Troy

No surprise there... No man is immune from these rumors.

This page is one one of the most frequently visited pages on AALBC and it has nothing to do with books. I created the page because I'm constantly on the look out for alternative places to network with others. Once I started researching sites I figured I'd share the information. In the early days of the web there were a great many places where you can find lists of recommended websites. Today these lists are virtually nonexistent and is one of the reasons indie websites are harder to discover. How many of these websites have you visited? The most frequent comment I hear regarding this list is, "I never heard of most of these sites."

Ah contraire mon frere. I defended Cosby: This particular situation is simply not worthy of my attention.

Laugh out loud funny -- thanks man LOL! Why am I not surprised you have a list of gay bars at your disposal.

No, I don't watch TV broadcast TV, but that does not surprise me -- he is popular enough to do that.

Sorry @Delano I meant what do you think about the general public's reaction to Al Sharpton's hairdo -- before he dropped all that weight and swapped out the jogging suits for the expensive tailor made suits?

No, it actually is not. If I directed the comment too you I know you would take it that way. Besides, "ad hominem attack," is a bit hyperbolic don't you think? @Pioneer1 is not nearly as sensitive as you are, and I'm certain he does not feel as though I'm attacking him. I suspect that he would be more likely to laugh at the dig rather than feel "attacked." LOL!

I was not asserting that. I was saying it is not necessary. However the notion that some women style their hair in a manner they believe men would find appealing is not exactly absurd. Wouldn't you agree @Cynique? Of course there are and given the escalating cost of college that might seem reasonable. The reality however is less than 10 percent of Black women are currently enrolled in college. @Delano I dunno. From a personal perspective I judged Brown on his music which for the most part I enjoy -- again I give entertaining a lot of leeway in how they present themselves. When Al first rose to prominence his hair style, obesity, and jogging suit, was definitely a negative in my book... he was a mess. What do you think Del?

This concept requires more nuanced thinking than @Pioneer1 normally exhibits. It is lost cause.

Damn @Pioneer1, that is a thought provoking statement. Indeed, any perceived problems with Black masculinity is usually a function of white racism. Can you imagine dudes straightening their hair, dying it Blonde, and styling it the way Brad Pitt does?! How would it sound if these Brothers defended the practice saying it was easier to maintain or that Black women have no place commenting on the how men style their hair. Suppose Black women preffered this look and more brothers started adopting the style. In this scenario it would be pretty obvious we are striving for and preferring a European stardard of beauty. However if Black women do this a Black man better not say shit about it being about rejecting naural hair in favor of adopting a white standard.... instead the problem is the Black man -- not the impact of centuries of white racism. @Delano sharpton claims he adopted the style to play homage to Brown. Neither dyed there hair blonde. I'd give entertainers a bit more lattitude in how they present themselves... very few Brothers are interested in mimicking Al Sharpton's hairdo. Of course this is true, but obviously we a particularly shallow culture. Women (not just black women) and their hair is perhaps the pinnacle of this. Black women, typically take FAR better care of their hair than the do their bodies. They invest far more time and money in their hair than their education -- am I lying? Go to any impoverished neighborhood and what business do you see thriving? This is energy is entirely unnecessary to attract a man. Big businesses are the only beneficiaries.

None of my doctors are white men. So this is mot a consideration of mine. White boys/men do a wide variety of dumb things they are a product of their environment. The school who published the photo is just as responsible. How do feel about Black men wearing wigs and dresses to amuse white people?

@harry brown there is not going to be a race war. First of all, it would last about 5 minutes. Blacks are out numbered and out gunned. We don't own the manfucaturing, distribution, or sales of weapons -- even if we wanted to stock up we'd be locked out. Besides Black folks kill each at a rate higher than the klan ever did. Plus the prison and education system are doing a pretty good job of destroying Black people already. I could care less what the governor did 35 years ago. Tell me what he is doing today. Most of us has done something stupid in the past. Short of a serious crime like rape or murder, I'd hate to be judged today on something I did in 1984. Wouldn't you?

@NubianFellow this article, written by @Cynique almost 1/2 century ago may give you some perspective https://aalbc.com/authors/article.php?id=16

Not sure how many different ways I can say "Yes." Yes, multiple races exist in Pioneer's reality. Again, this is not a reality shared by the scientific community...

Please post a link where one may find the share code. I actually did not expect that response. I thought for sure there must be at least a few. I don't think a Black-owned social network has to be used only by Black people. I welcome and encourage people of all backgrounds to enjoy what the site has to offer. But unless it is entertainment, white folks aren't lining up to consume our content -- certainly not with the vigor we consume theirs.

Yes, multiple races exist in your reality @Pioneer1, so it is real to you and many others. However that reality is not shared by more knowledgeable people.

@Pioneer1 because you are confusing my reality with your reality. You also believe that YOUR reality is the ONLY reality. Reality is relative.

