DarkStar Spouts Off

Email Exchange: I Got Your Plantation Right Here!

From an email exchange, today:

I'm Black and I'm a Republican. What I hate is Black Republicans and Black conservatives, alike, LIE about the progress that Blacks have made.

Did you know that for the past few years, Blacks have been leading, proportionally, in creating small businesses?

When listening to public Black Republicans and public Black conservatives, people would never know that 20-25% of Blacks are on welfare vs. MOST which people like [ public Black conservatives/Black Republicans ] would have you believe.

A serious side note: the same public Black conservatives/Black Republicans say that Al Sharpton is a race hustler and leader of most Blacks. Yet, Sharpton won ONE mostly Black voting district [ in the Democrat Presidential primary race he ran ] and at "his rally" this past weekend, less than [ a couple of thousand ] people who showed up. And the NAACP membership has been dropping since the 1980s!

But pointing that out takes away from talking points.

But I didn't write anything new.

Military Industrial Complex Snippet

Public Papers of the Presidents, Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1960, p. 1035- 1040

Another factor in maintaining balance involves the element of time. As we peer into society's future, we -- you and I, and our government -- must avoid the impulse to live only for today, plundering, for our own ease and convenience, the precious resources of tomorrow. We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss also of their political and spiritual heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.

Fannie, Freddie did not cause the housing crisis

Fannie, Freddie did not cause the housing crisis

This is an old theme, but it bears repeating when new information is presented. The right keeps blaring that liberals caused the housing bubble by showering money upon poor people through Fannie Mae and
Freddie Mac. So it must be repeatedly countered. I have no love for Fannie/Fred. Almost nobody other than the Wall Street Journal's editorial page was more critical of them than me in the years leading up to the disaster. They were ghastly government/private mutants, with taxpayers taking on all the risk and shareholders reaping incredible profits until the end.

But the fact is that they played a relatively minor role in the subprime bubble. They got into subprime only after they started losing market share to Wall Street, which was leading the subprime and Alt-A parade. They never had more than 13 percent of their originations in subprime. The table below shows the action. It's from a new "autopsy" of Fannie and Fred, of which the NYT's Economix blog has a good summary.

The vast majority of loan defaults have not been made by the poor. And Fannie & Fred weren't lending much to low-income folks anyway.

Stupid Politics

The Baltimore City Police Department chief placed a sign on his lawn that showed he was backing the opponent of the current Baltimore City State's Attorney. After a quick dust up and a meeting with the mayor, the BCPD chief removed the sign. The current chief was appointed by then Mayor Martin O'Malley who once told the State's Attorney go get off her ass and prosecute a police corruption case in which the video tape evidence against the police officer was stolen out of a "secret evidence facility" which only a handful of people knew its location.

Next, one of the police public spokesmen appeared in a political ad for the opponent of the current Baltimore City State's Attorney. He was dressed in a "generic police uniform."

Today, it was reported that a deputy mayor of Baltimore City had a sign in his window supporting the opponent of the current Baltimore City State's Attorney.

Starting tomorrow, that same deputy mayor will appear in the political ad of the opponent of the current Baltimore City State's Attorney.

1. The current mayor had to know the police chief was putting up the sign as well as her deputy mayor. So, it's easy to deduce she is supporting the opponent of the current Baltimore City State's Attorney.
2. The current police chief, who is an appointee to the position by the mayor, is now, again, in a direct public war against the current Baltimore City State's Attorney.
3. The police and police chief have to work with the state's attorney's office to prosecute crimes.
4. The governor of Maryland is working against the current Baltimore City State's Attorney.

If the current state's attorney wins re-election, and the mayor wins re-election, and the governor wins re-election, what does that mean for official crime fighting in Baltimore City?

Politics is rough and tumble, but I see the Baltimore City State's Attorney's race as THE marque race in the greater Baltimore region and one with deep repercussions. The move by the politically appointed police chief and the mayor against an elected state's attorney, to me, makes for stupid politics.

Honda Hybrid Batteries, Suck...

That's the title I'd give the article, along with the subtitle "Honda Hides the Facts".

When Honda Motor Co. rolled out its latest-generation Civic Hybrid, it was sold as the automaker's green car of the future.

But five years into production, Honda has discovered that its high-tech batteries can die years early — a potentially expensive flaw that the automaker has been addressing with a software update that many owners claim has made the car less environmentally friendly.

Jason Marchesano, a computer consultant from Overland Park, Kan., said the battery in his 2007 Civic Hybrid started losing its ability to hold a charge last year. Rather than replace the battery, which was under warranty, Honda loaded a software program into the car's computer that he said made the car sluggish and slashed the vehicle's gas mileage.

