Serena, The Greatest!

As I reflect on the legacy of one of the greatest athletes of any generation, I see the warrior queen of tennis battling one last time in her final match against Ajla Tomljanovic’. Serena would not go down without a fight. She gave it her all, and that’s all any of us could ever ask for, but Serena doesn’t owe us a thing. In fact we owe her so much for making the sport of tennis accessible to all of us, especially Black and Brown people. We owe her for elevating women in sports to be taken seriously as professional athletes. She lifted the game of tennis to new heights with every game, set, and match. Thank you Serena for doing it in your own way with style and fierce resolve, unapologetically.

Serena Williams has inspired generations of women and I’m sure some men too. Venus and Serena Williams raised in Compton, California, were propelled to the highest echelons of tennis by their talent and determination fostered by their parents, Richard Williams and Oracene Price. These ladies are a gift to the world of tennis, but it is that warrior spirit possessed by Serena which has proven to be the greatest gift to us all. Serena demonstrated to the world what it takes to be a champion. A fighter. A winner. Way back when the Williams sisters’ journey first began, I saw how the world of tennis was ready to anoint Venus. Venus, who began her professional tennis career first, was svelte and demure while Serena was athletic and audacious. As it turns out, Venus would never rival her baby sister on the tennis court. Serena would become a champion on and off the court all the while thwarting every attempt society made to diminish her greatness. Serena’s greatness remains her power and her beauty!

Serena’s tennis resume speaks for itself — 23 Grand Slams, four Olympic Gold Medals, and she ranked No. 1 for 319 weeks by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA). Serena’s final match encapsulated all the elements of her illustrious career. She was relentless and fought until the very end forcing her opponent, several years younger, to three sets to win the match. It was an incredibly inspiring performance that demonstrated her championship pedigree and indomitable spirit. As Serena said during a recent interview at the U.S. Open, she had nothing to prove and nothing to lose. I could not agree more. While she may have lost her final match at the U.S. Open, she absolutely won our hearts. Congratulations to The Greatest, Serena Williams, on an unmatched and brilliant career.

trump & Covid-19

trump has Covid-19 and because of 3.9 years of LIES, many Americans simply did not believe it to be true. His debate performance was classic trump. Bullying. Lies. He can’t debate since he doesn’t know anything. Many on social media assumed that trump knew he utterly failed in the first debate and probably didn’t want a repeat, and beside that the next debate format was in the style of a Town Hall. He can’t handle that format. trump’s in his white supremacist bubble and engaging with the American people outside of his cult is dangerous for him.

So, how sick is he? We’re getting conflicting reports. trump’s putting up video to keep his toxic “manly” image in front of his base. More importantly, how many people did the White House infect? Turns out the Amy Coney Barrett SCOTUS theft event was a superspreader. After that, trump traveled to Minnesota and probably knew he was already exposed to Covid-19 by time he went to his New Jersey fundraiser at Bedminster. Dangerous Donald strikes again. Folks better get tested.

Amerikkkan Barbarism

 

Barbaric! Racist. Fascist. These words define the current regime in the White House and its zero tolerance policy. The insidious policy of the 45 regime separating families of asylum seekers is evil and disgusting! Some of the immigrant families entering the United States have entered outside of the official entry points because official ports of entry choke the flow of these immigrants. This action has forced asylum seekers to wait days or weeks to enter the country forcing more danger upon them to fall prey to harsh elements and brutal smugglers.

The United States, through its racism and apathy, allowed a fascist, racist dictator to assume power, and take my word for it, he will not relinquish that power willingly. The man occupying the White House, 45 aka trump, a name I will not to mention again in this piece, is a Putin spy and Russian oligarch.

I did quite a bit of writing during the Obama years because I was hopeful that America had turned a corner in matters concerning race. It did not. The white backlash that empowered 45 has crushed many hopes and given rise to hate, misogyny and authoritarianism. I said it plainly in previous posts, Republicans no longer want democracy, they want autocracy with whites in control. Their basic fear is too many black and brown people in the country and our numbers continue to rise. In the era of 45, I am thoroughly persuaded that my assertions are correct.

Concentration camps in the United States are the latest sure sign of the fascist racism of the 45 regime. This would not be happening if immigrants arriving at the southern border were white. The inhumane evil of concentration camps, like the tent camp located in Tornillo, Texas is taken directly from the Joe Arpaio playbook. Ironically, the meaning of the word tornillo is a small tree with spirally twisted pods, also known as the screwbean. Essentially, immigrants and asylum seekers are being screwed. Is it coincidence that a migrant concentration camp has been set in this remote location? I think not.

