Pioneer1

Troy .... so why did race only become an issue In the last few hundred years a mere fraction of a second in the amount of time humans walked the planet It didn't. Race has been a MAJOR issue on this planet for atleast 6000 years if not longer. We can talk about the Egyptians and how they considered the Caucasian race of the deserts north of them to be savages and children of Set/Typhon. Or we can talk about ancient India and how the Caucasians invaded and land and set up a racist religious system about 4000 years ago. Race has been a problem for a long time on this planet. In Ebonics we say: Mayne...race BEEN a problem own dis mug!

Troy Come on man you need examples of bad people? Andrew Jackson: bad, J Edgar Hoover: Bad, every slave master : Bad (including Thomas Jefferson). Wait..... Are we talking about "bad people" or "bad things HAPPENING" to people????? You said "bad" in the context of things that didn't happen to atheists and other types.

Troy did you seem him on a Facebook site? No. To be honest I'm not sure why I thought about him. I actually thought of his name a week ago when you first started the thread but forgot to ask you. Chev LOL! You gotta be kidding! ....lol. He's brilliant. He has a lot of insight imo. "Lol...now YOU gotta be kidding!"

Chev Thanks a lot! Thank you for taking the time to read it! I can get long winded! I enjoyed it. There's a lot of detail for me to "picture" while I'm reading the story, which is why I said you should be an author. No way! Really!? I'm not sure if you can cross the border now, but when I lived in the Detroit area I used to go to Canada a lot. I started when I was a teenager. AfroAmericans noticed that we were treated much better in Canada than we were in the United States and couldn't figure out why at first. But the more time I spent there the more I noticed how the government encouraged true diversity and didn't allow the same things that are allowed here. Aside from having more nudity and less violence on their television.....lol...they also have more diversity (REAL diversity) and a more globalistic outlook on their television stations than you'll find in the United States. It's like watching an adult version of Sesame Street. The people are more educated and more peaceful too. Crime is "controlled" here......while in Canada it seems to be actively prevented.

Troy I figured I’d ask you since you said you were being treated special by the supreme being. I didn't say that. Meanwhile, heathens atheists and all types of ne’er-do-wells go through life without anything particularly bad happening to them. I'm not sure how accurate that statement is. I'd have to get a proper understanding of what you consider "bad". Many atheists get into terrible accidents and contract terrible diseases which leads to suffering. The thought that their final days or hours of existence will be spent suffering with nothing else coming after has to be a tremendous psychological toll for them. So why were you and Donald Trump treated so well by the supreme being? How do you know Donald Trump is being treated well? Do you know his medical or psychological condition to make that assessment?

Troy What are you talking about man? I set the Youtube video to play on the last 15 minutes of the program! Really, her points about how we as AfroAmericans used to live in a more tightly knit community were only about the first 5-10 minutes of that...which is what I wanted to share. You shouldn't have had to play the entire video from the beginning. She's usually great to look at (she usually looks much better than she did in that video) but she's not the most dynamic speaker anyway. Only the final 10 or 15 minutes makes the point.

Chevdove No one can tell a story like you, lol. “Is he Black?” I said, “Yes.” Then she tipped her head to the side and said with a matter-of-factly tone, “Then, he’ll get in.” – -- Well, my mouth dropped open! My eyes stretched open a little wider! I now know that sometimes Caucasians....when they get to know you well, literally FORGET that you are Black and they'll talk to you the same way they'll talk to other Caucasians. Which is usually in a RACIST manner, lol. I ran up the stairs and into the room and roused him. His arms were folded across his chest. He came to and slowly sat up and looked at me. Then he stood up. So, I said, “Okay! The door was locked. How did you get in!?” He wrinkled his forehead and look at me sideways and said, “Oh girl, please.” Then he grabbed my shoulders and sat me aside and walked off to the bathroom. Lol, sounds like something I would say and do! Like...what the hell did you wake him up from enjoying his sleep just to ask him a question like that could have waiting for the morning!!! Which was probably a blessing in disguise because Maurice had begun to pursue me and call me at home! Damn! Booooy, boy, boy...... Was Bethany wrong in her beliefs? Sounds like she was RIGHT to me. She said he'll find a way to get in...lol...and he did. What was it about that particular statement that seemed to piss you off? Was it the implication that him being Black meant he was good at "breaking in" buildings or something? I have come to believe too that exploitations by way of the government helps to shape race relations and how we may sometimes unknowingly succumb to superficial beliefs. Ofcourse. The U.S. perpetuates racism through it's media as well as it's local government policies that ALLOW people to be racist and practice their racism. People are allowed to live together in segregated communities and schools where everyone is of a certain race or ethnicity. You just go over the border to Canada and you won't see this because the government doesn't allow it. I really enjoyed that story. It was well detailed. I also learned about how important "steak orders" are to waitresses! I had no idea until you told us. I used to flirt with waitresses a LOT. Even got touchy-feely with them, right up until about a few years ago when I stopped because of the Me Too movement. I didn't want to catch a case. I forgot whether you said so or not but you should become an author, you seem to have a good memory and write with clear detail.

