Scripting America…And The New Body Politic

By Purnell Pinkney

Children derive exquisite pleasure out of playing the game of “pretend.” All kinds of personas are suddenly possible in this game and credibility merely requires holding the attention of playmates long enough to impress and entertain. That’s what children do in their innocence. They play social make-believe games. Adults also play the “pretend game;” it’s called acting, Hollywood, the “silver screen, “Broadway” and a half dozen or so other names. As adults however, “pretending” is serious big-business…in fact it is a socio-cultural, cash-cow industry. Actors of all shapes, sizes, ages, colors and levels of ability, are paid handsomely to pretend that they are not themselves, but rather, that they are some imaginary character freshly minted from the mind of a skilled writer. The “star” actor class in America… the 5% to 10% of them, who earn approximately 85% to 90% of the total wages paid to all of these performers, are generally recognized as “celebrities.”

So powerful has the influence of Hollywood celebrities grown that their cinematic success is now wrongly assumed to indicate… 1) elevated IQ’s and 2) possession of political notions of what is best for the American people. And so the U.S. public finds itself being nudged in a certain social and political direction by a class of people who are, a) paid to “NOT” be their “REAL” selves, b) who must constantly seek the personal approval of the public, c) who as a result of that pursuit are most likely to be neurotic to various degrees, d) who at all costs must maintain their theatrical persona in order to sustain marketability and e) who spend their entire professional lives avoiding the public exposure of their private lives. No one can be reliably certain of when these people are “in” or “out” of character. But so profound is the impact of the images of these folks on the silver screen, that a normally rational viewing audience will abandon common sense and bestow upon these performers some sort of special gift of prescience. In committing this error of presumption, the public inadvertently elevates ordinary everyday people who happen to work in an exclusive occupation to the lofty status of a kind of “American Nobility.” On a wide range of socio-political issues, large numbers of enthusiastic admirers eagerly subscribe to the opinions and judgments of this movie land pseudo-aristocracy. These fans steadfastly refuse to acknowledge that everything about Hollywood, including the actors and actresses, is contrived, controlled, fictitious, fake or imaginary…everything, that is, except the cash raked in by various studios from the revenues generated from the periodic block buster film.

So popular has the trade in fantasy become that Hollywood in recent times has slowly ratcheted up its influence on a dumbed-down public and openly entered partisan politics. Hollywood is now an unapologetically leftist operation. It is using its influence and financial clout to advance the agenda of the leftist elements in American politics by appealing to the naïve sensibilities of America’s millennials and at the same time, troll for the support of independents and minorities. This industry was instrumental in President Obama’s 2008 election and 2012 re- election. Nonetheless, it is now becoming evident that dealing in fantasy while positioning to dispense political and social dogma is a recipe for national chaos.

Regrettably black men in America are innocent casualties of this political “passion play.” The Hollywood version of America’s black men call for violent, misanthropic, unrefined, immature, predatory images and no amount of appealing to the studios to stop the damaging trend has produced results. There are no disclaimers on crazy-violent films that warn that the contents are make-believe…not true-to-life. Where there is viewer confusion, fantasy becomes dangerous; especially for black men in America at the hands of Hollywood studio executives. It can generate false images, untrue characterizations and more importantly, the attribution of beliefs, values and behaviors to black men that are misleading and derogatory. Notice that the unpredictable brute stereotype attached to black men who are actors continues to persist and just as importantly, these characterizations continue to fill the seats in movie theaters.

Having succeeded in casting black men and black communities as hopelessly pathological, Hollywood set its sights on imposing its version of social, economic and political reality on the American public via mass media scripting of certain elements of the secular- progressive agenda. To accomplish this objective, Hollywood relied upon the method it knows best; scripting. Without a script, Hollywood implodes…just as it did during the turbulent Civil Rights, Anti-War, “Academic Freedom” era of the 1960’s.

At that time theaters and movie houses simply became irrelevant as the “real” world of reconciling America’s espoused values with its actual values was publicly debated. During these epic struggles, fantasy was put in its proper place; the bottom of the list of national priorities. Hollywood struggled mightily through that slump and was unable to extricate itself from the decline until it stumbled upon the novel idea of “Blaxploitaion Movies.” The first and most successful of these movies was the block buster film, “Super Fly.” It is the opinion of many that this film, with its all-black cast, single-handedly ended the Black Power movement and the Civil Rights movement in America while simultaneously ushering in a self-indulgent era that glorified and encouraged sex, drugs and criminality in black communities across America. The effects of this movie and others of that genre are still reverberating throughout black communities across the nation.

But the film industry was just beginning to flex its muscles…for it had rediscovered the vulnerability of the American viewing audience to the power of suggestion and cinematic imagery. The transition from influencing pop-culture to orchestrating political thought proved to be an easy task; the apparatus was already in place. The studios had money, politicians, an ideology and an impressionable new audience to engage. This alliance was so powerful and new on the American political landscape that it was difficult to counter; for it had no clearly defined leader or identity to refute or discredit. Consequently, this union of Hollywood and political dogma appeared vague and innocuous. Even more important was that this scripting alliance was so positioned that its objectives appeared to represent the enlightened will of the American people.