If you want a better United States, stand against this evil. Contact your representatives in Congress at 202-224-3121 and demand their action against this barbaric practice of separating families. The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) is a Texas nonprofit group helping families separated at the border. Please donate and #KeepFamiliesTogether.

trump Fascism

In 2015 I wrote a piece entitled Dangerous Donald. Who would have known that this piece would become so prescient. I alluded to the toxicity of Trump’s rhetoric, and his blatant hostlity and bigotry against specific groups. Although I got the outcome of the election totally wrong, as most of us did, I saw something back then that has only been made manifest in the era of the trump regime.

The time is now for the people to stand up against the fascism of the Trump regime. Whether it be attacks against the Press, Muslims or an attempt to secure a national registry of voters to substantiate the LIE about voter fraud, fascism has come to America. Its face is Donald Trump, but its body is white nationalism also known as the Alt Right. That moniker is just another obfuscation of hatred against anything not white in the USA, and it is as old as slavery and the KKK.

There is enough evidence on the table already from public record that Trump likely colluded with the Russians to steal the 2016 presidential election. Recent reports have revealed that Russians not only successfully deployed a propaganda campaign against Hillary Clinton via WikiLeaks and hacked into the DNC, but they more than likely tampered with voter rolls in up to as many as 20 states.

Now we have the latest offense from the GOP, a most inhumane, draconian so-called healthcare bill in an attempt to repeal and replace Obamacare (the Affordable Care Act). This GOP bill in its present form will do tremendous damage against many Americans, and the CBO estimates approximately 23 million Americans will lose HealthCare coverage as a result. Is this trump making Anerica great again, or just sicker? Are Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell practicing Ayn Rand inspired eugenics on Americans?

My current prediction, and I hope I’m wrong, is that trump, and his cult following, will spread and foment propaganda that projects violent intent upon the Left, Progressives and Democrats. The fact of the matter is that terrorism is being perpetrated by white nationalists upon black people, Muslims and those who stand up for targeted groups. Cases in point, the murder of Richard Collins, a Bowie State University student on the campus of the University of Maryland. He was stabbed to death by a white nationalist for refusing to step aside. Then there is the murder of two men who defended Muslim women on an Oregon train.

Like it or not this is the reality of the trump era. The perfect storm of events has yielded trump in the White House, a second rate reality TV personality, con artist, misogynist, and grifter. His primary goal is not to create jobs for the American people, but rather try to destroy all that Barack Obama attempted to do to truly make America great. If true democracy looks like resistance to tyranny, then we had better immediately and relentlessly reflect that image. #RESIST!

Are Trump Voters Crazy?

The Washington Post proves that Trump voters really are quite crazy. Remember, during the GOP primaries, Donald proclaimed that he loved the “poorly educated”. The Donald’s campaign was far more about hate and malice than whether or not the electorate was educated, but it is quite clear from the results that ignorance is not bliss. 

Trump supporters choose to live in a bubble, an alternate reality, a world that is white male dominant and supremacist under the guise of religious freedom. These are the same people that rail against Islamic Sharia law, while imposing their perverse brand of so-called Christianity upon America. This is nothing new after all. Christianity was used to justify slavery, then Jim Crow and now the fool who just won the White House.

​White Noise!

I voted for Hillary! I hate the fact that Donald Trump is president-elect. What America said to me on  November 8th is, “we hate you if you’re not white”. This vote was the final dagger in the back of Barack Obama. In 2008, many in the country cheered when Obama was elected. He brought the promise of hope and change. With the election of Donald Trump, the country has gone into a low-level rage. The majority of voters who voted for Hillary have feelings of anger, anguish and mourning.

America has failed its racial test! This is a personal affront to me. This is a blow to the soul for me. I have watched for the last eight years America progressively manifest it’s racism overtly. The Republicans attacked Obama relentlessly, yelled at him in the House chamber, nullified him, ridiculed him and worked to degrade the first black president of the United States. So I’m not quite sure why this election was such a surprise to me. I just knew Hilary was going to win. Boy, was I totally wrong! I failed to realize the depth and the breadth of racism in this country.

