It's a Telling of How Rainbows are Made in the ShadeThing

Dear America,

"Poetry is a phantom script

 telling how rainbows are made

 and how they go away"

Carl Sandburg

awesome.

you know, it's kinda funny how times change; and then again, sometimes it isn't.

growing up, awesome was a word to express something totally outrageous and cool and wonderful and magnificent.  if something was awesome, it was the greatest thing ever, the best thing I ever ate, or the most perfect day in the life of an American girl.

Today, the word is reduced to the ultimate in snarky putdowns -- of person or circumstance -- pulling a total reversal of fortune in magnanimity.  and with that being said --  it also demands the delivery to be of equal importance.

...we're talking dry as all get out [spilled milk..."awesome"]

...perhaps the situation may call for making a subtle change to the face -- going from 'I was already so bored with you but now look at me (as in, if sarcasm had a face, this would be the one)

...but most definitely, it's an attitude; an attitude that takes awesome the distance -- and far, far away from it's original use and meaning.

Like for me, G, I could say the president's economic speech @ Knox College was, in a word,  awesome...and with the right delivery, at the right time, could walk away without saying another word and you would get it.  The "awesomeness" would be unquestionably written across my face and fully recognized in the sound of my voice.

get it?

I didn't say it was AWESOME!  and jump up for joy and get a tingle all up and down my leg.
No.   I said something more like, awesome. yay...in a tone as flat as a pancake  (which is -- naturally -- really, really hard for me to do); needless to say, the pressure to pull that off was like, pretty awesome, scratch that -- I mean, like, super huge!

The very same day that our president was speaking @ Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois for one hour and four minutes of the world's time on America's dime, I was shopping for groceries as part of my daytime gig -- that being the nanny/the help for a little family of four.

And so there I was, mindlessly running through the check-out when the girl (maybe all of nineteen) asked me if I wanted to donate a $5 bag of groceries for the homeless, when, realizing it wasn't my dime had to say 'not today', and lo and behold, just what was her fantabulous retort?

"awesome."

I wanted to punch her lights out.

It was so uncalled for, you know.
It was like, seriously, did she just say that?

And talk about self-control; the word hit me hard;  I had to give it everything I got to fight off the natural urge for retaliation given the day already flying off the charts in splendid awesomeness, inescapably surrounded by tweeny-bopper attitude to the maximus awesomeness capacity, that is.

And just look at me!

Considering it's been days -- clearly her snarky-ness left an AWESOME mark on my sensitive, highly vulnerable, normally peachy, side.

Cue the childhood flashback, take two:  'sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.'

It's easier said than done, isn't it.

Petty annoyances linger.

And then I realize something more. 
I know myself. 
I know who I am and from where I came.

The president ended his one hour and four minute speech of grand economic awesomeness quoting part of a poem by Carl Sandburg, Prairie.

"There is a song deep as the falltime redhaws,

long as the layer of black loam we go to,

the shine of the morning star over
the corn belt, the wave line of dawn up a wheat valley..    .    .
O prairie mother, I am one of your boys.
I have loved the prairie as a man

with a heart shot full of pain over love.
Here I know I will hanker after nothing so much

as one more sunrise

or a sky moon of fire doubled to a river moon of water..
  .    .
I speak of new cities and new people.
I tell you the past is a bucket of ashes.
I tell you yesterday is a wind gone down,
  a sun dropped in the west.
I tell you there is nothing in the world
  only an ocean of to-morrows,
  a sky of to-morrows.

I am a brother of the cornhuskers who say
  at sundown:
        To-morrow is a day."

The golden highlight is the part shared by the president; while, make no mistake, he introduces it with a certain context: 

 "[Sandburg] saw fortunes made and lost.  And he saw how change could be painful -- how a new age could unsettle long-held customs and ways of life.  But he had that frontier optimism, and so he saw something more on the horizon."

Translation: the president equating that frontier optimism with frontier redistribution...

That "frontier optimism" through the eyes of Sandburg, begins innocently enough:

I am here when the cities are gone.
I am here before the cities come.
I nourished the lonely men on horses.
I will keep the laughing men who ride iron.
I am dust of men.

The running water babbled to the deer, the cottontail, the gopher.
You came in wagons, making streets and schools,
Kin of the ax and rifle, kin of the plow and horse,
Singing Yankee Doodle, Old Dan Tucker, Turkey in the Straw,
You in the coonskin cap at a log house door hearing a lone wolf howl,
You at a sod house door reading the blizzards and chinooks let loose from Medicine Hat,
I am dust of your dust, as I am brother and mother
To the copper faces, the worker in flint and clay,
The singing women and their sons a thousand years ago
Marching single file the timber and the plain.

I hold the dust of these amid changing stars.
I last while old wars are fought, while peace broods mother-like,
While new wars arise and the fresh killings of young men.
I fed the boys who went to France in great dark days.
Appomattox is a beautiful word to me and so is Valley Forge and the Marne and Verdun,
I who have seen the red births and the red deaths
Of sons and daughters, I take peace or war, I say nothing and wait.

and all of a sudden we get something different.

All over America, hush now, the prairie is speaking.

It's the prairie that remains through thick and thin; surely it is a land of men past and present, steadfast, strong and proud.  Nearly everything under heaven comes and goes, freely.  And yet the prairie may just be the one thing that outlasts, one and all.

A wagonload of radishes on a summer morning.
Sprinkles of dew on the crimson-purple balls.
The farmer on the seat dangles the reins

 on the rumps of dapple-gray horses.
The farmer’s daughter with a basket of eggs

 dreams of a new hat to wear to the county fair..    .    .
On the left-and right-hand side of the road,
        Marching corn—
I saw it knee high weeks ago—now it is head high—

tassels of red silk creep at the ends of the ears..    .    .
I am the prairie, mother of men, waiting.
They are mine, the threshing crews eating beefsteak,

 the farmboys driving steers to the railroad cattle pens.
They are mine, the crowds of people at a Fourth of July basket picnic,

listening to a lawyer read the Declaration of
Independence, watching the pinwheels

and Roman candles at night,

the young men and women two by two

hunting the bypaths and
kissing bridges.
They are mine, the horses looking over a fence

 in the frost of late October

saying good-morning to the horses hauling wagons
of rutabaga to market.
They are mine, the old zigzag rail fences, the new barb wire..    .    .
The cornhuskers wear leather on their hands.
There is no let-up to the wind.
Blue bandannas are knotted at the ruddy chins.

