Sometimes people behave in ways that have me thinking that that’s how they are, and that I just need to accept that flaw, or that limitation, since we're close friends. And so I accept it.
And then I find out that flaw, that limitation is only in regards to me and not to other friends. Which in turn says a lot about how highly they regard me.
Again, I must recite Maya Angelou's quote, when someone shows you who they really are, believe them. People keep showing me who they really are. I mean, they protest one thing to assure me of their realness and that they can be someone I can depend on if I ever need them (because the last thing I need are fake people or fair-weather friends) but their actions say the complete opposite. Every single time.
I'm not perfect, but I do know that my actions equal my words.
The AK-47 is a selective-fire, gas-operated 7.62x39mm assault rifle,first developed in the USSR by Mikhail Kalashnikov. It is officially known as Avtomat Kalashnikova .. It is also known as a Kalashnikov, an "AK", or in Russian slang, Kalash.
Design work on the AK-47 began in the last year of World War II
(1945). After the war in 1946, the AK-46 was presented for official
military trials. In 1947 the fixed-stock version was introduced into
active service with selected units of the Soviet Army.
An early development of the design was the AKS (S—Skladnoy or "folding"), which was equipped with an underfolding metal shoulder stock. In 1949, the AK-47 was officially accepted by the Soviet Armed Forces
and used by the majority of the member states of the Warsaw Pact.
The original AK-47 was one of the first true "assault rifles" to be manufactured, after the original Sturmgewehr. Even after six decades the model and its variants remain the most
widely used and popular assault rifles in the world because of their
durability, low production cost, and ease of use. It has been
manufactured in many countries and has seen service with armed forces as
well as irregular forces worldwide. The AK-47 was the basis for developing many other types of
individual and crew-served firearms. More AK-type rifles have been
produced than all other assault rifles combined.
The Germans were the first to pioneer the assault rifle concept, during World War II, based upon research that showed that most
firefights happen within 400 meters and that contemporary rifles were
over-powered for most small arms combat..
The Germans sought to develop a select-fire intermediate powered rifle
combining the firepower of a submachine gun with the accuracy and range
of a rifle.
After 10 years , the Federal Assault Weapons Ban (signed into law by President Clinton) expired on September 13, 2004, as part of the law's sunset provision ( a measure within a statute, regulation
or other law that provides that the law shall cease to have effect after a specific date, unless further
legislative action is taken to extend the law. Most laws do not have sunset clauses and therefore remain in force indefinitely). There have been multiple attempts to renew the ban, but no bill has reached the floor for a vote.
The evil monster whose name I will not speak, was able to buy this same kind of assault rifle.It jammed during his rampage, apparently because of a problem with the 100-shot magazine feeding it. Had it not jammed, the massacre would have had more tragic and deadly consequences. He did pull out other guns to use.
Various news agencies are reporting that in the days since the movie massacre in Aurora, Colorado, firearms sales have spiked, not just in Colorado but across the nation. This begs the obvious question, and I'm sure you already know what it is.
I don't have a gun, and I don't want one. I don't have a criminal history. My background is squeaky clean. I would easily pass any background check for a gun.
I'm not in the military.
I have a right to own a gun, but what's to stop me or anyone from legally getting the same kind of assault weapon that that evil monster used? .
Not a damn thing, and that's the most criminal part of this story, that Congress allowed the assault weapon ban to expire without renewing it.The owners of these guns (like that evil monster) are intending to do major damage.
