tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30450997093548351142024-03-05T15:34:36.878-08:00Black SolutionsA blog designed to inform African Americans and others about the many "New" opportunities in Urban and Rural Gardening and Farming.Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.comBlogger66125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-61949386084744665872016-05-16T17:03:00.000-07:002016-05-16T17:03:48.503-07:00Avoid North Carolina ... unless...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNrwK5PoZINTRfDcmyiGEtNrcor8pbtuteQvkrV9AkufF89mk8GVopFO-eN9flq8P1XYD1S47t7vlH76PqaJfalwK6UlhszM5-L1gI8gsUL8WMELDIX1o4y8PG0vMKK8Mgojd7ijBwKXez/s1600/IMG_2145.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNrwK5PoZINTRfDcmyiGEtNrcor8pbtuteQvkrV9AkufF89mk8GVopFO-eN9flq8P1XYD1S47t7vlH76PqaJfalwK6UlhszM5-L1gI8gsUL8WMELDIX1o4y8PG0vMKK8Mgojd7ijBwKXez/s320/IMG_2145.jpg" width="240" /></a>I gave up. They wanted me to. I finally wised up and complied. It's an utterly beautiful state, complex... full of both compassion and bigotry... intellectualism and ignorance ... nevertheless... <br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>AVOID North Carolina! <span id="goog_1919314636"></span><span id="goog_1919314637"></span></b></span></span></span><br />
<br />
While it's a region steeped in FEAR of change, narrow mindedness, ignorance and superstition, I have to admit I learned a lot during the three years I was there... and I could have learned more if I'd been mentally and emotionally prepared for:<br />
<ol>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYmNl3a2zKoKuEYhBmvCbUh1xLot9TFsyqQhzSESZWlDfrnjdxs0EZHzrtVlkz0M11Au-avh6dtOxgaHkwzNT8SYxEJOo2v8LcIgA386k_tefGKgDDXaYq4RJC4PJ6-djDWd5gZty1eL6Q/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-05-16+at+3.04.52+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>
<li>Malicious Gossip</li>
<li>IGNORANT and jealous black folks who are the FIRST to attack you</li>
<li>Ignorant and jealous white folks who encourage the dither-heads to get at you</li>
<li>A "Matriarchy" that calls itself, "Feminism" .. but is focused on power rather than fairness</li>
<li>Junior High School culture that is already ready to throw their games at you... yep, same ones..</li>
<li>Traditionalism Vs. Post Modernism </li>
<li>Slaves who love the literal translation of the Bible --yet don't have a clue what it means</li>
<li>The unique history and the fear "The Outsider" beings to "the family"</li>
<li>Negro Confederates</li>
<li>Colored Republicans </li>
<li>Narrow minded cliques </li>
<li>Hypocritical sexuality that includes "Down Low Lesbians" </li>
<li>Borderline Retail Workers</li>
</ol>
<h4>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-lYK-VLnu5PwYpsG9gmLTual0btsKDSPTt9SVliJEohKbCTaR6Gih6U_tcpaqhyqzVXQGrczIz5NsTE8cMUPYV5XbwRLoOWmGS2Ye0PJ5tjiWQgU2QmX7AEzD_tHuSffXGj8G401O37Ve/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-05-16+at+3.04.52+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-lYK-VLnu5PwYpsG9gmLTual0btsKDSPTt9SVliJEohKbCTaR6Gih6U_tcpaqhyqzVXQGrczIz5NsTE8cMUPYV5XbwRLoOWmGS2Ye0PJ5tjiWQgU2QmX7AEzD_tHuSffXGj8G401O37Ve/s200/Screen+Shot+2016-05-16+at+3.04.52+PM.png" width="130" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: red;"><b>"Better Off Without 'Em" starts off: </b></span></span></h4>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Hang out in my living room on any national election night and at some point in the evening, usually around 7 p.m. Pacific time, you're almost certain to hear me scream something like: "Why in the hell does the United States--and by extension the entire free world, capitalist dominion, and all of Christendom--allow its government to be held hostage by a coalition of bought-and-paid-for political swamp scum from the most uneducated, morbidly obese, racist, morally indigent, xenophobic, socially stunted, and generally ass-backwards part of the country?" ~Chuck Thompson </blockquote>
<br />
Darn good question. The best answer I can come up with is that the vast majority of us have snippets of agrarian memories lingering ... unattached... somewhere down in our reptilian brain. We love the neat rows of corn and the tall green pine forest that stretch upwards to powder blue skies.<br />
<br />
What most of us to venture down thar eventually realize are all the reasons our parents and grandparents and great-grandparents fled the South in the first place. (There are MANY reasons why the land is so cheap down thar in "Way-Back Land.")<br />
<br />
But how can I really call it bad... when it works for them?<br />
Despite all the epidemics of Heroin, Oxycontin, Vicodin, Percocet, <span class="st">Fentanyl, Molly, Meth, Weed, and all forms of alcohol that literally FLOW off Southern store shelves... the straight jacket of Fundamentalism ... seems to work for them ... about as well as the cultural values found in any other region of this insane "United States of Oligarchal Kleptocracy." </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">Back South, they have FIRM definitions of what a man is... and what he does. With all due respect, it DOES take a lot to make a "Traditional Man" ... and when you encounter him, he is to be respected.... but in 2016, most of us are more products of either Post Modernism (Baby Boomers), or the values of the Information Age (Gen X and GenNext). </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">Try as we will, we can't fit the Genii back into the bottle again. <br />Still, coming from California where we talk about EVERYTHING.... yet we tend to be more on the shallow--keep it moving/have a nice day--side... North Carolina ... with all it's hypocrisy, taught me the value of being totally congruent. In California, it's easy to become too compartmentalized .... wearing different masks for different occasions with different people. But in traditional society, people know each other's grandparents. They've grown up together and rarely move. So ... people know all your shyt ... and if they don't, they make up the rest. </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">The South also taught me that black people are continuing to ... "Dream the WRONG dreams."</span><br />
<span class="st">Psychologist Carl Jung said he knew World War II was going to happen 10 years before it did simply by listening to the dreams of his German patients. </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">We're either too attached to "dreaming" ... ambitiously trying to manifest what the Social Engineers tell them to dwell upon. Television? NO Black person should have a TV in their house. That's how dangerous that tool is. And if you have a young son, and you're sitting him down in front of a TV and/or buying him video games, just admit to yourself that it would be far cheaper to buy little Johnny a loaded .357 pistol to play with... because you're killing him psychologically. </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st"><b>Proof?</b></span><br />
<ul>
<li><span class="st">It only takes 10.... and no more than 15 years to demoralize a culture.</span></li>
<li><span class="st">Black Americans are a <i>very</i> different people than we were up to the early 70s. </span></li>
<li><span class="st">70% of us aren't even getting married, and 90% of the thirty percent who do, end up in divorce. We can't survive like this. (Dr. Gabor Mate has the stats on what happens to children raised in single family homes Vs. un-stressed, nurturing homes where TWO parents look at a child with love and compassion during the first 6 years of his or her life. </span></li>
<li><span class="st">Trauma... abandonment, abuse... molestation, TOO MUCH BEATING and YELLING... have been catastrophic in our community. We lead the nation in prison inmates (.. the racist "drug war"), mental illness, homelessness, divorce, HIV-AIDs (... yes... The Fundamentalist Bible Belt South and North Carolina are now GROUND ZERO for new HIV-AIDs cases and many of them are age 45+).</span></li>
<li><span class="st">Violence? Gang Killings? </span></li>
<li><span class="st">Women hating men and men hating black women?? A house divided cannot stand and television shows like <i>Scandal, Empire,</i> and the duh values of Beyonce and her sell-out Malignant Narcissist husband Jay-Z are absolutely killing us! </span></li>
</ul>
<span class="st">We HAVE to look clearly... with curiosity and bravery... at where our values come from. Right now, the various Puppet Masters of emotions are leading us off cliffs by the thousands.</span><br />
<ol>
<li><span class="st">We also have to begin to understand that the Bible is ..."These things are <b>allegory!"</b> </span><span class="st">(Galatians 4:24). But how can you understand allegory if you don't stay in school long enough to understand what literature and myth mean? Likewise, even if you attend university and only study computer science and few or no Humanities courses... you'll graduate essentially as a semi-literate tool, instead of an empowered adult capable of carving out your own path in the world.<br /> </span></li>
<li><span class="st">We're TOO EXTREME ... either lost in hedonism or whooping and </span><span class="st">hollering in the superficial, fundamentalist Baptist churches slave masters set up for us. That Gospel (the "Good Spell") clearly says: <i>"Be not of the letter for the letter kills..." </i>(</span><span class="st">2 Corinthians 3:6) ... yet we continue to try and make meaning out of 2nd Century Social Engineering aimed at controlling you, rather than break the code through research and free ourselves.<i> </i>(Bill Donahue is one of best "code breakers alive." Listen to his videos to break the chains and discover the POWER of your <b>imaginations</b> and your hearts.</span></li>
<li>In that book, it CLEARLY states that, "God is not a man" (Numbers 23:19), but we continue--out of FEAR-- to worship a white image of the unseen forces of the Universe we call, "God." (... at least we could put a black Jesus up in our churches and homes... because if your God doesn't look like you... you're already in trouble.) </li>
</ol>
<h2>
<span style="color: red;"><b><span class="st">WE ARE DREAMING THE WRONG DREAMS!</span></b></span></h2>
<span class="st">Instead of attaching to being the victim and worrying about what others think of you... we absolutely have to stop wrestling with the dysfunctional Status Quo, and begin "dreaming" ... and IMAGINING what kinds of groups of health, fun, and functionality will look like. </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">To build a tradition, culture, or long surviving value structure... there needs to be an economy attached to it. </span><br />
<span class="st"><br /></span>
<span class="st">I am better, and wiser for having moved to the country of North Carolina, but I cannot recommend it to anyone ... ESPECIALLY if you're an older or retired single black male who has lived most of his life in modern, urban centers. I'm not a farmer and it's too hard to become one in your 60s. </span><br />
<span class="st"></span><br />
<span class="st"></span><br />
<span class="st"></span><br />
<span class="st"></span><br />
<span class="st">I think Chuck Thompson was right... we should have let the South secede when we had a chance. </span>
<span class="st"><br /></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-8111304711380778432015-09-23T19:07:00.000-07:002015-09-23T19:16:15.386-07:00The Upcoming Race WarI've lived, "Back South" for two years now. In hindsight, I should have moved to Raleigh, North Carolina instead of the small, rural town south of Greensboro that I did.<br />
<ul>
<li>Randolph County is ranked the 8th in gun ownership in America</li>
<li>Randolph County is a "No Growth" county... which means the STRONGLY resist change</li>
<li>In 2015, they still refuse to allow blacks to serve in the Town's politics</li>
<li>The black barber who moved in from Mississippi had to petition them to open a shop "downtown." Prior to that, blacks weren't even allowed "downtown."</li>
<li>Much of the "No Growth" is aimed at keeping black people down economically.</li>
</ul>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwo3XHic-57ZlB3daIy1eXrBBQjYmI4yUOImR-ZDRmnG2g4Lk4pe9gaRj4pq3w8Jq8g3DYXJpYLCoGxEmmQkPnO58XsZJSayLo9hUnguBA56eqY8swJ7sFb7SkYQuAOyVy7U24_g5snHbP/s1600/1US.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwo3XHic-57ZlB3daIy1eXrBBQjYmI4yUOImR-ZDRmnG2g4Lk4pe9gaRj4pq3w8Jq8g3DYXJpYLCoGxEmmQkPnO58XsZJSayLo9hUnguBA56eqY8swJ7sFb7SkYQuAOyVy7U24_g5snHbP/s320/1US.jpg" width="320" /></a>In 2015, the Whites still firmly think they're identity is attached to their racist past. <span id="goog_681680201"></span><span id="goog_1383470881"></span><span id="goog_1383470882"></span><br />
<span id="goog_681680200"></span><br />
<span class="st" data-hveid="44">Millennials are angrily preparing for a <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/dylann-roof-charleston-white-supremacists-race-war-346584" target="_blank">Race War.</a> To these numb-nuts, it doesn't matter that Zombies don't actually exist in nature, nor the fact that engaging in such and </span><span class="st" data-hveid="44"><span class="st">endeavor</span> ... to exterminate all the African Americans in the United States... is an exercise doomed to be their own self-destruction. </span><br />
