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As quiet as it's been kept, I produce the nation's most comprehensive bestsellers list featuring books written by Black people, The BLK Bestsellers: https://blkbestsellers.com/ Frankly, nothing has ever come close to a list like this. In a media landscape not dominated by a handful of white male billionaires, this would already be a big deal... but I digress. Using sales data provided by Circana BookScan, the goal of the BLK list is to highlight books written by Black people that are selling well but are not getting the attention they deserve. Only a handful of the BLK Bestsellers ever make the NY Times or USA Today lists; the BLK Bestsellers list helps to improve the discoverability of books by Black writers. My challenge is identifying the books written by Black authors to rank. There are no metadata fields I can query because no one really tracks an author's ethnicity (or so-called race). One of the things I've noticed, especially in the children's book space, is that the bestselling books featuring Black children are often not written by Black writers. IMHO, there is nothing inherently wrong with white writers writing about Black people, but in practice these writers often enjoy structural benefits that Black writers do not and it's just another way Black stories by Black people are suppressed. While working on this month's BLK List the #23 ranked book (image below) turned out to be My First Juneteenth Book for Toddlers by Ambsachi Nila. I was not familiar with the author which surprised me because I know the top selling children's book authors. The book was identified based upon the book's subject (Juneteenth) and its relatively high sales. So, I do what I normally do and researched the author, while authors included on the BLK Bestsellers list must be Black, I would certainly consider them for inclusion on AALBC.com. A web search for Ambsachi Nila revealed nothing about the author who is presumably also the illustrator of the book. It is not unusual for an author to hide their identity, but this is not typical for a children's book author, because classroom visits are an important source of income for many children's book authors. Ambsachi Nila didn't even have a website. So, I resorted to AI to see what I could learn about this writer/illustrator. At this point I'm still operating on the assumption that Ambsachi Nila is human. Gemini reached the same conclusion I was beginning to suspect, stating that "the books published under the name Ambsachi Nila were likely generated by AI or assembled using rapid automated content-generation tools." It also identified several additional warning signs I had overlooked (see its full response at the end of this message). Even without AI, I was definitely not going to add the book to AALBC or the BLK List, but the fact that it sold so many copies during Juneteenth, for lack of a better word, is fu*ked up--seriously. One of the top-selling books about Juneteenth was a subpar book likely created by a rapid automated content-generation tool. Hundreds of people were duped into buying this book. This is what happens when tech billionaires control book discoverability and sales. As with everything else, we (Black people) suffer the most. I maintain lists of quality Juneteenth books for kids (nonfiction and fiction). When it comes to Black culture, trust lists curated by Black people who have your best interests in mind—not algorithms designed to maximize revenue. Other, "AL slop" titles by the same "author," Ambsachi Nila: Gemini Confirmed My Suspicions: It is highly likely—somewhere in the 90% to 95% range—that the books published under the name Ambsachi Nila are completely generated by AI or assembled using rapid automated content-generation tools. When you look closely at the data trail left by these books on retail platforms, they display all the classic "smoking guns" of the synthetic book-packaging mills that have flooded Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) over the last couple of years. The Evidence Breakdown 1. Grammatical "Hiccups" in the Core Text AI text generators and non-native automated scrapers often stumble over fine syntax and pluralization rules. If you look closely at the official publisher's synopsis uploaded to book databases for the Kwanzaa Book for Toddlers, the text contains glaring grammatical errors and typos: "Kwanzaa Book for Toddlers was especially designed for young kids and write in easy-to-follow language..." "This educational book explain the seven principles..." "...full of colorful, bright and eye-catching ilustrations..." (spelled with a single 'l') A genuine children's book author or an established publishing house employs editors to catch these fundamental errors before pushing a book live to global distribution networks. Automated book-generation setups skip this step entirely. 2. Extreme Keyword Stuffing Human authors title their books for artistic resonance or clear branding. AI-driven operations title their books strictly to trick search algorithms. The full title registered in global databases reads: "Kwanzaa Book For Toddlers About Culture and Principles of Kwanzaa Holiday to Learn and Celebrate for Kids - Kwanzaa Books for Kids" This is not a title; it is a search string designed to capture click traffic from parents typing generic holiday terms into search bars. 3. The 36-Page KDP "Template" Layout The book's physical dimensions are listed as exactly $8.5 \times 8.5\text{ inches}$ with a page count of precisely 36 pages. This is the absolute standard automated template footprint used for print-on-demand children's books generated via Amazon KDP. A script or a prompt tells Midjourney or ChatGPT to produce roughly 15 consecutive square image blocks and matching simple sentences, which are then poured into an automated formatting tool and uploaded in a matter of minutes. Anatomy of a "Book Mill" Since the explosion of generative AI models, a massive global side-hustle industry has emerged. Operators use tools to: Generate simple rhyming text or basic holiday overviews using LLMs. Generate matching stock vector images or clip art using diffusion models. Publish the books under a completely fabricated, ethnically ambiguous pseudonym (like "Ambsachi Nila") to appear authoritative to unsuspecting buyers. The Bottom Line These types of books are commercial entities generated to mine search data for passive revenue. Because they lack a real author, they also lack any real cultural depth, nuance, or authentic lived experience. This trend highlights exactly why curated networks like AALBC are so important. In a sea of algorithmic noise and synthetic content, finding and vetting real, human Black authors who pour their actual souls and heritages into their books is the only way to protect authentic literary culture.

