Pioneer1

Aside from the student loans...... Another trick they're pulling on students today are these INTERNSHIPS. It used to be that only students going to school to be doctors and teachers did internships, now almost all students are required to so so many hours of FREE WORK for designated corporations in order to earn credits towards their degrees. And should we be suprised that each year more and more hours of free labor are being required for these internship programs? At the rate things are going, pretty soon it'll be standard entry level procedure to work at a job for 5 years as an "intern" before you get officially "hired" and even start receiving pay!

Troy Man @Pioneer1 this is an interesting point. Would it be more accurate to say start with those with nothing to lose? Is there a difference? Those with the "least to lose" or those with "nothing to lose", not too big of a difference. I believe that everyone has SOMETHING to lose even if it's their life or the life of a loved one. So "least to lose" would probably be a more accurate term. But the point is, just like it was easier to convince the field negro to run away and abandon his master because he was experiencing the worst conditions and the system wasn't helping him at all.....it would seem that those at the bottom of society ( petty criminals, drug addicts, homeless, poverty stricken, ect....) have the fewwest reasons to support this system and it's values and would be more open to something "new" to try. Too bad they don't let you eat bacon and drink a cold beer every once in a while.... I take a drink every now and then, usually socially....but I'm careful not to over induldge. I've noticed that alcohol....more so than weed....has a much more profoudly negative effect on the minds of people of color than it does on Caucasians . White people can drink until the fall out into a coma, but two days later they're normal again. Most AfroAmericans and Asians when they get drunk it really messes their minds up for a week or two and even changes their personality.

Troy Well that's the thing, and quite frankly it's one of the things that turned me away from organized religion. Since I was a kid they were predicting the end of the world. Then I foud out that generations before me going back hundreds of years each generation thought THEY were the generation that would see the end. Meanwhile the rich people and those in power kept right on doing what they were doing and running the world. I soon recognized organized religion as a sort of pacifier or drug used to keep people calm and sedated and WAITING....WAITING....WAITING....on something to happen to improve their society instead of MAKING it happen themselves. Many people believe that because Trump is in the Whitehouse he will make things so bad that the world will end. The problem with that type of thinking is that they said the same thing about George W. Bush.....and the world DIDN'T END.

Chev Not the main reason!? No. Because if we were smarter as a people White racism wouldn't affect us NEARLY as much as it does. If my Father owns his own law firm, should I really care that you won't offer me a part-time job as paralegal? If AfroAmericans had their own hospitals with their own doctors....which we SHOULD have by now if we were smart enough to do so.....the disparities in the healthcare system wouldn't be nearly as big of an issue as it is today. Do you really believe that they 'LIKE TO FIGHT' or what about looking at this from another point-of-view. You don't consider that they have been conditioned to feel that is what they are supposed to do? I think they've been conditioned AND toxins in the environment (lead, mercury, ect.....) are having negative influences on their behavior. But where I blame AfroAmericans is this has been a KNOWN fact for atleast 20 years yet how many of our people are actively trying to RE-CONDITIONING your youth and CLEAN UP the environment? So again, it's back to Black stupidity. Just like the drug problem. Even after it was publicized that crack was purposely put into the Black community, many Black youth STILL sold it, used it, and even rapped about it! Can you help a fool? You know you sound like Jesse Lee Peterson. ......GIRL, HUSH YOUR MOUTH!!!, lol. I said I'm changing into becoming more REALISTIC about the problems our people face. Jesse Lee DENIES reality and claims that racism doesn't even exist and never existed. 　 I become very frustrated too, but the problem begins with this government and their slave system of which lasted for hundreds of years. My question....a question I've been asking really since being a teenager....was HOW did African people get into such an inferior position TO BE ENSLAVED in the first place? It's not like Africans were all about love and peace, because they obviously fought wars with eachother.....but they couldn't keep Europeans from colonizing and enslaving them. We can talk about the 400 years of slavery and oppression but it's hard for you to make a slave out of and oppresss someone your intellectual equal......especially for that long of a time. Can a cat make a slave out of a dog.....or a dog make a slave out of a bird? They're all on a similar level and each would be unsuccessful trying to dominate the other. But a human can easily make a slave out of ALL of them because we dominate intellectually.

Troy Now, will you kindly do me the same favor on the subject of RACE and put that matter to rest, lol.