This is why the concept is RACE is so important! If you focus on limited terms like "German" or "European" you'll miss the bigger picture that racism was also practiced in places like India, and among the Arabs through out northern Africa. Race is biological and genetic, so it transcends national and geographical boundaries. You aren't limited to just one territory or period of time.

Chev I met quite a few seemingly well functioning adults who said they were going to be put in or WERE put in special education programs as children. As I've gotten older I've learned that people often mature A-symetrically. Meaning sometimes parts of their bodies and minds don't always mature at the same rate as other parts do. Sometimes a person's nose will not grow at the same rate as their face, or their legs won't grow at the same rate as their torso. But by the time they reach full adulthood things tend to balanced nicely. It's the same with the brain, some parts mature faster or slower than others and perhaps many people who are mistaken for having an intellectual disability are just experiencing an asymetrical maturation. Troy Yes, that is my question. How many people have you actually asked this question to? Perhaps YOU THINK they are worshipping a god who has done nothing for them based on YOUR perspective and assessment of their lives, but if you talked to them they would tell you otherwise. How many people have you met who actually TOLD you that the Being/being they worship does nothing for them?

Troy I did not, nor have I ever considered banning Chevdove. What about @Delano ? Lol, I notice you didn't say the same for him! Hey, maybe I'm mixing this site with another site but didn't we have a poster on here a few years ago named Nah Sun or Na Sun or similar? Chev Oh no! Not Delano! No way! LOL. He offers a lot! Yes but...do we really WANT what he's offering?????

Well, if you notice.....the racist Caucasians in the media are playing a "tit for tat" game with racist crimes against Asians in the United States. Everytime a Caucasian commits a heinous crime against an Asians like what happened in Atlanta, all of a sudden you get a rash of "mysterious" Black men who run around attacking Asians for no apparent reason. I find that very odd. For decades Black people and Asians have been living near and with eachother in the United States and there were no random attacks. Even in 2020 when Asians were being accused by Trump and other racists of starting the virus, you didn't see Black men attacking Asians. ..but ALL OF A SUDDEN in 2021 after it was revealed that Caucasian men were attacking them, you see a rush of images all over the media with close up near perfect shots of Black men commiting crimes against Asians and then posing for the cameras grinning. ...very suspicious.

Troy You should probably revise your understanding of the word thief. Based upon your definition Bernie Madoff is not a thief. I'm not sure exactly what Bernie Madoff did or what he was charged with, but if people VOLUNTARILY gave him the money he misused...then in my opinion it's not thievery. It's wrong. It's deception. It's dishonest. ....but not thievery. Now if he was entrusted with certain accounts and TOOK the money out of those accounts without permission...yes, that's theft. But then he'd be a scammer AND a thief. Sometimes it's a fine line, but one that exists in MY moral code. We must be specific when it comes to accusing people of misdeeds...especially in legal situations, and not just throw words and accusations around. The reason I make such a distinction is because I don't feel the punishments should be the same. A preacher who tricks his congregation into signing over their social security checks to him shouldn't be punished like a man who robs a liquor store...even if he ends up bringing in more money.

