Troy

...plus people lie on surveys giving responses to make themselves look good. Then there is the troll factor... We can poke holes in my little survey all day long. In case it was not obvious, I even said the survey was not scientific. Speaking of surveys and racism, I just about finished a book that I would recommend, Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, It is really a fascinating study of big data. It attempts to explains why surveys and Facebook posts are flawed ways of understanding people and why our Google searches are much more revealing of our true selves. Google search, for example, indicate that child abuse, abortions, and even racism is much more prevalent than what the governmental data reports.

...well Del he was nicknamed "Wilt the Stilt" which is apropos

Del, Cynique was asking about the existence of the G-Spot. Female ejaculation really is another issue; you don't have to ejaculate when you climate as a result of stimulating the G-Spot and you can ejaculate as a result of vaginal stimulation. Del using the resource you provided, you can see the two things are of course related but not necessarily dependent upon each other: Despite earlier contrary claims, researchers have found evidence that a sensitive area (Grafenberg Spot) exists in the vaginal barrel. This area is a potential source of orgasm independent of clitoral stimulation. Other researchers have reported that some women experience a sudden spurt of fluid at the moment of orgasm. In the interest of contributing to further understanding of physiological and psychological sexual satisfaction, and alleviation of concerns about perceived urination during orgasm, the investigators explored a series of variables thought to be associated with perceptions of the Grafenberg Spot and its relationship, if any, to the female orgasmic response and female ejaculation. An anonymous questionnaire was distributed to 2,350 women in the United States and Canada, with a subsequent 55% return rate. A number of factors were found to be associated with perceived existence of a sensitive area in the vaginal barrel which, when properly stimulated, activates orgasm. Women who reported sensitive area orgasms were also more likely to report a spurt of fluid at moment of orgasm. Apparently, most women have never climaxed as a result of G-Spot stimulation and a large percentage of women have never climaxed at all...

Cynique, I'm not a follower of Farrakhan, but I recognize he commands more respect than all of the Brothers you mentioned, for the reasons I've outlined. Sure, I know who Julian Bond is, but I'm educated, 55 years old, and actively support Black people. Most Black high schoolers know who Farrakhan is. None of them will know Bond, only a few will know the NAACP--both the man and the institution, I'm sad to say, are irrelevant and have been for some time. Maybe this will change. I hope so. I supported the NAACP financially, off and on, over the years. I even promoted their book awards for years with less than no support from them... It was no surprise to me one of their chapters had a white girl running it without their knowledge... The greatest story ever told, niggas in the field From Solomon to Sambo to Django, it's fact I'm the Farrakhan of rap and I get it from the wheel --Jay Z I guess you'd need to be a Black man to better understand the difference between a Bond and a Farrakhan. It is the same strength exhibited by Malcolm X and Brothers like Huey Newton, and others. None of these men are perfect--no man is. But we seemingly can even agree on who are strong leaders are... You and I gave several reasons for the apparent lack of follow-through since the Million Man March. I was one of those Brothers who had no interest in attending, because Marches do nothing and many of the Brothers I knew who were most excited to go were some of the most trifling Brothers around. Still to get a million people to do anything is a tremendous accomplishment, to get that many people to do something important is sublime. Farrakhan had that potential. The religion is one thing that put a serious constraint on his effectiveness. I've attended services at their Mosque I have seen the positive impact on Brothers and Sisters, but as I said it is not for me. I've also heard Farrakhan speak live, in perhaps his prime, in the early 1980's he was the most skilled speaker I ever heard. (I would not say that today, because Farrakhan does tend to ramble as Cynique said. In fact, his speech during the Million Man March, wasn't so great--a missed opportunity). Has anyone else been to a NOI service or heard Farrakhan speak live? It is hard to judge the man if you've never heard him speak. Sort of like dissin' Go-Go music without hearing it live. Giving @Delano the "wachu-talkin-bout-willis" look. Man, I know you ain't talking about me assuming what other people believe. I'm the one asking the most questions, sometimes asking the same question 2 or 3 times. I'm the one who crafted a survey to ask even more people what they think. If I ever make a statement about what someone else believes it is an attempt to restate my understanding of what they said so that it is clear that I understand them. I doubt you will ever find me making a declaration of what someone else thinks without anything to support the supposition. Pioneer I agree with a lot of what you say. But the tide has turned on homosexuality, the horse is out the barn, the cat is out the bag, that ship has sailed, and you are not putting that genie back in the bottle... Just get used to it man.

