Cynique

@Pioneer1 the man is 90 years old, so maybe that accounts for you and him thinking that what he says is new. it doesn't enlighten me. Or do i find him him any more knowledgeable or authentic than the spiritual philosophers who resonate with me. So, i for one, don't need your unsolicited advice. Maybe naive young people will be awe-struck by your recommendation.

@TroyI've been thinking about this. Do you equate a "great" movement with being a "good" movement? And the lasting effect of a movement is also a factor. Aside from the Civil Rights movement, i'd think about the Harlem Renaissance Movement because it was multi-faceted in that it involved literature, arts, theater, and politics. Many positive, enduring things came out of it. Then i'd even give some thought to Nat Turner's movement which culminated in a slave revolt. It ended in failure and tragedy but it provided black people with a genuine hero and a much needed inspiration because, to this day, the struggle continues. The Hip Hop movement significantly allowed younger generation to uniquely express themselves in style, and music and attitude and it has had longevity. I really can't just choose one movement as being the "greatest". Music is important because it is associated with certain eras and the movements that occurred during them.

@Pioneer1 Social change is the result of movements. What you credit to the Anti-Establishment Baby Boomer movement in the 1960s doesn't erase the gains instituted by the Civil Rights movement that was launched by the Depression generation whose accomplishments ended segregation laws and opened up doors for black people. In the 1960s Anti-Establishment movement, Baby Boomer hippies consisted of white kids rebelling against their middle class upbringing, and this movement exulted free love and promoted drug experimentation. Their black counterparts, the Panthers were about a violent revolution which never got off the ground. There was also the Feminist movement, again the brain child of white women who wanted to step down from their pedestals and be on a par with their men.This is the torch these Baby Boomers passed on to the detriment of the generations that followed. And to add insult to injury, as they grew older, the white hippies of the counter culture movement grew up and became a part of the racist establishment they were rebelling against, leaving behind the irresponsible social changes they had introduced. Meanwhile, the Black Baby boomers didn't maintain the positives gains made by the Civil Rights movement because they were too preoccupied with material acquisitions and superficiality. The Feminist movement never really caught on because of the perceived notion that it was the creation of lesbians. Today, it along with Gay Rights is still struggling as evidenced by the "me, too" movement and the AIDS specter. Bottom line is that all social change is not for the better, and whether or not what is passed on to the next generation is good or bad, is debatable. In response to your question, grammar is about correct usage of language, sentence structure, and punctuation. It is not about misspelling or incorrect use of words. Del is guilty of not editing his work. He cleans up well. @Mel Hopkins and @Troy, you 2 really have a handle on the situation. Blacks are stuck on, maybe even dependent on making racism the culprit. And they will get irrelevant solutions when focusing on the wrong problem. The ongoing litany about black unity and white villainy is just marching in place. Using black supremacy as a weapon against white supremacy is a short-sighted exercise in futility, and being preoccupied with this takes on a zeal comparable to religious fanaticism. New strategies are, indeed, needed. And as you both suggest, different goals set.

No, Antonio, i'm not from the South. i'm a good ol midwestern girl from Illinois, born and raised in a suburb of Chicago.

@ Antonio, you aren't the first newbie to react the way you did to the tone of this forum. They all seemed a little shell-shocked, and soon faded away. i like how you handled it. Hang in here. We can all learn from each other. My grandchildren are all millennials, and we are rarely on the same page. I think it's because everything new to them is old to me and i've become jaded. My screen name is a derived from the word "cynic". Over time, i have gravitated toward being an iconoclast and in discussions, i frequently take on the contrarian role which requires people i am debating with to examine and defend their beliefs. And this is beneficial to both me and them because we can both learn something. As an aspiring writer you should always be seeking truth and authenticity.

