitsas has written, and its purpose is to "have a unified message in the face of a unified conservative noise machine."

The party-line sensibility that pervades the netroots is not some artificial, Stalinist imposition. The close ties that exist among the netroots and its allies grow out of the technology they use so naturally. As insular as elite Washington may be, the netroots' world is arguably more so. The leading liberal bloggers all know one another and generally regard one another as friends, or at least allies. The countless smaller liberal bloggers may not inhabit the same social circles, but the nature of the form encourages them to share the same political sensibility. After all, if you are a new liberal blogger, your only way to escape total anonymity is if larger, established blogs point readers to your site. E-mail feedback and reader comments tend to be uniformly partisan as well, reinforcing the path of least resistance.

Even Matthew Yglesias, who writes one of the most independent-minded liberal blogs, confessed in March that he had soft-pedaled his opposition to gun control. "I don't write about this issue much because, hey, I don't want to be a wanker," he wrote. "Wanker" is the netroots equivalent of the conservative term "squish"--an expression of derision reserved usually, but not exclusively, for ideological defectors. It describes behavior that, for liberal journalists and policy wonks who came into politics a generation earlier, was a badge of honor.

Francis Holland writes about being banned from a site. This is one reason why it is important to grow the Afrospear.

h/t to African American Political Pundit.

Resources for Darfur

Article by Sylvia

As I mentioned in a comment on Bronze Trinity’s entry, there are a number of ways we as bloggers can call attention to the conflict in Darfur. One significant way is to assemble resources so people can get informed, sign petitions, and contribute to the effort to stop the conflict and help refugees. Quaker Dave, a great human rights activist blogger, has assembled a series of resources about the Darfur conflict that I think everyone should add to sidebars. Also, if there were any way someone could make a PSA or a graphic, that’d be excellent as well. (I’m not artistically inclined at all!)

Here are some sites to check out and publicize:

Amnesty Int’l: Darfur
Coalition For Darfur (blog)
Committee on Conscience: Darfur
Darfur Alert Coalition
Darfur Peace & Development
Divest for Darfur
ENOUGH
Genocide Intervention Network
Human Rights Watch: Darfur
Int’l Crisis Group: Darfur
Operation Sudan
Save Darfur
STAND
Sudan Divestment Task Force
Sudan Organization Against Torture
sudanreeves.org

Go here and find afrospear to find the links to the sites.

Supporting DARFUR-what's oil got to do with it?

PLEASE visit these boycott sites, learn about the boycotts and start boycotting!: Seattle Times article, France Boycotts Olympics in China over Darfur, SuperXtra.

Learn more about Sudan/Darfur Coalition for Darfur. Letter of protest, Boycott 2008 Olympics. Those who are supporting divestment in Sudan.

Fort Wayne issues.

The Indiana Senate, led by Fort Wayne’s own David Long, can surely do better than letting a divestment measure intended to support the people of Darfur fall victim to an ill-placed abortion amendment and a committee chairman’s misjudgment.

Indiana House Bill 1484 would require pension funds for teachers and for the state’s public employees to sell off holdings in any of a small number of foreign firms that do certain types of business with Sudan, the nation now most famous for sponsoring repeated massacres against people in Darfur. More than 200,000 have been killed, and about 2 million Darfuri have fled the country.

In Fort Wayne, we can be proud that 200 or more Darfuri have found a welcoming home among us. That continues at least a 60-year tradition in this city of embracing the oppressed and dispossessed from around the world and helping them create new lives here.

If only we could be as proud of the General Assembly as we are of the relief agencies, churches, employers and unsung good neighbors in Fort Wayne who’ve helped refugees from Darfur.

Admittedly, there are costs to scouring the state’s investments for businesses that have a hand in supporting the Sudanese government. The state’s Legislative Services Agency reports that implementing divestment might cost $2-$3 million, with an unknown financial impact from selling holdings in such companies. But those are costs backed by such a compelling moral argument that the U.S. government has already barred U.S. companies from doing business with Sudan.

Six other states have passed measures to divest assets in foreign companies engaged in some types of business with Sudan.

We’ve generally been skeptical about divestment as a foreign-policy strategy, because it so often harms unintended targets – sometimes the very innocents it is intended to help. But this Sudan divestment strives to exempt companies involved in providing humanitarian trade and focus on a small number of firms that help sustain the government in that country.

This measure came before the House backed by such a wide array of religious and secular groups, arguing such a clear moral point, that it was passed 97-0 by that body. If Reps. Randy Borror and Pat Bauer could both support this bill, along with every other Republican and Democrat in the House, it should have enjoyed similarly smooth progress through the Senate.

Two things happened to stall it last week.

First, several legislators told the Indianapolis Star that Sen. Mike Young, R-Indianapolis, tried to amend the bill to also require the state to divest any interests it holds in companies that manufacture abortion drugs. That’s the wrong approach. If legislators want to look for new ways to discourage women from having abortions, they ought to write separate bills instead of trying to piggyback a much more disputed measure on the Sudan divestment bill.

