Leaderboard

I cast a jaundiced eye at anyone who smugly looks down from their pedestal and says something to the effect that "if I can do it, you can do it". This assertion sounds noble and modest but is an empty platitude. Not everybody has the same potential. Contrary to constitutional rhetoric, all men are not created equal. Some are born more intelligent and more talented and more skilled than others. Everybody who makes it big, had what it took to do this, and when an opportunity presented itself, they were able to take advantage of it; cream eventually rises to the top. Inept people obviously do not progress because of their ability; their upward mobility has to do with them being rewarded by the people who use and manipulate them for their own purposes. (Think, George Bush) Yet, people like Dr. Ben Carson seemingly want to set themselves up as examples and chide anybody who, as Troy has noted, doesn't have the innate ability to do as well as the doctor has done. An effective leader doesn't preoccupty himself with shaking his finger at his naughty constituents. He has the wisdom to realize that he has to create optimal conditions for everyone to do their best. If Dr. Carson thinks the Republican Party offers the best springboard for him to help Blacks reform their errant ways, then he is not utilizing the knowledge he should have when it comes to recognizing the signs and symptoms of a malignancy. When it comes to black people, unless single black females stop having more children than they can care for, progress will be stalled. Bad schools are, of course, a factor, but it should be remembered that parents are children's first teachers, and young baby mamas are not equipped to fulfill this role. Republicans are not great advocates when it comes to birth control measures or educational reform. Their idea of creating jobs is to reinforce the prison industry. America is in such a state of disarray that no one individual can guide the ship of state through perilous waters. It's hard not to recall how things were back in the 1950s and the unspoken agreement of the Eisenhower years. "Ike" was not power hungry and he voluntarily settled into the role of a figurehead, quite receptive to the idea of the country being ruled "by committee." Was he crazy? Crazy like a fox. The 8 years of his presidency were a fairly stable era, a time when Americans looked upon their president as a kindly father figure. And from his vantage point, he was the one who warned against the rising specter of the military industrial complex that now has America in its grip. I'd be interested in hearing what argument "smart" people would come up in determining that Carson is more qualified than Obama as presidential caliber. Just because somebody can cut and stitch and prescribe pain killers doesn't mean he can heal the human condition. Obama is savvy and knows the score. He just can't surmount the racism that restricts him. This should clue Carson to the reality that unless he's a Republican puppet, racism will stifle him, too.