The strategic weak link in this coalition however, was the absence of a means of stifling popular opposition to the scheme. To remedy that problem, “political correctness” which had been steadily injected into the public psyche over a period of about 20 years, was the perfect solution…shame and the prospect of public vilification throttled dissent. No one and nothing dared to openly oppose the Hollywood/progressive/leftist agenda; neither churches, not conservatives nor the activist “Tea Party” groups ventured to risk the wrath of this new alliance.

For a while the agenda of this new force was virtually unstoppable … and then something happened. It became increasingly clear that nothing that the liberal-progressive Congress and President succeeded in passing into law, produced the desired results. Consequently, anything they wanted that failed to obtain legislative success was forced on the American public by activist judges and a passive U.S. Attorney General. Though the crown jewel of the Left’s agenda, “amnesty for 10 million illegal aliens” still eludes Congressional passage…it is almost a foregone conclusion that president Obama is “evolving” on the issue and will grant the amnesty before he leaves office in 2016.

Is it possible that the present state of affairs in America is the result of a series of scripted socio-political legislation introduced by the Left and aimed at creating a new version of America by totally dismantling the value system, religious ideals and social mores that have made the United States the most powerful and influential nation in modern history? The answer to this question seems to be a resounding “yes.” If there is sufficient evidence to conclude that Hollywood is complicit in this scheme, then it can be established once and for all that the use of scripting as a political tactic is indeed being used as a device to lull the masses into a sense of false security all the while subjecting the same masses to manipulation by an unprincipled cabal of zealots whose intent is to force their views upon the electorate.

Black men were always suspicious of the sudden and ubiquitous changes being forced upon them and their communities across the nation. Political correctness suppressed the concerns of these men however, and the Left ran roughshod over their sensibilities as the scripting expanded and intensified to encompass freedom of speech on certain subjects and personal behavior with respect to other situations. Nonetheless black men generally acquiesced to the script as it was given to them…if not they risked being accused of violating “political correctness” protocol and faced certain exposure to public ridicule by the media. This situation amounted to a form of psycho-social, high-stakes, behavioral blackmail. So how does this scripting operate in its ordinary and practical application?

Consider these examples:

1. One of Hollywood’s most masculine, macho, tough-looking actors suddenly announces his support for homosexual marriage. A few months later he produces a flop of a movie about a 1960s singing group. His movie was heavily promoted and released. Looked like the studios rewarded him for his favorable public stance on homosexuality. Scripted?? Looks possible.

2. Bill and Hillary Clinton were vehemently against homosexual marriage when President Clinton signed the DOMA Bill in 1996. By 2008 they were vigorously for it and in 2012 they encouraged the U.S. Justice Department not to enforce it laws against it. Sudden conversion…or scripting?

3. Anyone who disagrees with the liberal party-line is a bully, bigot or a Neanderthal. These labels enter the public discourse through the media and gain general acceptance. The use of the labels however, is a misapplication of the terms. Scripting??

4. A mediocre NBA player announced that he is a homosexual and the President of the United States invited him to the White House. Sales of his jersey supposedly skyrocket. At present this player is apparently not on the court but is being used as a “Poster Child” for diversity of any kind. Scripting gone sour??

5. Mr.Obama condones gay marriage and a slew of Hollywood types; male and female “come out” to the applause and admiration of their peers. Some of them were in career slumps and used the “disclosure” to try to re-charge flagging careers. Others had no career and try to use the gay card to jump-start a career in cinema. Actors vie for the opportunity to disclose their sexuality. Scripting??

6. President Obama laments the inaction of Congress on immigration and signals his sympathy for illegals and waves women and children besiege the US southern border overwhelming resources and personnel. It is the largest mass migration of unescorted children across international borders since the Europe’s “Children’s Crusade” to free the Christian Holy Land in the year 1212 AD. Latinos sending their children on a 1200 mile trip alone, through dangerous territory, on the top of freight trains?? No one saw them as they debarked? No one saw them coming toward the U.S. border?? Nonsense…this was a clear case of Scripting.

7. Global warming did not seem to find traction so now the liberal mantra is switched to “climate change.” No explanation for the change is offered.

8. A homosexual football player awaiting his selection to an NFL team announced his gay orientation to the fanfare of national press coverage. After a tearful acknowledgement that he had been drafted in the last round of the NFL draft he kissed his boyfriend in the mouth on national TV and it was replayed over and over ad nauseum by liberal media groups. Weeks later he had a book deal with Oprah and an exclusive interview on her show. A few months later the gay player was released by the Dallas Cowboys, the last team to give him a shot. For whatever reasons, he is no longer in the NFL. There was very little media coverage of his being cut from the squad in Dallas. Scripting gone sour??

