John McCain Might be challenged by a Tea Bag Supporter, JD Hayworth

Over the weekend I read an article that said John McCain might have to run against a member of the Tea bag movement. In a hypothetical Rasmussen poll John McCain has 45% support compared to former Congressman, conservative radio talk show host J.D. Hayworth’s 43%. Two per cent separates the two. “On his radio show Friday, Hayworth discussed the results of the Rasmussen poll at length. Hayworth said discussions with his immediate family are “more than a topic of casual conversation.” He indicated a desire to run, saying that he is in the “due diligence” phase and that the primary roadblock would be fundraising, specifically to pay off some debt.” Hayworth is a beneficiary of the 2008 election and he has mastered the mobs. He has successfully tapped into the anger that the McCain/Palin ticket unleashed. They waged an us against them campaign. In that case the them was President Obama and his supporters, but now in a twist McCain is seen as part of the them. Prior to the election McCain was viewed as a moderate Republican who would reach across the aisle to get results, but this crowd is hardline. Their motto seems to be our way or the highway. There is no longer any room for statesmen who have the word compromise in their vocabulary. Last November an angry monster was released. They tapped into visceral anger, but they thought they could control it. What John McCain did not know then was that he too might be eaten by the monster he helped create.

Unemployment is only Important When You are Unemployed

A wise Latina boss once told me to never say you did not do something because you were too busy. He said when something becomes a priority you will make time for it. For Congress the unemployment situation in this country is simply not a priority.  Sadly, unemployment has not been a priority to President Obama. He has been preoccupied with his signature issue: healthcare. All of the people who should be talking and doing something about unemployment all have a job. So they might devote some lip service to the issue it is not crucial. Last week we saw Congressmen grandstanding as they chastised the Treasury Secretary, but that was something done for dramatic effect. After the camera lights faded they went on to business as usual. It was entirely inconsequential. The members of Congress are not part of the 1 out of 10 Americans looking for non-existent jobs.  Next year we will get the opportunity to make some of them see what unemployment really feels like.

Did Lee Daniels Insult the Star of ‘Precious’?

 While watching Oprah Winfrey on Friday I was struck by something she said to the star of ‘Precious”, Gabourey Sidibe. Oprah quoting Precious director Lee Daniels said “Gabby speaks like a white girl from the Valley and is so confident that she is either in denial about her physicality or from another planet.” This is insulting on two levels. It is outrageous that Daniels would say it, and it is astounding that Winfrey would repeat it. Sidibe is an obese woman, but the fact that she is confidant in her own skin is not delusional. It is inspiring. Newsflash: not every big woman is a shame of herself. Some obese people actually like themselves. They do not look in the mirror and see someone else like the character Precious did in the movie. They look in the mirror and they like what they see. I might give Lee Daniels a pass on this one, but Winfrey who has struggled with self acceptance should know better. Sidibe has obviously come to love herself. She said she started dieting when she was six years old. In her twenties she finally found self acceptance and she said “One day I had to sit down with myself and decide that I loved myself no matter what my body looked like and what other people thought about my body.” Amen to that.

To Compare ‘Precious’ to ‘Birth of a Nation’ is Ridiculous

Over the past few weeks I have read many reviews of the movie Precious. Most if not all have been complimentary, but then there was Armond White of the New York Press. He wrote a scathing review that compared Precious to the infamous 1915 drama Birth of a Nation. That is quite the comparison. I saw Birth of a Nation in college and if featured unflattering portrayals of black people with the roles being played by white people in blackface. White said “not since The Birth of a Nation has a mainstream movie demeaned the idea of black American life as much as Precious. Full of brazenly racist clichés (Precious steals and eats an entire bucket of fried chicken), it is a sociological horror show. Offering racist hysteria masquerading as social sensitivity, it’s been acclaimed on the international festival circuit that usually disdains movies about black Americans as somehow inartistic and unworthy.” Precious does not demean the black experience in reality it embraces a part of the black experience that we don’t see. It exists but it is not only invisible to the mainstream it is also invisible to large segments of the black community. The real truth is we don’t want to see it. it is far too raw and too painful for most of us to deal with. Precious removes the veil and we are forced to look at some raw truths. It is ironic that the title character is over 300 pounds and she seeks to blend in. She does not want to be seen, but her size makes that dream impossible. We see a person, a child  struggling in an existence that most would find futile. Her struggle is reminiscent of the mythological character Sisyphus. His task was to push a huge rock up a hill with the full knowledge that it would come down again, and he would have to repeat the process. That is the life that Precious had a 24 hours of struggle with the promise of 24 more the following day. Sometimes when you don’t see something you can choose to believe it simply does not exist, but sometimes you are brought face to face with some truths that you do not want to accept. Sometimes you attach some insidious logic to why this truth is exposed. The purpose of Birth of a Nation was to instill fear in the majority. The images were designed to affirm the fear that black power spelled the end to life as they knew it. Precious had no such agenda. Precious is the story of a girl who lived a horrible life and then one day a light came into it, it was not a bright light but it was just enough to give Precious a glimmer of hope and that is what this girl yearned for.

