DarkStar Spouts Off

This Doesn't Add Up

Quickie....

I don't understand this one.

Bush has raised money for Steele.
Guiliani has raised money for Steele.
Mehlman has raised money for Steele.

But he's complaining about money not coming in from "on high"?

Uh?

Steele Wants GOP Cash to Keep Coming

The alarm bells started ringing inside the Senate campaign of Republican Lt. Gov. Michael Steele earlier this week: Was the national GOP leaving them behind?

As reported today, with anywhere from five to seven U.S. Senate seats to defend around the country, the GOP sent signals it would not match the quick infusion of $750,000 that the national Democratic party put into television ads in Maryland on behalf of Rep. Benjamin Cardin.

"They've made the commitment to have Sen. [Hillary] Clinton come here, Sen. [Barack] Obama come here. The natural question is: 'This is what these guys are doing; what are you prepared to do?' " Steele said in an interview yesterday.

During the courtship that brought Steele into the race, he had been made many promises, his aides said. Steele said he recognizes that the political landscape has changed. And he's appreciative of all the party has done for him to this point--which is substantial.

Black Dems Being Punked By The Party

Some time ago, Bill Clinton used "Sistah Souljah" at an event put together by Jesse Jackson, Sr. to "prove" to white Democrat voters that he wasn't beholden to "Black special interests" in the Democrat party. On USENET, specifically soc.culture.african.american.moderated, I "famously" wrote that Jesse Jackson, Sr. let Bill Clinton punk him.

Now it's Mfume's turn:

On stage at an outdoor amphitheater filled with college Democrats, the former NAACP president enthusiastically put his arms around Cardin, saying: "I know what he's done in the past, and I know what he'll do in the future. He's going to make a damn good senator."

But Mfume cautioned that the party had much work to do to energize black voters. The Democratic nominees for the top four jobs, he noted, look no different than the ticket 50 years ago.

"We need women in leadership positions in the state. We've got to find a way that African Americans and other minorities are represented statewide in office," he said, standing with Obama and other officials.

Cardin, who is white, faces Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele (R) in the general election Nov. 7 to succeed Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes (D), who is retiring.

In 2002, Steele became Maryland's first African American elected to statewide office and has tried to make inroads with black voters in the overwhelmingly Democratic state. He dismissed the significance of the high-profile endorsements yesterday and picked up on Mfume's theme.

"The challenge of the opportunity is to build a bridge to communities the Democratic Party has taken for granted and has, by its choice of nominee," decided to tell to wait, he said during an afternoon event in Largo. "I'm here to say, 'You don't have to wait any longer.' "

Cardin punked Mfume.

Compare this to Democrat Billy Murphy:

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s re-election campaign aired a radio ad yesterday that accuses Mayor Martin O'Malley of running a police department that has unlawfully arrested thousands of black residents of Baltimore.

The commercial features prominent Baltimore attorney William H. "Billy" Murphy Jr. - an African-American and Ehrlich ally - and launches the governor's attack on O'Malley's management of a police department dogged by commissioner turnover and accusations of misconduct.

"[O'Malley] sanctions and directs the arrests of thousands of Baltimore city people -predominantly black - without ever charging them with a crime," Murphy says in the 60-second spot running on black radio stations in the Baltimore and Washington markets.

The shift in the Republican governor's tactics comes after weeks of television commercials critical of the Democratic mayor's stewardship of Baltimore's public school system.

Ehrlich's ad escalated the vitriol between the candidates, as O'Malley's camp replied in an e-mail that the governor is "lying because he's losing."

Billy Murphy ain't a punk.

Cardin Is Worried

Ben Cardin is worried about Blacks not supporting him:

Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin has called on U.S. Sen. Barack Obama to woo black voters in his Senate run against Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele, a black Republican making inroads in Maryland minority communities that typically vote Democrat.

"I think he will be helpful for energizing my campaign," Mr. Cardin said of plans to campaign tomorrow with the Illinois Democrat, the country's only black senator. "I think he will attract all voters of Maryland."