When he complained again several weeks ago, Honda installed a second software update, cutting efficiency further. Today, he gets 33 mpg, compared with 45 mpg when the car was new.

Marchesano and other hybrid owners fear that Honda has decided to sacrifice their vehicles' performance in order to avoid the huge cost of replacing thousands of faulty batteries, which are still under eight- or 10-year warranties and cost as much as $3,000 each to replace.

I'm just saying, again, that hybrids, with their advanced batteries, aren't all that they are claimed to be. There is still that nasty factor of how these batteries will be disposed of, and that goes for CFL lights as well.

Idealism vs Reality

I've written this before and I'm going to write this again.

Not long after the 9/11 attacks, a video by bin Laden was released
where he stated the United States has "too much freedom" and they will
use these "freedoms" against us. This was evident with the creation of
TSA and all of the insane checks people have to go through to fly. It
was also evident with the creation of The Patriot Act. The latest
example is the mosque controversy in New York.

Without a doubt, it is legal for a mosque to go at that location. From
what I've read, there are no building regulations restricting the
mosque. The U.S. was founded on freedom on religion so there are not
Constitution issues involved. However, what is allowable is not always
right.

I am firmly in the camp that suspects this mosque is a marker of
triumph for the Islamic attackers, especially since the funding source
is suspect. I am firmly of the belief that this is an intentional
thumb in the eye. I am firmly in the camp that KNOWS -- not believes,
KNOWS -- the mosque should not be at that location.

I suspect more terrorist plannings will happen at that mosque.

I know I'm right.

Who Cares About "Dr" Laura?

Who cares about Dr. Laura?

The questions to ask are:

1. Why is a woman not telling her husband's friends that they are out of line?
2. Why is the husband brushing her off?
3. Why is the woman calling a talk in show?
4. If the husband is not responsive to her complaints about racism, and they are in an inter-racial marriage, should they be married?

The woman never stood up for herself when the first insults happened, otherwise they would not feel like it's a "joke" to continue to say things in her face that she finds offensive.

Catfish Died

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/17386/189981

Phelps "Catfish" Collins, the legendary funk guitarist who played with
James Brown and Parliament/Funkadelic, died Friday in Cincinnati after
a battle with cancer. He was 66. "My world will never be the same
without him," said his brother Bootsy Collins in a statement. "Be
happy for him, he certainly is now and always has been the happiest
young fellow I ever met on this planet."

Commentary Hash

Stream of thoughts:

• The ethics case against Charles Rangel seems cut and dry. He dodged paying taxes, didn't report income, and didn't fully disclose his finances. To quote the late Robin Harris, "gotta go, gotta go".
• The ethics case against Maxine Waters seems weak to me. As I understand it, before TARP, she had a meeting with a Black owned bank organization, of which One United is a member. Later, One United gets TARP money. But, the problem is Maxine Waters' husband has a financial stake in One United. From what I can tell, the ethics charge is weak.
• I've read and heard that it has been confirmed that Democrats are using "racist charges" as political strategy against opponents. Black Democrats and so-called "Black leaders" need to be riding the charge against this practice since it weakens the racist claim. (I'll wait until you finish laughing).
• Alicia Keyes hooks up with Swiss Beatz, a major producer, who is married. They are now married and the ex-wife is taking every opportunity to call Keyes a home wrecker. Given Beatz is in a lot of tax trouble, I think Keyes got the bad end of the deal.
• Fantasia is messing with a married man and from the looks of it, the man's wife is setting Fantasia up for an alienation of affection lawsuit. If she is having money troubles, now, just wait, especially if the wife's claim of sex tapes is true.
• A flight attendant tells a passenger to sit down and wait for the plane to come to a complete stop. The passenger ignores him, opens up the overhead bin and the baggage falls on the attendant's head, causing a gash. At this point, the attendant curses out the passenger, grabs the intercom, curses out everyone on the plane, grabs a beer, and leaves via the emergency  escape chute. The SWAT TEAM goes to his home to arrest him. At the time, the attendant is, ummm, "busy."
  
  Hello! The man gets a gash on his head, curses people out, grabs a beer, and leaves via an emergency escape chute. Is that a reason for SENDING OUT THE SWAT TEAM!?!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
• Google teaming up with Verizon to say that wireless data traffic should be subject to traffic prioritization makes good business sense from the network provider and service provider point of view. The provider gets faster access which may mean people want to go to their site over competitors. The network provider gets to benefit because they get paid on a continuous basis to shape traffic which is a part of their network infrastructure hardware. It costs very little to implement and monitor. I don't like it but, frankly, I expect it.
• I also expect the unlimited wireless data plans to go away within 5 years. They are getting us hooked on the wireless access crack. After we get hooked, we will pay for "privilege."

