careycarey

I have to say I really do not like the word "coon" and I shouldn't have used it. I hear it so much in reference to Tyler Perry and his films and I've never liked it. For one, the word "coon" was first introduced by racist white people, and now, misguidedly, we are using the word to describe one of our own. And really, I don’t know what the word means. Really, WTH is a coon and coonery? re: The election and the issues. I believe some Troy said it best... "Obama's chances will really be determined by the narrative his team comes up with to get people to come to the poles and vote for him” That’s where I’m at. The job issue is a (smoke screen) as was the debt ceiling debacle. In reality, those issues were only being used as a stick to beat Obama with. They, the politicians had absolutely nothing to lose. And please, jobs? How does a president really create jobs for those who are not working? Granted, there are many opinions, but in reality, short of something on the order of Work Projects Administration; WPA, the rich get richer and there’s little ways to stop that, so the work force will continue to decrease. It’s one big game. But all goodbye is not gone, imo. Obama is the best orator in the last 50 years or more, and he knows what he’s up against... been there and done that. It’s a war of word with one battle (issues) that will always be real and relevant... racism and bigotry. That’s the biggest elephant in this race and don’t let anyone convince you differently. Obama is getting ready and WILL win with words b/c he has his thumb on human emotions, and his opponents have showed their hold cards.

Here we are again. I can't stand suck butt smilley (I believe Troy loves him). I don't know their movitation, but more importantly I doubt their efforts will bring any measurable results. And to that point, I believe their efforts are doing more harm for the re-election of Obama, than solving the poverty issue. Now, I guess it's time for me to say... If not Obama than who? I really want Sippin' and Pimpin' to answer that question. Of course we've had the arguments on "making him accountable" and "we can't give him a pass because he's a black man" and " constructive feedback is a positive thing" but in reality those words produce no real results. So my question is "postive' for who and how? Case in point, Toe Nail & Travisty are speaking out and suppositly making the President accountable (not giving him a pass) but there's not fruit in their baskets. It's just talk.

Coon & Coon II. So they're on a bus tour kicking up dust? Those 2 released slaves must be getting paid b/c I can't find any other reason and results behind their chitlin tour. I wonder if they have those two white chicks or Romney on the bus? I mean, what's their purpose b/c they sure ain't creating jobs. So they must be driving Mr or Mrs daisy to the White House.

Okay Troy, I'll be waiting.

Troy, would you consider coming on a live podcast... your segment would not last longer than 1/2 hour. The blog is on the indiewire network. You could address the issue of trends in the book world, which to a large degree, is the same issues facing the black film world. You would be a perfect guest. You would talk from first hand experience. Hit me at my e-mail, I believe I can hook it up. On the businees tip, I believe it would be another great avenue to promote your site. ~Carey careydarnell@yahoo.com I no longer get e-mail notifications when someone posts a comment, b/c my e-mail address has changed. So do what you can do to change that, and hit me if you're interested. On a side note, one of the main contributor on the site is a writer for Ebony. Recently he posted his interview with Sapphire, the author of Push and The Kid.

Opps, here's a link to the newest debate, when I last checked there was 20 comments...Identifying Trends in Novels about Black People Made Into films.... Your input requested" http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/archives/identifying_trends_in_novels_about_black_people_made_into_films..._your_inp/