Second, Sen. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn, wouldn’t allow the Pensions and Labor Committee that he chairs to vote on the bill. He said he was worried about the precedent that would set for legislative tampering with and micromanaging state investments. That’s a reasonable concern to raise, but it’s better addressed in committee or full Senate debate. Instead, Kruse exercised his power to stop the Senate from even deliberating over this measure.

It’s this simple: A rarely assembled coalition of conservative, moderate and liberal legislators see the value in the state using its financial clout to help isolate Sudan from the world. Now Hoosiers who want to see more action on this front must pin their hopes on Long or other Senate leaders to insert the divestment measure somewhere else.

Only Monday, The New York Times published a story about refugees from the slaughter, the literal genocide, in Darfur who now live in Fort Wayne and northeastern Indiana. It provided a fresh look at neighborliness we take for granted.

As one of the first Darfuri to arrive here told the Times, “Cities like New York are not attractive for our beginners, too busy. This community welcomed us cheerfully and respectfully. They understand our people.”

The story noted that Darfuri who come to Fort Wayne find what seems to them astounding abundance and comfort even on low-wage, entry-level industrial work. They find more, too. They find networks of charities to help them adjust to America. Free clinics provide medical care. Volunteers help new arrivals learn English.

The New York Times couldn’t have paid Fort Wayne a greater compliment than showing us how we appear to new arrivals from a terribly oppressed region of Sudan. Read the story, available online at www.nytimes.com/2007/04/02/us/02indiana.html. It will make you feel freshly blessed to be an American and especially proud to be part of Fort Wayne.

Now perhaps the Indiana Senate will rise to emulate Fort Wayne’s example and support a people whose lives in recent years have been more terrible than most nightmares.

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

Afrospear Mission Statement Revisited

I am reposting here my thoughts after reading about a suggestion about starting an afrospear. And after recents comments I decided to reread the mission statement for clarification.

First my post

I

did it. The it is on my sidebar. I became a member of the afrospear. Names. Call it what you may, blackosphere/afrosphere/African-Americanosphere... But, I got my afrospear.

The symbol represents a concern many share in the blogosphere. Different concerns, but a common theme, a divide in the community.

I was concerned about the lack of African-American male bloggers in responses to Shaquanda Cotton. Of course, there were a few, but many where not presence on the site created for Free Shaquanda Cotton. No problem, just an insight.

So now I get to participate in the Afrospear challenge as it brings its movement. I read much of the material that has been posted on some of the sites. So, I am going to say, I think that many of the great minds will have an impact..the legal, the scholars. I believe they can explain legislations that are having a negative impact on our families in the prison system. I believe that Afrospear can help draft legislation to make changes. A grassroot net that must reach beyond the keyboard.

I find the creation of blogs troublesome. Simply because many who need the service offered by Afrospear are not on the internet. So I believe some other type of outreach program will need to be implemented. I suggest that we form a main blog, as a directory for those who do need the service of the afrospear. I suggest that those who do not have access to the internet be informed about the movement through webcast throughout the various cities that are represented in the afrospear.

I also agree with one of the bloggers, on the lack of brick and mortar participation from the afrospear in advocating for those most in need. I suggest that each blogger join an organization and implement the afrospear within such organizations. And the webcast could be one way of pulling in folks to learn how to blog. I suggest that a post goes up by one member, specifically about Afrospear agenda, once a week, a different blogger each week, and we all go over and comment.

This will change as the membership grows. I don't care who is the author, the article can be emailed to the host blogger, but a shared community. A model in which the Afrosphere can copy is African-American Political Pundit which does an excellent job for bloggers. And has already started a listing on African-American(Black) Opinion on the Afrospear members.

Perhaps these things are already being done, but I offer my two cents.

The post below is just something I wanted to share, and tell me what you think.To read the complete post go to Professor Zero.

None of these movements function effectively when the focus is on catering to the diverse needs of those enlisted in the ranks; the diversity can be acknowledged and supported, but a shared purpose must, for maximum effectiveness, remain the point of concentration. The common assumption that political action should be based on a fully shared–even identical–set of values and perspectives among those committed to a cause isn’t a good operational guide for effective organizing.

Within a given movement, differences are bound to exist among the rank and file in regard to class, race, gender, age, geographical location, religious belief and so on. But when those differences become the prime focus of attention, the energy that should be saved for working against a common oppressor gets diverted and sapped. To form powerful, effective political organizations, individuals cannot be allowed to let the differences that separate them usurp the agenda.

One central reason movements for social reform in this country have rapidly run aground is our commitment to the ideological belief (not the practice) of the supreme importance of the individual

The mission statement:

We live in a forced collective. Hear me out.

This gathering of people of African descent — whether born in the U.S. or Africa or elsewhere, whether descendants of slaves or free men, whether rich or indigent –this gathering arises out of a need for self-determination and a history of forced subordination and removed relativity to an abstract outsider. We face each other under a banner of survivalist solidarity because regardless of our differences — whether they be our sexualities, our disabilities, our religions or our interests — we are viewed as one. What jerks at one of us sends tremors through all of us. So we need to understand each other.

