A Social History of The American Negro
Author: Benjamin Brawley
1921
Excerpt:
Back on the shore a gray figure with strained gaze watched the ship fade away—an old woman sadly typical of the great African mother. With her vision she better than any one else perceived the meaning of it all. The men with hard faces who came to buy and sell might deceive others, but not her. In a great vague way she felt that something wrong had attacked the very heart of her people. She saw men wild with the whiskey of the Christian nations commit crimes undreamed of before. She did not like the coast towns; the girl who went thither came not home again, and a young man was lost to all that Africa held dear. In course of time she saw every native craft despised, and instead of the fabric that her own fingers wove--- her children yearned for the tinsel and the gewgaws of the trader. She cursed this man, and she called upon all her spirits to banish the evil. But when at last all was of no avail—when the strongest youth or the dearest maiden had gone—she went back to her hut and ate her heart out in the darkness. She wept for her children and would not be comforted because they were not
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
:) This is how I feel today
In the midst of it all LORD !
A little Mammie-Fired Up.... wouldn't you say !! ?? !!!
A little Mammie-Fired Up.... wouldn't you say !! ?? !!!
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
I found hope for today.....
If we do not believe it is possible to live in peace, it will not happen.
If we do not believe it is possible to heal our planet, it will not be healed.
If we do not believe it is possible to create a world of respect and kindness, it will not one day exist.
"It is better to believe than to disbelieve; in so doing you bring everything to the realm of possibility."
~ Albert Einstein
I was re-reading old file documents.... cleaning and rearranging my workplace computer..... it's theraputic (as in re-organizing my life!)
Check the link below....
http://goodnessgraciousness.blogspot.com/search/label/Mind%20Body%20Spirit
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Do you want to know what's buggin' me?
That monstros-city (fun spelling) of an Oil Spill in the Gulf... Day 37 of something... LA, GA, MS.... geeeeesssssh.... daily reading of the Wall Street Journal.....
There's a need in me... to be green..... just as much as I know myself to be black.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Long after the smoldering remains from the 1921 Tulsa Race Riot cooled, a veil of secrecy hung over the tragedy for generations.
The event was omitted from U.S. and Oklahoma history books, but the terror remained alive in the minds of those who lived through the torment.
“Events from the Tulsa Disaster” is a chronicle of the aftermath by Tulsa resident Mary E. Jones Parrish. Her first-hand account was published in 1923 and is filled with stories from witnesses and victims sharing their perspectives on these tragic events.
Parrish’s book was for many years out of print. Now — thanks to funding from Anne and Henry Zarrow Family Foundation, the Maxine and Jack Zarrow Foundation and the Oklahoma Humanities Council — the John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation has reprinted this historically important book. Copies were donated to Tulsa Community College, Tulsa Public Schools and the Tulsa City-County Library.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Anybody else this BAAAD DUDE is lookin just too cool... that is toooooo normal?
While the New York Police are still to reach any conclusion regarding the responsibility for the attempted incendiary attack in the Times Square of New York on the evening of May 1, 2010, tribal sources in Pakistan suspect that it was a joint attempt by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Islamic Jihad Union (IJU), also known as the Islamic Jihad Group.
a naturalized U.S. citizen who recently spent five months in Pakistan, was arrested on terrorism and weapons of mass destruction charges that allege he tried to blow up the crude gasoline-and-propane bomb amid tourists and theatergoers Saturday evening.
He was in custody after being hauled off a Dubai-bound plane at Kennedy Airport that he had been able to board Monday night despite being placed on the federal "no-fly" list.
NEW YORK - Seized from a plane about to fly to the Middle East, a Pakistan-born man admitted training to make bombs at a terrorism camp in his native land before he rigged an SUV with a homemade device to explode in Times Square
While the New York Police are still to reach any conclusion regarding the responsibility for the attempted incendiary attack in the Times Square of New York on the evening of May 1, 2010, tribal sources in Pakistan suspect that it was a joint attempt by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Islamic Jihad Union (IJU), also known as the Islamic Jihad Group.
a naturalized U.S. citizen who recently spent five months in Pakistan, was arrested on terrorism and weapons of mass destruction charges that allege he tried to blow up the crude gasoline-and-propane bomb amid tourists and theatergoers Saturday evening.