With the receipt of my passport in the mail yesterday, I can check one more thing off my list. I'm one step (and one day) closer to my trip to Paris! I don't know if I told you all, but I'm going to Paris for my birthday in November. The flight has been booked. I'm very excited. I'm currently trying to learn as much french as possible. I'll also have a 12 hour layover in Dublin, which I'm looking forward to as well. I've always wanted to go to Paris. I never thought I'd go without my wife or my fiance or a girlfriend. I have neither, and with my luck, I doubt I'd even have a serious girlfriend by then, but this is going to be a big birthday for me, and meeting friends at some dive bar wouldn't cut it. I needed to do something special, something big. I need to do it big, even if it's by myself. I have a friend in the UK so while I'm in France, I'll take the chunnel to see her as well. I'll be there for 2 whole weeks! God willing, I will wake up in a hotel room in Paris, and be 50 yrs old. That's right, I will be old. I feel older than I'd ever imagine I would feel at this age. That is because most of the things I have dreamed of and aspired to has not come to fruition yet. Perhaps being in Paris will soften the blow and give me some wonderful memories. Knowing my luck, I'll meet a woman with potential, 2 days before I return to The States.
On the eve of Mitt Romney's arrival in London, one of his advisers
made a remark that The Telegraph says "may prompt accusations of racial
insensitivity."
That's a fair assessment. When explaining why Romney would have a
better grasp of the relationship between the United States and the U.K.,
the adviser had this to say—
"We are part of an Anglo-Saxon heritage, and he feels that the special
relationship is special. The White House didn't fully appreciate the
shared history we have."
Obama, of course, has a different heritage, as his father was African.
This is only the latest dig at Obama's heritage by the Romney campaign.
Last week, Romney campaign co-chair John Sununu said
Obama "has no idea how the American system functions, and we shouldn't
be surprised about that, because he spent his early years in Hawaii
smoking something, spent the next set of years in Indonesia, another set
of years in Indonesia..."
Sununu later added, "I wish this President would learn how to be an American."
--courtesy, gawker.com
Excuse my french, but, what a fucking asshole.
Let me remind
you, Mitt, that A)You are part Mexican,
B) America is not and has
never been "anglo-saxon", and
C) America as we know it was built on the
backs of (and stolen from) non-Anglo Saxons, you fucking prick.
Vanessa Williams, the very first Black woman to be crowned Miss America, had to relinquish her crown because of questionable ( read s & m ) photographs to Suzette Charles, who was the runner up.
Earlier that year,the two judged the most beautiful, most qualified candidates for the crown, were black women. Both were light-skinned, but black women, nevertheless. Never before has this ever occurred in the history of the pageant.
And it hasn't happened since. And will probably never happen again.
We all know that Vanessa Williams didn't shrivel up and die, fading into oblivion. She went on to record, star in movies, Broadway and television, and is very well respected in Hollywood circles. ABC is even working on a televison project following the series finale of Desperate Housewives.
Woe to those who make unjust laws to those who issue oppressive decrees, 2 to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless. Isaiah 10: 1-2
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker comes to mind ( as well as the entire Republican party) when I read these verses.
Before Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker ran for governor, he
was a state legislator from 1993-2002, and he was an active member of ALEC.
“Many of us, myself included, were part of ALEC,” he said in a 2002
interview. In addition to sponsoring ALEC’s Truth in Sentencing Bill
(1997 AB 351), Walker attempted to privatize Wisconsin's prison system
(1997 AB 634, 1999 AB 176, and AB 519), and sponsored early versions of
anti-union legislation including “Right to Work” legislation (1993 SB
459) and “Paycheck Protection” (1997 AB 624). All these measures reflect
long-standing ALEC bills and priorities.
After entering the governor’s office in 2011, Governor Walker called
for the introduction of eight measures reflecting the ALEC agenda,
listed as "by request of the Governor.” The first bill Walker called for
upon taking office was Senate Bill 1 (which became Act 2), an “omnibus”
bill that draws on numerous ALEC model bills to change liability rules
and make it harder for Wisconsin families to hold corporations
accountable when their products injure or kill.
