Troy

"Success" is purely subjective, but I think the ability to live on one's is a good indicator. But again it depends upon the individual. Luck is subjective but it belongs in the equation. There are thing that happen to us like being hit by another car while sitting a stop light or catching a stray bullet watching TV in your home are things that impact our chances of success that we can't control: luck. Connections are not iffy in fact I'd argue that they are one of the most important things as far as a career is considered. Most of my opportunities have come from people I know. Genetics (do I wanna go down this road again?). There is a genetic component to intelligence. Since there is no such thing as race there can not be a genetic component as it relates to race. So all this stuff about "xenophobia, ethnocentrism, ethnic cleansing, and genocide" are arguments made by people who don;t understand genetics. There is no one gene for intelligence and of course environment plays a factor as well, in terms of how genes are expreseds and our potential. The economy is absolutely a factor. If there are no jobs opportunities are limited (why do I have to explain this?) People can do everything in their power to achieve success but at the end of the day there are many things one can not control. Of course we do our best to overcome these obstacles and do the best we can with the cards we are dealt.

Interesting @zaji I find magnets much more fascinating. You see sound I can understand intuitively. Sound travels over a media. So no sound it space, but it travels faster in water. In the cheap seat in the stadium you can observe a ball being hit before you hear it. All of this makes sense to me indeed I could reason this out on my own. But magnets never made sense until it was explained to me how they worked. Indeed electromagnetic force is far stronger than gravity and propagates infinitely. This is not something I could have intuited. @Cynique, maybe given how evil some people are.

I bet that would sound good read too.

People who say that aliens came to Earth to help build the pyramids are racists. People who will say anything to diminish the accomplishments of Black people. OK I dont completely believe that but you know what I mean. I will say that all I know about the Pyramids tells me they we have indeed forgotten something over the millennia. What was lost, forgotten, and often destroyed goes beyond just the construction of the pyramids. What we've forgotten is our understanding of nature and how we relate to it. We've forgotten how to relate to each other and our place place in the universe. It feels like we are reinventing the wheel even when it comes to spirituality. Today we can only hope to discover a fraction of what we knew thousands of years ago. SO we are susceptible to believe anything that comes along. In much the same way some in he Black community have latched on to the world of Wakanda as a source of pride...

Net-net we all agree people are better off with a college degree than without one in the current economy. However having one is no guarantee of success and not having one is no guarantee of failure. All the rest is a function of luck, preparation, connections, genetics, the economy, what you've studied, where you lives, etc, etc. Too many variables to come out with a perfect formula to predict an outcome with a high level of certainty. Again the degree maximizes your potential. No I would not have gotten the job at Goldman without the degree, but I also did not come in through the normal recruiting channels. Del I forgot all about Drexel. Were you there when they imploded?

OK @zaji we are in complete agreement and thanks for not picking about my use of the word "defy" for you understood what I was trying to communicate. As far as levitation magnets can be used to do this as well. @Delano I assume you meant some form of levitation using the mind right? If so, yes there would need to be a few new laws to support that, but I doubt any of the laws are in jeopardy as no one one has demonstrated the ability to levitate themselves.

@Kalexander2 all cynicism and jokes aside Del has a business degree from one of the top business schools on Earth. Indeed, he earned his before I did. I'd also argue that he understood the "value" of said degree before I did too.

-Respect for elders and veneration of ancestors. LIke when KIllmonger murdered the character played by Forest Whitaker?-The concept of female warriors Without looking name 3 "African" cultures that used female warriors-The belief and access to other realms where the ancestors dwell Man name one culture on earth that odes not have some variation of this concept-Black women wearing their hair NATURALLY....which is a big plus What?! nobody had a "natural" hair style in this film. Substituting a straight blond wig for a another wig one is not "natural." I don't think anyone is arguing that this movie has done "harm." My position is that the amount of good most are arguing that is has, or will do, for Black people is grossly exaggerated.

@Pioneer1 (anyone) do you think the construction of the Pyramids is an example of science applied?

Someone emailed this to me. They may lurk these forums. I have not watched the whole movie. So I can't really speak to it yet. I do not think this film could have the impact of the hollywood version because the hollywood version comes with it own marketing hype machine.

