Today I read two very heartbreaking stories. The first one was about the Rutgers student Tyler Clementi who jumped off the George Washington bridge when he found out his roommate had posted his gay sexual encounter online, and the other story was about Seth Walsh the 13 year old California boy who hung himself after he was the target of taunts from classmates. “Tehachapi California Police Chief Jeff Kermode says investigators interviewed some of the teenagers who allegedly taunted Seth for being gay and concluded no crime was committed” . No crime was committed, but that does not negate the damage that was done. So what have we become? Clementi was the victim of a vicious stunt allegedly perpetrated by his roommate, and Thomas was simply tired of being bullied. Two young people on two separate coasts chose death over life. The police say his Walsh’s classmates broke down when they were interviewed about the taunting, but it is too late. Two young people are dead. Some will say they took their own lives that is on them, but what did we as a society do to protect them?
politics from the eyes of an ebony mom
political perspectives from Joni Hudson-Reynolds, an African-American Mom
Posted in September 2010 …
Please Tell me Where did CBS Survivor Finda NaOnka?
We all know reality television has nothing to do with reality. The loudest in the crowd tend to get more air time. This brings me to the latest cartoon like character–NaOnka. She is a contestant on the CBS show Survivor. Last night she and another candidate were fighting and I mean real tousling over a clue to a hidden immunity idol. The person she was battling with has one leg and that is not the issue. The contestant with the prothesis is a viable and formidable contestant, but NaOnka’s speech after retrieving the clue was over the top. She said she didn’t care if she had one leg, she threatened to hide it or even burn it. NaOnka said she didn’t go “ghetto” on the girl she went “hood” on her. To say it was not enough. NaOnka had to do an imitation of both for the audience. Where do they find these people? Does the producer go out scouting them? Survivor is infamous for finding these polarizing stereotypes and it just seems a tad bit contrived to me.
Rutgers Student commits Suicide after His Sexual Tryst Appears Online
Rutgers freshman Tyler Clementi was so upset when he found out his roommate Dhrun Ravi had posted his gay sex tryst online that he jumped off the George Washington bridge to his death. Ravi and Molly Wei have been charged with privacy violations. Ravi used his Twitter to tell people that his roommate had asked for privacy and he went to Wei’s room to stream the sexual encounter. So why would Ravi do this to his roommate? He probably thought it was funny, but it wasn’t . People see and post so many things on line I believe it actually distorts their reality. This stunt gone wrong is why Clementi took his own life, but in an ironic twist Clementi posted on his Facebook page that he was going to be jumping off the GW bridge. I guess he felt the need to update his status. For more on this story: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2010/09/29/2010-09-29_rutgers_freshmen_busted_for_spying_on_fellow_students_online_sex_session_officia.html#ixzz110qfNVlZ
Chicago Woman Shoots 12 year old boy…justified?
An elderly woman simply had enough. A 12 year old boy and his friends had set her garbage can on fire, thrown bricks threw her window and she finally was at the end of her rope. Other neighbors said the same boys had committed other acts of vandalism. The elderly woman shot the 12 year old in the arm. The police did not charge her. Is this a case of youth gone wild? Was she justified or could this have been settled another way? Tell me what you think.
Why did Fox News Say the President loves Gangsta Rap?
The president recently sat down with Rolling Stone magazine and he was asked what music did he have on his IPOD. Here is his response: ”My iPod now has about 2,000 songs, and it is a source of great pleasure to me. I am probably still more heavily weighted toward the music of my childhood than I am the new stuff. There’s still a lot of Stevie Wonder, a lot of Bob Dylan, a lot of Rolling Stones, a lot of R&B, a lot of Miles Davis and John Coltrane. Those are the old standards. A lot of classical music. I’m not a big opera buff in terms of going to opera, but there are days where Maria Callas is exactly what I need. Thanks to Reggie [Love, the president's personal aide], my rap palate has greatly improved. Jay-Z used to be sort of what predominated, but now I’ve got a little Nas and a little Lil Wayne and some other stuff, but I would not claim to be an expert. Malia and Sasha are now getting old enough to where they start hipping me to things. Music is still a great source of joy and occasional solace in the midst of what can be some difficult days.” So how did Fox News distill this information for their website? With the following headline: President of the United States Loves Gangsta Rap. Just another attempt to portray the president as scary. He named alot of different artists but they zeroed in on rap. They have since pulled this image off the website.
Bishop Long Says This is “Spiritual Warfare”
It is ironic that Bishop Long addressed his congregation last night and told them this thing is bigger than him. He declared this to be “spiritual warfare”. At almost the same time one of his alleged victims Jamal Parris was making his first statement regarding the lawsuit. As you watch Long’s congregation you can see their enthusiasm for their leader has not waned. The reality is the congregation is the real audience that Long has to convince that he is innocent. Long has been the subject of thousands of blog posts, newspaper articles and television stories, but he has to keep the people who attend on Tuesday nights happy. Yesterday one of my frequent commenters sent me a link to an article written by Christopher Hitchens entitled God’s Big Mouths. Hitchens lambasted Long and others but the irony is Hitchens is an atheist. Why would he be charged with writing an article on the subject. He’s writing it because it’s a hot story, but it does not really matter. We are merely observers. We can’t stop looking at it, but the members are the real participants and they are the ones that have to believe. If they don’t continue to believe there will be no New Birth.
NFL Player Nick Collins threw his mouthguard at rowdy fan…was he justified?
Some fans seemingly think the cost of a ticket gives them the right to do or say anything. Monday Night Football featured the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers. After the game was over Packer Nick collins was leaving the stadium when a fan allegedly called him the n-word. Collins reacted by throwing his mouthguard at the rowdy fan. Collins has since apologized, but my question is was he right to react? Should he have just walked away? Tell me what you think.
Jamal Parris one of Bishop Long’s Accusers Speaks Out
Bishop Eddie Long made his statement on Sunday. He said he would fight the allegations but he did not say he did not do what was alleged. Fox News Atlanta spoke to one of his accusers, Jamal Parris and he spoke about the relationship. While watching him you could not help but feel the pain. He is just the first one to speak out. Follow the link to see the interview: http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.myfoxatlanta.com%2Fdpp%2Fnews%2Fiteam%2Fbishop-eddie-long-accuser-talks-jamal-parris-20100928-es&h=3e63f
