Can you believe there's something else Will Smith can do?

He can fit his whole foot in his mouth. The Fresh Prince has managed to offend a lot of people with a seemingly harmless comment.

Smith was quoted in a story the Scottish newspaper, The Daily Record, saying, "Even Hitler didn't wake up going, 'let me do the most evil thing I can do today.' I think he woke up in the morning and using a twisted, backwards logic, he set out to do what he thought was good."

Now obviously, I get it. He's basically saying that people generally do what they think is right. That most people usually don't wake up with the premise of seeing how much pain they can cause that day.

The sad thing is these pseudo journalists (gossips rags and paparazzi) took the comment and blew it completely out of proportion. Under most circumstances, Smith is usually a squeaky-clean kinda guy. You never hear about him losing his mind or running around on his wife so they took something like this to try to make him seem anti-Semitic.

Puh-lease!!! Now you've got Jewish people calling for his movie "I Am Legend" to be pulled form theaters. I tell you man, some of my counterparts really make me question why I got into this business in the first place.

I don't think this man hates Jewish people or loves Hitler. He was simply using an example of a bad person who thought he was doing good. Obviously people have nothing better to do with their time than to comb foreign newspapers for celebrity news.

Speaking of someone else who needs to find something to do. Young Joc was arrested in Cleveland on a concealed weapons possession charge. According to various media reports, the Atlanta-bred rapper was caught trying to carry a loaded gun onto a Delta Airlines flight.

Is it just me or has this dude been asleep since September 2001? Who told this Bama that he could take any kind of weapon on an airplane?

They are jacking people up for nail clippers and baby oil, why is hells name would he think he could get a gun through security? Shoot, I got pulled off to the side for having too many zippers so I know that dang detector started going crazy when he walked through with that gun.

Then, this dude had the nerve to miss court today - on a felony charge. I mean really. He's got some humongous balls ain't he?

Who does he think he is - R. Kelly?

And speaking of Kells, a Chicago judge forced him to cancel his Hampton, Va., concert to make sure that he is in court the following day. The man still hasn't been to court for when he got arrested for kiddie porn in 2002.

Maybe it's just me but I thought the Bill of Rights guaranteed a speedy trial. In what world is five years speedy? If he was any other neighborhood pervert, he would already been in prison. It didn't take 'em this long to get Michael Jackson in court.

Anyway, the concert is scheduled for Jan. 13, he has a court date on the 14th. He failed to appear at another court date because he was out of town on tour. I think the judge is saying "that'll never happen again." I guess with 869 miles between Chi-town and Hampton, the judge didn't want to take any chances.

Let's hope that he goes to court sometime soon before everybody forgets what he's been charged with. It's not like they need a jury anyway. His music is going to convict him.

Think about it:

"Bump & Grind" - "My mind's telling me noooooooooooo! But your bod-y, your bod-y's telling me yessssssssssssssssss!"

"It Seems Like You're Ready" - "It seems like you're ready, girl are you ready to go all the way? It seems like you're ready, I could have sworn you were ready ..."

"Down Low" - "Keep it on the down low. Nobody has to know."

Shall I go on? I mean really, it does not take an Algebra teacher to realize that this equation does not compute. He is obviously dealing with some young girls in these songs.

I say if his mind is telling him no, I am guessing he shouldn't do it. If he's telling the girl that it seems like she's ready, obviously she's not. And what grown a-- woman needs needs to be told she's ready to go "all the way" with a man? And that "down low" crap? That song sounds like it belongs on an episode of Barney and Friends.

Don't be like that, I am not the only one who thought Barney was a child molester. You do all this stuff with this big purple freak and you can't tell anybody about it? I don't care where you're from - That's a child molester.

There's another Spears baby on the way ...

... don't be alarmed, it's not Britney's. It's her little sister Jamie Lynn is preggors and the child is only 16 years old. I am not standing in judgement of this situation nor am I surprised.
For those of you who don't know, Jamie Lynn has starred in Nickelodeon's "Zoey 101" since 2005. Before landing that show, she was a regular cast member on Nick's sketch comedy show "All That."
Until today, the teen starlet has managed to avoid negative press unlike her sissy Brit and her counterparts. I heard about this when I turned on my girl Robin on Morning Express this morning.
My initial thought was, "another one bites the dust." Then I started to really think about that thing. I think she had to go to drastic measures to get the attention she needed. It is one thing to be a younger child, it is completely another to be the sibling that is not getting any attention.
I'm sure her parents are too busy being concerned about their grandchildren and their elder wayward child and she got lost in the shuffle. What better way to get her parents attention than to give them another grandbaby?
I really wish her the best. The good thing about this set up is Jamie Lynn has the money to take care of herself and her child but no amount of money can make up for piss poor parenting and I think that Jamie and Brit are victims of that.
Granted parents can not be responsible for their children once they are adults making their own decisions but it is the parents job to make sure that their children are equipped to make good decisions. I think Mrs. Spears dropped the ball on that one.
Speaking of dropping the ball, whose turn is it to suggest to Amy Winehouse that she actually go to rehab and stop singing about it?

I mean dang, how much more does she have to endure? How much further to the bottom? I really hate what she's going through because she is super talented. My heart really goes out to her and her family.

Winehouse, 24, is a London-bred soul singer who burst onto the American music scene with her "Back to Black" CD that features the hits "Tears Dry on Their Own" and "Rehab." The girl is so talented it's not even funny. "Back to Black" has done so well that her first CD "Frank" is being re-released in the states.

Now of course, with so much talent and so many accolades, Winehouse has been classified as a basket case. The woman has been arrested for assault and drug possession. She was also photographed roaming outside her house barefoot wearing a bra and jeans. Even if she was looking for an intruder, why wouldn't she put on a T-shirt or something?

Either way, I made the comment the other day that she and her husband like a British Bobby and Whitney. But hey, at least Whitney wised up and got out of that situation. I just hope that Winehouse will see the light and eventually change her situation and she looks good too.

When will people learn that "crack is whack" and rehab is a good thing?

I'll tell you someone who else is going to need rehab (and physical therapy too), the next paparazzi photog who tries to take Julia Roberts' picture.
Roberts has been stalked by those pseudo-pressmen outside her homes in NYC and LA and even her kids' school. What is that about? Is there nothing off limits?

I swear, they need to leave those people alone. I mean dang, I love celebrity news as much as the next person but good grief, do they have nothing that belongs only to them? How would you guys like it if people followed you and bugged the hell out of you snapping pictures while you try to live your life?

Have we created this monster? I mean dang, why should these artists and entertainers have to suffer just because they are good at what they do? That's crap! Nobody wants to be isolated but that is what they've had to do to try to shield themselves from these crazies with the cameras. I don't know what's worse, the people who break their necks to take the pictures or the "media" outlets that publish them.