He was in custody after being hauled off a Dubai-bound plane at Kennedy Airport that he had been able to board Monday night despite being placed on the federal "no-fly" list.
NEW YORK - Seized from a plane about to fly to the Middle East, a Pakistan-born man admitted training to make bombs at a terrorism camp in his native land before he rigged an SUV with a homemade device to explode in Times Square
Hi world
Black women speaks again.... I'm having fun.
folks wanted to know what we knew about the chemical dispersants that BP has been spraying over the surface of the slick, and which they are now spraying directly onto the leaks at deep ocean depths. Here's the bad oil!
The chemical agents used as dispersants work by reducing the tension between oil and water, thereby enhancing the natural process of dispersion that takes place when waves mix large numbers of small oil droplets into the water beneath a spill. To be effective, however, they must be used in a hurry -- within 12 to 48 hours after a spill according to the committee that wrote the new report -- before fluctuations in water temperature change the oil's viscosity, possibly turning it into a semi-solid that cannot be dispersed.
Here's the Good Oil Dispersing.... ahhhhh
The important thing to remember about chemical dispersants is that they do not reduce the total amount of oil entering the environment. There is a perception that chemical dispersants are like an industrial soap that somehow cleans the water of oil, and that is fundamentally untrue.
Chemical dispersants change the chemical and physical properties of oil, essentially breaking up oil that is congealed at the surface, and sending oil droplets down into the water column. (By dispersing oil into deeper waters, away from human eyes, dispersants can also have the welcome public relations effect of making the spill appear smaller). The primary objective of chemical dispersants is to avoid sending oil slicks into the nearshore marine environment.
http://www.oilspillsolutions.org/dispersant.htm ck the link!
folks wanted to know what we knew about the chemical dispersants that BP has been spraying over the surface of the slick, and which they are now spraying directly onto the leaks at deep ocean depths. Here's the bad oil!
The chemical agents used as dispersants work by reducing the tension between oil and water, thereby enhancing the natural process of dispersion that takes place when waves mix large numbers of small oil droplets into the water beneath a spill. To be effective, however, they must be used in a hurry -- within 12 to 48 hours after a spill according to the committee that wrote the new report -- before fluctuations in water temperature change the oil's viscosity, possibly turning it into a semi-solid that cannot be dispersed.
Here's the Good Oil Dispersing.... ahhhhh
The important thing to remember about chemical dispersants is that they do not reduce the total amount of oil entering the environment. There is a perception that chemical dispersants are like an industrial soap that somehow cleans the water of oil, and that is fundamentally untrue.
Chemical dispersants change the chemical and physical properties of oil, essentially breaking up oil that is congealed at the surface, and sending oil droplets down into the water column. (By dispersing oil into deeper waters, away from human eyes, dispersants can also have the welcome public relations effect of making the spill appear smaller). The primary objective of chemical dispersants is to avoid sending oil slicks into the nearshore marine environment.
http://www.oilspillsolutions.org/dispersant.htm ck the link!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
I Just Cannot help but correlate and reflect on the Civil Rights Era
Our God Is Marching On! MLK SPEECH March 25, 1965. Montgomery, Ala.
My dear and abiding friends, Ralph Abernathy, and to all of the distinguished Americans seated here on the rostrum, my friends and co-workers of the state of Alabama, and to all of the freedom-loving people who have assembled here this afternoon from all over our nation and from all over the world: Last Sunday, more than eight thousand of us started on a mighty walk from Selma, Alabama. We have walked through desolate valleys and across the trying hills. We have walked on meandering highways and rested our bodies on rocky byways. Some of our faces are burned from the outpourings of the sweltering sun. Some have literally slept in the mud. We have been drenched by the rains. [Audience:] (Speak) Our bodies are tired and our feet are somewhat sore.
But today as I stand before you and think back over that great march, I can say, as Sister Pollard said—a seventy-year-old Negro woman who lived in this community during the bus boycott—and one day, she was asked while walking if she didn’t want to ride. And when she answered, "No," the person said, "Well, aren’t you tired?" And with her ungrammatical profundity, she said, "My feets is tired, but my soul is rested." (Yes, sir. All right) And in a real sense this afternoon, we can say that our feet are tired, (Yes, sir) but our souls are rested.