9. The media encourages American children to play soccer. Soon a ho-hum American soccer team drafts one of the world’s premier players to bolster sagging attendance at games. US sports media have a field day covering the occasion and the player receives immediate commercial endorsement contracts. The player, Mr. David Beckham leaves at the end of his contract not to return. Americans consistently reject soccer as a mainstream major sport to the dismay of the scripting machine!!

10. A horrific shooting takes place and the script calls for the media to attack the 2nd amendment and gun ownership in America. A solemn President Obama appears on TV to call for much stricter gun control. No mention of the mental condition of the perpetrator is made. The people who have done most of the mass killings in America are proven to be mentally imbalanced. The Script calls for silence if confronted with that sort of evidence. It calls for silence on the murder and mayhem in the streets of President Obama’s hometown, Chicago. In 2011 the city recorded nearly 500 murders annually by criminals with guns acquired by extra-legal means. Scripting perhaps??

11. Common Core was considered the “Holy Grail” of the liberal educational agenda. It has been revealed to be a “Common Crime” against the children on America. The script called for complete adherence to the dictates of the program. The American people are rejecting the plan completely in state after state. Script gone sour??

12. The script calls for the rejection of organized religion and in particular Christianity. Religious organizations have taken to the courts to protect their First Amendment rights and they are prevailing in most cases. Script reversal??

13. The script calls for the Holder Justice department to selectively enforce the laws of the nation.  Suits filed against the U.S. Justice Department are piling up and aimed at forcing that agency to enforce the laws of the land.

14. Using the IRS to blunt the efforts of conservative groups to legally organize was another key element of the script. That plan has been exposed and discredited. Civil and criminal suites have been filed against the IRS and key administrators therein. Script gone awry??

15. Americans want jobs. The script call for a welfare state. President Obama extends unemployment benefits as long as he can to stave off an inevitable crisis resulting from the lack of jobs. Script out of control??

The fundamental change that president Obama promised the nation and by extension, black men, in 2008 is a far cry from the transformation that black men had expected. And besides, the details of the planned transformation were never fully explained. As a result, different demographics had different notions of how the transformation would occur and how they would be affected. African American men naively thought that change meant a new day in employment opportunities, safe communities, health care, education, business opportunities and access to the Oval Office to present the case for black America’s inclusion in the impending prosperity of the nation. Instead they got smoke and mirrors and chastening, condescending lectures on what they needed to do to measure up to the expectations of their nation’s president. The script prepared for black men did not call for their economic advancement or the alleviation of their array of continuing problems. These men were simply written out of the “Hope and Change” agenda, restrained at a safe distance from real political power and given a numbing dose of “benign neglect.” There was to be no happy ending in the script prepared for brothers. Instead they were publicly scolded whenever the opportunity presented itself and made to feel that they themselves were the source of all of their problems…that they would continue to languish in poverty, crime and unemployment unless they accepted the script. Black men seem to have rejected that offer and now they are beginning to reject their critic: the President of the United States. The separation appears to be overdue and perhaps even…permanent.

 

 

10 Rules of Survival If Stopped By The Police

Several months ago, The Dare To Be King Project founder David Miller created a flyer with 10 Rules of Survival If Stopped By Police that has gone viral.  The Dare To Be King Project inspires, supports and strengthens organizations that provide services to boys of color.

Given the recent developments with police officers and black males in America, this is a timely reminder of the reality for many citizens in America.

David Miller is the author of several books, which include Growing Up In a Notorious World (2002), Lessons I Learned from My Father: A Collection of Quotes from Men of African Descent (2004), Dare To Be Queen: Wholistic Curriculum for Working with Girls (2005) and Rhyme & Reason  a Hip Hop Curriculum for professionals who work with teens (2005), Daddy’s Girl: Remembering Advice From My Father  (2006) Where’s Mommy & Daddy?: A Workbook for Facilitating Groups with Youth Who Have a Parent in Prison (2014).  He’s also a graduate of the University of Baltimore with a B.S. Political Science and Goucher College with a Master’s Degree in Education.

 

 

THE HONORABLE JAMES SPENCER: HERE COMES THE JUDGE!

A MAN ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF GOD and JUSTICE IN RICHMOND

By Harold Bell

In the game called “Life” where every black face you see is not a Brother and every white face you see is not your Enemy—meet Brother Rev. James R. Spencer aka U.S. District Judge James R. Spencer of Richmond, Virginia. He is the sitting judge in the most political corrupt trial in the history of Virginia. Former Governor Bob McDonnell and his wife Maureen are facing charges that they took $165,000 from a Virginia businessman.

Judge Spencer is the first African-American to serve as a federal judge in Virginia. He recently stepped down from active status to become a senior judge on March 25, 2014.  He is now in semi-retirement from the Richmond division of the federal court system’s Eastern District of Virginia. As a senior judge he is allowed to take a smaller caseload.

