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Volume 2 Issue 30…….. Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…….. August 6, 1999

Kudos to Kembo!

Fighting stereotypes, young blacks are developing valuable skills, gaining practical experiences and professionalism. They are using spoken word and the hop-hop genre to build an economic network. The Atlanta Vibe has become the model other cities emulate, when trying to build a live spoken word vibe. One spot stands out symbolizing the ATL's cutting edge, flame throwing, up-front-in-your face poetry. Ying Yang Café is home to the most explosive late night Open Mic in town. Hosted by Kembo each Wednesday, it draws the best mad bombers and fast guns, who are quick enough to make the list. Although many artists collaborate and contribute to its success, Kembo has been a mainstay supporting the spoken word scene long before it became trendy. He has remained in the forefront of efforts to improve skills and elevate performances of sisters and brothers hanging in the Vibe. Mad props go out to Kembo. You're the man! More from the Vibe

July 30^th Statement by Presidential candidate Bill Bradley: "I am horrified by the tragedy in Atlanta. My thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the victims and the entire city of Atlanta. The pain of this event compels us to ask, how much more? How much more will it take before we take real action against gun violence? As the NRA makes excuses and our leaders quibble, handguns kill 13 children a day. In the wake of these awful shootings in Atlanta, we are reminded again of the desperate need for meaningful gun control legislation. The time is now for committed political leadership." webmaster@billbradley.policy.net

Going postal is the term used to describe a dispute resolution method popularized by U.S. Postal Service workers in handling their labor-management problems. It is now mainstream, downright upscale when you T.H.I.N.C. about it. Going postal is popular in schools, as well as on the job, as people kill to resolve disagreements, real and imagined. The most recent rampage left nine dead in Buckhead, an upscale Atlanta, GA neighborhood.

Recent postmasters delivered their deadly messages with glee. Displaying a grim wit, some laughed at their victims' attempts to flee. Suicide ended the most gruesome of the latest postal rampages.

The ease with which life is taken is alarming; it is inhuman and inhumane. Something is definitely wrong. When the Buckhead episode exploded across the screen, and CNN went live with "Breaking News," I wanted to know if psycho-drugs were involved. The postman was a chemist; but still no toxicology report.

Given the ease with which legal prescription drugs are doled out by psychiatrists as antidotes for the angst of living in a stressful society, it would be no surprise to learn something odd floated in a postmaster's bodily fluids. Something extraordinary must be present to suppress the conscious so completely that a human could kill its family and other innocent people. Could it be psycho-drugs?

Our apparent reversion to brutish and inhumane acts, like going postal, must be aided by something. Given the frequency of these events and the explosive news coverage given to them, possible postal accelerators must be identified and neutralized. Else, none is safe, not even the elite in Buckhead. Hoodnotes

by John Burl Smith

Participants of turnout 75%: Even comfortably cocooned, one cannot prevent life from intervening with profound lessons about struggle and resilience. A young mocking bird fell from its nest in an old Magnolia tree the other day. Surmising it had tried its wings too soon, as it fluttered desperately to take flight, it became clear these untested wings were poor support for a perilous existence. Its anxious parent fluttered frantically, unwilling to accept what seemed inevitable. Curious squirrels were buzzed off by efforts resembling cover fire. Like dive-bombers over Iraq, stray cats were repeatedly attacked before they noticed the vulnerable fledgling nearby. Shrugging off this death scene, my 10-month-old grandson, who had taken his first real steps that morning, was making immediate demands.

The next morning perched as usual, life played an ode to individual struggle and parental support. There, rustling among the shrubbery, a small bird fluttered into the azaleas. While contemplating the possibility of yesterday's fledgling survival, a mocking bird's call pierced the morning calm. The fledgling answered, and quicker than e-mail, a bird swooped down with food. Followed by another seconds later, a survival system gleaned clearer. Witnessing life's drama play out, thoughts of human parenting came to mind, and how the process has turned on our children.