They told us we wouldn’t get here. And there were those who said that we would get here only over their dead bodies, (Well. Yes, sir. Talk) but all the world today knows that we are here and we are standing before the forces of power in the state of Alabama saying, "We ain’t goin’ let nobody turn us around." (Yes, sir. Speak) [Applause]
Now it is not an accident that one of the great marches of American history should terminate in Montgomery, Alabama. (Yes, sir) Just ten years ago, in this very city, a new philosophy was born of the Negro struggle. Montgomery was the first city in the South in which the entire Negro community united and squarely faced its age-old oppressors. (Yes, sir. Well) Out of this struggle, more than bus [de]segregation was won; a new idea, more powerful than guns or clubs was born. Negroes took it and carried it across the South in epic battles (Yes, sir. Speak) that electrified the nation (Well) and the world.
Yet, strangely, the climactic conflicts always were fought and won on Alabama soil. After Montgomery’s, heroic confrontations loomed up in Mississippi, Arkansas, Georgia, and elsewhere. But not until the colossus of segregation was challenged in Birmingham did the conscience of America begin to bleed. White America was profoundly aroused by Birmingham because it witnessed the whole community of Negroes facing terror and brutality with majestic scorn and heroic courage. And from the wells of this democratic spirit, the nation finally forced Congress (Well) to write legislation (Yes, sir) in the hope that it would eradicate the stain of Birmingham. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 gave Negroes some part of their rightful dignity, (Speak, sir) but without the vote it was dignity without strength. (Yes, sir)
Once more the method of nonviolent resistance (Yes) was unsheathed from its scabbard, and once again an entire community was mobilized to confront the adversary. (Yes, sir) And again the brutality of a dying order shrieks across the land. Yet, Selma, Alabama, became a shining moment in the conscience of man. If the worst in American life lurked in its dark streets, the best of American instincts arose passionately from across the nation to overcome it. (Yes, sir. Speak) There never was a moment in American history (Yes, sir) more honorable and more inspiring than the pilgrimage of clergymen and laymen of every race and faith pouring into Selma to face danger (Yes) at the side of its embattled Negroes.
The confrontation of good and evil compressed in the tiny community of Selma (Speak, speak) generated the massive power (Yes, sir. Yes, sir) to turn the whole nation to a new course. A president born in the South (Well) had the sensitivity to feel the will of the country, (Speak, sir) and in an address that will live in history as one of the most passionate pleas for human rights ever made by a president of our nation, he pledged the might of the federal government to cast off the centuries-old blight. President Johnson rightly praised the courage of the Negro for awakening the conscience of the nation. (Yes, sir)
On our part we must pay our profound respects to the white Americans who cherish their democratic traditions over the ugly customs and privileges of generations and come forth boldly to join hands with us. (Yes, sir) From Montgomery to Birmingham, (Yes, sir) from Birmingham to Selma, (Yes, sir) from Selma back to Montgomery, (Yes) a trail wound in a circle long and often bloody, yet it has become a highway up from darkness. (Yes, sir) Alabama has tried to nurture and defend evil, but evil is choking to death in the dusty roads and streets of this state. (Yes, sir. Speak, sir)
So I stand before you this afternoon (Speak, sir. Well) with the conviction that segregation is on its deathbed in Alabama, and the only thing uncertain about it is how costly the segregationists and Wallace will make the funeral. (Go ahead. Yes, sir) [Applause]
My dear and abiding friends, Ralph Abernathy, and to all of the distinguished Americans seated here on the rostrum, my friends and co-workers of the state of Alabama, and to all of the freedom-loving people who have assembled here this afternoon from all over our nation and from all over the world: Last Sunday, more than eight thousand of us started on a mighty walk from Selma, Alabama. We have walked through desolate valleys and across the trying hills. We have walked on meandering highways and rested our bodies on rocky byways. Some of our faces are burned from the outpourings of the sweltering sun. Some have literally slept in the mud. We have been drenched by the rains. [Audience:] (Speak) Our bodies are tired and our feet are somewhat sore.