OK then we are on the same page. But I never wrote anything denigrating Viola. Can you find one thing I wrote where I diminish the person, Viola Davis? I see her as the victim and I explained why it is possible she may not see herself as a victim. The 5th grader attending a substandard school, living in a substandard neighborhood won't his current condition is a function of racism. His lack of knowledge of that fact does not make it any less true... Of course in a time when the planet may soon be rendered uninhabitable Viola's picture is of no consequence. But I did find the discussion very revealing about relative perceptions. I suspect part of the reason Black folks find it difficult to make the changes you suggested we have not made is because we can't agree on what the problems actually are. For example, there are many Black folks who would even disagree that racism exists at all--even if they concede that it does exist, it does not matter because if you work hard you can make it in America. Then there are people so crippled by the white man they do nothing but languish in some ghetto or jail cell. And of course, we have everything in between. The total is a rounding error @Mel Hopkins . Again I wrote what I hoped would happen.

No one knows who Jullian Bond is and I seriously doubt Jessie of Sharpton could have done what Farrakhan did. The primary reason is that Farrakhan is viewed as his own man. A "Man's man" if you will. Sharpton and Jessie have the reputation of pimping corporations and are dependent upon them. Can you image a Million Man March, sponsored by McDonalds or Coke?

Cynique, surveys are tough to execute without bias. I'm also not suggesting that this is a scientific study. In fact, I removed the Time Magazine cover because I actually believed if the image was presented in the full context people would have found it MORE racist. But again if you can't see an iota of racism, then there is nothing I can say to convince you. There is no data that I can present to change your opinion. But as you can see from my unscientific survey Black people are largely split on the issue, some dramatically so. You may recall I too described the picture as a Rorschach test. I also wrote that I suspected those suggested to more racism would be more likely to see the photo as racist. So I'm not surprised every nonBlack person would find the photo both flattering and not racist. I will tell you this much; in America, it is not uncommon for a racist to not recognize their racism, and it is not unusual for the victim to fail to see it when it is staring them in the face. This has come from centuries of institutionalized racism and the marginalization of a people. ...and yes, in America, you CAN find racism in virtually anything, but it is not because we want to. It is simply part and parcel of our culture. From our Whitehouse to our to our local school boards; From our currency to our history books. @CyniqueaAsk yourself why is it that you refuse to call 45 your president? What conditions thrust him into power--racism was part of it. I could go on and on, but you know the deal.

No, I don't feel vindicated. All I was interested in doing was helping people see another perspective. They may disagree with, or not understand, the perspective, but they are no longer ignorant of it. Thinking, opening minded, people can't unsee what they have been shown, their awareness has been raised. It is really all I'm trying to do with the website, helping people to see that Black people are much more than the stereotypical memes and entertainers. Speaking of entertainers I bet the majority of Black people Time felt were "most influential" are Black people who entertain them. I have not looked at the entire list because I refuse to let Time determine, for me, who is important and I not inclined to do the research to make a point... but if someone else does it I'd definitely look t the results. As one of the commenters wrote, “I never thought of the picture as racist until this survey,” if you (@Pioneer1) had not posed the question I probably would not have even seen the photo much less thought about. But once I thought about it for more than 5 seconds, it seemed pretty obvious what it represented Now I'm not saying Time has an agenda, but Time operates in a White male dominated environment. Time Magazine's aesthetic reflects this and this does not optimally service Black people--but what else is new, welcome to America. @Cynique , do you see the distinction here? No one is ashamed of Black women. That would make us ashamed of ourselves The shame belongs to our racist culture...

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...or to move on to the next woman. When Chamberlain famously said he shagged 20,000 women, no one ever asked if he satisfied that many--now THAT would have been impressive Cynique in this age of women's liberation do you think the "men-give-attention-to-get-sex and women-give-sex-to-get-attention" idea holds true, or is this something hard wired into our nature?

Hi Cynique an open ended question like that would have been too vague. I could have asked Pioneer's question "what's wrong with this picture" and provided a list of options but, as you said, I wanted know if people thought the photo was racist when asked directly. Did you see the complete results?