If one can believe the misanthrope's words, Mark Orrin Barton was a fundamentalist. He felt God made people the way they are and they cannot change. Consequently, he saw himself trapped in his father's world and doomed to relive his father's mistakes. Moreover, his son was likewise doomed to repeat his fate. Unlike the mocking birds, Barton apparently felt, the pain endured while experiencing life is too great a price for strength gained through growth. Accordingly, he acted to preempt life's disappointments by killing his children to spare them pain. Fatalistically, Barton's convoluted logic denies volition, growth, divine intervention and other agents of change. The fundamentalist dilemma consists in reconciling their belief in God, their tolerance for guns and killing, with the sanctity of human life. How will our children ever learn to soar, if society keeps clipping their wings? Essays by John B. Smith

Disgruntled says: While it is widely held that the pen is mightier than the sword, bullets and guns are capturing all the media attention.

Disgruntled feels: citizens should ticket cops when they break the law!

Disgruntled wants to know: I read recently that Newt Gingrich is getting a divorce after eighteen years of marriage. According to the grapevine, he divorced his sick and dying former wife to marry, Marianne. All over the landscape, GOP men are breaking up their families. Whatever happened to family values, a cornerstone of the GOP platform? Will compassionate conservatism suffer a similar demise in the face of such passionate hypocrisy? Disgruntled

The Dark Knight-Batman/White Ninja/Zorro is undergoing another metamorphosis. When asked about the change in persona, the Dark One/Ninja/Zorro replied, "I am a big boy now." More from the Bat Cave

Mark Orrin Barton's misanthropic reign of terror in Atlanta goes to the essential question raised by T.H.I.N.C. (Teaching Humanity In New Consciousness): The Chrysalis of Evolution. Without displaying any rage, Barton killed nine people in a matter of minutes, while remaining as pleasant as a door to door Bible salesman. Juxtaposed, the institution of slavery and the policies of Manifest Destiny desensitized American society to the oneness of humanity. Devaluating life based on differences made it easier to justify depriving African slaves and Native Americans of their human rights. Such a mind set over time makes it easier to devalue those who are just like you. Slavery never ended; it morphed into what is now called "free market capitalism." Wall Street is booming; besides, money is all that really matters. T.H.I.N.C. about it! (Logon to http://www.thedish.ws for background articles). Other Phantom Scribblers

The Accident (Part III):

Justice in a Failed Appearance

by Dot Smith

Dutifully, for the second time since the accident, we made our way to Atlanta traffic court to fight the ticket given a civilian for an accident caused by a policeman. This time, we knew the routine. After passing an airport-like security check at the guards' station, which includes scanners and metal detectors, we consulted the computer printout taped to the right wall; we were in courtroom Number One. On our first court appearance, a snafu sent us to the wrong room. The judge rescheduled the case, because the police officer failed to make an appearance.

Today, when we slid onto one of the long wooden benches, it was close to 8:00 A.M. - the scheduled court start time. About twenty others sat scattered around the small room. A steady stream of people came in just before eight, swelling the number to more than thirty; 90% of them were black. Ten minutes past eight and we were packed like sardines in the cramped space; court started at 8:15. We were instructed to move closer so people blocking the exit could be seated. A man was asked to remove his baseball cap - enforced courtroom etiquette.

At nine o'clock, the bailiff called the driver of the civilian car's name. We went to the front of the courtroom. The officer involved in the accident was absent; we were shocked at a second no show. This total disregard for the judicial process left us speechless, and the judge confused about the circumstances surrounding the ticket. A clerk sorted out the mess and explained it to the judge who then dismissed the ticket. See DISH Topic Below and other DISHing It Up Hot! topics

(Letter from DHR)

Re: Letter to Liane Levetan. "We will continue to investigate public health issues associated with the above reference facility, including the use of plastic plumbing pipes. This and other issues, including a delay in obtaining recent demographic information for the area, will unfortunately postpone the release of the final public health assessment for this facility. The projected date has been changed to October 31, 1999." (Jane Perry Britt, DHR) Funky Hood

Cautious GOP: An Oxymoron

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan sounded such a cautious note in his semi-annual Humphrey-Hawkins report that some are surprised to see the Republicans so intent on going forward with a tax cut Greenspan clearly does not support. Greenspan's caution centered around overheating the economy and triggering inflation. He warned against a tightening labor market. With the unemployment rate at less than 5% - 4% is considered full employment - Greenspan fears further labor market tightening could lead to inflation, the number one focus of Greenspan's monetary policy.

