Steeley Dan and Donald Fagan came to mind the other day. One of my favorite songs by Steeley Dan was "I.G.Y.". Its thirty years old but, its still a great song full of optimisim and hope for the future. The chorus goes:

"What a beautiful world this would be"
"What a glorious time to be free"

I look at the world today and, it seems that things are different now.

Dick Gephardt: Gone.
Tom Daschle: Gone.
George W. Bush: Re-Elected
Terry McAuliffe: Gone

To add icing on the cake I learned that Kweisi Mfume is leaving the NAACP. To his credit, he rescued the organization and got it out of debt using corporate style tactics and management skills to make it solvent. However, it would seem that the NAACP these days is nothing more than part of the Democratic coalition. Instead of fighting for things that a majority of blacks want like school vouchers and faith based programs, they instead oppose anything the GOP proposes even if it benefits the very people they say they are fighting for.

Now if Julian Bond would leave and fade into the sunset or, into the sun that would be even better.

Anyway for now, I"ll take what I can get. Sing with me!

"What a beautiful world this would be"
"What a glorious time to be free"

Well, after three days, the jury has recommended the death penalty for Scott Peterson. There will be an automatic appeal of course. The judge may set aside the verdict and go for life anyway. I think Scott is guilty but, I don't think the prosecution proved their case either.

George W. Bush is Time Magazines Person of the Year! What more is there to say!

This may be an old, tired issue but it keeps coming up.

Why is it that if a black person decides to be a Republican, they have somehow sold out their race or some other ignorant phrase the Civil Rights Industry decides to use to depict any conservative of color.

Recently my cousin and brother have been debating issues and it came up that Condoleezza Rice had advocated racial preferences for college admission but had not done enough for civil rights. I ask what do prosperous and successful people of color *need to do* for black people? What obligates anyone to do anything?

People need their souls saved. I am not a preacher nor do I want to be. Its not a gift I have, so, I will not be saving any souls today.

Conversely, Condoleezza is doing what she is destined to do, be the most powerful woman in America and an example that while it is harder for people of color to achieve than it is for white people, success is possible. For me anyway, all I need to know is that its possible. I can handle the rest.

Why should Condoleezza Rice, or any other successful black who is not a Democrat activist for that matter, try to go and talk to people who don't want to hear anything she has to say? She has been lambasted and insulted by the very people she is supposed to be helping. What cracks me up is that this is happening for no other reason than the fact that she is not a Democrat nor an activist.

Why should George Bush come and speak to the NAACP after Julian Bond made that ignorant move (yes I said he was ignorant and I stand by that assessment) and allowed the airing of that commercial saying that George W. Bush wanted to block the hate crimes legislation in Texas and getting the functionally illiterate daughter of James Byrd Junior to do it? Damn that was ignorant. All it did was scare people even more ignorant who will believe anything that comes out of his mouth. Ten minutes on Google would reveal why that legislation didn't pass. Personally I think its unnecessary. Murder is already illegal in this country and, two death sentences and life in prison without parole is what I would call justice.

I digress.

Sarcastically, I thought that Democrats were the most accepting of differing views of any people who have ever lived at any time on any planet in any solar system in any galaxy in any universe on any plane of reality. I suppose this is true if you are Mapplethorpe but not if you are a black conservative right?

When I hear things about Condoleezza Rice from the Civil Rights Industry, its almost always around ideology. Even though there are plenty of policy questions and blunders she can be criticized for, for them, it always gets back to the fact that she has conservative views. Ditto for Colon Powell. I have heard that to say that the Civil Rights Industry, which includes the NAACP, is another wing of the Democratic Party is wrong and what people are told to say by Rush Limbaugh and other conservative talk-show hosts.

Ok. I agree with the talk-show hosts. It is.

I would challenge the NAACP to support a single Republican candidate for any office or, any idea put forth by a Republican. If they really wanted to advance the cause of black people, they would take a little more balanced view don't you think? There are ideas, like school vouchers, that are Republican ideas that really could benefit black people.

Another thing I hear is that the Bush Administration has done nothing for black people. This is not true. Sarcastically Puff Daddy (P. Diddy) had his taxes lowered so he can buy more cars and jewelry and bling like never before. Let me ask this: Why does someone have to *give* you something in order to considered good for a people or race? Now, let me figure this out, lowering taxes does not benefit people of color, only white people had their taxes lowered right? Ignorant.

Condoleezza is neither stupid or ignorant. Did anyone every think that perhaps she has good reason to believe what she does?

I recalled an episode of the Larry Elder Show. This episode was the "Lets Bash Larry" episode where he had his detractors on. This one man, using very bad English referred to "The Struggle"

I listened closely because I had heard this term used many times before. I wanted a definition of "The Struggle".

From what I was able to figure out, he was talking about how hard his life has been and the challenges he faces on a daily basis because he is black. I wonder however, if this is the only thing.

I would like to offer up another view of what "The Struggle" really is.

The real struggle, is what happens when you are uneducated, uncouth and lacking proper diction,  White people, actually, people of any race can "Struggle" if they don't have an education. Come on now, haven't you laughed at the Beverly Hillbillies or anything with Jeff Foxworthy? Have you walked through a mobile home park?

If you are white, lacking an education and proper English you may also find yourself in a white ghetto, not being able to get a job, hanging out on the streets and committing petty crime to get by. It happens daily, it is happening everywhere.

We no longer live in an age where someone with an eighth grade education can go out and support a family of four. That"s the way it is. Period. Basically, I don't care what color you are, if you are uneducated, you will fail and "Struggle".