This space is an area to gather our thoughts — thoughts that we do not or should not expect to mesh into a single river of black unity. Thoughts that we do not write to bolster our Afro-credibility. Thoughts that may seem contradictory at times. We come together to share what we think works best for us as people who have had our fates forcibly woven together. As human beings, however, this weaving can read as a blessing or a curse. These writings, presented by a variety of different perspectives of those cut from the African cloth, intend to explore the mountains and the valleys of the landscape of being a person of African descent.

What does being a person of African descent mean? How does it guide individual and collective politics? Does it influence the formation of identity? Should we abandon identity altogether? What problems do we face, and what clear goals should we set to solve them? When should we band together? When should we break apart? Where should our priorities lie? This think tank does not claim any political affiliation; it does not claim any religion; it does not profess any specific philosophy as the guidepost for our people. Here, we unite to teach and to listen, to share and to withhold, to grow and to develop into people we pride within this forced unifier. We aim to loosen the restraints of these perceptive chains and to join our hands in unity — but only if we choose to do so.

These stories and ideas are thoughts of action, of ambition, of revelation, and of courage within our collective AfroSphere. We want to be interactive with those who share the above vision and want to add a positive contribution, i.e., their stories and ideas to this collective. We welcome interaction through comments, posts and essays. We will utilize the voices of guest contributors. However, we will have a zero tolerance policy on comments whose goal is to sow dissention, engages in personal attacks and/or attempts to demonize others because of their beliefs and/or opinions. Only positive criticisms, analysis and comments that educate, enlighten and edify will be allowed. This does not mean that we are only looking for those who will agree with our points of view. Far from it. However we are creating a space where discussion, discourse and debate can be exchanged in a respectful environment.

Welcome to AfroSpear. Share your insight.

The AfroSpear Circle.


My insight:

I think that we in the afrospear are reading the writings of the debates going on in the afrospear circle. And from that insight an action agenda has arisen from the thoughtful writing as well. It's all good.

If you can't work the street just harass the students

Fort Wayne police officers worked with school officials to remove students from school who appeared on Myspace doing stupid things. Enough to frustrate a student from getting his education and sending the student on the deadend road of joblessness.

However, the courts have ruled that the police are stupid in going onto Myspace and not recognizing the fact that this is a place where kids do and say stupid things.

Police don't like the courts telling them how to do their jobs. So to one up the court, and in their zealous to harm children, criminalizing posing with guns will be a new criminal act. Because fighting crime in the street came be a danger thing for police. Fort Wayne police have decided to charge a student with a felony for being in the possession of a handgun, in a picture. Yep, in a picture, the facts are not clear. But it's enough to frustrate a student and derail his education. And it gives the police an air of confidence when moving in the space of children.

It all started with a picture. Enough to give the officer enough reason to be in the face of a student who brought a cell phone and a camera to school to inquire about the picture with the handgun.

Let's see how many drug houses are in Fort Wayne? Oh I forgot this permissive crime keeps the police with those good paying jobs to harass students who should be getting educated in school.

Writing, Math and Brain Drain

The Elite needs to know they are communicating with other elitists. Dr. John Crawford, of Fort Wayne, Indiana suffers from brain drain. When in fact, Paul Gottieb states that their is an under utilization of young college educated students. Matter of fact, someone shared with me a story about a former student, who graduated from high school one day, and the next day graduated with a degree from College. The student was a child of one of the elites in the community. Assigning special privileges to some in higher education insures the success of their children. But privilege does not guarantee the same child continue growth when surrounded by nepotism and cronyism.

This is what Dr. Crawford witnesses on a daily basis exclusiveness, that involves colleagues who are dumb as a rock. It is his job to know more than his patients. But because they can afford his service, they are allowed in his circle. And his political world places him amongst those who practice nepotism and cronyism who would not be able to enter his circle of privilege. These individuals do not require real knowledge just a connection to Dr. Crawford or others who knows someone who is a friend of a friend..and the list goes on. And to sometimes fake titles like professor, Doctor of such and such institution help support the embellishment of entitlement of these individuals being as important and professional as Dr. Crawford. We just wish you would stop pretending these are our brightest and smartest, when it is what it is. Nepotism and cronyism and not governing by competent people.

This is networking. These folks interact with each other. Those who have real degrees never get a chance to contribute to the discussion. This is exclusive privilege at work. Just 4 the record posted a story about how privilege protects those who are not documented, by telling others they must have a college education. While privilege allow the slackers to learn on the job without that expensive college degree.

The pundits keep chanting that we need a more highly skilled workforce, by which they mean more college graduates, although the connection between college and skills is not always crystal clear. Jones, for example, was performing a complex job requiring considerable judgment, experience and sensitivity without the benefit of any college degree. And how about all those business majors -- business being the most popular undergraduate major in America? It seems to me that a two-year course in math and writing skills should be more than sufficient to prepare someone for a career in banking, marketing, or management. Most of what you need to know you're going to learn on the job anyway.