 With the experience of the Reagan and Bush Administrations, which included a sizeable tax cut in 1981, unsurpassed military spending, big budget deficits and a peace dividend that never materialized, Greenspan is justifiably concerned about engaging in activities that may trigger the onset of inflation. As a stimulant, Greenspan advised caution in using a projected budget surplus to cut taxes at this time. He would favor reducing the federal debt, which would positively influence credit markets, i.e., lower interest rates.

But, "desperate times call for desperate measures," and the GOP is desperate to preserve its majorities in both bodies of Congress and recapture the Presidency. The GOP is boldly banking on tax cuts to resonate with American voters in election year 2000. With a negative savings rate, American taxpayers will likely spend any tax cut to upgrade VCRs to DVDs, trade in the digital pager for a cell phone or purchase some other gadget. Greenspan cautioned against basing such a large tax cut on a ten year projected $3 trillion federal budget surplus, as forecasting anything so far out is risky business. But, the GOP is desperate. Throwing caution to the wind, its leaders are again showing themselves to be zealots. What the GOP's leadership fails to realize, most of us are in the middle; their extremes frighten the hell out of us. We respect Greenspan's economic prowess.

It is possible to cut taxes without heating up the economy. But, neither the GOP nor Democrats are willing to cut corporate welfare from the federal budget. Cutting the pork can provide taxpayers with a tax reduction and leave the budget surplus to pay down the debt, shore up Medicaid and save Social Security. When the Republican Party, ala John McCain, takes this kind of approach, then more Americans will start listening to the GOP. DISHing It Up Hot!

"Since time began, man has discriminated against his fellow man on the grounds of colour, race and religion. We have seen it manifested in the United States against African Americans, and for many centuries, the Jews and members of other religious groups have been discriminated against. This is because of the bigotry of the few always seem to have a greater amount of influence on society as a whole. I believe racism has found a new way of expressing itself here in Britain.

Three weeks ago in Sheffield and Manchester a story hit the headlines, which said the hospitals in these Northern English cities were refusing to give organs donated from white people to black people. It seems that hospitals in my country are refusing to give vital organ transplants to people if they are of the wrong colour. People are dying for the sake of a transplant but if a child or an adult of African descent is on a transplant waiting list and an organ is available he or she will be refused if that donor organ is from a white person. I would ask, is this racism on a new footing." Email: Tony Sklilandis (tony.skila@ic24.net)

"I am a Genealogist and have been for 26 years. I own several List and Several Web sites. Several African Americans have asked this question more than one time. Why are Whites so rude when we question them about the Surnames they are researching. This is the letter I sent out to all the Alabama Lists: My name is Sandra Denise Johnson. I am the Coordinator of Alabama African American Genealogy at http://www.rootsweb.com/~alaag We have a mailing list and we need your help. Join Us. Several folks have e-mailed me about the Alabama lists. Some of my African American Researchers were refused help. Some of you may not know this but some of my researchers' ancestors may be your kin. We here are serious researchers, like yourself, and we are pleading for your help. Afrigeneas is requesting Slave Data for all of the USA. Alabama African American Genealogy is looking for wills in and about Alabama. Both sites are great sites. Join us, and share your knowledge and spread the wealth. None of us was born back then, this is the nineties moving towards a new millennium. Let us make it a great one. Here is one of the replies I received: From: Max Dichter: maxdichter@hotmail.com "Everything is "racist" to you niggers, huh? What a one-track mind --a lady in nothing but name only! It's proper that you spelled it with a little letter 'l'. Email from ladyd@dnaco.net

"A reply to the Marriot Hotel Group incident: Well, I live in Houma, Louisiana, a few miles outside of the New Orleans. It is true what blacks say about Marriot and other hotels as well. I used to work at a hotel in Jackson, Mississippi, and believe me the situation is the same everywhere for blacks. I urged people to look into hotels or motels outside of these large populated areas. The reason being it will be cheaper (even though out the way) and more satisfying. Also, look into organizations like NAACP and see what different businesses they support and do not support. E-mail to brrobins@mobiletel.com. Other Mailbox Comments

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