Mr. Cardin, 62, a white 10-term congressman from Baltimore, yesterday did not acknowledge racial considerations in teaming with Mr. Obama against Mr. Steele, 47, the first black elected statewide in Maryland.

Obama wouldn't do it for me. Bringing someone in to speak for you instead of speaking for yourself is a big turn off.

What The MD Dem State Assembly Hath Wrought

The state assembly of Maryland is controlled by Democrats. Within the past few years, the Democrat controlled state assembly has:

• Supported "big oil" by banning gas stations from selling gas at a price that is "too low." I'm serious about this one. Here is what happened.

Big warehouse discounters like BJ's and Costco started to sell gas to its members. They were selling the gas at prices very near wholesale levels. This hurt the gas stations in the areas of the stores and the gas station lobby in Maryland pressed the Dem politicians to pass a law stating that gas could not be sold at a price that was "too low."

I'm not making that up.

• The city of Baltimore has schools that meet the criteria as being failed schools under NCLB. The Dem controlled state assembly blocked the state from "taking over" the failed schools. The state assembly gave the schools an additional year to get themselves together. However all of the schools had been failing for at least 10 years.
• The state assembly passed a law, at the urging of Giant Food and Safeway, that required Wal-Mart to either contribute more to their health benefits or pay more to the state insurance fund. The federal court struck down the law because the law was out of the realm of state regulation. It is controlled by the federal government. It is now known that state assembly Dem leaders knew the law would run afoul of federal rules if passed.
• Delayed energy deregulation in a way that forces those in central Maryland to pay a percentage of the real cost of energy used, pay interest on the amount not paid, and pay a fee for the "privilege" even if you have the ability to pay the real cost of the energy used. The state assembly delayed when this cap would be removed by 1 year. That's long enough for the state elections to take place without having the issue over incumbents.

I'm venting.
But what I wrote is accurate.

NFL: Week 3

The Ravens won ugly. Generally, that is a mark of a good team. Last year, the Ravens would have lost that game, so that is a look up. McNair engineered the winning drive in the last 2 minutes. That is the reason why he is in the black and purple.

However, this showed 2 problems:

1. The offense isn't where it should be with Air McNair. They still are not clicking.
2. The defense came out soft and got whacked. It took them a half to get it together. Against a better team, it would have been a blow out with the Ravens on the bad end of things.

I think The Browns are better than their record suggests and the Ravens are not as good as their record suggests.

I won't mention the Washington team.

End Of "The Boondocks"

It looks like "The Boondocks" will not be back:

It's over for "The Boondocks" comic strip, at least for now. After six years -- a remarkably short run for a strip that found its way into 300-plus newspapers, including The Washington Post -- Universal Press Syndicate told subscribers yesterday they should start looking for someone to replace political/social satirist Aaron McGruder.

McGruder, a Columbia native who in his twenties became the Garry Trudeau of the hip-hop generation, took a sabbatical six months ago to recharge. The syndicate kept checking with him, reminding him that its newspaper clients needed several weeks in order to prepare for his return or his departure.

Apparently, the mind behind young black radicals Huey and Riley Freeman has gone Hollywood, or at least has further hopes of doing so, and has decided he can't devote himself to the grind of a daily strip. His late-night animated show, "The Boondocks," on the Cartoon Network was recently renewed for another season, the first-season DVD is out, and a film is reportedly in the works.

That's too bad because I think the cartoon is good but the show is not good. "Mrs. DarkStar" thinks he couldn't take the heat.

Somewhat Random Notes

• I watched Monday Night Football, more for the game than for the hoopla surrounding the game. The game stunk. It was a blowout. The only time I like to see blowouts is when the Washington football team is on the RECEIVING end. But, given the hoopla around the game, I have to join the many people who are asking about priorities of the local government to spend money to help rebuild the Superdome.

