Troy

Amazon‘s is profiting from our insecurities with one hand and taking away jobs with the other. Amazon launched this product yesterday. Someone who knew this would tickle my fancy emailed it to me about it. I blogged about it, "Amazon‘s Echo Look: Exploiting Our Inner Narcissist." It seems strange to me that anyone would want this gizmo, but I know Amazon understand people very well, so I'm sure there is a sizeable market. Boy, in a world where companies can profit by writing code that tells women and metrosexuals what to wear, writing code to books makes one feel like an anachronism. Delano, I am a technological dinosaur.

Still Celebrating National Poetry Month! In honor of the day, which began in New York City in 2002 and was made national by the Academy of American Poets in 2008, we have a special offer for our very best customers. We're joining in the celebration by offering free shipping on any order of our poetry and literature titles to the first 50 people who send a short, original poem (no more than 10 lines) to email@blackclassicbooks.com. To be considered, the subject line of your email must read "Poem in My Pocket." Your free shipping code will be sent after your poem is received and reviewed. We must receive your poem by midnight on April 27th. Please note that, unless you indicate otherwise, we may post your poem on our blog or Facebook page.

Here is a list of the authors who have obtained the most votes so far.. I created a list like this about 17 years ago for the prior century. This most interesting this about last time was the votes came in much faster back then. This si true despite the fact that the site gets an order of magnitude more traffic today and there was no such thing as social media. My mailing list was smaller. I've been wondering what gives; Has the nature of the web changed in such a way that people are simply less willing to actively participate on the web--web fatigue of sorts? Maybe we've moved past looking at authors based upon their so-called "race," and are truly in post-racial environment where polls like this are antiquated, passe. Maybe there are just fewer people interested in Black authors. Maybe people are simply unaware of the new poll, and I need to share it on social media. I dunno, I could easily argue against and have data to dispute any of the above being true. At any rate, I'll keep the voting going until indefinitely it will be a living, breathing list. Ultimately I allow the page to be updated in real-time. I hope you all have voted. If not tell me why you have not voted. Is it one of the reasons listed above or something else?

"Black Lives Matter, Depending on Who Kills You," That is a good one...

My argument with Pioneer is not that any group of people are all good or all bad. My issue is how he describes our nature, as if we perpetuate this perverted form of capitalism because it is our nature. Germans are not inherently evil because they were led by a lunatic. I don't believe humans are inherently exploitative, but we are very easily led. I don't like the connotation of the term "primitive people" in this context. I think in many ways we are more primitive today, despite our technology--perhaps because of it. Sure the indigenous peoples of North America were more primitive from a technological people. But from a spiritual perspective, the people inhabiting these lands are spiritually vacuous, despite more the majority of us professing to follow a religion.

Well, I'm back in NYC The bus from the airport drops me off on 125th in Harlem (Spanish Harlem technically) and I start to walk home and this Brother tries to sell me a book. Initially, I say, "nah man," but I'm a soft touch for Brothers like this. I don't know him from boo, but he is familiar I grew up with cats like him. So I go into AALBC-mode. I buy a book, of course, we bargain--I did say I took the bus from the airport right? I shot the video below, with my cell phone. I'm using at Samsung Galaxy 5 a hand-me-down from my daughter. I'm still amazed what you can do with this 3-year-old cell phone. I literally meet Samson Dempsey two hours before writing this message. I've shot numerous videos over the years like this over the years, but I have not done one of someone, I just passed by on the street, in several years. The first one I did was over 10 years ago, of the author Randy Kearse (have not updated his page yet). Randy went on to publish several more books and gain a great deal more prominence. Years after I shot the video he told me he had only been out of jail for a couple of months and he truly appreciated the support I showed him. That made me feel so good, because at the time I had no clue, again he could have been someone I grew up with, or even me. Sometimes it just helps when someone tells you've had an impact. \

I only asked for a single title @Pioneer1--one book. I figured you would come strong--definitely a book you'd actually read. Is this the best book you could come up with? A book, from some unknown publisher written by an even more obscure author whose credentials, knowledge and bias are all unverifiable. This is what you share with me as your reference material? I am beginning to understand why you feel some things can't be proven. Like climate change deniers, overwhelming evidence means nothing as long as there is a single detractor that can be pulled from under some rock--they are satisfied. Keep in mind capitalism has only been practiced for a few hundred years, man has been on earth for 200 thousands years. If you believe that the last we, Black folks in particular, have fared better than any time in history despite all the ills you know all too well. Then you are right if can't be debated because nothing can convince you otherwise. You should read about some of the great African civilizations that existed. I just remembered PBS is broadcasting Africa's Great Civilizations. I have not seen it yet, but I'm sure they will focus on the tremendous accomplishments of these societies despite the absence of capitalism. You can also buy the DVD, though I don't know who still buys these things. "...then wouldn't the logical thing to do is derive as much pleasure as you can out of such a jacked up situation?" Man, this is such a profound statement. So @Pioneer1, if you were a slave living in the big house, the child of a raped African (your mother), who was later sold. You work 18 hours a day every day, wiping the ass of the dude that raped your mother and every other decent looking enslaved Black woman--including your wife... The only thing that comes to your mind is figuring out how to have fun? That is deep. Perhaps you put your finger on the mentality that keeps us mental slaves to this day. People are too busy having fun for themselves instead of trying to make things better for everyone... Again, this is not our nature, this is our conditioning.

