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@Delano, Yep! choice and freedom go hand and hand. Freedom, to me, means I'm exercising the right to act on my behalf. I have a sense of agency. If I'm only allowed to make decisions then someone is acting as an agent thereby usurping my freedom.

You've also got to understand the mind-bogglingly small variations that account for the various phenotypical differences. As stated in the book, "The Human Genome Project proved that humans share 99.99% of their genes, regardless of their so-called “race.” “And of that tiny 0.1% difference, 94 per cent of the variation is among individuals from the same populations and only six percent between individuals from different populations.” That means that only 6% of 0.1% represents variances between different populations or so-called races." Just because these differences are discernible does not make them determinant. That aside, define who, then, is black? Is is 30% African blood? Is it 51%. Does the person with 49% African ancestry then qualify as white? When we talk of race we're talking skin color. That's all we have to go by, and it is a piss poor indicator of genetic backgroud. Take, for instance, Jordan Peele, the director of "Get Out" who is bi-racial, yet looks like many other black man. Meghan Markle is biracial and looks white. Go figure. Culture is the determinant factor here. We have been so hung up on white folks' definition of and conceptions of race for so long that we have allowed ourselves to be blinded to our own historical and cultural treasure. There is a difference between being sociologically 'white' and actively adopting a 'white' identity. The former is neither here nor there. It's like someone saying they have two legs. The latter is acceptance of a toxic identity steeped in oppression, dehumanization, and race hatred. Being "black" is just another biological incident. It's like having two legs. It simply IS. Being born into or adopting Afro-American culture tells us the history with which you identify, and the culture borne of that history that influences how you live, think, etc. It's culture, not color that defines us.

You all bring so much passion and fire to your posts! I appreciate ALL of your words and look forward to seeing many more thought provoking posts such as the ones I've read. I really do mean it when I say I appreciate ALL thoughts, not just some. Watching the opposition between ideas sharpens me and makes me even more desirous to fall back and detach from views that could be debated all day long. Bottom line, 99% of what we know we get from methods we cannot personally confirm. It's a sad truth. But it is what it is. I lay wait like a lion in the bushes for new information to guide us to truths. Stay lively and keep bringing the fire! Thanks for having me here!

@Mel Hopkins, I'm giggling right along with you. Yes @Cynique. Ego can catch us unaware at times. I make it a point to attempt awareness of when my conversations are all about my ego, rather than finding truth. Some folks think we are trying to find truth, desiring to reveal truth to others, when in fact, they are just full of ego and trying to be right. The worst part is when an individual finds a little bit of information without knowing the fullness of a thing (or using no critical and unique thinking) and then they are off and running with the I-know-I'm-right attitude. And not from a humble place of so called knowing, but from a boastful place, a place of intellectual superiority. If I have to boast about knowledge I believe I have, then I need to question myself as to whether that knowledge is true and not just something I'm using to pretend I'm better informed than others and therefore above them. Truth does not require me to fight for it. It can stand on its own whether someone wishes to see it or not. Truth also doesn't require me to be angry and overly passionate on its behalf, simply because someone doesn't see it. My job is to drop seed and keep it moving. I try to leave my ego at the door whenever I am aware of its attempts at infiltration. Third eye gotta stay open!!

@DelI can't believe anybody would consider Pioneer a role model when it comes to being open-minded. Does this mean you are now more receptive to Troy's POV on climate change? Or does Pioneer's lack of open-mindness inspire you to not be that way? Or is it because his opinionated pontificating exposes you to points of view you have no problem swallowing? Or is it because you empathize with him for not conceding to Troy? Since you have confessed that you are trying to "improve" yourself, is this because you have decided to be a more tolerant person - or because you didn't realize that you weren't a tolerant person? Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh? Just curious about your mid-life transformation/epiphany. Me, i'm too old to change. Which is why i can't resist taking pot shots at Pioneer. i guess i should congratulate him on acquiring 2 new choir members for his preaching. Meanwhile, i await his next post, ever ready to disagree, - if he shows up.