Troy The other benefit of the Nation is that you are not excluded if you are poor and uneducated. True; infact they go DIRECTLY AFTER those who are the poorest and least educated. Elijah Muhammad taught that most of the well educated AfroAmericans with the professional jobs...along with the preachers....were one of the biggest obstacles to the success to our people, lol. If you want to build a new society with new values, you start with people who are LEAST invested in the old society and have the least to lose by opting out of it. Chev You discussed how AfroAmerican women fight each other by choice. Here you say, it is 'a conditioning' and that this society forced this behavior upon many of us. It's both conditioning AND choice. Once a person is conditioned or trained into a particular way of life, they will continue to behave that way despite having options to choose from because it's all they know and feel the most comfortable with. Kind of like women who constantly choose abusive men even over good ones because they grew up in an abusive household and those type of men are the only kind they "know". 　 But to be honest, every now and then I have to wonder ARE AfroAmerican women just naturally more violent and aggressive than other women because even when their violent or aggressive behavior in comparison to some other girls are pointed out I don't see a huge effort to try to change or be ashamed of that behavior. It seems as if many take PRIDE in being angry and confrontational. It's just embarassasing and shameful in MY opinion. Why can't someone else's women get that "reputation"? 　 I did not know that. Now that, to me, is unnatural. I know that is a significant belief system in the past. I think the term 'Epicureanism' may stem from this belief; The idea of 'living it up' and indulging in the search for self-gratification here and now. But, I cannot, for the life of me, understand how Black AfroAmericans being in a suppressive government like this would believe that this would be the extent of our life 'as a group'. If this is all that life has to offer me, then, there has got to be more, either now or in the future. Many if not most people don't know that. It's not taught to the public much by most ministers of the Nation of Islam because of how intolerable the concept is to most of our people, but it's actually part of Nation of Islam doctrine. Believe it or not it DID have SOME value to it. Since slavery so many AfroAmericans were deep into the church and Christianity and many of them didn't believe in standing up for themselves; they believed either in letting Jesus solve all their problems or waiting until they died and getting their reward after death. When they started believing in the teachings of Elijah Muhammad and stopped believing in life after a physical death it FORCED them to own businesses and try to build as much wealth and power in this life as they could because they didn't expect anyting else afterwards.

So you think this toxic red tide is just one of the Great Judgements? Well.....we'll see. Many people were saying that the waters in the gulf that turned red from that underground gas and oil well leak back in 2010 was a sign of Revelations about the waters turning to blood.....but it came and went and many of those who were in power then are STILL in power.

To Be S & B Is it so wrong to be a black woman who is strong? Most of the time....YES, it is. And for two major reasons: 1. Ofcourse every woman is different, but generally speaking it's not in the nature of most women to be strong....physically OR mentally. And when I speak of mental strength I'm not talking about intelligence or smarts which is perfectly fine and welcomed in women, but personality wise. Few people....including other women...like combative, argumentative, and domineering women. 2. Because a society is built upon BALANCE, and nature divided all societies up primarily between two major sexes; if one sex is strong then the other sex must be weak to balance it. So if you want the women to be the strong sex, then there is no need for strong men too; so you should settle for weak men and not complain about it. If both are strong they'll only end up fighting eachother for dominance and destroy the community from the inside.

No, it's not the Cardi B fight.......lol. Although that's just a minor SYMPTOM of a much greater problem. It was just a week of observing a Black city with deteriorating neighborhoods full of so many AfroAmericans sitting around being idle or engaging in foolishness with grins on their faces....and then I go into a University district that sits on the very edges of several of those neighborhoods and it's almost an oasis of peace and stability filled with young East Asian, Indian, and Middle Eastern kids with a totally different attitude about life and where they fit in in society. I used to believe that our condition was solely a consequence of centuries of racism, but even during the years I believed it on the surface...deep down while observing the behavior of our people I realized that the problems AfroAmericans had and have is MORE than just the racism they face. -Looking back at how much Black boys and girls liked fighting eachother in school and between schools -Looking at how so many grown AfroAmericans today despite having high rates of hypertension, diabetes, and other problems STILL induldge in junk food.....50 and 60 year olds sitting around eating hot cheetos and drinking grape soda pop. -Looking at how so many grown AfroAmericans who should know better will insult another AfroAmerican they don't even know just because they aren't moving fast enough in line or some other trivial matter......things most people learn NOT to do at 13 or 14. -The lazy and sloppy way so many of our people do jobs they don't like, as compared to so many others who will atleast pretend to do a good job until they leave and find something better. Much of the condition our people find themselves can't be attributed soley to racism. Something is wrong SPIRITUALY......or perhaps it's not spiritual but something else that isn't tangible enough to put my finger on.

