Pioneer1

I hate it when people start provocative discussions and then just DISAPPEAR out of thin air.....lol. You get all fixed up to have a decent dialog and it ends after 2 posts.

I don't think they should have been kneeling in the first place. For what? For one thing, KNEELING while that national anthem is being played actually shows MORE respect for it than standing. If they wanted to make a stronger more direct statment they would have sat down or turned their backs....not kneel in reverence. But even more importantly, these young men fail to realize how USELESS taking a knee during the anthem actually IS in the fight against racism and police brutality. One has nothing to do with the other and kneeling will pretty much have no impact on the behavior of racist police officers. This is one of the reasons I got so worked up over that Childish Gambino video. It seems that too many AfroAmerican youth are confused not only over what their REAL problems are but also over how to actually solve them...and videos like that further confuses them. They think they can sing and dance and "kneel" their way to a solution. Others think that if they can march and block freeways and make enough noise and grab the attention of the public then THAT will solve their problems. Wrong and wrong.

Troy For example, my belief in a single human race is derived completely from information outside my own experience. If I used my own experience, like Pioneer and perhaps yourself, I would still believe in multiple races. ((sigh)) Well....... Thanks for confirming what I already suspected for months now. As long as I disagree with you over YOUR concept and definition of race....that disagreement will "taint" almost every interaction you have with me despite the subject. I didn't want to believe this was true, I really didn't. But it's becoming more and more clear with every discussion. Even when I've purposely tried to avoid discussing the issue with you to prevent further disagreement.....it's still on your mind. Del I don't think you should waste your time trying to explain to Troy something he already knows. He understands clearly what I said and probably agrees with it to a certain extent. He's just being contrary because of our differing stances on a totally seperate issue......the race issue. ....which is a bit disappointing.

Well....... Judging by the comments of most people in this thread and even most Black people I know, it appears that I'm one of the few who actually has a problem with this video. Despite my genuinely strong reaction to it......most Black people either see it as a work of genius or are pretty much indifferent to it and don't care one way or the other. Who says there's no "Black unity".....lol

Troy I guess you're right. Perhaps most men don't want sex from the women they meet and I was just projecting.

I think for SOME Black men in America the future looks optimistic....and for others more pessimistic. Some of what happens to us may happen as a group but unlike many cultures in the East where most people have a collective mentality and the group tends to rise and fall together, in the United States emphasis is placed so much on INDIVIDUALISM that even if you belong to an oppressed group you as an individual still can often have opportunities to prosper. There will ALWAYS be atleast some AfroAmericans who find a way to make money and live nicely. Even during slavery you had some doing well. And I'm not talking about those who sold out or collaborated with slave masters, but those who just found a nice little "niche" and focused on it until they became successful. Look at Madame CJ Walker....a BLACK WOMAN who managed to get rich and do well for herself at a time when not only Black folks were oppressed but women of all races were too. You're right about the need for Black men to change their mentality and how they view themselves as a necessary part for improvement. A good example of this can be seen when comparing AfroAmericans with AFRICANS from places like Senegal, Nigeria, and Ghana. Africans tend to do better in school, earn higher incomes, and have far less social and family problems than AfroAmericans despite the fact that they are not only Black but most of the time tend to be BLACKER than most AfroAmericans! So obviously much of what's happening with us isn't do to racism only but also involves our line of thinking. It's really a balance....... AfroAmericans as a group must unite and change our way of thinking in order to prosper as a people.....both male AND female; but as an individual you should maintain a strong relationship with The Supreme Being and adhere to certain life principles in order to foster your own success. 　 Am I the only person who thinks the person pictured on the book cover looks a bit like a woman?

So you're saying older men still wanting sex from women is simply a projection of MY values and beliefs? I guess all those older men who go to bars and clubs and dating sites looking for women weren't actually interested in sex, but are just looking for drinking buddies with high pitched voices.....lol. I wonder what Donald Trump's REAL intentions were for all of those women he's been chasing around.....lol.