've been shopping for a diesel 2500 or F-350 Duelly pickup truck. A young white car salesman--in his Narcissism--talked about that many <br />
<b><br /></b>
<b><span class="st" data-hveid="44">There's a reason there are so MANY U.S. Military bases throughout the South. </span></b><span class="st" data-hveid="44"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrnguPm50hO8jJoOaOK04Gfet4ld17MT56ZDxxrol7WV5fXYf_Eg1UY3wfnAxcD89QeX5x6vTCwPdHLq4ji5XMJi5zGhEqRU1pjMoW0jnK30dOE-qzYWx1sjs8DokogBRc2nwkVygMRBXO/s1600/flag+stupid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrnguPm50hO8jJoOaOK04Gfet4ld17MT56ZDxxrol7WV5fXYf_Eg1UY3wfnAxcD89QeX5x6vTCwPdHLq4ji5XMJi5zGhEqRU1pjMoW0jnK30dOE-qzYWx1sjs8DokogBRc2nwkVygMRBXO/s320/flag+stupid.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span class="st" data-hveid="44">There are many small, unmarked roads and creeks in North Carolina and the South... and the U.S. Army, Marines, and Air Force now know them all. It's not just, "Google Earth"... the Army has been engaging in war games here in the South for a long time. They enlist the aid of locals and use the Special Forces to teach them to be the "Rebels" while the U.S. Army engages them in the same way <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/17/us/jade-helm-military-exercise-ends-with-little-fanfare-and-less-paranoia.html?_r=0" target="_blank">Jade Helm</a> does in the Southwest... only quieter. <i><br /></i></span><br />
<br />
<span id="goog_254373204"></span><span id="goog_254373205"></span>America <span id="goog_1916128307"></span><span id="goog_1916128308"></span>has lost fourteen I.Q. points in the last 20 years. Talking to many people down here is like talking to fence post. And it's not just whites... many black people copy them. <i>"Monkey See, Monkey Do."</i> Initially I saw the huge pattern of, Narcissist Nation... but it took me awhile to realize that the other half of that coin is, "Codependent Nation," and North Carolina is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDfdJ2v8nvU" target="_blank">Codependent Nation</a> on steroids. It's a state of small towns that became incorporated into small and midsize cities. People here have grown up with each other for generations. Black, White, Red, and Brown... they know each other's grandparents. The game is... "Oh, we're all just family ... living happily under the umbrella of White Supremacy."<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Codependency is about Toxic Shame. </b><br />
It's what happens when dysfunctional people BEAT children. My Mississippi mother was a RAGING Codependent... so my sister became a Narcissist with an Anti-Social Personality Disorder, and I became a Codependent ... constantly watching for when it was safe.<br />
<br />
It's a progressive emotional trauma that creates an insanity in people who will come up to you and believe you're their enemy... simply because they THINK you don't like them. In this cauldron of gossip and malicious lies fueled by narrow-minded Fundamentalism Christianity, CONTROL of others is the delusion of both <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4P05S2QtwQ" target="_blank">the needy Narcissist and the needy Codependent.</a> When these two personality types meet (... most people...) they become enmeshed in a dance of "Victim / Predator" that is so unconscious and so addictive that nothing seems to be able to break the loop.<br />
<br />
<b>What Black People are Doing Wrong</b><br />
<ul>
<li>We beat our children WAAAAY too much. The nation is currently in the grip of a Heroin epidemic, a Meth epidemic, and still "self-soothing" with Crack, weed, food addiction, gambling (...perhaps the cruelest addiction of all...), and sexual addiction. Alcohol flows off store shelves like the waves of tsunamis. It's said that ALL addicts and alcoholics are Codependents. They partner up with often with the pure form of Codependents because the drug of the Codependent is ... other people. (It keeps them from looking at themselves.) </li>
<li>We need more REASONING (around age 6 through 9) and spanking and less BEATING.</li>
<li>We can't reason if our minds are addicted and <span class="st">occluded</span>. We need to begin to detox... emotionally as well as spiritually. </li>
<li>TURN off the TV and all that loud music. Learn to quite and love your mind. All of our troubles come from troubled minds.</li>
<li>We need to begin to organize ... quietly. We WON the Civil Rights Movement. But first, we had to gather in church basements and community hall rooms in circles where we can look each other in the eyes and forgive... and learn how to empty our pain and trust each other again. We don't get there by calling each other Niggers and Whores... nor beating our chest declaring that we're the BADDEST this or that....</li>
</ul>
<b>The <span class="st">Opie and Anthony-ization</span> of America</b><br />
Howard Stern and other shock-jocks who replace functional interaction with a distorted illusion of coolness that comes out of the pit that no, we don't love one another, so lets all get together and cap on each other and call it cool ... and the first one that gets mad loses.<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;"><i><br /></i></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;"><i>"Those whom the gods wish to destroy, they first make mad."</i></span></span> ~<span class="_Tgc">Euripides</span><br />
<br />
<span class="_Tgc">Retail workers are taught that they can control you if they can control your emotions. </span><br />
<span class="_Tgc">Dysfunctional, often frustrated .... even jealous and not always highly educated people... attaching to the idea that if she or he can piss you off, they've somehow conquered you... and can control you.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="_Tgc">There's some truth to it.. so instead of getting increasingly emotional ... shouting at cops and getting </span><br />
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<span class="_Tgc"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhernkPMQQLInYzrNPJRcqJgK2f9eadyZzY3VTAigNQh1WP4Xg76yFWzw6BqVxD-2lhyphenhyphenk_St9VtgmH43riP-LeILra8ckfDmSdkVEH9oE90lpXAHimMaOAUYL6Qcd9ESWgqASL0-fZzzKwP/s1600/Screen+Shot+2015-09-23+at+6.24.33+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhernkPMQQLInYzrNPJRcqJgK2f9eadyZzY3VTAigNQh1WP4Xg76yFWzw6BqVxD-2lhyphenhyphenk_St9VtgmH43riP-LeILra8ckfDmSdkVEH9oE90lpXAHimMaOAUYL6Qcd9ESWgqASL0-fZzzKwP/s320/Screen+Shot+2015-09-23+at+6.24.33+PM.png" width="285" /></a></span></div>
<span class="_Tgc">shot... black people need to go the other way... learning to control our emotions. Mediation is the best way. Watching the movie instead of getting caught up in the movie. I have to admit, this passive-aggressive tool has been used on me to get me kicked out of places. Control? Well, no one controlled me to the point where I gave them $50 dollars... but I may have had to give the Korupt Courts even more. Why make a fool a Rock Star? </span><br />
<br />
<span class="_Tgc">This is what unhappy people like these hater White </span><span class="_Tgc"><span class="st">supremacist</span> feast upon. Instead, deal with the worst enemy we have... that man or woman in the mirror.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="_Tgc">Change is created not by going against the predominate paradigm ... it's done by creating a better model! </span><br />
<br />
<span class="_Tgc">Don't give a cripple crab a crunch. </span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-90171422726671595412013-03-06T01:27:00.000-08:002013-03-06T01:27:32.206-08:00A Great and Might WalkEvery African American and every African of every age across the Diaspora should view this film. It's here for you... free. If you fail to do so, please don't complain about racism or religion.<b></b><br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="http://aalbc.com/authors/john1.htm" target="_blank">A Great and Mighty Walk</a></b></h2>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuXdu9HGL3Sa0H3NttS1Q5py9rqDbYI2-EUGSS_UsTHjdmvqXNSNjclS2HwYvWhHaAR6CBw9XdCnrKmAkDrTAaeeTWIo8JbuuNMWrZnPoHlMkQIM_lgI1fLXWZ7ibTJRLdRQ9ZKgaV0Iwu/s1600/john_henrik_clarke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuXdu9HGL3Sa0H3NttS1Q5py9rqDbYI2-EUGSS_UsTHjdmvqXNSNjclS2HwYvWhHaAR6CBw9XdCnrKmAkDrTAaeeTWIo8JbuuNMWrZnPoHlMkQIM_lgI1fLXWZ7ibTJRLdRQ9ZKgaV0Iwu/s320/john_henrik_clarke.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
We gave the world it's first humanity ... and if fate has save African people who have suffered Holocaust ten times worst than any other holocaust... then perhaps we are destined to give the world its next model of humanity.</blockquote>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-5497827189214195702012-09-27T18:27:00.000-07:002012-12-07T05:03:32.781-08:00Niggas Travel Too<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I'm currently traveling Thailand and experiencing that regardless of the culture, there truly is a "Market For Niggass." The nigga might be a Euro sex-slave turned into a voluntary whore, or the nigga might be a rapper creating international hatred towards the once proud black man, but here where the Russian Mafia, the Italian Mob, and the Mexican cartels hold shop ... "niggas" are paid to act a fool here too.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I'm not a fan of Hip-Hop nor Gangsta Rap... not because of the genre ... but because of the "New Jack City Uncle Toms too ignorant to know they're just huck-a-bucking for the world, bringing us all down, and eventually, they'll have nothing to show for it. </span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/gV2XBNl5604?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Scum-bags like Jay-Z and Snoop-Dawg don't have money because they're so wonderfully talented... they have it because they were marked by racists as being stable and reliable enough to put forth a product that, (a) guarantees the prisons will stay full, and (b) will destabilize the black community, and (c) continue to destroy black lives because for the Status Quo to remain in power ... the Top has to have a Bottom and that's the job of the Nigga.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I was stationed in this same area 40 years ago. It's sad to see the hatred in the faces of people now. I puzzled about the various reasons why as I walked the streets, then I came face-to-face with a disco blasting loud music and in front, was a rapper spitting out his poison. The Russian Mafia owns all the bars in this area. They're not known for loving black "anything." But if it brings money in and keeps their users heads low and in line... then it's all good in the international hood.</span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-30004115233759439922012-09-20T20:03:00.001-07:002012-09-20T20:03:41.896-07:00Detaching Attachment Disorder<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Please join me at my new blog, "<a href="http://blacktraveler.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">black traveler</a>." </span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhKb5cm6b1Red3ehRrXm7qvM156dDT9aWorU7Vg9CdUCAUG7YoKui7yA5S8w4YtjBvhi4Jwr60U-RGoKQJVD0-tujvBwItAIFWgmDPdcmkLiryyfgVgd3_fzjBm-4mJS1Se7Czg4sT2MZa/s1600/421886-22621-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhKb5cm6b1Red3ehRrXm7qvM156dDT9aWorU7Vg9CdUCAUG7YoKui7yA5S8w4YtjBvhi4Jwr60U-RGoKQJVD0-tujvBwItAIFWgmDPdcmkLiryyfgVgd3_fzjBm-4mJS1Se7Czg4sT2MZa/s320/421886-22621-5.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I'm currently in <a href="http://blacktraveler.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Thailand</a> and traveling throughout Southeast Asia. Recently a black woman in a Facebook forum discussed her battle with "RAD" ... or "<a href="http://www.buzzle.com/articles/reactive-attachment-disorder-in-adults.html" target="_blank">Reactive Attachment Disorder.</a>"</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As I read, it occurred to me that many of us suffer from some degree of this ... or else, we have tried to have a successful relationship with someone who suffers from Attachment Disorder. I might go as far to say that the trauma-inducing effects of Social Engineering aimed at African Americans puts us at risk for, "<a href="http://reactiveattachmentdisorderlife.blogspot.com/2008/12/adult-attachment-disorder.html" target="_blank">RAD</a>."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Please feel free to comment on what I've written about my experiences with my personal "relationship" with attachment disorder on <a href="http://blacktraveler.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Black Traveler</a>.</span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-85075294973570165152012-07-25T18:17:00.003-07:002013-03-06T01:29:12.600-08:00The Dream Is Coming True<style>
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXqnd2Wx3L9DNqjTNmFC5Cx2YD9-cU4Q6mvn6ZGD_Q_-lKXII9iE2Yn0SH1cxcy72bQmNX5ghPHs8XXYAcuyNg9EBVdv94223xJhs_056WwFlCmCYjKTg6f0UxLf6WbqoCiTHfCTdh2B7W/s1600/get+rid+of+box.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXqnd2Wx3L9DNqjTNmFC5Cx2YD9-cU4Q6mvn6ZGD_Q_-lKXII9iE2Yn0SH1cxcy72bQmNX5ghPHs8XXYAcuyNg9EBVdv94223xJhs_056WwFlCmCYjKTg6f0UxLf6WbqoCiTHfCTdh2B7W/s320/get+rid+of+box.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I grew tired of California. The San Francisco