It's ABOUT TIME somebody posted something I can sink my teeth into, lol. I was getting kinda bored for a minute. I log on to AALBC on a smooth Saturday morning looking for about 5 or 6 threads I can chop it up in and see the only one who has been posting since yesterday is ME. Usually ProfD has dropped SOMETHING profound by the time I log on, now HE comes up absent.....lol. Sheeeyit....... I don't even know WHAT Mel said yet and already gave her ass a trophy just for posting something I can respond too....lol.

My other "Twin" HeyGen AI-ed this one of our Flexx promotional photos taken in the 90s. She updated us I'm on the right. 😄

Well enjoy your vacation @Pioneer1

Facts. For a number of reasons, it's better keeping one's cards closer to the vest. People make a huge mistake trying to impress others by spilling their bizness. Then, wonder why they got robbed in one way or another.🤣😎

I've learned that one of the better moves to make when first meeting others is to DOWN PLAY one's qualities. If people see you at what they believe to be your worst and still want to be with you, then you know the relationship can only get better as you reveal more of your true self.

An abridged digest of this famous speech. ### What to the Slave is the Fourth of July? by Frederick Douglass Delivered at Corinthian Hall, Rochester, New York, on July 5, 1852. Mr. President, Friends and Fellow Citizens: He who could address this audience without a quailing sensation, has stronger nerves than I have. I do not remember ever to have appeared as a speaker before any assembly more shrinkingly, nor with greater distrust of my ability, than I do this day. A feeling has crept over me, quite unfavorable to the exercise of my limited powers of speech. The task before me is one which requires much previous thought and study for its proper performance. I know that apologies of this sort are generally considered flat and unmeaning. I trust, however, that mine will not be so considered. Should I seem at ease, my appearance would much misrepresent me. The little experience I have had in addressing public meetings, in country schoolhouses, avails me nothing on the present occasion. The papers and placards say, that I am to deliver a Fourth-of-July oration. This certainly sounds large, and out of the common way, for it is true that I have often had the privilege to speak in this beautiful Hall, and to address many who now honor me with their presence. But neither their familiar faces, nor the perfect Gage of the Hall, can free me from embarrassment. The fact is, ladies and gentlemen, the distance between this platform and the slave plantation, from which I escaped, is considerable—and the difficulties to be overcome in getting from the latter to the former, are by no means slight. That I am here today is, to me, a matter of astonishment as well as of gratitude. This, for the purpose of this celebration, is the Fourth of July. It is the birthday of your National Independence, and of your political freedom. This, to you, is what the Passover was to the emancipated people of God. It carries your minds back to the day, and to the act of your great deliverance; and to the signs, and to the wonders, associated with that act, and that day. This celebration also marks the beginning of another year of your national life; and reminds you that the Republic of America is now seventy-six years old. I am glad, fellow-citizens, that your nation is so young. Seventy-six years, though a good old age for a man, is but a mere speck in the life of a nation. Three score years and ten is the allotted time for individual men; but nations number their years by thousands. According to this fact, you are, even now, only in the beginning of your national career, still lingering in the period of childhood. I repeat, I am glad this is so. There is hope in the thought, and hope is much needed, under the dark clouds which lower above the horizon. ... Fellow-citizens, pardon me, allow me to ask, why am I called upon to speak here today? What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us? What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, brass fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are, to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy—a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices, more shocking and bloody, than are the people of these United States, at this very moment... Can hardly wait for the fireworks tonight.