I don't know much about the group. Like the Panthers they were influenced heavily by the Nation of Islam and Malik Shabazz (Malcolm X) and you can hear it in much of their platform. I grew up hearing about them from some older people and saw a few members speak around town but they were so small they didn't have much of an impact on the city let alone the nation. Atleast not during the 80s and beyond when I was old enough to observe my environment. As far as the elder speaking in the video, he makes some good points. Obviously I don't agree with him being against calling ourselves "AfroAmericans" because it's a term I use quite often, but many of his points and ideas are good.

This beautiful sista I just got through listening to breaks it down wonderfully:

Troy f you acknowledge a preference but can't explain so many others, who worship and pray, are seeming ignored, Wait a minute- You're changing the scenario now. You didn't ask me about so many others who "worship and pray". You simple asked me about "other people" and left it at that. You didn't describe their faith or their activities. I've seen other people who DO have faith and worship and pray who seem to have been granted Favors and Protections. I don't follow them around all day nor have I monitored everything they've done to determine if all or been through in their lives to notice the cause and effects....but many people of faith SEEM to be getting the Help they requested. I guess it is just faith which drives your belief, huh? No. Actually my strong belief is PART of my Faith; however that strong beliefs are from the RESULTS I've gotten in my life so far. Why would a person worship or have faith in a god who they believed did absolutely nothing for them?

Troy Yes, but you are describing the behaviors of smaller tribal communities or small insular groups, not modern societies. Much if not MOST of the planet is made up of these smaller tribal communities! People talk about the world as if the U.S. and Europe is THEE world when they only make up a small portion. People of color who do NOT live in major cities but in rural villages and small towns make up most of the planet and we as people of color are communal and collective minded by nature. Again, I caution you not to just see things from YOUR perspective or the perspective of those around you in a Western society but to try and understand how much of the world sees an individual and how they represent their community. Whether YOU see yourself as separate from Tyson, Obama, Nas, and other AfroAmerican figures...or not...is irrelevant. If OTHERS see you all related then you should concern yourself with how that belief will affect you. For example...... There's been a lot of news headlines featuring AfroAmericans attacking Asians in the news lately. I consider this racist propaganda. I'm sure you say it's a few bad apples attacking people and YOU certainly aren't going to feel guilty over the actions of some deranged individuals. However what if you were an international business man and that video of the clown who attacked that 65 year old woman was released in the media the day or morning RIGHT BEFORE you had a major business meeting and deal with a Chinese firm with millions of dollars at stake?? Then his behavior and how the media is portraying him WILL be of concern to you almost instinctively because you'll worry whether or not the Chinese executives of that firm saw the video and what they may be thinking. You'd probably be ducking and dodging and apologizing and doing all types of condemnations of that attack simply because of what's at stake for you personally! And again, it doesn't matter if it's fair or not...that's how they think and you'd instinctively know that and will try to DISTANCE yourself from that man and his behavior as far as you can!

Troy but if he never opens the school and keeps pushing back dates indifferently, what distinguishes him from a thief? Do you know when his school will open? No, I don't. I will concede a little and say if he NEVER opens the school or keeps pushing the dates back over and over and over then he should be considered a SCAMMER. The people shouldn't allow themselves to be made fools out of. Infact, I'll go a bit further and say if he just does a little here and a little there to make it LOOK like he's making progress simply to keep the money coming in...he's a scammer. I wouldn't say "thief" because people voluntarily gave him the money. He used deceit to get it out of them, but he didn't take it against their will. But I need more concrete proof of this before accusing the brother. It looks suspicious certainly, but even the Caucasian law SAYS you're innocent until PROVEN guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. As long as he's not hurting anyone I'll give my brother the benefit of the doubt.