I encourage you to read another insightful post written by Gail on Precious and The Blind Side: http://gaj1206.wordpress.com/

Finally saw “Precious”, and it Lived Up to the Hype

 For the past few weeks I have heard nothing but praise for the movie Precious. I thought I would have gotten to see it on November 6th, but my city was not one of the selected cities. So I waited patiently and today I got the opportunity to see it. Precious is an intense drama that frankly discusses issues that we generally only discuss in whispered tones. By now most people know the premise that precious is physically and sexually abused by her mother and her father. Words can not adequately express the pain inflicted on Precious. Precious was such a broken individual she spent time yearning for her fantasy life while at the same time living a heartbreakingly broken life. At one point the character wishes she were dead and at that moment I wanted to give her the bullets. The movie is full of outstanding performances that are so riveting that you feel uncomfortable at times watching the raw emotions. I heard Oprah doing a promotion for the movie and she said we all are Precious, but after seeing the movie I can say we are not. Precious went through personal horrors that most of us will never have to endure, but she managed to come out on the other side. This film does not tie up all loose ends with a big bow, but you leave the movie believing there is still hope for her, and sometimes hope is all you have.

Jesse Jackson Says to Artur Davis “You Can’t Call Yourself a Black Man and Vote against Healthcare”

 In his effort to stay relevant Jesse Jackson has thrown out the race card in the healthcare debate. Jackson said “We even have blacks voting against the healthcare bill from Alabama.” “You can’t vote against healthcare and call yourself a black man.” Jackson called Artur Davis out because Davis cast a no vote against the bill. Jackson said he did not call anyone by name, but Davis is the only black member of Congress from Alabama, and he is the only member of the Congressional Black Caucus to have voted against the healthcare bill. Jackson made these remarks at a reception commemorating the 25th anniversary of his run for the presidency. Davis has elected to take the high road he said “One of the reasons that I like and admire Rev. Jesse Jackson is that 21 years ago he inspired the idea that a black politician would not be judged simply as a black leader,”. The best way to honor Rev. Jackson’s legacy is to decline to engage in an argument with him that begins and ends with race.” Jackson represents the old school thinking that all black people must speak in one voice, and in 2009 that simply is not the case. Davis is eyeing the governor’s office in his home state and his views are more centrist. It is unfair to question his black credentials because he votes independent of the Caucus which incidentally has not supported him. Lastly let us not forget that Jackson the ultimate black man said of our president last year that he wanted to “cut his balls off.” So I don’t think Jackson is in the position to question anyone’s allegiance.

Oprah Calling it Quits in 2011

Today Oprah will launch the long goodbye. She knows how to put on a show. I have been watching her from her first days in Chicago. Oprah made us love her because she made us think we knew her. She made us think she was one of us and she understood our struggles, but over the years we still took pride in her incredible success, but we knew she was different. Oprah started to change and her show and her choice of guests showed she was a different Oprah with an entirely different world view. For me she was no longer must see television. Now I occasionally watch her, but to me Oprah has been moving away from her core audience for years. So I’m sure people will be flooding the website and the Harpo phones trying to get a ticket to the show before it is over, but it was over for me a long time ago.

What Would Justify a Father Killing His Own Son?

A Michigan dad killed his 15 year old son after his son confessed to molesting a 3 year old girl. The father made his son strip and he marched him to a vacant lot and shot him as the boy’s mother screamed for mercy. We are left to ask why? How could a father kill his own son? Did he snap or what? What we do know is this is a sad example of domestic violence that plagues the black community. What we do know is the father had access to a gun and he used it on his son. What we do know is the son is dead and the father will probably die in prison. We know we are witnessing a tragedy and that no one wins.

The Radical Right and their Perversion of Psalms 109

The radical right wing of the Republican Party continues its Holy War against the president. They are currently selling merchandise that says Pray for Obama  with a scriptural reference Psalms 109:8-9 which reads: Let his days be few; and let another take his office. Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow. There is nothing like the perversion of prayer and that is what this is. There is nothing Christ- like about this prayer, and it might fall within the perview of the Secret Service. I pray that none of these zealots  try to fulfill the scripture for the good of the nation.

The Media Can Not Destroy Sarah Palin, but if they Are Not Careful They Will Turn Her into a Martyr

 Sarah Palin appeared on Oprah yesterday and she whined about how Katie Couric had an agenda when she interviewed her last year. Palin believes Couric’s mission was to make her look like an idiot. If that was the mission Couric was successful, but sadly I now believe Palin might have a point. I did not put much credence in anything Palin says until today. Today my Newsweek arrived in the mail. I had seen the cover and I found it offensive, but when I read the text I was completely infuriated. It reads, “How Do You Solve a Problem Like Sarah?’’ the subhead reads “She’s Bad News for the GOP and for Everybody Else, Too.” If you do not read one article in the entire magazine you already know where they stand. I am not naïve so I know every magazine has its own slant, but give me a break. I am fairly liberal, but this is truly piling it on. I was listening to MSNBC Morning Meeting today and I heard one of the guests actually say it was Palin’s fault for posing for the photo. He said if she had not posed they would not have had the picture. What? The woman posed for Runner’s Magazine and her attire was entirely appropriate, but to put that photo on Newsweek is simply just dirty politics. As a woman I have to defend Palin. We are ideological opposites, but this should anger all women. I think Palin has a lot to learn on policy issues if she wants to be taken seriously, and I think she takes cheap shots at the president, and I do not think Facebook is the proper venue to comment on policy or to spread fear with terms like “death panels”, but that aside today I have to agree with her when she talks about the mainstream media. This woman can’t simply be dismissed or destroyed. She does have to be dealt with but, not like this.