Bay Area has become a cesspool of anger, dysfunction, crime, bullying and
mental illness. Well, maybe that describes life in most areas of the United
States. Research quickly makes it clear that currently, there’s a lot of people
wondering if there is any place better to run to. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">For black people, we often have an additional
layer of fear and doubt to work through when faced with drastic change—because
moving to another state can be just that—a drastic life change, for better or
worse.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I'd done a lot of moving in my life, but only
recently did I learn that "smart relocators" take their time and create list
with as many as 24 items of "must" that are looking for in their new location.
They compare housing tax rates, quality of the drinking water, racial and
political demographics, proximity of good schools, city zoning laws, and even
the view they’ll have. Where do you find such valuable information?</span></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://www.city-data.com/" target="_blank"><b>City-Data.com </b></a>not only has statistics on most
cities in every state, the site also has a forum that allows anyone who
registers to post and replies to questions about … anywhere and anything. It's
been my experience that if asked without judgment or blame, candid, "real talk"
questions elicit "real talk" answers delivered with respect. </span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://wikipedia.com/"><b>Wikipedia.com</b></a> has a surprising amount of good
information on cities and counties.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b><a href="http://www.unitedcountry.com/" target="_blank">United Country.com</a></b> is a great website for
those of us who are looking for rural property just outside the trauma-drama of
urban technocratic apartment life. </span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am currently checking out the Southeastern
states I'm most attracted to. After this phase is over, I'll spend six months
in Southeast Asia, determining if I want to retire in a country like Thailand.
I've been warned against, "All or Nothing" thinking, so it might end up being
six months in Cambodia, and six months in North Carolina. Right now, life has
given me the luxury of being able to spend nine months deciding. From now on, most of my posting will take place on either:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li><h2>
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://blacktraveler.wordpress.com/" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Black Traveler</span></b></a></span></h2>
</li>
<li><h2>
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://blackfarms.wordpress.com/" target="_blank"><b><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Black Farms</span></b></a></span></h2>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I hope you'll
join me on the journey. </span></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-15487963087452731622012-07-25T18:16:00.004-07:002012-07-25T18:22:19.990-07:00Join me at Black Traveler!<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPLiU2NeQkA2-CIw8Lyn79KksWy2mQaoBriqWm_3BO6UhuChMt_knUxC8OqLzet_eLtGB-JDK-510Q7Mvvvlwc-5asktsx2Wyb7lJse_xn9SOXaMqmoC1p_PgT1NcuYg4T5govXfRqox28/s1600/BlackTraveler.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPLiU2NeQkA2-CIw8Lyn79KksWy2mQaoBriqWm_3BO6UhuChMt_knUxC8OqLzet_eLtGB-JDK-510Q7Mvvvlwc-5asktsx2Wyb7lJse_xn9SOXaMqmoC1p_PgT1NcuYg4T5govXfRqox28/s320/BlackTraveler.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I have embarked on a nine-month odyssey in
search of my little house in the country where a previously self-identified
black urbanite will produce my own organic food. But this is more than just
searching for a good plot of land and clean drinking water—it's also about
locating a spot where crime is low (no "thugs") and racist Right Wing extremist
are all but non-existent. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Harmony.</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In tomorrow's world, survival and quality of
life will depend upon low drama, and networking with "Like Minds." Notice I
didn't say, "Like Color." Smart people who have a sense of what's coming know
that combining resources and comparing information with as many types of people
as possible is not only healing—but super wise.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Join me at, <a href="http://blacktraveler.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">black traveler</a> and let’s compare
notes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://blacktraveler.wordpress.com/"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">http://blacktraveler.wordpress.com/</span></a></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-91762344718666026242012-07-25T18:00:00.002-07:002012-07-25T18:00:54.446-07:00Have Previous Black Eonomic Gains Been Reversed?<style>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-BASGIdri6wqbmuQ0_3erWm-USadLfQKeZFvGG4Y3f9aBZe-kh8KDiPxZUUJ0FdS6L2tmKfz7RvIyBsouoc-B3Cq_yYWWNtdaexzBjIQqOcAbfJOECtpM1A4hjiCUZS7nxPPE5e-MNx7u/s1600/25135f77ea4a24dfede0c7d380db1274.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-BASGIdri6wqbmuQ0_3erWm-USadLfQKeZFvGG4Y3f9aBZe-kh8KDiPxZUUJ0FdS6L2tmKfz7RvIyBsouoc-B3Cq_yYWWNtdaexzBjIQqOcAbfJOECtpM1A4hjiCUZS7nxPPE5e-MNx7u/s320/25135f77ea4a24dfede0c7d380db1274.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It's clear that the current, "Recession" for
middle America is a “Depression” for Black America. Further, "Dr. Doom," </span><a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/economist-nouriel-roubini-rips-u-s-economy" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">NourielRoubini</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">, the economics professor who correctly
predicted the '08 Crash and smaller economic downturns before and since, now
says we’re in, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sheldon-filger/dr-doom-redux-roubini_b_1695724.html" target="_blank">"The Perfect Storm" for an upcoming crash</a> that will be worst
than the '08 Crash.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So it's way past time for blacks to stop
thinking that everything is going to be alright. Sad to repeat this, but when
white America catches an economic cold, we often catch pneumonia. Some say that
Black America has lost a combined trillion dollars since the '08 crash. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(And no, selling drugs is NOT a good 'fall
back' career choice… unless you feel like sitting in a prison cell that feels
like 200 Degrees Fahrenheit </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-style: normal;"></span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></i><i><span style="font-family: Calibri;">when they transfer your over-crowded behind to some obscure rat
hole in Rattlesnake, Nevada is a "good thing.")</span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">But we're not upset about our suffering
because Obama is in office? Huh?? Really? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Y’all better wake up! Read the links about
the next forecasted economic downturn and begin thinking:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What will I need to do to keep
food on my plate?</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now that Monsanto is holding our
food hostage, is it better for me to grow my own?</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What in life would I REALLY love
to do, regardless of the income?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Number Three may be most important. The
following is a USA TODAY story titled: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: Times; font-size: 14pt;">Black economic gains reversed in
Great Recession</span></b></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
“Millions of Americans endured similar
financial calamities in the recession. But for Goldring and many others in the
black community, where unemployment has risen since the end of the recession,
job loss has knocked them out of the middle class and back into poverty. Some
even see a historic reversal of hard-won economic gains that took black people
decades to achieve.”</div>
</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I strongly encourage you to read the
entire story at: <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2011-07-09-black-unemployment-recession_n.htm" target="_blank">USA TODAY | ECONOMY</a> </div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-3105289736169759262011-09-08T05:47:00.000-07:002012-07-25T18:18:06.033-07:00Be Small<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>It's about control. </b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">I never thought I'd be advocating for some of the issues that I will be in the coming weeks and months ... but I now see, that "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_engineering_%28security%29">Social Engineers</a>" ... and well meaning people who've been brainwashed by them ... are using issues of race, sex, sexuality, gender, and religion to insert fear and division as their way to control.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/SJr1mr8oYMA?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Yes, it's the same as it's always been... but subtle in its approach because the fear is often married to "niceness." Don't cave to clicks. Don't make the world smaller for another small person. If you slander, label, slur, or be-little anyone, what you're actually doing is making the world smaller for yourself.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b>QUESTION: </b>Why aren't we focusing our anger on those greedy bastards holding and grabbing all the money instead of calling each other words like, "... bitches, fags, whores, punks, losers ... Lib-weirds, and all the zillion other words we use against our neighbors?</span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Afraid?</span></div>
<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-37597079584045588832011-07-07T01:29:00.000-07:002011-07-07T03:14:48.620-07:00Black Religion: Hurting or Helping Us?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJy2luWnHdbJkH9K0RM6DzxjwTte4QzEgrWpyAkhe7QQXKoRvxQfjcm4EjbOiU-ex3VJyCvW8vSO_8KHeff9-EIf92IG71OerzefQJyZ1Wm_cZYA25e76OCihyfYnyC1yEB5oNp4WMKyu5/s1600/Black-Church-Face.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 274px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJy2luWnHdbJkH9K0RM6DzxjwTte4QzEgrWpyAkhe7QQXKoRvxQfjcm4EjbOiU-ex3VJyCvW8vSO_8KHeff9-EIf92IG71OerzefQJyZ1Wm_cZYA25e76OCihyfYnyC1yEB5oNp4WMKyu5/s320/Black-Church-Face.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5626550334276663922" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: arial;font-size:130%;" >I</span><span style="font-family: arial;">t seems we're at a point where we cannot advance without dealing with "The Spiritual." And no, I am most def NOT talking about religion. (Well ... I'm not recommending it, nor am I advising it.) Spiritual to me is a part of my body and my personal psychology. Take </span><a style="font-family: arial;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoga"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Yoga</span></a><span style="font-family: arial;"> for instance. If my </span><a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;" href="http://kyoga.livenetworks.tv/">"life nerve" is tight, then my thinking is also tight</a><span style="font-family: arial;">... easily angered and reactive.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">At my age, I'm forced to reflect that without mainstream Christianity, I would never have gotten sober and remained sane all these years. But I also see the limitations of the Black Church and ask: "If </span><a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;" href="https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=237852542911356&id=747005972#%21/Rev.Dr.MatthewFox">Christianity needs reformation</a><span style="font-family: arial;">--again, then do I have time to wait on it?"</span><br /><br /><ul style="font-family: arial;"><li>I reject the concept of a god that loves Baptist and hates Hindus. (What kind of god is THAT? That sounds more like the guy in the corner market down the street.)<br /><br /></li><li>I reject the abomination of "<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Christianity/2009/03/The-Problem-for-the-Prosperity-Gospel.aspx"><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">Prosperity Christianity</span></a>" that puts money at the forefront of God... even higher than the necessary concept of learning to love and accept ourselves so that we can love and accept others</li></ul><ul style="font-family: arial;"><li>I reject the <a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);" href="http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Christianity/2009/03/The-Problem-for-the-Prosperity-Gospel.aspx"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Christianity of The State</span></a> ... this vile "religion" that tells us we must now kill Muslims ... because God wants us to have their oil. Naaa... don't sound right partna.