I'll tell you what though, there wouldn't be so many of these lowlifes if the law didn't protect them as much. Granted if you are on a public street, I guess that means you are fair game. But when it comes to a school and photographing people with their children, something should be done about that.

It is official ...

Lil' Mikey Vick will be going away for a long time. Vick was sentenced to 23 months in jail. And to tell the truth, I'm not all that surprised. After all, he is (or used to be) a rich black man who had a moderate amount of influence on a lot of people.
Come on now, ya'll know they had to get him. They let OJ get away the first time, now look what happened. That Bama came back for another taste of criminal law and I hate to say it, but this time, they're going to get him.
You know they can't let that happen to Mike Vick, who knows what he'll do the next time. You know "they" never learn. The next time, he might jaywalk or get caught doing 42 mph in a 35 mph zone.
Then again, speaking as a dog lover, I can understand the need to see him be put into jail. I mean, what if somebody did black men the way he did those dogs. You know, toss 'em into an arena and make them beat on each other until they're a pulp just to be treated half way decently. And then if they don't win consistently, we throw them away.
No, wait, they already do that. It's called boxing and it is recognized as a legitimate sport. The only difference here is the dogs can't spend millions and millions of dollars and marry white women and that makes it 'inhumane.'
Am I condoning illegal dogfighting? No, I don't condone illegal fighting of any sort, but I am still going to maintain my position that had it been Brett Farve or Tom Brady or even Kurt Warner fighting dogs, this case would have never seen the light of day.
Now, I'm not going to debate this any further but there are other repercussions that warrant mention. Since Vick is now a convicted felon, he can't own a weapon, serve on a jury (but who really wants to) and more important than that, he can't vote. But I'll bet my rent check they're going to tax him to high hell!
If he decides to maintain residence in the Commonwealth of Virginia, he will not be able to vote again until the law there has been ratified to allow ex-felon restoration. Virginia is one of only 13 of the countries states/commonwealths that do not allow for restoration.
On the other hand, if the Falcons agree to take him back and he changes his information to become a legal Georgia resident, then he will be eligible for restoration.
I don't remember much about U.S. History class, I mean, that was eight years ago. But I do remember a little catch phrase called "taxation without representation" and I think that is illegal. Now granted the citizens of that Hellhole they call Washington, D.C. (I hate that city) has been without representation for years, they are doing the same thing to Vick.
Vick is not by any stretch of the imagination comparable to a city but it is the same principle. Because he is in a high tax bracket, he already loses a substantial amount of his income. At the same time, he won't be able to vote for his candidate of choice thereby relieving him of any representation.
For the lack of a better term, that sucks!!! As if enough of us weren't already disenfranchised they gotta do it to the folks who mess up a time or two. Granted he messed up BIG, one could even say he F'd up, but was it so bad that they take away his right to vote? Gah!
Speaking of voting, I still don't have my candidate yet, not that I'm in a rush or anything. But I'll tell you what, if they accept write-in votes, put me down for Michelle Obama as president and Oprah for the vice president. Go ahead, chuckle if you want to but I'm serious. I just think that would be a power house team.
Quite frankly, I think Michelle should be running anyway. Sure Barack has more experience and he knows how the big dogs roll in Washington, but Michelle looks like she will get some things done. I think she would get up there and roll up into House and Senate sessions like, "I told you not to send me this or I was going to veto it! But you sent it anyway and now look, I vetoed it. I tell you one thing, it had better not pass in the second vote or else!"
Then Oprah would come behind her and smooth things over. "I know you guys have been working hard and things haven't been going your way, but ***singing in that annoying voice*** I've got a surprise for yooooooouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu! You get a car! ***pointing*** You get a car! ***pointing*** You get a car!"
Couldn't you just imagine it? ***smiling with my head cocked to the right***

I am amazed ...

... at how well the Republican presidential hopefuls skirt questions.

Against my better judgement, I watched CNN's YouTube Debate last night to see what was up because I didn't have a candidate yet. Let's just say that I still don't have one.

Because of the nature of my profession, I refuse to publicly identify myself as Republican or Democrat. But like other red-blooded and connected Americans, I have certain issues that I would like the government to address.

Sadly, last night, none of them were addressed. There was no talk of health care - universal or otherwise - and no one discussed education. I know the candidates could only answer the questions that were asked so that's why I fault CNN.

I hardly believe that with more than 5,000 questions posted that no one asked about health care or education. It seems to me that the biggest issue on the Republican agenda is cutting taxes, abolishing abortion, sending all the brown immigrants back to their countries and continuing the "war on terror."

What's even more disturbing is the answers to the question asked by an African American father and his son about what the candidates planned to do to stop black on black crime. Mitt Romney gets the award for the Vaguest Answer of the Night because that dude started talking about how fortunate the boy was because his father was there and how "Bill Cosby got it right."

Romney brought up a statistic that stated 69 percent of all African American children are born out of wedlock and we need to start getting back to family values.

***This is the part where I cock my head to the left and turn up my lips***

So you mean to tell me that if my parents would have been married when I was born, that would stop some random black boy from killing another? You'll have to excuse me if I am a little skeptical.

The reality of it is none of the candidates can do anything about black on black crime or any other issue that the minority folks who were born here face. They are ill-equipped - always have been and always will be. To paraphrase Kanye West and Michael Jackson, they don't care about us!

Maybe it is just me, but I would think that the whole black on black crime issue would be in the forefront right now - especially with the untimely death of Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor. That man was 24 years old and was shot by an intruder while in his home.

I'm not implying that the intruder/murder/thief was black, but according to Fox Sports columnist Jason Whitlock, the statistics say the odds are great.

Here's the column: http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/7499442

Either way, this is a tragic situation. With that said, I'm a little irritated by Whitlock's column - even though he spoke the truth. A lot of what Whitlock wrote is speculation, nothing more, nothing less.

I'm not saying that his checkered past should be overlooked or unaddressed. I'm not saying that we don't have our fair share of self-hatred.

I am saying that his speculation and ASS-umption that Taylor's murderer is black is premature.

He even went so far as to go on a five-graf tirade about how hip hop is to blame for black on black crime. Don't know how we got here? I don't either. I hardly see what any of this has to do with hip hop. As far as I'm concerned, Whitlock is no different from the white folks and the old folks who sit up and talk about how "they're doing it to themselves."

I will be the first to admit that the music has gotten out of hand, but make it the cause of all that is wrong in the black community. The real problem is those of us who are educated, who can put a face on what it looks like to be educated and do fairly well don't go back to our own neighborhoods enough to show these kids the truth.

We're too busy filling their heads with all this nonsense about being whatever they want to be if they put their minds to it. What if I want to be a coat rack? Or a park bench? What about race car? Can I be a race car?

To answer those questions, not just no. HELL NO!!! I can't be coat rack, a park bench or a freakin' race car because I am not made of the stuff needed to be any of that. What's the moral of the story kids? Everybody is not made of the same stuff as these professional athletes and entertainers. DANG!