Yeah they fought eachother at some sort of Fashion Show the other week. I don't even follow them but heard about it, I'm suprised you didn't....lol. They started hitting eachother and throwing shoes at eachother and Cardi who JUST had a baby not too long ago ended up with a head injury. It may be a celebrity beef but it certainly wasn't staged. It's typical behavior of a lot of young AfroAmerican women who are coming from the innercities. They aren't being taught how to be "ladies" and carry themselves in a respectable manner, they are being taught to be aggressive, fight, and say what's ever on their mind which leads directly to conflicts like this. Cardi and Nicki didn't do anything unusual, they're just bringing that typical dysfunction that already exists in the hood onto the global stage and showing the world how disgraceful so many of our people have become. It's very embarrasing bro. I used to attend a lot of Nation of Islam lectures when I was younger. I even went to the Million Man March. I still believe in a lot of their philosophy but they don't believe in life after a physical death....and I do. I believe the Nation of Islam is one of the best organizations out there for AfroAmericans today the way it cleans up and reforms our people in a way few other groups have been able to, but to be honest with you I'm beyond organized religion at this point.

If we were to be accurate, it really depends on the era. From the late 40s to the early 80s this society in general actually catered more toward the middle classes (working and professional). Ofcourse the rich had it easier simply by having an abunance of resources. But because of the New Deal, unions, and Civil Rights laws.....the working class and even professional classes were really making progress. College education, owning a home, even owning a car USED TO be things that only wealthy people could afford.....until the 50s when the nature of the economy started changing to lift more people out of poverty and build a more stable middle class. It's during the Reagan Era and the introduction of Reaganomics that the scale began tilting back toward the plutocrats and it has continued tilting deeper and deeper with each administration.

Troy Forget about celebrity beefs. It is difficult to distinguish between actual beef and marketing hype to attract attention. True, but regardless as to the origin of these beefs or their intent...their actual CONSEQUENCES have been devastating! Children learn how to behave in society from WATCHING how adults act; not by listening to them. When they turn on the television, go to the movies, or get online and see video after video after video of AfroAmerican men handling their conflicts and differences by cussing at eachother, threatening eachother, and eventually getting violent with eachother.....how else CAN they be towards eachother but violent? A good example is the recent Nicki Minaj and Cardi B fight. Whether it was real or staged, so many young AfroAmerican girls look up to both of these women and they are treated as role models. (which I find suprising because I don't consider either one of them authentic AfroAmericans). What type of message does two grow women throwing shoes at eachother send to the young girls who look up to them? Which reminds me.......... *Another good code would be for us not to allow our women physically fight anymore. I'm not sure when it actually stopped because girls were fighting when I was a kid too but from what i've heard there used to be a time in the AfroAmerican community that if two women were fighting in public a man or the men in the area would immediately break it up and send them their seperate ways and he would be respected. Now....half of the men either ignore it or cheer it on hoping some clothes end up flying off. How many other groups allow or even encourage their women to disgracefully fight and scrap with eachother in public like wolves or grizzly bears? I don't know if other ethnic groups have a code for this or it's such a HUMAN thing to do that no code is necessary for it unless you're dealing with people who have reached such a savage condition that even the basic rules of humanity must be written out for them.

Chev Whew! You know there are so many times I have witnessed scenes where in the case of a customer complaining about an employee that the management will support their own employee, but not when it comes to a Black woman. And the insensitive comment of the quote you put, shows how pampered Europeans can be and how supremacist they are in their viewpoint, when it comes to Black women. History is replete with White women not giving two damns about the mistreatment of women of color. We can go back to how Lisa Bonet was fired by Bill Cosby for participating in sex scenes in her own movie. Or to a case in New York that you may remember involving a housekeeping maid from The Carribean who was sexually assaulted in a New York hotel by a rich White man and not only did he get off but none of the women in the media and very few in society came to her defense. Or how about how Omarosa is currently being treated in the media today. When Trump called her a dog you would think "metoo" and "times up" would have gotten involved and expressed their outrage, but you could hear crickets from them. Troy What is it with Black women and blond hair Ah careful! You know how upset Cynique gets at just the thought of a Black man just DARES to criticize or question the mindset of Black women who chose to dye their hair blond, lol. Maybe your generation, "the greatest generation," was indeed better that ours I know you put it in quotes, but just to make the point I wouldn't say the Depression Era generation (those born 1920-1944) is the greatest generation, not by a long shot. Infact the NEXT generation after...the Baby Boomer Generation (those born 1945-1960)....is better in my opinion because they actually got out and demanded changes in society for the better. But I think that Reconstruction generation (between 1865-1900) was better than BOTH of them and very well may have been the best generation of AfroAmericans right up until now because of the swift and massive progress they were able to make independently.

