Stefan

Chevdove, I hope things are better with your Father. I will say it once more with authority, the Bible roundly IGNORES skin color. The 40-odd Bible writers preferred using geographic locations. And the King James version is no longer the go-to translation of Bible enthusiasts. You are making the same mistake millions of others have while trying to bolster your own race. But the only races that mattered in the Bible were first, the ancient Israelites and second, only those who professed a belief in whom many refer to as Jesus, the Christ. And it is that second fact which blows the concept that skin color matters in the Bible completely out of the water. Because the Apostle Peter declared that it didn't make any difference what a man's ethnic background was. As long as he believed in the Christ, they were good to go, according to Peter. "At this Peter began to speak and he said: 'Now I truly understand that God is not partial, but in every nation the man who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.' " (Acts: 10:34, 35) And yet, here we are, centuries later and there are billions of otherwise decent people still in a tizzy and trying to brag that skin hue matters. When Peter wrote that God is not partial, he meant the Creator does not look at rank, wealth, skin hue, where a person was born, their livelihood or their appearance. Which makes me wonder why anyone would accept what some White museum curators depict about the likeness of human beings who lived thousands of years ago. Those Whites were not there. Neither were you. And it rankles me why so many Blacks want to be associated with long dead Egyptian Pharoahs when we know they owned and mistreated Slaves. What too many do is employ their own observations to boost ethnic pride. Which means nothing since God does not care what your ethnicity is.

Ann Bray Smith, If there's one thing I always will do on an online forum is peruse a different viewpoint. I just may not agree with it. However, what I steadfastly refuse to do is suffer fools gladly. If those who respond to my posts do so with immaturity, I can always ignore them and often do. That does not make them right. Just childish. If someone disagrees with a comment, then they should do it politely. These relentless and ad hominem personal attacks are silly and tiresome.

It is difficult to obtain a well-paying job with benefits without a college degree. One can learn a trade in a profession that is necessary for a society to function, such as plumbing or electrical work. But some type of education will always be required. The less knowledge and experience an individual has, the more likely it is for them to be indoctrinated. Not the other way around. Learning different college level subjects defeats Ignorance.

It is not only that fewer people are going to college. It's that fewer people even bother to read. We are in an era of Dumbness where accuracy, knowledge and explanation tend to be ridiculed by those who are insecure. You can see the personality of a Donald Trump (I'm the smartest man in the room) in many men, regardless of their race or background. No one wants to fact check. No one wants to do any research. All the silly want to do is attack, attack and attack. It's as if someone who's well informed bothers them so much, their stomach starts to hurt.

I am fairly certain creating Covid-19 vaccines and treatments will become another facet of the healthcare industry. A race of people can no longer effectively isolate themselves because of world travel, communications and ongoing environmental damage. Those who tried always failed and even if they kept most intruders at bay, they usually became ill because they were not properly vaccinated. In Africa, lack of adequate sanitation and clean drinking water always killed millions. And 56% of Africans living south of the Sahara Desert suffer from this now, according to the World Health Organization. What good is it to hide from invaders and those bent on harm if your people do not have access to clean drinking water? Or cannot grow enough food to feed everyone?

Troy, I agree with your post 100%. I am not a doctor and I am certainly no infectious disease expert. If parents believe a certain drug has harmed their children, who am I to dispute this? First of all, it's none of my business. I can only sympathize. Even thought I am in the high risk category, I am holding off on getting any Covid-19 vaccine. I never trusted Trump and I remember his vow to not allow residents of Blue States to receive vaccines because he engaged in words with their Governors.

I believe all professional sports leagues are worried about their bottom lines and so are their team owners. It is not just Major League Baseball. Just as you, Troy, I cannot wait until the records of our Black ballplayers are matched up against the traditional White stalwarts that we learned of as children. Covid-19 is going to end the dreams of many and cause the loss of billions. I would hate to see a team definitely headed to a post-season only to loose its star player or perhaps two to Covid-19.