@Pioneer1 and I had a meeting of the minds about Black Gen X, and I'll add Black Gen Jones men (born between 1955-1965): either avoiding marriage or staying married once they say, "I do." Now, we've agreed on a lot of the points made in this video presented on YouTube. But here's where we diverge in our perspectives. (see the topic "Search Engines and Aggregation Websites LOVE AALB to read the rest of the exchange) From my experience, Black people have different mating rituals than those who established Western civilization. When Black families come together, from birth to death, it is often a proverbial Thanksgiving, cook-out, brunch, or some type of eatfest. That is usually how you know two people are about to unite—case in point, my response to Pioneer's observation. When I met my firstborn's father in college, it was at his insistence that I come to his house for dinner. It wasn't our first encounter, but by the time he was really interested, I knew he was bringing a brontosaurus steak to win me over. On the flipside, I've gotten proposals from my cooking. In fact, one suitor ate all my homemade almond-flour cookies after he said he didn't want any. Black men will PROPOSE something if you cook for them!!! 😆 That's our courting ritual. As I said, Black men will also cook for Black women, and if they can't cook, they will take their date to some linen-cloth table restaurant with waiters ready to wait on the table. And creepy as this sounds, they will do this for the woman they want on the side too, so she knows he wants to keep her too. Also, I've learned that if a Black man wants to take you to his family reunion, you'd better get off your booty and go! He is really serious about that woman. On the same token, if a Black woman wants a Black man to meet her sister-girls, that is a huge hint! Those are our courting rituals. So, stop watching Hallmark movies to get a clue and watch us, what we do naturally, and then see what comes next and how quick we connect. Ok, so, that's what happens in my Black tribe. Has anyone observed something different in their tribe?

Black family ends UNC Wilmington scholarship rather than remove support for Black students According to WHQR, the Upperman family has decided to stop awarding new scholarships at UNCW. University officials said scholarship language referencing African American students would need to be revised to comply with the UNC System’s updated equality policy. Linda Upperman Smith, daughter of the late physician Dr. Leroy Upperman, said removing references connected to her father’s vision would contradict the purpose of the family’s philanthropy. “There’s no way that we’re going to not follow my father’s wishes for the money to go to an African American student, so we’re not changing the wording,” Upperman Smith told WHQR. Black family ends UNC Wilmington scholarship rather than remove support for Black students 👏🏾 👏🏾 👏🏾

I guess so...... With names like that, they had to LEARN how to fight.....lol.

What a dog and pony show........lol.

Or go the more direct "Frank Lucas" route....lol. Find promising Black students in highschool who's dream is to go to college but are having financial hardships, and grant THEM the money directly. Not all at once for them to waste it or get robbed of it; but piece-meal as they go through their courses.

To me the evidence is overwhelming..... My interest in this topic goes back the early 80's Not really..... I have vague memories....