***And for the record, I think Whitlock is referring to rap music, not hip hop. He's using the two interchangeably and he shouldn't be. That's like using woman and bitch interchangeably. The two are similar in nature but they are not synonyms. ***

Hope you guys had a great holiday ...

... I know I did. I swear I think I ate for at least three days straight. I saw a lot of my family and friends and had an all around wonderful holiday weekend. But with all that, I still had time to stay on top of the news, well, some of it anyway.

The main topic of conversation between my brother and I was Michael Vick and his decision to go to jail early. Since neither of us knows what really happened, we both have our theories.

He seems to think that some team in the NFL has already told Vick that they'll take him after his sentence is completed. It's no secret that he's going to get about 12 months so if he goes now, he can come in mid-season next year.

I told my brother that his theory was well-thought out and it makes a lot of sense. My theory on the other hand - well let's just say I don't think it has anything to do with his career.

I think that Mikey went in early so he can avoid the family discussion during dinner. Until recently, the family embarrassment was Mike's little brother Marcus and his childish and sometimes dangerous antics on and off the field.

Now that Mikey's been caught abusing Fido and he's losing all his money, the family has a helluva lot to say. Ya'll know how black families are, word travels fast and eight times out of 10, it is the wrong information.

I imagine the conversation would have gone something like this:

Random relative: "So Mike, what happened man? ShayShay said something 'bout they got you on tape fighting dogs. Man, I thought you knew better than that. You know how white folks are about dogs. And then you taped it too? Man that was stupid!"

Random relative 2: "I know, right? I heard they fired you too. What 'choo gon do for money now? You know you can't do nothing but play football."

For real, I think he went to avoid it. I know I would have.

Something else that caught me kinda off guard was the Miss Puerto Rico pepper spray incident. In case you guys haven't heard, somebody spiked the evening gown and make-up of the newly crowned Miss Puerto Rico Ingrid Marie Rivera with pepper spray.

The woman smiled and kept her composure long enough to be crowned and receive her accolades but went back stage and violently ripped her gown off and packed her hive-covered face and body in ice.

Now, authorities are investigating her and her people saying that the sabotage was likely an inside job. I hardly think that she would douse herself in pepper spray and put herself through that hell.

I would be more apt to believe that it was a disgruntled make-up artist or a jealous rival(s). I mean, hey, those girls are pretty but they have a competitive nature that is out of this world. I don't know personally but I've seen just about all the beauty pageant movies out there.

Anyway, according to CNN, authorities are investigating Rivera because they want to know how the woman was able to keep her composure in front of the judges. Now, I don't know about beauty pageant jargon, but when I was in JROTC, we called that bearing. We were told no matter what was going on or went wrong to always keep your bearing. I just think she was trained well.

Either way, she has the crown now and she still has hives. They still don't know who did that to her, but I suggest when they find out who did, they lock the person in a room with her and then drop all the charges, if there are any.

Now ...

... now they've gone too far! First, Don Imus calls the Rutgers Women's Basketball team "nappy-headed hoes," then some random white lady called Hilary Clinton a bitch now, they're trying to make Santa stop saying "ho, ho, ho."
What does Santa have to do with this?

Apparently, some folks down under in Sydney say that some children may be frightened and some women maybe offended if the mall Santa sits atop his perch belting out "ho, ho, ho" all day long.

Here's the story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071115/wl_asia_afp/lifestyleaustraliachristmasoffbeat

I mean dang, I know Santa dresses like a pimp and all, but I didn't think they'd resort to taking away his laughter. How many of us haven't been about somebody who has a jacked up laugh? Even then, you don't make them stop, you just don't say anything funny around them.

And on top of that, it ain't Santa's "ho, ho, ho" that the kids are afraid of. It's the fact that they haven't seen this dude all year, now all of a sudden, you're telling them they have to sit on his lap to get a surprise on Christmas morn?

That would scare me too. I mean, I am all for some free stuff but why do I have to get molested by Santa to get it?

I'm just saying, they have taken this thing a bit too far. Santa has been coming from the North Pole for hundreds of years to entertain the kids and bring surprises and he's had the same laugh, I hardly think that he's been doing it intentionally to disrespect women for all this time. Plus, if you get offended because Santa says, "ho, ho, ho" then maybe you should stop sleeping around.

Who wants to go see Santa and he's belting out, "ha, ha, ha." That makes him seem too real because he has a real person's laugh and where's the magic in that? If anything, it will scare the kids more. And God forbid Santa is being played by somebody the kids knows, every time he sees that person, that kid is either going to ask for something or realize that the pedophile Santa is Mr. Ratley from down the street.

Then on top of that, they are trying to make Santa lose weight. I saw on ABC News that they are hiring slim Santas in London this year to discourage childhood obesity. I wonder how that's gonna work out.

You take the kid to the mall to see that Santa who weighed 300 pounds last year and this year, he weighs a buck 75, don't you think that will send an even worse message?
"Ha, ha, ha kids, you too can be skinny! Don't you want Santa to bring you a crack pipe for Christmas?"
Whatever, they'd better leave Santa alone before we all don't get anything for Christmas. The last thing we need is for Santa to be on strike. We are already running out of new television episodes, loosing money on Broadway tickets and now they want us to give up Santa?

What next?

Alright, settle in ...

... this could get long. There are a lot of things I'm pissed about and I have to say. So you have been forewarned, this entire post may be void of any logical transition.
First and foremost, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to Kanye West in his time of grief. In case you've been living under a rock, Kanye's mom, Dr. Donda West, passed away Saturday night. To be completely clear about this, no one is sure of how she died. It has been reported that West had a couple of cosmetic procedures done and she died due to complications from the surgeries.

You read right, surgeries. According to a cosmetic surgeon who allegedly performed the procedures, West had a tummy tuck and a breast reduction. Dr. Jan Adams was quoted on http://www.tmz.com/ saying that her performed the surgeries but West may have died from a heart attack, pulmonary embolism, or massive vomiting.

Of course the doctor is saying that she could have died from any of those things because he has to do an effective job of C.Y.A. Since Adams has come forth saying he operated, another doctor, Andre Aboolian has come forward saying that he refused to operate on West until she got a clean bill of health. According to Aboolian, West had a pre-existing condition that could cause complications or death if he did the surgery.

I'm not knocking plastic surgery at all, but if a doctor tells you that you should not have it then don't. I'm not even speaking ill of West, but I know for a fact that the new doctor had to have performed the same examinations that the first one did and he had to have found the same thing(s).

I want to know where the dang medical board is to prevent this kind of thing from happening. Surgery is surgery, I don't care what you're going to have fixed. If it requires anesthesia there's always the off chance that you'll die, that's why they have you sign that crazy wavier.