From the story, it appears that the Jones in the story, was the dean of admission at MIT, stated she had three degrees and had none. Jones was performing this job for 28 years without a degree. But the moment it was discovered Jones was canned. Are the student's parents reimbursed part of their tuition because Jones lied about her credential. I doubt it.

The Craft of a Snit

This is an interview from Edrea Davis, author of Snitchcraft. Davis was interviewd by Felicia Pride, AOL Black Voices:

Cam'ron's recent ill-advised, uh, I mean stupid comments about snitching have sparked a debate about this "code of the streets." Urban lit novelist Edrea Davis attempts to address the other side of snitching in her debut novel SNITCHCRAFT. The book, which she recently self-published, is about JC, a nightclub owner set-up by a dishonest snitch, and how JC struggles to clear his name. Along the way he is introduced to corruption within the criminal justice system.


I wondered what Davis, who has worked in various communication fields and is co-founder of Dogonvillage.com, thought about Cam'ron's recent 60 Minutes appearance and what makes her book SNITCHCRAFT different. Here's what she had to say:

What made you write a book about snitching?

I wrote SNITCHCRAFT to shed light on the corrupt snitch-system. It has reached epidemic proportions and helps to feed into a prison industry that incarcerates over 2 million American citizens. Let me clarify: A person reporting criminal activity in their neighborhood is a concerned citizen, and someone that gives an accurate account of a crime is called a witness. Snitches are government-made parasites that drop a dime on people for a reduction in prison time, a get-out-of-jail credit, monetary payment, or a hit of crack. When necessary, these foot soldiers in the so-called "War on Drugs" embellish the truth. Quite often, they fabricate stories. Snitches are responsible for nearly 46% of wrongful capital convictions from false testimony, according to a study by Northwestern University Law School's Center on Wrongful Convictions. They are also the reason that innocence commissions across the country have concluded that snitch testimony is false and unreliable. Snitches are criminals hustling the system.



What did you think about Cam'ron's appearance on 60 Minutes?
I am writing an op-ed on it as we speak. Cam'ron's foolish response, which even he knows didn't make sense, was obviously a tool for the 60 Minutes folks to spread their propaganda. That's the fad of the day: blaming the black community for their problems. Propaganda shows one side of an issue, journalism gives an unbiased view. They found Cam'ron and two other blacks so far removed from hip-hop culture it's almost a joke. 60 Minutes could have reached out to conscious people in the hip-hop community like Davey D or Mos Def and would quickly find out that a snitch is a criminal telling on criminals. Davey D would have taken that shining moment to let the world know that black people report crimes every day but the police don't want to hear their "complaints." An articulate spokesperson would have also pointed out that that "code of silence" goes beyond hip-hop to include our nation's elected officials and, none other than the "Boys In Blue." They would have also pointed out that the true stop-snitching movement started before hip-hop entrepreneurs decided to make a few dollars off the slogan. Mainstream activists and organizations fighting against the mass incarceration of Americans have been criticizing the use of snitches for years.

What does your book say about snitching?
My book is a fictional account of a nightclub owner set-up by a lying snitch. The facts incorporated in the book illustrate the corrupt environment created by the governments use of snitches. Although I encourage your audience to read SNITCHCRAFT, they only need to look at the recent controversy surrounding the use of a snitch in the killing of 92-year-old Kathryn Johnston to know that the system is broken.

OBAMA Needs protection from the FBI

Earlier, I questioned the lack of response by African-American males bloggers to the Shaquanda Cotton debate who was not a prominent figure as well as the lack of endorsement of Senator Barack Obama for President who is a prominent figure.

Shaquanda Cotton was somewhat vindicated and brothas stepped forward and expressed various reasons why they were slow to support the sista. The various reasons given appears to be that brothas write about what they are interested in, and Shaquanda Cotton was not on that radar of interest.

Forget the fact that an injustice was being committed and the facts were being shared on the Internet about Ms. Cotton. But intelligent and educated brothas remained silent on the issue. It appeared as if the brothas had a reputation to maintain on the net that put them in a Booker T. Washington, Marcus Garvey, W.E.Dubois, Malcolm X, or Martin Luther King, Jr. camp. The camp of who in the greater society do I align with or identify with? Shaquanda was just a kid. What was her social value to brothas in the know?

And now Senator Obama. What test must Senator Obama pass to be supported by those, mainly African-American males in the blogosphere? It started out with is Obama a real brotha? Meaning does he come from the struggle? Does Obama know what it means to be a "black man" in America? Can he talk basketball or football? Is Obama black enough?

Michelle, his wife told us Obama was black enough. Obama married her did he not? Obama had not taken his intellectual power and moved on to a raced white girl simply because his mama was raced white. Obama children were African-American, because Obama identified as an African-Americans. The sistas in Chicago vouched for Obama being black enough, for his commitment to Chicago African-Americans. I don't know what Katie Couric was thinking that the elders was going to diss a brotha?