Troy It is really hard to worry about people so ignorant that they would assume Lil NasX or Iron Mike represent other Black people. If they are that stupid surely they have too little influence to impact my life. You feel this way because you were born and raised in the United States...a very individualist minded society. Here, most people keep to themselves and mind their own business. In most other nations people associate behavior with the ENTIRE GROUP. In other words, if ONE man from New York came to their community cussing, acting crazy, and being violent...they are inclined to expect you and other men from New York to be the same way. You may say this is unfair, and it is...but that's how how much of the world looks at people. At first I didn't understand this and thought it was totally unfair but as I got older I began to understand the logic and reasoning behind it. The logic behind their thinking is if the other people of that group WERE NOT like that and didn't approve of it...they wouldn't allow it. In other words... continuing with that same analogy....if the other men of New York weren't violent and crazy themselves, then they wouldn't allow that one man to be. They would "check" him right then and there and put an end to his behavior. The fact that he's "allowed" to do what he does means that his groups APPROVES of his behavior! Do you understand this? Their thinking....not saying I agree with it....is if we didn't approve of Lil Nas X or Mike Tyson's behavior then we wouldn't ALLOW them to behave that way.

Troy Lol...and I'll answer the same way I did in the other thread. I'm not sure. However I believe my consistent Belief and fluctuating but persistent Faith in The SUPREME BEING plays a huge role. Also.... Believe it or not, I have a very "logical" mind that seems to over-ride many of the social instincts that influence most people. Most people start off drinking, smoking, gambling, even engaging in criminal behavior simply because their "friends" were engaging in it and they wanted to be part of the group. By the time they hit early adulthood...they were addicted to it regardless of their "friends". If something isn't enjoyable and doesn't make sense to me, I unless there's some sort of non-social benefit to it...I usually won't engage in it. For example, I used to go to strip clubs with my friends and watch the dancers and pay for lap dances but I wouldn't buy drinks or smoke. Now I DID drink from time to time in private settings with friends of mine, but I didn't like drinking in public....and usually didn't do so. My friends would tell me I should drink SOMETHING so I wouldn't look like an under-cover cop, lol. I didn't care what people thought...I was there for the lap dances and the titties shaking....lol. So they just stopped telling me. I smoked cigarettes as long as I enjoyed them, but when I started reading about the chemical ingredients in them and how most of them weren't made with pure tobacco and how menthol cigarettes were directed at Black folks....that was enough to make me quit. My logic often prevents me from doing things just to gain social acceptance UNLESS there is a particular benefit to that social acceptance (like money, sex, favor, ect..).

Troy When it comes to the AfroAmerican community, my code of ethics and expectations are a little different than most peoples. I EXPECT for you to skim a little off the top. I calculate that into the funds I give you. As long as your good outweighs your bad AND your bad doesn't involve directly harming other AfroAmericans....I'll cut you a little slack. If nothing else, Dr. Umar is a great talker and knows how to articulate the problems of the AfroAmerican community in general and the problems of Black boys in the educational system in specific. There aren't many out there who can do it as well as he can. So if he is looking both ways and stuffing a couple grand in his pockets here and there...I don't mind. Now I understand that a lot of people will find this intolerable. They consider it theft, fraud, ect... I'm not going to argue with them, but I will ask for them to find someone who produces BETTER results. You have a father who is a hard drinker and yells at your mother every other night in a drunken rage....but he's a good provider, keeps a roof over everybody's head, and protects her and the rest of the children from harm in the neighborhood. Despite his yelling, he doesn't physically abuse her. Should she leave him? Maybe. But does she have someone better to take his place? You gotta take the good with the bad and not throw the baby out with the bath water sometimes. Now that's how I look at it...but I could be wrong.

Troy Why did the Supreme being help you but forsake so many other people. How do you square this preference? The most exact answer is...I'm not sure why. However if I were to speculate I'd say SOME of the reasons why is: -As far back as I've known I've always believed in and had a certain amount of Faith in The SUPREME BEING -I also frequently ASK The SUPREME BEING for Protection and Favors and they are often Granted. There's an old saying that God looks out for fools and babies. I'm not sure how true that is, but I believe if a person's heart is correct and they mean well there's a certain amount of protection they get, even if they aren't the cleverest person. But again, much of this is speculation. I can speak of my past and be Thankful for it, however I don't know what's going to happen to me in the next 5 minutes. My observations is that things have gotten far worse in my community. Personally I was was lucky. You also grew up in the late 60s and early 70s, coming off of the heels of the Civil Rights and Black Revolutionary movements where AfroAmericans were more united and DEMANDED much better social services like better schools, access to more college education, welfare, healthcare, political power, ect...and taking action to achieve it. Around the mid to late 70s Negroes started getting spoiled. Instead of maintaining what they fought for and gaining more ground, they got lazy...got into drugs and partying and enjoying themselves and before they knew it Satanic Reagan got in office and reversed much of what they fought for.