Bro, I've been an old man all my life. I was born old.🤣😎

You'd be surprised at the many different Creative ways Black people...both FBA and African...have when it comes to fighting with eachother. Willie Lynch could sit back and TAKE NOTES and revise his letter, with some of the shit some of these niggaz do to eachother. Talk about Black folks killing eachother over religion or tribal affiliation.....imagine them fighting over a red rag or blue bandana. Black folks beefing over which coast they hail from....Pacific or Atlantic. Negroes in Somalia fighting over how hard or how soft and curly one's hair is. In Rwanda if you're Tutsi with a long narrow nose....you're running around calling yourself a "caucasian" and thinking your better than your Hutu brother. I went into this Soul Food joint a couple days ago to get some food. ....one of the few days it's actually open! After a brief conversation about the staff...who are her co-workers.....this dark skinned sista with a ring in her nose go lean in closer to me darting her eyes around and say, "I'm not like these other niggaz around here. See, my family.....we (something she called herself but I forgot). We related to the Gypsies. See, look at my nose. We is different, see. That's why I can't relate to these other ho'z around here. Hee hee......." Sista looked just like India Arie, talking about SHE ain't like other Black folks. ((shakes head))

I agree with this. Looking back, a lot of the predictions from 2022 didn't really play out the way people expected. Instead of one company pulling far ahead, we've ended up with three very different approaches to gaming. Microsoft has leaned heavily into services and expanding beyond the console itself, Sony continues to focus on high-quality exclusives, and Nintendo is still proving that great games matter more than having the most powerful hardware. I also think players are much less tied to a single platform than they were a few years ago. Cross-play, PC releases, cloud gaming, and subscription services have changed how a lot of people decide what and where to play. It'll be interesting to see how things look again in another three or four years.

What does it profit a man to gain the world & lose his soul.🤣 Many people have a price at which they can be bought. It's usually less than thousands or millions of dollars.😁😎

OK Maybe I'm the only one who did not know this (a publicist told me over the course of a conversation). Here's how Ashley Allison is reimagining it @Pioneer1 put you tongue back in your mouth. I hope she gets rid of those crazy ads on the website--it is painful to visit the site with them the type, numbers, and the intrusiveness of them.

"fornicative"....lol. My first time coming across that one!

@Pioneer1 hahah no:) None of the people I am referring to have sought fornicative adventures outside the usa.

Looks like Wakanda is protected from the brunt of it.....lol

Who are they.....Oaktown 357 back on the scene????

Yes please The cadence and tonal quality is difficult for me to listen to most times That's Gold Our class had a case study during orientation. Students were arguing both sides. I listened for a while. I raised my hand and said I crunched the numbers. Which ended the argument. Two things are notable. Opinions are often not rational or rather are more about feelings than facts. Second thing is hard copy and computer output has more weight than an individual"s opinion.

Public schools are hit or miss when it comes to change &/or incorporating new ideas depending on location & funding. Private schools with better resources can more quickly embrace new technologies & methods of educating. That's why I wrote a fraction or less. 😉 I know that people learn as much as their aptitude will allow whether it is inside or outside the classroom. Individuals get the knowledge, skills & abilities they need in order to function in life by any means necessary. It is not confined to a building.😎