I wrote a piece about Donald last August. In that piece I indicated just how dangerous I thought Donald Trump to be. My opinion has not changed. In fact, I am now more convinced that he is one of the most Insidious people on the planet. White America has elected this crazy man to be the chief executive officer of the United States of America. They have elected this narcissistic liar to be the commander-in-chief. Why? Fear of losing white privilege? Tired of 8 years of that n***** in office?

Hillary Clinton ran a solid campaign. Again, I hate that she lost the election, but things happen for a reason. This country isn’t worthy of Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. On the Republican side, Donald Trump rose to the top of the heap. Out of 17 or more candidates in the primaries, he became the GOP nominee. Hillary, on the other hand, had far less competition, but Bernie was her rival so he pulled her toward his progressive agenda. Regardless of what people say in hindsight post-election, Bernie would not have won the White House. This election was a perfect storm of events — voting irregularities, Russian hacking, misogyny and white supremacist hatred.

How did Trump rise above all of his competitors? He was one of the most uncouth, vile presidential candidates that has ever run for this high and lofty office, and his supporters loved every minute of it. In each passing day, with his demonstrated behavior, Trump revealed the heart and soul of white America. The United States of America is a nation of bigots, racists and misogynists. Given this fact, Hillary didn’t stand a chance. All I hear now is the Democrats didn’t speak enough to the white working-class voter. That’s racial code for, “you spent too much time talking to those n*****s and sp**s”. On Tuesday November 8, 2016, a faction of white America said we’ve had enough of that n***** and that n***** lover.

So now YOU have Trump because HE’S NOT MY PRESIDENT! America is in deep trouble. Because you say we don’t want the thing that is decent, honorable and good; so now you have trouble! This guy is going to bring heartache and misery to you. He lied to you all throughout his campaign. Already, he is backing away from empty promises. Since the election, hate crimes have spiked against Jews, Muslims and other groups targeted by his hateful rhetoric. All groups that Donald Trump maligned are now living with anxiety and fear. Children are afraid of Donald Trump and crying because they fear that their undocumented loved ones will be deported. It is deplorable, and it is disgusting!

Okay Deplorables, this is your time, let’s see what you’ve got. The world is looking at the heart and soul of America and we see that it is vapid, vacuous and violent, Donald Trump.

Watch “Full Speech: Hillary Clinton Anti-Trump Speech in Reno, Nevada (8/25/2016) Hillary Rally in Reno” on YouTube

Thank you Hillary Clinton for the speech you delivered at your really in Reno, Nevada! It takes a lot of courage for someone to make a speech that exposes the racist underbelly of the United States of America. During Hillary’s presidential campaign and throughout most of her public life, she has reached out to, worked with and supported black Americans. In her early career, she went door-to-door in my hometown in Massachusetts while working with the Children’s Defense Fund. Her methodical indictment of Donald Trump’s rhetoric and marriage to the white supremacist hate movement in America was powerful and effective.

Last August, I wrote a piece called Dangerous Donald, and my assertions could not have been more prescient. Many in the press, and in politics did not take Donald’s run for the presidency very serious. But, here we are a year later, and he’s the Republican nominee. He’s destroying the GOP with every racist word and misdeed, and it is well-deserved.

I applaud Hillary Clinton for making this speech at this particular moment in her campaign for the presidency especially since ‘thedonald’ has made his so-called  “pivot” in an effort to soften his image while disingenuously courting the black vote, and picture this, to all-white audiences using every stereotypical, dog-whistle talking point that he can muster. I repeat, Trump is dangerous, and not just to black Americans, but all Americans, and to the world at large.

Now the media and scared GOP politicians want to sanitize the white supremacist mob that has taken over their Party with the ascendancy of their nominee. In doing so, they use the term Alt-Right. The Southern Poverty Law Center defines the alternative right. 

The Alternative Right, commonly known as the Alt-Right, is a set of far-right ideologies, groups and individuals whose core belief is that “white identity” is under attack by multicultural forces using “political correctness” and “social justice” to undermine white people and “their” civilization.

What I know, racism and hate under any name is still racism and hate. We need to call out this evil, divisive hate whenever it rears is ugly head. I’m glad that we have at least one responsible, qualified presidential candidate in Hillary Clinton to speak out against white supremacists as they attempt to stage their coup against the American people. 

Head for the Hills! 