When asked by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel if Governor
Walker relied upon ALEC legislation when putting together this “tort
reform” bill, Walker’s press secretary Cullen Werwie replied “absolutely
not.” But as the bill was pending in the legislature, ALEC sent an
email to Wisconsin members stating that ALEC “supports this legislation
which includes numerous provisions that reflect ALEC's civil justice
reform policy and model legislation.” After Act 2 became law, ALEC
issued a press release commending Walker and the legislature “for their
immediate attention to reforming the state’s legal system.” Walker
promoted the bill as needed to free the private sector to create jobs.
Today, Walker has the worst jobs record of any governor in the nation,
with Wisconsin ranking 50 out of 50 states in job creation.
Other bills Governor Walker requested that incorporate parts of the
ALEC agenda include: Act 1 (Health Savings Accounts), a tax break that
shifts cost burdens to individual policy holders; Act 9 (Super Majority
Act), which would allow a minority of legislators to block a majority
vote to raise taxes (supported by Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax
Reform, a long-time ALEC member); Act 10 (the Budget Repair Bill), which
stripped most public workers of their collective bargaining rights; SB
13 (the Drug Liability Act), which would bar almost all suits by
Wisconsin residents if a drug or medical device kills or injures a
member of their family; Act 93 (the Trespasser Responsibility Act),
which limits a property owner’s liability for injuries to another; Act
22 (Telecommunications Modernization Act), which deregulates the
telecommunications industry; AB 14 (Interest Rate Judgment Act), which
would have reduced the interest rate on court-ordered payments for
Wisconsin families injured or killed by corporations; and Act 21
(Economic Impact Statement Act), which places hurdles on promulgating
regulations, including regulations to ensure cleaner water and air for
Wisconsin families.
Governor Walker has signed 19 ALEC-related bills and budget
provisions into law. Many of these bills contain multiple provisions
drawn from the ALEC playbook. In addition, Walker has received over
$406,000 in recent years in campaign contributions from ALEC member
corporations. Top ALEC corporate members that have contributed to Walker
include: MillerCoors ($36,055), WellPoint ($34,200), Wisconsin Public
Service Corp. ($28,364), Pfizer ($26,845), and AT&T ($22,875). [49]
--courtesy sourcewatch.org I don't even want to post his picture. Who comes to mind for you, and why?
If your daily life seems poor, do not blame it; blame
yourself that you are not poet enough to call forth its riches; for the
Creator, there is no poverty.
Tonight I was watching the show Nightline and their coverage of the theater shooting in Colorado. They had a story of two black men who were heroes, helping women with their children escape from the theater to safety. Then, while still talking about the tragedy, Diane Sawyer talked about the 7 year-old autistic girl who, earlier this week, was out on top of an air conditioner who fell into the waiting arms of a bus driver below, another black man, named Steven St Bernard.
Diane Sawyer spoke about a man named Phil Zimbardo, head of the Heroic Imagination Project. He did a study that, though unpublished, yielded some preliminary findings that gave me a feeling of pride. For example, people in cities were more likely to be reported taking heroic action then those living in rural areas. But what made me feel good was hearing that Black people were 8 times more likely to have done heroic deeds than caucasians, and Hispanic men- not women , were 2 times more likely than caucasians.
How come? That segment of the show ended right there, with no explanation.
This requires further review, for a future blog entry.
believe in a love that is being stored up for you like an
inheritance, and have faith that in this love there is a strength and a
blessing so large that you can travel as far as you wish without having
to step outside it.
I love love, and the idea of it. I love seeing this couple love on each other. I can’t remember any of our past Presidents and First Lady’s ever showing affection. Not even the holding of hands. The chemistry between President Obama and The First Lady Michelle Obama is so strong that even when they’re not touching, you can tell that they can’t want to be alone.
I remember as a child, I so desperately wanted my mother to go out on dates…I wanted a father to do father and son things with , but also, I guess I was in love with the idea of love as a child. I wanted to see my mother be loved the way The First Lady is loved. I wanted someone to look at my mother the way The President looks at his wife.
I'm sure the bottom picture is in my blog a few dozen times. Every time I come across this picture, it makes me smile. I love how he loves her.
