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Hello. I am pending publication of a memoir, White Man's Disease. White Man’s Disease is not overtly about race (although a publisher/mentor told me a memoir written by a Black man in America is inevitably about race.) Nor is White Man’s Disease literally about a disease--it's metaphorical--medical calamity provides a subtext. I have a blog with excerpts here: http://whitemansdisease.weebly.com/ The photo is a placeholder for the book cover art. Thank you.

This discussion would not be complete without a dissenting view, and dissent is my brand. When it comes to Beyonce, I consider her a caricature. She's so over the top, she's exhausting. I question her genuine concern for her people which includes charitable write-offs, because everything she does is calculated to enhance her image and advance her career which is why she's currently capitalizing on controversy. I don't think, in between forever reminding people that she is half Creole, that Beyonce is hard core black, or could she ever hold her own in an in-depth discussion about anything except booty shaking and pelvis grinding. She's all style and no substance, all designer garb and hair extensions, replete with a wind machine. I really wouldn't be surprised if Jay-Z wasn't bored out of his skull with her. . Yes, Bey is a great entertainer, a golden girl who doesn't do drugs, but there are so many more accomplished black females who make better role models. I will give her her props for being ambitious and determined but she didn't pull herself up by her bootstraps since she came from a middle class family and had a head-start, thanks to her bootielicious physical attributes. But - that's show biz! I know I'm talking to the wall because you can't argue with success! Just ask Lady Ga-Ga and Taylor Swift, the other 2 pagan goddesses of vacuity. LOL

Sara So 30% of young black boys in high school and 30% of young black men in college are not gay, rather lisping ultra-effeminates? ???? Did you even COMPREHEND ANYTHING of what I just told you? First of all, where are you coming up with this "30%" business? I didn't mention any percentages.... Second, whether you agree or not with what I said....if you UNDERSTOOD what I said the you wouldn't be applying the same percentage to both high school AND collegiate males in your question. I said that there is a HIGHER percentage of effeminate Black men in college than in highschool because the weeding out process prevents many masculine men from even making it TO the college level. How many young men can function successfuly in an environment where they're EXPECTED to suppress their natural inclinations and act like eunuchs? Third, there is a DIFFERENCE between men who are effeminate and men who are gay just as there is a DIFFERENCE between women who are masculine and women who are lesbian. One is how you ACT....the other is who you LIKE. I have no idea about how much of the demographic GAY Black males make up on high school and college campuses because I don't go around asking men who they're sleeping with. But I can clearly SEE how men behave and carry themselves so it's easier to come to my conclusions regarding thier demeanor being feminine or masculine. To say that a young black boy or man is effeminate (and ultra? WTF???) because he's well-spoken, mannerable, civil, and subjugates his thug impulses to earn a diploma or degree makes about as much sense as a female looking to marry a dope, pimped-out bad azz who goes to work every day, pays his bills on time and takes care of his kids. I agree. Now if I've gotten the wrong of it, please, give an example of a "masculine" young black male and define his behavior vis a vis an ULTRA-effeminate young black male.... who is not gay. It appears that you HAVE gotten it wrong so...... Example of an MASCULINE young Black man talking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_ZmM7zPLyI 　 Example of an EFFEMINATE young Black man walking and talking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nS9raqeoiks You can see a clear difference in how these two men carry themselves. If you look at the brother in the second video, a good example of feminine behavior is the exaggerated sway of his hips. Why would a man's hips "sway" when he walks? Mechanically it makes no sense. CD Like you...I don't understand how Sara can live in this society and actually QUESTION my statement about so many effeminate Black men occupying positions in both academic institutions as well as corporate America. It's one thing to be tolerant of those who are different than us, but it's another thing to turn a blind eye to it and pretend that it doesn't exist and is all a delusion. A few Black men being feminine in their demeanor isn't a problem, it's natural. But when you start seeing the percentage grow higher and higher in society you MUST ask yourself why is this happening and why now? Intelligent people closely observe their environment and carefully note any changes.

I'd read it! I read the chapters posted and it's engaging. I would sit and read each chapter if they were posted... which would defeat the purpose of writing the book, lol. I would buy the book though. I shared it also. Congrats and I'm looking forward to the release.

Chris, the meticulous men who Pioneer,Troy and you describe are referred to as "Meterosexuals", a term that has been around for over 10 years. What I currently notice about black young men is how so many of them have "swag". Whatever the case, it should be obvious that not having male role models can take its toll on black men and, in some schools of thought, their having a dysfunctional relationship with an absentee father can be a precursor to homosexuality. But I don't think the feminine straight guys are just limited to black men. Lesbianism also seems to be growing more common - among women of all colors. Who knows? Maybe all of the interchangeable sexuality is the next stage in the evolution of the species known as Homo Sapiens, - no pun intended.