@zaji I said the same thing but I reckon I may have one or two more trips. I want to care less but not be careless. - Del Strachen

Zaji We need to go back to OUR science and stop following behind them. They are nothing more than intellectual thieves who have bastardized the discoveries and inventions of others. I'm glad you said they stole it AND bastardized it. It's one thing to steal someone's idea and claim it as your own....that's bad enough; but to steal it and change the original meaning of it! Most authors, poets, and singers tell those who steal their work say, "If you're gonna steal my work...you should atleast sing it right!" "If you're gonna steal my quotes....atleast put the original meaning on it". A lot of the times when Whites steal original Black knowledge they corrupt it to the point that it no longer has any real meaning and is utterly confusing and useless. I suspect that where most of these crazy religions come from.....ancient Black knowledge that was corrupted and mythologized to the point of being irrecognizable. The 42 Laws of Maat turns into the 10 Commandments.....for people who routinely break all 10 of them. The fasting of the ancients meant to cleanse and rejuvenate the body turns into a religious ritual where people begrudglingly starve themselves or abstain from eating meat totally ignorant as to WHY they're doing it and assuming it has some "spiritual" meaning behind it. Anyhoo, I continue to research melanin. And I see the game they are playing with race/phenotype/melanin. We also know that there are different TYPES of Melanin. The melanin in most Caucasians and many East Asians is different than the melanin in Blacks and true Native Americans. We have "eumelanin" which is Black.....they have mostly "pheomelanin" which is red. This is why sometimes when you're looking at a picture of White people you see a red dot in their eyes in the photo. 　 　 　 Cynique Well , i always ask what do white people have to gain by abandoning the idea of different races? It is to their advantage to keep their artificial construct since, as everybody agrees, this allows them maintain white supremacy. It helps them to acknowledge race as long as they are in the majority..... But when they become a MINORITY in any nation/community then they try to erase the idea of race so as to CONFUSE the masses of the people. One of the reasons why there wasn't a major Civil Rights movement in Latin America like it was in the United States is because most of the Black people in Latino nations think they're everything BUT Black. White Latinos who control Latin America tell them they aren't Black but Cuban, Brazilian, Mexican, Columbian, ect..... They tell them we're all the same race...."Latino race"....to fool them. And because they don't see race or see themselves as Black they don't know how to explain why they are poor and being exploited by the White Brazilians, Mexicans, ect... Leonce 　 　 That aside, define who, then, is black? Is is 30% African blood? Is it 51%. Does the person with 49% African ancestry then qualify as white? 　 To me, in order to actually still be considered African/Black you would have to be atleast 3/4 African/Black or if you have a non-Black parent but you LOOK like a complete African/Black person I'd still consider you African/Black. I know that figure is kind of high, but I think it's reasonable because if you start accepting EVERYBODY with any African ancestry as Black you run the risk of watering down the entire race and replacing it with another. However this is why I refer to ETHNICITY and call our people "AfroAmericans". This terms encompasses EVERYONE of African ancestry in the Americas regardless of how much or how little African blood runs through their veins. Troy Man you are just mumbling and grumbling to yourself, but you aren't actually ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS me and others have posed to you. And you seem to be overlooking the answers to the very questions YOU asked of us. You keep talking about how stupid it is to continue to believe in different races and how science disproves it.....but without offering any real concrete evidence.

@Pioneer1 come on man there are Black people involved in all aspect of science. Man, Black people invented science! Are you actually trying to suggest that science is biased because Black people, in your opinion, do not dominate the fields?! You don't trust genetics or climate change because Black people are not dominating the fields?! You know Neil deGrasse Tyson believes in climate change and the fact that there is only one race. You know the continent of Africa is full of scientists who believe this too. I'm used to your use of racial stereotypes, but sometimes the things you say are really quite astonishing.

@Delano, I wonder if the Aborigines would agree with you?

{sigh} there is never a theory or finding that is accepted on the word of a single scientist. All findings are independently vetted by other scientists. It is common for a finding to be rejected because the experient can not be reproduced or others found flaws in the method. The Pilt Down man was always suspect, never universally accepted, and is exceptional because it too so long to disprove. If you don't trust so called "white science," that is fine. But science has no color, true scientists try to eliminate biases, unlike the vast majority of the rest of us. Cynique this is a good observation, but I would not use the word "limbo," I think "denial" would be better. In any case, much of what science tells us is beyond our ability to validate. So if you reject what science says, that is a personal decision and based upon nothing more than your opinion. I trust the scientific community over anyone's opinion including my own. We used to call it learning when someone more knowledgeable relates information to some less knowledgeable. I appreciate in the age of social media access to more information does not mean we are any better informed....

i like that; "idol" used in place of "idle". I love puns. "I.Don't.Know" is a phrase to live by. i like it because it raises the possibility of there being an answer to the most profound question; we just don't know it. You escape being included in my generalization about people in limbo because, unlike some other people, you don't consider yourself an infallible oracle. One of my favorite adages says: He who knows not, and knows not that he knows not, is a fool. Shun him.He who knows not, and knows that he knows not, is a child. Teach him.He who knows, and knows not that he knows, is asleep. Wake him.He who knows, and knows that he knows, is a leader. Follow him. Always fun to engage you in conversation.