If you say you 'dont like no drama', but you won't get rid of the
people in your life that causes the drama, even though myself and every
one else agrees that you need to remove him from your life, and 100% of
your contribution to our telephone conversations day after week after month after year after year are new bits of drama
interspersed with the same old drama regarding the same person with
every single phone call, despite the fact that you agree you need to
stop dealing with this person because you ' don't like no drama,'
then you need to take that record off the victrola and play a new song because this one is skipping.
Best known for her title role in the 1968 television series Julia, which made her the first African American actress to star in her own television series, she also starred with Dorothy Dandridge in Porgy & Bess, and Carmen Jones, played Dominique Devereau on Dynasty, and starred in one of my favorite movies of all time, Claudine, and so many other movies and television shows.
POWERFUL PEOPLE CANNOT AFFORD TO EDUCATE THE PEOPLE THEY OPPRESS...BECAUSE ONCE YOU ARE TRULY EDUCATED, YOU WILL NOT ASK FOR POWER, YOU WILL TAKE IT.
I will email this blog entry to my 16 yr old nephew. I want him to be more than the Heisman Trophy winner he dreams of being. I want him to be well-educated and informed enough and competitive enough and qualified enough that he will not have to ask for power.
I even baked a cake for parties that I weren't invited to.
& all I had to do was to stop communicating.
to stop hearing from you.
I've waited long enough (not really waiting, living my life) for you to call or text or email
to say something as simple as
'wassup man, long time no hear. what have you been up to?'
& all I had to do was to stop communicating.
to stop hearing from you?
Maya Angelou says, 'when someone shows you who they really are, believe them'.
I believe you.
(note to self -stop communicating to find out who will wonder why they haven't heard from you. those that you will never hear from again, don't matter. except your family-
I used to call my sister alot. When I stopped calling her, I never heard from her again. Oh, I still leave happy birthday happy mother's day or merry christmas voicemails on her phone when she doesn't answer. She never responds. This blog entry isn't about her though. It's for someone else. My sister just happens to do the same thing)
-- Justin Simien doesn't mind the possible comparisons to Spike Lee. Since the recent release of the trailer for his film Dear White People,
a satire about black students' experience at PWIs (Predominantly White
Institutions), many have noted the similarities between its take on race
relations and Lee's own joints. (The clip already has more than 600,000
views on YouTube and has raised more than $41,400 on Indiegogo, surpassing its $25,000 fundraising goal.)
But, Simien says, the film is not just about race. "The movie to me
is really about what it means to your identity when you are a thing that
everyone around you has a preconception about," he explained. "And how
that can really limit you, your potential, and in some ways, honestly,
help you find yourself."
Simien used his own college years as inspiration, with the first few
drafts culled from experiences such as when his suitemate was
disappointed that the filmmaker couldn't teach him how to Crip Walk, or
how people were obsessed with his hair. He talked with The Rootabout how Dear White People came to life and how he hopes it will spark much-needed cross-cultural conversations. The Root: Why do you think it's so important for a movie like yours to be released now?
TR:What was your character development process like? JS: There was always [characters like] a Sam, a
Coco, a Troy and a Lionel ever since I started writing the script in
2005. It's really hard for me as a writer to really talk about any major
topics, such as identity, from one point of view. So, I love ensemble
movies -- Do the Right Thing, Election, The Royal Tenenbaums and Insane.
Those movies are such an inspiration to me because you see this one
thing dissected from all these different points of [view]. Sam, her
voice was definitely developed through the Twitter account @DearWhitePeople;
that's where I really honed her in a little bit as a funny,
Angela-Davis-Malcolm X-Huey-Lisa-Bonet-type of amalgamation [laughs].
The other characters were culled from people I knew and experiences that
I had personally. TR: How has the film changed since you wrote it in 2005?
JS: When I first started writing it, I was fresh
out of film school. I don't think I was a strong enough writer to write
a script like this. At the time, it was called Two Percent …
and it was just a series of episodes. Myself and the other producers all
met in writers' groups where I was working on some version of it.
