The Birds

Alfred Hitchcok did it 1st Mr. President

One of the best horror flicks I ever saw coming up was
Alfred Hitchcocks – The Birds. In the movie, Birds was (im country)
rolling like crips wreaking havoc on a small lily white, coastal
town. A few weeks ago, your boy G.W. got on the television set,
read a few tele-prompted words that he likely didn’t write
and played the role of contentious national leader. The speech
was on the war with Iraq, fighting AIDS, and guarding against
new health threats, namely the Avian Influenza virus.

Just a few weeks after the President did this, we began to see
a few more situations manifest. First the British government
said a strain of bird flu that killed a parrot in quarantine is has
made it to Europe. The bird died from the same strain that killed
61 people in Asia over the past few years. It has also been observed
in avian species in Russia, Turkey, Sweden and Montenegro.
In Russia, The latest incident of bird flu was in Tambov,
about 250 miles southeast of Moscow
Meanwhile back on the home front, the president actually
requested from congress, the power to use the military if
a bird flu pandemic ever occurs. He has also met with major
pharmaceutical company big wigs including GlaxoSmithKline
and Merck & Co., asking them to develop a vaccine against
bird. For some reason I feel that the President may have
already dropped a few vials of the H5N1 in the hands of
some of his cronies.

I hope I am just being far-fetched, cynical and conspiratorial
but it is very ironic, that almost two-weeks after The
President gave his speech talking about the threats of
at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, we
begin to see first: 1) news coverage outlining the risk and
scaring the general public, 2) news releases that
pharmaceutical companies will begin mass production of a vaccine
that we don’t or won’t know will work, and 3) outbreaks of the
virus in countries across Europe. I don’t know how much risk
we are to the bird flu, frankly I feel a greater risk of being
beaten to death by a cop or crashing on I-285. I wonder
what will be the next thing the government uses to scare
us into denying our civil liberties and moving us closer to
martial law and a police state. If it is a remake of an
Alfred Hitchcock classis – I ain’t buying it.

ya dont say

"Eighty-nine percent of blacks" believe them folk owe us
some land and loot...... more.

in the mean time the man
and they pundits hate - now its Spike Lee

The there is the new possibility of more war.

Will the next world war be fought over the internet or will Vice President Cheney dicide to go else where like Syria or Iran be the next sites for war?

Female Dog Gluteus Maximus Negro

[originally called Bitch ass nigga-editors changed it]
I have always traveled back and forth to Africa rather
frequently over the last 12 years. Each time I learn something
new about African cultures as well as my own, being an
African American. My most recent trip brought to the fore
an experience that I never would have dreamed of
occurring – meeting a fellow African American, whom for
me it was obvious was his first time in Africa, who did
not acknowledge another fellow countryman. Now
when I’m there, I stay in houses or five star hotels.
This time I was in one of my regular habitats in
Johannesburg – the Hyatt Rosebank in Sandton. For the
purpose of anonymity, I will try to tell the story in an old
fashion way as to not give out too much information on
the person I am speaking about.

Once upon a time, an expatriate returned to South Africa
on one of his usual business trips. He stayed in a luxurious
five star hotel where he often occupied the Bill Clinton
Suite. The floor of this hotel, where this suite was located
also contained all of the other suites in the hotel. One
morning by chance he woke up and exited his room.
At the same time, a fellow African American was coming
out of his room also. He spoke to the young man. He could
recognize his face but did not know where he had seen him
before. Being the courteous person he was, he started small
talk and introduced himself. The young man seemed to be
brash, and not interested in the fact that there were other
African Americans staying in the hotel with him. Before
He could say have a nice day, the rather diminutive man
hurriedly walked away to the elevator, putting the head
phones to his mp3 player on his head, trying not to make
eye contact with the man. He was also very surprised to
see how short this person was, and If he would not have
know better, he may have though of him as being a black
mini-me of the Austin Powers variety.

The expatriate found the entire situation strange, especially
when it dawned on him who this person was. He was an actor,
a very popular actor. Although he had not seen any of his
movies, he knew that he had played several major roles
opposite some of Hollywood’s biggest stars. In one movie
adapted from a major novel, he played opposite Whoopi
Goldberg and Angela Bassett. In another, he has also
played opposite of Omar Epps, Mos Def and Sanaa Lathan. The end.