True the other thing is i am a citizen of the world. I am not saying the elsewhere is this racial utopia. However you can breathe a bit.

@zajii really appreciate your insight and clarity, and how you are able to keep yourself in perspective. Some of the things you say are like shoes that fit my feet. i am not deluded about how flawed i am and that is my salvation. I am on a truth seeking mission, myself, and the one truth i've learned is how elusive yet constant the truth is and how the journey supercedes the destination. i really appreciate having you on this board to keep me in check by virtue of what i gain from the thoughts you share. @Pioneer1Did you read Zaji's above post. You could take some lessons from this. Your ego and your imagination are over the the top. A threat you are not. That's something you have imprinted on your psych, in order to feel good about yourself. Why you think that you are anymore riveting than Troy or Del, is beyond me. Most of your long posts i don't even finish reading. i categorize you as a certain type. i've encountered males like you from time to time all my life and they've always turned me off. And, lo behold, one of these types turns up on this board in the person of a deluded boring know-it-all.

The first time I didn't feel the pressure of my race was in Switzerland. I had some family friends come ti Australia for a visit. They also remarked about how colour wasn't a factor here. That was my experience. Hi Pioneer Leaving and building aren't necessarily mutually exclusive. Travel opens your eyes to different ways to be in the world. It gives perspective by leaving your fishbowl. But you can release some if the mental shackles society puts on you. That's good.

@DelThanks for your heartfelt reply. @zajiThe Pilt Down man fraud was publicly exposed years ago. Margaret Meade and a host of other white anthropologists have also had their studies discredited. And does anybody really not know about America's revisionist history? Or realize that down through the ages, victors are who get to write history. i notice you omitted the the biggest con job of all and that is Christianity. i agree that we should question everything. That's what Buddha advised. We are all free to do this at the risk of laying the groundwork for anarchy. When you doubt everything except what you want to believe, you're in limbo. @Pioneer1Still can't get past the "boy toy' thing, can you? Kinda takes the wind out of your sails when it comes to your ego-driven fantasy that of all the male posters on the board, you exude something that attracts me, Yeah, like a fly is attracted to dung. Get real. It's very easy for anybody who thinks outside of the box to disagree with a mundane thinker like you. A young version of my boy toy. Eat your heart out, loser, who pouted because i preferred the words and wisdom of white philosophers and poets instead of your trite utterances.

Troy Not only are the racial differences manifested PHENOTYPICALLY but also PSYCHOLOGICALLY. Different races tend to "think" or see the world differently on a bio-chemical level......which is why Black Americans and White Americans can live in the same country yet see things so much differently and practice different cultures. Like Zaji said, the racists are playing one big GAME with you. There is no scientific "consensus"..... These scientists will play up racial differences when it suits their purposes and then the erase the differences and pretend they don't exist when THAT suits their purposes. If science doesn't see race why do we read about the differnces between Black and White IQ scores? Why do we hear so much about Black women getting breast cancer as compared to White women? Race and racial differences are acknowledged in every field of science from medicine, to social issues, to politics, to anthropology. You said there is no gene for race but white anthropologists and paleontologists can determine if a bone they found belongs to an African or a Caucasian simply by the structure and mineral content. You can deny racial difference all you want or call it by another name. Call it color, class, breed, caste, ect..... But whatever you call it....the people who are now classified as White will still know who THEY are and know who YOU are and will see themselves as different and better than you. 　 Zaji Dang girl, you are absolutely right about so much, where do I start..........lol. First you are right about their being so many phenotypical difference between just Africans ALONE, even when you leave out other races. I've heard many times that Africa both linguistically and cultural is the most diverse continent on the planet. Perhaps there are TOO MANY differences and this is what made her so easy to conquer from the outside. Second, you're right about not trusting Ancestry-.-com. You never know WHO is handling the dna samples you're sending in or what they may really be used for. Dr Umar Johnson said that you send a sample of your hair or saliva to these people and next thing you know the police may be at your door claiming your DNA was found at a murder scene way on the other side of the country. The old folks who knew magic and how to work with roots KNEW the power you could have over a person if you got some of their hair or nail clippings.....don't think the scientists of today have slept on this either. They change based on something they want. And now, since their numbers might now be lower than the 10% they seem to be on the planet compared to melanin rich peoples, they must boost their numbers by pushing interracial relationships. Easiest way to do this??? Tell everyone that the scientific/biological races (and yes, it has been based on science for over 100 years) are no longer true. How convenient that this new "science" has surfaced. Just in time to save their race. I have an entire book dedicated to the various races. Written around the early 1900s, maybe late 1800s. Over 200 pages of the various races and a breakdown of various aspects of said races. They're also "training" the Asians with their massive numbers to be the new standard bearers who will continue carrying the torch of white supremacy so that it doesn't burn out. If you notice, most north east Asians practice Western civilization and morality better and more precise than even White people do....lol. I clearly see where caucasians are making stuff up and where they have truly discovered something (or most likely unlocked a cabinet in the Vatican so they can pretend they made a new discovery after reading our ancient knowledge). Yes, proper DISCERNMENT is key to getting the truth without falling victim to the lies. You have to know how to read between the lines and decode the "coded" language. Neely Fuller Jr said that racists will give you a meal that may be 90% poison and 10% nutrition, and you have to know how to pull the nutrition out and accept it while rejecting the poison. You dropped a lot of knowledge, I'm still reading. To Be Continued...... 　