From 119th Congress the H. R. 6644 The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act "is a comprehensive piece of federal legislation designed to increase the national supply of housing and improve affordability through diverse regulatory reforms and pilot programs. Structurally, the Act addresses the housing crisis by modernizing building codes, such as guidelines for single-stairway buildings, and streamlining environmental reviews for infill development to accelerate construction. Key themes include the promotion of manufactured and modular housing parity, the establishment of small-dollar mortgage initiatives to help low-income buyers, and the creation of an Innovation Fund to reward localities that successfully expand their housing stock. Furthermore, the text outlines a Whole-Home Repairs program and a temperature sensor pilot to ensure the safety and habitability of existing federally assisted units. Ultimately, the purpose of this legislation is to reduce regulatory barriers and provide the financial and technical frameworks necessary to foster attainable homeownership and rental opportunities across urban, suburban, and rural communities." Within this affordable housing package that is expected to increase the U.S. housing supply is Sen. Raphael Warnock's highest-profile housing proposals that according to CBS News has officially become federal law, marking a significant policy change aimed at slowing corporate ownership of single-family homes in Georgia and across the country. This, in my opinion, is a huge slam dunk for the two term senator whose seat is up for election in 2028. The law prohibits "large institutional investors" from purchasing, or entering into a contract to directly or indirectly purchase, any single-family home Under the law, a "large institutional investor" includes corporations, investment funds, limited liability companies, and partnerships that are in the business of investing in, owning, renting, or managing single-family homes and control at least 350 single-family homes in the aggregate. To enforce this prohibition, the Secretary of the Treasury or the Attorney General can bring an action against a violating corporation for civil penalties of up to $1,000,000 per violation, or three times the purchase price of the property, whichever is greater. ### The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act is a comprehensive legislative package designed to increase the supply of housing, modernize federal housing programs, and expand homeownership opportunities across the United States. Beyond the restrictions on corporate homebuyers and the publication of zoning reform guidelines discussed earlier, the legislation contains several major components aimed at reducing development barriers, supporting vulnerable populations, and updating financial regulations. Spurring Housing Supply and Development A core focus of the legislation is accelerating the construction of affordable and attainable housing: The Innovation Fund and Build Now Act: The law establishes competitive grant programs to reward local governments that demonstrate objective improvements in housing supply growth. Furthermore, it adjusts the allocation of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds, offering bonus amounts to jurisdictions with extremely high housing growth rates while decreasing funds for those lagging behind. The RESIDE Act: This establishes a pilot program providing grants between $1,000,000 and $10,000,000 to convert vacant and abandoned commercial properties—such as old malls, factories, and hotels—into attainable housing. Streamlining Environmental Reviews: The Act removes duplicative environmental review processes for infill development projects and provides categorical exemptions under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for certain HUD-supported housing activities, particularly those involving up to 15 units. The Accelerating Home Building Act: This provides grants for communities to select "prereviewed designs" (pattern books) for structures like duplexes, townhomes, and accessory dwelling units to expedite the permitting and construction of mixed-income housing. Advancing Manufactured and Modular Housing To diversify the types of homes available, the law fundamentally updates federal standards for non-traditional construction: The Housing Supply Expansion Act: This modernizes the definition of a manufactured home, directing the establishment of new standards for manufactured homes built without a permanent chassis to put them in parity with traditional manufactured homes. The PRICE Act: This creates a competitive grant program to fund infrastructure improvements, home repairs, and resilience upgrades in manufactured housing communities, prioritizing resident-owned communities. The Modular Housing Production Act: This directs a review of FHA construction financing to eliminate barriers and create alternative draw schedules for modular home developers. Modernizing Housing Assistance and Preservation Several initiatives focus on maintaining existing housing stock and assisting low-income families: The Whole-Home Repairs Act: This pilot program awards grants to implementing organizations to provide financial assistance to eligible homeowners and small landlords. The funds can be used for accessibility modifications, weatherization, and habitability repairs. Landlords receiving these funds must agree to specific tenant protections, including capping rent increases and extending leases. The Helping More Families Save Act: This creates a pilot program for HUD-subsidized families that establishes interest-bearing escrow accounts. As a participating family's earned income increases, the corresponding increase in their rent is placed into this escrow account, allowing them to build wealth and achieve financial independence. Reforming Disaster Recovery Act: To better manage future crises, the law establishes the Long-Term Disaster Recovery Fund and permanently authorizes a CDBG Disaster Recovery Program to allocate funds via formula to areas impacted by catastrophic major disasters. Supporting Veterans The Housing Unhoused Disabled Veterans Act: This addresses a critical gap in assistance by requiring that specific VA disability benefits be excluded from income eligibility calculations for supported housing programs, ensuring disabled veterans are not disqualified from receiving housing assistance due to their benefits. Military Service Disclosure: The law requires the Uniform Residential Loan Application to include a military service question to explicitly alert prospective borrowers that they may qualify for a VA Home Loan. Banking Reforms and Financial Access FHA Small-Dollar Mortgages: A new pilot program will be established to increase access to mortgages with original principal balances of $100,000 or less by incentivizing originators and providing direct grants to borrowers for down payments and closing costs. Promoting Bank Formation: The Act streamlines the application process and provides mentorship programs to encourage the formation of de novo (newly chartered) regulated banking institutions, particularly to serve rural and underserved communities. Central Bank Digital Currency Limitation: The legislation prohibits the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) directly or indirectly to the general public, though it preserves the ability for open, private digital currencies to exist. President Donald Trump did not sign the bill into law. The Presentment Clause- Article I, Section 7, Clause 2 of the U.S. Constitution states that if 2/3 of the Senate and 2/3 of the House approve the bill, but the president doesn't veto or sign the bill within 10 days, it becomes law. I've attached a link to the 139 page legislation in this post. I also uploaded it into my Google Notebook which provides direct answers to questions about the legislation's contents.