However, I understand paying for the repairs came from a combination of insurance money and bonds. The bonds means government -- public -- financing and I have a problem with that when there are other things more pressing. On the other hand, tourism was New Orleans' main industry, so in that realm, it makes some sense.

• President Bush is going to release the entire NIE report. I think this is a good thing to do to get all of the information out there. This is needed to help the American public THINK about what is going on and what the future may hold vs. taking a one sided view of what is happening.
• Whoever leaked those SELECTED CLASSIFIED parts of the NIE report committed a crime and must be found and punished.
• Getting back to the idea of priorities, all I'm going to say is, I see the affects of people growing up in poverty and now having "money" to only make poor choices in dealing with the money they own. It has to deal with not being taught to handle money and now not seeking out learning about handling money. However, what really burns me is when people are given ideas and suggestions on how to better handle their money to only ignore it, then get themselves into trouble, and then come to you for a bailout.
• The rising harshness of the media dealing with politicians and the politicians dealing with media is interesting to watch. Unfortunately, I think it is needed to put "both sides" in check. But it's going to get uglier.
• If Chavez calling Bush "el Diablo" was inappropriate, what about Fawell's "flip" comments that Hilliary would get his base more riled up than Lucifer?

Politics: Playing the Race Card

Quick notes on politics and the playing of the "race card."

• Maybe I'm not recalling things correctly, but I think I remember Condi Rice previously saying that she was a friend of one of the girls who died in the Birmingham bombing years ago but that she didn't remember much about it. Yet, on 60 Minutes, she gave, what appeared to me, to be a different story. I never heard her mention feeling the ground shake or anything else before. And, frankly, linking it to TWOT as she did smelled of rank political opportunism.
• When George Allen was running for governor of Virginia, he was proud of the confederate flag that he kept behind his desk. He was proud of the rebel flag on his car in either high school or college. He was proud of the noose he kept in his office. Now, he seems to be singing a different tune. However, this one will hurt him more:

Larry J. Sabato, one of Virginia's most-quoted political science professors and a classmate of Allen's in the early 1970s, said in a televised interview Monday that Allen used the epithet.

"I'm simply going to stay with what I know is the case and the fact is he did use the n-word, whether he's denying it or not," Sabato, now director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, told Chris Matthews on MSNBC. Sabato would not say whether he had heard Allen say the word, and did not know whether it was true that Allen used the word frequently in college.

Larry Sabato has appeared on the national news and is well respected in the D.C. area for his political analysis. I don't think that can be blown off like the following can be blown off:

Shelton, a Hendersonville, N.C., radiologist who was a tight end and wide receiver for the university in the early 1970s, said Allen used the n-word only around white teammates.

Shelton said the incident with the deer head occurred during their college days when he, Allen and another teammate who has since died were hunting on a farm the third man's family owned near Bumpass, Va., 40 miles east of the university.

Shelton said Allen asked the other teammate where black families lived in the area, then stuffed a deer's head into the mailbox of one of the homes.

• Michael Steele is using the race card in a "reverse" way from what I can tell. In interviews, before he said he was running for congress, Steele would say that Blacks have to concentrate on the issues and then vote on the issues and how they line up with their world-view. Now, he seems to be saying to Blacks, "The Dems have let you down by not giving the nod to Mfume, so vote for me to show Dems they can't take the Black vote for granted."

So be it. But, I think the following is an example of him going overboard when he, Steele, has said something similar about Bush and the administration's slow response to Katrina:

Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele is criticizing his Democratic opponent in Maryland's Senate race, Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin, for repeatedly invoking Hurricane Katrina to stir anti-Republican sentiment among blacks.

This is boring.

Clinton on Fox News Sunday

Yes, I watched Bill Clinton on Fox News Sunday.

Yes, it was heated.

Other than that, I don't have jack to say about it.

What Is The World Coming To?

What is the world coming to when "We Want the Funk" is used as music to sell Honda Oddessy mini-vans?

Spouting Off On Terrorism

I don't write much about what is happening in Iraq, Afghanistan, or the rest of the Middle East because I think too much is written by people who know too little about what is going on.