Falltime and winter apples take on the smolder

of the five-o’clock November sunset:

 falltime, leaves, bonfires, stubble,
the old things go, and the earth is grizzled.
The land and the people hold memories,

even among the anthills and the angleworms,

among the toads and woodroaches—among
gravestone writings rubbed out by the rain—

they keep old things that never grow old.

Nearly everything under heaven comes and goes, freely; and yet, the prairie remains the constant.

 Read the whole poem.  Like everything in life, our individual experiences bring a context that is truly of our own making -- even in poetry.

"poetry is an echo, asking a shadow to dance." 

 --  Sandburg

"when a nation goes down, 

or a society perishes,

one condition may always be found;

they forgot where they came from. 

They lost sight of what brought them along." 

 -- Sandburg

"I've written poetry even I don't understand." 

 -- Sandburg

"I have often wondered

what it is an old building

can do to you

when you happen to know

 a little about things

 that went on

 long ago in that building."

 -- Sandburg

Obama also said this @Knox College, when he spoke for one hour and four minutes of total awesomeness:

"When we think about our own communities -- we're not a mean people; we're not a selfish people; we're not a people that just looks out for “number one.”  Why should our politics reflect those kinds of values?  That’s why we don’t call it John’s dream or Susie’s dream or Barack’s dream or Pat's dream -- we call it the American Dream. "

...which is ironic when put in the context of the book that put Obama's political career on the map, Dreams From My Father.   [Not to mention, interaction with a certain checker-girl coming to mind -- she being an awesome reminder of how unfortunate the times and all the ways times have changed.   But let's keep moving forward, shall we?]

The president continued --  muscling every ounce of awesomeness of Politics in America... from the prairie...to the purple mountains majesty...from sea to shining sea...to the forefront -- saying:

"And that’s what makes this country special  -- the idea that no matter who you are or what you look like or where you come from or who you love, you can make it if you try. (Applause.)  That’s what we're fighting for.

So, yes, Congress is tough right now, but that’s not going to stop me.  We're going to do everything we can, wherever we can, with or without Congress, to make things happen.  We're going to go on the road and talk to you, and you'll have ideas, and we want to see which ones we can implement.  But we're going to focus on this thing that matters."

 awesome.

Politics and propaganda

is like poetry --

 a phantom script

 telling how rainbows are made

 and how they go away

The speech was a stunner on many levels, but you shouldn't take it from me.

Just look upon the task of reading the transcript @ Knox College like a piece of Americana, plucked out of the poetic reality from an iconic writer, or something.  Just know it will be awesome either way;  and surely, reading it will take a whole lot less time than the one hour and four minutes to listen to it.  [This old prairie girl, here, is always looking for new ways to make lemonade.]

Make it a Good Day, G

 

It's a Marvelous Night for a Moondance Thing

Dear America,

so, it's evening and it's also been a very long day...

but my mind is just racing.

Having been idling on a quote of Martin Luther King's since midmorning  -- here I am --  the sun is setting and I am still sitting with my new best friend, miss preoccupation; and she won't quit, she can't stop talking.   So, with the thought having no where to run, no where to hide -- it's become quite apparent there is no settling into a quiet, mellow evening for me; no wine will be poured, no remote will be drawn, until I put these thoughts well enough to bed already.

And to think, it all began when little old gthing here, got a little lucky, and was able to catch a few minutes of the Mike Slater Show on KFMB/760am San Diego.  Mike -- who never seems to let me down -- was just doing what he does best... making common sense entertaining, thought provoking, genuine, honest, and timely.  

But, like I said, it's been a long day and I'm tired; and all I really remember on the remarks was a stunning stat, and something about St. Louis, and that it came out of a brilliant mind (and one of my favorite people in the whole, wide, wonderful, world) -- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Making a long story short -- it was Mike number one who unwittingly led me to find Mike number two (gotta love Google search, no?  match dot com to the nth degree; infinity times infinity;  and, lo and behold, making the two put together make magic!

Since my last post was super long --  my aim, before we call it a day, is to keep this one pretty simple.

So without further delay -- you must read Another Gun Blog, by Mike W. -- here.  He's  a fellow BlogSpot-er; he seems cool; and aw hell, what have you got to lose, right?

Mike, number one, and Mike, number two shared the same quote of Martin's:

Do you know that Negroes are 10 percent of the population of St. Louis and are responsible for 58% of its crimes? We've got to face that. And we've got to do something about our moral standards.....We know that there are many things wrong in the white world, but there are many things wrong in the black world, too. We can't keep on blaming the white man. There are things we must do for ourselves."

Magic, right?

It gets better.

Mike, number two, also steers us to an article online from the Wall Street Journal, written by Jason Riley: Race, Politics and the Zimmerman Trial;  consider it to be, like, oh, how do you say,  a must read, numero dos.   And lucky for you, it's also really good.

so that's it, really.

if you read these two things --  Mike and Mike and Martin and me ...oh and Jason...(even though that "J" magnificently messes with my alliteration magic; I hate that...) will ask nothing more from you until tomorrow...maybe; gee willickers, who am I?  What am I saying?  I can't speak for anyone else but me.  

For all I know, the good Dr. King could be calling on you right now, pursuing you into the wee hours and making you toss and turn -- wondering : 

wondering about all the things we must do for ourselves;
wondering about all the things that nudge us, concern us -- all the things we question well into the midnight hour;
wondering about all the things our own moral standards teach us;
wondering about all the things that keep us awake at night --  day dreaming -- dreaming of all the things that could BE in the real world, in the world right here, right now.  

It's really about the only thing we can do, must do --  for ourselves and for all mankind.

Thank you, gentlemen, for keeping this girl company this evening, and helping her along the way.