The advice you give is sound and good to teach our youth; but it also sounds like you're trying to teach us how to live in a police state. Racism is a huge problem..... But I believe one of the major reasons there are so many police shootings today of all races is the sheer number of people with serious mental illnesses who are walking the streets today. In the past when a person was violent, hallucinating, or suicidal....they would institutionalize them. Now they give them a bottle of pills and let them roam the streets refusing to provide any meaningful support.....even if they're homeless. So when the police run into people who are violent, insane, or suicidal and LOOK to die anyway.....they don't have time to give them a psychological assessment. They just start using physical and often deadly force to get them under control. Another problem is the SYSTEM itself. 1. There are too many laws and rules for any one person to acknowledge and obey....which often gets people in the type of trouble that only an experienced team of LAWYERS who know the law can get them out of. Meeks Mills gave credit to the fact that he was able to get out of jail because he could afford good lawyers. 2. For poor people of average or below average intelligence, this society is increasingly being seen as too complicated to make a good living and live a comfortable life in doing the "right thing"......so many have elected to do illegal things to survive and THIS also puts them on the wrong side of the law. One solution is to have far less laws for police officers to have a need to enforce and make making a living in this society much easier for the person of average or slightly below average intelligence.

Man......I guess I've learned something else today! The term "picture show" DOES sound archaic. Or more like a Power Points presentation....lol. But the term "motion picture" seems to build a bit of anticipation....like you can't wait to see what it's about!

Troy As far as the so called "race" of the bride, who cares? Why do you care about promoting African American literature more than other types of literature? Perhaps the same answer you give to THAT question......would also apply to YOUR question.

I believe for most men, while their view of sex and it's function doesn't change much.....their views of women in general tend to CHANGE with age and experience. While a 20 year old man may see women and categorize them as either women he WANTS to have sex with or women he DOES NOT want to have sex with....e.i. "sex objects"....and treat them accordingly. That same man at 50 may see women and categorize them as either his daughter, his wife or woman he would enjoy sex with, his sister, or his mother......and treat them accordingly. He still wants sex, but his maturity and the experiences he's had has made sex less of a factor in defining the women he meets.

Lol.....what's the difference between a movie and a film? It's about time Spike rolled out with something for the people! His movies used to be so positive, powerful, and uplifting.....and then after Jungle Fever it seems as if his movies took a turn toward the silly or stereotypical side. Spike is talented, but he's getting up there in age and we need another SERIOUS Black director who knows how to show the AfroAmerican experience with detail and quality!

I'm glad so many Black people are finally agreeing with me that just because you have a Black parent, doesn't necessarily mean you're Black yourself. I DON'T see her as Black but I DO see her as an AfroAmerican. A BI-RACIAL AfroAmerican.....like WEB Dubois, Halle Berry, and President Obama.

however the moors mighta been teaching the same thing about us flying and using the pyramids as a tranportation portals ancient helicopters and shyt Come on bro, you know White people weren't the first to fly! We were flying for THOUSANDS if not MILLIONS of years before White people even existed. Gerard is just parroting the same bullshiit he learned in his physics class....lol. How can they be the first to fly when: 1. You have documented evidence found not only on the pyramids of Kemet of flying vehicles but also from the art work of the ancient Mayans and Incas? 2. White folks are operating on the LIMITED mathematics that WE gave them. Algebra was brought to Europe by the Moors! Infact, Terrence Howard (who's not even a scientist but an actor) came on television the other day talking about a NEW type of mathematics that he either invented or discovered that he presented to Oxford University and they didn't even wanna acknowledge that a Black man knows something they don't! Del Perhaps rapper are proxy killers and promoters of death on behalf of the label or capitalistic structure. Well Minister Farrakhan says that back in the early 80s there was a meeting that record executives had with those looking to invest in private prisons before it became big business. He said that a plan was orchestrated to promote GANGSTA RAP music among the youth the encourage them to become lawless so that they could get arrested and fill up the prisons for those investing in them. Not sure how true this is, but it sounds reasonable in a capitalistic system. Troy Hey Pioneer, if I took off my shirt and wiggled around in a video shooting people would you talk about AALBC on other websites? If you took your shirt off and wiggled around in a video I would DEFINATELY talk about your site to other GAY WHITE MASONS......lol. Might even share it with the GAY-K-K...lol. Mel Exactly, why I chose not to talk about the video! I did watch it once on twitter out of curiosity . I wanted to know what all the fuss was about - Once I saw it, I thought nothing to see here move along. It wasn't sharing anything that I didn't already know. Further, I'm not impressed by Donald Glover's work. @Pioneer1 's discussion of the video allowed me to revisit the role of art - but the video, meh. The problem is....... And the reason this video SHOULDN'T be ignored is...... It could be doing far more harm to Black youth than good. If there's any good that comes from it. If you care about Black youth, you would want to know what type of negative conditioning and programming is being aimed at them to retard their progress.