That's where we all became friends and decided to do this project
together. It really wasn't until two years ago when I felt a sense of
urgency about it all of a sudden. We then took it to a workshop and did
it with actors -- that was such a profound moment because I think we all
heard it for the first time and were like, "Wow, this is the movie,
this is a real story and it works." Jade O. Earle is an editorial intern at The Root.
Behold, I give unto you power to tread on
serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing
shall by any means hurt you. --Luke 10:19 Kjv
"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please every body."
By the way- This billionaire ( and mentor to Oprah) might have been broke or an up and coming comedian when he coined that quote, but he does know the key to success.
By now, we've all heard about Mitt Romney getting booed at an NAACP event recently. Well, after that, he spoke to a crowd at a fundraiser in Hamilton, Montana:
"By the way, I had the privilege of speaking today at the NAACP convention in Houston and I gave them the same speech I am giving you. I don't give different speeches to different audiences alright. I gave them the same speech. When I mentioned I am going to get rid of Obamacare they weren't happy, I didn't get the same response. That's ok, I want people to know what I stand for and if I don't stand for what they want, go vote for someone else, that's just fine. But I hope people understand this, your friends who like Obamacare, you remind them of this, if they want more stuff from government tell them to go vote for the other guy-more free stuff. But don't forget nothing is really free."
Shortly after the speech, Rachel Maddow reported on Romney's remark, noting its problematic undertones in the context of racial politics.
"It seemed like Mitt Romney wanted to get booed at the NAACP this morning," Maddow said. "He wanted to wear that around his neck like a badge of courage. It looks like he is not wasting any time in doing so."
Romney has used similar language throughout his presidential bid. During an event in Florida earlier this year, when confronted by a young voter who voice support for "free birth control," Romney quipped:
"If you’re looking for free stuff you don’t have to pay for? Vote for the other guy, that’s what he’s all about, okay? That’s not, that’s not what I’m about."
Criticism of Obama's Affordable Care Act has proved to be an uncomfortable line of attack for Romney, who as governor of Massachusetts introduced comprehensive health care reform that has drawn comparisons to Obama's. The state law includes provisions for much of the same "free stuff" that Obamacare does, including an individual mandate.
U came 2 me
Said give U more time
Time 2 get yourself 2gether
Time 2 make up your mind
I want 4ever love
U want a one night fantasy
While I'm sittin' here waitin' on U
U know somebody somewhere's waitin' on me
I always feel encouraged to have lowered expectations as I get to know people so that I am not shocked when they say something I consider to be the stupidest (is that a word?) thing I have ever heard, today.
A friend of mine used to listen to Frank Ocean on Spotify.com. along with Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj ( I tried not to judge him on the latter 2) on a daily basis, and today he said:
"I used to love his song thinking about you, but it's obvious he's talking about some guy. I can't be liking a song that another guy is singing about a guy. It's as if I was singing a song about a guy."
Yes, honestly, he said that. I didn't respond at first because I was waiting for his serious face to crack a smile,and for him to laugh and say something like "yo man i'm just playing," but he was serious.
I told him that "smart intelligent people shock me sometimes. That stupid dumb ass comment will now make me question any future comments that you make about anything."
And he had no idea why I thought that what he said was stupid..
"You
know, there's a lot of talk in this country about the federal deficit.
But I think we should talk more about our empathy deficit - the ability
to put ourselves in someone else's shoes; to see the world through the
eyes of those who are different from us - the child who's hungry, the
steelworker who's been laid-off, the family who lost the entire life
they built together when the storm came to town. When you think like
this - when you choose to broaden your ambit of concern and empathize
with the plight of others, whether they are close friends or distant
strangers - it becomes harder not to act; harder not to help."