But today as I stand before you and think back over that great march, I can say, as Sister Pollard said—a seventy-year-old Negro woman who lived in this community during the bus boycott—and one day, she was asked while walking if she didn’t want to ride. And when she answered, "No," the person said, "Well, aren’t you tired?" And with her ungrammatical profundity, she said, "My feets is tired, but my soul is rested." (Yes, sir. All right) And in a real sense this afternoon, we can say that our feet are tired, (Yes, sir) but our souls are rested.
They told us we wouldn’t get here. And there were those who said that we would get here only over their dead bodies, (Well. Yes, sir. Talk) but all the world today knows that we are here and we are standing before the forces of power in the state of Alabama saying, "We ain’t goin’ let nobody turn us around." (Yes, sir. Speak) [Applause]
Now it is not an accident that one of the great marches of American history should terminate in Montgomery, Alabama. (Yes, sir) Just ten years ago, in this very city, a new philosophy was born of the Negro struggle. Montgomery was the first city in the South in which the entire Negro community united and squarely faced its age-old oppressors. (Yes, sir. Well) Out of this struggle, more than bus [de]segregation was won; a new idea, more powerful than guns or clubs was born. Negroes took it and carried it across the South in epic battles (Yes, sir. Speak) that electrified the nation (Well) and the world.
Once more the method of nonviolent resistance (Yes) was unsheathed from its scabbard, and once again an entire community was mobilized to confront the adversary. (Yes, sir) And again the brutality of a dying order shrieks across the land. Yet, Selma, Alabama, became a shining moment in the conscience of man. If the worst in American life lurked in its dark streets, the best of American instincts arose passionately from across the nation to overcome it. (Yes, sir. Speak) There never was a moment in American history (Yes, sir) more honorable and more inspiring than the pilgrimage of clergymen and laymen of every race and faith pouring into Selma to face danger (Yes) at the side of its embattled Negroes.
On our part we must pay our profound respects to the white Americans who cherish their democratic traditions over the ugly customs and privileges of generations and come forth boldly to join hands with us. (Yes, sir) From Montgomery to Birmingham, (Yes, sir) from Birmingham to Selma, (Yes, sir) from Selma back to Montgomery, (Yes) a trail wound in a circle long and often bloody, yet it has become a highway up from darkness. (Yes, sir) Alabama has tried to nurture and defend evil, but evil is choking to death in the dusty roads and streets of this state. (Yes, sir. Speak, sir)
So I stand before you this afternoon (Speak, sir. Well) with the conviction that segregation is on its deathbed in Alabama, and the only thing uncertain about it is how costly the segregationists and Wallace will make the funeral. (Go ahead. Yes, sir) [Applause]
Health Insurance Reform becomes law in the United States of America
Let us march on ballot boxes (Let us march)
until we send to our city councils (Yes, sir),
state legislatures, (Yes, sir)
and the United States Congress, (Yes, sir)
men who will not fear to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with thy God.
Let us march on ballot boxes (Let us march. March)
until brotherhood becomes more than a meaningless word in an opening prayer, but the order of the day on every legislative agenda. (Martin Luther King - "Our God Is Marching On!" March 25, 1965. Montgomery, Ala.
Washington (CNN) -- President Obama on Tuesday (March 23, 2010) signed into law a sweeping health care reform bill, the nation's most substantial social legislation in four decades, achieving a top priority of his administration.
Greeted by applause from enthusiastic supporters, he said, "Today after almost a century of trying; today, after over a year of debate; today, after all the votes have been tallied, health insurance reform becomes law in the United States of America."
"We are not a nation that scales back its aspirations," the president said. "We are not a nation that falls prey to doubt or mistrust. We don't fall prey to fear. We are not a nation that does what's easy. It's not who we are. It's not how we got here. We are a nation that faces its challenges and accepts its responsibilities."
Before the signing, Vice President Joe Biden, praising Obama's leadership in forging the legislation, said, "Mr. President, you've done what generations of not just ordinary, but great men and women have attempted to do. ... You delivered on a promise, a promise you made to all Americans when we moved into this building," the White House.
until we send to our city councils (Yes, sir),
state legislatures, (Yes, sir)
and the United States Congress, (Yes, sir)
men who will not fear to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with thy God.