What's up y'all. Troy, watching movies is one of my grestest passions, so by a natural extension of “storytelling” books and your site fell out of my mouth when I was in a heated debate concerning The Help. First, one of the arguments centered around white folks telling “our” stories. But eventually the arguments moved to the core of a bigger complaint... maids, and their life and times, and how they are depicted on the screen. For the most part, I believe many blacks- on this one particular site with a huge fan base - , simply used the discussion and the movie as a way to vent on white people. So, to see if that was true, I introduced the “maid” books by Barbara Neely. Oh boy, many had not heard of her and when I said her books were written by a black women, about a black maid, and from the viewpoint of the maid, many were left with the mouths hanging open because now, they couldn’t throw stones at a white person and the author of The Help. But see, I pointed out that those who thought The Help was a glamorized or sugar coated version of a maids life, might also have similar complaints with Neely’s books. In short, my personal beliefs concerning this movie and all the uproar, is the image of a maid, and how each individuals likes and dislikes, history, visions, concepts or whatever, moves each individual. I mean, I don’t go to movies as a source of learning. Sure, there are subtle messages in every movie, but I don’t think the goal of this movie was to promote the white savior slant, nor to relieve whites of their guilt. To me it’s simply a chick-flick-date-flick, told by a white woman for it’s entertainment value. Additionally, many of the arguments centered on what many believed are limited stories written by us and about “us” and why that was. So again, I took it upon myself to suggest that there was this wonderful book site AALBC that has thousands of stories written by and about black folk. I linked your page on authors and their profiles. I told them they would find nearly one thousand black authors on that page alone. That reminds me, today they posted a question asking which books, written by black authors, should and/or chould be made into movies. I beleive the question also asked which movie, adapted from a book... did the best job? So Troy, after I posted the link (which got me back here) I came back to see if Cynique or anyone else was discussing the movie. And sure enough, Cynique had voiced her opinion. The blog site in mention was rated as one of the top 30 black websites by Ebony/Jet and The Root, so you owe me *LOL* And yeah, I agree, facebook, twitter and the like has wiped out mediums such as this. On a side note, I also got a chance to champion your site when a discussion involved the trend of “ black” movies moving away from great storytelling and “quality” movies to... lets say, more popular movies, or at least the ones that are in the most demand and making the most money. Well, as you know, we’ve been having that discussion over here for some time, long before Tyler Perry blew up.. We’ve witnessed the hardship of some authors to continue to make a living writing the types of books that always paid the bills. So I got a chance to talk about your web-site because books and movies go hand n hand. Hey, go over there and toot your own horn. Screenwriters, movie producers, filmmakers and actors do it all the time. Hey, come to think of it, you might be perfect for one of their live podcast. I was a co-host on one of their shows. Yep, you would be perfect to talk about everything involved the black storytelling world. Their last guest was the owner of Melee productions. They are the production company behind the Friday Movies and "You got Served". Now they are doing a movie starring Isiah Washington, called The Undershepard... I believe that's the name. Anyway, I got a chance to talk to the director (on this same site) of the movie Russ Par, and he said he can't wait to see my review. But let me tell you something, based on a 50 second clip that he posted, I said the movie was lacking in so many ways. Well, that's when he said what he said. I am trying to get other sneak peeks from him but he is yet to hit me back. I gues I wasn't very... ahh... easy on his movie *smile*

Dang it Cynique, I was ready to come back to my old stomping grounds and get it on with you, just like the old days. But nope, I am actually in agreement with everything you said, including the part about you mother once working as a maid... so did mine. But I don't know why I am surprise at the position you've taken? Hell, you've always moved away from the main stream (sort of). I mean, everywhere I went everybody was crying about this movie, and the actors, and the white writer, and the "black savior movie" slant. Damn, I've never got so tired of negroes whinning and crying in my whole life. And get this, much of it was coming from people that had not read the book, nor had they seen the movie! One of the major uproars was over black actors having to, or accepting roles as maids. Oh yeah, they were screaming about white folks this... and white folks that and shame on those actors. And Shame on the NAACP. . I was like, write your own damn story. This book was not a case study of the life and times of maids from "that" period. The book (and movie) was not focused on civil rights, nor was it a portrait of civil rights and the po' suffering maid. It simply was not that kind of party, nor was it intend to be. Like you mother, my mother was not worked like a dog, and she would not be talked to like she was less than. Yet, some of the complaints about this movie centered around a "false" representation of a maids life. I know maids come in all flavors and thier employers do to. And you and I both know that white folks in the North can be, and many times are, much more evil than those in the south. Martin Luther King said the same. Nice post.

What'sup Kola, Woman, I've been seeing your face and name all over the blogsphere. One blogger had a picture of you and her while you were signing your new book (in Harlem). Now don't ask me the store or the bloggers name, because I'll probably jack it. You had your legs crossed sitting on a table. Anyway, she did a whole post on you. And, I was once treatened to be barred from Womanist Musings. Oh yeah, I think I stepped on ol'girls toes, but we're cool now, although I don't visit her blog anymore. I mean, that blog is difinitely a women's spot (kind of man hating if you ask me) and our conversations/disagreement carried over from a guest post I did @ RiPPa's site... The Intersection Of Madness. Anyway, I'm gonna read your essay, but I have to tell you that I am probably on the other side of the fence, but I am tired. I've talk about this movie for DAYS! So excuse me if I can't muster up one more rebuttle. But if come back and force me, I'll copy and paste a few of my "comments" and then we can get it on.... one mo again :=) It's great that you're still doing your thang. How is you new book going? That title is, ah... We'll have to talk :-) And btw, I still have my autographed copy of your book with all your breastisses hangin' out. But you know what, I once hit an Amazon link on you, and that book was not listed? Do I have a collectors item or what.