Only a slight purr remains,
it's a marvelous night for a moondance,
me thinks I can close my eyes now and go to sleep. 
sweet dreams to all and to all a good night.

Make it      a         good     day............g
 

It's About a Stilted and Highly Politicized Locked Position, Times Two, Thing

Dear America,

"the funny thing

 about home improvement

-- it's contagious" 

latest Lowe's commercial

and isn't that the truth...

while isn't the contrast, an absolute community killer.

Oh wow, America; are we in for a long ride through another valley, or what?

And oh the irony coming from a campaign revolving around the idea of moving forward.

It's like, seriously, do we really have to go back to the 60's?  Whether it be the 1960's or 1860's -- let's refer back to the words of our president --  having duly noted this stark reality during an interruption of the press corps briefing on Friday: 

"You know, when Trayvon Martin was first shot I said that this could have been my son.  Another way of saying that is Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago.  And when you think about why, in the African American community at least, there’s a lot of pain around what happened here, I think it’s important to recognize that the African American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that doesn’t go away."


and isn't that the truth... 

Thank you, Mr. President, for admitting this right up front anyway.  For we are truly living in the midst of  "a history that doesn't go away" and will never go away.  Leading many of us to believe then, this valley is America's cross to bear for the duration.  yippee.

The funny thing about home improvement --

it's contagious.

And now let's think about Detroit -- which, by the way, by the 1960's was considered the fifth largest city in America, with a population of 1.8 million; now, having lost over a million tax payers, Detroit is filing for bankruptcy.  It could be said that Detroit became a community where the contagion known as home improvement -- beginning at the level of the family residence (be it an apartment, townhome, condominium, or single family residence with a two car garage...) and working, rippling, from the inside out -- never really caught on for the long haul.  Graffiti, disrepair, lack of ownership in every sense of the word, living alongside the home wrecker of the century -- an overwhelming and heightened growth of entitlement without expectation of any return on investment.  Hmmm... I wonder who is responsible for that?

And let's now think about Chicago.  Go here.  And here.  And just listen to the Governor, Pat Quinn, offering up the answer to it all:  "[T]hat ought to be an alarm bell to all of us that we need strong laws that protect the public safety, especially when it comes to guns," the Chicago Democrat told reporters after speaking at a church on the city's West Side. "It's time to end the violence."

Kinda funny coming from a state with some of the toughest gun laws on the planet already; the not-so-funny thing about the contagion that looks like, and acts like, gun recklessness, gun law disrespect, gang violence, and the brutal reality that is thugocracy,  is that it's beginning to show -- killing innocent standbys.  In the end, none of it serves the neighborhood any good.   Hmmm...I wonder who is responsible for that?

Actual quote from "Dreams from My Father" [pg. 100-101]:  "To avoid being mistaken for a sellout, I chose my friends carefully. The more politically active black students. The foreign students. The Chicanos. The Marxist professors and structural feminists and punk-rock performance poets. We smoked cigarettes and wore leather jackets. At night, in the dorms, we discussed necolonialism, Franz Fanon, Eurocentrism, and patriarchy. When we ground out our cigarettes in the hallway carpet or set our stereos so loud that the walls began to shake, we were resisting bourgeois society’s stifling constraints. We weren’t indifferent or careless or insecure. We were alienated.  But this strategy alone couldn’t provide the distance I wanted, from Joyce or my past. After all, there were thousands of so-called campus radicals, most of them white and tenured and happily tolerated. No, it remained necessary to prove which side you were on, to show your loyalty to the black masses, to strike out and name names."

Joyce was just a girl and fellow classmate of mixed race.

 

Deep impact of history and community and faults and improvements run rampant and wild within the American psyche.  But just when will we ever accept our American history as an equal opportunity to understand, and respect, and heed, as one people?   

 

Newsflash:   It's been all about the American community since the year 1776.  There is no "white" history, "black" history, "Hispanic" history, "Irish" history, "Italian" history, "Japanese" history.   Those who continue to separate our "histories" --  as if by color or ethnicity, and not by the content of their character (or the lack thereof) --  demonstrably, irresponsibly, and in no uncertain terms, stand in the way of real progress moving forward.  Unless, of course, they really don't want to move forward -- for political aims and popular vote control.  Oh, who would do a thing like that? 

 

Historical segregation should be considered just as evil as the segregation itself. 

 

The thing is, we are One Nation  ---  and oh, by the way,  it's Under God.

[and besides, what's Africa's excuse these days -- when Black on Black Oppression still rues the day in parts?    The real African History shows enslavement, wretched violence by blacks against blacks, horrific living conditions and huge income disparities, right now -- in the present day; not only that, since when is it okay in America to consider all whites assumed to be related to families of previous slave owners without prejudice, across the board?    That is simply not true;  talk about profiling gone amuck; enough!   Doesn't the president recognize how white people are sensitive about America's past racial transgressions in equal portion?   Isn't he half white?  Isn't he "white" just as much as Zimmerman?   Oh, but didn't Obama also say, "I ceased to advertise my mother's race at the age of 12 or 13, when I began to suspect that by doing so I was ingratiating myself to whites."

And I may be just a girl -- and a white girl, at that -- but what is it about the poor-ness, or the black-ness, within the black community that allows for total disrespect of fellow human life and personal property, jeopardizing the overall happiness and sense of security of an entire neighborhood?   Can't they teach their children to love one another, too -- even in Chicago?  

Mind you, if we are to be aligned with the notion that it's cool to separate people now (per the president, in company with the entire Democratic Party) --  doesn't the black community go to church with one foot in front of the other just like everybody else?  Reading the teachings of the good book on a weekly basis is believed to be not only right and good, but it's done and done, right?   So where is the love?

The funny thing about home improvement --

it's contagious

Home improvement isn't just about what it looks like on the outside.  Oh contraire.   The happiest of families are usually the ones who know how to love and respect one another, as well as thy neighbor.

It is the job of the parent to raise the child to love and live in community with one another, while amply supported by the teachings of church, school, and village that center upon the principles, values, and virtues that lift mankind and make the community in which we live more beautiful.