Let us march on ballot boxes (Let us march. March)
until brotherhood becomes more than a meaningless word in an opening prayer, but the order of the day on every legislative agenda. (Martin Luther King - "Our God Is Marching On!" March 25, 1965. Montgomery, Ala.
Washington (CNN) -- President Obama on Tuesday (March 23, 2010) signed into law a sweeping health care reform bill, the nation's most substantial social legislation in four decades, achieving a top priority of his administration.
Greeted by applause from enthusiastic supporters, he said, "Today after almost a century of trying; today, after over a year of debate; today, after all the votes have been tallied, health insurance reform becomes law in the United States of America."
"We are not a nation that scales back its aspirations," the president said. "We are not a nation that falls prey to doubt or mistrust. We don't fall prey to fear. We are not a nation that does what's easy. It's not who we are. It's not how we got here. We are a nation that faces its challenges and accepts its responsibilities."
The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice
James Russell Lowell is right. "Truth forever on the scaffold, Wrong forever on the throne; Yet that scaffold sways the future, And behind the dim unknown, Standeth God within the shadow, Keeping watch above His own."
How long sir.... not long.....
Why ? ? ? Because ..........The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice
How long sir.... not long.....
MLK his "Letter from Birmingham Jail":
While confined here in the Birmingham City Jail, I came across your recent statement calling our present activities "unwise and untimely" . . . . Frankly I have never yet engaged in a direct action movement that was "well timed," according to the timetable of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word "Wait!" It rings in the ear of every Negro with a piercing familiarity. This "wait" has almost always meant "never."
Monday, March 22, 2010
OBAMACARE
U.S. President Barack Obama is flanked by Vice President Joe Biden (L) as he makes a statement about the House of Representatives' final passage of health care legislation, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, March 21, 2010. Obama on Sunday hailed the House of Representatives vote for his sweeping healthcare plan as a victory for the American people that answered the call of history.
He called the vote "another stone firmly laid in the foundation of the American dream" and said it would help people who lack insurance get access to coverage but would also help those who already have insurance.
"If you have health insurance this reform just gave you more control by reining the worst excesses and abuses of the insurance industry with some of the toughest consumer protections this country has ever known so that you are actually getting what you pay for," he said.
U.S. President Barack Obama is flanked by Vice President Joe Biden (L) as he makes a statement about the House of Representatives' final passage of health care legislation, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, March 21, 2010. Obama on Sunday hailed the House of Representatives vote for his sweeping healthcare plan as a victory for the American people that answered the call of history.
Today's vote answers the prayers of every American who has hoped deeply for something to be done about a healthcare system that works for insurance companies but not for ordinary people," Obama told reporters in the White House East Room.
He called the vote "another stone firmly laid in the foundation of the American dream" and said it would help people who lack insurance get access to coverage but would also help those who already have insurance.
"If you have health insurance this reform just gave you more control by reining the worst excesses and abuses of the insurance industry with some of the toughest consumer protections this country has ever known so that you are actually getting what you pay for," he said.
History being made again.... OBAMA STYLE....
Mar 22, 2010
The Washington Post: "House Democrats scored a historic victory in the century-long battle to reform the nation's health-care system late Sunday night. ... House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her colleagues erupted in cheers and hugs as the votes were counted, while Republicans who had fought the Democratic efforts on health-care reform for more than a year appeared despondent. ... The debate has consumed Obama's first year in office, ... inflamed the partisanship that Obama pledged to tame when he campaigned for the White House and has limited Congress's ability to pass any other major legislation, at least until after the midterm elections in November. And it has sparked a citizens' revolt that reached the doors of the Capitol this weekend" (Murray and Montgomery, 3/22).
The New York Times: "With the 219-to-212 vote, the House gave final approval to legislation passed by the Senate on Christmas Eve. Thirty-four Democrats joined Republicans in voting against the bill." Following that vote, the House then "adopted a package of changes to [the Senate-passed measure] by a vote of 220 to 211. That package — agreed to in negotiations among House and Senate Democrats and the White House — now goes to the Senate for action as soon as this week" (Pear and Herszenhorn, 3/21).