That was pretty good. You had me hook, line, and sinker. However, somewhere back in my mind, I thought to myself, here comes Cynique, she's about to beat up my girl Oprah. But, it's just another loss for the city of Chicago. Oprah on Wednesday, and the Bulls close behind.

"Better stick to rooting for Obama, Carey. Like The Bulls and The Heat, he isn't over the hill" Well, the stars of the Bulls and The Heat are black men. And Obama is black, but soon,like real soon, one will be standing on the sidelines. So yeah, I'm laying odds that Obama will be the last black player - standing. Momma didn't raise no fools.

"Electa" started her career around the time this board was up and jumping. She used to visit (here) quite a bit. In fact, I just spoke with her about 3 weeks ago. There's a movie being made by the title of her second book, but it's not being adapted from her book. And who, may I ask , are you? What's your connection to Electa, and when did you start reading her books? What's your favorite?

Po Crystal... why are you always hatin' on Koby? You better get on a winning team instead of riding with the losers *cough* Clippers. Now, since everyone on the Bulls sucks, with the exception of Rose, they may not make it to the second round. And since LeBron still sucks, I am riding with Boston in a tuff series with THE LAKERS.

Breathebooks, If I had your hand I'd throw mine away. You dissected Rudy's piece with the brilliance of a skilled surgeon. I knew someone saw through that purple prose. Oh how I love this.... "These phrases clearly reveal animus", and this... " Who has attempted to elevate President Obama to sainthood? Is it not presumptous to ascertain that President Obama has not changed the "context in which he lived"?".... and espeacially this... "We" have refused to acknowledge that racial pride can manifest as myopia? Which we? The nation nor any racial subset are monolithic. Furthermore, how is it that the myopia relates to how "we" misunderstood our President? Incidentally, "excessive racial pride" is redundant

Done. April 11th, 7:45 CST

"Engaging in an adult discussion is not about cloaking your responses in petulance and pettiness." OH MY GOD!, Cynique backed into a bit of wisdom. Now, lets she if she can practice her new found wisdom, as it relates to President Obama. Thank you, my work is done.

Considering my above comment, here's what I am suggesting. First, it's unreasonable to believe that all the conversations and scorn directed at President Obama is justified and comes from individuals that have all POC's and President Obama in their best interest. And, much of that "discourse" is spoken from those that have ulterior motives behind their opinions. That's true and cannot be denied. So I am suggesting the following should be considered. I heard a bunch of negros being played like black pawns. So, Obama did what? Nigga please, where do you get your news? From what I am hearing, you got your misguided opinions from another negro. And you didn't look very deep. And then you all joined hands. Yelp, another case of monkey see, monkey see doo-doo. If all they (sing along chorus) heard be true (WHICH I DOUBT), my question is, why are they playing in that mess? Try this at home. When you find yourself in a conversation with another person, start talking negatively about someone of something, and then notice what the other person does. You guessed it, 90% OF THE TIME THEY WILL FOLLOW SUIT, because people usually give us what they are given. It's simple human behavior (unfortunately) to be part of "a common opinion", if only for that moment in time. It's easier to be "agreeable". Really, try this at home. Give someone a smile, and in most cases, I bet you get one back. Even a stranger will return a smile. On the flip-side, mean-mug someone and I bet you do not receive a smile. That's just simple human behavior. I am suggesting that one dirty face takes away 10 "atta-boys". And again, there are more followers than there are leaders. More importantly, the risk is always a given - negative attracts negative. No value, no reward. Skepticism and mistrust should led a person to always look up the information or theories people present. It's basically the development of the scientific mindset... And, "A good scientist is observant and notices thing in the world around him/herself. (S)he sees, hears, or in some other way notices what’s going on in the world and becomes curious about what’s happening". By doing a deep investigation of the motives and opinions of others, a person can actually come to a qualified conclusion. The problem is MOST people will watch one documentary, believe everything, and stop there. They might take action, but when they actually try to explain to someone else why they are taking action, they realize they don't even know why they are taking action. They give up because they still only have the band-aid of knowledge. That is the problem that lies behind someone getting their information from the wrong source. That's the problem! They got it from a source, instead of exploring all there is on the topic from all sides. If they do that, then they come to their OWN conclusions based on all the information they've seen and can actually BELIEVE in it and defend their beliefs. So, I've been reading some of the limber mouth rhetoric of some of our black naysay negro brothers and sisters. They've been ranting that Obama did this and that, much of which had nothing to do with his power to conrol the situation and had nothing to do with his skin color. Now mind you, little or nothing of what they are saying is rooted in any facts, but nevertheless, they are quick to point a glaring stare at Mr Obama. I am asking those misguided bobbin head Uncle Toms and Tomettes to tell me where they are getting their information and how much of it do they believe to be true. Because if it's not fact based and not voiced to persuade other to dance on Obama's head, then they need to check themselves. If this shoe does not fit don't wear it. But negroes please, if this shoe does fit, why don't you sit down a while before you speak. Don't be so prone to jump on a bandwagon before you know where it's going, and why it's going in that direction. Get your own map, and map your own direction. Then you'll be standing on facts instead of porous opinions, or some sh*t you heard on CNN or Fox news. Fools go where wise men tread not. But if you like swimming in popular opinion and getting screwed along the way, keep your head down, and your back bent. Somebody will come along with a smile and give you what you want. Then you can drop to your knees and sing the old niggerette spiritual, "Free at last, free at last, great googlemoogle, I got it up my A$$". Some negros love to drink a little wine and talk on the tele-negro-phone. Monkey see, monkey do the doo-doo.