<br /><br /></li><li>The Christianity I got was almost a <a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);" href="http://progressivechristianitylaw.blogspot.com/2011/05/boogie-man-lee-atwater-story-2008_15.html">"Boogie-Man" religion</a>. God wasn't just there to punish me, He didn't want me to think too much and would send me to hell if I took a <a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);" href="http://kyoga.livenetworks.tv/">Yoga class</a>. ("Hmmm... if God created everything ... how come I can only put my money into the plate at the <span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">"</span><a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);" href="http://leadercall.com/local/x1316176968/Local-pastor-now-a-published-author">JUmPin' JiviNg" Church</a><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153);">"</span>?)<br /><br /></li><li>I love <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hEiGEfm2uE">Gospel music</a> ... but there's far too much externalization in service. Where's the time to, "Be still and hear my voice"? Meditation isn't owned by anyone. East and Western traditions do it. Jesus was both praying and meditating in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_of_Gethsemane" title="Garden of Gethsemane" class="mw-redirect">Garden of Gethsemane</a> when they came for Him. And if Jesus is all of God, who was He praying to and why when we are to enter Heaven, are we expected to find Him sitting on the right hand of God The Father?? Bad theology for those who teach it and lazy theology for those who accept it.</li></ul><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">To be a "Spiritual Warrior" means to go out beyond the fence line ... out beyond the boundary the "overly religious" warn you to stop. It is there we find the need to have faith because it is there we confront the archetypes of our minds and listen, learn what </span><a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;" href="http://archive.cacradicalgrace.org/conferences/cosmic-christ/">The Cosmic Christ</a><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial;">... the Great "I Am" is trying to teach us.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">I advocate that we shed the limitations of the </span><a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;" href="http://historyscoop.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/biblical-verses-used-by-slaveowners-to-justify-slavery/">religion slaves were given by slave owners</a><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Explore the Eastern philosophies from whence our Western spirituality came from.</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Accept yourself fully as you are... shadow and light... made in God's image...</span><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">Seek out people and places to guide you to your heart ... your own INNER Light and from there, connect to the One Soul that unites us all.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">If "The Garden of </span><a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agony_in_the_Garden">Gethsemane was a state of mind</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> ... a state of agony, then I likewise believe that </span><span style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;">"</span><a style="color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ru4s0TgXvc&feature=player_embedded#at=13">The Garden of Eden"</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> was also meant to be a state of mind ... of innocence, virtue, and love. I want to spend more time ... </span><a style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 0, 153); font-family: arial;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6IDoxi9QsE">"getting back to the Garden"</a><span style="font-family: arial;"> than being lost in lust, pride, greed, envy, anger(fear) and sloth.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: arial;">It's from here we can begin to rebuild bridges to each others hearts and minds... and begin to climb out of the dark prison that we've been locked in these past 30 years... or more...</span><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_of_Gethsemane" title="Garden of Gethsemane" class="mw-redirect"></a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-41676466878297699752011-06-13T18:15:00.000-07:002011-07-06T15:21:02.529-07:00I'm back<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFbVNroQpHitvJ8W143vNuMwmuyjPoXua9pcjhTy_Vvs8Br0bZQXuBS1_n8823RjrzvP0RkNLZWxkSRoAIwm9bxDlLz9UKfm4qnbh_xQF13Hn3v8FcBMTFL6nHnjs23magPvX9LQ85ZxGv/s1600/Maximun.jpeg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 165px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFbVNroQpHitvJ8W143vNuMwmuyjPoXua9pcjhTy_Vvs8Br0bZQXuBS1_n8823RjrzvP0RkNLZWxkSRoAIwm9bxDlLz9UKfm4qnbh_xQF13Hn3v8FcBMTFL6nHnjs23magPvX9LQ85ZxGv/s320/Maximun.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5617885759624081970" border="0" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Well ... this is the first post in a long time. I gave up posting after Congress passed </span></span><a href="http://www.healthfreedomusa.org/?p=7446"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">SB 510</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">. Yup, it's official. They call it the "</span></span><a href="http://www.infowars.com/senate-bill-s510-makes-it-illegal-to-grow-share-trade-or-sell-homegrown-food/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Food Safety Law</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">." Ironic, eh? They're pouring </span></span><a href="http://fluoridealert.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Fluoride</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> in our waters (poison and it drops children's I.Q. rates up to 7 points) and filling our food with </span></span><a href="http://www.wikihow.com/Avoid-High-Fructose-Corn-Syrup"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">corn syrup</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> and cancer causing </span></span><a href="http://aspartame.mercola.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">aspartame</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">. </span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">All I wanted was for them to allow small farming to return. Manufacturing is always the cornerstone of wealth in a country... and new ideas are often driven by agriculture. But now that </span></span><a href="http://organicconsumers.org/monsanto/index.cfm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Monsanto</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> is so huge, they want to control everything. I won't bore you with more "doom and gloom" because my premise has always been,</span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> "Every problem is an opportunity in work clothes,"</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> right? </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Well, right now, as I see it... we have two choices:</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><ol><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Bend over and kiss your ass goodbye because you should have listened before they gained all this power... or<br /><br /></span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Begin healing yourselves so that you can join healthy communities with others and build bridges of cooperation and survival.</span></span></li></ol></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">That's the direction this blog is taking. Spiritual and psychological survival in the dark days ahead. Peace, and hope things look brighter tomorrow.</span></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-68997611722701073492010-07-18T00:56:00.000-07:002010-07-18T01:53:56.944-07:00What now?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.independent.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00247/dollar_247863s.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 616px; height: 421px;" src="http://www.independent.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00247/dollar_247863s.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">I stopped posting entries for a while ... because honestly, I was in the middle of a transition. I'm not out of that transition yet, but it's clear that business is no longer "as usual." </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">When I look into the darkness, I ask, "What will they now allow us to do?" </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AIbBGi1gjo"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">This New World Order is essentially a corporate dictatorship</span></b></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">. When I look into the positive side of all this, I can see where, "something is coming ... something is changing!" </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Cosmology from every culture proclaims that there are countless numbers of angelic light beings eagerly waiting to guide us ... to encourage us, and assist us. So if the predictions about the Mayan Calender are true, then what do we have to fear? Nothing.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">If they are to be taken in perspective of the end of THEIR world ... then that means life will go on after 2012 ... but it won't be "business as usual." Life ... will ... be ... different. Then again, all this may be just more "Y2K" style hype. The oceans will heal ... even after this massive destruction. The Military Industrial Complex will hold itself in some kind of check ... and while the greedy rich will continue to rob us into abject poverty, there will be opportunities for those who decide to act on them.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">I predict fewer Americans will find economic salvation in Corporate America. India has a BILLION people and so does China. Both have better secondary school systems than we do ... and they don't complain. So ... I strongly advise all reading this entry to begin looking into how they can make a job for themselves.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:16.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"></p><ol><li><b><a href="http://www.humcapinc.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=78"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">80 million Baby Boomers are entering retirement</span></a></b><a href="http://www.humcapinc.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=78"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">.</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> That's huge! Think of all the goods and services you can provide pampered Boomers. (Look three steps past the problem ... and you'll get paid!)</span></li><li><b><a href="http://nstarzone.com/MONSANTO.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Monsanto's genetically modified crap</span></a></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> they're feeding us is creating health hazards daily. 1 out of 3 children born after the year 2000 will get early onset Type-2 Diabetes. Two out of three of those will be children of color. View some of Will Allen's videos on Urban Agriculture and think: "Organic Urban."</span></li><li><b><a href="http://blog.buzzflash.com/interviews/113"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">While Hate Radio has been brainwashing millions</span></a></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> ... seducing them into quagmires of racism and elitism, the killer psychiatry institution is pouring Prozac and other useless drugs down their depressed throats. (That's right, psychiatry has never cured ONE person. The Rockefeller family owns all drug pharmacies and Rockerfeller has been quoted for being very “concerned” about over population.) Create small models of joy. We've forgotten what functional looks like. Every neighborhood should have some kind of community organization or club of shining hearts so that those emotionally constipated retards can look over the fence one day and marvel: "Wow ... they're actually having fun..." and join in. (I predict funding for those few who still retain social skills.)</span></li></ol><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:16.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">All I’m saying is that things are going to become more intense. Things are going to change for many of us ... and eventually, for all of us.</span><span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Like Mother Jones said: “Educate yourself for the coming struggle.” Start looking at your talents and how much innovative comfort you can carve out of life. Quality rather than meaningless quantity. Put more positive, supportive PEOPLE in your life rather than cell phones and other meaningless gadgets you hope will raise your self-esteem and make you happy. Be well Divine Spirits.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <!--EndFragment--><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-87343413111406508032010-07-17T23:38:00.000-07:002010-07-18T00:05:16.080-07:00The End of America<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.webislam.com/media/image/2009/10/naomi_wolf.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 175px; height: 233px;" src="http://www.webislam.com/media/image/2009/10/naomi_wolf.