LOL. If you think the arguing and debunking that has been going on here from day one will suddenly reverse itself, Antonio, and everybody is going be of one mind, you're in for a rude awakening. Like Troy suggests, this is an open forum where a lively exchange of ideas prevails, and nobody is encouraged to defer to another person just for the sake of harmony. Different opinions are the name of the game here, because this broadens the perspective and keeps things interesting. The regulars here routinely argue and feud with each other and then move on. We don't really take each other that seriously and "insults" roll off our backs. There does, however, seem to be a consensus here among all of us, who unlike you, are not Millennials. Black unity will remain elusive because the black community is not a monolith; it is diverse. And diversity is not necessarily a bad thing. You're input is welcome, however, because as a Millennial you represent a new interpretation on existing points of view. But don't expect to have your opinions go unchallenged. For instance, your opinion about the Black Panthers being one of the greatest movements we ever had. i don't agree. They were on a collision course with disaster from the beginning because they were ill-prepared revolutionaries more about style than substance, not to mention their abusiveness toward women. As you say, the FBI had its sites on them, and they weren't going anywhere, except to the morgue after being mowed down. In spite of their bravado about the government being able to "kill the revolutionary but not the revolution', they both died. Panther co-founder, Bobby Seale, is today a member of the mainstream and seemingly looks back, almost with detachment, at this organization which lacked viability. The greatest accomplishment of the Black Panthers was their aggravating J. Edgar Hoover, head of the FBI back then.

Words of "wizzdom" from Pioneer who undoubtedly holds multiple mail order degrees in sociology, science, anthropology, and history all of which make him an expert on nothing but his imagined scenarios. i was talking specifically about the MLK-led civil rights movement during the '50s and '60s, comprised of a segment of the population made up of both blacks and whites, people of good faith with their eyes on the prize, who grew up during the depression era, and came together to break down racial barriers. They made progress in doing this and paved the way for succeeding black generations starting with the baby boomers. You can't obscure this reality with your myopic observations. And your penchant for stating these opinion as facts is what voids everything else you assert about the succeeding generations based on your mixing specifics with generalities. You're just spouting off, speaking the language that is the native tongue in the skewed world that exists inside your head. But we've all learned to expect this from you, so drone on.

@Pioneer1 You are giving the Babyboomers credit for what my generation, the Depression Babies, accomplished. At the height of the civil rights movement and barrier breaking during the mid 1950s and all through the 60s, Babyboomers were children. We passed the torch to the Babyboomers who barely kept it burning.

WHY? None of what you're jabbering about will have a great impact on somebody of my age and circumstances.

Antonio, the word should be "insight", not "incite". Little errors like, are red flags in submission cover letters. Tidy up your syntax, too, babe. This sentence reads betters as; "you make the third person who has told me". Just an observation. Your writing has a conversational tone, so being a playwright is probably your forte. BTW, "Cynique" is my screen name, not my given one.

Writing is a very lonely profession not to mention being a very crowded and competitive one. It's like the NBA where only a chosen few make it to the pros. Your one consolation is that you are not alone. The world is full of talented writers who don't get lucky. Community theater may be a venue to have your plays produced and performed. This might lead to something bigger or at least give you some exposure and a little self satisfaction. Sometimes, just when you think all is lost and you switch your focus, Fate steps in and you become an "overnight success". The stuff of dreams.

I'm somewhere in the middle. Exact science can be dry, but unproven scientific theories are interesting to ponder, and imagine what their being eventually proven would bring about. Whether the god particle/gene has been discovered or not, the possibility of this coming into fruition one day is mind-blowing. My attitude has something to do with being a curious person. Here's another short, "controversial" video on the subject. Maybe-shouldn-t-looking-quite-hard-God-particle-destroy-universe-warns-Stephen-Hawking.html

Whatever. I.DON'T.CARE.