I see things a bit differently @zaji in the case of describing the elephant each person was accurately describing what they felt. They were all correct. The problem comes when any of them use their limited experience in an attempt to describe the entire elephant. Many of us do this without even realizing it. We do not realize we are blind to a larger whole. This is called ignorance. The worst of us are indeed closed to additional information we are arrogant in our ignorance. In terms of airplanes. Airplanes do not "defy" gravity. The take advantage of another scientific principal to overcome gravity. Indeed a complete understanding of gravity and how it works is necessary in order for one to understand flight. This similar to what you wrote, but the distinction I'm trying to make is that gravity is not "wrong," but a better understanding of the whole environment allows us to apparently defy it. Opinions and preferences are subjective, so we can all have different opinions and be completely right as far as the individual concerned. Facts are not subject to individual whims or preferences.

This is such a meaty topic. It is hard to properly address all the issues being raised. Look for Black people with college degrees, these degrees mean a lot means a lot less than they used to and have always meant less than they do for white people. I have typically been more educated than most of the people I've worked with (I have an MBA and a MS in engineering). I once had a white manager tell me during our first meeting that he did not care how many degrees I had -- this coming from a white guy who had less education and I'd guess who was less intelligent as well. But he was senior to me in his role and made a lot more money. He also had a direct say on the size of my bonus. When the bonus pool was being divided up who do you think got the largest shared me or his boys? This was at Goldman Sachs. This type of thing was one of the reasons I left. After a certain point, I determined I would rather struggle on my own than be owned by folks who really don't see me or respect me. But that is me and I know most people are not like me in this way. At a Goldman it is also not just enough to have a degree it also matters where the degree is from. Because of this Black people are are a significantly disadvantage because we are historically excluded from the Ivies. Again, not because of ability but because of legacy, racist admission policies, etc. Of course there are other places to work, but the firms where you earn the highest wages operate the same way. Now this also excludes other whites based upon class, which have led some whites who believe "affirmative action" has given unqualified Blacks positions that they rightly deserve. The value of an education is not a simple question. People always say. "Troy I'm sure your engineering degrees helped you create AALBC.com," No they did not. The skills I use today were not invented when I got my degrees. I learned everything I know to run this site on my own. Well surely, they say, that my MBA helps me run my business. Again, the answer is "no." An MBA is best suited to teaching one how to work for a large corporation. Sure the same ability that allowed be to earn my degrees is the same one that allowed me to create AALBC.com. But that ability is not at all unique and definitely not sufficient to run AALBC.com. @Kalexander2's point "Black are taught to never challenge authority" resonated because this was he way I was raised. I always referred to people who were older to me. In my first job I found it difficult to refer to the older white guys by the first names. My white peers did not have this problem and they also challenged the older guys ideas more freely.

I think Pioneer is right in the sense that a college education is a waste of time for some people, especially if we looked at there personalities, talents and goals. For many college is just a rip off (but that is another conversation. But ability is rarely the reason for someone not to go to college, that is were we diverge on opinions.

@zaji, so you don't believe that some beliefs are wrong or incorrect and others are right and correct? If this does not accurately describe what you mean, you'll need to clarify it a bit more (at least for me) perhaps an example would be a good why to start.

If @Pioneer1 was a troll he would be the most ineffective or slowest one in existence. Pioneer is not a troll. I'm been running discussion forums for 20 years now and I don't begrudge anyone for wanting to maintain their anonymity. In fact the guy who spent a decade running our book club went by the name of Thumper and he did not want to reveal his real identity. In fact for years, lurkers would come to me, in the real world, and ask if I was Thumper -- many just automatically assumed this was true. After a while Thumper gained some notoriety and maintaining his anonymity became really hard. To this day his real name does not appear on this site. The same was true for the author known as Zane (who has posted here in the past). Zane ran her own forum dealing with sex and she maintained her anonymity for a long time she even had books published before people know who she was. The woman you runs the most popular Black forum that I know of uses Condi Rice as her avatar, thought she revealed her identity to me when I inquired whether her site was Black owned. Thought she could have made up an identity... That said, I give a lot more credit to people who stand behind what they say with a true identity. Look I know anyone can take some I might have written here out of context and make me look crazy. I know I can't run for public office of work for many companies based upon some of the stuff I've written here -- even if said in jest or to play devils advocate. So if you job is in jeopardy by all means use an avatar. There are many good reason to hide one's identity on the web. BTW @Kalexander2, Pioneers avatar is Earl Graves founder of Black Enterprise Magazine: https://aalbc.com/top_black_websites/#Black+Enterprise