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><p class="MsoNormal">Naomi Wolf ‘s recent book, “<a href="http://www.endofamericamovie.com/trailer">The End of America</a>” shines a creepy light on our current, “reality behind the reality.” Click on the link below and view the trailer. What angers me most about this ... is that while Social Engineers who use puppet masters like Rush Linbaugh and Fox “News” commentators to convince over half the county to sink even deeper in cesspools of racism, elitism and denial the REAL threats have not only sold the store, they’ve sold the shelves too. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>Democracy as the slave owning framers of the constitution meant it to be is over. The <a href="http://www.mefeedia.com/video/32031522">T-Bills have been sold to China</a>. Most of the mineral rights too. So what is this big saving hero called, the Solar Green Industry going to use? <b>Germany</b> is <a href="http://etbe.coker.com.au/2007/08/01/germany-leads-the-world-in-solar-power/">already way ahead</a> of us in technology. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>So, with all this out-sourcing, and shutting down manufacturing, what do they need with most of us?</o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>I predict is that at some point, they’re going to send many of the able-bodied young men and women out into the middle of the country to work (safely) on rebuilding the power grid that up-coming solar storms may knock out anyway.</o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>You want to make decisions based upon what the reality truly is ... not what they tell us the reality is. Below are the 10 steps that <a href="http://naomiwolf.org/">Naomi Wolf</a> list what every dictator does to close down free and open society.</o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Arial, serif;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">The 10 Classic Steps Dictators Use to close down a Free Society</span></b></span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">1.</span><span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"> 1. </span> </span></span></span>Invoke an External and Internal Threat<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">2.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Establish Secret Prisons<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">3.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Develop a Paramilitary Force<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">4.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Surveil Ordinary Citizens<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">5.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Infiltrate Citizens’ Groups<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">6.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Arbitrarily Detain and Release Citizens<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">7.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Target Key Individuals<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">8.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Restrict The Press<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">9.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Cast Criticism As, “Espionage” and Dissent As “Treason”<br /><br /><span style="mso-bidi-mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;font-family:Cambria;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore">10.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span></span>Subvert The Rule Of Law </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>Find<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>simple needs that need to be filled that make some kind of living for you and others. This will keep you out of Prison Nation. Think three steps beyond any problem ...and you’ll get paid.</o:p></p> <!--EndFragment--><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-88207092424504964582010-03-27T16:16:00.000-07:002010-04-01T04:32:52.675-07:00New Black Professionals<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjISs3VVC8HFnYLYV6De6-XTe8dxToizTIk-i2BhbAqZuTWuLUqUuukgPzoKd9mCi3U6Y1vcCye8FJJcCClSX5lwyIAfTVwyQiep_08hiSg0M_OSSoi9XRXmCKCNyCRemdhdIo6kx5Yu1Fp/s1600/black_professionals.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjISs3VVC8HFnYLYV6De6-XTe8dxToizTIk-i2BhbAqZuTWuLUqUuukgPzoKd9mCi3U6Y1vcCye8FJJcCClSX5lwyIAfTVwyQiep_08hiSg0M_OSSoi9XRXmCKCNyCRemdhdIo6kx5Yu1Fp/s320/black_professionals.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455130486751076034" /></a><span style="font-size:130%;">"<em>You write the laws ... but let ME write the songs because the youth will act out the songs."</em> -Aristotle</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">All we see is images of young black people killing each other, selling and abusing drugs, dropping out of school and lining up for welfare. But I'm pleased to report that there is a backlash in the black community against the values and images of </span><a href="http://wordofmorgan.com/thug-culture-black-racism/"><span style="font-family:arial;">Thug Nation</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;">. They may still be dancing to </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hip_Hop_Is_Dead"><span style="font-family:arial;">Hip Hop</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;">, but I'm so glad to see that many, raised by parents who called themselves deep in the game (but only came out losers) have lined up for accounting jobs, worked hard to educate themselves, and are now stepping into the workforce as new professionals.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Those who graduated from </span><a href="http://www.blackcollegesearch.com/"><span style="font-family:arial;">Historically Black Colleges and Universities</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;"> (HBCU) are armed with the knowledge it takes survive and flourish in a society that wishes to either brainwash them into impotency or deny them access to the table. Nothing new. All the information they need is now published both online and are waiting on library and bookstore shelves for them to access.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">But a far greater issue sits like a time bomb within their souls ... and that's the still uncompleted answer to the question, "Who am I?" </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">I love watching YouTube videos of </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/qzDb4lucoMI"><span style="font-family:arial;">Cornell Wes</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;">t, </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVIepaDRw2Q"><span style="font-family:arial;">Dr. Ben (</span></a><span style="COLOR: rgb(102,102,102);font-size:12;" class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;color:#000000;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVIepaDRw2Q">Dr Yosef AA</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;color:#000000;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVIepaDRw2Q"> </a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;color:#000000;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVIepaDRw2Q">Ben</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;color:#000000;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVIepaDRw2Q">-</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;font-size:100%;color:#000000;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVIepaDRw2Q">Jochannan</a></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><strong>), </strong></span><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;">and Dr. John Henry Clarke. What everyone needs--not just "young black professionals"--is the bar raised on the consciousness of what it means to be human ... to live a successful life ... and what it takes to be happy. We're aware that blind materialism sure isn't it, and a person with a professional degree who hates themselves is a setup for everything from addictions to major depression. </span></span></span><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(102,102,102);font-size:12;" class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;"></span></span></span><br /><span style="COLOR: rgb(102,102,102);font-size:12;" class="Apple-style-span"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;color:#000000;">Do your own search of: "<a href="http://ybpguide.com/">Young black professionals</a>" and judge for yourself. Get back to me with any comments all those websites raise. Peace.</span></span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-6410773773278150482010-01-29T11:10:00.000-08:002010-01-29T12:08:58.717-08:00Obama Says "He'll Pay' ... $2,500 A Year To Go To School<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiekFMVIcNvwAfwdRYtZmKWqJxDFAurfkRDBNrrgNQFZBCPZNQ-OpzMJ3UuZJigcijezgo1g1vY8vE5-jGtDZmjlMgEGe29LDOBrRVm2Fy5LH53iJYuqPLTvsMHaVycVdM7jXNTj9BCGECF/s1600-h/us+students.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 199px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiekFMVIcNvwAfwdRYtZmKWqJxDFAurfkRDBNrrgNQFZBCPZNQ-OpzMJ3UuZJigcijezgo1g1vY8vE5-jGtDZmjlMgEGe29LDOBrRVm2Fy5LH53iJYuqPLTvsMHaVycVdM7jXNTj9BCGECF/s400/us+students.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432247747729570210" /></a><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.classesandcareers.com/em/stimulus-financial-aid/index.php?CACP=CD_STI2FI_CAC_OELF_ComboID=9362PublisherID=2695"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">Reprint:</span></a> (ARA) - Where there's a will, there will always be a way. So the economy is crashing around us. Everywhere, dust is settling over the graves of greed. And yes, now really is a good time to both, STAY in college and to start or return to college. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;">Think: "Multiple Income Streams." The Obama administration's stimulus bill is supposedly designed to get the economy moving again. Most of the bill's $70 billion for education will go to low- to middle-income individuals.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;">"A major part of the bill is a $13.8 billion tuition tax credit boost called the American Opportunity Tax Credit," reports <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGqrvn3q1oo">ARALifestyle</a>. "This tax credit reimburses 100 percent of the first $2,000 of educational expenses for lower income students. For the next $2,000, students will receive a 25 percent reimbursement. In short, lower income students will receive $2,500 in education reimbursements per year.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;">The bill also features other benefits for low-income students. Families that do not earn enough to pay income taxes can receive a $1,000 education refund.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;">"These kinds of incentives from the government don't come along very often," says Janet Hill, financial aid and education counselor at<a href="http://www.classesandcareers.com/em/stimulus-financial-aid/index.php?CACP=CD_STI2FI_CAC_OELF_ComboID=9362PublisherID=2695"> ClassesandCareers.com</a>, a free online education service. "If people have been thinking of going back to school, now would be the time to do it. If they are hurting financially, they can easily get the money they need to get a degree." These benefits are set to expire after the 2010-2011 school year.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;">Fortunately, thanks to a growing number of online education options, degree-seekers can take advantage of President Barack Obama's stimulus bill without leaving their jobs. Sites like <span style="color:#000090;"><a href="http://www.adfusion.com/adfusion.partnersite/LinkRedirect.aspx?UserFeedGuid=872ece75-2432-42c5-b36e-575bdc1c6119&ArticleId=2611&ComboId=9362&LinkId=1&salt=JdTpBq3"><span style="text-decoration:none;text-underline:nonecolor:#000090;">ClassesandCareers.com</span></a> have </span>helped nearly 500,000 degree-seekers get their stimulus money and enroll in online universities." </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;">But the consumer has to be cautious. The word went out that there weren't enough medical professionals. People flooded little medical colleges by the thousands ... and now there are too many of them. Same with IT professionals like Graphic Designers and "Computer <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Cambria, serif; ">Technicians." NPR recently ran a story advising listeners to imagine fifteen Empire State Buildings of empty office space. That's how many empty office space is presently in Silicon Valley. Research. Do your homework. Question what you'd <b>REALLY</b> like to do. Avoid standing in the line that's already crowded.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Cambria, serif; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; ">That set, Hill continues, "We help people learn how to take advantage of this bill," says Hill. "All they have to do is visit our form and fill it out. We guide them through the rest."