People have always believed what they wanted to believe; this is nothing new. For most people, EMOTION is just as involved in making decisions and guiding one's beliefs as INTELLECT and LOGIC. If I'm deeply inlove with my wife and facts like text messages, credit card statements, and even VIDEOS are brought to me to prove that my wife is cheating on me....depending on how deep my emotions are I may REJECT all of those facts and maintain my belief that she is faithful. This is human nature that only a few can rise above.

I've been changing and reconsidering my political positions and the way I think about society period over the past few weeks, but several incidents that I've witnessed the past few days are really accelerating those reconsiderations and changes. I've suspected it for a while, but I'm begining to believe more and more it's not White Racism that is the main reason so many AfroAmericans are in the condition they find themselves in today, but Black Ignorance/Stupidity. Both seem to feed off eachother, but Black Ignorance/Stupidity seems to take precedence and may very well be a major reason White Racism was able to flourish so through out history in the first place. I'm also beginning to believe that many cases of contemporary White Racism may very well be logical REACTIONS to the Black Ignorance/Stupidity being witnessed. I'm not sure how to describe the direction I'm leaning because I'm definately not a Republican or Conservative. Perhaps a Pragmatic Reformist would be a more accurate description of my position based on how I've been viewing society in general and AfroAmericans in specific lately.

Cynique Can't you say what you have to say in a few words? Yeah.... -Kiss my ass- Hope that didn't take up too much space, lol. Do you really think i'm going to waste my time reading your long drawn out drivel? When it comes to reading and understanding my material....TIME is not your problem, INTELLECTUAL ABILITY is...lol. And there's not much you can do about that so don't even worry about it. Now take your ass to bed.

Cynique 　 I'll leave that to hard-up women who don't mind teenie weenie impotent losers who try to compensate for this by never admitting they're wrong. The only reason you're leaving it up to them is because you know that even men like THAT would still be out of your league....lol. Just admit it. You messed up BIG time by not paying your 78 year old "boy toy" enough attention on that vacation, lol. If you had spent more time focusing on HIM than you did trying to keep up with what was happening on AALBC and what I was saying.....you two would still be together and he'd still be giving you rides to the grocery store. You're who needs to stop, jack-off. This statement makes NO sense, lol. I think you're getting a little confused. Maybe it's about time for you shoo those roaches away and hop in bed. Go on, get yourself some sleep and you can tell us all about your sweet dreams in the morning.....lol.

Troy What is an example of a code you think should be implemented? A good code for AfroAmerican men to follow would be to not criticize eachother in public. Do it in private and even then only after getting the FACTS straight about a particular incident. Look at all these "beefs" that you see in the AfroAmerican community, especially between men in the entertainment industry.....most of it comes from people getting angry and violent about what they HEARD someone said about them or wanted to do to them. But instead of going directly to the person in private (without an audience to instigate) to get to the bottom of things, the instead jump to conclusions and make plans to retaliate immediately....in part to save their reputation. This leads to an escalation in conflict and often times ultimately to violence. A code to demand all conflict between AfroAmerican males be handle ONLY AMONG OURSELVES and out of the media or public in general would be a good start. Chev Most of the relationships that I've seen that worked had a dominant person and submissive passive person. It could have even been a dominant female who was bossy and ran things with a passive male who just quietly sat back and give his input only every now and then; but as long as he kept his mouth shut and knew his place things were cool, lol. Reminds me of Aunt Esther and Uncle Woody from Sandford and Son. But over 75% of the time the dominant one is usually the man. I think most woman are naturally passive but what's making a lot of problems is that this society is FORCING women to be more dominant and aggressive than they naturally are and it's not only making men feel uncomfortable and frustrated but even a most women don't find this role comfortable. I'm of the belief that most AfroAmerican women aren't acting the way they REALLY want to act. I think most AfroAmerican women who are independant and strong minded are that way because they are both taught and FORCED to be that way....not being able to rely on AfroAmerican men to shelter, protect, and provide for them. I've seen the same AfroAmerican women who took pride in being independant and strong minded turn right around and take pride in being a stay at home wife and soccer mom as soon as she found a husband who was making enough money to take care of her so she didn't have to work, lol. This society is engineering unnatural conditions among our people.

