Blagojevich (BLAGO) isn’t the problem…

Why is everyone making BLAGO out to be some kinda political anomaly.  Is it because of his hair???  Whatever the reason the media and the public are having a ball with this one.  OK, I admit ol’ boy was clowning (e.g. going to court in a jogging suit) but he isn’t the only one, and attacking/roasting BLAGO isn’t really going to accomplish anything.  The real joke is our political system, not BLAGO.  When I think about it, this is exactly why Tom Daschle exhorted the, relatively speaking, politically pristine Obama to run NOW.  He knows that if you play the game long enough, sooner or later you gonna get dirty, or at the very least, have too much explaining to do.

The Illinois Govenor is a product of his/our political culture.  There are more like him.  They may not all be as brazen and arrogant as BLAGO but they all share the same impious political DNA.  And he is the one in the news because he is the one that the FEDS decided to make an example of.  Unfortunately, making examples of people, rather than dealing head on with the dysfunction of the larger political culture, really misses the point.

BLAGO isn’t so much stupid as he is arrogant.  And to say that he is insane is true, but inadequate.  He is intoxicated with power and high as hell on “e”.  No not the drug extacy – BLAGO got that good shit.  BLAGO got an over inflated sense of entitlement.  Bush, Cheney, Gov. Ryan, Billy Clinton, Nixon and so on and so forth all use or used the same shit.  They are going to do what they gotta do to get where they wanna be.  That’s it.  And as the south side Chicago colloquial expression goes, “they don’t give no fuck”.

In the end, this is bigger than a corrupt political system/culture.  There are BLAGOS everywhere in our society.  They are raised on cultural diet that consists primarily of privilege (male and white) and entitlement and little bit of the King James Version and Nietzsche’s “Superman”… 

I’ve worked for and with these people.  They are on Wall Street and in the Academy.  They are CEO’s and mavericks.  They are executive directors of non-profits and they coach collegiate athletics.  They are superstar athletes.  Some of them ”enforce” the law and others even preach from the pulpit.

Sorry for the roiled pitch and timbre.  I’m just tired and frustrated.  Anyhow, I hope at some point, at the very least, we focus our national attention less on the BLAGOS and more on the social rituals and cultural memes that reinforce and perpetuate BLAGO like behavior.

Humbly;

kd

a few last minute pointers for Barack Obama…

Here are some key last minute points that Barack should hammer home during the final hours of Election 2008.  In no particular order:

• Assure White America that Black folks are not going to enslave them.  Tell them upfront that we are not looking for revenge.
• Assure White America (and Black America) that Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Rev. Jeramiah Wright, and Louis Farrakhan will have no place in an Obama Administration.
• Remind all of his supporters that the fight doesn’t stop with the vote.
• Remind Black folks not to celebrate too hard if he becomes President.  Why?  Look, some White folks are gonna be very angry/scared/depressed in response to an Obama victory.  They might very well be lookin’ for some get-back.  Don’t provoke them with excessive celebration e.g. rockin Obama Tees and poppin’ Champagne bottles at the office – in a “Soul Train line” – while blasting “ain’t no stoppin’ us now”.  Do that shit at the crib or at Church.  And when you get back to the office on Thursday – on Thursday – act like nothing has happened.
• Urge people not to riot if he loses the election is stolen.
• More than a few Black people lost some tried and true White homies (Hillary supporters) over the jolting course of this social and cultural powder-keg of a campaign.  Barack should gently nudge Black folks to determine if any of these relationships are worthwhile and salvageable and if so to go about the work of rekindling these friendships.
• To assuage the concerns of some Black folks that continue to charge Barack with, “forgetting where he came from”, the Big “O” should acknowledge a few of the key Black people that helped him to arrive at this momentous occasion.  Especially his barber.  Barack’s fade, waves and line were consistently TIGHT throughout the entire campaign cycle.
• Let everyone know that if he wins the election, this does not mean that America has finally overcome the “race problem”. 
• In case the election is lost stolen, Barack should point out to his supporters that he/we came this far together.  And that we have come too far – accomplished too much to turn back now.  He should embolden his supporters to continue to march bravely forward and carry on with the great change-work that THEY started.

Humbly Submitted.

kd

most racist campaign: Hillary Clinton or John McCain

Obama Bucks: Barack, Chicken, Watermelon, and Kool-Aid (the red flavor)

 

“Why is everything always about race with you people!?!” 

You people…

I betta-not EVER AGAIN hear the above got-damn question come out of a White person’s thin-lipped mouth.  Get the story here: OBAMA BUCKS .

*This story was first seen at:  News and Views, the companion blog to NPR’s News and Notes.

Video: War (Insert Patriotism) What is It Good For – Edwin Starr

Stirred up by the hate and fear-mongering of the McPalin ticket, good ol’ American patriotism has been on full display as of late.  The below video/song best captures my reaction to the ugliness that I’ve witnessed.   As you listen, every time you hear brotha Edwin shout, “War!”, insert the word “Patriotism” in its place.

 

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WARNINGS: these posts deserve another looksy…

Warning #1:  “If Barack Becomes President…”

 

Warning #2:  “Things we should do…”

quick question: for the last 2 weeks has America been the greatest country in the world?

Considering the FACT that we are in an economic depression.  Considering the CRASH of the stock market.  Considering all of the mudslinging in the Presidential race.  Considering all the racial tension bubbling over…  Can we you believers still, at this precise social/historical moment, stand on the claim that this is the greatest country in the world?

CNN Responds to My Post with this segment: Prejudice in the election?

OH SNAP!!!  CNN responds to my post from yesterday with a timely segment about race and politics.  Okay, they didn’t really respond to little ol’ me - but it is a heck of a coincidence.  Whatever the case, kudos to the folks at CNN for sparking this much needed conversation.  Looks like I’m back in the mix commenting/ranting about all things Campaign 2008.

Stay Well.

 

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Imagine: November 5, 2008. The front page of your morning paper reads???

I’ll Start.  “Barack Wins!  Bin Laden Orders Al-Qaeda To Stand Down”.  Have at it.

I’m not writing anything else about Election 2008 Until…

I’m self-imposing a moratorium on commenting about Campaign 2008.  I’m tired of all the politalking, the stump speeches, the faux-debates, the mudslinging, the absolutely useless media coverage.  And can we please do away with the damn polls!  It’s the same stories and soundbites and finger-pointing – by the same people - over and over and over again.   So, as far as I’m concerned, there really isn’t anything riveting or substantive to talk about.  That is, unless someone in the mainstream media or the blogosphere has the balls/ovaries to spark up a national conversation about the 800 lb. guerrilla in the room.  You know exactly what I’m talking about.  I’m sure you’ve been thinking about it, and maybe even discussing it under your breath.  What’s the 800 lb. guerrilla that I speak of?  It’s the persistently ignored fact that the race for the White House is as close as it is because one of the candidates is Black.  And relatedly,  the only reason that the vast majority of  “undecideds” (mostly White) remain undecided, is because on the one hand – in their rational minds – they know that the McCain/Palin ticket is a fucking joke.  On the other hand,  they just can’t quite bring themselves to vote for – gulp - a negro.  Just to be clear, I’m saying that if Barack were White, this thing would’ve been over a long long time ago.  Why isn’t anyone touching this?  Why isn’t this headline news?  Is it because the shot-callers in mainstream media don’t know?  Or could it be that they don’t care?  Whatever the reason, I refuse to contribute anything else to this white-washed amateurish real-time work of political pop-fiction that’s been over-sold to us as insightful, objective, and professional campaign coverage.

Frank Talk (like Steve Biko);

kd