This is a good point. In this case, I blame the educational system, not AI. Those who use AI shouldn't be using it as a Search Engine because it is not that. But some folks who use the LLM AI also aren't accustomed to challenging authority. I watched a video about Feynman and education that sent me down a rabbit hole. In it, the writer posits that most students accept answers without challenging the meaning. Whether this documentarian is telling the truth or not, I've also recognized this behavior throughout my years in school, business, and corporate America. People don't ask questions or challenge information. Obviously, you challenge the answers, so I'm really responding to your statement because most people are just looking for packaged answers rather than meaning, and that's the real payoff. Which will continue to separate the haves from the have-nots. (I'm not speaking about money here, but those who innovate because they can think beyond what the education system provides to the student. I always go back to our education at Brooklyn Tech - we couldn't skate on memorization, the teachers there taught us to think it through. Like the Feynman video I linked to in my response.

@Mel Hopkins at the bottom of the edit screen simply click the area shown below, and you’ll be able to upload an image. Alternatively, you can copy an image to the clipboard and simply paste it directly into the Editing window. It’s pretty much the same procedure as before.

This could be a great piece of legislation to increase homeownership in the USA. The comedic source material that jump out at me is manufactured modular housing: That is a fancy way of what is commonly called trailers.🤣😎

Don't know hw effective Sen. Warnock's bill will be in keeping Black Rock & other huge investors from buying up other real estate. They are creating a situation where many Americans will be living in rental properties. Either investors &/or insurance companies could see marriage as a viable market too. Give people incentives to marry;, er, start that bizness (LLC) & keep it going.🤣😎

IMO, as a society, we need to do a better job of telling the truth about marriage. Marriage is a business arrangement, er, a contract between a man & woman to share their lives. 🤣 The married couple decides if they want to operate as a sole proprietorship, LLC or S corp. Of course, throughout marriage there is a coordination of roles & responsibilities; assets & liabilities. A successful marriage is one that works & bears fruit for all parties involved over a sustained period of time. 😁 The resident agnostic & standup comedian will be performing here all week.🤣😎

Harder to do especially when eating in a restaurant or buying fast food.😁 Places like Taco Bell are messed up right now.🤣 Thankfully, at least around these parts, Chipotle places the lettuce on the bowl last. If needed, another option is to ask for the produce on the side. That makes it easier to sanitize as well. Most welcome sista @Mel Hopkins . We have to remain vigilant on so many levels. D8mn shame if they don't have a few Port-A-Pottys out in the farm fields. That way, employees won't be dumping & adding their own fertilizer to the crops.🤣😎

Man you killed it with that one. Who else would have thought of the Poker analogy and not letting others know what kind of cards you're carrying.....lol.

You met them honestly but those n8gglets were on some BS. 🙄 Unfortunately, there are way too many goofy azz people out here playing games. I think people who catfish should be fileted & fried. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.🤣😎