I sincerely want them to get to the bottom of this because the bottom line is if the doctor operated on West and he shouldn't have, he should be charged with murder, because he knew the consequences.

Speaking of consequences, when are we going to get some for overzealous police officers, particularly those in New York? NYPD gunned down a teenager who was armed with - a hair brush.

According to police, they responded to a domestic disturbance call in BedStuy from the teen's mother and the dispatcher allegedly heard the boy say he had a gun. Police say the boy had a black object hidden under his shirt and refused to stop while approaching police. After the boy failed to stop, the officers then shot at the boy - 20 times. Doesn't this sound straight out of a 90s "hood" movie?

It was just a year ago that they shot Sean Bell. And please don't forget about how they shot Amadou Diallo for picking up a damned wallet. I swear man, they must be training them to shoot to kill at the academy.
I have a suggestion. I say they start treating those cops like Andy Taylor used to treat Barney Fife. You can have a gun, but you only get one bullet and you have to keep it in your shirt pocket. If you run into a real problem, call somebody with some damn sense!

Protect and serve my ass!

On top of that, this O.J. Simpson preliminary hearing has been dragging on for days. We all know they are going to hang him, they should just get it over with already.

This is a preliminary hearing, it's preliminary. That means that this ain't even the real trial here. Do you know what preliminary means? They are trying to see if this dude qualifies to be sent to the grand jury. Then they gotta do this crap all over again to see if he gets indicted.

I'm already tired. They need to just let everybody go home and send O.J. before the judge.
They got him all over the news stations sitting down in the defendants chair acting like he's reading over a document. That dude can't read! I was young but I remember those "leters" he used to write Nicole before she died.

That junk is for show. If you ask me, he is looking over coloring pages his lawyers downloaded from Nickelodeon.com. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with coloring, in fact, I enjoy it on occasion, but don't try to play me like that dude knows how to read and understand all that courtroom jargon.

Johnnie ain't here to break it down in a cute lil' rhyme for him, so they're having to have his hearing Sesame Street style and it's sponsored by the letter "I" for incarceration.

And another thing, how come O.J. don't have a baby sitter? Usually when those people who are mentally challenged grow up, they have to have someone living with them or live in a group home to ensure that they don't hurt themselves. Who is his social worker? Somebody needs to get fired.

And just so we can clear this up, I am not calling O.J. mentally challenged, I would never offend them that way. I'm saying this bama is retarded and he needs to be watched!

Thank you Vets ...

... for fighting for my right to free speech and my rights to life liberty and to pursue happiness.
To my father, my stepfather, my brothers, cousins and anyone else who has ever served in our country's military:
I just wanted to pause on this day, the observed day to honor U.S. Armed Forces veterans, to say I appreciate all you do. The average American will never know the depth of the sacrifices made by you guys and your families.
So today, I thank each and every veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces. Whether you're in the Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard, Marine Corps or the Reserves, I salute you, I honor you and I respect you.
Your service has proven itself to be our country's most valuable resource and I know you don't hear it enough.

I'm torn ...

... I mean, I used to be one of Dog Chapman's biggest fans, but I watched Larry King Live last night and I found the uncensored, unedited version of his rant with his son, who by the way taped him and sold it to the National Enquirer.
There is something to be said about the power of the spoken word. I sat there and I watched a man who was no doubt embarrassed. I'm just not sure if he is embarrassed that he said it or if he's embarrassed that he got caught.
I sat there and I watched him shed crocodile tears and bring on his "spiritual advisor" who is a black man to basically say, "he's not a racist." Dog is hell bent on convincing us all, himself included, that he is cool with black people. So cool in fact that he thought it was OK to say it.
I want to know what black person that he is so cool with told him that it would be OK for him to say it - repeatedly?

The man said the word "nigger" at least six times. I know black folks who say the word and don't use it that much in conversation. And, he called the girl a nigger. But, he's not racist, he was just angry.

The funniest thing about the whole situation to me was he said ignorance is the main reason that he used, not only that word, but other words, those with four letters, that people find offensive. He basically said that when he gets mad, he's too ignorant to come up with words other than profanity. But, as of last night, he was four days into not cursing. Pardon me, but whoop-de-damn-do.

So because you got caught using a word that a lot of your fans find offensive, you're sorry? He and Dr. Phil are very adamant about saying that this man has a 7th grade education and that he's ignorant. I say, so the freak what!!! The average 7th grader will tell you that the word is offensive.

I'm going to stick my toe over the ledge and say that his show shouldn't be cancelled, but I will say that I'm not going to watch it again. I can not, because I don't think I can watch that without thinking about how he's reacted. Granted it was a private conversation that should have never been made public, but my concern is how often he says it.

I just feel like he's sorry that he was caught.

Whoopi Goldberg made a great point on The View yesterday. They brought it up in the Hot Topics segment and Sherri Shepard shared how his comments really hurt her. Goldberg admitted that she's used a lot of less than kind words to describe people and the only reason nobody is offended is because they haven't heard her.

What's the moral of the story class? Don't use the offensive words that you don't want people to hear you say.

Again, it was a taped conversation, that occurred in April, that he didn't intend to be heard. But, the man admitted that his son and his girlfriend tried before to get him and his wife on tape saying something racist. Why in the name of Heaven and Hell would they not believe that he would tape the conversations they have on the phone? I'm sorry, nobody is that dumb.

Dog is not dumb. In fact, he's quite intelligent that's another thing that pisses me off about this situation. He's not so ignorant that he doesn't know the word is offensive.

Now the dude is saying he's got plans to participate in all these different forums and classes. I got a class or two I'd like to teach for him. The first is Vocabulary 101. The only texts required are a Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus.

These books will actually kills two birds with one stone. One, he will be able to look up the words he wants to use and then find a more suitable one to replace it. And two, it will make him think before he opens his mouth!

The second class will be one Racial Sensitivity, no number, it doesn't need one. That class doesn't require a number because it is only one class that everybody should take. The first lesson is nobody is better than anybody else because your skin has a certain hue.

People are people. Oddly enough, there have been studies conducted on the DNA of people of different races and nationalities and it has been found that we are all 99.9% the same. It is that .01% that makes us look the way we look i.e. color, features, etc.

Here's a little lesson for Dog and anyone else who is uneducated in World History, we all originate from the same people in Mesopotamia. That's in Africa, so guess what - we're all black!

Welcome to the family!

I know we don't look alike, but don't worry. You have to be patient. Global warming does have it's positive effects. If we don't soon get it under control, we'll all be the same complexion as Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth.

My heart goes out ...

