The Tribune Online, 14

Taking it to the next level...

After the recent attempted assasination of Ms Sherrod's character by Breitbart and the "right-wing" media. I believe the NAACP should take it upon its organization to legally pursue the elements for mis-appropriation of this tape during the conference...at least to the extent of finding out who took and released the video. This should tie up these culprits in a court of law with the possibility of a large reparative recompense, and if no more than to send a message to all those who would submit to such an underhanded ploy in the future.

Black Men choose the military

In my day-to-day interactive business within the community, I come across any number of young men who have just come out of jail, mostly sentences of 2-5 years for the usual dumb ass offenses of dope dealing. They will give some sort of flippant answer such as "brother just trying to get paid." These are who I consider to be the young cowards of a decaying neighborhood, community, city, state, and nation...letting down their previous and current generation. Asked why don't you do some honest work, although making minimum wage while possibly going to school, to get a better hold on the future?...again a flippant "bullsh*t" response...such as "I can't roll like that." The truth is that they are mostly too inept in reading, writing, and doing simple math to land a minimum wage position. 

I then engage them with, wouldn't it be smarter to do a 4-year stretch in the military when coming out of school, than doing 2-5 in the penitentionary? One young fool said I did get a trade while I was in there. I responded, yeah, but you also have a record as a felon...do the math! He shot back!!  "But, it's not my goddamn war and besides, I could get killed"!!  My rebuttal, and you don't think the same thing could happen while dealing in the streets? His eyes glazed over, while saying, that's why I'm through with the streets. I looked him square in the eyes and simply said, I'm old enough to be your granddaddy so,  "Don't try to bullsh*t a former bullsh*tter." and with that, we parted company.

I had a personal, one-to-one conversation with my elder son some years back upon his graduating high school and this was during the beginning of the first Iraq conflict. I asked him about his plans for tomorrow and the day after? This was done by phone, for his mother and I were divorced, but we maintained communication as well as my authority as his father. After what was a father-son "bullsh*t session", I told him, before you lounge away your life on the block, I'd rather see you lose it in doing something noble in some branch of the military...you make the choice. You have not given me or yourself a more productive option. He joined the Air Force.

A few years later after his stint, we talked again, and as far as the "Air Force"...he said he hated it. Nevertheless, I could see a since of discipline in his character that he had yet to realize...he's now a father of two sons and I wonder what course of instruction he will provide his offspring in their father-son "bullsh*t session"...about life? 

Back to Basics

Virginia's Democratic Senator, Jim Webb, made known his outlook on Affirmative Action in a WSJ column. The issue didn't pick up a lot of discussion on the Sunday Morning television talk shows. It did receive some comments by some bloggers, with me as one. I supported the Senator's stand about affirmative action being much too liberal in getting from its original purpose. http://theroanoketribune.com/about_1.html 

The program was initiated to assist the descendants of slaves for civil and economic injustices for more than two hundred years of mandated servitude, that incorporated mandated illiteracy. Consequently, if you are not a proven descendant of a slave, then you don't qualify...period. 

I don't support reparations to black Americans in general, because this too is an overly liberal recompense for those that may not be deserving. However, the Affirmative Action program clearly set out to compensate these descendants. Unfortunately, the program got out of hand by extending this welfare to any and all minorities...excluding whites primarily. Thus, Mr. Webb's observation is fair and objective.

Mayor Doug Wilder of Richmond, VA takes exception to the proposal made by Senator Webb by stating, Mr. Webb was elected indirectly, resulting from affirmative action for minorities. That's quite a stretch in any Virginia voter's handbook...I would say. That's the same as saying Bob McDonnell got elected comparably...for I dare say his position on this issue would be as conservative, if not more so. Bob McDonnell was elected because minorities did not get out and support Democratic candidate Creigh Deeds...thanks to politicians such as Doug Wilder...so wear the shoe if it fits.

Affirmative action, again is or was for those that are proven descendants of slaves and simply being a minority by ethnicity, gender, religion, or otherwise doesn't cut  it. If those who may have received financial benefits resulting from affirmative action and were not proven descendants of American slaves, and went on to be "successful" as a result thereof, they should be required to reimburse the government for the accountable amount received.

Sherrod and Sanford Bishop...Legacies Crossing Paths

Ms Sherrod is of course the delicate little lady whose character and being were attacked by the right wing conspirators to their ultimate discredit. She just recently said she fully supports Sanford Bishop's bid to return as the Democratic Congressman representing the district of her town, Albany, GA. She has also said that the right wingers are attempting a similarly weirdo conspiracy against Mr. Bishop. Will these political right-wingers ever learn??

I am not a voter in Georgia, but I do have personal knowledge of Mr. Bishop from many years ago. Sanford and I were both Boy Scouts back in Mobile in the late fifties and the first time I met him was at Camp Leon Roberts in Citronelle, AL...he was a scout leader. I was but maybe 12 years old and he was in his teens, but even then the man possessed leadership skills that even young crazy kids among others there could see it, because they seem to give him "the respect" that kids today just wouldn't recognize. The reason the camp was called Camp Leon Roberts was because it was named after one of the famed Tuskegee Airmen from the Mobile area, Capt. Leon Roberts who lost his life in a crash. Also, I believe he was one of the Airmen that destroyed Hitler's rails in his (Hitler's) attempt to deliver heavy water for his nuclear program.