— Barack Obama
*****
Presidential elections are rarely won and lost on policy. Voters
instead tend to choose the person they most want to be president based
on who they like. And that feeling is heavily influenced by which of the
candidates they believe best understands their hopes and dreams.
Call it the empathy factor. And it matters. A lot.
New national polling done by the Washington Post and ABC News shows
that President Obama has a significant edge over former Massachusetts
governor Mitt Romney on the empathy question — although the gap between the two men has narrowed slightly since February.
Asked
which man “better understands the economic problems people in this
country are having”, 49 percent of people said Obama while 37 percent
named Romney. Nine percent said neither man understood the economic
problems of regular people while two percent said both men did.
A
look inside the numbers tells a similar story. Among electorally
critical independents, Obama enjoys a 47 percent to 35 percent edge over
Romney. Women favor Obama over Romney by 20 points on the empathy
question.
Republicans in search of a silver lining in the numbers
will note that as recently as an early February Post-ABC survey, Obama
held a 17-point edge on the empathy question.
In our mind,
tracking how the two candidates perform on this question between now and
November is the single best measure (or at least one of them) of how
the race will turn out.
--courtesy the Washington Post
Are you praying? We can't be complacent. We can't have our eyes closed.
I'm not always a good judge of character. I try to see the good in people, and sometimes there is no goodness in them, but I will still look for it. Sometimes I think that people can't possibly mistreat people who treat them well, but I know that's me being naive. My mother raised me to believe in reaping and sowing, so being evil on indifferent in return is not in my DNA. Dear Lord, please subtract from my life, people who don't mean me well, people who are anchors whose only purpose in life is to weigh me down, instigators, liars, hypocrites, fair-weather friends, users, those who call me friend but treat me like that friend of the family that always assumes he's invited and shows up to events, those who invite me to events only after everyone else has been invited and they made the mistake of mentioning the event to me, those who don't have the courage to tell me to leave them alone, those who make me feel like I don't measure up to them, and people who will prevent me from being who and what You and I want me to be, and, dear Lord, please add to my life, the exact opposite, and that is, people who actually care about me, who want me to be happy and want me to do well on this journey I call life. Amen "
This is my prayer every morning. Interesting though; I try to be as cool as receptive and as funny and as sweet and as reliable as I can be, and sometimes I wonder why some friends automatically drop off, never to be heard from again. Sometimes I even call and text them, leaving messages, 'hoping that they're okay,' and they don't respond.
Then I realize, God is answering my prayer. He's filtering out all the anchors, all the albatrosses, all the fakers, all the liars, the fair-weather friends, those that either don't mean me well or don't care about me. Like I asked.
It
makes no difference to me whether or not Socrates actually developed
this test, said it or lived it. Regardless of its source, the value of
the test is fundamental. As the story goes, Socrates advises that you
apply this test before you repeat a rumor.
Is it true? If it’s not, keep your mouth shut.
Is it good? If it’s not, don’t repeat it if you are not certain it is true.
Is it useful? If what you are about to say is neither true, good or useful, there is no point in repeating it.
And every day, the world will drag you by the hand, yelling "This is
important! And this is important! And this is important! You need to
worry about this! And this! And this!"
And each day, it's up to you, to yank your hand back, put it on your heart and say "No. This is what's important."
First of all, I love GOD. Proud Christian here! I love the smell of baked goods, seeing dads with their sons at the barbershop, couples walking down the street holding hands, I love my friends and their kids and their dogs and cats and my cats. I love poetry, jazz, old school R&B, Hip hop, Gospel, House, architecture, writing, and baking. I love compliments about my baking, I love Paris, Scarborough Ontario, Latino culture, nappy hair, and the sound of kids laughing. The first thing I do every morning after I crawl out of bed is get on my knees to thank God for letting me see another day. I invite you to join me on this journey on this thing called Life, where you might laugh, cry, and perhaps be enlightened along the way! I might be enlightened as well, based on your responses to my posts. For collaborations: daij62@gmail.com