Troy We, all people, MUST rely on the knowledge of others. This is the very thing that has allowed humanity to advance I didn't say we didn't have to rely on the knowledge of others. My point is BLACK PEOPLE need to make up a substantial number of those "others"; instead of constantly soley relying on the information that White people relay to us. If you look at much of the technology of the world, it's not "humanity" advancing, it's White people advancing and Black folks just going along for the ride....lol. How many Black people are actually down in South America studying the ecology of the Amazon, or building rockets to go to Mars, or spicing genes and making clones??? We let White people do it......then run to the university or go to youtube and let THEM tell US what they found. This is not only lazy, but silly. We need DIRECT KNOWLEDGE that we gain from our own expriments and reasoning that we can use to benefit ourselves instead of expecting that some balding White man with a grey pony tail and glasses will give us all the information we need. Zaji I like you too! I believe you mentioned something about being from Jamaica. I have yet to meet a Carrribean woman I DIDN'T like...lol. Cynique Objective people tend to be curious and flexible and consider all views, gravitating toward those which extensive studies and experiments have proven to be reliable and authentic. Sounds to me like THESE type of people would rather believe what other people tell them rather than what they've seen with their own two eyes....lol.

@Pioneer1, Restrictions and consequences are attempts to curtail freedom. We don't have to heed them. There are laws against murder and penalties if you are caught, but people feel free to commit murder everyday. Pioneer there are degrees to everything -- including marriage. People locked up in SuperMax prisons are less free than people who live in Australia. I agree there can't be a completely free society, but you can get pretty close which is makes the trade off worth it.

Troy You said: Pioneer there are always restrictions and consequences, these issues do not take away from our freedom. But you also said: No one is free to do anything they what, if they expect to be able to engage with anyone else. Doesn't the second statement cancel out the first? Now a child may be prevented from skydiving, because a parent or the law may not permit it. That child is less free than the adult. I'm not sure there is actually any such thing as "less free"; it's like being "less married"...lol. Either you're free or you're not. But you mentioned something I found interesting...... Can any society really be "free" if children are under the control of their parents? I would think that children would have to be released from control of their parents, there couldn't be any prisons or jails, and even mental patients would have to be released in order for a society to really call itself "free" for all people. Which is why I said, I don't think there really IS a "free" society in this world. Some are less restricted than others, but all of them have restrictions to a certain degree. Zaji And everything this culture is, for me, is the opposite of how I envision/imagine authentic freedom. It was designed that way by social engineers. This society was designed to get the maximum amount of labor from people for corporate use. That's why the NUCLEAR FAMILY is pushed in this society instead of the traditonal extended families of African society which would provide more economic support during tough times. It's also why cigarettes and alcohol are promoted. It gets you addicted to the point you're FORCED to work in order to feed your addiction. Del Leave the United States Wouldn't it be better if she stayed and tried to IMPROVE things rather than just pack up and leave? Black people do too much bouncing and moving around. Running from one city to the next, one village to the next, one country to the next looking to see which White man is going to treat us better.....lol. How about we do what Booker T. Washington said and cast our buckets down where we are and start building OUR ideal society right where we happen to be standing.

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo - Yes, @Cynique . This just reminded me that five years ago I would chant every day. I was wondering what was different about my life then but I noticed a lot of things changing. I may have to revisit this practice.

