Pioneer1

Happy Mother's Day!

Whattup everyone, good to be back in the dialog............ This subject fascinates me as well. One of the reasons is it basically confirms what I and most of the world has already known or suspected.....that there IS life after a physical death. I don't even call them "near" death experiences anymore because the people weren't NEAR death.....they actually DIED.... by every definition of the term. If your heart and breathing stops and brain activity stops....you're dead. The doctors and coroners don't wait until the body starts decomposing before putting that toe-tag on, but now all of a sudden when more people announce that they've died and had these experiences people want to change the definition of death so as to try to discredit them. No, these people actually died and they pierced the veil and saw what was on the other side. It's nothing new, our ancestors were doing this for thousands of years. Troy Am I to understand that YOU had a near death experience? If so, did you see any intelligent beings like Angels, Spirit Guides, or deceased relatives?

Yeah a friend of mine kept trying to get me to check this brutha out but I hadn't got around to it until just now....and I like what I'm hearing. He doesn't seem to speak not quite as charismatic as Malcolm X but he hits on some good points. He said what I've been saying for years, that too many non-Blacks are benefiting off of what Black folks fought for. I said for years that the Civil Rights bill should have been race specific to make sure those who fought for it be the main beneficiaries.

Slavery during the time that verse was written wasn't the same as the "chattel" type slavery Black people went through during the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. At the time of Paul (man who wrote that verse) being a slave was basically being a servant. They often landed in slavery from debt or through warfare, but they were often granted freedom and their children were usually born free. Not trying to justify slavery, just putting things in context.

I have MAJOR respect (Jamaicans say "big ups") for the Rev Al Sharpton. He is not only artfully articulate and entertaining with his speaking but the man is as sharp as a razor....extremely quick witted. I've heard him fire off on opponents during debates the minute they finish making their statement with outstanding responses. I know people get tired of comparing the two, but actually I think he's quicker then Jesse Jackson, though not quite as wise/clever. I try to go see him when he comes to Detroit. I actually got a chance to meet him years ago in a church. I actually apologized to him that the church was only half full. Anytime a dynamic speaker like him comes to your church that mug should be filled to the brim and bursting at the seams, lol. But on the rills....he needs to leave those diets alone. Some people (like Oprah actually) look better and healthier when they're fat.

What gets me is there are just as many if not more Latinos in gangs than Black people....so why don't we hear about Latino violence. What ever happened to the Latino gangs??? All you hear about on television are Black gangsters banging and shooting but gang lifestyle have been deep among Mexicans for GENERATIONS and some of them absolutely hate eachother......where is the violence? Why isn't East Los Angeles a warzone with all the Latino gangs roaming around? Why aren't Puerto Ricans in NY and Philly killing eachother like Black folks? Even in Chicago, there seems to be just as many Latino/Mexican gangs as Black gangs...I've seen them. What the hell are THEY doing? Sitting back watching Black gangs fight eachother?

It just goes to show you how stupid and twisted the minds of some of the youth are. I remember on one particular song rapper DMX said he was a slave until his home was the grave. Also, Jadakiss called himself an "ape" on Nas "Made You Look" remix. Infact, a lot of rappers are calling themselves gorillas and apes. 50 Cent leads the "G-Unit" and I found out the "G" didn't stand for the same thing Fred Sanford's "G" stood for. His crew calls itself the "Gorilla Unit" Then you have the rapper Gorilla Black. They are so brainwashed, it's not even a joke. Even when they're trying to be positive many of them are twisted and confused and have the world laughing at them.

Coming from a decent workingclass environment with 2 good parents, I used to be VERY judgemental of people who couldn't seem to stay out of jail or stay off drugs. But the older I got and the more I realized what some people had to live with and around on a daily basis, it's a wonder so many survive and maintain their sanity....let alone learn virtues like sacrifice and discipline. I remember me and my brother would sometimes spend time with our relatives in other parts of Detroit. Everyone would be outside and you'd hear automatic gunfire and instinct said to duck and run inside but people would laugh and chill like nothing was happening and some even knew WHO was doing the shooting based on how the gun sounded!! Maybe you or Troy should do a book about coming up in and surviving NYC during the 70s and early 80s where shit had to be BUCKWILD...lol. Those are the times where both Heroin AND Crack hit the community hard.