Talking Out Both Sides Of His Butt

When school scores showed this:

Baltimore's poor African-American students are reading on average as well as their peers, whether they are in a small town in North Carolina or a city such as Chicago, according to the results of a national test released Thursday.

The results of the most rigorous and reliable assessment of reading given across the nation show that the city still faces challenges in improving its schools. The majority of fourth- and eighth-graders didn't pass the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which doesn't test just whether they can read, but whether they can comprehend a long passage and write a short response.

Baltimore City Public School "CEO" said this when he liked what school scores showed:

"We are primed to take the next leap into a story which is increasingly about excellence rather than a story about chasing 'good enough,' " said city schools CEO Andres Alonso.

But when the scores showed something he didn't like:

Sixty percent of Baltimore's elementary and middle schools failed to reach their annual progress goals based on state test results

Alsonso said this:

City schools CEO Andrés Alonso said that although adequate yearly progress, also known as AYP, is part of how a school's achievement is measured, the yearly targets are far from the strongest method for determining a school's successes and shortfalls. The targets are set by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, which dictates that all students be proficient in math and reading by 2014 and raises standards every year.

"It's a perverse conversation, because schools can be improving and not make AYP and other schools can be declining and still make AYP," Alonso said. "It focuses school attention only on the tested subjects as part of the push for accountability.

This is further evidence why I state Alonso must be fire, NOW!

If that isn't talking out of both sides of his butt, what is?

More On "Porn Stars"

I want to give a little more about "porn stars."

A relative worked in a state institution with troubled teens. One
teenager said when she was released, she was going to go to L.A. to
star in porn movies because it was something she "always wanted to
do."At 18, she was released from state care. There was a co-worker
of my relative who was addicted to porn. She showed up at work one day
and while the teens were asleep, she showed her co-workers a
professional porn tape which contained the released teenager in a
staring role.This girl, from what I was told, was emotionally and
sexually abused. Later, this same relative was taking courses in
college and showed me reading material that stated many (most?) of the
female porn "stars" were abused in some manner BEFORE getting into
"the industry."Something to think about.

Marriage

Marriage is between a man and a woman.

'nuff said.

Straight Up: That Girl Has Daddy Issues!

I'm going to make it plain: Larry Fishborne's daughter going into porn
movies to "reach fame the level of Kardashian" is straight bullhist!
This girl is either a freak and wants to get paid to screw and is
using her father's name, and her name, to get the money, or she has
serious issues with her father and this is serious "get back" to
publicly humiliate him.If you are a praying person, pray for her
father's strength and pray for her salvation and pray for their
reconciliation.If that were MY daughter, people would be hurt and I
would be in jail.

Ain't Urban, America?

As I continue to ponder whether I should continue to be a Republican or if I should go back to being "non-aligned" party affiliation, one of the things that continues to vex me and point me to the idea of being non-aligned is the continue politics of dividing America by my fellow Republicans, such as Sarah Palin.

I was born in New York city and grew up in Baltimore city. I'm urban to the core. My mother's family came to Baltimore from North Carolina during the Northern Migration and part of the family continued to New York. My family has men who fought in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. We had/have "blue collar" workers, teachers, nurses, a doctor, engineers, school administrators, state and federal government workers (*GASP*), business administrators, business owners, etc. We are American and we are urban.

I wrote that preamble to say, I appreciate this opinion article by Kathleen Parker:

When politicians speak of small-town values, we know what they mean. Generally, they are invoking family, faith and flag -- coincidentally the subtitle of Palin's next book, "America by Heart." In the politician's world, small towns are where "real Americans" live, as opposed to all those other people -- the vast majority of Americans -- who live in urban areas.

As someone who grew up in a small town (and left as soon as possible) and who recently has chosen to live in a small town (though lately in absentia), I've given this a lot of thought. Despite all my implicit exposure to small-town values, I never really understood what they were until I moved to Olive Street, a three-block-long street in the nation's capital.

...

So goes life in the city. But if those aren't small-town values, I don't know what we're talking about. All the inferences one has drawn from reading the foregoing are meant to be taken to heart. Families come in many configurations. And small-town values have nothing to do with small towns.

Palin, Limbaugh, Hannity, and all of the other Republican and conservative spewing heads can kiss the behinds of my urban AMERICAN family!

P.S. Why don't Black Republicans and Black conservatives, who are urban or grew up in urban areas, speaking out against the madness of the commentators?