@Delano As I mentioned my goal is NON-ATTACHMENT. Un-attachment is different. My comment to Troy, here, reveals out of sheer exhaustion to get him to see my perspective, and failing miserably, I stopped. Not detach but just stopped. Maybe stepping back gave me an opportunity to determine what I was actually debating. Was I fighting to defend President Obama's legacy? Or was I fighting to prove that life under President Obama was better. In debating the former, I'm offering a record which has nothing to do with me. If I was debating for the latter, it would be fighting to maintain the illusion that circumstances have to be a certain way for me to be happy. It could be but I'm no longer in that moment so I don't know. I'm not sure how this relates to your original comment here in the Calling all amateur psychiatrists thread, I responded here that I didn't think your assessment, characterization of Cynique not critiquing my comments was accurate. For clarification: I meant that maybe you don't notice that in my exchange with Cynique that I offer no resistance to Cynique's alleged critique or psychoanalyzing. I believe that she can "see" what I'm attached to. So, I look within then respond. Maybe, it's me who responds differently to Cynique than I do with the others. I do agree with Cynique though CONTEXT matters.

In some ways I am the same. I think and if someone makes sense I acknowledge them especially if i disagree with them. Pioneer said that he did not go to University. Yet he will debate those of us who have gone to Uni. His statement was honest and I was humbled by it. So I can't be an elitist nor attack him or anyone else personally. When he was debating with Troy. I said that his position was logical and Troy's wasn't. That wasn't an emotional response. I have softened my stance on climate change but not on the science. Based on the discussions I have seen here, Pioneer isn't less open minded than anyone else. Or at least not by much. If you look at my post about Viola Davis I wasn't on either side. There are two things that are important to me. Being able to think in a full circle. And in order to do so I need to be open minded. I idolise none. However Pioneer wants to improve the lot of Black Folks. Something that appears important to a few of the active contributors. While i may disagree with his solutions or even what he thinks are the causes of said problem. I commend him and any other person who wants to make the world better. I have learned at various times that my self perception can be skewed. I believe I have addressed your queries. If my position or motivation is unclear say so.

We 3 women here all seem to be on the same page. My inner-narrative is constantly prompting me to exercise my 3rd eye, and to make sure i'm seeing what i'm seeing, and hearing what i'm hearing. The ego can be a capricious filter. Zen is the key to my inner sanctum. Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

@Pioneer1 et al,On February 16, 2018 PBS is airing the documentary Pioneers: Reginald F. Lewis and the Making of a Billion Dollar Empire - PBS

@zaji Thank you for your presence!

After reading this thread, I must say, @Pioneer1 and @Del, I like ya'll.

This is where I think a lot of folks get confused. For example, I don't ignore "gender" constructs; I simply refused to submit to it. In fact, when I hear someone discuss gender, I give them the side-eye and keep it moving. Those who embrace constructs and labels as if it's a badge - tell me all I need to know about their level of engagement.

@CDBurns This ^ is the term I was trying to remember! Thank you! Yes, please share a video in strategies !

It is actually great that you are visiting a network of other sites related to your business! I agree with the premise of everything your written. Brands are already know they are at an disadvantage when there are less than a handful a places to promote their products. Content rich websites are the way to rich a specific audience. I've know this for years by simply comparing ad engagement on my website versus what I see on social media. Plus, social media ad engagement over time has only gotten worse and more expensive. 3,000 to 400,000 visits a month is incredible growth -- congratulations! Have created a video or article describing this success? If so please share it in the Strategies section of #ReadingBlack

@Mel Hopkins, I currently have code on the site which allows me to link directly to authors site for buying a book, as I have for your new book: So You Want to Be a Flight Attendant: A Memoir. I'm going to update the code so that all other options to buy the book are removed so that only the author's link is an option Ultimately I'm going to reach out to you and anyone else I do this for to create an affiliate programs so that I (or any other bookseller) can be paid for the sale. Right now I'm think about keeping it easy and cheap, say a $1 a sale. What do you think about that? It is FAR less than what Amazon takes, and can be scaled across all other websites. I'm working with an author I know to work out the process, so that the work on the author's end is trivial--otherwise no one will do it. Mel, when someone buys your book they are sent to PayPal, have you created a customized thank you page? I'm thinking about showing others how they can track where sales come from. Basically you'd just pay AALBC.com (or anyone who sells you book) a $1 for each tracked sale. I can set it up so that we both see this in real time. Let me know if this is something you are interested in doing? Also what is your wholesale discount? If indie authors and publishers boycott Amazon by themselves without the support of readers, I'm afraid readers will just buy other books. Only the indie author/publisher will be hurt and Amazon will be un effected. Reader really have to be part of the effort. I know at least 50 people have filled out the questionnaire from this afternoon, but I have not looked the results yet. Those results will determine if I move forward with this effort.