Well, they caught them now....so I guess we can look forward to another story to focus the public on. Having had a few friends in the local media and having met people in major/national media (when I lived in Atlanta I loved hanging around CNN Center...lol) ....they told me first hand about the tricks and psychological games that are played on the television viewer. We all know how they use sex to sell, that's old. But there are dozens if not hundreds of other tricks they use to manipulate the minds of the audience for a particular purpose. Even things as simple as lighting and the position of the camera can make all the difference in how people are depicted. Ever notice how some pictures like Drivers Licenses make White people look their best while making Black people look like they're taking a mugshot? Depending on the camera, unless you're very lightskinned you may not even able to see yourself, all you see is some eye...lol. It's about lighting and using particular lights that seem to go well with certain skin tones. Most professionals in the media KNOW this. I got an opportunity to go to Belgium some years ago and Belgium has a large Congolese population with their own television channels. I'm laying in bed with my lady in the hotel room and she's flipping through channels. I'm enjoying the nudity that is commonly seen on European tv.....lol....she's looking for European soap operas. I saw images of the Congo like major cities with big sky scrapers and military marches....but these were Black folks in the heart of Africa! You don't see that in America. In America the pictures of Africa you often see are lions and elephants in the jungles, or tribal fighting. She remarked about how well Black people looked on television in Europe. I didn't pay that statement much mind at the time, but started noticing that some television channels seem to make Black people "glow" or pick up the full texture of our skin, while others make Black folks look dull and grainy.

It's funny to watch those drug commercials on tv. You see people smiling and bouncing up and down happy....butterflies and shit floating around, lol. Then they list the "potential" side effects: Nausea Bloody diarreah Bloody GONNOREAH Blindness Heart attact Stroke Violent nightmares Suicidal thoughts Suicidal tendencies Mass murder and mayhem .....and have the nerve to tell people to run out and ask their doctor for some, lol. Most drugs have side affects, whether they're illegal or prescription. That's why the elders and shaman of ancient cultures recognized that medicines should be given in their proper herbal forms. Most roots and leaves have properties to countereffect the negative side effects of the most potent ingredient/chemicals in them. But when you extract that potent chemical out (drug) there's nothing left to counteract it, which is why people often have to end up taking OTHER drugs to deal with the side effects of the drugs they're taking.

Troy I believe it. I also believe it's the "culture" of college life that turns many Black men off. My idea of a University is a place where people of various backgrounds come together to not only learn but share their culture witheachother. Instead I see young people from all over the world enrolling just to compete with eachother over who can blend in and imitate White middleclass culture and values the best. They abandon their beautiful traditional clothes for a t-shirt, jeans, and a dirty pair of gymnshoes and try to imitate Western Whites as much as they can. This is what I call the increased "Third Worlding" of the United States. All over the Third World you have the urban areas occupied primarily by the rich and upper middleclass while the suburbs and townships are occupied by the povertystricken. The United States was the opposite for so long but now they're trying to change that by moving the poor out of the inner cities and into the distant rural areas. Look how they're tearing down the housing projects and not replacing them with affordable housing but with luxury condos like you mentioned. One of the reasons Roosevelt has been my favorite president is because of his slum clearance programs. The Federal government was supposed to be incharge of public housing and ensuring the poor had a decent place to live, instead they are actually playing sleazy landlords and cheap motel owners to offer inferior housing to the poor at a much higher rate.

White women actually played an important role in the Civil Rights movement. Just behind White liberals in general. It's a shame more Black leaders haven't recognized this I think an often unwarranted distrust of White liberals by Generation X AfroAmericans along with the fact that many Black women would rather just not have White women around Black organizations period (fearing that they may seduce or "lure" Black men away) surely has pissed off many White people who otherwise would like to join Black people in the struggle for social justice. Also, the increasing rate that White men are snatching up Asian women is a clear signal to White women to "leave those negroes alone or we'll abandon you for someone else", and many White women have gotten the message. This is where your Sara Palins and Ann Coulters come from. White women who act as cheerleaders for the rightwing movement. A lot of White women who SHOULD be organizing and voting along side Black people for equal rights legislation and other important issues are actually becoming more conservative and aligning themselves with the Republican party. Some have turned ultra conservative and now you see some of them out like Calamity Jane with a gun in one hand and a Confederate flag in the other going to extremes to show their allegiance to a white male dominated national heritage.