A very interesting and enlightening exchange. i would concede that i can loosely be described as being a "new-ager". My interest in the quest for enlightenment began in the early sixties with "Chariot of the Gods" a book about extra-terrestrial aliens, and then "Celestine Prophecy" a novel about recognizing the obvious. I was also into the properties of pyramid power and chanting. i found it plausible that pyramid receptacles could generate an atmosphere that rearranged molecules and atoms in bodies and objects, and that the repetitive sounds and vibrations of chanting mantras could have an impact of your hopes. I was also into the books of anthropologist, Carlos Castanedo, who wrote best sellers about "separate realities" conjured up by Mexican shamans. Later i read "the Secret" a book about imaging and mind power. All of this stuff has always fascinated me. It's just the way my brain is wired. And from time to time i would actually reap results from planting these ideas in my psyche. Believing was seeing. Organized religion was never my thing, but spirituality and meta-physics were a fulfilling alternative for me because they opened my mind, instead of closing it. Below is a 2-minute video about quantum physics claim to discovering what is referred to as the "god particle".

@Mel Hopkins I am always pleased and often surprised at how you "get me".

How does the meme i posted which was not written by a scientist, conflict with any of the responses to it? i got my information about the quantum physics relevancy to this subject from watching the Science channel. @TroyMy refrigerator and everything that exists are all matter in a state of flux. Our eyes draw order from chaos.

Have a scary Halloween!

The word you are trying use is "jibe" not "jive". To jibe with someone is to agree with them. Jibe can also mean “be compatible with or similar to.” If two people jibe, they get along quite well. (Definition from Merriam Webster.) Trailer park communities exists in every state, just like ghettos exist in most of them. We have to be careful in giving explanations for why whites do what they do. Especially since we tend to blow off whites when they seek to explain why blacks do what they do. Trailer park dwellers are no different from white suburbanites when it comes to a choice of where to live. Racism crosses all classes. Poor whites helplessly stay where they are because they are too unskilled and dumb to be upwardly mobile. They along with ghetto blacks have been relegated to the fate of the have-nots in a capitalistic society. i think if you interviewed blacks in the inner city, i'm sure you'd find they have just as much revulsion and contempt for poor whites as these woebegotten cretins have for them. So why worry about why poor whites are where they are. Who cares?

@Troy and @Pioneer1I think quantum physics is an exact science. Its experiments have proven that your eyes integrate an image that disintegrates when the eyes look away. i have no problem at all with believing that people are subjective when it comes to what they see. That's why eye witness accounts are so unreliable. Do either of you know whether what i call the color "blue" is what you call the color "blue". Quantum physics has also proven that something can be 2 places at once. Quantum physics is the stuff of the universe along with mathematics. Since i believe that reality is in the eye of the beholder, i am very compatible with this meme which is why i posted it. Your scoffs don't count as credible rebuttals.

I'm finding it interesting, that when i express "unpopular" opinions here and on FaceBook, there are always a few who speak up and confide, that i am just verbalizing what many people think. So it is occurring to me that since most of what i said in my "carefree" vent, is a rejection of political correctness, political correctness bears closer analysis because it is a double-edge sword. It charges people to exorcise their personal prejudices and conform to what is considered civility when dealing with their fellow human beings. Since we are all flawed individuals, and human nature is difficult to suppress, people become conflicted about thinking one thing and saying another. This is what has spawned a polite society that is separate from the real world. In the real world people like me remind ourselves that we should live and let live, but we still, for example, cringe when we see public displays of affection among same-sex couples. We still think the word "retarded" is a legitimate one when referring to "mentally challenged" people. We still prefer mothers to not nurse their babies in public or to at least cover their breast when doing so. We still think that dressing provocatively is sending signals to men, since women who show off their physical assets are presumably not trying to appeal to other women. We still think trans-gendered people are weird. We still wish black folks wouldn't make it so hard to defend them because of the stupid things they do. I could go on and on. But these are all private opinions we harbor while publicly hating Donald Trump because in the big picture he and his supporters are our worst nightmare. It is becoming clear that this political correctness specter played a significant role in the last presidential election. Trump's followers were tired of high-minded liberals dictating who and what they should accept. And now these deplorable bigots are happy because they are free to be themselves. Meanwhile liberals are unhappy because their "inclusiveness" formula couldn't dissolve the electoral college. In the ongoing battle between Liberals and Conservatives, the right-wingers are presently in control. Why? Because our esteemed ex-president Obama and his scrupulous wife, set the pace by going "high" when the Republicans went "low". A credo that seems to permeate the liberal philosophy. Pundit Bill Maher says "screw" this. Democrats need to take off the gloves and fight dirty, too. The only option is to be patient. Political dominance goes in cycles, and the minority party invariably makes a comeback. Meanwhile, the voting public alternates between polite society and the real world, struggling to do what is right instead of what is natural. The truth is a bitch.