</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;">If you are a low-income individual and want to get money to go back to school, <span style="text-decoration:none;text-underline:nonecolor:windowtext;"><a href="http://www.classesandcareers.com/em/stimulus-financial-aid/index.php?CACP=CD_STI2FI_CAC_OELF_ComboID=9362PublisherID=2695">visit </a></span><span style="text-decoration:none;text-underline:nonecolor:#000090;"><a href="http://www.classesandcareers.com/em/stimulus-financial-aid/index.php?CACP=CD_STI2FI_CAC_OELF_ComboID=9362PublisherID=2695">ClassesandCareers.com</a></span>, fill out their form, and indicate which schools you may be interested in. An education advisor will contact you and help you get your share of President Obama's stimulus money to go back to school." </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 15px;">One word of caution children ... the country is still built upon mountains of debt. Read the fine print and ask before you sign. Take time before you decide. </span></span></p> <!--EndFragment--><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-44594235613159939052010-01-28T07:43:00.000-08:002010-01-29T12:55:25.247-08:00Free College for Black males???<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh60JrGXXIw5DygU8B3VLLgXcRjBSzm9hvZSxot-5H7IhFksc6DkNg9TkyYaQ5XfGR46-JnfiiPzOoPaQygYpRcM9cwCLOV05YSOLT40iJIvnCtwMQL5g47Dh8H94AkzzfNkpRKTZRZJPju/s1600-h/Call+Mr.gif"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 271px; height: 196px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh60JrGXXIw5DygU8B3VLLgXcRjBSzm9hvZSxot-5H7IhFksc6DkNg9TkyYaQ5XfGR46-JnfiiPzOoPaQygYpRcM9cwCLOV05YSOLT40iJIvnCtwMQL5g47Dh8H94AkzzfNkpRKTZRZJPju/s400/Call+Mr.gif" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431828271534725282" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 15px; font-family:Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><h1 style="font: normal normal bold 2.2em/normal 'Trebuchet MS', Arial, sans-serif; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 5px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 0px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(212, 212, 212); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-weight: normal; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); line-height: 15px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This information is too important to post only once. Please, if you know any black males who dream of going to college but see no way of being able to afford the cost, 13 Black Colleges and Universities are working with Clemson University to send them to school absolutely </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 15px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#FF0000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">FREE.</span></span></span></span></h1><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The text below is reprinted directly from the </span><a href="http://www.clemson.edu/hehd/departments/education/research-service/callmemister/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"Calll me MISTER" website.</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Click and view all the links on the left side to view the program in greater detail. The goal of the program is to increase the number of black male teachers in under-served and rural communities. There was a time when I would have even balked at going into places like the Mississippi Delta to teach ... but these days, being able to live and work (earning a decent salary) at a very esteemable position in a rural area is pure GAME. I repeat over and over that owning a home with a few acres on it within a 45 minute radius of a city or college town is the number one choice. (If you don't know, read past posts to learn why.) But before I digress, read about the program below. Each link takes you to a different site.)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"The mission of the Call Me MISTER (acronym for Mentors Instructing Students Toward Effective Role Models) National Initiative is to increase the pool of available teachers from a broader more diverse background particularly among the State's lowest performing elementary schools. Student participants are largely selected from among under-served, socio-economically disadvantaged and educationally at-risk communities.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Call Me MISTER program is contributing to the talent pool of excellent teachers by identifying and supporting students like Mr. Mark Joseph (shown here), who are literally "touching the future" by teaching children. Mark's teaching degree was made possible through the </span><a href="http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_state_of_black_america_news/13339"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Call Me MISTER program</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span></p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.5em; margin-left: 0px; "></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><b>The project provides:</b><br /><ul><li>Tuition assistance through Loan Forgiveness programs for admitted students pursuing approved programs of study in teacher education at participating colleges.</li><li>An academic support system to help assure their success.</li><li>A cohort system for social and cultural support.</li></ul>“Call Me MISTER” was developed by some of our State’s visionary educational leaders who sincerely believe we can build a better tomorrow by getting you involved today.<br /><br />Maintained by <a href="MISTER@clemson.edu">MISTER@clemson.edu</a><br />Copyright ©2009 Call Me MISTER, 203 Holtzendorff, Clemson, S.C. 29634, (800)640-2657"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Georgia, serif;font-size:130%;color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small; line-height: 15px;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-60315851045617753042010-01-09T15:14:00.000-08:002010-01-09T15:22:37.031-08:00Supporting Our Own Slavery<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Arial, serif;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Recreated from Luther Brook's "</span><a href="http://www.destee.com/forums/showthread.php?t=56104"><span style="text-decoration:none;text-underline:nonecolor:windowtext;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Heteplandproject</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">" </span></p> <!--EndFragment--> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Drug money saved banks in global crisis, claims UN advisor</span></span></b><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This is from an interesting article originally printed in "</span><span style="text-decoration:none;text-underline:nonecolor:windowtext;"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/global/2009/dec/13/drug-money-banks-saved-un-cfief-claims"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Guardian</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">." I love President Obama and I hope that it's simply too early to evaluate which direction he's going ... "the same old trip," or is he shrewd enough to give the Military Industrial complex what it wants in exchange for breaking off something for the people who elected him later? We'll just have to wait and see.</span></span></p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV2keq82-uIoF6CyoDpsxPLTSSHKQEeA8MsRJuwkWBMcOiluTEKM7oxRA2XR3qSO1EMb89GskH8Uwk5DJnaEtRTMe6T437Cq2RSmZd6P8pjOqZKiMAc1Opaf13a6MbYZMvaF3pyuBts67p/s400/securedownload.jpeg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424884027270780594" /><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Luther Brook's reprint of The Guardian's story (below) points out the lie behind our "Drug War." It's been close to 30 years and more Americans are in prisons than in any industrial nation on earth. UN Drug Tsar Antonio Maria Costa, estimated that the "Drug Industry" is a $325 billion dollar industry ... and that's probably a low-ball figure. Just ONE example of how dangerous our current drug policies are is privately owned prisons that drain money from the public treasury and places those funds in private pockets.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Drugs and crime chief Costa went on to say that he has uncovered evidence that the $352 Billion dollars of confirmed criminal drug money was effectively laundered by large US and European legal financial institutions. But even more alarming was the report that "the (drug money) was the only liquid investment capital" available to some banks on the brink of collapse last year."</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The report further stated that "poppy/opium crops were stopped by Taliban completely in 2001 because it was "un-Islamic". It was only after we invaded that it restarted and crops have increased in size every year since we invaded. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">NOTE:</span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Afghanistan is yet another poor country that never invaded by the United States. In 2005, Canadian ex-Minister of Defense </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_O%27Connor"><span style=" text-decoration:none;text-underline:nonecolor:windowtext;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Gordon O'Connor</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> reported that heroine is again being produced in that country. The much-demonized Taliban had stopped it. Okay ... so if the poppy/opium production is $300 billion+ industry and Afghanis are dirt poor... who's running it all???</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In terms of President Obama's current policy towards I'm not in favor of this quick, knee-jerk reaction that is coming from so many on the Left. The race is early and "our horse" still has a long way to run. But let's face it, all this is occurring within the cauldron of the "American Empire" that has been built on U.S. Banks and our "New Roman Empire Military Forces."</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The problem is one of priorities. Have our ruling classes become so greedy that they are blind to how their empty, bottomless desire is running the country into economic and moral ruin? Silly question isn't it?</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">As we look for solutions to our current state of economic and moral decay, we have to realize how important drugs are to keeping us imprisoned and existing in lives of hopelessness and lovelessness. I don’t care if it’s marijuana, Crystal Meth, Cocaine or heroine, you can’t yearn to enjoy any part of “God’s Full Bounty” if we’re choosing to live in the Hells of addiction and demoralization.</span></span></p> <!--EndFragment--><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-54085919450688194022009-08-08T13:30:00.000-07:002009-08-08T14:05:45.496-07:00New Ag Blog<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR88-eHOYAl-hDck-2r1XROe0YI1D_shJuHlJ9-WAi6X_ACmkHkAsTg4CMNHGDcFHX-mJ2zfL59AYVduBAXVR3kZ_l0JT4emNI6aPKt7IXsuxSWT_hyphenhyphenO_POu6gocm54CNNyplH7mZvuv7W/s1600-h/Bitch+Don%27t+Steal+Greens.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR88-eHOYAl-hDck-2r1XROe0YI1D_shJuHlJ9-WAi6X_ACmkHkAsTg4CMNHGDcFHX-mJ2zfL59AYVduBAXVR3kZ_l0JT4emNI6aPKt7IXsuxSWT_hyphenhyphenO_POu6gocm54CNNyplH7mZvuv7W/s400/Bitch+Don%27t+Steal+Greens.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5367700535416156002" border="0" /></a><br />Well, now that I'm off that truck, I've begun working on a blog devoted just to agriculture. "WHAT'S a BROTHA FrOm Berkeley doing blogging about FARMS?"<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;" ><br />Urban Farming</span><br />I don't care if it's raising a garden in your backyard, or developing a small "farm" inside the city limits with the intention of providing your neighborhood with fresh vegetables, fruit and meat ... the time to plant is NOW!<br /><br />Check out the amazing opportunities posted on my newest blog. Everything from the 200 Agriculture related career fields that are currently going wanting for college educated people to fill them ... to stories about a 70 year old Detroit man who makes a living shooting Raccoons and selling the meat and skins to his protein starved neighbors.<br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><br /><span style="font-family: arial; font-weight: bold;">Check it all out on:</span></span> <span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.greenfred.wordpress.com/">greenfred </a></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-70336884461833776852009-05-01T16:49:00.000-07:002009-05-01T16:55:37.282-07:00Green Jobs<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecY8Sb1OoMTtM4-21ORcG9mUCujceONntAqyDJcpXUhj0Rm9pAGo7YRFjKYTxJZkJ-nvqDYB9qJyOi-veSs_X-tNF1BJKe0JPDnzg3QsnVzwKSqXjAm_csnVG3kv6vba0bViy0BvH9vP3/s1600-h/Green+2.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 217px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecY8Sb1OoMTtM4-21ORcG9mUCujceONntAqyDJcpXUhj0Rm9pAGo7YRFjKYTxJZkJ-nvqDYB9qJyOi-veSs_X-tNF1BJKe0JPDnzg3QsnVzwKSqXjAm_csnVG3kv6vba0bViy0BvH9vP3/s320/Green+2.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331008463569164370" /></a><br /><strong>The Recovery Act
</strong>President Obama's number one priority upon entering the White House, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, was signed into law on February 17th. The act is intended to revitalize the U.S. economy, and includes crucial investments in transportation, infrastructure, education, and energy.