Delano The problem is potential mental manipulation. With Rob. Kelly it appears to be actualized Mental manipulation......like emotional maturity....is a highly subjective term. First of all, it could be argued that everytime a man tries to convince a woman to have sex with him he's "manipulating" her mind or atleast attempting to. Secondly, IS mental manipulation for sex wrong in and of itself? And if manipulating a woman's mind to have sex is wrong PERIOD, then wouldn't it be just as wrong to do to GROWN WOMEN as to underaged girls? Third, what approaches then SHOULD a man take to get sex from females that would be considered UNIVESALLY APPROPRIATE?

Mel I'm not going to argue with you over the accuracy of those statistics you're quoting. I'll simply say that if dozens and dozens of Black people are STILL being shot and/or killed in places like Chicago every week....then the numbers are STILL too high. When these youth groups start getting the numbers of Black victims BELOW that of Whites and Asians.....I'll be impressed and consider their strategies effective. 　 　 You did it again ! I really don't want to give childish gambino this much credit - but he deserves it. He got you talking about him... and I joined in. I didn't want to talk about his provocative video because I suspected that is exactly what he wanted me (meaning us, the masses) to do just ; but here I am. smh (:-) Well...what? Lol, is it against your religion to talk about Gambino's videos or something? No one is saying we should be OBSESSED with the man's work, but if there's something he's doing worth talking about....why should we "hold back" or arbitrarily REFUSE to give him or his work any attention? Even if that IS what he wants.....why deny the man what he wants simply for the sake of denial? I know some people who won't give a person a well deserved compliment simply because they feel the person is EXPECTING it. "Ahhh, don't say nothing to her....she's just looking for attention that's all". And I'm like....so what? If you put on a lot of perfume TRYING to smell good....and you ACTUALLY DO smell good....I have no problem complimenting you. Now I have to admit that is what art does. It doesn't seek to change minds - but it does force you to open your mind and ponder it. You can only disagree with it once you consider it . We may never know what he wants - but we are talking about it. And unlike a politician who tells us what to think about; we have consider how to think about the spectacle. Well for one thing........ This video in a way actually DOES tell you what to think about and limits your thinking; not because of what's in it....but because of what's NOT in it. I believe I've mentioned before that the video basically shows Gambino...a Black man....commiting all of the murders in the video. But a White man actually committed the church shooting. But he didn't show that.....he showed HIMSELF committing it. So a person not familiar with the facts of the Charleston Chuch Massacre....after watching the misinformation (art?) being portrayed in this video would be inclined to believe that church shootings are a result of some crazy Black man with his shirt off instead of a Confederate Flag waving White guy. Speaking of the Confederacy, it it's true....why the hell is a BLACK MAN dancing around in Confederate soldier pants? Yet another act of confusion as you have a Black man now putting himself in the shoes/pants of Confederates. Infact, this video would induce one to believe that the problem of violence in America is soley the responsibility of crazy acting (dancing and squirming around) Black males. Why? Simply not one act of vioence in this "artful" video was shown being commited by a White person. So besides a Black man squirming around with his shirt off stretching his eyes and acting a fool......the lack of White male violence in this video is another problem I have with it.