In the twilight of my years, there are a lot of things about which i've been trying to not let my baser instincts prevail. But lately, i have become inundated with current events that i am just not compatible with or sympathetic about. In my ongoing search for the truth, i have begun to look inward and if i am to be honest, i have no choice but to confess that i am descending into a state of "i don't give a damnism". i am not proud of this but the truth is not always pretty and, in my case, there are many things that have neutralized my humanity and no longer inspire my concern. Where to begin? What don't i give a damn about? Well, i don't care about the plight of Muslim immigrants or Hispanic illegals. i don't care about feminists and their shrill complaints about sexual harassment. i don't care about the ambiguous Black Lives Matter movement. i don't care about the opioid epidemic. i don't care about the Las Vegas mass murders. i don't care about manipulation of corporate America. i don't care about anything pertaining to celebrities. i don't care about any black actor or author who has an African surname. i don't care about the america flag or the country that it flies over. More specifically, why should i care about clannish Muslims, hovering in their little enclaves, their women claiming to not be submissive while dutifully wearing head coverings? Why shold i care about hard-working Mexicans speaking Spanish and implicitly scorning lazy blacks. Neither one of these group have ever bonded with black people in their struggle but instead just want to avail themselves of a better life they hope America will provide. Why should I care about this "me too" mania of white women and their phony newly-found male supporters who formerly looked the other way and shrugged, all jumping on the bandwagon pointing their fingers as if dirty ol men haven't always been around propositioning females, many of whom took them up on their offers. Not to mention the ambitious aggressive seducers using their wiles to get what they wanted from men. None of this is new to long-suffering black women who are not held in high esteem like fragile, intimidated white women. Why should i care about the floundering BLM movement which has been taken over by inept self-serving leaders putting out a message that is being blatantly ignored? Why should i care about the opioid crises and its white suburban victims any more than whites cared about the crack epidemic that devastated black ghettos. Why should i care about the Las Vegas terrorist shootings, white-on-white crime instead of white-on-black killings at the hands of police terrorism? Why should i waste time caring about Amazon and FaceBook and other mega capitalists who exploit the powerless masses of every color? Why should i care about the baby bumps and hook-ups and excesses in the shallow ranks of the rich and famous? Why should i rejoice about the success of Africans living in this country who reap all the benefits that American-born blacks fought and died for, smug pervasive late comers with strange names who haven't paid their dues? Why should i care about that star spangled rag that is the symbol of red genocide, black enslavement, and white entitlement. Or about the BS country that this besmirched banner represents. Why should i care indeed? i have better things to occupy myself with. Do i sound like a bitter black woman, lacking in compassion? Can i regard life as a big joke and be bitter at the same time?

@Mark RadfordPretty much where i am. i have to stop expending my energy on hating the Donald Trump disease which is infecting this country. i am ready to secede from America and live in my own world.

What do you consider the mainstream media? Every story I've heard about the LaDavid Johnson tragedy on the evening news and daily newspapers reports how the Congressional Black Caucus is demanding that Trump and Kelly apologize for disrespecting and mocking this black law maker. Nobody is telling blacks to stay out of the military. Blacks serving their country are who protesters can point to when patriots say they are dishonoring the flag young men fought and died for. What better retort than to remind these neo-fascists that black guys also fought and died for their people to be free to challenge injustice.