Anti-Vaxxers tend to be intolerant of others' opinions. And one does not have to meet them online to know how they feel. It is quite sad that the Black anti-Vaxxers I did engage with online are simply disdainful of science, much like Republicans are. Who are YOU going to listen to? Do you really think Dr. Fauci flew to China and concocted a scheme to create the Covid-19 virus with Chinese scientists in Wuhan? One Black anti-Vaxxers insists this is true. I cannot believe some would listen to a person who has no medical degree, never practiced as a doctor, knows nothing about infections respiratory viruses, but thinks you need to follow their advice. Engage an anti-Vaxxer then. Ask them why children should not be vaccinated against measles, whooping cough and polio. Go ahead. But first, list the names of people in your neighborhood who have polio or smallpox. The idea is to live. I want the Black Community to survive. And I am thrilled that a second Covid-19 vaccine is about to approved for emergency use. This one is from Moderna. We do not need any more needless deaths in our community from this pandemic. It's an individual choice. Here is more information on the issue: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landig/article/PIIS2589-7500(20)30227-2/fulltext

Wait a minute. No one thinks this historical advancement is newsworthy? No one thinks it is another feather in our cap? More proof of our awesome physical and mental talents?

Troy, There are some Black anti-Vaxxers, too. Many such folks truly believe that any vaccine causes Autism. I've met a few Black anti-Vaxxers online and a few of them are truly hateful. To their own people who want to stay alive. They find every excuse to label government-run health agencies and pharmaceutical companies as killers. They attack anyone who wants to wear a mask and they view as stupid any parent who wants their child to receive childhood vaccinations. If I didn't know better, I could imagine some of these Black anti-Vaxxers picking up an assault rifle and shooting anyone in the Black Community who advocates wearing masks and taking safe vaccines. I am not certain the Covid-19 vaccines are safe. I've adopted a wait and see attitude. We know individual patients may develop side effects and some suffer from the vaccines. Even medical experts have said this. But that does not mean we should eschew every vaccine and simply let the Covid-19 virus run amok. Because that is what anti-Vaxxers want. They want to use their rights to debate personal freedoms in a crusade to end yours. If they have the right to refuse medical care, what gives them the right to order everyone else to do the same?

Troy, I am hoping the enthusiasm for reading Our history remains high.

Major League Baseball on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020 recognized the Negro Leagues as a major league and will now count the statistics and records of thousands of Black players as part of the game's storied history. The move officially puts Negro League stats into the record book and gives thousands of Black players the official designation of being major-league baseball players. According to ESPN, Willie Mays will add some hits to his record, Monte Irvin's big league batting average should climb over .300, and Satchel Paige might add nearly 150 victories to his total. Josh Gibson, the greatest of all Negro League sluggers, might just wind up with a major league record too. The statistics and records of greats such as Gibson, Paige and roughly 3,400 other players are set to join Major League Baseball's books after MLB announced Wednesday that it is reclassifying the Negro Leagues as a major league. ( End ESPN snippet ) This is just unbelievable! I am thrilled! That's mighty Josh Gibson below.

I have zero Buyers' Remorse. Donald Trump is a dangerous demagogue who managed to get millions of his hateful supporters to actively participate in acts of violence and voter suppression. If you believe so many have the same feeling of loathing for both Trump and Biden, you may want to rethink your hypothesis. Because Biden crushed Trump by seven percentage points. That is near landslide territory and the same percentage with which Barack Obama whupped John McCain. And voting for third party candidates who have no chance of winning is a foolish strategy. Butt hurt Bernie Sanders pulled this nonsense in 2016 and their refusal to accept defeat graciously led to Trump coming to power. And what has Trump done? Constantly maligned Black Africa, undercut the Poor, the Disabled, the Elderly and the Ill at home. Started an unwinnable trade war with China, insulted NATO allies, used our military to help assassinate Muslim generals and nuclear scientists. Oh, what happened to ISIS? It's still hale and hearty despite Trump's promise to destroy the group within a month after taking his oath. So is Covid-19 is also still active which Trump swore was going to disappear in the summer of 2020. This is what happens when people do not think about the consequences of voting for third party candidates. There was no alternative for Black people, but Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Our survival was at stake. We are still not out of the woods yet because our Community has been one of the hardest hit in this pandemic. And anyone who thought Trump was going to look out for folks in Blue States must be smoking some real good dope. Trump has always been a coddled and protected clown. Smart he is not.