@Pioneer1 I do believe that the vast majority of people are intellectually capable of getting a college degree. The biggest challenge is not intellectual. It is financial. I also believe that a high school education from 50 years ago is worth a college education today (@Cynique what do you think). I mean many in my parent's generation had little more than a grade school education and seem better prepared for life that a college grad today... Even when I was in school it was simply more difficult to do anything, writing a paper required a level of discipline that is unnecessary today. Today you can just type all you thoughts and some program will correct the spelling, properly format it, into whatever style you want and even fix your the grammar. I remember how frustrated I would be with a single typo-- too many and you had to start all over. Programming was more difficult, I won;t even talk about access to information... Again we have all the information in the world at our finger tips and people are less informed and greater numbers seem misinformed.

“...an uncompromising enemy of racism.” Author, Frank Hercules “thinking of one of my early inspirations Lewis Michaux. everyone who knew him has stories of him and the bookstore. when i started selling books in Baltimore, after the Panther Party and before Black Classic Press, i would travel to New York and bargain with Mr. Michaux for slow selling items in his inventory. we'd quietly do our bargaining away from the retail customers. he drove hard bargains, but would most often let me win, taking pity on this young bookseller breaking into the trade that he pioneered. i'd get lost in the thousand and thousand of books on his shelves, and loved the larger than life oil paintings always on display by Earl Sweeting. and the political and literary discussion always going on in the store. Louis H. Michaux remains our greatest bookseller.” —Paul Coates, Founder Black Classic Press (from Facebook post) Lewis Michaux, 92, Dies; Ran Bookstore in Harlem By C. GERALD FRASERAUG. 27, 1976 Mr. Michaux called his bookstore the house of common sense and the home of proper propaganda. The community called it Michaux's. The store was situated for 38 years on Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard at 125th Street. Browsers and customers included Kwame Nkrumah, who later became Ghana's first President; Malcolm X and many authors and scholars, such as W. E. B. DuBois, who met his wife, Shirley Graham, there. (read the complete article) National Memorial African Book Store The bookstore was located in two locations in Harlem, New York for 38 years (1932 and 1974). The 125 Street and 7th Ave (now Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard), pictured above, was torn down to make way for the Harlem State Office Building.

Wow that software has been around forever! I've used it myself but that was 30 years ago or more.

@Pioneer1, in reaction to your comment about, Black folks parading around the internet posting pictures and other personal form of information, I guess you've never heard of Facebook. I could not resist making that observation

I heard they are trying to change the law in Kentucky (I think that was the state) to make the legal age of marriage 18, or 17 in the parent permission. Seems the state has come under fire for allowing children as young as 13 to get married. These are mostly white girls I'm sure, given the state's demographics. The problem of over sexualiztion of girls is cultural. Sure our most vulnerable are often the most exploited. So perhaps this make Black girls particularly vulnerable. I doubt, Pioneer, you'll find any evidence to support the statement that Black girls become sexually mature earlier than white girls. But I don't doubt that is your experience.

@Kalexander2 maybe @Delano can help you with the statistics app; he is well versed in the subject and has probably used the software. To be clear, I was saying I found Boehner's crying ridiculous. I just want to shake and a tell him to pull himself together. Thought I'm sure some people might find his "sensitivity" refreshing or admirable -- however, I doubt any of those people are men. I'd like to think I'm a normal, compassionate person

You need an UAA or APU username and password to read the document.

Absolutely. Not all of course but enough. 600,000 laid their lives down in the civil war, dying for a cause that was really not in their self interest., but in the interest of the wealthy.

No need to apologies about how long it takes to reply @Kalexander2, besides you actually replied two hurs after my comment which is immediate as far as I'm concerned. The scenario you outlined would make a good book and film. I was not up on the influence the railroads had on the civil war are there any web based resources you recommend that I check out on the subject?