“The Smaller Caseload” suddenly became a Giant when he was assigned to hear the biggest corruption case in the history of Virginia politics.
Judge Spencer was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1986, then 37. The appointment made him one of the youngest federal judges in the country. His background includes some accomplishments shared by few, if any, federal judges: He has a black belt in karate, he is a avid tennis player and hold a degree in divinity.

In a sermon heard at Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Arlington, Virginia in the early 90s interview after he became a judge, Rev. Spencer gave credit to his parents, Hannah and Benjamin, and one teacher, Mattie Lou Perkins for his lifelong love of reading, his faith and his Southern civility.

He said, “In 1986 I felt my judgeship would be a source of pride for many older black lawyers who paved the way, such as Oliver W. Hill Sr. Being the first black to accomplish something like that did not mean that much to me. I have always … been the first black or the only black, he said at the time. That’s not a victory. I think it is too bad. I long for the day when it will be so insignificant that it will become irrelevant,”
The White House will solicit recommendations from his home-state senators, which carry great weight.

A spokesman for Sen. Mark R. Warner, D-Va., said his office has informally discussed with newly elected Sen. Timothy M. Kaine, D-Va., the process used by Warner and then-Sen. Jim Webb to fill an earlier vacancy.

The process includes asking bar associations for a diverse list of potential nominees, said Warner spokesman Kevin Hall. “We will jointly vet those potential nominees and then schedule face-to-face interviews involving both senators.”

Rev. Spencer was raised in Florence, S.C. He is a 1971 graduate of Clark College in Atlanta and graduated from Harvard Law School in 1974.
Reagan nominated Spencer for the district court seat in September 1986. He was unanimously confirmed by the Senate and was commissioned in October 1986, filling the seat of the late D. Dortch Warriner.

Rev. Spencer was the chief judge of the 11-judge district, which includes divisions in Alexandria and Hampton Roads, from 2004 to 2011.
Federal judges who reach the age of 65 with 15 years of service — or one less year of service for each additional year of age — are eligible to semi-retire at full salary.

“It’s important he’s announcing his intent early to give plenty of time for a new appointment so there will be no long vacancy,” said Carl Tobias, a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law.

“This gives the President and Senate time to select a successor and get the benefit of another senior, experienced judge,” Tobias said. The division’s two other judges are Henry E. Hudson and John A. Gibney Jr.

Robert E. Payne is the other senior judge. Tobias said he believes Judge Spencer, like Payne, “will continue to be very active and continue to carry a substantial load.”

“They can stay as busy as they want, but a half load is typical,” Tobias said of a senior judge. In more than a quarter century as a judge, Judge Spencer has handled thousands of criminal and civil cases, Tobias said.

Perhaps the highest-profile case was the patent-infringement suit by a Virginia company against Research In Motion, the manufacturer of the Black-Berry. A jury ruled that RIM had infringed on the Virginia firm’s patents.

A federal appeals court sent the case back to Spencer, however, prompting negotiations that Judge Spencer steered to a $612.5 million settlement in 2006 amid long-running, national media coverage, Tobias said.

President Barack Obama will nominate a candidate to replace Judge Spencer. He will be hard to replace—he is definitely a tough act to follow. The courthouses and judges around this country lack the characteristics of a Judge James Spencer. There seems to be no sense of fair play, integrity and honesty.

My wife Hattie introduced me to the Rev. Spencer in the early 90s at Mount Olive Baptist Church in Arlington, Virginia where he was the guest speaker.

His sermon “Role Models & Heroes” was the best I have ever heard as it relates to the demise of the Black Community. Two decades later his sermon is still the most inspiring I have ever heard from the pulpit. Looking at the state of Black America today, he has become a prophet.
Rev. Spencer laid the blame directly at the feet of black politicians, preachers, hero athletes, entertainers, drug dealers, thugs running loose in the streets, shooting and killing our children and raping and robbing residents of our community.

Unlike other ministers and pastors in today’s black churches, he kicked ass and called names. He belted out familiar names like, Marion Barry, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Ben Hooks, Michael Jackson, Michael Jordan, Pete Rose, Len Bias, etc. During his sermon anonymity was not an option.

His heroes were my heroes, his parents, Hannah and Benjamin and one outstanding teacher, Mattie Lou Perkins. He hit close to home, for me it was my mother Mattie, grandmother Amy Tyler Bell and my high school Coach Dave Brown. The entire church stood on their feet and gave him a standing ovation that seem like it lasted forever at the conclusion of his sermon.

Since that sermon Congressman Charles Rangle, Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, DC City Councilmen, Kwame Brown, Michael Brown, and Harry Thomas all have run afoul of the law.