I was on a website this morning whose stated mission is quoted in the subject of this post; "Our goal is to empower all Black communities to invest in one [an]other." I have added it to my site list Black-owned websites, but I could not help but think this site has prominent links to Facebook, Twitter, Google, and Pinterest social media platforms! Surely there are Black owned social media platforms we can promote.instead? @NubianFellow can you list a few Black owned social media platforms that provide a social sharing icon that can be used by web sites that purportedly invest and empower Black communities? At some point we HAVE to stop feeding the beast and recognize the fact that every time we prominently display the logos of Facebook and Twitter on our sites we providing FREE promotion for these sites (as if they need it) and telling the world we think these sites are important -- indeed more important than our own! We are also are hurting our own indie websites in the process. Now if I wanted to promote AALBC on that site that supposedly invests in Black folks, I better have some money! Does anyone see how messed up this is? Sure, I understand why folks do it. I have social haring buttons on AALBC. Markers say you have to be where audience is. However if your goal is to invest in one another we have to actually do that.

Full stop. No! Gravity, tumors and now race, where will it end? Pioneer race is also a story we tell ourselves. In my reality (one shared with most informed, thinking people) there is only one race. In your version of the world, there are multiple races -- despite the fact that view is not supported by the current science, it is one you've adopted -- it is YOUR reality.

The following are quotes from an article written by an employee of IPS Inc., the company who developed the discussion forum software I'm use here. The article was written to help explain why privacy is an important aspect to building and online community and growing a discussion forum. This article struck me because I did observe an great migration away from indie forums like this one to the large social media platform and I'm interested in growing this forum. Participation way down from a peak about a decade ago. Competing against the large social media sites is very hard, for the simple fact is that sites like Facebook utilize everything they know about you and the latest science to keep you engaged on they platforms. While an increasing number of people are abandoning social media (I'm one) I don't sense a great exodus of people leaving social media and returning to indie forums like this AALBC. However, I can see where privacy it is a strong selling point. I also work hard to prevent trolls from posting on these forums. Plus your privacy is protected here, anonymity is OK, and selling your data never crossed my mind. Interestingly it never occurred to me to maintain my privacy. I have never posted anonymously. One of the most prolific posters here, in the past @Thumper, never revealed his identity. For years many people thought I was Thumper :-). Recently @Cynique asked @NubianFellow how old he was, and he declined to answer the question. Was Cnyique trying to make sense of him by learning his age? Was Nubian preventing her from doing it by denying her the information -- forcing her to judge him in his words (assuming Nubian is in fact a man). There have been several posters here whose gender, age, and even celebrity was kept secret. One the "suits" walk in they mess everything up. This is the case with Amazon, Google, and Facebook. Of course I'm biased, but that does not mean what I've said is invalid. Below are some quotes from the article: “People may strategically express identities when they think they will not be punished, and/or connect them to an audience that is valued.” “For an individual with a stigmatized condition, a forum may be a real life-line in coping with the condition as face-to-face support is often limited.” “Forums allow a way to create a new identity that is either gender-neutral thus allowing the male users to assume a gender, or overtly male to ensure their contributions are evaluated on merit, and not with any gender bias.” “With a forum community, you can truly be who you want to be. This is not so with social media where others can create bias based on your gender, looks or topical preferences.”

See there you go again running to the white man book LOL for validation! As Cynque says you are mixing apples with oranges and resorting to you old tactic of moving change your argument. You started with gravity and when I explain that gravity is not reality but a story well tell ourselves until we learn more. Now you are on to a tumors -- what else is next? Dude what do you know about what actually exists or real -- other than what someone else has told you? You decide what is real and was is false. We all do it. I tell you the dress is blue and you swear it is gold. Some believe the end of the world is upon us and others think that is utter nonsense. One Dr. says it is a malignant tumor and another Dr. say it is a benign mass. What is the reality? Flip a coin.

Yes.

That's right @Pioneer1. If one can't perceive something, and has not learned of it in any other way, that is the very definition of what makes it part of one's reality. It is really quite a simple concept; I'm not sure why you are struggling with it.

If that is the case what is stopping you from saying any old crazy thing just to make a point... ah nevermind in your case their nothing stopping you LOL! What? Are you confusing reality with relative LOL! We agree that perceptions are different. I'm saying perceptions are reality. Therefore reality is relative to the perceive. What you believe is a objective relativity is just your perception. You are just egotistical enough to believe it THE only reality and that everyone else is delusional (or mentally ill). That is just the point no one can "prove" it. They just know our understanding of gravity does not explain it. This is true for the quantum world too. Man if it were not for books you'd be running looking for a virgin to sacrifice to placate the Gods who have brought cold weather to your area. What do you know really know about reality?

Lets not convolute things any further with mental illness. I don't think the multiverse theory can ever be proven. Well that is basically my point man. an individuals perception is "their" relativity. The perception IS their reality. In addition there is no objective reality. You speak about gravity, but like the multiverse it too is a theory and it is very likely to change. People used to believe Newton's laws which implied and invisible force between objects, that was later rejected in favor of a warping of space, but our current understand of gravity fails at the quantum level and does not explain the accelerating expansion of the universe. So you are using gravity to prove an objective reality, when we really don't have a clue what 95% of the observable universe if made of. Gravity as you understand it Pioneer may not be "reality," but a story we tell ourselves to make sense of the universe. Future generation will wonder how we believed such a thing in much the same way some believed the world was flat.