But still the brothers, was waiting for the real Obama to break out.

Bam, Obama squashes the little people. The blogosphere spread the story, that Obama or was it Obama's camp mistreated the grassroot. It appeared that a volunteer in the cyberspace had built up quite a following for Obama. So big was this network, that the camp was getting nervous and wanted to buy the site. Negotiation fail through on the money part and with that came I told you so's about Obama. But Joseph still support Obama after the fallout, after a telephone call from Obama, himself. But the Afrosphere probably won't report that.

This alone should prove Obama is black. It only takes a slight misstep, and African-American know they will have start packing stuff in a box and move out of their little cubicle. But this misstep by Obama's camp was enough of a confirmation to African-American bloggers, that something is still not right about Obama.

But, some African-Americans who are supporting Obama believes that it does not take much to be black in America. No the slight by the camp was not the reason, just a skin shade dark enough to shout warning, a black has entered the room. Jared Roebuck found himself in the media discussing another type of Obama's slight this time, to t the "boys in the hood". Obama's comments on pimps hos and other names we use to describe the underground economic businesses for our sistas who have not reached the level of the Washington D.C. madam's black book. But they did not diss the madam by calling her simply a "ho."

"Miz Julia" sent tremors through the nation's capital Monday simply by threatening to call her "clients" to testify at her trial. Talk about real power.

But Miz Julia, otherwise known as Deborah Jeane Palfrey, is neither a politician nor a high government official involved in making war or policy. Nor is she a CIA undercover agent.

Instead, she says she merely ran a legal escort service in the nation's capital featuring massages and sexual fantasy. To the contrary, say U.S. government prosecutors. They have charged her with racketeering by allegedly running a prostitution ring, with girls charging $300 an hour.

Now, those allegations have given Palfrey, 50, of Vallejo, Calif., a nickname other than Miz Julia. She's become widely known as the "D.C. Madam" who has brought Washington an old-fashioned sex scandal.

. She wasn't a nappy-headed sista, either.

But Michelle had warned us that Obama was black. So it should not had come to too much of a surprise that Obama stated that brothas use these names to degrade their mamas, sisters, friends, wife and others. What discounted Obama as black was his breaking the brothas silence code. It's just a brothas holding it up, in his misogyny attitude toward sistas with this name calling to make a sista respect a brotha.

Chastising black children who tell their peers that getting good grades is “acting white.”

Criticising blacks who don’t exercise their right to vote.

Taking rappers to task for the language they use in their lyrics (an issue magnified by the recent Don Imus flap).

Promiscuity among young black men and women.

The number of black children in one-parent homes.

The disproportionate crime rate among blacks - and the fact that it is often black-on-black crime.

source bloggernews.

Obama snitched on a brotha. Brothas got issue, something that Bill Crosby could relate to but did not speak too. That is a crime in the brotherhood bonding arena. Crosby focused on the mama's children drama. That's black brothas business, no need to tell the raced white folks. So Obama is left hanging on the is he really black sideline?

But once again, all we had to do was listen to Michelle to tell if Obama was black. It was going to be dangerous for Obama as a black man to run for president. And we knew she was right! So it was no surprise when for the first time, a presidential candidate has been provided protection from the Secret Service so early in the game.

Oh Lordy have mercy don't think the afrosphere is going to spend a lot of time talking about this latest development. FBI protection. Threats. Obama is not black enough? How they are going to write about that, with headline like OBAMA needs protection by the FBI?

No, these bloggers have to worry about credibility. Some don't want to be viewed as bias toward one group via another group. Some have to worry about not offending their diverse readers. Others have to worry about their sponsors. Some just simply don't like the man, Obama that is. Because he is black. Yep.

Obama is so hated for just speaking his mind. That CBS is sending email to their staffers telling them to turn out the comment section of any stories about Obama. The volume of hate mail they receive after doing a story on Obama is too much to monitor. Skeptical brotha post:

It’s very simple,” Mike Sims, director of News and Operations for CBSNews.com, told me. “We have our Rules of Engagement. They prohibit personal attacks, especially racist attacks. Stories about Obama have been problematic, and we won’t tolerate it.”

How can that be, brothas and some sistas in the blogosphere believe Obama ain't black enough. So, I just want to take a moment to say to my sista and brothas, are you color blind? Obama you have just passed the black enough test.

Pick a number any number-start now

Bronze Trinity has compiled an action list for the Afrospear members.

1) Get the UN to stop the war in Darfur. Join organizations and promote the cause until the UN or someone steps in to stop the African World War. Post a Stop the War in Darfur button or image on your blog or website at the very least. As you can see to your right I have the button and I have signed
maybe 4 Darfur petitions. For some of the petitions prewritten emails or letters were automatically mailed. Tonight I also donated $100 to the UN Refugee Agency. Have you done this yet?