<br /><br /><strong>The Recovery Act totals $787 billion</strong>, including billions that can be used to green the economy, create green jobs, and build green pathways out of poverty.
<br /><br /><strong>$6 billion in has been allocated to the Weatherization Assistance Program,</strong> which will go to weatherize homes to make them leak less energy.<br />The Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants means that every city, county, state and tribe in the country will receive some portion of over $3 billion to spend on projects that reduce energy use or conserve resources.<br /><br /><strong>$500 Million for Green Jobs Training </strong>will be allocated through competitive grants for green jobs training. Both advanced skills training and pathways out of poverty programs are eligible for grants.<br /><br /><strong>Green Jobs Training Grants</strong> The federal recovery package allocated $500 million to be given out in competitive grants for green job training programs across the county. There will be grants available for advanced<br />skills training and for pathways out of poverty programs.<br /><br /><strong>A Green-Collar Job Strengthens Urban and Rural Communities.</strong> Essentially, the new green economy will be more "hammer and nails" than high tech. Still, to get all that cheap energy being produced in Texas up to an icy home in upstate Maine, the entire United States power grid is going to have to be updated. That's a LOT of jobs. All kinds of jobs. Be well Space Travelers.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-85637607166849296882009-05-01T14:55:00.000-07:002010-01-29T13:26:10.392-08:00CHange<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSL68enePobpliSYCx6RVs6lazWfs9gHStPh55uV_7qCXPkUYHM2XxnsEWck0m4jKQh0gS4odBxvbl3bT9LpSl27BQlRjWpfwmA3zr1O2OPlqyIONO83yjr6-D7QrMwsLRgvtF9WKjv2Zt/s1600-h/Change.png"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 158px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSL68enePobpliSYCx6RVs6lazWfs9gHStPh55uV_7qCXPkUYHM2XxnsEWck0m4jKQh0gS4odBxvbl3bT9LpSl27BQlRjWpfwmA3zr1O2OPlqyIONO83yjr6-D7QrMwsLRgvtF9WKjv2Zt/s200/Change.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432275379001536002" /></a><div>I haven't posted for a while. I'm undergoing a major change. The truck driving was interesting ... but it's time to start a real life again. I saw enough of the country and went "gaw-gaw" over enough farms to KNOW I want to live on one.</div><br />Personally, I'm putting my hopes on updating my marketing skills. New Media Marketing ... Going to take a minute, but running away from life ... just ain't no life at all.<br /><br />I will be developing some new "Green" blogs shortly. Stay tune. Share your thoughts. Find someone to love. Meditate. Pray. Enjoy the journey. Peace.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-64014519262232198082009-01-17T19:49:00.000-08:002009-01-17T20:23:22.536-08:00Hypocrisy In The Hood<a href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3193/3002604326_cb8f74ee5a.jpg?v=0"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 363px; height: 500px;" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3193/3002604326_cb8f74ee5a.jpg?v=0" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />Interesting. We arguably in what may be called the middle phase of a Black Civil War. This ... "Civil War between the "Thug Kulture" and those who identify with the more positive aspects of the Black Community are, and have been at odds for a long time now. <br /><br />Naturally, this is only one front of a larger "war" ... a spiritual war we're all deeply embroiled in regardless if we know it or now. (<strong>SEE:</strong> "Materialism, addictions, criminality, domestic abuse, racism, sexism, pornography ... et al...)<br /><br /><strong>You might say it's the old story of man's inhumanity to man.</strong> Since the early 80's, we've been slowly seduced out of our collective humanity. Driving that truck, I witnessed people from Rock Hill, South Carolina to Portland, Oregon ... depressed and hardened towards each other. Last Christmas was the meanest I've ever seen.<br /><br />Now, the Obama Inauguration is at hand. Many of the people who will be clapping and pounding themselves on the back will be "folks" who love to refer to themselves and others as, "Niggas."<br /><br /><strong>It's been a long, dark night</strong> ... a Holocaust of killing each other ... of terrorizing black neighborhoods by the very black men and women who should have been defending and building it up. "I gotta get my bling on."<br /><br /><strong>It's going to be interesting to watch.</strong> Obama wasn't elected by black people, but he is a Standard Bearer for people of every hue and strata. The forces of darkness are going to come quick, fast and in a hurry to divide and conquer the Liberal Left. There will be confusion. But in all the things I hope for ... paramount in my mind, is the death of Thug Kulture and the transformation of da Nigga. <br /><br />I'll be out of touch for a while. Peace. Be aware of the larger war we're all in. In other words space travelers ... "Be ye as wise as the serpent, and as humble as the dove."<div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-31204038741966034282008-12-20T13:29:00.000-08:002008-12-20T15:46:00.126-08:00Dick Gregory<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Gregory"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Dick Gregory</span></a> may be the only person on the planet right now who I can listen to talk about the current state of racism and oppression in America. It's just too late to discuss being a victim or to pay too much attention to the illusionary, "Oppressor."<br /><br />If every human being is a spiritual being having a human experience, then being a "victim" ... or a "perpetrator" are merely roles we either choose to play or "attach" to and have difficulty letting go of. (This is only background babble because by now, most folks know this already... at least intellectually, if not emotionally.) <br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=dick+gregory&search_type=&aq=f">Dick Gregory</a> has worn many hats. Among them being, social activist, comedian, writer, and entrepreneur, grandfather, and spiritual adviser ... but the thread that weaves them all together is that he is a healer. A "social counselor" that tells both the emperor and the field hand that they have no clothes ... that they've forgotten who they are ... and like the father, chides them to the point of awareness that yes, they can and must ... do better.<br /><br />Please play the video below. Like <a href="http://www.drphil.com/shows/">Dr. Phil</a>, <a href="http://www.johnbradshaw.com/">John Bradshaw</a>, and <a href="http://www.chopra.com/thirdjesus">Jesus Christ</a>, I too agree that the burden of unnecessary guilt and shame lie at the heart of America’s ills. I hope you’ll "YouTube" all his videos. He speaks to the healing heart of us all ... black, white, yellow, brown, red … male, female ... et al ...<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ibo1j5lVYu0&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ibo1j5lVYu0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-86383024930134291762008-12-06T19:46:00.000-08:002008-12-09T15:48:28.849-08:00Black Renaissance on Pine Street<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZhcjqJ0p6SanzVtoAK9JwTFwA52aNd-j3E5AmdxNfBeMdGGdgJwRLFH9f9wKvPhyeuWFSewwP6ub2z1bpLPWyobVcpl_S_McEE2mVhsPaVO3k9L1ZMeasVxyoZG1xtmAR4fkprGd-taA/s1600-h/me&don.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 234px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZhcjqJ0p6SanzVtoAK9JwTFwA52aNd-j3E5AmdxNfBeMdGGdgJwRLFH9f9wKvPhyeuWFSewwP6ub2z1bpLPWyobVcpl_S_McEE2mVhsPaVO3k9L1ZMeasVxyoZG1xtmAR4fkprGd-taA/s320/me&don.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5276918152779120546" /></a><br />So I'm eating breakfast at this cafe on Adeline in Berkeley. The guy at the table next to me has just finished a bowl of something ... some kind of greenish cooked cereal or some sort of Split Pea soup. A short stack with home fries follows. (Hmmm ... interesting. Either this guy is from some Eastern European country or he's just a very hungry fellow who knows how to eat.) <br /><br />So I strikes up a conversation. Turns out the couple are far-left Berkeley types. Not many left these days. I tell him a bit about me, and then he pauses, and tells me about this brother down in the Lower Bottom (a.k.a. "West Oakland") who is creating this whole movement around black art, music and writing. <br /><br />It takes me a week, but I find the scrap of paper deep in my pocket, and read, "<span style="font-weight:bold;">Marcel Diallo's</span>" name on it, along with the words, "<a href="http://www.blackdotcafe.blogspot.com/">blackdotcafe magazine</a>". <br /><br />Google then name in, and BaM! There's all these stories and links about a new urban revival of da creative arts in an area once labeled Oakland's Buttermilk Bottom. West Oakland. Once home to Pullman Car Porters, Southern Pacific and Sante Fe trains, Chinese Cleaners, and a strip of African American bars and night clubs linked to the infamous <a href="http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/chitlin_circuit/">"Chitlin Circuit"</a> that ran under the South's Cotton Curtain, up to Harlem, across the Midwest, and even out to Northern and Southern California.<br /><br />So, here's this Marcel Diallo sitting next to actor Don Cheadle. (<a href="http://blackdotcafe.blogspot.com/2007/06/marcel-diallo-interview-by-jr-valrey-in.html">Ya gotta click on some of these links and read this stuff..)</a> They're talking about how developer Rick Holliday came up with the idea of renovating the dead heart of West Oakland's 7th & Pine Street area. The surprising part of all this to me is that this has been going on for some time ... and like the West Oakland Farmer's Market, far too few people know about it. <br /><br />I'm sooOOOOoo glad to read about all of Diallo's work ... even though it's a bit too urban for me. But it's important ... because like the cliché says ... <span style="font-style:italic;">"<span style="font-weight:bold;">the artist, the poets, and the musicians create the consciousness of the race."