ProfD Nowadays, some folks are so busy in their lives that they don't have time to meet people in their daily routine. Well if they don't even have time to even MEET people, they have even LESS time to date and fuck....lol. Another thing is if a common friend thinks two people may be a match but won't meet each other under normal circumstances, that common person will set them up. Yes. That makes sense, and sometimes it works out......sometimes. Sometimes you try to hook two friends up and end up making 2 enemies because you insulted them. You hook ONE ugly person up with ANOTHER ugly person, and both of them get mad because you suggested that they were so ugly they deserved to be with somebody else who was ugly too...lol. Now they spend the rest of the month thinking to themselves...... "Now why would she think, that I'd want to date a woman who looked like THAT???? Unless she thought we were on the same level???" I'm an old skool caveman to the the point that I don't believe in dating apps or set-ups or anything else. I prefer to meet women out in the wild & let nature take its course. Not only is it more natural but more comfortable and fun that way, in my opinion. Finding a mate through a dating app and questionnaire is like seriously asking somebody on a date is it ok if you can kiss them and touch their genitals. Yes it's logical, but very unnatural and awkward. When it comes to meeting another person, not only do you see them but you have to SMELL them...their pheromones and the spiritual VIBES they give off. All of this plays a role in attraction. I've said for years and I'll still say, dating apps is for WHITE PEOPLE because many of their marriages and unions are SHAMS anyway. They force themselves to be together for reproductive reasons. Mel My first true love, my friend, my first born's father is 5' 6"... I'm 5'8" So there's that. Shit, who was he....Eazy E? I'm sure you weren't wearing the shoes you're wearing in this picture....lol. This makes a lot of sense, @Pioneer1 !!! All of those exclamation marks makes it seem as if you were surprised that it even came from me....lol. But there are certain types of men who marry up but they travel in a different circles. See: Alexis Ohainian married to Serena Williams estimated net worth 400M? Andrea Preti married to Venus Williams whose est net worth $65 M - $95 M? That wasn't love, those were business moves...lol. And as sad as it may seem....... Judging by how them and a lot of Black people see themselves, perhaps it may have been the sisters THEMSELVES who considered themselves the lucky ones who were "marrying up" because they were Black women who found themselves the object of the affection of White men. Especially if they have any offspring from those unions. They'll see that as some sort of "improvement" on their progeny. When rich people and celebrities marry eachother, you can't assume it's love. It's usually a business deal or their agents encouraging it for strategic reasons. TRUE love is two people working at Taco Bell fall inlove with eachother and run down to city hall and get married. Or some man working at Home Depot giving a homeless woman and her children a ride, they develop feelings for eachother...and after months of dating they get married and he accepts her children as his own. If two poor or working class people meet, marry, THEN become rich....that's one thing. But if people who are ALREADY rich and famous hook up, you have to suspect ulterior motives for the union.

Mel Lol....how are you going to sit up there and list ALL of them as "number 1" on the list????? There's really no ranking because my ideal man has all three. Even if you met all the men (friends, lovers, associates, acquaintance) that I had an opportunity to have in my life - you'd see the all share the same characteristics. While I'm sure Troy welcomes your participation, this list was actually crafted for men because we tend to look for different attributes in the opposite sex than women do. Some of what you value, we can take or leave Like height....lol. I don't care how short a woman is. I'd date a MIDGET if she was sexy...lol. And WOULDN'T be ashamed to walk around with her in public. I'd pick her up and carry her in one arm like a baby is she wanted me to. There was one man, a friend set me up with, and we went out on a date. See, I've learned that's a tell tale sign right THERE...the need to be "set up" for a date. Most people who are atleast moderately attractive don't need to be "set up" to meet other people. They naturally attract others either at work or while they're out and about in their daily life. Usually it's people who are generally not attractive enough to meet people in their day to day life....for whatever reason be it looks or personality....who need to be "set up" by a friend or turn to dating apps. Just like if a person is constantly in and out of jail......there's usually a reason for it. If a person has a hard time finding or attracting others, there's usually a reason. I have never or would ever entertain, date or even tease a broke man. See, that's one of the major differences between what most women are looking for and what most men are....lol. Most men could care less about the financial status of a woman. She could be too broke to pay ATTENTION let alone pay her bills...lol...doesn't matter as long as she was sexy, or pretty, or ultra-feminine. See all of those mail order brides from dirt poor countries that men are willing to spend millions of dollars to get? intelligence see this denontation it was what makes a man the entire package Yet another difference between most men and most women. Most men aren't looking for a super intelligent woman, just one who is intelligent enough to KNOW HOW TO ACT IN PUBLIC...lol. As long as she ain't acting a loud mouth ghetto fool when you take her out somewhere and doing things like.... -Getting into arguments with other women while standing in line. -Mean mugging and cussing out the waitress who has to serve us our food. -Threatening men with what I'M going to do to them when they look at her wrong or say something she doesn't like I don't care whether she can even read or write, as long as she has enough sense to carry herself in a mild, non-aggressive, feminine manner. attractiveness If he has the first two - he definitely has this one. I'm glad you said this because I initially was going to mention it to Troy. Attractiveness involves ALL of these attributes and how they relate to eachother synergistically to make a person desirable. I presumed when he wrote "attractiveness" he meant LOOKS, so I rolled with it. But I would have chosen another word to be more specific like "beauty" or "aesthetics" dealing with the physical outward appearance.

