Leaderboard

I still have not heard the President's farewell speech, but I have heard clips and I watched an Interview on TV last night. In each instance, I've heard Obama state that the country is better off as a result of his presidency. In fact, in the interview I watched last night, Obama said this was "objectively" true in any way you want to measure it. As an entrepreneur; educator; and someone who has been involved in a wide variety of industries including, defense, financial services, publishing, and technology the notion that the country is better off now, than it was 8 years ago, does not ring true. While it is true, based upon the data I have access to, that the Nation's GDP has increased, during this same period of "growth," income has remained stagnant and wealth inequality as increased. If we measure the success of the economy based upon the increase in wealth of the extremely wealthy, then Obama is right. However. if we look at the prospects of most Americans, the picture is bleaker. I see education costing more and more, so much more that a decent one is out of reach of many—especially for those you can't, or refuse, to take on oppressive debt. At the same time, the prospects of a decent, well-paying job, as a result of this expensive education is no longer guaranteed. I see opportunities for running independent businesses, swiftly evaporating as super massive and ultra wealthy corporations are allowed to operate as virtual monopolies, utilizing the capital markets, tax loopholes, and politicians in a way that would be considered criminal is an individual engaged in this behavior. We have witnessed the death of journalism; and the rise of fake and biased news spewed by people armed with misinformation and biased opinions on platforms whose sole motivation is revenue. Trump's dysfunction became much more newsworthy than the coverage of legitimate candidates. If the country is doing better, why have the American people decided to radically change direction and go with Donald Trump? I submit for the very same reasons we chose Obama over Clinton in the primaries and again over Romney in the general. We were full of "hope" for a "change." Of course, wealth inequality did not start with Obama, but not only did he not reverse it, it grew under his watch and people are feeling the pain. Bernie Saunders spoke directly to this pain, while Obama attempted to convince us everything was going great. This is why Bernie's message resonated so strongly with many people, while Hillary just promised more of what Obama delivered--the rich getting richer. When Hillary modified her message to be more Saunder's like, she came across as a typical poll-monitoring politician, more commonly known as a liar, the chants of "lock her up" made perfect sense to many. Now that Trump is practically in office, the media will continue to cover his silly tweets and fail to directly challenge his lies. Our country is broken. God help us.

Image was always important to Obama. I'm sure this is why he avoided the Black press, ditched Dr. West and Tavis Smiley from jump street all of whom all would have been held more accountable for his actions regarding Black people. Instead, he latched on to sycophants like Al Sharpton. This is not an issue of "messaging" as Obama likes to claim, this is an issue of the struggles of Americans. Perhaps the democrats can find a truly progressive candidate to run against Trump in four years and truly make America great.

I enjoyed reading your comments on Hillary, whlte women and their vote, and many of your comments on various subjects you briefly touched. I teach African American Literature at Des Moines Area Community College. I am an anglo-saxon person who tries to help your African American men and women realize the richness of their heritage and be proud of their accomplishments and continue the heritage. There so much to learn in the African American experience that every person should be aware about and the tremendous contribution many of these artist have contributed to American culture and society. Keep up your great work and comments.

At this point, Obama is preoccupied with his record and his main priority is to try and polish the legacy he is reluctant to accept as being lackluster because the high hopes he inspired, never got off the ground.

In another conversation Cynique wrote, “…my sense of humor is what sustains me. I regularly watch Family Feud hosted by Steve Harvey, just to laugh at how stupid the average person can be.” What struck me about Cynique's statement is that she is roughly 30 years my senior and I can't see myself being amused by Family Feud--ever. In fact, I'm beginning to wonder what will amuse and interest me if I'm fortunate enough to have Cyniques longevity. I used to watch Family Feud and I even derived some enjoyment from it, but this was many years ago. Lately however, I when catch it channel surfing, it feels like I'm wasting time watching the show. I don't find humor in it anymore. It just seems stupid, like so much of the other stuff that is on broadcast TV. I guess that it why TV was known as the "boob tube." Now I'm not one of those folks who go around boasting that, "I don't even own a T.V." I see nothing wrong with owning a TV, but I find much of the programming a waste of time, so I can understand why people don't bother with them. It has been suggested that I just turn off my brain, at least the analytical part of it, and relax to enjoy this stuff. But that is not in my nature. Besides the analytical part is what makes things interesting for me. But it goes beyond Family Feud; I don't enjoy many most movies I watch in the theaters. I used to love Star Trek and Star Wars, but the last two installments of Star Wars was just boring to me. I mean how many times can one watch space ships fighting each other. It seems like I've seen all of these movies before. In fact, the same goes for all of those franchise films, after the first one they are all repeats from Harry Potter to the Avengers. I'll probably stop seeing these films in the theater. I will, however, make a point of seeing Hidden Figures, Fences, and Midnight. I recently saw Birth of Nation {yawn}. Hopefully one of these films will restore my hope that I can continue to enjoy a good movie as I get older. Despite the awards and critical praise of Midnight I'm definitely managing my expectations ;-)