</span></span><br /><br />We've had 30 years of Korporate State control of the music. Started in the 70s actually ... when they took the stage out and this thing called, "Disco" suddenly appeared. All that great, REAL, music ... gone. <a href="http://www.democracynow.org/2004/6/11/reagan_and_the_homeless_epidemic_in"><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Great Communicator </span>(Ronald Regan</a>) came in and university scholarships began disappearing. A tragic thing called, "Homelessness" appeared in both America's cities and its rural areas. Drugs began pouring in from "no where" and high school drop-outs were suddenly getting all the contracts that people like Aretha Franklin, O.C. Smith, and James Brown once had. The Giants of Rhythm and Blues suddenly couldn't BUY a job ... but high school drop-outs like "Too Short" and "Snoop Dog" couldn't find pockets deep enough to hold all the money that was thrown at them. <br /><br /><blockquote>Like Aristotle once said: "You write the laws, but let me write the songs because the youth will act out the songs."</blockquote><br /><br />It's been a long, dark, night upon the land folks. We need visionaries of every hue at the table ... writing, sculpting, painting a path to a New Renaissance that will stop the killing, free some souls, and fill some hearts, minds ... and stomachs.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-57114624558364504492008-11-30T18:36:00.000-08:002008-11-30T19:38:24.443-08:00An Argument For Black Spiritual Marriage<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiftCLhDy5FJnJr3nqjUDTLmUnlSR2d_m8eF4gjwrkloJcy8OMX6P-AK_R3QG3j8yy1zzG01b740ijAbUNqzwEcQKjM9jh6Jp_7QN53KlIkpLXEx21h-qRZjbET-U3xVnfuJtgql13KfCj3/s1600-h/spaceball.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 251px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiftCLhDy5FJnJr3nqjUDTLmUnlSR2d_m8eF4gjwrkloJcy8OMX6P-AK_R3QG3j8yy1zzG01b740ijAbUNqzwEcQKjM9jh6Jp_7QN53KlIkpLXEx21h-qRZjbET-U3xVnfuJtgql13KfCj3/s320/spaceball.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274658898264980290" /></a><br />The state of relationships in America is bad enough, but in Black America, it's a train wreak. <a href="http://www.thecongressionalblackcaucus.com/">The Congressional Black Caucus</a> produced statements that alluded to the numbers of African-American divorces being on par with the general population (about 50 per cent divorce rate) ... but the alarming co-statistic was that only about 75 per cent of blacks are even getting married in the first place. So, what's keeping so many black folks single?<br /><br />While the stressors may be many, "the cure" seems to be all point back to issues of ethics, morality, and spirituality. In his book, <a href="http://www.matthewfox.org/sys-tmpl/htmlpage15/">"Blessings Of The Flesh, Sins Of The Spirit,</a>" esteemed <a href="http://websyte.com/unity/crystalmountain/mfox.htm">theologian Matthew Fox</a> correlates the <a href="http://www.sanatansociety.org/yoga_and_meditation/seven_chakras.htm">Seven Major Chakras</a> of the East with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_deadly_sins">the Seven Deadly Sins</a> of the West. Old news for spiritual seekers, right? Yes and no.<br /><br />Lust simply isn't sufficient to carry an adult, mature relationship very far. Yet, within Black American cultures, the over-emphasis on sex and sexuality continues to be an over-value commodity. People still think sex alone will bring them happiness. While sex is an important piece to the human experience, determining what to do with that most sacred parts of our anatomies is best mapped out by centuries of spiritual exploration. (Notice my continued reference to the word, "Spiritual" rather than the word, "Religious.")<br /><br />In their paper, "An Exploration of Factors Related to the Decline in Black Marriages," W. E. Harris, Jr. and Kelly D. Bradley assert:<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="font-style:italic;">When Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech, married couples headed more than 70% of all black families. In 2002, the number had declined to 48% (Kinnon, 2003). One of the factors influencing the decline in Black marriage rates has been the rising rate of incarceration among Black men at all educational levels over the past 30 years (Kiecolt & Fossett).</span></blockquote><br />It's odd, but when most people begin having in their relationships with others, they often first seek out the help of a therapist or a psychologist. But all of modern psychology sits on top of old world theology that it doesn't want to recognize. So why look to a watered-down set of instructions rather than seek out an experience in all it's fullness, it's majesty and its "AWE"?<br /><br />The answers to that question are many. From, it's easier to take drugs to attempt to simulate a spiritual experience, to the willful decision to not be disappointed by one of the mainstream religions all too many have lost faith in. But spirituality involves our personal spirit along with whatever cosmology one finds faith in ... from Yoga, to Buddhist Mediation, to <a href="http://www.meditationexpert.com/comparative-religion/c_eastern_orthodox_church_teaches_emptiness_cultivation.html">Greek Orthodox Meditation</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Merton">Catholic Comptemplative Prayer</a>, and on to religious metaphysical practices like the <a href="http://www.wordtrade.com/religion/judaism/jewishmysticismR.htm">Jewish mysticism of the Kabbalah</a>. Spiritual teacher <a href="http://deepakchopra.com/">Deepak Chopra</a> enjoys using phrases like:<br /><br /><blockquote><span style="font-style:italic;"><span style="font-style:italic;">"We are literally made of start dust. Carbon. The process of photosynthesis nurtures us--is a part of us. We are essentially the eyes of The Universe in co-creation with God."</span></blockquote><br />This is similar to fingerprints at the tip of each person's hand. We all have them, but each is different. Religion helps teach us the beginning practices that lead to spiritual experiences. But to be a Spiritual Warrior, one has to be willing to relinquish fear, and to relax in faith, surrendering every pre-conceived idea of what God the Spirit is. That can means work. But the work that we were born for. This fellow Space Travelers, is a of the journey too good to miss. May I leave you with this?<blockquote><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Anything you put in front of God, will either eat you—or you'll eventually lose it.</span></blockquote><br /><br />Meaning? In this alienated, pornographic age, we essentially have to even learn how to physically love our wives and husbands. To make an alter out of the body of another means creating yet one more "false god" in our life. One more demon. <br /><br />Opening to spirituality means opening to a higher, deeper, richer experience in life than people who cling to crutches like alcohol, drugs, porn, and the delusions of power will ever achieve. We really are "spiritual beings have a human experience." Life is really amazing.<br /><br />May you sincerely, be happy.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3045099709354835114.post-55109702207865931792008-11-20T16:17:00.000-08:002008-11-20T17:36:16.002-08:00Post-Obama: Still Addicted to Negativity?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy9bLLvJuv9ZPQhFVM1-SpJrc6tnRbWcNlhqy8o1cLICy-2qllBVFkoRfpAD5R94RwtWQpS2d7XrVpEgsL4JOyzXX7hBnvvjgMiunJWyy21cLqOSWaxfI7NH7L5snCv8ES938wgQX1XflO/s1600-h/rednecksforobama53.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 206px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy9bLLvJuv9ZPQhFVM1-SpJrc6tnRbWcNlhqy8o1cLICy-2qllBVFkoRfpAD5R94RwtWQpS2d7XrVpEgsL4JOyzXX7hBnvvjgMiunJWyy21cLqOSWaxfI7NH7L5snCv8ES938wgQX1XflO/s320/rednecksforobama53.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5270917852077468194" /></a><br />I left the room after hearing his first press conference, and breath an unconscious sigh of relief. For the first time in 30 years, I did not feel like my government was persecuting me. ("Phweeeph"!)<br /><br />So it's been a little over a month, and there is still a lightness in the air. The California Bay Area hasn't felt this good since the 70's. Yet, already, the bloggers, writers, and media reporters are re-hitching up their little wagons to stars of hatred, fear and resentment. <br /><br />It's like half the population is addicted to being the victim. Literally ... addicted. In his book, "People of The Lie," <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._Scott_Peck">Dr. M. Scott Pec</a>k speaks to the fundamentals of "Evil."<br /><br />I guess I'm alarmed at how quickly people can go from elation, hope, and joy ... to returning to the slop of their "Lazy Thinking" ... blaming others instead of getting to work on creating the society ... the culture ... and the individual lives we most want to experience. <br /><br />It's been easy to point fingers at all the many sources of evil that has came at us these past 30 years. OK ... longer ... but there's been breaks... and it's during these "breaks" that the greatest change can occur. The 60s was a wonderful break. That decade gave us Dr. Martin Luther King, an end to institutionalized Jim Crow, and privileges like the right to vote. And now, as President-elect Obama prepares to enter the White House, we all stand, at a threshold of another unique time in history where great change can happen ... if we only become aware of how the trauma of racism has become a habit in our thinking. <br /><br /><blockquote><span style="font-style:italic;">"Since they must deny their own badness, they must perceive others as bad. They project their own evil onto the world. The evil attack others instead of facing their own failures. Spiritual growth requires the acknowledgment of one's own need to grow. If we cannot make that acknowledgment, we have no option except to attempt to eradicate the evidence of our imperfection. Strangely enough, evil people are often destructive because they are attempting to destroy evil. The problem is that they misplace the locus of the evil. Instead of destroying others they should be destroying the sickness within themselves."<blockquote></blockquote></span></blockquote><br /><br />I suppose what I'm challenging everyone ... blacks, whites, Latinos, Asians, et al ... is to begin ... quickly... to think about what each of us as individuals can bring to the table to make this a better place to live. Stop looking at the faults of others for a minute, and begin thinking about what they need. More, what do I need to be fully happy, healthy, joyous and free ... and what am I doing to stop that from becoming reality in my life? That is the work and the great opportunity of this moment.<br /><br />Here are some <a href="http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/m/m_scott_peck.html">quotes by Dr. Peck</a> ... food for thought...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mscottpeck.com/html/scott-peck-books.php">Books by Dr. M. Scott Peck</a><div class="blogger-post-footer"><p id="blogfeeds"><$BlogFeedsVertical$></p></div>Journeymanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15829715902042288735noreply@blogger.com3