Congratulations on AALBC's growing sales.

The Pfizer medicine has been put through stringent and supervised medical trials. So it is neither untested, nor should it be called a cure. It is simply a vaccine, one of three possible vaccines that might make a difference in any unfortunate who contracts Covid-19. If you are philosophically against Pfizer, then you can always wait for the vaccine being tested by Moderna or Astra-Zeneca. It's up to the individual. But one thing is certain, Vaccines do work. Do you know anyone who has contracted Smallpox, a disease that has been around for at least 3,000 years? Probably not. Because vaccines have practically eradicated this once feared disease. The last known natural case was in Somalia in 1977., the World Health Organization said. Know anyone that has Polio? Nope. Know why? Childhood vaccines eliminated this malady in the U.S., even though individual cases pop up time to time in Pakistan, Nigeria and Afghanistan, according to the World Health Organization. Unfortunately, we are going to hear a lot from anti-Vaxxers, many of whom are against childhood vaccinations that can save the lives of two to three million youngsters who die from preventable diseases each year. The numbers of unvaccinated children has quadrupled since 2001, according to the Centers of Disease Control. Why? Because what began as attempts to prove Autism was linked to vaccinations, has become an anger filled personal freedom debate, said The Nautilus, a publication of Texas A&M University at Galveston. Thus, in many online forums, you’ll be treated to unhinged rants from people without medical degrees that may devolve into demands to accept questionable research. Vaccines do not cause Autism, a claim which has been widely debunked as false. But you're now hearing are the howls of rage and derision from anti-Vaxxers as Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine has begun to be distributed. One last time: Do you know of anyone who has Smallpox? Thank vaccine makers for this.

I posted several links to news websites which proved my contention. It is amazing a grown azz man cannot read and uses this lack of ability to disbelieve what is front of him. More Blacks did support Trump this time around. I will post yet another link. Know what is so silly about you, dude? Troy once claimed that you "write with authority." I'd like to know what authority because most times you sound out to lunch. Launching personal attacks against someone you don't know? Oh, what brains it takes to do that. Here is the link - and again, more proof of what I claimed. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-54972389 And here is another link proving that more Blacks supported Trump in the 2020 election that they did in 2016. I can prove my contentions: https://thecincinnatiherald.com/2020/11/one-in-three-black-men-backed-trump-in-blue-wall-states/

There are some who believe that only one male is speaking in the Song of Solomon. And that man is Solomon himself. But they would be wrong. There are two men speaking in the Song of Solomon, the King and the shepherd boy. Both are trying to woo the Shulamite maiden. And it is King Solomon, who already had many wives and concubines, who speaks for himself all through the love poem. The Shepherd only speaks through the thoughts of the Shulammite Maiden. King Solomon could not have been White. Since he lived in ancient Israel, he was the same color as others who were born and lived their lives in that region. And it's likely King Solomon had a similar complexion to modern-day Palestinians.

Some people are so deluded, they believe they are right about everything. Just because a person is interested in history does not mean they worship or even admire the characters mentioned therein. And so it is with anyone who studies the classics, ancient writings, beliefs, customs or a people's history. Just because you've studied and know a subject fairly well does not mean you believe it. When you read a lot, you learn about a great many things. You discover the world is full of possibilities. You can always tell when you run into a person who hasn't read a lot: They are usually negative and always have something nasty to say.