Lol Yeah that was a good one!

When in Florida, I spend hours in Barnes and Noble and Starbucks working on AALBC.com. Sometimes I use the library, but I like being able to buy a cup of coffee and something to eat without having to pack up and leave.. Plus, I can people watch in B&N and Starbucks. People are so interesting, but before I digress let me tell you about a Brother I've become friendly with over the last couple of years, Milton Bertrand. We started talking because I noticed he was sitting in the B&N at a wooden desk--that he brought into the store himself--which initially seemed crazy--who brings a desk to a bookstore?!. We started talking and he explained how his desk actually folded up into his backpack. I thought that was such a cool idea since tables can fill up during busy times in the store. I filmed him on my cell phone but never edited the video (just never got to it). Late last year, I ran into him again and this time he had an upgraded model of the desk. It was no longer made out of wood, but plastic and a light-weight metal. The desk can also be converted into an easel with the desktop doubling as a whiteboard-like writing surface. So I filmed him again and this time I even started to edit the video, but one thing led to another and I never finished editing it. Yesterday I saw him again and told him I'll get to his video, but I was saying to myself I must sound like I'm full crap. So while he never asked for a video, I'd been promising to create one, for the better part of a year, but never did it. So I decided to finish it today. Hopefully, it will inspire others to create. He told me he actually filled a large order for a school.

Hi Dee, you forgot to post a link where people may learn more about your book. People will assume the book is available on Amazon, save folks a step and simply post a direct link. Actually, after searching for you on the site , I see that you have previously posted (please create an account so I don't have to manually approve what your posts) and see that you don't have a website. Why don't you let AALBC.com host your web presence: https://aalbc.com/authors/mydomain.html Let me know what you think. Peace, Troy

I forgot where I heard this, but someone suggested that strippers might fell a little different about what they do seeing Harriett Tubman's face stuffed in their crotches... ...something tells me they will get used to it.

Miss Sunshine, that was a good one LOL! (is that original) @Pioneer1 please refer me to a single book, written in the last 50 years, that describes native Americans as "blood thirsty savages and cannibals." It is interesting you are so quick to say what can't be proven but you use "unprovable" information to support your arguments. Pioneer America was built on the back on, and derives most of its wealth from, the labor of enslaved Africans. Even today people labor all over the Earth in slave-like conditions so that you can pay $200 for a pair of sneakers that cost a few bucks to produce. It is very easy to become wealthy if Your labor costs are $0 You have consumers brainwashed into buying thing they don't need or paying for the things that they don't need You own politicians so that you don't pay taxes, don't deal with regulations, get bailed out if you ever lose money, etc You convince the masses that you are righteous because greed is good, or as you put it "Human Nature" No man, what we have is an oligarchy and it is sad to see so many people defend it when so many people are suffering under it. I guess it is no different that the house slave who fights to defend massa's house...

Well because you shared the information here, even more people will learn about Eric's latest. Eric's work has definitely stood the test of time. Looking forward to reading your thoughts about this book and any others you enjoy.

I have 750 author profile pages to migrate and I came across Meri Nana-Ama Danquah profile and discovered this video. She talks about her experience in Vermont where everything was white. I wonder if the incidence of depression in a place like Ghana is lower because everyone is Black. It was one of the things that I never liked about corporate America. We need to see ourselves reflected in things and places that are valued. I wonder if all the faces on our currency were Black would depression in the Black community be just a tiny bit less...

Wow. I completely missed the fact the Eric had a new book. Thanks for sharing your enthusiasm here. How did you learn about the book's publication?

I'm reading a book right now, The Wisdom of the Native Americans, just little quotes from the indigenous people describing their way of life. There is nothing in it that describes all of the negative attributes that @Pioneer1 seems to think is human nature. Again, I think this is more a reflection of conditioning than an indication of human nature. I sure you've traveled and talked to a lot of people but if you probably talked to others like yourself who were fed a diet of the virtues of capitalism and the ills of socialism. I'm not trying to glorify the native American's but there is nothing in their history to reflect what you describe as human nature. The same goes for the precolonial African peoples. Capitalism, as we know it effectively started with Europeans about 500 years ago. The shit only works when people are exploited and enslaved--you know this right? Even when great wealth is amassed by a few they never share it. Today the majority of the Earth's population lives in abject poverty thousands of people die every day from starvation. This does not have to be the case, we have the resources to eradicate starvation, we just don;t have the systems to do it. In all of your travels have you seen real poverty? Do you think it is human nature to let that exist?