I was very troubled by his actions and at first thought it
was just bad timing or an aberration. But we meet again,
and as I was saying hello again, he quickly jumped on the
elevator trying not to notice or make eye contact with me.
I say all of this just to instruct folks on how expatriates behave
when they are abroad. All Americans, especially African
Americans usually meet, greet and speak to each other
when in Africa. I have been with other notable celebrities in
a host of African countries, and even in flight, they are cordial
and seem to recognize the importance of acknowledging ones own
kind in a foreign country. So people please, when ever you are in
Africa, and you see a person who looks American, or hear a
distinctly unique American voice, common protocol is to
speak and be courteous, for you never may know who you
will run into. And please, what ever you do, don’t act like
a, well since I cant say what I would like to, a female dog
gluteus maximus Negro. I will not hold this against him,
hopefully he will learn from his mistakes and use this as
a growing experience. Besides I would never reduce myself
to such pettiness – not speaking when spoken too. I have
too much home training for that.

Ethnic Cleansing (10.1.05)

We will always remember from here on out the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina. For me, it will begin with redefining and
rearranging old concepts into new ones. In particular is the
concept of ethnic cleansing. I have followed the recent
natural disaster that tore up the gulf coast, especially
New Orleans rather closely.
Ethnic cleansing refers to policies of forcibly removing
people of one ethnic group through actions man made
that can range to cover forced emigration, mass population
transfer and/or genocide. For most historians and
politicians it mainly refers to as the forced expulsion
of an unattractive and unwelcome group of people
from a given area (New Orleans) as a function of racial
discrimination. It was first used exclusively during
the conflict between Serbia and Croatia. Now, given
the recent comments by politicians and other
associated with the New Orleans community,
ethnic cleansing takes on a new meaning.
First, there is House Speaker Dennis Hastert
statement he made to a Chicago newspaper
that it was senseless saying that large areas of
New Orleans look as if they could be bulldozed.
Then there is Mark Drennen, who president of
Greater New Orleans Inc., who has referred to
residents of the damaged area as being a minority
group when in fact African Americans in the city
are the clear majority. Next there is former First
Lady Barbara Bush who stated that by loosing
their homes and being forcibly removed, that
the” underprivileged” were in a situation that
was” working very well for them.”
It will be some time before or if New Orleans as
will resemble its old self. Not only is the estimate of
nearly 200,000 homeless residents is high, President
Bush has proposed the “Urban Homesteading Act”
which really doesn’t do anything about the problem.
The concern is that the minority or approximately 25
percent white community will likely be allowed to
slowly return to the areas that were least damaged
(the French Quarter and the garden District) while
African Americans from the hardest hit areas will
have a more difficult task of retuning given they have
been bussed and transported to places as far away as
Minnesota and Utah. Maybe this is what was meant when
Republican Congressman Richard Baker of Baton said that
that the housing projects were finally cleaned
up--we couldn’t do it, but God did.
What has occurred in the city of New Orleans is a
deliberate and systematic destruction of the urban
African American community. More than 200,000
individuals, mostly African Americans have been removed,
transported and relocated to other parts of the country
under the guise of protection. But then again, that’s the
excuse the Serbs, the Croat’s and the Rwandans used also.

Mook -B, Born Immaculate & Fabo

Congrats to my Folk on their 98th place showing on
Billboard this week. Ill stop by the spot this week
Mook-B. more specifically it said "

This week's top debut was Alicia
Keys' "Unbreakable,"
which bowed at No. 61. Also new to the list
...... D4L's "Laffy Taffy" (No. 98).

typical assailant (7.28.05)

"Whoop that Trick"

If somebody is missing, you know the procedural manual
suggests blaming a man, preferably one of a darker shade.
Just ask Jennifer Wilbanks whose April wedding was
supposedly interrupted by a Latino man. Or, let’s go way
back to Charles Stuart in Boston, Massachusetts,
who said a black man shot his pregnant wife –when
actually, he was the assailant. Then there was Susan Smith,
who in 1994 stated that an African American man
kidnapped her sons, but authorities later discovered
that she drowned them herself.

This time, police in Aruba detained Mickey
John and Abraham Jones in connection with Natalee Holloway’s
disappearance. They were eventually released, but
they meet the standard of being males of African descent.
Why they were held so quickly and considered prime suspects
from jump street is not the issue. The issue is that history, replete
with incessant examples of allegations against men such
as myself, tends to repeat itself.

It appears that there has not been much change at all from
the days of law enforcement opening the jails and allowing
groups of white men to freely have their way with us without
due process. Now true, the justice system in Aruba is very
different from ours in the U.S. But the quickness with
which these men were held and condemned as being guilty,
was a continuation of past acts.

The men and women out there who happen to be mothers
and fathers, myself included, must always reinforce to their
daughters that they are valuable and that they will be
looked for if they’re ever missing, regardless of media
coverage. And for our sons, we must remind them that
things are not as they seem and that they too,
instantaneously and without due process can be considered
the typical assailant.--torrance stephens

i eat peta’s (1.27.05)

I want to unswervingly address this essay to the
organization, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
or PETA. Just to set the record straight, there is no
legitimate substitute or alternative for meat; not even
vegetable sushi or grilled tofu.
PETA is harping some new foolishness regarding fish
consumption by humans. This deception is called the
Fish Empathy Project. First, I cannot figure out why
PETA desires to behave as an oppressor and tell me
as an individual what I can and cannot consume. Second,
it is perceptible that they are picking solely on humans,
unless they are marketing this project to sharks and
other fish-eating fish, too.