I don't think I give The SUPREME BEING enough Credit for having Protected me and continuing to Protect me against Addiction, because I've certainly tried different things that have caused addictions in most people who have tried them. I've tried drinking and gambling and continue to engage in both from time to time, yet haven't developed anything close to an addiction. I've tried drugs several times in my youth but walked away from them with no desire and nothing even close to an addiction to them either. I did smoke briefly, then stopped on a dime over 20 years ago...again, absolutely NO desire for them. I consider this Divine Grace instead of only my own will power. I'm not the smartest man in the world and I don't have the most powerful intellect so if it was ONLY my own mind and will protecting me, there's no telling where I'd be now.

Troy I know, stop going where they push stuff like this to you. I don't care if it is CNN or NBC. You don't understand....... It's not a matter of me GOING to those places so much as it's matter of just login on to the internet and having that content PUSHED ON you. When you log on to your start up page, you are usually hit with dozens of "news" headlines that mostly consist of crime, sports, politics, and weather. You didn't SEARCH for this content, it automatically pops up on your start up page UNTIL you change the web address to whichever sites you want to go to. So is sharing the "news" that Lil Nas X (whoever that is) is one of Satan's minions. Until they catch him sacrificing virgins or something newsworthy who cares. YOU should care, because it ill-effects you indirectly and in the long run! This reminds me of the argument I had with a few brothers over the Mike Tyson incident where he bit part of Evander Holyfield's ear off. They kept saying it doesn't matter what Mike Tyson does because that's just him...he's not all Black men. I kept telling them that may be the way THEY see it, but people around the world see him as a representative of Black men and if HE is seen as crazy and savage that will negatively affect their image too. With Lil Nas X. If he is seen as a Satan worshipping demon, there are many around the world will see him as a representative of Black youth. It doesn't matter if this is rational or not.

It was supposed to open BEFORE then...lol. I'm a little different than most in that I'll continue to give Dr. Umar a break as long as he keeps trying and giving SOME sort of effort to build the acadamy he has been talking about for years. I support the GOOD that Black men do...even if it's just a little bit. People question what he's doing with the money and what's taking him so long or if he's just bullshitting the people.... As long as he's not strong-arm robbing people and doing SOMETHING of worth with the money, I'm gonna give him a break. Even if he IS skimming off the top, that's to be expected in this society. I don't expect a Saint or Angel.

This is a great topic. I'm not an expert on the matter but I can give my opinions based on my personal observations and assessment. A lot of AfroAmericans ARE indeed emotionally disabled because many of our people suffer from serious psychological and even psychiatric problems that cause emotional instability. Among the causes are: -The stresses of overt and covert racism -A society with too many laws and an overly complex legal system making it difficult for some of our people to avoid trouble -A society where the ability just to provide the 4 basic needs for one's self becomes increasingly difficult and demands more education -Living in neighborhoods where crime and the threat of violence is the norm -Food and medicine purposely infused with chemicals that are toxic to the human body and are designed to cause sickness and psychiatric problems -Drug and alcohol abuse leading to violence, poor mental health, ect... -Negative music and other forms of entertainment designed to promote violence and dysfunction in the individual and community These are just some of the many many causes of emotional instability and disability found in the AfroAmerican community. As far as me personally..... I attribute my avoiding most of these problems first and foremost because of Divine help from The SUPREME BEING. A distant second is my association with the Nation of Islam earlier in life and my studying the teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad and later on the teachings of Neely Fuller Jr. These two men really help you to understand the nature or racism and the tricks that the racists use to CAUSE many of the problems that afflict our people in the first place...so we can avoid them.