"If you watch it, I suspect it will put things into perspective for you and help you understand why Obama is really part of the problem" Excuse me, help "me" put things into perspective. If you're implying that I don't know what time it is, you're woefully mistaken. Listen, the structure of america and it's political system has always been about power and money. As far back as the evolution of the polical parties, it's always been about control, power and money. There's nothing new here. Democrates were not always called Democrats, and the Republican party has gone through several name changes , But s the most prevalent issue have always been the same, ie, money, power and control. The grand Civil War was not about freedom for the black man. At it's root was the issue of MONEY! So Troy, you're not telling me anything new and you certainly are not changing my perspective. Anyway, since we all agree that there's a established power structure, it stands to reason that any Tom, Dick or Harry could be plugged into the solution (president) and little will change. Now, let me see if I can change your perspective. "Folks like Tavis, Dyson, West, Farakhan are trying to point out these problems".... "we have a "Wall Street government". "folks like us with no power or money squabble over while the folks with real control "stack mad paper". Troy, now it's time we all say AMEN! Now, if we believe the following is true, then i'll move to my basic point of contention. look.... "Any benefit that we accrue as a result of an Obama (any man's presidency) is purely incidental" Troy, I know you know where I am going so I won't belabor the point, I'll just ask a few simple questions. First, my usual..... if not Obama than who? Second, considering all the things we've mentioned, do you believe all the race centered scorn and ridicule, directed at President Obama is justified and/or necessary? Really, what part of the solutions calls for calling him a mulatto, or any of the other disrespectful names used to assasinate his character? More importantly, how productive is it to call those that do not wish to engage in that form of vile conversation.... hero worshippers, or any of the other names that have been used to imply we are simply following a man with a God like hold on our brains.? Slavish devotees?! WTF? Look, in short, pointing out problems is great, but the ways and mean of doing such (re: Obama), frequently has missed the mark. Although we've agreed that many matters are out of Obama's control, many use any nondescript problem (out of Obama's control) as a vehicle to vilify him. You have to agree that it's not always "contructive criticism". That's MY perspective. And Troy, comments like the following should be addressed and cannot be supported. It's nothing more than foolish banter... You said, "We have blinded ourselves with slavish devotion to Obama". First, who in the hell are "we" and please explain "slavish devotion"? See Troy, it's statements like that, that I believe should be called to the floor. Troy, it's terribly presumptious of you and possibly snooty of you to make such statements. Surely you can see (as I pointed out) that using Obama to voice all your concerns does not play to everyone's ear. Frequently it's heard as negros talking shit and moving their own selfish agenda.

O-TAY! Does this mean you're not gonna kiss me in the morning?