The irrational hatred of Hillary Clinton boggles my mind. After all, this woman is quite accomplished in her long career of public service. I have come to the conclusion that she is disliked primarily because she is a woman whose strength and unapologetic determination is regarded as lacking in feminity. It is fundamentally an unhealthy case of “sexism”. Attributes such as strength and courage are rarely celebrated when found in a woman. I think it is also partly the reason Hillary has related so well to black women and other minority groups. 

During Hillary’s campaign for the presidency, she has consistently reached out to black women. Let’s not forget, she began her long and impressive career working with a black woman, Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children’s Defense Fund. I had this thought again while watching the Democratic Convention and listening to the speeches delivered by the ‘Mothers of the Movement’. I discerned a very real connection between Hillary and the black mothers who had lost children to gun violence.

As I read through the Slate article, The Hillary Haters, I noted  one common thread, most, if not all, of the vehement haters were white people. Maybe Hillary is becoming our first black female president after all..

“It may be that the moment she starts to claim more power, it elicits a negative response,” 

Republicans and the corporate news media, have done effective damage to the image of Hillary Clinton. This media bias is very real and borne out by the research data. Right wing propaganda, conspiracy theorists and GOP talking points have smeared, maligned and vilified Hillary Clinton to the American people with vicious consistency. Who can withstand a constant barrage of negativity? Yet this woman, against an onslaught of hate-filled propaganda, has persevered. I give her much credit for that.

For example, when I watched Hillary testify for 11 hours straight during the Benghazi hearings, that Republican circus, I knew then that she was the best choice to succeed Barack Obama for president. Her toughness and stamina, her calmness under pressure and her intelligence in responding to the relentless questioning demonstrated her character and strength for leadership. In my opinion, the treatment of Hillary Clinton, and the level of hatred that is heaped upon her is similar to that of the hatred I have seen heaped upon black people in the United States of America. It’s peculiar. It’s sport. It’s insane.

I like Hillary, and Barack Obama for that matter, for their pragmatic approach to politics. Pragmatism doesn’t always enjoy popular support. In some cases it turns people off entirely. It’s not sexy. It doesn’t titillate. Pragmatism in politics is a workhorse, and it makes the effort to reach across the aisle.This is something that Hillary and Obama seem to have in common. Politics, after all, is the art of compromise. So, it makes perfect sense that the first black president will likely be succeeded by the first woman president. This is the real ‘revolution’, and both Hillary and Barack are and will be held to a very different standard.

I predict Hillary will win in November, but if Donald Trump were to take the White House, heaven forbid, the blame will lie squarely on the backs of hateful GOPers, low information voters, Hillary haters, Third-Party supporters and Bernie-or-Bust cultists.Truth be told, Libertarians are disgruntled Republicans, and the Green Party folks are disillusioned Democrats. Let’s face it, a vote for Third-Party candidates, Jill Stein or Gary Johnson is a vote for Donald Trump. As for me, I’m headed for the Hills! #StrongerTogether!

GOP’s Abismal Terrorism Record!

I just love it when the Obama haters are proven to be liars. My grandfather always said that Republicans were liars. Rest his soul, he was spot on about many of them.

When I consider the GOP Primary candidates and their eventual nominees in just the last two presidential elections, the one constancy is the level of overt mendacity. Well, maybe I should add racism to that. Wait, let’s add fascism too.

This DailyKos piece lays out the facts on the true track record of the hawkish GOP on terrorism. They suck at keeping Americans safe!

The Angry Electorate!

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The Republican Party has created it’s current nightmare scenario. All that the pundits can talk about is how to stop Donald Trump. Will the Republicans usurp the will of the angry white electorate that support Trump? Will their “establishment” candidate save the day?

My theory, after seven years of obstruction and hatred of Barack Obama, the GOP is reaping what they have sown. The stated goal from the mouth of Mitch McConnell was to make sure that Obama was a one-term president. Epic fail! The hallmark of the Obama administration has been success. This very fact has angered white men, in particular, who feel they are losing privilege, power and control in America. White supremacist hate groups are rising faster than they have in many recent years. For more than seven years, the GOP along with the right-wing media echo chamber has stoked the Tea Party and created a rabid, beast-like constituency that can no longer be controlled. The Republican Party is getting what it deserves! Trump is dessimating the Party, and they are frantic to regain control.

Roland Martin breaks it down in plain language, Trump is “the great white hope”. Martin provides an insightful analysis on both Democrats and Republicans, and I couldn’t agree more. The chickens are finally coming home to roost for the Republicans. Can you imagine Trump as #POTUS? Neither can the Republicans.