Del I'm talking about the most popular rappers like Little Wayne or Snoop, not the Q-Tips. The rappers that the majority of the world know and regularly see. I agree, rappers span the gamut and there are a great variety of them. I was NOT indicting rappers, I was indicting the media images which depict grown men behaving as boys and the adverse stereotypes and they create and the resulting behavior the result when Black men mimic the images they see. Don't get me wrong it is not that I don't watch TV. I just don't watch very much of it. Unless I'm watching a documentary about don't use that media to learn about people. Similarly, I'm sure there are people who think I'm missing out on learning about the world and people by opting out of social media. I don't think so, I think we can learn much more about each other by reading books, articles, and even posts on discussion forums like this. And Cynique, I've on the business end of the "vodka-primed-girls-night-out" so I 'm what you are saying

@Delano why would a "Real" Black man want to delay his orgasm? See why you are confused with being gay? Before you ladies pounce on a negro I just wanted to relate another issue overlooked when it come to raising men; sex. I was a grown man before the notion of satisfying a woman was something I even considered. It is like we are supposed to learn this stuff through osmosis. Even worse some women, perhaps most, have no clue about their own bodies unable to offer and guidance leading to their own satisfaction. Some guys learn from porn, through the braggadocio of their homeboys, or some hooker. Sometimes men can learn a few things from an older woman. The "Kegel Lady" raised my awareness.

I just posted the preliminary results of the little survey asking if the photo of Viola flattering and Racist. The results are reflective of our conversation. It was interesting, to me, to see that 100% of the non-black respondents found the photo both flattering and nonracist. This, of course, comes as no surprise. Almost 72% of Black women did not think the photo was flattering almost 1/3 strongly disagreeing with the statement. See the complete summary.

Here are the results so far. The survey was prompted by a question posed in the conversation What's Wrong With This Picture? I’d encourage everyone to check out this conversation. During the conversation, you'll learn if the makeup artist was Black. You definitely read a wide variety of opinions; some of the comments may change the way you feel about this photo or they may strengthen your opinion. Here are the results so far: None of the non-Black respondents did saw the photo as racist and all of them agreed the photo was flattering. The responses from the Black Males were split. Half agreed the photo was racist and half felt it was the photo was flattering 10% of respondents were Black men, 10% were not Black (evenly split between male and female). 80% of the respondents were Black women The following are Responses from Just Black Women 80% of All Respondents Photo Racist and Not Flattering: 37% Photo Racist and Flattering: 3% Photo Not Racist and Not Flattering: 34% Photo Not Racist and Flattering: 26% These are the Comments from the survey respondents (comments were optional): “Why is a picture of a black woman wearing red lipstick, smiling broadly about something that made her bring her hands to her face so offensive? Subjective reactions to it are more about how white people will view the picture rather than how black people would. Many black women look this way and a broad smile is not something any woman should have to be judged for. I'd be interested in hearing Viola's comments about this candid shot. I'm actually American and of African Ascent ” “It is certainly not flattering, but not racist” “If black folk find this in any way racist, I will be edified.” “Viola Davis is such a beautiful black women. I had always admired her ""Blackness"" and darkness. It seems that they used the worst picture of her to make a mockery for Black women. Bottom line is that I think it was intentional to make her look like an animal. Blessings to Viola...” “God have mercy on (them) whoever!” “Ms Davis is a beautiful Black woman - end of story!” “For years the publication Time has been subtly racist. In my younger years I subscribed to this magazine, but after noting how snide and subtly derisive this publication can be when the subject of an article is black, I wrote them an angry letter and dropped my subscription. I see from this picture, where they seemed to wait until they found the most unflattering posture and snapped the picture, they haven't changed at all. Regards, Pat” “I don't understand the question. Is this a picture of Viola in a role, or is it just a picture. She has many different looks, she wears her hair in many different styles, so in what context is the question being asked.????” “I never thought of the picture as racist until this survey. My first reaction to it when I first saw it was to just think it was not a good picture, period. The colors don't mix at all. It's too many colors, actually, for something so serious and a woman of her stature. She's not a pop star, but a great and studious actress. I kind of feel like I know what they were going for- joy and all that- but they missed the mark. I am also tired of them making Viola into some charity case who is ecstatic she survived abject poverty and childhood trauma. I get that, that's great and all. But, we are just proud of her as a beautiful artist and woman who is a joy to watch in all her diverse roles like a Meryl Streep or Kate Winslet. We're not framing her in her past.” “I am sure this wasn't her best photo of the evening. It definitely brings to mind the old red lipped big teeth grinning Negro. Not to be ashamed of showing a toothy smile or wearing red lipstick...but she's only a hair away from wearing a bandana and apron here. She's beautiful, this doesn't really look like Viola Davis!” “I am curious what is racist about it? I think she looks beautiful. However it does look like a lot of photoshop.” “It show how ridicules we look we try to adopt white culture. Hair makeup etc.” “An expert professional photographer could have gotten a better photo of Viola Davis; the photo is not flattering at all.” “This is a photo of Ms. Davis. I feel it may not be the most flattering of photos, but I don't see anything racist about an actual photo. She is smiling and posing.” “Somehow, when profiling women who are not of color, they seem to be photographed in a more appealing profile.”

