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Volume 10 Issue 7…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…February 16, 2007
Intuit's Vibe
"Ball Of Confusion (That's What The World Is Today)"
By The Temptations
People moving out, people moving in.
Why? Because of the color of their skin.
Run, run, run, but
you sure can't hide.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
Vote for me and I'll set you free.
Rap on, brother, rap
on.
Well, the only person talking about love
thy brother is the preacher.
And it seems nobody's interested in learning
but the teacher.
Segregation, determination,
demonstration, integration,
Aggravation, humiliation,
obligation to our nation.
Ball of confusion.
Oh yeah, that's what
the world is today.
The sale of pills are at an all time high.
Young folks walking round
with their heads in the sky.
The cities ablaze in the summer time.
And oh, the beat goes
on.
Evolution, revolution, gun control, sound of soul.
Shooting rockets to the moon,
kids growing up too soon.
Politicians say more taxes will solve everything.
And the band played
on.
So, round and around and around we go.
Where the world's
headed, nobody knows.
Oh, great googalooga, can't you hear me talking to you.
Just a ball of confusion.
Oh yeah, that's what
the world is today.
Fear in the air, tension everywhere.
Unemployment rising fast,
the Beatles new record's a gas.
And the only safe place to live is on an Indian reservation.
And the band played
on.
Eve of destruction, tax deduction,
city inspectors, bill collectors,
Mod clothes in demand, population out of hand,
suicide, too many bills,
Hippies moving to the hills.
People all over the world are shouting,
'End the war.'
And the band played on.
Great googalooga,
Can't you hear me talking to you.
Sayin'... ball of confusion.
That's what the world is today.
Let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya.
Sayin'... ball of
confusion.
The Dark Knight-Batman/White Ninja/Zorro is wise beyond his tender years.
Recently, our enlightening conversation turned to one of his younger siblings;
he was asked for his insight on her apparent separation anxiety. In her mind,
she has been replaced by the new baby in the affections of her parents and
everyone else doting on the new arrival. Losing attention is surely difficult
for one so young, especially when she has been doted on. The Dark
One/Ninja/Zorro shrugged, as though this matter was inconsequential, then he
succinctly said, "She'll get over it!"
By John Burl Smith
Approaching the subject of politics in the United States (US), most view it through
the broad principles contained in The Declaration of Independence. Its
expansive statements speak of rights men have that are "inalienable."
Juxtaposed against the "Hobbesian" notions of power and privilege
enshrined in the US Constitution's Article I Section II, neither life, liberty,
nor the pursuit of happiness was considered "inalienable" as it
related to slaves and their descendants. Having mentally confused these
documents, most Americans answer with vague generalities the question, "Why
does inequality exist today?
Described as a divided nation by historians before the Civil War, Emancipation
and the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments, economist Dot M. Smith has proven
that the divide that existed during slavery between whites and blacks remains
today. Using US government data, she measured relative disparities in medium
family income and unemployment rates between blacks and whites. Her regression
analysis, which controlled for variables, such as education, age, sex and
mobility, found black medium family income fluctuated within the narrow range
of .5 to .65.
The relevant factor here is that the 3/5 Compromise is the statement in the
Constitution that legalized slavery and established the value of black human
capital at 3/5 (.6 ) relative to white men. Slightly oversimplified by these
numbers, the 3/5 Compromise formula of .6 1 nonetheless represents the divide
of inequality (institutionalized racism). The Founders mandated that through
disparate treatment and discrimination 2/5 of all that would accrue to slaves
and their descendants went to whites. Most US citizens reject these findings
and analysis as legitimate because they do not conform to their assumption that
the US Constitution contains the principles espoused in the Declaration of
Independence.
Historically, it is assumed blacks reached equilibrium with whites at some
point following slavery. It is further assumed that somehow blacks failed to
take advantage of opportunities to pull themselves by the bootstraps out of the
mire of poverty, a holdover from slavery. Thus, through no fault of whites,
blacks simply slipped back into their current second class state. Smith's
research debunks both of these assumptions. She shows that because blacks have
been denied equal access and services such as health care, social assistance,
employment and a fair criminal justice system, blacks remain trapped in the
same chasm that divided the nation when Abraham Lincoln embraced war to save
the Union. Specifically, Smith's chasm analysis debunks the assumption that
blacks and whites achieved equality, which can be expressed as 1 +1 =2.
Politicians, scientists and leaders in education offer generalities about
equality that could not have taken place for blacks before 1965. Moreover, they
fail to offer any statistical examples to support their contention that slave
descendants are not currently experiencing the same systemic 3/5 Compromise
discrimination and disparate treatment their ancestors endured. The Civil
Rights and Black Power Movements, after 1965, brought blacks closest to
experiencing equality, but it is readily admitted that period left blacks with
"a long way to go" to reach 1=1 equality.
There has never been a time when blacks enjoyed the same level of access to
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness that whites enjoy in the US.