I agree....I have learned much in a short time from CDBurns. I love this sounding board. Yes, my point exactly. The urban sounding Destinys Child barely cracked platinum. Mainstream Destinys Child, after the switch, sold many millions and then Beyonce took over the world. I have been down since No NO No, I remember All my classmates singing along after the switch. Destinys Child was in fact, mainstream. And Beyoncé has never not acknowledged her Black audience. My point was not to pick apart the career of one of my favorite entertainers...thAt would only pull in more of audience to debate instead of celebrate which was the thesis of my initial post.

“Thus, end of discussion.” Done! Please have safe and fun weekend......

CD Yeah, I know when it comes to practicality it's all about the detail. I think some people are just naturally better at detail while others are best imagining things in their entirety. This is why TEAM WORK is so important, bringing these skills together so everyone can work in harmony doing what they are good at. Personally, I've found that when it comes to many of our people you have to first SELL them an idea with the method of big and broad visionary description so they can get a clear picture of what you'd like to accomplish before they decide to contribute. I can walk up to a group and say let's build entire districts of greenhouses growing millions of tons of produce a year. But I just leave it at that; people would scratch thier heads and ask "what the hell for?" But when I give it to them in the context of helping to feed a massive city of millions with a dense population so that they can be more self-sustaining, then it begins to make more sense as to why we should build an entire neighborhood of high-rise greenhouses.

CD Chinese men would have PLENTY of women to marry if they didn't give so many of them away to White men....lol. Go to any college campus and most of the Asian women I see are dating White men while the male Asian students are usually by themselves. For years White men have been going to Asian nations literally buying women. If you think a garden tower was pretty imaginative, me and some of my partners have dreamed up plans for entire greenhouse districts in the middle of cities. Especially for cold places like Michigan where you can't naturally grow most edible plants all year round, we have to have some sort of way to grow enough to feed a massive population. There are forces who would like to diminish the population no doubt, but I say we shouldn't give them any excuses to do it. What I mean by that is, when I drive through Detroit, Flint, parts of Chicago, Milwaukee and other mostly Black communities and see so many of our people just doing NOTHING but laying around consuming.....it makes me frustrated for 2 reasons: 1. There is a lot of creativity in thier minds but they aren't expressing it because they're too busy waiting on a green light or go ahead from a White person to ENCOURAGE them. 2. If I as a Black man can look at the inertia and shiftlessness among so many of our people and find it distrubing....I can only imagine what most NON-BLACK people are thinking. So if there is a plan to diminish or move Black people out of the inner cities and take over the land, many would actually see this as a LEGITIMATE move because the current occupants aren't doing anything with it anyway. So why not just move them out (or worse) and put the land to valuable use? This is the mentality of a LOT of people. So like I said, we shouldn't give people who think along these lines an excuse to justify thier inhumane ideology of putting profit over people. We should busy ourselves to start building with a new vision. The situation in Flint would be an excellent opportunity for Black professionals to come together with plans to initiate something rather than waiting on wealthy White men to build it and then come running and begging for a place at the table.

Thanx As far as expanding beyond Black journalism for quality......looks to me like we don't have much of a choice now a days, lol.

Sara Yes, I've noticed the same thing among SOME Black boys in highschool....but not as many. It's not so much a "change over" that occurs among the individual that turns them from masculine to feminine.......it's more of a WEEDING OUT process. It appears that many masculine Black males don't make it to college level or if they do they are quickly disheartened and end up dropping out (like I did) because of the very sterlized culture of most colleges today. Most of us grew up in communities where it's common to "chase" after women and no matter how smart you are academically....it puts you at odds with the culture of todays colleges. The majority of AfroAmerican males I've met who've actually made it through major universities with a graduate degree seem to fall into 2 types: -Those of average intelligence but are passive and feminine in thier demeanor. -Those who are masculine BUT are smart and clever enough to carry themselves in a certain way as to not attract too much attention and can focus on their curriculum. Ofcourse there are exception, but these two categories seem to be the most prevelant types among the Black American men who seem to do well in college. But again, to answer your question...... The demographic among Black male demeanor doesn't change...it's that most masculine Black boys end up dropping out of the academic system BEFORE reaching college which is why the more effeminate type seems to be seen. Cynique So we meet again....LOL. In SOME ways a very smart cereberal person may appear more feminine only because smart people tend to THINK before taking action....so they tend to be less impulsive which some people may ignorantly take to be more feminine. But this isn't what I'm refering too. I'm refering to the walk, the talk, the lisp, the shyness, the loss of bass from the voice....just the way so many operate in general. I'm not even talking about homosexuality, because there are plenty of MASCULINE gay men. I'm talking strictly how a lot of the young men I'm seeing carry themselves regardless of their sexual orientation or even level of intelligence.

A black male who talks "proper" often comes across as effeminate and doing so is associated with being smart, and being smart is a prelude to attending college where overcompensating to shed the ghetto/thug demeanor could create the effect of diminished masculinity.

Perfectly Stated! So many writers forget that they have a CORE audience! Everyone isn't going to be interested in your product but there will be a group of folks, such as Beyonce and her BeyHive, who will be about everything you do. It's those readers (market) that you have to find first then make sure whatever you do speaks to them.