6) In the Bible, Hagar is described as Sarah’s Egyptian maidservant; and later, Abraham’s concubine and the mother of Ishmael. Again, some Black people are taking much liberal license by claiming everyone in Egypt was Black. Remember, the Bible identifies Egypt and Ethiopia separately. 7) Asenath, is supposed to be the daughter of an Egyptian priest. Again, no description of this woman is given in the Bible. So, one cannot call her Black. Tirhaka, also known as Taharga, was indeed Black and he did have an army of chariots who came to the aid of Israelite King Hezekiah. The Jewish king had launched a revolt against Assyrian King Sennacherib. But Tirhaka is also identified as Pharaoh Taharqa, so he was linked to Egypt. By the way, the revolt failed. Sennacherib's forces kicked the living crap out of Hezekiah's and Tirhaka's armies, according to the Bible. An Assyrian inscription, though not mentioning Tirhakah, indicates that Sennacherib defeated the forces that came from Egypt and captured “the charioteers of the king of Ethiopia.” The next Assyrian king, Esar-haddon, boasted about his conquest of Egypt, saying: “Its king, Tirhakah, I wounded five times with arrow shots and ruled over his entire country.” During the reign of Esar-haddon’s son and successor Ashurbanipal, Tirhakah revolted against submission to Assyria. But, according to Ashurbanipal, “the terror of the (sacred) weapon of Ashur, my lord, overcame Tirhakah where he had taken refuge and he was never heard of again.”—Ancient Near Eastern Texts, edited by J. Pritchard, 1974, pp. 287, 288, 290, 295. 9) Zerah, the Cushite. Zerah is called by the Bible to be an Ethiopian, or Cushite, who led a huge army of a million men and 300 chariots into Judah during Asa’s reign, in 967 B.C.E. However, Zerah was defeated, and his fleeing forces were pursued and slaughtered “as far as Gerar.” (2nd Chronicles 14:1, 9-15) 10) Eded-melech was an Ethiopian eunuch in the house of King Zedekiah. Though Ethiopian, Ebed-melech worshiped the God of the Israelites. When the princes of Judah falsely charged the Prophet Jeremiah with sedition, Zedekiah threw him into a cistern to die without food. Ebed-melech appealed to Zedekiah to save Jeremiah and later with 30 men, he pulled God’s prophet from the cistern and saved his life. God told Ebed-melech he would not die in the coming siege of Jerusalem by Babylonian forces, but would escape. 11) ) Symeon is another Black man in the Bible. He was from Niger, which is a Black area of Africa. (Acts 13:1). Symeon was an early believer in Jesus, the Christ. There is no indication that Symeon carried the wood that Jesus was impaled upon. Symeon is also one of the prophets and teachers of the congregation in Antioch, Syria, who laid their hands on Barnabas and Paul after the Holy Spirit had designated these two for missionary work. Symeon’s Latin surname was Niger. Have you heard of other folks who are Black and who are Bible figures? We all would like to learn about them.