The Los Angeles Times: "On the House floor, Democrats erupted into cheers of 'Yes, we can!' at 10:45 p.m. Eastern time as the decisive 216th 'yes' vote was recorded, capping a tortuous campaign that several senior lawmakers linked to the historic battle for civil rights two generations earlier. 'This is the Civil Rights Act of the 21st century,' said Democratic Rep. James E. Clyburn of South Carolina, the top-ranking black member of the House." Meanwhile, "Angry protesters swarmed over the Capitol lawn throughout the day, cheering sympathetic Republicans who urged them on from the House balcony. They called for lawmakers to 'kill the bill' and warned of dire political consequences for Democrats who voted for the legislation. ... But after a final flurry of negotiating defused an intraparty dispute over abortion and locked down the last votes, Democratic lawmakers ... were celebrating the payoff of a monumental gamble" (Levey and Hook, 3/22).
USA Today has an interactive map of how each member voted. "Republicans who voted unanimously against the health care overhaul, along with 34 Democrats, predicted it would come back to bite Democrats at the polls — and in the form of repeal efforts as soon as next year" (Wolfe and Fritze, 3/22).
The Wall Street Journal: "It was a tumultuous sprint to the finish for legislation that has brought Washington many dramas over the last year, ranging from a Christmas Eve Senate vote to the surprise January election of Massachusetts Republican Sen. Scott Brown that upended Democrats' plans." The big changes sparked reaction from various groups, with opposition coming from the business community and insurers bracing to bear the heaviest regulations. "Hospitals, doctors, drug makers and the seniors group AARP backed the overhaul, saying it will reduce the growth of health costs and make sure no one goes without care" (Adamy and Hitt, 3/22).
The Christian Science Monitor: "The vote is being touted as the single most significant piece of domestic legislation to be passed by Congress since Medicare in 1965. Though Democrats and Republicans disagreed on whether it was for good or ill, most acknowledged that it was a historic day in American politics" (Sappenfield, 3/22
The Washington Post: "House Democrats scored a historic victory in the century-long battle to reform the nation's health-care system late Sunday night. ... House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her colleagues erupted in cheers and hugs as the votes were counted, while Republicans who had fought the Democratic efforts on health-care reform for more than a year appeared despondent. ... The debate has consumed Obama's first year in office, ... inflamed the partisanship that Obama pledged to tame when he campaigned for the White House and has limited Congress's ability to pass any other major legislation, at least until after the midterm elections in November. And it has sparked a citizens' revolt that reached the doors of the Capitol this weekend" (Murray and Montgomery, 3/22).
The New York Times: "With the 219-to-212 vote, the House gave final approval to legislation passed by the Senate on Christmas Eve. Thirty-four Democrats joined Republicans in voting against the bill." Following that vote, the House then "adopted a package of changes to [the Senate-passed measure] by a vote of 220 to 211. That package — agreed to in negotiations among House and Senate Democrats and the White House — now goes to the Senate for action as soon as this week" (Pear and Herszenhorn, 3/21).
The Los Angeles Times: "On the House floor, Democrats erupted into cheers of 'Yes, we can!' at 10:45 p.m. Eastern time as the decisive 216th 'yes' vote was recorded, capping a tortuous campaign that several senior lawmakers linked to the historic battle for civil rights two generations earlier. 'This is the Civil Rights Act of the 21st century,' said Democratic Rep. James E. Clyburn of South Carolina, the top-ranking black member of the House." Meanwhile, "Angry protesters swarmed over the Capitol lawn throughout the day, cheering sympathetic Republicans who urged them on from the House balcony. They called for lawmakers to 'kill the bill' and warned of dire political consequences for Democrats who voted for the legislation. ... But after a final flurry of negotiating defused an intraparty dispute over abortion and locked down the last votes, Democratic lawmakers ... were celebrating the payoff of a monumental gamble" (Levey and Hook, 3/22).
USA Today has an interactive map of how each member voted. "Republicans who voted unanimously against the health care overhaul, along with 34 Democrats, predicted it would come back to bite Democrats at the polls — and in the form of repeal efforts as soon as next year" (Wolfe and Fritze, 3/22).
