Troy

I was tagged on this on Instagram. I know @aka Contrarian has been around long enough to "get" this message from one former poster to another. "deeshaphilyaw" went on to become a critically acclaimed writer nominated for a National Book Award in 2020 for her collection of short stories, The Secret Lives of Church Ladies. The last time I saw Deesha was in November at the 2024 awards ceremony. I never did meet Yvette in real life. From the 'Gram: deeshaphilyaw 17h My dear friend Yvette Perry, PhD is a wonder. In addition to her work in academia, her roles at the @thegoodlisteningproject as the health equity programs lead and a member of the co-founding team, and her adventures as an art collector, Yvette is also an artist in her own right. Recently, I became the beneficiary of her creativity, brilliance, and generosity. She sent me this “junk journal” she made for me, and listen, y’all…the tears I cried as I thumbed through it OMG. It’s beautiful. It’s detailed. It’s thoughtful. It’s smart. It’s funny. And so, so sweet. It took everything I could not to post pictures of every lovingly made page. There are vintage ads, TV scripts, book excerpts, and so much more. Tucked in some of the pages are little surprises, like a gorgeous photo of Miami that Yvette took; for a too-brief time, we both lived in Miami, which is where I live now.

There are also blank pages to write on. I’m still trying to decide which thoughts and ideas of mine are worthy. Yvette’s note on the envelope references both my short story collection (The Secret Lives of Church Ladies) and my forthcoming novel (The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman). Very fitting given that our friendship spans the 20 years during which I wrote these books. Like so many of my friendships, ours started online (shout out to the early 2000s @aalbc message boards). And while Yvette and I haven’t seen each other in person nearly as much as we would like, I’ve always considered her friendship a treasure.

Along with the journal, Yvette also sent me a collage she made (see the next to last slide here). Eagle eyes will see that the text to the right of the church ladies is from my short story, “Jael.” Yvette gives the details of the collage on the last slide. I am thankful for my #goodartfriend!

Yeah, you simply can’t do it can you? You’re too young to be so rigid in your thinking.

There are engravings of creatures with the heads of birds in the body of men. That does not mean that those creatures existed. People create images of horses with wings doesn’t mean they’re flying horses as somebody wants to believe something, anything can be twisted into proof… it’s human nature to see what you wanna see even if it flies in the face of science defies logic, or is just dumb. 🥺

Period. End of story. 'Nuff said. @Pioneer1 what specifically in the quoted statement you disagree with?

That is the best way to go. take them up on their offer!

I believe I understood what you wrote. Plausible implies within the realm of possibility. It is not possible to extract DNA from anything 65+ million years old -- even the fossils they find of dinosaurs are basically rocks. Wow! your standard of "proof" in the case is not even on par with Piooner's proof of the genetic basic for race. The reality is that all the evidence tells us that dinosaurs died more than 65+million years ago. If there were a herd of t-rex running around someone would have noticed it by now. The coelacanth is fascinating.

Sad. He has been incarcerated longer than many people who have great lives lived. I see from @aka Contrarian that his crimes were brutal... did he kill civilians?

This is not plausible you are not ġonna find some resin sample with viable DNA older than 65 million years. I heard on the radio that they are working on creating a woolly mammoth!

This assumes a rational electorate -- which we ain't. Besides since reconstruction the democrats are held the presidency the longest the democrats and the longest stretch of 20 years. The republicans are not likely to ever beat that IMHO. This appears to be becoming increasingly likely.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: amberbks@aol.com TONY ROSE, NAACP IMAGE AWARD-WINNING PUBLISHER AND PIONEERING MUSIC EXECUTIVE, PASSES AWAY AT 74 Phoenix —Tony Rose, acclaimed book publisher, pioneering music executive, Vietnam War veteran, and co-founder of the influential Boston Black music scene, passed away peacefully at home on Tuesday, May 30, 2025, following a courageous battle with cancer. Born Conant Burleigh Rose in Boston, Massachusetts, “Tony” Rose was raised in the Whittier Street Housing Projects in Roxbury. After serving in the Vietnam War with the U.S. Air Force, Rose studied at the University of Massachusetts, the University of California at Los Angeles, and the New England Conservatory of Music. Tony Rose was a respected figure in both music and publishing, known for his visionary leadership, entrepreneurial drive, and unwavering commitment to African American culture and community. In the late 1970s, Rose launched his storied career in the music industry. Starting as a production assistant at Burbank Studios and moving quickly through the ranks at WEA and RCA Records, he established himself as a skilled A&R executive and talent promoter. Rose was instrumental in helping Boston R&B group The Energetics (later known as Planet Patrol) sign with Atlantic Records and securing a singles deal for Maurice Starr at RCA for the hit “Bout Time I Funk You, Baby.” Rose’s deep collaboration with Maurice Starr and Michael Jonzun helped catalyze what would become known as the Boston Black Music Scene—a movement that gave rise to global acts like New Edition, New Kids on the Block, The Jonzun Crew, and Prince Charles and the City Beat Band. Rose managed and produced the latter, releasing several acclaimed albums, including Gang War (1980), Stone Killers (1982), and Combat Zone (1984), which earned Gold status and international acclaim. In 1982, Rose made history as the first African American production company owner to sign a production deal with Virgin Records through his label, Solid Platinum Records and Productions. His work as a producer and engineer earned him Gold and Platinum album certifications and Ampex Golden Reel Awards, particularly for his work with New Kids on the Block. In the late 1980s, Rose launched Hit City Recording Studio in Boston, which recorded a wide range of hip-hop and R&B artists before being sold to Maurice Starr in 1990. Around this time, he also produced Dance Slam, a youth-oriented TV dance show pilot showcasing local Boston talent. In addition to his impact on music, Rose was a trailblazer in publishing. In 1996, he founded Amber Books. Over nearly three decades, Amber Books and its sister company Quality Press (headed by his wife, Yvonne) published more than 1,000 titles. His literary achievements were recognized with numerous awards, including the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literature in 2013. Rose authored several books, including Before the Legend: The Rise of New Kids on the Block and a Guy Named Maurice Starr (2011), America: The Black Point of View (2015), and The Autobiography of an American Ghetto Boy (2016). In 2004, he co-founded The African American Pavilion at BookExpo America, creating a platform for thousands of Black publishers and industry professionals. He also led humanitarian efforts, such as organizing the Katrina Literary Collective, which donated more than 90,000 books to Hurricane Katrina survivors. Tony Rose’s profound legacy lives on through the books he authored, the artists he mentored, and the communities he helped uplift. His life’s work is archived at the University of Massachusetts Boston and documented in numerous interviews and videos available online.