The more we do this, the more we witness the good that lives and breathes inside all of us, as if every Random Act of Kindness, and act of paying it forward, becomes the new role model for everyone to follow.

Thinking Justin; the new kind of dividend for our future...as in, a mind is a terrible thing to waste kind of way.  Promoting another commercial now, advertising for the Connect a Million Minds campaign on Time Warner Cable,  a young, African-American boy named Justin declares a few of his ambitions, including going back to fix Detroit.

And here's the elitist-in-chief with an answer from Friday:

"But I do recognize that as President, I’ve got some convening power, and there are a lot of good programs that are being done across the country on this front.  And for us to be able to gather together business leaders and local elected officials and clergy and celebrities and athletes, and figure out how are we doing a better job helping young African American men feel that they’re a full part of this society and that they’ve got pathways and avenues to succeed — I think that would be a pretty good outcome from what was obviously a tragic situation."

Perhaps the president should just get with the program with what corporations like Time Warner Cable have already put together -- going on for a number of years now.

But more than that, maybe what should happen is we cease looking to the upper echelon, other elitists, to organize and take action and go right to the source -- to the family unit -- right from the start.  It really doesn't have to get any more complicated, or organized by "celebrities and athletes," than that.   And for that matter, we really don't even need a Time Warner Cable, if we are to do it right.    All we need is every parent in America to watch over their own children -- to encourage the importance of going to school, doing homework, staying out of trouble, being a good neighbor, doing the right thing and even wanting to do the right thing -- like a Justin, and whoever is responsible for instilling the hearty and sound work ethic and commitment to excellence that bubbles over when he speaks.

Every parent, no matter the color of the skin, whether rich or poor, can do it.

The African-American community has shining examples all around us -- including the person in the highest office of the land, including every level of government, including positions of CEO's and Corporate Board Members, including professors of higher learning, including community volunteers of all agencies and organizations, including clergy, including medicine, including economics, including media, including entertainment, including sports.   And the list goes on.

The funny thing about home improvement --

it's contagious

"And then, finally, I think it’s going to be important for all of us to do some soul-searching.  There has been talk about should we convene a conversation on race.  I haven’t seen that be particularly productive when politicians try to organize conversations.  They end up being stilted and politicized, and folks are locked into the positions they already have.  On the other hand, in families and churches and workplaces, there’s the possibility that people are a little bit more honest, and at least you ask yourself your own questions about, am I wringing as much bias out of myself as I can?  Am I judging people as much as I can, based on not the color of their skin, but the content of their character?  That would, I think, be an appropriate exercise in the wake of this tragedy."   President Obama, last Friday

Exactly.

That's what I'm talkin' about.

But then, putting this in direct contrast to how he started, the president began with having his thoughts and prayers and love extend only to the family of Trayvon -- Zimmerman's family got nada.    "First of all... to remark on the incredible grace and dignity with which they’ve dealt with the entire situation.  I can only imagine what they’re going through, and it’s remarkable how they’ve handled it."

Mr. "He-could-have-been-my-son and He-could-have-been-me-35-years-ago" seems to have a hard time taking the color of skin out of the picture, doesn't he; me thinks a'stilting and a'politicizing on a'fairly-locked-position he will go, with pride.  Perhaps the president could stop and ask himself, "Am I judging people as much as I can, based on not the color of their skin, but the content of their character?"   Am I, am I?

For more on the Press Conference interrupt-ess, The Patriot Post provides a wonderful rebuttal to the president's propaganda push from Friday, here.  And for the full transcript on the president's full court press on the various racial disparities that will never go away, dating back 200 years, and proving his "loyalty to the black masses" in spades, go here, courtesy of The Blaze.

The funny thing about home improvement --

it's contagious

But since I brought up religion a wee bit ago, allow me to break away from the lowlights of last Friday and circle around to something that made my heart go into virtual shock and horror.

First, Fox News supplied this link, here.

But for the genuine article, simply click here.

"God ain’t good all of the time. In fact, sometimes, God is not for us. As a black woman in a nation that has taken too many pains to remind me that I am not a white man, and am not capable of taking care of my reproductive rights, or my voting rights, I know that this American god ain’t my god. As a matter of fact, I think he’s a white racist god with a problem. More importantly, he is carrying a gun and stalking young black men."

For some, not only do we have separate histories now, we have our own god, too -- an American god [note, she used a little g], who -- according to this Associate Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, Religious Studies, Anthea Butler --  finds this god to be knee deep in racism, solely for the love and purpose of the white man. 

Of course, in her blog, she was referring to a specific answer George Zimmerman gave to Sean Hannity, citing his actions as "God's will."  In fact, if you actually listen to what Zimmerman said to Hannity, that wasn't exactly what he said.   He said it was part of God's plan.  

These are two widely different things:  for referring to God's will, speaks of volition and deliberate intention, by design, at the hand of God; however, in the context of "God's plan," Zimmerman describes the outcome of the night as if it were meant to be, arriving at a place decided by two people of free will making choices for themselves (and who is he to "second guess it" or "question it").   God doesn't decide for us -- we do; even though God sees everything, knows everything, long before we even show up and open our eyes.

Was it God's will for Trayvon to circle back around and pick a fight with Zimmerman?  Wouldn't it have been better for him to go on home?   Was it the best idea for Zimmerman to get out of his truck?  Wouldn't it have been better for him to wait for police to handle it?

The most absurd thing would be to believe that we are God's puppets on a string -- be these strings white or black or brown or yellow -- for God to use as his play toys.  For then, how could we ever explain God's random plane crash killing our loved ones -- the tornado, the hurricane, taking everything we own from us, or the child who died of cancer, or the infertility in our womb -- or from the other end of the spectrum, winning the lotto?

The funny thing is, we are all spirit expressing -- spiritual beings having a human experience, creating our world as we go along, whether we are believers in God, or not.   We fall prey sometimes to the actions and choices of others, while at the same time, being equally responsible for our own.   But then, there is something we call just dumb luck; and then again, something else we just call being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I've heard, and well believe, there are no accidents; things happen in this physical world that shake us, thrill us, nurture us, sustain us, and make us think.   Things happen to push mankind to think beyond ourselves --  pushing us to ask the tough questions, like, why am I here, what is my purpose, and just what does God want me to do with myself here on earth? Or perhaps, just stop to wonder about what are we to learn, and take away, for ourselves and our communities, in the wake of the Zimmerman trial?