Yeah Swaller's books looks pretty dense too. What also interested me in his work is his research into ancient Egypt. The very existence of the Pyramids tells us the ancient Egyptions knew things about the way the world works that we do know. Surely we can learn from them. I think science's dismissal of spirituality and western region's corruption of it, have left a void in western cultures. A void, that if not filled, will result in not just more wealth being hoarded by a few, but Earth becoming uninhabitable for Sapiens.

interesting... I knew a woman who could bring herself to climax by simply squeezing her legs together. She was also a body builder who also exercised that part of her body by doing Kegal (sp?) exercises.

@Delano when you wrote I was "mirroring your statement" I was saying that it was because I learned something from you in this exchange. @Pioneer1 , I do believe the ladies are begging to understand our perspctive. Yes, Cynique's statement about Leslie was on point. Again since Black folks do not choose who is most important to us, all we can do is still back and complain...

Well perhaps if we referred to it as "the congress of a cow" as named in the Kamasutra, or the the Latin "coitus more ferarum," it would sound more romanitc. That Latin translates to "sexual intercourse in the manner of wild beasts" Sound like fun to me! I dunno, the missionary position, does not seem optimal for the female's climax as she has less control, but it is more intimate How does a post about Thinking" digress into the relative merits of "doggy style"? I guess that reveals something about what we think.

Again, @Delano, I suggest the notion that, "Stupidity Brawn and hyper violence and sexuality" is what makes a Black man--otherwise you're gay is nonsense feed to up by the media and even more so by social media. Now I know @Cynique, does not agree with this, but she was fortunate to grow up in a world--not where these images did not exist--but where they were not constantly driven into your head like a pile driver. Today people walk around, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with devices in their hands feeding them a constant stream of stereotypes and other nonsense psychometrically designed to keep you engaged, dumb and easily manipulated. These stereotypes are becoming greatly reinforced. Don't ask me to present a scientific study to prove what I just wrote. There have been plenty of books that touch on the subject which I have read and have previously shared. But even these books are obsolete as the technology is rapidly changing and becoming more effective. @Mel Hopkins, I know exactly what you are talking about with the retrospective on TV. But I suspects that would only mean something to someone who was in NYC in the 70's. Relatively speaking we have a much larger selection of channels and programming than most. In many places during that time, there were only 3 or 4 stations and those did not broadcast 24 hours a day. @Cynique, what your grandson did is called "code switching," I did it until I was in my mid-twenties. I stopped because I was no longer spending time in the 'hood. I can't to it any longer because the lingo has changed and I rather speak do the way I do, than coming across as "frontin' (phony)." I know where I come from and have nothing to prove. Unfortunately, many of us never grow out of that. We have all seen s middle aged men behaving and dressing like a 20-something. In fact, this is the effect that middle-aged rappers go for and they look silly, juvenile, to me. Here again is a message that we are hit with constantly--Black man behave like a child. Again, one would have to be sensitive to this, as some of it is almost subliminal, but I can give you MANY examples.