“The Mayor for Life” now City Councilman Marion Barry continues to have encounters with law enforcement in DC. He was involved in a recent minor automobile accident while driving on the wrong side of the street. He was driving a car that was not registered and without insurance. It was later discovered he had accumulated almost $3,000 in unpaid traffic tickets. All this followed the arrest of his son Christopher in July. He was pulled over because of a faulty signal light and was arrested when drugs were found in his car.

When I spoke with Judge Spencer after the sermon he mentioned he worked as an assistant in the office of the U.S. attorney in Washington, DC and had received his Master of Divinity degree from Howard University in 1985. I told him DC Superior Judge Luke C. Moore was my “Big Brother and Mentor” he lit up like a Christmas Tree.

Spencer gave me his contact numbers in Richmond and said to make sure the next time Hattie and I were in town to call him. The next time I would be in Richmond would be 1993. This marked the last year the CIAA Tournament (The Central Inter-Collegian Athletic Association) would play in the city.” I called him and we met for a game of tennis and lunch.

During the tennis match I discovered his competitive nature. He played the game of tennis like he played The Game Called Life—he played to win. I beat him in a close match. And during lunch he kept asking me, “When are you going to be in town again.” He wanted revenge. What really impressed me with Judge Spencer was how he played the game of tennis. All close calls that were in doubt he gave to me. Honesty and integrity is something you cannot teach, especially, in this win at all cost world today.

You can bet the McDonnells will get a fair trial. The only payroll Judge Spencer is on—–is God’s.

The day we spend together I knew I had been in the company of a Super Star in the Game Called Life. He had not forgotten who he was and where he came from. I know our friend the late DC Superior Court Judge Luke C. Moore is looking down and smiling on him for a job well done.

With the CIAA Basketball Tournament leaving Richmond and with his busy schedule there was no re-match but the final score was Love-Love-Love.

Harold Bell is the Godfather of Sports Talk radio and television in Washington, DC.  Throughout the mid-sixties, seventies and eighties, Harold embarked upon a relatively new medium–sports talk radio with classic interviews with athletes and sports celebrities.  The show and format became wildly popular. Harold has been an active force fighting for the rights of children for over 40 years with the help of his wife through their charity Kids In Trouble, Inc.   To learn more about Harold Bell visit his official web site The Original Inside Sports.com.

 

Introducing the American Renaissance Movement Incorporated (ARMI)

Founded in 2011 by professional black men, the American Renaissance Movement Incorporated (ARMI) is an organization dedicated to the reconstitution of America’s finest economic, social and political traditions. Informal discussions among these men led to the realization that their political identities were not aligned with the aims of contemporary, secular liberal politics, but much more with that of conservatives and moderates on most issues of importance in current national politics. A close examination of the political philosophies of the two major U.S. political parties confirmed that our fundamental belief system was fiscally conservative and socially moderate.

These founders of the ARMI came from diverse geographical regions across America; however, we shared the very same love of family, God and country. They wanted for their families the very same traditional values that served them well as they matured into manhood and took their place among the strong and purposeful men and women of our great nation. As political popularity gradually supplanted rule-of-law among the nation’s highest ranking office holders, these men became increasingly concerned. They chose to break with the pop-culture, media-fed machine created by the entertainment industry which produced an illusion of national well-being within a progressive agenda.  They examined the social, economic, political and cultural conditions of America’s black enclaves and concluded that they could no longer continue to passively ignore the tragic decline of goods and services to these communities. In a relatively brief amount of time, these men realized that their value system paralleled that of a traditional conservative ideology and their political thought evolved accordingly. Once fully formulated, their political ideology favored Republican values, rather than secular liberal politics.

To all Americans of good will, but particularly those who share the fundamental values generated from the love and nurturing within a traditional family, who respect and honor America and who acknowledge the primacy of God, we extend an invitation to visit our site. On the site you will find black political history, glimpses of the long and successful struggle for emancipation waged by American blacks with the support of the 19^th century Republican Party, contemporary political opinion, entertaining political satire, suggested readings, selected current events and…all through a conservative black American point of view. Find us at www.visitarmi.org and join us today.  And always remember that …“the American people created our government…the American government did not create the people.”

Click here to join the ARMI today!

Bold Predictions for 2014

By Raynard Jackson

Now that a 2014 has come, I have decided to pull out my trusted crystal ball and give you some of my predictions for the year.

I think the biggest thing to watch is on the political front.  This year we will have congressional elections for the House and Senate.  Republicans will keep the House.  Even if Republicans have a total meltdown, they will still keep the House. But their margins may shrink (currently the Republicans hold a 17-vote margin over the Democrats).  The way congressional districts have been gerrymandered , that virtually guarantees minimum change in the composition of the House.

Republicans have a better than even chance to take over the Senate if they nominate the best conservative candidate that is “electable.”  The GOP should be able to pick up seats in Alaska, Arkansas, Louisiana, North Carolina and West Virginia.  Republicans need only a net of six seats to win the Senate.