... to the girls who were abused at the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. It saddens me that the main people who were put in place to protect these children are the ones who were hurting them.
In case you've not been keeping up with the news, or you just crawled out from under the rock you've been living under, there has been abuse alleged at Oprah's school in South Africa.
According to a report on CNN.com, about 15 of the students went to the school's chief executive officer to air their list of grievances that included alleged sexual abuse by a dorm matron.
This happened on Oct. 6. That employee has since been removed and has been arrested and charged with 13 counts of abusing and assaulting at least six students at the school. She made bail and will make her next appearance in court in mid-December.
In an effort to thwart retaliation efforts by remaining employees, the other dorm matrons and the head of school have all been relieved of their posts.
Though this was no doubt a very tragic ordeal for the students and families involved. I think there was something positive to come from this. I think Oprah dealt with this the way she should have. She stood up and jumped head first into this thing.
People have been looking, hoping and praying for her to fail with this venture. She's handled critics in the U.S. and South Africa with grace and poise and should be commended. I'm glad that she has opted to see this thing through and has not abandoned her efforts to educate those girls.

Know what I hate?

I just hate it when people can't admit that they made a mistake and move on from it.

OK, so I'm a little late on this one. I hardly ever watch BET so you can't fault me for posting this up a full two weeks and some change after the fact.

Look to your immediate left and see if you recognize the man in the picture. Take a good look now: that's Money Mike or A Pimp Named Slick Back or Katt Williams. Arguably one of the funniest comedians working today.

Before this Bama dressed up in that pink suit and put on that noose, I may have said he was THE funniest. He missed the mark on that one though.

I learned about this last night while I was watching CNN's "Out in the Open," and they were talking about whether or not the noose was an appropriate Halloween decoration.

After listening to about a half hour of commentary from a couple of black folks and two white folks who hung the nooses as decoration, the host, Rick Sanchez, attempted to interview Williams to find out why he wore the noose.

He said, "I thought I was helping."

My first reaction was, 'yea right pal!' Then I said, well, let me see how he thought he was helping. This dude said that white supremacists seem to have a problem with where they are placing the nooses.

"They never put them in black neighborhoods," he said. So he basically went on to say that they mean the nooses for "n-words and I wanted to show them where to find one. I mean, I am that."

Yes, the man called himself a nigger and told white America on CNN, of all places, that he was a nigger. I had a very sad Halloween, but in the spirit of the holiday, I was haunted.

It saddens me that our brothers refer to themselves as such and they have a lack of respect for themselves and the rest of us. Sanchez asked Williams how he could have such a lack of respect for himself and people like him and he asked, "what makes you think I don't respect myself?"

The entire interview was a farce. I mean, Sanchez gave him an out when he asked whether or not he would change anything about that night and if there was anything he regretted.

And do you know what this dude said? "I regret wearing that pink suit. I regret not having my hair done ..."

Argh! What is wrong with people? The only thing I hate worse than inarticulate negroes on TV is an articulate fool! All of you are familiar with my disdain for the word nigger and all of it's derivatives and the word articulate, but since he doesn't care that he's being offensive, neither do I. I wish somebody would tell that brother what time it is!

Also in this edition of celebrities gone wild - Da Brat has thrown "anuthatantrum"(like the wordplay on her name and her second album?) and this one got her arrested.

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, my dream paper, the oh-so-funkdafied one was arrested in Tucker, Georgia for hitting a waitress with a rum bottle. According to a Dekalb County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman, Brat, whose government name is Shawtae Harris, got into a shoving match with the waitress and then hit the woman with a bottle that broke and caused "a deep laceration."

The charge is felony aggravated assault, because the bottle was the weapon. Under Georgia law, she is supposed to be held until her initial appearance which is supposed to be within 72 hours of her arrest. Since she was arrested early this morning, she'll have to be in court before the judges head home tomorrow.

This is the second time Brat has been in trouble in an Atlanta area club. For those of you familiar with the area, she was arrested in 2000 for an incident in Buckhead. Police say Brat pistol whipped a woman for sitting in the VIP area after she was told to leave.

The victim in that incident was cut on her face and had to get stitches. In that incident, Brat was charged with felony aggravated assault, but it was later reduced to misdemeanor reckless conduct in exchange for a guilty plea. Brat was ordered to serve 80 hours of community service, pay a $1,000 fine and serve a year of probation.

Now, maybe it's just me, but for future reference, if I am ever in the "A" and I find myself in an altercation with Da Brat, I am going to wear a catchers mask before I fight this chick. She is brutal - she's playing for keeps.

I just hate that every time those women look in the mirror, they are going to say to themselves, "man, I shoulda killed that heifer!"

Not cool Brah ...

... not cool at all! How you gonna do me like this Dog? I thought you were cool man! I was telling all my friends to watch you and everything! I was telling them how you were a good, decent, hard working dude! And then, you made an ass of me!

Brah, why would you say something like that to your son about his girlfriend? When would you ever think it is OK to use that word? I mean, have you not already been through enough in your life that you have to aggravate it with hate speech?

GAH!!!

OK, for those of you who don't know Duane "Dog" Chapman, he's a Denver native who was made famous after he captured Andrew Luster, the heir to the Max Factor throne, in Mexico. He has a show on one of my favorite channels on TV, A&E, called "Dog the Bounty Hunter" where he and his team, made up of his brother, sons and super busty wife, capture some of Hawaii's most dangerous bail-jumping offenders.

I mean, I was a fan. The operative word here is "was."

Anyway, he was recorded while on a racist tirade about his son's black girlfriend. I have taken the liberty of copying a transcript Honolulu's Star Bulletin Web site. I must warn you, this is offensive.

Chapman: "Don't care if she's a Mexican, a whore, whatever. It's not 'cause she's black. It's because we use the word "n_____" sometimes here. I'm not going to take a chance ever in life by losing everything I've worked for for 30 years for some f____ n_____ heard us say "n_____" and turned us in to the Enquirer magazine -- our career is over. I'm not taking that chance at all, never in life, never. Never. ... If Lyssa was dating a n_____, we would all say f___ you. And you know that. If Lyssa brought a black guy home ... It's not that they're black. It's none of that. It's that we use the word "n____." We don't mean "you f___ scum n_____ without a soul." We don't mean that s___, but America would think we're meaning that. And we're not taking a chance and losing everything we've got over a racial slur. Because our son goes with a girl like that, I can't do that, Tucker, you can't expect Garry, Bonnie, Cecily, all them young kids ... 'cause I'm in love for seven months, I ... f___ that. ... So I'll help you get another job, but you cannot work here unless you break up with her and she's out of your life. I can't handle that s___. I've got 'em in the parking lot trying to record us. I've got that girl saying she's going to wear a recorder. ..."
What else can you say to that except, "Damn Dog." But, he did issue a statement, but only after he was caught.

Chapman: "I should have never used that term. I have the utmost respect and aloha for black people, who have already suffered so much due to racial discrimination and acts of hatred. I did not mean to add yet another slap in the face to an entire race of people who have brought so many gifts to the world. I am ashamed of myself and I pledge to do whatever I can to repair this damage I have caused."