It is beyond my mental faculties to consider that fish
require empathy when all I can think of is grilled salmon,
fried tilapia and tuna fish; and don’t forget to mention
crab, shrimp, oysters and clams.

No organization, not even the government, has the
authority to tell any person what to eat and/or place in
their body, for that matter. This is by all accounts an
inalienable right. By definition, inalienable rights are
rights that only God can allot. Not to mention, I eat
PETA’s – stuffed with meat and vegetables. PETA needs
to have empathy for soybeans and stop the spread of the
wind-borne soybean rust spore that is presently devastating
crops before their members find themselves eating
fish also. -torrance stephens

pictures of american presidents (1.6.05)

The economy is rather problematic; that is, if you are a
resident of the United States. The dollar is not as powerful as it
used to be. Currency exchange rates and our penchant to
borrow from abroad have lead to these concerns. As things
stand, the picture does not appear to be improving anytime
soon. There is an increase in requests for unemployment
benefits and the U.S. has not engendered any new development
of economic capital within its borders to create employment
for an already large and ever expanding populace,
although the president just signed a $388 billion pork-filled
bill to keep the government up and running for another fiscal year.
As we continue to borrow and increase our national deficit,
China—where the current value of the Chinese yuan is
8.3 to one U.S. dollar—is sitting pretty and set up to
make an appealing penny, as well as create a strong
boost for their own economy by flooding the U.S. with cheap
imports.

Other countries may be in dire economic times, but we, as
our forefathers might say, are up a creek without a paddle.
Surely, we can recover, but how long will this take? Add to
the aforementioned the open-ended cost of occupying Iraq,
and unstable energy prices at the consumer level. We should
all expect a deluge of pink slips in our communities. This is
because the world, especially the folks from whom we borrow,
are weary of us forcing our views on other countries and no longer
want to accept U.S currency bearing minute pictures of American
presidents for their services and products, because the dollar
has no value. –torrance stephens

the good, the bad, the 527s (5.2.05)

Once upon a time, politics were controlled by the unlimited
spending practices of political parties. This is no longer the case.
However, money is still running all things politically related
to campaigns and legislation.
Organizations that are set up to raise money for political
activities, including voter mobilization efforts, are called 527s.
They represent the Swift Boats veterans and the Moveon.orgs
of the world. They are special interest groups that purchase
television and radio advertisement to promote their political
agendas. This enhanced political freedom has resulted in a
dramatic change in the manner in which political elections
are run. They have more freedom than political parties to
raise funds and may use it as they please.
It was initially believed that once the McCain-Fiengold Bill
(the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act) was passed, this type
of soft money spending would be significantly affected.
Since it was not, politicians seemed to make more trouble
for themselves, since anyone has the ability to control
the messages they put out.
Last year, these so-called 527s spent approximately
400 million on their political agendas and advertising to
promote their beliefs and their political candidates. These
organizations are independent, more so than political action
committees—and have the ability to make politicians address
issues that they would otherwise have avoided. Since most
politicians use the focus group methodology to decide what
they will use for talking points and selecting sounds bites,
527s have the capacity to force the issue from outside of
the political process. Thanks to Capitol Hill, for this is another
fine mess you have gotten us into. --torrance stephens

dvds are fundamental (6.03.05)

There is a new disease infecting our community.
It specifically targets our children and young adults.
No, I am not speaking of a new strain of HIV/AIDS or
violence, but rather something more heinous and without
a viral etiological connection. I am speaking specifically
of our ability to read as well as our desire to read.
This is not an issue of having a skill deficit, but rather,
the failure of seeing reading as being important and
essential. I was taught that it was my duty to read all I
could get my hands on, and this was not just limited to
the sports page, horoscopes or my particular interests.
I often remind my son that more than 150 years ago,
during the period of American slavery, it was illegal for
slaves to learn to read and that if they were discovered
to have acquired such a skill, they were punished by
being blinded, having their tongue cut out or killed.
Now I am not going to place blame on the school system,
since the foundation for reading should be established in
the home, nor will I attach this reduction to external
elements of the environment such as television, cable and
the New Age culture of music videos and playstations.
If we truly concerned ourselves with this issue, then we would
elevate reading over other pastimes, particularly in
environments where reading should flourish such as in the car.
I don’t claim to have all of the answers but I do know that
if we were concerned with this, we would have books and
newspapers in the backseats of our cars and trucks instead
of video screens and DVDs.
--torrance stephens