I suppose I'll add to it now.

Many opponents of the current strategy in the Middle East say that we are creating more terrorists by our actions. If the following is to be believed, those opponents have a sound point:

The war in Iraq has become a primary recruitment vehicle for violent Islamic extremists, motivating a new generation of potential terrorists around the world whose numbers may be increasing faster than the United States and its allies can reduce the threat, U.S. intelligence analysts have concluded.

A 30-page National Intelligence Estimate completed in April cites the "centrality" of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, and the insurgency that has followed, as the leading inspiration for new Islamic extremist networks and cells that are united by little more than an anti-Western agenda. It concludes that, rather than contributing to eventual victory in the global counterterrorism struggle, the situation in Iraq has worsened the U.S. position, according to officials familiar with the classified document.

"It's a very candid assessment," one intelligence official said yesterday of the estimate, the first formal examination of global terrorist trends written by the National Intelligence Council since the March 2003 invasion. "It's stating the obvious."

All I can write to this is the following:

No matter what we do, terrorists will be bred. I'm convinced, and have been for some time, that we are fighting a religious war and our government leaders are too chicken shit to publicly say otherwise.

People need to wake up, take the blinders off, and take a look around.

Look at what happened to Salmon Rushdie when he wrote "The Satanic Verses."

Ayaan Ali has been critical of Islam and has been in hiding or has been protected as a result.

This is a religious war, plain and simple, and I fear the general U.S. population doesn't realize it, is too self absorbed, or just doesn't think it means anything to them, personally.

Idlewild

The wife and I had a date night.

We saw "Idlewild" and I have to say I was impressed. Normally, to me, a movie is good or not good. I  don't get into the cinematography, storyline, and acting too much. (I know, those are the basics of a movie but if I rate movies by them too much, then I would never be happy with movies). I just go to turn off the brain for an 1 1/2  or 2 and be entertained. Of course, if the story is just awful or unbelievable or if the acting is just horrible, then it just screams at you.

For some reason, Idlewild was different.

It started off in the beginning with the use of what appeared to be "vintage" photos with the brownish/grayish coloring to them, the expressions towards the camera of those being photographed, and the increasing in size of some of the items in the photographs. It continued with the animation of the rooster on the flask given to "Rooster" and it went from there. The limited and timely use of animation through out the film was great.

The coloring used in the film was set by the first use of the period photos but, surprisingly, it wasn't too dark. In fact, the sparse use of colors in the movie really set things off.

I was then struck by the choreography of the dance scenes of the people in "The Church" juke joint. There is not much to say except it was good. The first scene with the people dancing while Big Boi rapped, was good. I didn't even care that it was out of place to the period.

The story line was simple but good. Big Boi and Andre were perfectly cast and both played their characters well. Both were believable.

Now let's get to the actors:

Terrance Howard: Good as usual. He played his part to a tee.

Ben Vereen: Good to see him in a movie and good to see he still has it.

Ving Rhames: Appropriate for his part.

And now......

Cicely Tyson: Ms. Tyson was on screen for about 5 minutes and RIPPED IT! STOLE THE SCENE. DID HER THANG! Period.

I'd rate the movie an 8 out of 10.

Observation: Racial Politics

I'm going to point to a situation and follow it up with an observation. This will center on politics surrounding Lt. Gov. Michael Steele.

Situation: Michael Steele asked the National Black Republican Association to stop a radio ad that Steele felt was divisive and insulting to Blacks.

Observation: Michael Steele has used the "stuck on the Democrat plantation" rhetoric that some, including me, find offensive. In fact, one time Steele was on a radio talk show, I called him and argued with him that the comment is insulting and equivalent to the name calling he was complaining about. He disagreed with my comment. More here about "the ad."

Situation: Conservative radio in Baltimore went NUTS over a comment made by a Black Maryland Democrat when she said "party trumps race." Essentially she was saying that Blacks should vote the party, even if the person running in general election is of another race and the opposition party is running someone of your race. In this instance, it would me voting for a Democrat rather than voting for Republican Michael Steele, even if he is Black.