Now, it could be that I've been listening to Maroon 5 too much lately, but, this incident really makes me wonder how often he uses this word. And I want to know why no one around him told him that this wasn't cool to say?

Either way, they say every dog has his day, I guess the sun is setting on his. Damn Dog, I'm so disappointed, Brah, so disappointed!

Now that homecoming is over ...

... let's get back to the business at hand.

I am ecstatic to report that Genarlow Wilson is out of prison. Four members of Georgia's highest court saw the light and agreed that it was cruel and unusual punishment.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Wilson's story, he was arrested, tried and convicted for aggravated child molestation for an event that occurred when he was 17 years of age.

As a result of his felony conviction, Wilson received a mandatory 10-year-sentence and a year of probation and he would have had to register as a sex offender.

It all started at a New Year's Eve party where he received oral sex from a consenting 15-year-old girl. The problem with that is, in Georgia, the age of consent is 16.

Since being convicted, he spent more than two years in prison while his attorney, his mother, people in his community and of course, the "Civil Rights Advocates" tried to have his story heard and trying to have his case appealed.

Since Wilson's conviction, the state law in Georgia has not lowered the age of consent but has determined that no teen should serve more than a year in prison for giving or receiving oral sex. The teen is to be charged with a misdemeanor, punishable by a year in prison and will not be required to register as a sex offender.

This law went into effect shortly after Wilson was convicted by was not retroactive. That is why it had to go all the way to the state's high court to be overturned. A lower judge ordered Wilson's release earlier this year, but the district attorney appealed which kept him locked up until last week.

Now that you're caught up, I hope you'll join me in saying that the southern states are stuck in the dark ages when it comes to sex crimes. I don't know if they are in denial about the fact that sex is going on with teenagers or if they want to fill the prisons with young people.

Regardless of the situation, lawmakers and parents need to grow up. They need to realize that their children are having sex, oral and intercourse, and it is their job to make sure the lil' Filthy McNasties are being safe and that they are getting educated about what they are doing.

Times are a-changing and from what I understand, these lil' high school girls don't mind giving "knobbers" to their lil' boyfriends or in some cases like Wilson's, the popular athletes.

So instead of trying to prosecute them for acting on their hormones, parents and lawmakers need to accept the responsibility of educating them about their bodies, STDs, prophylactics and the consequences.

So what I took two weeks off?

I was working. And I had to get ready for Homecoming.
It is only the biggest event to hit a historically black college or university all year long. If more of you went to HBCU's, you'd know that!
Anyway, I do want to throw out a big, "Ag-gie Pride" to all of my fellow Aggies throughout the world, because you know that Aggie Pride is definitely worldwide.
It's too bad we lost the game - again.
I love my school as much, probably more than, the next Aggie, but we haven't won a football game in so long, we had to take the "for" off and just call it 'ever. Our boys are currently on an unprecedented 25-game losing streak.
I think it is safe to say that Coach Lee Fobbs and his entire staff can go ahead and clean out their lockers.
Now, I don't know a WHOLE lot about football, but I do know that any college coach who loses every single game for two consecutive seasons can not expect to get a job anywhere else. It might be time to re-examine his profession.
I mean dang, a single game in two years. Shoot, even a broken clock is right twice a day. I think if Coach Fobbs plans to stay in the coaching field, he might need to start out with something smaller, like, Pee Wee Football or Pop Warner or something.
I'm not saying the dude shouldn't be coaching, just maybe not football. There's still track and baseball and basketball, hell, he may even want to give soccer a run.
I mean, I've never played football, competitively, a day in my life and judging by what they've done there, I could at least be the defensive coordinator. I'm saying all this to say the athletic director Dee Todd needs to start interviewing some folks for that job, right quick like.
I mean really, we ain't got no where to go but up!
But regardless, I still love my alma mater. I think we have simply fallen victim to lackluster coaching and a couple of poor recruiting classes. I would think that it is hard to recruit a strong freshman class if you're not winning any games.
Here's a novel idea, let's get a mediocre coaching staff and try to win at least one game next season.

Why Do I Keep Reading Movie Reviews?

It's only going to piss me off. So, for whatever reason today, I opted to find a few "mainstream" reviews of Tyler Perry's "Why Did I Get Married?" And of course, it pissed me completely off.
First and foremost, let me clear up the comment made yesterday that this wouldn't be an Academy Award contender. I said that because this movie was written, produced and directed by black folks and did not have any of our brothers and sisters degrading themselves or portraying a criminal lifestyle.

It seems that the only time our folks get recognized for cinematic achievements is when they play ex-slaves, bums, rogue cops, maids and a step down from crack whores.

Granted Jaime Foxx and Jennifer Hudson won, but he won for his outstanding portrayal in a biopic and she won playing a character, Effie, who was the classic stereotypical Sapphire personality.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Sapphire, according to the Arte Sana Web site, Sapphire is described as an African American woman portrayed as evil, bitchy, stubborn and hateful. In other words, what we call ghetto or 'hood, that is Sapphire. Think those chicken headed girls on VH1's "The Flavor of Love" and you'll have the perfect example.

Now, because the characters in Perry's film were educated and had very high skilled and high paying professions, he won't be receiving many accolades outside of the African American community.

I read on my classmate Eb the Celeb's Renaissance Black Woman blog, http://renaissanceblackwoman.blogspot.com/2007/09/blog-post.html, that VH1 was considering a reality TV show about interracial couples but they were looking for a black woman with, for the lack of a better term, some sense and they couldn't get the show green lighted.

With that said, she posed the question of whether or not America was ready for an educated black woman. I think the downplaying and the outright disrespect for Perry's film goes above and beyond to prove that America is not ready because it doesn't want to be ready.

America has grown comfortable with seeing minorities as one-dimensional. How often do you see black folks in movies where their characters remain true to themselves and life in the suburbs at the same time? How ofter do you see movies with Hispanics where their characters don't have on tropical print shirts wearing their hair slicked down or wearing long sleeve flannel shirts with one button done and tattoos? How often do you see Arabs or Asians in movies where they don't own the convenience stores?

Having a hard time aren't you? You know why? The people green lighting these films have absolutely NO idea of what goes on in the world outside of their own. Their only contact with minorities is through the eyes of the screenwriters who have been known to change their stories so that producers will make the movies.

I'm not saying they are wrong for making some money, I am saying that the gatekeepers are wrong for putting only one dimensional characters out there. Can the Hollywood Higher Ups get a clue?!

In the past 10 years, we have seen feature films like, "Love Jones," "Two Can Play That Game," "Hav Plenty," "The Wood," "The Best Man," "Love & Basketball" and "Brown Sugar." All decent films in their own right, but I guarantee you I can link them all with no more than two degrees of separation. If you think about it for a minute, you can too. I won't waste your time doing it, but if you care to challenge me, I'd be more than happy to oblige you in the comment section.