Troy I love most of Spike Lee's work. He's one of the few Black directors with the gift to bring the realistic feel of the Black American experience to the big screen and make it entertaining at the same time. That's a gift. The older I get the more I appreciate the wisdom that comes with experiencing and observing things. I've watched School Daze numerous times and saw that scene and as funny as it was it didn't hit me UNTIL I had a chance to go down to Atlanta and visit Morehouse college. After visiting Morehouse and the surrounding WestEnd neitghborhood, and knowing Spike went to Morehouse...I saw where he got his ispiration for that scene from. The WestEnd is a ghetto that sits right next to Morehouse with brothers (some of whom are still wearing Jheri curls..lol) like Sam's character still there very resentful of the upperclass Black youth in Morehouse. Also there was another scene in the movie right before the clip I posted where Sam makes fun of "Mission men" implying that they were effininate. That one didn't make any sense either until I visted Morehouse and noticed the large gay presence there and then again, I understood where Spike was inspired. I think success is often about what you think of yourself and what other's think of you and having the wisdom to properly discern which holds the most importance at the proper time. This is where CULTURE comes in. Unlike Latinos, Arabs, and even many ethnic Whites (Italians, Jews, Irish, ect....) Black Americans don't have a very strong CULTURE that people can clearly identify us with or that we can identify ourselves with. Too many of us float along with whatever mainstream America is doing at the time instead of establishing clear boundaries. Our culture used to be big on family and relatives helping eachother out, which is why you used to never see homeless Black people. Not anymore. Many Black youth go to college and feel lost because they don't know who or what to identify with. There's an old saying that if you don't define yourself, others will define you. It's for this reason that...as an Aries and naturally confrontational....I typically find more success when I make myself very clear on where I stand and express my ideas boldly rather than trying to play the "laid back" role in life which may look cool but is often ineffective and allows people to draw often inaccurate conclusions about you.

As soon as the Biker incident starts to die down, the mainstream media finds more racist crap to focus on. Now they're focusing on 2 Black men who escaped from a Florida prison. This story means nothing to anyone outside of Florida. Why talk about it on every major network and post their pictures on the screen all day for damn near a week? Racism and the need to frequently depict Black males as criminals, are the only reasons I can think of. And again, I haven't heard one Black leader come out and speak on this.

Troy I believe all people of average intelligence should be required to be literate....to atleast be able to read, write, and count. I also believe that the government (through the FDA) should properly ENFORCE it's laws to make sure all drugs are what they claim to be and in the said dosage. Outside of this, what else can you do? You can't protect people from being stupid or making stupid decisions like drinking while taking medication even when you're specifically told not to. And remember, some people are suicidal. Since Euthenasia is illegal, some people find all types of ingenious ways to kill themselves. In an ideal society you protect people from eachother, but not necessarily from themselves.

Ben Carson has the mannerisms of a turtle or a little lamb. I just don't see him generating the excitement in people necessary to even get on a state ballot let alone winning a national election. He's similar to Obama in the fact that he's very thoughtful and cereberal, but the man has very little emotional appeal. You can't confront Vladimir Putin or do business with China's President talking meek and looking sleepy and sheepish in the eyes...lol. The rapper Mase made a point about being able to walk into a room and see the "bitch" come up out of a person. It's a vulgar but factual way of stating that some people have a talent for smelling weakness. Troy Now this is where my conservatism is aroused, lol. I'm with you on Universal Healthcare. You didn't specifically use the word "universal" but it's the only way everyone would get it because charging ANYTHING for health care will automatically dismiss a certain percentage of the population. But I actually don't believe everyone deserves or should get a college education or have their own place. We actually have discussions like these in some circles and I've had a lot of time to think about them from various perspectives on which would be best for society. I don't think it would be a good idea to just let any and everyone into college. I think only those intellectually qualified should be allowed to go. However...if you qualify....it should not only be FREE but you should also be supported while going. Having looked at public housing and welfare programs (in Michigan atleast) I've come to the conclusion that everyone deserves a bed and a hot shower, but not everyone should actually get free housing. One of my goals is to eliminate DESTITUTION....but not necessarily POVERTY. And there's a difference between the two....

Delano You're a clairvoyant? How old were you when you first become aware of this?

Atleast the Native Americans have pretty much re-incarnated themselves as Mexicans and other Central American Latinos. They have the same genes and ancestry, but the culture is different. But no matter what language we speak or culture we adapt, we're still pretty much still considered Black people by the rest of the world, lol. I'm sure in New York you've met hundreds if not thousands of Black people who have adopted Islam, joined the Hebrews, practice Buddhism, speak with a FAKE accent....lol. Some are Puerto Rican, others Dominican and Haitian.....but if they look like other Black folks, they're still CALLED Black. Changing religions, changing cultures, changing dietary practices..... No matter what we do...we're pretty much "stuck" being Black, lol. Like Samuel L. Jackson said in the movie School Daze: "Yall's niggaz.....and you go BE niggaz....just like us....niggaz" .....LMBAO!!!!