God's Will gave humanity Free Will.

But Anthea -- associate professor of Religious Studies! -- the horror! -- to think, that you think, that...

"God ain't good all the time.  In fact, sometimes, God is not for us.  As a black woman  in a nation that has taken too many pains to remind me that I am not a white man, and am not capable of taking care of my reproductive rights, or my voting rights, I know that this American god ain’t my god.."

Oh my.  So sad.

As a black woman who studies religion for a living, my God, what happened to you?  GOD is always Good.   God is Love.   End of story.    But given this archaic and narrow minded and backwards blog of yours has been broadcasted for all the world to see, this girl can't help but wonder just what you say in the privacy of your lectures...but let's not dwell.

But just as a matter of clarity, not all women (whether black, white, or in all fifty states of grey) believe like you -- who, in this context,  seems to be forgetting that women are living in a world with the right to choose, and have so for the last forty years!

But if you want to go down that road, a woman's reproductive right does not necessarily translate to a culture that values human life, let alone a woman's body, in the general sense.  If being honest here, an era welcoming women's  "reproductive rights" coming to life has also created a world of unintended, negative, consequences, like...the growing rate of STD's, infertility, sexual abuse, the loss of traditional family values, just to name a few.  

Even though Free Will rules the day,  I think any God might look down upon us shaking his head with some concern  on this one, and wondering, just what in sam hill are we doing to ourselves.  But maybe that's just me.  In a manner of speaking, "God's will" would probably have none of this.

While for some women -- like myself -- believe a man has a right to enter the reproductive conversation, if the conception arrives following the gift of his sperm! [I know, how bizarre]  And if we go there, some of us may have a problem with anyone acting upon a "reproductive right" while fully expecting the bill to be handed over to the general public to pay!  The thing is, it's not just old white men who question the significance of life and liberty as it pertains to women's reproductive rights....and besides, every right comes with a corresponding duty, if not a fair amount of thought.

And voting rights?  Are you serious?   Do you remember how our founders came up with that plan?  It was all about giving the southern states less power to make the decision for us -- and possibly be forced to live with slavery forever!  That plan, counting black people as 3/5th's of a human being, was to make sure that the odds were stacked in favor of abolishing slavery for good!

You say,

"When the laws were never made for people who were considered, constitutionally, to be three-fifths of a person, I have to ask: Is this just? Is it right? Is God the old white male racist looking down from white heaven, ready to bless me if I just believe the white men like Rick Perry who say the Zimmerman case has nothing to do with race?"

Oh my, guess we could easily assume, Perry's signature on the latest reproductive rights law recently passed in the state of Texas has your panties in a wad, too.   Besides having some serious second-class citizen thing running through your veins, don't you think a woman has ample time to decide to abort her unborn fetus before the end of TWENTY weeks?  Does it really take longer than five months to figure that out?  And if in a position to have an abortion, wouldn't you want a reputable doctor, prepared for any health emergency when in the midst of taking care of such a procedure, by your side?  Is that really asking too much in the state of Texas, if not, beyond?

Don't you care about the welfare of women -- or is this just part of picking sides much in the same capacity as this black president picks the "loyalties of the black masses?"

And what's with the Left overlooking Zimmerman's Hispanic, Peruvian, heritage?  George's brother, Robert, even spoke secret messages to him in Spanish to keep his spirit's up, for goodness sake.

And how about the true history of Planned Parenthood?  But of course, as a learned woman, Anthea, you probably know all about this sordid, ugly, racist past in American history, no?  So we will just leave it at that.

But here's the associate professor's big finish, so hold on tight (and mine comes immediately ever after, oh joy):

"Those of us who teach American Religion have a responsibility to tell all of the story, not just the nice touchy-feely parts. When the good Christians of America are some of its biggest racists, one has to consider our moral responsibility to call out those who clearly are not for human flourishing, no matter what ethnicity a person is. Where are you on that scale? I know where I am."

Um.
yoo-who, heaven's to Betsy and to her best girl Anthea -- first off, "American Religion?"  You know, as a blogger I have a responsibility to tell all of the story -- of America -- and not just the touchy-feely parts, either.  When an associate professor of one of America's best universities "are [one of] the biggest racists [I've come across], one has to consider [the] moral responsibility to call out those who clearly are not for human flourishing, no matter what ethnicity a person is."  

Due to the origins of fighting a revolution for religious freedom and fleeing the Church of England, our founders recognized the beauty of Divine Providence as we deliberately chose to be a country under God, but totally free of labeling a specific religion.  It's such a beautiful thing, really.  There is no "American Religion" -- and that was decidedly done on purpose.

In America, we have a right to the free exercise thereof, of our religion, whatever it may be -- which means, we can speak up if a prospective, progressive policy or brand spanking new law is not in keeping with our religious beliefs.   As a member of the black community, you must recognize -- tying in an entirely new agenda -- that Gay Marriage is not always acceptable according to one's religious beliefs and family background; as a woman, you must also recognize that not all woman share your glorification of reproductive rights in the same manner. 

Honestly, if you take a moment to look around -- the old, worn-out story of the white man being at the center of all wrongs in America is getting...well... old.   With so much diversity going on in America, it's time we release the old stereotypes that history brings and usher in a new beginning.  Actually, to be a part of the solution, this righteous occasion demands that we -- meaning, you, I guess -- do.

And make no mistake, looking back at our history and our future ahead, the underpinnings of Christianity, of which you, Anthea, freely speak with such vitriol and rebuke, has selflessly funneled and fortified the generous financial footing for nearly every charity for the poor, the hungry, and the homeless for centuries --  and totally color blind in both directions, mind you.

Which reminds me -- you failed to mention all the work George Zimmerman did to help minority kids up to the night where fate led to a horrific outcome for both Trayvon and George. 

But all of it doesn't matter...