Troy Man you ask, "what does he want his audience to do?" Dude, you are doing it! You are talking about his music and his video and raising his profile. Don't you see you are actively promoting his video -- I only saw it because of you. I'm not promoting it....I'm CRITIQUING it. Not only is there a difference, but the after effects are different. Most people don't want the NEGATIVE ATTENTION that comes from the criticizm He obviously wants attention to push his brand; but I think he also wants MORE than just attention. I believe he also is trying to put out a message to his target audience. My criticizm isn't aimed at his ability to garner attention so much as it's over the seemingly confusing and garbled message he's trying to send. 　 Can you name any other businesses, that you actually like, that you talked about here is say the last month? Not at the moment. But you know how human beings are, most tend not to talk as much about what they like as they do about what they DON'T like. If you look back on your life, how many friends have come to you to talk about how WELL things are going with their wife or girlfriend? They usually are COMPLAINING about something they don't like. People don't go to the doctor to tell them how great things are going, they usually go with a complaint. Look at the news and how most of what's reported is of a negative nature from crime to war. It's human nature man.

　 Del Half your age plus 9 years. So the only person that should be sleeping with a 16 year old is a 17 year old. What's your cut off for teenagers? I've also heard "half your age plus 7" for an ideal mate. I'm not sure about those old sayings. I say go with who compliments you.....or with NO ONE at all. Some people are asexual and aren't sexually attracted to anyone, others are free spirits and simply just aren't good at relationships. They're happier and better off alone.

Del You may not be his demographic. Scorsese and Glover may win an award. I wouldn't be suprised if Glover did win an award. White people aren't very good at recognizing REAL Black talent and art when they see it. They either judge Black talent by THEIR standards and what THEY find artistic..... Or if they're sincerely trying to be fair and open minded they'll monitor the response of BLACK PEOPLE to a particular work and determine it's worth base on the Black response to it. Kind of like they did with rap music...lol. Based on my limited knowledge of the linear way most White people think, I don't see them being too fond of this video...not necessarily because of it's political message....but simply because the video doesn't seem to make a lot of sense. But if enough Black people make a lot of noise and clamour over it and praise it as genius, they'll give it an award or two just to appear fair and placate...lol. Mel I hear what you're saying, but how much INFLUENCE do these Black youth groups have politically or financially? Conservative talk show host Laura Ingram said something silly about one of the Parkland protestors and he was so effective in clapping back at her that he damn near got her show taken off the air! How many Black youth organizations have that type of media influence? And more importantly, how much of a positive effect are they having on the violence in their community? It seems to me that the violence in Chicago has remained steadily high if not increased. I'm not saying that Glover and Trump are in the same PROFESSION.....lol. I'm just saying they're both public figures. And being that they're both public figures with social sway and have heavy influence on society....especially their target audiences....how is that influence being harnessed and used. Trump has been VERY effective with his approach....hell it got him in the White House. Like it or not, atleast Trump has a CLEAR AGENDA and is pushing it to his audience. Clear and direct....no need to dance and sing and ride white horses all around the damn yard and squirm around with his hair messy. But we don't know WHAT the hell Gambino's agenda is.....besides selling music. The man dances around a warehouse with his shirt off shooting people......ok.....so what's the message? Is he simply trying to portray America as violent? Does he want gun control? Does he want police brutality to stop? What exactly does he want his audience to do? I bet if you got 25 young Black people in a room and made them watch this video and later on asked them what the message was....you'd get aleast 20 different responses.

TIME OUT If you're REALLY a Black man, then you know how serious it is to insult another Black man's mother. Until you apologize for this statement.....communication between us has STOPPED.