The Black vote could be the margin of victory in states such as Arkansas, Louisiana and North Carolina. Each has Black voters who thoroughly turned off by the Democrats and Obama.  If these Republican candidates take their message to the Black community, Republicans will take over the Senate.

I know many of my Democratic friends will laugh at me and my Republican friends will continue to want to dismiss the Black vote; but I dare my Republican leaders to call my bluff if they really want to win the Senate.

As I often say, I have been Black most of my life and I know the sentiments of my community very well.  To prove my point, what was unthinkable just a month ago is going to happen more frequently going forward.  Democrats, especially Blacks, for the first time are publicly voicing their dissatisfaction with Obama.

A group of very liberal Blacks are about to file a lawsuit against Obama for enacting policies that have decreased the number of Black students attending HBCUs. Civil Rights leaders such as Congressman John Lewis have publicly threatened to go to war with Obama over the lack of Black judges being nominated.  On Black radio, there is huge vocalization of dissatisfaction with Obama. This was unimaginable only a few weeks ago.

Blacks turning away from Obama will be one of the top news stories of the year.  The question is are Republicans prepared to take advantage of this opening within the Black community?

Gun violence and mass shootings will continue, not because of the availability of guns; but  because of the continued breakdown in our moral fabric.  By 2016, I predict that morals and values will be in the top five issues of importance to voters.  This liberal drift towards pluralism and relativism will begin to reverse itself with a lot of help from within the Black community.    Republicans, are you listening?

Look for a major reduction in corporate support for many of the reality TV shows that have proliferated over the past several years.  These corporations will find it increasingly more difficult to justify the expenditure of their corporate dollars from a cost/benefit analysis.

I expect to see more suicides from those who played professional football and hockey.  The issue of trauma to the brain during violent sports is a lot worse than the public is being told.  I think over the next few years, pro football will become unrecognizable as we know it today.

There will be no comprehensive immigration reform. However,  as a compromise, there will be a path to legalization, but not citizenship.  Republicans who vote for citizenship will lose their next election and some will even be recalled before their next election (on the local level).

Journalism will continue its downward spiral towards the cult of personality.  Journalists will continue down the path of becoming bigger than the story they are supposed to be covering.  They will continue to put more emphasis on being famous versus being accurate.

My final prediction is that Obamacare will be a huge albatross around the necks of the Democrats for the next three years and will make their retaining the White House very problematic.  The issue will be are the Republicans prepared to address some the major problems facing America with policy solutions?

If the answer is yes, then Republicans will win the White House. If the answer is no, we can kiss the America we know goodbye.

Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a Washington, D.C.-based public relations/government affairs firm. He can be reached through his Web site,  http://www.raynardjackson.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at raynard1223.

The Most Revolutionary Thing A Black Man Can Do

By Nadra Enzi aka Cap Black–The Hood Conservative

As a rule of thumb, I don’t believe in the popular notion of Black revolutionaries because failure to be productive citizens in this society isn’t a good indicator of future performance in one starting from scratch.

The most revolutionary thing a Black man can is simple.

It’s not even as drastic as changing his name; diet or religion, though these are game changing assertions of a self freed from limiting past constructs.

The most revolutionary thing a Black man can do is… not become a felon!

TA-DAHHH! EUREKA! SHAZAM! AMEN! HALLELUIAH! — and every other exclamation to the Divine supplicants can utter.

A Black man with a felony, let alone several, voluntarily places himself into legal bondage.

He can be legally excluded from employment; federal financial aid; public housing; private housing from discerning land lords; entering certain professions; voting; running for office; owning fire arms and other weapons… need I continue?

That’s right brothers, you can allow people to legally discriminate against you and there isn’t anything you can do about it in the age of the background check.

You can hope against hope some liberal or even libertarian politician can get enough support to change state or federal law, but it’s not likely to happen soon enough to help millions of self-enslaved Black men!

Think about that the next time some felon ( or future one ) wants you to join him in selling some crack; robbing somebody or breaking into a home or business.

Definitely think about if you’re the one planning a felony crime because it’s like jumping into the slave ship and telling the captain, ” Let’s go! ”

Felonies equal slavery and I’m not mad that they do.

Look at any inner city crime rate and guess who’s committing most of the offenses, you guessed it, felons i.e., so-called brothers and sisters who do serious crime as a life style.

Think long and hard about whether you want to be a legal slave whom people can discriminate against or worse, use as a meal ticket for reentry programs which make money off your slave status.

That’s why the most revolutionary thing a Black man can do is not become a felon and therefore deny others legal reasons to limit his opportunities or worse, profiteer from his plight.

But, if you do choose to become a felon, please, don’t waste my time complaining how hard life is for you.

It’s already hard enough for brothers and others who aren’t felons or ” reborn ” ones who’ve left felonious lifestyles in their distant past!

Be a real Black revolutionary- don’t be a felon!