Let me check my list... ahh... let's see, here it is.... numbskull #92. Well Cynique, you're slippin'. You have to come up with more creative names. But listen, when are you going to realize I have no intention of engaging in conversation whose sole purpose is to highlight Obama's alledged missteps. I've said that many times. If it serve no purpose other than entertain those that love to gossip and swim in negativity, I don't play those kind of games. So why oh why do you keep saying I should refute-rebuttle and/or debate every issue the naysayers lay on the table? When, and i I did that, I'd be playing right into the hands of another man's game. So, just like you feel it's important to critiques the errs of President Obama, I have the right to shine my light on those who I believe are hurting the cause. Let's just call it my form of critical analysis of the critic. And my style is different than yours, but you can't seem to come to grips with that. Instead, you've taken it upon yourself to analyze (wrongly I must say) my understanding of the porous opinions that frequently find there way in this type of discussion, and then speak for me. While doing so, you don't seem to understand that you're actually showing how much of a deep thinker.... you're not. Consequently, your presumptious attitude will always find you sucking hind tit.

Look mom, up in the sky, it's a bird... it's a plane.... no, it's the black creature from the black lagoon of days gone by. She's risen from her deep slumber to support a negro gone wild, Rudy "Rufus" Lewis. Although she berates those that pull back the smoke and mirrors of the uncover snakes, she feeds on those and champions those who talk with fork tongues. However, many don't take her seriously because she's an old school fool, and thus, has paid her dues to bite on the wrong ass. But she will continue to try to influence others by her evil ways of twisting and turning the words of others, because that's what the oldest of old people do. They will never admit that they're being bamboozled. Yep, there are many shade of blackness, and some are called wanna-be something that they are not, Cynique. Move out of your own way and you might learn something. They say a mind is a terrible thang to waste and it's never too late to learn. Go for it.

Seriously?! I mean Troy, did you read Rudy's garbage? Surely you didn't really believe those 2 opinions should be displayed as competing points of view? One was a scathing attack on the President (2200 words!), and the other was a light speech by a motivational speaker (1100 words), who I believe has a strong faith. Now look at this.... "If truth be told, what Obama tried to escape was not the murder of his father and incest with his mother. The urge of the young Mr. Obama who finally ended up in law school was his middle-class attempt to escape ordinariness. He wanted to become special when his fate was to be an imitator of flawed but successful ordinary men accidentally raised to high places. Many of us mistakenly thought him a genius, a godlike creature, a view which he encouraged by making himself over in the religious consciousness of Negroes, namely, to proclaim himself a Joshua" WTH? Truth?! Many of us mistakenly thought him a genius, a godlike creature?! First, Mr Rufus Rudolph should be slapped for insulting our intelligence, and Troy should get a swift kick in his ass for posting this propaganda. And Mr Lewis continued to imply that all black folks are gullible fools, lead by an unrealistic optimism. "But in African-American history the folks allow the existence of the arrival into the world countless approximations of the biblical prophet Moses" Really Troy?! Really Rudy?! And it gets uglier: "Those kinds of individuals appear as well in African history. For instance, there was the successor to the Albanian Muhammad Ali, namely, Muhammad Ahmad, a Sudanese who was to fulfill his fate by way of a religious teacher, maybe in ways not too unlike a Jeremiah Wright. And Ahmad, though a rather ordinary fellow himself, remade himself imaginatively into the Mahdi and by historical chance became the father of modern Sudan, or Sudanese nationalism, by laying the foundation by which the colonized tribes finally expelled their Anglo-Egyptian oppressors. Ahmad lived a rather short life and probably hoped like all such leaders in a monarchial climate that he would be able to establish a family dynasty. Of course, religion is never really established on or in or as a rock and after his death from some disease or poison all that he left by inspiration was remade into something else that did little to advance Sudan toward righteousness or a more perfect nation" Really Troy? But how low could he go.... "Maybe a similar messenger can be found in African American history, namely in the mulatto Nathaniel Turner, the prophet of Southampton. Turner was one of those ordinary persons who was saved from the fate of ordinariness by self-criticism, sexual piety, and self-sacrifice. Mr. Obama, I suspect now, never possessed Turner’s correcting traits. “Ole Nat Turner,” born old like Obama, was probably, though a murderer from necessity because of his religious beliefs (a modern-day Jesus)" Shame on you Troy. Mr Rudy's whole piece was a shameful attack on religion and all people of color who support President Obama. And you paid money for this?!!! SMDH

[quote Two writers with two very different prespectives on President Barack Obama; read what they have to say and vote on which opinion most closely matches yours. http://aalbc.it/obamaprocon