Troy Yes, perhaps the ONLY value of this video is that it's bringing more fame to Danny Glover (Childish Gambino) and his work.....because I sure don't see anything positive coming from this. What's really got me worked up about this video and the reaction of the youth to it is how naive and easily influenced they are over bullshit. White kids in Florida have one major shooting and they get bold and organized enough to march on Washington D.C., demand attention from the media, and even get legislation changed. Black folks living with violence for decades and the most some of these young people can pull out of their ass is some bushy headed negro making a video with his shirt off bucking his eyes and twerking with Black folks getting shot in the background.......and that's supposed to be the answer to the violence? 　 　 　 Del Did you see the man riding the horse in the video? No it is not. I saw the person riding the white horse. A lot of people were talking about THAT TOO and talking about how deep and symbolic it was. I didn't see the significance of him adding that to the video what so ever.

　 K2 Just like my fair skin and the image you choose make us no more other than Black men with a dominate African gene, if you are in-fact a Black man, that is. If YOU are is the real question.....lol. I thought you said you were a Black man, what are you doing with "fair" skin? 　 　 In Africa, who were the Blacks most African people rejected, and why? I think they were the dark-skinned people who migrated to African from Egypt and other parts of the desert. Not to make money or mix with other Blacks (because they believed those Africans' morals were compromised, their polytheist ways of life). These are the African's said to be the ones who traded those rejected Blacks to Jewish owned vessels manned by European Whites. Ohhhhh...... I think I've got your angle now. You're a Hebrew Israelite! Or atleast have a belief that AfroAmericans are the lost Hebrews or Israelites who ended up in America. I suppose you also believe in the Bible, Joseph, Adam and Eve, ect....

Sean Carter is Jay Z's government name.

　 I understand your skepticism in religion as, other than, a system to establish ethical values that bring order to a society; in which case it is quite possible Jews and White Caucasians went through great pains to develop a myth aimed to cement White power. You pretty much summed up the way I feel about MOST of the religions I've studied so far. Arab males go to other countries as first steps towards U.S. citizenship, for both freedom - escape from traditions of their own culture; and for monetary benefit which they have access to more than Blacks. Correction: Black and Brown people are not indigenous in the U.S. This sounds like the same thing European males did. The poor White European men wanted to be "free" from the cultural oppression that forced them to pay tributes to the kings and queens and restricted their sexual opportunities. So what did they do? Those with nothing to lose and who just got out of jail piled up in ships and sailed to Africa, India, the Americas, and Australia exploring, getting rich, and having sex with as many of the native women as they could get their hands on. The Lebanese men, Palestinian men, Syrian men all tend to be WHITE SKINNED or LIGHT SKINNED Arabs who feel the need to go abroad to make their money. They go to Haiti, Brazil, Cuba, Liberia, and other African nations and have sex with the native women and set up businesses to get rich in these places. These men....by the way....tend to be a mixure of both Christian and Muslim Arabs who are doing this. This shows me that despite the religions these Caucasian men CLAIM to believe in....most of them still have the same racist mentality. 　 Correction: Black and Brown people are not indigenous in the U.S.  The brown people are what you call "Native Americans". Most of the Native Americans you see today being called "red" are MIXED with White....the original ones were much darker and brown in color. While most of the Black people in America were descended from those brought from Africa, a large portion were NOT. There were Black people here in America LONG before Columbus. 　 　 Furthermore, under a patriarchal system where a hegemonic group control almost everything, "caste systems" is just another name to justify, separate circles of power of approval and disapproval. I hear what you're saying about the patriarchal system, however why don't I hear about Liberian MEN or Haitian MEN or Congolese MEN going to Lebanon or Palestine setting up businesses and marrying LEBONESE WOMEN or PALESTINIAN WOMEN? If it's about the Patriarchy then it would be ALL men doing the same things to ALL women in all countries.......but it's not. It's a one sided light/White men doing it to dark/Black nations. 　 I recognize those responsible for most conditions of Blacks in American. They are not Arabs, Brown, Asian, nor Native peoples. AND YOU?  Not only do I agree, I'm beginning to believe that those people MOST responsible for the condition of Blacks in America are BLACK PEOPLE THEMSELVES.

Sean Carter???? I didn't know JAY Z was a Harvard educated lawyer......lol.