To read more about Cap Black click here to visit his blog.

Question Bridge Explores Experience of Black Males in America

Question Bridge: Black Males is a collaborative, transmedia project that complicates traditional views of identity by exploring the full spectrum of what it means to be “black” and “male” in America.  In video-mediated exchanges, 150 black men of different social, economic, political, and generational backgrounds from across America respond to questions posed by one another about issues that unite, divide, and puzzle them.  Framed as an internal conversation within a group too often defined externally, Question Bridge uses candid discussion to expose the diversity of thought and identity among black males, challenging monochromatic views of “blackness.”  The wide-ranging conversation touches on family, love, masculinity, discrimination, community, education, violence, and the past and future of black men in society.

The public is invited to engage with the Question Bridge: Black Males project in a variety of ways.  In addition to the five-channel video installation in the main gallery, the project includes an installation at the Corcoran’s Community Gallery at THEARC in Southeast D.C., a website, custom tablet application, educational curriculum, and roundtable conversations with members of the local community.

The exhibition ends on February 16, 2014.

Click here for additional information on workshops and roundtable discussions.

Click here to watch a short video feature.

ABOUT THE CORCORAN

Established in 1869, the Corcoran Gallery of Art was one of America’s first museums of art—dedicated, in the words of

founder William Wilson Corcoran, to “encouraging American genius.” Today it is Washington, D.C.’s largest non federal art museum, known internationally for its distinguished collection of historical and modern American art as well as contemporary art, photography, European painting, sculpture, and the decorative arts. A dynamic schedule of special exhibitions complements arrange of educational programming, which together enrich the perspectives of the visiting public, support the local arts community, and encourage thoughtful interpretation of today’s most compelling social issues. The Corcoran College of Art + Design was founded as a school of art in 1890 and stands as Washington’s only four-year accredited college of art and design. The college is one of the few in the nation whose educational model includes an integral relationship with a museum, fostering the talent of the next generation of artists. For more information about the Corcoran Gallery of Art and College of Art + Design, visit www.corcoran.org.

New Reality Show: Preachers of L. A. Premieres October 9th (Really?)

By Gary A. Johnson, Black Men In America.com

I have a feeling that after this show airs tomorrow night, people will refer to this show as “Pastors Gone Wild.”  There is a lot about this show that makes me uncomfortable, and I mean very uncomfortable.  That probably says a lot about me and the way I was raised and the churches that I attended growing up in Washington, DC.

The pastors featured on this reality show are charismatic and very different from the preachers that I grew up with.  Do I know preachers that I believe are “shady?”  You bet.  I have run across some preachers that if their lips are moving they’re telling a lie about something.

The cast of “Preachers of L.A.” is composed of L.A. based pastors Bishop Noel Jones, Bishop Clarence McClendon, Pastor Wayne Chaney, Bishop Ron Gibson, Pastor Jay Haizlip and Pastor/Gospel singer Deitrick Haddon. The show offers viewers an inside look of these preachers’ lives beyond the pulpit.

Check out a couple of soundbites from the “Preachers of L.A.” trailer:

• “P. Diddy, Jay-Z, they’re not the only ones who should be driving Ferraris and living in large houses.” (Gibson)
• “The Bible says that those of us who sow among us should reap from us, that’s implying that preachers should be taken care of.” (Haizlip)

Haizlip, upset by suggestions that he and his cast mates were somehow more style than substance, maintained that the public need only give “Preachers of L.A.” a chance to see what the ministers are truly about.

Some Christian leaders asked by Christianity Today for their thoughts on “Preachers of L.A.,” were convinced the docu-series, would “(shine) a spotlight on some of the shameful abuses of those who claim to be evangelical Christians” and that it “epitomizes what is wrong with reality TV.” But others asked for their views were cautiously optimistic that the docu-series had the potential to “shine the light of Christ.”  Time will tell. 

Who are the people behind this show?  “Preachers of L.A.,” conceived by Lemuel Plummer (“Vindicated” and “The Sheards”) and Holly Carter (“106 & Gospel” and “The Sheards”).  Check out the Question and Answer interview with Plummer and Carter at the following link:  http://preachers-of-la.oxygen.com/blogs/qa-producers-holly-carter-lemuel-plummer#fbid=SZU0t-YLnsu.

You can watch a preview of the show below to hear Minister Deitrick Haddon, Pastor Wayne Chaney and Bishop Ron Gibson talk about the show:

You can also watch the first episode of “Preachers of L.A.” online in its entirety right now.  Here is the description of Episode 1 provided by the Oxygen Network:

Meet Pastor Jay Haizlip, Minister Deitrick Haddon, Pastor Wayne Chaney, Bishop Ron Gibson, Noel Jones, and Bishop Clarence McClendon, six pastors with fascinating backgrounds, strong faiths, and of course, beautiful women. In Episode 1, the pastors attend Deitrick Haddon’s gospel show, Deitrick faces his controversial past, Ron Gibson intervenes in a gang fight, and all the pastors hang out in their brand new man cave…and the results are explosive. 