Pioneer I'm not silly enough not to recognize that the country views "race" completely differently than what science tells us, and treat people who like like me completely differently than people who look like 45. There are plenty of people who recognize the pain that Black people are in, there have been many books written on the subject. Terrie Willams wrote a book a number of years ago called Black Pain: It just Looks Like We're not Hurting, and there have been many others on the subject. But fixing this problem requires more effort that people are willing to exert. And people are so doggedly tied to the systems that are causing the problems we are trying to correct. It is like the author who understands that Amazon's monopoly on books is making them less wealthy, but maintains an Amazon Prime membership and buys all their books from Amazon. Or the Blogger who complains about a lack of traffic to their blog, but tells readers to visit them on Facebook any chance they get. There is A LOT of education that has to happen before anything changes, and that is even considering all of the resources arrayed against us.

I guess the problem in the US is that we do not practice a true form of capitalism, which is the fundamental problem. I I don't agree that capitalism is "in tune with human nature," unless you consider the exploitation of large swaths of the earth's population and the concentration of wealth into the hands of a few "human nature." People are more effective when they share resources and work together. While I agree there are many people who seek wealth, women, property and nice things as you suggest; I think most of that motivation is created because of the capitalist system. It is part of the conditioning that is required to make our brand of capitalism work. In fact, many could make a strong argument that constant consumption or the desire for it, makes us less happy. Are we happier upgrading our cell phones every two years, or buying more clothing than we can ever wear? Besides the majority of us are not benefiting from this system. I can't image that any thinking person would agree that progressing on our current trajectory is sustainable.

Da Lord, @Pioneer1, The Lord our Savior. That would be the response many might give. But you pose a good question. It does not seem as though guys are socialized to seek help, not from their wives, mothers or even there boys. Sure we can bitch and moan, but we generally don't say, I need "help." That would be a sign of weakness, and that dude would not be much of a man--not in his own eyes or in the eyes of society at large. Of course, we already know the system despises, so we can forget about any support in that direction. Some guys deal with the pressure with drugs or women. But the answer to your question is ourselves and our God. Of course, there are always exceptions but this is the general case. I feel sorry for that Brother. I falso feel sorry for that football play that killed himself in jail. I feel sorry for that Brother they rushed to execute in Arkansas. Black men garner the least amount of sympathy than any other creature in this country. Even dogs are treated with more compassion.

Yeah, white folks with money generally dictate what is is worthy. The sad part is they we seemingly follow what they do as if their brand of "journalism" is worthy of emulating. I listened to Joe Madison and Karen Hunter on Sirius and they talked about it for what seemed like their entire broadcasts. But I guess there is nothing that can be done. If you don't talk about it no one consumes your media. If you do talk about it you're nothing special...

Hi Sam, thanks for adding this information abut Yusef's latest book. I've updated the website to include it:https://aalbc.com/books/bookinfo.php?isbn13=9780472073443 and am considering it for review.

Du Bois's speech reminded me of a comment @Delano, made in a conversation I started last week. Du Bois died a year after I was born and was old enough to have personally known black people who were formerly enslaved. It is a crying shame that almost 60 years after this speech was delivered the things Du Bois criticized have only gotten worse. His point on what we now refer to as campaign finance reform was particularly telling. W. E. B. Du Bois Criticizes Capitalism in the audio below. He was 93 when this speech was delivered and was a remarkable human. It seems he was wrong about socialism being the dominant world structure. I guess he was far more confident or optimistic in human nature. Your browser does not support the audio element. “…American Negroes must know what is going on in the world today and learn for themselves what [Socialism] has to teach them in order that they may preserve their culture, get rid of their poverty, ignorance and disease and help America live up at least to a shadow of its vain boast as the land of the free and the home of the brave” Del, maybe Dubois was right too.

Thanks for the offer, for I know white gay males don't have to work for free. Anywho, "gay white slave boy's" message did prompt me to reread this post. Almost two years later things have seemingly gotten worse even scandal driven black owned sites are not as popular as they once were. I this may be a leading indicator of the fate of indie websites in general. Is this the end of indie websites? Have Facebook reached a tipping point on their way to dominance of the WWW?

I have not heard this story in the news yet. It sounds so crazy, and you say he is still alive? Wow...

Perhaps the characteristics that made Robinson an ideal candidate to integrate baseball, were the same ones that did not necessitate his assignation. Robinson was a young man when he died, younger than I am now. I still think of myself as relatively young, perhaps I always will... The Robinsons used to host a big concert in their backyard in CT, eventually if got so big it was moved. I attended a few times it was like a family reunion. I spent most of the day drinking and playing spades. The Jackie Robinson Foundation used to host an awards banquet for their scholarship fund at the Waldorf Astoria hotel (they still may do it I just have not been in a long time). It was a big event. For some reason, Goldman Sachs used to have me sit at one of their tables--which was unusual because everyone else at the table was a partner (read: very wealthy). I never did learn why they invited me, but I always enjoyed myself. I met Bill Cosby one year. This was long before the rape allegations Cosby presented as much more elderly than I expected and this was well over 10 years ago. It is interesting to consider how the Black American presence in major league baseball is approaching our involvement in Ice Hockey. 50 years later we need another Jackie Robinson, a great athlete, family man, advocate for Black rights, free of drugs and hormones, with a squeaky clean rep, to integrate baseball once again. Then again they don't make men like Robinson anymore, do they? May he rest in peace.