The Wall Street Journal: "It was a tumultuous sprint to the finish for legislation that has brought Washington many dramas over the last year, ranging from a Christmas Eve Senate vote to the surprise January election of Massachusetts Republican Sen. Scott Brown that upended Democrats' plans." The big changes sparked reaction from various groups, with opposition coming from the business community and insurers bracing to bear the heaviest regulations. "Hospitals, doctors, drug makers and the seniors group AARP backed the overhaul, saying it will reduce the growth of health costs and make sure no one goes without care" (Adamy and Hitt, 3/22).
The Christian Science Monitor: "The vote is being touted as the single most significant piece of domestic legislation to be passed by Congress since Medicare in 1965. Though Democrats and Republicans disagreed on whether it was for good or ill, most acknowledged that it was a historic day in American politics" (Sappenfield, 3/22
Thursday, March 18, 2010
I said it yesterday.... Tiger Woo,woo,woo !
Posted it on facebook...... the World was silent except for my brother who cheered him on to victory!
POST: my child is back. :) April 8 '10 is the Masters favorite with 4green jackets - Tiger Woo woo woo (Nuff said...!!! :)
At first, President Obama seemed taken aback by the question -- and understandably so, since he has some many other problems to worry about (such as health care) that the actions of a golfer don't seem so important. However, he did eventually give his thoughts: Tiger has acknowledged his faults to all of America, and anything else in his personal life is between him and Elin Nordegren to figure out. Nevertheless, he believes that Tiger will still be a "terrific golfer."
The Tiger Woods scandal has taken the TV world by storm, and many people expect his return to the Masters to be the highest-rated golf broadcast in the history of the sport. Since the event is heavily protected, it is unlikely that Tiger will be pushed into talking much about his personal life
POST: my child is back. :) April 8 '10 is the Masters favorite with 4green jackets - Tiger Woo woo woo (Nuff said...!!! :)
Controversial golf star Tiger Woods still has one supporter -- at least of his abilities as a golfer. In a brief interview on Fox News, President Barack Obama was asked about his thoughts on Tiger's return to the Masters next month.
At first, President Obama seemed taken aback by the question -- and understandably so, since he has some many other problems to worry about (such as health care) that the actions of a golfer don't seem so important. However, he did eventually give his thoughts: Tiger has acknowledged his faults to all of America, and anything else in his personal life is between him and Elin Nordegren to figure out. Nevertheless, he believes that Tiger will still be a "terrific golfer."
The Tiger Woods scandal has taken the TV world by storm, and many people expect his return to the Masters to be the highest-rated golf broadcast in the history of the sport. Since the event is heavily protected, it is unlikely that Tiger will be pushed into talking much about his personal life
Monday, March 15, 2010
In his autobiography, Destined to Witness: Growing Up Black in Nazi Germany, Hans J. Massaquoi gives us a detailed, first-hand account of growing up amidst daunting adversity.
Massaquoi was born in 1926 in Hamburg, Germany to a German nurse and an African diplomat’s son. He grew up an ordinary German boy, speaking Platt (Low German), wearing knickers, and, apart from the occasional taunt or curious stare, engaging in the same daily routines as his friends and schoolmates. He felt privileged to grow up in Germany, especially in Hamburg, “blessed with the most beautiful, the most exciting, and the most desirable hometown on the face of the earth.”
At first, Hitler’s arrival on Germany’s political scene was an exciting experience for the little boy everyone called Hans-Juergen. He admired the polished ranks of the SA and envied his friends who joined the Hitler Youth movement. In school, he and the other children were taught to revere the “Fuehrer.” Hans-Juergen was so enthralled that he asked his Tante (Aunt) Moeller to sew a swastika on his knit sweater.
Gradually, things turned for the worse. Massaquoi recounts how a sign suddenly barred him, an Afro-German child, from entering the playground. He was shocked and surprised to learn that one of his friends, Klaus, was Jewish and that he had to avoid any contact with him. (Klaus and his family committed suicide during the Kristallnacht riots of 1938.) His mother lost her job; Rassenschande was the reason. In school, Hans-Juergen routinely endured snide remarks and a barrage of the derogatory words, including Neger (Negro) and Mischling (mixed breed). As a “non-Aryan” Hans-Juergen was also barred from continuing high school and had to opt for vocational school instead.