Well, the pop culture vulture has just seen on FaceBook that Trump and Ben Carson have approached Steve Harvey in regard to coming on board to assist Carson in his new role as Secretary of Housing Development I guess Steve's ghetto persona impressed them so much they think he'd know how to get rid of Sections 8s.

Well, as usual, you Cynique you reveal a depth that I can only hope to achieve. Perhaps a willingness on my part to look a little deeper, I can find more amusement in these things. I'm sure Steve's appeal has to do with his work ethic and playing to the lowest common demoniator like Wendy Williams or Tyler Perry.

I should say in regard to Family Feud that i don't always laugh at it. I just as frequently cringe at the the far-fetched, irrelevant answers contestants come up with on this circus.There a family is, elated at their chance to be on TV, all decked out in their coordinated outfits, colored shirts and ties matched up with dresses or tops, hair all coiffed, grinning like the idiots their responses reveal them to be when team members support each other by shouting "good answer" to a response the buzzer immediately signals as being an unbelievably bad answer as the person who gave it, inexplicably claps his hands. In a way there is something bizarre about this show, something revealing about the emotions reflected on the faces of contestants; the deflated expressions brought on by a rejected answer, or the satisfied smirk that reflects an acceptable one. Then, there's the dapper Ring Master,Steve Harvey, alternating between his "down home good ol boy" persona and his "street smart city slicker" one, mugging and bucking his eyes, surprised when an occasional intelligent answer proves to be right because he is clueless about anything remotely intellectual. Something which has not, in any way, hindered his becoming a big TV star. It gets worse when one at a time 2 members from the winning team are called upon to think on their feet and quickly match obvious answers to the 5 questions a polled audience of 100 people has given; a challenge many aren't equal to. When a duo does rack up the required 200 points to take the grand prize, all hell breaks loose as the happy winners go wild. The Jackpot is $20,00 which has to be divided among 5 people after taxes. You'd think those jumping up and down and dancing around were getting a million dollars instead of about $3,000 each. But their joy is boundless. For a brief moment, 5 ordinary people have become special, and have experienced the thrill of victory by participating in an event they can look back on with satisfaction. Since I've always been a people watcher, the "appeal" of Family Feud is its spontaneity. Observing as folks from a cross section of typical Americans appear on a half hour TV show where a white family from a small southern town might be pitted against a black family from the urban north, is a study in psychology. Seeing individuals stripped of their poise in a controlled environment, watching their reaction under pressure, as well as the varied reactions of family members over a failed effort by one of their own, is a study of human behavior; an imitation of life.To others this might be entertainment. To some it might be vapid. But I find it all rather interesting.

The Meryl Streep speech reminds me of the Madonna Speech. Both woman are part of an two elite groups. Millionaires and Celebrities. Celebrities are our royalty. Celeberity worship is not new. I bet you can name more celebrities from one decade than politicians in any 100 year period. Babe Ruth justified making more money than the President of The U.S. by saying that he had a better year than the President. Can you name a movie where Meryl Streep had black co star. There was an article about when will the disenfranchised white male voter realise that Trump sold them out. What about the othe disenfranchised people. Donald Trump wants to be noticed and maybe even Loved and respected by the public. That's not likely to happen. Since he is not a likeable guy. In my mins eye I can see his son Barron asking him some brutally honest questions, that Trump won't have answers. And on that day Donald Trump will be a broken man. Trump is the most important President ever, and his rhetoric will spawn unlikely alliances.