The media, the Left, people just like Anthea, wanted to portray Zimmerman as a "white Hispanic" AND a total racist for the sole purpose of making this case about race; and they succeeded.    Just listen to the conversations we are having these days...

All of this reminds me of one of my favorite bumper stickers:

White, Straight, Republican, Male -

 How Else Can I Piss You Off Today?

pretty good, huh.

And just look at me now; this has turned out to be a pretty long day.  Isn't it only fitting, considering how we began, and all  -- with white people getting a'talkin to by the president; and he's never short on words, is he.  We got a history lesson from a professor -- oooh, make that two.  It's a week where white people were essentially left to lick our wounds over "a history that doesn't go away" in the valley; it might as well be Death Valley, where temperatures have hit record highs.

Until we meet again,

"the funny thing

 about home improvement

-- it's contagious"

the not so funny thing, the opposite can leave us in ruins.
But here's the thing -- whether for home, community, country, all around the world -- no matter the color of our skin -- we always, always, always, get what we give.


Make it a Good Day, G


 

It's Not the Fence That Makes Us Good Neighbors Thing

Dear America,

if you know me, then you know it's been a quiet week of utter, simple -- and yet, for me, painfully disengaged -- absence.

...so on that note, allow me to interrupt the celebration out there and say something.

Just expecting the day to evolve, as they always do, out of one thing or another and turn into something...and just maybe, it will all be worthy of your time.

There is a Robert Frost poem that cites, "good fences make good neighbors."  In this light, the fence serves as a guard, keeping the riff-raff out and keeping the children safe; it serves as a barrier offering both sides of it equal protection under the law of this is yours and this is mine, respectfully.  It becomes the hard line between privacy and security from invasion and danger.  And just to be clear, both property and body have it.   It's like the difference between assault and assault and battery.

This week, the priest from the Heart of the Nation quoted this line of Frost's as he spoke of a passage from the Book of Luke -- specifically, The Parable of the Good Samaritan.

The passage reflects upon a question, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"  

And Jesus, basically responds to the question with a question, what does the law tell you? 

To which the Good Book records the lesson: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind," and, "Love your neighbor as yourself."

And Jesus says, "you have answered correctly...do this and you will live."

Leaving an opportunity for further probing and testing, Jesus was then asked, "And who is my neighbor?"  To which Jesus replied with a story:

“A man wwas going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a xpriest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise xa Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a ySamaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and zbound up his wounds, pouring on zoil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two adenarii1 and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”


At the end of reminding us of the way of The Good Samaritan, the priest rose his head and surmised to all within the sound of his voice, 'it's not the fence that makes us good neighbors...it's what is in our hearts...how we show mercy to one another.'

So go, and do likewise. 
Treat thy neighbor as thyself.

Breaking News Update: 

George Zimmerman

was found

NOT GUILTY

last night.

Passing upon the infinite similarities of the night watchman and the good Samaritan, let's return to what we know about that fateful night.   Trayvon Martin was out and about 'jumping fences' on a dark, drizzly night in Sanford, FL with Skittles in his pocket.  See more about that, here.

For a somewhat fair account following court testimony, allow me to direct you to a post from ABC's Dan Abrams to read, go here (July 1, 2013)   

[It's awfully frustrating for the media to cover this story, considering the side leaning politically and culturally correct aligns with the golden child. If perception is king, pulling for fundamental prosecution was, without a doubt, the only answer.    oh snap.   What will be a riot will be listening to the resolve and rationalization of a travesty for the ages, and undoubtedly leading up to the cry, fully supported by this media, for a second go-round in civil court. ugh.] 

George Zimmerman got his head bashed into the pavement with pictures and open wounds to prove it.   The seventeen year old young man, Trayvon -- whom the President at one time promoted the assumption "if I had a son, he'd look like Trayvon" [hmmm, but would he act like him, too? I think not...I would hope not]  -- was on top and beating the crap out of him.

And while we introduce the president -- because he, on his own, interfered with the process and mingled into the conversation right from the get-go -- let's take a moment for ethnicity clarification and it's ill-effects upon the law, and the outcome thereof [race protests].  The media, along with the supporters of Trayvon, made race of issue; and more than that, insisted on making the case white man vs. black boy. 

And thank you, Department of Justice, for picking a side of the fence, as well.  See here, for more about the Community Relations Service provided by the American taxpayer.  It's a fine line between offering mediation services and manipulating public opinion and painting a picture of innocence up against an overzealous, racist, night watchman on the loose, isn't it.  It's not only fine, it's a wee bit grey in the light of this day.

But let's get one thing straight:    Calling Zimmerman white is like calling Obama white. They are each half of one thing and half another. In Zimmerman's case, it's Peruvian.   But in the case of the United States of America, it serves the greater good better to refer to all of us as one thing, and one thing only -- American.  To serve the law synonymous with treating our neighbors as ourselves, race must be set aside; to live in community with one another, race must be set aside;  while even Martin Luther King called upon us to look upon our neighbor from a wider angle -- the content of our character, not the color of our skin. 

Remember, too, it was the 911 operator who asked, who probed, who wanted the details as to the ethnicity of Trayvon Martin; and it was the mainstream media who edited the tape to insinuate Zimmerman's actions were all about race.

Oh,  teacher, when will we ever learn?

So go, and do likewise.

Perhaps this will sound as an oversimplification of what just happened... but in the end, it was Zimmerman -- not Trayvon -- begging for mercy from his neighbor.  And it doesn't get any more complicated than that.   Trayvon could have stopped slamming the "creepy ass cracker's" head into the concrete at any time; while even his own prosecution team could not save Trayvon's family from a second blow to the heart.  The evidence was clearly not there; and what was there, was in doubt.
 
Even though, it must be said, the "Not Guilty" still amounts to the rest of Zimmerman's life sans freedom; life will never be the same; whatever life he can make for himself will be considered stolen from just a boy about to have Skittles and Watermelon Arizona Tea running through his veins.

The thing is, it's a tragedy no matter which way we look at it.  It just makes me cry for all of us.