2) Make Poverty History. Join One.org and support organizations that are working to end poverty. Spend the dollar at least and get the bracelet.I have done this and I wear the bracelet. I have also signed at least one petition at their site and I sent emails about the One to my friends. I also make monthly donations to UNICEF even though my income is unstable and I have loads of student debt. Have you done this yet?

3) Black Leader Recruitment and Promotion. If you know positive Black role models then promote them, ask them to get involved, help them to make changes, and work with them. Make a website of good Black role models so they become famous and so that they are called when the media wants to hear from the Black Community. If you want better leaders then go out and find them because they are just waiting for your support and encouragement. There are two sites already doing this, Black Male Appreciation and Sistas in the News (available on the Afrospear Politics & Opinion Page) but PLEASE HELP to find some more sites like this and to encourage or participate in their work.

4) Convict Workforce. Hire ex-cons who no one else will hire and have them fix up Black communities in return for food, shelter, clothing, recommendation letters, and help finding another job. Employ them as security guards and construction and maintenance workers. Make it so that those who want to change can find rewarding work that can help our communities.

5) Citizen Police Surveillance. Videotape cops whenever they are around and post it to a website so that we can catch corruption and police brutality. Videotape how they react to being recorded in a public place in the same way many places in North America are under constant surveillance. People behave if they are being watched and court cases are easy to win if there is video footage. Use cellphones to post instantly and anonymously to the site. Support the underdog because one day he might be you. Youtube has an instant mobile upload service that you can use to instantly upload video to the site.

6) Marry Your Baby Daddy. This is a campaign started by author Maryanne Reid. Encourage people to get married and raise children as families. Its not cool to raise kids in broken homes or to have children when you do not have the means to support them. Visit the site HERE.

7) Sex Education Website Promotion. If parents don’t want their children to get pregnant and catch STDs, schools only teach abstinence, and parents are too afraid to talk about sex then make an interactive website that will do the talking for them and answer questions. Let them know about the various sex education sites online. Are you going to let schools decide if your kids become teenaged parents and die of AIDS? Some sites include Scarleteen, Sex Education Links, Sex Etc, .

8) Why Are You Wasting Your Money Campaign. Make ads showing how much money we waste in a year on booze, cigarettes, designer clothes, and other crap and compare it to the cost of a house, university education, tutor for a year, company shares, and other expenditures that would actually improve the African Diaspora. Those who want you to waste your money benefit from keeping you poor and they don't care about you. They only care about what you can do for them.

9) Stop Using the N-Word. Stop saying it, tolerating it, and purchasing music that uses it. You have been fooled into thinking that using an insult in a friendly manner takes the power away from the word. You were tricked into habitually insulting yourselves and making racists smile.

10) Elect Barak Obama. Stop the monopoly by getting registered to vote and voting for Barak Obama. Make history and change the way Black people are viewed in the world by making a Black man the leader of the most powerful country in the world. Choose a leader and get together and back him!

11) Make Education Cool. Stop paying attention and promoting ignorant behaviour and people. Make educated involved citizens our heroes by writing about positive Black Role models and flooding the media with stories about them and demanding that they are aired.

12) Make Gangstas Uncool. Stop looking up to Gangstas and buying there stuff. Stop acting like them, dressing like them, talking like them, and buying their music. Make a website of bad Black role models and make them look like the idiots and losers they are.

13) Afrosphere Online Newspapers. I have already started one but other people can get out there, find content relevant to different parts of the world and different interests so that we make it easy for people to get involved and knowledgeable about African Diaspora issues. If you don’t like the media then make alternative media sources available.

14) Positive Hip Hop Free Promotion Campaign. If you don’t like Gangsta rap then promote positive, conscious hip hop artists on your blog or website until it becomes the mainstream.I have started this with a premade slide show of artists with positive and conscious lyrics and I have pasted it on my blog. Have you done this yet? Also please sign the Stop Offensive Media and Negative Hip Hop Petition!

15) Plus 1 Minus 1. Created by Young Black Professionals Guide. Only buy CDs and mp3s from artists who do not make the African Diaspora look bad and hurt our members. Advertise the campaign on your blog. I have done this. Have you done this yet?

16) Internet Public Service Announcements. Use YouTube, paint shop, and any means you can to promote these African Diaspora issues. Make interesting, inspiring, moving, funny, or any announcement that gets our causes noticed. You can find freeware and online sites so you don’t even need a cent to make them. Find announcements that have already been made and keep them them on your site.

17) Single Mothers' Village. It's difficult for single mothers to raise children alone. There is an African saying that it takes a village to raise a child. Single mothers can get together and share houses and apartments together with their children to share the child raising and foster community support.

That's off the top of my head and it wasn’t hard to come up with these ideas with absolutely no research. So lets hear some more ideas.

Afrospear member recognized by the MSM

Jared Roebuck, a member of Afrospear has had a busy week. First a quote in the Washington Post, an op-ed piece in his school newspaper,The Campus an interview on radio and more stuff in the works. Roebuck blog is called Lies before breakfast.