Observation: If you are a partisan, what is wrong with the comment "party trumps race"? Isn't that a definition of being partisan?

Situation: In 2002 when Robert Ehrlich was running for governor of Maryland, there were life size cardboard cut outs of Michael Steele with the caption, "Vote for him. He's one of us" in "the hood."

Observation: That's racial politics.

Situation: When Al Sharpton ran for the Democrat presidential nomination, he won ONLY ONE MAJORITY BLACK DISTRICT.

Observation: Blacks will vote for non-Blacks when it matters.

Situation: Michael Steele has stated many times that Blacks need to focus on the issues, their own beliefs, and then make political choices based on who more closely aligns with their beliefs. He has said race should not be a factor. That's a great statement that cannot be denied. Later, he was quoted in The U.S. News & World Report as stating that if he has a race against Mfume, he would go to white voters with the message that he, Steele, would represent ALL voters while Mfume would only represent one race.

Observation: No comment needed.

Situation: Rep. Al Wynn is in a political fight for his life. The votes are still being counted and he has a very slim lead over his challenger Donna Edwards. Donna Edwards, in her first political race, was able to make it a close race because of her grass roots efforts and especially because she challenged Wynn not only in Prince Georges County, MD, which is predominantly Black, but in Montgomery County, MD, where Wynn is not strong. She challenged Wynn on his support of the bankruptcy reform law, an energy bill, and his support for the war in Iraq. Basically, she is saying Al Wynn is out of touch with his district.

Observation: Edwards took on Wynn by addressing the issues. These are two Black Democrats going head to head, hand to hand, man to [wo]man. Two Black candidates with no race baiting going on. Compare that to what Steele stated his plan would be if Steele ran against Mfume.

Just some observations.

Greg Kane On Maryland Primary

I'm showing this just because Greg Kane is deliberately throwing dirt in the faces of Black Democrats in Maryland:

The rejection of both Mfume and Simms should provide Maryland’s black Democrats with some food for thought and prompt some questions. And the first question should be why white Maryland Democrats don’t vote for black Democratic candidates for statewide office in the same proportion black Maryland Democrats vote for white candidates for statewide office.

In fact, blacks do that at the municipal level in Maryland. O’Malley is the white mayor of predominantly black Baltimore only because enough black folks voted for him -- against two qualified black opponents, by the way -- in 1999. One of those candidates, former Baltimore City Council President Lawrence Bell, was actually more qualified than O’Malley.

...

But if Steele can get elected to statewide office by Republicans while being an Uncle Tom/Sambo/Oreo cookie, what do we call black Maryland Democrats who got chumped by their party for the second straight election?

There is one little problem with the crowing by Greg Kane and that is called the general election.

Right now, polls show Steele behind Cardin and that is the reason why the state Republican party wanted Steele to go against Mfume and that is why Republicans pushed the issue of the Maryland State Party supporting Cardin and not Mfume.

If the polls hold out and the election goes to Cardin, what will Kane write then? Consider this: in political polls, there is always more stated support for the Black statewide candidate then when the voting results are tallied.

Mfume Supports Steele

Mfume decides to support Michael Steele:

U-S Senate candidate Michael Steele had a surprise visitor Thursday while campaigning with Democrats in Baltimore.

Michael Mfume, one of Kweisi Mfume's sons, appeared at the Eubie Blake National Jazz Institute and Cultural Center after Steele held a press conference with Baltimore Democrats and other Steele supporters.

That's interesting.

Wal-Mart Pushes Drugs

Wal-Mart is cutting prices on generic drugs:

TAMPA, Fla (Reuters) - Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, said on Thursday it would cut the prices of nearly 300 generic drugs to $4 per prescription starting in the retirement haven of Tampa, Florida.