Smith's data revealed a 3/5 Compromise trend line, which establishes clearly
that slavery never ended. Succinctly exposing baseless assumptions, Smith
demystifies the subject with the question. "Is it possible for human
dynamics to remain stable over such an extended period until the present,
without government and private mechanisms maintaining discrimination?"
Social phenomenon or institutionalized racism?
"Why does inequality exist today?" It exists because it never ended.
Leaders in the US refuse to admit that institutions, government and private,
set up systems to maintain racial discrimination and racist social practices.
They hid the reality that-- like the 3/5 Compromise --they were never dismantled.
Article I Section II does not remain a part of the US Constitution simply
because of the Electoral College and the legal right not to count black votes;
it allows whites to continue accruing the 2/5 that would accrue to blacks had
institutionalized racism ended in 1865 or 1965.
"How does the 2/5 accrue to whites?" Blacks endure socioeconomic and
political discrimination across the spectrum. They pay more for everything (the
ghetto tax). They receive fewer services for the taxes they pay. Their life
expectancy is less than whites. Consequently, blacks receive less Social
Security than whites. This is all compounded by disparate treatment that denies
blacks open and complete access to all US institutions -- after all, it is
legal. The 3/5 formula guarantees that blacks receive .6 and whites get 1.4. Such a result will always yield
inequality.
The system was designed to always give whites more and blacks less, which is
slavery. Now, you understand the question, you know the answer. What are you
going to do?
Jean-Baptiste-Point
Du Sable (1750-1818)
Jean-Baptiste-Point Du Sable was
born on November 4, 1750 in St. Marc, Sainte-Domingue -- current day Haiti --
to a French merchant father and black Haitian mother. It is widely assumed Du
Sable was born free. In the 1770's, he journeyed to North America. In 1773, he
had a farm near Peoria and managed a British trading post called the Pinery on
the St. Clair River in present-day Michigan.
Loyal to the Americans, he was arrested by the British in 1779, and spent
several years in prisoner at Fort Mackinac. Upon his release, Du Sable returned
to the site of modern-day Chicago, where he established a trading post. By
1790, Du Sable's trading post had become an important link in the region's fur
and grain trade. In 1800, Du Sable sold his business and moved to Missouri,
where he continued to farm and trade until his death.
Du Sable's 20-year residence on the shores of Lake Michigan established his
title "Father of Chicago." He died August 28, 1818 in St. Charles,
Missouri. In 1830, the name of his settlement was changed from Fort Dearborn to
Chicago.
In recognition of his pioneering role, the US Postal Service issued a 22-cent
stamp in honor of African American entrepreneur Jean-Baptiste-Point Du Sable on
February 20, 1987. (Sources: www.chipublib.org,
www.aaregistry.com, www.enchantedlearning.com, and http://library.thinkquest.org)
Sudoku
By Dot
It's addictive! If you enjoy
solving puzzles, the logic-based number puzzle - Sudoku - is a great way to
spend a lazy afternoon! Knowing how much I enjoy them, my son recently
surprised me with a book of these puzzles.
The instructions provided in Sudoku, a book of 300 number puzzles by Michael
Rios, are relatively simple. The solver of a 9x9 puzzle must "fill in the
boxes so that each of the nine rows, each of the nine columns, and each of the
nine 3x3 sections contain all the numbers from 1 to 9."
According to wikipedia.com, "completed Sudoku puzzles are a type of Latin
square. Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler (1707-1783) is sometimes cited as
the source of the puzzle, based on his work with Latin squares." However,
the online encyclopedia credits American Howard Garns with inventing the modern
puzzle, which was published by Dell Magazines in 1979 under the name
"Number Place." Popularized in Japan and published in newspapers and
magazines by Nikoli, Number Place became Sudoku. The rest as they say is
history.
Given that these puzzles can be constructed using numbers, letters, shapes,
colors, etc. and can be as large as 100x100, the 9x9's I enjoy are possibly
some of the easiest to successfully complete. Even the easy puzzles require a
strategy that includes gathering information, asking the right questions and
analyzing the available data.
Sudoku forces the solver to look at situations from various angles. Sometimes,
one must choose a number for a cell that may simply not be correct. I usually
place a star near the cell where I had more than one choice. When it does not
work out, at least I know where I started guessing wrong. Determined to get it
right, I can erase my mistakes and start anew. I have used lots of erasers.
I was hard at work in my book over the weekend when it dawned on me the
importance of asking the right questions, given the available information. It
reminded me of the US' situation in Iraq. Americans are told, the decision to
invade Iraq was based on erroneous intelligence. Yet, the Bush administration
continues to wage its propaganda war to convince the American people that it
was the right thing to do, deposing Saddam Hussein and "freeing" the
Iraqi people from the grips of dictator. Thus, the Bush administration has
never admitted its mistakes, so there is no effort to "erase" errors.
In fact, it does not regret destroying that country.
Unlike Sudoku, the US cannot simply erase its mistakes and start anew. However,
there are some things it can do to rectify its mistakes. Getting out now just
might be the right thing to do.
Have you tried Sudoku yet? I promise it is
addictive, and it makes you think, a great brain exercise.