It should would be nice when MSM began to print the names of the blogs along with the bloggers name.

Afrosphere's Black Accused Support Groups

The Afrosphear's Black Accused Support Coalition invites you to join them in their fight against injustice in the criminal justice system. Look for the icon in support of the BASC and contact its members.


The Afrosphere invites individuals to join the Afrosphere's Black Accused Support Groups (BASG), which is a national union of the blogs set up for Black people seeking justice from the American criminal (in)justice system.

Black Accused Support Groups blogs are interlinked across America to provide support, lay advice and information to Black accuseds, victims of criminal system injustice, their families, friends and communities. When Blacks demand justice, we speak not as isolated individuals; we speak as "One Nation Under and AfroSpear."

The way to start a local Black Accused Support Group (BASG) within the Afrosphere is to (1) start a Black blog that tells the history of one or more accused Black people. (2)Include within that blog a “Welcome to the Afrosphere” list of Afrosphere blogs, (3) using the AfroSpear icon in the Blog layout to identify this blog as part of the Afrosphere and part of the International Black Accused Support Group Coalition. (4)Advocates who do not know how to start a blog can request help from any member of the Afrosphere and receive immediate assistance and directions for starting a BASG blog.

The issues raised and advocacy raised in these independent BASC blogs will likely receive spontaneous or organized support in the Afrosphere consistent with the compelling nature of the case and the effectiveness of the presentation made in the BASC blog.

Because Afrosphere blogs are independent and spontaneously organized, all Black people have an opportunity to present their case to the nation that there is a Black person wrongly accused or unjustly sentenced.

The BASG’s can be another way to help stop urban violence, uniting the families of warring factions behind the common goal of freeing those community members who have been imprisoned and preventing others who are currently defendants from receiving unjust and excessive convictions and sentences. BASG can advocate for increased funding for alternative sentencing modalities, like drug and alcohol treatment and accused participation in BASG support groups.

Do you know someone who needs BASC help? If so, pass this information to them or their group immediately!

Fort Wayne Social Security Office Move

There has been a lot of talk about redevelopment in the downtown area. Folks putting their heads together to bring more businesses downtown. Well it appears that the old building at 5800 Fairfield is no longer able to accommodate the baby boomers and those qualifying for disability. So you would think city leaders would have moved to relocate this business downtown. Wrong.

Now, the old Fairfield building is not far from downtown. So, it makes sense that downtown would be a good location and the fact that there are lots of empty buildings downtown. Matter of fact, a lot of empty buildings that sit on the bus lines are prime property downtown. The bus lines are important for those who are unable to drive themselves or unable to afford to pay for other more expensive transportation to the Social Security Office. Downtown would be more convenient for all parties involved. You would think, but nope, folks got other ideas.

They want to move the Social Security office closer to the airport. I don't know, it is hard enough to catch a plane flying out of Fort Wayne. Now they want to make folks go out there. Is this Fort Wayne way of telling seniors they need to get out of town and make room for all the young folks that is going to grow this city?

I don't know. But I do know this. I called David Gionet and voiced my concern about this latest development at the Social Security Office. Oh I told him how much it would cost riding in a cab to make it out to the airport. One way to the airport would cost around $15-20 dollars. That's does not include the tip, and if the gas price keep going up, the cab drivers will probably tack on another $1 for gas. Two trips could eat away at the fixed income of families who are receiving social security.

Gionet suggested that I call Congressperson Mark Souder's office. I did. The man who answered the phone for Souder, Steve Howell was nice as I expressed my concern. But this much I do know, Souder's aide does not use public transportation if he grew up on a farm. So, I shared with Howell why this move is economically harmful to low income families.

Now I need your help, folks out here in the blogger's land.I'm suggesting that you call Souder's office. The number is 260-424-3041. Now the line may be busy. I had to keep calling before I finally got through. Below are other ways to contact Souder:


Fort Wayne Office:
E. Ross Adair Federal Building, Room 3105
1300 South Harrison Street
Fort Wayne, IN 46802
Main: (260) 424-3041
Fax: (260) 424-4042
Tollfree: 1-800-959-3041


I think Souder will be more than glad to hear from you.

A meeting scheduled for Friday morning between

Citilink’s board of directors and a representative of U.S. Rep. Mark Souder’s office has been cancelled.

Citilink notified the media of the cancellation about the time Souder’s office issued a press release saying a member of the legislator’s staff was denied entrance to a meeting Wednesday between Social Security officials and Citilink.

Souder’s office has questioned why Social Security’s new office in Fort Wayne is not directly accessible by Citilink, Fort Wayne’s public transportation system.

In a letter dated Thursday, Souder asked for a meeting with Social Security officials next week, saying he planned to bring a Citilink representative with him.

Souder said a Social Security official denied his staffer access to the meeting, adding “to my knowledge, this has never happened in my career as a congressional staffer or Member of Congress, and I don’t expect it to happen again.”