This “all-out psychological warfare” took its toll. He started to loathe his African hair and blamed himself for his appearance. Still, he persevered, aided by the unfailing guidance and optimism of his mother and the support of a few friends and teachers. Reading became his survival tool, Joe Louis and Jesse Owens his new heroes. He attended dance school and came to represent the antithesis of a Hitler Youth -- a so-called “swingboy.” Due to his racial background, he was deemed unfit for military service, and Massaquoi and his mother were evacuated from Hamburg to the countryside after surviving some two hundred air attacks. There, Massaquoi witnessed prisoner convoys passing through the village on the way to the concentration camp Dora-Mittelbau.
His survival is a story of surprising contradictions: the NSDAP member who rescued him from an assault by Hitler Youths; the colleague who first criticized the Nazis and then accused Massaquoi of high treason. Growing up, he never knew who was friend or foe, and he survived day-to-day. Finally, in 1948 he left Germany for Liberia and later immigrated to the United States. Today, he lives in New Orleans, a retired managing editor of Ebony magazine.
Destined to Witness: Growing Up Black in Nazi Germany includes a prologue by the author and numerous photographs.
628 pages,37 b&w illustrations, ISBN: 0-688-17155-9, Call no: DD78 .B55 M38 1999
Massaquoi was born in 1926 in Hamburg, Germany to a German nurse and an African diplomat’s son. He grew up an ordinary German boy, speaking Platt (Low German), wearing knickers, and, apart from the occasional taunt or curious stare, engaging in the same daily routines as his friends and schoolmates. He felt privileged to grow up in Germany, especially in Hamburg, “blessed with the most beautiful, the most exciting, and the most desirable hometown on the face of the earth.”
At first, Hitler’s arrival on Germany’s political scene was an exciting experience for the little boy everyone called Hans-Juergen. He admired the polished ranks of the SA and envied his friends who joined the Hitler Youth movement. In school, he and the other children were taught to revere the “Fuehrer.” Hans-Juergen was so enthralled that he asked his Tante (Aunt) Moeller to sew a swastika on his knit sweater.
Gradually, things turned for the worse. Massaquoi recounts how a sign suddenly barred him, an Afro-German child, from entering the playground. He was shocked and surprised to learn that one of his friends, Klaus, was Jewish and that he had to avoid any contact with him. (Klaus and his family committed suicide during the Kristallnacht riots of 1938.) His mother lost her job; Rassenschande was the reason. In school, Hans-Juergen routinely endured snide remarks and a barrage of the derogatory words, including Neger (Negro) and Mischling (mixed breed). As a “non-Aryan” Hans-Juergen was also barred from continuing high school and had to opt for vocational school instead.
This “all-out psychological warfare” took its toll. He started to loathe his African hair and blamed himself for his appearance. Still, he persevered, aided by the unfailing guidance and optimism of his mother and the support of a few friends and teachers. Reading became his survival tool, Joe Louis and Jesse Owens his new heroes. He attended dance school and came to represent the antithesis of a Hitler Youth -- a so-called “swingboy.” Due to his racial background, he was deemed unfit for military service, and Massaquoi and his mother were evacuated from Hamburg to the countryside after surviving some two hundred air attacks. There, Massaquoi witnessed prisoner convoys passing through the village on the way to the concentration camp Dora-Mittelbau.
His survival is a story of surprising contradictions: the NSDAP member who rescued him from an assault by Hitler Youths; the colleague who first criticized the Nazis and then accused Massaquoi of high treason. Growing up, he never knew who was friend or foe, and he survived day-to-day. Finally, in 1948 he left Germany for Liberia and later immigrated to the United States. Today, he lives in New Orleans, a retired managing editor of Ebony magazine.
Destined to Witness: Growing Up Black in Nazi Germany includes a prologue by the author and numerous photographs.
628 pages,37 b&w illustrations, ISBN: 0-688-17155-9, Call no: DD78 .B55 M38 1999
From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany’s government led by Adolf Hitler promoted a nationalism that combined territorial expansion with claims of biological superiority—an “Aryan master race”—and virulent antisemitism. Driven by a racist ideology legitimized by German scientists, the Nazis attempted to eliminate all of Europe’s Jews, ultimately killing six million in the Holocaust. Many others also became victims of persecution and murder in the Nazis’ campaign to cleanse German society of individuals viewed as threats to the “health” of the nation
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