Someone once told me, "it's not the fence that makes us good neighbors;"  it's about what is in our hearts, our minds, our soul... of a nation.   Our roots teach us everything we need to know -- whether it be about ourselves, our neighbor, our planet, or our faith in God and humanity.

Oh, Mercy, mercy, me...

We see evidence of it all the time -- in the every day, actually.

And one of these days, I hope we can all have an honest, open, loving conversation about everything under heaven.  Until then, let this be a lesson for all of us.

Make it a Good Day, G

It's Just a Cream Filled Treat the Whole Day Through Thing

Dear America,

okay g, it's just like riding a bike.

don the pink helmet and just go with it...
run with free abandon on whatever comes to mind.


Living "on the verge of a civil war" in Egypt?  Not.   (Besides, it's been in a civil war for a couple of years now -- but more important, where can I get me a pair of those rose-colored glasses?)

Syria?  No way; that is one hot mess. 

Our president -- who is presently mulling over pulling the troops out of Afghanistan,  more sooner than later?  Between the no will to win, no strategy beyond an empty threat that comes complete with a surge and ends with mixed signals, low moral, a PR nightmare, and a lead-from-behind Commander-in-Chief leading the way -- hell no, we won't go there today.  The eyes are burning crimson red just thinking about it.

The Asiana plane crash with a pilot in training -- having 43 hours behind the joystick of the Boeing 777,  with this being his ninth trip, but his first flying into San Francisco on this type of plane?

Or perhaps we get into the loss of the nineteen "hot shot" firemen in Arizona? 

As worthy of my time these events may be, I just don't have it in me.   Tragedy that keeps coming at us in shock waves demands our full attention immediately and respectfully and with everything we've got.   And being a girl who recognizes her limits respective  of the emotional whirlwind that is her life these days, THIS is NOT that day.  So let us pray for these families and continue venturing into a topic that sticks...

The wavering immigration bill on perpetual stand by in the congressional wings; or how about the disintegration of Obamacare right before our eyes?  Oh what's the point.   What does it matter, right?  What congress sells to the American people as the "end all" legislation to illegal immigration, never seems to be an "end all,"  now does it?  Things that get written into law -- be it dealing with new immigration law, or health care  -- fail to stick, fail to fix, fail to end the conflict, or simply fail to address and answer the unintended consequences all the time.  Besides explaining just how much a bigger government does not equate to better, smarter -- THIS, too, is not where we will settle and dwell in this new day.  But it does provide the segway into an idea with some long, lean legs with a free enterprising fire in the veins.


So -- after wandering the world -- we suddenly find ourselves at the hot topic on the day.

It's a story of perspective, really; nothing  more, nothing less.  But more often than not, it never fails at achieving the perfect balance, striking the right cord, bringing to life the virtues (and calamities) of cause and effect.  Effort and hard work (and maybe a little dumb luck) -- against the odds, liabilities and risk -- aim to prevail in the pursuit of happiness.

It's a civil war as old as time itself.

May I first point you in the direction of a perspective missing the point entirely.  In a stunning, whining appeal to loathe the 1% and then some, read Rex Nutting's  (MarketWatch)  Who Killed the American Dream.

Let's just skip to the chase and get to Nutting's conclusions, shall we?

Bivens and Mishel's research further shows that the horrendous widening of equality in America isn't the result of benign and impersonal market forces, but of conscious policy decisions -- for instance, lower tax rates and reduced bargaining power for workers -- that increased the ability of a few to capture almost all the benefits of the economy's growth over the past 30 years.

Ultimately, the next generation at the top will be the friends, neighbors, classmates and children of the current crop.

The country that once boasted of equal opportunities has re-created a self-perpetuating aristocracy. And that's not the America I dream of.

Is this really a fair deduction, Rex?  "conscious policy decisions...that increased the ability of a few to capture almost all the benefits of the economy's growth over the past 30 years?"  Seriously?

"A few"; "all the benefits";

give me a f&*((& break.

The next generation at the top will amount to the frills of friends with benefits and nepotism running amuck?  Oh really?

"The country that once

boasted

of equal opportunities

has re-created

a self-perpetuating aristocracy?"

And you are a guy who writes for Market Watch, a fully integrated and connected business news network focusing on the business of understanding the free market, the stock market, from the corporate office to the mom and pop market?  wow.

America has made business large and small the mainframe and source of providing the greatest abundance on the planet.  Corporate America provides opportunity and jobs and a future that otherwise would not be there, if not for the initial risk and investment.

And now -- to another eye opening perspective.

Let's apply the learning curve of just one story happening in corporate America today in order to complete the equal opportunity, not equal outcome, guarantee.

Cue the Twinkies.

But behind the return of the familiar cream-filled sponge cake is a leaner operation, free of the union contracts and the $1.3 billion in debt that saddled the brand's previous owners. With that clean slate, the new owner and chief executive, C. Dean Metropoulos, plans to launch an ambitious growth plan and avoid the problems that led to two Chapter 11 bankruptcies, the last of which ended in liquidation...

A bankruptcy judge in March granted Hostess permission to sell most of its snack cake brands to Mr. Metropoulos's private-equity firm, Metropoulos & Co., and Apollo Global Management LLC, APO +2.25%for $410 million, following liquidation proceedings that began in November. The two firms wouldn't disclose their ownership stakes in the new Hostess, which also cranks out snacks including CupCakes, Ho Hos, Ding Dongs, Zingers, Suzy Qs and Sno Balls.

hmmm.
a private equity firm gets the opportunity to buy a company losing semi-truck-loads of money...
they get to buy it for a whopping $410 MILLION dollars...and, if you read on, get to put hundreds of millions more into it in order to make it profitable, operationally sound after operating in the red for so long.  Julie Jargon does a fabulous job spelling it all out in black and white and read all over.

In addition to the 50 million Twinkies that will be shipped to 100,000 stores in the first two weeks of the launch, Hostess has gotten orders for nearly 40 million Hostess CupCakes and 6 million bags of Donettes, which are small donuts. The four bakeries are running two shifts a day, seven days a week to fulfill the orders.