Well, at this point....we have what Barack Obama calls a "fundamental disagreement".....lol. There's no misunderstanding of our positions. We both understand clearly the direction the other is coming from on this issue. Any further points I would make to counter your argument on this particular matter would simply be redundant.

Refugees from South Africa should get asylum in the United States. If the Trump Administration wants to limit immigration to ONLY refugees who are fleeing persecution in South Africa, instead of the White Afrikaners.....they should first accept the BLACK AFRICAN immigrants who are currently being harassed and persecuted in there. Give them priority refugee status. I don't recall hearing or seeing anyone else on the internet suggesting this. So remember the idea came from ME.....lol.

Unfortunately, too many Black people get way too comfortable around non-Black people. While most Black people will not end up a Nolan Wells, one unalived Black person hanging out with non-Black folks is too many. IMO, this young man's parents did him a disservice if they allowed him to feel that comfortable around non-Black folks. I see it a lot among middle-class & up Black folks who either live in mixed neighborhoods &/or send their kids to private schools & whatnot. It is even worse with interracial couples. Those Black parents allow their children to hang out with & have sleepovers with their non-Black associates & family members. There is no telling how many racists & anti-Black family members that Black man or woman has married into & take their mixed race kids around. Bad enough non-Black people cannot make potato salad or cook greens or fried chicken. 🤣 Add in the fact that some of those non-Black folks like to eat weird foods & hunt all types of animals & engage in reckless activities for fun. In the words of Dr. John Henrik Clarke, Black folks have no friends especially when it comes to non-Black people. Every now & then, we'll be reminded of it.😎

I don’t recall that conversation, but I can tell you one thing with 100% certainty those brothers don’t want a woman, and that’s perfectly fine. I just remember your boy Tariq Nashed had a whole career teacher brothers how to Mack women:

Umbrarchist is the dude who talks about the twin towers, accounting, depreciation & planned obsolescence.😁😎

I respect your position but know that your contributions to the forum are not a waste of time. I look forward to reading your posts. Every birthday, your personal holiday, is a milestone to celebrate. We're thankful that you're still on this side of glory. Please do not take offense that I'm unwilling to accept your resignation.🤣😎

Ddddamn

High quality people you’re hanging out with. In the moment, appreciating the people they are with and apparently not addicted to social media… a blessing.

@richardmurray I think you would be who could best fufill my request to print Frederick Douglass' famous 4th of July speech. I never tire of reading it. Its message is as timely today, as it was when he first delivered it.

Easy like Sunday morning... You really got some good moves, Baby.

Say what you will about Obama, his privately funded new presidential library, located in Chicago is very impressive and a good time was had by all attending the opening night reception there. "The Audacity of Hope" 😘

@ProfD And you have a great sense of humor ! YOLO!

Fam...I just stand on my block when it comes to being a no nonsense man but still a clown, er, with a sense of humor.🤣😎

This is already happening. I see couples out having drinks or a meal. They are both on their phones. I go to a fast food Mexican restaurant. Most customers order on line. When they show up they don't ask for their order they just hold out their phone.