Over the years, I've encountered many individuals who remain curious about who was Black in the Bible. A lot of them spout legends and myths are absolute falsehoods. Some even mention individuals who actually never appear in the Scriptures. So I did research and here are my findings. When compiling this data, I incorporated the claims made on different Websites and by many individuals. I chose to stick with only what I found in the Bible. This way, I would not codify legends, myths and feel good tales. That's how we ended up with a White Jesus. One thing I discovered is that the Bible rarely mentions the skin color of those in the Scriptures. 1) Some believe the Queen of Sheba was named Makeda and that she was Black. But here is no mention of Makeda in the Bible. The Queen of Sheba is indeed mentioned in the Bible, but she is neither identified, nor described. 2) Zipporah was definitely Black and she was the Cushite wife of Moses. How do we know Cushites were Black? Well in the Bible Book of Numbers, the brother and sister of Moses took issue with Moses' choice of a wife. "And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married: For he had married a Cushite woman." (Num. 12:1). Some translations use Ethiopian instead of Cushite. I also believe this is the first Biblical reference to an interracial marriage. At Jeremiah 13:23, it reads: "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots?" Judging from the color of a leopard's spots, it is easy to discern that the skin color Jeremiah is referring to is Black. 3) The claim that Pharaohs were Black cannot be proven. Because the Bible never identifies the skin color of Egyptians during the time of Exodus. If you run into anyone who claims the Bible does this, ask them to show you the scripture. The oft-repeated claim that Egypt and Ethiopia are one is untrue. The Bible does indeed mention Africa, but it does so by specifically noting exact regions of the continent, such as Egypt or Cush. And remember, the Bible rarely identifies skin color. The Bible usually denotes a geographic area, tribe or lineage. Notable exceptions include the young man from the Song of Solomon who fell in love with a Black girl. The young man is identified as having a ruddy complexion. (Song of Solomon 5:10) 4) When it comes to Ham, take care to recall that the Bible rarely identifies skin color. And so it is with Ham, one of the three sons of Noah. Ham's complexion is never noted in the Bible. So, how could someone claim he was Black, like many White Supremacists and the Mormons do. Now, Cush, a grandson of Noah, and a son of Ham, is thought by serious Bible scholars to be the Father of the Black race. I will also note that it was Caanan and not Cush, who was cursed by Noah for uncovering his grandfather's nakedness. (Gen. 9:24-26) 5) Nimrod was described in the Bible as "a mighty hunter in opposition to the Lord." He is a Son of Cush. (1st Chronicles 1:10) There is so much confusion among some Blacks over Nimrod. Some think of him as a hero. However, the rabbinical writings derived the name Nimrod from the Hebrew verb ma•radhʹ, meaning “rebel.” Thus, the Babylonian Talmud (Erubin 53a) states: “Why, then, was he called Nimrod? Because he stirred up the whole world to rebel (himrid) against His [God’s] sovereignty.” — Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation, by Menahem M. Kasher, Vol. II, 1955, p. 79.

I also can make a case for George Floyd to be named Time's Person of the Year. His death was minutes long and it was filmed so those who wanted to could watch the entire murder video. But the death of George Floyd did not have a lasting effect all over the country for the full year. It's horror was subtly eclipsed by the presidential campaign, an active and devastating hurricane season and of course, the Pandemic. Some Blacks may rage at this notion, but it's true. Many legal experts have dissected the Floyd murder and agree that true justice will not prevail. Now as far as Emmett Till, it was not the young man, but the photos of his corpse that shocked the world. The quiet dignity and iron will of his grieving mother crystallized this event for many. Joe Biden's greatest appeal is that he is a Democrat and the former Vice President of the Obama administration. Many Blacks made hay out of Biden's comments from when he was much more conservative and tone deaf to the suffering of Blacks. Thus, his victory can be ascribed to his willingness to apologize when he knew he was wrong. George Floyd's murder pierced the composure of the U.S. by hardening the attitudes on both sides. Whites expressed disdain because they believed Floyd a career criminal. While outraged and grieving Blacks and their allies received further confirmation that this country is intractably racist, even when being filmed.

Reparations will be for centuries of unpaid labor which made millions of Whites rich and paved the way for the U.S. to become an economic power sooner than ordinarily possible. If Reparations were ever to be paid for pain and suffering, then the galaxy itself would have to be presented to the descendants of Black Slaves.

The Bible was written in ancient Hebrew and Aramaic, (the language of the Persian Empire and which some believe was the language Jesus, the Christ). The books of the New Testament, also called the Greek Scriptures, were written in Koine Greek, which was spoken in the Mediterranean thanks to the conquests of Alexander the Great. Skin color or skin hue was rarely mentioned in the Bible. Instead, geographic regions are used.

Sometimes, the news out of Africa is sickening and motives behind armed groups' behavior are stomach churning. At least, the news does get out. Even if it is bad. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-nigeria-security-kidnappings/boys-escaped-through-forest-after-gunmen-abducted-their-friends-at-nigeria-school-idUSKBN28O26V

The editors at Time Magazine chose correctly. The choice of Person of The Year is determined solely by the amount of influence they had on the events of the year. While there is an actual online poll, whomever wins that does not necessarily mean they will chosen. And that is a good thing because emotion cannot get in the way of historical analysis. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris did have the most influence over events in the U.S. Moreover, they will continue to shape the future of this country and this planet for the next few years. I offer everlasting respect and condolences to the memory, family, friends and supporters of George Floyd.