Click on the link below to watch the first full episode.  (Note: video may not be viewable on smartphones & tablets.)

http://features.oxygen.com/videos/vid:26810511/#fbid=SZU0t-YLnsu

“Preachers of L.A.” premieres Wednesday, Oct. 9 at 10 p.m. ET on the Oxygen network. Find out more on the show online: http://preachers-of-la.oxygen.com.

Will you watch the show?  If so, tell us what you think?

Former Democrat Elbert Guillory Launches PAC for Black Conservatives

Sen. Elbert Guillory

Earlier this summer former Louisiana State Senator Elbert Guillory, a former Democrat, made a YouTube video explaining why he was a Republican.  That video has become very popular on YouTube and other social media (see below).

In early August 2013, Guillory announced that he will be serving as honorary chairman of the Free at Last PAC, which describes itself as being “formed by several leaders as an effort to support Black Republicans who run for federal office and also to educate Blacks about the values of the Republican Party.”

“Liberalism has nearly destroyed black America, and now it’s time for black America to return the favor,” Guillory says with a smile in his video.

To learn more about Sen. Guillory, click here to visit his official website.

Don Lemon is Just Doing His Job! Objectors Are Barking Up The Wrong Tree

By Cleo Manago, CEO and Founder of the Black Men’s Xchange (BMX)   

In 2010, during a radio interview, former CNN anchor Rick Sanchez, a Latino, called “The Daily Show’s” Jon Stewart a “bigot” and intimated that CNN was “run by Jews.” Swiftly, in response to Jewish outrage about his comments, Sanchez was fired. Former CNN pundit  Roland Martin would later be “let go” by CNN because White people who make up close to 100% of gay leadership complained about Mr. Martin and did not like him.

At the moment, many Black people are outraged by comments from CNN anchor Don Lemon. Lemon apparently “sided” with Bill O’Reilly, a known racist and White supremacist, during his typical anti-Black and ill-informed rant about Black people on his talk show. Of course Don Lemon offending Black people will not result in his being fired by CNN. As a matter of fact, Lemon has been featured on other high-profile talk shows to explain himself.  Neither Sanchez, nor Martin were afforded these opportunities. That is because White folks like and are comfortable with Lemon. And (right now) what White folks like – Jewish or otherwise – White folks get.

Lemon proved his undying love and loyalty to White people some time ago, particularly when dedicating his memoirs to a White male, after coming out as gay-identifying in 2011. Offending Black people, like murdering a 100% innocent Black child (Trayvon Martin) is not offensive in America or among media bosses. The United States’ media manufactures Black dismissing, dehumanizing, anti-Black, and White protecting and accommodationist thinking.

Again, this tendency in America directly contributed to Trayvon Martin’s cold-blooded murderer being found not guilty. This same thinking occurs and is internalized among Black people too. Without deliberate means, it can be difficult to avoid. It is not a rarity to locate a Black American who sees other Black people through the lens of a White racist. Even among Black people, the widely used term “nigga” came from racist White people.

Cleo Manago,  founder and CEO of the Black Men’s Xchange

Armstrong Williams, Larry Elders, Rev. Jesse Lee Peters, Clarence Thomas, just

to name a few, are often given a platform specifically to low rate Black people. Yet Black people are almost never given a prime time platform to do the opposite. Most of America’s systems are designed to be White comfort zones, or to be non-threatening to White people.

Typically, success for Black and Latino people, in corporate America for example, involves if they have the capacity to walk, talk and act in ways that comfort White folks. In America, being Black and actually loving yourself and your community without question is a challenge for many. Yet, having that disposition can get you more rewards, White associates, jobs and approval.

The recent hoopla about Don Lemon’s “race” comments divert from the fact that there are few to no Black males in high profile television positions like his, because of White racism and control. What other Black men in Lemon’s position (an anchor on a major network) have we heard from at-all regarding their views of the Black community?  None. When was the last time you’ve heard a high-profile media personality go into any detail, let’s say, about the impact of racism and the media on Black people? Never. How many other daily televised Black male anchors have given an analysis of life in Black communities, since the Zimmerman trial (let alone before)?  None.

Don Lemon is just doing his job, and was selected as one who would be good at it. And, he is. Lemon is just another ambitious, non-threatening, White accommodationist Black male who gets to be on camera because White CNN executives are comfortable with him.

Complaining about Don Lemon, and not holding his racist bosses accountable, again, you are barking up the wrong tree. Protest racism in America’s media. It does much greater damage to Black people than Don Lemon does.

Cleo Manago is founder and CEO of the Black Men’s Xchange (BMX) (http://www.bmxnational.org/), the nation’s oldest and largest community-based movement devoted to promoting healthy self-concept and behavior among diverse males of African-descent.