I don't know about you, but little old G here wouldn't know where to begin in making 50 million Twinkies.  I'm more of a pie maker, myself; but honestly -- getting 50 million Twinkies made and to market seems a daunting task; at first blush thinking outside the box,  my eyes would explode, my legs would buckle, and I would be on the floor sucking Chianti from a straw with no problem passing on this "equal opportunity."   Not.   No way.   Not in this lifetime.

This is why America works, and how it works for us, in ways we seem totally oblivious, according to Rex Nutting.  According  to Rex --   C. Dean Metropoulos -- Metropoulos & Co. -- (wonder how many sons and daughters and cousins are involved...) is simply a greedy bastard.

Oh Never you mind --  in reality --

The 67-year-old Mr. Metropoulos has been involved in 78 consumer acquisitions in the last 25 years, including Pabst Brewing Co. in 2011. A spokeswoman said his deals' average return on investment exceeds 44%.

The old company also was weighed down by debt, preventing it from investing in its 11 plants, all the while rivals operated more automated, efficient bakeries.

The owners purchased four of those plants and are investing $100 million to upgrade them. They plan to spend another $75 million to $80 million to open a fifth plant next year.

The debt and hefty pension obligations that the old Hostess faced also prevented it from investing in product innovation or marketing. Consumers seeking healthier products abandoned Twinkies, while those who still wanted indulgent treats grew bored of the same old assortment.

 Which, by the way --

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters declined to comment. The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco and Grain Millers International Union didn't respond to requests for comment.

[of course they did.]

Rex -- who killed the American Dream?  Apparently, all signs point to you.  Here's some news, with accompanying perspective,  you could use:

We are what we make, bake, bundle and gobble in more ways than one.

Make it a Good Day, G

It's a Day to Cruz Thing

Dear America,

this day could not be any easier.

all you need to do is read the latest Imprimis from Hillsdale College featuring words of wisdom from U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (my conservative heart throb on the day)...

The Miracle of Freedom is adapted from the Commencement he gave at Hillsdale, May 11, 2013. 

Why, pray tell?

It's wonderful.

It's Tuesday and two days before we celebrate our Independence Day!

It's a day to elevate the truth of who we are and what it all means.

So little old G is just gonna get out of your way and lead you right to it, right here, right now.

Make it a Good Day, G

I know...
me neither...
can't even believe this is it...
shortest blog on the day on record and you were here.
  

It's a Friendly Redress of Thy Grievances Thing

Dear America,

first, some quick housekeeping:

Even though my  upon my last post, I blurted out the old Gthing was back... 
It's also summer.

I will be keeping different hours on the day job, on different days, and with my girl out of school and places to go and things to do....the foggy bottom line is, plan on me being a wee bit intermittent; or maybe we should just call it unpredictable...a lady of mystery, perhaps.  Whatever gets you through my lamebrain rationale, I promise to give you my very best no matter how haphazard this thing appears to be by the naked eye. 

And have no fear, it will be good, too.

And now,
to two things revolving around one subject.  And trust me,  this will be short and sweet.

Did you hear?

The atheists unveiled a monument (and versatile bench!) to protest the religious statement insinuated by the marble slab that reveals the Ten Commandments, in front of the Bradford County Courthouse (Florida). 

See it for yourself - - checking any religious baggage at home -- right here.

I marvel at this, really.  What a splendid idea!

Now, instead of tormenting those of us who believe, we can just give them space for a bench -- be it in cement, marble, or pine -- and give them their own reason to coexist with the rest of us, peacefully. 

The thing is -- I've been screaming for an Atheist monument for years!

This is a perfect resolution for everyone; instead of being allowed to protest our God, and demand our monuments come down for the sake of "church and state", give the Atheists room to sit in peace alongside us and shut up.  marvelous.  absolutely marvelous.

[I would re-think the whole going nuclear, atom bombing of the letter A, but whatever...]

Needless to say, all legal suits on the docket across America should be handled accordingly.

Next.

Moving on to another part of the country and something from The Daily Caller... 

"Parents angry

because religion

may get mentioned

in optional

summer Constitution

  class [VIDEO]"

seriously?

So on first blush, the class is optional, folks.  If you don't likey God, or want to talk about religion and the truth surrounding how conscientious our founding fathers were back in the day about God, Divine Providence, and the people's unalienable rights divined by our Creator, Nature's God -- then perhaps this class is not for you.

The Constitution outlines everyone's rights and duties accordingly --  in a spirit of understanding commiserating with the outcome of the Constitutional Conventions, respective of the immense duty of arriving at a form of government of the people, for the people.

These people  -- these people -- came to America to celebrate their religious freedom and ultimately, their freedom from "taxation without representation" from Great Britain (ruled by the Church of England).    The people were faithful, religious, and loved their God; these people worshiped God in every way.  

How can you not teach about the Constitution and this nation's founding without mentioning the Divine Influence upon which it stands?  

Are you kidding me?

And who says we must believe in something wholeheartedly in order to be taught about that certain something?   Do I need to be a believer in global warming to read about what some scientists believe to be their truth about something I find totally absurd?   Does a student need to be a communist to read about the horrific hand and psychopathic head of Hitler?

But I digress; these parents have an option not to let their student go. 

And understand this -- just about everything David Barton has produced is touched by and for the hand of God, deeply believing in the teachings of Christianity, and recognizing every virtue and value this nation finds essential is directly linked to the Almighty;  every inch of his website exudes this compassion and confidence; this class should NOT come as a surprise to anyone.

Clearly, for some parents and their children, this class is not for you (or just maybe, it was MADE for you...aw, whatever...their is a double entendre there somewhere, but no time to explain.)

Amendment I:

CONGRESS shall make no law

respecting an establishment of religion,

or PROHIBITING

THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF;

or abridging the

freedom of SPEECH,

or of the press;

or the right of the people

 peacefully ASSEMBLE,

and to petition  the government

for a redress of grievances.

so there.

God is working from within, on the side of God, every single day in America.

It's a spirit of understanding unimaginable and brilliant and bold and beautiful...and unwavering (and comes in all kinds of colors, and packaging, and flavors, too).

Make it a Good Day, G