Oh Congressperson Souder had more to say:

May 3, 2007

The Hon. Michael J. Astrue
Commissioner
U.S. Social Security Administration
Windsor Park Building
6401 Security Blvd.
Baltimore, MD 21235

Dear Commissioner Astrue:

Recently, it was brought to my attention that Fort Wayne’s Social Security office (5800 Fairfield Avenue, Suite 235, Fort Wayne, Indiana) will be moving to a location that is not accessible by public transit (Fort Wayne’s Citilink).

A member of my Fort Wayne staff inquired about the office’s new location on April 27, 2007, and was told that she would be contacted by Cordelia Davis, the Fort Wayne Social Security office’s District Manager, with that location. To this date, she has not received a response from Ms. Davis. But she was assured that the new location would be accessible via public transit. Moreover, an unsuccessful bidder on the new office project has told my staff that accessibility to public transit was a requirement for any potential bid on the work.

After learning of a May 2, 2007, meeting between the local Social Security staff and Citilink, my District Director (Derek Pillie) attempted to attend the meeting. Upon showing up at the meeting place, however, District Manager Cordelia Davis barred Derek from entering, telling him that it was “a closed meeting.” I had specifically asked Derek to attend this meeting as my representative, as I wanted him to learn why the local Social Security office would be moving and why the new site wouldn’t be accessible via an existing bus route. I am angered that my District Director was blocked from performing the fact-finding mission I requested. To my knowledge, this has never happened in my career as a congressional staffer or Member of Congress, and I don’t expect it to happen again.

With this letter, I am asking for a meeting with the Social Security Administration next week, and I plan to bring along a representative of Citilink. If this meeting is not achieved, I will bring up this issue at future hearings of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, of which I am a senior member.

I thank you for your prompt attention to this matter, and I look forward to your response.

Sincerely,


Mark Souder
Member of Congress
cc: Sharon Wilson, Director, Legislative Research and Congressional Constituent Relations Staff, SSA
Kevin Messner, Associate Administrator, Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, GSA

So you can write a letter to the U.S. Social Security Commissioner too:

The Hon. Michael J. Astrue
Commissioner
U.S. Social Security Administration
Windsor Park Building
6401 Security Blvd.
Baltimore, MD 21235

Or write a letter to the newspapers and tell them what you think about this treatment of our senior citizens. I was unable to find email addresses.

Fort Wayne-Social Security for the Elderly and Disabled.

All right now. Congressperson Mark Souder has entered the debate on the movement of the the local Social Security office from its current location. The current location is on the bus line making the office accessible to high disadvantaged groups. Whereas, the new location will discourage those high disadvantaged groups from getting their needs met.

I would say the fact that Congressperson Souder aide was barred from the meeting did not make Souder a happy camper. Well I am still waiting on Souder to address the drug problem in Fort Wayne. But, this Social Security debacle is a quick fix

.

“They’re behaving like they don’t want public scrutiny,” Souder said of the local Social Security officials. In an interview, Souder said he sent an aide to attend a meeting about the move, but the staff member was refused admittance by Cordelia Davis, the district manager of the Fort Wayne office.

Davis could not be reached Wednesday evening. Souder mailed and e-mailed the letter after 5 p.m., and Davis’ home phone mailbox was full.

“At the end of the day, it wasn’t clear to me, to be honest, at this late stage in the process whether anything could actually be done,” Souder said. “But the way they have behaved has now set off a red flag of warning to me that there may be more to this than I thought.”

“In fact, there may be quite a few people who use public transportation. They were supposed to calculate that in the bid,” he said.

Walk to the airport.

Plan ahead and walk to the airport appears to be the message to those without transportation and need to travel to the social security office. For those who use public transportation, their is no bus route to the new office for social security.

The problem is that adding service to the new location will either require cutting service elsewhere or adding buses to serve the new office. Gionet estimated that would cost at least $120,000 a year, which would primarily have to come from local taxes. He said the nearest route is almost a mile away from the proposed office.

Carmen Moreno, Social Security spokeswoman, said access to public transportation was a consideration in choosing a new location, but officials received only two bids for a new site. She said the selection was awarded a few years ago based on the bids.

Moreno said the move is necessary because the office has outgrown its space for visitors and staff, and a new location will provide space for better technology. She said Social Security will be discussing options with Citilink about providing public transportation to the new site.

Remember what I said about officials in Fort Wayne, or what's the word, camarilla.

Gionet said he tried warning the administration about problems with a new location in a letter two years ago. He said federal executive order directs federal buildings to be accessible to public transit.

And that's the law. Fort Wayne officials don't follow the law. They have friends in high places. Public transportation appears to be under attack.

Bush says No what say you?

Bagnews Notes suggest there has a been a shift in power with the mighty pen.


There will be a rally and speakout at the downtown Fort Wayne Courthouse Green, on Wednesday, May 2, 2007 at 5:00 p.m. Bush's veto of the Iraq bill that would have set a timeline for our troops to come home is under seize.