Disgruntled Says: The
old slave South rose again in near unison in the US House of Representatives to
speak in support of staying the course in Iraq and the Bush proposed troop
escalation. As a southerner, a transplanted Georgian, it was an embarrassing
display. Oblivious to the facts that have since debunked the Bush dossier for
war, they repeated the same lies he told during the run-up to the illegal
invasion and occupation of Iraq. For their perfidy, in a less civilized time,
they would be tarred and feathered and rode out of the House on rails.
Disgruntled feels:
Implicated! During his opening statements, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby's
attorney Theodore Wells claimed the White House made Libby a scapegoat for the
leak of a CIA's name to the press to protect Karl Rove - Bush's brain and
"right-hand man." Cheney's handwritten notes, evidence introduced at
trial, seem to bolster Wells' assertion. Moreover, it shows Cheney and George
W. Bush actively engaged in outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame. Bush and Cheney
have steadfastly maintained they played no role in discrediting Plame’s
husband, former ambassador Joseph Wilson, who went to Africa to validate the
White House claim that Iraq tried to buy uranium from Niger, a lie included in
Bush's State of the Union address. Bush administration skeptics have long held
that the CIA outing went all the way to the Oval Office. Now we learn Cheney
will not testify as expected on behalf of Libby, probably because on
cross-examination, he will be further implicated in outing a CIA agent.
Disgruntled wants to know: The US has
lost its way. Worldwide, a majority view the conflict and occupation of Iraq a
war of aggression - a war crime. Moreover, there is no doubt that the George W.
Bush administration "sexed" up its Iraq war dossier. Abroad and at
home, the lies told to get us in this war have been exposed. At home, the
Senate has refused to engage in a serious debate on US involvement in Iraq. A
debate that is essential, if the US is to regain its former standing in the
global community; for now, it is a rogue nation. Americans need to debate that,
because too many of them still believe Saddam Hussein was linked to the tragedy
of 9-11 and possessed weapons of mass destruction with which to wreak greater
havoc on this nation. Truth is, a truth that the rest of the world well knows,
the US went to war against Iraq to control that country's oil. It will remain
in the region because of its oil, which is the US vital national security
interest. I suspect a majority of Americans prefer working on ways to wean the
US off oil, rather than engage in endless war. Armed with the truth about our
invasion of Iraq, Americans can ask the relevant question, i.e., is it worth
it?
Mailbox: E-Mails, Faxes and
Phone Calls
Email myers@cyberone.com.au ...'NYT'
Reporter Who Got Iraqi WMDs Wrong Now Highlights Iran Claims...by Greg
Mitchell...Saturday's New York Times featured an article that strongly suggests
Iran is supplying the "deadliest weapon aimed at US troops" in Iraq.
It may be worth noting that the author is Michael R. Gordon, the same Times
reporter who, on his own, or with Judith Miller, wrote some of the key, badly
misleading or downright inaccurate articles about Iraqi WMDs in the run-up to
the invasion.
Email www.legitgov.org Target Tehran: Washington
sets stage for a new confrontation...The United States is moving closer to war
with Iran by accusing the "highest levels" of the Iranian government
of supplying sophisticated roadside bombs that have killed 170 US troops and
wounded 620. The allegations against Iran are similar in tone and credibility
to those made four years ago by the US government about Iraq possessing weapons
of mass destruction in order to justify the invasion of 2003.
Email kmuhammad3@comcast.net Below
is a very touching story about Tony Dungy, Coach of the Indianapolis Colts, and
the essence of his purpose in life. It was most amusing to hear Coach Dungy's
responses to the TV sports interviewer, when he was asked how great it was to
be one of the first "African-American" head coaches to take his team
to a Super Bowl. Head Coach
"Tony Dungy" responded immediately with: "Yes that's good, but
what is really great and awesome, is how God worked this out for us; it's just
amazing how He made this all come together!" Thus, (as Paul Harvey would
say after reading the following) "and now, you know the rest of the
story."
Email www.washingtonpost.com An
Inarticulate Kickoff...By Eugene Robinson...What is it, exactly, that white
people mean when they call a black person "articulate?" I'll leave it
to Joe Biden to explain (or figure out) why he used "clean" as one of
a logorrheic string of adjectives describing his Senate colleague Barack Obama.
I'm not sure his initial revision and extension of his remarks -- that he meant
"clean as a whistle" -- get him off the hook. Just a suggestion, but
Biden might fall back to "clean as the Board of Health," meaning
sharply dressed; the last time I saw Obama he was, indeed, wearing an
impeccable navy suit. For anyone who missed it, Biden explained Obama's appeal
as a presidential candidate by calling him "the first mainstream
African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking
guy." He was talking to a reporter for the New York Observer, who recorded
the interview; an audio clip was soon posted on the Internet. There was a sharp
reaction, mostly focused on Biden's incomprehensible reference to personal
hygiene. The Rev. Al Sharpton, a one-time presidential candidate, said when
Biden called him to apologize, "I told him I take a bath every day."
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