Chev we are still very conditioned too, by negative influences and this is what is keeping us from knowing what to do about our sad condition Ofcourse there are negative influences that seek to block information and truths from coming to AfroAmericans; but also the strong "culture of ignorance" in the AfroAmerican community is a major factor. A lot of our people don't know how to help themselves or their community and what's even worse is a lot of them DON'T CARE OR WANT TO KNOW. They are in "survival mode" and as long as they're getting the basics to survive another day, they could care less what happens next month let alone next generation. I'm glad to see Africa coming together but until they learn how to be independant and abandon the Caucasian legal system and social/moral systems that were left over there after colonialism....they will continue to have problems. In many African governments the officials still wear those "George Washington" wigs during their meetings as a left over from when the British had them under their thumb. Troy I didn't respond for two reasons: 1. I thought if I didn't respond you'd eventually forget about the question and move on, lol. 2. Although I believe man has been on this planet for not just millions or billions of years but actually TRILLIONS of years....I can't prove it. I can only go by the few sources I trust that state this. And since I know you wouldn't accept my sources anyway, I said why bother?

Cynique and why you're a "jack-off" full of yourself. I know seeing me "full of myself" is making you jealous....... Because YOU want to be full of me too, lol. -You better stop now, because it'll only get rougher from here on.....lol.

He's speaking a lot of truth but I just can't get past Paul's demeanor.....the man is as "sweet" as cotton candy, lol. One point of contention I have to make is as I observe what's been going on in the AfroAmerican community for nearly 50 years I have to question whether or not much of our behaviour can be attributed to slavery. The condition of the AfroAmerican family today has little to nothing to do with slavery. I think it's merely a case of African people ATTEMPTING to function in a Caucasian based society and for the most part failing. Even if slavery had never existed, because of our very NATURE as African people just attempting to live in a society that was not designed BY us nor FOR us would still ultimately lead to disasterour consequences.

I don't know if the decisions made against Serena by the officials were racist, I don't know enough about tennis to make that judgement; but I DO believe this cartoon is racist. Not just because of it's depiction of Serena, but because they replaced the TRUE image of Naomi (who is half African and half East Asian) with that of a blond Caucasian girl which was meant to INVOKE as well as PLAY ON certain racist stereotypes. If they'd just put out the grotesque picture of Serena by herself having a fit, the agrument could have been made that it was NOT racist. But when it's wedded to the picture of petite white girl who appears to be confused and innocent while someone telling her to LET Serena win....it was clearly meant to invoke feelings of resentment harbored in the hearts of many Caucasians who feel that Africans are too priviledged already.

Man, go' on somewhere and STOP BLOCKIN'.......lol. It ain't even like that now anyway....lol. We've had too many political and religious conversations so now she's n the FRIENDSHIP category (sorry Chev, lol)

Troy Some Black people believe Black people should patronize Black businesses whenever they have can, some black people believe all Black businesses are subpar and never patronize them, while others look for the best deal regardless of the ownership. What code should we adopt when it comes to creating and supporting our own businesses? How would we enforce compliance to any of the rules defined? I haven't developed such a code myself, I'm just saying we NEED one. Just promoting the idea. But right off the top of my head I would say Black people should have the right to patronize any business they choose whether they're doing so for prices, quality, or just plain convenience. The ONUS wouldn't be on the patron but on the BUSINESS. From an early age part of the Code would be to teach Black males in both school and home at an early age to make sure that every thing you produce....at school, at work, in your own business is TOP QUALITY and make no excuses for not providing it. It's not about punishing people, just giving them more options. Elijah Muhammad said if you see a dirty glass that people are drinking out of you don't have to condemn the glass to get the people to stop.....just produce a CLEAN glass and put them next to eachother and most people will NATURALLY gravitate toward the cleaner glass. You don't have to FORCE AfroAmericans to patronize their own businesses if we are making sure we offer SUPERIOR services and products to anyone else! 　 　 　 　 Chev I am divided when I read this. I can absolutely understand, AfroAmerican males having a code, and obtaining morals for yourselves, but I dunno, leaving out the input of AfroAmerican woman while you make this code, could end up being probematic. It's about balance. We most certainly will consider and be heavily influenced by the AfroAmerican woman because men NEED women just like women NEED men, but we must put HER perspective in the PROPER perspective. Especially when it comes to family and sexual matters. We must know and understand that while there are exceptions, men and women tend to think differently and have a different understanding of their roles in family life and sexual relations and these differences must be acknowledged and respected.....not condemned or used to justify mistreatment.

Cynique You're more like a dense black hole, full of yourself. Speaking of black holes that need to be filled....... NAAAAHH, I won't go there.....lol.