Please, right or wrong, different prespectives ? That was a race between a thoroughbred and a snake. Shame on Troy Johnson for presenting Lewis's rhetoric as a valid argument that addressed the issue of "construtive criticism": One opinion was nothing more than an attack on President Obama's character and a very disrespectful way of insulting his family. And an insult to the intelligence of all people of color. I couldn't even finish Rufus's Rudolph's piece because the opening told me which way he was going. Look, when he opened with his negrofied version of an " Oedipus complex” I knew he was on some BS. I mean, I tried to finish it but it was filled with so many idotic assumptions, it became nothing more than a fool's errand to continue reading. Listen, this man, Rudolph Lewis, wrote the following... "The Greeks warned us so long ago that hubris was a fault. They passed down to us kindly through the ages the character Oedipus as a poetic reminder. Here I do not propose to be Mr. Obama's analyst. I possess no talent and training for what is Oedipal and what is not Oedipal" "I POSSESS NO TALENT AND NO TRAINING FOR WHAT IS OEDIPAL AND WHAT IS NOT OEDIPAL!!!" Really, as if his words didn't speak for him. But I wonder why he even mentioned that nonsense? But since he showed his hand, I knew this man must have thought he was talking to a room full of kindergarteners . You know, those that might be impressed by "big words" or quotes of mythical gods. Look, hubris means extreme haughtiness, pride or arrogance. It often indicates a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of one's own competence or capabilities. So what was Rudolph The Black Nose Reindeer carrying... what message was he delivering? It's awfully presumptious of Mr. Lewis to imply that those of us that accept President Obama's faults, are some kind of stupid brown blind mice. Uuuum, maybe, just maybe, the ol' hubris one - was thee I see? And dare I explain Oedipus, the mythical Greek king of Thebes, who fulfilled a prophecy that said he would kill his father and marry his mother? Nope, after reading that mess, I believe Mr Lewis must think we're a house of special kind of fools. Consequently, he might come back and tell us his name is Henny Penny and inform us that sky is falling down. I wouldn't want that to happen because I am sure there are no Ducky luckies and Loosey Goosey's up in here. But wait a minute, that must be it! The ol' gray bearded Foxy Loxy Rudy Tooty, must have thought he was talking to a room full of gullible fools who he could lead down his funky den of inequity. My god, I don't believe there is a truly "thinking" man or woman who could legitimately claim or believe the request to "watch the motive of others" regarding the public flogging of a President can compare to what some would call "hero worship". In short, if Mr Lewis believes those of us who support Obama's mission and feel no need, nor purpose, to highlight all his "alledged" missteps, are some kind of closed mouthed groupies, he's obviously blinded by his own arrogance and a need to stroke his own ego. Consequently, what misguided negro would say their opinion most closely matched that of the runaway "mouth" fugitive? Wanted: Educated fool, Rudy. Approach with caution!

What, no new names? Don't tell me we're stuck on #138 "Old Fart"? Anyway, I can use 50 bucks and i started to take a shot, but by the time I read the post, it was a done deal. But no way am I letting you off the hook because you "said" you would vote Democratic. And since Troy didn't speak up, I know he has his Dixie flag under his pillow. But Cynique, I don't understand why you would vote Democratic when over the last 3 years you've trashed everything associated with this administration? The records will show that you have not said one nice thing about Obama. See, now you're really starting to show the signs of a diehard hater. I mean, you hate the person and everything associated with him, but tomorrow you're going to love his dirty underwear? That makes no sense at all. And see, I'm not going to tell you to stfu, but lets talk about this dense thang, and who's really missing the part. You said whoever is president will always be subject to criticism by the loyal opposition who elected him. Now wait one minute Ms Loyal opposition. Yeah, "loyal opposition"??? Lets take a deeper look into your crazy mind game. .. "always be subject to criticism". Uuuummm, first, I've always (and will continue to) questioned your use of the word "criticism", but I'm going to let that slide today. But check this, over the last few years, you've yet to tell me the purpose behind you're style of criticism. Really, sure, it's easy to hide behind the trite - free pass - that everybody does it. But what's to gain by doing "it"? Seriously, just because everyone is doing it, does not make it right. And I've said this before, since you implied that you want President Obama to stay in office for a second term, do you believe your "criticism", barks and bites, will move people toward him or away from him? Really, I believe it's safe to say a few people might read your criticism. In short, what propels you to stomp on our president every chance you get? Can't be the shoes?