OK at least @frankster is not arguing that humans lived 65 MYA when the earth would have been largely uninhabitable for human even if we had evolved that early. The discovery or a 50 MYA fish (assuming that is true) is enough to prove to Frankster than dinosaurs could still exist. That is a WHOLE lot harder to accept as proof than the fact that no one has ever seen a dinosaur. His proof that dinosaurs could exist based upon the existence of a fish that survived millions of years ago is weaker than saying cockroaches have been around a lot longer than that fish (and even dinosaurs), so therefore dinosaurs could still exist. We know birds are descendants of dinosaurs. Hopefully that will not be his argument, because we are talking about the existence of the large animals like T-Rex, Brontosaurus, etc.

Yeah, the party in the white house swings back and forth as the people struggle for either party to improve things. The mid-terms will be telling.

You are assuming that he will survive his term. At this rate, it is seeming increasingly unlikely otherwise our system of government is truly broken.

Again, I don’t argue with religious people about their beliefs as it is completely pointless.. you’re giving people a lot of grace with 7 million years those animals were basically monkeys Homo sapien sapiens did not emerge until a couple hundred thousand years ago .

Again, you’re a definition of white is causing confusion. You realize that many Latino people by your own definition are white, don’t you?

those Nigerians are a biased sample of the most highly educated and wealthy ones from the country. South Africa is actually larger. You probably mean that Nigeria is Africa’s most populated country….

LOL! Dude, your proof wasn’t proof and the reason for it not being proof was already explained.

White racism has been a global phenomenon for several hundred years. Why would anybody expect Latinos of all people to be in a different?

I don’t debate or argue with people about their religious beliefs, as they have nothing to do with reason or logic it’s a matter of faith. I tried a reason with you about the issue of race, but I’m beginning to see it’s a matter of faith with you as well. To someone who’s religious telling them that science clearly shows that man was not on the planet at the same time as the dinosaurs or that the Earth is more than 6000 years old is meaningless. Still. do you believe the Earth is flat?

I only watched a few seconds of the last two videos. When I went to the beach. I saw nothing but white people. South Africa has a very European feel at least in Cape Town and some of the other areas. in the airport, it’s a sea of white people. Nothing like flying into Nigeria or Ghana, where it’s nothing but Black people the only black people you see in the Cape Town airport are the people who work there. I think you might like Ghana more although it’s not as picturesque as South picturesque as South Africa

Really? What makes it different? Besides why play games with semantics. You questioned the credibility of credentials. This is the kind of game @Pioneer1 plays. Just admit that you know much less than a PhD (or an MD) when it comes to the heart.

LOL! Let's see what he says -- it would explain a lot! I was floored the first time I met a flat earther (yes, I've met more than one), a brother. I did not debate him as that level of delusion reflects a mental state, I'm ill-prepared to deal with. Otherwise, he seemed perfectly normal, cool even.

Dude, our knowledge about the heart human body has advanced by light years in last 50 years let alone hundreds. The first heart transplant took place in our lifetime. Indeed, this is how the notion of information being stored in the heart was even realized. This is both dodging the question and being intellectually dishonest. If you needed to have bypass surgery (God forbid), would you want me to do it or a trained heart surgeon? Credentials matter Bruh.

Sure, @ProfD we're entitled to our own opinions, but some opinions are worth for more than others on any given subject. For example, surely, you'd agree that your opinion on the function of the heart is far less valuable than a Pd.D. who has studied the organ for a couple of decades. Do you agree? Why or why not?

By that standard there is very little that is not subject to interpretation. This is why we have to have debates over the fact that race is a social construct with nor basis in science, whether the earth is flat or whether vaccines are bad for people. That statement is obviously refuted by the study you've ready but rejected. Do you think writing it was a waste of time? The advancement of knowledge and understanding of our bodies is always a good thing -- even if people uneducated or trained in science, medicine, or neurobiology rejects it's value as a "collection of opinions" on it from the peanut gallery 😎