Target Inc., which has faced increasingly stiff competition from Wal-Mart, said it would immediately match the drug prices in the Tampa Bay area as part of a long-standing practice of remaining price competitive with its larger rival.

Wal-Mart characterized the program as "part of its ongoing commitment to provide affordable health care to America's working families" and said it hoped to drive down drug prices in general.

Consumer advocates said the move might achieve just that, and shares of generic companies, as well as those of other retail pharmacies, fell.

When Wal-Mart decided to sell food in its Maryland stores, the Maryland state assembly, with the strong urging of Giant Foods, decided to tax Wal-Mart extra because Wal-Mart was taking business from Giant.

I wonder what the drug store companies will get Maryland political whores state legislators to do.

Michael Steele and "That Ad"

There is a political radio ad that is running in the Maryland market that is sponsored by the National Black Republican Association.

The ad claims Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Republican, that the Klu Klux Klan was created by the Democrats and it is the Republican party that is the party of Civil Rights.

I have no idea if MLK, Jr. was a Republican or not. But given the time frame, chances are he was a Republican because he lived in an era where most Blacks were Republican.

I don't know the specifics of the creation of the KKK, but there is a difference between the KKK being created by people who were Democrats vs. the KKK being created as an official effort of the Democrat Party. I've heard the ad and the ad implies the latter.

[ Wiki-pedia covers the creation of the KKK here. Make of it what you will, I don't trust Wiki-pedia in general ]

It also covers "who voted for The Civil Rights Act and who voted against it." I cover that in this post, make sure you follow the links provided.

This post isn't about the ad, but Michael Steele's response to the ad.

I was listening to WBAL when I heard about Steele's comments on the ad.

Republican Senate candidate Michael Steele is calling on a group running radio ads encouraging black Marylanders to vote Republican to take their ad of the air.

...

Steele calls the ad "insulting to Marylanders."

Steele says -- quote -- "Although they may have had good intentions, there is no room for this kind of slash-and-burn partisan politics in the important conversation about how to best bring meaningful change to Washington, D-C, and get something done for Maryland."

His response surprises me because I remember Steele mentioning about the support of the Civil Rights Act and the support of Republicans for ending slavery, etc. However, Steele has also said that he thought the Republican party was wrong for abandoning the Black vote.

I wonder if he really thinks the ad is not appropriate. He has no problem using the "stuck on the plantation" garbage. After he said he would not use race if he ran against Mfume, he was quoted as saying that if he runs against Mfume, he was going to tell white voters that he, Steele, will represent all voters while Mfume would represent only some voters.

I tend to think that Steele is making a political calculation to peel Black votes.

Who is the National Black Republican Association?

Chris Arps of the New Leadership Blog covers the creation here.

Chris later goes into his leaving the group here and then here.

Lionel Richie: Coming Home

I'm giving the first listen to Lionel Richie's new CD, "Coming Home."

It's uneven but enough cuts are nice to make it worthwhile. I'm going to have to listen a few more times to be able to rate it.

I think I like cuts:

1. I Call It Love
3. Why
4. What You Are
6. I'm Coming Home
7. All Around The World

Michael Steele Hates Puppies!!!!

Michael Steele hates puppies!!!!

This is a GREAT political ad.

Voter ID

Look, I like the idea of a voter identification card.  Showing further identification to verify you are the person who you claim to be is a no-brainer. As someone who is registered to vote and who intends to vote this November, I think it may help stop someone from claiming they are me and voting. I think the chance of that happening is slim and more likely to happen to those who are dead, especially if you live in Chicago.

If people are too poor to afford a state recognized identification card, give them an identification card for free. I swear I don't understand the nonsense about producing identification means the poor and minorities will be disenfranchised.

[ Update ]

When I wrote this, I did so because I heard an earlier talk show host droning on and on about voter identification cards being harmful to Black voters. I didn't realize this was in the works.

I wonder how many people can produce proof of citizenship. Hmmmm....

Hat Tip: Anderson@Large

NFL: Week 2

Ravens are now 2-0. They looked sloppy on offense, but the defense is TIGHT!!!!