One of the reasons Republicans hate "government" so much is because of the government jobs so many Black people hold. I keep waiting for a Democrat to bring up that point during discussions on television, lol. Go to the Post Office or DMV/Secretary State and it looks like America. Even the Military is diverse. Black folks rise quick in the Military because the goals are clear and there is little room for tricks and schemes....it's about performance. See that wall....jump over it. See that target...hit it. The government is the "great arbitrator" in a Capitalist society. Infact, I came up with a proposal for the state of Michigan to have it's own "state work force" to employ unemployed people who otherwise couldn't find work in the private sector like convicts or people with little skills. That way people with racist agendas can't "starve" Black folks out of the workforce. But as far as racism in the media............. One of the things I liked (and still like to a certain extent) about PBS....besides the nudity...was how they showed uncut and uncensored Black history and speeches by Martin Luther King and Malcolm X and other figures that they NEVER showed on the commercial networks!!!! You can even watch News Hour on PBS and you'll have a more professional and less sensational and racist news format.

Most of our people don't know the value of sacrifice or investment because they involve "delayed gratification", something most AfroAmericans have a problem with The results are often too far removed from the initial action. If they don't see the immediate need or immediate benefit of a particular behavior, they don't see the purpose of it period. This comes from living in dangerous neighborhoods where you don't know if you'll live long enough to enjoy the fruits of your investment or see the results of what you've sacrificed for.

Talk about a conspiracy theory, Back in the 90s some rappers and comedians kept running their mouth about how nice Black women's curves were and making fun of how flat White women's butts were. I instinctively knew it wasn't a good idea to do that. All of a sudden you see young White women (even skinny ones) jogging up and down the street with big round butts bouncing around. Now, I'm not saying they're putting something in the food to give White women more curves,lol. I'm just saying.........

Cynique It's funny you mentioned that Black girls smoke less. I've noticed that Black girls have always smoked less than White girls, but for the past 10-15 years I've noticed an INCREASE in smoking among Black youth in general. It seems like a lot more Black youth both male and female are bumming cigarettes and lights from people now a days. Which tells me most of them aren't serious about smoking because if they were they'd by buying cigarettes by the pack and would keep a lighter on them. I smoke pipes and cigars infrequently and can go days without either. It seems most Black people who smoke just do it to imitate Whites or because they don't have anything else to occupy their time. White people are SERIOUS about their smoking. You see them standing outside hospitals in their underwear in a hospital gown holding an IV pole while smoking on cigarettes.....they ain't playing. Troy Height too. Wealthy White people tend to be a little taller than the poor Black and Brown populations in the same metro area. I first noticed this when I was in downtown Columbus Ohio and saw tall White men walking around in suits and the only Black people other than myself I saw were bums reeling back and forth as they begged for money. They were so short they blended right in with the bushes and shrubs. After that I started noticing it in other cities. A Chinese lady who works at a resturant I frequent mentioned the same thing while we were talking about poverty in America. I've BEEN noticing that wealthier people were thinner, but I was a little suprised that she noticed that also.

While I consider myself somewhat Conservative in behavior I believe in a Liberal society where people should be free to make their own choices as long as it doesn't hurt others. The good thing about living in a permissive society is that you can change your mind about things as you get older and more experienced. There are things I thought was immoral 20 years ago that I support today. There are things I thought was stupid and unnecessary 20 years ago but understand the purpose of it today...like prison...lol. After a brief and "close call" with Xanax about 15 years ago...I now understand why some drugs should only be allowed under a doctor's supervision. That's why I maintain my original position that as long as they're in their herbal form, most plants should be legal. But once distilled into the drug or crystalline form...then special precautions must be taken for public safety.

Lol.... You'd be blessed if you could walk out without some crazy redneck pulling heat on you and accusing you of being one of Obama's "government goons" coming to spy on them, lol. They don't trust Black people as much as Black people trust them. But even if you managed to get the pictures and get out alive, they probably wouldn't sell because White people don't like seeing the inferior unsophisticated side of themselves. When was the last time you saw a White man with no teeth on television? When was the last time you saw a White woman with no make-up on on television? Unlike many of our people, they don't like "keeping it real"....lol. No. Actually your feelings of frustration are linked to what his taking pictures of Black people and displaying them in a White bookstore actually means on a subconscious level. It's almost as if he's a White man who went on a Safari in Africa taking picture of animals and putting them on display to the more "civilized" Remember when Bill O'Reilley went to Sylvia's a few years back and claimed to be surprised at how nice was??? Al Sharpton took him to task on it like....'da hell did you EXPECT to experience in a soul food restaurant? I know how you feel because White suburbanites often do the same thing to Detroit. They go through the city snapping pictures of Black people and run down buildings and display the photos at high-end events discussing them and they are often praised for having the "bravery" to do it. If you notice, most of the photos in these various "urban experience" books are done in Black and White, and this is for an important reason. It's to make Black people look like......history. As if innercity Black people are an endangered species who can't speak for themselves and their images must be captured before....the inevitable happens. The arrogance of it can really get to you. Well..... Atleast Arsenio Hall is back on tv, lol.