What I'm trying to say is Hollywood sees our movies and characters so one-dimensionally (is that a word) that they can't even give us more actors and actresses to play the parts. One of the main reasons Perry's films take beatings is because he goes against a lot of the cliches of "urban" films and uses a plethora of talented actors. He brings out a story the entire family can enjoy and he touches on subjects that need to have families and friends talking.

So bottom line, leave the man alone. He's anointed and he's been appointed. You can't mess with God's children and get away with it.

Besides, the only time we're going to get the recognition we deserve is if we come up with some sort of Academy of our own that recognizes achievement in minority cinema anyway. Don't believe me, look at the folks who make up the academy and then look at the folks to get nominated and then tell me that it's all equal.

Humph ...

It's been a few days ...

I've been busy, but please believe there's not been a shortage of things I must tell you guys about.
First and foremost, go see Tyler Perry's "Why Did I Get Married." This movie is truly his best work and I just don't see how he's going to top himself.
While I know that this movie will certainly not be an Academy Award contender, I will say that it was still an outstanding movie. The story line was great and a very talented ensemble of actors was assembled to pull this movie off.
As you probably can tell, I will more than likely be going to see this movie in the theater again. I don't think I've seen a movie in the theater more than once since, "Set It Off," and how long ago was that?
Someone you guys should be on the lookout for is Tasha Smith. She and Tyler Perry were definitely the comic relief in that movie. For those of you who are unfamiliar with her work, she played the mom in "Daddy's Little Girls" and she also used to be a stand-up comic.
All I'm going to say is, the girl is funny and you need to see this movie.
Speaking of things that are making me laugh as of late, a Vatican official (that means he works with the Pope), Monsignor Tommaso Stenico has been suspended after he was caught on a hidden camera making "advances" to a young man.
It's not funny that he was caught, it's funny that he says he was "pretending to be gay" because he was doing psychoanalytical research. ***chuckling to myself *** That's a new one. I didn't know that people pretended to be gay. I know a lot of people who pretended not to be gay, but that's a whole 'nother story.
It is no secret that Catholics view homosexuality as a sin. It also is no secret that Catholic priests and nuns take vows of celibacy and that in recent years, a lot of priests have been busted for molesting little boys.
I am in no way, shape form or fashion implying that all gay men are pedophiles, nor am I suggesting that all pedophiles are gay. I'm simply saying that sexual repression can lead to some very unhealthy activities.
Now, Tommaso said that "he frequented online gay chat rooms and met with gay men as part of his work." He's claiming that he's been set up and that he was working on "cleaning up the church."
OK, I'll wait while you stop laughing ...

I think he's been listening to Larry Craig or he pulled out some old Shaggy, "It Wasn't Me." Maybe it's just me, but I don't believe the dude was "pretending." I mean, I stopped playing dress-up when I was seven and I think it would be easier to repress sexual desires if you were convinced beyond any shadow of doubt that those desires are sinful.

But hey, maybe it's just me. If this is true, more information is going to come out eventually anyway.

Speaking of the truth coming out, in case you guys haven't been following Mychal Bell's case, he's been locked up again. Not for anything new though, he went back to a juvenile facility on a probation violation for the assault.

And I can honestly say that I'm not mad about that. The boy was on probation for a previous charge and he was involved in something he had no business being in. For that, I do agree that he needs to be punished for the violation. The only thing I will say about that is I hope that the court credits him with time served. He was locked up from December to September and he was sentenced to 18 months for the violation. If he is credited with time served that will cut his sentence in half.
The thing about this whole situation is the truth still hasn't come out in this and I am worried that the movement toward equal justice is losing momentum. What do you guys think? Do you think that now that there's been a march and the media has moved on to the news of late that the movement is loosing momentum?

Now that's enough ...

... it's time for all school aged and college aged racists to go home, regroup and come up with another form of intimidation, other than a noose, that will give them all the credit they are so desperately seeking.

Since the Jena, La., story has hit national news, I have counted seven incidents involving nooses, one of which was the situation at Alma J. Brown Elementary School on Grambling State University's campus.

Most recently, a noose was found on the office door of an African American professor at Columbia University. A noose was also found in the sea bag of an African American cadet at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Conn., in July and another was found in the office of a white civil rights instructor during race relations training in August.

That's just the tip of the ice burg. Nooses were found on the campuses of the University of Maryland and Andrews High School in High Point, N.C. Police also arrested two suspects in Alexandria, La., after the Jena Six rally for inciting violence after they rode around with two nooses tied to a pick-up truck.

Now that incident was wrong on so many different levels. Not only were the nooses being dragged by self-proclaimed White Supremacists but the incident kind of brought back the not-so-fond memories of the James Byrd Jr., murder in Jasper, Texas.

A noose wasn't used to drag him behind the pick up truck but I am willing to bet that it has been done before.
Upon preparing for this post, I did a Google search of the word "noose," then I searched the word plus (+) "2007" and some of the stuff that I saw should have been surprising, but it wasn't. I saw everything from recent stories to noose hanging incidents to the message boards where people were asking why the image of a noose hanging from a tree was so powerful.

Because I believe there is power in knowledge and I never like to pass up a teaching opportunity, allow me to illustrate.

Now that you see that not so long ago, Southern trees bore strange fruit, I hope you can understand why seeing nooses hanging on trees can send chills, shock waves and anger through the bodies of African Americans/Blacks/Coloreds/Negroes everywhere.

It's not so much that people have been hanging nooses in several locales throughout the country, it's that some of my counterparts in the media act as if it just started last year with the incident in Jena.

In all actuality, lynching dates back to slavery when some of our ancestors attempted to run and free themselves from the physical and mental bondage inflicted on them by their masters and the rest of society.

As far as I'm concerned, the hanging of a noose carries the same weight of a cross burning on some one's lawn. It's all about hate, nothing more, nothing less. It is the sheer hate of people of color, particularly black people, for no reason.

When someone hangs a noose, it not only symbolizes hate, it is also meant to intimidate and it sends the clear message that people of color are not wanted there. The sad thing about this situation is nooses are being hanged in places where they will be found and in places we shouldn't have to avoid like schools, our homes and in some cases our workplaces.

The only thing that kind of irks me about the situation is nobody is owning up to it. I guess Paul Lawrence Dunbar said it best, "We wear the mask that grins and lies, It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes ..."

I say we all take off our masks and be true to ourselves, our God and everyone else. In other words, if you are going to be a racist, show yourself. No sense in hiding from the world. I say if you hate me, hate me for all to see, not just behind closed doors.

Open Letter to Society ...