@Delano (everyone), please share information on AALBC.com's site any way that makes sense for you. I encourage and NEED you to do share AALBC.com's information. While I have chosen not to use social media for personal purposes, and am halfway through a 6-month boycott to help determine how I will use social media for business purposes; I do not mean to imply anyone should not share social links back to AALBC.com, indeed the first thing I learned from my boycott is that OTHERS sharing on social is how all of my social media derived traffic is obtained--it is not the result of my activity on social media--it is yours. I hope you like the book. I'm considering buying The Temple of Man, but I have about 10 books queued up ahead if it. Plus your reaction to A Study of Numbers will probably influence my decision. Though the Sister as Marcus Books already sold me.

Het @Delano, I discovered this book, A Study of Numbers: A Guide to the Constant Creation of the Universe by R. A. Schwaller de Lubicz, recently and was wondering what you thought about it, based upon the description and perhaps the youtube video. I was in Oakland, CA on Friday and I visited the iconic Marcus Bookstore. One of the coowners turned me onto another book by the same authors, which she said would blow my mind. I discovered the book above while researching R. A. Schwaller de Lubicz. The book she recommended to me was The Temple of Man,

@Delano, I've seen both the Dance Theater of Harlem and Alvin Alley. While I'm not an avid support of dance, I've attended quite a few performances and have even made contributions. @Cynique I know I don't confuse disagreement with a lack of appreciation. More importantly, I and many others I'm sure, have been thoroughly enriched by your presence here. I only wish that even more people benefit from your wisdom and skill as a writer. Here is my prediction: In the not too distant future, when people tire of corporate control of the platforms in which they engage with each other, they will return to to indie platforms. When that happens Cynique's Corner will become a very popular discussion forum. People will read you wisdom, humor, and cynism and regret not participating sooner.

Perhaps, @Mel Hopkins, I guess the biggest difference between our opinions is that I do not distinguish the fight for Black women's rights with the fight for Black people. Your points, on this issue, are indeed lost on me. This, however, is not for a lack of trying. @Cynique (anyone), do you see what I'm missing? If so please give me a simple summary. Cynique, I see you mirror, more or less, Mel's statement that I found so sad. It is not just sad but it is also a bit surprising that you separated from Mel by both geography and a generation share this sentiment. Your statement is more nuanced and revealing some of the complexity in the situation, but the conclusions are similar. Black power does not, can not, and never has just come from just one gender. This male/female battle is white people's mess. Now I know full well many Black are full of self-hate, but I really did not appreciate how Black women feel about Black men. Now Cynique and Mel do not represent all Black women and I'm sure I can find Black women who disagree with them. Still, I hope their opinion is not widespread. I hope my daughters do not grow to feel this way... I have an anecdote that I will share in a separate conversation because it is related to this conversation but from a very different angle. It talks to a Black women not supporting Black men, namely me. It was a situation that perplexed me more than is bothered me because I never experienced such an obvious situation of a Black woman not supporting me before... I did not view it as a Black woman not supporting me I saw this as a Black person not supporting me. Perhaps I'm naive.

. and even in science, there are no absolutes. Anything we claim to know today and be changed if proven otherwise. The truth of the matter is that we know so very little. Sure we know vastly more than we knew 300 years ago, but we knew almost nothing then beyond making weapons and growing crops. I would not be surprised if we knew more about the way the world works thousands of years ago than we know today, particularly as it deals with spirituality. I agree with Cynique that people should defend their convictions. But I also believe that these convictions must be subjected to tests where applicable, this is how improvement comes about. It is the same thing with Trump as president. People disagree on Trump's qualifications to be president. Tests or proofs to the contrary are meaningless, people are "religious" in the convictions (read: irrational). I do believe people by nature do not test their beliefs or subject what they to evaluation (the way we do here). It is just hard to have your ideas challenged and this is simply something most people do feel like doing. Plus people generally don't think deeply about many things--including themselves and their own motivations--this takes effort. For the religion, faith is all that is needed. indeed alternative perspectives are avoided and even violently eliminated. People might debate whether Lebron is better than Jordan, but it really does not get much deeper than that for most folks... @Delano, you might observe that they both wear number "23" and see a more profound significance and I might be perplexed at why we are spending so much money on professional basketball, making the owners fantastically wealthy it the expense of our community. To me the significance of Jordan being better than Lebron is as significant to me as your preference of pie over cake... Now why do I think that way? Largely, I suspect, it is a result of running a small business selling books.