The Eagles are now in overtime. They are blowing it.

For the night game of Washington vs. Cowboys....

As much as I hate to say it, GO COWBOYS!!!!

OH SNAP!!!!!!!!!

Why ISN'T John McWhorter a race hustler?

A few years ago, I decided that I would be able to do my second career as a race commentator better by working for the Institute full-time in New York and doing linguistics research and writing independently (and, still, obsessively).

Hat tip: Booker Rising

Clarification Of Views

[ Update 9/16/06]

Added "clarification" concerning focusing on bad news vs. good news.

[ Update 9/3/06]

Added Republican Democrat "clarification"

[ Update 8/30/06 ]

Added affirmative action and "acting white" "clarifications" and I'm feeling real silly for doing this.

If you want to read these views in one setting, select the "POV" category to the left.

[ Update ]

I'll bring this to the top each time I post something that is a part of this "series."

It's become clear to me that clarification of some of my views are needed. I do this because it has become increasingly obvious that dealing with partisans means if I argue against concept A, it doesn't mean I embrace concept B which is the polar opposite of concept A.

Unfortunately, this is VERY clear when dealing with partisan Blacks on the Internet. People who I expect to know better. It seems my expectations are TOO HIGH.

[ Update ]

I'll touch on:

• "Black leaders"
• Education
• Republicans, Democrats, and the Black Voters
• Affirmative Action
• "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News"
• "Victimology"
• The Role of Government
• "Acting White"

Clarification Of Views: Don't Bring Me No Bad News

I often wonder, and write, about the lack of good news about Blacks being published when there is a lot of good news out there. I wonder but I know the reason: bad news sells.

This "bad news sells" theology -- yes, theology -- is what drives most of the commentary about the Black community, in my opinion.

Why write about the growth in Black business when it's better to write how Black business is a small percentage of American business or how most Black businesses employ only the owner?

Why write about the fall in the out of wedlock birth rate when it's better to write about the percentage of children in single family homes?

Am I saying these things should not be mentioned? No. But, no matter how many times I say that, my critics still claim that is what I am saying.

It's very simple: If you want behavior modification, how do you best get the results you want? You use a combination of negative and positive re-enforcement with most of the re-enforcement being positive.

The most successful managers get the best out of their charges by using positive re-enforcement techniques. When you are raising kids, the quickest way to get the desired behavior, is to praise the kids when they exhibit the behavior they want.

Mostly negative re-enforcement works for a very short period of time. Over the long term, what you get is low morale and a re-enforcement of behavior that you do not want.

Again, I'm not saying that the negative news should not be stated, but to get the accurate view, the positive must also be stated.

The truth is, since negative news sells, those on the left and right who focus on race get more notoriety by doing it. And, IMO, that's what they want.

Cardin's Race issues?

This is interesting:

It's an unfortunate situation when you're running an established, older, white candidate against a dynamic, younger African American. It's unfortunate, because the racism card hovers constantly, just waiting to be dealt.

It's unfortunate, because no matter how completely and utterly incompetant a person is, if he fits in the wrong demographic, you're stuck with him. It doesn't matter what his job history is, or that he may have been fired by every other campaign in the county's history, you can't let him go.

And when his supervisor, after explaining the same detail seventeen different times, becomes frustrated and less then pleasant, he has one recourse that is only available to him because of the color of his skin.

He plays the racism card, the magic passport to a different chain of command.

His supervisor has no such weapon in her arsenal, she has only the documentation of their interactions, and her own good standing within the organization. She has the respect of her supervisors, and their backing, but still nothing can be done.

And this one:

As I've grown older, and gotten to know these men who seemed so frightening to the toddler me, I find that they share a number of chracteristics. They are large men with strong, loud voices and Jewish noses. They are also overly friendly. Some of these men are now my friends, but some are just a little bit creepy to this day.

This was a staffer who worked for Ben Cardin.

More here