Dear World Leaders, Dignitaries, Politicians, Saints, Sinners, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Atheists, Capitalists, Communists, Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, Middle Eastern, Celebrities, Pseudo-celebrities, racists, classists, sexist, normal, abnormal, regular and irregular people and anyone else who may have been left out:

It has come to my attention that WE as a collective population have grown to hate each other and it needs to stop! For the past few months, I have seen some of the most outrageous events play out in the media and all I can say is if these things weren't happening, they wouldn't be getting reported.

First off, we need to stop being naive and trying to get everything sugar-coated. The sooner we admit that racism, classism, sexism and prejudice of all kinds still exist, the sooner we can begin the healing process and taking steps toward understanding each other.

I don't even NEED to further explain why the March on Jena was necessary, but I will. The bottom line in this whole debate is that there is a separate justice system for white folks and people of color, not just in Jena, but the whole country.

If that's not the truth, explain to me why Darryl Hunt can have two trials and still spend 18 years of his life behind bars for a crime he did not commit? If it's not true, why did Geronimo Pratt spend 27 years of his life in prison on trumped up murder and kidnapping charges? If it's not true, why are more black and Hispanic men incarcerated more than any other group?

I'll tell you why, other people are afraid. They are afraid of what they don't know and what group of people are avoided at all costs? Black and Hispanic males, that's who. Meanwhile, those REAL criminals, many of whom are of the Caucasian persuasion, go free because they either have the resources to hire those folks who can get them off the hook or invoke their white privilege while we on the other hand have to pay that old, Colored Tax.

If that's not enough, we are passing this hate along to our children and masking it as education. Take the "noose lesson" at Grambling State University's Alma J. Brown Elementary School. The "adults" in this situation used "mock" nooses to "teach" the children, all kindergarten and first-grade students, why the noose was a symbol of racism.

Maybe it's just me but I think the same thing could have been taught with movie scenes. I can think of a couple off the top of my head - the Ving Rhames hanging in Rosewood or the hanging of the little girl in A Time to Kill. Here's a novel idea, why not Google a few pictures to show these children how horrible hangings are. But they wouldn't do that because it's "too graphic."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-10-01-grambling-noose_N.htm

I'll do you one better, two teachers up in New Jersey assigned their sixth grade students social studies projects where the students had to create an advertisement IN FAVOR OF slavery. According to a story from a local news station, the students had to defend the use of slave labor to run a newly built plantation in South Carolina. Students were told to come up with a '"catchy" name for the plantation and give three reasons why slave labor is the "best idea" and they were even encouraged to add illustrations.

http://wcbstv.com/watercooler/slavery.slave.labor.2.312697.html

Here's an even better story, at a high school for the deaf and hard of hearing just outside of Washington, D.C., our nations capital, a black student was held against his will by six white students and one black student. The student was let go after being held for about 45 minutes and after the seven students used markers to draw swastikas and "KKK" on his body.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/10/04/deafschool.racial.incident/index.html

Regardless of what happened, it was wrong. This entire incident is nothing more than the proverbial chickens coming home to roost. Frankly, if we spent more time educating our kids at early ages about our ACTUAL history, there would be no need for these incidents to keep popping up.

As much as we'd like to believe that these incidents are isolated, those of us with some common sense can see that all of these incidents are indirectly related to the miseducation and the desensitization of our children and ourselves.

After a while, we'll be back to square one - segregated getting separate, but unequal shares of everything this great nation has to offer. Look around ya'll. Is this what our ancestors fought for? Is this why our foremothers and forefathers were attacked by dogs and fire hoses?

I think not! It's time we wise up, start the healing process and take the first step toward equality, in justice, in the economy and in life in general - together.

Sincerely,

A fed up, black, female, Christian hippie who wants justice and equality for all, in all.

THIS JUST IN ...

... bail is being posted for Mychal Bell. According to CNN, Rev. Al Sharpton said Bell's bail (say that five times fast) was set at $45,000. If I am not mistaken, in most cases, 10 percent of that amount has to be paid to the bailbondsman and he does the rest.

Well thank God for small miracles ...

... Mychal Bell has been moved to a juvenile facility.

Star Jones Reynolds announced on her show today that LaSalle Parrish District Attorney Reed Walters has said that he will not pursue adult charges against Bell. He does however plan to re-file charges in juvenile court.
There's been no word on bail as of yet. One of his attorneys, Louis Scott talked to Jones Reynolds today saying that he was going to file a motion for bail in the Parrish Clerk's office today.

As I understand it, Bell has to have a new bail because once he was convicted, the initial $90,000 bail was revoked. Hopefully since his case has been moved to juvenile court, he will get a bail that his family will be able to afford. He has been in jail since the December arrest.

My heart goes out to the families of the six "attackers" and to the victim, but quite frankly, I would love to get to the bottom of it all. The information that has been fed to us all has been that the entire incident began with the hanging of nooses on what was known as the "white" tree on the school's campus.

Until earlier this week, it was believed that the boys had only received a few days suspension after the expulsion was overturned. It was reported earlier this week that the boys who hanged the nooses from the tree spent nearly two school weeks in an alternative school and served a two-week in-school suspension.

According to the widely believed information, this supposedly set off a chain of racially motivated events that resulted in arson, an incident where a shotgun was pulled on several students and at least two fights.

The thing that keeps bugging me is that the reports are now saying the victim in the beating by the Jena 6 was beaten into "bloody unconsciousness," but he was in attendance at a school function that night. What hospital releases a patient who was knocked unconscious as a result of a fight where he was supposedly stomped in the head?

I am having a hard time buying that this kid was beaten this badly. We see the same picture of this kid while he is in the hospital but we don't see any pictures of the black kid who was beaten up by the group of white people.

The bottom line in this entire situation is these kids were overcharged. I am not saying that they didn't deserve to be prosecuted, but it should have been juvenile assault or Louisiana's equivalent.

Another thing that tripped me out was during Walter's press conference, he stated that he couldn't find a law to charge the "noose hangers" with and Jones Reynolds had one and showed video from the CNN i-Report from the Alexandria incident where two white teenagers were arrested for tying two nooses to the back of a pick up truck.

Have I said before that Jones Reynolds is the WOMAN?!

She had the law that is on the books in Louisiana in front of her and had a legal expert on hand to discuss it. I know Walters was not watching the show, but I hope somebody down there TiVos her show and can show it to him.

On her show today, Jones Reynolds admitted that she's been out of practice for a while but she found said law in about three minutes, she said. And I say to you all that if she could find it that quickly, Walters couldn't have been looking for it.

Growing up, I always heard, "if it was snake, it would have bit ya." My response was, "if it was a snake, I wouldn't have been looking for it."

I think that kind of rings true with this case. He probably thought charging those boys would probably have come back to bite him in the polls at re-election time. The funny thing is, not charging them has come back to bite him, on the ass - right now.

After this blows over, I hope the Louisiana Bar Association reviews this and takes necessary action.

*rubbing my chin and chuckling to myself* I guess he and Mike Nifong will have a lot to talk about in a few months.