Anyway, being black, the Boy Scouts like everything else in the South was segregated and blacks and whites went to separate camps, thus Camp Leon Roberts. Other than mosquitoes and calamine lotion, I remember the milk from the machines being some of the coldest I had tasted...oh, and that big pot of stew after we came off a hike. However, a scout leader had to be good at most anything we had to attempt, be it hiking, swimming, canoeing, or any other skill...and Bishop was always good if not the best.

He is also the son of the well-known founder of the Community College in Mobile called Bishop State Community College, which meant his dad too had to be a leader. I, however, don't believe leaders are born but are made through merit, and strongly believe Sanford has earned that merit badge of leadership in his taking care of his Congressional District in Georgia. If you who are members of the right wing cadre or if you are black or any other minority and you don't vote...you idiots will prove that you are deserving of your fate.      

Rants from the right...

When listening to the talk show hucksters of "conservative radio," it goes something like this: They condemn the Obama Administration on every move, they castigate anyone outside of their belief system as haters of the nation, they use cartoonish names to caricaturize various officials (although, I'm no big fan of bureaucrats), and they claim to be the sole patriots of our future. All of sudden in the midst of their tirades, they'll break and try to sell you some gold...never, ever US bonds!! Where's the patriotism?

They resume with the schlock of why they are the best thing for America since air conditioning, then they break again for, as they admit, to an obscene profit break or otherwise a disc jockey's con, by hustling some back up system for your computer, when one with basic knowledge could do it at no charge.

Basically, these con-artists appeal to those of a low grade mentality..."T-Bags", Palin supporters...individuals that couldn't get beyond a high school degree as with the big three...Limbaugh, Hannity, and Beck. My assessment?  As long as these empty-headed suckers are willing to buy this crap...more power to these crap pushers that fill their heads. 

Roanoke's WFIR 960 AM moves to the rabid right?

WFIR is making the move to kick Neal Boortz to the curb or at least out of the 10-12 noon time slot to replace him with the rabid right winger Glenn Beck from 9AM-noon. I wonder if this is a smart move, or if this is the real temperament of Roanokers who will listen to Beck's social philosophy?

I know Boortz comes on with his Obama conspiracy theories in line with Limbaugh, Beck, and Hannity but never so far right as will be Beck. Nonetheless, Boortz, who really is a Jew in denial, unlike Mark Levin who has openly pronounced his Judaism, proceeded with a note of caution when coming to subjects of ethnicity, ethics, and economics.

Coincidentally, WFIR booted Michael Savage some time back for his damnable assessment of children's autism, which meant he tossed a brick that truly injured some listeners. Savage can't even find air time in England today. Will Beck trod the same path with some of his inflammatory comments? Evidently, WFIR is willing to take a chance. 

It's hard to imagine their having to air this raving lunatic just to beef up their ratings, but not an unheard of tactic to survive...is this the case for WFIR? It will be difficult to disassociate the comfort of television's "Hometown Station" WDBJ 7, who is under the umbrella, from the ravings of Glenn Beck, as probably "Hometown(same name) Bank" and potentially other sponsors of this sort of irresponsible radio.

I would vote for Dr. Edell who provides excellent healthcare information, or Dave Ramsey who provides great financial advice, and would leave the likes of Beck in the night time dungeons of other fire-breathing demons...where radio stations have sold their souls to simply boost the bottom line.               

Gun Buy Back Programs...A Real Paradox

I'm no constitutional scholar, just an everyday "common sense American Joe" but, let's look at this second amendment issue again. There is this annual gun show sponsored in the Roanoke Valley with the televised headlines...Protect Your Second Amendment Rights!! In other words it's a call out to the "general" public to come and buy all sorts of firearms from dealers who have no background checks, nor with the buyers having any sort of checks...an overall flea market of deadly weapon advocacy.

In other major metropolitan areas they offer gun "buy back" programs primarily in black communities to get the weapons off of the streets. So what if, there was advertising in urban based radio stations for blacks to go out in mass and buy guns at these flea market gun shows in staying with the NRA's second amendment advocacy? What kind of reaction would there be? Common sense tells me...it would be as all hell has broken loose. 

Paradoxically, what if the various police departments, instead of the limited "buy back" programs in the urban areas, simply went to the gun shows and purchased all the weapons from these unregistered sellers, with a reasonable discount of course, being I'm sure these second amendment "patriots" would agree, and resold them to registered law-abiding citizens for a reasonable profit? I would bet a "pair of docs" might conclude this as a remedy to this nationwide disease of gun lust... or simply jack-up the price of bullets as Chris Rock suggested. Now, that's real capitalism!!